http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hindu_and_Buddhist_heritage_of_Pakistan

Pakistan's Buddhist Gandhara heritage

Gandhara – the pinnacle of Buddhist Civilization at the time Venerable Mahinda's father, Emperor Ashoka, ruled a greater part of the Indian sub-continent – Arahat Mahinda poplular buddist guru in sri lanka is from Gandhara that Buddhism spread to Sri Lanka and other Asian countries during Ashoka's reign.

The name Gandhara is virtually synonymous with Buddhist art and culture throughout the world.

Although there is hardly any Buddhists or Buddhist clergy in Pakistan today but it is a land blessed with the world's vast cultural treasures linked to the glorious Gandhara Civilization that flourished in the country's northwestern areas. It was here that a sculptural representation of the Buddha first emerged during the rule of Indo-Greek kings who finally embraced Buddhism. The statues - inspired by Greco-Roman art – became an inspiration for Buddhist art in Sri Lanka and other Asian Buddhist countries. Buddhist monks and scholars who traveled to Central Asia, China, Korea and Japan introduced Gandhara Art to those countries.

Gandhara is an insight into the richness of the ancient civilization that remained the cradle of culture and seat of learning and legacy of the ancient world. Most of ancient India's basic philosophy, science, physics, mathematics, medicine, and grammar originated from this region where most famous specimen is the Taxila University. Named after the city where it is located, this university, the world's oldest seat of higher learning having been in existence even before the time of the Buddha and even before the Achaemanid rulers who occupied the Taxila valley in 6th- 5th century B.C. Taxila (or Takshasila), which came under the UNESCO's World Heritage List in 1980, figures prominently in Buddhist literature. The city flourished from fourth millennium B.C to the 6th Century A.D.

During Emperor Asoka's reign, the network of Buddhist monastic institutions expanded throughout the Mauryan Empire and in Sri Lanka, Kashmir, Gandhara, and the Swat Valley. Archaeological remains of stupas and monasteries established during the Mauryan period show that Buddhist centers in these regions functioned as bases for the transmission of Buddhism to Southeast Asia and Central Asia.

One of the world's best collections of Gandhara art, including statues of the Buddha and bodhisattvas are housed in the Peshawar Museum.

Beside Buddhism, many sacred historical places of other religions particularly Sikhism are also present in Pakistan at Hassanabdal, just 15 kms away from Taxila.

In the words of the Nepalese Buddhist Monk, Venerable Lama Mama, "Pakistan is like an ocean rich in Buddhist treasure." (Reloaded Gandhara – 2008)

- Asian Tribune -