Hinduism in Afghanistan

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Afghan Hindus
افغان هندوان
هندوس افغانی
Hindu king statue in Kabul Museum, Afghanistan
Hindu king statue in Kabul Museum, Afghanistan
Total population
50 in Afghanistan[1]
Larger diaspora in India, Germany, United States, United Kingdom, and Canada
Regions with significant populations
Jalalabad, Kabul
Religions
Hinduism[2]
Languages
Pashto, Hindko, Punjabi, Dari, Sindhi, and Hindustani (Urdu-Hindi

Part of a series of articles on
Religion in Afghanistan
Blue Mosque in the northern Afghan city in 2012.jpg
Blue Mosque in Mazar-i-Sharif
The largest mosque in Afghanistan
Majority
Sunni Islam
Minority
Historic/Extinct
Controversy
  • Flag of Afghanistan.svg Afghanistan portal
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Hinduism in Afghanistan is practiced by a tiny minority of Afghans, believed to be about 50 individuals,[1][3] who live mostly in the cities of Kabul and Jalalabad. Afghan Hindus are ethnically Pashtun,[4] Hindkowan (Hindki), Punjabi or Sindhi and primarily speak Pashto, Hindko, Punjabi, Dari, and Hindustani (Urdu-Hindi).

Before the Islamic conquest of Afghanistan, the Afghan people were multi-religious.[5] Religious persecution, discrimination, and forced conversion of Hindus perpetrated by Muslims has caused the Afghan Hindus, along with Buddhist and Sikh population, to dwindle from Afghanistan.[6]

During the 1970s, the Afghan Hindu population was estimated to number between 80,000 and 280,000 (0.7% - 2.5% of the national population).[a][b][c][9] However, the population rapidly declined thereafter due to the Afghan wars along with continued persecution, discrimination and forced conversion.[10]

Background[]

The Indo-Aryan inhabitants of the region including Pashayi and Nuristanis were known to be followers of the Hinduism.[11][12][13][14][15] Pashtuns, the majority ethnic group in Afghanistan, have a component of Vedic ancestors from the Pakthas.[16][17]

"The Pakthas, Bhalanases, Vishanins, Alinas, and Sivas were the five frontier tribes. The Pakthas lived in the hills from which the Kruma originates. Zimmer locates them in present-day eastern Afghanistan, identifying them with the modern Pakthun."[18]

Gandhara, a region encompassing the South-east of Afghanistan was also a center of Hinduism along with Buddhism.[19] Later forms of Hinduism were also prevalent in this south-eastern region of the country during the Turk shahis, with Khair Khaneh, a Brahmanical temple being excavated in Kabul and a statue of Gardez Ganesha being found in Paktia province.[20] Most of the remains, including marble statuettes, date to the 7th–8th century, during the time of the Turk Shahi.[21][22][23] The statue of Ganesha from Gardez is now attributed to the period of Turk Shahis in the 7-8th century CE, rather than to their successors the Hindu Shahis (9th-10th century) as has also been suggested.[24] The datation is essentially based on stylistic analysis, as the displays great iconographical and stylistic similarities with the works of the Buddhist monastery of Fondukistan, which is also dated to the same period.[24]

Hinduism further flourished under the rule of Hindu Shahis and went into sharp decline with the advent of Islam through the Ghaznavids who defeated the Shahis. Nonetheless, it continued as a significant minority until the 21st century when its number of followers fell into a few hundreds.[25][26][27]

History[]

Main article: History of Hinduism in Afghanistan
Hinduism by country
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Further information: Hindu and Buddhist heritage of Afghanistan
Gold dinar of Kanishka II, emperor of the Kushan Empire, with Lord Shiva (200–220 CE)

There is no reliable information on when Hinduism began in Afghanistan but historians suggest that the territory south of the Hindu Kush may have been culturally connected with the Indus Valley Civilization (5500–2000 BCE) in ancient times. At the same time, most historians maintain that Afghanistan was inhabited by ancient Arians followed by the Achaemenid before the arrival of Alexander the Great and his Greek army in 330 BC. It became part of the Seleucid Empire after the departure of Alexander three years later. In 305 BCE, the Seleucid Empire lost control of the territory south of the Hindu Kush to the Indian Emperor "Sandrocottus" as a result of the Seleucid-Mauryan War.

Alexander took these away from the Arians and established settlements of his own, but Seleucus Nicator gave them to Sandrocottus (Chandragupta), upon terms of intermarriage and of receiving in exchange 500 elephants.[28]

— Strabo, 64 BCE–24 CE

The Indo-Aryan inhabitants of the region-mainly in the eastern and south-eastern parts of the country-were adherents of Hinduism. Notable among these were the Gandharis.[11] The Pashayi and Nuristanis are present day examples of these Indo-Aryan Vedic people.[29][30][31][32][33]

Ekamukhalinga (Shivalinga with one face), Shahi Period, 9th century. Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto.

When the Chinese travelers Faxian, Song Yun, and Xuanzang explored Afghanistan between the 5th and 7th centuries CE, they wrote numerous travelogues in which reliable information on Afghanistan was stored. They stated that Buddhism was practiced in different parts between the Amu Darya (Oxus River) in the north and the Indus River.[34] However, they did not mention much about Hinduism although Song Yun did state that the Hephthalite rulers did not recognize Buddhism but "preached pseudo gods and killed animals for their meat".[34]

Kabul Shahi and Zunbil dynasty[]

Further information: Turk Shahis and Zunbils

Before the Islamic conquest of Afghanistan, the territory was a religious sediment of Zoroastrianism, Zunbils, Hinduism and Buddhism. It was inhabited by various peoples, including Persians, Khalaj, Turks, and Pashtuns.[citation needed] Parts of the territory South of Hindu kush were ruled by the Zunbils, offspring of the southern-Hephthalite. The eastern parts (Kabulistan) were controlled by the Turk Shahis. The Zunbil and Kabul Shahis were connected with the Indian subcontinent through common Buddhism and Zun religions. The Zunbil kings worshipped a sun god by the name of Zun from which they derived their name. André Wink writes that "the cult of Zun was primarily Hindu, not Buddhist or Zoroastrian", nonetheless he still mentions them having parallels with Tibetan Buddhism and Zoroastrianism in their rituals.[35][36]

In 653–654 CE, Abdur Rahman bin Samara along with 6,000 Arab Muslims penetrated the Zunbil territory and made their way to the shrine of Zun in Zamindawar, which was believed to be located about three miles south of Musa Qala in today's Helmand Province of Afghanistan. The General of the Arab army "broke of a hand of the idol and plucked out the rubies which were its eyes in order to persuade the Marzbān of Sīstān of the god's worthlessness."[37]

The Kabul Shahi ruled north of the Zunbil territory, which included Kabulistan and Gandahara. The Arabs reached Kabul with the message of Islam but were not able to rule for long. The Kabul Shahis decided to build a giant wall around the city to prevent more Arab invasions, this wall is still visible today.[38]

Willem Vogelsang in his 2002 book writes: "During the 8th and 9th centuries AD the eastern terroritries of modern Afghanistan were still in the hands of non-Muslim rulers. The Muslims tended to regard them as Indians (Hindus), although many of the local rulers and people were apparently of Hunnic or Turkic descent. Yet, the Muslims were right in so far as the non-Muslim population of eastern Afghanistan was, culturally linked to the Indian sub-continent. Most of them were either Hindus or Buddhists."[39] In 870 AD the Saffarids from medieval Zaranj, located at the Nad-e Ali site of modern day Iran (not to be confused with the similarly named modern city of Zaranj in Afghanistan),[40] conquered most of Afghanistan, establishing Muslim governors throughout the land. It is reported that Muslims and non-Muslims still lived side by side before the arrival of the Ghaznavids in the 10th century.

"Kábul has a castle celebrated for its strength, accessible only by one road. In it there are Musulmáns, and it has a town, in which are infidels from Hind."[41]

— Istahkrí, 921 AD
A 5th-century marble Ganesha found in Gardez, Afghanistan, now at Dargah Pir Rattan Nath, Kabul. The inscription says that this "great and beautiful image of Mahāvināyaka" was consecrated by the Hindu Shahi King "Khingala".[42]

The first confirmed mention of a Hindu in Afghanistan appears in the 982 AD Ḥudūd al-ʿĀlam, where it speaks of a king in "Ninhar" (Nangarhar), who shows a public display of conversion to Islam, even though he had over 30 wives, which are described as "Muslim, Afghan, and Hindu" wives.[43] These names were often used as geographical terms. For example, Hindu (or Hindustani) has been historically used as a geographical term to describe someone who was native from the region known as Hindustan (Indian subcontinent), and Afghan as someone who was native from a region called Afghanistan.[44]

Martin Ewans in his 2002 book writes: "Even then a Hindu dynasty the Hindu Shahis, held Gandhara and the eastern borders. From the tenth century onwards as Persian language and culture continued to spread into Afghanistan, the focus of power shifted to Ghazni, where a Turkic dynasty, who started by ruling the town for the Samanid dynasty of Bokhara, proceeded to create an empire in their own right. The greatest of the Ghaznavids was Mahmud who ruled between 998 and 1030. He expelled the Hindus from Ghandhara, made no fewer than 17 raids into India. He encouraged mass conversions to Islam, in Pakistan as well as in Afghanistan."[45]

When Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni began crossing the Indus River into Hindustan (land of Hindus) in the 10th century, the Ghaznavid Muslims began bringing Hindu slaves to what is now Afghanistan. Al-Idirisi testifies that until as late as the 12th century, a contract of investiture for every Shahi king was performed at Kabul and that here he was obliged to agree to certain ancient conditions which completed the contract.[46] The Ghaznavid military incursions assured the domination of Sunni Islam in what is now Afghanistan and Pakistan. Various historical sources such as Martin Ewans, E.J. Brill and Farishta have recorded the introduction of Islam to Kabul and other parts of Afghanistan to the conquests of and Mahmud:

The Arabs advanced through Sistan and conquered Sindh early in the eighth century. Elsewhere however their incursions were no more than temporary, and it was not until the rise of the Saffarid dynasty in the ninth century that the frontiers of Islam effectively reached Ghazni and Kabul. Even then a Hindu dynasty the Hindushahis, held Gandhara and eastern borders. From the tenth century onwards as Persian language and culture continued to spread into Afghanistan, the focus of power shifted to Ghazni, where a Turkish dynasty, who started by ruling the town for the Samanid dynasty of Bokhara, proceeded to create an empire in their own right. The greatest of the Ghaznavids was Muhmad who ruled between 998 and 1030. He expelled the Hindus from Gandhara, made no fewer than seventeen raids into northwestern India and succeeded in conquering territory stretching from the Caspian Sea to Varanasi. Bokhara and Samarkand also came under his rule.[47] He encouraged mass conversions to Islam, of Indians as well as Afghans, looted Hindu temples and carried off immense booty, earning for himself, depending on the viewpoint of the observer, the titles of 'Image-breaker' or 'scourge of India'.[47]

Mahmud used his plundered wealth to finance his armies which included mercenaries. The Indian soldiers, presumably Hindus, who were one of the components of the army with their commander called sipahsalar-i-Hinduwan lived in their quarter of Ghazna practicing their own religion. Indian soldiers under their commander Suvendhray remained loyal to Mahmud. They were also used against a Turkic rebel, with the command given to a Hindu named Tilak according to Baihaki.[48]

In his war on Peshawar and Waihind says al-Utbi, Mahmud acquired 500,000 slaves that included children and girls. Men were sold as slaves to even common merchants. The amount of slaves captured in Nardin plummeted their price and male slaves were even bought by common merchants. After raiding Thanesar, he acquired 200,000 slaves.[49]

The renowned 14th-century Moroccan Muslim scholar Ibn Battuta remarked that the Hindu Kush meant the "slayer of Indians", because slaves brought from India who had to pass through there died in large numbers due to the extreme cold and quantity of snow.[50]

The Ghaznavid Empire was further expanded by the Ghurids. During the Khalji dynasty, there was also free movement between people from India and Afghanistan. It continued this way until the Mughals followed by the Suris and the Durranis.

Modern period[]

The main ethnic groups in Afghanistan which practice Hinduism today are the Punjabis and Sindhis who are believed to have come along with Sikhs as merchants to Afghanistan in the 19th century.[51] Till the collapse of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan, there were several thousand Hindus living in the country but today their number is only about 1,000.[52] Most of the others immigrated to India, the European Union, North America or elsewhere.[3]

Afghan Hindus and Afghan Sikhs often share places of worship. Along with the Sikhs, they are all collectively known as Hindki.[53] Linguistic demographics among the Hindu community are diverse and generally follow regional origins: those hailing from Punjab generally speak Punjabi, Sindhis speak Sindhi, and the northern and southern dialects of Hindko. The local Hindu community in Afghanistan is mostly based in the city of Kabul. The 2002 loya jirga had two seats reserved for Hindus[54] and former President Hamid Karzai's economic advisor, Sham Lal Bhatija was an Afghan Hindu.[55]

During the Taliban 1996 to late 2001 rule, Hindus were forced to wear yellow badges in public to identify themselves as non-Muslims. Hindu women were forced to wear burqas, a measure which was claimed to "protect" them from harassment. This was part of the Taliban's plan to segregate "un-Islamic" and "idolatrous" communities from Islamic ones.[56]

The decree was condemned by the Indian and U.S. governments as a violation of religious freedom. Widespread protests against the Taliban regime broke out in Bhopal, India. In the United States, Abraham Foxman, chairman of the Anti-Defamation League, compared the decree to the practices of Nazi Germany, where Jews were required to wear labels identifying them as such.[57] Several influential lawmakers in the United States wore yellow badges with the inscription "I am a Hindu", on the floor of the Senate during the debate as a demonstration of their solidarity with the Hindu minority in Afghanistan.[58][59][60][61]

Indian analyst Rahul Banerjee said that this was not the first time that Hindus were singled out for state-sponsored oppression in Afghanistan. Violence against Hindus has caused a rapid depletion in the Hindu population over the years.[62] Since the 1990s, many Afghan Hindus have fled the country, seeking asylum in countries such as India, Germany and United States.[63]

In July 2013, the Afghan parliament refused to reserve seats for the minority group as a bill reserving seats for the mentioned was voted against. The bill by the then president Hamid Karzai, had tribal people and "women" as "vulnerable groups" who got reservation, but not religious minorities as per the religious equality article in the constitution.[64]

Notable people[]

  • Atma Ram – Afghan Minister and Author.
  • Celina Jaitley – Indian actress born in Kabul to an Indian father, Colonel V. K. Jaitly and an Afghan Hindu mother, Meeta Jaitly, who was also from Kabul and was a nurse in the Indian Army.[65][66][67]
  • Annet Mahendru – American actress born in Kabul to an Indian father, Ghanshan "Ken" Mahendru whose family had moved from Delhi to Afghanistan for business and a Russian mother, Olga.[68][69][70]

Diaspora of Hindus[]

See also: Afghan diaspora
Afghan Hindu Diaspora
Total population
80,000 - 280,000[3][7][9][8] (c. 1980)
Regions with significant populations
India, Germany, United Kingdom, United States, Canada, Australia
 India15,000-16,000[2]
 Germany7,000-10,000[71]
 United States3,000[72]
 United Kingdom1,600[73]
Languages
Hindko (native), English, Hindi , Punjabi, Pashto (older generation), Dari (older generation)

As both populations are frequently merged in historic and contemporary estimations, the population ratio between Afghan Sikhs and Hindus is estimated to be 60:40 according to historian Inderjeet Singh.[d]

With a wide range of population approximations in the absence of official census data and with much of the community concentrated in the provinces of Kabul, Nangarhar, Ghazni, and Kandahar, the Afghan Hindu population was estimated to be between 80,000 and 280,000 in the 1970s,[3][7][e][9][8][f] as per estimates by historian Inderjeet Singh, Ehsan Shayegan with the Porsesh Research and Studies Organisation and Rawail Singh, an Afghan Sikh civil rights activist.

In the time of 1980's after the Afghan civil war 1979 the population of Hindus and Sikh fell at a very fast rate due to Taliban's rise to power and religious persecution and discrimination and they migrated from Afghanistan to other countries,[74] The continue rise of Islamization and Taliban insurgency also contributed in the diaspora.[75] The decline was seen mostly in Pashtuns-dominated areas,due to Pashtunistan and Pashtun nationalism.[76], with the Afghan Hindu population declining to 3,000 by 2009.[7]

As per the 2017 data, more than 99% of Afghan Sikhs and Hindus have left the country in the last 3 decades.[8] Many of Afghan Hindus and Sikhs have been settled in Germany, France, United States, Australia, India, Belgium, Holland and other nations.[3]

The Afghan Hindu population declined to approximately 50 in 2020.[3]

Demographics[]

Historical Population
YearPop.±%
201010,000—    
20153,440−65.6%
202050−98.5%
Source: [77][78][1]
Year Percent Increase
2010 0.03% -
2015 0.01% -0.02%
2020 0.0001% -0.0099%

Ancient Hindu temples[]

Further information: Hindu temples of Kabul and List of Hindu temples
Place Description Other information Ref.
Polusha Bhima Devi (Durga) and temple of Maheshvera Visited by Xuanzang [79]
Sakawand Temple dedicated to Suna [80][81]
Asamai Temple The Asamai temple is at the foothills of the central Kabul hill Koh-e Asamai [82]
Bhairo Temple Shor Bazaar [83]
Mangaldwar Mandir [84]

See also[]

Notes[]

  1. ^ According to Singh, there were at least 2 lakh Sikhs and Hindus (in a 60:40 ratio) in Afghanistan until the 1970s.[3]
  2. ^ “In the 70s, there were around 700,000 Hindus and Sikhs, and now they are estimated to be less than 7,000,” Shayegan says.[7]
  3. ^ “An investigation by TOLOnews reveals that the Sikh and Hindu population number was 220,000 in the 1980's.[8]
  4. ^ According to Singh, there were at least 2 lakh Sikhs and Hindus (in a 60:40 ratio) in Afghanistan until the 1970s.[3]
  5. ^ “In the 70s, there were around 700,000 Hindus and Sikhs, and now they are estimated to be less than 7,000,” Shayegan says.[7]
  6. ^ “An investigation by TOLOnews reveals that the Sikh and Hindu population number was 220,000 in the 1980's.[8]

References[]

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  2. ^ Jump up to: a b Singh, Manpreet (22 August 2014). "Dark days continue for Sikhs and Hindus in Afghanistan". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h Goyal, Divya (28 July 2020). "Sikhs and Hindus of Afghanistan — how many remain, why they want to leave". The Indian Express.
  4. ^ Ali, Tariq (2003). The clash of fundamentalisms: crusades, jihads and modernity. Verso. p. 20. ISBN 978-1-85984-457-1. Retrieved 20 April 2008. The friends from Peshawar would speak of Hindu and Sikh Pashtuns who had migrated to India. In the tribal areas – the no man's land between Afghanistan and Pakistan – quite a few Hindus stayed on and were protected by the tribal codes. The same was true in Afghanistan itself (till the mujahidin and the Taliban arrived).
  5. ^ Wink, André (2002). Al-Hind, the Making of the Indo-Islamic World: Early Medieval India and the Expansion of Islam 7Th-11th Centuries. BRILL. ISBN 978-0-391-04173-8.
  6. ^ Hutter, Manfred (2018). "Afghanistan". In Basu, Helene; Jacobsen, Knut A.; Malinar, Angelika; Narayanan, Vasudha (eds.). Brill's Encyclopedia of Hinduism. 1. Leiden: Brill Publishers. doi:10.1163/2212-5019_BEH_COM_9000000190. ISBN 978-90-04-17641-6. ISSN 2212-5019.
  7. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e Ruchi Kumar (1 January 2017). "The decline of Afghanistan's Hindu and Sikh communities". Al Jazeera.
  8. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e "Nearly 99% Of Hindus, Sikhs Left Afghanistan in Last Three decades". TOLOnews. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  9. ^ Jump up to: a b c Ruchi Kumar (19 October 2017). "Afghan Hindus and Sikhs celebrate Diwali without 'pomp and splendour' amid fear". Archived from the original on 26 October 2017. Retrieved 6 July 2021.
  10. ^ Bagchi, Joymala. "Sikh Afghan Nationals Narrate Their Stories Of Fear, Suppression And Anxiety Faced In Kabul". businessworld.in. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
  11. ^ Jump up to: a b UNESCO World Heritage Centre: Taxila
  12. ^ Minahan, James B. (10 February 2014). Ethnic Groups of North, East, and Central Asia: An Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. p. 217. ISBN 9781610690188. Historically, north and east Afghanistan was considered part of the Indian cultural and religious sphere. Early accounts of the region mention the Pashayi as living in a region producing rice and sugarcane, with many wooded areas. Many of the people of the region were Buddhists, though small groups of Hindus and others with tribal religions were noted.
  13. ^ Weekes, Richard V. (1984). Muslim peoples: a world ethnographic survey. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 601. ISBN 9780313233920.
  14. ^ Khanam, R. (2005). Encyclopaedic ethnography of Middle-East and Central Asia. Global Vision Publishing House. p. 631. ISBN 9788182200654.
  15. ^ "The Pashayi of Afghanistan". Bethany World Prayer Center. 1997. Retrieved 11 April 2019. Before their conversion to Islam, the Pashayi followed a religion that was probably a corrupt form of Hinduism and Buddhism. Today, they are Sunni (orthodox) Muslims of the Hanafite sect.
  16. ^ India: from Indus Valley civilisation to Mauryas By Gyan Swarup Gupta Published by Concept Publishing Company, 1999 ISBN 81-7022-763-1, ISBN 978-81-7022-763-2, page 199.
  17. ^ Comrie, Bernard (1990). The World's Major Languages. Oxford University Press. p. 549.
  18. ^ Ancient Pakistan: Volume 3, University of Peshawar. Dept. of Archaeology - 1967, Page 23
  19. ^ *Schmidt, Karl J. (1995). An Atlas and Survey of South Asian History, p.120: "In addition to being a center of religion for Buddhists, as well as Hindus, Taxila was a thriving center for art, culture, and learning."
    • Srinivasan, Doris Meth (2008). "Hindu Deities in Gandharan art," in Gandhara, The Buddhist Heritage of Pakistan: Legends, Monasteries, and Paradise, pp.130-143: "Gandhara was not cut off from the heartland of early Hinduism in the Gangetic Valley. The two regions shared cultural and political connections and trade relations and this facilitated the adoption and exchange of religious ideas. [...] It is during the Kushan Era that flowering of religious imagery occurred. [...] Gandhara often introduced its own idiosyncratic expression upon the Buddhist and Hindu imagery it had initially come in contact with."
    • Blurton, T. Richard (1993). Hindu Art, Harvard University Press: "The earliest figures of Shiva which show him in purely human form come from the area of ancient Gandhara" (p.84) and "Coins from Gandhara of the first century BC show Lakshmi [...] four-armed, on a lotus." (p.176)
  20. ^ Kuwayama, Shoshin (1976). "The Turki Śāhis and Relevant Brahmanical Sculptures in Afghanistan". East and West. 26 (3/4): 407. ISSN 0012-8376. JSTOR 29756318.
  21. ^ KUWAYAMA (Kyoto City University of Fine Arts), SHOSHIN (1975). "KHAIR KHANEH AND ITS CHINESE EVIDENCES". Orient. XI.
  22. ^ Kuwayama, Shoshin (1976). "The Turki Śāhis and Relevant Brahmanical Sculptures in Afghanistan" (PDF). East and West. 26 (3/4): 375–407. ISSN 0012-8376. JSTOR 29756318.
  23. ^ Hackin, Joseph (1936). Recherches Archéologiques au Col de Khair khaneh près de Kābul : vol.1 / Page 77 (Grayscale High Resolution Image). DAFA.
  24. ^ Jump up to: a b "It is not therefore possible to attribute these pieces to the Hindu Shahi period. They should be attributed to the Shahi period before the Hindu Shahis originated by the Brahman wazir Kallar, that is, the Turki Shahis." p.405 " According to the above sources, Brahmanism and Buddhism are properly supposed to have coexisted especially during the 7th-8th century A.D. just before the Muslim hegemony. The marble sculptures from eastern Afghanistan should not be attributed to the period of the Hindu Shahis but to that of the Turki Shahis." p.407 in Kuwayama, Shoshin (1976). "The Turki Śāhis and Relevant Brahmanical Sculptures in Afghanistan". East and West. 26 (3/4): 375–407. ISSN 0012-8376. JSTOR 29756318.
  25. ^ "Contained within a clay urn were a gold bracteate with the portrait of a ruler, three early drachms of the Turk-Shahis (Type 236, one of which is countermarked), and a countermarked drachm of the Sasanian king Khusro II dating from year 37 of his reign (= 626/7). The two countermarks on Khusro 's drachm prove that the urn could only have been deposited after 689" ALRAM, MICHAEL (2014). "From the Sasanians to the Huns New Numismatic Evidence from the Hindu Kush" (PDF). The Numismatic Chronicle. 174: 282–285. ISSN 0078-2696. JSTOR 44710198.
  26. ^ Kim, Hyun Jin (19 November 2015). The Huns. Routledge. pp. 62–64. ISBN 978-1-317-34091-1.
  27. ^ Alram, Michael; Filigenzi, Anna; Kinberger, Michaela; Nell, Daniel; Pfisterer, Matthias; Vondrovec, Klaus. "The Countenance of the other (The Coins of the Huns and Western Turks in Central Asia and India) 2012-2013 exhibit: 16. THE HINDU SHAHIS IN KABULISTAN AND GANDHARA AND THE ARAB CONQUEST". Pro.geo.univie.ac.at. Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna. Retrieved 22 July 2017.
  28. ^ Nancy Hatch Dupree / Aḥmad ʻAlī Kuhzād (1972). "An Historical Guide to Kabul – The Name". American International School of Kabul. Archived from the original on 30 August 2010. Retrieved 18 September 2010.
  29. ^ Minahan, James B. (10 February 2014). Ethnic Groups of North, East, and Central Asia: An Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. p. 217. ISBN 9781610690188. Historically, north and east Afghanistan was considered part of the Indian cultural and religious sphere. Early accounts of the region mention the Pashayi as living in a region producing rice and sugarcane, with many wooded areas. Many of the people of the region were Buddhists, though small groups of Hindus and others with tribal religions were noted.
  30. ^ Weekes, Richard V. (1984). Muslim peoples: a world ethnographic survey. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 601. ISBN 9780313233920.
  31. ^ Khanam, R. (2005). Encyclopaedic ethnography of Middle-East and Central Asia. Global Vision Publishing House. p. 631. ISBN 9788182200654.
  32. ^ "The Pashayi of Afghanistan". Bethany World Prayer Center. 1997. Retrieved 11 April 2019. Before their conversion to Islam, the Pashayi followed a religion that was probably a corrupt form of Hinduism and Buddhism. Today, they are Sunni (orthodox) Muslims of the Hanafite sect.
  33. ^ Richard F. Strand (31 December 2005). "Richard Strand's Nuristân Site: Peoples and Languages of Nuristan". nuristan.info. Archived from the original on 1 April 2019. Retrieved 19 January 2012.
  34. ^ Jump up to: a b "Chinese Travelers in Afghanistan". Abdul Hai Habibi. alamahabibi.com. 1969. Retrieved 9 August 2012.
  35. ^ André Wink, Al-Hind: The Making of the Indo-Islamic World, Brill 1990. p 118
  36. ^ "Parallels have been noted with pre-Buddhist religious and monarchy practices in Tibet and had Zoroastrianism in its ritual". Al- Hind: The slave kings and the Islamic conquest. 2, page 118. By André Wink
  37. ^ André Wink, Al-Hind: The Making of the Indo-Islamic World, Brill 1990. p 120
  38. ^ "The Kabul Times Annual". Kabul Times Pub. Agency, Information, Culture Ministry., 1970. p. 220.
  39. ^ by Willem Vogelsang, Edition: illustrated Published by Wiley-Blackwell, 2002 Page 188
  40. ^ Mehrafarin, Reza; Haji, Seyyed Rasool Mousavi (2010). "In Search of Ram Shahrestan The Capital of the Sistan Province in the Sassanid Era". Central Asiatic Journal. 54 (2): 256–272. ISSN 0008-9192. JSTOR 41928560.
  41. ^ "A.—The Hindu Kings of Kábul (p.3)". Sir H. M. Elliot. London: Packard Humanities Institute. 1867–1877. Archived from the original on 26 July 2013. Retrieved 18 September 2010.
  42. ^ For photograph of statue and details of inscription, see: Dhavalikar, M. K., "Gaņeśa: Myth and Reality", in: Brown 1991, pp. 50, 63.
  43. ^ Vogelsang, Willem (2002). The Afghans. Wiley-Blackwell. p. 18. ISBN 0-631-19841-5. Retrieved 16 August 2012.
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