An ancient Hindu temple has been discovered at a mountain in Swat district of northwest Pakistan
Bengaluru: An ancient Hindu temple has been discovered at a mountain in Swat district of northwest Pakistan.
It was unearthed by Pakistani and Italian archaeological experts.
The temple is 1300 years old and belongs to Lord Vishnu.
It was built during the Hindu Shahi period.
As per a popular website, the Hindu Shahis or Kabul Shahis, a Hindu dynasty which ruled the Kabul Valley (eastern Afghanistan), Gandhara (modern-day Pakistan), and present-day northwestern India from 850-1026 CE may have built the Hindu temple in the region.
During their excavation, the archaeologists also found traces of cantonment and watchtowers near the temple site.
NDTV also noted that the experts found a water tank near the temple site which they believe was used for bathing before worship.
Fazle Khaliq, an archaeologist said that Swat district is home to a thousand-year-old archaeological sites and the traces of the Hindu Shahi period have been found for the first time in the area.
It is important to note that in July earlier this year, a newly discovered Buddha statue was smashed into pieces by local construction workers and a Muslim cleric. The relic was discovered while digging the foundation for a house in the Pashtun-dominated Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province’s Mardan district in Pakistan.
A video of the act showed the construction workers, along with a Muslim cleric, smashing the Buddha statue using a sledgehammer. They were seen walking over and destroying the life-sized Buddha status while expressing their acrimony against Buddhism, which they consider anti-Islam, as reported by a popular website.
Dr Luka, the head of the Italian archaeological mission, said this was the first temple of the Ghandhara civilisation that was discovered in Swat district.
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