Sphola Stupa
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Sphola Stupa
Sphola Stupa is a Buddhist monument located in the Khyber Pass, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa of Pakistan. The monument located about 25 kilometers from Jamrūd is on a high rocky ledge and consists of a stone mound supported by a tiered base. Large sections of the stone have fallen away, particularly to the right of the mound. A man is standing on the top of the mound, and another man is standing on a pile of rubble to the right. There is a valley beyond with steep mountains rising behind it. This ruined stupa built of stones features a dome resting upon a three-tiered base. Sphola sits in a ravine located in Zarai village midway between Ali Masjid and Landi Kotal in the Khyber Pass. The 2nd century stupa may have been constructed towards the end of the Kushan Empire or according to some sources soon after third to fifth centuries. It is the most complete Buddhist monument in the Khyber Pass. It is a reminder of the great Kushana Empire and Buddhism nexus which is often depicted in Gandha ...
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Buddhist Tope (at) Ispola, Between Ali Musjid & Landi Kotal
Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or 5th century BCE. It is the world's fourth-largest religion, with about 500 million followers, known as Buddhists, who comprise four percent of the global population. It arose in the eastern Gangetic plain as a movement in the 5th century BCE, and gradually spread throughout much of Asia. Buddhism has subsequently played a major role in Asian culture and spirituality, eventually spreading to the West in the 20th century. According to tradition, the Buddha instructed his followers in a path of development which leads to awakening and full liberation from '' dukkha'' (). He regarded this path as a Middle Way between extremes such as asceticism or sensual indulgence. Teaching that ''dukkha'' arises alongside attachment or clinging, the Buddha advised meditation practices and ethi ...
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Buddhist
Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or 5th century Before the Common Era, BCE. It is the Major religious groups, world's fourth-largest religion, with about 500 million followers, known as Buddhists, who comprise four percent of the global population. It arose in the eastern Gangetic plain as a movement in the 5th century BCE, and gradually spread throughout much of Asia. Buddhism has subsequently played a major role in Asian culture and spirituality, eventually spreading to Western world, the West in the 20th century. According to tradition, the Buddha instructed his followers in a path of bhavana, development which leads to Enlightenment in Buddhism, awakening and moksha, full liberation from ''Duḥkha, dukkha'' (). He regarded this path as a Middle Way between extremes su ...
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Khyber Pass
The Khyber Pass (Urdu: درۂ خیبر; ) is a mountain pass in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan, on the border with the Nangarhar Province of Afghanistan. It connects the town of Landi Kotal to the Valley of Peshawar at Jamrud by traversing part of the White Mountains, Afghanistan, White Mountains. Since it was part of the ancient Silk Road, it has been a vital trade route between Central Asia and the Indian subcontinent and a Military strategy, strategic military choke point for various states that controlled it. The Khyber Pass is considered one of the most famous mountain passes in the world. Geography Following Asian Highway 1 (AH1), the summit of the pass at the town of Landi Kotal is inside Pakistan, descending into the Valley of Peshawar at Jamrud, about from the Afghan border by traversing part of the Spin Ghar mountains. History Historical invasions of the Indian subcontinent have been predominantly through the Khyber Pass, such as those of Cyrus the ...
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Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (; ; , ; abbr. KP or KPK), formerly known as the North West Frontier Province (NWFP), is a Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Pakistan. Located in the Northern Pakistan, northwestern region of the country, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is the fourth largest province of Pakistan by land area and the third-largest province by population. It is bordered by Balochistan, Pakistan, Balochistan to the south; Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab, Islamabad Capital Territory, and Azad Kashmir to the east; and Gilgit-Baltistan to the north and northeast. It shares an Durand Line, international border with Afghanistan to the west. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has a varied geography of rugged mountain ranges, valleys, rolling foothills, and dense agricultural farms. While it is the third-largest Pakistani province in terms of both its population and Economy of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, its economy, it is geographically the smallest. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's share of Pakistan's GDP has historically com ...
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Jamrūd
Jamrūd (Pashto/) or Jam () is a town in the Khyber District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. Located in the Valley of Peshawar, on the western fringe of Peshawar city, Jamrud is the doorway to the Khyber Pass which is just to the west of the town. The pass connects Jamrud with Landi Kotal to the west, located near the border of Afghanistan's Nangarhar Province. Jamrud has remained a location on the trade route between Central Asia and South Asia, and a strategic military location. It is located at an altitude of above sea level. The Jamrud Fort is located west of the city of Peshawar. History The Battle of Jamrud between the Sikh Empire and the Emirate of Kabul took place at Jamrud where the Sikh general Hari Singh Nalwa was killed. The famous Jamrud Fort was built in 54 days by Hari Singh Nalwa. The proposal to build the fort was issued to him by one of his generals. The proposal was opposed; however he finally decided to build the fort and construct its layout. The founda ...
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Ali Masjid
Ali Masjid (Pashto and ) is the narrowest point of the Khyber Pass. It is located in Khyber District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. It is around east of the city of Landi Kotal (West of Peshawar) and has an elevation of . The width of the Khyber near Ali Masjid was earlier too narrow for two fully laden camels to pass each other, but since has been widened. Name origin It was named in memory of Ali, the cousin of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. A mosque and a shrine has been built here in the memory of Ali, who visited this place according to a local tradition. There is also a huge boulder which carries the marks of a hand believed to be that of Ali. History Ali Masjid is located at the narrowest point in the Khyber Pass. It contains a shrine to ʻAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib (circa 600–661) the cousin and son-in-law of Muhammad.Caption of Ali Masjid from Bewlow WDL11473, Library of Congress Travellers would stop to pray at the shrine while on the trading route between Kadam an ...
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Landi Kotal
Lanḍī Kōtal (, ) or Lwargai ( ''Lwāṛgai'') is a town in the Province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in Pakistan, and the administrative capital of Khyber District. It was one of the largest towns in the former Federally Administered Tribal Areas, and is located above sea level, on the route across the mountains to the city of Peshawar. Landi Kotal is at the western edge of the Khyber Pass that marks the entrance to the Nangarhar Province of Afghanistan, which is located just to the west. Landi Kotal is a tourist destination. It was the terminus railway station of Khyber Pass Railway. A tourist train, the Khyber train safari was run on this railway. However, the train closed down in 2006 after floods washed away the railway track and bridges. Landi Kotal is the main shopping centre for the Shalmani, Shinwari, Afridi, and Mulagori Pashtun tribes, tribes of Khyber Agency. History Landi Kotal was the westernmost part of the Khyber held by the British Empire, British during their Br ...
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Kushana Empire
The Kushan Empire (– CE) was a syncretic empire formed by the Yuezhi in the Bactrian territories in the early 1st century. It spread to encompass much of what is now Afghanistan, Eastern Iran, India, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Kushan territory in India went at least as far as Saketa and Sarnath, now near Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, where inscriptions have been found dating to the era of the Kushan emperor Kanishka the Great. The Kushans were most probably one of five branches of the Yuezhi confederation, an Indo-European nomadic people of possible Tocharian origin, who migrated from northwestern China (Xinjiang and Gansu) and settled in ancient Bactria. The founder of the dynasty, Kujula Kadphises, followed Iranian and Greek cultural ideas and iconography after the Greco-Bactrian tradition and was a follower of the Shaivite sect of Hinduism. Two later Kushan kings, Vima Kadphises and Vasudeva II, were also patrons of Hinduism. The Kushans in general were also gr ...
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Gandhara
Gandhara () was an ancient Indo-Aryan people, Indo-Aryan civilization in present-day northwest Pakistan and northeast Afghanistan. The core of the region of Gandhara was the Peshawar valley, Peshawar (Pushkalawati) and Swat valleys extending as far east as the Pothohar Plateau in Punjab, though the cultural influence of Greater Gandhara extended westwards into the Kabul, Kabul valley in Afghanistan, and northwards up to the Karakoram range. The region was a central location for the Silk Road transmission of Buddhism, spread of Buddhism to Central Asia and East Asia with many Chinese Buddhism, Buddhist pilgrims visiting the region. Between the third century BCE and third century CE, Gandhari language, Gāndhārī, a Middle Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language written in the Kharosthi script and linked with the modern Dardic languages, Dardic language family, acted as the lingua franca of the region and through Buddhism, the language spread as far as China based on Gandhār ...
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Peshawar
Peshawar is the capital and List of cities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by population, largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It is the sixth most populous city of Pakistan, with a district population of over 4.7 million in the 2023 census. It is situated in the north-west of the country, lying in the Valley of Peshawar. Peshawar is primarily populated by Pashtuns, who comprise the second-largest ethnic group in the country. Situated in the Valley of Peshawar, a broad area situated east of the historic Khyber Pass, Peshawar's recorded history dates back to at least 539 BCE, making it one of the oldest cities in South Asia. The area encompassing modern-day Peshawar is mentioned in the Vedic scriptures; it was one of the principal cities of the Gandhara, ancient Gāndhāra. Peshawar served as the capital of the Kushan Empire during the rule of Kanishka and was home to the Kanishka Stupa, which was among the tallest buildings in ...
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Frontier Constabulary
The Frontier Constabulary () is a federal paramilitary force of Pakistan under the control of the Interior Secretary of Pakistan, which is largely drawn from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, but operates in several districts of Pakistan. It is responsible for maintaining law and order, and dealing with situations beyond the capabilities of the civilian Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police. It also guards against tribal incursions, criminal gangs, and contraband smuggling. The Frontier Constabulary was created in 1915 by amalgamating the Border Military Police (formed in 1852) and Samana Rifles (formed in 1879), during the British Raj. Both of the forces were guarding the border between the tribal areas and the then-settled areas of the North-West Frontier Province (after which it is named). The Frontier Constabulary is often confused with Frontier Corps as both forces abbreviated as ''FC''. Frontier Corps are group of four paramilitary forces officered by the Pakistan Army. On other hand, ...
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Archaeological Sites In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, archaeological site, sites, and cultural landscapes. Archaeology can be considered both a social science and a branch of the humanities. It is usually considered an independent academic discipline, but may also be classified as part of anthropology (in North America – the four-field approach), history or geography. The discipline involves Survey (archaeology), surveying, Archaeological excavation, excavation, and eventually Post excavation, analysis of data collected, to learn more about the past. In broad scope, archaeology relies on cross-disciplinary research. Archaeologists study human prehistory and history, from the development of the first stone tools at Lomekwi in East Africa 3.3 million years ago up until recent decades. A ...
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