Taxila
Taxila ( Greek form of the name; actually Sanskrit, तक्षशिला, f Takṣaśilā, Takshashila; Literally: "Hill of Taksha ", Pali: Takkasilā ) was the historical capital of the kingdom of Gandhara, located on the eastern parts of present-day Afghanistan and the North West Pakistan stretched. Taxila flourished from the fifth century BC to the fifth century of our era. Since 1980, the archaeological sites of the former Taxila by UNESCO listed as World Heritage Site.
Location
Located at the crossroads of three major trade routes, was the site of significant economic and strategic importance. The remains of the city, a rich locality for archaeological research are, about 35 kilometers northwest of Islamabad in Pakistan's Punjab province near the border with the North West Province and the so-called Grand Trunk Road.
History
In the Indian epic Ramayana is told that the founding Taxilas to Bharata, the brother of Rama back. In the second great epic of India, the Mahabharata, and the Jatakas ( " birth stories " Buddhas, which tell of his earlier incarnations ) is called the city. Takshashila, the actual name of the city derives from Taksha accordingly, the oldest son of Bharata and first ruler, manufactures and means "Hill of Taksha ". The now common form as Taxila comes from the later Greek historians.
In the 6th century BC, Taxila was the capital of the kingdom of Gandhara, since the conquest by the Achaemenid Darius I in 516 BC, the easternmost satrapy of the Persian Empire. Already at that time apparently passed trade relations with China, because in the language of the Achaemenids there was already a word for silk. These trade routes should be in later centuries to develop a network of routes that became known as the "Silk Road ", which Taxila was connected via the Kunjirap Pass. In addition to articles of Lying west Persia and the Mediterranean region, from China in the east and India in the south also met philosophies, religions and sciences each other from these major cultural areas, making the city soon became a center of teaching and sharing and a large university arose. Panini, an Indian scholar (5th / 4th century BC), wrote to the University of Taxila, the " Ashtadhyayi ", the most important for long -time summary of the grammar of Sanskrit. Kautilya ( fourth / third century BC) wrote here the " Arthashastra " ( " The doctrine of material gain ").
In the 4th century BC, the countries of the Persians by Alexander the Great conquered. 326 BC he reached Taxila, the city adopted without a fight, as the ruling prince there Taxiles showed the superiority, and stationed there a garrison of Macedonians. Although ended the rule of the Greeks already 317 BC, but the Hellenistic influence remained long after, especially in the arts.
To 321 BC the Indian Mauryan king Chandragupta was the first Indian empire that large parts of the Indian subcontinent comprised founded. The kingdom experienced its greatest extent during the reign of his grandson Ashoka, who even before he became emperor, governor of his father in Taxila was. 272 BC Ashoka was the ruler of the empire and converted by a series of bloody military campaigns and battles to Buddhism. As a result, he was to build a great supporter of the doctrine of the Buddha, the Dharma, and had besides edict -pillar also thousands of stupas. Even in Taxila, which was at that time has long been an important center of Buddhism attracted the Studious from the entire Buddhist world, was at that time the " Dharmarajika Stupa " (also Chir Tope ), the order of probably the oldest stupa in today's Pakistan is. The original construction of this central religious building of the city had a diameter of 50 meters, was hemispherical and was similar to the well -known stupa of Sanchi. The building was in an earthquake in 30 years largely destroyed and later rebuilt in even greater shape.
After Ashoka's death soon began the disintegration of the empire and 185 BC Gandhara was finally conquered by the Bactrian Greeks. With Sirkap they created their own Greek city in close proximity Taxilas and ruled it until about 90 BC. A late heyday Taxila under the Indo- Greek king Antialkidas, probably in the period 115-95 reigned BC; his name is mentioned in an inscription on the Heliodorus column. Then the state changed in rapid succession to the Sakas ( a tribe of Scythians, about 90 BC ) and then the Persian Parthians ( about 19 AD). Their king Gondophares to have had the tradition according to the Apostle Thomas and Apollonius of Tyana at his court a guest.
A little later, around the year 78, the Parthians were in turn by the Kushans, a branch of Yüe -chi, defeated. Vima Kadphises, the second king of Kushan, founded the third city in the area Taxilas, Sirsukh. Under the Kushans, Buddhism experienced a re- bloom in the region, particularly promoted by King Kanishka. Meanwhile personal physician Charaka is considered the author of the " Charaka Samhita ", the oldest and most important classical work to the Indian art of healing, Ayurveda. Even Nagarjuna, the eminent Buddhist scholar and founder of the Shûnyavâda School of Mahayana Buddhism, taught at that time in Taxila. During the reign of Kanishka the Dharmarajika stupa was expanded once more. The still visible remains of this important religious building Taxilas go back to this period. In the 1st century originated in Gandhara, simultaneously with the central Indian region of Mathura, the earliest images of the Buddha in human form after he had previously represented only by symbols. Clearly in these representations were the widespread since the conquests of Alexander the Great, Hellenistic and also to recognize provincial Roman influences ( " Graeco- Buddhism "). Based on this Gandhara style was a major influence on Buddhist art not only this region, but also the countries along the Silk Road; from Central Asia to China and Mongolia to Korea and Japan.
Coin finds indicate that Taxila was conquered in the 4th century by the Sassanids. A final report on the city and in particular its Buddhist culture comes from the Chinese pilgrim monk Fa Xian, who visited it in the year 403. Around the year 455, the region was eventually conquered by the Hephthalites ( "White Huns "). They destroyed the city and the Buddhist monasteries of surrounding land, thus ending the 1,000 years of history Taxilas. The Chinese pilgrim monk Xuanzang, from which among other things comes a report on the also built in Gandhara Buddha statues of Bamiyan, the former visited Taxila in the 7th century and described it as a city of ruins.
The city system (s)
The ruins of Taxila is actually three or even four city facilities. To the west lies the oldest city (now referred to as Bhir Mound ). In it is so far little has been dug, but show the examined residues that there was an unplanned city area with small houses and narrow streets. Here resided Ashoka as governor.
In Greek times, perhaps under Seleucid or Bactrian rule a second city ( Sirkap ) was built west of it. It shows a regular, checkerboard map, as it is typical of Hellenistic cities. In the center of town is the wide main street, leading off from the smaller side streets. Stores were located on a main street, usually consisting of one room only. Behind it lay the larger residential buildings. There were stupas, temples and a palace. The palace is not very large and is characterized by the smallness of the rooms. The plan he is close palaces of Mesopotamia. In the fifth block is found the pagoda with the double-headed eagle. Your base is decorated by niches, which are delimited by columns. In between there are smaller portals that are crowned by animals, including just a double-headed eagle. In addition to this pagoda was a larger house in which any visitor or monks were housed. Here there was an Aramaic inscription that mentions Asoka, but is probably older than the pagoda. In the seventh block and very engaging him was the so-called apsidal temple.
The town of Kushan ( Sirsukh ) has been built to the northwest. She is so far poorly understood. Approx. 1.5 km away from finally located an approximately simultaneous City plant. These individual cities or neighborhoods seem mostly the same time, and to have been not only successively inhabited. Between those walled city facilities were various temples and monasteries.
Archeology
Were rediscovered the ruins of Taxila mid-19th century by the British archaeologist Alexander Cunningham. His countryman Sir John Marshall took from 1913 over a period of twenty years, first detailed excavations before.