THE-VALLEYOF' BAMIYAN BY Nancy Hatcll J>gpree -- ,d S.c:OAd EdUiOA . ' Published by the Afghan Tourist Organization· 1967 First Edition 1963 Second Edition 1967 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS (in the first edition) The preparation of this Guide could never have been un­ dertaken without the encouragement of Mr. Abdul Wahab Tarzi of the.Afghan Tourist Organization and M. Le Berre of D. A. F. A. who have continued to offer aid and assurance throughout the project. Mr. Ahmad Ali Kohzad, Afghanistan's foremost histor­ ical scholar, has given unstintingly of his time and know­ ledge without which I should be most hesitant in presen - ting this work to the public. Dr. Louis Dupree, an autho­ rity on Afghanistan's pre-history and present, has also been most gracious in his advice and direction for which I am most grateful. Mrs. Janet Marxen and Miss Myra Johnson were un­ daunted and observant companions during the research period in Bamiyan. I also owe a debt of gratitude to Mrs. Marxen for her artistic sketches which so enhance the chap­ ter on theBuddhist period and to Miss Johnson, without whose contribution of hours of typing, the project must surely have floundered. Mr. James Cudney, whose beautiful pictures of Af grutn­ istan are admired by all visitors to this country, has been most kind in donating his talent and I am most fortunate to be able to pr~sent some of his work in this Guide. Finally, much gratitude is due to Mr. Robert MacMa­ kin for hi'.;professional advice regarding the lay-out and all matters concerning printing about which I was totally ignorant. Nancy Hatch Wolfe KABUL December 1962 FOREWARD The Afghan Tourist Organization is now plca:,cd tu have its second printing of Bamiyan. When the first edi­ tion of this excellent guide book appeared in 1963 i had cxpre,sed my appreciation and gratefulness to the author !uc ,he valuable contribution she· had made tu our touc- 1sm development program by producing thts much nl·ecled guidi.: to Bamiyan. ;\o need to say that the bol'k had !rc­ mcndous success which was proof of the talent and schoi­ arly approachoftheauthorin tho preparation oflhis work. Because of her great interest in the history of culture and art of Afghanistan she gave spontaneous response to my later request to write other guide books. Kabul came next and then Herat each one giving fresh pron!" of how much she understood Afghanistan. This year the Afghan Tourist Organization is happy to present The Road To Balkh and it will be up 1.o the readers to judge the value of this new guide to the northern parts of Afghanistan. I wish to express to Nancy Dupree my gratitude for fil­ ling up one more gap in the path of our tourism develop­ ment program.Who knows what will be in store when we have the pleasure of seeing the Duprees back in Afghan­ istan, next year? ·A. W. Tarzi TABLE OF CONTENTS Page PART ONE -THE ROUTE Via the Shi bar Pass Via the Unai and HajiGak Passes 6 PARTTWO-HISTORY OF A VALLEY 9 PART THREE-THE BUDDHIST PERIOD The Colossal Buddhas and the Monastic Grottos 22 The Foladi and Kakrak Valleys 50 Chinese Accounts of Barniyan Fa Hsien c. 400 A. D. 53 Hsuen-tsung 632 A. D. 55 Hui-ch'ao c. 827 A.O. 58 PART FOUR-THE ISLAMlC PERIOD Shahr-i-Gholghola 60 The Legend ofShahr-i-Gholglmla 64 Kalah-i-Dokhtar 74 Chilsitoon 75 Ajdahar-i-Sorkh Dar 76 The Legend of the Drag\,n 78 Shahr-i-Zohak 81 Sar Khoshak 86 BlBUOGRAPHY 88 SKETCHES : Janet Marxen PHOTOGRAPHS: J. Cudney, M. Johnson, A.S. Asifi PLANS. MAP, TRACINGS: M<'moires de la D.A.F.A. COVER: From black and white by .I. Cudney. KABUl. -BAMIY AN Yia The SHlBAR PASS 246 Kilometers, 154 miks, approximately 7 hours in­ ciuding a half hour lunch ~top. Before the opening of the Salang Highway this was the main highway between Kabul ~.nd MazJr -i- Sharif nmv the traffic i; not so hea V). The asctcnt :o the Shi bar Pass is quite gradual and for this reason the Sh1bar route is prefr:rred by some tl) the precipitous route over the Unai and Hajigak Passes. ·1he road is paved from Kabul to Charibr and Pnl-i­ Matak, about 75 Kilometers. Km.0. Bagh-c-Bala Amir Abdur Rahman's paiace ( r. 1880-1901) in which he died, and is now a restaurant, ('l1 r.orthwcst edge of Kabul. Road forks; left to Paghman and the Kargah Dam, right to Bamiyan. Km. 6. Khair Khana Pass. At the foot and to the right, are the remainsot;a Budd hist settlement which was active during the V century A. D. Principal find, marble group of a Sun God in a chariot drawn by horses, may be seen 1 in the Bamiyan room in the Kabul Museum. The Pass leads into the Koh Daman. Valley. Literally translated, Koh Daman means "Skirts of the Hills", an apt description of this fertile valley and the low ranges which surround the southern approaches to the towering Hindu Kush. Buddhist remains, most unexcavated, can be found throughout the valley from the Khair Khana Pass to its northern limits at Charikar. Km. 17. Kalah Murad-Beg, village. The trees lining the road here are mulberries. Km. 30. Serai Khodja, administrative center. In the low hills to the right are the ruins of a strong fortress known locally as Alexaneer's Fort. It is mure likely, however, of Kushan workmanship of the II - III cen­ turies AD. Km. 38. Road branching off to the left to the pictures­ que village oflstalif, famous for its blue pottery and car­ ved wooden chests. Km. 40 Qara-Bagh, village, Note walls with many slits or loopholes. These are the rooms used' for drying grapes to make raisins; the many slits provide the necessary circulation of air through th'e tows of grapes hung on lines. Koh Daman is justly famous for its grapes and raisins. Km. 47. Road branching ~ff to the right leads to Bagram Airfield, in the vicinity of which lie the ruins of 2 A.S.Asifi . "The mountains are rugged and without vegetation and.have a majestic quality -about them. which is .very impressive.'; the ancient Kushan capital of Kapissa, artifacts from which may be seen in the Kabul Muse um. Km. 62. Charikar, large commercial city, adminis trative center of Parwan Province. Gas pump. Three miles ( 5Kms. ) to the north west lie the ruins of Hopian, identified by some as Alexandria-ad-Caucasum where Alexander had his headquarters while in Afghanis­ tan. Km. 73. Pul -i- Mattak, village. The road to the pic­ turesque Ghorband Valley and to Bamiyan branches off to the left. The road from Charikar continues on to Jebal -us- Seraj ~t the entrance to the Salang Pass. Good bazaar on the roadside in which to buy artistic stone cooking pots. Km. 87. Burj-i- Guljan, Village. Note ruins of caravan serai on left. Km: 109. Sia Gird, village. Islamic ruins to left and right of road. The VII century Buddhist site ofFondukistan lies 3 miles, 5 kms,. to the south. Follow the right bank of the Fondukistan River to the viltage of Fondukistan. Objects hav~ bfen removed and ma:ybe seen in the Kabul Museum. Maiiy decorative motifs parl).llel to those in Bamiyan though Indian influences predominate over the - Sassaniart. Km. 115. Ghorband Bridge. .. Km. 120. Motorable path to left leads through a forest of poplars, Jungal-i-Char Deb, to the banks of the Ghor- 3 band River. Magnificent camping and picnicing spot. Km. 123. Picturesque Char Deb~village. Note primitive paintings on walls of tea houses. Km. 147. Sheikh Ali, village. Km. 154. Deb Nirkh, village. Km. 167. Very attractive Budian Valley, leads into the Taidu-Kul Gorge. Note stupa perched on cliff on right midway through gorge. Km. 176. Beginning of ascent to top of Shibar Pass. (9240 ft.).Watershed of the Indus and Oxus River basins. Km. 192. Shumbol Gorge. Km. 200. Bololah Gorge. Very fine example of a fortified village on the right. Km. 203. Bolo.ah village. Km. 209. Road' forks; left to Bamiyan, right through Shikari Gorge past Sar Khoshak, Doab, where the road to Doshi bifurcates for Aja'r valley, and finally to where it joins the main asphalt road to the north Note ruins of look-out tower on spur to left. Road to Bamiyan follows the Bamiyan River. Km. 229. Bamiyan River meets the Kalu River. Junc­ tion with alternate route from Kabul. On top of the red cliff to the left is Shahr-i-Zohak (Red City) . , Km. 246. Gas pump, Bamiyan. Just beyond the pump, on the left, a lovely tree- lined road winds up to the top of the plateau and the local administration,, buildings, to 4 the ls.imiyanHotel. Shahr-i-Gholghola(Silent City) may be seen on a conical hill to the left as the road nears the top of the platea,• 'KABUL- BAMIYAN Via 'lhe tTN:\I 1\ND Hf\li(:\K P\SSrs ~sok;;,~\';ir_:> '."'-, 11:: rr,<,··,, ~lpprc•\1 --~/' ' inc!udin:! a b~11:·-:-:,:·1,_Fst,-,p fr1 : iu1h:h. Th:: C· ~<L·u_~--~ ...·. j ·:r:J of fords 3!1d (iu6ng ,h·-· .,.i;,ll.'r it is '.H"!lt,) check :he conditior; of '.he 0a~,;.(·s. Km. (\ K()~ai.Sangi ga~.. ,t .th':n :_11: ~he snu1h\Vt~St cdg:e of K~1bul V\'here ~1':: .r<;\J.':'uad :. }s:,.gha1an~1nd Ka11dat1ar begins t:1rn tc :he Kandahar !(:;.:C,· Km.