کانیشکا سټوپا | |
 1899 engraving showing the remnants of the Kanishka Stupa inShaji-ki-Dheri | |
  Kanishka stupa Shown within Pakistan Show map of Pakistan Kanishka stupa Kanishka stupa (Gandhara) Show map of Gandhara | |
| Location | Peshawar,Khyber PakhtunkhwaPakistan |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 33°59′58″N71°35′30″E / 33.9994°N 71.5918°E /33.9994; 71.5918 |
| Type | Stupa |
| Part of | Kushan Empire andWhite Huns |
| Height | 400 feet (120 m) to 560 feet (170 m) |
| History | |
| Periods | 2ndC.E. |
TheKanishka Stupa (Pashto:کانیشکا سټوپا;Urdu:کنشک اسٹوپ) was a monumentalstupa established by KingKanishka ofKushan during the 2nd century CE in today'sShaji-ki-Dheri on the outskirts ofPeshawar,Pakistan.
The stupa was built during the Kushan era to house Buddhist relics, and was among the tallest buildings in the ancient world.[1] The stupa is also famous for its Buddhist relics, which were transferred to the U Khanti Hall atMandalay Hill, inMandalay,Burma after their discovery.[2][3]
According to Buddhists the building of the stupa was foretold by the Buddha:
The same story is repeated in aKhotanese scroll found atDunhuang, which first described how Kanishka would arrive 400 years after the death of the Buddha. The account also describes how Kanishka came to raise his stupa:
The original Kushan stonestupa was probably built after the death ofKanishka the Great,[7] between 150 and 300 CE, but probably circa 151 CE, with a shape similar to the contemporaryLoriyan Tangai stupas and the addition ofschist reliefs.[7]
The stupa was rebuilt under Kushan rule in the 4th century CE into acruciform stupa with a tower-like structure, with four staircases and four corner bastions, and possibly pillars at each corner.[7] The stupa's symmetrically cross-shapedplinth measured 175 feet (53 m), though the plinth had large staircases at each of the stupa's sides. In total, the base of the stupa may have spanned 272 feet (83 m) on each side.[7] The plinth was likely decorated with sculpted reliefs,[7] while niches built into the dome's four cardinal points was inlayed with precious stone.[7] The tall wooden superstructure was built atop a decorated stone base,[7] and crowned with a 13-layer copper-gildedchatra.[7] Modern estimations suggest that the stupa had a height of 400 feet (120 m).[7]
![Ground plan of the second stupa, of a cruxiform shape. The central square plinth is 175 feet (53 m) wide, the full width, including the stairs is 272 feet (83 m).[6]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aShah-ji-ki-Dheri_stupa_plan.jpg)
![A Stupa-shaped reliquary, the design of which might be used to explain the reported great height of the Kanishka stupa. Jaulian monastery.[6]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aJaulian_Stupa_A11_reliquary.jpg)
The stupa's wooden superstructure was rebuilt atop the stone base,[7] and crowned with a 13-layer copper-gildedchatra.[7] In the 5th century CE, stucco imagery was probably added to the site, in keeping with contemporary popularity for Buddhist imagery.[7]
Sung Yun noted in the early 6th century that the tower had been struck by lightning at least three times, having been rebuilt after each strike.[7] The tall stupa with a copper top acted as alightning rod. This propensity to attract lightning strikes may explain the dearth of any surviving examples of wooden-tower stupas.[8]
In 726 CE, the Korean pilgrimHyecho visited Gandhara and saw the Kanishka monastery and stupa, of which he said in hisMemoir of the pilgrimage to the five kingdoms of India (Chinese:往五天竺國傳): "The monastery is called Kanishka. There is a great stupa which constantly glows. The monastery and the stupa were built by the former king Kanishka".[a]
The stupa was discovered and excavated in 1908–1909 by a British archaeological mission underDavid Brainard Spooner, and led to the discovery in its base of theKanishka casket, a six-sided rock crystalreliquary containing three small fragments of bone,[10] relics of the Buddha (which were transferred toMandalay,Burma) and a dedication inKharoshthi involving Kanishka.[2][3]
In the 400s CE, theChinese BuddhistpilgrimFaxian visited the structure and described it as "the highest of all the towers" inthe "terrestrial world",[7] which ancient travelers claimed was up to 560 feet (170 m) tall,[7] though modern estimates suggest a height of 400 feet (120 m).[7]
In 520 CE,Sung Yun describes the stupa in the following terms:
The stupa is believed to have influence later constructions of "tower stupas" throughout ancientTurkistan.[7] The construction of wooden towers topped with metalchatras made such buildings act as lightning rods, which could explain why such towers have all but disappeared.[8]
The site has not been preserved. The location was re-identified in 2011. It is located outside the Gunj Gate of the old Walled City of Peshawar and is called Akhunabad.[11]
