Hinduism in Afghanistan

Hinduism in Afghanistan is practiced by a tiny minority of Afghans, believed to be about 25 individuals who live mostly in the cities of Kabul and Jalalabad.[2][3][4][5][6]

Afghan Hindus

Regions with significant populations
Kabul, Jalalabad
Afghanistan	about 25[1]
Languages
Hindko (native), Pashto, Dari, Hindi
Religion
Hinduism
Related ethnic groups
Hindus, Punjabis, Sindhis

Ekamukhalinga (Shiva linga with one face), Afghanistan

Before the Islamic conquest of Afghanistan, the Afghan people were multi-religious.[7]

Religious persecution, discrimination and forced conversion of Hindus has caused the Hindu, Buddhist and Sikh population to dwindle in Afghanistan.[8]

Sikhs and Hindus continue to flee from Afghanistan as of January 2021.[9]

History

Gold dinar of Kushan king Kanishka II with Lord Shiva (200–220 AD)

There is no reliable information on when Hinduism began in Afghanistan but historians suggest that the territory south of the Hindu Kush may have been culturally connected with the Indus Valley Civilization (5500–2000 BC) in ancient times. At the same time, most historians maintain that Afghanistan was inhabited by ancient Arians followed by the Achaemenid before the arrival of Alexander the Great and his Greek army in 330 BC. It became part of the Seleucid Empire after the departure of Alexander three years later. In 305 BC, the Seleucid Empire lost control of the territory south of the Hindu Kush to the Indian Emperor "Sandrocottus" as result of the Seleucid-Mauryan War.

Alexander took these away from the Arians and established settlements of his own, but Seleucus Nicator gave them to Sandrocottus (Chandragupta), upon terms of intermarriage and of receiving in exchange 500 elephants.[10]

— Strabo, 64 BC – 24 AD

The Indo-Aryan inhabitants of the region- mainly in the southern and eastern parts of the country were adherents of Hinduism. Notable among these were the Gandharis[11]

The Pashayi and Nuristanis are present day examples of these Indo-Aryan Vedic people.[12][13][14][15][16]

When Chinese travelers, Faxian, Song Yun and Xuanzang explored Afghanistan between the 5th and 7th centuries AD, they wrote numerous travelogues in which reliable information on Afghanistan was stored. They stated that Buddhism was practiced in different parts between the Amu Darya (Oxus River) in the north and the Indus River.[17] However, they did not mention much about Hinduism although Song Yun did state that the Hephthalite rulers did not recognize Buddhism but "preached pseudo gods and killed animals for their meat".[17]

Kabul Shahi and Zunbil dynasty

A 5th-century marble Ganesha found in Gardez, Afghanistan, now at Dargah Pir Rattan Nath, Kabul. The inscription says that this "great and beautiful image of Mahāvināyaka" was consecrated by the Hindu Shahi King "Khingala".[18]

Before the Islamic conquest of Afghanistan, the territory was a religious sediment of Zoroastrianism, Zunbils, Hinduism and Buddhism. It was inhabited by various peoples, including Persians, Khalaj, Turks, and Pashtuns. Parts of the territory South of Hindu kush were ruled by the Zunbils, offspring of the southern-Hephthalite. The eastern parts (Kabulistan) were controlled by the Kabul Shahis. The Zunbil and Kabul Shahis were connected with the Indian subcontinent through common Bhuddism and Zun religions. The Zunbil kings worshipped a sun god by the name of Zun from which they derived their name. André Wink writes that "the cult of Zun was primarily Hindu, not Buddhist or Zoroastrian", nonetheless he still mentions them having parallels with Tibetan Buddhism and Zoroastrianism in their rituals.[19][20]

In 653–654 AD, Abdur Rahman bin Samara along with 6,000 Arab Muslims penetrated the Zunbil territory and made their way to the shrine of Zun in Zamindawar, which was believed to be located about three miles south of Musa Qala in today's Helmand Province of Afghanistan. The General of the Arab army "broke of a hand of the idol and plucked out the rubies which were its eyes in order to persuade the Marzbān of Sīstān of the god's worthlessness."[21]

The Kabul Shahi ruled north of the Zunbil territory, which included Kabulistan and Gandahara. The Arabs reached Kabul with the message of Islam but were not able to rule for long. The Kabul Shahis decided to build a giant wall around the city to prevent more Arab invasions, this wall is still visible today.[22]

Willem Vogelsang in his 2002 book writes: "During the 8th and 9th centuries AD the eastern terroritries of modern Afghanistan were still in the hands of non-Muslim rulers. The Muslims tended to regard them as Indians (Hindus), although many of the local rulers and people were apparently of Hunnic or Turkic descent. Yet, the Muslims were right in so far as the non-Muslim population of eastern Afghanistan was, culturally linked to the Indian sub-continent. Most of them were either Hindus or Buddhists."[23] In 870 AD the Saffarids from Zaranj conquered most of Afghanistan, establishing Muslim governors throughout the land. It is reported that Muslims and non-Muslims still lived side by side before the arrival of the Ghaznavids in the 10th century.

"Kábul has a castle celebrated for its strength, accessible only by one road. In it there are Musulmáns, and it has a town, in which are infidels from Hind."[24]

— Istahkrí, 921 AD

The first confirmed mention of a Hindu in Afghanistan appears in the 982 AD Ḥudūd al-ʿĀlam, where it speaks of a king in "Ninhar" (Nangarhar), who shows a public display of conversion to Islam, even though he had over 30 wives, which are described as "Muslim, Afghan, and Hindu" wives.[25] These names were often used as geographical terms. For example, Hindu (or Hindustani) has been historically used as a geographical term to describe someone who was native from the region known as Hindustan (Indian subcontinent), and Afghan as someone who was native from a region called Afghanistan.[26]

Martin Ewans in his 2002 book writes: "Even then a Hindu dynasty the Hindu Shahis, held Gandhara and the eastern borders. From the tenth century onwards as Persian language and culture continued to spread into Afghanistan, the focus of power shifted to Ghazni, where a Turkic dynasty, who started by ruling the town for the Samanid dynasty of Bokhara, proceeded to create an empire in their own right. The greatest of the Ghaznavids was Mahmud who ruled between 998 and 1030. He expelled the Hindus from Ghandhara, made no fewer than 17 raids into India. He encouraged mass conversions to Islam, in Pakistan as well as in Afghanistan."[27]

When Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni began crossing the Indus River into Hindustan (land of Hindus) in the 10th century, the Ghaznavid Muslims began bringing Hindu slaves to what is now Afghanistan. Al-Idirisi testifies that until as late as the 12th century, a contract of investiture for every Shahi king was performed at Kabul and that here he was obliged to agree to certain ancient conditions which completed the contract.[28] The Ghaznavid military incursions assured the domination of Sunni Islam in what is now Afghanistan and Pakistan. Various historical sources such as Martin Ewans, E.J. Brill and Farishta have recorded the introduction of Islam to Kabul and other parts of Afghanistan to the conquests of and Mahmud:

The Arabs advanced through Sistan and conquered Sindh early in the eighth century. Elsewhere however their incursions were no more than temporary, and it was not until the rise of the Saffarid dynasty in the ninth century that the frontiers of Islam effectively reached Ghazni and Kabul. Even then a Hindu dynasty the Hindushahis, held Gandhara and eastern borders. From the tenth century onwards as Persian language and culture continued to spread into Afghanistan, the focus of power shifted to Ghazni, where a Turkish dynasty, who started by ruling the town for the Samanid dynasty of Bokhara, proceeded to create an empire in their own right. The greatest of the Ghaznavids was Muhmad who ruled between 998 and 1030. He expelled the Hindus from Gandhara, made no fewer than seventeen raids into northwestern India and succeeded in conquering territory stretching from the Caspian Sea to Varanasi. Bokhara and Samarkand also came under his rule.[29] He encouraged mass conversions to Islam, of Indians as well as Afghans, looted Hindu temples and carried off immense booty, earning for himself, depending on the viewpoint of the observer, the titles of 'Image-breaker' or 'scourge of India'.[29]

Mahmud used his plundered wealth to finance his armies which included mercenaries. The Indian soldiers, presumably Hindus, who were one of the components of the army with their commander called sipahsalar-i-Hinduwan lived in their quarter of Ghazna practicing their own religion. Indian soldiers under their commander Suvendhray remained loyal to Mahmud. They were also used against a Turkic rebel, with the command given to a Hindu named Tilak according to Baihaki.[30]

In his war on Peshawar and Waihind says al-Utbi, Mahmud acquired 500,000 slaves that included children and girls. Men were sold as slaves to even common merchants. The amount of slaves captured in Nardin plummeted their price and male slaves were even bought by common merchants. After raiding Thanesar, he acquired 200,000 slaves.[31]

The renowned 14th-century Moroccan Muslim scholar Ibn Battuta remarked that the Hindu Kush meant the "slayer of Indians", because slaves brought from India who had to pass through there died in large numbers due to the extreme cold and quantity of snow.[32]

The Ghaznavid Empire was further expanded by the Ghurids. During the Khalji dynasty, there was also free movement between people from India and Afghanistan. It continued this way until the Mughals followed by the Suris and the Durranis.

Modern period

The main ethnic groups in Afghanistan which practice Hinduism today are the Punjabis and Sindhis who are believed to have come along with Sikhs as merchants to Afghanistan in the 19th century.[33] Till the collapse of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan, there were several thousand Hindus living in the country but today their number is only about 1,000.[3] Most of the others immigrated to India, the European Union, North America or elsewhere.

Afghan Hindus and Afghan Sikhs often share places of worship. Along with the Sikhs, they are all collectively known as Hindki.[34] Linguistic demographics among the Hindu community are diverse and generally follow regional origins: those hailing from Punjab generally speak Punjabi, Sindhis speak Sindhi, and the northern and southern dialects of Hindko. The local Hindu community in Afghanistan is mostly based in the city of Kabul. The 2002 loya jirga had two seats reserved for Hindus[35] and former President Hamid Karzai's economic advisor was an Afghan Hindu.

During the Taliban 1996 to late 2001 rule, Hindus were forced to wear yellow badges in public to identify themselves as non-Muslims so they would not be punished for not going to mosques during prayer times. Hindu women were forced to wear burqas, ostensibly a measure to "protect" them from harassment. This was part of the Taliban's plan to segregate "un-Islamic" and "idolatrous" communities from Islamic ones.[36]

The decree was condemned by the Indian and U.S. governments as a violation of religious freedom. Widespread protests against the Taliban regime broke out in Bhopal, India. In the United States, Abraham Foxman, chairman of the Anti-Defamation League, compared the decree to the practices of Nazi Germany, where Jews were required to wear labels identifying them as such.[37] Several influential lawmakers in the United States wore yellow badges with the inscription "I am a Hindu", on the floor of the Senate during the debate as a demonstration of their solidarity with the Hindu minority in Afghanistan.[38][39][40][41]

Indian analyst Rahul Banerjee said that this was not the first time that Hindus were singled out for state-sponsored oppression in Afghanistan. Violence against Hindus has caused a rapid depletion in the Hindu population over the years.[42] Since the 1990s, many Afghan Hindus have fled the country, seeking asylum in countries such as India, Germany and United States.[43]

In July 2013, the Afghan parliament refused to reserve seats for the minority group as a bill reserving seats for the mentioned was voted against. The bill by the then president Hamid Karzai, had tribal people and "women" as "vulnerable groups" who got reservation, but not religious minorities as per the religious equality article in the constitution.[44]

Meeta Jaitley, late mother of Celina Jaitley was born in Kabul to a Hindu family.[45]

Diaspora

Afghan Hindu Diaspora

Total population
Unknown
Regions with significant populations
India, Germany, United Kingdom,United States, Canada, Australia
Germany	7,000-10,000[46]
United States	3,000[47]
United Kingdom	1,600[48]
Languages
Hindko (native), English, Hindi , Punjabi, Pashto (older generation), Dari (older generation)

Ancient Hindu temples

Place	Description	Other information
Sakawand Temple[49]	Logar Province[49]
Polusha[50]	Bhima Devi (Durga) and temple of Maheshvera [50]	Visited by Xuanzang[50]

See also

• Hinduism by country
• Religion in Afghanistan
• Jainism in Afghanistan
• Sikhism in Afghanistan
• Buddhism in Afghanistan
• Pre-Islamic Hindu and Buddhist heritage of Afghanistan
• Khatri
• Punjabis in Afghanistan
• Hindkowan

References

1. "Country Policy and Information Note Afghanistan: Sikhs and Hindus/" (PDF). Retrieved 27 March 2020.
2. https://www.nytimes.com/2001/05/23/world/taliban-propose-an-identity-label-for-the-protection-of-hindus.html
3. Sikhs struggle for recognition in the Islamic republic, by Tony Cross. November 14, 2009.
4. "Latest world news, breaking world news - MSN India". Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 31 March 2017.
5. Legal traditions of the world: sustainable diversity in law, H. Patrick Glenn Edition 3, Oxford University Press, 2007
6. "Dark days continue for Sikhs and Hindus in Afghanistan". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 12 May 2015.
7. Al-Hind, the Making of the Indo-Islamic World: Early medieval India and the expansion of Islam, 7th-11th centuries, Volume 1 of Al-Hind, the Making of the Indo-Islamic World, André Wink, ISBN 90-04-09509-8, Publisher BRILL, 1990.
8. Kumar, Ruchi. "The decline of Afghanistan's Hindu and Sikh communities". aljazeera.com. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
9. Bagchi, Joymala. "Sikh Afghan Nationals Narrate Their Stories Of Fear, Suppression And Anxiety Faced In Kabul". businessworld.in. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
10. Nancy Hatch Dupree / Aḥmad ʻAlī Kuhzād (1972). "An Historical Guide to Kabul – The Name". American International School of Kabul. Archived from the original on 30 August 2010. Retrieved 18 September 2010.
11. UNESCO World Heritage Centre: Taxila
12. Minahan, James B. (10 February 2014). Ethnic Groups of North, East, and Central Asia: An Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. p. 217. ISBN 9781610690188. Historically, north and east Afghanistan was considered part of the Indian cultural and religious sphere. Early accounts of the region mention the Pashayi as living in a region producing rice and sugarcane, with many wooded areas. Many of the people of the region were Buddhists, though small groups of Hindus and others with tribal religions were noted.
13. Weekes, Richard V. (1984). Muslim peoples: a world ethnographic survey. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 601. ISBN 9780313233920.
14. Khanam, R. (2005). Encyclopaedic ethnography of Middle-East and Central Asia. Global Vision Publishing House. p. 631. ISBN 9788182200654.
15. "The Pashayi of Afghanistan". Bethany World Prayer Center. 1997. Retrieved 11 April 2019. Before their conversion to Islam, the Pashayi followed a religion that was probably a corrupt form of Hinduism and Buddhism. Today, they are Sunni (orthodox) Muslims of the Hanafite sect.
16. Richard F. Strand (31 December 2005). "Richard Strand's Nuristân Site: Peoples and Languages of Nuristan". nuristan.info. Archived from the original on 1 April 2019. Retrieved 19 January 2012.
17. "Chinese Travelers in Afghanistan". Abdul Hai Habibi. alamahabibi.com. 1969. Retrieved 9 August 2012.
18. For photograph of statue and details of inscription, see: Dhavalikar, M. K., "Gaņeśa: Myth and Reality", in: Brown 1991, pp. 50,63 harvnb error: no target: CITEREFBrown1991 (help).
19. André Wink, Al-Hind: The Making of the Indo-Islamic World, Brill 1990. p 118
20. "Parallels have been noted with pre-Buddhist religious and monarchy practices in Tibet and had Zoroastrianism in its ritual". Al- Hind: The slave kings and the Islamic conquest. 2, page 118. By André Wink
21. André Wink, Al-Hind: The Making of the Indo-Islamic World, Brill 1990. p 120
22. "The Kabul Times Annual". Kabul Times Pub. Agency, Information, Culture Ministry., 1970. p. 220.
23. by Willem Vogelsang, Edition: illustrated Published by Wiley-Blackwell, 2002 Page 188
24. "A.—The Hindu Kings of Kábul (p.3)". Sir H. M. Elliot. London: Packard Humanities Institute. 1867–1877. Archived from the original on 26 July 2013. Retrieved 18 September 2010.
25. Vogelsang, Willem (2002). The Afghans. Wiley-Blackwell. p. 18. ISBN 0-631-19841-5. Retrieved 16 August 2012.
26. David Lorenzen (2006). Who Invented Hinduism: Essays on Religion in History. Yoda Press. p. 9. ISBN 9788190227261.
27. Afghanistan: A New History, by Martin Ewans Edition: 2, illustrated Published by Routledge, 2002 Page 15 ISBN 0-415-29826-1, ISBN 978-0-415-29826-1
28. Al-Idrisi, p. 67, Maqbul Ahmed; Al-Hind, the Making of the Indo-Islamic World, 1991, p. 127, Andre Wink.
29. Afghanistan: a new history by Martin Ewans Edition: 2, illustrated Published by Routledge, 2002 Page 15 ISBN 0-415-29826-1, ISBN 978-0-415-29826-1. "He encouraged mass conversions to Islam, of Indians as well as Afghans, looted Hindu temples and carried off immense booty, earning for himself, depending on the viewpoint of the observer, the titles of 'Image-breaker' or 'Scourge of India'."
30. Romila Thapar (2005). Somanatha: The Many Voices of a History. Verso. p. 40. ISBN 9781844670208.
31. Al-Hind the Making of the Indo-Islamic World: The Slave Kings and the Islamic Conquest : 11Th-13th Centuries by Andre Wink, Published by BRILL, 1990 Page 126 ISBN 9-004-10236-1, ISBN 978-9-004-10236-1.
32. Christoph Witzenrath (2016). Eurasian Slavery, Ransom and Abolition in World History, 1200-1860. Routledge. p. 45. ISBN 978-1-317-14002-3. Ibn Battuta, the renowned Moroccan fourteenth century world traveller remarked in a spine-chilling passage that Hindu Kush means slayer of the Indians, because the slave boys and girls who are brought from India die there in large numbers as a result of the extreme cold and the quantity of snow.
33. Majumder, Sanjoy (25 September 2003). "Sikhs struggle in Afghanistan". BBC. Retrieved 17 December 2009.
34. "Hindki". Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition. Archived from the original on 11 August 2010. Retrieved 15 September 2007.
35. Afghanistan's loya jirga BBC 0- June 7, 2002
36. Taliban to mark Afghan Hindus Archived 2007-02-21 at the Wayback Machine, CNN
37. Taliban: Hindus Must Wear Identity Labels, People's Daily
38. "U.S. House condemns Taliban over Hindu badges – WWRN – World-wide Religious News". Retrieved 31 March 2017.
39. "ForAmerica President Brent Bozell and FNC's Megyn Kelly Discuss Eric Cantor's Primary Loss". 12 June 2014. Archived from the original on 5 November 2016. Retrieved 31 March 2017.
40. "rediff.com US edition: US lawmakers say 'We are Hindus'". Retrieved 31 March 2017.
41. "Afghanistan News Center". Retrieved 31 March 2017.
42. US Lawmakers Condemn Taliban Treatment Of Hindus Archived 2008-05-25 at the Wayback Machine, CNSnews.com
43. Immigrant Hinduism in Germany: Tamils from Sri Lanka and Their Temples, pluralism.org
44. "We condemn the discrimination against Sikhs and Hindus of Afghanistan". Kabul Press. Retrieved 12 May 2015.
45. "'Accident...' will show another side of me: Celina". 26 December 2009.
46. https://www.remid.de/info_zahlen/hinduismus/
47. "Afghans in New York Metro Area". Unreached New York.
48. "Edward Snowden: the whistleblower behind the NSA surveillance revelations | US news". The Guardian. 9 June 2013. Retrieved 6 March 2016.
49. Buddhist caves of Jāghūrī and Qarabāgh-e Ghaznī, Afghanistan, by Giovanni Verardi, Elio Paparatti Page 102
50. A History of Civisalition of Ancient India Vol 11, by Romesh Chander Dutt, p. 135

External links

• www.afghanhindu.info
• The Afghan Hindu Association of America
• Hindus abandon Afghanistan, Hinduism Today, 2 April 1994
• Inscription throws new light to Hindu rule in Afghanistan, Indian Express 5 January 2010