INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Taliban defeated by the quiet strength of Pakistan's BuddhaMINGORA: The Buddha of Swat, carved on a cliff
in the seventh century, was dynamited by the Pakistani Taliban in 2007
Now it has been restored, a powerful symbol of tolerance in the traumatised valley.The holy figure, depicted in a lotus position at the base
foothills of the Himalayas.There the Italian government has been helping to preserve hundreds of archaeological sites, working with local
authorities who hope to turn it into a place of pilgrimage once more and pull in sorely needed tourist dollars.A decade ago, the militants
Another, smaller fresco nearby was torn to pieces.For Shaheen, the statue is "a symbol of peace, symbol of love, symbol of brotherhood"."We
The Vajrayana school even consider it a "holy land", from where their faith originated.They continued to visit right up until the 20th
population are Muslim.Buddhism for its part disappeared from the region around the 10th century AD, driven out by Islam and Hinduism.Its
golden age in Swat lasted from the second to the fourth centuries, when more than 1,000 monasteries, sanctuaries and stupas spread out in
constellations across the valley."The landscape was worshipped in itself," says Luca Maria Olivieri, an Italian archaeologist who oversaw
the restoration of the Buddha."The pilgrims were welcomed by these protective images, sculptures and inscriptions, arranged along the last
Carried out in phases, it began in 2012 with the application of a coating to protect the damaged part of the sculpture
The reconstruction of the face itself was first prepared virtually in the laboratory, in 3D, using laser surveys and old photos.The last
phase, the actual restoration, ended in 2016
Olivieri says the reconstruction is not identical, but that is deliberate, as "the idea of damage should remain visible"
The Italian archaeological mission in Swat, which he directs, has been there since 1955 -- though it was briefly forced from the valley
It manages other excavation sites and supervised the restoration of the archeological museum in Mingora, the main city of Swat, damaged in
striving to involve the local population as much as possible
Thailand.Years after the Taliban were ousted, the valley is largely rejuvenated, though at times security is still tense.Some people in Swat
also see the Buddha as a tool for promoting religious tolerance.Fazal Khaliq, a journalist and author living in Mingora, thinks the threat
to cultural heritage has been "minimised" through education and the use of social networks to spread a "soft, good" image.However, "the
majority of people who are not young, educated -- they still do not understand" its importance, he admits.
