Requiem for a smile Buddha
Islamic warriol robbed a grenade launcher and caught the goal, pressed the trigger. Fiery footprint rushed to a gigantic statue. Flash, explosion, hail of stone fragments. The face of the stone colossus and before that it was disgraced. Now instead of chela – scary chick. But this Taliban is not enough – the mysterious smile of the Buddha. Smile enlightenment.
Blood flows and endless human suffering in Afghanistan no one will not be surprised. However, the Taliban does not get tired to shock the world. Now they execute human history. Guide to Afghan Movement "Taliban" It was assimary to destroy all the unique monuments of the Queen of the Quera, even those that are stored in the Kabul Museum.
True, all those who came from the depths of the centuries of the spiritual leader of the Taliban Mulla Mohammad Omar monuments at all and does not consider. From his point of view, the destruction is subject to "Simple stones". "In accordance with the teachings of Islam, it does not bother me anything but compliance with its canons", – manshedrally stated by.
TO "Simple stones" Mullah Omar is also ranked the highest 53-meter stone statue of the Buddha, cut off in the niche of the world-famous cave monastery near the city of Bamian, which is about 150 kilometers west of Kabul.
And in the first hours of the sacred for Muslims of the day – Friday, March 2, when all the faithful, it would seem, simply obliged to show kindness towards all the disadvantaged, militarized detachments of the Ministry of Sharia morality and the fight against debauchery, having received the order of Mullah Omar, with screams "Allah Akbar!" (Allah is great) began to massacre. "To destroy false idols, we use all means, including guns and tanks", – Not without pride announced the whole world of Kudratulla Jamal, performing in the Taliban administration duties of the Minister of Information and Culture.
However, in such a context, the word itself "Culture" looks clearly in the thorny body, if not to say more. But what can you do: Taliban have a Taliban. However, have not yet been erased in the memory of the event, when in 1998 the leadership "Taliban" Special decree obliged Afghan citizens confessing Hinduism, carry a distinguishing bandage on her hand.
Little distinctive signs are unwittingly recall – "Stars David", who forced to wear Jews fascists. By the way, the fascists had his own odious minister of information, Goebbels, who just like his Taliban colleague, with the word "Culture" grasped for a gun. However, Kudatulla Jamal is clearly shared. With the heritage of world culture, the Taliban are fighting not pocket small arms, but the most difficult – tanks, artillery and even rockets.
The words of the Afghan poet and our contemporary Suleiman Laika turned out to be voluntarly or involuntarily prophetic: "Only a bird – the night prophet, rush at the stone feet, will make that the path is now – theft and barbarism path that the fate of the fate will die". In his century, Afghanistan did a lot of vandals. But, in perhaps, for the first time, the destruction of the historical and cultural heritage of this ancient country was deliberately engaged not by the sediments, but "their" rulers.
The first Buddhist monks appeared in the Bamian, this hard-to-reach Mountain Area of Central Afghanistan, still at the dawn I century new era. And immediately started the construction of a cave monastery. By the end of the III – the beginning of the IV century in the rocky niche of the facade of the monastery was cut down 38-meter "Small Buddha", And two centuries later in another niche appeared and large – 53 meters high. "Buddha" And in the literal sense, the Word became the world’s largest statue of Tsarevich Siddhartha Gautama (623-544 BC), who was destined to achieve the state of higher perfection and establish one of three – along with Christianity and Islam – world religions.
The Buddhist monastery was cut down in the rocks consisted of more than two thousand grots with stairs and transitions. It was decorated with numerous statues, filigree wall murals, amazing on the beauty of the carved decor. Already in the middle of the first millennium, our era, the cave temple enjoyed the glory of one of the largest centers of Buddhist religion, where the pilgrims were flocked from everyone – without exaggeration – the ends of the world. The monastery survived two and a half millennia to be destroyed at the very beginning of the third, when it would seem, a civilized look at the cultural heritage won finally and irrevocably.
Honestly, demolition of historical and cultural monuments for Afghanistan is not new. But they usually were engaged in alien conquerors. So, in the XIII century in Bamian – the main center of Buddhism of those times – came in Genghis Khan. Great Khan Mongol Empire, argue legends, ordered to destroy the sculpture of the Buddha "in revenge" For the fact that during the siege of the Mongols of the Balka, in the north of Afghanistan, one of his relatives died. However, fortunately, Genghis Khan did not have guns and tanks to be divided with stone colosses.
Both statues relatively safely survived the inconsistency not only in these places of the Horde of Genghis Khan, but also Timur, as well as all the rest. Moreover, for all 1200 years of existence on the territory of Afghanistan, Islamic faith – Islam was listed here by Arabs, who at the beginning of the 7th century went on a hike on Sind, – no of the rulers of this country did not occur to consider the Bamian sculptures of the Buddha "idols" and try to demolish them.
But from our contemporaries stone buddhas. In the 80s, a mountain artillery was shot on them. As for the Taliban, they are fighting with sculptures for the second time. In 1997, when they first found themselves in the area, the shells were seriously damaged by the face of one and belly of another statue.
Now, in Afghanistan, the conscious destruction of all NEIST Historical Monuments began in. It is not difficult to guess, in what despair is all, to whom the roads of cultural monuments. Does not hide his emotions and famous Indian archaeologist, participant in many scientific expeditions to Afghanistan Senguput.
– Taliban, denying past of humanity, deprive themselves places in his future, – without hiding anger, says the archaeologist. – They destroy not some "idols", And the creations of the spirit and hands of the whole people and one of the largest civilizations of Asia. Where the desert sands and stones are now dominated by the powerful state with high culture and wide connections with the rest of the world.
Afghanistan, being at the crossroads of the Great Silk Road, became the owner of a unique cultural heritage, which influenced the influence of Persia and Ancient Greece, Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam. And the Bamian himself with its high level of development, in various ways, religious variety and tolerance turned into something similar to a large caravan-shed on this path.
In addition to typical Buddhist stumps, personifying the sacred mountain, which is considered the center of the Universe, as well as Vajr, symbolizing lightning – the highest strength and power, the Afghan land kept many cultural monuments of at least an ancient Hindu Kushansky kingdom (I – III century new era). At one time, they decorated the cities of Ningrachar (the current Hadda) or Kapis (now. Made of the Reliefs and Statues made for many years, archaeologists from different countries collected. Among them was Senguput. "Invaluable finds – he remembers, – passed to the Kabul archaeological museum to envy all other storage facilities".
Exposition of the Kabul Museum, as well as a collection of Buddhist gliptic – the art of a thread on precious stones – from Hudda was considered one of the best collections of Buddhist antiquities. Figurines found in Afghanistan, carry the strongest influence of both ancient plastics and the style of Indian culture of Gandhara.
Now this collection, and so largely lost over the years of almost 20-year war, has become another target of the Taliban, regarding unique works of art as "idols", which is not a place in "the most pure Islamic state".
However, the current announcement of the War Buddha is still not the beginning, but rather the final stage, one can say, Agony Campaign Fanatikov-obsobesov. As the Ambassador of Greece in Pakistan Dimitris Lundras, who heads one of the Society for the Preservation of Afghanistan’s Cultural Heritage, even before the promulgation of the decree of Mullah Omar of the destruction of the idols around 60 statues of Buddha from the vaults of the Kabul Museum has been destroyed "Izlamic faith clean".
No wonder in vain "fanaticism", As a rule, it is mentioned in a pair with definition "blind". And excessive proof – Decree Mullah Mohammed Omar, who sentenced to death "all reports of worship objects".
The senseless act of vandalism did not leave anyone anyone else’s indifferent. The words of anger and condemnation were made by UN, UNESCO, the governments of various countries, including Russia, religious figures, master of culture, scientists. However, on the call of the UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan not to destroy the ancient monuments Foreign Minister Taliban annoyed: "Abandoned monuments are not our concern".
But, which is noteworthy, although the Taliban and cover their actions to Islam, none of the Muslim countries on the territory of which there are monuments of the Quality Starny, and did not support it "Iconobracy". With the call, not destroying the monuments of ancient culture turned to the Taliban even their ally – Pakistan, one of the three countries with which the official Kabul has diplomatic relations and which providing Taliban all the assistance. Appealed to the Taliban and one of the oldest Pakistani scientists Dani. "Neither Islam nor the Quran do not contain the requirements of destroying historical monuments, – he assures. – Anyone must strictly adhere to his faith, but at the same time he must respect someone else’s religion and its followers".
The reaction of Iran was similar, where there is also enough of their NEISC antiquities. Even after the Islamic Revolution of 1979, the barbaric thought of the ancient religious capital of Ahmedenidov – Persepol or other monuments of later Zoroastrian times literally strangled the province of Farci in Iran. Moreover, the organization of the cultural heritage of Iran called on the international community, including UNESCO, to stop urgently "Taliban vandalism that discredit Islam". "Stupid statements of the leaders of the Taliban, – emphasized in the statement, – show how far they are from Islam".
And in general, whether the Taliban has any reason to cover their vandalism Islam, when even the Supreme Mufti Egypt Sheikh Nasre Farid Vasale expressed surprise on this? The influential religious authority of Muslim-Sunnites has no doubt that the sculptures of the associate epoch, who decided to destroy in Afghanistan, "represent only the display of history and can not negatively affect the Muslim faith". Moreover, mufti compared Buddhist monuments in Afghanistan with numerous ancient associate monuments on the Egyptian land that is carefully protected to this day. And the giant statues of Pharaoh Ramses II in Abu Simbel at one time were generally transferred to another, a higher place to avoid flooding during the construction of the Asuan dam. Mufti firmly confident that Buddhist sculptures in Afghanistan can be preserved, and this does not contradict Islam.
And this is not talking about some scholar or there a public figure, on whose opinion, the impression is created, the Talibans are deeply noted, and Mufti Nasre Farid Vasale, whose fetwas (prescriptions) have the power of the law for Sunnis, which are the Taliban themselves.
Here, the children’s booster is involuntarily coming to mind that for someone "The law is not written if the written is not chitan if the chitan is not understood if they are understood – then not!" Probably, therefore, Mullah Mohammad Omar on the worldwide storm of protest reacted extremely briefly and clearly: "Nothing cares me, except Islam. Preservation of monuments and statues illegally and sinning. All statues that persist in various parts of the country must be destroyed. They represent the deities of pagans".
But it was possible to prevent this madness or at least stop him? As practice shows, international sanctions do not justify hopes imposed on them. On the contrary, they even more harbing the Taliban. The UN Security Council in December last year introduced an embargo on trade and economic ties with Kabul in support of the requirement to give the justice of the international terrorist Usama bin Laden. So what? The organizer throughout the world terrorist attacks remains "expensive guest and friend" Talibov, copes in Afghanistan the wedding of his son and – as if in a mockery above all the light – reads ODD to the glory of terror. Approximately the same happens now: you are against us sanctions, and we are against you all – or rather, against all your idols – orthodox with explosives, scans and sledgehammers.
Or maybe it’s time to create international forces on the salvation of cultural heritage, a kind "Cultural special forces", If the Taliban of Normal Language does not understand? But, however, as long as they are formed, there will be nothing to save in Afghanistan.
In a desperate attempt to save the dying monuments, the Government of India expressed her willingness to provide asylum to the Bamian colossos. And New York "Metropolitan Museum" generally offered the Taliban to sell everything they are going to destroy. According to the director of the Museum Phillip de Montebello, specialists and art historians are ready to come to Afghanistan at their own expense and take out all monuments and sculptures from the country, which will only be able to.
Special Representative of UNESCO, former Ambassador of France in Pakistan Pyer Lafrance was sent to negotiations with Taliban from Paris. At the meeting in Kandaharé, the Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Taliban Administration Vakil Mutavakil made it clear to the representative of UNESCO that the destruction of the Quality Monuments is irreversibly – they say, the order is not a government, but the theologians, and their verdicts are required for the administration. So no chance. And the request of Lafrans about the meeting with Mullah Omar was rejected under the pretext that Mullah is busy on a Muslim holiday.
About what is happening now directly in Bamyan, no one with confidence can say. Journalists do not let. From there only fragmentary and sometimes contradictory information from random eyewitnesses.
However, it is almost formerly known that at the time of delivery of this material in the set already two thirds of Buddhist monuments in Afghanistan were destroyed. The leadership of the Taliban’s ruling movement was not constrained that such a fate awaits all Buddhist shrines without exception.
And the Taliban began their own, the so-called new cultural revolution from those monuments that can be destroyed without much difficulty – in Kabul museums, Jelalabad and Herat, a significant part of clay and wooden sculptures are broken.
And then they took over the stone colosses of the Bamian. As a prelude execution pounced on face "Little Buddha" car tire and set fire. But in "Big Buddha" Rocket and artillery salts were produced. Lower half of the giant statue is already destroyed by projectiles.
However, as they say, the famous "Smile enlightenment" Buddha is still recognizable. That will only disappear by the enlightenment on the spiritual leaders of the Taliban? So far hope for it is very ghost. The promise of the Minister of Information was too blasphesed, again Mullah Kudatullah Jamal, that the Kabul Museum will be reopened to visit. But only after it is over "cleaning" His collections.
