Traders, Kings and Pilgrims

Kanishka I — King and Buddhist Patron:

Kanishka is celebrated in Buddhist tradition for convening the Fourth Buddhist Council (either in Jalandhar or Kashmir; different sources disagree). The council collected and codified Buddhist texts — resulting in a large scholarly commentary (Mahavibhasha). This council is associated with the rise of Mahayana (Great Vehicle) Buddhism; the Mahayana/Theravada distinction crystallised gradually over centuries and was not formally decided at a single council.

Kushana coinage: Kushana coins are remarkable for showing deities from multiple traditions — Greek (Heracles, Helios), Roman (Serapis), Iranian (Mithra, Ahura Mazda), Indian (Shiva, Nana), and Buddhist (Buddha himself). This religious eclecticism reflects the Kushanas' position at the crossroads of civilisations on the Silk Route.

Gandhara art: The Kushana period produced the Gandhara school of art — a fusion of Greek/Roman naturalism with Buddhist religious themes. The Buddha image (an anthropomorphic representation of the Buddha) was first created in the Gandhara region under Kushana patronage (~1st–2nd century CE). Earlier Buddhist art (Sanchi, Bharhut) had avoided depicting the Buddha's human form, using symbols (wheel, footprints, empty throne, Bodhi tree). The Gandhara Buddha figure — with Greek-style wavy hair, toga-like robes, and naturalistic features — became the template for all subsequent Buddha images across Asia.

[Additional] Silk Road UNESCO WHS and India-BRI Policy (GS1 — Art & Culture / GS2 — India Foreign Policy):

UNESCO inscription — Chang'an-Tianshan Corridor:

India's Silk Road tentative list (WHL tentative ref. 5492):

• Submitted by ASI: 20 January 2010
• 12 component sites across 7 states (Bihar, J&K, Maharashtra, Puducherry, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, UP)
• Part of a proposed transnational South Asia serial nomination (with Bhutan, China, Nepal)
• UNESCO/Korea Funds-in-Trust project supporting the South Asia Silk Road nomination was approved July 2013
• Status as of 2025: Still on tentative list only; no inscription submitted

India and BRI — Official Position:

India is the only major BRICS economy that has not joined the Belt and Road Initiative. India's official objection:

IMEC — India's strategic connectivity alternative:

The ancient Silk Road → modern BRI parallel: The ancient Silk Roads (3rd century BCE – 15th century CE) connected China, Central Asia, India, Persia, and Rome. China's BRI explicitly invokes this history to legitimise its modern connectivity ambitions. India's counter-argument: the ancient Silk Roads were multi-centred (India was a major node, not merely a destination), whereas BRI is China-centric. IMEC represents India's attempt to reclaim its role as a connectivity hub rather than a BRI spoke.

UPSC synthesis: Silk Road UNESCO = GS1 Art & Culture. Key exam facts: Chang'an-Tianshan WHS = WHL No. 1442, inscribed 22 June 2014, countries = China + Kazakhstan + Kyrgyzstan, 33 sites, criteria (ii)(iii)(v)(vi); India's Silk Road tentative list = ref. 5492, submitted Jan 2010, 12 components, 7 states — NOT yet inscribed; BRI = India NOT joined = CPEC passes through PoK (sovereignty reason); MEA language = "connectivity must respect sovereignty and territorial integrity"; IMEC = announced G20 New Delhi September 2023, India-Gulf-Europe multimodal corridor. Prelims trap: The Silk Road UNESCO WHS (2014) does NOT include India (only China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan); India has Silk Road sites on tentative list only (NOT inscribed); India's BRI objection is specifically about CPEC through PoK (NOT a general anti-China stance); IMEC was announced at G20 (NOT ASEAN or SCO).

[Additional] Nalanda Mahavihara UNESCO WHS and University Revival (GS1 — Art & Culture / GS2 — Diplomacy):

Ancient Nalanda Mahavihara — UNESCO inscription:

Nalanda Mahavihara — historical significance:

• Founded by Kumaragupta I (Gupta dynasty, ~5th century CE)
• At its peak: ~10,000 resident students + 1,500 teachers; students from China, Korea, Japan, SE Asia, Central Asia, Sri Lanka
• Chinese pilgrims Xuanzang (629-645 CE) and Yijing (671-695 CE) studied at Nalanda — their accounts are the most detailed surviving records
• Library ("Dharmaganj") reportedly had three multi-storey buildings; destroying it took months to burn
• Destroyed by Bakhtiyar Khilji (~1193 CE) — marking the effective end of Indian Buddhist institutional scholarship

Revived Nalanda University — timeline:

18 participating EAS countries: Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos PDR, Mauritius, Myanmar, New Zealand, Portugal, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam.

Nalanda University as soft power:

• Under Ministry of External Affairs (not Ministry of Education) — explicitly a diplomatic project
• India's ancient Nalanda connected India to Buddhist Asia; the revived university aims to reconnect India to East and Southeast Asian Buddhist nations
• Buddhist Circuit tourism, ancient Nalanda WHS, and revived university form a three-part heritage diplomacy ecosystem

UPSC synthesis: Nalanda = GS1 Art & Culture + GS2 diplomacy. Key exam facts: Ancient Nalanda Mahavihara = UNESCO WHL No. 1502, inscribed 15 July 2016; ~23 hectares; Rajgir area, Bihar; criteria (iv)(vi); founded by Kumaragupta I (Gupta); destroyed by Bakhtiyar Khilji (~1193 CE); Nalanda University Act = Act No. 39 of 2010, Presidential assent 21 September 2010; EAS framework = 2nd EAS Jan 2007 endorsed, 4th EAS Oct 2009 formalised; 18 EAS countries participating; new campus inaugurated by PM Modi on 19 June 2024 at Rajgir Bihar; under Ministry of External Affairs (NOT Education). Prelims trap: Nalanda Mahavihara WHS inscribed in 2016 (NOT 2014 or 2007); criteria = (iv)(vi) (NOT (i)(ii)); the WHS is the ancient ruins (WHL 1502); the revived university is a separate entity (established 2010, campus 2024); Nalanda University is under MEA (NOT Ministry of Education); Xuanzang and Yijing studied at Nalanda (NOT Fa-Hien — Fa-Hien visited Nalanda only briefly/may not have studied there during the Gupta period before its peak).