A Flourishing Late Buddhism in Northern Afghanistan?

Prof. Etienne de la Vaissière (EHESS, Paris)

Abstract

New textual and archaeological evidences concur to the idea of a late economic flourishing of Buddhist monasteries along the middle course of the Amu Daria in the 7th c. AD, an hypothesis strikingly at odds with the accepted narrative of a sharp decline of Buddhism before the Islamic conquests. Results from surveys in the Bactra oasis will be presented, among other data.

Bio

Etienne de la Vaissière is Professor of Central Asian Medieval History at the Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales (Paris).  A specialist of Trade (Sogdian Traders, 2001, 2005) he has enlarged his interests toward Nomadic History, and also Acculturation process, especially islamisation (Samarcande et Samarra, 2007, Islamisation de l’Asie centrale, 2008). He is currently writing a history of Central Asia (4th-9th c. AD) and is collaborating with the Délégation archéologique française en Afghanistan.