HARIPUR: The Jandial Temple in Khanpur tehsil here is a testament to the historical interactions between Hellenistic and local traditions in ancient Pakistan, showing the cultural exchanges that took place at the important crossroads of the ancient world, said documentarian and poet Talib Ansari on Tuesday.

During a session of Lok Chaupal at Wakefield Garden in Khanpur here, Mr Ansari said although the exact purpose of the Jandial Temple was under debate after centuries, the scholars believed that it might have been a Zoroastrian fire temple or a Buddhist sanctuary.

“A raised platform at the Jandial Temple standing on an artificial mound dates back to the first century BC, indicating a space used for fire worship, aligning with Zoroastrian religious practices,” he said.

The expert said the temple, located 630 meters north of the northern gate of Sirkap, was excavated in 1912–1913 by the Archaeological Survey of India under John Marshall.

He said that the temple was built in the Scythio-Parthian period and was believed to be the temple described by Philostratus in his Life of Apollonius of Tyana.

Mr Ansari said the structure of the temple was in limestone and kanjur with plaster on the facade, patches of which were still intact, while some large columns and pillars were constructed with massive blocks of sandstone.

He also discussed the brazen tablets about Porus and Alexander the Great.

Retired DIG Police conducted the event, where Malik Ushtar Ali and Iftikharuddin Siddiqui of the Gandhara Resource Centre, historian Raja Noor Mohammad Nizami, Malik Najeebur Rehman of Aiwan-i-Danish), Malik Asif Mehmood of Watan Dost Forum, Ilyas Mughal, Raja Ejaz Gohar and representatives of local social and cultural organisations of the region were in attendance. A question answer session was held afterward.

Published in Dawn, October 9th, 2024