BUDDHA’S TOOTH RELIC IN DIR MUSEUM, PAKISTAN

BUDDHA’S TOOTH RELIC IN DIR MUSEUM, PAKISTAN

PROF WAQAR HUSSAIN

                    Buddha’s tooth relic is very unique, valuable and sacred commodity for the Buddhists. Luckily, Pakistan has that precious worthy tooth in Dir Museum Chakdara that can attract a massive Buddhist pilgrimage and tourists. Though some countries claim to have such relics but also have many controversies of their claims.

             In China, there is 1200 years old Lingguang Temple (Temple of divine light) at the foot of Beijing’s Western Hills. It houses Buddha’s precious tooth relic in stupa. Hence the temple has become one of the busiest centre of Buddhist pilgrimage in the world.

          In Singapore, there is Buddha Tooth temple which is a living cultural monument in Chinatown. It claims to accommodate sacred Buddha Tooth relic in a stupa composed of 320kg of gold.

             In Sri Lanka, there is a legend that a single tooth remained after Buddha’s cremation. There is myth that whoever had the tooth, had the divine right to rule. So, it is analogous to Shade of Huma (It is a mythical bird having reputation that whoever comes under its shadow becomes a king). There is long tradition behind Buddha tooth currently present in Sri Lanka. It is said that when Buddha died in 543BC, his body was cremated in a sandalwood pyre at Kushinagara in India. His left canine tooth was recovered from the funeral pyre and was given to King Brahmadatte, who kept it in the city of Dantapuri (now Puri, Orissa). Here originated a legend whoever possess the tooth, had the divine right to rule. So, many wars were fought to get the sacred tooth. In 4^th century AD, tooth came into the custody of king Guhaseeva of Kalinga who adopted Buddhism and started worshipping sacred tooth.

             One day the son of King Ksheeradara raised a huge army to snatch the tooth and destroy it. When the forces entered the city, King Guhaseeva secretly sent away his son in law (Prince) Danth and his daughter Hemamala with tooth. She hid the tooth in her hair and royal couple disguised themselves as Brahmin and sailed in Ganga and reached Lankapattana, a Sri Lankan port. Sri Lanka was chosen as new abode for tooth as once Buddha said his religion will be safe in Sri Lanka for 5000 years. King of Sri Lanka Kirthi Sri Meghavarna became overjoyed to heard the news of arrival of sacred tooth and warmly welcomed couple and built a palace for tooth relic and ordered annual festival perhera in honour of sacred tooth. Later, when Sri Lanka was threatened from foreign invaders, capital was shifted from one city to another. Upon each shift, new palace was built to enshrine tooth relic. Finally, it was brought to Kandy where it is now present in Temple of Tooth which attracts a large number of visitors.

                   Luckily, Pakistan has Buddha tooth relic in Dir Museum. Archeologists found the casket in 2003 during excavation of a stupa at Shalkandi area of tehsil Munda in Lower Dir. The relic casket which can invite global attention is lying in the store of the Dir Museum for security reasons.

                  Archaeologists are still grappling with the assumption that a casket relic carrying a small bone may be Buddha’s tooth, which is said to have gone missing in Gandhara.           

                 “The casket had a small piece of tooth-like bone. We assume it in Buddha’s tooth which had gone missing in Gandhara” said Dr. Wahab. The casket cover is made of stone and has a bone like material in it. The cover doesn’t fix the box. We can assume that the casket, more than 2000 year old, was brought here from somewhere else”, experts say.          

             Experts believe that the casket may be the one among those relics which comprised either ash or bone of Buddha which were doled out among 84,000 stupas by Asoka in 261 BC, most probably after the War of Kalinga. Buddhists worship ashes or bones of Buddha kept in such casket and further enclave in dome-shaped stony stupa         

              “Archaeologists and historians from all around the globe are agreed that this the missing relic casket in Gandhara which contains the tooth of Buddha”, Dr Zainul Wahab said. He further added: “This box was taken to international exhibition at Germany and almost all the scholars gathered there said the same story”.

               “There is need to bring such relic in the limelight for further research and recognition but unfortunately security situation and lack of government attention to this historical wealth has often over shadowed such success”, said Dost Muhammad founder of Museum defense Council (MDC).

                 If confirmed through apposite research that the relic casket contains the tooth of Buddha; it could bring worldwide attention, Buddhist pilgrimage and foreign tourists. Consequently our tourist industry will boom, economic prosperity will get fillip and it will also ameliorate our bilateral relationship especially with Buddhist nations.