A BUDDHIST TEMPLE AND THE SETTLEMENT OF KUVA

Kuva is located 30 km from Fergana. The exact data when the town was founded is unknown, the archeological finds prove that the settlement appeared in the 3rd century BC. The archaeological site is located along the central road.

According to the study based on the Arab written sources of the Х century, the medieval city was known as “Kuba”, which means the same as "Tepa" in Turkic - "hill" or “hillock”. There is also another version of the name "square". During the archaeological excavations that were repeatedly carried out on the territory of the settlement, many cultural layers of different periods were unearthed, and this is not surprising, because the new city was always built on the top of ruins of the previous one.

The important political and economic position of Kuva was also indicated by the presence of a mint in the city. The fact that coins were minted in Kuva in the X century was proved in the late 50s. During the excavations of the fifties, 14 of the 21 coins published to date were found in Kuva, which are practically unknown outside the Ferghana valley. These coins were cast in bronze and resemble the Chinese "Wu-Shu" in appearance. They are round, somewhat different in size. Some of them are known with a diameter of 2.7 and 2.9 cm with a square hole 0.8 x 0.8 cm. On the front side of the rim, bordering the coins in a circle and around the perimeter of the hole. To the left of the hole, the Turkic title "Khakan"is written in Sogdian script. On the right is the Tamga (ancestral sign) of the ruler who issued the coin.

According to Arabic sources, the ancient city consisted of three parts: a citadel - shakhristan (inner part of the city) and rabad (residential part of the city). The site is close to the square, remained part of the citadel up to 10 m; from the North, South and East surrounded by suburbs, the area which extends more than 1 km from the centre of the monument. The cultural layer on the hillfort is up to 9 m, the upper layers are most fully studied. In Shahristan, areas of residential development of the XI-XII centuries (manors with a courtyard) were excavated. In Shahristan, several rectangular rooms of the VII-VIII centuries were studied (the flat ceiling was supported by 4 wooden columns) with hearths in the center.

Some sections of a 7th century sanctuary or temple complex were excavated in the northern part of shahristan, consisting of a series of entrance rooms, a central courtyard, and two large halls. In Rabat, there are traces of production: glazed and unglazed dishes, a brick kiln (Northwest of Shahristan), and traces of glassmaking. For the first result of archaeological excavations became the confirmation the version about an all-time peak of crafts in ancient Kuva.

Today, there is already scientific evidence that the city was the center for the production of glass for the entire Fergana Valley.

Glass in Kuva was so cheap that numerous household items were made from it: beautiful examples of glassware, vases and vessels, and glass pots were made for children's cradles. The color of the glass ranged from transparent to black, and it had completely different shapes. Chinese Chronicles of the VIII-IX centuries, claiming that the then ruler of Fergana gave the "secret of glassmaking" by sending his glassblowers to the "celestial Empire", who, having mastered it, found quartz sand suitable for making glass there.

Under the archeological strata dating to the 10th-11th century the archeologists discovered the remains of a Buddhist temple. Built on a natural hill, it towered over the whole settlement. The remains of the temple were hidden by cultural strata of the subsequent period, including three tiers of the 10th- and 11th- century graves. The temple was built of adobe bricks and pakhsa (rammed loam and straw mixture), whereas the overhead cover was made of wood. Although what survived of the temple strong walls was the structure not exceeding two metres in height, the archeologists managed to reconstruct the layout of the Buddhist religious complex. In the southern part of the temple there was a deep niche with an ayvan under a wooden roof. The wall of the ayvan still contains fragments of a painting that served as a background for sculptures. In the niche there were also discovered debris of two sculptures of horses and warriors. The temple contained fragments of monumental sculpture, statues of various gods, confirming the spread of Buddhism in the Fergana valley.

Near the entrance, blocking it, lay a clay figure of the Buddha, the size of two and a half human growth. Fragments of statues of other Buddhist characters were found nearby, including the head of the goddess Sri Devi, painted black, the defender of Buddhism. The archeologists believe that the sculptures in the ayvan depicted the scene of fight between the forces of good, led by Sri Devi, and the forces of evil, led by Marah (the demonic tempter of Prince Siddharha Gautama who meditated under the Bodhi tree to gain enlightenment) Buddha’s enemy. In the niches of the resulting images of Mahesvara ("Great God") and Buddha Vajradhara. Apparently, in the early medieval Kuva there was a Buddhist temple belonging to the vajrayan or diamond path-a method of rapid transformation based on the motivation and philosophy of the great Mahayana Path with an independent view, behavior and practice of meditation.

Tibetans view Hinayana, Mahayana, and Vajrayana as the three directions that make up the three main stages of the Buddhist path. From the Tibetan point of view, one who is on the path to enlightenment first practices Hinayana, then Mahayana, and finally Vajrayana. Archeologists have not yet determined the exact age of the Buddhist temple in Kuva. It is only clear that its heyday fell on the second half of the 7th century, while in the 8th century the temple was destroyed by Arabs. At least the ruins of the sanctuary and the other parts of the temple bear visible traces of fire. 

Abu'l-Abbas Ahmad Ibn Muhammad Ibn Qatir al-Farghani (797-865) was a mathematician and astronomer who lived in the 9th century, also known as Alfraganus in the West. Ahmad al-Ferghani was one of the scholars of the House of Wisdom, an institution founded in the ninth century by Caliph al-mA'mun. The works of Ahmad al-Ferghani, such as "The book on the beginnings of the science of astronomy", "A Compendium of the Science of the Stars” or elements of astronomy on the celestial motions, "the Book of astronomical movements, and a Summary of the science of stars", "Thirty Elements", "Theoretical calculations on the sphere" are among the first works in Arabic on astronomy. At the end of the book, al-Ferghani placed a table of known geographical locations, placing them according to seven climates from East to West with coordinates. Al-Ferghani is also the author of "Introduction to geography", "Names of countries and cities known on Earth, as well as their climatic conditions". Ferghani's works in the field of astronomy have been used in Europe for 700 years as an encyclopedia and textbook. As a practitioner and observing the heavenly bodies, al-Ferghani made many discoveries. So, he scientifically proved the spherical shape of the Earth, set the date of the longest day of the year - June 22, and the shortest - December 23. Ferghani also discovered the existence of sunspots and predicted a solar Eclipse that occurred in 832.

The scientist spent the last years of his life in Cairo. Where he composed a treatise on the astrolabe, a tool for determining the location of the stars and measure the distance between them. There, he also supervised the construction of the large Nilometer. It was erected under the leadership of al-Ferghani in 861 to measure the water level in the Nile. The al-Ferghani nilometer, located on the Rowda island. This instrument allowed the height of the Nile to be measured in the event of a flood. This building still remains one of the capital's attractions. The archaeologist from Fergana, candidate of historical Sciences Gennady Ivanov suggested that Kuva is a birthplace of the famous scientist. Based on strict scientific data and the results of the last archaeological expedition to the ancient settlement, the fact of the famous scientist's stay in Kuva was confirmed, which led to the opening of a memorial complex in the homeland of the great scientist in 1998.

METHODICAL RECOMMENDATIONS:

1. Warn the group about walking tour (45 min). Follow the safety rules when crossing the road.

2. The guide should take the group to the al-Fargoni monument and to tell them about the great scientist.

3. First of all, take the group to the first point and show them the part of manor and streets, then take the group to the opposite side of the settlement and show them the place of a Buddhist temple.

4. When observing tour is over, take the group back to the first point of the excursion and provide 10-15 minutes of free time for photography.

Compiled and translated by: Azarenko E., a guide of the first category. 

Tourism development institute under the State Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan for Tourism Development

👉 Join it: https://t.me/guide_portfolio