Travel Guide Balkh

Balkh, "the mother of all the cities": that was what the Arab invaders called the Arab invaders in the th century. And for the reason: the city was a place of civilization where zoroastrianism, Buddhism and Islam succeeded. It houses the oldest mosque in the country. Kabul has also placed the city on the indicative list of UNESCO with a view to a possible inscription to the world heritage of mankind. Today, Balkh can be divided into two entities: the new city, shopping and agricultural, and the old town, largely in ruins, but very pleasant to visit. The city of Balkh is a pashtun settlement in this predominantly Uzbek region. Hashish and cotton are cultivated there.A rich historical past. The city of Balkh is one of the oldest cities in Afghanistan and the legendary birthplace of the philosopher Zarathustra 3 000 years ago. Long, it remained the nerve centre of the zoroastrianism. Later, in 329-327 BC, Alexander the Great married Roxane, daughter of a local lord and founded a Greek city. But the city reached its peak by becoming the capital of the kingdom of Des. It was known as Bactres. In the early centuries after BC, Balkh earned fame as a great Buddhist centre. The pilgrims poured into this town of monasteries and stupas.In the th century, the Arabs arrived in Afghanistan and were impressed by the beauty of the city. In the th century, under the Samanides dynasty, Balkh took over two mosques. This period was a cultural apogee: Balkh welcomed great names of Persian literature, such as Rabia Balkhi, the first poet of the Islamic period. In the th century, the city was endowed with large terracotta walls whose remains are still visible before being embellished in the th century by Ghaznavides and Bursa. The great poet Rumi, son of a Sufi teacher, was born in 1207. He is the greatest Sufi poet of that time, and many consider him to be the best Persian poet. Balkh was then a major trading centre, trading with China and India.But his glory ended in 1221, when Genghis Khan invaded the city, incendia and left it in ruins. At the same time, Mazar-e-Sharif grew up and eventually took over by becoming the region's great cultural and commercial place. In the next Few Centuries, Balkh ended up and still remained a major trade hub. The city was described by Marco Polo as a "great and noble city." In 1768, Ahmad Shah Durrani (1747-1772) crossed Afghanistan's borders in the Amu Darya and Balkh became the headquarters of successive governors of the Afghan state. In 1850, the city was connected to the Kingdom of Afghanistan.