The Buddhas of Bamiyan

Bamiyan, Afghanistan used to be home to two of the tallest standing Buddha statues in the world, carved in the 6th century. However, in 2001, they were destroyed by the Taliban. I visited the site where the statues once stood and studied the remaining fragments of the Buddhas and their empty niches. The site carries a significant historical and cultural value and it was truly disheartening to witness the destruction that occurred here due to religious extremism. However, I did learn about the efforts currently underway to reconstruct the Buddhas and potentially restore their former glory.