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Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa · 33.9992°, 71.5918°
The ruined mound at Shaji-ki-Dheri outside Peshawar's old walled city is the base of the colossal relic stupa raised by the Kushan emperor Kanishka; excavation there recovered a rock-crystal reliquary holding fragments of bone identified as relics of the Buddha. Chinese pilgrims described it as one of the tallest buildings of the ancient world, and the site was re-identified in 2011 though it remains unpreserved.
What follows is the temple’s own traditional account, transmitted through liturgy and local memory. It is recorded here as tradition, not as attested history.
Buddhist texts record a prophecy that Kanishka would build a great stupa bearing his name on the spot where a small boy had piled up a stupa of mud, and that celestial beings helped to raise it.
coordinates: wikipedia-2026-08-28 · sources retrieved 2026-08-26 · dynasty page: Kushan
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