The Hunnic tribes in the Hindukush

The intersection of Afghanistan's Wakhan corridor, the southern hills of Tajikistan, the northern tip of Khyber-Pakhunkhwa province of Pakistan, and the Gilgit-Baltistan region of India's Union Territory of Ladakh has long stood as the threshold for countless invaders and rulers from various ethnicities. The Hindukush-Pamir realm has served as a gateway to a myriad of empires, each bringing with them diverse cultures—Buddhist, Hindu, and Islamic. In the Puranic verses, this region is called Nisadha, encompassing the valleys of Kuha (Kunhar River), Gauri, and Sindhu (Indus) rivers. Long before the Saffarids, Samanids, and Taharids populated the Afghan, Pakistani, and Tajik realms, smaller Vedic nations inhabited what was known as Uttara Parvat or Ashreya.

Kingdoms such as Taksasila, Rajapura, Simhapura, Kasmira, Parinotsa Udyana, Gandhara, Nagarahara, Lampa, Kapisa, and Bamiyana separated the Tushara or Tukhara kingdom from the Takka in the south—today's Punjab valley of Pakistan. These independent kingdoms were vibrant centers of Buddhism, Zoroastrianism, Jainism, Nestorian Christianity, Shamanism, and Animism. Yet the Hindukush valley has always been under threat due to its strategic location. As the Göktürks expanded in Central Asia and Maharajadhiraja Harshavardhana triumphed in the Indo-Gangetic plains, the Hindukush acted as a natural buffer of small kingdoms between these vast empires. Consequently, it was inevitable that any invader seeking to enter Indian lands would pass through these mountainous valleys. And so it was, during the pre-Islamic era, that the ferocious Hunas arrived. But who were these Hunas, and how did they come to these lands?

The cultural and philosophical exchanges that occurred with the Hunnic invasions were profound, leaving a mark that would last for centuries. Sanskrit and its dialects mixed with Bactrian, leading to the evolution of Dari in modern Afghanistan—a language deeply influenced by this fusion. Middle Persian, the language of the Sassanian Empire, mingled with Hunnic Bactrian and Sogdian, and traces of this hybrid language can still be found across Tajikistan, Iran, and Afghanistan. Meanwhile, Prakrit, widely spoken in the Hindukush, was also adopted by the Hunas.

Religious conversion and the destruction of places of worship during this period remain controversial topics, fraught with complexity. The prominent religions of the time—Buddhism, Shaivism, Zoroastrianism, and Manichaeism (a fusion of Buddhism, Zoroastrianism, and Christianity)—were impacted by the animistic Hunnic Shamanism and Tengerism, which led to the destruction of many Buddhist monasteries. Shaivism was particularly significant in this era, a time when Hinduism, as we know it today, had not yet fully formed. Devotees of Shiva often clashed with Vaishnavites, a rivalry that persisted into the 15th century. Despite these conflicts, religious syncretism thrived: Toramana (r. 493–515 AD) patronized Shaivism alongside local customs. The Buddhist art in Gandhara also exhibited Greek influences, spreading these artistic styles across other regions.

Among the Hunnic rulers, Toramana and his son, Mihirakula, are the most prominent. Toramana was relatively tolerant and adaptable, while Mihirakula's cruelty and barbarism hastened the decline of Hunnic rule. Worse still, their actions weakened the Gupta Empire, leading to territorial losses, disruptions in trade, and a decline in cultural influence. Yet the Hunnic invasions also devastated the Hindukush kingdoms, where the destruction of Buddhist monasteries tore at the socio-religious fabric of the region. This destruction created a void, one that was later filled by Islamic rulers. The smaller kingdoms, disunited and fragmented, were prime targets for the expanding Rashidun and Umayyad Caliphates. The remnants of the Kidarites and Hephthalites were unable to resist the Islamic onslaught that would come in the following centuries.

Further south, the chaos unleashed by Mihirakula in Malwa prevented rulers like Yashodharman from mounting a defense against future Islamic invasions. The Silk Route, once a thriving trade corridor from China to Turkey through Central Asia, was also disrupted by the Hunnic invasions. Towns in the Hindukush, once flourishing commercial hubs, saw their trade networks crumble, forever changing the landscape of culture and commerce in the region.

It is astounding to realize that the very tribe that shattered the backbone of the Hindukush states originated centuries earlier in today's Mongolia-Manchuri region. From the east, waves of invaders swept through the Hindukush, culminating in the arrival of Islam in the Afghan territories—a cultural boiling point that forever changed the fabric of Indian states.