Religions of the Hindukush: The Pre-Islamic Heritage of Eastern Afghanistan and Northern Pakistan

The traditional religions of the remote tribes along the northern borderlands between Afghanistan and Pakistan, with their complex cosmology of gods and demons, preserved elements from archaic Indo-Aryan, and possibly even pre-Vedic, beliefs. While these regions were converted to Islam by the early 20th century, the deeply conservative nature and isolation of these tribes have combined to perpetuate, often in coexistence with Islam, ancient religious practices long extinct elsewhere in Asia. The author, a renowned Austrian anthropologist, integrates the diverse scholarly studies of colleagues in the fields of linguistics, cultural history and archaeology with his own field investigations to construct an authoritative account of the religious practices of this remote, still poorly understood corner of Asia.A groundbreaking and indispensable reference both for the general student of Asian religions and for specialists focussed on the tribal cultures of eastern Afghanistan and Pakistan's North-West Frontier Province. Read more