Mohenjo-daro

Mohenjo-daro
Urdu: موئن جو دڑو‬‎

It is an ancient Indus Valley Civilization city that flourished between 2500 and 1900 BCE. Located in the Larkana district of Sindh, Mohenjo-daro means ‘mound of the dead’. Although no greenery around, this dry landscape is a beauty itself and its history is what makes it standout today.

It is an archaeological site in the province of Sindh, Pakistan. Built around 2500 BCE, it was one of the largest settlements of the ancient Indus Valley civilization, and one of the world's earliest major cities, contemporaneous with the civilizations of ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, Minoan Crete, and Norte Chico. Mohenjo-daro was abandoned in the 19th century BCE as the Indus Valley Civilization declined, and the site was not rediscovered until the 1920s. Significant excavation has since been conducted at the site of the city, which was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1980. The site is currently threatened by erosion and improper restoration.

Mohenjo-daro is located west of the Indus River in Larkana District, Sindh, Pakistan, in a central position between the Indus River and the Ghaggar-Hakra River. It is sited on a Pleistocene ridge in the middle of the flood plain of the Indus River Valley, around 28 kilometres (17 mi) from the town of Larkana.

The ridge was prominent during the time of the Indus Valley Civilization, allowing the city to stand above the surrounding flood, but subsequent flooding has since buried most of the ridge in silt deposits. The Indus still flows east of the site, but the Ghaggar-Hakra riverbed on the western side is now dry.

Mohenjo-daro was built in the 26th century BCE. It was one of the largest cities of the ancient Indus Valley Civilization, also known as the Harappan Civilization, which developed around 3,000 BCE from the prehistoric Indus culture.

At its height, the Indus Civilization spanned much of what is now Pakistan and North India, extending westwards to the Iranian border, south to Gujarat in India and northwards to an outpost in Bactria, with major urban centers at Harappa, Mohenjo-daro, Lothal, Kalibangan, Dholavira and Rakhigarhi. Mohenjo-daro was the most advanced city of its time, with remarkably sophisticated civil engineering and urban planning. When the Indus civilization went into sudden decline around 1900 BCE, Mohenjo-daro was abandoned

The ruins of the city remained undocumented for around 3,700 years until R. D. Banerji, an officer of the Archaeological Survey of India, visited the site in 1919–20, identifying the Buddhist stupa (150–500 CE) known to be there and finding a flint scraper which convinced him of the site's antiquity. This led to large-scale excavations of Mohenjo-daro led by Kashinath Narayan Dikshit in 1924–25, and John Marshall in 1925–26. In the 1930s, major excavations were conducted at the site under the leadership of Marshall, D. K. Dikshitar and Ernest Mackay.

Further excavations were carried out in 1945 by Mortimer Wheeler and his trainee, Ahmad Hasan Dani. The last major series of excavations were conducted in 1964 and 1965 by Dr. George F. Dales. After 1965 excavations were banned due to weathering damage to the exposed structures, and the only projects allowed at the site since have been salvage excavations, surface surveys, and conservation projects. However, in the 1980s, German and Italian survey groups led by Dr. Michael Jansen and Dr. Maurizio Tosi used less invasive archeological techniques, such as architectural documentation, surface surveys, and localized probing, to gather further information about Mohenjo-daro. A dry core drilling conducted in 2015 by Pakistan's National Fund for Mohenjo-daro revealed that the site is larger than the unearthed area.

Mazar-e-Quaid

Mazar-e-Quaid
(Urdu: مزار قائد‬‎),

also known as the Jinnah Mausoleum or the National Mausoleum, is the final resting place of Quaid-e-Azam ("Great Leader") Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan. Designed in a 1960s modernist style, the mausoleum also contains the tomb of his sister, Māder-e Millat ("Mother of the Nation") Fatima Jinnah, and that of Liaquat Ali Khan, the first Prime Minister of Pakistan.

The mausoleum was completed in 1970, and is an iconic symbol of Karachi. The mausoleum is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Karachi.

^{The mausoleum is located in the Jamshed Quarters neighborhood of Karachi, along the northern edge of the colonial-era core. The mausoleum is surrounded by a large garden which offers a calm and tranquil environment in the large and bustling metropolis. The illuminated tomb can be seen at night from far distances.} 

The Mausoleum building was designed by famous architect Yahya Merchant. It is made of white marble with curved Moorish arches and copper grills reset on an elevated 54-square-meter platform. The mausoleum is located in a 53-hectare park and the building has a footprint of 75 by 75 m (246 by 246 ft) with a height of 43 m (141 ft), built on a 4 m (13 ft) high platform.

In each wall is placed an entrance. Fifteen successive fountains lead to the platform from one side and from all sides terraced avenues lead to the gates. The cool inner sanctum reflects the green of a four-tiered crystal chandelier gifted by the People's Republic of China. Around the mausoleum is a park fitted with strong beamed spot-lights which at night project light on the white mausoleum.

In the interior of the grave complex, there are three graves in a row and one to the north. The northern one, which is decorated with a series of black floral design at the base, belongs to Miss Fatima Jinnah, Quaid-e-Azam's sister.

Out of the three graves, the northern one belongs to Liaquat Ali Khan, the first Prime Minister of Pakistan. The extreme southern grave belongs to Sardar Abdur Rab Nishtar. In the middle lies buried Nurul Amin, who rose to be the Vice-President of Pakistan.

All these graves are made of Italian white marble, and they are of the box type, like the sarcophagus of Jinnah, placed on a triple base. But the sides of these graves are tapering inward while that of Jinnah are diverging outward. These are all plain graves, except that of Mohtarma Fatima Jinnah, which has a basal floral ornamentation.

Official and military ceremonies take place here on special occasions, such as on 23 March (Pakistan Day), 14 August (Independence Day), 11 September (the anniversary of Jinnah's death) and 25 December (Jinnah's birthday). Dignitaries and officials from foreign countries also visit the mausoleum during official tours. On 14 August 2017, Pakistan's Independence Day, it was used for paying a tribute to Jinnah through 3d projection mapping show by 3D illumination.

Taxila

Taxila
(Urdu: ٹيکسلا‬‎),

 is a city in Rawalpindi District of the Punjab, Pakistan. Taxila is situated about 32 km (20 mi) north-west of Islamabad and Rawalpindi, Near N 125 Khanpur Road 3 km famous Tofkian Orange valley Wakefield Gardens. along the historic Grand Trunk Road, near the important Sikh pilgrimage centre of Hasan Abdal, and the Mughal-era Wah Gardens.

Ancient Taxila was historically referred to as Takshashila in Sanskrit, and Takkasila in Pali. The earliest settlement at Taxila was founded around 1000 BCE at the Hathial site. The Hindu epic poem Mahābhārata is believed to have been first recited at Taxila, by the sage Vaiśampāyana. By some accounts, Taxila was home to one of the earliest, if not the first, universities in the world.

Taxila's ruins are internationally renowned, and function as a series of interrelated sites, including: a mesolithic cave, the remains of 4 ancient cities, and Buddhist monasteries and stupas. The ancient ruins of Taxila were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1980.

Taxila was in ancient times known in Pali as Takkasila,^[12] and in Sanskrit as Takshashila (IAST: Takṣaśilā). The city's Sanskrit name means "City of Cut Stone". The city's ancient Sanskrit name alternately means "Rock of Taksha" – in reference to the Ramayana story that states the city was founded by Bharata, younger brother of the central Hindu deity Rama, and named in honour of Bharata's son, Taksha.

The city's modern name, however, is derived from the ancient Greek recording of the ancient city's name, noted in Ptolemy’s Geography. The Greek transcription of Taxila became universally favoured over time, while the Pali and Sanskrit versions fell out of use.

 Taxila is one of northern Pakistan's most important tourist destinations, and is home to the Taxila Museum which holds a large number of artifacts from Taxila's excavations.

In 2017, the Pakistani government announced its intention to develop Taxila into a site for Buddhist religious pilgrimage. As part of the efforts, it announced that an exhibition on the Buddhist heritage of the region would be held in Thailand, and that the Thai government would assist in conservation efforts at the site. Relics from Taxila were also sent to Sri Lanka for the 2017 Vesak holiday as part of an effort to showcase the region's Buddhist heritage. The Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation also announced in 2017 that a tour bus service would be launched between the Taxila Museum and Islamabad.

In addition to the ruins of ancient Taxila, relics of Mughal gardens and vestiges of historical Grand Trunk Road are also found in Taxila. Nicholson's Obelisk, named in honour of Brigadier John Nicholson who died in during the Sepoy Mutiny of 1857, is a monument from the British era that welcomes travelers arriving from Rawalpindi/Islamabad.

Museums

Taxila Museum has one of the most significant and comprehensive collections of stone Buddhist sculpture from the first to the seventh centuries in Pakistan (known as Gandharan art.






The core of the collection comes from excavated sites in the Taxila Valley, particularly the excavations of Sir John Marshall. Other objects come from excavated sites elsewhere in Gandhara, from donations such as the Ram Das Collection, or from material confiscated by the police and custom authorities.

Wagah border

Wagah border

Wagah Border: This is the border between Lahore, Pakistan and Amritsar in India. It is famous for its daily flag-lowering ceremony which is carried out by both countries before sunset. The gates are unlocked and the soldiers from both countries carry out a parade which then leads to lowering the flags, folding them, handshake between soldiers from either side and shutting the gates. All of this is witnessed daily by spectators in Amritsar and Lahore every day, with chanting and singing.

  
The lowering of the flags ceremony at the Wagah border is a daily military practice that the security forces of India (Border Security Force, BSF) and Pakistan (Pakistan Rangers) have jointly followed since 1959.The drill is characterized by elaborate and rapid dance like man oeuvres and raising legs as high as possible, which have been described as "colorful". It is alternatively a symbol of the two countries’ rivalry, as well as brotherhood and cooperation between the two nations.

This ceremony takes place every evening immediately before sunset at the Wagah border, which as part of the Grand Trunk Road was the only road link between these two countries before the opening of the Aman Setu in Kashmir in 1999. The ceremony starts with a blustering parade by the soldiers from both sides, and ends up in the perfectly coordinated lowering of the two nations' flags.

It is called the Beating Retreat border ceremony on the international level. One infantryman stands at attention on each side of the gate. As the sun sets, the iron gates at the border are opened and the two flags are lowered simultaneously. The flags are folded and the ceremony ends with a retreat that involves a brusque handshake between soldiers from either side, followed by the closing of the gates again.

The spectacle of the ceremony attracts many visitors from both sides of the border, as well as international tourists. In October 2010, Major General Yaqub Ali Khan of the Pakistan Rangers decided that the aggressive aspect of the ceremonial theatrics should be toned down. The soldiers of this ceremony are specially appointed and trained for this auspicious ceremony. They also have a beard and mustache policy for which they are paid additionally.

After the India–Pakistan military confrontation on 29 September 2016 the border closing ceremony continued, but on the Indian side public attendance was denied on the evenings between 29 September and 8 October 2016. As a sign of the increased tensions, the BSF did not exchange sweets and greetings with Pakistani Rangers on Diwali 2016, despite a long tradition of doing so on major religious festivals like Bakr-Eid and Diwali, and also during Independence Days of both countries.

Golra Sharif

Golra Sharif (Urdu: گولڑہ شریف‬‎),

 is a town situated near the Margalla Hills, in the Islamabad Capital Territory, Pakistan, at about 520 m (1,710 ft) above sea level, 17 km (11 mi) from the ancient city of Taxila. 

The Museum of Meher Ali Shah, Golra Sharif has much significance for the people of the Pothohar Plateau and yearly anniversary of the Pir Meher Ali Shah which is attended by thousands of people every year to pay their regards.

Golra Sharif is widely known for its last custodian (Sajjada Nasheen) Pir Syed Naseer Uddin Naseer Gilani and spiritual place's Custodian (Sajjada Nasheen) is Pir Syed Shah Abdul Haq Gilani, the younger son of Babuji.

Prior to the arrival of Meher Ali Shah's ancestors Golra Sharif was just a small village in the suburbs of Rawalpindi.

Golra Sharif also has fundamental importance geographically. The vast tracts of Margalla Hills and their adjoining plains have been witness to a vast panorama of chequered history. 

The area extending from Hasan Abdal to the neighborhood of Taxila, a settlement traced back to 2000

years, is custodian of a rich cultural heritage of pre-Islamic period. Even today the archaeological remains dotting the area furnish evidence of the splendid cultural and religious traditions of Buddhist era.

Eminent historians of the world agree that it was here that Greek wisdom and Indian civilization meshed together to bring about a synthesis which influenced cultures and art movements everywhere.

With the passage of time, it was overrun by many foreign invaders, such as Greeks, Persians, Afghans, White Huns, Mughals, Sikhs and the British.