Samangan

Samangan, also known as Aybak, lies in the valley of the Khulm River north of the Hindu Kush. Its name belongs to the country celebrated in the Persian epic of Rostam and Sohrab. Near the town is Takht-i Rustam, a Buddhist sanctuary carved into the rock: a stupa stands within a circular trench, with monastic chambers nearby. The monument recalls a time when Buddhism flourished along the routes between Bactria and the mountain passes, before Islam became established in the region.