A Drive to Paharpur- 07/16/07
By Luke Juran, University of Iowa

The sultry day commenced at 8:00 am with the group loading into the bus for a 100 kilometer trip from Rajshahi to Paharpur. Paharpur- pahar meaning ‘hill’ and pur meaning ‘place’- is a UNESCO World Heritage Site that represents the largest Buddhist monastery south of the Himalayas. Paharpur was constructed in the 8^th century and covers a 27 acre area. There are 177 rooms where Buddhist monks used to live and teach the ways of Lord Buddha. In the center of the historical, religious, and archaeological site is a large temple built on a manmade hill, hence the name Paharpur (hill place). Buddhism is a religious minority in Bangladesh, with Buddhists representing less than one percent of the population.

Paharpur, a Buddhist site funded by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)

The most interesting part of the trip to Paharpur was the journey getting there. The 100 kilometer trip, which is a little over 60 miles, took close to four hours to complete. The roads were mostly paved, but littered with massive potholes, intermittent sections of dirt, and were often only one lane. We passed through a countless number of villages and towns and got a better flavor of rural lifestyle. The major crop being produced was rice, with sugarcane, banana, jute, betel, and fruits and vegetables also being grown. A couple farmers were using small diesel tractors, a few were plowing their fields with cattle-pulled plows, while most of the work was extremely labor intensive being performed by hand.

Rice paddies as far as the eye can see

The domestication of multiple varieties of animals was overwhelmingly visible. Goats, cattle, and an occasional sheep were grazing in the rice paddies, ditches, and around the houses eating agricultural waste, grass, and weeds. There were a preponderance of goats, but there were even more ducks and geese. Ducks and geese were spotted walking in groups alongside the road, swimming and eating in the rice paddies, and meandering around the villages. At one point, the bus had to stop to let a group of ducks cross the road-- a veritable ‘duck crossing’! Furthermore, some of the fowl were covered in neon pink markings so the owner could identify them, which made for some interesting colored ducks and geese. The fowl are used for both eggs and meat.

Some of Bangladesh’s finest goats . . . soon to be some of Bangladesh’s finest cuisine!

After enjoying our destination of Paharpur, we had lunch and embarked on our long return journey. En route back to Rajshahi we stopped to visit Kusumba Mosque, a place of worship for Muslims that was constructed 510 years ago by Moghul ruler Sultan Nashrat Shah. A few kilometers later we visited at a betel farm. Betel leaves are chewed after a meal and act as a stimulant and help aid digestion. Because it is a stimulant, betel is also consumed as a drug and is commonly consumed by drivers and laborers. As we visited the betel farm, a village cricket game was being played and live chickens were being sold in the background.

Bangladesh at a glance: river bank erosion in the foreground, a cricket game on the left, and chicken vendors on the right.

The remainder of the ride back to our hotel consisted of winding through villages and seeing more agriculture and domesticated animals. There were many timber shops along the road selling firewood, bureaus, wood for personal use, and even a few boat-builders. One last interesting sight was passing a caravan of six van rickshaws (tricycles used for transporting goods) filled to the brim with cow dung formed on sticks. Each ‘dung kebab’- known as nodas in the Bengali language- is sold for around 5 takas (7 cents) and is used as fuel for cooking food.

Nodas drying to be sold as fuel for cooking

After returning to Rajshahi we ate some real kebabs at a restaurant and went back to the hotel to prepare for tomorrow’s surely extraordinary day.