Some of the earliest relics of Stone Age man were found in the Soan valley near Rawalpindi,
dating back to at least 50,000 years. Predominantly an agricultural region, its inhabitants
learned to tame and husband animals and cultivate crops some 9,000 years ago. Farming
villages dating from 6000 BC have been excavated in Baluchistan, the North West Frontier
Province and Punjab.
The Indus Valley Civilization is considered to have evolved around 2600 BC. Built on the
ruins of fortified towns near Kot Diji, it is now believed to have emerged from farming
communities of the area. The Civilization boasted immense cities like Moenjodaro and
Harappa. These towns were well planned, with paved main roads, multistoried houses,
watchtowers, food warehouses, and assembly halls. Their people developed an advanced
script that still remains un-deciphered. The Indus Civilization's decline around 1700 BC is
attributed to foreign invaders, who at some sites violently destroyed the cities. But with recent
research, historians have become unsure as to the exact causes of decline of the Indus
Civilization.
Aryans, who were rough cattle breeders, came from Central Asia around 1700 BC, seeking
grazing land for their herds. Their religion was well developed, with gods identified from
elements of nature. They followed a strict caste system, which later became Hinduism. They
wrote the first book of Hindu scripture, the Rig Veda, which was a collection of hymns
remembered through several generations. Some anthropologists believe that there is no real
historical evidence to prove the coming of Aryans, and consider their coming as a myth.
In sixth century BC, the people of the region were getting increasingly dissatisfied with the
Hindu caste system. When Buddha, son of a Kshatriya king preached equality in men, his
teachings were quickly accepted throughout the northern part of the Sub-continent. Around
the same time Gandhara, being the easternmost province of the Achaemenid Empire of
Persia, became a major power in the region. Its two cities - Pushkalavati, or present day
Charsadda near Peshawar, and the capital Taxila, were the center of civilization and culture.
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