Our heritage
Bangladesh is a country rich in archaeological wealth, especially of the medieval period, both the Muslim and pre-Muslim rules. Its heritage reveals the ancient legacies of the Buddhist, Hindus and Muslims. The early history of Bangladesh reveals that Buddhism received royal patronage from some important ruling Hindu dynasties like the great Pal rulers, the Chandras and the Deva Kings. Under their patronage numerous well-organised monasteries sprang up all over the country. The combination of Dravidian, Indo-Aryan, Mongol/Mughal, Arab, Persian, Turkish, and West European cultures have also enriched our heritage. Here, kings, sultans and conquerors competed with each other to build beautiful palaces, mosques and temples. But we have failed to preserve many of these ancient structures because of our collective carelessness. Still we have enough time to protect heritage sites for at least: : Reviving our golden past : Conferring it on future generations : Upholding social, spiritual, ethical and legal obligations etc. Heritage places are often described as either natural or cultural heritage. In reality they often have a blend of natural, historic and aboriginal heritage significance. For example, the vast landscape of Paharpur, the largest monastery south of Himalayas contains important terracotta plaques, images of different gods and goddesses, potteries, coins, inscriptions, ornamental bricks, minor clay objects, ecosystems, wonderful native paintings and engravings, sites of great spiritual significance and interesting historic features. Understanding this multifaceted heritage place means distinguishing all the different elements of significance. The following steps can be considered for heritage awareness: 1. From primary to university level, beside Bengali and English, tourism should be prescribed as a compulsory subject. 2. Newspapers, television, radio and other media have to be instructed to produce shows and weekly supplementary on culture and heritage. 3. There should be exhibitions to highlight unknown aspects of heritage. 4. Every year a heritage festival should be observed in every district. 5. Writers and experts on heritage have to be patronised to raise awareness. The government is expected to formulate a series of rules and standards to manage and protect cultural relics and create national standards for both conservation and awareness building.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel.
Comments