Buddhism itself flourished in Kashmir during the 1st century CE when Kashmir was a part of the Kushana Empire. Its greatest Emperor, Kanishka I was a great proponent of Buddhism and ruled over a vast Empire which stretched from Western Afghanistan to Pataliputra in the south and from Central Asia and Tarim Basin in China, to Central India. Kashmir was a part of the Empire as well and lay at the eastern end of the Gandhara Region which served as a nursery for the growth and spread of Buddhism further afield.

Buddhism continued to be the main religion in Kashmir from the time of Kanishka well into the 8th century CE when it was gradually replaced by a revitalized form of Hinduism. For a time period both co-existed in a syncretic existence until Buddhism all but disappeared, with the coming of Islam.