Kanishka's dynastic mark right. [ edit ] The Kushans and Buddhism An early Mahayana Buddhist triad. From left to right, a Kushan devotee, the Bodhisattva Maitreya , the Buddha, the Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara , and a Buddhist monk. 2nd-3rd century, Gandhara . Cultural exchanges also flourished, encouraging the development of Greco-Buddhism ,