Mausoleum of Shah-i-Zinda

The complex of Shah-i-Zinda, which has survived to this day, was formed over approximately a millennium. It includes more than 20 structures from the 9th to 14th centuries, located along the southern slope of the Afrasiab hills. The earliest cult buildings were destroyed in the 13th century during the Mongol invasion of Genghis Khan. However, just half a century later, reconstruction and expansion began based on these ruins, especially during the 14th and 15th centuries—under Timur and his immediate descendants. They transformed this place into a necropolis for their dynasty and the representatives of the Muslim clergy close to them. Around this time, a staircase of 40 steps was built, ascending from the foot of the hills to the mausoleum of Kusam ibn Abbas. In the 14th to 19th centuries, in “folk Islam,” the belief emerged that pilgrimage to the mausoleum of the Living King could partially replace the hajj—the obligatory pilgrimage to Mecca for every Muslim.

The pilgrimage to the mausoleum is conducted in a special manner. One must ascend the staircase over the course of 40 days, overcoming one step each day while filling the remaining time with pious reflections and prayers. It is highly likely that this cult was supported by the mentors of Sufi orders. There is a tradition that the forty-day prayers on this staircase were performed by Bahauddin Naqshband, the founder of the Naqshbandi Sufi order, who lived in the 14th century. The staircase was also a site for zikr—Sufi prayer gatherings. Both silent zikr (khafi) and vocal zikr (jahri) could be practiced here. Russian ethnographer and anthropologist Sergey Maslovsky (1876-1943), disguised as a dervish, managed to participate in a night zikr and dancing rituals of the Qadiriyya Sufi order near the mausoleum of Kusam ibn Abbas at the end of the 19th century.

Today, the orthodox Muslim clergy of the Hanafi school in Uzbekistan does not support the idea that pilgrimage to the Shah-i-Zinda mausoleum can replace the hajj to Mecca. Zikrs have not been held here for a long time. Nevertheless, the cult complex continues to be a site of active pilgrimage—despite the restoration in 2005, it has not significantly changed its historical appearance. The complex is eagerly visited by both foreign tourists and devout Muslims, as well as representatives of the clergy. Many guides even recommend that secular tourists take each step on the staircase to the mausoleum of Kusam ibn Abbas, if not over the course of an entire day, then at least with focused thoughts on something elevated.

Another character from the legend of eternal life that has survived to this day on the hills of Afrasiab is the elder Hazrat Khizr (Khizr, Khidhr). Not only in Uzbekistan but throughout the Muslim world, Khizr is the hero of numerous fairy tales, where he appears as a sage and eternal wanderer, emerging from nowhere to perform miracles or teach people lessons of true virtue. Although the name Khizr is not mentioned in the Quran, oral tradition holds that he is the mysterious “servant of Allah” referred to in the 18th surah, “Al-Kahf” (“The Cave”). It is he who, upon meeting the Prophet Musa (Moses) at the confluence of two seas, narrated instructive parables about the ambiguity of many events and things. In the folk legends of Central Asia, Khizr is considered to live eternally because he once drank from the water of the fountain of life.

According to legend, when Alexander the Great brought his armies to the upper reaches of the Amu Darya, he learned from the Pamiri highlanders that somewhere high in the mountains there was a spring whose water granted immortality. The Greek commander sent one of his best warriors named Khizr to search for this spring. The warrior succeeded in finding the miraculous source and drinking from it himself, but on the way back, the jug of water intended for Alexander broke. Failing to fulfill his mission yet gaining eternal life, Khizr began to wander the world. Centuries of wandering endowed him with supernatural wisdom and the ability to perform miracles for the benefit of humanity. In particular, Eastern hospitality is sometimes explained by the fear that people might show disrespect or insufficient care for wanderers, one of whom could very well be Hazrat Khizr.

According to Russian Orientalist Vasily Bartold (1869-1930), who authored articles in the “Encyclopedia of Islam,” the figure of Khizr embodies legendary representations of different times and peoples regarding eternal life—from the Babylonian Gilgamesh to the biblical prophets Enoch and Elijah. Often, Elijah and Khizr are mentioned together, with Elijah attributed control over the deserts and Khizr over water sources and irrigated lands. Another Russian Orientalist, Evgeny Bertels (1890-1957), believed that in the perception of the peoples of the Middle East, the image of Khizr “undoubtedly goes back to some ancient deity of the plant world, under whose feet everything greens and flourishes, but this representation is layered with many other traits…” Bartold argued that legends about Khizr are particularly widespread where Sufis operate. When discussing Khizr, Sufis clarify that stories and parables about him should not be interpreted too simply or superficially. It is better for the uninitiated not to mention him at all. In a cultural sense, the figure of Khizr can be viewed as an ideal image of a hermit, a wandering dervish, of whom he seems to be the mystical patron.

As mentioned earlier, in one version of the Shah-i-Zinda legend, Khizr helps the wounded Kusam ibn Abbas escape from his pursuers into underground caves, where Kusam attains eternal life. The connection with water—a symbol of eternal life in Central Asia—is also highlighted in the legend of the first Samarkand mosque of Hazrat Khizr. The first mention of it dates back to the period of the Arab conquests in the early 8th century. According to tradition, after the capture of Samarkand by the forces of Qutayba ibn Muslim in 712, the Arabs attempted to flood the city fortress by blocking the Arzis canal, which supplied the city with water from underground springs. However, a massive white bird descended from the sky and destroyed the dam. In commemoration of this miraculous event, one of the Arab commanders, Muhammad ibn Wasi, built the mosque of Hazrat Khizr at the southern end of Afrasiab, replacing the previous Zoroastrian temple. This mosque, like the Arzis canal, was destroyed in 1220 during the conquest of Samarkand by the Mongol armies of Genghis Khan. A new mosque building was restored on the ancient foundation in 1854—though the final finishing touches were completed only in 1919. Since then, this small but quite exotic-looking structure has served as one of the popular entrances to the Afrasiab hills and is a must-visit for pilgrims coming to the mausoleum of Shah-i-Zinda.

@ Andrey Kudryashov / “Fergana”