Bogustan

The main shrine of Bogustan and all of Charvak is the mausoleum of Sheikh Umar Vali, located in a dense fruit garden where the mountain stream Mazarsay flows into the Pskem River. According to legend, the garden was planted by Sheikh Umar himself, a skilled gardener who amazed local villagers by producing fresh grapes even in winter. The story goes that one day, strangers knocked on the sheikh’s door, asking for food in exchange for work. Umar Vali tasked them with clearing a mountain slope of weeds to create a garden. The strangers turned out to be “marked by the seal of the Almighty,” and after reciting a prayer, they eradicated the weeds in minutes. They then ate a single bowl of sour milk and left, blessing the future garden. Today, the garden is home to enormous walnut trees, their hollows large enough for an adult to climb into. In early spring, when apricot and almond blossoms appear on the plains, snow still covers the mountain slopes around Charvak. Yet in Sheikh Umar’s magical garden, hundreds of white snowdrops bloom.

Hide in the Hollow

The modern mausoleum of Umar Vali is a relatively recent structure from the 18th–19th centuries, restored in the mid-1990s. It is said that the restoration was halted due to a lack of permits, which is why the building is topped with a temporary pyramidal roof of corrugated plastic instead of a traditional dome. Many pilgrims are eager to see the kairak—a long, polished tombstone at the entrance to the mausoleum, inscribed with the date 1189. It is believed that touching this stone will grant any wish, provided the wish is pure. Although this ritual aligns poorly with Islamic norms and resembles shamanic magical practices, few are deterred. Modern Muslim guides claim that the inscription “Fakir ibn Fakir” (“Poor man, son of a poor man”) indicates the stone could not have marked the grave of a prominent figure, rendering the associated legend mere superstition. However, the sheikhs of the Naqshbandi order, who currently oversee the mausoleum, do not refute local legends and do not restrict pilgrims. For example, many pilgrims freely climb into the hollow of an old walnut tree near the mausoleum, believing this ritual ensures good health and longevity.

Next to Umar Vali’s mausoleum lies another mazar—the burial site of his descendant, Khodja Daud. Locals say that a stone with a strange inscription once lay at the entrance to this mazar, which neither mullahs nor scholars—local or foreign—could decipher. In 1978, this stone was mysteriously stolen by two unknown individuals who snuck into the garden at night and loaded the meter-long boulder onto a donkey. Whether this was the work of “black archaeologists” or a ritual act by mystics remains unknown. Believers also avoid discussing why the sacred aura of the place failed to protect the tomb from thieves.

In Uzbekistan’s history, Sheikh Umar Vali Bogustani is known as the founder of a famous dynasty of Sufi teachers. His son, the legendary Sheikh Khavendi Tahur, was buried in Tashkent in 1355. The oldest district of Uzbekistan’s capital, Shaykhantahur, is named in his honor. Khodja Daud, mentioned earlier, was the son of Khavendi Tahur and the grandson of Umar Vali. His daughter, in 1404, became the mother of Khodja Ubaydullah Ahrar Shashi, who led the Naqshbandi order in his youth. This order played a significant spiritual and political role in the lives of many Central Asian and Middle Eastern countries not only in the 14th–17th centuries but also much later.

It is worth noting that pilgrimage to Umar Vali’s mausoleum is now quite organized. Located near the state border between Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, the village of Bogustan is in a restricted access zone and lacks regular transport links even to the district administrative center, Gazalkent. However, this does not prevent tour companies from arranging charter bus trips from Tashkent.

@ Andrey Kudryashov / “Fergana”