Hazrat Khizr

Hazrat Khizr is the most famous name of the old wonderworker in the East, shrouded in secrets and legends. The oldest mosque in Central Asia, whose history dates back to the XI century, is named after him. 

Coming to Samarkand, any self-respecting tourist and traveler considers it his duty to visit the Hazrat Khizr Mosque. 

The Hazrat Khizr Mosque was built at the dawn of the XIX century, on a natural elevation in the center of Samarkand. In the XI century, on this hill, on the site of an ancient Zoroastrian temple, the Arab conquerors erected the first Muslim mosque in Central Asia. According to legend, Kuteiba ibn Muslim, after conquering the territories, destroyed one of the largest Zoroastrian temples and wanted to flood it with water by building a dam, however, a white bird descended from the sky and destroyed the dam. After that, one of the supporters of Kuteiba, Muhammad ibn Vasa, decided to erect a mosque on this hill, named after Hazrat Khizr, which by that time was often mentioned and revered in Central Asia. Near the hill where the mosque was built there were the city gates and the Argiz aqueduct, which was one of the main sources of drinking water for the residents of Samarkand at that time. According to some legends, Argiz was filled with living water and became an eternal refuge for Qussama ibn Abbas, the cousin of the Prophet Muhammad.

However, the first mosque of Samarkand was destroyed after the Mongol invasion and rebuilt on the same site only in 1823. According to research, the new mosque was built on the foundation of the old mosque of the XI century and was part of the Shahi Zinda complex, which included the mausoleum of Kussama ibn Abbas.

Hazrat Khizr, the legendary owner of the “living water”, was known in these lands as a good-natured old man with a cheerful disposition, the patron of wanderers and travelers, who fulfilled wishes, gave fertility and a high harvest of crops. His name has been overgrown with numerous legends. So, one of the legends says that Khizr was once the best warrior of Alexander the Great, and he, having learned that there is a water sourse in the Pamir mountains that grants immortality, sent his best warrior there for water. Khizr found a water sourse, drank water from it and collected water for his commander. But on the way the vessel broke, and when Alexander the Great went with Khizr to the water sourse, they could not find it, their paths diverged in search, and the water sourse was reopened to Khizr only when he was alone.

Another legend tells that Hazrat Khizr travels all over the world, and everyone can meet him in different appearance. Every meeting necessarily brings with it a lesson. It is believed that it is impossible to show disrespect to the saint by offending him with words and deeds, hence the hospitality of the Uzbek people originates. Also, the tradition of greeting with both hands originates from the legends about Saint Khizr, which say that the elder does not have a phalanx of the thumb on one hand, and by this sign he can definitely be recognized.

To date, the complex of the Hazrat Khizr mosque includes a mosque on a high base and aivans with arched niches. A canopy on columns decorated with national ornaments leads to a square-shaped khanaka with a mihrab facing Mecca. On the sides of the khanaka there are 2 prayer rooms – hujras. In the east of the complex there is a darvazakhana with guldastas and a gate decorated with openwork carvings. There is a minaret to the east of the mosque. The mosque is decorated with ganch carvings, traditional for Central Asia, and its dome is decorated with carvings using the ”chaspak" technique. Visitors to the mosque can see many dates on the walls, which mark the dates of restoration and construction of individual objects of the Hazrat Khizr mosque complex. The dates are written according to the Hijri chronology. Thus, the year 1854 is indicated above the mihrab of the khanaka – the date of the first restoration of the mosque. Below is the date of finishing of bulding process of the khanaka – 1884. Then, in 1889, the construction of darvazakhana and the reconstruction of aivans are dated. The year 1919 is indicated on the gate at the entrance – the year of the construction of the minaret on the eastern side of the mosque. The name of the builder of the building – “usto Abdukodir son of Baki Samarqandi” – is indicated above the stairs of the minaret. 

During the next restoration work, a well with a depth of 40 meters was found near the mosque, which confirms the oldest legends. 

On September 3, 2016, the First President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Islam Karimov was buried on the territory of the Hazrat Khizr mosque. Shortly after the funeral, the construction of the mausoleum began, in the construction of which about 2,000 people participated. The main task of the masters and architects was to connect the mausoleum of the first president and the Hazrat Khizr complex in a single artistic and architectural style. On January 30, 2018, on the day of the 80th anniversary of the birth of Islam Karimov, the complex was inaugurated with the participation of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev. The mausoleum is made of white marble, decorated with multicolored majolica. The tomb is decorated with colored semi-precious stones, and the arched vaults are decorated with paintings in the style of “Kundal” with the use of gold leaf. 

The history of more than 10 centuries and numerous legends give the oldest mosque in Central Asia an even greater flavor. And Hazrat Khizr, whose name also translates from Arabic as “Green” – the favorite color of the Prophet Muhammad, according to legends, will surely come to each of us. Holy Khizr comes when a person needs it most and will stay in everyone's life exactly as long as it will be necessary for a person. And most importantly, everyone will receive support, advice or a lesson from Hazrat Khizr, which they will definitely have to learn.