Mausoleum of Bahauddin Nakshbandi
The Bahauddin Naqshbandi Memorial Complex, located in the village of Bahauddin, 12 km from the city of Bukhara, consisting of three mosques, summer terraces, minaret, khanaka, madrasah, darvazakhana and the Dahmai Shahon complex, dates back to the XVI century, but each element of the complex was built at different times, over the past 500 years.
Baha-ad-Din Muhammad, a Persian religious figure, founder of the Sufi order, patron of the population of Bukhara, was born in 1318, in the village of Qasr-i-Hinduvan and spent his whole life in Bukhara and its environs only twice leaving his homeland to make a pilgrimage to Mecca. The great philosopher takes his origin from the Seyid family, who were direct descendants of the Prophet Muhammad. From early childhood, Bahauddin mastered the craft of his parents, who were engaged in jewelry and gold embroidery. For his skillful work, he received the nickname Nakshband, which means “applying a pattern". Bahauddin Naqshband took over his interest in Sufism from his grandfather, and then studied with prominent Sufi philosophers of that time, among whom was Amir Kulal. Bahauddin, being the fifth head of the Khojagon Order, adapted Sufi practices to the worldview of his contemporaries and spread them throughout Central Asia. For his activities, Bahauddin Naqshband was popularly nicknamed “Balogardon”, which means “diverting misfortune". He led an ascetic lifestyle, completely rejecting lavish traditions, rituals and ostentatious piety. The main dogma of his teaching was the idea that faith in God should be carried in your heart, and your life should be provided with your work. Hence his main statement, which is still popular in Central Asian countries: “The heart is for God, the hands are for work.” Contemporaries loved and remembered him as a kind and sympathetic person, not indifferent to other people's problems and difficulties. He did not allow his followers to record his statements and ideas, so his thoughts and moments of biography are known only from the notes of his students, which were written after the death of Bahauddin Naqshband in 1389. The great Sufi thinker is buried in the same place where he was born and spent his life – in the village of Qasr-i-Hinduvan.
Immediately after his death, the burial place of Bahauddin Naqshband became a place of mass pilgrimage, citizens came to his grave for blessings, solution to problem and support.
In the XVI century, after the Sheibanids came to power, Abdulaziz Khan ordered to design a crypt over the burial of Bahauddin Naqshband, which was built in 1554. The crypt is a rectangular burial with a marble fence. It is from this event that the history of the entire memorial complex begins. Simultaneously with the crypt, a khanaka was erected – a Sufi monastery, which is still considered one of the largest in the world. After that, the Sheibanids decided to bury their kings in the same cemetery, and then this place became the last refuge of the last three dynasties of the rulers of Bukhara, in connection with which the village of Qasr-i-Hinduvan was renamed Qasr-i-Arifon, which translates as “the castle of the sages”. In addition to Bahauddin Naqshband and representatives of the Sheibanid and Timurid dynasties, representatives of the Ashtarkhanid and Mangit dynasties are also buried on the territory of this necropolis. The necropolis itself was named Dahmai Shahon, which means “tomb of the kings” and today is one of the oldest and largest pilgrimage sites in Central Asia and is very popular with pilgrims from all over the world. It is believed that a three-time walking pilgrimage from Bukhara to the Mausoleum of Bahauddin Naqshband is equivalent to a pilgrimage to Mecca.
In the XVIII century, men's and women's mosques were built nearby, and in the XIX century Muzaffar Khan built a minaret, which today is named after him.
However, history remembers the times of the USSR, when the memorial complex fell into decay and desolation, as well as many other historical and religious memorial complexes throughout the country at that time.
After Uzbekistan gained Independence, in 1993, by the 675th anniversary of the birth of Bahauddin Naqshband, a major reconstruction of the complex was carried out, and the village of Kasri Arifon was renamed Bahauddin.
In 2003, on the personal initiative of the First President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Islam Karimov, the complex was expanded and its large-scale reconstruction was carried out. So, Darvazakhana was built with a sky-blue dome – a majestic entrance room to the territory of the memorial complex, made in the traditional Central Asian style, which is called Bobi Islom, which translates as “Islamic gate”. Restoration work also covered the entire necropolis of Dahmai Shahon, as well as the tomb of the great philosopher, combining it with a common garden with the tomb of his mother, Bibi Saida. According to legends, one of the trees of the garden grew out of the rod of the great Bahauddin Naqshband, which he stuck into the ground. Pilgrims from all over the world walk around this tree with prayers on their lips, asking him for help, healing and protection.
In addition, terraces and an artificial lake were built, where tourists can feed waterfowl.
In 2016, the architects decided to dismantle the Muzaffar Khan minaret due to its instability and build an exact copy of it, which the architects and craftsmen successfully coped with.
Today, the memorial complex is not only a religious, but also a tourist center, including a gates, necropolis, a minaret, 3 mosques, a khanaka and summer terraces.