Uzbekistan is full of madrasa, Sufi shrines and speaks of an atmosphere of learning and knowledge.
One such place was in the heart of Tashkent. The shrine of
Sheikh Zayn ad-Din Bobo is situated on a hillock inside the Tashkent cemetery of Vilayat, built in the 16th century.
sheikh Zayn ad-Din Kui Arifani, was the son of sheikh Shihab ad-Din as-Sukhravardi who was a head of Baghdad Sufis in the early 13th century.
He established a Suhrawardi khanqah in Tashkent. The Suhrawardi silsilah spread to C.Asia from here.
Amir Timur’s spiritual master Shams ad-Din Kulyal belonged to this silsilah.
The shrine itself is beautiful but what is fascinating is a small sunken domed building behind. This has two room, of which one is underground and was used as a chillahgah for meditation and fasting. This is of a much earlier vintage.
The dome and floor of first room have holes arranged in such a way that the sun rays can reach the underground cellar only at the time of the solstice.
Drawings in the room help us understand that the saint was an astronomer like many of his silsilah and had a profound knowledge of astronomy and studied the sky.
#tashkent #suhrawardi #sufusilsilah #uzbekistan #cemetery #astronomy
