Ubiquitously Uzbekistan – The Hazrati Imam Complex in Tashkent
As we walked from the Chorsu Bazaar to the Hazrati Imam Complex, we were going through the Old City area in Tashkent. However, I did not seem to get the impression that the sights on the way were particularly “old” in any ordinary sense of the word. We went through quite a few construction sites, but the feeling is that it was a modern city, with wide roadways lined with trees. It was a pleasant walk and soon we came to the Hazrati Imam Complex.
The Hazrati Imam Complex
The Hazrati Imam Complex, also known as the architectural complex of Khazrati Imam, is a group of structures that pay tribute to the Uzbek scholar Abu Bekr Al-Kaffal Al-Kabir Ash-Shashi. Abu Bekr Al-Kaffal Al-Kabir Ash-Shashi was the first known Uzbek Imam. His now-revered status would be somewhat similar to the idea of a patron saint for Tashkent. Imam, in Islamic culture, refers to a Muslim leader. He usually serves the role of the prayer leader in the mosque.
Abu Bekr Al-Kaffal Al-Kabir Ash-Shashi (903-976 AD), played a significant role as a religious leader, diplomat and scholar. He has written significantly on Islam and was well versed in the Koran, Hadith and Islamic law. He spent his earlier years in Tashkent, but decided to move to Baghdad. For most of his adult life, he was in Baghdad.
In his life he had dedicated his efforts to first the diplomacy and strategic dialogues between the Arab Caliphate in Baghdad and the Byzantine Emperor. Then when he had returned to Tashkent in his later years, he also served as the intermediary between the Arab Caliphate and the Karakhnid Turks. The Karakhnid Turks eventually turned to Islam due to his persuasion. Besides religious writing, he had also written in poetry and philosophy, notably The Beauty of Dialectics and Mahasinu Sharia.
As it currently stands, Hazrat Imam Complex is a work of restoration and reconstruction that completed in 2007. It consists of a mausoleum of Hazrati Imam, the original of which was built in 16th century, madrasas (an Islamic school), two other mausoleums, a library and mosques.
Our Tour at Hazrat Imam Complex
We noticed the minaret on our way there. A minaret is the tower that is very often featured in Islamic religious sites. They are mostly used to call for prayers. These two minarets at Hazrati Imam Complex are 50 meter tall. We became very excited about the first Islamic structure that we would visit in Uzbekistan.
I was amazed by the beautiful arches that greet visitors at the entrance of the buildings. As it turns out, this architectural feature, known professionally as “iwan,” would reappear in every single ancient Islamic structure that we would see during this trip. The decorative mosaic really breathes life into the earthy tone of the buildings. “In Islamic tradition blue (al-azraq) often signifies the depths of the universe & turquoise is thought to have mystical qualities.”[1]
Set in the gentle post-shower sunshine of the day, the earthiness of the structures was very much a reminder that we were in desert land. Finally, the Arabic inscriptions on the buildings are meant to convey some critical clues about these structures. For the Khazrati Imam Mausoleum, the Arabic says something about the Imam. It also mensions the architects of the 16th century original mausoleum.
That would be my meet-and-greet with Uzbek architecture. As I went on to other cities, I would come to understand how to tell the differences between a mosque, a madrasa and a mausoleum by looking at the structure.
Sources
The Wikipedia on Minaret.
Hazrati Imam Complex, Central Asia Guide.
Khazrati Imam Architectural Complex, Central Asia Travel.
The Blue Tiles of Uzbekistan, Bayt Al Fann.
Calum Macleod, Uzbekistan: the Golden Road to Samarkand (2014).
[1] The Blue Tiles of Uzbekistan, Bayt Al Fann
