Uzbekistan: The Country of a Hundred Shrines

Uzbekistan - the most populous country in Central Asia is, is sometimes called the country of a hundred shrines or the “second Mecca”. It is home to hundreds of well-preserved mosques, madrasas, bazaars and mausoleums, dating largely from the 9th to the 17th centuries, almost untarnished by the time.

In fact, many shrines find their roots in pre-Islamic and pagan times.

The strict Soviet anti-religion stance couldn’t stop believers from paying respect their holy sites of pilgrimage. Neither could the Muslim Ulema who say that visiting shrines may contradict Islamic teachings.

Locked for most of the past 150 years under the Russian rule, it emerged as an independent nation in 1991 – only to slide into a totalitarian state with restricted religious freedoms. Poverty, the loss of identity and the closeness to volatile neighbours such as Afghanistan and Tajikistan have contributed to the spread of radicalisation. Hundreds of Uzbeks fight alongside militants in Pakistan, Afghanistan and the Mideast.

In the last couple of years several radicalised Uzbeks committed terror attacks in the USA, Europe and Russia prompting the fears that the many young Uzbeks might be joining militant Islamist groups. Now the new Uzbek government is ready to restore and open all shrines to public in a bid to boost tourism and most importantly – to fight the growing radicalism among young Uzbeks.

Rustam Qobil travels to the ancient cities of Bukhara and Samarkand in his native Uzbekistan to find out if the increased interest to shrines can indeed stop radicalism.

Presenter: Rustam Qobil
Producer: Natalia Golysheva

Photo Credit: Festival of Silk and Spices, Bukhara
Natalia Golysheva/ BBC