Things to see and do Kasri Arifon

The tomb of the city's patron saint is one of the major pilgrimage sites in Uzbekistan but also shines throughout Central Asia. Baha-Al Din Naqchband, who lived from 1318 to 1389, is the founder of the Sufi order of Naqchbandi, the most widespread Sufi order in Central Asia. The ritual of the pilgrimage is imitated from that of Mecca around the Kaaba. Pilgrims must walk around the saint's grave several times, then kiss the tugh, the sacred pole that points to his grave. Then the pilgrim lays his head on a dark stone - the Stone of Desire, brought back from Mecca - embedded in one of the sides of the mazar. Baha-Al Din Naqchband is nicknamed "Balagardon", the one who repels evil. Many miracles were attributed to him; to those who asked him to perform one, he replied: "Here is an obvious miracle: I have sinned a lot and I am still alive. "The architectural complex consists of several buildings built between the 16th and 20th centuries. The mausoleum and khanaka are the oldest and were built in the 16th century by Obaydullâh khan of the Chaybanid dynasty. In 1917, the Abdulfis Khan Mosque was built near the mausoleum, and in 1860 the Muzafar Khan Mosque was added to the complex, forming a courtyard around the saint's tomb. In the 20th century, a basin and a domed building were added. Behind the khanaka, an old cemetery shelters the vaults of Abdullah Khan II and Abdul Aziz khan as well as of noble Bukharian families.