Central Asia reviving Islamic roots

Central Asia is now reviving its Islamic roots, 15 years after the collapse of the Soviet Union, according to an editorial on Reuters.

In Soviet days, people didn’t even notice the Khoja Ahmed Yasawi mausoleum, a holy Muslim site in southern Kazakhstan.

But now thousands of pilgrims visit the site every year, “just like in the Middle Ages”, said Beisekul Aladasugirova, a middle-aged librarian who has traveled some 300 km to pray at the site.

"After the Soviet collapse, the ideological vacuum was filled with all kinds of false teachings. It is only now that people are beginning to understand true Islam," said Muzaffar Haji, a prominent cleric in the ancient Silk Road town of Turkestan.

"Only now people are beginning to see that (Central Asia) is not just a backyard of the Soviet Union, but a region with deep historical roots,” he added.

The revival of Islam and its teachings in the dying days of the Soviet Union were mainly due to a strong desire to break with communism which had tried to terminate religious traditions.

Several mosques and Islamic schools were built in different countries across the region. Studying Islamic law and Arabic in foreign countries, mainly in Turkey and Saudi Arabia, became popular among young people.

Islam was introduced in Central Asia in the 7th Century, but the region is still bouncing between its Soviet and Islamic pasts, with Muslim traditions often intertwined with communist habits.

But young Central Asian Muslims, who matured after the Soviet collapse, want a better future, with many seeking an end to state interference in religious matters.

Imam Esirkep Meiranbek, one of the youngest religious leaders in Central Asia, opened an Islamic school in the Kazakh town of Kentau last month.

The 25-year-old said that he wants to teach a form of Islam that has nothing to do with politics. He added that the number of students at his Islamic school tripled to 90 just after the opening.

"We teach them how to be clean, how to eat healthy food, how to do good things. ... It's the first time in the history of our town that we have our own mosque," he said.

"People come here from far away. It was worth working for... Because this is our own little revival."