Pilgrimage tourism

On the territory of Uzbekistan, there are many Holy places belonging to the Islamic culture and its current of Sufism, as well as other religions. The most valuable monuments are recognized as UNESCO World Heritage sites. Among them is the city of Bukhara, called in the Islamic world Bukhara-Sharif, which means Blessed Bukhara. The city of Samarkand, which has a huge number of priceless monuments. Shakhrisabz is the birthplace of Amir Temur. Of course, these cities have an ancient and rich history and have undergone significant changes throughout their lives.

The idea of immortality is associated with these cities. There was one episode in the biography of the prophet Muhammad. He was making a Mirage. He had a celestial horse and he ascended to the sky on this horse. First he visited Jerusalem, then Mecca. On his way to Mecca, he saw the sun's rays illuminate the entire world. Then he saw only two points on the ground, from which the rays came up from below. These rays were Bukhara and Samarkand.

The emergence of Christianity in Central Asia is associated with the names of the apostles Thomas and Andrew, who preached in this territory at the beginning of the 1rst Millennium.

Since then, the 2 most important religions of the world – Islam and Christianity-have coexisted peacefully. In Uzbekistan, there are more than 10 places of pilgrimage that are sacred and revered by Christians and Muslims.

Until modern times, on the territory of Uzbekistan there are revered by both Christians and Muslims "springs of Job", the most famous of which is located in Bukhara.

The Orthodox Church in Uzbekistan is beginning to form along with the arrival of the Russian Orthodox Church in Central Asia after the annexation of the main part of this region to the Russian Empire and the formation of the Turkestan General government (1867).

In 1968, a statue of the Buddha was discovered on the territory of old Termez, and since then this land has become the main object for the study of many scientific archaeologists, later the oldest Buddhist temple complexes were discovered: Fayaztepa (1st century BC – 3rd century ad), Kampyrtepa, Karatepa. And the discovery of elements of the famous Ayrtam frieze with the image of ancient musicians-became evidence that Buddhism was once preached in this region and elements of Hellenistic culture were revealed. Now the terracotta bas-reliefs of the frieze are stored in the State Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg.