Sovyetlerin Kutsal Yerlere Yönelik Politikası: Ahmet Yesevi Türbesi Örneği

Abstract

This article briefly explains the attitude and actions of the Soviet state towards the holy places in the example of Khoja Ahmet Yasawi Tomb. Adhering to the ideology of atheism, the Soviets encountered the biggest obstacles in building a new Soviet society. It was the religion and customs of the local people in the Soviet Central Asia. For a long time people in Turkestan had a tradition of considering and visiting the tombs of the saints as holy. One of the largest holy places in the Turkestan region was the Khoja Ahmet Yasawi Tomb. The Yesewi Tomb is sacred to the peoples of Central Asia and Kazakhstan. Muslims from all over the Soviet Union visited it. This religious tradition and holy place became a great obstacle for the Bolsheviks who wanted to destroy the religion. In this wise, the Soviets fought against the local Muslims' holy places and tradition of visiting holy places. Both actual attacks and propaganda were made against the holy places. The Bolsheviks tried to prove that the holy places were not holy at all. Propaganda was not made only against Yasawi's Tomb, but also against his own name. The local Soviet Islamic Religious Administration published the fatwa against the holy places with the decision of the Communist Party. In this study the research was conducted based on Kazakhstan archival sources.