SAMARAKAND, UZBEKISTAN: ST. DANIEL'S MAUSOLEUM

I have one final post about Samarkand, one of the most amazing cities we have ever visited. The last place we stopped on our way out of town was St. Daniel's Mausoleum--yes, THAT St. Daniel, he of lion den fame and a prophet recognized by Muslims, Jews, and Christians alike.  However, eight other places around the world also claim to be Daniel's mausoleum. Wikipedia, for example, places Daniel's burial site in Susa, Iran.

On the other hand, the Uzbeks have a pretty good story, and guess who is involved in it? None other than Amir Timur, World Conqueror. The story goes that Timur, frustrated by his failed attempts to conquer a small city in Asia Minor (now known as *ta-da!* Susa, located in Iran), heard from one of his ministers that Daniel, a figure from the Bible who lived about 2500 years ago, was buried there and protected the land. Aha! Problem solved! One version says Timur sent an army to Daniel's burial place, disinterred the body after a fiery battle, and brought at least some of the remains back to Samarkand. Another version says he negotiated for part of the relics, and that is what was brought back to Samarkand. A third version says he brought back some dirt from Daniel's grave. (Now, does that sound like Timur to you?) Then he went on to win the battle, or maybe he did all this after he won the battle. No one knows.

In any case the remains/relics/dirt were re-interred on the shore of Siab, a small tributary of the Zerafshan River, which is one of the major rivers in Uzbekistan:

Another version of the story says that these are not the relics of that Daniel, but rather of Daniyor (or Danier), an associate of the prophet Muhammad's cousin Kussama ibn Abbas. Yet another version says the remains were brought here by early Christians. Even what is contained inside the tomb is contested. Some say it is the body, others say an arm, and yet others say it is only soil from the actual grave in Susa. No one seems to be bothered with the ambiguity, and the site attracts Jewish, Muslim, and Christian pilgrims.

In the 19th century, a large mausoleum was built on the top of a sandy mesa, but visiting this site is not all about the mausoleum.

1. HOLY WATER
At the base of the mesa is small cupola that covers a sacred spring said to have appeared when Daniel's/Daniyor's body parts arrived here. The arrow on the left points to the mausoleum, and the arrow on the right shows the location of the spring.

Here is a view taken from above:

Locals believe that the water has healing properties, and they come here to wash their hands in it and to fill small containers to take home. I was happy to see that the water has not yet been commercialized--no containers for sale as we have seen in other places with "holy water." This is meant to be a personal, individual experience:

Inside the structure are spigots from which the water pours. It seemed that women are assigned to one side and men to the other, although that may be just how it was when I happened to see it.  My pictures are not very good because I didn't want to intrude on the experience, and I did not feel it was appropriate to go inside myself:

2. EXPOSED BONES
As we made our way up the hill to the mausoleum, our guide told us that the surrounding area has been used as a burial ground for centuries, and that as the ground erodes, bones are constantly appearing in these banks. She pointed out a few bone fragments protruding from the dirt, but they were too small to show up in my pictures:

3. HERMIT CAVE
Another interesting feature of this site is the hermit cave located behind an old wooden door. It was once used by those who needed a period of solitude or a place to "mortify the flesh," which is a process of purification or sanctification accomplished by fasting and other forms of self-denial. Visitors used to be able to see inside, but a crumbling ceiling has led to the place being locked up for now.

4.  GRAVE MARKER
This very tall pole may mark the burial spot of St. Daniel (which is confusing, as I thought his body/body parts were in the mausoleum).

5. RESURRECTED PISTACHIO TREE

Between the Mausoleum and the Hermit Cave is a very, very old pistachio tree. It is said to have been planted about 600 years ago at the same time that Daniel's relics were brought here, and that it was possibly brought from the area where Daniel's body originally lay. After some years the tree appeared to die a natural death, but it was never removed from the hill. In 1996 the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Alexy II, came to this site to add his blessing to the tomb. The next spring, the tree bloomed again--a miracle!

6. THE MAUSOLEUM OF DANIEL
And so finally we get to the mausoleum itself, seen in the photo below on the left. This is just one end of a building that is 60 feet long. I couldn't get a picture from the side because of how close everything is.

We could see the tomb through the open door, some type of box covered in richly embroidered green velvet:

Looking to our left, we could see that this was a long tomb:

Oh my goodness! Daniel must have been a GIANT (albeit a skinny one)!!

Why is the tomb 60 feet long? There are two theories:

1) The remains of Daniel grow a little bit each year--5 cm, according to local lore (and apparently the coffin and building grow with them). If this were true, the tomb would now be 410 feet long.

2) Timur, that wily (and paranoid) rascal, made the coffin exceedingly long so as to hide the scant remains of the prophet, effectively protecting his treasure from grave robbers.

7. THE RULES

Finally, on our way out I enjoyed reading this list of rules, presented in three different languages. My favorites are #2 (Women visitors shouldn't wear shortcut and very impressing dresses) and #6 (The person who lies in the mausoleum were also the man created by God and it is guilty to request him your desires and sacrifice animals for him.) Other rules about not burning candles, not hanging fabric on the trees, not kissing the grave, and other admonitions make me wonder what has gone on here over the centuries.

And that's it for Samarkand. 

Good-bye, fascinating city. 

I hope to return some day.