The pilgrimage of Turkistani muslims in the XIX. Century

The Pilgrimage of Turkistani Muslims in the XIX. Century The pilgrimage is one of the most significant divine services that all Muslims perform in Islam. Like other Muslims, Turkistani Muslims had always spent considerable effort to try to conduct this act of worship. They used various paths through: Afghanistan, India, Iran, and the Caspian (Caucasus, Crimea, and Istanbul) as pilgrimage routes throughout different periods of history. Problematically, Russia had dominated the Turkistani region in the second half of the nineteenth century which had a notable impact on pilgrimage. Russia had followed a very cautious policy against them due to their concern that the pilgrimage had been a unifying phenomenon for all Muslims. Although the pilgrimage candidates could not be detained completely, Russia continually tried to prevent their progress by putting forward various subterfuges. Another cause that had made the pilgrimage journey troublesome was the disagreements between Turkistan Khanates and Iran. For these reasons, the pilgrims from Turkistan changed their course towards the Ottoman domain, despite it being longer than alternative routes. Thus, the Ottoman Empire had provided appropriate grounds and support for the pilgrims as the shield to protect all Muslims.