Turkmenbashi Ruhy Mosque (Photo: Emily O'Dell)
Exploring Turkmenistan (Photo: Emily O'Dell)
Three hundred and sixty noble kinsmen rest,
In this holy land of saints bequest,
Like Mecca for Turkmen the land of promise,
My gold, my pearls, my diamonds best…
The marble minarets at the Turkmenbashi Ruhy Mosque in Turkmenistan are unlike any other minarets in the world. While minarets are often decorated with elaborate brickwork or colorful mosaics, these unusual minarets are inscribed with verses from the Qur’an and quotes from Turkmenbashi’s “Book of the Soul”–the Ruhnama.
When I was living in Turkmenistan, I frequently passed by a giant replica of the Ruhnama in Ashgabat. This “moving monument” was designed to open every night under neon lights to reveal a passage from the Ruhnama. Now that current President Berdymukhammedov is writing his own holy book to rival or replace Turkmenbashi’s guide for the nation, one has to wonder if Berdymukhammedov’s text will be getting its own monument too…
