How the Waqf of the ‘Ali shrine
shaped the Balkh region
Zachary Johnson
Professor Gross: History 453
November 9, 2018
Johnson 2
The waqf is a legal and religious document where the owner gives away his positions to
be looked after. Waqfs can be public or private, the private ones mainly staying inside a family,
and the public ones are given away to a mutawalli to look after the property. A mutawalli is
someone who looks after the waqf document following it to the letter. If a mutawalli is found not
following the document, he will be brought to a qadi-court where a case will be made1. The
Mutawalli can be given as little or as much control as the document spells out, but the more
freedom given, the greater chance the property has to prosper. These waqf documents can
generate income for shrines, hold commercial property, and give money to whomever. Sultan
Husayn endowed the shrine of ‘Ali with 18 canals to help irrigate the Balkh region.2 He donated
this waqf for many reasons. First, he wanted to control the food economy of the area. Second,
with the newly fertile land he wanted to start to attract pilgrims to the new ‘Ali shrine boosting,
the economy of the town and the shrine. The Ansari family reigned as the mutawalli family later
after the Timurid period and continued to keep the canals flowing for over four hundred years.
“The transformation of the shrine from village holy site, to urban conglomeration was largely
dependent on the economic fortunes of the shrine, and these in turn were predicated mainly on
the management of the waqf endowment.” 3 Modern observers see the shrine as a Shi’i shrine but
really during the time of the creation there were so many branches of Islam in the Balkh region
that throughout the shrine you can see parts of each branch4. The Shrine of ‘Ali was in the
1
McChesney, R. D. Waqf in Central Asia: Four Hundred Years in the History of a Muslim Shrine,14801889. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University press, 2014, 46.
2
Ibid, 41.
Ibid, Preface
4
Ibid, 31.
3
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perfect place to create a strong economy and help the growth of the Balkh region and Sultan
Husayn used the Waqf document to make this happen.
Also, with the waqf the owner voluntarily relinquishes their right of disposal of an item.
The item can be property, land, and even slaves. The first waqf was when Mukhayriq willed all
his wealth to the Prophet Muhammad himself.5 When a waqf is created a mutawalli is appointed.
Once a waqf has been endowed by its owner, the original endowment can be changed during his
lifetime.6 Depending on the waqf the mutawalli can have total freedom of the item noted within
or very little. “It was therefore to the advantage of the donor to allow the mutawalli as wide as
scope as possible for maneuvering while at the same time trying to ensure that he kept his
attention riveted on the welfare of the waqf. 7 Mutawalli after the death of the waqf creator were
able to dispose of the waqf if in the “general good”. The main purpose of the mutawalli was for
the greater good of the waqf. Should the creator say the endowment is never to be sold, lent,
rented, or exchanged, then the mutawalli is forced to do so. 8 The mutawalli could even be
dismissed by a judicial overseer if he is noted to be violating the waqf document. There are cases
where a mutawalli’s judgement of a waqfs greater good is brought under trial and he may lose a
case if what he does is not judged as beneficial for the shrine.
Waqfs were not exempt of taxes and could be charged by the ruling government if the
waqf had in it the relinquishing of property. Yet, taxes might not be collected on some waqf
5
Ibid, 7.
Crecelius, Daniel. "Introduction." Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient 38, no. 3
(1995): 247-61. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3632478, 250.
6
7
McChesney, R. D. Waqf in Central Asia: Four Hundred Years in the History of a Muslim Shrine,14801889. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University press, 2014,12.
8
Ibid,11.
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properties and collected on others.9 To collect taxes the state must be on constant communication
with the waqf to determine the waqf’s assets, income, and other taxable items. On smaller,
private waqfs, the government may not take interest. This is why the Turkish Republic in 1954
abolished private property waqfs. 10 While waqfs were religious-based documents and not
government-based ones it was still in the best interest of the mutawalli to be on good terms with
the government. If a Waqf document was ever brought to be in question it would go to a qadijudge and decided from there. The final power to appoint or approve waqf administrators resided
with the government and was customarily exercised or supervised by the office of the qadi. 11
The more developed the government the greater they looked into waqfs. The Timurid state had
offices to supervise waqfs.12 In the case of the Balkh region politics were less of a concern in the
history of the ‘Ali Shrine waqfs. This put the mutawalli of the ‘Ali waqf in a confusing and
demanding political environment as he had to maintain and kindle new friendships with each
new government that took over Balkh. 13
Waqf endowments could be used as a reward for community leaders who have given
support in the past. For example, if a waqf document was that of a school, a teacher appointed by
the mutawalli, who was paid from the waqf revenues, may feel obligated to the owner in
ensuring that the waqf thrived. This helped keep a positive social and political atmosphere in the
school and thus in the community. There are three distinct types of waqfs. The Waqf Khayri or
public waqf, support institutions such as mosques, schools, and hospitals. The Waqf Ahli or
9
Ibid,49.
Crecelius, Daniel. "Introduction." Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient 38, no. 3
(1995): 247-61. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3632478, 258.
11
McChesney, R. D. Waqf in Central Asia: Four Hundred Years in the History of a Muslim Shrine,14801889. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University press, 2014,47.
12
Ibid, 47.
13
Ibid, 17.
10
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family waqf was a waqf where its income went to the donor’s family or relatives. Last, the
Mushtaraka Waqf or mixed waqf which combined both of the previous waqfs listed above.14
When money was made from waqfs the income was spent on schools, tombs, and other religious
or public works. Mutawallis were expected to keep accounts of incomes and expenditures to
ensure the waqf was being used for its intended resolves. “The Waqf had many purposes, to
please God, to succor the needy, to sustain a specific religious doctrine or interpretation, to
legitimize a ruler in the eyes of his people, to provide community services, to lay the foundations
for new urban quarters, to preserve a family’s wealth.”15 The waqf document is responsible for
shaping most of suburban Islamic land. In the Suburban areas with less population and more land
waqfs were able to grow and thrive with room to grow and people to donate to these waqfs like
the Shrine of ‘Ali. In Urban areas there was not as much space and waqfs were used to generate
funding instead of land. 16
Private waqfs tended to be small and more susceptible to economic and political pressure.
In the case of Central Asia and in the Balkh region private waqfs had little economic importance.
They were mostly Waqf Ahli and were used to keep money flowing outside of the governments
reach. 17 Public waqfs were the opposite, some were multiple waqfs and properties combined
creating a giant influence over the economy of the region. For example in Sefrou, waqf
administrators kept rents on commercial properties extremely low; they all but eliminated rent so
14
Crecelius, Daniel. "Introduction." Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient 38, no. 3
(1995): 247-61. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3632478, 248.
15
Ibid, 253.
16
McChesney, Robert D. Central Asia: Foundations of Change, Princeton, NJ: Darwin Press, 1006, 81.
17
Crecelius, Daniel. "Introduction." Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient 38, no. 3
(1995): 247-61. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3632478, 258
Johnson 6
that shops could grow.18 Waqf property was a very useful economic tool, by building
commercial property on waqf land that was gained under the waqf of a mosque or madrasah the
owner could set the rent at whatever they choose. The mutawalli could also build schools, or
other community works at little to no costs as long the mosque, shrine, or madrasah earned
steady donations from beneficiaries. Wealthy civilians would donate to mosques and shrines
knowing their money would go to supporting the community and at the same time by donating,
they would look pious themselves. Large waqfs were known to support governments that could
provide political and economic stability such as the waqf of the ‘Ali Shrine.
The Shrine of ‘Ali was the creation the Timurids during the period of transition in 1480.19
A descendant of Sultan Bayzaid arrived in Balkh with a book that documented the discovery of
‘Ali’s tomb in Balkh during 1480. Since the Timurids helped create the shrine, the shrine
administration would have supported the Timurid rulers. This is shown where in 1505 Balkh
surrendered to the Uzbek forces but was passed back to Timurid forces in 1510 and kept as a
Timurid outpost until 1579. 20 The Timurids’ main endowment was the Shahi Canal. Sultan
Husayn also commissioned a domed building to be raised around the ‘Ali Shrine but the exact
details are lost. The canal was built by Sultan Sanjar, but it had gone to ruin, so two centuries
later Sultan Husayn reconstructed the canal and brought production to Balkh. Sultan Husayn
appointed two officials to look after the shrine and its waqf holdings, both of these positions
were held by professionals, nonmembers of his government. Both of these positions were
18
McChesney, R. D. Waqf in Central Asia: Four Hundred Years in the History of a Muslim Shrine,14801889. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University press, 2014, 10.
19
McChesney, Robert D. Central Asia: Foundations of Change, Princeton, NJ: Darwin Press, 1006, 88.
20
McChesney, R. D. Waqf in Central Asia: Four Hundred Years in the History of a Muslim Shrine,14801889. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University press, 2014, 69.
Johnson 7
dissolved in the mid sixteenth century and a mutawalli took over.21 The Shahi canal originates at
the first barrage on the Balkh rivers and flows down to villages along the way. One of the first
villages mentioned as apart of the canals distribution was the ‘Ali shrine. 22 “The Shahi canal
was built primarily to water the shrine region, the “Shahi” Canal, probably derived from one of
the familiar rubrics for ‘Ali, the shah-i mardan, (Ruler of men)”. 23
Sultan Husayn picked this region not because of the shrine of ‘Ali but because of its
agricultural contents. While the Shahi canal was the most important canal, there were eighteen
branches that needed to be repaired as well. These canals became a major part of the Balkh
region. There is documentation of “an unbroken four-hundred-year history of channeling water
from the Balkh River to the region around the shrine and beyond.” 24 Throughout the different
governments and occupations the mutawalli kept the canals clear and flowing. The region was
dependent on the canals to grow food, the total amount of land involved is around 250,000 acres.
These canals fanned out all across the region creating more arable land. Agricultural revenue
increased, and the region started to resemble Egypt. 25
The Balkh region had been used in the past for its demographics. Depending on the
economy the region had prosperity that flowed with the fashion of the era. Romans and
Byzantine were extremely interested in the silks of the region. 26 The elevation of being in the
21
McChesney, R. D. Waqf in Central Asia: Four Hundred Years in the History of a Muslim Shrine,14801889. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University press, 2014,42.
22
Ibid, 41.
23
Ibid, 41.
24
Ibid, 276.
25
Subtelny, Maria. Timurids in Transition” Turko-Persian Politics and Acculturation in Medieval Iran,
Leiden: Brill, 2007, 214.
26
McChesney, R. D. Waqf in Central Asia: Four Hundred Years in the History of a Muslim Shrine,14801889. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University press, 2014, 21.
Johnson 8
Hindu Kush range helped them gain a flow of water coming from the melting snows further up
in the mountains. Even though the region never got more than ten inches of rain annually and
mainly had rain during February, March, and April they were able to contributed to the
agricultural economy strong enough to shape the economy of the region. 27 At the region’s peak
there were twenty-two canals functioning. There are notes of the canals being used before Sultan
Husayn. “The earliest known reference to the system of eighteen canals, however, is in the
geography of Hafiz-I Abru (1430).”28
Over 230 separate villages were irrigated because of these canals. Not only was food
grown because of these canals other business grew around them as well. Mills were powered by
the water flow of the canals. Wood and other materials that washed down the canal were
collected and used as fuel. “Irrigation in the region around Balkh was essential to the economic
well-being of the city if not its very existence.” 29 The waqf document stopped the Shahi canals,
such an important resource, from falling into the hands of the local government at the time. This
way whoever was in charge of the Balkh region could not control its most valuable resource.
Like other parts of the redevelopment of Balkh, Sultan Husayn put people in charge that
were professionals. He did not want court followers to be in charge instead having it done
through people he hired. Sultan Husayn privatized the land with a waqf and then endowed it off
to the shrine. He also endowed arable and irrigated land from the new canal to the shrine. With
all of these documents endowed to the shrine of ‘Ali the Timurids could control a large amount
27
McChesney, R. D. Waqf in Central Asia: Four Hundred Years in the History of a Muslim Shrine,14801889. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University press, 2014, 22.
28
Ibid, 23.
29
Ibid, 25.
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of farmable land as long as the shrine was under their control. During the time of the Timurid
empire the shrine’s annual income is reported to be around 1 million dinars. 30
Sultan Husayn wanted the shrine to become an alternative place for a pilgrimage. Shrines
represent an individual’s hope to better the world they are in by looking towards something
better than themselves. A shrine can be many things. In its simplest form, a shrine can be a
formation of rocks over a gravestone. The Shrine of ‘Ali was to be more then just a formation of
rocks and Sultan Husayn wanted to make the shrine grow to its greatest potential. He made
variations the were similar to the hajj pilgrimage rites. “The rediscovery of the burial place of
‘Ali……exerted a powerful attraction for the popular imagination, and people became to visit the
tomb site in large numbers. “31 Sultan Husayn set up an environment where the shrine would
become a place to rival the pilgrimage to Mecca.
Although, this was not the first time this shrine had been “discovered.” This tomb had
been found at the Khvaja Khairan site in 1135. 32 There are reports of a shrine existing there
since 1170 by a traveler. “When Mirza Bayqara reported to his brother the Sultan Husayn
Bayqara the rediscovery of the tomb site of ‘Ali. The news was greeted not with indifference or
hostility but with an outburst of genuine fervor.” 33 Although this is obviously because of
political reason, as it gave an excuse for his political decelerate of adherence to Twelver Shi’ism.
So Sultan Husayn immediately recognized the tomb and set up funds for its development and
Subtelny, Maria. Timurids in Transition” Turko-Persian Politics and Acculturation in Medieval Iran,
Leiden: Brill, 2007, 213.
31
Ibid, 212.
32
Ibid, 208.
33
McChesney, R. D. Waqf in Central Asia: Four Hundred Years in the History of a Muslim Shrine,14801889. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University press, 2014, 35.
30
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waqf endowment. This shows that while Sultan Husayn cared as much about the shrine of ‘Ali,
maybe even more, then he did about the agricultural benefits of the region.
The shrine in Balkh had been listed as sacred before the Timurids’ time and it is not
unnatural for there to be “multiple” sites of ‘Ali. When he was buried the original site was a
mystery. 34 When a faction from the other ‘Ali shrine protested the one in the Balkh region
Sultan Husayn had them whipped and flogged to tell them “There was room for only one “Ali
shrine, and that it had to be under the control of Timurid State and religious authorities.” 35
At the beginning of the 16th century, Wali Muhammad donated a large endowment of
new waqf properties to the ‘Ali shrine. He was the first Tugay-Timuried at Balkh and as the new
governor thought it would be smart to be on good terms with the local shrine.36 He realized that
having local political and religious backing would help him carry out any rules from his
government. The shrine’s officials enjoyed the attention gained in the Balkh region and the
shrine prospered A main project Wali Muhammad did was to create a system of roads leading to
the shrine. 37 These roads gained pilgrimages to the shrine and the shrine items money. The
people saw the Tugay-Timuried as wealthy and kind for helping their town prosper. This is the
same thing that Sultan Husayn was doing.
Between the time of Wali Muhammad and Nadhr Muhammad there is the first
documentation from the Ansari Family. The Ansari were in charge of the ‘Ali Shrine in the
Subtelny, Maria. Timurids in Transition” Turko-Persian Politics and Acculturation in Medieval Iran,
Leiden: Brill, 2007, 210.
35
Ibid, 212.
36
McChesney, R. D. Waqf in Central Asia: Four Hundred Years in the History of a Muslim Shrine,14801889. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University press, 2014, 85.
37
Ibid, 88.
34
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middle of the seventeenth century. 38 The first documentation of this family is in 1688 where the
political administration recognized that the shrine owned the entire eastern region in the province
of Balkh. 39 They were even able to hold a small army of 1,000 horsemen with the resources they
had. This family is documented to be in charge of the shrine through the late nineteenth century.
With how long they were involved in the shrine a sort of spiritual legacy formed around them
and they gained the status of a spiritual heir to ‘Ali. 40 Even though the Ansari claim to be the
mutawalli, there is no documentation from Husayn about them and through textual
documentation we have to assume they trained for the position of mutawalli and were the natural
choice. 41
Modern observers see the ‘Ali shrine as a work of Shi’i piety but ignore the history
behind it. “The intellectual history of Muslim Central Asia before and after 1480-1481 is far too
broad and complex a subject to even attempt to sketch here.”42 The range of religion throughout
the area was always changing and because of that the shrine was not just Shi’I. The finding of
‘Ali’s body was found to be Shi’i because of its importance to Ali and his family in the religion.
It is thanks to the work of Sultan Husayn and his work on encouraging pilgrimages that shaped
the religion of this shrine. Because of this Balkh became a region where Islam as a whole was
worshipped and visited the shrine together.
The examples cited here show how the ‘Ali shrine shaped the land of Balkh around the
people. With the use of the waqf document the mutawalli were able to control the shrines
38
39
McChesney, Robert D. Central Asia: Foundations of Change, Princeton, NJ: Darwin Press, 1006, 89.
Ibid, 91.
Ibid, 92.
41
McChesney, R. D. Waqf in Central Asia: Four Hundred Years in the History of a Muslim Shrine,14801889. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University press, 2014, 146.
42
Ibid, 33.
40
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finances and use them as they saw fit. They used it to keep the Shahi Canal and its branches
flowing for over four hundred years. They used resources on expanding the shrine itself and the
roads around it to bring in pilgrims. Between the pilgrimages and the farmable land, the waqf
started to generate close to a million dinar a year. Modern observers look at the shrine and see it
as a work of Shi’i Islam, but they forget the vastly different groups of people that were in Balkh
during the time of the shrine. Even after the Timurids control the Ansari, who were the mutawalli
family, were able to stay on good terms with each new government ensuring the shrine would be
able to function. With the money earned, the shrine of ‘Ali became a powerful part of the Balkh
region, reshaping it to resemble Egypt and fulfilling Sultans Husayn’s goal of advancing regional
prosperity.
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Iran, Leiden: Brill, 2007