Paraw Bibi Shrine

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The Paraw Bibi Shrine is one of the most important and most visited pilgrimage sites in Turkmenistan . It is dedicated to the legend of the beautiful woman Paraw Bibi.

location

The shrine is located near the city of Serdar in the Balkans welaýaty on the rail and road connection between the Turkmen capital Ashgabat and the provincial capital Balkanabat . The small village in the immediate vicinity of the pilgrimage site is called Paraw, also named after the heroine Paraw Bibi, who is worshiped here.

Legend

According to legend, Paraw Bibi was an exceptionally beautiful woman who was envied by other women because of her beauty. When the place where Bibi lived was attacked by enemies, a jealous woman offered the attackers a deal: They would get Paraw Bibi if they did not attack the city and moved on. Paraw Bibi found out about this conspiracy and turned the envious woman into a black stone. Then she went into the surrounding mountains and looked down at the enemy and her hometown. She realized that the enemies were about to attack the place. In order not to fall into the hands of the approaching enemies, Bibi ordered the mountain to open. This opened a crack and Bibi disappeared into the mountain and thus saved himself from the attackers. After this miracle, a shrine was built in memory of her at the point in the mountain where Bibi is said to have disappeared. Numerous stones associated with the legend were found in the area, including an allegedly petrified watermelon that Bibi is said to have eaten shortly before she escaped.

Pilgrimage site

The shrine is a few hundred meters higher at the point where Bibi is said to have disappeared into the rock. The shrine itself is a very small, white building, built in the architecture typical of the region. The entrance is designed with an ivan and the main room is covered by a dome . The building is surrounded on three sides by rock walls, from the fourth side the building can be reached via a white staircase. At the shrine there are numerous stones that Bibi is said to have touched or seen during her escape and which are therefore said to have special powers. Pilgrims take it in hand and try to balance it with thumb and forefinger. If this succeeds, one is - depending on the interpretation - free from sin or one has a free wish. Below the shrine is a simple pilgrim hostel with a covered forecourt for dining and gatherings.

meaning

Several hundred pilgrims travel to the Paraw Bibi shrine every day, making it one of the most important pilgrimage sites in the country. Even in Soviet times , the shrine was visited by numerous pilgrims. Today there are mainly women among the visitors who ask for fertility at the shrine .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Internet Archaeol. 26. McLaren. Myths and Legends associated with stone. Retrieved November 9, 2019 .
  2. ↑ STANTOURS - Turkmenistan - Balkans - Paraw Bibi Shrine. Retrieved November 9, 2019 .
  3. ↑ Beatrice Sonntag: Discover Turkmenistan: Travel guide through an unusual desert state .
  4. ^ Beate Luckow: Turkmenistan . 1st edition. Trescher Verlag, S. 147 f .

Coordinates: 39 ° 1 ′ 19.8 ″  N , 56 ° 2 ′ 32.8 ″  E