Bahauddin Naqshband died in 1389 in the village where he was born, a short ride from Bukhara, and the Sufi order that bears his name went on to spread across Central Asia, India, the Ottoman Empire and beyond. The Naqshbandi order emphasised silent remembrance of God and living a spiritual life within the everyday world, and its founder's tomb became one of the most important pilgrimage sites in Central Asia, so much so that locals sometimes call it the Mecca of Central Asia. The complex, with its mosques, minaret, courtyards and the tomb itself, was largely built in the sixteenth century under the Shaybanid rulers and restored in recent decades.
Pilgrims come from across Uzbekistan and beyond, walking around the tomb, praying, touching the old mulberry tree and drinking from the sacred well. The atmosphere is devout but welcoming, and visitors are generally received with courtesy, though modest dress is expected, with shoulders and knees covered and head scarves for women in some areas.
Bukhara, about ten kilometres away, is one of the great cities of the Silk Road, its historic centre listed by UNESCO, with madrasas, mosques, minarets, covered bazaars and the fortress of the Ark. The Kalyan minaret, built in the twelfth century, so impressed Genghis Khan that he is said to have spared it when he destroyed much of the city. Spending a few days in Bukhara is one of the joys of travelling in Central Asia.
The riding in this part of Uzbekistan is flat, with long straight roads across irrigated fields, desert and villages. Surfaces vary, traffic can be unpredictable and police checkpoints are frequent. A practical point: many Uzbek cars run on compressed gas, and petrol of higher octane grades can be hard to find, so fill up whenever you see good fuel and plan your route around larger stations. Kagan, about eight kilometres away, and Bukhara have the most reliable options.
Food is a highlight: plov, the national dish of rice, meat and carrots, samsa baked in clay ovens, shashlik, fresh bread and endless pots of green tea. April and October are the sweet months. Summer heat in Bukhara is intense. Visit the complex in the early morning, when pilgrims gather in the cool and the call to prayer drifts over the courtyards.