Scientists from the Yassawi Studies Research Center at the Aziret Sultan National Historical and Cultural Museum-Reserve have discovered a previously unknown 17th-century manuscript in the Russian State Library. This manuscript is dedicated to the history and spiritual teachings of the Yassawi tariqah.
This research is being conducted in pursuance of the instructions of Head of State Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to comprehensively study and popularize the legacy of Khoja Akhmed Yassawi, as well as within the framework of the government-approved Yassawi Studies development plan.
The manuscript, "Khujjat az-zakirin li-radd al-munkirin" (Proof of Those Who Perform Dhikr Against Those Who Deny It), was discovered during a scientific expedition to Moscow. Created in Bukhara, this work is an important written source on the history of the Yassawi school.
The manuscript examines the principles of Sufi education, the tradition of public dhikr, and spiritual continuity. It also contains information about the spiritual chain leading back to Khoja Ahmed Yasawi, Hakim Ata, Zangi Ata, and subsequent representatives of the tariqa.
Specialists are currently preparing a scholarly description of the manuscript. Its text will be compared with known copies of the work, after which the scholars will conduct a textual analysis and introduce the results of their research into scholarly discourse.