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The
Shrine
of
Bayazid
Bostami
is
a
shrine
in
Chattogram,
Bangladesh.
Bayazid
Bostami
was
a
famous
Persian
Sufi
born
in
Bostam,
Iran.
Its
shrine
area
as
a
complex
consists
of
a
tomb
surrounded
by
a
brick
structure
along
with
an
old
mosque
and
a
large
pond.
There
is
no
significant
historical
evidence
about
Bostami's
visit
and
tomb
in
this
area.
The
whole
complex
is
located
on
a
hillock
of
Nasirabad,
considered
to
be
a
holy
place
and
attracts
a
large
number
of
visitors
and
pilgrims
daily.
The
tomb
and
the
sarcophagus
it
houses
were
originally
discovered
in
1831,
and
at
the
time
were
enclosed
by
a
wall
with
protective
pillars,
that
have
since
been
replaced
by
a
more
modern
structure.
At
the
foot
of
the
tomb
hill,
there
is
an
ancient
three-domed
mosque,
which
is
believed
to
date
from
the
time
of
the
Mughal
emperor,
Aurangzeb
(1618ā1707).
The
interior
of
the
mosque
is
sparsely
decorated,
while
the
mihrab
on
the
qibla
wall
(indicating
the
direction
of
Mecca)
has
an
identical
projection
on
its
opposite
side.
Although
the
shrine
is
believed
to
be
Bostami's
tomb
according
to
local
tradition,
there
is
no
significant
historical
evidence
about
Bostami's
visit
to
this
part
of
Bangladesh.
It
is
thought
that
this
tomb
was
attributed
to
him
as
a
jawab
or
imitation.
According
to
Hamidullah
Khan
(a
historian
of
19th-century
Chittagong),
Muslim
faqirs
and
wanderers
of
the
time
used
to
come
to
Chittagong
to
take
their
seats
on
hill
tops
surrounded
by
jungles.
Some
people
believe
that
Bostami
visited
this
part
of
the
world
during
his
lifetime.
According
to
legend,
during
his
return
local
followers
asked
him
to
stay
in
Chittagong.
Overwhelmed
by
their
love
and
devotion,
Bostami
pierced
his
fifth
(little)
finger,
allowed
a
few
drops
of
blood
to
fall
to
the
ground,
and
permitted
his
followers
to
build
a
shrine
there
on
his
name.
Although
there
is
no
authentic
historical
record
about
Bostami's
visit
to
Chittagong,
some
18th-century
Bengali
poets
remembered
a
Shah
Sultan
of
Nasirabad
in
their
poems.
In
front
of
the
tomb,
there
is
a
large
pond
that
houses
a
large
number
of
black
soft-shelled
turtles
known
as
Bostami
turtle
or
Bostami
kachim
(locally
called
mazari)
which
are
a
very
rare
and
critically
endangered
species.
Legends
claim
that
these
turtles
are
the
descendants
of
evil
spirits
that
incurred
the
wrath
of
the
renowned
saint,
Bayazid
Bostami,
while
he
was
visiting
the
area.
It
is
believed
that
the
evil
spirits
were
then
transformed
into
turtles
as
a
punishment
and
are
doomed
to
spend
eternity
in
this
pool.
At
present,
the
shrine's
caretakers
ā
the
Mazar
Committee
ā
protect
the
turtle
population
but
will
not
allow
specimens
to
be
taken
anymore,
regardless
of
whether
they
would
be
killed
or
reintroduced
into
the
wild.
Scientifically,
the
black
soft-shelled
turtle
or
Bostami
turtle
(Aspideretes
nigricans,
sometimes
placed
in
genus
Nilssonia)
is
a
species
of
freshwater
turtle
found
in
India
(Assam
and
Tripura)
and
Bangladesh
(Chittagong).
They
have
been
long-believed
to
be
inbred
variants
of
the
Ganges
soft-shelled
turtle
(A.
gangeticus
or
N.
gangeticus)
or
the
peacock
soft-shelled
turtle
(A.
hurum
or
N.
hurum).
While
it
is
a
close
relative
of
the
latter,
it
is
a
distinct
species.
As
of
2002,
the
IUCN
classified
the
species
as
extinct
in
the
wild.
2012
an
initiative
taken
to
build
a
multi-storey
mosque
at
the
location
of
the
pond
was
stayed
by
the
Supreme
Court
of
Bangladesh.
Although
several
concrete
pillars
had
been
erected
inside
the
shrine
pond,
about
10
feet
off
the
bank
despite
the
rule
of
high
court.
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