More than two and a half centuries ago, with funds from the Tatar merchant Yakub Sultangaliev founded the Second Cathedral Mosque in Kazan. The ceremonial event on the occasion of the significant date, which took place on October 26, 2024, gathered high-ranking officials, religious figures, scientists, historians, teachers and philanthropists of the capital of the Republic of Tatarstan in the Apanaev Mosque. As part of the anniversary celebration, a scientific conference was held in the building of the Apanaev Madrasah, where were presented reports on the past and present of the architectural heritage, as well as on its important historical significance.
Like the First Cathedral, today known as "Al- Marjani", the Apanaev Mosque was built after the signing of the decree "On the tolerance of all religions ..." by Empress Catherine II. Because of this historical fact, the religious building can be considered one of the symbols of the emergence of the multi-confessional policy of the Russian state. However, the true proof of the epochal role of the Apanaev Mosque is the current state of affairs. This was also indicated by the imam- khatyb of the Al- Marjani Mosque, Ravil hazrat Zumerov, who welcomed the participants of the anniversary celebration on behalf of the Mufti of Tatarstan Kamil hazrat Samigullin. The results of the work and good deeds of the scientists and imams of the Apanaev complex allowed the values of Islam to be carried through the centuries.
The madrasah at the Apanaev Mosque opened in 1770. The facade of the building facing Lake Kaban earned the educational institution the name "Priozernoye". Another name - " Kasimiya" - goes back to one of the mudarris - Muhammadkasym Salikhov. A separate article would be needed to list the prominent teachers, as well as their students, who subsequently achieved heights in many areas of public life. In order to trace the connection between generations, without missing important stages of history, we will dwell on the name of one shakird - Galimdjan Barudi. In the future, this graduate will head the Kazan madrasah "Mukhammadiya", widely known in the Islamic world today. Commitment to Barudi The new method of teaching will also have an impact on the Apanaev madrasah: the latter will become more open to new trends representing Jadidism.
Today the imam is Khatyb of Apanaev Mosque Niyaz Hazrat Sabirov and the head of the madrasah, Akhmad Hazrat Sabirov worthily continues the good work of his predecessors. The main qazi of Tatarstan Jalil Hazrat Fazlyev in his welcoming speech to the participants of the solemn event, drew attention to the centuries of preservation of religion thanks to ancestors who did not give in to many difficulties. Jalil Hazrat also emphasized that the work of many patrons and religious figures was invested in the Apanaev mosque. It is not without reason that the religious building received its current name in honor of its benefactors - the Apanayevs merchant dynasty, who lived in the quarter of the Old Tatar settlement, over which the minaret of the mosque towered.
In 1930, the Apanaev Mosque was closed by a decree of the Central Executive Committee of the Soviets of Workers, Peasants and Red Army Deputies of the TASSR. During the Soviet era, the building, deprived of its minaret, housed a kindergarten.
The religious building was returned to the Muslim community in the 1990s, and Valiulla Hazrat Yakupov, who made significant efforts to revive the Islamic heritage in Russia and develop it in a constructive way, became the imam- khatyb of the mosque. In the 2000s began the process of restoration of the Apanaev Mosque, which took place with the participation of the republican and federal authorities, as well as caring residents of Tatarstan. The names of benevolent citizens were included in the book "Revival of the Apanaev Mosque", published with the aim of preserving them in history - about this Valiulla Hazrat said in 2011 at the opening ceremony of the restored place of worship.
Continuing the tradition of perpetuating important events for the mosque in books, on the occasion of the 255th anniversary, a publication in the Tatar language, “Apanaev Mosque: Serving Religion and the People”, was presented. In addition, the opening of a library in the Apanaev Madrasah was timed to coincide with the round date, where more than a thousand books from the Iman publishing house (founded in the 1990s by Valiulla Yakupov), as well as modern Muslim literature and periodicals. The walls of the cozy reading room are decorated with quotes from the writer Alexei Tolstoy and the philosopher Ibn Arabi . "We must draw the best from the culture of our peoples. In this way, we must enrich each other", Niyaz Hazrat Sabirov shared his opinion during the celebration.
Imam- khatyb of Apanaev Mosque also noted that in the age of the Internet, most people use e-books, but not all printed publications have a digital analogue on the World Wide Web. Director of the Institute of History named after Sh. Marjani Radik Salikhov, one of the participants in the anniversary event, spoke about the defining character of the stone mosques of Apanay and Marjani for the architectural landscape of the Old Tatar Quarter from the 16th to the beginning of the 19th century. The architectural appearance of the building itself combines elements of Moscow Baroque and Old Russian style with Tatar decor. Today, the Apanaev Mosque, like "Al- Marjani", being an integral part of the historical heritage of Russia, still remain dominant in the spiritual space of Muslims of Tatarstan.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: A.Savin/Free Art License