Научная статья на тему 'HYBRIDIZATION OF MUSEUM PRACTICES: STATE AND CONFESSIONAL EXPERIMENTS IN MOSQUES OF KAZAKHSTAN'

HYBRIDIZATION OF MUSEUM PRACTICES: STATE AND CONFESSIONAL EXPERIMENTS IN MOSQUES OF KAZAKHSTAN Текст научной статьи по специальности «Философия, этика, религиоведение»

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Ключевые слова
ISLAM / MOSQUE / CULTURAL HERITAGE / MUSEUM / POST-SOVIET / SECULAR / RELIGIOUS / HYBRIDIZATION / PARTICIPATION / SPIRITUAL ADMINISTRATION OF MUSLIMS OF KAZAKHSTAN

Аннотация научной статьи по философии, этике, религиоведению, автор научной работы — Kikimbayev Meiram Zh.

The article analyzes the cases of organizing the activities of Islamic museums in regional mosques, which appeared as a result of the participation of state power, branches of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of Kazakhstan and other stakeholders. The author posits that the Rukhaniyat Museum located at the Nur-Gasyr Mosque in the Aktobe region, and the Museum of Islamic Culture situated at the Khalifa Altai Mosque in the East Kazakhstan region, represent the initial undertakings towards a comprehensive implementation of Soviet museum methodologies to showcase the suppressed pre-Soviet Islamic legacy. The emergence of hybrid forms of coexistence between the museum and mosque has made it challenging for researchers to categorize these institutions using existing museum classifications in Kazakhstan. One of the museums is run by a government body, while the other is managed by a branch of the country's primary Islamic institution. This distinction is evident in the way each museum presents its exhibits and communicates with the local community. In general, it is argued that a hybridization of museum practices is taking place, and mosques are becoming a place of compromise for all stakeholders to showcase Islamic heritage in secular Kazakhstan. Both the state power and religious institutions are demonstrating their own approaches to representation within this context.

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Текст научной работы на тему «HYBRIDIZATION OF MUSEUM PRACTICES: STATE AND CONFESSIONAL EXPERIMENTS IN MOSQUES OF KAZAKHSTAN»

IRSTI 02.41.41

Hybridization of museum practices: state and confessional experiments in mosques of Kazakhstan

Meiram Zh. Kikimbayev

L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University, Astana, Kazakhstan

E-mail: m.kikimbaev@yandex.ru

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4157-3302 DOI: https://doi.org/10.32523/2616-7255-2023-142-1-252-264

Abstract. The article analyzes the cases of organizing the activities of Islamic museums in regional mosques, which appeared as a result of the participation of state power, branches of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of Kazakhstan and other stakeholders. The author posits that the Rukhaniyat Museum located at the Nur-Gasyr Mosque in the Aktobe region, and the Museum of Islamic Culture situated at the Khalifa Altai Mosque in the East Kazakhstan region, represent the initial undertakings towards a comprehensive implementation of Soviet museum methodologies to showcase the suppressed pre-Soviet Islamic legacy. The emergence of hybrid forms of coexistence between the museum and mosque has made it challenging for researchers to categorize these institutions using existing museum classifications in Kazakhstan. One of the museums is run by a government body, while the other is managed by a branch of the country's primary Islamic institution. This distinction is evident in the way each museum presents its exhibits and communicates with the local community.

In general, it is argued that a hybridization of museum practices is taking place, and mosques are becoming a place of compromise for all stakeholders to showcase Islamic heritage in secular Kazakhstan. Both the state power and religious institutions are demonstrating their own approaches to representation within this context. Keywords: Islam; mosque; cultural heritage; museum; post-Soviet; secular; religious; hybridization; participation; Spiritual Administration of Muslims of Kazakhstan.

Received 22 January 2023. Revised 25 January 2023. Accepted 31 January 2023. Available online 30 March 2023.

For citation:

Kikimbayev M. Hybridization of museum practices: state and confessional experiments in mosques of Kazakhstan// Bulletin of the L.N. Gumilyov ENU. Historical sciences. Philosophy. Religion Series. 2023. - Vol. 142. - №. 1. - С. DOI: https://doi.org/10.32523/2616-7255-2023-142-1-252-264

Для цитирования:

Кикимбаев М. Гибридизации музейных практик: государственные и конфессиональные эксперименты в мечетях Казахстана // Вестник ЕНУ им. Л. Гумилева Серия Исторические науки. Философия. Религиоведение. - 2023. - Т. 142. - №. 1. - С. DOI: https://doi.org/10.32523/2616-7255-2023-142-1-252-264

Introduction

As of the beginning of 2022, 250 different objects have been included in the state list of monuments of historical and cultural significance of the republican level of Kazakhstan (Prikaz Ministra kultury i sporta Respubliki Kazakhstan ot 14 aprelia 2020 goda № 88). Among them are about 30 historical mosques, but this is only a small part, as the majority of Islamic heritage objects are included in the lists of monuments of local (regional) significance approved by the akimats of the administrative regions of Kazakhstan.

Mosques built in the pre-colonial, colonial, or Soviet periods of Kazakhstan>s history are included in the republican list. Some of them are part of large complexes, such as the Aziret Sultan Reserve-Museum (Sait gosudarstvennogo istoriko-kulturnogo zapovednika-muzei

«Aziret Sultan»), the Mangystau Historical and Cultural Reserve (Sait Mangistauskogo istoriko-kulturnogo zapovednika), Istoriko-muzeinyi kompleks «Bukeevskaia orda), and others. However, the majority of them are separate mosques. These include, for example, the Jarkent Mosque, which is built in a Chinese style (Zharkentskaia mechet: putevoditel po Kazakhstanu), and Tatar mosques in the city of Semey (Pamiatniki arkhitektury Semeia).

With the collapse of the USSR and the process of re-Islamization (Khalid, 2012: 316) in post-Soviet Kazakhstan, the process of active mosque construction began (Kikimbayev). Large central mosques were built in every regional center, which gradually became important public spaces in the lives of local communities. In addition to the usual practices associated with religious services, mosques began to open shops, food establishments, and libraries for local communities. However, non-standard experiments also emerged, when museums began to open in mosques, which required more serious investments from interested parties.

Undoubtedly, some individual experiments in new museums in Kazakhstan appeared earlier, but they did not have a massive character and were created as small personal museums of

individual religious figures, or had an informal character in the form of small stands inside mosques.

In this article, we will attempt to show the current results of the experiments of state bodies and Islamic institutions in creating museums of Islamic heritage using the example of historical and local lore museums of the Soviet period.

The main theoretical framework for the article is the concept of the culturologist Ann Rigney. She criticizes the «methodological nationalism» widespread in the West in cultural studies (memory studies) and, in contrast to it, suggests a concept of multiscalarity. The concept of multiscale states that the memory produces and circulates within different social frameworks, having its own unique scales: an individual, a family, a city, a region, a nation, a continent, the world, etc. According to Rigney, each of them, from the memories of individuals to larger configurations, is important for the production of cultural memory right here and right now (Rigni, 2020: 30).

In addition, Rigney identifies the three most important memory production sites:

1. The nation-state is the main producer of collective memory, which systematically influences public consciousness with the help of schools, museums and monuments.

2. Cities and city authorities are a less visible but no less important player in the field of memory. The boundaries of the memory of the city in many cases might not coincide with national frames, creating different from it places of memory.

3. Art is the reproduction of an alternative view regarding the national memory. It cannot fully compete with the nation-state memory, but it has ability to broaden the boundaries of collective memory.

According to Rigney, the production of collective memory is a dynamic system of interaction between various frameworks, where not only confrontation, but also mutual perception takes its place. The power of state and cities has a monopoly in the public space, albeit media, art and local small-scale initiatives can offer alternatives, allowing mobilisation

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of people in order to change current situation (Interviu s Enn Rigni, 2020: 13).

In our opinion, in the cases described in this article, as Rigney predicts, the interaction of some of the memory boundaries takes places (primarily nation-states and cities), that are being influenced by true initiatives of local communities.

Research methods

As part of a research project on museum practices within the space of a mosque, a trip was made to Aktobe from December 2021 to March 2022. During this trip, employees of the «Rukhaniyat» museum conducted a tour at the «Nur-Gasyr» mosque and provided informational materials.

To prepare the article, a qualitative sociological research method was used. Expert interviews were conducted with individuals from the following museums:

1) The organizer of expeditions for the «Rukhaniyat» museum (Aktobe), a descendant of a religious educator repressed in the USSR.

2) The chief imam of the central «Nur-Gasyr» mosque (Aktobe).

3) The curator of the Museum of Islamic Culture at the «Khalifa Altai» mosque (Ust-Kamenogorsk).

In addition to the interviews, founding documents of the studied Islamic museums, official websites of the mosques, and publications from news websites dedicated to the activities of Islamic museums were used as supplementary sources.

The State Museum «Rukhaniyat» at the «Nur Gasyr» Mosque

The «Ruhiyat» Museum, located near the Nur Gasyr Mosque in Aktobe, opened in 2011 and represents a unique case of hybridization

Photo 1. It captures a memorial plaque located at the entrance of the Nur-Gasyr mosque. The plaque is inscribed with the following text: «The Nur-Gasyr Mosque - a center of spirituality and kindness - was opened by the first President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, during the holy month of Ramadan. The President of Russia, Dmitry Medvedev, also participated in the opening ceremony on September 22, 2008» (Photo by M. Kikimbayev)

Photo 2. From the museum stand dedicated to the V International Forum

(photo by M. ikimbayev)

in museum practice, where the interests of the secular state authority and the Islamic community intersect.

The idea for the construction of a new central mosque was proposed by the governor of the region, Eleusin Sagyndyqov. The idea of incorporating a thematic museum into the mosque project came to him after visiting the Kul-Sharif Mosque in Kazan, Tatarstan, Russia. He was deeply impressed by the Islamic Culture Museum located in the basement of the famous mosque (Sait Gosudarstvennogo istoriko-arkhitekturnogo i khudozhestvennogo muzeia-zapovednika «Kazanskii Kreml»). A total of 1,960,445,000 tenge, which amounted to more than 16 million dollars at the exchange rate of that time, was collected for the construction of the mosque. A total of 200,000 people participated in the financing of the construction. The main contributions came from large companies in Kazakhstan such as «Kazakhstan Railways», «KazMunayGas», «AktobeMunayGas», and others. In addition to Kazakhstani builders, specialists from Russia, Uzbekistan, Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, and other countries also participated in the construction of the mosque [Aktiubinskaia oblastnaia tsentralnaia mechet, 2011: 26-27].

Difficulties for government agencies arose during the legal registration of the museum. The mosque itself did not have the necessary financial resources and personnel to organize museum activities. Since the initiative came from a government agency, the decision was made by the regional governor to open a state museum with a monthly rent payment in favor of the mosque for the use of the exhibition hall. On the other hand, this solved the problem of maintaining the entire mosque - the rent covered the utility expenses for electricity, water, and heating.

In the exhibition logic of the «Ruhiyat» Museum, there is a noticeable movement from present to past: in the first block, exhibits are dedicated to the stages of the construction of the Nur Gasyr Mosque, the International Forum of 2008 with the participation of Presidents N. Nazarbayev and D. Medvedev, and so on -events that are presented as achievements and reflections of the independence of Kazakhstan (photos 1 and 2).

Furthermore, there are exhibits dedicated to the origins of Islam in Mecca and Medina, as well as those highlighting the significance of historical figures who helped spread Islam in Kazakhstan (photo 3). However, the largest portion of the displays (around 10 exhibits) focus on the local

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Islamic heritage. This includes items belonging to religious leaders and scholars (khazrets, ishans, akhuns, khalpes, and others), religious books donated to the museum by the local population,

photographs, and models of historical mosques in the Aktobe region (photos 4 and 5). During the tour, the museum guide emphasized that the region possesses no less heritage than its famous

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Photo 4. A stand with Islamic books and photos of mosques of the Aktobe region destroyed during

the Soviet period (photo by M. Kikimbayev)

Photo 5. A part of the layouts of new and Tatar mosques (photo M. Kikimbayev)

neighboring region, Mangystau (Interactive Map of Historical-Cultural Places of Mangystau region of the Republic of Kazakhstan). While Mangystau is home to 362 aulies (saints), the Aktobe region has no fewer Islamic leaders buried there. The region also has many different pre-Soviet mosques, madrasas, and mausoleums. The only difference is that the Aktobe region lacks underground mosques like those found in Mangystau.

The main actors in collecting unique exhibits for the «Ruhaniyat» museum were the descendants of Islamic religious figures who were repressed during the Soviet era. According to a museum representative, Zhibek Abdullina, who coordinates local activism, she is the descendant of a repressed religious leader during the Soviet era. Her grandfather, Bisen Khasret, received a religious education in Uzbekistan (Bukhara, Kukeldash madrasah) and Turkey (a madrasah in Istanbul) during the tsarist period. During the Soviet confiscation period, he fled with his family to the territory of present-day Russia (Orenburg region). After World War II, when he returned to the territory of Kazakhstan, he was repressed as an enemy of the people and exiled for 20 years to Taishet prison in the Irkutsk region. Bisen

Khasret, before fleeing from the Bolsheviks to Russia, engaged in enlightenment activities and built a mosque-madrasah to teach Kazakh children literacy and religious knowledge.

Zhibek Abdullina came to the museum opening in 2011 to request the opening of a stand dedicated to her grandfather. Later, she accepted the museum managements offer to become the leader of the «Ruhaniyat» club, which coordinated the collection of exhibits for the museum among the local population. After that, she became the main representative of the museum in communicating with the descendants of local Islamic figures and popularizing the Islamic heritage of the region. At the same time, she began to compile lists of repressed religious figures and publish articles in newspapers and magazines about religious figures and historical monuments. In addition, since 2016, Zhibek Abdullina has been conducting search expeditions called «Amanat» throughout the Aktobe region, with the participation of descendants of religious figures, employees of state agencies, and imams of the region.

Zhibek Abdullina considers the most important exhibits in the museum to be the belongings of religious figures in the Aktobe

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Photo 6. Religious figures, as well as the ruins of pre-Soviet mosques (photo by M. Kikimbayev)

region. She placed particular emphasis on the stand dedicated to three of the most famous religious figures who received Islamic education in Bukhara, built their mosques in the region, and actively engaged in enlightenment activities (photo 6). Their life stories illustrate all the changes that took place in Kazakhstan in the first half of the 20th century. Through the fates of these figures, one can trace all the tragic events in the history of Kazakhs during that period. All three figures became victims of Bolshevik repression: Bisen Khasret (1878-1969) served his sentence in Taishet prison; Karimbergen Khasret (1886-1974) served his sentence in prison on the White Sea Canal; Sagidolla Hazret (1876-1964) escaped direct repression by escaping from the Bolsheviks to Tajikistan and hiding there until the 60s of the twentieth century.

Another respondent, the chief imam of the Nur-Gasyr mosque, considers the religious books exhibited in the museum>s exhibition hall more important for modern Kazakhstan than the

models of mosques and personal belongings of Islamic figures. Many of the books found in the museum contain educational materials on Sharia, Fiqh, Aqeedah, and Arabic grammar. Religious books vividly demonstrate that Kazakhs even during the tsarist and Soviet periods acquired deep knowledge in the field of Islamic sciences and engaged in educational and enlightening activities among the population.

Also, in our view, the list of religious figures repressed by the Bolsheviks in Aktobe is very important in the museum>s space. Its annual update reflects the development of the museum>s collection. At present, the list consists of the names of 34 Islamic figures, which are annually replenished as materials are collected in archives and during expeditions. According to the respondent, this list would be replenished even more actively if information about their activities reached all interested descendants. The tragic events of the first half of the 20th century in the USSR (collectivization, confiscation, repression,

etc.) scattered the descendants of many Islamic figures not only throughout Kazakhstan but also to neighboring countries and beyond.

In this regard, the respondent expressed regret that at the end of 2018, such a unique museum lost its independent state status. A new building of the regional historical and local lore museum was opened in the region, and the new akim of the region, Berdibek Saparbayev, decided to centralize the activities of all state museums. As a result, the state museum «Rukhaniyat» was liquidated, the akimat refused to rent the museum hall in the Nur-Gasyr mosque, and all exhibits were transported to organize an exhibition hall in the new building of the regional museum (Postanovlenie akimata Aktiubinskoi oblasti № 525 ot 06.12.2018 goda).

Afterwards, there were appeals from initiative groups addressed to the akim of Aktobe region. Letters were sent to the chief imam of the Nur-Gasyr mosque requesting the restoration of the Islamic museum>s state status within the walls of the mosque. Only after the appointment of a new akim in 2020 was the rental of the museum hall in the mosque renewed, and most of the exhibits were returned. However, the museum>s state status was not restored, and it began to function as a thematic hall of the local regional historical and local lore museum.

Following the loss of its independent status, the active work of the Ruhanat Museum, which previously carried out purposeful work to replenish the museum>s fund, significantly decreased. The absence of its own mission and budget had a significant impact on the initiatives and cooperation with the local community: there are no longer the same scale of tours and educational events as before; the museum>s website was closed, where it was planned to open the «Virtual Museum» option.

In the history of the development of a new public space, the relationship between the museum and the mosque is of interest. Despite being Islamic in content, the museum is not in the constant focus of attention of the imams of the Nur-Gasyr mosque. Information about the Islamic museum «Rukhaniyat» is almost absent in official sources and publications of SAMK. An

analysis of the official website of the Nur-Gasyr mosque (Sait Aktiubinskoi oblastnoi mecheti «Nur-Gasyr») showed that interaction exists, but it manifests itself in the use of the museum hall for reporting meetings and meetings of imams, various contests among believers, etc.

Cooperation with the imams of the Nur-Gasyr mosque only begins after appeals from museum staff. For example, assistance can be provided in the identification of religious books provided by the population. The leadership of the mosque does not show particular interest in assisting in attracting the local umma to the museum, in collecting religious exhibits for the museum fund. That is, the state museum, though part of the Islamic complex, is perceived to a greater extent as a foreign body, as a simple tenant, which has no relation to the main activity of the mosque itself.

According to respondents, at present, the practice of developing a separate state museum dedicated to Islamic heritage contradicts the principles of secularism in Kazakhstan>s state policy. However, despite the loss of state status, the museum hall «Rukhaniyat» at the Nur-Gasyr mosque has the potential for further development. The demand for Islamic museums will increase in the future, as the process of Islamic revival is still ongoing in Kazakhstan, and the number of practicing believers is growing among the population. In the future, the museums of Islam maintained at the expense of the state budget will cease to cause controversy, as it is happening at the moment.

Confessional Museum at the Khalifa Altai Mosque

The «Khalifa Altai» mosque in Ust-Kamenogorsk was opened in 2012 and is considered one of the largest mosques in Kazakhstan in terms of area. While the museum hall of the «Ruhaniyat» museum in Aktobe was initially included in the project for the new mosque, the idea of creating an Islamic museum in Ust-Kamenogorsk did not arise immediately. The available space in the «Khalifa Altai» mosque building pushed the imams to develop practices

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for promoting religious heritage. The history of the museum began with the mosque>s library, which collected the works of the writer, religious enlightener, and translator of the Quran into Kazakh, Khalifa Altai, as well as other religious literature, including rare editions of Islamic books that the population sometimes brought to the mosque.

The initiator of creating the Museum of Islamic Culture at the «Khalifa Altai» mosque was the akim of the East Kazakhstan region, Danial Akhmetov. The region>s leader, as in the case of the «Ruhaniyat» museum in Aktobe, proposed this idea after visiting the Museum of Islamic Culture at the Kul-Sharif mosque in Kazan (Tatarstan, Russia).

The museum was opened in 2019, and the presentation was attended by the region>s akim, civil servants, representatives of the intelligentsia, imams of the SAMK, as well as leaders of all confessions of the East Kazakhstan region (Muzei islamskoi kultury predstavil unikalnye eksponaty). As the museum curator noted, the area of the «Khalifa Altai» mosque allowed them to organize a museum hall comparable to state historical and local lore museums. The region>s akim provided support in developing the museum>s concept, which involved employees of state bodies, the regional local lore museum, representatives of the local academic community (historians, archaeologists). Prominent Islamic scholars of the country gave their recommendations and proposals on complying with Sharia requirements in the museum>s activities. In addition, at the request of the region>s akim, 52 rare books and manuscripts published from the 13th to the 18th centuries were brought and donated to the mosque from the UK. Respondent, in addition to the rare books gifted by the akim, noted the presence of the first electronic Quran in Kazakhstan, which is available in Arabic, Kazakh, Russian, and English, at the museum.

The confessional museum developed a more extensive exhibition concept. Firstly, seven exhibitions were created linearly, in which the main idea is the evolution of the Kazakh people>s religiosity from ancient times (from Tengrism)

to the present day (the assertion of traditional Hanafi Islam). Secondly, the museum did not limit itself to religious heritage. It also showcases archaeological and ethnographic exhibits such as balbals, yurts, clothing, utensils, coins, and more. Thirdly, there is a dedicated section that explores the history of the Kazakh statehood from the reign of Janibek and Kerey Khan to Nursultan Nazarbayev. The emphasis is on how the revival of religious and national heritage became possible after gaining independence. Particularly, it is noted that the revival of traditional Islam is happening all over Kazakhstan, and the number of practicing believers and mosques is increasing.

Overall, the museum>s concept shows an ambition to cover all periods in the history of Kazakhstan. From the respondents descriptions, it can be noted that a comprehensive picture of the development of religious worldview among the Kazakhs is being constructed, and a positive view of the future of Islam in the country is represented. The religious worldview of the pre-Islamic period, especially the image of the creator god in Tengrism, is interpreted as a stage of preparation for accepting the Islamic concept of tawhid (monotheism). It is asserted that the peaceful penetration and establishment of Islam among the peoples inhabiting the territory of Kazakhstan became possible due to the similarity between the images of Tengri and Allah.

The «Khalifa Altai» Mosque aims to become a spiritual and cultural center of the region. In addition to the museum, there is a «Shygys Media» center here, where various video products (interviews, video clips, etc.) are prepared and work is being done to digitize books. For example, 52 rare books donated by the governor of the region have already been digitized at the center. The same center is developing a new website for the «Khalifa Altai» Mosque, where a «Virtual Museum» will be provided.

In addition, the museum interacts with the Ministry of Culture of Kazakhstan, particularly on issues related to the restoration of existing Islamic manuscripts and books. Connections have been established with foreign universities and museums: copies of various ancient manuscripts were brought from Cambridge University, a copy

of the medieval work «Oguz-nama» in Chagatai language was obtained from the British Museum, and negotiations are underway to obtain copies of rare books from the Suleymaniye Library in Turkey.

An important feature of the Islamic Culture Museum>s work is that group excursions are regularly organized for students of educational institutions in the region at the beginning of the academic year. There are also frequent visits by government delegations and foreign tourists interested in this unique landmark.

One important mission is considered to be the implementation of spiritual and educational activities with the local community. In addition to excursions around the East Kazakhstan region, annual tourist trips are organized to Islamic holy sites in Central Asia. For example, in 2019, a tour of Kazakhstan (mosques and mausoleums in Turkistan, Taraz, and Almaty) and Uzbekistan (Mir Arab Madrasah, mausoleums of Imam Termez and Imam Bukhari) was organized for schoolchildren who won a special essay competition. In 2020, a tour of Kazakhstan (mosques and mausoleums in Turkistan, Taraz, and Almaty) was organized for winners of a drawing competition among students.

The Islamic Culture Museum operates around the clock. There is no special tour guide in the mosque; all mosque workers, including the chief imam, 5 senior imams, 3 mullahs, and 3 administrative staff, act as tour guides. The process of acquiring tour guide skills and familiarity with exhibits occurs through mutual learning seminars.

Overall, regarding the Islamic Culture Museum at the «Khalifa Altai» Mosque, it can be asserted that such experiences in non-religious activities are likely to gradually be adopted by the main mosques in other regions. Although this undoubtedly requires lengthy preparatory work, regional museum experiments of the state and branches of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of Kazakhstan (SAMK) no longer seem like a novelty and something unfamiliar. Islamic museums can gradually become a familiar element of the space of the largest mosques in Kazakhstan, which are practically present in every administrative region of the country.

Conclusions

Research shows that the idea of creating the state museum «Rukhaniyat» in the Aktobe region and the private Museum of Islamic Culture at the «Khalifa Altai» mosque in the East Kazakhstan region belongs to the akims (governors) of these regions. The Museum of Islamic Culture at the Kul-Sharif mosque in Kazan, Tatarstan, serves as an exemplary model for emulation.

In the case of the Nur-Gasyr mosque project in Aktobe, a museum hall was initially included, while in Ust-Kamenogorsk, the organizers were able to allocate space for a museum in one of the largest mosques in Kazakhstan.

In both cases, individual activists who were initially not involved in either museum work or religious activities made a significant contribution. Thanks to their activism, they influenced the formation and even the concepts of the museums: in Aktobe, a descendant of local religious figures and a teacher of Kazakh language and literature in a college became instrumental in defining the museum>s concept; in Ust-Kamenogorsk, the museum>s curator was the administrative manager of the mosque, who had previously had a successful teaching and management career at a local university.

The museums reflect concepts that can be divided into two polar positions: a) a pessimistic view that emphasizes the traumas of memory, disrupted intergenerational continuity, and lost heritage (Aktobe); and b) an optimistic view that considers Kazakhstan>s independence as a time of triumph for Islam, with the past being something to remember but it is more important to look to the future (Ust-Kamenogorsk).

The museums> statuses have affected the relationship between the mosque and the museum. In Aktobe, there is a sense of alienation between the state museum and the mosque, where secular institution staff and religious leaders do not interact enough. In the confessional museum in Ust-Kamenogorsk, there are no internal barriers, and the museum hall is an integral part of the religious structure. The museums> statuses have also affected tour practices, where trained specialists conduct tours in the state museum, while imams in the confessional museum

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are forced to acquire unfamiliar skills and competencies through self-education.

In general, the state status of a museum located at a mosque in Aktobe initially contradicted the secular principles of Kazakhstan>s religious policy, leading to its reorganization into a regular exhibition hall of the main state museum in the region. However, descendants of religious figures disagree with this decision and are currently pressuring authorities to restore the museum>s independent state status. Nevertheless, special funding for the hall at the mosque has been preserved. On the other hand, the confessional affiliation of the museum in Ust-Kamenogorsk influences the personal interest of the mosque>s imams, opening up broader perspectives for development: organizers are not limited by

bureaucratic procedures inherent in state institutions, and the mosque is more mobile in establishing communication and cooperation with various foreign and domestic institutions and communities.

It should be noted that the scenarios of hybridization of museum practices at mosques described in the article have not yet been sufficiently conceptualized and are conditional. In the future, other practices may emerge or be discovered that could both supplement and refute the described scenarios. In this regard, studying the forms of cooperation between the state, Islam, and communities in constructing and representing the memory of religious heritage in the space of mosques appears to be a promising direction for researchers.

References

Aktiubinskaia oblastnaia tsentralnaia mechet [Aktobe Regional Central Mosque]. Available at: http://web. archive.org/web/20130125032849/http://aktobe.su/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/d0bcd0b5d187d0b5d182d18c-c2abd0bdd183d180-d0b3d0b0d181d18bd180c2bb.pdf [in Russian]. (accessed: 01.02.2023)

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Interactive Map of Historical-Cultural Places of Mangystau region of the Republic of Kazakhstan. Available at: https://mangystau.inmap.kz/ru/ (accessed: 01.02.2023)

Interviu s Enn Rigni. My takzhe dolzhny poniat, pochemu chast liudei ne v silakh otkazatsia ot izliublennykh imi verovanii v mificheskuiu natsiiu [We also need to understand why some people are unable to give up their favorite beliefs in a mythical nation] // Istoricheskaia ekspertiza. - 2020 - № 4. - S. 9-16. [in Russian].

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М.Ж. К,ик,ымбаев

Л.Н. Гумилев атындагы Еуразия улттъщ университетi, Астана, Казахстан

Муражай тэж!рибелершщ гибридизациясы: Казакстан мешiттерiндегi мемлекетпк жэне кон-фессияльщ эксперименттер

Аннотация. Макалада мемлекеттш органдардьщ, Казахстан мусылмандары дши баскармасыныц филиалдары мен MyA^^i кауымдастыктардыц партисипациясы нэтижесшде пайда болган аймактык мешiттердегi ислам муражайларыныц кызметiн уйымдастырудыц кейстерi талданады. Автор шюрш-ше, «Нур-Гасыр» мешишщ жанындагы «Руханият» (Актебе облысы) жэне «Халифа Алтай» мештнщ жанындагы Ислам мэдениет (Шыгыс Казакстан облысы) муражайларын Кецес заманында жойылган немесе кудаланган ислам мурасын трансляциялауга багытталган алгашкы аукымды эксперименттер катарына жаткызуга болады. Нэтижесшде, муражай мен мешитщ кызметi уштасып, зерттеушiлерге Казакстандагы муражай классификациясына косуга киындык тудыратын гибридтiк формалар пайда болды. Муражайдыц бiрiнде мемлекеттiк орган, ал екiншiсiнде Казакстан мусылмандары дши баскармасыныц филиалы басты уйымдастырушы болып, бул жагдай экспозициялык жэне жерплшл когамда-стыкрен коммуникациялык тэж1рибелерге эсер еттi.

Жалпы, елiмiздегi мешггтер зайырлы Казакстанда ислам мурасын трансляциялау багытында барлык MYДДелi тараптар ушш компромисстiк орынга айналып, казiргi тацда ол жерлерде муражай тэжiрибе-лершщ гибридизациясы орын алуда, ал мемлекеттш органдар жэне дiни институттар ислам тарихы мен мурасын езiндiк репрезентациялау логикасын ЖYзеге асыруда.

ТYЙiн сездер: ислам; мешiт; мэдени мура; муражай; посткецестш жагдай; зайырлылык; дiни ахуал; гибридизация; партисипация; Казакстан мусылмандарыныц дши баскармасы.

М.Ж. Кикимбаев

Евразийский национальный университет имени Л.Н. Гумилева, Астана, Казахстан

Гибридизации музейных практик: государственные и конфессиональные эксперименты в мечетях Казахстана

Аннотация. В статье анализируются кейсы организации деятельности исламских музеев в региональных мечетях, которые появились в результате партисипации государственной власти, филиалов Духовного управления мусульман Казахстана и заинтересованных сообществ. Автор считает, что музей

ВЕСТНИК Евразийского национального университета имени Л.Н. Гумилева. № 1(142)/2023 263

Серия Исторические науки. Философия. Религиоведение

«Руханият» при мечети «Нур-Гасыр» (Актюбинская область) и Музей исламской культуры при мечети «Халифа Алтай» (Восточно-Казахстанская область) стали первыми экспериментами масштабного внедрения советских музейных практик для демонстрации репрессированного досоветского исламского наследия. В результате появились гибридные формы сосуществования музея и мечети, которую исследователям сложно вписать в существующие классификации музеев Казахстана. В одном из музеев главным организатором выступает государственный орган, в другом - филиал главной исламской институции в стране, что нашло отражение на практиках экспонирования и коммуникации с местным сообществом.

В целом, утверждается, что происходит гибридизация музейных практик и мечети становятся стала для всех заинтересованных сторон компромисным местом для демонстрации исламского наследия в светском Казахстане, в котором государственная власть и религиозная иснтитуция демонстрируют соб-ственые логики ее репрезентации.

Ключевые слова: ислам; мечеть; культурное наследие; музей; постсоветскость; светское; религиозное; гибридизация; партисипация; Духовное управление мусульман Казахстана.

Сведения об авторах:

Кцщымбаев МейрамЖумабекулы - Л.Н. Гумилев атындагы Еуразия улттьщ университетшщ PhD-док-торанты, Астана, Казахстан.

Кикимбаев Мейрам Жумабекович - PhD-докторант Евразийского национального университета имени Л.Н. Гумилева, Астана, Казахстан.

Kikimbayev Meiram Zhumabekovich- PhD student of L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University, Astana, Kazakhstan.

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