 |
| Maiden Tower (Qiz qalasi), Baku, Azerbaijan |
 |
| Baku's Holy Fire Temple-Tower (Maiden Tower), reconstruction by Prof Davud A.Akhundov |
 |
| Baku Maiden Tower, painting, Tahir Salahov |
Background
Numerous scientific
sources have confirmed the Maiden Tower as being a paramount example of
Zoroastrianism and pre-Islamic architecture in Azerbaijan and Iran. In
particular, some archaeological and architectural evidence indicate the tower
to be the Holy Fire Temple-Tower of Zoroastrians, dating back to approximately
the eighth to seventh century BC. As scientists argue, the tower had seven fire
exits on the top, symbolizing the Zoroastrian "seven steps" or
"seven skies" to get to heaven.
Legends and mysteries
There exists a rich pool
of mysteries and legends related to Baku's Maiden Tower that have come down to
the present day. However, some key mysteries remain unresolved: What is the
purpose of the tower? Why does the tower have the kind of design it has?
Undoubtedly, the tower is covered by a cloud of legends and epics deeply rooted in Iran's and Azerbaijan's history, religion, and culture. Some legends have even become the subject of scenarios for ballets and theatre plays that have themselves become part of Azerbaijan's national heritage and identity. In particular, one such play is the Maiden Tower ballet, a world-class Azerbaijani masterpiece created by the Azerbaijani composer Afrasiyab Badalbeyli in 1940, of which a remake was performed in 1999.
Interestingly, up to 20 legends are related to the
Maiden Tower, a large number of which connect to Baku's medieval or Islamic
period. However, at least two such legends (which have come down to the present
day) are deeply rooted in Baku's Zoroastrian or pre-Islamic period. We believe
that the most impressionable and colorful story to come out of Baku's ancient
Maiden Tower is the Zoroastrian legend of the virgin girl savior with fire-colored
hair.
Legend of the
Fire-Color-Haired Virgin Girl Savior
A long time ago, there
existed the ancient town-fortress of Baku. The fortress had a Fire
Temple-Tower. At one point in Baku's history, the enemy managed to encircle the
fortress. The enemy requested that Baku's people surrender; however, they
refused. Consequently, the enemy launched a siege to demolish the fortress and
capture all the inhabitants into slavery. As a result, many fortress defenders
died while attempting to stop the enemy's attacks.
The enemy's commander ordered the cutting of water supply lines in an attempt to overthrow the fortress's defenders. Everybody in the fortress was thirsty. They had no water, nor food only blood and death. The supreme magi, together with the other priests, thus prayed to the Holy Fire kept in the fortress's Fire Temple Tower, asking the god Ahura Mazda to help and protect the people. They prayed day and night, asking the All-Mighty and Merciful Ahura Mazda to save their lives and push back the enemy.
Finally, the supreme god Ahura Mazda heard the magi
and people's prayers. One day, people saw a large piece of the Holy Fire
falling from the top of the Fire Temple Tower. A beautiful girl came up from
the fire. She had long fire-colored hair. The crowd went down on their knees
and started to pray to her. The girl said, not worry. I am here to help and
protect you! Give me a sword and helmet! The enemy must not see my girl's hair.
Open a fortress gate!"
Meanwhile, the enemy commander was waiting outside for
a one-on-one fight with the fortress pahlevan. If the fortress pahlevan were to
win the fight, the enemy's army would subsequently back away. However, if the
enemy commander were to win, the fortress would be destroyed, and the surviving
inhabitants would be enslaved.
The fortress gate opened, and the enemy commander saw
the pahlevan coming to fight. Thus, the heavy battle began. In one of the
god-blessing moments that ensued, the fortress pahlevan unhorsed the enemy and
put a knife directly on his neck. The enemy commander screamed, "You win!
Who are you? Take your helmet off. I want to see your face, Pahlevan!" He
took off the helmet and saw that the fortress pahlevan was a beautiful girl
with long, fire-colored hair. He exclaimed, "Oh, you are a girl! You are a
brave and beautiful girl! If the girls of Baku are so brave, I will never capture
your fortress! Do not kill me, beauty!"
He fell in love with her because of her beauty and
bravery. He asked her to marry him. Of course, the girl did not kill him. She
fell in love with him too because of his open heart.
In the end, the enemy did not capture the Baku
fortress, and the locals named it the Maiden Tower.
The following legend indicates the tower's Zoroastrian
roots as well:
Legend
of Why Baku Tower's Fires Stopped Burning
Once upon a time, the
enemy besieged the fortress of Baku. However, Baku's people refused to give up. They decided to fight and defend their
lives. They fought with great bravery, but the situation inside the fortress
increasingly worsened. The enemy launched a tight siege to overthrow the
defenders and cut off their water supply.
Meanwhile, the supreme magi and other priests prayed to the All-Mighty God Ahura Mazda in the fortress's Holy Fire Temple Tower. They prayed to Ahura Mazda for help.
After
several days of nonstop prayer, Ahura Mazda heard the priests' blessings and
prayers. A strong and devastating earthquake occurred, perishing the enemy
troops. Thus, the All-Mighty Ahura Mazdā destroyed the enemy and Baku's people
escaped slavery, but the Holy Fires stopped burning on top of Baku's Fire
Temple Tower.
Comments: Why is Baku's
Tower Named the Maiden Tower?
Except for the legendary
background, there is no historical explanation or archaeological or written
evidence describing why the tower was named the Maiden Tower. Therefore, we
cannot exclude the possibility of a religious explanation.
We believe the tower is named the Maiden Tower because it was never destroyed by the enemy. From a religious perspective, this means that the temple was never humiliated or desecrated by evil (Ahriman, or Avestan: Angra/Aŋra Mainyu). Therefore, if the tower was not desecrated by the enemy/evil (Ahriman), it would continue to be a "virgin" (untouched)-hence, a "Maiden" tower temple of the Zoroastrian God Ahura Mazdā.
In the meantime, there is an unconfirmed hypothesis that Baku’s Maiden Tower is named a “Maiden” because the temple possibly is related to two associated deities, Fire and Anāhitā and so it is Ādur-Anāhīd or Fire of Anāhitā. The Goddess Anāhitā is one of the major divinities in Zoroastrianism and is the goddess of purity, fertility, healing, wisdom, and water “she who possesses waters”.
Additionally, the Sasanian King Shāpūr I (r. 240-270 CE) established many Bāhram fires for his soul Xusraw Šāhbūhr and his daughter Xusraw Ādur-Anāhīd in Ērānšahr and surrounding lands. Indeed, the tower has visible elements of the Sasanian construction techniques the same as the fire temple in Ādur Gušnasp in Azerbaijan (Pahlavi: Ādurbādagān), (now Azar Goshnasp Fire Temple complex in Takht-e Soleyman, West Azerbaijan province, Iran).
 |
| 4th-6th century silver and gilt Sassanian vessel, assumed to be
depicting Anahita, (Cleveland Museum of Art, PA, USA) |
*Mahir
Khalifa-zadeh, research professor, Ph.D., a regular contributor to international outlets
on global politics and security, and member of the Canadian Political Science
Association, Toronto, Canada.
**Leyla
Khalifazadeh, university student, Toronto, Canada
