Overview
Satuq Bughra Khan, who took the Muslim name Abd al-Karim, was the first Karakhanid ruler to accept Islam. By making it the faith of a ruling Turkic house, he began the change that turned Kashgar into a centre of Muslim learning. He died in 955 and is buried at Artush, near Kashgar, where his shrine is still visited.
Rise to Power
Tradition says he converted as a boy of twelve, under the influence of Muslim merchants; modern estimates of the date run from the 930s to the 950s. With a ruling from Muslim jurists he turned against his uncle Oghulchak and took Kashgar, and he went on to win the supreme title.
Rule and Achievements
- Ruled from Kashgar with the title Bughra Khan
- Made Islam the religion of his court and army
- Fought the khans who stayed pagan; tradition also credits him with war against Buddhist Khotan, though Khotan fell only decades later
Legacy
Muslim historians record that in 960, soon after his death, some 200,000 tents of Turks converted to Islam. Every later Karakhanid khan descended from him. His mausoleum at Artush was restored in 1995.