A few kilometres from Baku, in the suburban town of Suraxanı, lies one of the most interesting sight of my trip until now. Ateshgah means "abode of fire" (from Persian atesh (آتش) meaning fire, and gah (گاہ) "throne" or "bed". It's set on a former natural gas source, which caused the flames, but now it's exhausted (since 1969), having been restored for preservation reason.
The temple has been a site of worship for Zoroastrians, Sikh and Hindu travelers, as fire is considered sacred in the Indo-Iranian branches of Sikhism, Hinduism, and Zoroastrianism. Many of these travelers were connected with the Silk Road trade.
To get to this place, me and my friend Aytaj had to take a metro to Koroğlu station, then get a taxi who drove us there. No questions on marriage on either.
The temple itself is surrounded by tall walls. Inside further inner walls there is the main structure, cubical with vaulted ceiling and a central altar, from where flames sprout. Along the inner walls, there are several small cells for pilgrims and worshippers, now turned into small archaeological exhibits. Two more flame sources are situated in the courtyard and four atop the main structure, unfortunately not working at the moment.
It's a pity the Ateshgah closes at 18:00, where there is still way too much summer light. Such a place would be incredible at dusk, as the photos available online show.
On our way back to the metro, we discovered a bus goes there. On the bus I learnt that Azerbaijani insult each other by means of "cucumber" and "donkey", the latter being a particularly grave offense.
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