He was born in Kangarlu village of Shusha Uyezd (modern Kəngərli, Tartar) on 30 May 1837 to Mirza Nasir bey Tahirzadeh.
After receiving his primary education from his father, he then proceeded to continue his studies at the Talibiya madrasa in Tabriz.
He started military service on August 21, 1873 in His Majesty's Own Cossack Escort as the akhund of the 4th Muslim platoon.
[1] After the death of Mirza Shafi, the rector of the St. Petersburg Imperial University opened applications for the vacant post of lecturer of the Persian language.
[5] In his report to Alexander III, he mentioned that he instructed his community to respect the Bible, the Psalms of David, the Gospel as Quran and make no distinction between churches and mosques.