The article discusses the current cases of revival of religious practices in Dagestan, that is the trend toward the imposition of Islamic customs over the traditions that had formed during the Soviet period. In the condition of ideological crisis in the post-Soviet space, the vacant ideological spot is being increasingly taken by religious ideas. The society is looking for a tangible orientation in its own past that could serve as a ground in its search for new ways of development. One of the marker points of the type is the period of the Caucasus War and especially the image of Imam Shamil. The author draws on a range of sources including his own fieldwork in 2006 in Tabasarnask, Gunib, Khunzakh, Gergebel regions and cities of Derbent and Makhachkala.