The article is the result of extensive research and generalization of available sources and literature that reflect the life and spiritual activities of Garifulla Ishan Gainullin – one of the most authoritative religious figures of the Middle Volga region of the Soviet period. He was the last Tatar Sheikh of the Naqshbandi tariqah, who was related to Dagestani Sheikh Bayazid Ishan Khairullin through Zainulla Ishan Rasulev. In his youth, he received a good theological education in a pre-revolutionary madrasah, passed many trials and overcame hardships of his time on his life's path. Despite the difficult situation in the country, he managed to gain additional religious knowledge, spiritually improved himself and became an authoritative spiritual mentor (Ishan) in the Middle Volga region. Published for the first time are personal photos and documents of Ishan, with some of them used in his biography. In Russian historiography, the personality of Garifulla Ishan Gainullin has not been studied in detail and many of its aspects are little known to general readers.