The religious history of the Timurid fifteenth century is remarkably rich, particularly in terms of the history of religion and mysticism. Prominent Timurid cities in this period like Samarqand and Herat were centers not only of scholarship but also of varieties of Sufism and other mystical trends. The creativity of this period is notable, among other things, for producing numerous spiritual communities including the Naqshbandi, Nimatullahi, and Hurufi communities. While most rulers of this period, from Timur to Husayn Bayqara, were very interested in religiosity, their differing attitudes had a strong impact on how these religious orientations evolved over time. From the more broad-minded Timur to shari’a-minded Shahrukh, Timurid rulers changed their approach towards what kinds of spirituality to cultivate. Sufism in cities like Herat continued to thrive under the aegis of princely patronage, however, some orientations were increasingly excluded both by rulers and by other Sufis. This paper studies aspects of this change in the religious life of Herat in the first half of the fifteenth century. I focus on the relationship between different spiritual communities in the city, led by charismatic masters like Zayn al-Din Khwafi, Qasim-i Anwar, and Ubaydallah Ahrar, and ask the following questions: What kinds of Sufi communities were closer to the Timurid court and why? How did Shahrukh’s policies impact Sufism in Herat and Khorasan? How did different Sufi communities compete for princely favor and patronage? What were the ways in which these communities began to set themselves apart? The paper concludes by arguing that the intense competition for patronage as well as the need to prove a shari’a-abiding stance led these communities to evolve from a shared Sufi life to segregated Sufi communities with distinct methodologies and narratives. I consider this evolution to be a unique moment in the history of Sufism as, for the first time, Sufi leaders actively and purposefully propagated their own proper tariqas. This paper focuses on Herat as an example of the development of “walled gardens of truth,” i.e. tariqas, primarily because of the rich evidence left by the historians of the Timurid lands. In addition to Timurid and Mamluk chronicles on the period, I rely on biographical and hagiographical works on Khorasan, Central Asia, and the wider Timurid lands.