 Anushtegin was originally a Turkic slave of the rulers of Gharchistan, known as the "Shars" (an Iranian word meaning "greatness and lordship").But was later sold to the Seljuq officer Gumushtegin Bilge-Beg.Anushtegin was put in command together with his master Gumushtegin Bilge-Beg in 1073 by the Seljuq sultan Malik-Shah I to retake territory in northern Greater Khorasan that the Ghaznavids had seized.