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Mosque

Topic: Engineering

 From HandWiki - Reading time: 41 min
Short description: Place of prayer for followers of Islam
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A mosque (/mɒsk/ MOSK) or masjid (/ˈmæsdʒɪd, ˈmʌs-/ MASS-jid, MUSS-; both from Arabic: مَسْجِد, pronounced [ˈmasdʒid]; lit. place of ritual prostration) is a place of prayer for Muslims.[1] Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers (salah) are performed, including outdoor courtyards.[2][3]

The first mosques were simple places of prayer for Muslims, and may have been open spaces rather than buildings.[4] In the first stage of Islamic architecture, 650-750 CE, early mosques comprised open and closed covered spaces enclosed by walls, often with minarets from which calls to prayer were issued.[5] Mosque buildings typically contain an ornamental niche (mihrab) set into the wall that indicates the direction of Mecca (qibla)[1] and ablution facilities.[1][6] The pulpit (minbar), from which the Friday (jumu'ah) sermon (khutba) is delivered, was in earlier times characteristic of the central city mosque, but has since become common in smaller mosques.[7][1] Mosques typically have segregated spaces for men and women.[1] This basic pattern of organization has assumed different forms depending on the region, period and denomination.[6]

Mosques commonly serve as locations for prayer, Ramadan vigils, funeral services, marriage and business agreements, alms collection and distribution, as well as homeless shelters.[1][7] Historically, mosques have served as a community center, a court of law, and a religious school. In modern times, they have also preserved their role as places of religious instruction and debate.[1][7] Special importance is accorded to the Great Mosque of Mecca (centre of the hajj), the Prophet's Mosque in Medina (burial place of Muhammad) and Al-Aqsa in Jerusalem (believed to be the site of Muhammad's ascent to heaven).[1]

With the spread of Islam, mosques multiplied across the Islamic world. Sometimes churches and temples were converted into mosques, which influenced Islamic architectural styles.[7] While most pre-modern mosques were funded by charitable endowments,[1] increasing government regulation of large mosques has been countered by a rise of privately funded mosques, many of which serve as bases for different Islamic revivalist currents and social activism.[7] Mosques have played a number of political roles. The rates of mosque attendance vary widely depending on the region.

Etymology

The word 'mosque' entered the English language from the French word mosquée, probably derived from Italian moschea (a variant of Italian moscheta), from either Middle Armenian մզկիթ (mzkit‘), Medieval Greek: μασγίδιον (masgídion), or Spanish mezquita, from مسجد (meaning "site of prostration (in prayer)" and hence a place of worship), either from Nabataean masgĕdhā́ or from Arabic Arabic: سَجَدَ (meaning "to prostrate"), probably ultimately from Nabataean Arabic masgĕdhā́ or Aramaic sĕghēdh.[8]

History

Origins

Islam was established in Arabia during the lifetime of Muhammad in the 7th century CE.[9] The first mosque in history could be either the sanctuary built around the Ka'bah ('Cube') in Mecca, known today as Al-Masjid al-Haram ('The Sacred Mosque'), or the Quba Mosque in Medina, the first structure built by Muhammad upon his emigration from Mecca in 622 CE,[10] both located in the Hejaz region in present-day Saudi Arabia.[11]

Other scholars reference Islamic tradition[12][13][14] and passages of the Quran,[15][16][17] according to which Islam as a religion precedes Muhammad, and includes previous prophets such as Abraham.[18] In Islamic tradition, Abraham is credited with having built the Ka'bah in Mecca, and consequently its sanctuary, Al-Masjid al-Haram, which is seen by Muslims as the first mosque that existed.[19][20][21][22] A hadith in Sahih al-Bukhari states that the sanctuary of the Ka'bah was the first mosque on Earth, with the second mosque being Al-Aqsa in Jerusalem,[23] which is also associated with Abraham.[20] Since as early as 638 CE, the Sacred Mosque of Mecca has been expanded on several occasions to accommodate the increasing number of Muslims who either live in the area or make the annual pilgrimage known as Hajj to the city.[24]

Either way, after the Quba Mosque, Muhammad went on to establish another mosque in Medina, which is now known as Al-Masjid an-Nabawi ('The Prophet's Mosque'). Built on the site of his home, Muhammad participated in the construction of the mosque himself and helped pioneer the concept of the mosque as the focal point of the Islamic city.[25] The Prophet's Mosque is considered by some scholars of Islamic architecture to be the first mosque.[26][27] The mosque had a roof supported by columns made of palm tree trunks[28] and it included a large courtyard, a motif common among mosques built since then.[25] Rebuilt and expanded over time,[29] it soon became a larger hypostyle structure.[27] It probably served as a model for the construction of early mosques elsewhere.[26][27][28] It introduced some of the features still common in today's mosques, including the niche at the front of the prayer space known as the mihrab (first added in the Umayyad period)[29] and the tiered pulpit called the minbar.[30]

  • 2010 Aerial view of the largest mosque in the world, The Sacred Mosque (Al-Masjid Al-Ḥarām) of Mecca in the Hejaz region of Saudi Arabia, with the Kaaba in the center

  • Islam's second holiest site Al-Masjid an-Nabawi (The Prophet's Mosque) in Medina

  • Masjid al-Qiblatayn (Mosque of the two Qiblahs) in Medina

  • Islam's third holiest site Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem

  • Umayyad Mosque built by the Umayyad Caliphate

Diffusion and evolution

Kampung Hulu Mosque, the oldest mosque in Malaysia

The Great Mosque of Kairouan in present-day Tunisia was the first mosque built in northwest Africa, with its present form (dating from the ninth century) serving as a model for other Islamic places of worship in the Maghreb. It was the first to incorporate a square minaret (as opposed to the more common circular minaret) and includes naves akin to a basilica.[31][32] Those features can also be found in Andalusian mosques, including the Grand Mosque of Cordoba, as they tended to reflect the architecture of the Moors instead of their Visigoth predecessors.[32] Still, some elements of Visigothic architecture, like horseshoe arches, were infused into the mosque architecture of Spain and the Maghreb.[33]

The first mosque in East Asia was established in the eighth century in Xi'an. The Great Mosque of Xi'an, whose current building dates from the 18th century, does not replicate the features often associated with mosques elsewhere.[34] Minarets were initially prohibited by the state.[35] Following traditional Chinese architecture, the Great Mosque of Xi'an, like many other mosques in eastern China, resembles a pagoda, with a green roof instead of the yellow roof common on imperial structures in China. Mosques in western China were more likely to incorporate elements, like domes and minarets, traditionally seen in mosques elsewhere.[34]

Namazgah Mosque in 2018. It was the largest mosque in the Balkans at the time of completion.

A similar integration of foreign and local influences could be seen on the Indonesian islands of Sumatra and Java, where mosques, including the Demak Great Mosque, were first established in the 15th century.[36] Early Javanese mosques took design cues from Hindu, Buddhist, and Chinese architectural influences, with tall timber, multi-level roofs similar to the pagodas of Balinese Hindu temples; the ubiquitous Islamic dome did not appear in Indonesia until the 19th century.[35][37] In turn, the Javanese style influenced the styles of mosques in Indonesia's Austronesian neighbors—Malaysia, Brunei, and the Philippines.[36]

Muslim empires were instrumental in the evolution and spread of mosques. Although mosques were first established in India during the seventh century, they were not commonplace across the subcontinent until the arrival of the Mughals in the 16th and 17th centuries. Reflecting their Timurid origins, Mughal-style mosques included onion domes, pointed arches, and elaborate circular minarets, features common in the Persian and Central Asian styles.[38] The Jama Masjid in Delhi and the Badshahi Mosque in Lahore, built in a similar manner in the mid-17th century,[39] remain two of the largest mosques on the Indian subcontinent.[40]

Faisal Mosque in Islamabad is the largest mosque in Pakistan and in South Asia with a capacity of 300,000

The Umayyad Caliphate was particularly instrumental in spreading Islam and establishing mosques within the Levant, as the Umayyads constructed among the most revered mosques in the region — Al-Aqsa Mosque and Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, and the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus.[41] The designs of the Dome of the Rock and the Umayyad Mosque were influenced by Byzantine architecture, a trend that continued with the rise of the Ottoman Empire.[42]

Several of the early mosques in the Ottoman Empire were originally churches or cathedrals from the Byzantine Empire, with the Hagia Sophia (one of those converted cathedrals) informing the architecture of mosques from after the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople.[43] Still, the Ottomans developed their own architectural style characterized by large central rotundas (sometimes surrounded by multiple smaller domes), pencil-shaped minarets, and open facades.[44]

Mosques from the Ottoman period are still scattered across Eastern Europe, but the most rapid growth in the number of mosques in Europe has occurred within the past century as more Muslims have migrated to the continent. Many major European cities are home to mosques, like the Grand Mosque of Paris, that incorporate domes, minarets, and other features often found with mosques in Muslim-majority countries.[45] The first mosque in North America was founded by Albanian Americans in 1915, but the continent's oldest surviving mosque, the Mother Mosque of America, was built in 1934.[46] As in Europe, the number of American mosques has rapidly increased in recent decades as Muslim immigrants, particularly from South Asia, have come in the United States. Greater than forty percent of mosques in the United States were constructed after 2000.[47]

Inter-religious conversion

The Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey, was converted into a mosque after the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople in 1453

According to early Muslim historians, towns that surrendered without resistance and made treaties with the Muslims were allowed to retain their churches and the towns captured by Muslims had many of their churches converted to mosques.[48] One of the earliest examples of these kinds of conversions was in Damascus, Syria, where in 705 Umayyad caliph Al-Walid I bought the church of St. John from the Christians and had it rebuilt as a mosque in exchange for building a number of new churches for the Christians in Damascus. Overall, Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan (Al-Waleed's father) is said to have transformed 10 churches in Damascus into mosques.[49]

The process of turning churches into mosques were especially intensive in the villages where most of the inhabitants converted to Islam.[citation needed] The Abbasid caliph al-Ma'mun turned many churches into mosques. Ottoman Turks converted nearly all churches, monasteries, and chapels in Constantinople, including the famous Hagia Sophia, into mosques immediately after capturing the city in 1453. In some instances mosques have been established on the places of Jewish or Christian sanctuaries associated with Biblical personalities who were also recognized by Islam.[50]

Mosques have also been converted for use by other religions, notably in southern Spain, following the conquest of the Moors in 1492.[51] The most prominent of them is the Great Mosque of Cordoba, itself constructed on the site of a church demolished during the period of Muslim rule. Outside of the Iberian Peninsula, such instances also occurred in southeastern Europe once regions were no longer under Muslim rule.

Religious functions

The masjid jāmiʿ (Arabic: مَسْجِد جَامِع), a central mosque, can play a role in religious activities such as teaching the Quran and educating future imams.[citation needed]

Prayers

There are two holidays (Eids) in the Islamic calendar: ʿĪd al-Fiṭr and ʿĪd al-Aḍḥā, during which there are special prayers held at mosques in the morning. These Eid prayers are supposed to be offered in large groups, and so, in the absence of an outdoor Eidgah, a large mosque will normally host them for their congregants as well as the congregants of smaller local mosques. Some mosques will even rent convention centers or other large public buildings to hold the large number of Muslims who attend. Mosques, especially those in countries where Muslims are the majority, will also host Eid prayers outside in courtyards, town squares or on the outskirts of town in an Eidgah.[52][53]

Ramadan

Iftar at Taipei Grand Mosque, Taiwan during Ramadan

Islam's holiest month, Ramaḍān, is observed through many events. As Muslims must fast during the day during Ramadan, mosques will host Ifṭār dinners after sunset and the fourth required prayer of the day, that is Maghrib. Food is provided, at least in part, by members of the community, thereby creating daily potluck dinners. Because of the community contribution necessary to serve iftar dinners, mosques with smaller congregations may not be able to host the iftar dinners daily. Some mosques will also hold Suḥūr meals before dawn to congregants attending the first required prayer of the day, Fajr. As with iftar dinners, congregants usually provide the food for suhoor, although able mosques may provide food instead. Mosques will often invite poorer members of the Muslim community to share in beginning and breaking the fasts, as providing charity during Ramadan is regarded in Islam as especially honorable.[54]

Following the last obligatory daily prayer (ʿIshāʾ) special, optional Tarāwīḥ prayers are offered in larger mosques. During each night of prayers, which can last for up to two hours each night, usually one member of the community who has memorized the entire Quran (a Hafiz) will recite a segment of the book.[55] Sometimes, several such people (not necessarily of the local community) take turns to do this. During the last ten days of Ramadan, larger mosques will host all-night programs to observe Laylat al-Qadr, the night Muslims believe that Muhammad first received Quranic revelations.[55] On that night, between sunset and sunrise, mosques employ speakers to educate congregants in attendance about Islam. Mosques or the community usually provide meals periodically throughout the night

Vault ceiling of the Nasir al-Mulk Mosque in Shiraz, Iran

During the last ten days of Ramadan, larger mosques within the Muslim community will host Iʿtikāf, a practice in which at least one Muslim man from the community must participate. Muslims performing itikaf are required to stay within the mosque for ten consecutive days, often in worship or learning about Islam. As a result, the rest of the Muslim community is responsible for providing the participants with food, drinks, and whatever else they need during their stay.[55]

Charity

Adina Mosque, once the largest mosque in South Asia, in Pandua, the first capital of the Bengal Sultanate.

The third of the Five Pillars of Islam states that Muslims are required to give approximately one-fortieth of their wealth to charity as Zakat.[56] Since mosques form the center of Muslim communities, they are where Muslims go to both give zakat and, if necessary, collect it. Before the holiday of Eid ul-Fitr, mosques also collect a special zakat that is supposed to assist in helping poor Muslims attend the prayers and celebrations associated with the holiday.

Frequency of attendance

The frequency by which Muslims attend mosque services vary greatly around the world. In some countries, weekly attendance at religious services is common among Muslims while in others, attendance is rare. A study of American Muslims did not find differences in mosque attendance by gender or age.[57]

Percentage of Muslims who attend mosque at least once a week, 2009–2012[58]
Countries Percentage
Ghana Ghana
 
 99%
Liberia Liberia
 
 94%
Ethiopia Ethiopia
 
 93%
Uganda Uganda
 
 93%
Guinea-Bissau Guinea-Bissau
 
 92%
Mozambique Mozambique
 
 92%
Kenya Kenya
 
 91%
Niger Niger
 
 88%
Nigeria Nigeria
 
 87%
Democratic Republic of the Congo Democratic Republic of the Congo
 
 85%
Cameroon Cameroon
 
 84%
Djibouti Djibouti
 
 84%
Tanzania Tanzania
 
 82%
Chad Chad
 
 81%
Mali Mali
 
 79%
Indonesia Indonesia
 
 72%
Jordan Jordan
 
 65%
Senegal Senegal
 
 65%
Afghanistan Afghanistan
 
 61%
Egypt Egypt
 
 61%
Pakistan Pakistan
 
 59%
Malaysia Malaysia
 
 57%
United Kingdom United Kingdom [note 1][59]
 
 56%
State of Palestine Palestine
 
 55%
Iraq Iraq
 
 54%
Spain Spain [60]
 
 54%
Bangladesh Bangladesh
 
 53%
Thailand Thailand[note 2]
 
 52%
Yemen Yemen[note 3][61]
 
 51%
Israel Israel[note 4][62]
 
 49%
Italy Italy[63]
 
 49%
Canada Canada [note 5][64]
 
 48%
Algeria Algeria[note 6][65]
 
 47%
Tunisia Tunisia
 
 47%
United States United States [66]
 
 47%
Turkey Turkey
 
 44%
Australia Australia [note 7][67]
 
 40%
Morocco Morocco
 
 40%
Germany Germany [note 8][68]
 
 35%
Lebanon Lebanon
 
 35%
Libya Libya[note 9][61]
 
 35%
Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina
 
 30%
France France [note 10][69]
 
 30%
Tajikistan Tajikistan
 
 30%
Belgium Belgium[63]
 
 28%
Iran Iran[note 11][65]
 
 27%
Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia[note 12][65]
 
 27%
Denmark Denmark [70]
 
 25%
Netherlands Netherlands[71]
 
 24%
Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstan
 
 23%
Kosovo Kosovo
 
 22%
Bulgaria Bulgaria[note 13][72]
 
 21%
Russia Russia
 
 19%
Georgia (country) Georgia[note 14][72]
 
 14%
Kazakhstan Kazakhstan
 
 10%
Uzbekistan Uzbekistan
 
 9%
Albania Albania
 
 5%
Azerbaijan Azerbaijan
 
 1%

Architecture

Styles

A 14th century mosque of Mir Sayyid Ali Hamadani in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, India.

Arab-plan or hypostyle mosques are the earliest type of mosques, pioneered under the Umayyad Dynasty. These mosques have square or rectangular plans with an enclosed courtyard (sahn) and covered prayer hall. Historically, in the warm Middle Eastern and Mediterranean climates, the courtyard served to accommodate the large number of worshippers during Friday prayers. Most early hypostyle mosques had flat roofs on prayer halls, which required the use of numerous columns and supports.[50] One of the most notable hypostyle mosques is the Great Mosque of Cordoba in Spain, the building being supported by over 850 columns.[73] Frequently, hypostyle mosques have outer arcades (riwaq) so that visitors can enjoy the shade. Arab-plan mosques were constructed mostly under the Umayyad and Abbasid dynasties. The simplicity of the Arab plan limited the opportunities for further development, the mosques consequently losing popularity.[50]

Huseina Čauša džamija (a.k.a. Džindijska), 17th century traditional wooden mosque in Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina

The first departure within mosque design started in Persia (Iran). The Persians had inherited a rich architectural legacy from the earlier Persian dynasties, and they began incorporating elements from earlier Parthian and Sassanid designs into their mosques, influenced by buildings such as the Palace of Ardashir and the Sarvestan Palace.[74] Thus, Islamic architecture witnessed the introduction of such structures as domes and large, arched entrances, referred to as iwans. During Seljuq rule, as Islamic mysticism was on the rise, the four-iwan arrangement took form. The four-iwan format, finalized by the Seljuqs, and later inherited by the Safavids, firmly established the courtyard façade of such mosques, with the towering gateways at every side, as more important than the actual buildings themselves.[74] They typically took the form of a square-shaped central courtyard with large entrances at each side, giving the impression of gateways to the spiritual world.[75] The Persians also introduced Persian gardens into mosque designs. Soon, a distinctly Persian style of mosques started appearing that would significantly influence the designs of later Timurid, and also Mughal, mosque designs.

Great Mosque of Xi'an in China built in 742

The Ottomans introduced central dome mosques in the 15th century. These mosques have a large dome centered over the prayer hall. In addition to having a large central dome, a common feature is smaller domes that exist off-center over the prayer hall or throughout the rest of the mosque, where prayer is not performed.[76] This style was heavily influenced by Byzantine architecture with its use of large central domes.[50]

Mosques built in Southeast Asia often represent the Indonesian-Javanese style architecture, which are different from the ones found throughout the Greater Middle East. The ones found in Europe and North America appear to have various styles but most are built on Western architectural designs, some are former churches or other buildings that were used by non-Muslims. In Africa, most mosques are old but the new ones are built in imitation of those of the Middle East. This can be seen in the Abuja National Mosque in Nigeria and others.[citation needed]

Islam forbids figurative art, on the grounds that the artist must not imitate God's creation. Mosques are, therefore, decorated with abstract patterns and beautiful inscriptions. Decoration is often concentrated around doorways and the miḥrāb. Tiles are used widely in mosques. They lend themselves to pattern-making, can be made with beautiful subtle colors, and can create a cool atmosphere, an advantage in the hot Arab countries. Quotations from the Quran often adorn mosque interiors. These texts are meant to inspire people by their beauty, while also reminding them of the words of Allah.[77]

Prayer hall

The prayer hall, also known as the muṣallá (Arabic: مُصَلَّى), rarely has furniture; chairs and pews are generally absent from the prayer hall so as to allow as many worshipers as possible to line the room.[78] Some mosques have Islamic calligraphy and Quranic verses on the walls to assist worshippers in focusing on the beauty of Islam and its holiest book, the Quran, as well as for decoration.[55]

Often, a limited part of the prayer hall is sanctified formally as a masjid in the sharia sense (although the term masjid is also used for the larger mosque complex as well). Once designated, there are onerous limitations on the use of this formally designated masjid, and it may not be used for any purpose other than worship; restrictions that do not necessarily apply to the rest of the prayer area, and to the rest of the mosque complex (although such uses may be restricted by the conditions of the waqf that owns the mosque).[79]

In many mosques, especially the early congregational mosques, the prayer hall is in the hypostyle form (the roof held up by a multitude of columns).[80] One of the finest examples of the hypostyle-plan mosques is the Great Mosque of Kairouan (also known as the Mosque of Uqba) in Tunisia.[81]

Usually opposite the entrance to the prayer hall is the qiblah wall, the visually emphasized area inside the prayer hall. The qiblah wall should, in a properly oriented mosque, be set perpendicular to a line leading to Mecca, the location of the Kaaba.[82] Congregants pray in rows parallel to the qiblah wall and thus arrange themselves so they face Mecca. In the qiblah wall, usually at its center, is the mihrab, a niche or depression indicating the direction of Mecca. Usually the mihrab is not occupied by furniture either. A raised minbar or pulpit is located to the right side of the mihrab for a Khaṭīb, or some other speaker, to offer a Khuṭbah (Sermon) during Friday prayers. The mihrab serves as the location where the imam leads the five daily prayers on a regular basis.[83]

Left to the mihrab, in the front left corner of the mosque, sometimes there is a kursu (Turkish kürsü, Bosnian ćurs/ћурс), a small elevated plateau (rarely with a chair or other type of seat) used for less formal preaching and speeches.

  • The hypostyle prayer hall in the Great Mosque of Kairouan, Tunisia

  • Ottoman-style prayer hall of the Yıldız Hamidiye Mosque in Istanbul, Turkey

  • A wooden prayer hall of the Järvenpää Mosque in Järvenpää, Finland

  • Kursu in Čaršija mosque (Zenica) (sh) in Zenica, Bosnia and Herzegovina

  • Prayer hall of the Ulu Mosque in Utrecht, Netherlands

Makhphil

Stairs toward makhphil
Makhphil

Women who pray in mosques are separated from men there. Their part for prayer is called makhphil[84] or maqfil (Bosnian makfil/макфил). It is located above the main prayer hall, elevated in the background as stairs-separated gallery or plateau (surface-shortened to the back relative to the bottom main part). It usually has a perforated fence at the front, through which imam (and male prayers in the main hall) can be partially seen. Makhphil is completely used by men when Jumu'ah is practised (due to lack of space).[citation needed]

Mihrab

Mihrab in Al-Masjid an-Nabawi, Medina, Saudi Arabia

A miḥrāb, also spelled as mehrab is a semicircular niche in the wall of a mosque that faces the qiblah (i.e. the "front" of the mosque); the imam stands in this niche and leads prayer. Given that the imam typically stands alone in the frontmost row, this niche's practical effect is to save unused space.[85] The minbar is a pulpit from which the Friday sermon is delivered. While the minbar of Muhammad was a simple chair, later it became larger and attracted artistic attention. Some remained made of wood, albeit exquisitely carved, while others were made of marble and featured friezes.[86]

Minarets

Main page: Engineering:Minaret
One of the oldest standing minarets in the world at the Great Mosque of Kairouan in Tunisia

A common feature in mosques is the minaret, the tall, slender tower that usually is situated at one of the corners of the mosque structure. The top of the minaret is always the highest point in mosques that have one, and often the highest point in the immediate area. File:ASC Leiden - van Achterberg Collection - 5 - 022 - Deux minarets de boue de la Grande Mosquée - Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso, 19-26 août 2001.tifThe origin of the minaret and its initial functions are not clearly known and have long been a topic of scholarly discussion.[87][88] The earliest mosques lacked minarets, and the call to prayer was often performed from smaller structures or elevated platforms.[89][90][91] The early Muslim community of Medina gave the call to prayer from the doorway or the roof of the house of Muhammad, which doubled as a place for prayer.[92] The first confirmed minarets in the form of towers date from the early 9th century under Abbasid rule and they did not become a standard feature of mosques until the 11th century.[93][94] These first minaret towers were placed in the middle of the wall opposite the qibla wall.[95] Among them, the minaret of the Great Mosque of Kairouan in Tunisia, dating from 836, is well-preserved and is one of the oldest surviving minarets in the world today.[96][94][97]

Before the five required daily prayers, a Mu’adhdhin (Arabic: مُـؤَذِّن) calls the worshippers to prayer from the minaret. In many countries like Singapore where Muslims are not the majority, mosques are prohibited from loudly broadcasting the Adhān (Arabic: أَذَان, Call to Prayer), although it is supposed to be said loudly to the surrounding community. The adhan is required before every prayer. Nearly every mosque assigns a muezzin for each prayer to say the adhan as it is a recommended practice or Sunnah (Arabic: سُـنَّـة) of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. At mosques that do not have minarets, the adhan is called instead from inside the mosque or somewhere else on the ground.[55] The Iqâmah (Arabic: إِقَـامَـة), which is similar to the adhan and proclaimed right before the commencement of prayers, is usually not proclaimed from the minaret even if a mosque has one.

Domes

The 201 Dome Mosque in Tangail District, Bangladesh.

The domes, often placed directly above the main prayer hall, may signify the vaults of the heaven and sky.[98] As time progressed, domes grew, from occupying a small part of the roof near the mihrab to encompassing the whole roof above the prayer hall. Although domes normally took on the shape of a hemisphere, the Mughals in India popularized onion-shaped domes in South Asia which has gone on to become characteristic of the Arabic architectural style of dome.[99] Some mosques have multiple, often smaller, domes in addition to the main large dome that resides at the center. The domes of Turkish-style mosques are influenced by Byzantine architecture, particularly from the 15th century onwards as the Balkans and Constantinople became part of the Ottoman Empire.

Ablution facilities

The wudu ("ablution") area, where Muslims wash their hands, forearm, face and feet before they pray. Example from the Badshahi Mosque, Lahore, Pakistan

As ritual purification precedes all prayers, mosques often have ablution fountains or other facilities for washing in their entryways or courtyards. Worshippers at much smaller mosques often have to use restrooms to perform their ablutions. In traditional mosques, this function is often elaborated into a freestanding building in the center of a courtyard.[73] This desire for cleanliness extends to the prayer halls where shoes are disallowed to be worn anywhere other than the cloakroom. Thus, foyers with shelves to put shoes and racks to hold coats are commonplace among mosques.[78]

Contemporary features

Modern mosques have a variety of amenities available to their congregants. As mosques are supposed to appeal to the community, they may also have additional facilities, from health clinics and clubs (gyms) to libraries to gymnasiums, to serve the community.[citation needed]

Symbols

Certain symbols are represented in a mosque's architecture to allude to different aspects of the Islamic religion. One of these feature symbols is the spiral. The "cosmic spiral" found in designs and on minarets is a references to heaven as it has "no beginning and no end".[100] Mosques also often have floral patterns or images of fruit and vegetables. These are allusions to the paradise after death.[100]

Rules and etiquette

Prayer leading

Appointment of a prayer leader is considered desirable, but not always obligatory.[101] The permanent prayer leader (imam) must be a free honest individual and is authoritative in religious matters.[101] In mosques constructed and maintained by the government, the prayer leader is appointed by the ruler;[101] in private mosques, appointment is made by members of the congregation through majority voting. According to the Hanafi school of Islamic jurisprudence, the individual who built the mosque has a stronger claim to the title of imam, but this view is not shared by the other schools.[101]

Leadership at prayer falls into three categories, depending on the type of prayer: five daily prayers, Friday prayer, or optional prayers.[101] According to the Hanafi and Maliki school of Islamic jurisprudence, appointment of a prayer leader for Friday service is mandatory because otherwise the prayer is invalid. The Shafi'i and Hanbali schools argue that the appointment is not necessary and the prayer is valid as long as it is performed in a congregation. A slave may lead a Friday prayer, but Muslim authorities disagree over whether the job can be done by a minor.[101] An imam appointed to lead Friday prayers may also lead at the five daily prayers; Muslim scholars agree to the leader appointed for five daily services may lead the Friday service as well.[101]

All Muslim authorities hold the consensus opinion that only men may lead prayer for men.[101] Nevertheless, women prayer leaders are allowed to lead prayer in front of all-female congregations.[102]

Cleanliness

Storage for shoes

All mosques have rules regarding cleanliness, as it is an essential part of the worshippers' experience. Muslims before prayer are required to cleanse themselves in an ablution process known as wudu. Shoes must not be worn inside the carpeted prayer hall. Some mosques will also extend that rule to include other parts of the facility even if those other locations are not devoted to prayer. Congregants and visitors to mosques are supposed to be clean themselves. It is also undesirable to come to the mosque after eating something that smells, such as garlic.[103]

Dress

Islam requires that its adherents wear clothes that portray modesty. Men are supposed to come to the mosque wearing loose and clean clothes that do not reveal the shape of the body. Likewise, it is recommended that women at a mosque wear loose clothing that covers to the wrists and ankles, and cover their heads with a Ḥijāb (Arabic: حِجاب), or other covering. Many Muslims, regardless of their ethnic background, wear Middle Eastern clothing associated with Arabic Islam to special occasions and prayers at mosques.[55]

Concentration

As mosques are places of worship, those within the mosque are required to remain respectful to those in prayer. Loud talking within the mosque, as well as discussion of topics deemed disrespectful, is forbidden in areas where people are praying. In addition, it is disrespectful to walk in front of or otherwise disturb Muslims in prayer.[104] The walls within the mosque have few items, except for possibly Islamic calligraphy, so Muslims in prayer are not distracted.[105] Muslims are also discouraged from wearing clothing with distracting images and symbols so as not to divert the attention of those standing behind them during prayer. In many mosques, even the carpeted prayer area has no designs, its plainness helping worshippers to focus.

Gender separation

A women-only mosque in Byblos, Lebanon

There is nothing written in the Qur'an about the issue of space in mosques and gender separation. Traditional rules have segregated women and men. By traditional rules, women are most often told to occupy the rows behind the men. In part, this was a practical matter as the traditional posture for prayer – kneeling on the floor, head to the ground – made mixed-gender prayer uncomfortably revealing for many women and distracting for some men. Traditionalists try to argue that Muhammad preferred women to pray at home rather than at a mosque, and they cite a ḥadīth in which Muhammad supposedly said: "The best mosques for women are the inner parts of their houses," although women were active participants in the mosque started by Muhammad. Muhammad told Muslims not to forbid women from entering mosques. They are allowed to go in.[citation needed] The second Sunni caliph 'Umar at one time prohibited women from attending mosques especially at night because he feared they might be sexually harassed or assaulted by men, so he required them to pray at home.[106] Sometimes a special part of the mosque was railed off for women; for example, the governor of Mecca in 870 had ropes tied between the columns to make a separate place for women.[50]

Many mosques today will put the women behind a barrier or partition or in another room. Mosques in South and Southeast Asia put men and women in separate rooms, as the divisions were built into them centuries ago. In nearly two-thirds of American mosques, women pray behind partitions or in separate areas, not in the main prayer hall; some mosques do not admit women at all due to the lack of space and the fact that some prayers, such as the Friday Jumuʻah, are mandatory for men but optional for women.[citation needed] Although there are sections exclusively for women and children, the Grand Mosque in Mecca is desegregated.[107]

Non-Muslim inclusion

President George W. Bush inside the Islamic Center of Washington D.C., US

Under most interpretations of sharia, non-Muslims are permitted to enter mosques provided that they respect the place and the people inside it.Template:Additional citation A dissenting opinion and minority view is presented by followers of the Maliki school of Islamic jurisprudence, who argue that non-Muslims may not be allowed into mosques under any circumstances.[101]

The Quran addresses the subject of non-Muslims, and particularly polytheists, in mosques in two verses in its ninth chapter, Sura At-Tawba. The seventeenth verse of the chapter prohibits those who join gods with Allah—polytheists—from maintaining mosques:

It is not for the polytheists to maintain the mosques of Allah while they openly profess disbelief. Their deeds are void, and they will be in the Fire forever.
—Surah At-Tawbah 9:17

The twenty-eighth verse of the same chapter is more specific as it only considers polytheists in the Masjid al-Haram in Mecca:

O believers! Indeed, the polytheists are ˹spiritually˺ impure, so they should not approach the Sacred Mosque after this year. If you fear poverty, Allah will enrich you out of His bounty, if He wills. Surely, Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise.
—Surah At-Tawbah 9:28

According to Ahmad ibn Hanbal, these verses were followed to the letter at the times of Muhammad, when Jews and Christians, considered monotheists, were still allowed to Al-Masjid Al-Haram. The Umayyad caliph Umar II later forbade non-Muslims from entering mosques, and his ruling remains in practice in present-day Saudi Arabia.[50] Today, the decision on whether non-Muslims should be allowed to enter mosques varies. With few exceptions, mosques in the Arabian Peninsula as well as Morocco do not allow entry to non-Muslims. For example, the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca is one of only two mosques in Morocco currently open to non-Muslims.[108]

There are many other mosques in the West and Islamic world which non-Muslims are welcome to enter. Most mosques in the United States, for example, report receiving non-Muslim visitors every month. Many mosques throughout the United States welcome non-Muslims as a sign of openness to the rest of the community as well as to encourage conversions to Islam.[109][110]

In modern-day Saudi Arabia, the Grand Mosque and all of Mecca are open only to Muslims. Likewise, Al-Masjid Al-Nabawi and the city of Medina that surrounds it are also off-limits to those who do not practice Islam.[111] For mosques in other areas, it has most commonly been taken that non-Muslims may only enter mosques if granted permission to do so by Muslims, and if they have a legitimate reason. All entrants regardless of religious affiliation are expected to respect the rules and decorum for mosques.[55]

In modern Turkey, non-Muslim tourists are allowed to enter any mosque, but there are some strict rules. Visiting a mosque is allowed only between prayers; visitors are required to wear long trousers and not to wear shoes, women must cover their heads; visitors are not allowed to interrupt praying Muslims, especially by taking photos of them; no loud talk is allowed; and no references to other religions are allowed (no crosses on necklaces, no cross gestures, etc.) Similar rules apply to mosques in Malaysia, where larger mosques that are also tourist attractions (such as the Masjid Negara) provide robes and headscarves for visitors who are deemed inappropriately attired.[112]

In certain times and places, non-Muslims were expected to behave a certain way in the vicinity of a mosque: in some Moroccan cities, Jews were required to remove their shoes when passing by a mosque;[113] in 18th-century Egypt, Jews and Christians had to dismount before several mosques in veneration of their sanctity.[114][better source needed]

The association of the mosque with education remained one of its main characteristics throughout history,[115] and the school became an indispensable appendage to the mosque. From the earliest days of Islam, the mosque was the center of the Muslim community, a place for prayer, meditation, religious instruction, political discussion, and a school. Anywhere Islam took hold, mosques were established, and basic religious and educational instruction began.[116]

Role in contemporary society

The East London Mosque was one of the first in Britain to be allowed to use loudspeakers to broadcast the adhan[117]

Political mobilization

The late 20th century saw an increase in the number of mosques used for political purposes. While some governments in the Muslim world have attempted to limit the content of Friday sermons to strictly religious topics, there are also independent preachers who deliver khutbas that address social and political issues, often in emotionally charged terms. Common themes include social inequalities, necessity of jihad in the face of injustice, and the universal struggle between good and evil.[1] In Islamic countries like Bangladesh, Pakistan, Iran, and Saudi Arabia, political subjects are preached by imams at Friday congregations on a regular basis.[118] Mosques often serve as meeting points for political opposition in times of crisis.[1]

Countries with a minority Muslim population are more likely than Muslim-majority countries of the Greater Middle East to use mosques as a way to promote civic participation.[119] Studies of US Muslims have consistently shown a positive correlation between mosque attendance and political involvement. Some of the research connects civic engagement specifically with mosque attendance for social and religious activities other than prayer.[120] American mosques host voter registration and civic participation drives that promote involving Muslims, who are often first- or second-generation immigrants, in the political process. As a result of these efforts as well as attempts at mosques to keep Muslims informed about the issues facing the Muslim community, regular mosque attendants are more likely to participate in protests, sign petitions, and otherwise be involved in politics.[119] Research on Muslim civic engagement in other Western countries "is less conclusive but seems to indicate similar trends".[120]

Role in violent conflicts

Mosque in Gaza, destroyed during the Gaza War in 2009

As they are considered important to the Muslim community, mosques, like other places of worship, can be at the heart of social conflicts. The Babri Mosque in India was the subject of such a conflict up until the early 1990s when it was demolished. Before a mutual solution could be devised, the mosque was destroyed on December 6, 1992, as the mosque was built by Babur allegedly on the site of a previous Hindu temple marking the birthplace of Rama.[121] The controversy surrounded the mosque was directly linked to rioting in Bombay (present-day Mumbai ) as well as bombings in 1993 that killed 257 people.[122]

Bombings in February 2006 and June 2007 seriously damaged Iraq's al-Askari Mosque and exacerbated existing tensions. Other mosque bombings in Iraq, both before and after the February 2006 bombing, have been part of the conflict between the country's groups of Muslims. In June 2005, a suicide bombing killed at least 19 people at an Afghan Shia mosque near Jade Maivand.[123] In April 2006, two explosions occurred at India's Jama Masjid.[124] Following the al-Askari Mosque bombing in Iraq, imams and other Islamic leaders used mosques and Friday prayers as vehicles to call for calm and peace in the midst of widespread violence.[125]

A study 2005 indicated that while support for suicide bombings is not correlated with personal devotion to Islam among Palestinian Muslims, it is correlated with mosque attendance because "participating in communal religious rituals of any kind likely encourages support for self-sacrificing behaviors that are done for the collective good."[126]

Following the September 11 attacks, several American mosques were targeted in attacks ranging from simple vandalism to arson.[127] Furthermore, the Jewish Defense League was suspected of plotting to bomb the King Fahd Mosque in Culver City, California.[128] Similar attacks occurred throughout the United Kingdom following the 7 July 2005 London bombings. Outside the Western world, in June 2001, the Hassan Bek Mosque was the target of vandalism and attacks by hundreds of Israelis after a suicide bomber killed 19 people in a night club in Tel Aviv.[129][130][131] Although mosquegoing is highly encouraged for men, it is permitted to stay at home when one feels at risk from Islamophobic persecution.[132]

Saudi influence

Although the Saudi involvement in Sunni mosques around the world can be traced back to the 1960s, it was not until later in the 20th century that the government of Saudi Arabia became a large influence in foreign Sunni mosques.[133] Beginning in the 1980s, the Saudi Arabian government began to finance the construction of Sunni mosques in countries around the world. An estimated United States dollar 45 billion has been spent by the Saudi Arabian government financing mosques and Sunni Islamic schools in foreign countries. Ain al-Yaqeen, a Saudi newspaper, reported in 2002 that Saudi funds may have contributed to building as many as 1,500 mosques and 2,000 other Islamic centers.[134]

Saudi citizens have also contributed significantly to mosques in the Islamic world, especially in countries where they see Muslims as poor and oppressed. Following the fall of the Soviet Union, in 1992, mosques in war-torn Afghanistan saw many contributions from Saudi citizens.[133] The King Fahd Mosque in Culver City, California and the Islamic Cultural Center of Italy in Rome represent two of Saudi Arabia's largest investments in foreign mosques as former Saudi king Fahd bin Abdul Aziz al-Saud contributed US$8 million[133] and US$50 million[135] to the two mosques, respectively.

Political controversy

Historic wooden Kruszyniany Mosque, used by the Polish Tatar community, and targeted by an Islamophobic attack in 2014

In the western world, and in the United States in particular, anti-Muslim sentiment and targeted domestic policy has created challenges for mosques and those looking to build them. There has been government and police surveillance of mosques in the US[136] and local attempts to ban mosques and block constructions,[137] despite data showing that in fact, most Americans oppose banning the building of mosques (79%) and the surveillance of U.S. mosques (63%) as shown in a 2018 study done by the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding.[138][clarification needed]

Since 2017, Chinese authorities have destroyed or damaged two-thirds of the mosques in China's Xinjiang province.[139] Ningxia officials were notified on 3 August 2018 that the Weizhou Grand Mosque would be forcibly demolished because it had not received the proper permits before construction.[140][141][142] Officials in the town said that the mosque had not been given proper building permits, because it is built in a Middle Eastern style and includes numerous domes and minarets.[140][141] The residents of Weizhou alarmed each other through social media and finally stopped the mosque destruction by public demonstrations.[141]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Survey was conducted in 2016, not 2009–2012.
  2. ↑ Survey was only conducted in the southern five provinces.
  3. ↑ Survey was conducted in 2013, not 2009–2012. Sample was taken from entire population of Yemen, which is approximately 99% Muslim.
  4. ↑ Survey was conducted in 2015, not 2009–2012.
  5. ↑ Survey was conducted in 2016, not 2009–2012.
  6. ↑ Survey was conducted in 2008, not 2009–2012.
  7. ↑ Survey was conducted in 2015, not 2009–2012.
  8. ↑ Survey was conducted in 2008, not 2009–2012.
  9. ↑ Survey was conducted in 2013, not 2009–2012. Sample was taken from entire population of Libya, which is approximately 97% Muslim.
  10. ↑ Survey was conducted in 2016, not 2009–2012.
  11. ↑ Survey was conducted in 2008, not 2009–2012.
  12. ↑ Survey was conducted in 2008, not 2009–2012.
  13. ↑ Survey was conducted in 2017, not 2009–2012.
  14. ↑ Survey was conducted in 2017, not 2009–2012.

References

Citations

  1. ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 John L. Esposito, ed (2014). "Mosque". The Oxford Dictionary of Islam. Oxford University Press. http://www.oxfordislamicstudies.com/article/opr/t125/e1552. 
  2. ↑ Longhurst, Christopher E; Theology of a Mosque: The Sacred Inspiring Form, Function and Design in Islamic Architecture, Lonaard Journal. Mar 2012, Vol. 2 Issue 8, p3-13. 11p. "Since submission to God is the essence of divine worship, the place of worship is intrinsic to Islam's self-identity. This 'place' is not a building per se but what is evidenced by the etymology of the word 'mosque' which derives from the Arabic 'masjid' meaning 'a place of sujud (prostration).'
  3. ↑ Colledge, R. (1999). The mosque. In: Mastering World Religions. Macmillan Master Series. Palgrave, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-14329-0_16 "A mosque is a building where Muslims bow before Allah to show their submission to His will. It is not necessary to have a building to do this. Muhammad said that 'Wherever the hour of prayer overtakes you, you shall perform the prayer. That place is the mosque'. In his early days in Makkah there was no mosque, so he and his friends would pray anywhere."
  4. ↑ Grabar 1969, p. 34: "The main characteristic, then, of this first stage was the creation of a space which served exclusively Muslim purposes and which, in cities that were entirely Muslim, existed on two separate levels of exclusivity. The word masjid is always associated with these spaces, but it does not yet possess any formal structure nor does it have any precise function other than that of excluding non-Muslims."
  5. ↑ Grabar 1969, p. 34-35: "A second stage occurred between 650 and 750. To my knowledge, twenty-seven masjids from this period are archaeologically definable… All mosques had a certain relationship between open and closed covered spaces. The problems posed by this relationship pertain primarily to the history of art, except on one point, which is the apparent tendency to consider the covered parts as the bayt al-salat, i.e. place of prayer, and the rest of the building as an overflow area for prayer. All these buildings were enclosed by walls and did not have an exterior façade. Their orderly form appeared only from the inside where the balance between open and covered spaces served, among other things, to indicate the direction of qibla. Their only outward symbol was the minaret, a feature which appeared early in mosques built in old cities with predominantly non-Muslim populations and only later in primarily Muslim ones."
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Nuha N. N. Khoury (2009). "Mosque". in Juan Eduardo Campo. Encyclopedia of Islam. Infobase Publishing. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 Patrick D. Gaffney (2004). "Masjid". in Richard C. Martin. Encyclopedia of Islam and the Muslim World. MacMillan Reference. 
  8. ↑ For the word's origin from French and probable origin from Italian moscheta, see "mosque, n.". OED Online. December 2011. Oxford University Press. [1]. For the derivation of moscheta from Arabic sajada see "mesquita, n.". OED Online. December 2011. Oxford University Press. [2]. For the probable origin of "sajada" from Aramaic, and the meanings of sajada and masjid in Arabic, see "masjid, n.". OED Online. December 2011. Oxford University Press. [3]. For the inclusion of Spanish mesquita, possible derivation from Nabataean masgĕdhā́, and the Aramaic sĕghēdh, see Klein, E., A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language (Elsevier Publishing, 1966), p. 1007.
  9. ↑ Watt, William Montgomery (2003). Islam and the Integration of Society. Psychology Press. p. 5. ISBN 978-0-415-17587-6. https://books.google.com/books?id=AQUZ6BGyohQC. 
  10. ↑ Tajuddin 1998, p. 135
  11. ↑ Palmer, Allison Lee (2016) (in en). Historical Dictionary of Architecture (2nd ed.). Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 236. ISBN 978-1-4422-6309-3. https://books.google.com/books?id=aMsvDAAAQBAJ&pg=236. "The first mosque is considered to be either the one built around the Kaaba, or "House of God", in Mecca, now called Al-Masjid Al-Haram, or the Quba Mosque in Medina, Saudia Arabia, built when Muhammad arrived there from Mecca in 622." 
  12. ↑ Esposito, John (1998). Islam: The Straight Path (3rd ed.). Oxford University Press. pp. 9, 12. ISBN 978-0-19-511234-4. 
  13. ↑ Esposito (2002b), pp. 4–5.
  14. ↑ Peters, F.E. (2003). Islam: A Guide for Jews and Christians. Princeton University Press. p. 9. ISBN 978-0-691-11553-5. https://archive.org/details/islamguideforjew00fepe/page/9. 
  15. ↑ Quran 2:7-286
  16. ↑ Quran 3:96
  17. ↑ Quran 22:25-37
  18. ↑ Alli, Irfan (2013-02-26). 25 Prophets of Islam. eBookIt.com. ISBN 978-1-4566-1307-5. https://books.google.com/books?id=5nRJK9sLjLsC. 
  19. ↑ Kuban 1974, p. 1
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 Michigan Consortium for Medieval and Early Modern Studies (1986). The Meeting of Two Worlds: Cultural Exchange Between East and West During the Period of the Crusades. 21. Medieval Institute Publications, Western Michigan University. p. 208. ISBN 978-0-9187-2058-0. https://books.google.com/books?id=p44kAQAAMAAJ. 
  21. ↑ Mustafa Abu Sway. "The Holy Land, Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa Mosque in the Qur'an, Sunnah and other Islamic Literary Source". Central Conference of American Rabbis. http://www.wcfia.harvard.edu/sites/default/files/Abusway_0.pdf. 
  22. ↑ Dyrness, W. A. (2013-05-29). Senses of Devotion: Interfaith Aesthetics in Buddhist and Muslim Communities. 7. Wipf and Stock Publishers. p. 25. ISBN 978-1620321362. https://books.google.com/books?id=inJNAwAAQBAJ. 
  23. ↑ "55. Prophets - Sahih Al-Bukhari - 585" (in en). https://www.searchtruth.com/book_display.php?book=55&translator=1&start=0&number=585#585. 
  24. ↑ Dumper & Stanley 2007, p. 241
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 Chiu 2010, pp. 67–8
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 Petersen 1996, pp. 195–196: "The first mosque was the house of the Prophet Muhammad in Medina. This was a simple rectangular (53 by 56 m) enclosure containing rooms for the Prophet and his wives and a shaded area on the south side of the courtyard which could be used for prayer in the direction of Mecca. This building became the model for subsequent mosques which had the same basic courtyard layout with a prayer area against the qibla wall."
  27. ↑ 27.0 27.1 27.2 Bloom & Blair 2009, p. 549, Mosque: "The first mosque, a building that Muhammad erected at Medina in 622, is usually described as the Prophet's house but was probably intended from the outset as a community center as well. Initially, it was a rectangular enclosure of unbaked brick, a little over 50 m square, but a portico of palm trunks supporting a roof of palm-frond thatch was quickly erected on the north side of the court, facing Jerusalem, the first qibla, or direction in which Muslims sent their prayers [...]. In 624 when the qibla was changed to Mecca, another such arcade was built on the south side, facing that city. Muhammad and his family lived in rooms built on to one side of the enclosure, and Muhammad was buried in one of these rooms in 632. During the 7th and early 8th centuries, Muhammad's mosque was repeatedly enlarged and rebuilt, becoming a flat-roofed hypostyle structure with a central court and a prayer-hall deeper than the three other porticos. [...] The form of the mosque of the Prophet was closely imitated in the early congregational mosques built in the Iraqi cities of Wasit, Kufa and Basra, and in the mosque built at Daybul in Sind (now Banbhore, Pakistan)."
  28. ↑ 28.0 28.1 Tabbaa, Yasser (2007). "Architecture". in Fleet, Kate (in en). Encyclopaedia of Islam, Three. Brill. ISBN 9789004161658. "If Mecca provided the first Muslim shrine, the city of Medina, to which Muḥammad migrated in 622 C.E., may have provided the germ of the idea for the Muslim place of prayer, the masjid, in the form of the house of the Prophet himself. Descriptions of the house allow us to reconstruct it as a mud-brick rectangular enclosure consisting of an open courtyard, a three-aisled roofed space to the south, a one-bay space inside the northern wall, and eight separate rooms annexed to the eastern wall. The eight rooms housed Muḥammad’s wives; the northern vestibule was a waiting area; the southern space served various residential, official, and ritual functions. The roof was supported by palm trunks and its southern wall, after 6/628, contained a three-stepped platform (minbar), from which Muḥammad spoke and adjudicated. Despite its rudimentary form and construction, Muḥammad’s house would provide the basic model for the first mosques." 
  29. ↑ 29.0 29.1 Petersen 1996, pp. 182–184.
  30. ↑ Cosman & Jones 2008, p. 610
  31. ↑ "Minaret of the Great Mosque of Kairouan". The Qantara Project. 2008. http://www.qantara-med.org/qantara4/public/show_document.php?do_id=1287&lang=en. 
  32. ↑ 32.0 32.1 Elleh 2002, pp. 114–5
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  40. ↑ Asher 1992, p. 202
  41. ↑ Kuban 1985, p. 27
  42. ↑ Flood 2001, pp. 101–3
  43. ↑ Essa & Ali 2010, pp. 230–1
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  79. ↑ "Fiqh of Masjid & Musalla". Qa.sunnipath.com. 2005-07-03. http://qa.sunnipath.com/issue_view.asp?HD=1&ID=4347&CATE=4. 
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  82. ↑ Bierman, Irene A. (December 16, 1998). Writing Signs: Fatimid Public Text. University of California Press. p. 150. ISBN 978-0-520-20802-5. 
  83. ↑ "Terms 1: Mosque". University of Tokyo Institute of Oriental Culture. http://www.ioc.u-tokyo.ac.jp/~islamarc/WebPage1/htm_eng/index/keyword1_e.htm. 
  84. ↑ "State of cultural heritage of religious minorities in Georgia". humanrights.ge. 2016. http://www.humanrights.ge/admin/editor/uploads/pdf/angarishebi/hridc/religiur%20umciresobata%20kulturuli%20memkvidreoba-eng.pdf. 
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  88. ↑ Bloom 2013, Chapter 1: The History of Scholarship and the Nature of the Problem.
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  91. ↑ Hillenbrand 1994, pp. 136–137.
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  93. ↑ Bloom 2013, p. xvii, 64, 72.
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  98. ↑ Mainzer, Klaus (June 1, 1996). "Art and Architecture". Symmetries of Nature: A Handbook for Philosophy of Nature and Science. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter. p. 124. ISBN 978-3-11-012990-8. "the dome arching over the believers like the spherical dome of the sky" 
  99. ↑ Asher 1992, p. 256
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  102. ↑ Karin van Nieuwkerk, 'Women Embracing Islam'. University of Texas Press. 2006. p. 63. ISBN 978-0292773769. https://books.google.com/books?id=Z9WF1fRGOsQC&q=false&pg=PA63. 
  103. ↑ "Chapter 16. The Description of the Prayer". SunniPath. http://www.sunnipath.com/Resources/PrintMedia/Hadith/H0002P0016.aspx. 
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  105. ↑ Renard, John (1996) (in en). Seven Doors to Islam: Spirituality and the Religious Life of Muslims. University of California Press. ISBN 978-0520917477. https://books.google.com/books?id=ondWbP0sB-MC&q=false&pg=PA47. 
  106. ↑ Doi, Abdur Rahman I.. "Women in Society". University of Southern California. http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/humanrelations/womeninislam/womeninsociety.html#mosque. 
  107. ↑ Rezk, Rawya (January 26, 2006). "Muslim Women Seek More Equitable Role in Mosques". The Columbia Journalist. http://www.columbiajournalist.org/rw1_dinges/2005/article.asp?subj=national&course=rw1_dinges&id=624. 
  108. ↑ "Morocco travel". CNN. http://edition.cnn.com/2003/TRAVEL/DESTINATIONS/02/25/morocco.travel.ap/index.html. 
  109. ↑ Takim, Liyakatali (July 2004). "From Conversion to Conversation: Interfaith Dialogue in Post 9–11 America". The Muslim World 94 (3): 343–355. doi:10.1111/j.1478-1913.2004.00058.x. http://www.macdonald.hartsem.edu/articles/mw943f.pdf. Retrieved June 16, 2006.  Liyakatali Takim is a professor at McMaster University
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  112. ↑ Turner, Peter; Taylor, Chris; Finlay, Hugh (1996). Malaysia, Singapore & Brunei (6 ed.). Hawthorn, Vic.: Lonely Planet. ISBN 978-0-86442-393-1. 
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  115. ↑ Nizamoglu, Cem (2001-08-12). "Education in Islam - The Role of the Mosque". https://muslimheritage.com/education-in-islam-the-role-of-the-mosque/. 
  116. ↑ Qureshi, M. 1990. The Role of the Mosque in Islam. New Delhi: International Islamic Publishers.
  117. ↑ Eade, John (1996). "Nationalism, Community, and the Islamization of Space in London". in Metcalf, Barbara Daly. Making Muslim Space in North America and Europe. Berkeley: University of California Press. ISBN 978-0520204041. http://publishing.cdlib.org/ucpressebooks/view?docId=ft2s2004p0&chunk.id=s1.12.69&toc.id=ch12&brand=ucpress. Retrieved 19 April 2015. "As one of the few mosques in Britain permitted to broadcast calls to prayer (azan), the mosque soon found itself at the center of a public debate about "noise pollution" when local non-Muslim residents began to protest." 
  118. ↑ "What Muslims Hear at Friday Prayers". Der Spiegel. April 19, 2006. http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,411903,00.html. Retrieved October 31, 2010. 
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  123. ↑ Aizenman, N.C. (June 2, 2006). "Suicide Bomber Kills 20 in Afghan Mosque". The Washington Post: p. A16. https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/01/AR2005060100263.html. 
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  128. ↑ "JDL Chairman, Follower Accused of Plotting to Bomb Mosque, Congressman". Associated Press via FOX News. December 13, 2001. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,40693,00.html. 
  129. ↑ "Arafat orders immediate ceasefire". BBC. June 3, 2001. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/1366719.stm. 
  130. ↑ Harris, John (April 22, 2006). "Paranoia, poverty and wild rumours – a journey through BNP country". The Guardian (London). http://politics.guardian.co.uk/farright/story/0,,1758974,00.html. 
  131. ↑ Carlile, Jennifer (May 25, 2006). "Italians fear mosque plans". NBC News. http://www.nbcnews.com/id/12927212. 
  132. ↑ Rahman, Fazlur (2009). Major Themes of the Qur'an: Second Edition. p. 147. 
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  136. ↑ "Factsheet: The NYPD Muslim Surveillance Program" (in en). American Civil Liberties Union. https://www.aclu.org/other/factsheet-nypd-muslim-surveillance-program. 
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