Mosque (place of worship)
A mosque is a place of worship for Muslims, derived from the Arabic term masjid, meaning "a place of prostration." These religious structures serve as centers for community prayer and can vary in size from large congregational mosques to smaller, private spaces. Over 1.5 billion Muslims worship in mosques globally, with more than a thousand located in the United States alone. The architectural design of mosques is influenced by historical and regional styles, often featuring open prayer spaces without seating, as worship involves bowing and prostrating.
Key features of mosques include the mihrab, an alcove indicating the direction of Mecca, where worshippers face during prayer, and the minaret, a tower used to call the faithful to worship. Mosques typically incorporate spaces for ablution, essential for ritual cleansing before prayer. While most prayers can occur anywhere, congregational Friday prayers are particularly significant, drawing men to mosques. Many mosques also function as community centers, providing educational and charitable services. Well-known mosques, such as the Masjid al-Haram in Mecca and the Blue Mosque in Turkey, are recognized for their historical and spiritual significance, though access to some may be restricted for non-Muslims.
Subject Terms
Mosque (place of worship)
A mosque is a place of worship used by Muslims. The term comes from the Arabic word masjid, which means "a place of prostration" to God. A mosque may be masjid jami, a "collective mosque" or congregational mosque, which is a center of worship in a city, state, or nation, or it may be a small, private place of worship used by a specific group or neighborhood.
More than 1.5 billion Muslims worship in mosques around the world. The United States alone is home to more than one thousand mosques.
History
Muslims practice the religion of Islam, which follows the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad (570–632 C.E.). Early mosques were based on the courtyard of the home in which Muhammad lived—in modern-day Medina, Saudi Arabia. Arabian homes of the seventh century had central courtyards, around which columns supported rooms. Structures in this style are called hypostyle mosques, which means "many columns."
The architectural style of a mosque is often strongly influenced by the time and place in which it is constructed. Greek architects designed the earliest structures built in the Islamic Empire (632–circa 1050), so many of these mosques look like buildings of the Late Roman Empire (250–550). The Dome of the Rock, built in Jerusalem in the seventh century, is octagonal in keeping with Roman traditions.
The capital of the Islamic Empire moved east to Baghdad in the early ninth century. The architects there hailed from the Sassanian Empire and created mosques according to their traditions. They also had to make decisions based on the available building materials, which in Baghdad were mud and brick. Over the centuries, as architects traveled around the Islamic Empire, they shared ideas for mosque designs, which solidified and became more homogeneous. Many mosques have domed ceilings to represent the vault of heaven.
Structure and Features
Most mosques contain a wide open prayer space. They do not contain any seating, because Muslim prayer involves bowing and prostrating oneself. The faithful stand barefoot in rows behind the imam, who leads them in prayer. Mosques may include a separate chamber in which women pray, away from men, though some communities instead encourage women to pray at home. Congregational mosques also may have a courtyard adjacent to the prayer hall, which accommodates many more people for prayer.
Most mosques have a mihrab, which is a semicircular alcove in which the imam leads prayer. The mihrab points toward the holy city of Mecca, the birthplace of Muhammad. To the right of the mihrab is a seat called a minbar. The preacher, or khatib, uses the minbar as a pulpit. Some mosques include a maqsurah, which is a wooden box or screen originally meant to protect a leader worshipping in the mosque from being assassinated.
Mosques are not decorated with statues or pictures of any kind, though detailed patterns may cover interior surfaces. The walls, and in particular the mihrab, which worshippers face, are often inscribed with the name of Muhammad and his companions and inscriptions of verses from the Qur'an (or Koran). The Qur'an is the holy book that Muslims believe contains the words of God as revealed to Muhammad. Many mosques include shelves holding appropriate books and copies of the Qur'an.
A minaret, which is usually a tall, slender tower, is used by the muezzin, or crier, to call the faithful to worship, or adhan, five times a day. The five prayers are the Fajr, which is before sunrise; Dhuhr, the afternoon prayer; Asr, or midday; Maghrib, after sunset; and Isha'a, after dusk. Prayer clocks in the mosque indicate the times when each prayer will take place. On Fridays, Muslims also pray a Friday prayer, Juma'a, and often visit a city's congregational mosque to do so. Though most prayer can take place anywhere, men are expected to gather in a mosque for the noon Friday prayer.
Many mosques have an adjacent or nearby source of running water for ablution, or ritual cleansing, which is called wudu. The washroom of a larger mosque may include a central fountain surrounded by benches, where worshippers prepare to pray by washing their ears, faces, hands, arms, and feet. Men and women perform ablution separately.
Non-Muslim visitors are often welcome in mosques, as long as they remove their shoes, dress modestly and simply, and do not disturb those engaged in prayer. Women are expected to cover their hair.
Many mosques serve as community centers and have traditionally been the site of political, social, and educational meetings and events. Unlike Christian places of worship, mosques are not used for all religious ceremonies. Marriages, for example, do not take place in mosques.
Because charity is an important institution in Islam, a mosque may incorporate or have adjacent facilities to feed the poor, educate children, or care for the sick.
Well-Known Mosques
Among the most famous and celebrated mosques in the world are the Masjid al-Haram, in Mecca, and the Blue Mosque in Turkey. Other well-known mosques include the Masjid al-Aqsa in Jerusalem, the Babri Mosque in India, and the Great Mosque in Paris.
Non-Muslims are not permitted to enter the Masjid al-Haram, the most sacred mosque in Islam. Inside the mosque is the Kaaba, a black, granite, cube-shaped building, which contains a meteorite Muslims believe Abraham and Ishmael placed there. This sacred rock is a symbol of God's covenant with them and with all Muslims.
Bibliography
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