A mosque is a place of worship used by the Muslims. Islam has now become one of the classical religions in the contemporary society. It is one of the daughter religions of Judaism along side Christianity. Since the time it was founded by prophet Mohamed (Peace Be Upon Him), mosque has played central role in the performance of most of its activities. Just like in any other religion, mosques perform a very significant role in Islam. Some of its major functions include saying prayers (sallah) and hosting the Muslims during the holy month of Ramadan. Besides, they can be used for the submission and collection of alms, generous contributions exclusively meant for aiding the poor Muslims (Walker, B., 2008). Moreover, they Act as educational, information and dispute resolution centers in which the followers are sensitized on the Muslim doctrines of harmony and peaceful coexistence. After all, Muslim is a peacemaker. In the modern society, mosques have been used to carry out civil education to the local Muslim communities. For instance, in the United States of America (USA) in which Muslims, who are of course the second or third generation minority immigrants, they are used as centers for creating public awareness and advocating for the Muslim community to actively participate the political exercises.
As already highlighted, Islam has an expansive history right from the time of Prophet Mohamed (PBUH). According to the Islamic history, the construction of mosques originated in the Arabian Peninsula. Later, the technology spread to other areas. Today, they are found in all corners of the world. Quba was the first known mosque to be constructed. It was located in Saudi Arabia which is the head quarters for Islam. After its completion, the Saudi government took the initiative to sponsor the construction of mosques in different countries in the world. For instance, by 2002, the government had already spent over US$ 100 billion in the construction of 2,000 Islamic centers and 1,500 mosques especially in the countries where Muslims are the oppressed minority groups. Such initiatives were supported by the ordinary Saudi citizens who generously contributed towards the course under the leadership of great men like Fahd bin Abdul Aziz al-Saud. Today, Islam enjoys a huge following in the whole world. There are very many mosques in which they can comfortably go to say their prayers and perform many other functions as per the Islamic doctrines. Mosques are found in the cities, towns and even in remote villages in which adherents are found (Lewis, B., 2004).
On the other hand, the mosque has transformed its architectural designs. A lot of changes have occurred in their construction. The earliest mosques used Arab-plan called hypostyle. This was a design pioneered by the legendary Umayyad Dynasty. Unlike the modern types, they were known to have rectangular or square plans with covered prayer hall and courtyard. Moreover, they had flat roof tops which prompted the use of supports and columns. Some of the mosques which had this design include the Great Mosque of Cordoba in Spain which was supported by at least 850 columns. It had outer arcades which were used for accommodating guests who were interesting in enjoying the shades. However, this kind of design later lost popularity especially after the end of the founding dynasties.
As result, new designs emerged. For instance, the Persians (Iranians) decided to inherit the rich architectural designs used by the earlier dynasties in the construction of the palace. It incorporated the ideas used in the construction of great buildings such as the Palace and Palace of Ardashir. Hence, it introduced new ideas such as the use of domes and iwans in the construction of mosques. This was characterized by the construction of square centrally located courtyards which had large entrances ion each of its sides, a unique initiative which was translated to mean a grand entrance to the spiritual world (Arberry, A. J., 2006). However, the Persian design lost popularity when it was replaced by the more advanced dome shaped mosque designs introduced in the 15h century by the Ottomans. Unlike its predecessor designs, the Ottoman’s had large domes which were centrally located on the prayer hall. It was influenced by the Byzantine religious architecture which had been characterized by pyramid shapes. However, the mosques which were constructed in Southeast Asia assumed the Indonesian-Javanese style architecture which was totally different from the mosques found in the Greater Middle East.
The designs of mosques found in the contemporary society are quite different from the earlier ones. For instance, all the mosques found in USA, and Europe has adopted the modern western architectural designs. This is mainly because they are structures which were initially used by the non-Muslim communities. Some of them were churches which were later converted to the mosque as the need arose. In Africa, old designs are still prominently used (Hawting, G.R., 2000). However, new constructions are made to redefine the shape of these mosques to resemble that of the Greater Middle East. One of such mosques includes the Abuja National Mosque Nigeria whose construction has influenced Africa as a whole.
Abuja National Mosque in Nigeria
However, despite this development, mosques still have a standard structure associated with all of them. This includes features such as minarets, Mihrab, domes and the ablution facilities. These are important components found in all the mosques because they have different roles to play. For instance, the minarets which are the highest points in the mosques are used for inviting the followers to offer the daily five prayers. On the other hand, Mihrab is used to indicate the direction of Mecca which should be faced by the faithful when offering their prayers. Finally, the domes which are strategically situated at the top of the main prayer hall symbolize the vaults of the sky and heaven.
At the same time, a mosque has a prayer hall which does not have any furniture. This is mainly because there is a need to create a large space for the faithful to offer their prayers. Unlike Christians and followers of other religions, the Muslims do not sit on chars, but prostrate while praying. However, the mosque should be equipped with other important facilities like Islamic calligraphy, ablution fountains and library for storing the major religious texts like Quran and hadith.
Works Cited
Arberry, A. J. (2006). The Koran Interpreted: A Translation (1st ed.). Touchstone.
Hawting, G.R. (2000). The First Dynasty of Islam: The Umayyard Caliphate AD 661–750.
Routledge.
Lewis, B. (2004). Islam and the West. London: Oxford University Press.
Walker, B. (2008). Foundations of Islam: The Making of a World Faith. Peter Owen Publishers.
