East is a delicate matter. This is the conclusion people came many years ago. This phrase with the light hand of a classic of Soviet cinema became winged. Asian, in particular Arab, civilization for Europe is a mystery, but very interesting. People of this part of the world have a special attitude to everything: to life and death, to love and marriage, to religion.
Muslim temple outwardly
Travelers, whose path passed through Asia and Arabia, noticed that there are no churches and cathedrals. But still, the faithful followers of Islam have their own place for prayer, and it is called a "mosque."
What is a mosque? This is a special architectural structure for worship, built according to established canons. This is a building that stands alone under the luxurious Gambiz dome. The minaret towers surround the temple - at least one, at most nine. From them the muezzin calls out loudly for prayer. Today, however, many mosques are radio-frequency. Sometimes the building has a courtyard and a madrasah school.
Mosque inside
The Muslim mosque is characterized by a modest prayer hall, without rich frescoes and murals, as is customary in the Western world. On the walls can only write in Arabic script lines from the holy book of the Quran. In the wall, which is turned towards Mecca, there is an empty niche called the mihrab. To her right is a chair for the preaching of an imam. All parishioners turn their faces here to the side of the city where the great prophet Muhammad was born.
The floors of the prayer house are covered with carpets, on which they kneel during prayer. A mandatory attribute that any Muslim mosque possesses is the presence of a ritual pool. In it, believers perform a symbolic ablution before prayer to purify the soul and body. It is worth remembering that you cannot enter the sacred building with shod ones; believers bare their feet in front of the entrance.
Treasures of the Islamic world: Syria
So, what is a mosque, sorted out. And now it's time to go on an exciting journey through the most beautiful buildings of the Muslim world. There are a lot of them, and you can’t tell about everyone, so we will choose the most worthy and beautiful.
The list of “Beautiful Mosques” is headed by the Umayyad Temple in Damascus (Syria). It was built for a decade, and over twelve thousand people were involved in the work. The interiors are decorated with gold, mother of pearl and pearls. The building has an impressive size and minaret of Jesus Christ. According to legend, the prophet (namely, the Muslims of Jesus consider Jesus to be the prophet, calling him Isa) will come down here during his Second Coming for the final battle with evil forces.
The most beautiful mosques in the world: Iraq
Nine million gold coins - dinars (the weight of one was 4.27 grams of precious metal) - the caliph paid for the construction of Al-Kazymein. The Golden Mosque in Baghdad was erected for four years and is rightfully considered one of the best. Unfortunately, only those who believe in Islam can see this splendor: people who profess a different religion will simply not be allowed here.
The main shrine of Cairo
What is a mosque can be understood by visiting the Sultan Hassan Mosque, located in the Egyptian capital. Its construction lasted six years - from 1356 to 1362. Two decades later, a sarcophagus with the body of a great ruler was placed here. It is interesting that it is in Cairo at this house of worship that the oldest school in the Arab world is located.
Symbol of Istanbul: Blue Mosque
One of the main visiting cards of the ancient capital of the Ottoman and Byzantine empires is the Blue Mosque. They called it that because of the turquoise tiles that adorn the interiors of the temple. And she went to this a lot: about two hundred thousand pieces. In 1609, Sultan Ahmed ordered the construction of the shrine at the age of nineteen. Legend has it that in this way he wanted to pray for some grave sin.
The building turned out to be excellent, and the dome crowning it has a diameter of 23.5 meters. There are also three dozen small domes located above the 26 granite columns of the courtyard. The blue mosque inside is very bright, as it has 260 windows. According to the canons of Islam, the walls, ceilings and domes are decorated with quotes from the Koran, skillfully executed by the famous master Seyid Kassym Bibari.
Instead of an afterword
The list of the most beautiful mosques in the world can be continued indefinitely. This is the delightful mosque of Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi, which can accept more than forty thousand believers, and the Shah Faisal mosque in Islamabad, and the so-called Mosque of the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem.
They also know what a mosque is in Russia, because representatives of different peoples and religious faiths live in this country. The “Heart of Chechnya” was built in 2008 in the center of Grozny by the son of Akhmat Kadyrov. The beautiful building is similar to the Blue Mosque in Istanbul, but has a special charm. Its walls are decorated with travertine and white marble, and the suras from the Koran were applied with pure gold. In Kazan, at the turn of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, Kul Sharif appeared - an amazing temple that impresses with its unusual design, abundance of windows and luxurious decoration.