The mosque in Islamic religion

House of prayer in Islam. A mosque is symbolically very important to Muslims, and is a humble way for man to recreate pure divine presence on earth. But mosques are not built according to what is believed to be divine patterns, even if they are divinely guided, nor after very clear rules, except on some few points. It shall have a clear indication of the direction of Mecca, qibla (kible). The indication is in most mosques a mihrab, a niche in the wall. A mosque shall have a roofed area in front of the mihrab, and doors can be placed in the walls where the mihrab is not.

Masjid (Mescit) is a word meaning 'place for prostration', and were used by the early Muslims for houses of worship, even for other religions. Today the Arabic 'masjid', and the English 'mosque' are used exclusively for religious houses in Islam.

History and Development

Mosques are centers of cities, or of neighborhoods in cities. This function does not always have to be structured, but can be connected to mentality, and the construction of a new mosque makes a centre emerge. Very few mosques lie in open areas, and very few mosques does not have shops and commercial activities in the streets around it. People's houses are often lying in a second "circle" outside the mosque and the shops. Other social functions have often been connected to mosques, schools, law courts, hospitals, and lodging for travelers. This pattern is based upon the Madina mosque, but is of less importance today, as city planning now often use Western models.

When entering the mosque, a person shall take off his shoes or sandals. Entering the mosque shall be done with the right foot first, while one utters blessings to Muhammad and his family. Once inside the mosque, two rak'as shall be performed. A person inside the mosque shall talk softly, not loudly, so that he or she does not disturb people praying. For the Friday prayer, nice clothes and perfumes are recommended.

Women entering mosques, are not prevented through neither the Koran nor the Sunna, but there are regulations on how a woman in a mosque shall behave. Mosques can be segregated, either in time, or in space. But in some Muslim countries, women entering mosques have not been welcomed, and mosques can be closed to women, either by local rules, or by habit. In Turkey women can easily go into any mosque.

While the salat can be performed anywhere, it is considered more meritorious when performed in the mosque, i.e. together with other people. The Sunna states that salat in the mosque is 20 or 25 times more valuable than the one performed in the home.

The Friday prayer or sermon, khutba (hutbe), is considered to be compulsory for all male Muslims, but the regulations on khatib, and for the Friday mosques, jami (cami), developed over a long period, approximately two centuries. With the strong increase in jami's from the 9th century, the term 'masjid' was more and more used for small and insignificant mosques. For a period in early Islam, sermons were delivered every day, by a qass, who recited and explained. But the institution of qass, never became widespread, and soon disintegrate, and was condemned, and did only continue in Sufism.