Community topics
Written by: Huang Guigui
2020-01-25 09:00
Last updated: 2020-01-25 12:15The white façade of the Kowloon Mosque resembles a Muslim woman's headscarf. It tightly wraps the mosque and isolates it from the crowded Nathan Road.
The past 19 January was the Kowloon Mosque Open Day. Many people walked in to see what the mosque inside the hijab looks like-the sun penetrated the walls of the flowers and the light yellow was burned on the green carpet. Seals illuminate every corner of the third-floor hall, with dark green arch recesses to the west, golden Arabic characters above, crystal lamps hanging from the ceiling, and men filling the empty hall.
Someone with curious eyes asked, "Why is there nothing here?" There seems to be nothing here, but in fact there is everything, said Miss Tu, a guide wearing a dark blue turban.
Photography: Li Zetong
January 19 is the open day of the Kowloon Mosque, which attracts many non-Muslims to visit. (Photo by Li Zetong)
Step on the ten-level staircase of the Kowloon Mosque that was stained with water, and there is a shoe cabinet next to the open dark brown door. Visitors need to take off their shoes to enter. There are rows of chairs in the middle of the dark hall, full of Hong Kong people listening to the Islamic briefing. There are two rooms on the right side of the hall. One has a recording of the Qur'an, and the other has a sign "Men Do Not Enter" on the outside. There are several Muslim women wearing turbans for visitors.
Miss Tu is a native of Hong Kong and a Muslim. On this day, she wore a dark blue turban, wore an ordinary long-sleeved dress and loose pants, and hung a microphone on her neck, and led a group of more than ten people to start a guided tour of the Kowloon Mosque.
The Kowloon Mosque was completed in 1896. It was the first mosque in Kowloon and the largest mosque in Hong Kong. When it was first built, it was mainly used by Islamic soldiers who were stationed at the Weyfield Road Barracks. Later, the barracks were demolished and the mosque was rebuilt. Since then, it has stood still.
In a room on the second floor, a Muslim woman in a green robe is studying Arabic in the Qur'an. (Photo by Li Zetong)
Language of the Qur'an: Arabic
The second floor of the mosque is a female floor, and men cannot enter. There are several rooms on both sides of the narrow corridor. Inside are women covered with shawls and robes. Each person holds the Qur'an in Arabic and recites it. Some people occasionally stop and draw on the Qur'an with a pencil. Under mark.
Miss Tu said that the women were taking classes and learning Arabic. The original Qur'an is written in Arabic. Muslims believe that the Qur'an is the language of the “Allah” (Allah), so the connotation in the text can only be fully reflected in Arabic. If translated into other languages, the meaning is not complete. "So only the Qur'an written in Arabic can be called the Qur'an, and other languages can only be called the Qur'an."
The woman in the orange robe was the teacher and was teaching the students to recite the Qur'an, word by word. (Photo by Li Zetong)
Tonghua wall and onion top of the main hall
Then we walked up the third floor along the revolving staircase and entered the hall through the side entrance. There was a sudden opening in front of our eyes. There was no corridor or room on the second floor, but an empty hall. The floor was covered with rectangular rugs. The upper half of the carpet is a scallion with a burgundy pattern on the bottom. There are snow-white walls around the hall, and the sun shines through the hall. Even without lights, the hall is clear. In addition, there are only a few marble pillars for support, crystal lamps hanging from the ceiling, and a dark green wall recessed on the main hall. No other decorations.
"Have you found that this hall is very bright and transparent?" Miss Tu asked, and then replied, "This is because the mosque is a place for Muslims to gather and worship. Everyone is standing in the hall densely. For worship, air circulation is very important. Before, there was no air-conditioning, so the floor must be high and the walls must be transparent. This is why the mosques have onion roofs. "She pointed to the high dome in the middle of the hall. Like cutting half onions.
The third floor hall has almost no tables and chairs, only a row of tables and chairs in the wall. Miss Tu explained: "Because there are many movements to worship, some people with mobility problems may not be able to do so. They will give them tables and chairs to facilitate their worship." (Photo by Li Zetong)
West is the direction of the Creator
"But why is there nothing here? There are no portraits or sculptures of God?" Some visitors raised their hands and asked. Miss Tu smiled and seemed to have anticipated this problem. "Because we believe that Allah who created everything cannot be replaced or painted by anything, so the mosque does not have any portraits, images, or sculptures. The Creator is invisible, and He exists. Around us. "
If Allah is invisible, how can Muslims pray and worship Allah? Miss Tu refers to a dark green wall behind her. "This is the west side. Mecca's Kaaba is on the west side of Hong Kong. Muslims all over the world should face the direction of Mecca when they worship." . There is a line of golden typeface above the arched recess. Ms. Tu recites it fluently in Arabic, and then explains it in Cantonese: "This sentence means" All things are not the Lord, but Allah is the only one. Muhammad is the Lord's messenger. "This is the testimony of Islam." Stepping into the hall and seeing this recess and testimony, Muslims know that this is the direction they want to worship.
The walls of Tonghua make the mosque very bright even without lights, but in fact, these Tonghua are for air circulation. (Photo by Li Zetong)
There are five major contributions to Islam:
1. Testimonial. When a person believes in the existence of Allah and is willing to believe that Muhammad is the messenger of Allah, all he has to say is, "I testify that everything is not the Lord, but Allah; I testify that Muhammad is the messenger of the Lord." That person became a Muslim.
Second, worship. Muslims are required to worship Allah five times a day, namely morning rituals, ceremonial ceremonies, ceremonial ceremonies, faint ceremonies, and supper ceremonies. They believe that worship is the cornerstone of Islam.
Zakat. According to the Qur'an, Muslims need to donate part of their remaining money each year to people in need at a fixed rate.
Fourth, fast. In the Islamic calendar, every September (ie Ramadah), Muslims are not allowed to eat, drink, and have sex with men and women from daybreak until the sun goes down, which is called fasting. The above activities can be carried out after going down the mountain, which is called "fasting." Fasting is seen as a test of Muslims' patience and selflessness.
5. Hajj. In response to the call of Allah, Hajj went to the holy city of Mecca to participate in a ceremony to commemorate Allah. Muslims who are in good physical condition and economic circumstances permit Hajj at least once in their lifetime.
Miss Tu paused. After all the guests had digested the meaning of the testimony, they explained to everyone: "This sunken place was originally where the Imam stood. During worship, the Imam will lead the believers to recite Chapters of the Qur'an and praises to the creator. Because the mosque is too large, there was no microphone in the past, so the place where the Imam is facing is designed as an arch, so that all believers can hear the Imam's recitation. "
To the west of the mosque is a recessed green wall with a line of golden Arabic text. Ms. Tu said, "We are worshiping at the west-facing location." (Photo by Li Zetong)
The third floor is for men.
"Girls can't come up to the third floor for worship." Miss Tu said lightly. Someone at the scene asked, "Why?" Miss Tu replied, "There is no need for women to come up. Islam pays great attention to the difference between men and women, so men and women must do it separately during the week to avoid bad things."
In fact, there is a layer between the third-floor hall and the onion roof. Miss Tu said that on the fourth floor, women worshippers used to worship. Later, they stayed on the second floor, and the fourth floor was rarely used. For security, the mosque will be divided into at least two floors. The lower floor is where men worship, and the ladies are on the upper floor. If they cannot be layered, a corner is used for the ladies on the same floor.
Ms. Tu said that although there is a set of specified movements for worship, which requires up to four worships, it can actually be completed in five to ten minutes, and it does not have to be performed in a mosque, as long as the worship is in a clean and quiet place. (Photo by Li Zetong)
The main hall inside the mosque is very empty. Miss Tu explained that this is because the most important function of the mosque is to worship Mussen. "It is a place for everyone to gather, so the facilities are not high." (Photo by Li Zetong)
The call that disappeared from the minaret: Come to worship
There is a platform outside the fourth floor. There are four white minarets at the four corners of the platform. Miss Tu said that these four towers are called "Xuanli Towers". Muslims worship five times a day, and about ten to fifteen minutes before each worship, a responsible Muslim will read a prayer in Arabic. At this time, Muslims (especially men) will start to wash their faces, wash their hands, feet, and then go to the mosque for worship.
"Muslims who were responsible for calling up stood on the minaret to read the prayers. Later, with the high wind, and the mosque was in the middle of the city, the government was worried that this move would disturb the people, so it will no longer use the minaret. Said Miss Tu.
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The responsible Muslim embarked on the minaret: "Allah is the greatest! I testify that everything is not the Lord, only Allah; I testify that Muhammad is the Lord's ambassador. The time of worship is coming. Come to worship, come to success! (Photo by Li Zetong)
"Worship is the way we communicate with the Creator"
At 1:00 pm, a song-like Arabic suddenly came from the mosque-Allah is the greatest! I testify that all things are not the Lord, but Allah; I testify that Muhammad is the Lord's messenger. It's almost time to worship, come to worship, come to success-this is a call to worship.
It's time for Zuhr. Men with deep senses walked into the mosque, and immediately after entering the bathroom, they immediately entered the main hall on the third floor. With their bare feet, they stepped on the blue felt pattern, side by side, their hands opened, their palms facing their shoulders, indicating the beginning of worship.
"Women don't have to come to worship in the mosque, because women have to look after the family. Men work outside, so it is convenient to come to worship in the mosque." Miss Tu said. (Photo by Li Zetong)
Then they followed the leader of the Imam neatly, standing, bowing, hoeing, and kneeling, during which they raised their index finger, representing "Allah is unique." After repeating it several times, they opened their hands and put them together in front of their chests, as if they were reading a book, and they muttered words in their mouths. This is prayer, everyone tells Allah what he is saying.
Finally, they turned their heads and looked at the right shoulder first, then the left shoulder, indicating that the worship service was over.
"Worship is our way of communicating with the Creator, expressing our worship of the Creator, and from the recitation of the Qur'an, understand the teachings of the Creator, and reflect on whether we have done something that is contrary to the teaching of Allah." Miss explained.
In addition to group worship, Muslims can also worship individually. Prayer is considered as part of the practice, and doing more can “add points”. (Photo by Li Zetong)
This world is hard work and the next life is a gain
After the service, some people left, some people hugged each other, and some people were sitting there for personal worship. It turns out that five collective worships are homework, like the credits required every day, and personal worships are extra. You can get extra points if you do. Muslims believe in this life and future generations. They believe that this life is hard work and that future life is harvest. This life is short and the future life is eternal. After death, there is a doomsday judgment, with heaven as a reward and fire as a punishment.
Many people think of Islam and think of "terrorists". Miss Tu thinks that this is a misunderstanding of "Islam". "The Qur'an teaches us to be a kind person!" The Qur'an Chapter VI 151 has a paragraph It goes like this: "You should honor your parents; you should not kill your children because of poverty [...] You should not approach obvious and subtle scandals; you should not kill people in violation of the true prohibition, unless it is righteous."
Until 4:40 pm, the men one by one returned to the hall full of sunshine, and performed the third worship of the day, the salute.
During the service, the leader of the service will recite the first and seventh verses of the first chapter of the Qur'an, in order to worship the only God in the world. (Photo by Li Zetong)
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