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Islam = "surrender to God’s will" mosque = "place of prostration" The concept of "din" (religion) for Muslims includes three aspects: imam (belief, dogma), ibadat (religious obligations), and ihsan (right doing). Islam one of the three religions of the Book: Jewish-Torah, Christianity-Bible, Islam-Koran (Qu'ran). There are two fundamental dogmas (kalimas=words): "God is one", and "Muhammad is the messenger of God." The conceptual structure of Muslim religious faith rests on an architectural metaphor: five pillars or corners disposed in a quincunx. At the centre the Shahada= creed. On the four peripheral corners: prayer, fasting for Ramadan, payment of a tithe (poor-tax), and pilgrimage to Mecca(Hajj) (prayer and pilgrimage are concerned directly with architecture). Muhammad (530-632), the Prophet (mustafa = chosen one) was born in Mecca. He fled to Medina in 622 as a result of persecution. This Hijra marked the beginning of the Muslim community and Islamic calendar. New faith established the jihad (struggle): against one's desires, to make the community as righteous as possible, and finally the struggle against outsiders wishing to harm the Muslim community. Stories and traditions Sunna---Sunni derived from sunna. Shi'at Ali (partisans of Ali are the founders of Shi'ism who believe the Imams or chosen leaders are blood descendants of the Prophet. Islam continued to grow after the Prophet's death. Split with the fourth Caliph Ali, nephew of Muhammad. Separated from Sunni Muslims. The Ka’ba or axis mundi of Islam is locayed in the center of Mecca, birthplace of Muhammad. The Koran (Qur’an) = Kalam Allah, the utterance made visible or audible hence apprehensible. From here the fact that calligraphy occupies the highest rank in the arts. It is the art that embellishes God’s speech. Umma Muhammayida (Mohammed's nation) the genetic accident of birth is replaced by belief as a criterion of nationality. 99 Attributes of God derived from 99 Names of God. Many of the Names are self-explanatory. The abstruse ones ("the Outwardly Manifest, the Inwardly Hidden) form the starting point of Sufism (an internalization of Islam) Significant aspects of Islamic architecture which sets it apart from non-Islamic architectures. Architectural trinity of Islam: column, arch, dome, Dome stands for heaven. Principle of reversibility which recurs throughout Islam, i.e., Paradise-Earth, Cosmological Tree growing downwards, praying to and from the Ka’ba. Reflection. Paradise = enclosed garden (from faradis in Persian). Use of water Focus on the interior, disregard for the exterior, i.e. Muslim house, the mosque, the Palace, etc. Focus therefore on enclosure. Ornamentation conceived primarily to dematerialize the structure. Effect of weightlessness. The dome, for instance, is visible from afar but becomes part of the built fabric. This usually happens as one approaches a given domed monument which can be either religious or secular. The dome indicates power in all cases. Hidden architecture as a main characteristic with some exceptions. The Great Ummayyad Mosque of Damascus establishes a tradition. On the other hand, the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem built by Muslims but based on pre-Islamic precedents is an exception. Another exception, particularly in later times is the Tomb which makes part of the non-urban forms (bridges, towers, and fortified frontier structures, i.e. ribats and qasrs) Lack of architectural form for a specific function. There are very few forms that cannot be adapted for a variety of purposes. Four-iwan courtyard, typical of central Asia and Iran but found as well in other locations. This structure functions as: palace, mosque, madrasa, caravanserai, bath, and private dwelling. With the exception of the tomb, mausoleum, ad other similar domed buildings, Islamic architecture rarely displays axiality. See the mosque. The corollary: as oppossed to European architecture, there is a lack of balance among the various parts of the building in Islamic architecture. In Islamic architecture, with the exception of the four-iwan courtyard, the design does not focus on a single unit. Even the four-iwan courtyard often disappears in a larger complex. A corollary here is the idea of possible additions in any direction, disregarding the form of the original structure. The Mosque Erected over an invisible axis pointing at Mecca or hub of the Islamic world. The Ka’ba is at the centre of Mecca. It is a hollow cube made of stone and rebuilt many times. The axis mundi counteracts with the existential horizontal plane. The Ka'ba is the only non-directional building in the Muslim world. The Ka’ba’s corners face the cardinal points. Pilgrims circumambulate the Ka’ba seven times. (Same ritual in a tomb of a saint). Against the sun to gain maximum exposure of baraka (the psychic fluid which emanates from any sacral object, i.e., holy tomb, relics, etc.) This accounts for the oldest extant Islamic building: Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem (688-692) with octagonal plan and ambulatories. The moving mosque; consists originally of a limit set on the sand by the spear. The spear thrown on the ground indicating the direction for prayer. Qibla=horizontal axis radiating from Mecca Mihrab. Liturgical axis made visible at Mirhab or directional niche. It appears in praying carpets as well. The Mihrab enters Islamic architecture in 707-9 via Coptic masons brought to Medina to work on the Prophet’s Mosque. Mihrab vs Christian altar. External features of the Mosque: Minaret, dome, ablution fountain (mayda'a).Sahil (covered central ablution fountain). Saha=central open courtyard. Riwaq arcaded porches surrounding the saha (also known as sahn) Muezzin (the concept of blind muezzin) The Fountain: purity and impurity. Barefoot. Head cover. Prayer’s phases: standing, bowing, prostration, genuflexion. Four levels of prayer: Daily (dawn, noon, afternoon, sunset, evening). Congregational on Friday noon. Community prayer in two festivals. The annual ritual of prayer. Each level has a corresponding structure from the individual to the world prayers. Masjid the daily mosque which can be as simple as a carpet. Jami is the Friday Mosque. Early mosque (jami) consisted of hypostyle hall preceded by courtyard. The jami has a minbar or pulpit for the Imam (prayer-leader). Acoustic elevation and symbol of authority. Dikka=respondents platform Madrasa or collegiate mosque, instrument of education. Examples: Dome of the Rock, Jerusalem, end of 7thCGreat Mosque of Kairouan,, 7th c. (later rebuilt) Great Mosque of Cordoba, Spain, (784-990) Ibn Tulun Mosque, Cairo, (879 ) Sultan Hassan Mosque and madrasa, Cairo, 13thC The Alhambra and Generalife, Granada, Spain, 14thC Last reviewed: 5 November 2002
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