Asalaamu alaikum,
Our friend and sister Fairuza, better known as the writer of the Oy Habibti blog, left a very interesting and thought-provoking comment about mosque architecture in America. Her comments were made in reference to the recent opening of a new mosque here in Atlanta, Georgia.
It is beautiful, but personally I dislike the use of minarets on American masjids. They cost an arm and a leg to construct and 9 and 3/4 times out of ten they are completely non-functional. On a deeper level I believe that to build a mosque that looks like it was transplanted from Saudi, Morrocco, Jordan, wherever- is just a mistake in this country. Don’t get me wrong, it is beautiful and as a Muslim, I can appreciate its beauty and love it ’til the cows come home, but Muslims should be cognizant of the fact that we need to develop our own distinct forms of AMERICAN Islamic architecture.
I’m glad she brought this up because this is something that I have been thinking about. What should the American mosque look like? I’ve discussed this with one sister and she believed that mosques should have the traditional minaret and domes so that Americans could get used to seeing them as being part of the national landscape. Others have mentioned that our mosques shouldn’t look like that for the reasons Fairuza, Ibrahim and Dynamite have stated in the last entry.
I guess there is no right or wrong answer to this question. I’m a sucker for domes, minarets and Arabic calligraphy carved into marble. But I would also like to see an American interpretation of a mosque that goes beyond the storefront masjid and converted building. I would like to see a conscious choosing of certain architectural elements that complement the locality of our neighborhoods. Does the future hold the presence of mosques that look like brownstones of New York City or the art deco homes of Miami? How a masjid converted from an old shot gun house in New Orleans or big beautiful Victorian home?
American architecture is so diverse and differs in location, style and utility. In those parts of the Muslim world where Islam has existed for centuries, they have developed their own unique style. You can tell a Persian mosque from a Chinese mosque and a West African mosque from an Indian mosque. But with the multiplicity of American styles (ultimately reflecting America as a multi-ethnic nation) the only thing our mosques will have in common is that they will all be different.
And I do wonder about using the minaret as a decorative piece. Do we need all that stone and concrete just pointing up into the sky like that? Fairuza pointed out that we already have a plethora of masajid but not enough community or fitness centers. We could definitely build some fitness centers, health clinics, women’s centers, and schools. We could also use some various sports organizations and Arabic language centers. For places like New York and Maryland, there’s plenty of mosques but what about small town America where there are no mosques? Or there is a mosque but the strain of Islam practiced at that mosque is not broad enough to embrace different kinds of Muslims?
Any thoughts?
Faraz said,
July 2, 2008 at 10:39 pm
I’ve never been, but isn’t there a masjid near Capitol Hill in Washington, DC that fits in very nicely with that architecture style? I seem to remember seeing some pictures of it.
In Burnaby, BC, there is a beautiful mosque which incorporates Islamic and Canadian themes very well. In my opinion, it’s the most beautiful mosque in Canada, even though it wasn’t fully complete when I saw it. It had a minar and dome, but also borrowed a lot of wooden mosaics that are common in Canadian and Aboriginal architecture.
fairuza said,
July 2, 2008 at 10:39 pm
Hey, what is wrong with the storefront masjid? LOL. I am impartial to them as I was married in a converted Subway/ Masjid. The paint on the walls was Subway yellow back then!
Just kidding, they SUCK….yuck!
What about the Arts and Craft style, or southwestern adobe style? AbuSinan mentioned the log cabin look. That is a uniquely American style.
Most Americans see the Arabic or Indian style mosque and they freak out, it is fearful to them. My best friend from high school asked where I prayed once. When I told her it was that beautiful building with the minaret on the south side of town, she looked at me with a crooked smile and said, ” you mean that scary place?” I love Islamic architecture and arabic calligraphy more than anything…esp as an artist…it fills my heart with joy. But I am a Muslim, I am biased. It is just like how Catholics love their stained glass, crucifixes and iconography….yet to a Muslim eye, it is scary. If Muslims want Islam to have a wider impact and appeal…they gotta start with the “packaging”.
Minarets, besides being non-functional in the US, are a scary symbol to most Americans. I can only imagine how inviting a mosque built with distinct American architectural features would be for the average American. I think this may just be an idea that is ahead of it’s time in most Muslim circles. It is frustrating and I think it will be several decades before we see anything different on the masjid building scene.
Unfortunate.
Khalid said,
July 2, 2008 at 11:31 pm
The Burnaby mosque does look very interesting; thanks for pointing it out. You can (sort of) see photos of it at: http://www.bcmaburnaby.org/slideshow_flash.html
Ann said,
July 3, 2008 at 1:07 pm
Assalaamu alaikum,
Here’s more than anyone might want to know about minarets
http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/200202/the.minaret-symbol.of.faith.power.htm
Practically speaking, when it’s time to pray and you’re in an unfamiliar area, the minaret shows you where the nearest masjid is.
gess said,
July 3, 2008 at 3:14 pm
My last comment before I go,
To all American Muslims who complain about the design a mosque should have on American soil. I just want to remind you how lucky you are for having ONE mosque or allowed to have one.
Here in Denmark, we struggle to be allowed to build a Mosque.
Izzy Mo said,
July 5, 2008 at 1:45 am
Thanks for your feedback, everyone.
Gess: Thank you, sister, for this reminder. I had NO idea it was that way in Denmark. May Allah grant all the Denmark Muslims patience and sabr and a house of worship to call your own.
Brooke AKA Ummbadier said,
July 8, 2008 at 8:05 am
You so had me going on the Subway Masjid!
Perhaps in our setting the minaret furthers the idea of Islam being a misogynist religion and like ya’ll are saying, they Middle Eastern architecture does exotify it in ways that are not inviting.
I remember just before I converted seeing some business advertisement with a stylized minaret on it and my thoughts were something like “how Phallic.” I cannot be the only person to ever have thought like that
Love and Peace,
~Brooke AKA Ummbadier
huda said,
July 10, 2008 at 12:59 pm
if you want “scary”, try the Jain temple in downtown T.O. that has swastikas on it! Gave me a jolt until I remembered that in Indian/Hindu cultures the swastika was, and still is, a good symbol. I wonder if there was an outcry when it was built, as many sections of society are decidedly twitchy about swastikas, for obvious reasons.
JDsg said,
July 10, 2008 at 2:36 pm
As Huda noted, some swastikas are “good” symbols. They’re extremely common in Buddhist culture. However, Buddhist (and presumably Hindu) swastikas point counter-clockwise and are usually “level,” not like Nazi swastikas which point clockwise and are at an angle. There’s a primary school about a five-minute walk from my apartment called the Red Swastika School, which uses the Buddhist swastika for its logo.
NOOR MOHAMMD said,
July 13, 2008 at 6:21 pm
I’ve never been, but isn’t there a masjid near Capitol Hill in Washington, DC that fits in very nicely with that architecture style? I seem to remember seeing some pictures of it.
In Burnaby, BC, there is a beautiful mosque which incorporates Islamic and Canadian themes very well. In my opinion, it’s the most beautiful mosque in Canada, even though it wasn’t fully complete when I saw it. It had a minar and dome, but also borrowed a lot of wooden mosaics that are common in Canadian and Aboriginal architecture.
MAMTA SHARMA said,
July 13, 2008 at 6:28 pm
if you want “scary”, try the Jain temple in downtown T.O. that has swastikas on it! Gave me a jolt until I remembered that in Indian/Hindu cultures the swastika was, and still is, a good symbol. I wonder if there was an outcry when it was built, as many sections of society are decidedly twitchy about swastikas, for obvious reasons.
ONE MESSAGES TO NOOR
i LOVE NOOR MOHAMMAD