Mahayana: Buddhist Temples, Monasteries and Buddha Images Part 2

7 Temples, 6 Pagodas, 1 Dagoba and a Turtle (Roughly)

Mahayana

Attempting to explain the differences between Mahayana and Theravada is beyond my level of understanding of Buddhism, and not helped by both being ‘broad churches’. I will confine myself to a few basic points and hope not make too many howlers.

Distribution of the Different Buddhist traditions
This is a simplified map by Javierfv1212
To see his more complex map, click here

Mahayana came from India before Buddhism was abandoned in the land of its birth. It accepts the main scriptures and teachings of early Buddhism, and adds new doctrines and texts, particularly the Mahayana Sutras, writings from between 100 BCE and 100 CE preserved in Chinese, Tibetan or Sanskrit manuscripts. Mahayana also consorted with the various folk religions it encountered on its eastward journey.

There is a heavenly hierarchy in Mahayana. Arhats are those far advanced along the path of enlightenment who have escaped the cycle of death and rebirth but lack the altruism to advance further. Bodhisattvas, however, are struggling to become fully awakened Buddhas. There were Buddhas before Siddhartha Gautama achieved enlightenment and Maitreya, the ‘Future Buddha’ will come after him.

Mahayana Buddha images often come as a triad, the Bodhisattva Maitreya (the Future Buddha), the Buddha, and Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara (The Compassion Buddha).

A monastic tradition exists, but is less important than in other forms of Buddhism.

China

There are roughly 244m Buddhists in China, almost half the world’s total and most follow the Mahayana tradition. Tibetans have their own Vajrayana tradition, sometimes regarded as a branch of Mahayana.

Buddhism arrived in China during the latter part of the Han dynasty around 150 CE. Travelling teachers brought writings from India that were translated and formed the basis of local Buddhist thought. Periodically a feeling would arise that modern practices were drifting from earlier teaching, so someone set off to fetch some more written wisdom

Yuan Zhao in Suzhou

One of the earliest know teachers was Yuan Zhao, who may have been Chinese or may have come from India and been given a Chinese name. He brought Buddhism to Suzhou, near Shanghai in eastern China and his statue looks Chinese, but as he lived in the 2nd or 3rd century the likeness may not be exact – or even approximate.

Lynne and Yuan Zhao in Suzhou

He sits facing Ruiguang Ta (Pagoda of Auspicious Light). Built to house his teachings around 250 CE by the local king, it was rebuilt in the 10th century and again in the 12th and restored in 1879. By 1978 it was a ruin but has since been restored yet again – or maybe completely rebuilt, the Chinese are unfazed by distinctions between restoration, rebuilding and outright fakery.

Ruiguang Pagoda, Suzhou

See Suzhou (3), The Lingering Garden and City Gate: Part 5 of South East China (2016)

Kumarajiva and Baime Ta

Locations mentioned in the Kumarajiva story

Born in Kucha in 344 the son of a Kashmiri priest and the King’s sister, Kumarajiva studied in Kucha and then Kashmir. Back home, he became the royal priest and a renowned Buddhist teacher.

The ‘Later Qin’ Emperor in Chang’an (now Xi’an) wanted Kumarajiva to come to what was then the world’s largest city. After various vicissitudes, including time spent imprisoned by a war lord, he arrived about 400.

His life is well documented, but it is unclear who he was fleeing in 384 when his white horse dropped dead in the Dunhuang Oasis. As the horse turned out to be a disguised Dragon God rather than merely a white horse, it felt reasonable to build a Dagoba over his tomb.

Baima Ta, the White Horse Dagoba, seemed in fine repair considering its antiquity. Only as I left did I spot the plaque bearing the (English) words: 'the White Horse Dagoba, rebuilt by Dunhuang City government in 1992’. I felt cheated, but then I also doubt the horse was really a dragon god. Kumarajiva was among the greatest intellectuals of his age - sad then that his hokum is his major memorial.

Baima Ta - The White Horse Dagoba - Dunhuang

Kumarajiva’s finest achievement was the translations of a vast number of Sanskrit documents and the development of language for expressing Buddhist concepts in Chinese. Previous translators had made do with adopting words for similar Daoist or Confucian ideas. For all his efforts it can still be difficult to tell Daoist from Buddhist temples.

See Dunhuang, Dunes in the Gobi (2008)

Xuanzang and the Great Wild Goose Pagoda

Xuanzang, an illustration in Journey to the West
In Public Domain

Born in Henan Province in 602, Xuanzang became a novice monk at the age of 13. Unrest forced a move to Chengdu, where he became a full monk in 622 and then to Chang’an, capital of the peaceful and orderly Tang Dynasty. Concerned about misinterpreting the incomplete Buddhist texts available he decided to journey to India.

He left China in 629 journeying through what is now Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan and Pakistan. He travelled throughout India and Nepal before returning to China to much acclaim in 645. The Great Wild Goose Pagoda was built in Chang’an to house the writings and Buddha images he brought back from his 17-year sojourn.

The (much restored) Great Wild Goose Pagoda, Xi'an (formerly Chang'an) 2004

In 646 Xuanzang completed his Great Tang Records on the Western Regions. the longest and most detailed account of the countries of Central and South Asia of the period. 900 years later his journey was fictionalised by Wu Cheng'en in Journey to the West, one of the earliest Chinese novels and 500 years after that set to music by Damon Albarn in Monkey: Journey to the West.

The photograph of the pagoda is from our pre-blog 2004 visit to Xi’an. We re-visited in 2008

Pagodas and the occasional dagoba are easy to find in China, but temples are less obvious. It is easy to book a Chinese tour and see no temples at all – an impossibility in India or Thailand. But they do exist, and I will start with the most important (though for political rather than religious or architectural reasons)

Guangji Si, Beijing

Power in China is centralised and Xi Jinping is their most authoritarian leader since Mao; religions can offer an alternative power base so the government keeps a firm grip on all religious activity. Guangji Si, in north central Beijing, is the headquarters of the Chinese Buddhist Association, so although the Buddhist flag flies, this is as near as makes no difference a government department.

Buddhist flags fly around the Incense incinerator, Guangji Si, Beijing

The temple was built in the 12th century but most surviving structures are Ming (1368 to 1644). Inside are some important sculptures and pictures, but we missed them. From the outside it is a typical building of its period.

Guangji Si, Beijing

There were also many closed doors - the offices of the association we presumed.

Visited 06/09/2013, see Beijing (2): Xicheng and Beihai Park

Yuantong Temple, Kunming

When we visited in November 2010 Kunming had forgotten that it is the ‘city of eternal spring’ and was practicing ‘Incipient Winter.’

The Location of Kunming and Xingyi

A little north of the city centre, Yuantong was built in the 8th century, rebuilt and expanded in the 15th and took its present form in the late 17th. It is (according to the Rough Guide) the ‘most important Buddhist site in northern Yunnan Province’ - faint praise or what?

Approaching from the south an ornamental gate leads into a garden.

Entrance, Yuantong Temple, Kunming

Beyond the garden an octagonal pavilion sits in a luridly green pond.

Octagonal Pavilion in a green pond, Yuantong Temple, Kunming

At the end is space for devotees to light their incense sticks and hold them in a bunch while bowing in each of the cardinal directions.

Burning incense, Yuantong Temple, Kunming

Prayers may then be offered while kneeling before a Buddha image.

Buddha image, Yuantong temple, Kunming

see Kunming to the Stone Forest (2010)

Cave Temple, Wanfengling, Xingyi

Xingyi is a small city (by Chinese standards) some 300 km east of Kunming. On the edge of the city is Wanfengling, the Forest of Ten Thousand Peaks. It is an area of karst geology and the peaks are jagged, other-worldly limestone cones.

One of the Wanfengling peaks. I cannot vouch for there being 10,000, but there are lots.

Temples and shrines – some Buddhist, most Daoist – abound and we encountered the temple below in a cave on the side of one such peak. The cave has been sacred since ancient times, but the statues of the Buddha are relatively new, the originals having being destroyed in the Cultural Revolution. The residue of scrubbed out Cultural Revolution graffiti was still visible on the cave wall.

Main Buddha Images as a triad, Wanfengling Cave Temple

To the left, in front of a wall of small Buddha images, sits Budai, often erroneously called ‘Happy Buddha’. A possibly mythical Chinese monk, he allegedly travelled and taught in the Wuyue Kingdom (the Hangzhou/Shanghai region of Eastern China) during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period (907–960CE). His name comes from the Budai (cloth sack) in which he carried his belongings. His cheerful nature and humorous personality distinguish him among Buddhist masters and some venerate him as Maitreya, the ‘Future Buddha’.

Budai, not really the 'Happy Buddha'

See Xingyi and on to Huangguoshu (2010)

Lingyin Temple and Felai Feng, Hangzhou

The Lingyin-Felai Feng Scenic area is a 20-minute drive into the countryside outside Hangzhou in eastern China.

According to tradition, Lingyin (lit: Soul’s Retreat) Monastery was founded in 328 CE by an Indian monk given the Chinese name ‘Huili’. His ashes are allegedly entombed in the small, weathered Elder Li’s Pagoda.

Elder Li's Pagoda, Feilai Feng

Between the pagoda and Lingyin is Feilai Feng (lit: The Peak that Flew Here). Limestone is so unusual locally that the outcrop was surely whisked through the air from India by the power of Buddhist philosophy. It is covered with carvings many dating from the 10th century when Lingyin housed 3,000 monks.

Carvings, Feilai Feng

In the monastery courtyard visitors are presented with incense sticks.

Main courtyard, Lingyin Monastery

Which they light in the brazier...

Lighting the incense stick, Lingyin Monastery

…and bow in the four cardinal directions before planting them in the incense the burner.

Bowing to the north, Lingyin Monastery

The Guardian Hall, like most of the existing buildings dates from the Qing dynasty (1644-1912). It contains four scary guardians who frighten off evil spirits…

Guardian, Lingyin Monastery

…while the main hall contains the primary Buddha image.

Main Buddha image, Lingyin

See Hangzhou (1) West Lake, Lingyin Temple and Longjing Tea (2016)

West Garden Temple, Suzhou

And finally for China, a brief look at the small and outwardly unremarkable West Garden temple in Suzhou.

Either the Drum or the Bell Tower, West Garden Temple, Suzhou

It has magnificent statues of the arhats, though doing them justice in a photograph was beyond me.

Arhats, West Garden Temple, Suzhou

But, best of all, is the pool at the back. For over 400 years it has been home to a colony of Asian giant soft-shelled turtles. As they only surface to breath twice a day it is very unlikely one will pop up when you have your camera ready. But it can happen.

Turtle, Fangsheng Pond, West Garden Temple, Suzhou

See Suzhou (3), The Lingering Garden and City Gate (2016)

Hong Kong

Hong Kong is China, but not China – as long as Xi Jinping permits.

The Ten Thousand Buddha Monastery, Shatin

The temple its on a low hill near Shatin railway station. The path up the hill is lined with arhats.

Arhats on the path ip to the 10,000 Buddha Monastery, Hong Kong

As an ensemble they always look eccentric, but that effect is multiplied when seen singly.

Arhat on the path up to 10,000 Buddha Monastery, Hong Kong

Even the courtyard at the top is surrounded by them. Clearly there is a story behind each one, as there is a story behind each Christian saint, but the statues do not make guessing easy.

Courtyard, 10,000 Buddha Monastery, Hong Kong

And, of course there are Buddha images, too, big ones….

Compassion Buddha, 10,000 Buddha Monastery, Hong Kong

….and little ones. Maybe there really are 10,000.

Little Buddhas by the thousand, 10,000 Buddha Monastery Hong Kong

North Korea

The Koreas with Sariwon circled

Buddhism arrived in Korea from China in 372 CE, largely supplanting Shamanism. Early Korean monks perceived inconsistencies in their inherited Mahayana traditions and their quest for harmony resulted in a distinctive Korean form of Mahayana known as Tongbulgyo ("interpenetrated Buddhism"). There must be something in the Korean air as over a millennium later the remarkably stable genius Kim Il Sung similarly resolved the inconsistencies in Marxism/Leninism/Maoism to create North Korea’s ruling ideology.

Songbul Monastery, Sariwon

Today the majority in both Koreas describe themselves as irreligious with only 16% of South Koreans and 5% in the North claiming to be Buddhists. There is of course complete freedom of religion in the worker’s paradise of North Korea and to prove it we were taken to Songbul Monastery near the city of Sariwon.

Founded in 898, the monastery consists of six buildings in a rough square….

Songbul Monastery, Sariwon

….including two of the oldest wooden buildings in Korea. The Kukrak Hall was last rebuilt in 1374 and the little pagoda outside is of much the same date.

Kukrak Hall and small pagoda, Songbul Monastery, Sariwon

Inside are the expected Buddha images (another appearance of a triad)...

Buddha Images, Kukrak Hall, Songbul

…while beside sits what what looks like an overlarge jury but is, presumably the arhats.

Arhats, Kukrak Hall, Songbul

They wheeled out the abbot to greet us….

Actors, Songbul Monastery

… but it’s not this chap, he is an actor like those lining the buildings in the top photo. The North Korean film industry is booming and ancient monasteries make excellent locations. The ‘real abbot’ is the guy below.

Lynne and the Abbot, Songbul Monastery

‘Are there any other monks?’ I asked through the interpreter. He assured me there were. ‘But where are they?’ ‘They are not here, but they are nearby.’ After a few days in North Korea you get used to the bland and unconvincing. I preferred the actors, at least they admitted they were just pretending.

See Sariwon to Nampho (11/09/2013)

Vietnam

Although officially atheist, Vietnam seems to permit genuine freedom of religion. According to the government 15% of the population identify as Buddhists and 8.5% as Christians (French colonialism created a catholic elite). Most of the rest are lumped together as no religion/folk beliefs. Folk religion has seen a revival and every house we entered, whether grand or humble had an ancestor altar in the entrance hall. Vietnamese Buddhism has no hierarchy to direct teaching and there is a growing overlap with folk beliefs.

Buddhism has deep roots in Vietnam, but it has never been the majority religion and Buddhist temples are harder to find than catholic churches.

The locations of pagodas mentioned below (and Ho Chi Minh City/Saigon)

The One Pillar Pagoda, Hanoi

The tiny One Pillar Pagoda, once considered a symbol of Hanoi, is today overshadowed by the adjacent Ho Chi Minh museum and mausoleum. Built in the 11th century by King Le Thai Tong, it has suffered some heavy-handed restoration; the concrete single pillar looks anything but 11th century.

See Hanoi (3), the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum and the Temple of Literature (2012)

The One Pillar Pagoda, Hanoi

Thien Mu Pagoda, Hue

In Vietnam ‘pagoda’ is applied to the whole temple complex not just a particularly shaped building, though the 17th century ‘pagoda style’ building at Thien Mu is a symbol of the city.

Thien Mu Pagoda, Hue

The pagoda was busy and the local school parties noisy…

Thien Mu Pagoda, Hue

….but inside the atmosphere was calm and subdued, like the lighting.

A novice monk and a triad of Buddha images, Thien Mu, Hue

In one of the sheds around the courtyard was an elderly, rusting Austin Westminster.

Thích Quàng Đúc's Austin Westminster, Thein Mu Pagoda, Hue

In the early sixties, as the Vietnam war picked up ferocity, the autocratic, Catholic President Ngo Dinh Diem marginalised Buddhist voices and ensured all positions of power went to Catholics. Buddhists felt persecuted.

In June 1963, Thích Quàng Đúc, the abbot of Thien Mu, drove to Saigon in this Austin Westminster and notified the foreign press that “something important” would happen. He sat in the lotus position at a major road intersection while a monk poured petrol over him, then he set himself alight. The “Buddhist crisis” was old news and only one press photographer turned up. Malcom Browne’s picture was World Press Photo of the Year 1963. It is an appalling image, as are many that came out of the Vietnam war. I will not reproduce it here but it can be seen on the relevant website.

The shrine of Thích Quàng Đúc on the corner where he died, Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon)

See Hue (2), A Self-immolating Monk, an Impotent Emperor and an Imperial Dinner (2012)

and
The Cu Chi Tunnels and the Cao Dai Great Temple (2012)

Vinh Trang Pagoda, My Tho

In the heart of the Mekong delta, My Tho’s Vinh Trang Pagoda resembles none of the previous temples. Completed in 1850, it was seriously damaged ten years later during fighting between the French and Emperor Tu Duc. There was more major rebuilding after a tropical storm in 1907.

It has been described as ‘like a rajah’s palace’ or ‘blending classical European and Asian architecture’ but to me Vinh Trang is typical southern Vietnamese exuberance, not always in the best of taste but always vigorous, even flamboyant.

In front of the façade is a garden of tropical profusion....

Vinh Trang Pagoda behind its luxuriant garden, My Tho

...with a Disneyfied shrine...

Shrine, Vinh Trang Pagoda, My Tho

... and a large Budai, often, though incorrectly called the 'Happy Buddha'. It may have something to do with my build but I have occasionally been greeted with the words ‘Happy Buddha’ when sitting down in restaurants, I have even had my stomach patted. This should be taken as a compliment, the Vietnamese consider being well-nourished a sign of prosperity; they do not (yet) live in our strange inverted world where obesity and poverty so often walk hand in hand.

Two Happy Buddhas, Vinh Trang Pagoda, My Tho

The temple courtyard is lined with monks' cells and beyond there are more courtyards, more statues and a hall, but Vinh Trang is not about inside, it is a place to be enjoyed outside.

see The Mekong Delta (3) Cai Rang and My Tho (2012)

Finally

When I compiled the same sort of posts about mosques, it was obvious that, with rare exceptions, the buildings retained a definite Arabian style in deference to Islam’s Arabian origins. The opposite is true of Buddhism, Chinese Temples look Chinese, Vietnamese look Vietnamese – though different in north and south - and Korean look Korean. Buddhism is far more flexible and readily bends to the society in which it is taught, both in doctrine and architecture.

Buddhist Temples, Monasteries and Buddha Images

Part 1: Introduction
Part 2: Mahayana Buddhism
Part 3: Tibetan Buddhism
Part 4: Theravada (1) Sri Lanka
Part 5: Theravada (2) Myanmar
Part 6: Theravada (3) Laos, Cambodia & Thailand

Praying Facing West: The Variety of Mosques Part 2

This post and its companions (Praying Facing East and Praying Facing South) have been developed from the November 2011 post ‘Three Favourite Mosques’. The world has many fine mosques we have yet to visit, but we have now seen more than enough to make ‘Three Favourites’ a very limited ambition – indeed the 'favourites' now fill three posts.

Islam is the world’s second largest religion with 1.9 billion adherents. It is the majority religion in 49 countries, centred on the middle east but with a vast geographical spread. In 2005 we visited The Great Mosque in Xi’an in China. Some distance away an English-speaking person with an overloud voice (his nationality was immediately obvious) was giving his Chinese guide the benefit of his knowledge of Islam. ‘They have to pray facing East,’ he announced.

This map comes from Wikipedia. It is the work of Tracey M Hunter, the figures are from Pew Research Centre
It is reproduced un changed under Creative Commons Attribution Share Alike

Muslims, of course, pray facing Mecca, the city, now in Saudi Arabia, that was home to the Prophet Muhammed. To make sense of my collection of mosques I have split it into three, depending of the (rough) direction of Mecca. The mosques I have selected are old or beautiful or quirky or have an interesting history, or any combination of those four.

I should also point out I am not a believer, in Islam or any other religion, but I do like religious buildings.

For ease of access and because I have occasionally broken my own rules, countries are allocated as follows

Facing East	Jordan, Oman, Egypt, Libya, Portugal	Arab Countries (with one obvious exception!)
Facing South	Turkey, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, Bulgaria, Albania, North Macedonia, Bosnia & Herzegovina	Countries wholly or partly in Europe
Facing West	Iran, India, China, Malaysia	An ethnic mixed bag

9 of the 18 are Muslim Majority countries, the others have or had an indigenous Muslim population.

Iran

In 2000 we followed the green line anticlockwise from Tehran to Tehran
The featured mosques are in Shiraz, Isfahan and Tehran
Thanks to Encyclopedia Britannica for the original map

Iran is the land of my birth, but in 1951 the Iranian government nationalised its oilfields and had no further use for British engineers, or their families. I left before I had taken my first step. In 2000 Lynne and I took a journey through Iran to find my place of birth (that story is told in Finding my Way Home and two subsequent posts) and to see the country.

The Iranian regime can be difficult, particularly when Western governments flail around with no concept of the society and culture they are dealing with, but the people are open and friendly.

For a country with Islam at the heart of both its government and the lives of its citizens we saw surprisingly few mosques, but the following is a small collection of truly memorable buildings.

Nasir-ol-Molk Mosque, Shiraz

The ‘Pink Mosque’ in Iran’s ‘Rose City’ was built between 1876 and 1888 on the orders of Shirazi aristocrat Hassan Ali Nasir ol-Molk, whose endowment foundation still funds the mosque.

Nasir ol-Molk Mosque, Shiraz

Shah Nasir al-Din (reigned 1848-96) was an enthusiast for European culture. During his reign coloured tiles depicting landscapes and European architecture instead of the traditional geometric patterns were imported in large quantities from Europe. Some were used at Nasir ol-Molk along with brightly coloured stained glass, to give the interior a particular glow.

Nasir ol-Molk Mosque interior, Shiraz

My photographs do not do the mosque justice and all the tiles they show have geometric patterns. With no digital cameras in 2000, every press of the shutter used up precious film and there was no instant feedback. I would do better now (I hope).

The elegant city of Isfahan has a wealth of architectural gems, including three of the finest mosques in Iran.

The Friday Mosque, Isfahan

The first mosque on this site was built in 711. That burned down in the 11th century during the time of Turco-Persian Seljuq Empire and was replaced by the basis of the current building consisting of four iwan (vaulted open rooms) facing each other across a central courtyard.

The Southern iwan of Isfahan's Friday Mosque indicates the direction of Mecca - so it actually faces south west. The outline of a brick dome can be seen to the left and above.

The brick chambers behind the southern and northern iwan have the largest domes built in the period. Squinches are the architectural devices which permit circular based domes to be built on rectangular buildings. Elegant and often highly decorated they are a feature of many mosques.

Intricate brick squinch beneath the brick dome, Isfahan Friday Mosque

The iwan are connected by prayer halls, and hypostyle areas with cupolas and piers. The Mongol, Muzzafarid, Timurid and Safavid rulers who followed the Seljuqs all contributed to their construction, so the mosque displays a history of 700 years of Iranian architecture.

Elaborate carved stucco mihrab commissioned in 1310 by Mongolian ruler Oljaytu, Frday Mosque, Isfahan

Imam Mosque, Naqsh-e Jahan Square, Isfahan

Shah Abbas moved his capital to Isfahan in 1598. A kilometre southwest of the old Friday Mosque he built the magnificent Maidan-e Naqsh-e Jahan (Image of the World Square), now also known as Maidan-e Imam (Imam Square). The 560m by 160m square is framed by rows of two-storey shops. Among these he built the Royal bazaar on the north side, and the great Shah Mosque – now Imam Mosque - on the south, and oversaw the powers of commerce and religion from the Ali Qapu Palace on the eastern side.

Imam Mosque, Isfahan

The Imam Mosque has taken over the functions of the old Friday Mosque, but when we were there it was undergoing extensive repair work. It was a little difficult to appreciate the ‘pinnacle of Safavid architecture’ when peering through scaffolding at decoration removed for conservation.

The Sheik Lotfollah Mosque, Naqsh-e Jahan Square, Isfahan

The Sheik Lotfollah Mosque on the west side of the square was one of the original ‘Three Favourite Mosques'. Built a little later in Shah Abbas’ reign it was completed in 1618, and is a little gem.

Sheik Lotfollah Mosque, Isfahan

It has no minarets as it was intended for the private use of the Shah's hareem. Allegedly connected to the Ali Qapu Palace (from which the photo above was taken) by a tunnel under the square, the entrance was guarded from prying eyes. It is now open for all to enjoy.

The inside of the dome, Sheik Lotfollah Mosque, Isfahan

The Mausoleum of Ruholla Khomeini, Behesht-e Zahra, Tehran

Strictly speaking this a mausoleum not a mosque, but let’s not be picky.

Behest-e Zahra (The Paradise of Zahra) is a vast public cemetery on the southern edge of metropolitan Tehran containing 1.6 million graves. By far the most noticeable is that of Ruhollah Khomeini. Ayatollah Khomeini was the guiding hand behind the revolution that overthrow the Shah in 1979 and when he died ten years later the authorities immediately started building this mausoleum.

The mausoleum of Ayatollah Khomeini, Tehran

Much as the Shah deserved overthrowing, Khomeini was not an easy man for outsiders to like - if he was not dogmatic, humourless and unempathetic, he did a good impression of it. His mausoleum is not an easy building to like either – it looks tastelessly ostentatious to me. On the other hand, foreigners (without their cameras) are welcome inside where the atmosphere is remarkably peaceful. After a more than routine frisk the guard asked where I came from. ‘You are welcome!’ he said when I told him, and gave me a beaming smile.

India

14% of Indians are Muslims, but India has such a vast population that 14% means 189 million people. Hindu majority India has the world’s third largest Muslims population after Indonesia and Pakistan. There are, therefore, a lot of mosques and I am choosing four; not because they are typical – typicality means little in a country of such diversity – but because they caught my eye.

India with Kerala ringed

Mappila Mosques, Kozhikode (formerly Calicut), Kerala

Kerala faces the Arabian Sea in India’s southwest corner and has traded across that sea for millennia. More diverse than most states, Hindus are only just a majority (56%) and there are substantial Muslims (26%) and Christian (18%) minorities.

Mappilas are the Muslim descendants of native converts, some with part middle eastern ancestry from the earliest trading days. Most Mapillas live along the northern part of the coast and are so integrated into Keralan society that their mosque look more Keralan than Islamic.

Mapilla Mosque, Calicut

The overhanging eves and slatting were designed to keep interiors cool in the days before air-conditioning. They are remarkably effective and admit more light than you might expect.

Minaret of Mapilla Mosque, Calicut

The interiors of Mapilla Mosque are usually plain.

Interior of a Mapilla Mosque, Calicut, Kerala

Mosque in Madikeri, Karnataka

Karnataka is ringed,
Madikeri is in the south west, near the Kerala border

Neighbouring Karnataka is overwhelmingly Hindu (84%), while Muslims (13%) are a small but historically important minority. The tiny Kingdom of Kodagu (or Coorg) in south west Karnataka sought British protection in 1790 to protect itself from the aggression of the Muslim Tipu Sultan of Mysore. At independence Kodagu’s strong identity led to it briefly becoming a state in its own right, but now it is one of the 30 districts of the State of Karnataka. Its capital is the pleasant small town of Madikeri (pop:33,000).

There is nothing special about this mosque in Madikeri, I just liked the way the minarets are echoed by the telephone masts behind – both are structures designed for communication.

Mosque in Madikeri, Karnatika

Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh, Northern India

Asafi Mosque, Bara Imambara, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh

Lucknow (pop:2.9 million), capital of the northern State of Uttar Pradesh is very different from Madikeri. It was the centre of the 1857 ‘Indian Mutiny’ which destroyed the East India Company and the Mughal Empire and ushered in the British Raj. Previously, it had been capital of the Kingdom of Awadh, which emerged in 1722 and accepted British control in 1764. Awadh was one of many princely states where a Muslim nawab or sultan ruled an overwhelmingly Hindu populace

An Imambara is a hall where Shia Muslims gather on the anniversary of the death of Imam Hussein, grandson of the Prophet, at the Battle of Karbala (680 CE).

Lucknow has several imambaras, but this is the largest and its mosque is as fine any in northern India. It was built by Nawab Asaf-ud-Daula between 1784 and 1791 as a workfare project after a series of bad harvests had threatened famine.

Asifi Mosque, Bara Imambara, Lucknow

see Lucknow (1) City of Nawabs(2013)

Delhi (ringed) the capital of India

Majid-i Jehan Juma, Old Delhi

If Awadh was just one of many Muslim ruled Hindu states, the Mughal Empire (1526-1857) to which all eventually became vassal states, was the ultimate case of Muslims ruling Hindus.

The Empire had several capitals before settling in Delhi in 1648 once Shah Jahan had completed the Red Fort. An indefatigable builder Shah Jahan started on the Masjid-i Jehan Numa (Mosque of the Celestial Sphere), also called the Jama Masjid (Friday Mosque), in 1650 before completing the Taj Mahal (1653). The Taj was built as a tomb for his beloved first wife Mumtaz and he was buried beside her in 1666.

The Masjid-i Jehan Numa is one of the largest mosques in India. The prayer halls either side of the iwan are relatively small, but local weather usually allows worshippers to pack the courtyard and stand six deep along the tops of the walls. Allegedly the mosque accommodates 25,000 worshippers at Eid and other festivals.

Majid-i Jehan Numa, Old Delhi

The weather is not always good. When we visited in February 2013, Delhi was cold and drizzly.

Lynne in the drizzle by the Eastern Gate wearing the dressing gown given to all potentially immodest western women

see Delhi (1) mainly Old Delhi, but some New Delhi, too

China

China is the only country in the world with more people than India and 3% of its 1.4b citizens (42 million) identify as Muslims. I dislike the way India’s Hindu Nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi has goaded and marginalised India’s Muslims, but he is a paragon of virtue compared with China’s President Xi who is determinedly leading China backwards to the bad old days.

Xinjiang in Red

25 million of China’s Muslims are Uighurs, one of the 55 official minorities. Of all the ethnic minorities I have encountered or read about the Uighurs and Tibetans are, in different ways, the least like the majority Han population, in religion, looks, diet, language and script. Each has a homeland, Xizang for the Buddhist Tibetans and the huge Xinjiang Autonomous Region for the Uighurs - but there has always been distrust between the Uighurs and the Han.

Officially encouraged Han migration means that the Uighurs are no longer a majority (45%) in their own homeland and are only 12% of the population in the capital, Urumqi.

The Id Kah Mosque, Kashgar

Kashgar in the far west of the region - closer to Beirut than Beijing – has 500,000 inhabitants, 90% of them Muslim Uighurs. Id Kah Square is the heart of the city and Id Kah Mosque, originally built in 1443, though much altered since, was when we visited (2008) China’s oldest and most active mosque.

Id Kah Mosque, Kashgar

Non-believers are welcomed but we found the interior disappointing. I doubt it was ever an architectural gem and after so many refurbishmentsit has lost all sense of antiquity. Two outdoor pulpits and a large, plain central prayer hall - spoiled as a place for meditation by the guardian playing music on his mobile phone - sit beside a rose garden. Ten thousand regularly attend Friday prayers but Sunday morning was very quiet.

We liked Id Kah Square in the evening when the locals gathered to watch television on a big screen in one corner….

Watching TV, Id Kah Square, Kashgar

….while elsewhere children played and families strolled.China has one time zone, Beijing time, but most Kashgaris work on unofficial local time two hours behind. Maybe this accounts for the large number of children out well after 10pm.

Id Kah Square in the evening

• Kashgar (1) The Sunday Market and the Former Britsh Consulate (2008)
• Kashgar (2) Upal, Abahk Hoja and the Old Town (2008)

Emin Mosque, Turpan

The Turpan depression is a huge oasis taking up the north-eastern quarter of Xinjiang. It lies below sea-level and the city of Turpan at its centre is the hottest city in China.

The largely Uighur populated city is surrounded by vineyards, famous for their intensely sweet green raisins. Beside the vineyards on the edge of town is the Emin Mosque. The region was taken from the Dzungar Mongols and incorporated into China during the Qing dynasty. The Uighurs had sought Chinese protection from the Dzungar Mongols and the mosque, completed in 1778, honours Emin Khoja, a Uighur general who had fought alongside the Qing

The Emin Mosque, Turpan

I love the clean, simple lines of this building, which was another of the original ‘three favourites.’ The huge pepper-pot minaret - at 44m the highest in China - recalls the great mosques of Samarkand and Bukhara.

Corridor Inside the Emin Mosque

seeTurpan: Ruined Cities of the Silk Road (2008)

The building is government owned and no longer functions as a mosque; so I expect it is still there. I am less certain about Id Kah.

The endless niggling security we encountered in 2008 wound me up, never mind the traditionally rebellious Uighurs. Having provoked more trouble Xi Jinping – a man of very fixed ideas - used the excuse to stamp his heel onto the Uighur throat and keep it there relentlessly. Bulldozing mosques while detaining over a million Uighurs in 're-education centres' is a Crime against Humanity but no one has the will to challenge him, let alone the ability to stop him.

The Great Mosque, Xi’an

Not all Chinese Muslims are Uighurs; the Hui are another group over 10 million strong. Although one of the 55 recognised ethnic minorities, the Hui are the only Muslim group with no language other than their local Chinese dialect. They are indistinguishable from the Han majority except for the women’s headscarves and men’s white hats.

Young Hui chef pulling us some fresh noodles, Huizhou, southern China

Although more frequent in the north-western provinces, Hui live throughout the Han heartland. Xi’an, right in that heartland, has a Hui Muslim quarter and a Great Mosque built in the 14th century, though much changed over the centuries. This is the mosque where I heard that individual giving loud and confident voice to his ignorance.

The mosque has a prayer hall….

Prayer Hall, Xi'an Great Mosque

…and an ‘Examining the Heart Tower’ which I took for a minaret.

Examining the Heart Tower, Xi'an Great Mosque

Most mosques show some level of Arabic influence, but some, like the Mappila mosques in India and Xi’an’s Great Mosque are entirely in the local vernacular.

I will look at mosques in Malacca (Melaka), Kuala Lumpur
and Kuala Kangsar further to the north

Malaysia

All Malays are, by law, Muslims, but Malays only account for 55% of the population. A further 14% are from other indigenous groups, about half of whom are Muslim, half Christian bringing the country’s Muslim population to about 61%. 23% of Malaysians are of Chinese origin mainly followers of Buddhism, Taoism and Chinese folk religions. A further 7% are of Indian origin, mainly Hindus.

Malaysia is complicated. There are tensions between the groups at political level, but to the traveller the Malay Peninsula presents a gloriously harmonious diversity of ethnicity, religion, tradition and cuisine.

Kampung Kling Mosque, Malacca

Jalan Tukang Emas in Malacca showcases Malaysia’s diversity. Almost side by side are a Buddhist Temple, a Taoist temple, the Kampung Kling Mosque and a Hindu temple. Christ Church is in Dutch Square at the end of the street.

Jalan Tukang Emas. Malacca, photo taken from the Buddhist temple

Originally built in 1748 and extensively restored in 1872, Masjid Kampung Kling, like the Indian Mappila Mosques and Xi’an’s Great Mosque shows little Arabic influence. It is, I read, Sumatran in style, but I have not been there (yet) so I have seen nothing like it.

Masjid Kampung Kling, Melacca

The wudu for washing before prayers features Portuguese and English tiles and a roof supported by cast iron Corinthian columns. An eclectic mixture that is typically Malaysian.

Wudu, Masjid Kampung Kling, Malacca

Unlike churches, mosques rarely have a graveyard attached, but Kampung Kling does. Elaborate memorials are not the Muslim way, a simple stone marker is enough – your status in life no longer matters, all are equal in the sight of God.

Graveyard, Masjid Kumpung Kling, Malacca<

The Jamek Mosque, Kuala Lumpur and the Ubudiah Mosque, Kuala Kangsar

Kuala Lumpur means ‘muddy confluence’, though today the confluence of the Gombak and Klang Rivers is tidily canalised and mud-free. The confluence is the site of the Jamek Mosque, KL’s oldest functioning mosque (it opened in 1909 - KL is a young city). Now dwarfed by the surrounding buildings it can accommodate 5,000 worshippers and was the national mosque until the Masjid Negara, was built in 1965. The design, variously described as a Moorish, Indo-Saracenic or Mughal, was by English architect A. B. Hubback.

Jamek Mosque, Kuala Lumpur

Hubback was responsible for several other buildings in the city and the Ubudiah Mosque in Kuala Kangsar, the royal capital of Perak State 240Km to the north. In 1911, Idris Shah I, Sultan of Perak, was taken ill and vowed that should he recover he would build a mosque. This is the result.

Ubudiah Mosque, Kuala Kangsar

It looks to me, from his mosques and other buildings, that Hubback had swallowed the myth of the ‘mystic orient’ and was attempting to capture a romance that only ever existed in European minds. But Idris ordered it and Idris liked it (as far as I know) so perhaps I am wrong. Another interesting question is how did this Liverpudlian brother of an Anglican bishop come to design two of the most important mosques in Malaysia?

See also

See also

The Variety of Mosques (1) Praying Facing South

The Variety of Mosques (2) Praying Facing West

The Variety of Mosque (3) Praying Facing East