1 Year6 visit to the masjid ul-imam-il-bhukari & the darul uloom Islamic exhibition march 2017
2 The prayer room: We learned many things including the name of the pulpit is mimbir and is used by the Imam. Worshippers always make sure they are facing the holy city of Mecca.
3 The wash room: Wudhu is the ritual washing performed by Muslims before prayer. Muslims must be clean before they present themselves before God. We watched a demonstration of how to perform wudhu.
4 The School room: Muslim children from the age of 4 attend Madrassa after school or at the weekend to learn about their religion. We found it interesting to compare Madrassa to our school.
5 The exhibition: We saw a number of examples of mosques, old and newThe exhibition: We saw a number of examples of mosques, old and new. the cloth is a piece from the cover over the Kaaba in Mecca. It is embroidered in real gold thread and its words come from the Quran
6 The exhibition: We learned lots of information about Islam from Mohammed our guide and from reading the boards including what Ramadan means and who the prophets of Islam are.
7 WE enjoyed our visit to the mosque and the exhibitionWE enjoyed our visit to the mosque and the exhibition. we learned many things about Islam.
8 Our Trip To The Masjid-Ul-Imam-Il-Bukhari LarisaOn the 29th of March we were going to the Masjid-Ul-Imam-Il-Bukhari Mosque. I was looking forward to be going even though we had already visited a mosque in the year. The additional Islamic Exhibition would make this visit rather special. In order to get there, we had to pass through Abby Park-it was an enjoyable, slow walk(as always) but it was tiring as well. As soon as we arrived at our first destination, we were greeted by our guide Mohammed. We entered the mosque and he asked us politely to remove our shoes which showed we were being respectful. He then took us into the prayer room which was surprisingly enormous. We were shown how Muslims pray which was incredibly interesting to watch because I’ve never seen a Muslim pray before. Mohammed prayed in Arabic but sometimes he translated what he said into English,” Guide me to the straight path not the path of those who gone astray. “Was one of the quotes he gave us. Before praying, Muslims have to wash themselves in a special way; either at home or if they haven’t had time, there is a wash room provided at the Mosque. The room is called the Wudu/Wuzu where they follow the washing ritual. Mohammed kindly demonstrated how to do the Wudu/Wuzu. Did you know that the prophet Mohammed only had a small container with 750ml of water to wash himself daily? This is why Muslims do not like to waste water, especially when other countries have droughts and people are dying. There is even a sign on the wall, which impressed me, to remind everyone of this-it said-Don’t waste water, it is a gift from Allah, use it don’t abuse it Sometime later, we were instructed to move on to the school room called the Madrassa. Interestingly, most of us thought the children (that are attending) sit on the wooden benches provided, but actually they use them to place their school work on. I personally would find that rather uncomfortable; however for Muslims it is normal practise as they are used to it, especially because they also pray and often eat whilst sitting down on the floor. Mohammed informed that children can be taught at the Madrassa from the age of four. The lessons last for one to two hours, although for children that are older-five to six-they are expected to come to Monday to Friday for two hours. If the child is unable to attend for those five days the can study in the weekend in the mosque. Shortly after when we’d finished it learning about the Madrassa, we moved swiftly downstairs to collect our belongings. Then we took a pacey walk to the Darul-Uloom to see an exhibition to learn more about Islam. Arriving at the Darul-Uloom, Mohammed quickly took us into a room to look at displays of interesting creations that Muslims made. Muslims had invented; the zero, algebra, medicine and surgery. Despite already knowing quite a lot about the Islamic faith, due to this exhibition, my knowledge has now expanded even more. I would recommend this visit to anyone; it was excellent!
9 Our Fabulous Mosque Trip TristenOn Wednesday 29th March 2017, we had a fantastic opportunity to visit a marvellous Mosque to extend our knowledge even further about Islam. As well as going to the Mosque, we also went to an Islamic exhibition. As we ventured to the Mosque we passed the Space Centre and more major landmarks, such as the Abbey Pumping Station (which I have visited previously). Eventually, feeling excited, we arrived at our destination Firstly, we were enthusiastically greeted by Muhammed who explained that he would be showing us around his spectacular mosque. After removing our shoes, we moved into the huge prayer room, which can accommodate 2,000 people on Eid. The whole class sat down on the carpet, each sitting on a separate rectangle facing Mecca (which is the holy city situated in Saudi Arabia). We noticed at the front of the room a pulpit (called a mimbir in Arabic) where the Imam, who is the Mosque leader, stands to say prayers. As we sat, Muhammed demonstrated how to pray. We were informed that Muslims pray 5 times every day; Muhammed said, “Prayer is the charging of the soul to connect with God.” I learned that when Muslims wash they wash their different body parts in this order: their hands, then gargling water in their mouth, after that they put water in their nose using their left hand; next they wash their face, arms and elbows and finally they wash their feet including their ankles. Muhammed said, “Water is a gift from God so use it wisely and be grateful.” Having found the wash room incredibly interesting we swiftly moved on to the school room. Again, we learnt a new word - ‘Madrassa’ which means school. Did you know Muslim children sit on the floor whilst their work is on benches? I prefer to sit on chairs and place our work on tables after all Muslim children are used to it because they pray on the floor. Children from the age of four go to school for one hour a week. However, when they get to six years old, they attend school for two hours a day (Monday to Friday). Moreover, they are unable to attend they can instead go at the weekend After touring around the Masjid-Ul-Imam-Ul-Bukhari, we hurried on to the Darul Uloom to see the Islamic exhibition. Muhammed first took us to a room to show us a model of the Kabbah. I was extremely impressed that it was made from mud. We also found out about the prophets of Islam who are people that preach. Did you know Jesus is a prophet of Islam? Displayed on the wall was a cloth - originally draped over the Kabbah - which had an Islamic word on it made from fine gold. It was given as a gift for everyone to admire. I thought it was exquisite! Muhammed was very thorough in his communication to us about the Islamic faith. As a result of this, I found the visit to be interesting. I now know so much more about Islam.
10 THE MASJID UL IMAM IL BUKHARI MagdaOn Wednesday 29th March we were invited to the Mosque, to explore our knowledge of Islam. We walked through Abbey Park and past the Space Centre. Unexpectedly, this was an extra treat for some children as they had never seen the enormous rocket before. On arrival at the Mosque, Muhammed welcomed us and explained to take our shoes off before entering. Inside the huge prayer room, I really loved the carpet - the pattern faced Mecca. Muhammed told us that Muslims pray five to ten minutes, five times a day. Did you know Friday is a special day for Muslims and over 1500 people come to pray and to be close with their God. The guide told us all Muslims need to do Wudu before prayers. Wudu means washing the body in a special way: hands, face, arms, feet, hair and ears – all three times. It is very important for Muslims to keep clean and also to pray in a hygienic place. I never so much preparation was needed before Soon after, we went to a small room which was a school called Madrassa. It was really interesting because I didn`t know that in some Mosque schools they have just boys or girls. At four years old they go for two hours from Monday to Friday. It was very different to our school, but a few things were familiar to me, like the good work sticker charts and some beautiful art work on the walls. After putting our shoes back on, Muhammed led us down the road to the Darul U loom school, where the Islamic Exhibition is situated. At first, we learned about a number of prophets featured in the Qu `ran. Interestingly, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, Adam, Isaac and many others also appear in the Christian Bible. I especially liked looking at the models of Mosque, the cities of Mecca and Medina and prophet Muhammad`s house. Personally, I enjoyed the day because it was interesting to learn about an unfamiliar religion. There was so much to see and do at the Exhibition. I would have to visit another day!