Mosques in my city

 

 

 

 

There are approximately 30 mosques in my city . . . and I have the goal of taking pictures of all of them. Unfortunately, I don't know exactly where all of them are! However, I do know about half of them and one of these days, I'll head out on my photographic journey.

There are two kinds of Muslims in China . . . those who know, understand and practice the faith and those who are born into an ethnic group that claims the Muslim faith. Most of the Muslims I know have never entered a mosque and aren't that interested in the belief system. They like the cultural identity of being Muslim, but don't know or care much about Islamic teachings.

The following is a little background on mosques:

A mosque is symbolically very important to Muslims and is a humble way for man to recreate pure divine presence on earth.

Muslims pray facing the direction of the qiblah that is the Ka’ba, the House of God in Mecca. To show them where this is a mihrab (niche) in the middle of the front wall of the mosque. To the right of the mihrab is the minbar a platform with steps where the Imam, the local religious leader addresses the worshippers during the Khutbah (talk).

Mosques have a roofed area in front of the mihrab and doors are placed in the wills where the mihrab is not.

Men and women pray separately and there are special sections for women. Mosques having washing facilities in order that worshippers can perform wudu (ritual washing) before prayers.

Muslims will try to find a mosque which is used by people belonging to their own creed (Sunnis, Shi’ites). Most mosques are however seen as neutral and are used by all creeds. Most mosques are situated in centres of cities there are very few lay in open areas.

When entering a mosque, a person should take their shoes or sandals off. You should also enter a mosque with your right foot first, while uttering a blessing to Muhammad and his family. Once inside you should talk quietly in order not to disturb other worshippers. Muslims on Friday wear the best clothes to the mosque and perfumes are recommended.

The Qu’ran or sunna does not prevent women from entering a mosque however many are closed to women either by local rules or by habits.

The sunna states that prayers in the mosque are 20 to 25 times more valuable than praying at home.

KA’BA: The most holy structure in Islam. Situated in Mecca and according to Islam is the centre of the world. A pre-Islamic holy place rebuilt by Abraham and his son Ismail. The Ka’ba is a rectangular building made of bricks.

(The first photo is the interior of the mosque in the last two photos. I have no idea why it jumped around like that. The second photo is what I call "The Silver Mosque." The third is "The Gold Mosque." The last two are of the Grand Mosque in our city and it is indeed, downtown in the center of things.)

Buddhist Temple

 

 

 

Five Springs Mountain is a "combination" area for our city. There is an aquarium, an amusement park, a small zoo (complete with pandas, so we hear, but we didn't get to it the other day), hiking trails and multiple Buddhist temples.

This particular temple was right beside the bumper cars and bungee/trampolene jump . . . seemed kind of strange to me! We stepped into the doorway and saw a small shop selling incense and other Buddhist items. Off to the right of the courtyard was a very small fire where people could light their incense. They would then go to the large smoking pits and bow three times and then place their incense or candles in the pits. Some would bow three times facing all four directions . . . north, south, east, west. For most people, that was the extent of the visit. However, some of them went to the top of the steps and knelt down and bowed three more times. Always in sets of three.

If you look in the photos, you will see a man in a purplish vest. The first photo shows him walking towards the pits. The second photo shows him holding his incense up to his forehead . . . he is completing one of his bows. The third photo shows him kneeling at the top of the stairs. I took all of these photos while simply holding the camera at the top of the opening in my purse. I had no idea what I was pointing at as I didn't look at the camera at all while I was taking the pictures.

Now, one of the basic tenets of Buddhism is to deny craving. In fact, the motto "If there was no craving, there would be no suffering" is a pretty accurate summary of the religion. However, go back to photo number one.

Yes, that is a covered car on the left. Cars, while increasing in number here in China, are still not *that* common for most people in my area. While the city has about 3.5 million people, the car population nowhere near reflects that. A traffic jam will definitely consist of more buses, taxis, trucks and the like than private cars. So what the heck is a car doing inside a Buddhist temple courtyard? (And, to be honest, I have never seen a car cover before in this area, much less a designer one like this one!)

I doubt I will ever know.

Shaolin Monks

 

Yesterday, Art and I took the kids to a nearby mountain known as "Five Springs Mountain." It's a huge place with . . . yes, five springs . . . and is home to many Buddhist temples.

On the outside, Buddhism looks to be a simple belief system, but beneath the robes, there is a myriad of thought patterns which can become quite confusing.

Buddhism is not a single monolithic religion. There are many different variations which have developed with little conflict. This has been because at its core is a philosophical system to which such additions can be easily grafted.

The main branches:

** Theravada / Hinayana (The great tradition or the way of the elders):

Practised in Sri Lanka, Burma, Thailand, Cambodia and Laos and sticks firmly to the teachings of the Vinaya Pitaka. It teaches that Buddha was a man, a very special man, a very special person but nevertheless human.

** Mahayana (little tradition)

Theraveda emphasizes the life of the monk and serious meditation practices that demand extended time and isolation which became difficult for millions and as Buddhism moved into new countries outside India it also had to compete with other religions. A new strand developed which was known as Mahayana.

Mahayan accommodated and change it’s religious beliefs and practises to the religious expectations and ideas of people. They moved away from considering monks as the only elite and beyond the monastery. The Mahayan interpreted and transformed the Buddha and his teachings into divine being of personal nature and transcendence.

** Variants of Mahayana Buddhism:

Tibetan Buddhism:

A mixture of Buddhism, Tantrism and the ancient Bon religion of Tibet. They have a vast collection of scriptures (tantras), which describe powerful rituals. Their teachers (Lamas) are said to be reincarnations of holy teachers who lived in earlier times.

The spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists is the Dalai Lama who is believed to be the reincarnation of Avalokiteshvara.

Zen Buddhism:

Developed from CH’an a school of Chinese Buddhism formed in the Seventh century from a blend of Taoism (Chinese philosophy outlined in the TaoTeChing). It aims is to achieve harmony with all that is by pursuing inaction and effortless) and Mahayana teachings. The school stressed experience rather than learning. One of the heroes of Zen is the fierce – looking Indian monk Boddhidharma who brought Buddhism to China.

Absolute faith is placed in a person’s own inner being. Zen came to Japan in the 13th century five centuries after the orthodox forms of Buddhism. It appealed because of its emphasis on the uselessness of words and the insistence of action without thought.

**Pure Land Buddhism:

Buddhist sect founded by a Chinese monk called Hui Yuan (AD 334 –416). It focuses on one particular scripture which tells of a living Buddha who inhabits another world system, a far off place known as the Pure Land. The Buddha is Amitabha and his followers believe that through faith they will be transported there after death.

**Nichiren Buddhism:

A Japanese Buddhist reformer whose teachings are based on the Mahayana Sutra (scripture) known as the Lotus Sutra which contained the ultimate truth and that it could be compressed into a sacred formula NAMO MYOHO RENGE KYO (homage to the Lotus of the wonderful law).

The central practice of Nichiren Buddhism is reciting the mantra of the namo myoho rengye kyo. Nichiren denounced all other forms of Buddhism and when the Mongols threatened Japan preached a fiery nationalism, urging the nation to convert to true Buddhism.

(From: http://www.racialjustice.org.uk/Types%20of%20Buddhism.htm data acquired October 6, 2009)

Clear? Understand the differences? Nah, me neither!

Our part of the country typically follows Mahayana, Tibetan and Zen Buddhism.

When we went to the Five Springs Mountain, however, we saw these monks. They aren't part of any Buddhist sect, but are a part of the Shaolin temple. While Shaolin is known for its kung fu and martial arts, it's origins are in Buddhism and it's not that uncommon to see the occasional Shaolin monk at a Buddhist temple.

"The Shaolin philosophy is one that started from Buddhism and later adopted many Taoist principles to become a new sect. Thus even though a temple may have been Taoist or Buddhist at first, once it became Shaolin, it was a member of a new order, an amalgamation of the prevailing Chinese philosophies of the time." (From: http://www.shaolin.com/historycontent.aspx data acquired October 6, 2009)

Spiders

 

 

Spiders can be pretty scary, especially when they are THIS big! However, please note, that making them pink appeals to the female side of the generation!

Food . . .

 

 

 

There is no doubt that China is a "Food Nation." Like anywhere else, food plays an important role in celebrations, both big and small.

"Eight Treasure Tea" is somewhat common and contains green tea and various kinds of nuts, berries and flowers. I've usually had it with sugar, but this particular restaurant didn't provide any sugar . . . I thought it was rather brittle.

Noodles are big . . . literally, big! . . . in China. Many noodle places make their own (and yes, they are hand-pulled) but for those places who don't have the time or space to make their own, delivery is provided. This is a huge outdoor delivery of dried noodles on a scale outside an extremely popular Muslim restaurant in the area.

Pumpkin seeds are fun to chew on and spitting the shells is a national sport. This is a truckload of burlap sacks of pumpking seeds being delivered to a local market.

A woman's work is never done . . .

 

How many of us complain about doing laundry? I know it never seems to end in my house . . . with two kids, the pile just keeps growing and growing.

I was walking with some friends the other day and noticed this lady at the side of the road doing *her* laundry. Washboard and all. I live in the largest city in my province and yet the poverty of a developing nation is still aboundingly obvious. I don't think I'll be complaining for a while. I do know that I am exceedingly grateful for my state-of-the-art washing machine.

Finally! Some photos!

 

 

 

These photos were taken on Mid-Autumn Festival . . . October 3 this year. The fifteenth of each lunar month sees a full moon. While my camera didn't take a great photo, at least you "get the picture!"

I went shopping earlier in the day and the shopping center was decked out for the day. Performances and flags . . . it was festive feeling and fun to be around.

Now . . . I'm going to go back and try to post some National Day photos. I'm not uploading directly from Picasa and that seems to be solving the problem with the photos.