Kowloon Masjid and Islamic Centre

Coordinates: 22°17′55″N 114°10′18″E / 22.298733°N 114.171719°E / 22.298733; 114.171719

Kowloon Mosque and Islamic Centre
九龍清真寺暨伊斯蘭中心
Kowloon Masjid
مسجد كاولون والمركز الإسلامي
Basic information
Location 105 Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong
Affiliation Sunni Islam
Country People's Republic of China
Website kowloonmosque.com
Architectural description
Architect(s) I. M. Kadri
Architectural type Mosque
Completed 1896 (original building)
11 May 1984 (current building)[1]
Construction cost HK$ 25 million
Specifications
Capacity 3,500 people
Dome(s) 1
Dome height (outer) 9 meters
Dome dia. (outer) 5 meters
Minaret(s) 4
Minaret height 11 meters
Kowloon Mosque prayer hall
Open Day in 2011

Kowloon Masjid and Islamic Centre or Kowloon Mosque and Islamic Centre (Chinese: 九龍清真寺暨伊斯蘭中心) is second among five principal mosques constructed in Hong Kong.[2] Located in Kowloon at the corner of Nathan Road and Haiphong Road next to Kowloon Park, the mosque is currently the largest Islamic house of worship in the city. The mosque holds 5 prayers daily and is capable of accommodating up to approximately 3,500 people.

History

The Kowloon Mosque and Islamic Centre was first established in 1896, on the site where the Tsim Sha Tsui Police Station now stands. It was originally intended to serve the Indian Muslim troops of the British army stationed at nearby Whitfield Barracks, now the site of the adjacent Kowloon Park.

In the late 1970s, the building suffered structural defects due to the underground construction carried out for the Mass Transit Railway. With the compensation given by Mass Transit Railway Corporation and donations from Muslims, a new Mosque was built and was open on 11 May 1984 on the present site at 105 Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, to replace the old one.

Currently, the mosque primarily serves Muslims with origin from South Asia and Indonesia. Many of them live around the mosque area nearby Chungking Mansions where ethnic minorities have settled. This also explains why Kowloon Mosque also plays an important role as a cultural site for non-Chinese Muslims in Hong Kong.[3]

Vendors selling South Asian related things in the Chungking Mansions are close to the Kowloon Mosque.[4]

The building

The mosque, designed by architect I.M. Kadri, represents the unique identity of the Muslim community in Hong Kong. Decorated and elaborate, the traditional Muslim architecture of the mosque distinguished itself from the rational and modern architecture of the nearby commercial buildings. The most prominent features of the building are the four 11 meters high minarets which mark the corners of the upper terrace and the extensive use of white marble on both the paving and the facade.

In addition to three prayer halls and a community hall, there is a medical clinic and a library. The main prayer hall on the first floor can accommodate 1,000 people. A smaller, women's prayer hall is on the upper floor and is surrounded by a terrace. This upper hall is surmounted by a dome 5 meters in diameter and 9 meters in height.

Kowloon Masjid and Islamic Centre at night

Personnel

Chief Imam of Hong Kong Mufti Muhammad Arshad (Master of Arts in Islamic studies) has been serving as Imam and Khateeb of this Masjid since 2001. He also teaches the Arabic language course, and delivers the Friday sermons in Urdu, English and Arabic. He is also responsible for the issuance of fatwa and Quranic Maktabs. He is an Instructor of Baptist University of Hong Kong. He was ranked one of the 500 world's most influential Muslim leader 2009.

Maulana Qari Muhammad Tayaib Qasmi is an Islamic scholar who has lived in Hong Kong since 1989. He served as a Chief Imam and Khateeb of the Kowloon Mosque till 2001. He has invited many prominent Islamic scholars to Hong Kong from different part of the world, among them Makki sahib, Abdul Majeed Nadeem Shah sahib, and Imam-e-Kabba, imam Masjid e Nabwi (SAW). Maulana Tariq Jameel. Dr Tahir ul Qadri. Dr Murtaza Sahib Dr Zakir Naike Trustee is currently running seven large Islamic Centres throughout Hong Kong, giving free after-school Quranic education to over 1,500 students including adult students and boys and girls, who study full-time in local schools in Hong Kong. The Masjid is very important to the community.

Transportation

The building is accessible within walking distance North from Tsim Sha Tsui Station of the MTR.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Islam and China's Hong Kong: Ethnic Identity, Muslim Networks and the New Silk Road
  2. ↑ http://www.islam.org.hk/eng/E-HKmosque.asp
  3. ↑ https://openaccess.leidenuniv.nl/bitstream/handle/1887/16773/ISIM_10_Contested_Mosques_in_Hong_Kong.pdf?sequence=1
  4. ↑ Paul O'Connor (1 September 2012). Islam in Hong Kong: Muslims and Everyday Life in China's World City. Hong Kong University Press. pp. 102–. ISBN 978-988-8139-57-6.
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