Editing Mosque (section)

==Rules and etiquette==

===Prayer leading===
Appointment of a prayer leader is considered desirable, but not always obligatory.<ref name="mawardi112">{{Cite book |last=Abu al-Hasankok Ibn Muhammad Ibn Habib |first=Al-Mawardi |author-link=Al-Mawardi |title=The Ordinances of Government (''Al-Ahkam al-Sultaniyya w'al-Wilayat al-Diniyya'') |publisher=Garnet Publishing |location=Lebanon |year=2000 |isbn=978-1-85964-140-8 |page=184}}</ref> The permanent prayer leader ([[imam]]) must be a free honest individual and is authoritative in religious matters.<ref name="mawardi112" /> In mosques constructed and maintained by the government, the prayer leader is appointed by the ruler;<ref name="mawardi112" /> in private mosques, appointment is made by members of the congregation through [[majority rule|majority voting]]. According to the [[Hanafi]] [[Madh'hab|school]] of Islamic jurisprudence, the individual who built the mosque has a stronger claim to the title of imam, but this view is not shared by the other schools.<ref name="mawardi112" />

Leadership at prayer falls into three categories, depending on the type of prayer: five daily prayers, Friday prayer, or optional prayers.<ref name="mawardi112" /> According to the Hanafi and [[Maliki]] school of Islamic jurisprudence, appointment of a prayer leader for Friday service is mandatory because otherwise the prayer is invalid. The [[Shafi'i]] and [[Hanbali]] schools argue that the appointment is not necessary and the prayer is valid as long as it is performed in a congregation. A slave may lead a Friday prayer, but Muslim authorities disagree over whether the job can be done by a minor.<ref name="mawardi112" /> An imam appointed to lead Friday prayers may also lead at the five daily prayers; [[List of Islamic studies scholars|Muslim scholars]] agree to the leader appointed for five daily services may lead the Friday service as well.<ref name="mawardi112" />

All Muslim authorities hold the consensus opinion that only men may lead prayer for men.<ref name="mawardi112" /> Nevertheless, women prayer leaders are allowed to lead prayer in front of all-female congregations.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Z9WF1fRGOsQC&q=false&pg=PA63 |title=Karin van Nieuwkerk, 'Women Embracing Islam'|page=63 |publisher=University of Texas Press |isbn=978-0-292-77376-9 |year=2006}}</ref>

===Cleanliness===
{{See also|Ritual purity in Islam}}
[[File:Zoetermeer Meerzicht Moskee Qibla (04).JPG|upright|thumb|Storage for shoes]]

All mosques have rules regarding cleanliness, as it is an essential part of the worshippers' experience. Muslims before prayer are required to cleanse themselves in an ablution process known as ''wudu''. Shoes must not be worn inside the carpeted prayer hall. Some mosques will also extend that rule to include other parts of the facility even if those other locations are not devoted to prayer. Congregants and visitors to mosques are supposed to be clean themselves. It is also undesirable to come to the mosque after eating something that smells, such as garlic.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.sunnipath.com/Resources/PrintMedia/Hadith/H0002P0016.aspx |publisher=SunniPath |website=SunniPath Library |access-date=July 12, 2006 |title=Chapter 16. The Description of the Prayer |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061128133738/http://www.sunnipath.com/Resources/PrintMedia/Hadith/H0002P0016.aspx |archive-date=November 28, 2006 }}</ref>

===Dress===
Islam requires that its adherents wear [[Islam and clothing|clothes]] that portray [[modesty]]. Men are supposed to come to the mosque wearing loose and clean clothes that do not reveal the shape of the body. Likewise, it is recommended that women at a mosque wear loose clothing that covers to the wrists and ankles, and cover their heads with a ''[[Hijab|Ḥijāb]]'' ({{langx|ar|حِجاب}}), or other covering. Many Muslims, regardless of their ethnic background, wear Middle Eastern clothing associated with Arabic Islam to special occasions and prayers at mosques.<ref name="teach-islam" />

===Concentration===
As mosques are places of worship, those within the mosque are required to remain respectful to those in prayer. Loud talking within the mosque, as well as discussion of topics deemed disrespectful, is forbidden in areas where people are praying. In addition, it is disrespectful to walk in front of or otherwise disturb Muslims in prayer.<ref>{{Cite journal |author=Connecting Cultures, Inc. |title=Building Cultural Competency: Understanding Islam, Muslims, and Arab Culture |journal=MAEC |publisher=Connecting Cultures, Inc. |url=http://www.maec.org/2004conferencepapers/ismail.doc |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060724145207/http://www.maec.org/2004conferencepapers/ismail.doc |archive-date=July 24, 2006 |page=15 |format=Doc |access-date=July 12, 2006 }}</ref> The walls within the mosque have few items, except for possibly Islamic calligraphy, so Muslims in prayer are not distracted.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ondWbP0sB-MC&q=false&pg=PA47|title=Seven Doors to Islam: Spirituality and the Religious Life of Muslims|last=Renard|first=John|year=1996|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=978-0-520-91747-7|language=en}}</ref> Muslims are also discouraged from wearing clothing with distracting [[image]]s and [[symbol]]s so as not to divert the attention of those standing behind them during prayer. In many mosques, even the carpeted prayer area has no designs, its plainness helping worshippers to focus.

===Gender separation===
{{See also|Gender segregation and Islam|Women's mosques|Islamic Bill of Rights for Women in the Mosque}}
[[File:Sultan Abdul Majid mosque in Byblos, Lebanon (for women only).JPG|thumb|A women-only mosque in [[Byblos]], Lebanon]]

There is nothing written in the Qur'an about the issue of space in mosques and gender separation. Traditional rules have segregated women and men. By traditional rules, women are most often told to occupy the rows behind the men. In part, this was a practical matter as the traditional posture for prayer{{spaced ndash}}kneeling on the floor, head to the ground{{spaced ndash}}made mixed-gender prayer uncomfortably revealing for many women and distracting for some men. Traditionalists try to argue that Muhammad preferred women to pray at home rather than at a mosque, and they cite a ''[[hadith|ḥadīth]]'' in which Muhammad supposedly said: "The best mosques for women are the inner parts of their houses," although women were active participants in the mosque started by Muhammad. Muhammad told Muslims not to forbid women from entering mosques. They are allowed to go in.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://muftiwp.gov.my/ms/artikel/al-kafi-li-al-fatawi/2835-al-kafi-936-tempat-solat-yang-terbaik-bagi-seorang-wanita-2 |title=Al-Kafi #936: Tempat Solat Yang Terbaik Bagi Seorang Wanita |trans-title=Al-Kafi #936: The Best Prayer Place For A Woman |language=ms |author=  Mohammad Izzhar Faizzy Osman |work=Mufti of Federal Territory's Office |access-date=1 July 2024}}</ref> The second Sunni caliph '[[Umar]] at one time prohibited women from attending mosques especially at night because he feared they might be sexually harassed or assaulted by men, so he required them to pray at home.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/humanrelations/womeninislam/womeninsociety.html#mosque |access-date=April 15, 2006 |title=Women in Society |publisher=University of Southern California |website=Compendium of Muslim Texts |last=Doi |first=Abdur Rahman I. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060409200739/http://usc.edu/dept/MSA/humanrelations/womeninislam/womeninsociety.html |archive-date=April 9, 2006 }}</ref> Sometimes a special part of the mosque was railed off for women; for example, the governor of Mecca in 870 had ropes tied between the columns to make a separate place for women.<ref name="Masdjid1" />

Many mosques today will put the women behind a barrier or partition or in another room. Mosques in [[South Asia|South]] and [[Southeast Asia]] put men and women in separate rooms, as the divisions were built into them centuries ago. In nearly two-thirds of American mosques, women pray behind partitions or in separate areas, not in the main prayer hall; some mosques do not admit women at all due to the lack of space and the fact that some prayers, such as the Friday Jumuʻah, are mandatory for men but optional for women.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.malaysiadateline.com/wanita-dari-maghribi-terkejut-kaum-hawa-di-malaysia-tak-solat-jumaat-masjid-pula-dipenuhi-kaum-adam-sahaja/ |title=Wanita dari Maghribi terkejut kaum Hawa di Malaysia tak solat Jumaat, masjid pula dipenuhi kaum Adam sahaja |trans-title=A woman from Morocco is surprised that women in Malaysia doesn't perform Friday prayer, instead the mosque is only filled with men |quote=Beberapa individu menerangkan bahawa ruangan solat wanita akan dibuka kepada golongan lelaki sewaktu solat Jumaat. Ini kerana mereka akan terpaksa bersembahyang di luar masjid atau atas jalan tar dengan ruangan solat yang tidak mencukupi. |trans-quote=Some individuals explained that women's prayer space will be opened to men during Friday prayer. This is because they would have to pray outside the mosque or on top of the paved road due to inadequate prayer space. |language=ms |author=Kim Syazie |work=Malaysia Dateline |date=20 March 2024 |access-date=1 July 2024}}</ref> Although there are sections exclusively for women and children, the Grand Mosque in Mecca is desegregated.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.columbiajournalist.org/rw1_dinges/2005/article.asp?subj=national&course=rw1_dinges&id=624 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060527161519/http://www.columbiajournalist.org/rw1_dinges/2005/article.asp?subj=national&course=rw1_dinges&id=624 |archive-date=May 27, 2006 |access-date=April 9, 2006 |date=January 26, 2006 |title=Muslim Women Seek More Equitable Role in Mosques |last=Rezk |first=Rawya |publisher=The Columbia Journalist }}</ref>

===Non-Muslim inclusion===
[[File:Bush Islamic Center Washington.jpg|thumb|left|President [[George W. Bush]] inside the [[Islamic Center of Washington|Islamic Center]] of [[Washington D.C.]], US]]

Under most interpretations of ''sharia'', non-Muslims are permitted to enter mosques provided that they respect the place and the people inside it.{{additional citation needed|date=June 2017}} A dissenting opinion and minority view is presented by followers of the [[Maliki]] school of Islamic jurisprudence, who argue that non-Muslims may not be allowed into mosques under any circumstances.<ref name="mawardi112" />

The Quran addresses the subject of non-Muslims, and particularly [[polytheism|polytheists]], in mosques in two verses in its ninth chapter, [[At-Tawba|Sura At-Tawba]]. The seventeenth verse of the chapter prohibits those who ''join gods with Allah''—polytheists—from maintaining mosques:
{{Blockquote|It is not for the polytheists to maintain the mosques of Allah while they openly profess disbelief. Their deeds are void, and they will be in the Fire forever.|{{qref|9|17|c=y}}}}

The twenty-eighth verse of the same chapter is more specific as it only considers polytheists in the [[Masjid al-Haram]] in Mecca:
{{Blockquote|O believers! Indeed, the polytheists are ˹spiritually˺ impure, so they should not approach the Sacred Mosque after this year. If you fear poverty, Allah will enrich you out of His bounty, if He wills. Surely, Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise.|{{qref|9|28|c=y}}}}

According to [[Ahmad ibn Hanbal]], these verses were followed to the letter at the times of Muhammad, when [[Jews]] and Christians, considered [[monotheism|monotheists]], were still allowed to ''Al-Masjid Al-Haram''. The Umayyad caliph [[Umar II]] later forbade non-Muslims from entering mosques, and his ruling remains in practice in present-day Saudi Arabia.<ref name="Masdjid1" /> Today, the decision on whether non-Muslims should be allowed to enter mosques varies. With few exceptions, mosques in the Arabian Peninsula as well as Morocco do not allow entry to non-Muslims. For example, the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca is one of only two mosques in Morocco currently open to non-Muslims.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://edition.cnn.com/2003/TRAVEL/DESTINATIONS/02/25/morocco.travel.ap/index.html |title=Morocco travel |work=CNN|access-date=September 22, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071012004112/http://edition.cnn.com/2003/TRAVEL/DESTINATIONS/02/25/morocco.travel.ap/index.html |archive-date=October 12, 2007 }}</ref>

There are many other mosques in the West and Islamic world which non-Muslims are welcome to enter. Most mosques in the United States, for example, report receiving non-Muslim visitors every month. Many mosques throughout the United States welcome non-Muslims as a sign of openness to the rest of the community as well as to encourage conversions to Islam.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Takim |first=Liyakatali |date=July 2004 |title=From Conversion to Conversation: Interfaith Dialogue in Post 9–11 America |journal=The Muslim World |volume=94 |pages=343–355 |url=http://www.macdonald.hartsem.edu/articles/mw943f.pdf |access-date=June 16, 2006 |doi=10.1111/j.1478-1913.2004.00058.x |issue=3 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060618192654/http://macdonald.hartsem.edu/articles/mw943f.pdf |archive-date=June 18, 2006 }} [http://www.ltakim.com/ Liyakatali Takim] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120218012727/http://www.ltakim.com/ |date=2012-02-18 }} is a professor at [[McMaster University]]</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4511780.stm |publisher=BBC |access-date=June 16, 2006 |title=Laptop link-up: A day at the mosque |date=December 5, 2005 |archive-date=April 18, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230418171725/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4511780.stm |url-status=live }}</ref>

In modern-day Saudi Arabia, the Grand Mosque and all of Mecca are open only to Muslims. Likewise, Al-Masjid Al-Nabawi and the city of [[Medina]] that surrounds it are also off-limits to those who do not practice Islam.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Dictionary of Beliefs & Religions |last=Goring |first=Rosemary |publisher=Wordsworth Editions |year=1997 |isbn=978-1-85326-354-5 |url=https://archive.org/details/wordsworthdictio0000unse }}</ref> For mosques in other areas, it has most commonly been taken that non-Muslims may only enter mosques if granted permission to do so by Muslims, and if they have a legitimate reason. All entrants regardless of [[List of religions and spiritual traditions|religious affiliation]] are expected to respect the rules and [[decorum]] for mosques.<ref name="teach-islam" />

In modern Turkey, non-Muslim tourists are allowed to enter any mosque, but there are some strict rules. Visiting a mosque is allowed only between prayers; visitors are required to wear long trousers and not to wear shoes, women must cover their heads; visitors are not allowed to interrupt praying Muslims, especially by taking photos of them; no loud talk is allowed; and no references to other religions are allowed (no crosses on necklaces, no cross gestures, etc.) Similar rules apply to mosques in Malaysia, where larger mosques that are also tourist attractions (such as the [[National Mosque of Malaysia|Masjid Negara]]) provide robes and headscarves for visitors who are deemed inappropriately attired.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Turner |first1=Peter |title=Malaysia, Singapore & Brunei |year=1996 |publisher=Lonely Planet |location=Hawthorn, Vic. |isbn=978-0-86442-393-1 |edition=6th|first2=Chris |last2=Taylor |first3=Hugh |last3=Finlay}}</ref>

In certain times and places, non-Muslims were expected to behave a certain way in the vicinity of a mosque: in some Moroccan cities, Jews were required to remove their shoes when passing by a mosque;<ref>{{Cite book |first=Norman |last=Stillman |title=The Jews of Arab Lands: A History and Source Book |publisher=Jewish Publication Society of America |location=Philadelphia |year=1979 |isbn=978-0-8276-0116-1 |page=[https://archive.org/details/jewsofarablands00stil/page/83 83] |url=https://archive.org/details/jewsofarablands00stil/page/83 }}</ref> in 18th-century Egypt, Jews and Christians had to dismount before several mosques in veneration of their sanctity.<ref>{{Cite book |author=Bat Ye'or |author-link=Bat Ye'or |title=Islam and Dhimmitude. Where Civilizations Collide |publisher=Fairleigh Dickinson University Press/Associated University Presses |location=Madison/Teaneck, NJ |year=2002 |isbn=978-0-8386-3943-6 |page=98}}</ref>{{better source needed|date=December 2022}}

The association of the mosque with education remained one of its main characteristics throughout history,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Nizamoglu |first=Cem |date=2001-08-12 |title=Education in Islam - The Role of the Mosque |url=https://muslimheritage.com/education-in-islam-the-role-of-the-mosque/ |access-date=2023-08-03 |website=Muslim Heritage |archive-date=2022-11-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221106001009/https://muslimheritage.com/education-in-islam-the-role-of-the-mosque/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and the school became an indispensable appendage to the mosque. From the earliest days of Islam, the mosque was the center of the Muslim community, a place for prayer, meditation, religious instruction, political discussion, and a school. Anywhere Islam took hold, mosques were established, and basic religious and educational instruction began.<ref>Qureshi, M. 1990. ''The Role of the Mosque in Islam''. New Delhi: International Islamic Publishers.</ref>