In England, we have purpose and non-purpose built Masjids. Non-purpose built Mosque was built in around 1960’s when Muslims came to England, after the Second World War for work purposes. All the Muslims from all different areas grouped together and bought a house by collecting funds to use that as a Masjid. This is known as Non-purpose built Mosque.
As time went by, more people realised that they need a bigger and a purpose built Mosque, so that’s why they mostly bought lands and built Masjids, known as purpose-built Mosques.
Masjid-e-Anisul Islam, which is situated on Troy Street, Blackburn was a church, then a theatre and then refurbished into a Masjid and now it is one of the famous Masjids in Blackburn. The Mosque has many features, interior and exterior.
One of the interior features of Masjid-e-Anisul Islam Mosque is that it has a massive Jamaat Khana. Five daily Salahs, Taraweeh Salahs, Eid Salahs, Jummah Salahs and Khutbahs are prayed in the big prayer hall. Jamaat Khana contains no images of people, animals, and spiritual figures as Muslims in prayer are supposed to only be focusing on . Also Angels do not enter the Jamaat Khana. Instead, the Masjid has on the walls to assist worshippers in focusing on the beauty of Islam. The Jamaat Khana has carpeted area with Musallas drawn on it in a dome-shaped to show the Muslims where they stand and which direction should they be facing for Salah.
Opposite the entrance door of the prayer hall is the wall, which is the visually emphasized area inside the prayer hall. The Qibla wall stands in a properly situated place oriented in Mosque, set perpendicular to a line leading to Makkah, the location of the .
Congregants pray in rows, safs parallel to the Qibla wall and thus arrange themselves so they face Makkah. In the Qibla wall, at its center, is the Mihrab, a niche or depression indicating the Qibla wall. Also, a raised Minbar or pulpit is located to the side of the Mihrab for a Khatib or some other speaker to offer a sermon (). Climbing on Minbar and giving Khutbas was a practice of Prophet (S.A.W), because when our Prophet had to give Khutbahs he would always climb on Minbar and talk.
An ablution facility, i.e. Wudhu Khana is also available for the Musallis to come and to Wudhu as purity/cleanliness is half of Iman and Wudhu is very essential for Salah. You cannot pray Namaz until you are clean and pure.
Also shoe racks are situated at the entrance so that Musallis can remove their shoes and put them neatly on the rack, to show that purity and cleanliness is essential in Islam. Also you have to remove your shoes before you enter Allah’s house, because you don’t do it at your own house, so how can you expect it at your Lord’s house?
In the Mosque, there are Clocks that indicates Salah times, so just say if a traveller was travelling and needed to know all the Salah times so he can arrange for them, he would be able to do so.
As it is a Masjid, it also has Qurans and Quran Stands to show respect for Allah’s words. Also out of respect, there are no furniture’s, but just few chairs for elderly and poorly and this symbolizes unity of the Ummah.
Again, to collect funds, there are charity boxes (Lillah, Zakah and Sadaqah.) So this is a reminder to all Muslims, especially to those Musallis who are coming in and out of Masjid to help the poor and the needy.
Other basic facilities like provisions for Mosque children in the evening form five o’clock to half past seven by providing them with many classrooms and teaching them about their religion. They get taught the Quran, learning important issues(maslas) that we are in need in our daily lives and some also learn Urdu as another language so it would help them both in worldly(lecturer or a translator) and religiously(teaching or lectures)
One more thing that is available in the Masjid is the curtain rails for the Itikaaf in Ramadhan. It does not particularly have a big library, but a classroom full of religious books.
The Masjid also has a Mortuary Room, where the dead are given Ghusl, shrouded and in emergency cases dead are kept in big, large freezers for a day or a night.
There are Jamaat Charts, showing when and where will be Jamaats coming and going. Namaz timetables are also stuck everywhere for people’s attention and also are distributed, so that they can be taken home. This probably would encourage those who see these at home to go for their Fardh act, one of the pillars of Islam and that is to pray Namaz. Like all places, the Masjid has a noticeboard with all the latest news of fundraising events, if someone has passed away or if there are any bayaans anywhere. This is like a mini newspaper, so if they come back from work and don’t have time to see the news or read the newspaper, then they come Mosque, at least they will be familiar what’s happening in their Muslim local community.
Also youth events are held in Mosque, calling all the youngsters to Islam and making them aware as to what Islam is in reality and what does the world think about it. It tells them the real picture of Islam. They are given leaflets and brochures so that they can make the people aware of the truth and spread Islam to Muslims and Non Muslims. They are encouraged to come to this by sticking posters up everywhere, keeping refreshments and all the attractive things youngsters would get attracted to like keeping a debate on a certain issue.
Jalsas are also kept in Mosque, so that includes all the people gathering (women and men separate) and listening different speeches, Islamic nazams and other interesting things. This is mostly held occasionally on a special occasion, like when girls/boys finish Aalim/Aalima Course where they learn the translation of Quran, pray the 6 Authentic Hadith books and other big grammar and maslas books.
One of the exterior features is a dome on top of the Mosque roof representing the Ummah’s Unity and representing the Muslim Community. The main thing it represents that it is a Masjid.
There are also Minarets on the Mosque where before the five required daily prayers, a calls the worshipers to s from the . Now they don’t do it from there, because there is a receiver at everybody’s house. On top of the Minaret are the crescent and the star showing the navigation system and the direction of Qiblah.
