Chapter 38 Chapter 3 Famous Islamic Temples

Dongsi Mosque, also known as Faming Temple, is located at No. 13 Dongsi South Street, Dongcheng District, Beijing today. It is one of the largest, oldest and best-built mosques in Beijing.The date of its founding varies.One said that it was built in the sixth year of Yuan Zhizheng (AD 1356), and the other said that it was built in the twelfth year of Ming Zhengtong (AD 1447).In the first year of Jingtai (AD 1450), Emperor Zhu Qiyu of the Ming Dynasty inscribed "Mosque". The existing main buildings in the temple include worship hall, north and south lecture halls, water room and library, etc., covering an area of ​​10,000 square meters.The worship hall is magnificent, with carved beams and painted buildings. The three arches are engraved with Kufic scriptures, with strong fonts and exquisite carvings.The whole building not only has the characteristics of the Ming Dynasty, but also incorporates the Arabic style.The kiln hall at the back of the hall is a beamless dome structure.The original Xuanli Building built in the 22nd year of Chenghua in the Ming Dynasty (1486 A.D.) was destroyed by an earthquake in the late Qing Dynasty. Now there is only a large round copper roof, which is displayed under the north wall of the main hall.

There is a collection of cultural relics and books in the temple today. There is the "Halal Faming Hundred-Character Stele" written in the seventh year of Wanli in the Ming Dynasty (AD 1579). There are four characters of "Wuji"; there are "Halal Words" porcelain plaques baked in the Ming Dynasty, and there are various versions. One of the Yuan Dynasty manuscripts is neat and beautiful, and is well preserved. The Dongsi Mosque used to be very large. There were many houses in the south, west and north of the main hall, which were mainly used for primary schools.In the Qing Dynasty, primary schools were a must-have in the great mosques of our country.

In 1974, the state allocated funds to renovate the Dongsi Mosque, creating a solemn and quiet temple environment.Now, here is the site of the Beijing Islamic Association, and it is also a place for Chinese and foreign Muslims to worship and celebrate festivals. Niujie in Guang'anmen, Xuanwu District, Beijing, is an area inhabited by Muslims in Beijing. The mosque here is the largest and oldest Islamic temple in Beijing.Niujie Mosque, also known as the Mosque of Worship, was founded in the 14th year of Liao Tonghe (AD 996) by Nasu Luding, a foreign Muslim.It was rebuilt in the seventh year of Ming Zhengtong (AD 1442).In the thirty-fifth year of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty (1696 A.D.), after the Niujie Mosque was rebuilt, Emperor Kangxi personally wrote the inscription "Mosque of Worship", so Niujie will only be called Mosque of Mosque in order to distinguish it from other mosques.

The architecture of Niujie Mosque is unique.Its buildings are characterized by compact symmetry, mainly including the worship hall, Bangge building, Wangyue building and stele pavilion. The worship hall is the main building in the temple. It sits west and faces east. It adopts a traditional Chinese wooden structure. It consists of three hooked roofs and a hexagonal pavilion. The screen wall becomes a special decoration on the top.In terms of detailed decoration, it also has a strong Arabic style of Islamic architecture. The buildings are full of Arabic and Arabic patterns, such as traditional themes such as bogus and flowers.The worship hall is lined with edifices on the left and right, which are simple and magnificent, giving people a sense of spaciousness and solemnity.The entire hall can accommodate thousands of people worshiping at the same time.

Bangge Tower is used to report the time to the religious people before worshiping. It is also called Wake Up Tower and Xuanli Tower.During the reign of Emperor Shizu of the Yuan Dynasty, two Arab missionaries came to the temple to preach, that is, they stored scriptures on the pavilion.The current Bangge Tower is a square pavilion building with double eaves and Xieshan style. Wangyue Tower is hexagonal in plane, with double eaves resting on the top of the mountain.The stele pavilion is symmetrical on both sides of the platform in front of the worship hall, and is a unique building in Islamic temples.Inside the pavilion stands the stele "Records of Worship to the Temple" written in Chinese and Arabic in the ninth year of Ming Hongzhi (AD 1496).It records the process of rebuilding the mosque.

There are a large number of cultural relics and inscriptions preserved in Niujie Mosque. Except for the stele of "Chici Worship Temple", the two Arabic tombstones in the 17th year of Yuan Zhiyuan (AD 1280) and the 20th year of Zhiyuan are all researches on Islamic culture. Precious material for teaching history.