- 目錄
第1篇 陜西西安大清真寺英文導(dǎo)游詞
the great mosque at huajue lane
the mosque is a major spot for religious activities of over 60.000 moslems in xi’an, likewise, an important cultural relic protected by the provincial people’s government. unlike the arabic mosques, with splendid domes, the minarets reaching into the clouds, the coulourful engraved sketches with dazzling patterns, the mosque here in xi’an possesses much chinese traditional touch in both its design and artistic outlook; besides the style peculiar to islamic mosques, this mosque also holds characteristics of chinese pavilions with painted beams and engraved ridgepoles.
however, any further discussion about the mosque will be futile unless anything of the introduction of islam into china is brought up.
islam as a religious order was founded in the early period of the 7th century a.d. and was introduced to china in the mid-600s. at that time, arabian merchants and travelers came to the northwest of china by way of persia and afghanistan and thus established diplomatic, trade, and military contacts with china. in the meantime, another route saw a batch of sea voyagers through bangladesh bay and the malacca strait to china’s guangzhou, quanzhou, huangzhou, yangzhou and other cities where many of them settled down and married the local women who later gave birth to babies who then became moslems.
however, massive immigration of the moslems to china did not take place until as late as the early period of the 13th century, when genghis khan, as a result of his expedition against the west, had conquered vast expanses of land stretching from central asia to eastern europe, including the north of iran. many of the moslems in the conquered areas were thus forced to enlist and later settled in china.
among the enlisted many were soldiers, and some were smiths and officials who were called the hui people in the history books on the yuan dynasty. the hui people later followed kublai khan down to the south, helping him unifying china and then establish the yuan dynasty. in the wake of the conquest, islam spread all over china and mosques began to appear everywhere. in the yuan dynasty, many moslems held positions both in the military and civilian organs of the country. and a lot of the moslems took part in zhu yuanzhang’s uprising in the early 14th century and made great contributions to the founding of the ming dynasty. therefore, all the emperors of the dynasty issued mandates to protect islam, and to set up mosques in praise of the moslems for their feats. in the early 16th century, islam predominated qinghai on the minority nationalities including the huis, the uygurs, the kazaks, the kirgizes, the tajiks, the tartars, the ozbeks, the dong xiangs, the salars and the bonans. the moslems in xi’an are mainly the huis, being a small portion out of the ten million in china.
the mosque at hua jue lane is the largest in xi’an, and at the same time, it is also one of the earliest built on a comparatively large scale, and well preserved mosques in china.
according to “the stele on the building of the mosque”, the mosque is said to be built in the tang dynasty. however, the architectural style of the mosque suggests a possible building dating back to the ming dynasty. the four courtyards of the mosque cover an area of more than 12,000 square meters, out of which about 4,000 are occupied by various structures. the still intact wooden front memorial gateway of the front yard, built at the turn of the 17th century, with glazed tiles on the top, spectacular corners and upturned eaves, is about 9 metres high, and has a history of about 360 years. the stone memorial gateway in the center of the second courtyard is flanked with a tail stele on either side with dragons carved on each, recording the repair work ever since the building of the mosque. on the back of one of the steles are engraved characters by the master calligrapher mi fu, “may buddhism fill the universe”, on the other, “royal -bestowed”by dong qichang, another master of the same art of the ming dynasty. they are treasures in chinese calligraphy. at the entrance of the third courtyard is an imperial built hall, where a “month tablet”, showing the calculation of the hui calendars in arabic, is stored. it was compiled by a man in charge of the mosque called xiao mining in the early period of the qing dynasty. a three –storeyed octagonal wooden structure called “retrospection tower”also stands in the center of the courtyard, which has the same function as the minaret in islamic temples in arabic countries, and which is a place from where orders were sent to call the moslems to come to worship. respectively, on the south and north wings of the tower, are a reception chamber and a scripture chamber, both elegantly laid out. the five wooden houses, which are called “water houses”in the southwest section of the mosque are the place where the believers bathe themselves before they attend their services. and in side the fourth courtyard there is a structure called “the pavilion of phoenix”, a place where the worshipers used to wait for the services. the pavilion, in fact, is a compound structure of three small buildings. the six-gabled structure of the central part, adjoining the two three-gabled buildings on each side looks very much like a flying phoenix, and hence its name. just at the back of the pavilion, there is a fishpond, beyond which is a platform occupying an area as large as 700 m2. across both ends of the platform stands the 1,300 square metered service hall, holding over a thousand worshipers at once. there are over six hundred sunk panels well as the sunk panels, are decorated with patterns of painted trailing plants and arabic letterings. the imam leads his group of worshipers, while facing in the direction of mecca, to chant in koran and to pay their religious homage.
the moslems in china share very much the same customs with their brothers and sisters elsewhere in the world. they worship five times a day: at dawn, at noon, in the afternoon, at dusk, and at night. female worshipers attend their services in a separated place from their brothers, usually at home. moslems pay special attention to their health and see that they always wear clean clothes. they are teetotalers not only of wine, but also of pork and animal blood for in koran pigs have been mentioned four times as being “unclean”. according to koran, a man can have four wives and women should wear veils when they go out. however, except a few places in xinjiang, the chinese practise monogamy and women are veiless when they go out. upon his death, a moslem has to be “thoroughly cleaned”(thoroughly bathed), has to be put on “ke fan”(to be shrouded with a piece of white cloth) and has to be buried coffinless in the ground, with an imam reciting scriptures at the funeral.
the chinese constitution promulgates that freedom of religion of each citizen and freedom of preserving or reforming local customs for every nationality are permitted. and of course, the moslems in china enjoy equal rights with peoples of other nationalities and their religious beliefs and customs are respected everywhere in the countr
第2篇 西安七大清真寺導(dǎo)游詞
篇1：化覺巷清真大寺
清真大寺位于西安鼓樓西北的化覺巷內(nèi)，又稱化覺巷清真大寺，它與西安大進修巷清真大寺并稱為中國西安最迂腐的兩座清真大寺，因其在大進修巷寺以東，故又叫東大寺。
清真大寺是一座汗青久長，局限弘大的中國宮殿式古構(gòu)筑群，是伊斯蘭文化和中國文化相融合的結(jié)晶。該寺院始建于唐天寶元年(公元742年)歷經(jīng)宋，元，明，清各代的維修掩護，成為今朝的名堂。該寺屬陜西省重點文物掩護單元，1988年又提拔為世界第三批重點文物掩護單元，1997年5月被評為西安市旅游十大景觀之一。
全寺總面積1.3萬平方米，寺院內(nèi)有建于17世紀(jì)初高達9米的木布局大牌樓，牌樓琉璃瓦頂，異角飛檐，精縷細(xì)雕;對象走向成正方形，共分為四進院。殿內(nèi)有石碑七通，碑文有阿拉伯文、波斯文和華文。第二進院內(nèi)有宋代大書法家米芾和明代大書法家董其昌的書法真跡。第四進院內(nèi)有面積約1300平方米的殿堂，可容納千余人做星期，殿內(nèi)有壁畫400余幅，書以阿拉伯文圖案，構(gòu)圖各具千秋。
清真大寺的構(gòu)筑情勢、基調(diào)一派中百姓族氣魄威風(fēng)凜凜，然而，寺院內(nèi)的統(tǒng)統(tǒng)部署又嚴(yán)酷憑證伊斯蘭教制度，殿內(nèi)的鐫刻藻飾、蔓草斑紋裝飾都由阿拉伯文套雕構(gòu)成，中國傳統(tǒng)構(gòu)筑和伊斯蘭構(gòu)筑藝術(shù)氣魄威風(fēng)凜凜云云調(diào)和地團結(jié)，令人驚嘆，因而被連系國教科文組織列為天下伊斯蘭文物之一。
篇2：西安大皮院清真寺
西安大皮院清真寺始建于明永樂九年(1411年)，由馬道真老師購地興建。1959年被占作他用，致使年久失修，大殿、南北亭坍毀。1985年黨的民族宗教政策獲得進一步的貫徹落實，由內(nèi)地教民捐資，在學(xué)董白志清的率領(lǐng)下，顛末5年的全力，不單規(guī)復(fù)了清真寺的原貌，并且新修了石刻圍欄、牌杭、滿拉樓、虎國拜樓等辦法。
現(xiàn)占地面積共約5畝，構(gòu)筑總面積1610平方米，星期大殿構(gòu)筑面積354平方米，為中國古典式構(gòu)筑氣魄威風(fēng)凜凜。寺院周圍樹木參天，花卉披拂，情形整潔清幽。為內(nèi)地回族穆斯林群眾從事宗教勾當(dāng)?shù)氖崍龊稀?/p>
寺內(nèi)保藏有阿拉伯文經(jīng)典51本，明宣德銅香爐1個。本坊覲朝哈吉有馬迎春、陳壽令、童仲景、蘇吉祥、孫培恒、李本元、馬振番、賈永信、趙明州等。
篇3：西安小皮院清真寺
西安小皮院清真寺位于古城西安市中心的小皮院巷內(nèi)，東鄰市當(dāng)局大院(亦是明清陜西巡撫衙門地址地)。它以久長的汗青和為穆斯林作育出大批有成績的宗解說者而著稱于世，并受到國表里人士的存眷。至今，每逢星期時，八方信眾來此星期禱告，朗朗誦經(jīng)聲一直于耳，宗教糊口情況如同昔時。
據(jù)寺內(nèi)原碑(已毀)和現(xiàn)存碑文記實，小皮院清真寺原名“真教寺”、“萬壽寺”，又因其在化覺巷清真大寺(也叫東大寺)以北，且局限較大，亦稱“北大寺'。據(jù)傳，該寺興建于唐末，宋徽宗(大觀)丁亥年(1107年)，真教寺為長安京兆四坊舊有“清真寺”，是西安伊斯蘭教最早構(gòu)筑之一。
該寺敕建于元仁宗皇慶元年即公元1312年。據(jù)明太祖朱元璋洪武元年(1368年)歲次正月敕匾該寺(百字贊)和明萬歷三十九年至四十二年(1611—1614年)間重修寺碑記曰：“‘天方之一脈，肇于唐初，盛于大元，皇慶(仁宗)年間，以迄于今，歷千余載。’為進士馬士騏撰，其新野回回人也”(見馬以愚《中國回教史鑒》100頁)。
二十世紀(jì)三十年月末，該寺曾遭侵華日寇飛機的轟炸，所幸炸彈為啞彈，大殿才免遭惡運。在上世紀(jì)六、七十年月的“十年大難”中，寺毀殆盡，寺內(nèi)歷代牌匾30多面被毀，僅剩星期殿孑然危立。小皮院清真寺的牌匾在大殿立柱下有明太祖御制至圣“百字贊”的木質(zhì)牌匾一幅，山門正中門楣和一進院二門內(nèi)后檐上別離懸掛明禮部侍郎董其昌題寫的“開天古教”匾和“敕賜星期寺”匾，北廳房檐下懸掛清嘉慶年云貴總督僧學(xué)謙題寫的“六來堂”匾，大殿門內(nèi)上方懸掛“欽若吳天”牌匾，大殿門內(nèi)北側(cè)上方懸掛“臨下有懾”匾，大殿檐下懸掛“道貫古今”、“三畏四毋”匾，均由秦隴復(fù)漢軍戎馬總都督張云山題寫。清光緒26年，庚子之役，慈禧與光緒從北京逃至西安，次年返京前為西安小皮院清真寺等揮筆題匾，河南導(dǎo)游詞，慈禧手書“派衍天方”，光緒天子手書“教崇西域”，大殿中閣門上懸掛慈禧手書龍頭“福”字匾。大殿左檐下懸掛民國29年百姓當(dāng)局行政院副院長白崇禧題寫的“興教開國”匾。
1980年往后，跟著國度民族宗教政策的落實，寺院回到坊民手中，1990年，大殿被列為省級重點文物掩護單元。依據(jù)《中華人民共和國文物掩護法》“掩護文物，大家有責(zé)”的原則。為了使祖先遺留下來的這一貴重遺產(chǎn)不在我們這一代人中毀掉，經(jīng)寺管會研究抉擇，按照現(xiàn)殘存構(gòu)筑，全面恢復(fù)興有面孔。在當(dāng)局有關(guān)部分大力大舉幫忙下，寬大坊民慷慨解囊籌措資金，為修復(fù)寺院做出了不懈全力。從八十年月中期開始，歷時近二十年，終于使迂腐的清真寺面目一新，重放色澤。
篇4：西安灑金橋清真古寺
西安灑金橋清真古寺，亦稱清真北寺，其構(gòu)筑年月長遠，汗青悠長，相傳元明時期已存，距今已六、七百年之久。世代以來，聚居于灑金橋、大麥?zhǔn)薪?、新寺巷、香米園、東舉院、廟后街等街坊的回族穆斯林群眾依寺而居、依坊而商地糊口在這片熱土上。
在抗日戰(zhàn)爭時期，當(dāng)東瀛鬼子軍國主義的鐵蹄踐踏中國大地的時辰，古寺這一圣潔之地也未能幸免，竟然慘遭日寇飛機蠻橫轟炸。1940年4月30日，兩枚炸彈別離落到大門內(nèi)天井(古槐之西約兩米處)和大殿上殿南墻處，所幸兩彈均是“臭彈”，沒有爆炸，未造成職員傷亡。但因為激烈的攻擊力和龐大的震動，致上殿半毀，后殿移位。東瀛鬼子降服信服后，經(jīng)坊民出資著力，并多方捐獻，大殿才得以規(guī)復(fù)。穆斯林群眾對日寇的這一暴行悔恨至極，世代難忘。
篇5：西安大進修巷清真寺
安市大進修巷清真寺位于西安市西大街大進修巷內(nèi)北側(cè)，與化覺巷清真寺對象遙遙相對。該寺構(gòu)筑局限較大，僅次于東側(cè)的化覺巷清真大寺，故又稱西大寺。
據(jù)寺內(nèi)現(xiàn)存石碑記實，該寺建設(shè)于唐中宗乙巳年(公元705年)。賜名清教寺，玄宗朝更名唐明寺，元中統(tǒng)間賜名回四萬善寺，及明洪武時賜名清真寺。是西安最迂腐的清真寺之一。元至明末，經(jīng)賽典赤、鐵鉉、鄭和等人屢次重修擴建。明永樂、天啟及清代均有碑紀(jì)其事，解放后迄今當(dāng)局曾兩次撥款維修。樓、臺、亭殿機關(guān)肅靜肅穆，外面則迂腐而顯敞亮，布局壯觀而緊湊，內(nèi)觀則平均調(diào)和，碑、雕、畫多系有數(shù)。
這座清真寺占地9.1畝，總構(gòu)筑面積270o平方米，由照壁、石坊(上有“政建陸次”字樣)、大門、三間庭、省心閣、南北廳、碑亭、阿訇齋、洗浴室，星期正殿等構(gòu)筑群構(gòu)成。相傳，省心閣建于宋代，明朝鄭和四下西洋返來后重修清真寺時復(fù)修，后經(jīng)多次修葺，仍保持原貌至今。
省心閣為四角形樓式構(gòu)筑，三層三重檐，機關(guān)肅靜古雅，現(xiàn)經(jīng)彩繪，映翠飛丹，玲瓏爛漫，為寺內(nèi)首要構(gòu)筑之一。正殿前為。一廣大月臺，周圍環(huán)以石欄。石欄前一閣下各立一碑亭，南碑亭內(nèi)是聞名的。“鄭和碑”，即《重修清凈寺碑》。正殿門首懸掛慈*禧手書“派衍天方”的牌匾。殿內(nèi)后中為窯殿。上方寫有《古蘭經(jīng)》原文，系“土耳其”體書法，筆勢蒼勁，線條流通。右邊是阿訇宣講臺。大殿面積約為600平方米，可容納500多人同時作星期。大殿四壁飾有花一圖案，套刻著古蘭經(jīng)和阿拉伯文的“嘟哇”，這些瀝粉貼金壁板為海內(nèi)合一老清真寺現(xiàn)存之佳構(gòu)，具有極高的藝術(shù)代價。清真寺的整個機關(guān)以個中前合壁的構(gòu)筑伎倆，浮現(xiàn)出伊斯蘭教份真寺在中國的早期構(gòu)筑氣魄威風(fēng)凜凜。
此寺1956年被列為陜西省文物掩護單元。
篇6：小進修巷清真營里寺
營里清真寺，顧名思義就是“兵營中的清真寺”。對付營里清真寺最早記實是在唐代，唐代宗年間隨郭子儀逍遙安史之亂僑居長安的一些阿拉伯或波斯官兵就被安放在進修巷，并且他們的兵營就駐扎在巷內(nèi)，為了利便這些外籍武士的宗教勾當(dāng)成立了一座專供官兵行使的清真寺，因為該寺在虎帳地區(qū)內(nèi)因此取名“營里清真寺”。
但此刻較量風(fēng)行的說法是元代回回軍駐在了長安，元當(dāng)局專門為駐扎在虎帳里的穆斯林官兵制作的清真寺，可是否建于元代待考。有據(jù)可查的年月應(yīng)該是山門樓上牌匾標(biāo)出的清乾隆甲午年間建制年月，其時這里駐扎的部隊中多為穆斯林官兵。為利便宗教糊口而制作的此寺，至今小進修巷向北段仍有一條筆挺的狹小小巷，據(jù)傳是其時兵營中的軍械庫為利便輸送箭支而開發(fā)的專用通道，俗稱“箭道”。
小進修巷是條幽靜幽深的小巷，營里清真寺就在巷子深處，由于地處荒僻之所，和小皮院清真寺一樣很少為外人所存眷。固然營里寺前院也是個關(guān)閉小院，但因為附近被種種民居樓房所困繞，因此無法在北側(cè)開門，只虧得西北角面東開立大門樓。和大皮院清真寺相同，營里寺更像是小皮院清真北大寺的迷你版，寺院中央也是一條石砌長廊，不外比小皮院寺短許多，上面纏繞開花卉想必夏季坐在長廊下異常風(fēng)涼，尚有山門樓兩側(cè)的玉輪門以及月臺上三連石牌樓門。
景區(qū)地點：陜西省西安市蓮湖區(qū)小進修巷86號
搭車線路：西安市內(nèi)可乘4、7、15、23、31、43、45、201、205、206、215、221、222、252、300、302、604、611、612、k630國都隍廟站下車，向前50米，進大進修巷，大進修巷四面有許多蹦蹦車，可坐車前去。
篇7：北廣濟街清真寺
西安北廣濟街清真寺位于蓮湖區(qū)北廣濟街南端東側(cè)83號，俗稱小寺。相傳建設(shè)于明代晚期(公元1600年前后)，地處廣濟坊，鄰近化覺巷清真大寺俗稱“清真小寺”坊民嬉稱大寺的“哨門”。清乾隆33年(公元1769年)從頭翻建了寺院首要構(gòu)筑。北廣濟街清真寺原占地面積2000平方米，構(gòu)筑面積不敷1000平方米。
進寺院的大門、二門正方的“清真寺”匾額為清代名家宋伯魯和當(dāng)代榜書家石憲章題書。整個寺院構(gòu)筑特色是，寺小充實操作臺階來表現(xiàn)大殿的肅穆肅靜。內(nèi)部以鐫刻精細(xì)取勝，各類構(gòu)筑的渾樸色彩、磚雕、石雕、木雕的過細(xì)優(yōu)良，為迂腐的寺院增加了隱秘的色彩和文化咀嚼。北廣濟街清真寺是一座具有中百姓族特色的伊斯蘭教寺院。
尊重清真寺有如下十七種示意：
1、進入清真寺見到人先說賽倆目，沒人答復(fù)時，就說：“安賽倆目，阿來一拿，命染必拿，外爾倆，爾巴丁倆信灑力嘿乃”。
2、跪之前先禮兩拜“道賀清真寺的乃麻子”在坐下。
3、不在清真寺里做交易。
4、寺里不帶武皿。
5、不要在殿內(nèi)大叫，探求失物。
6、不升大聲音。
7、不說現(xiàn)代的任何話。
8、不要超過別人脖子，擠進前班。
9、不要和別人爭位子。
10、不要擁擠班子中任何人。
11、不要在星期人眼前顛末。
12、不吐唾沫。
13、不在殿內(nèi)拉指節(jié)。
14、不把易燃品帶入大殿。
15、破除污物，勸阻瘋漢、頑童。
16、不在星期殿內(nèi)執(zhí)行法度。
17、多念記主詞，仔細(xì)不大意。
交通指南
景區(qū)地點：陜西省西安市蓮湖區(qū)北廣濟街83號
搭車線路：西安市內(nèi)可乘4、7、15、23、31、32、43、45、201、201、205、206、215、218、221、222、251、252、300、302、604、611、612、k630、游8等路公交在廣濟街下車。
看過'西安七大清真寺導(dǎo)游詞 '的還看了:
1.化覺巷清真大寺導(dǎo)游詞
2.關(guān)于西安的導(dǎo)游詞
3.有關(guān)西安的導(dǎo)游詞
4.西安旅游導(dǎo)游詞
第3篇 西安大清真寺導(dǎo)游詞
清真大寺位于西安市鼓樓街北隅的化覺巷內(nèi)。因為它與大進修巷的清真寺對象遙遙相望，并且局限較大，故又被稱為東大寺或清真大寺，為世界重點文物掩護單元。
據(jù)寺內(nèi)現(xiàn)存石碑記實，清真大寺建成唐玄宗李隆基天寶元年(742年)，距今已有1250多年的汗青。經(jīng)宋、元、明、清屢次重修和護建，慢慢形陳局限弘大，樓臺、亭殿機關(guān)緊湊調(diào)和，肅靜肅穆的構(gòu)筑群。清真寺前后分四個院落，占地面積13000多平方米，構(gòu)筑面積5000多平方米。前院緊臨照壁的木牌坊，高約9米，琉璃瓦頂，挑角飛檐，雕梁畫棟，極為壯觀。南北雙方為仿古構(gòu)筑的迎接室。
第二院是懸掛“清真寺”匾額的五間樓。院內(nèi)樹木成蔭，花園對稱分列，石制牌樓聳立其間，碑陰雕刻有聞名書法家米芾、董其昌的題字。
第三院是敕賜殿，院中央是三層布局優(yōu)良的八角形省心樓。南北兩廂是經(jīng)堂、宮殿，內(nèi)里珍藏有阿拉伯文和華文翻譯的《古蘭經(jīng)》及貴重書畫等。
第四院中心是一真亭，又名鳳凰亭，南北各有面寬七間的廳房。南廳后有石碑廊，陳列著建設(shè)和重修清真寺的碑刻。
一真亭后有海棠形魚池噴泉，亭南北各有一座碑亭。進石門，走上遼闊的大月臺，大殿就在正端。大殿面闊7間，進深9間，面積約1300平方米，可容納千余人同時作星期。殿內(nèi)天棚藻井，有畫600余幅，彩繪圖案紛歧，墻壁刻蔓草斑紋，套刻古蘭經(jīng)，構(gòu)圖著色，均示意中國伊斯蘭教寺院構(gòu)筑和宗教彩畫的特色。
西安大清真寺導(dǎo)游詞
第4篇 西安大清真寺英文導(dǎo)游詞
the mosque is a major spot for religious activities of over 60.000 moslems in xi’an, likewise, an important cultural relic protected by the provincial people’s government. unlike the arabic mosques, with splendid domes, the minarets reaching into the clouds, the coulourful engraved sketches with dazzling patterns, the mosque here in xi’an possesses much chinese traditional touch in both its design and artistic outlook; besides the style peculiar to islamic mosques, this mosque also holds characteristics of chinese pavilions with painted beams and engraved ridgepoles.
however, any further discussion about the mosque will be futile unless anything of the introduction of islam into china is brought up.
islam as a religious order was founded in the early period of the 7th century a.d. and was introduced to china in the mid-600s. at that time, arabian merchants and travelers came to the northwest of china by way of persia and afghanistan and thus established diplomatic, trade, and military contacts with china. in the meantime, another route saw a batch of sea voyagers through bangladesh bay and the malacca strait to china’s guangzhou, quanzhou, huangzhou, yangzhou and other cities where many of them settled down and married the local women who later gave birth to babies who then became moslems.
however, massive immigration of the moslems to china did not take place until as late as the early period of the 13th century, when genghis khan, as a result of his expedition against the west, had conquered vast expanses of land stretching from central asia to eastern europe, including the north of iran. many of the moslems in the conquered areas were thus forced to enlist and later settled in china.
among the enlisted many were soldiers, and some were smiths and officials who were called the hui people in the history books on the yuan dynasty. the hui people later followed kublai khan down to the south, helping him unifying china and then establish the yuan dynasty. in the wake of the conquest, islam spread all over china and mosques began to appear everywhere. in the yuan dynasty, many moslems held positions both in the military and civilian organs of the country. and a lot of the moslems took part in zhu yuanzhang’s uprising in the early 14th century and made great contributions to the founding of the ming dynasty. therefore, all the emperors of the dynasty issued mandates to protect islam, and to set up mosques in praise of the moslems for their feats. in the early 16th century, islam predominated qinghai on the minority nationalities including the huis, the uygurs, the kazaks, the kirgizes, the tajiks, the tartars, the ozbeks, the dong xiangs, the salars and the bonans. the moslems in xi’an are mainly the huis, being a small portion out of the ten million in china.
the mosque at hua jue lane is the largest in xi’an, and at the same time, it is also one of the earliest built on a comparatively large scale, and well preserved mosques in china.
according to “the stele on the building of the mosque”, the mosque is said to be built in the tang dynasty. however, the architectural style of the mosque suggests a possible building dating back to the ming dynasty. the four courtyards of the mosque cover an area of more than 12,000 square meters, out of which about 4,000 are occupied by various structures. the still intact wooden front memorial gateway of the front yard, built at the turn of the 17th century, with glazed tiles on the top, spectacular corners and upturned eaves, is about 9 metres high, and has a history of about 360 years. the stone memorial gateway in the center of the second courtyard is flanked with a tail stele on either side with dragons carved on each, recording the repair work ever since the building of the mosque. on the back of one of the steles are engraved characters by the master calligrapher mi fu, “may buddhism fill the universe”, on the other, “royal -bestowed”by dong qichang, another master of the same art of the ming dynasty. they are treasures in chinese calligraphy. at the entrance of the third courtyard is an imperial built hall, where a “month tablet”, showing the calculation of the hui calendars in arabic, is stored. it was compiled by a man in charge of the mosque called xiao mining in the early period of the qing dynasty. a three –storeyed octagonal wooden structure called “retrospection tower”also stands in the center of the courtyard, which has the same function as the minaret in islamic temples in arabic countries, and which is a place from where orders were sent to call the moslems to come to worship. respectively, on the south and north wings of the tower, are a reception chamber and a scripture chamber, both elegantly laid out. the five wooden houses, which are called “water houses”in the southwest section of the mosque are the place where the believers bathe themselves before they attend their services. and in side the fourth courtyard there is a structure called “the pavilion of phoenix”, a place where the worshipers used to wait for the services. the pavilion, in fact, is a compound structure of three small buildings. the six-gabled structure of the central part, adjoining the two three-gabled buildings on each side looks very much like a flying phoenix, and hence its name. just at the back of the pavilion, there is a fishpond, beyond which is a platform occupying an area as large as 700 m2. across both ends of the platform stands the 1,300 square metered service hall, holding over a thousand worshipers at once. there are over six hundred sunk panels well as the sunk panels, are decorated with patterns of painted trailing plants and arabic letterings. the imam leads his group of worshipers, while facing in the direction of mecca, to chant in koran and to pay their religious homage.
the moslems in china share very much the same customs with their brothers and sisters elsewhere in the world. they worship five times a day: at dawn, at noon, in the afternoon, at dusk, and at night. female worshipers attend their services in a separated place from their brothers, usually at home. moslems pay special attention to their health and see that they always wear clean clothes. they are teetotalers not only of wine, but also of pork and animal blood for in koran pigs have been mentioned four times as being “unclean”. according to koran, a man can have four wives and women should wear veils when they go out. however, except a few places in xinjiang, the chinese practise monogamy and women are veiless when they go out. upon his death, a moslem has to be “thoroughly cleaned”(thoroughly bathed), has to be put on “ke fan”(to be shrouded with a piece of white cloth) and has to be buried coffinless in the ground, with an imam reciting scriptures at the funeral.
the chinese constitution promulgates that freedom of religion of each citizen and freedom of preserving or reforming local customs for every nationality are permitted. and of course, the moslems in china enjoy equal rights with peoples of other nationalities and their religious beliefs and customs are respected everywhere in the country.
