Halal Travel Guide: Ramadan in Beijing 2023 — Mosques and Iftar (Part 1)
Reposted from the web
Summary: Ramadan in Beijing 2023 — Mosques and Iftar is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: Every year during Ramadan, I make it a habit to visit a few different mosques. Last Ramadan, I visited seven mosques in Beijing: Shahe, Changping Wujie, Heying, Nankou, Chadao, Majuqiao, and Mishi Hutong. The account keeps its focus on Beijing Ramadan, Mosque Travel, Iftar while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
Every year during Ramadan, I make it a habit to visit a few different mosques. Last Ramadan, I visited seven mosques in Beijing: Shahe, Changping Wujie, Heying, Nankou, Chadao, Majuqiao, and Mishi Hutong. I wrote about them in my article, "Visiting Seven Ancient Mosques During Ramadan." This year, I visited eight mosques in Beijing: Dongsi, Nandouyacai, Nanxiapo, Dongzhimenwai, Dewai Fayuan, Madian, Changying, and Balizhuang. I will share these in two separate posts. The first part covers the first seven mosques, and the second part focuses on Balizhuang Mosque.
March 23
On the first day of Ramadan, I received a traditional halal plaque hand-carved by Mu Ningduosi.
I broke my fast in the evening at Nanxiapo Mosque, where I had various traditional pastries and fruits.
Nanxiapo Mosque, also known as the Small Mosque (Xiao Libaisi), was built in the early years of the Kangxi reign. It is the only ancient mosque remaining outside Chaoyangmen in Beijing. According to local elders, during the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, a shed builder lived in Nanxiapo. He used bamboo poles and reed mats to build a large shed, where an imam named Hu Zhonghe led the local Hui Muslims in worship. This was the earliest version of Nanxiapo Mosque. In the early Kangxi period, a Hui Muslim surnamed Ma who sold bows and arrows inside Chaoyangmen heard about the situation in Nanxiapo. He happened to receive payment for a bow and arrow order from some Mongols, so he donated the money to build the Nanxiapo Mosque.
After the 1960s, Nanxiapo stopped its regular activities but continued to serve as a funeral service center for Hui Muslims, helping them with end-of-life arrangements. At that time, more than twenty local elders, including Ma Yulin, Ma Yuhai, and Tuo Jihua, took turns guarding the mosque day and night to protect it from destruction, saving the ancient site from disaster.
After breaking my fast, I had pilaf (zhuafan) at Hetian Restaurant on Ritan Shangjie. The meat was incredibly tender, though the wait for the food was a bit long, which isn't ideal for Ramadan.
I discovered that Hetian Restaurant opened a shop on the street selling yogurt, shaved ice, and sticky rice dumplings (zongzi)—it felt like being back on the streets of Xinjiang! It felt so authentic. Once the weather in Beijing warms up, it will be so pleasant to sit on the street, eating yogurt zongzi and drinking shaved ice.
March 24
Today is the first Jumu'ah of Ramadan. I went to Changying Mosque at noon for the prayer. The magnolia trees in the mosque are in bloom, full of spring spirit.
Changying is located not far from the north side of the Chaoyangmen official road. The "Beijing Chaoyang District Gazetteer" mentions a rhyme from the Republican era about Changying: "Three treasures of the Changying Hui Muslims: pushing carts, selling hay, and pulling rickshaws." Pushing carts meant using wheelbarrows to transport grain from the Tongzhou earth dam to the "Thirteen Granaries" inside and outside Chaoyangmen. Pulling rickshaws meant transporting passengers along the Chaoyangmen official road. Both were directly related to the canal transport system.
Changying Mosque was built during the Ming Zhengde period (1505-1521), renovated in 1796 (the first year of the Jiaqing reign), renovated again in 1986, and underwent large-scale expansion in 2004 to reach its current form.
March 29
I was at Nanxiapo Mosque again today. After breaking the fast, everyone drank tea and ate fruit and pastries. The elders were very welcoming, and the atmosphere was wonderful.
Beijing snack honey-coated fried dough cubes (mishandao).
March 30
Today I was at Nandouyacai Mosque. We had the usual fruit, pastries, and tea. I also received some braised chicken from Jiaoxiao Zhai, a gift from an elder in his eighties. I felt very grateful. Nandouyacai Mosque is surrounded by the Dongsi Olympic Park. The park is full of spring, and the evening breeze felt very comfortable.
People say Nandouyacai Mosque was originally a mosque, bought and converted by Hui Muslims in 1798 (the third year of the Jiaqing reign). In 2002, due to the demolition of Chaonei Small Street, the mosque was moved 20 meters south and rebuilt, with its entrance now facing west toward Douban Hutong.
After breaking my fast, I had dinner at Xinyue Zhai at the entrance of Nandouyacai Mosque. I ordered a few home-style dishes: stir-fried trio (bao sanyang), shredded pork with garlic sprouts, shredded tofu with hot peppers, and hot and sour soup. I have been eating at this place for over ten years, and it is one of the most reliable Beijing-style stir-fry restaurants near my home. Their main selling point is how fast they serve the food! Everything is cooked instantly over a high flame. I especially love the stir-fried trio (bao sanyang)—lamb with scallions, lamb liver, and lamb kidney. The aroma of the scallions and the meat blend perfectly, making it great to eat with rice.
For iftar, I ate some braised chicken (paji) donated by an elder.
March 31
It is the second Jumu'ah of Ramadan, and I am at Changying Mosque again. The sky turned blue today, and I feel great.
In the book 'Narrative of the North China Campaign of 1860' by Swinhoe, it is written that after the Anglo-French forces landed in Tianjin, they passed through Changying on their way to Beijing:
On the afternoon of October 3, we struck our tents, crossed the canal, and marched into a Hui Muslim village in Changying. This village was near the rifle regiment's outpost. Lord Elgin and Sir Hope Grant, along with their staff, stayed in a beautiful mosque, while about six thousand strong soldiers camped in the surrounding fields.
The village was very small, and it was full of mud huts. But this time, not all the houses were empty. The villagers were Hui Muslims who practiced Islam, and you could tell them apart from the other locals by the strange pointed hats they wore on their heads, with their braids tucked inside. Inside the mosque, there were many inscriptions in Arabic and Chinese, and several books and scriptures printed in Arabic were scattered around. Many of the Prophet's Chinese followers could recite a few sentences from these books, but very few could explain what they meant. However, they were very familiar with the prayers and chapters of the Quran and often recited them to the Sikh cavalry (Note: the author mistook Indian Muslims for Sikhs). The villagers recited these prayers repeatedly, which always moved the weary Indian warriors to tears and often made them take silver out of their pockets. The Hui Muslims of the Celestial Empire knew better than to refuse this sympathy.
An ancient tree from the Ming Dynasty Zhengde era inside the mosque.
I continued to break my fast at Nandouya Mosque in the evening. Many university student friends (dosti) came to the mosque, and I am very grateful to be able to visit the mosque more often during Ramadan.
After the Maghrib prayer, I had dinner at Xinyuezhai as usual. The spring breeze was gentle, so we ate at the entrance. We ordered pan-fried lamb (guota yangrou), braised winter bamboo shoots and mushrooms (shao erdong), and dough drop soup (gedatang). I have been eating the pan-fried lamb at this place for over ten years, and it goes so well with rice! The winter bamboo shoots in the braised dish are sweet and delicious, and the dough drop soup is very thick; if you don't want rice, a big bowl of this is enough to fill you up.
April 2
I broke my fast at home over the weekend. Zainab made hand-pulled noodles (latiazi), and I made eggplant with meat and bamboo shoots with meat. Compared to the ones in Xinjiang, they are quite light.
April 3
I broke my fast at Dongsi Mosque today. There were pastries and fruits donated to the mosque by an elder.
Dongsi Mosque is one of the four major official mosques in Beijing from the Ming Dynasty. It was built in 1447 (the 12th year of the Ming Zhengtong era) with funds donated by Chen You, a famous Hui Muslim military officer of the Ming Dynasty. In 1450 (the first year of the Ming Jingtai era), the Jingtai Emperor bestowed the title 'Mosque' upon it.
During the Yongle era, Chen You followed Zhu Di on two northern expeditions against the Mongols and performed meritorious service. During the Xuande era, he was mainly engaged in pacification work along the northern and northwestern borders of the Ming Dynasty. During the Zhengtong era, the tribute trade between the Ming Dynasty and the Mongols entered a prosperous period. In 1436 (the first year of the Zhengtong era), Chen You became an envoy for the mission to the Oirat Mongols. Later, he led Oirat envoys to the capital to present horses many times, and due to his achievements, he was promoted several times to the position of Assistant Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. In 1444 (the ninth year of the Zhengtong era), Chen You was appointed as a Guerrilla General and began patrolling the borders in places like Ningxia. During this time, he defeated the Mongol army and achieved great military success, leading to his promotion to Assistant Commander of the Rear Chief Military Commission, becoming a high-ranking military officer. He donated money to build the Dongsi Mosque during this period.
In 1449 (the 14th year of the Zhengtong reign), war broke out between the Ming Dynasty and the Oirat Mongols. Chen You followed the Ming Emperor Yingzong into battle, but they were defeated and the emperor was captured. During the crucial defense of Beijing, Chen You fought bravely and earned military honors, leading to his promotion to Commander-in-Chief of the Rear Military Commission. In 1450 (the first year of the Jingtai reign), the Jingtai Emperor sent Chen You to the Guizhou and Huguang regions to suppress the Miao uprising, and he was promoted twice for his military achievements. It was during this time that the Jingtai Emperor bestowed the plaque reading "Mosque" (Qingzhensi) upon the Dongsi Mosque.
Because of his outstanding military service, Chen You was granted the title of Count of Wuping in 1457 (the first year of the Tianshun reign), a title his descendants inherited. Later, Chen's descendants often served as officers in the Beijing military camps and funded the repairs of several old mosques, including those in Dingzhou and Yizhou, Hebei.
After Shamu finished, he rode his bike home. He passed a Niujie fried chicken shop on Dongsi North Street and bought a freshly fried chicken leg. When he got home, he ate the stir-fried rapeseed, spring bamboo shoots, carrots, and potatoes I had made earlier, along with the steamed buns (momo) my father-in-law had made for us.
April 4
We went to the mosque outside Dongzhimen to break our fast in the spring rain. There were fried cakes (zhagao) freshly made by the elders; I hadn't eaten them in a long time! Shamu ate dumplings at the mosque. They were fennel and chive, which tasted better than the ones in restaurants and really reminded me of my childhood.
The mosque outside Dongzhimen was originally called the Erlizhuang Mosque. It was first built during the Yuan Dynasty and renovated during the Kangxi reign of the Qing Dynasty. In the late 1980s, Shougang Group and a Danish investor built international apartments in Erlizhuang, so the old mosque was moved one kilometer to the northwest and rebuilt. It was completed in 1991 and reopened in 1993.
After coming out, I bought two milk flatbreads (naizi nang) at the bakery by the mosque gate to eat for the next day's fast.
April 6
In the evening, we broke our fast at the Nanhxiapo Mosque and had some glutinous rice strips (jiangmitiao), which I loved as a child. After Shamu finished, he ate some meat pies (xianbing) given out by the elders, which were delicious.
April 7
It was the third Friday (Jumu'ah) of Ramadan, and we were at the Changying Mosque again. The sky today was as blue as if it had been washed, clear and vast, just like a painting.
Inside the Changying Mosque, there is a 1937 stone tablet titled "Last Words of My Late Mother," which is a precious record of the Changying Women's Mosque. It says, "Sacrificing the family house in the west courtyard, we converted the former girls' school into a women's bathing facility." But the two rooms on the east side were kept as a place for Lin and others to stay when they returned home. "" The "Lin" mentioned here refers to Zhang Zhaolin, a Hui Muslim from Changying who was known as one of the "Five Great Hui Journalists of the Republic of China."
According to the article "With the Zhang Zhaolin Brothers," Zhang Zhaolin, whose courtesy name was Ziqi, was born in Changying in 1865. His grandfather and great-uncle were both military scholars (wujinshi) in the same year during the Daoguang reign. When he was four or five, his family's fortunes declined. He only attended a private village school before becoming an apprentice at a grocery store. In 1909, Zhang Zhaolin founded the "Xingshi Bao" (Awakening Times) in Fengtian, which was the most important vernacular newspaper in Fengtian at the time.
April 8
I spent the weekend at home taking care of Suleiman. I went out in the morning to buy vegetables and meat. I bought fresh lamb at a lamb stall next to Dongzhimen Hospital and made lamb soybean paste noodles (zhajiangmian) for breaking the fast, with noodles pulled by Zainab.
April 9
Today I made tomato sauce noodles (dalumian) at home, which are lighter than the soybean paste noodles.
April 10
I broke my fast at Fayuan Mosque outside Deshengmen. Fayuan Mosque is also called Dewai Guanxiang Mosque. It was originally located on the north slope of Jiaochangkou outside Deshengmen. It was moved and expanded during the Kangxi reign, and the main hall was expanded again during the Republic of China period. It consists of four connected roofs and a four-cornered pavilion with a pointed top.
After the evening prayer (sajdah), I rode my bike home along the North Moat. The breeze felt great.
April 18
I broke my fast at Madian Mosque. I ate noodles with eggplant and tomato-egg sauce. The noodle bowls at Madian Mosque are huge, they feel like small basins, haha.
Madian was once the second-largest residential area for Hui Muslims in Beijing after Niujie, and it was also the center of the sheep trade in Beijing. Since the Qing Dynasty, sheep transported from Mongolia through Zhangjiakou were kept in the sheep pens of various sheep trading firms in Madian after arriving in Beijing, before being sold to mutton stalls inside the city. Madian Mosque was first built during the Kangxi reign. It was rebuilt with donations from 14 local sheep trading firms during the Daoguang reign and was renovated again in the 1980s. It is an important ancient mosque in Beijing.
Collapse Read »
Summary: Ramadan in Beijing 2023 — Mosques and Iftar is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: Every year during Ramadan, I make it a habit to visit a few different mosques. Last Ramadan, I visited seven mosques in Beijing: Shahe, Changping Wujie, Heying, Nankou, Chadao, Majuqiao, and Mishi Hutong. The account keeps its focus on Beijing Ramadan, Mosque Travel, Iftar while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
Every year during Ramadan, I make it a habit to visit a few different mosques. Last Ramadan, I visited seven mosques in Beijing: Shahe, Changping Wujie, Heying, Nankou, Chadao, Majuqiao, and Mishi Hutong. I wrote about them in my article, "Visiting Seven Ancient Mosques During Ramadan." This year, I visited eight mosques in Beijing: Dongsi, Nandouyacai, Nanxiapo, Dongzhimenwai, Dewai Fayuan, Madian, Changying, and Balizhuang. I will share these in two separate posts. The first part covers the first seven mosques, and the second part focuses on Balizhuang Mosque.
March 23
On the first day of Ramadan, I received a traditional halal plaque hand-carved by Mu Ningduosi.
I broke my fast in the evening at Nanxiapo Mosque, where I had various traditional pastries and fruits.
Nanxiapo Mosque, also known as the Small Mosque (Xiao Libaisi), was built in the early years of the Kangxi reign. It is the only ancient mosque remaining outside Chaoyangmen in Beijing. According to local elders, during the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, a shed builder lived in Nanxiapo. He used bamboo poles and reed mats to build a large shed, where an imam named Hu Zhonghe led the local Hui Muslims in worship. This was the earliest version of Nanxiapo Mosque. In the early Kangxi period, a Hui Muslim surnamed Ma who sold bows and arrows inside Chaoyangmen heard about the situation in Nanxiapo. He happened to receive payment for a bow and arrow order from some Mongols, so he donated the money to build the Nanxiapo Mosque.
After the 1960s, Nanxiapo stopped its regular activities but continued to serve as a funeral service center for Hui Muslims, helping them with end-of-life arrangements. At that time, more than twenty local elders, including Ma Yulin, Ma Yuhai, and Tuo Jihua, took turns guarding the mosque day and night to protect it from destruction, saving the ancient site from disaster.
After breaking my fast, I had pilaf (zhuafan) at Hetian Restaurant on Ritan Shangjie. The meat was incredibly tender, though the wait for the food was a bit long, which isn't ideal for Ramadan.
I discovered that Hetian Restaurant opened a shop on the street selling yogurt, shaved ice, and sticky rice dumplings (zongzi)—it felt like being back on the streets of Xinjiang! It felt so authentic. Once the weather in Beijing warms up, it will be so pleasant to sit on the street, eating yogurt zongzi and drinking shaved ice.
March 24
Today is the first Jumu'ah of Ramadan. I went to Changying Mosque at noon for the prayer. The magnolia trees in the mosque are in bloom, full of spring spirit.
Changying is located not far from the north side of the Chaoyangmen official road. The "Beijing Chaoyang District Gazetteer" mentions a rhyme from the Republican era about Changying: "Three treasures of the Changying Hui Muslims: pushing carts, selling hay, and pulling rickshaws." Pushing carts meant using wheelbarrows to transport grain from the Tongzhou earth dam to the "Thirteen Granaries" inside and outside Chaoyangmen. Pulling rickshaws meant transporting passengers along the Chaoyangmen official road. Both were directly related to the canal transport system.
Changying Mosque was built during the Ming Zhengde period (1505-1521), renovated in 1796 (the first year of the Jiaqing reign), renovated again in 1986, and underwent large-scale expansion in 2004 to reach its current form.
March 29
I was at Nanxiapo Mosque again today. After breaking the fast, everyone drank tea and ate fruit and pastries. The elders were very welcoming, and the atmosphere was wonderful.
Beijing snack honey-coated fried dough cubes (mishandao).
March 30
Today I was at Nandouyacai Mosque. We had the usual fruit, pastries, and tea. I also received some braised chicken from Jiaoxiao Zhai, a gift from an elder in his eighties. I felt very grateful. Nandouyacai Mosque is surrounded by the Dongsi Olympic Park. The park is full of spring, and the evening breeze felt very comfortable.
People say Nandouyacai Mosque was originally a mosque, bought and converted by Hui Muslims in 1798 (the third year of the Jiaqing reign). In 2002, due to the demolition of Chaonei Small Street, the mosque was moved 20 meters south and rebuilt, with its entrance now facing west toward Douban Hutong.
After breaking my fast, I had dinner at Xinyue Zhai at the entrance of Nandouyacai Mosque. I ordered a few home-style dishes: stir-fried trio (bao sanyang), shredded pork with garlic sprouts, shredded tofu with hot peppers, and hot and sour soup. I have been eating at this place for over ten years, and it is one of the most reliable Beijing-style stir-fry restaurants near my home. Their main selling point is how fast they serve the food! Everything is cooked instantly over a high flame. I especially love the stir-fried trio (bao sanyang)—lamb with scallions, lamb liver, and lamb kidney. The aroma of the scallions and the meat blend perfectly, making it great to eat with rice.
For iftar, I ate some braised chicken (paji) donated by an elder.
March 31
It is the second Jumu'ah of Ramadan, and I am at Changying Mosque again. The sky turned blue today, and I feel great.
In the book 'Narrative of the North China Campaign of 1860' by Swinhoe, it is written that after the Anglo-French forces landed in Tianjin, they passed through Changying on their way to Beijing:
On the afternoon of October 3, we struck our tents, crossed the canal, and marched into a Hui Muslim village in Changying. This village was near the rifle regiment's outpost. Lord Elgin and Sir Hope Grant, along with their staff, stayed in a beautiful mosque, while about six thousand strong soldiers camped in the surrounding fields.
The village was very small, and it was full of mud huts. But this time, not all the houses were empty. The villagers were Hui Muslims who practiced Islam, and you could tell them apart from the other locals by the strange pointed hats they wore on their heads, with their braids tucked inside. Inside the mosque, there were many inscriptions in Arabic and Chinese, and several books and scriptures printed in Arabic were scattered around. Many of the Prophet's Chinese followers could recite a few sentences from these books, but very few could explain what they meant. However, they were very familiar with the prayers and chapters of the Quran and often recited them to the Sikh cavalry (Note: the author mistook Indian Muslims for Sikhs). The villagers recited these prayers repeatedly, which always moved the weary Indian warriors to tears and often made them take silver out of their pockets. The Hui Muslims of the Celestial Empire knew better than to refuse this sympathy.
An ancient tree from the Ming Dynasty Zhengde era inside the mosque.
I continued to break my fast at Nandouya Mosque in the evening. Many university student friends (dosti) came to the mosque, and I am very grateful to be able to visit the mosque more often during Ramadan.
After the Maghrib prayer, I had dinner at Xinyuezhai as usual. The spring breeze was gentle, so we ate at the entrance. We ordered pan-fried lamb (guota yangrou), braised winter bamboo shoots and mushrooms (shao erdong), and dough drop soup (gedatang). I have been eating the pan-fried lamb at this place for over ten years, and it goes so well with rice! The winter bamboo shoots in the braised dish are sweet and delicious, and the dough drop soup is very thick; if you don't want rice, a big bowl of this is enough to fill you up.
April 2
I broke my fast at home over the weekend. Zainab made hand-pulled noodles (latiazi), and I made eggplant with meat and bamboo shoots with meat. Compared to the ones in Xinjiang, they are quite light.
April 3
I broke my fast at Dongsi Mosque today. There were pastries and fruits donated to the mosque by an elder.
Dongsi Mosque is one of the four major official mosques in Beijing from the Ming Dynasty. It was built in 1447 (the 12th year of the Ming Zhengtong era) with funds donated by Chen You, a famous Hui Muslim military officer of the Ming Dynasty. In 1450 (the first year of the Ming Jingtai era), the Jingtai Emperor bestowed the title 'Mosque' upon it.
During the Yongle era, Chen You followed Zhu Di on two northern expeditions against the Mongols and performed meritorious service. During the Xuande era, he was mainly engaged in pacification work along the northern and northwestern borders of the Ming Dynasty. During the Zhengtong era, the tribute trade between the Ming Dynasty and the Mongols entered a prosperous period. In 1436 (the first year of the Zhengtong era), Chen You became an envoy for the mission to the Oirat Mongols. Later, he led Oirat envoys to the capital to present horses many times, and due to his achievements, he was promoted several times to the position of Assistant Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. In 1444 (the ninth year of the Zhengtong era), Chen You was appointed as a Guerrilla General and began patrolling the borders in places like Ningxia. During this time, he defeated the Mongol army and achieved great military success, leading to his promotion to Assistant Commander of the Rear Chief Military Commission, becoming a high-ranking military officer. He donated money to build the Dongsi Mosque during this period.
In 1449 (the 14th year of the Zhengtong reign), war broke out between the Ming Dynasty and the Oirat Mongols. Chen You followed the Ming Emperor Yingzong into battle, but they were defeated and the emperor was captured. During the crucial defense of Beijing, Chen You fought bravely and earned military honors, leading to his promotion to Commander-in-Chief of the Rear Military Commission. In 1450 (the first year of the Jingtai reign), the Jingtai Emperor sent Chen You to the Guizhou and Huguang regions to suppress the Miao uprising, and he was promoted twice for his military achievements. It was during this time that the Jingtai Emperor bestowed the plaque reading "Mosque" (Qingzhensi) upon the Dongsi Mosque.
Because of his outstanding military service, Chen You was granted the title of Count of Wuping in 1457 (the first year of the Tianshun reign), a title his descendants inherited. Later, Chen's descendants often served as officers in the Beijing military camps and funded the repairs of several old mosques, including those in Dingzhou and Yizhou, Hebei.
After Shamu finished, he rode his bike home. He passed a Niujie fried chicken shop on Dongsi North Street and bought a freshly fried chicken leg. When he got home, he ate the stir-fried rapeseed, spring bamboo shoots, carrots, and potatoes I had made earlier, along with the steamed buns (momo) my father-in-law had made for us.
April 4
We went to the mosque outside Dongzhimen to break our fast in the spring rain. There were fried cakes (zhagao) freshly made by the elders; I hadn't eaten them in a long time! Shamu ate dumplings at the mosque. They were fennel and chive, which tasted better than the ones in restaurants and really reminded me of my childhood.
The mosque outside Dongzhimen was originally called the Erlizhuang Mosque. It was first built during the Yuan Dynasty and renovated during the Kangxi reign of the Qing Dynasty. In the late 1980s, Shougang Group and a Danish investor built international apartments in Erlizhuang, so the old mosque was moved one kilometer to the northwest and rebuilt. It was completed in 1991 and reopened in 1993.
After coming out, I bought two milk flatbreads (naizi nang) at the bakery by the mosque gate to eat for the next day's fast.
April 6
In the evening, we broke our fast at the Nanhxiapo Mosque and had some glutinous rice strips (jiangmitiao), which I loved as a child. After Shamu finished, he ate some meat pies (xianbing) given out by the elders, which were delicious.
April 7
It was the third Friday (Jumu'ah) of Ramadan, and we were at the Changying Mosque again. The sky today was as blue as if it had been washed, clear and vast, just like a painting.
Inside the Changying Mosque, there is a 1937 stone tablet titled "Last Words of My Late Mother," which is a precious record of the Changying Women's Mosque. It says, "Sacrificing the family house in the west courtyard, we converted the former girls' school into a women's bathing facility." But the two rooms on the east side were kept as a place for Lin and others to stay when they returned home. "" The "Lin" mentioned here refers to Zhang Zhaolin, a Hui Muslim from Changying who was known as one of the "Five Great Hui Journalists of the Republic of China."
According to the article "With the Zhang Zhaolin Brothers," Zhang Zhaolin, whose courtesy name was Ziqi, was born in Changying in 1865. His grandfather and great-uncle were both military scholars (wujinshi) in the same year during the Daoguang reign. When he was four or five, his family's fortunes declined. He only attended a private village school before becoming an apprentice at a grocery store. In 1909, Zhang Zhaolin founded the "Xingshi Bao" (Awakening Times) in Fengtian, which was the most important vernacular newspaper in Fengtian at the time.
April 8
I spent the weekend at home taking care of Suleiman. I went out in the morning to buy vegetables and meat. I bought fresh lamb at a lamb stall next to Dongzhimen Hospital and made lamb soybean paste noodles (zhajiangmian) for breaking the fast, with noodles pulled by Zainab.
April 9
Today I made tomato sauce noodles (dalumian) at home, which are lighter than the soybean paste noodles.
April 10
I broke my fast at Fayuan Mosque outside Deshengmen. Fayuan Mosque is also called Dewai Guanxiang Mosque. It was originally located on the north slope of Jiaochangkou outside Deshengmen. It was moved and expanded during the Kangxi reign, and the main hall was expanded again during the Republic of China period. It consists of four connected roofs and a four-cornered pavilion with a pointed top.
After the evening prayer (sajdah), I rode my bike home along the North Moat. The breeze felt great.
April 18
I broke my fast at Madian Mosque. I ate noodles with eggplant and tomato-egg sauce. The noodle bowls at Madian Mosque are huge, they feel like small basins, haha.
Madian was once the second-largest residential area for Hui Muslims in Beijing after Niujie, and it was also the center of the sheep trade in Beijing. Since the Qing Dynasty, sheep transported from Mongolia through Zhangjiakou were kept in the sheep pens of various sheep trading firms in Madian after arriving in Beijing, before being sold to mutton stalls inside the city. Madian Mosque was first built during the Kangxi reign. It was rebuilt with donations from 14 local sheep trading firms during the Daoguang reign and was renovated again in the 1980s. It is an important ancient mosque in Beijing.
Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Ramadan in Beijing 2023 — Mosques and Iftar (Part 2)
Reposted from the web
Summary: Ramadan in Beijing 2023 — Mosques and Iftar is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: I had two skewers of red willow lamb (hongliu) and a bowl of yogurt at the entrance of the Madian Mosque at the Kashgar Restaurant. The account keeps its focus on Beijing Ramadan, Mosque Travel, Iftar while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
I had two skewers of red willow lamb (hongliu) and a bowl of yogurt at the entrance of the Madian Mosque at the Kashgar Restaurant. The meat on the red willow skewers was quite tender, and the yogurt had no sugar added, giving it a pure taste of Xinjiang. The Kashgar Restaurant is an old Uyghur eatery that has been around since I was a child, but I rarely visit because it is out of my way. They also sell yellow carrots (huangluobo), which are perfect for friends (dosti) who want to take some home to make pilaf (zhuafan).
April 22
Today is Eid al-Fitr. In the morning, we attended the congregational prayer (namaz) at the Balizhuang Mosque. At noon, we visited Teacher Chen Hui at his Jingyi Farmhouse at the foot of the Western Hills in Beijing. We tasted authentic Xinjiang starch noodle soup (fentang) and pilaf made by his wife. It was my first time eating Eid starch noodle soup (erde fentang) cooked in a large firewood pot!
Every year during Eid (erde), every Hui Muslim household in Xinjiang makes starch noodle soup and fried dough (youxiang). Usually, they stew the meat and mix the pea starch a day in advance, then cook everything together on the morning of the holiday. After the congregational prayer, Hui Muslims in Xinjiang usually visit graves first and then go to see relatives. At each house, they are served a bowl of starch noodle soup. Sometimes they drink five or six bowls in a single day. This is a classic memory of Eid for Hui Muslims in Xinjiang.
After eating the Xinjiang starch noodle soup and fried dough, we sat around the stove to drink tea and chat. We had a barbecue in the orchard with grilled fish, chicken wings, sweet potatoes, corn, and lamb skewers handmade by Hui Muslims from the Xiguanshi Mosque at the foot of the mountain. We also tasted the meat porridge and fried dough distributed (chusang) by the Xiguanshi Mosque. The Xiguanshi Mosque also stewed meat for a whole day before Eid, then used the meat broth to cook wheat porridge (mairen zhou). It was very fulfilling (shukr).
Collapse Read »
Summary: Ramadan in Beijing 2023 — Mosques and Iftar is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: I had two skewers of red willow lamb (hongliu) and a bowl of yogurt at the entrance of the Madian Mosque at the Kashgar Restaurant. The account keeps its focus on Beijing Ramadan, Mosque Travel, Iftar while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
I had two skewers of red willow lamb (hongliu) and a bowl of yogurt at the entrance of the Madian Mosque at the Kashgar Restaurant. The meat on the red willow skewers was quite tender, and the yogurt had no sugar added, giving it a pure taste of Xinjiang. The Kashgar Restaurant is an old Uyghur eatery that has been around since I was a child, but I rarely visit because it is out of my way. They also sell yellow carrots (huangluobo), which are perfect for friends (dosti) who want to take some home to make pilaf (zhuafan).
April 22
Today is Eid al-Fitr. In the morning, we attended the congregational prayer (namaz) at the Balizhuang Mosque. At noon, we visited Teacher Chen Hui at his Jingyi Farmhouse at the foot of the Western Hills in Beijing. We tasted authentic Xinjiang starch noodle soup (fentang) and pilaf made by his wife. It was my first time eating Eid starch noodle soup (erde fentang) cooked in a large firewood pot!
Every year during Eid (erde), every Hui Muslim household in Xinjiang makes starch noodle soup and fried dough (youxiang). Usually, they stew the meat and mix the pea starch a day in advance, then cook everything together on the morning of the holiday. After the congregational prayer, Hui Muslims in Xinjiang usually visit graves first and then go to see relatives. At each house, they are served a bowl of starch noodle soup. Sometimes they drink five or six bowls in a single day. This is a classic memory of Eid for Hui Muslims in Xinjiang.
After eating the Xinjiang starch noodle soup and fried dough, we sat around the stove to drink tea and chat. We had a barbecue in the orchard with grilled fish, chicken wings, sweet potatoes, corn, and lamb skewers handmade by Hui Muslims from the Xiguanshi Mosque at the foot of the mountain. We also tasted the meat porridge and fried dough distributed (chusang) by the Xiguanshi Mosque. The Xiguanshi Mosque also stewed meat for a whole day before Eid, then used the meat broth to cook wheat porridge (mairen zhou). It was very fulfilling (shukr).
Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Jinan — Baba Cave, Baba Tomb and Sufi Heritage
Reposted from the web
Summary: Jinan — Baba Cave, Baba Tomb and Sufi Heritage is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: On February 2, 2023, I visited the Baba Cave and Baba Tomb on Jiuding Mountain in Jinan, Shandong, a place I had wanted to see for a long time. The account keeps its focus on Jinan Muslims, Sufi Heritage, Hui Muslims while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
On February 2, 2023, I visited the Baba Cave and Baba Tomb on Jiuding Mountain in Jinan, Shandong, a place I had wanted to see for a long time. Baba is a Persian honorific that Hui Muslims use to show respect for their elders. The Baba Cave is the most important Sufi retreat in the Shandong region, and the Baba Tomb is a large cemetery for historical figures and Sufi saints, holding great significance in the history of the faith and Sufism.
I took a high-speed train from Beijing to Jinan West Station in the morning. Guided by Ma Lianjun, a friend (dost) who has studied the cave and tomb for years, we first went to the home of Ma Haji in Dangjiazhuang, where we were warmly welcomed by him and his wife.
We ate hot noodle soup and Shandong pancakes (dajianbing) as thin as paper at Ma Haji's house, then he drove us to Jiuding Mountain to visit the tombs.
Jiuding Mountain Baba Cave
The Baba Cave is on Jiuding Mountain in the southern suburbs of Jinan. With its layered peaks, rocky cliffs, and pine and cypress trees, it is a perfect place for quiet meditation.
At the foot of the mountain, you first see a stone tablet set up by local Muslims in 2021 that welcomes fellow believers to follow in the footsteps of the saints. After the show "World Hui Muslims" aired an episode on the Jinan Baba Cave, many friends (dost) came to visit, making the cave well-known.
As we climbed higher, we saw the tomb of Master Yang and several other saints. Master Yang, named X Rui and styled Fengyi, was born in 1757 and passed away in 1815. The inscription on his tomb says he left home young, went barefoot with messy hair, endured hunger and cold, and traveled the world, crossing thousands of rivers and climbing thousands of mountains. It also records that he established a "Dao Hall" on Qingfeng Mountain in Yunnan, which confirms he was a traveling Sufi.
According to a Qing Dynasty tablet about rebuilding the gate near the cave, which mentions that Sa, Ma, Mao, Yang, and Zuo loved the quiet and passed away there, we can conclude that the Jiuding Mountain Baba Cave was Master Yang's place of retreat.
1899 tablet record for rebuilding the gate
The names Sa, Ma, Mao, Yang, and Zuo on the tablet
Following the mountain path upward, we passed through a stone gate to reach the cliff where the Baba Cave is located. There are some cliff carvings on the rock face. Interestingly, the 1989 cultural heritage protection sign from the Licheng District of Jinan is also carved directly into the cliff.
Next to the cliff carvings are some older tablets, including an official notice from the Jinan Prefecture Changqing County government dated 1889. It records that Jiuding Mountain originally had a mosque cave, saint tombs, and prayer rooms, but they were damaged because no one looked after them. The government issued the notice to tell nearby residents to stop grazing livestock on the mountain and to forbid stealing or gambling inside the cave.
Many beautiful stone carvings in Chinese and Arabic are stored near the Baba Cave, and they have great historical and artistic value. Sadly, due to history, most of these stone tablets are badly damaged and broken into pieces. These precious artifacts are in urgent need of protection and repair.
On the cliff, there is also a "Saint's Tomb" with an inscription by Du Rongxiu. There was originally a large rock jutting out from the cliff that looked like a tomb. Later generations trimmed it to look more like a large grave from a distance, but no one is actually buried underneath it. It was built only to commemorate the Prophet Muhammad. Every year during the Mawlid, villagers come to the foot of the mountain to invite an imam to recite the Quran and prepare fried dough (youxiang).
In the area where the stone carvings are kept, you can also see a carving with an inscription by Du Rongxiu for the Baba Cave.
The Baba Cave is a natural cliff cave. Later people rebuilt it with stone bricks, dividing the cave into inner and outer sections. The door on the right is only big enough for one person; it is said to be where the Baba performed namaz. The inside of the cave has holes connected to the mountain, which keeps it very cool in the summer. It is also dry and does not collect water, making it perfect for quiet meditation.
Sufis call the basic five pillars of a Muslim the Sharia, and the higher level of practice above that is called the Path (Tariqa). Meditation (Muraqabah) is an important part of the Path. This tradition comes from the Prophet Muhammad, who spent a month every year in the Hira Cave on the Mountain of Light before receiving revelations from Allah.
Next to the Baba Cave is a stone room, which is a place for performing rituals (amal). Near the stone house, you can see some mortise and tenon joints (sunmao) on the cliffside, which are likely the remains of the house where the Baba lived while practicing his faith.
After visiting the Baba Cave, we walked down the mountain. At the foot of the mountain is the Green Pine Spring (Qingsong Quan), where the Baba used to get his water. In February, the spring water is clear and does not freeze; Jinan truly lives up to its name as the City of Springs.
Beside the Baba Cave on Jiuding Mountain in Jinan, there is a broken stone tablet dated to the ninth year of the Daoguang reign (1829). One of the names on the tablet is Zuo Tingrong, who is one of the five figures—Zuo, Ma, Sa, Mao, and Yang—mentioned in the 1899 'Reconstruction of the Main Gate' tablet as having practiced in the cave. In fact, except for Yang Baba, who is buried at the foot of the Baba Cave mountain, the graves of the other four Babas still exist. Mao Baba is buried in Dangjiazhuang Town, and the other three Babas are buried at Ma'anshan, south of Jinan city.
The Baba Graves at Ma'anshan.
Guided by Ma Haji and Ma Lianjun Dosti, we arrived at the Baba graves on the eastern slope of Ma'anshan, south of Jinan. There are dozens of graves of Muslim ancestors here dating back to the Yuan and Ming dynasties, including the graves of Zuo, Ma, and Sa Baba.
Zuo Baba's grave is at the far west end of the cemetery. The tombstone is engraved with Chinese and Arabic, as well as Xiao'erjing (Arabic script used to write Chinese), providing a wealth of information. Ma Lianjun Dosti helped write the article 'A Study of the Chinese-Arabic Tombstone of Zuo Gong's Grave in Jinan during the Daoguang Reign of the Qing Dynasty from the Perspective of the Sinicization of Islam,' published in 'World Religious Studies.' This is currently the most detailed introduction available regarding Zuo Rongting Baba.
From the inscription, we know Zuo Baba's name was Tingrong, his courtesy name was Yunbo, and he was from the West Gate of Jinan. He was born in 1750 (the 15th year of the Qianlong reign) and passed away in 1829 (the 9th year of the Daoguang reign). His religious name was Ishaq. He was guided by the Sufi master Mahmud Baghdadi and became a leader for local practitioners, known far and wide for his spiritual path. Zuo Baba endured great hardships to travel to Mecca for Hajj and visited the tomb of the Prophet Muhammad in Medina. The inscription shows that Zuo Baba was a Sufi practitioner with a clear lineage, who insisted on asceticism and traveling to practice his faith. Such detailed records of a Sufi practitioner are extremely rare in the entire eastern region.
The top stone of Zuo Baba's grave is also very unique. Its cross-section looks like an arch, and the sides are carved with exquisite Arabic calligraphy, including both traditional Chinese styles and the brick-like Bannai script derived from Kufic. However, because later generations repainted it with gold lacquer, the original calligraphy has become somewhat blurry.
According to the article 'Baba Graves of the Yuan and Ming Dynasties in Shandong,' Sa Baba was named Sa Tianchi. He was from ancient Xihe in Yunnan, and he lived around the end of the Yuan and the beginning of the Ming dynasties. In the oral traditions of the Sai family of Hui Muslims in Jinan, Sa Baba's experiences of seeking medicine to save the dying and heal the wounded are very consistent with Sufi practices. He often used his medical knowledge to treat people regardless of whether they were Hui or Han, and he was respected by all ethnic groups.
Additionally, there is the grave of Niu Baba, a disciple of Sa Baba, in the Baba cemetery.
Legend says Ma Baba passed away at the end of the Ming dynasty. The 1933 issue of the Republic of China periodical 'Yuehua' (Vol. 5, No. 18) contains an article titled 'Ma'anshan Small Mosque,' which records that 'outside the gate are the graves of the three Babas: Zuo, Ma, and Ma.'
Besides this, there are many graves of Muslim ancestors from the Yuan and Ming dynasties in the Ma'anshan Baba cemetery. The articles 'Baba Graves of the Yuan and Ming Dynasties in Shandong' and 'Baba Graves of the Qing Dynasty in Shandong' provide detailed introductions.
The life story of Sayyid Baba cannot be verified. Sayyid is an honorific title used to refer to the descendants of the Prophet's daughter Fatima and Imam Ali, suggesting that Sayyid Baba was likely a descendant of the Prophet.
The life story of Ma Baba is also unreliable; he is one of the three Babas—Zuo, Ma, and Ma—mentioned in the 1933 'Yuehua' article.
On the tombstone of Gu Mingxiu Baba, there is an inscription, half of which is buried in the soil. It shows text like '16th day of the 2nd month of the 12th year of the Wanli reign of the Great Ming,' and '8th day of the 2nd month of the 4th year of the Xianfeng reign of the Great Qing,' which are likely the dates of the original construction and the renovation.
Li Baba's grave originally had a stone tablet from the Tongzhi reign of the Qing dynasty, but it no longer exists. Every year on the 24th day of the 6th lunar month, middle-aged and elderly Hui Muslim women from the outskirts of Jinan, Tai'an, and the north bank of the Yellow River go to Li Baba's grave to light incense, recite scriptures, and give charity (niatie).
Cha Baba's life story cannot be verified; it is only known that the later tombstone says he 'passed away at the end of the Ming dynasty.'
The tombstone for Chen Ying Baba and his wife, surnamed Sai, reads 'Grave of Mr. Chen Ying, an official of the Honglu Mosque of the Great Ming, and his wife, Lady Sai.' Behind it is a 'Chen Zhangjiao Epitaph' erected in 1834 (the 14th year of the Daoguang reign).
Chen Ying Baba holds a very high historical status among Muslims in Jinan. He was once appointed by the Emperor as the Superintendent of Religion for Shandong, and his descendants inherited the position of imam at the Jinan South Mosque (Nandasi) for over a hundred years. The existing 1495 (the eighth year of the Ming Hongzhi reign) record of the renovation of the Jinan Prefecture Licheng County Mosque states: 'During the Xuande year of Bingwu in our dynasty, there was a shortage of imams. Just then, Master Chen Ying went to the Western Regions three times as an envoy, was appointed to an official rank, and returned after retiring from office.' This means that during the Ming Xuande period (1426-1435), Chen Ying served as an official envoy to the Western Regions three times. Based on calculations, Chen Ying Baba likely lived during the late Yuan and early Ming dynasties.
The Chen family was prominent during the Ming Dynasty and received rewards many times. The Jinan South Mosque currently houses a 1528 (the seventh year of the Ming Jiajing reign) stone inscription titled 'Laifu Ming,' signed by 'Chen Si, Imam of this mosque.' Chen Si was a descendant of Chen Ying Baba.
Besides Chen Ying Baba, many other imams of the Jinan South Mosque are buried in the Baba Cemetery (Baba Fen).
Dang Baba was named Dang Yu, with the courtesy name Kunshan. He was from the West Gate of Jinan, born in 1703 (the forty-second year of the Kangxi reign) and passed away (returned to Allah) in 1785 (the fiftieth year of the Qianlong reign). According to a Republic of China era stele, he traveled widely and went on Hajj to Mecca many times. He discovered errors in the practice of the faith in China, sought to correct them upon his return, and was invited to serve as the imam of the South Mosque.
Mi Baba was named Mi Guoxiang, with the religious name Puzhong. People called him Master Mi (Mi Zhenren). He was also from the West Gate of Jinan, born in 1735 (the tenth year of the Yongzheng reign) and passed away in 1792 (the fifty-seventh year of the Qianlong reign). In front of his tomb stands a 1792 stele inscribed with 'Inheriting the Past and Ushering in the Future,' which contains very detailed records about Master Mi.
Mi Baba traveled throughout the Northwest, met a teacher named Wang, and learned the 'profound principles of returning to the truth and restoring life.' Afterward, he traveled everywhere and avoided women. The stele records that he 'built a home in the bright mountains southwest of the city and lived in an ancient cave.' It is speculated that this is likely the Baba Cave on Jiuding Mountain.
It continues to write
He 'ate the morning mist in spring, drank the night dew in summer, cleansed his heart and spirit, and after decades, mastered the techniques of breathing and meditation.' This is clearly a description of Sufi asceticism. The stele uses many Taoist terms to describe the faith, calling the sages 'True Men' (Zhenren), referring to passing away as 'feathering' (yuhua), and even using Taoist immortals like Wang Ziqiao and Chisongzi as metaphors. This is a great example of exchange between different religions.
Heifaxiang Baba became the imam of the Jinan South Mosque in 1815 (the fifteenth year of the Jiaqing reign). He presided over the renovation of the South Mosque and wrote Arabic calligraphy in the main hall, which was widely praised. Evidence suggests that He Baba was very likely the disciple of He Wushaihai, who was one of the 'Two Changs' of the Shandong scripture education system, Chang Jie Baba. Their birth and death dates also match. He Baba played an important role in inheriting and promoting the Shandong school of scripture education, and people today should attach great importance to him.
to local Jinan people, Sufi sages who came from other places to study are also buried in the Baba Cemetery. Ma Zhaochi Baba was from Pingliang, Gansu. He was born in 1673 (the twelfth year of the Kangxi reign), passed away in 1796 (the first year of the Jiaqing reign), and lived to be 123 years old. According to the stele, his 'merits and deeds were complete, and he had achieved immortality.' This is also a way of using Taoist vocabulary to describe Sufi practice.
There is a worn-out stele in the Baba Cemetery. Thanks to the sharing of a fellow believer (dosti), Teacher Ma Ming finally deciphered the content of the stele after years of research. According to the stele, the tomb owner was named Yang Zongyao, born in 1699 (the thirty-eighth year of the Kangxi reign), passed away in 1795 (the sixtieth year of the Qianlong reign), and lived to be 96 years old.
Yang Zongyao Baba's mentor was 'Grand Master Ma Huajiao from Shaanxi.' He followed Grand Master Ma to travel the world and learn Sufi cultivation. The stele records that Grand Master Ma 'abandoned his great business to become a monk;' He cast aside his high position to achieve his goals. It can be seen that he was a Sufi sage. Teacher Ma Ming found in the Yongzheng edition of 'Sichuan Tongzhi' and the Republic of China era 'Songpan County Annals' that 'Qingzhang Laying Army Garrison Commander... Ma Huajiao, a Shaanxi native, appointed in the thirty-second year of Kangxi,' and the Republic of China era 'Ba County Annals' records: 'Mosque... the South Mosque was built by Ma Huajiao and Han Daxiao in the early Kangxi period of the Qing Dynasty.' It can be seen that Grand Master Ma was active in the Sichuan region during the Kangxi period and donated money to build mosques while serving as an official.
Buried in the Baba Cemetery is the famous Hui Muslim martial artist Ma Shengping (1849-1921) from modern Jinan history. Ma Shengping was known as 'Western Whip Ma Wu.' He was from Linqing, Shandong, practiced martial arts since childhood, and was skilled in using the pole whip (also called fishing whip). At the end of the Qing Dynasty, he joined the Boxer Rebellion and fought all the way from Shandong to Tianjin. After the movement failed, he hid his identity and lived at the South Mosque (Nandasi) in Jinan, where he spent years working as a mosque caretaker while pretending to be deaf and mute. After the Republic of China was established, Ma Shengping revealed his true identity and began teaching martial arts at a Hui Muslim boxing school in the Xiguan area of Jinan. He passed away in 1921 and was buried in the Baba Tomb at Ma'anshan.
Some other tombstones in the Baba Tomb also feature Arabic calligraphy, but unfortunately, it is now difficult to identify who they belong to.
Because many respected elders (baba) are buried in the Baba Tomb and many moving stories are told about them, the site holds a very high status among Jinan's Hui Muslims. They often visit the graves to light incense, recite scriptures, and perform dua. According to the 18th issue of the fifth volume of the Yuehua newspaper in 1933, Jinan's Hui Muslims would visit the graves after the wheat harvest, especially after times of disaster, to thank Allah for His grace and to remember the virtuous predecessors. To make visiting the graves easier, a mosque was built next to the Baba Tomb long ago, known as the Ma'anshan Small Mosque.
The Yuehua magazine provides a detailed record of the Ma'anshan Mosque: There are three baba tombs on the mountain. Visitors use this place as a resting spot and a place to invite an imam to recite scriptures and prepare food, which is why the mosque was built. The mosque sits at the eastern foot of the mountain, and right outside the gate are the tombs of the three babas: Zuo, Ma, and Ma. The north building in the courtyard has five rooms. The middle three serve as the prayer hall, the single room on the east is the imam's living quarters, and the west room is the kitchen. There is also a south shed that serves as the living quarters for the mosque caretaker. The mountain only has ten mu of land to support the mosque. The mosque's imam is Ding Kaoshan, a Jinan local. He usually stays at the South Mosque and only comes here when people visit the graves. There are no regular prayers held here, so it functions like a local travel mosque.
Due to history, the Ma'anshan mosque (masjid) has collapsed, but the original foundation and building structure are still visible, with many bricks and tiles scattered around the site. A while ago, some friends (dosti) found half a stone tablet at the site. You can see the name Zuo Junzhenquan and the words kitchen room. The names of those who respectfully erected it include Ma Yusheng, Zhu Chunshou, Zuo Entang, Zhang Jinxing, and Zuo Junying. For hundreds of years, this mosque was an important part of the Baba Tomb complex. Just like the mosques at the tombs of Puhading, Wanggesu, and the Langzhong Baba, it is highly valued by friends (dosti) and holds significant cultural meaning. Seeing it in such a ruined state today is heartbreaking.
According to Lei Guangjing's article on the general situation of Islam in Jinan, Hui Muslims in the past placed great importance on the Baba Tomb and deeply respected the babas, calling them elders (laorenjia). Every spring when the flowers bloom, people would visit the graves in an endless stream, invite an imam to recite scriptures, and prepare fried dough (youxiang) to distribute to friends (dosti). Between the 1960s and 1970s, the Baba Tomb was damaged, but it was preserved thanks to the protection of the Muslim community (mumin). In 1982, Jinan's Hui Muslims held an unprecedented grave-visiting event with hundreds of people attending. Everyone brought boilers and food boxes, and they invited an imam to recite scriptures in memory of the predecessors.
With the rapid development of modern society, the inheritance of religious traditions everywhere has faced varying degrees of impact. The tradition of Jinan's Hui Muslims visiting the Baba graves is also gradually fading. Religious scholars argue that visiting graves for the purpose of reflection is a commendable act. By remembering our predecessors, we can reflect on the meaning of life, examine our own mistakes, and encourage ourselves to do more good deeds. It is a positive activity. At the same time, gathering in the cemetery to recite scriptures and distribute fried dough (youxiang) is a chance for young people to get closer to their faith. Amidst our busy work, we need such traditions to act as a bond for our faith and keep everyone united.
I am very grateful that friends (dostani) like Ma Lianjun and Ma Haji have cared for the Baba Cave and Baba Tomb for many years. When they learned I wanted to visit, they gave me a lot of help, and I truly experienced the hospitality of the people of Shandong. Let me share the delicious food I ate at Ma Haji's house. The homemade soy sauce beef was not too salty and tasted just right. This was my first time eating Shandong big pot bread (daguobing), which was as thick as a brick. It was really interesting.
I ate two styles of fried dough (youxiang) at Haji Ma's house, one from Linxia, Gansu, and one from Jinan, Shandong. You can compare them for yourselves. When I left, Haji Ma gave me some Jinan-style fried dough (youxiang) as a sign of the friendship between us friends (dosti).
Finally, I welcome all friends (dostani) to visit Baba Cave and Baba Tomb. If you want to learn more, you can join the WeChat group below.
Collapse Read »
Summary: Jinan — Baba Cave, Baba Tomb and Sufi Heritage is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: On February 2, 2023, I visited the Baba Cave and Baba Tomb on Jiuding Mountain in Jinan, Shandong, a place I had wanted to see for a long time. The account keeps its focus on Jinan Muslims, Sufi Heritage, Hui Muslims while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
On February 2, 2023, I visited the Baba Cave and Baba Tomb on Jiuding Mountain in Jinan, Shandong, a place I had wanted to see for a long time. Baba is a Persian honorific that Hui Muslims use to show respect for their elders. The Baba Cave is the most important Sufi retreat in the Shandong region, and the Baba Tomb is a large cemetery for historical figures and Sufi saints, holding great significance in the history of the faith and Sufism.
I took a high-speed train from Beijing to Jinan West Station in the morning. Guided by Ma Lianjun, a friend (dost) who has studied the cave and tomb for years, we first went to the home of Ma Haji in Dangjiazhuang, where we were warmly welcomed by him and his wife.
We ate hot noodle soup and Shandong pancakes (dajianbing) as thin as paper at Ma Haji's house, then he drove us to Jiuding Mountain to visit the tombs.
Jiuding Mountain Baba Cave
The Baba Cave is on Jiuding Mountain in the southern suburbs of Jinan. With its layered peaks, rocky cliffs, and pine and cypress trees, it is a perfect place for quiet meditation.
At the foot of the mountain, you first see a stone tablet set up by local Muslims in 2021 that welcomes fellow believers to follow in the footsteps of the saints. After the show "World Hui Muslims" aired an episode on the Jinan Baba Cave, many friends (dost) came to visit, making the cave well-known.
As we climbed higher, we saw the tomb of Master Yang and several other saints. Master Yang, named X Rui and styled Fengyi, was born in 1757 and passed away in 1815. The inscription on his tomb says he left home young, went barefoot with messy hair, endured hunger and cold, and traveled the world, crossing thousands of rivers and climbing thousands of mountains. It also records that he established a "Dao Hall" on Qingfeng Mountain in Yunnan, which confirms he was a traveling Sufi.
According to a Qing Dynasty tablet about rebuilding the gate near the cave, which mentions that Sa, Ma, Mao, Yang, and Zuo loved the quiet and passed away there, we can conclude that the Jiuding Mountain Baba Cave was Master Yang's place of retreat.
1899 tablet record for rebuilding the gate
The names Sa, Ma, Mao, Yang, and Zuo on the tablet
Following the mountain path upward, we passed through a stone gate to reach the cliff where the Baba Cave is located. There are some cliff carvings on the rock face. Interestingly, the 1989 cultural heritage protection sign from the Licheng District of Jinan is also carved directly into the cliff.
Next to the cliff carvings are some older tablets, including an official notice from the Jinan Prefecture Changqing County government dated 1889. It records that Jiuding Mountain originally had a mosque cave, saint tombs, and prayer rooms, but they were damaged because no one looked after them. The government issued the notice to tell nearby residents to stop grazing livestock on the mountain and to forbid stealing or gambling inside the cave.
Many beautiful stone carvings in Chinese and Arabic are stored near the Baba Cave, and they have great historical and artistic value. Sadly, due to history, most of these stone tablets are badly damaged and broken into pieces. These precious artifacts are in urgent need of protection and repair.
On the cliff, there is also a "Saint's Tomb" with an inscription by Du Rongxiu. There was originally a large rock jutting out from the cliff that looked like a tomb. Later generations trimmed it to look more like a large grave from a distance, but no one is actually buried underneath it. It was built only to commemorate the Prophet Muhammad. Every year during the Mawlid, villagers come to the foot of the mountain to invite an imam to recite the Quran and prepare fried dough (youxiang).
In the area where the stone carvings are kept, you can also see a carving with an inscription by Du Rongxiu for the Baba Cave.
The Baba Cave is a natural cliff cave. Later people rebuilt it with stone bricks, dividing the cave into inner and outer sections. The door on the right is only big enough for one person; it is said to be where the Baba performed namaz. The inside of the cave has holes connected to the mountain, which keeps it very cool in the summer. It is also dry and does not collect water, making it perfect for quiet meditation.
Sufis call the basic five pillars of a Muslim the Sharia, and the higher level of practice above that is called the Path (Tariqa). Meditation (Muraqabah) is an important part of the Path. This tradition comes from the Prophet Muhammad, who spent a month every year in the Hira Cave on the Mountain of Light before receiving revelations from Allah.
Next to the Baba Cave is a stone room, which is a place for performing rituals (amal). Near the stone house, you can see some mortise and tenon joints (sunmao) on the cliffside, which are likely the remains of the house where the Baba lived while practicing his faith.
After visiting the Baba Cave, we walked down the mountain. At the foot of the mountain is the Green Pine Spring (Qingsong Quan), where the Baba used to get his water. In February, the spring water is clear and does not freeze; Jinan truly lives up to its name as the City of Springs.
Beside the Baba Cave on Jiuding Mountain in Jinan, there is a broken stone tablet dated to the ninth year of the Daoguang reign (1829). One of the names on the tablet is Zuo Tingrong, who is one of the five figures—Zuo, Ma, Sa, Mao, and Yang—mentioned in the 1899 'Reconstruction of the Main Gate' tablet as having practiced in the cave. In fact, except for Yang Baba, who is buried at the foot of the Baba Cave mountain, the graves of the other four Babas still exist. Mao Baba is buried in Dangjiazhuang Town, and the other three Babas are buried at Ma'anshan, south of Jinan city.
The Baba Graves at Ma'anshan.
Guided by Ma Haji and Ma Lianjun Dosti, we arrived at the Baba graves on the eastern slope of Ma'anshan, south of Jinan. There are dozens of graves of Muslim ancestors here dating back to the Yuan and Ming dynasties, including the graves of Zuo, Ma, and Sa Baba.
Zuo Baba's grave is at the far west end of the cemetery. The tombstone is engraved with Chinese and Arabic, as well as Xiao'erjing (Arabic script used to write Chinese), providing a wealth of information. Ma Lianjun Dosti helped write the article 'A Study of the Chinese-Arabic Tombstone of Zuo Gong's Grave in Jinan during the Daoguang Reign of the Qing Dynasty from the Perspective of the Sinicization of Islam,' published in 'World Religious Studies.' This is currently the most detailed introduction available regarding Zuo Rongting Baba.
From the inscription, we know Zuo Baba's name was Tingrong, his courtesy name was Yunbo, and he was from the West Gate of Jinan. He was born in 1750 (the 15th year of the Qianlong reign) and passed away in 1829 (the 9th year of the Daoguang reign). His religious name was Ishaq. He was guided by the Sufi master Mahmud Baghdadi and became a leader for local practitioners, known far and wide for his spiritual path. Zuo Baba endured great hardships to travel to Mecca for Hajj and visited the tomb of the Prophet Muhammad in Medina. The inscription shows that Zuo Baba was a Sufi practitioner with a clear lineage, who insisted on asceticism and traveling to practice his faith. Such detailed records of a Sufi practitioner are extremely rare in the entire eastern region.
The top stone of Zuo Baba's grave is also very unique. Its cross-section looks like an arch, and the sides are carved with exquisite Arabic calligraphy, including both traditional Chinese styles and the brick-like Bannai script derived from Kufic. However, because later generations repainted it with gold lacquer, the original calligraphy has become somewhat blurry.
According to the article 'Baba Graves of the Yuan and Ming Dynasties in Shandong,' Sa Baba was named Sa Tianchi. He was from ancient Xihe in Yunnan, and he lived around the end of the Yuan and the beginning of the Ming dynasties. In the oral traditions of the Sai family of Hui Muslims in Jinan, Sa Baba's experiences of seeking medicine to save the dying and heal the wounded are very consistent with Sufi practices. He often used his medical knowledge to treat people regardless of whether they were Hui or Han, and he was respected by all ethnic groups.
Additionally, there is the grave of Niu Baba, a disciple of Sa Baba, in the Baba cemetery.
Legend says Ma Baba passed away at the end of the Ming dynasty. The 1933 issue of the Republic of China periodical 'Yuehua' (Vol. 5, No. 18) contains an article titled 'Ma'anshan Small Mosque,' which records that 'outside the gate are the graves of the three Babas: Zuo, Ma, and Ma.'
Besides this, there are many graves of Muslim ancestors from the Yuan and Ming dynasties in the Ma'anshan Baba cemetery. The articles 'Baba Graves of the Yuan and Ming Dynasties in Shandong' and 'Baba Graves of the Qing Dynasty in Shandong' provide detailed introductions.
The life story of Sayyid Baba cannot be verified. Sayyid is an honorific title used to refer to the descendants of the Prophet's daughter Fatima and Imam Ali, suggesting that Sayyid Baba was likely a descendant of the Prophet.
The life story of Ma Baba is also unreliable; he is one of the three Babas—Zuo, Ma, and Ma—mentioned in the 1933 'Yuehua' article.
On the tombstone of Gu Mingxiu Baba, there is an inscription, half of which is buried in the soil. It shows text like '16th day of the 2nd month of the 12th year of the Wanli reign of the Great Ming,' and '8th day of the 2nd month of the 4th year of the Xianfeng reign of the Great Qing,' which are likely the dates of the original construction and the renovation.
Li Baba's grave originally had a stone tablet from the Tongzhi reign of the Qing dynasty, but it no longer exists. Every year on the 24th day of the 6th lunar month, middle-aged and elderly Hui Muslim women from the outskirts of Jinan, Tai'an, and the north bank of the Yellow River go to Li Baba's grave to light incense, recite scriptures, and give charity (niatie).
Cha Baba's life story cannot be verified; it is only known that the later tombstone says he 'passed away at the end of the Ming dynasty.'
The tombstone for Chen Ying Baba and his wife, surnamed Sai, reads 'Grave of Mr. Chen Ying, an official of the Honglu Mosque of the Great Ming, and his wife, Lady Sai.' Behind it is a 'Chen Zhangjiao Epitaph' erected in 1834 (the 14th year of the Daoguang reign).
Chen Ying Baba holds a very high historical status among Muslims in Jinan. He was once appointed by the Emperor as the Superintendent of Religion for Shandong, and his descendants inherited the position of imam at the Jinan South Mosque (Nandasi) for over a hundred years. The existing 1495 (the eighth year of the Ming Hongzhi reign) record of the renovation of the Jinan Prefecture Licheng County Mosque states: 'During the Xuande year of Bingwu in our dynasty, there was a shortage of imams. Just then, Master Chen Ying went to the Western Regions three times as an envoy, was appointed to an official rank, and returned after retiring from office.' This means that during the Ming Xuande period (1426-1435), Chen Ying served as an official envoy to the Western Regions three times. Based on calculations, Chen Ying Baba likely lived during the late Yuan and early Ming dynasties.
The Chen family was prominent during the Ming Dynasty and received rewards many times. The Jinan South Mosque currently houses a 1528 (the seventh year of the Ming Jiajing reign) stone inscription titled 'Laifu Ming,' signed by 'Chen Si, Imam of this mosque.' Chen Si was a descendant of Chen Ying Baba.
Besides Chen Ying Baba, many other imams of the Jinan South Mosque are buried in the Baba Cemetery (Baba Fen).
Dang Baba was named Dang Yu, with the courtesy name Kunshan. He was from the West Gate of Jinan, born in 1703 (the forty-second year of the Kangxi reign) and passed away (returned to Allah) in 1785 (the fiftieth year of the Qianlong reign). According to a Republic of China era stele, he traveled widely and went on Hajj to Mecca many times. He discovered errors in the practice of the faith in China, sought to correct them upon his return, and was invited to serve as the imam of the South Mosque.
Mi Baba was named Mi Guoxiang, with the religious name Puzhong. People called him Master Mi (Mi Zhenren). He was also from the West Gate of Jinan, born in 1735 (the tenth year of the Yongzheng reign) and passed away in 1792 (the fifty-seventh year of the Qianlong reign). In front of his tomb stands a 1792 stele inscribed with 'Inheriting the Past and Ushering in the Future,' which contains very detailed records about Master Mi.
Mi Baba traveled throughout the Northwest, met a teacher named Wang, and learned the 'profound principles of returning to the truth and restoring life.' Afterward, he traveled everywhere and avoided women. The stele records that he 'built a home in the bright mountains southwest of the city and lived in an ancient cave.' It is speculated that this is likely the Baba Cave on Jiuding Mountain.
It continues to write
He 'ate the morning mist in spring, drank the night dew in summer, cleansed his heart and spirit, and after decades, mastered the techniques of breathing and meditation.' This is clearly a description of Sufi asceticism. The stele uses many Taoist terms to describe the faith, calling the sages 'True Men' (Zhenren), referring to passing away as 'feathering' (yuhua), and even using Taoist immortals like Wang Ziqiao and Chisongzi as metaphors. This is a great example of exchange between different religions.
Heifaxiang Baba became the imam of the Jinan South Mosque in 1815 (the fifteenth year of the Jiaqing reign). He presided over the renovation of the South Mosque and wrote Arabic calligraphy in the main hall, which was widely praised. Evidence suggests that He Baba was very likely the disciple of He Wushaihai, who was one of the 'Two Changs' of the Shandong scripture education system, Chang Jie Baba. Their birth and death dates also match. He Baba played an important role in inheriting and promoting the Shandong school of scripture education, and people today should attach great importance to him.
to local Jinan people, Sufi sages who came from other places to study are also buried in the Baba Cemetery. Ma Zhaochi Baba was from Pingliang, Gansu. He was born in 1673 (the twelfth year of the Kangxi reign), passed away in 1796 (the first year of the Jiaqing reign), and lived to be 123 years old. According to the stele, his 'merits and deeds were complete, and he had achieved immortality.' This is also a way of using Taoist vocabulary to describe Sufi practice.
There is a worn-out stele in the Baba Cemetery. Thanks to the sharing of a fellow believer (dosti), Teacher Ma Ming finally deciphered the content of the stele after years of research. According to the stele, the tomb owner was named Yang Zongyao, born in 1699 (the thirty-eighth year of the Kangxi reign), passed away in 1795 (the sixtieth year of the Qianlong reign), and lived to be 96 years old.
Yang Zongyao Baba's mentor was 'Grand Master Ma Huajiao from Shaanxi.' He followed Grand Master Ma to travel the world and learn Sufi cultivation. The stele records that Grand Master Ma 'abandoned his great business to become a monk;' He cast aside his high position to achieve his goals. It can be seen that he was a Sufi sage. Teacher Ma Ming found in the Yongzheng edition of 'Sichuan Tongzhi' and the Republic of China era 'Songpan County Annals' that 'Qingzhang Laying Army Garrison Commander... Ma Huajiao, a Shaanxi native, appointed in the thirty-second year of Kangxi,' and the Republic of China era 'Ba County Annals' records: 'Mosque... the South Mosque was built by Ma Huajiao and Han Daxiao in the early Kangxi period of the Qing Dynasty.' It can be seen that Grand Master Ma was active in the Sichuan region during the Kangxi period and donated money to build mosques while serving as an official.
Buried in the Baba Cemetery is the famous Hui Muslim martial artist Ma Shengping (1849-1921) from modern Jinan history. Ma Shengping was known as 'Western Whip Ma Wu.' He was from Linqing, Shandong, practiced martial arts since childhood, and was skilled in using the pole whip (also called fishing whip). At the end of the Qing Dynasty, he joined the Boxer Rebellion and fought all the way from Shandong to Tianjin. After the movement failed, he hid his identity and lived at the South Mosque (Nandasi) in Jinan, where he spent years working as a mosque caretaker while pretending to be deaf and mute. After the Republic of China was established, Ma Shengping revealed his true identity and began teaching martial arts at a Hui Muslim boxing school in the Xiguan area of Jinan. He passed away in 1921 and was buried in the Baba Tomb at Ma'anshan.
Some other tombstones in the Baba Tomb also feature Arabic calligraphy, but unfortunately, it is now difficult to identify who they belong to.
Because many respected elders (baba) are buried in the Baba Tomb and many moving stories are told about them, the site holds a very high status among Jinan's Hui Muslims. They often visit the graves to light incense, recite scriptures, and perform dua. According to the 18th issue of the fifth volume of the Yuehua newspaper in 1933, Jinan's Hui Muslims would visit the graves after the wheat harvest, especially after times of disaster, to thank Allah for His grace and to remember the virtuous predecessors. To make visiting the graves easier, a mosque was built next to the Baba Tomb long ago, known as the Ma'anshan Small Mosque.
The Yuehua magazine provides a detailed record of the Ma'anshan Mosque: There are three baba tombs on the mountain. Visitors use this place as a resting spot and a place to invite an imam to recite scriptures and prepare food, which is why the mosque was built. The mosque sits at the eastern foot of the mountain, and right outside the gate are the tombs of the three babas: Zuo, Ma, and Ma. The north building in the courtyard has five rooms. The middle three serve as the prayer hall, the single room on the east is the imam's living quarters, and the west room is the kitchen. There is also a south shed that serves as the living quarters for the mosque caretaker. The mountain only has ten mu of land to support the mosque. The mosque's imam is Ding Kaoshan, a Jinan local. He usually stays at the South Mosque and only comes here when people visit the graves. There are no regular prayers held here, so it functions like a local travel mosque.
Due to history, the Ma'anshan mosque (masjid) has collapsed, but the original foundation and building structure are still visible, with many bricks and tiles scattered around the site. A while ago, some friends (dosti) found half a stone tablet at the site. You can see the name Zuo Junzhenquan and the words kitchen room. The names of those who respectfully erected it include Ma Yusheng, Zhu Chunshou, Zuo Entang, Zhang Jinxing, and Zuo Junying. For hundreds of years, this mosque was an important part of the Baba Tomb complex. Just like the mosques at the tombs of Puhading, Wanggesu, and the Langzhong Baba, it is highly valued by friends (dosti) and holds significant cultural meaning. Seeing it in such a ruined state today is heartbreaking.
According to Lei Guangjing's article on the general situation of Islam in Jinan, Hui Muslims in the past placed great importance on the Baba Tomb and deeply respected the babas, calling them elders (laorenjia). Every spring when the flowers bloom, people would visit the graves in an endless stream, invite an imam to recite scriptures, and prepare fried dough (youxiang) to distribute to friends (dosti). Between the 1960s and 1970s, the Baba Tomb was damaged, but it was preserved thanks to the protection of the Muslim community (mumin). In 1982, Jinan's Hui Muslims held an unprecedented grave-visiting event with hundreds of people attending. Everyone brought boilers and food boxes, and they invited an imam to recite scriptures in memory of the predecessors.
With the rapid development of modern society, the inheritance of religious traditions everywhere has faced varying degrees of impact. The tradition of Jinan's Hui Muslims visiting the Baba graves is also gradually fading. Religious scholars argue that visiting graves for the purpose of reflection is a commendable act. By remembering our predecessors, we can reflect on the meaning of life, examine our own mistakes, and encourage ourselves to do more good deeds. It is a positive activity. At the same time, gathering in the cemetery to recite scriptures and distribute fried dough (youxiang) is a chance for young people to get closer to their faith. Amidst our busy work, we need such traditions to act as a bond for our faith and keep everyone united.
I am very grateful that friends (dostani) like Ma Lianjun and Ma Haji have cared for the Baba Cave and Baba Tomb for many years. When they learned I wanted to visit, they gave me a lot of help, and I truly experienced the hospitality of the people of Shandong. Let me share the delicious food I ate at Ma Haji's house. The homemade soy sauce beef was not too salty and tasted just right. This was my first time eating Shandong big pot bread (daguobing), which was as thick as a brick. It was really interesting.
I ate two styles of fried dough (youxiang) at Haji Ma's house, one from Linxia, Gansu, and one from Jinan, Shandong. You can compare them for yourselves. When I left, Haji Ma gave me some Jinan-style fried dough (youxiang) as a sign of the friendship between us friends (dosti).
Finally, I welcome all friends (dostani) to visit Baba Cave and Baba Tomb. If you want to learn more, you can join the WeChat group below.
Collapse Read »
Halal Food Guide: Hui Muslim Seasonal Dishes and Eid Food
Reposted from the web
Summary: Halal Food Guide: Hui Muslim Seasonal Dishes and Eid Food is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: In the daily life of Muslims, certain foods are closely tied to holidays. Foods like bean rice for Ashura, fried dough (youxiang) for Mawlid, dates for breaking the fast, and lamb for Eid al-Adha are all important parts. The account keeps its focus on Hui Muslim Food, Eid Food, Halal Traditions while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
In the daily life of Muslims, certain foods are closely tied to holidays. Foods like bean rice for Ashura, fried dough (youxiang) for Mawlid, dates for breaking the fast, and lamb for Eid al-Adha are all important parts of these holidays. I will share some of the holiday foods I have eaten.
10th of the first month of the Islamic calendar: Ashura.
The 10th of the first month is the honorable Ashura, the first important day after the Islamic New Year. To commemorate the day the ship of Nuh (Noah's Ark) docked, Hui Muslims traditionally make Ashura bean porridge.
Every year, my family makes the Urumqi Hui version of Ashura lamb and bean rice. We prepare seven types of beans, boil them in a pressure cooker, then dice lamb from the Eid al-Adha sacrifice (Qurbani), fry it with scallions in rendered lamb fat, and add salt and Sichuan peppercorn powder. After the beans are cooked, we add rice and glutinous rice, then the fried meat, and simmer until the rice is done. When eating, it has both the fresh scent of beans and the savory taste of lamb; I could eat two big bowls and still want more.
I am sharing the origin of Ashura porridge as told by Imam An from the Jingjue Mosque in Nanjing: On Ashura, the Prophet Nuh and his followers got off the boat and fasted that day to thank Allah. At that time, they had almost no food left. One person took out a handful of wheat, another a handful of mung beans, and another a handful of fava beans. After the Prophet Nuh gathered seven types of seeds, he boiled them so everyone could break their fast. By the will of Allah and the miracle (mu'jiza) of the Prophet. This small amount of food was enough to feed everyone who came off the boat. This was the first meal cooked on land after the flood covered the earth, so people treat it as a blessing from the Prophet Nuh. The Prophet Nuh is known as the second ancestor of humanity.
12th of the third month of the Islamic calendar: Mawlid.
The 12th of the third month is the birthday of the Prophet (Mawlid), and Muslims everywhere commemorate him during this time. Mawlid celebrations first appeared in Baghdad during the Abbasid Caliphate and grew into grand festivals in the Middle East through the Sufis in the 13th century, then spread around the world. In places like Indonesia, the scale of Mawlid even exceeds that of Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha.
Hui Muslims in China hold Mawlid events at the mosque during this time, also called the Holy Gathering or Holy Birthday. After listening to sermons (wa'z), scripture recitations, and saying dua in the main hall, everyone goes downstairs for a communal meal, which is called "koudao." In North China, the most important foods for the Holy Gathering are fried dough (youxiang) and meat porridge. The fried dough in North China is relatively soft, with a texture a bit like bread. The lamb porridge is made with lamb bones, letting the marrow melt into the porridge, making it very fragrant.
Below is the Holy Gathering I attended in Nanxiapo, Beijing, in 2021; although it was smaller than in previous years, I still had the fried dough and meat porridge.
15th of the eighth month of the Islamic calendar: Night of Bara'at.
The night of the 15th of the eighth month is called the night of Bara'at, meaning the night of forgiveness. People say Hu Dengzhou Baba in Shaanxi during the Ming Dynasty started the practice of observing Bara'at, also called the Night Prayer or the Walking Festival. During the first half of the eighth month, everyone gathers to invite the imam and elders to recite scriptures and praise for Bara'at, welcoming the arrival of Ramadan through seeking forgiveness.
In 2022, our family visited Bulate. My mother-in-law made lamb noodle soup (yangrou fensi tang), fried dough (youxiang), braised meatballs (hui wanzi), braised beef steak, and spicy chicken (jiaoma ji). It felt like we were back in Urumqi.
To make lamb noodle soup, first braise the lamb. Then, stir pea starch, let it set overnight, and cut it into blocks. Next, make a topping with cabbage, small radishes, sliced meat, and tomatoes. When eating, you must soak fried dough in the soup.
The ninth month of the Islamic calendar: Ramadan.
The ninth month of the Islamic calendar is the holy month of Ramadan, the month when the Quran was revealed. Fasting, also called holding the fast, is one of the five pillars of the faith. Muslims abstain from food during the day this month. They eat a pre-dawn meal called Suhur and break their fast after sunset with a meal called Iftar.
Eating dates to break the fast is a Sunnah, so many people choose to use dates to break their fast. These are the three types of Medina dates I ate during Ramadan in 2022.
On the left are Mabroom dates, which are long, dark brown, and have a moderate, candy-like sweetness. In the middle are Safawi dates, which are rectangular, dark black, and relatively soft. These are also commonly eaten by pilgrims during Hajj. On the right are Ajwa dates, which are round, dark black, chewy, and very sweet. This is also the most famous type of date, mentioned in the Hadith. Records state that all Ajwa dates originally came from a date palm tree planted by the Prophet Muhammad.
Breaking the fast with everyone at the mosque is a very atmospheric experience. Some mosques in Beijing prepare pastries and fruit for Iftar.
Below is when I was at Nanxiapo Mosque in Beijing in 2021.
This was at the Nandouyacai Mosque in Beijing in 2021.
This was at the Dongzhimenwai Mosque in Beijing in 2021.
In Beijing, some foreign halal restaurants offer Iftar buffets during Ramadan, where you can taste specialty foods from different countries. For details, see my previous article, 'Eating Turkish, Tunisian, Jordanian, and Pakistani Buffets during Ramadan in Beijing'.
The first place is Dardanelles, a long-standing Ramadan Iftar buffet restaurant on Ritan Upper Street. It is a Turkish restaurant run by Azerbaijanis, so it features both Turkish and Azerbaijani flavors.
The best part is the unlimited supply of meat from the open-fire grill, including roast chicken, roast lamb chops, and kebab meat paste. You can eat your fill! There are also various types of flatbread (nang) and bread, plus Levantine appetizers and stews. They have lentil soup made from three colors of lentils. Drinks include lemonade, salty yogurt drink (ayran), and Turkish black tea. For dessert, there is classic baklava and milk pudding, plus various fruits. In short, their selection is very rich.
Baklava is the most famous dessert of the Ottoman Empire, developed by royal chefs at the Topkapi Palace. Every year on the 15th day of Ramadan, the Ottoman Sultan would attend a ceremony called 'Baklava Alayı,' where he would distribute trays of baklava to the Janissaries.
Baklava is a pastry made by layering very thin unleavened dough (filo) with crushed pistachios, crushed walnuts, syrup, or honey.
The second stop is the Tunisian restaurant La Medina at Liangma River. First, follow the Sunnah by eating dates, then drink Harissa soup. The first plate I took included North African sausage (merguez), kebab, six types of Levantine and Maghreb appetizers (meze), fried chickpea balls (falafel), and fried meat balls (kibbeh). Meze and falafel can be stuffed into pita bread.
The second plate was the classic North African Berber dish couscous served with a clay pot stew (tajine). Couscous is a staple food for the Berbers. It is made by rubbing semolina flour into millet-sized grains, which are then dried. A clay pot (tajine) is a cooking vessel with a round, flat bottom and a conical or domed top. This design lets evaporated steam return to the bottom, and you can add water through the hole in the lid.
The third stop is the Levantine restaurant Al Safir at Sanyuanqiao, owned by a Palestinian from Jordan.
The three Ramadan iftar buffets I have tried so far each have their own unique features. Dardanelles has the widest variety, and the open-flame grilled meat is unlimited. La Medina is the only place in Beijing to get a Maghreb buffet, which makes it very unique. Al Safir has the richest selection of Levantine appetizers (Meze), and their falafel and grilled chicken wraps are the best.
At Al Safir, you can eat the most classic Ramadan snack for Arabs, lamb fried pastry triangles (Sambousek). This snack started as the Iranian Sanbosag and spread everywhere as Persian culture traveled. It entered Arab cuisine after the 10th century, reached South Asia with the Delhi Sultanate after the 13th century, and later spread to China, Indonesia, and Africa with Muslim merchants.
The fourth stop is the Pakistani restaurant Khan Baba in Sanlitun. First came dates and water, then Zainab chose flatbread (naan) as her main, while I picked the classic biryani rice with masala chicken, grilled chicken chunks (tikka), and grilled fish. The drink was rose syrup water, and dessert was milk pudding (Kheer). Their yogurt tasted very authentic and tart.
1st day of the 10th month of the Islamic calendar: Eid al-Fitr.
A month of fasting ends, welcoming the important Eid al-Fitr, also called 'Guo'erde'. 'Eid' is Arabic for 'festival,' and Hui Muslims in Urumqi pronounce it 'Erdi'.
I spent Eid al-Fitr in Urumqi in 2020. Hui Muslims in Urumqi usually follow three main steps for Eid al-Fitr: go to the mosque in the morning for prayers, visit graves, and then visit relatives. There are four must-have foods for Eid al-Fitr: noodle soup (fentang), fried dough (youxiang), fried dough twists (sanzi), and small pastries (diediezi). The noodle soup and fried dough must be homemade.
Our family's fried dough twists (sanzi) and small pastries (diediezi).
Hand-pulled fried dough twists (sanzi) made with eggs.
After finishing my first bowl of noodle soup (fentang), my father-in-law and I set off for Zainab's uncle's house, where I had a second bowl. The fried dough (youxiang) at the uncle's house was made with scalded flour.
The uncle's fried dough twists (sanzi) and small pastries (diediezi), which included twisted sugar snacks (tangningningzi) and pastries from the Ma family shop on Shanxi Alley. The twisted sugar snacks (tangningningzi) were soft and delicious.
After visiting the graves, we went to visit Zainab's great-uncle.
The great-uncle's fried dough twists (sanzi) and various snacks.
I spent Eid al-Fitr in Beijing in 2021. After the Eid prayers, everyone gathered on the roof of the century-old Jian'an Zhai shop on Yangmeizhu Xiejie outside Qianmen for a buffet. The 21st-generation successor of the Wang Hui family from Jian'an Tang fried the dough (youxiang) for us himself. It was super delicious, with a chewy texture that wasn't hard at all. We also ate old Beijing Hui-style beef stew and sugar-rolled fruit (tangjuanguo). The beef is brought from Niujie every morning and stewed fresh, never kept overnight. The sugar-rolled fruit (tangjuanguo) is made of yam, dates, and raisins, which are steamed and then stir-fried in sugar, a very time-consuming process.
Besides old Beijing specialties, there was chicken curry, tomato pasta, fried cod fillets, fruit salad, and cream cakes. It was a very satisfying meal!
10th day of the 12th month of the Islamic calendar: Eid al-Adha.
Eid al-Adha is also called the Festival of Sacrifice or the Festival of Loyalty and Filial Piety. In Singapore and Malaysia, it is called Hari Raya Haji. It commemorates the story of the Prophet Ibrahim following Allah's command to sacrifice his beloved son Ismail. Just as the knife touched his throat, Allah sent an angel with a black-headed ram to take his place. Muslims who can afford it perform a sacrifice every year during Eid al-Adha, choosing between a camel, cow, or sheep depending on their situation. After the sacrifice, the meat is usually divided into three parts: one for the family to eat, one for relatives, and one to give to the poor.
In 2020, I spent Eid al-Adha in Sanya, Hainan, and the sheep we sacrificed was a Dongshan goat (Dongshan yang) bought by my friend Muning.
We asked a neighbor to make us some dry-fried lamb (ganbian yangrou) in the local Sanya style. Their family usually sells roast duck next to the Southern Mosque (Nan Si) in Huixin Village, but they were on holiday for Eid al-Adha.
The imam from Turpan, Xinjiang, who performed the sacrifice for us, made a Xinjiang-style clear-stewed lamb (qingdun yangrou). It was super delicious, and the lamb broth was great too.
After the meal, I helped Muning distribute the rest of the meat to friends.
This is the lamb offal soup (yangza tang) stewed by our downstairs neighbors, who are Hui people from Huihui Village. Hui people in Huihui Village rarely eat lamb; they basically only eat the Dongshan goats they sacrifice themselves once a year during Eid al-Adha. After slaughtering the sheep, the Hui people scrape off the hair because they think lamb tastes best with the skin on.
When stewing the lamb offal, they include the sheep's feet and cook it from morning until afternoon, adding various spices. Finally, they add radishes, corn, and mushrooms. The taste is completely different from northern lamb soup; it is a unique and delicious flavor.
Besides holiday foods based on the Islamic calendar, I also eat traditional seasonal foods based on the lunar calendar.
Jingzhe (Awakening of Insects): Oil tea eggs (youcha dan).
Oil tea eggs are a seasonal food unique to Xinjiang Hui Muslims on the day of Jingzhe. The method is simple: first brew brick tea (zhuancha), then render some lamb fat. Stir-fry eggs in the lamb fat, then add raisins, sliced dates, and walnuts. After the eggs are fried, strain the tea leaves, pour the brick tea into the pot, and finally add rock sugar.
Summer Solstice: Cold noodles (lengtao mian).
Beijingers have a saying, 'Wonton for Winter Solstice, noodles for Summer Solstice.' On the Summer Solstice, we eat cold noodles, which are boiled and then rinsed in cold water. You can serve them with eggplant sauce, fried soybean paste (zhajiang), or sesame paste. According to the 'Dijing Suishi Jisheng,' 'On this day, every family eats cold noodles, which is what people commonly call rinsed noodles...'
Let me share how I make fried soybean paste noodles (zhajiang mian). It is actually simple. First, stir-fry meat with green onions, ginger, and garlic over high heat. Use plenty of oil (sometimes I render some lamb fat to add in). Then add yellow soybean paste (huangjiang)—if it's dry, dilute it with water, though I usually buy the wet version—and sweet bean paste (tianmianjiang). Simmer on low heat, adding salt and sugar to your own taste. I usually use a ratio of three parts sweet bean paste to seven parts yellow soybean paste, then add a little sugar.
Winter Solstice: Wonton.
The night of the Winter Solstice is the longest of the year. It is also Yalda Night in Iranian culture, where people like to eat pomegranates, as the red color represents the light of dawn.
Old Beijingers make a point of eating wonton on the Winter Solstice. The 'Yanjing Suishi Ji' records: 'The shape of a wonton is like a chicken egg, resembling the chaos of heaven and earth, so we eat them on the Winter Solstice.' There is also the saying, 'Wonton for Winter Solstice, noodles for Summer Solstice.' Additionally, the 'Chunming Caifeng Zhi' records: 'Yuanbao soup is wonton. Beijing families often eat this on the Winter Solstice, as the proverb says, Wonton for Winter Solstice, noodles for Summer Solstice, which is appropriate for the season.'
My family makes traditional Urumqi Hui-style lamb sour soup wonton (hong dong). After the lamb is stewed, we add tomatoes, spinach, green onions, and cilantro. The wontons are filled with the classic lamb and onion (piyazi) filling.
Collapse Read »
Summary: Halal Food Guide: Hui Muslim Seasonal Dishes and Eid Food is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: In the daily life of Muslims, certain foods are closely tied to holidays. Foods like bean rice for Ashura, fried dough (youxiang) for Mawlid, dates for breaking the fast, and lamb for Eid al-Adha are all important parts. The account keeps its focus on Hui Muslim Food, Eid Food, Halal Traditions while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
In the daily life of Muslims, certain foods are closely tied to holidays. Foods like bean rice for Ashura, fried dough (youxiang) for Mawlid, dates for breaking the fast, and lamb for Eid al-Adha are all important parts of these holidays. I will share some of the holiday foods I have eaten.
10th of the first month of the Islamic calendar: Ashura.
The 10th of the first month is the honorable Ashura, the first important day after the Islamic New Year. To commemorate the day the ship of Nuh (Noah's Ark) docked, Hui Muslims traditionally make Ashura bean porridge.
Every year, my family makes the Urumqi Hui version of Ashura lamb and bean rice. We prepare seven types of beans, boil them in a pressure cooker, then dice lamb from the Eid al-Adha sacrifice (Qurbani), fry it with scallions in rendered lamb fat, and add salt and Sichuan peppercorn powder. After the beans are cooked, we add rice and glutinous rice, then the fried meat, and simmer until the rice is done. When eating, it has both the fresh scent of beans and the savory taste of lamb; I could eat two big bowls and still want more.
I am sharing the origin of Ashura porridge as told by Imam An from the Jingjue Mosque in Nanjing: On Ashura, the Prophet Nuh and his followers got off the boat and fasted that day to thank Allah. At that time, they had almost no food left. One person took out a handful of wheat, another a handful of mung beans, and another a handful of fava beans. After the Prophet Nuh gathered seven types of seeds, he boiled them so everyone could break their fast. By the will of Allah and the miracle (mu'jiza) of the Prophet. This small amount of food was enough to feed everyone who came off the boat. This was the first meal cooked on land after the flood covered the earth, so people treat it as a blessing from the Prophet Nuh. The Prophet Nuh is known as the second ancestor of humanity.
12th of the third month of the Islamic calendar: Mawlid.
The 12th of the third month is the birthday of the Prophet (Mawlid), and Muslims everywhere commemorate him during this time. Mawlid celebrations first appeared in Baghdad during the Abbasid Caliphate and grew into grand festivals in the Middle East through the Sufis in the 13th century, then spread around the world. In places like Indonesia, the scale of Mawlid even exceeds that of Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha.
Hui Muslims in China hold Mawlid events at the mosque during this time, also called the Holy Gathering or Holy Birthday. After listening to sermons (wa'z), scripture recitations, and saying dua in the main hall, everyone goes downstairs for a communal meal, which is called "koudao." In North China, the most important foods for the Holy Gathering are fried dough (youxiang) and meat porridge. The fried dough in North China is relatively soft, with a texture a bit like bread. The lamb porridge is made with lamb bones, letting the marrow melt into the porridge, making it very fragrant.
Below is the Holy Gathering I attended in Nanxiapo, Beijing, in 2021; although it was smaller than in previous years, I still had the fried dough and meat porridge.
15th of the eighth month of the Islamic calendar: Night of Bara'at.
The night of the 15th of the eighth month is called the night of Bara'at, meaning the night of forgiveness. People say Hu Dengzhou Baba in Shaanxi during the Ming Dynasty started the practice of observing Bara'at, also called the Night Prayer or the Walking Festival. During the first half of the eighth month, everyone gathers to invite the imam and elders to recite scriptures and praise for Bara'at, welcoming the arrival of Ramadan through seeking forgiveness.
In 2022, our family visited Bulate. My mother-in-law made lamb noodle soup (yangrou fensi tang), fried dough (youxiang), braised meatballs (hui wanzi), braised beef steak, and spicy chicken (jiaoma ji). It felt like we were back in Urumqi.
To make lamb noodle soup, first braise the lamb. Then, stir pea starch, let it set overnight, and cut it into blocks. Next, make a topping with cabbage, small radishes, sliced meat, and tomatoes. When eating, you must soak fried dough in the soup.
The ninth month of the Islamic calendar: Ramadan.
The ninth month of the Islamic calendar is the holy month of Ramadan, the month when the Quran was revealed. Fasting, also called holding the fast, is one of the five pillars of the faith. Muslims abstain from food during the day this month. They eat a pre-dawn meal called Suhur and break their fast after sunset with a meal called Iftar.
Eating dates to break the fast is a Sunnah, so many people choose to use dates to break their fast. These are the three types of Medina dates I ate during Ramadan in 2022.
On the left are Mabroom dates, which are long, dark brown, and have a moderate, candy-like sweetness. In the middle are Safawi dates, which are rectangular, dark black, and relatively soft. These are also commonly eaten by pilgrims during Hajj. On the right are Ajwa dates, which are round, dark black, chewy, and very sweet. This is also the most famous type of date, mentioned in the Hadith. Records state that all Ajwa dates originally came from a date palm tree planted by the Prophet Muhammad.
Breaking the fast with everyone at the mosque is a very atmospheric experience. Some mosques in Beijing prepare pastries and fruit for Iftar.
Below is when I was at Nanxiapo Mosque in Beijing in 2021.
This was at the Nandouyacai Mosque in Beijing in 2021.
This was at the Dongzhimenwai Mosque in Beijing in 2021.
In Beijing, some foreign halal restaurants offer Iftar buffets during Ramadan, where you can taste specialty foods from different countries. For details, see my previous article, 'Eating Turkish, Tunisian, Jordanian, and Pakistani Buffets during Ramadan in Beijing'.
The first place is Dardanelles, a long-standing Ramadan Iftar buffet restaurant on Ritan Upper Street. It is a Turkish restaurant run by Azerbaijanis, so it features both Turkish and Azerbaijani flavors.
The best part is the unlimited supply of meat from the open-fire grill, including roast chicken, roast lamb chops, and kebab meat paste. You can eat your fill! There are also various types of flatbread (nang) and bread, plus Levantine appetizers and stews. They have lentil soup made from three colors of lentils. Drinks include lemonade, salty yogurt drink (ayran), and Turkish black tea. For dessert, there is classic baklava and milk pudding, plus various fruits. In short, their selection is very rich.
Baklava is the most famous dessert of the Ottoman Empire, developed by royal chefs at the Topkapi Palace. Every year on the 15th day of Ramadan, the Ottoman Sultan would attend a ceremony called 'Baklava Alayı,' where he would distribute trays of baklava to the Janissaries.
Baklava is a pastry made by layering very thin unleavened dough (filo) with crushed pistachios, crushed walnuts, syrup, or honey.
The second stop is the Tunisian restaurant La Medina at Liangma River. First, follow the Sunnah by eating dates, then drink Harissa soup. The first plate I took included North African sausage (merguez), kebab, six types of Levantine and Maghreb appetizers (meze), fried chickpea balls (falafel), and fried meat balls (kibbeh). Meze and falafel can be stuffed into pita bread.
The second plate was the classic North African Berber dish couscous served with a clay pot stew (tajine). Couscous is a staple food for the Berbers. It is made by rubbing semolina flour into millet-sized grains, which are then dried. A clay pot (tajine) is a cooking vessel with a round, flat bottom and a conical or domed top. This design lets evaporated steam return to the bottom, and you can add water through the hole in the lid.
The third stop is the Levantine restaurant Al Safir at Sanyuanqiao, owned by a Palestinian from Jordan.
The three Ramadan iftar buffets I have tried so far each have their own unique features. Dardanelles has the widest variety, and the open-flame grilled meat is unlimited. La Medina is the only place in Beijing to get a Maghreb buffet, which makes it very unique. Al Safir has the richest selection of Levantine appetizers (Meze), and their falafel and grilled chicken wraps are the best.
At Al Safir, you can eat the most classic Ramadan snack for Arabs, lamb fried pastry triangles (Sambousek). This snack started as the Iranian Sanbosag and spread everywhere as Persian culture traveled. It entered Arab cuisine after the 10th century, reached South Asia with the Delhi Sultanate after the 13th century, and later spread to China, Indonesia, and Africa with Muslim merchants.
The fourth stop is the Pakistani restaurant Khan Baba in Sanlitun. First came dates and water, then Zainab chose flatbread (naan) as her main, while I picked the classic biryani rice with masala chicken, grilled chicken chunks (tikka), and grilled fish. The drink was rose syrup water, and dessert was milk pudding (Kheer). Their yogurt tasted very authentic and tart.
1st day of the 10th month of the Islamic calendar: Eid al-Fitr.
A month of fasting ends, welcoming the important Eid al-Fitr, also called 'Guo'erde'. 'Eid' is Arabic for 'festival,' and Hui Muslims in Urumqi pronounce it 'Erdi'.
I spent Eid al-Fitr in Urumqi in 2020. Hui Muslims in Urumqi usually follow three main steps for Eid al-Fitr: go to the mosque in the morning for prayers, visit graves, and then visit relatives. There are four must-have foods for Eid al-Fitr: noodle soup (fentang), fried dough (youxiang), fried dough twists (sanzi), and small pastries (diediezi). The noodle soup and fried dough must be homemade.
Our family's fried dough twists (sanzi) and small pastries (diediezi).
Hand-pulled fried dough twists (sanzi) made with eggs.
After finishing my first bowl of noodle soup (fentang), my father-in-law and I set off for Zainab's uncle's house, where I had a second bowl. The fried dough (youxiang) at the uncle's house was made with scalded flour.
The uncle's fried dough twists (sanzi) and small pastries (diediezi), which included twisted sugar snacks (tangningningzi) and pastries from the Ma family shop on Shanxi Alley. The twisted sugar snacks (tangningningzi) were soft and delicious.
After visiting the graves, we went to visit Zainab's great-uncle.
The great-uncle's fried dough twists (sanzi) and various snacks.
I spent Eid al-Fitr in Beijing in 2021. After the Eid prayers, everyone gathered on the roof of the century-old Jian'an Zhai shop on Yangmeizhu Xiejie outside Qianmen for a buffet. The 21st-generation successor of the Wang Hui family from Jian'an Tang fried the dough (youxiang) for us himself. It was super delicious, with a chewy texture that wasn't hard at all. We also ate old Beijing Hui-style beef stew and sugar-rolled fruit (tangjuanguo). The beef is brought from Niujie every morning and stewed fresh, never kept overnight. The sugar-rolled fruit (tangjuanguo) is made of yam, dates, and raisins, which are steamed and then stir-fried in sugar, a very time-consuming process.
Besides old Beijing specialties, there was chicken curry, tomato pasta, fried cod fillets, fruit salad, and cream cakes. It was a very satisfying meal!
10th day of the 12th month of the Islamic calendar: Eid al-Adha.
Eid al-Adha is also called the Festival of Sacrifice or the Festival of Loyalty and Filial Piety. In Singapore and Malaysia, it is called Hari Raya Haji. It commemorates the story of the Prophet Ibrahim following Allah's command to sacrifice his beloved son Ismail. Just as the knife touched his throat, Allah sent an angel with a black-headed ram to take his place. Muslims who can afford it perform a sacrifice every year during Eid al-Adha, choosing between a camel, cow, or sheep depending on their situation. After the sacrifice, the meat is usually divided into three parts: one for the family to eat, one for relatives, and one to give to the poor.
In 2020, I spent Eid al-Adha in Sanya, Hainan, and the sheep we sacrificed was a Dongshan goat (Dongshan yang) bought by my friend Muning.
We asked a neighbor to make us some dry-fried lamb (ganbian yangrou) in the local Sanya style. Their family usually sells roast duck next to the Southern Mosque (Nan Si) in Huixin Village, but they were on holiday for Eid al-Adha.
The imam from Turpan, Xinjiang, who performed the sacrifice for us, made a Xinjiang-style clear-stewed lamb (qingdun yangrou). It was super delicious, and the lamb broth was great too.
After the meal, I helped Muning distribute the rest of the meat to friends.
This is the lamb offal soup (yangza tang) stewed by our downstairs neighbors, who are Hui people from Huihui Village. Hui people in Huihui Village rarely eat lamb; they basically only eat the Dongshan goats they sacrifice themselves once a year during Eid al-Adha. After slaughtering the sheep, the Hui people scrape off the hair because they think lamb tastes best with the skin on.
When stewing the lamb offal, they include the sheep's feet and cook it from morning until afternoon, adding various spices. Finally, they add radishes, corn, and mushrooms. The taste is completely different from northern lamb soup; it is a unique and delicious flavor.
Besides holiday foods based on the Islamic calendar, I also eat traditional seasonal foods based on the lunar calendar.
Jingzhe (Awakening of Insects): Oil tea eggs (youcha dan).
Oil tea eggs are a seasonal food unique to Xinjiang Hui Muslims on the day of Jingzhe. The method is simple: first brew brick tea (zhuancha), then render some lamb fat. Stir-fry eggs in the lamb fat, then add raisins, sliced dates, and walnuts. After the eggs are fried, strain the tea leaves, pour the brick tea into the pot, and finally add rock sugar.
Summer Solstice: Cold noodles (lengtao mian).
Beijingers have a saying, 'Wonton for Winter Solstice, noodles for Summer Solstice.' On the Summer Solstice, we eat cold noodles, which are boiled and then rinsed in cold water. You can serve them with eggplant sauce, fried soybean paste (zhajiang), or sesame paste. According to the 'Dijing Suishi Jisheng,' 'On this day, every family eats cold noodles, which is what people commonly call rinsed noodles...'
Let me share how I make fried soybean paste noodles (zhajiang mian). It is actually simple. First, stir-fry meat with green onions, ginger, and garlic over high heat. Use plenty of oil (sometimes I render some lamb fat to add in). Then add yellow soybean paste (huangjiang)—if it's dry, dilute it with water, though I usually buy the wet version—and sweet bean paste (tianmianjiang). Simmer on low heat, adding salt and sugar to your own taste. I usually use a ratio of three parts sweet bean paste to seven parts yellow soybean paste, then add a little sugar.
Winter Solstice: Wonton.
The night of the Winter Solstice is the longest of the year. It is also Yalda Night in Iranian culture, where people like to eat pomegranates, as the red color represents the light of dawn.
Old Beijingers make a point of eating wonton on the Winter Solstice. The 'Yanjing Suishi Ji' records: 'The shape of a wonton is like a chicken egg, resembling the chaos of heaven and earth, so we eat them on the Winter Solstice.' There is also the saying, 'Wonton for Winter Solstice, noodles for Summer Solstice.' Additionally, the 'Chunming Caifeng Zhi' records: 'Yuanbao soup is wonton. Beijing families often eat this on the Winter Solstice, as the proverb says, Wonton for Winter Solstice, noodles for Summer Solstice, which is appropriate for the season.'
My family makes traditional Urumqi Hui-style lamb sour soup wonton (hong dong). After the lamb is stewed, we add tomatoes, spinach, green onions, and cilantro. The wontons are filled with the classic lamb and onion (piyazi) filling.
Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Chifeng — Beidasi Mosque and Muslim Food
Reposted from the web
Summary: Chifeng — Beidasi Mosque and Muslim Food is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: I headed to Chifeng, Inner Mongolia, on February 11. It takes two and a half hours by high-speed train from Beijing Chaoyang Station. The account keeps its focus on Chifeng Mosque, Inner Mongolia, Halal Food while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
I headed to Chifeng, Inner Mongolia, on February 11. It takes two and a half hours by high-speed train from Beijing Chaoyang Station.
After arriving in Chifeng, I first went to the Reidian residential area on Gangtie Street to eat Fengsi lamb soup (yangtang) and hanging-oven flatbread (shaobing). Most people eating at these small shops in the neighborhood are locals. I haven't seen flatbread made in a hanging oven for many years. It was truly delicious.
From Chengde and Pingquan to Chifeng, Hui Muslims who traveled through Gubeikou after the Qing Dynasty began popularized the clear-broth version of lamb soup. This kind of lamb soup doesn't need much seasoning; it tastes great just from the natural flavor of the meat. At this shop, you can choose lamb offal, tripe strips, or head meat. I had the head meat, and they gave me a generous portion. Right after I ordered, the shop received a large order for one hundred flatbreads. They used up all their dough, but I felt very grateful to have gotten mine.
After breakfast, I went to visit the famous Chifeng North Mosque. In the early Qing Dynasty, Hui Muslims from Shandong and Hebei kept traveling through Gubeikou and Chengde to make a living in eastern Inner Mongolia. In the 1730s, ten Hui Muslim families with surnames like Zhang, Ma, and Bai moved from Shandong and Hebei to settle in Chifeng. They were known as the ten great Hui Muslim families, or the 'Zhanshanhu' settlers.
In 1739 (the fourth year of the Qianlong reign), elder Zhang Yueming of Chifeng led the effort to lease seven mu and six fen of land from Mongol princes. They built five mud rooms and three main halls, which became the earliest Chifeng Mosque.
In 1742 (the seventh year of the Qianlong reign), elder Ma Fen, who once ran the Desheng Security Bureau in Shenyang, initiated the renovation of the mosque. He paid for the foundation, and the imam and several elders traveled to various places to collect donations (nietie). Later, elder Ma Fen went to Shenyang to hire craftsmen. Construction took four years and was completed in 1747 (the twelfth year of the Qianlong reign). All the wood used was red pine from the southern mountains of Chifeng. Since then, the imam of the North Mosque has always been a scripture reader from the Ma family line.
The North Mosque underwent a major renovation in 2011. Now, another round of repairs is starting, so the main hall is locked. For now, namaz is held in the south building. I was very sorry that I couldn't get a close look at the beautiful mihrab inside the main hall this time.
The main hall of the Chifeng North Mosque consists of a porch, the main hall, a rear kiln-style hall, and a moon-watching tower (wangyuelou) on top of the kiln hall. The tower has a double-eaved hexagonal roof with a gilded bronze treasure vase on top, and the wooden carvings feature two dragons playing with a pearl. The porch sits on a Sumeru pedestal, and the wooden carvings between the eaves pillars feature cloud and flower patterns, which are very characteristic of the Northeast.
The stone, wood, and brick carvings at the North Mosque are all very exquisite:
The beams of the porch are painted with Suzhou-style art, and the wooden dragon heads are very rare in China.
The stone carvings on the gable walls of the main hall feature bats representing 'good fortune' and intertwined passionflower vines.
The stone base of the corner pillar of the main hall features a phoenix, peony, sun, and moon design.
The drum-shaped stone base in front of the porch.
The brick carvings on the roof corners feature calligraphy. This style of calligraphy is related to the spread of the Shandong school of scripture hall education in the Northeast.
At noon, I ate buckwheat noodles (bo mian), a specialty of Aohan Banner, in front of the Chifeng South Mosque. These noodles are made by kneading buckwheat dough until it is quite firm, then using a special knife with handles on both sides to slice the dough directly on a board. The boiled noodles can be topped with various sauces, usually including pickled cabbage, eggplant, or celery, and served with fresh leek flower sauce.
There are many halal restaurants next to the Chifeng South Mosque. By the beginning of the 19th century, the Hui Muslim population in Chifeng had grown to over 300 households. In 1801 (the sixth year of the Jiaqing reign), Hui Muslims with the surname Zhang decided to set aside five mu of land from their cemetery to build the Chifeng South Mosque. Part of the construction funds were raised through donations (nietie) from various mosques and Hui Muslim communities, and the Zhang family covered the rest. Construction of the South Mosque began in 1802 (the seventh year of the Jiaqing reign) and was completed the following year. After 1958, the South Mosque (Nandasi) was occupied and later demolished to be rebuilt as Changqing Park. After the 1980s, Hui Muslims in Chifeng proposed restoring the South Mosque. After years of effort in the 1990s, the current South Mosque was finally completed in 1997.
I bought a few prayer cards (qihuci) at this shop next to the South Mosque.
My impression of this trip to Chifeng is that the streets are full of roasted chicken shops. There are so many kinds of roasted chicken, smoked chicken, and braised chicken. Do people in Chifeng really love eating chicken?
I also bought roasted chicken and braised chicken at two shops to try. The taste was okay, just a bit salty. The first roasted chicken shop was opened by a Hui Muslim named Liu from Jinchanggouliang Town. This is a small town rich in gold and silver under Aohan Banner in Chifeng. After the Rehe administrative system was established during the Yongzheng reign, many people came here to pan for gold. In 1893, the Qing Dynasty officially set up a general bureau to mine gold, with more than 4,000 people at its peak.
I didn't expect there to be a small halal food court next to Changqing Park in Chifeng. It has all the classic snacks like octopus balls (zhangyu xiaowanzi), grilled cold noodles (kao lengmian), iron-plate squid (tieban youyu), grilled gluten (kao mianjin), grilled scallops (kao shanbei), and stinky tofu (chou doufu). There is even a conveyor belt hot pot (huizhuan xiaohuoguo) in the back, and many children come here to eat. I also pretended to be a kid and had some grilled cold noodles and iron-plate squid. Actually, when I was little, I also loved eating iron-plate squid from the Longfu Mosque snack shop, but we really didn't have the others back then.
Collapse Read »
Summary: Chifeng — Beidasi Mosque and Muslim Food is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: I headed to Chifeng, Inner Mongolia, on February 11. It takes two and a half hours by high-speed train from Beijing Chaoyang Station. The account keeps its focus on Chifeng Mosque, Inner Mongolia, Halal Food while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
I headed to Chifeng, Inner Mongolia, on February 11. It takes two and a half hours by high-speed train from Beijing Chaoyang Station.
After arriving in Chifeng, I first went to the Reidian residential area on Gangtie Street to eat Fengsi lamb soup (yangtang) and hanging-oven flatbread (shaobing). Most people eating at these small shops in the neighborhood are locals. I haven't seen flatbread made in a hanging oven for many years. It was truly delicious.
From Chengde and Pingquan to Chifeng, Hui Muslims who traveled through Gubeikou after the Qing Dynasty began popularized the clear-broth version of lamb soup. This kind of lamb soup doesn't need much seasoning; it tastes great just from the natural flavor of the meat. At this shop, you can choose lamb offal, tripe strips, or head meat. I had the head meat, and they gave me a generous portion. Right after I ordered, the shop received a large order for one hundred flatbreads. They used up all their dough, but I felt very grateful to have gotten mine.
After breakfast, I went to visit the famous Chifeng North Mosque. In the early Qing Dynasty, Hui Muslims from Shandong and Hebei kept traveling through Gubeikou and Chengde to make a living in eastern Inner Mongolia. In the 1730s, ten Hui Muslim families with surnames like Zhang, Ma, and Bai moved from Shandong and Hebei to settle in Chifeng. They were known as the ten great Hui Muslim families, or the 'Zhanshanhu' settlers.
In 1739 (the fourth year of the Qianlong reign), elder Zhang Yueming of Chifeng led the effort to lease seven mu and six fen of land from Mongol princes. They built five mud rooms and three main halls, which became the earliest Chifeng Mosque.
In 1742 (the seventh year of the Qianlong reign), elder Ma Fen, who once ran the Desheng Security Bureau in Shenyang, initiated the renovation of the mosque. He paid for the foundation, and the imam and several elders traveled to various places to collect donations (nietie). Later, elder Ma Fen went to Shenyang to hire craftsmen. Construction took four years and was completed in 1747 (the twelfth year of the Qianlong reign). All the wood used was red pine from the southern mountains of Chifeng. Since then, the imam of the North Mosque has always been a scripture reader from the Ma family line.
The North Mosque underwent a major renovation in 2011. Now, another round of repairs is starting, so the main hall is locked. For now, namaz is held in the south building. I was very sorry that I couldn't get a close look at the beautiful mihrab inside the main hall this time.
The main hall of the Chifeng North Mosque consists of a porch, the main hall, a rear kiln-style hall, and a moon-watching tower (wangyuelou) on top of the kiln hall. The tower has a double-eaved hexagonal roof with a gilded bronze treasure vase on top, and the wooden carvings feature two dragons playing with a pearl. The porch sits on a Sumeru pedestal, and the wooden carvings between the eaves pillars feature cloud and flower patterns, which are very characteristic of the Northeast.
The stone, wood, and brick carvings at the North Mosque are all very exquisite:
The beams of the porch are painted with Suzhou-style art, and the wooden dragon heads are very rare in China.
The stone carvings on the gable walls of the main hall feature bats representing 'good fortune' and intertwined passionflower vines.
The stone base of the corner pillar of the main hall features a phoenix, peony, sun, and moon design.
The drum-shaped stone base in front of the porch.
The brick carvings on the roof corners feature calligraphy. This style of calligraphy is related to the spread of the Shandong school of scripture hall education in the Northeast.
At noon, I ate buckwheat noodles (bo mian), a specialty of Aohan Banner, in front of the Chifeng South Mosque. These noodles are made by kneading buckwheat dough until it is quite firm, then using a special knife with handles on both sides to slice the dough directly on a board. The boiled noodles can be topped with various sauces, usually including pickled cabbage, eggplant, or celery, and served with fresh leek flower sauce.
There are many halal restaurants next to the Chifeng South Mosque. By the beginning of the 19th century, the Hui Muslim population in Chifeng had grown to over 300 households. In 1801 (the sixth year of the Jiaqing reign), Hui Muslims with the surname Zhang decided to set aside five mu of land from their cemetery to build the Chifeng South Mosque. Part of the construction funds were raised through donations (nietie) from various mosques and Hui Muslim communities, and the Zhang family covered the rest. Construction of the South Mosque began in 1802 (the seventh year of the Jiaqing reign) and was completed the following year. After 1958, the South Mosque (Nandasi) was occupied and later demolished to be rebuilt as Changqing Park. After the 1980s, Hui Muslims in Chifeng proposed restoring the South Mosque. After years of effort in the 1990s, the current South Mosque was finally completed in 1997.
I bought a few prayer cards (qihuci) at this shop next to the South Mosque.
My impression of this trip to Chifeng is that the streets are full of roasted chicken shops. There are so many kinds of roasted chicken, smoked chicken, and braised chicken. Do people in Chifeng really love eating chicken?
I also bought roasted chicken and braised chicken at two shops to try. The taste was okay, just a bit salty. The first roasted chicken shop was opened by a Hui Muslim named Liu from Jinchanggouliang Town. This is a small town rich in gold and silver under Aohan Banner in Chifeng. After the Rehe administrative system was established during the Yongzheng reign, many people came here to pan for gold. In 1893, the Qing Dynasty officially set up a general bureau to mine gold, with more than 4,000 people at its peak.
I didn't expect there to be a small halal food court next to Changqing Park in Chifeng. It has all the classic snacks like octopus balls (zhangyu xiaowanzi), grilled cold noodles (kao lengmian), iron-plate squid (tieban youyu), grilled gluten (kao mianjin), grilled scallops (kao shanbei), and stinky tofu (chou doufu). There is even a conveyor belt hot pot (huizhuan xiaohuoguo) in the back, and many children come here to eat. I also pretended to be a kid and had some grilled cold noodles and iron-plate squid. Actually, when I was little, I also loved eating iron-plate squid from the Longfu Mosque snack shop, but we really didn't have the others back then.
Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Yangbi, Dali — Hui Street and Mosques
Reposted from the web
Summary: Yangbi, Dali — Hui Street and Mosques is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: On January 29, I rode an electric scooter from Xiaguan in Dali to Yangbi County in the west to visit an old mosque and taste local food. The account keeps its focus on Yangbi Dali, Tea Horse Road, Hui Muslims while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
On January 29, I rode an electric scooter from Xiaguan in Dali to Yangbi County in the west to visit an old mosque and taste local food. The trade route from Dali to Thailand and Myanmar is part of the Southern Silk Road, known at different times as the Shu-Shendu Road and the Tea Horse Road. The old post road from Xiaguan in Dali west through Yangbi to Baoshan is also called the Bonan Ancient Road because it passes through the Bonan Mountains.
Halal food
On the way from Xiaguan to Yangbi, there is a hot spring village called Shaba. The road is lined with fish restaurants, and their Shaba fish is very famous in Dali.
The restaurant I chose is run by Hui Muslims from Eryuan, Dali. The service is great, and they served dried fruit and tea as soon as I sat down. Shaba fish is actually sour and spicy crucian carp. It is affordable, and two fish are just right for one person.
The crucian carp is caught and prepared fresh. They use dried papaya and plum vinegar for the sour flavor, and add chili for a very rich taste. It comes with tofu and mushrooms, which is very satisfying. If you find it too spicy, you can drink a bottle of local Ruili River mango juice from Yunnan. I was also pleasantly surprised that the two fish the waiter picked for me were full of roe, which tasted very rich and delicious.
I feel the most popular rice noodle roll (juanfen) shop in Yangbi town is Kemeijia on Jinxing Road. You can buy a whole sheet of rice noodle roll to take away, or eat a bowl of warm meat sauce rice noodle roll in the shop. The open kitchen is clean and hygienic, and the taste is great.
Yangbi Xiajie
In 1279 (the 16th year of Zhiyuan), Nasr al-Din, the eldest son of the Yunnan regional commander Sayyid Ajjal Shams al-Din, moved the military headquarters to Dali and sent tens of thousands of Hui Muslim troops to fight repeatedly against Myanmar. After the war, the Yuan Dynasty left many soldiers to guard various key routes. According to the History of Yuan, in 1303 (the 7th year of Dade), an imperial decree ordered 14,000 Hui Muslim soldiers who had conquered Myanmar to return to their respective garrisons. The location of Yangbi Xiajie was set up as a military post, and elite Tamachi troops were stationed there, which is how Yangbi Xiajie began to form.
In 1382 (the 15th year of Hongwu in the Ming Dynasty), Ma Dinghui, a descendant of the Tamachi troops left in Dali by the Yuan Dynasty, followed the Ming army to fight in Yunnan. He earned many merits and was appointed as the local inspector of the Yangbi Inspection Office, settling in Yangbi Xiajie with his subordinates. Ma Dinghui's descendants were known as the Tusi official family, and together with the officers and soldiers who guarded and farmed in Yangbi at that time, they became the earliest Hui Muslims in Yangbi. In the early Ming Dynasty, the main Hui Muslim surnames in Yangbi were Ma, Sha, Bai, and Yang. In the mid-Ming period, the Long, Wu, Wang, Du, and Mi surnames were added, and by the mid-Qing Dynasty, there were more than 800 households.
During the Ming and Qing dynasties, Yangbi Xiajie was a narrow ancient road nearly one kilometer long. Along the street were various horse inns, hotels, and shops selling halal snacks and local specialties, with a constant stream of horse caravans and mountain people selling mountain goods. At that time, almost every Hui Muslim household in Yangbi raised horses and carried out long-distance transport under the leadership of a caravan leader (maguotou).
During the Tongzhi disaster, most of the Hui Muslims in Yangbi were killed, and only a very small number escaped. In 1877 (the 3rd year of Guangxu), the Qing government encouraged the displaced Hui Muslims to return and resume their businesses. Eight households of survivors moved back to live in Xiajie. After that, more Hui Muslims came to Xiajie to do business and settle down, and by the Republic of China period, the number had increased to 70 or 80 households. In 1931, Edgar Snow traveled with a horse caravan to Yangbi Xiajie. In his article 'Caravan Leaves Dali for Yongping, China,' published in the American newspaper The Sun on August 15, 1931, he described Yangbi Xiajie as a 'Muslim-inhabited town'.
In the late Republic of China period, the Hui Muslim horse caravans in Yangbi Xiajie developed again. With less than 100 households, they raised more than 400 horses. Most of the young men had experience traveling to Myanmar and India for trade, and some even started families abroad.
In 1938, the Burma Road opened to traffic, and villagers began to build houses on both sides of the road, gradually forming the current layout of Xiajie Village. As the Burma Road became the main transport route, the Bonan Ancient Road gradually faded into history, and the shops along the road closed one after another.
Old mosque
The Yangbi old mosque is located next to the old Burma Road in Xiajie Village. When the main beam of the hall was replaced in 1958, an inscription from the 15th year of Hongwu of the Ming Dynasty was found on the beam. According to the oral history passed down through generations in Xiajie, after the Hui Muslim officers and soldiers left in the early Ming Dynasty camped in Yangbi, they went to the river to bathe and purify themselves. Each person carried a stone on their shoulder to gradually build the foundation of the main hall. At first, they just built simple flat-roofed houses. Later, they hired craftsmen and spent many years building the current main hall with its three-bay and five-grid structure. Today, the stone foundation of the main hall is uneven, and it does not perfectly align with the thickness of the walls, which matches the legends about the mosque's construction.
The old mosque was once magnificent. From east to west, it featured a gate in the style of a memorial archway, a screen wall, a three-story prayer tower (jiaobailou), a second gate, a stone archway, a stone bridge, north and south side rooms, and the main hall, making for a spectacular sight. During the Tongzhi disaster, the mosque was burned and destroyed. It was later turned into a Confucian mosque. The gate and prayer tower were taken down to build Zhulin Mosque, and other buildings were ruined, leaving only the main hall standing.
The main hall is 15 meters high. Inside, there are eight 12-meter-tall pillars made of lotus wood and camphor wood, which have lasted a long time because they were soaked in lime water. The walls of the main hall were originally decorated with calligraphy of scriptures written in black ink. When it became a Confucian temple, they were covered with lime and painted red, but now they have been restored and repainted. The ceiling is made of 144 panels, all featuring scripture calligraphy written with a gold pen. Windows were opened on all four sides below the beams, allowing air to circulate and sunlight to fill the hall.
In 1917, the old mosque was turned into a primary school. In 1937, a bridge construction team moved into the mosque to rush repairs on the Yunnan-Burma Road. During the chaos of war, the main hall's sandalwood lattice doors with double-sided carvings of flowers, the marble railings by the pond, and the stone archway were all stolen and sold in Weishan County. The ceiling of the main hall was used as firewood, and a large amount of the wooden structure was burned.
In 1950, the mosque was verbally returned. That May, under the guidance of the Hui Muslim Association and the Mosque Property Committee, over ten young men and women from the village set up a weaving factory in the main hall. In August of the same year, they held a grand Christmas celebration inside the mosque. But just two months later, in October 1950, the County Grain Bureau borrowed the mosque to use as a warehouse. Later, it was reported as state-owned property, and the land in front of the main hall was occupied by a veterinary station and a foreign trade company. In 1977, the Grain Bureau tore down the roof ridge of the main hall and sawed off the four corners of the eaves. It was not until 1994, after years of effort, that Yangbi County finally handed the mosque over to the mosque management committee, and it was reopened after repairs.
There is a plaque reading 'Bao Luo Wan You' (All-Encompassing) inscribed by acting Yangbi County Magistrate Yang Wenmei during Christmas in 1943, and a plaque reading 'Xing Jiao Jian Guo' (Revive Religion and Build the Nation) inscribed by Bai Chongxi in 1941.
Shangxiang Mosque
Yangbi Shangxiang Mosque is located in the center of Xiajie Village and was first built in 1921. After the Tongzhi disaster, the old Yangbi mosque was turned into a Confucian mosque, and religious life in Xiajie Village died out. It was not until the early years of the Guangxu reign that Ma Yuzhang, who had fled to Shaanxi to study, returned to Xiajie and began teaching scriptures in a private home. Later, Ma Long was elected as the imam. He traveled to Menghua Prefecture (Weishan) to negotiate and successfully redeemed 30 mu of mosque property land.
In 1915, the Yangbi Halal Association was established. The president, Du Fachun, was from Dali. After the Tongzhi disaster, he fled with his family to Xiajie in Yangbi, started a small business, and eventually expanded his shops to places like Baoshan and Yangon, Myanmar. His residence in Xiajie, Yangbi, also served as a place for local believers to pray and recite scriptures. To build a new mosque, the elders of Xiajie Village sent Du Fachun and his group out in 1919 to raise funds. Du Fachun and his group followed a horse caravan all the way to Yangon, Myanmar. More than 30 overseas Chinese from Yangbi who were working there generously donated over 1,000 small silver coins (British pounds). In 1921, through everyone's joint efforts, they obtained the sloping land at Sangyuan. After digging and filling to level the ground, they finally built Shangxiang Mosque.
After the old mosque reopened in 1994, Shangxiang Mosque gradually fell into disuse. The prayer schedule (wushibiao) in the main hall was updated until 2001.
Yangbi Shangjie
Yangbi Shangjie is on the west side of Xiajie, separated by the Xueshan River. During the Hongzhi reign of the Ming Dynasty (1488-1505), the Yunlong Bridge was built in Shangjie, and the ancient Bonan Road was diverted through Shangjie, leading to its rapid development. Today, Shangjie preserves its complete ancient road and street-side shops. In 2022, it was named a provincial-level historical and cultural district.
Shangjie Mosque
The Shangjie Xinyingpan Mosque in Yangbi was first built in 1859 (the ninth year of the Xianfeng reign). It was confiscated after the disasters of the Tongzhi reign. During the Guangxu reign, the local community leaders elected Imam Ma Ende, along with managers Li Xiucheng and Zhang Chenlin, to travel to Menghua Prefecture (Weishan) to redeem the mosque. To raise funds for the mosque, Ma Ende followed a horse caravan all the way to Myanmar. With the help of overseas compatriots like Haji Zhao Lianhong, he collected enough donations to rebuild the Shangjie Mosque. In 1989, a neighbor's careless use of electricity caused a fire. The entire Shangjie Mosque burned down, except for 16 carved lattice doors that were rescued in time. Between 1991 and 1992, the Shangjie Mosque community hired craftsmen from Weishan and bought timber from the Dali forest region to rebuild the main hall, maintaining the traditional Dali architectural style.
Spring travels in 2023:
On January 23, I set off from Macau and visited the Macau mosque, Moro Garden (Moro Yuan), where I ate delicious Indonesian Javanese food (see "Moro Garden and Indonesian Food in Macau"). On January 25, I arrived in Guangzhou, visited some friends (dosti), and ate various halal foods (see "Hui Muslim Fried Dough (youxiang) and Yemeni Food in Guangzhou").
At noon, I performed the afternoon prayer (asr) at Huaisheng Mosque, then went to visit the ancient tombs of the sages (see "Huaisheng Mosque and the Ancient Tombs of the Sages in Guangzhou").
In the afternoon, I performed the late afternoon prayer (asr) at Haopan Mosque and the sunset prayer (maghrib) at Xiaodongying Mosque (see "Visiting Haopan Mosque and Xiaodongying Mosque in Guangzhou").
On the morning of January 26, I took a train from Guangzhou to Zhaoqing, visited two mosques, and ate halal Cantonese food (see "Halal Roast Goose and Starfruit at the Mosque in Zhaoqing, Guangdong").
On the morning of January 27, I flew from Guangzhou to Xichang, Sichuan. I performed the Friday prayer (jumuah) at the Xichang City Mosque, visited the West Mosque and East Mosque, and ate Xichang rice noodles (see "Performing Jumuah and Eating Rice Noodles in Xichang, Sichuan").
On January 28, I took a high-speed train south to Miyi County in Panzhihua, Sichuan. I visited the beautiful Hui Muslim village of Tianba, performed the afternoon prayer (asr) at the ancient Tianba Mosque, and ate delicious food at a local farmhouse restaurant (see "A Beautiful Hui Village Deep in the Mountains—Tianba, Miyi, Sichuan").
From January 28 to 31, I traveled in Dali. During this time, I carefully explored the Hui mosque neighborhoods around Wenming Street and West Street in Xiaguan to learn about the history of the Xiaguan mosques (see "Centennial Mosques and Halal Food in Xiaguan, Dali"). Collapse Read »
Summary: Yangbi, Dali — Hui Street and Mosques is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: On January 29, I rode an electric scooter from Xiaguan in Dali to Yangbi County in the west to visit an old mosque and taste local food. The account keeps its focus on Yangbi Dali, Tea Horse Road, Hui Muslims while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
On January 29, I rode an electric scooter from Xiaguan in Dali to Yangbi County in the west to visit an old mosque and taste local food. The trade route from Dali to Thailand and Myanmar is part of the Southern Silk Road, known at different times as the Shu-Shendu Road and the Tea Horse Road. The old post road from Xiaguan in Dali west through Yangbi to Baoshan is also called the Bonan Ancient Road because it passes through the Bonan Mountains.
Halal food
On the way from Xiaguan to Yangbi, there is a hot spring village called Shaba. The road is lined with fish restaurants, and their Shaba fish is very famous in Dali.
The restaurant I chose is run by Hui Muslims from Eryuan, Dali. The service is great, and they served dried fruit and tea as soon as I sat down. Shaba fish is actually sour and spicy crucian carp. It is affordable, and two fish are just right for one person.
The crucian carp is caught and prepared fresh. They use dried papaya and plum vinegar for the sour flavor, and add chili for a very rich taste. It comes with tofu and mushrooms, which is very satisfying. If you find it too spicy, you can drink a bottle of local Ruili River mango juice from Yunnan. I was also pleasantly surprised that the two fish the waiter picked for me were full of roe, which tasted very rich and delicious.
I feel the most popular rice noodle roll (juanfen) shop in Yangbi town is Kemeijia on Jinxing Road. You can buy a whole sheet of rice noodle roll to take away, or eat a bowl of warm meat sauce rice noodle roll in the shop. The open kitchen is clean and hygienic, and the taste is great.
Yangbi Xiajie
In 1279 (the 16th year of Zhiyuan), Nasr al-Din, the eldest son of the Yunnan regional commander Sayyid Ajjal Shams al-Din, moved the military headquarters to Dali and sent tens of thousands of Hui Muslim troops to fight repeatedly against Myanmar. After the war, the Yuan Dynasty left many soldiers to guard various key routes. According to the History of Yuan, in 1303 (the 7th year of Dade), an imperial decree ordered 14,000 Hui Muslim soldiers who had conquered Myanmar to return to their respective garrisons. The location of Yangbi Xiajie was set up as a military post, and elite Tamachi troops were stationed there, which is how Yangbi Xiajie began to form.
In 1382 (the 15th year of Hongwu in the Ming Dynasty), Ma Dinghui, a descendant of the Tamachi troops left in Dali by the Yuan Dynasty, followed the Ming army to fight in Yunnan. He earned many merits and was appointed as the local inspector of the Yangbi Inspection Office, settling in Yangbi Xiajie with his subordinates. Ma Dinghui's descendants were known as the Tusi official family, and together with the officers and soldiers who guarded and farmed in Yangbi at that time, they became the earliest Hui Muslims in Yangbi. In the early Ming Dynasty, the main Hui Muslim surnames in Yangbi were Ma, Sha, Bai, and Yang. In the mid-Ming period, the Long, Wu, Wang, Du, and Mi surnames were added, and by the mid-Qing Dynasty, there were more than 800 households.
During the Ming and Qing dynasties, Yangbi Xiajie was a narrow ancient road nearly one kilometer long. Along the street were various horse inns, hotels, and shops selling halal snacks and local specialties, with a constant stream of horse caravans and mountain people selling mountain goods. At that time, almost every Hui Muslim household in Yangbi raised horses and carried out long-distance transport under the leadership of a caravan leader (maguotou).
During the Tongzhi disaster, most of the Hui Muslims in Yangbi were killed, and only a very small number escaped. In 1877 (the 3rd year of Guangxu), the Qing government encouraged the displaced Hui Muslims to return and resume their businesses. Eight households of survivors moved back to live in Xiajie. After that, more Hui Muslims came to Xiajie to do business and settle down, and by the Republic of China period, the number had increased to 70 or 80 households. In 1931, Edgar Snow traveled with a horse caravan to Yangbi Xiajie. In his article 'Caravan Leaves Dali for Yongping, China,' published in the American newspaper The Sun on August 15, 1931, he described Yangbi Xiajie as a 'Muslim-inhabited town'.
In the late Republic of China period, the Hui Muslim horse caravans in Yangbi Xiajie developed again. With less than 100 households, they raised more than 400 horses. Most of the young men had experience traveling to Myanmar and India for trade, and some even started families abroad.
In 1938, the Burma Road opened to traffic, and villagers began to build houses on both sides of the road, gradually forming the current layout of Xiajie Village. As the Burma Road became the main transport route, the Bonan Ancient Road gradually faded into history, and the shops along the road closed one after another.
Old mosque
The Yangbi old mosque is located next to the old Burma Road in Xiajie Village. When the main beam of the hall was replaced in 1958, an inscription from the 15th year of Hongwu of the Ming Dynasty was found on the beam. According to the oral history passed down through generations in Xiajie, after the Hui Muslim officers and soldiers left in the early Ming Dynasty camped in Yangbi, they went to the river to bathe and purify themselves. Each person carried a stone on their shoulder to gradually build the foundation of the main hall. At first, they just built simple flat-roofed houses. Later, they hired craftsmen and spent many years building the current main hall with its three-bay and five-grid structure. Today, the stone foundation of the main hall is uneven, and it does not perfectly align with the thickness of the walls, which matches the legends about the mosque's construction.
The old mosque was once magnificent. From east to west, it featured a gate in the style of a memorial archway, a screen wall, a three-story prayer tower (jiaobailou), a second gate, a stone archway, a stone bridge, north and south side rooms, and the main hall, making for a spectacular sight. During the Tongzhi disaster, the mosque was burned and destroyed. It was later turned into a Confucian mosque. The gate and prayer tower were taken down to build Zhulin Mosque, and other buildings were ruined, leaving only the main hall standing.
The main hall is 15 meters high. Inside, there are eight 12-meter-tall pillars made of lotus wood and camphor wood, which have lasted a long time because they were soaked in lime water. The walls of the main hall were originally decorated with calligraphy of scriptures written in black ink. When it became a Confucian temple, they were covered with lime and painted red, but now they have been restored and repainted. The ceiling is made of 144 panels, all featuring scripture calligraphy written with a gold pen. Windows were opened on all four sides below the beams, allowing air to circulate and sunlight to fill the hall.
In 1917, the old mosque was turned into a primary school. In 1937, a bridge construction team moved into the mosque to rush repairs on the Yunnan-Burma Road. During the chaos of war, the main hall's sandalwood lattice doors with double-sided carvings of flowers, the marble railings by the pond, and the stone archway were all stolen and sold in Weishan County. The ceiling of the main hall was used as firewood, and a large amount of the wooden structure was burned.
In 1950, the mosque was verbally returned. That May, under the guidance of the Hui Muslim Association and the Mosque Property Committee, over ten young men and women from the village set up a weaving factory in the main hall. In August of the same year, they held a grand Christmas celebration inside the mosque. But just two months later, in October 1950, the County Grain Bureau borrowed the mosque to use as a warehouse. Later, it was reported as state-owned property, and the land in front of the main hall was occupied by a veterinary station and a foreign trade company. In 1977, the Grain Bureau tore down the roof ridge of the main hall and sawed off the four corners of the eaves. It was not until 1994, after years of effort, that Yangbi County finally handed the mosque over to the mosque management committee, and it was reopened after repairs.
There is a plaque reading 'Bao Luo Wan You' (All-Encompassing) inscribed by acting Yangbi County Magistrate Yang Wenmei during Christmas in 1943, and a plaque reading 'Xing Jiao Jian Guo' (Revive Religion and Build the Nation) inscribed by Bai Chongxi in 1941.
Shangxiang Mosque
Yangbi Shangxiang Mosque is located in the center of Xiajie Village and was first built in 1921. After the Tongzhi disaster, the old Yangbi mosque was turned into a Confucian mosque, and religious life in Xiajie Village died out. It was not until the early years of the Guangxu reign that Ma Yuzhang, who had fled to Shaanxi to study, returned to Xiajie and began teaching scriptures in a private home. Later, Ma Long was elected as the imam. He traveled to Menghua Prefecture (Weishan) to negotiate and successfully redeemed 30 mu of mosque property land.
In 1915, the Yangbi Halal Association was established. The president, Du Fachun, was from Dali. After the Tongzhi disaster, he fled with his family to Xiajie in Yangbi, started a small business, and eventually expanded his shops to places like Baoshan and Yangon, Myanmar. His residence in Xiajie, Yangbi, also served as a place for local believers to pray and recite scriptures. To build a new mosque, the elders of Xiajie Village sent Du Fachun and his group out in 1919 to raise funds. Du Fachun and his group followed a horse caravan all the way to Yangon, Myanmar. More than 30 overseas Chinese from Yangbi who were working there generously donated over 1,000 small silver coins (British pounds). In 1921, through everyone's joint efforts, they obtained the sloping land at Sangyuan. After digging and filling to level the ground, they finally built Shangxiang Mosque.
After the old mosque reopened in 1994, Shangxiang Mosque gradually fell into disuse. The prayer schedule (wushibiao) in the main hall was updated until 2001.
Yangbi Shangjie
Yangbi Shangjie is on the west side of Xiajie, separated by the Xueshan River. During the Hongzhi reign of the Ming Dynasty (1488-1505), the Yunlong Bridge was built in Shangjie, and the ancient Bonan Road was diverted through Shangjie, leading to its rapid development. Today, Shangjie preserves its complete ancient road and street-side shops. In 2022, it was named a provincial-level historical and cultural district.
Shangjie Mosque
The Shangjie Xinyingpan Mosque in Yangbi was first built in 1859 (the ninth year of the Xianfeng reign). It was confiscated after the disasters of the Tongzhi reign. During the Guangxu reign, the local community leaders elected Imam Ma Ende, along with managers Li Xiucheng and Zhang Chenlin, to travel to Menghua Prefecture (Weishan) to redeem the mosque. To raise funds for the mosque, Ma Ende followed a horse caravan all the way to Myanmar. With the help of overseas compatriots like Haji Zhao Lianhong, he collected enough donations to rebuild the Shangjie Mosque. In 1989, a neighbor's careless use of electricity caused a fire. The entire Shangjie Mosque burned down, except for 16 carved lattice doors that were rescued in time. Between 1991 and 1992, the Shangjie Mosque community hired craftsmen from Weishan and bought timber from the Dali forest region to rebuild the main hall, maintaining the traditional Dali architectural style.
Spring travels in 2023:
On January 23, I set off from Macau and visited the Macau mosque, Moro Garden (Moro Yuan), where I ate delicious Indonesian Javanese food (see "Moro Garden and Indonesian Food in Macau"). On January 25, I arrived in Guangzhou, visited some friends (dosti), and ate various halal foods (see "Hui Muslim Fried Dough (youxiang) and Yemeni Food in Guangzhou").
At noon, I performed the afternoon prayer (asr) at Huaisheng Mosque, then went to visit the ancient tombs of the sages (see "Huaisheng Mosque and the Ancient Tombs of the Sages in Guangzhou").
In the afternoon, I performed the late afternoon prayer (asr) at Haopan Mosque and the sunset prayer (maghrib) at Xiaodongying Mosque (see "Visiting Haopan Mosque and Xiaodongying Mosque in Guangzhou").
On the morning of January 26, I took a train from Guangzhou to Zhaoqing, visited two mosques, and ate halal Cantonese food (see "Halal Roast Goose and Starfruit at the Mosque in Zhaoqing, Guangdong").
On the morning of January 27, I flew from Guangzhou to Xichang, Sichuan. I performed the Friday prayer (jumuah) at the Xichang City Mosque, visited the West Mosque and East Mosque, and ate Xichang rice noodles (see "Performing Jumuah and Eating Rice Noodles in Xichang, Sichuan").
On January 28, I took a high-speed train south to Miyi County in Panzhihua, Sichuan. I visited the beautiful Hui Muslim village of Tianba, performed the afternoon prayer (asr) at the ancient Tianba Mosque, and ate delicious food at a local farmhouse restaurant (see "A Beautiful Hui Village Deep in the Mountains—Tianba, Miyi, Sichuan").
From January 28 to 31, I traveled in Dali. During this time, I carefully explored the Hui mosque neighborhoods around Wenming Street and West Street in Xiaguan to learn about the history of the Xiaguan mosques (see "Centennial Mosques and Halal Food in Xiaguan, Dali"). Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Baoding — Historic Mosques and Hui Muslim Food
Reposted from the web
Summary: Baoding — Historic Mosques and Hui Muslim Food is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: I visited Baoding, Hebei, on the morning of March 12, 2023. It was very convenient, taking just over 40 minutes by high-speed train from Beijing West Station. The account keeps its focus on Baoding Mosques, Hui Muslims, Halal Food while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
I visited Baoding, Hebei, on the morning of March 12, 2023. It was very convenient, taking just over 40 minutes by high-speed train from Beijing West Station.
The Hui Muslim community in Baoding is in the southeast of the old city, commonly known as 'Dongtou.' It has three ancient mosques built during the Ming and Qing dynasties and the Republican era. Before the old city renovation, this area was full of crisscrossing streets and alleys, with many old homes of famous people tucked away inside. After the 2010 renovation, the Mosque Residential Area (Qingzhensi Xiaoqu) was built here. The layout of the mosque and its surrounding neighborhood was preserved, and the area is now very lively with halal snack shops all around.
The most common snack sold around the Mosque Residential Area is braised chicken (luzhuji). I bought one from a cart inside the neighborhood run by the Ma Family Brand (Majia Laohao). The chicken weighed a little over a pound and wasn't very big. The braised flavor was good and not as salty as in some other places, so it was perfect to eat on its own.
I had lunch at Yongshenghao on Fuxue Back Street, west of the Mosque Residential Area. The Baoding Antique Market is right next door, and it gets incredibly crowded and busy on weekends.
Yongshenghao is a typical old-town shop run by a husband and wife. It is small, and by 11 a.m., it was already full of local customers. Local halal food in Baoding follows the style of traditional North China halal cuisine but has its own unique character. The most interesting dish is the shredded pork with fish-flavored sauce (yuxiang rousi). Outsiders would never think to order it just by looking at the menu, but it is actually the most popular dish people order at halal restaurants in Baoding! The beef is shredded very thinly. The sweet and sour sauce doesn't have the dark color of soy sauce, and the plate is full of meat with almost no vegetables, making it very appetizing.
I also ordered the famous Baoding halal dish, beef covered flatbread (niurou zhaobing). After you order, the owner asks 'how much cover, how much bread,' which refers to how many liang of beef and how many liang of flatbread you want. The flavor of the covered flatbread comes mainly from the aged broth used to stew the meat. Every shop uses different meat ingredients, which are considered their secret recipes. The flatbread (laobing) soaked ladle by ladle in the aged broth is very fragrant and rich. Besides the meat and bread combinations, there is also 'shovel cover' (chanzhao), which is just the flatbread and green onions soaked in the aged broth. It is very affordable.
Another covered flatbread shop.
Stewed skin (taopi) is also a special halal delicacy in Baoding. The pot of stewing meat bubbles away, and you can use it to blanch vegetables or soak flatbread.
The Baoding West Mosque was first built in 1616 (the 44th year of the Wanli reign of the Ming Dynasty). According to the stone tablet in the mosque, a man named Fa from Hanji Village in Fangshan served as a military official in Baoding during the Wanli period. He saw there was no mosque in the city, and fellow Muslims had to go elsewhere for Eid prayers, so he bought 12 mu of land at the Wei Family Garden. Besides building the mosque, he allowed fellow Muslims to build houses on the surrounding land, which officially formed the mosque-centered neighborhood layout in Baoding. The West Mosque was renovated many times after the Qing Dynasty. The bathing room was rebuilt in 1906 (the 23rd year of the Guangxu reign), and the north and south lecture halls were rebuilt during the Republican era, forming the current layout.
The main hall is divided into front and back sections. The kiln-style roof has an octagonal pavilion over 7 meters high, with a couplet that reads 'The Lord is formless, the heart can understand; leave room for retreat in affairs, the character is truly high,' and a horizontal plaque reading 'Mecca in Sight.' The roof ridges originally had animal statues, but during the Republican era, Bai Yunzhang, the owner of the famous Baoding halal shop Bai Yunzhang Steamed Bun Shop, paid to have them all replaced with flower and plant designs.
Components replaced during the renovation.
After 1966, the mosque was damaged. The main hall became a club, the lecture hall became a street factory, and the bathing room became a carpentry workshop. It was reclaimed in 1979 and renovated again in 1987.
As a famous mosque in North China, the Baoding West Mosque had a thriving religious life and trained many imams, including Xie Jinqing, Yang Yuzhen, An Shiwei, and Yang Yongchang. The mosque also once had a training ground that produced many famous wrestling masters and martial arts teachers.
During the Tongzhi reign, because the number of worshippers at the West Mosque increased and the main hall became too small, local residents Shi Xie and his son Shi Jun built a scripture room east of the West Mosque. A few years later, it was officially completed as the Baoding East Mosque under the leadership of the famous Imam Yan Mingpu. The East Mosque was renovated many times later. During the Guangxu reign, Imam Zhang Ziwen and Mr. Shi Tongshan led the construction of the south lecture hall and bathing room. During the Xuantong reign, Imam Xie Jinqing led the construction of the north lecture hall, and Shi Changchun and Shi Tongshan led a comprehensive renovation. In 1936, Imam Yang Baozhai led another renovation.
Although the East Mosque is not large, many famous imams like Wang Gui, Li Ba, Zhang Li, and Bai Da taught there and trained many excellent students.
After 1958, the East Mosque was occupied by a blueprint paper factory. In 1979, the property rights were returned to the West Mosque, and it is currently a warehouse for the Xinyue Halal Food Factory.
The Baoding Women's Mosque was founded in 1916 by Imam Yan Fengshan of the East Mosque in the alley north of the mosque, and the prayer leader was Jin Shiniang from Shandong. In 1932, the mosque hired Imam Sha Zhijun from Jilin to start a primary school for Muslim girls, but it closed in 1937 after the Japanese occupation. In 1940, Imam Sha and Mrs. Shi traveled to Beijing, Tianjin, and Jinan to raise money. With extra funds from local elders, they bought a house from Bai Yunzhang, the owner of the famous Baoding halal steamed bun shop (Bai Yunzhang baozi), to build the current women's mosque.
The women's mosque was taken over after 1958. In the 1970s, digging an air-raid shelter under the main prayer hall caused structural damage. The building was returned in 1982, but the walls slowly cracked. During the 2015 urban renewal project, a new building was added to the north side, and the old main hall is now used as a storage room.
Before leaving, I bought chestnut pastries (banli su) and strawberry milk at Zhili Pastry Shop (Zhili Su Yuan) on Yonghua South Street. They sell both traditional and modern pastries. The kitchen is clean and tidy, and you can tell they put a lot of care into their work. I especially liked the chestnut pastries. They are not too sweet and have a strong chestnut flavor. I only bought one box at first, but after eating one piece at the door, I quickly went back inside to buy another.
Collapse Read »
Summary: Baoding — Historic Mosques and Hui Muslim Food is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: I visited Baoding, Hebei, on the morning of March 12, 2023. It was very convenient, taking just over 40 minutes by high-speed train from Beijing West Station. The account keeps its focus on Baoding Mosques, Hui Muslims, Halal Food while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
I visited Baoding, Hebei, on the morning of March 12, 2023. It was very convenient, taking just over 40 minutes by high-speed train from Beijing West Station.
The Hui Muslim community in Baoding is in the southeast of the old city, commonly known as 'Dongtou.' It has three ancient mosques built during the Ming and Qing dynasties and the Republican era. Before the old city renovation, this area was full of crisscrossing streets and alleys, with many old homes of famous people tucked away inside. After the 2010 renovation, the Mosque Residential Area (Qingzhensi Xiaoqu) was built here. The layout of the mosque and its surrounding neighborhood was preserved, and the area is now very lively with halal snack shops all around.
The most common snack sold around the Mosque Residential Area is braised chicken (luzhuji). I bought one from a cart inside the neighborhood run by the Ma Family Brand (Majia Laohao). The chicken weighed a little over a pound and wasn't very big. The braised flavor was good and not as salty as in some other places, so it was perfect to eat on its own.
I had lunch at Yongshenghao on Fuxue Back Street, west of the Mosque Residential Area. The Baoding Antique Market is right next door, and it gets incredibly crowded and busy on weekends.
Yongshenghao is a typical old-town shop run by a husband and wife. It is small, and by 11 a.m., it was already full of local customers. Local halal food in Baoding follows the style of traditional North China halal cuisine but has its own unique character. The most interesting dish is the shredded pork with fish-flavored sauce (yuxiang rousi). Outsiders would never think to order it just by looking at the menu, but it is actually the most popular dish people order at halal restaurants in Baoding! The beef is shredded very thinly. The sweet and sour sauce doesn't have the dark color of soy sauce, and the plate is full of meat with almost no vegetables, making it very appetizing.
I also ordered the famous Baoding halal dish, beef covered flatbread (niurou zhaobing). After you order, the owner asks 'how much cover, how much bread,' which refers to how many liang of beef and how many liang of flatbread you want. The flavor of the covered flatbread comes mainly from the aged broth used to stew the meat. Every shop uses different meat ingredients, which are considered their secret recipes. The flatbread (laobing) soaked ladle by ladle in the aged broth is very fragrant and rich. Besides the meat and bread combinations, there is also 'shovel cover' (chanzhao), which is just the flatbread and green onions soaked in the aged broth. It is very affordable.
Another covered flatbread shop.
Stewed skin (taopi) is also a special halal delicacy in Baoding. The pot of stewing meat bubbles away, and you can use it to blanch vegetables or soak flatbread.
The Baoding West Mosque was first built in 1616 (the 44th year of the Wanli reign of the Ming Dynasty). According to the stone tablet in the mosque, a man named Fa from Hanji Village in Fangshan served as a military official in Baoding during the Wanli period. He saw there was no mosque in the city, and fellow Muslims had to go elsewhere for Eid prayers, so he bought 12 mu of land at the Wei Family Garden. Besides building the mosque, he allowed fellow Muslims to build houses on the surrounding land, which officially formed the mosque-centered neighborhood layout in Baoding. The West Mosque was renovated many times after the Qing Dynasty. The bathing room was rebuilt in 1906 (the 23rd year of the Guangxu reign), and the north and south lecture halls were rebuilt during the Republican era, forming the current layout.
The main hall is divided into front and back sections. The kiln-style roof has an octagonal pavilion over 7 meters high, with a couplet that reads 'The Lord is formless, the heart can understand; leave room for retreat in affairs, the character is truly high,' and a horizontal plaque reading 'Mecca in Sight.' The roof ridges originally had animal statues, but during the Republican era, Bai Yunzhang, the owner of the famous Baoding halal shop Bai Yunzhang Steamed Bun Shop, paid to have them all replaced with flower and plant designs.
Components replaced during the renovation.
After 1966, the mosque was damaged. The main hall became a club, the lecture hall became a street factory, and the bathing room became a carpentry workshop. It was reclaimed in 1979 and renovated again in 1987.
As a famous mosque in North China, the Baoding West Mosque had a thriving religious life and trained many imams, including Xie Jinqing, Yang Yuzhen, An Shiwei, and Yang Yongchang. The mosque also once had a training ground that produced many famous wrestling masters and martial arts teachers.
During the Tongzhi reign, because the number of worshippers at the West Mosque increased and the main hall became too small, local residents Shi Xie and his son Shi Jun built a scripture room east of the West Mosque. A few years later, it was officially completed as the Baoding East Mosque under the leadership of the famous Imam Yan Mingpu. The East Mosque was renovated many times later. During the Guangxu reign, Imam Zhang Ziwen and Mr. Shi Tongshan led the construction of the south lecture hall and bathing room. During the Xuantong reign, Imam Xie Jinqing led the construction of the north lecture hall, and Shi Changchun and Shi Tongshan led a comprehensive renovation. In 1936, Imam Yang Baozhai led another renovation.
Although the East Mosque is not large, many famous imams like Wang Gui, Li Ba, Zhang Li, and Bai Da taught there and trained many excellent students.
After 1958, the East Mosque was occupied by a blueprint paper factory. In 1979, the property rights were returned to the West Mosque, and it is currently a warehouse for the Xinyue Halal Food Factory.
The Baoding Women's Mosque was founded in 1916 by Imam Yan Fengshan of the East Mosque in the alley north of the mosque, and the prayer leader was Jin Shiniang from Shandong. In 1932, the mosque hired Imam Sha Zhijun from Jilin to start a primary school for Muslim girls, but it closed in 1937 after the Japanese occupation. In 1940, Imam Sha and Mrs. Shi traveled to Beijing, Tianjin, and Jinan to raise money. With extra funds from local elders, they bought a house from Bai Yunzhang, the owner of the famous Baoding halal steamed bun shop (Bai Yunzhang baozi), to build the current women's mosque.
The women's mosque was taken over after 1958. In the 1970s, digging an air-raid shelter under the main prayer hall caused structural damage. The building was returned in 1982, but the walls slowly cracked. During the 2015 urban renewal project, a new building was added to the north side, and the old main hall is now used as a storage room.
Before leaving, I bought chestnut pastries (banli su) and strawberry milk at Zhili Pastry Shop (Zhili Su Yuan) on Yonghua South Street. They sell both traditional and modern pastries. The kitchen is clean and tidy, and you can tell they put a lot of care into their work. I especially liked the chestnut pastries. They are not too sweet and have a strong chestnut flavor. I only bought one box at first, but after eating one piece at the door, I quickly went back inside to buy another.
Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History (Part 8A)
Reposted from the web
Summary: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: During the 2023 Spring Festival holiday, I finally hit the road again, restarting my plan to visit and eat in Muslim communities after a two-year break. The account keeps its focus on Macau Muslim History, Indonesian Food, Halal Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
I also had a serving of green coconut rice scented with pandan leaves.
Collapse Read »
Summary: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: During the 2023 Spring Festival holiday, I finally hit the road again, restarting my plan to visit and eat in Muslim communities after a two-year break. The account keeps its focus on Macau Muslim History, Indonesian Food, Halal Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
I also had a serving of green coconut rice scented with pandan leaves.
Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History (Part 8B)
Reposted from the web
Summary: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: During the 2023 Spring Festival holiday, I finally hit the road again, restarting my plan to visit and eat in Muslim communities after a two-year break. The account keeps its focus on Macau Muslim History, Indonesian Food, Halal Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
My friend beside me ordered turmeric coconut rice (nasi kuning). Both are classic Indonesian coconut rice dishes.
Collapse Read »
Summary: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: During the 2023 Spring Festival holiday, I finally hit the road again, restarting my plan to visit and eat in Muslim communities after a two-year break. The account keeps its focus on Macau Muslim History, Indonesian Food, Halal Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
My friend beside me ordered turmeric coconut rice (nasi kuning). Both are classic Indonesian coconut rice dishes.
Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History (Part 8C)
Reposted from the web
Summary: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: During the 2023 Spring Festival holiday, I finally hit the road again, restarting my plan to visit and eat in Muslim communities after a two-year break. The account keeps its focus on Macau Muslim History, Indonesian Food, Halal Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
Pandan is also called fragrant orchid or seven-leaf orchid. Wild pandan comes from Indonesia's Maluku Islands. Today, farmers usually grow it by taking pieces from an existing plant, and it is common across Southeast and South Asia. Collapse Read »
Summary: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: During the 2023 Spring Festival holiday, I finally hit the road again, restarting my plan to visit and eat in Muslim communities after a two-year break. The account keeps its focus on Macau Muslim History, Indonesian Food, Halal Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
Pandan is also called fragrant orchid or seven-leaf orchid. Wild pandan comes from Indonesia's Maluku Islands. Today, farmers usually grow it by taking pieces from an existing plant, and it is common across Southeast and South Asia. Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History (Part 9)
Reposted from the web
Summary: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: During the 2023 Spring Festival holiday, I finally hit the road again, restarting my plan to visit and eat in Muslim communities after a two-year break. The account keeps its focus on Macau Muslim History, Indonesian Food, Halal Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
The word for Javanese fermented soybean cake (tempeh) is said to come from the Old Javanese word 'tumpi'. This soybean cake, made by pressing fermented soybeans, originated in central and eastern Java. It is fermented with a natural mold culture that grows on teak and hibiscus leaves. The relationship between tempeh and Chinese tofu is still unclear, as tempeh is rarely mentioned in ancient Javanese texts. This food has always been a staple for ordinary people.
Collapse Read »
Summary: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: During the 2023 Spring Festival holiday, I finally hit the road again, restarting my plan to visit and eat in Muslim communities after a two-year break. The account keeps its focus on Macau Muslim History, Indonesian Food, Halal Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
The word for Javanese fermented soybean cake (tempeh) is said to come from the Old Javanese word 'tumpi'. This soybean cake, made by pressing fermented soybeans, originated in central and eastern Java. It is fermented with a natural mold culture that grows on teak and hibiscus leaves. The relationship between tempeh and Chinese tofu is still unclear, as tempeh is rarely mentioned in ancient Javanese texts. This food has always been a staple for ordinary people.
Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History (Part 7)
Reposted from the web
Summary: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: During the 2023 Spring Festival holiday, I finally hit the road again, restarting my plan to visit and eat in Muslim communities after a two-year break. The account keeps its focus on Macau Muslim History, Indonesian Food, Halal Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
For side dishes, I ordered Terong penyet ikan asin. In this dish, 'terong' means eggplant, and 'penyet ikan asin' is Javanese fried small salted fish, where 'penyet' is the Javanese word for 'pressed'. It also came with Javanese-style fermented soybean cake (tempeh), fried tofu (tahu goreng) brought by Indonesian Chinese, and spicy stink bean paste (sambal petai). Stink beans are a common bean in Southeast Asia. They have a unique smell that might be hard for first-timers to get used to.
Collapse Read »
Summary: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: During the 2023 Spring Festival holiday, I finally hit the road again, restarting my plan to visit and eat in Muslim communities after a two-year break. The account keeps its focus on Macau Muslim History, Indonesian Food, Halal Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
For side dishes, I ordered Terong penyet ikan asin. In this dish, 'terong' means eggplant, and 'penyet ikan asin' is Javanese fried small salted fish, where 'penyet' is the Javanese word for 'pressed'. It also came with Javanese-style fermented soybean cake (tempeh), fried tofu (tahu goreng) brought by Indonesian Chinese, and spicy stink bean paste (sambal petai). Stink beans are a common bean in Southeast Asia. They have a unique smell that might be hard for first-timers to get used to.
Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History (Part 6)
Reposted from the web
Summary: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: During the 2023 Spring Festival holiday, I finally hit the road again, restarting my plan to visit and eat in Muslim communities after a two-year break. The account keeps its focus on Macau Muslim History, Indonesian Food, Halal Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
Since it was the first day of work after the holiday, some of their ingredients had not arrived yet. I didn't get to eat the Javanese specialty I wanted most, but I still ordered a few dishes I was happy with. First, I ordered the deluxe version of the Javanese coconut milk iced drink, which has avocado, grass jelly, red beans, syrup, and more. The black grass jelly is called cincau hitam in Java, and it is a classic combination when served with coconut milk, syrup, and ice cubes.
Then I ordered the large Indonesian meatball (bakso besar). The word bakso comes from the Hokkien word for "meat crisp" (rousu). It is a classic Indonesian street food made from beef, fish paste, and a small amount of tapioca flour, making it very firm. Finished meatballs are usually placed in beef broth, served with tofu, glass noodles, and various side dishes.
Collapse Read »
Summary: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: During the 2023 Spring Festival holiday, I finally hit the road again, restarting my plan to visit and eat in Muslim communities after a two-year break. The account keeps its focus on Macau Muslim History, Indonesian Food, Halal Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
Since it was the first day of work after the holiday, some of their ingredients had not arrived yet. I didn't get to eat the Javanese specialty I wanted most, but I still ordered a few dishes I was happy with. First, I ordered the deluxe version of the Javanese coconut milk iced drink, which has avocado, grass jelly, red beans, syrup, and more. The black grass jelly is called cincau hitam in Java, and it is a classic combination when served with coconut milk, syrup, and ice cubes.
Then I ordered the large Indonesian meatball (bakso besar). The word bakso comes from the Hokkien word for "meat crisp" (rousu). It is a classic Indonesian street food made from beef, fish paste, and a small amount of tapioca flour, making it very firm. Finished meatballs are usually placed in beef broth, served with tofu, glass noodles, and various side dishes.
Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History (Part 5)
Reposted from the web
Summary: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: During the 2023 Spring Festival holiday, I finally hit the road again, restarting my plan to visit and eat in Muslim communities after a two-year break. The account keeps its focus on Macau Muslim History, Indonesian Food, Halal Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
In the afternoon, I went to Macau's most famous Indonesian restaurant, Loly Indonesian Food. It is always packed with people, mostly Indonesian friends (dosti), as well as local Macau residents who come for the reputation.
The owner of Loly is Indah Handayani Sunardi, the sister standing in the red shirt in the picture below. She was born in 1984 to a farming family in Banyuwangi, at the easternmost tip of Java. Because her family had little money, she left school at 14 and took a job at a restaurant in Surabaya, the capital of East Java. In 2000, Sunardi went to Hong Kong at 16 to work as a household helper. She moved to Macau in 2003 and met her current husband. In 2013, Sunardi quit her job to focus on making Indonesian food. She started by selling online and finally opened Loly restaurant in 2016. Because it is authentic and delicious, it became the most famous Indonesian restaurant in Macau within a few years. In 2021, it was recognized as a specialty shop by the Macau Economic and Technological Development Bureau.
Collapse Read »
Summary: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: During the 2023 Spring Festival holiday, I finally hit the road again, restarting my plan to visit and eat in Muslim communities after a two-year break. The account keeps its focus on Macau Muslim History, Indonesian Food, Halal Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
In the afternoon, I went to Macau's most famous Indonesian restaurant, Loly Indonesian Food. It is always packed with people, mostly Indonesian friends (dosti), as well as local Macau residents who come for the reputation.
The owner of Loly is Indah Handayani Sunardi, the sister standing in the red shirt in the picture below. She was born in 1984 to a farming family in Banyuwangi, at the easternmost tip of Java. Because her family had little money, she left school at 14 and took a job at a restaurant in Surabaya, the capital of East Java. In 2000, Sunardi went to Hong Kong at 16 to work as a household helper. She moved to Macau in 2003 and met her current husband. In 2013, Sunardi quit her job to focus on making Indonesian food. She started by selling online and finally opened Loly restaurant in 2016. Because it is authentic and delicious, it became the most famous Indonesian restaurant in Macau within a few years. In 2021, it was recognized as a specialty shop by the Macau Economic and Technological Development Bureau.
Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History (Part 4)
Reposted from the web
Summary: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: During the 2023 Spring Festival holiday, I finally hit the road again, restarting my plan to visit and eat in Muslim communities after a two-year break. The account keeps its focus on Macau Muslim History, Indonesian Food, Halal Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
Iced cendol (es cendol) is made by putting sticky rice flour jelly dyed with pandan leaves into ice water, then drizzling it with coconut milk and palm sugar. The origin of cendol is still uncertain. One theory is that it comes from a Javanese snack called dawet, though traditionally dawet does not contain ice.
On the morning of January 24, I ate at an Indonesian family restaurant in Three Lamps (San Zhan Deng) that Imam Ding recommended. Three Lamps is the area in Macau with the most Southeast Asian immigrants and workers, and you can find all kinds of Southeast Asian restaurants there.
This Indonesian restaurant is inside an apartment and has no name. Only Indonesian workers know about it. When I walked in, a young lady was curious about how I found it, but as soon as I said "masjid," they all understood. There is no menu in the restaurant because all the dishes are laid out for you to choose. I picked the sour and spicy fish with some vegetables and tofu puff soup. The sour and spicy fish was very hot. I finished a bottle of mineral water, but it tasted very authentic.
Collapse Read »
Summary: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: During the 2023 Spring Festival holiday, I finally hit the road again, restarting my plan to visit and eat in Muslim communities after a two-year break. The account keeps its focus on Macau Muslim History, Indonesian Food, Halal Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
Iced cendol (es cendol) is made by putting sticky rice flour jelly dyed with pandan leaves into ice water, then drizzling it with coconut milk and palm sugar. The origin of cendol is still uncertain. One theory is that it comes from a Javanese snack called dawet, though traditionally dawet does not contain ice.
On the morning of January 24, I ate at an Indonesian family restaurant in Three Lamps (San Zhan Deng) that Imam Ding recommended. Three Lamps is the area in Macau with the most Southeast Asian immigrants and workers, and you can find all kinds of Southeast Asian restaurants there.
This Indonesian restaurant is inside an apartment and has no name. Only Indonesian workers know about it. When I walked in, a young lady was curious about how I found it, but as soon as I said "masjid," they all understood. There is no menu in the restaurant because all the dishes are laid out for you to choose. I picked the sour and spicy fish with some vegetables and tofu puff soup. The sour and spicy fish was very hot. I finished a bottle of mineral water, but it tasted very authentic.
Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History (Part 3)
Reposted from the web
Summary: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: During the 2023 Spring Festival holiday, I finally hit the road again, restarting my plan to visit and eat in Muslim communities after a two-year break. The account keeps its focus on Macau Muslim History, Indonesian Food, Halal Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
In the afternoon, I went to an Indonesian restaurant called Warung Indonesia near the Ruins of St. Paul's. They are from Semarang, the capital of East Java. In Indonesian, 'Warung' refers to a small convenience store or restaurant, usually converted from the front room of a house. The environment there is very nice, with many young Indonesian men and women coming to eat. Indonesian love songs play on the TV, making it feel a bit like I had traveled to Semarang.
I ordered sticky rice cake (kue lupis ketan), chicken satay skewers (sate ayam), beef rendang rice (nasi rendang), and iced cendol (es cendol).
Sticky rice cake (kue lupis ketan) is a local Javanese snack. It is popular in central and eastern Java, but you can find it in other parts of Indonesia too. The word "kue" comes from the Hokkien word for "cake" (kueh), which means rice cake. To make sticky rice cake (lupis), you first soak sticky rice in water with salt and lime juice. After draining it, you wrap it in banana leaves and fold it into triangles, similar to making rice dumplings (zongzi). Once cooked, the sticky rice cake is served in palm sugar syrup and topped with shredded coconut.
Chicken satay skewers (sate ayam) also started on Java island. People say Javanese street vendors in the 18th century developed it by combining local food with Indian grilled skewers brought by Tamil Muslim merchants. The meat skewers are usually marinated in turmeric, sweet soy sauce, or coconut oil before grilling, then dipped in satay sauce when eaten. Satay sauce is mainly made of roasted peanuts, plus coconut milk, turmeric, soy sauce, galangal, garlic, chili, and various spices. After the 19th century, Chinese workers in Southeast Asia brought satay sauce back to Fujian, where it combined with local food to become satay sauce (shacha jiang).
Beef rendang is a curry that originated with the Minangkabau people of Sumatra. It likely started as a curry brought by Indian merchants who came to Sumatra to trade before the 15th century, which then blended with the local Minangkabau diet. After the 16th century, Minangkabau merchants began traveling to Malacca, and rendang spread to other parts of Indonesia. The main ingredients for rendang are meat, coconut milk, chili, and various spices, including ginger, galangal, turmeric, lemongrass, garlic, and shallots. To suit the needs of Minangkabau merchants on long sea voyages, rendang is slow-cooked until it becomes thick and dry, allowing it to be stored for several weeks.
Collapse Read »
Summary: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: During the 2023 Spring Festival holiday, I finally hit the road again, restarting my plan to visit and eat in Muslim communities after a two-year break. The account keeps its focus on Macau Muslim History, Indonesian Food, Halal Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
In the afternoon, I went to an Indonesian restaurant called Warung Indonesia near the Ruins of St. Paul's. They are from Semarang, the capital of East Java. In Indonesian, 'Warung' refers to a small convenience store or restaurant, usually converted from the front room of a house. The environment there is very nice, with many young Indonesian men and women coming to eat. Indonesian love songs play on the TV, making it feel a bit like I had traveled to Semarang.
I ordered sticky rice cake (kue lupis ketan), chicken satay skewers (sate ayam), beef rendang rice (nasi rendang), and iced cendol (es cendol).
Sticky rice cake (kue lupis ketan) is a local Javanese snack. It is popular in central and eastern Java, but you can find it in other parts of Indonesia too. The word "kue" comes from the Hokkien word for "cake" (kueh), which means rice cake. To make sticky rice cake (lupis), you first soak sticky rice in water with salt and lime juice. After draining it, you wrap it in banana leaves and fold it into triangles, similar to making rice dumplings (zongzi). Once cooked, the sticky rice cake is served in palm sugar syrup and topped with shredded coconut.
Chicken satay skewers (sate ayam) also started on Java island. People say Javanese street vendors in the 18th century developed it by combining local food with Indian grilled skewers brought by Tamil Muslim merchants. The meat skewers are usually marinated in turmeric, sweet soy sauce, or coconut oil before grilling, then dipped in satay sauce when eaten. Satay sauce is mainly made of roasted peanuts, plus coconut milk, turmeric, soy sauce, galangal, garlic, chili, and various spices. After the 19th century, Chinese workers in Southeast Asia brought satay sauce back to Fujian, where it combined with local food to become satay sauce (shacha jiang).
Beef rendang is a curry that originated with the Minangkabau people of Sumatra. It likely started as a curry brought by Indian merchants who came to Sumatra to trade before the 15th century, which then blended with the local Minangkabau diet. After the 16th century, Minangkabau merchants began traveling to Malacca, and rendang spread to other parts of Indonesia. The main ingredients for rendang are meat, coconut milk, chili, and various spices, including ginger, galangal, turmeric, lemongrass, garlic, and shallots. To suit the needs of Minangkabau merchants on long sea voyages, rendang is slow-cooked until it becomes thick and dry, allowing it to be stored for several weeks.
Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History (Part 2)
Reposted from the web
Summary: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: During the 2023 Spring Festival holiday, I finally hit the road again, restarting my plan to visit and eat in Muslim communities after a two-year break. The account keeps its focus on Macau Muslim History, Indonesian Food, Halal Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
After 1945, the Macau Mosque returned to peace, maintained only by a few elderly Pakistani community members. The mosque was rebuilt in 1973, reaching its current size. After Macau's handover in 1999, many Muslims from countries like Pakistan and Indonesia came to Macau for work, and the number of Muslims in Macau gradually increased.
In the early 21st century, the Macau Mosque's religious affairs were maintained by Imam Yunus, a Pakistani born in East Timor. After Yunus passed away due to illness in 2013, the Friday prayer (Jumu'ah) at the Macau Mosque could only be led by imams invited temporarily from Hong Kong. It was not until 2018 that Imam Ding Shaojie, originally from Inner Mongolia, was hired as the imam of the Macau Mosque, and the mosque's religious affairs finally got back on track. Imam Ding graduated from the China Islamic Institute and the International Islamic University in Pakistan. He is fluent in Arabic and English, allowing him to communicate smoothly with local Pakistani elders and organize various activities. Every Friday, Imam Ding delivers the sermon (khutbah) in both Arabic and English.
Thanks to Imam Ding's efforts, on February 25, 2023, the Moro Garden will participate in the 'Thousand Miles of Shared Customs: Macau Six Religions Culture and Relics Exhibition' to introduce the history of Islam in Macau to fellow citizens.
Additionally, every Sunday, the Macau Mosque becomes a home for Indonesian female migrant workers. Everyone cleans the courtyard, prepares meals, and sets up the space here. Many bring homemade hometown delicacies to share with others. After lunch, everyone recites the Quran together. At this time, the Macau Mosque truly becomes a spiritual home for these friends (dostani) who are far from home and working abroad.
In 1874, Portugal transferred a regiment from Portuguese India, Goa, to Macau to reinforce the local police force, leading to the construction of a Moorish Barracks (Quartel dos Mouros) near Macau's A-Ma Temple. People say a mosque was also built around the barracks, which was not demolished until the 1940s.
The Moorish Barracks was designed by the Italian Cassuto and features many Islamic-style arches. In the late 19th century, a trend emerged across Europe to use Islamic elements in modern architecture, known as Moorish Revival architecture. In Spain and Portugal, people applied the horseshoe arches and arabesque tiles found in Andalusian Islamic architecture to modern building facades, a style known as Neo-Mudéjar architecture. The term Mudéjar was originally used to refer to Muslims who remained on the Iberian Peninsula after the Reconquista of Andalusia.
In 1905, the Moorish Barracks became the headquarters for the Port Authority and the Marine Police, and it is now the Port Authority Building.
Collapse Read »
Summary: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: During the 2023 Spring Festival holiday, I finally hit the road again, restarting my plan to visit and eat in Muslim communities after a two-year break. The account keeps its focus on Macau Muslim History, Indonesian Food, Halal Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
After 1945, the Macau Mosque returned to peace, maintained only by a few elderly Pakistani community members. The mosque was rebuilt in 1973, reaching its current size. After Macau's handover in 1999, many Muslims from countries like Pakistan and Indonesia came to Macau for work, and the number of Muslims in Macau gradually increased.
In the early 21st century, the Macau Mosque's religious affairs were maintained by Imam Yunus, a Pakistani born in East Timor. After Yunus passed away due to illness in 2013, the Friday prayer (Jumu'ah) at the Macau Mosque could only be led by imams invited temporarily from Hong Kong. It was not until 2018 that Imam Ding Shaojie, originally from Inner Mongolia, was hired as the imam of the Macau Mosque, and the mosque's religious affairs finally got back on track. Imam Ding graduated from the China Islamic Institute and the International Islamic University in Pakistan. He is fluent in Arabic and English, allowing him to communicate smoothly with local Pakistani elders and organize various activities. Every Friday, Imam Ding delivers the sermon (khutbah) in both Arabic and English.
Thanks to Imam Ding's efforts, on February 25, 2023, the Moro Garden will participate in the 'Thousand Miles of Shared Customs: Macau Six Religions Culture and Relics Exhibition' to introduce the history of Islam in Macau to fellow citizens.
Additionally, every Sunday, the Macau Mosque becomes a home for Indonesian female migrant workers. Everyone cleans the courtyard, prepares meals, and sets up the space here. Many bring homemade hometown delicacies to share with others. After lunch, everyone recites the Quran together. At this time, the Macau Mosque truly becomes a spiritual home for these friends (dostani) who are far from home and working abroad.
In 1874, Portugal transferred a regiment from Portuguese India, Goa, to Macau to reinforce the local police force, leading to the construction of a Moorish Barracks (Quartel dos Mouros) near Macau's A-Ma Temple. People say a mosque was also built around the barracks, which was not demolished until the 1940s.
The Moorish Barracks was designed by the Italian Cassuto and features many Islamic-style arches. In the late 19th century, a trend emerged across Europe to use Islamic elements in modern architecture, known as Moorish Revival architecture. In Spain and Portugal, people applied the horseshoe arches and arabesque tiles found in Andalusian Islamic architecture to modern building facades, a style known as Neo-Mudéjar architecture. The term Mudéjar was originally used to refer to Muslims who remained on the Iberian Peninsula after the Reconquista of Andalusia.
In 1905, the Moorish Barracks became the headquarters for the Port Authority and the Marine Police, and it is now the Port Authority Building.
Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History (Part 1)
Reposted from the web
Summary: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: During the 2023 Spring Festival holiday, I finally hit the road again, restarting my plan to visit and eat in Muslim communities after a two-year break. The account keeps its focus on Macau Muslim History, Indonesian Food, Halal Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
During the 2023 Spring Festival holiday, I finally hit the road again, restarting my plan to visit and eat in Muslim communities after a two-year break. This time I started from Macau, then went to Guangzhou, Zhaoqing, Xichang and Miyi in Sichuan, and Xiaguan, Yangbi, Binju, and Yongjian in Dali. This first part starts in Macau.
On the morning of January 23, I took a boat from the Wanzai Port in Zhuhai to Macau.
I originally planned to eat breakfast at an Indonesian Javanese restaurant I had looked up. Because of the situation over the last two years, several Indonesian restaurants in Macau have closed. I couldn't eat there, so I went to a South Asian street food spot on Rua de Silva Mendes called Zaika Curry (ri zhichuan) to buy chicken curry, samosas, and masala tea, which I packed to eat at the nearby Lou Lim Ioc Garden. Qasim, who works at the trading company next to the curry shop, is an elder at the Macau Mosque.
The winter weather in Macau is pleasant and the park is lush. Many Southeast Asian workers use their holidays to bring snacks to the park to eat and chat, which is very relaxing.
At noon, I arrived at the Macau Mosque and happened to run into a group of Pakistani-origin friends from Hong Kong who were there for a gathering (dawah). They made authentic Pakistani food at the mosque, including stir-fried okra, minced meat with potatoes, and flatbread (paratha). They also invited Imam Ding Shaojie and us to eat with them.
In 1841, the British occupied Hong Kong Island and immediately began sending Muslim soldiers from British India to be stationed there. As Hong Kong Island was being built up in the 1840s, South Asian Muslims arrived to work as police, security guards, and sailors, while a few wealthy merchants came to open companies. In 1849, South Asian Muslims built the first mosque on Hong Kong Island, which later became the Jamia Mosque (Shelley Street Mosque). There are now about 30,000 people of Pakistani descent living in Hong Kong, and about 12,000 of them have local status and identify as Hong Kongers.
At the mosque, I ate some Filipino dessert shared by a friend. Every Sunday and on holidays, many Indonesian friends working in Macau come to the Macau Mosque to eat and chat. Everyone brings all kinds of snacks to share while they talk.
Although the Macau Mosque is not large, the environment is excellent. Besides performing worship and learning, you can play ball, use the swings, pick bananas and starfruit, look at the lake view, and pet cats. In the summer, you can even have outdoor barbecues. It is a great place to get away from the noise and relax.
I listened to Imam Ding Shaojie tell the history of the Macau Mosque.
Locals call the Macau Mosque the "Moro Garden" (Mo Luo Yuan). The term "Moro" comes from the Portuguese word "Mouros." It originally came from the name "Mauri," which the Romans used for the Berbers of North Africa under their rule. Later, various versions appeared in European languages, such as "Moro" in Italian and Spanish, and "Maure" in French. After the Age of Discovery, Spain and Portugal called many of the Muslim groups under their rule "Moros." For example, Spain collectively called the Austronesian Muslim groups in the southern Spanish East Indies (now the southern Philippines) "Moros." Portugal called the Arab-descended Muslims in Portuguese Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) "Ceylon Moors," and in Portuguese-occupied Goa, India, local Muslims were called "Moir."
The Portuguese officially occupied Macau in 1557 and began transferring troops from places like Portuguese India, which included some Muslims. According to the Portuguese scholar Luís Morais in his book "Muslims in Macau," a Macanese real estate businessman named Filipi António Osório sold a piece of land to Macau Muslims to build a mosque and a cemetery, which is the current "Moro Garden." Later, more Muslims from other parts of South Asia came to Macau, and after they passed away, they were buried in the Moro Garden.
Today, most of the South Asian Muslim graves in the Moro Garden date from the 19th to the 20th century. The birthplaces include the Indian states of Punjab, West Bengal, and Goa, as well as Peshawar in Pakistan. The oldest tombstone belongs to a friend from Gujarat, India, who died in 1875. The tombstone is written in Persian and Gujarati, serving as an important historical witness for Macau's Muslims.
Gujarati script developed from the ancient Indian Nagari script and is similar to Sanskrit. Gujarati people are good at business and entered Southeast Asia very early, having a major influence on the development of local scripts in parts of Sumatra, Sulawesi, and the Philippines. Some Gujarati people also lived in Portuguese India, and they likely went to Macau to make a living in the 19th century.
In 1937, when the Japanese army invaded Guangzhou, some Hui Muslims were forced to flee to Hong Kong and Macau. Some eventually passed away in Macau and were buried in the Moro Garden, becoming witnesses to those war-torn years.
Among these Guangzhou Hui Muslims buried in the Macau Moro Garden, three are especially worth mentioning. The first is the famous modern Guangzhou religious teacher, Imam Yang Ruisheng (1863-1939). Imam Yang led the religious community in Guangzhou for many years, serving as the head of the Xiaodongying Mosque and the Dongjiao Mosque. On the eve of the Japanese occupation of Guangzhou in 1937, a Japanese spy named Sakuma pretended to be a Muslim to lure Imam Yang into cooperating with the Japanese. To maintain his integrity, Imam Yang resolutely decided to take his descendants to Macau. Even on his deathbed, he insisted on presiding over the religious affairs of the Macau Mosque until he passed away in 1939.
The second person is Mr. Yang You (1882-1944), a diplomat who served as consul in Fukuoka, Japan, and Wonsan, Korea. He came from the Jingxiutang Yang family, a prominent Hui Muslim family in Guangdong. Several diplomats emerged from this family during the late Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China, including Yang You's cousin, Yang Shu, who was once the Qing Dynasty's minister to Japan. Because he was fluent in Japanese and Korean, he faced threats and pressure from the Japanese military. He had to sell his property and flee to Hong Kong. After Hong Kong fell in 1942, he escaped to Macau, where he passed away (returned to Allah) in 1944.
The third person is Bao Tingzhen, the eldest son of Dr. Bao Zongqi, who died in childhood. Dr. Bao Zongqi came from the Qingshantang Bao family, a prominent Hui Muslim family in Guangdong known for generations of dentists. After fleeing to Macau in 1937, he continued working as a dentist and actively provided relief to refugees. Due to a lack of supplies and poor medical conditions, the son and daughter born to Dr. Bao's family in Macau both died young, one of whom was Bao Tingzhen.
After the liberation in 1945, Hui Muslims gradually returned to Hong Kong and Guangzhou from Macau. Dr. Bao Zongqi continued to run his dental clinic in Macau until he moved to Hong Kong in the 1960s, where he passed away in 1999.
Collapse Read »
Summary: Macau — Moorish Barracks, Indonesian Food and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: During the 2023 Spring Festival holiday, I finally hit the road again, restarting my plan to visit and eat in Muslim communities after a two-year break. The account keeps its focus on Macau Muslim History, Indonesian Food, Halal Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
During the 2023 Spring Festival holiday, I finally hit the road again, restarting my plan to visit and eat in Muslim communities after a two-year break. This time I started from Macau, then went to Guangzhou, Zhaoqing, Xichang and Miyi in Sichuan, and Xiaguan, Yangbi, Binju, and Yongjian in Dali. This first part starts in Macau.
On the morning of January 23, I took a boat from the Wanzai Port in Zhuhai to Macau.
I originally planned to eat breakfast at an Indonesian Javanese restaurant I had looked up. Because of the situation over the last two years, several Indonesian restaurants in Macau have closed. I couldn't eat there, so I went to a South Asian street food spot on Rua de Silva Mendes called Zaika Curry (ri zhichuan) to buy chicken curry, samosas, and masala tea, which I packed to eat at the nearby Lou Lim Ioc Garden. Qasim, who works at the trading company next to the curry shop, is an elder at the Macau Mosque.
The winter weather in Macau is pleasant and the park is lush. Many Southeast Asian workers use their holidays to bring snacks to the park to eat and chat, which is very relaxing.
At noon, I arrived at the Macau Mosque and happened to run into a group of Pakistani-origin friends from Hong Kong who were there for a gathering (dawah). They made authentic Pakistani food at the mosque, including stir-fried okra, minced meat with potatoes, and flatbread (paratha). They also invited Imam Ding Shaojie and us to eat with them.
In 1841, the British occupied Hong Kong Island and immediately began sending Muslim soldiers from British India to be stationed there. As Hong Kong Island was being built up in the 1840s, South Asian Muslims arrived to work as police, security guards, and sailors, while a few wealthy merchants came to open companies. In 1849, South Asian Muslims built the first mosque on Hong Kong Island, which later became the Jamia Mosque (Shelley Street Mosque). There are now about 30,000 people of Pakistani descent living in Hong Kong, and about 12,000 of them have local status and identify as Hong Kongers.
At the mosque, I ate some Filipino dessert shared by a friend. Every Sunday and on holidays, many Indonesian friends working in Macau come to the Macau Mosque to eat and chat. Everyone brings all kinds of snacks to share while they talk.
Although the Macau Mosque is not large, the environment is excellent. Besides performing worship and learning, you can play ball, use the swings, pick bananas and starfruit, look at the lake view, and pet cats. In the summer, you can even have outdoor barbecues. It is a great place to get away from the noise and relax.
I listened to Imam Ding Shaojie tell the history of the Macau Mosque.
Locals call the Macau Mosque the "Moro Garden" (Mo Luo Yuan). The term "Moro" comes from the Portuguese word "Mouros." It originally came from the name "Mauri," which the Romans used for the Berbers of North Africa under their rule. Later, various versions appeared in European languages, such as "Moro" in Italian and Spanish, and "Maure" in French. After the Age of Discovery, Spain and Portugal called many of the Muslim groups under their rule "Moros." For example, Spain collectively called the Austronesian Muslim groups in the southern Spanish East Indies (now the southern Philippines) "Moros." Portugal called the Arab-descended Muslims in Portuguese Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) "Ceylon Moors," and in Portuguese-occupied Goa, India, local Muslims were called "Moir."
The Portuguese officially occupied Macau in 1557 and began transferring troops from places like Portuguese India, which included some Muslims. According to the Portuguese scholar Luís Morais in his book "Muslims in Macau," a Macanese real estate businessman named Filipi António Osório sold a piece of land to Macau Muslims to build a mosque and a cemetery, which is the current "Moro Garden." Later, more Muslims from other parts of South Asia came to Macau, and after they passed away, they were buried in the Moro Garden.
Today, most of the South Asian Muslim graves in the Moro Garden date from the 19th to the 20th century. The birthplaces include the Indian states of Punjab, West Bengal, and Goa, as well as Peshawar in Pakistan. The oldest tombstone belongs to a friend from Gujarat, India, who died in 1875. The tombstone is written in Persian and Gujarati, serving as an important historical witness for Macau's Muslims.
Gujarati script developed from the ancient Indian Nagari script and is similar to Sanskrit. Gujarati people are good at business and entered Southeast Asia very early, having a major influence on the development of local scripts in parts of Sumatra, Sulawesi, and the Philippines. Some Gujarati people also lived in Portuguese India, and they likely went to Macau to make a living in the 19th century.
In 1937, when the Japanese army invaded Guangzhou, some Hui Muslims were forced to flee to Hong Kong and Macau. Some eventually passed away in Macau and were buried in the Moro Garden, becoming witnesses to those war-torn years.
Among these Guangzhou Hui Muslims buried in the Macau Moro Garden, three are especially worth mentioning. The first is the famous modern Guangzhou religious teacher, Imam Yang Ruisheng (1863-1939). Imam Yang led the religious community in Guangzhou for many years, serving as the head of the Xiaodongying Mosque and the Dongjiao Mosque. On the eve of the Japanese occupation of Guangzhou in 1937, a Japanese spy named Sakuma pretended to be a Muslim to lure Imam Yang into cooperating with the Japanese. To maintain his integrity, Imam Yang resolutely decided to take his descendants to Macau. Even on his deathbed, he insisted on presiding over the religious affairs of the Macau Mosque until he passed away in 1939.
The second person is Mr. Yang You (1882-1944), a diplomat who served as consul in Fukuoka, Japan, and Wonsan, Korea. He came from the Jingxiutang Yang family, a prominent Hui Muslim family in Guangdong. Several diplomats emerged from this family during the late Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China, including Yang You's cousin, Yang Shu, who was once the Qing Dynasty's minister to Japan. Because he was fluent in Japanese and Korean, he faced threats and pressure from the Japanese military. He had to sell his property and flee to Hong Kong. After Hong Kong fell in 1942, he escaped to Macau, where he passed away (returned to Allah) in 1944.
The third person is Bao Tingzhen, the eldest son of Dr. Bao Zongqi, who died in childhood. Dr. Bao Zongqi came from the Qingshantang Bao family, a prominent Hui Muslim family in Guangdong known for generations of dentists. After fleeing to Macau in 1937, he continued working as a dentist and actively provided relief to refugees. Due to a lack of supplies and poor medical conditions, the son and daughter born to Dr. Bao's family in Macau both died young, one of whom was Bao Tingzhen.
After the liberation in 1945, Hui Muslims gradually returned to Hong Kong and Guangzhou from Macau. Dr. Bao Zongqi continued to run his dental clinic in Macau until he moved to Hong Kong in the 1960s, where he passed away in 1999.
Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Dali Xiaguan — Century-Old Mosque Lane and Halal Food
Reposted from the web
Summary: Dali Xiaguan — Century-Old Mosque Lane and Halal Food is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: On the afternoon of January 28, I took a train from Miyi County in Panzhihua, Sichuan, to Xiaguan in Dali, starting my third trip to Dali. The account keeps its focus on Dali Mosques, Xiaguan Food, Yunnan Muslims while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
On the afternoon of January 28, I took a train from Miyi County in Panzhihua, Sichuan, to Xiaguan in Dali, starting my third trip to Dali. This time I visited Binju, Yangbi, Fengyi, and Weishan, where I visited mosques and tasted halal food. I also carefully explored the Hui Muslim neighborhood around Wenming Street and West Street in Xiaguan to learn about the history of the Xiaguan Mosque.
As a key town in western Yunnan, Xiaguan was once home to many Hui Muslims and had three ancient mosques: the Yidianhong Mosque (Upper Mosque), Yulong Mosque (Middle Mosque), and Caiyuan Mosque (Lower Mosque). However, after the hardships during the Tongzhi reign, the Hui Muslims of Xiaguan died or fled, and all three ancient mosques were destroyed.
It was not until the middle of the Guangxu reign that the Qing government's pacification policy encouraged some surviving Hui Muslims to return to Xiaguan. Later, more Hui Muslims came to Xiaguan for business and gradually settled in the Yulong Pass (Xiaguan) area and outside the pass.
In 1915, led by Ma Yulong and over ten others, the Hui Muslims of Xiaguan worked together to build the current Xiaguan Mosque. They also built a new street in front of the mosque, commonly known as Hui Street, which is now Wenming Street. This established the layout of the Xiaguan mosque district.
The current Xiaguan Mosque was rebuilt in 2004. Many Hui Muslims still live in the surrounding Wenming Street and West Street areas, where there are many halal restaurants.
This year, I noticed signs on some shop walls saying "rectification in use," and I wonder if there is a new plan for this area.
For my 2020 Dali trip, see "Eating and Visiting Halal Spots in Dali Xiaguan and Weishan" and "The Twenty Traditional Mosques of Dali."
Sha Family Courtyard
Today, many old Hui Muslim houses are still preserved around the Xiaguan Mosque, the most notable being the Sha Family Courtyard, which is over 110 years old. Fortunately, the descendants of the Sha family still live in the courtyard and run the Shajie Restaurant. You can enjoy a meal while experiencing the charm of this century-old Hui Muslim courtyard.
The Sha Family Courtyard follows the traditional Dali "three houses and one screen wall" (sanfang yizhaobi) layout, a style used by many local Bai, Han, and Hui Muslim families. The "three houses and one screen wall" layout means the main house and the east and west wing rooms are all two-story, three-room structures, with a large screen wall facing the main house.
I ate the most home-style Yunnan Hui Muslim food here: beef jerky rice (niu ganba fan) and pea sprout soup with pickled cucumbers. The Sha family is very welcoming, and it really doesn't feel like a restaurant; it feels like stepping into the daily life of the Hui Muslims in Xiaguan.
Inside the west wing of the Sha Family Courtyard, the middle room is a living room decorated with traditional calligraphy in the style of Weishan, Dali. The grandfather of the Sha family watches TV here in the evenings. On both sides are bedrooms, which have pictures of Mecca (tianfang tu) hanging inside.
Inside the north room, besides the calligraphy, there are photos of the Sha family from different periods, as well as gifts from Mrs. Sha's 80th and 90th birthday celebrations.
On the wall is a painting by the Yunnan Hui Muslim artist Wang Guowen Haji, featuring a little boy wearing an Ottoman fez hat. This is very interesting, and I suspect it relates to the Yunnan Islamic Progress Association organizing students to study at Al-Azhar University in Egypt after 1931. In 1829, the Ottoman Empire implemented a hat reform, ordering officials to stop wearing turbans and wear fez hats instead. The fez hat then became popular in Egypt under Ottoman rule.
Wenming Street
Wenming Street faces the Xiaguan Mosque, and there are many halal restaurants on the street.
In 2020, I ate braised meat rice noodles (menrou mixian) at this Renji shop.
Then I ate braised meat rice strips (menrou ersi) at this Baiweixuan shop; rice strips are firmer than rice noodles.
West Street
West Street is south of Wenming Street and also has many halal restaurants.
In the morning, I ate thick pea flour (xi doufen) with fried dough sticks (youtiao) and brown sugar boiled eggs at Ma Haibo's snack shop. Boss Ma is from Yongping County, Dali, which is the westernmost mountainous county in Dali, with the Lancang River just to the west.
The freshly fried dough sticks are crispy, and they taste great when dipped in the thick pea flour. The brown sugar boiled eggs have a warming feeling, making them perfect for breakfast.
The beef sauce rice cakes (erkua) made by local Hui Muslims on West Street come with different sauces, so you can have them sweet or spicy. The neighborhood kids love them. It is also very convenient to pack some rice cakes (erkua) to eat on the road when you get hungry.
Zhengyang Times Square
Zhengyang Times Square is right across from Wenming Street. It has many halal restaurants and is especially lively at night.
At night, I ate beef-covered rice balls (niudagun) and savory bean-flour soup dumplings (ganba doumian xiantangyuan) at Du's Tangyuan shop in Zhengyang Times Square. Yunnan has a really rich variety of rice balls (tangyuan), both sweet and savory. Beef-covered rice balls (niudagun) are made by rolling the rice balls in roasted soybean flour and adding maltose or rose jam. Their shop stays open until night, and it is mostly locals who come to eat here.
At a street stall in Zhengyang Times Square, I had a pineapple-flavored Burmese flatbread (Palata). Palata comes from the Indian flatbread Paratha. After it reached Burma, sugar was added to make it a snack. Hui Muslim caravans from Yunnan brought this snack back to their hometown, where it became known as tossed flatbread (shuaishou baba).
I had a copper pot stew (guoguocai) at Musheng Copper Pot. The owners are Hui Muslims from Xingzhuang in Xizhou Town, Dali. It is a beautiful Hui Muslim village located under Canglang Peak by Erhai Lake.
Copper pot stew (guoguocai) is similar to spicy hot pot (malatang) where you pick your own vegetables, but they do not weigh them. Unlike spicy hot pot (malatang), copper pot stew (guoguocai) is cooked in a small copper pot. You also add a topping of classic Yunnan Hui Muslim dishes like braised meat, cold-sliced meat, or yellow-braised chicken, and eat it with rice.
I ordered the mild spicy version, but it was on a completely different level than the mild spicy in Beijing. It made my nose run, my eyes water, and my lips feel like they were being electrocuted. Next time, I will honestly stick to the clear broth, but for those friends (dost) who love spicy food, I still recommend trying the spicy pot base!
I bought some milk fans (rufan) at a fresh milk shop at the corner of Zhengyang Times Square in 2020.
Outside the Hui Muslim Street
Besides the Hui Muslim street around Xiaguan Mosque, there are many other halal restaurants in other parts of Xiaguan. I will share a few more here.
Nafeng Halal Snack Shop is an old place where locals eat. I ordered a bowl of minced meat rice noodles (ersi) with a braised meat topping. The texture of the rice noodles (ersi) is softer and not as chewy as rice noodles (mixian).
At night, I had a late-night snack at Plato Zhaotong Specialty Small Meat Skewers next to Dali Station.
Their service is quite good; as soon as you sit down, they bring you tea and melon seeds. At first, I ordered Zhaotong small meat skewers, fermented tofu (baojiang doufu), and roasted potatoes. The Zhaotong small meat skewers are truly mini. Each skewer is just one bite, mostly to savor the flavor. The fermented tofu (baojiang doufu) is very tender. They added a lot of fish mint (zhe'ergen) to enhance the flavor, and there was charcoal fire underneath.
After eating these, I still wanted more. I checked their menu, which was really rich and quite bold, so with the encouragement of my friends (dostani) in the group, I ordered beef brain and roasted grasshoppers, which I had never eaten before. The texture of the brain is actually a bit like fermented tofu (baojiang doufu), and it tasted quite good. I had always wanted to try grasshoppers as a food mentioned in the teachings, and this time I finally did. It looked a bit hard to eat at first, but once I actually ate it, I felt it was acceptable. It was roasted very crispy and felt a bit like eating shrimp.
You can find halal restaurants from all over Dali in the Renmin South Road area west of Xingsheng Bus Station. In 2020, I bought braised dishes made by Hui Muslims from Weishan Huihuideng at the market on Renmin South Road.
In 2020, I visited a restaurant on Renmin South Road run by Hui Muslims from Yongping County, Dali. I ate the local Yongping specialty, yellow-braised papaya chicken (huangmen mugua ji). The black-footed free-range chicken was excellent, and the papaya juice gave it a nice sour taste. I also had fermented bean curd (mei doufu) stir-fried with garlic sprouts and pickled vegetable red bean soup. These red beans were different from the kind we usually eat.
Spring travels in 2023:
On January 23, I left Macau and visited the Macau mosque known as the Moor Garden (Moluoyuan), where I ate delicious Indonesian Javanese food (see "Moor Garden and Indonesian Food in Macau"). On January 25, I arrived in Guangzhou, visited friends (dost), and ate various halal foods (see "Hui Muslim Oil Cakes and Yemeni Food in Guangzhou").
At noon, I performed namaz at the Huaisheng Mosque, then went to visit the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies (see "Huaisheng Mosque and the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies in Guangzhou").
In the afternoon, I prayed the afternoon prayer (asr) at Haopan Mosque and the sunset prayer (maghrib) at Xiaodongying Mosque (see "Visiting Haopan Mosque and Xiaodongying Mosque in Guangzhou").
On the morning of January 26, I took a train from Guangzhou to Zhaoqing, visited two mosques, and ate halal Cantonese food (see "Halal Roast Goose and Starfruit at the Mosque in Zhaoqing, Guangdong").
On the morning of January 27, I flew from Guangzhou to Xichang, Sichuan. I performed Jumu'ah at the Xichang city mosque, visited the West Mosque and the East Mosque, and ate Xichang rice noodles (see "Performing Jumu'ah and Eating Rice Noodles in Xichang, Sichuan").
On January 28, I took a high-speed train south to Miyi County in Panzhihua, Sichuan. I visited the beautiful Hui Muslim village of Tianba and performed namaz at the old Tianba mosque. I also enjoyed a delicious meal at a local farmhouse restaurant (see "The Beautiful Hui Village Deep in the Mountains—Tianba, Miyi, Sichuan"). Collapse Read »
Summary: Dali Xiaguan — Century-Old Mosque Lane and Halal Food is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: On the afternoon of January 28, I took a train from Miyi County in Panzhihua, Sichuan, to Xiaguan in Dali, starting my third trip to Dali. The account keeps its focus on Dali Mosques, Xiaguan Food, Yunnan Muslims while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
On the afternoon of January 28, I took a train from Miyi County in Panzhihua, Sichuan, to Xiaguan in Dali, starting my third trip to Dali. This time I visited Binju, Yangbi, Fengyi, and Weishan, where I visited mosques and tasted halal food. I also carefully explored the Hui Muslim neighborhood around Wenming Street and West Street in Xiaguan to learn about the history of the Xiaguan Mosque.
As a key town in western Yunnan, Xiaguan was once home to many Hui Muslims and had three ancient mosques: the Yidianhong Mosque (Upper Mosque), Yulong Mosque (Middle Mosque), and Caiyuan Mosque (Lower Mosque). However, after the hardships during the Tongzhi reign, the Hui Muslims of Xiaguan died or fled, and all three ancient mosques were destroyed.
It was not until the middle of the Guangxu reign that the Qing government's pacification policy encouraged some surviving Hui Muslims to return to Xiaguan. Later, more Hui Muslims came to Xiaguan for business and gradually settled in the Yulong Pass (Xiaguan) area and outside the pass.
In 1915, led by Ma Yulong and over ten others, the Hui Muslims of Xiaguan worked together to build the current Xiaguan Mosque. They also built a new street in front of the mosque, commonly known as Hui Street, which is now Wenming Street. This established the layout of the Xiaguan mosque district.
The current Xiaguan Mosque was rebuilt in 2004. Many Hui Muslims still live in the surrounding Wenming Street and West Street areas, where there are many halal restaurants.
This year, I noticed signs on some shop walls saying "rectification in use," and I wonder if there is a new plan for this area.
For my 2020 Dali trip, see "Eating and Visiting Halal Spots in Dali Xiaguan and Weishan" and "The Twenty Traditional Mosques of Dali."
Sha Family Courtyard
Today, many old Hui Muslim houses are still preserved around the Xiaguan Mosque, the most notable being the Sha Family Courtyard, which is over 110 years old. Fortunately, the descendants of the Sha family still live in the courtyard and run the Shajie Restaurant. You can enjoy a meal while experiencing the charm of this century-old Hui Muslim courtyard.
The Sha Family Courtyard follows the traditional Dali "three houses and one screen wall" (sanfang yizhaobi) layout, a style used by many local Bai, Han, and Hui Muslim families. The "three houses and one screen wall" layout means the main house and the east and west wing rooms are all two-story, three-room structures, with a large screen wall facing the main house.
I ate the most home-style Yunnan Hui Muslim food here: beef jerky rice (niu ganba fan) and pea sprout soup with pickled cucumbers. The Sha family is very welcoming, and it really doesn't feel like a restaurant; it feels like stepping into the daily life of the Hui Muslims in Xiaguan.
Inside the west wing of the Sha Family Courtyard, the middle room is a living room decorated with traditional calligraphy in the style of Weishan, Dali. The grandfather of the Sha family watches TV here in the evenings. On both sides are bedrooms, which have pictures of Mecca (tianfang tu) hanging inside.
Inside the north room, besides the calligraphy, there are photos of the Sha family from different periods, as well as gifts from Mrs. Sha's 80th and 90th birthday celebrations.
On the wall is a painting by the Yunnan Hui Muslim artist Wang Guowen Haji, featuring a little boy wearing an Ottoman fez hat. This is very interesting, and I suspect it relates to the Yunnan Islamic Progress Association organizing students to study at Al-Azhar University in Egypt after 1931. In 1829, the Ottoman Empire implemented a hat reform, ordering officials to stop wearing turbans and wear fez hats instead. The fez hat then became popular in Egypt under Ottoman rule.
Wenming Street
Wenming Street faces the Xiaguan Mosque, and there are many halal restaurants on the street.
In 2020, I ate braised meat rice noodles (menrou mixian) at this Renji shop.
Then I ate braised meat rice strips (menrou ersi) at this Baiweixuan shop; rice strips are firmer than rice noodles.
West Street
West Street is south of Wenming Street and also has many halal restaurants.
In the morning, I ate thick pea flour (xi doufen) with fried dough sticks (youtiao) and brown sugar boiled eggs at Ma Haibo's snack shop. Boss Ma is from Yongping County, Dali, which is the westernmost mountainous county in Dali, with the Lancang River just to the west.
The freshly fried dough sticks are crispy, and they taste great when dipped in the thick pea flour. The brown sugar boiled eggs have a warming feeling, making them perfect for breakfast.
The beef sauce rice cakes (erkua) made by local Hui Muslims on West Street come with different sauces, so you can have them sweet or spicy. The neighborhood kids love them. It is also very convenient to pack some rice cakes (erkua) to eat on the road when you get hungry.
Zhengyang Times Square
Zhengyang Times Square is right across from Wenming Street. It has many halal restaurants and is especially lively at night.
At night, I ate beef-covered rice balls (niudagun) and savory bean-flour soup dumplings (ganba doumian xiantangyuan) at Du's Tangyuan shop in Zhengyang Times Square. Yunnan has a really rich variety of rice balls (tangyuan), both sweet and savory. Beef-covered rice balls (niudagun) are made by rolling the rice balls in roasted soybean flour and adding maltose or rose jam. Their shop stays open until night, and it is mostly locals who come to eat here.
At a street stall in Zhengyang Times Square, I had a pineapple-flavored Burmese flatbread (Palata). Palata comes from the Indian flatbread Paratha. After it reached Burma, sugar was added to make it a snack. Hui Muslim caravans from Yunnan brought this snack back to their hometown, where it became known as tossed flatbread (shuaishou baba).
I had a copper pot stew (guoguocai) at Musheng Copper Pot. The owners are Hui Muslims from Xingzhuang in Xizhou Town, Dali. It is a beautiful Hui Muslim village located under Canglang Peak by Erhai Lake.
Copper pot stew (guoguocai) is similar to spicy hot pot (malatang) where you pick your own vegetables, but they do not weigh them. Unlike spicy hot pot (malatang), copper pot stew (guoguocai) is cooked in a small copper pot. You also add a topping of classic Yunnan Hui Muslim dishes like braised meat, cold-sliced meat, or yellow-braised chicken, and eat it with rice.
I ordered the mild spicy version, but it was on a completely different level than the mild spicy in Beijing. It made my nose run, my eyes water, and my lips feel like they were being electrocuted. Next time, I will honestly stick to the clear broth, but for those friends (dost) who love spicy food, I still recommend trying the spicy pot base!
I bought some milk fans (rufan) at a fresh milk shop at the corner of Zhengyang Times Square in 2020.
Outside the Hui Muslim Street
Besides the Hui Muslim street around Xiaguan Mosque, there are many other halal restaurants in other parts of Xiaguan. I will share a few more here.
Nafeng Halal Snack Shop is an old place where locals eat. I ordered a bowl of minced meat rice noodles (ersi) with a braised meat topping. The texture of the rice noodles (ersi) is softer and not as chewy as rice noodles (mixian).
At night, I had a late-night snack at Plato Zhaotong Specialty Small Meat Skewers next to Dali Station.
Their service is quite good; as soon as you sit down, they bring you tea and melon seeds. At first, I ordered Zhaotong small meat skewers, fermented tofu (baojiang doufu), and roasted potatoes. The Zhaotong small meat skewers are truly mini. Each skewer is just one bite, mostly to savor the flavor. The fermented tofu (baojiang doufu) is very tender. They added a lot of fish mint (zhe'ergen) to enhance the flavor, and there was charcoal fire underneath.
After eating these, I still wanted more. I checked their menu, which was really rich and quite bold, so with the encouragement of my friends (dostani) in the group, I ordered beef brain and roasted grasshoppers, which I had never eaten before. The texture of the brain is actually a bit like fermented tofu (baojiang doufu), and it tasted quite good. I had always wanted to try grasshoppers as a food mentioned in the teachings, and this time I finally did. It looked a bit hard to eat at first, but once I actually ate it, I felt it was acceptable. It was roasted very crispy and felt a bit like eating shrimp.
You can find halal restaurants from all over Dali in the Renmin South Road area west of Xingsheng Bus Station. In 2020, I bought braised dishes made by Hui Muslims from Weishan Huihuideng at the market on Renmin South Road.
In 2020, I visited a restaurant on Renmin South Road run by Hui Muslims from Yongping County, Dali. I ate the local Yongping specialty, yellow-braised papaya chicken (huangmen mugua ji). The black-footed free-range chicken was excellent, and the papaya juice gave it a nice sour taste. I also had fermented bean curd (mei doufu) stir-fried with garlic sprouts and pickled vegetable red bean soup. These red beans were different from the kind we usually eat.
Spring travels in 2023:
On January 23, I left Macau and visited the Macau mosque known as the Moor Garden (Moluoyuan), where I ate delicious Indonesian Javanese food (see "Moor Garden and Indonesian Food in Macau"). On January 25, I arrived in Guangzhou, visited friends (dost), and ate various halal foods (see "Hui Muslim Oil Cakes and Yemeni Food in Guangzhou").
At noon, I performed namaz at the Huaisheng Mosque, then went to visit the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies (see "Huaisheng Mosque and the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies in Guangzhou").
In the afternoon, I prayed the afternoon prayer (asr) at Haopan Mosque and the sunset prayer (maghrib) at Xiaodongying Mosque (see "Visiting Haopan Mosque and Xiaodongying Mosque in Guangzhou").
On the morning of January 26, I took a train from Guangzhou to Zhaoqing, visited two mosques, and ate halal Cantonese food (see "Halal Roast Goose and Starfruit at the Mosque in Zhaoqing, Guangdong").
On the morning of January 27, I flew from Guangzhou to Xichang, Sichuan. I performed Jumu'ah at the Xichang city mosque, visited the West Mosque and the East Mosque, and ate Xichang rice noodles (see "Performing Jumu'ah and Eating Rice Noodles in Xichang, Sichuan").
On January 28, I took a high-speed train south to Miyi County in Panzhihua, Sichuan. I visited the beautiful Hui Muslim village of Tianba and performed namaz at the old Tianba mosque. I also enjoyed a delicious meal at a local farmhouse restaurant (see "The Beautiful Hui Village Deep in the Mountains—Tianba, Miyi, Sichuan"). Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Miyi Tianba — Hui Muslim Village in Sichuan Mountains
Reposted from the web
Summary: Miyi Tianba — Hui Muslim Village in Sichuan Mountains is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: On the morning of January 28, I took a high-speed train from Xichang to Miyi County, located at the southwestern tip of Sichuan. From there, I took a taxi to Tianba Hui Muslim village. The account keeps its focus on Miyi Tianba, Hui Muslim Village, Sichuan Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
On the morning of January 28, I took a high-speed train from Xichang to Miyi County, located at the southwestern tip of Sichuan. From there, I took a taxi to Tianba Hui Muslim village.
Tianba Village is a very beautiful Hui Muslim village. Besides the Tianba Mosque, which is listed as a Sichuan provincial cultural heritage site and is well worth a visit, the village is a peaceful place to wander. It feels like a quiet, rural paradise where you can hear chickens and dogs in the distance.
Tianba Village sits in a dry, hot subtropical valley. It is warm in winter and cool in summer, feeling like spring all year round with flowers blooming in every season. In 2019, the village was named one of the most beautiful villages in Sichuan. The streets are clean and tidy, and the local Hui Muslims greet you with smiles.
Although it is deep in the mountains and used to be very difficult to reach, the high-speed train has made it much easier. Many trains between Chengdu and Kunming stop at Miyi East Station. After exiting the station, you can hire a car or wave down a local bus heading from Miyi to Guabang to get there.
An elderly man (baba) saw me and immediately told his grandson to give up his stool for me. I tried to refuse for a long time before the grandson finally sat back down.
I first performed namaz at Tianba Mosque. Tianba Mosque was first built in 1702 during the 11th year of the Kangxi reign of the Qing Dynasty. It was renovated and expanded several times during the Qianlong, Jiaqing, and Daoguang periods, and it was named a provincial cultural heritage site in 1991.
Tianba Mosque has a traditional courtyard layout. The main gate features a moon-viewing tower (wangyuelou) with a double-eaved hexagonal roof, similar in style to traditional mosques in nearby Zhaotong, Yunnan. The main prayer hall has a T-shaped structure with a single-eaved, ridge-roofed design. Since the population of Tianba Village is small, the hall is not large, but it is elegant, simple, and beautiful.
The mihrab was eaten by termites, so a replica was made. You can see it is in a typical Yunnan style, almost identical to the Dazhuang Mosque in Kaiyuan and very similar to the Huihuiying Mosque in Chenggong.
The mihrab of Dazhuang Mosque in Kaiyuan.
The mihrab of Huihuiying Mosque in Chenggong.
I received a warm welcome from Director Sa Fanghui at the mosque and learned many stories about the mosque and Tianba Village.
The mosque is filled with various flowers and plants, and the small pineapples look very cute.
Date palms (yezao) from the Arab region also grow very well here. During Ramadan, everyone breaks their fast at the mosque. People spit the date pits into the flower beds, and they grow into strong trees.
The most interesting thing is that they even grow coffee beans in the mosque. This was my first time seeing that. I heard the imam usually picks some to roast for coffee, and it tastes quite good.
The south wing of Tianba Mosque has been turned into an exhibition hall. It displays old items from the local Hui Muslim families as a memory of life in the past, which I think is very meaningful.
After leaving the mosque, a friend (dost) from Gansu who prayed namaz with me invited me to eat at the Yiqingyuan farmhouse restaurant in the village. The owner is the brother of Director Sa, and he is a very kind and welcoming person. The restaurant has been open for 10 years and strictly does not sell alcohol.
We ate stir-fried beef with chili, cured duck (banya), stir-fried cabbage, and bitter vegetable soup. The beef was tender and went well with rice, and the cured duck was salty and delicious. Overall, it was tasty and affordable. The way they eat bitter vegetable soup here is the same as in Yunnan: you first scoop a spoonful of the vegetable soup into your dipping sauce.
The atmosphere at the restaurant is really nice. When there are no customers, they keep the doors open, and the village children play inside.
Leaving Tianba Village, Baima Town is not far away. At the town's farmers' market, a Hui Muslim auntie from Tianba Village sells pea jelly noodles (wandou liangfen). After saying salaam, the auntie refused to take my money, so I paid her secretly. Because Miyi is at the southern end of Sichuan and very close to Yunnan, the halal food culture is quite similar.
There are a few other halal restaurants in the town.
The scenery in the town is also very beautiful.
After walking around, I took a bus from the town back to the high-speed train station and headed to Dali for the next leg of my trip.
Spring travels in 2023:
On January 23, I left Macau and visited the Macau mosque known as the Moor Garden (Moluoyuan), where I ate delicious Indonesian Javanese food (see "Moor Garden and Indonesian Food in Macau"). On January 25, I arrived in Guangzhou, visited friends (dost), and ate various halal foods (see "Hui Muslim Oil Cakes and Yemeni Food in Guangzhou").
At noon, I performed namaz at the Huaisheng Mosque, then went to visit the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies (see "Huaisheng Mosque and the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies in Guangzhou").
In the afternoon, I prayed the afternoon prayer (asr) at Haopan Mosque and the sunset prayer (maghrib) at Xiaodongying Mosque (see "Visiting Haopan Mosque and Xiaodongying Mosque in Guangzhou").
On the morning of January 26, I took a train from Guangzhou to Zhaoqing, visited two mosques, and ate halal Cantonese food (see "Halal Roast Goose and Starfruit at the Mosque in Zhaoqing, Guangdong").
On the morning of January 27, I flew from Guangzhou to Xichang, Sichuan. I performed Jumu'ah at the Xichang city mosque, visited the West Mosque and the East Mosque, and ate Xichang rice noodles (see "Performing Jumu'ah and Eating Rice Noodles in Xichang, Sichuan"). Collapse Read »
Summary: Miyi Tianba — Hui Muslim Village in Sichuan Mountains is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: On the morning of January 28, I took a high-speed train from Xichang to Miyi County, located at the southwestern tip of Sichuan. From there, I took a taxi to Tianba Hui Muslim village. The account keeps its focus on Miyi Tianba, Hui Muslim Village, Sichuan Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
On the morning of January 28, I took a high-speed train from Xichang to Miyi County, located at the southwestern tip of Sichuan. From there, I took a taxi to Tianba Hui Muslim village.
Tianba Village is a very beautiful Hui Muslim village. Besides the Tianba Mosque, which is listed as a Sichuan provincial cultural heritage site and is well worth a visit, the village is a peaceful place to wander. It feels like a quiet, rural paradise where you can hear chickens and dogs in the distance.
Tianba Village sits in a dry, hot subtropical valley. It is warm in winter and cool in summer, feeling like spring all year round with flowers blooming in every season. In 2019, the village was named one of the most beautiful villages in Sichuan. The streets are clean and tidy, and the local Hui Muslims greet you with smiles.
Although it is deep in the mountains and used to be very difficult to reach, the high-speed train has made it much easier. Many trains between Chengdu and Kunming stop at Miyi East Station. After exiting the station, you can hire a car or wave down a local bus heading from Miyi to Guabang to get there.
An elderly man (baba) saw me and immediately told his grandson to give up his stool for me. I tried to refuse for a long time before the grandson finally sat back down.
I first performed namaz at Tianba Mosque. Tianba Mosque was first built in 1702 during the 11th year of the Kangxi reign of the Qing Dynasty. It was renovated and expanded several times during the Qianlong, Jiaqing, and Daoguang periods, and it was named a provincial cultural heritage site in 1991.
Tianba Mosque has a traditional courtyard layout. The main gate features a moon-viewing tower (wangyuelou) with a double-eaved hexagonal roof, similar in style to traditional mosques in nearby Zhaotong, Yunnan. The main prayer hall has a T-shaped structure with a single-eaved, ridge-roofed design. Since the population of Tianba Village is small, the hall is not large, but it is elegant, simple, and beautiful.
The mihrab was eaten by termites, so a replica was made. You can see it is in a typical Yunnan style, almost identical to the Dazhuang Mosque in Kaiyuan and very similar to the Huihuiying Mosque in Chenggong.
The mihrab of Dazhuang Mosque in Kaiyuan.
The mihrab of Huihuiying Mosque in Chenggong.
I received a warm welcome from Director Sa Fanghui at the mosque and learned many stories about the mosque and Tianba Village.
The mosque is filled with various flowers and plants, and the small pineapples look very cute.
Date palms (yezao) from the Arab region also grow very well here. During Ramadan, everyone breaks their fast at the mosque. People spit the date pits into the flower beds, and they grow into strong trees.
The most interesting thing is that they even grow coffee beans in the mosque. This was my first time seeing that. I heard the imam usually picks some to roast for coffee, and it tastes quite good.
The south wing of Tianba Mosque has been turned into an exhibition hall. It displays old items from the local Hui Muslim families as a memory of life in the past, which I think is very meaningful.
After leaving the mosque, a friend (dost) from Gansu who prayed namaz with me invited me to eat at the Yiqingyuan farmhouse restaurant in the village. The owner is the brother of Director Sa, and he is a very kind and welcoming person. The restaurant has been open for 10 years and strictly does not sell alcohol.
We ate stir-fried beef with chili, cured duck (banya), stir-fried cabbage, and bitter vegetable soup. The beef was tender and went well with rice, and the cured duck was salty and delicious. Overall, it was tasty and affordable. The way they eat bitter vegetable soup here is the same as in Yunnan: you first scoop a spoonful of the vegetable soup into your dipping sauce.
The atmosphere at the restaurant is really nice. When there are no customers, they keep the doors open, and the village children play inside.
Leaving Tianba Village, Baima Town is not far away. At the town's farmers' market, a Hui Muslim auntie from Tianba Village sells pea jelly noodles (wandou liangfen). After saying salaam, the auntie refused to take my money, so I paid her secretly. Because Miyi is at the southern end of Sichuan and very close to Yunnan, the halal food culture is quite similar.
There are a few other halal restaurants in the town.
The scenery in the town is also very beautiful.
After walking around, I took a bus from the town back to the high-speed train station and headed to Dali for the next leg of my trip.
Spring travels in 2023:
On January 23, I left Macau and visited the Macau mosque known as the Moor Garden (Moluoyuan), where I ate delicious Indonesian Javanese food (see "Moor Garden and Indonesian Food in Macau"). On January 25, I arrived in Guangzhou, visited friends (dost), and ate various halal foods (see "Hui Muslim Oil Cakes and Yemeni Food in Guangzhou").
At noon, I performed namaz at the Huaisheng Mosque, then went to visit the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies (see "Huaisheng Mosque and the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies in Guangzhou").
In the afternoon, I prayed the afternoon prayer (asr) at Haopan Mosque and the sunset prayer (maghrib) at Xiaodongying Mosque (see "Visiting Haopan Mosque and Xiaodongying Mosque in Guangzhou").
On the morning of January 26, I took a train from Guangzhou to Zhaoqing, visited two mosques, and ate halal Cantonese food (see "Halal Roast Goose and Starfruit at the Mosque in Zhaoqing, Guangdong").
On the morning of January 27, I flew from Guangzhou to Xichang, Sichuan. I performed Jumu'ah at the Xichang city mosque, visited the West Mosque and the East Mosque, and ate Xichang rice noodles (see "Performing Jumu'ah and Eating Rice Noodles in Xichang, Sichuan"). Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Xichang — Jumu'ah Prayer and Rice Noodles (Part 1)
Reposted from the web
Summary: Xichang — Jumu'ah Prayer and Rice Noodles is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: On January 23, 2023, I left Macau to visit the Macau mosque known as Moro Garden (Moro Yuan) and enjoyed delicious Indonesian Javanese food (see "Moro Garden and Indonesian Food in Macau"). The account keeps its focus on Xichang Travel, Jumu'ah Prayer, Halal Food while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
On January 23, 2023, I left Macau to visit the Macau mosque known as Moro Garden (Moro Yuan) and enjoyed delicious Indonesian Javanese food (see "Moro Garden and Indonesian Food in Macau"). On January 25, I arrived in Guangzhou, visited friends (dost), and ate various halal foods (see "Hui Muslim Oil Cakes and Yemeni Food in Guangzhou"). At noon, I prayed the noon prayer (dhuhr) at a Guangzhou mosque, then went to visit the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies (see "Huaisheng Mosque and the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies in Guangzhou"). In the afternoon, I prayed the afternoon prayer (asr) at Haopan Mosque and the sunset prayer (maghrib) at Xiaodongying Mosque (see "Visiting Haopan Mosque and Xiaodongying Mosque in Guangzhou").
On the morning of January 26, I took a train from Guangzhou to Zhaoqing, visited two mosques, and ate halal Cantonese food (see "Halal Roast Goose and Starfruit at the Mosque in Zhaoqing, Guangdong").
On the morning of January 27, I flew from Guangzhou to Xichang, Sichuan, to begin visiting the local mosques and halal food spots.
Xichang Rice Noodles
After arriving in Xichang, I first went to the Hui Muslim Beef and Mutton Restaurant on South Street in the Ancient City of Jianchang to eat Xichang rice noodles (mixian). According to Imam Sha from Dujiangyan, his family's restaurant was a famous halal spot in Xichang during the 1980s, originally serving traditional Sichuan Hui Muslim dishes like braised, stewed, steamed, stir-fried, and mixed cold dishes. Today, the Ancient City of Jianchang has been developed into a tourist area, and South Street has become a pedestrian street, so the Hui Muslim Beef and Mutton Restaurant now focuses mainly on selling Xichang rice noodles.
I felt the toppings for the Xichang rice noodles were very rich, with five or six different types of chili, and just like in Yunnan, you can add plenty of fresh mint. With a bone broth base, it was very comforting to eat. It is no wonder their place is crowded with people all day long.
Friday Prayer at Xichang City Mosque
At noon, I prayed the Friday prayer (Jumu'ah) at Xichang City Mosque, and after the prayer, I caught the traditional tea-passing activity. On Friday mornings, community members (gaomu) arrive at the mosque one after another to deliver gifts (hadiya), which are daily items like steamed buns (momo), tangerines, buckwheat crispy treats (saqima), and milk, all placed in baskets (poluo) on the table in front of the main prayer hall. After the Friday prayer, everyone sits around the table and distributes the gifts bit by bit.
I feel this tea-passing tradition is excellent and really strengthens the unity of the mosque community. I have encountered this several times before while praying on Fridays in Yunnan; at Manluan Hui Mosque in Menghai, I received various tropical fruits, and at Tangzi Mosque in Xundian, I ate delicious pastries. This was my first time experiencing the tea-passing tradition in Sichuan. Imam Sha said that in Sichuan, this tradition only exists in Xichang, Miyi, and Panzhihua, which are close to Yunnan, and it takes place during Friday prayers and Ramadan.
The former director of the mosque management committee, Director Tuo, and Imam Ma.
Xichang City Mosque is located on Jiyang Lane within the Ancient City of Jianchang. It was built with funds raised by Muslims who came to Xichang for business during the Yuan Dynasty's Taiding era (1324-1328). It was relocated to its current site on Jiyang Lane in 1574 (the second year of the Ming Wanli era, though some say the Hongwu era) and rebuilt to its current form over six years starting in 1875 (the first year of the Qing Guangxi era), earning it the reputation as the premier mosque in Xichang.
During the Yuan Dynasty, Xichang belonged to the Jianchang Circuit of the Yunnan Province. Sumuding Wumoli, the fourth son of Sayyid Ajjal Shams al-Din, and his son Sheheiwusuman served successively as the administrators of the Jianchang Circuit. Another grandson of Sayyid Ajjal Shams al-Din, Yelu Timur, served as the Pingzhang Zhengshi (a high-ranking official) of the Jianchang Circuit at the end of the Yuan Dynasty. Today, descendants of Yelu Timur are among the Hui Muslims in Xichang.
According to the "History of Ming: Records of Sichuan Tusi," Yelu Timur submitted to the Ming Dynasty in 1382 (the 15th year of the Ming Hongwu era) and was appointed as the Jianchang Guard Commander. He rebelled again in 1392 (the 25th year of the Ming Hongwu era), led an army of over ten thousand to attack the city, but was defeated, fled to Baixing Prefecture (Yanyuan County, Liangshan Prefecture), and was eventually captured and executed. According to the genealogy of the Sha-surname Hui Muslims in Xichang, after Yelu Timur was killed, his descendants scattered. One branch fled to Huangcaoping in Miyi County, Panzhihua, hid their identity, and changed their name to Sha Shun. By the third generation, they moved to Heying Yantang Village in Xichang. Imam Sha from Dujiangyan is a descendant of Yelu Timur.
To suppress Yelu Timur, the Ming Dynasty dispatched 15,000 soldiers from the capital guards (the Jiangnan region) and the Shaanxi-Gansu region. Many Xichang Hui Muslims today are descendants of these Ming Dynasty garrison troops from Jiangnan and Shaanxi: Imperial Commander Ma Gang was from Suzhou Prefecture in Jiangnan, and his descendants became the Ma family of Shaguoying. Commander Ma Jun was from Suzhou Prefecture in Jiangnan, and his descendants became the Ma family of Hetao Village. Commander Ma Dengyi was from Dali, Yunnan, and his descendants became the Ma family of Yushitang. Deputy Commander Liu Yuanyuan was from Suzhou Prefecture in Jiangnan. His second generation married a Hui Muslim woman and converted to Islam, and his descendants settled in Xixi Dazi Camp.
The mosque is divided into two courtyards. The right side of the front courtyard contains offices, living quarters, and a washroom, while the left side has an ancient cypress tree that reaches the sky. Entering the inner courtyard through an arched gate, you find the standard main prayer hall and north and south side rooms. There are also two ancient cypress trees in front of the main hall. According to the Republic of China's "Xichang County Annals": "In the fifth year of the Kangxi era, a fire on South Street spread to the mosque. A person in green clothes appeared on the mosque's cypress tree, pouring water from a clean pot to douse the flames, and the fire stopped."
On the west side of the second courtyard is the entrance hall and the main prayer hall. After the 1960s, the entrance hall (baoting) and the two side rooms were taken over by a school, and the main prayer hall was closed off. They were not restored until after the 1980s. Today, the entrance hall and the main prayer hall are hung with various plaques and couplets in Chinese and Arabic, which are precious cultural heritage items of the mosque.
Inside the main prayer hall are the mihrab, minbar, scripture box, and various plaques and couplets.
The mosque holds plaques from different periods, ranging from the Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China era to after the 1990s.
The plaque reading 'Qu Wang Xun Zhen' (Seeking Truth by Eliminating Falsehood) was replicated in 2005 from the original 1746 (11th year of Qianlong) version. The donor, Deputy General Mai Guoliang of the garrison, had ancestral roots in Fengxiang, Shaanxi. He settled in Xichang in 1738 (3rd year of Qianlong) due to military service, and his descendants are known as the Mai family of Shaanxi.
Imam Sa Fuchu was a famous Arabic calligrapher in Xichang.
Imam Sa passed away in 2014 at the age of 89.
Lao Hao Qingzhen Yuan restaurant.
In the afternoon, I ate at the main branch of Lao Hao Qingzhen Yuan near the Xichang West Mosque. It is a restaurant serving traditional halal stir-fry dishes, and the owner is a member of the Yang family, who are community leaders (gaomu) of the Xichang West Mosque.
I ordered the small stir-fried meat (xiaochao rou) and bear paw tofu (xiongzhang doufu), and they also served me lotus leaf tea. It was my first time seeing a restaurant serve lotus leaf tea, and it smelled quite fragrant. The food arrived just five minutes after I ordered; they stir-fry really quickly! The small stir-fried meat is a classic, but it was my first time eating bear paw tofu. 'Bear paw' is actually what Sichuanese people call pan-fried tofu. It is a specialty Sichuan dish stir-fried with bean paste (doubanjiang) that is spicy and rich. It made my nose run and my eyes water, but Sichuan food is truly satisfying!
Xichang West Mosque.
Because the city bought up all the houses during the renovation of the Jianchang Ancient City, there are no longer community leaders (gaomu) living around the city mosque. Relatively speaking, the West Mosque outside the Jianchang Ancient City still maintains the layout of a traditional mosque neighborhood, and there are more halal restaurants nearby.
The Xichang West Mosque is also called the Mashuihe Mosque outside the city. Mashuihe Street has been a street for the Hui Muslim leather industry since the Qing Dynasty. The West Mosque was first built in 1801 (6th year of Jiaqing). When the Xichang earthquake hit in 1850 (30th year of Daoguang), the mosque buildings collapsed and were rebuilt with funding from the Wool Guild, a trade association of local leather workers. In 1935, to stop the Red Army from entering the city, the Chuan-Kang border defense forces burned down 28 streets and alleys outside Xichang for three consecutive days. The West Mosque was also destroyed and was rebuilt in 1948. After 1958, the West Mosque was occupied and severely damaged. It was gradually reclaimed after 1978 and rebuilt into its current form after 1999.
The calligraphy carvings on the minbar, scripture box, mihrab, door panels, and plaques of the West Mosque.
The West Mosque retains the column bases from the old Qing Dynasty main hall, which feature decorations adapted from the Taoist Eight Immortals. I have seen this before at the lower gongbei in Shangmazhuang, Bazanggou, Qinghai, which is a great example of cultural exchange between different religious traditions.
Additionally, there were sausages and pressed duck (banya) drying in the courtyard of the West Mosque, and bamboo baskets in front of the main hall held steamed buns (momo) used for tea after Friday prayers (jumu). These all added a lot of life to this ancient mosque.
The halal restaurants near the West Mosque mainly serve Xichang rice noodles, as well as stir-fried dishes and pastries. The rice noodle shops are packed from early morning until noon; they are very popular. The dried beef (niu ganba) and pressed duck (banya) placed at the entrances of the restaurants are also specialties.
Xichang East Mosque.
The Xichang East Mosque is also called the East Street Mosque outside the city. It was first built in 1578 (6th year of Wanli in the Ming Dynasty). Most of the community leaders (gaomu) moved here from Shaanxi and the Jiangnan region during the Ming and Qing dynasties, mainly working in fur processing, cattle and sheep slaughtering, and the food industry. In 1850 (30th year of Daoguang in the Qing Dynasty), the East Mosque was damaged in the Xichang earthquake and was rebuilt in 1861 (11th year of Xianfeng). According to the Republic of China era 'Xichang County Annals,' it was 'grand in scale, the best among all the mosques.' In 1935, to stop the Red Army from entering the city, the East Mosque was burned down by the Chuan-Kang border defense forces, just like the West Mosque. It was rebuilt as simple one-story houses in 1948, occupied by a fur factory after the 1950s, reclaimed in 1982, and rebuilt into its current form in 2001.
The East Mosque contains plaques and handwritten scriptures by the famous Sichuan scripture teacher Imam Yang Hua, as well as some stone inscriptions from the Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China era. Imam Yang Hua was a student of Imam Sha from Dujiangyan. His family roots were in Fengxiang Prefecture, Shaanxi, and he moved to Xichang during the Tongzhi reign after traveling through Songpan, Sichuan. Imam Yang Hua was born on Hedong Street in Xichang in 1922. He studied at the New Guest Mosque (Xinke Si) and the East Mosque (Dong Si), then taught at the Shaguoying Mosque for a long time. He taught over three hundred students and made a huge contribution to the development of the faith in Xichang.
Beef wontons (chaoshou)
On the morning of January 28, I ate preserved vegetable and beef steamed buns (xiaolongbao) and beef wontons (chaoshou) next to the West Mosque (Xi Si) in Xichang. The owner is a local Hui Muslim named Ma.
I really love the dipping sauces (zhanshui) in the Yunnan, Guizhou, and Sichuan regions. They add so much flavor to the buns! The wontons (chaoshou) didn't look very spicy with red oil, but they got spicier the more I ate. They have a real Sichuan flavor. I also saw some local fried dough (youxiang). It looked quite unique, and it was my first time seeing it.
While I was eating, many Yi ethnic aunties came to buy their buns. It seems they are really popular. The owner said that fewer people are making wheat-based foods here now. Many have switched to rice noodles because wheat-based foods take more time and effort.
Collapse Read »
Summary: Xichang — Jumu'ah Prayer and Rice Noodles is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: On January 23, 2023, I left Macau to visit the Macau mosque known as Moro Garden (Moro Yuan) and enjoyed delicious Indonesian Javanese food (see "Moro Garden and Indonesian Food in Macau"). The account keeps its focus on Xichang Travel, Jumu'ah Prayer, Halal Food while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
On January 23, 2023, I left Macau to visit the Macau mosque known as Moro Garden (Moro Yuan) and enjoyed delicious Indonesian Javanese food (see "Moro Garden and Indonesian Food in Macau"). On January 25, I arrived in Guangzhou, visited friends (dost), and ate various halal foods (see "Hui Muslim Oil Cakes and Yemeni Food in Guangzhou"). At noon, I prayed the noon prayer (dhuhr) at a Guangzhou mosque, then went to visit the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies (see "Huaisheng Mosque and the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies in Guangzhou"). In the afternoon, I prayed the afternoon prayer (asr) at Haopan Mosque and the sunset prayer (maghrib) at Xiaodongying Mosque (see "Visiting Haopan Mosque and Xiaodongying Mosque in Guangzhou").
On the morning of January 26, I took a train from Guangzhou to Zhaoqing, visited two mosques, and ate halal Cantonese food (see "Halal Roast Goose and Starfruit at the Mosque in Zhaoqing, Guangdong").
On the morning of January 27, I flew from Guangzhou to Xichang, Sichuan, to begin visiting the local mosques and halal food spots.
Xichang Rice Noodles
After arriving in Xichang, I first went to the Hui Muslim Beef and Mutton Restaurant on South Street in the Ancient City of Jianchang to eat Xichang rice noodles (mixian). According to Imam Sha from Dujiangyan, his family's restaurant was a famous halal spot in Xichang during the 1980s, originally serving traditional Sichuan Hui Muslim dishes like braised, stewed, steamed, stir-fried, and mixed cold dishes. Today, the Ancient City of Jianchang has been developed into a tourist area, and South Street has become a pedestrian street, so the Hui Muslim Beef and Mutton Restaurant now focuses mainly on selling Xichang rice noodles.
I felt the toppings for the Xichang rice noodles were very rich, with five or six different types of chili, and just like in Yunnan, you can add plenty of fresh mint. With a bone broth base, it was very comforting to eat. It is no wonder their place is crowded with people all day long.
Friday Prayer at Xichang City Mosque
At noon, I prayed the Friday prayer (Jumu'ah) at Xichang City Mosque, and after the prayer, I caught the traditional tea-passing activity. On Friday mornings, community members (gaomu) arrive at the mosque one after another to deliver gifts (hadiya), which are daily items like steamed buns (momo), tangerines, buckwheat crispy treats (saqima), and milk, all placed in baskets (poluo) on the table in front of the main prayer hall. After the Friday prayer, everyone sits around the table and distributes the gifts bit by bit.
I feel this tea-passing tradition is excellent and really strengthens the unity of the mosque community. I have encountered this several times before while praying on Fridays in Yunnan; at Manluan Hui Mosque in Menghai, I received various tropical fruits, and at Tangzi Mosque in Xundian, I ate delicious pastries. This was my first time experiencing the tea-passing tradition in Sichuan. Imam Sha said that in Sichuan, this tradition only exists in Xichang, Miyi, and Panzhihua, which are close to Yunnan, and it takes place during Friday prayers and Ramadan.
The former director of the mosque management committee, Director Tuo, and Imam Ma.
Xichang City Mosque is located on Jiyang Lane within the Ancient City of Jianchang. It was built with funds raised by Muslims who came to Xichang for business during the Yuan Dynasty's Taiding era (1324-1328). It was relocated to its current site on Jiyang Lane in 1574 (the second year of the Ming Wanli era, though some say the Hongwu era) and rebuilt to its current form over six years starting in 1875 (the first year of the Qing Guangxi era), earning it the reputation as the premier mosque in Xichang.
During the Yuan Dynasty, Xichang belonged to the Jianchang Circuit of the Yunnan Province. Sumuding Wumoli, the fourth son of Sayyid Ajjal Shams al-Din, and his son Sheheiwusuman served successively as the administrators of the Jianchang Circuit. Another grandson of Sayyid Ajjal Shams al-Din, Yelu Timur, served as the Pingzhang Zhengshi (a high-ranking official) of the Jianchang Circuit at the end of the Yuan Dynasty. Today, descendants of Yelu Timur are among the Hui Muslims in Xichang.
According to the "History of Ming: Records of Sichuan Tusi," Yelu Timur submitted to the Ming Dynasty in 1382 (the 15th year of the Ming Hongwu era) and was appointed as the Jianchang Guard Commander. He rebelled again in 1392 (the 25th year of the Ming Hongwu era), led an army of over ten thousand to attack the city, but was defeated, fled to Baixing Prefecture (Yanyuan County, Liangshan Prefecture), and was eventually captured and executed. According to the genealogy of the Sha-surname Hui Muslims in Xichang, after Yelu Timur was killed, his descendants scattered. One branch fled to Huangcaoping in Miyi County, Panzhihua, hid their identity, and changed their name to Sha Shun. By the third generation, they moved to Heying Yantang Village in Xichang. Imam Sha from Dujiangyan is a descendant of Yelu Timur.
To suppress Yelu Timur, the Ming Dynasty dispatched 15,000 soldiers from the capital guards (the Jiangnan region) and the Shaanxi-Gansu region. Many Xichang Hui Muslims today are descendants of these Ming Dynasty garrison troops from Jiangnan and Shaanxi: Imperial Commander Ma Gang was from Suzhou Prefecture in Jiangnan, and his descendants became the Ma family of Shaguoying. Commander Ma Jun was from Suzhou Prefecture in Jiangnan, and his descendants became the Ma family of Hetao Village. Commander Ma Dengyi was from Dali, Yunnan, and his descendants became the Ma family of Yushitang. Deputy Commander Liu Yuanyuan was from Suzhou Prefecture in Jiangnan. His second generation married a Hui Muslim woman and converted to Islam, and his descendants settled in Xixi Dazi Camp.
The mosque is divided into two courtyards. The right side of the front courtyard contains offices, living quarters, and a washroom, while the left side has an ancient cypress tree that reaches the sky. Entering the inner courtyard through an arched gate, you find the standard main prayer hall and north and south side rooms. There are also two ancient cypress trees in front of the main hall. According to the Republic of China's "Xichang County Annals": "In the fifth year of the Kangxi era, a fire on South Street spread to the mosque. A person in green clothes appeared on the mosque's cypress tree, pouring water from a clean pot to douse the flames, and the fire stopped."
On the west side of the second courtyard is the entrance hall and the main prayer hall. After the 1960s, the entrance hall (baoting) and the two side rooms were taken over by a school, and the main prayer hall was closed off. They were not restored until after the 1980s. Today, the entrance hall and the main prayer hall are hung with various plaques and couplets in Chinese and Arabic, which are precious cultural heritage items of the mosque.
Inside the main prayer hall are the mihrab, minbar, scripture box, and various plaques and couplets.
The mosque holds plaques from different periods, ranging from the Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China era to after the 1990s.
The plaque reading 'Qu Wang Xun Zhen' (Seeking Truth by Eliminating Falsehood) was replicated in 2005 from the original 1746 (11th year of Qianlong) version. The donor, Deputy General Mai Guoliang of the garrison, had ancestral roots in Fengxiang, Shaanxi. He settled in Xichang in 1738 (3rd year of Qianlong) due to military service, and his descendants are known as the Mai family of Shaanxi.
Imam Sa Fuchu was a famous Arabic calligrapher in Xichang.
Imam Sa passed away in 2014 at the age of 89.
Lao Hao Qingzhen Yuan restaurant.
In the afternoon, I ate at the main branch of Lao Hao Qingzhen Yuan near the Xichang West Mosque. It is a restaurant serving traditional halal stir-fry dishes, and the owner is a member of the Yang family, who are community leaders (gaomu) of the Xichang West Mosque.
I ordered the small stir-fried meat (xiaochao rou) and bear paw tofu (xiongzhang doufu), and they also served me lotus leaf tea. It was my first time seeing a restaurant serve lotus leaf tea, and it smelled quite fragrant. The food arrived just five minutes after I ordered; they stir-fry really quickly! The small stir-fried meat is a classic, but it was my first time eating bear paw tofu. 'Bear paw' is actually what Sichuanese people call pan-fried tofu. It is a specialty Sichuan dish stir-fried with bean paste (doubanjiang) that is spicy and rich. It made my nose run and my eyes water, but Sichuan food is truly satisfying!
Xichang West Mosque.
Because the city bought up all the houses during the renovation of the Jianchang Ancient City, there are no longer community leaders (gaomu) living around the city mosque. Relatively speaking, the West Mosque outside the Jianchang Ancient City still maintains the layout of a traditional mosque neighborhood, and there are more halal restaurants nearby.
The Xichang West Mosque is also called the Mashuihe Mosque outside the city. Mashuihe Street has been a street for the Hui Muslim leather industry since the Qing Dynasty. The West Mosque was first built in 1801 (6th year of Jiaqing). When the Xichang earthquake hit in 1850 (30th year of Daoguang), the mosque buildings collapsed and were rebuilt with funding from the Wool Guild, a trade association of local leather workers. In 1935, to stop the Red Army from entering the city, the Chuan-Kang border defense forces burned down 28 streets and alleys outside Xichang for three consecutive days. The West Mosque was also destroyed and was rebuilt in 1948. After 1958, the West Mosque was occupied and severely damaged. It was gradually reclaimed after 1978 and rebuilt into its current form after 1999.
The calligraphy carvings on the minbar, scripture box, mihrab, door panels, and plaques of the West Mosque.
The West Mosque retains the column bases from the old Qing Dynasty main hall, which feature decorations adapted from the Taoist Eight Immortals. I have seen this before at the lower gongbei in Shangmazhuang, Bazanggou, Qinghai, which is a great example of cultural exchange between different religious traditions.
Additionally, there were sausages and pressed duck (banya) drying in the courtyard of the West Mosque, and bamboo baskets in front of the main hall held steamed buns (momo) used for tea after Friday prayers (jumu). These all added a lot of life to this ancient mosque.
The halal restaurants near the West Mosque mainly serve Xichang rice noodles, as well as stir-fried dishes and pastries. The rice noodle shops are packed from early morning until noon; they are very popular. The dried beef (niu ganba) and pressed duck (banya) placed at the entrances of the restaurants are also specialties.
Xichang East Mosque.
The Xichang East Mosque is also called the East Street Mosque outside the city. It was first built in 1578 (6th year of Wanli in the Ming Dynasty). Most of the community leaders (gaomu) moved here from Shaanxi and the Jiangnan region during the Ming and Qing dynasties, mainly working in fur processing, cattle and sheep slaughtering, and the food industry. In 1850 (30th year of Daoguang in the Qing Dynasty), the East Mosque was damaged in the Xichang earthquake and was rebuilt in 1861 (11th year of Xianfeng). According to the Republic of China era 'Xichang County Annals,' it was 'grand in scale, the best among all the mosques.' In 1935, to stop the Red Army from entering the city, the East Mosque was burned down by the Chuan-Kang border defense forces, just like the West Mosque. It was rebuilt as simple one-story houses in 1948, occupied by a fur factory after the 1950s, reclaimed in 1982, and rebuilt into its current form in 2001.
The East Mosque contains plaques and handwritten scriptures by the famous Sichuan scripture teacher Imam Yang Hua, as well as some stone inscriptions from the Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China era. Imam Yang Hua was a student of Imam Sha from Dujiangyan. His family roots were in Fengxiang Prefecture, Shaanxi, and he moved to Xichang during the Tongzhi reign after traveling through Songpan, Sichuan. Imam Yang Hua was born on Hedong Street in Xichang in 1922. He studied at the New Guest Mosque (Xinke Si) and the East Mosque (Dong Si), then taught at the Shaguoying Mosque for a long time. He taught over three hundred students and made a huge contribution to the development of the faith in Xichang.
Beef wontons (chaoshou)
On the morning of January 28, I ate preserved vegetable and beef steamed buns (xiaolongbao) and beef wontons (chaoshou) next to the West Mosque (Xi Si) in Xichang. The owner is a local Hui Muslim named Ma.
I really love the dipping sauces (zhanshui) in the Yunnan, Guizhou, and Sichuan regions. They add so much flavor to the buns! The wontons (chaoshou) didn't look very spicy with red oil, but they got spicier the more I ate. They have a real Sichuan flavor. I also saw some local fried dough (youxiang). It looked quite unique, and it was my first time seeing it.
While I was eating, many Yi ethnic aunties came to buy their buns. It seems they are really popular. The owner said that fewer people are making wheat-based foods here now. Many have switched to rice noodles because wheat-based foods take more time and effort.
Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Xichang — Jumu'ah Prayer and Rice Noodles (Part 2)
Reposted from the web
Summary: Xichang — Jumu'ah Prayer and Rice Noodles is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: Next, I will take the high-speed train from Xichang West Station to Miyi. The next post will introduce the Hui Muslim village of Tianba in Miyi. The account keeps its focus on Xichang Travel, Jumu'ah Prayer, Halal Food while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
Next, I will take the high-speed train from Xichang West Station to Miyi. The next post will introduce the Hui Muslim village of Tianba in Miyi.
For a detailed introduction to the Hui Muslims of Xichang, I recommend checking out the WeChat official account "Shuzhong Huihui":
Origins of the Sichuan Hui: A Brief Analysis of the Surname Structure of the Hui Muslims in Xichang City, Sichuan
Origins of the Sichuan Hui: A Muslim Family Thriving Since the Yuan Dynasty—The Sha Family of Hui Muslims in Xichang, Sichuan Collapse Read »
Summary: Xichang — Jumu'ah Prayer and Rice Noodles is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: Next, I will take the high-speed train from Xichang West Station to Miyi. The next post will introduce the Hui Muslim village of Tianba in Miyi. The account keeps its focus on Xichang Travel, Jumu'ah Prayer, Halal Food while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
Next, I will take the high-speed train from Xichang West Station to Miyi. The next post will introduce the Hui Muslim village of Tianba in Miyi.
For a detailed introduction to the Hui Muslims of Xichang, I recommend checking out the WeChat official account "Shuzhong Huihui":
Origins of the Sichuan Hui: A Brief Analysis of the Surname Structure of the Hui Muslims in Xichang City, Sichuan
Origins of the Sichuan Hui: A Muslim Family Thriving Since the Yuan Dynasty—The Sha Family of Hui Muslims in Xichang, Sichuan Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Guangzhou — Haopan Mosque, Xiaodongying Mosque and Old Streets
Reposted from the web
Summary: Guangzhou — Haopan Mosque, Xiaodongying Mosque and Old Streets is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: I left Macau on January 23, 2023, to visit the Macau mosque known as Moro Garden (Moro Yuan). The account keeps its focus on Guangzhou Mosques, Haopan Mosque, Muslim Heritage while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
I left Macau on January 23, 2023, to visit the Macau mosque known as Moro Garden (Moro Yuan). I ate delicious Indonesian Javanese food and wrote about it in my post, 'Moro Garden and Indonesian Food in Macau'. I arrived in Guangzhou on January 25, visited a friend (dosti), and ate various halal foods, which I posted about in "Hui Muslim Fried Dough (youxiang) and Yemeni Food in Guangzhou." On January 25 at noon, I performed namaz at the Huaisheng Mosque in Guangzhou, then visited the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies (Xianxian Gumu) to pay my respects. I posted about this in my article, "Guangzhou's Huaisheng Mosque and the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies." On the afternoon of January 25, I performed the dhuhr prayer at the Haopan Mosque and the asr prayer at the Xiaodongying Mosque, taking the opportunity to visit both of these mosques.
Hui Muslim officials and soldiers in Ming Dynasty Guangzhou.
The Yuan Dynasty was a turning point for the development of the faith in Guangzhou. Between 1276 and 1278, a two-year tug-of-war between the Mongol army and local forces, followed by a decade of anti-Yuan uprisings in Guangdong, left Guangzhou severely damaged. Many foreign Muslim merchants moved to Quanzhou and other coastal cities to settle. After the Yuan Dynasty took control, many Hui Muslim soldiers, craftsmen, and merchants traveled east to China by land, but apart from a few officials, not many Hui Muslims came to Guangzhou. As a result, the foreign Muslim quarter (fanfang) in Guangzhou gradually declined during the Yuan Dynasty and finally fell apart between the end of the Yuan and the beginning of the Ming Dynasty.
After the Ming Dynasty was established, the "Daguan Army" replaced the foreign merchants as the main group of Muslims in Guangzhou. In the early Ming Dynasty, many Yuan soldiers surrendered. They were initially called "Tatars" (dada) and later renamed "Daren." Many of them were Hui Muslims from the Western Regions. Some of these surrendered Daren were sent to farm land across the country, while others served in military garrisons, which is why they were called the "Daguan Army."
In 1450 (the second year of the Jingtai reign), the Ming government sent troops to suppress the Huang Xiaoyang uprising in Guangzhou. This was the first time the Daguan Army was stationed in Guangzhou, though their numbers were relatively small. In 1465 (the first year of the Chenghua reign), the Ming government sent troops to suppress the Yao people's uprising in Guangdong and Guangxi, again calling up the Daguan Army from Nanjing. The Ming Dynasty's "Guangdong Tongzhi" (Gazetteer of Guangdong) from the Jiajing reign records that "over a thousand Daguan soldiers were ordered to the region." The Daguan Army achieved a major victory in the campaign. The commander, Han Yong, wrote a memorial to the court titled "Proposal on Handling Affairs in Guangxi," suggesting that some of the Daguan soldiers stay in Guangdong. He proposed a specific plan: "They should all remain in Guangzhou city to settle... find vacant land, build houses, and assign them to live there." For those with families, I request that the Nanjing garrison commander be ordered to send ships to bring them here. For those without families, we will find ways to arrange marriages for them.
According to statistics from the Ming Dynasty's "Guangzhou Tongzhi" (Gazetteer of Guangzhou) from the Jiajing reign, 285 Daguan soldiers eventually settled in Guangzhou. To accommodate them, four garrisons were established: Dadongying, Xiaodongying, Xiying, and Zhutongying, collectively known as the "Four Hui Camps." The ancestors of Yu Fengqi and Ma Chengzhu—who are buried in the "Three Loyalists of the Faith" tomb next to the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies in Guangzhou—were Yu Shifu and Ma Heima, who were leaders of the Daguan Army stationed in Guangzhou at that time. For the next 200 years, the Ming government frequently deployed the Daguan Army to fight in various parts of Guangdong and Guangxi. The final battle for the Daguan Army was the Qing army's siege of Guangzhou in 1650. Represented by Daguan generals Yu Fengqi, Ma Chengzhu, and Sa Zhifu, the "Three Loyalists of the Faith" died heroically for their country, and the Daguan Army and the Guangzhou Hui camps were disbanded.
Although the Daguan Army as a military unit ceased to exist after the Qing Dynasty, their descendants have continued to live in Guangzhou. Yu Shifu's descendants multiplied and developed into the Yu Chengxi Hall family of Guangzhou. Ha Zixiang from Hejian County, Hejian Prefecture, was ordered to garrison Guangzhou. His descendants developed into the Hui Muslim Ha family of Guangzhou. During the Wanli reign, Yang Rikui from Zhengding County, Zhengding Prefecture, was ordered to garrison Guangzhou. His descendants developed into the Hui Muslim Yang Jiguang Hall family of Guangzhou.
Inside the Huaisheng Mosque in Guangzhou, there is a stone tablet commemorating a house donation by Yu Dajing, a descendant of the Yu family. It records that after Yu Dajing passed away (returned to Allah), his wife donated a house he had bought in Nanshengli to the Guangzhou Four Quarters Public Fund. The rent from the house was used to cover expenses for the memorial days at the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies and other public costs.
After the Daguan Army settled in the Four Hui Camps in Guangzhou, they built the Haopan Mosque (1465), Nansheng Mosque (1465-1467), and Xiaodongying Mosque (1468) near their stations. They also rebuilt the Huaisheng Mosque (1468), marking the formal establishment of the four Muslim quarters of Guangzhou during the Ming and Qing dynasties. This was the rebirth of the faith in Guangzhou after the foreign Muslim quarters dissolved at the end of the Yuan and the beginning of the Ming Dynasty.
Haopan Street Mosque.
Haopan Mosque sits by the Nanhao, a branch of the Pearl River. It was built during the Chenghua period of the Ming Dynasty by Hui Muslim officials who settled in Guangzhou. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, the area around Haopan Street was a major trade hub in Guangzhou, bustling with merchants. Qu Dajun, a famous Guangzhou scholar from the late Ming and early Qing periods, wrote in his classic work New Sayings of Guangdong (Guangdong Xinyu): In the Haopan Street area, during prosperous times, spices, pearls, rhinoceros horns, and ivory were piled like mountains, and flowers and birds were as plentiful as the sea. Foreign merchants gathered here, spending tens of millions of gold every day. The abundance of food and the frequency of singing and dancing far exceeded that of the Qinhuai area. These merchants were mostly from Jiangsu and Zhejiang, and locals called them Jiangnan guests.
In 1706 (the 45th year of the Kangxi reign), Fu Yunfeng led the reconstruction of Haopan Mosque. Fu Yunfeng was originally Han Chinese. During the Kangxi era, he traveled from Zhejiang to Guangdong for business. After he ran into trouble, an imam at the Haopan Mosque in Guangzhou saved him. He lived in the mosque for a while and then converted to Islam. He was a timber merchant. After becoming wealthy, he funded the reconstruction of the Haopan Mosque in Guangzhou. He also renovated the Huaisheng Mosque, Nansheng Mosque, the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies, and the Chengdong Mosque in Zhaoqing, making a major contribution to the development of the faith in Guangdong.
Starting in the Qianlong period, Haopan Mosque opened a scripture school, and during the Tongzhi period, it opened a Hui Muslim university. It hired many famous scholars from Nanjing, Gansu, and Yunnan to train a large number of imams, playing a major role in the development of Islam in Guangzhou, Hong Kong, and Macau.
Haopan Mosque originally featured a classic southern mosque design with three-sided corridors, creating a courtyard in front of the main prayer hall. This style was well-suited to the rainy, low-wind climate of the south. After 1952, the mosque used the three-sided corridors to open a nursing home for Hui Muslims. In 1958, it opened a bamboo processing factory, which later grew into a sewing machine parts factory for Hui and Manchu Muslims. In the early 1960s, the mosque remained largely in its original state. The main prayer hall and the water room were used normally, and factory production did not interfere with the religious practices of the community. However, after 1966, the stone tablets and plaques in the mosque were destroyed, all scripture books were burned, and the main prayer hall was turned into a warehouse. In 1973, the three-sided corridors were torn down and replaced by a five-story factory building. In 1994, the factory finally returned the main prayer hall to the mosque. After preparations, it was renovated in 1997 and officially reopened in 1998.
Today, Haopan Mosque preserves the main prayer hall rebuilt during the Kangxi period. It has a square, three-bay, hip-and-gable roof design, which is completely different from mosques in the north. The mihrab inside the hall once featured exquisite Arabic calligraphy and geometric patterns, along with a beautifully carved hardwood minbar, but unfortunately, these no longer exist. When I visited Guangzhou in 2017, Haopan Mosque was about to undergo repairs. This time, the results look very good, and the ancient mosque's style was not ruined by over-restoration.
Many Hui Muslims from Zhejiang, Shanghai, and Nanjing who came to Guangzhou for business chose to live in the foreign trading firms near Haopan Street and the shops near Xiguan, which had a significant impact on the Haopan Street Mosque. Today, Haopan Mosque keeps half of a plaque inscribed with, In the first month of the seventh year of the Republic of China, the Jiangnan Association Tongshantang renovated this, which serves as a witness to the business activities of Jiangnan Hui Muslims in Guangzhou.
I met Master Yang at Haopan Mosque, whom I had not seen for six years. Master Yang is a local Hui Muslim from Guangzhou and has been a mosque attendant at Haopan Mosque for 20 years. I drank tea and chatted with Master Yang, and I ate some fried dough (youxiang) made by local Guangzhou Hui Muslims for a charity event (chusan). This was my first time eating local Guangzhou youxiang. They were small, crispy, and sweet, almost like a pastry.
Xiaodongying Mosque
Xiaodongying Mosque is located on the site of Xiaodongying, one of the four Hui Muslim camps in Guangzhou. It was built in 1468 (the fourth year of the Ming Chenghua reign) by Hui Muslim officials and was renovated twice during the Qing Jiaqing and Tongzhi periods. In 1901, Hui Muslims from Guangzhou and Hong Kong raised funds to start the Xiaodongying Mosque Charity School, with imams Yang Ruisheng and Wang Mingshan as teachers. In 1925, Xiaodongying Mosque became the activity center for the Guangzhou Islamic Youth Association, and in 1931, Chen Huanwen founded the Muslim (Mumin) monthly magazine there.
After 1949, Xiaodongying Mosque gradually became a funeral service center for Hui Muslims. After 1966, it was occupied by a Guangzhou Hui and Manchu Muslim factory as a warehouse. When it was returned in 1979, it was in ruins. After being renovated in 1982, it continued to serve as a funeral service center for burials. In 1998, Xiaodongying Mosque was approved as a place for religious activities, and in 2005, it officially resumed Friday Jumu'ah prayers. Now, those who come here for namaz are mainly foreign friends (dosti) from near Xiaobei.
The Xiaodongying Mosque currently preserves several plaques from the Qing Dynasty.
In the fifth year of the Tongzhi reign (1866), Li Chengyi from Dingyuan County, Fengyang Prefecture, Jiangnan, respectfully inscribed an Arabic plaque.
In the sixth year of the Tongzhi reign (1867), Yang Yongchun respectfully inscribed and erected the Hundred-Word Eulogy by Emperor Taizu of Ming.
In the 34th year of the Guangxu reign (1908), Liao Shouqi from Jiangxia County, Hubei, along with his son Dalian, erected a plaque reading 'The Religion Has an Orthodox Origin'.
Opposite the main hall of the Xiaodongying Mosque in Guangzhou is a stele corridor, which features a series of stone tablets from the Qing Dynasty recording charitable donations.
The 1808 stele regarding the permanent donation of property to the Dongying Mosque records that a woman named Li Ding, who lost her husband in middle age and had no children, wished to donate two houses she had purchased outside Wenming Gate and in the Fourth Lane. The rent from these houses was to support three imams at the mosque, and she requested that the imams perform dua on the anniversary of her death.
The 1818 stele for the Dongying Mosque records that the community members of the four neighborhoods raised funds to purchase a house from a woman named Li He, a resident of Nanhai County, located in Ying'en Lane outside the South Gate, and donated the rent to the mosque.
The 1822 stele regarding the purchase of property for the Dongying Mosque records that the community of the four neighborhoods raised funds to buy a house within the Zhan Family Garden and donated it to the Xiaodongying Mosque, with the rent going into the mosque's public fund box.
The 1846 stele regarding Li Yatai's house donation exchange records that Li Zhenchang wanted to combine a house in the Fourth Lane, which Li Yatai had donated to the Xiaodongying Mosque in 1807, with his own property. He exchanged it for a house in the Fifth Lane and used the additional rent to cover the repair costs for a collapsed house in the Zhan Family Garden. It also records that a house belonging to the Children's Association in the Zhan Family Garden had been collapsed by water for over ten years, and it was finally repaired thanks to donations from local elders.
The 1854 stele regarding the purchase of property for the Xiaodongying Mosque records that in 1819, the mosque received funds from the elders of the four neighborhoods to buy a house from Ma Shunhong in Jinshi Lane. In 1851, Zhang Chaodong combined this house with his own, so he bought two houses from the Xu Ding family in the Zhan Family Garden and donated them to the mosque instead.
The 1866 stele regarding donations to the Dongying Mosque records that the community of the four neighborhoods donated houses and storefronts. It lists all the donated properties of the Dongying Mosque, located in the Second Lane of Wende Lane, the Fifth Lane of Wende Lane, the east end of Nansheng Lane near the city wall, the entrance of Xiaodongying Street, and Xianxiang Street outside the Great East Gate.
The 1866 stele regarding the renovation of the Xiaodongying Mosque records the process of the mosque's renovation during the Tongzhi reign, including the names, official titles, and donation amounts of the contributors.
The 1909 stele for the Dongying Mosque Charity School records how Muslims in Guangzhou and Hong Kong raised funds in 1900 to establish a charity school within the Dongying Mosque.
If you are interested in the history of the faith in Guangzhou, I recommend reading "History of Islam in Guangzhou" edited by Bao Yanzhong and "Collection of Hui Muslim Tablet Inscriptions and Couplets in Guangzhou" edited by Ma Jianzhao. These two books were very helpful in organizing and editing this article. Finally, I would like to thank Chen Yong, a dost (friend), for correcting the information in this article.
Collapse Read »
Summary: Guangzhou — Haopan Mosque, Xiaodongying Mosque and Old Streets is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: I left Macau on January 23, 2023, to visit the Macau mosque known as Moro Garden (Moro Yuan). The account keeps its focus on Guangzhou Mosques, Haopan Mosque, Muslim Heritage while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
I left Macau on January 23, 2023, to visit the Macau mosque known as Moro Garden (Moro Yuan). I ate delicious Indonesian Javanese food and wrote about it in my post, 'Moro Garden and Indonesian Food in Macau'. I arrived in Guangzhou on January 25, visited a friend (dosti), and ate various halal foods, which I posted about in "Hui Muslim Fried Dough (youxiang) and Yemeni Food in Guangzhou." On January 25 at noon, I performed namaz at the Huaisheng Mosque in Guangzhou, then visited the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies (Xianxian Gumu) to pay my respects. I posted about this in my article, "Guangzhou's Huaisheng Mosque and the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies." On the afternoon of January 25, I performed the dhuhr prayer at the Haopan Mosque and the asr prayer at the Xiaodongying Mosque, taking the opportunity to visit both of these mosques.
Hui Muslim officials and soldiers in Ming Dynasty Guangzhou.
The Yuan Dynasty was a turning point for the development of the faith in Guangzhou. Between 1276 and 1278, a two-year tug-of-war between the Mongol army and local forces, followed by a decade of anti-Yuan uprisings in Guangdong, left Guangzhou severely damaged. Many foreign Muslim merchants moved to Quanzhou and other coastal cities to settle. After the Yuan Dynasty took control, many Hui Muslim soldiers, craftsmen, and merchants traveled east to China by land, but apart from a few officials, not many Hui Muslims came to Guangzhou. As a result, the foreign Muslim quarter (fanfang) in Guangzhou gradually declined during the Yuan Dynasty and finally fell apart between the end of the Yuan and the beginning of the Ming Dynasty.
After the Ming Dynasty was established, the "Daguan Army" replaced the foreign merchants as the main group of Muslims in Guangzhou. In the early Ming Dynasty, many Yuan soldiers surrendered. They were initially called "Tatars" (dada) and later renamed "Daren." Many of them were Hui Muslims from the Western Regions. Some of these surrendered Daren were sent to farm land across the country, while others served in military garrisons, which is why they were called the "Daguan Army."
In 1450 (the second year of the Jingtai reign), the Ming government sent troops to suppress the Huang Xiaoyang uprising in Guangzhou. This was the first time the Daguan Army was stationed in Guangzhou, though their numbers were relatively small. In 1465 (the first year of the Chenghua reign), the Ming government sent troops to suppress the Yao people's uprising in Guangdong and Guangxi, again calling up the Daguan Army from Nanjing. The Ming Dynasty's "Guangdong Tongzhi" (Gazetteer of Guangdong) from the Jiajing reign records that "over a thousand Daguan soldiers were ordered to the region." The Daguan Army achieved a major victory in the campaign. The commander, Han Yong, wrote a memorial to the court titled "Proposal on Handling Affairs in Guangxi," suggesting that some of the Daguan soldiers stay in Guangdong. He proposed a specific plan: "They should all remain in Guangzhou city to settle... find vacant land, build houses, and assign them to live there." For those with families, I request that the Nanjing garrison commander be ordered to send ships to bring them here. For those without families, we will find ways to arrange marriages for them.
According to statistics from the Ming Dynasty's "Guangzhou Tongzhi" (Gazetteer of Guangzhou) from the Jiajing reign, 285 Daguan soldiers eventually settled in Guangzhou. To accommodate them, four garrisons were established: Dadongying, Xiaodongying, Xiying, and Zhutongying, collectively known as the "Four Hui Camps." The ancestors of Yu Fengqi and Ma Chengzhu—who are buried in the "Three Loyalists of the Faith" tomb next to the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies in Guangzhou—were Yu Shifu and Ma Heima, who were leaders of the Daguan Army stationed in Guangzhou at that time. For the next 200 years, the Ming government frequently deployed the Daguan Army to fight in various parts of Guangdong and Guangxi. The final battle for the Daguan Army was the Qing army's siege of Guangzhou in 1650. Represented by Daguan generals Yu Fengqi, Ma Chengzhu, and Sa Zhifu, the "Three Loyalists of the Faith" died heroically for their country, and the Daguan Army and the Guangzhou Hui camps were disbanded.
Although the Daguan Army as a military unit ceased to exist after the Qing Dynasty, their descendants have continued to live in Guangzhou. Yu Shifu's descendants multiplied and developed into the Yu Chengxi Hall family of Guangzhou. Ha Zixiang from Hejian County, Hejian Prefecture, was ordered to garrison Guangzhou. His descendants developed into the Hui Muslim Ha family of Guangzhou. During the Wanli reign, Yang Rikui from Zhengding County, Zhengding Prefecture, was ordered to garrison Guangzhou. His descendants developed into the Hui Muslim Yang Jiguang Hall family of Guangzhou.
Inside the Huaisheng Mosque in Guangzhou, there is a stone tablet commemorating a house donation by Yu Dajing, a descendant of the Yu family. It records that after Yu Dajing passed away (returned to Allah), his wife donated a house he had bought in Nanshengli to the Guangzhou Four Quarters Public Fund. The rent from the house was used to cover expenses for the memorial days at the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies and other public costs.
After the Daguan Army settled in the Four Hui Camps in Guangzhou, they built the Haopan Mosque (1465), Nansheng Mosque (1465-1467), and Xiaodongying Mosque (1468) near their stations. They also rebuilt the Huaisheng Mosque (1468), marking the formal establishment of the four Muslim quarters of Guangzhou during the Ming and Qing dynasties. This was the rebirth of the faith in Guangzhou after the foreign Muslim quarters dissolved at the end of the Yuan and the beginning of the Ming Dynasty.
Haopan Street Mosque.
Haopan Mosque sits by the Nanhao, a branch of the Pearl River. It was built during the Chenghua period of the Ming Dynasty by Hui Muslim officials who settled in Guangzhou. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, the area around Haopan Street was a major trade hub in Guangzhou, bustling with merchants. Qu Dajun, a famous Guangzhou scholar from the late Ming and early Qing periods, wrote in his classic work New Sayings of Guangdong (Guangdong Xinyu): In the Haopan Street area, during prosperous times, spices, pearls, rhinoceros horns, and ivory were piled like mountains, and flowers and birds were as plentiful as the sea. Foreign merchants gathered here, spending tens of millions of gold every day. The abundance of food and the frequency of singing and dancing far exceeded that of the Qinhuai area. These merchants were mostly from Jiangsu and Zhejiang, and locals called them Jiangnan guests.
In 1706 (the 45th year of the Kangxi reign), Fu Yunfeng led the reconstruction of Haopan Mosque. Fu Yunfeng was originally Han Chinese. During the Kangxi era, he traveled from Zhejiang to Guangdong for business. After he ran into trouble, an imam at the Haopan Mosque in Guangzhou saved him. He lived in the mosque for a while and then converted to Islam. He was a timber merchant. After becoming wealthy, he funded the reconstruction of the Haopan Mosque in Guangzhou. He also renovated the Huaisheng Mosque, Nansheng Mosque, the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies, and the Chengdong Mosque in Zhaoqing, making a major contribution to the development of the faith in Guangdong.
Starting in the Qianlong period, Haopan Mosque opened a scripture school, and during the Tongzhi period, it opened a Hui Muslim university. It hired many famous scholars from Nanjing, Gansu, and Yunnan to train a large number of imams, playing a major role in the development of Islam in Guangzhou, Hong Kong, and Macau.
Haopan Mosque originally featured a classic southern mosque design with three-sided corridors, creating a courtyard in front of the main prayer hall. This style was well-suited to the rainy, low-wind climate of the south. After 1952, the mosque used the three-sided corridors to open a nursing home for Hui Muslims. In 1958, it opened a bamboo processing factory, which later grew into a sewing machine parts factory for Hui and Manchu Muslims. In the early 1960s, the mosque remained largely in its original state. The main prayer hall and the water room were used normally, and factory production did not interfere with the religious practices of the community. However, after 1966, the stone tablets and plaques in the mosque were destroyed, all scripture books were burned, and the main prayer hall was turned into a warehouse. In 1973, the three-sided corridors were torn down and replaced by a five-story factory building. In 1994, the factory finally returned the main prayer hall to the mosque. After preparations, it was renovated in 1997 and officially reopened in 1998.
Today, Haopan Mosque preserves the main prayer hall rebuilt during the Kangxi period. It has a square, three-bay, hip-and-gable roof design, which is completely different from mosques in the north. The mihrab inside the hall once featured exquisite Arabic calligraphy and geometric patterns, along with a beautifully carved hardwood minbar, but unfortunately, these no longer exist. When I visited Guangzhou in 2017, Haopan Mosque was about to undergo repairs. This time, the results look very good, and the ancient mosque's style was not ruined by over-restoration.
Many Hui Muslims from Zhejiang, Shanghai, and Nanjing who came to Guangzhou for business chose to live in the foreign trading firms near Haopan Street and the shops near Xiguan, which had a significant impact on the Haopan Street Mosque. Today, Haopan Mosque keeps half of a plaque inscribed with, In the first month of the seventh year of the Republic of China, the Jiangnan Association Tongshantang renovated this, which serves as a witness to the business activities of Jiangnan Hui Muslims in Guangzhou.
I met Master Yang at Haopan Mosque, whom I had not seen for six years. Master Yang is a local Hui Muslim from Guangzhou and has been a mosque attendant at Haopan Mosque for 20 years. I drank tea and chatted with Master Yang, and I ate some fried dough (youxiang) made by local Guangzhou Hui Muslims for a charity event (chusan). This was my first time eating local Guangzhou youxiang. They were small, crispy, and sweet, almost like a pastry.
Xiaodongying Mosque
Xiaodongying Mosque is located on the site of Xiaodongying, one of the four Hui Muslim camps in Guangzhou. It was built in 1468 (the fourth year of the Ming Chenghua reign) by Hui Muslim officials and was renovated twice during the Qing Jiaqing and Tongzhi periods. In 1901, Hui Muslims from Guangzhou and Hong Kong raised funds to start the Xiaodongying Mosque Charity School, with imams Yang Ruisheng and Wang Mingshan as teachers. In 1925, Xiaodongying Mosque became the activity center for the Guangzhou Islamic Youth Association, and in 1931, Chen Huanwen founded the Muslim (Mumin) monthly magazine there.
After 1949, Xiaodongying Mosque gradually became a funeral service center for Hui Muslims. After 1966, it was occupied by a Guangzhou Hui and Manchu Muslim factory as a warehouse. When it was returned in 1979, it was in ruins. After being renovated in 1982, it continued to serve as a funeral service center for burials. In 1998, Xiaodongying Mosque was approved as a place for religious activities, and in 2005, it officially resumed Friday Jumu'ah prayers. Now, those who come here for namaz are mainly foreign friends (dosti) from near Xiaobei.
The Xiaodongying Mosque currently preserves several plaques from the Qing Dynasty.
In the fifth year of the Tongzhi reign (1866), Li Chengyi from Dingyuan County, Fengyang Prefecture, Jiangnan, respectfully inscribed an Arabic plaque.
In the sixth year of the Tongzhi reign (1867), Yang Yongchun respectfully inscribed and erected the Hundred-Word Eulogy by Emperor Taizu of Ming.
In the 34th year of the Guangxu reign (1908), Liao Shouqi from Jiangxia County, Hubei, along with his son Dalian, erected a plaque reading 'The Religion Has an Orthodox Origin'.
Opposite the main hall of the Xiaodongying Mosque in Guangzhou is a stele corridor, which features a series of stone tablets from the Qing Dynasty recording charitable donations.
The 1808 stele regarding the permanent donation of property to the Dongying Mosque records that a woman named Li Ding, who lost her husband in middle age and had no children, wished to donate two houses she had purchased outside Wenming Gate and in the Fourth Lane. The rent from these houses was to support three imams at the mosque, and she requested that the imams perform dua on the anniversary of her death.
The 1818 stele for the Dongying Mosque records that the community members of the four neighborhoods raised funds to purchase a house from a woman named Li He, a resident of Nanhai County, located in Ying'en Lane outside the South Gate, and donated the rent to the mosque.
The 1822 stele regarding the purchase of property for the Dongying Mosque records that the community of the four neighborhoods raised funds to buy a house within the Zhan Family Garden and donated it to the Xiaodongying Mosque, with the rent going into the mosque's public fund box.
The 1846 stele regarding Li Yatai's house donation exchange records that Li Zhenchang wanted to combine a house in the Fourth Lane, which Li Yatai had donated to the Xiaodongying Mosque in 1807, with his own property. He exchanged it for a house in the Fifth Lane and used the additional rent to cover the repair costs for a collapsed house in the Zhan Family Garden. It also records that a house belonging to the Children's Association in the Zhan Family Garden had been collapsed by water for over ten years, and it was finally repaired thanks to donations from local elders.
The 1854 stele regarding the purchase of property for the Xiaodongying Mosque records that in 1819, the mosque received funds from the elders of the four neighborhoods to buy a house from Ma Shunhong in Jinshi Lane. In 1851, Zhang Chaodong combined this house with his own, so he bought two houses from the Xu Ding family in the Zhan Family Garden and donated them to the mosque instead.
The 1866 stele regarding donations to the Dongying Mosque records that the community of the four neighborhoods donated houses and storefronts. It lists all the donated properties of the Dongying Mosque, located in the Second Lane of Wende Lane, the Fifth Lane of Wende Lane, the east end of Nansheng Lane near the city wall, the entrance of Xiaodongying Street, and Xianxiang Street outside the Great East Gate.
The 1866 stele regarding the renovation of the Xiaodongying Mosque records the process of the mosque's renovation during the Tongzhi reign, including the names, official titles, and donation amounts of the contributors.
The 1909 stele for the Dongying Mosque Charity School records how Muslims in Guangzhou and Hong Kong raised funds in 1900 to establish a charity school within the Dongying Mosque.
If you are interested in the history of the faith in Guangzhou, I recommend reading "History of Islam in Guangzhou" edited by Bao Yanzhong and "Collection of Hui Muslim Tablet Inscriptions and Couplets in Guangzhou" edited by Ma Jianzhao. These two books were very helpful in organizing and editing this article. Finally, I would like to thank Chen Yong, a dost (friend), for correcting the information in this article.
Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Guangzhou Huaisheng Mosque — Sage Tomb and Muslim History (Part 1)
Reposted from the web
Summary: Guangzhou Huaisheng Mosque — Sage Tomb and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: I left Macau on January 23, 2023, to visit the Macau mosque known as Moro Garden (Moro Yuan). The account keeps its focus on Huaisheng Mosque, Guangzhou Muslims, Sage Tomb while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
I left Macau on January 23, 2023, to visit the Macau mosque known as Moro Garden (Moro Yuan). I ate delicious Indonesian Javanese food and wrote about it in my post, 'Moro Garden and Indonesian Food in Macau'. I arrived in Guangzhou on January 25, visited a friend (dosti), and ate various halal foods, which I posted about in "Hui Muslim Fried Dough (youxiang) and Yemeni Food in Guangzhou." On the afternoon of January 25, after Chen Yong and I finished our afternoon prayer (namaz) at Huaisheng Mosque, we took a good look around the mosque, which I hadn't visited in years, and then went to pay our respects at the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies (Xianxian Gumu).
The Foreigner Quarter (fanfang) of Guangzhou during the Tang and Song dynasties.
Huaisheng Mosque was once the heart of the Guangzhou Foreigner Quarter and the starting point for the faith entering China.
According to the Old Book of Tang, Records of the Arabs: "In the second year of Yonghui (651 AD), they first sent envoys to offer tribute." This was during the reign of Caliph Uthman. He sent Arab armies to conquer the Sassanid Empire of Persia and took control of the entire Persian Gulf, which led Arab and Persian merchant ships to sail continuously eastward until they reached Guangzhou. During the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, the government twice ordered a ban on trade with the Western Regions (in 714 and 743) and blocked land trade. Because of this, Guangzhou suddenly became the largest overseas trading port of the Tang Dynasty, and a large number of Arab and Persian merchants flooded into the city. According to the Record of the Eastern Expedition of the Great Tang Monk, when Jianzhen arrived in Guangzhou in 742, he saw "countless large ships from Brahman, Persia, and Kunlun in the river, all loaded with spices, medicines, and treasures, piled up like mountains." The ships were sixty to seventy feet deep. People from the Lion Kingdom (Sri Lanka), the Arab Kingdom (Dashi), Gutang, White Barbarians, and Red Barbarians came and went, living there in great variety.
More and more Arabs and Persians lived and stayed in Guangzhou, gradually forming a residential area recorded in historical books as the "Foreigner Quarter" (fanfang). In 827 (the third year of the Baoli era of the Tang Dynasty), Fang Qianli wrote in Miscellaneous Records of Exile: "Recently, in the Guangzhou Foreigner Quarter, the food offered often used honey and musk." This is the earliest clear record of the Guangzhou Foreigner Quarter. Additionally, the Arabic notes collected in 851, Accounts of China and India, contain detailed descriptions of Muslims in Tang Dynasty Guangzhou, specifically mentioning: "There is one Muslim imam and one mosque there." This is the earliest record of the faith in Guangzhou.
At the end of the Tang Dynasty, the rebel army of Huang Chao captured Guangzhou, and most of the Muslims were massacred. Trade between the Persian Gulf and Guangzhou did not recover until the Song Dynasty, when the Foreigner Quarter was rebuilt. The Northern Song geographer Zhu Yu recorded in Pingzhou Table Talk what his father, Zhu Fu, saw while serving as an official in Guangzhou between 1099 and 1102: "In the Guangzhou Foreigner Quarter, people from various overseas countries live together, and a Foreigner Chief (fanzhang) is appointed to manage the affairs of the quarter." He is specifically responsible for inviting foreign merchants to pay tribute, using foreign officials for this purpose. You can see that the Foreigner Quarter had a certain degree of autonomy at that time.
At the end of the Song and the beginning of the Yuan dynasties, Guangzhou suffered from war. Many Arab and Persian merchants moved to Quanzhou and other coastal cities to live. After the Yuan Dynasty, Quanzhou replaced Guangzhou as the number one trading port, and the Guangzhou Foreigner Quarter gradually declined.
The Light Tower (Guangta) of Huaisheng Mosque.
Today, the most important historical witness to the Guangzhou Foreigner Quarter is the Light Tower of Huaisheng Mosque. The Light Tower is in the southwest corner of Huaisheng Mosque. The 36-meter-tall cylindrical tower body is coated with shell lime and has small windows in the middle. Inside the tower, there are two brick spiral staircases that wind upward without intersecting, leading directly to the platform at the top of the tower. The base of the tower has a 3.5-meter-thick foundation made of red rice stone, and there are wooden piles several meters deep underneath, which is why it has stood for a thousand years without collapsing.
The Light Tower was first called the "Foreigner Tower" (fanta), and during the Song and Yuan dynasties, it was also called the "Huaisheng Tower." It was only after the Qing Dynasty that it began to be called the "Light Tower," a name that is still used today. to being a minaret (bangkelou), the Light Tower also served as a navigational lighthouse, and the golden rooster on top of the tower that could rotate with the wind also acted as a wind vane. Although the Light Tower is no longer near the shipping channel due to the southward shift of the Pearl River, it remains an important witness to Guangzhou as a commercial metropolis.
According to the Ming Dynasty Jiajing edition of the Guangzhou Gazetteer, Records of Foreign Affairs: "(Huaisheng Mosque) is two miles west inside the government city, built by foreigners during the Tang Dynasty, with a Foreigner Tower built inside." Most of the early records about the Light Tower currently come from the Song Dynasty. In 1088 (the third year of the Yuanyou era of the Northern Song Dynasty), Guo Xiangzheng, then the prefect of Duanzhou, climbed the Light Tower of Huaisheng Mosque with Jiang Zhiqi, the governor of Guangzhou, and wrote two poems: "Climbing the Foreigner Tower with Ying Shu" and "Presenting to Governor Jiang at Yuewang Terrace in Guangzhou."
During the Southern Song Dynasty, Fang Xinru and Yue Ke both recorded the Light Tower (Guangta) of the Huaisheng Mosque. In 1206 (the second year of the Kaixi era of the Southern Song), Fang Xinru wrote in 'One Hundred Poems of the South Sea' (Nanhai Baiyong): 'The Foreign Tower (Fanta) began in the Tang Dynasty and is called the Huaisheng Tower. It rises straight up, measuring sixteen zhang and five chi in height, with no levels inside. At the top sits a golden rooster that turns with the wind. Every year in the fifth or sixth lunar month, foreigners climb to the very top at the fifth watch to call out the name of Allah and pray for favorable winds. Below it is a mosque (libaitang).'
Yue Fei's grandson, the Southern Song writer Yue Ke, came to Guangzhou with his father in 1192 at the age of ten. In his book 'Notes on the History of the Song' (Tuo Shi), in the section 'Foreigners in Panyu' (Panyu Hailiao), he described the Muslim community in Guangzhou at that time in detail, including a specific description of the Light Tower: 'Behind it is a stupa that reaches into the clouds. Its style is unlike other towers; it is surrounded by bricks to form a large base, built up layer by layer, and covered with plaster on the outside, looking like a silver brush.' There is a door at the bottom. You climb the stairs inside, spiraling around like a snail shell, and you cannot see the steps from the outside. Every few dozen steps, there is an opening. In the fourth or fifth lunar month, when the ships are about to arrive, the foreigners enter the tower and call out through the openings to pray for the south wind, which often works. At the very top, there is a huge golden rooster that replaces the traditional wheel, though it is now missing one foot.
In the stele pavilion next to the main hall of the Huaisheng Mosque stands a replica of the stele commemorating the reconstruction of the Huaisheng Mosque and Tower in 1350 (the tenth year of the Zhizheng era of the Yuan Dynasty). This Yuan Dynasty stone stele was originally the most important religious inscription for the Huaisheng Mosque and all of Guangzhou, but it was unfortunately destroyed between 1966 and 1976. What we see now is a replica made from rubbings.
The inscription was written by Guo Jia, an official in the Guangdong Pacification Commission, calligraphed by the official Sa-di-mi-shi, and the title was carved by the official Seng Jiane. It is divided into Arabic and Chinese sections. The Arabic section at the top includes religious teachings and a dua, mentioning that the mosque was rebuilt by Masoud and the commander Mahamu, who was the Guangdong Pacification Commissioner at the time.
The Chinese section below describes the Light Tower in detail. It mentions that the Huaisheng Mosque suffered a fire in 1343 (the third year of the Zhizheng era) and was rebuilt in 1350 (the tenth year of the Zhizheng era), with only the Light Tower surviving the fire: 'At the foot of White Cloud Mountain, by the slope of Po Mountain, there is a pagoda. Its design is from the Western Regions, standing tall like stone.' 'It is something unseen in the Central Plains, and legend says it began in the Tang Dynasty... When the mosque was destroyed in the year of Guiwei of the Zhizheng era, the halls were left empty.' It also mentions that there was a golden rooster on top of the tower at the time, which served as a tool for passing ships to observe the wind direction. It also mentions that the imam (zhuchi) of the Huaisheng Mosque at the time was named Haji Hasaan.
During the Yuan Dynasty, the status of the Semu people rose, and many held important positions across the country. In the Guangdong region, this included Pu Shougeng, the military commander of Fujian and Guangdong; Mahamu, the Guangdong Pacification Commissioner; Pu Dexing, the deputy commander; and Lamadan, the salt commissioner of Guanghai. In 1347 (the seventh year of the Zhizheng era), the great traveler Ibn Battuta arrived in Guangzhou. In his 'Travels of Ibn Battuta,' he recorded: 'One area of the city is a Muslim residential district, which contains a mosque and a lodge, and has a judge and a sheikh... We stayed with Aohadunding Xizhalai, a kind and wealthy man, for fourteen days. During this time, the judge and other Muslims came one after another to send precious gifts, and every day they held banquets and invited singers to perform.'
After the Huaisheng Mosque was rebuilt in 1350 (the tenth year of the Zhizheng era), it was rebuilt twice more during the Ming Dynasty's Chenghua era and the Qing Dynasty's Kangxi era, and renovated three times during the Daoguang, Xianfeng, and Tongzhi eras. The stone railings around the current main hall have a style from the Yuan and Ming dynasties, while the Moon-Watching Pavilion (Kanyuelou) with its double-eaved hip-and-gable roof reflects the style after the Ming and Qing renovations.
During the Republic of China era, the Huaisheng Mosque in Guangzhou gradually fell into disrepair. The land around the Light Tower was occupied by nearby residents, and the tower gate was buried. In 1934, the Guangdong branch of the Chinese Muslim Association raised nearly 20,000 small silver coins through donations, reclaimed the occupied land around the Light Tower, and reinforced the tower.
After the reinforcement was completed, two stone steles, one in Chinese and one in Arabic, were carved and embedded at the base of the tower. Only the Arabic stele remains today, written by Ma Ruitu, an imam living in Guangzhou. Ma Ruitu was from Daying, Yuxi, Yunnan. He came from a family of Islamic scholars and served as the imam of the Haopan Mosque and Nansheng Mosque in Guangzhou after 1927.
To prevent termite damage, the Huaisheng Mosque also demolished the original brick-and-wood main hall in 1935 and rebuilt it as a reinforced concrete structure, while still maintaining the previous double-eaved hip-and-gable roof design.
Plaques of the Huaisheng Mosque.
There are many Qing Dynasty plaques inside the Huaisheng Mosque, which reflect the prosperity of the Muslim community in Guangzhou during that time.
In 1698 (the Kangxi era), the imperial guard and scholar Gai Rixin inscribed the 'Grace of the Emperor for All Time' plaque.
In 1698 (the Kangxi era), the scholar and Hanlin Academy official Tie Fanjin inscribed the 'Righteous Heart and Sincere Intent' plaque.
In 1698 (the Kangxi era), the official Yang Guolin erected the 'Great Mercy for the World' plaque.
In 1721 (the Kangxi era), the military official Yan Guangwu erected the 'Utmost Sincerity Never Ceases' plaque.
In 1755 (the Qianlong era), the military official Li Xianxiang inscribed the 'Following the Past and Opening the Future' plaque.
In 1846 (the Daoguang era), the committee members jointly erected the 'Sharing the Muslim Gift' plaque.
In 1867 (the Tongzhi era), the military official Bao Yingxiong erected the 'Overlapping Blessings from the Lord' plaque.
In the 26th year of the Guangxu reign (1900), Yang Shu, a second-rank official with a peacock feather and special imperial appointment, and Yang Xun, a fourth-rank official with a peacock feather and a member of the Plain Red Banner Han Army, dedicated the 'Grace Shared by All' plaque.
In the 31st year of the Guangxu reign (1905), the officials, elders, and managers of the Huaisheng Mosque (Guangta Si) dedicated the 'Benevolent Rain and Kind Clouds' plaque to celebrate the birthday of Master Ma.
Donation tablets inside the stele corridor of the Huaisheng Mosque.
The 1761 tablet regarding the purchase of a shop by the Elderly Association records that in 1716, Ma Kuan and 27 other Hui Muslim families formed an association to buy a shop across from the Haopan Mosque, using the rent to cover funeral expenses for their members. Over 40 years later, after all the families had finished their funeral needs, their descendants followed their ancestors' wishes and donated the shop to the Haopan Mosque and the Huaisheng Mosque.
The 1770 tablet regarding the donation of a shop at the end of Haopan Street to the four mosques in the old and new cities records that Yang Yuanxiu, following his brother Yang Yuanzhen's dying wish, donated a shop to the Huaisheng, Haopan, Nansheng, and Xiaodongying mosques to fund their religious schools and teacher salaries.
The 1783 tablet from the Jiangnan guests in Foshan records that although many Hui Muslims lived in Foshan, they had never built a mosque. In 1708 (the 47th year of the Kangxi reign), Hui Muslims from Jiangnan who were doing business in Foshan bought a house from a Mr. Wang in Qingyun Lane, Panyong, and built a mosque. Later, because all the Hui Muslims in Foshan moved to Guangzhou, the mosque was left unmanaged and was occupied by local thugs during the Qianlong reign. Jiangnan Hui Muslims living in Guangzhou consulted with the teachers of the Guangzhou mosques and sold the Foshan mosque, donating the funds to the Huaisheng, Xiaodongying, Haopan, and Nansheng mosques in Guangzhou, and the mosque in Sanya's Huixin Village (Hainan Sanya Huixin Cun).
The 1903 tablet regarding the donation of a house by Lin Liye and others records that twenty Hui Muslim women donated a house at the entrance of Taojia Lane to the Huaisheng Mosque's public fund, with the rent used for prayers on the anniversary of the saintly Lady Fatimah (Fatumei Shenghui).
The 1841 tablet regarding the donation of a house by Mrs. Jin Zhang records that she donated a house she owned in Nansheng Lane to the Huaisheng Mosque to support religious studies.
The 1855 tablet regarding Liu Jicai's donation to education records that he donated a house he owned at the entrance of Cuifu Street to the Huaisheng Mosque to supplement religious study funds.
The 1864 tablet regarding the sale of a shop by He Qieben records that a Manchu named He Qieben, needing money urgently, sold his late father's shop on Dashi Street to the Huaisheng Mosque through a middleman, Cun Gui of the Plain Red Banner Manchu.
The 1848 tablet regarding the donation of funds by 37 people to the Huaisheng Mosque records that 37 Hui Muslims pooled money to buy a shop on Guangta Street, with the rent deposited into the Huaisheng Mosque's public fund to cover the annual Isra and Mi'raj (Dengxiao) expenses.
The 1863 tablet regarding the donation to the Huaisheng Mosque school records that Hai Tingchen donated two properties he owned inside the Guide Gate at the Four Archways (Si Pai Lou) and in Qingyun Lane to the Huaisheng Mosque to supplement religious study funds. Additionally, the Shunsheng Hall donated a house in Guangta Foot Lane to the Huaisheng Mosque to supplement religious study funds.
The 1841 tablet regarding the donation of a house for the Huaisheng Mosque school records that Ma Buqing donated a house he bought on Changtang Street inside the Wenming Gate to the Huaisheng Mosque to serve as a school, with funds used for teaching and annual memorial services.
The 1913 tablet regarding the Huaisheng Mosque's property purchase records that the mosque sold a jade shop and bought three houses located at 20 Agate Lane (Manaoxiang), 7 Huodui Lane in Tao Street, and 21 Huilong Lane.
Ancient Tombs of the Worthies (Xianxian Gumu).
After leaving the Huaisheng Mosque, I went to visit the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies. The Ancient Cemetery of the Worthies in Guangzhou is commonly known as the Huihui Cemetery, the Great Man's Cemetery, or the Echoing Cemetery. It has been a burial ground for Muslims in Guangzhou since the Tang Dynasty. The earliest record of the Ancient Cemetery of the Worthies comes from 'One Hundred Poems of the South Sea' (Nanhai Baiyong) written by Fang Xinru in 1206 (the second year of the Kaixi period of the Southern Song Dynasty): 'The tombs of the foreigners are ten miles west of the city, thousands of them, all with heads to the south and facing west.'
At the center of the ancient tombs lies the legendary Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas, the first person to come to China to spread the faith. Records show the status of the Tomb of Waqqas (Wangesu mu) rose during the Yuan and Ming dynasties. The Ming dynasty book Guangzhou Prefecture Records (Guangzhou fuzhi) notes: Every year, people of all surnames must visit the tomb to pay respects and recite scriptures, a tradition that continues to this day. Countries in the Western Regions respected this influence. Every time they sailed thousands of miles to Guangzhou, they considered visiting the tomb an honor. Even the most noble visitors would crawl and bow in Guangzhou to show their utmost sincerity.
The Ancient Tombs of the Worthies were renovated several times during the Jiaqing, Daoguang, and Republican periods. Traditionally, on the 27th day of the 11th month of the Islamic calendar, Guangzhou Muslims hold a memorial service at the tombs, known as the 'Master's Anniversary' (Daren Ji).
The tomb path outside the cemetery has north and south entrances. At the south end stands a stone archway inscribed with 'Path to the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies,' featuring a couplet: 'Traveling across the vast ocean to reach the Eastern Land, the ancient sage spent his life spreading the holy teachings;' 'Explaining the scriptures and teachings with wisdom reaching the Western Regions, the Muslim people look up to this peak for all generations.'
Passing through the stone archway, you can see the 'Proclamation No. 5 of the Guangdong Provincial Government' written by Governor Liao Zhongkai in 1924, which records that he sent people to survey the boundaries of the 'Muslim Public Cemetery' at Guihuagang and set up stone markers to protect the cemetery from encroachment.
South Courtyard of the cemetery.
Continuing along the tomb path, you arrive at the cemetery of the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies. The cemetery is surrounded by a blue brick wall. The main gate is inscribed with Ancient Tomb of the Muslim Worthies (Qingzhen Xianxian Gumu). On the back, there are plaques donated by the congregation of the Huaisheng Mosque in Guangzhou, dating back to the first year of the Xuantong reign (1909) and the second year of the Xuantong reign (1910). These plaques feature the Islamic declaration of faith and the phrase Goodness has its reward.
The cemetery is divided into north and south courtyards. The south courtyard includes a reception room, a lounge, a water room, and a women's prayer hall. In the center stands a square pavilion decorated with many plaques and couplets. The courtyard also houses the Worthies' Well (Xianxian Jing), which provides sweet water.
Some plaques and couplets in the south courtyard:
In the tenth year of the Jiaqing reign (1805), Xu Wenmo, a military official holding the title of Jiyong Baturu and commander of the Guangdong Gao-Lian-Luo region, donated the plaque inscribed with True Enlightenment of the Western School (Zhengjue Xizong).
In 1913, a group of people donated the plaque inscribed with Spreading the Faith (Chanyang Shilai), calligraphed by Ma Yongkuan.
In 1924, a group of people donated the plaque inscribed with Ancient Faith that Opened the Heavens (Kaitian Gujiao).
A memorial archway separates the north and south courtyards. It features a stone plaque from the first year of the Yongzheng reign (1723) inscribed with High Virtue to be Admired (Gaofeng Yangzhi).
The north courtyard of the cemetery.
Passing through the archway, you find a granite path with stone railings, rebuilt in the Wuxu year of the Daoguang reign (1838) by the Baodunhe Hall. The Baodunhe Hall was a prominent family of Hui Muslims in Guangzhou. The sixth-generation member, Bao Antai, served as a postal official in Guangdong during the Daoguang reign. The ancestral graves of the Baodunhe Hall are also located on the north side of the Ancient Tomb of the Muslim Worthies, which I will introduce later in this article.
At the end of the path lies the tomb chamber of Waqqas. The tomb chamber is a domed building with a porch added later. The two outer stone pillars are carved with a couplet from the Jiawu year of the Guangxi reign (1894), donated by Cai Jinzhang, the Guangdong land forces commander: Spreading the holy teachings in the southern land, passed down through generations, thirty volumes strictly following the divine instructions; Establishing a virtuous reputation in the eastern Guangdong, standing tall and independent, for thousands of years all look up to this model.
The two inner stone pillars feature a wooden couplet carved in the eleventh year of the Jiaqing reign (1806) by Hu Changqing, a scholar from Guilin: Receiving the holy teachings from the West, the source of the heart inherited for fifty generations; Serving the heavenly scriptures in the eastern land, the tradition remains for thousands of years.
In the center hangs a plaque from the Yiwei year of the Guangxi reign (1895), donated by Xu Yingzhong, the imam of Huaisheng Mosque, and others, inscribed with Long-lasting Respect and Far-reaching Journey (Changzhan Yuanxing).
Inside the tomb chamber is a dome built with corbelled masonry. Because it creates a loud echo when reciting the Quran inside, it is also called the Echoing Tomb (Xiangfen). Under the dome lies the tombstone of the worthy Waqqas, covered with multiple layers of burial cloths placed by visitors.
Graves around the tomb chamber.
There are many Muslim graves surrounding the tomb chamber.
The tombstone of the Turkish Haji Mekemede, carved in the sixteenth year of the Qianlong reign (1751). The inscription records that he was from Rome (the Anatolia region). He traveled to Guangzhou in 1749 specifically to pay respects to the worthy Waqqas, stayed at the Da'erkaha Mosque, and passed away two years later. It is currently impossible to verify exactly which mosque the Da'erkaha Mosque refers to.
The tombstone of Yang Wendeng, carved in the twenty-fifth year of the Qianlong reign (1757), written by his close friend Zhamalunding. The inscription records that Yang Wendeng, whose religious name was De-ya-ao-ding, was a scholar of Islamic law who lived to be 87 years old.
The tombstone of the forty worthies from Medina, re-carved in the seventh year of the Jiaqing reign (1802). The inscription records that the forty worthies from Medina were sent by the Prophet Muhammad to accompany Waqqas to China to spread the faith. During a congregational prayer, they were all killed by bandits and became martyrs (shahid).
The tombstone of General Zhang Delu, carved in the twelfth year of the Guangxi reign (1886), written by Haji Salih. According to the inscription, General Zhang Delu, whose religious name was Du-wu-da Ge-ma-lun-ding, was originally from Tianjin. He served as a commander in Gaozhou and Chaozhou in Guangdong, Guzhou in Guizhou, and Qiongzhou. He was highly respected and used his own money and effort to help mosques and schools. He passed away while in office at the age of 52.
The tombstone of the worthy Erbudanglexi (Abdullah), carved in the fifteenth year of the Guangxi reign (1889) and the sixteenth year of the Guangxi reign (1890). The inscription records that the person buried here was named Abdullah ibn Shaaban. He was from Mecca and was an elder of the Shadhili school. He arrived in Guangzhou by boat in 1886. He preached in the provinces of Jiangnan, Henan, Shaanxi, and Gansu. Two years later, he returned to Guangzhou to continue teaching students. He passed away in 1889 at the age of 46 due to illness from overwork.
The tombstone of General Cai Jinzhang, who held the title of Jianwei General, was carved in the 20th year of the Guangxu reign (1894). Cai Jinzhang was from Shouzhou, Anhui. He served as a regional commander for the Guangdong and Guangxi provinces, a land force commander in Guangdong, a regional commander in Guangxi, and a leader of various defense battalions in Guangxi. He also commanded all military forces in Guangji and Guangsheng, Guangdong, and helped manage provincial military affairs.
The tombstone of Haji Ma Xiaoxian was carved in the 25th year of the Guangxu reign (1899). Ma Xiaoxian was from Hezhou, Gansu. By age 24, he had finished studying 11 religious texts, which allowed him to wear the robes and lead the congregation as an imam. He came to Guangzhou to preach and passed away at the age of 85 in a school.
The tombstone of Haji Fa Mingdao, an imam, was carved in the third year of the Xuantong reign (1911). Imam Fa Mingdao, whose religious name was Muhammad Umar, was from Hezhou, Gansu. He studied and preached at the Haopan Mosque in Guangzhou and later passed away in the city.
The tombstone of Haji Sheikh Zhang Jinxiu was carved in 1913. Zhang Jinxiu, whose religious name was Sahri Muhammad Shams al-Din, was from Hezhou, Gansu. He studied and preached in Guangzhou and eventually passed away there.
The tombstone of the elder imam Ma Yunting was carved in 1929. Ma Yunting was from Eshan County, Yunnan. His mother once ran a teacher training school for women in Guangzhou. He later came to Guangzhou to preach for 28 years, gained great respect, and passed away at age 80.
The tombstone of Ma Zhaofang was carved in the sixth year of the Daoguang reign (1826).
The tombstone of Zhang Xiaode was carved in the 26th year of the Guangxu reign (1846). He was from Deping County, Jinan Prefecture, Shandong. Deping County was abolished in 1956, and its former seat is now Deping Town in Lingyi County.
Inside the cemetery is the Hong Family Charity Land stele, carved in the 36th year of the Kangxi reign (1697). It records that Hong Yusheng, a Hui Muslim from Linqing, Shandong, followed the Qing army to Guangzhou as part of the Plain Yellow Banner. His son, Hong Yugong, died young in Guangzhou, and his daughter-in-law, surnamed Ma, remained chaste and filial until her death. Consequently, Hong Yusheng and his wife bought a plot of land on Dashe Mountain outside the North Gate of Guangzhou, which contained over a thousand grave sites. Except for the burial of his daughter-in-law, the rest was donated as a public cemetery for Muslims. The text was written by Ma Xi, a candidate for prefect in Jiangning, who was a Muslim official.
Graves on the southwest side of the cemetery.
There are many Muslim graves on the southwest side of the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies. This area was reorganized in 2010 after scattered old graves around the tomb were moved here.
Among them are two very precious Song Dynasty Muslim tomb cover stones, which are shaped the same as those from the same period in Quanzhou. One of them has a stone tablet in front of it, carved in 1948, stating that it is the tomb of Sa Yihu, the ancestor of the Sa family in Guangdong, re-erected by his descendants. The top of the other cover stone is carved with Arabic text: The Prophet said, when you are in doubt, seek advice from those in the graves! In the grave, there is either a garden of paradise or a pit of hellfire. The Sa family Hui Muslims are one of the only two remaining descendants of the foreign merchants from the Tang and Song dynasties in Guangzhou, having lived in the city for over a thousand years.
During the Song Dynasty, the overland Silk Road became difficult to travel due to wars with the Liao, Western Xia, and Jin dynasties, but maritime trade continued to grow in scale. Arab and Persian merchants dominated Indian Ocean trade during this period. They did business in cities like Guangzhou, Quanzhou, Yangzhou, and Hangzhou, playing a major role in the religious and economic development of the southeastern coastal regions. According to the Song Huiyao Gao, in 1028 (the sixth year of the Tiansheng reign of the Song Dynasty), Emperor Renzong issued a special decree to strengthen import trade in Guangzhou: Guangzhou has seen few foreign ships lately; the local government and the transport commission should invite and settle them. After this, many Muslim merchants settled in Guangzhou, and the foreign quarter (fanfang) that had been destroyed during the Huang Chao Rebellion at the end of the Tang Dynasty was rebuilt.
However, between 1276 and 1278, the two-year war between the Southern Song and the Mongol army caused devastating damage to Guangzhou. Muslim merchants left the city to escape the chaos, and many moved to Quanzhou. Today, among the local Hui Muslims in Guangzhou, only the Sa family can be verified as descendants of the Tang and Song foreign merchants; all other Hui Muslims moved here after the Ming and Qing dynasties. The Pu family, who have lived in Zhugang and Pu villages in Guangzhou for generations, are also descendants of foreign visitors from the Tang and Song dynasties. However, they no longer show any signs of their foreign ancestry and their customs are exactly the same as the local Han people.
According to the Sa Family Genealogy of the Two Yue Regions, our clan's history began with the Muslim people, established its roots in China, flourished during the Tang dynasty, continued through the Song, rose during the Yuan, branched out in the Ming, and spread across eastern and western Guangdong. According to the Guangzhou Prefecture Records, during the Zhizheng era of the Yuan dynasty, seventeen families led by Sa Dula guarded the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies and the mosque outside the North Gate. The Sa Family Genealogy of the Two Yue Regions records that Sa Dula was a descendant of the Sa family. When the Qing army attacked Guangzhou at the end of the Ming dynasty, one of the three loyal Muslim defenders who died for the city was named Sa Zhifu. According to the Sa family records, the Sa and Sa families are one, and he was also a descendant of the Sa family.
To the southwest of the cemetery is the tomb of Imam Ma Renfeng of the Huaisheng Mosque in Guangzhou. Imam Ma Renfeng was a local Hui Muslim from Guangzhou. He studied the scriptures under Imam Wang Zhizhou from a young age. After completing his training, he began serving as an imam at the Huaisheng Mosque in 1912 and became the head imam in 1928. After 1938, to escape the threats and pressure of the Japanese army, Imam Ma fled to the Baihedong refugee camp. He later moved to Hong Kong and served as an imam at the Hong Kong Chinese Muslim Fraternity Association. In 1954, while attending the National Day celebrations, Imam Ma suffered a sudden brain hemorrhage from excitement and passed away at the age of 60.
There are also many tombs of Guangzhou Hui Muslims from the Qing dynasty nearby.
The stele corridor on the east side of the cemetery.
Directly east of the cemetery is a stele corridor that preserves a series of stone inscriptions from the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies. The row on the far left mostly concerns the protection of the Muslim cemetery. From left to right, they are as follows:
A reward notice stele from the Guangzhou Prefecture during the Guangxu era. It reiterates the official ban on protecting the Muslim cemetery and encourages the public to arrest offenders.
A boundary marker stele for the protection of the Muslim cemetery, carved in 1924. In 1924, after Guangzhou Hui Muslims successfully opposed the Dazhen Company's attempt to claim land outside the North Gate, they held a city-wide celebration at the mosque outside the North Gate. They invited prominent Hui Muslims from Hong Kong and Macau to attend, and the assembly decided to set up boundary markers at all Muslim cemeteries to protect them.
A stele commemorating the renovation of the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies in the 17th year of the Jiaqing era (1812). The original stele was carved in the 29th year of the Kangxi era (1690) and recorded the renovation of the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies by Hui Muslims like Sun Ying. It was re-carved in 1812 by Liu Chengzhang and others from the Guangta Mosque.
A 1878 official notice from the Guangzhou Prefecture strictly forbidding the destruction of graves and the sale of land by local workers. It was issued by Guangzhou Prefect Feng Taisong to protect the cemetery outside the North Gate and was originally placed next to the mosque there.
A 1925 notice from the Guangzhou Finance Bureau, signed by Director Wang Tang, declaring the preservation of the Muslim cemetery. The Guangzhou Municipal Construction Commission verified and approved the map of the public Muslim cemetery surveyed and drawn by Hui Muslim representative Ma Yunting and others, confirming the boundaries and area of the cemetery.
Embedded in the stele corridor is a series of donation steles, mostly recording the donation of property and land by Guangzhou Hui Muslims during the Qing dynasty and the Republic of China:
A 1779 stele recording a collective donation to repair abandoned graves and fill in ponds. It records that the elders of the four mosques in Guangzhou (Huaisheng, Haopan, Nansheng, and Xiaodongying) raised funds to buy a house belonging to the Ma family in Nanshengli, using the rent to repair the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies.
A 1785 stele recording a house donation by overseas Muslims. It records that overseas Muslims Palalibike and Tanni, out of respect for the worthy Wan Gesu, bought a house in Nanshengli and donated it to the Huaisheng Mosque, requesting that the mosque go to the ancient tomb to perform dua on the anniversary of the worthy's passing.
A 1815 stele recording the conversion of houses donated by Elder Yang into shops. It records that Guangzhou Hui Muslim Elder Yang Yuanzhen donated a house in the western section of Haopan Street to the four mosques in 1759 to support scriptural studies. Later, because the house fell into disrepair and no one managed it, the Dai Wanli shop in Yuxianfang took the lead in converting the house into a storefront. They used the rent for scriptural studies and religious anniversaries, and the remaining money was given to the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies to perform the anniversary rites for Wan Gesu.
A 1830 stele recording the donation of property by the Tuo Yang family. It records that after the Hui Muslim Tuo Yang passed away, she donated two houses in Nanshengli and Luohuata Street to the public fund of the four mosques, requesting that the presiding teacher be invited to the tomb to perform dua on her anniversary.
A 1828 stele recording a house donation by Yang Xilong for his late uncle. It records that Changsha Hui Muslim Yang Yuanxun came to Guangzhou to study for over 20 years. After he passed away and was buried in Zoumagang, his nephew Xilong bought a shop at the entrance of Tonglong Lane inside the North Gate and donated it to the public fund of the four mosques. It was used for religious anniversaries and the anniversary of the worthy Wan Gesu, and to invite the presiding teacher to the tomb to recite scriptures and perform dua on his uncle's anniversary.
A 1864 stele recording the donation of merit money to the mosques by the Xiangmao firm. It records that Yunnan Hui Muslims Ma Dahe and Ming Qizhong brought funds from the Xiangmao firm in Tengchong, Yunnan, to do business in Guangzhou. Unfortunately, both passed away and were buried outside the North Gate. Because of the unrest in Yunnan at the time, the status of the Xiangmao firm was unknown, so the funds they left behind were donated to the four mosques in Guangzhou to purchase property for merit. Every year during Ramadan, dua is performed for the Xiangmao firm, Ma Dahe, and Ming Qizhong.
A 1827 stele recording the donation of property by the Sa Bu family. It records that because the Guangzhou Hui Muslim Sa Bu had no children, she donated the rent of a house in Nanshengli to the public fund of the four mosques after her death. Every year on her anniversary, a portion of the money is used to invite the teachers of the four mosques to recite scriptures and perform dua at her tomb. The public fund of the four mosques refers to the funds raised by the Muslim communities of the Huaisheng, Haopan, Nansheng, and Xiaodongying mosques. The rent is collected in a public fund and used for religious activities, helping the poor, and funeral arrangements for the deceased.
A 1829 stele recording the donation of silver to buy a house by Li Yingxiang. It records that former Guangzhou Assistant Commander Li Yingxiang bought a house in Zhanjiayuan inside the North Gate and donated it to the public fund of the four mosques to help the poor.
The 1693 public field stele at this mosque records that Huaisheng Mosque bought land outside the North Gate of Guangzhou after Li Mingfeng died. Tenant farmers worked the land, and the rent money supported mosque affairs. The Yu Yingxiang and Yu Ying'ao mentioned in the stele were the surviving sons of Yu Fengqi, one of the Three Loyalists of Islam.
Tomb of the Three Loyalists of Islam
On the east side of the cemetery stands the Tomb of the Three Loyalists of Islam and the Three Loyalists Pavilion. They were built to honor three Hui Muslim generals—Yu Fengqi, Sa Zhifu, and Ma Chengzu—who died heroically defending Guangzhou against the Qing army. In 1650, Shang Kexi and Geng Jimao led the Qing army to surround Guangzhou. Southern Ming Governor Du Yonghe led his troops to hold the city. After an eight-month siege, the Qing army used heavy artillery to blast the city walls. They entered through the collapsed sections and took the city after several days of intense street fighting.
Among the Three Loyalists of Islam, Ma Chengzu was the first to be recorded. Qu Dajun, a famous scholar from the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, wrote in his book 'Records of Martyrs of the Four Ming Reigns' that Ma Chengzu was a high-ranking commander of the Guangzhou Right Guard. He defended Wuyang Gate and died in battle alongside his sons, Zongbao and Zongren, when Guangzhou fell. Nearly 40 years later, Qu Dajun met Yu Ying'ao, the son of another martyr, Yu Fengqi, on the streets of Guangzhou. He learned of Yu Fengqi's heroic deeds and wrote the 'Stele for the Ming Dynasty Commander Yu,' commonly known as the 'Three Loyalists of the Faith' stele.
The stele records that Yu Fengqi was a descendant of the Uyghur people. His ancestor Yu Shifu and Ma Chengzu's ancestor Mahema were both military leaders in Nanjing. They helped suppress rebellions in Guangdong and Guangxi during the Chenghua period of the Ming dynasty and settled in the Hui Muslim camp in Guangzhou. During the 1650 siege of Guangzhou, Yu Fengqi served as a commander and was responsible for defending the South Gate. When Guangzhou fell, Governor Du Yonghe led his officers to open the gates and flee. Some people urged Yu Fengqi to run away, but he scolded them. When the Qing army arrived, Yu Fengqi hanged himself at home to die for his country. Over a hundred people in his household were captured and killed, but his sons Yu Ying'ao and Yu Yingxiang survived because they were studying with a teacher outside the city.
During the Qianlong period, Qu Dajun's works were banned and destroyed, and Yu Fengqi's tombstone disappeared. The current stele inside the Three Loyalists Pavilion was re-erected by the Islamic Association.
Collapse Read »
Summary: Guangzhou Huaisheng Mosque — Sage Tomb and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: I left Macau on January 23, 2023, to visit the Macau mosque known as Moro Garden (Moro Yuan). The account keeps its focus on Huaisheng Mosque, Guangzhou Muslims, Sage Tomb while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
I left Macau on January 23, 2023, to visit the Macau mosque known as Moro Garden (Moro Yuan). I ate delicious Indonesian Javanese food and wrote about it in my post, 'Moro Garden and Indonesian Food in Macau'. I arrived in Guangzhou on January 25, visited a friend (dosti), and ate various halal foods, which I posted about in "Hui Muslim Fried Dough (youxiang) and Yemeni Food in Guangzhou." On the afternoon of January 25, after Chen Yong and I finished our afternoon prayer (namaz) at Huaisheng Mosque, we took a good look around the mosque, which I hadn't visited in years, and then went to pay our respects at the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies (Xianxian Gumu).
The Foreigner Quarter (fanfang) of Guangzhou during the Tang and Song dynasties.
Huaisheng Mosque was once the heart of the Guangzhou Foreigner Quarter and the starting point for the faith entering China.
According to the Old Book of Tang, Records of the Arabs: "In the second year of Yonghui (651 AD), they first sent envoys to offer tribute." This was during the reign of Caliph Uthman. He sent Arab armies to conquer the Sassanid Empire of Persia and took control of the entire Persian Gulf, which led Arab and Persian merchant ships to sail continuously eastward until they reached Guangzhou. During the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, the government twice ordered a ban on trade with the Western Regions (in 714 and 743) and blocked land trade. Because of this, Guangzhou suddenly became the largest overseas trading port of the Tang Dynasty, and a large number of Arab and Persian merchants flooded into the city. According to the Record of the Eastern Expedition of the Great Tang Monk, when Jianzhen arrived in Guangzhou in 742, he saw "countless large ships from Brahman, Persia, and Kunlun in the river, all loaded with spices, medicines, and treasures, piled up like mountains." The ships were sixty to seventy feet deep. People from the Lion Kingdom (Sri Lanka), the Arab Kingdom (Dashi), Gutang, White Barbarians, and Red Barbarians came and went, living there in great variety.
More and more Arabs and Persians lived and stayed in Guangzhou, gradually forming a residential area recorded in historical books as the "Foreigner Quarter" (fanfang). In 827 (the third year of the Baoli era of the Tang Dynasty), Fang Qianli wrote in Miscellaneous Records of Exile: "Recently, in the Guangzhou Foreigner Quarter, the food offered often used honey and musk." This is the earliest clear record of the Guangzhou Foreigner Quarter. Additionally, the Arabic notes collected in 851, Accounts of China and India, contain detailed descriptions of Muslims in Tang Dynasty Guangzhou, specifically mentioning: "There is one Muslim imam and one mosque there." This is the earliest record of the faith in Guangzhou.
At the end of the Tang Dynasty, the rebel army of Huang Chao captured Guangzhou, and most of the Muslims were massacred. Trade between the Persian Gulf and Guangzhou did not recover until the Song Dynasty, when the Foreigner Quarter was rebuilt. The Northern Song geographer Zhu Yu recorded in Pingzhou Table Talk what his father, Zhu Fu, saw while serving as an official in Guangzhou between 1099 and 1102: "In the Guangzhou Foreigner Quarter, people from various overseas countries live together, and a Foreigner Chief (fanzhang) is appointed to manage the affairs of the quarter." He is specifically responsible for inviting foreign merchants to pay tribute, using foreign officials for this purpose. You can see that the Foreigner Quarter had a certain degree of autonomy at that time.
At the end of the Song and the beginning of the Yuan dynasties, Guangzhou suffered from war. Many Arab and Persian merchants moved to Quanzhou and other coastal cities to live. After the Yuan Dynasty, Quanzhou replaced Guangzhou as the number one trading port, and the Guangzhou Foreigner Quarter gradually declined.
The Light Tower (Guangta) of Huaisheng Mosque.
Today, the most important historical witness to the Guangzhou Foreigner Quarter is the Light Tower of Huaisheng Mosque. The Light Tower is in the southwest corner of Huaisheng Mosque. The 36-meter-tall cylindrical tower body is coated with shell lime and has small windows in the middle. Inside the tower, there are two brick spiral staircases that wind upward without intersecting, leading directly to the platform at the top of the tower. The base of the tower has a 3.5-meter-thick foundation made of red rice stone, and there are wooden piles several meters deep underneath, which is why it has stood for a thousand years without collapsing.
The Light Tower was first called the "Foreigner Tower" (fanta), and during the Song and Yuan dynasties, it was also called the "Huaisheng Tower." It was only after the Qing Dynasty that it began to be called the "Light Tower," a name that is still used today. to being a minaret (bangkelou), the Light Tower also served as a navigational lighthouse, and the golden rooster on top of the tower that could rotate with the wind also acted as a wind vane. Although the Light Tower is no longer near the shipping channel due to the southward shift of the Pearl River, it remains an important witness to Guangzhou as a commercial metropolis.
According to the Ming Dynasty Jiajing edition of the Guangzhou Gazetteer, Records of Foreign Affairs: "(Huaisheng Mosque) is two miles west inside the government city, built by foreigners during the Tang Dynasty, with a Foreigner Tower built inside." Most of the early records about the Light Tower currently come from the Song Dynasty. In 1088 (the third year of the Yuanyou era of the Northern Song Dynasty), Guo Xiangzheng, then the prefect of Duanzhou, climbed the Light Tower of Huaisheng Mosque with Jiang Zhiqi, the governor of Guangzhou, and wrote two poems: "Climbing the Foreigner Tower with Ying Shu" and "Presenting to Governor Jiang at Yuewang Terrace in Guangzhou."
During the Southern Song Dynasty, Fang Xinru and Yue Ke both recorded the Light Tower (Guangta) of the Huaisheng Mosque. In 1206 (the second year of the Kaixi era of the Southern Song), Fang Xinru wrote in 'One Hundred Poems of the South Sea' (Nanhai Baiyong): 'The Foreign Tower (Fanta) began in the Tang Dynasty and is called the Huaisheng Tower. It rises straight up, measuring sixteen zhang and five chi in height, with no levels inside. At the top sits a golden rooster that turns with the wind. Every year in the fifth or sixth lunar month, foreigners climb to the very top at the fifth watch to call out the name of Allah and pray for favorable winds. Below it is a mosque (libaitang).'
Yue Fei's grandson, the Southern Song writer Yue Ke, came to Guangzhou with his father in 1192 at the age of ten. In his book 'Notes on the History of the Song' (Tuo Shi), in the section 'Foreigners in Panyu' (Panyu Hailiao), he described the Muslim community in Guangzhou at that time in detail, including a specific description of the Light Tower: 'Behind it is a stupa that reaches into the clouds. Its style is unlike other towers; it is surrounded by bricks to form a large base, built up layer by layer, and covered with plaster on the outside, looking like a silver brush.' There is a door at the bottom. You climb the stairs inside, spiraling around like a snail shell, and you cannot see the steps from the outside. Every few dozen steps, there is an opening. In the fourth or fifth lunar month, when the ships are about to arrive, the foreigners enter the tower and call out through the openings to pray for the south wind, which often works. At the very top, there is a huge golden rooster that replaces the traditional wheel, though it is now missing one foot.
In the stele pavilion next to the main hall of the Huaisheng Mosque stands a replica of the stele commemorating the reconstruction of the Huaisheng Mosque and Tower in 1350 (the tenth year of the Zhizheng era of the Yuan Dynasty). This Yuan Dynasty stone stele was originally the most important religious inscription for the Huaisheng Mosque and all of Guangzhou, but it was unfortunately destroyed between 1966 and 1976. What we see now is a replica made from rubbings.
The inscription was written by Guo Jia, an official in the Guangdong Pacification Commission, calligraphed by the official Sa-di-mi-shi, and the title was carved by the official Seng Jiane. It is divided into Arabic and Chinese sections. The Arabic section at the top includes religious teachings and a dua, mentioning that the mosque was rebuilt by Masoud and the commander Mahamu, who was the Guangdong Pacification Commissioner at the time.
The Chinese section below describes the Light Tower in detail. It mentions that the Huaisheng Mosque suffered a fire in 1343 (the third year of the Zhizheng era) and was rebuilt in 1350 (the tenth year of the Zhizheng era), with only the Light Tower surviving the fire: 'At the foot of White Cloud Mountain, by the slope of Po Mountain, there is a pagoda. Its design is from the Western Regions, standing tall like stone.' 'It is something unseen in the Central Plains, and legend says it began in the Tang Dynasty... When the mosque was destroyed in the year of Guiwei of the Zhizheng era, the halls were left empty.' It also mentions that there was a golden rooster on top of the tower at the time, which served as a tool for passing ships to observe the wind direction. It also mentions that the imam (zhuchi) of the Huaisheng Mosque at the time was named Haji Hasaan.
During the Yuan Dynasty, the status of the Semu people rose, and many held important positions across the country. In the Guangdong region, this included Pu Shougeng, the military commander of Fujian and Guangdong; Mahamu, the Guangdong Pacification Commissioner; Pu Dexing, the deputy commander; and Lamadan, the salt commissioner of Guanghai. In 1347 (the seventh year of the Zhizheng era), the great traveler Ibn Battuta arrived in Guangzhou. In his 'Travels of Ibn Battuta,' he recorded: 'One area of the city is a Muslim residential district, which contains a mosque and a lodge, and has a judge and a sheikh... We stayed with Aohadunding Xizhalai, a kind and wealthy man, for fourteen days. During this time, the judge and other Muslims came one after another to send precious gifts, and every day they held banquets and invited singers to perform.'
After the Huaisheng Mosque was rebuilt in 1350 (the tenth year of the Zhizheng era), it was rebuilt twice more during the Ming Dynasty's Chenghua era and the Qing Dynasty's Kangxi era, and renovated three times during the Daoguang, Xianfeng, and Tongzhi eras. The stone railings around the current main hall have a style from the Yuan and Ming dynasties, while the Moon-Watching Pavilion (Kanyuelou) with its double-eaved hip-and-gable roof reflects the style after the Ming and Qing renovations.
During the Republic of China era, the Huaisheng Mosque in Guangzhou gradually fell into disrepair. The land around the Light Tower was occupied by nearby residents, and the tower gate was buried. In 1934, the Guangdong branch of the Chinese Muslim Association raised nearly 20,000 small silver coins through donations, reclaimed the occupied land around the Light Tower, and reinforced the tower.
After the reinforcement was completed, two stone steles, one in Chinese and one in Arabic, were carved and embedded at the base of the tower. Only the Arabic stele remains today, written by Ma Ruitu, an imam living in Guangzhou. Ma Ruitu was from Daying, Yuxi, Yunnan. He came from a family of Islamic scholars and served as the imam of the Haopan Mosque and Nansheng Mosque in Guangzhou after 1927.
To prevent termite damage, the Huaisheng Mosque also demolished the original brick-and-wood main hall in 1935 and rebuilt it as a reinforced concrete structure, while still maintaining the previous double-eaved hip-and-gable roof design.
Plaques of the Huaisheng Mosque.
There are many Qing Dynasty plaques inside the Huaisheng Mosque, which reflect the prosperity of the Muslim community in Guangzhou during that time.
In 1698 (the Kangxi era), the imperial guard and scholar Gai Rixin inscribed the 'Grace of the Emperor for All Time' plaque.
In 1698 (the Kangxi era), the scholar and Hanlin Academy official Tie Fanjin inscribed the 'Righteous Heart and Sincere Intent' plaque.
In 1698 (the Kangxi era), the official Yang Guolin erected the 'Great Mercy for the World' plaque.
In 1721 (the Kangxi era), the military official Yan Guangwu erected the 'Utmost Sincerity Never Ceases' plaque.
In 1755 (the Qianlong era), the military official Li Xianxiang inscribed the 'Following the Past and Opening the Future' plaque.
In 1846 (the Daoguang era), the committee members jointly erected the 'Sharing the Muslim Gift' plaque.
In 1867 (the Tongzhi era), the military official Bao Yingxiong erected the 'Overlapping Blessings from the Lord' plaque.
In the 26th year of the Guangxu reign (1900), Yang Shu, a second-rank official with a peacock feather and special imperial appointment, and Yang Xun, a fourth-rank official with a peacock feather and a member of the Plain Red Banner Han Army, dedicated the 'Grace Shared by All' plaque.
In the 31st year of the Guangxu reign (1905), the officials, elders, and managers of the Huaisheng Mosque (Guangta Si) dedicated the 'Benevolent Rain and Kind Clouds' plaque to celebrate the birthday of Master Ma.
Donation tablets inside the stele corridor of the Huaisheng Mosque.
The 1761 tablet regarding the purchase of a shop by the Elderly Association records that in 1716, Ma Kuan and 27 other Hui Muslim families formed an association to buy a shop across from the Haopan Mosque, using the rent to cover funeral expenses for their members. Over 40 years later, after all the families had finished their funeral needs, their descendants followed their ancestors' wishes and donated the shop to the Haopan Mosque and the Huaisheng Mosque.
The 1770 tablet regarding the donation of a shop at the end of Haopan Street to the four mosques in the old and new cities records that Yang Yuanxiu, following his brother Yang Yuanzhen's dying wish, donated a shop to the Huaisheng, Haopan, Nansheng, and Xiaodongying mosques to fund their religious schools and teacher salaries.
The 1783 tablet from the Jiangnan guests in Foshan records that although many Hui Muslims lived in Foshan, they had never built a mosque. In 1708 (the 47th year of the Kangxi reign), Hui Muslims from Jiangnan who were doing business in Foshan bought a house from a Mr. Wang in Qingyun Lane, Panyong, and built a mosque. Later, because all the Hui Muslims in Foshan moved to Guangzhou, the mosque was left unmanaged and was occupied by local thugs during the Qianlong reign. Jiangnan Hui Muslims living in Guangzhou consulted with the teachers of the Guangzhou mosques and sold the Foshan mosque, donating the funds to the Huaisheng, Xiaodongying, Haopan, and Nansheng mosques in Guangzhou, and the mosque in Sanya's Huixin Village (Hainan Sanya Huixin Cun).
The 1903 tablet regarding the donation of a house by Lin Liye and others records that twenty Hui Muslim women donated a house at the entrance of Taojia Lane to the Huaisheng Mosque's public fund, with the rent used for prayers on the anniversary of the saintly Lady Fatimah (Fatumei Shenghui).
The 1841 tablet regarding the donation of a house by Mrs. Jin Zhang records that she donated a house she owned in Nansheng Lane to the Huaisheng Mosque to support religious studies.
The 1855 tablet regarding Liu Jicai's donation to education records that he donated a house he owned at the entrance of Cuifu Street to the Huaisheng Mosque to supplement religious study funds.
The 1864 tablet regarding the sale of a shop by He Qieben records that a Manchu named He Qieben, needing money urgently, sold his late father's shop on Dashi Street to the Huaisheng Mosque through a middleman, Cun Gui of the Plain Red Banner Manchu.
The 1848 tablet regarding the donation of funds by 37 people to the Huaisheng Mosque records that 37 Hui Muslims pooled money to buy a shop on Guangta Street, with the rent deposited into the Huaisheng Mosque's public fund to cover the annual Isra and Mi'raj (Dengxiao) expenses.
The 1863 tablet regarding the donation to the Huaisheng Mosque school records that Hai Tingchen donated two properties he owned inside the Guide Gate at the Four Archways (Si Pai Lou) and in Qingyun Lane to the Huaisheng Mosque to supplement religious study funds. Additionally, the Shunsheng Hall donated a house in Guangta Foot Lane to the Huaisheng Mosque to supplement religious study funds.
The 1841 tablet regarding the donation of a house for the Huaisheng Mosque school records that Ma Buqing donated a house he bought on Changtang Street inside the Wenming Gate to the Huaisheng Mosque to serve as a school, with funds used for teaching and annual memorial services.
The 1913 tablet regarding the Huaisheng Mosque's property purchase records that the mosque sold a jade shop and bought three houses located at 20 Agate Lane (Manaoxiang), 7 Huodui Lane in Tao Street, and 21 Huilong Lane.
Ancient Tombs of the Worthies (Xianxian Gumu).
After leaving the Huaisheng Mosque, I went to visit the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies. The Ancient Cemetery of the Worthies in Guangzhou is commonly known as the Huihui Cemetery, the Great Man's Cemetery, or the Echoing Cemetery. It has been a burial ground for Muslims in Guangzhou since the Tang Dynasty. The earliest record of the Ancient Cemetery of the Worthies comes from 'One Hundred Poems of the South Sea' (Nanhai Baiyong) written by Fang Xinru in 1206 (the second year of the Kaixi period of the Southern Song Dynasty): 'The tombs of the foreigners are ten miles west of the city, thousands of them, all with heads to the south and facing west.'
At the center of the ancient tombs lies the legendary Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas, the first person to come to China to spread the faith. Records show the status of the Tomb of Waqqas (Wangesu mu) rose during the Yuan and Ming dynasties. The Ming dynasty book Guangzhou Prefecture Records (Guangzhou fuzhi) notes: Every year, people of all surnames must visit the tomb to pay respects and recite scriptures, a tradition that continues to this day. Countries in the Western Regions respected this influence. Every time they sailed thousands of miles to Guangzhou, they considered visiting the tomb an honor. Even the most noble visitors would crawl and bow in Guangzhou to show their utmost sincerity.
The Ancient Tombs of the Worthies were renovated several times during the Jiaqing, Daoguang, and Republican periods. Traditionally, on the 27th day of the 11th month of the Islamic calendar, Guangzhou Muslims hold a memorial service at the tombs, known as the 'Master's Anniversary' (Daren Ji).
The tomb path outside the cemetery has north and south entrances. At the south end stands a stone archway inscribed with 'Path to the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies,' featuring a couplet: 'Traveling across the vast ocean to reach the Eastern Land, the ancient sage spent his life spreading the holy teachings;' 'Explaining the scriptures and teachings with wisdom reaching the Western Regions, the Muslim people look up to this peak for all generations.'
Passing through the stone archway, you can see the 'Proclamation No. 5 of the Guangdong Provincial Government' written by Governor Liao Zhongkai in 1924, which records that he sent people to survey the boundaries of the 'Muslim Public Cemetery' at Guihuagang and set up stone markers to protect the cemetery from encroachment.
South Courtyard of the cemetery.
Continuing along the tomb path, you arrive at the cemetery of the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies. The cemetery is surrounded by a blue brick wall. The main gate is inscribed with Ancient Tomb of the Muslim Worthies (Qingzhen Xianxian Gumu). On the back, there are plaques donated by the congregation of the Huaisheng Mosque in Guangzhou, dating back to the first year of the Xuantong reign (1909) and the second year of the Xuantong reign (1910). These plaques feature the Islamic declaration of faith and the phrase Goodness has its reward.
The cemetery is divided into north and south courtyards. The south courtyard includes a reception room, a lounge, a water room, and a women's prayer hall. In the center stands a square pavilion decorated with many plaques and couplets. The courtyard also houses the Worthies' Well (Xianxian Jing), which provides sweet water.
Some plaques and couplets in the south courtyard:
In the tenth year of the Jiaqing reign (1805), Xu Wenmo, a military official holding the title of Jiyong Baturu and commander of the Guangdong Gao-Lian-Luo region, donated the plaque inscribed with True Enlightenment of the Western School (Zhengjue Xizong).
In 1913, a group of people donated the plaque inscribed with Spreading the Faith (Chanyang Shilai), calligraphed by Ma Yongkuan.
In 1924, a group of people donated the plaque inscribed with Ancient Faith that Opened the Heavens (Kaitian Gujiao).
A memorial archway separates the north and south courtyards. It features a stone plaque from the first year of the Yongzheng reign (1723) inscribed with High Virtue to be Admired (Gaofeng Yangzhi).
The north courtyard of the cemetery.
Passing through the archway, you find a granite path with stone railings, rebuilt in the Wuxu year of the Daoguang reign (1838) by the Baodunhe Hall. The Baodunhe Hall was a prominent family of Hui Muslims in Guangzhou. The sixth-generation member, Bao Antai, served as a postal official in Guangdong during the Daoguang reign. The ancestral graves of the Baodunhe Hall are also located on the north side of the Ancient Tomb of the Muslim Worthies, which I will introduce later in this article.
At the end of the path lies the tomb chamber of Waqqas. The tomb chamber is a domed building with a porch added later. The two outer stone pillars are carved with a couplet from the Jiawu year of the Guangxi reign (1894), donated by Cai Jinzhang, the Guangdong land forces commander: Spreading the holy teachings in the southern land, passed down through generations, thirty volumes strictly following the divine instructions; Establishing a virtuous reputation in the eastern Guangdong, standing tall and independent, for thousands of years all look up to this model.
The two inner stone pillars feature a wooden couplet carved in the eleventh year of the Jiaqing reign (1806) by Hu Changqing, a scholar from Guilin: Receiving the holy teachings from the West, the source of the heart inherited for fifty generations; Serving the heavenly scriptures in the eastern land, the tradition remains for thousands of years.
In the center hangs a plaque from the Yiwei year of the Guangxi reign (1895), donated by Xu Yingzhong, the imam of Huaisheng Mosque, and others, inscribed with Long-lasting Respect and Far-reaching Journey (Changzhan Yuanxing).
Inside the tomb chamber is a dome built with corbelled masonry. Because it creates a loud echo when reciting the Quran inside, it is also called the Echoing Tomb (Xiangfen). Under the dome lies the tombstone of the worthy Waqqas, covered with multiple layers of burial cloths placed by visitors.
Graves around the tomb chamber.
There are many Muslim graves surrounding the tomb chamber.
The tombstone of the Turkish Haji Mekemede, carved in the sixteenth year of the Qianlong reign (1751). The inscription records that he was from Rome (the Anatolia region). He traveled to Guangzhou in 1749 specifically to pay respects to the worthy Waqqas, stayed at the Da'erkaha Mosque, and passed away two years later. It is currently impossible to verify exactly which mosque the Da'erkaha Mosque refers to.
The tombstone of Yang Wendeng, carved in the twenty-fifth year of the Qianlong reign (1757), written by his close friend Zhamalunding. The inscription records that Yang Wendeng, whose religious name was De-ya-ao-ding, was a scholar of Islamic law who lived to be 87 years old.
The tombstone of the forty worthies from Medina, re-carved in the seventh year of the Jiaqing reign (1802). The inscription records that the forty worthies from Medina were sent by the Prophet Muhammad to accompany Waqqas to China to spread the faith. During a congregational prayer, they were all killed by bandits and became martyrs (shahid).
The tombstone of General Zhang Delu, carved in the twelfth year of the Guangxi reign (1886), written by Haji Salih. According to the inscription, General Zhang Delu, whose religious name was Du-wu-da Ge-ma-lun-ding, was originally from Tianjin. He served as a commander in Gaozhou and Chaozhou in Guangdong, Guzhou in Guizhou, and Qiongzhou. He was highly respected and used his own money and effort to help mosques and schools. He passed away while in office at the age of 52.
The tombstone of the worthy Erbudanglexi (Abdullah), carved in the fifteenth year of the Guangxi reign (1889) and the sixteenth year of the Guangxi reign (1890). The inscription records that the person buried here was named Abdullah ibn Shaaban. He was from Mecca and was an elder of the Shadhili school. He arrived in Guangzhou by boat in 1886. He preached in the provinces of Jiangnan, Henan, Shaanxi, and Gansu. Two years later, he returned to Guangzhou to continue teaching students. He passed away in 1889 at the age of 46 due to illness from overwork.
The tombstone of General Cai Jinzhang, who held the title of Jianwei General, was carved in the 20th year of the Guangxu reign (1894). Cai Jinzhang was from Shouzhou, Anhui. He served as a regional commander for the Guangdong and Guangxi provinces, a land force commander in Guangdong, a regional commander in Guangxi, and a leader of various defense battalions in Guangxi. He also commanded all military forces in Guangji and Guangsheng, Guangdong, and helped manage provincial military affairs.
The tombstone of Haji Ma Xiaoxian was carved in the 25th year of the Guangxu reign (1899). Ma Xiaoxian was from Hezhou, Gansu. By age 24, he had finished studying 11 religious texts, which allowed him to wear the robes and lead the congregation as an imam. He came to Guangzhou to preach and passed away at the age of 85 in a school.
The tombstone of Haji Fa Mingdao, an imam, was carved in the third year of the Xuantong reign (1911). Imam Fa Mingdao, whose religious name was Muhammad Umar, was from Hezhou, Gansu. He studied and preached at the Haopan Mosque in Guangzhou and later passed away in the city.
The tombstone of Haji Sheikh Zhang Jinxiu was carved in 1913. Zhang Jinxiu, whose religious name was Sahri Muhammad Shams al-Din, was from Hezhou, Gansu. He studied and preached in Guangzhou and eventually passed away there.
The tombstone of the elder imam Ma Yunting was carved in 1929. Ma Yunting was from Eshan County, Yunnan. His mother once ran a teacher training school for women in Guangzhou. He later came to Guangzhou to preach for 28 years, gained great respect, and passed away at age 80.
The tombstone of Ma Zhaofang was carved in the sixth year of the Daoguang reign (1826).
The tombstone of Zhang Xiaode was carved in the 26th year of the Guangxu reign (1846). He was from Deping County, Jinan Prefecture, Shandong. Deping County was abolished in 1956, and its former seat is now Deping Town in Lingyi County.
Inside the cemetery is the Hong Family Charity Land stele, carved in the 36th year of the Kangxi reign (1697). It records that Hong Yusheng, a Hui Muslim from Linqing, Shandong, followed the Qing army to Guangzhou as part of the Plain Yellow Banner. His son, Hong Yugong, died young in Guangzhou, and his daughter-in-law, surnamed Ma, remained chaste and filial until her death. Consequently, Hong Yusheng and his wife bought a plot of land on Dashe Mountain outside the North Gate of Guangzhou, which contained over a thousand grave sites. Except for the burial of his daughter-in-law, the rest was donated as a public cemetery for Muslims. The text was written by Ma Xi, a candidate for prefect in Jiangning, who was a Muslim official.
Graves on the southwest side of the cemetery.
There are many Muslim graves on the southwest side of the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies. This area was reorganized in 2010 after scattered old graves around the tomb were moved here.
Among them are two very precious Song Dynasty Muslim tomb cover stones, which are shaped the same as those from the same period in Quanzhou. One of them has a stone tablet in front of it, carved in 1948, stating that it is the tomb of Sa Yihu, the ancestor of the Sa family in Guangdong, re-erected by his descendants. The top of the other cover stone is carved with Arabic text: The Prophet said, when you are in doubt, seek advice from those in the graves! In the grave, there is either a garden of paradise or a pit of hellfire. The Sa family Hui Muslims are one of the only two remaining descendants of the foreign merchants from the Tang and Song dynasties in Guangzhou, having lived in the city for over a thousand years.
During the Song Dynasty, the overland Silk Road became difficult to travel due to wars with the Liao, Western Xia, and Jin dynasties, but maritime trade continued to grow in scale. Arab and Persian merchants dominated Indian Ocean trade during this period. They did business in cities like Guangzhou, Quanzhou, Yangzhou, and Hangzhou, playing a major role in the religious and economic development of the southeastern coastal regions. According to the Song Huiyao Gao, in 1028 (the sixth year of the Tiansheng reign of the Song Dynasty), Emperor Renzong issued a special decree to strengthen import trade in Guangzhou: Guangzhou has seen few foreign ships lately; the local government and the transport commission should invite and settle them. After this, many Muslim merchants settled in Guangzhou, and the foreign quarter (fanfang) that had been destroyed during the Huang Chao Rebellion at the end of the Tang Dynasty was rebuilt.
However, between 1276 and 1278, the two-year war between the Southern Song and the Mongol army caused devastating damage to Guangzhou. Muslim merchants left the city to escape the chaos, and many moved to Quanzhou. Today, among the local Hui Muslims in Guangzhou, only the Sa family can be verified as descendants of the Tang and Song foreign merchants; all other Hui Muslims moved here after the Ming and Qing dynasties. The Pu family, who have lived in Zhugang and Pu villages in Guangzhou for generations, are also descendants of foreign visitors from the Tang and Song dynasties. However, they no longer show any signs of their foreign ancestry and their customs are exactly the same as the local Han people.
According to the Sa Family Genealogy of the Two Yue Regions, our clan's history began with the Muslim people, established its roots in China, flourished during the Tang dynasty, continued through the Song, rose during the Yuan, branched out in the Ming, and spread across eastern and western Guangdong. According to the Guangzhou Prefecture Records, during the Zhizheng era of the Yuan dynasty, seventeen families led by Sa Dula guarded the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies and the mosque outside the North Gate. The Sa Family Genealogy of the Two Yue Regions records that Sa Dula was a descendant of the Sa family. When the Qing army attacked Guangzhou at the end of the Ming dynasty, one of the three loyal Muslim defenders who died for the city was named Sa Zhifu. According to the Sa family records, the Sa and Sa families are one, and he was also a descendant of the Sa family.
To the southwest of the cemetery is the tomb of Imam Ma Renfeng of the Huaisheng Mosque in Guangzhou. Imam Ma Renfeng was a local Hui Muslim from Guangzhou. He studied the scriptures under Imam Wang Zhizhou from a young age. After completing his training, he began serving as an imam at the Huaisheng Mosque in 1912 and became the head imam in 1928. After 1938, to escape the threats and pressure of the Japanese army, Imam Ma fled to the Baihedong refugee camp. He later moved to Hong Kong and served as an imam at the Hong Kong Chinese Muslim Fraternity Association. In 1954, while attending the National Day celebrations, Imam Ma suffered a sudden brain hemorrhage from excitement and passed away at the age of 60.
There are also many tombs of Guangzhou Hui Muslims from the Qing dynasty nearby.
The stele corridor on the east side of the cemetery.
Directly east of the cemetery is a stele corridor that preserves a series of stone inscriptions from the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies. The row on the far left mostly concerns the protection of the Muslim cemetery. From left to right, they are as follows:
A reward notice stele from the Guangzhou Prefecture during the Guangxu era. It reiterates the official ban on protecting the Muslim cemetery and encourages the public to arrest offenders.
A boundary marker stele for the protection of the Muslim cemetery, carved in 1924. In 1924, after Guangzhou Hui Muslims successfully opposed the Dazhen Company's attempt to claim land outside the North Gate, they held a city-wide celebration at the mosque outside the North Gate. They invited prominent Hui Muslims from Hong Kong and Macau to attend, and the assembly decided to set up boundary markers at all Muslim cemeteries to protect them.
A stele commemorating the renovation of the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies in the 17th year of the Jiaqing era (1812). The original stele was carved in the 29th year of the Kangxi era (1690) and recorded the renovation of the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies by Hui Muslims like Sun Ying. It was re-carved in 1812 by Liu Chengzhang and others from the Guangta Mosque.
A 1878 official notice from the Guangzhou Prefecture strictly forbidding the destruction of graves and the sale of land by local workers. It was issued by Guangzhou Prefect Feng Taisong to protect the cemetery outside the North Gate and was originally placed next to the mosque there.
A 1925 notice from the Guangzhou Finance Bureau, signed by Director Wang Tang, declaring the preservation of the Muslim cemetery. The Guangzhou Municipal Construction Commission verified and approved the map of the public Muslim cemetery surveyed and drawn by Hui Muslim representative Ma Yunting and others, confirming the boundaries and area of the cemetery.
Embedded in the stele corridor is a series of donation steles, mostly recording the donation of property and land by Guangzhou Hui Muslims during the Qing dynasty and the Republic of China:
A 1779 stele recording a collective donation to repair abandoned graves and fill in ponds. It records that the elders of the four mosques in Guangzhou (Huaisheng, Haopan, Nansheng, and Xiaodongying) raised funds to buy a house belonging to the Ma family in Nanshengli, using the rent to repair the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies.
A 1785 stele recording a house donation by overseas Muslims. It records that overseas Muslims Palalibike and Tanni, out of respect for the worthy Wan Gesu, bought a house in Nanshengli and donated it to the Huaisheng Mosque, requesting that the mosque go to the ancient tomb to perform dua on the anniversary of the worthy's passing.
A 1815 stele recording the conversion of houses donated by Elder Yang into shops. It records that Guangzhou Hui Muslim Elder Yang Yuanzhen donated a house in the western section of Haopan Street to the four mosques in 1759 to support scriptural studies. Later, because the house fell into disrepair and no one managed it, the Dai Wanli shop in Yuxianfang took the lead in converting the house into a storefront. They used the rent for scriptural studies and religious anniversaries, and the remaining money was given to the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies to perform the anniversary rites for Wan Gesu.
A 1830 stele recording the donation of property by the Tuo Yang family. It records that after the Hui Muslim Tuo Yang passed away, she donated two houses in Nanshengli and Luohuata Street to the public fund of the four mosques, requesting that the presiding teacher be invited to the tomb to perform dua on her anniversary.
A 1828 stele recording a house donation by Yang Xilong for his late uncle. It records that Changsha Hui Muslim Yang Yuanxun came to Guangzhou to study for over 20 years. After he passed away and was buried in Zoumagang, his nephew Xilong bought a shop at the entrance of Tonglong Lane inside the North Gate and donated it to the public fund of the four mosques. It was used for religious anniversaries and the anniversary of the worthy Wan Gesu, and to invite the presiding teacher to the tomb to recite scriptures and perform dua on his uncle's anniversary.
A 1864 stele recording the donation of merit money to the mosques by the Xiangmao firm. It records that Yunnan Hui Muslims Ma Dahe and Ming Qizhong brought funds from the Xiangmao firm in Tengchong, Yunnan, to do business in Guangzhou. Unfortunately, both passed away and were buried outside the North Gate. Because of the unrest in Yunnan at the time, the status of the Xiangmao firm was unknown, so the funds they left behind were donated to the four mosques in Guangzhou to purchase property for merit. Every year during Ramadan, dua is performed for the Xiangmao firm, Ma Dahe, and Ming Qizhong.
A 1827 stele recording the donation of property by the Sa Bu family. It records that because the Guangzhou Hui Muslim Sa Bu had no children, she donated the rent of a house in Nanshengli to the public fund of the four mosques after her death. Every year on her anniversary, a portion of the money is used to invite the teachers of the four mosques to recite scriptures and perform dua at her tomb. The public fund of the four mosques refers to the funds raised by the Muslim communities of the Huaisheng, Haopan, Nansheng, and Xiaodongying mosques. The rent is collected in a public fund and used for religious activities, helping the poor, and funeral arrangements for the deceased.
A 1829 stele recording the donation of silver to buy a house by Li Yingxiang. It records that former Guangzhou Assistant Commander Li Yingxiang bought a house in Zhanjiayuan inside the North Gate and donated it to the public fund of the four mosques to help the poor.
The 1693 public field stele at this mosque records that Huaisheng Mosque bought land outside the North Gate of Guangzhou after Li Mingfeng died. Tenant farmers worked the land, and the rent money supported mosque affairs. The Yu Yingxiang and Yu Ying'ao mentioned in the stele were the surviving sons of Yu Fengqi, one of the Three Loyalists of Islam.
Tomb of the Three Loyalists of Islam
On the east side of the cemetery stands the Tomb of the Three Loyalists of Islam and the Three Loyalists Pavilion. They were built to honor three Hui Muslim generals—Yu Fengqi, Sa Zhifu, and Ma Chengzu—who died heroically defending Guangzhou against the Qing army. In 1650, Shang Kexi and Geng Jimao led the Qing army to surround Guangzhou. Southern Ming Governor Du Yonghe led his troops to hold the city. After an eight-month siege, the Qing army used heavy artillery to blast the city walls. They entered through the collapsed sections and took the city after several days of intense street fighting.
Among the Three Loyalists of Islam, Ma Chengzu was the first to be recorded. Qu Dajun, a famous scholar from the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, wrote in his book 'Records of Martyrs of the Four Ming Reigns' that Ma Chengzu was a high-ranking commander of the Guangzhou Right Guard. He defended Wuyang Gate and died in battle alongside his sons, Zongbao and Zongren, when Guangzhou fell. Nearly 40 years later, Qu Dajun met Yu Ying'ao, the son of another martyr, Yu Fengqi, on the streets of Guangzhou. He learned of Yu Fengqi's heroic deeds and wrote the 'Stele for the Ming Dynasty Commander Yu,' commonly known as the 'Three Loyalists of the Faith' stele.
The stele records that Yu Fengqi was a descendant of the Uyghur people. His ancestor Yu Shifu and Ma Chengzu's ancestor Mahema were both military leaders in Nanjing. They helped suppress rebellions in Guangdong and Guangxi during the Chenghua period of the Ming dynasty and settled in the Hui Muslim camp in Guangzhou. During the 1650 siege of Guangzhou, Yu Fengqi served as a commander and was responsible for defending the South Gate. When Guangzhou fell, Governor Du Yonghe led his officers to open the gates and flee. Some people urged Yu Fengqi to run away, but he scolded them. When the Qing army arrived, Yu Fengqi hanged himself at home to die for his country. Over a hundred people in his household were captured and killed, but his sons Yu Ying'ao and Yu Yingxiang survived because they were studying with a teacher outside the city.
During the Qianlong period, Qu Dajun's works were banned and destroyed, and Yu Fengqi's tombstone disappeared. The current stele inside the Three Loyalists Pavilion was re-erected by the Islamic Association.
Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Guangzhou Huaisheng Mosque — Sage Tomb and Muslim History (Part 2)
Reposted from the web
Summary: Guangzhou Huaisheng Mosque — Sage Tomb and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: North of the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies (Xianxian Gumu), you will find the ancestral graves of the Bao Dunhe Tang family. The account keeps its focus on Huaisheng Mosque, Guangzhou Muslims, Sage Tomb while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
The ancestral graves of the Bao Dunhe Tang family.
North of the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies (Xianxian Gumu), you will find the ancestral graves of the Bao Dunhe Tang family. The Bao family made significant contributions to the renovation of the Huaisheng Mosque, the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies, and the Xiaodongying Mosque. According to family records, the first ancestor of the Bao Dunhe Tang, A Bao Mu'er, moved from Xinjiang to Kunming Prefecture. The second generation, Bao Guowei, went to Nanjing for business during the Kangxi and Yongzheng reigns of the Qing Dynasty. Later, he brought his second son, Bao Tingzhi, to Guangzhou for business, and Bao Tingzhi's descendants settled in Guangzhou from then on.
Xianxian Mosque.
Historically, there has always been a mosque next to the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies. Past stone tablets referred to it as the Mosque Outside the Great North Gate or the Xianxian Mosque. In the fourth year of the Guangxu reign (1878), a stone tablet issued by the Guangzhou government to strictly forbid locals from destroying graves for theft was erected next to the mosque. The inscription reads, "A public notice posted next to the Mosque Outside the Great North Gate." The 1934 tablet commemorating the renovation of the Xianxian Mosque records, "The original structure of the mosque was rebuilt during the Kangxi reign of the Qing Dynasty, about 260 or 270 years ago." It is one of the six mosques in Guangdong. The six mosques in Guangzhou mentioned in the inscription are the Huaisheng Mosque, Haopan Mosque, Xiaodongying Mosque, Nansheng Mosque, Dongjiao Mosque, and Xianxian Mosque. It also records that Muslims from various districts in Guangzhou and Hong Kong donated funds to renovate the mosque in 1934.
In the book "History of Islam in Guangzhou" edited by Bao Yanzhong, it is suggested that the historical Xianxian Mosque was the south courtyard of the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies. However, Ma Jianchun presents a different view in his article "Guangzhou's 'Ancient Xianxian Mosque'—A Study of the Mosque Outside the Great North Gate." He believes that while the mosque was adjacent to the tomb garden, it was a separate building and quite large.
First, British scholar Marshall Broomhall recorded in Chapter 7, "Mosques and Muslim Graves in Guangzhou," of his 1911 book "Islam in China: A Neglected Problem," that "another mosque located about half a mile outside the North Gate of Guangzhou is a second point of interest." The mosque itself is a fine, large building... from its appearance, one can conclude that the courtyard was rebuilt in modern times. In this respect, the mosque is superior to most mosques in China. It was built with land purchased by the imperial court using tax revenue to meet the needs of construction and namaz," and he clarified that the mosque and the tomb were not in the same place: "Near the mosque is a small cemetery of about a quarter of an acre... here lie some of the earliest converts to Islam, and at the end of the cemetery sits the famous domed tomb of the Prophet's uncle." The 1934 renovation tablet also records that the renovated mosque was "a magnificent sight." Meanwhile, according to the 1955 "Tablet Record of the Three Loyal Graves of Muslims," "Later, the people of Guangdong, admiring the heroes, buried them in front of the Xianxian Mosque outside Liuhua Bridge, built a pavilion and erected a stone, naming it the Three Loyal Graves of the Hui Muslims to express their mourning." From this, Ma Jianchun infers that the original site of the Xianxian Mosque was located in the small woods behind the Three Loyal Graves of the Muslims.
It is still uncertain when the Xianxian Mosque disappeared. It was not until 2010 that 21 dormitory units southwest of the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies were demolished, and the cleared land allowed for the reconstruction of the main prayer hall. It was officially named the Xianxian Mosque in 2011 and is now one of the four existing mosques in Guangzhou.
If you are interested in the history of the faith in Guangzhou, I recommend reading "History of Islam in Guangzhou" edited by Bao Yanzhong and "Collection of Hui Muslim Tablet Inscriptions and Couplets in Guangzhou" edited by Ma Jianzhao. These two books were very helpful in organizing and editing this article. Finally, I would like to thank Chen Yong, a dost (friend), for correcting the information in this article.
Collapse Read »
Summary: Guangzhou Huaisheng Mosque — Sage Tomb and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: North of the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies (Xianxian Gumu), you will find the ancestral graves of the Bao Dunhe Tang family. The account keeps its focus on Huaisheng Mosque, Guangzhou Muslims, Sage Tomb while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
The ancestral graves of the Bao Dunhe Tang family.
North of the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies (Xianxian Gumu), you will find the ancestral graves of the Bao Dunhe Tang family. The Bao family made significant contributions to the renovation of the Huaisheng Mosque, the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies, and the Xiaodongying Mosque. According to family records, the first ancestor of the Bao Dunhe Tang, A Bao Mu'er, moved from Xinjiang to Kunming Prefecture. The second generation, Bao Guowei, went to Nanjing for business during the Kangxi and Yongzheng reigns of the Qing Dynasty. Later, he brought his second son, Bao Tingzhi, to Guangzhou for business, and Bao Tingzhi's descendants settled in Guangzhou from then on.
Xianxian Mosque.
Historically, there has always been a mosque next to the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies. Past stone tablets referred to it as the Mosque Outside the Great North Gate or the Xianxian Mosque. In the fourth year of the Guangxu reign (1878), a stone tablet issued by the Guangzhou government to strictly forbid locals from destroying graves for theft was erected next to the mosque. The inscription reads, "A public notice posted next to the Mosque Outside the Great North Gate." The 1934 tablet commemorating the renovation of the Xianxian Mosque records, "The original structure of the mosque was rebuilt during the Kangxi reign of the Qing Dynasty, about 260 or 270 years ago." It is one of the six mosques in Guangdong. The six mosques in Guangzhou mentioned in the inscription are the Huaisheng Mosque, Haopan Mosque, Xiaodongying Mosque, Nansheng Mosque, Dongjiao Mosque, and Xianxian Mosque. It also records that Muslims from various districts in Guangzhou and Hong Kong donated funds to renovate the mosque in 1934.
In the book "History of Islam in Guangzhou" edited by Bao Yanzhong, it is suggested that the historical Xianxian Mosque was the south courtyard of the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies. However, Ma Jianchun presents a different view in his article "Guangzhou's 'Ancient Xianxian Mosque'—A Study of the Mosque Outside the Great North Gate." He believes that while the mosque was adjacent to the tomb garden, it was a separate building and quite large.
First, British scholar Marshall Broomhall recorded in Chapter 7, "Mosques and Muslim Graves in Guangzhou," of his 1911 book "Islam in China: A Neglected Problem," that "another mosque located about half a mile outside the North Gate of Guangzhou is a second point of interest." The mosque itself is a fine, large building... from its appearance, one can conclude that the courtyard was rebuilt in modern times. In this respect, the mosque is superior to most mosques in China. It was built with land purchased by the imperial court using tax revenue to meet the needs of construction and namaz," and he clarified that the mosque and the tomb were not in the same place: "Near the mosque is a small cemetery of about a quarter of an acre... here lie some of the earliest converts to Islam, and at the end of the cemetery sits the famous domed tomb of the Prophet's uncle." The 1934 renovation tablet also records that the renovated mosque was "a magnificent sight." Meanwhile, according to the 1955 "Tablet Record of the Three Loyal Graves of Muslims," "Later, the people of Guangdong, admiring the heroes, buried them in front of the Xianxian Mosque outside Liuhua Bridge, built a pavilion and erected a stone, naming it the Three Loyal Graves of the Hui Muslims to express their mourning." From this, Ma Jianchun infers that the original site of the Xianxian Mosque was located in the small woods behind the Three Loyal Graves of the Muslims.
It is still uncertain when the Xianxian Mosque disappeared. It was not until 2010 that 21 dormitory units southwest of the Ancient Tomb of the Worthies were demolished, and the cleared land allowed for the reconstruction of the main prayer hall. It was officially named the Xianxian Mosque in 2011 and is now one of the four existing mosques in Guangzhou.
If you are interested in the history of the faith in Guangzhou, I recommend reading "History of Islam in Guangzhou" edited by Bao Yanzhong and "Collection of Hui Muslim Tablet Inscriptions and Couplets in Guangzhou" edited by Ma Jianzhao. These two books were very helpful in organizing and editing this article. Finally, I would like to thank Chen Yong, a dost (friend), for correcting the information in this article.
Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Zhaoqing — Roast Goose, Mosque Life and Guangdong Streets
Reposted from the web
Summary: Zhaoqing — Roast Goose, Mosque Life and Guangdong Streets is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: I left Macau on January 23, 2023, to visit the Macau mosque known as Moro Garden (Moro Yuan). The account keeps its focus on Zhaoqing Halal Food, Guangdong Mosques, Muslim Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
I left Macau on January 23, 2023, to visit the Macau mosque known as Moro Garden (Moro Yuan). I ate delicious Indonesian Javanese food and wrote about it in my post, 'Moro Garden and Indonesian Food in Macau'. On January 25 in Guangzhou, I visited with friends (dosti) and ate various halal foods, which I posted about in "Guangzhou's Hui Muslim Fried Dough (youxiang) and Yemeni Cuisine." On the morning of January 26, I took a train from Guangzhou to Zhaoqing to start the third leg of my journey.
After leaving the Zhaoqing train station, I took a taxi straight to a halal restaurant by the West River. Like the Hui Muslim restaurants in Guangzhou, the Zhaoqing Halal Restaurant is a long-standing state-run halal Cantonese restaurant established in the 1950s. In 1957, the Zhaoqing Halal Restaurant was co-founded by local Hui Muslims Luo Shiyong, Sa Zhinan, Dong Shi, and Liu Youxing. Luo Shiyong was also a board member of the Zhaoqing West Mosque (Chengxi Si). He ran the halal restaurant for half a century until his daughter took over in 2007.
The Zhaoqing Halal Restaurant is better for family meals. The main hall has large round tables and the portions are quite big, so it is actually hard to order for just one person. However, you must try their signature dish, the halal roast goose. The Cantonese-style crispy roast goose is not greasy at all. Dipping it in sweet hawthorn sauce is very appetizing; this was my first time eating it this way. I also ordered a clay pot of radish and beef offal (niuzabao). Clay pots with beef and lamb are also a specialty of Guangdong Hui Muslims.
After leaving the halal restaurant, I went to the Zhaoqing West Mosque (Chengxi Si) and received a warm welcome from Imam (ahong) He. Imam He is from Hami and his ancestral home is in Shaanxi. He was previously at the Meilin Mosque in Shenzhen and only came to Zhaoqing recently after the old imam of the West Mosque retired. Currently, most of the people coming to the mosque for namaz are friends (dosti) who run noodle shops. Many are willing to settle in Zhaoqing because it is convenient for their children's schooling and the climate is pleasant.
I also met Mr. Luo at the mosque, who is a local Hui Muslim from Zhaoqing. According to family records, the ancestors of the Zhaoqing Luo family were from Xuanping County, Lishui City, Zhejiang Province (the county was abolished in 1958). They came to Zhaoqing for garrison duty during the Qianlong reign and settled down, so they have been here for 300 years.
The Zhaoqing West Mosque was first built in the early Qianlong reign. It was originally small. In 1767 (the 32nd year of Qianlong), the elder Liu Shifang led 15 Muslims to buy land and build the mosque by the Longding Ridge outside the west city wall. It was expanded twice during the Jiaqing and Daoguang reigns and rebuilt into its current form in 1983. I am very grateful that the original stone pillars and the mihrab stone arch from the Qing Dynasty main hall were preserved. The mihrab stone arch and four stone pillars are carved with scripture calligraphy. Two of the pillars are carved with a Chinese couplet: "Diligently recite, pray, follow the rules, fast, and worship once a week with reverence; uphold loyalty, filial piety, benevolence, and righteousness, for the six actions and three items are precious and sincere." The first line is about religious faith, and the second line is about Confucianism. Both were very important to the Hui Muslims at that time.
On the door of the main hall of the West Mosque, there is a plaque and couplet. The plaque "Always Remember the Lord's Grace" was respectfully inscribed in 1838 (Daoguang Wuxu year) by Li Xianyang, a military official. The couplet, "Why need the physical form to be manifest, for in the five prayers one is as if in His presence; do not say the tradition is far away, for in the thirty volumes there is the true teaching," was respectfully written by Liu Hu in 1814 (Jiaqing Jiaxu year).
The West Mosque preserves old photos of the main hall from before and during its demolition in 1983. From the photos, you can see that this mosque, like the Haopan Mosque in Guangzhou, has a double-eaved hip-and-gable roof and a stone-pillared corridor. This architectural style is extremely rare in northern mosques. You can also see what the Chinese stone couplets looked like on the old main hall.
After saying goodbye to the Zhaoqing West Mosque, I walked through the old town of Zhaoqing to the East Mosque (Chengdong Si) and contacted Grandpa Wang, the mosque caretaker, to open the door for me. Mr. Wang is also a local Hui Muslim. According to family records, the ancestors of the Zhaoqing Wang family were from Taiyuan Prefecture, Shanxi. They came to Zhaoqing with the army in the early Qing Dynasty to serve in office and later settled down in Zhaoqing.
Because the climate in Lingnan is pleasant, Zhaoqing remains lush and green even in winter. The East Mosque is full of life, with papaya, starfruit, and mango trees planted inside. When I arrived, the starfruit was just right, and Mr. Wang picked several for me from the tree. Although I had eaten starfruit from fruit shops before, this was my first time eating it straight from the tree, and it was grown in a mosque, which felt very special. "Travel through the earth and observe how Allah created all living things." Travel lets you meet all kinds of interesting people, see all kinds of beautiful scenery, and experience all kinds of unforgettable moments. I am very grateful.
The East Mosque was originally on Water Street and was small. During the Kangxi reign, Fu Yunfeng from Guangzhou bought land and moved it to the Water Village Camp. It was rebuilt many times during the Qianlong, Daoguang, and Republican eras. Fu Yunfeng was originally Han Chinese. During the Kangxi era, he traveled from Zhejiang to Guangdong for business. After he ran into trouble, an imam at the Haopan Mosque in Guangzhou saved him. He lived in the mosque for a while and then converted to Islam. He was a timber merchant. After becoming wealthy, he funded the reconstruction of the Haopan Mosque in Guangzhou. He also renovated the Huaisheng Mosque, Nansheng Mosque, the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies, and the Chengdong Mosque in Zhaoqing, making a major contribution to the development of the faith in Guangdong.
In 1946, Imam Yang Maolin opened a scripture hall inside the Chengdong Mosque. The following year, he used the scripture class as a foundation to start the private Zhaoqing Muslim Primary School, which became a public school after 1949. After 1966, the Muslim Primary School was renamed Zhaoqing No. 17 Primary School. Everything except the main gate and the main prayer hall was torn down to build classrooms, and the mosque stopped its activities. In the late 1980s, after religious policies were restored, the government gave the area north of the main prayer hall to the school and returned the area south of the hall to the Chengdong Mosque, along with compensation. In 1991, the Chengdong Mosque tore down the original main prayer hall and rebuilt it with reinforced concrete. It was finished in 1993. In 2006, they rebuilt the scripture hall, washroom (shuifang), and offices, creating the mosque as it stands today.
The main prayer hall of the Chengdong Mosque still holds a Qing dynasty mihrab, and outside the hall, you can see the original Qing dynasty stone column bases from the prayer hall and the courtyard. Outside the ridge, there is also a stone carving that says "Ancient mosque" (Qingzhen Gusi) which was dug up from the ground during the reconstruction.
The Chengdong Mosque in Zhaoqing still keeps a "Unique" (Duyi) plaque from 1775, the year of Yiwei in the Qianlong reign, as well as photos of the mosque taken before it was torn down in 1991.
Finally, here is a look at the scenery in Zhaoqing, including the West River, Star Lake, the city walls, and the greenery along the streets.
Collapse Read »
Summary: Zhaoqing — Roast Goose, Mosque Life and Guangdong Streets is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: I left Macau on January 23, 2023, to visit the Macau mosque known as Moro Garden (Moro Yuan). The account keeps its focus on Zhaoqing Halal Food, Guangdong Mosques, Muslim Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
I left Macau on January 23, 2023, to visit the Macau mosque known as Moro Garden (Moro Yuan). I ate delicious Indonesian Javanese food and wrote about it in my post, 'Moro Garden and Indonesian Food in Macau'. On January 25 in Guangzhou, I visited with friends (dosti) and ate various halal foods, which I posted about in "Guangzhou's Hui Muslim Fried Dough (youxiang) and Yemeni Cuisine." On the morning of January 26, I took a train from Guangzhou to Zhaoqing to start the third leg of my journey.
After leaving the Zhaoqing train station, I took a taxi straight to a halal restaurant by the West River. Like the Hui Muslim restaurants in Guangzhou, the Zhaoqing Halal Restaurant is a long-standing state-run halal Cantonese restaurant established in the 1950s. In 1957, the Zhaoqing Halal Restaurant was co-founded by local Hui Muslims Luo Shiyong, Sa Zhinan, Dong Shi, and Liu Youxing. Luo Shiyong was also a board member of the Zhaoqing West Mosque (Chengxi Si). He ran the halal restaurant for half a century until his daughter took over in 2007.
The Zhaoqing Halal Restaurant is better for family meals. The main hall has large round tables and the portions are quite big, so it is actually hard to order for just one person. However, you must try their signature dish, the halal roast goose. The Cantonese-style crispy roast goose is not greasy at all. Dipping it in sweet hawthorn sauce is very appetizing; this was my first time eating it this way. I also ordered a clay pot of radish and beef offal (niuzabao). Clay pots with beef and lamb are also a specialty of Guangdong Hui Muslims.
After leaving the halal restaurant, I went to the Zhaoqing West Mosque (Chengxi Si) and received a warm welcome from Imam (ahong) He. Imam He is from Hami and his ancestral home is in Shaanxi. He was previously at the Meilin Mosque in Shenzhen and only came to Zhaoqing recently after the old imam of the West Mosque retired. Currently, most of the people coming to the mosque for namaz are friends (dosti) who run noodle shops. Many are willing to settle in Zhaoqing because it is convenient for their children's schooling and the climate is pleasant.
I also met Mr. Luo at the mosque, who is a local Hui Muslim from Zhaoqing. According to family records, the ancestors of the Zhaoqing Luo family were from Xuanping County, Lishui City, Zhejiang Province (the county was abolished in 1958). They came to Zhaoqing for garrison duty during the Qianlong reign and settled down, so they have been here for 300 years.
The Zhaoqing West Mosque was first built in the early Qianlong reign. It was originally small. In 1767 (the 32nd year of Qianlong), the elder Liu Shifang led 15 Muslims to buy land and build the mosque by the Longding Ridge outside the west city wall. It was expanded twice during the Jiaqing and Daoguang reigns and rebuilt into its current form in 1983. I am very grateful that the original stone pillars and the mihrab stone arch from the Qing Dynasty main hall were preserved. The mihrab stone arch and four stone pillars are carved with scripture calligraphy. Two of the pillars are carved with a Chinese couplet: "Diligently recite, pray, follow the rules, fast, and worship once a week with reverence; uphold loyalty, filial piety, benevolence, and righteousness, for the six actions and three items are precious and sincere." The first line is about religious faith, and the second line is about Confucianism. Both were very important to the Hui Muslims at that time.
On the door of the main hall of the West Mosque, there is a plaque and couplet. The plaque "Always Remember the Lord's Grace" was respectfully inscribed in 1838 (Daoguang Wuxu year) by Li Xianyang, a military official. The couplet, "Why need the physical form to be manifest, for in the five prayers one is as if in His presence; do not say the tradition is far away, for in the thirty volumes there is the true teaching," was respectfully written by Liu Hu in 1814 (Jiaqing Jiaxu year).
The West Mosque preserves old photos of the main hall from before and during its demolition in 1983. From the photos, you can see that this mosque, like the Haopan Mosque in Guangzhou, has a double-eaved hip-and-gable roof and a stone-pillared corridor. This architectural style is extremely rare in northern mosques. You can also see what the Chinese stone couplets looked like on the old main hall.
After saying goodbye to the Zhaoqing West Mosque, I walked through the old town of Zhaoqing to the East Mosque (Chengdong Si) and contacted Grandpa Wang, the mosque caretaker, to open the door for me. Mr. Wang is also a local Hui Muslim. According to family records, the ancestors of the Zhaoqing Wang family were from Taiyuan Prefecture, Shanxi. They came to Zhaoqing with the army in the early Qing Dynasty to serve in office and later settled down in Zhaoqing.
Because the climate in Lingnan is pleasant, Zhaoqing remains lush and green even in winter. The East Mosque is full of life, with papaya, starfruit, and mango trees planted inside. When I arrived, the starfruit was just right, and Mr. Wang picked several for me from the tree. Although I had eaten starfruit from fruit shops before, this was my first time eating it straight from the tree, and it was grown in a mosque, which felt very special. "Travel through the earth and observe how Allah created all living things." Travel lets you meet all kinds of interesting people, see all kinds of beautiful scenery, and experience all kinds of unforgettable moments. I am very grateful.
The East Mosque was originally on Water Street and was small. During the Kangxi reign, Fu Yunfeng from Guangzhou bought land and moved it to the Water Village Camp. It was rebuilt many times during the Qianlong, Daoguang, and Republican eras. Fu Yunfeng was originally Han Chinese. During the Kangxi era, he traveled from Zhejiang to Guangdong for business. After he ran into trouble, an imam at the Haopan Mosque in Guangzhou saved him. He lived in the mosque for a while and then converted to Islam. He was a timber merchant. After becoming wealthy, he funded the reconstruction of the Haopan Mosque in Guangzhou. He also renovated the Huaisheng Mosque, Nansheng Mosque, the Ancient Tombs of the Worthies, and the Chengdong Mosque in Zhaoqing, making a major contribution to the development of the faith in Guangdong.
In 1946, Imam Yang Maolin opened a scripture hall inside the Chengdong Mosque. The following year, he used the scripture class as a foundation to start the private Zhaoqing Muslim Primary School, which became a public school after 1949. After 1966, the Muslim Primary School was renamed Zhaoqing No. 17 Primary School. Everything except the main gate and the main prayer hall was torn down to build classrooms, and the mosque stopped its activities. In the late 1980s, after religious policies were restored, the government gave the area north of the main prayer hall to the school and returned the area south of the hall to the Chengdong Mosque, along with compensation. In 1991, the Chengdong Mosque tore down the original main prayer hall and rebuilt it with reinforced concrete. It was finished in 1993. In 2006, they rebuilt the scripture hall, washroom (shuifang), and offices, creating the mosque as it stands today.
The main prayer hall of the Chengdong Mosque still holds a Qing dynasty mihrab, and outside the hall, you can see the original Qing dynasty stone column bases from the prayer hall and the courtyard. Outside the ridge, there is also a stone carving that says "Ancient mosque" (Qingzhen Gusi) which was dug up from the ground during the reconstruction.
The Chengdong Mosque in Zhaoqing still keeps a "Unique" (Duyi) plaque from 1775, the year of Yiwei in the Qianlong reign, as well as photos of the mosque taken before it was torn down in 1991.
Finally, here is a look at the scenery in Zhaoqing, including the West River, Star Lake, the city walls, and the greenery along the streets.
Collapse Read »
Halal Food Guide: Guangzhou — Hui Youxiang and Yemeni Food
Reposted from the web
Summary: Halal Food Guide: Guangzhou — Hui Youxiang and Yemeni Food is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: I left Macau on January 23, 2023, to visit the Macau mosque known as Moro Garden (Moro Yuan). The account keeps its focus on Guangzhou Halal Food, Yemeni Food, Hui Muslims while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
I left Macau on January 23, 2023, to visit the Macau mosque known as Moro Garden (Moro Yuan). I ate delicious Indonesian Javanese food and wrote about it in my post, 'Moro Garden and Indonesian Food in Macau'. On the morning of January 25, I left Macau through the border gate to Zhuhai, then took a train to Guangzhou to start the second leg of my trip. This post covers the halal food I ate in Guangzhou. I will write about my visits to the mosque and the cemetery in the next post.
I took the subway from Guangzhou Station to Taojin and started with a Turkish breakfast at MADO. MADO is famous for its ice cream made from goat milk sourced from the high mountain pastures of Mount Ahir in southeastern Turkey. Mount Ahir is near the epicenter of the recent major earthquake in Turkey. I pray they can get through this difficult time.
MADO likely has the widest variety of breakfast options among Turkish restaurants in China. When I visited the Yiwu branch, I had the Sini breakfast for two, which came with a great selection of cheeses and jams. Since I was alone at the Guangzhou branch, I ordered the hot breakfast platter. It included grilled Turkish sausage (sujuk), grilled mushrooms with yellow cheese, grilled cheese, spring rolls filled with feta cheese, tomato and egg scramble (menemen), grilled peppers, grilled tomatoes, and fried potatoes, served with bread and Turkish black tea.
The earliest record of sujuk sausage appears in the 1070s in the 'Compendium of the Turkic Dialects' (Divan-u Lugat-it-Turk) by Mahmud al-Kashgari. Similar versions exist in many parts of the Balkans, the Middle East, and Central Asia. Turkish sujuk is mainly made by mixing ground beef with beef fat, sheep tail fat, salt, cumin, garlic, chili, and other spices, then stuffing it into casings to dehydrate and ferment.
The name for the tomato and egg scramble (menemen) comes from a town in Izmir, Turkey, and the word itself originally comes from Ancient Greek. Menemen served with bread is a classic Turkish breakfast combination. Besides tomatoes, eggs, and green peppers, this dish can also include onions, black pepper, oregano, garlic, and chili powder, depending on personal taste.
At noon, I met my friend (dosti) Chen Yong, whom I had known for a long time. He is both a staff member and a volunteer at the Huaisheng Mosque. My friend treated me to Shache Halal Food across from the Huaisheng Mosque. It is the closest halal restaurant to the mosque's minaret. When the oil-fried meat noodles (youyourou banmian) and kebabs arrived, they looked perfect, and they tasted even more authentic than I expected! I really did not expect to find such delicious Xinjiang food in Guangzhou; it was just as good as what I ate in Shache. The hand-pulled noodles (latiaozi) were very thin, showing years of skill, and the oil-fried meat was cooked just right—not too hard and not too soft. The best part was their kebabs. They were grilled over charcoal and were very fresh and tender. I could close my eyes and imagine I was back at a bazaar in Southern Xinjiang.
I rarely eat at Xinjiang restaurants when traveling in China because the taste often changes completely when the ingredients are different. But Shache Halal Food across from Huaisheng Mosque changed my mind. I will definitely eat there again next time I am in Guangzhou!
In the afternoon, I went to the Haopan Mosque in Guangzhou for the afternoon prayer (dhuhr) and met Master Yang, whom I had not seen in six years. Master Yang is a local Hui Muslim from Guangzhou and has been a mosque attendant at Haopan Mosque for 20 years. I drank tea and chatted with Master Yang, and I ate some fried dough (youxiang) made by local Guangzhou Hui Muslims for a charity event (chusan). This was my first time eating local Guangzhou youxiang. They were small, crispy, and sweet, almost like a pastry.
Haopan Mosque is located on the banks of the Nanhao, a tributary of the Pearl River. It was first built during the Chenghua period of the Ming Dynasty and rebuilt in 1706 (the 45th year of the Kangxi Emperor). A scripture school was opened here during the Qianlong period, and a Hui language university was opened during the Tongzhi period. They hired many famous scripture teachers from Nanjing, Gansu, and Yunnan, training a large number of imams and playing a major role in the development of Islam in Guangzhou, Hong Kong, and Macau.
In the afternoon, I went to visit the Ancient Cemetery of the Worthies in Guangzhou. There is a well in the south courtyard of the cemetery called the Well of the Worthies. Legend says it was built to commemorate the worthy Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas. Many friends (dosti) drink a cup of water from the well after visiting the graves, and it really tastes sweet.
The Ancient Cemetery of the Worthies in Guangzhou is commonly known as the Huihui Cemetery, the Great Man's Cemetery, or the Echoing Cemetery. It has been a burial ground for Muslims in Guangzhou since the Tang Dynasty. The earliest record of the Ancient Cemetery of the Worthies comes from 'One Hundred Poems of the South Sea' (Nanhai Baiyong) written by Fang Xinru in 1206 (the second year of the Kaixi period of the Southern Song Dynasty): 'The tombs of the foreigners are ten miles west of the city, thousands of them, all with heads to the south and facing west.'
At the center of the ancient cemetery is the tomb of the legendary first worthy to come to China to preach, Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas (Saheb Saad Wakkas). Records show the status of the Tomb of Waqqas (Wangesu mu) rose during the Yuan and Ming dynasties. The Ming dynasty book Guangzhou Prefecture Records (Guangzhou fuzhi) notes: Every year, people of all surnames must visit the tomb to pay respects and recite scriptures, a tradition that continues to this day. Countries in the Western Regions respected this influence. Every time they sailed thousands of miles to Guangzhou, they considered visiting the tomb an honor. Even the most noble visitors would crawl and bow in Guangzhou to show their utmost sincerity.
In the evening, I went to Hadramout Restaurant, a long-standing Yemeni eatery that has been in Guangzhou's Xiaobei area for over a decade. Hadramout is now the name of a province in eastern Yemen, but it is also a very ancient term once used to refer to the coastal plains of the southern Arabian Peninsula. Residents here established the Kingdom of Hadramout as early as 1000 BC, and the people of Ad mentioned in the ancient Quran are said to have lived here as well.
I visited Xiaobei in Guangzhou many times before 2019 and witnessed the glory of its Middle Eastern and African trade. Although the country has opened its borders again, the major trade centers have not yet recovered. The building where Hadramout is located used to be packed with shops doing foreign business, but now you can only feel the old bustle of Xiaobei inside their restaurant.
Although there are several Arab restaurants in Beijing, they are all concentrated in the Levant region on the eastern Mediterranean coast, such as Lebanon, Palestine, and Syria. While they are all Arab, the cuisines of the Levant, the Arabian Peninsula, and the North African Maghreb region each have their own characteristics and are all worth trying. Coming to Guangzhou this time, I really wanted to try Yemeni food that I cannot get in Beijing.
At Hadramout, I had the Yemeni specialty Zurbian lamb and saffron rice (Zurbian yangrou zanghonghua menfan), a major dish served at Yemeni weddings, breaking the fast, and birthdays. The portion of rice is very large, making it suitable for two people. They give you a lot of meat. You might not see it well in the photo, but the rice is actually buried under all that meat. The meat is braised until very tender, and the texture and flavor are both excellent.
When eating Yemeni rice, you should pair it with the Yemeni specialty spicy sauce Sahawiq. This spicy sauce is made with fresh chili peppers, cilantro, garlic, salt, cumin, and parsley, mixed with olive oil and sometimes tomatoes. Their meat broth is also free to drink, and I think it tastes quite good.
On the morning of January 26, I arrived right at 7:00 AM when the Guangzhou Hui Muslim Restaurant (Guangzhou Huimin fandian) opened for morning tea. Some elderly people had already taken seats, but there were still plenty of empty ones. Every time I visited Guangzhou before, I would go to the Hui Muslim Restaurant for morning tea, and I especially liked their lamb barbecue buns (yang chashaobao). Five years have passed in the blink of an eye, so I had to try them again on this trip.
The Hui Muslim Restaurant can be called the last tear of local halal food in Guangzhou, serving as the final witness to the city's once-thriving local halal dining industry. The Hui Muslim Restaurant started as a halal canteen in 1956, with chefs coming from local halal eateries like Gaosheng Tea House, the Hui Muslim Fengcheng Roasted Meat Shop, and the Halal Deji Roasted Meat Shop. In 1959, the canteen merged with the Huabei Hotel and took over the second branch of Satangji, renaming itself the Hui Muslim Grand Hotel. It took over the Hui Muslim Ice Room in 1964 and moved to its current location on Zhongshan 6th Road in 1975, where it has been for nearly 50 years. Due to complex historical reasons and the changes in the local Muslim community during the 20th century, the local halal dining industry in Guangzhou declined. As a restaurant with nearly 70 years of history, it is quite an achievement for the Hui Muslim Restaurant to still be here today.
In 2016, I posted an article on Douban called The Morning and Night of Guangzhou Hui Muslim Restaurant, and I ate there several times in a row back then. I checked the morning tea menu from that time, and it was only on its 52nd edition; now it is already on its 70th. Except for the price increases on the dim sum, the variety has basically stayed the same. Besides the lamb barbecue buns I wanted most, I also ordered steamed chicken feet, water chestnut cake, chicken biscuits, and curry beef rice noodle rolls (changfen). When eating alone, you cannot order many things. I wanted to order more, but unfortunately, I was too full. The barbecue buns are still filled with soft, slightly sweet lamb and paired with salted egg yolk, which is very delicious. This was my first time eating chicken biscuits (jizaibing). They are said to be a very traditional recipe from Hui Muslims in Guangzhou, mixing the flavors of fermented bean curd (nanru) and dried tangerine peel (chenpi) to take you right back to old Guangzhou.
You should really take your time with morning tea (zaocha), ordering a few items at a time and adding more as you go. But because I had to head to Zhaoqing that day, I ate in a rush. While the grandparents at the next table were still looking at the menu and chatting, I had basically finished my meal. Although it wasn't as amazing as the first time I had halal Cantonese morning tea, I still felt very satisfied after finishing. It felt like the three years of being stuck were finally over, and I was relieved to be able to travel across the land again.
By eight o'clock, the dining halls of the Hui Muslim restaurant were already full. If you don't want to get up early, buying some specialty steamed snacks at the takeout window by the entrance is a great option.
In the evening, I went to Sadda Restaurant, a long-standing Yemeni spot in Guangzhou's Xiaobei area that has been open for over a decade. Just like the Yemeni restaurant Honghui I visited the day before, they have regular tables and chairs, plus a room where you can sit on the floor to eat, just like in Yemen.
Sa'dah is an ancient capital in northwestern Yemen. It was founded in the late 9th century by Imam al-Hadi, the leader of the Zaydi branch of Shia Islam (the Five-Imam sect), and has been the stronghold of the Zaydi sect ever since. The Lasi dynasty founded by Imam al-Hadi lasted for over a thousand years (893-1962). The city of Sa'dah preserves the oldest Shia mosque on the Arabian Peninsula and many historical buildings from different periods, and it was added to the World Heritage Tentative List in 2002. After the Republic of Yemen was established, the Zaydis in the north and the Sunnis in the south were at odds for a long time. In 2004, Hussein al-Houthi, from the Zaydi Houthi tribe in Sa'dah, started the Houthi movement there. In 2011, they officially established a new government in Sa'dah, and the city has been under Houthi control ever since. During the 2015 war, the Arab coalition launched airstrikes on Sa'dah, and the city's oldest Great Mosque of Imam al-Hadi was severely damaged.
When you come to Guangzhou to eat at a Yemeni restaurant, you must try the classic Yemeni dish Fahsa, a lamb stew served with Mulawah flatbread. For Fahsa, the lamb must be stewed until it is very tender. It starts in a large pot and is then moved to a small stone pot to continue simmering. Besides ginger, garlic, and cumin, you must add a spice called fenugreek (hulbah) when stewing the meat. Fenugreek is actually what people in Northwest China often call xiangdouzi. People in the Northwest dry the leaves and grind them into powder to steam buns, while Yemenis grind the seeds to stew meat. Fenugreek seeds expand when they hit water, and they foam up very easily when you stir them in a bowl.
Mulawah flatbread is traditionally baked in an Arabian clay oven called a tannur. It is very fragrant with wheat and quite large. You can tear the flatbread apart to scoop up the Fahsa lamb stew, or soak it in the broth; both ways are delicious. Also, you should eat it with Sahawiq dipping sauce, which contains fresh green chili, cilantro, garlic, salt, cumin, and parsley.
Finally, here are a few photos of Baohan Straight Street in Xiaobei, Guangzhou, at night. This area is known as Guangzhou's Muslim street.
Collapse Read »
Summary: Halal Food Guide: Guangzhou — Hui Youxiang and Yemeni Food is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: I left Macau on January 23, 2023, to visit the Macau mosque known as Moro Garden (Moro Yuan). The account keeps its focus on Guangzhou Halal Food, Yemeni Food, Hui Muslims while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
I left Macau on January 23, 2023, to visit the Macau mosque known as Moro Garden (Moro Yuan). I ate delicious Indonesian Javanese food and wrote about it in my post, 'Moro Garden and Indonesian Food in Macau'. On the morning of January 25, I left Macau through the border gate to Zhuhai, then took a train to Guangzhou to start the second leg of my trip. This post covers the halal food I ate in Guangzhou. I will write about my visits to the mosque and the cemetery in the next post.
I took the subway from Guangzhou Station to Taojin and started with a Turkish breakfast at MADO. MADO is famous for its ice cream made from goat milk sourced from the high mountain pastures of Mount Ahir in southeastern Turkey. Mount Ahir is near the epicenter of the recent major earthquake in Turkey. I pray they can get through this difficult time.
MADO likely has the widest variety of breakfast options among Turkish restaurants in China. When I visited the Yiwu branch, I had the Sini breakfast for two, which came with a great selection of cheeses and jams. Since I was alone at the Guangzhou branch, I ordered the hot breakfast platter. It included grilled Turkish sausage (sujuk), grilled mushrooms with yellow cheese, grilled cheese, spring rolls filled with feta cheese, tomato and egg scramble (menemen), grilled peppers, grilled tomatoes, and fried potatoes, served with bread and Turkish black tea.
The earliest record of sujuk sausage appears in the 1070s in the 'Compendium of the Turkic Dialects' (Divan-u Lugat-it-Turk) by Mahmud al-Kashgari. Similar versions exist in many parts of the Balkans, the Middle East, and Central Asia. Turkish sujuk is mainly made by mixing ground beef with beef fat, sheep tail fat, salt, cumin, garlic, chili, and other spices, then stuffing it into casings to dehydrate and ferment.
The name for the tomato and egg scramble (menemen) comes from a town in Izmir, Turkey, and the word itself originally comes from Ancient Greek. Menemen served with bread is a classic Turkish breakfast combination. Besides tomatoes, eggs, and green peppers, this dish can also include onions, black pepper, oregano, garlic, and chili powder, depending on personal taste.
At noon, I met my friend (dosti) Chen Yong, whom I had known for a long time. He is both a staff member and a volunteer at the Huaisheng Mosque. My friend treated me to Shache Halal Food across from the Huaisheng Mosque. It is the closest halal restaurant to the mosque's minaret. When the oil-fried meat noodles (youyourou banmian) and kebabs arrived, they looked perfect, and they tasted even more authentic than I expected! I really did not expect to find such delicious Xinjiang food in Guangzhou; it was just as good as what I ate in Shache. The hand-pulled noodles (latiaozi) were very thin, showing years of skill, and the oil-fried meat was cooked just right—not too hard and not too soft. The best part was their kebabs. They were grilled over charcoal and were very fresh and tender. I could close my eyes and imagine I was back at a bazaar in Southern Xinjiang.
I rarely eat at Xinjiang restaurants when traveling in China because the taste often changes completely when the ingredients are different. But Shache Halal Food across from Huaisheng Mosque changed my mind. I will definitely eat there again next time I am in Guangzhou!
In the afternoon, I went to the Haopan Mosque in Guangzhou for the afternoon prayer (dhuhr) and met Master Yang, whom I had not seen in six years. Master Yang is a local Hui Muslim from Guangzhou and has been a mosque attendant at Haopan Mosque for 20 years. I drank tea and chatted with Master Yang, and I ate some fried dough (youxiang) made by local Guangzhou Hui Muslims for a charity event (chusan). This was my first time eating local Guangzhou youxiang. They were small, crispy, and sweet, almost like a pastry.
Haopan Mosque is located on the banks of the Nanhao, a tributary of the Pearl River. It was first built during the Chenghua period of the Ming Dynasty and rebuilt in 1706 (the 45th year of the Kangxi Emperor). A scripture school was opened here during the Qianlong period, and a Hui language university was opened during the Tongzhi period. They hired many famous scripture teachers from Nanjing, Gansu, and Yunnan, training a large number of imams and playing a major role in the development of Islam in Guangzhou, Hong Kong, and Macau.
In the afternoon, I went to visit the Ancient Cemetery of the Worthies in Guangzhou. There is a well in the south courtyard of the cemetery called the Well of the Worthies. Legend says it was built to commemorate the worthy Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas. Many friends (dosti) drink a cup of water from the well after visiting the graves, and it really tastes sweet.
The Ancient Cemetery of the Worthies in Guangzhou is commonly known as the Huihui Cemetery, the Great Man's Cemetery, or the Echoing Cemetery. It has been a burial ground for Muslims in Guangzhou since the Tang Dynasty. The earliest record of the Ancient Cemetery of the Worthies comes from 'One Hundred Poems of the South Sea' (Nanhai Baiyong) written by Fang Xinru in 1206 (the second year of the Kaixi period of the Southern Song Dynasty): 'The tombs of the foreigners are ten miles west of the city, thousands of them, all with heads to the south and facing west.'
At the center of the ancient cemetery is the tomb of the legendary first worthy to come to China to preach, Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas (Saheb Saad Wakkas). Records show the status of the Tomb of Waqqas (Wangesu mu) rose during the Yuan and Ming dynasties. The Ming dynasty book Guangzhou Prefecture Records (Guangzhou fuzhi) notes: Every year, people of all surnames must visit the tomb to pay respects and recite scriptures, a tradition that continues to this day. Countries in the Western Regions respected this influence. Every time they sailed thousands of miles to Guangzhou, they considered visiting the tomb an honor. Even the most noble visitors would crawl and bow in Guangzhou to show their utmost sincerity.
In the evening, I went to Hadramout Restaurant, a long-standing Yemeni eatery that has been in Guangzhou's Xiaobei area for over a decade. Hadramout is now the name of a province in eastern Yemen, but it is also a very ancient term once used to refer to the coastal plains of the southern Arabian Peninsula. Residents here established the Kingdom of Hadramout as early as 1000 BC, and the people of Ad mentioned in the ancient Quran are said to have lived here as well.
I visited Xiaobei in Guangzhou many times before 2019 and witnessed the glory of its Middle Eastern and African trade. Although the country has opened its borders again, the major trade centers have not yet recovered. The building where Hadramout is located used to be packed with shops doing foreign business, but now you can only feel the old bustle of Xiaobei inside their restaurant.
Although there are several Arab restaurants in Beijing, they are all concentrated in the Levant region on the eastern Mediterranean coast, such as Lebanon, Palestine, and Syria. While they are all Arab, the cuisines of the Levant, the Arabian Peninsula, and the North African Maghreb region each have their own characteristics and are all worth trying. Coming to Guangzhou this time, I really wanted to try Yemeni food that I cannot get in Beijing.
At Hadramout, I had the Yemeni specialty Zurbian lamb and saffron rice (Zurbian yangrou zanghonghua menfan), a major dish served at Yemeni weddings, breaking the fast, and birthdays. The portion of rice is very large, making it suitable for two people. They give you a lot of meat. You might not see it well in the photo, but the rice is actually buried under all that meat. The meat is braised until very tender, and the texture and flavor are both excellent.
When eating Yemeni rice, you should pair it with the Yemeni specialty spicy sauce Sahawiq. This spicy sauce is made with fresh chili peppers, cilantro, garlic, salt, cumin, and parsley, mixed with olive oil and sometimes tomatoes. Their meat broth is also free to drink, and I think it tastes quite good.
On the morning of January 26, I arrived right at 7:00 AM when the Guangzhou Hui Muslim Restaurant (Guangzhou Huimin fandian) opened for morning tea. Some elderly people had already taken seats, but there were still plenty of empty ones. Every time I visited Guangzhou before, I would go to the Hui Muslim Restaurant for morning tea, and I especially liked their lamb barbecue buns (yang chashaobao). Five years have passed in the blink of an eye, so I had to try them again on this trip.
The Hui Muslim Restaurant can be called the last tear of local halal food in Guangzhou, serving as the final witness to the city's once-thriving local halal dining industry. The Hui Muslim Restaurant started as a halal canteen in 1956, with chefs coming from local halal eateries like Gaosheng Tea House, the Hui Muslim Fengcheng Roasted Meat Shop, and the Halal Deji Roasted Meat Shop. In 1959, the canteen merged with the Huabei Hotel and took over the second branch of Satangji, renaming itself the Hui Muslim Grand Hotel. It took over the Hui Muslim Ice Room in 1964 and moved to its current location on Zhongshan 6th Road in 1975, where it has been for nearly 50 years. Due to complex historical reasons and the changes in the local Muslim community during the 20th century, the local halal dining industry in Guangzhou declined. As a restaurant with nearly 70 years of history, it is quite an achievement for the Hui Muslim Restaurant to still be here today.
In 2016, I posted an article on Douban called The Morning and Night of Guangzhou Hui Muslim Restaurant, and I ate there several times in a row back then. I checked the morning tea menu from that time, and it was only on its 52nd edition; now it is already on its 70th. Except for the price increases on the dim sum, the variety has basically stayed the same. Besides the lamb barbecue buns I wanted most, I also ordered steamed chicken feet, water chestnut cake, chicken biscuits, and curry beef rice noodle rolls (changfen). When eating alone, you cannot order many things. I wanted to order more, but unfortunately, I was too full. The barbecue buns are still filled with soft, slightly sweet lamb and paired with salted egg yolk, which is very delicious. This was my first time eating chicken biscuits (jizaibing). They are said to be a very traditional recipe from Hui Muslims in Guangzhou, mixing the flavors of fermented bean curd (nanru) and dried tangerine peel (chenpi) to take you right back to old Guangzhou.
You should really take your time with morning tea (zaocha), ordering a few items at a time and adding more as you go. But because I had to head to Zhaoqing that day, I ate in a rush. While the grandparents at the next table were still looking at the menu and chatting, I had basically finished my meal. Although it wasn't as amazing as the first time I had halal Cantonese morning tea, I still felt very satisfied after finishing. It felt like the three years of being stuck were finally over, and I was relieved to be able to travel across the land again.
By eight o'clock, the dining halls of the Hui Muslim restaurant were already full. If you don't want to get up early, buying some specialty steamed snacks at the takeout window by the entrance is a great option.
In the evening, I went to Sadda Restaurant, a long-standing Yemeni spot in Guangzhou's Xiaobei area that has been open for over a decade. Just like the Yemeni restaurant Honghui I visited the day before, they have regular tables and chairs, plus a room where you can sit on the floor to eat, just like in Yemen.
Sa'dah is an ancient capital in northwestern Yemen. It was founded in the late 9th century by Imam al-Hadi, the leader of the Zaydi branch of Shia Islam (the Five-Imam sect), and has been the stronghold of the Zaydi sect ever since. The Lasi dynasty founded by Imam al-Hadi lasted for over a thousand years (893-1962). The city of Sa'dah preserves the oldest Shia mosque on the Arabian Peninsula and many historical buildings from different periods, and it was added to the World Heritage Tentative List in 2002. After the Republic of Yemen was established, the Zaydis in the north and the Sunnis in the south were at odds for a long time. In 2004, Hussein al-Houthi, from the Zaydi Houthi tribe in Sa'dah, started the Houthi movement there. In 2011, they officially established a new government in Sa'dah, and the city has been under Houthi control ever since. During the 2015 war, the Arab coalition launched airstrikes on Sa'dah, and the city's oldest Great Mosque of Imam al-Hadi was severely damaged.
When you come to Guangzhou to eat at a Yemeni restaurant, you must try the classic Yemeni dish Fahsa, a lamb stew served with Mulawah flatbread. For Fahsa, the lamb must be stewed until it is very tender. It starts in a large pot and is then moved to a small stone pot to continue simmering. Besides ginger, garlic, and cumin, you must add a spice called fenugreek (hulbah) when stewing the meat. Fenugreek is actually what people in Northwest China often call xiangdouzi. People in the Northwest dry the leaves and grind them into powder to steam buns, while Yemenis grind the seeds to stew meat. Fenugreek seeds expand when they hit water, and they foam up very easily when you stir them in a bowl.
Mulawah flatbread is traditionally baked in an Arabian clay oven called a tannur. It is very fragrant with wheat and quite large. You can tear the flatbread apart to scoop up the Fahsa lamb stew, or soak it in the broth; both ways are delicious. Also, you should eat it with Sahawiq dipping sauce, which contains fresh green chili, cilantro, garlic, salt, cumin, and parsley.
Finally, here are a few photos of Baohan Straight Street in Xiaobei, Guangzhou, at night. This area is known as Guangzhou's Muslim street.
Collapse Read »
Halal Food Guide: Urumqi Hui Muslims — Fried Youxiang and Family Cooking
Reposted from the web
Summary: Halal Food Guide: Urumqi Hui Muslims — Fried Youxiang and Family Cooking is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: A few days ago, my family made fried dough (youxiang). I recorded the process, which is the Urumqi Hui Muslim version. It is likely similar to how it is made in many parts of the Northwest. The account keeps its focus on Urumqi Halal Food, Hui Muslim Food, Xinjiang Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
A few days ago, my family made fried dough (youxiang). I recorded the process, which is the Urumqi Hui Muslim version. It is likely similar to how it is made in many parts of the Northwest.
First, make the leavened dough. After it rises, use hot oil to scald a small portion of the dough. Add a little baking soda and blue fenugreek powder (xiangdoufen) to the scalded dough and mix well. This makes the fried dough crispy on the outside. Place the mixed scalded dough onto the leavened dough, knead them together evenly, cover the basin, and let it rest for fifteen minutes.
Knead the rested dough into a long strip, pinch off small pieces, roll them into balls, and flatten them into discs. Use a knife to cut four small slits in each, then they are ready to be fried in oil. In some places, people say the slits represent the knife marks made by a believer.
Fry for a while, then flip them over. Wait a bit longer, then pick one up and tap the edge with chopsticks. If it makes a crisp, hollow sound, it is ready to be taken out.
Also, you must perform wudu (abdest) before frying the dough, and recite the Tasmiyah before frying each piece. When eating, break the dough apart. You should also recite the Tasmiyah before eating each piece.
Besides this classic fried dough, Urumqi Hui Muslims also make steamed fried dough (zheng youxiang) and scalded dough fried dough (tangmian youxiang). Steamed fried dough is usually made when you do not fry the dough during a religious gathering (soer); you can steam it instead. Scalded dough fried dough is made entirely from scalded dough. I will share more about that when I have the chance.
For other Urumqi Hui Muslim home-cooked dishes, you can check my previous diaries, '15 Urumqi Hui Muslim Dishes My Mother-in-law Made (Part 1)' and '15 Urumqi Hui Muslim Dishes My Mother-in-law Made (Part 2).' Collapse Read »
Summary: Halal Food Guide: Urumqi Hui Muslims — Fried Youxiang and Family Cooking is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: A few days ago, my family made fried dough (youxiang). I recorded the process, which is the Urumqi Hui Muslim version. It is likely similar to how it is made in many parts of the Northwest. The account keeps its focus on Urumqi Halal Food, Hui Muslim Food, Xinjiang Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
A few days ago, my family made fried dough (youxiang). I recorded the process, which is the Urumqi Hui Muslim version. It is likely similar to how it is made in many parts of the Northwest.
First, make the leavened dough. After it rises, use hot oil to scald a small portion of the dough. Add a little baking soda and blue fenugreek powder (xiangdoufen) to the scalded dough and mix well. This makes the fried dough crispy on the outside. Place the mixed scalded dough onto the leavened dough, knead them together evenly, cover the basin, and let it rest for fifteen minutes.
Knead the rested dough into a long strip, pinch off small pieces, roll them into balls, and flatten them into discs. Use a knife to cut four small slits in each, then they are ready to be fried in oil. In some places, people say the slits represent the knife marks made by a believer.
Fry for a while, then flip them over. Wait a bit longer, then pick one up and tap the edge with chopsticks. If it makes a crisp, hollow sound, it is ready to be taken out.
Also, you must perform wudu (abdest) before frying the dough, and recite the Tasmiyah before frying each piece. When eating, break the dough apart. You should also recite the Tasmiyah before eating each piece.
Besides this classic fried dough, Urumqi Hui Muslims also make steamed fried dough (zheng youxiang) and scalded dough fried dough (tangmian youxiang). Steamed fried dough is usually made when you do not fry the dough during a religious gathering (soer); you can steam it instead. Scalded dough fried dough is made entirely from scalded dough. I will share more about that when I have the chance.
For other Urumqi Hui Muslim home-cooked dishes, you can check my previous diaries, '15 Urumqi Hui Muslim Dishes My Mother-in-law Made (Part 1)' and '15 Urumqi Hui Muslim Dishes My Mother-in-law Made (Part 2).' Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Beijing Balizhuang Mosque — Jummah Prayer and Community
Reposted from the web
Summary: Beijing Balizhuang Mosque — Jummah Prayer and Community is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: Jumu'ah Mubarak! After years of renovations, the Balizhuang Mosque outside Chaoyangmen has finally reopened, so I went there to attend Jumu'ah prayers. The account keeps its focus on Balizhuang Mosque, Beijing Mosques, Jummah Prayer while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
Jumu'ah Mubarak! After years of renovations, the Balizhuang Mosque outside Chaoyangmen has finally reopened, so I went there to attend Jumu'ah prayers. The renovated mosque is clean and tidy, and it looks beautiful against the blue sky. After namaz, I received some flatbread (nang) given out by the elders; it was freshly baked and tasted delicious!
Balizhuang got its name because it is eight li away from Chaoyangmen. After Emperor Yongle of the Ming dynasty moved the capital to Beijing, he built a series of granaries inside Chaoyangmen, and large amounts of grain began to be transported to Chaoyangmen via the canal. After the Qing dynasty, because boats moved slowly on the Tonghui River section of the canal, many grain boats chose to leave their ships at Tongzhou, which made the official road between Chaoyangmen and Tongzhou increasingly busy. In 1729 (the seventh year of the Yongzheng reign), the stone road outside Chaoyangmen was completed. The Diary of Jehol records: 'Between Tongzhou and the Imperial City, a distance of forty li, the road is paved with stone. The iron wheels clash, and the sound of the carts is so loud that it shakes one's spirit.'
Between the reigns of Yongzheng and Qianlong, Hui Muslims with the surnames Jing, Li, and Jin grew vegetables along the stone road outside Chaoyangmen to supply the capital, gradually forming the Balizhuang area outside the gate. The Balizhuang Mosque was first built in the early years of the Qianlong reign, and at its peak during the Qing dynasty, the mosque's property covered thirteen mu. The mosque was occupied after 1958 and was not returned until 1982. It was rebuilt between 1997 and 2000, reaching its current size.
Collapse Read »
Summary: Beijing Balizhuang Mosque — Jummah Prayer and Community is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: Jumu'ah Mubarak! After years of renovations, the Balizhuang Mosque outside Chaoyangmen has finally reopened, so I went there to attend Jumu'ah prayers. The account keeps its focus on Balizhuang Mosque, Beijing Mosques, Jummah Prayer while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
Jumu'ah Mubarak! After years of renovations, the Balizhuang Mosque outside Chaoyangmen has finally reopened, so I went there to attend Jumu'ah prayers. The renovated mosque is clean and tidy, and it looks beautiful against the blue sky. After namaz, I received some flatbread (nang) given out by the elders; it was freshly baked and tasted delicious!
Balizhuang got its name because it is eight li away from Chaoyangmen. After Emperor Yongle of the Ming dynasty moved the capital to Beijing, he built a series of granaries inside Chaoyangmen, and large amounts of grain began to be transported to Chaoyangmen via the canal. After the Qing dynasty, because boats moved slowly on the Tonghui River section of the canal, many grain boats chose to leave their ships at Tongzhou, which made the official road between Chaoyangmen and Tongzhou increasingly busy. In 1729 (the seventh year of the Yongzheng reign), the stone road outside Chaoyangmen was completed. The Diary of Jehol records: 'Between Tongzhou and the Imperial City, a distance of forty li, the road is paved with stone. The iron wheels clash, and the sound of the carts is so loud that it shakes one's spirit.'
Between the reigns of Yongzheng and Qianlong, Hui Muslims with the surnames Jing, Li, and Jin grew vegetables along the stone road outside Chaoyangmen to supply the capital, gradually forming the Balizhuang area outside the gate. The Balizhuang Mosque was first built in the early years of the Qianlong reign, and at its peak during the Qing dynasty, the mosque's property covered thirteen mu. The mosque was occupied after 1958 and was not returned until 1982. It was rebuilt between 1997 and 2000, reaching its current size.
Collapse Read »
Halal Travel Guide: Urumqi Dawan — Hui Muslim Streets and Halal Food
Reposted from the web
Summary: Urumqi Dawan — Hui Muslim Streets and Halal Food is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: June 2018 was my fifth trip to Urumqi for sightseeing and eating. Nanguan used to be the traditional neighborhood in Urumqi that attracted me the most; it was lively and full of energy. The account keeps its focus on Urumqi Dawan, Xinjiang Travel, Hui Muslims while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
June 2018 was my fifth trip to Urumqi for sightseeing and eating. Nanguan used to be the traditional neighborhood in Urumqi that attracted me the most; it was lively and full of energy. In 2017, a friend (dosti) told me that demolition and renovation had started in Nanguan, which made me very anxious. Later on, the small alleys deep inside Nanguan were completely torn down.
I came to Urumqi again in 2018, and the area deep inside the old Nanguan had become a construction site. However, I will not dwell on the past in this article. Instead, I want to share my experience of sightseeing and eating in Urumqi this time. Besides the consistently wonderful Lingguan Lane and Shengli Road, I also visited Dawan, another food hub in Urumqi. As a side note, I certainly did not expect when writing this that my wedding would be held in Dawan two years later.
Table of Contents
1. Yining Yixiang Butter Milk Tea House
2. Lingguan Lane
1. Original Meat Naan (rounang)
2. Arman Supermarket
3. Gülba xikar Dessert Shop
4. Other shops in Lingguan Lane
3. Shengli Road
1. Babahan Food World
2. Marhaba Tatar Pastries
4. Dawan
1. Ailuo Family Coffee
2. Pairhan Imported Goods Store
3. Aile Imported Goods Store
4. Maidana
1. Yining Yixiang Butter Milk Tea House
Next to the Urumqi People's Theater is Yining Yixiang Butter Milk Tea House, a famous Kazakh milk tea spot. I ate milk skin (naipizi), fried dough fritters (baorsak), and honey-based drink (kawasi) here, but unfortunately, mare's milk is only available after July.
Milk skin (naipizi)
Fried dough fritters (baorsak) and honey-based drink (kawasi)
The People's Theater was built in 1956 and is a landmark building of old Urumqi.
2. Lingguan Lane
Consulate Lane (Lingguan Xiang) is south of Erdaoqiao. Except for a new residential complex in the middle section, most shops in the lane look the same. It is a small comfort after the deep Nanguan area was leveled.
1. Original Meat Naan (rounang)
As soon as you enter the west end of Consulate Lane, you can smell the aroma of meat-topped flatbread (rounang). This original meat flatbread (rounang) shop opened in 2000. It is a very popular spot on Lingguan Lane with long lines, and the meat flatbread is truly fragrant.
2. Arman Supermarket
Arman Supermarket at the east end of Lingguan Lane is the largest in the chain. It has many great items, and I shop here every time I visit Urumqi. This time, I bought mint tea, butter milk tea (suyou naicha), and almond nut cake (qiegao).
Various pastries at Arman Supermarket.
3. Gülba xikar Dessert Shop
There is a dessert shop called Gülba xikar inside Arman Supermarket. I had almond and walnut ice cream there, plus a walnut pie. Everything was delicious and very cheap.
4. Other shops in Lingguan Lane
There are many other good places to eat on Lingguan Lane. I passed by the local-style hand-rubbed noodles (cuomian) shop this time, and the Yizihaier ice cream and Yili milk tea shop I visited years ago are still the same.
3. Shengli Road
Shengli Road is south of Erdaoqiao, at the east end of Lingguan Lane, and it also has plenty of good food.
1. Babahan Food World
The breakfast at Babahan Food World on Shengli Road and Lingguan Lane is excellent. This time, I had barley porridge (yarma) and milk-topped flatbread (naizi nang) soaked in milk tea.
Barley porridge (yarma).
Milk tea.
Milk-topped flatbread (naizi nang).
2. Marhaba Tatar Pastries
Marhaba Tatar Pastry Shop opened in 1998. The original shop was on Heba Third Lane, south of Lingguan Lane, and they later opened a new location at 454 Shengli Road. The founder of the shop is Saweige Musabayufu, born in 1949. The shop is named after her mother, Marhaba, who taught Saweige how to make Tatar pastries.
The girl with the red collar in the picture is Saweige's daughter, Fikelati.
Tatar cream cake made with six layers of sweet cake and six layers of cream.
Delete
Walnut dried fruit pie.
Black Forest chocolate cake made with ghee.
Black-eyed apricot jam cake.
4. Dawan
Dawan is in the southeast of Urumqi's old city. I mainly walked around the Oujing Mingyuan residential area. It has a nice environment and good food, which is a sharp contrast to the heavily demolished and renovated Erdaoqiao and Nanguan areas. It is truly a hidden paradise in the city.
Street view of Oujing Mingyuan in Dawan.
1. Ailuo Family Coffee
It was not yet dinner time when I arrived in Dawan, so I first had some Turkish black tea at Ayrosa Coffee. Downstairs, many young people were celebrating a birthday.
2. Pairhan Imported Goods Store
Pairhan is a main imported goods supermarket in Oujing Mingyuan. They have a lot of items, and I bought some chocolate from Kazakhstan there.
3. Aile Imported Goods Store
Aile is another import shop that has some good finds inside.
4. Maidana
Merdana at Oujing Mingyuan was the biggest surprise of my food tour in Urumqi. The atmosphere is great, and the food is fantastic. The liver wrapped in fat (youbaogan) was so delicious I actually shouted out loud. It was intoxicatingly good, and it only costs 5 yuan a skewer. The grilled pork tenderloin (kao liji) was a long-awaited treat, and the homemade mixed noodles (banmian) tasted perfectly authentic. Even by Urumqi standards, it is incredibly delicious.
The pinyin for barbecue is the local Xinjiang dialect: SAO KAO.
Collapse Read »
Summary: Urumqi Dawan — Hui Muslim Streets and Halal Food is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: June 2018 was my fifth trip to Urumqi for sightseeing and eating. Nanguan used to be the traditional neighborhood in Urumqi that attracted me the most; it was lively and full of energy. The account keeps its focus on Urumqi Dawan, Xinjiang Travel, Hui Muslims while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.
June 2018 was my fifth trip to Urumqi for sightseeing and eating. Nanguan used to be the traditional neighborhood in Urumqi that attracted me the most; it was lively and full of energy. In 2017, a friend (dosti) told me that demolition and renovation had started in Nanguan, which made me very anxious. Later on, the small alleys deep inside Nanguan were completely torn down.
I came to Urumqi again in 2018, and the area deep inside the old Nanguan had become a construction site. However, I will not dwell on the past in this article. Instead, I want to share my experience of sightseeing and eating in Urumqi this time. Besides the consistently wonderful Lingguan Lane and Shengli Road, I also visited Dawan, another food hub in Urumqi. As a side note, I certainly did not expect when writing this that my wedding would be held in Dawan two years later.
Table of Contents
1. Yining Yixiang Butter Milk Tea House
2. Lingguan Lane
1. Original Meat Naan (rounang)
2. Arman Supermarket
3. Gülba xikar Dessert Shop
4. Other shops in Lingguan Lane
3. Shengli Road
1. Babahan Food World
2. Marhaba Tatar Pastries
4. Dawan
1. Ailuo Family Coffee
2. Pairhan Imported Goods Store
3. Aile Imported Goods Store
4. Maidana
1. Yining Yixiang Butter Milk Tea House
Next to the Urumqi People's Theater is Yining Yixiang Butter Milk Tea House, a famous Kazakh milk tea spot. I ate milk skin (naipizi), fried dough fritters (baorsak), and honey-based drink (kawasi) here, but unfortunately, mare's milk is only available after July.
Milk skin (naipizi)
Fried dough fritters (baorsak) and honey-based drink (kawasi)
The People's Theater was built in 1956 and is a landmark building of old Urumqi.
2. Lingguan Lane
Consulate Lane (Lingguan Xiang) is south of Erdaoqiao. Except for a new residential complex in the middle section, most shops in the lane look the same. It is a small comfort after the deep Nanguan area was leveled.
1. Original Meat Naan (rounang)
As soon as you enter the west end of Consulate Lane, you can smell the aroma of meat-topped flatbread (rounang). This original meat flatbread (rounang) shop opened in 2000. It is a very popular spot on Lingguan Lane with long lines, and the meat flatbread is truly fragrant.
2. Arman Supermarket
Arman Supermarket at the east end of Lingguan Lane is the largest in the chain. It has many great items, and I shop here every time I visit Urumqi. This time, I bought mint tea, butter milk tea (suyou naicha), and almond nut cake (qiegao).
Various pastries at Arman Supermarket.
3. Gülba xikar Dessert Shop
There is a dessert shop called Gülba xikar inside Arman Supermarket. I had almond and walnut ice cream there, plus a walnut pie. Everything was delicious and very cheap.
4. Other shops in Lingguan Lane
There are many other good places to eat on Lingguan Lane. I passed by the local-style hand-rubbed noodles (cuomian) shop this time, and the Yizihaier ice cream and Yili milk tea shop I visited years ago are still the same.
3. Shengli Road
Shengli Road is south of Erdaoqiao, at the east end of Lingguan Lane, and it also has plenty of good food.
1. Babahan Food World
The breakfast at Babahan Food World on Shengli Road and Lingguan Lane is excellent. This time, I had barley porridge (yarma) and milk-topped flatbread (naizi nang) soaked in milk tea.
Barley porridge (yarma).
Milk tea.
Milk-topped flatbread (naizi nang).
2. Marhaba Tatar Pastries
Marhaba Tatar Pastry Shop opened in 1998. The original shop was on Heba Third Lane, south of Lingguan Lane, and they later opened a new location at 454 Shengli Road. The founder of the shop is Saweige Musabayufu, born in 1949. The shop is named after her mother, Marhaba, who taught Saweige how to make Tatar pastries.
The girl with the red collar in the picture is Saweige's daughter, Fikelati.
Tatar cream cake made with six layers of sweet cake and six layers of cream.
Delete
Walnut dried fruit pie.
Black Forest chocolate cake made with ghee.
Black-eyed apricot jam cake.
4. Dawan
Dawan is in the southeast of Urumqi's old city. I mainly walked around the Oujing Mingyuan residential area. It has a nice environment and good food, which is a sharp contrast to the heavily demolished and renovated Erdaoqiao and Nanguan areas. It is truly a hidden paradise in the city.
Street view of Oujing Mingyuan in Dawan.
1. Ailuo Family Coffee
It was not yet dinner time when I arrived in Dawan, so I first had some Turkish black tea at Ayrosa Coffee. Downstairs, many young people were celebrating a birthday.
2. Pairhan Imported Goods Store
Pairhan is a main imported goods supermarket in Oujing Mingyuan. They have a lot of items, and I bought some chocolate from Kazakhstan there.
3. Aile Imported Goods Store
Aile is another import shop that has some good finds inside.
4. Maidana
Merdana at Oujing Mingyuan was the biggest surprise of my food tour in Urumqi. The atmosphere is great, and the food is fantastic. The liver wrapped in fat (youbaogan) was so delicious I actually shouted out loud. It was intoxicatingly good, and it only costs 5 yuan a skewer. The grilled pork tenderloin (kao liji) was a long-awaited treat, and the homemade mixed noodles (banmian) tasted perfectly authentic. Even by Urumqi standards, it is incredibly delicious.
The pinyin for barbecue is the local Xinjiang dialect: SAO KAO.
Collapse Read »