Reposted from the web

Summary: Islamic World in 1550: Africa, Ottoman Lands and Safavid Iran is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: I started staying home in mid-November. I wanted to use this time to do things I had always planned, so I decided to take an online tour of the Islamic world. The account keeps its focus on Islamic World, Ottoman History, Safavid Iran while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.

I started staying home in mid-November. I wanted to use this time to do things I had always planned, so I decided to take an online tour of the Islamic world. I chose the year 1550 because my previous travels abroad showed me that many interesting things really happened in the Islamic world during the first half of the 16th century. During my travels, I saw the Ottoman Empire reaching its peak under Suleiman the Magnificent, the Crimean Khanate building a new capital in a valley, the Kazan Khanate about to be conquered by Tsarist Russia, the Bukhara and Yarkent Khanates just being established, the Sur Empire in Afghanistan sweeping through northern India to conquer the Mughal Empire, and the island of Java in Indonesia forming a unique Javanese Islamic culture under the influence of Sufi missionaries. This gave me an idea to see exactly which Islamic countries existed in 1550 and what was happening in them.

After researching, I found that in 1550 there were at least 50 Islamic countries and regimes spanning Africa, West Asia, Central Asia, South Asia, and Southeast Asia, each with its own distinct cultural traditions and history. Out of these 50 countries and regimes, I will detail 9 that I have visited before, including the Ottoman Empire, the Crimean Khanate, the Kazan Khanate, the Bukhara Khanate, the Yarkent Khanate, the Sur Empire, the Golconda Sultanate, the Banten Sultanate, and the Demak Sultanate. I hope this online trip helps everyone imagine the atmosphere of the Islamic world in 1550.

Besides these 50 countries, there are other Islamic nations I did not include this time, and I hope to find more information about them in the future.

Let me briefly introduce the travel route for this trip:



Our journey starts in Morocco in the far northwest of Africa, moves east into Algeria and Tunisia, and then heads south across the Sahara Desert into the savanna. Then we will cross the African continent to the east, enter the Nile River basin, and arrive at the Somali Peninsula by the Indian Ocean. We will sail north, pass through the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea to reach Egypt, cross the Mediterranean to Istanbul, and then head east to Iran. This is the first part.

In the second part, we will visit 12 countries ruled by the descendants of Genghis Khan. We start from the Crimean Peninsula, head east to the Volga Delta, go north to the Ryazan region of Russia, and then east to the city of Kazan on the Volga River. We continue east to the Irtysh River, then south to the Kazakh steppe, east into the Transoxiana region, cross the Tianshan Mountains into southern Xinjiang, pass through the Pamir Plateau into Kashmir, and finally enter the Sindh region of Pakistan.

In the third part, we will experience the Islamic culture of South Asia. We first arrive in Delhi, then head south into Gujarat and central India. Next, we will enter the Deccan Plateau, visit the 5 sultanates on the plateau, and finally arrive in the Maldives by boat.

In the fourth part, we will cross the Bay of Bengal to Southeast Asia. We first enter the Pattani region of Thailand, then head south along the Malay Peninsula, pass by 3 sultanates founded by princes of Malacca, and then take a boat past Sumatra and Java to visit the most unique Islamic culture there. Then we come to the Spice Islands in eastern Indonesia to see the influence of the Portuguese and Spanish, and finally arrive in Brunei and the southern Philippines. Our 1550 world Islamic tour ends here.

General Table of Contents

The Vast African Continent

1. Saadi Sultanate of Morocco (1510-1659)

2. Kingdom of Tlemcen in Algeria (1235-1556)

3. Ottoman Regency of Algiers in Algeria (1516-1830)

4. Kingdom of Beni Abbas in Algeria (1510-1872)

5. Kingdom of Kuku in Algeria (1515-1638)

6. Hafsid Dynasty of Tunisia (1229-1574)

7. Songhai Empire in West Africa (1464-1591)

8. Mali Empire in West Africa (1230-1672)

9. Funj Sultanate of Sudan (1504-1821)

10. Adal Sultanate in Ethiopia (1415-1577)

11. Ajuran Sultanate in Somalia (13th century-late 17th century)

Ottoman Empire spanning Europe, Asia, and Africa (1299-1922)

12. Ottoman Egypt Province (1517-1867)

13. Istanbul, capital of the Ottoman Empire (1453-1922)

14. Safavid Dynasty in Iran (1501-1736)

Legacy of the Mongol Empire

15. Crimean Khanate in Ukraine (1441-1783)

16. Astrakhan Khanate in Russia (1466-1556)

17. Nogai Khanate in Russia and Kazakhstan (1440-1634)

18. Qasim Khanate in Russia (1452-1681)

19. Kazan Khanate in Russia (1438-1552)

20. Sibir Khanate in Russia (1468-1598)

21. Kazakh Khanate in Kazakhstan (1465-1587)

22. Khanate of Khiva in Turkmenistan (1511-1920)

23. Khanate of Bukhara in Uzbekistan (1500-1785)

24. Yarkent Khanate in China (1514-1680)

25. Haidar in Kashmir (1540-1550)

26. Arghun Dynasty in Afghanistan and Pakistan (1520-1591)

27. Sur Dynasty that swept through northern India (1538-1556)

Legacy of the Delhi Sultanate

28. Gujarat Sultanate in western India (1407-1573)

29. Khandesh Sultanate in central India (1382-1601)

Five Deccan Sultanates

30. Berar Sultanate on the Deccan Plateau (1490-1572)

31. Ahmadnagar Sultanate on the Deccan Plateau (1490-1636)

32. Bidar Sultanate on the Deccan Plateau (1492-1619)

33. Golconda Sultanate on the Deccan Plateau (1518-1687)

34. Bijapur Sultanate on the Deccan Plateau (1490-1686)

35. Maldive Sultanate in the Indian Ocean (1153-1968)

36. Pattani Sultanate in Thailand (1457? -1902)

The legacy of the Malacca Sultanate.

37. Perak Sultanate in Malaysia (1528–present).

38. Pahang Sultanate in Malaysia (1470–1623).

39. Johor Sultanate in Malaysia (1528–present).

Sultanates of Indonesia.

40. Aceh Sultanate in Indonesia (1496–1903).

41. Banten Sultanate in Indonesia (1527–1813).

42. Cirebon Sultanate in Indonesia (1447–1679).

43. Demak Sultanate in Indonesia (1475–1568).

The four sultanates of the Spice Islands.

44. Ternate Sultanate in Indonesia (1486–1914).

45. Tidore Sultanate in Indonesia (1450–1967).

46. Jailolo Sultanate in Indonesia (late 15th century–1832).

47. Bacan Sultanate in Indonesia (late 15th century–1965).

48. Maguindanao Sultanate in the Philippines (1520–1905).

49. Sulu Sultanate in the Philippines (1457–1915).

50. Brunei Sultanate in Brunei (1368–1888).

1. Saadi Sultanate of Morocco (1510-1659)

Our journey through the Islamic world begins in the ancient city of Marrakesh, Morocco.

The sultans of the Saadi Sultanate claimed to be descendants of Imam Hassan, the grandson of the Prophet. They established their sultanate in southern Morocco in the early 16th century to resist the Portuguese invasion. They made Marrakesh their capital in 1524, drove the Portuguese out of Morocco in 1541, and then attacked the Wattasid dynasty of the northern Berber people, capturing their capital, Fez, in 1549.

By 1550, the eastward expansion of the Saadi Sultanate caused friction with the Ottoman Empire. At this time, the Ottoman Empire had already expanded into Algeria and was actively preparing for war against the Saadi Sultanate.

Under Saadi rule, Marrakesh became a commercial hub connecting the Maghreb, the Mediterranean, and sub-Saharan Africa. Today, the city of Marrakesh preserves the gongbei (zawiya) complex of the Sufi sheikh Sidi Muhammad Ben Sliman al-Jazuli, which was built in 1524. Jazuli was highly respected by the Saadi family, so when they made Marrakesh their capital in 1524, they moved his gongbei into the city.

The north side of the tomb of Sidi Muhammad Ben Slimane al-Jazuli, photographed by Robert Prazeres in 2014.



The location of the city of Marrakesh.



2. Kingdom of Tlemcen in Algeria (1235-1556)

We head east from Morocco to the city of Tlemcen in northwestern Algeria.

In the early 16th century, Algeria was ruled by the Tlemcen Kingdom, which was established by the Berbers. At this time, the Tlemcen Kingdom was very weak and was fought over repeatedly by Spain and the Ottomans.

In June 1550, the Saadi Sultanate of Morocco captured the capital of the Tlemcen Kingdom without a fight and decided to continue pushing eastward.

The location of Tlemcen city.



3. Ottoman Regency of Algiers in Algeria (1516-1830)

Let us continue east to Algiers, which was under the control of Ottoman pirates.

In 1516, the Ottoman pirate brothers Barbarossa (Red Beard) captured Algiers from Spanish rule and used it as a pirate base to fight against Spain repeatedly. In 1545, Red Beard was called to Istanbul to retire, and his son Hasan Pasha became the Ottoman governor of Algiers. Hasan Pasha captured Tlemcen in 1545, but it was taken back two years later. In 1548, Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent removed him from office and replaced him with the Ottoman naval commander Dragut.

In 1550, Dragut was leading the Ottoman navy on raids across the Mediterranean. That year, he attacked Mediterranean coastal regions including Tunisia, Sardinia, Corsica, Genoa in Italy, and Spain. In September, Dragut was trapped in a lagoon in Tunisia by the fleet of the Knights of Malta. He escaped by quickly digging a canal and laying down greased wooden planks to drag all his ships out of the lagoon, successfully sailing back to Istanbul.

The Death of Dragut, painted by Maltese artist Giuseppe Calì in 1867.



Today in Algiers, you can see the Safir mosque, built in 1534 by Safar bin Abdullah, a general in the Barbarossa fleet. The mosque features Ottoman architectural style.

Photo by Brahimpic in 2014.



The location of Algiers.



4. Kingdom of Beni Abbas in Algeria (1510-1872)

In the mountains east of Algiers, there were two small states established by the Berbers.

The Kingdom of Beni Abbas was a small state of the Kabyle Berbers in the mountains of northern Algeria. It held a key strategic position on the trade route between the Mediterranean and the Sahara Desert. In the 16th century, the Kingdom of Beni Abbas attracted many Andalusians, Christians, and Jews fleeing Spain and Algiers, which enriched the kingdom's cultural diversity.

In 1550, the Ottoman Empire sent troops to attack the Kingdom of Beni Abbas twice, but they were repelled, so the Ottomans signed a treaty with them.

The location of the capital, Kalâa of Ait Abbas.





5. Kingdom of Kuku in Algeria (1515-1638)

The Kingdom of Kuku was another state established by the Kabyle Berbers in the mountains of northern Algeria. It was located east of Algiers and was a rival to the Kingdom of Beni Abbas.

The location of Kuku city.





6. Hafsid Dynasty of Tunisia (1229-1574)

Continue east along the North African coast to reach the city of Tunis.

The Hafsid dynasty was a Berber dynasty that was also caught up in the repeated struggles between Spain and the Ottomans in the early 16th century.

In 1550, the Hafsid dynasty was a vassal state of Spain. They were not completely conquered by the Ottoman Empire until 1573.

Santiago Chikly castle, rebuilt by the Spanish in Tunis between 1546 and 1550. Photo by Imanis in 2013.



The location of Tunis.



7. Songhai Empire in West Africa (1464-1591)

Let us head south along the ancient trade routes across the vast Sahara Desert to reach the ancient city of Gao in Mali.

The Songhai Empire was established by the Songhai people of West Africa. It was located in the semi-arid region between the Sahara Desert and the savanna. At its peak, it was one of the largest countries in Africa, with Timbuktu and Djenné as its main cities.

In 1550, the emperor ruling the Songhai Empire was Askia Daoud (reigned 1549–1582). Under his rule, the Songhai Empire enjoyed peace at home, expanded its borders, and saw its economy thrive. At that time, Timbuktu was the center of Islamic culture in Africa, placing great importance on education and preserving a vast collection of book manuscripts.

The capital of the Songhai Empire was located in Gao, Mali, where the tomb of the Songhai emperor Askia Muhammad I, who died in 1538, stands. It was named a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2004. People say the mud and wood used for this tomb were brought back from Mecca by the emperor himself after his hajj.

The Tomb of Askia, photographed by Our Place for the World Heritage website in 2007.





The location of Gao, the capital of the Songhai Empire.



8. Mali Empire in West Africa (1230-1672)

Let us continue south into the savanna to visit the mysterious Mali Empire.

The Mali Empire was once the largest empire in West Africa, though it was gradually replaced by the Songhai Empire from the north after the 16th century. The economic focus of the Mali Empire shifted from trans-Saharan trade to commerce in coastal regions.

In 1545, the Songhai Empire invaded the capital of the Mali Empire, but they did not actually take control of it. By 1550, the Mali Empire still held onto a certain amount of territory. That year, they attacked a trade center in southern Ghana and seized the gold there.

The region attacked by the Mali Empire in 1550.



9. Funj Sultanate of Sudan (1504-1821)

This time, we will travel a long distance across the African continent to reach Sudan on the upper Nile.

The Funj Sultanate was a state established by the Funj people on the upper Nile. Due to the spread of Sufism along the upper Nile in the 16th century, the founder of the Funj Kingdom, Amara Dunqas, became a Muslim. However, the Funj people still kept many local customs and Christian rituals, gradually forming a unique Sudanese folk Islamic tradition.

To counter the expansion of the Ottoman Empire, the Funj Sultanate formed an alliance with the Ethiopian Empire in the early 16th century and exported horses and camels to them.

Sennar, the capital of the Funj Sultanate.



10. Adal Sultanate in Ethiopia (1415-1577)

Let us continue east into the ancient Ethiopian city of Harar.

The Adal Sultanate was located east of the Funj Sultanate on the northern Somali Peninsula and served as a commercial and political partner to the Ottoman Empire. Between 1529 and 1543, with help from the Ottoman Empire, the Adal Sultanate fought an 11-year war against the Ethiopian Kingdom, which eventually weakened both sides.

In 1550, the Adal Sultanate was ruled by Nur ibn Mujahid, who built a city wall with five gates in the capital, Harar. This walled city, known as Harar Jugol, was named a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2006. Harar is located in eastern Ethiopia and served as the capital of the Adal Sultanate from 1520 to 1577. Historically, this city has been an important African commercial and Islamic center, connecting trade routes from Ethiopia to the Somali Peninsula, the Arabian Peninsula, and the heart of Asia.

The Harar city wall, photographed by Sailko in 2018.



The location of the city of Harar.



11. Ajuran Sultanate in Somalia (13th century-late 17th century)

We continue south to the port city of Mogadishu on the Indian Ocean.

The Ajuran Sultanate was located on the Somali Peninsula, south of the Adal Sultanate. It held a key position in North Indian Ocean trade, with ships traveling between East Asia, South Asia, Europe, and Africa, leaving behind many ancient monuments in Somalia.

As a maritime nation, the Ajuran Sultanate not only allied with the Ottoman Empire but also maintained friendly relations with the Ming Dynasty. They were the first African country to send envoys to the Ming Dynasty.

In the early 16th century, the wealthiest Indian Ocean port city in the Sultanate was Mogadishu, which is the current capital of Somalia. According to the 16th-century Andalusian traveler Leo Africanus, the people of Mogadishu at that time had olive skin, wore white robes and white turbans, and used Arabic as their common language. Mogadishu had stone walls and was equipped with muskets and cannons imported from the Ottoman Empire.

The location of Mogadishu city.



Ottoman Empire spanning Europe, Asia, and Africa (1299-1922)

Let us take a ship from the Indian Ocean port of Mogadishu, sail north along the Somali Peninsula, enter the Red Sea from the Gulf of Aden, and arrive in Cairo, Egypt, under Ottoman rule.

12. Ottoman Egypt Province (1517-1867)

In 1517, the Ottoman Empire conquered the Mamluk Sultanate, which had ruled Egypt for over two hundred years. Although they appointed a series of Egyptian governors, the political structure and cultural arts still continued the traditions of the Mamluk period. In early 16th-century Cairo, Mamluk and Ottoman architectural styles began to merge.

In 1528, the Egyptian governor Hadım Suleiman Pasha built the Suleiman Pasha Mosque for the Ottoman Janissaries stationed in the Cairo Citadel. This was the first Ottoman-style mosque in Egypt.

Suleiman Pasha Mosque photographed by Houssam_Daowd_102 in 2019.



The location of Cairo.



13. Istanbul, capital of the Ottoman Empire (1453-1922)

We cross the Mediterranean Sea and arrive at Istanbul, the capital of the Ottoman Empire. At that time, the eastern Mediterranean had become an inland sea for the Ottoman Empire.

In the first half of the 16th century, the Ottoman Empire entered its Golden Age under the rule of Suleiman the Magnificent (reigned 1520-1566). Ottoman territory continued to expand. They besieged Vienna twice in 1529 and 1532, captured Baghdad in 1535, and defeated the Portuguese to control the Red Sea in 1538.

Meanwhile, under the patronage of Suleiman the Magnificent, various talented craftsmen and artists came to the Ottoman court, leading to great cultural prosperity. Mimar Sinan, the court architect for Suleiman the Magnificent, built a series of structures in Istanbul that became the best witnesses of that era.

The Haseki Hürrem Sultan Complex (Haseki Hürrem Sultan Külliyesi) was commissioned by Suleiman the Magnificent's wife, Hürrem Sultan, and built by Mimar Sinan in 1539. It was the first complex built by Mimar Sinan after he became the royal architect. Hürrem Sultan, known as Roxelana, was the first empress in Ottoman history to receive the title of 'Haseki Sultan' (the Sultan's favorite). She is also known as the most powerful and controversial woman in Ottoman history.

After becoming empress, Hürrem Sultan began building a series of public structures, the first of which was this empress complex. The complex includes a Friday mosque (Jumu'ah mosque), a public kitchen (imaret), a religious school (madrasa), an elementary school (mektep), and a hospital (darüssifa). The mosque was completed in 1539, the religious school and kitchen were finished the following year, and the hospital was not completed until 1550. When designing the entire complex, Sinan arranged the different buildings at various angles, leaving only narrow passages or gaps between them. This arrangement created rich perspective effects that almost never appeared in his later works.



The mosque (1539) is at the southernmost part of the complex, separated from the other parts by a narrow alley. The mosque was originally a simple, traditional single-dome, single-minaret structure made of alternating brick and stone. The porch is supported by six marble columns holding up five small domes. The mosque was expanded in 1612, growing from a single dome to a double dome, which doubled its area. The mosque has no tiles, and the current paintings were added later. During this period, Sinan had not yet started to innovate in mosque architecture.

The madrasa (1540) is directly opposite the mosque and consists of sixteen student rooms and a large lecture hall arranged in a rectangle.

The primary school (1540) is known as the most beautiful primary school built by Mimar Sinan.

The hospital (1550) is in the far north and was built by Hurrem Sultan specifically for women. The hospital courtyard is octagonal, with rooms on three sides and windows facing the street on the fourth side. The two arched gateways (iwan) at the corners of the octagonal courtyard and the dome foreshadowed Sinan's later development of arches and domes.



A diagram of the public kitchen published by Cornelius Gurlitt in 1912.



The Mihrimah Sultan Complex (Mihrimah Sultan Külliyesi) was commissioned in 1543 by Mihrimah Sultan, the daughter of Suleiman the Magnificent and Hurrem Sultan, and built by Mimar Sinan. It is the second complex by Mimar Sinan in Istanbul that still stands today.

Mihrimah Sultan was the wife of the Grand Vizier Rustem Pasha and is known as the most powerful princess in the history of the Ottoman Empire.

The entire complex is cleverly built on a slope extending to the coast. It includes a mosque, a madrasa, a guesthouse, a canteen, a primary school, and some later tombs. The guesthouse and canteen were destroyed by fire in 1772.

The Mihrimah Sultan Mosque is the first semi-domed mosque designed by Mimar Sinan. The mosque consists of one main dome and three semi-domes. This shape expands the interior space, making people feel like they are under the dome as soon as they enter the main hall. Although the mosque itself has limited depth, this design increases the sense of openness. Mimar Sinan added a T-shaped canopy in front of the porch to soften the hardness of the entrance facade.



A diagram of the mosque published by Cornelius Gurlitt in 1912.

















The madrasa consists of sixteen student rooms and a large lecture hall in a rectangle. It is now a hospital, and the integrity of the cultural heritage has been damaged.







The Sehzade Complex (Sehzade Külliye) is located on the third hill of the old city of Istanbul. Built between 1543 and 1548, it is considered Mimar Sinan's most important early work and his first masterpiece.

The complex was built by Suleiman the Magnificent to commemorate his beloved son, Prince Mehmed (Sehzade Mehmed), who died young. Prince Mehmed was the son of Suleiman the Magnificent and Hurrem Sultan. He was favored from a young age and was the most likely heir, but he sadly died of smallpox (some say murder) in 1543. After the prince died, Suleiman the Magnificent was heartbroken. Traditionally, princes were buried in Bursa, but the Sultan decided to commission Mimar Sinan to build a tomb for the prince in Istanbul and match it with a complex.

The Sehzade Complex was the first work Mimar Sinan was directly commissioned to build by Suleiman the Magnificent. It was also his most ambitious early work, with a much grander scale and more decoration than his previous projects.

The complex includes a mosque, five tombs, a madrasa, a guesthouse, a hostel, a public canteen, and a primary school. These buildings are freely distributed on flat ground without a deliberate attempt at symmetry. the mosque is not a single unit with the other buildings; the other structures are distributed in the gardens or streets surrounding the mosque.



The mosque (1543-1548) is the second semi-domed mosque designed by Mimar Sinan, consisting of one main dome and four semi-domes. This is both an improvement on Sinan's previous work, the Mihrimah Sultan Mosque with its three semi-domes, and a reinterpretation of designs by predecessors like the Fatih Mosque (1471) and the Bayezid II Mosque (1506). This design isolates the four pillars supporting the central dome, creating a more stunning visual effect. The interior of the mosque is a square that unfolds along a central vertical axis. When people enter, they can immediately feel the dominance of the central dome. the porches on the walls on both sides of the mosque are a bold innovation, which also foreshadows the future direction of Ottoman mosque development. This design softens the flanks of the building and hides the buttresses, allowing the facade to blend in more perfectly. The design of the Sehzade Mosque had gradually moved away from the traditional Ottoman mosque model and began to move toward Sinan's own unique style.

A diagram of the mosque published by Cornelius Gurlitt in 1912.

























The Tomb of Prince Mehmed (1543) sits southeast of the mosque. It has an octagonal structure, Persian inscriptions at the entrance, and Cuerda Seca tiles inside.







The madrasa (1546) is outside the garden on the north side of the mosque. It forms a rectangle surrounded by a gallery, with 21 student rooms and one large lecture hall on three sides. The fountain in the middle of the courtyard still keeps its Seljuk-era (11th to 13th century) tomb tower (kumbet) structure.









The public kitchen (1543-1548) is across the street east of the mosque. It consists of two buildings, each with six domes and a courtyard in the middle.







The octagonal tomb of Hüsrev Paşa is in the west of Istanbul. It is known as one of the most beautiful tombs built by Mimar Sinan. Hüsrev Paşa was a vizier of the Ottoman Empire. People called him the Mad Hüsrev Paşa because he had a bad temper. Hüsrev Paşa was born in Bosnia in 1495 and came from the famous Sokollu family. He became the governor of Egypt in 1535 and the Second Vizier in 1538. In 1544, Hüsrev Paşa lost the race for Grand Vizier to Rüstem Paşa. He died of illness shortly after, and Mimar Sinan built his tomb.





The Yavuz Sultan Selim Medrese is in the west of Istanbul. Suleiman the Magnificent commissioned Mimar Sinan to build it, and it is named after the Sultan's father, Selim I. The madrasa consists of 20 student rooms on three sides and one large lecture hall. In 1563, the lecture hall was turned into a prayer hall, and a minaret (banketa) was added. The minaret is now destroyed, and the madrasa has become a hospital.













The Rüstem Paşa Medrese is not far northeast of the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul and was built in 1550. This madrasa is Mimar Sinan's new take on the famous Büyük Ağa Medrese in Amasya, which was built in 1488. The Büyük Ağa Medrese was the first octagonal madrasa in Turkey. Mimar Sinan kept the internal octagonal courtyard but changed the outside to a rectangle, which was a further development in Ottoman madrasa architecture.













14. Safavid Dynasty in Iran (1501-1736)

We headed east from Istanbul, passed through several Kurdish emirates, and arrived in Tabriz in northwestern Iran.

The Safavid dynasty is considered the most important dynasty in Iran since the Sassanid Empire. The Safavid dynasty made Twelver Shia Islam the state religion, which was a major event in Islamic history. The rulers of the Safavid dynasty claimed to be descendants of the Prophet Muhammad, but historians believe they were Turkified Iranians from Iranian Kurdistan.

In 1501, Ismail I captured Tabriz, the capital of the Aq Qoyunlu, and made it the capital of the Safavid dynasty. Tabriz is now the capital of East Azerbaijan Province, and most of its residents are Azerbaijanis.

In 1550, the Safavid dynasty was ruled by Tahmasp I and was in a break between two large-scale wars with the Ottoman Empire. Between 1532 and 1555, the Ottoman Empire led by Suleiman the Magnificent and the Safavid dynasty led by Tahmasp I fought a 23-year war. Between 1548 and 1549, the Safavid dynasty used a scorched-earth policy to level Armenia, but the Ottoman army still pushed deep into the Iranian interior. After occupying the Safavid capital of Tabriz, the Ottoman army looted Hamadan, Qom, and Kashan, reaching as far as Isfahan. Tahmasp I chose not to fight the Ottoman army head-on, and the Ottoman army was forced to retreat because they ran out of food and supplies. Shortly after this in 1555, to avoid attacks from the Ottoman Empire, the Safavid dynasty moved its capital from Tabriz in the northwest to Qazvin, which was further inland.

A miniature painting of Tahmasp I painted in Qazvin, Iran, in 1575.



The location of Tabriz.



That is all for the first part. In the next post, we will visit 12 Islamic countries ruled by the descendants of Genghis Khan. Collapse Read »

Reposted from the web

Summary: Islam Book Guide: DK Introduction to Islam — Muslim History and Visual Culture is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: I found a popular science book titled Islam published by DK at the Panjiayuan antique book market. It is full of pictures and text and even comes with a giant poster. The account keeps its focus on Islam Books, DK Islam, Muslim History while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.

I found a popular science book titled Islam published by DK at the Panjiayuan antique book market. It is full of pictures and text and even comes with a giant poster.







The first chapter is about the story of the noble Prophet, where you can see that classic miniature painting of the Night Journey.





The second chapter is about the Quran, showing beautiful handwritten manuscripts.



The third chapter introduces the Five Pillars. It includes demonstrations by modern people and paintings from the Ottoman period, and it uses a tile artifact featuring the Kaaba to explain how the Kaaba is structured.





The fourth chapter introduces the mosque (masjid). It uses a small Andalusian-style mosque model to explain the basic structure, and the miniature painting on the right showing an imam giving a khutbah on the minbar is also very cute.





The fifth chapter covers the history of the Caliphs. The Tiraz in the top right corner is an embroidered decoration sent by the Caliph. It can be in various forms like armbands, robes, or headscarves, and it is embroidered with the Caliph's name, a dua, or poetry.





The sixth chapter is about scholars and teachers. The eighth chapter is about calligraphy and writing. The ninth chapter covers various explorations of knowledge like astronomy, navigation, and architecture.









Let's take a look at the religious holidays.



The first is Ramadan. The book shows a colorful glass lamp lit during iftar.



The second is the Prophet's Birthday (Mawlid an-Nabi). The book shows Kenyan children celebrating the day, when many people recite the praise poem Qasīdat al-Burda.



The third is Eid al-Fitr. On the left are the Eid cards people send each other, and on the right are Eid balloons that add to the festive atmosphere.



The fourth is Eid al-Adha. The Hausa people in northern Nigeria call it the Durbar festival or Sallah festival, where they hold colorful knight parades and equestrian performances.



The fifth is called Seb-i Arus, which is the day of the Sufi master Rumi. On this day, the Mevlevi Sufi order he founded holds grand commemorative events and performs the Sema whirling ceremony.



The sixth is Ashura, when the Shia mourn Imam Hussein. The book shows people carrying a model of the Hussein gongbei.



The seventh is Laylat al-Miraj. Muslims in Iran, Turkey, and South Asia all celebrate this day, lighting up entire cities with lamps and candles. The book shows the Buraq that the noble Prophet rode during his Night Journey, which is often depicted as a human-faced horse in Persian and South Asian miniature paintings.



The eighth is circumcision (Khitan), which is usually performed at age seven. The book shows a group of Turkish boys preparing to enter the mosque for their circumcision.



In the Spain section, the left side introduces Andalusian troubadours, the Great Mosque of Cordoba, the Alhambra, and an ivory carved box from the Umayyad Caliphate. The right side introduces the ancient city of Granada and the last Caliph, the Mudejar architecture developed by Andalusian Muslims after Christian rule, and the Moorish style in Spanish architecture.





In the Africa section, the left side introduces the Berbers, Quran manuscripts from Timbuktu, the mud-built Great Mosque of Djenne, and the 9th-century ribat in the ancient Tunisian city of Sousse. The right side introduces a Mauritanian scholar studying, West African Ashanti warriors wearing robes covered in leather pouches containing the Quran, North African floral pattern tiles, the famous medieval Catalan Atlas showing the ruler of the West African Mali Empire, Mansa Musa, traveling for Hajj between 1324 and 1325, and the gongbei of a saint in Sudan.



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Summary: Ottoman Architecture Guide: Mimar Sinan — Peak Works and Imperial Mosques is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: Mimar Sinan (1488/1490-1588) is known as the great architect of the Ottoman Empire. The account keeps its focus on Mimar Sinan, Ottoman Architecture, Istanbul Mosques while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.

Mimar Sinan (1488/1490-1588) is known as the great architect of the Ottoman Empire. His career can be split into three periods: the growth period (1539-1556), the maturity period (1556-1574), and the peak period (1574-1588). These three periods are best represented by three specific buildings. The Prince Mosque (Şehzade Camii), built in 1548, was the first large mosque Sinan designed and serves as a masterpiece of his early work. The Suleymaniye Mosque (Süleymaniye Camii), completed in 1557, became a landmark for all of Istanbul. The Selimiye Mosque (Selimiye Camii), built in Edirne in 1574, represents the absolute peak of Sinan's architectural skill. Here, I will share nine architectural works Sinan built in Istanbul during his later years to show his style during this period.

A look back at my previous articles on Mimar Sinan:

The Great Ottoman Architect—Mimar Sinan (Part 1): Growth,

The Great Ottoman Architect—Mimar Sinan (Part 2): Maturity

The Peak of Ottoman Architecture—The Selimiye Mosque in Edirne

Table of Contents

1. Sokollu Mehmet Pasha Mosque (Azapkapı): 1578

2. Private Chamber of Murad III: 1578

3. Kılıç Ali Pasha Complex: 1578-1580

4. Şemsi Pasha Complex: 1581

5. Tomb of Kanijeli Siyavuş Pasha: 1582-1584

6. Molla Çelebi Mosque: 1570-1584

7. Atik Valide Sultan Complex: 1571-1586

8. Nişancı Mehmet Pasha Mosque: 1584-1589

9. Zal Mahmut Pasha Complex: 1577-1590

1. Sokollu Mehmet Pasha Mosque (Azapkapı): 1578

The Sokollu Mehmet Pasha Mosque (Sokollu Mehmet Paşa Camii) is in the Azapkapı area on the north shore of Istanbul's Golden Horn, next to the Atatürk Bridge. It was commissioned by the Ottoman Grand Vizier Sokollu Mehmet Pasha (in office 1565-1579) and built by Mimar Sinan in 1578. It is the third mosque Sinan built for Sokollu in Istanbul.

Here, Sinan continued using the octagonal support system he used in his masterpiece, the Selimiye Mosque, and added a small dome to each corner. Also, the mosque's front porch is fully enclosed and connected to the main hall, which is very unique among Sinan's works.















2. Private Chamber of Murad III: 1578

The Private Chamber of Murad III (III. Murad Has Odası) is inside the Harem of Topkapı Palace (Topkapı Sarayı) in Istanbul. It is one of the best-preserved and most complete structures in the Harem, built by Mimar Sinan in 1578. Murad III was the 12th Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, reigning from 1574 to 1595. In his final years, he rarely left the palace and spent his days reading and resting in this private chamber.

The chamber has balanced proportions and a well-planned decorative scheme, showing the peak Ottoman architecture reached in the late 16th century. The chamber has the second-largest dome in the Harem, second only to the Imperial Hall. The interior is covered in blue, white, and red Iznik tiles with orange borders, and a band of calligraphy tiles runs across the middle of the room. Inside, there is a two-story fountain. The sound of the water prevents eavesdropping and creates a comfortable atmosphere. The room also has a large fireplace decorated with colorful marble. The interior also displays two luxurious 18th-century cotton beds.

















3. Kılıç Ali Pasha Complex: 1578-1580

The Kılıç Ali Pasha Complex is located in the Tophane district on the northern side of the Golden Horn and the western shore of the Bosphorus in Istanbul. It was commissioned by the Ottoman Grand Admiral (Kapudan-ı Derya) Kılıç Ali Pasha and built by Mimar Sinan between 1578 and 1580. The complex consists of a mosque, a madrasa, a tomb, and a bathhouse. It was originally built on reclaimed land right next to the shore, but due to further land reclamation during later port construction, the complex is now 120 meters away from the sea.

Evidence discovered by Turkish historian Rasih Nuri İleri suggests that Miguel de Cervantes, the author of Don Quixote, was a worker on the Kılıç Ali Pasha Complex while he was enslaved by Ottoman pirates between 1575 and 1580.

The mosque is surrounded by galleries on three sides, and the central area is separated from the side areas. This structure is very close to the Hagia Sophia and differs from the classic Ottoman mosque architecture of the same period. Some people use this to question whether the mosque was truly built by Sinan. The main dome of the mosque sits above a square base in the central area, supported by a semi-dome on each side. The central area is much higher than the side areas, and very wide arched buttresses extend to the outer walls. the front of the mosque has a double-layered porch, which makes it stand out compared to other mosques of the same period.



















The main hall of the madrasa is square. Because it does not appear in Sinan's official list of works, the Tazkirat-al-Abniya, some people also believe this madrasa was not built by Sinan himself.







4. Şemsi Pasha Complex: 1581

The Şemsi Pasha Complex is located on the Asian side of Istanbul, on the coast of the Üsküdar district. It was commissioned in 1581 by the Ottoman Grand Vizier (Vezir-i Azam) Şemsi Pasha, who succeeded Sokollu Mehmed Pasha as Grand Vizier in 1579, and built by Mimar Sinan. This is the most compact complex built by Sinan and is very famous in Istanbul as an important example of the organic combination of human architecture and natural landscape.

The complex consists of a mosque, a tomb, a madrasa, and a seawall. The tomb of Şemsi Pasha is completely connected to the mosque and is separated from the inside by a grille. The single-domed mosque itself is not particularly new, but it is unique in terms of its picturesque landscape.











The L-shaped madrasa has one large classroom and 12 student rooms, connected by an arcade. It was converted into a library after 1958, and the large classroom became a reading room.







5. Tomb of Kanijeli Siyavuş Pasha: 1582-1584

Kanijeli Siyavuş Pasha was the son-in-law of Ottoman Sultan Selim II (reigned 1566-1574) and served as the Grand Vizier (Vezir-i Azam) of the Ottoman Empire three times between 1582 and 1593. His tomb is located in the Eyüp district, northwest of Istanbul's old city. It was built by Mimar Sinan between 1582 and 1584, during his first term as Grand Vizier. The Eyüp Cemetery (Eyüp Mezarlığı) is the oldest and largest Muslim cemetery in Istanbul because it contains the grave of Abu Ayyub al-Ansari, a close companion of the Prophet Muhammad.











6. Molla Çelebi Mosque: 1570-1584

The Molla Çelebi Mosque is located in the Fındıklı district on the northern side of the Golden Horn and the western shore of the Bosphorus in Istanbul. It was commissioned by the Ottoman Chief Justice (Kazasker) Mehmet Vusuli Efendi and built by Mimar Sinan between 1570 and 1584.

Here, Sinan perfected the hexagonal structure within the Ottoman classical mosque architectural style. The six supporting columns are embedded in the walls, and the mihrab is located in a protruding apse. By installing ten windows, this area becomes the brightest part of the main hall.













7. Atik Valide Sultan Complex: 1571-1586

The Atik Valide Complex is located in Üsküdar on the Asian side of Istanbul. It is a large complex commissioned by the Ottoman Queen Mother Nurbanu Sultan and built by Mimar Sinan. Nurbanu Sultan was the mother of Sultan Murad III (reigned 1574-1595) and was the first woman in Ottoman history to hold power legally.

The Atik Valide Complex is one of the largest Ottoman complexes in Istanbul. It consists of 10 buildings with different functions, including a mosque, a madrasa, a Hadith school, a primary school, a Sufi lodge, a hospital, a soup kitchen, guest rooms, a two-story inn with stables, and a bathhouse. Planning for the entire complex began in 1571. As Nurbanu Sultan’s status grew, the complex expanded. It was finally completed in 1586, three years after her death, spanning a 15-year construction period.

The buildings are arranged on a slope from northeast to southwest. At the highest point in the northeast is the Sufi lodge (tekke). Across the road to the southwest is the main complex, which includes a mosque and a religious school (madrasa), with a primary school behind the mosque. Further southwest, across the road, is the second group of buildings, consisting of a Hadith school, guest rooms, a hospital, a canteen, and a large inn (caravanserai). The bathhouse (hammam) stands alone at the far southwest end of the complex.

Construction of the mosque happened in three stages. The first stage was from 1571 to 1574. At that time, Mimar Sinan was in Edirne overseeing his masterpiece, the Selimiye Mosque, so he commissioned another Ottoman court architect to supervise the Old Queen Mosque. The second stage was from 1577 to 1578. Nurbanu Sultan held real power in the empire then, and a second minaret and a double-portico courtyard were added to the mosque. The third stage was from 1584 to 1586. Nurbanu Sultan had passed away by then. The mosque was expanded horizontally, with a pair of small domes added on each side of the central dome. It is believed that because Mimar Sinan was quite old, his successor, Davut Ağa, likely completed the third stage.

The mosque consists of one central dome and five semi-domes. The area near the mihrab is decorated with beautiful Iznik tiles depicting spring flowers. Unfortunately, I did not take a separate photo of them at the time.









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The religious school (madrasa) was built in 1579 and sits on a platform below the mosque. Due to the terrain, the arcades on both sides are different lengths. It is also very rare for the central auditorium to be built as a bridge-like structure over the street. It is currently an open public space with a small tea house where people can rest.











The Sufi lodge (tekke) on the northeast side.



8. Nişancı Mehmet Pasha Mosque: 1584-1589

The Nisanci Mehmet Pasha Mosque was built by Mimar Sinan between 1584 and 1589. Some scholars believe this mosque is not Sinan's work but should be credited to his student and successor as royal architect, Davut Ağa, who served from 1588 to 1599. However, if you study the architectural structure carefully, it is clearly a further development of Sinan's octagonal mosque design.

Sinan was nearly 100 years old at the time, and he continued to develop his original design plans. Here, the main hall became a truly unified space, covered by a main dome and a series of semi-domes. Since the main dome is not very large, it is easily supported by the zigzagging walls, which also allows the portico to maintain the harmony of the exterior facade. Unlike many mosques of that time with massive load-bearing walls, Sinan gave these walls a lively appearance. All these features give this mosque an important place among Sinan's works.



















9. Zal Mahmut Pasha Complex: 1577-1590

The Zal Mahmud Pasha complex is located in the Eyüp district in the northwest of Istanbul's old city. It was commissioned by Şah Sultan, daughter of Ottoman Sultan Selim II (reigned 1566-1574), and her husband Zal Mahmud Pasha. Mimar Sinan began construction in 1577, and it was completed in 1590, two years after Sinan's death.

The complex is carefully planned on a slope and divided into two separate areas connected by stairs. The upper area contains the mosque and a religious school (madrasa), while the lower area contains another religious school and a tomb (turbe). This layout breaks away from traditional symmetry and feels more dynamic.

The Zal Mahmud Pasha Mosque feels like an original experiment Sinan conducted in his later years. It has no connection to his previous mosque designs and is even visually the complete opposite.

In his earlier designs, Sinan was used to creating a large pyramid effect by layering domes, semi-domes, pendentives, main arches, and galleries. Here, the mosque rises on three sides like a tall prism with a palace-like appearance. Three wide galleries rise to the main arches, which in turn support the dome. In Sinan's previous designs, the main arch was usually decorated with window walls or semi-domes. But here, the main arch has no decoration other than the qibla wall and connects directly to the gallery. This design weakens the visual effect of the dome, and the widening of the space on three sides makes the dome look low enough for people to reach.











The upper madrasa remains separate from the mosque's gallery, and the auditorium is not on the same axis as the mosque's mihrab. The lower madrasa is designed with a recessed shape to fit the street layout, and the rooms vary in size.



The tomb of Sah Sultan and Zal Mahmud Pasha has an octagonal exterior and a square interior. Both died in 1577 and did not live to see the complex completed.





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Summary: Sanya — Huihui Muslims, Mosques and Island History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: This is my record of my first visit to the Hui Muslims in Sanya, Hainan, in 2017. For my second visit in 2020, see my diary entry, 'Celebrating Eid al-Adha in Sanya'. The account keeps its focus on Sanya Muslims, Huihui People, Halal Travel while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.

This is my record of my first visit to the Hui Muslims in Sanya, Hainan, in 2017. For my second visit in 2020, see my diary entry, 'Celebrating Eid al-Adha in Sanya'.

In 'History of Hainan Muslims,' we discussed how the Cham people from southern Vietnam moved to the coast of Hainan Island during the Song and Yuan dynasties due to war or typhoons. These 'foreigners' (fanren), who shared customs similar to the Hui Muslims, left behind several ancient coral stone Muslim cemeteries on the coastal sand dunes of southern Hainan. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, the 'foreigners' living in Qiongshan, Danzhou, Wanzhou, and Yazhou of Hainan gradually integrated with the local population. The remaining people all moved to the Suo Sanya Li Fan village, forming the current Sanya Hui Muslim community.

In this article, I will continue to talk about the Sanya Hui Muslims since the late Qing dynasty, as well as the halal food in the two Muslim communities of Huihui Village and Huixin Village.

Table of Contents

1. The Hui Muslims since the Qing Dynasty

1. Traveling to Southeast Asia (Xia Nanyang)

2. Japanese military builds an airport, Hui Muslims forced to relocate

3. From fishing and farming to business

4. Muslims from various places coming to live here

2. Halal food in Huixin Village

3. Halal food in Huihui Village

4. Mosques of the Hui Muslims

1. Changes to the Huihui Mosque

2. Ancient Mosque (Qingzhen Gusi)

3. Northwest Grand Mosque (Qingzhen Xibei Dasi)

4. North Mosque (Qingzhen Beisi)

5. East Mosque (Qingzhen Dongsi)

6. South Mosque (Qingzhen Nansi)

7. Nankai Mosque

1. The Hui Muslims since the Qing Dynasty

1. Traveling to Southeast Asia (Xia Nanyang)

According to the 'Genealogy of the Pu Family in Sanya Port Tong Village,' the Hui Muslims suffered a major disaster during the Xianfeng era. In 1858 (the eighth year of Xianfeng), the foreign village was burned, looted, and attacked by bandits. The survivors had to live in the mountains and forests. The following year, the bandits were wiped out or surrendered, and the Hui Muslims were able to rebuild their homes. However, because of this disaster, many Hui Muslims fled to Singapore, Penang, and Vietnam in Southeast Asia:

'From the beginning until the eighth year of Xianfeng, on the 22nd day of the tenth lunar month at 5-7 AM, we suffered a tragedy. Li bandits from Lingshui, colluding with local Li people, started an uprising. They looted and killed without stopping, burning everything to the ground. Countless people died, and bodies were scattered everywhere.' 'From then until this summer, we lived on the seaside slopes and in the mountains. Our suffering was like catching snakes, and our troubles were like walking through fire. The sky was sad and the earth was sorrowful, and we had nowhere to turn.' 'By the fourth month of the ninth year, we were lucky that the gentlemen and scholars of Yazhou heard of our plight and felt pity. They provided funds for food and fuel, 100 strings of copper coins, and lent them to Sanya to hire local militia to suppress the Li bandits.' 'By the sixth month, the Li bandits in the various villages were terrified and surrendered.' 'Only then could everyone return to rebuild their houses and focus on settling the people.' The population was small, and people fled to places like Singapore, Vietnam, and other foreign ports to start families, with about a hundred people living or dead. Sanya was empty, the people were poor, and the land was barren, so they returned to their old ways of fishing and gathering from the sea.

2. Japanese military builds an airport, Hui Muslims forced to relocate

After the bandit chaos during the Xianfeng era, the Hui Hui people continued their quiet life in Suosanya Village, making a living by fishing. After the Republic of China was established, Yazhou was renamed Ya County, and Fan Village was called Huihui Township, belonging to the Second District of East Ya County.

At dawn on February 14, 1939, the Japanese navy landed on the coast near Sanya and occupied Sanya Bay with almost no resistance.

In the summer of 1940, the Japanese military decided to build a seaplane and land airport in Suosanya, so they moved all the Hui Hui people 4 kilometers west to live in Yanglan. The 350 houses and 4 mosques in Fan Village were all torn down, and the new settlement was called Huihui Village.

After the Japanese left in 1945, some Hui Hui people returned to the old Fan Village, which then became known as Huixin Village or the Old Village, while the name Suosanya was no longer used.

From then on, the Hui Hui people formed two communities: Huihui Village and Huixin Village.

Huihui Village



Traditional clothing for Hui Hui women includes a dark headscarf (gaitou) and a jacket with a slanted right-side opening, fastened with three silver or cloth buttons at the collar and two under the arm, with cuffed sleeves. The shirt has a seam down the center of the chest and back, reaches the hips, and is worn with dark trousers.

The most unique part of Hui Hui women's clothing is the black apron (bufu) worn over the shirt, which is not found among the neighboring Han or Li people.



The earliest Hui Hui people lived in thatched huts, just like the local Li and Han people. To withstand typhoons, these houses were very low and sometimes you could not even stand up straight inside. In modern times, these thatched huts were gradually replaced by brick houses with black tiles, which lasted until the tourism industry in Sanya boomed in the 1990s. Today, there are not many black-tiled brick houses left, as they have mostly been replaced by modern buildings.









On the bus from Huihui Village to Huixin Village



A wedding banquet for Hui Hui people in Huixin Village







Black-tiled brick houses in Huixin Village





3. From fishing and farming to business

By the 1950s and 1960s, the Hui Hui people still made a living by fishing in shallow waters. They used bamboo rafts to carry fishing nets out to sea, and a team of 35 people would pull the nets from the shore in two rows, usually once a day, catching 200 to 300 jin of fish on average, up to 5,000 jin at most, and as little as a few dozen jin at the least.

The Hui Hui people were never good at farming and used to rent their land to the Li people to cultivate. After the People's Commune was established in 1958, the government organized nearby Han and Li people to teach the Hui Hui people agricultural techniques, but it did not work well. After the 1970s, more than 2,000 mu of farmland belonging to the Hui Hui people was given to the Han and Li people in neighboring villages, leaving the Hui Hui with only 200 mu of garden and residential land, mainly for growing vegetables.

After the 1980s, as shallow-water resources were depleted and the Hui Hui fishermen lacked the ability to fish in deep waters, the fishing industry basically stopped, with only occasional small-scale fishing for fish and shrimp as a side job.

Fish market in Huixin Village





Starting in 1979, some Hui Hui women who were unhappy with the economic decline began to go out to do small business. By 1982, almost every Hui Hui family had women selling local specialties and tourist souvenirs in towns and scenic spots, which significantly improved their family lives.

In the 1980s and 1990s, the Hui Hui people gradually formed a trend of going out to do business; besides women selling goods at scenic spots, many men also started working in the passenger transport industry. Since 1982, many Hui Muslim men have bought two-wheeled motorcycles or three-wheeled vehicles to carry passengers between the city center and tourist spots. After Sanya Phoenix Airport was built in 1994, Huihui Village became a major traffic hub because it is right next to the airport. Huihui people started buying minibuses and small buses to run passenger routes from the airport to the city, with men working as drivers and women as conductors.

4. Muslims from various places coming to live here

After Sanya's tourism industry boomed in the 1990s, Huihui Village and Huixin Village became the only two Muslim communities in Sanya, and many Muslim tourists from all over the country chose to stay here. Gradually, the Muslim tourists shifted from young and middle-aged people on short sightseeing trips to older people staying for long periods to escape the cold. Starting every October, Huihui Village and Huixin Village fill up with older Muslim people from Xinjiang, Gansu, Qinghai, and Ningxia, including Uyghur, Salar, Dongxiang, and Hui ethnic groups who come to escape the winter. They live here for the entire winter and do not return home until April or May of the following year.

At this time, you can see Uyghurs wearing floral headscarves (duopa) and Hehuang Hui Muslims wearing white skullcaps and black head coverings (gaitou) mingling together on the streets. Seeing people from Northeast China in shorts makes you think you are in Shenyang in the summer, while seeing Huihui people in floral trousers and headscarves speaking the Tsat language makes you think you have arrived in Southeast Asia. There is halal Hainan food, Yili food, Xining food, Linxia food, and even Xi'an and Henan food here. It feels like a utopia far away from winter.











After the reform and opening up, the first people to come to Huihui and Huixin villages to open shops were Hui, Dongxiang, and Salar Muslims from Gansu and Qinghai. Later, Uyghurs also came to Huihui Village to open Uyghur specialty restaurants, followed by Hui Muslims from Yunnan, Henan, and other places who opened restaurants. Because of this, you can taste halal food from all over the country here.

A shop selling Uyghur embroidered clothing.



A bridge-crossing rice noodle (guoqiao mixian) shop opened by Shadian Hui Muslims.



A restaurant opened by Yili Hui Muslims where you can eat smoked meat with pasta (naren).



A restaurant opened by Henan Hui Muslims where you can eat steamed bowl dishes (kouwan) and braised noodles (huimian).



2. Halal food in Huixin Village





Freshly picked starfruit.





Dried eel made by a Huihui auntie.







Jackfruit.





Cassava.





Beef brisket noodles from Li's Rice Noodle Shop.







Huihui-style sour soup fish from the first fresh fish soup shop. I ordered an eight-tael land fish (luzaiyu). Adding starfruit is a special feature of Huihui sour soup fish. It also came with free coconut-scented red rice.













3. Halal food in Huihui Village

Huihui Village during the day.











Huihui Market.







Old duck porridge.







Beef brisket noodles from Haxuanren Beef Brisket Noodle King.







Seafood congee and beef bone soup from Li's Beef Bone Soup Shop.









Winged beans, stir-fried pumpkin leaves with shrimp paste, and coconut red rice from Hualide Restaurant.









White snails and stir-fried noodles from Phoenix Yueju Restaurant.









Huihui Village at night.



Halal seafood barbecue and coconut milk herbal dessert (qingbuliang). I ordered grouper, saury, and squid tentacles. The herbal dessert had twelve ingredients, which is quite luxurious.



















This is my favorite halal seafood barbecue spot at night. The next night, I went back and ordered tilapia, sea snails, cuttlefish, and squid tentacles. A young Li man was drinking coconut milk herbal dessert (qingbuliang), a young Hui Muslim couple from the Northwest ordered fourteen skewers of grilled steamed buns (kaomantou), and a middle-aged Uyghur couple I have seen on the street many times ordered a lot of oysters. The city management officers did not come today, so we ate happily.











At Hui's Fresh Fish Soup (Huiji Xianyu Tang), I ate clams, oysters, coconut-flavored red rice, and fresh coconut. This shop has a great atmosphere for being on the halal street on Fenghuang Road. There is a small courtyard with two longan trees at the entrance, and it feels so comfortable to sit in the 26-degree breeze.

















I ate spicy crab made with triangle crabs at Dongsheng Seafood Processing Restaurant. Triangle crabs are the cheapest crabs in the shop, costing 80 yuan per jin.









Seafood fish noodles and coconut milk herbal dessert (qingbuliang) at Fatty's Halal Fast Food (Pangzi Qingzhen Kuican).







Wenchang chicken and Hainan wild vegetables, also known as revolution greens (ye tonghao), at Fenghuang Yuwenwei Seafood Food City.







4. Mosques of the Hui Muslims

1. Changes to the Huihui Mosque

During the Ming and Qing dynasties, there were four mosques in Sanya's Fan Village, known as the East, West, South, and North mosques. They were all built in the Han Chinese architectural style, and the largest one was the West Mosque.

In 1931, German ethnologist H. Stubel visited Sanya twice. In his 1937 book, The Li Tribes of Hainan Island: A Contribution to the Ethnology of South China (Die Li-stamme der Insel Hainan, Ein Beitrag zur Volkskunde Sudchinas), he recorded the mosques and Islamic faith of the Huihui people:

There are four Islamic mosques in Sanya. In the largest one, located in the west, we were warmly welcomed by the respected mullah (a title for Islamic scholars) and teachers. They treated us to cakes and eggs soaked in sweet syrup.

The mosques are not very large, but they are beautiful, clean, and built in the Han Chinese architectural style, just like in other parts of China. The Muslims in Sanya belong to the Shafi'i school, and they keep in touch with the Muslims in Guangzhou, especially those at the Huaisheng Mosque (Guangta Si).

According to a respected Han Chinese merchant at the Sanya port, these Muslims are helpful and friendly people who own land, most of which they rent out. Besides hunting, they also fish and own fishing boats. There are a total of 400 Muslim households in Sanya port, about 2,000 people. Their village has been burned down twice.

These Muslims can be divided into two types: one has a narrow face and a long, hooked nose. The other type has a less prominent but wider nose with a sunken bridge and more prominent cheekbones; the latter type is more common. The older men there often have striking beards, and you can see men wearing fezzes everywhere. Muslims who have been on a pilgrimage to Mecca grow long beards and wear popular fez headscarves. The educated people among them can speak very good Mandarin. But others speak a very unique dialect. Most of their numerals come from the Malay language, but other than that, there seem to be no other signs of Malay influence.

In 1940, the Japanese army built an airport in Fan Village, and all four mosques were destroyed. After the Huihui people moved to Yanglan Huihui Township, they renamed the East Mosque as the Ancient Mosque (Gusi) and rebuilt it, and they merged the West and North mosques to rebuild them as the Northwest Grand Mosque. The two rebuilt mosques are similar to the traditional black-tiled brick houses of the Huihui people, only distinguished by signs on the doorways.

After the Japanese army left in 1945, some villagers returned to the old village and rebuilt the South Mosque. At this time, the Huihui people had three mosques.

After 1966, Red Guards from Beijing traveled south to Hainan. Together with Red Guards from Yaxian Middle School, they tore down the mosque of the Hui Hui people, burned religious texts, confiscated robes used for namaz, and banned all religious activities. At that time, some imams led the people to secretly perform namaz by the seaside, in air-raid shelters, or in sugarcane fields. If they were caught, they would be taken away for study sessions or forced labor. Pu Zongli, an old imam in Huihui Village, was taken away to a study session and labeled an unrepentant counter-revolutionary for leading people in secret namaz.

After 1978, the Hui Hui people resumed normal religious activities and began to restore their mosques. In 1978, the North Mosque (Beidasi) was separated from the Northwest Great Mosque. In 1979, the East Mosque (Dongsi) was separated from the Ancient Mosque (Gusi). In 1990, the Nankai Mosque was newly built in Huixin Village (the old village). Since then, Huihui Village has had six mosques.

2. Ancient Mosque (Qingzhen Gusi)

The predecessor of the Ancient Mosque in Huihui Village was the East Mosque of Suosanya Lifan Village. It was reportedly built in 1470 and was originally a Chinese-style building.

In the 1920s, the East Mosque was rebuilt into an Arabic-style reinforced concrete building with an arched design, and the main prayer hall was octagonal.

After 1940, it was destroyed because the Japanese army built an airport there. It was moved to Yanglan Huihui Township, rebuilt, and renamed the Ancient Mosque. It was destroyed again after 1966 and rebuilt in 1982 as a brick house with black tiles.

In 1986, a Muslim delegation from Hong Kong and Macau donated funds to expand it into an Arabic-style building. After renovations in 1999, a dome was added.

The Ancient Mosque was hit by floods twice in 2008 and 2009. During the Mawlid (Shengjijie) in 2010, funds were raised to rebuild it into a more modern Arabic-style building.



3. Northwest Grand Mosque (Qingzhen Xibei Dasi)

The Northwest Great Mosque in Huihui Village was formed by merging the North Mosque and the West Mosque of Suosanya Lifan Village. The West Mosque was reportedly built in 1473. It was destroyed in 1940 for the Japanese airport, then rebuilt in Yanglan Huihui Township as the Northwest Great Mosque by merging with the North Mosque. It was destroyed again after 1966 and rebuilt in 1978 as a Chinese-style palace building.











4. North Mosque (Qingzhen Beisi)

The North Mosque of Huihui Village was originally located in Suosanya Lifan Village and was reportedly built in 1487. It was destroyed in 1940 for the Japanese airport, then rebuilt in Yanglan Huihui Township as the Northwest Great Mosque by merging with the North Mosque. It was destroyed again after 1966, separated from the Northwest Great Mosque in 1978, rebuilt as a Chinese-style palace building in 1981, expanded in 1993, and is currently being rebuilt again.



5. East Mosque (Qingzhen Dongsi)

The East Mosque of Suosanya Lifan Village was reportedly built in 1470. It was destroyed after 1940 for the Japanese airport, moved to Yanglan Huihui Township, rebuilt, and renamed the Ancient Mosque. It was destroyed again after 1966 and separated from the Ancient Mosque in 1979.



6. South Mosque (Qingzhen Nansi)

The South Mosque of Huixin Village was reportedly built in 1487. It was destroyed in 1940 for the Japanese airport, rebuilt as a brick house with black tiles after the Japanese left in 1945, destroyed again after 1966, and rebuilt as a brick house with black tiles in 1978. After several more rebuilds, it reached its current size in 2016.



7. Nankai Mosque

The Nankai Mosque in Huixin Village was built in 1990, with the name meaning 'open south'.

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Summary: Delhi Lodhi Garden — Sultanate Tombs and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: The Lodhi dynasty was the last of the five dynasties of the Delhi Sultanate. It was founded by the Pashtun Lodhi family in 1451 and lasted 75 years until it was conquered by the Mughal Empire in 1526. The account keeps its focus on Delhi Travel, Lodhi Dynasty, Muslim Heritage while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.

The Lodhi dynasty was the last of the five dynasties of the Delhi Sultanate. It was founded by the Pashtun Lodhi family in 1451 and lasted 75 years until it was conquered by the Mughal Empire in 1526. The Lodhi dynasty did not build a new capital in Delhi, so no large palaces remain. However, many tombs and mosques from the Lodhi period are preserved in the southern suburbs of Delhi, serving as the best examples for studying the history and architectural art of the Lodhi dynasty.

If you want to experience the history of the Lodhi dynasty firsthand, the best place to go is Lodhi Garden on the south side of New Delhi. The entire garden covers 360,000 square meters. Major buildings include the tomb of Sultan Muhammad Shah (reigned 1434-1445) of the Sayyid dynasty, the tomb of Sultan Sikandar Lodi (reigned 1489-1517) of the Lodhi dynasty, the Bara Gumbad (Big Dome), and the Shish Gumbad (Glass Dome), which is suspected to be the tomb of Sultan Bahlul Lodi (reigned 1451-1489). Some relics from the Mughal period are also preserved there.

Tomb of Muhammad Shah

Entering from the south gate of Lodhi Garden, the first thing you see is the tomb of Muhammad Shah (reigned 1434-1445), the third sultan of the Sayyid dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate.

The Sayyid family claimed to be descendants of the Prophet Muhammad and originally lived in the Punjab region. The founder, Khizr Khan, became the governor of Multan after Timur invaded the Delhi Sultanate in 1398, and he officially established the Sayyid Sultanate after occupying Delhi in 1414. Muhammad Shah was the grand-nephew of Khizr Khan. During his reign, the territory of the Delhi Sultanate continued to shrink. Sunni Islam was no longer the dominant force, Shia Islam began to rise, and Indian Islamic culture started to take root in areas outside of Delhi.

During the reign of Muhammad Shah, Bahlul Lodi, the leader of the Pashtun Lodi tribe, was highly favored by the Sultan. Thanks to his military achievements, he gained control over most of the Punjab region, laying the foundation for the establishment of the Lodhi dynasty.

The tomb of Muhammad Shah is an octagonal domed building, which is more magnificent than the tomb of the previous sultan, Mubarak Shah. It is very strange that this tomb has no outer walls. Some speculate it was due to a lack of funds, while others think the outer walls likely collapsed later.

This building has a very typical Indo-Islamic architectural style. The central dome (gumbad) is surrounded by decorative spires (guldasta), then by domed pavilions (chhatri), and finally by eaves (chhajja).

Guldasta means 'tied bouquet' in Persian, and in Indo-Islamic architecture, it is usually shaped like a flower. The domed pavilion (chhatri) first appeared on early Indian Sufi tombs in the 12th century. It was later popularized by the Mughal Empire and became a signature feature of Indo-Islamic architecture. In fact, both the guldasta and the chhatri are a fusion of Persian pavilions and the indigenous Indian roof tower (sikhara).

The eaves (chhajja) were relatively rare during the Delhi Sultanate period. They did not become popular until the Mughal period and were later incorporated into Hindu architecture.



















Bara Gumbad

Walking northeast from the tomb of Muhammad Shah, you reach the largest building from the Lodhi period: the Bara Gumbad (Big Dome).

The Bara Gumbad was built in 1490 by Sultan Sikandar Lodi (reigned 1489-1517) of the Lodhi dynasty. It consists of three buildings on a 4-meter-high platform. In the middle of the platform is a tombstone, with the Bara Gumbad on the south side, a Friday mosque (Juma Masjid) on the west side, and a guest house (mehman khana) on the east side. Judging by its shape, the Bara Gumbad looks like a tomb, but no burial has been found underneath, so it is likely the south gate of the platform.

The Bara Gumbad is 29 meters high and features Delhi's first 'full dome,' which is a complete semi-circular dome. The outer wall looks like it has two layers from the outside, but it is actually a single-layer structure inside. This design is very clever. The building is made of gray quartzite and decorated with red sandstone and black stone. All the stones were trimmed and polished, with no plaster used at all.



















The Friday mosque on the west side of the Bara Gumbad was built in 1494. It is in the classic Lodhi style, with three large and two small arches, three domes on top, corner towers on both sides, and stone windows (jharokha) on the sides and back. This design had a great influence on later Mughal architecture.



















The plaster carvings inside the Friday mosque of the Bara Gumbad are perhaps the richest of the Lodhi period. The abundance of floral patterns, geometric designs, and scriptures is overwhelming, making this mosque occupy an important place among mosques in India.



























Shish Gumbad

Directly north of the Bara Gumbad is the Shish Gumbad (Glass Dome), which is said to have been built by Sultan Sikandar Lodi (reigned 1489-1517). The ownership of this dome is still debated. One theory is that it belonged to a nobleman of the Lodhi dynasty, while another suggests it was for the founder of the Lodhi dynasty, Bahlul Lodi (reigned 1451-1489).

The Glass Dome gets its name from the blue tiles that once decorated the exterior of the tomb, making it shine like glass. Currently, only a few blue tiles remain.

The Glass Tomb (Shisha Gumbad) and the Big Tomb (Bara Gumbad) have similar structures. Both look like two stories from the outside, but they are actually only one story inside. The dome is also surrounded by decorative spires called guldasta. However, the interior of the Glass Tomb (Shisha Gumbad) is poorly preserved and covered in bird droppings.

















Tomb of Sikandar Lodi

Northeast of the Glass Tomb (Shisha Gumbad) stands the tomb of the Lodi Dynasty Sultan Sikandar Lodi (reigned 1489-1517). It was built between 1517 and 1518 by his successor, Sultan Ibrahim Lodi (reigned 1517-1526), and is India's first enclosed garden tomb.

Sikandar Lodi was a capable ruler. He expanded the Lodi Dynasty's territory and built the city of Agra between 1504 and 1505, which is the same city where the Taj Mahal is located today. The Lodi Dynasty officially moved its capital to Agra after that, but after Sikandar passed away, his son still buried his father in Delhi.

The tomb is surrounded by a 3.6-meter-high wall with corner towers. The west wall features a prayer wall and three mihrab niches—one large and two small. The south gate is shaped like a convex character and has two domed pavilions (chhatris) inlaid with tiles.

The main building's design follows the tomb of the previous Sultan, Muhammad Shah. Both are octagonal domed buildings, but the main difference is that Sikandar Lodi's tomb lacks the domed pavilions (chhatris).

















The biggest feature of Sikandar Lodi's tomb is the colorful tile decoration inside, which is extremely rare in Lodi Dynasty architecture.











Example of a small Lodi Dynasty mosque

Inside the garden is an example of a small Lodi Dynasty mosque, with the remains of walls and tombs nearby. The mosque has three arched entrances, and the top is decorated with inverted lotus flowers. Unlike the brick buildings of the Mughal era, the Lodi Dynasty used stone even for small structures and applied bright red plaster using traditional fresco techniques.













Mughal Rose Garden

On the south side of Sikandar Lodi's tomb is a group of Mughal-era buildings surrounded by walls, with a two-story gate and a three-arched mosque on the east side. Today this is a rose garden, but there was likely a Mughal tomb in the center of the garden in the past.

The two-story gate features a Bengal-style roof, traditional Indo-Islamic eaves (chhajja), and Mughal-style Lakhori bricks.

The Bengal-style roof mimics the thatched, reed roofs of rural areas in the rainy Bengal region. It first appeared in Bengal in the 16th century and was introduced to Delhi in the 17th century, so it is only seen in buildings from the Mughal era and later.

Lakhori bricks are relatively flat red bricks that were popular from the time of the 17th-century Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan until the early 20th century. During the Delhi Sultanate period, buildings were mainly supported by pillars and beams made of large stone blocks, without the need for mortar. By the time of Shah Jahan, Lakhori bricks were used on a large scale to build houses. These bricks are smaller in size, which allows for more complex architectural decorations.

















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Summary: Hong Kong — Mosques, Halal Food and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: I visited Hong Kong twice in December 2015 and October 2017 to explore the city and its food. I visited several mosques and tried a few halal restaurants. I am sharing what I saw and ate here. The account keeps its focus on Hong Kong Travel, Halal Food, Mosques while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.

I visited Hong Kong twice in December 2015 and October 2017 to explore the city and its food. I visited several mosques and tried a few halal restaurants. I am sharing what I saw and ate here.



There are currently six mosques in Hong Kong. I have visited the Jamia Mosque (Shelley Street Mosque), the Ammar Mosque, and the Kowloon Mosque. I have not yet visited the Stanley Mosque at Stanley Prison, the Chai Wan Mosque at the Muslim Cemetery, or the Ibrahim Mosque, which was newly built in Yau Ma Tei in 2013.

Hong Kong Island Section

The oldest mosque in Hong Kong: Jamia Mosque (Shelley Street Mosque).

The British occupied Hong Kong Island in 1841 and immediately began sending Muslim soldiers from British India to be stationed there. As Hong Kong Island was being built up in the 1840s, Indian Muslims arrived to work as police, security guards, and sailors. A few wealthy merchants also came to open companies. Early Indian Muslims mainly lived in the area of present-day Upper Lascar Row in Central, where they opened the first halal eateries in Hong Kong.

At that time, Indian Muslims had to pray on the street for Jumu'ah and Eid prayers. As the population grew, building a mosque became a necessity.

Mosque Street in Central.



The term 'Moro' originated in the Middle Ages when Spanish Christians used it to refer to Muslims in southern Spain and North Africa. After the Age of Discovery, the Portuguese brought this term to South Asia and Southeast Asia, where they began calling South Asian Muslims 'Moro people.' The British later adopted this usage. The English name of this street, Mosque, refers to a place of worship for Muslims.

Junction Street means the intersection of roads, which is the English word 'Junction'.



At the request of Indian Muslims, the colonial government leased a piece of land to four trustees representing the Muslim community in 1850 to build the first mosque on the island, the Mohammedan Mosque. The mosque was originally just a stone house. Expansion began in 1870, and a formal mosque was completed by 1890. It was rebuilt again in 1915, keeping only the original minaret, and it has remained in use ever since.

After 1945, the mosque was renamed Jamia Mosque. Its Chinese name is the Islamic Mosque and Prayer Hall. Because it is located on Shelley Street, it is also called the Shelley Street Mosque.

The entrance to the Jamia Mosque is right by the famous Central-Mid-Levels escalator, the same one outside Tony Leung's home in the movie Chungking Express.









A stone tablet from the 1915 reconstruction.



The mosque was originally white and was only painted green a few years ago.

















The center of Islam on Hong Kong Island.

Besides the Jamia Mosque, the current center for Muslim activities on Hong Kong Island is the Ammar Mosque and Osman Ramju Sadick Islamic Centre.

The Ammar Mosque can be traced back to a mosque built by Hong Kong Muslims at 7 Seymour Road in 1864. At that time, the mosque was mainly used for funerals. Later, as the number of Muslims increased, it was also used for daily namaz.

After 1945, the Ammar Mosque was rebuilt in Happy Valley. However, in 1978, the government acquired the land where the mosque stood to build the Aberdeen Tunnel. The government provided a new piece of land on Oi Kwan Road and paid 2.5 million dollars in construction funds. The new Ammar Mosque was officially completed in 1981, and its Chinese name was set as the Oi Kwan Mosque.









The Islamic center has many functions. The ground floor is the reception area, the first floor has the wudu area (small cleaning room), the second floor is the men's prayer hall, the third floor is the women's prayer hall, the fourth floor has classrooms, the fifth floor is a restaurant, the sixth floor has seminar rooms and a library, the seventh floor is the Islamic Union office, and the eighth floor houses the foundation office and the youth office.



Reception area.





Wudu area (water room).



Prayer times.



Prayer hall.





Class schedule.



I missed the food fair held to raise money for Syrian refugees.



I had dim sum at the fifth-floor restaurant. I saw many South Asian and Southeast Asian Muslims there, and everyone went straight to the window to order their food.









Take only what you need!





Garlic spring rolls (suanjuan)



Pan-fried radish cake (luobogao)



Smooth yellow pea cake (madougao)



Vegetarian bean curd skin rolls (susu fupijuan)



Vegetarian shark fin dumplings (suchijiao)



Sticky rice with chicken in lotus leaf (nuomi zhenzhuji)





Steamed sponge cake (malagao)



Steamed chicken and mushroom buns (beigu jibao)



I went back for dim sum in October 2017.







Steamed rice noodle rolls with shredded chicken (jisi fenjuan)



Sticky rice with chicken in lotus leaf (nuomi zhenzhuji)



Daliang pan-fried fish cakes (daliang jian yubing)



Egg tofu with shrimp paste (baihua yuzi doufu)



The Islamic restaurant serves regular meals outside of dim sum hours, but they are not as good as the dim sum.





Egg foo young (furong jiandan)





Stir-fried beef rice noodles (ganchao niuhe)



Rice with minced beef and cilantro (xiangqian niusongfan)



Braised grouper fillet with tofu (bannan doufu)



Sand ginger chicken (shajiang ji)



Price



Restaurant







In December 2015, I went to the Islamic Union office on the 7th floor to buy a calendar published by the Islamic Center. The proceeds were donated to Syrian refugees.







In October 2017, I donated money here for Rohingya refugees.





The Ma Da Wu Library on the 6th floor has many books available for free.











In October 2017, I met Haji Ma Pengwei, the chairman of the Da'wah Committee of the Islamic Union of Hong Kong, and received a copy of his book, "Paradise and Hell" (Tianyuan yu Huoyu).





I also received a copy of "Prayer Rituals" (Baikong Yishi), printed and donated by the Hong Kong Muslim Mission in 1962 and compiled by Ma Da Wu.









Halal Wai Kee (Qingzhen Huiji)

Halal Wai Kee is currently the only traditional local halal snack shop on Hong Kong Island. It is located inside the Bowrington Road Market in Wan Chai. It is not easy to find, so if you cannot find it after entering the market, you can ask a local stall owner.





Halal Wai Kee has reportedly been operating near the Canal Road Flyover in Wan Chai for over 60 years. It moved into the Bowrington Road Market when it opened in 1979 and has been there ever since. Wai Kee (Qingzhen Huiji) is open for dine-in from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., so if you plan to go in the afternoon, make sure to arrive early.



Wai Kee is famous for its traditional roasted duck (gualu shaoya) and soy sauce chicken (taiyeji), as well as their own original curry lamb brisket (gali yangnan). Honestly, this is the best curry lamb brisket I have ever had; the flavor is spot on.











The famous Times Square is right next to Wai Kee.



Kowloon Section

Crossing Victoria Harbour, let's talk about Kowloon.



Kowloon Mosque

After the Convention of Peking was signed in 1860, Kowloon was handed over to the British government. Britain immediately began sending British Indian troops to be stationed in Kowloon, and many of them were Indian Muslim soldiers.

In the 1890s, the British built the Whitfield Barracks for the British Indian troops at the current location of Kowloon Park. To meet the prayer needs of the Indian Muslim soldiers, the first Kowloon Mosque was built in the southeast corner of the barracks in 1896.

The early Kowloon Mosque remained a military facility for the barracks until it was handed over to the British Hong Kong government in 1967. In 1970, most of the Whitfield Barracks were demolished to build Kowloon Park, but the Kowloon Mosque was preserved.

Between 1975 and 1979, the Hong Kong MTR (originally the Kwun Tong Line, now the Tsuen Wan Line) began construction. In 1978, the MTR Corporation conducted blasting next to the Kowloon Mosque, which severely damaged the mosque's structure, and it was declared a dangerous building. With compensation from the MTR Corporation and donations from Muslims, the Kowloon Mosque was rebuilt at its current Tsim Sha Tsui site in 1980 and opened in 1984.

Currently, the Kowloon Mosque is mainly used by South Asian and Southeast Asian Muslims and serves as a cultural center for non-Chinese Muslims in Hong Kong.





Many people are resting at the entrance of Kowloon Park, right next to the Kowloon Mosque.



Inside the Kowloon Mosque.





Chungking Mansions

The world-famous Chungking Mansions is located near the Kowloon Mosque and is a well-known multicultural center in Hong Kong.

The most famous record of Chungking Mansions is Wong Kar-wai's film Chungking Express. Brigitte Lin moves through the building, appearing in various shops run by Indians selling handbags and electronics, and in curry restaurants. It is a fantastic capture of Chungking Mansions in the nineties.

Another film is the 1994 Hong Kong movie Neon Goddess, starring Dicky Cheung and Charlie Young, with Charlie Yeung and Irene Wan in supporting roles. The story takes place in a women's apartment on the top floor of Chungking Mansions, vividly portraying the lives of the gay community, Europeans, and Indians in the building. There is a mainland girl abandoned by an Indian man who is raising her mixed-race daughter alone, a middle-aged tailor who flirts with stylish men while measuring them for clothes, a devoted man who bravely runs a curry restaurant, and an original singer trapped by commercialism while chasing his music dreams. Chungking Mansions is a small society, and this warm love story gives us a glimpse of the building in the nineties.

The entrance of Chungking Mansions that I photographed in December 2015.







Takeshi Kaneshiro at the entrance of Chungking Mansions in Chungking Express, running inside.



Wong Kar-wai at the entrance of Chungking Mansions.



The entrance of Chungking Mansions in the movie Neon Goddess.





I learned more about Chungking Mansions from Gordon Mathews' book Ghetto at the Center of the World: Chungking Mansions, Hong Kong.



To briefly introduce the legendary Chungking Mansions using Mathews' words from the book: Chungking Mansions is a seventeen-story dilapidated building filled with small, cheap hotels and shops, standing in sharp contrast to the surrounding tourist areas. This building is arguably the most globalized in the world, where business people and temporary workers from South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa come to seek their fortunes, international refugees seek asylum, and tourists look for cheap accommodation and adventure. People from all walks of life rest in the building, fight for seats at food stalls, haggle in mobile phone shops, and walk through the hallways.

I first visited Chungking Mansions in January 2014. It was very chaotic back then, with a group of Indian men at the entrance soliciting guests for the hostels upstairs, which felt like the classic Chungking Mansions style. When I went again in December 2015, there were no solicitors at the entrance, and the inside was much cleaner and tidier. I visited for the third time in October 2017, and the whole building was just as busy as ever.







Tony Leung and Faye Wong in front of the snack shop.



Christopher Doyle and Wong Kar-wai in front of Faye Wong's snack shop. Actually, there were almost no shops run by Chinese people there at the time; it has always been a shop run by Indian people. This shop is on the 3rd floor of Block A in Chungking Mansions, so friends who also love Faye Wong can go take a look.





Gordon Mathews introduces Chungking Mansions to first-time visitors like this:

Among the dazzling high-rises in the prime location of Nathan Road, there is a plain, or even messy and decaying building. Between the ground floor shops, there is an indescribably dark entrance that looks like it belongs somewhere else. You cross the road and walk toward this entrance, seeing many people nearby who look different from typical Hong Kong residents, and they do not look like shoppers on Nathan Road. If you are Chinese, you might feel like a minority after entering the building and feel lost and overwhelmed. If you are white, you might subconsciously clutch your wallet, feeling a mix of unease and the guilt of someone from a first-world country. If you are a woman, you might feel a bit uncomfortable because there are over a hundred pairs of male eyes watching you.

Chungking Mansions as I photographed it in October 2017.









Wong Kar-wai in the hallway of Chungking Mansions.



In the film Fallen Angels (duoshi tian shi), looking down from the first floor to the ground floor, you can see the Pierre Cardin sign.



My photo of the view from the first floor to the ground floor taken in December 2015.



Gordon Mathews continues: Once you escape the barrage of curry restaurant touts and hostel touts at the entrance, you fall into the whirlpool of people in Chungking Mansions. You may have never seen so many people crowded into such a small place in your life. The scene before your eyes is extraordinary: Africans in bright robes, hip-hop clothes, or ill-fitting suits; devout Pakistanis wearing small brimless caps (topi); Indonesian women in black Islamic veils (hijab); elderly white men in shorts with big beer bellies; and some hippies who look like refugees from a past era. Nigerians talk loudly, young Indian men chat and laugh with their arms around each other's shoulders, and some people from mainland China look unable to hide their surprise at all of this. People of all skin colors wait in line for the elevator, all waiting to go to over a hundred different hostels.

Free Indian movie discs on the ground floor of Chungking Mansions that I photographed in December 2015.



Brigitte Lin in an Indian shop.



In Fallen Angels, the Indian man who helps carry bags in Chungking Mansions expects a tip.



A very classic scene in Fallen Angels: in the Chungking Mansions elevator, Mok Siu-chung takes out a tissue, and Charlie Young is confused. A bunch of Indian people enter, and then Charlie Young realizes why he had to cover his nose.



This scene is the curry restaurant on the ground floor of Chungking Mansions in Fallen Angels, which was likely filmed directly in a Pakistani restaurant.

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Reposted from the web

Summary: Hong Kong — Mosques, Halal Food and Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: In December 2015, I ate at Hong Kee Chinese Restaurant on the ground floor of Chungking Mansions. The account keeps its focus on Hong Kong Travel, Halal Food, Mosques while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.



In December 2015, I ate at Hong Kee Chinese Restaurant on the ground floor of Chungking Mansions.









Stir-fried beef tenderloin noodles with black pepper (ganchao heijiao niuliu mian).



Fried rice with olive vegetables and diced goose (lancai eli chaofan).



Signature crispy fried chicken (zhaopai cuipi zhaziji).



I went back to Hong Kee in October 2017 and ate corn with grouper fillet (sumi bannan) and mixed mushroom and fish maw (zajun cai yudu).







In the film 'Neon Goddesses', Charlie Young says her mother told her when she was little that this place was complicated and wouldn't let her go downstairs.



Max Mok described Chungking Mansions in the early 1990s as having many tourists and many curry shops.



Next to Hong Kee Chinese Restaurant is a Pakistani shop where I bought several South Asian hats.









Hats bought at the Pakistani shop.

This type of skullcap (topi) can be seen in Pakistan and Tajikistan around the Pamir Mountains.





Traditional wool felt cap (pakol).



Red style fez cap (rumi topi).

The fez cap was first worn by ancient Phoenicians living in Cyprus, introduced to the Balkans during the Byzantine era, and later became popular among Bosnians and Serbs during the Ottoman Empire.

In 1826, Ottoman Sultan Mahmud II began comprehensive military reforms, and his modernized army wore Western-style uniforms with fez caps on their heads.

In 1829, the Sultan ordered officials in the country to stop wearing turbans and to wear fez caps instead. This series of measures made the fez cap a symbol of modernization in Islamic countries, and it was not only welcomed by people within the Ottoman Empire but also began to spread throughout the Islamic world.

In South Asia, the fez cap is called rumi topi, which translates literally to 'Roman cap,' because the Ottoman Empire was seen as the successor to the Eastern Roman Empire. At first, only Muslim nobles in South Asia wore them, but later it spread to the common people.



Bismillah Kebab House on the first floor of Chungking Mansions.









Ottoman Mediterranean Cuisine.

Besides Chungking Mansions, there are many halal restaurants in Kowloon. This time I chose a Turkish restaurant, 1453 Ottoman Mediterranean Cuisine on Ladies' Market in Mong Kok.

























Ebeneezer's Kebabs & Pizzeria.

Also, when visiting tourist spots in Hong Kong, there are many halal fast food restaurants. A famous one is Ebeneezer's Kebabs & Pizzeria, which is where we ate this time at Ngong Ping Village on Lantau Island.









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Summary: Seoul — Mosques, Muslim History and Korean Halal Food is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: Looking back at my halal trip to Seoul, South Korea, in 2017. The account keeps its focus on Seoul Travel, Korean Muslims, Halal Food while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.

Looking back at my halal trip to Seoul, South Korea, in 2017.

Muslims in ancient Korea

Persian and Arab merchants arrived in Korea to trade as early as the 9th century during the Silla period. Their numbers grew after the Goryeo period (918-1392). Some Muslim merchants married local women, forming the first Muslim communities in Korea.

During the Yuan dynasty, many people from Central Asia (Semu) came to Goryeo to settle and trade. They built a mosque called Ye-Kung in the capital city of Kaesong. A poem from that time called Sanghwajeom (The Bakery of the Semu) tells the story of a Korean woman going to a halal shop to buy dumplings (jiaozi).

After the Joseon dynasty (1392-1910) began, King Sejong ordered a ban on the religion in 1427. He forbade wearing prayer caps, closed the Kaesong mosque, and the Korean Muslim community fell apart.

The emergence of Korean Muslims

During the Korean War, a Turkish unit with an imam arrived to fight and took part in humanitarian work, serving war orphans in wartime schools. After the war, Turkish soldiers stationed in Korea became UN peacekeepers, and Koreans began to convert to Islam. In 1955, the Korea Muslim Society was founded, and they established the first prayer space in downtown Seoul. In 1967, the Korea Muslim Society grew into the Korea Muslim Federation (KMF), which oversees the Korea Muslim Student Association and the Korea Islamic Culture Institute.

Halal certification mark issued by the KMF



A brochure printed by the KMF containing information about mosques across Korea.



A magazine published by the KMF in 1999, which includes a list of Korean Muslims who converted that year and the halal butcher shops at the time.







Itaewon Muslim community

In 1952, the U. S. military officially set up its headquarters in Yongsan on the Korean Peninsula, which became the United States Forces Korea headquarters after 1957. To meet the needs of the large number of U. S. troops, various foreign restaurants and bars began to appear in Itaewon, not far east of the Yongsan base. Muslims also started coming to Itaewon to open halal restaurants.

In 1976, President Park Chung-hee provided land to the KMF, and the Seoul Central Mosque was built in Itaewon. That year, the number of Korean Muslims grew from fewer than 3,000 to over 15,000, and a halal business district formed in Itaewon. After the 1990s, as Muslims from Pakistan, Bangladesh, Indonesia, and Malaysia came to work, the number of Muslims in Korea reached 150,000. Currently, there are an estimated 100,000 Muslims in Korea, 40,000 of whom are native converts.

A map at the Itaewon subway station entrance showing the Middle Eastern business district and the mosque.



Seoul Central Mosque













There is a school inside the courtyard that provides Arabic language instruction.





Around the mosque, there are halal restaurants with various flavors like Iranian, Indian, and Turkish, as well as halal supermarkets, religious bookstores, and Muslim travel agencies.

Itaewon street view







You can pick up an Itaewon halal travel guide published by the Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism at Incheon Airport, which shows the locations of halal restaurants in Itaewon.









You can see how the Korean government categorizes different types of restaurants:

The first type is called "Halal Certified," meaning that to having at least one Muslim employee, it must receive halal certification from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety.

The second type is called "Self-Certified," which refers to restaurants opened by Muslims themselves that do not sell alcohol.

The third type is called "Muslim Friendly," meaning they may sell alcohol and have a partial or full halal menu.

The fourth type is called "Pork-Free," meaning that although there is no halal menu, they do not use pork.



Breakfast

I stayed at the ITW Hotel in Itaewon. Every morning from 7 to 9, there is a halal buffet breakfast provided by the nearby Indian halal restaurant, ZAFFRAN. Besides the 24-hour Turkish kebab shop MR. KEBAB, most halal restaurants in Itaewon do not open in the morning.







Halal Supermarket

ZAFFRAN MART, the largest halal supermarket in Itaewon.







Religious Bookstore

The religious bookstore in Itaewon is run by a man from Indian-administered Kashmir. We hit it off right away, and he greeted me very warmly when he saw me the next day. They have hats from India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, East Africa, and Malaysia. I bought one made in Pakistan and one made in India.











Hat made in India



Hat made in Pakistan



Makan Restaurant

Although Itaewon has many Middle Eastern, Indian, and Turkish halal restaurants, the most unique ones are the halal Korean restaurants. Makan is the most famous one.



This lady is the chef.



There are 6 types of side dishes.



Grilled fish



Korean rice is delicious!



Soybean paste soup (doenjang-jjigae)



Soaking the rice in the soup.



Korean-style grilled meat bibimbap. The meat was covered by the egg, so I didn't get a photo.





Stir-fried squid and rice cakes (tteokbokki) on a hot plate.



The person in the front right of the picture is also a chef.



Menu





Makan Chicken & Noodle

Besides the main shop south of the mosque, Makan has another shop west of the mosque that specializes in Korean fried chicken and black bean noodles (jajangmyeon). The chef is a man, and it is part of the same business as the main shop.



Korean black bean noodles. The taste is different from Beijing-style black bean noodles, and the noodles are a bit like udon.







The man on the right is the chef.





Menu





Eid

Eid and Makan are tied for the best halal Korean restaurants in Seoul. Although the menu at Eid is not as extensive as Makan's, it is still very delicious.



The chef is this very capable lady.



Ginseng chicken soup (samgyetang)





There are three types of side dishes.



The stewed chicken is great, and the rice cakes (nian gao) inside are delicious.





Hajj

There is also a halal Korean restaurant east of the mosque run by a Korean auntie. She is very friendly, though she has a thick accent when speaking English. I wanted to order bibimbap, but she made me spicy dried fish fried rice instead, so I am not sure how their authentic Korean food tastes.









Evening in Itaewon











Yanggood

Yanggood is the only halal Korean barbecue restaurant in Seoul. It is located in the Gangnam District and is very busy, mostly with Muslim customers who come to try it out. I ordered my favorite lamb ribs. A staff member grilled them for me, so I did not have to do anything. Dipping them in the sweet and spicy sauce was delicious. Eating it with kimchi and a steaming bowl of soybean paste stew (doenjang-jjigae) with rice made me feel warm all over.





























Besides that, there are many Middle Eastern halal restaurants in Itaewon.













There are other fun restaurants in Seoul that I did not find at the time. I will have to leave that as a regret and visit them if I have the chance in the future.



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Reposted from the web

Summary: Mehrauli Archaeological Park — Delhi Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: Today I am introducing an archaeological park in the southern suburbs of Delhi that is well worth a visit. The account keeps its focus on Delhi Travel, Mehrauli, Muslim Heritage while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.

Today I am introducing an archaeological park in the southern suburbs of Delhi that is well worth a visit.

I previously mentioned in 'The First City of Delhi—The Minaret Reaching the Clouds' that in 1193, the Ghurid dynasty general Qutb al-Din Aibak became the governor of northern India. He ruled from the city of Lal Kot in Delhi and officially established the Delhi Sultanate in 1206.

Qutb al-Din Aibak built a massive mosque in Lal Kot, and the Qutb Minar is known as the tallest ancient minaret. Later, two large-scale expansions by his successors, Iltutmish in 1225 and Alauddin Khalji in 1310, made Lal Kot the political, religious, and cultural center of the Delhi Sultanate.

The Qutb Minar site was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1993, and many tourists visit it for its fame. However, on the south side of the site, there is also the 80-hectare Mehrauli Archaeological Park. Although it is not as famous as the Qutb Minar site, it is dotted with over 100 historical monuments spanning a thousand years hidden in the forest, making it equally worth exploring.

The heart of Mehrauli Archaeological Park is the gongbei (shrine) of the famous South Asian Sufi sheikh Qutbuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki (1173-1235). This is the first Sufi gongbei in Delhi and is very prestigious. Around the Qutbuddin gongbei are buried many nobles from the Delhi Sultanate and Mughal Empire periods, spanning from the 13th to the 19th century. These include the son and nephew of a Mamluk sultan, the Sufi mentor of a Lodi sultan, and the foster mother and a general of the Mughal Emperor Akbar. In the 18th century, the Mughal dynasty even built a summer palace right next to the Qutbuddin gongbei, where three Mughal emperors are buried. The tomb of the last emperor, Bahadur Shah II, was also prepared, but he died in exile in Myanmar after being banished by the British.

There are also many mosques in the park. The 15th-century Madhi Mosque combines the styles of an open-air prayer wall mosque and a roofed indoor mosque, making its architectural structure unique. The 16th-century Jamali Kamali Mosque is considered a transition between the Lodi and Mughal architectural styles and holds an important place in the history of Indian architecture. The 18th-century Moti Mosque was built by the Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah I using pure white marble, representing the Mughal dynasty's respect for the Sufi sheikh.



Looking out at Delhi's landmark, the Qutb Minar, from within the park.



Mehrauli Village

The Sufi sheikh Qutbuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki (1173-1235) was born in Osh, in present-day Kyrgyzstan. After inheriting the Sufi tradition of Sheikh Mu'in al-Din Chishti in Osh, he began leading the Chishti Order and came to Delhi to preach during the reign of Iltutmish (reigned 1211-1236), the third sultan of the Mamluk dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate. The sheikh's khanqah (spiritual retreat) was built outside the southwest wall of the Delhi Sultanate capital, Lal Kot, and his dargah (gongbei) was also built there after he returned to Allah.

After the gongbei was built, the Mehrauli village, primarily inhabited by Muslims, gradually formed around it. Because Qutbuddin had a major influence on the development of Sufism in South Asia, his ideas of love and charity influenced not only Muslims but also Hindus, Christians, and Sikhs. Therefore, not only is a grand ceremony held every year on the sheikh's death anniversary (Urs), but believers of various religions also visit the sheikh's gongbei every week. Mehrauli village is very lively every day. On the street, you can see various shops selling Sufi supplies, mainly burial shrouds and fresh flowers for offerings, as well as various scripture amulets and perfumes.

Interestingly, Mehrauli village is also the venue for Delhi's famous interfaith festival, Phool Waalon Ki Sair. This is a celebration attended by both Muslims and Hindus, usually held in September after the rainy season. Led by musicians and dancers, people walk 32 kilometers from Old Delhi, carrying giant fans made of fresh flowers called pankhas, to offer them to both the Qutbuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki gongbei and the nearby Hindu mosque, Yogmaya. This festival originated in 1812. At that time, the Mughal Emperor Akbar II (reigned 1806-1837) had his youngest son, Mirza Jahangir, exiled after a conflict with an East India Company official. His mother, Mumtaz Mahal Begum, made a dua that if her son returned safely, she would offer flowers at the Qutbuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki gongbei. A few years later, Mirza Jahangir returned safely, so his mother went to the gongbei to offer flowers and held a grand celebration in Mehrauli village. to cockfighting, kite flying, wrestling, and swimming, the Mughal court also offered flowers to the Hindu mosque in the village.













There are also many small halal snack shops here. I ate curry with roti bread at one of them, along with onions (piyaz) and a mint-garlic sauce.









The last summer palace of the Mughal dynasty—Zafar Mahal

Right next to the Sufi sheikh Qutbuddin gongbei is the last summer palace of the Mughal dynasty—Zafar Mahal.

Both the Delhi Sultanate and the Mughal dynasty attached great importance to the Qutbuddin gongbei, so much so that the Mughal Emperor Akbar II (reigned 1806-1837) built a summer palace right next to it, later known as Zafar Mahal, meaning 'Palace of Victory'.

The entrance to the palace was rebuilt in 1842 by the last Mughal emperor, Bahadur Shah II (reigned 1837-1857). This red sandstone gate was built in the style of a Hathi gate, designed specifically for riding elephants carrying a Howdah throne to pass through.







The top floor of the gatehouse is an arched room where the court band performed ceremonies, known as Naqqar Khana, which translates to drum house. This type of arched gallery overlooking a courtyard is called a Dalan in Indian architecture. At the very top is the traditional Indian roof eave known as a Chhajja.





Looking down from the Dalan, you see the management committee for the gongbei of Sheikh Qutbuddin to the north. The courtyard contains a 19th-century mosque and several Mughal-era tombs. One of these, the tomb of Empress Murad Bakht, wife of Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II (reigned 1759-1806), has now been turned into a residence.



To the east of the gate are rows of palace ruins. The nearby houses were once built in a European style and featured classic fireplaces. The houses further to the right were built using the traditional Indian Dalan arched structure.







The tomb garden of four Mughal emperors: 1713-1857.

At the far east of Zafar Mahal are two pure white marble buildings, right next to the gongbei of the Sufi Sheikh Qutbuddin. The marble screen enclosure inside was built by Mughal Emperor Jahandar Shah (reigned 1712-1713) as a tomb garden for his father, Bahadur Shah I (reigned 1707-1712). Later Mughal emperors Shah Alam II (reigned 1759-1806) and Akbar II (reigned 1806-1837) are also buried here. It is arguably the best place to experience the history of the late Mughal Empire. The tomb of the last emperor, Bahadur Shah II (reigned 1837-1857), was already prepared, but because he was held under house arrest by the British in Myanmar after 1857 and died far from home, only an empty grave remains for him in Zafar Mahal.

As a follower of Sheikh Qutbuddin, Bahadur Shah II felt a special attachment to this place. Shortly before he passed away, he wrote several Urdu Ghazal lyric poems expressing his sorrow at not being able to be buried here.









Moti Mosque: 1709.

North of the tomb garden is the Moti Mosque, built in 1709 by Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah I, representing the respect the Mughal court held for the Sufi Sheikh Qutbuddin at the time. Bahadur Shah I's father, Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb (reigned 1658-1707), also built a white marble Moti Mosque inside the Red Fort in Delhi. It is larger than the one in Zafar Mahal, but both share the same design of three arches and three domes.











Tomb of Alauddin: 13th century.

In the courtyard of Zafar Mahal lies the tomb of Alauddin, the nephew of Iltutmish (reigned 1211-1236), the third sultan of the Mamluk dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate. He was a loyal follower of the Sufi Sheikh Qutbuddin and was buried next to the Sheikh's gongbei after he passed away.













Jamali Kamali Mosque: 1528-29.

In the southeast of Mehrauli Archaeological Park stands the Jamali Kamali Mosque and tomb, built between 1528 and 1529. The tomb belongs to the famous South Asian Sufi Sheikh and Persian poet Jamali Kamboh, who was a mentor to Sultan Sikandar Khan Lodi (reigned 1489-1517) of the Delhi Sultanate's Lodi dynasty.

The name Jamali comes from the Urdu word Jamal, which means beauty. Jamali belonged to the Suhrawardiyya Sufi order. He traveled widely in his youth and later became a court poet for the Lodi dynasty. Sultan Sikandar Khan Lodi also enjoyed writing poetry, so he often asked Jamali for advice on his work.

After the Lodi dynasty fell in 1526, the first two Mughal emperors, Babur and Humayun, continued to support Jamali. Between 1530 and 1536, Jamali wrote the book Siyar-l-Arifin in Persian, which documented the two major South Asian Sufi orders of the time, the Chishti and the Suhrawardiyya. In 1536, Jamali passed away while accompanying Mughal Emperor Humayun on a military campaign to Gujarat.

The mosque is built of red sandstone and white marble. It is considered a transition between the architectural styles of the Lodi and Mughal dynasties and holds an important place in the history of Indian architecture. The overall design continues the five-arch style of the Lodi dynasty, with the middle arch being the largest and topped by a Lodi-style dome. The mosque sits on a platform, making it look taller from the back, where you can also see octagonal towers and traditional Indian Jharokha stone windows.

The pilasters inside the mosque have a unique grooved design. The five arches correspond to five mihrabs, with the central mihrab being the most exquisite.



















The south gate of the mosque is built of red sandstone and marble and is one of the earliest examples of Mughal architecture.



The tomb has a flat roof decorated with colorful tiles and plaster patterns, carved with inscriptions written by Jamali himself. The decorations inside are said to be beautiful, but unfortunately, the door was locked when I visited, so I could not see them.



Tomb of Khan Shahid: 1286

Further south of Jamali Kamali mosque is a 13th-century tomb. It belongs to Khan Shahid, the son of Ghiyas ud din Balban, the ninth sultan of the Mamluk dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate, who reigned from 1266 to 1286. Khan Shahid died in battle against the Chagatai Mongols in 1286, which is how he earned the title Khan Shahid.

The entire site has a 5-meter-high wall, three gates, and two heavily collapsed tomb structures inside.

Today, it is a simple and tidy open-air mosque. I had never seen an open-air mosque among ancient ruins deep in the woods back home, and this was my first time seeing one in India. I was deeply moved the moment I walked through the gate, a feeling you cannot get just by looking at photos. It lacks the grandeur and bustle of a large mosque, but it has a unique charm that drew me in. Time seems to stand still here, free from outside interference, with only the centuries-old devotion of the Muslim community. No matter the environment, as long as you have faith in your heart, even ruins can be a place for prayer.















Madhi mosque: Lodi dynasty, 15th century

Continuing south from Jamali Kamali mosque, you reach Madhi mosque, built during the Lodi dynasty in the 15th century. The mosque is hidden in a mango orchard and is now a playground for pigeons and monkeys.

The design of this mosque is unique and very distinctive. The mosque sits on a platform. On the east side is a Lodi-style domed gate featuring stone windows (jharokha) in a very local Indian style. After climbing the steps and passing through the gate, you can see a spacious courtyard. There used to be graves in the middle of the courtyard, but most are gone now.

On the west side of the courtyard is an open-air prayer wall (qibla wall) consisting of three mihrabs, one large and two small. There were once carvings of scriptures on it, but almost nothing remains. Around the mihrabs are a series of small niches, and the top still has blue tiles often seen on Lodi dynasty buildings.

Interestingly, two roofed arcades were built on both sides of the prayer wall. This structure, which sits between an open-air prayer wall mosque and a roofed indoor mosque, is extremely rare, and there is still no definitive research explaining why it was built this way.



















Bagichi mosque: Lodi dynasty, 15th century

To the west of Madhi mosque is another Lodi-era open-air prayer wall mosque called Bagichi. These two mosques are very similar in shape, both on large platforms, and the mihrabs are almost identical.

As a historical site in the archaeological park, it should be managed by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) like Madhi mosque. However, to address the education of local Muslim children, the Wakf board, which manages the mosque, currently uses it as a madrasa where local children can come to study.

After being kindly reminded that photography is prohibited inside the courtyard, I stayed outside and filmed the students playing cricket. The children here are all very cute and love to have their photos taken.



















Rajon ki Boli stepwell: 1506

In the forest of the Mehrauli Archaeological Park in Delhi, there is a very beautiful stepwell (boli) called Rajon ki Boli, built in 1506 during the Lodi dynasty (1451-1526). The name Rojan likely comes from the stonemason Raj.

This Boli stepwell has four levels, including arched walkways and inner rooms, but you can usually only see three levels because the bottom one holds water. The Boli stepwell was not just for storing water; it was also a great place to cool off during the summer.





Above the Boli, there is a mosque and a tomb with a twelve-pillared domed pavilion (chhatri). The inscription says it was built in 1506 by Daulat Khan Khwaja Muhammad. The mosque features rich calligraphy carvings, and the top of the tomb has the classic petal design of the Lodi dynasty.

This combination of a stepwell, mosque, and tomb represents the Muslim view of the two worlds. The stepwell was built to help the neighborhood in this life, while the mosque and tomb were built to help reach Paradise in the next life.















Adham Khan's Tomb: 1562

At the intersection southwest of the Qutub Minar area stands an octagonal tomb (gongbei) from the Mughal dynasty, built in 1562. It sits on the southern wall of Lal Kot, the first city of Delhi. The tomb belongs to Maham Anga, the foster mother of the Mughal Emperor Akbar, and her son, Adham Khan.

Maham Anga was very skilled at improving her own status and her son's position in the Mughal court. In 1560, Akbar had a falling out with his regent, Bairam Khan. For the next two years, Maham Anga became the actual regent of the Mughal dynasty, and her son became a top general.

In 1562, Adham Khan tried to murder his rival, Atagh Khan, who was Akbar's favorite general. Akbar caught him immediately. Akbar ordered his men to throw Adham Khan off the city wall twice until he died. Maham Anga was heartbroken when she heard the news of her son's death and died of grief just forty days later.

After Maham Anga and her son died, Akbar ordered a tomb to be built for them. Although it was built at the same time as Humayun's Tomb, this is the last octagonal tomb (gongbei) in the Lodi dynasty style in Indian history. Some say it was designed specifically for a traitor because octagonal shapes do not appear in any other Mughal buildings of that time, though they were common in the earlier Sur dynasty and the Lodi dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate. Adham Khan's tomb also has some early Mughal features, such as the six-pointed star patterns on the outer wall, which are exactly the same as those on Humayun's Tomb.

In the 1830s, a British officer named Blake turned this place into a dining hall and removed the tombstones of Maham Anga and her son. After Blake died, the site was used as a guesthouse, a police station, and a post office. Between 1899 and 1905, Viceroy George Nathaniel Curzon ordered the tomb to be restored and Adham Khan's tombstone replaced, but his mother Maham Anga's tombstone was never found.



















Chaumukha Darwaza: 14th-15th century

When you exit the southeast gate of the Qutub Minar area and take the small path into the archaeological park, the first monument you see is the ruins called Chaumukha Darwaza. It is believed that this was once a gate to the city of Lal Kot. It has the style of the Tughlaq dynasty (1320-1413) of the Delhi Sultanate and may have been repaired during the Lodi dynasty.













Muhammad Quli Khan's Tomb: Early 17th century

South of Chaumukha Darwaza is an octagonal Mughal tomb from the early 17th century with beautiful calligraphy carvings. The tomb belongs to Muhammad Quli Khan, who was the son of Maham Anga, the foster mother of the Mughal Emperor Akbar (reigned 1556-1605), and the younger brother of Adham Khan.

After the 19th century, the site was bought by Sir Thomas Metcalfe, an agent to the court of the last Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah II (reigned 1837-1857). He converted it into a vacation garden in the European style called Dilkhusha, which means 'joy of the heart' in Urdu.

Sir Metcalfe turned the tomb into a dining hall and added wings as living rooms, bedrooms, and bathrooms. Today, only the ruins of one wing remain. Besides this, Sir Metcalfe converted other nearby buildings into guest rooms, staff quarters, and stables, but many of these have not survived.



















Other Lodi Dynasty Tombs: 15th-16th century

South of Adham Khan's tomb is a tomb from the Lodi dynasty (1451-1526) of the Delhi Sultanate. The person buried here is unknown. The tomb sits on a platform. In the center is a domed pavilion (chhatri) made of twelve pillars, surrounded by more than twenty graves. There is an octagonal corner platform on each side of the terrace.









Stroll along the forest paths in the eastern part of the archaeological park to see a series of tombs from the Lodi dynasty. These structures were once half-buried in silt, but the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) recently cleaned and restored them.









The park contains many other Lodi dynasty tombs and prayer wall mosques, including many ancient monuments with no clear historical records.











A simple and classic Lodi dynasty tomb and prayer wall design. The tomb connects to the prayer wall, which features three mihrabs—one large and two small.



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Reposted from the web

Summary: Mehrauli Archaeological Park — Delhi Muslim History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English. The account keeps its focus on Delhi Travel, Mehrauli, Muslim Heritage while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.





Collapse Read »