mosques etiquette, Istanbul

Remember that no one is allowed inside the mosques without first covering their shoulders and knees. As far as we could tell, all Turkish men wear slacks no matter what the weather is like, so it's no big deal for the locals. But tourists used to wearing shorts and/or tank tops should dress appropriately. If you forget, it's not a big deal because all the mosques have shawls and velcro skirts you can borrow at the entrance. Some mosques also require women to cover their heads, but scarves can be borrowed at those mosques.

Even though I knew about these rules before our trip, we took an unscheduled visit to the Blue Mosque on our first day in Istanbul to escape the pesky salesmen around the Hippodrome. My wife and I were both wearing shorts, which was no big deal for my wife because she looked fine in the borrowed skirt. I attracted more than a few giggles as I strolled around in my skirt though. I'll even let you laugh at me in my skirt in the photo I'm providing. Oh well. I'm just grateful they let me in at all.

Inside the mosque women have a separate area to pray, usually at the back of the mosque. I spend sometime in this area and discover that there is a Library with different books.

After prayer a lot of the women stayed to wonder through the books.

Although visitors need not go through this ritual before entering mosques, it was interesting to see Muslims preparing themselves for prayers by washing their feet, hands, and heads before entering mosques to pray.

Before you enter the Mosque , you have to take of your shoes , and enter without them .
Nice young man in front of the Blue Mosque gave us bags to put our shoes in ... You can see some wet feet on pic LOL ( so there wont be any confusion , my feet got wet before entering the mosque It was snowing in Istanbul , my shoes were not exactly prepared for that ... :)

The majority of Turks are Muslim (about 99% of the population) of the Sunni creed. Hence, ISLAM is the principle religion in Turkey. Islam means devotion to God (Allah) & the basic belief is Allah created the world & everything shares the same roots as Christianity & Judaism except the belief about Jesus' divinity & status as a savior. Adam, Abraham, Moses, David, Jesus & Mohammed are all prophets while Mohammed is the greatest. It is believed that Mohammed is God's messenger & it was to him that God communicated his last revelation; being the last prophet. Muslims worship only God, no other. In Arabic, MUSLIM means one who has submitted to God's will.

Islamic teaching is recorded in the KORAN (which has sura -114 chapters) - Kur'an-i Kerim (Holy Koran) contains God's revelations to Mohammed. Koran (being sacred) cannot be translated & exits in Arabic only.

Sunna is the "rules of life" which governs the private & public behavior. (Sunna is a combination of the utterances of the prophets + The Koran)

In order to be a Muslim, one needs only submit his/her heart to God's will & perform a few religious duties - Specifically 5 Pillars of Islam:

1) Profession of faith - understand & believe "There is no god but God & Muhammed is his Prophet".
2) Daily Prayer - 5 times (dawn, noon, mid-afternoon, dusk & after dark).
3) Duty to give alms to the poor.
4) Fasting during Ramadan month
5) Pilgrimage to Mecca - once in his/her lifetime.

Muslim prayers are set rituals. Before praying, he/she must wash hands, arms, feet, ankles, head & neck in running water. As pictured, outside the mosques, one can usually find places for the Muslims to clean themselves with running water. If no water is available, one can clean with sand instead. If no sand, motions will suffice. After this ritual, he/she must cover his/head, face Mecca & perform a series of gestures & genuflections.

When you enter the mosque, you will be expected to take your shoes off and put on some slippers. If you are a woman, I suggest you wear something not too sexy or suggestive, unless you just love to be stared at.

Fountains such as the one pictured here are found outside of every mosque. Before entering for prayers, a Muslim must have ablution, or the washing of the hands, face, neck and feet before his prayers will be accepted.

When you enter in a mosque you should take your shoes off.This costum is part of the Islamic Religion.Also women should be dressed well with no naked parts of the body.But this is in every religion.