Hello all! We'll be heading to Marrakech for about a week next month. We will also be in Granada, where there is a mosque with a call to prayer so this may be an issue in that one small section also: what is appropriate behavior if you are out and about during a call to prayer? I would personally feel it wrong to take photos or videos of the participants, But should we remain still? Silent? Do we go about business as usual? I don't want to offend anyone. Thanks for any insight!
Posted by
Edinburgh
2676 posts
I have spent a bit of time in a strict muslim country and just ignored the call to Prayer(several times a day).it is not as though they get down in the street and do their prayers they have a routine they go through and most will attend the mosques .Just go about business as normal and don't worry about the calls to prayer.Like you I certainly would never take pictures of any at their devotions.
Posted by
Utah
455 posts
In Turkey tourists are not permitted inside mosques during prayer times. Religious devotions are not performed in public as they are in some Buddhist countries. I suspect it will be the same in Morocco. Just enjoy the sounds of the call. It's especially interesting if there is more than one mosque nearby.
Posted by
Tel Aviv
15768 posts
As far as I can remember, every mosque ushers visitors out a few minutes in advance and only allows visitors in after the faithful have left. You can record the call to prayer if you want. Here most of the mosques use a pre-recorded call to prayer, though in Turkey I was told that they are all "live." Think of the call to prayer as similar to church bells calling the congregants. If you want to visit major mosques, get the prayer times in advance so you can time your visit. The prayer times change day by day (by a couple minutes) and are place-specific, so the times in Marrakech are not necessarily the same as in Fes. Here's a website for times.
Posted by
OP
Pittsburgh, PA, USA
712 posts
Thanks all! I think I had a completely incorrect concept of what happens during this time. I has imagined that anywhere and everywhere (even on sidewalks) when the call to pray came, the faithful would have their mats ready and kneel. I don't know why I thought of it that way, But thanks for the clarification!
Posted by
TN, USA
2144 posts
Monique,
If you have a local guide, get him to explain the process of prepping for prayer .. the washing...what gets washed, in what order and (most interestingly) the why's. What can (possibly) be skipped and why. Travel does expand our understanding of the world and its people.
We had already visited Istanbul several years ago (and loved it), but we were surprised at how different the call to prayer sounds in Mararkech, likely because of the difference in speakers used.
Posted by
CA
2128 posts
We saw men on their prayer rugs on the streets in Egypt but not in Istanbul. You will find many not paying attention to the" call" to prayer too. Our guide in Egypt said that the call can be ignored but that they must pray 5 times a day. I don't know if that is true but that is the answer I got. Many ignored the" call" in Turkey too.