SPATIAL PRACTICES OF MOSQUES IN TOKYO

Abstract

In a Muslim-majority country, the mosque is a significant urban facility found throughout the city. As Japan is not Muslim-majority country, the number of mosques is quite small. The typical mosque is deconstructed into behavioral norms and their associated architectural norms that must be maintained by the facility to be used as a mosque in Tokyo. Each of the behavioral norms, Adhan, Wudu, Iqamah, Salat and Khutbah, are associated with an architectural norm. The Adhan is given at the Minaret. The Wudu is performed in the Wudhu area. Salat is performed in the Salat area that contains the Minbar and Mihrab, where the Khutbah and Iqamah are also performed. This study takes the 11 mosques in Tokyo as case studies. Through interviews with the users and field surveys, the management of the mosque, sequence and adaptations of each of the mosques was examined. The case studies show how architectural norms are modified to accommodate specific behaviors of religious practices.In Tokyo, different adaptations of the architectural norms are found. In Minaret, there are: Typical Minaret, Object and Painted. In Wudu area, there are: Built-In and ready-made Products. In the Salat area, there are: One Room, Mezzanine and Divided. In Mihrab, there are: Mihrab, Corner and Wall. In Minbar: Typical Minbar, Gazebo, Podium and Chair. A typical mosque cannot be perfectly replicated in Tokyo, with many conflicts arising between the typical architectural norms and the city condition. The practice of Adhan is removed, devolving the minaret into non-functional adaptations. But practices such as Wudu and Salat are crucial to a mosque and their associated areas were adapted but never removed. The separation of women and men in the Salat and Wudu areas is an important factor in each of the mosques. The Wudu and Salat areas are used to compare the different mosques and to organize them into seven pat-terns of adaptations, from A - G. A: the Salat is One room and the Wudu is Built-In; B: the Salat area is One room and the Wudu area has Ready-made Products; C: the Salat area is divided by a Mezzanine and Wudu area is Built-in; D: the Salat area is divided by a Mezzanine and the Wudu area is combination of Built-in and Ready-made Products; E: the Salat area is divided by floor and Wudu area is Built-in; F: the Salat area is divided by floor and Wudu area is combination of Built-in and Ready-made Products; G: the Salat area is divided by floor and Wudu area has Ready-made Products. After clarifying the management of the mosques and the adaptations of the architectural norms, it was seen that while all mosques provide a space for communal Salat, some cases are established with the cultural influences of a certain country, either as an independent facility or an annex to an institution, while others do not. The mosques in Tokyo display the diverse prac-tices that the mosques undertake to facilitate the Muslim identity.