Mosque - Functions

are commanded to offer prayer (salah) five times a day: before sunrise (fajr), at midday (dhuhr), in the afternoon (asr), at sunset (maghrib), and in the evening (isha'a). Although Muslims are not required to offer prayer inside a mosque, it is considered seventy times better to offer prayer in congregation at a mosque than to offer it alone.

In addition to holding the five ordinary daily prayers, mosques hold Friday prayers (Arabic transliteration: jumu'ah). While the ordinary daily prayers can be performed at any location, it is required that all teenage and adult men attend Friday prayers at the mosque. During the month of Ramadan, tarawih prayers are usually offered in major Sunni mosques. These prayers, which can last for up to two hours each night, result in the entire Qur'an being recited within the holy month. However, these prayers are only recommended in Sunni Islam and non-existent in Shi'a Islam. Other special prayers offered at the mosque include the funeral prayers (Arabic transliteration:janazah) and Eid prayers offered in commemoration of the two Islamic festivals, Eid ul-Fitr and Eid al-Adha. Both the funeral prayers and Eid prayers are traditionally held outdoors in a large courtyard. Some mosques, especially those in less favorable climates, will offer Eid prayers indoors in the same location as the five daily prayers. However, funeral prayers may not be held in the same location as the daily prayers, and thus they are held outside or in another area regardless of the climate.

Before the five required daily prayers, a muezzin calls the worshippers to prayer from the minaret (Arabic transliteration:manara). Although, the call to prayer (adhan) is not required, nearly every mosque practices it as it is a recommended practice or sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad.

Mosque - Other functions

Mosques are not meant solely for the purpose of prayer. Mosques are also community centers, places where Muslims are able to gather for social activities. During Ramadan, mosques will host iftar dinners where Muslims can break their fasts. Large mosques will often host dinners and other events where politicians and important Islamic scholars are invited to speak. Many mosques will have offer classes for those interested in learning more about Islam; Arabic and Qur'anic recitation classes are commonplace at mosques outside Arabic-speaking countries. Full-time schools for students in elementary school, and sometimes in high school, can be found at some mosques in countries where Muslims are not the majority and students are unable to get an Islamic education in state-funded schools. Some mosques will even have recreational facilities, such as basketball courts, or medical facilities to help promote the mosque as a place where the community can come together.