Investigating Female Accessibility and Prayer Space in Mosque Architecture: A Case Study in Dhaka, Bangladesh

Abstract

The paper aims to highlight the lack of prayer space and accessibility for females in mosques in Bangladesh. The paper argues that it is fundamental to consider designing accessible prayer spaces for women while designing mosques. The study examines Islamic scriptures and proves that despite having instructions, women are unacceptable to enter mosques without separate prayer spaces merely as a social phenomenon. Six Sample mosques were selected for study within walkable distance from a central location point of Kafrul thana in Dhaka city. The data collection method includes Non-participant Complete Observation for the study of the cases. The research outcome shows that none of the community mosques allow or have prayer spaces for women as a result of a shortage of space. A mosque facilitated with female provision located at the nearby planned area was also featured in this paper to represent the status of female prayer space in a mosque where it is available in the city.

Keywords

• Muslim Community
• Community Mosque
• Mosque Architecture
• Female Prayer Space

References

1. [1] Pew Research Centre. (2011, January 27). The Future of the Global Muslim Population. Pew Research Centre.
2. [2] Tribune Desk. (2022, July 27). Census 2022: Number of Muslims increased in the country. Dhaka Tribune. https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/291196/census-2022-number-of-muslims-increased-in-the-country
3. [3] Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics. (2022). Population And Housing Census-2022 Preliminary Report. Bangladesh: Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics. https://sid.portal.gov.bd/sites/default/files/files/sid.portal.gov.bd/publications/01ad1ffe_cfef_4811_af97_594b6c64d7c3/PHC_Preliminary_Report_(English)_August_2022.pdf
4. [4] Tribune Desk. (2022, July 27). Census 2022: Bangladesh’s female population 83.34m, male 81.71m. Dhaka Tribune. https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/2022/07/27/census-2022-bangladeshs-female-population-8334m-male-8171m
5. [5] Nawawi, N.M., Rahim, Z.A., Majid, N.H.A., Kassim, P.S.J., (n.d.). Investigation on Women’s Space in Masjid Architecture: Case Study of Selected Masjids in Malaysia. Academia. https://www.academia.edu/9511578/
6. [6] Rabbani, R. (2019, December 16). মসজিদে নারীদের নামাদির সুদ াগ থাদে না কেন? (Why Women Do Not Get Access into the Mosques?). Fateh24 News. https://fateh24.com/
7. [7] Al-Bukhari, M.I.I. (1997). The Translation of the Meanings of Sahih Al-Bukhari Arabic-English (Volume 1-9). Riyadh: Dar-us-Salam.
8. [8] Sulaiman, A.D. (2008). English Translation of Sunan Abu Dawud. (Volume 1-5) Riyadh: Dar-us-Salam.

9. [9] An-Nasai, A. S. A. (2007). English Translation of Sunan An-Nasa'i (Volume 1-6). Riyadh: Dar-us-Salam.
10. [10] Muslim, I.H. (2007). English Translation of Sahih Muslim (Volume 1-7) Riyadh: Dar-us-Salam
11. [11] At-Tirmidhi, I.E. (2007). English Translation of Jami' At- Tirmidhi. (Volume 1-6) Riyadh: Dar-us-Salam.
12. [12] HajjUmrahPlanner.com, (2023). Hajj & Umrah Planner. Sunnah Projects. https://hajjumrahplanner.com/masjid-nabawi/
13. [13] Utaberta, N., Omi, S.F., Roslan, S.B., & Ariffin, N.F. (2018). An analysis of women’s access and participation in the mosques in the contemporary world. IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering. IOP Publishing Ltd. DOI: http://doi.org/10.1088/1757-899X/401/1/012032
14. [14] Nyhagen, L. (2019). Mosques as Gendered Spaces: The Complexity of Women’s Compliance with, And Resistance to, Dominant Gender Norms, And the Importance of Male Allies. Religions. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel10050321
15. [15] Nawawi, N.M., Rahim, Z.A., Majid, N.H.A., Kassim, P.S.J., (2017). Women Space in the Design of Masjid in Malaysia: How Much Space do Women Need? Journal of Computational and Theoretical Nanoscience. 23(7):6294-6298. https://doi.org/10.1166/asl.2017.9255
16. [16] Al-Fassi, H. (2006, 30 August). The Rights of Women in the Grand Mosque. Arab News, Saudi Research and Publishing Company [Riyadh]. https://www.arabnews.com/node/280788
17. [17] Stickdorn, M., Hormess, M., Lawrence, A., & Schneider, J. (2018). This Is Service Design Doing: Applying Service Design Thinking in the Real World.(Chapter 5). O’Reilly Media Publishers.
18. [18] Baharuddin, N.A., & Ismail, A.S. (2014). Communal Mosques: Design Functionality towards the Development of Sustainability for Community. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences. 153: 106-120. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.10.046
19. [19] Islam, S., Miah, S. (Eds) (2021, June 18). Banglapedia: National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh. https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php/Kafrul_Thana
20. [20] Mosjid Directory of Bangladesh. (2023). Dhaka City Masjid List-Kafrul Thana. https://mosjid.info/index.php/thanas-of-dhaka-city/kafrul-tahana/
21. [21] Patton, M.Q. (2002). Qualitative research & Evaluation Methods (3rd ed.). 194-195. SAGE Publications.
22. [22] Azhar, D.W., Putri, W.F., & Asbari, M. (2022). The Role of Islamic Religious Education in growing a sense of Nationalism. Journal of Information Systems and Management. https://doi.org/10.4444/jisma.v1i1.5
23. [23] Dogra, S.A., Rai, K., Barber, S., McEachan, R.R., Adab, P., & Sheard, L. (2021). Delivering a childhood obesity prevention intervention using Islamic religious settings in the UK: What is most important to the stakeholders? Preventive Medicine Reports. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pmedr.2021.101387
24. [24] Pouradeli, S., Najafipour, R., Mohammadi, F.D., Hosseini, F., & Rezaeian, M., (2021). A Review of Suicide in the Mirror of Islamic Hadiths and Traditions. Journal of Suicide Prevention. https://isssp.ir Article ID: e20210003