Niujie Mosque Beijing

The Niujie (Ox Street) Mosque in Beijing's Xuanwu District, the spiritual centre for the 10, 000 Muslims living in the vicinity, is the biggest and oldest one in Beijing. Beijing has about 250,000 Muslims. The Niujie Street in Xuanwu District, where the mosque is located, is the largest area inhabited by Muslims in Beijing.

Architecture
The Niujie Mosque is a famous Islamic temple covering an area of approximately 6000 square meters. The mosque is a mixture of Islamic and Chinese cultures. Niujie Mosque consists of an observation tower, prayer hall, and minaret with a pavilion on each side. More information...

History
The Niujie mosque, the largest among the 68 mosques in the Chinese capital, was built in 996 AD during the Liao Dynasty (916-1125), the mosque was rebuilt in 1442 in the Ming Dynasty and expanded in 1696 under the Qing Dynasty. It is now one of the major mosques in north China. More information...

Custom of Muslins
Muslims must wash their whole bodies on Friday, the major prayer day. They only need to wash their heads, hands and feet on other days. Muslims are supposed to pray five times a day at dawn, at mid-day, in the afternoon, at dusk, and in the evening. Adults who have no time to pray during their working hours come in the early morning before work and in the evening after work.

Non-Muslim visitors are also welcome, but they have to make arrangements in advance. They may have a look around and hear explanations from the imams or staff of the Islamic Society. But when prayer is going on, they are not permitted to enter the prayer hall.