Evaluating possible innovative and sustainable approach of mosque in contemporary world

Mosque is one of the major establishment within a Muslim community in countries with Muslim majority as well as countries where Muslims are minority. It is almost inevitable that every Muslim community would have at least one mosque within the locality. For most of the cases in Muslim major countries, there are more than one mosque to be found in any locality. These carries the sign of different ideologies and isms of architecture according to their contextual variance. In contemporary world, where environmental issues are given high priority, identifying sustainable approach for designing mosques are strongly recommended. This paper aims to analyze the principles of Islamic teachings toward attaining a balanced built environment and its implication on developing a sustainable language for mosque architecture in contemporary world. It analyzes the indigenous characteristics of the Prophet's (pbuh) mosque and draws lessons from therein. It also presents discussion on the contemporary Polder Mosque in Netherlands and its innovative sustainable features. Recommendations are made consequently regarding sustainable approach of mosque design in the contemporary world at the end of this paper

Re-Discovering the Ingenuity of Contemporary Malaysian Mosques’ Architecturral Characterisitic As One of the Prime Symbol of South-Asian Islamic Tourism Hub

To develop Malaysia into the most popular Islamic tourism hub in the world, it is important to identify and promote the uniqueness of Malaysia in terms of tourist spots, facilities and Muslim-friendly practices. Currently Malaysia faces tough competition with similar Islamic tourism hubs such as Turkey and the UAE. Staying ahead in this race requires efficient ‘Rebranding’ of the tourist spots and facilities. Malaysia’s tourism potential is enhanced by its rich cultural diversity. This is reflected by the wide range of architectural styles that contribute to Malaysia’s unique architecture. This is particularly evident in the country’s mosques which are constructed in various styles reflecting colonial, modernism and modern contemporary stylistic influences inspired by a number of ethnic subcultures, foreign influences, technology utilization, and the political environment. In this research, three contemporary mosques have been selected for investigation. Generally, the architectural styles of the modern mosque can be grouped into two categories. The first category contains the modern styles which emphasize the advancement in building technology and engineering (i.e. Masjid Tunku Mizan Zainal Abidin). The second category covers the Islamic influences found in countries including Turkey, the Middle East, and Northern Africa (i.e. Masjid Putra). This research will attempt to formulate framework to re-evaluate the classifications for these two categories, before suggesting how these distinctive features might encourage Islamic tourism in Malaysia.   Keyword: Tourism, Uniqueness, Contemporary Malaysian Mosque

Understanding Flood Vulnerability Issues in Hulu Langat Residential Zone: A Study of Taman Sri Nanding, Hulu Langat, Malaysia

Flood vulnerability issues in residential zones in Taman Sri Nanding, Hulu Langat, Malaysia require to be addressed, analyzed and carefully recorded. This is because the residential zones are severely affected and immediately need to implement effective strategies in mitigating flood hazards. However, there are limited research in understanding flood vulnerability issues in residential zone with respect to Taman Sri Nanding, Hulu Langat, Malaysia. There are no framework provided on dealing with the existing flood vulnerability issues in residential zones. The aim of this paper is to understand the flood vulnerability issues in residential zones in Taman Sri Nanding, Hulu Langat, Malaysia and put forward a framework to mitigate the flood hazards.  Qualitative research methodology is adopted for this research through analysing the perspectives of local with open-ended questionnaires. It has been found that there are still more actions required to implement by the local authority in order to provide better living conditions for the residents of Taman Sri Nanding. Moreover, careful considerations should be made for low income group of Taman Sri Nanding, who are the most vulnerable during flood. Hence, it is significant to take into account of the perspectives of local authority for carrying further this research

Mosques as emergency shelters in disaster prone regions

Providing emergency shelter for the victims of natural disasters is part of disaster risk reduction (DRR) strategies. It is essential for the proper management of resources in the communities during emergency time. The approach toward providing emergency shelter to the victims varies in different contexts depending on the availability of suitable places. Organizations like IOM and FEMA have proposed a framework for appropriate planning and design of emergency shelters. These bodies also encourage local disaster management authorities in their guideline to utilize existing structures like schools, community centers, etc., as an emergency shelter for the victims. However, recent flood occurrence in India, UK, and Malaysia showed that the institution of the mosque is highly appropriate to be used as an emergency disaster shelter. This study analyzes the compatibility of mosque institution as a potential place for emergency shelter. The analysis follows the criteria set by IOM and FEMA to design properly functioning emergency shelter. Then, based on these criteria the design of common mosques is discussed considering different aspects such as location, capacity, and facilities. The institution of the mosque is also analyzed from the perspective of Islamic theology and how it is recommended for mosques to provide social and welfare services to the community. This paper recommends further study in this regard to proposing specific guidelines for the mosque so that it can be utilized as an existing structure for providing emergency shelter for disaster victims

The significance of vertical farming concept in ensuring food security for high-density urban areas

Cities are increasingly turning into megacities due to their enlarged and intense population. There has been a global attempt by designers to spread the view that cities can be potential areas for producing loads of food required by communities and fitted for specific ecologies. A similar trend has been spread to developing countries where it is essential to provide food for local consumption, and serious attempts are made to distribute food materials to protect particular urban communities. Therefore, recent attempts of food security have aimed not only to guarantee availability but also the provision of sustainable, locally-fitted and food production that is not industrialized to sustain the potential for production. The solution seems to be Vertical Farming (VF). Producing food can be brought into cities through VF and this significant step, if taken, can make life in cities more viable. The present research aims to review the VF plays in the future of food production in high-density cities. The present research reviews the body of related literature, both online and printed publications on the issue. VF is a turning point of the millennium in urban designing but not limited to that. It further presents a new type of architecture as both a local and global remedy for the 21st crisis

The relevancy of mosque architecture in a multi-faith country: China as a case

INTRODUCTION ACCORDING to the survey by Pew Research Center for the level of religious diversity in 2010, China was defined as one of the most multi-faith countries all over the world. At present, data shows that some 20 to 40 million Muslims live in China for which the actual numbers are still difficult to obtain. They acknowledged that due to the different origins of Islam in China and the complexity of China’s modern national policy, various official and unofficial national identities1, 2. Interestingly, Chinese mosque architecture, whether historical or modern, reflects this diversity. This paper investigates the development history of mosque buildings in China3. The discussion on historical mosques continues to contemporary times, which presents diversified architectural styles for mosques in China. Especially, unlike the olden days, in the 21st century, modern architectural technology allows clients to choose from a variety of styles and materials when designing mosques to reflect specific versions of Islamic identity

The study of housing preferences of the Seletar community in Johor Bahru, Malaysia

Johor Johor Bahru, in the state of Johor, is located at the southern tip of Peninsular Malaysia and considered to be one of the most rapidly developing cities in Asia. The land resources of Johor Bahru is financially attractive to both local or foreign investors because of its emergent economic corridor, that is being led by the Iskandar Regional Development Authority (IRDA). The impacts of rapid development in this economic corridor has affected some of its Indigenous community groups, especially the Orang Seletar community. The Orang Seletar people, sea nomads of the Tebrau Strait shores, have been particularly exposed to cultural decay due to the surrounding rapid urbanization. This paper aims to consider the Orang Seletar’s culture and housing typology preferences to inform options for their future housing design consideration and to ensure their cultural sustainability. The first objective of the research is to examine culture and daily activities that were and continue to be practiced by the Orang Seletar, who used to live in houseboats and thus integral to their sea nomadic lifestyle. The second objective is to investigate the typology of the housing settlement patterns of the Orang Seletar community, and the third objective is to assess the housing settlement preferences of the Orang Seletar community. This research uses both qualitative and quantitative approaches, where content analysis of literature is utilised to achieve the first objective. Field observation and survey questionnaires techniques were used to achieve the second objective, and a structured interview was carried out to achieve the third objective. Three types of houses were identified in eight selected villages studied including: single storey landed brick houses that are built on the land by government; houses on stilts that are made of timber; and, lastly, raft houses that float on sea and reverine water. Based on this comparative study, it is concluded that the Orang Seletar people preferred to continue to live on raft houses

Assessment of a Masjid as a place of racial harmony

INDIA is a Nation of various culture where people belonging to different religious, racial, cultural and lingual identities live together harmoniously. Currently various incidents are happening in India those are affecting the communal harmony. But India is known for communal harmony which has to be maintained. Communal harmony now is the primary need of country and it means that people of different religions, castes, creeds, sex and different background live together in the society with love and peace. Its very much important to understand the importance of communal harmony, and there are various example of it in India and one of the best example exist in state of Goa in India that is heritage mosque of Surla Tar

The relevancy of mosque architecture in a multi-faith country-China as a case study

Islam had entered the land of China around 1400 years ago, and since then, Chinese Muslims are one of the minority group there. From the Tang dynasty until the present time, various cultural and geopolitical factors have influenced and shaped the architecture of Chinese Muslims. This paper reviews the chronological phases of mosque architecture in mainland China to elaborate on the process of adaptation and localization of Muslim architecture from ancient until modern times. Through comparison and discussion, this paper points out the inducing factors of the existing problems and puts forward some suggestions on the transformation of the function of urban mosques under the background of modernizatio

Pembangunan kerangka definisi seni bina Melayu moden di Malaysia

Pembangunan rekabentuk yang tidak mencerminkan kebudayaan Malaysia telah mencetus paradigma pemikiran bagi mencipta suatu karekter rekabentuk yang mencerminkan identiti Malaysia sebagai sebuah negara yang kaya dengan budaya. Wacana pembangunan identiti seni bina nasional ini telah mula dibicarakan seawal tahun 1950-an melalui penerbitan yang bertemakan ‘towards a Malayan Architecture’ (ke arah seni bina Malaya). Salah satu resolusi yang disepakati di dalam membina karekter identiti seni bina nasional ialah melalui pengadaptasian nilai kesenian Melayu di dalam rekabentuk bangunan (Kementerian Kebudayaan Belia Dan Sukan, 1981). Setelah melebihi enam dekad, perbahasan mengenai identiti seni bina Malaysia ini dilihat tidak berkesudahan sehingga ke hari ini. Walaupun pembudayaan nilai tradisional pada pembangunan moden dilihat penting bagi membina karakter identiti negara, pengaruh modenisasi tidak harus diabaikan, khususnya modenisasi masyarakat Melayu. Justeru, sangat penting untuk menjustifikasi hubungan di antara tradisional dan moden, serta apakah aspek yang penting bagi mengimbangi kerangka tradisional dan moden pada pendekatan seni bina hari ini. Oleh itu, pendefinisian senibina Melayu moden adalah penting di dalam merubah halatuju perbahasan ‘identiti seni bina nasional’ yang telah dibahas sekian lama. Kajian ini menilai dan menstruktur semula apakah yang dimaksudkan dengan ‘seni bina melayu moden’ di dalam konteks masyarakat hari ini. Kajian ini dilaksana dengan motodologi kualitatif, berdasarkan teori, konsep dan perbahasan mengenai isu modenisasi dan perkembangan senibina yang berlaku di Malaysia dan barat. Kajian ini diharap akan dapat memberi impak yang besar di dalam perangkaan dan pembangunan ‘identiti senibina Nasional’ pada masa akan datang