User:Sabahmed3/Prayer rug

Copied from Prayer rug

A prayer rug or prayer mat is a piece of fabric, sometimes a pile carpet, used by Muslims, some Christians, especially in Orthodox Christianity and some followers of the Baháʼí Faith during prayer.

In Islam, a prayer mat is placed between the ground and the worshipper for cleanliness during the various positions of Islamic prayer. These involve prostration and sitting on the ground. A Muslim must perform wudu (ablution) before prayer, and must pray in a clean place.

Prayer rugs are also used by some Oriental Orthodox Christians for Christian prayer involving prostrations in the name of the Trinity, as well as during the recitation of the Alleluia and Kyrie eleison. Its purpose is to maintain a cleanly space to pray to God and shoes must be removed when using the prayer rug. Among Russian Orthodox Christians, particularly Old Ritualists, a special prayer rug known as the Podruchnik is used to keep one's face and hands clean during prostrations, as these parts of the body are used to make the sign of the cross.

Many new prayer mats are manufactured by weavers in a factory. The design of a prayer mat is based on the village it came from and its weaver. These rugs are usually decorated with many beautiful geometric patterns and shapes. They are sometimes even decorated with images. These images are usually important Islamic landmarks, such as the Kaaba, but they are never animate objects. This is because the drawing of animate objects on Islamic prayer mats is forbidden.

For Muslims, when praying, a niche, representing the mihrab of a mosque, at the top of the mat must be pointed to the Islamic center for prayer, Mecca. All Muslims are required to know the qibla or direction towards Mecca from their home or where they are while traveling. Oriental Orthodox Christians position their prayer rugs so that they face east, the direction of prayer towards which they offer prayer.

In Islam

Significance

While not explicitly mandated in the Quran or Ḥadīt̲h, prayer rugs, known in one source as sad̲j̲d̲j̲āda, are nonetheless deeply embedded in Islamic practice and material culture. They represent a physical and symbolic delineation of sacred space, allowing the worshiper to create a ritually pure area for prayer. The presence of the miḥrāb—a stylized representation of the prayer niche found in mosques—visually orients the individual towards the Kaaba in Mecca, the direction Muslims face during prayer. Prayer rugs, particularly those from the Safavid and Qajar periods, offer a window into broader cultural and intellectual trends in the Islamic world. During the Safavid era, prayer rug designs emphasized explicitly Islamic themes and specifically Shi'a Islam, with inscriptions reinforcing religious identity. Conversely, Qajar prayer rugs reflect a growing focus on the individual, with patron's names, images of kings and heroes, and motifs inspired by contact with the West, signaling a shift in the understanding of the rug's purpose and meaning. Ultimately, the prayer rug, while a simple object in form, embodies the connection between the material and the spiritual, the individual and the communal, and historical trends and artistic expression in the Islamic world.

Backround

In Islamic world there are two basic types of prayer rug, one designed with a single mihrab and meant for individual worship, the other with multiple niches and intended for a place of public prayer such as a mosque. This second type is known as saf.

A prayer rug is characterized by a niche at one end, representing the mihrab in every mosque. The mihrab represents not just the direction of prayer but also a gateway to the divine or a symbolic connection to the mosque architecture. Many rugs also show one or more mosque lamps, a reference to the Verse of Light in the Qur'an. Additionally, the use of floral and tree motifs, particularly the tree of life, can be linked to concepts of paradise, eternity, and immortality. Occasionally, prayer rugs depict specific mosques, such as those in Mecca, Medina, and Jerusalem, further emphasizing the symbolic connection between the prayer rug and the physical space of the mosque as a place of communal worship. After the advent of Islam, Muslims often depicted the Kaaba in order to distinguish themselves from Christian carpets. Decorations not only play a role in imagery but serve the worshipper as aids to memory. Some of the examples include a comb and pitcher, which is a reminder for Muslims to wash their hands and for men to comb their hair before performing prayer. Another important use for decorations is to aid newly converted Muslims by stitching decorative hands on the prayer mat where the hands should be placed when performing prayer.^{[citation needed]}

Prayer rugs are typically produced in the towns or villages where they are used, reflecting local weaving traditions and cultural aesthetics. The exact pattern will vary greatly by original weavers and the different materials used. Some may have patterns, dyes and materials that are traditional/native to the region in which they were made. The varied patterns, dyes, and materials used in prayer rugs reflect not only regional aesthetics but also the desire to create a sensory experience that enhances the act of prayer. Prayer rugs' patterns typically feature a niche at the top, representing the mihrab in a mosque, which is oriented towards Mecca during prayer. During prayer, the individual kneels at the base of the rug and performs sud̲j̲ūd, prostrating with their forehead, nose, hands, knees, and toes touching the ground, towards the niche representing the direction of Mecca.

Some countries produce textiles with prayer rug patterns for export. Many modern prayer rugs are strictly commercial pieces made in large numbers to sell on an international market or tourist trade.^{[citation needed]}

Prayer Rugs Around the World

Using some type of floor covering for prayer was known early in Islamic history. Though there is evidence that carpets may have been produced in Anatolia before Turkish invasions in the 11th century, no examples survive. The oldest surviving prayer rugs, discovered in mosques in Konya and Beyşehir, are believed to be from the 14th century, and were woven entirely of wool with geometric designs. From the 14th century onward, European paintings increasingly depict Anatolian prayer rugs that were exported to Europe, leading to the use of European painter's names to classify prayer rug types. Prayer rugs are also found in Persian miniatures. By the 19th century, the artistic tenets of Islam were less rigidly interpreted in Persia than Turkey, so animals and birds frequently appeared in Persian carpets and prayer rugs. In both Persia and Turkey, the rural people and nomadic tribes produced prayer rugs with bold, colorful designs.