Mosque and Khanqah of Shaykhu

mosque, educational institution
Part of	Islamic Cairo
Year dem found am	1349
Country	Egypt
Edey de administrative territorial entity insyd	Cairo, Cairo Governorate, Islamic Cairo
Located on street	Saliba Street
Coordinate location	30°1′50″N 31°15′11″E
Commissioned by	Shaykhu
Architectural style	Mamluk architecture
Heritage designation	part of UNESCO World Heritage Site

De Mosque and Khanqah of Shaykhu be an Islamic complex insyd Cairo wey de Grand Emir Sayf al-Din Shaykhu al-Nasiri build am. Na dem build de mosque insyd 1349, while dem build de khanqah insyd 1355. Na Shaykhu be de Grand Emir under de rule of Sultan an-Nasir Hasan.

Mosque

Na Al-Maqrizi say dis “mosque be one of de most sublime mosques insyd Egypt (smith).” E dey locate opposite de Khanqah. Na dem say dem build de foundation give Shaykh Akmal al-Din al-Rumi, wey na he be de principal of twenty Sufis dem attach to am wey na dem ultimately bury am within de khanqah. De mosque get an unusual layout den instead of make dem dey increase wall thickness make e maintain internal symmetry, as na be de standard practice, de prayer hall get an irregular shape plus walls wey no be parallel. De walls shadow de layout of de surrounding streets wey “dis unconventional layout dey allow de mausoleum make e communicate plus de sanctuary thru a window” (Cairo of de Mamluks). Na dis window replace de mausoleum ein mihrab. De courtyard of de mosque be de earliest extant insyd a riwaq mosque make dem pave plus polychrome marble. Chaw of de mosque ein original work go under restoration, however, de mihrab dey contain remains of de polychrome marble of de era. De lower segment of de mihrab dey display eighteenth century Tunisian tiles. Maqrizi sanso make de claim dat “no previous mosque den khanqah, insyd de area of Saliba, thrive to dis extent, nor na dem ever create insyd de Bahri Mamluk state wey be equal to dema pious endowments den de excellence of dema incomes” (Smith).

Khanqah

De Khanqah dey locate insyd de area of al-Saliba, outsyd Cairo proper. Ebe directly opposite de Mosque of Shaykhu, wich ebe associated plus. Na dem build insyd 756 anaa 1355 C.E., six years after de Mosque by Shaykhu plus de intention say e go serve as both a madrasa, a school, den a khanqah, a Sufi monastery. Ebe de earliest known khanqah-madrasa of de Mamluk period. E get de capability make e house residences of de general populace. For addition to de khanqah, na dem sanso be two baths den a row of stores plus small residences insyd de second story above de shops Shaykhu construct. Na he arrange lectures of each of de four legal schools (Shafi‘i, Hanafi, Maliki, den Hanbali), a lecture for de hadith of de prophet, den a lecture for se seven readings of de Qur’an. Na he assign a teacher den a group of students to each lecture. Shaykhu “appoint as teacher of de Shafi‘i legal scholars Baha’ al-Din Ahmed ibn ‘Ali al-Subki; give de Maliki legal scholars, de Shaykh Khalil, wey na he get a military manner wey he run de study group like ein own fief; for de Hanbali legal scholars, de chief judge Muwaqqif al-Din al-Hanbali. Na he install Shaykh Akmal al-Din Muhammad ibn Mahmoud as head of de khanqah den teacher of de Hanafis. He sanso organize den finance chow give de students den a monthly allotment of basic necessities. De reputation of de khanqah grow across de region den chaw notable persons of learning from de era dem graduate from der. E get de prestige of he dey increase ein prosperity beyond every pious endowment insyd Egypt. Dis surplus ultimately lead to de khanqah ein downfall, as de Sultan al-Nasir Faraj confiscate de money. De condition of de khanqah, once dem meticulously keep, decline til e fall behind for payments insyd dem promise to de holders of various positions dem hia make dem support de khanqah.

De building einself take seven months make dem plete. A faddan of land be 4200sqm wey Shaykhu acquire a little more dan dat give de khanqah den surrounding baths den shops. De foundation inscription insyd de entrance portal dey mention de founder ein name plus de humble sufi attribute ‘al-‘abd al-faqir’ wich dem translate dey mean ‘de poor slave.’ De inscription for de khanqah ein minaret dey differ from de mosque, as de khanqah dey include de Qur’an passage XXII, 27 wey dey refer to de Hajj under de title “De Pilgrimage:” “Proclaim de Pilgrimage to all people. Dem go cam to you for foot den for every kind of swift mount, wey dey emerge from every deep mountain pass” (Qur'an). Presumably, na dem use de khanqah make dem host foreign travelers wey dey pass thru Cairo for dema way to Mecca.

Dem construct de khanqah around a courtyard, plus an arcaded prayer hall for one side den living units wey dey occupy three floors for de oda three sides. Instead of make dem increase de thickness of de wall to even out de irregular shape of de building, dem extend de prayer hall past de courtyard along de street, wich be similar to de style of de mosque, wey dey create an additional space insyd de eastern corner, dem cover by a wooden dome. Dis be de tomb of Akmal al-Din, wey die during de reign of Sultan Barquq insyd 786 anaa 1384 C.E. Na de Sultan rever Akmal al-Din dat he order ein burial within de khanqah, no be a common occurrence give a shaykh, buh na Akmal al-Din be de supervisor of de endowment wey even na Shaykhu fi stipulate de location of ein burial. Shaykhu einself na dem reportedly bury am within de khanqah, wey dey indicate dat he change ein mind after de completion of de mausoleum dem attach to ein mosque. Dis modification go be coherent plus ein self-view as a Sufi, as dem express insyd de foundation inscription of de Sufi monastery na he build.

De Mosque den de Khanqah

“Although na dem separate de khanqah den de mosque of Shaykhu by six years, dem get similar facades, portals, den minarets. De two buildings face each oda across Sharia Saliba plus almost identical exterior aspects, yet de interiors serve completely different purposes. By flanking - den thus dey frame - de street, de two opposing minarets den portals produce de effect of a monumental gate wey dey render de segment of de processional al-Saliba Street, dem define by dese two parallel facades, part of de complex of Shaykhu” (Archnet).

Read further

"Amir Shaykhu al 'Imari Mosque-Khanqah." Arch Net. Arch Net, n.d. Web. 5 Mar. 2011. <Amir Shaykhu al 'Imari Mosque-Khanqah>.

Behrens-Abouseif, Doris. Cairo of the Mamluks: A History of the Architecture and Its Culture. London: I.B. Tauris & Co Ltd, 2007. 191-95. Print.

Qur'an. Oxford: Oxford World's Classics, 2008. 211. Print.

Smith, Martyn. "Mosque and Khanqah of Shaykhu." Maqrizi.com: Cairo Through the Eyes of Its Greatest Medieval Historian . Ed. Martyn Smith. N.p., n.d. Web. 5 Mar. 2011. <Maqrizi Homepage>.

External links

Khanqah wa Qubbat al-Amir Shaykhu, archnet