Reverberations

Did today's Friday Prayers at Masjid Sultan, my first time there for the congregational prayer. Impressed by the simplicity of the place. The carpet has a cheerful clash of colours that's somehow welcomingly comfortable. It's nice to think that the closest thing on the island to a national mosque is so homely.

I was a bit taken aback by the azan, though. I was sort of expecting something really mellifluous, and I suspect it was beautifully read. But the amplified voice was treated with so much reverb and echo that it was actually difficult to make out the precise words of the call to prayer. I'm not sure if this is seen as some kind of halo effect, or whether it's an attempt to re-create the reverberant quality of a prayer-call in one of the really grand mosques of the world. I've heard the same thing on studio recordings of readings from The Holy Qur'an and it just doesn't work for me. What does work is the powerful music of an azan, or prayer, read with the urgency of a full commitment to the words you hear so often in quite ordinary places of worship.

After prayers it was time for lunch with Fazli, Sharrif, Ismail and Arzami - actually the reason for going to the mosque as we'd decided to eat opposite. They were kindly wishing me well ahead of my intended umrah to Makkah & Madinah, now on the cards for late December after the disappointment of the June cancellation. Can't wait - though, of course, I'll have to.