Alabaster Mosque : The final touch of Salah Al-din's Citadel

View of the Alabaster mosque inside the citadel

Egypt’s history is as much the history of the great Pharaohs and the pyramids, the Greek and Roman civilization as it is of the crusades and the Ottoman Empire. While the first image of India to the outside world culturally is probably that of the Taj Mahal, Egypt goes way back to the Pyramids. I had the opportunity to go to Egypt this December, during my winter break. Everyone who knows me could probably imagine how excited I was in the land of the pyramids, the land that was ruled by Cleopatra and Tutankhamun and the land where the Coptic Christians and the Muslims (of varying sects) live far more harmoniously. Visiting a new country, a new continent is probably a good excuse to write a blog post. Since a lot of people have asked me one burning question ever since my return, I would like to state that this post is my answer to “what was the most amazing place that you visited in Egypt?”

The answer to that question is the Alabaster Mosque or the Great Mosque of Muhammad Ali Pasha which is located inside the citadel of Cairo. The citadel was built by the Ayyubid ruler Salah Al-din (or Saladin as mentioned in the Christian records) in the 12th century to provide protection against the raging crusaders. Being situated on a hill, one can assume it was well protected. When our absolutely amazing guide told us that the history of the citadel was related to the crusades, I was all consumed with questions. I was slightly disappointed when, in my quest to hopefully understand the crusades fully one day, I still could not get some amount of clarity, ironically being inside the very citadel of Salah Al-din. (Fun fact - Any tourist guide in Egypt has to have proper educational qualifications and has to be certified before they can take up the job. So if I was a local there, studying history, I would at least have some answer to “What after history” if people asked. Unfortunately in India, I cannot compete with the level of intellectual guides here who claim Maharana Pratap to be 16 feet or something.)

Stained glass windows

In 1976, the Cairo Citadel was proclaimed by UNESCO as part of the World Heritage Site. The view from the citadel was breathtaking. It was almost as if I was a living part of the stories from ‘1001 Arabian Nights’. One could catch a bird eyes view of the capital city of Egypt. However, not much of the original 12th-century construction remained. The fortification wall that once stood in all its glory, was crumbling and lay in ruins. Some part of the citadel was also under the control of the Egyptian army. The citadel also housed a museum and several small souvenir shops. While I was able to appreciate this 12th-century beauty, I could not help but think of all the fortifications that I have seen in India and how I was just a tad bit biased towards the forts back home. If there was one word that I could use to describe the two forts I saw during the entirety of my trip to Egypt, in Cairo and in Alexandria, it would be ‘Cute’.

The Mihrab

The Alabaster Mosque was built by Muhammad Ali Pasha who was the Ottoman governor of Egypt from 1805 to 1848. At the height of his rule, he controlled Lower Egypt, Upper Egypt, Sudan and, briefly, parts of Arabia and the Levant. Though not a modern nationalist, he is regarded as the founder of modern Egypt. The Ottomans had always had troubled relationships with the Mamluk dynasty that had ruled over Egypt for almost 6 centuries. Muhammad Ali’s approach was to eliminate the Mamluk leadership, then move against the rank and file. Amongst other things, he was successful in recapturing Egypt from the brief invasion by Napoleon and establishing a dynasty that would rule over Egypt (which soon came under British rule) till the Egyptian revolution of 1952.

  

Left - Alabaster Mosque
Right - Blue Mosque (google images)

At first glance, I could sense that the architecture of the mosque is similar. I thought it reminded me of Hagia Sophia. So naturally, I decided to read a little about its architectural style. Built-in the 19th century, the mosque was modeled after the Sultan Ahmed Mosque or what we know as the Blue Mosque in the city of Ottoman Istanbul of the 17th century. The Blue Mosque is very close to Hagia Sophia and has, in turn, borrowed stylistic features of the ancient Greek Orthodox Christian Cathedral. I have but, of course, seen only pictures, and hope to tick this city off my bucket list as well. The architect, Yusuf Bushnak, was brought in from Istanbul and like other great monuments of the world, this mosque was also supposed to be a statement. The message that was meant to be sent after the construction was that the Ottoman Empire was still strong and had enough power to dominate and influence, even if the Ottoman Empire like all other major Empires and kingdoms of the world, too was on the decline during the age of newfound nationalism. 

The mosque is a living monument where every Friday, people still go to offer their prayers and is therefore closed for the general public and tourists on that day. But even on other days, one can just sit on the carpeted floors, Muslim or not and irrespective of gender and listen to the Azzan or the call to prayer. Our guide told us how the mosques in Egypt are not restrictive in allowing a certain religious sect or gender in allowing them to offer their prayers. On non-Friday days, women are also not mandated to cover their heads, so even people who come from countries or places with little understanding of the significance of the headscarf, feel comfortable in praying.

A defunct fountain to wash oneself before entering the praying hall

The Alabaster Mosque was not just a religious sanctuary. This mosque was one of those rare places where I could find some peace within me, despite being an agnostic or almost a disbeliever. Some would say I am a Kafir ( a word which means many things, disbeliever being one of the definitions, yet being highly misunderstood and taken out of context). Whether it was the stained glass that was placed in such a way to let the sun rays sparkle through the windows or the delicate forms of calligraphy (a very important aspect of Islamic aesthetics) that was etched on the walls, I did not want to leave. The gilded minarets or even the mihrab (generally a semicircular niche in the wall of a mosque that indicates the direction towards which the Kaba is located and accordingly Muslims offer their prayers in that direction), just added to the beauty of it. In one corner of the praying hall, was also the enclosed tomb of Muhammad Ali Pasha himself, the soul of whom was probably overseeing the legacy of his constructions in the country he helped redefine.

Disclaimer - All pictures are clicked by me unless otherwise stated.