2013-12-07 
【Aiden in English】
When Mom and I got back from Dubai International Airport and checked in at the Raffles Hotel, the first thing I did was go to bed. Just as my head hit the pillow, I fell asleep like a log. As Mom woke me up at the crack of dawn for the tour, I tumbled around for a while and was still half asleep. After a brief breakfast, we hopped onto a city tour bus to Abu Dhabi, the capital of UAE where we would be seeing Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque or the Grand Mosque, which was the largest in the nation where Muslims prayed at least five times a day.
When we arrived, my mouth draped open like a stone. The Grand Mosque was literally a giant palace in Arab, Persian, Mughal, and Moorish styles plus some modern decorations like Greek marbles, German lights, Turkish ceramics, Iranian hand-knotted woven carpets, etc. The entrance was a huge overhead door that was decorated with pictures of flowers derived from the country. But that wasn't all. The doorway led to a vast courtyard that had a marble floor and huge pillars with engraved flowers. I thought that looked as cool as it could get, but the courtyard couldn't even be compared to the hall inside. Three tremendous crystal chandeliers were hanging from the domed ceiling from above. It was a mix of colors that seemed to make each other blend. If you stood under it, the crystal chandelier looked like a flower in full bloom with red petals and a green outline. On the walls, there were pictures of flowers and columns covered in gold. Every time when I looked at them, the gold appeared so bright that it stood out like a hungry wolf in a herd of sheep. Now I understood why it took 545 million dollars to build this spectacular architecture in 11 years.
As I walked on my way out, I noticed a clock on the wall that showed six different times when Muslims would pray during the day. They must be extremely dedicated to their religion because the first time Muslims had to pray was sometime around 5 O'clock in the morning. Afterward, every two or three hours later, they had to pray again.
Right there, I learned about the Prophets who sounded like the messenger of "Allah" because the Muslims believed that Allah gave those signs that only the Prophet could read. In addition, all Muslims read a collection of books called the "Quran". The Quran is to the Muslims as the bible is to the Christians.
As I left the Grand Mosque, I reviewed all things I saw today. The one that intrigued me most was how similar being a Muslim was to being a staff in a government with different levels. Some were more respected than others and each person had to be promoted by someone else. When I thought of it this way, the Muslims were combining traditional religion and modern life as a whole.
【红霞译文】
待我和妈妈离开迪拜国际机场入住莱佛士酒店之后，当务之急便是睡觉，一旦脑袋触及枕头，我立刻像木桩倒地昏睡过去。
天刚亮游览时间将近，妈妈叫醒了我，这时我睡眼惺忪，仍然处于半迷糊状态。简单吃罢早餐，我们乘车前往阿拉伯联合酋长国首都阿布扎比(意指“羚羊之父”)，重点参观全国最大的酋长·积德大清真寺或简称大清真寺，穆斯林信徒每天至少要祷告五次。
集中体现穆斯林风格的大清真寺宛若一座富丽堂皇的宫殿，不仅借鉴阿拉伯、印度、北非等穆斯林建筑设计，而且还引进了希腊汉白玉、德国水晶吊灯、土耳其瓷砖、伊朗手工编织地毯等经典装饰艺术，叫我张目结舌；寺庙门楣雕刻着具有乡间气息的图案装饰，内侧庭院大理石地面和花岗岩廊柱绽放出土生土长的各色植物，令我叹为观止；寺庙大厅三个调色考究的巨型水晶吊灯倒挂在圆拱形天花板下，映照得大厅绚烂多彩，使我眼花缭乱；寺庙釉瓷砖面之上，每盏灯具如同朵朵娇艳的花蕾，叫我陶然心醉；寺庙墙壁用黄金镶嵌的花卉华美富丽，每当我凝神注视就像饿狼窜进羊廐，让我双目放光。现在我终于明白，为何建造这样雄伟的建筑群需要斥资五亿四千五百万大洋、耗时十一年。
大清真寺经堂里一个标有六段不同时间的钟表格外引人注意，这是穆斯林教徒每天祈祷的标志，在我看来他们一定虔诚执着，不然怎么能够坚持每早五点钟开始祷告、随后每隔二、三个小时还要顶礼膜拜？！
此时此地我了解到信使先知“阿拉”教导所有穆斯林人笃信伊斯兰教义——《古兰经》，而《古兰经》堪称伊斯兰教的指路明灯，正如《圣经》被视为基督徒的定海神针。 离开大清真寺时我回首今天所见所闻，感触最深的就是穆斯林人等级分明，犹如在政府部门任职的工作人员，倍受尊重的教徒社会地位也高，教徒之间彼此互相鞭策，从这个角度来说穆斯林人已将传统宗教与现代意识兼收并蓄。
Today in History(历史上的今天): 2010: 节日心态(Holiday Mindset)
Panorama of Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque (酋长·积德大清真寺全景) 
Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, the Largest in the Country (羚羊之父大清真寺—全国之最) 
82 Domes of 7 Different Sizes (82个七种不同大小的圆顶) 
Dome Layout & Floorplan Inspired by the Badshahi Mosque (由王位清真寺启发而来的圆顶布局与平面设计)
Outer Entrance (入口外 12-07-2013) 
Inner Entrance (内入口 12-07-2013) 
Courtyard w/ Minaret (庭院与宣礼塔 12-07-2013) 
The Inner Courtyard (内庭院) 
Main Prayer Hall (主经堂)
Two of 7 Chandeliers from Faustig (来自德国七盏水晶吊灯中的两盏 12-07-2013) 
One of 7 Chandeliers from Faustig (来自德国的七盏水晶吊灯之一) 
One of 7 Chandeliers from Faustig (来自德国的七盏水晶吊灯之一) 
One of 7 Chandeliers from Faustig (来自德国的七盏水晶吊灯之一) 
The Main Axis Aligned in the Direction of the Kaaba, Mecca (主轴线指向沙特朝拜圣地的天房) 
Wall Clock w/ 6 Different Times for Daily Pray (标示六段不同祈祷时间的钟表) 
Glazed Tiles from Turkey (来自土耳其的釉瓷 12-07-2013) 
Glazed Floor Tiles from Turkey (来自土耳其的地面釉瓷 12-07-2013)
Candid Camera Tower (狗仔镜头) 
The Fountains (盥洗池 12-07-2013) 
Wearing Hijab Women (戴盖头的女子) 
Wearing Türban Girls (戴双头巾的少女) 
Bus Stop (大清真寺车站) 
Corniche Beach (滨海大道海滩 12-07-2013) 
Corniche Park (滨海大道公园) 
Corniche Light (滨海大道路灯) 
The Village @ Zayed Heritage Center (积德遗产中心·村落 12-07-2013)
Theatre @ Natl Museum (国家博物馆·剧院 12-07-2013) 
Chairs For Abu Dhabi @ Natl Museum (国家博物馆·《羚羊之父椅子》) 
Qasr Al Watan Palace (总统府) 
Nation Towers over Corniche(滨海大道上国家大厦)
Bus Stop (汽车站) 
Aldar HQ Building (楷木总部大楼) 
Capital Gate, the World's Furthest Leaning Tower (首都门·世上最歪的比斜塔)
World Trade Ctr (世贸中心) 
Marina Mall Tower (游艇码头购物中心塔)
Marina Mall (游艇码头购物中心) 
Shaikh Shakhboot Bin Sultan Mosque (羚羊之父酋长清真寺) 
Mohammed Khalaf Al Mazroui Mosque (主爱总督信仰清真寺) 
Sheikh Zayed Bridge (酋长·积德大桥) 
Saadiyat Beach Villas (启蒙地海滩别墅) 
Yas Island New Development (兴奋岛开发区) Crosslinks(相关博文): United Arab Emirates(出游阿联酋)
Across the Indian Ocean(穿越印度洋) 5th Grade(小学五年级) |
