Jahriyya Shengji (圣纪) Commemorative Ritual (Mawlid an-Nabī) Recorded by Rachel Harris, Qiaomen Mosque 乔门寺, Lanzhou, 7am, 30 March 2014. Short recorded excerpt from the climax of a three hour ritual. In 2014, this annual commemorative ritual for the birth of… Read More ›
Sound map contents 
Gedimu dhikr at the Chengjiao Mosque (城角寺)
Gedimu dhikr at the Chengjiao Mosque (城角寺) Recorded by Rachel Harris, 6.40am, 28 March 2014. The Gedimu, literally “old teachings” from the Arabic qadim, represent the loose set of ‘traditional’ practices (Hanafi and Sunni) which were present in China before… Read More ›
Khufiyya dhikr at the North Mosque (北寺), Linxia (2)
Khufiyya dhikr at the North Mosque (北寺), Linxia (2) Recorded by Ruard Absaroka, 6.30am, 28 March 2014. These worshippers belong to the Khufiyya menhuan, one of the main branches of the Sufi orders that were introduced into this part of China… Read More ›
Khufiyya dhikr at the North Mosque (北寺), Linxia (1)
Khufiyya dhikr at the North Mosque (北寺), Linxia (1) Recorded by Ruard Absaroka, 6.30am, 28 March 2014. These worshippers belong to the Khufiyya menhuan, one of the main branches of the Sufi orders that were introduced into this part of China… Read More ›
Evening call to prayer heard from the North Mountain
Evening call to prayer heard from the North Mountain ( 北山 ) above Linxia city Recorded by Ruard Absaroka, 7pm, 28 March 2014. Just to the north of the Muslim quarter of Linxia, with its densely packed mosques, lies a… Read More ›
Soundwalk in the Bafang Muslim quarter of Linxia
Soundwalk in the Bafang Muslim quarter of Linxia Recorded by Rachel Harris, 1.40pm, 29 March 2014. The dense tangle of narrow alleys that is the Bafang, eight neighbourhoods each centred on a mosque, is the heart of the old Muslim… Read More ›
The Soundscapes of Tajik shrines in Xinjiang, China
The Soundscapes of Tajik shrines in Xinjiang, China Aynur Kadir There are more than 50,000 Tajiks living in China, the majority in the Tashkurgan area of Xinjiang which borders on Tajikistan. They follow the Ismaili branch of Shi’aIslam, and they… Read More ›
Continuity of Musical Tradition: Performance of Islamic Stories among the Uyghur
Mutellip Iqbal (PhD Student, Sociology Department, Istanbul University) Uyghur religious narratives are full of heroic stories and magical events. With the spreading of Islam in Central Asia, worshippers not only accepted Islamic doctrines, but also enjoyed stories about the foundation and… Read More ›
Jahariyyah Madā’ih, Xiji county, Ningxia
Jahariyyah Madā’ih, Xiji county, Ningxia (courtesy of Ma Qiang) Madā’ih are hymns praising Allah or the Prophet transmitted by the Jahariyyah Sufi order which are chanted at all sorts of commemoratory occasions, such as the death anniversary of Shaykhs… Read More ›
Al-Rahman
Recorded by: Rachel Harris and Aziz Isa Place: Shahyar county, Aqsu prefecture, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region Date: August 2009 A Uyghur qushnach ritual specialist recites part of Surah Al-Rahman (The Beneficent, Q55:1-13) from the Qur’an. The recitation comes at the… Read More ›