Muslim Prayer Room

[kyle]

what is the name of place of worship

[sleeping at airport]

i love sleeping in Muslim prayer Room its free and np body will stop you i use to do same in old airport as well thanks to all thais for providing such Room ......

[Solo Travel]

Hi Sleeping,
Thanks for sharing this useful info.
One question, do you have to be a muslim ?
I'm asking this b/c I'm a female Asian from other religion. Often I have a layover in a wee hours at the airport , I don't feel safe to take a taxi outside . I need a place to dose-off just a few hr. somewhere inside the terminal.
Rome (Italy) airport has set-up an out-of-the-way space by the corner for fellow travels who missed the connecting flights. I was one of those who utilized this service.

[deviroza]

Actually Suvarnabhumi Int'l Airport is not the only one having prayer room for Muslims. Singapore's Changi have them for a long time already, but they don't call it Muslims Prayer Room, it's only "Prayer Room". But if you look at inside, it's design and layout suits more to the need of Muslims when we pray, i.e. praying mats, the direction of Qiblah (Ka'bah in Mekkah), and running water for ablution. I think there's another prayer room beside, which has rows of benches like in a church. Although the signs say multi-faith prayer room on the doors, but practically Muslims use it more often since we must pray 5 times a day preferably by standing (and we need some space for that). Unless for example inside the aircraft or when someone's too sick to pray, or under a circumstance that makes standing not possible, we can do it by sitting down.
FYI, Hongkong Int'l Airport and Incheon Int'l Airport have prayer room too. I've used them all during transits and I am glad they have them. Same as Changi, they all just name it Prayer Room. The one in Incheon also has rows of benches and there's no Qiblah direction. But Muslims (at least I did) use this room because it's quiet and gives us some "space" to do the prayer. When I used it, I didn't see people from other religion used the room. In Hongkong, there are benches as well as some facilities that cater more to the need of Muslims: water for ablution, Qiblah direction, praying mat.
So I think if some of you don't like the name Muslims Prayer Room, the airport authority can always change it, but the facts remain the same: Muslims need these rooms more because the specific obligation to pray certain times a day, considerable numbers of travellers in those airports I mention are Muslims, and even though it only says "Prayer Room" - Muslims use it more often (at least this is from my experience).

[benp]

what point is g grass trying to make? just because muslims pray ?five times a day, do they warrant an exclusive prayer room? as a christian i do get the urge to say my prayers whenever i feel like doing so........ i have no regular time to say my prayers.......... does this mean that i do not warrant a prayer room? there are many christians, buddhists and other denominations who would like to sit in solace and say their prayers. i cannot believe that there is no prayer room for other denominations at supposedly the best airport in the world (so they want us to believe)! considering that thailand is a buddhist country the authorities that be should be ashamed of themselves for not having at least a buddhist prayer room, or indeed a common prayer room for all denominations.
i would be interested to know how many muslims, christians, jews, buddhists, agnostics visit this beautiful country! anyone give me any figures???
i would also like to know whose decision it was to have a muslim prayer room, bar others, at the airport.
many people i know have commented on the fact that other religious denominations have nowhere to pray and have expressed their disgust at the fact that the only religion given this facility are the muslims. why?

[travelusa]

Islamophobia: but not at its worst!!

If you need and you asked for a prayer room and were not provided one, I understand your anger. Particularly if, as in this case, some one else (Muslims) were given the facility.

If you don't need, never asked and never got one and are still whining about it, then shame on you. Unless you are of course a five year old!

And by the way, from the very little I know about this faith, there would be no problem if you go in and join the prayer.

[travelusa]

i love sleeping in Muslim prayer Room its free and np body will stop you i use to do same in old airport as well thanks to all thais for providing such Room ......

At Amestradam airport, I read a big sign in the "Meditation Room" and it read, "No Sleeping Allowed". I am not sure but I would expect other places to have similar rules to avoid misuse.

[qadamali]

As'salam alaikum wa Rahmatu Allah wa barakatu

The prayer room has signs saying no sleeping, no eating and no drinking
yet no one takes notice of these.
During the protests and volcanic eruptions last year I spent a week in that room and people
were more than willing to share food and drink.
In particular, most of the people I met and who shared food with me were Thai.
Mainly from the southern provinces, but all people who worked and spent much of their life cleaning and serving
the foreigners who are angered by the concept of a Muslim prayer room.
People you would have not thought of as Muslims unless you read their name tags, even most of the women did not
wear the veil, but still appreciate the fact they have somewhere to pray.
Islam has been a part of Thai life for hundreds of years, some of Bangkok's oldest buildings are Mosques and descendants of
Iranian traders reached the highest ranks of the aristocracy in the Ayutthayan and early \\ /// era.

I feel it would be great if all could pray together in one place, yet a Muslim must bow their face to the ground 5 times a day.
Therefore feet must be washed before entry, shoes can not be worn etc.
These facts do make a shared space difficult.
If you walk down further you will found luxury rooms for Buddhist monks. Both Islam and Buddhism have a long, if colourful history together in Thailand.
Do not all Thai's have a right to follow their own religion in their own country?