The Khanqah Naqshbandia Islamic Centre
The Khanqah is a well-established Manchester Islamic centre, providing a range of services to the local Muslim community, as well as an Islam information service for the wider public.
Services for the Muslim Community
- 5 times daily congregational prayers
- Friday Prayers (Jumuah) and Eid Prayers, with capacity for up to 800 worshippers
- Member of MCOM (Manchester Council of Mosques)
Islam Information Service and Community Links
- Educational visits to the Centre for schools and Inter-Faith groups
- Islam Awareness open days
- Active participant in Police Community Forum meetings since 1997
- Hosting a variety of local events involving community leaders
History of the Centre
The Manchester Khanqah of the Naqshbandia Mujaddidia Sufi order was one of the first of its kind in Europe, and was established by local members of the Naqshbandia Mujaddidia order. The word ‘Khanqah’ is of Persian origin, and it denotes a place set aside for Islamic spiritual contemplation, self-rectification and study.
This spiritual aspect of the religion of Islam, known as Sufism, involves gatherings held for the remembrance of Allah (also known as Dhikrullah, or Zikrullah). At these gatherings, verses of the Holy Qur’an are recited, and opportunities afforded for meditation and reflection on the Divine Names, or Attributes, of God, and also on the condition of one’s own heart.
The centre opened in 1994 in Burnage, south Manchester. The location and amenities of the premises allowed for the establishment of a fully-functioning congregational mosque, which provides a place for the performance of the obligatory five times daily prayers, as well as the Friday Prayer and other events in the Islamic calendar. These services, and also the Sufi gatherings described above, are much-appreciated by the many Muslims who live in the area.
Links have been forged with local schools, and these often send groups of children to the Khanqah as part of their religious education syllabus. The Khanqah committee also joined the local Police and Community Partnership scheme in 1997, and representatives of the Khanqah have continued to attend and contribute to these meetings to this day.
Aims of the Khanqah
The principle function of the Khanqah is to provide a place where people can come to find out, or to remind themselves, about the most important priorities in the life of a human being. These priorities are those established by the Prophet Muhammad, may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and they include:
- To be regular in the obligatory congregational prayers
- To be mindful and considerate of neighbours
- To be honest and sincere in dealings with others
- To honour the elderly and to promote family and societal cohesion
- To strive in every way to forge a strong, living and meaningful relationship with our Creator.
Since a central aspect of this relationship with God involves human beings showing concern and consideration for each other, and to their environment, the Khanqah aims to be an integral part of the solution to life’s tensions and problems, for individuals and for families, within the Muslim community and in the wider society of the UK as a whole.
