I was honored to be given an opportunity to give a lecture at The Grand Hamad Bin Jassim (HBJ) mosque.

One of the best things about Qatar by far is the attention given to the maintenance of mosques.

HBJ mosque is special.

The building.

The size.

The symmetry.

The silence.

Then a thought hit me hard.

Sometimes a masjid becomes so beautiful that its purpose gets forgotten.

People become too busy taking selfies whilst precious moments of worship slip away.

Ironically the topic of the lecture was Salah 😅

When you enter the house of Allah and exit having prayed a distracted prayer and back to the grind of life.

That's a loss if there is ever one!

Take the Prophet's ﷺ masjid for example.

Sometimes the prophet ﷺ would wipe remanants of sand from his forehead after sujood.

Whilst the masjid was clean the core essence wasn't forgotten.

There were no imported carpets.

There were no grand chandeliers.

Yet the masjid was alive.

Yes, keep the masajid clean.

Yes, maintain hygiene.

Cleanliness supports worship.

Order protects focus.

But never forget the main reason the masjid exists.

Worship of Allah alone.

Masjid literally means a place of prostration.

A place where the forehead meets the ground.

A place built for humility.

Not admiration.

Not spectacle.

If a masjid inspires awe but causes you to forget sujood, something is missing.