March 26: More Istanbul
Blue Mosque
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The most important element in the interior of the mosque is the mihrab, which is made of finely carved and sculptured marble, the adjacent walls sheathed in ceramic tiles. To the right of the mihrab is the mimber, or pulpit, where the Imam stands when he is delivering his sermon at the time of noon prayer on Fridays or on holy days. The mosque has been designed so that even when it is at its most crowded, everyone in the mosque can see and hear the Imam. Until the 20th century, however, the sermon was delivered in Arabic, which few in the congregation would have understood. In 1928 President Kemal Atatürk ordered that sermons must be given in Turkish.