GJAT | JUNE 2018 | VOL 8 ISSUE 1 | 43 ISSN : 2232-0474 | E-ISSN : 2232-0482 www.gjat.my This journal is a member of and subscribes to the principles of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) “Not Just a House to Honour God”: Mosques in the Malay World as Cosmopolitan Spaces Khairudin Aljunied Georgetown University ak1679@georgetown.edu Abstract This article argues that mosques are not just devotional places but also projections of the cosmopolitan temperaments of Muslims in the Malay world. This is evidenced, frst, in the aesthetics and architecture of the mosques that draw upon so many religious and cultural traditions. I then show how the close proximity between mosques and other places of worship and the sharing of sacred spaces have ensured the continued vitality of cosmopolitanism among Muslims and non-Muslims in the Malay World. For many generations, mosques have functioned as sites that sustain the spirit of mutual tolerance and cooperation between Muslims and adherents of other faiths to ensure the safety and welfare of their communities. In his study of mosques in Europe, Roemer van Toorn noted that a mosque ‘is not just a house to honour God, but a place to come together, a collective space for the community. In short, a mosque as a space can provide a counterweight to the “public” space of the individualized and consuming human being (2009, p.112). I would extend this illuminating refection further to argue that mosques in the Malay World are also places that enable different faiths, persuasions, ideologies and temperaments to interact, collaborate, amalgamate and appreciate the beauty of the Muslim belief, giving rise to a dynamic and peaceful environment. To demonstrate this point, I will frst dissect the aesthetics of the mosque. This is followed by an examination of the tolerance and cooperation between the worshippers at these mosques and devotees of other faiths at nearby religious sites. I delve into the inclusive nature of mosques, allowing non-Muslims to utilise the space for their own purposes. Before making the case for us to begin to view mosques as cosmopolitan spaces, I recount, in very broad strokes, the evolution of mosque building in the Malay World. The wide scope of the topic would not allow me (or anyone) to discuss in vivid detail the history of all mosques in the Malay World. What I hope to provide here is a sketch for refection, a macroscopic view that would encourage us to see the forest apart from the trees, so to speak, in the path to cement the point that mosques are indeed refections, expressions, manifestations, representations and symbols of cosmopolitanism. The Evolution of Mosques in the Malay World The successful diffusion and continuous vitality of Islam in the Malay World is partly attributed to the rapid expansion of mosques in all corners of the region. The region’s oldest surviving mosque, Masjid Agung Demak, was built in the thirteenth century in Central Java, Indonesia. The structure and functions of this mosque became a sort of model that was emulated by other mosque founders and builders in later years. It ‘was made up, reproduced, and rearticulated, along with other practices, products, and discourses demarcated over time in Javanese society (Abidin Kusno, 2010, p. 216). The colonial period saw a sustained expansion of mosque-building throughout The Malay World. The Dutch and the British, in particular, sponsored the founding of many mosques as part of their strategy to gain the support of local rulers and Muslim elites. However, they maintained a close surveillance of all mosque