Mosque in Bohoniki

One of the stops on our route during our trip was the mosque in Bohoniki. Bohoniki is a small village near the border with Belarus. The land was donated to the Polish Tatars and it is here that they built their temple.

The mosque was built in the second half of the 19th century, probably in 1873. During the war, it was badly damaged by the Nazis, who set up a field hospital here. In 2005, it was completely renovated.

Fun fact: the year the mosque was built was only discovered during the 2005 renovation, on the frame of the entrance door. No documents have survived. The Tatars themselves settled around Sokółka in 1679. King John III Sobieski could not pay them the wages he owed for their military service, so he gave them land instead. Bohoniki went to cavalry captain Michał Olejowski.

We know so little about Islam. In school they taught us only about Christianity, and the subject of religion, unfortunately, did not mention other religions. So we needed to learn about it ourselves.

We were in a mosque for the first time in our lives. We got there on Friday. Who would have thought that Friday for Muslims is like a Christian Sunday, when the main service is held. We had to wait for a while until they finished praying. From outside we could hear only some Arabic chanting.

The mosque is divided into three parts. The first is the vestibule, where shoes are removed. Women must also have their shoulders covered, and if you do not have the proper attire, you can borrow a scarf. The second room is a room for men only and the third room for women - according to the requirements of Islam. Men and women are separated by a wooden wall with a slot in which hangs a curtain. Observing the main hall is possible from there. The men's room has a small balcony (gallery), a mihrab (niche indicating the direction of Mecca), and a minbar (pulpit).

As we learned here in Bohoniki, women can enter the men's part. In Kruszyniany, apparently, this is impossible, because they are stricter there.

We were able to learn a lot about the mosque, customs and religious rules. We were told this by the current imam, the religious leader - the head of the mosque.

Visiting is paid: you buy a so-called brick (a donation) for PLN 5 per adult.