Islam is the second large religion after Christianity. It is spreading faster in number than any other religion. This increase is attributed to a higher birth level, and, perhaps, higher level of conversion than other religions.
Much can be found out of the traditions of Islam by studying some of its great artistic heritage. Islamic art grew from a mixture of ideas, which came from many cultures, which were imbibed during centuries of conquest.
The Arab armies required to enact authority over their more exquisite subjects, but took several dynamic traditions of their own. After the first several years of power, they perceived the need to create a monumental artistic style that could enlarge their faith and contend with other great religions and cultures. Two factors contributed to their success in this affair: art and architect (Richard Ettinghausen and Oleg Grabar, 1987).
Islamic art was "born almost during a night, about a century after the Prophet's death, [and] ...displayed a completely convincing unity of form that would keep itself over the centuries Islamic Art." (Titus Burckhardt (1992), p.150). Islamic art tend toward geometric model and delicate tracery as shown on the decorations of Koran (Blair and Bloom (1994), p. 233).
However, the impact of the religion, which is the most significant of all the elements in Islamic art, almost always predominates above all else. One of the expressions of Islamic art is a mosque.
The word “mosque” denotes “place of prostration”, a site to humble oneself before God. A mosque has no religious significance other than a niche, which shows the direction of Mecca and thus the direction the faithful should face during the prayer. It has no other furnishings than prayer rugs.