Untitled Document
Meditation Centre meets need Muslim students
TU/e's new Meditation Centre or 'Stilteruimte' is meeting
a real need among Muslim students. "We have been wanting
a place to pray for years. A space like this is every-thing we
could wish for. We are very pleased", says Murat Bozkurt,
an active member of multi-cultural student association Mosaïc
and a third year Applied Physics student.
Bozkurt is not sure how many students
at TU/e are practising Muslims. "We thought we knew everyone,
but now we find that there may be more than one hundred Muslims
at TU/e. And not everyone prays five times a day", he says.
"Many of the new people I've met are living alone far away
from their families, whether their families live in the Netherlands
or abroad. So a student association like Mosaïc can sometimes
provide a home away from home."
This is particularly true in the Muslim month of Ramadan, which
started this week. Bozkurt explains how this month of prayer and
fasting is a time of reconciliation and peace. After fasting during
the day, family and friends like to get together for festive meals
in the evenings. "There's always a special atmosphere. A
really warm feeling", says Bozkurt.
Mosaïc is making an effort to organise a number of gatherings
during the coming month, which started with a meal this Tuesday
and will continue with evening prayers every Tuesday of Ramadan
at sunset (5 p.m.). In connection with Ramadan, the Meditation
Centre will be open longer than usual, from 7 a.m. to 10.30 p.m.
during the week.
Bozkurt feels Muslim students may experience difficulty in combining
Ramadan with their studies this year, as the coming period is
also exam time. "The opportunity to take some time out in
the small prayer room at the Stilteruimte is very welcome",
he says.
Non-cultural
But the Meditation Centre is not only for Muslims. It was set-up
in September with the blessing of the Executive Board as a place
of silence and contemplation for TU/e students and staff, regardless
of their faith or lack of it. A special committee including TU/e's
humanist counsellor Willemien Fraaije, Eindhovense Studenten Kerk
(ESK), Mosaïc, Studium Generale, Vredescentrum and Stichting
Inter Kommunikatie has been working on this project since the
fall of 1998.
"There are a number of other universities who have successfully
opened Meditation Centres. People seem to need a place to be quiet.
We want to make sure that this is a space for general use. It
should be non-cultural and non-demoninational", says Willemien
Fraaije.
As a 'humanist' she sees the Meditation Centre as a place for
meditation and thoughtful discussion about the meaning of life
and ethical issues. Fraaije and well-known Dutch philosopher Charles
Vergeer are planning a number of activities to start in January.
Also, ESK has started yoga and Zen training sessions early on
Wednesday mornings (7.45 and 8 a.m.). "This is probably a
bit too early for most people. So I'm thinking of shifting the
sessions to Thursday lunch times next year", says pastor
Bert Jan van Haarlem. ESK has its own chapel in the Paterskerk
downtown where ecumenical services are held on Sunday mornings.
According to Van Haarlem, the 'Stilte-ruimte' at TU/e is a good
place for silent meditation and small-scale group activities.
Peaceful
The Meditation Centre is situated in room 1.46 of De Hal, next
to the library, another comparatively 'silent' place on campus.
It is a spacious, very high room with big windows and long curtains
that accentuate the height of the space and screen out some of
the noise of the university. It has an entry hall and a small
prayer room especially for Muslims. The larger space is open to
anyone who feels the need for a quiet moment. Appropriate group
activities will also be regularly organised there.
The Meditation Centre looks peaceful, but is still very empty.
TU/e's Real Estate department has spent some 40,000 guilders to
bring it to its current sober but functional state. The committee
behind the 'Stilteruimte' is trying to find the funds to install
some low seating or cushions to make the place more inviting.
The official opening of the 'Stilteruimte' will be on January
8 2002 by rector Rutger van Santen./.
Mosaïc members at a festive Ramadan
meal (above) and Muslim students at evening prayers Tuesday. Photos
by Bert Jansen