{"id":196526,"date":"2026-03-04T14:57:21","date_gmt":"2026-03-04T13:57:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=196526"},"modified":"2026-03-06T16:46:08","modified_gmt":"2026-03-06T15:46:08","slug":"met-of-zonder-stilteruimte-wijken-islamitische-studenten-uit-naar-trappenhuizen-om-te-bidden","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2026\/03\/04\/met-of-zonder-stilteruimte-wijken-islamitische-studenten-uit-naar-trappenhuizen-om-te-bidden\/","title":{"rendered":"With or without a meditation room, Muslim students often go to stairwells to pray"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The meditation room in the G Building is no longer accessible due to a power cut. This is particularly complicating for Muslim students during Ramadan, who pray five times a day. However, a walk around campus shows that even before the closure, students often turned to alternative places, such as stairwells and empty lecture rooms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Students often use the stairwell in the Polak building as a place for prayer.<\/p>

\n\t\n\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\tImage by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFeba Sukmana<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cJust any random empty room\u201d, replies a hurried student in the lift of the Polak Building when asked about possible prayer locations. On the fifth floor, Psychology student Sueda is studying by a window. \u201cThere\u201d, she points towards the emergency exit on her right. \u201cIn the stairwell behind that door, you can do your prayer.\u201d She brings her own prayer mat from home. She also performs the wudu <\/em>\u2013 the ritual washing before prayer \u2013 at home beforehand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Now the G Building is closed, the university has found a temporary location for the quiet room in the P Building, namely PT-50 and PT-48 (between the rooms of student associations). This place will open on 10 March. The EUR is still working on a more permanent location, a spokesperson says. It’s not clear yet where that will be.<\/p>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\n

In the stairwell, another Psychology student has just finished her midday prayer. She puts her white trainers back on. Her black prayer mat is still lying next to the window. She often uses stairwells as a place to pray, she explains. \u201cIt\u2019s quite a walk to G, because most of my classes are in Polak or Mandeville, so random stairwells are an easier alternative.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Popular stairwells<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It’s not just the Polak Building stairwell that’s popular, one in the university library is frequented as well. There are even prayer mats placed against the wall there, left behind by students so that everyone can easily perform salat <\/em>\u2013 the ritual prayer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Students left prayer mats in the library’s stairwell for their fellow students.<\/p>

\n\t\n\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\tImage by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFeba Sukmana<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

When it’s time for the late afternoon prayer, a Law student in the quiet area of the library walks towards the emergency exit. She is used to improvising a prayer space, she says. \u201cI look everywhere for a quiet, empty space nearby. Sometimes I spend twenty minutes to half an hour finding a suitable spot.\u201d She uses an app to determine the qibla<\/em>, the direction of prayer towards Mecca. \u201cBut now that I\u2019ve prayed on campus often, I know that the qibla is roughly in the direction of the Novotel.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Next door<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

For first-year Law student Zakaria, the meditation room at the Hogeschool Rotterdam is a better alternative than stairwells. \u201cI\u2019ve just come from the bus stop next to the Sports building and usually have classes in Sanders. So this room is closer than, for example, the library or the G Building.\u201d Three Hogeschool students standing next to him don’t mind that EUR students use their space. \u201cIt\u2019s for everyone anyway\u201d, one of them says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not far from the meditation room on the first floor of the building, a student is waiting for her friend who is praying. \u201cWe used to go to a stairwell in the Mandeville building, but recently a staff member told us we were not supposed to block the emergency exit. That\u2019s why we came here now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Students Noura and Esma Nur also prefer using the meditation room at the Hogeschool. \u201cIt\u2019s more pleasant than a stairwell. At least you know the space is intended for it\u201d, says Noura. For Esma Nur, it’s her first time using the room. \u201cToday I happen to have enough time between classes to walk here, otherwise I might look for an empty lecture hall.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mindfulnest<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

For fellow students who don’t have time to visit the Hogeschool, Noura is happy to share tips. \u201cYou can also use small study rooms. I often take turns with a friend: one prays while the other keeps an eye on the door\u201d, she laughs. Pedagogy student Ay\u00e7a has another hidden gem: the mindfulnest in the library. \u201cI don\u2019t like praying in a random room. You\u2019re not focused and you keep worrying that someone will walk in. In the Mindfulnest you can adjust the lighting yourself and choose background sounds. You can easily perform salat there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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According to student Ay\u00e7a, you can easily perform salat in the mindfulnest in the library.<\/p>

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There are also tricks for the wudu. \u201cMost people wash at home or in the accessible toilet, but I\u2019m fine using the sink in the women\u2019s toilet\u201d, says Ay\u00e7a. Noura has a tip: \u201cBring a bottle of water with you, that rinses more easily than the tap.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All the students regret that they cannot easily perform their prayers. Ay\u00e7a: \u201cI already thought one quiet room was too few, given the size of the group that uses it. Let alone now that G is closed. I\u2019ve attended schools with less diverse student populations, yet they were more inclusive. This situation does not match the image of an inclusive university.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n\t

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Read more<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t