yah loh how ah ?
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/defaul...0-4-2006_pg7_18
Thursday, April 20, 2006
How will Muslims pray in space: Malaysia
KUALA LUMPUR: How do Muslim astronauts pray in space? Malaysias
National Space Agency is holding a conference to consider such
questions as the country prepares to send its first citizen into
orbit.
A nationwide competition in the majority-Muslim country has
narrowed the field to four astronaut candidates, three of whom are
Muslims.
Two will eventually be trained and sent into space by Russia, and
Malaysias space agency - Angkasa - said it had been scratching its
head over how Muslim rituals could be carried out properly.
Performing ablutions for Muslim prayers with water rationing in
space and preparing food according to Islamic standards will be
among the issues discussed, said Angkasa Director General Mazlan
Othman.
So far, Angkasa has not discussed these matters with Russia
because the candidates have not been decided and the needs of
Malaysian astronauts have not been determined, Mazlan was quoted
as saying by the state-run Bernama news agency.
We have to make preparations to discuss with Russia when the time
comes, she added.
The astronaut will also visit the International Space Station,
which circles the earth 16 times in 24 hours, so another thorny
question will be: How to pray five times a day as required by
Islam, she said. Working out the direction of Mecca while hovering
above the earth will also prove challenging.
The two-day Islam and Life in Space seminar will begin next
Tuesday, bringing together 150 scientists, astronauts, religious
scholars and academics.
An official from the Malaysian Astronomy and Islamic Law
Association said that the gathering would be the first time the
Islamic world mulled life in space. AFP
