The sheikh zayed mosque, abu dhabi
Sheikh Zayed Mosque: Where I Heard God Clearly
The Sheikh Zayed mosque is a great escape from your mind and the hustle bustle that comes with it.
I instantly felt peaceful in the mosque.
From downtown Abu Dhabi, there was a direct bus. It took an hour, but it was worth it. I told the guards that I wanted to pray, so they let me through. As a visitor, you’re supposed to enter from the visiting gate. And then—surprise—there’s a whole mall attached to the mosque.
So you have to pass through the mall area to get to the mosque, which honestly feels like a buzzkill. You didn’t come to see a mall. You came for something else. So I would suggest: go and pray first. Then go to the visitor section.
To pray, girls have to be covered.
Hands till the wrists. Legs till the ankles. Head covered—either with an abaya or a scarf.
If you're not covered, they won’t let you in.
Also—this is important—if you're going during the summer, definitely carry sunglasses. The heat is burning. A good pair of sunglasses will soothe your eyes.
The prayer room is peaceful. One for women, one for men.
The whole mosque is made of white marble.
There are beautiful flowers on the pillars, and when you look closely, you can tell it’s done by hand. With so much love. So much precision. So much effort. True art from the hands of real craftspeople.
If you go during sunset, you'll see the sky change its colours behind the mosque. If you go at night, they light it up in blue—and that is a beauty to behold too.
When I looked at the mosque, I was in awe that such beautiful places even exist in this world.
And I thought—whenever I feel down, I can remember this.
That someone created something this beautiful. And that means I can still create. That all my problems are so, so small.
There is so much to see.
There is so much life to live.
I meditated in the mosque and prayed to the energy that created this world.
I am not religious. I don’t believe in one god.
But I do believe that there is energy.
And I wish to pray to this energy.
During my meditation, somehow—I received so many answers.
If I could just think of a problem in my head, the answer would instantly come.
I just had to ask God for it.
I just had to pray. And believe in God.
When I asked, “Why was I put on this earth?”
She said:
You are here to heal people.
To help people, in whatever way you can.
You’ve been given some gifts.
That is why you were meant to be a lawyer.
That’s why you like it—because you truly want to help people.
But you can also help in other ways.
You can be in nature. You can still do it.
And yes, you can earn from this.
It has to be the way, because this is the only way for you to live.
I asked God about my family.
Do I constantly need to be there for them, live at home, even when I don’t want to?
She said:
You can live your life.
You can be happy.
You can trust that God will take care of them.
Same for all the friends and partners that I love now or loved in the past—but can no longer love.
I don’t have to cling to old relationships just because I feel a duty.
I can move on. I can change.
I can start a new chapter.
> And God will take care of them too.
I believe her.
I truly do.
I asked: “What will make me happy?”
She said:
Whenever you’ve lived something new…
Whenever you’ve seen something beautiful…
Whenever you’ve been in nature…
That is when you’ve been happy.
This mosque gave me something.
Not just the architecture.
Not just the peace.
It gave me answers.
And every time I go there again, or remember this, I know I’ll get more.
