Crowds of peoples on Ampel Mosque.
Friday night saw traffic jams across several cities, compounded in part by crowds of people doing their best in the eyes of Allah, and at least trying to attend the evening tarawih prayers.
Saturday marked the first of the last 10 days of Ramadhan (though Muslims of the Muhammadiyah organization end Ramadhan on Oct. 22).
This period includes the night of Lailatul Qadar, when one's prayers and good deeds is considered more valuable than 1,000 months of good deeds.
Lailatul Qadar is also the night that Muslims believe the Koran was revealed to humankind.
Anyone who does his best is believed to be able to "sense" the arrival of Lailatul Qadar, a gift promised to those who try to live up to Islamic values and conduct, "even if you can't read the Koran", said one ustadz, or teacher.
For those in Surabaya and surrounding areas, the obligatory activity on this night is to flock in the thousands to the ancient mosque of Sunan Ampel, located in the heart of the capital (right) -- no matter if one loses their flip-flops outside the gate to the mosque compound, where the remains of Sunan Ampel lies.
Sunan Ampel is one of Java's famed nine Wali Songo -- the "saints of Islam" who first brought Islam to Java in the late 15th and early 16th centuries -- and it is believed that praying at his grave brings blessings.
The mosque was first built in 1421.
The thousands of pilgrims who converge on the mosque also provide an opportunity for commerce, as seen in the tight rows of stalls vending sarong, prayer beads and other religious accessories in the compound.
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