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When the Ottoman Turks
奥斯曼土耳其帝国
conquered Constantinople in 1453,
1453年征服君士坦丁堡后
instead of demolishing the Hagia Sophia,
他们并没有推倒圣索菲亚大教堂
they converted it into a mosque.
而是将它变为了清真寺
But there was no escaping the fact
不可否认的是
that this conversion was superficial.
这一变化微不足道
Islamic elements had merely been bolted onto a church.
教堂建筑本身几乎没有什么伊斯兰元素
Somehow, Christianity was always showing through.
而基督教元素却始终呼之欲出
There came a time when this partial makeover
有一段时期 这种有限的改造
wasn't good enough.
并不令人满意
Not, at any rate,
至少
for the greatest of the Ottoman rulers
奥斯曼伟大的君主苏莱曼大帝
Suleiman the Magnificent.
对此非常不满
His armies had cut a swathe through Christian Europe.
他的军队横扫欧洲基督世界
So when he decided to build a new mosque,
所以他决定建造一座新的清真寺
unencumbered by Christian leftovers,
完全不受残留的基督教元素束缚
he was making a point for Allah.
是为真主安拉而建
And he was making it directly at his rivals,
也是为了针对他的敌人
the holy Roman Emperor and the Pope.
神圣罗马帝国皇帝和教宗
Ironically, the master builder ordered to create
讽刺的是 受命建这一礼拜用大清真寺的
the great Friday service mosque had been born a Christian.
伟大建筑师却是基督教徒出身
Mimar Sinan was a Janissary,
米马尔.希南是耶尼切里军团的一员
converted to Islam as a child
童年改信伊斯兰教
and conscripted into
然后被征召
the crack household troops of the Sultan.
加入了苏丹派系复杂的军队
Sinan rose through the ranks
希南通过晋升
to become the greatest military engineer of his day.
成为了当时最伟大的军事工程师
But he always felt himself destined for something greater
但他冥冥中觉得自己命中注定要干一件大事
than bridges and fortresses.
而不仅仅是建造桥梁和堡垒
"I wish to become an architect", he told his biographer,
他告诉传记家 "我想成为一个建筑师
"So my perfect skills should leave art to the world."
这样我完美的技术可以作为艺术展现给世界"
Suleiman's order was thrilling but daunting.
苏莱曼的命令令他兴奋 却也是个挑战
A great dome surrounded by half domes, four minarets,
大穹顶需要由半圆顶和四座尖塔拱卫
a structure as immense as the two-continent empire.
整个结构需要像横跨两大陆的帝国一样庞大
A mosque that would eclipse Hagia Sophia.
这座清真寺需要让圣索菲亚大教堂黯然失色
The visible proclamation of Islam's victory.
这是伊斯兰教壮观的胜利宣言
Sinan's great idea is the indivisibility of space.
希南的设计理念是空间不能分割开
The architectural proclamation of the union of all believers.
这是所有信徒团结一致的理念在建筑上的表达
Here, the space isn't chopped up by forests of columns
在这里 空间没有被一根根立柱以及唱诗班
and barriers of choir and altar.
和圣坛的围栏分割开
