Li Saijun, the imam, chants from the Quran in Arabic, at the Friday Salah at the only mosque in Taojiang county, Hunan province. Photos by Wang Jing / China Daily

Skull caps

"We don't have a mosque in my home village, because there are only a small number of Hui people there, so if I am at home, I will drive here to do Salah," Huang said, looking round at his fellow worshippers, about 30 men in white skull caps.

Li Saijun, the imam, chanted a text from the Quran in Arabic, and the worshippers knelt or stood in accordance with his words.

Although the mosque is the only one in Taojiang, pressure of business prevents many Muslims from attending, so the crowd for the Friday Salah usually only numbers about 30 to 40 people.

"I think the north has a much stronger religious atmosphere than the south," said Huang, who studied at an Arabic school in Henan province for a short while.

Although business means he usually spends most of the year in Fujian province, Huang finds it easy to maintain his religious duties. "In Fujian, there are more mosques than here, because so many foreign Muslims live there or visit the place," he said.

Li Saijun said people, especially young men, are often very busy with work, which means they may not have time to attend Salah in the mosque, but that they can always make amends at a later date.

"If you are too busy to perform Salah, it's OK. You can make it up later," he said, referring to the five prayer sessions held every day.

"Sometimes, young people are busy doing business or working at factories," he added.