Adhan

Adhan(Azaan) (^*) is the Islamic call to prayer, recited by the muezzin. The root of the word is ' "to permit", and another derivative of this word is ', meaning "ear".

Adhan is called out by the muezzin from a minaret of a mosque five times a day (Sunni Islam) or three times a day (Shi'a Islam) summoning Muslims for Fard (mandatory) Salah (prayers). There is a second call known as iqama that summons Muslims to line up for the beginning of the prayers.

Text

Recital	Arabic	Transliteration	Translation	Sect
4x*	الله اكبر	Allāhu Akbar	God is the greatest	Sunni & Shia
2x	اشهد ان لا اله الا الله	Ash-hadu allā ilāha illallāh	I bear witness that there is no god except God	Sunni & Shia
2x	اشهد ان محمد الرسول الله	Ash-hadu anna Muhammadur rasūlullāh	I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of God	Sunni & Shia
2x	اشهد ان عليا ولي ال	Ash'hadu anna 'alīyā walī'ul-lāh	I bear witness that Ali is the vicegerent of God ***	Shia optional
2x	حي على الصلاة	Hayya 'alas-salāt	Make haste towards prayer	Sunni & Shia
2x	حي على الفلاح	Hayya 'alal-falāh	Make haste towards welfare	Sunni & Shia
2x	الصلاة خير من النوم		Prayer is better than sleep**	Sunni only
2x	حي على خير العمل	Hayya 'alā khayril-'amal	Make haste towards the best deed	Shia only
2x	الله اكبر	Allāhu akbar	God is the greatest	Sunni & Shia
1x****	لا اله الا الله	Lā ilāha illallāh	There is no god except Allah	Sunni & Shia

* Followers of the Maliki madhab say this line twice instead of four times.

** The line "Prayer is better than sleep" is used only for the first prayers of the day at dawn (fajr salat).

*** The line "I bear witness that Ali is the vicegerent of God" is preferable and, although not mandatory, most Shia recite it. Phrases like "Ameer-ul-Mu'mineen" (The commander of the faithful), "wa abna'unhu al-ma'soomeen hujjaju Allah" (and his infallible sons are the proofs of God), may be added to the end of that line.

**** Shia repeat the last line twice instead of once.

Sunni view

Sunnis state that the adhan was not written or said by Muhammad, but by one of his Sahabah (his companions), a freed Ethiopian slave by the name of Bilal ibn Ribah. However, Muhammad did choose adhan as the Islamic call to prayer in place of the bell or conch used by Christians, or the shofar (ram's horn), used by Jews ^*.

During the Friday prayer (Salat Al Jummah), there are two adhans; the first is to call the people to the mosque, the second is said before the Imam begins the khutbah (sermon). Just before the prayers start, someone recites the iqama as in all prayers.

Shi'a/Shiite view

Shi'a sources state that it is Muhammad who, according to Allah's command, ordered the adhan as a means of calling Muslims to prayer. Shi'a Islam teaches that no one else contributed, or had any authority to contribute, towards the composition of the adhan.

Shi'a Islam teaches that God appoints a vicegerent on Earth for every generation. It teaches that although Muhammad is God's final Prophet and Messenger, God appointed Ali as the first of God's twelve vicegerents to succeed Muhammad in order to lead humankind. See also: wali

Form of the adhan

Each phrase is followed by a longer pause and is repeated one or more times according to fixed rules. During the first statement each phrase is limited in tonal range, less melismatic, and shorter. Upon repetition the phrase is longer, ornamented with melismas, and may possess a tonal range of over an octave. The adhan's musical form is characterized by contrast and contains twelve melodic passages which move from one to another tonal center of one maqam a fourth or fifth apart. The tempo is mostly slow; it may be faster and with fewer melismas for the sunset prayer. During festivals, it may be performed antiphonally as a duet. (Touma, p.157-158) Salafists, such as the Wahhabis of Saudi Arabia, prefer to issue the adhan in a monotone, considering any verbal elaborations to be makrouh (permissible but discouraged)—or haraam (forbidden) if the meaning of the words is altered. ^*

Dua after Azaan

The following dua is optionally read by Muslims after the adhan is recited.

O Allah! Lord of this complete call and prayers of ours, by the blessing of it (Allahumma rabba hadhi-hid dawa-tit-tamma wa-salatil qae-ma) اللهم رب هذه الدعوة التامة والصلاة القائمة Give to Muhammad his eternal rights of intercession (Ati muhammadanil wasilata wal fadeela) آت محمداً الوسيلة و الفضيلة And raise him to the promised rank you have promised him (Wab ath-hu maqamam-mahmuda-nil ladhi wa at-ta) وابعثه مقاماً محموداً الذي وعدته

The Adhan in the Republic of Turkey

During the 1920s and 1930s, the government of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk imposed a Turkish-language adhan in place of the traditional Arabic. The prohibition of the Arabic adhan was repealed on June 6, 1950, after an opposition election victory. This prohibition was also in direct confrontation with a hadith that relatively said: Arabic verses not kept in Arabic do not retain their meaning, as it can change the translation easily.

Sources

Habib Hassan Touma (1996). The Music of the Arabs, trans. Laurie Schwartz. Portland, Oregon: Amadeus Press. ISBN 0931340888.
http://www.iad.org/Pillars/athan.html

External links

Muslim music | Salat

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