The Book of the Adhan (The Call to Prayer)

Muhammad ibn Isma'il and Ibrahim ibn al-Hasan reported to us. They said: Hajjaj narrated to us. He said: Ibn Jurayj said, Nafi' informed me, from 'Abd Allah ibn 'Umar, who used to say: When the Muslims came to Madinah, they would gather and watch for the time of prayer, but no one called them to it. One day they discussed this. Some said, 'Let us use a bell like the Christians' bell.' Others said, 'Rather, a horn like the Jews' horn.' 'Umar said, 'Why don't you send a man to call the people to prayer?' The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, 'Bilal, get up and call the people to prayer.'

Qutaybah ibn Sa'id reported to us. He said: 'Abd al-Wahhab narrated to us, from Ayyub, from Abu Qilabah, from Anas, who said: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) ordered Bilal to pronounce the phrases of the adhan in pairs and the phrases of the iqamah singly.

'Amr ibn 'Ali reported to us. He said: Yahya narrated to us. He said: Shu'bah narrated to us. He said: Abu Ja'far narrated to me, from Abu al-Muthanna, from Ibn 'Umar, who said: During the time of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), the phrases of the adhan were said twice each, and the phrases of the iqamah once each, except that you say, 'The prayer has been established, the prayer has been established.'

Bishr ibn Mu'adh reported to us. He said: Ibrahim—son of 'Abd al-'Aziz ibn 'Abd al-Malik ibn Abi Mahdhurah—informed me. He said: My father, 'Abd al-'Aziz, and my grandfather, 'Abd al-Malik, informed me, from Abu Mahdhurah, that the Prophet (ﷺ) seated him and taught him the adhan, phrase by phrase. Ibrahim said, 'It is like the adhan we give.' I said to him, 'Repeat it to me.' He said: 'Allah is greatest, Allah is greatest. I bear witness that there is no god but Allah'—twice—'I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah'—twice. Then, in a voice lower than the first, audible to those around him: 'I bear witness that there is no god but Allah'—twice—'I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah'—twice—'Come to prayer'—twice—'Come to salvation'—twice—'Allah is greatest, Allah is greatest. There is no god but Allah.'

Suwayd ibn Nasr reported to us. He said: 'Abd Allah—Ibn al-Mubarak—informed us, from Hammam ibn Yahya, from 'Amir ibn 'Abd al-Wahid, who narrated to us from Mak'hul, from 'Abd Allah ibn Muhayriz, from Abu Mahdhurah, that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, 'The adhan consists of nineteen phrases, and the iqamah of seventeen phrases.' Abu Mahdhurah then counted them: nineteen phrases and seventeen.

Ishaq ibn Ibrahim reported to us. He said: Mu'adh ibn Hisham informed us. He said: My father narrated to me, from 'Amir al-Ahwal, from Mak'hul, from 'Abd Allah ibn Muhayriz, from Abu Mahdhurah, who said: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) taught me the adhan and said: 'Allah is greatest' four times; 'I bear witness that there is no god but Allah' twice; 'I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah' twice. Then he repeats: 'I bear witness that there is no god but Allah' twice; 'I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah' twice; 'Come to prayer' twice; 'Come to salvation' twice; 'Allah is greatest' twice; 'There is no god but Allah.'

Ibrahim ibn al-Hasan and Yusuf ibn Sa'id reported to us—the wording is Yusuf's. They said: Hajjaj narrated to us, from Ibn Jurayj, who said: 'Abd al-'Aziz ibn 'Abd al-Malik ibn Abi Mahdhurah told me that 'Abd Allah ibn Muhayriz informed him. He had been an orphan in the care of Abu Mahdhurah until Abu Mahdhurah prepared him to travel to Syria. He said: I told Abu Mahdhurah, I am going to Syria and fear I will be asked about the way you call the adhan. So he told me that Abu Mahdhurah said: I went out with a group of people, and we were on part of the road from Hunayn as the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) was returning from Hunayn. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) met us on the road. His caller gave the call to prayer in his presence. We heard the caller's voice while we were off to one side, and we began imitating it and mocking him. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) heard the sound and sent for us. We stood before him, and he said, Who among you had the loud voice I heard? The people pointed to me, truthfully. He sent all of them away and kept me there. He said, Stand and call the people to prayer. I stood, and the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) himself taught me the call. He said, Say: Allah is greatest four times; I bear witness that there is no god but Allah twice; I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah twice. Then he said, Go back and raise your voice. Then he said, Say: I bear witness that there is no god but Allah twice; I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah twice; come to prayer twice; come to salvation twice; Allah is greatest twice; there is no god but Allah. When I had finished calling the prayer, he summoned me and gave me a small pouch containing some silver. I said, Messenger of Allah, appoint me to call the adhan in Makkah. He said, I have appointed you to do so. I went to 'Attab ibn Asid, the Messenger of Allah's governor in Makkah, and called the people to prayer with him by the Messenger of Allah's command.

Ibrahim ibn al-Hasan reported to us. He said: Hajjaj narrated to us, from Ibn Jurayj, from 'Uthman ibn al-Sa'ib, who said: My father and Umm 'Abd al-Malik ibn Abi Mahdhurah informed me, from Abu Mahdhurah, who said: When the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) departed from Hunayn, I went out as one of ten men from Makkah in pursuit of them. We heard them calling the people to prayer, so we stood and called out, mocking them. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, I heard among these people the call of someone with a beautiful voice. He sent for us, and we each called the adhan one by one. I was the last. When I had called it, he said, Come here. He seated me before him, wiped my forehead, and blessed me three times. Then he said, Go and call the adhan at the Sacred House. I asked, How, Messenger of Allah? He taught me as you call it now: Allah is greatest four times; I bear witness that there is no god but Allah twice; I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah twice; then again, I bear witness that there is no god but Allah twice, and I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah twice; come to prayer twice; come to salvation twice. For the first call of the dawn prayer, he also taught me to say, Prayer is better than sleep, twice. He taught me the iqamah with each phrase said twice: Allah is greatest four times; I bear witness that there is no god but Allah twice; I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah twice; come to prayer twice; come to salvation twice; the prayer has been established twice; Allah is greatest twice; there is no god but Allah. Ibn Jurayj said: 'Uthman related this entire report to me from his father and Umm 'Abd al-Malik ibn Abi Mahdhurah, both of whom had heard it from Abu Mahdhurah.

Hajib ibn Sulayman reported to us, from Waki', from Sufyan, from Khalid al-Hadhdha', from Abu Qilabah, from Malik ibn al-Huwayrith, who said: I came to the Prophet (ﷺ) with a cousin of mine—another version says, with a companion of mine. He said, 'When the two of you travel, give the call to prayer and the iqamah, and let the older of you lead the prayer.'

Ziyad ibn Ayyub reported to me. He said: Isma'il narrated to us. He said: Ayyub narrated to us, from Abu Qilabah, from Malik ibn al-Huwayrith, who said: We came to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) as young men close in age and stayed with him for twenty nights. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) was compassionate and gentle. He thought we were longing for our families, so he asked us about the family members we had left behind. We told him, and he said, 'Return to your families and stay with them. Teach them and instruct them: when the time for prayer comes, let one of you give the call to prayer, and let the oldest among you lead the prayer.'

Ibrahim ibn Ya'qub reported to me. He said: Sulayman ibn Harb narrated to us. He said: Hammad ibn Zayd narrated to us, from Ayyub, from Abu Qilabah, from 'Amr ibn Salimah. Abu Qilabah said to me, 'He is still alive; will you not meet him?' Ayyub said: I met him and asked him. He said: When the conquest took place, every people hastened to embrace Islam. My father went to bring the Islam of the people of our district, and when he returned, we welcomed him. He said, By Allah, I have truly come to you from the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). He said: Pray such-and-such a prayer at such-and-such a time, and such-and-such a prayer at such-and-such a time. When the prayer time comes, let one of you give the call to prayer, and let the one among you who knows the most Qur'an lead you.

Qutaybah reported to us, from Malik, from 'Abd Allah ibn Dinar, from Ibn 'Umar, that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, 'Bilal gives the call to prayer during the night, so eat and drink until Ibn Umm Maktum gives the call.'

Qutaybah reported to us. He said: Al-Layth narrated to us, from Ibn Shihab, from Salim, from his father, that the Prophet (ﷺ) said, 'Bilal gives the call to prayer during the night, so eat and drink until you hear Ibn Umm Maktum's call.'

Ya'qub ibn Ibrahim reported to us. He said: Hafs narrated to us, from 'Ubayd Allah, from al-Qasim, from 'A'ishah, who said: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, 'When Bilal gives the call to prayer, eat and drink until Ibn Umm Maktum gives the call.' She said, 'There was only enough time between their calls for one to descend and the other to ascend.'

Ya'qub ibn Ibrahim reported to us, from Hushaim, who said: Mansur informed us, from Khubayb ibn 'Abd al-Rahman, from his paternal aunt Unaysah, who said: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, 'When Ibn Umm Maktum gives the call, eat and drink; when Bilal gives the call, do not eat or drink.'

Ishaq ibn Ibrahim reported to us. He said: Al-Mu'tamir ibn Sulayman informed us, from his father, from Abu 'Uthman, from Ibn Mas'ud, from the Prophet (ﷺ), who said: 'Bilal gives the call during the night to wake those of you who are sleeping and allow those standing in prayer to conclude. This call is not the one announcing dawn.' The narrator explains: meaning, the dawn call.

Ishaq ibn Ibrahim reported to us. He said: Yazid narrated to us. He said: Humayd narrated to us, from Anas, that someone asked the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) about the time of the dawn prayer. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) instructed Bilal to give the call when dawn broke. The next day, he delayed the dawn prayer until daylight had brightened. Then he ordered Bilal to call the iqamah and prayed. He said, 'This is the time for the prayer.'

Mahmud ibn Ghaylan reported to us. He said: Waki' narrated to us. He said: Sufyan narrated to us, from 'Awn ibn Abi Juhaifah, from his father, who said: I came to the Prophet (ﷺ). Bilal came out and gave the call to prayer, turning to his right and left as he did so.

Muhammad ibn Salamah reported to us. He said: Ibn al-Qasim informed us, from Malik, who said: 'Abd al-Rahman ibn 'Abd Allah ibn 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Sa'sa'ah al-Ansari al-Mazini narrated to me, from his father, who told him that Abu Sa'id al-Khudri said to him: I see that you love sheep and the countryside. When you are with your sheep or in the countryside and give the call to prayer, raise your voice, for no jinn, human, or anything else within the caller's range of voice hears it without bearing witness for him on the Day of Resurrection. Abu Sa'id said: I heard this from the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ).