Adhan (Call to Prayer)
The Islamic call to prayer, recited by a muezzin.
Adhan (Arabic: أذان) is the Islamic call to prayer, which announces that the time for an obligatory prayer has arrived. The adhan is recited by a muezzin and can be heard from the mosque's minaret. The word "adhan" comes from the Arabic root meaning "to listen" or "to be informed".
The adhan was introduced in the second year after the hijra (migration to Medina). According to tradition, one of the Prophet's companions, Bilal ibn Rabah, had a dream about the call to prayer, and Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) approved this form. Bilal became the first muezzin in Islam.
The adhan consists of the following phrases: "Allahu Akbar" (Allah is the Greatest), "Ashhadu an la ilaha illallah" (I bear witness that there is no god except Allah), "Ashhadu anna Muhammadan rasulullah" (I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah), "Hayya 'alas-salah" (Come to prayer), "Hayya 'alal-falah" (Come to success), and concludes with "Allahu Akbar" and "La ilaha illallah".
It is sunnah to repeat the words after the muezzin and to say a specific du'a (supplication) after the adhan.
Related terms
Salat al-Jama'ah (Congregational Prayer)
The congregational prayer, where Muslims pray together in rows behind an imam.
Du'a Kumayl (Kumayl's Supplication)
One of the most famous Shia supplications, taught by Imam Ali to Kumayl ibn Ziyad.
Salat al-Wahsha (The Prayer of Loneliness)
A prayer performed on the first night after burial for the soul of the deceased.
Sunan al-Nasa'i (Nasa'i's Hadith Collection)
One of the six canonical hadith collections, known for its strict authenticity criteria.
Ma'ad (Resurrection)
Belief in resurrection and judgment day — the fifth article of faith in Shia Islam.
Du'a al-Qunut (The Qunut Supplication in Witr)
The special supplication recited during the last rak'ah of the Witr prayer.