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
Marja' al-Taqlid (Religious Authority)
The highest religious authority in Shia Islam, whom the believer follows in prayer and legal matters.
Mashhad (Imam Reza's City)
The sacred city in Iran with Imam Reza's shrine, Iran's most visited pilgrimage destination.
Dhikr (Remembrance of Allah)
Remembrance and glorification of Allah through repetition of sacred phrases.
Ruku (Bowing)
Bowing from the waist during prayer as a sign of humility.
Salat al-Wahsha (The Prayer of Loneliness)
A prayer performed on the first night after burial for the soul of the deceased.
Tawaf (Circumambulation of the Kaaba)
The ritual of walking seven times around the Kaaba counterclockwise as part of Hajj and Umrah.