When Allaah made the prayer obligatory on Muslims, it was quite difficult for the Muslims to get themselves together at the various times of the prayers. This is because there was no uniform way they could use in doing that.
The Suggestions & Answer
Having considered the difficulty they were facing with regards to calling themselves together for prayer, some of the companions met with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and made some suggestions about how to call themselves together for prayers. Let us see the story as narrated by one of the companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him); Reported Abdullah ibn (Zaid ibn) Abd Rabbih, "When the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was to order the use of a bell to call the people to prayer, he disliked it because if resembled the Christian practice. While I was sleeping, a man came to me carrying a bell. I said to him, a slave of Allaah, will you sell me that bell? He said, What would you do with it? I replied, I would call the people to prayer with it. He said, Shall I not guide you to something better than that? I said, Certainly. He said, You should say, AIlahu akbar, AIlahu akbar, AIlahu akbar, Allahu akbar. Ashhadu alla ilaha iIIallah, ashhadu alla ilaha iIlallah, Ashhaduanna Muhammad ar- Rasool-Ial-Iah, ashhadu anna Muhammadar-Rasool-Ial-Iah. Hayya alas-salah, hayyah alas- Salah. Hayya alal-falah, hayya alalfalah. Allahu akbar, Allahu akbar. La ilahaiIIallah. These are the wordings of Adhan Iqaamah Then he went a short distance away and said, When you stand for the prayer, say, Allahu akbar, Allahu akbar. Ashhadu alla ilahaillal-Iah, Ashhadu ann a Muhammad ar- Rasool-Ial-Iah Hayya alas-salah, hayya alal-falah. Qad qaamatis-salah, qad qaamatissalah Allahu akbar, Allahu akbar. La ilaha illal-Iah. When the morning came, I went to the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings be upon him) to tell him what I had seen. He said, Your dream is true, Allaah willing.
Go to Bilal, tell him what you have seen, and tell him to make the call to prayer, for he has the best voice among you. I went to Bilal and told him what to do, and he made the call to prayer. Umar was in his house when he heard it. He came out with his cloak, saying By the One who has raised you with the truth, saw similar to what he saw. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), said, To Allah is the praise. (at-Tirmidhi)
The adhan was made part of the shariah during the first year after the migration to Madinah.
Lessons
One of the lessons in this story is that we should not emulate any aspect of the worship of the non-Muslims. This is especially with regards to those things that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) has guided us to how to do them. Another lesson is that we should be concerned about the affairs of the Muslims. This can be seen from the way the Companions were concerned about the important issue of calling themselves for congregational prayers. This concern did not stop at talking about it amongst themselves only, rather individuals continued to worry about it even in their sleep. This was why Abdullah and Umar and the Prophet [(peace and blessings be upon him) (according to one narration)] had similar dreams. Yet, another lesson is that the proper way to show concern about the affairs of the Muslims is to seek divine guidance. In the present times, that means looking for guidance from the Quran and the Sunnah, according to the understanding of the Companions of the Messenger of Allaah.
This article was culled from the publications of Deen Communication Limited