Adhan: The Call to Salah

Adhan: The Call to Salah

by Nisaar Y. Nadiadwala on Thursday, May 26, 2011 at 10:44am

 

   A Hindu friend of mine who had  worked in the Gulf for a decade, told me" When we were in the Gulf we used to get to hear excellent adhan, but back in India why don't your Masjid deliver a good adhan?"

   In Mumbai there are no less than 1400 Masajid belonging to different sects, according to the statistics of Tableeghi Jamat. Every Fajr I can hear no less than 20 adhan being aired from different Masajid. I dont know how many of you will agree to my view or how many of you have experienced that the adhan we hear in our localities are not so melodious. Some of the muazzeins scream so loudly over the mike that many sick and old Muslims feel bitter about it. A Muslim neighbor of mine once complained to our society that his  little child feels frightened upon hearing the scream from the neighboring masjid in the fajr. 

 In my childihood days my village had hundred houses and most of them belonged to Non Muslims. There was a small masjid from where every morning a muazzein delivered the adhan for fajr. It was a beautiful voice and never did any Hindu or a dalit complained about being disturbed.Never did they find their  kids crying upon hearing the adhan.

   Umar Bin Al khattab once dismissed a muazzein because he did not deliver a melodious adhan. 

   On one hand we have Mosques competing in promoting sectarian views, corrupt creeds, and racing with each other in looks, facilities but not in adhaan! There are Masajid which have been decorated by expensive granites, colorful carpets, cooled by good quality air conditioners and have very good imams but no one pays attention towards the choice of the muazzein. 

In a Non Muslim country like India where hundreds of masajid are allowed to deliver adhan on mike , where millions of Non Muslim get a chance to hear your call to goodness, it is essential upon us to appoint a muazzein with a good voice who can deliver good adhan.

 When we have Qirat competitions , we can also have adhan competitions too. We can have workshops on adhaan,....I dont know of any trustee of any masjid asking the muazzein to give a adhan as his test before being appointed for the post. Unfortunatly the job of muazzein in most of the masajid of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh has shrunk to cleaning of the masajid and filling water for wudhu. Indeed adhan is a lso a form of invitation to FALAAH. i.e Goodness

Author: Nisaar Nadiadwala speaks and writes on socio-educational issues from Islamic view point. He canbe reached at nisaar_yusuf@yahoo.com

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