What Does the Muezzin Say During the Call to Prayer?
Here in Morocco, we hear the adhan or call to prayer five times a day. For me, they are to Morocco what the church bells were to Malta. That is, a clockwork reminder of religion, shared by an entire community.
You’ve probably heard the call to prayer on television or in a movie (wasn’t it in The English Patient?). You’ve certainly heard it if you’ve visited a Muslim country. You can listen to some samples of the adhan here. The local ones have a droning, haunting quality that sounds, well, really foreign to my Western ears.
What is the muezzin–the chosen person who leads the call to prayer–actually saying? We’ve got a book on Islam, and here are the phrases that comprise the adhan:
- God is great.
- I witness that there is no god but God.
- I witness that Muhammad is the messenger of God.
- Rise up for prayer.
- Rise up for salvation.
- God is great.
- There is no god but God.
These are repeated a number of different times. There are also some differences between the Sunni and Shia versions, which you can read about on Wikipedia.
February 12th, 2008 at 10:44 am
Oddly, it had never occurred to me to wonder what the muezzin was saying, although I subconsciously must have thought it was something like this. Interesting how the Sunni-Shi’a split is so immediate after Muhammad, rather than the longer delay before schisms in Christianity.
February 14th, 2008 at 12:40 pm
I loved hearing the call to prayer 5 times a day (yes, even the one that took place at 3 in the morning). My only complaint were with the tinny speaker systems that some of the smaller mosques use to broadcast it.
It was also interesting/unusual to be in Jerusalem where you’d hear the call to prayer and church bells ringing multiple times a day. I genuinely miss it.
February 25th, 2008 at 5:35 pm
I recently visited India and was enchanted by the call of the muezzin. I wondered about the translation. Thank you for the information. I am leaving for a visit to Morocco and this knowledge will enhance my visit and give it a deeper meaning. What a beautiful way to start the day!