The Ruling on Advancing the Fajr Adhan and Shortening Its Prayer in Ramadan

The questioner : What is observed in Ramadan is that the imams of the mosques advance the Fajr prayer significantly, and they do not recite anything but from the short surahs of the final part of the Qur'an. Is this the Sunnah? And how do you reconcile this with the general hadiths, and the fact that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) maintained the regular voluntary prayers of Fajr in residence and travel, and would sit between the adhan and the iqamah for the length of fifty verses? I ask for a comment with clarification.

The Shaykh : By Allah, the people's problem with the adhan is a worrying one, because its matter is very serious. The Fajr adhan, according to the Umm al-Qura calendar, is advanced by five minutes. So the one who calls the adhan according to the Umm al-Qura calendar has called the adhan five minutes before the time. And if a person prays immediately after the adhan, he has prayed before the time, and his prayer is returned to him, not accepted. And the people now—may Allah guide us and them—compete to see who comes out first, not competing to see who does the best deed.
No, as if the best is the one who comes out first, and this is a mistake by the imams, because the imam is the one who establishes the iqamah. And among the mu'adhdhins who advance the time, look, for example, the 'Isha adhan: the government decided that it should be two hours after sunset. Some people adhered to obedience to Allah and obedience to the ruler, because Allah commanded us to obey our rulers, and the rulers explained the delay with three causes and benefits.
Yes, and there is an additional reason for this: it is easier for those who are fasting, and there is ample time. Delaying the 'Isha' prayer is also better in this regard, as it is obedience to Allah and His Messenger, for we are commanded to obey the one in authority except in disobedience to Allah. However, some of the mu'adhdhins—may Allah the Exalted guide them—have the will to persist in defying the order, as if This is undoubtedly a lack of fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence). I cannot say it is a lack of religion, for they are upon the religion, but it is a lack of fiqh. If they had obeyed Allah by obeying the rulers, it would have been better for them, and it would have been better for the people in general, so that Muslims would appear with the appearance of unity and agreement, rather than appearing as they do now, where one person has finished the prayer and another has not yet called the adhan, as is the current reality in the 'Isha' prayer, where some people may have finished the prayer while others have not yet been called to it.
The danger of the Fajr prayer is very great, and it is obligatory to delay until we are certain of the dawn's appearance, for Allah the Exalted says in the Qur'an: "It becomes clear to you." Some of the later scholars said that Allah did not say "until you make it clear," indicating that we do not go out to look at the dawn to see if it has appeared or not.
Rather, we remain eating until it becomes clear. What is it? We go around and seek it, because Allah said "until it becomes clear to you." And in any case, whether this is what Allah the Mighty and Majestic intended, or the intention is that it becomes clear by itself or by His making it clear, Allah knows best. But in any case, it is necessary to make it clear and it is necessary to be cautious so that the people perform the Sunnah of Fajr as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) commanded. That we continue to eat.
"Until the dawn becomes clear." He commanded this when it was said that Bilal calls the adhan at night to wake up your sleepers and return your standers, so Some narrators said that he was a blind man who did not call the adhan until it was said to him, "It is morning, it is morning." And now, is it said to us, "It is morning, it is morning," when we hear the mu'adhdhins? No, it is not said. That means those who go by [the new times] and we do not obey them, but they say, "We say that if we are right, the dawn does not become clear until a third of an hour after the people's adhan." Yes, for this reason they criticize us, saying, "Why do you not forbid the people from this manipulation? They pray before the dawn and eat before the dawn." We say, "By Allah, we have things we follow, and there are astronomical calculations that modern astronomers have agreed upon." The matter of clarity is relative; it may become clear to others and not to you. In any case, I would like us to be cautious with our religion and not to rush in the Fajr prayer until we are certain of the dawn's appearance. Yes. This is like the Sunnah.
As for shortening the Fajr prayer on days of fasting, it is not from the Sunnah. It is not from the Sunnah to shorten it. But there may be a circumstance that necessitates shortening the prayer, such as if the time is cold and the sky is raining, and the people fear that urine and discharge will overtake them, and the imam sees it in the public interest to lighten it so as not to burden the people, then this would be a temporary lightening. And temporary lightening occurs even from the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). He would enter the prayer (peace and blessings be upon him) intending to lengthen it, but he would hear the crying of a child and lighten it (peace and blessings be upon him) out of consideration for his mother. Yes. And some of the brothers say that the time has increased by five or ten minutes, so we ask your excuse for the delay, and if Allah wills, the remaining questions will be in the next lesson.