If 'Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him) did that on the basis of the unrestricted public benefit that governed that time as a result of the expansion that took place

The questioner : If you please, Shaykh, I hope you will be patient with me; because I will repeat a point in a question I had asked of you, which was about the action of 'Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him) regarding the first adhan on Friday, and you answered with a response—meaning, praise be to Allah—that was largely sufficient, but one issue remains for me, which is: if the matter is as you mentioned, that 'Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him) did that on the basis of the unrestricted public benefit that governed that time as a result of the expansion that took place; is it not possible to do this without there being an adhan in the existing form, such as giving notice or ordering the people and encouraging them to go to Jumu'ah, without there being an adhan in the known form?

The Shaykh : Of course it is possible, but what is said about that is not said about the other, so how many issues are there? The answer is: it is possible.

The questioner : The issue is why 'Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him) asked for this adhan; because this will open the door for innovators to make claims based on such an action.

The Shaykh : No, the answer to that is known to us. If that is the issue, the answer is known. But you—may Allah bless you—seem to want to distinguish between the 'Uthmanic adhan and the one you are asking about: is it possible or not? We answered that it is possible. But if that were the case, would it not also be opening the door for innovators? What is the difference between this and that?

The questioner : This would be in the category of enjoining good and forbidding evil.

The Shaykh : Glory be to Allah! And that is also the case, and in making manifest its prescribed nature, it is for the exaltation of Allah and His oneness, and a testimony to His Messenger with the testimony of faith.

The questioner : There was nothing that called for making this adhan obligatory in its entirety.

The Shaykh : Yes?

The questioner : There was nothing that called for making this adhan obligatory in its entirety.

The Shaykh: It called for realizing the public interest that we referred to.

The questioner : The public benefit we referred to is realized with the least possible; so this means that in my mind, the point of the issue still remains.

The Shaykh : No, this issue—I hope that... in your mind; because the result will be that... the cessation was called for.

The questioner : May Allah protect you from that.

The Shaykh : Yes, that is it.

The questioner : But what we are striving for is a sound guidance for such an action.

The Shaykh : The guidance is that a text was found for this... action in "Sahih al-Bukhari" due to the construction of buildings in the city, and the voice of the mu'adhdhin in the Prophet's Mosque not reaching that place where the merchants used to gather on Friday, known as al-Zurra'. So he saw it as a public benefit to inform the people through the religious means of notification; which is the adhan, that the time has entered, so they would leave their trade, as is the text of the Noble Qur'an. So why did he choose this wording instead of a wording like "Prayer"? Because the addition was found, whether with the words 'Uthman chose or with a wording some people might propose, the addition was found. And this addition is originally not prescribed. But because 'Uthman's (may Allah be pleased with him) intention was to realize a religious public benefit necessitated by the circumstances of his time, he saw that. And it is sufficient that it was approved by the Companions without objection. It was a recommended practice in the era of the Rightly Guided Caliphs. As for why he did not adopt another means, I believe that is a matter of scrutiny that has no benefit.

The questioner : The Shaykh :

The Shaykh: Go ahead.

The questioner : Okay; if this is an unrestricted public benefit; does it mean... now if it replaces— for example—two calls, microphones, for example...?

The Shaykh : You say two calls?

The questioner: Yes.

The Shaykh : ... ؟

The questioner : The first call, the first adhan and the second adhan.

The Shaykh: Do you want more than Uthman’s adhan?

The questioner : No, perhaps it would be reduced to the first adhan only.

The Shaykh : So you... do without two calls.

The questioner : No, do without one call...

The Shaykh : Ah, the matter is... and this is what we testify to Allah with. And I said when this issue was raised among us in the Levant, many of you may know that there is a mosque called al-Jami'ah Mosque, this is well known.

The questioner : It is known.

The Shaykh : Yes, this mosque was used as a restaurant or for intoxicants and perhaps dancing and the like during the French era. So in the national era, some zealous students committed to the Shari'ah came forward with a request that this place be returned to how it was in the Turkish era; because the place was called the Iron Shell, yes. So praise be to Allah, the government agreed, and this place was returned to what it originally was, a mosque. So some of the known preachers, like 'Isam al-'Attar and others, would deliver sermons and the hearts of the youth would gather around him. But here the phenomenon of the 'Uthmanic adhan appeared. So as soon as this mosque was revived, there was a bit of disagreement between the Salafis and the masses of people who did not know except that this adhan is a prescribed adhan. The point is that I learned about the matter and perhaps mentioned some of this in my book "The Beneficial Answers to the Questions of the University Mosque Committee," because... you saw it. So the point is that we said there that 'Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him) adopted this means to bring the distant ones closer to the mosque, as I mentioned earlier. And if 'Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him) were in our time, or if these means of amplifying the voice to the farthest possible place existed, he would not have needed such an adhan. Rather, a wire or tape of the adhan of the mu'adhdhin in the Prophet's Mosque would be pulled, and they would remain in the place where the mu'adhdhin gave the 'Uthmanic adhan. This is what we believe if the matter were so. And therefore we proposed that this 'Uthmanic adhan was outside the mosque and in al-Zurra'. But with time, and it has been indicated in some narrations that the one who did that was Hisham ibn 'Abd al-Malik; where he brought the 'Uthmanic adhan into the Prophet's Mosque. So the purpose for which— in my view— 'Uthman did it and made this adhan obligatory, the purpose is gone. So it became like a recommended practice, like the iqamah, where an adhan is called for this adhan in the mosque. So if the intention is truly the 'Uthmanic adhan and a need is found; instead of this adhan, we pull a wire and a loudspeaker at the door of the mosque, for example, and the passersby pass by there and hear the adhan; then the matter ends and the purpose that 'Uthman aimed for with his objectives for this adhan, which you noted, is fully achieved in its place.

The questioner : Shaykh, if you please, it has been observed in the 'Uthmanic adhan that it precedes the original first religious adhan by a period in order to prepare.

The Shaykh : Yes, this period is considered... and the period is not in order to create an opportunity to establish a worship that was not in the time of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), which is the pre-prayer recommended practice, but rather the distance is such that... so the iqamah is established for the adhan with a few minutes.

The questioner : We understand from this that the matter of extending the speakers from the last adhan is without doubt that... that the original is the last adhan.

The Shaykh : There is no doubt.

The questioner : And if it were up to me, I would be satisfied with that; practically speaking, but we are dealing with the reality now.

The Shaykh: Correct.

The questioner : So now, the matter of pulling a wire or speaker from the last adhan may miss the purpose for which the 'Uthmanic adhan was established, meaning there is no period that people benefit from... or is my speech not clear?

The Shaykh : No, it is very clear, but this requires us to imagine that the place is very far, such that if they hear Allahu Akbar from the mu'adhdhin of the mosque and rush to the mosque, they would miss the sermon. It is not necessary to imagine this place to be that far, but it is far enough that they do not hear the loud voice which is in the Prophet's Mosque, and Allah knows best.