Did it come from the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) that the mu'adhdhin, when he says "Hayya 'ala al-salah, hayya 'ala al-falah," turns and looks to the right and the left?
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The questioner : Did this hadith come from the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) that the mu'adhdhin, when he says: "Hayya 'ala al-salah" and "Hayya 'ala al-falah," turns and looks to the right and the left?
The Shaykh : Yes, it is a recommended practice (sunnah) for the mu'adhdhin to turn to the right and to the left when saying "Hayya 'ala al-salah" and "Hayya 'ala al-falah," because this was the adhan of Bilal in the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family). However, the scholars differed on whether he says "Hayya 'ala al-salah" once to the right and once to the left, and "Hayya 'ala al-falah" once to the right and once to the left, or whether he says "Hayya 'ala al-salah" twice to the right and "Hayya 'ala al-falah" twice to the left. The well-known practice that is followed is that he says: "Hayya 'ala al-salah" twice to the right and "Hayya 'ala al-falah" twice to the right. This applies when the mu'adhdhin performs the adhan with his own voice without an intermediary. However, nowadays, most mu'adhdhins perform the adhan using a loudspeaker, and there is no need to turn in this case, because the turning in the past was to allow those on his right and left to hear. Now, the loudspeaker is placed in the minaret to the right, to the left, toward the qiblah, and behind the qiblah, so there is no need to turn. Furthermore, if he turns, he will deviate from the microphone's opening, and the sound will change. So if he remains facing the microphone and facing the qiblah, there is no need to turn at that time. But should he put his fingers in his ears in this situation? The answer is: Yes, because placing the fingers in the ears improves the mu'adhdhin's voice, as a small part of the sound comes out from the ears. So if he puts his fingers in his ears, this makes the voice clearer and purer.
The questioner : May Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh : Yes, it is a recommended practice (sunnah) for the mu'adhdhin to turn to the right and to the left when saying "Hayya 'ala al-salah" and "Hayya 'ala al-falah," because this was the adhan of Bilal in the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family). However, the scholars differed on whether he says "Hayya 'ala al-salah" once to the right and once to the left, and "Hayya 'ala al-falah" once to the right and once to the left, or whether he says "Hayya 'ala al-salah" twice to the right and "Hayya 'ala al-falah" twice to the left. The well-known practice that is followed is that he says: "Hayya 'ala al-salah" twice to the right and "Hayya 'ala al-falah" twice to the right. This applies when the mu'adhdhin performs the adhan with his own voice without an intermediary. However, nowadays, most mu'adhdhins perform the adhan using a loudspeaker, and there is no need to turn in this case, because the turning in the past was to allow those on his right and left to hear. Now, the loudspeaker is placed in the minaret to the right, to the left, toward the qiblah, and behind the qiblah, so there is no need to turn. Furthermore, if he turns, he will deviate from the microphone's opening, and the sound will change. So if he remains facing the microphone and facing the qiblah, there is no need to turn at that time. But should he put his fingers in his ears in this situation? The answer is: Yes, because placing the fingers in the ears improves the mu'adhdhin's voice, as a small part of the sound comes out from the ears. So if he puts his fingers in his ears, this makes the voice clearer and purer.
The questioner : May Allah reward you with good.