I am in a place far from the city and work in the mountains, and I do not hear the adhan except via the radio, so I perform the adhan and iqamah for my prayer alone. Is this...
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The questioner : He says that he is in a place far from the city and works in the mountains. He says, "I do not hear the adhan except via the radio, so I perform the adhan and iqamah for my prayer alone. Is this permissible, O honorable Shaykh?"
The Shaykh : I do not see any difficulty in this question. If he means that he limits himself to hearing the adhan from the radio, that has one ruling. If he means that when he hears the adhan from the radio, he stands up and calls the adhan, that has another ruling. If it is the first case, we look at it: if the adhan is being broadcast live from the mosque, I hope that suffices for him, because he is hearing the adhan directly from the mu'adhdhin, albeit through this device that transmits it. It is as if he heard it from the loudspeaker in the town. However, if the adhan is being played from a recording, as some radio stations do by playing the adhan from a recording, and for this reason they may sometimes play the adhan of a person who has died, then this adhan does not suffice. This is because the adhan is an act of worship that must be performed by an actor. The tape on which the adhan was recorded is not an actor who draws near to Allah through the adhan, like the mu'adhdhin who calls the adhan with his voice and his tongue.
As for the second meaning, which is that when he hears the mu'adhdhin on the radio, he stands up and calls the adhan and iqamah, that is good and fine, and there is no harm in it. There is no difficulty in it, because his observing the radio adhan, which is considered to be on time, is better than his calling the adhan by guesswork and estimation. He might guess or estimate and be mistaken, and pray before the time. However, it is obligatory for him, if the distance between him and the town from which the adhan is transmitted is a distance where the time might differ, to take that into account. He should delay slightly to be cautious. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah reward you. This listener, A.A.A. from Riyadh, sent a message.
The Shaykh : I do not see any difficulty in this question. If he means that he limits himself to hearing the adhan from the radio, that has one ruling. If he means that when he hears the adhan from the radio, he stands up and calls the adhan, that has another ruling. If it is the first case, we look at it: if the adhan is being broadcast live from the mosque, I hope that suffices for him, because he is hearing the adhan directly from the mu'adhdhin, albeit through this device that transmits it. It is as if he heard it from the loudspeaker in the town. However, if the adhan is being played from a recording, as some radio stations do by playing the adhan from a recording, and for this reason they may sometimes play the adhan of a person who has died, then this adhan does not suffice. This is because the adhan is an act of worship that must be performed by an actor. The tape on which the adhan was recorded is not an actor who draws near to Allah through the adhan, like the mu'adhdhin who calls the adhan with his voice and his tongue.
As for the second meaning, which is that when he hears the mu'adhdhin on the radio, he stands up and calls the adhan and iqamah, that is good and fine, and there is no harm in it. There is no difficulty in it, because his observing the radio adhan, which is considered to be on time, is better than his calling the adhan by guesswork and estimation. He might guess or estimate and be mistaken, and pray before the time. However, it is obligatory for him, if the distance between him and the town from which the adhan is transmitted is a distance where the time might differ, to take that into account. He should delay slightly to be cautious. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah reward you. This listener, A.A.A. from Riyadh, sent a message.