What is the ruling on eating the pre-dawn meal while the mu'adhdhin is calling to prayer?
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The questioner : May Allah reward you. Shaykh, some of the elderly people eat the pre-dawn meal.
The Shaykh : What?
The questioner : Some of the elderly people eat the pre-dawn meal while the call to prayer is being made.
The Shaykh : What is it?
The questioner : The Fajr call to prayer is being made.
The Shaykh : Why?
The questioner : He says: Wait until the white thread is distinguished from the black thread.
The Shaykh : Yes... and it is not distinguished until noon, glory be to Allah. No, no, by his knowledge, say: It is forbidden for you. But praise be to Allah, if the mu'adhdhin is calling to prayer according to the calendar, the calendar has a five-minute advance for Fajr. As for sitting and saying: Wait until the white thread is distinguished from the black thread, if his eyesight is weak, when will it be distinguished? Yes, but his case is like the case of 'Adi ibn Hatim. 'Adi ibn Hatim (may Allah be pleased with him) was eating the pre-dawn meal, and they had placed two reins, the kind used to tie a camel, one white and one black, under his pillow. Every time he ate, he looked at the two reins. As long as the white one was not distinguished, he ate. When the white one was distinguished, he stopped. He mentioned this to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), and he said to him: And he did not order him to repeat it because he was ignorant. So the important thing is to convey this to him, may Allah reward him with good, that he must stop. The most that can be said is that if the mu'adhdhin is calling to prayer according to the calendar, he may eat until the call to prayer is finished.
The questioner : From when he starts the call to prayer, Shaykh?
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : From when he says: Allahu Akbar, he stops? Or when he finishes the call to prayer?
The Shaykh : No, no, I told you: If he is calling to prayer according to the calendar, the calendar has a five-minute advance. Yes.
The Shaykh : What?
The questioner : Some of the elderly people eat the pre-dawn meal while the call to prayer is being made.
The Shaykh : What is it?
The questioner : The Fajr call to prayer is being made.
The Shaykh : Why?
The questioner : He says: Wait until the white thread is distinguished from the black thread.
The Shaykh : Yes... and it is not distinguished until noon, glory be to Allah. No, no, by his knowledge, say: It is forbidden for you. But praise be to Allah, if the mu'adhdhin is calling to prayer according to the calendar, the calendar has a five-minute advance for Fajr. As for sitting and saying: Wait until the white thread is distinguished from the black thread, if his eyesight is weak, when will it be distinguished? Yes, but his case is like the case of 'Adi ibn Hatim. 'Adi ibn Hatim (may Allah be pleased with him) was eating the pre-dawn meal, and they had placed two reins, the kind used to tie a camel, one white and one black, under his pillow. Every time he ate, he looked at the two reins. As long as the white one was not distinguished, he ate. When the white one was distinguished, he stopped. He mentioned this to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), and he said to him:
Indeed, your pillow is wide if it accommodates the white and the black thread. That is only the whiteness of the day and the darkness of the night.
إن وسادك لعريض أن وسع الخيط الأبيض والأسود إنما ذلك بياض النهار وسواد الليلThe questioner : From when he starts the call to prayer, Shaykh?
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : From when he says: Allahu Akbar, he stops? Or when he finishes the call to prayer?
The Shaykh : No, no, I told you: If he is calling to prayer according to the calendar, the calendar has a five-minute advance. Yes.