Adzan
&
Iqamat

Indeed it's the case that like almost every other aspect of the world of Islam,

the Adzan can be heard to have various local differences,

but once again it is extraordinary how similar they all are.

After fourteen hundred years,

having travelled all around the world,

still the Adzan is clearly recognisable,

a direct link to the Messenger's mosque in Madinah.

It begins with a calling out of what this thing, about to happen is all about.

The time of Sala

is when we remember what we are truly doing,

whether alone or together with companions.

Because this life will always be a great distraction,

and the Messenger knew that we need a reminder

whatever we are doing God is Greater.

If we listen carefully it helps to keep us humble,

because however great we think we might be,

we can be sure that God is Greater.

No matter how wide our imagination

or how far our vision,

times and distances that cannot be experienced

and only imagined,

the power of particles

and the billions of galaxies,

God is Greater.

And however great our understanding of love,

we can know that the Love of God is Greater.

The Adzan continues straight away

to call out loud the belief in God that we share,

and that there is no god if not God,

the belief that links all muslims together.

This alone is enough to make you a muslim,

and the fact that you only need to say it once,

doesn't mean that it isn't good to say it twice,

because you can't point out too often

that there is no god if not God.

And yet strange as it may seem,

this God has a relationship with each one of us,

and to humankind as a whole,

It's a relationship that God has displayed to humans

at different times in their history,

and followers of other Messengers have their own traditions of remembering,

while muslims follow the historic event of God's Message being given to the Messenger.

So we call that out loud and proud

to one and all,

that Muhammad is the Messenger of God.

And his tradition was handed down to us

by his holy family, 'Ali and Fatima Hasan and Hussein,

and the Companions and those that came after.

All agreed and accepted that Muhammad is the Messenger of God.

So the Messenger showed them the best possible way

for us to show our surrender to God through the form of the Sala,

and the Adzan is a reminder of when it is time

to stop what we are doing and come to pray

And just in case it seems hard to find the time,

we are given a reminder

of who it is that our Sala truly benefits,

ourselves.

We are urged to come to what benefits our lives,

to come to success in what truly matters in life,

and of course we are urged to come to yet more success

in the life that comes after,

But because we accept that the times of the Sala

are tied to the relationship of the earth and the sun,

the first prayers of the day are before dawn,

so it is e xtra useful at that time to add a reminder

that Sala is better than sleep,

a reminder to pop the semi-conscious bubble of a dozer.

And with that it is time to end the adzan

and to bring things full circle,

back to the beginning,

remembering that God is Greater

and there is no other.

Which of course brings us to

the beginning of the second version of the call to Sala

The Iqamat is called just before the Sala begins,

and is not meant for other than those who are gathered there.

The Iqamat is more or less the same as the Adzan,

but perhaps assumes that if you're there there's no need

to say everything twice.

Instead, this call is simply to let people know

that now is the time to stand together,

shoulder to shoulder in surrender.