Adhan and Iqama: Words, Meaning and How to Respond

The adhan is the public announcement that a prayer's time has entered; the iqama is the shorter call given inside the mosque just before the congregation stands. Both go back to the first year in Madinah, when the Prophet (peace be upon him) was looking for a way to gather the people, and the companion Abdullah ibn Zayd was shown the words in a dream, which the Prophet confirmed (Sunan Abu Dawud and al-Tirmidhi). Al-Bukhari and Muslim report that Bilal was then told to call the adhan.

This article gives the words and meanings, how to reply, the dua afterwards, and the main differences between the schools.

The words of the adhan

The caller faces the qibla, turns the head to the right for "hayya 'ala as-salah" and to the left for "hayya 'ala al-falah", and raises the voice.

The adhan is given only once the prayer time has entered. How those times are determined is in the prayer times guide; the Fajr adhan in particular depends on true dawn, explained in Fajr and true dawn.

The words of the iqama

The iqama uses the same phrases with one addition ("qad qamat is-salah") and, in most schools, fewer repetitions.

Hanafis give the iqama as a full repetition of the adhan wording plus "qad qamat is-salah"; the other schools give it "single" (ifrad), following the report that Bilal was commanded to make the adhan in pairs and the iqama single, except for "qad qamat is-salah" (Sahih al-Bukhari 603; Sahih Muslim 378). Some Hanbali scholars also accept the double form. All forms are accepted in practice; follow your mosque. The iqama is said faster and lower than the adhan, and the congregation stands for it.

How to respond

When you hear the adhan, repeat each phrase after the caller (reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim: say as he says). Two exceptions:

• After hayya 'ala as-salah and hayya 'ala al-falah, say la hawla wa la quwwata illa billah (there is no power nor strength except with Allah), as reported in Sahih Muslim.
• After as-salatu khayrun min an-nawm at Fajr, many say sadaqta wa bararta (you have spoken truly); this reply has no established hadith and is a custom, so repeating the phrase itself is also fine.

The reply is made quietly, and it is fine to be sitting, walking or working while you say it. Someone in prayer or using the toilet does not reply; they may say the dua afterwards.

The dua after the adhan

After the adhan finishes:

1. Salawat on the Prophet, in any form (reported in Sahih Muslim: whoever hears the caller, say as he says, then send blessings on me).
2. Allahumma rabba hadhihi ad-da'wati at-tammah, was-salati al-qa'imah, ati Muhammadan al-wasilata wal-fadilah, wab'athhu maqaman mahmudan alladhi wa'adtah. Meaning: O Allah, Lord of this perfect call and the prayer about to be established, grant Muhammad the means and the virtue, and raise him to the praised station You promised him. The Prophet said that whoever says it will have his intercession (Sahih al-Bukhari).
3. A dua of your own. The time between adhan and iqama is described in a hadith in Abu Dawud and al-Tirmidhi as a time when supplication is not rejected.

Between adhan and iqama

The Prophet said: between every two calls there is a prayer, for whoever wishes (reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim). This is the time for the sunnah rak'ahs before Fajr, Dhuhr and Asr, and for the two rak'ahs before Maghrib and Isha that some pray; the full list is in sunnah prayer times. The gap between adhan and iqama is set by each mosque; it is usually shortest at Maghrib.

Madhhab and regional variations

• Number of takbirs at the start of the adhan: Malikis say "Allahu akbar" twice; the others four.
• Tarji' (repeating the testimonies, first quietly, then loudly): Maliki and Shafi'i; not Hanafi or Hanbali.
• Fajr addition: the four Sunni schools include "as-salatu khayrun min an-nawm" in the Fajr adhan. Many scholars (Malikis, Shafi'is, Hanbalis, and Abu Yusuf among the Hanafis) also allow an earlier adhan before dawn, following the Prophet's words that Bilal calls at night so that the sleeper may wake and the one praying may return (Sahih al-Bukhari 621; Sahih Muslim 1093); Abu Hanifa and Muhammad al-Shaybani disagree. It is not the adhan of Fajr, which is called after dawn.
• Ja'fari practice: "Allahu akbar" four times, the two testimonies, then commonly "ash-hadu anna 'Aliyyan waliyyullah" (held by Ja'fari scholars to be a recommended addition, not part of the adhan proper), "hayya 'ala as-salah", "hayya 'ala al-falah", "hayya 'ala khayr al-'amal" (come to the best of deeds) twice, takbir twice, and "la ilaha illallah" twice. "As-salatu khayrun min an-nawm" is not said.

Practical notes

• A mosque's adhan time may differ by a few minutes from a phone app. The adhan should be given once the time has entered; precaution minutes and method differences explain the gap, as covered in mosque times vs apps.
• Praying in congregation after the iqama, rather than arriving at the second rak'ah, is the aim; the rewards and rules are in praying in congregation.
• Apps that play the adhan are reminders; set them to the method your mosque uses so that you are not surprised by a five-minute difference. See prayer reminders on your phone.

For questions about your own mosque's practice, or the details of a particular wording, ask a scholar or imam you trust.