Adhaan in Wilderness

Abu Saeed al-Khudri (radi Allahu anhu) said to Abu Sa’sa’ah: “I see that you love sheep and the wilderness. If you are with your sheep or in the wilderness, say the Adhaan for your prayer, and raise your voice when doing so, for as far as the Muezzin’s voice reaches, there is no Jinn, human, or thing but it will bear witness for him on the Day of Resurrection.” Abu Saeed (radi Allahu anhu) said: “I heard that from the Messenger of Allah (sal Allahu alaihi wa sallam).” [Bukhari]

This hadith tells us that the Jinn will bear witness on the Day of Resurrection for the one whose Adhaan they heard. That is why it is recommended to give the Adhaan even if one is alone and there appears to be nobody around for miles. In fact, even inanimate objects will testify to the good and bad that they witnessed.

As in humans, the Jinn follow different paths. Some are perfect in their righteousness and in doing good deeds, some are of a lesser status than that, and some are Kuffar; and they are the majority. Allah (subhana wa ta’ala) tells us that the Jinn who listened to the Quran said: “There are among us some that are righteous, and some the contrary; we are groups having different ways.” [Quran 72:11]

We should realize that we are always on display and audio-video evidence is constantly being gathered regarding us. It will all be presented on the Day of Judgement. We spend so much time and money on recording every significant and insignificant moment of our lives, our children’s lives, time spent with friends and relatives, etc. Yet all this filming and photographing is so redundant, when every second of our lives is already being recorded.

Should we make it to Jannah inshaAllah we can ask to see more photographs and videos than it is possible for us to record on earth. Should anybody end up in Jahannum (Allah Forbid), then they couldn’t care less about the videos they made in life or the photographs they took.