Quoting teaschip:

I have never heard this call to prayer, but would love to experience it one day. Five times a day huh...How long does this usually last, each prayer that is. Does everyone stop when their working etc..to prayer each time? Just curious...

Quoting libralady:

Quoting libralady:

When I was in Istanbul I heard the call, five times a day, taxis stopped, shops closed and men troup across the road, wash their feet and enter the mosque. Yes they stop work and go and pray.

Quoting teaschip:

I have never heard this call to prayer, but would love to experience it one day. Five times a day huh...How long does this usually last, each prayer that is. Does everyone stop when their working etc..to prayer each time? Just curious...

Quoting rosha:

.
but do you know why there is five calls in the day which are distributed through the whole day ??
why there is not only one call in the day for example at the end of the day when muslims can pray all what they have to pray ???
if you like we can discuss this

Quoting Daydreamer:

I remember th amazing experience when, sitting on a bench in Hipodrome area, I could hear two muezzins calling for prayers from two mosques. It seemed like a dialogue and was absolutely wonderful.

Quoting lady in red:

Another thing that happens here (and maybe this is a general thing - I don't know) after the Call to Prayer is the announcement of any deaths that have occurred locally - this can go on for quite a long time.

Quoting thehandsom:

Actually, this entire adhan(ezan) thing causes 'noise pollution'.
I can understantand the necessity of it in old times when the clock or watch were not invented.
But in today's world, adhan(ezan) is unnecessary.

Quoting libralady:

When I was in Istanbul I saw taxi's pull up on the side of the road, drivers get out and go into the mosque and I saw shops shut for a few minutes while they went to the mosque and I literally saw 20 or so men troup into the mosque near Galata bridge.

Quoting libralady:

That on this day in 1950, the call to prayer was legalized to be called in Arabic.

Quoting thehandsom:

Actually, this entire adhan(ezan) thing causes 'noise pollution'.
I can understantand the necessity of it in old times when the clock or watch were not invented.
But in today's world, adhan(ezan) is unnecessary.

Quoting Deli_kizin:

A little more clarification:

The call to prayer, Adhan in arabic and ezan in Turkish (note that vowels in Arabic often change in turkish when transliteration because the vowel system is different, and the arabic D sounds a little like a Z, hence EZan), is ofcourse originally in Arabic.

Quoting CANLI:

Actually Adhan is informal arabic
İt is Azan in Arabic,thats why it is Ezan in Turkish
أذان
We usually change the letter ذ which is like z of the word to D when we talk informal 'Egyptian delicate'
So we say Adaan not Azan

İn arabic we have 2 D's one soft like English D,and one is neither in English nor in Turkish language called daad ض with hard voice
Thats why Usually in Turkish they change the arabic hard D to Z...
İ dont know the relation ,it would be closer to change it to D
Like Razı it is Radi originally

Neysa,Arabic D is different than Z,there is also Arabic Z
Arabic D,is D soft one 'Da^l' and hard one 'Dad'

Quoting CANLI:

Bir şey değil
Btw,is it hard language to learn it ?

Quoting Deli_kizin:

Quoting CANLI:

Quoting thehandsom:

Of course it is noise pollution Canli.
Sometimes they are putting 4 nos 100/200W speakers on to each minaret. Sometimes they are adding them on to other parts as well. A mosque with 2 minarets may create more than 2000W sound.
They have checked some of these mosques and the sound was measured between 110-150 decibel units!!

For human ears normal sounds are between 35 and 65 dB .
When you exceed this level continuously it effects the quailty of life and causes psychological problems!!

Some examples for noise levels:
* normal conversation 50 - 60 dB(A)
* a loud radio 65 - 75 dB(A)
* a busy street 78 - 85 dB(A)
* a heavy lorry about 7 metres away 95 - 100 dB(A)
* a pighouse at feeding time 110 dB(A)
* a chain saw 115 - 120 dB(A)
* a jet aircraft taking off 25 metres away 140 dB(A). (HSE, 2000 )

Quoting caliptrix:

Quoting alameda:

The problem is not the azan, the problem is abuse of sound amplification equipment.

Quoting serhattugral:

One of them is "in a muslim country people must be called to NAMAZ publicly" as in a christian country toll for sunday ceremony.

Quoting elham:

alameda canim,the problem in the mind of the person who think that azan is noise pollution

Quoting libralady:

It was a Friday, but honestly it happened!

Quoting teaschip:

I guess if you lived close to a mosque and it was extremely loud, yes 5x day could be bothersom. But then again I imagine some people get use to it.

Quoting CANLI:

To Muslims its same like bells to Christians,a reminder of the time of prayers

Quoting CANLI:

Azan is a call of prayer to remind people of the time of prayers,and to gather people 'who wants' to pray together at mosques.

Quoting Deli_kizin:

I lived in Turkey for 1 year and was woken up nearly every night by ezan

Quoting Deli_kizin:

I think there are more people sleeping at 5 than waking up for ezan Isnt it a passage from Quran 'to you your religion, to me my religion' (something like this?). You can pray as long as you dont bother people who dont. But as you said, if they make rules according to sound and meters, it should not be a problem at all.

Quoting Avalon:

ezans are better than alarm clocks.I love them)))))))

Quoting Deli_kizin:

Quoting ninja:

I was wondering about that too. I heard the prayers many times and I always stayed at the same hotel which is so near to the Blue Mosque. Yet I never saw the taxis stop, or business stop or anyone trying to stop to observe the prayer. Maybe those more responding muslims were already inside the mosque by the time of the prayers.

Quoting serhattugral:

Quoting libralady:

Quoting thehandsom:

Quoting libralady: Quoting serhattugral: Quoting ninja: I was wondering about that too. I heard the prayers many times and I always stayed at the same hotel which is so near to the Blue Mosque. Yet I never saw the taxis stop, or business stop or anyone trying to stop to observe the prayer. Maybe those more responding muslims were already inside the mosque by the time of the prayers. Exactly! This is the summary of the Turkish religious life! You are managing to convince me that I imagined taxis pulling up and the driver going in the mosque!

Quoting libralady:

Quoting thehandsom: Quoting libralady: Quoting serhattugral: Quoting ninja: I was wondering about that too. I heard the prayers many times and I always stayed at the same hotel which is so near to the Blue Mosque. Yet I never saw the taxis stop, or business stop or anyone trying to stop to observe the prayer. Maybe those more responding muslims were already inside the mosque by the time of the prayers. Exactly! This is the summary of the Turkish religious life! You are managing to convince me that I imagined taxis pulling up and the driver going in the mosque! I TRUST you libralady..

Quoting lady in red:

Quoting libralady: Quoting thehandsom: Quoting libralady: Quoting serhattugral: Quoting ninja: I was wondering about that too. I heard the prayers many times and I always stayed at the same hotel which is so near to the Blue Mosque. Yet I never saw the taxis stop, or business stop or anyone trying to stop to observe the prayer. Maybe those more responding muslims were already inside the mosque by the time of the prayers. Exactly! This is the summary of the Turkish religious life! You are managing to convince me that I imagined taxis pulling up and the driver going in the mosque! I TRUST you libralady.. I know I have a wild imagination but not normally about taxis