URGENT: Is it against any Islamic sect to play recorded azaans from a cassette player to the public instead of an azaan called out by a muezzin? Zahid

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His slave and Messenger.

Calling the Athaan with a tape is not a religious Athaan and it is not permissible to rely on it instead of the live Athaan from the mosques. The Islamic Fiqh Committees issued many Fataawa regarding this. For instance, the Fiqh Committee of the International Islamic League issued a Fatwa prohibiting calling the Athaan with a tape for many reasons, among which is that the intention is one of the conditions of the Athaan. Therefore, the Athaan is not valid from a mad or drunk person, and the like, because of the lack of intention in his performance; the same thing applies to the tape. In addition to this, there are many disadvantages in generalizing the Athaan with the tape as it has a relation with the legitimacy of the Athaan, because there are some Sunnan (plural of Sunnah) and etiquettes in every prayer in every mosque.

Calling the Athaan with a tape is neglecting the legitimacy of the Athaan and abandoning spreading it [this legitimacy], in addition to neglecting the condition of the intention and opening the door for the Muslims to misuse religion and them adopting innovations in their acts of worship and religious rituals, because this may lead to abandoning the live Athaan and relying on a tape.

It is for the above reasons, that the Islamic Fiqh Committee ruled that performing the Athaan with a tape and the like –when the time of the prayer begins –does not suffice and it is impermissible to perform this act of worship in this way because it is not like the legislated Athaan. On the contrary, Muslims should perform the Athaan of every prayer and in every mosque according to what the Muslims have inherited from the time of our Prophet Muhammad .    

Allaah Knows best.