IN Pakistan, one area in a city has at least 10 to 15 mosques within a kilometre radius. There is a dedicated muezzin in each mosque who then calls azan for prayer according to specific times set in each mosque. Sooner or later, one azan starts from one mosque and others one by one or all start at the same time.

The loudspeakers are set to the loudest pitch owing to which a single azan cannot be heard properly when all muezzins call for prayer simultaneously.

We always talk about unity which comes by small acts. In my suggestion, there should be a system in mosques which can regulate and inculcate the concept of ‘one azan, one eman’.

Under this concept, mosques in one area should be equipped with an inter-connected sound system through which azan should be called at the same time.

A wireless or local area network should connect five to 10 mosques and the azan schedule will be calculated according to their timesheet for calling azan. Only one muezzin will call the azan for all five to 10 mosques. This will eventually reduce the chaos we notice at present, and everyone will listen to the same azan attentively.

To achieve this, we need government support. To avoid any misconception, Friday prayer’s azan can be exempted from this system so that all people can offer Friday’s prayer in their respective mosques.

A chart should be drawn in all mosques on which the timing and selected muezzins will call the azan as prescribed by the elders of the mosques. This process will bring in more muezzins who will be encouraged to practise azan and get selected.

This can be achieved by rotating azan duties from one mosque to another starting from the azan for Fajr prayer to the azan for Isha.

Naqash Munir

Rawalpindi

Published in Dawn, January 16th, 2019