◈ The Announcement of “ألا صلوا في الرحال” During Adhān ◈
Written by: Imran Ayub Lahori
❀ Ruling: Saying “ألا صلوا في الرحال” in Adhān
During nights of severe cold or rainfall, it is recommended (mustaḥabb) for the mu’adhdhin to announce:
“ألا صلوا في الرحال“
“Behold! Pray in your homes.”
This announcement is to be made in place of “Ḥayya ʿala al-Ṣalāh” to inform people that they are permitted to perform prayer at home under such conditions.
❀ Evidences from Authentic Narrations
Various ḥadīths support this practice. One such narration from Ḥaḍrat Ibn ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما states:
“أن رسول الله كان يأمر المؤذن إذا كانت ليلة ذات برد ومطر يقول ألا صلوا في الرحال“
“When the night was extremely cold or rainy, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ would instruct the mu’adhdhin to say: ‘Ala ṣallū fī al-riḥāl’ – Be aware, pray in your homes.”
References:
[Bukhārī: 666; also Muslim: 697; Muwaṭṭa: 1/73; Abū Dāwūd: 1061; Nasā’ī: 2/15; Ibn Mājah: 938; Aḥmad: 2/4; Ḥumaydī: 700; Ibn Khuzaymah: 1655; Dārimī: 1/292; Bayhaqī: 1/398]
Additionally:
- [Bukhārī: 668, Kitāb al-Adhān: Bāb Hal Yuṣallī al-Imām liman Ḥaḍar]
- [Muslim: 699; Abū Dāwūd: 1066; Ibn Mājah: 939; Bayhaqī: 1/398]
Narrations from Ibn ʿAbbās and Ibn ʿUmar indicate that this concession was well known and practiced.
✅ Conclusion:
In cases of hardship due to weather, the addition of “ألا صلوا في الرحال“ in the Adhān is a Sunnah-based practice taught by the Prophet ﷺ for ease and facilitation.
