Listening to the Adhān and Responding to the Muezzin’s Words is Legislated in Islam

Hadith Reference:​

Jābir bin ʿAbdullāh (رضي الله عنه) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said:
"Whoever says the following supplication upon hearing the call to prayer (Adhān):

اللَّهُمَّ رَبَّ هَذِهِ الدَّعْوَةِ الثَّامَةِ ، وَالصَّلَاةِ الْقَائِمَةِ آتِ مُحَمَّدًا اَلْوَسِيلَةَ ، وَالْفَضِيلَةَ ، وَالدَّرَجَةَ الرَّفِيعَةَ وَابْعَثُهُ مَقَامًا مَحْمُودَان الَّذِي وَعَدْتَهُ

(‘O Allah, Lord of this perfect call and the established prayer, grant Muhammad (ﷺ) intercession, superiority, and a lofty rank, and raise him to the praiseworthy station You have promised him.’)
Will be granted the intercession of the Prophet (ﷺ) on the Day of Judgment."

[Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 471, 614]

Key Lessons Derived from the Hadith:​

➊ Responding to the Adhān is Sunnah and should be done by repeating the same words as the Muezzin.

➋ Listening to the Adhān and responding to the Muezzin’s words is legislated in Islam. It is permissible to respond in both states of purity and impurity, but one should refrain from responding while in the restroom or engaged in relieving oneself.

➌ The call to prayer that echoes from the mosques should be respected. As believers, we are more deserving of attentively listening to Allah’s call and responding to it. The minimum level of respect is to listen and reply to the Adhān, followed by supplication and sending blessings upon the Prophet (ﷺ).
The Muezzin should also deliver the Adhān in a moderate tone—neither excessively prolonged nor rushed in just a few seconds.

➍ One may respond to the Adhān while walking, sitting, or lying down. However, unnecessary restrictions—such as not responding unless wearing a cap or a head covering—are baseless.
The only exceptions where one should refrain from responding are while in the restroom, engaged in relieving oneself, or during marital relations.
The proper method of responding is:

• Repeat the words of the Muezzin.
• When the Muezzin says "Ḥayya ʿalaṣ-Ṣalāh" and "Ḥayya ʿala al-Falāḥ", one should say: لَا حَوْلَ وَلَا قُوَّةَ إِلَّا بِاللَّهِ.
• After the Adhān, recite the supplication اللَّهُمَّ رَبَّ هَذِهِ الدَّعْوَةِ... and send ṣalāt (durūd) upon the Prophet (ﷺ).

➎ Sincerely responding to the Adhān is a means of entering Paradise, and reciting the duʿāʾ after the Adhān grants the intercession of the Prophet (ﷺ) on the Day of Judgment.

[This content has been taken from the book Ḍiyāʾ al-Islām fī Sharḥ al-Imām bi-Aḥādīth al-Aḥkām by Shaykh Taqī al-Dīn Abī al-Fatḥ, translated by Mawlānā Maḥmūd Aḥmad Ghaḍanfar.]