Azan echoes in Mardan villages to ward off coronavirus

PESHAWAR: The muezzins in various villages in Mardan district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa recited Azan (call for prayer) from mosques at 10:30pm, which continued till 11pm in a bid to shake off the coronavirus.

The people also joined the muezzins and started reciting the Azan from rooftops to seek Almighty Allah’s help to get rid of the coronavirus that has forced cities across the globe to go into lockdown, bringing the routine life to a grinding halt. A local dispenser said he could not figure it out when he heard the call for prayer after the Isha prayer was offered. However, he also asked his son, who was learning the Holy Quran by heart, to recite the Azan from his house when his brother told him to do so. The elders recalled that reciting Azan had been the practice since ages to invoke Allah’s mercy in order to seek His protection from natural calamities and disasters. Some religious people argued that the coronavirus pandemic was a test from Allah and only He could avert it. Earlier, the prayer leaders and ordinary people in Peshawar had also recited Azan from mosques and rooftops to seek Allah’s mercy and forgiveness. The Ulema in the Friday sermons directed the faithful to follow precautionary measures to save themselves from coronavirus and also recite verses from the Holy Quran.“Precautionary measures are necessary and these must be followed, but offering collective azan and prayers will avert these disastrous,” said one Zaman Khan. One Zaman Khan recalled that the people of entire village offered Namaz-e-Istisqa for rain and Allah Almighty answered their prayers by starting rain before the end of the prayer. Some people tried to convince the people to follow the instructions being issued by the government. However, some people seemed adamant to go to mosques by terming it a conspiracy against Islam to prevent the Muslims from going to offering prayers at mosques.