Concerning the adhan, he states: “It is either obligatory or merely recommended.”

I say: Perhaps the author—may Allah protect him—has not yet had the opportunity to investigate the question thoroughly and determine which of the two opinions is correct; otherwise, we would never doubt for a moment that describing the adhan as only recommended is patently untenable. How could that be when it is among the greatest Islamic symbols? The Messenger of Allah ﷺ, if he failed to hear it in a land, would advance against its people and launch an attack; but if he did hear it, he would spare them, as is authentically reported in the two Sahihs and elsewhere. The Prophet’s explicit command to give the adhan is established in several sound hadiths, and an obligation can be proven with far less evidence than this. The truth, then, is that the adhan is a communal obligation (fard kifayah); this is the position endorsed by Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah in his Fatawa 1/67–68 and 4/20—and, as will be shown, it is required even of the solitary worshipper.

We shall present another proof of its obligatory nature in the forthcoming discussion on congregational prayer. Al-Shawkani also cites this evidence in al-Sayl al-Jarrar 1/196–197 along with other hadiths, and he concludes:

“In sum, no one should hesitate over the obligation of so great an act of worship as this. It is more renowned than a blazing fire on a mountaintop, and its evidences shine like the midday sun. Furthermore, this emblem is not limited to congregational prayer: every person who prays must give the adhan and the iqamah. If one is in a congregation, the caller’s adhan and iqamah suffice for all. Apparently women are like men in this regard, for they are the twins of men; whatever command applies to men applies to them. Nothing transmitted provides conclusive proof to exempt them, for the narrations cited in that respect include two transmitters who are both discarded, and it is impermissible to rely on them. Should a sound proof emerge to exclude women, so be it; otherwise, they are like the men.”