Bilal al-Habashi Mosque

Hz. Bilal b. Rabah al-Habashi is a great companion who has gone down in history as the first muezzin of Islam. Of Abyssinian descent, Bilal lived as a slave of a polytheist Quraysh man named Umayyah b. Khalaf in Mecca. In the early years of Islam, when he converted to Islam, he faced severe torture; Umayyah tortured him by laying him on hot stones during the scorching days. During this torture, Hz. Bilal only said, "Ehad! Ehad!" (God is One!) and did not renounce his faith. Hz. Abu Bakr as-Siddiq paid a heavy price to buy and free Hz. Bilal. After the Hijra, in Medina, Hz. the Prophet appointed Hz. Bilal as the muezzin. His loud and beautiful voice ensured that the first adhan was raised from the Mosque of the Prophet. Hz. Bilal recited the adhan five times a day during the lifetime of Hz. the Prophet; during the conquest of Mecca, he climbed onto the Kaaba and recited the conquest adhan. After the death of Hz. the Prophet, Hz. Bilal fell into great sorrow and said he would never recite the adhan again. He left Medina and went to Syria; he spent most of the rest of his life there. At the insistence of Hz. Umar, he recited the adhan once more; however, it is reported that all the people of Medina were overwhelmed with tears at that moment, feeling the absence of Hz. the Prophet. Hz. Bilal passed away around 20 AH (641 CE) in Damascus and was buried there. As for the Bilal al-Habashi Mosque: Adnan Şensoy's notes clearly state that this mosque does not have a historical background, has no real connection to Hz. Bilal, and was built recently by a private individual. Therefore, the mosque itself does not have historical or religious significance. [Source: Casim Avcı, "Bilal al-Habashi", TDV Islamic Encyclopedia, https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/bilal-i-habesi]