Please lower your voice during the athan, please!
As-salamu alaykum. One of my biggest pet peeves is when people keep talking during the athan. Where I live you can hear the call around mosques, in malls, and in the neighborhood, and lately I even notice it in government offices and at late hours on college campuses. Given that so many people here are Muslim or know the culture, I don’t understand why some still keep chatting over the athan. I've been in situations - even on phone calls - where I asked the other person to be quiet and they nodded but then said two more words and went on. When it’s quiet, it feels peaceful and respectful toward our religion. But when I’m outside a mall it can get really loud, like people are competing to be heard and staff turn up the mic even more. It’s honestly annoying. I wish there was more of that unspoken respect we’re taught, something passed down from the Prophet’s time. I know markets are busy and some prayer times coincide with rush hour, so I’m not being naïve, but common courtesy would help a lot. This is a largely Arab and Muslim area - people know the custom. I don’t want to assume the worst, but talking through the athan isn’t respectful worship. Sometimes when I politely ask people to stop they still won’t for a few minutes, and they look so tense like they’re holding back - it’s uncomfortable. P.S. What about the Qur’an being played in homes or shops for long stretches that drowns out the athan? Should businesses and households consider pausing or lowering recitation volume during the athan out of respect?