Beats & Boundaries (Music)

Let us take a quick trip to the valley of Makkah…

Islam was conquering the hearts and minds of the Makkah inhabitants. The worrisome chieftains of the kuffar put their heads together to counter the mesmerizing influence of Qur’an. All their previous tactics of flase accusations and slander went ineffectual. Nazar bin Harith came with a new and apparently most effective remedy. They decided to engage the musician slave girls to attract the young and thoughtful mind away from pure and sober teachings of the Qur’an.

The results came as they expected. The minds which otherwise were melting through the poetic and meaningful words of the Qur’an were getting tangled in the harmonics of the music and the lust inducing poetry.

Allah exactly revealed that situation as:

And of mankind is he who purchases idle talks (i.e. music, singing etc.) to mislead (men) form the path of Allah without knowledge, and takes it (the path of Allah, the verses of the Qur’an )by way of mockery. For such there will be a humiliating torment (in the Hell-fire).

 (The Noble Quran – Luqman 31:6)

Syedna Abdullah bin Masood (may Allah be pleased with him) in the explanation of the above ayah said, ‘I swear to Allah this refers to music/song, I swear to Allah this refers to music/song, I swear to Allah this refers to music/song.’

In another narration Abdullah bin Masood (may Allah be pleased with him) reports that the messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) said:

“Songs make hypocrisy grow in the heart as water causes farm-produce to grow”.

(Sunan al-Bayhaqi)

There is another narration in which it is related that Prophet of Allah Muhammad (Peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) said:

“There will be (at some future time) people from my ummah who will seek to make lawful: fornication, the wearing of silk, wine drinking and the use of musical instrument”. (Bukhari)

At one occasion Ali bin Talib (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that Prophet of Allah Muhammad (Peace be upon him) said that When my ummah indulges in fifteen misdeeds, calamities will settle on them, among these (fifteen misdeeds) are singing girls and musical instruments. (Tirmidhi)

In another narration Abdullah ibn Abbas (May Allah be pleased with him) said: “Verily, Allah has made haraam (forbidden) liquor, gambling, the musical drum, and every intoxicant is haraam (forbidden)”. (Ahmad, Abu Dawud,al- Bayhaqi)

Taken from  a   post of Al-Jamia Publications, Pakistan