
3 minute read
Artists Of 2019--- The Art of Music
By: Beenish Khurshid, Montreal, Quebec
When in the car, on the bus, doing homework, when bored or reading a book, tell me what you hear? Most of us hear the sound of music. Music gives people a chance to break out of our monotonous routines, and boredom and experience emotions. A diversity of sounds. Something to make the blood pump, the heart feel, and the souls to feel alive.
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But the traditional scholars of old, both Sunni and Shia, have always considered Music as categorically haram.
“Soon there will be people from my Ummah who will regard adultery, wearing silk garments, wine and musical instruments as lawful…’
(Sahih Bukhari -Ta’liqan,بصيغة الجزم Hadith: 5590, Sahih Ibn Hibban; Al Ihsan, Hadith: 6754 and As Sunanul Kubra of Imam Bayhaqi, vol. 10 pg. 221)
And there are many other hadiths like this that make it clear that Rasulullah صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم considered music, specifically in the form of musical instruments, or even music-less poetry in the form of speech that invites evil or misleads in some way, as a bad thing. So how then do we reconcile ourselves to the dry monotonous car rides, and to the boredom of our everyday lives? Having taking the trip from cultured to a music-free lifestyle, here are a few tips:
· Music is like an addiction. You won’t realize this until you start going without and feeling the pangs. The best way to cut it is to cut it clean, but before you do, you have to prepare yourself mentally for what it is you are doing, and why.
· Realize that when Allah SWT recommends something for you, it is always better for you. There is barakah in it, and Allah SWT will reward you for taking this higher road.
· Take a look at the other sins on the list: adultery, wearing silk garments, wine. The harm in most of these is fairly evident and obvious. And while we may not have a clear understanding of why God is forbidding us from musical instruments, know that this is God’s wisdom, and mercy upon His believing servants.
· Busy your heart with the remembrance, consciousness, and genuine gratitude of Allah SWT. This is not something that is fostered easily, by saying “I am thankful to Allah”, but something that is cultivated from within. God is Great.
· When you give something up, don’t look back. Going back and forth, and straddling the two worlds confuses the Heart, and is one of the causes of hypocrisy. Give it up because you feel it is wrong. Give it up because Allah dislikes it. Give it up, and walk away.
· Move on to better things. Read books on your rides to and from. Start a conversation with someone you haven’t chatted with in a while. Read Qur’an. Memorize a part of it. Think through a personal problem you are having, and ask Allah SWT for guidance. All things that your time, your mind, and your hearts energies can be better devoted towards.
· For those who find it difficult to cut clean, below is a list of acapella artists: artists who use beat-boxing and other techniques to produce sounds only with their mouths and hands. The artists listed also only produce material that invites one to the way of Allah SWT. Please, take a look, and supplement your playlist, or replace it completely with the wide diversity of halal listening options out there.
Jazakallah khair.
Note: we are not writing this article to encourage those who do not listen to music at all to start. Silence is golden, and the Qur’an is the best sound. But the aim of the article is to provide those who are struggling with the idea that music may be haram an alternative, to pull each other closer to the path of Allah SWT.
For another perspective on the permissibility of Music, watch this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1dafblZJec
If you are looking for alternative content, below are a few recommendations to get you started. Once you have entered the realm, you'll find that there is a very large realm of music-free content out there.
Netflix Shows¶
Who killed Malcolm X?
Spoken Word Artists¶
Talk Islam (see Youtube)
¶ Boona Mohammed Duff-Only Islamic Content
(Nasheed) Artists
¶ Zain Bhika
¶ Native Deen Podcasts
¶ Honest Tea Talk
Acapella Islamic-Content(Nasheed) Artists
¶ David Wharnshby Ali (earlier children songs)
¶ Ilyas Mao
¶ Siedd ¶
Rhamzan Days
¶ Nadeem Mohammed
¶ Omar Esa
Photo by Pierre Châtel-Innocenti on Unsplash