Music is of the purest and most beautiful

Music is of the purest and most beautiful creation of Allah who set the tone and rhythm of every sound in the universe. Music or singing like all the creations of Allah, that now constitute an important part of our daily life, can be lawfully used or maliciously abused. Both music and singing are created pure, and beautiful like our fresh air and fresh water and they can be corrupted or polluted by evil-doers of every nationality, colour or gender. The corruption of some music shows or songs does not make all the music or songs haram just like the pollution of some water or fresh air by some people will not deem all the water and air haram.

The sincere Muslim who is adhering to the Quran will not find in the Quran ANY PROHIBITION whatsoever OF MUSIC OR SINGING. Allah is very specific and His commands are very clear regarding any prohibition given in the Quran. Allah, the Most Merciful, NEVER prohibited music or singing in the Quran. Any prohibition of music or singing that is talked about among some Muslims has no basis in the Quran. These prohibitions are innovations made up.

The prophet Muhammad (saw) himself followed and preached the Quran. Those, who failed to accept Allah's law in the Quran, looked for different kinds of laws in other books. They invented their own law and claimed that "Music and singing are haram." Those who are confused or ignorant with their Quran choose to follow other than the Quran and ignore the clear laws of Allah in the Quran. After all we should always remember that Quran is the book that Allah calls COMPLETE, PERFECT and FULLY DETAILED,

(1) Quran is a COMPLETE, PERFECT AND FULLY DETAILED BOOK, (as far as this religion is concerned): See 6:19.,38 and 114; 7:52; 17:12; 11:1; 41:3; 12:111, and 16:89. Those who refuse this notion by God Almighty should not go any further. They will not see or understand anything as God promised in His book.

(2) The Prophet Muhammad (saw), lived by, ruled by, preached and followed the Quran. See 5:48-50

(3) Allah is the ONLY source of law, see 6:114. No one, including the prophet Muhammad (saw) , cannot prohibit what Allah did not prohibit, see 66:1. Many quote verse 59:7 as a proof that the prophet Muhammad (saw) permitted and prohibited on his own. They are hoping to confuse those who are not familiar with the Quran, as this verse is talking about the spoils of war and has nothing to do with any laws or any prohibitions.

(4) In addition to reminding us repeatedly that the Quran is DETAILED, Allah told us that He detailed for us what has been prohibited for us, see for example 6:119. Allah did not need assistance from any Imams, Sahaba or Tabi'in. Allah did not expect or wanted the prophet Muhammad (saw) to make his own laws. The Prophet Muhammad (saw) did not bring any laws other than the Quran.

(5) Allah does not forget, 19:64. He did not forget to prohibit Music or singing and waited for someone else to do it. The prohibition of Music and singing cannot be found in the Quran because Allah did not prohibit them.

(6) Those who believe Allah in His book believe that Quran is a COMPLETE BOOK as far as Islam is concerned and it is as well regarding all the prohibition. The list of prohibitions in the Quran does not include Music or singing. When needed, prohibitions are given clear and straight forward so as to leave no doubt in the minds of the believers, See 39:28.

(7) Some people do not want to believe Allah in the Quran, when He tells them that He has no shortage of words. Allah could have used both words, music AND/OR singing or words referring directly and clearly to them, if He so chose, See 31:27 and 18:109. The TRUE BELIEVERS know that the absence of these words from the Quran is because Allah never prohibited them and not because Allah does not use them, forget them, know them or know how.

(8) The Quran teaches us that Allah is extremely displeased with those who prohibit anything that was not specifically prohibited in the Quran, see 16:112-116.

(9) The upholding of any prohibitions not specifically mentioned in the Quran (e.g., prohibiting Music and singing) is tantamount to idolatry (6:142-152). Such prohibitions represent some other god) besides Allah.

(10) Allah condemned innovated prohibitions in 7:32
"Say, "Who prohibited the nice things Allah has created for His creatures, and the good provisions?" Say," such provisions are to be enjoyed in THIS life by those who BELIEVE. Moreover, the good provisions will be exclusively theirs on the Day of resurrection." We thus explain the revelations for people who know." 7:32 (QURAN)

Now and before responding to those who claim that Music and singing are haram in Islam let us ponder for few seconds at our universe and the way Allah created this world.

While we might remember that Galileo once said, "Mathematics is the language in which God wrote the universe.", it may be fair enough to say that Music has been the voice of that universe.
Any keen observer of the universe will realize that the whole universe was created with music in every corner of it. Our talking, crying, laughing, singing, yelling or screaming are nothing but music. Our heart beats, bowel sounds, breath sounds, the sound of our blood flow or even our brain waves are but music. The birds, the animals, the trees, the oceans, the wind and the clouds are all created with their own music. Music is in every corner of our universe. With music in every thing around us, it is naive to think that the One God who created all this music prohibited it. Those who claim that Music and singing are haram, lie about God and prohibit what God never did.

The human being was created and given one of the most valuable gifts, a voice box, which is in reality a music box. This voice box, or the larynx is one important instrument that allows us to communicate with each other and with other creatures around us. Our arrival and departure to and from this world are celebrated with that special music, the cry of the newborn or the cry for the departing one. The arrival of the newborn to this life is announced by his/her scream, the best music to the mother's ear. For the earlier months of the human being's life, the only way of communication is through the music that his/her voice box makes until he/she learns the more sophisticated music that is called the speech-language.

It is not surprising to find out that listening to a foreign language is like listening to music with different tones. Those who prohibit music do not understand their Islam (Submission), or the basic gifts in life that God gave them.

A quick look at the life around those who condemn music and prohibit what God did not, will only expose their hypocrisy. Life around these people is full of music, a music they do not understand or appreciate, the music that God put in their life to prove to us how wrong they are.
Examples of such music around them are, the door bell, the car horn, the alarm clock, the telephone, fire alarm, the whistle of a tea pot , the computer, the radio, TV, the kids toys, the exotic birds, the lawn mower..., etc. All these are but few of the music producing instruments in our life. Those who missed the true Islam, missed what life actually means, they prohibit what God did not in His complete book, the Quran.

Now let us look at what these people use to claim that Music and singing are haram. I will specifically quote from the posting in AOL Islam BB. library with the title "Music and Singing" , posted on 9/2/96.

(1) First, it is interesting to see the inverted logic of these people. After finding no proof in the Quran to prohibit music, by their own admission, they resort to the weaker sources one after the other to try to prove what they could not find in the Quran. Those who refuse to accept the Quran as a complete book for this religion, are led by Satan into inventing all kinds of laws from sources outside the Quran.

(2) In every verse they used in an attempt to prove that music is haram, they ended by concluding that the verse does not really prohibit Music. Despite that, they never got the message that God DID NOT PROHIBIT MUSIC OR SINGING. They also failed to understand that prohibition laws ONLY COME from God. When the prophet Muhammad gave any prohibitions it was FROM THE QURAN ONLY, and was not from his own. When the prophet Muhammad once tried to prohibit on his own, God admonished him publicly, see 66:1. Here are the verses that they claim to prohibit music and singing with few comments from me;

a) Allah addresses the disbelievers of the Quraish as follows, "Do you marvel at this statement, and laugh and do not weep, while you amuse yourselves (proudly) in vanities? Rather, prostrate before Allah and worship Him." (53:59-62)

Because of the expression "amuse yourselves" these Muslims twisted the words and the logic to make a conclusion that music and singing is what is meant here. They are missing the point and the meaning that is clear to any sincere believer. The word is general and indicates that any kind of amusement that keeps you from paying your duties to God is leading you to commit a sin. It does not make it haram or prohibited. If you amuse yourself by watching Baseball while forgetting to do your Salat-prayers on time then you are committing a sin but this does not make Baseball haram. If you amuse yourself by playing games with your children while forgetting to pray on time you are committing a sin but playing with your children will not be haram. If you listen to music or singing and forget to do your prayers then you commit a sin but music does not become haram. Remember that music is like air and water, it is not haram per se, but the way it is used in certain circumstances will control its status then. I will elaborate on this later, God willing.

While God did not prohibit music in this or any other verse, these group of Muslims find in human beings like sahaba, tabi'in, and later scholars of tafseer, idols, to prohibit for them what God did not. Al-Qurtubi, At-Tabari , Ibn Abbas, Al-Hasan, Mujahid, Ad-Dahhak, Ibn Jareer ..., etc. are more important to these people than God.

b) Allah SWT addresses Satan thus; "And excite any of them whom you can with your voice. Assault them with your cavalry and infantry, be a partner with them in their wealth and children, and make them promises. But Satan promises nothing but deceit" (17:64)

Using this verse as a proof of prohibition of music and singing shows only how naive and misguided are those who are running after other gods than the One God who gave them a complete book, the Quran. No intelligent human being can accept the voice here as pointing to music and singing. If those confused at heart want to use the voice here to prohibit anything, then may be they should prohibit talking and all these people should not talk because Satan does.

It is clear from this verse that there is no prohibition here. God does prohibit things by saying it without any confusion and without leaving a place for guess. They quote here Ibn Abbas, as saying "the voice mentioned in the verse refers to any form of invitation which calls to disobedience to Allah." If this form of invitation is "talking nicely" to someone to make him/her disobey Allah, this does not make "talking nicely" haram. If the invitation here is accompanied by music or singing, this does not make the music or singing haram but rather it is the invitation to disobey God in any form that is haram. They do not like what God says in the Quran, but find nothing wrong in listening to Ibn Abbas even if they do not know who is Ibn Abbas is.
c) The third verse, and the one most often referred to as evidence of the prohibition of music and singing (according to them) is found is Sura Luqmaan.

"And there are among men those who purchase idle talk in order to mislead others from Allah's path without knowledge, and those who throw ridicule upon it. For such there will be a humiliating punishment." (31:6)

Again, like the previous verse, using the expression "idle-talk" (lahwal hadiths) to condemn music and singing is clearly corrupt. It only exposes the confused minds and hearts of those who do not understand that God does not run out of words and that God controls all the languages and will not leave guess work for us to prohibit what He did not.

Idle-talk can be any form of talk and not necessarily singing and music. There is usually more idle-talk that is calling on the people to disobey God in other forms than singing and music. These should be considered first. Hadiths and Sunna books are full of fabrications and lies that should be considered as idle-talk as they contradict the Quran and the true message of our beloved prophet Muhammad.

NOW THAT QURAN DOES NOT PROHIBIT MUSIC OR SINGING, these people looked for other idols to do this for them. They refused the law of the book that God called the Best Hadith (Quran). They refused to obey God in the Quran when He told them to follow no other hadith BUT the Quran for religious law.

A look at what they claimed as hadith of the prophet will show their misguidance and confusion. Here is an example of what these people quote and claimed it to the prophet which is a clear lie. The prophet cannot deviate from the Quran.

* "The Prophet SAWS said, "There will be (at some future time) people from my ummah (community of Muslims) who will seek to make lawful: fornication, the wearing of silk by men), wine-drinking, and the use of musical instruments(ma'azif). Some people will stay at the side of a mountain and when their shepherd comes in the evening to ask them for his needs, they will say, 'return to us tomorrow.' Then Allah will destroy them during the night by causing the mountain to fall on them, while he changes others into apes and swine. They will remain in such a state until the Day of Resurrection.(related by Imam Al-Bukhari in Fat-hul Baari, graded sahih)
FIRST, God teaches us in the Quran that the Prophet Muhammad did not know the future. This will immediately expose the falsehood of this hadith and similar ones and expose the hypocrisy of those who claim to be Muslims but refuse to believe God in the Quran. God told them Muhammad did not know the future.

"Say (O Muhammad), "I have no power to benefit myself, or harm myself. Only what God wills happen to me. If I KNEW THE FUTURE, I would have increased my wealth, and no harm would have afflicted me. I am no more than a warner, and a bearer of good news for those who believe." 7:188

"Say (O Muhammad), "I am not different from other messengers, I have NO IDEA what will happen to ME OR TO YOU. I ONLY follow what is revealed to me. I am NO MORE than a profound warner." 46:9

SECOND, For the past 1400 years there have been millions who listened to music and songs without mountains falling on top of them or turning into apes and pigs. I guess we should rather be afraid that all these millions of people turning to their computers now will turn into pigs and monkeys because their computers have all kinds of music built in them. This only shows the non-sense seen rampant in these so called Hadith and Sunna books.

As I said before, God created the music in our universe like the air and water and many other provisions. We cannot prohibit the water because someone washes his dirty clothes in it and we cannot prohibit the air because someone smokes around us. Music is as pure as fresh water and fresh air. It is up to us to use it or abuse it. Music is one of the great provisions from God that we should be grateful for. We should use it and enjoy it like we enjoy all the other provisions. If you indulge in eating your favorite food or drinking your favorite juice to the point you do not have time to do all your other duties towards God, then you committing a sin. Your food and drinks would not become haram (prohibited). If you indulge in any kind of music or singing that occupy you to the point that you do not remember God or your duties towards Him, then you are committing a sin but the music itself would not become haram (prohibited). If someone sings a song encouraging corruption or misbehavior then listening to that song intentionally may be a sin but this does not make all singing haram (prohibited.) It is true that many of the song lyrics we hear these days are disturbing but this does not make music or singing haram, it makes these specific songs undesirable and should be avoided. We need to warn our children and loved ones of these bad songs and bad lyrics but we should not prohibit what God never did, prohibit music or singing. We will not stop our children from reading books, newspapers, or magazines because some one produced a pornographic book, newspaper or magazine, we will tell them and warn them about these bad books or magazines. We will never stop our children from watching TV or videos because some people produce bad movies, programs or videos. If they do, they will miss all these great programs , movies or videos that teach them to appreciate God and His creation. We will instead teach them to choose the right programs.

Those who really appreciate music and the beautiful voices that God created, are more appreciative of God's creations and closer to God than those who prohibit what God did not and see evil in every beautiful creation of God.

"Say, "Who prohibited the nice things God has created for His creatures, and the good provisions?" Say," such provisions are to be enjoyed in THIS life by those who BELIEVE. Moreover, the good provisions will be exclusively theirs on the Day of resurrection." We thus explain the revelations for people who know." 7:32 (QURAN)

MUSIC AND SINGING WERE NEVER PROHIBITED BY GOD. They are part of the most beautiful creations of God. As long as they do not call on the people or encourage them to commit sins, they are for the TRUE BELIEVERS TO ENJOY while remembering God with every beautiful note or rhythm. Those who prohibit what God never did in the Quran will be surprised on the Last Day when the messenger of God will complain to God from them, See 25:30.

Is it time yet to wake up and follow the QURAN, instead of following the man-made laws??!!

Your comments are welcome....

Reflections on violence

Hi, this is Jacob de Villiers. I found Islam. What/ you might ask? What's an Afrikaner doing being a Moslem? He probably married a moslem girl hey. No, not so. I found something deeper and understanding reality. In otherwords, I came out of the unrreal world I have been living in. Let me share the following experience with you the other day and my reflections:

I switch on my tv, a documenatry is being flighted. A documentary on Iran. Two Dutch journalists are guided through Iran under the guidance of the Iranian government. We are shown an all-female high school. The morning starts with songs such as: 'Death to America'. Later on they interview students, but the journalists are not allowed as they do not have permission to talk with people. The journalists heard there is a martyrs-organisation in Iran.

The Iranian government makes an appointment with a lady who runs it, she is also a professor at the Teheran University. On many streets we see posters that promote the martyr-organisation. They meet with the woman on a martyr-graveyard. One large marble stone stands there, with the inscription in English: "Kill them wherever you find them, expel them from their homes like they expelled you from your homes." We see graves with pictures on them, men and women with scarves around their temples, with Arabic or Persian lines. I do not need to know what they say, I can guess already.... They talk with the head of the martyr-organisation. The organisation is building up a large registration of all people who would sign up for being a martyr. It is sponsored by the Iranian government.

The journalists do not need to find out anything, no background research needed on any secret rules of the martyr organisation, no, this lady tells them everything, they just have to listen to this woman with astonishment. We see posters everywhere with people holding Kalashnikofs and granades. She shows the forms people need to fill in. They must give their personal data, but also have to choose from the 3 targets given on the form.

A suicide-mission in Iraq, A suicide-mission in Jerusalem, or A suicide-mission to kill Salman Rushdie. A smile strikes me with the last one. The poor man only repeated what their own history is selling to people.... The woman proudly says most people, 90%, sign up for all three missions. We see a video where people are signing up. I see young men and women, signing up as if they were signing up for a contest of tennis. They are smiling, two females joking which each other about the form, while signing up. Then the head of the organisation shows to the camera two videos. She proudly points to one and says; 'This woman was 22 years old, and had 2 young kids.' We see a young beautiful female, holding a grenade launcher in one hand, and her young son, about 3 years old I guess, in the other. A Palestinian flag in the background, the famous green scarf with yellow Arabic around her temple. She shouts something. The head of the organisation points proudly to the young boy; 'That is her young boy, but she didn't care. She killed 4 zionists before she was killed.' She says with a proud smile. I look at the woman on the videoscreen. What a fool and a bad mother, my mind says. But can I judge so quickly?

Hardship does strange things to people, throw some mythological thinking in it and you get a frustrated stew with no fear of death. But no insight into the real consequences of her deeds also......

We see a young man, perhaps 20 odd years old and Palestinian. He reads from a paper. In this paper he reads how Allah will let him join the Prophet (saw) in heaven. How God the most Merciful...my mind stops at seeing him read that. You hold a gun, and dare to say God most Merciful? These two do not connect in the way he reads them. But again, who am I? He walks with his mom outside, massive machinegun in his hands.

The head of the organisation explains that no civilians may be hurt, only army targets. And suicide is only as a last resort. The video switches to a gathering of people. Men and women all covered, not to be recognized. The scarf around their temples.

I see them shout, women screaming 'La illeh ilAllah' the men shouting 'Muhammed rasollAllah', again and again. The tone and the continious repitition.... The way the women say it, it seems they are in a trance. With every word I hear frustration behind it. Anger and hate. In their eyes I see the same, but also something else, something that also can be traced in the tone of their shouts. No touch with Reality. None at all. My mind cannot grasp it, the Quran clearly says not to kill yourself.

God is abused by people to hold on to their non-reality... I shut my tv off.

Enough is enough. I walk to my computer, and I write what you now read. I remember the same trance I was in, the out of touch with Reality. I had studied engineering. Yet I still believed in people living in their graves. I believed the nabie Mohammed (saw) curing people. Miracles after miracles... Moses chasing a stone that got away with his clothes..... I remember my state of mind in that period. I didn't care about Reality back then, I just wanted to be different, to be accepted by my new found faith. I lived in a sort of self-made movie. I made the rules, and the story line were partialy made by what the imams were teaching me in my new found faith.

I was looking for jinns everywhere, stepped into my toilet while saying a prayer. Got to be carefull, they are especially active in the toilet. Back then, my mind never thought that in the Prophet's time, there were no toilets... My mind couldn't go beyond the mythological thinking. Why not? Because reality scared me I think. And I could vent all my frustration on all non-Muslims. It became a holy duty to vent! I was so rational before I found my bew faith. What happened, I'm still finding out. Ah man, the continious going out of bed to renew my Wudhu. The self-imposed duties. My mind was to busy with fulfilling the mythological duties, it had no time for reality, no time for objective research.

Then I came across the Return to the Quran movement. In one week, I lost all my mythological thinking. Boom, like a bomb it cleaned my mind. I could research again, be objective, scientific in my thinking. I was me again. I sit in a mosque, talking to a young man.. We are discussing the Moses and the Israelies. He tells me of the stone running away with Moses' clothes. I try to reason with him. I try to make him see the physical laws of nature that is unchangeable. I refer him to the Quran which verifies that the laws of nature can never change. That Allah's laws are eternal and unchangeable. He doesn't believe me, he doesn’t even hear me, why? Because his favourite scholar said it was so.

The young man had studied Higher Physics at University. I was talking to a Master in Physics.

How can it be that he could be so gullible about running rocks and other matters? He tells me he will research the matter. I see it in his eyes, he doesn't care about reality. Why? Because in reality you are responsible for your real crimes and wrongdoings. In his world, you do wrong by stepping into the toilet with the right foot.... By taking a slice of bread in your left hand…by inadvertantly not wetting a small part of the heal during ablutions…by not believing in a story that reduced 50 namaaz to 5 namaaz. Yes this is the crimes in his world.

I look back at these things, these different people. I think about the extremist Christians in America and the rest of the world. All of these people. I look at them from the back of my mind. I try not to judge, because that doesn't help to judge the situation correctly. What do they all have in common? What is it, that makes them loose Reality on certain subjects and hold on to it with the other? How can you be a Physics professor and at the same time believe in an rocks that can run? How can you walk around in country, where all wellfare, all progress, is because of the rational mind creating and using the fixed laws of nature. And at the same time believing in the absurd?

My friends tell me, that I should not try to rationalise Islam. Do not mix these two up. And indeed, this seems to be true. But why do I hold on to reality with all my might? Maybe it is because my return to the Quran was also a return to Reality...But I catch myself sometimes too. Sometimes I do like to be in the non-reality. When I read a fantasy book or play a videogame. When I believe certain frivolous matters are more important then my studies. When I do something not according to the Quranic Laws, and I try to fool myself that these things have no consequences. I see people everyday, on the taxis, at work, on the streets. I see them do their everyday things, and I wonder.

Do you know you are alive? That you really exist? This is not a movie. How miraclous it is you are here. How weird it is. Some people hide in non-reality by shouting Death to America, by killing themselves, by believing in moving stones that steal your clothes. Others by living their life everyday without facing themselves with the weirdness they exist, that their choices are real, have real consequences, good or bad. Life, life is a long journey towards Reality. Everyday we learn to handle it more and more, if we choose to. I can see the need for the Quran in my above observations, in my own experiences.

The Quran tries to guide into Reality. To have the best relationship with Reality, to use it in the best way. This is why It constantly refers to that we must investigate Nature, the reality around us. That we must observe Allah's Law of requital in life.

See how the order of the Universe denotes a Single God, see see see...That is all Allah says throughout the Quran. 3:191 (Such men and women of understanding keep reflecting upon how God’s Laws operate in the Universe) Standing, sitting, and reclining, they observe, and reflect upon God's creation of the heavens and the earth and wonder, "Our Lord! You have not created all this without Purpose. High Above You are from creating anything in vain! Save us, then, from being negligent in attaining knowledge and thus, getting condemned to Fire." You either observe and accept Reality, otherwise you are in your own selfmade Fire. The Quran begins even with the confirmation of Reality.

In verse 1:2, it says AlHamd to the Rabb of the Universes. Hamd means praisement after amazement.

In 1:4 it says Maliki-YauwmeDeen, the One who controls the Constant Law of Requital.

These are all confirmations of Reality, acknowledgements that Allah's Reality is amazing…the fact that we are here is amazing..., that He has created Laws of Cause and Effect that judge our doings. Because of this realisation, Allah says: 2:2 This is the Book whereof there is absolutely no doubt concerning its Authority and Authenticity. A direct Guide from the Ultimate Reality itself, a Guide into Reality from the Reality itself!! But who will accept such a Message? A person who chooses non-Reality? Of course not.

Only a person who is convinced that Reality is not scary, a person who believes that Reality is good for him, will choose to try out this challenge. Who wish this... 2:3 Those who (wish to journey through life in honor and security,) believe in the Unseen. Eventually, Allah's System, His Deen will rule the Earth, because people voluntarely choose to follow it as they see it is the best way. But this will only happen when the majority will look and see...

Looking is a choice, a choice to not accept non-reality anymore, accepting that hiding in non-reality will not help them, will not escape YauwmeDeen.

We can shoot people into space, but not reality into people....