Amusing song and music

28 Pages·2018·0.41 MB·English

by  Ibn Hazm al-Andalusi

Amusing Song and Music
(original author: Ibn Hazm)
Abū Muḥammad (ibn Hazm) said: Praise belongs to Allāh, Master of the Universe; the end
belongs to the pious; there is no enmity except against the tyrants; and may Allāh bless
Muḥammad, Seal of the Prophets. To proceed:
May Allāh empower you and me with His taufīq [success], and by His luṭf [kindness] may He
help us fulfill His rights, for you wanted me to present to you something about amusing
song, regarding whether it is mubāḥ [allowed, i.e. legal] or maḥẓūr [banned, i.e. illegal].
There have come some narrations indicating its restriction and there have come some
narrations indicating its permissibility, so I will mention the narrations of restriction and
explain their defects and I will mention the narrations of permissibility and explain their
authenticity, if Allāh wills, and Allāh guides to the correct answer.
As for the narrations of restriction:
1. Sa’īd ibn Abī Razīn related from his brother from Laith ibn Abī Salīm from ‘Abd Ar-Raḥmān
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ibn Sābiṭ from ‘Ā`išah, that the Nabī ﷺ said:
ه(cid:5677)لإ عامتسﻻاو اهم(cid:5677)لعتو اهنمثو اهع(cid:5677)(cid:5590)و ة(cid:5677)نغملا مرح ﷲ نإ
“Verily Allāh made ḥarām: the songstress, her sale, her wage, her education, and listening to
her.”
2. Lāḥiq ibn Ḥusain ibn ‘Umar related that Ibn Abil-Wird al-Maqdisī said: Abul-Murajjā Ḍirār
ibn ‘Alī ibn ‘Umair al-Qāḍī al-Jīlānī told us: Aḥmad ibn Sa’īd told us from Muḥammad ibn
Kaṯīr al-Ḥimṣī from Faraj ibn Faḍālah from Yaḥyā ibn Sa’īd from Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥanafīyah
from ‘Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib: Rasūl Allāh said:
(cid:6251) (cid:6248)
هتجوز لجرلا عاطأو امرغم ةا(cid:5887)زلاو امنغم ةنامﻷاو ﻻود لاملا نا(cid:5887) اذإ ءﻼ(cid:5656)لا اهب لح ةلصخ ة(cid:6340)ع سمخ (cid:6350)مأ تملع اذإ
(cid:6301)
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(cid:6251) (cid:6247)
ر(cid:5611)(cid:5505)حلا تس(cid:5854)لو ه(cid:6339) ةفاخم لجرلا مر(cid:5927)أو مهلذأ موقلا م(cid:5677)عز نا(cid:5887)و دجاسملا (cid:6362) تاوصﻷا تعفتراو ها(cid:5623)أ افجو همأ قعو
(cid:6301)
افسخو اخسمو ءارمح اح(cid:5611)ر كلذ دنع اوعقوتيلف اهلوأ ةمﻷا هذه رخآ نعلو فزاعملاو تانيقلا تذختاو
“When my ummah comes to know of fifteen practices they will be consumed by tribulation.
When wealth is plentiful, trust is plundered, charity brings loss, a man obeys his wife,
disobeys his mother and abandons his father, the voices are raised in the masājid, the
leader of people is their most lowly, a man is honored in fear of his evil, silk is worn,
(singing) slavegirls are taken, as are instruments, and the last of this ummah will curse its
first. They will then be afflicted by a red wind, deformation and humiliation.”
3. Abū ‘Ubaidah ibn Fuḍail ibn ‘Iyād related: Abū Sa’īd Maulā Banī Hāšim ‘Abd Ar-Raḥmān
ibn ‘Abd Allāh told us: ‘Abd Ar-Raḥmān ibn al-’Alā informed us from Muḥammad ibn al-
Muhājir from Kaisān Maulā Mu’āwiyah: Mu’āwiyah told us: Rasūl Allāh forbade nine things
and I forbid you from them as well: Alas! Verily from them are:
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ر(cid:5611)(cid:5505)حلاو زخلاو عا(cid:5656)سلا دولجو بهذلاو رعشلاو ر(cid:5611)واصتلاو ح(cid:5524)نلاو ءانغلا
“Singing, wailing, statues, poetry, gold, skins of predatory beasts, silken-wear, and silk
itself.”
4. Salām ibn Miskīn related from an old man who witnessed Ibn Mas’ūd say, “Singing
cultivates nifāq [hypocrisy] in the heart.”
5. ‘Abd al-Malik ibn Ḥabīb related: ‘Abd al-’Azīz al-Uwaisī told us from Ismā’īl ibn ‘Ayyāš from
‘Ali ibn Zaid from al-Qāsim from Abū Umāmah: I heard Rasūl Allāh saying:
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(cid:6247) (cid:6251)
نم سانلا نمو ه(cid:5623)اتك (cid:6362) كلذ ﷲ لزنأ دقو مارح نهنمثو نهذاختا ﻻو نهع(cid:5656)ي ﻻو نههؤا(cid:6339) ﻻو تا(cid:5677)نغملا م(cid:5677)لعت لح(cid:5644) ﻻ
(cid:6301)
(cid:6248)
ناناط(cid:5677)ش هفدتر ا ﻻإ ءانغلا(cid:5623) هت(cid:6338)(cid:6293)قع لجر عفر ام هد(cid:5677)ب (cid:6355)(cid:6301) فن يذلاو ملع (cid:6338)(cid:6293)غ(cid:5623) ﷲ ل(cid:5677)(cid:5739)س نع لض(cid:5677)ل ث(cid:5644)دحلا وهل ي(cid:6338)ش(cid:5842)
(cid:6248) (cid:6247)
تكس(cid:5842) (cid:6350)ح هرهظو هردص امهلجرأ(cid:5623) نا(cid:5590)(cid:6342)(cid:5644)
“The teaching of songstresses is not permissible, nor is buying them, selling them, or
accepting them. Their wage is ḥarām. Allāh has revealed that in His book: (And of mankind is
he who purchases amusing speech to mislead from the path of Allāh without knowledge).
(31:6) By the One in Whose Yad is my soul, a man does not raise his voice in song except
that two shaiṭanain follow behind him kicking his chest and his back until he becomes
quiet.”
6. Also from ‘Abd al-Malik ibn Ḥabīb from al-Uwaisī from ‘Abd Allāh ibn ‘Umair ibn Ḥafṣ ibn
‘Āṣim that Rasūl Allāh said:
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(cid:6248) (cid:6247)
تكس(cid:5842) (cid:6350)ح هشعري ناط(cid:5677)ش د(cid:5677)ب هنذأ (cid:6350)غملا نإ
(cid:6301)
“Verily the singer’s ear is shaken by the hand of a shaiṭān until he becomes quiet.”
7. Also from ‘Abd al-Malik ibn Ḥabīb: Ibn Ma’īn told me from Mūsā ibn A’yan from al-Qāsim
from Abū Umāmah that Rasūl Allāh said:
(cid:6251)
نهنامثأ ل(cid:5967)أو نهع(cid:5677)(cid:5590)و نهءا(cid:6339)و تا(cid:5677)نغملا م(cid:5677)لعت مرح ﷲ نإ
“Verily Allāh forbade the teaching of songstresses, their purchase, their sale, and consuming
their wages.”
8. Al-Buḵārī mentioned: Hišām ibn ‘Ammār said: Ṣadaqah ibn Khālid told us: ‘Abd Ar-Raḥmān
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ibn Yazīd ibn Jābir told us: ‘Aṭīyah ibn Qais al-Kilābī told us: ‘Abd Ar-Raḥmān ibn Ghanam al-
Aš’arī told us: Abū ‘Āmir or Abū Mālik al-Aš’arī told me that he heard the Nabī ﷺ saying:
(cid:6248)
فزاعملاو رمخلاو ر(cid:5611)(cid:5505)حلاو رحلا نولحتس(cid:5842) موق (cid:6350)مأ نم ننوك(cid:5677)ل
(cid:6301)
“There will be a people from my ummah deeming permissible vaginae, silk, wine and
mandolins.”
9. Ibn Sha’bān related: Ibrāhīm ibn ‘Uṯmān ibn Sa’īd told me: Aḥmad ibn al-Ghimr ibn Abī
Hammād told me in Ḥimṣ and Yazīd ibn ‘Abd Aṣ-Ṣamad both said: ‘Ubaid ibn Hāšim al-Ḥalabī
Abū Nu’aim told us: ‘Abd Allāh ibn al-Mubārak told us from Mālik from Muḥammad ibn al-
Munkadir from Anas: Rasūl Allāh said:
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(cid:6247)
ةما(cid:5677)قلا موي كنﻵا ه(cid:5677)نذأ (cid:6362) بص ةنيق (cid:6368)إ سلج نم
(cid:6301)
“Whoever sits (listening) to a singing slave woman, black lead will be poured into his ear on
Yaum al-Qiyāmah.”
10. Ibn Sha’bān also related: My uncle told me: Abū ‘Abd Allāh Ad-Dūrī told us: ‘Ubaid Allāh
al-Qawārīrī told us: ‘Imrān ibn ‘Ubaid told us from ‘Atā ibn al-Sā`ib from Sa’īd ibn Jubair from
Ibn ‘Abbās regarding the saying of Allāh ﷻ:
(cid:6224) َ َ ﱠ ُ َ (cid:6164) َ ْ(cid:6160) َ(cid:6248) ْ َ َ ﱠ َ َ
(cid:5469) ِ ا لِ (cid:5677)(cid:5739)ِس نع لضِ (cid:5677)لِ ثِ (cid:5644)دِحلا وهل ي(cid:6338)(cid:6162) ش(cid:5842) نم س(cid:6162) انلا نمِو
And of mankind is he who purchases distracting speech to misguide from the path of Allāh…
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(31:6)
He said, “al-Ghinā [singing].”
11. Ibn Abī Shaibah Abū Bakr related: Zaid ibn al-Ḥubāb told us: Mu’āwiyah ibn Sālih told us
from Ḥātim ibn Ḥuraiṯ from Ibn Abī Maryam: ‘Abd Ar-Raḥmān ibn Ghanam visited us and
said: Abū Mālik al-Aš’arī informed us that he heard the Nabī ﷺ saying,
(cid:6247) (cid:6248) (cid:6251)
ضرﻷا مهب ﷲ فسخ(cid:5644) تانيقلاو فزاعملا مهسوؤر (cid:6370)ع ب(cid:6342)ت اهمسا (cid:6338)(cid:6293)غ(cid:5623) اهنومس(cid:5842) رمخلا (cid:6350)(cid:6301) مأ نم سان ب(cid:6340)(cid:5842)
“Some people from my ummah will drink wine calling it another name; mandolins being
struck and singing slave women will be on their heads; so Allāh will sink them into the
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earth.”
12. Another narration contains:
(cid:6247) (cid:6247)
ة(cid:5677)نغم توصو ةحئان توص (cid:6348)(cid:6293)نوعلم (cid:6348)(cid:6293)توص نع (cid:6375)ن (cid:6368)اعت ﷲ
“Allāh ﷻprohibited two accursed sounds: the sound of a wailing woman and the sound of a
songstress.”
There is no authenticity in any of these and all of them are fabricated.
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