Music is a divisive subject, perhaps more so than any other. This is because the limited practical value of music is often overshadowed, almost canceled out, by the significant amount of negativity frequently linked to it, whether directly or indirectly.

As a result, many fatwas or legal opinions prohibiting music—usually inseparably associated with singing—stem from concerns over these negative associations. However, almost no opinion targets music itself as a concept or perceptible reality, separate from these associations.

While scholars are correct to highlight the potentially destructive relationship between music and vices, and prioritize prevention, it is equally important not to overlook the need for accuracy. Overzealous criticism can lead to confusion, especially among youth, and may unintentionally cause people to listen to more music.

Prohibiting music entirely could be seen as unnatural, leading to unintended consequences. A balanced approach—permitting reasonable and acceptable music—can create a healthy environment for growth and enrichment. Instead of shutting down this form of expression, it may be more beneficial to guide people toward fulfilling their natural urge for music through legitimate and constructive means.

Given the current complexities, scholars may need to consider a strategy of minimizing harm, making small concessions where necessary to help those struggling with the subject. We need practical solutions, not just blanket condemnations. Our youth need step-by-step guidance to navigate the modern world of entertainment and music, which can often be a mix of good and harmful influences.

In today's world, music is often linked with less desirable elements. The challenge is helping young people discern between harmful influences and legitimate enjoyment. Music itself is an intrinsic part of life—a succession of pleasing sounds arranged in rhythmic, melodic, and harmonious patterns, which can soothe the mind and soul. Humanity has a natural inclination towards order, balance, harmony, and proportion, making music inherently desirable when experienced in a refined and regulated manner.

Music is an art form, a way of expressing and enjoying beauty. Scholars like Ibn Sina have emphasized the importance of appreciating beauty, including sound, in a way that elevates human understanding. He and others recognized that beauty—whether visual or auditory—should be appreciated intellectually and morally, rather than solely through base desires.

Did Islam really prohibit music?

Islam does not categorically prohibit music. There are instances where music is permitted, such as during celebrations, weddings, and other social occasions. However, prohibitions generally focus on the harmful associations that can accompany music, such as inappropriate language, indecency, or behaviors that contradict moral and spiritual principles.

The Qur'anic verse often cited regarding music—“And of the people is he who buys the amusement of speech (lahw al-hadith) to mislead (others) from the way of Allah” (Luqman, 6)—does not target music in itself. Instead, it warns against using speech, including music, for frivolous or misleading purposes.

As Imam al-Ghazali explained, music stirs emotions already present in a person. If someone holds love for God, music that nurtures that love is commendable. If music leads to worldly desires, it may be harmful. But enjoying music for its beauty is as neutral as appreciating the beauty of nature.

Therefore, rather than condemning music outright, it is more productive to guide people towards an appreciation of music that aligns with spiritual and moral values, fostering a balanced and healthy way of life.

Where is the real problem?

The real problem lies in the fact that the innate human desire for music, as an expression of the soul's search for beauty, harmony, coherence, balance, and proportion, is neither adequately nurtured nor fully fulfilled. This desire is powerful, and unfortunately, negative forces—from Satan to his followers among humans—seek to exploit it as a means of controlling humanity. Consequently, music has become one of the most exploited forms of expression.

In the Qur'an, Satan’s "voice" (Al-Isra', 64) is mentioned as one of his tactics to mislead and harm the human race, often understood to refer to certain forms of detrimental music and singing. Today, we see how various immoral and harmful behaviors are often accompanied by similarly immoral and negative genres of music, which have taken control of the souls and minds of many.

It has even become common to hear people say that music is like a religion, providing meaning to life and the world. For many, music serves as a vital source of existential nourishment. Figures such as Friedrich Nietzsche—known for his philosophical stance that “God is dead”—famously remarked, "Without music, life would be a mistake." Similarly, Ludwig van Beethoven said, "Music is a higher revelation than all wisdom and philosophy."

In the Muslim world, the situation is particularly concerning. Some governments and agencies actively seek to divert people from their Islamic culture, history, and identity, often using music as a tool to achieve this. As a result, a proliferation of low-quality, deviant, and immoral music—along with other forms of decadent art and entertainment—distracts people from focusing on more important matters. This is similar to the Roman concept of “bread and circuses,” a tactic used to keep populations entertained and satisfied, thereby preventing dissent and critical thought.

Such practices keep people occupied with trivial matters, concealing the failure of governments to address genuine societal problems. In many cases, this leads to an overabundance of TV channels, radio stations, websites, and publications all centered around music. Musicians and singers are elevated to the status of celebrities and role models, especially for the younger generation.

Unfortunately, many of these so-called "artists" are involved in performances that are at odds with Islamic principles, both in behavior and content. This degradation of art has led to a culture where children aspire to become entertainers rather than contributing, virtuous members of society.

Despite living in Muslim countries, many people lack significant socio-cultural, educational, and political initiatives that promote the study of the Qur'an and the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. This absence limits the ability to emulate the Prophet ﷺ as a role model and to explore the richness of Islamic history, culture, and values as the foundation of a Muslim’s life. Without such guidance, Muslims may feel directionless and disconnected from their identity.

In reflecting on the current state of affairs, it becomes clear that in many parts of the Muslim world, distractions such as music and entertainment are used to mislead people from the path of Allah. As mentioned in Surah Luqman, verse 6, frivolous speech, including harmful forms of music, can divert people from the remembrance of Allah and lead them toward destructive behaviors.

Music, art, leisure, and entertainment should be means of guidance, enrichment, and enlightenment. When they are misused, they become liabilities that impede spiritual and moral growth, nation-building, and the development of civilization. It is not surprising that the trajectory of the Muslim world over the past two centuries has been one of stagnation, as authentic Islamic paradigms have been replaced by flawed models from other cultures.

How to address the problem?

The key is to be pragmatic and acknowledge that, fundamentally, music is a harmless and essential element. Being excessively rigid and naive doesn't benefit us. The ongoing issues in the Muslim world and beyond stem from music being excessively venerated or unfairly condemned, and from people being exposed to an excess of unnatural and unhealthy music. Without a doubt, the subject of music needs to be attended to as it is, neither adding to nor subtracting from it. It also needs to be carefully navigated through not only life challenges but also opportunities.

It is better to confront the music phenomenon directly, analyze and Islamize it, integrate it with Islamic principles, and embrace it, rather than completely rejecting and ignoring it. Nobody would argue against the benefit of the prospect of controlling music, in place of being controlled by it. The former is certainly more auspicious and entails fewer risks. Whether we like it or not, the double-edged nature of music is here to stay.

Such is the case because the rhythms, sounds, energy, equilibrium, synchronizations, vibes, moods, emotions, meanings and morals, all of which are central to the substance of music and singing, are also properties of virtually all life aspects and their pursuits.

Accordingly, by way of illustration, it is rightly said that architecture is like frozen music, painting is music translated onto a canvas, poetry and eloquent speech are the threshold of music, synchronized movement is music in action, and any well-thought-out arrangement or design, whether conceptual or practical, shares similarities with music.

In actual fact, a beautiful life resembles a beautiful melody. The precise order and balance of the universe resonate like a melody to the senses, captivating one's entire being. The soul naturally sways to this cosmic symphony.

It is crucial for Muslims to receive proper education on the meaning, purpose and role of music. This education should emphasize how music can coexist harmoniously with the cultural and spiritual teachings of Islam, as well as with the fundamental principles and natural laws of life.

Individuals have the right to be taught how to use rather than misuse music. They in addition should be invested with such intellectual and spiritual capacities as will enable them to deal with the universe of music appropriately, to know where and when to stop while immersing themselves in the minefield of music, and to subject the interests of music to those of the more consequential life engagements.

Furthermore, Muslims are to be taught that, its several benefits notwithstanding, music is still regarded as a great trial for humankind. Everything that is served in the name of music is not necessarily wholesome. Needless to say that the disadvantages of music greatly outweigh its advantages. Hence, it is very difficult to have what it takes to stay completely clean and uncontaminated. Multitudes of souls have drowned in the bottomless ocean of music’s temptations. Not many have stayed afloat. Music has become a catacomb of spiritual purity and innocence.

The biggest mistake is thinking that music can bring about ultimate self-fulfillment. Some fools yet believe that music is the key to absolute happiness, to a state of ecstasy. However, both history and daily life show that this is not true at all. Sooner or later, those deceived in this way come to realize this, leading their entire life journey to become an underwhelming experience and a bitter disappointment.

A threefold strategy to tackle the music urge

While neither closing the eyes to nor downplaying the threat of music, a middle and uniquely Islamic way is to be sought. This is to nurture the innate musical drive present in every human being. That approach should be threefold.

First, the intrinsic aspect of music – highlighted through a number of the Prophet’s references to the positive, no matter how limited, sides of music and singing - is to be explored and exploited to the fullest. The conditions that apply here are suggested by Yusuf al-Qaradawi: the subject matter of music and singing should not be against the teachings of Islam; the manners of playing music and singing and the overall conditions in which they are executed, cannot be in breach of the Islamic principles; excess and extravagance are to be avoided; music cannot be in conjunction with any other prohibited activities; and finally, if a certain type of music and accompanying singing “arouses one’s passions, leads him towards sin, excites the animal instincts, and dulls spirituality, he must avoid it, thus closing the door to temptation.”

Second, once the scope and parameters of the first dimension are clearly defined and observed, a person should search for a sense of fulfillment in the “music” of life that surrounds him every moment and in every circumstance. An example is the music produced by various elements in nature, both individually and collectively, because the infinite wonders of the world and its life forms incessantly create the most mesmerizing, and correspondingly infinite, symphonies.

For these, however, a person ought to develop the appropriate senses and faculties of appreciation, something that is the main objective of the Islamic monotheistic perceptions of man, nature and existence as creations, on the one hand, and the Almighty Allah as the sole Creator, on the other. With these additional senses and faculties onboard, a person will also be able to “listen to and enjoy” the beats of the universe’s order, regularity, serenity and harmony.

The Qur’an instructs in this vein: “You do not see in the creation of the Most Merciful any inconsistency. So return (your) vision (to the sky); do you see any breaks? Then return (your) vision twice again. (Your) vision will return to you humbled while it is fatigued” (al-Mulk, 3-4).

Also: “Indeed, in the creation of the heavens and the earth and the alternation of the night and the day are signs for those of understanding” (Alu ‘Imran, 190).

Third, crowning the first and second dimensions is the purely spiritual factor. This factor involves the unavoidable aspects of “music” entailed in the recitation of and listening to the Holy Qur’an, dhikr and other religious chants like invoking salam and salawat upon the Prophet ﷺ, takbir, talbiyah, adhan, spiritual poetry and eloquence, traditional and modern spiritual tunes and their complementary hymns, etc.

The Prophet ﷺ recommended making the recitation of the Qur’an more beautiful with melodious voices (Sunan al-Nasa’i). Indeed, when the Qur’an is recited in a beautiful and melodious manner, it captivates listeners, making it more enjoyable and encouraging deeper reflection.

According to a hadith, the Prophet ﷺ once listened to the recitation of the Qur’an at night by his companion Abu Musa al-Ash’ari and clearly enjoyed it. The following morning, he expressed his appreciation by saying: “O Abu Musa, I heard your recitation last night; you have been blessed with a beautiful (melodious) voice similar to the voice of (Prophet) Dawud.” Abu Musa al-Ash’ari humbly responded: “O Messenger of Allah, if I had known you were present, I would have made it even more beautiful” (Sunan al-Nasa’i).

If under the second category listening to and enjoying the melodies of the natural world is highly recommended, here as well listening to and enjoying the tranquil melodies of the inspired-by-Islam man-made worlds (domains), is strongly proposed. The main features of the latter worlds are Islamic art, urbanism, architecture, calligraphy, arabesque and Islamic aesthetics taken as a whole. Indeed, there is nothing more calming, relaxing and uplifting than the silent pulsations of a heavenly vivacity intimated and brought closer to human senses by a beautiful masterpiece produced by a Muslim artist, aesthete, or a sage.

The reason for this is that in Islam, human-generated environments should be echoes of the heavenly dispositions as much as possible, and human-generated beauties – flashes of bliss, including those associated with music – should be echoes of the heavenly beauty.

Directed towards this end are the Prophet ﷺ words in Sahih Muslim that man has been created in God’s image, and that God is beautiful and loves beauty (including the prospects of people being beautiful, living beautiful lives and creating beautiful objects, occasions and experiences, in compliance with the divine beauty as the source, stimulus and quintessence of all types of conceptual as well as corporeal beauties).

However, for this quality, too, a special sense must be developed and meticulously nurtured. The repository of that sense is the nexus between the human soul, intellect and fitrah (human innate inclination to worship the Creator, love virtue and appreciate beauty).

The additional sense (intuition) ought to be recognized and fostered by means of formal and informal educational systems undertaken by the hierarchy of private and governmental institutions, and by means of creating conducive general milieus that will work hand in hand with the former in propelling the human development towards the desired heights. Possessing the sixth sense and the abilities required for self-actualization will be the benchmark for the development strategies.

Isma’il al-Faruqi said in his book “Al Tawhid: Its Implications for Thought and Life” about the miraculous artistic power of the Qur’an, acting as the foundation of the sources of Islamic aesthetics, including those affiliated with music:

“If anything is art, the Qur’an certainly is. If the mind of the Muslim has been affected by anything, it was certainly affected by the Qur’an. If this affecting was anywhere deep enough to become constitutive, it was so in aesthetics. There is no Muslim whom the Qur’anic cadences, rhymes, and awjuh al-balaghah (facets of eloquence) have not shaken to the very depth of his being; there is no Muslim whose norms and standards of beauty the Qur’an has not re-kneaded and made in its own image.”

This way, the Qur’an has placed “its reader in front of a challenge to which he can rise, but which he can never meet.” Thus, it always fascinates, surprises and captivates – only this time musically.

Once the innate and natural world and its sublime beauties, as well as the man-made artistic environments with their diverse ramifications, are learned, lived and fully appreciated, and once they are properly ingrained in the social, cultural and civilizational fabrics of society, those contaminated and corrupted forms of music – or for that matter those socially and culturally unhealthy phenomena at large – will stand no chance. They will either be reformed or fade away into oblivion.

Music should neither be excessively praised nor be dismissed outright. Music can play an important role in the lives of Muslims if it is Islamized and integrated into Islamic principles. Music's harm lies in its misuse and potential to corrupt, but there is room to appreciate its constructive potential when framed within the context of Islamic values and used to enhance the spiritual, intellectual, and emotional aspects of life.

Muslims should adopt a balanced approach to music, educating themselves and developing their ability to engage with music responsibly. This would include fostering appreciation for natural harmonies and the spiritual dimensions of music and life, and avoiding excessive indulgence.