Music, classified as a branch of fine arts, is the art of expressing feelings and thoughts in terms of sounds and movements composed in polyphony, harmony and rhythm. It was said by ancient Holy Nabis of Divine Dins that there is music in Paradise, and so it was believed by the ancient Egyptians, Chinese and Greek philosophers including Buddhists, and Brahmin kafirs, who were the followers of distorted forms of Divine Dins. The origin of the word "music" has connections with the name Musa given to the nine statues which were believed to be the statues of the daughters of Zeus, the great idol of the ancient Greeks. It is written in Durr al-munteqa that music is a grave sin according to all revealed dins. That afterwards priests instilled music, which was prohibited by the Injil, into the Christian religion is written in detail in the fifth volume of Zarqani's (rahmat-Allahi ta'ala 'alaih) commentary to Mawahib al-laduniyya. Since a corrupted religion could not nourish their souls, they thought music had a spiritual affect, whereas in fact it is just a pleasure for the nafs. Today's western music originated from church music. Music became a kind of worship in all corrupt religions all over the world. With music, the nafses are pleased, the voluptuous animal instincts are soothed, whilst the holy 'ibadat which nourish the soul and purify the heart are forgotten. It is written at the end of the ninetieth and ninety-ninth letters of Makatib-i Sharifa: "Do not listen to songs, to music very much. Music will kill your heart and cause mischief." And ninety-sixth letter says, "Listening to poetry increasing love for Allahu ta'ala in the heart is permissible provided that there should not be any musical instruments or sinners." Music motivates a man to lead an indolent life like that of alcoholics and drug addicts, and thus causes the kafirs to be deprived of endless bliss. To protect man against this calamity and endless disaster, Islam has made distinctions between different kinds of music and has prohibited the harmful ones.

 In the last chapter of the book Qurrat al-Uyun are quoted some of the hadiths which describe the music in Paradise and the kind of music which is haram for both men and women in this world. This book is printed on the margin of Mukhtasar-i Tazkira-i Qurtubi published in Istanbul, in 1302 A.H.

 It is written in Hadiqa: "It is written in the Fatwa book Tatarhaniyya: 'It is haram in every din to read with taghanni, that is, with a melodious voice, poems that satirize others or describe indecency, alcoholic drinks, and incite lust. Those things that cause harams to happen are haram, too.' One who says, 'How beautifully you have read', for something which is certainly haram becomes a kafir. The same applies for harams, such as adultery, usury, hypocrisy and drinking wine. It is permissible to recite with taghanni the poems and ilahis that are conveying Islamic preachings, wisdom, good advice, or beautiful moral qualities. It is makruh to occupy oneself with these continually. It is a more serious haram for the false tariqat followers to excite the lust of people by reciting ilahis, dhikr or tasbih in mosques or tekkes. One should not attend gatherings that are certainly known to be so. Such places have ceased to be places of 'ibadat and become gatherings of fisq [immorality, sinning]. However, one should not have a bad opinion of them unless one knows for certain. According to the unanimity [of savants], it is haram to recite with taghanni the Qur'an al-karim, dhikr, prayers or adhan. Taghanni distorts the letters and words, and spoils the meaning. It is haram to change these intentionally, advertently. It is not haram when it is spoilt by mistake, by taghanni or inadvertently for those who are trying to learn where it will be spoilt and where it will not. For this, it is necessary to learn tajwid. It is mustahab to recite the Qur'an al-karim, the dhikr and the ilahis with a beautiful voice provided that it does not spoil the meaning. And this is done by reciting compatibly with the tajwid. The effect of this on the heart and the soul is tremendous. Reciting with a beautiful voice does not mean making melody and moving ones chin; it means reciting with the fear of Allah. Anbiya (salawatullahi ta'ala 'alaihim ajmain) and Awliya (rahmat-Allahi ta'ala 'alaihim ajmain) used to recite with a beautiful voice. It was prohibited by a hadith ash-Sharif to recite with a sad voice and to listen to it like the fasiqs and the Ahl-i kitab. To spoil the tajwid by elhan, that is, by keeping up with a musical tune, is an ugly bidat and to listen to it is a grave sin.

 To give a complete explanation of taghanni and music, the eighth article of the first chapter of Kimya-yi saadat is translated below. There is detailed information on singing on page 182 of the book Akhlaq-i 'ala'i and in the last chapter of Tibb-un-nabawi by Muhammad ibn Ahmad Zahabi. Imam-i-Ghazali's account is as follows:

 "There is a force called qalb or inclination in the heart. Beautiful and harmonious sound sets this hidden force into motion, like a piece of steel when it hits flintstone generates spark, as a spark will be generated when flintstone is struck against a piece of steel [and as a glass or a bakelite rod when rubbed with wool attracts pieces of paper]. Beautiful sounds penetrate into one's heart, de spite one's will, because the qalb (heart) and ruh (soul) have a connection with the 'alam al-arwah, which is above the 'Arsh. This non-material and immeasurable 'alam is the 'alam of 'husn al jamal' or beauty, and the basic element of beauty is tanasub (harmony). Every kind of beauty in this world comes from the beauty of that 'alam. Beautiful, rhythmic and harmonious sounds resemble that 'alam. The hearts of those who obey the Shariat become pure and strong. Such hearts have a strong connection with the 'alam al-amr, and music influences and sets them into motion in the direction of their inclinations or orientations as the wind sets the glowing fire into flames. If there is love for Allahu ta'ala in the heart, a beautiful voice causes that love to increase, and, therefore, it is beneficial. Contrary to this is the case of a person whose heart is corrupt and whose nafs has become stronger because he does not obey the Shariat but follows his nafs, instead. The sick heart of such a person cannot enjoy music because his nafs is excited by music, and music, therefore, is harmful and haram for him. Those who cannot understand that there can be love for Allahu ta'ala in the heart say that any beautiful voice is haram. They say man can love his like and man's heart cannot have any relation with anything which is not of his kind, and, therefore, they do not believe in love for Allahu ta'ala. When they are told that the Shariat orders man to have love for Allahu ta'ala, they say this means that we should obey His orders lovingly.

 "A beautiful sound does not bring to the heart anything from the outside. It excites the halal 'connections' in the healthy heart, and, therefore, it is halal to listen to taghanni (singing) for a heart that is not sick. If there is no inclination (or connection) in the heart, his enjoying a beautiful voice is similar to his listening to birds, singing, or his looking at green plants, beautiful streams and flowers. As these refresh the eyes, fragrant scents are pleasurable to the nose, delicious food gives delight to the mouth, scientific knowledge and discoveries are sweet to the intellect, so a beautiful voice is pleasurable to the ears and is mubah as they are.

 "The nafs of a person with a sick heart fancies a na-mahram girl or boy. This desire in his or her nafs becomes more intense when he or she listens to music. Since it is haram for him or her to be with her or him, listening to any kind of taghanni (singing) causes haram activities.

 "He whose heart is not sick does not enjoy hearing the voice which is describing girls, love and desire; he even feels uncomfortable. But if the heart happens to be sick, the nafs enjoys it and is excited towards the haram. Therefore, it is haram for such people to listen to music. All young people, both boys and girls, are in this category. Anything that enrages the fire of the nafs, which the Shariat has ordered to be extinguished, is haram. And it is only under certain conditions and within limitations that it becomes mubah for a healthy heart to listen to the sounds that increase the love for, or the inclination towards, the halal.

 "It is mubah, even blessed, for the will-be hajjis to listen to songs about Kaba, hajj, Mecca and Medina, and for soldiers to listen to songs about war and bravery.

 "In Al-mawahib al-laduniyya, it is written that when Rasulullah (sallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam) entered the city of Mecca, Ibn Rawaha was walking in front of the procession and reciting couplets. 'Umar (radiallahu 'anh) said, 'Is it appropriate to recite poems in front of Rasulullah?' Thereupon, Rasulullah declared: 'Let him do it, o 'Umar; do not prevent him! These couplets are more detrimental to the kafirs than arrows.' This shows that it is jaiz (permissible) to read poems that harm the morale of the enemy and make them feel sad, whereas it is not jaiz to read poems that excite the nafs.

 "It is a blessing to feel sorry and to repent by reading qasidas and ilahis about faults, sins and the torment in Hell. But, it is haram to feel sorry while listening to poetry against death, qada and qadar. [Therefore, we should not read the chapter on death in Mawlids.]

 "It is mubah to make merry with halal sounds on happy occasions when it is necessary to be joyful, such as at weddings, feasts, sunnats (circumcision ceremonies), 'Iyds and returns from safars (journeys). These sounds do not strengthen the nafs but the qalb. It is self- deception for those with stained hearts to say there is love for Allah in their hearts and then to listen to songs or ilahis. Only a murshid kamil (rahmat-Allahi ta'ala 'alaihim ajmain) can diagnose whether the qalb is pure, strong and has defeated the nafs or if the qalb is sick and the nafs has overpowered it. [It was for this reason that Imam-i Rabbani (quddisa sirruh) did not approve of young people re citing ilahis at meetings, as written in his 266th letter.] A beautiful voice or naghma (song) does more harm than good to the devotees of tasawwuf whose hearts have not attained ahwal, or whose hearts have not been redeemed from shahwa (lust), though they may have ahwal," elucidates Imam-i Ghazali in Kimya-yi saadat.

 Hadrat Sad ad-Din al-kashgari reports from Khawaja Muhammad Parisa (Quddisa sirruhuma) in Rashahat: "The most harmful of the curtains separating man from Allahu ta'ala is the settling of worldly thoughts in the heart. These thoughts come from bad companions or from watching unnecessary things. One should try very hard to expel them from one's heart. Reading frivolous books [or novels, newspapers, magazines, stories] and talking about unnecessary or trivial subjects increase such thoughts. Watching women or their pictures [in photo-novels, films or on television] and listening to songs and music [with voices of women] cause such harmful thoughts to settle in the heart, all of which take a man away from Allahu ta'ala. Sickness of the heart is its forgetting Allahu ta'ala. Please see the final part of the forty-sixth chapter in the first part of Turkish version! Those who want to approach Allahu ta'ala should avoid this and abstain from anything which incites a malignant imagination. Allahu ta'ala's habit is such that He does not bestow the blessing (of approaching Him) upon those who do not work, endure hardships and give up their joys and desires."

 [The qalb (heart) is the home of joy and love. Any qalb without them is said to be dead. Either love for Allahu ta'ala or love for the world is in one's qalb. The word 'world' here means things that are haram. When you expel love for the world from your qalb by performing dhikr and worship, it will be purified. Love for Allahu ta'ala will be infused into this purified qalb automatically. When you commit sins, the qalb becomes dark and ill. Consequently, love for the world settles in the qalb instead of love for Allahu ta'ala. An example of this is: If you fill a bottle with water, the air in it will be expelled automatically. When the water is poured out, air will come into the bottle again automatically.]

 Mahmud Anjir Faghnawi (rahmat-Allahi ta'ala 'alaih), a great tasawwuf leader, declares: "For the dhikr al-'alaniyya (the audible dhikr) to be useful [and therefore, permissible], the heart should be in a state of lewn (deep sorrow, bleeding), that is, there should not be the stain of lying or backbiting in the heart, nothing haram or mushtabih should have passed through one's throat, and one's mind should be free from riya' (hypocrisy) and sum'a (desire for fame) and inclinations towards anything but the sirr-i Hadrat Haqq." For such people only is taghanni (singing) or sima' beneficial. For those who have not attained such a state, the fiqh ulama' (fuqaha) say taghanni is haram. The following couplets, which are translated from Persian, indicate the state of those who practice tasawwuf and taqwa:

 Wandering hand-in-hand with my honey,
My eyes caught a flower, unknowingly.

 'Aren't you ashamed!' she said, and added,
'How can you see the rose while I am with thee?'

 The following five conditions should be observed in order for taghanni to be mubah.

 1 - It is haram for every [na-mahram] man to listen to the voice of women, girls or beautiful boys when he is with them and looking at them. A pure heart is distressed at the sight of such scenes, and is stained; the nafs enjoys them, gets stronger and becomes excessive. The Shaitan helps the nafs and shahwa. Although it is jaiz to listen to the voice of an unattractive boy, it is haram to listen to even an ugly girl while near her. Namahram men listening to girls or women reading or singing something permissible, such as mawlid or ilahi, without seeing them [for example, from a record-player or radio-receiver], is similar to their looking at a boy's face. That is, it becomes halal or haram depending on the thought or intention; listening to a mawlid is permissible, while listening to the voice is haram. One should abstain from doubtful actions.

 It is written in Al-Hadiqa that it is haram for men to talk with namahram women unless there is darurat (necessity); it is jaiz (permissible) to talk only as much as necessary in cases such as buying and selling.

 2 - No musical instruments, such as the lute, the violin, the reed, the saxophone or the flute should be played while listening to the voice of the reciter. It is haram to play or listen to any musical instrument for pleasure or for merry making. It is the habit of those who drink alcoholic beverages. And alcohol incites the malignant desire of the nafs, that is, the shahwa. However, it is permissible for every Muslim to play band music to strengthen the morale of the soldiers in war and to improvise during peacetime to get ready, and to play the drums and tambourines at wedding parties. [Political congresses are regarded as battlefields in this respect.]

 Playing musical instruments is haram, not the instruments themselves.

 3 - Muslims should not read with a beautiful voice or listen to poems about indecency, women or alcoholic drinks. It is haram to listen to anyone who blames Muslims or the 'ulama' of the Din.

 4 - There should not be beautiful boys or namahram women among an audience. Fisq (debauchery), obscenities, sodomy and adultery are all the lusts, the shahawat, of the nafs; they should not be called love or affection. It is the heart where love and affection dwell in and they are valuable.

 5 - Although it is permissible to listen to a beautiful voice for pleasure for those who have no worldly love in their hearts or no shahwa of the nafs, this must not become habitual. It is lahw (amusement, entertainment), la'b (playing, game) and absurdity to do or to use some mubahs frequently. These are ways of killing time, which is haram.

 [The profound alim in Zahiri sciences and 'arif (he who knows Allah) and kamil (perfect) Hadrat Mazhar-i Jan-i Janan (rahmat-Allahi ta'ala 'alaih) said, "Sima', that is, qasida, ilahi or mawlid, fills a heart that is not ill with compassion and make it tender. Allahu ta'ala pities and looks with compassion on those with tender hearts. Why should something be haram while it causes Allahu ta'ala's compassion? It is unanimously understood that instrumental music is haram. However, it is said that at wedding parties, playing tambourines [and drums] is mubah and playing reeds is makruh. Rasulullah (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) plugged his ears with his fingers when he heard the sound of a reed when passing by, but he did not order 'Abdullah bin 'Umar, who was with him, to do so. This means that to avoid hearing the sound of a reed is taqwa' (fear of Allahu ta'ala) and 'azima (a high moral quality). There is a difference of opinion about sima' (singing). There are those who say it is permissible, as well as those who say it is not. It is better not to do something on which there is a disagreement. It was for this reason that those who had taqwa did not perform an audible dhikr; they performed dhikr silently." These words of Hadrat Mazhar-i Jan-i Janan are written in Maqamat-i Mazhariryya.]

 On the fourth page of Durr al-ma'arif, it is written: "Sima' is permissible only for those who have turned towards Allahu ta'ala and who know that everything is from Allahu ta'ala. Involuntary dancing is called wajd, and voluntary dancing is called tawajud. There was sima' in Hadrat Nizam ad-Din Awliya's (rahmat-Allahi ta'ala 'alaih) majlis (lecture, gathering, meeting), but there was no musical instrument, women or boys; there was not even the clapping of hands. A voice without instrumental music is called sima' [that is, taghanni]. The human voice accompanied with instrumental music is called ghina' [that is, music]. Ghina' is haram according to the unanimity of the 'ulama.' There are 'alims who said that the 64th ayat of surat al-Isra declared ghina' haram. The hadiths-i Sharifs, 'Shaitan was the first one to make taghanni,' and 'Ghina arouses discord in the heart,' prove that ghina' is haram. The 'ulama' disagreed on whether sima' is haram or not, while there is no dispute that ghina' is haram. The voice of women or young boys is also classified as ghina.' The 'ulama' who said that sima' is halal also stated the conditions for it to be halal. When these conditions are not fulfilled, sima' is haram according to the unanimity." The above extract from Durr al-ma'arif shows that there is no music or musical instrument in Islam. The term Islamic music, which has been coined recently, has no connection with Islam. A person who says "halal" for something haram becomes a kafir. Moreover, it should be understood that those who mix the haram into their ibadat become kafirs like the zindiqs who try to demolish and corrupt the image of Islam. Therefore, it is a dangerous bidat to recite the Qur'an-al-karim, the takbir, and the eulogies with musical instruments like reeds, for instance. The Qur'an al-karim should be recited with a beautiful voice and with tajwid. It is haram to recite it by modifying the words to keep up with tune.

 It is ghina', and therefore haram, for young hafiz qurras to recite the Qur'an al-karim, mawlids or ilahis to an audience of young women and girls. If a person looks at something with lust his heart also becomes busy with it; the heart gets stained and falls ill. The nafs gets stronger and becomes impetuously violent.

 Although we said it is permissible to listen to a beautiful voice for those with only love for Allah in their hearts, providing they recite in accordance with the above-mentioned conditions, we should also note that the Sahaba (radi-Allahu ta'ala anhum ajmain) and the Tabiin (rahmat-Allahi ta'ala 'alaihim ajmain) never did such things. Though taghanni is obviously a bidat, we said it was jaiz because it has some uses. Hasan Basri states at the end of Siyar-ul-aqtab, "A person who listens to sima' (music) with love of Allah becomes a Siddiq. A person who listens to it by following his nafs becomes a zindiq."

 When the Qur'an al-karim is recited on the radio or through a loudspeaker, the original sounds, that is, the original articulation of the letters are distorted most of the time and the meaning of the ayats change. The Qur'an al-karim recited then becomes a common composition of a meaningless waves of sound, and a means of sentimental pleasure like the melodies of a song. In addition, as written in Radd al-mukhtar, Majma' al-anhur and Durr al-munteqa, and also on the 2361st page of the third volume of the tafsir by Elmalili Hamdi Effendi (rahmat-allahi ta'ala 'alaih): "Recital of the Qur'an al-karim is its recital by a person conscious enough to recognize what he is reciting is the Qur'an al-karim." Mosques are built primarily to perform salat inside them. There is no quiet corner left for praying when the voice of a wa'iz or hafiz qurra' fills the whole mosque by means of radios and loudspeakers. Those who are praying in the mosque become confused. Ibni 'Abidin wrote that it is sinful for the imam to be so loud as to disturb others when it is wajib to recite aloud. Those who recite through loud-speakers are sinning from this point of view as well.

 In the beginning of the section where he described a ghusl in his Fatawa' al-kubra, Hadrat Ibni Haitami al-Makki (rahmat-Allahi ta'ala 'alaih) wrote, "Reciting the Qur'an al-karim in a mosque is a valuable qurba. But, it is necessary to silence the children who recite loudly and who confuse those who are performing salat. If the teacher does not keep the children quiet, the authorities should send the children and the teacher out of the mosque."

 [Question: A loud-speaker makes it possible for the adhan to be heard from distances; believers can hear the adhan. Therefore, is the loud-speaker not useful and beneficial?

 Answer: If the assumption that the adhan should be heard over a large area were true, this question then would have a meaning and value. If it had been necessary for the adhan to be recited with a voice louder than that of a normal human being, Rasulullah (sallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam) would have given a solution for this since it was his duty to preach and see that everything necessary in Islam was learnt and done. Although there had been those who proposed that prayer times should be announced by ringing bells like Christians or by blowing horns like Jews to make it heard from distances, he did not accept any of these ideas. "We shall not do it that way. Mount a high place and call the adhan," he declared. Thus, it became clear that it was not necessary to make a single adhan heard everywhere. We know that any alteration in 'ibadat is a bidat and a grave sin, and it is an even more detestable bidat and a more disgusting sin to mix an 'ibadat with something which was never approved of and even refused by Rasulullah (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam). It is written in the nineteenth letter of the thirty-fourth chapter in the first volume, "Even if bidats seem to be bright, glorious and beneficial, all of them must be abstained from. Not one bidat contains an advantage." The 186th letter in the book Mujdeci Mektublar states: "Since the hearts of today's men have been darkened, some bidats appear to be beautiful and useful, but on the Rising Day, when the hearts will be awakened it will be understood that all the bidats were harmful without exception. Rasulullah (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam) declares: "Any renovation in the religion is harmful. You should throw them out." In the 216th verse of sura Baqara, Allahu ta'ala declares: "It may happen that you love something which is bad for you." As it is seen, (See chapter 4, Endless Bliss, Third Fascicle) it does not befit a Muslim to propound the bidat of calling the adhan through a loud-speaker. In addition to this, in Durr al-mukhtar in the section on yamin (oath) where the nazr (vow) is explained, it is declared: "It is wajib for the government to build a mosque in every town and locality. It is necessary to get it built with funds from the Bayt- ul-mal. If the government does not build it, then it becomes wajib for the Muslims to build it." On the 480th page of the first volume, it is written, "It is haram to leave a mosque while the adhan is being called. However, it is permissible to leave it in order to join the jamaat of one's own locality because it is wajib to pray in the mosque of one's own locality." In summary, it is ordered that there should be a mosque in every Muslim ward, that the adhan should be called at every mosque, and that one should hear the adhan called at the mosque in one's locality or market and join the jamaat there. There must be a mosque in every ward of a town; the adhan must be called at each and every mosque, and everyone must hear the adhan. There is no need to make the adhan heard over great distances. If loud-speakers are used, the result is interference and confusion, and the adhan will have been made a play- thing. Therefore, it is unnecessary and harmful to use loud-speakers to amplify the adhan. If, following the order of the Shariat, every muazzin calls the adhan in accordance with the Sunnat from a minaret, every Muslim will hear clearly the adhan closest to his home without the need of a loud-speaker calling it over a distance. Using loudspeakers to make the adhan audible over great distances is a manifestation of the wish to have the adhan called at one single mosque only and not at other mosques.

 In a hadith quoted in Kunuz ad-daqaiq on the authority of al-Baihaki, Rasulullah (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) declared: "There will come a time after you when the most miserable and the most debased of Muslims of the time will be the muazzins." This hadith prophesied that there will be people who will do taghanni and will not recite or call the adhan in accordance with the Sunnat, and who will mix bidats into the 'ibadat. May Allahu ta'ala protect our muazzin brothers from being like the muazzins condemned in the above hadith! Amin.

 In our time, it is difficult to see any mosque where the adhan is being called on the minaret in accordance with the Sunnat. The practice of not calling the adhan on the minaret has spread in both towns and villages. Thankfully, the [Turkish] Authority of Religious Affairs has made all Muslims happy by announcing, in the circular sent to the Muftis dated December 1, 1981 and numbered 19, which orders muazzins to call the adhan on minarets, that they are resolved to give an end to this ugly bidat.

 It is necessary for Muslims to know that the muazzin is a Muslim, 'aqil (sane) and salih (pious). Therefore, the adhan on a tape-recorder or radio is not sahih. It is not compatible with the Sunnat even if an 'aqil and salih Muslim calls the adhan on the minaret and yet through a loudspeaker. Please see the final part of the sixty-first chapter in the first part of the Turkish version. 'Ibadat should be distinguished from 'adat (customs). A radio and loudspeaker are of course used in functions other than 'ibadat and no one will have any reason to protest it. But anyone who makes the slightest alteration in 'ibadat becomes a man without a Madhhab.

 Many examples can be given of the fact that a phonetical distortion made while reciting the Qur'an al-karim results in an alteration of its meaning and thereby causes kufr. One of many such examples is given below to illustrate the subject: The last phrase of the 81st ayat of sura Yasin means: "Those He has created are very many. He is who knows everything." He is the Creator of incalculable things. And He has knowledge of all things. However, when this same ayat is recited on a radio or through a loud-speaker the guttural 'kh' of the word "khallaq" is transformed usually into 'h', and the word becomes, "hallaq", which means barber. Then, the new meaning of the phrase becomes "He is the barber, and He has knowledge of all things." Those who read the ayat that way and the ones who hear and approve or like it all become kafirs. In the Islamic letters (Arabic) the words "Khallaq" and "Hallaq" are two different words both in spelling and pronunciation; they mean creator and barber respectively. Another example is the three z sounds of the Arabic language. Each one of them requires different sounds. The first is the emphatic "Zi", the second is "Ze", the third is "Zel." Ibni 'Abidin, on the 332nd page, wrote: "One should say 'azim' with 'Zi' in the ruku tasbih which means 'My Rabb is Great.' If, instead, it is pronounced with 'Ze', it means, 'My Rabb is my enemy', and the salat (namaz) is broken." A Muslim who reads and learns the Qur'an al-karim transliterated into Latin characters will hardly be able to distinguish these three consonants, and, therefore, his salat will not be sahih.

 It is not permissible to transliterate the Qur'an al-karim into the Latin characters. This is noted in the chapter on Najasa in Ibn Haitami's Al-fatawa' Al-kubra and in the fatwa on page 62 of the book Al-Hady al-Islami published by Al-Jamiat al-Islamiyya in Libya, in 1966. A fatwa on this matter in the 1406 [1985] issue of the monthly periodical Al-muallim published by the professors of "Bakiyatus-salihat" madrassa which is one of the great madrasses of the hundreds in India. A copy of this fatwa is written in the book of khutba titled Al-adillat-ul-kawati published by Hakikat Kitabevi in Istanbul.

 The Qur'an al-karim recited on the radio or through a loud-speaker, like the Bibles and Torahs of today's Christians and Jews, is not the Word of Allahu ta'ala. It is written on the 115th page of the book Al-Hadiqa that it is not permissible to insult or show contempt for, to ridicule or to read or to listen to the Divine Books that have been abrogated by Allahu ta'ala and the texts of which have been altered by man. For example, it is kufr to make merry by listening to the Qur'an al-karim or Mawlid on the radio in public houses, gambling-rooms, playgrounds, or in places where sins are being committed. And those who cause kufr become kafirs.

 There may be those who listen reverently to the Qur'an al-karim or Mawlid on a radio and cry as a result of being touched by the naghma (melodious voice) of the qari' (reciter). The beautiful voice and the naghma influences the nafs of the sick-hearted; it nourishes the nafs, and the nafs makes the person cry. However, reciting the Qur'an al-karim is a sunnat, and it is a basic rule in fiqh that a sunnat which brings about a haram or even a makruh should be abandoned. Therefore, it is better not to recite the Qur'an al-karim or a Mawlid on the radio. Nevertheless, it is necessary to broadcast the human word on the radio about the teachings of Islam and the soul-nourishing words of the Ahl as-Sunnat 'ulama', which fill with admiration the learned minds of the world. Such broadcast (and publications) are certainly very useful and very blessed.

 Question: It is true that the sound on the radio is not clear when tuned to the radio stations in far countries. But, the reception from a local radio-station is perfectly similar to that of the qari.' Besides, the meaning also is clear. Would such a sound heard from a radio- receiver, a tape-recorder or a loud-speaker still not be regarded as the Qur'an?

 Answer: Scientifically speaking, the sound heard from a radio-receiver is neither aqs as- sada (reflection of sound) nor naql as-sada (transmission of sound). Naql means transmission or the transfer of the sound itself without any transformation. For example, heat may be transferred by conduction as well as by radiation and convection. An iron rod conducts heat without transforming it. Heat is conducted from one iron crystal to the next one and thus from one end of the rod to the other. The voice of the reader is heard by transmission, that is, Naql as-sada, by the people within earshot. The vocal chords in the larynx in the throat become tense and the air blown from the lungs sets them (the two fleshy chords) into vibration when we talk. Vibrations of these chords set into vibration the air molecules surrounding them, and this vibration is transmitted by other air molecules to our ears, and thus we hear the voice of someone talking. Sound propagates in the form of spherical pressure waves in air. Air transmits sound; it does not travel (or carry sound) itself. Sound travels 340 meters per second in dry air. Water molecules also conduct sound. Velocity of sound in water is about 1500 meters per second. Solids transmit sound much faster. The velocity of sound in steel and glass is approximately 5000 meters per second.

 Sound waves propagating in air or water change their direction when they hit a solid smooth sur face like a wall or a rocky cliff. The reflected waves give a second sound of similar qualities. This second sound is called aqs as-sada or "echo." Although the reflected sound, the echo, is similar in quality to the original sound, it has been stated that it is not necessary to perform sajdat at-tilawat (to prostrate) when one hears the echo of an ayat as- sajda even if one understands the ayat clearly. That is, the echo of Qur'an is not the Qur'an al-karim. This sound is not called the Word of Allahu ta'ala. The voice on the radio is neither the naql (transmission without transformation) nor even the aqs (echo) of the voice of the qari.' It is a sound different from and only similar to the voice of the qari.' looking at the reflections of women in a mirror or water, or the pictures of women on paper or a screen is not the same as looking at them directly. The sound that reaches the microphone is no longer a sound wave when it is converted into, first, electrical impulses and then into electromagnetic waves. The sound heard from the radio is a reproduction through an inverse process: the electromagnetic waves received by the antenna of the radio-receiver are converted into electrical impulses and then into a new sound. A loud-speaker is defined as an apparatus that converts electrical impulses into audible sound waves. (See, for example, the French dictionary Larousse for hautparlour.) How can a transmission of the Qur'an al-karim which involves transformations or conversions into another sound be called the Qur'an while even an echo of the Qur'an is not?

 Question: The voice on the radio is not the voice of the hafiz qurra', as proved scientifically, but it is still completely similar in all its harmonics. And the meaning is not distorted, either. Why should it not be permissible to listen to it?

 Answer: Something similar to something else is not that thing itself. For example, brass bracelets may be similar to gold ones, but they are never the same; brass does not count as gold. The sound from a radio-receiver or a loud-speaker may be very similar to that of the qari', but it is not the human voice. It is a metallic sound. Its quality, pitch, volume and harmonics are different. The picture of a woman may be very similar to her, but it is never the woman herself, nor is it something which has a connection with her. This is why it is not haram to look without desire at the 'awrat (private parts) of a woman in her picture, while it is haram to look at her very body. Nevertheless, because the picture of a woman is like her, it is makruh to look at the picture. Similarly, it is necessary to respect the like of a respected being because of its close proximity, even if it is not the same.

 It is written in valuable books that it is kufr to recite the Qur'an al-karim accompanied with instrumental music, like the kafirs' singing hymns in a church with organ music. Please see the fortieth chapter in the second part of the Turkish version. It is kufr also to profane in this manner the Qur'anic recitation on the radio or through a loud-speaker, which is very similar to the Qur'an. If the Qur'an al-karim is recited without any instrumental music, and if it is recited with tajwid on the radio just for a few minutes after hours of music and other shahwa-inciting programs, and then the usual sinful broadcasting starts again, this case is similar to that of people in a fisq majlis with gambling, drinking, playing and immodestly dressed women reciting some Qur'an al-karim in an interval between the haram; it is a sin. In the commentaries of Multaqa, it is written: "It is a sin to say tasbih, tahlil, dhikr, takbir or to read hadith, fiqh and the like in a gathering of debauchery or to those who profane." The reason for this is that our Holy Nabi (sallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam) forbade reciting the Qur'an in such gatherings or without proper reverence. For example, in the book Kimya-i saadat, it is written, "Rasulullah (sallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam) went to Rabi bin Su'ud's house. Small girls were playing tambourines and singing in the house. They stopped singing [and playing tambourines], and started lauding Rasulullah. 'Do not mention my name! [Go on with what you have been reciting already!] Eulogizing me [reciting mawlid or ilahi] is an 'ibadat. It is not permissible to perform 'ibadat when playing tambourines [musical instruments], making merry and playing,' he declared." It is written in Jawahir al-fiqh that he who recites Qur'an al-karim while playing a tambourine or any other musical instrument, or while playing any other thing or game will become a kafir. It is written in the chapter on ablution in Mizan-i Sharani: "The 'ulama' of Islam declared that the person who recites the Qur'an al-karim after saying unpleasant words is like that person who puts the Qur'an al- karim into dirt. There is no doubt about his kufr."

 It is written in Al-Hadiqa in the chapter on the inflictions of the tongue that a hadith declared: "Announce nikah to the public! For this purpose, perform the ceremony in mosques and play tambourines!" Imam Munawi, explains this hadith ash-Sharif and writes, "Tambourines are not to be played in mosques. This hadith does not order that the tambourines should be played in mosques; it orders that only nikah could be done in mosques." It is clear as explained in Al-Hadiqa that it is never permissible to play any other musical instrument in mosques while it is prohibited to play even tambourines which are otherwise certainly permissible outside the mosque.

 In the hadiths quoted in Mukhtasar at-Tazkira, it is declared: "In the latest time ignorant men of din and fasiq hafiz qurra' will be on the increase. There will come such a time that men of religious profession will be more rotten and putrid than a donkey's carcass." This hadith ash-Sharif prophecies that as the Rising Day nears fasiq and corrupted men of din will appear. We have heard that in Russia they put a turban and gown on communist spies and anarchists trained with special methods and call them the Mufti of Turkmanistan, Azarbaijan, or hadrat so and so. We have seen their photographs in their periodicals published to further their international propaganda. They are sending these spies in the guise of religious men to African and Arabic countries where people are Muslims. Through these spies they are sowing the seeds of anarchy and are making brothers enemies to one another. They have thus gotten hold of countries called "Socialist Islamic Republic." We see with gratitude that in our pure country there are no such corrupted men of religion among our honorable nation.

 Recording the Qur'an al-karim on magnetic tapes or gramophone discs is like writing it on paper. There can be no arguments against doing this based on the objection that tapes and disc are used for recording music, songs, games and amusements, because paper also is used for printing picture-novels, obscene pictures, amusements and pornographic magazines. The Qur'an al-karim is called a Mushaf when it is written on paper. A Mushaf is valuable because it is the cause and means by which people read and learn and memorize the Qur'an al-karim. For this reason, it is very meritorious to write or print Mushafs and distribute them as gifts. Tapes and discs are also used as means for learning and memorizing the Qur'an al-karim for they sound like something very similar to it. A tape or a disc on which the Qur'an al-karim is recorded should be esteemed like a Mushaf ash- Sharif, and nothing else should be recorded on them; they should be kept somewhere high, and nothing else should be placed on them; they should not be touched without a wudu', or given to kafirs or fasiqs; they should not be put together with tapes and discs on which other things are recorded; and they should not be played at places where there is fisq (debauchery), games, gambling and entertainment. The record player or the tape-recorder used for listening to the Qur'an al-karim should in no circumstance be taken to a fisq majlis (gathering for debauchery), and should never be used for playing haram and indecent recordings. It is not permissible to play the Qur'an al-karim on a record-player or tape- recorder which is used also for playing music because it is like listening to the Qur'an al- karim recited by a fasiq hafiz qari' who also sings songs and lyrics which are not permissible as stated above. In short, the tapes and discs on which the Qur'an al-karim is recorded are held in high regard and valued like Mushaf-i Sharifs, and disrespecting or dishonoring them causes kufr. However, listening to these recordings of the Qur'an al- karim is a way of listening to something very much like the Qur'an al-karim, but it is not the same as listening to the hafiz qurra' reciting it. One cannot obtain the blessings of listening to the Qur'an al-karim from it. Because, the tilawat of al-Qur'an al-karim (recital of the Qur'an) is its recital by someone (a Muslim) who is conscious about the fact that he is reciting the Qur'an al-karim. This fact is written on the five hundred and thirty-sixth page of Radd-ul-mukhtar. However, it is fard to listen to any recitation which sounds like the Qur'an al-karim. It is written on the three hundred and sixty-sixth page of Radd-ul-mukhtar that the Qur'an al-karim recited by a small child who is not conscious of what he is reciting should also be listened to respectfully.

 If the radio is always used for listening to useful things and things causing thawab and never used for listening to things prohibited by the Shariat, it is permissible to listen to recitals of Qur'an al-karim performed amidst these useful things or to listen for the purpose of learning to those recitals of Qur'an al-karim performed during the preaches, lessons and other programs on tapes at home provided these programs be proper and suitable for Muslims. However, it is written in page 2361 of the third volume of the book of Tafsir by Hamdi Effendi of Elmali that this does not mean to listen to Qur'an al-karim. It is a worship to recite (or read) Qur'an al-karim as was done by our Holy Nabi 'sall-Allahu alaihi wa sallam' and the Ashab al-kiram. To recite it in another manner or to listen to such recitals means to change a worship, which is a bidat. And bidat, in its turn, is the gravest sin. [Please read the first chapter in the third part of the Turkish version of our book!]

 It was written in a letter from India that the Wahhabis in a certain town performed salat without an imam in some mosques. These mosques were connected with a wire to the central mosque and the jamaats followed the imam by hearing his voice through loud- speakers. That the salat is not sahih if performed by following the voice of an imam through a loud-speaker was written in chapter 19. It is stated in Fatawa-i-Hindiyya, "One of the hindrances against following an imam is the existence of a stream as wide as to let a boat pass or a road wide enough for a cart (car) to pass or, when the namaz is performed in an open space of ground, an empty space of two lines. In mosques, it is permissible to follow the imam behind a large empty space. Another hindrance is the existence of a wall big enough to prevent the person performing the namaz in or outside the mosque from hearing the imam or one of the jamaat or from seeing the movements of the imam or one of the jamaat. [The voice heard through a loudspeaker is not the voice of the imam him self. Likewise, the pictures seen on a television screen are not their originals; they are their visions]. It is not permissible for a person performing the namaz in the mosque or behind the wall to follow someone except the imam or one of the jamaat. If the mosque is full up to the entrance, it is sahih for a person performing the namaz at a place adjacent to the mosque to follow the imam. If it is not full up to the entrance, it is sahih if the distance between him and the last line is not large enough to let a cart (or car) pass. If the distance is larger, his following the imam is not sahih [even if he hears the imam]. It is stated in Qadihan that it is permissible for a person performing the (same) namaz in a building adjacent to the mosque to follow the imam. It is not permissible if this person is in this adjacent building or in a building which is not adjacent to the mosque." This plain fact shows that those men of religion who are making Muslims perform namaz in jamaat without an imam are leading them not to worships but to disasters.

 Unbelievers are trying to convert Muslims into Christians and mosques into churches. To do this insidiously, they disguise themselves as Muslims. They attempt to elevate the place of sajda (where the head is laid in prostration) to pave the way for the future introduction of desks into mosques. "A head should not be laid on places trodden on by feet," they say, "for it causes infection." They have in mind a plan of evolving these higher places of sajda into desks by making them higher and higher year by year. To introduce music and an organ into mosques, they start first by introducing loud-speakers and tape-recorders to prepare people gradually for worship accompanied with music and musical instruments. However, it is a basic fiqh rule that doing a mubah, which is not a sin, becomes haram if there is the danger of this mubah being mistaken for an 'ibadat. Doing such a mubah then becomes a grave sin. Therefore, Muslims should be very vigilant, indeed, and should be extremely careful to worship like the Sahabat al-kiram, as their grandfathers did. Because it is bidat and will give way to other alterations in 'ibadat, loud-speakers, tape-recorders and the like should not be allowed in mosques, though they may seem good and useful. Also, Muslims should be careful not to be caught in the traps or used in the plans of enemies of Islam. In the 216th ayat of Surat-ul-Baqara, it is declared: "There are many things that you approve of and like but which are [in fact] harmful for you!" One should abstain from the slightest alteration in 'ibadat, no matter how useful they may appear. An adhan called through a radio or loud-speaker is not sahih. A salat is not sahih if it is performed in jamaat by following a voice from a radio or loud-speaker, without hearing the voice of the imam or the muazzin himself. This fact is explained in the nineteenth chapter.

 In Targhib-us-salat it is written, "In a hadith quoted in the pamphlet Kitab al-qira'a, Rasulullah (sallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam), describing the signs of the Rising Day, declared: "Judges will take bribes and decide unjustly. Murders will increase. The younger generation will not care or respect his parents and kin. The Qur'an will be recited with mizmar, that is, with musical instruments. People will not listen to those who recite beautifully with tajwid; they will listen to those who recite with music like songs." In his book Musamara, Hadrat Muhyiddin-i 'Arabi (Qaddasallahu sirrahul'aziz) wrote that in a hadith ash-Sharif narrated by Abu Huraira (radiallahu 'anh), it is declared: "There will be such a time that the Muslims will disunite, break into groups. They will abandon the Shariat and follow their own ideas and judgements. They will recite the Qur'an al-karim with mizmars, that is, with instruments, as if singing songs. They will recite not for Allah's sake but for fun. There will be no blessings for those who recite so. Allahu ta'ala curses them. He will punish them." In many such hadith ash-Sharifs Rasulullah (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) foretold that the Qur'an al-karim will be recited through an apparatus, such as radios, magnetic tapes, records and loud-speakers, which are used for playing music. He declared that it will be sinful to recite in such a manner. In the translation of the collection of the forty hadiths by the profound alim , Shaikh-ul-Islam Ahmad bin Sulaiman bin Kamal Pasha, in the thirty-ninth hadith it is declared: "I have been sent to break mizmars and to kill pigs." In the translation, this hadith is explained: "mizmar means flute or all musical instruments." By this hadith he means. "I am ordered to forbid every kind of musical instrument and the eating of pork." In another hadith, it is declared: "Recite the Qur'an with the Arabic dialect and the Arabic phonetic! Do not recite like fasiqs and singers!" It is haram for a person who recites like singing a song to be the imam (lead the salat). The namaz performed behind him is not sahih. The reason for this is that in order to tune up or make a melody, he adds syllables, which changes the recitation into human language and not the Qur'an al-karim.]

 WARNING: All that is explained above is about reciting and listening to the Qur'an al- karim on the radio. No mention of using or listening to the radio in general has been made. The general use of a radio should not be confused with its use in 'ibadat. Comments on the use of a radio in general will be made later.

 In Kimya-i saadat, it is declared: "It is very meritorious to learn how to read the Qur'an al-karim. But, those who read and the hafiz qurra' should revere the Qur'an al-karim. And to do this, they must obey the Qur'an al-karim in every word and action of theirs. They must adopt the adab (rules and manners) of the Qur'an al-karim. They must keep away from what it prohibits. If they do not act in this manner, the Qur'an al-karim becomes an enemy (and hates them.). Rasulullah (sallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam) declared: "Most of the munafiqs of my Ummat will be of those who recite the Qur'an al-karim." Abu Sulaiman Darani said, "The Zebanis, the angels who will do the tormenting in Hell, will attack the hafiz qurra' who do not obey the Shariat before they do anything to the idolatrous kafirs. The hafiz qurra' who recites mawlid for money and those who recite melodiously are of this kind. It should be realized quite well that the Qur'an al-karim is not for reciting only, it was sent for man to follow the way, the Shariat preached in it." In the commentary of Shir'at al- Islam, it is written, "It is the ugliest and most loathsome bidat to recite the Qur'an al-karim as if singing a song. Those who recite in such a manner are to be punished."

 In Riyad an-nasihin, it is written, "The Qur'an al-karim will intercede for the hafiz of the Qur'an al-karim who obeys the Shariat. In a hadith ash-Sharif in the book Muslim, it is declared: 'The Qur'an al-karim will be either the intercessor or the enemy of its reciters.' In a hadith ash-Sharif it is declared: 'There are many who recite the Qur'an al-karim while the Qur'an al-karim calls down curses upon them.' It is necessary for one to have a wudu' (ablution) when reading the Qur'an al-karim, to hold it in the right hand, not to leave it lower than one's knees, not to leave it open after reading but to close and put it somewhere high [and clean], not to talk when reading it, and if one does talk, one should say the A'udhu again and then start reading or reciting. One should take (or hand) the Mushaf [and also the tape on which the Qur'an al-karim is recorded] standing as one is.

 And those who listen to the Qur'an al-karim on the radio should at least put the radio-set some where high, should not busy themselves with anything else, and should sit facing the Qibla. It is an irreverence to the Qur'an al-karim (or the Mawlid) to listen to music, songs or other kufr and harams before or after the Qur'an al-karim. The Qur'an al-karim calls curses upon those who do not revere it when it is recited. Actions and behaviors that are sins for those who are reading or reciting are also sins for those who make or have it read or recited.

 Listeners who cause the hafiz to recite the Qur'an al-karim on the radio are, in some respects, like those who watch an acrobat: If the acrobat falls down during the show and dies, the spectators will have committed a sin because the acrobat would not have been in the show and would not have died if the spectators had not been there to watch. It is true that victims die because man is mortal and the time for death has come; however, the killer is punished.

 It distorts the meaning and is harmful to recite the Qur'an al-karim, the Mawlid and the Adhan with music (melodiously) and taghanni. For example, "Allahu akbar" means Allahu ta'ala is the Greatest. If it is recited as 'Aallahu akbar" with a long "A", it means "Is Allahu ta'ala (re ally) great?" This injects a tone of doubt, which is kufr. Therefore, it is obvious that those who say "Allahu akbar" with a long initial 'A' become kafirs.

 In fiqh books, for example, in Halabi as-saghir on page 252, it is written, "The 'ulama' said that it is makruh to recite the Qur'an al-karim with naghma (melodiously), even if it does not cause any phonetical distortion. The basis for this is that it is a simulation of the fasiqs' singing, and it is haram if there is phonetical distortion. It is makruh to listen to something which is makruh to read, and it is haram to listen to something which is haram to read. It is wajib (necessary) to do amr bi'lmaruf (to remind someone of the rules of the Shariat) to the hafiz qurra' who recite the Qur'an al-karim with taghanni (melody). If reminding them is likely to arouse perversity or enmity, one should not listen and should leave that place." In Halabi on page 297, it is written, "It is necessary to re-perform those salats prayed behind an imam who recites melodiously." On another page it is written, "It is a sinful action o recite the Qur'an al-karim loudly where people are working (or studying) or resting by lying down."

 On page 496 of Al-Halabi al-kabir, it is written, "It is permissible to recite the Qur'an al- karim through one's heart while lying down on one's side with one's legs put together, or to recite when walking, working, taking a bath or sitting beside graves. It becomes a sin to recite the Qur'an al-karim loudly near those who are reading, writing or working while they are not listening. It is tahrimi makruh for a few people to recite the Qur'an al-karim loudly in a chorus. One of them should recite and the others should listen quietly. It is not fard to listen for those who have work to do. It is fard-i kifaya to listen to the Qur'an al- karim, and listening to the Qur'an al-karim is more meritorious than reciting it or doing any nafila 'ibadat (supererogatory worship). A woman should learn from another woman how to read or recite the Qur'an al-karim. A woman should not learn it from a na-mahram man, even if he is blind. It is written in Bariqa and Al-Hadiqa that it is sinful to forget the Qur'an al-karim after one has learnt it. In Khulasat al-fatawa, it is written: "It is permissible to recite the Qur'an al-karim in the heart or mind while working or walking."

 There is no need to learn music to recite the Qur'an al-karim correctly and beautifully. It is necessary to learn the 'ilm at-tajwid (the science of reciting the Qur'an al-karim). According to the majority of Islamic scholars, the Qur'an al-karim cannot be recited correctly, and the adhan and salat (namaz) will not be accepted when done without studying the 'ilm at-tajwid, which teaches the articulation places of the letters (makharij al- Huruf) or correct pronunciation, the madd, that is, the length of vowels and many other rules.

 In Al-Halabi as-saghir, a few lines above the section on sajdat at-tilawa, it is written, "It is a sin to write the Qur'an al-karim in an illegibly small script or to get or own such small- sized copies of Qur'an al-karim." Allahu ta'ala sent the Qur'an al-karim to be recited, read, listened to and its contents to be learnt and obeyed. It is an insult to the Qur'an al-karim to write it in an illegibly small script. The Khalifa 'Umar (radiAllahu 'anh) punished a man who wrote an illegibly small copy of the Qur'an al-karim. Buying such Mushafs, carrying them in small golden boxes attached to a string around the neck, as Christians do with their icons or crosses, is useless and very sinful.

 It is written in Al-Halabi that it is tahrimi makruh to write ayats or names of Allahu ta'ala' [and also a picture of the Kaba] on things spread on the ground or on praying mats (sajjada). It is written in Tahtawi's annotation to Imdad that it is makruh to write such sacred words on coins or paper bills. The exalted alim as-Sayyid 'Abd al Hakim Arwasi (Quddisa sirruh) states in one of his letters that during the time of the Sahabat al-kiram and the Tabiin 'izam ('alaihim ar-ridwan) no sacred word was written on money. The rationale for this is that money is used in buying and selling, and, therefore, it is not revered. It is permissible to print pictures on it. The non-Sunnite governments, for example, that Fatimis and the Rasulis, who belonged to the Mutazila and who bore the name Muslim but who in reality did not follow the Shariat, had ayats and hadiths printed on money. This was one of the tricks they played to deceive the people and hide in a Muslim guise. The 'ulama' of the Din [that is, the Fuqaha-yi 'izam] did not permit writing blessed words even on grave- stones, let alone money. It is written in Al-fatawa al-Hindiyya that it is makruh to touch such money without an ablution. It is written in the explanation of Shir-at al-Islam that it is necessary to bury or burn the old and ruined Mushafs.

 'Ibadat cannot be altered to please men. It is very wrong to think that Allahu ta'ala will be pleased with what man himself is pleased with. If it were so, then there would be no need for Holy Nabis to be sent; everyone would worship in a way he pleased and Allahu ta'ala would be pleased with it too. However, in reality, for a worship to be acceptable, it must be in conformity with the Shariat, though the human mind may not see the reason or appreciate the benefit and use of it.

 What has been written above may not please those who have made the Din a means to earn earthly possessions. However, it is not intended for them but for those who want to learn the truth.

 Question: Is it sinful to listen to the radio and watch television?

 Answer: This question is similar to asking whether it is sinful to go to the cinema or not.

Let us answer the two questions together.

 Question: Is it sinful to go to the cinema?

 Radio, cinema and television are all media for mass communication. They are like books, newspapers and magazines. They are all means or tools like guns. It is sinful to use guns against faultless, innocent and harmless people, but it is very meritorious to use them against enemy in a war. Therefore, it would not be correct to make a clear-cut judgement of the matter by saying that it is all sinful or all definitely meritorious.

 Similarly, if the radio programs and films are prepared by decent people and, therefore, their contents are of what Allahu ta'ala approves of, such as the use and application of Islamic teachings, ethics, trade, arts, factories and production, history, military training and other useful religious or secular information, then it is not sinful but mubah to listen to such radio programs or watch a television and cinema film. It is even necessary for every Muslim to listen and to watch them as it is necessary to read useful books and magazines. Please see the third page of the sixty-eighth chapter in the first part of the Turkish version.

 However, if such media are under the control of the enemies of the Din and the programs are tabled by morally indecent people who propagate such ugly and harmful things as the ideas of enemies of Islam and the promotion of haram, then it is not permissible to listen to such radio programs or to watch such television programs or to go to the cinemas where they show such films. It is haram like reading papers, books and novels with similar haram contents.

 It is stated in the final sections of Hadiqa and Bariqa, "It is sinful to keep tambourines or other sorts of musical instruments in one's home or shop or to sell them or to give them as presents or to hire them out, though one may not be using them oneself.

 If mubah (permissible things) and sins are mixed and if there is haram where the programs are broadcast or where the radio, television or films are listened to or watched, it is necessary to give up the mubah or even the thawab (merits) in it in order to save oneself from the sins. As a matter of fact, although it is sunnat to accept an invitation from a Muslim, one should not accept or attend an invitation wherein there is haram; one should give up a sunnat to avoid haram or makruh.

 In the book Akhlaq-i ala'i, it is written: "Poetry is metered words in verse form. It is certainly mubah to listen to a beautiful voice in which there is no melody or singing. Some said it is jaiz (permissible) to sing to oneself to rid oneself of boredom or worries. But it is haram to do so to entertain others or to earn money. There are three kinds of naghma, that is, metered sound:

 1 - Human voice. (We have explained this kind of naghma above in detail.)

 2 - Animal voice, such as birds' singing, is certainly halal to listen to.

 3 - Sound made by percussion, wind and string instruments [all musical instruments] is certainly haram to listen to. It is not sinful to listen to a stream of water murmuring, waves splashing, wind blowing and leaves fluttering. It is useful to listen to such sounds, for it helps to dissipate worries."

 It is written in Ashi'at al-lama'at, in the chapter Bayan wa Shi'r, that a hadith narrated by Aisha (radiAllahu anha), declared: "Poetry is good when it is good and bad when bad." "That is, meter or rhyme does not make a word bad or displeasing; it is the meaning which makes it so."

 It is written in Al-Hadiqa, "Music mixed with haram pleases the nafses of fasiqs, in the same way that taghanni into which no haram is added pleases the pure hearts and souls of pious men." Neither the former nor the latter enjoy the other's music; they feel uncomfortable. This is because what tastes good to hearts and souls makes the nafs uncomfortable, and what tastes sweet to the nafses gives discomfort to pure hearts. This is why the places that offer a life of Jannat (Paradise) to the kafirs and fasiqs are prisons to the Muslims, the pious. The hadith ash-Sharif, "The Dunya [that is, places where there is haram, the majlis al-fisq] is a prison to believers, and Paradise to the kafirs," communicates this unchanging fact. With this fact in view, everyone can judge the quality of his qalb (heart). Because the nafses of most people have become strong by using the 'alamats (signs) of kufr and by committing harams their nafses have suppressed their hearts and souls; naghma (singing) excites their nafses causing them to become excessive. And the soul or the heart is not influenced or moved because their talents and attributes have been blunted and made insensible. Thus, people assume the good taste felt by their nafses is also the same taste felt by their hearts and souls, whereas the latter two have no share. As a matter of fact, animals also enjoy naghma."

 In the tafsir books (explanations of the Qur'an al-karim), for example, in Tafsir-i medarik, it is written that the ayat Lahw al-hadith in the Surat al-Luqman is a prohibition against music. In the Persian tafsir book Mawahib-i 'aliyya this ayat is interpreted: "Some people gossip, tell and write false stories and novels, and pay songstresses to get them to sing for the public. By doing so, they are actually trying to hinder people from listening to the Qur'an al-karim, from reading and learning the fard and the haram, and from performing salat; in short, they are trying to divert them from the way of Islam. Thus, they ridicule Muslims and insult Allahu ta'ala's orders. They call Islam 'regression' and Muslims abnormal, old-fashioned, sick men who are retrogressive or reactionary. When these so- called intellectuals are told about Allahu ta'ala's orders or the words of the Ahl as-Sunnat 'ulama', they put on an air and turn away their faces haughtily, full of conceit and take no notice as if they do not at all hear what is being said. Give them the news of the fire of Hell and its very bitter torments." This tafsir has been translated into Turkish under the title Mawakib tafsiri. The book Durr-al-munteqa declares: "It is haram to recite the Qur'an al- karim with taghanni (that is, melodiously) and to listen to it being so recited. Burhan ad- Din Marginani (rahmat-Allahi ta'ala 'alaih) stated that a person will lose his iman if he says, 'How beautifully you recite!' to a hafiz who recites the Qur'an al-karim melodiously. He will necessarily have to renew his iman and nikah (marriage). Hadrat Quhistani also wrote the same. If some people say, 'We go into ecstasies by reciting qasidas and ilahis melodiously,' they should not be believed. There is no such thing in our Din. Dances in tekkes and melodious recitals [of ilahis or mawlids] are all haram. It is not permissible to go to such places and to listen to their un-Islamic practices. The Tasawwuf leaders did not have such practices. They were invented later. Our Holy Nabi (sallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam) listened to poetry. But this is no implication of a permission to listen to naghma (singing). Those who say our Nabi (sallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam) listened to songs and went into ecstasies are liars." [The taghanni which is haram is to recite or read (Qur'an al-karim) by tuning it up to musical notes. And the taghanni which is sunnat is to recite or read by observing the rules of Tajwid]. There is detailed information on raqs and sima' (dancing and singing) in the last chapter of 'Uqud Durriyya.

 On page 270 of the fifth volume of Durr al-mukhtar, it is written, "It is permissible and beautiful to recite the Qur'an al-karim with taghanni provided that no letter is added and the words are not misspelt or mispronounced. Otherwise it is haram. There is the fear of kufr if one says, 'How nicely you recite!' to someone who performs taghanni in a way that distorts the Qur'an al-karim." Ibn Abidin explaining this statement in his commentary, writes, "It was said that a person will become kafir if he says, 'How beautifully you recite!' to a hafiz who recites with taghanni. This is because he who says 'good' for something which is haram, according to all four Madhhabs, will become a kafir (disbeliever). Also, he who says, 'You recite beautifully!' referring to the distorted words becomes a kafir, and certainly not the one who means his voice or his reciting the Qur'an al-karim itself is beautiful." Such a person will enjoy listening to the same hafiz also when he recites without performing taghanni, and will say, 'He recites beautifully.'

Nevertheless, one should not listen to a hafiz who recites with taghanni; it is haram both to recite and to listen to. In Al-Hadiqa, in the section on the afflictions incurred by the tongue, it is declared: "It is haram to recite the Qur'an al-karim by keeping up with a tune and, thereby, altering the harakas and meds (the vocalizations and the prolongations), and so is the case with listening to this. Beautifying the recitation of the Qur'an al-karim means reciting it in accordance with the rules of tajwid."

 On the 266th page of the book Kimya-i saadat, in the paragraph concerning child training, it is written, "Children should not be allowed to read or recite poems about women, girls and love, and parents should not let their children go to or learn from a teacher who says such poems are "nourishment for the soul." A teacher who says so [and teaches sex] to his students is not a master but a Shaitan because he is spoiling the hearts of children." Our Nabi (sallAllahu alaihi wa sallam) declared: "Ghina darkens the heart." That is, taghanni with human voice and instrumental music stains the heart. [Ibni 'Abidin explains this hadith on page 222, volume five.] One should not fancy music or be taken in by the taste of it. Not the soul but the nafs, who is the enemy of Allahu ta'ala, enjoys its taste. The wretched ruh (soul) has fallen prey to the hands of the nafs and, therefore, thinks it is its taste. The taste of music is like that of honey that is poisoned or the najasat [dirt] that is sweetened and gilded.

 The aim of reporting that music is haram and harmful is not to brand thousands of music addicts as fasiq and sinful; it must certainly be pointed out that the sins of the author of these lines are much more than those of his readers. Only Holy Nabis ('alaihimussalam) are Mathum, that is, free from any sin. It is another sin not to know the wide-spread sins. He who shamelessly commits any haram which is unanimously said to be a haram, thinking that it is halal, becomes a kafir. Thinking of how we are so sinful, we must always be in supplication with bowed necks before our Rabb. We must make tawba every day!

 The great wali Jalaladdin Rumi (quddisa sirruh), who was full of love for Allahu ta'ala, never played reeds or any other instrument. He did not listen to music nor did he ever dance (raqs). Commentaries have been written in every country in many languages to his Mathnawi (Mesnevi), which has more than forty-seven thousand couplets that have been spreading nur (light) to the world. The most valuable and tasteful of these commentaries is the one by Mawlana Jami which has also been commentated on by many others. And, of these, 56 pages, which covered only four couplets, of the commentary by Sulaiman Nesh'et Effendi was published during the time of Sultan 'Abd al-Majid Khan by the Matba'a-i Amira in 1263 A.H. In this book, Mawlana Jami (quddisa sirruh) wrote, "The word 'ney' in the first couplet of the Mathnawi [Listen to the reed...] means a perfect and exalted human being brought up in Islam. Such people have forgotten themselves and everything else. Their minds are always busy seeking Allahu ta'ala's rida (approval, love). In the Persian language, 'ney' means 'non-existent.' Such people have become non-existent from their own existence. The musical instrument called 'ney' is a plain pipe and the sound from the ney is completely from the player. As those exalted men are emptied of their existence, the manifestation of Allahu ta'ala's Akhlaq, Sifat and Kamalat (moral qualities, attributes and perfection) are observed in them. The third meaning of the word 'ney' is reed-pen, which again means, or points to, an insan-i kamil (perfect human). Movements and writings of a pen are not from itself, nor are the actions and words of a perfect human; they are all inspired to him by Allahu ta'ala." 'Abidin Pasha 'rahmatullahi ta'ala 'alaih', the governor of Ankara during the time of Sultan 'Abd al-Hamid Khan the Second, gave nine proofs in his Masnawi Sharhi to show that 'ney' meant insan-i kamil.

 Also, the Mawlawi (Mevlevi) Shaikhs were learned and pious persons. Uthman ('Uthman) Effendi, one of them, wrote a book titled Tazkiya-i-Ahl al-bayt, in which he refuted the Rafidi book Husniya with documents, thus rendering a great service to Islam. Later some ignorant people thought the 'ney' meant 'musical instrument' and began to play musical instruments such as flutes and drums and dance. Musical instruments were placed in the mausoleum of that great master of Tasawwuf (Mawlana Jalaladdin Rumi). Certainly, people who have read the explanations of Mathnawi (Mesnevi) and know that sun of truth well, will not be misled by such falsifications.

 Jalaladdin Rumi (quddisa sirruh) did not even perform loud dhikrs (to recite Allahu ta'ala's name loudly). In fact he declared:

 "Pes zi jan kun, wasl-i jananra Talib,
Bi leb-u-bi-gam migu, nam-i Rabb!"

 In his Mathnawi, which means, "Therefore, with all your heart, you desire to reach the Beloved. Without moving your lip and tongue, say [in your heart] the name of your Rabb!" Later, people ignorant of Islam entertained their nafses by playing instruments, such as the ney, saz and tambourines and by singing lyrics and dancing. In order to call these sins 'ibadat and to make themselves known as men of din they even lie; they say, "Mawlana also used to play and dance like this. We are Mawlawis; we are following his path."

 Hadrat Abdullah-i Dahlawi, a specialist in 'ilm az-zahir, an owner of high ranks in tasawwuf, a profound alim, a great wali, states in his 74th letter: "Taghanni, sad voice and poetry on the theme of love for Allahu ta'ala and the qasidas telling the life-stories of the Awliya-i kiram, move the related connections and bonds in the heart. Making dhikr with a low voice and listening to poetry not prohibited by the Shariat refines and gives tenderness to the hearts of the followers of the Chishtiyya tariqat." In the 85th letter, he declares: "Tasawwuf masters and leaders listened to beautiful voices. But the voices were not accompanied by instrumental music, and the listeners were not in the company of boys or girls, nor were they in the company of fasiqs. A great leader of the Chishtiyya tariqat, Hadrat Sultan al-Mashayikh Nizam ud-Din-i Awliya, listened to beautiful voices, but never to instrumental music, as written in the books Fawa'id al-fuad and Siyar al-awliya. The Awliya's listening to sima', that is, to beautiful voices, is for the purpose of converting the heart from the state of discomfort to comfort. The ghafils' (those devoid of love for Allahu ta'ala) listening to a beautiful voice gives way to fisq. No instrumental music is halal. Although there were those who, when in a state of sekr (ecstasy), said it was permissible, they are held excusable; one should not say jaiz putting forth their word as an evidence. Silent dhikr (dhikr al-khafi) is more meritorious (afdal), though it is permissible to make audible dhikr (dhikr al-'alani), observing the conditions compatible with the Shariat. It is not permissible to play an instrument, such as a flute, violin, saz, ney, or to listen to the songs of ghafils, to dance [raqs], or to watch those who do so." In the 99th letter, he states: "To dissipate the qadb [discomfort] of the heart, the Qur'an al-karim, recited with a beautiful voice and in accordance with the rules of tajwid, should be listened to. This is what the Sahabat al-kiram used to do. It was not their habit to listen to qasidas or poems. Listening to songs and musical instruments and performing audible dhikr were introduced later. The great tasawwuf leaders like Abu 'l-Hasan ash-Shadhili and Hammad ad-Dabbas (qaddasallahu ta'ala asrarahuma) categorically refused all such things. 'Abd al-Haqq ad- Dahlawi (rahmat-Allahi 'alaihim) relates this in detail. There were also those leaders who, without any accompanying music, fasiqs or ghafils, listened to poetry about love for Allahu ta'ala. When they brought the ney and saz to Hadrat Shah an-Naqshaband al-Bukhari, he stated: 'We do not listen to these. But we do not deny the mutasawwifs who listen. Rasulullah (sallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam) never listened to a musical instrument. In the Tariqat-i Mujaddidiyya, listening to taghanni does not influence the heart. Listening to the Qur'an al-karim gives ease to the heart and increases its peace. To those in (the phase called) the sayr-i qalb, songs and music give pleasure. The dhikr made with a low voice and sad taghanni increases zawq (joy) and shawq (ardor). The dhikr with a loud voice full of pain and sorrow, outside of one's own control and option, is not prohibited. But it should not be made a habit."

 In Ashi'at al-lama'at, in chapter Bayan wa Shi'r, it is written, "Nafi', a great Tabi', said, "Abdullah ibn 'Umar (radiAllahu 'anhuma) and I were walking together. We heard the sound of a ney. Abdullah plugged his ears with his fingers. We quickly walked away from that place. 'Is the sound still audible?' he asked. 'No, it can no longer be heard,' I replied. He took his fingers from his ears and, 'Rasulullah (sallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam), too, had done so,' he said. Then, Nafi' added, 'I was only a child then. This means that he did not order Nafi' to plug his ears because he was a child.' Therefore, it is not correct to deduce from this that listening to the sound of a ney is tanzihi makruh and not tahrimi makruh, and to think that 'Abdullah (radiAllahu 'anh) plugged his ears with his fingers out of wara' and taqwa. Nafi' added the explanation that he was a child then to prevent such misinterpretations."

 Itri Effendi, who lived in the time of Sultan Muhammad Khan the Third (rahmat-Allahi ta'ala asrarahum), was not an Islamic scholar. He was a master of music like Beethoven. By composing the Takbir in the segah maqam (tune), he did not perform a service to Islam but rather introduced a bidat into Islam. To keep up with a tune, the words are distorted and the meaning is spoilt. People are carried away by the effect of naghma on their ears and nafses, and, therefore, the meaning of the Takbir and its effect on the heart and the soul is lost. The same distortion of words and the consequent spoiling of the meanings happen when the Qur'an al-karim and the Mawlids are recited with naghma. No desirable effect or blessing is left in such recitations. The Qur'an al-karim should be recited with a beautiful voice and tajwid so that it will be more effective and full of blessings.

 In the book Bariqa, ghina, that is, taghanni is explained and discussed in detail as the seventeenth of the afflictions incurred by the tongue (afat al-lisan), and Shaikh al-Islam Abussuud Effendi's (rahmat-Allahi ta'ala 'alaih) fatwa is also quoted. In this fatwa, a distinction is made between the halal and haram kinds of taghannis only. And there is nothing written in the fatwa about musical instruments. Despite this fact, some people who play a ney and other musical instruments put this fatwa forward as a support and thus slander Abu's-Su'ud Effendi.

 Ibni 'Abidin, in the fourth volume, within the paragraph concerning those whose testimony is not acceptable, declares: "It is unanimously understood that it is haram to sing to people to entertain or to earn money. It is a grave sin to play music and dance. It is not a sin to sing to oneself to dissipate one's worries. It is permissible to listen to poetry in which there is wa'z (preaching) and hikmat (wisdom). As for musical instruments, only women are allowed to play tambourines at wedding parties." But both sexes must not intermingle. There is detailed information on taghanni and musical instruments in the last chapter of the second part of Al-mawahib al-Ladunniyya. In Al-Hadiqa, in the section dealing with the afflictions incurred by the ear, it is written, "It is haram to play or listen to musical instruments with girls dancing in a function where there are fisq and alcohol. These are the kinds of music and musical instruments prohibited in the Hadith. Al though Rasulullah (sallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam) plugged his blessed ears with his fingers upon hearing the shepherd's flute, he did not order 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar, who was with him, to do so. This shows that it is not haram to hear when passing by." In the section on the afflictions of the hand, it is stated: "It is haram to play musical instruments for entertainment with alcohol, playing, dancing and women. It was ordered in a hadith to play tambourines at wedding parties. It is true that this order includes men, too. [But Ibni 'Abidin's prohibiting statement quoted above is preferable.] It is permissible to play drums and similar instruments on the way to hajj and in the army." The last sentence shows that it is permissible to have musical bands play at schools or at national and political functions.

 In the last chapters of Imam-i Zahabi's (rahmat-Allahi ta'ala 'alaih) Tibb-un-nabawi and Ibni Abidin's (rahmat-Allahi ta'ala 'alaih) fatwa book Al-'uqud Durriyya, the haram and the permitted kinds of taghanni are explained in detail in Arabic. The whole of the former was printed in the margins of the book Tas'hil al-manafi', and the chapter on taghanni of the latter was appended to the book Al-habl al-matin fi ittiba' as-Salaf as-salihin. These two books have been published by Hakikat Kitabevi in Istanbul.

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