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[marhum]

a good friend of mine has taken up music to keep him away from things tht he thinks are even worse..like drugs for instance..he thinks music shouldnt be haraam for him in this case...any opinion?

oh, and hes not a muslim..just so you know

Kumeil

[Tayyaba]

As we all knw that music is haraam and there r so many other things u'r friend can do apart from listenin to musci i mean is that if he keeps himslf busy wid readin or playin sports then he wont go for drugs yeah...there is a better alternative then turnin to music ryte?
any comments feel free...

[marhum]

i agree

do you have like any solid scientific evidence proving tht music is bad for you? i believe tht theres sufficient logic and reason behind most of our sharia..so technically there should be..i tried to look it up but all it says is like shaitan this shaitan tht..and thts just not something these guys will fall for..theyll only believe in wht science has to say unfortunately..

but if im not mistaken, there IS scientific evidence proving tht music is in fact harmful but i cant find anything online yet

so if anyones got any info..please do share

-Kumeil-

[Sayyeda]

Some actions or movements outside human body can adversely effect the natural equilibrium of Sympathetic and Parasymphatetic nervous system. One of those things is "Music".

A brisk and lively musical programme, in particular if it is accompanied by musical instruments, disturbs this equilibrium of the various systems; digestion is badly effected; palpitation of the heart is increased; blood pressure goes high; and abnormal secretion of hormones leaves a lasting bad effect upon general health.

Music stimulates mostly the sympathetic nervous system, and it may create insomnia (lack of sleep); it may cause tempers to flare up; sudden laughter or nonsensical talks are amongst its possible effects. It may even lead to mania (a kind of madness).

Such people may be seen to move their hands and feet in dancing pattern even when not listening to music.

Dr. Vollf Adler, who was a professor in the Columbia University, found out that a best melodious record of music can badly harm the nerves of a human body; and the warmer the weather the more the harm. He proved that the music upsets the nervous systems unnaturally, and causes considerable fatigue.

It is an accepted fact that mental tension creates many ailments. Excitement and tension are like a fire which destroys the natural functions of human body. And Music creates excitement and tension.
Not only madness and nervous break down but even ulcers, heart diseases, diabetes, rheumatism and even birth of deformed or disabled children are caused by mental tension.

Music releases 'hormone adrenalin' in abnormal quantity. This hormone clots the blood vessels, and finally leads to heart attack. The relation between excessive release of adrenalin and heart attack was discovered in France in 1957.

Coming to Jazz, an important finding must be quoted here from the Reader's Digest:
"Otologists say that youngsters are going deaf by blasting their ears with electronic pop music. Experts know that prolonged exposure to a noise level above 85 decibles will eventually result in a reduction of hearing keeness in the frequency range most important for understanding human speech. Dr Charles Lebo, of the Pacific Medical Centre, took measuring instruments into 2 San Francisco dance halls where the cacophony from amplified instruments caused sound intensity from 100 to 119 decibles in the low-frequency range."

Music is like intoxicants in that it makes one forget one's surroundings; and one does not know what is happening to him or her.

Frank King has reported in Reader's Digest as saying:
"I returned home one evening and noticed a large red mark that looked like a burn on my wife's right cheek. When I asked her what had happened, she sheepishly told me the story: She had set up the iron-board in the living room so that she could watch a favourite television programme while doing the ironing. The telephone table was also near at hand. As she was intently watching TV, the phone rang, and she reached out automatically and answered the iron."

Another interesting story was published some years ago. A pregnant woman attended a musical programme in a local cinema. She became so engrossed in it that she gave birth to a baby on the spot without realising what was happening to her, 'Was it a cinema hall or maternity home?', asked the paper.

In short, high blood pressure, insomnia, emotional instabililty, mania and madness, nervous break down, ulcers, heart troubles, diabetes, rheumatism, temporary or permanent deafness and birth of deformed or disabled babies are the effects of music.

No wonder, Islam, being a religion from Allah, has warned us against this disabling habit.

[Muntazir Manji]

sa.

i read kumeil's dilemma about his friend, and honestly im surprised! he has taken up music as an alternative to drugs. Thats like saying, we take a bullet as an alternative to a bomb. Although the bullet wont hurt as much, at the end both would kill!

I would like to present my two cents here, to explain which music is haram and what alternatives this friend has (Kumeil's friend) and ofcourse,all those who are into music.

Music in its entirety is not haram. even if it has a relaxing effect on your mind, or even if it raises your heart beat! there are other things with that effect and they are not haram. For example, coffee is a Central nervous system stimulant and also raises the heart rate! what we call a positive chronotroic effect. apparently, coffee is not haram! there are other such things as well.

I read the reply that sayyeda gave, and i agree with her a hundred percent, because i have personally gone through some of theseeffetcs (insomnia) due to music. But these are extreme cases like mine. Within moderation it isnt so bad! I believe she got this info from the book "Music and its effects".

Therefore, music is not haram because it has that soothing and relaxing effect, but because of the way in which it is being used in this world, in totally satanic ways! What makes music haram is the ghina (singing) that accompanies it.

If music is used appropriately, there is no harm in it. For example, some music is used to treat patients with psychological diseaes (relaxation therapy). Infact, there is a report I have heard from sheikh arif abdulhussein, that one of our scholars has himelf used music to treat a condition that his son had.

That music which is used for amusement and immoral acts is haram. according to the fatwa of the grand ayatollah sistani. Now that includes everything from Elvis prestley and Tina turner to Nelly and J-Lo.

We must constantly ask ourselves, what do we gain from the music that is presented to us.-- I love u, turn me on! i am p.i.m.p.. now
come on guys, islam is such a moral religion, all of this automatically becomes haram.

We must realise that islam wants to liberate the human being from all these vices, all of this small talk! and guide humans towards greater heights!

Which sort of music is halal then? as per the fatwa, that which is not used for amusement or immorality.

There are some islamic songs called nasheed, which are not haram. They contain words which actually direct us towards religion and also do not play any haram instrument. For example last breath. Here too caution should be exercised, if the nasheeds are a cause of ur moving away from listenig to the duas and Quran, then here, you should start taking care.

Infact, even for the nasheed, the same rule applies, that if they are fit for amusement, then they also become haram.

Please note there are some nasheed, which are like hip hop (rap) songs. I really doubt that would fall into the halal category.

You can get these nasheed from http://www.shiasource.com infact the site has some latmiyat as well.

http://www.dartabligh.org also has a good collection, but at the moment, the site doesnt seem to work propoerly!

there is alot i would like to share with you guys, because i take keen interset this topic., but time is not enough. Please refer to the book "CODE OF PRACTICE FOR MUSLIMS IN THE WEST" and "CONTEMPORARY LEGAL RULINGS IN SHI'I LAW"

Finally, just a note for Kumeil's friend, please dont resort to haram acts to refrain fro other haram acts! its like taking posion as an antidote for poison!

Stop listening to music, and resort to Quran recitation and Duas. I am telling you from personal experience, that i was a music addict, and although some of the music had a very relaxing effect on my MIND, my SOUL found peace and guidance only when i left all of this. You can also heal your soul, you need the Quran and Duas to do that. Once you get addicted to living according to the shariah that Allah has given us, no other addiction will ever find its way in your life!

May Allah grant us the tawfiq to live according to the islamic shariah which is a shariah sahla (easy laws) and also endow us shias, with a greater understanding of this religion, while we await our savior, the vali al asr, Imam mahdi (As).

Wassalaam.

Muntazir Manji.

[*Fatemah*]

s.a everyone....i thout of posting my view on kumail's post...i hope its useful in one way or the other....

In recent years, certain developments have taken place which has brought the subject of music as an extremely significant issue. Music has spread to such an extent that it is afflicting every muslim in this modern era. Today, individuals are being confronted by a situation where one is forced to listen to music whether by choice or without. Music is played in nearly all department stores and super markets. Even whilst walking in the streets, we find cars blaring with music. No matter which direction we go, we are blasted with music. The increasing popularity of music, which is prevalent in our society poses a tremendous danger for muslims.

Muslims are aware that nothing has been prohibited by Allah except that which is harmful to the welfare of a Muslim individual and the society as a whole. The divine attribute behind the prohibition of music can be comprehended by looking into the diverse influence music can have.

Experiments carried out by doctors and professors have confirmed that the music of today is such that it does not only affect the brain, but each and every organ of one`s body. There is a close relationship between music and bodily movements. We find that people listening to music automatically start tapping their fingers and feet, as if the music is permeating in their blood.

It is also proved that music affect`s one`s emotions, increases arousal in terms of alertness and excitement and also leads to various physiological changes in the person. In a psychology experiment, it was found that listening to moderate type of music increased one`s normal heart beat, whilst listening to rock music the heart beat increased even further, yet people claim that music has no effect.

It is a very ignorant and misguided attitude to percieve music as a form of pleasure and passing of time, since the messages of today`s music follow a general theme of love, fornication, drugs and freedom.

We find that the whole world is obsessed with the kufr idea of freedom, i.e. freedom of speech, freedom of movement, etc. In western schools and universities, we observe independence, free expression and secular thinking being encouraged. This idea of freedom, “ It`s my life, I`ll do what I want” is a predominant, underlying theme of today`s music. It is being used as a means for drilling western ideologies, which are totally contrary to Islamic Shariah and values, into the minds of Muslims.

One should abstain from evil audacities such as listening to music and encourage others to do the same too.

MAY ALMIGHTY ALLAH GUIDE US ALL TO THE STRAIGHT PATH-
AMEEN.

[abuali]

a good friend of mine has taken up music to keep him away from things tht he thinks are even worse..like drugs for instance..he thinks music shouldnt be haraam for him in this case...any opinion?

oh, and hes not a muslim..just so you know

Kumeil

Kumeil mentioned that this friend is not a muslim.

For us muslims its very easy to argue based on common reference points on why music is haraam and bad for us.

On the other hand, for non-muslims, its harder to convince them of the same since scientific researches are produced to support both the supporters and the critics of music.

The most effective way of proving to a non muslim the bad effects of music are to ask him to experiment. Ask him to try and stop (i mean totally stop) listening to music for say one month. He will surely come and tell you how difficult and frustrating it was, mentally especially to do so (thats if he didnt give up in the first few days). This proves how addictive music can be (in surprising similitude with intoxicants like drugs and alcohol).

If he succeeds for one month ask him to try for longer, say 3 months or half an year. If he is observant of himself, he will notice how being free of the addiction of music benefits his mental and moral being.

The key here is of course the person has to be willing to find the truth, Otherwise, those that are stubborn, Allah (swt) makes their heart hard and unable to comprehend.