What is the ruling on a narrator or hadith scholar who issues a fatwa permitting singing, if he is from the people of Madinah and they permit it, similar to the people of Kufah permitting nabidh?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : Peace be upon you and Allah's mercy.
The Shaykh : And upon you be peace and the mercy of Allah.
The questioner : Shaykh, regarding the case where the people of a major city permit something, such as the people of Madinah who used to permit singing, they considered singing permissible, and the people of Kufah who permitted nabidh, what is the ruling on singing if the people of Madinah, for example, the scholars of Madinah, permit this, O Shaykh? So if the narrator or hadith scholar is from the people of a major city and he considers it permissible, what is his ruling, O Shaykh?
The Shaykh : If we know that this narrator is criticized for singing, for example, because he sings, but he is upright in his condition in everything else, we investigate whether he is one of those who considers singing permissible?
If they say: Yes, then that does not criticize him. And if they say: No, then that criticizes him, because he persisted in disobedience.
And people have differed regarding singing, there is no doubt in this, the scholars have differed, but Allah has placed a scale for us when scholars differ, which is the Book and the Sunnah, as He the Exalted said:[An-Nisa 4:59], so the difference of scholars does not weaken the ruling if the Sunnah is clear. What weakens the ruling is that the Sunnah is not established, or its indication of the ruling is not established. This is what weakens it. As for mere disagreement, it does not weaken the ruling, but it obligates -I mean the disagreement- the one who seeks evidence to investigate more so that he knows the reason for the disagreement that arose and knows the refutation of it. And in this matter, few are aware of it, because some people think that mere disagreement weakens the ruling, and this is an error. For example, if one says: The meat of camels breaks the ablution or does not break the ablution, and then another says: Rather, it breaks the ablution based on the hadith, the second one says: The scholars differ on this. We say: The disagreement does not harm, it does not weaken the ruling as long as the evidence indicates it, the evidence is established, and the indication is established. Then the disagreement does not weaken the ruling, but as I told you: it obligates the one who seeks evidence and looks to be careful and to look at why this disagreement occurred, because perhaps the disagreement is for a matter he did not know, and if he knows it, he returns, for example, from his statement.
The questioner : Shaykh, I have a question to complete.
The Shaykh : No, one question.
The questioner : Continue, O Shaykh, there are issues.
The Shaykh : Do you allow him?
The questioner : Shaykh, glory be to Allah, the people of Madinah were the ones who were skilled, for example, al-Dhahabi mentioned in the biography of Ibrahim ibn Sa'd, after he authenticated him, then he said: "And he was skilled in singing", and we know that Imam Malik considers the singer or the one who engages in singing to be an open sinner?
The Shaykh : Do not be surprised, do not be surprised, the evidence is hidden from the scholars, and the indication is hidden from them. Sometimes they do not know the evidence, so they build on a principle. And sometimes they know the evidence, but the indication is hidden from them, so they interpret the hadith in a way other than its meaning, and disagreement occurs thereby.
The Shaykh : And upon you be peace and the mercy of Allah.
The questioner : Shaykh, regarding the case where the people of a major city permit something, such as the people of Madinah who used to permit singing, they considered singing permissible, and the people of Kufah who permitted nabidh, what is the ruling on singing if the people of Madinah, for example, the scholars of Madinah, permit this, O Shaykh? So if the narrator or hadith scholar is from the people of a major city and he considers it permissible, what is his ruling, O Shaykh?
The Shaykh : If we know that this narrator is criticized for singing, for example, because he sings, but he is upright in his condition in everything else, we investigate whether he is one of those who considers singing permissible?
If they say: Yes, then that does not criticize him. And if they say: No, then that criticizes him, because he persisted in disobedience.
And people have differed regarding singing, there is no doubt in this, the scholars have differed, but Allah has placed a scale for us when scholars differ, which is the Book and the Sunnah, as He the Exalted said:
And if you disagree over anything, refer it to Allah and the Messenger, if you should believe in Allah and the Last Day
فَإِنْ تَنَازَعْتُمْ فِي شَيْءٍ فَرُدُّوهُ إِلَى اللَّهِ وَالرَّسُولِ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ تُؤْمِنُونَ بِاللَّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الْآخِرِThe questioner : Shaykh, I have a question to complete.
The Shaykh : No, one question.
The questioner : Continue, O Shaykh, there are issues.
The Shaykh : Do you allow him?
The questioner : Shaykh, glory be to Allah, the people of Madinah were the ones who were skilled, for example, al-Dhahabi mentioned in the biography of Ibrahim ibn Sa'd, after he authenticated him, then he said: "And he was skilled in singing", and we know that Imam Malik considers the singer or the one who engages in singing to be an open sinner?
The Shaykh : Do not be surprised, do not be surprised, the evidence is hidden from the scholars, and the indication is hidden from them. Sometimes they do not know the evidence, so they build on a principle. And sometimes they know the evidence, but the indication is hidden from them, so they interpret the hadith in a way other than its meaning, and disagreement occurs thereby.