Advice for those who listen to songs
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Q: The women among us listen to songs, so we hope for advice from the Shaykh.
A: My advice to all men and women is not to listen to songs, for the danger of songs is great. People have been afflicted by them on the radio, on television, and in many other things such as tapes. This is a trial. It is obligatory for the people of Islam, men and women, to beware of their evil and to replace them with listening to what benefits them from the words of Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) , from the words of His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), and from the words of the successful scholars in their religious talks, seminars, and articles. All of this benefits them in this world and the Hereafter.
As for songs, their evil is great. They may cause a believer to deviate from his religion, and a believing woman likewise. They may cause hypocrisy to grow in the heart. Hypocrisy is hating what is good and loving what is evil; for hypocrisy is hating what is good and loving what is evil, while displaying Islam and concealing something else. The danger of hypocrisy is great, and songs call to it. Whoever becomes accustomed to them may come to hate listening to the Qur'an, listening to advice, and listening to beneficial hadiths and the hadiths of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). They may lead him to love obscenity and corruption, to frequenting obscenities and desiring them, to talking with their people, and to inclining toward them.
It is obligatory for the people of faith, men and women, to beware of their evil. Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) says in His great Book:[Luqman 31:6] And when Our verses are recited to him, he turns away arrogant, as if he had not heard them, as if there were deafness in his ears. So give him the glad tidings of a painful punishment [Luqman: 6-7].
The scholars of tafsir say that "lewd talk" is singing, and that every indecent sound is included with it, such as flutes and instruments of amusement. This is what most of the scholars of tafsir said, may Allah have mercy on them.
And Abdullah ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "By Allah, it is singing." He used to swear to that and say: "Singing causes hypocrisy to grow in the heart just as water causes grass to grow," meaning plants. The meaning of that is that it causes a person to hate what is good and love what is evil, and to hate listening to dhikr and the Qur'an and the like, and to love songs and amusement and the like. This is a type of hypocrisy; for the hypocrite displays Islam and hatred of falsehood. He displays that he is a believer, while in reality he is not. He displays love for the Qur'an, while in reality he is not. Songs call to that; they call to hating listening to the Qur'an and listening to it, and they call to hating listening to dhikr and the call to Allah. They call their people to the opposite of that, and to love frivolity, love of falsehood, love of bad speech, and love of speech with obscenity and open sinfulness and the like of what singing causes. It leads to the deviation of hearts and their love of what Allah has forbidden and their hatred of what Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) has prescribed. This is clear to everyone who has tried it. Whoever has tried it and known it knows this. And so do those who have known the people of singing and known their conditions, and the deviation and corruption that appears on them because of their love for singing and the great evil and great corruption in it for whoever becomes accustomed to it. There is no power and no strength except with Allah.
A: My advice to all men and women is not to listen to songs, for the danger of songs is great. People have been afflicted by them on the radio, on television, and in many other things such as tapes. This is a trial. It is obligatory for the people of Islam, men and women, to beware of their evil and to replace them with listening to what benefits them from the words of Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) , from the words of His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), and from the words of the successful scholars in their religious talks, seminars, and articles. All of this benefits them in this world and the Hereafter.
As for songs, their evil is great. They may cause a believer to deviate from his religion, and a believing woman likewise. They may cause hypocrisy to grow in the heart. Hypocrisy is hating what is good and loving what is evil; for hypocrisy is hating what is good and loving what is evil, while displaying Islam and concealing something else. The danger of hypocrisy is great, and songs call to it. Whoever becomes accustomed to them may come to hate listening to the Qur'an, listening to advice, and listening to beneficial hadiths and the hadiths of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). They may lead him to love obscenity and corruption, to frequenting obscenities and desiring them, to talking with their people, and to inclining toward them.
It is obligatory for the people of faith, men and women, to beware of their evil. Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) says in His great Book:
And of the people is he who buys the amusement of speech to mislead [others] from the way of Allah without knowledge and who takes it in ridicule. Those will have a humiliating punishment.
وَمِنَ النَّاسِ مَنْ يَشْتَرِي لَهْوَ الْحَدِيثِ لِيُضِلَّ عَنْ سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ بِغَيْرِ عِلْمٍ وَيَتَّخِذَهَا هُزُوًا أُولَئِكَ لَهُمْ عَذَابٌ مُهِينٌ The scholars of tafsir say that "lewd talk" is singing, and that every indecent sound is included with it, such as flutes and instruments of amusement. This is what most of the scholars of tafsir said, may Allah have mercy on them.
And Abdullah ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "By Allah, it is singing." He used to swear to that and say: "Singing causes hypocrisy to grow in the heart just as water causes grass to grow," meaning plants. The meaning of that is that it causes a person to hate what is good and love what is evil, and to hate listening to dhikr and the Qur'an and the like, and to love songs and amusement and the like. This is a type of hypocrisy; for the hypocrite displays Islam and hatred of falsehood. He displays that he is a believer, while in reality he is not. He displays love for the Qur'an, while in reality he is not. Songs call to that; they call to hating listening to the Qur'an and listening to it, and they call to hating listening to dhikr and the call to Allah. They call their people to the opposite of that, and to love frivolity, love of falsehood, love of bad speech, and love of speech with obscenity and open sinfulness and the like of what singing causes. It leads to the deviation of hearts and their love of what Allah has forbidden and their hatred of what Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) has prescribed. This is clear to everyone who has tried it. Whoever has tried it and known it knows this. And so do those who have known the people of singing and known their conditions, and the deviation and corruption that appears on them because of their love for singing and the great evil and great corruption in it for whoever becomes accustomed to it. There is no power and no strength except with Allah.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.