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What is the ruling on music, including Islamic anasheeds, and what is the definitive proof of its prohibition, taking into consideration the verse: "And of the people is he who buys speech for diversion to mislead from the way of Allah" - since it stipulated misleading - and the hadith: "There will be people from my Ummah who will consider unlawful sexual intercourse and silk lawful"?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

The ruling on musical instruments has been discussed in previous fatwas, which distinguished between singing and musical instruments. Singing has various types, and each type has its own ruling, while musical instruments are forbidden. The narration from Ibn Mas'ud pertains to singing, not musical instruments. The hadith: "There will be among my Ummah people who will consider lawful sexual intercourse, silk, wine, and musical instruments" is not the only proof for the prohibition of musical instruments. Al-Shawkani refuted objections to its indication, such as the argument that the prohibition of musical instruments is linked to drinking wine, by responding that the linkage does not mean that the prohibition is only on combining them. The widespread prevalence of hearing musical instruments does not negate the prohibition because the prohibition is related to intentional listening, not merely hearing. For further details on this topic, it is advisable to consult specialized books such as "Tahrim Alat al-Tarab" (The Prohibition of Musical Instruments) by Al-Albani.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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