In order for us to know and understand the value of joy, we necessarily have to experience pain. It is our perception of a certain thing, which makes something agreeable or disagreeable. If everything is essentially good than what is then, that distinguishes a thing into begin evil or sin, good or virtue?

For a word, thought, action, movement to be called a sin - hence evil and forbidden; or virtue -hence good and permissible one has look at the attitude, motive, time, place, situation, circumstance and result, before one can give the label of sin or virtue. Intention, time, place, circumstance are the factors that are taken into consideration before anything is declared impermissible. This is one of the basic principles of fiqh.

The absence of one of these factors makes it incomplete, but these together make a thing either virtue or sin. In short, any action, thought, or word that deprives one of the expected result, the result of which is not in conformance with Islamic ideals and requirements and expected by the mind and the soul as well, may be called a sin.

That which deprives one of peace, happiness, tranquility of mind and harmony and hinders one from accomplishing one's purpose- both in the external and internal life, and ultimately leading one to Allah, is a sin -- whatever the action. Virtue or Right is the straight path which the soul is inclined to take in life which brings it happiness, and ever increasing will power, leading one ultimately to Allah.

Similar factors need to be taken into consideration, before judgement is passed on "Music", as to it being permissible or impermissible. Intention, time, place and circumstance have been the criteria utilised by scholars of all eras in their rulings concerning music. Some scholars have regarded music and musical instruments per se as forbidden whilst others have regarded music and the use of musical instruments as permissible -under certain specific circumstances-conforming to strict regulatory measures.

All scholars are unanimous that any music that incites basal desires and feelings of eroticism and evil, are expressly forbidden.

To sing in a melodious voice with rhythm and tone is called music [Gina], and Sama-Audition- is to listen to poetry sung in a melodious voice. Singing can be done with or without the accompaniment of musical instruments. Sama in the Islamic context as made famous by the Chishtia Spiritual Order, is the singing of religious songs composed in poetical style with or without instruments. Scholars have based their arguments using proofs as follows:
Then as for those who believed, and did righteous deeds, such shall be honoured and made to enjoy a luxurious life in a garden of delight. (30:15)

Sayyid `Alusi al-Baghdadi in his commentary Rooh al-Ma`ani quotes Imam Awza`i and Yahya ibn Kathir and states in the explanation of [yuhbaroon] that the people of Imaan will listen to melodious tunes in paradise. And Allah increases for creation as He pleases (35:1) Commentators are of the opinion that a beautiful voice is meant here.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "Allah has sent me as a mercy to the universe and as a guidance to the universe, and my Lord, Who is Great and Glorious, has commanded me to annihilate stringed instruments, wind instruments, idols, crosses and pre-Islamic customs. My Lord, Who is Great and Glorious has sworn, 'By My might, none of My servants will drink a mouthful of wine without My giving him a similar amount of pus to drink, but he will not abandon it through fear of Me without My giving him drink from the holy tanks."

Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him) said, "Do not sell, buy or teach singing-girls, and the price paid for them is unlawful. To similar effect has been sent down, 'Among men are those who purchase frivolous talk'."

I had a girl of the Ansar whom I gave in marriage, and Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him) said, "Why do you not sing, Aisha, for this clan of the Ansar like singing?"

Amir ibn Sa'd said: "Going in and finding Qarazah ibn Ka'b and Abu Mas'ud al-Ansari at a wedding where girls were singing" I said, "Is this being done in the presence of you two who are companions of Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him) and were present at Badr?" They replied, "Sit down if you wish and listen along with us, or go away if you wish, for we have been given licence for amusement at a wedding."

Allah's Apostle (peace be upon him) came to my house while two girls were singing beside me the songs of Buath (a story about the war between the two tribes of the Ansar, the Khazraj and the Aus, before Islam). The Prophet (peace be upon him) lay down and turned his face to the other side. Then Abu Bakr came and spoke to me harshly saying, "Musical instruments of Satan near the Prophet (peace be upon him) ?" Allah's Apostle (peace be upon him) turned his face towards him and said, "Leave them." When Abu Bakr became inattentive, I signaled to those girls to go out and they left. It was the day of 'Id, and the Black people were playing with shields and spears; so either I requested the Prophet (peace be upon him) or he asked me whether I would like to see the display. I replied in the affirmative. Then the Prophet (peace be upon him) made me stand behind him and my cheek was touching his cheek and he was saying, "Carry on! O Bani Arfida," till I got tired. The Prophet (peace be upon him) asked me, "Are you satisfied (Is that sufficient for you)?" I replied in the affirmative and he told me to leave.

The Prophet came to me after consuming his marriage with me and sat down on my bed as you (the sub-narrator) are sitting now, and small girls were beating the tambourine and singing in lamentation of my father who had been killed on the day of the battle of Badr. Then one of the girls said, "There is a Prophet amongst us who knows what will happen tomorrow." The Prophet said (to her)," Do not say this, but go on saying what you have spoken before."

Shaykh Ahmad al-Ghazzali (the brother of Imam Ghazzali) has written a treatise called " Bawariq al Asma `i fi takfir mun yuharrim al-Sama", wherein he has proven from Ahadith- as quoted above -that anyone who has forbidden Sama has forbidden something which the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sallalahu alaihi wasallam) permitted. This forbiddance is thus tantamount to inferring that the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sallalahu alaihi wasallam) engaged in Haraam activity (na oozubillah) and anyone who insults the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sallalahu alaihi wasallam) even by such an inference is a Kafir.

Imam Nawawi ,Imam Sakahwi, Hafiz bin Hajar Al-Asqalani, are of the opinion that some of the Ahadith quoted by scholars on the impermissibility of music are fabricated. Shah Abdul Haq Muhaddith Dehlawi in his book Madarij al -Nubuwwah has quoted a list of the names of sahaaba who listened to Sama.

Imam Ghazzali (rahmatullahi alaihi) has devoted an entire chapter in his monumental work Ihya al-uloom al-Din on the permissibility of Sama. He has discussed the objections of scholars, the beneficial as well as unbeneficial effects of music the rules and regulations to be observed before Sama is regarded as permissible etc. He has also given the etiquettes of Sama and the times and occasions when it is permissible and commendable eg. Songs of pilgrims, songs at the times of festivals songs of mourning for one's sins, songs in honour of the beloved servants of Allah and songs of the devotees of Allah in love for Allah etc. He has concluded thus:

So from what has been stated above, songs sometimes become lawful and sometimes unlawful according to the circumstances of each case. Sometimes it becomes undesirable. It is unlawful for those youth whose sexual passion is strong as it increases their hidden vices in their minds. It is not illegal for those who enjoy good moral songs and it is commendable for those religious persons who are engrossed in divine love.

By far the greatest musical instrument is the human voice-the larynx being the instrument upon which all musical instruments have been fashioned.

The use of the musical instrument-the tambourine- in the presence of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sallalahu alaihi wasallam) has already been cited. The trumpet will be blown the sound of which will destroy everything, and the second blowing of the trumpet will bring all back to life with the command of Allah.

Shaykh Ali bin Uthman al-Hujwiri has succinctly concluded the circumstances of impermissibility as well as the permissibility of the use of musical instruments:

The reason why men are seduced and their passions excited by musical instruments is that they hear unreally: if their audition corresponded with the reality they would escape from all evil consequence.

Sayyiduna Shaykh Abd al Qadir al-Jilani quotes a hadith of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sallalahu alaihi wasallam) in his book The Secret of Secrets [Sirr al -Asrar]:

Our Master the Prophet (sallalahu alaihi wasallam) says, 'The ecstatic ritual of the lovers of Allah, their whirling and chanting, is an obligatory form of worship for some, and for others a supererogatory act of worship-and yet for others still it is heresy. It is obligatory for the perfect man, it is supererogatory for the lovers and for the heedless it is heresy.' And 'He is ill - natured who takes no pleasure being with the lovers of Allah: the poems of the wise, which they chant, the season of spring, the colour and perfume of its flowers and the lute and its song.'

Shaykh Abd al-Qadir Al Jilani states in his book "Sufficient provision for seekers of the path of Truth" [al Ghuya li Talibi Tariq al-Haqq]:

We have seen fit to mention this subject here, although we have not been devoting much space to the spiritual concert [sama], chanting [qawl], the music of the reed flute [qasab], and dancing [raqs]. In previous contexts, we have simply described such practices as undesirable. If we raise the topic now, we do so because the spiritual concert [sama] is a favorite practice of our (Sufi) contemporaries, in their guesthouses [arbita] and during their gatherings, and it cannot be denied that that some of its practitioners are quite genuine. From the inner meaning of what is heared [in the concert], the participants receives an exciting stimulus, which arouses the ardent fervor of his truthful nature [sidq], so he is absorbed by his fervor, and loses his ordinary consciousness therein.

Shaykh Abd al-Qadir devotes an entire chapter on the proper modes of conduct in relation to the spiritual concert [sama] spiritual ecstacy [wajd] in the form of dancing [raqs].

Practitioners of Sama have participated in Sama -sometimes with - and at times without the use of musical instruments. The use of musical instruments is not a necessity. The scholars of the Chistiyya Sabiriyyah order have particularly used musical instruments. Qadi Thana allah Panipatti states:

Shaykh Abdul Qudoos Gangohi (rahmatullahi alaihi) who is the patriarch of this order - a great master and scholar of Islam in all fields preferred the use of musical instruments. In his book Sharh -e- Awaarif he has presented a lengthy treatise on the permissibility of Sama. His sons also have written similar articles with great authority.

Music from the point of view of the lovers is nothing but the picture of the Beloved. It is because music is the picture of the Beloved that music is loved. But the question is what and who is the Beloved, and where is our Beloved? Our Beloved is that which is our source and goal - Allah; and what we see of our Beloved before our physical eyes is the beauty which is before us; and the part of our Beloved which is not manifest before our eyes is the inner form of beauty which our Beloved speaks to us.

If only we listen to the voice of all the beauty that attracts us in any form, we would find that in every aspect of beauty it is telling us that behind all this manifestation is the Spirit or Essence, who is Allah. Movement is the principle expression of life in the beauty visible before us. In the line, in colour, in words, in the rising and falling of the waves, in the alternation of day and night, in the changes of the seasons, in the wind, in the storm and calm. Thus, it has been stated that music is beauty in motion.

Owing to our limitation we cannot see the whole being of Allah, but all that we love in line, colour, form, personality, belongs to the real beauty, the Beloved of all - Allah. It is this search if the Life beyond the form, - which in reality gives life to the form - that attracts man to music. Art no doubt is elevating, but at the same time it contains structure and form; poetry has words suggestive of name and form; but it is only music which has power, beauty, charm; whilst at the same time, no form. It is for this reason that the leaders of the Chishtia Spiritual order have made music a means of spiritual attainment and development.

They see music as a link which, which with all its beauty, splendour, majesty and glory is formless and yet has the ability to touch one so intensely. In this aspect of music, they see the soul's attraction to a Beauty with such splendour and majesty and glory which has enraptured the soul; and in music only, do they find an attraction and beauty which is beyond form - similar to their search and yearning and attraction to a formless God.

In Sama, the nature of love, liver and beloved is expressed. In a gathering of Sama, the lover of Allah is merely not listening to a song or poetry. It is an entire vision which, is created in the realm of music of the Sufi who is capable of visualising it against positive environments. When the music is played the soul is automatically attracted to the beauty without form, and sees in it, its yearning for the ultimate beauty beyond form, which is Allah.

The experience of the soul of beauty beyond form in music, enraptures it and reminds of its purpose and goal, which is the Beloved Allah. Hence, Sufis have called Sama "Ghiza - e - Ruh" - The Food of the Soul.

The heart of the sufi is attracted to the subject of the poetry - love, lover, beloved. The ego is attracted to the subtlety of the poetry, and the intellect is attracted to the wisdom latent in the poetry; one's nature and mood is attracted to the subtleness of the music. In this way, every aspect of the sufi's being is nourished by Sama and it raises the sufi and uplifts him to a state of perfection wherein he is alone with his Beloved Allah, and Him alone.

The verses speak of an ideal beyond name and form, qualities, merits which, cannot even be confined in knowledge, as it is beyond limitation. Some verses speak of the ideal (Allah) by describing symbolically the sweetness of the voice, the beauty of the countenance, the grace of movement and the wining ways of the ideal. Some speak of the separation of the lover from the beloved, the lover in his love, the humility of the lover and the caution and respect in the presence of the Beloved.

In this music, the sufi finds a means whereby his feelings and emotions and thoughts in love for Allah, are expressed in a way which can never be otherwise expressed. His feelings are clear by his state in the gathering which manifest - at times in the form of sighs and crying for those who have not yet reached the goal; and "Wajd "- sacred ecstasy for those who have "arrived" at their ideal, their Beloved Allah.

The leaders and masters of the Chishti spiritual order have imposed strict rules. Speaking of participants in Sama' Sayyid Ali al-Hujwiri (rahmatullahi alaihi) has stated:

There are two kinds of people in Sama':

1. Those who concentrate deeply upon the objective and moral lessons, and the true meaning of the sufistic poetry and its delicate points.

2. Those who are instinctively attracted by and are fond of musical concerts although they have little or no knowledge to understand and appreciate the 'object' lessons of a strictly religious gathering like Sama'.

The latter are strictly forbidden from participating in Sama' as the melodies reaching the ears of sensuous persons only generates in them devilish desires of the ego according to their own low receptive quality and knowledge. Sama' for these people is strictly forbidden and disallowed by all teachers of the spiritual orders.

Sama' strictly place a supplementary role on the spiritual path and is not the sole objective of Al-Tariqah. It is there merely to supply nutrition to the soul and is not the "staple diet" of a traveller on the path. Before participating in Sama' one necessarily has to have the permission of one's spiritual guide, who after diagnosing one's spiritual condition will decide whether Sama' will be beneficial or harmful in one's spiritual progress.

There are various other etiquettes of Sama' such as:

• Time [Zamaan]
• Place[Makaan]
• Participants[Ikhwaan