animated mode leading to foot play (
daur
,
raqs
) and dancing, accompanied
by chanting, which might change to almost singing. The Sufi literature
often talks of yet another specifically Sufi practice facilitating direct approach
to God by activating the heart. It is called
sama’
or “listening to music
”.
Sama’
is considered to be a very effective and powerful technique of achieving
the longed for nearness and knowledge of God. Etymologically it is derived
from an Arabic verb
sama’
, which means a “hearing” or an “audition”. The
word itself does not occur in the Qur’an in this meaning, but in classical
Arabic it meant “a singing or musical performance”.
Certain theologians hold that listening to music is permissible as long
as its aim is not merely to amuse oneself, and on the condition that it does
not induce sinful thoughts. The lawfulness of music, and connected with it
singing and dancing have been a subject of long controversy within Islam.
Importance was attached to this question when
sama’
was adopted as a
spiritual exercise and “as a means of revelation attained through ecstasy” by
the Sufi circles in the late second or early third century Hijra (9th or 10th
AD). Thus it was in Sufism that
sama’
acquired its technical meaning of
listening to music, singing, chanting and rhythmical recitation meant to
produce the religious emotions and ecstasy (
wajd
) of knowing God most
directly.
All the manuals of Sufism, starting with the earliest ones, usually have
a chapter on
sama’
or “audition”. As it was a controversial subject, usually
they try to justify its use and explain its role in reaching God. Abu Bakr al-
Kalabadhi (d. 988) writes in
Kitab al-Ta’aru fil madhhab ahl al-tasawwuf:
“Audition is a resting after the fatigue of the (spiritual) moment, and a
recreation for those who experience (spiritual) states, as well as a means of
awakening the consciences of those who busy themselves with other things...
