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David Freedburg uses the phrase “the myth of aniconism.” Analyze this in reference to Islamic

visual culture.

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Analyze any one of the readings on chant in the Hindu, Islamic, or Christian context, and

summarize its key points.

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http://www.jstor.org/stable/3060828 . Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp . JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org. . British Forum for Ethnomusicology is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to British Journal of Ethnomusicology. http://www.jstor.org This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions VOL. 6 The Sama' BRITISHJOURNALOFETHNOMUSICOLOGY sacred in music the of Islam: Sufi Persian 1997 tradition Leonard Lewisohn The creation of a specific liturgy, composed of prayer, litanies, singing, music and sometimes dance, known as Sama', integratingmusic into the practiceof meditation,is an importantaspect of the contemplativelife in Islamic Sufism. The essay explores the basic theological and mystical concepts of Samd'. Part 1 discusses auditionin Islamic theology, where three schools of scholars existed: advocates, adversariesand moderates.The views of the advocates-the Sufis-are discussed, and in particular,key works on Samd' by the Persians Ahmad b. Muhammadal-Tiisi and Abf Hamid al-Ghaztli. Part 2 explores the idea of the Sacred and the preconditionswhich the mystic must observe while listening to music, analysing Tisi and Ghazali's understandingof the three conditions ("right time, place and company")of Samda'. Part 3 examines the relationof music to poetry in Islamic mysticism. Part 4 explores the relation of Koranic cantillation to singing, poetry and Samd'. Part 5 discusses the contemplative fruits of audition, the relationship of ecstasy (wajd) to tranceexperiences, and the attitudeof the Koranand the ProphetMuhammadto dance, often consideredan integralpartof Samd'. Know that hearts and consciences are treasuries of secrets and mines of jewels. Wrappedwithin them lie theirjewels just as fire is enveloped in iron and stone, and hidden like water is concealed under dust and loam. There is no way of extractingsuch hidden things save by theflint and steel of audition to poetry and music (samd'), and there is no entrance to the heart save by the ante chamber of the ears. So musical tones, measured and pleasing, bring forth what is in it and make evident its beauties and defects. Abfi Hdmidal-Ghazgli(n.d.: 237, also cf. Macdonald1901-2a: 199) 1 Sam&'in Islamic theology The greathistorianof Islamic music H.G. Farmer(1942, intro.:1) once described the "interminabledebate between Muslim legists concerningthe proprietyof 'audition(al-sama')', or more properly'musical audition',"as being "probably the most interestingof Arabic polemical literature."For over a millenniumthis debatehas generatedinterminableopinionsandargumentspro andcon by leading 1 This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 2 British Journal of Ethnomusicology,vol. 6 (1997) Islamic theologians,jurists,philosophersandmystics.1Fromthe very earliestdays of Islam, one finds a numberof authoritieswho endorsedthe legality of listening to music and a number of others who rejected all music as immoral and irreligious,as well as those who maintainedthe "goldenmean"in this debate-in turnadvocates,adversariesandmoderates. Writerswho belonged to first category-staunch advocatesof the legality of music-were first and foremostthe Muslimmystics or Sufis, to whom music was a spiritualstaple,not merelya permissible(haldl)but a requiredreligiouspractice (wdjib). "The question of the significance and legitimacy of music in the total structureof the Islamic tradition,"S.H. Nasr (1987:153-4) points out, "is not merely juridical or theological. It involves most of all the inner and spiritual aspectof Islam,andthereforewhateverambiguitiesexist on thejuridicallevel, the ultimateanswer,especially as far as the relationof music to Islamic spiritualityis concerned,must be sought above all in Sufism."Prof. Nasr's observationis very importantto keep in mind since it was the Sufis with theirSamd'ceremonieswho became the chief guardiansand patronsof Islamic music throughoutperiods of history when puritanismdominatedthe social fabric of Muslim society and the cultivationof music was discouraged. From its very beginnings, Persian and Turkish classical music has been associatedwith the Samd'ceremony;2boththe poets andthe musicianswere often of a Sufi background(Feldman 1993:243-66;Michon 1991:494). Not only did numerousPersianSufis practiseSamd' as an integralpartof theircontemplative and spiritualmethod, one also finds renowned theologians who supportedthe practice and arguedfor its validity from a theological standpoint,3perhapsthe most famous of whom was Abfi Muhammadal-Ghazdli(d. 505/1111). in which "hedoubtedthe validityof all he was Following a personalcrisis of faithH.amid teachingof religiouslore,"andfoundhis spiritualcurecould only be effected "by acceptinga moraldecision to withdrawand lay new basesfor his life throughSufi practices" (Hodgson 1977, 11:181), Ghazali composed The Revival of the Religious Sciences (Ihyd' 'ulamal-din), his greatestwork which earnedfor him the sobriquet"Proofof Islam",with which (in the Sunni world at least) he has ever since been acclaimed An entire book (see Ghazali n.d., II) of this monumentalencyclopedia was devotedto the defence of Samd'. His mystical IFor a summaryoverview of the entire gamut of themes found in the relevantIslamic traditions and in teachings of protagonistsof the four greatlegal schools and the ideological debates which have evolved as a result,see Shiloah 1995:31-44. 2Schimmel (1975:325) points out that "the intense love for music that the Mevlevis inherited from their master Jalaluddin has inspired many classical musicians and composers in the Ottoman Empire. In fact, the best pieces of Turkishclasscial music, such as those by 'Itri (17th century), were composed by artists who were either members of, or at least loosely connected with, the order." 3 To cite but one example, Ibn Khaldun(d. 1406), who "clearlyshared the view of most of the cultured elite of his time who realised that Sufism was the essence of Islam," as Casewit (1985:182) points out, vindicatedthe value of mystical concerts(see Ibn Khaldiin1958, 1:230-1). For a general account of the history of opposing viewpoints concerning audition, see Gribetz (1991:43-62). This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Lewisohn: The sacred music of Islam 3 exegesis and approachto the Sufi concert,which will be explainedbelow, soon came to play a centralpartin subsequentdebateson the legalityof music in Islam. In the second category-opponents of music-one finds the mediaeval ayatollahs, pointing the finger at and accusing of blasphemyall who believed music to be food for the soul. Such exotericclerics consideredmusic as belonging to the categoryof hateful things such as usury,fornicationand intoxication,and argued that all musical activities, whetherplaying instrumentsor singing, are fundamentallyvanity,interpreting,for instance,the referencein the sixth verse of the SuraLuqmanto "idle talk"(lahwaal-hadith)as designatingand thusbanning singing (Farmer1942:14).4 Authorswho sharedsuch views include the likes of the theologianIbn Abi'l-Dunya(d. 281/894),5the Ash'aritheologianandpreacher Ibn Jawzi (d. 600/1201), the jurist Ibn al-Hajaj(d. 736/1336), Ibn Jama'a (d. 739/1338) and the fanatical legalist Ibn Taymiyya (d. 728/1327)-the last of whom condemnedanyonewho practicedSamd'as an infidel. In general, however, the anti-musicalbias of exoteric clericalism was but a reflection of much wider debates and differences which had existed between Islamic puritanismand mysticism from the earliest days of Islam-the former group stressing divine transcendenceand the role of Law and the latter camp emphasizingthe power of faith, immanenceand Love. As Gritbetz(1991:52) has pointedout: "Thedifferenceof opinionregardingsamd' can be viewed as partof a largercontroversywhich exists betweenthe Sufis and the legalists, namely the Sufi support of the Neoplatonic "eros" doctrine, and the Hanbalite-orthodox support of the "nomos" doctrine."Less often, however, one finds Sufis who consideredSamd'reprehensible.6Muhyi al-Din ibn al-'Arabi(d. 638/1240), for instance,known as the Shaykhal-Akbar"SupremeShaykh",authorof 600 books or treatises in Arabic on Sufi themes, in some of his writings appears to be vigorously opposed to Samd' (e.g. Boase & Sahnoun1993:51-2),while in other works (notably in his Futi4hdtal-Makkiyyaor Meccan Revelations) presents argumentsapparentlyin favorof it.7 In the third category-those who maintainedthe "goldenmean"-one finds authorssuch as Abu'l-Qasim'UbaydAllah ibn Khurradadhbih (d. 300/911) who in his Kitdbal-lahw wa'l-maldhi(Book on Diversionand Musical Instruments) 4 For other verses cited in the Koranwhich have been interpretedas relatingto the permissibility and prohibitionof music, see Roy Choudhury'slengthy discussion (1957:57-65). 5 He is the author of the earliest known treatise in opposition to music, written in the 3rd/9th century:Dhammal-maldhi, from which one may deduce thatsamd' was semi-institutionalizedin the 2nd/8th century. 6 However, such mystics more often than not either hailed from the Western lands of Islam, or belonged to the NaqshbandiOrder(who were, doctrinallyspeaking,opposed to the practice);it is extremely rareto encounterSufis in the Persianor Persianateworld who opposed the practiceas un-Islamic. 7 However, such arguments are based on theologico-cosmological principles which place "mysticalsamd' as a sub-class of a broaderkind of sama' which has nothing to do with music" per se, as Shehadi (1995:159-62) has shown in his study of the Shaykh's chapteron samd' in the Futaihdt. This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 4 British Journal of Ethnomusicology,vol. 6 (1997) defended the religious lawfulness of audition,noting that, from a philosophical standpoint, the science of music formed an essential part of the quadrivium (Shiloah 1993:113). Ibn Rajab(d. 1392) in his book Nuzhatal-asmd'ft mas'alat al-sama' (The Ears' Delight in the Practice of Musical Audition) also took a moderate stance-describing two categories of singing: sacred and profane, condemning the latter and condoning the former, considering, however, all musical instruments as forbidden (Roy Choudhury 1957:43-102). Ibn 'Abd Rabbihi(d. 328/940) also defendedauditionin a chapteron music found in his workentitledThe UniqueNecklace('Iqd al-farid)(transl.Farmer1942). Ibn 'Abd Rabbihi'sdiscussion centresaroundthe legality of singing, ratherthan music in general, althoughhis argumentsare relevant to the understandingthe place of music in Islamic culture as well. He argued that "he who listens to singing (ghina') does not take the verses of God [in the Qur'acn]for mockery. And the most just view in this matteris thatits medium (sabil) is poetry. So its good is good and its evil is evil" (ibid.). Essentially,Ibn 'Abd Rabbihimaintainsthat if the singer chants poetry of a spirituallyuplifting and moral nature,his song is praiseworthy,butif contraryto that,quitereprehensible. The focus of the presentstudyof mysticalmusic anddancein the PersianSufi traditionwill be on the views of the first categorymentionedabove, namely, the Sufis. Insofaras many-if not most-of the spiritualmastersas well as secular practitionersof music from the earliest days of Islam were of Persianorigin or birth,8the examples adduced here will be mainly confined to authors in the Persianmusico-mysticaltradition.9Amongstthese authors,we concentrateon two al-Ghazaliwho both Iranians:Ahmadb. Muhammadal-Thsi1oand Abi Hmid H and Ghazdli in 646/1248 his work wrote Samd' on composed key works (TOsi be will masters other from circa 1096-1111), while examples occasionally suppliedto adumbratethe variouscontextsdiscussed. Samad',which literally means "audition",connotes in the Sufi tradition a hearing with the "earof the heart",an attitudeof reverentlylistening to music and/orthe singing of mystical poetrywith the intentof increasingawarenessand understandingof the divine objectdescribed;it is a type of meditationfocusingon musicalmelody,by use of instruments,mysticalsongs or combiningboth (During 1988:13). "The most widely known expression of mystical life in Islam," as Schimmel (1975:179) has called it, Samd' is practiced by nearly all the Sufi Orders in Islam with the sole exception of the Naqshbandiyya(especially its Indianbranches)who sharedthe aversionof exotericIslamicorthodoxyto music 8 Evidence gleaned from the works of Mas'fdi, Ibn 'Abd Rabbihiand Abfi FarajIsfah5nipoints to strong Persian influence in the development of music in Islam during the period of the four "righteous"caliphs;cf. Roy Choudhury1957:73-4;Graham1988-9:22-7;Miller 1997:chs. 1-2). 9 On the centralrole of PersianSufism in mediaevalIslamic thought,see Lewisohn 1993. 10 This author, as Ahmad Mujahid has pointed out, must not be confused with Ahmad alGhazali, brotherof the famous theologian Abfi Hamid al-Ghazdli.See AhmadMujahid's lenghty introductionto Tfisi (1360 A.Hsh./1981), where he points out (pp. 19ff.) that the Bawdriq alilmra'could not have been composed by AhmadGhazdlibecause (among otherreasons) of poetry from later (7th/l3th century)authorswhich occur in the text. This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Lewisohn: Thesacred music of Islam 5 in general. In Islam, its backgroundcan be traced back at least to the time of Abfi'l-QasimJunayd(d. 298/910) who was born in Nahavandnear Hamadanin WesternPersia,but lived most of his life in BaghdadwhereSamad'-khacnas, lodges dedicated to the performanceof mystical musical concerts, had been operative since the secondhalf of the 9th century(ibid.:181). We do not proposehere to discuss the historicalorigins of Samd' beyond the bordersof Islamic thought,nor explorethe similaritiesof the variouselementsof its ceremonyto forms of Near EasternShamanism,pre-IslamicSemiticpaganism, nor compare the effects of auditionwith diverse strandsof Christianor Jewish manifestationsof ecstasy duringthe experienceof music, nor analysethe theories of Muslimneo-Platonism(as featuredin the thoughtof the Ikhwanal-Safi in their Ras''i111 for instance) in regard to music-all of which would entail several separate studies. In any case, since it is well-nigh impossible to establish any direct affiliation of the Sama' ritual to any one particularpre-Islamic ethnic, religious or philosophical tradition,it appearsfar more reasonableto seek the foundation of Samd' within Islam itself.12As During (1988:15) persuasively argues:"If the attitudeof the auditorto Samat'is not somethingentirelynovel in oriental culture, the rite itself must be consideredas an original achievement." Furthermore-and as the examples shown at the end of this study indicate-the Sufis themselves were highly affected by profane poetico-musical traditions alreadyexistent within Arabic and Persianculturepriorto Islam.Thus, it is easy to see how the Samd' ritual developed in an intra-Islamiccontext as a kind the "counter-concert" deliberatelyset in contrastto profanemusicalgatherings;13 not so perceptibledifference, in fact, between the sacred and profanetypes of concert underlies the many disparagingremarksfrequentlymade by both the nomocentriclegalists and the more temperatemystics aboutthe practice.Samd' was also firmly groundedin PropheticSunnaand ahadith,which were frequently cited in its defence by the mystics (Roy Choudhury1957:66-70;Tfisi 1938:140), and if this was lacking, there was also the sanction provided by the personal 11For a general discussion of their musical theories, see Shiloah 1978; also cf. Btirgel 1988:ch. 4; for general information on their views on music, see Wright 1993:683); for an interesting discussion of the spiritualdimension of music among them, also cf. Shiloah 1980:170. 12Massignon (1954:104-5) considered the Samd' ritualto be a kind of Muslim liturgy naturally evolved from the early Muslim practices of Koranicrecitation(qira'ah) and communalsessions for recollection of God (majdalisal-dhikr). Roy Choudhury(1957:56) also observes that "the entire culture of pre-Islamic Arabia centred round their pleasurers,joys, poets, music, singing girls and musical stories." 13 "The singing in secular life was known as ghind', so that of religious life was termed ta'bir, i.e. an 'interpreting'. Thus there came to Islam its approved religious music," notes Farmer (1952:62). And as Ibn 'Abd Rabbihi points out: "The origin of singing and its source were clearly from the mother towns of the land of the Arabs, and they are Al-Medina, and Al-Td'if, and Khaibar,and Widi al-Qura,and Daumatal-Jandal,and Yamana.And these towns comprise the marketsof the Arabs"(Farmer1942:4). Also cf. During 1988:16-7. This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 6 British Journal of Ethnomusicology,vol. 6 (1997) examples of the foundersof the four schools of Islamiclaw, all of whom enjoyed music.14 2 Sam&' and the Sacred:preconditionsof Sufi music Since Samd' is both an art form and a spiritualexercise composedof music and poetry and singing, as such, it can be graspedeitherby Art or Religion;thatis to say, either aesthetically--not analytically; or spiritually--but not "scientifically".15In his introductionto Erlanger'sgreat work on La musique arabe, Carrade Vaux (1930:ix) observesthe enormousimpressionwhichmusic made on Middle Easterners."A simple distichaccompaniedby the lute, a few introductory notes sung by a beautifulvoice, possibly a voice with the slightly raucous and gutturaltimbreas they love it in the MiddleEast,was enoughto throwthe listener into a state similarto thatof ecstasy;he quivered,wept, fainted,he thoughthe was going to die. Arab literatureis full of anecdotes bearingwitness to this hyperesthesia of the musical sense." Commentingon this observation,Rouget (1985: 298) insightfully points out that "one could just as easily interpretour relative indifference to music as resulting from a veritable form of anesthesis of our musical sensibility; in which case this would then be our culturally specific characteristic." Besides our apparentaesthetic anesthesis, the spiritual-or rather,secularpresuppositionsof modem Western man also present obstacles to the understandingof the Muslimmystic's sensitivityto music. To mediaevalman-whether from the ChristianWest or classical Islam-the close connectionof Art and the Sacredwas takenfor granted(Coomaraswamy1977:43-70;Burckhardt1986:8-9). Today, due to the predominantlysecularmentalityof Westernsociety, with its aversion to all types of hierarchy,whether social or religious, a widespread prejudicehas been generatedthat any type of formal discipline, be it artisticor religious, only serves to stifle the artist's "creative genius" and that rigid adherance to the impersonal and objective rules of Art only suppresses our "individualfreedom of expression".Thus, a strange conditionhas occurredin which modern man no longer beholds the Sacred to be prior-ontologically prior--to Art. This modern approach, needless to say, is alien the basic assumptionsof Persianmysticism in particularand Persianmusic in general.16 14"Whatevermight have been thejuristic decisions on particularincidentsconnectedwith music given by the Imams [Abfi Hanifa; Malik; Shafi'i; Ahmad ibn Hanbal],their personal practices sufficiently illustrate that music under certain circumstances was treatedas permissible"(Roy Choudhury1957:80). See also Farmer1942:23-5. 15During (1993:277-87] points out thatthere is a subtle difference between the interpretationof samd' by the initiated listener "attuned"to the invisible dhikr of the heart within the musician, and the profanelistener's understandingof the musical and/orvocal performanceitself. 16The accomplished female Persianvocalist Parish(1374 A.Hsh./1995:9) made this quite clear in a recent interview when she pointed out: "Whenwe discuss Persianmusic or Persianmystical music and their different vocal or instrumentalstyles, what is of primaryconcern is the inner This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Lewisohn:Thesacredmusicof Islam 7 artistconcernedwith the Posing the question:"Wheredoes the twentieth-century Sacred stand with regardto prayeror reachingthe thresholdof a true encounter with the living God?", the contemporaryEnglish composer John Tavener (b. 1944), who convertedto the GreekOrthodoxchurchin 1976, pointsout (1988:334): The modern artist is isolated: he is an eccentric. He has the same natural and normal incentive to creative activity;he has the same thirstfor objectivetruth,the same loves and hates. But he has not the same clientele, no longer is he naturally Thereis employed as partof the ordinarycompanyof buildersor furniture-makers. no naturalor properplace for anythinghe makes.The concerthall isolates him and his work from everythingaroundit. It is not he (or she) who is abnormal:it is his age and its circumstances...Once upon a time the artistwas often the anonymous painterof Ikons, the composer of chants for huge liturgicalstructures.He or she once fasted, prayed, attended all night Vigil Services. To live, was to adore, throughevery brushstroke,the one andonly creator. Tavener's commentson the difficultyof interpretingthe traditionof Christian classical sacredmusic in termsof modem secularcategoriesof aestheticreception have a Near Easternreprisein Muslim sacredmusic or Sama'.From the earliest days, the Sufis had argued that it was impossible to authentically experience music's "sweet concord" (in Shakespeare's words) and consequent therapeutic effects without also observing its proper spiritual conditions incumbent upon both performer and listener. One need only consider the vast number of manuals which were composed on the properconduct(adab) to be observedby the Sufi during Samd' to realize how inseparable the practice of Sama' is from the ambience of its ritual "sacred" discipline: the Sufi tariqa.17 state (hdlat-i durCnt)of the performer;that is, with what intention and purpose does he or she approachthe music? What, then, is the purpose of such music? What is truly importantfor the artist is the mystical morality (akhldq-i 'drifdna)of the music.'That is to say, if the musician or vocalist negates his or her own existence [before the Divine] and expresses a gnostic humility (tawddu'-i 'arifdna), one can say that the type of music he or she performsis a mystical music It matters not if the musician play tdr or tanbir, perform in a traditional Sufi ('drifmna). Khanaqahor in a modern concert hall. Here, neither the place nor the instrumentsthemselves have any particularvalue for their own sake." While Parisd's views, of course, on the "proper place" to perform music do not reflect the traditionalSufi attitudein this regard(see below) to the conditions of "righttime" and "rightplace", they certainly demonstratethe close affiliation of Persian music to Sufism. Also cf. Corbin 1990:245-50. 17Foremost among the classical treatiseswhich contain chaptersor subectionson samd' and its rules and manners,should be mentionedthe Kitdbal-Luma' of Abi Nasr al-Sarrij (d. 378/988); the Ta'arruf of Al-Kalabadhi(d. 385/995); the Risdla (Treatise on Sufism) by Abii'l-Qasim alQushayri of Nishapur (d. 465/1072); the Kashf al-mathjib of Hujwiri (d. 465/1072); the Sad maydan (One HundredFields) and Mandzil al-sd'irfn (Stages of the Wayfarers)of 'Abdu'lldh Ansdriof Herat (d. 481/1089); the Risdlat al-quds (Treatiseon the Sacred)by Rozbih5n Baqli of Shiraz (d. 606/1210) and the 'Awarifal-ma'drif of Abi Hafs 'Umar Suhrawardi(d. 632/1234), not to mention the chapter on samd' in Ihyd' 'ulam al-din (Revivification of the Science of Religion) of Abo Hamid al-Ghazzali cited above. For a synopsis of the views of some of these manualson samd', see Robson's introductionto Tfsi (1938:4-8). This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 8 British Journal ofEthnomusicology, vol. 6 (1997) For instance, the foremost point of etiquette upon which all the Sufis are agreed,is that silence and stillness must reign throughoutSamd'notwithstanding the participantbecoming affected by ecstasy and rapture(wajd). The great Sufi theorist Abu Hafs 'Umar Suhrawardi(d. 632/1234), in his Arabic-language 'Awdrifal-ma'drif(1364 A.Hsh./1985:86),perhapsthe most celebratedmanualof Sufi discipline, doctrine and practice in all Islamic thought, emphasizes that Sama-'is the auditionof soundand the realizationof ecstasywithoutshatteringthe inwardsilence, self-controlandcontemplativesobrietyof the Sufi: The aspiringdisciple,yearningaspirant,sincerewayfarerandseekerinspiredby divinelove mustinvesthimselfwiththe robesof piousvigilance(taqwa)which inspirehim with steadfastnessandgranthim hiddenpowersof will, and which bearthe fruitof highspiritualrankandsalvationin the hereafter. In this fashion, the flames of divineyearningwithinhim will be rekindledevery momentand freshlyrenewedso thatGod'sgrace-the bountyof thisworld,will blessall of his days,suchthatin Samd'he will be ableto controlhis movements, exceptwhenhe is unableto keephis peace-like a personwhomustsneeze,no matterhowmuch he wishesnotto.18 Proper musical "audition"depends on the acoustic sensibility, the spiritual "attunedness"of the soul, states Suhrawardi.But thatis not the whole rule, since "Audition demands proper time, place and brethren (zaman, makdn and akhwdn:)"(Ghazali 1319 A.Hsh./1940:388)-as Abf'l-Qasim al-Junayd's (d. 297/910) celebratedrule went. This rule, mentionedby nearly every Sufi who subsequentlywrote on Samd', is commentedupon at length by both Ahmad b. Muhammadal-Tusiin his treatiseon Samd'and by Abo Hamidal-Ghazaliin his Persian book Kimiyd-yisa'ddat (The Alchemy of Felicity) (ibid.:388). If we examine how the threeconditionsare describedby these two authors,the former with mysticalexactitudeutilizing the terminologyof tasawwufand the latterwith the same terminology and similar definiteness complementedby a passionate concern for theological rectitude,the inter-relationof Music and the Sacred in Sama' in the PersianSufi traditionwill perhapsbecomeclearer. i. "Right time" The first category which Tufsiand Ghazaliset themselvesto define is the "right time for Samd'"'.The "propertime [for sama-']is when their [the Sufis'] hearts enjoy purity so that they desire to concentratetheir aspirationin seeking their Beloved's goodwill," Tisi informs us-in order "to divest their outer being of sensual characteristicsand release theirinnerbeing from attachmentto attaining high spiritual degrees or stations (talab al-darijdt wa tahsil al-maqdmat), so as to collect their transconscious selves (asrdr) [to be receptive to] the infusions of the breaths of divine mercy" (Tlsi 1938:123, Arabic text; transl. mine). 18"Silence and self-control"also constitutefor Abfi Hamidal-Ghazali(n.d.:266) the "thirdpoint of etiquette"in samd'. This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Lewisohn: The sacred music of Islam 9 As this definition indicates, Tfisi's understandingof the proper "time" for Samd' is largely unconcernedwith the temporalrealm,but ratherpertainsto the proper"spiritualmood"or "mysticalstate"(hal) possessed by the Sufi, the right conditionswhich will enablehim to entercorrectlyinto a genuinemusicalreverie, a time of the heartor soul ratherthana specific temporalrealityof the body. Thus, concludes Tfisi, "duringsuch a time when [the Sufis] assemble,the illumination which graces the heartsof certainof themis reflectedonto the heartsof others,so by the gathering the general light, revelation, clarity and cheer is increased" (ibid.:123). Time's metaphysicalarrow,one could say, muststrikethe Sufi's heart before it hits the body. The same strictly metaphysical attitude and spiritual approach to the condition of the "correcttime for musical audition"is also accentuatedby Abfi Himid al-Ghazdli(1319 A.Hsh./1940;388) when he asserts that "Sama' should not be conducted during any times when one's heart is engaged [with worldlyconcerns],norwhen it is time for ritualprayer(namdz)nor when eating or when one is distracted."No doubt, it was in reference to this precondition that Jalal al-Din Rfumi's(d. 672/1273) famous verse should be interpreted(1925-40, I, vv. 2763): trueandpure, Not everymanattainsthesamda' Noreverybirdmayfeedon figs. ii. "Rightplace" The second category discussed by Ghazali and Tfsi concerns the surroundings necessary to evoke the Sacred:the places best suitable to conduct Samd'. Tifsi opines that the places where Samd' may be properlyperformedare "zawiyds, khcnaqahsand mosques, which are preferredover otherspots, since the mosque was foundedfor sake of the bodily devotionand the heartcreatedfor the sake of divine gnosis and the theophanytherein"(Tisi 1938:123-4, Arabictext; transl. mine). Again, just as the "right time" is both a temporal "moment"and a metaphysicalcondition which connotes the heart's detachment(fardghal-qalb) (Ghazalin.d.:265;transl.mine;Macdonald1903:2),the conditionof "place"must not to be interpreted too literally. Thus, the "place" of the concert is also paradoxically a "no-place",a u-topos, a "heart-land",ratherthan any specific bodily locus. A "place"is sacred by virtue of the heart's presence there rather thanthe heart'spresencephysicallycontingentuponthe geographicallocus of the bodydescends.So whena mystic ...since theheartis the sitewheredivineillumination endowedwiththe spiritualheartfeels movedwithina mosqueon accountof an andsoul's serenitythere,suchstirring increaseof his heart'sinteriorillumination excels the corporealmotionsof otherdevoteeswho areengagedin actsof ritual devotionyet lack the presenceof such illumination...Sowhenthe brethrenof purity (ahl al-safa') assemble in a place of worshipwishing that the light enjoyed by the heartsof somebe conveyeduntothe heartsof othersso thattheirmutual illuminationincreaseandthatthe purityof theirsouls be amplified,theirsouls This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 10 British Journal of Ethnomusicology,vol. 6 (1997) becomefortifiedby the lightof thatplace, heighteningtheirmysticalstatesand perfectingtheirinnatecharacters. (Ttisi1938:124-5,Arabictext;transl.mine) "Lightof that place" is here underscoredbecause the proprietyof "place"is contingenton a spiritualprecondition-an en-lightenment.Although,indeed, the heart finds "interiorillumination"within the sanctified atomosphere of the mosque, the mosque also is illuminatedby the heart[s] ("the site where divine illuminationdescends")of the worshipperstherein.Nonetheless,as AbfHlHmid al-Ghazalistates (1319 A.Hsh./1940:388;n.d.:265), the importanceof the actual for Samd' mustnever be conductedin physical place is not to be underestimated, a "darkand unpleasantplace, nor in the home of despoticfolk where all the time one feels aggrievedandvexed." iii. "Right company" Ghazali (n.d.:265) underlinesthe negative effect on the Sufi gatheringof those who "repudiatethe practiceof Samd' while ostentiouslydisplayingtheir ascetic piety, being completely impoverishedin respect to the 'refinedsentimentof the heart' (muflis min also 1938:124-5, English text). al-qulub)" la.td'if as "the (T.isiof the describes the Sufi concert T.isi stirring spiritby listening to wonderful realities in delicate poems and the abandonmentof the attachmentsof created things, and being drawnto the spiritualstages (mandzil),"concludingthat "the instrumentof obtainingthese lights is the associationof the [Sufi] brethrenand the seeking of help from God".Since Samd' is an esotericactivity demandinga refined degree of understandingon the listener'spart,it is usually considereda ceremony proper"formembersonly", and from which the uninitiatedare to be excluded. In fact, among the "brethren"or practitionersof Samd' itself, a definite hierarchyexists. First come the ordinarylaymen/women,the common Muslim believers (referredto in KoranXLIX:10) with whom one shouldassociateas little as possible; only "briefly, just enough that they may benefit by one" be (T.si 1938:126,Arabictext). Accordingto Ghazali,neophytesin Sufism shouldnot permittedto engage in Samd' at all. Beginners possess neither the ability to understandnor the "taste"(dhawq)for Samd'and so theirtime is betteroccupied in dhikrand service(khidmat)on the Path(Ghazalin.d.:265-6).19 Here, parenthetically,it may be mentioned that the Persian Sufi shaykhs differedin theiropinionsaboutthe permissibilityof Samd'for beginnersand for al-Ghazali(n.d.:266), for intermediateadepts on the mystical path. Abi H.Iimid from access to Samd', "since one, absolutely denied that the beginner will profit 19 It should be noted that in many modern-dayPersian Sufi orders, such as the Dhahabiyya, Qadariyyaand the Ni'matu'llahiyya,attendenceat Sama' is still strictlylimited (except on public religious holidays when their ceremony is open to the masses) to dervishes initiated into the practicesand customs of the tariqa. This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Lewisohn: The sacred music of Islam I sensual pleasures and attentionto lusts and humanqualitiespersist in him even though he may relish the savour of the mystic concert (dhawqal-samd')...such auditionoften merelyamountsto no more thana summonsto self-indulgenceand lust, so that his path is cut off." Therewere otherPersianSufi masters,however, such as ShaykhAbfi Sa'id ibn Abi"l-Khayr(357/967-440/1048),who completely contradictedthis view, maintainingthat Samd' is highly conducive to spiritual advancementand illuminationfor beginners (Nicholson 1980:58ff). Generally of speakinghowever,the consensusof earlyPersianSufis-from Abf Nasr Sarratj Tus (d. 378/988) in his Kitabal-luma' to Abf'l-Qasim al-Qushayri(d. 465/1072) of Khurasanin his Al-Risdlaft 'ilmal-tasawwufdown to 'Ali b. 'UthmanJulldbi Hujwiri(d. 463/1071) in his Kashfal-mahjiib--accordswith the views of Ghazdli here: that Sama' is harmfulfor beginners.20In practice,however, such fine print was more often thannot ignored,and the more antinominianand liberalviews of Abf Sa'id came to prevailin later Sufism in Iranproper21while in the Persianate of Samd'becamean importanttool cultureof MughalIndiathe institutionalization in the popularizationof the Sufi orders in the non-Islamicenvironmentof the Subcontinent".22Finally, with the endorsement of the utility of Samd' for commonerand Sufi adeptalike by Rfimi-whose works,especiallythe Mathnawi, were known all over the Persian-speakingworld, his fame having reached the eastern fringes of the Muslim lands shortly after his death-the high status of Samd' in subsequentSufi traditionwas ensured(Romi 1330 A.Hsh./1951:289, ta'liqdt;Kiyini 1369 A.H.sh./1990:430). The second groupare more advancedSufis, whom Tflsi terms"thebrethrenof disciplic devotion and love ((irddat wa'l-muhabbat)."Despite their limited spiritualcapacity, these brethrenmay be associatedwith so that "grace"may be filtereddown to the commonfolk (Tilsi 1938:126,Arabictext; transl.mine). Thirdly and lastly come "the brethrenof purity and ecstatic consciousness, gnostic sciences, seclusion, heart-savour,yearningand perfection (akhwdnalsafa' wa' i-mawajidwa' i-ma'drifwa' i-tafdridwa' i-dhawqwa' i-shawq wa' 1kamdl).These arebrethrenin truth"(ibid.:125-6). 20 "It is more desirablethatbeginners should not be allowed to attendmusical concerts lest their natures become depraved"(Hujwiri 1976:430). And a century before Ghazdli by Qushayri's teacherand father-in-lawShaykh Abi 'Ali Daqqaq(d. 407/1016) noted thatSamd' is prohibited for the common folk (al-'awdm) because of the persistance of [the passions of] their carnal nature; permitted for ascetics for having realized their spiritual struggles (li-husil mujahads atihim) and allowable to Sufis because of their quickenedhearts (li-hiydt qulibihim). (Cited by Hussaini 1983:113.) 21 The Mongol rulers of Iran, for instance, from the reign of Abfi Sa'id (1265-82) onwards actively patronizedSufi samd' ceremonies, and in India the musical concert became a common featureof most of the orders;see Lewisohn 1995:77. 22 As Ahmad (1969:143) points out: "Music is perhapsthe only art in which something like a synthesis between the Muslim and Hindu artistictraditionswas achieved, though not without a series of tensions." Also cf. Hussaini 1983: ch. 3; S. Rizvi 1941:331-40. This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 12 British Journal of Ethnomusicology,vol. 6 (1997) In conclusion, according to Tfisi the brethren of Samd' are to be divided into Muslims, novices in Sufism and perfect gnostics, to all of whom it is beneficial,23 whereas from Ghazdli's point of view, the practice is considered reprehensible and injurious to all except advanced adepts in Sufism. The above discussion of the two mystics' views of Samd' also provides an excellent illustration of the ontological priority of the Sacred in the Samd' ceremony. Despite the difference in opinions concerning the permissibility of music audition for beginners, it is evident that the Sacred preludes, preconditions, encompasses and, ultimately, defines the ambience of the Sufi's audition. In the absence of the Sacred, there is no Samd'. As Ghazali (1319 A.Hsh./1940:388) reiterates: If it so happens that a proud and worldly person be present, or the singer has profanemotives, or some pretentiouspersonbe continuallydancing and feigning ecstatic experienceor a groupof people heedless of God be attendingwho practice samd' to indulgein theirown vain humoursor make small talk, staringaboutin all directionswithoutany sense of reverence,or else a groupof women onlookersbe presentthere mixing with a group of young men so that each group is meditating on the othersex-such Samd' is to no avail. Taken collectively then, the three "conditions" of time, place and brethren constitute the psychological, liturgical and sociological substructure of the Sufi adab of sama'. Most of the Persian Sufi and masters poets who evoke the experience of sacred mystical music emphasize the absolute indispensibility of such conditions. Mir Husayn Harawi's (d. 718/1318) lines, for instance, illustrate this quite well (cited by Nurbakhsh:1982:55, transl. mine): How well those adeptsin states - 'heart declared: "No soul existent,no living ego may taste this wine." Look how all the mystics, legion on legion, here fell prey to passion; Aghast in God, they vanishedin oblivion... Best let the novice steerclear of all such disquisition. For Samd"s not for one who's boundby nature'surges, woundup in greed andpassion. Unless you cast aside all this, how should it be fit for you? Not all who languishmeritsuch an apertif. Only the burningheart is cut out for it. When all who treadthis way hazardall away, lose theirstakesfor the sake of God, this is no place for vain men to try theirluck, or arrantfolk to joke about. 23 "Samd'is permittedto the commoners(awwdm),more permissibleto disciples, but a required practice (wdjib)for the Friendsof God (awliyd' Alldh)" (Tfisi 1360 A.Hsh./1981:9). This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Lewisohn:Thesacredmusicof Islam 13 The music24 of the Samd' ceremony is also permeatedby a fundamentally sacredambience.Accordingto Ahmadb. Muhammadal-Tfisi,each of the instruments used in the Sufi musical concerthas a sacredconnotationand archetypal meaning (ma'na) which it incarnatesand expresses. The large tambourine(daf) refers to "the cycle of all createdbeings (dd'ra akwan)"(Tisi 1938:98, Arabic text; transl. mine). The hide on the tambourinerefers to "the descent of divine visitations (wdriddt) from the innermost arcana al-butan) upon general existence..." (ibid.). Even the jangling bells on (b.tin the tambourinehave spiritual the in to the voice of significance. Listening singer Samd' itself evinces another life whichdescendsfromthe inner "the divine contemplativeexperience:recalling most arcanato the levels (mardtib)of the spirits,the hearts,and the consciences (asrdr)"(ibid.). The flute (qasab) refers to "thehumanessences"and the breath blown into the flute alludes to the "divinelight penetratingthe seed of man's essence"(ibid.). Far from being "weak-minded" and "farfetched" as Ahmad Mujahhid maintains(TMisi1360 A.Hsh./1981:20,introduction),in such descriptionsone is presented with Music as Nature transfigured,an interiorizedreality of Samd' which might well be comparedwith what HenryCorbin(1990b:16), in reference to Mazdeancosmology, has termed"avisionarygeography."Such a cosmologyis "concentratedor concentratesa sacralspace in medio mundi,in the centerof the 24 The word "music" is used only once by Tflsi, and as Rouget points out (1985:256-7), Abii Hamid al-Ghazdlideliberatelyavoids using the word masfqtin his book on the "RightUsages of Audition and Ecstasy" (Kitab dddbal-sami'y wa'l-wajd) . This is not because he was unfamiliar with the word: at the time of his composition of the Ihyd' translationof Greek works into Arabic had been going on since the days of Hrftin al-Rashid (reg. 789-809). It is ratherbecause "the word masiqi denoted the rules or the art of music but not music itself as a product of that art" (ibid.:256.) In Islamic Peripateticphilosophymasfqidenotes strictlythe theoryof music which is recognized to be of Greek origin;defined as the science of the composition of melodies (ta'lifalalhdn) (Wright 1993:681), it is contrastedto ghind', song or musical practice.As a championof orthodoxy and an outspokenenemy of Peripateticphilosophy,Ghazdliobviously did not wish to associate himself with and thus perhapsbecome inducedto defend, a profession as suspect in the eyes of the faith as that of the musician.Rouget's (1985:257) summaryof GhazMi'sposition visa-vis masiqi also illuminatesits relationto respectablesamd': From Ghazili's point of view, which is essentially that of finding a moral justification for sama ', it is indispensibleto make a distinctionbetween what we might term"light"music and "serious"music. Only the latteris lawful. To confuse the two by using the same termto cover both would thus be aberrant.That which is lawful consisted of, first, the cantillation(taghbir) of the Koran, of course; 2nd, sung poetry, on the condition that it sentiments and thoughts were sufficiently elevated; and 3rd, accompaniedsong, providedthat the musical instruments utilized were permitted, which is to say instruments that were never associated with blameworthymusical practices.But this is not all. Anotherrestrictionmust be addedto these. It is permissible to hear only that which one hears when one is oneself in a certain state of inner purity. It is not only what is sung or played that counts; it is also the disposition of the listener. Heard with a pure heart, music can be lawful even though it would not be if one listened to it in a lascivious state of mind. This delimitationof the repertoire(Koran,poetry, accompaniedsong), made all the stricterby a proviso applyingto the listener's own intention, is precisely what is conveyed by the word samd'. This conceptional patterningof reality to which it correspondsis comparableto no other,andcertainlynot to that of the word "music." This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 14 BritishJournalof Ethnomusicology, vol.6 (1997) vision contemplatedin the presenceof the visionarysoul...Geographicalfeatures, mountainsfor instance,are here no longermerely physical features;they have a significance for the soul; they are psycho-cosmic aspects. The events that take place thereconsist in the very seeing of these aspects;they arepsychic events."25 In exactly same way, auditionin the Sufi traditionis not done with the ear of mundaneconsciousnessbut rather"witha consciousnessanchoredin the imaginal world"(cf. Mitchell 1986:99). The spiritualconsciousnessor state attained (.hl)visionary by "listeningto music" in Samd' was well understoodby the English poet William Blake, who said: "I would no more questionmy eye thanI would question a window concerninga sight. I look throughit, not with it" (cited by Raine 1979:39). Apropos the ontological priority of the Sacred in the Sama' ceremony mentioned above, another equally fundamentalelement in the metaphysical world-viewof the Sufi musician/cantor(mutrib26)and the initiatedauditorto his musical concert is the theocentricnotion of realitywhich both shared.From the Muslimmystic's theocentricperspective,God is the sole CreativeForce,Who in every moment createsboth Concert,Music and Auditionperpetuallyanew.27As the Persian Sufi poet Maghribi (d. 810/1408) expresses it (1993:383, ghazal 187:5-6): Sure,in a painting or in a drawing thereis nothingbuta paintinganda drawing YetMani is hiddendeepbeneath in all theartof Manicheaism. See nothingin all thesongsandtunesandrhythmsandlines theMusician,though buttheRhythm-maker, emanations tones,scales,vibrations, be thousands. JeanDuring(1989:574)also insightfullypointsout, in the contextof describing the spiritual state inspiring the vocal or instrumentalartist performing (.hl) 25 An interestingdiscussionof the relationof the mundusimaginalisto musicis also givenby During(1989:576-85). 26 Ldhiji(1371 A.Hsh./1992:531),describingthe mysticalsignificanceof this Arabo-Persian word,states:"Themutribis a personwho, by meansof his practiceof singingandchanting va surud)in memoryof the drunkards, gives the adeptsfamiliarwith mystical (khwdnandigi 'tasting'andspiritualstatesthefeelingof joy (tarab)andblessedness." 27 This perceptionis what,in Ibn 'Arabi'sterminology,has been called "the2nd audition" al-Jili(d. 1403) (1886, II, 57) describesit, the devotee (istama'al-thdni).As 'Abdu'l-Karim of theDivineNames,Qualitiesandthe [human]essencesand "hearsthe summons(mukhattibat) respondsto a Quality(sifdt)...Herethequality respondsto it as thesubjectof a Quality(maws•3f) of audition[or 'facultyof hearing']becomesthedevotee'sessentialreality,neitherborrowednor derivedfromoutside,so thathe verifiesthetruthof thisauditoryrevelation(al-tajallial-sami)." This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Lewisohn: The sacred music of Islam 15 PersianSufi music, that:"Unetelle esth6tiquerefleteun pointdu vue th6ocentriste absolu, car a chaque fraction d'instant toute cr6atureest sauv6e du n6ant et e l'atre dans un acte de Cr6ationPerp6tuelle.Le 'pointdu vue' de Dieu ramen6e dans l'ontologie devient le point due vue de 1'artistecr6ateur:en particulierdans la musiquepersane,I'oeuvrene poursuitpas a vie de maniereautonomeen vertu des lois internes qui la r6gissent."Samd' is thus a musical experience whose aesthetic depth leads to metaphysical penetration;the notes reflect, indeed, become, the divine harmony.Such metaphysicalreflectionslead us as a matterof course to examine the specifically aesthetic natureof Samd', that is: mystical poetry. 3 Poetryand Sami' Besides the necessaryconditionsconstitutedby the triadof the "company"of the Sufis, proper spirituo-geographical"place"and temporal/metaphysical"time", anotheressential elementin the Sufi musicalseanceandpartof the contemplative experienceof Samd' is poetry.Poetryandwords,as vehicles capableof communicating the Transcendental,are themselves highly inadequate.Music alone is capable of bridgingthe gap between the literal and anagogic levels of meaning, for the intenseemotionalityof any Sufi poem cannotbe properlyexpressedexcept within the sacredambienceof the Samd'ceremony.Music constitutesthe poem's emotional body of water; the poem-fish is born and swims in the ocean of Samd'-for withoutmusic, the verticaldimensionof Samd',the poem expires on the dry landof literalandhorizontalmeanings. In the exordium of the Bawdriq al-ilmd', Ahmad b. Muhammadal-Tusi (1938:121-2, Arabic text; transl. mine) reveals the close relationshipbetween poetry and Samd', portrayingits rites as a cognitive experiencebased on song ratherthanpuremusic:28 Theauditionof thisgroup(al-td'ifa,i.e. theSufis]consistsin mysticaldeliberation thehiddenmysteries[concealed] over(muldhazat) withinthehighlyrefinedpoetry (al-ash'dr al-raqiqa) which are sung by the cantor (qawwdl) when touched by ecstasy(wajd)realizedby theassidousheartof thegnosticandtheperfectdisciple. Suchauditioninducesthemto set asideresistanceandthroughbeingdrawnto the UniqueAlmightyBeingto becomeawareof spiritualsubtletiesandmysteries.In of obligatory orderto removetheseveils,on mostoccasions,aftertheperformance audition have chosen to beautiful duties, [the of] (Samd') they practice religious voicessincehumannatureis inherently inclinedto thevoicein orderto procureby meansof it whatis beneficialandrepulsewhatis harmful. As Tisi makes clear in the above passage,it is importantthatthe mystic audit "thehidden mysteries"within the poetry. Auditionto such poetry/musicduring Samit' is not merely an aestheticexperiencerequiringattentionto the words and 28 Hence Rouget's observatonthat "music has the power of inducing tranceonly because it is a vehicle for words, and because these words are chargedwith meaning"(1985:300). This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 16 British Journal of Ethnomusicology,vol. 6 (1997) music alone: it is rathera concentrationon the symboliccorrespondencesand mystical references of Sufi poetry with the ear of the heart; an audition to the "hidden"melody within sound,to the secretswithinthe silent intervalsas well as the notes of the music. Thesoul'ssamd'is notcompacted Aloneof wordsandconsonants. No, in everypitchandstrain there'sanotherenigmacontained. So wrote MahmfidShabistari(d. after 737/1337) (1365 A.Hsh./1986:102;v. 854) in his Garden of Mystery (Gulshan-i rdz), and Muhammad Lahiji (d. 912/1507) (1371 A.Hsh./1992:532) in his famous commentaryon this poem, aproposof this verse, pointedout: Forall thosefamiliarwithmysticalstatesof consciousness (ahl-ihalI)andadeptin spiritualperfections(arbab-ikamdl),the Samd'of the soul andspiritdoes not consist merelyof the soundsand wordsheardfrom a musician(mutrib).No, a freshmysteryand behindevery strain(parda)andmelody,adeptsapprehend mysticalstate.But such mysteriousvirginsdo not exposethemselvesto every theyneverunveiltheirfacesexceptto the mostelect of confidants.No, stranger; noteveryonewho busieshimselfin audition(Samd'),clapshis handin passionor whirlsin its danceis necessarilyaninitiatein tunewithits mysteries. Approaching the subject of poetry and music from a more theological perspective,Abfi Hamid al-Ghazalienumeratessome seven differentoccasions when poetry is traditionallypermitted, sometimes even incumbent upon the believer to use: (1) the singing of pilgrims;(Macdonald1901-2a:220-1);(2) the rousing of soldiers for war (ibid.:221-2); (3) the use of rajaz verses during an actual battle (ibid.:222); (4) rousing listeners to weeping and lamentationon certainreligious occasions (ibid.:222-3);(5) on occasionsof joy, such as festival days and marriages (here the use of both music and poetry are considered praiseworthy)(ibid.:223-8);(6) listeningto music andpoetryby lovers in orderto arouselonging and love (thatis, withinmaritalrelations)(ibid.:228-9);and(7) for the lovers of God (ibid.:229-35).It is Ghazdli'sdescriptionof this final category, however,which has relevanceto the presentdiscussionof sacredmusic in Islam. Reflectingthe theocentricattitudeof the Sufi mysticsdescribedabove, Ghazali assertsthateverythingwhich the lover of God beholdsevokes the vision of God, for "he cannot look upon a thing but he sees in it the Almighty, for no sound strikeshis ear but he hearsit from Him and in Him".29Thus, all Samd' (here the noun is not specific and may connote both "listening" and the Sufi concert itself) but further strengthens his yearning (shawq) and love ('ishq) of God. Audition also has a deeply cleansing, purifying and guiding effect on the soul, in turn 29 The following analysis is based on my own translationof GhazaJli (n.d., 1:246-47);for another English translation,see Macdonald(1901-2a:229-30). This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Lewisohn: Thesacred music of Islam 17 inducing various types of ineffable visionary experiences (mushaihidat, mukdshifat), which "are the summation of what is sought by the lovers of God Almighty and the ultimate fruit of all pious works". These experiences are known only to those who have directly relished them through heart-savour (dhawq).30 Discussing the fruits of Sama' within the context of Sufi contemplative states, the Proof of Islam underlines how the mystic "encounters in himself states which he had not encountered before he listened to the music". His encounter with such states, like the experience of music itself is, however, ultimately ineffable: The cause of those states appearingin the heartthroughlisteningto music (Samd') is a divine mystery (sirr AllaTh)found within the harmonious relationship of measured tones [of music] to the [human] spirits and in the spirits becoming overcome by these melodies and stirredby them-whether to longing, joy, grief, expansion or contraction.But the knowledge of the cause as to why spirits are affected through sounds is one of the mystical subtleties of the sciences of visionary experience [known to the Sufis]. (Ghazlli n.d.:247; also cf. Macdonald 1901-2a:230) Regarding the content of the poetry being sung in Samd', Abfl HmrnidGhazali underlines that it is the state of inner purity on the listener's part which is of importance in the first degree-since it is the listener's own spiritual disposition which determines the permissibility of the Samd' rather than the subject-matter of the the poetry or song. Even the most erotic poetry can be applied to God, since all descriptions of the parts of the Beloved's body contain metaphysical as well as physical allusions; these only the pure in heart can discern. Ghazali writes (n.d.:249; transl. mine; also cf. Macdonald 1901-2a:237-9): As for amatorypoetry (al-nasib), that is, love poetry with descriptionof cheeks, temples, beauty of figure, statureand the other qualities of women: this calls for consideration. The sound view is that the composition and recitation of such poetry, with or withoutmelody, is not legally forbidden(haram).Rather,it is up to the listener to see to it thathe does not apply what he hearsto a particularwoman, and if he does apply it that he apply it to one permittedto him, i.e. his wife or slave-girl;for if he apply it to a strangewomanthenhe is a sinnerby thus applying it to, and ponderingupon, her. He who is characterizedby such passion ought to put aside music and singing (samd') altogether.For he over whom such a passion reigns applies all he hearsto thatpassion,whetherthe expressionsuits it or not; for what expression is there that cannot be applied to ideas by way of metaphorical usage? However, one whose heartis totally overcome by the love of God is reminded by the (poetic image of the) blacknessof the hairon the temples of a similarthing, i.e. infidelity (al-kufr);by the brightnessof the cheek, of the light of Faith;by the mention of consummation(al-wisal), of the meeting with God Almighty; by the mention of separation(al-fardq), of the veil which is [between him] and God 30 Dhawq is a key term in Abi Hamid al-Ghazali's aesthetics and philosophy and was described elsewhere by him as "the most special characteristicof the highest Sufi mystics, and what is uniquely theirs, [this] can only be attainedby taste, not by learning...[it is] like witnessing with one's own eyes and taking in one's own hands"(Ghazali 1969:35, 44). For furtherdiscussion of Ghazali's conception of dhawq, see Ormsby 1991:142. This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 18 British Journal of Ethnomusicology,vol. 6 (1997) Almighty while in the company of the outcast; by the mention of the rival (alraqib) who disturbsthe pleasureof union, of the hindrancespresentedby the world and its various corruptionsthat interuptthe continuityof his intimacy with God Almighty. And thereis no need of fabricatingfarfetchedanalogies,deliberation,or taking time for calm considerationin such application;for the ideas (al-ma'dni) which dominatethe heartweigh moreheavily upon the understandingthanthe bare expressionswhich are heard. Thus, it is relatedof one of the [Sufi] Shaykhs,passingthrougha market,heard someone cry: "The good ones-ten for a grain!"31and was strickenwith ecstasy (al-wajd). When he was asked about that experience, he explained: "When the good are [only] ten for a grain,then what is the value of evil?" And anotherof them was passingthrougha marketwhen he hearda hawkercry, "O wild thyme!" (Yd sa'taru barri) and was smitten with ecstasy. When asked from whence had arisen his ecstasy, he replied, "I heardhim as though he were saying, 'Persevereand you'll see my benevolence!"'(isa' tarrabarri). And such experiences can even reach the point where ecstasy will overcome a Persian upon hearing verses in Arabic, for some Arabic words correspond to Persianwords, so he understandsfrom them anothermeaning.Thus, when someone once recitedthe Arabichemistich: Naughtat night has ever visited me (wa md zdrani)-but his fancy. -a Persianman was seized with ecstasy upon hearingit. Asked what had induced his ecstasy, he said, "Ah! It was as though the poet had said in Persianmd zdrim, 'We are forsaken';"-for the expresson zdr indicatesbeing forsaken, so that he fancied that he was saying "We are all forsakenand on the verge of destruction" and was thereby striken with fright imagining the peril of destruction in the Hereafter. However, the ecstasy of one who is consumedby divine love is in proportionto his understanding, and his understanding is in proportion to his power of imagination,and what he imagines does not necessarilyaccord with what poet's intended meaning or language. Nonetheless-his ecstasy is totally true and genuine.Thus, it is entirelyproperthatone who fearsthe peril of the destructionin the next world should be disconcerted and that his limbs should tremble. [Furthermore]there is no greatbenefit to be gained by changing the substanceof the expressionsthemselves. Althoughone who is overcomeby love of a createdbeing (al-makhlciq)ought to guardhimself againstmusic and singing (samd') in whatevertype of expressionit appears,one who is enthralledby love of the Almighty will not be disturbedby verbal expressions since they present no obstacle to his understandingof the [underlying]sublime and subtle ideas which flow throughthe streamof his noble aspiration. This passage, clearly a locus classicus on the mystical use of poetry,32 emphasizes that it is the listener's state of mind--or ratherthe proper "tune"of his soul-which determines both the effect of the music and the content of the poetry. If such hermeneutics be criticized as "purely subjective...vague, indefinite," as D.B. Macdonald (1901-2b:77, no. 1) argues, and the emotional conditions aroused be regarded as merely the product of "the hyperactivity of a set of neurovegetative 31Theweightof a grainof barley;apparently a fractionof a dirham. 32Macdonald remarkson anotherpassagealongthesesamelines. (1901-2b:706-7) This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Lewisohn: The sacred music of Islam 19 functions,"as Rouget (1985:301) would persuadeus, it should not be forgotten thatit is a mysticalsubjectwho hearsthe voice of God in the hawkerselling wild thyme and discernsthe threatof His wrathin poetrywhich to othersis naughtbut a flight of poetic fancy at best andmorbidfantasyat worst.Such a subjecthas also undergonethe difficult discipline of observing,understandingand applyingthe spiritualpreconditionsof Samd'. It is for this reasonthathis ecstatic experiences are, as Ghazdlistates, "genuineand true;"they are only subjectiveto those who deny the validity of contemplative experience altogether or whose musical insensibility(or culturalanesthesia?)makesthemoverlookthe indisolvableunion of poetry,music andthe Sacredin Islamicculture. Sa'di, in a chapterof his didacticpoemBitstdndevotedto spiritualintoxication, perhapsprovidesthe best riposteto those who, interpretingsuch sacredmusic on the basis of either a secularaestheticsor from the bias of nomocentrictheology, critiqueSamd'(1352 A.Hsh./1973:183;adaptedfromWickens 1974:117): I'll notsay,brother,whatis Samd' UnlessI knowwhomaythelistenerbe: If fromtheSpirit'slofthis soul-birdsoar TheveryAngellagsbehindin flight; Butif he be a manof sportandplayandjest Thedemongrowsin forcewithinhis chest. Thebreezeof dawntearsaparttherosewithgrace Butwoodtheaxealonecansplit. Theworldis full of passion,drunkenness andmusic Butin themirrorwhatcana blindmansee? 4 Prophetic versus poetic audition Ghazaliprovidesnumerousexamplesof mystics, scholarsand even ordinaryfolk finding themselvesseized by rapture(wajd)uponauditionof the Koran(see Macdonald 1901-2b:732-8).Samd'may even causedeath,he states: One of the Sufisuponhearingthe verse:"Osoul at peace!Returnto yourLord, well pleasedand well-pleasing,"(KoranLXXXIX:27-8)besoughtthe reciterto "HowoftenI incitemy soulto 'Return!'yet it does repeatit. He thenremarked: not."Thenconstraining himselfto ecstasy(tawajjud) he uttereda loudcryandhis 1901-2b:736) spiritdeparted. (Ghazalin.d.:262;cf. alsoMacdonald On the otherhand,he also enumeratesseven reasonswhy listeningto poetryis more conducive to rapturethan hearing the cantillationof the Koran, most of which are reducible to the fact that Muslims have become too habituatedto reading,auditingor reciting the Koranto become stirredinto furtherrapturesby it. Replyingto the questionof why ecstasy shouldmanifestitself upon auditionto poetry but rarely proceeds from hearing the Koran, the direct word of God, Ghazalimaintainsthe objectivetruthof the Samd'experience. This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 20 British Journal of Ethnomusicology,vol. 6 (1997) Ecstasy is Truth(wajd al-haqq). It springsfrom the abundanceof the love of God Almighty and from sincere devotion and true longing (sidq irddatwa'l-shawq)to encounterHim. It may also be inducedby auditionto the Koran.One who is not stirredup by hearingthe Koranis but absorbedin fondnessfor creationandlove of what is created, as the saying of God Almighty indicates: "Verily in the remembranceof God heartsfind serenity"(KoranXIII:28)and "[Godhas revealed the fairest of sayings, a scriptureuniformin style where warningsare pairedwith promises,so that]the flesh of those who fear theirLorddoes creep, and theirskins and hearts soften to the remembranceof God..." (KoranXXXIX:23). Therefore, whatever one finds (yijadu) as a consequenceof audition(Samad')by means of audition within the soul is all ecstasy (wajd). Such "serenity","creepingof the flesh", awe and "softening of the heart" (which was referred to in the above passages) is itself wajd. (Ghazalin.d.:261also cf. Macdonald1901-2b:733) However, the Koran has certain liturgical limitations due to its prearranged system of cantillation which only permit its use in a highly ritualized manner. One is not permitted, for instance, to set its verses to music. Thus, paradoxically, it is easier to gain access to the Sacred through the "profane"medium of poetry, since few people can "call attention to ideas that are remote through things that are near" (Ghazali n.d.:263; also cf. Macdonald 1901-2b:739-40). Furthermore, the language of poetry "has a power through poetic taste of making an impression on the soul, insofar as a pleasant voice with measure is not like a pleasant voice without measure; and measure is what is found in poetry as opposed to the verses of the Koran" (Ghazali n.d.:264; following closely Macdonald's translation, 19012b:741-2). Improvisation in musical measure, poetic metre and vocal ornamentation, combined with the shortening and lengthening of syllables, is also permissible when singing poetry but forbidden during Koranic recitation. The very rhythms of poetry and especially its singing to instrumental accompaniment greatly stimulate the arousal of ecstasy. Now, since the conception which common folk harbour of such musical rhythms is that "they are but idle jest and sport", while "the select classes of educated folk (al-khacssa)consider the form of such music itself as ridiculous" (Ghazali n.d.:264; transl. mine), it is evident that association of the speech of God with poetic jest or musical "sport"may appear as an impious breach of courtesy. The final argument summoned up in defence of the use of poetry is adapted by Ghazali (n.d.:264-5; transl. mine) from Ab-i Nasr alSarrLaj al-Tfisi's Kitab al-Luma': The Koran is the word of God and one of his qualities; and it is a truthwhich humanitycannotcomprehend,becauseit is uncreated,andcreatedqualitiescannot comprehendit. If even a grain of its meaningand splendourwere revealed to the humanheart,it would shatterin awe andbewilderment. But sweet melodies concord with the natural humours (al-ilhdn al-tiyibba munasibatli-taba'), and have a relationto these humoursby way of [the soul's] ratherthan throughits naturalprivilege and birthright naturalpleasure relation So [to the soul] pertainsto such naturalpleasures. poetry's (al-hu~.u) (al-huqaq). Thus, when melodies and sounds are combined with the symbolic allusions and refined points (al-ishdrat [of poetry] they suit each other well since naturalpleasures[of the soul] and seem lighter to the they are both nearerto thewa'l-la.td'if) heart,because what is created is conjoinedwith the created.Thus, as long as our This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Lewisohn:Thesacredmusicof Islam 21 "humanity"remains and we enjoy mournfulmelodies and sweet sounds through our own qualities and naturalpleasures,our receptivity and openness to contemplate the continuationof these pleasuresthroughpoetry is greaterthan our receptivity to the word of God, which is his Quality and Word, having begun in Him and to which to Him returns.33 It is for such reasons,in short,statesGhazili, that althougha humanheartbe passionatelyin love with God, "a strangeverse of poetrywill rousethe heartwith more fervour than recitation of the Koran"(Ghazali n.d.:265; transl. mine). Ultimately, the only road to raptureswhich are "divine"are throughaesthetic pleasureswhich arepreeminentlyhuman:music andpoetry.Discussingthe virtual preeminence of poetic over prophetic audition in the Sufi contemplative life, Ahmad b. Muhammad al-Tfsi (1938:121-22; Arabic text) also underlines the have on the soul: positive effect which poetry's"harmonies" When many melodic arrangementsand spiritual harmonies- that is to say, music-are evoked within someone, his naturecome to preferthem over all else. Thus, when a person listens to harmonious melodies which allude to those archetypalmeanings relating to heart-savourand to the realities of divine Unity (al-ma'anti al-dhawqiyya wa' 1-haqd'iq al-tawhidiyya), his whole being inclines to these things, each limb receiving its own individualdelight. Hence, while the ear hearkensto the subtlities of the harmoniesof the Infinite, the eye apprehendsthe harmoniesof movement,the heartthe subtletiesof ideas, and reason ('aql) knows raptureof the harmoniesof the Infinite.34 In conclusion, in PersianSufism poetry with musical accompanimentconstitutes the main staple of the mystical soul. As St. Teresa of Avila pronounced, "Eventhe greatestcontemplativescannotbearto live withoutpoetry". 33 His view is similar to the neo-Platonic theory elaboratedby Avicenna in his Kitdbal-shi'r where, describing the harmony generated by poetry, he states that poetry's "harmonyhas an unquestionableeffect on the soul, and each object has a harmonywhich suits it best in agreement with its profusion, its sweetness or its moderation;and by this influence the soul reproduces within itself sadness, anger or any other motion" (quoted in Cantarino 1975:137). A similar notion is advocatedby Ibn 'Abd Rabbihi:"Andthe philosophersassertthatmusicalnotes (nagham)are a super-excellence(fadl) thatremainsover fromspeech,whichthe tongueis unableto extract.Butnatureexpressesit throughmelodies(alhan),notby meansof therepeated poeticalfeet (taqtf'),butby therepeatedmusicalphrase(tarji').Whenit appears,thesoulfallsin love with it and the spirit sighs for it. And for that reason Plato says that one part of the soul should not be preventedfrom loving another"(Farmer1942:7). 34 Robson's translationof this passage, althoughgenerallyaccurate,shows astoundingdisregard for conventional English usage and simplicity of expression. His translationof the Arabicphrase al-mundsibdtal-naghmiyyat as "the analogies which pertain to notes," for example, although referin factto themysteryof musicalharmony literal,overlooksthatthesespiritual"analogies" itself, the very "concordof sweet sounds," which as Shakespearesays, constitutes "the food of love." This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 22 British Journal of Ethnomusicology,vol. 6 (1997) 5 The fruits of audition The creationof a specific liturgycomposedof prayer,litanies,singing,music and sometimes dance known as Samd', integratingmusic into the practiceof meditation, is one of the most highly originalaspectsof the contemplativelife in Islam. As we have seen, Sufi mystics ascendedto the heightsof contemplationsaddling the steeds of two creativeArts:Poetryand Music. In each Sufi meeting house or khanaqdhcould be found singers(qawwal)and sometimesmusicians(mutrib)as well who specializedin conductingthese concertsof sacredmusic. Althoughthe various spiritual preconditions, social organization and the religio-aesthetic elements of Samai'have been explored above, the specific purpose of the ceremony-to adore God and consequentlyactualizecertainspiritualstates and ecstaticconsciousness(wajd)-demands furthercomment. i. Ecstasy Whatprecisely is the conceptandnatureof the "ecstaticconsciousness"obtained through Samd'? To answer this question, it will be useful for the following discussion to briefly examine the metaphysicalimplicationsof the etymology of the termfor ecstasy in Sufism:wajd.This word,derivedfromthe Arabictri-literal root wajada, means both 1) "ecstasyand ardour",as well as 2) "finding"and 3) "being".Thus, the highest state of ecstasy is referredto as wujador "existence" itself. Hence, the attainmentof wujad,"realizedecstasy"(it is the abstractnoun) is the supremerealizationof being as well, for, in the wordsof Abil'l- HusaynalDarraj,"Ecstasy (wajd) signifies that which is found (yiujadu)through sama'" (cited by Ghazalin.d.:257;Macdonald1901-2b:719).The fruit of Sama' is both mystical and metaphysical,for it is at once a both a psychologyof raptureand an ontology of ecstasy. Some scholars have endeavouredto establish an analogy between wajd and certain "trance" experiences such as the phenomenon of "possession" in shamanism (Rouget 1985:ch. 7). Although drawing analogies between trance states and wajdmay be partiallyuseful for the sake of comparison,it often leads to farfetchedand barbarousassumptionsabout the wajd experienceitself.35As describedin the classicaltexts, the basic experienceof wajdis thatof a heightened egoless consciousness: "selflessness"(bikhwudf)in the lexicon of the Persian Sufis. The subject who experiences wajd is temporarilyabsent from him or herself; it is indeed an extasis, an exit from self-existence and an entranceinto egoless consciousness.Thus, Shibli (d. 334/945), describingwajd, said: "WhenI 35 For instance, Rouget (1985:299) posits thatwajd is purely a productof culturalconditioning, and proposes that dhikr should be understood as a kind of "excitationaltrance"produced by "hyperactivity of the vocal cords in conjunction with overstimulationof the hearing system" which thus "modify the vascularand neurologicalbalance of the encephalon,"inducing "trance" (ibid.:301). Such grandiouse biological reductionism, although perhaps comforting to the egocentric paranoia of our modem scientific mentality, does however ignore (=academic anesthesia?) the testimony of generations of Muslim mystics who, having experienced wajd, interprettheir experience within the sacralframeworkof their own spiritualtradition. This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Lewisohn: The sacred music of Islam 23 suppose that I have lost it, I find it andwheneverI imaginethatI have found it, I lose it." Furthermore, he declared,"Ecstasyor 'finding'is the manifestationof the ExistentOne or 'the Found' (mawjiid)"(Nurbakhsh1984:182).Nuik(d. 295/907) likewise pronounced,"Findingis the losing of personal being in the Divinely Found or Existent One" (ibid.). The experience of wajd means, in short, the finding (wajada) of an existence transcendingthe consciousness of the finite ego-and it is thatexistencewhich the Sufis believe is AbsoluteBeing Itself. When describing the Sufi conception of this term containing such broad metaphysicalresonances,I am remindedof Emerson'scritiqueof Swedenborg's theory of symbolism. Swedenborg theorized that material objects were all to a signifiersof a universalmeaning,andthateach sensualthing "corresponded" notion. Emerson endorsed this herme(1983:672) generally Although spiritual neutical approachto Nature,he condemnedwhat he perceivedas Swedenborg's "exclusivelytheologicdirection,"warning: The centralidentityenables any one symbol to expresssuccessivelyall the of heavenlywaters,every qualitiesandshadesof realbeing.In the transmission Natureavengeshereselfspeedilyon thehardpedantry hosefits everyhydrant. that wouldchainherwaves.She is no literalist.Everything mustbe takengenially,and we mustbe atthetopof ourcondition,to understand anythingrightly. In the practice of auditionto Sufi music/poetry,a similarphenomenontakes place, for "we mustbe at the top of ourcondition"to understandit rightly.Indeed, Abfi Hamidal-Ghazhli(n.d.:253-7;Macdonald1901-2b:705-18)devotes an entire section of his book on Samd'to the differentmethodsof understandingthe poetry being sung, thus underliningthe intellectualbasis of ecstasy.36Thereis no such thing as an unconscious or irrational ecstasy, he asserts. The ecstatic first "understands",and only then attains to the certainty of the ecstasy which In the words of Abfi Sa'id b. al-'Arabi(d. 341 A.H.) "transcendsunderstanding". (cited by Ghazalin.d.:257;transl.mine): of the All-Observant (mushchidaalEcstasyis liftingof the veil, contemplation (huzuir al-fahm),studyof the UnseenRealm, Raqib),presenceof understanding conversewiththe soul'stransconscious al-sirr),andassociationwith (muihdditha andtermination of "you"in respect whatone lacks.It consistsin the annihilation to all you are.... Ecstasyis the firststageof the Elect:the fruitvouchsafedone throughverifiedfaith in the Unseen Realm(tasdiqal-ghayb).Whendirectly (dhawq),its light illumineshis experiencedby the mysticthroughheart-savour heartand all doubtand uncertaintyleave him. Hence, the mystical subject consciouslyrecognizes the origin and end of his ecstasy; his transportsmay thus be betterdescribedas the objective fruits of a 36 "Know that the first degree in samd' (listening to music) is understanding(fahm) what is heard and then applying this to a meaning which occurs to the listener. The fruit of such understandingis ecstasy (wajd), and the fruit of ecstasy is physical movement of one's limbs" (Ghazali, n.d., II:253;translationmine). This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 24 British Journal of Ethnomusicology,vol. 6 (1997) heightenedconsciousnessratherthanthe subjectivevagariesof a hyper-emotional imagination. Further underlining this highly intellectual character of Samd', Ghazali maintainsthateverythingone hearsduringSamd'shouldbe appliedby the mystic to his own soul's "dealingswith God" (mu'dmilat);for it is mainly with these "dealings"with his Beloved thatthe mysticis concerned."Itis not requiredof the listenerthathe ruminate(murd'at)over the purportedmeaningof the poet's word, since every saying has variousaspectsand everyrationalpersontakespleasurein appropriatinga [different]meaningfrom it" (Ghazdlin.d.:254;transl.mine). In short,if indeed "everyhose fits every hydrant"as Emersonclaimed,the waterof wajd should not be wasted, but ratherconsumed exclusively as "food for the spirit". This leads us to study the importanttherapeuticeffect which Samd' has upon the soul. Music causes sharpeningof the attention,leading to a greaterfocus of both mind and body and a concentrationof the externaland innersenses. In fact, as Tfisi explains (1938:123, Arabic text; transl.mine), the remembranceof God (dhikr)duringSamd' operateslike a sortof mystical"musictherapy": When [by means of music] the variouslimbs of the body become properly collected,hatredandaversionis removedandconcord(hukmal-tawdfuq) appears. Discordanddissension(al-tanafur)belongto darknesswhereasconcordcomes fromLight-so whendarknessis dispersedandlightshinesforth,one's worldly witha claritywhicha thousand affairsandthespiritualrealitiesbecomeuncovered effortscouldnothaveaccomplished. It is relevant in this context to recall Shakespeare's description of the therapeuticpower of music in the Merchantof Venice where (V.I, 75-88) he remarkson the power of music to tamewild horsesas well as to collect the wits. "A wild andwantonherd,"he writes: sound, ...If theyputhearperchancea trumpet Oranyairof musictouchtheirears, Youshallperceivethemmakea mutualstand, Theirsavageeyesturnedto a modestgaze thepoet By thesweetpowerof music.Therefore DidfeignthatOrpheusdrewtrees,stonesandflood, Sincenaughtso stockish,hard,andfullof rage Butmusicforthetimedothchangehisnature. Themanthathathno musicin himself Noris notmov'dwithconcordof sweetsounds Is fit for treasons,stratagems,and spoils; The motions of his spiritare dull as night, And his affectionsdarkas Erebus; Let no such man be trusted. This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Lewisohn: The sacred music of Islam 25 In an importantpassage on music in the fourthbook of his Mathnawi,Rumi also describes the same therapeuticuse of the Sufi concert, concluding (192540:IV:vv.742-5): Samd'is thefoodof lovers; Thestrandsof dispersedimagination in it gainconcentration. Thefantasiesof theinnerpsychein musicfindstrength; No, transcend strength,by thewail of thefluteandhorn,takeform. The idea that "music is the food of lovers" expressed by Rfimi in the lines above, and the Platonicnotion that "musicis the food of love" (immortalizedby Shakespearein TwelfthNight's opening verse37),is one that often appears in Persian Sufi texts (cf. J. C. Biirgel 1988:89-118). Abfi'l-QasimNasrabadihad noted that "Everythinghas its own food and the food of the spirit is Samd'" (Nurbakhsh1984:189),andin this regardGhazaliquotesthe anonymoussayingof a Sufi that "Sama' is the sustenence of the spirits for the people of gnosis" (n.d.:257; Macdonald1901-2b:719).The same notion is also describedby Tfisi (1938:133-4, Arabic text) when Samd' is said to be the "al-ghadhaal-rithi, spiritualnourishment"which "strengthensthe heartand the innernature".It is a means to induce the descent of "spirit,light and life from the unseen world" (ibid:162). ii. Dance One of the most neglected, least understood,yet most attractive aspects of Samd'-at least to a Westernspectatorunfamiliarwith Islamicmysticism-is the physical movementsof its participants,popularlyknown as "Sufidance"(raqs). Nearly all the Sufis adduced numerous traditions supportingthe legality of dancingin Islam, furnishinglegal precedentsin the Prophetictradition(hadith)to justify the bodily movements of those who engaged in sama'. Both Tisi and Ghazali(n.d., II, p. 244ff.; Macdonald1901-2a:pp.223-27), for example,relatea story taken from the Musnad of Ahmad Hanbal in which Abyssinians were dancing and playing a tambourinein the Prophet's presence while chanting "Muhammadis an upright servant".The Prophet,who was present among the bystanders,asked them what theirrefrainwas, anduponbeing informed,listened attentivelyand did nothingto stop theiractivity.Hence Ahmadb. Muhammadal(1938:133-4, Arabictext; transl.mine) arguesthat T.isi of beingpresentat dancingand Thistraditionclearlyindicatesthe permissibility andsinging.So if the permissibilityof listeningto the soundof the tambourine fromhimthat anyonesaysthatdancingis forbidden,thatis an acknowledgement 37 For the Platonic provenance of this phrase, cf. Erixymachus's discussion of cosmic love in Plato's Symposium:186b-187d;and Ficino 1985:66-7. This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 26 British Journal of Ethnomusicology,vol. 6 (1997) the Prophetwas presentat whatis forbiddenand confirmedothersin whatis thenhe is aninfidelby general Andif anyonefindsthisstorydisturbing forbidden. consent. Tusi also relatesseveralotherstoriesportrayingthe Prophetas a centralfigure, standingby or commentinguponthe singingor dancingof his followers,andcites 'Abd the names of some eminent Companionsof the Prophetsuch as Allah Ja'far(the brotherof 'All who was laterkilled in the battleofH.aritha, Mu'ta),who practiced or participated in ceremonies resembling Samd' to buttress his arguments.Perhapsthe most interestingstory(againfrom the Musnadof Ahmad Hanbal)is one which emphasizesthe canonicityof dancing(raqs). Zayd ibn Haritha,Muhammad'sadoptedson, along with 'All and his brother Ja'farstandin the Prophet'spresence.The Prophetcomplimentseach of them in turn, which causes them to leap with joy. Since leaping (the Arabic word is hajala) is part of dancing (raqs), then all of dancingmust be consideredallowable, the authorargues.Ghazali(n.d., II, p. 267; Macdonald1903:8-9) also uses the same traditionas a point of departureto justify the legality of raqs in the last partof his tracton the "Etiquetteof Samd'andEcstasy"in the Ihyd' 'ulhmal-din. "Thefourthrule of good conductduringauditionto music,"he informsus, is thatone shouldnotriseup norraiseone'svoice in weepingas long as one can restrainoneself.However,if one dance(raqs)or forceweeping,thatis allowable as long as one doesnotintendostentation by it; for forcingweepinginducesgrief and dancingis a cause of joy and liveliness(al-raqs sababfi tahrikal-surar). theexcitationof everyallowable joy is permissible. Therefore, If it wereunlawful,'A'ishawouldnothavelookedon at theAbyssinianswith the Apostleof God while they were "leaping"(wa humyasfinan)....And in a traditionit is saidthathe saidto 'A'isha,"Wouldyouliketo lookattheleapingof the Abyssinians(zafanaal-habashat)?"Now, "leaping"(al-zafana)and "hopping" (al-hajala)aredancing(al-raqs)whichoccurduetojoy or yearning(shawq).The preceptwhichone mustapply[in the Shari'a]to it [dancing]is the same rule and whichappliesto thatwhichstimulatesit. If thedelightthereinis praiseworthy thatdelight,thenthedancingis praiseworthy. thedancingstrengthens the Koranatteststhatthe purposeof its reminderto humankindis Furthermore, for the Prophetto "makeclearto men whathas been divinelyrevealed"(XVI:44), and had leaping-which is a form of dancing-belonged to the category of doubtful or harmful or irreligious acts, it would have been necessary for the Prophet to have said so. The Prophet's refusal to prohibit even his closest companionsfrom leaping proves the legality of dancing,Ahmadb. Muhammad al-Tilsi(1938:84-5English;139-40, Arabictext) wouldpersuadeus.38 For both mystics cited above, dance is the very blossoming of ecstasy and ecstasy is both the cause of dance and the effect of music (cf. Rouget 1985:286). The most essential contemplative element of the dance is that it must be genuine, resulting from an authentic ecstasy experienced by the listener. In Sufism there is 38 Ghazd.li(n.d., II:267ff.) provides thorough-goingproofs of its permissibilityas well. This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Lewisohn: The sacred music of Islam 27 no "dance"-in the modem sense of the word-apart from religious contemplation, for the sensual and the spiritual, the profane and the Sacred must first be firmly distinguished and separated. Abli Hamid al-Ghazdli's "thirdrule" of Samd' which establishes that "none can savour the spiritual concert (dhawq al-sama') as long as their delight in sensual pleasure and passion (huziiz, shawdt) endures" (n.d.:266; Macdonald 1903:3). underlines the essentially sacral basis of the Sufi concert. Obviously, the same rules and manners (adab) which applies to one's comportment during ecstasy also control the etiquette of the dance. Dance is to be preceded by stillness of the limbs, for all movement is itself but the fruit of interior contemplation. The third rule is that one should be attentiveto what the speakersays, with full presence of heart(h•ddiral-qalb), not glancing about in every direction,guarding oneself from staringat the faces of the listenersand from observingwhat sort of ecstatic states they experience, but absorbedin oneself and in contemplationof one's own heart for whatever God in his mercy may vouchsafe one's innermost consciousness. One must keep oneself from any movementthat would disturbthe heartsof the Sufi brethren. Externally, one should be at rest, remainingstill in one's gestures, guarding oneself from coughing or yawning. Seated, one shouldkeep one's head down like one absorbedin meditationand reflectionwithinthe heart,restrainingoneself from hand-clapping(al-tasfiq) and dancing(al-raqs), or any othermovements made in order to fake, simulate or artificially "act-out"[one's state]. Instead, one should remain silent during the intervals between the recitation, abstaining from conversation. Only then, if ecstasy overcome and move one without any selfvolition, will one be absolved and not blamed because of it. But whenever one's volition returns,then [the rule is to] returnto stillnessandrepose. (ibid.) It is the stillness which rules, begins and terminates the dance, for there is nothing praiseworthy about dancing for its own sake. As Ghazali put it: "One shouldn't imagine that one who throws himself upon the ground in distress is more perfect in ecstasy than one who is still and does not agitate himself. Rather, often he who is still is more perfect in ecstasy than he who is in agitation" (Ghazdli n.d.:266-7; closely following Macdonald 1903:6), as the famous story about Junayd's not being swayed by music and poetry (Samd') in the final years of his life demonstrates (ibid.): Al-Junayd,in the beginning[of his progresson the Path]used to be moved through samd'; then he came not to be moved and people spoke to him about this. He quoted: "And you see the hills you think as solid flying with the flight of clouds. Such is the might of God, who has perfectedall things"(KoranXXVII:88). This points to the fact thatwhile the heartmay be agitated,soaringthroughthe invisible world (malakat), the limbs may outwardly remain properly disciplined and unmoved. Some Sufis, however, even went beyond advocating the superiority of stillness to movement during Sama '. Sari Saqati (d. 255/871), for instance, reportedly said, "One who cries out in ecstasy while in samd' must be so bereft of consciousness This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 28 British Journal of Ethnomusicology,vol. 6 (1997) that if someone strikes him on the face with a sword, he will not feel the blow or the pain of the wound which is made" (Suhrawardi 1364 A.Hsh./1985:96). At this advanced degree, the Samd' ceremony reaches such a climax within the mystic's heart that both immobile meditation and rapturousdance appear as incidental. The mystic's inner absorption is so total that music, prayer and dance dissolve in the ineffability of the musical experience itself. 6 Conclusion The supreme verbal expression in the Persian language of the paradoxical nature of Sama' can be found in the ecstatic lyrics of the Divan-i Shams-i Tabriz by Jaldl al-Din Rfimi, whose Order was to become known as the "Whirling Dervishes". "Under his guiding genius, music and dance," as Fritz Meier put it, "intermingled to create so indivisible a unity that the dances were performed as rituals in praise of God and as stimulants to an exalting experience of inner harmony" (Shiloah 1995:142). Thus, it is appropriate to bring this study to a close with a ghazal by Riimi (1976, IV:65, no. 1734; transl. mine) describing the Sufi concert's startling theraupetic effect on the spirit: yet conveying to us a distant echo-in translation-of TheMessage of Sama' Sama'-what's that?Fromlords of mystery a missive dispatchedto us-for heartsin enmity, a note from them of calm serenity. The blossoms bud from wisdom winnowedin its pleasantbreeze and like a lovely chord,its plectrumstrikes in Being perforation. Its music heraldsdawnjust as the crow Of the Spirit-cockblazons morning'sglow; Its thrumbeckons success Like Mars's kettle-drum. To sate the palate,its silvery sugardrips Such strangesweet taste...What odd delight the body senses from the player's pipe andlip! Those million bitterscorpiongriefs, Behold here dealt a wretcheddeath. These thousandroundsof joy, look! Are passed aroundwithouta cup. Out of every niche anotherJacobdarts Disturbedby scent of Joseph's shirt. This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Lewisohn: The sacred music of Islam 29 For if our soul's a puff of breaththat'scast By "I breathedin him My spirit,"39it's fit Such "breath"be food and wine as well. On JudgementDay, they say, this hordeof men Shall turnto puffs of "breath,"who like the dead, when, Thrilledto hearthis call, vaultup from sleep. "Throwashes on the head of any man who cares And grieves, depressed,"they curse:"Oneuntouched By such a breath-he's less thandeath." For once the flesh andheartdrinkdown This wine by heaven sanctioned, Foreverbannedfrom them areheat of grief And snarlingsorrowsthatcan bite the heart. And yet such supersensualloveliness Is not to be described-a thousandeyes Demandfor it on loan, on loan! Withinyou shines a moon Wherefrom the vault of heaven The sun trumpetsanddeclaims,"I am your humbleservant!" Like Moses, look withinyour breast; Seek therethatmoon;gaze throughthe windowthere And warmlycry "Salam",greetthatray "Good-day". ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank Dr. Saeed A. Durranifor inviting me to speak on the subject of mysticism and music in Islam at the conference which he convened on "Muhammad Iqbal and the Fine Arts: the heritage of Islamic creativity", at the University of Birmingham, 14-15 October 1995, where an abbreviatedversion of the presentpaper was presented.Anotherversionwas presentedas one of the "CalamusSummerLectures" at the WarburgInstitutein London,July 1996. 39 An allusionto the followingpassagein the Koran(XV:28-31):"Andrememberwhenthy Lordsaiduntothe angels:'Lo!I amcreatinga mortaloutof potter'sclay of blackmudaltered. So, whenI havemadehimandhavebreathedintohimof My Spirit,do ye fall down,prostrating all of themtogether.SaveIblis.He refusedto be yourselfuntohim.So the angelsfell prostrate, the Translation M. Pickthall. by among prostrate." This content downloaded from 142.150.190.39 on Fri, 3 Oct 2014 20:50:11 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 30 British Journal of Ethnomusicology,vol. 6 (1997) REFERENCES Ahmad,Aziz (1969) An IntellectualHistoryof Islam in India. EdinburghUniv. Press. Boase, Roger & Sahnoun, Farid, transl. (1993) "Ibn 'Arabi's Risdla Ruthal-quds as 'Excerptsfrom the Epistle on the Spiritof Holiness'." In S. Hirtenstein/M. Tieman, MuhyiddinIbn 'Arabi:a commemorativevolume,44-72. Dorset:Element. Burckhardt,Titus (1986) Sacred art in East and West:principles and methods, transl. LordNorthborne,Middlesex:PerennialBooks. Btirgel, J.C. (1988) The Feather of Simurgh:the "licit magic" of the arts in medieval Islam, 89-118. New York:New YorkUniversityPress. Cantarino,Vicente (1975) Arabicpoetics in the GoldenAge. Leiden:E.J. Brill. Casewit, S. (1985) "The mystical side of the Muqaddimah:Ibn Khaldun's view of Sufism."Islamic QuarterlyXXIX/3:172-85. Coomaraswamy,A. 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Running Head: ANICONISM IN ISLAM

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Aniconism in Islam
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ANICONISM IN ISLAM

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Aniconism is defined as the absence or the lack of material representations of the natural
and supernatural beings in various cultures, (Gaifman, 2017). Aniconism can be utilized in
demonstrating divine presence without a figural image in religious practice. Aniconism is the state
in which religion does not embrace the use of images to represent certain supernatural beings such
as God. There are religions which have prohibited the use of these images, and there are others
which have embraced it fully. For instance, the Roman Catholics have adopted the use of images
in their worship. They have pictures of Jesus Christ, Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ, and saints.
The Christians believe and have faith that there is the divine presence of Jesus through the images
of Him.
The images that have been prohibited in the Islam culture are those that depict God,
Muhammad, the Islamic prophets and the relatives of Muhammad. This explains why Is...


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