Slippery Stone” by Khalid Baig is an excellent, well-researched book that exhaustively investigates one of the most contentious and debated issues in the Islamic jurisprudence discourse related to the permissibility of music. With well over six hundred references and more than 120 biographical notes on notable scholars, Baig delivers a comprehensive historical, cultural, and legal study of the issue of music within the context of Islam. The myriad of research involved with this work classifies it for all scholars, imams, community leaders, and individuals looking for clarity on the position of Islam regarding music.

Historical Context: Music in Pre-Modern Islamic Societies

One strength of “Slippery Stone” is its rich historical analysis in the way music has been treated in different Islamic societies through the years. Baig traces the role of music from the early Islamic period up to the pre-modern Muslim empires such as the Abbasids. In these societies, some forms of music-such as poetry recitations and epic storytelling-were permitted in controlled environments. But music that promoted immorality or obstructed religious activities was condemned by all.

Unlike other religions, according to Baig, while the place of worship-the church in Christianity-accommodated much in the scope of music, the mosque, the modern equivalent has traditionally remained a place without music. This is why the discussion and debate on music have always been cautious, deliberative, and contentious among Muslim scholars & jurists.

Quranic and Hadith Background: A Legitimacy of the Ban on Music

Part and parcel of Baig’s insistence is taken from verses of Qur’an and Hadith that speak against those issues that divert one from religious observance. One of the most oft-quoted verses in this regard comes from Surah Luqman:

“And of mankind is he who purchases idle talks to mislead (men) from the path of Allah. “ (Quran 31:6).

As most scholars, including Ibn Kathir, have explained, this verse also comprises not only music but vain amusement, which would divert people’s attention away from their religious work.

Furthermore, Baig mentions a few Hadith. To mention is one of the most popular narrations given in Sahih Bukhari in which Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said:

There will be among my Ummah people who will make lawful for themselves illegal sexual intercourse, the wearing of silk, the drinking of alcoholic drinks, and the use of musical instruments.”

Through these textual sources, Baig demonstrated how Islamic scholars have always perceived music, particularly instruments, as dangerous to one’s spirituality. Music, when seen to accompany other haram activities such as immoral gatherings or drunkenness, was considered spiritually dangerous, requiring careful restriction or outright prohibition.

Scholarly Perspectives and Islamic Jurisprudence

“Slippery Stone” delves into the academic view across the four major schools of thought in Sunni theology – Hanafi, Shafi’i, Maliki, and Hanbali, but also influential individual scholars, including Imam al-Ghazali, Ibn Taymiyyah, and Ibn al-Qayyim. Baig provides a detailed analysis on how, despite differences in methodology, each of these scholars came to the same conclusion in their respective masses: that music that incorporates instruments is forbidden with very few exceptions.

Other Hanafi scholars, under Abu Hanifa’s guidance, usually forbade music but may have accepted it if it was intended for explicit religious or didactic purposes, such as using war anthems during battles.

Shafi’i and Maliki scholars also followed similar attitudes and precautionary remarks regarding music but accepted it when it is done in controlled settings.

During this period, Hanbali scholars, like Ibn Taymiyyah and Ibn al-Qayyim, formulated severe restrictions on music, where such music finalizing moral as well as spiritual damage might cause due to indulgence in it.

Baig also addresses the views of Ibn Hazm, a prominent scholar who belongs to a minority who believes that music was not prohibited by the Quran. was not prohibited by the Quran. Baig still feels compelled to criticize Ibn Hazm’s argument, while scholars across the Islamic period agree that music using instruments must be prohibited or restricted.

Sufi Perspective: The Concept of ‘Sama’ and the Metaphor of the ‘Slippery Stone

One of the fascinating things about the book is the study of the Sufi tradition and the manner in which music is treated in this mystical branch of Islam. Although some orders of Sufism did incorporate ‘Sama’, music and chanting, into their spiritual practice, they did so with considerable care. Baig traces the metaphor of the “slippery stone” back to Sufi teaching, suggesting all these spiritual risks that music posed provided it was not properly tended to. Even such Sufi masters as al-Ghazali, who tolerated music in restricted contexts only, warned that music might lead the soul astray.

Colonialism and the Media Revolution: Changing Attitudes Toward Music

Baig provides an interesting view of the change in Muslims’ perceptions regarding music through analysis of how colonialism and modern media have been able to alter its outlook. The music-public performances were considered undesirable or even forbidden and were sometimes regulated. With the import of Western culture- opera, then the symphonies, radio, then television-what began to change in the fabric of Muslim society was nothing short of remarkable. According to Baig, the colonial powers and the revolution in the media blurred lines in regards to what was acceptable or not music and thus opened the gates for an increased acceptance of the modern Muslim life, with its doors open for the advancement of music.

The Emergence of Islamic Music: Boundary-Blurring

In his conclusion, Baig critiques the contemporary trend of Islamic music, particularly nasheeds accompanied by instruments. He says that “this trend has blurred the line so much between permissible and impermissible to the extent that in many cases nasheeds become secular in their character”; because Islamic nasheeds, which are to be free of all forms of worldly music, have instilled “the instruments of secular music” which would now “open the door to moral and spiritual harm which constitutes the contrary end result of what secular music does.”.

Conclusion: A Balanced Evaluation of Islam’s Stand on Music

“Slippery Stone” is a balanced, well-researched, and meticulously elaborated book that covers no stone in its comparison of Islam’s stand on music. It provides readers with an exhaustive historical and jurisprudential analysis that is well-supported by copious references from the Quran, Hadith, and the writings of scholars for centuries.

While Baig’s conclusion seems to lean towards the prohibition of music, especially when accompanied by instruments, he phrases the problem with balance. He acknowledges that much sense and meaning may be made. For anyone who would want an answer to whether music is permissible in Islam, “Slippery Stone” will prove itself an irreplaceable resource that sheds deep insight into a topic sorely misunderstood.