Slippery Stone: An Inquiry into Islam’s Stance on Music – Comprehensive Study on Music, Singing & Islamic Law (English, Softcover)

Slippery Stone: An Inquiry into Islam’s Stance on Music is a scholarly and comprehensive book that explores the topic of music, singing, poetry, and musical instruments from an Islamic perspective. It asks key questions about how Islamic law, history, and culture have approached these issues — from early Muslim societies to modern debates — and why music remains a controversial subject in many Muslim contexts. The book examines evidence from the Qur’an, Prophetic traditions, juristic opinions, and historical attitudes across different schools of Islamic law, as well as cultural influences like colonialism and media.

From Author:

What does Islam say about poetry, singing, musical instruments, musicians, and the business of music? How have Muslim societies historically looked at these questions and how have their attitudes changed in the media age? Why have mosques remained music-free while churches have not? What is the truth about the much-publicized “music controversy” in Islam? Why did Sufis call sama as the slippery stone? These are some of the questions explored in-depth in Slippery Stone: An Inquiry into Islam's Stance on Music. Of late, increasing attempts are being made to promote “Islamic music,” and the distinction between what is allowed and what is not has become hazy and unclear for many. This book demystifies the issue of music in Islam by going to original source books in Arabic, many of them brought to light for the first time in the English language. It traces the attitudes of the Muslim society about music and the musician throughout its history and quotes extensively from the deliberations of the Qur’an and Hadith scholars and jurists from all schools of Islamic Law, both Sunni and Shi'ah.

Open Mind Press

• Khalid Baig