significance" in Islamic discourse. Islamic art and music flourished greatly during the Islamic Golden Age in the Abbasid Caliphate, and continued to flourish Since the early Islamic era, there has been extensive debate across the Muslim world with regard to the nature and permissibility of music from the perspective of Islam. Many Islamic scholars believe that the Quran and sunnah (the sayings and lifestyle of Muhammad) prohibit creating or indulging in any form of music and associated arts, such as dancing; while others have asserted that some specifi According to the grand mufti of the Al-Azhar University, there is nothing in the Islamic reports prohibiting music:the traditions (ahadith) used by those who consider music to be haram, if we accept them to be authentic, their meaning is always qualified (muqayyad) by the fact that they mention that type of music which is accompanied by immoral acts, alcohol consumption, fornication, and other vices. In fact, we do not know of any hadith condemning music that has not mentioned these vices. and that music was played by the sahaba and Tabi'un:It has been reported from the Prophet and many of his companions (sahaba), their successors (tabiun), the great leaders of the schools of law and jurisprudence that they used to listen to and attend musical events which were not accompanied by vices or prohibited acts. This is the view held by many of the scholars of Islamic jurisprudence (fuqaha). Their fatwa concluded that listening to musical instruments cannot be considered haram simply because they have a melody and sound. However, it only becomes haram for a person to listen to them when they become a tool to incite people towards immoral and prohibited behaviour or when they prevent a person from fulfilling his obligatory religious duties. According to the grand mufti of the Al-Azhar University, there is nothing in the Islamic reports prohibiting music:the traditions (ahadith) used by those who consider music to be haram, if we accept them to be authentic, their meaning is always qualified (muqayyad) by the fact that they mention that type of music which is accompanied by immoral acts, alcohol consumption, fornication, and other vices. In fact, we do not know of any hadith condemning music that has not mentioned these vices. and that music was played by the sahaba and Tabi'un:It has been reported from the Prophet and many of his companions (sahaba), their successors (tabiun), the great leaders of the schools of law and jurisprudence that they used to listen to and attend musical events which were not accompanied by vices or prohibited acts. This is the view held by many of the scholars of Islamic jurisprudence (fuqaha). Their fatwa concluded that listening to musical instruments cannot be considered haram simply because they have a melody and sound. However, it only becomes haram for a person to listen to them when they become a tool to incite people towards immoral and prohibited behaviour or when they prevent a person from fulfilling his obligatory religious duties. Some Muslims believe musical instruments are haram and only vocals are allowed, but the performer must be of the same gender as the audience. A cappella music (whatever the audience) has led to a rich tradition of devotional singing in Islam. In support of singing being halal, the jurist Abu Bakr ibn al-Arabi says, "No sound hadith is available concerning the prohibition of singing", while Ibn Hazm says, "All that is reported on this subject is false and fabricated." There are some Muslims who believe drums are permissible, but no other instruments. Indian Islamic scholar Zakir Naik maintains musical instruments are haram except for two—the daf (a traditional one sided drum) and tambourine, which are also mentioned in Hadith. According to the Deobandi scholar Muhammad ibn Adam Al-Kawthari, exception in the prohibition of music can be made for women playing the Daf, at celebrations and festivals, according to a minority group of Sunni Islam and another a group of Shiites. This exception comes from a well-known hadith in which two small girls were singing to a woman, and the Islamic Prophet Muhammad instructed Abu Bakr to let them continue, stating, "Leave them Abu Bakr, for every nation has an Eid (i.e. festival) and this day is our Eid." Still other Muslims believe that all instruments are allowed, provided they are used for acceptable or halal types of music and are not sexually arousing or un-Islamic. Hence there is a long history of instrumental accompaniments to devotional songs, particularly in the Shia and Sufi traditions. Many Sufi orders use music as part of their worship, most notably in Qawwali performances. According to the Irish Times, "a majority of Muslims" follow the view taken by modern scholars such as Yusuf al-Qaradawi that music is forbidden "only if it leads the believer into activities that are clearly defined as prohibited, such as drinking alcohol and illicit sex". Imam al-Ghazali, reported several hadith and came to the conclusion that music in and of itself is permitted, saying: "All these Ahadith are reported by al-Bukhari and singing and playing are not haram." He also references a narration from Khidr, wherein a favorable opinion of music is expressed. In the Iḥyāʾ ʿUlūm al-Dīn, al-Ghazālī includes an anecdote attributed to a meeting with al-Khiḍr, in which Khiḍr is asked about samāʿ (listening to music and poetry). Khiḍr is reported to have replied that it is ‘a pure draught upon which only the feet of the learned can stand.’ Al-Ghazālī presents this story as a supportive remark within his broader argument for the permissibility of music under certain conditions, though it is not treated as a Prophetic hadith or legally binding proof. According to Hussein Rashid, "contemporary scholars including Shaykh al-Azhar Mahmud Shaltut, Shaykh Yusuf Qaradawi, and Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini have all issued legal rulings that audio arts [including music] that