It is the manifestation of nature; except for the part that is with the Real (al-Ḥaqq), it is the rending of the outer garment; except for the form that is listened to with contemplation, it is a source of discord.
It is said that Samāʿ (spiritual audition) is of two kinds: The first is samāʿ with the condition of knowledge and sobriety (ṣaḥw). The one possessing knowledge and sobriety must have knowledge of Allah's names and attributes. Otherwise, in that ḥāl (spiritual state), he falls into pure kufr (disbelief). The second is samāʿ with the condition of ḥāl. The one who performs samāʿ in a state of ḥāl must, due to the manifestation of the rulings of ḥaqīqa (inner reality) during samāʿ, become annihilated from human states and purified from traces of pleasures belonging to the nafs (the lower self). (Qushayrī, 167)
Samāʿ is of three types: samāʿ with nature, with ḥāl, and with the Real (al-Ḥaqq). In samāʿ with nature, both the common people and the elect are alike, for man, by his nature, takes pleasure in pleasant sound. The one who performs samāʿ with ḥāl reflects upon and contemplates such spiritual influxes as address, union, separation, nearness, distance, sorrow over what is lost, intense longing for what is to be attained, loyalty to a covenant, affirmation of a promise, breaking of a covenant, sorrow, yearning, fear of separation, joy of union, and anxiety over abandonment. The one who performs samāʿ with the Real is not characterized by the aforementioned states mixed with human pleasures, for those states are defective (not pure). The one who performs samāʿ with the Real does so not for pleasure, but for the purification of tawhid (the oneness of God).
It is said that the people of samāʿ are of three ranks. The first are the sons of ḥaqīqa (inner reality); they turn to the state in which the Real addresses them through samāʿ. The second address Allah through the meanings they hear in samāʿ; they are obliged to be faithful regarding the meanings to which they allude. The third are the poor who, having stripped themselves of all worldly attachments and afflictions, are in a state of isolation; they perform samāʿ with contentment and are the closest to safety. (Qushayrī, 168; Jāmiʿ, 245)
It is said that every organ has a share in samāʿ. If samāʿ strikes the eye, the eye weeps; if it strikes the tongue, it cries out with burning; if it strikes the hand, it tears one's clothes; if it strikes the foot, it dances.
I heard from Master Abū ʿAlī Daqqāq: People regarding samāʿ (hearing) are divided into three: mutasammī (one who hears the moment), mustamiʿ (one who hears the state), and sāmiʿ (one who hears the Real). (Qushayrī, 171)
The shaykhs and the people of verification have differed regarding samāʿ. Some have said that samāʿ is an instrument of absence (ghayba), arguing that it is impossible to perform samāʿ during witnessing (mushāhada), for when the friend meets the Beloved, he is absorbed in vision and contemplation and has no need for samāʿ. Samāʿ is news, and news at the station of direct vision is nothing but distance, veiling, and preoccupation. Samāʿ is a means for gathering oneself from the state of distraction, which is the result of heedlessness. As a result, the one who gathers himself through samāʿ also attains the state of distinction.
Another group has said: Samāʿ is an instrument of presence (ḥuḍūr), for maḥabba (love) requires totality. The lover's love is not complete until he is annihilated in the Beloved with his entire being. In the state of union, the qalb (the heart) receives its share as love, the sirr (the innermost secret) as witnessing, the ruh (the spirit) as union, the body as service, and the ear must also have its share, just as the eye has its share in vision.
They have said: Samāʿ is an instrument of presence, for the absent one is already absent. The absent one is a denier, and the denier is not worthy of it.
Samāʿ is of two kinds: one mediated, the other unmediated. What a person hears from a reciter is an instrument of absence; what he hears from the Creator is an instrument of presence. (Hujwīrī, 491)
Samāʿ is an influx (wārid) from the Real. This influx purifies the body from frivolity and amusement. The nature of the beginner is never in a state to accept the word of truth. (Hujwīrī, 493)
In my view, samāʿ, in the matter of doing good, is first with the secret (the inner heart), then with the qalb (the heart), and then with the body (through action). (Fath, 10)
When a shaykh was asked what samāʿ is, he said: For the people of ḥaqīqa (inner reality), it is recommended (mustaḥabb); for the people of scrupulousness (waraʿ), it is permissible (mubāḥ); for the people of the nafs (the lower self), it is disliked (makrūh).
When Junayd was asked about samāʿ, he said: Everything the servant gathers in the presence of Allah is permissible. As for listening to a beautiful voice and pleasant melody, this is the pleasure of the ruh (the spirit) and is permissible, for pleasant speech is praiseworthy in itself.
Regarding the verse, "He increases in creation what He wills" (cf. al-Fāṭir 35:1), it is said: This refers to a beautiful and pleasant voice. Some say: A beautiful voice never enters the heart, but rather stirs what is already in the heart.
The people of samāʿ differ in their states during samāʿ. Among them are those who, during samāʿ, are dominated by fear, sorrow, or ecstasy; these states lead them to weep, moan, tear their garments, fall into absence, and sway. Among them are also those who, during samāʿ, are dominated by hope, joy, or glad tidings; these states lead them to happiness, dancing, and clapping. It is narrated that Prophet David found peace through dancing.
It is also reported that ʿAlī said: While I was with Zayd and Jaʿfar, we were performing samāʿ.
The Messenger of God (peace be upon him) came. He said to Jaʿfar, "You resemble me in creation and character." Jaʿfar, out of joy at these words, leapt up. He said to Zayd, "You are our brother and friend." Zayd also leapt up out of joy. He said to me, "You are of me and I am of you." I too leapt up out of joy.
Abū ʿUbayda said: Hajal (leaping) is to lift one foot and jump with the other. This can be done with both feet together, for it is leaping, not walking. When the mustamiʿ (listener) is overtaken by longing for the Mentioned (Allah) during samāʿ, he leaps from his place. Those who seek what is with the Beloved do so. They realize that unless they repeat this leaping and turning again and again, it is not possible to reach what is with the Beloved (the state of ecstasy).
During samāʿ, what lies between the body and the ruh (the spirit) is manifested. For the base body is created from earth, while the exalted spiritual ruh is created from joy. Until tranquility occurs, the ruh ascends to its own realm, and the body descends to its own place. From such people, relief, relaxation, and pleasantness may be manifested during samāʿ. This is not forbidden. However, these are not the attributes of the verifiers (the people of realization among the Sufis). (Adāb, 11)
Samāʿ is a shahwa (desire) for one who is in the pit of doubt. No one but the possessor of insight (baṣīra) among the gnostics should attain it. The gnostic wisely eliminates the desire found in samāʿ. Doubt does not touch him.
Junayd said: Every murīd (aspirant, disciple) I have seen inclines toward samāʿ. Know that there is a trace of heroism in it.
It is said: Samāʿ is an extended bridge to which the possessor of certainty (yaqīn) and existence (wujūd), as well as the possessor of doubt and denial, turn. Whoever crosses it either rises to the highest heights or falls to the lowest depths.
Some murīds asked their shaykhs, "Do the shaykhs not incline toward samāʿ?" The shaykhs replied: "When you become like them, then perform samāʿ!"
It is said: Samāʿ is sometimes a fleeting joy, and sometimes a deadly poison. (Adāb, 64)
When a shaykh was asked about the wine of samāʿ (the effects of samāʿ on human spirituality) for the qalbs (hearts), ruhs (spirits), and nafs (lower selves), he replied: The wine of the qalbs is wisdoms, the wine of the ruhs is melodies, and the wine of the nafs is the recollection of pleasures suited to their nature.
When the same shaykh was asked about affectation (takalluf) in samāʿ, he said: This is of two kinds: The affectation of the listener who seeks a station or worldly benefit, which is deception and betrayal; and the affectation of one who listens in order to experience ecstasy by forcing himself, seeking the truth, which is like one who tries to force himself to weep. (Adāb, 65)
Ibn ʿAtāʾ said: Regarding the verse, "O you who have believed, respond to Allah and the Messenger when He calls you to that which gives you life" (al-Anfāl 8:24), the response (istijāba) has four aspects: the first is the response of tawhid (the oneness of God), the second is the response of realization (taḥqīq), the third is the response of submission (taslīm), and the fourth is the response of taqrīb (drawing near). The response is as much as the samāʿ (hearing). Samāʿ varies according to understanding (fahm). Understanding is possible to the extent that the value of the divine speech is appreciated. Comprehension of the speech is according to the power of maʿrifa (gnosis) and knowledge of the Speaker. The aspects of understanding are not limited, for the aspects of the speech are not limited.
The true samāʿ, regarding which there is no disagreement among the people of iman (faith), leads its possessor to hudā (guidance) and the essence of the matter. When the warmth of this kind of samāʿ comes upon the coldness of certainty (yaqīn), tears flow from the eyes. For samāʿ sometimes brings sorrow, and sorrow is burning; sometimes it brings longing, and longing is burning; sometimes it brings regret, and that too is burning.
When Ruwaym was asked about the ecstasies of the Sufis during samāʿ, he replied: They understand meanings that are distant from others and allude to those meanings. Thus, they receive their share of the blessing of joy. When a veil falls over their spiritual state, joy turns to weeping. Some of them tear their garments, some weep, and others cry out in lamentation. (ʿAwārif, 106)
Samāʿ is one of the secrets from among the secrets of Allah's unique Essence. Those who perform samāʿ are of two kinds: those who listen with their nafs (lower self) and those who listen with their intellect. There is no other kind of samāʿ. Some say there are those who perform samāʿ with their Lord. Samāʿ with the Lord is the ultimate point of samāʿ with the intellect. However, the intellect has two kinds of hearing: hearing by its fiṭra (innate disposition) and hearing by acquired knowledge. (Tadbīrāt, 223)
Divine samāʿ with asrār (secrets) is to hear divinely from everything, in everything, and with everything. According to the great Sufis, the entirety of wujūd (existence) is Allah's words. His words never end. They have an endless hearing corresponding to these words. These names (pertaining to the words) are realized in their secrets through the existence of the words.
The domain related to spiritual samāʿ (samāʿ rūḥānī) is the management of the divine pens, and the changes and differentiations of wujūd (existence) in the Preserved Tablet (Lawḥ al-Maḥfūẓ). The entirety of wujūd is like a spread-out piece of skin (on which writing is done). The world within it is a book written line by line. The pens speak, the ears hear, the words write and witness. Their witnessing is pure understanding, without increase. Only intellects that manifest at the same level can attain this samāʿ. Since the essence of samāʿ is fourfold—Essence (dhāt), relation (nisba), orientation (tawajjuh), and speech—existence is manifested through divine samāʿ. The spiritual samāʿ is likewise composed of the Essence, the hand holding the pen, and the pen that manages. Ultimately, the coming into being of the rational soul (nafs nāṭiqa) that hears the management of these pens over the tablets of the qalbs (hearts) occurs through management and transformation. (Futūḥāt, II, 361)
Samāʿ that is an innovation (bidʿa) is clapping hands, listening to tambourines and reed flutes. The Companions (ṣaḥāba), the Followers (tābiʿūn), and other great imams did not accept these as a path to Allah, nor did they consider them as nearness or obedience, but rather as a blameworthy innovation (bidʿa).
Al-Shāfiʿī said: I left Baghdad. There was something there that the heretics had introduced. They called it taghbīr. With it, they distracted people from the Qur'an. Allah's gnostic friends (ʿārif awliyāʾ) recognize it and know that Satan has a share in it. For this reason, some great people who practiced it repented from it. (Furqān, 146)
The samāʿ we mean by song is the greatest thing that Iblis has devised to corrupt hearts. Not only the common people, but even many among the scholars and ascetics have been deceived by it. Some have even claimed that during the excitement of listening to stirring songs, their hearts found presence with Allah. They imagined that the excitement and joy produced by samāʿ was a spiritual ecstasy related to the Hereafter. (Qudāma, 142)
Samāʿ inevitably stirs love. As long as it continues at this level, it is considered the cause of love. When love arises, the states of lovers differ according to their weakness and steadiness. Among them are those who are moderate and those who are destroyed. When firmness and stability are attained, sensation disappears. (Rawḍa, 270)
Some have claimed that samāʿ is something clear in terms of ecstasy and effect arising from recitation. The proof is that the majesty of the Qur'an is such that human strength cannot bear it, nor can created attributes carry it. If even a particle of the meaning of the Qur'an were unveiled to the hearts, those hearts would tremble, shatter, and be stunned in amazement. Melodies, compared to pleasures, are more suited to natures. If melodies were related to poetry, due to the similarity among creatures, they would always seem light to natures as long as humanity endures. (Rawḍa, 271)
When the Real entrusts the servant with the attribute of hearing, that servant hears Allah's speech with Allah's hearing. In this station, hearing cannot be enumerated, nor can the states of the names and attributes with the Essence and in the Essence be known. The second meaning of samāʿ, which the Merciful (al-Raḥmān) has taught His servants as the Qur'an, is such a samāʿ. For in this station, the attribute of hearing is an essential reality for the servant, no longer a trust or an acquired attribute.
When such a manifestation of hearing becomes valid for a servant, the Throne of Mercy is established for him. His Lord manifests to him, establishing Himself upon that throne. If the servant had not first heard the divine matters, the names and attributes coming from the Just (al-Dayyān) would not require this hearing, nor would it be possible for the servant to be refined in the presence of the Merciful with the etiquette of the Qur'an. Only the literati, the trustworthy, and the strangers (ghurabāʾ) understand such words. These are those who, through their samāʿ, have attained the attribute of being people of realization, a group unique and without equal. (Samrā, 897)
Samāʿ is performed to escape the fatigue brought by the moment, to spend pleasant time, for the people of ḥāl (spiritual state) to breathe, and for those preoccupied (with the world) to invite (spiritual) secrets.
It is said: The reality of samāʿ is like a wind that comes from every heart and does not remain there. (Jāmiʿ, 54)
Samāʿ is of three kinds: the samāʿ of the common people is to listen with the nafs (lower self), the samāʿ of the elect is to listen with the qalb (heart), and the samāʿ of the elite of the elect is to listen with the ruh (spirit). Samāʿ is forbidden for the common people, for their nafs remains; it is permissible for the elect, for they have attained witnessing; and it is recommended for the elite, for their witnessing has been realized. (Jāmiʿ, 62)
The reality of samāʿ, in the dictionary, is the verbal noun from samiʿa-yasmaʿu (to hear). In technical terms, it is a well-known concept. There has been disagreement regarding samāʿ. Some, like Mālik, Anas, Ibn Jurayj, and the people of the Hijaz, have said that listening to melodious poetry is permissible. Listening to poetry without melody is unanimously permitted. The caravan leader's singing of melodies is likewise permitted. Both sides have cited their evidence on this matter. The books of fiqh and Sufism have discussed these evidences at length. The books of fiqh are more suitable for this, for the sciences of ḥaqīqa (inner reality) and tariqa (Sufi path) are not based on debate and reports, but rather on abandoning all of them. (Jāmiʿ, 268)