differ from his followers in condemning and disapproving of it. Indeed, he was among the most emphatic in this regard, to the point that his followers wrote separate works condemning singing and listening to it. When Ishāq ibn Īsā al-Tabbāʿ asked him about the singing that the people of Medina allowed themselves, he replied, “Among us, only the openly sinful do that.”

In his discussion of listening to singing, Muhammad ibn Tāhir related a story claiming that Mālik beat a drum and recited some verses. Those knowledgeable in the matter do not dispute that this story is falsely attributed to Mālik.

Likewise, al-Shāfiʿī consistently expressed disapproval of it. In his book known as The Conduct of Judges, he said, “Singing is a reprehensible diversion resembling falsehood. Whoever indulges in it excessively is foolish, and his testimony is rejected.” Of the newly introduced practice of devotional listening, he said, “I left behind in Baghdad