Music and Sufism
The International Sufi Movement
Music and Sufism
In the words of Hazrat Inayat Khan on the subject of Music:
To me, architecture is music, gardening is music, farming is music, painting is music, poetry is music. In all the occupations of life where beauty has inspired, where the divine wine has been poured out, there is music. But among the different arts, the art of music has been especially considered divine, because it is the exact miniature of the law working within the whole universe. For instance if we study ourselves we shall find that in the beats of the pulse and the heart, in the inhaling and exhaling of the breath, all is the work of rhythm. Life depends upon the rhythmic working of the whole mechanism of the body.
Breath manifests as voice, as word, as sound. And the sound is continually audible, the sound without and the sound within oneself, and that is music. This shows that there is music outside, and music within ourselves. Music inspires not only the soul of the great musician, but every infant the instant he comes into the world begins to move his little arms and legs with the rhythm of music. Therefore it is no exaggeration to say that music is the language of beauty, of the One Whom every living soul has loved. And one can understand that if one realizes and recognizes the perfection of all this beauty as God, our Beloved, it is natural that this music that we see in art and in the whole universe should be called the divine art.
Really, before its incarnation the soul is sound. It is for this reason that we love sound. The breath, the speech, the step, all have rhythm. Religions have all made music part of their worship. The Sufi especially loves music, calling it Ghiza-i-ruh, food of the soul.
I gave up my music because I had received from it all I had to receive. To serve God, one must sacrifice the dearest thing, and I sacrificed my music, the dearest thing to me. I had composed songs, I sang and played the vina; and practicing this music, I arrived at a stage where I touched the music of the spheres. Then every soul became for me a musical note and all life became music. Inspired by it, I spoke to the people, and those who were attracted by my words listened to them instead of listening to my songs. Now if I do anything, it is to tune souls instead of instruments; to harmonize people instead of notes.
If there is anything in my philosophy, it is the law of harmony, that one must put oneself in harmony with oneself and with others. I have found in every word a certain musical value, a melody in every thought, harmony in every feeling, and I have tried to interpret the same thing with clear and simple words to those who used to listen to my music. I played the vina until my heart turned into this same instrument; then I offered this instrument to the Divine Musician, the only Musician existing. Since then I have become His flute, and when He chooses He plays His music. People give me credit for this music, which in reality is not due to me, but to the Musician who plays on His own instrument.
In 1909, Hazrat Inayat Khan made a series of recordings in India. Although the technology was not sophisticated, it is possible to get some idea of his vocal mastery from these fascinating archives.
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