Here is the relevant paragraph:
But in 1977 he decided to hang up his guitar -- changing his name and retiring from it all after receiving a copy of the Koran, he pledged to devote his life to the Islamic faith.
This makes it sound as if he simply retired from his music career. Actually he was involved with a brand of Islam that regards instrumental music as forbidden! From a Weekly Standard
article:
Wahhabism, the state religion in Saudi Arabia, and the inspirer of al Qaeda, is especially known for its hatred of music. In Wahhabi theology, all music except for drum accompaniment to religious chanting is haram, or forbidden. For anybody who has had contact with Muslim civilization, this is a fairly shocking bit of information, since music is one of the great glories of Islamic culture.
Yusuf Islam has demonstrated his sympathy for this posture on several occasions. Above all, he is careful to point out his caution about bucking the Wahhabis in this realm. In 1997, he released an album titled I Have No Cannons That Roar, dedicated, he said, to the cause of the Bosnian Muslims. In an interview with Stephen Kinzer, appearing in the New York Times on December 8, 1997, he commented on the project, "I've . . . used a very conservative approach. You only hear my own voice, a slight choral accompaniment and drums. Let's say that's the safest option according to certain Islamic schools of thought. I've made minimal use of musical instruments, and in some schools of thought in Islam musical instruments are disapproved of."
I am not trying to Islam-bash. I just think this is a good example of how the MSM doesn't inform the public. When the incident occurred in which Stevens was denied entry to the US, I remember hearing left-wing callers to radio programs complaining, "They are even after Cat Stevens!" It may have been ultimately unfair to Stevens--I don't know whether it was or not--but it wasn't an outrage.
No comments:
Post a Comment