In the same room where musical instruments are being played
When music class begins this week at Toronto’s Donwood Park elementary school, Mohammad Nouman Dasu will send a family member to collect his three young children. They will go home for an hour rather than sing and play instruments – a mandatory part of the Ontario curriculum he believes violates his Muslim faith.
The school tried to accommodate the religious fanatic, but nothing would do – music has to be banned from his children’s lives entirely.
According to documents obtained by The Globe and Mail, some parents insist they cannot allow their children to be in the same room where musical instruments are being played. Mr. Dasu, a Koran teacher who sometimes leads prayers at Scarborough’s Jame Abu Bakr Siddique mosque, says he has led the fight on behalf of parents. He has consulted with national Islamic bodies, and requested a letter from the leader of his mosque.
“We here believe that music is haram [forbidden]. We can neither listen to it, nor can we play a role in it,” said the mosque’s imam, Kasim Ingar.
That’s one of religion’s more disgusting tricks – declaring beautiful aspects of life and of human culture Forbidden. This man’s unfortunate children are to be prevented from sharing the joys of music, because it’s Forbidden.
Conceding that Muslims have to adjust when they send their kids to public school, he suggested that some matters, such as teaching music, are beyond debate.
“We do not compromise with anyone on the clear-cut orders and principles conveyed by the Prophet,” said Mr. Ingar, who also leads the Scarborough Muslim Association.
That’s your biggest mistake right there – refusing to rethink particulars, and just mandating a mindless, slavish, obedient Rule instead. Humans who forbid themselves to rethink particulars are dangerous.
No picnics! No walking on the beach! No visiting with friends! No strolling past the shops! No writing poems! No dessert! No playing with puppies! No carrying your little kids on your shoulders!
How is the “no music” prohibition any less stupid than declaring that other simple, harmless things that make life pleasurable are taboo? But that’s it, isn’t it? Life isn’t supposed to be pleasurable.It’s supposed to be a joyless slog to the grave.
It’s supposed to be a dirty nasty thing you reject in favor of focusing on that Other Place.
Since when was music a problem for Islam? Now they’re just making up new shit on top of the old made-up shit.
My son accused me of child abuse when i DID sing – he threatened to call child welfare on me! Because he believed music was supposed to be beautiful and pleasurable.
And forgive me for being cynical, but I suspect this is about more than his children not being able to listen to music. That could be done within the school, by removing them to other rooms where they would hear and see nothing. I suspect this has a lot to do with wanting the school to bow to his demands and remove the music from everyone’s life, because Islamists want everyone to follow the same horrible rules they do. I mean, how many Muslim children are there that have parents that don’t think the prophet insists they have to rob their life of music, and avoid all music classes? I’m betting there are more than a few, and they probably would argue with this guy that the prophet didn’t think that. Who’s right? Who knows? Does it matter what some guy dead for 1400 years thought, anyway? What matters is how you live as a person, and how you treat other people. Full stop.
I agree with Blood Knight. Music is not haram. There’s a lot of instrumental music coming out of Islamic countries. This is one parent’s worry that their child might hear the *wrong* music, turned into a blanket prohibition.
Or maybe just one crazy sect, like the JW’s are Christians and think blood transfusions are prohibited, while the Red Cross, with Christian roots, has been a major supplier of blood for transfusions through blood drives.
Well of course music is not “haram.” I don’t accept the concept “haram” to begin with.
But Mr Dasu says it is and throws his weight around accordingly.
There was a similar case in Quebec in 2012. In this little girl’s case, they addressed the issue by having her wear headphones during music time.
http://deweycsi.blogspot.ca/2012/01/im-not-little-teapot-muslim-familys.html
Pragmatically speaking, I suppose having the kids in school for all but the music time is a better outcome than having them not go to public school at all. And I’m betting that as they get older they’ll be stealing a listen from friends’ earbuds, if they have not already done so.
There’s a risk of hearing music at school in many situations other than formal music classes. What happens when the national anthem is played at school assemblies? The Last Post or Reveille at Remembrance Day assemblies? There goes pretty much any and all audio-visual media, as most movies or television presentations, dramatic or otherwise, have music in the soundtrack. What does he himself do to dodge music? It could come at him from ANYWHERE! What if somebody hums in close proximity? Music while one is on hold on the phone? Elevator music? Wow. What a joyless life this guy must have and how awful that he’s imposing it on his children. Child abuse indeed.
So there are no Koranic descriptions of of Paradise that include music? Or do you have to be dead and in paradise to be allowed to listen?
Oh, also forgot to add, what a joyless mosque this guy Kasim Ingar must run.
Certainly not a Mousique! (Does it have a minaret? If so, what emanates from that minaret?)
Again, there is enough ‘real Islam’ that abhors music to be a public nuisance for the rest of the community, and to generate abuse like this.
By making a public row, Mr Dasu has carved out his status as a ‘Community Leader.’ So the media will allow him to speak for all Muslims, which may well include significant numbers of musicians.
I’m assuming that its Wahhabi/Muslim Brotherhood tripe that’s being promoted here. Incredibly ironic for a religion that rests so heavily on the (essentially) musical declamation of poetry.
Imagine the same scenario, except he vetoed say, biology rather than music for his kids. I wonder if there would be so much sympathy for him then? And yet, this is essentially what many conservative christians are trying to do with their continued efforts to excise evolution from not only their own, but all children’s education. Banning music is different enough that they can be percieved as being anti-western furriners, but they are not so different in principle.
Yay, religion.