This music echoes, not only with the cosmic “music of the spheres,” but also with the original Divine call and human response, which the Qur’an describes:

When your Lord brought forth from the children of Adam and their descendants from their loins, He made them bear witness to their own souls: “Am I not your Lord?” They said: “Yes! we bear witness.” (7:172)
Sages and saints through the ages have described traditional Islamic music as the reverberation of this primordial “call and response,” which calls us back to the “time before time” when we were with God. As Rumi writes:

The sages have said these melodies,
We took from the rolling spheres,
The faithful say that paradise,
Turns noises to sweets for our ears

Once, when we were all parts of Adam
We heard these songs in paradise.
Although body’s clay made us forget them
In our memories, their echoes reside

Oh, Music is the lovers’ food
Who hold in mind the thought of meeting
The fire of love flares up through songs
Like blazes lit from kindling

—Rumi (Mathnawi, IV, 733)

Those whose hearts still long for that time out of time will find much to appreciate in this album. In a world that is increasingly noisy and chaotic, the music and lyrics of this album—drawn from centuries of Sufi traditions—offer a window onto an inner oasis of peace and harmony. What makes traditional Islamic music truly Islamic is not merely the lyrics or the faith of the performer, but rather the presence of the same Divine grace that emanates from the Qur’an and the person of the Prophet—the barakah muhammadiyah. This barakah can be seen in the great masterpieces of Islamic architecture and calligraphy and heard in the arresting beauty of the adhaan (call to prayer), in the beautiful recitation of the Qur’an, and in the various traditions of sacred music represented here.

Sami Yusuf’s latest work is a humble turn to these traditions of sacred music, marked by a profound love for and presence of the Divine. We hope that this album serves as an introduction to the barakah of Islamic music—the sound of the perennial love and longing for our Creator and eternal home. As Hafiz, perhaps the most musical of all poets, writes:

مطرب عشق عجب ساز و نوایی دارد
نقش هر نغمه که زد راه به جایی دارد
عالم از ناله عشاق مبادا خالی
که خوش آهنگ و فرح بخش صدايى دارد

Love’s musician has such wonderful harmony and melody
Every song is a path to a place to be found
May the world never be empty of the cry of lovers
Because it has such a sweet and joyful sound

—Hafiz

Delivered upon Purchase:
Full Digital Album
High-quality Download
Includes 16 tracks
Exclusive Digital Booklet

Tracklist: