A group of Muslim religious leaders issued a fatwa yesterday that Muslims must not indulge in loud music and other activities that disturb or cause inconvenience to others on the occasion of Milad - un - nabi that falls on Sunday, the 5th of February. They also said that even reading the Quran in a manner that disturbs others is against the tenets of Islam.

This is a very welcome step. All religions should follow this principle. Do whatever you want when it comes to religion. But it should always be without disturbing others.

I strongly believe that religion is an intensely personal thing and it should be more in the mind rather than on display. Many religions, including my own, these days have become so far removed form the initial sets of teachings that it is very difficult to recognize the original forms!

The blatant use of loudspeakers is a curse afflicting all religions today. Many people who are disturbed by this noise actually curse the religions and their followers when such things happen. This is not at all desirable. And to top it all, the followers of one religion start indulging in competitive nuisance creation. "You spoilt my sleep during your festival, so I will spoil your sleep during mine!"

So, amidst all this, this fatwa is a great step and shows some very mature thinking on the part of these leaders.

... http://www.kamaldshah.com/2012/02/welcome-fatwa.html