Love is not Familiar without Harmony – Abdur Rahman’s Corner

Peace, one and all…

I was recently listening to the excellent Jazz Is Dead 2 album (You Tube channel), in collaboration with Roy Ayers. It’s an amazing album. I highly recommend it. I was listening to the track ‘Soulful and Unique’ as the following line was sung:

‘Love is not familiar without harmony’

Have you ever had a moment where you know that you’ve heard something profound and important, without being immediately sure why? This line has stayed with me for the last few months. Perhaps it has something to do with that moment of recognition, when you realise you just click with someone. It also suggests that love is strange and doesn’t fit quite right without harmonisation, a beautiful, mysterious and subtle coming together on a deep level.

Most of our experience of love lies beyond words, which is why music is so very powerful. Music is able to express emotions, colours and textures beyond the realm of the spoken. Love and music are therefore largely wordless. Our words capture but the smallest reflection of the truth. Our experience is metaphorical (ishq-i majazi), whilst real love (ishq-i haqiqi) is from another realm entirely. It flows from the Divine.

Love is recognition (or ma’rifah), connection and oneness. In other words, our recognition of love is also a recognition of Divine involvement, that our every experience of human love is a manifestation, in earthly terms, of God’s overflowing love.

And praise be to God, who maketh it so.