James the Persian
Dreptcredincios Crestin
Actually, this has prompted me to ask something I've always wondered. Is the Islamic prohibition on alcohol limited or does it extend to other intoxicants? The reason I ask is that I've noticed that historically at least some Muslim groups have used cannabis (the hashashin most famously) and I've never been sure whether this is in contradiction to the Islamic faith or not.The Truth said:It's really an interesting topic to debate.
As a matter of fact, before Prophet Mohamed (PBUH) was sent for human beings in order to spread Islam he was living among arabs while they were like animals in human forms at that time because they have no religion and they have nothing to worry about like ethics or morals.
Then, when prophet Mohamed(PBUH) started to spread Islam among his people they were drinking alcohol as any other nations at that time so he began to make rules for them but he didn't ordered them at once to stop drinking it but step by step because they used to it.
Intoxicants were forbidden in the Qur'an through several separate verses revealed at different times over a period of years. At first, it was forbidden for Muslims to attend to prayers while intoxicated (4:43).
Then a later verse was revealed which said that alcohol contains some good and some evil, but the evil is greater than the good (2:219) "which proves that God didn't deny it's benefit but it's evil is more than it's benefit". This was the next step in turning people away from consumption of it. Finally, "intoxicants and games of chance" were called "abominations of Satan's handiwork," intended to turn people away from God and forget about prayer, and Muslims were ordered to abstain (5:90-91). (Note - the Qur'an is not arranged chronologically, so later verses of the book were not necessarily revealed after earlier verses.)
In the first verse cited above, the word for "intoxicated" is sukara which is derived from the word "sugar" and means drunk or intoxicated. That verse doesn't mention the drink which makes one so. In the next verses cited, the word which is often translated as "wine" or "intoxicants" is al-khamr, which is related to the verb "to ferment." This word could be used to describe other intoxicants such as beer, although wine is the most common understanding of the word.
Muslims interpret these verses in total to forbid any intoxicating substance -- whether it be wine, beer, gin, whiskey, or whatever. The result is the same, and the Qur'an outlines that it is the intoxication, which makes one forgetful of God and prayer, which is harmful. Over the years, the list of intoxicating substances has come to include more modern street drugs and the like. The Prophet Muhammad also instructed his followers, at the time, to avoid any intoxicating substances -- (paraphrased) "if it intoxicates in a large amount, it is forbidden even in a small amount." For this reason, most observant Muslims avoid alcohol in any form, even small amounts that are sometimes used in cooking.
Contemporary pathologists and physicians have lately come to an absolute conclusion about intoxicants, and decided to warn people by pointing out the following facts:
[size=-1]
1) When many people enjoy the feeling when they have a drink, that feeling is a Drug Effect.[/size]
[size=-1]2) It is a nervous system depressant, much like an anesthetic, which, in sufficient quantity, can result in loss of consciousness.[/size]
[size=-1]3) It causes shrinking of the brain, and early senility.[/size]
[size=-1]4) It has a toxic effect on the peripheral nerves, the skeletal muscles, and the heart muscles.[/size]
[size=-1]5) It effects the digestive system, and the sexual system: it decreases active testosterone in men and inhibits the formations of testosterone.[/size]
[size=-1]6) It disturbs a person's quality of sleep, which is one reason a person may feel bad the next day after the night before.[/size]
[size=-1]7) It causes high blood pressure. Even regular use of modest amounts of alcohol, significantly increases the risk of having a hemorrhage in the brain causing a stroke. Heavy drinkers are 5 times as likely to have a hemorrhage stroke as non-drinkers.[/size]
Peace ...
James