The Shield of Islam
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Any wonder why Islam forbids alcohol?
A man was once asked why he did not drink, and he replied, 'By God, I am not happy with my mind when it is sound, so why should I corrupt it even further?' - The Seventy-seven Branches of Faith - Imam Al-Bayhaqi, The Quillian Press - (1996, ISBN 1 872038 03 4) - Page 31
Alcohol is detrimental to your health especially your liver. Alcohol befogs the mind and prevents rational thinking. Alcohol causes road accidents and innocent lives lost. Alcohol increases the occurance of domestic violence. Alcohol addiction causes financial ruin.
The Holy Quran, 2.219: They ask thee concerning wine and gambling. Say: "In them is great sin, and some profit, for men; but the sin is greater than the profit." They ask thee how much they are to spend; Say: "What is beyond your needs." Thus doth Allah Make clear to you His Signs: In order that ye may consider.
The Holy Quran, 5.90: O ye who believe! Intoxicants and gambling, (dedication of) stones, and (divination by) arrows, are an abomination,- of Satan's handwork: eschew such (abomination), that ye may prosper.
The Holy Quran, 5.91: Satan's plan is (but) to excite enmity and hatred between you, with intoxicants and gambling, and hinder you from the remembrance of Allah, and from prayer: will ye not then abstain?
Many of grow up in societies where drinking is second nature to most people. Alcohol is staple in some societies, among an increasing number of people. It is also becoming an irreplaceable component of "having fun" and partying. No get together seems complete without alcohol. Tequila shots over the bar counter, vodka and vodka lime for beginners.
"Let's go have fun tonight" is being replaced by "Let's go get pissed drunk tonight."
It can be difficult to deal with an environment where peer pressure is overpowering - which is almost always is. But consider this: Drunk people embarrass themselves in public and in front of friends. They have little control their actions or their words. One friend of mine nearly died because he walked onto a busy street in his drunken stupor. Another friend was raped by her boyfriend while she was asleep/hungover.
You have a million reasons to stop drinking - not just for yourself but for your friends and family...and especially the innocent stranger who might get hurt by your actions during a drunken stupor. You'll feel healthier - it's a guarantee and you'll save money to do other cool stuff.
God gives us instructions because He is All Knowing. Everything in Islam has a practical and healthy reason behind it..some of which we are aware of and others we're not but they're for our own good. God says in the Holy Quran - there is some good in alcohol but the bad outweighs the good.
http://www.themodernreligion.com/index2.html
One glass too many... The Prohibition of Alcohol
By S. M. BLEHER
Everybody would admit that there are problems with alcohol. Drink driving for example. Or violent crimes in which alcohol abuse plays a part. Yet most agree that the moderate consumption of alcohol as is customary in our society does not do much harm. Let's take a hard look at the facts:
The Facts
Alcohol is a bigger problem than we tend to admit, and it starts at an early age. According to the government publications on the state of pubic health (1993)
20% of 9 to 15 year olds have had their first alcoholic drink by the age of 8, and 89% by the age of 15. 12% (more than one tenth!) of 11 to 15 year olds are regular drinkers.
And according to "Social Trends" ( HMSO 1994), almost a third of the males living in Britain consume alcohol above sensible limits (consumption above sensible limits is lower in women with 11% of the total).
Besides clear convictions for drunkenness or drink driving, courts are kept busy with numerous offenses committed under the influence of alcohol, from domestic violence (including child battering) to serious vandalism or grievous bodily harm.
The government's health and safety executive jointly with the health departments and departments of employment had to publish policies on the "problem drinker at work", and the National Health Service spends large amounts of scarce resources on illnesses caused or exacerbated by alcohol.
Every Christmas there is a nationwide campaign against drink driving.
Governmental representatives lament the state of the nation's health and drinking habits, but they don't do much more: There is a great deal of tax revenue in the sale of alcoholic beverages.
The Islamic View
Islam takes a different view. It values the moral and spiritual health of a nation as much as it's physical well being. It considers anything that interferes with the normal working of the mind, numb our senses, thereby reducing our level of shame or responsibility, or clouds or perception as harmful (this includes alcohol as well as other drugs altering the mind).
And recognising that different people react quite differently to the same stimulant, it does not leave judgment, as to how much is acceptable to them. Too many people thought they had control over their drinking habit, yet endued up having "one glass too many".
Islam categorically states that if a substance can destroy the clarity of the mind in large quantities, it is harmful even in minute quantities. Islam, therefore, advocates a total prohibition of narcotic drugs, including alcohol. It forbids the use, not just the abuse of these substances.
Another Prohibition
Many would by now point to the prohibition period in America and how it utterly failed by driving the habit underground. As God is aware of human nature, Islam acknowledges how entrenched such habits can be in people and that they cannot be changes overnight. The gradual prohibition of alcohol has to go hand in hand with an educational campaign to build a moral awareness and spiritual identity in our society.
When Islam was first established over fourteen centuries ago in Arabia, continuing the Judeo-Christian tradition of prophets from Abraham over Moses, Jesus to Muhammad peace be upon them all, the harm that alcohol caused was well recognised, but it was not immediately eradicated.
In a first revelation, the Qur'an the Holy Book for Muslims, acknowledged the benefits of alcohol, (as now proven by modern medicine that small amounts of alcohol are beneficial to the body) but pointed out that it's harms out weighed those benefits by far. (Click HERE to read more about this)
Next, it forbade believers from praying whilst under the influence of alcohol, thus making it clear that spirituality and drunkenness don't mix.
Finally, many years later, was altogether prohibited as the handiwork of the devil. By the early Muslims who had lived through the spiritual and moral teachings of the Prophet Muhammad (SAW) had realised the harms of the drug as well as the benefits of the Islamic system of values as the foundation of a strong and caring society.
They happily spilled whatever alcoholic beverages was left in their possession, and the streets of Medinah were reported as having been awash with the stuff.
Saving Society
Modern society has come a long way since those days. We pride ourselves of great technical achievements. Yet we have also fallen back into the evils of drunkenness and the harm it does to so many people, because we have lost our moral conscience and sense of direction.
We forgot that there is more to human civilisation than material advancement. Drained of true humanity, many seek escape and consolation in drink and drugs.
However, this situation is not irreversible. Whilst the hypocritical approach of the American prohibition, where the law enforcement agencies collided with gangster syndicates, was bound to fail, Islam shows the way how a pure and content society can be built which need not be ashamed of its darker side and need not numb its senses in guilt and desperation.
Next time, before you tend to drown your worries in another glass, to be followed by another and yet another, put it down and find out about the Islamic alternative.
A man was once asked why he did not drink, and he replied, 'By God, I am not happy with my mind when it is sound, so why should I corrupt it even further?' - The Seventy-seven Branches of Faith - Imam Al-Bayhaqi, The Quillian Press - (1996, ISBN 1 872038 03 4) - Page 31
Alcohol is detrimental to your health especially your liver. Alcohol befogs the mind and prevents rational thinking. Alcohol causes road accidents and innocent lives lost. Alcohol increases the occurance of domestic violence. Alcohol addiction causes financial ruin.
The Holy Quran, 2.219: They ask thee concerning wine and gambling. Say: "In them is great sin, and some profit, for men; but the sin is greater than the profit." They ask thee how much they are to spend; Say: "What is beyond your needs." Thus doth Allah Make clear to you His Signs: In order that ye may consider.
The Holy Quran, 5.90: O ye who believe! Intoxicants and gambling, (dedication of) stones, and (divination by) arrows, are an abomination,- of Satan's handwork: eschew such (abomination), that ye may prosper.
The Holy Quran, 5.91: Satan's plan is (but) to excite enmity and hatred between you, with intoxicants and gambling, and hinder you from the remembrance of Allah, and from prayer: will ye not then abstain?
Many of grow up in societies where drinking is second nature to most people. Alcohol is staple in some societies, among an increasing number of people. It is also becoming an irreplaceable component of "having fun" and partying. No get together seems complete without alcohol. Tequila shots over the bar counter, vodka and vodka lime for beginners.
"Let's go have fun tonight" is being replaced by "Let's go get pissed drunk tonight."
It can be difficult to deal with an environment where peer pressure is overpowering - which is almost always is. But consider this: Drunk people embarrass themselves in public and in front of friends. They have little control their actions or their words. One friend of mine nearly died because he walked onto a busy street in his drunken stupor. Another friend was raped by her boyfriend while she was asleep/hungover.
You have a million reasons to stop drinking - not just for yourself but for your friends and family...and especially the innocent stranger who might get hurt by your actions during a drunken stupor. You'll feel healthier - it's a guarantee and you'll save money to do other cool stuff.
God gives us instructions because He is All Knowing. Everything in Islam has a practical and healthy reason behind it..some of which we are aware of and others we're not but they're for our own good. God says in the Holy Quran - there is some good in alcohol but the bad outweighs the good.
http://www.themodernreligion.com/index2.html
One glass too many... The Prohibition of Alcohol
By S. M. BLEHER
Everybody would admit that there are problems with alcohol. Drink driving for example. Or violent crimes in which alcohol abuse plays a part. Yet most agree that the moderate consumption of alcohol as is customary in our society does not do much harm. Let's take a hard look at the facts:
The Facts
Alcohol is a bigger problem than we tend to admit, and it starts at an early age. According to the government publications on the state of pubic health (1993)
20% of 9 to 15 year olds have had their first alcoholic drink by the age of 8, and 89% by the age of 15. 12% (more than one tenth!) of 11 to 15 year olds are regular drinkers.
And according to "Social Trends" ( HMSO 1994), almost a third of the males living in Britain consume alcohol above sensible limits (consumption above sensible limits is lower in women with 11% of the total).
Besides clear convictions for drunkenness or drink driving, courts are kept busy with numerous offenses committed under the influence of alcohol, from domestic violence (including child battering) to serious vandalism or grievous bodily harm.
The government's health and safety executive jointly with the health departments and departments of employment had to publish policies on the "problem drinker at work", and the National Health Service spends large amounts of scarce resources on illnesses caused or exacerbated by alcohol.
Every Christmas there is a nationwide campaign against drink driving.
Governmental representatives lament the state of the nation's health and drinking habits, but they don't do much more: There is a great deal of tax revenue in the sale of alcoholic beverages.
The Islamic View
Islam takes a different view. It values the moral and spiritual health of a nation as much as it's physical well being. It considers anything that interferes with the normal working of the mind, numb our senses, thereby reducing our level of shame or responsibility, or clouds or perception as harmful (this includes alcohol as well as other drugs altering the mind).
And recognising that different people react quite differently to the same stimulant, it does not leave judgment, as to how much is acceptable to them. Too many people thought they had control over their drinking habit, yet endued up having "one glass too many".
Islam categorically states that if a substance can destroy the clarity of the mind in large quantities, it is harmful even in minute quantities. Islam, therefore, advocates a total prohibition of narcotic drugs, including alcohol. It forbids the use, not just the abuse of these substances.
Another Prohibition
Many would by now point to the prohibition period in America and how it utterly failed by driving the habit underground. As God is aware of human nature, Islam acknowledges how entrenched such habits can be in people and that they cannot be changes overnight. The gradual prohibition of alcohol has to go hand in hand with an educational campaign to build a moral awareness and spiritual identity in our society.
When Islam was first established over fourteen centuries ago in Arabia, continuing the Judeo-Christian tradition of prophets from Abraham over Moses, Jesus to Muhammad peace be upon them all, the harm that alcohol caused was well recognised, but it was not immediately eradicated.
In a first revelation, the Qur'an the Holy Book for Muslims, acknowledged the benefits of alcohol, (as now proven by modern medicine that small amounts of alcohol are beneficial to the body) but pointed out that it's harms out weighed those benefits by far. (Click HERE to read more about this)
Next, it forbade believers from praying whilst under the influence of alcohol, thus making it clear that spirituality and drunkenness don't mix.
Finally, many years later, was altogether prohibited as the handiwork of the devil. By the early Muslims who had lived through the spiritual and moral teachings of the Prophet Muhammad (SAW) had realised the harms of the drug as well as the benefits of the Islamic system of values as the foundation of a strong and caring society.
They happily spilled whatever alcoholic beverages was left in their possession, and the streets of Medinah were reported as having been awash with the stuff.
Saving Society
Modern society has come a long way since those days. We pride ourselves of great technical achievements. Yet we have also fallen back into the evils of drunkenness and the harm it does to so many people, because we have lost our moral conscience and sense of direction.
We forgot that there is more to human civilisation than material advancement. Drained of true humanity, many seek escape and consolation in drink and drugs.
However, this situation is not irreversible. Whilst the hypocritical approach of the American prohibition, where the law enforcement agencies collided with gangster syndicates, was bound to fail, Islam shows the way how a pure and content society can be built which need not be ashamed of its darker side and need not numb its senses in guilt and desperation.
Next time, before you tend to drown your worries in another glass, to be followed by another and yet another, put it down and find out about the Islamic alternative.
