Contents
General approach
Islam’s comprehensive approach to health and wellness means that anything harmful or nearly harmful is prohibited. Therefore, Islam takes an uncompromising stance towards alcohol and prohibits its consumption in small or large quantities. Alcohol is undoubtedly harmful and negatively affects the mind and body. It clouds the mind, causes disease, wastes money, and destroys individuals, families and communities. Researchers have proven that there is a strong link between alcohol and gambling. Drinking impairs judgment, lowers inhibition, and encourages the kind of risk-taking associated with gambling and dangerous activities. God tells us in the Qur’an that intoxicants and gambling are abominations of Satan and commands us to avoid them. (Quran 5:90)
The effects of alcohol
In Australia, a country with a population of about 20 million people, about 3,000 people die each year from alcohol abuse, while 65,000 more are hospitalized. Studies have consistently shown a link between heavy drinking and brain damage and around 2,500 Australians are treated for alcohol-related brain damage each year. Research in the UK indicates that 6% of cancer deaths are linked to alcohol abuse and the Harvard Center for Cancer Prevention says drinking significantly increases the risk of numerous cancers. Alcohol is considered highly carcinogenic and increases the risk of oral, pharyngeal, larynx, esophagus, liver and breast cancers. Alcohol consumption during pregnancy can lead to fetal alcohol syndrome, which causes the child to be small at birth, to have certain facial defects, small eye openings, fused or even missing fingers or toes, organ abnormalities, learning difficulties, mental retardation, and much more.
Researchers in Australia have also estimated that 47% of all violent crime offenders, and 43% of all victims of these crimes, were intoxicated before the event. Alcohol is responsible for 44% of burns, 34% of falls and drownings, 30% of car accidents, 16% of child abuse cases, and 7% of work accidents. While it is clear that alcohol is responsible for a myriad of evils, it is legal and even encouraged in most societies. In Muslim countries where alcohol is banned, many people still find it difficult to resist temptation and fall prey to the disease that is alcoholism. It is amazing that, even in the face of such appalling evidence against alcohol, people around the world continue to consume alcohol in ever-increasing amounts. Why?
A fall of the devil/satan
Alcohol is one of the means Satan uses to distract mankind from the worship of God. God clearly states in the Qur’an that Satan is an open enemy of mankind, but by drinking alcohol we invite Satan into our lives and make it easy for him to distract us from our real purpose in life, which is to worship of God.
“Surely Satan is an enemy to you, so treat him as an enemy. He only invites his followers that they may become the inhabitants of the blazing Fire.” (Quran 35:6)
Alcohol affects the mind and beautifies sinful behavior and evil deeds. It creates enmity and hatred between people, prevents them from remembering God and distracts them from prayer, and incites them to engage in illicit sexual relations. Alcohol arouses shame, regret and disgrace and renders the drinker mindless. It leads to revealing secrets and exposing flaws.
“Satan only wants to stir up enmity and hatred between you by intoxicants (alcoholic drinks) and gambling, and to keep you away from the remembrance of God and from prayer. Will you not then abstain?” (Quran 5:91)
How was alcohol banned?
In pre-Islamic Arabia, alcohol consumption was very common. To eradicate this evil, God in His mercy revealed the prohibition in stages. First, He made it clear to them that the harm of drinking alcohol is greater than the benefit, then He told the Muslims not to come to prayer drunk, and finally He revealed a verse that completely forbade alcohol.
“O you who believe! Intoxicants (alcoholic beverages of all kinds), gambling, idolatry, and divining arrows are an abomination of Satan’s handiwork. So avoid this, that you may prosper.” (Quran 5:90)
When this was revealed, the Muslim citizens of Medina immediately began to destroy their alcoholic barrels and empty them into the street. Even those who guiltlessly enjoyed cups of wine spewed the alcohol from their mouths. It is said that the streets of Medina were full of alcohol. So why is it so difficult to eradicate this evil in the 21st century? Believers today must fully rely on God, in the same way that the early Muslims relied on God and understood that He was their only Protector and Provider. All power and strength comes from God, and a plague like alcohol can only be eradicated when those affected by alcohol turn to God in complete submission.
The Quran is a guide
The Qur’an is a book of guidance sent to all mankind. It is a set of instructions from the Creator for His creation. If we follow these instructions, our lives will be easy and peaceful, even in the face of calamity and disaster. God associates alcohol and gambling with idolatry and declares it filthy and evil; but He is merciful and generous to the believers and recognizes the power of addiction. Islam is committed to encouraging and facilitating those who wish to repent of wrongdoing and sinful behavior. God accepts repentance from those who are truly sorry for their actions and commit themselves to abstain from sin.
Muslim communities do not cast out those who have made mistakes, but keep them within the fold of Islam by encouraging them to seek the nearness to God that will enable them to abandon sinful behavior. Friends, family and neighbors don’t just look away while someone destroys himself or his family. Islam is a community-oriented faith. There is no place for an individual to do as he pleases if it harms others. Alcohol abuse affects not only the alcoholic, but also his or her family and community. There is great wisdom in the prohibition of alcohol.