Just a question always knew that alcohol was no-no in islam ( its brilliant ffs) want to know why.

Cheers
Adam

Let me see if I remember this correctly, and sorry, I don't have any scripture to back this up right now.

In the beginning alcohol was allowed, but then Mo's men started to like it a little bit too much, so he outlawed it.

Because if you drink you won't pray.

Is it banned in Islam? I have Muslim friends who drink like hell!

the way i had it explained to me (which in no way means it's true) is that anything that which "clouds" or "alters" the mind is forbidden. Hence no to alcohol, cannabis, heroin, etc, but nicotine is fine and dandy.

well... im no expert but I thinks its due to the book.

Quran 2:219 ''They ask you concerning alcoholic drinks and Games of Chance, Say: In them are harm and goods for men, but their harm exceeds their good effects.''

Quran 5:90 ''O ye who believe! Intoxicants and gambling, (dedication of) stones, and (divination by) arrows, are an abomination, - of Satan's handwork: so avoid it that you may prosper''

But on the other hand ( am I alone in finding the inconsistencies in islamic teachings odd)

16:67 ''And of the fruits of the date-palms and the grapes, you obtain Alcoholic drinks and goods. Verily in that is a Sign for a people who use their understanding.''

Please forgive me if im wrong as I am by no means a student of any religion.

What about caffeine? Doesn't that make you anxious?

Actually I think the Quaran got this one right. If you look at Britain today, alcohol is a big problem, people drink it in excess to have "fun" but biologically it has been shown to cause depression and anxiety - hardly the fun people want. Alcohol lowers the serotonin and norepinephrine levels in your brain, with prolonged repeated use to zero, and even with anti-depressant, this chemical imbalance can take a long time to return to normal. And of course, alcohol temporarily prevents stress hormones...and you feel much worse after sobering up when they kick in again.

Interestingly, we're not just speaking about alcoholics. A study of a group people who drink one drink a day found their depression scores improved after stopping drinking for 3 months.

That's not to say the Quaran is right, but when it comes to alcohol it was just a bad idea - we should have stuck with cannabis instead.

I think this is part of a package of health advice that got disguised as religious injunctions. Don't drink alcohol, don't eat pork, wash your hands several times a day, oh and do some light exercise too while you're at it.

There are plenty of Muslims who do drink alcohol though.

Pity Allah couldn't have informed Mo that in about 1,000 years people would cross the great ocean and discover an aromatic leaf growing in a new continent, and that under no circumstances should any muslim smoke or chew it.

jim wrote:16:67 ''And of the fruits of the date-palms and the grapes, you obtain Alcoholic drinks and goods. Verily in that is a Sign for a people who use their understanding.''

Please forgive me if im wrong as I am by no means a student of any religion.

You are on the right track. Yes, the Qur'an does ban alcohol, cigarrettes etc, and if you think about, alcohol is bad for you in the long run.

Anyways, that verse that I quoted above deals with heaven. Although it may sound weird, yes, there will be "wine" in heaven. It is a reward for people from sustaining from it in this life. But this type of wine will not clog the brain or cloud judgement or harm the body. It is "pure" wine.
"With cups, and jugs, and a glass from the flowing wine, Wherefrom they will get neither any aching of the head, nor any intoxication." (Qur'an 56:18-19)

Not my first choice for a bottle to go with dinner then.
Wine that doesn't get you drunk, so that will be grape juice then

katja z wrote:I think this is part of a package of health advice that got disguised as religious injunctions. Don't drink alcohol, don't eat pork, wash your hands several times a day, oh and do some light exercise too while you're at it.

There are plenty of Muslims who do drink alcohol though.

P much this. Don't eat pork because it causes disease (hot climate +storage etc), don't drink it causes social + physical problems, was your hands 5 times a day, its just a healthy thing to do

The wrote:

You are on the right track. Yes, the Qur'an does ban alcohol, cigarrettes etc, and if you think about, alcohol is bad for you in the long run.

I grew up with many muslims in a boarding school, plus i have spent time in several muslim countries, and i can honestly say the the rate of smoking seemed greater than in the UK. Every time i asked about tobacco i was told it was fine as it doesn't cloud the judgement (ha! ever gone out and forgotten your ciggies? There's your clouded judgement right there )

Just to help clear up some things:
If you see a Muslim drinking/smoking/eating pork, they are doing things that is haram (something that causes sin). Just because they say they are "men" does not give them any more rights. A Muslim is a Muslim, no matter what gender they are.

Wait , drinking alchool without excess is ultimately BAD for the body ??Even FRENCH GOOD WINE????!!!

The wrote:If you see a Muslim drinking/smoking/eating pork, they are doing things that is haram (something that causes sin).

Hello The, haven't seen you for a while. Could you explain please: I understand "haram" to mean "forbidden". Are you saying that eating forbidden food is not, of itself, a sin? But if you do eat a pork pie it will cause you to do something else, which will then be sinful?

Oeditor wrote:Hello The, haven't seen you for a while. Could you explain please: I understand "haram" to mean "forbidden". Are you saying that eating forbidden food is not, of itself, a sin? But if you do eat a pork pie it will cause you to do something else, which will then be sinful?

Concepts in Islam do not mirror Christianity. There is for example no concept of morality in Islam - rather there is a concept of "legal" and "illegal" or "allowed" and "forbidden". Doing something that is haram is what is not allowed - and is therefore a "sin".

jim wrote:
Quran 5:90 ''O ye who believe! Intoxicants and gambling, (dedication of) stones, and (divination by) arrows, are an abomination, - of Satan's handwork: so avoid it that you may prosper''

But on the other hand ( am I alone in finding the inconsistencies in islamic teachings odd)

16:67 ''And of the fruits of the date-palms and the grapes, you obtain Alcoholic drinks and goods. Verily in that is a Sign for a people who use their understanding.''

Please forgive me if im wrong as I am by no means a student of any religion.

Muhammad changed his mind on a number of aspects in his revelations.
People started to get suspicious at this (because they had been told that Allah would only reveal one perfect message for all time) and started to suspect that Muhammad might be a charlatan. Muhammad then revealed a verse that said that Allah was allowed make changes - which was better than the previous revelation and told them to shut up.

He also revealed a verse saying that people shouldn't use previous verses revealed against him.

The concept in Islam is called the concept of Abrogation - where the new verse abrogates the old verse. Note that later verses in the Qur'an are not necessarily later chronologically. Approximately 5% of the Qur'an has been abrogated by other bits of the Qur'an.

Regarding alcohol, Muhammad first revealed that it was acceptable but frowned upon. He later then revealed that it was banned.

offon wrote:
Concepts in Islam do not mirror Christianity. There is for example no concept of morality in Islam - rather there is a concept of "legal" and "illegal" or "allowed" and "forbidden".

That's going to take a bit of digesting. At first sight, it would seem to reduce Muslims to something like automata. It would explain a great deal, though.

offon wrote: Approximately 5% of the Qur'an has been abrogated by other bits of the Qur'an.

That may well be 5% of the verses. However about 2/3 of the chapters contain abrogations. If chapters were "revealed" as a whole, rather than a few verses at a time (I don't know which is correct), the bigger figure is more important. http://wapedia.mobi/en/Criticism_of_the_Qur%27an