"The manager is reviewing a potential employee’s application and notes that the fellow has never worked in retail before.'For a man with no experience,' he says, 'you are certainly asking a high wage and position.''Well, sir,' the applicant replies, 'the work is much more difficult when you don’t know what you’re doing.'""'Everyone eats rice, yet no one knows why. When I say this now, people laugh at me,' that's a snippet of an eighteenth-century Zen poet Ryokan poem," said Jasmine to continue what she was speaking about."Ryokan stimulates us to ask, who made these decisions? Why do we love spices, sweets, coffee? The answer is thought provoking: no one knows the names of the great inventors. We know the names of a few latter-day chefs, but food history—unlike the history of war and violence—is generally a history without names. Whoever developed bread wheat—a complicated, difficult hybrid—benefited humanity more than any named hero; yet we have no clue as to his or her name or language, though we know every detail of the lives of arch-villains like Stalin and Hitler. The unknown Mexican indigenous people who developed maize gave life to countless people. We know nothing about the maize breeders, though we know the names of the conquistadors and generals who massacred their descendents. Humans make food, but, as Karl Marx said of history, 'they do not make it just as they please'. They construct their foodways within limits set by biology, economics, and psychology. There is an infinite number of possible dietary regimes, but no dietary regime can long endure if it does not provide protein, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, and necessary minerals.We do not know who they were. We know nothing about them. They live on, but only in the silence of bread, the calm of a bowl of rice, the joy of wine, the light of a cup of coffee. Perhaps they did not care; perhaps they felt that fame is for those who have nothing better to leave. From the late unlamented twentieth century, almost every- one knows of Madonna and Elvis, but few indeed recall E. V. McCollum or Albert Szent-György—the discoverers of vitamins A and C, respectively.Knowing about food is fun, but there are more cogent reasons to worry about understanding foodways. The problems of hunger, of obesity, and of malnutrition are among the world’s most serious con- cerns. Diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and other diseases owe much of their prevalence to poor eating habits.We eat largely to stay alive. Most people in the world, most of the time, have to take whatever they can get—usually dull, inadequate, depressing fare. But almost everyone gets to celebrate occasionally, and good food is almost always at the core of good times.The ancient Egyptians, Mesopotamians, and their neighbors all concerned themselves about good food. The Bible refers to spices, olive oil, fat meat, fruits, and other goods. The ancient Greeks had an extensive gourmet literature, much of it surviving only in quotations. The Chinese, of course, are famous for good eating; Yuan Mei in the eighteenth century was probably the most famous Chinese food writer, as well as being a feminist far ahead of his time. The French gourmet tradition was old before Jean Sangthelme Brillat-Savarin set his seal on it in The Physiology of Taste. This book became the Great Work for gourmets—or, as he called them, gourmands, the words having differentiated in meaning only since his time.It is the nature of humans to take delight in satisfying survival needs. Indeed, any higher animal must find deprivation of food and drink uncomfortable, and satisfaction of the need at least somewhat pleasant. Hunger hurts. Satiation is a neutral state; it feels neither good nor bad—unless one is overstuffed to the point of sickness. The enjoyment comes in the process of moving from state of hunger) to state of comfortable fullness. Almost every culture seems to have a saying equivalent to the common English-language proverb 'hunger is the best sauce.'If you are feeling tired and extremely full after eating, it is a sign that your meals are not balanced and that you need to make some changes to the way you are eating. Eating balanced meals and being moderate with our diets is one of the best ways to achieve good health. Our beloved Prophet (ﷺ) says,مَا مَلأَ آدَمِيٌّ وِعَاءً شَرًّا مِنْ بَطْنٍ حَسْبُ الآدَمِيِّ لُقَيْمَاتٌ يُقِمْنَ صُلْبَهُ فَإِنْ غَلَبَتِ الآدَمِيَّ نَفْسُهُ فَثُلُثٌ لِلطَّعَامِ وَثُلُثٌ لِلشَّرَابِ وَثُلُثٌ لِلنَّفَسِ'A human being fills no worse vessel than his stomach. It is sufficient for a human being to eat a few mouthfuls to keep his spine straight. But if he must (fill it), then one third of food, one third for drink and one third for air.' [Sunan Ibn Majah; Sahih according to Ibn Majah, Hasan according to at-Tirmidhi]Apart from the food served on their plates, people certainly want to enjoy delicious drinks. It would be difficult for us nowadays to imagine the crucial role alcoholic drinks played before the hot, nonalcoholic beverages—coffee, tea, and chocolate—assumed their permanent place in the European diet. The former were consumed as both a semiluxury to be enjoyed and a nourishing staple. Medieval people drank copious amounts of wine and beer, especially on holidays—and holidays were quite numerous then (in Paris, for instance, 103 holidays were observed in the year 1660), including church con¬ secrations, weddings, baptisms, burials, and 'blue Mondays.' On workdays beer and wine were a regular part of the meals.Prior to the introduction of the potato, beer was second only to bread as the main source of nourishment for most central and north Europeans. An English family in the latter half of the seventeenth century—the period when coffee drinking was catching on among the upper classes—consumed about three liters of beer per person daily, children included. Although large breweries already existed by then, beer brewing was still a part of housekeep¬ ing, like bread baking and slaughtering—one of the housewife's duties.The ritual function of alcohol, above and beyond its nutritional function, explains what we now regard as the excessive consumption of alcohol in preindustrial societies. Drinking rites are of course still very much with us today. Drink¬ ing to someone's health, clinking glasses, the obligation to return another's toast, drinking as a pledge of friendship, drinking contests, etc.—these are rites and obligations one cannot easily evade. To earlier societies they were even more obligatory.Drinkers would work themselves into a state of intoxication that was not merely the result of the alcohol imbibed. It was also psychological in origin, fueled by the frenzy engendered in out¬ doing yourself offering toasts.A drinking bout, once under way, usually ended only when its participants lost consciousness. To withdraw earlier was viewed either as an insult to one's drinking companions or as an admission of weakness on the part of the one who 'chickened out'.It began with pepper and other spices, like cinnamon and nutmeg, some eight hundred years ago. Then came coffee, tea, and chocolate, followed by alcohol and opium—all articles of pleasure people in the world craved in order to escape from their humdrum lives and heighten their daily enjoyment.Every society has the pleasure goods, stimulants, and inebriants it deserves, needs, and can tolerate. In whatever forms it has been consumed—as wine, beer, or hard liquor—alcohol has become so permanent an element of some culture. The socially destructive consequences of alcoholism are all too obvious. Alcohol addiction is one of the most devastating ills of our civilization. That its material cause, alcohol, should be so firmly anchored in our culture.The same cannot be said of the group of narcotics that have achieved such a tremendous significance in other cultures but never really gained a foothold in Europe. These drugs might be referred to as intoxicants—and 'poison' translates the toxin in intoxicant quite literally—a designation the bitterest ideological opponents of alcohol have applied to it too.The taboo on narcotics (opium, hashish, marijuana, cocaine, heroin, morphine, etc.) and their being made illegal in today's world happened fairly recently. Until the end of the nineteenth century narcotics were treated and used in a laissez-faire manner. How freely and naively they were used, and with what consequences, is exemplified in the history of opium. At the beginning of the nineteenth century, opium was commonly available as a sedative and painkiller. It was used somewhat as aspirin is today and had a regular place in the family medicine chest. The family doctor prescribed it like any other medication. The prominent opium addicts of the century usually traced the start of their addiction to just such dosing with opiates in childhood.So, what is addiction? Muhammad bin Mustafa al-Jibaly defined Addiction as a recurring engagement in a substance or activity despite the negative consequences resulting from it. It is a physical and psychological dependence on the substance or activity.Pleasure and enjoyment would have originally been sought by the addict. However, over time, he develops a compulsion to continue engaging in his addictive behavior in order to be able to pursue his other activities or obligations. Addiction is a primary and chronic disease of brain reward, motivation, memory and related circuitry. An addiction is harmful both to the addict and to those around him.An addict’s enjoyment often becomes focused on carrying out the addictive behavior and on relieving withdrawal. This results in self-deprivation of many important experiences that could give him happiness.An addict may deny or fail to recognize the harm that his addiction causes to his health and overall wellbeing. He may even blame outside circumstances or other people for his difficulties. Some addicts, on the other hand, are very aware of their addiction and its harms but continue indulging in it for various reasons. The harm of addiction may only be recognized when the addict goes through a crisis. This can occur if the addictive substance or behavior is taken away completely, forcing the addict to go into withdrawal. The crisis can also be a direct consequence of the addiction, such as serious illness, loss of a partner, or loss of a job.Alcohol is the most common representative of intoxicants. When alcohol is drunk, it first stimulates the mouth and pharynx mucous membranes. This increases secretions of the salivary and gastric glands, boosting appetite. For a short time, the drinker feels an enhancement in his physical performance; but this is soon replaced with a feeling of fatigue. The drinker’s heartbeat and breathing rates increase, his skin reddens, and blood pressure rises. His brain is stimulated, making him more talkative and vivacious. At the same time, his brain cells are depressed, weakening his higher functions of thinking, observing, awareness, control, and judgment.In Islam, any substance that suppresses the intellect or confuses reason is considered an intoxicant and is given the generic term of khamr. Halal food is not exclusively about meat. But questions about what types of meat should be consumed and how they should be sourced occupy a central place in halal considerations. Along with meat, the status of intoxicants has been a focal topic in halal matters. According to standard halal considerations, alcoholic drinks are just as najis (impure or filthy) as pork, blood, and carrion. Most legal experts have regarded all intoxicating beverages as forbidden.Following are the relevant verses regarding intoxicating substances in the order they were revealed. Beginning at Mecca, Allah said,وَاللّٰهُ اَنْزَلَ مِنَ السَّمَاۤءِ مَاۤءً فَاَحْيَا بِهِ الْاَرْضَ بَعْدَ مَوْتِهَاۗ اِنَّ فِيْ ذٰلِكَ لَاٰيَةً لِّقَوْمٍ يَّسْمَعُوْنَ وَاِنَّ لَكُمْ فِى الْاَنْعَامِ لَعِبْرَةً ۚ نُسْقِيْكُمْ مِّمَّا فِيْ بُطُوْنِهٖ مِنْۢ بَيْنِ فَرْثٍ وَّدَمٍ لَّبَنًا خَالِصًا سَاۤىِٕغًا لِّلشّٰرِبِيْنَ وَمِنْ ثَمَرٰتِ النَّخِيْلِ وَالْاَعْنَابِ تَتَّخِذُوْنَ مِنْهُ سَكَرًا وَّرِزْقًا حَسَنًاۗ اِنَّ فِيْ ذٰلِكَ لَاٰيَةً لِّقَوْمٍ يَّعْقِلُوْنَ'And Allah has sent down rain from the sky and given life thereby to the earth after its lifelessness. Indeed in that is a sign for a people who listen. And indeed, for you in grazing livestock is a lesson. We give you drink from what is in their bellies - between excretion and blood - pure milk, palatable to drinkers. And from the fruits of the palm trees and grapevines you take intoxicant and good provision. Indeed in that is a sign for a people who reason.' [QS. An-Nahl (16):65-67]These verses do not explicitly state that intoxicating drinks are haram; indeed, they present them as among Allah’s gifts to those who appreciate his power and creation.Next, revealed in Mecca, Allah said,يَطُوْفُ عَلَيْهِمْ وِلْدَانٌ مُّخَلَّدُوْنَۙ بِاَكْوَابٍ وَّاَبَارِيْقَۙ وَكَأْسٍ مِّنْ مَّعِيْنٍۙ لَّا يُصَدَّعُوْنَ عَنْهَا وَلَا يُنْزِفُوْنَۙ وَفَاكِهَةٍ مِّمَّا يَتَخَيَّرُوْنَۙ وَلَحْمِ طَيْرٍ مِّمَّا يَشْتَهُوْنَۗ'There will circulate among them young boys made eternal. With vessels, pitchers and a cup [of wine] from a flowing spring, no headache will they have therefrom, nor will they be intoxicated, and fruit of what they select, and the meat of fowl, from whatever they desire. [QS. Al-Waqi'ah (56):17-21]Later in Mecca, Allah said,فِيْ جَنّٰتِ النَّعِيْمِۙ عَلٰى سُرُرٍ مُّتَقٰبِلِيْنَ يُطَافُ عَلَيْهِمْ بِكَأْسٍ مِّنْ مَّعِيْنٍۢ ۙبَيْضَاۤءَ لَذَّةٍ لِّلشّٰرِبِيْنَۚ لَا فِيْهَا غَوْلٌ وَّلَا هُمْ عَنْهَا يُنْزَفُوْنَ وَعِنْدَهُمْ قٰصِرٰتُ الطَّرْفِ عِيْنٌ ۙ'In gardens of pleasure. On thrones facing one another. There will be circulated among them a cup [of wine] from a flowing spring, white and delicious to the drinkers; no bad effect is there in it, nor from it will they be intoxicated. And with them will be women limiting [their] glances [i.e., chaste and modest, looking only at their mates], with large, [beautiful] eyes. [QS. As-Saffat (37):43-48]These verses mention pleasure-inducing drinks in paradise suggest that the problem with their earthly counterparts is not their foul or impure (najis) nature, but their troubling effects: they cause bodily discomfort and inebriation. Without the latter, they are as worthy of paradise as honey, milk, fruits, fowl meat, and wide-eyed maidens.Then, again in Mecca, Allah said,اِنَّ الْاَبْرَارَ لَفِيْ نَعِيْمٍۙ عَلَى الْاَرَاۤىِٕكِ يَنْظُرُوْنَۙ تَعْرِفُ فِيْ وُجُوْهِهِمْ نَضْرَةَ النَّعِيْمِۚ يُسْقَوْنَ مِنْ رَّحِيْقٍ مَّخْتُوْمٍۙ خِتٰمُهٗ مِسْكٌ ۗوَفِيْ ذٰلِكَ فَلْيَتَنَافَسِ الْمُتَنٰفِسُوْنَۗ'Indeed, the righteous will be in pleasure. On adorned couches, observing. You will recognize in their faces the radiance of pleasure. They will be given to drink [pure] wine [which is delicious and does not intoxicate] [which was] sealed. The last of it [i.e., its lingering odor] is musk. So for this let the competitors compete. [QS. Al-Mutaffifin (83):22-26]In early hijra to Medina, Allah said,يَسْـَٔلُوْنَكَ عَنِ الْخَمْرِ وَالْمَيْسِرِۗ قُلْ فِيْهِمَآ اِثْمٌ كَبِيْرٌ وَّمَنَافِعُ لِلنَّاسِۖ وَاِثْمُهُمَآ اَكْبَرُ مِنْ نَّفْعِهِمَاۗ وَيَسْـَٔلُوْنَكَ مَاذَا يُنْفِقُوْنَ ەۗ قُلِ الْعَفْوَۗ كَذٰلِكَ يُبَيِّنُ اللّٰهُ لَكُمُ الْاٰيٰتِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَفَكَّرُوْنَۙ'They ask you about wine [the word "khamr" (wine) includes all intoxicants] and gambling. Say, "In them is great sin and [yet, some] benefit for people. But their sin is greater than their benefit." And they ask you what they should spend. Say, "The excess [beyond needs]." Thus Allāh makes clear to you the verses [of revelation] that you might give thought. [QS. Al-Baqarah (2):219]This first Medinan verse that mentions khamr, acknowledges its benefit but declares that its resultant sin is greater than any good.Then, in Medina, Allah said,يٰٓاَيُّهَا الَّذِيْنَ اٰمَنُوْا لَا تَقْرَبُوا الصَّلٰوةَ وَاَنْتُمْ سُكٰرٰى حَتّٰى تَعْلَمُوْا مَا تَقُوْلُوْنَ وَلَا جُنُبًا اِلَّا عَابِرِيْ سَبِيْلٍ حَتّٰى تَغْتَسِلُوْا ۗوَاِنْ كُنْتُمْ مَّرْضٰٓى اَوْ عَلٰى سَفَرٍ اَوْ جَاۤءَ اَحَدٌ مِّنْكُمْ مِّنَ الْغَاۤىِٕطِ اَوْ لٰمَسْتُمُ النِّسَاۤءَ فَلَمْ تَجِدُوْا مَاۤءً فَتَيَمَّمُوْا صَعِيْدًا طَيِّبًا فَامْسَحُوْا بِوُجُوْهِكُمْ وَاَيْدِيْكُمْ ۗ اِنَّ اللّٰهَ كَانَ عَفُوًّا غَفُوْرًا'O you who have believed, do not approach prayer while you are intoxicated until you know what you are saying [the use of intoxicants was later prohibited completely] or in a state of janābah [literally, 'distance', the state of one under obligation to perform ghusl (a complete bath) due to having had sexual intercourse or ejaculation], except those passing through [a place of prayer], until you have washed [your whole body]. And if you are ill or on a journey or one of you comes from the place of relieving himself or you have contacted women [i.e., had sexual intercourse] and find no water, then seek clean earth and wipe over your faces and your hands [with it]. Indeed, Allāh is ever Pardoning [literally, able to erase and remove sins completely, leaving no trace of them in the record of deeds] and Forgiving.' [QS. An-Nisa (4):43]This verse again clarifies that alcohol consumption is repulsive for its inebriating symptoms, especially during prayer, when one is expected to be sober. The fact that this verse compares intoxication to bodily impurity caused by ejaculation (janaba) is instructive considering Islam’s favorable treatment of licit sex. The religion sanctions sexual intercourse among lawful partners but requires them to take a ritual bath (ghusl al-janaba) before they participate in any religious activity. In a similar fashion, and read in isolation, the verse may be interpreted to suggest that alcohol consumption might be acceptable so long as those who drink purify themselves before prayer.Revealed in Medina, Allah said,مَثَلُ الْجَنَّةِ الَّتِيْ وُعِدَ الْمُتَّقُوْنَ ۗفِيْهَآ اَنْهٰرٌ مِّنْ مَّاۤءٍ غَيْرِ اٰسِنٍۚ وَاَنْهٰرٌ مِّنْ لَّبَنٍ لَّمْ يَتَغَيَّرْ طَعْمُهٗ ۚوَاَنْهٰرٌ مِّنْ خَمْرٍ لَّذَّةٍ لِّلشّٰرِبِيْنَ ەۚ وَاَنْهٰرٌ مِّنْ عَسَلٍ مُّصَفًّى ۗوَلَهُمْ فِيْهَا مِنْ كُلِّ الثَّمَرٰتِ وَمَغْفِرَةٌ مِّنْ رَّبِّهِمْ ۗ كَمَنْ هُوَ خَالِدٌ فِى النَّارِ وَسُقُوْا مَاۤءً حَمِيْمًا فَقَطَّعَ اَمْعَاۤءَهُمْ'Is the description of Paradise, which the righteous are promised, wherein are rivers of water unaltered [in taste or smell, neither stagnant nor polluted], rivers of milk the taste of which never changes, rivers of wine delicious to those who drink, and rivers of purified honey, in which they will have from all [kinds of] fruits and forgiveness from their Lord... [Are its inhabitants] like those who abide eternally in the Fire and are given to drink scalding water that will sever their intestines?' [QS. Muhammad (47):15]The final prohibitions were revealed in Medina, Allah said,يٰٓاَيُّهَا الَّذِيْنَ اٰمَنُوْٓا اِنَّمَا الْخَمْرُ وَالْمَيْسِرُ وَالْاَنْصَابُ وَالْاَزْلَامُ رِجْسٌ مِّنْ عَمَلِ الشَّيْطٰنِ فَاجْتَنِبُوْهُ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُوْنَ اِنَّمَا يُرِيْدُ الشَّيْطٰنُ اَنْ يُّوْقِعَ بَيْنَكُمُ الْعَدَاوَةَ وَالْبَغْضَاۤءَ فِى الْخَمْرِ وَالْمَيْسِرِ وَيَصُدَّكُمْ عَنْ ذِكْرِ اللّٰهِ وَعَنِ الصَّلٰوةِ فَهَلْ اَنْتُمْ مُّنْتَهُوْنَ'O you who have believed, indeed, intoxicants, gambling, [sacrificing on] stone alters [to other than Allāh], and divining arrows are but defilement from the work of Satan, so avoid it [the prohibition understood from the word 'avoid' is stronger than if Allah had merely said, 'abstain.' The former requires distancing oneself from anything remotely related to these practices] that you may be successful. Satan only wants to cause between you animosity and hatred through intoxicants and gambling and to avert you from the remembrance of Allāh and from prayer. So will you not desist?' [QS. Al-Ma'idah (5):90-91]These verses are said to have been revealed a mere two years before the Prophet’s death, demonstrate the most critical treatment of khamr. Unlike earlier verses, these neither list the desirable attributes of the drink nor distinguish it from its adverse side effects. Instead, the verses compare wine-drinking to pre-Islamic pagan animal sacrifice and describe it as a temptation generated by Satan. Because these verses were revealed so late, their apparent inconsistency with earlier ones has been explained by Muslims with reference to the principle of abrogation (naskh): when they were revealed, these verses treatment of wine-drinking replaced, or abrogated, earlier scriptural attitudes and became accepted as the new standard.We will continue our topic in the next episode. Bi 'idhnillah."
Citations & References:
- E. N. Anderson, Everyone Eats: Understanding Food and Culture, 2005, New York University Press
- Wolfgang Schivelbusch, Tastes of Paradise: A Social History of Spices, Stimulants, and Intoxicants, Translated from the German by David Jacobson, 1992, Pantheon Books
- Muhammad bin Mustafa al-Jibaly, Smoking, Intoxicants, & Narcotics, 2012, Al-Kitaab & as-Sunnah Publishing
