Different Strokes

It frequently occurs to me, many people don’t realize not all Muslims are the same. But Muslims are not a monolith, even though it is really tempting to consider us as such, particularly considering how organized “Organized Religion” truly is. It can be natural to say “everyone in this religion must be the same, because they have to be!” — but, that’s not even close to true.

For example, here I sit, writing this post, with a mixed drink of vodka at my side. But how can this possibly be?

In fact, Muslims have a wide spectrum of beliefs on Alcohol, with the mainstream opinion being that it is haram (or forbidden, unlawful) to drink alcohol. From there, you expand on a sliding scale or spectrum:

Some Muslims only consider drinking alcohol to be prohibited.
Some Muslims consider drinking alcohol, and being in the presence of alcoholic drinks (bars, restaurants, gatherings, etc) to all be a problem.
Some Muslims who believe alcohol is so forbidden, also believe you must avoid even the smallest, most miniscule presentation, right down to the presence of alcohol in substances such as vanilla extract.
And still, other Muslims may even eschew products like perfume that contain alcohol.
Finally, there are Muslims like myself… so let’s talk about that!

Some Muslims (like me!) do not believe the Qur’an tells us to avoid alcohol entirely, especially when it comes to its presence in small quantities, such as vanilla extract, but also including alcoholic drinks. Instead, we believe the Qur’an does outline clear issues surrounding the idea of intoxication, and the Qur’an does advise us caution; but, it’s not as cut-and-dry as you may have been led to believe.

What the Qur’an says:

In the Qur’an, God tells us that intoxicants (not just alcohol) have both bad and good things for humanity, though the bad tends to outweigh the good (2:219).

They ask you about intoxicants and gambling. Say, “In them is great harm, and a benefit for people; but their harm is greater than their benefit.” They ask you how much are they to give, say, “The excess.” Thus, God clarifies for you the signs that you may think.

That’s not a prohibition — that’s just a warning. And a fair one.

It’s important to note that this verse is frequently mistranslated with incorrect pronunciation of the word for intoxicant. The root word “Kha-Ma-Ra”, if mispronounced on the first letter, can mean “red” and becomes intertwined with the idea of “red wine” or alcohol/liquor. In fact, this root word KhaMaRa means “to cover”, which makes a lot of sense considering intoxication in general interferes with conscious thought. This applies not only to wine, but other liquors and drugs as well.

Next, the Qur’an goes on to mention (5:90-91) that intoxicants bear an evil that spreads hate between humans and distract us from God’s path, which again, is also pretty fair. Gambling is also in this one as well, by the way.

O you who acknowledge, intoxicants, and gambling, and altars, and arrows of chance are tools of affliction used by the devil. You shall avoid him* so that you may be successful.

The devil only wants to cause strife between you through intoxicants and gambling, and to repel you away from remembering God and from the contact prayer. Will you then desist?

Here, the Qur’an mentions intoxicants are a tool of “the devil” and bears an evil that spreads dissonance between humans and distract us from God’s path, which continues to make sense: if you’ve allowed alcohol or drugs to become a problem for your life, there are ways out which can and should be followed.

But, 5:90 in particular is interesting in yet another perpetual mistranslation among both English and Arabic speakers. The last sentence is frequently stated to be “and you should avoid them” (intoxicants, gambling, altars, and arrows of chance), but it actually says to avoid him (aka “the devil”): You shall avoid him so that you may be successful.

This outlines what we’re meant to avoid isn’t intoxicants strictly so much as the idea of harm and, again, anything in our lives has the potential to become harmful.

We cannot so narrowly define the idea of ‘harm’ to that of alcohol or gambling or any other single perceived negativity without remembering all things in our lives that are colloquially or legally considered ‘permissible’, could also become harmful should we misuse or abuse them.

Finally, we are told not to be intoxicated when we pray (4:43, 5:90) which again seems entirely fair particularly considering what we just mentioned regarding the ability of intoxicants to distract us from God, but also because we must understand our words when we pray.

(That also puts a damper on the idea of praying in a language you don’t understand, too, by the way)

O you who acknowledge, do not come near the contact prayer while you are drunk, until you know what you are saying. (snip)

Intoxication affects our mental, emotional, and physical state, and therefor can possibly distract our focus from God.

This is not a big or unusual ask, and it is a fairly common thing in a wide variety of religions. Even in various forms of Paganism and/or Polytheism, it was ill-advised to go before the Gods while your mind is altered. We’ve known in terms of Divinity that this can be a Bad Idea™ for thousands of years.

What about Hadith? (Insert scholar here)? (Insert fatwa here)?

… sure, what about it?

Hadith are primarily the words of man written down after the word of God. While some hadith have value in assisting us in the understanding of religious and cultural practice, they are not the word of God and never have been.

As for scholars and fatwas, the compaction of the words of man on top of the words of man over and over again throughout the centuries has led to a degradation of the Divine that must be stopped at all costs.

Never forget, the Qur’an specifically encourages us told not to follow tradition blindly and to think for ourselves, and warns us that those who do not think will lead us astray:

6:115-116: The word of your Lord has been completed with truth and justice; there is no changing His words. He is the Hearer, the Knower. If you obey the majority of those on earth they will lead you away from God’s path; that is because they follow conjecture, and that is because they only guess.

Ideas of man in any age are finite.

So what about Vanilla Extract?

Using alcohol is not directly prohibited by the Qur’an at all. In fact, Alcohol is really not even discussed beyond the point where it is mentioned it has both harm and benefits (the benefits are not really extrapolated).

At no point does the Qur’an tell someone to avoid vanilla extract – or anything else really – because it has a drop of alcohol in it.
In no way does the Qur’an instruct us to eschew establishments or people where alcohol is present, though logic dictates if alcohol is a trigger for your addiction or habit, avoiding it makes logical sense in that capacity.
The Qur’an demands we think critically and evaluate life with reason, logic, and all of our senses, and not to blindly follow any tradition or status-quo. It encourages us to be open-minded and listen to all views on various topics and follow what is best, even if it is new or different. The references for these are all over the Qur’an but you can start with 3:137, 6:115-116, 7:179, 8:22, 10:100, 12:111, 17:36, 26:5 and 38:7.

So unless vanilla extract is driving you to hate your neighbor or in general transgress God in other ways, you are going to be just fine.

TL;DR what does it all mean?

We are told intoxicants have both harm and benefits, though the harm tends to outweigh benefits.
We are told intoxication can bring dissonance between human beings and distracts us from God.
We are told not to be intoxicated when we pray.
Finally, we are told to avoid harm in order to succeed in life.

The Qur’an says nothing about a drop of alcohol in food, the use of alcohol in medical practice, friends or establishments where alcohol is present, or even using alcohol in quantities that are not causing harm in your life.

Instead, the Qur’an warns us that drinking has the possibility of leading to Bad Things™, and if we end up in ‘bad things’ territory, we should stop what we’re doing and turn to God instead.