Satanic Origin: Branding them as devised by Satan.
Allah identified the origin of drugs for humans to realize that they are weapons of their most avowed enemy, Satan. In the battle for human souls, Satan uses a variety of tools which he beautifies and makes alluring in order to trap human beings
Avoidance: Emphasizing the Prohibition by using Avoidance.
Allah’s use of the imperative ‘avoid’ makes the injunction much stronger and more comprehensive than it would have been had the word ‘prohibited’ been used instead. The implication here is that one should not only refrain from the consumption of drugs but also anything to do with their production and distribution should be avoided. Consequently, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "Ten people are cursed due to intoxicants, the one who prepares it, the one for whom it was prepared, the one who consumes it, the one who carries it, the one to whom it is carried, the one who pours it, the one who sells it, the one who benefits from its sale, the one who buys it and the one for whom it was bought."
He further emphasized the importance of avoidance by stating, "One should not sit at a table at which alcohol is consumed." Furthermore, the Prophet (peace be upon him) prohibited Muslims from even keeping the containers in which alcohol was traditionally kept.
Success: Linking the avoidance of Drugs to Prosperity
In the above verse, the Almighty also made the avoidance of intoxicants a precondition for prosperity. People naturally desire success and wealth and they despise failure and poverty. Thus, Allah addresses the human psyche by promising success to those who avoid intoxicants. When the wealth normally consumed by addicts is recycled, the financial benefits to society are quite tangible. However, the social benefits to both the individual and family are even more priceless. Furthermore, real wealth, is as the Prophet (peace be upon him) said "richness of the heart and soul, and not an abundance of
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property." It is contentment which those who take drugs seek but never find, and that only comes from a sober search for God.
Ultimate success is paradise, so the Prophet (peace be upon him) informed that, "One who consumes drugs and does not repent will not drink it in the Hereafter even if he enters Paradise."
Sows Discord and Hatred
In these verses, the Almighty points out that Satan uses drugs to create enmity among people. It has been proven statistically that the majority of hate-crimes are committed by those under the influence of drugs.
Hinders Remembrance of God and Prayer
The Almighty warned of the most evil consequence of drug consumption; that it prevents people from remembering God and making regular prayer, which is their regular means of remaining in contact with God. Once the consciousness of God is lost, corruption quickly fills the vacuum and those under the influence easily commit the most heinous of crimes without any sense of shame or morality. Intoxicated people are very susceptible to the most perverse suggestions. They lose their shyness and moral values leading to some of the most incredibly evil acts.
Reports of drug-crazed fathers raping their own baby daughters, husbands killing their wives and eating them, and so on, abound in newspapers around the world. In one narration from the Prophet (peace be upon him) he was reported to have said, "Intoxicants are the mother of despicable acts and the greatest of major sins. Whoever consumes them abandons regular prayer, and rapes his mother or his aunt." Prayer is a deterrent against indecency and sinfulness, as the Almighty said (Qur’an) and it is the foundation of remembrance of God. Allah points out that the consumption of drugs breaks the believers’ main link with God and thereby destroys spiritual well-being. In order to further emphasize its danger to prayer, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "The prayer of one who drinks alcohol will not be accepted for forty days and nights."
A Rhetorical Question
This verse is concluded with a rhetorical question, "Will you not, then, desist?" This grammatical construction creates the strongest possible threat. On hearing it, the Prophet’s companion’s response was, "We do, Our Lord: We do!" After hearing all the
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expressions of prohibition and grasping their implications, can an intelligent person ignore warning? This question addresses common sense and reason. It invites the thinking person to make the necessary steps to help remove this destructive channel from society.
History Repeats Itself
Descriptions of Madinah at the time when these verses were revealed to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) illustrate the impact that they had on the fledgling community there. Historians reported that the streets of Madinah flowed with wine, as containers were broken and poured in the streets, and even those who had cups of wine in their hands and others who had wine glasses at their lips, stopped immediately and emptied them in the streets.
The prohibition of drugs has remained a way of life for Muslims from that day until today. Though some elements of Muslim society have indulged at different points in history, and many modern Muslim governments have become lax and permissive, for the vast majority of Muslims, the production and consumption of drugs remains prohibited. In the West and East, governments of countries like, USA, Canada, Russia, etc., have at varying times in the 20th century and for varying lengths of time prohibited the production, sale and consumptions of alcohol, however, these periods of prohibition all came to an end. Drugs cannot be eliminated by legislation alone. Legislation is a beginning, it is a tool, but the will to implement the legislation has to come from the power of faith within the population as a whole. The various successful anti-addiction programmes, like Alcoholics Anonymous, which were developed in the secular West all require individuals trying to overcome their addictions to call on God, the Higher Power, to help them succeed.
by Dr. Bilal Philips Qatar’s Guest Centre
www.bilalphilips.com
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