Intoxicants and Recreation in Islamic Law: Difference between revisions

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'''Intoxicants''' (الخمر al‐khamr) such as [[alcohol]], marijuana, other drugs,<ref>"''....The Messenger of Allah (PBUH) replied: "Every intoxicant is khamr, and every khamr is haram."....“Khamr is what befogs the mind.” These are the words spoken by 'Umar ibn al-Khattab from the pulpit of the Prophet (PBUH),....Drugs such as marijuana, cocaine, opium, and the like are definitely included in the prohibited category of khamr. It is well known that the use of such drugs affects the sensory perceptions, making what is near seem distant and what is distant seem near; that their use produces illusions and hallucinations, so that the real seems to disappear and what is imaginary appears to be real; and that drug usage in general impairs the faculty of reasoning and decision-making....''" - [Alcohol and Intoxicants in Islam] - Muslim Bridges</ref> and recreational games of chance, such as board games<ref>"''....the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "Whoever plays games of dice has disobeyed Allah and His Messenger."....''" - {{Muwatta|52|2|6|}}, See also {{Muwatta|52|2|7|}}</ref> (including chess),<ref name="chess">"''....Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) said: He who played chess is like one who dyed his hand with the flesh and blood of swine....''" - {{Muslim||2260|reference}}, See also {{Muwatta|52|2|7|}}</ref> card games, and other forms of gambling, are forbidden under [[Islamic law]]. However, this regulation in its current form was absent in early Islam.  

The Qur'an was purportedly revealed to Muhammad over a period of 23 years<ref>Living Religions: An Encyclopaedia of the World's Faiths, Mary Pat Fisher, 1997, page 338, I.B. Tauris Publishers,</ref>, and it is not written in chronological order. A [[Chronological Order of the Qur'an|chronological]] reading would indicate a gradual shift in religious attitudes toward intoxicants.  

Over the course of the Qur'an's composition, older [[Revelation|revelations]] were stricken and replaced by newer ones, a phenomenon known as Naskh ([[abrogation]]). When Muhammad's followers were attending prayer at the mosque while intoxicated, the following verse was revealed to warn against such behavior: