ALCOHOL IN ISLAMIC MIDDLE EAST AND OTTOMAN EMPIRE

This research seeks to investigate views regarding alcohol in Middle Eastern Islamic populations from before Islam was introduced, during the emergence of Islam, and in present times. The research examines how people interpreted alcohol usage in earlier periods, with a particular emphasis on the Ottoman Empire.

The report then examines how attitudes about alcohol in Middle Eastern communities have changed over time. It has been observed that before to the emergence of Islam, alcohol usage was not deemed prohibited or offensive.

However, the situation altered when Islamic law declared that alcohol intake was a capital penalty. Particularly during the Ottoman empire, a number of state and Islamic rules were imposed regarding alcohol consumption.

The authority even proceeded to ban coffee, tobacco, and cannabis and this gave rise to debates. In the context of modern times, it has been considered that the Middle Eastern Islamic communities have developed a moderate view toward alcohol consumption. However, in many places the traditional perceptions regarding liquor consumption and substance use still overwhelms the modern thinking.

Introduction

Every religion and their religious beliefs adhere to some fixed rules, principles, or guidelines formulated through some specific perceptions. However, these perceptions or guidelines have historically ignited controversy and debate at times which are still going on. In the same vein, the Middle Eastern Islamic beliefs in particular and during the Ottoman empire specifically, like many other religions, have a controversial and in some ways contradictory perspective of alcohol among its believers. Whereas Rumi, the Islamic Sufi mystic, often talked about the spiritual side of libations, the words of Muhammad – the prophet who founded Islam – calls on followers to not use the substance, warning of the dangers of sin that it breeds within them. In this paper, a chronicling of the history of alcohol in Middle Eastern Islam specifically during the Ottoman empire as well as the perceptions of alcohol in the modern day Middle Eastern society will be presented from a critical point of view. The current paper attempts to discuss the Middle East’s historical relationship with alcohol with an exclusive focus on the Ottoman empire, starting from the introduction of Islam till the modern period, as well as how the Middle Eastern Islamic beliefs impacted that relationship and how the perceptions of alcohol or alcoholic drinks have changed in the modern times.

Attitudes toward Alcohol before Islam

Wine in Arabian countries was once a celebrated drink that people widely used and incorporated into their cooking and social events. It has been noted by historians that “Arabs during the period of jahiliyyah [the time period prior to the rise of Islam] were very fond of wine and drinking parties. This love of wine is reflected in their language, which has nearly one hundred names for it, and in their poetry, which celebrates the praises of wine, goblets, drinking parties, and so on.” This term “jihiliyyah” being used to describe the time period where wine was accepted and in some cases even celebrated reflects the way that attitudes changed about consumption of alcohol in the Middle East, with this word translating to mean “ignorance.” As can be seen, the customs and attitudes of Middle Easterners have been drastically changed by the teachings of Islam. This has happened to such a great extent that the period in which alcohol was celebrated is referred to as a time of darkness and ignorance. In the minds of many Middle Eastern Muslims, the use of alcohol during that period is seen as evidence of the people’s ignorance and lack of understanding about God’s will for their lives.

Islamic Jurists’ perceptions of Alcohol

The time of ignorance (when alcohol consumption was not considered as a sin) was changed forever with the rise of the Islamic faith. The comprehensive way developed by the Middle Eastern Muslims to deal with wellbeing and prosperity implies that a thing which might prove to be destructive or, for the most part, unsafe is prohibited. In this manner, Islam has adopted an uncompromising stand towards liquor and restricts its utilization in either little or huge amount. Liquor is without a doubt unsafe and antagonistically influences the psyche and the body. It mists the psyche, leads to the malady, squanders cash, and annihilates people, families, and groups. Various research works have demonstrated that one can easily find out a solid connection amongst liquor and betting. Drinking disables judgment, brings down hindrance, and energizes the kind of hazard taking required in betting and perilous exercises. It has also been demonstrated in Quran that intoxicants and betting are evil entities from Satan and thus, such perception requests the followers to maintain a strategic distance from those items.

When Muhammad began his teachings about the nature of alcohol, the social attitudes of Middle Eastern Muslim community towards alcohol began to change and the Islamic jurists took the perceptions and beliefs so seriously that they argued for banning alcohol once and for all. According to some Middle Eastern Muslim jurists, liquor is a device utilized by Satan for diverting mankind from God and that Satan should be considered as an open adversary towards mankind and therefore, by drinking liquor, one would eventually welcome Satan into his/her life and become diverted from the genuine logical objectives of human life.The jurists expanded upon such beliefs and they advocated for structuring the Islamic culture around such perspective. This eventually lead them to ban alcohol consumption within the Arab world in an attempt to deter the sins that would inevitably be committed by those under the influence of alcohol and in this manner, a wide change in the society was made which does not seem to be completely ethical from a modern perspective. Furthermore, a number of critics and expert suggest that the decision of banning alcohol in the Middle Eastern community can be deciphered as an attempt to conform to the Islamic religious teachings and forcefully placing the rules or restrictions even on those individuals who might not have supported the regulation.

Attitude Toward Alcohol during the Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman Empire acted and operated as a ruling dynasty conforming to the Islamic regulations that respected prohibitions against liquor utilization through the medium of both rules and legislations prescribed at the state level as well as the laws directed by Islamic regulations. Notwithstanding, resilience toward non-Muslim populaces took into account the proceeding with the existence of liquor consumption during the Ottoman empire. Customary drinking foundations were regarded as the foundation of the region’s cultural orientation regarding drinking. Consumption of wine and some other kinds of alcoholic beverages was widely popular among the people of Turkey. Although the Ottoman empire concentrated on both state-level and Islam-based regulations to ban alcohol consumption, it became difficult to maintain a balance between these two aspects because whereas the primary inclination was to ban the wine consumption according to the Prophet’s directions, gradually the laws continued to ban every kind of alcoholic beverages. This gave rise to a huge debate regarding whether it would be better to only ban wine in accordance with the primary directions provided by the Islamic law or whether it would yield better results if the ban is imposed on every kind of alcoholic beverages and completely ban alcohol consumption to upheld the spirit of these regulations and the extreme advocates of these aspects. Furthermore, it also presented a topic for debate as the laws did not specify if the ban was on every level/measurement of alcohol consumption or the ban was imposed on drinking alcohol to the state of being intoxicated. These regulations brought about a social unrest of a specific nature which observed that the individuals from upper-class societies clearly stated that the complete ban on alcohol indeed needed to be imposed but only on the lower-class people who were neither socially nor financially sophisticated and thus, could easily be intoxicated as they lacked self-control regarding moderated alcohol consumption. However, these statements and perceptions clearly demonstrated that the mindset of these people were completely biased and uninformed as it had been noticed that it were the upper-class individuals who frequently consumed alcohol to a high level during festivals and occasions and thus, easily became intoxicated. Furthermore, the empire also dictated that alcohol consumption was a significant guilt and crime in accordance with the Islamic laws and thus, such actions needed to be restricted and the offenders required to be punished for social welfare on a wholesome level. However, individuals could be spared off the punishment if the consumption was unintentional and coerced.

The Ottoman empire did not only ban alcohol consumption but they also banned consumption of tobacco and coffee; the punishments varied according to the level of consumption or the assumed ’offense’ and in some instances, the offenders were punished by the Sultan himself. Notwithstanding, it has been contended that the ban was not only imposed due to the religiously directed prohibition of intoxicating substances but there was also another reason which suggested that the authority expected that bistros or coffee-houses, wine shops and any other locations like these would be utilized in the form of meeting spots for plotting a revolt against the empire. However, it is extremely surprising that the empire banned coffee while opium and cannabis could still be legally consumed. The use of these substances had become an integral part of the cultural orientation of the society and thus, they did not think that these substances could cause any potential harm. Similar to a number of social orders, within the society during the Ottoman Empire, the gatekeepers of imaginative demonstration and the watchmen of religious creed opposed each other. Whereas a number of artistic creations, such as the poem ’The Wine Ode’, suggest that alcohol, tobacco, and coffee were considered as the pads of the couch of delight by the artists from various streams, the religious pastors perceived these objects as the foundations of evil and devil. However, after the death of Sultan Murad in the year of 1640, all of the imposed bans were lifted within a short span of time.

Modern Age, Islam, and Perceptions of Alcohol Consumption

A number of people in Muslim social orders still see drinking liquor in the form of a repulsive sin and an image of insidiousness. Other people feel it is just a fun liberality. The mentioning of drunk driving accidents, the breaking up of families, and the various violent acts that occur when alcohol is involved shows that the Islamic rejection of alcohol is not altogether based in religious teachings. There are also practical reasons for why alcohol gets in the way of people doing what is right. So deplored is Alcohol in the Quran that its use is rejected by many even in cooking. However, in the light of modernized perceptions, a few gatherings enjoy mystery, others prefer straightforwardness regarding the consumption of alcohol. It has been indicated that there is a rise in alcoholic consumption throughout Islam meaning that there is an increasing industry and culture to match it as well. This represents a new twist in Islamic countries which by and large have ostensibly banned alcohol for some time. Depending on the context, the attitude and behavior towards alcohol is known to change. In Dubai for instance, swank clubs openly distribute alcohol whereas in Lahore, alcohol is enjoyed in content-concealing serviettes. In such locations, the use of alcohol in food is likely to be more permitted than in others where the bans, religious and lawful, are fully upheld. But yet, others stress unendingly that they may incidentally commit sin if they utilize liquor based hand rub or mouthwash. The last class of Muslims commands the talk around liquor within Muslim circles in the Middle East. The individuals in support of drinking typically keep away such talks, secretly presenting a wanting to keep themselves out of such dubious, candidly charged civil argument. The force of feeling encompassing such issue represents it in the form of a standout amongst the majority of polarizing aspects in Muslim people group. In this manner, the aspect of polarizing actually is the angle that is most disinclined even to bring it up.

The policy arrangements introduced by the governmental authorities regarding liquor utilization by Middle Eastern Muslims are similarly differing in the same line of being of strict as the standard legal implications. In a few nations, an individual knows about individuals being sentenced to prison or any other kind of punishment due to consuming alcohol. In other nations, liquor might be openly accessible and even the government authorities do not potentially care about being noticed as holding an alcoholic drink. In any case, the truth of the matter is that numerous Muslims do drink. What’s more, episodic confirmation recommends that the numbers are expanding. In most common nations, liquor is broadly accessible. So Muslims, regardless of whether going by, examining or living there, will have simple access to it at school, companions’ homes, eateries, bars and dance club. In most Islamic nations, liquor is apparently prohibited. In any case, insiders know how to get it, and they do. From lowly observed opened jugs in wash Dubai dance club to glasses, wrapped in substance disguising serviettes, held in Lahore, the substance being soaked up and appreciated are basically the same; however, the confinements on liquor as a properly identifiable and noticeable parts of the Middle Eastern Muslim character. A few people are alright with the decision. These people do not trust that by drinking with some restraint they are hurting anybody. In addition, they don’t think the embodiment of Islam or some other religion is about not doing things that mischief an individual or others around the person. Direct drinking can be categorized under such classification. Indeed, even a few people discover comfort in the way that society to a great extent acknowledges it. They surmise that society affirms of them drinking, so these individuals do not feel regretful, despite the fact that it is a transgression as indicated by the Qur’an. These individuals are aware of the fact that a number of hijab-wearing ladies go similarly as evacuating their headscarves for going to clubs and consume drinks. These ladies still need to be a piece of the crowd of cool cats.

In spite of the acknowledgement of their decisions, a few individuals hold the assessment that drinking liquor should be considered as a transgression or despicable action. They approve of it, despite the fact that they realize that their general public does not support. They believe that they would do it straightforwardly, aside from in little circles where this may make disgrace their folks. The bigger aspect for the Islam-oriented people group in regards to liquor utilization is whether the issue might be talked about without any more extending the partition amongst the individuals who consume alcohol and the individuals who are against it. All social orders need to ponder the issue of liquor utilization. Beside religious lessons, social orders must instruct consumers to oversee liquor utilize capably. Liquor is a substance that, if not legitimately oversaw, can bring about genuine mischief — specifically, by medical issues, and in a roundabout way, for example, by drink-driving crashes. Be that as it may, in social orders where the unthinkable of admitting to liquor utilize is high, the open doors for training, talk and direction around drinking are low. This may make Muslims who drink – especially the youthful – more helpless against the negative impacts of liquor utilize contrasted with other people who are capable with have a straight to the point discourse about drinking with their folks or group pioneers. The test for the individuals who stress over the aspect is providing safe scenarios in which the youthful Muslims specifically can connect with their folks, religiously identified pioneers and different senior citizens in this discourse without dread of feedback or underestimation. This engagement should be managed without turning to forced rules or different types of judgment.

Regarding numerous Muslim social orders, guardians and educators trust that basically discussing liquor would be viewed as allowing its utilization. Along these lines the subject is never raised with the exception of in profoundly pompous or judgmental ways. Frequently, however, this exclusive serves to further drive the issue underground. In social orders where liquor utilize is normal, government funded instruction battles and the inclusion of guardians, schools and even religious organizations have assumed a constructive part in enabling youngsters to deal with their liquor consuming permission capably. Without a doubt, this is more efficient that young people feel safety in having the capacity to admit to their folks that they did not drive the auto home since they had consumed alcohol, instead of being so apprehensive of getting into inconvenience that they hazard the lives with taking the risk to drive to home at any rate. The aspect is, obviously, less demanding to be stated than to be performed. An antagonistic observation about the character of individuals who drink liquor is hard-wired into the mind of standard Muslims. This is regularly combined with solid social originations of family respect that are ensured against disgraceful conduct at any cost. By the by, it is basic that pioneers of Middle Eastern Muslim people group address the substances of these issues and permit them to be talked about, however troublesome and awkward those aspects might be.

Conclusion

This paper has appropriately assessed how alcohol and alcoholic drinks were perceived by people before the introduction of Islam and how the beliefs changed after Islam dominated the Middle East with a specific focus on the Ottoman empire. It has also been observed that there is a large gap between how Middle Eastern Islam communities perceived alcohol consumption in general sense and how the perception developed in the modern era to a rationalized thinking. However, it has been also been observed that the traditional notions dominate the modern thoughts even in this globalized scenario. The jurists tell of the dangers in using strong drink; many devout Muslims head these messages and refrain from using alcohol in all instances. This means that alcohol, even in cooking, is strictly prohibited for even though the majority of the alcohol is cooked out, the sale of wine encourages a lifestyle outside of Islam. Although many Islamic countries have followed suit with the Quran and banned alcohol, an underground alcohol culture remains depending on the way and place that alcohol is shared with richer countries more likely to ignore the scripture. Almost in every case where it is allowed, it is with the assistance or prodding of foreigner tourists and their non-Islamic life styles that support them to make such leniencies. However, the perceptions have developed through the ages and the notions have advanced. Hopefully, the modern era would see the Middle Eastern Islamic nations nourishing a liberal view and a softer approach toward alcohol drinking instead of unreasonable punishments and illogical strictness.

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