Imam Ahmad recorded that Abu Hurayrah said, "There were three stages to prohibiting
Khamr (intoxicants). When the Messenger of Allah migrated to Al-Madinah, the people
were consuming alcohol and gambling, so they asked the Messenger of Allah about
these things, Allah revealed,
﴿يَسْـَلُونَكَ عَنِ الْخَمْرِ وَالْمَيْسِرِ
قُلْ فِيهِمَآ إِثْمٌ كَبِيرٌ وَمَنَـفِعُ لِلنَّاسِ﴾
(They ask you about alcoholic drink and gambling. Say: "In them is a great sin,
and (some) benefit for men.'')﴿2:219﴾, until the end of the Ayah. The people said,
`They (intoxicants and gambling) were not prohibited for us. Allah only said,
﴿فِيهِمَآ إِثْمٌ كَبِيرٌ وَمَنَـفِعُ
لِلنَّاسِ﴾
(In them is a great sin, and (some) benefit for men.)' So they went on drinking
Khamr until one day, one of the emigrants lead his companions in the Maghrib prayer
and mixed up the Ayat in his recitation. Thereafter, Allah sent down a tougher statement,
﴿يَـأَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ
لاَ تَقْرَبُواْ الصَّلَوةَ وَأَنتُمْ سُكَـرَى حَتَّى تَعْلَمُواْ مَا تَقُولُونَ﴾
(O you who believe! Approach not the Salah (the prayer) when you are in a drunken
state until you know (the meaning of) what you utter.)﴿4:43﴾ xThen, the people would
drink before the time of the prayer so that they would attend the prayer while sober.
A firmer Ayah was later revealed,
﴿يَـأَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُواْ إِنَّمَا
الْخَمْرُ وَالْمَيْسِرُ وَالاٌّنصَابُ وَالاٌّزْلاَمُ رِجْسٌ مِّنْ عَمَلِ الشَّيْطَـنِ
فَاجْتَنِبُوهُ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ ﴾
(O you who believe! Khamr, Maysir, Ansab, and Azlam are an abomination of Shaytan's
handiwork. So avoid that in order that you may be successful.)﴿5:90-91﴾ So they
said, `We abstained, O Lord!' Later, some people said, `O Allah's Messenger! Some
people died in the cause of Allah, while some others died in their beds, but they
used to drink alcohol and indulge in gambling, which Allah has made a Rijs of the
work of Shaytan.' So Allah sent down,
﴿لَيْسَ عَلَى الَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ
وَعَمِلُواْ الصَّـلِحَـتِ جُنَاحٌ فِيمَا طَعِمُواْ﴾
(Those who believe and do righteous good deeds, there is no sin on them for what
they ate...) ﴿5:93﴾, until the end of the Ayah. The Prophet said,
«لَوْ حُرِّمَ عَلَيْهِمْ لَتَرَكُوهُ
كَمَا تَرَكْتُم»
(Had they been made impermissible for them, they would have abandoned them as you
have abandoned them.) Ahmad recorded this Hadith. Imam Ahmad recorded that `Umar
bin Al-Khattab said, "O Allah! Explain the verdict about Khamr to us clearly.''
The Ayah in Surat Al-Baqarah was revealed,
﴿يَسْـَلُونَكَ عَنِ الْخَمْرِ وَالْمَيْسِرِ
قُلْ فِيهِمَآ إِثْمٌ كَبِيرٌ﴾
(They ask you about alcoholic drink and gambling. Say: "In them is a great sin.'')﴿2:219﴾
`Umar was summoned and this Ayah was recited to him, but he still said, "O Allah!
Make the verdict of Khamr clear to us.'' Then the Ayah in Surat An-Nisa' was revealed,
﴿يَـأَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ
لاَ تَقْرَبُواْ الصَّلَوةَ وَأَنتُمْ سُكَـرَى﴾
(O you who believe! Do not approach the Salah when you are in a drunken state.)﴿4:43﴾
Thereafter, the Prophet had someone herald when it was time to pray, "Those in a
drunken state are not to approach the prayer.'' `Umar was again summoned and the
Ayah was recited to him, but he still said, "O Allah! Make the verdict concerning
Khamr clear to us.'' Then, the Ayah in Surat Al-Ma'idah ﴿5:91﴾ was revealed, and
`Umar was summoned and it was recited to him. When he reached the part of the Ayah
that reads,
﴿فَهَلْ أَنْتُمْ مُّنتَهُونَ﴾
(So, will you not then abstain)﴿5:91﴾, `Umar said, "We abstained, we abstained.''
Abu Dawud, At-Tirmidhi, and An-Nasa'i recorded this Hadith. `Ali bin Al-Madini and
At-Tirmidhi graded it Sahih. It is recorded in the Two Sahihs, that `Umar bin Al-Khattab
said in a speech; while standing on the Minbar of the Messenger of Allah (in the
Prophet's Masjid in Al-Madinah) "O people! The prohibition of Khamr was revealed;
and Khamr was extracted from five things: From grapes, dates, honey, wheat and barley.
Khamr is what intoxicates the mind.'' Al-Bukhari recorded that Ibn `Umar said, "The
prohibition of Khamr was revealed when there were five kinds of intoxicants in Al-Madinah,
besides what was produced from grapes.
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