DR. SHAFEEQ AHMED ISLAHI, a medical practitioner by profession, talks about the ills of alcohol and how the present society of ours is responsible for this growing menace. In an interview with KAMRAN SHAHID ANSARI, he explains how Islam changed the hearts and minds of the people and espoused in them the love of the creator which made them a teetotaler the moment they heard that their Lord has prohibited alcohol for them. He further says that it is an Islamic State which would rid the people completely of this menace. Excerpts:
Everyone is aware of the ills of alcohol and substance abuse yet more and more people especially youth are getting dragged into it. What is the reason?
It is true that everyone is aware of the ills of alcohol but the general trend among the masses is that the consumption of alcohol helps them forgetful of their state of misery and tension. Secondly, many people drink it before sleeping as they say it makes them sleep tight the whole night. And thirdly, some believe that it causes freshness and helps in their overall performance at work. The reason why it is common among youth because it is in the blood of youth that he wants to experience every new thing in his life. Hence in the beginning it is only about experiencing but as the days and months pass it becomes his habit and then the circle of its consequences increases and reaches his friends and family members. It is indeed true that there are some minor benefits of alcohol, but when compared to its ills they are absolutely insignificant.
Do you feel that another reason behind it is that people feel they have control over themselves and if they consume alcohol in little quantities it would be good for them? However it is this small consumption that makes them addict?
Yes, it is indeed true. The thing is that the person starts by consuming little amounts but he then fails to control himself and this finally makes him an addict.
Do you believe the present society to be responsible for such behaviour where not involving in such acts does not qualify one to be “cool” especially in college life? And the advertisements in newspapers and television make an environment around us where masses do not feel that alcohol is a great evil.
The society does understand that alcohol is evil but it never accounts people who drink and it never stops them from it. Hence the society could be held responsible from evading from its duty to forbid the evil. People do not give much attention to those who drink and consider it something normal. However, if people keep a tab on those who drink and counsel them from the very first day and remain attentive then it could put a break on alcoholism. So I believe the society to be fully responsible for the growing alcoholism.
As for advertisements, they definitely promote it. We find people smoking in every nook and corner and they smoke it in a way as if they are doing something majestic while it is written on every packet that smoking is injurious to health. Same is the case with alcohol.
Many people say banning alcohol is the solution; however it fetches government a lot of revenue. What should be done according to you? Is there any other alternative rather than banning it?
It is true that it generates a lot of revenue for the government and one of the prime reasons for not banning is the money it generates. However, on the other hand it is the government itself which gives full page advertisements in newspapers and other media stating that alcohol is bad for health and people should avoid it. So here we need to understand that it is the dual policy of the government. On the one hand it does not put a ban and on the other hand it gives advertisements, from which some people think that the government itself does not want alcohol in the state. The thing is revenue which is coming in the way of the ban of alcohol.
Secondly, banning it could not be a practical solution unless there is a change in the mentality and the mindset of people. We can understand it from the example of the United States of America where there was a ban on alcohol during 1920–1933. Actually the ills of alcohol started to pop up during the start of the 20th century and the intelligentsia realised as to how lethal it could be. Then there began many movements and many societies cropped up which started educating people about the ills of alcohol and the ban was put in place in 1920. It is interesting to note here that the things changed drastically once the ban was placed. People said they were willing for the ban but when the implementation started people failed to live up to what they had committed to. The government tried tooth and nail to implement the ban. Money was spent in unimaginable amounts and literatures amounting millions of pages were distributed. Interestingly, it was found that all the licenced liquor shops got closed but at the same time secret pubs and liquor shops sprang all across America and those were far more in numbers as compared to the licenced shops. The secret selling of alcohol became a profitable business and lakhs of people started taking it as their profession. It was found that after the prohibition the American people started consuming 20 million gallons of alcohol a year. (See details of it in the article Alcohol – Man-made Law or Law of God by Maulana Syed Abul A’la Maududi on pp. 70-78)
So the first thing is to change the mindset and mentality of the people and merely placing the ban would not do the job rather create more chaos.
As you talked about changing the mindset, we find that the government holds seminars and workshops to disseminate the ills of alcohol. But on the other hand we have enticing and well-decorated pubs. Don’t you think it as a contradiction in itself?
It is just a façade and the dual policy of government. On the one hand they hold seminars and workshops and on the other it is they who issue licenses to pubs and bars. The government does not really want to eradicate this menace.
Alcohol and substance abuse not only ruins the person but his/her entire family. Can you narrate an incident which might have shocked you from within?
Yes, sure. Actually there was a man who used to live next to my clinic and he was living a good life. He had a lathe (kharad) machine, a big house and was financially at ease, but he met a friend who was alcoholic and he became addicted. He then started being under the influence of alcohol all the time, and beating his wife and children every night, in the inebriated state, became his habit. He started using expletive language at home which ultimately ripped off the homely atmosphere. His children took the road of evil and his business also got hit because of his addiction. He then started selling off his properties and eventually sold off everything and started living in slums. People started declining marriage proposals for his daughters and sons which compelled him to marry them off to wicked and evil people. The addiction came to such a sorry pass that one day he died under the influence of alcohol. All his children went helter-skelter, one of them started taking smack and his daughters got married off to smackers. Hence the whole of his life and family went haywire and topsy-turvy just because of alcohol. There are many incidents like this, but this incident happened in our immediate neighbourhood.
How long did it take for the complete fall of the person?
All this happened within a short span of 10 years.
Alcohol hits people in many ways. One way is that it deteriorates physical and mental health of the person. Another is that many people get mowed down by vehicles driven by drunk drivers. The third way is that it gives a boost to crimes. How do you see the effect on the level of crimes if alcohol is banished from the society?
Obviously, the crime rate would fall because alcohol has a direct effect on the mind of humans. It is related directly to the character of man as when one loses control over the mind it becomes impossible for him to have control over his own actions.
The Qur’ān prohibits alcohol and drugs categorically. However, the commandment for its prohibition came gradually. Hence many people say that we have to go step by step (Tadarruj). What lessons do you think we can derive from Islam in this regard?
See at this point of time all the ahkam (commandments) of Islam are before us. At that time this wisdom to go step-by-step was used because the people were highly addicted to alcohol and if the direct commandment would have come, it would have been difficult for them to follow the commandment. So it was better to build their mindset first. Hence the first commandment came that alcohol has some benefits but the harms are much more. Second commandment prohibited to pray in an inebriated state. So many left drinking but some continued drinking maintaining gaps between their prayers so that their prayers did not clash with the time of their drinking. And the third commandment came only when the Qur’ān prepared them for the blanket ban.
It was revealed that alcohol is the handiwork of Satan so just stay away from it as Satan wants to create enmity among you. So, first Islam prepared them mentally and then gave the commandment. It is reported that when the caller called out in the streets of Medina that alcohol has been prohibited there were some people, around 10-11, who were about to drink. One of them who had his cup raised to his lips, heard the voice of the caller and stopped immediately.
So all this was done in steps but now tadarruj will not be used as the Qur’ān is complete and all the ahkam regarding everything has been revealed. But if one wants to help a person quit this evil then wisdom says that it will be done slowly as it is a slow process. But tadarruj in principle will not be used.
What was it that changed the people of Medina that they threw away the containers of wine when the commandment of the prohibition came? At that time people did not even know much of the ill-effects of wine yet today when people know a lot about the ills they do not refrain from alcohol.
Islam lays out the principles to change the mindset of people. In today’s situation as well one needs to make the basic principles of Islam as the parameters for change which are belief in Allah and Akhirah (hereafter). Once the belief in Allah (that we must believe in Allah and should fear and follow him alone) and Akhirah is in place then this would lead to the ultimate change in the thinking and complete worldview of people. It is important to note that this belief in Allah encompasses belief in revealed books, prophethood, and other pillars of Islam. It is important to believe that we will be held accountable for what we do in this life and we will be answerable to our Lord for all the evils that we will do. It is only when this concept is in place we could expect that people would refrain from all the evils, including alcohol and drugs. So this concept was first developed among the people and when this concept was well in place in the minds of the people, commandments of prohibition of alcohol came and people readily accepted that commandment. So this needs to be done.
Do you think this menace could be curbed by individuals only without the will of the government as some people believe that things can be controlled in a top-down manner whereas some believe that things could also go bottom-up and individuals should take up this task?
We know that the government is also partner in this menace but the society should also come up to tackle this problem. So it is the responsibility of both. It is true that the government owes more responsibility because there are many things which cannot be implemented without the use of force or authority. It must remain clear that alcohol was not prohibited in Makkah, but the prohibition came in Medina where the Islamic state was already present. So this means that power is also required so that the implementation could be done properly. Hence the role of government or authority is indispensable. I must say here that if the whole of the Islamic system is in place, then this alcoholism could easily be eradicated.
You said the Islamic State in Medina eradicated this menace. So in today’s perspective do you think there should be efforts to create a state first and then other things should follow suit?
No, it is not like this. The first thing is the culturing of the people. They should be educated about Islamic teachings that could effect social change and emphasis should be given on Tauheed, Risalat, Akhirah (Oneness of God, Prophethood and Hereafter) and then there should be efforts by the state. I believe then things would be more practical.
Would you like to give some message to the addict or to his family so that they could bring the person back to the correct path?
My message is that alcohol destroys this world and the hereafter as well. And the repercussions of the destruction of this world are felt on the immediate family of the person, his whole clan and then the whole of the society. The biggest problem is that it destroys the hereafter. So still there is time for the person to return to the correct path, and family members and other people should also support and help him to get rid of this problem. To excel in both the worlds one needs to get away from this handiwork of Satan.