SC - Re: sca-cooks V1 #1863
Grimmund
grimmund at frontiernet.net
Sat Jan 29 08:52:50 PST 2000
Well met!
First:
> There are also Islamic sectarian differences about the consumption of
> alcohol. The specific prohibition is against the fruit of the grape.
Most
> sects apply a general prohibition against all alcoholic beverages, but
there
> are some which follow the prohibition precisely and only deny
beverages made
> from grapes.
Second:
> I vaguely recall a cute bit in "The Thirteenth Warrior" illustrating
> this, although how accurate it is I couldn't say. For the umpteenth
> time the main character is offered some mead, and for the umpteenth
> time he refuses, saying the Law of the Prophet forbids him to drink
> of the fermented fruit of the grape. Finally somebody lets on that
> mead is made from fermented _honey_: the reaction is more or less
> "Woo-hoo!!!"
Well, sort of glug, glug, "Woo-hoo." I caught this bit, understood it,
and laughed pretty hard.
If I remember correctly, as explained to me by a Saudi national in
1991, the relevent bit of the Koran says, almost literally,
"Let not one drop of wine pass your lips."
Modern interpretations by Muslims:
1. No alcohol or mind-altering drugs.
2. No alcohol.
3. No wine, but beer and non-grape liquors, such as vodka, whiskey,
etc. are OK because they don't involve wine.
4. Pour out the first mouthful from each bottle of wine you open onto
the ground; THOSE drops will not pass your lips. Drink the rest of the
bottle.
Arabic is a beutiful langauge; lawyers would love the built-in
ambiguity.
Grimmund
- --
Grimmund Blackwing, Castellan Windhaven, Northshield, Midrealm
Dan Long- Clintonville/Appleton/Green Bay, WI (715) 823-2370
Windhaven on the Web: http://www.execpc.com/~lilith/
You need only reflect that one of the best ways to get yourself a
reputation as a dangerous citizen these days is to go about repeating
the very phrases which our founding fathers used in the struggle for
independence. -- Charles A. Beard
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