DEFINITION

1. General

An organic substance formed when a hydroxyl group is substituted for a hydrogen atom
in a hydrocarbon. The type of alcohol used in alcoholic beverages, ethanol, derives from
fermenting sugar with yeast. After alcohol is ingested, the body converts it to sugar-based
fuel. Alcohol acts as a central nervous system depressant, and it may be part of solutions
used as preservatives, antiseptics, or medications. Alcohols are among the most
common organic compounds. They are used as sweeteners and in making perfumes, are
valuable intermediates in the synthesis of other compounds, and are among the most
abundantly produced organic chemicals in industry. Perhaps the two best-known alcohols
are ethanol and methanol (or methyl alcohol). Ethanol is used in toiletries, pharmaceuticals,
and fuels, and it is used to sterilize hospital instruments. It is, moreover, the alcohol
in alcoholic beverages. The anesthetic ether is also made from ethanol. Methanol is used as
a solvent as a raw material for the manufacture of formaldehyde and special resins, in
special fuels, in antifreeze, and for cleaning metals.

2. Islamic

The word alcohol is derived from the Arabic word al-kohl, which means fermented grains,
fruits, or sugars that form an intoxicating beverage when fermented. Khamr or khamrah is
the word used in the Qur'an to denote a fermented beverage that intoxicates a person when
he/she drinks it. It is sometimes translated as "wine." Alcohol and other intoxicants are
forbidden in the Quran, as they are a bad habit that drives people away from the
remembrance of God. Several different verses address the issue, revealed at different times
over a period of years. A complete ban on alcohol is widely accepted among Muslims as part
of wider Islamic dietary law.
ALCOHOL IN PERFUME ISSUE

The Shaf'i school of jurisprudence and the other schools maintain is that alcohol is
not filth in itself and it is permissible to be utilized in (manufacturing) perfumes, detergents,
medicine and other useful usages. If one performs prayer while wearing perfume containing
alcohol, his prayer is valid. This is because of the following reasons.

The Shafi'is generally consider all liquid intoxicants of grabs as wine and stipulate for
the filthiness of the liquid to have the property of causing strong state of intoxication. The
Hanafis stipulate for the filthiness of the liquid to produce foam. The Shafi' also applied this
to all liquid intoxicants other than grabs which also cause strong state of intoxication and
they considered them prohibited and filthy. The Hanafis maintain that any liquid intoxicants
other than grabs are not filth; though they have considered it prohibited to be taken.

Based on this, alcohol is not considered as wine or filthy. It is not also a liquid
intoxicant, unlike wine which scholars have differed over determining its filthy or pure
properties. Alcohol is merely a toxicant substance and it is not meant to be drunk in normal
conditions for the sake of intoxication. Rather, it is prohibited to take toxicant substances
because it is harmful and destructive. Alcohol is pure the same as hashish and opium and all
of them are harmful.

Filth is governed by the laws of Shari'ah and it is not a chemical fact. This means
that wine is considered filth in the Shari'ah, while the chemical analysis proved that alcohol is
considered the intoxicant element in wine. This mere chemical fact does not necessitate
alcohol to be filth or prohibited when it is found in liquids other than wine. This is because it
is not necessary for the generated elements of a filthy compound to be impure. There is a
consensus that filth includes urine and excrement which are made up of chemical elements
that can be found in pure things; rather in food and drink. However, filthiness and impurities
attached to them as an outcome of the presence of certain filthy compounds. Fermentation
only occurs when the object contains a sugary substance, or the fermentation can never be
occurred such as the case with colocynth. Fermentation is the conversion of the sugary
substance to carbonic acid and alcohol. Consequently, the liquid becomes intoxicant
because of the presence of alcohol. Alcohol in itself is not intoxicant, however it is harmful. If
someone merely drinks alcohol, he would either fall asleep or be unconscious. In order to
transform alcohol to intoxicant liquid, we should mix one part of alcohol with three parts of
water and distill the whole amount and it will produce wine. Mixing alcohol with water turns it
to intoxicant liquid. The variety of intoxicant liquids result from the different sugar degrees
formed when mixing alcohol with much or little amount of water. 'Arrack contains 40% or
more of alcohol, the remaining kinds of wine contain 10% of alcohol, beer which is made
from barely contains 5% of alcohol and so forth. Alcohol in itself is a toxicant substance and
it only becomes intoxicant when mixed with water.

Imam al-Nawawi said in al-Minhaj: "filth includes every liquid intoxicant". Thereupon,
some Shafi'is doubted this and mentioned that there are some liquid intoxicants which are
not filthy such as liquid hashish. The advocators of imam al-Nawawi interpreted his saying
"liquid" as causing strong state of intoxication. Consequently, there is a consensus that not
every liquid intoxicant is filth, and it is a condition for the liquid to cause a strong state of
intoxication to consider it filth. However, imam al-Nawawi said in the section titled "drinks" of
al-Minhaj: "Any beverage that intoxicates when taken in large quantities is unlawful both in
small and large quantities. The penalty for drinking [a liquid intoxicant] is obligatory enforced
against anyone who drinks".

It is established (in the Shari'ah) that when the essence and characteristics of objects
change, its legal ruling subsequently changes. For instance, filth becomes pure if it is mixed
with much amount of water, and the color, taste and odor of water remain unchanged.
Alcohol is not considered as wine if it is mixed with perfume, medicine or detergents. There
is also consensus among scholars that if wine converts to vinegar, it is considered pure by
the Shari'ah, even with chemists finding traces of alcohol in it.
REFERENCES

1. Alcohol. (2008). In C. Kuhn, S. Swartzwelder & W. Wilson (Eds.), Buzzed: The

straight facts about the most used and abused drugs from alcohol to ecstasy (3rd
ed., pp. 33–61). New York: WW Norton.
2. Ibn Kathir. "The Gradual Prohibition of Khamr (Alcoholic Drink)". Quran Tafsir Ibn
Kathir. Retrieved 23 July 2018.