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Tag: "Alcohol"

tag name Alcohol type: Miscellaneous
web link bahai-library.com/tags/Alcohol
related tags Addiction; Domestic violence; Wine (metaphor)
Inventory subject Alcohol and drugs; tobacco; opium
notes

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selected quotations
(authoritative sources)

These quotations reflect common presentations of Bahá’í views; the materials below may show a wider range of interpretations and contexts:

"... It is inadmissible that man, who hath been endowed with reason, should consume that which stealeth it away. Nay, rather it behooveth him to comport himself in a manner worthy of the human station, and not in accordance with the misdeeds of every heedless and wavering soul..."

– Bahá'u'lláh, Kitáb-i-Aqdas, ¶119

"144. It is inadmissible that man, who hath been endowed with reason, should consume that which stealeth it away. ¶119

There are many references in the Bahá’í Writings which prohibit the use of wine and other intoxicating drinks and which describe the deleterious effect of such intoxicants on the individual. In one of His Tablets, Bahá’u’lláh states:

Beware lest ye exchange the Wine of God for your own wine, for it will stupefy your minds, and turn your faces away from the Countenance of God, the All-Glorious, the Peerless, the Inaccessible. Approach it not, for it hath been forbidden unto you by the behest of God, the Exalted, the Almighty.

‘Abdu’l-Bahá explains that the Aqdas prohibits “both light and strong drinks,” and He states that the reason for prohibiting the use of alcoholic drinks is because “alcohol leadeth the mind astray and causeth the weakening of the body.”

Shoghi Effendi, in letters written on his behalf, states that this prohibition includes not only the consumption of wine but of “everything that deranges the mind,” and he clarifies that the use of alcohol is permitted only when it constitutes part of a medical treatment which is implemented “under the advice of a competent and conscientious physician, who may have to prescribe it for the cure of some special ailment.”

– Kitáb-i-Aqdas, Note 144

"Regarding the use of liquor: According to the text of the Book of Aqdas, both light and strong drinks are prohibited. The reason for this prohibition is that alcohol leadeth the mind astray and causeth the weakening of the body. If alcohol were beneficial, it would have been brought into the world by the divine creation and not by the effort of man. Whatever is beneficial for man existeth in creation. Now it hath been proved and is established medically and scientifically that liquor is harmful.

As to the meaning of that which is written in the Tablets: “I have chosen for thee whatsoever is in the heaven and the earth”—this signifieth those things which are in accordance with the divine purpose and not the things which are harmful. For instance, one of the existing things is poison. Can we say that poison must be used as it hath been created by God? Nevertheless, intoxicating liquor, if prescribed by a physician for the patient and if its use is absolutely necessary, then it is permissible.

In brief, I hope that thou mayest become inebriated with the wine of the love of God, find eternal bliss and receive inexhaustible joy and happiness. All wine hath depression as an after-effect, except the wine of the Love of God."

– 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Additional Tablets, Extracts and Talks (AB02266)

"The wine mentioned in the Tablets has undoubtedly a spiritual meaning for in the "Book of Aqdas" we are definitely forbidden to take not only wine, but everything that deranges the mind. In poetry as a whole wine is taken to have a different connotation than the ordinary intoxicating liquid. We see it thus used by the Persian poets such as Saadi and Umar Khayyam and Hafiz to mean that element which nears man to his divine beloved, which makes him forget his material self so as better to seek his spiritual desires. It is very necessary to tell the children what this wine means so that they may not confuse it with the ordinary wine."

– from a letter dated 4 November 1926, written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer

bahaidata.org Q1626   ·   Links to Bahá'í wikis (bahai9, bahaipedia, etc.)
references en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_and_alcohol; bahaiquotes.com/subject/alcohol; www.bahai.org/library/authoritative-texts/search#q=Alcohol

"Alcohol" has been tagged in:

25 results from the Main Catalog

1 result from the Chronology

from the main catalog (25 results; expand)

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  1. 2023-07. Mizán of Affect in Material v. Metaphysical Models of Human Consciousness, The. John S. Hatcher. — Though Baha'i teachings hold that the soul progresses after the body ceases to exist, the physical b... Articles.
  2. 2019-09. Worldview and the Laws of the Bayán. Nader Saiedi. — Explores the Persian Bayan's spiritual worldview and laws through four talks, offering insights into... Audio.
  3. 2018. Is Spirituality Effective in Addiction Recovery and Prevention?. Abdu'l-Missagh Ghadirian, Shadi Salehian. — Substance abuse has become a global health crisis, the leading cause of death and disability worldwi... Articles.
  4. 2015/2025. Principles of Spiritual Economics: A Compilation from the Bahá'í Writings. Hooshmand Badee, comp. — A book-length compilation, in 38 chapters, from the writings of Baha’u’llah, The Bab, ‘Abdu’... Compilations-personal.
  5. 2015 Fall. Wittgensteinian Language-Games in an Indo-Persian Dialogue on the World Religions. Juan Cole. — Reflections on Baha'u'llah's theology of previous religions and Ludwig Wittgenstein’s concept of "... Articles.
  6. 2013-2018/2023. Various Essays. Susan Gammage. — 47 short essays on following the teachings and living a Baha'i life, life coaching and counselling, ... Essays.
  7. 2011-01. Substance Abuse Alcohol and Drug Abuse: A Psychosocial and Spiritual Approach to Prevention, by A.M. Ghadirian: Review. John Guilfoyle. Reviews.
  8. 2005/2011. Alcoholics Anonymous: Reviews of two books by James Duncan. Jack McLean. — Reviews of World Awakening: AA and Higher Power Mutual Aid and Living the Twelve Steps: Change Ourse... Reviews.
  9. 2005. Food, Justice, and the Baha'i Faith. Paul Fieldhouse. — PhD Dissertation tests the claim that "food," both literal and metaphorical, provides a practical wa... Theses.
  10. 2004. Bahá'í Ethics: Answers to 55 Questions Submitted by Arthur Dobrin. Dianne Bradford, Fiona Missaghian, Udo Schaefer, Robert Stockman, Jonah Winters, comp. . — Answers to questions submitted in preparation for a source book in religious ethics for a college co... Essays.
  11. 2000. Substance Abuse: A Bahá'í Perspective. Abdu'l-Missagh Ghadirian. — Up-to-date information about diverse addictive substances that are widely abused worldwide, includin... Books.
  12. 1998-12. African Culture, Traditional, Aspects of. Universal House of Justice, Universal House of Justice, Research Department, comp. . — Challenges and opportunities in the African continent; eliminating prejudices; dance and music; alco... Compilations.
  13. 1997-03-30. Alcohol, Prohibition of. Universal House of Justice. — Explanation of the prohibition on drinking alcohol; guidelines on how to approach and impose adminis... UHJ-letters.
  14. 1997. In A Blue Haze: Smoking and Baha'i Ethics. Udo Schaefer. — Smoking as a focus of this first attempt to define certain aspects of Baha'i ethics. Books.
  15. 1995. Effects of addiction/alcoholism, acculturation, physical, emotional and sexual violence on the education of aboriginal children, The. Tjanara Goreng-Goreng. — The social problems facing many Australian aboriginal children; the need to involve indigenous peopl... Articles.
  16. 1993/2000/2013. True Foundation of All Economics, The. Bahá'u'lláh, Abdu'l-Bahá, Shoghi Effendi, Universal House of Justice, Hooshmand Badee, comp. . — Book-length compilation ordered by chapters covering 26 themes on the economy, welfare, development,... Compilations-personal.
  17. 1991. Alcohol, Prohibition on Drinking. Bahá'u'lláh, Abdu'l-Bahá, Shoghi Effendi, Universal House of Justice, Universal House of Justice, Research Department, comp. . Compilations.
  18. 1991. Chaste and Holy Life, A. Bahá'u'lláh, Abdu'l-Bahá, Shoghi Effendi, Universal House of Justice. Compilations.
  19. 1988. Lights of Guidance: A Bahá'í Reference File. Bahá'u'lláh, Abdu'l-Bahá, Shoghi Effendi, Universal House of Justice, Helen Bassett Hornby, comp. . — The classic Baha'i reference book. This is its first online edition. Compilations-personal.
  20. 1988. Three Bahá'í Voices. Esther Bradley-DeTally. — Personal stories about addiction, alcoholism, and spiritual growth through a then-new group called "... Essays.
  21. 1988. Twelve Steps, The: Bahá'í Writings and recovery from substance abuse. Bahá'u'lláh, Abdu'l-Bahá, Bahá'ís in Recovery Fellowship, comp. . Compilations-personal.
  22. 1987-11-09. Alcoholics Anonymous. Universal House of Justice. — Three short letters concerning Baha'i participation in Alcoholics Anonymous. UHJ-letters.
  23. 1985. Unrestrained as the Wind: A Life Dedicated to Bahá'u'lláh. National Youth Committee, comp. — Compilation of quotations on topics of especial interest to Baha'i youth. Compilations-NSA.
  24. 1978. Tablet of Purity. Abdu'l-Bahá, Bahá'í World Centre, trans. . — Emphasizing purity, cleanliness, and abstinence from harmful habits, linking physical refinement to ... Writings.
  25. 1972. Alcohol, Compilación Sobre. Bahá'u'lláh, Abdu'l-Bahá, Shoghi Effendi, Universal House of Justice, Universal House of Justice, Research Department, comp. . — Compilación de la C.U.J. sobre el Alcohol y las drogas, publicada en el Boletin Baha'i de España d... Compilations.

from the Chronology (1 result)

  1. 1935-10-01 — Shoghi Effendi wrote to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States and Cana...
 
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