Islam's great figures were winos to a man. It's time to revise the sharia

According to the Muslim jurists, "the gate of ijtihad is closed", meaning that creative additions to the sharia are no longer permissible. Nevertheless, additions are definitely needed, and in no matter more urgently than that of wine. The Persian poet Hafiz set a standard in the praise of wine: no vulgar winespeak, no gross lingering over noses, palates, foreplay, afterplay, and all the other obscenities that occur in every weekly paper save the New Statesman. On the contrary, a direct connection between the flagon that delights us and the God who inspires. Hafiz breathed in love from his finjan, and breathed it out again in prayer. We read every day about the "clash of civilisations". In fact, there is no such thing, because the civilisation represented at its greatest by Hafiz, Rumi and Omar Khayyam - winos to a man - has been forgotten by those who claim to represent it.

It is true that the Prophet, in his tetchy admonitions to his congregation, found himself compelled to forbid wine. There was no other way to guarantee their sobriety. But the rivers of Muhammad's paradise flow with the stuff, and that which is permitted in heaven must surely be permitted here below.

Look at the Islamic world today and you will find two entirely different communities. In the one, typified by Saudi Arabia, grossly wealthy rulers, with fossilised attitudes fortified by fossil fuels, crown their list of oppressive laws with a vicious condemnation of the grape. In the other, typified by Morocco, an impoverished government composed of people like you and me does its best to grant a measure of freedom to its subjects, including the freedom to drink. Where would you rather live: Saudi Arabia or Morocco?

The French colonial administration introduced Chardonnay, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon to the stony hillsides of Morocco; it also introduced planning laws that insisted on maintaining the outline of the old Muslim city, in which only the minaret punctures the sky. Hence the enduring beauty of Fez and Marrakesh. If there is any cause of the cultural and moral disaster of Saudi Arabia besides the absence of wine, it is the triumph there of the worst forms of modern architecture, many of them attributable to the Bin Laden family.

You can visit Morocco at your local Oddbins. The wines available are grown in Meknes, bottled in France, and sold under the Bonassia label, with a serviceable Cabernet Sauvignon at £4.49. L'excellence de Bonassia (a warm, fruity Merlot-Cabernet mix) is the best imaginable accompaniment to couscous, and a bargain at £5.49. Soon the equally palatable white wines of that beautiful country will also travel north and - who knows? - there may no longer be the need to travel there.

Post your comment

Please note: you will need to login or register before you can comment on the website