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    Angels Tapping at the Wine-Shop’s Door: A History of Alcohol in the Islamic World

    1646.000

    A fascinating history of the complexities and contradictions of alcohol consumption in the Muslim world, from the founding of the faith to the present day.

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    AuthorRudi Matthee
    ISBN9781787388154
    Published LanguageEnglish
    Publication Year2023
    PublisherC Hurst & Co Publishers Ltd
    BindingHardback
    Original Price£25
    Pages352
    Ships By2−3 days

    Description

    Islam is the only major world religion that resists the juggernaut of alcohol consumption. In many Islamic countries, alcohol is banned; in others, it plays little role in social life. Yet, Muslims throughout history did drink, often to excess—whether sultans and shahs in their palaces, or commoners in taverns run by Jews or Christians.

    This evocative study delves into drinking’s many historic, literary and social manifestations in Islam, going beyond references to ‘hypocrisy’ or the temptations of ‘forbidden fruit’. Rudi Matthee argues that alcohol, through its ‘absence’ as much as its presence, takes us to the heart of Islam. Exploring the long history of this faith—from the eight-century Umayyad dynasty to Erdogan’s Turkey, and from Islamic Spain to modern Pakistan—he unearths a tradition of diversity and multiplicity in which Muslims drank, and found myriad excuses to do so. They celebrated wine and used it as a poetic metaphor, even viewing alcohol as a gift from God—the key to unlocking eternal truth.

    Drawing on a plethora of sources in multiple languages, Matthee presents Islam not as an austere and uncompromising faith, but as a set of beliefs and practices that embrace ambivalence, allowing for ambiguity and even contradiction.

    Additional information

    Author

    ISBN

    Published Language

    Publication Year

    Publisher

    Binding

    Original Price

    Pages

    352

    Ships By

    2−3 days