Thanks to God, Lord of Mankind, who rewards the Faithful. Blessings of Allah on Muhammad, the last of the Prophets and Messengers sent by God. Blessings of God on Muhammad's family and companions who are all very pure. Blessings of God on all those, who follow Muhammad step by step and behave like him until the Day of Judgement.

 

One of God's biggest graces on humanity was to send his honourable Messenger, his greatest Prophet, Muhammad with a complete message which is good for every place, every era, every century, every locality, every generation and every tribe. This message includes all that can make people happy. The Messenger of God did not omit anything that could be beneficial to human beings and humanity. At the same time, he prohibited and warned against all that could be bad or harmful. This is provided by texts in the book or laws of God or by complete rules in which human beings could find all that can happen in a framework of compassion, of justice, of benefit, of facilitation, of relief, of encouragement to do good and to do away with evil. The final goals of all this is to establish the good society by good people.

 

The Almighty God indicates some of the basis of the Islamic Shari'ah in

which the Prophet commands people:

 

!I Those who follow the Apostle,

The unlettered Prophet,

Whom they find mentioned

In their own (Scriptures), -

In the Law and the Gospel; -

For he commands them

What is just and forbids them

What is evil; he allows

Them as lawful what is good

(And pure) and prohibits them

From what is bad (and impure);

He releases them

From their heavy burdens

And from the yokes

That are upon them.

So it is those who believe

In him, honour him,

Help him, and follow the Light

Which is sent down with him, -

It is they who will prosper."

 

Divine law was concluded with five items: - to preserve religion, soul, spirit, honour and wealth. The Shari'ah also prohibits all aggression against the right religion, the soul, the honour and anything harmful to the mind and any waste of wealth.

 

It is noted that in order to preserve the mind, religious law sets limits on what makes someone inebriated and has censured intoxication.

 

This is an illustration of the Shari'ah's comprehensiveness and accuracy. It is clear that these limits should by no means be exceeded or reduced.

 

This is different from cases of warning since the latter differs from one person to another and changes according to circumstances. It was reported by Oum-Salmah, mother of believers, that the Prophet prohibited all inebriating drinks and all intoxicants.

 

Therefore to distinguish inebriation needs no deep study or great efforts. However, this is different in the case of warning of addictive drugs, since it necessitates undertaking big efforts in view of the minuteness of their effects. Bearing in mind that judgement is derived from perception, before acquainting ourselves with the Shari'ah's position on khat, it is necessary to introduce its definition and effects, both, on the individual and on the society. Thus, we will draw conclusions on the Shari'ah's position, God willing.

 

DEFINITION:

 

We read in the Arabic Encyclopaedia by the "Dar El Kalam & Franklin, Printing & Publication Institution" that khat's scientific name is Catha edulis Forsk and it belongs to the celastraceae family. It is found in Ethiopia and is widely cultivated in Yemen.

 

This plant is a shoot, cultivated for the sake of its leaves, chewed when green, similar to the coca-bush. Khat is widely chewed in Yemen. It provokes strange visions and imaginative sights when taken in small quantities and has a stimulant effect, but large doses lead to intoxication which might manifest itself in depression, passivity, etc. Wild khat has a greater effect than the garden-cultivated one. The leaves may be steeped in water as it is done in Ethiopia. Reproduction is done by seeds.

 

According to the report of the Sixth Session of the Arabic Conference on Narcotics, the Director General of the Pan-Arab Bureau for Narcotics Affairs stated that:

"The Arab Conference at its Fifth Session held from 15 to 20 December 1969 on the current habit of khat chewing in some Arab countries, recommended that member countries which have not yet classified khat as a drug should proceed urgently to do so."

The Conference also recommended that the Pan-Arab Bureau for Narcotics Affairs follow up this problem and submit for urgent consideration the subject of amphetamines at the next session of the United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs, because the problem of khat is part of that subject.

 

On pages 29 - 32 of the same document, we read that khat problems have been the (a) focus of interest at the Pan-Arab Bureau for Narcotic Affairs since 1951, which had drawn the attention of the United Nations in 1956 to the results of the first analysis done by the Egyptian Office for Legal Medicine on samples of khat leaves. Through chemical extraction it has been shown that khat has four active ingredients: cathine, cathidine, cathinone and a sugar-like substance.

 

All these strong substances have effects similar to those of caffeine and ephedrine. The effect of this plant is intoxicant and chewing its leaves has stimulating and euphoric effects, it expands the eye and excites the central nervous system.

 

Under title of "The Problem of Khat and the United Nations" it is written that since 1935, khat has benefited from the attention of the League of Nations' Advisory Commission. Thus, during the period corresponding to the 12th - 16th Sessions of the Commission, the question was under discussion. Thereafter it was moved to the World Health Organization and in 1964 a WHO Expert Committee indicated in its 13th Report that: "Khat could be compared with the amphetamine group; the withdrawal symptoms following excessive chewing of khat is similar to those which are usually produced by misuse of amphetamines."

 

Also, under the title "The khat plant's damages to health" we read that "damages to health consist of loss of appetite, malnutrition and vulnerability to contagious diseases like tuberculosis, and weakening of men's sexual ability, leading to family break and other damages."

At the Manager's Seminar held in Sana'a from 15 - 21 May, 1972, several resolutions were adopted declaring khat a national catastrophe and calling for a ban on khat among state employees and the up-rooting of khat tree, etc.

 

At the World Islamic Conference for the Campaign against Alcohol and Drugs, held at the Islamic University in Medina, it was decided to list khat among the psychoactive substances. Reporting on his research,

Dr. Salaah El-Din Ahmed Othman, Head of the Chemistry and Botany Departments, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences and Nutrition, King Faisal University, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, discussed the Chemical Classification pnd Bio-Chemical Effects on Alcohol and Drugs, saying that:

 

"Chemical investigation has proved that the juice of khat leaves contains several alkaloids which are all psychoactive and chemically similar to opium."

 

We red in the Al-Munjid dictionary that khat is a small plant cultivated in Yemen where they chew its intoxicating leaves.

 

In Al-Waseet dictionary by the Arabic Language Academy in Egypt, published by Dar El-Ma'rif, we read on page 765, volume 2 the following definition of khat: "It is a plant of the celastraceae group which is cultivated for its leaves which are chewed when still green." Chewing a limited quantity produces an exciting effect but excessive chewing induces intoxication.

 

In his book "The Reform of Society" the late Al-Sheikh Muhammad Salem Al-Bihany, (God bless him) on pages 406-409 wrote:

 

"It is known that khat has adverse effects on health; destroys teeth, provokes haemorrhoids, harms the stomach and decreases appetite, it may ultimately destroy the spinal cord, weakens sperm, emaciates and causes chronic constipation and kidney ailments.

Children of khat consumers are often with weak constitution, with small physique; their growth is stunted and they suffer from anaemia and are plagued with stomach problems."

 

Those who have chewed khat and then given it up acknowledge that upon chewing khat leaves they felt their eyes were expanding and they were experiencing a sense of ecstasy and imagination, a state which lasted two hours. Afterwards they started to feel sluggish, weak and passive. Consumption of khat provokes gastric disturbances, and sexual weakness and secretion of an infectious liquid.

 

To know the worst of the lot

is to look at the addiction of khat

Khat kills talent and strength

giving birth to concern and regret

Khat is nothing but a poisoned idea

leading the mind to catastrophe

It flows like a killer within the body

and exposes the nerves to damages

It leads the mind to dream

bringing on the bitter taste of misery

It kills ambitions in youth

it melts away all qualities and will-power

It destroys life and wealth

taking on the colours of ruin and devastation

It kills will-power and youth

and removes smiles from once radiant faces

It splashes on consumer's faces

nothing but the yellow colour of death.

 

The World Islamic Conference for the Campaign against Alcohol and Drugs, held in Medina from 22 - 25 May, 1982 adopted the following resolutions:

 

"After reviewing reports submitted to the Conference on the health, psychological, ethical, behavioural, social and economic damages resulting from khat, the conference judges khat to be a drug prohibited by religion and accordingly the Conference recommends to Islamic States to apply punishment of the basis of Islamic Shari'ah against any person who plants this tree and markets or consumes khat."

 

THE SHARIAH'S ATTITUDE VIS-A-VIS KHAT

 

I have already demonstrated that divine law should apply to the five items to preserve religion, soul, mind, honour and wealth. Shari'ah dictates that aggression and harm should be removed from individuals and from society.

 

To form the good individual and establish the good society are among the most important purposes of the Shari'ah. The latter therefore, makes goodness lawful to them, prohibits wickedness. It makes lawful

for man to draw advantage from all that is absolutely or most probably beneficial, it forbids him from all that is purely or most probably harmful.

 

According to the Shari'ah's rules, to reject harm has priority over getting benefits, thus, whenever, something has as much harm as benefit, the previous general rule brings the latter under prohibition. It is also with some logic that whenever something calls as much for prohibition as for lawfulness, it is the first that overrides the latter since it is an instruction aiming at protection against harm. The general rule is to benefit providing, that immunity against harm has priority over getting benefits, as already explained above.

 

In view of what we have learnt from the experts' report it is clear, without doubt, that khat is damaging and its harm effects both, the individual and the society. Since experts decided that khat is intoxicating we refer to Al Imam Ahmed and Abu Dawoud, who quoted Oum-Salma, saying that the Prophet has prohibited all that is inebriating or intoxicating.

 

Indeed, the Islamic Ulema (scholars) were the first to warn against khat's harmful effects, calling for its prohibition and adding it to the list of drugs. Thus, the Mufti of Mecca, Sheikh Ahmed ben Muhammad ben Hogar Al-Haithamy Al Makki (909-974H.) wrote a book on the subject under the title "Warning the Faithful against using Khat".

 

The Mufti quotes the Faquih (theologian) Abi Baker Ibn-Ibrahim Al-Maqery Al-Herazi from his book "The Prohibition of Khat" in which he wrote that "The khat eater feels comfortable and gets cheerful, feeling happy, his sadness disappears. Then, within two hours of eating he is embraced by accumulating concerns and unhappiness and is invaded by sadness, turning into misbehaviour. Khat spoils the appetite and the taste for food, causing insomnia and depriving the chewer of the gift of sleep. Khat harms the body and following urination a discharge similar to gonorrhoea continues for some time.

 

Concluding that it is a catastrophe to the religion and a heavy burden for Muslims.

 

Ibn Hogar agrees with those who proclaim prohibition of khat. He follows the erudite Faqih (theologian) Hamzah Al-Nashiry who can be trusted when giving his or other opinions. A narrator in Holy Mecca once told me of a poem from Al-Nashiry:

 

Do not eat khat, neither wet nor dry

 

it leads to both harm and incurable misery Outstanding ulema believe it should be restricted as by its use people are harmfully affected

 

Ibn Hogar added that the use of khat only ends in harm and does not even have the warmth of alcohol. The harmful effects of alcohol are brought on after addiction as in the case of opium which makes people ugly and disfigures their appearance and soul. Khat is more harmful than opium because it has no known benefits and has many harmful effects such as rigidity of mind, misbehaviour, loss of appetite, causing loss of self-respect, constipation, etc. It is regarded as worse than hashish and alcohol because it combines the adverse effects of these substances with anaemia and the drying up of the brain.

 

This is a synthesis of the book written on khat. It is clear that the Islamic Sharitah completely prohibits khat and recommends warning the cultivators, sellers, distributors and users. We thank all international organizations and governments who work towards the eradication of this disease, by which they will protect humanity from a major problem.