Prohibition of Drinking (and Intoxicants)

Question

I want to ask what Islam says about drinking (alcoholism)? Do include verses from Holy Quran and the Prophet (pbuh)'s sayings, with references, in your answer.

Response

Quran has categorically forbidden drinking and consumption of all kinds of intoxicants and declared them abominations, and Satan's work. One should indeed stay away from such things. Quran says,

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُواْ إِنَّمَا الْخَمْرُ وَالْمَيْسِرُ وَالأَنصَابُ وَالأَزْلاَمُ رِجْسٌ مِّنْ عَمَلِ الشَّيْطَانِ فَاجْتَنِبُوهُ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ * إِنَّمَا يُرِيدُ الشَّيْطَانُ أَن يُوقِعَ بَيْنَكُمُ الْعَدَاوَةَ وَالْبَغْضَاء فِي الْخَمْرِ وَالْمَيْسِرِ وَيَصُدَّكُمْ عَن ذِكْرِ اللّهِ وَعَنِ الصَّلاَةِ فَهَلْ أَنتُم مُّنتَهُونَ

O believers! Intoxicants, games of chance, (sacrificing at) stone altars and (dividing by) arrows are an abomination from Satan's works; shun them so you may be successful. Satan wants to excite enmity and hatred between you with intoxicants and gambling, and wants to hinder you from the remembrance of God, and from prayer: will you then not abstain? (Quran 5:90-91)

If you closely examine the above verses, there are two areas of how they affect us:

At an individual level, Satan wants to distance us from God by keeping us away from His remembrance and prayer, both of which connect us to Him. This is his main objective in this world, and he wants to drive as many humans into Fire with him as possible. (See: Whose Law to Follow?)
Along with the effect on individuals, there is a societal impact as implied by the phrase "excite enmity and hatred between you". In other words, drinking and gambling are opposed to peace and safety of a society.

Based on these, it seems that drinking and gambling should be rejected at individual level, and for the well-being of a society, it must be driven out at a societal level too. The words of this verse and a few sayings ascribed to the Prophet (pbuh) suggest that drinking even small quantities of intoxicants must be avoided.

Drinking seems to have been prohibited in the previous scriptures too:

Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit. (Ephesians 5:18)

In the life of the Hereafter, those who end in Paradise will be served wine that shall be free of the associated evils mentioned in Quran's verse quoted above.

From an academic point of view, there are two great articles on drinking: "Prohibition" and "Alcoholism", published in Microsoft® Encarta® Online Encyclopedia 2005.