It is also established that he flogged the drinker on more than one occasion (1), as did his caliphs and the Muslims after him.

Most scholars hold that execution was abrogated. Others say that the ruling remains in force; and it may also be said that it is a discretionary punishment for the ruler to impose when necessary.

It is established that the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—administered forty blows with palm fronds and sandals as punishment for drinking wine. Abu Bakr administered forty, while Umar administered eighty during his caliphate. Ali—may Allah be pleased with him—would sometimes administer forty and sometimes eighty (2).

Some scholars therefore say that eighty strokes [أ/ق 43] are obligatory, while others say that forty are obligatory and that the ruler may impose the additional strokes when necessary—such as when people become habituated to drinking wine, when the drinker cannot be deterred without them, or in similar circumstances.

When drinking is uncommon and the drinker’s case is not severe, however, forty strokes suffice. This is the stronger of the two views, and it is the position of al-Shāfiī and one of the two reported positions of Ahmad (3).