In Several authentic Hadiths there exists an extremely hard-line punishment for repetitive alcohol consumption. According to these narrations drinking alcohol 4 times gets you the death penalty. For brevity I will only quote one such narration:
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Sunan An-Nasa’i 5661:
It was narrated that Ibn Umar and a number of the Companions of Muhammad said: “The Messenger of Allah said:’ Whoever drinks Khamr, whip him; then if he drinks (again), whip him; then if he drinks (again), whip him; then if he drinks (again), kill him. [1]
Hadith Grade:
(Sahih) according to Al-albani
(Sahih) according to Ahmad Shakir
(Sahih) according to Darusallam
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On top of this, it is also recorded that companions of the prophet Muhammad supported and imposed this punishment, such as Abdullah Bin Amr:
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Musnad Ahmad 6974:
Narrated al-Hasan al-Basri: “By Allah, they claimed that Abdullah bin Amr testified on the basis that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, ‘If he drinks khamr (wine), whip him; then if he drinks again, whip him; then if he drinks again, whip him. If he is at his fourth instance, then strike his neck (i.e., kill him).’” He said, “Abdullah bin Amr would say, ‘Bring me a man who has been whipped for khamr four times, I owe it to you to strike his neck.’” [2]
Hadith Grade:
(Sahih) according to Shu’ayb Arnaut
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Some however dispute whether this punishment should still be acted upon. Evidence for those who say it should not be is found in Sunan Abu Dawud:
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Sunan Abu Dawud 4485:
Narrated Qabisah ibn Dhuwayb: The Prophet said If anyone drinks wine, flog him; if he repeats it, flog him, and if he repeats it, flog him. If he does it again a third or a fourth time, kill him. A man who had drunk wine was brought (to him) and he gave him lashes. He was again brought to him, and he flogged him. He was again brought to him and he flogged him. He was again brought to him and he flogged him. Then he did not execute that man, and it was a concession. [3]
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However there is a problem with this Hadith. Qabisah ibn Dhuwaib was two years old when Muhammad died. It is impossible that he heard this from Muhammad. Thus, this Hadith was regarded as Daif by Al-Albani. However, Shu’ayb Arna’ut was willing to, without evidence, presume that Qabisah heard it from a Companion of Muhammad so declared it Sahih.
But despite the obvious weakness of the narration, it appears the vast majority decided to take the hadith as proof and decided to not implement the punishment:
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An-Nawawi:
Muslim scholars are agreed that the Hadd (punishment) should be carried out against the one who drinks alcohol regardless of its quantity. They also agree that a person is not killed even if he repeatedly drinks it. This consensus is also reported by al-Tirmizi, Qadi Ayadh and many other many scholars. The exceptional opinion that approves killing the one who drinks a fifth time is not correct and contrary to the agreement of Sahabah and their followers. [4]
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Nawawi is wrong on a few things here. First: it is the fourth instance which the drinker is executed not the fifth. Second: the Sahabah and scholars did not completely agree on this. As I already stated, Abdullah Bin Amr supported the punishment. Scholars also supported the punishment such as As-Sindi as well as Ibn Taymiyyah who said that it can be implemented if deemed necessary.
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As-Sindi:
These are some ten hadiths, all of which are sahih and explicit about killing in the fourth instance. There is nothing that explicitly counters it. The statement of those who say that it has been abrogated is not backed by any proof. [5]
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Ibn Taymiyyah:
It is a tazeer that an imam makes when necessary.” [6]
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For a more modern example, Ahmad Shakir, who was a great muhadditheen of the 20th century, known for his hadith authentications of Tafsir al-Tabari and Musnad Ahmad, authored a 97 page work titled: “The definitive word on killing the habitual wine drinker” In the conclusion to his work he states:
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Ahmad Shakir:
This is ample evidence, as I see it, verifying the Hadith which commands the killing of the wine drinker on the fourth instance. It becomes clear to the reader that this command is firm and not abrogated. It is the correct treatment for an addiction that has nearly destroyed the Islamic nations. It is near to their sublime legislation and the pure, exalted morals of Islam.
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Lastly, for those who use the Sunan Abu Dawud hadith: Remember that it doesn’t actually say there was an abrogation as the concession may have been unique to that one man. Thus the command’s abrogation is presumed.
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Sources:
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[1] https://sunnah.com/nasai/51/123
[2] https://archive.org/stream/waqmsnda/msnda11#page/n556/mode/1up
[4] http://islamweb.net/en/fatwa/86328/
[5] http://shamela.ws/browse.php/book-5760/page-4037
[6] https://archive.org/stream/FP162512FP#page/n84/mode/1up
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