The article examins the development of attitudes of the Proplet Muhammad to the use of wine and other beverages containing alcoholic substances. The author questions commonly shared view, that the ban of wine-drinking in Islam is due to the „God’s revelation“ itself and analyzes all Qur’anic verses, in which the motif of wine occurs, in their actual contexts. Thus, it seems to be clear, that the real ban of wine and application of the whole range of penalties for the transgression of the „God’s borders“ is only the issue of the later developments within the framework of the Islamic law (shari’a).
The article examines the gap between serious analytical vision of Islam as a religious system and civilisation and the one-sided, distorted and even xenophobic attitude that occures in Europe (including the Czech Republic) in last few years as a kind of fashion. The author remindes to still surviving heritage of Huntington’s „clash of civilisations“ and notices, how deeply this paradigmatical approach still influences the correct understanding of such a complex and multiform phenomenon like Islam.