The Commentary of Al-Qasidah — Page 106
106 The commentary of al-Qa si dah COUPLET 32 They abandoned the pleasures of the evening wine; And embraced the joy of prayers in nights of grief How wonderful was the revolution that took place amongst the Arabs. There was a time when they exhausted their nights in music, luxury, sports, eating and drinking, and now the same people were spending the dark hours of the night enjoying the pleasure of prayers and crying while prostrating to All a h. This was a wonderful revolution that took place. Pre-Islamic Arab customs include five different times when liquor was consumed and presented to guests within the day. There was a liquor named j a shiriyyah which was consumed before sunrise. The liquor called s ab uh was consumed after sunrise. At noon-time it was qail. The one consumed in the afternoon was named ghab u q , and the drink for the evening was named fa h mah. 16 Islam changed these five times of drinking alcohol into the five daily prayers, and thus replaced each sinful activity with a good deed. 16 Lis a nul-‘Arab , under the word Fa h mah