s-k-r

Description

The Arabic root س-ك-r (s-k-r) carries the core meaning of blocking, closing off, or obstructing normal perception and consciousness. In the Quran, this root appears in contexts describing states where rational faculties are impaired or overwhelmed, whether through literal intoxication from substances (khamr), the confusion and stupor of death, or the dazzling of vision that prevents proper seeing. The Quran uses this root to emphasize the Islamic prohibition against anything that clouds human judgment and reason, which are essential for worship and moral responsibility, making intoxicants forbidden because they induce the same blocked state (sukr) that separates humans from clear God-consciousness.