Liquor

Condemned by the traditional Hindus,
although attitudes differ based on the
type of liquor consumed. Consuming
beer, wine, and distilled spirits (“foreign
liquor”) carries the stigma of adopting
“foreign” Western values; whereas consuming undistilled, fermented beverages such as “country liquor” and toddy
carry the taint of low-class behavior.
Patterns of drinking tend to reflect and
reinforce these negative attitudes. Since
liquor is taboo in polite society, people
who drink will often finish the bottle in
one sitting and become intoxicated,
thus “proving” that there is no such
thing as responsible drinking.
Despite the general cultural disapproval, there are a few Hindu temples
where liquor is the everyday offering to
the deity. The worshipers also receive
liquor as prasad, the sanctified food or
drink that carries the deity’s blessing.
Alcohol has also been incorporated into
religious rituals in certain types of
tantric religious practice. Tantra is a
secret ritual-based religious tradition,
based on the belief that there is an ultimate unity of everything that exists.
From a tantric perspective, to affirm
that the entire universe is one principle means that the adept must reject
all concepts based on dualistic thinking. One way to do this is to partake of
the “Five Forbidden Things” (panchamakara), consciously breaking societal norms forbidding consumption of
intoxicants, nonvegetarian food, and
illicit sexuality. This is always done within a carefully defined ritual setting, in a
conscious effort to sacralize what is normally forbidden.