Forgotten Islamic History: Coffee, The Power Drink of the Pious

“Coffee is the common man’s gold, and like gold it brings to every person the feeling of luxury and nobility.”

(Shaykh Abd al–Kadir, wrote the earliest known manuscript on the history of coffee in 1588)

Tarim, Yemen - The sun rose towards its zenith, baking the Hadhramaut Valley below in a scorching 40º heat. The afternoon was no time to be in the market; still Nu’man hunched over a cart under the blazing sun, running his fingers through a pile of sesame seeds. Humus was his mother’s specialty and she demanded the whitest seeds. Nu’man examined the pile hunting for any discolouration that might disqualify them.

Habib, the vendor from Mocha (Yemen) watched the teenager with amusement. He leaned against a pole holding up his stall’s canvas and stroked his beard. Nu’man’s frankincense misbaha (prayer beads) wrapped around his wrist caught Habib’s attention; the beads gave off a sweet scent. He must be a Sufi, thought Habib.

“Boy!” he called out to Nu’man, who lifted his head and peered up at the vendor.

“Who is your Shyakh?” Habib asked,

“Who wants to know?” Nu’man responded.

Ignoring the question, Habib reached into a small sack, scooped up a handful of green coffee beans, leaned towards Nu’man with the palm of his hand at eye level and went straight into his sales pitch.

“See these beans, boy… they have special powers… they will keep you awake at night and increase your level of concentration. They will help you in your nightly dhikr sessions.”

“What do you know about my dhikr sessions?” Nu’man shot back, irritated.

Pointing at the sweet scented misbaha wrapped around Nu’man’s wrist, Habib smiled and leaned back. He nodded his head.

“Trust me... I know about your dhikr sessions.” He closed his hand into a fist and poured the green coffee beans into Nu’man’s surprised hands. “Take these. They are a gift from me.” Habib may have been a simple merchant but he knew his customers well.

Misbaha or prayer beads wrapped around the wrist

Nu’man had been struggling during his dhikr sessions. His fellow Murids (students) would have amazing visions but all Nu’man would get was a sore back and cramped knees. Maybe this was the magic elixir he needed to push him over the top. He studied Habib’s face trying to decide if he could trust the man with the soft eyes and ivory white grin permanently tattooed on his jet black face.

He pocketed the coffee beans.

Nu’man paid for the sesame seeds, turned and walked away briskly. Habib, called “Remember if you want more I have plenty here.” without turning Nu’man simply waved with the back of his hand and kept walking.

Coffee a beverage for the pious?

For coffee drinkers, the day cannot begin without a cup of coffee. For the pious Muslim over eight hundred years ago the night could not begin without a freshly brewed cup of coffee.

Coffee was the power drink of the pious. For the first 300 years after it was discovered, coffee was closely associated with Muslims, in particular the Sufi’s. Believers consumed coffee to stay awake during the night in contemplation of Allah.

Although Muslims may have discovered the coffee “drink”, the Ethiopians were aware of the coffee bean’s energizing effects much earlier.

The wild flowering coffee plant grows in the jungles of Ethiopia. The edible cherry it produces holds the sacred green coffee bean, which is the second most traded commodity in the world after oil. The Ethiopians chewed this bean. The concept of coffee as a beverage arose in the port city of Mocha (al-Mukha), Yemen by a Muslim.

It’s unknown exactly when the coffee plant jumped across the Rea Sea but it reached the port of Mocha about a thousand years ago. After this, all coffee plants around the world originated from Yemen. These plants gave birth to the global coffee industry and the vast majority of coffee plants outside Ethiopia share the same Yemini genetic code.

The story of coffee brewed in a liquid form is linked to Umar al – Shadhili, a master of the Shadhili Tarika (order). There are numerous stories associated with his discovery. Some say he discovered the powers of the plant while out in the wilderness and others say he observed the Ethiopians drinking coffee and brought the habit back to Mocha.

Whatever the story, Umar al – Shadhili introduced coffee as a drink to help his students during their nightly dhikr sessions. Dhikr sessions are popular among Sufi’s. The name of Allah or a du’a (prayer) or a verse from the Quran is repeated over and over again so the belief in the oneness of Allah penetrates the heart. This can be done at any time but many Tarikas spend a portion of the night in dhikr. Because of this habit, coffee spread like wildfire among the various Sufi Tarikas. Between the years 1200CE & 1500CE Sufis wandered the Arabian Peninsula and used coffee during their dhikr sessions.

Once coffee spread to the general population, the Yemenis cultivated the land to support this stimulating elixir. This started near the city of Taiz and Ibb in southern Yemen on the legendary Nasmurade Mountain (Nakil Sumara) or Coffee Mountain.

Qahwah!!!

A small flame burned under the pot of boiling water; time to add Habib’s ingredients. Nu’man followed his instructions carefully.

He dropped unroasted green coffee beans into the boiling water and stirred. The water turned a dark brown, almost black, and gave off a strange but appealing fragrance. After several minutes of stirring, he took the pot off the fire and poured the dark magic elixir into a bowl; the bitter tasting mixture was scorching hot. Nu’man still had his doubts but if the powers of this elixir were true...

Cringing, he grabbed the bowl with both hands and as he raised the bowl he could smell the sweet aroma emanating from his concoction. The dark liquid may look evil but it smelt heavenly.

Black coffee, the magic elixir

He took a sip.

“QAHWAH !!!” he said as he spit out the bitter tasting liquid. His whole body shuddered as he turned his face away from the bowl in disgust!

He stared at the dark liquid, unsure of what he should do; but he was out of time. His Shaykh would start the dhikr session soon and he had a 20 minute walk to the mosque. Shaking his head, he mumbled this better work and forced down the hot brown liquid he called “qahwah” as quickly as he could without burning his tongue.

He made a mental note add cardamom in the future and grabbed his Quran, misbaha and ran out towards the mosque.

______ .... ______

Qahwah is the Arabic word for coffee. Every language has merged “Qahwah” into their vocabulary to describe this drink.

Qahwah - Arabic

Kahveh - Turkish

Kafee - German

Café - French

Coffee - English

According to medieval Arab lexicographers, the word qahwah was in common use prior to the consumption of coffee. It meant to make something repugnant or lessening one’s desire for something.

In the early years, raw green coffee beans were used to make coffee which made for a bitter tasting brew, and it is probably the reason why qahwah was used to describe this broth; roasting came much later. Roasting coffee beans releases the oils giving its unique taste and aroma.

Dhikr Session

Nu’man reached the mosque just after dusk. He didn’t feel any different. Was Habib playing games with him? Nu’man thought. He took his spot to the left of his Shaykh’s chair in the third row and sat crossed legged, waiting to get started. Others took their spots. The ones in the first row were the Shaykh’s favorites.

His Shaykh entered and sat in the chair facing the students. He opened with a dua and gave the instructions for the dhikr session. He warned his students that a dhikr session such as this should only happen in the presence of a Shaykh. It was dangerous to do this without a person of knowledge and then he started.

He closed his eyes, nodded his head and in a slow deep voice he stretched out the recitation of the name of Allah

“Allahhhhhhh...”

The students started to recite and Nu’man along with them. At first they were all in unison but eventually broke off into their own individual recitation.