Short answer
Kava is haram in an amount that clouds the mind or impairs you, which heavy kava drinking does. Whether a small, mild cup is allowed is a contemporary question: some scholars treat kava as an intoxicating drink and forbid any amount, while others treat it like a sedative plant and forbid only the amount that impairs. The careful course is to avoid it.
Kava in an amount that clouds the mind or impairs judgement and coordination is haram. If kava counts as an intoxicating drink, the Hanafi fatwa (following Imam Muhammad) forbids even a small amount; if it counts as a sedative substance, only the impairing amount is forbidden. Since the classification is not settled, the careful position is to avoid kava drinks and kava bars.
The four schools agree on this.
Explanation
Kava is a drink made from the root of a Pacific island plant. It has long been drunk in Fiji, Tonga, Samoa and Vanuatu, and kava bars have spread across the US. It relaxes the body and numbs the mouth, and larger amounts cause drowsiness, poor coordination and a dulled, heavy state that is often compared to being drunk. In some places driving after drinking kava is treated like driving under the influence.
The scholars judge a substance by its effect. Whatever clouds the mind and judgement is forbidden. If kava counts as an intoxicating drink, the Hanafi fatwa follows Imam Muhammad: if a large amount intoxicates, a small amount is forbidden too. If it counts as a sedative plant, like the substances discussed under nutmeg, only the amount that affects the mind is forbidden. Since kava is drunk in rounds and its effect builds up, people rarely stop at a harmless amount, so the careful course is to avoid it.
Some contemporary scholars view a mild cup that leaves the mind clear as permissible, comparing it to a strong herbal tea. This is a real difference of opinion among contemporary scholars, not a settled ruling of the classical schools. If you are in a community where kava is part of social life, ask a local mufti who knows the drink.
- Kava to get relaxed or high: haram.
- Kava bars that also sell kratom: see weed and kratom.
- Kava capsules for anxiety: a medical question; speak to a doctor, since kava can harm the liver, and ask a mufti.
Ask a mufti about your own case. This answer explains the general ruling. When the details of your situation matter, as they do here, ask a qualified mufti and give them the full facts. Where to ask a scholar.
The evidence
Quran, Surah Al-Maaida 5:91
إِنَّمَا يُرِيدُ ٱلشَّيْطَٰنُ أَن يُوقِعَ بَيْنَكُمُ ٱلْعَدَٰوَةَ وَٱلْبَغْضَآءَ فِى ٱلْخَمْرِ وَٱلْمَيْسِرِ وَيَصُدَّكُمْ عَن ذِكْرِ ٱللَّهِ وَعَنِ ٱلصَّلَوٰةِ ۖ فَهَلْ أَنتُم مُّنتَهُونَ ﴿٩١﴾
Satan only wants to cause between you animosity and hatred through intoxicants and gambling and to avert you from the remembrance of Allah and from prayer. So will you not desist?
Shows the harm of intoxicants that the ruling guards against.
Sahih Muslim 2003
Sahih... كل مسكر خمر وكل مسكر حرام ...
"Every intoxicant is khamr, and every intoxicant is haram."
Any drink that intoxicates takes the ruling of wine.
Sunan Abi Dawud 3681
Graded hasan sahih... ما أسكر كثيره فقليله حرام ...
"Whatever intoxicates in a large amount, a small amount of it is haram."
The basis for avoiding even small amounts of a drink that impairs in larger ones.
Where the ruling is recorded
- Radd al-Muhtar (Ibn Abidin), Kitab al-Ashriba. The fatwa follows Imam Muhammad on intoxicating drinks.
- al-Hidaya, Kitab al-Ashriba. The categories of forbidden drinks.
Checked by our team. For a more accurate answer to your own situation, consult a scholar. Quran translation by Sahih International. Hadith Arabic from the standard editions of the six books and the Muwatta, with gradings as recorded there; the English is our own rendering. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.