Cannabis never became an intoxicant in the alcohol based of Western Civilization, but it has been the intoxicant of choice in the Middle East and parts of Asia for thousands of years, it predates Islam. Europe was not drenched in Cannabis use and then somehow erased that memory and history.
The Middle East has always been know to be Cannabis based, even the word assassin comes from Hashish.
“The three religions of the Book, Judaism, Christianity and Islam, are not well known for having drug cultures associated with them, so it comes as something as a surprise to learn that Islam, perhaps the most puritanical of the three, has a strong undercurrent of marijuana use throughout its long history.
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/ID11Ak03.html
Your evidence shows only that cannabis was sometimes used, not that it was the intoxicant of choice. \
Islam, perhaps the most puritanical of the three, has a strong undercurrent of marijuana use throughout its long history.
Look up the word "undercurrent." This statement does not support your "intoxicant of choice" claim.