Discovery of Tobacco
Tobacco was discovered by the Spanish sailors on the American shores at about 1500 CE (900 AH). Since its discovery, the epidemic of smoking has continued to spread all over the world. In our times, one seldom finds a house not afflicted by it. (1)
Smoking Among Muslims
The Europeans around 1000 AH introduced smoking to the Muslim countries. Its spread among the Muslims was similar to that in the West. The unfortunate fact, however, is that in the Muslim countries, no measures are exerted to protect the people from it.
To the contrary, the media continues to promote smoking and encourage people to do it. This caused the epidemic of smoking to continue to spread in those countries to such an extent that it has become hard to control.
Smoking has become the rule, and abstaining from it the exception. Often, people look with astonishment and disdain at a person whom when a cigarette is offered to him, declines to smoke explaining that he does not smoke.
Offering cigarettes to the guests has become among the first rules of hospitality. Anyone who does not offer them to his guests or insist on them to smoke would be violating the ethics of hospitality and generosity!
Furthermore, some of those who pretend to represent the Deen are among the worst addicts to smoking. When they are reproached or reminded of their vice, they respond by providing weak excuses to justify it in the name of Islam. They slyly remark that there is no clear text prohibiting smoking. Therefore, they conclude, smoking is not prohibited, but is only makruh (disliked). By this, they provide a poor excuse for the ignorant, and establish a very bad example for others.
Such statements have influenced many Muslims, falling into the snares of addiction to smoking. This is observed all over the world. A striking example is that all American airlines now prohibit smoking, even on most international flights; on the other hand, for Muslim airlines, one travels in a near-suffocation state, even on short trips, because of the high number of smokers.
Thus, it becomes incumbent to write an article, which provides evidence concerning the ruling of smoking in Islam. We hope that this will benefit our Muslim brothers and sisters; and we ask Allah (SWT) to accept it from us as a sincere deed for His pleasure.
Evidence for the Prohibition of Smoking
There are many reasons, any one of which sufficient to rule smoking prohibited. Most importantly, it is harmful in numerous ways. It is harmful to the Deen, health, environment, family, brotherhood and social relations, property, etc. The following sections will briefly outline some of its harms and evils.
Harm To the Human Body
No one can deny the harm of smoking to the human body. The medical evidence for this is well established and overwhelming. Because of this, the law in the United States and many other countries requires including a warning on any smoking advertisement.
Smoking contains poisonous materials, such as nicotine, tar, carbon monoxide, arsenic, benzopyrene, etc. that the smoker swallows in small proportions. Their harm accumulates with time to result in a gradual killing of the human organs and tissues.
The hazards of smoking to the health are hard to enumerate. Cancer, tuberculosis, heart attacks, asthma, coughing, premature birth, infertility, infections in the digestive system, high blood pressure, nervousness, mouth and teeth diseases, etc., are among the many health hazards that have been strongly linked to smoking.
These diseases may not appear all at once, however a smoker is most likely to suffer from some of them, and his suffering increases, as he grows older. It reduces smokers' life expectancy by 15 to 25 years, and is the single most preventable cause of death. In one study only 42% of male lifelong smokers reached the age of 73 compared to 78% of nonsmokers.
Cigarette smoking kills nearly about 420,000 people a year, making it more lethal than AIDS, automobile accidents, homicides, suicides, drug overdoses, and fires combined. (2)
This is sufficient to prohibit smoking. Islam prohibits any action that causes harm to oneself or to other people. Allah (SWT) says:
Do not kill yourselves, Allah is indeed merciful to you. (An-Nisa' 4-29)
Do not cast yourselves, with your own hands, into destruction. (Al-Baqarah 2:195)
And the Messenger(SAW) says:
No harm may be inflicted on oneself or others.(Recorded by Ahmad and Ibn Maajah from Ibn `Abbaas and `Ubaadah; authenticated by al-Albaani and others.)
The feet of a human being will not depart, on the day of Judgement, from his standing before his Lord, until he is questioned about five things: his lifetime - how did he pass it, his youth - how did he used it, his wealth - where did he earn it and how did he spend it, and how did he follow what he knew. (Recorded by at-Tirmithi and others from Ibn Mas`ud and AbO Barzah , authenticated by al-Albaani.)
Whoever consumes poison, killing himself with it, then he will he consuming his poison in the hellfire, and he will abide in it permanently and eternally.( Al-Bukhaari and Muslim from Jaabir)
