Difference Between the Intoxication of Tea and Cigarettes – Sharʿi Clarification
Source: Aḥkām wa Masāʾil, Aḥkām regarding Food & Drink, Vol. 1, Page 449
❖ Question
Some people say that just as smoking a cigarette causes intoxication, in the same way drinking tea also causes intoxication. Kindly clarify this matter.
❖ Answer
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu was-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh, Ammā Baʿd!
There is a fundamental difference between tea and cigarettes, which is very important to understand:
◈ Cigarettes, hookah, and tobacco do indeed contain intoxicating effects.
◈ Tea, however, does not cause any form of intoxication.
Definition of Intoxication
In Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, a narration reports the statement of ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb (رضي الله عنه):
«وَالْخَمْرُ مَا خَامَرَ الْعَقْلَ»
(“Khamr is that which clouds the mind.” – Bukhārī, Kitāb al-Ashriba, Bāb: Mā jāʾa anna al-khamra mā khāmara al-ʿaql min al-sharāb)
This ḥadīth clearly proves that an intoxicant is something which affects a person’s intellect, overpowers his senses, and takes him away from his normal state.
Application
◈ Cigarettes, hookah, and tobacco influence the mind and senses, thus they contain an intoxicating effect.
◈ Tea does not create any such state, therefore it is incorrect to label tea as an intoxicant.
ھذا ما عندي والله أعلم بالصواب
