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While there's controversy about whether marijuana causes long term effects, let's assume that the long term damage is no different than eating fatty foods or sugary drinks. It's clearly less harmful than smoking tobacco, so it does not fall under the exact same legality.

Marijuana acts more as a hallucinogen and sedative, but I can't find anything that explicitly forbids those. I'm thinking it may be forbidden as an intoxicant, but it is a different form of intoxication than alcohol.

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  • you essentially answered your own question by mentioning it's "hallucinogen" ... and "a different form of intoxication".
    – kmonsoor
    Nov 4, 2016 at 19:02

8 Answers 8

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An intoxicant is defined, for legal purposes in Islam, as anything that dulls the senses and induces a state of mental fogginess (e.g. to the point where one is unaware of what one does). For example, one such principle is mentioned in the following narration from `Umar (ra)

وَالْخَمْرُ مَا خَامَرَ الْعَقْلَ

And khamr is what confuses and stupefies the mind

Source

By qiyas (analogy) to other kinds of khamr, the scholars have declared cannabis/hemp/marijuana haram (prohibited and sinful).

There is no point in arguing about the effects of marijuana on the mind - the effects of THC are well-documented.

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    +1 Maybe this hadith is more appropriate - sunnah.com/nasai/51/44
    – Abdullah
    Feb 13, 2013 at 7:29
  • @Abdullah The definition on intoxicant itself is vague. I'd agree that "confuses and stupefies the mind" is a good interpretation for marijuana as an intoxicant, though the hadith does seem to be from Umar, not the Prophet (SAWS).
    – Muz
    Feb 13, 2013 at 8:04
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    Some statements of Imams of the past on Marijuana - salafyink.com/fiqh/IslamicRulingMarijuana.pdf
    – Abdullah
    Feb 13, 2013 at 19:51
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    Caffeine is an intoxicant as well and it changes your state of mind. Should it be haram?
    – amphibient
    Jan 15, 2015 at 2:33
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    I'm muslim, and use cannabis, Some scholars will argue that it is not haram so please don't say "no point in arguing". Cannabis absolutely doesn't make you unaware of what you're doing. Anybody claiming this hasn't smoked it; or smoked too much. Eat too much chocolate and it becomes a stimulant. Drink a red bull. Same thing. Sugar haram too? Coco? Tea leaves? "stupefies the mind" is wrong. I became Muslim after years of study ... most of the time I studied after having a few tokes of cannabis. Alhamdulillah. Sep 18, 2020 at 11:56
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narrated by Ahmad in his Musnad and by Abu Dawood in his Sunan with a saheeh isnaad from Umm Salamah (may Allaah be pleased with him) who said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) forbade all kinds of intoxicants and relaxants. The scholars said that relaxants are things that cause drowsiness and languor in the limbs.

Source: http://islamqa.info/en/115761

Important definitions:

Intoxicanting: Cause (someone) to lose control of their faculties or behavior.

Relaxants: A drug used to promote relaxation or reduce tension.

Languor: The state or feeling, often pleasant, of tiredness or inertia

Ineria: A tendency to do nothing or to remain unchanged

When asked, why do people smoke marijuana, the answer was:

I always blaze a doob when making a big decision. I spark one when I need to relax. When I need to think. When I am feeling mellow. When I need to feel chill. It's not an addiction, my mind just craves being on another plane of existence. It's not about quitting, it's about accepting that mother nature has offered her mana and it's called Marijuana. Get on the train or get crushed by the gears.

Such confessions leave no room for doubt that at minimum, marijuana is a relaxant, which are forbidden. At worst, marijuana is an intoxicant which is also forbidden. That confession shows hypocrisy too. He says it's not an addiction, yet he craves the effects...

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  • Indian/Pakistan food is considered to have relaxant effects. I feel very sleepy after drinking a local drink "Lassi" (a mix of curd with water)...that should be totally haram too. Got some advice for this drink too? May be it should be haram by Islamic Mufti Police. :-)
    – Asad Malik
    Apr 27, 2022 at 19:19
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One of the greatest distinction of human beings is that Allah has given us with intelligence. Thus we can make decisions through it of what is right and what is harmful to us. We use it everyday to make important decisions. Anything that clouds our thinking ability thus lowers us from the honour that God has bestowed upon us. The things that have these properties have thus been forbidden by Allah. This includes alcohol and any type of drugs including weed.

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    I totally agree with you regarding alcohol and drugs, but weed, especially cannabis doesn't cloud my thinking neither lowers my mental abilities, it even have the opposite effect (relaxation and better focus) Jul 19, 2013 at 9:50
  • Best to give some references Aug 19, 2013 at 1:27
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    You are wrong! Intelligence is not exclusive to humans. Make some research before misleading other members of the community.
    – Derfder
    Aug 27, 2013 at 13:23
  • @Derfder: I did not said that intelligence is EXCLUSIVE to humans... I said that God has given humans intelligence. He has surely given other creatures intelligence too.
    – goto
    Aug 29, 2013 at 6:21
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Assalamualaikum brother,

First of all, you have to know a reason based on common sense that What Islam told us to leave, we have to leave it. Where Allah and Prophet Muhammad put Full stop, we should not go even an inch beyond it.

About your point of weed, Heroine has somewhat same effects on people, but can we make it legal?

In short, what is Haram in Islam, no matter how many benefits it has, we have to consider it Haram and avoid it at all costs..

Anything that causes intoxication is prohibited in Islam according to our beloved Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him:

Narrated Jabir ibn Abdullah: "The Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) said: If a large amount of anything causes intoxication, a small amount of it is prohibited. (Translation of Sunan Abu-Dawud, Drinks (Kitab Al-Ashribah), Book 26, Number 3673)"

Also

"That which intoxicates in large quantities is prohibited in small quantities." (Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah, and others, with a sound chain of narrators)

You can read more about it here:

http://turntoislam.com/community/threads/marijuana-then-will-you-not-end-it.83557/

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Weed? Hadith states, anything that causes drowsiness(Even drowsiness) is forbidden. Its least amount is forbidden. So anything, that has a relation to some drug is forbidden.

You might need to consider this: Alcohol is used in medicines, but is allowed. Why? Its allowed for the cure, but if you use it as a drink. Its forbidden. Weed, marijuana, opium! If used for some cure (medical might have the answer) are allowed, else they are forbidden!

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    can you give a reference? Aug 19, 2013 at 1:27
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Asalam u alikum wr wb, I read it alot. Is it haraam or halal. Let me explian it. Canabis has an alkaloid component. On the level of molecule it differes from alcohol. Some Alkaloids are phycoactive. It alter state of mind. Sadis of india use it frequentlly as part of thier spiritual excersice. But using such substance, is in its core: materialism. To experiance and alter mind based on matter and dependent on matter is no spitualism at all. It is chaining ur self om matter and bound by matter. Playing with alkloid and ur mind is no purity. If you want to experince, our propheet has teached us the way. It is by fasting and avoiding somr foods. Fasting and eating properlly as propheet teached us is the proper way of true alter state. Dont forget the dhikr as part of alter state. I know what alkloid does and it is not proper way of altering mind. Beside that , using alkloid has back fire. Which is u can get possessed. If you toon ur mind on wrong frequancy, you will get the wrong signal.

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It is not Haram. THC is not toxic to the brain and therefore is not an intoxicant. It is consumed in its unaltered form and has numerous health benefits that far exceed any so called intoxicant like alcohol.

A so called marijuana high is nothing like an alcohol buzz. Stop putting everything in the same bucket. Next type the doctor gives any of these "Marijuana is haram" crowd even a tylenol or pain killer, they should refuse it as it does have some mind altering chemicals present in small quantities.

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i think there is a mix of personal opinion weed doesn't do the same things as alcohol to ones mind the effects are differnt and its clear

the way pple are looking at this is same way a non drinker looks at a drinker

An intoxicant is defined, for legal purposes in Islam, as anything that dulls the senses and induces a state of mental fogginess (e.g. to the point where one is unaware of what one does).

love is an intoxicant, food is an intoxicant (oooh i cant believe i ate that much), sex is an intoxicant (you dirty girl, can't believe you did that), are they all haraam? no they are not

alcohol was specifically mentioned, weed was around at the time of the prophet pbuh, so if Allah swt wanted to include weed then he would have told his messenger. but i dont see that anywhere in the quran or hadith

alcoholics dont become prominent leaders and thinker, physicists, engineers, artists. creativity is not born from alcohol, weed on the other hand is a different story

to each his own because at the end of the day we have to stand before Allah swt alone.

but one thing for sure, anything not done in moderation should also be considered haraam. so light up your spliff but be mindful it doesn't get lit more than your desire for salaat

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    Welcome to Islam. Please improve your answer, be objective rather the subjective (we are not looking for opinions here), provide references, don't use SMS language (capitalize the lone "i"). Go through How to Answer. Jan 11, 2014 at 15:47

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