Smoking and selling cigarettes
Question:-
Are we permitted to smoke and sell cigarettes?
Answer:-
Smoking is considered as Makrooh-e-Tahrimi. The same ruling will apply to trading in cigarettes; hence one should refrain from both smoking as well as trading in cigarettes.
Our bodies are an Amaanat from Allah Taála. The human being does not own himself, rather his body belongs to Almighty Allah. It is therefore not permissible for him to utilize this body against the pleasure of Allah Taála.
It is an established fact that smoking is harmful to the consumer as it causes cancer and even results in sudden death. This warning (of it being cancerous) is recorded by the manufacturers themselves on the product itself. Hence, any person that smokes brings harm upon himself and even harms other individuals that are in close proximity to him, and harms the environment as well. This would be one particular reason as to why smoking is prohibited.
Another harm of smoking is squandering one’s hard earned money. This type of squandering is referred to as ‘Tabzeer’ in the terminology of the Quraan. Allah Taála states, “Verily, the squanderers are the brethren of the Shayateen.” [Re:- Surah Bani Isra’eel; verse 27]
Some years ago there was a discussion of cigarettes containing Haraam ingredients as well. We have not followed this up but you may verify the ingredients with the tobacco companies.
In conclusion, due to various reasons, cigarettes are prohibited both for consumption as well as trade.