What is the Islamic view on marijuana (cannabis/weed) use? Is it halal
Recently, marijuana use has become popular. But how is the position of Islam towards the use of marijuana or any other types of drugs? Does Islam forbid it? And if the answer is yes, is there any reason behind it?
Religious authority and the current head of the republic of ran, Sayyid Al Khamenei, has answered several questions regarding drug use that were asked to him. Here are the following answers that he poured into his book, Practical Laws of Islam.
Question 1392: “what is the Islamic law about narcotic use like marijuana, heroin, etc? Be it by way eating it directly, drinking, injecting, smoking, etc.? and what is the Islamic view regarding the sale and purchase of these illicit goods, as well as dealing with them in general, for example carrying, storing, or smuggling them?”
Sayyid Al Khamenei answered that narcotics are haram (religiously forbidden) in any form because they cause huge losses both in terms of personal health and social costs. And it is also haram to deal with narcotics in any way, either smuggling, transporting, storing it, etc.
Another popular religious authority based in Iraq who oversees the Islamic Seminary in Najaf, Sayyid Ali Sistani, replied “it is impermissible” when he was asked about the use of hashish on his website. Hashish is a drug made from the resin of the same plant as marijuana.
Sunni scholars also prohibit marijuana use through the answers of Shaykh Muhammad bin Adam al-Kahwthari of Dar al-Iftaa in Leicester about marijuana, which he said that drugs such marijuana, cocaine, etc are haram due to the various harms connected with them. He says that marijuana is an intoxicant then explained that “Every intoxicant is prohibited” in Islam.
Another group of Muslims asked about marijuana use under certain circumstances as they state that cannabis can be used as an analgesic for pain relief, effective treatment for glaucoma even can cure breast cancer. Sayyid Khamenei answered in Practical Laws of Islam that there is no objection to it provided that the treatment and the eventual recovery are dependent on their use and it is prescribed by a trustworthy physician.
It is clear that any narcotic use is haram in Islam, and one of the reasons it is prohibited is because it is intoxicant and could cause brain damage.