Smoking

Smoking is a practice in which a substance, most commonly tobacco, is burned and the smoke tasted or inhaled. This is primarily practised as a route of administration for recreational drug use, as combustion releases the active substances in drugs such as nicotine and makes them available for absorption through the lungs. It can also be done as a part of rituals, to induce trances and spiritual enlightenment. The most common method of smoking today is through cigarettes, primarily industrially manufactured but also hand-rolled from loose tobacco and rolling paper. Other smoking tools includes pipes, cigars, hookahs and bongs.

Smoking is one of the most common forms of recreational drug use. Tobacco smoking is today by far the most popular form of smoking and is practiced by over one billion people in the majority of all human societies. Less common drugs for smoking include cannabis and opium. Some of the substances are classified as hard narcotics, like heroin and crack cocaine, but the use of these is very limited as they are often not commercially available.

The history of smoking can be dated to as early as 5000 BC, and has been recorded in many different cultures across the world. Early smoking evolved in association with religious ceremonies; as offerings to deities, in cleansing rituals or to allow shamans and priests to alter their minds for purposes of divination or spiritual enlightenment. After the European exploration and conquest of the Americas, the practice of smoking tobacco quickly spread to the rest of the world. In regions like India and Subsaharan Africa, it merged with existing practices of smoking (mostly of cannabis). In Europe, it introduced a new type of social activity and a form of drug intake which previously had been unknown.

Perception surrounding smoking has varied over time and from one place to another; holy and sinful, sophisticated and vulgar, a panacea and deadly health hazard. Only recently, and primarily in industrialized Western countries, has smoking come to be viewed in a decidedly negative light. Today medical studies have proven that smoking tobacco is among the leading causes of many diseases such as lung cancer, heart attacks, erectile dysfunction and can also lead to birth defects. The well-proven health hazards of smoking have caused many countries to institute high taxes on tobacco products and anti-smoking campaigns are launched every year in an attempt to curb tobacco smoking.

Larangan Hari Valentine

Arab dan India Larang Hari Valentine

Valentine’s Day’ Dikecam di Malaysia
Activist Hindu juga protest atas Perayaan Valentine’s Day di Bombay
Perayaan hari Valentine, yang jatuh pada hari rabu 14 Februari biasanya dilakukan dengan cara menukar hadiah dan bunga pada pasangan kekasih yang sedang bercinta di berbagai penjuru dunia. Bedanya, di Arab Saudi, umat Islam di sana justru diharamkan untuk memperingatinya karena dianggap sebagai perayaan kaum yahudi yang penuh kekufuran. "Itu adalah hari raya penyembah berhala …, dan umat Muslim yang percaya pada Allah dan Hari Kiamat. tak boleh merayakan atau mengakuinya atau mengucapkan selamat (kepada orang yang merayakannya). Umat Muslim wajib menjauhkannya guna menghindari hukuman dan murka Allah," kata Imam Agung Syeikh Abdulaziz bin Abdullah. Asy-Syeikh seperti dikutip harian Ar-Riyadh.
Selain di Saudi, perayaan serupa juga dianggap terlarang di lakukan di India. Umat Hindu garis keras bahkan mengancam akan mencoreng wajah orang-orang yang memperingati Valentine dengan arang dan mengatakan perbuatan itu merupakan dekadensi Barat yang merusak budaya India.
kamis 14 Februari hari Valentine diperingati di seluruh dunia. Meski tidak jelas benar bagaimana sejarah terjadinya peringatan ini, sejumlah versi mengatakan, peringatan ini bermula saat menghormati seorang martir yahudi yang kemudian menjadi santo pelindung mereka. Versi lain hari valentine berawal dari masa pemerintahan Raja Claudius. Ia menganggap bahwa para pria yang sudah
menikah akan menjadi prajurit yang lemah, maka ia melarang pernikahan di daerah kekuasaannya. Pada masa pemerintahannya itu, hidup seorang pendeta Romawi yang bernama Valentinus yang melawan perintah raja.
Valentinus yang secara diam-diam menikah dan jatuh cinta pada gadis muda tertangkap dan dipenjarakan. Setelah kematiannya, Valentinus lalu diangkat menjadi Santo