The Value of Smoke

Let me preface this with a disclaimer…

Actually, let me not. I hate trite disclaimers. So here it is:

There is a reason why every culture of the world has smoking traditions and why tobacco is a part of many spiritual rituals. If you are smoking, and so long as you know the long-term risks and will stop eventually, follow through with what you are doing. You are doing it for a reason.

My grandfather smoked a pipe for- well, probably 90 of his 99 years. His fingertips were badly burnt and his teeth had long since departed because of the resin, but I believe that it was during those times when he would sit motionless, pulling long draws on that hot bowl, that he got the closest to enlightenment. Soon after he would stop, knock out the hot ashes, and get up and start again on the task at hand, whether is was welding a tangled hay elevator or solving complex algebra.

I smoked a pipe during college, and it made me feel very close to him after he had gone. It was always outside- since, ironically, a good smoke can only be had in fresh air. I also smoked unfiltered cigarettes after college, which was my late father’s vice. In total, I smoked some form of tobacco for the entire run of my twenties. And I’m glad that I did. Because now I understand the value of smoke.

The breath is life. All meditation disciplines involve some form of breath focus. Similarly, when you concentrate on keeping a small fire alive with your breath, your awareness moves to the breath outside of your body. It enhances your connection to the spiritual fire of the rest of the world.

As far as the body of the smoke itself, if it is inhaled, I always found that it put my own physical body in context. I was conceived and born, and I will die and dissipate. This is a shared trait with everyone who has come before me, those who will follow me, and every one of my friends of today. It made me comfortable with my own mortality.

I don’t have a pipe or a pack of Lucky Strikes these days, but it is not because I don’t have a need for them. I learned to how to listen to my body many years ago, and unfortunately, I no longer have the capacity to both smoke and lead a healthy life. But there was a time when I did, and there are those who do today. If you are one of them, don’t self-judge. For a short time, you have a powerful tool for advancing your understanding of the world and yourself. When you are done, use that knowledge.

This post is not endorsed by the American Cancer Society.