What is the ruling on smoking, and will a smoker be able to utter the Shahada at the time of death?

Smoking is forbidden by the Qur’an, Sunnah, and scholarly consensus, due to the harms and dire consequences that result from it. Allah Almighty says: "They ask you, [O Muhammad], what has been made lawful for them. Say, 'Lawful for you are [all] good things'" (Al-Ma'idah: 4). Smoking is among the evil things, not the good things. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said: "There should be neither harm nor reciprocating harm" narrated by Malik.

Doctors have proven that smoking causes many diseases such as lung cancer, heart disease, stroke, and erectile dysfunction. It also harms others with its smell and by exposing their health to danger.

As for a smoker's ability to utter the Shahada at the time of death, this is among the matters of the unseen, about which there is no textual evidence, and no room for human intellect to discuss.