ve--an evil habit, and one the harmfulness of which gradually
becometh apparent to all. Every qualified physician hath ruled--and this
hath also been proven by tests--that one of the components of tobacco is a
deadly poison, and that the smoker is vulnerable to many and various
diseases. This is why smoking hath been plainly set forth as repugnant
from the standpoint of hygiene.

The Bab, at the outset of His mission, explicitly prohibited tobacco, and
the friends one and all abandoned its use. But since those were times when
dissimulation was permitted, and every individual who abstained from
smoking was exposed to harassment, abuse and even death--the friends, in
order not to advertise their beliefs, would smoke. Later on, the Book of
Aqdas was revealed, and since smoking tobacco was not specifically
forbidden there, the believers did not give it up. The Blessed Beauty,
however, always expressed repugnance for it, and although, in the early
days, there were reasons why He would smoke a little tobacco, in time He
completely renounced it, and those sanctified souls who followed Him in
all things also abandoned its use.

My meaning is that in the sight of God, smoking tobacco is deprecated,
abhorrent, filthy in the extreme; and, albeit by degrees, highly injurious
to health. It is also a waste of money and time, and maketh the user a
prey to a noxious addiction. To those who stand firm in the Covenant, this
habit is therefore censured both by reason and experience, and renouncing
it will bring relief and peace of mind to all men. Furthermore, this will
make it possible to have a fresh mouth and unstained fingers, and hair
that is free of a foul and repellent smell. On receipt of this missive,
the friends will surely, by whatever means and even over a period of time,
forsake this pernicious habit. Such is my hope.

As to opium, it is foul and accursed. God protect us from the punishment
He inflicteth on the user. According to the explicit Text of the Most Holy
Book, it is forbidden, and its use is utterly condemned. Reason showeth
that smoking opium is a kind of insanity, and experience attesteth that
the user is completely cut off from the human kingdom. May God protect all
against the perpetration of an act so hideous as this, an act which layeth
in ruins the very foundation of what it is to be human, and which causeth
the user to be dispossessed for ever and ever. For opium fasteneth on the
soul, so that the user's co