I was reading a book about the Middle East today and it mentioned that Arabs sometimes smoke pipes known as "narghiles", apparently used to smoke tobacco or hashish. Any possible connection?

-- Mat Rebholz (matrebholz@yahoo.com), March 10, 1999

Answers

...from the Persian for coconut(!). That's what my dictionary says. Maybe Chung just liked the sound of it? *shrug*

-- Philip Mills (philip.mills@cableinet.co.uk), March 10, 1999.

Response to Possible Origin of "Narghile"

I had to break out Webster's for this one, here's what I found: A "narghile" is a Middle Eastern water pipe, with a base made out of coconut. Essentially, it`s an old-fashioned bong :). Hope that clears it up!

-- Paul D. Gilbreath (gilbreathfamily@worldnet.att.net), February 18, 2000.

Well, narghiles do produce a drug. Mayhap the Middle Eastern drugs smoked in these bings makes paople lose their memory?

-- Frostbite (mbkrooks@bellsouth.net), February 20, 2000.

I wrote a full book and some papers on narghile. Check at www.techism.com/narghile. Regards,

-- KamCha (correlkc@ifrance.com), December 12, 2000.

If that is the origin, it seems quite appropriate. A vessel containing a substance which upon consumption alters reality (to some extent)

-- William (stateofflux@yahoo.com), December 12, 2000.

Narghille for me is about philosphy, and relaxing. Society nowadays is full of nervousness and hurryin. Nervousness will destroy the good life you try and created through hurrying. How do you remove this nervousness and tesion, and achieve absolute happiness? Narghille poeple ahve been smoking for hundreds of years for a reason, the feeling you get when you smoke it can only only be described as Euphoric. This like many unlike many other things is good without having any negative side effects. Narghille smoking is purest form of pleasure.

-- Bertie Litwin (blitwin@tesltra.com), May 02, 2001.

I've smoked some funny stuff as well Bertie.

-- Mark (hammerofthehorse@BigPoppaPump.zzn.com), May 02, 2001.

"Narghile" smoking (what a nice little euphemism we've developed) is just as much about the ritual/zen-like state of smoking (everybody has a certain way they do their thing - and the repetition of these actions are just as soothing to some people as the chemical effects)

-- pixi (pixiness@yahoo.com), May 09, 2001.

I just came back from a holiday in Cairo, Egypt. Narghile smoking has obviously come full cycle here, as it permeates every level of society. U see it in every corner and everyone, young and old men and women alike could be seen puffing away on one. People even hang out in the evenings in shisha cafes on crowded streets enjoying it. I tried it myself, and I must cautioned the uninitiated that it would rob you of the pleasure of smoking normal filtered cigarettes. 'Hope this thing catches on everywhere.

-- Tai Vincent. (taivince@hotmail.com), December 13, 2002.

I cant possibly imagine a connection between nargilot and Narghiles, its all in your head, sorry.

P.s

Its not a bong, idiots... Well alright, maybe you can call it a bong, but here, nargillot arent such a big deal, and we very rarely smoke weed or some shit like that, its mostly used with flavors, you put that flavor tablet on the... You know something? I just realized i dont realy know the english names for the parts of the nargilla... But its not commonly used with weed or tabacco, that i can tell you, even the arabs use flavor tablets as far as i can tell...

-- zach the new lurker (mr_spidy@hotmail.com), December 14, 2002.

Hello, I am an Arab American and to clear any questions about the bong for you I am here. the bong we call it argeelee. We have flavored tobacco and we put it at the top part "head" and then we put aluminum over it. We poke little holes over the aluminum and then connect the head to the neck. The neck has a long slim part to go into the bottom. We usually fill the bottom up with water and then cut little lemons and put them in there. You need to make sure you put the right amount of water or it wont work right. Then you connnect the pipe "barbeesh" in the whole and put your charcoal on the top of the aluminum. Let it burn for a while and start smoking. In the beginning a little smoke will come out but then it'll be at a good pace and good amount.

Any questions email me @ firas_isa@msn.com

-- Firas Isa (Firas_isa@msn.com), October 24, 2003.

Hello to everybody there, Firas (last contributor), there's no point in making so many efforts !

There is an entire fascinating reference site about NARGHILE or call it hookah (Indian name).

Check out at WWW.SACREDNARGHILE.COM

The guys there have even written two books on it. One of both actually tackles the relation partially real, but so often dreamed of through centuries, between narghile and drugs.

As for "bongs", of course they are an adaptation of the Middle East- Asian (Chinese) narghile but, ya know, they kind a lack the peculiar extraordinary human and social setting surrounding narghile, don't they ?

Regards,

-- Ernesto (correlkc@ifrance.com), December 25, 2003.