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When we smell a nice plant, we make a blessing on it -- either בורא מיני בשמים, or בורא עשבי בשמים, depending on what kind of plant it is. (Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 216)

Ignoring, for the moment, the question of marijuana's permissibility (spoiler: it's forbidden, according to most opinions); would one inhaling vaporized marijuana make that bracha (presumably בורא מיני בשמים)? Marijuana doesn't smell good, by itself, but it can make a person feel good.

I guess the question can be boiled down to: is the bracha on smell triggered by an olfactory sensation, or by a הנאה (enjoyment) that comes through the sense of smell?

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  • I originally wanted to ask about havdallah, but I figured this was the simpler question to ask. I might ask about havdallah separately, after seeing answers here. There may or may not be room to differentiate between the two, but let's see what answers show up here, first. – MTL Jan 15 '15 at 03:40
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    A Rov in Denver said he gets asked this question (since it's legal there). If I knew what he answered, I'd have an answer for you! – Y     e     z Jan 15 '15 at 03:55
  • @YeZ Ha! ....though legal doesn't solve all of the issues, I don't think. Certainly not kibbud av. – MTL Jan 15 '15 at 03:57
  • Yeah - as far as I know, he wasn't actually asked about smoking it, just smelling it. – Y     e     z Jan 15 '15 at 03:58
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    One other thing we need to clarify: I'm not thinking about doing this -- this is a purely theoretical question. – MTL Jan 15 '15 at 04:05
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    sure it is, sure it is – Y     e     z Jan 15 '15 at 04:05
  • I definitely believe that this is purely theoretical, because I'm not sure if the question even makes sense. Nobody just 'smells' marijuana, and doing so would not "make a person feel good", unless it's been vaporized. Are you asking about inhaling vaporized marijuana, or smoking marijuana? – הנער הזה Jan 15 '15 at 04:50
  • The hanah of marijuana does not come from the smell. You can put it in a capsule and swallow it without tasting or smelling it and still get the hanah. Conversely, if you swallow cloves, you would get less hanah than you would if you smell it. – Clint Eastwood Jan 15 '15 at 05:10
  • @ClintEastwood that doesn't matter. Smelling fruits (which provide more enjoyment when eaten) still requires a bracha – הנער הזה Jan 15 '15 at 05:21
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    @ClintEastwood what does matter is that smelling marijuana is actually not enjoyable in the slightest. Besides for the fact that it stinks, smelling the plant itself would be almost completely non-psychoactive (unless it was dehydrated sufficiently but even then, I'm not sure) – הנער הזה Jan 15 '15 at 05:26
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    "Marijuana doesn't smell good, by itself" - you might've been smelling skunkweed... – Gary Jan 15 '15 at 06:43
  • So then if you smell some that is pleasant (without smoking it), you should make a bracha, no matter which way the question is answered (simple olfactory or enjoyment). – Mike Jan 16 '15 at 00:02
  • @Mike I don't understand your question. My question is based on that premise, if I understand what you're saying; it's a halacha that's brought down in Shulchan Aruch and cited in my question. Unless I don't understand what you're saying? – MTL Jan 16 '15 at 01:50
  • @Shokhet not so much a question, just a logical deduction based on your quoting of the Shulchan Aruch. By http://halachipedia.com/index.php?title=Brachot_on_a_nice_smell it would be "Boreh Isbei Besamim". I like the idea of making a bracha when your friend tells you to smell his bag, but others will probably disagree. – Mike Jan 16 '15 at 02:11
  • @Mike I know; that's why I asked. People often forget about that one, even though the first halacha in that siman makes it quite clear that "אָסוּר לֵיהָנוֹת מֵרֵיחַ טוֹב עַד שֶׁיְּבָרֵךְ קֹדֶם שֶׁיָּרִיחַ," "it is forbidden to benefit from a good smell without blessing first." That said, see Matt's answer; weed might be excluded from this blessing, for good reason (besides legal issues). – MTL Jan 16 '15 at 02:17

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As far as I know, your making an incorrect assumption about marijuana.

However, assuming that you're correct in saying that smelling marijuana makes one feel good, then it should have the same rule as smelling 'tabak', a longstanding Jewish custom, which does not require a bracha. The Aruch Hashulchan (216:4) explains that smelling something for an enjoyment that isn't due to the actual smell is not sufficient to make a bracha. This is true even of scented tabak, and therefore presumably true of scented marijuana as well (no matter how it might be inhaled).

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