Hookah Education

965Alright, guys. Since I haven’t seen once a thread about hookahs here on Terra-Arcanum, I thought it might benefit the forum to dole out a bit of education regarding my favorite thing in the world. So, before I get things started, if you don’t want an education, cease reading…or temporarily blind yourself. For the good of the House, let’s get started;

Names

The hookah is called many things in many cultures. It may be referred to as hookah (Hindi for water pipe), nargile in Turkish (derived from the Sanskrit word narikela, meaning coconut), narjileh in Lebanese, Syrian and Palestinian dialects, ghalyun in Persian, shisha in Arabic (it’s also the Arabic word for glass), lula in Croatia, lulava in Romani, chillim in Uzbekistan, and South Africans call the hookah a hubbly-bubbly or okka pipe. No matter what you’ve heard, it’s all the same thing, a Hookah.

History

In India, in the court of Emperor Akbar (1542-1605 AD), the hookah was invented. A physician, Hakim Abul Fateh Gilani, raised concerns about the smoking of tobacco and envisioned a way to purify and cool the smoke through the use of water. He introduced the idea to Akbar, who was encouraged to begin smoking by ambassador Asad Beg of Bijapur, as it was the “in” thing to do amongst nobility.

-William Hickey-

Hookah Culture

In the middle east, hookah is as much a part of the culture as a coffee shop might be in Europe or North America, and in fact, many coffee shops in the middle east also serve and allow hookahs to be used within. Etiquette in hookah smoking is very important, as it is rude to simply offer a person the hose. Nasser al-Din Shah Qajar, Shah of Persia (1848-1896) was apparently insulted by those who didn‘t follow proper procedure.
You must either leave the mouthpiece on a table to signify that it is free, or hand it over to someone else while it’s folded over, so that the mouthpiece is not pointed at the recipient (just like a knife or a gun).
Single to quadruple hoses are normal fare for social smoking, though hookahs with more than two hoses are normally used for parties or get-togethers.
Iran’s hookahs have larger bowls than traditional Turkish hookahs, and have very flexible hoses usually covered in silk or other decorative cloth, while Turkish hookahs maintain inflexible wooden hoses. Each person is given or provides their own mouthpiece, called an Amjid, and it’s normally made of wood or metal and decorated with various types of stones (both valuable and otherwise), though if you don’t have your own mouthpiece, all hookah bars have their own supply of plastic ones.
Iran’s use of hookahs can be traced back to the Qajar period, when the hoses were made of sugarcane. They also created a special tobacco, called Khansar (probably named after the city where it was created), which produced less smoke than other tobaccos and was burned without foil separating the coal from the leaf. Hookah smoking is very popular amongst the younger people in Iran, and local tea shops are frequented by smokers. A law was recently passed that forbids smoking hookahs to those under 20 in Iran, when previously, all ages were permitted to enjoy.
Israel is a heavy supporter of hookah, and the prevalence extends to the Mizrahi Jews (from Iran, Iraq, Turkey, and Yemen). Tourism has really helped the hookah spread in popularity, as visitors are compelled to try it when they travel to Israel. However, the Israeli Defense Forces have forbidden the use of hookahs on military bases by soldiers.
India, where the hookah came to be, has declined somewhat in enthusiasm, though it is coming back thanks to cafes and restaurants offering hookahs as consumables. It was once a mark of prestige to smoke a hookah, as well as a custom. Those with money and land smoked hookah as a way to separate themselves from those without, and many villages maintain their hookah smoking customs as traditions to be passed down.
Smoking hookahs with molasses-flavored tobacco has become popular among adolescents and children, and there are several chain hookah bars that offer flavored herbal smoking mixtures, though this is not just an Indian trend, as I too enjoy flavored tobacco.
In Pakistan, people have been smoking in rural areas for generations, though the hookah is becoming more and more popular in the cities. The youth and the students caught on quickly, and they readily adapted the hookah into social gatherings, community functions, and events.
In the Philippines, the Arab and Indian Filipino communities have been smoking for years, especially the Muslim Filipinos. However, until the later part of the 20th century, the Christian Filipinos had almost no contact with or even knowledge of hookahs, though the younger Christians seem to gravitate toward them. Even though hookahs have been a part of Asian culture for hundreds of years and enjoyed by all ages, only recently has the phenomena been oriented toward the youth. Many college students and young adults smoke hookahs, as they may be underage and unable to purchase cigarettes.
South Africa’s Indian and Cape Malay population smoke as a social pastime, though the hookah has seen a steady increase of popularity among the white youth. Bars that offer hookahs are becoming more prominent, though predominantly a smoker either stays at home or goes on an outing, for example at a beach or a picnic area.
In the North America, hookahs have reached full-blown Youtube status. Simply look it up, you’ll get hits for smoke rings, how-to videos, home-made hookahs and more. There have been indoor smoking bans in several cities, though there are still some bars in operation selling tobacco-based moassel (not quite tobacco, but a tobacco product).
Here in the US, the term shisha is interchangeable with tobacco, instead of being used as a term for the hookah itself…although it is sometimes used as such.

Parts

The Bowl

Where all good times are had. The tobacco goes here, covered with perforated aluminum foil and a lit coal. Inhale and enjoy.

The Tray

This little number, located just under the bowl, has the ability to catch and hold falling ashes and coals, preventing injuries and messes.

The Body

The body contains the stem, the purge valve (optional), a hose port(s), and gaskets.
The stem is the smoke’s conduit. Without the stem, there’d be no bubbles, and no bubbles means no iconic sound.
The purge valve is operated by air pressure, and contains a ball bearing that can be forced away from the body to release stale or foul-tasting smoke.
The hose ports are, obviously, where the hoses go. These, too, can have ball bearings in them, though they’re completely optional, as one can simply cap the hoses with a thumb to allow one person to smoke. Though, there’s no prohibiting more than one person from smoking at once, if there’s more than one hose.
The gaskets create air-tight seals, which allow full, rich smoke to fill the water jar and your lungs. There’s a gasket under the bowl where it connects to the body, gaskets where the hoses connect, and also where the body joins the water jar. The gaskets are either made from a non-toxic rubber or moistened cloth, such as a towel or a shirt that’s been torn up.

Hoses

Without these, you could still smoke, but you’d have to shotgun each hit (take it right from the body). Plus, you wouldn’t be able to sit back and relax without hoses. My verdict? Hoses are a positive…though your hits are more impressive looking if you use the shotgun method.

The Water Jar (or Base)

The water fills the jar until it’s about a half inch above the bottom of the stem. Too much water and the water vapor overcrowds the smoke, leading to a weaker draw (i.e. less smoke, though it's easier on your lungs). Too little water and you’re not filtering the smoke, and you’re missing out on bubbles (again!).

Smoking

Take your tobacco and aerate it (by mixing it, either with tongs or your fingers) and make sure to break it up. Place it lightly in the bowl, don’t force it down. After filling the bowl to just below the lip (this ensures that the tobacco isn't directly affected by the heat from the coal), test the hookah to make sure you have a nice, smooth draw. If it takes effort to inhale, aerate the tobacco some more, or remove some. After placing your tobacco in the bowl, covering it with foil (make sure it's taught), poking holes in said foil, and placing a lit coal atop the contraption, simply inhale. It may take a few hits (perhaps two or three) to prime (in this vernacular, to make ready) the hookah. Once it has been primed, the smoke you exhale will be thick and milky in color. Enjoy your flavor, and make sure to move the coal around the foil every few minutes (either clockwise or counterclockwise, according to taste) so that the tobacco roasts under the heat without burning. You‘ll know that it‘s been officially burned when you see wisps of smoke rise from around the coal. Burned smoke simply tastes awful. Your smoking session should last anywhere from 10-15 minutes, though it may last longer if you have very juicy tobacco and extra coals. It’s possible, if your bowl is large enough, that you can put two coals on (one after the first one expires), and extend your session to a full half hour. This may take practice, as even smoking a hookah is a skill to be learned. Experience is the best teacher. Enjoy either alone or with friends.

Care

Cleaning a hookah should be just as much a part of your routine as should be smoking it, as a clean hookah simply tastes better.
Cleaning the bowl is simple, as all you need is soap, hot water, and a sponge. This should be done every time the bowl is smoked, though you can get by simply by wiping the bowl clean with a wet paper towel. Be aware of temperature differential stress fractures! The bowl, if it is ceramic, should not be cleaned with cold water right after smoking, as the temperature difference will weaken and possibly shatter the bowl.
The stem inside the body requires a large diameter pipe cleaner, soap, and hot water. Simply apply the soapy water to the pipe cleaner, and scrub the inside of the pipe. Very easy. Rinse out the stem when you’re done, as you don’t want to taste soap. Do this at least once every week.
The hoses require nothing but hot water and water pressure to clean the resin from the inside. Take the hose and adapt it to the faucet of your sink with your hand (in the bathroom, hopefully), and aim the other end of the hose into your toilet bowl. The resin should dissolve in the water and leave the hose as a cloudy reddish-brown solution. Then, let your hose hang dry. This is a once a week process as well.
The purge and hose valves require brushing with either a metal bristle brush or nylon bristle brush, and make sure to use hot water. This prevents the ball bearing from sticking in he valve and blocking air flow. The ball bearings themselves should be lubricated after cleaning, as this keeps them mobile for a longer period of time. Use valve oil for brass instruments, I use this stuff called “blue juice” that I got for my trumpet. There’s no definite time frame for this procedure, just do it when the valves stick...though, if done regularly, you never have to worry about valves sticking.
The water jar is very easy, simply rinse with hot water after each smoking session. Now, it will eventually start to stink. When it does, fill the jar with a bleach-water solution, approximately 1 part bleach to 10 parts water. Let it soak for about an hour. This will eliminate the smell, as well as any residue on the inside of the jar. Then, rinse it out thoroughly. This should be done once every 3 weeks.
The gaskets on the hookah, if they’re made of rubber, will eventually dry rot. Simply replace them. If the cloth gaskets become too dirty, either replace or wash them, depending on their condition. This can take months to happen, so you may want extra gaskets in waiting so you don’t need to worry about not being able to smoke, though you can easily jury-rig new gaskets for a single smoke out of wet paper towels.

Health risks

These are all the same health risks you might incur if you smoke cigarettes or cigars, though you will most likely smoke a hookah much less often than either one of the former. The reasons being;
The length of time it takes to smoke, the portability of a hookah (you can smoke a hookah while walking, but it’s hard), and the preparation involved. However, it’s been said that a hookah smoker will typically inhale 70 times the nicotine and 200 times the smoke in an hour of bliss than a cigarette smoker will in their entire cigarette. This makes sense, as the volume of tobacco is that much more from a hookah. The addiction I’ve experienced, as far as hookahs are concerned, is completely psychological (I hope). If I am physically addicted, I show no outward signs of nicotine dependence aside from smoking the hookah to relax.

Ok, if you read the whole thing, congratulations, you just read my longest post. Ever. And you know everything you need to know about hookahs. Go out, enjoy!
Note;
The names, history, and culture aspect were gathered online by me and worded in my own way, while everything else is from personal experience. Also, I was not paid to plug blue juice, it simply works that well.

 

That's a nice video! Very campy. I actually wish I had a camera to make a tutorial like that, but all I've got right now is the internet and a pair of working hands...so I typed. Do you smoke hookah often, Vorak?

 

Why should I bother to read it, when I can just walk to a Nargile Cafe in Ortaköy and see the original stuff myself? =p

P.S. It doesn't really create addiction. I don't know why. It's good though.

Also, a "round" of nargile costs about 16 Liras, which is as much as two packs of Marlboro here. Just for a price comparison.

 

Well, all in good time, I suppose. I think if you got back into the habit you'd wonder why you ever stopped. I know that even going on vacation away from a hookah for me is pretty easy, but by the time I get back and smoke again I wonder how I lasted so long without. I remember the first time I smoked hookah, it was about three years ago...and a month after that I bought my own. I'm not one to follow modern trends, but it seems like a lot of kids are doing it these days to be cool, so I'm glad I started when it was still relatively unknown.

Mesteut, you're exempt. You live in Turkey. Speaking of which, reading what "nargile" means gave me an idea to make a hookah out of a coconut, and using fruit as a bowl... I think I'll use sugarcane hoses, too.

 

That goes for any good/fun thing though. I feel the same when when I ride a bicycle (I no longer have a long coastline with a bike-way in front of my house). It's normal for you to go "How could I forget about this?".

Oh, and we see the nargile as a traditional flavor that goes well with friendly group activities. Nobody smokes nargile to actually smoke here - or at least most people don't.

P.S. I know I'm exempt. I can help with questions though, as it's one of our traditional things.

 

Hey, I'm more glad that I got a response from such a long post, and from people who've used hookahs before. It'll be a tradition in my household, that's for sure.

 

A great way to recap our surfing session of the day.