is it assur to smoke hookah while learning gemara? it helps me concentrate

Just like many European rabbis used to smoke when they learned, I'm sure quite a few Sephardi and Mizrahi rabbis used to smoke a hookah when they learned. Sounds good to me.

well i wouldn't use cigarettes they are disrespectful to the sfarim cuz they smell and make ash. However hookah is diff i even make bezamim on it (asked a rabbi who said, sure it smells good why not) but thats another story.

Numerous studies have shown that extended use of hookah over many sessions can be as detrimental to a person's health as smoking cigarettes. [15][16][17][18]. Each hookah session typically lasts from 20 - 80 minutes and consists of 50 - 200 puffs which range from 0.15 - 1 litre per puff [19]. This exposes the hookah smoker to considerably more smoke over a longer time period compared with a cigarette which ranges from 0.5 - 0.6 liters per cigarette[20].

While the water absorbs some of the nicotine in the tobacco smoke, the smoker can be exposed to enough nicotine to cause addiction [21] [22]. Furthermore, the water moisture induced by the hookah makes the smoke less irritating and may give a false sense of security and reduce concerns about true health effects [23].

Other research shows that a 45 minute session of hookah tobacco smoking (tobacco molasses) delivers slightly more tar and carbon monoxide (around 5-10%) than a pack of cigarettes.[24]

A hookah can be worse worse than cigarettes:


To me, it is clearly assur to smoke a hookah, period. A mitzvah (learning torah) that comes through an avierah (smoking) is not a mitzvah.

what are you talking about,your not a posek.

what are you talking about,your not a posek. smoking is not an aveira, and even if it was Hookah isn't because when set up correctly you don't burn the tabacco as with a cigarette rather heat from the coal on top of the foil vaporizes the sugars in the molasses and cooks the tabacco.

By saying smoking is an aveira you are therefore saying that all the Hachamim who smoke (not a small amount I assure you) are commiting aveiras.
show me one real psak from a Gadol that says its an aveira.

the Argileh, has a longer mesora for Jews than Arabs even, for it was Turkish Jewish merchants who introduced it to Egypt and the Ottomon Empire (it originates in India and spread to persia then egypt, the rest is history)

as for it being worse than a cigarrete your referring to the flawed tests which where preformed which burned tabacco at unrealistic temperatures(for a hookah)

If you don't want to accept the truth why bother asking?

show me one serious psak where smoking is assur,

R' Nissin Alpert zt"l

Or if you prefer the RCA.

never heard of nisan albert, but RCA isnt a psak, give me real poskim from POSKIM (like Rav Moshe feinstein, Hacham Ovadia Yosef,etc) RCA gerut aren't even accepted in Israel so i doubt their psaks carry value

give me real poskim from POSKIM (like Rav Moshe feinstein, Hacham Ovadia Yosef,etc)

never heard of nisan albert, but RCA isnt a psak, give me real poskim from POSKIM (like Rav Moshe feinstein, Hacham Ovadia Yosef,etc) RCA gerut aren't even accepted in Israel so i doubt their psaks carry value

Yes, Rav Ovadia, shlita assured it.

And like Micha said you can't fault Rav Moshe zt'l for not knowing the metzi'us.

I see only poskim you agree with "carry value" with you.

Rav Ovadia Yosef forbade smoking in Halichot Olam 1:265-266. (cited here)