the jinn – Ibn Taymiyahs Essay on the Jinn pdf

The Jinn – Book Sample

THE JINN 

Mankind should realize that Allah, the Exalted, the Almighty send Muhammad () to both worlds; the world of man and the world of the Jinn. Belief in God and obedience to Him was made compulsory on the inhabitants of both worlds.

All of mankind and the Jinn were required to permit what Allah and His Prophet permitted, to enjoin what Allah and Prophet enjoined, to love what Allah and His Prophet loved, and to despise what Allah and His Prophet despised.

It should also be known that any man or Jinn given proof of Muhammad’s prophethood, who does not believe in him deserves to be punished by Allah, in a way similar to the punishments which befell those who disbelieved in the earlier prophets who were sent.

Belief that Prophet Muhammad was sent to both mankind and the Jinn is a fundamental principle agreed upon by the Șahâbah, the righteous generation which followed them and by leading Muslim scholars of all schools of thought (may Allah be pleased with all of them). 

The Jinn are beings created with free will, living on earth in a world parallel to that of man, and are invisible to human eyes in their normal state. The Arabic word Jinn comes from the verb “Janna” which means to hide. Consequently, the embryo hidden in the womb is called a Janeen and the heart hidden in the chest is called the Janân.

The term Jinni (Eng. Genie) is equivalent to Jinn, and Jânn may be used as its plural or as another singular form. In Islamic literature Shayłân (Eng. Satan, devil) is a name given to disbelieving Jinns — see Fatḥ al-Bari by Aḥmad ibn ‘Ali ibn Hajar, (Cairo, Egypt: al-Matba’ah as-Salafeeyah, 1st ed., 1961), vol 6, p. 344 and vol. 8, p. 675. They are created from fire according to Allah’s statement in the Qur’an:

(The Jinns were created from the fire of a scorching wind.) (Qur’an 15: 27). They are not “fallen angels”, as angels are made from light according to the following statement of Prophet Muhammad (bpuh) narrated by his wife ‘A’ishah: «The angels were created from light and the Jinn from a fiery wind.» [Saheeh Muslim (English Trans.), vol. 4, p. 1540, hadith no. 7134] and angels can not disobey God according to Allah’s statement in the Qur’an, C… angels stern and severe, who do not disobey Allah in what He orders them, but do whatever they are commanded.) (Qur’an 66: 6)

No one in any of the Muslim sects denies the existence of the Jinn or that Allah, the Exalted, Almighty also sent Muhammad Created to them.

The vast majority of disbelievers, whether pagan Arabs and other Semites?, Indians and other Hamites, most Canaanites and Greeks and other descendents of Japheth”, confirm the existence of the Jinn. As for Jews and Christians, they recognize that Jinns exist in much the same way that Muslims do

In Mesopotamian religion among the ancient Assyrians and the Babylonians, demons were of two kinds: non-human beings and the vengeful dead. The first comprised many types: those which lurked in dangerous places, e.g., deserts and graveyards — the Labartu, a female demon of mountains and marshlands attacked children in particular.

The Sedu and Lamassu were ambivalent, being both evil and guardian-spirits. Lilitu was a succubus (a beautiful nude female demon) who visited men at night and had intercourse with them. The second were the ghosts (Etimmu) of those who died by mischance and were greatly feared. Sickness and misfortune were attributed to demonic attack, especially of the Etimmu. S. G. F. Brandon, gen. ed., A Dictionary of Comparative Religion, (London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 2nd., ed., 1971) p. 232.

Among Indians, demons were either of non-human or human origin. 1. Non-human spirits or fiends are endowed with a superhuman powers, and possess material bodies of various kinds, which they can change at will, and which are subject to destruction. As free agents, they can choose between good and evil, but a disposition towards evil preponderates in their character. (G. Oppert, Original Inhabitants of Bharatavarsa or India, 515 ff.). The Asuras, Danavas, Daityas and Raksasas belong to this group.

Human spirits, or ghosts of human beings, known collectively as Bhuta are always evil. They originate from souls of those who have died untimely or violent deaths, or been deformed, idiotic, or insane; affected with fits or unusual ailments; or drunken, dissolute or wicked during life.

The most dangerous of these are the spirits of the murdered, those who have left the world with unsatisfied desires, and spirits of foreigners. James Hastings ed., Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics, (Edinburgh: T. and T. Clark, 4th ed., 1959), vol. Pp. 601-603. 4 The English word ‘demon’ is derived from the Greek ‘daimon’, pl. 

The 8th Century B.C. Greek poet Hesiod, in his account of the Four Ages, explains that after death, those of the golden age became daimones (Works and Days, 109 ff.).

They were described as kindly guardians of men, distributors of property and wealth, but wrapped in darkness so as to be invisible while they wander over every region of the earth. So long as they were treated with respect, they were expected to show favour. These were good demons.

Evil spirits were conceived as ghosts of heroes as they were considered incapable of conferring blessings and only powerful to work ill. Some evil demons were represented as specifically attached to each individual from birth to death.

 Others were conceived as avenging demons and were the instrument appointed to punish the crimes of a particular family and bore the special title of Alastor (Encyclopedia of