All about Jinn Part 2

Who are the Jinn?

The Jinn are a part of Allah's creation separate from man and the angels, but they share certain qualities with man, like intellect, discrimination, freedom, and the power to choose between true and false, right and wrong.

Qur?anic ayahs indicate the existence of the jinn:

?I only created the jinn and man to worship me.?

Qur?an 51:56

Also in Surah al - Anaam it states:

?Oh assembly of Jinn and man, have messengers from among you not come to you, explained our signs and warned you about meeting this Day of yours? They say, 'We bear witness on ourselves.?

Qur?an 6:130



The Prophet (saws) said:

?There are 3 types of Jinn, one type flies through the air, another consists of snakes and dogs , the third type is based in one place but travels about.?

Tabarani, and Bahaqi

The jinn are created with free will, living on earth in a world along with us, and are invisible to human eyes in their normal state.

The Qur?an states that jinn were created from fire, for instance:

?We created Jinn from smokeless fire?.

Qur?an 55:15

Smokeless fire means the tips of flames.

The Prophet (saws) said that the angels were created from light and the Jinn were created from smokeless fire, and Adam was created from clay. (Al Tabarani, Baihaqi)

So you may ask, If the jinn are created from fire how can fire burn fire?

Well what is meant is that like human origin is from clay and mud the origin of jinn is also from fire.

The proof of this is in a hadith related by Imam Ahmad.

The Messenger of Allah (saws) got up one morning to pray fajr, and I was praying behind him. He recited and he became confused in the recitation. When he finished the prayer, he said, 'If you could have only seen me grabbing Iblis and how I kept on throttling him until I felt the coolness of his spittle between my thumb and index finger. If it had not been for the supplication of Sulayman, morning would have found him tied to one of the pillars of the mosque so that the children of Madina could have played with him.

Bukhari

The jinn also have the power to take on the form of human beings, birds, animals, and other things, they see you yet we see them not.

This verse in the Qur?an shows,

?Surely he (shaytan) sees you, he and his tribe from where you see them not.?

Qur?an 7:27

What are the names of the Jinn?

Jinni: Is a term used by the Arabs to refer to one Jinn.

Amir: (Resident Jinn) used to mean that he is one of those who lives with people.

Shaytan: Used for a Jinni who is malicious and has become wicked.

Ifrit: Used for a Jinni who is stronger and more powerful than a shaytan.

The throne of Iblis is on the sea.

The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him said;

?Iblis places his throne on the sea then he sends forth his armies. The nearest of them to him in rank is the greatest in sedition. One of them comes and says, "O did such and such", He Says, "You did not do anything" Then another comes and says, "I did not leave him until I had split him from his wife" He brings him near and says "You did well".

Muslim & Ahmad

Do they marry and have children?

Yes they marry and have children, the Qur?an says:

?What, do you take him and his offspring to be your friends apart from Me when they are an enemy to you??

Qur?an 18:50

This indicates that they marry for the sake of offspring (children and family)

The Jinn live all over the earth, although they are found mostly in deserts, ruins, and places of impurity like, bathrooms and graveyards.

They are frequently found in places where they can cause a lot of mischief and corruption, like in markets. That is why the Prophet, (saws) gave some advise t o one of the companions, saying:

"If possible, do not be the first to enter the market nor the last to leave it. It is the battleground of shaytan and he raised his barrier there.

Muslim

Saying, 'In the name of Allah before all our actions drives him away from our houses?.

The Messenger of Allah (saws) says:

'When a man mentions the name of Allah on entering his house and when he eats, shaytan says to his troops "you have no place to spend the night and no supper", When the man mentions Allah on entering but does not when he eats, he says "You have supper but no place to spend the night". If he does not mention the name of Allah when he enters, shaytan says, "You have got a place to spend the night and supper.?

Sahih

References : 'Jinn' by Mustafa Ashour The Jinn (Demons) by Ibn Taymeeyah, translated by Abu Ameenah Bilal Philips.

Lessons/jinn2