Jinn Devils

1- This regulation concerning the prohibition of killing such animals is with respect to snakes only and not with respect to all animals.

2- The regulation does not extend to every snake but only two those that are found in the house. Those that are found outside of the houses may be killed.

3- If one sees a snake in the house then he should warn it, on other words, order it leave, by saying something similar to, "I adjure you by Allah to leave this house and take your evil away from us, if you do not do so we shall kill you." If you see it after three days, you should kill it.

4-The reason that it is to be killed only after three days is a precautionary step in order to ensure that one does not kill a jinn that had become Muslim. If we was such a jinn, he would leave the house. If he does not leave, then he deserves to be killed, as it is, in that case, a rebellious non-believing jinn that deserves to be killed due to the harm that it brings to the inhabitants of the house.

5- There is one type of snake that is found in the house which we have been given special permission to kill without first requesting it to leave. In Sahih-al-Bukhari it is recorded from Abu Lubab that the prophet (peace be upon him) said,

"Do not kill the jinn, except every one with two streaks on the back, for they cause miscarriages and take away the eyesight. Therefore, kill them.''

Does this ruling that snakes are jinn mean that every snake is a jinn or only some of them? The prophet ( peace be upon him) said, "snakes are the forms of the transmutations of the shape of the jinn in the same way that the apes and swine were transmutations of the tribe of israel."

Satan is able to flow in the descendants of Adam like blood flow through a vein.

In sahih al-Bukhari and sahih Muslim it is recorded that the prophet ( peace be upon him) said, "Verily, satan flows in the human like the flowing of blood ." It is also recorded in the two sahihs that safiyya bint hayy, the wife of the prophet, said, "The Messenger of Allah was making "seclusion' (itikaaf) in the mosque and i brought him his loin cloth during the nigt. We talked and then I stood to leave. He also stood with me and walked with me. I was living in the house of usama ibn zaid. Two men from Ansar passed by us . When the prophet (peace be upon him) saw them he went quickly to them and said, 'It is only Safiyya bint Hayy.' They said, 'May Allah be glorified, Oh Messenger of Allah [we had no bad suspicion about you].' The prophet (peace be upon him) told them, 'Satan flows in the human like the flowing of the blood. I feared that he would cast some evil allegation in your souls."

Their weaknesses and inabilities

In some aspects, the jinn and devils are strong while in others they are weak. Allah says, "Verily, the plot of satan is  weak" (al-Nisaa 76). We shall mention some of those aspects that Allah and His Messenger ( peace be upon him) have informed us about.

They have no power over the pious worshipper of Allah

Allah did not give satan the ability to compel mankind of force them to misguidance and disbelief. Allah says in the Quran, "Lo! My faithful bondsmen- over them you have no power, and your Lord suffices as their guardian" (al-Israa 65) . 

And He also said, "And satan indeed found his calculation true concerning them, for they follow him, all save a group of true believers. And he had not warrant whatsoever against them, save that we would know him who believes in the Hereafter from him who is in doubt thereof' (Saba 20-21) . 

The meaning is that satan has no means of mastery over them, either through proofs against them or through any power over them. And satan, himself, recognizes that fact as one can see in the following verse, "He (Satan) said : My Lord! because you have sent me astray, I verily shall adorn the path of error for them in the earth, and shall mislead them everyone, save such of them as are you perfectly devoted slaves" (al-Hijar 39-40).

His mastery is over those humans and and jinn who are pleased with his ideas and those who are pleased to follow and obey him. Allah has said, "Lo ! As for My slaves, you have no power over any except such of the froward as follow you (al-Hijr 42). 

On the Day of Resurrection, satan will say to those who followed him in this world to misguidance and destruction, "[Lo! Allah promised you a promise of truth; and I promised you, then failed you.] And I had no power over you save that I called unto you and you obeyed me. I cannot help you, nor can you help me" (ibraheem 22) . 

And another verse says, "His power is only over those who make him an ally, and those who ascribe partners of Allah" (al-Nahl 100 ).

 His mastry over them is through seduction and misguidance. He  agitates and stirs them and leads them to disbelief and polytheism. He harasses them until they enter into it. And he never leaves them alone. Allah says in the Quran,

"Do you not see that we have set the devils on the disbelieverse to confound them with confusion" (Maryam 83).

His power over them is not due to any proofs or arguments but is simply because the actions that he calls them to are in accordance with their own desires and wishes. They have harmed themselves. They allow their true enemy, satan, to become their friend and master because they are in agreement with what he wants from them. 

When they stretch their hands to him, they become his prisoner as a type of punishment for their own acts. Allah did not give satan power over any of his slaves until the slave himself opened the way for satan by obeying him and associating him with Allah. Then Allah allows satan to subjugate the slave and have power over him.

 He has power over the believers due to their sins

A hadith states, "Allah is with the judge as long as he does not commit any injustice. If he commits any injustice, Allah is free from him and keeps satan with him." Abu al-Faraj ibn al-Jauzi has related a unique story from. al-Hassan al-Basri. The story, depending on how authentic it is, shows the ability of a human in overpowering satan if he is sincere to Allah in his religion and it show how satan can take advantage of the human his religion and it shows how satan can take advantage of the human when he strays. 

Al-Hasan al-Basri narrated that there was a tree that was worshipped instead of Allah. One man decided to chop down that tree. He was going to chop down the tree out of anger for the sake of Allah. On the way to the tree he met Iblees who was in the form of a man. 

Iblees asked him, "What do you plan on doing?" The man answered, "I am going to chop down that tree that is worshipped instead of Allah." Satan said, "If you do not worship it, why should it harm you if others do so ?" The man replied, "I will chop it down." Satan then told him, "Would you like something better than that? Do not cut it and you will that?" the man asked. "i will give it to you," said Iblees. The man returned and the next morning he found two dinars under his pillow. The Following morning he again  found two dinars under his pillow. On the following morning he did not find anything. 

He got upset and went to chop down the tree. Satan again appeared to him in the shape of the same man. Satan asked him, "What do you want to do ?" The man answered "I plan on cutting down that tree that is worshipped instead of Allah! " Iblees said, "You have lied. There is no way you will be able to do it," The man left to chop it down. The earth swallowed him and chocked him until it almost killed him. 

Iblees asked, "Do you know who iam? I am satan. I met you for the first time when you were angry for the sake of Allah and I had no power over you. I deceived you by two dinars and you stopped what you had intended to do [for the sake of Allah]. Now you have come because you are angry about the two dinars, and I have gotten mastery over you."

Allah has also informed us in His Book about a person who has given the signs of Allah  and was aware of them, but then he left all of that and Allah let satan again mastery over him, Satan then seduced him and misled him and became a lesson for other and a story that has been passed on. Allah says in Quran, "Recite unto them the tale of him to whom We gave Our revelations, but he sloughed them off, so satan overtook him and he became of those who were lead astray. And had we willed we would have raised him by their means, but he clung to the earth and followed his own lust. 

Therefore his likeness is as the likeness of a dog; if you attack him, he pants with his tongue out, and if you leave him alone he pants with his tongue out. Such is the likeness of the people who deny our revelations.

Narrate unto them the history (of the men of old), that the haply they may take though" ( al-Araaf 175-76). It is clear that this parable applies to the one who knows the truth and refuses to accept it, like the jews who knew that the prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was a true messenger from the Lord but they disbelieved in him.

This is all of the story that Allah gives us. Some say that the verse refers to Balaam ibn Baoora who was a pious person and then he became a disbeliever. Some say it refers to Umayya ibn Abu as-salit who worshipped Allah during the days of ignorance and who had met the prophet but refused to believe in him out of envy. He had hoped that he would be the next messenger to be sent. 

We do not possess any authentic text that clearly identifies who the verse refers to. "To receive the signs of Allah and then to disbelieve in them" is a description of someone who is very similar to satan. This is so because satan became a disbeliever after he clearly knew and recognized the truth. This is one of the things that the prophet (peace be upon him) feared most for his nation. 

Al-Hafez Abu yala recorded from Hudhaifa bin al- yaman that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, "From the things that I fear for you is a man who recites the Quran until you see its splendor upon him. His cloak is Islam and he wears it until Allah wishes and then he throws it behind his back and attacks his neighbour with a sword and accuses him of polytheism." Hudhaifa] said, "o Messenger of Allah, which should be killed, the one who is attacking or the one who is attacked." He (peace be upon him) said, "Nay, the one who is attacking."

Satan s fear and fleeing from some of the slaves of Allah

If a slave holds fast to Islam, has a sincere belief in his heart and stays within the bounds set by Allah, then satan departs and flees from him. The prophet (peace be upon him) said to Umar,

"satan most certainly from you, O Umar." He also said about umar, 

"I certainly see the devils of jinn and mankind fleeing from Umar." But that situation was not solely for Umar.Whoever possesses a strong faith can overcome satan, defeat him and belittle him. It states in a hadith,

"The believer emaciates  his devil in the same way that one of you weakness his camel during traveling." Ibn Katheer stated, after recording his hadith, "Seizing his devil means grabbing his forelock and overpowering him like what is done to a camel if he escapes and is captured?

 It is even the case that a Muslim may have such a strong effect on his "Partner" or "companion" from among the jinn that the jinn becomes a Muslim. Muslim and Ahmad have recorded from the prophet (peace be upon him),

"There is not one of you whose does not have his partner from among the jinn." 

The people asked, "Even you, Oh Messenger of Allah?" He answered, "Even me, but Allah has helped me against him and, therefore, he only commands me to do good." Imam Ahmad has also recorded this hadith from Ibn Abbas with the wording, "But Allah has helped me against him and he embraced Islam." And Muslim recorded from Aisha, "But my Lord aided me against him until he submitted."

The Jinn were made subservient to solomon

Allah made all the jinn and devils subservient to the prophet solomon (peace be upon him) and they all performed what he wished. He punished and imprisoned those who disobeyed. Allah says in the Quran, "So we made the wind subservient unto him, setting fair by His command whatever he intended. And the devils, every builder and diver (made we subservient), and others linked together in chains" (Saud 36-38). 

He also said, "And unto Solomon (We gave) the wind, where of the morning course was a month's journey and the evening course a month's journey, and we caused the fountain of copper to gush forth for him, and (We gave him) certain of the jinn who worked before him by permission of his Lord. And such of them as deviated from our command, them we caused to taste the punishment of a flaming fire" (Saba 12 ). 

This subjugation to solomon was in response to a prayer that he made to Allah that is stated in the Quran, "He said: My Lord! Forgive me and bestow on me sovereignty such as shall not belong to any after me. Lo! you are the Bestower" (Saud 35). It was this supplication that prevented the prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) from keeping and showing the jinn that he had captured, who had put a burning branch in the prophet's face and wanted to throw it at him. 

In sahih Muslim, the following is related on the authority of Abu al-Darda: the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) stood (to pray) and he could be heard saying, "I seek refuge in Allah from you." After which he said, " I curse you with the curse of Allah." He stated that three times and then stretched out his arm, looking as if he was about to grab something. When he finished the prayer, he was asked, "Oh Messenger of Allah, during the prayer we heard you say some thing that we have not heard you say before in the prayer, and we saw you stretch out your arm.

" The prophet ( peace be upon him) told them, "The enemy of Allah, Iblees, came to me with a flame of fire to put it in my face, therefore I said three times, 'I curse you with Allah's curse.' Afterwards, I said three times, 'I seek refuge in Allah from you.' But he did not leave after any of these. Then I attempted to seize him. I swear by Allah, that had it not been for the supplication of my brother solomon, he would have been 'fettered and made an object of sport for the children of Madina." And that type of incident accursed the following from Abu Huraira: 

The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, "An afreet [ a type of devil] of the jinn escaped last night to interrupt my prayer, but Allah gave me power over him, therefore i seized him and I was planning on tying him to one of the pillars in the mosque, but then I remebered the suppication of my brother solomom, 'My Lord! Forgive me and bestow on me sovereignty such as shall not belong to any after me.' So Allah returned him belittled and despised."

The Jews lied about solomon

The jews and those who follow them in using jinn through the art of magic allege that solomon used magic to gain mastery over the jinn. Many of the early scholars mention that when solomon died, the devils recorded books of magic and disbelief and put them under his throne and they said, "Solomon used these books to subjugate the jinn."

This led others to say that if this art is not peermissible why did so solomon perform it. Allah revealed the following,"And when there comes unto them a Messenger from Allah, confirming that which they possess, a party of those who have received the scripture of Allah behind their backs as if they knew not" (al-Baqara 101). 

Then He clarifies that they followed what was recited unto them by the devils during the life of solomon, declaring solomon innocent of magic and disbelief, 

"Solomon disbelieved not; but the devils disbelived, teaching mankind magic and that which was revealed to the angels in Babel, Harut and Marut. Nor did they (the two angels) teach  it to anyone till they had said: We are only a temptation, therefore disbelieve not (in the guidance of Allah)..." (al-Baqara 102).

They are incapable of performing miracles

The jinn are not able to perform miracles like those of the Messengers That are meant as proof for the truth of their missions. some of the disbelievers alleged that the Quran was from the workings of satans, so Allah revealed,

"The devils did not bring it down. it is not proper for them [to bring it down], nor is it in their power. Lo! Verily they are banished from the hearing" (al-  Shuaraa 21 0-2 12 ).

Allah challenges all of mankind and the jinn in the following verse." "Say: Verily, though mankind and jinn should assemble to produce the like of this Quran, they could not produce the like there of though they were helpers one of another" (al-Israa 88 ).

They are not able to appear like the prophet (peace be upon him) in a vision or dream

The devils are incapable of appearing in the shape of the prophet in a dream. At-Tirmidhi has recorded, with a sahih chain, that the prophet in a dream. At-Tirmidhi has recorded, with a sahih chain, that the prophet (peace be upon him) said, "Whoever sees me, then it is me, for the devils cannot appear like me." And in the two sahih the wording is, whoever sees me, then the vision is true for the devils cannot appear in my form.

" The apparent meaning of the hadith is that the devils are incapable of taking the true form of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). But this does not prevent them from taking a form other than that of the prophet (peace be upon him) and claiming that they are the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). 

Therefore it is not permissible to argue from this hadith that everyone who sees who he thinks is the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) in a dream has actually seen him, unless, of course, who he saw meets the description  of the prophet (peace be upon him) that is found in the books of hadith. Many people claim that they had seen the prophet, yet they give a description of him that differs from what has been recorded in the trustworthy books.

They are not able to go beyond the limit set for them in the skies

Allah says in the Quran, "O Company of jinn and men, if you have power to penetrate (all) regions of the heavens and the earth, then penetrate (them)! You will never penetrate them save with (our) sanction. Which is it, of the favors of your Lord, do you deny? There will be sent against you both, heat of  fire and flash of brass, and you will not escape" (al-Rehmaan 33-35). Despit their power and speed of movement, they are not able to go beyond such limits; if they try, they will be destroyed.

They are not able to open the closed doors that have and the name of Allah mentioned over them

The prophet (peace be upon him) stated, "Close the doors and mention Allah's name upon them, for satan cannot open a door that has been closed up upon him [and has had the name of Allah mentioned over it]" There is also the following hadith hadith in the two sahihs, "Certainly, Satan does not open a shut door. Tie your buckets and mention Allah's name upon them, even if it is just putting something over it, and extinguish your lamps?

In Musanad Ahmad, there is the following hadith, "Close your doors and cover your vessels and tie up your waterskins and put out your lamps, for satan does not open a closed door, nor does he take off a cover, nor does he untie the water skins."

The ultimate Purpose of their creation The jinn were created for the same purpose that mankind was created,

"I created the jinn and human kind only that they worship Me" (al-Dhaariyaat 56). Therefore, jinn are responsible for their actions and have been ordered to perform some acts and to abstain from performing others.Concerning he who is obedient, Allah will be pleased with him and he will enter paradise. For whosoever disobeys and rebels, he is given the hell-fire. Many statements of the Quran and hadith indicate this fact.

On the Day of judgement  Allah will address both the jinn and mankind with the following words, "O you assembly of jinn and human kind! Came there not unto you messengers of your own who recounted unto you My tokens and warned you of this Day? They will say: We testify against themselves that they were disbelievers" (al-Anaam 130). 

This verse proves that the command of Allah reached the jinn and that they had received messengers who warned them and conveyed the message to them. The proofs that they will be punished in the fire are many: "He says: Enter into the fire among nations of the jinn and mankind who passed away before you" (al-Araaf 37 ); "Already have We urged unto hell many of the jinn and mankind, having hearts where with they understand not..." (al-Araaf 179); "But the word from Me concerning evildoers took effect: that i will fill hell with the jinn and mankind together" (al-Sajda 13).

And the proofs that the believing jinn will enter paradise include, "But for him who fears the standing before his Lord there are two gardens. Which is it, of the favours of your Lord, that you deny?" (al-Rahmaan 46-47) This verse, as is clear from the previous verse and, in face, the whole surah, is addressed to both jinn and mankind. The chapter talks about Allah's blessing to the jinn, of their entering paradise. If they were not to again that bounty, how could it be mentioned as a blessing for them? 

Ibn Mufleh said in his book al-Furu; The jinn are responsible for their actions according to the cansensus. Their believers will enter the fire, and this is agreed upon. Their believers will enter paradise according to Malik and ash-Shafi. In their opinion, they will not be turned to dust, like animals, and the reward for their believers is being saved from being in the hell-fire. 

And this opinion differs from that of Abu Hanifa, al-Laith ibn Saad and others. Apparently the first opinion is correct. They will be in the paradise with the humans in accordance with their measure of reward. This differs from those who say they will not eat or drink therein; this was said by mujaahid. And this also differs from the opinion, held by Umar ibn Abdul Aziz, that says that they will be on the outskirts of paradise. Ibn Hamad said in his book, "The jinn are like humans with respect to responsibility for deeds and worship?

They are responsible according to their own specific standard

Ibn Taimiya said, The jinn are commanded to do the fundamental acts and the secondary acts according to their own ability. They are not exactly like humans in definition and nature. What they have been ordered to do or prohibited from is not, in its nature, exactly the same as what humans have been ordered to do or what they have been prohibited from. But they have in common with humans responsibility for doing what they have been ordered to, and to abstain from what they have been forbidden. On this point, I know of no dispute among the Muslim.'

A Misconception and its reply

Some people have raised an objection or doubt, stating, "You accept the fact that the jinn have been created from fire. Then you say that the unbelievers from them will be punished in the hell-fire. And the one who tries to steal any news [from the heavens] will have a meteor flung at him. 

How will the fire harm them when they have been created from it ?" The response is that in origin they are created from fire. But after their creation they were not exactly like fire. They became a creation different from fire. This point can be made clear with reference to humans who were created from soil. After their creation they certainly became different from soil. 

If one strikes another human with a large portion of soil one could badly harm the other or possibly kill the other. If human is buried in soil, he will suffocate and die. Therefore, although he is from the earth or soil, the soil can certainly harm him. The same is the case with respect to jinn and fire.

There is no relationship between the jinn and Allah,the Glorious

The jinn, as was just stated, are just one of the creations of Allah and, like all the other creations of Allah, are subservient to him. They were created only to worship and obey Him and they are responsible for fulfilling His commands. All of that information puts an end to the superstitions that developed as a result of misconceptions concerning their true nature and lack of knowledge. The jews and polytheistic Arabs believed that Allah took wives from the jinn and the result of their relationship were the angels. In the Quran, Allah refers to this false notion and states that it is false. 

He says,"and they imagine kinship between Him and the jinn, where as the jinn know well that they will be brought before (Him). Glorified be Allah from that which they attribute (unto Him) " (al-saaffaat 158-159). In his commentary to this verse, Ibn Katheer writes, Mujahid said, "The polytheists said, 'The angels are the daughters of Allah, exalted be He above what they say.' Abu Bakr said to them, 'Who are their mothers?' They answered, 'The daughters of the best of the jinn." Ibn Zaid and Qatada both made statements similar to that of Mujahid.. Al-Aufi narrated on the authority of ibn Abbas, 'The enemies of Allah alleged that He- The Most Honourable and Most High-and Iblees were brothers. And Allah is much greater than this grave allegation."

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The Nature of Satan

Since they are responsible for their actions, there is no doubt that the revelation of Allah must reach them and establish "the proof' against them. But how does this occur? Do they have messengers from among themselves like humans do or are the same human messengers also sent to them?

Allah says in the Quran, 0 you assembly of jinn and mankind, came there not unto you messenger of your own who recounted unto you of  My tokens..." (al-Anaam 130). This verse shows that Allah sent messenger to them. But this verse does not make it clear who these messengers were; Were they jinn or man? The Arabic word used in the verse, minkum [translated by pickthall as "of your own:] , could imply either that the messengers were of the same species as the jinn or it could imply that the one human messenger was sent to both of them together.

Consequently, there is a difference of opnion concerning which is meant. Basically, there are two opinions on this point. The first opinion is that the jinn received messengers of their own kind. This was the opinion of al-Dhuhhaak. Ibn al-jauzi said that this is the most obvious meaning of the verse. Ibn Hazm said that no human messenger was also a messenger was also a messenger to the jinn before the prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).

The second opinion is that all of the messengers that were sent to the jinn were humans. Al-Suyooti stated in Luqat al-Marjaan that the major of the early and later scholars stated that the jinn never had a messenger of prophet from their kind; this opinion was related from ibn Abbas, Mujahid, al-Kalbi and Abu Ubaid. 

What makes the latter opinion seem stronger is the statement of the jinn upon hearing the Quran, "They [the jinn] said, 'O our people lo, we have heard a scripture which has been revealed after Moses.." (al- Ahqaaf30). But this verse is still not a clear proof for this particular question. The debated question does not require any action on the part of the Muslims, nor is there any clear text concerning it; therefore, there is no need to discuss this question in any greater detail.

The message of Muhammad (peace be upon him)  is for both jinn and humans

The prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was sent to both jinn and humans. Ibn Taimiya stated, "There is agreement on this principal among the companionss and those that followed their way and the leaders of the Muslims and rest of the different groups of Muslims, the ahl al-Sunnah wa- al-jamaa and others. May Allah be pleased with all of them."

What suggests this is the challenge of the Quran to both the jinn and humans to compose a work similar to the Quran. Allah says in the Quran,

"Say: Verily, though mankind and jinn should assemble to produce the like of this Quran, they could not produce the like there of though they would be helpers, one of another" ( al-Israa 88).

Some of the jinn quickly became believers when they heard the Quran recite. The Quran states, "Say it is revealed unto me that a company of the jinn listened, and they said, 'Lo it is a marvelous Quran, which guides unto righteousness, so we believe in it and we ascribe no partner unto our Lord"' (al-Jinn 1-2).

Those who listened to the Quran and believed in it are the same ones who are mentioned in the following verse from surah al-Ahqaaf, "And when we inclined toward you (Muhammad) certain of the jinn, who wished to hear the Quran and, when they were in its presence, said, 'Give ear.' And when it was finished, turned back to their people, warning [them]. They said, '0 our people, lo, we have heard a scripture which has been revealed after Moses, confirming that which was before it, guiding unto the truth and a right road. 0 our people, respond to Allah's summoner and believe in Him. He will forgive you some of your sins and guard you from a painful doom. And whosoever does not respond to Allah's summoner, he can nowise escape in the earth, and you can find no protecting friends instead of Him. Such are in error manifest" (al-Ahqaaf 29-32). 

They heard the Quran, they believed in it and returned to their people to call them towards the oneness of Allah and faith and they gave them good tidings as well as a warning.

The story of their listening to the prophet (peace be upon him) has been recorded by al-Bukhari and Muslim on the authority of ibn Abbas. Ibn Abbas reported that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) departed with some of his companions, intending to go to the bazaar at Ukaz. At that time, there had been obstruction between the devils and the news from the heavens. And flames were being hurled at the jinn. 

Therefore, the jinn went back to their people and were asked about what had happened. They answered, "Some barriers have been put between us and the news from the heavens." They said, "This could only happen due to some important event. So go to the eastern parts of the earth and its western parts to find out what has happened to cause these barriers between us and the news from the heavens." They did so. A group of them proceeded to Tihama which is a palm grove close to the fair of Ukaz. 

At that time, the prophet (peace be upon him) was leading his companions in the dawn prayer. When the jinn heard the recitation of the Quran, they said, "Listen to it." Then they said, "This is what has caused the barriers between us and the news of the heavens." They returned to their people and said, "O our people, we have heard a marvelous Quran that guides us to the straight path and we believe in it." Then Allah revealed to His prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him),"Say; It is revealed to me that a company of the jinn listened..." (al-jinn 1 ). Allah revealed to the prophet (peace be upon him) what the jinn had stated.

The delegation from the jinn

The incident mentioned above was the first time that the jinn became aware of the message of the prophet (peace be upon him). They listened to the Quran without the prophet (peace be upon him) being aware of their presence. A group of them believed in it and went back to their people to spread the message. After that incident, a delegation of the jinn met with the Prophet (peace be upon him) to gain some knowledge from him. 

The Prophet (peace be upon him) gave them an appointment and met with them and taught them what Allah prescribed for them and he read the Quran to them and informed them of the news of the heavens. This latter incident occurred in Makkah before the prophet's migration to Madina.

Muslim, in his sahih, and Ahmad, in his Musnad, recorded from Alqama that he had asked Abdullah ibn masud if anyone had accompanied the prophet (peace be upon him) on the night that the prophet (peace be upon him)  met with the jinn. Ibn Masud said, "No, none of us did. But we were in the company of the Messenger of Allah Peace be upon him) that night in Makkah and we missed him. We searched for him in the valleys and the hills and said, 'He has either been taken away [by the jinn] or has been secretly killed.' He said, 'We spent the wrost night which people could ever spend.

When it was dawn we saw him coming from the direction of Hiraa. We said, 'Messenger of Allah, we missed you and searched for you but we could not find you and we spent the wrost night which people could ever spend.' He [the prophet] said, 'There came to me someone inviting me on behalf of the jinn and I went along with him and recited to them the Quran.' He said, 'He then went along with us and showed us their traces and traces of their embers.' They [ the jinn] asked him about their food and he said, 'Every bone on which the name of Allah is recited is your provision. The time it will fall in your hands, it would be covered with flesh. And the dung of the camels is fodder for your animals," And in al-Tabari's narration from ibn Masud, "I stayed one night reciting to the jinn at a place called al-Hujoon [in Makkah]," 

From among the verse that he recited to them was surah al-Rahmaan. In another hadith, the prophet (peace be upon him) said, "I read it [ Surah al- Rahmaan] to the jinn on the night of the jinn and they had a better response to it than you did. When I came to, 'Which of the favors of your Lord do you deny?' they responded with, 'There is none of your bounties. O Lord, that we deny. And for you is the praise." That was not the only time that the prophet (peace be upon him) recited to the jinn but such meetings were repeated a number of time afterwards. In his commentry to surah al-Ahqaaf, ibn katheer records various hadith in which the prophet (peace be upon him) met with jinn. In some of these hadith, it states that ibn Masud was very close to the prophet (peace be upon him) during such a night.

In a hadith recorded in sahih al-Bukhari, there is the description of some jinn from a place calles Naseeb in Yamen visting the prophet (peace be upon him). Al-Bukhari recorded from Abu Huraira that the prophet (peace be upon him) said, "A delegation of the jinn of Naseeb [a part of Yamen] came to me- and how nice these jinn are- and asked me for provisions. I suppicated to Allah for them that they would never pass by a bone or dung of an animal except that they would find food upon it."

 The jinn preaching to the humans
  

In some of the authentic hadith there are reports that some jinn played a role in guiding some humans. In sahih al-Bukhari, it is recorded that Umar ibn al-khattab asked a man who used to be a diviner during the days of ignorance about the most amazing thing that his female jinn had ever informed him of. The ex-diviner told Umar, "One day she came to me in a state of fright. She said, 'Have you not seen the despair of the jinn and their defeat [i.e..from listening to the news in the heavens] and, 

Therefore, they now only follow the camel riders." Umar said, "such is the truth." I was sleeping near some idols and there came a man with a calf and he sacrificed it for the idol. It let out a scream the like of which I have never heard. It said, 'O Julaih, O you arrogant sinner, You have a matter of success in front of you. A man of fair speech is saying, 'None has the right to be worshipped save you (o Allah).' The people fled from the sight (due to fear). Then the same cry came again. I then went away and a few days later, the people were saying, 'A prophet has appeared..."

    

After recording this hadith in his commentary to surah al-Ahqaaf, Ibn Katheer wrote, "This is the text of al-Bukhari. Al-Baihaqi has recorded something similar to it from ibn wahb." Then he stated, "Appearently this narration follows the mistaken notion that it was Umar himself who heard the scream at the time of the sacrifice. This is made explicit in weak narrations from Umar. All of the other narrations point to the diviner as being the one who reported what he had seen and heard. Allah knows best. " Then he adds, "That man who was the diviner was Sawaad ibn Qaarib."

 Their order to do good deeds and being witnesses for Muslim

The hadith from prophet (peace be upon him) in which he states that his partner from among the jinn submitted and ordered him only to do good deeds will be mentioned later.

Abu saeed al-Khudri said to Abu Sasa al-Ansari, "I see that you like sheep and wilderness, make the call to prayer and raise your voice while doing so. Whoever hears the call to prayer, whatever he be human, jinn or any other being, will be a witness for it on the Day of Resurrection." Abu Saeed added " I heard that from the Messenger of Allah"[ Recorded by al-Bukhari.] He stated that the jinn who heard the call to prayer will be witnesses for him on the Day of Resurrection.

They are at different levels of good and evil

The jinn are of different varieties; some of them are fully devoted to doing good and righteousness; other are less so. Some of them are heedless; others are outright disbelievers and they are by far the majority. Allah says, concerning those who listened to the Quran,

"And among us there are righteous flok and among us there are some that are far from that. We are sects having differences'' (al-Jinn 11 ). In other words, some of them are completely pious, some are less so and so on. They are of different ways and thoughts like the human beings.

Allah also states about them, quoting them, "And there are among us some who are unjust. And whoso has surrendered to Allah, such, have taken the right path purposefully. And as for those who are unjust, they are firewood for hell"( al-Jinn 14-15). In other words, some of them are Muslims and some have wronged their own souls by being unbelievers. Whoever submitted has set himself upon the path of guidance by his actions and whosoever among them wronged their own souls will be fuel for the hell-fire.

The nature of Satan

Allah gave the jinn ability to become believers or disbelievers. Thereby, satan used to worship Allah along with the angels before he became an ingrate. When he became such, he became pleased with evil and sought it even though it would be the cause of his punishment. He was pleased by the performance of evil and encouraged others to perform evil deeds.

"He [Satan], 'Then, by your might, I will surely beguile them, every one, save your single-mu ded slaves among them" (Saud 82-83). The same is the case with a human. If his soul becomes evil, he desires whst harms him and becomes gratified by such actions; in fact, he becomes passionately in love with such things to the extent that he  he rums his mind, religion, character, body and wealth. It is sufficient to consider, as examples, those who drink alcohol or smoke cigarettes. These things kill the one who consumes them. They are sufficient to cause the person's death yet the person is not able to leave them save through hardship.

Can a devil embraced Islam?

It is apparent from the hadith' that is possible for a devil to embrace Islam as the devil of the prophet (peace be upon him) did so. Some scholars, though, reject this statement and state that a devil cannot become a believer. The commentator of al-Aqeeda al-Tahaawiya is of latter opinion. The people of this school argu that the word aslam [mentioned in the hadith concerning the submission of the prophet's devil] means that the devil submitted to the laws of Islam [without any belief or faith]. 

Some scholars say that the correct narration of the hadith is the prophet (peace be upon him) saying, "I am safe from him." The commentator on al-Tahaawiya is of the opinion that the narration putting the word aslam in the nominative case is a mistake; but, al-Nawawi, in his commentary to sahih Muslim, states, "They are two well-confirmed narrations." He states that al-Khattabi thinks that the stronger narration is with the dhamma (that is, with the word in its nominative from).

From among those who say that the devil can embrace Islam is ibn Hibban. Commenting on the hadith referred to above, he stated, "In this report there is evidence that the devil of the prophet (peace be upon him) embraced Islam and he did not incite the prophet (peace be upon him) to do any thing but good deeds. otherwise, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was safe from him even if the devil were a disbeliever."

There is some about concerning the opinion of the commentator on al-Aqeeda al-Tahaawiya that a devil can only be an unbeliever. If he means that the word devil is only used for the disbelievers of the jinn, then his opinion is correct. but if he means a devil can never change and convert to Islam, then his opinion is far from correct and the hadith is an evidence against him.'

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Satan vs Mankind

The reason behind the enmity, its history, and its severity The enmity between humans and Satan is rooted in an incident that took place a long time ago. One must go back to the day that Allah formed Adam, before He breathed His spirit into him. satan went around him and said, "[Adam,] if you are given mastery over me, I will surely disobey you. And if I am given mastery over you, I will destroy you."

It is recorded in sahih Muslim on the authority of Anas that the prophet (peace be upon him) said, "When Allah fashioned Adam in paradise, He left him as long as He wished to leave him. Then Iblees roamed around him to see what he actually was and when Iblees found him to be hollow from within, he recognized that the new creature had been created with a disposition such that it would not have control over itself.''

When Allah breathed into Adam his spirit, he ordered the angels to prostrate to Adam. Iblees used to worship Allah with the angels so the order was also addressed to him. But Iblees considered himself too great and, out of pride, he refused to prostrate to Adam. He cried, "I am better than him. You created me from fire and you created him from clay."

Then when Adam opened his eyes he found a great and generous gesture: the angels bowing down to him. But he also found a great enemy waiting for him that would try to lead him and his descendants to destruction and misguidanced. Satan was cast out of paradise due to his pride but he took a promise from Allah to be left alive until the day of judgement. "He said: Reprieve me till the day when they are raised (from the dead). He said: Lo ! You are of those who are reprieved" (al-Araaf 14-15). Then the accursed one made a promise and vow to himself that he would mislead the offspring of Adam and plot against them.

"He said: Now, because you have sent me astray, verily I shall lurk in ambush for them on your right path. Then I sahll come upon them from before them and from behind them and from their right and from their left, and you will not find most of them beholden (to you) (al-Araaf 15-16). This latter statement of his shows how great will be his struggle to mislesd the offspring of Adam. He will take every path he can against them, on their right, left, in front of them and behind them. 

He will attack them from every direction. Al-Zamakhshari said in his commentary to this verse, "He will come to them from all four directions as the enemy usually does, such as his 'sneaking whispers' to them. He will entice them in every way that he can. As in the [Quranic] statement, 'And excite any of them whom you can with your voice, and urge your horse and foot against them, and be a partner in their wealth and children, and promise them. Satan promise them only to deceive' (al-Israa 64)."

 Allah warning to us concerning satan

The Quran warns us at lenght about satan since he is such a great test for humanity. Allah warns humans about Satan's misguidance and his desire to mislead people. Allah says, "O children of Adam ! Let not satan seduce you..." (al-Araaf 27). And, "Lo' The devil is an enemy for you, so treat him as an enemy" (Faatir 6). Again, "Whoever chooses satan for an ally instead of Allah is vereily a loser and his loss is manifest" (al-Nisaa 119).

The enmity from satan will not change or vanish. This is because satan sees the father of the humans, Adam, as the cause for his satan. There is no doubt that he will seek revenge from Adam and his offspring. "He said: Do you see this (creation) that you have honoured above me ? If you give me grace until the Day of Resurrection I will verily seize this seed, save but a few" (al-Israa 62).

The scholars who ideal in matters related to behaviour and conduct often discuss the shortcomings and weakness of humans' souls but they do not put enough stress on this fierce enemy, although Allah warns us against him at many different places in the Quran. And He orders us to seek refuge from him while Allah does not order us to seek refuge from our souls anywhere. Only in the opening to an oratory did the prophet (peace be upon him)  state about the evil in the souls, "And we seek refuge in Allah from the evil in our souls and the evil of our deeds."

The goals or the aims of satan

Long-term Goal: Satan has one long term goal. This is his ultimate ambition. This goal is to see humans thrown into the hell-fire and prevented from entering paradise. "He only summons his faction to be owners of the flaming Fire" (Faatir 6).

Short-term Goals: The above is satan's long-term goal. But he has many short-term goals including:

1. To get the slave involved in disbelief and idolatry. This is done by calling people to worship beings or idols other than Allah. Satan calls the people to disbelief in Allah and to disobey His commands. "Or the likeness of Satan when he tells man to disbelieve, but when he disbelievers, he says, 'Verily, i am innocent of you"' (al-Hashr 16). Imam Muslim records in his sahih on the authority of Iyaadh ibn Hamaar that the prophet (peace be upon him) addressed them saying, "O people, Allah has commanded me to teach you that which you do not know which He has taugh me today. (It is that) any bounty which I have conferred upon them is lawful for them. I have created my servants with a natural inclination toward My worship but the Devils turn them away from the right religion and he makes the things that are unlawful to be lawful and he orders them to make partners with Me although they have no authority to do so."

2. If he is not able to lead them to disbelief, he leads them to sins
If he is not able to lead the slave to idolatry or disbelief, Satan does not despair. He then becomes pleased with things that are less than that, such as sins and disobedience to Allah. He also plants enmity and hatred in their ranks. Al-Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah have recorded in their Sunans, with a hasan chain, that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, "Verily, satan has despaired that he should ever be worshipped again in this land of yours. But he will be obeyed in some of your actions that you consider small. And he will be pleased by that." 

And it is recorded in sahih al-Bukhari and elsewhere, "Verily Satan despairs that he should ever be worshipped by the performers of prayer in the Arabian peninsula. But he will instigate between them." In other words, he will cause hatred and enmity to occur in their midst and he will incite them against each other. This is as Allah says in the Quran, "Satan seeks only to cast among you enmity and hatred by means of strong drink and game of chance..." (al-Maaidah 91). Satan enjoins every evil, "He enjoins  upon you only the evil and the foul, and that you should say concerning Allah that which you know not" (al-Baqara 169). In sum, any action that is loved by Allah is hated by satan and every act of disobedience that is hated by the Merciful is loved by satan.

3. Blocking the slave from obeying Allah. It is not sufficient for him to call people to disbelief, idolatry and evil deeds. He also tries to block the way to any good deed. There is no path of goodness that man may follow except that he sits there, lurking and waiting to turn mankind away. It is stated in a hadith, "Satan  sits in all the paths of the children of Adam. He sits in the path to Islam and says, 'Will you embrace Islam and leave the religion of your father and grandfathers?' The man disobeys him and embraces Islam. Then he sits in the path to migration (hijra) and says, 'Will you migrate and leave your native land? The emigrant is like one on an arduous journey ' The man disobeys him and migrates. 

Then Satan sits in the path to jihad and says, 'The struggle is with your life and wealth. If you fight you will killed and your wives will marry others and your wealth will be distributed.' He disobeys him and makes jihad. Whoever does that has the right upon Allah to enter paradise. And who killed has a right upon Allah to enter paradise. And whoever drowns has the right upon Allah to enter paradise. And whoever has his neck broken by his animal has the right upon Allah to enter paradise." The above hadith is confirmed by Allah's saying in the Quran concerning Satan,

"He said: Now, because You have sent me astray, Verily I shall lurk in ambush for them on your Right Path. Then I shall come upon them from before them and from behind them and from their right hands and from their left hands, and you will not find most of them beholden (to you)" (al-Araaf 16-17).
The statement, "I shall sit for them on your path," could either mean, "I shall cling to Your Path [ to misguide them], " "I shall keep them from your path," or " I shall make them deviate from it."

The early scholars have explained this right path in different ways but all of their explannations, though, are quite similar and consistent. Ibn Abbas said that it is the clear religion. Ibn Masood said it is the book of Allah. Jaabir called it Islam while Mujaahid said it is "the truth." Satan does not leave any path to good except that he sits there to turn people away from it.

4. Ruining the Acts of Obedience to Allah. If Satan is not able to block the way to acts of obedience, then he will do his best to ruin the act of obedience or worship by making it such that the person will not receive reward for the action. A companion came to the prophet (peace be upon him) and said, "verily satan comes between me and my prayer and my recitation of the Quran and confuses me." The prophet (peace be upon him) said, "That is a devil called khinzah. If you feel that occurring to you, seek refuge in Allah from him and spit (or blow*) on your left side three times." the companion said he did so and Allah took that devil away from him. ( This was recorded by Muslim in his sahih.) 

When the Muslim begins his prayer, satan comes to him and whispers to him and makes his mind busy with the affairs of this life rather than obedience to Allah. In sahih Muslim it is recorded that the prophet (peace be upon him) said, Definitely when Satan hears the call to prayer, he turns his back and flees, noisily breaking wind in order not to hear the call. fter the call is over he returns to whisper to those who are about to pray.

When the second call (al-iqaama) is made, he again flees and noisily breaks wind in order not to hear the call. Again, when the call is over, he returns to
(the people praying) and whispers to them (to distract them from the prayer).. And in another narration, .When the call is finished, he turns back and comes between the person and his soul, saying to him, .Remember this and remember that,. which the man did not think of before [the prayer] until he does not know how much he has prayed.. (Recorded by al-Bukhari and Muslim.)

Every disobedience to the Merciful is obedience to Satan

 Allah says in Quran, They invoke in His stead only females; they pray to none other than Satan, a rebel whom Allah cursed, and he said; Surely I will take of Your bondsmen an appointed portion. (al-Nisaa 117-l IS). 

Therefore, everything that is worshipped instead of Allah, be it statues, idols,
sun, the moon, one.s desires, another human, some ideology or whatever,
is actually the worship of Satan. This is true whether the person is pleased with that fact or denies it, because it was Satan that ordered and sought that action. For example, the worshippers of the angels are actually worshipping Satan. 

Allah says in the Quran, ".And on the day when He will gather them all together, He will say unto the angels: Did these worship you? They will say: Be You glorified. You are our Protector from them! Nay, but they worshipped the jinn, most of them were believers in them. (Saba 40-41). So the angels never asked the people to worship them, but it was the jinn that ordered them to do so in order to have them worship the devils who appeared to them and led them. Similarly, every idol has devils [encouraging others to it].

Conclusion: What one can conclude is that Satan orders and encourages every evil and strives his best for evil; he tries to forbid every good and, in fact, he fears every good deed. He wants the person to do the former and to leave the latter. Allah says,

"The devil promises you destitution and enjoins upon you lewdness. But Allah promises you forgiveness from Himself with bounty. (al-Baqara 268). Satan makes humans fear poverty. He says to them, .If you spend your wealth in the way of Allah you will become poor.. And he orders
humans to acts of lewdness. He leads humans to every evil and lewd act, from being miserly to adultery and so on.

5. Psychologically and physically harming humans. In the same way that it is the goal of Satan to mislead mankindby disbelief and sins, it is also his goal to physically and psychologically harm the Muslim. The following are some of what is known concerning,

such attacks:

a. Attacking the Prophet: Later we shall present a hadith in which Satan attacked the Prophet (peace be upon him) by trying to throw a flame of fire into his face.

b. The dreams from Satan: Satan has the ability to bring dreams of the human while he is sleeping to molest and distress the person in order to worry and harm him. The Prophet (peace be upon him) has stated that dreams in sleep are of three types: from the Most Merciful, of anguish from Satan, and from the person himself.. In Sahih al-Bukhari, it is recorded that the
Prophet (peace be upon him) said. ".If one of you sees a dream that he likes, it is from Allah. He should praise Allah for it and he should relate it to others. If he sees what he dislikes, it is from Satan. He should seek refuge in Allah from it and not mention it to anyone. Thereby, it will not harm him."

c.Burning down houses: Satan may use animals that he spurs on for this purpose. Abu Dawud has recorded in his Sunan and ibn Hibbaan in his Sahih, with a sahih chain, that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "When you sleep at night, extinguish your lamps for Satan guides like this (mouse) to one like this (lamp) and they burn your place down."

d. Satan fights and plays with the human at the time of death The Prophet (peace be upon him) used to seek refuge in Allah from that. He used to say, .Oh Allah, I seek refuge in You from death through falling. I seek refuge in You from my house falling on me. I seek refuge in You from falling into a ditch, drowning, burning and decrepitude. I seek refuge in You from the devil harming me at the time of my death.' I seek refuge in You from dying while fleeing from the enemy. I seek refuge in You from dying from a poisonous sting"
e. Harming the child at the time of its birth: The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "Every child of Adam is touched by Satan on the day that his mother
gives birth to him except Mary and her son". (Recorded by Musim.)

And in Sahih al-Bukhari it is recorded that, .When any human is born, Satan touches him at both sides of the body with his two fingers, except in the case of Jesus, the son of Mary. Satan tried to do so but failed and touched the placenta instead." In another hadith in Sahih al-Bukhari, the following is stated, "There is no one born among the offspring of Adam except that Satan
touches it. The child cries loudly at birth, therefore, from the touch of Satan. except Mary and her child." The reason that Mary and her child were exempted from such an action was the supplication that the mother of Mary made, "[My Lord, I have vowed to You that which is in my belly as a consecrated (offspring)...] and lo! I crave Your protection for her and for her offspring from Satan the outcast."(ali-Imraan 36). 

Since she was sincere in her request, Allah answered that supplication and protected Mary and her son from Satan. Ammaar ibn Yaasir was also protected by Allah from Satan. In Sahih al-Bukhari it is recorded that Abu ad-Darda said, "Is there among you the one that was protected from Satan according to what the Prophet said." Al-Mughira said, "The one who was protected from Satan according to the tongue of His Prophet means Ammar."

f. Plague is from the jinn: The Prophet (peace be upon him) stated, "The end of this nation would come through calumnies and plague. These are the pierces from the enemy of the humans of the jinn. And whoever dies due to this infliction has attained martyrdom... In al-Mustadrak of al-Haakim it is
recorded that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "Plague is the piercing of your enemies from among the jinn. And for you it is martyrdom." Perhaps what occurred to the Prophet Job (peace be on him) was from the jinn, as it states in the Quran, "And make mention of Our bondsman Job, when he cried unto his Lord (saying): Lo! the devil does afflict (lit., touch) me with distress and torment" (Saad 4 1).

g. Various other diseases: The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, concerning the prolonged flow of blood that occurs to some women, "It is but a kick from the kicks of Satan."

h. They share in the food, drink and lodging of the humans. One of the ways by which Satan harms humans is by sharing in their food, drink and lodging. This occurs if the human contradicts the guidance of Allah or if he is unmindful of Him. If he sticks to the guidance of Allah or is constant in His remembrance, Satan would not have any path to his wealth or housing. It is not allowed for Satan to take any food unless it is .offered. to him by someone who has neglected to mention the name of Allah over it. If it has had the name of Allah mentioned over it, it is forbidden for Satan. 

In Sahih Muslim, it is related from Hudhaifa that they were attending a meal with the Prophet (peace be upon him) and they did not touch the meal until the Prophet (peace be upon him) did so. A girl came quickly as if chased and was about to grab some food when the Prophet (peace be upon him) caught her hand. Then a bedouin came and did similarly. Then the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "Satan is permitted that food which has not had the name of Allah pronounced over it. He brought this girl in order for the food to be lawful for him. And he brought this bedouin in order for the food to be.

lawful for him. So I caught their hands. By the One in whose Hand is my soul, his [Satan.s] hand is in my hand along with theirs. "The Prophet (peace be upon him) ordered us to protect our wealth from Satan by closing doors, covering vessels and mentioning the name of Allah upon them. That will protect them from Satan. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said,

"Close the doors and make mention of Allah. For Satan does not open a closed door. And tighten the mouths of the waterskins and mention the name of Allah. Cover your utensils and mention the name of Allah even though you may only put something over them. And extinguish your lamps." (Recorded by Muslim.)

Also Satan drinks and eats with the human if he should drink or eat with his left hand. The same is the case if he drinks standing. In Musnad Ahmad it is recorded on the authority of Aisha that the Prophet said, " Whoever eats with his left hand, Satan eats with him. Whoever drinks with his left hand, Satan drinks with him."

Also in the Musnad it is recorded on the authority of Abu Huraira that the Prophet (peace be upon him) saw a man drinking while standing and said to him, "Qih," The man said, .Why do you say so?" The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "Would you be pleased if a cat drank with you?. The man said,  "No" The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "Verily there is someone worse
than that drinking with you, and that is Satan"

Satan is repelled from one's place of residence when the person does not neglect to mention the name of Allah upon entering his home. The Prophet (peace be upon him) pointed that out to us. He said, "If a man enters his house and mentions the name of Allah upon entering and upon eating, Satan says, 'There is no lodging or food for us here.' If he enters without mentioning the name of Allah, Satan says, 'I have found lodging for you.' And if he does not mention Allah upon eating, Satan says,'I  have found lodging and food for you"  [Recorded by Muslim.]

i. The touch of Satan upon the humans [possession by jinn] Ibn Taimiya said, The jinn entering the body of the humans is confirmed by the agreement of the leaders of the people of the sunna and the community (ahl wa al-jamaa). Allah says in the Quran, "Those who swallow usury cannot rise up save as he arises whom the devil has prostrated by his touch" (al-Baqara 275). And in the Sahih it is recorded on the authority of the Prophet (peace be upon him), Satan flows in the children of Adam like the flowing of the blood" Abdullah, the son of Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal said, "I said to my father, 'Some people say that the jinn does not enter the body of the possessed.' He said, 'Oh my son, they are lying. It is that which speaks by his tongue." 

Ibn Taimiya said, What he [Ahmad] said is well-known. The possessed person speaks a language that he himself does not understand. And his body may be struck with a ferocious beating, such that it would leave a great mark on a camel. The possessed person does not perceive the strike nor does he perceive the words that he is speaking. The possessed may lift others heavier than him. He may pull out the carpet he is sitting upon... and other such things that have been witnessed and reported by reliable sources. He speaks with the tongue of the human and he moves with that body but he is a specie other than a human.

And ibn Taimiya also wrote, "None of the leaders of the Muslims reject the notion that the jinn enters into the body of the possessed and others. Those who reject it and claim that the Islamic law states it to be false are stating a lie concerning Islamic law, as there is no proof therein that
denies its occurrence"

Ibn Taimiya also mentioned that some of those who deny that the jinn enter the body of the possessed include Mutazilahs such as al-Jubbai and Abu Bakr al-Raazi.' We shall return to this point and discuss it in more detail in the
fifth chapter.

The leader of the Battle

Iblees is the one who lays out the strategy of the battle against humans and is the leader. From his seat, he sends his troops and armies to different places for different purposes. He meets with his troops and reviews what they have accomplished. He praises those who created a
great deal of mischief and misguidance among the people. Imam Muslim records in his Sahih on the authority of Jabir that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said,

"Iblees sets his throne on the water. From there, he sends out his troops to tempt mankind. The one whom he regards as closest to him is the one who causes the greatest temptation. One of them returns to him and says, 'I stayed with so and so and did not leave him until he did such and such,. and he is told, .You have done nothing.' Then one comes and reports, 'I did not leave him until he separated from his wife.'Iblees then brings him near to him and says, 'How fine you are."

In Musnad it is recorded that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said to ibn Sa-id (concerning whom he had a suspicion that he was the anti-Christ), "What do you see?" He replied,"I see a throne upon the sea and around it are serpents." The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "He has told the truth. That is the throne of Iblees." Satan is very well versed in the ways of misguidance. He has well-conceived plans and works of deception. And he will continue to
live and will not cease in this adventure as long as humans are alive,
until the day of Judgement. 

The Quran says, "He [Satan] said: My Lord reprieve me till the Day when they are raised. He [Allah] said: Then lo! you are of those reprieved" (al-Araaf 14-15). He made a vow to urge until evil as manv of mankind as he can. He does
not give up nor does he get bored. There is a hadith that states, "Verily, Satan has said, 'By your Honor and Grandeur [0 Allah], my enticements will not depart from your slaves as long as their souls are in their bodies.' And the Lord said, 'By  My Honor and My Grandeur, I will not cease forgiving those who ask for my forgiveness."*

The Soldiers: He has two types of soldiers: one from among jinn and one from
among humans. His soldiers from the jinn Satan has supporters and soldiers from among the jinn. We have already mentioned the hadith that states that he sends his troops out from his throne. And it says in the Quran, "And excite any of them whom you can with your voice, and urge your horse and foot against them" (al-Israa 64). 

He has soldiers that attack while riding and on foot. He sends them against Allah.s slaves to incite them to evil, "Do you not see that we have set the devils on the disbelievers to confound them with confusion?".(Maryam 83).

Every human has a partner

Every human has a devil with him that never leaves him. Muslimrecorded that Aisha narrated that one night the Prophet (peace be upon him) left her room and she felt jealous. When he returned he saw her upset. He said to her, "Oh Aisha, what has happened to you? Are you
jealous?. She responded, .How could it be that a woman like myself would not be jealous with respect to a man like yourself?. He told her, "It was your devil that came to you." She asked, "Oh Messenger of Allah, is there a devil with me?"  He said, "Yes, She asked, .Is there a
devil attached to everyone?. He said, "Yes, She again asked, .Oh Messenger of Allah, even with you?. He answered, "Yes, but my Lord has aided me against him and, therefore, I am absolutely safe from his actions."

It is also recorded in Sahih Muslim and Musnad Ahmad  that the Prophet (peace be on him) said, "There is none among you except that he has a partner entrusted to him from among the jinn." The companions asked, "You too, Oh Messenger of Allah?"  He responded, "Yes, but Allah aids me against him so I am safe from him and he only orders me to do good."

In the Quran it states, "And he whose sight is dim to the remembrance of the Beneficent, We assign unto him a devil who becomes his comrade" (al-Zukhruf 36). And in another verse, "And We assigned them comrades, who made their present and their past fair seeming unto them"(Fusilat 25).

His patrons from among the humans

Satan is man's first enemy who rushes to take him to his eternal destruction. Although that is the case, most humans take him as their friend and ally. They follow in his footsteps. They are pleased with his thoughts. Allah says, "Will you choose him and his seed for your protecting friends instead of
Me, when they are an enemy unto you? Calamitous is the exchange of
evildoers" (al-Kahf 50).

The one who takes him as an ally will suffer a great loss due to that choice. Allah says, "Whosoever chooses Satan for an ally instead of Allah is verily a loser and his loss is manifest" (al-Nisaa 119). They lose because Satan misguides and ruins their souls; he prohibits them from the bounty of
guidance; and he throws at them misguidance and doubts.

 Allah says, "As for those who disbelieve, their patrons are false deities. They bring them out of light into darkness. Such are the rightful owners of the Fire.
They will abide therein. (al-Baqara 257). And they will lose because he
will lead them to the fire on the Day of Resurrection. "He only summons his faction to be owners of the Flaming Fire" (Faatir 6). Those patrons of Satan are used by him as his troops in order to carry out his plans and to meet his goals.

He deceives and disappoints his patrons: Many humans follow and support Satan. He is deceiving them and leading them to what will end in their ultimate destruction and ruin. He will, in the end, abandon them and forsake them. He even laughs at them. Furthermore, he will point them out and even expose them. He orders them to steal, kill, commit adultery, and so on, and then he discloses their acts to others and disgraces them. He did that to the
unbelievers at the battle of Badr when he came to them in the shape of
Suraaqa ibn Maalik. He had promised them succour and victory by saying, "No one of mankind can conquer you today for I am your protector" (al-Anfaal 48).

When he saw the angels coming to aid the believers, Satan fled the battlefield and he left the unbelievers to be defeated. Hassaan ibn Thabit said (in words of poetry), "He guided them by deception and then he left them. The evil person is the one who follows him out of deception." He did the same thing to the monk who killed the woman and her child. It was Satan who ordered him to commit fornication with her and then to kill her. Then Satan pointed him out to her family and disclosed what he had done. Then he ordered the man to prostrate to him. When he did so, he fled from him and left him. We shall present that story later. On the day of Resurrection, he will say to his patrons after he and all of them have entered the fire,

"[And Satan says, when the matter has been decided, 'Lo! Allah promised you a promise of truth; and I promised you, then failed you. And I had no power over you save that I called unto you and you obeyed me. So blame me not, but blame yourselves. I cannot help you, nor can
you help me.] Lo! I disbelieved in that which you before ascribed to me." (Ib rahim 22). 

First, he encouraged them to every evil and then he claimed complete innocence of them. We shall present the story later of the Channeler who claimed to know the world of the spirits. Satan left him after he became very famous. Finally, he was left lost and disgraced, not knowing what to do.

Satan uses his patrons as troops to serve him and to help him in his battle against the believers Humans are of two groups: allies and servants of Allah, the Most Merciful, and allies of Satan. The patrons of Satan are all of the unbelievers, regardless of what group they belong to or what affiliation they may profess. 

Allah says, "Lo! We have made the devils protecting friends for those who believe not. Araaf 27). Satan gets power over them to mislead the believers by way of doubts and skepticism. Allah says, "Lo! The devils do inspire their followers to dispute with you" (al-Anaam 121). The doubts and misconceptions that the Orientalists, missionaries, Jews, atheists and others spread are of this nature. He urges them to psychologically injure the believers. Allah

"Lo! Secret talks and conspiracy . are only of Satan, that he may vex those who believe"(al-Mujaadala IO). He incited the polytheists to speak secretly among themselves whenever the Muslims were close by so the Muslims would think that they were conspiring against them.

He also urges the unbelievers to fight against the believers. Allah says, "Those who believe do battle for the cause of Allah; and those who disbelieve do battle for the cause of idols. So fight the friends of Satan. Lo! Satan.s strategy is ever weak" (al-Nisaa 76).

And he always tries to put the fear of his patrons into the believers. "It is only Satan who would make (men) fear his allies. Fear them not; fear Me, if you are truly believers" (ali-Imraan 175). And his patrons and supporters are large in number, "And Satan indeed found his calculation true concerning them [humans], for they follow him, all save a group of true believers" (saba 20).

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