JINN
7. Sura al-Araf, Mecca 39
The Quranic Text & Ali’s Version:
وَلَقَدْ
ذَرَأْنَا
لِجَهَنَّمَ
كَثِيرًا مِّنَ
الْجِنِّ
وَالإِنسِ...
7: 179. Many are the Jinns and men, We have made for Hell:
...لَهُمْ قُلُوبٌ لاَّ يَفْقَهُونَ بِهَا...
They have hearts wherewith they understand not,
...وَلَهُمْ أَعْيُنٌ لاَّ يُبْصِرُونَ بِهَا...
eyes wherewith they see not,
C1153. Cf. 2:18.
Though they have apparently all the faculties of reason and perception, they have so deadened them that those faculties do not work, and they go headlong into hell. They are, as it were, made for Hell.
...وَلَهُمْ آذَانٌ لاَّ يَسْمَعُونَ بِهَا...
and ears wherewith they hear not.
...أُوْلَـئِكَ كَالأَنْعَامِ بَلْ هُمْ أَضَلُّ...
They are like cattle, nay more misguided:
...أُوْلَـئِكَ هُمُ الْغَافِلُونَ ﴿١٧٩﴾
for they are heedless (of warning).
Other Versions:
7: 179
Asad And most certainly have We destined for hell many of the invisible beings and men who have hearts with which they fail to grasp the truth, and eyes with which they fail to see and ears with which they fail to hear. They are like cattle – nay, they are even less conscious of the right way: it is they, they who are the [truly] heedless!
Pickthall Already have We urged unto hell many of the jinn and humankind, having hearts wherewith they understand not, and having eyes wherewith they see not, and having ears wherewith they hear not. These are as the cattle nay, but they are worse! These are the neglectful.
Transliteration Wa laqad zara'na_ lijahannama kasiram minal jinni wal ins(i), lahum qulu_bul la_ yafqahu_na biha_, wa lahum a'yunul la_ yubsiru_na biha_, wa lahum a_za_nul la_ yasma'u_na biha_, ula_'ika kal an'a_mi bal hum adall(u), ula_'ika humul ga_filu_n(a).
===================================
6. Al-An'am (Cattle)
Mecca Period
The Quranic Text & Ali’s Version:
وَجَعَلُواْ
لِلّهِ شُرَكَاء
الْجِنَّ
وَخَلَقَهُمْ...
6: 100. Yet they make the Jinns equals with Allah, though Allah did create the Jinns;
C929. Jinns: who are they?
In 18:50 we are told that Iblis was one of the Jinns, and it is suggested that that was why he disobeyed the Command of Allah.
But in that passage and other similar passages, we are told that Allah commanded the angels to bow down to Adam, and they obeyed except Iblis. That implies that Iblis had been of the company of angels.
In many passages Jinns and men are spoken of together. In 55:14-15, man is stated to have been created from clay, while Jinns from a flame of fire.
The root meaning of junna, yujannu, is "to be covered or hidden," and janna yajunnu, in the active voice, "to cover or hide," as in 6:76.
- Some people say that jinn therefore means the hidden qualities or capacities in man;
- others that it means wild or jungle folk hidden in the hills or forests.
I do not wish to be dogmatic, but I think, from a collation and study of the Quranic passages, that the meaning is;
- simply "a spirit," or
- an invisible or hidden force.
In folk-lore stories and romances like the Arabian Nights they become personified into fantastic forms, but with them we are not concerned here.
Both the Quran and the Hadith describe the Jinn as a definite species of living beings. They are created out of fire and are like man, may believe or disbelieve, accept or reject guidance. The authoritative Islamic texts show that they are not merely a hidden force, or a spirit. They are personalized beings who enjoy a certain amount of free will and thus will be called to account. (Eds.).
...وَخَرَقُواْ لَهُ بَنِينَ وَبَنَاتٍ بِغَيْرِ عِلْمٍ...
and they falsely, having no knowledge, attribute to Him sons and daughters.
...سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى عَمَّا يَصِفُونَ ﴿١٠٠﴾
Praise and glory be to Him! (for He is) above what they attribute to Him!
وَكَذَلِكَ
جَعَلْنَا
لِكُلِّ نِبِيٍّ
عَدُوًّا شَيَاطِينَ
الإِنسِ وَالْجِنِّ
...
6: 112. Likewise did We make for every Messenger an enemy, evil ones among men and Jinns,
C941. What happened in the history of the Holy Prophet happens in the history of all righteous men who have a Message from Allah. The spirit of evil is ever active and uses men to practice deception by means of highly embellished words and plausible excuses and objections.
Allah permits these things in His Plans. It is not for us to complain. Our faith is tested, and we must stand the test steadfastly.
...يُوحِي بَعْضُهُمْ إِلَى بَعْضٍ زُخْرُفَ الْقَوْلِ غُرُورًا...
inspiring each other with flowery discourses by way of deception.
...وَلَوْ شَاء رَبُّكَ مَا فَعَلُوهُ فَذَرْهُمْ وَمَا يَفْتَرُونَ ﴿١١٢﴾
If thy Lord had so planned, they would not have done it:
so leave them and their inventions alone.
وَيَوْمَ
يِحْشُرُهُمْ
جَمِيعًا يَا
مَعْشَرَ الْجِنِّ
قَدِ اسْتَكْثَرْتُم
مِّنَ الإِنسِ...
6: 128. One day will He gather them all together, (and say):
"O ye assembly of Jinns! much (toll) did ye take of men."
C949. Jinns are spirits -here evil spirits.
...وَقَالَ أَوْلِيَآؤُهُم مِّنَ الإِنسِ ...
Their friends amongst men will say:
... رَبَّنَا اسْتَمْتَعَ بَعْضُنَا بِبَعْضٍ وَبَلَغْنَا أَجَلَنَا الَّذِيَ أَجَّلْتَ لَنَا ...
"Our Lord! we made profit from each other: but (alas!) we reached our term -- which Thou didst appoint for us."
C950. It is common experience that the forces of evil make an alliance with each other, and seem thus to make a profit by their mutual log-rolling.
But this is only in this material world. When the limited term expires, their unholy bargains will be exposed, and there will be nothing but regrets.
...قَالَ النَّارُ مَثْوَاكُمْ خَالِدِينَ فِيهَا إِلاَّ مَا شَاء اللّهُ...
He will say:
"The fire be your dwelling-place you will dwell therein for ever, except as Allah willeth."
C951. Eternity and infinity are abstract terms. They have no precise meaning in our human experience.
The qualification, "except as Allah willeth," makes it more intelligible, as we can form some idea -however inadequate- of a Will and Plan, and we know Allah by His attribute of Mercy as well as of Justice.
...إِنَّ رَبَّكَ حَكِيمٌ عَليمٌ ﴿١٢٨﴾
For thy Lord is full of wisdom and knowledge.
يَا
مَعْشَرَ
الْجِنِّ
وَالإِنسِ
أَلَمْ
يَأْتِكُمْ
رُسُلٌ
مِّنكُمْ
...
6: 130. O ye assembly of Jinns and men! came there not unto you messenger from amongst you,
C953. "Messenger from amongst you."
This is addressed to the whole gathering of men and Jinns. (R).
...يَقُصُّونَ عَلَيْكُمْ آيَاتِي وَيُنذِرُونَكُمْ لِقَاء يَوْمِكُمْ هَـذَا...
setting forth unto you of the meeting of this day of yours?"
...قَالُواْ شَهِدْنَا عَلَى أَنفُسِنَا...
They will say: "We bear witness against ourselves."
...وَغَرَّتْهُمُ الْحَيَاةُ الدُّنْيَا وَشَهِدُواْ عَلَى أَنفُسِهِمْ أَنَّهُمْ كَانُواْ كَافِرِينَ ﴿١٣٠﴾
It was the life of this world that deceived them.
So against themselves will they bear witness that they rejected Faith.
ذَلِكَ
أَن
لَّمْ
يَكُن
رَّبُّكَ
مُهْلِكَ
الْقُرَى
بِظُلْمٍ
وَأَهْلُهَا
غَافِلُونَ
﴿١٣١﴾
6: 131. (The messengers were sent) thus, for thy Lord would not destroy for their wrongdoing men's habitations whilst their occupants were unwarned.
وَلِكُلٍّ
دَرَجَاتٌ
مِّمَّا
عَمِلُواْ
...
6: 132. To all are degrees (or ranks) according to their deeds:
C954. On good and evil there are infinite degrees, in our deeds and motives: so will there be degrees in our spiritual position.
For everything is known to Allah, better than it is to ourselves.
... وَمَا رَبُّكَ بِغَافِلٍ عَمَّا يَعْمَلُونَ ﴿١٣٢﴾
for thy Lord is not unmindful of anything that they do.
وَرَبُّكَ
الْغَنِيُّ
ذُو
الرَّحْمَةِ...
6: 133. Thy Lord is Self-sufficient, full of Mercy:
C955. Allah is not dependent on our prayer or service. It is out of His Mercy that He desires our own good.
Any race or people to whom He gives chances should understand that its failure does not affect Allah. He could create others in their place, as He did in times past, and is doing in our own day, if only we had the wit to see it.
...إِن يَشَأْ يُذْهِبْكُمْ وَيَسْتَخْلِفْ مِن بَعْدِكُم مَّا يَشَاء...
if it were His Will, He could destroy you, and in your place appoint whom He will as your successors,
...كَمَآ أَنشَأَكُم مِّن ذُرِّيَّةِ قَوْمٍ آخَرِينَ ﴿١٣٣﴾
even as he raised you up from the posterity of other people.
إِنَّ
مَا
تُوعَدُونَ
لآتٍ
...
6: 134. All that hath been promised unto you will come to pass:
C956. Both the good news and the warning which Allah's messengers came to give will be fulfilled. Nothing can stop Allah's Universal Plan.
See n. 947 to 6:125.
... وَمَا أَنتُم بِمُعْجِزِينَ ﴿١٣٤﴾
nor can ye frustrate it (in the least bit).]]
Asad’s Version:
6: 112 And thus it is that against every prophet We have set up as enemies the evil forces from among humans as well as from among invisible beings that whisper unto one another glittering half-truths meant to delude the mind. But they could not do this unless your Sustainer had so willed; stand, therefore, aloof from them and from all their false imagery!
6: 128 And on the day when He shall gather them [all] together, [He will say] “o you who have lived in close communion with [evil] invisible beings! A great many human beings have you ensnared!” And those of the humans who were close to them will say: “O our Sustainer ! We did enjoy one another’s fellowship [in life] ; but we have reached the end of our term – the term which You have laid down for us – [we see the error of our ways]!”
He will say : “ The fire shall be your abode, therein to abide – unless God wills it otherwise.” Verily, your Sustainer is wise, all knowing.
(6:130) [And thus will God continue:] "O you who have lived in close communion
with [evil] invisible beings and [like-minded] humans! Have there not come unto you apostles from among yourselves, who conveyed unto you My messages and warned you of the coming of this your Day [of Judgment]?" They will answer: "We do bear witness against ourselves!" - for the life of this world had beguiled them: and so they will bear witness against themselves that they had been denying the truth.
6:131 And so it is that thy Sustainer would never destroy a community 116 for its wrongdoing so long as its people are still unaware [of the meaning of right and wrong]: (6:132) for all shall be judged according to their [conscious] deeds 117 - and thy Sustainer is not unaware of what they do.
(6:133) And thy Sustainer alone is self-sufficient, limitless in His grace. If He so wills, He may put an end to you and thereafter cause whom He wills to succeed you - even as He has brought you into being out of other people's seed.
6:134 Verily, that [reckoning] which you are promised is bound to come, and you cannot elude it! ]]
Pickthall’s Version:
6: 131
Pickthall This is because thy Lord destroy not the townships arbitrarily while their people are unconscious (of the wrong they do).
Transliteration Za_lika allam yakur rabbaka muhlikal qura_ bi zulmin wa ahluha_ ga_filu_n(a).
6: 132
Pickthall For all there will be ranks from what they did. Thy Lord is not unaware of what they do.
Transliteration Wa likullin daraja_tum mimma_'amilu_, wa ma_ rabbuka bi ga_filin 'amma_ ya'malu_n(a).
6: 100
Asad And yet, some [people] have come to attribute to all manner of invisible beings [note 86] a place side by side with God – although it is He who has created them [all]; and in their ignorance they have invented of Him sons and daughters [note 87]! Limitless is He is His glory, and sublimely exalted above anything that men may devise by way of definition [note 88]:
Pickthall Yet they ascribe as partners unto Him the jinn, although He did create them, and impute falsely, without knowledge, sons and daughters unto Him. Glorified be He and high exalted above (all) that they ascribe (unto Him).
Transliteration Wa ja'alu_ lilla_hi syuraka_'al jinna wa khalaqahum wa kharaqu_ lahu_ banina wa bana_tim bi gairi'ilm(in), subha_nahu_ wa ta'a_la_ 'amma_ yasifu_n(a).
[[ Asad’s note – 86 The plural noun “jinn”…………..According to Arab philologists, the term “jinn” signifies, primarily “beings that are concealed from [man’s] senses”….and is thus applicable to all kinds of invisible beings or forces. For a further discussion of this term and of its wider implications, see Appendix III.]]
[[ Ali’s note - 929 Jinns: who are they? In xviii. 50 we are told that Iblis was one of the Jinns, and it is suggested that that was why he disobeyed the Command of God. But in that passage and other similar passages, we are told that God commanded the angels to bow down to Adam, and they obeyed except Iblis. That implies that Iblis had been of the company of angels. In many passages Jinns and men are spoken of together. In lv. 14-15, man is stated to have been created from clay, while Jinns from a flame of fire. The root meaning of junna, yujannu, is "to be covered or hidden," and janna yajunnu, in the active voice, "to cover or hide," as in vi. 76. Some people say that jinn therefore means the hidden qualities or capacities in man; others that it means wild or jungle folk hidden in the hills or forests. I do not wish to be dogmatic, but I think, from a collation and study of the Quranic passages, that the meaning is simply "a spirit," or an invisible or hidden force. In folklore stories and romances like the Arabian Nights they become personified into fantastic forms, but with them we are not concerned here. (6.100) ]]
6:130
Asad [And thus will God continue:] “O you who have lived in close communion with [evil] invisible beings and [like-mined] humans! Have there not come unto you apostles from among yourselves, who conveyed unto you My messages and warned you of the coming of this your Day [of Judgment]?” ……..
Pickthall O ye assembly of the jinn and humankind! Came there not unto you messengers of your own who recounted unto you My tokens and warned you of the meeting of this your Day? They will say: We testify against ourselves. And the life of the world beguiled them. And they testify against themselves that they were disbelievers.
Transliteration Ya_ ma'syaral jinni wal insi alam ya'tikum rusulum minkum yaqussu_na 'alaikum a_ya_ti wa yunziru_nakum liqa_'a yaumikum ha_za_, qa_lu_ syahidna_ 'ala_ anfusina_ wa garrathumul haya_tud dunya_ wa syahidu_ 'ala_ anfusihim annahum ka_nu_ ka_firin(a).
[[ Ruby’s Note – Who are Jinns? Here it is mentioned that the prophets are sent among both of these groups of Jinns and men? Are they humans ?]]
[[ Ali’s Notes - 953 "Apostles from amongst you." This is addressed to the whole gathering of men and Jinns. Are the Jinns but disembodied spirits of evil men? (6.130)
954 On good and evil there are infinite degrees, in our deeds and motives: so will there be degrees in our spiritual position. For everything is known to God, better than it is to ourselves. (6.132) ]]
===================================
11. Surah Hud, Mecca 52
The Quranic Text & Ali’s Version:
إِلاَّ مَن
رَّحِمَ رَبُّكَ
وَلِذَلِكَ
خَلَقَهُمْ...
11: 119. Except those on whom He hath bestowed His Mercy: and for this did He create them:
...وَتَمَّتْ كَلِمَةُ رَبِّكَ لأَمْلأنَّ جَهَنَّمَ مِنَ الْجِنَّةِ وَالنَّاسِ أَجْمَعِينَ ﴿١١٩﴾
and the Word of thy Lord shall be fulfilled:
"I will fill Hell with jinns and men all together."
If Satan and his evil soldiers tempt men from the path of rectitude, the responsibility of the tempted, who choose the path of evil, is no less than that of the tempters, and they will both be involved in punishment together.
Other Versions:
11: 119
Asad Save those upon whom thy Sustainer has bestowed His grace. And to this end has He created them [all]. But [as for those who refuse to avail themselves of divine guidance,] that word of thy Sustainer shall be fulfilled: “ Most certainly will I fill hell with invisible beings as well as with humans, all together!”
[Asad note 151: I.e., those who avail themselves of His grace, consisting of the God-given ability to realize His existence [cf. 7: 172 …and note 139] and the guidance which He offers to mankind through His prophets [Razi]. ]
Pickthall Save him on whom thy Lord hath mercy; and for that He did create them. And the Word of thy Lord hath been fulfilled: Verily I shall fill hell with the jinn and mankind together.
Transliteration Illa_ mar rahima rabbuk(a), wa liza_lika khalaqahum, wa tammat kalimatu rabbika la'amla'anna jahannama minal jinnati wan na_si ajma'in(a).
===================================
15. Surah Al Hijr
The Quranic Text & Ali’s Version:
وَالْجَآنَّ
خَلَقْنَاهُ
مِن قَبْلُ مِن
نَّارِ السَّمُومِ ﴿٢٧﴾
15: 27. And the Jinn race, We had created before, from the fire of a scorching wind.
C1967. Cf. 6:100 and .
Hidden or invisible forces are aptly typified as arising "from the fire of scorching winds."
Other Versions:
15: 27
Asad Whereas the invisible beings We had created, before that, out of the fire of scorching winds.
Pickthall And the jinn did We create aforetime of essential fire.
Yuksel The Jinn, We created him before that from the flames of fire
Transliteration Wal ja_nna khalaqna_hu min qablu min na_ris samu_m(i).
[Asad note 25: Cf. 55:15 – “out of the confusing flame of fire [marij min nar]”: i.e., of non-corporeal elements. The noun al-jann, rendered by me as “the invisible beings”, is in reality a singular, denoting here the kind of these particular beings or forces, similar to the use of the singular noun “man” [al-insan] which describes the collective entity “mankind”. ……………..]
[[ Ali’s note – 1967 Cf. vi. 100 and n. 929. (15.27)]]
===================================
55. Ar-Rah Man (The Most Gracious)
Period Uncertain
The Quranic Text & Ali’s Version:
وَخَلَقَ
الْجَانَّ مِن
مَّارِجٍ مِّن
نَّارٍ ﴿١٥﴾
Wa halaqal ja_n na mim ma_rijim min na_r
55: 15. And He created Jinns from fire free of smoke:
C5182. For the meaning of Jinn, see n. 929 to 6:100.
They are spirits, and therefore subtle like a flame of fire. Their being free from smoke implies that they are free from grossness, for smoke is the grosser accompaniment of fire. (R).
Pickthall’s Version:
55: 15
Pickthall And the Jinn did He create of smokeless fire.
Transliteration Wa halaqal ja_n na mim ma_rijim min na_r
55: 15 whereas the invisible beings He has created out of a confusing flame of fire..
55: 33 O company of jinn and men, if you have power to penetrate regions of the heavens and the earth, then penetrate! You will never penetrate them save with (Our) sanction.