The Jinn

In the Hadīth there is a warning against the devil, and an alerting note about his permanent accompaniment of man in all of his affairs. Hence, one must guard himself against the devil, and not be fooled by that which he beautifies for him. There is a blessing in the food that man prepares, and he knows not whether this blessing is in the food he has already eaten, or in that left on his fingers, or in what is left in his dish, or in the morsel that fell. So one must preserve all of that in order to attain the blessing. "Blessing" originally refers to increase, continuity of goodness and benefiting therefrom. What is meant by “blessing” in this context is the achievement of nourishment, safety from harm, and strength in obeying Allah, the Exalted. A point of benefit that doctors mentioned in this regard is that while eating, the fingers tips release what aids in the digestion of food.

بهجة الناظرين شرح رياض الصالحين؛ تأليف سليم الهلالي، دار ابن الجوزي. تطريز رياض الصالحين؛ تأليف فيصل آل مبارك، تحقيق د. عبدالعزيز آل حمد، دار العاصمة-الرياض، الطبعة الأولى، 1423هـ. رياض الصالحين من كلام سيد المرسلين؛ للإمام أبي زكريا النووي، تحقيق د. ماهر الفحل، دار ابن كثير-دمشق، الطبعة الأولى، 1428هـ. شرح رياض الصالحين؛ للشيخ محمد بن صالح العثيمين، مدار الوطن-الرياض، 1426هـ. شرح صحيح مسلم؛ للإمام محي الدين النووي، دار الريان للتراث-القاهرة، الطبعة الأولى، 1407هـ. صحيح مسلم؛ للإمام مسلم بن الحجاج، حققه ورقمه محمد فؤاد عبدالباقي، دار عالم الكتب-الرياض، الطبعة الأولى، 1417هـ. فتح الباري بشرح صحيح البخاري؛ للحافظ أحمد بن علي بن حجر العسقلاني، دار المعرفة-بيروت. كنوز رياض الصالحين؛ فريق علمي برئاسة أ.د. حمد العمار، دار كنوز إشبيليا-الرياض، الطبعة الأولى، 1430هـ. نزهة المتقين شرح رياض الصالحين؛ تأليف د. مصطفى الخِن وغيره، مؤسسة الرسالة-بيروت، الطبعة الرابعة عشر، 1407هـ.

The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) informed us about the beginning of creation. He first mentioned that the angels were created from light, and for this reason they do not disobey Allah nor are they prevented by arrogance from worshiping Him. As for the jinn, they were created from fire, and for this reason many of them are characterized by recklessness, vanity, and hostility. As to Adam, he was created from "what was described to you", i.e. he was created from dust and clay. Dust became sticky clay then dry clay, like pottery, and Adam was created therefrom.

- صحيح مسلم؛ للإمام مسلم بن الحجاج، حققه ورقمه محمد فؤاد عبد الباقي، دار عالم الكتب-الرياض، الطبعة الأولى، 1417هـ. - رياض الصالحين من كلام سيد المرسلين؛ للإمام أبي زكريا النووي، تحقيق د. ماهر الفحل، دار ابن كثير-دمشق، الطبعة الأولى، 1428ه. - بهجة الناظرين شرح رياض الصالحين؛ تأليف سليم بن عيد الهلالي، دار ابن الجوزي- الطبعة الأولى1418ه. - نزهة المتقين شرح رياض الصالحين؛ تأليف د. مصطفى الخِن وغيره، مؤسسة الرسالة-بيروت، الطبعة الرابعة عشرة، 1407هـ. - شرح رياض الصالحين؛ للشيخ محمد بن صالح العثيمين، مدار الوطن، الرياض، 1426هـ. -التَّنويرُ شَرْحُ الجَامِع الصَّغِيرِ محمد بن إسماعيل الصنعاني، المحقق: د. محمَّد إسحاق محمَّد إبراهيم مكتبة دار السلام، الرياض -الطبعة: الأولى، 1432 هـ - 2011 م.

The Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) gave a sermon to his Companions wherein he informed them that Allah ordered him to impart to them the knowledge that Allah had imparted to Him that day. Allah said that all the wealth that He gives to His servants is lawful for them. This is a response to those who made unlawful for themselves certain types of cattle, clarifying that it did not become unlawful for them by their making it unlawful. Therefore, every property that a person possesses in this world is lawful for him, unless some external right is attached to it or there is evidence that excludes it from the general permissibility. Allah then said that He has created His slaves predisposed to be Muslims, submitting to Allah alone, or pure from all sin, or on the straight path with a readiness to receive guidance – these are three interpretations for this segment of the Hadīth. One further interpretation is that it refers to the oath that Allah took from people in the world of Dharr (particles), before they were born into this world, when he asked them: "Am I not your Lord?" They said: "Indeed you are." He then said: Then the devils came to them, bluffed them, caused them to deviate from the path that they were on, and directed them toward falsehood. They also deluded them by making what was lawful for them unlawful, and ordered them to associate with Allah in worship that which Allah did not order to be worshiped and sent no evidence that would suggest that they deserve to be worshiped. The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) then said that Allah looked at the people of the earth before the Messenger was sent and he saw them all united upon polytheism and disbelief. He hated them for this, except for some remnants of the People of the Book, those who were still holding on to their religion and had not altered it. Most of the People of the Book, however, had distorted the religion revealed to them by Allah. Allah said: "I sent you to the people to test you," meaning to see how you would carry out the tasks I assigned to you of delivering the message, fighting in the cause of Allah, and being patient for His sake. I also tested others through you by observing how they react to your message and whether or not they will believe in you. Some will reveal their faith and obey you, others will turn away from you and show enmity to you, and others will be hypocrites and will pretend to have believed while they have not. Allah already knows how everyone will react before they actually do, but He tests them so that their actions would become a clear reality. Indeed, Allah punishes His slaves based on the actions they commit, not on His prior knowledge of their actions before they actually commit them. Then Allah said that He sent down the Qur'an, and that it is preserved within the chests and not liable to elimination; rather, it will survive throughout the ages. Allah said that it could be recited during wakefulness and sleep, meaning that it is preserved for you in both wakefulness and sleep, or that it could be easily recited, according to another interpretation. The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) then said: Allah ordered me to burn down the (tribe of) Quraysh; i.e. to kill the disbelievers of Quraysh, so I said: 'O my Lord, they would break my head just as they would break bread.' Allah said to this: Expel the Quraysh from their lands just as they did to you, though there is a big difference between the two, as the Quraysh expelled him based on falsehood while he would expel them based on truth. Allah said: Fight them and we will assist you, spend in the path of Allah and we will compensate you for it in this life and in the afterlife, and if you send an army to fight the non-Muslims, we will send angels five times its number to assist the Muslims, just as He did in Badr. He then ordered him to fight those who disobey him of the disbelievers with the help of those who do obey him of the Muslims. He then said: The people of Paradise are three: the man who possesses authority and power, yet he is fair to people, non-oppressive, and charitable towards them. He is guided to doing good and the doors of benevolence are opened before him. The second is the man who is merciful to the young and old, who has a tender heart towards his kin in particular and all Muslims in general. The third is the man who has dependents and he avoids unlawful gains and refrains from asking people for assistance because he relies upon Allah regarding his sustenance and that of his dependents. His love for his dependents and his fear concerning lack of sustenance for them do not drive him to beg people and stop relying on Allah, or to seek unlawful gains, or to become too preoccupied with them to do what is required of him of seeking (religious) knowledge and fulfilling (religious) obligations. The people of Hellfire are five: the weak who lacks the intelligence that deters him from doing what is inappropriate, who is subordinate to you and does not seek to have a wife or wealth through lawful means. Such people refrain from what is lawful and commit what is unlawful. The second is the betrayer who covets every covetable thing, even if it is almost unnoticeable; he traces it and examines it until he finds it and betrays you trust regarding it. This is a hyperbolic description of betrayal. The third is the deceiver, and the fourth is the liar or the miser, and the fifth is he who uses obscene language and is ill-mannered.

صحيح مسلم، تحقيق: محمد فؤاد عبد الباقي، نشر: دار إحياء التراث العربي – بيروت. المنهاج شرح صحيح مسلم بن الحجاج، للنووي، نشر: دار إحياء التراث العربي – بيروت، الطبعة: الثانية، 1392هـ. مختار الصحاح، لزين الدين أبو عبد الله محمد الحنفي الرازي، تحقيق: يوسف الشيخ محمد، نشر: المكتبة العصرية - الدار النموذجية، بيروت – صيدا، لطبعة: الخامسة، 1420هـ / 1999م. التمهيد لشرح كتاب التوحيد-صالح بن عبد العزيز آل الشيخ، -الناشر: دار التوحيد-الطبعة: الأولى، 1424هـ - 2003م. الملخص في شرح كتاب التوحيد-صالح بن فوزان بن عبد الله الفوزان-دار النشر: دار العاصمة الرياض- الطبعة الأولى 1422هـ- 2001م. القول المفيد على كتاب التوحيد-العثيمين-دار ابن الجوزي، المملكة العربية السعودية-الطبعة: الثانية, محرم 1424هـ.

In this Hadīth, the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) commands us to not offer prayer when the edge of the sun that appears first at sunrise shows until the entire sun rises and becomes high in the sky. We should also avoid prayer when the edge of the sun disappears until the sun has completely set. The Prophet has forbidden us from praying at times of sunrise and sunset because the sun rises and sets between the two horns of the devil, i.e. the two sides of his head. This is because the devil faces the sun when it rises so that it rises between his two horns, so that he becomes a Qiblah for those who prostrate themselves before the sun. The same happens during sunset. Therefore, we are prohibited from praying at these times to avoid resembling those people in their false worship.

- صحيح البخاري، نشر: دار طوق النجاة (مصورة عن السلطانية بإضافة ترقيم محمد فؤاد عبد الباقي)، الطبعة: الأولى، 1422ه. - صحيح مسلم، تحقيق: محمد فؤاد عبد الباقي، نشر: دار إحياء التراث العربي – بيروت. - عمدة القاري شرح صحيح البخاري، لمحمود بن أحمد بن موسى الحنفى بدر الدين العينى، الناشر: دار إحياء التراث العربي – بيروت. - مرقاة المفاتيح شرح مشكاة المصابيح، لعلي بن سلطان الملا الهروي القاري، الناشر: دار الفكر، بيروت – لبنان، الطبعة: الأولى، 1422هـ - 2002م. - شرح الطيبي على مشكاة المصابيح المسمى بـ (الكاشف عن حقائق السنن), شرف الدين الحسين بن عبد الله الطيبي, المحقق: د. عبد الحميد هنداوي, الناشر: مكتبة نزار مصطفى الباز - مكة المكرمة - الرياض, الطبعة: الأولى، 1417 هـ - 1997 م.

‘Āmir Ash-Sha‘bi (may Allah have mercy upon him) asked ‘Alqamah (may Allah have mercy upon him) — both were venerable Tābi‘īn — whether ‘Abdullāh ibn Mas‘ūd (may Allah be pleased with him) witnessed the night when the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) met the Jinn. ‘Alqamah said that he asked Ibn Mas‘ūd about that, and he told him that none of the Companions witnessed that. However, one night, they were with the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) but they suddenly could not find him. Therefore, they searched for him in the valleys, roads, and among mountains, but they could not find him. So they feared that the Prophet was assassinated or kidnapped by the Jinn. This prospect was so upsetting to them that they spent the night in grief. In the morning, they saw the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) coming from the direction of the mount of Hirā'. They told him that they missed him and had looked for him but could not find him, which made them spend the night in great sorrow and grief. However, the Prophet told them that an emissary from he Jinn had come to him, so the Prophet went along with him and read the Qur’an to the Jinn. The Prophet went with the Companions and showed them the traces of the Jinn and the traces of their embers. He told the Companions that the Jinn had asked him for food, so he told them that their food would be every bone on which the name of Allah was mentioned. If such bones fell in their hands, they would find them covered with meat. Likewise, the dung of animals would be fodder for their beasts. Then the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) forbade the Muslims to cleanse themselves after defecation with bones and animal dung, for these belong to the food of their brethren from among the Jinn.

-صحيح مسلم، تحقيق: محمد فؤاد عبد الباقي، نشر: دار إحياء التراث العربي – بيروت. -تاج العروس من جواهر القاموس، للزبيدي، نشر: دار الهداية. -المصباح المنير في غريب الشرح الكبير، لأحمد بن محمد بن علي الفيومي، الناشر: المكتبة العلمية – بيروت. -المنهاج شرح صحيح مسلم بن الحجاج، للنووي، نشر: دار إحياء التراث العربي – بيروت، الطبعة: الثانية، 1392ه. -مختار الصحاح، لزين الدين أبو عبد الله محمد بن أبي بكر بن عبد القادر الحنفي الرازي، تحقيق: يوسف الشيخ محمد، نشر: المكتبة العصرية - الدار النموذجية، بيروت – صيدا، لطبعة: الخامسة، 1420هـ / 1999م. -عمدة القاري شرح صحيح البخاري، لمحمود بن أحمد بن موسى الحنفى بدر الدين العينى، الناشر: دار إحياء التراث العربي – بيروت. -التوضيح لشرح الجامع الصحيح, عمر بن علي بن أحمد ابن الملقن, ت: دار الفلاح للبحث العلمي وتحقيق التراث, دار النوادر، دمشق – سوريا, الطبعة: الأولى، 1429 هـ - 2008 م. -الإفصاح عن معاني الصحاح، ليحيى بن هبيرة بن محمد بن هبيرة الذهلي الشيباني، المحقق: فؤاد عبد المنعم أحمد، الناشر: دار الوطن، سنة النشر: 1417هـ.

Satan places his throne over the water, then dispatches his soldiers from the Jinn to tempt people and mislead them. The closest one to Satan is the one who causes the most mischievous deviation among people. One of those devils will come and say to Satan: I did this and that (i.e. I enticed someone to steal, drink wine, for example). Satan tells him: You did nothing worth the attention. The line continues until one comes up and says: I did not leave so-and-so until I caused dissension between him and his wife to the extent that he divorced her. Satan shall bring him closer, hug him, and say: It is you (i.e. you are the one who fulfilled my wish of misleading and corrupting people).

- صحيح مسلم، تحقيق: محمد فؤاد عبد الباقي، نشر: دار إحياء التراث العربي – بيروت. - إكمال المعلم بفوائد مسلم لعياض بن موسى بن عياض بن عمرون اليحصبي السبتي، المحقق: الدكتور يحيى إسماعيل، الناشر: دار الوفاء للطباعة والنشر والتوزيع، مصر، الطبعة: الأولى، 1419 هـ - 1998 م. - مرقاة المفاتيح شرح مشكاة المصابيح، لعلي بن سلطان الملا الهروي القاري، الناشر: دار الفكر، بيروت – لبنان، الطبعة: الأولى، 1422هـ - 2002م.

A man came to the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) and said: O Messenger of Allah, one of us may experience such thoughts that confuse him, but talking about them is grave, to the extent that he would prefer to turn into charcoal rather than speak about them. Thereupon, the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) proclaimed Allah's greatness twice and praised Allah for reducing Satan's plotting to mere whispering.

1. The Hadīth demonstrates that Satan lies in wait for the believers, whispering to them in an attempt to turn them from belief to disbelief.
2. It highlights the weakness of Satan towards the believers, as he is unable to do anything but whisper.
3. A believer should turn away from the whisperings of Satan and repel them.
4. It is legitimate to proclaim Allah's greatness upon experiencing something pleasant, amazing, or the like.
5. It is legitimate for a Muslim to ask a scholar about all that he finds confusing.

سنن أبي داود (7/ 435) (5112) السنن الكبرى للنسائي (9/ 249) (10435)، شرح سنن أبي داود للعباد (580/ 28)، صحيح مسلم (1/ 119) (132)، شرح سنن أبي داود لابن رسلان (19/370)، ومرقاة الصعود (3/1301).

‘Uthmān ibn Abi al-‘Ās (may Allah be pleased with him) came to the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) and said: O Messenger of Allah, Satan intervenes between me and my prayer and prevents me from offering it with Khushū‘ (humility and focus) and makes me confused and doubtful about my recitation in it. Thereupon, the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said to him: That is Satan, who is known as Khinzab. If you perceive that and feel it, seek refuge with Allah from him and blow three times to your left with a bit of saliva. 'Uthmān said: I did what the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) commanded me to do, and Allah caused him to depart from me.

1. The Hadīth demonstrates the significance of humility and presence of mind in prayer and that Satan strives to make one confused and doubtful about it.
2. It is recommended to seek refuge with Allah Almighty from Satan when he whispers in prayer, along with spitting three times to the left.
3. It points out how the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) used to go to the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) and present their problems to him so that he could solve their problems for them.
4. The Companions possessed living hearts, and their principal concern was the Hereafter.

صحيح مسلم (4/ 1728) (2203)، إكمال المعلم (7/110)، شرح النّووي على مسلم (14/190)، البحر المحيط الثجاج في شرح صحيح الإمام مسلم بن الحجاج (36/ 136).