(Series of Answers by the Scholar Ata Bin Khalil Abu Al-Rashtah, Ameer of Hizb ut-Tahrir, to Questions from Visitors to His Facebook Page)
To Salem Jaradat
Question:
Assalamu Alaikum Wa Rahmatullah Wa Barakatuhu, my Sheikh.
It is well known that evidence in Aqeedah (creed) is either rational (aqli) or transmitted (naqli).
Belief in Jinn exists solely because of transmitted evidence, due to the absence of any tangible material evidence that leads to a rational belief in their existence.
The question is: How does it align with the above when scholars claim the existence of "touch" (al-mass), possession (at-talabbus), or similar physical interferences between Jinn and humans?
Furthermore, how is it correct for them to say that Jinn have a relationship with envy (hasad) and the illnesses or crises (such as the sudden disruption of work, etc.) that a person might experience?
Finally, how do you interpret the verses and hadiths regarding the terms of "touch" and the like, if they are not to be understood as these scholars have understood them?
Answer:
Wa Alaikum Assalam Wa Rahmatullah Wa Barakatuhu.
The Jinn are among the matters of the Unseen (al-ghayb) to us; we do not see them. The Almighty says:
يَرَاكُمْ هُوَ وَقَبِيلُهُ مِنْ حَيْثُ لاَ تَرَوْنَهُمْ
"Indeed, he sees you, he and his tribe, from where you do not see them." (Surah Al-A'raf [7:27])
Meaning Iblees and his people, or in other words, the Jinn, as Iblees is from the Jinn:
إِلاَّ إِبْلِيسَ كَانَ مِنَ الْجِنِّ
"except Iblees. He was of the jinn." (Surah Al-Kahf [18:50])
The fundamental principle in our relationship with them is that they are capable of whispering (waswasah). The Almighty says:
فَوَسْوَسَ لَهُمَا الشَّيْطَانُ
"Then Satan whispered to them." (Surah Al-A'raf [7:20])
And He says:
فَوَسْوَسَ إِلَيْهِ الشَّيْطَانُ
"Then Satan whispered to him." (Surah Taha [20:120])
Satan here refers to Iblees, who is from the Jinn.
The devils (shayateen) have no compulsory authority over humans, except if a human chooses to follow the devil by their own choice. Allah (swt) says:
وَقَالَ الشَّيْطَانُ لَمَّا قُضِيَ الأَمْرُ إِنَّ اللَّهَ وَعَدَكُمْ وَعْدَ الْحَقِّ وَوَعَدْتُكُمْ فَأَخْلَفْتُكُمْ وَمَا كَانَ لِيَ عَلَيْكُمْ مِنْ سُلْطَانٍ إِلاَّ أَنْ دَعَوْتُكُمْ فَاسْتَجَبْتُمْ لِي
"And Satan will say when the matter has been concluded, 'Indeed, Allah had promised you the promise of truth. And I promised you, but I betrayed you. But I had no authority over you except that I invited you, and you responded to me.'" (Surah Ibrahim [14:22])
And He (swt) says:
إِنَّ عِبَادِي لَيْسَ لَكَ عَلَيْهِمْ سُلْطَانٌ إِلاَّ مَنِ اتَّبَعَكَ مِنَ الْغَاوِينَ
"Indeed, My servants - no authority will you have over them, except those who follow you of the deviators." (Surah Al-Hijr [15:42])
And He (swt) says:
فَإِذَا قَرَأْتَ الْقُرْآَنَ فَاسْتَعِذْ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ * إِنَّهُ لَيْسَ لَهُ سُلْطَانٌ عَلَى الَّذِينَ آَمَنُوا وَعَلَى رَبِّهِمْ يَتَوَكَّلُونَ * إِنَّمَا سُلْطَانُهُ عَلَى الَّذِينَ يَتَوَلَّوْنَهُ وَالَّذِينَ هُمْ بِهِ مُشْرِكُونَ
"So when you recite the Qur'an, [first] seek refuge in Allah from Satan, the expelled [from His mercy]. Indeed, he has no authority over those who have believed and rely upon their Lord. His authority is only over those who take him as an ally and those who through him associate others with Allah." (Surah An-Nahl [16:98-100])
Any material relationship other than this fundamental principle established by Allah (swt) requires a specific text (nass). If a text exists for a specific case, we believe in that case according to the text.
For example, the authority of Solomon (as) over the Jinn and his commanding and forbidding them... This matter was mentioned in a text, so we believe in it. Allah (swt) says in Surah An-Naml regarding Solomon (as):
قَالَ يَا أَيُّهَا الْمَلَأُ أَيُّكُمْ يَأْتِينِي بِعَرْشِهَا قَبْلَ أَنْ يَأْتُونِي مُسْلِمِينَ * قَالَ عِفْريتٌ مِنَ الْجِنِّ أَنَا آَتِيكَ بِهِ قَبْلَ أَنْ تَقُومَ مِنْ مَقَامِكَ وَإِنِّي عَلَيْهِ لَقَوِيٌّ أَمِينٌ
"[Solomon] said, 'O assembly [of jinn], which of you will bring me her throne before they come to me in submission?' A powerful one from among the jinn said, 'I will bring it to you before you rise from your place, and indeed, I am for this [task] strong and trustworthy.'" (Surah An-Naml [27:38-39])
And He (swt) says:
وَلِسُلَيْمَانَ الرِّيحَ غُدُوُّهَا شَهْرٌ وَرَوَاحُهَا شَهْرٌ وَأَسَلْنَا لَهُ عَيْنَ الْقِطْرِ وَمِنَ الْجِنِّ مَنْ يَعْمَلُ بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ بِإِذْنِ رَبِّهِ وَمَنْ يَزِغْ مِنْهُمْ عَنْ أَمْرِنَا نُذِقْهُ مِنْ عَذَابِ السَّعِيرِ * يَعْمَلُونَ لَهُ مَا يَشَاءُ مِنْ مَحَارِيبَ وَتَمَاثِيلَ وَجِفَانٍ كَالْجَوَابِ وَقُدُورٍ رَاسِيَاتٍ اعْمَلُوا آَلَ دَاوُودَ شُكْرًا وَقَلِيلٌ مِنْ عِبَادِيَ الشَّكُورُ
"And to Solomon [We subjected] the wind - its morning [journey was that of] a month - and its afternoon [journey was that of] a month, and We made flow for him a spring of [liquid] copper. And among the jinn were those who worked for him by the permission of his Lord. And whoever of them deviated from Our command - We will make him taste of the punishment of the Blaze. They made for him what he willed of elevated chambers, statues, bowls like reservoirs, and stationary kettles. [We said], 'Work, O family of David, in gratitude.' And few of My servants are grateful." (Surah Saba [34:12-13])
The Messenger of Allah (saw) used to deal with any physical occurrence as part of human affairs, as long as no specific text via "revelation" (wahy) indicated that the Jinn had a connection to it. All incidents were treated this way. For example, if a murdered man was found, the mind would not jump to the conclusion that Jinn killed him unless a text stated so. Thus, in the incident of the man killed in Khaybar, the investigation focused on who among the people killed him, and it did not turn toward the Jinn:
Muslim narrated in his Sahih that Abdullah bin Sahl and Muhayyisah went to Khaybar during a time of hardship. Then Muhayyisah came and informed that Abdullah bin Sahl had been killed and thrown into a well or a pit. He went to the Jews and said, "By Allah, you killed him." They said, "By Allah, we did not kill him..." Then the case reached the Messenger of Allah (saw) who said:
إِمَّا أَنْ يَدُوا صَاحِبَكُمْ وَإِمَّا أَنْ يُؤْذِنُوا بِحَرْبٍ فَكَتَبَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم إِلَيْهِمْ فِي ذَلِكَ فَكَتَبُوا إِنَّا وَاللَّهِ مَا قَتَلْنَاهُ...
"Either they pay the blood money for your companion or they declare war." So the Messenger of Allah (saw) wrote to them regarding that, and they wrote back, "By Allah, we did not kill him..." (The story is well known). The actions of Jinn did not enter the investigation of the case in any way, shape, or form.
Accordingly, as long as no text mentions a physical relationship of the Jinn in a specific incident, the relationship between Jinn and humans remains one of whispering (waswasah) and does not exceed it.
Since the message of the Prophet (saw) is the Seal of Messages and revelation ceased after him, there are no new texts. Therefore, there is no physical relationship between us and the Jinn; rather, it is only whispering. As we said, the whispering of the Jinn has no authority over a person unless the person responds to this whispering by their own choice.
This is how physical matters were dealt with during the era of the Rightly Guided Caliphs. In any physical event—murder, theft, fraud, or deception—the mind did not turn toward the Jinn but toward humans, because the relationship of the Jinn is one of whispering unless a specific text stated otherwise. Since there is no specific text after the Messenger of Allah (saw), all physical events are from humans and not from Jinn. Their world is different from ours, and their relationship with us is whispering and nothing else.
Consequently, if a person becomes ill, the Jinn have no relation to the matter. Rather, the illness is treated according to what is mentioned in Islam, which is seeking medical treatment (tadawi):
Whether the medicine is material, as mentioned in the hadith through Usamah bin Sharik who said: "I came to the Prophet (saw) and his companions as if birds were on their heads. I greeted them and sat down. Then bedouins came from here and there and said: 'O Messenger of Allah, should we treat ourselves?' He said:
تَدَاوَوْا فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ لم يَضَعْ دَاءً إِلاَّ وَضَعَ لَهُ دَوَاءً غَيْرَ دَاءٍ وَاحِدٍ الْهَرَمُ
'Seek medical treatment, for Allah (az) has not created a disease without creating a cure for it, except for one disease: old age (i.e., death).'" (Narrated by Abu Dawood).
Or whether the treatment is through supplication and ruqyah, as mentioned in the hadith narrated by Muslim through Aisha, Mother of the Believers (ra):
أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم كَانَ يَرْقِي بِهَذِهِ الرُّقْيَةِ أَذْهِبْ الْبَاسَ رَبَّ النَّاسِ بِيَدِكَ الشِّفَاءُ لاَ كاشِفَ لَهُ إِلاَّ أَنْتَ
"The Messenger of Allah (saw) used to perform ruqyah with these words: 'Remove the suffering, O Lord of mankind. In Your hand is the healing. There is no remover of it except You.'" (Or similar supplications from the Qur'an or Sunnah).
As for resorting to those who claim to have a physical relationship with the Jinn to cure the sick, this is fraud and deception by those charlatans who prey on simple people to extort them and consume their wealth unjustly.
As for the interpretation of the verse containing "touch" (al-mass), it seems you mean the verse in Al-Baqarah, number 275:
الَّذِينَ يَأْكُلُونَ الرِّبَا لَا يَقُومُونَ إِلَّا كَمَا يَقُومُ الَّذِي يَتَخَبَّطُهُ الشَّيْطَانُ مِنَ الْمَسِّ ذَلِكَ بِأَنَّهُمْ قَالُوا إِنَّمَا الْبَيْعُ مِثْلُ الرِّبَا وَأَحَلَّ اللَّهُ الْبَيْعَ وَحَرَّمَ الرِّبَا
"Those who consume usury cannot stand [on the Day of Resurrection] except as one stands who is being beaten by Satan into insanity. That is because they say, 'Trade is [just] like usury.' But Allah has permitted trade and has forbidden usury." (Surah Al-Baqarah [2:275])
The following is its interpretation:
Allah has struck a metaphor for the one who consumes usury (riba) like one who is convulsing from epilepsy; he stands and falls, stumbling in his walking, standing, and sitting, as insanity has completely overcome him. This is because he considers usury to be like trade, whereas Allah has forbidden usury and permitted trade.
﴿الَّذِينَ يَأْكُلُونَ الرِّبَا﴾ means they take it, and it encompasses all types of benefit from it. The term ﴿يَأْكُلُونَ﴾ is used in the Holy Qur'an to denote condemnation, as in: "Indeed, those who unjustly consume the property of orphans are only consuming fire into their bellies," and "they enjoy themselves and eat as grazing livestock eat, and the Fire will be a residence for them." It is the same here.
﴿لَا يَقُومُونَ﴾ means on the Day of Resurrection.
﴿إِلَّا كَمَا يَقُومُ الَّذِي يَتَخَبَّطُهُ الشَّيْطَانُ﴾ means they are resurrected from their graves, standing as the convulsing, epileptic person stands in this world—meaning the insane—and that is a disgrace for them on that day. It is a context for the decisive prohibition of usury, which was repeatedly emphasized in these verses.
﴿مِنَ الْمَسِّ﴾ means insanity (al-junun). It is said: a man is "touched" (muss) so he is "mamsus" if he becomes insane. "Khabt" is striking in an irregular manner, like the random striking of a blind camel.
There are narrations regarding the interpretation of ﴿إِلَّا كَمَا يَقُومُ الَّذِي يَتَخَبَّطُهُ الشَّيْطَانُ مِنَ الْمَسِّ﴾, and the most correct view is that when a human is afflicted with insanity, the devil has a greater influence on them through his whisperings, making many things appear to them that lead the insane person to convulse.
As for the claim that the devil is the one who causes the seizure or leads him to insanity, the verse does not say this. Allah (swt) did not say "The devil beats him with touch" (meaning the devil causes him insanity), but rather the verse says ﴿يَتَخَبَّطُهُ الشَّيْطَانُ مِنَ الْمَسِّ﴾, meaning the devil beats him because of his insanity. Thus, the insanity precedes the devil's beating.
This is the most correct view for me in interpreting the verse. The example of the usury-consumers is like the one whom the devil beats because of ﴿الْمَسِّ﴾, i.e., because of insanity. This means that insanity precedes the devil's beating of the person; the person becomes insane due to some reason, and then the devil beats him with his whisperings and hallucinations.
The devil did not cause the person's seizure, i.e., he did not make him insane, otherwise, the noble verse would have been "whom the devil beats with touch," where the preposition "with" implies the instrument of insanity. This metaphor is a horrific sensory depiction of the severity of the crime committed by usury-consumers.
Your brother, Ata Bin Khalil Abu Al-Rashtah
Link to the answer from the Ameer's Facebook page