Arabian Nights

Islam encourages the creative genius of the musician, poet, astronomer and historian. Persian stories were adopted and altered to suit the beliefs of Islam. The Jinn or Genii are prominent characters in Arabian tales, taking the place of Peries and Deevs.

The Jinn were said to have occupied the Earth several thousand years before Adam and Eve. According to Islam the Jinn were formed of "smokless fire". They were governed by a group of monarch called Suleyman, the last of whom built the Pyramids of Egypt.

Prophets were sent now and then to instruct the Jinn, but when they got out of hand an army of angels were sent to deal with the unruly spirits. The Jinn were made prisoners, but some escaped to the islands of the ocean.

This is where we get the image of a Genie in chains, locked in a bottle or lamp.

One of the Jinn became the leader of the angels. He refused to wroship Allah's human race, and so was turned into a Sheytan (Devil) and became the father of all Sheytans.

 "When we said unto the Angels, Worship ye Adam, and they worshiped except Iblees (who) was of the Jinn."- the Qur'an chapter xviii. v. 48. The reply of Iblees was, "Thou hast created me of fire, and hast created him of earth."

Jinn are not immortal and can be killed by each other or by humans. They are most commonly killed by shooting stars, hurled down at them from heaven.

Instead of blood, the Jinn have fire in their veins. When they are mortally wounded, the fire consumes them and they are reduced to a pile of ashes.

The Jinn eat, drink and multiply. Sometimes they mate with humans and have halfling children.

Some Jinn are Muslims, following Allah and Muhammed. These are good Jinn. Others are bad Jinn and disobedient to Allah.

The Jinn live in communities that are ruled by princes. They have the power to make themselves visible of invisible whenever they like. They can also assume the form of an animal, usually a snake, cat, or dog. When the Jinn appear in human form then you can tell whether they are good or bad by whether they are beautiful or not.

Jinn are believed to be repelled by iron. The whirlwind is thought to be created by the flight of evil Jinn, and so Muslims cry out to them, "Iron! Iron! Thou unlucky one! God is most great!"

The Jinn are dispersed across the Earth, but the biggest population is on the Mountains of Kaf. Sometimes the Jinn take residence in baths, wells, latrines, ovens, and ruined houses. Jinn can often be found travelling the sea, rivers, cross-roads, and market-places.

When Arabs go to pour water on the ground, let a bucket down into a well, or enter a bath, they say "Permission, ye blessed!" to the Jinn.

Jinn are able to fly to the lowest heaven where they can eavesdrop on the angels. The Jinn pass on the secrets they learn to humans who have enslaved them with magick.

Sea Priestess Grace 

HTML By Max @ Max'sCreationCafe