"Djinn"
07 / 12 / 02
General
Alright your demon myths and legends fans, another little snippet to tempt your curious nature. This time, we present "The Djinn", as written in A field guide to Demons, Fairies, Fallen Angels, and other Subversive Spirits Just click the "link" for this entry to read the full story.
Djinn, an ancient, Islamic, invisible, illusion-casting species who live for centuries, can manifest in many forms and travel anywhere instantly. Like the Greek daimon, they are spirits of an intermediate nature between humans and angels. It is said in Q'uran that they are an ancient species who were created before humankind from smokeless fire. The Djinn have no bodies of their own but are masters of illusory disguise. However, because the Djinn are made of fire, wen they manifest in human form they have flaming eyes, which are set vertically in the head, not horizontally as human eyes. Aside from human form, certain Djinn also appear in the shape of black dogs or snakes or toads or black cats. They are considered the cause of violent sandstorms, whirlwinds, and shooting stars.
Although Djinn inhabit ruins, wells, kitchen fireplaces, and public baths, their favourite abode is the desert. Some believe Djinn live just under the sand in organized towns and only rise to the surface to harass humans. Some have heard music from Djinn "villages" — campsites like human nomadic abodes —which suddenly appear and then vanish in the blink of an eye. When journeying through the Arabian desert it is necessary to call out to the Djinn and ask their permission to pass by. Each place has its own resident spirit, its ancestral genius loci, and one addresses it respectfully. If answered by a sudden whirling pillar of sand, it is wise to turn back at once.
LORE
One day King Suleyman (or King Solomon), who had great powers and a formidable magic ring with jewels given him by angels, used his art to gather the multitudes of Djinn around him, for he wanted to see what they looked like. He conjured them to come to his presence, and as they poured forth in vast numbers, the earth trembled. When they became visible to him he reported he saw a legions of aberrant creatures, some two-headed, some fire-breathing, and then many thousands in shapes of fantastical hybrid animals with the head of a cat and the body of a dog and hooves, or with heads on backward. With his magic ring held high, he watched as they bowed to him, for he could subdue all but Iblis. King Suleyman used his magic powers of good, and he soon had a legion of Djinn building for him, diving for pearls, collecting jewels, and mining minerals. No human could craft metal like the Djinn , and their fabulous rings play a part in many tales.
It is said that for each human born, a Djinni (singular) is also born. He is a kind of supernatural twin who tempts the human being forth to do the wrong thing. He is always present, as are the angels the human has to guard him. The Djinni can change form. If a black cat were to enter the house at night, he might actually be the twin Djinni of a member of the household, and if he is hurt by his human twin, the human will inflict harm upon his own self as well. The result of such an event is insanity. Along this line it is said that if a human unknowingly eats Djinn excrement, his intelligence shoots up immediately. This the proverbial expression, "He has eaten Djinn dung [goh-e-djeri]!" of a very bright child.
All Djinn are closely intertwined or involved in human affairs. Like fairies, Djinn steal human babies and substitute their own. They also indulge in petty demonic acts like pushing people down stairs, making them yawn uncontrollably, spilling their milk, and giving them nightmares, but these are minor annoyances compared tot he serious maladies that Djinn are known to cause, such as epidemics, convulsions, insanity, and death.
In the Q'uran, chapter 72 ins named for the Djinn, and there it is said: "And some of us are the righteous, and some of us are otherwise. We are sects differing." It says in this chapter that some Djinn have surrendered and they are not harmful, and some have deviated, and the latter will go to hell.
DISAMRING & DISPELLING TECHNIQUES
Since all Djinn are invisible and plentiful as sand, they are considered to always be present and listening — reputedly they know every language — so care must be taken when discussing them. One must never inadvertently injure them by throwing water on a fire — they often rest in ashes. A stone thrown in the desert may injure some invisible Djinn offspring and force retaliation. Any black cat, black dog, or snake might be a Djinn, and therefore these animals must be treated with respect. Never sweep at night, for obvious reasons.
Fortunately there are many documented ways of keeping the malevolent Djinn away. The first method is to recite the protective bismillah "in the name of Allah." To eat without reciting the bismillah is virtually an invitation for Djinn to lurk in the food, where they may be ingested along with the meal. The prayer is effective at other times when it's known Djinn are near, such as when turning off a lamp at night or stamping out a campfire.
Djinn loathe salt. When used in food, salt will keep them away, as will salt sprinkled on the floor, carried in pockets, in shoes, tucked under the pillow, or thrown up in the air at night while out walking. Since Djinn are attracted to human blood, salt is a necessary at such events as circumcision, the slaughtering of animals, or childbirth.
Djinn also abhor loud sounds. They are afraid of pins, needles, silver, iron, and steel. Successful exploitations of this fear include wearing a metal ring, keeping a knife under the bed, stringing a nail around the neck, or adding a coin to the bathwater. Djinn are repelled by strong odors in particular the smell of tar drives them off at once.
If Djinn should get inside a human, a cure must be found to drive them out or the person will become insane. Many of the disarming techniques above can be used to expel the creatures. Tar, for example, can be used on the body, in addition to the inhalation of smoke or incense along with specific incantations. Salt is usually put under the pillow of anybody who is ill. Most often, the recitation of the sacred words is employed, as are charms written by people skilled in such things. Often the charms are written in the Djinn's native language, far more ancient than our own. One interesting cure involves preparing a meal (salt-free) for the Djinn. The ill person, in order to stimulate the Djinn's appetite, eats a morsel while the Djinn watch hungrily from within, then exit the human body to enjoy the rest of the meal. The meal should be placed far away from the patient for best results.
Sorry, spammers forced my hand. Comments reviewed before being published.
Comments: 2 winds
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Whoa. That's cool.
I hear another name for the djinn is /ifrit/, hence the well-known fire summon in the FF games.
. . . strange, it won't let me sign the comment with my name.
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Gen's a mind reader!
Kit and I were just talking about the Djinn a while a go. Well, of a sort.
That so kicks ass. All that salt stuff that people do actually came from somewhere...imagine that.I found myself wondering about whether or not I had anything metal, and realized that there's a metal Norse-style wolf strung around my neck on a black string. Go fig.
But...man. I suddenly feel so uninformed. And tempted to find more.Tankee Gen.
( 7:10 pm )