The Unseen World

And yet, some [people] have come to attribute to all manner of invisible beings a place side by side with God although it is He who has created them [all]; and in their ignorance they have invented for Him sons and daughters! Limitless is He is His glory, and sublimely exalted above anything that men may devise by way of definition:88

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 98 But they could not do this unless thy Sustainer had so willed: stand, therefore, aloof from them and from all their false imagery!

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 [other] 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 (now that] we have reached the end of our term - the term which Thou hast laid down for us - (we see the error of our ways]!" [But] He will say: "The fire shall be your abode, therein to abide - unless God wills it otherwise." Verily, thy Sustainer is wise, all-knowing. 111 Lit., "and this thy Sustainer's way is straight" - i.e., unchanging in its application of the law of cause and effect to man's inner life as well.- The term rijs occurring in the preceding sentence, and rendered by me as "horror", signifies anything that is intrinsically loathsome, horrible or abominable; in this case, it would seem to denote that awesome feeling of utter futility which, sooner or later, overcomes everyone who does not believe that life has meaning and purpose. 112 According to most of the commentators, the invisible beings (al-jinn) referred to here are the "evil forces" (shayatin) among them, such as are spoken of in verse 112 of this surah. It is generally assumed that these very beings or forces are addressed here; but the primary meaning of the term ma'shar appearing in this context warrants, in my opinion, a different conclusion. It is true that this term is often used to denote a group or community or genus of sentient beings which have certain characteristics in common: a conventional - and undoubtedly justifiable - use based on the verb 'asharahu, "he consorted [or "was on intimate terms"] with him" or "lived in close communion with him". But it is precisely this verbal origin of the term ma'shar which gives us a clue as to what is really meant here. Since, in its primary significance, a person's ma'shar denotes those who are on intimate terms or in close communion with him (cf. Lisan al-'Arab: "A man's ma'shar is his family"), we may well assume that it has a similar significance in the above Qur'anic phrase. Thus, to my mind, the allocution yd ma'shar al-jinn does not denote, "O you community of [evil] invisible beings" but, rather, "O you who are [or "have lived"] in close communion with [evil] invisible beings": in other words, it is addressed to the misguided human beings - who have been seduced by "glittering half-truths meant to delude the mind" (verse 112). This interpretation is reinforced by the words, "Have there not come unto you apostles from among yourselves", occurring in verse 130 below: for the Qur'an speaks always only of apostles who belonged to the human race, and never of apostles from among the jinn. (As regards the wide significance of this latter term, see Appendix III.) 113 Le., close to the evil invisible beings. It is to be remembered that the primary meaning of wali (of which awliya' is the plural) is "one who is close [to another]". 114 I.e., unless He graces them with His mercy (see verse 12 of this surah, and the corresponding note). Some of the great Muslim theologians conclude from the above and from the similar phrase occurring in 11:107 (as well as from several well-authenticated sayings of the Prophet) that contrary to the bliss of paradise, which will be of unlimited duration - the suffering of the sinners in the life to come will be limited by God's mercy. (See in this connection the hadith quoted in note 10 on 40:12.)

[And thus will God continue:] "O you who have lived in close communion with [evil] invisible beings and [likeminded] 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.

And most certainly have We destined for hell many of the invisible beings 143 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:144 it is they, they who are the [truly] heedless!

[all of them,] 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!" 148 See surah 6, note 116. 149 This passage connects with the concluding clause of the preceding verse, "and lost themselves in sinning". According to most of the classical commentators, the term zulm (lit., "wrong" or "evildoing") is in this context synonymous with "wrong beliefs" amounting to a denial of the truths revealed by God through His prophets, a refusal to acknowledge His existence, or the ascribing of divine powers or qualities to anyone or anything beside Him. Explaining the above verse in this sense, Razi says: "God's chastisement does not afflict any people merely on account of their holding beliefs amounting to shirk and kufr, but afflicts them only if they persistently commit evil in their mutual dealings, and deliberately hurt (other human beings] and act tyranically [towards them]. Hence, those who are learned in Islamic Law (al-fuqaha') hold that men's obligations towards God rest on the principle of [His] forgiveness and liberality, whereas the rights of man are of a stringent nature and must always be strictly observed" - the obvious reason being that God is almighty and needs no defender, whereas man is weak and needs protection. (Cf. the last sentence of 28:59 and the corresponding note 61.) 150 I.e., about everything, even about the truths revealed to them by God. - For a discussion of the term ummah wahidah ("one single community") and its wider implications, see surah 2, notes 197 and 198; the second part of 2:253 and the corresponding note 245; and the second part of 5 :48 and the corresponding notes 66 and 67. Thus, the Qur'an stresses once again that the unceasing differentiation in men's views and ideas is not incidental but represents a God-willed, basic factor of human existence. If God had willed that all human beings should be of one persuasion, all intellectual progress would have been ruled out, and "they would have been similar in their social life to the bees and the ants, while in their spiritual life they would have been like the angels, constrained by their nature always to believe in what is true and always to obey God" (Manar XII, 193) - that is to say, devoid of that relative free will which enables man to choose between right and wrong and thus endows his life - in distinction from all other sentient beings - with a moral meaning and a unique spiritual potential. 151 I.e., those who avail themselves of His grace, consisting of the God-given ability to realize His existence (cf. 7:172 and the corresponding note 139) and the guidance which He offers to mankind through His prophets (Razi). 152 Some of the earliest commentators (e.g., Mujahid and 'Ikrimah) are of the opinion that the expression li-dhalika (rendered by me as "to this end") refers to God's bestowal of His grace upon man, while others (e.g., Al-Hasan and 'Ata) relate it to men's ability to differ intellectually from one another. According to Zamakhshari, it refers to the freedom of moral choice which characterizes man and is spoken of in the preceding passages: and since it is this freedom which constitutes God's special gift to man and raises him above all other created beings (cf. the parable of Adam and the angels in 2:30-34), Zamakhshari's interpretation is, in my opinion, the most comprehensive of all. 153 The "word of God" reiterated here as well as in 32:13 has originally been pronounced in 7:18 with reference to the "followers of Satan", i.e., those who reject the guidance offered them by God; hence my interpolation at the beginning of the paragraph. As regards the meaning of jinn (rendered by me in this and similar instances as "invisible beings"), see Appendix III.

whereas the invisible beings We had created, [long] before that, out of the fire of scorching winds.

Say: "If all mankind and all invisible beings" would come together with a view to producing the like of this Qur'an, they could not produce its like even though they were to exert all their strength in aiding one another!"

AND [remember that] when We told the angels, "Prostrate yourselves before Adam," they all prostrated themselves, save Iblis: he [too] was one of those invisible beings, but then he turned away from his Sustainer's command. Will you, then, take him and his cohorts for (your], masters instead of Me, although they are your foe? How vile an exchange on the evildoers' part!

And [one day] there were assembled before Solomon his hosts of invisible ~ and of men, and of birds; and then they were led forth in orderly ranks,

Yet had We so willed, We could indeed have imposed Our guidance upon every human being:12 but [We have not willed it thus - and so] that word of Mine has come true: "Most certainly will I fill hell with invisible beings as well as with humans, all together!"