Jinn: The Ancient Arabian Shapeshifter

There’s an ancient Arabic legend about a shapeshifter that can take the form of any animal.They can also appear as a living column of smoke or dust, or a giant human— and have also been known to live trapped in a bottle.

    Jinn are genies - ancient creatures believed to occupy the space        between celestial and terrestrials worlds. 

Not quite monsters, not quite humans, and not quite celestial  beings, the jinn are something different.

But for many people, the genie is just some guy in a lamp who can give you three wishes. A way for you to get what you want without having to work for it. Not only is that not even close to the original versions of the jinn, it dismisses the immense power these beings possess. The jinn are a species all their own, more powerful than humans, and more meaningful than pop culture would have us believe. Crafted from prehistoric fires, long before humans, Jinn are neither wholly earthly nor wholly spiritual.

They require food to live, are subject to lust and other human passions, and can die, although they live naturally for thousands of years. Jinn can see humans and interfere in their lives. Humans can only see a jinni if it takes a form that allows itself to be seen, which is rare.

They can move through walls and travel great distances quickly, shapeshifting into all kinds of animals and can appear as smoke. Sometimes the appearance of a jinni is preceded by an earthquake or a storm. In ancient Arabic cultures, jinn were worshipped for their capacity to make legendary weapons and supposed ability to encourage fertile crops. These pre-Islamic accounts of jinn also claimed a jinni could take on a human form and have children with them. These offspring were often seers who could communicate with their jinn relatives as well as with the divine. These half-jinn children were advisors and consultants of religious matters. 
They helped find lost animals, gave and removed curses, and settled personal disputes. Islamic narratives heavily influenced the perception of jinn and their characteristics. The Qur’an explicitly mentions there are three types of spiritual beings: angels, demons, and Jinn. That text also states jinn were created before humans and are intelligent beings with free will, formed from “smokeless fire” and “scorching winds.” In Islamic tradition, people made from clay occupy the material realm of Earth, while angels occupy the celestial realm of light. 

Must Read:https://charminglyrics.blogspot.com


It’s said that jinn, being made from fire, reside in a realm between the material and celestial—called the intermediate realm. A particular story in the Qur’an tells of an encounter between the prophet Muhammad and a crowd of jinn. This tale describes the jinn as “men, tall as lances, completely wrapped in their mantles from their feet up" who seem to be composed of "blackness."

Interestingly, the 55th chapter of the Qur’an is written in duel form for both humans and jinn. It describes Jinn as practitioners of religion, including Islam, who are believed to have the same religious responsibilities as humans. Medieval Muslim scholars believed the jinn were susceptible to fiery temperaments because they were composed of fire. So jinn could either be good or evil. 

The evil jinn were said to enter into the bodies of humans, causing madness, injury,or death—an idea that pre-Islamic communities shared as well. Human and jinn interactions weren’t always negative—stories of love affairs between jinn and humans were popular in the Medieval period. One of the most famous interactions between jinn and humans occur in one of the world’s most popular texts— The Thousand and One Nights. 

Scholars argue the famous collection of stories takes its inspiration from a number of sources including Indo-Persian and Greek traditions as well as Arabic-Islamic ones. One thing for certain is that although a 9th-century fragment and a 14th -century manuscript of  The Thousand and One Nights have been found, there still no conclusive source. Since jinn figure heavily in various stories, we can assume that some aspects of these creatures exist across many cultural histories.

With each translation and variation of the text, older and newer tales were added and subtracted regularly, but the jinn appear in all known editions. One significant story in the collection is “The Story of the Fisherman.” In it, an old man slogs through a hard day of work, with nothing to show for it. After casting his net many times, he draws up a bottle of brass with a heavy lead stopper stamped with the seal of a dead sultan. 

When he opens the bottle, a plume of smoke rises up and condenses into the form of a massive ‘Efreet, an evil jinni, so big his head is inside the clouds. At first the jinni, having been trapped in the bottle for 1,800 years, wants to kill the fisherman. But the old fisherman is clever. He challenges the jinni to show him how it was possible for such a magnificent, powerful being to fit in such a small vessel. Apparently very vain, the jinni turns back into smoke and enters the bottle little by little until the fisherman can seal it up, once again trapping the Jinni. 

After some negotiation the two come to a compromise—if the fisherman releases him the jinni will  not only let the fisherman live, but will grant him one service. Once freed, the jinni leads the man to a hidden lake in the desert where he is able to capture the most exquisitely colored fish. The rare fish make the fisherman a very prosperous man. 

Jinn have shown up in traditions and stories since the pre-Islamic Arabic world, but it wasn’t until a few stories were translated in the 18th century, that these beings were popularized.  

They’re more than just some blue guy trapped in a lamp who grants wishes. They’re powerful, intellectual entities whose stories are woven into ancient Islamic culture—and, yes, also capable of changing the direction of your life in an instant. 

Interestingly, the 55th chapter of the Qur’an is written in duel form for both humans and

jinn.

It describes Jinn as practitioners of religion, including Islam, who are believed to have

the same religious responsibilities as humans.

Medieval Muslim scholars believed the jinn were susceptible to fiery temperaments because

they were composed of fire.

So jinn could either be good or evil.