Spirit possession and exorcism in Islam

Belief in Islam of possession by spirits and of their exorcism

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The 72nd chapter of the Qur'an entitled Al-Jinn (The Jinn), as well as the heading and introductory bismillah of the next chapter entitled al-Muzzammil (The Enshrouded One).

In Islam, the belief that spiritual entities—such as jinn, ghosts, devils—can possess a person, a thing or location,[1] is widespread; as is the belief that spirits can be expelled from the possessed person (or thing/location) through exorcism. This practice is called al-'azm,[2]: 98  ṭard al-shayṭān/al-jinn (expulsion of devils/spirits),[3] or ruqya (Arabic: رقية, romanized: ruqya, spell, charm, magic, incantation),[4] and exorcists are called raqi.

Belief in the supernatural creatures such as Jinn are both an integral part of Islamic belief,[5] and a common explanations in society "for evil, illness, health, wealth, and position in society as well as all mundane and inexplicable phenomena in between". Given the moral ambivalence ascribed to supernatural agents in Islamic tradition, exorcisms can be addressed to both good and evil spirits.[6]

Jinn are thought to be able to enter and physically possess people for various reasons, while devils (shayāṭīn) assault the heart (qalb) and attempt to turn their victims to evil.[7]

## Possession in Islam

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Most Muslim scholars believe in the possibility that jinn can physically possess people.[8] Only a minority denies demonic possession and argues that jinn can merely whisper to a person.[8] The everyday-life concern may vary. Some consider possession to be purely theoretical with no practical application, others consider interference of jinn only under rare circumstances, for example, when summoned by a sorcerer, yet others take it seriously and attribute everyday events to demonic activities.[9]

Mental disorders, such as epilepsy, forgetfulness, schizophrenia,[10] lack of energy, and morbid fears, are often attributed to demonic-possessions and witchcraft.[8] Yet, not all mental-illnesses are attributed to demons, rather demons are believed to cause such symptoms.[11]: 54  Belief in Jinn-possession is not only prevalent in Middle-Eastern countries, such as Saudi Arabia,[12] but also among Muslims in Great Britain.[13] Belief in demonic possession also prevails among educated people.[12][14][15]

Due the ambiguous nature of jinn, some people may volunteer for possession. Possession by spirits are believed to grand beneficent powers, as in the case of diviners.[6] In that case, the possessed by perform a trance dance (hadra) in order to renew their covenant with their personal jinni.[6] In context of Swahili culture, jinn possession may be used for healing purposes.[16] Such possessions are to be distinguished from cultural concepts of possession by demons.[17][11][18]

### Possessing spirits

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According to the Islamic view on possession, a corrupted soul (nafs) increases suspectibility (dha'iyfah)[19] to possession by evils spirits. Among them are ghosts (arwa'), jinn, devils.[20][21][22][23][24] The jinn differ from devils, by that the former can be believers (Muslim). However, since both are said to be created from some sort of fire, they are affined in some local Islamic beliefs.[21] Ghosts are the souls of the improperly-buried dead and those who have been cursed by God.[21][21] They are conceptually different from jinn-possession.[25]

The jinn can be good or evil and inflict act autonomously or inflict harm when enslaved through magic.[26][27][21] Since jinn share their bodily nature with humans, jinn may also possess people because they fell in love with them, often resulting in alleged intercourse between these two.[18] Jinn may also possess someone to take revenge if angered. In such cases, the jinn are also thought to harm a person by hitting them.[28][29] Even if a pious jinni befalls a human, there is need for an exorcism as relationships between humans and jinn are socially frowned (makruh) upon.[6]

Devils (pl.: شَيَاطِين shayāṭīn) assault their victims by whisperings (وَسْوَسَة waswasa), which is spiritually, rather than possessing them physically.[30] The devils' sole purpose is to lure both humans and jinn into sinful activities, both minor ones and major ones.[31][32] Paradoxically, suspectibility to the devils also increase with piety, since the devils are more engaged to corrupt a pure soul than a tainted one.[21][33]

## Ruqyā (exorcism)

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Ruqyā (Arabic: رقية IPA: [ruqja], lit. 'invocation') refers to the practise of exorcising spirits, jinn, and demons in Islamic tradition and is part of the wider body of the "prophetic medicine".[34]

Exorcisms are performed by religious authorities, such as a mullah or a qualified a Raqi or a saint (darvish) who has been blessed by God (barakah).[35][24] To qualify as a Raqi, one needs, among other criteria, to believe in God, practise the Five Pillars of Islam, follow the Sunnah as examplified by Muhammad and the saints, believe that the Quran has the power to influence spirits, and knows about the spiritual world.[22]

For preparations, distractions, such as pictures, music, and golden jewelry, are removed to enable angels to enter.[22] During the exorcism the exorcist seeks refuge in God and recites Quranic verses. The process further constitutes questioning the patient about their emotional state and dreams. Next, the excorsist negotiates with the possessing creature.[36][37] Such negotiation may include to command the spirit to curse Satan. It is believed that a satanic spirit would refuse to curse their father and can be identified as a devil, much tougher to manage.[38] If the jinni is willing to negotiate, some healers make attempts to convince them to convert to Islam.[37]

Some traditions request aid from good jinn (muwakkal) to negotiate with the possessing spirit.[3][39]

## See also

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* Spirit possession#Islam
* Islam and magic
* Outline of Islam
* Glossary of Islam
* Index of Islam-related articles
* Devil
* Demonic possession
* Al-Mu'awwidhatayn

## References

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### Citations

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1. ^ Jacobs, Louis (1999). "Exorcism". A Concise Companion to the Jewish Religion. doi:10.1093/acref/9780192800886.001.0001. ISBN 978-0-19-280088-6.
2. ^ Magic and Divination in Early Islam. (2021). Vereinigtes Königreich: Taylor & Francis.
3. ^ a b Szombathy, Z. (2014). Exorcism. In K. Fleet, G. Krämer, D. Matringe, J. Nawas and D. J. Stewart (eds.), Encyclopaedia of Islam Three Online. Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_ei3_COM_26268
4. ^ Wehr, Hans. Dictionary of Arabic (PDF). p. 302. Retrieved 8 March 2024.
5. ^  Amira El-Zein, Islam, Arabs and the Intelligent World of the Jinn (Syracuse: Syracuse University Press, 2009), p. x.
6. ^ a b c d Maʻrūf, Muḥammad. Jinn Eviction as a Discourse of Power: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Modern Moroccan Magical Beliefs and Practices. Vol. 8. Brill, 2007. p. 2
7. ^ Szombathy, Zoltan (2014). "Exorcism". In Fleet, Kate; Krämer, Gudrun; Matringe, Denis; Nawas, John; Rowson, Everett (eds.). Encyclopaedia of Islam. Vol. 3. doi:10.1163/1573-3912_ei3_COM_26268. ISBN 9789004269637
8. ^ a b c Dein, Simon, and Abdool Samad Illaiee. "Jinn and mental health: looking at jinn possession in modern psychiatric practice." The Psychiatrist 37.9 (2013): 291.
9. ^ GINGRICH, ANDRE. “SPIRITS OF THE BORDER: SOME REMARKS ON THE CONNOTATION OF JINN IN NORTH-WESTERN YEMEN.” Quaderni Di Studi Arabi 13 (1995): 199–212. http://www.jstor.org/stable/25802775. p. 299-200
10. ^ Lim, Anastasia; Hoek, Hans W.; Blom, Jan Dirk (1 February 2015). "The attribution of psychotic symptoms to jinn in Islamic patients". Transcultural Psychiatry. 52 (1): 18–32\. doi:10.1177/1363461514543146. PMID 25080427. S2CID 6807422.
11. ^ a b Rassool (2015).
12. ^ a b Obeid, Tahir, et al. "Possession by ‘Jinn’as a cause of epilepsy (Saraa): a study from Saudi Arabia." Seizure 21.4 (2012): 245-249.
13. ^ Khalifa, Najat, and Tim Hardie. "Possession and jinn." Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine 98.8 (2005): 352.
14. ^ Uvais, N. A.. Jinn and Psychiatry: Beliefs among (Muslim) doctors. Indian Journal of Social Psychiatry 33(1):47-49, Jan–Mar 2017. doi:10.4103/0971-9962.200095
15. ^ Naz, N. F., & Aslam, N. (2024). Belief in Jinn Possession Scale: Development and validation. Archive for the Psychology of Religion, 46(1), 88-105. https://doi.org/10.1177/00846724231225675
16. ^ Kim, Caleb C. "Jinn Possession and Uganga (Healing) among the Swahili." p. 71-72
17. ^ Al-Krenawi & Graham (1997), p. 211.
18. ^ a b Bulkeley, Adams & Davis (2009).
19. ^ GINGRICH, ANDRE. “SPIRITS OF THE BORDER: SOME REMARKS ON THE CONNOTATION OF JINN IN NORTH-WESTERN YEMEN.” Quaderni Di Studi Arabi 13 (1995): 199–212. http://www.jstor.org/stable/25802775. p. 203
20. ^ Barbera, Gerardo. "People of the Wind." Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society 31.3 (2021): 421-432.
21. ^ a b c d e f Khan, S. (18 Nov. 2024). Spirit of the Mind. Leiden, Niederlande: Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004719033 p. 35
22. ^ a b c Alean Al-Krenawi; John Graham (1999). "Social work and Koranic mental health healers". International Social Work. 42 (1): 57. doi:10.1177/002087289904200106. S2CID 71504194.
23. ^ Dein, Simon; Abdool Samad Illaiee (2013). "Jinn and mental health: looking at jinn possession in modern psychiatric practice". The Psychiatrist. 37 (9): 290–293\. doi:10.1192/pb.bp.113.042721. S2CID 29032393.
24. ^ a b Luther, Kenneth Allin (1 June 1975). "Louis Dupree. Afghanistan. Princeton: Princeton University Press. 1973. Pp. xxiv, 760. $22.50". The American Historical Review. 80 (3): 106–107\. doi:10.1086/ahr/80.3.708. ISSN 1937-5239.
25. ^ The living and the dead in Islam: studies in Arabic epitaphs. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz. 2004. p. 116\. ISBN 978-3-447-05083-8.
26. ^ Joseph P. Laycock Spirit Possession around the World: Possession, Communion, and Demon Expulsion across Cultures ABC-CLIO 2015 ISBN 978-1-610-69590-9 page 166
27. ^ Egdunas Racius ISLAMIC EXEGESIS ON THE JINN: THEIR ORIGIN, KINDS AND SUBSTANCE AND THEIR RELATION TO OTHER BEINGS pp. 132–135
28. ^ GINGRICH, ANDRE. “SPIRITS OF THE BORDER: SOME REMARKS ON THE CONNOTATION OF JINN IN NORTH-WESTERN YEMEN.” Quaderni Di Studi Arabi 13 (1995): 199–212. http://www.jstor.org/stable/25802775. p. 202
29. ^ Větrovec, Lukáš. "Curse, Possession and Other Worlds: Magic and Witchcraft among the Bosniaks." p. 79
30. ^ Maʻrūf, Muḥammad. Jinn Eviction as a Discourse of Power: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Modern Moroccan Magical Beliefs and Practices. Vol. 8. Brill, 2007. pp. 96/167
31. ^ Meldon (1908), pp. 123–146.
32. ^ Sells (1996), p. 143.
33. ^ Szombathy, Zoltan, "Exorcism", in: Encyclopaedia of Islam, THREE, Edited by: Kate Fleet, Gudrun Krämer, Denis Matringe, John Nawas, Everett Rowson. Consulted online on 15 November 2019<http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_ei3_COM_26268> First published online: 2014 First print edition: 9789004269637, 2014, 2014-4
34. ^ Gerda Sengers Women and Demons: Cultic Healing in Islamic Egypt BRILL, 2003 ISBN 9789004127715 p. 50
35. ^ Al-Krenawi, Alean, and John R. Graham. "Spirit possession and exorcism in the treatment of a Bedouin psychiatric patient." Clinical Social Work Journal 25 (1997): 211-222.
36. ^ Maʻrūf, Muḥammad. Jinn Eviction as a Discourse of Power: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Modern Moroccan Magical Beliefs and Practices. Vol. 8. Brill, 2007. pp. 165-167
37. ^ a b Najat Khalifa; Tim Hardie (August 2005). "Possession and Jinn". J R Soc Med. 98 (8): 351–353\. doi:10.1177/014107680509800805. PMC 1181833. PMID 16055898.
38. ^ Maʻrūf, Muḥammad. Jinn Eviction as a Discourse of Power: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Modern Moroccan Magical Beliefs and Practices. Vol. 8. Brill, 2007. p. 167
39. ^ Khan, Sanaullah. Spirit of the Mind: Divine Disclosure, Nafs and the Transcendental Self in Islamic Thought. BRILL, 2024.

## Bibliography

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* Bulkeley, Kelly; Adams, Kate; Davis, Patricia M., eds. (2009). Dreaming in Christianity and Islam: Culture, Conflict, and Creativity. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press. p. 148\. ISBN 978-0-813-54610-0.
* Griffel, Frank (2005). Islam and rationality : the impact of al-Ghazālī: papers collected on his 900th anniversary. Leiden, Netherlands: Brill. p. 103\. ISBN 978-9-004-29095-2.
* Jones, Lindsay (2005). Encyclopedia of Religion. Vol. 13 (2 ed.). Detroit, MI: Macmillan Reference USA. p. 8687\. ISBN 0-02-865733-0.
* Al-Krenawi, A.; Graham, J.R. (1997). "Spirit Possession and Exorcism in the Treatment of a Bedouin Psychiatric Patient". Clinical Social Work Journal. 25 (2): 211. doi:10.1023/A:1025714626136. S2CID 140937987.
* Maʻrūf, Muḥammad (2007). Jinn Eviction as a Discourse of Power: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Modern Moroccan Magical Beliefs and Practices. Brill. p. 2\. ISBN 978-90-04-16099-6.
* Meldon, J.A. (1908). "Notes on the Sudanese in Uganda". Journal of the Royal African Society. 7 (26): 123–146\. JSTOR 715079.
* Rassool, G. Hussein (2015). Islamic Counselling: An Introduction to theory and practice. New York: Routledge. ISBN 978-1-317-44124-3.
* Sells, Michael Anthony (1996). Early Islamic Mysticism: Sufi, Qurʼan, Miraj, Poetic and Theological Writings. Paulist Press. p. 143\. ISBN 978-0-809-13619-3.
* Szombathy, Zoltan (2014). "Exorcism". In Fleet, Kate; Krämer, Gudrun; Matringe, Denis; Nawas, John; Rowson, Everett (eds.). Encyclopaedia of Islam. Vol. 3\. doi:10.1163/1573-3912_ei3_COM_26268. ISBN 978-90-04-26963-7.
* Westermarck, Edward (23 April 2014). Ritual and Belief in Morocco. Routledge Revivals. Vol. 1\. Routledge. pp. 263–264\. ISBN 978-1-317-91268-2.

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