The Vengeful Djinn: Unveiling the Hidden Agenda of Genies (28 page)

Some of these cases may indeed be caused by infesting demons,
but in persistent cases, the occupying entity may be a djinni. The
house may sit in a portal area, which is not likely to close, especially upon the religious commands of people. Dealing with djinn
has little to do with "good" people versus "evil" spirits. Rather, the
conflict is racial: humans versus djinn.

In Closing

We believe there are many places all over the planet where djinn
have a strong presence. We are re-evaluating cases in our files, and
we find many that fit a djinn profile. In some cases, djinn may
create mild haunting phenomena, and in others, they may make
life quite miserable for humans. Conventional exorcisms against
demons, "elementals" and ghosts will not work on them, for they
are far more powerful than humans. If they retreat, it is at their
own volition. For example, a djinni can masquerade as a demon or any other kind of entity and pretend to be exorcized-just to
go into hiding and reappear at a later time. Perhaps this might explain some of the more resistant possession cases.

Some djinn are not interested in peaceful coexistence. As an analogy, if your home is invaded by ants or rodents, you do not care
how "nice" the invaders think they are, or that they want to share
space with you-you want them out. This attitude is how many
djinn regard humans-as pests. A frequent refrain in negative
hauntings is an entity's warning-"Get out!" When the djinn say
it, they mean it!

ONJURATION IS TRICKY BUSINESS. REGARDLESS of a spirit's
type and nature-good, bad, or indifferent-all are difficult
to summon and even more difficult to control. If a ritual is not executed properly, or the summoner lacks the proper power, a spirit
may wreak havoc, including damaging or draining the summoner's physical and mental health.

The djinn are no different than other spirits and entities when
it comes to being summoned. As they have free will, calling upon
a djinni can be very dangerous; just how it will react to the conjurer is anyone's guess. Like humans, djinn have their own rules
that govern their behavior. In most cases, a djinni will ignore anyone trying to call upon it unless it has something to gain in return. Djinn also have been conjured to manipulate, possess, and
do harm to others. This can be a dangerous prospect, because like
us, not all djinn are good-some are evil, and a small number are
downright psychotic.

The Prophet Muhammad was able to call upon the djinn, and when he did, they challenged his claim that he was the chosen prophet of Allah. In every version of the story, Muhammad is able to control the djinn and convince them he is indeed the Prophet, resulting in the djinn converting to Islam. Of the many stories told, the most popular and our favorite appears below.

The Prophet Muhammad's Contact with Djinn

It is stated by Imam Baihaqi in Dala'il-al-Nubuwaat that the Prophet Muhammad once said to his companions in Mecca, "Whosoever from amongst you desires to see the djinn, he should come to me tonight."'
One of his followers, Hadhrat Abdullah Ibn Masood, was the only one who came that night, for all others were fearful of the djinn. The Prophet took him to a high hill in Mecca on a clear, moonless night. Muhammad drew a circle and told Ibn Masood that no matter what happened, he was to remain seated and motionless within its confines. Hadhrat Abdullah Ibn Masood sat within the circle and began reciting the Qur'an. Suddenly, a large number of djinn appeared out of smoke and encircled Muhammad, who was outside the circle. The djinn seemed to be creating a barrier around the prophet, captivating him.

Ibn Masood heard the djinn say to Muhammad, "Who gives evidence that you are the Prophet?"

Muhammad pointed to a nearby tree and said, "Will you accept my claim if this tree gives the evidence?"

The leader of the group of djinn said, "Yes, we shall accept it."

On that, the Prophet called the tree and it moved toward the djinn. This gave evidence to the group of djinn that Muhammad was indeed the prophet chosen by Allah. The djinn were so im pressed that they gave praise to Allah and his prophet and converted to Islam.

How did Muhammad know to place his companions within a
circle for protection? Perhaps he was familiar with the concept of
a magic circle. Circles have had a magical, protective significance
since ancient times, when they were drawn around the beds of
sick persons and mothers who had just given birth to protect them
against demons. If a person summons spirits, a magic circle protects
him against any negative influences, and creates a symbolic barrier
against his own lower nature.

The story about Muhammad provides no clues as to whether
or not he used any magical symbols or rituals in casting the circle,
such as found in the magical lore attributed to King Solomon.

Solomon's Control over the Djinn

Ever since the days when King Solomon forced the djinn into
slave labor, individuals have sought to harness their supernatural
powers, usually for acquiring secret knowledge, power, the ability
to tell the future, procurement of love, and riches and treasure.

Solomon used a power granted him by God, a dominion which
was to be given to no one after him. His power was channeled
through a magical ring that nullified the djinn's ability to resist
him. That legendary ring has vanished into the mists of time, but
in its place are numerous manuals of magic, some said to be written by Solomon himself. In the Western magical tradition, these
handbooks came to be known as "grimoires," and supposedly they
were available only to the initiated. As with anything supposed to
be "forbidden" or "secret," however, they found their way into the
masses. Many claimed roots of antiquity and lineages going back
directly to Solomon, but most of the principal ones were written
in Europe (especially France) in the seventeenth and eighteenth
centuries during a period of renewed interest in magic. They are
heavily derivative of Hebrew magical lore, as well as Egyptian, Hellenistic, and Greek magical texts.'

The most famous and oldest text attributed to Solomon is the Key of Solomon, also called the Greater Key of Solomon. The manual contains incantations and instructions for summoning djinn, (called demons in Western translations). According to lore, Solomon wrote all of his magical secrets in this book, and ordered that upon his death it be sealed in an ivory casket and placed in his tomb. Some time later, his tomb was opened and the casket and book were discovered.'

The Jewish historian Flavius Josephus referenced such a book in the first century CE, but it's not clear whether he was referring to this grimoire or to the Testament of Solomon, which tells the stories of Solomon's djinn subjugation:

God enabled Solomon to learn the skill which expels demons, which is a science useful and sanitative to men. He composed incantations also by which distempers are alleviated. And he left behind him the manner of using exorcisms, by which demons are driven away, so that they never return.'

The Key probably was written by one or more anonymous authors; it circulated as a magical text in Europe from about 1100 on, the earliest date of a known manuscript.

Another Solomonic magical text is the Lesser Key of Solomon, also called the Lemegeton, a term of unknown meaning. Although it, too, claimed a direct lineage from Solomon, it probably was written in stages by different anonymous authors from the sixteenth cen tury on. It is derivative of the Testament of Solomon and the book
of Enoch, as well as the Key. The Lemegeton has four parts; the Ars
Goetia describes the 72 "fallen angels" Solomon evoked and how
they can be conjured. Whether or not the entities are actually fallen
angels, djinn, or something else remains uncertain.

In Islamic belief, the books of magic attributed to Solomon are
lies the djinn invented, in an attempt to make Solomon come off
as a sorcerer-a disbeliever. After his death, the djinn wrote books
of magic and disbelief and placed them beneath Solomon's throne,
claiming they were the texts he had used to subjugate them. The
djinn then spread the lies throughout humanity, fooling people
into thinking they could learn genuine magical secrets.

Summoning the Djinn

Another Western text of interest in relation to summoning djinn
is The Black Pullet, probably written in France or elsewhere in Europe in the late eighteenth century. It is one of the few grimoires
that does not claim to be ancient-but it does feature the djinn,
though they are not called by that name. It evokes the Solomonic
legend, centering on the use of talismanic rings and inscribed circles as the channels of magical power.

According to the legend told in The Black Pullet, the magical secrets were discovered by an anonymous soldier in Napoleon's army
sent to Egypt. Near the pyramids in Cairo, he and several companions were attacked by Arab soldiers. All but him were killed, and
he was left for dead. By sunset he feared he too would soon expire-but suddenly a stone rolled back in the Great Pyramid and
a turbaned Turk came out. The Turk took the solider inside, where
there were vast halls, huge galleries, subterranean chambers, and
piles of treasures, all ministered by spirits (we may assume them
to be djinn). The attendant to the Turk was a djinn (also called a
spirit in the text) named Odous.

After the soldier recovered his health, the Turk took him into his confidence. All the riches in the pyramid were the product of eighty years of occult and magical practice, which the Turk wished to pass on to the soldier, as he was nearing death himself. To demonstrate his power, the Turk showed him a magical ring. He blew on it three times and said an incantation. Attendant spirits (djinn) and whatever else the Turk wished appeared. He manifested a sumptuous feast of fine food and wine in this manner.

The Turk showed the soldier The Black Pullet, described as like a version of the Arabian folk tale Aladdin and the Enchanted Lamp, but with an extra inner spiritual meaning. The text told how to acquire magical power with twenty-two talismans embroidered on silk and etched on rings made of bronzed steel. The Turk said he was the only one who possessed this knowledge. He guided the soldier through all twenty-two talismans. At the end, he summoned Odous to bind him over to the soldier. Odous, the soldier reported, appeared as "a young man of the most beautiful stature; the remainder of his person shone with all the charms, and on the summit of his head shone a flame of which my eyes could not sustain the brilliance."5
(From this description, it is easy to see how this entity might be interpreted as an angel or guardian spirit.)

The Turk had another gift for the soldier in addition to the magical manual: a black hen ("pullet" coming from the French term for chicken, poulet) trained to find gold. In fact, a ritual to create a "gold-finding hen" was one of the most important parts of The Black Pullet.

After being taught the secrets, the soldier lost consciousness. The Turk died and was cremated, and Odous became the soldier's dedicated servant. They departed for Europe, taking the book, the Turk's ashes, the black hen, and the piles of treasure. In France, the soldier published the book. He used the black hen to find great
hidden riches.

The connections of these Western magical ritual guides to the
djinn are quite clear: the claims to a Solomonic heritage, the djinnilike servants, the evoking of the Arabian lore of wish-granting
djinni, and the lure of great treasure, one of the specialties of the
djinn. The entities in the Western grimoires may be called spirits,
demons, fallen angels, or angels, but the djinn lurk behind them.
Material from the various grimoires has found its way into many
books and texts on magic, mixing in some cases with Christianized
material. Magical rituals continue to be reinterpreted in modern
times, with additions from modern Paganism and even shamanic
traditions. The result is that origins become increasingly obscuresomething the djinn would appreciate and encourage in order to
mask their presence.

Some Western rituals have been specifically adapted from Middle Eastern sources to conjure djinn, not "demons" or "spirits."
Many in the Islamic world disapprove of westerners meddling
with djinn, believing that non-believers (infidels) do not have the
right-or the proper knowledge-for doing so.