The Vengeful Djinn: Unveiling the Hidden Agenda of Genies (9 page)

We anchored several clamps in the rock and hooked the rope
on the rapelling harness. I began my slow descent into the cave.
The only illumination was the light of the sun projecting almost
straight down into the hole from above. As I was midway down,
a mist began to rise up. I thought I heard echoes coming from the
darkness of the cave. They sounded like a human voice speaking
Arabic. I stopped my descent and the mist appeared to take on a
large form just below me. I found this strange because this part
of the mist was not illuminated by the sun, yet it glowed with a
greenish hue. I heard the voice again, but this time it spoke English. Although there was quite a bit of echo, I was absolutely sure it
was saying, "Leave. My place."

My two companions must have also witnessed the same thing
because they spoke rapidly with each other and seemed quite agitated. Although I couldn't understand what they were saying, one
word was clear-djinn. They ran away from the cave opening, leaving me hanging about seventy-five feet in the air. Fearing that they were going to leave altogether, I climbed out and saw them running toward the vehicle. I got out of my climbing gear and yelled
for them not to leave. Yarr yelled back, "Hurry, my friend! It is
the djinn!" I scrambled to catch up with them at the car. Breathlessly, I asked them both, "What the hell is going on?!" Yarr replied,
"Didn't you see it?! It was a djinni taking form and telling us to get
out of this place at once!" Although I thought I heard a voice and
saw a vague, cylindrical-shaped mist, both men insisted they saw
the shape of a djinni and clearly heard a voice ordering us to leave.

Yarr and the guide refused to go back to the cave, insisting we
leave the area immediately. I wasn't going to hang around in the
mountains by myself, so I had no choice but to get in the car. On
our way back to the village, both my companions said prayers to
Allah in Arabic. Our guide refused to talk about the incident, but
Yarr kept repeating, "I had heard they were real, but didn't think
too much about it. They are real!"

The next day when I tried to get more information, Yarr informed me that some constable of the town had asked us to leave.
Yarr said it would be a good idea to take his advice and leave as
soon as possible. It was disappointing to be so close, yet so far from
learning more about the djinn. Apparently, the people in the town
thought I had awakened a nasty old djinni and they were afraid
of reprisals. Yarr and I made our way back on to the road and to
the airport to return to Saudi Arabia. Soon after, I spent a short
amount of time in Syria to gather more information, and not too
long after that, I returned to the United States.

Not long after my visit to Majlis al Djinn, the Omani government opened the cave to the public, and by 2007, it had seen more
than a hundred thousand visitors. It became so famous that even a
number of American and European commercials were filmed there.
For some unknown reason, the Omani Ministry of Tourism closed
the cave to all people in 2008 and now, no one is allowed to en ter. Their given reason was "safety concerns," but perhaps the djinn
proved stubborn and unwilling to give up their "meeting place."
I heard rumors from people in Oman, Syria, and Iraq that djinn
have already infiltrated into our world and wield a great influence
in a number of villages and cities in those countries. I will never
forget the final warning I received from our guide when Yarr and
I left Fins: "Watch closely, my friend-the djinn have returned to
our world!"

HE HUMAN RACE HAS BEEN entrusted with the care, upkeep,
and overall balance of our planet. This stewardship is a delicate relationship; even small mistakes can have devastating longterm results on the environment. The Qur'an makes it clear that
the djinn failed in this responsibility and were replaced by human
beings. If the human race takes the time to study the mistakes the
djinn made when they were stewards of this planet, then perhaps
we can avoid the major environmental catastrophes that might
take place in the near future.

The djinn are a beautiful creation of God, made from fire or a
special smokeless flame. In modern terminology, it can be said that
they are beings of plasma in its most energetic state. Just like humans, they have free will and the ability to choose between good
and evil. Their exercising it means the djinn have (or had) the ability
to take action and better the state of their environment, or upset its balance for selfish or misguided reasons. Iblis, the ascended djinni
who earned the right to live among the angels, exercised his free will
when God ordered him and the other djinn to bow down in honor
of man. In defiance, he yelled out, "No! I am superior to he!" As
the result of this, Iblis was thrown out of the company of angels,
becoming the adversary of the human race forever.

The Qur'an makes it clear that not all djinn are evil: some walk
the path to God and follow the teaching of not only the Prophet
Muhammad, but also Jesus Christ, whose teachings were meant
for all sentient beings, not just humanity. The Qur'an devotes an
entire chapter to the djinn race, enabling us to learn and understand more about our predecessors, hopefully learning from their
accomplishments and mistakes.

Did the Djinn Affect Human History?

The djinn were created before mankind and were entrusted with
great knowledge and power. That knowledge gave the djinn the
ability to manipulate the physical world around them. Many civilizations of ancient history attribute their growth and development
to one or a group of mysterious benefactors who descended from
the sky and glowed or burned like fire. Were they actually djinn?

When Moses received the Ten Commandments, he saw God as
a burning bush. The flame that engulfed the bush didn't consume
it, and it didn't give off any smoke. When the Israelites left Egypt,
Pharaoh's soldiers were held at bay by a "pillar of fire." Both the
burning bush and the pillar of fire resemble the Qur'an's description of the djinn. If they were perceived as gods from the sky, they
may have steered humanity in unique directions. They may have
even shaped humanity's ancient religious beliefs and been responsible for the multiple gods and goddesses worshipped in ancient
cultures around the world.

A Lesson to Be Learned

The djinn failed in the trust God had given them, and as a result,
lost dominion over the earth. Responsibility was passed to the human race and we are now entrusted with that same knowledge and
control. However, God states in the Qur'an that if humanity fails
in what has been entrusted to us, God will raise up another to take
our place, just as we were created to take the djinn's place. Is it possible that we may soon see drastic changes on our planet?

The Djinn and the Qur'an

Al-Djinn ("The Djinn") is the surah (chapter or book within the
Qur'an) dedicated to them and what makes this chapter especially
interesting is that the djinn seem to be speaking in first-person.
Since translations of the Qur'an into English differ slightly from
scholar to scholar, we have consulted three different versions in
our research, but primarily used the Asim reader version. We also
have included our comments at the end of a number of chapters.
Please note that Qur'an references to a "him," "his," or "he" usually mean Allah (God).

The djinn are also mentioned in a number of Islamic writings, and
one must read passages carefully to fully understand their meaning.
We have included passages from the Qur'an and a few passages from
hadith (one of the most well known being the Sahih al-Bukhari),
which are texts concerning the words and actions of the Prophet,
considered as important to Islamic life as the Qur'an itself.

THE QUR'AN-AL-DJINN (THE DJINN) 72.I-28

[72.1] Say: It has been revealed to me that hundreds of djinn
listened (to the Qur'an) and said, `We have really heard a wonderful recital!

[72.2] `It gives guidance to the right path, and we have believed therein: we shall not join (in worship) any (gods) but our
Lord Allah.

[72.3] `And Exalted is the Majesty of our Lord: He has taken
neither a wife nor a son.

[72.4] `There were some foolish ones among us, who used to
utter extravagant lies against Allah;

[72.5] `But we do think that no man or djinn should say
aught that untrue against Allah.

[72.6] `True, there were persons among mankind who took
shelter with persons among the djinn, but they increased them
in folly.

[72.7] `And djinn and men came to think as ye thought, that
Allah would not raise up anyone (to Judgment).

[72.8] `And we sought to reach into the secrets of heaven; but
we found it filled with stern guards and flaming fires.

[72.9] `We used, indeed, to sit there in (hidden) stations, to
(steal) a hearing; but any who listen now will find a flaming fire
watching him in ambush.

[72.10] `And we understand not whether ill is intended to
those on earth, or whether their Lord (really) intends to guide
them to right conduct.

[72.11] `There are among us some that are righteous, and
some the contrary: we follow divergent paths. Many of us djinn
worship Allah in their own way.

[72.12] `But we think that we can by no means frustrate Allah throughout the earth, nor can we frustrate him by flight.

[72.13]. And as for us, since we have listened to the Guidance, we have accepted it: and any who believes in his Lord has
no fear, either of a short (account) or of any injustice.

[72.14] `Amongst us are some that submit their wills (to Allah), and some that swerve from justice. Now those who submit
their wills-they have sought out the path of right conduct:

[72.15] `But those who swerve, they are (but) fuel for Hellfire.'-

[72.16] (And Allah's Message is): "If the non-believers had
only remained on the (right) Way, we should certainly have bestowed on them Rain in abundance.

[72.17] "That we might try them by that (means). But if any
turns away from the remembrance of his Lord, he will cause
him to undergo a severe Penalty.

[72.18] "And the places of worship are for Allah (alone) so
invoke not any one along with Allah;

[72.19] "Yet when the devotee of Allah stands forth to invoke him, they just make round him a dense crowd."

[72.20] Say: "I do no more than invoke my Lord, and I join
not with him any false god."

[72.21] Say: "It is not in my power to cause you harm, or to
bring you to right conduct."

[72.22] Say: "No one can deliver me from Allah (If I were to
disobey Him), nor should I find refuge except in Him,

[72.23] "Unless I proclaim what I receive from Allah and
his Messages: for any that disobey Allah and his messenger, for
them is Hell: they shall dwell therein for ever."

[72.24] At length, when they see (with their own eyes) that
which they are promised, then will they know who it is that is
weakest in (his) helper and least important in point of numbers.

[72.25] Say: "I know not whether the (Punishment) which
ye are promised is near, or whether my Lord will appoint for it
a distant term.

[72.26] "He (alone) knows the Unseen, nor does he make
any one acquainted with His Mysteries,-

[72.27] "Except a messenger whom He has chosen: and then
He makes a band of watchers march before and behind him,

[72.28] "That He may know that they have (truly) brought
and delivered the Messages of their Lord: and He surrounds (all
the mysteries) that are with them, and takes account of every
single thing."

Comments: This is a remarkable chapter, for the djinn seem to be
the ones speaking. They make it clear that only the followers of
Iblis are evil and there are many djinn who are Islamic, Christian, and followers of other religions. They also indicate that they have the ability to fly and in the past have often gone up to heaven to eavesdrop on the angels, but then were blocked by "fire" or some type of energy barrier. In the Bible and other Judeo-Christian literature, angels are depicted as being, or being surrounded by, pillars of fire. The cherubim, a high order of angel, wield swords of fire to guard access to the Trees of Life and and Knowledge, and the gates of Eden-in other words, the secrets of heaven.