What is the ruling on seeking the help of the jinn?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : Regarding the jinn, there are two matters in the affair of the jinn. The first question is seeking the help of the jinn. It is known to us that among the jinn there are disbelievers, open sinners, and Muslims. So, is it permissible for a Muslim, if he is able, or if certain matters occur to him and, for example, a Muslim jinn appears to him, to seek his help in some worldly matters? Is it permissible for a Muslim to use this jinn in a matter, just as I would seek the help of my Muslim human brother?
The Shaykh : Of course, it is not permissible. But when you mentioned seeking the help of a Muslim jinn, how do you know that he is Muslim?
The questioner : He says, he says
The Shaykh : And he is unknown to you!
The questioner : Yes!
The Shaykh : And he is unknown to you?
The questioner : Yes, unknown.
The Shaykh : So how do you judge based on the testimony of an unknown person?
The questioner : He means, actually, some of the brothers
The Shaykh : No, I am asking you, the one next to me. Yes! How do you know?
The questioner : I do not know.
The Shaykh : So the question is wrong from its origin. The question remains in its first, general starting point: Is it permissible to seek the help of the jinn or not? The answer is no. As for classifying the jinn, there are two considerations. Classifying the jinn in that there are among them the righteous and the wicked, the believers and the disbelievers, this is correct. This is from the perspective of the unseen reality that is not witnessed by us. As for classifying the jinn with respect to us humans, this classification is lost for us. We cannot say, "So-and-so who is speaking with us is a Muslim jinn, or a disbeliever, or a righteous Muslim jinn, or a wicked Muslim jinn." We cannot issue judgments, because this is a judgment about what is beyond, as they say today, nature, meaning, in the Shari'ah expression, the unseen. We do not know the unseen, and believing in the unknown from what is beyond the unseen, at a time when it is not Shari'ah, is foolishness. Because if a person you do not know at all came to you and said, "I am a trustworthy Muslim man and I want to partner with you," you would not agree to this because you do not know him. And a fortiori, you would not accept the testimony of a person from behind the wall who says to you, "I am a righteous, good Muslim and I will deal with you according to the religion, giving advice," and he is behind the wall. Would a person accept this dealing? What about behind the wall, behind all matter? So the correct question is: Is it permissible to deal with the jinn absolutely? The answer is: It is not permissible absolutely. Everything that is permissible regarding the jinn and humans is only if it is likely that there is a human who is afflicted due to the oppression of a jinn over him. Then some verses are recited over him and he is warned with them, and nothing more than that. This is what is established in the Sunnah. As for the Qur'an, it warns us against seeking the help of the jinn, on the tongue of the believing jinn who came to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), believing in him, and spoke about their reality with words like: [Al-Jinn 72:6] meaning fatigue and misguidance. Therefore, it is not permissible to seek the help of the jinn. And this is the answer to the question.
Another questioner: My Shaykh, regarding the point you mentioned, may Allah reward you with good. My cousin's brother told me about a Shaykh... who works with contractors. He said to him, "I have engineers who are beating me down. This is acceptable, this point. So I want you to make a barrier with something that helps me in my work." This is from his tongue. He spoke with me, this man, the one involved, spoke with me. He said to me, "I told the Shaykh so-and-so. I want, meaning, a barrier that helps me so I can overcome these who work with me, and I sought his help in my work." He said, "Well, what do you think? Shall I give you a jinn who will work with you and make things easy for you?"
The Shaykh : A nice thing.
Another questioner: He said, "He brought this paper and wrote on it and folded it, and said, 'If you want, put it in the tile. Just put it under you and tie it like this.'" They said, "I brought a young man, so small and short in stature." They said, "This is Ahmad. What do you want me to do for you?"
The Shaykh : Allahu Akbar.
Another questioner: He said, "Ahmad came down, short in stature, and he is short. He will tell me, and this one said..."
The Shaykh : This jinn?
Another questioner: This jinn. He said, "If I sleep with you today at work." He said, "What do you want?" They said, "If this engineer is going back and forth." He said, "Well, the engineer is sitting on the chair, and he is idle, and we became like this, at our ease." He said, "What do you want to do?" He said, "I want to work and tire him. Just pull your hand... the jack that lifts the concrete, this requires effort. Four or five strong young men work on it." He said, "I will work on it." He said to him, "Okay." He said, "You put it on it." He said, "They lifted it. Concrete does this for it. And he is the bucket above, to the top of the building, and returns the bucket. They saw it. They said, 'It cannot carry anything with us. It goes with us in the service, it comes with the service.' He said to me, 'Three days with them, I dried up.' He said to me, 'I dried up. I was accompanying him in the service, and in the house, and at work, and in this, for three days. I was afraid of fatigue."
The Shaykh : Dried up means tired.
Another questioner: Because the owner of this jinn saw it in his eye. He said to me, "I went, I want to eat. I went with me at the mixer, with me at the engineers, and every time they said, 'My Shaykh, let me look at him, and he looks at me. Let me, I became in the sun, I ate, and fear crept into me.' And I went to the Shaykh and said to him, 'O Shaykh, aren't you the one who wanted someone to help you? This is his help.' He said to me, 'I do not want him. Let the engineer beat me, and I will bring workers for the concrete, and take him away from me.' They said, 'Okay, bring the paper.' He took the paper and tore it. He lost it. I did not see him, and the routine became normal. He said to me, 'Their problem is a problem like this.' He said, 'This is me. I have spoken with the one who mentions this man to me.' So I will say that dealing with the jinn means difficult.
The Shaykh : Very difficult.
Another questioner: True, Blessed and Exalted is He.
The Shaykh : Of course, it is not permissible. But when you mentioned seeking the help of a Muslim jinn, how do you know that he is Muslim?
The questioner : He says, he says
The Shaykh : And he is unknown to you!
The questioner : Yes!
The Shaykh : And he is unknown to you?
The questioner : Yes, unknown.
The Shaykh : So how do you judge based on the testimony of an unknown person?
The questioner : He means, actually, some of the brothers
The Shaykh : No, I am asking you, the one next to me. Yes! How do you know?
The questioner : I do not know.
The Shaykh : So the question is wrong from its origin. The question remains in its first, general starting point: Is it permissible to seek the help of the jinn or not? The answer is no. As for classifying the jinn, there are two considerations. Classifying the jinn in that there are among them the righteous and the wicked, the believers and the disbelievers, this is correct.
And among us are the transgressors, and among us are others. We were [divided into] sects.
وأنا منا القاسطون ومنا دون ذلك كنا طرائق قدداAnd there were men from mankind who sought refuge in men from the jinn, so they [only] increased them in burden.
وأنه كان رجال من الإنس يعوذون برجال من الجن فزادوهم رهقاAnother questioner: My Shaykh, regarding the point you mentioned, may Allah reward you with good. My cousin's brother told me about a Shaykh... who works with contractors. He said to him, "I have engineers who are beating me down. This is acceptable, this point. So I want you to make a barrier with something that helps me in my work." This is from his tongue. He spoke with me, this man, the one involved, spoke with me. He said to me, "I told the Shaykh so-and-so. I want, meaning, a barrier that helps me so I can overcome these who work with me, and I sought his help in my work." He said, "Well, what do you think? Shall I give you a jinn who will work with you and make things easy for you?"
The Shaykh : A nice thing.
Another questioner: He said, "He brought this paper and wrote on it and folded it, and said, 'If you want, put it in the tile. Just put it under you and tie it like this.'" They said, "I brought a young man, so small and short in stature." They said, "This is Ahmad. What do you want me to do for you?"
The Shaykh : Allahu Akbar.
Another questioner: He said, "Ahmad came down, short in stature, and he is short. He will tell me, and this one said..."
The Shaykh : This jinn?
Another questioner: This jinn. He said, "If I sleep with you today at work." He said, "What do you want?" They said, "If this engineer is going back and forth." He said, "Well, the engineer is sitting on the chair, and he is idle, and we became like this, at our ease." He said, "What do you want to do?" He said, "I want to work and tire him. Just pull your hand... the jack that lifts the concrete, this requires effort. Four or five strong young men work on it." He said, "I will work on it." He said to him, "Okay." He said, "You put it on it." He said, "They lifted it. Concrete does this for it. And he is the bucket above, to the top of the building, and returns the bucket. They saw it. They said, 'It cannot carry anything with us. It goes with us in the service, it comes with the service.' He said to me, 'Three days with them, I dried up.' He said to me, 'I dried up. I was accompanying him in the service, and in the house, and at work, and in this, for three days. I was afraid of fatigue."
The Shaykh : Dried up means tired.
Another questioner: Because the owner of this jinn saw it in his eye. He said to me, "I went, I want to eat. I went with me at the mixer, with me at the engineers, and every time they said, 'My Shaykh, let me look at him, and he looks at me. Let me, I became in the sun, I ate, and fear crept into me.' And I went to the Shaykh and said to him, 'O Shaykh, aren't you the one who wanted someone to help you? This is his help.' He said to me, 'I do not want him. Let the engineer beat me, and I will bring workers for the concrete, and take him away from me.' They said, 'Okay, bring the paper.' He took the paper and tore it. He lost it. I did not see him, and the routine became normal. He said to me, 'Their problem is a problem like this.' He said, 'This is me. I have spoken with the one who mentions this man to me.' So I will say that dealing with the jinn means difficult.
The Shaykh : Very difficult.
Another questioner: True, Blessed and Exalted is He.