Who is iblis in islam

This is a transcript from the video series Why Evil Exists. Watch it now, Wondrium. It seems inappropriate to Iblis that he should lower himself below something that was made of clay since he was made of fire.

Furthermore, another picture, another dimension, of evil here: Iblis does not, per se, act; Iblis refuses to act. He does not bow down. These show a couple of different dimensions of evil in Islamic accounts that are worth noting. First of all, the paradoxical dimension of it: Evil is clearly something that is done by people, but it can also be seen as something that happens to them.

Many people who have done evil acts often report their deeds as effectively things they had to do; compelled to do. Effectively, then, action of this sort looks ambivalently like it was done, but also like it happened without an agent.

In the Islamic tradition, Satan himself is only ambiguously a personal agent. But at other times, Iblis, the satanic energies, seems more like an impersonal force; a power in the cosmos that humans experience as preying on their weakness and seducing them.

Learn more about the origins of Evil. Questions of responsibility are enormously complicated here, but they seem inescapable in these traditions. Now, that I have delivered his message to you Prophet of Allah, you should hire me. I have also heard him reciting a great verse that my tongue kept repeating. There is no god but He, of a surety. He will gather you together on the Day of Judgment.

Both the eagle and Solomon prayed to Allah at that moment. When the eagle looked up Solomon made him the king of birds. It was also reported that a sparrow landed in front of Solomon and greeted him in three languages; the language of Adam and those of Noah and Abraham.

It said: Oh, Prophet of Allah! I am the one whom Noah had chosen and carried with him on his ark. All the sparrows in the world are my offspring. You will meet one of my grandchildren whose kingdom is like mine. Allah will make birds, wild animals, lions and Jinns obey his orders. When you meet him, give him my regards. Let me tell you of a chapter that only your father Abraham had heard. So I came to him and was able to win his trust.

He taught me that chapter. Do you like to hear it? Solomon talked to the raven next. The raven said: Oh, Prophet of Allah! He taught you things that you had never known before. My color was changed because of. I met your father Adam who prayed for me to have a long life. I heard your father recite a verse from his books and all the spiritual angels nodded in agreement. Jibriil disappeared for an hour, and came back with two bay oxen, some equipment, a hammer and a blower. He put every thing in front of Adam, and then disappeared for another hour.

When he came back he brought with him this time a spark from hell. The spark flew a way and fell into the sea. Jibriil extended his hand, grabbed the spark and gave it back to Adam once again. For seven times the spark flew a way and Jibriil brought it back.

I am not going to feed you, and on the Day of Judgment I will take revenge on anyone of your children who had disobeyed Allah. Jibriil said to Adam: It will not obey you, but you have to keep it for it has so many benefits for you and your children. Therefore, Adam put the fire inside the stones and the iron. After showing Adam how to make a plough out of iron, Jibriil brought three wheat seeds and said: OK, Adam! Two seeds for you and one for Eve. That is why when it comes to inheritance men in Islam get twice the share of women.

Every seed weighed something like 3. Adam asked: What do I do with them? Jibriil said: Take them! You were kicked out of paradise because of them; they will satisfy your hunger and use them for your sustenance. They will help you and your children survive disturbances and hard times. Jibriil ordered Adam to break pieces of wood, put them around the two oxen, and plow the ground. Adam was the first to plow! The oxen cried as a resultof that hard labor, and remembered the easy life they had in paradise.

When their tears hit the ground they became peas, which began to grow. When the peas grow up they produced lintel. Adam broke up the three wheat seeds into small pieces to increase the number and spread them in his field. Soon the wheat plants began to grow. As soon as the wheat plants started to grow up Adam asked Jibriil if he could eat it them. Jibriil responded that Adam had to wait until they grow spikes.

When spikes began to show Adam repeated his question. Jibriil said that he should wait until the spikes fully grown. A few weeks later Adam asked if it was time to eat, Jibriil told him that he had to harvest first. When Adam finished his harvest he and Eve sat down to eat, but Jibriil told them that they needed to step over the ears to separate the seeds.

They did so and thought it was the time to eat finally. Jibriil recommended that they had to grind and sift next. Adam did that, spread the bran in his field and barley plants started to grow up. Jibriil showed Adam how to make dough from the flour. He instructed him to dig a hole in the ground, collect dry branches inside the hole and start a fire. He showed him how to spread the dough over the fire to make bread. When that was done, Adam asked if it was time to eat, Jibriil told him to wait until the bread became cold.

Finally Adam was able to eat, but he began to cry. He asked: Oh Adam, all this labor was only for making bread? Jibriil said: This is what Allah has destined for you for eternity. Therefore, the exposed private parts became shameful. Adam and Eve ran to trees for cover. All trees began to run a way from them except the fig tree which stopped and let them collect some of its leaves with which they covered themselves.

The other trees were surprised and asked the fig tree why it did that. The fig tree said: I learned from the Lord how to be generous. He never stopped talking about Adam. I believe that honoring Adam by mentioning his name was more important than my leaves.

Can you imagine the honor He will bestow on someone for helping an individual that He has chosen? So, when Adam landed on earth covered with fig leaves wild animals came to greet him. Deer was the first to show up.

Adam took a piece of leaf and fed it to the deer. The deer became musk. Adam fed them with the fig leaves but they did not turn to musk. They complained to him why the deer was different. Adam did not have an answer so he turned to Jibriil for an explanation.

Jibriil said: The deer came to greet you and got your blessings. The other animals came, but they had their own motivation. He was kicked out just before the sunset. Therefore, he stayed in heaven for eighty three years. They also said that after Adam landed on earth Allah inspired him to take a pilgrimage trip to His house in Mekka and spent a week performing all the rituals.

Allah sent Jibriil to show Adam the way to Mekka. When Adam got there and his eyed captured the scene of the old house they were filled with tears. He spent a whole week crying while ambulating around it. He began to wade through his own tears. He threw the stones and performed the rituals. He went back to Mekka to conclude his ambulating.

Once he was done, the angels met him in Makka and wished him that Allah would accept his pilgrimage. They also told him that they had been ambulating around the old house two thousand years prior to his creation. He said to him: Now that Allah has forgiven you and promised to let you go back to paradise later, why do you cry? Adam handed him a piece of paper with a few lines of poetry written in Arabic. They read like this:. As you see from this strange story, our mother Eve was the reason why Adam was exiled from Paradise.

She was the first to eat from the forbidden tree, and she was the one who tempted him to eat, as well. Of course, all of that was their fate that was determined for them by Allah. He did that because of a woman, their sister. Some of them would be jealous of him and would plan and extend their hands to murder him. He was banished in this world and the hereafter. Prophet Mohammed was asked to tell the true story so that people would consider and remember. That way, they would not believe some silly stories that were circulated for pleasure purposes.

She gave birth five hundred times. The first twin was Cain and his sister Iqliima. After two years she gave birth to Abel and his sister Leoda. Abel agreed to such an arrangement, but Cain refused to marry Leoda.

He would not agree that his sister Iqliima, the more attractive than Leoda, would marry Abel. Adam suggested that each of the boys should offer a sacrifice. The one whose sacrifice was accepted would marry Iqliima. Abel took a fat heifer and milk and butter from the best of his sheep, while Cain took the worst grain spikes from his farm. They headed to the top of the mountain. On the way, Cain said to himself that he would not care if Allah accepted his sacrifice or not!

Abel would never marry Iqliima. They went down the mountain, but each went his way. A few hours later Cain approached his brother while he was attending his sheep.

They each presented a sacrifice to Allah. It was accepted from one, but not from the other. Al-Saddy said that Cain was older than Abel. When Adam was planning to go outside Mekka for some business, he asked heaven to take care of his family and children. Heaven declined. So, Adam turned to earth then mountains, but both declined.

The story was reported in the. Cain was a farmer and Abel was a herder. So, Cain gathered and took some grain spikes and Abel picked up one of his fat rams. A fire came down from heaven and took the ram and left the grain spikes behind. Cain was filled with jealousy and said that he would kill his brother. Abel contended himself by saying that Allah had accepted the sacrifice of the one who was righteous.

When choosing to give a sacrifice one has to be careful that that sacrifice should be something worthwhile and dear to those who gave it. Therefore, Cain became an infidel. Abel was told that he truly feared Allah and would not do any action that is forbidden.

While Abel was sleeping his brother approached and smashed his head with a big stone. However, Ibn YaHiya said that Cain was just responding to his jealous soul. Al-Kalbi said Cain was led or was made bold to commit his act. So, he killed his brother and became a loser; meaning that he would loose this world and the hereafter.

He made his father mad, killed his brother and made Allah angry. So, he headed to Hell. In another story, Cain did not know how to kill. Therefore, Iblis came to him in a form of a bird. That bird took another bird and cut off its head. Then he took the head, put it between two stones and crashed it.

Cain had decided to kill his brother. He took off and found his brother sleeping in the shade of the mountain while his sheep were grazing. Therefore, Abel was the first victim of murder on earth. Prophet Mohammed said that no soul should be victimized by aggression. Ali Ibn al-Hasan said that Allah assigned two angels to guard Cain following the murder of his brother. The two angels kept watch on him from sunrise until sunset. They would give him warm water when the sun was hot.

That would last till the Day of Judgment. Trees would carry thorns, fruits became sour, water became bitter and the earth surface became dusty. Adam took off to India repeating to himself the following stanza of Arabic poetry:.

However, when the murder took place wild animals became shy of humans, the wind blew up and the atmosphere became dark. Adam was performing his pilgrimage when he noticed that.

He said to Jibriil: What is going on? Adam cried and never laughed for the next hundred years. It was also said that he had not touched Eve after that crime. Qataada said that a raven killed another raven and began to cover it with dirt. Only Allah knows the truth. I am not even as smart as a raven. Ibn Munabbih, however, said that Cain carried the body of his brother for three days without knowing what to do with it, until Allah sent him the raven. They were punished for their crimes, regardless.

He quoted the story of those who worshipped the calf and regretted that. They were punished by being led to commit suicide. Forgiveness for showing repentance was a privilege only granted to Muslims. It was reported that when he killed his brother, Cain was told that he would.

He would think that anyone he met had intentions to kill him. It was mentioned that his face turned black. Out of fear, Cain took off aimlessly. Anyone who saw him would cast a stone at him. One of his children saw him and threw a stone at him and killed him.

It was said that Allah had ordered the wind to carry him to the hottest spot on earth so that he would suffer during summer. Then the wind would carry Cain to the coldest spot so that he would suffer during winter time. It was also mentioned that Iblis came to him in a form of a human being. Mohammed Ibn Ali al-Tarmathy said that Cain was created from the power of a seed from the fruit that Adam ate from the forbidden tree. That is why the boy was born corrupt.

Cain would be in Hell forever, together with Iblis. Show us those among Jinns and men, who misled us. We shall crush them beneath our feet so that they become the vilest. This account was reported in the interpretations of al-Imaam al-Nasfi. Therefore the question of an angel disobeying Allah does not arise.

This further supplements that Iblis was a Jinn and not an angel. Advanced Search. Jinns have free will and can disobey Allah Secondly, Jinns have a free will and may or may not obey Allah, but angels have no free will and always obey Allah.

Rate Article. Most read Today Week Month.