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Spirit possession and exorcism in Islam
Islamic healing from demon and jinn intrusion

In Islam, belief in supernatural entities like jinn and demons is widespread and culturally significant, explaining phenomena such as illness, wealth, and social status. Jinn are believed to possess people or places, with exorcism (called ruqya in Arabic) practiced to expel these spirits. Exorcists, known as raqi, perform rituals addressing both benevolent and malevolent forces. In Islamic tradition, devils (shayṭān) target the heart (qalb), trying to lead individuals astray. Contrary to some views, belief in witchcraft, magic, and spirits is common across all social classes in the Muslim world, reflecting a deep integration of the supernatural in society and religion.

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Possession in Islam

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.9 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.10

Mental disorders, such as epilepsy, forgetfulness, schizophrenia,11 lack of energy, and morbid fears, are often attributed to demonic-possessions and witchcraft.12 Yet, not all mental-illnesses are attributed to demons, rather demons are believed to cause such symptoms.13: 54  Belief in Jinn-possession is not only prevalent in Middle-Eastern countries, such as Saudi Arabia,14 but also among Muslims in Great Britain.15 Belief in demonic possession also prevails among educated people.161718

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.19 In that case, the possessed by perform a trance dance (hadra) in order to renew their covenant with their personal jinni.20 In context of Swahili culture, jinn possession may be used for healing purposes.21 Such possessions are to be distinguished from cultural concepts of possession by demons.222324

Possessing spirits

According to the Islamic view on possession, a corrupted soul (nafs) increases suspectibility (dha'iyfah)25 to possession by evils spirits. Among them are jinn and devils.26272829 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.30

The jinn can be good or evil and inflict act autonomously or inflict harm when enslaved through magic.313233 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.34 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.3536 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.37

Devils (pl.: شَيَاطِين shayāṭīn) assault their victims by whisperings (وَسْوَسَة waswasa), which is spiritually, rather than possessing them physically.38 The devils' sole purpose is to lure both humans and jinn into sinful activities, both minor ones and major ones.3940 Paradoxically, suspectibility to the devils also increase with piety, since the devils are more engaged to corrupt a pure soul than a tainted one.4142

Ruqyā (exorcism)

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".43

Exorcisms are performed by qualified a Raqi or a saint (darvish) who has been blessed by God (barakah).44 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.45

For preparations, distractions, such as pictures, music, and golden jewelry, are removed to enable angels to enter.46 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.4748 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.49 If the jinni is willing to negotiate, some healers make attempts to convince them to convert to Islam.50

Some traditions request aid from good jinn (muwakkal) to negotiate with the possessing spirit.5152

See also

Citations

Bibliography

  • 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.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)

References

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  2. Magic and Divination in Early Islam. (2021). Vereinigtes Königreich: Taylor & Francis. ↩

  3. 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 https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_ei3_COM_26268 ↩

  4. Wehr, Hans. Dictionary of Arabic (PDF). p. 302. Retrieved 8 March 2024. https://giftsofknowledge.files.wordpress.com/2016/01/hans-wehr-searchable-pdf.pdf ↩

  5. Amira El-Zein, Islam, Arabs and the Intelligent World of the Jinn (Syracuse: Syracuse University Press, 2009), p. x. ↩

  6. Maʻrūf, Muḥammad. Jinn Eviction as a Discourse of Power: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Modern Morrocan 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. 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. Dein, Simon, and Abdool Samad Illaiee. "Jinn and mental health: looking at jinn possession in modern psychiatric practice." The Psychiatrist 37.9 (2013): 291. ↩

  10. 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 http://www.jstor.org/stable/25802775 ↩

  11. 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. /wiki/Doi_(identifier) ↩

  12. Dein, Simon, and Abdool Samad Illaiee. "Jinn and mental health: looking at jinn possession in modern psychiatric practice." The Psychiatrist 37.9 (2013): 291. ↩

  13. Rassool (2015). - Rassool, G. Hussein (2015). Islamic Counselling: An Introduction to theory and practice. New York: Routledge. ISBN 978-1-317-44124-3. ↩

  14. Obeid, Tahir, et al. "Possession by ‘Jinn’as a cause of epilepsy (Saraa): a study from Saudi Arabia." Seizure 21.4 (2012): 245-249. ↩

  15. Khalifa, Najat, and Tim Hardie. "Possession and jinn." Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine 98.8 (2005): 352. ↩

  16. Obeid, Tahir, et al. "Possession by ‘Jinn’as a cause of epilepsy (Saraa): a study from Saudi Arabia." Seizure 21.4 (2012): 245-249. ↩

  17. 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 /wiki/Doi_(identifier) ↩

  18. 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 https://doi.org/10.1177/00846724231225675 ↩

  19. Maʻrūf, Muḥammad. Jinn Eviction as a Discourse of Power: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Modern Morrocan Magical Beliefs and Practices. Vol. 8. Brill, 2007. p. 2 ↩

  20. Maʻrūf, Muḥammad. Jinn Eviction as a Discourse of Power: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Modern Morrocan Magical Beliefs and Practices. Vol. 8. Brill, 2007. p. 2 ↩

  21. Kim, Caleb C. "Jinn Possession and Uganga (Healing) among the Swahili." p. 71-72 ↩

  22. Al-Krenawi & Graham (1997), p. 211. - 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. https://doi.org/10.1023%2FA%3A1025714626136 ↩

  23. Rassool (2015). - Rassool, G. Hussein (2015). Islamic Counselling: An Introduction to theory and practice. New York: Routledge. ISBN 978-1-317-44124-3. ↩

  24. Bulkeley, Adams & Davis (2009). - 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. ↩

  25. 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 http://www.jstor.org/stable/25802775 ↩

  26. Barbera, Gerardo. "People of the Wind." Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society 31.3 (2021): 421-432. ↩

  27. Khan, S. (18 Nov. 2024). Spirit of the Mind. Leiden, Niederlande: Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004719033 p. 35 https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004719033 ↩

  28. 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. https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Alean+Al-Krenawi+and+John+Graham+Social+work+and+Koranic+mental+health+healers+International+Social+Work+1999&hl=en&as_sdt=0&as_vis=1&oi=scholart#d=gs_qabs&u=%23p%3DAkuutJBIk6sJ ↩

  29. 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. https://doi.org/10.1192%2Fpb.bp.113.042721 ↩

  30. Khan, S. (18 Nov. 2024). Spirit of the Mind. Leiden, Niederlande: Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004719033 p. 35 https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004719033 ↩

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  34. Bulkeley, Adams & Davis (2009). - 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. ↩

  35. 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 http://www.jstor.org/stable/25802775 ↩

  36. Větrovec, Lukáš. "Curse, Possession and Other Worlds: Magic and Witchcraft among the Bosniaks." p. 79 ↩

  37. Maʻrūf, Muḥammad. Jinn Eviction as a Discourse of Power: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Modern Morrocan Magical Beliefs and Practices. Vol. 8. Brill, 2007. p. 2 ↩

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  39. Meldon (1908), pp. 123–146. - Meldon, J.A. (1908). "Notes on the Sudanese in Uganda". Journal of the Royal African Society. 7 (26): 123–146. JSTOR 715079. https://www.jstor.org/stable/715079 ↩

  40. Sells (1996), p. 143. - Sells, Michael Anthony (1996). Early Islamic Mysticism: Sufi, Qurʼan, Miraj, Poetic and Theological Writings. Paulist Press. p. 143. ISBN 978-0-809-13619-3. ↩

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