The Soorah starts with a command to the Prophet to recite it to the Makkans so they might re-think their attitude towards the Qur-aan in the light of the Jinns’ reaction to it. The opening of the story indicates that the Prophet did not see the Jinns, nor did he know that the Jinns were listening or that they had believed in the message, until he was informed by this revelation. There was no direct contact or communication between the Prophet ŝall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam and the Jinns. Expressly stating this fact was necessary because some of the Makkans were already speculating that the Prophet ŝall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam was getting his “revelations” from Jinns, just as they presumed that what soothsayers presented as fortune-telling was on the basis of the communications coming from Jinns.

1 Let people know: It has been revealed to me that after a band of Jinns happened to listen attentively to the Qur-aan, they told their folks that:

* “We have indeed heard an amazing Recital (the Qur-aan) 2 that guides to the right course; so we have believed in it and, henceforth, we will never associate anyone with our Lord.

* 3 Exalted is the Majesty of our Lord; He has taken neither a wife nor a son.

The first thing that struck them was the exquisite beauty of the Qur-aan. It indicates that the Jinns had expert knowledge of the language of the area where they resided. They were sensible, rational and open-minded. They did not react emotionally or defensively. The message made sense so they accepted it right away without hesitation. It appears that they used to believe in some religion that had a notion of Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta’aala having a family. Listening to the Qur-aan, they discovered its falsehood and clearly understood that Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta’aala is infinite, far above and beyond any need to have a family. They not only corrected their own views and beliefs in the light of the teachings of the Qur-aan, they conveyed the correct beliefs to their folks as well.

* 4 The foolish one among them has been saying outrageously false things about Allaah.

* 5 We had thought that no human being or Jinn would speak a lie against Allaah.

They had associated partners with Allaah in the past because of what they were told and they had accepted it on the assumption that human beings or Jinns would not dare to lie about Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta’aala. After listening to the Qur-aan, it dawned on them how stupid and dishonest some of their fellow Jinns had been who had been misleading them by saying such outrageous lies about Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta’aala. Verse 4 talks about one “foolish one”. The way the phrase is constructed in Arabic, it can be used for one single person or a group. If it is taken to mean a single person, it will refer to Iblees; as a group, it will refer to the group of Jinns who promoted wrong views about Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta’aala.

This was the stupidity of Jinns; the next two verses talk about the stupidity of human beings.

* 6 Some human men have been invoking the protection of men from the jinn, so they increased them in their troubles.[1]

* 7 They had thought, as you thought, that Allaah would not raise anyone.

Despite being vicegerents of Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta’aala on earth, people seek refuge of the Jinns. This weakness on the part of human beings encouraged Jinns to cause them more trouble. Arabs used to make sacrifices and offerings on the suggestion of their soothsayers to avoid trouble from and to seek approval of a mischievous Jinn. They also used to seek the refuge of the chief Jinn of the area when they had to spend a night in a deserted place. The more they fell into this trap of doing things to please the Jinns, the more they were expected to do next time. Thus, their troubles kept on increasing, instead of being alleviated.

The second human folly, which they shared with Jinns, was their disbelief in Allaah’s raising everyone on the Day of Judgment.[2]

* 8 We sought to reach the heaven but found it filled with stern guards and shooting stars (meteors). 9 We used to sit in some of the sitting-places thereof to steal a hearing, but whoever eavesdrops now finds a shooting star lurking for him.

* 10 We do not know whether ill is intended for those on earth, or whether their Lord intends for them a right course.

They referred to what all Jinns had noticed in terms of the increase in surveillance of the heavens and the increase in meteor activity that barred them from flying high into the sky or sit at certain venues to hear and observe in order to guess what was going on. Because of the increased security, they could not even go to the places they were able to go in the past. They knew that an increase in security used to happen only for two reasons: Either some nation was going to be destroyed or new guidance was to be sent to some nation. However, they did not know which the case was. When they listened to the Qur-aan, they then understood the reason for the tightened security. For Arabs, there was a lesson to understand that Jinn did not have any direct knowledge at all of any future affairs, and therefore, could clearly not be helpful to the soothsayers in their soothsaying.

* 11 Some of us are righteous while others of us are quite the opposite of that; we follow divergent paths.

* 12 We have realized that we cannot outrun Allaah in the earth, nor can we escape Him by fleeing in the heaven.

* 13 When we listened to the Guidance, we believed in it; so whoever believes in his Lord needs not fear about being short-changed or being wronged.

They acknowledged how there were all kinds of good, bad, believing and disbelieving persons among them. Naturally, all of them could not have the same end after death. As for them, they realized the power and authority of Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta’aala. Fearing Allaah, they could not insist on their misguided notions after finding the Truth. Hence they believed in it. Believing in Islam is a winning proposition. A believer will be rewarded justly and kindly.

This was their invitation to their fellow Jinns so that they, like them, also embrace the guidance. After this invitation and encouragement, they conclude their discourse by reminding their folks:

* 14 Some of us are Muslims (submitting to Allaah obediently) while others are deviant; so whoever has submitted, they have sought out the right course.

* 15 And as for the deviant, they will be the fuel for Hell.”

A question may be raised concerning how the Fire of Hell can be a punishment for Jinns who themselves are created from it. The reality is that it is not the elements making up a living entity that feel pain; it is the living being that suffers pain. Human beings are made of earthly elements, but we feel pain as living beings, not as amino acids, fatty acids, calcium, iron, water, etc that came from the earth.

Foot Notes

[1] Translation based on the Tafseer of Amin Ahsan Islahi, who thinks that “Rahaqaa” means problems and troubles, and cannot mean arrogance or that type of attitude. According to him “they” is for Jinns and “them” is for human beings, indicating that the naughty or evil Jinns increase the trouble they cause to those human beings who ignorantly seek refuge of them.

[2] This implies that there were both human beings and Jinns who disbelieved in the Hereafter. This is quite understandable that there will be disbelievers in the Hereafter from both of the creatures. This is also relevant because at the time of the revelation of this Soorah, belief in the Hereafter was the focus of the revelations. Some people interpret this verse to mean that “Allaah will not send a messenger” implying that none of them ever believed that a messenger of Allaah will be sent to them. This meaning is inappropriate because there was no need or relevance for Jinns to have an opinion about the advent of the Prophet. The Prophet ŝall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam’s advent was relevant only to human beings. As for human beings, the Arabs have been quoted in Al-An‘aam saying that if a prophet was sent to them they would be better in following the guidance offered by him. This indicates that they had some expectation or want to have a prophet in their midst, although the idea may not have been that crystallized.