The Jinns’ Love for the Prophet ﷺ

The Jinns’ Love for the Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم

Mawlana Sayyid Imran Akhtar Attari Madani

Not only humans but all living creatures, inanimate objects, angels, and jinn are moved with love and affection for the Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم . Due to being legally bound by Islamic law just like humans, many jinn accepted Islam and shared its message with others. According to the exegeses of Quran, 46:29-32 and 28:1-2, the early Muslim jinn embraced Islam after listening to the Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم recite the Quran. With this new faith firmly in their hearts, they returned to share the Islamic call with their respective nations. Remember, various groups of jinns went to the court of the Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم , listened to the Quran and accepted Islam. Mufti Ahmad Yar Khan Naeemi رَحْمَةُ الـلّٰـهِ عَلَيْه writes that there were two such incidents: the one mentioned in the Quran (Surah Jinn) and another.^[1]

Aside from accepting Islam, there are many incidents in which the jinn displayed their love and loyalty for the Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم . There are occasions where the jinn would go to the Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم to settle a matter.^[2]  When they arrived before the Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم , they would ask for food for the return journey, and the Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم would oblige their wishes.^[3]  The great grandson of Iblis, Hāma, who repented at the hands of Sayyidunā Nūḥ عَـلَيْـهِ الـسَّـلَام and accompanied many Prophets عَـلَـيْـهِمُ الـصَّلٰوةُ وَالـسَّـلَام , conveyed the greetings of Sayyidunā ʿĪsā عَـلَيْـهِ الـسَّـلَام to the Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم and asked the Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم to teach him the Quran. The Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم taught him some chapters and encouraged him to visit again in the future.^[4]  

During the Migration, the jinns sung praises of the beloved Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم and Sayyidunā Abū Bakr. They would commemorate the birth of the Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم and praise him in such a way that the enemies of Islam would be troubled. Here are some faith-inspiring incidents in relation to the love that the jinn expressed for the noble Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم .

The Jinn Commemorating the Prophet’s Birth

Sayyidunā ʿAbd al-Raḥmān b. ʿAwf رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ reports that when the Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم was born, the jinn climbed mount Abū Qubays and the Ḥajūn mountains and called out. The jinn on the mountains of Ḥajūn said, “I swear that no woman was ever blessed with an honour like the one that Āmina has received. No woman has given birth to a child of such rank, eminence, and nobility. Aḥmad صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم is the most superior among all tribes. It is necessary to respect and honour the mother and her son.”

The jinn on mount Abū Qubays exclaimed, “Residents of Makkah! Do not make a mistake in accepting reality. The tribe of Banū Zahra is from your lineage and is still with you today. Show me a woman from the people of this lineage or from elsewhere who has given birth to a child as pure as the noble Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم .”^[5]

The Jinn Recognised the Prophet’s Prophethood

When the Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم began openly inviting people to Islam, the disbelievers were enraged. They hatched a plan to convince their community that he was liar and a sorcerer. A man named Walīd was asked to give his thoughts on the matter, but he asked for them to wait for three days, and went home. He had two idols cast from gold and silver sitting on chairs, clad in valuable jewellery and clothes. He worshipped them continuously for three days before asking, “For the sake of my worship, tell me, is Muhammad truthful or not?” At that moment, a satanic jinn entered the idol and said, “Muhammad is not a prophet; do not believe him.” Thus, Walīd became happy and told the disbelievers what the idol had said.

These wicked people prepared a gathering and invited the Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم . They also decorated their idols in expensive clothes. The Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم attended with Sayyidunā Ibn Masʿūd رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ . The disbelievers prostrated to their idols. Walīd said, “My dear idol! Tell me what you think about Muhammad.” The idol spoke ill of the noble Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم , so he left. On the way back, he saw a rider dressed in green, holding a sword dripping with blood. The rider dismounted his horse and greeted the Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم with great respect.

He said: “My name is Muhin b. Abhar, and my home is on mount Sinai. I accepted Islam during the time of Sayyidunā Nuḥ عَـلَيْـهِ الـسَّـلَام . When I returned home from my journey, my wife was crying and told me that a jinn named Musfir disparaged you, so immediately, I set out to take revenge. Finding him between Safa and Marwa, I decapitated him. Here is his head, and he is lying there dead in the form of a dog.” Upon hearing this, the Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم became happy.

When the disbelievers gathered again the next day, they decorated the same idol called Habal and prostrated to it. They asked it to speak ill of the Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم . Thus, Muhin entered the idol after receiving permission from the noble Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم and said: “People of Makkah! Muhammad صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم is truthful. His speech and religion are true. He invites you to leave falsehood and accept the true faith. You and your idols are false. You are misguided and misguide others. If you do not accept the faith of Muhammad, Hell will be your eternal abode on the Day of Judgement. So, believe in Muhammad صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم , who is the Messenger of Allah and the best of His creation.” The disbelievers were infuriated. Abū Jahl threw the idol to the ground before casting it into a fire. On the other hand, the Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم was extremely happy and named the jinn ʿAbdullah.^[6]