Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Witchcraft and the Occult: Difference between revisions

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→‎Magic: Have added some more Qur'anic magic verses, and academic quotes to further improve this section.
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(→‎Magic: Added verses with magic in ancient Egypt)
(→‎Magic: Have added some more Qur'anic magic verses, and academic quotes to further improve this section.)
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4. <b> And from the evil of those who blow on knots </b>  
4. <b> And from the evil of those who blow on knots </b>  
5. And from the evil of the envious when he envies}}
5. And from the evil of the envious when he envies}}
And verse 113:5 (evil of the envious when he envies) is believed to be referring to the 'The Evil Eye'.
And verse 113:5 (evil of the envious when he envies) is believed to be referring to the 'The Evil Eye'.<ref>See tafsirs on [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/113.5 ''verse 113:5'']</ref>
 
Emran El-Badawi (2024)<ref>El-Badawi, Emran. Female Divinity in the Qur’an: In Conversation with the Bible and the Ancient Near East (p. 147 - 155). Springer Nature Switzerland. 2024. Kindle Edition.
 
A PDF of the relevant pages can be read on an r/AcademicQuran post: ''[https://www.reddit.com/r/AcademicQuran/comments/1f0auhr/the_historical_context_of_surahs_113_and_114/ The historical context of Surahs 113 and 114].'' </ref> notes its link with previous superstitions around magic, with both the Qur'anic surah's 113 and 114 belonging to a genre of popular literature centered around magic protection from higher powers, which was prevalent in antiquity. The amulet, like many other magical artifacts from that time, includes invocations of multiple divinities or angels to maximize protection, a practice common in Syriac and Greco-Egyptian traditions, and there have been early Islamic papyri found as small amulets with these surah on.<ref>Ibid. pp. 152.</ref> However these Qur'anic amulets/phrases are distinct in their strict monotheism, invoking only the one God, unlike the multiple deities in earlier traditions. El-Badawi (2024) draws a link between these apotropaic readings and the protective role they play, emphasizing that the Qur'anic Surahs maintain a connection with this ancient tradition of seeking divine protection through sacred texts.


At least once, angels ([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harut_and_Marut#:~:text=Harut%20and%20Marut%20(Arabic%3A%20%D9%87%D9%8E%D8%A7%D8%B1%D9%8F%D9%88%D9%92%D8%AA,Babylon%20and%20teach%20humans%20magic. Harut and Marut] are named in this verse) and satans (believed to be jinn) teach humans magic:
At least once, angels ([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harut_and_Marut#:~:text=Harut%20and%20Marut%20(Arabic%3A%20%D9%87%D9%8E%D8%A7%D8%B1%D9%8F%D9%88%D9%92%D8%AA,Babylon%20and%20teach%20humans%20magic. Harut and Marut] are named in this verse) and satans (believed to be jinn) teach humans magic:
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|102}}|and they follow what the Satans recited over Solomon's kingdom. Solomon disbelieved not, but the Satans disbelieved, <b>teaching the people sorcery,</b> and that which was sent down upon Babylon's two angels, Harut and Marut; they taught not any man, without they said, 'We are but a temptation; do not disbelieve.' From them they learned how they might divide a man and his wife, yet they did not hurt any man thereby, save by the leave of God, and they learned what hurt them, and did not profit them, knowing well that whoso buys it shall have no share in the world to come; evil then was that they sold themselves for, if they had but known.}}And pharaoh has wizards in his employ in ancient Egypt, who's magic is overthrown by Moses's.
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|102}}|and they follow what the Satans recited over Solomon's kingdom. Solomon disbelieved not, but the Satans disbelieved, <b>teaching the people sorcery,</b> and that which was sent down upon Babylon's two angels, Harut and Marut; they taught not any man, without they said, 'We are but a temptation; do not disbelieve.' From them they learned how they might divide a man and his wife, yet they did not hurt any man thereby, save by the leave of God, and they learned what hurt them, and did not profit them, knowing well that whoso buys it shall have no share in the world to come; evil then was that they sold themselves for, if they had but known.}}This verse also seems to imply that Jews would also perform this magic.
{{Quote|Sinai, Nicolai. Key Terms of the Qur'an: A Critical Dictionary (p. 187). Princeton University Press. Kindle Edition.|An even more unequivocal Qur’anic rejection of magic—which can for present purposes be defined as the attempt to coerce superhuman powers other than God into serving human interests—emerges from an isolated Medinan resonance of the theme of Solomon’s association with powerful spirits. This is found in Q 2:102, containing the only Medinan reference to “the devils” (al-shayāṭīn) in the plural (see QP 193–196). Taken together with the preceding verse, Q 2:101, the passage accuses the Israelites (who are addressed from v. 83 onwards) of discarding “God’s scripture” in favour of “that which the devils recited during the reign of Solomon.”<sup>22</sup> “That which the devils recited” is sorcery, and by indicting the Israelites for preferring sorcery over revelation the verse polemically exploits what Crone calls the “well-attested phenomenon” of Jewish magic (QP 194–195).}}
At least some Jinn appear to have magic powers able to transport King Solomon several hundred miles from Israel to Yemen in the blink of an eye.<ref>Maududi - Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi - Tafhim al-Qur'an [https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Maududi/27.38 (Tafsir on verses 27:38-14)] </ref>
{{Quote|{{Quran|27|38-40}}|38. He said: O chiefs! Which of you will bring me her [the queen of Sheba's] throne before they come unto me, surrendering?
39. A stalwart of the jinn said: I will bring it thee before thou canst rise from thy place. Lo! I verily am strong and trusty for such work.
40. The one who had knowledge of the Book said, ‘I will bring it to you in the twinkling of an eye.’ So when he saw it set near him, he said, ‘This is by the grace of my Lord, to test me if I will give thanks or be ungrateful. Whoever gives thanks, gives thanks only for his own sake. And whoever is ungrateful [should know that] my Lord is indeed all-sufficient, all-generous.’}}
And pharaoh has wizards in his employ in ancient Egypt, who's magic is overthrown by Moses's.
{{Quote|{{Quran|7|109-120}}|Said the Council of the people of Pharaoh, 'Surely this man is a cunning sorcerer
{{Quote|{{Quran|7|109-120}}|Said the Council of the people of Pharaoh, 'Surely this man is a cunning sorcerer
who desires to expel you from your land; what do you command?'
who desires to expel you from your land; what do you command?'
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