Shayāṭīn ( ; ) refers to a class of evil spirits in Islam, inciting humans and jinn to sin by whispering ( ) in their hearts ( ). According to Islamic tradition, though invisible to humans, shayāṭīn are imagined to be ugly and grotesque creatures created from the fires of hell.
The Quran speaks of various ways the shayāṭīn tempt humans into sin. They may teach sorcery, float below the heavens to steal the news of the angels, or lurk near humans without being seen. Several hadith tell of how the shayāṭīn are responsible for various calamities that affect personal life. Both the hadith literature and Arab folklore usually speak of the shayāṭīn in abstract terms, describing their evil influence only. According to hadith, during Ramadan they are said to be chained up.
In Islamic theology, the influence of the shayāṭīn on humans is elaborated as an internal struggle against the noble angels, often described in the invisible reality called alam al-mithal or alam al-malakut. On a narrative perspective, Islamic traditions disagrees whether the shayāṭīn are simply misguided jinn, or a separate class of being. The latter position often identifies them with the terrestrial angels who defied Adam as a governor of Earth and become enemies of mankind.
Etymology and history The term shayāṭīn roughly corresponds to the English words "demons", "satans", or "devils".Mehmet Yavuz Seker Beware! Satan: Strategy of Defense Tughra Books 2008 page 3 The Arabic term šayṭān originated from the triliteral root š-ṭ-n ("distant, astray") and is cognate to Satan. It has a theological connotation designating a creature distant from the divine mercy.Mustafa ÖZTÜRK The Tragic Story of Iblis (Satan) in the Qur’an Çukurova University,Faculty of Divinity JOURNAL OF ISLAMIC RESEARCH İslam Araştırmaları Vol 2 No 2 December 2009 page 134 As a spirit, it can refer both to pre-Islamic jinn as well as satans comparable to the Jewish tradition.Tritton, A. S. (2012). S̲h̲aiṭān. In Various Authors & Editors (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam First Edition Online. Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/2214-871X_ei1_SIM_5297
In pre-Islamic usage, the term is attested in Geʽez. In the Book of Enoch, "angels of punishment prepare the instruments for the säyəṭanə".Grasso, Valentina A. "Historicizing Ontologies: Qur'ānic Preternatural Creatures between Ancient Topoi and Emerging Traditions." Journal of Late Antiquity 16.1 (2023): 160-188. Similarly to the Quranic usage, the term referred to the hosts of Satan.James Windrow Sweetman Islam and Christian Theology: Preparatory historical survey of the early period. v.2. The theological position at the close of the period of Christian ascendancy in the Near East Lutterworth Press 1945 University of Michigan digitalized: 26. Juni 2009 p. 24 Book of Jubilees mentions the shayṭān Mastema, who commands over evil spirits (manafəsəta).
Besides referring to a specific entity, the term shayāṭīn is also applied to any being who rebels against God. This can be from among the jinn as well as humans. The template for this descriptive character of the term is already provided by the Quran. In Surah 6:112, the Quran speaks about shayāṭīn from al-ins wa al-jinn (humans and jinn).
Jacques Waardenburg argued that jinn underwent a transition from neutral spirits to demons through the progress of Qur‘anic revelation whereby substituting jinn by the shayāṭīn , and explains by that the absence of jinn mentioned in Medinan Surahs and presence of multiple satans whereas Christian tradition knows only one satan. Accordingly, the multitude of devils may have been adopted from previous jinn-beliefs.
Paul Arno Eichler, however, held this theory unconvincing; since the idea of a multitude of shayāṭīn already existed in Judeo-Christian tradition, independent from jinn-beliefs. Generally, the term šayṭān appears in traditions associated with Jewish and Christian narratives, while the term jinn represents entities of polytheistic background.
In the Qur’an, the existence of the shayāṭīn, like that of jinn, is taken for granted.Karl-Friedrich Pohlmann „Die Entstehung des Korans Neue Erkenntnisse aus Sicht der historisch-kritischen Bibelwissenschaft“ 2012, 80-140 While the jinn are autonomous spirits of pre-Islamic Arabian beliefs, the shayāṭīn are primarily adversaries of the believers („satans“). The origin and theological purpose of the shayāṭīn is then explained through the figure of al-šayṭān (the Devil). Through analysis of textual criticism, Karl-Friedrich Pohlmann argues that the Quranic figure of the primary Devil was a later redaction in order to offer a theological explanation for the opposition towards Islam told through the concept of satans and a respond to discussions regarding the origin of evil (unde malum?).
The narratives about the primary devil reveal strong parallelism to Judeo-Christian traditions, particularly Vitae Adam et Eva which may have served as a foundation of theological speculations. The Devil embodies the characteristics of the lesser devils. Muslim authors‘s iteration of the story reveals that, although the Devil had been dismissed by God, even after his fall, the Devil cannot operate independently from God. This might have been a direct reaction to implied deficiencies in God’s omnipotence in the Christian apocrypha.
The shayāṭīn are thus an embodiment of opposition and hostility, imagined to be still operating and initiated only by the power of an omnipotent God. Only a few Muslim denominations, such as the Mu’tazilah, favored the independence of shayāṭīn over God‘s omnipotence for upholding God‘s justice.
In the Quran
In the Quran, shayāṭīn are mentioned approximately as often as angels. The shayāṭīn are mentioned less frequently than Šayṭān, but they are equally hostile to God's order (sharīʿa). They teach sorcery to humans (), inspire their friends to dispute with the faithful (), make evil suggestions () towards both humans and jinn (),Teuma, E. (1984). More on Qur'anic jinn. Melita Theologica, 39(1–2), 37–45. and secretly listen to the council of the angels ().Eichler, Paul Arno, 1928 Die Dschinn, Teufel und Engel in Koran [microform] p. 31. (German) speaks about the junud Iblīs, the invisible hosts of Iblīs (comparable to the junud of angels fighting along Muhammad in ).THE ROLE OF AL-'aql in early Islamic Wisdom with reference to Imam Jafar al Sadiq
Despite their reluctant nature, the shayāṭīn are ultimately under God's command and do not form their own party. According to the Islamic doctrine of tawḥīd, both good and evil are prescribed by God. explicitly warns people not to follow the Šayṭān, implying that humans are free to choose between the path of God or the one of Šayṭān. However, Šayṭān only promises delusion and there is no success in following his path (). In the Quranic story of Iblīs, who represents the shayāṭīn in the primordial fall, shows that they are subordinative to and created by God, by means of functioning as tempters.Sinai, Nicolai. "Key terms of the Qur'an: a critical dictionary." (2023): 1-840. Šayṭān can only act with God's permission (). God tasks the shayāṭīn as companions to the misbelievers (), and to incite them against each other (). After convincing sinners to remain in their disbelief, the shayāṭīn betray their followers when faced with God's judgement (;; ).
In the ḥādīth literature
The ḥādīth speak about shayāṭīn as malevolent forces, linked to the psychological life of humans.Awn, P. J. (1983). Satan's Tragedy and Redemption: Iblīs in Sufi Psychology. Niederlande: E.J. Brill.Spronk, Annemiek. "God’s good plan and evil forces in this world: The place of the devil in traditional Islam." Probing the Depths of Evil and Good. Brill, 2007. 249-256. The emphasis on the devils' evil nature, sometimes veils the Quranic depiction of the shayāṭīn as forces under God's control. However, ḥādīth clarify that God is ultimately in control of both angels and devils and that only God decides whom the devils can lead to hell.
Sometimes, specific devils are considered to be tasked with disturbing specific spheres of human activities. Eminent among them are: Dasim assigned to causing troubles between married couples; Awar, who incites people to commit illicit sexual intercourse (zinā); Sut, who inspires lies and gossip; Tir causing injuries; and Zalambur, assigned to the market and presiding over dishonest and fraudulent business transactions.
Although the ḥādīth describe the devils mostly as evil influences, they indicate that they are composed of a body. The shayāṭīn are said to eat with their left hand, therefore Muslims are advised to eat with their right hand (Sahih Muslim Book 23 No. 5004).Burning Issues in Afro-Asiatic Linguistics. (2014). Vereinigtes Königreich: Cambridge Scholars Publishing. p. 143 Shayāṭīn, although invisible, are depicted as immensely ugly (Sahih Muslim Book 26 No. 5428). The sun is said to set and rise between the horns of a shayṭān and during this moment, the doors to hell are open, thus Muslims should not pray at this time (Sahih Muslim 612d Book 5, Hadith 222). Satan and his minions battle the angels of mercy over the soul of a sinner; however, they are referred to as "angels of punishment" instead of shayāṭīn (Sahih Muslim 612d: Book 21, Hadith 2622).
However, the ḥādīths also describe the limits of shayāṭīn. Ritual purity is said to attract angels and fend off shayāṭīn, while shayāṭīn are attracted to impurity, filthy, and desacralized places.Marion Holmes Katz Body of Text: The Emergence of the Sunni Law of Ritual Purity SUNY Press, 2012 p. 13 Before reciting the Quran, Muslims should take wudu/abdest and seek refuge in God from the shayāṭīn. Reciting specific prayers is further believed to protect against the shayāṭīn.Rudolf Macuch "Und das Leben ist siegreich!": mandäische und samaritanische Literatur ; im Gedenken an Rudolf Macuch (1919–1993) Otto Harrassowitz Verlag 2008 p. 82 If a shayṭān successfully interrupts a ritual Muslim prayer, the Muslim has to prostrate two times and continue (Sahih Bukhari 4:151). During Ramadan the shayāṭīn are chained in hell (Sahih al-Bukhari 1899). Shayāṭīn are sent by Iblis to cause misery among humans and return to him for report (Muslim 8:138). A shayṭān is said to tempt humans through their veins (Muslim 2174).
Theology (Kalām) Islamic theology usually accepts three types of invisible creatures: angels (malāʾikah), djinn, and devils (šayāṭīn). While good jinn rarely draw the attention of scholars of the Quran (mufassirūn), the supposed negative influence of evil jinn and devils on humans are studied in depth.Egdunas Racius