Iblis
Iblis, also known as Shaitan, is the progenitor of the devils in Islam. According to the Quran, Iblis was thrown out of heaven after refusing to prostrate himself before Adam. In Sufi cosmology, Iblis embodies the cosmic veil supposedly separating the immanent aspect of God's love from the transcendent aspect of God's wrath. He is often compared to the Christian concept of Satan, since both figures were cast out of heaven according to their respective religious narratives. In his role as the master of cosmic illusion in Sufism, he functions in ways similar to the Buddhist concept of Mara.
Islamic theology regards Iblis as an example of attributes and actions which God punishes with hell. Regarding the origin and nature of Iblis, there are two different viewpoints. According to one, Iblis is an angel, and according to the other, he is the father of all the jinn. Quranic exegesis and the Stories of the Prophets elaborate on Iblis's origin story in greater detail. In Islamic tradition, Iblis is identified with , often followed by the epithet . is usually applied to Iblis in order to denote his role as the tempter, while is his proper name.
Some Muslim scholars uphold a more ambivalent role for Iblis while preserving the term exclusively for evil forces, considering Iblis to be not simply a devil but also "the truest monotheist", because he would only bow before the Creator and not his creations. Others have strongly rejected sympathies with Iblis, considering them to be deceptively instigated by Iblis. Rumi's poetic work Masnavi-e-Ma'navi explores this form of deception in detail: when Iblis wakes up Mu'awiya to the morning prayer, he appears to have benevolent intentions at first, but it turns out, Iblis is just hiding his true malevolent motivations. The ambivalent role of Iblis is also addressed in Islamic literature. Hafez, who considers Iblis to be an angel, writes that angels are incapable of emotional expression and thus that Iblis attempts to mimic piety but is incapable of worshipping God with passion. According to Muhammad Iqbal, Iblis tests humans in order to teach them to overcome their selfish tendencies.
Iblis is one of the most well-known individual supernatural entities in Islamic tradition, and has appeared extensively across Islamic and non-Islamic art, literature, and contemporary media.
Naming, etymology, and origin
In Islamic traditions, Iblīs is known by many alternative names or titles, such as , stemming from the word – meaning 'bitter'; or ; and .The designation may be an epithet referencing an attribute, deriving from the Arabic verbal root . According to Ibn Manzur, this is the majority opinion among Arab scholars, who maintain the tradition that the personal name of this being was.
Some Muslim teachers, such as al-Jili, relate this name to talbis meaning confusion, because God's command confused him.
Another possibility is that the name was derived from Ancient Greek via a Syriac intermediary. The name is not found in Arabic literature before the Quran, suggesting it is not of pre-Islamic Arabian origin.
The Quranic story of Iblis parallels extrabiblical sources, such as Life of Adam and Eve, about Satan's fall from heaven, preponderant in Eastern Christian circles.
Theology (''Kalam'')
Quran
Iblis is mentioned by name in the Quran eleven times, nine of which relate to his refusal of God's Command to prostrate himself before Adam. The term šayṭān is more prevalent; although Iblis is sometimes referred to as šayṭān, the terms are not interchangeable: Iblis is the proper name of the Quranic figure, while šayṭān refers to an unequivocal evil force. The fragments of Iblis's story are scattered across the Quran. In the aggregate, the story can be summarised as follows:When God created Adam, He ordered the angels to bow before the new creation. All of the angels obeyed, but Iblis refused. He argued that, having been created from fire, he was superior to humans, who were made from clay-mud, and therefore should not be expected to prostrate himself before Adam. As punishment for his haughtiness, God banished Iblis from heaven and condemned him to hell. Later, Iblis requested permission to attempt to mislead Adam and his descendants, and God granted the request—thus portraying God as the power behind both angels and devils.
Surah al-Kahf states in reference to Iblis:
except Iblis, he was one of the jinni
This passage led to a dispute among the mufassirūn, who disagree on whether the term is intended as a nisba, designating Iblis's heavenly origin in contrast to the earthly Adam, or if it serves to distinguish Iblis from the angels, portraying him as the progenitor of the jinn who dwelled in paradise until his fall — analogous to Adam's sin in Garden Eden followed by his fall. This dispute goes back to the formative stage of Islam. These two conflicting opinions are based on the interpretations of ibn Abbas and Hasan al-Basri respectively. This debate resulted in two positions, at each gained substantial support by Muslim scholars.
Iblis is arguably implicitly mentioned in Surah 21:29 , claiming divinity for himself by inviting humans and jinn to follow egoistic desires. This interpretation is shared, among others, by Tabari, Suyuti, al-Nasafi, and al-Māturīdī:
"And whosoever among them would say, "Truly I am a god apart from Him," such will We requite with Hell. Thus do We requite the wrongdoers."
Sijjin'', mentioned in Surah 83:7, is described as a prison in hell by Quranic exegetes. Iblis is chained at the bottom and sends his demons to the surface.
Affiliation and predestination
There are different opinions regarding the origin of Iblis. This dispute is closely related to doctrinal differences regarding free will. Islam believes that like humans, jinn are created on earth to "worship" God, and are capable of righteous and evil acts.It is disputed in Islam whether angels are capable of sin. Those who hold that angels cannot sin thus assert that Iblis is merely a jinn, with only jinn and humans being capable of disobeying God. This is the general opinion among the Qadariyah and most Mu'tazilites. This view is also found among many Salafis. The Islamist writer Sayyid Qutb denies that angels can sin and so rejects readings which depict Iblis as an angelic being. Sunni Muslims, with al-Razi as one exception, generally adhere to the doctrine of predestination—i.e. that everything that happens in the universe happens by divine decree—and assert that Iblis acts in obedience to his inner nature and God's plan, but in disobedience to God's command.
The context of Iblis's disobedience assumes that Iblis is an angel, as in early Islam the term is used for celestial beings. Tabarsi says that if Iblis were a jinni, he could not have been one of the custodians of Paradise.
Many of those who say that Iblis was an angel read Surah 18:50 as a for the term, thus referring to Iblis's heavenly origin.
The Hanbalites and Ash'arites argue that Iblis was ignorant and did not understand God's will, but Iblis's unbelief was ultimately caused by God. Al-Maghrībī states that, when the angels questioned the creation of Adam, God opened the angels' eyes to the characteristics of Adam, but closed the eyes of Iblis, so he would remain in resistance. Therefore, Iblis would have been created as a disobedient angel and function as God's tempter. Abu Mansur al-Maturidi, the eponymous founder of Māturīdī theology, argues that humans and jinn are tested on earth, while angels are tested in heaven. He argues that if angels were not tested, the Quran would not compliment angels for obedience.
The Mu'tazilites, considering it impossible for God to have any negative attributes, reject the notion that Iblis's function as a tempter was initiated by God. Al-Zamakhshari criticizes the Sunni view as ascribing negative attributes to God. According to the Mu'tazilites, when Iblis blames God for leading him astray in Surah 15:39, these words belong to Iblis alone and cannot serve as a confirmation of God being the cause of Iblis's fall.
Function
In Muslim thought, Iblis is generally not considered to be the originator of evil. However, there are a few exceptions among Muslim scholars. The Qadariyah asserted that evil was introduced by disobedience to God, and Iblis was the first who disobeyed. This view is sometimes attributed to Hasan al-Basri. An extreme position among the Qadariyah asserted that Iblis was not even created by God, but this was generally rejected as a limitation on God's power, showing influence from the cosmic dualism of Zoroastrianism, as expressed by "magicians". Al-Māturīdī argued that such dualistic worldviews are irreconcilable with the Islamic doctrine of. Some extreme positions went as far as to consider belief that actions are uncaused by God to be a form of , as it implies a second power independent from God.Iblis's disobedience is understood as an example and warning for humans and jinni.e. the, the two types of creatures held to account for their deeds. The position that Iblis was predestined to fall views his creation as a means for God to demonstrate his entire spectrum of attributesincluding his wiliness as well as to teach the consequences of sin. As such, the example of Iblis demonstrates the necessity of avoiding transgression, arrogance, and comparison between oneself and another creature of God.Although not the cause of evil, Iblis is known as the progenitor of tempters, known as the "father of the devils". Hadith literature emphasizes their evil influences over humans rather than treating them as proper personalities. Muslims are advised to "seek refuge" from such influences and are recommended to recite prayers for protection.
Sufism
about the mystical union with God, although fundamentally mystical in nature, derive from the theological debates undertaken within the school of kalam. In sum, there are two distinct interpretations of the role of Iblis within the Sufi tradition.The first interpretation holds that Iblis refused to bow before Adam because he would not prostrate himself before anyone but his creator, thus considering Iblis to be a "true monotheist" only bested by Muhammad, an idea known as "Satan's monotheism". Oblivious to rewards and punishment, Iblis acts out of pure love and loyalty and disobeys the explicit command and obeys the hidden will of God. In a unity of opposites, Iblis finds in his banishment proximity to God.
The second interpretation disapproves of Iblis's refusal to prostrate himself before Adam. Adam, as a reflection of God's names, is more complete than the angels. Iblis, being blind to the hidden reality of Adam, refuses to bow due to his own spiritual ignorance.