Spirit possession and exorcism in Islam

The 72nd chapter of the Qur'an entitled Al-Jinn (The Jinn), as well as the heading and introductory bismillah of the next chapter entitled al-Muzzammil (The Enshrouded One).

In Islam, the belief that spiritual entities—particularly, jinn—can possess a person, (or a thing or location),[1] is widespread; as is the belief that the jinn and devils can be expelled from the possessed person (or thing/location) through exorcism. This practice is called al-'azm[2]: 98  or ruqya (Arabic: رقية, romanizedruqya, spell, charm, magic, incantation),[3] and exorcists are called raqi.

Belief in the supernatural—witchcraft, sorcery, magic, ghosts, and demons—in the Muslim world is not marginalized as eccentric or a product of ignorance, but is prevalent among all social classes.[citation needed] Belief in the supernatural creatures known as Jinn is both an integral part of Islamic belief,[4] and a common explanations in society "for evil, illness, health, wealth, and position in society as well as all mundane and inexplicable phenomena in between".[citation needed] Jinn are thought to be able to enter and possess people, with evil jinn causing various maladies in the humans they possess.[citation needed]

  1. ^ Jacobs, Louis (1999). "Exorcism". A Concise Companion to the Jewish Religion. doi:10.1093/acref/9780192800886.001.0001. ISBN 978-0-19-280088-6.
  2. ^ Magic and Divination in Early Islam. (2021). Vereinigtes Königreich: Taylor & Francis.
  3. ^ Wehr, Hans. Dictionary of Arabic (PDF). p. 302. Retrieved 8 March 2024.
  4. ^  Amira El-Zein, Islam, Arabs and the Intelligent World of the Jinn (Syracuse: Syracuse University Press, 2009), p. x.

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