The Ugliness of Satan

Satan has a very ugly appearance. This is something well-accepted by the mind. Allah compares the branches of the tree of Zuqqum in Hell to the heads of the devils. Allah says,

"Is it better as a welcome, or the tree of Zaqqum? Lo! we have appointed it a torment for wrong-doers. Lo! It is a tree that springs in the heart of hell. Its crop is as it were the heads of the devils'' (al-Saffaat 62-65)

Christians of the middle Ages used to picture satan as a black man with a pointed beard, raised eyebrows, a mouth that emits flames, horns and hoofs
and a tail.'

Satan has two horns

In sahih Muslim, it is recorded from Ibn Umar that the prophet (peace be upon him) said, "Do not seek to pray when the sun is rising or when it is setting, verily it rises [and sets] between the two horns of a devil.'' In al-Bukhari and Muslim, it is also recorded that the prophet (peace be upon him) said,

"If the sun is setting then leave the prayers until it disappears. And do not wait for your prayers until the sun is rising, nor while it is setting.For veri;y it sets and rises between the two horns of satan.'' These hadith are referring to the polytheists of the Arabs who used to worship the sun and would prostrate to it when it would set or rise, for that reason satan would establish himself in that direction so that their worship could be directed towards him. 

The prophet (peace be upon him) has forbidden us to pray during that time . Actually, the correct opinion is that prayer during that time is permissible if there is someone reason for it, such as the prayers upon entering the mosque. it is not allowed, thought, if there is no reasons for it, such as simply a supererogatory prayer,"

The meaning of the prophet's words is that one should not intentionally set that time for prayer. And from among the other narrations that mention the horn of satan is the following hadith that is recorded in sahih al-Bukhari: Ibn Umar related that he saw the prophet ( peace be upon him) pointing to the east and state,

"Verily the trial will come from here, the calamity will come from here, Where the horn of satan raises." The latter statement is referring to the East.

Their ability and strength

Allah has given the jinn power and ability that He has not given humans. Allah has informed  us of some of their ability, including great speed and movement.

One of the afreet of satanic jinn promised solomon that he would be able to bring the throne of sheba to jerusalem in a period of time that was so short that a man would not be able to stand from his place of sitting. But one who had knowledge of the Book said, "I will bring it before your gaze returns to you." Allah has described this incident in the Quran with the following verses,

"A stalwart of the jinn said : I will bring it to you before you can rise from your place. Lo ! I verily am strong and trusty for such work. One with whome was knowledge of the scripture said : I will bring it to you before your gaze returns to you. And when he saw it set in his presence and he said, 'This is from the bounties of my Lord." ( al-Naml 39-40).

They preceded mankind in matters related to space

The jinn used to go the lowest heaven to eavesdrop on the inhabitants of the heavens in order to find out what event would occur in the future. When the prophet was sent with his message the number of "guards" in the heaven were increased. Allah says, in the Quran,

"And (the jinn who had listened to the Quran said): we had sought the heavens but had found it filled with strong warders and meteors. And we used but had found it filled with strong warders and meteors. And we used to sit on places (high) therein to listen. But he who listens now finds a flame in wait for him" (al-Jinn S-9).

The prophet ( peace be upon him) himself described how the jinn tried to steal the messages in the heaven. Abu Huraira reported that the prophet (peace be upon him) informed him, "when Allah decrees a matter in heaven, the angels move their wings in submission to His word which is like a chain on a smooth stone. When their hearts are delivered from fear they say, 'What did you Lord say?' and receive the reply, 'That which He said is the truth and He is the most High and the Most Great.' 

Then those who listen by stealth hear it (i.e., he jinn), and they are like this, some above others ( and Sufyan, a narrator, illustrated  this point by turning his hand over and separating the fingers). Then one who hear the word passes it on to the one below him, and so forth until one of them passes it to the tongue of a soothsayer or diviner. 

Often a flame catches him before he is able to pass it on. He then mixes with it one hundred lies. people then ask, 'Isn't it true  that he not made such a statement on a specific date,' and he is believed because of that onc word which was heard from the heavens." ( Recorded by al-Bukhari in his sahih.)

Superstitions during the period of ignorance

Knowledge of the reason why they were being pelted with meteors put an end to superstitious belief that the people of ignorance used to pass on. Ibn Abbas narrated from one of the companions of the prophet (peace be upon him), from among the Ansar, who said that they were with the prophet one night and they witnessed a shooting star. 

The prophet asked them, What did you say during the days of ignorance concerning a shooting star like that? They said, "Allah and His Messenger know best. We used to say that on that night an important person was born or an important person had died." The prophet said, "It does not do so because of the death or birth of anyone. But when Allah decides an affair, the inhabitants who carry the Throne sing His praise, and so do the ones of the next heaven and so forth until the lowest heaven. 

Then those are close to those who carry the Throne say to those who carry the Throne, "What did your Lord say?' And they are then informed about what Allah has decreed. And they pass this news to the next heaven and so forth until it reaches the lowest heaven. Then the jinn listen in and pass on the word to their servants.  When they angels notice them they attack them with meteors. If all that they [ the jinn] would relate is only that which they actually had heard, they would be truthful; but, instead, they mix it with lies and make additions to it." ( This hadith was recorded in sahih Muslim.)

Their knowledge in building and other crafts

Allah has informed us that the jinn which were subjected to the control of the prophet solomon performed many feat which were evidence of their physical ability, intelligence and skill. Allah says in Quran, "And (we gave him) certain of the jinn who worked before him by permission of his Lord. And such of them as deviated from our command, them we caused to taste the punishment of flaming fire. They made for him what he willed: Synagogues and statues, basin like wells and boiler built into the ground" ( Saba 12-13). 

And, perhaps, they also had the ability to communicate between locations and reach places in a way similar to radios and televisions. Ibn taimiya stated that one of the shaikhs who had contact with the jinn told him that the jinn showed them something sparkling like water or glass. And they showed him therein whatever thev wanted of news [ apparently it was some thing like a crystal ball] The one reporting this to ibn taimiya said, "They would bring the speech of the one who was seeking my help to me and i would respond and they would  take my speech back to that person." perhaps they were able to discover things, like the technology of radios and televisions, a long time ago.

Their ability to taken on other shapes

The jinn have the ability to take on the shapes of humans or animals. On the day of the Battle of Badr, satan approached the polytheists in the form of a man called suraaqa ibn Malik and he promised the polytheists aid and victory on that day. Concerning this event, Allah has revealed the following,

 "And when satan made their deeds seem fair to them and said: No one of mankind can conquer you this day, for iam your protector." (al-Anfaal48) But when the armies met and satan saw the angels descending from the sky, he fled.[ The above verse continues:]

"But when the armies came in sight of one another. he took flight, saying: Lo! I am innocent of you. Lo ! I see that which you do not . Lo! I fear Allah. And Allah is severe in punishment" (al-Anfaal 48).

Abu Huraira has related the following incident that was recorded in sahih al-Bukhari and other books. Abu Huraira said that the prophet had put him in charge of guarding the zakat of ramadhaan. He related, "Someone came to me and began to take portions of the food. I caught him and told him that i was going to take him to the messenger of Allah. The man complained, 'I am in great need and i have children dependent on me.' 

Therefore I let him go. In the morning the prophet (peace be upon him) asked me, ' What happened to the one you caught last night, Abu Huraira?' I replied, 'Oh Messenger of Allah, he pleaded with me concerning his great need and hid dependent children, so i felt pity for him and let him go.' The prophet (peace be upon him) said, 'He lied to you and he will be back.' I knew that he would therefore return because the prophet ( peace be upon him) had said so. I waited for him. 

When he came, he again began to take loads of food. I caught him again and again told him that i was going to take him to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). But when he pleaded, 'Let me go. I am in great need and have children dependent on me, I again had mercy on him and let him go. In the morning, the Messenger of Allah ( peace be upon him) again asked me, 'Oh Abu Huraira, What happened to your prisoner last night?"  I replied, 'Oh messenger of Allah, he complained to me of his great need and dependent children so I let him go again.' 

The prophet (peace be upon him) said, 'He has lied to you and he will return.' I again waited for him and again he came and began to take loads of food. I caught him once again. I told him, this time i will definitely take you to the Messenger of Allah. This is the third time you have done such an act.' This time the man said to me , 

'If You let me go I will teach you some words by which Allah will greatly benefit you ! When you go to your bed recite the verse of the throne [al-Baqara 255], from, "Allah, there is no  god but He, the living, the Eternal " to the end of the verse. If you do so a guardian from Allah will come and protect you from the devils until the morning.' 

I decided to let him go. In the morning, the Messenger of Allah ( peace be upon him) again asked me, 'What happened to your prisoner last night, Abu Huraira?' I answerd, 'He claimed that he would teach me some words that would benefit me greatly.' The prophet ( peace be upon him ) said, 'He has told the truth although he is a liar. Do you know who was that person you have been talking to for the last three nights?' 

'I replied in the negative. The prophet ( peace be upon him) told me, 'That was a devil." 'In this hadith it is clear that devil jinn took the from of a human being. They may also take the from of certain animals, for example, camels, donkey. cows, dogs, or cats. But, in particular, they take the from of a black dog. The prophet ( peace be upon him ) has said that the black dog interrupts the prayer and he gave the reason for that it is a devil. Ibn Taimiya said, "The black dog is the devil of the dogs. And the jinn often take its from. Similarly, they take the from of a black cat.' The colour black has the greatest strength for the devils as opposed to other colours; in it is the power of the heat.''

The jinn of the houses

The jinn take the forms of snakes and appear in front of humans. It is for this reason that the prophet (peace be upon him) has forbidden the killing of the snakes found in the houses, out of fear that they may be jinn that have embraced Islam. It is recorded in sahih Muslim on the authority of Abu Saeed al-Khudri that the prophet (peace be upon him) said,

                     

" A group of jinn in Madina have embraced Islam. So he who sees anyone of them, should warn it three times. And if it appears after that it should be killed, for it must be a devil."

 One of the companions of the prophet ( peace be upon him) killed one of the snakes in the houses houses and this led to his death. Muslim has recorded it in this sahih that Abu-Saib went to abu saeed's house and found him praying. Abu al-Saib was waiting for him to finish his prayer when he heard some rumbling in the bundles of wood which were lying in the corner of the house. He looked and he found it was a snake. 

He was about kill it when Abu Saeed gestured to him to sit down. After the prayer, Abu Saeed pointed to a room and he said, "Do you see this room?" "Yes." answered al-Saib. Abu Saeed said, "There was once a man who was a newlywed and we went to participate with the prophet (peace be upon him) in the Battle of the Trench. He used to ask the prophet's permission to go to his wife and the prophet cautioned him to take along his weapons for he feared [ an attack from behind by] the tribe Quraidha. 

The man took his weapons and when he returned to his family he found his wife standing between the doors of the apartment. He was enraged from jealousy and took a stab at her with his spear. She told him to keep his spear away and to enter the house to see what had made her go outside. He entered and found a big snake on the bed. He struck it with his spear and pierced it. He was bent upon taking it outside, but the snake had enough strength to bite him. 

No one knows who died first from that incident, the snake or the man. The people made mention of this incident to Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) , asking him to ask Allah bring that man back to life. Instead, the prophet  (peace be upon him ) said,  "Ask forgiveness for our companion. In Madina there are jinn that embraced Islam. If any of you should see one of them [ that is, a snake], he should give him warning for three days. If it appears after that, it should be killed because it is, therefore, a devil."