ANGELS IN ISLAM
ANGELS IN ISLAM
A Commentary with Selected
Translations of Jalal al-Dïn al-Suyütï’s Al-Habâ’ik fïakhbâr al-malâ’ik (The Arrangement of the Traditions about Angels')
S. R. Burge
Doctor of Philosophy
The University of Edinburgh
2009
A loose-leaf from a MS of
al-Qazwini’s, cAja ’ib fimakhluqat (British Library)
Source: Du Ry, Carel J., Art of Islam (New York: Abrams, 1971), p. 188
This thesis presents a commentary with selected translations of
Jalal al-Dîn cAbd al- Rahman al-Suyütî’s Al-Haba’ik fi akhbar
al-mala’ik (The Arrangement of the Traditions about Angels). The work is a
collection of around 750 hadith about angels, followed by a postscript (khatima)
that discusses theological questions regarding their status in Islam.
The first section of this thesis looks at the state of the study
of angels in Islam, which has tended to focus on specific issues or narratives.
However, there has been little study of the angels in Islamic tradition outside
studies of angels in the Qur’an and eschatological literature. This thesis
hopes to present some of this more general material about angels.
The following two sections of the thesis present an analysis of
the whole work. The first of these two sections looks at the origin of Muslim
beliefs about angels, focusing on angelic nomenclature and angelic iconography.
The second attempts to understand the message of al-Suyüfî’s collection and the
work’s purpose, through a consideration of the roles of angels in everyday life
and ritual. The translation and annotated commentary that follow focus on
angels mentioned in the Qur’an itself: Gabriel, Michael, Israfîl, the Angel of
Death, the Bearers of the Throne, the Spirit, Ridwan, Malik, the Guardians of
Heaven and Hell, al-Sijill, Harüt, Marüt and the Sakîna.
The aim of the thesis is to open up the study of the angelic world
of the hadith, beyond the eschatological material and to show the
vitality of Muslim beliefs about angels in Islamic tradition.
I declare that I, Stephen Russell Burge, have written this thesis
and that the work is my own. The thesis has been submitted to the University of
Edinburgh for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and it has not been submitted
for any other degree or professional qualification.
S. R.
Burge
There are a number of people who have helped me enormously during
my doctoral studies and whom I wish to thank.
I am very grateful for the financial support of the Arts and
Humanities Research Council (AHRC), who have provided me with a Doctoral
Studentship throughout my studies, which covered my fees, maintenance and a
grant for a research trip. I would not have been able to complete this work
without their generous financial support.
Firstly, I would like to thank Prof. Julia Bray, now of the
Université de Paris VIII, for introducing me to al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ikfi
akhbar al-mala’ik. She also encouraged me greatly in my undergraduate
studies at the University of St. Andrews.
A number of colleagues and staff in the Department of Islamic and
Middle Eastern Studies have provided me with helpful comments on my work, but I
would like to mention especially Dr. Ayman Shihadeh, Jokha Al-Harthi and Samy
Ayoub for their comments on my Arabic; Songul Mecit for helping me with my
German; Margaret Graves for introducing me to Islamic Art and especially Saeko
Yazaki and Alex Mallett who have both been a joy to work with and to know.
Special thanks go to my parents who have been extremely
encouraging and supportive throughout my studies. My interest in Arabic and
Islam began when we lived in Khartoum in the mid 1980s, but I doubt that they
ever anticipated one of their children would be writing a thesis as a result.
I would like, especially, to thank my supervisor, Prof. Carole
Hillenbrand OBE, for all her encouragement since we first met in 2003. I hope
that she has been as fascinated as I have been by Al-Suyuti's Al-Haba’ik
and the weird and wonderful world of Islamic angelology. She has not only
supervised my work, but encouraged me to publish and to develop as an academic,
a researcher, a tutor and an individual; for that I am eternally grateful.
Above all, I would like to thank my wife, Laurelin. Our family has
doubled since I began my studies and she has been happy to look after two young
children on her own, whilst I worked long hours. She has also been willing to
listen to me talking about angels in Islam for more than most could stand and has
commented on all of my ideas and random thoughts. I could not have completed
this thesis without her constant and steadfast support. I also thank, although
they do not yet understand, my two children, Christian and Peter, who show me
constantly that play is just as important as work.
Arabic
The transliteration used in this thesis is a modified version of
the Encyclopaedia of Islam:
Consonants n, Vowels Diphthongs Feminine Endings Nisba adjectives Definite article Enclitics: |
’, b, t, th, j, h, kh, d, dh, r,
z, s, sh, s, d, . t, z, c, gh, f, q, k, l, m, h, w, y a, a, i, i, u, u, ay, aw -a / at (in idaafa) iyy al- / ‘l- [‘sun’ letters have not been assimilated] bi-‘l- |
Case endings are only marked when necessary.
Common English names (such as Michael, Gabriel and Adam) have not
been transliterated.
^1*11 UUJ V^l ^_xi ÂS^Jl j|
^Ljj^JI
-i'-i' JA' ^ &^
for
Laurelin, Christian and Peter
with love
CONTENTS
0. Front Matter
0.1 Abstract................................................................................... 5
0.2 Declaration.............................................................................. 6
0.3 Acknowledgements................................................................. 7
0.4 Transliteration
System............................................................ 8
0.5 Contents 13
1. Angels in Islam: Classical Islam and Previous
Scholarship........ 19
1.1
The Study of
Angels in Previous Scholarship...................... 22
1.2
Jalal al-Dm al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba ’ik fiakhbar al-mala ’ik.... 33
1.3
Contextualizing
al-Suyuti in the Late Mamluk Milieu____ 38
1.4
Jalal al-Dm
al-Suyuti: Methodology and Sources________ 47
1.5
The Purpose of Al-Haba
’ik and its Audience___________ 60
2. The Origin of Islamic Beliefs About Angels_________________ 65
2.1
Angelic
Nomenclature_____________________________ 69
2.1.1
Theophori c Name s________________________ 72
2.1.2
Function Names____________________________ 78
2.1.3
Function Names
without Malak_______________ 84
2.1.4
Other
Miscellaneous Names 87
2.2
The Iconography of Angels.................................................... 93
2.2.1 The Physical Form of Angels..................................... 97
2.2.2 Angels of Great Size................................................. 104
2.2.3 Finer Detailing: Clothing, Jewellery and Colours.... 110
3. The Angelic World of al-Habâ’ik
fîakhbâr al-malâ’ik................. 123
3.1
The Angels’ Roles
in Human Life........................................ 127
3.1.1 The Angels of the Womb......................................... 127
3.1.2 The Scribes............................................................... 131
3.1.3 The Angel of Death.................................................. 136
3.1.4 The Post-Mortem Angels......................................... 146
3.2
Angels and Ritual................................................................. 152
3.2.1
Angels as the Template of Ritual_______________ 154
3.2.2 Commanding Right and Forbidding Wrong?______ 165
4. Al-Habâ’ik fîakhbâr al-malâ’ik: Text and Translation________ 185
4.1
A Note on the
Supporting Manuscript_________________ 189
4.2
Translation and Commentary________________________ 191
4.2.1 Preface___________________________________ 193
4.2.2 The Necessity of Belief in Angels______________ 193
4.2.3
The Origin of the Creation of the Angels_________ 195
4.2.4 The Great Abundance of Angels_______________ 196
4.2.5
The Four Archangels................................................. 203
4.2.6
Gabriel....................................................................... 208
4.2.7
Michael..................................................................... 224
4.2.8
Israfil......................................................................... 227
4.2.9
The Angel of Death................................................... 235
4.2.10
The Bearers of the Throne....................................... 262
4.2.11 The Spirit................................................................. 273
4.2.12 Ridwan, Malik and the Keepers of the Fire............. 278
4.2.13
Al-Sijill.................................................................... 284
4.2.14
Harut and Marut....................................................... 286
5. Conclusions...................................................................................... 299
6. Appendices___________________________________________ 307
A Arabic
Text______________________________________ 309
B Chapter
Details - Leiden MS Or. 474(28)______________ 347
C Textual
Variants - Leiden MS Or 474(28)______________ 349
D Al-Suyuti’s
Sources________________________________ 361
E The
Authorities of the Hadïth________________________ 379
F Précis of Hadïth
Not Translated______________________ 387
G Images of
Angels in Islamic Art,______________________ 431
7. Indexes............................................................................................. 439
7.1
Index of
al-Suyütî’s Sources................................................. 441
7.2
Index of Qur’anic Quotations............................................... 443
8. Bibliography.................................................................................... 449
8.1
Abbreviations-....................................................................... 451
8.1.1
Journals, Encyclopaedia and Monographs................ 451
8.1.2
Ancient and Mediaeval Texts................................... 453
8.2
Primary Sources
(Muslim).................................................... 454
8.3
Primary Sources
(Non-Muslim)............................................ 459
8.4
Secondary Sources................................................................ 462
Introduction: Angels in Islam
20
1. Angels in Islam: Classical Islam and Previous Scholarship
In an article published in The Muslim World in 1937, the
American missionary Samuel M. Zwemer commented: ‘The angelology of Islam is
very extensive and has been treated only partially by western scholars,
although it holds such an important place in the belief of popular Islam...’[I]
There still remains a large gap in the scholarly literature on the role of
angels in Islam, with only two early monographs available on the subject.[II]
Admittedly, there are a number of studies in areas that include the angels, but
none devoted exclusively to them. This is quite surprising as angels are a
fundamental part of Islamic belief, as Sachiko Murata notes: ‘The Islamic
concepts of creation, revelation, prophecy, the events that occur in the world,
worship, the spiritual life, death, resurrection, and the central position of
man in the cosmos cannot be understood without reference to angels.’[III]
[IV]
In fact, belief in angels is necessary in Islam and their rejection constitutes
kufrA This strong stance on angels can be seen quite clearly
in the Qur’an, for example: ‘Whoever is an enemy to God and His angels and His
messengers, Gabriel, and Michael - surely God is an enemy to the unbelievers.’[V]
Angels, then, are an integral part of the Islamic worldview and deserve
attention.
Despite the lack of a single monograph exploring angels in Islamic
thought, it would be inaccurate to suggest that there has been no scholarship
on the subject. The roles of the angels in specific mythic events (such as the
prostration of the angels to Adam) and their role in the eschatological works
(including the micrâj) have been discussed, albeit not always
in much depth. Angels encompass a range of different areas of study: Qur’anic
and Hadïth studies, accounts of the micraj and Islamic
eschatology, notions of popular religion and discussions in systematic theology
(kalam) and philosophy. Although not the focus of one work, Islamic
angels have often been featured in all of these areas of Islamic Studies.
1.1 The Study of Angels in Previous Scholarship
There has been no study on the development of Islamic angelology,
but there have been a number of works on the origins of Muslim beliefs about
angels. These have focused on two main areas: (i) the Jewish or Christian
provenance of particular angels or narratives involving angels and (ii) the
development of Islamic angelology and its relation to pre-Islamic religion,
both usually relating to the study of the Qur’an.
That the Qur’an is the principal source for Muslim beliefs about
angels is undeniable, but a number of scholars have attempted to analyse and
find the origins of specific Qur’anic narratives. Sometimes the association of
angels in Islam, such as Gabriel, with their Jewish or Christian antecedents
are quite obvious and were also acknowledged in mediaeval Islamic sources.[VI]
[VII]
Western studies of the foreign vocabulary of the Qur’an, particularly Arthur
Jeffery’s study of 1938,7 attempted to use these examples of non-Arabic
vocabulary to locate the origins of Islam in a particular milieu.[VIII]
Similar source-critical methods were also used in the study of various Qur’anic
pericopes, originally as part of a broader polemic against Islam.[IX]
More recently, the methodology has been used to understand the shared
heritage of Jewish, Christian and Muslim stories, motifs and traditions more broadly.[X]
Steven Wasserstrom’s work on the relationship between Islamic tradition and
Jewish Pseudepigrapha is the best example of this type of approach in recent
times.[XI]
These studies do not aim, as with the early polemicists, to establish a genetic
link between the Qur’an (as well as hadith) and earlier Jewish works,
but to explore the intricate relationships between Jews, Christians and Muslims
in the early period of Islam.[XII]
The secondary literature on narratives involving angels has tended
to focus on the Qur’an and its exegetical literature (including both tafsir
and qisas al-anbiya’). Taking the narrative of the angelic prostration
to Adam as an example, it can be seen that some scholars look at the Qur’anic
accounts specifically, [XIII]
whilst others look at the narrative more broadly, but always with the Qur’anic
episode in mind.[XIV]
The earliest articles and studies on this Qur’anic pericope attempt to find a
‘source’ for the story.[XV]
William St. Clair Tisdall comments that the story: ‘...is doubtless borrowed
from a misapprehension of Heb. i. 6...’[XVI]More recent studies,
however, have tended to treat the material interpretively. For example, M. J.
Kister attempts to place the traditional qisas literature about the
prophets in the context of the Qur’an, arguing that: ‘The rich treasure of
stories and traditions relating to Àdam, Hawwa’ and their progeny is closely
connected to the narrative verses of the Quran which deal with their creation,
temptation, vicissitudes, and fate.’[XVII] Likewise, Annemarie
Schimmel is less interested in the sources of the narrative, but explores
Muslim responses to the story in theology and mysticism.[XVIII] In Sufism, it is Iblis
that becomes an important subject; as Iblis refused to bow down to something
other than God, he comes to be seen, by some, as a kind of proto-Sufi and
strict monotheist.[XIX]
Other commentaries have included a contextualisation of the narrative in
its Arabian context,[XX]
thematic analyses and comparative approaches.[XXI] However there is a
tendency in all of these studies to discuss events and characters other than
the angels; authors are interested in what the prostration says about Adam and
humans more generally (or in the case of Sufism, Iblis). There has, however,
been relatively little work pursued on the role of angels in Islamic tradition
more widely.[XXII]
The second focus of the secondary literature on the origins and
development of angelology in Islam focuses on its relationship with pre-Islamic
paganism.[XXIII]
The most notable studies have been by Joseph Chelhod, Jacques Waardenburg and
Alford T. Welch.[XXIV]
These studies relate the development of Qur’anic angelology to the decline of
pre-Islamic paganism, with particular focus on the various verses of the Qur’an
that accuse the Meccans of angel and jinn worship.[XXV] There are a number of
problems with this type of research. The idea that Arabian religion progressed
from animism to monotheism, through various other stages (including
polydaemonism, polytheism and panentheism) is based on the concept of religious
evolutionism.[XXVI]
Religious evolutionism has been largely rejected by anthropologists of
religion because of the results of anthropological research, as well as its
strong imperialist overtones. Both Waardenburg and Welch approach Qur’anic
angelology on evolutionist lines, but their arguments frequently encounter
problems. Welch, for example, bases his thesis on the chronological ordering of
the verses of the Qur’an and the historiographical and practical problems
associated with this are well known.[XXVII]
For those who argue from an evolutionist perspective, the Qur’an
uses angels in a larger polemic against polytheism, in which other deities
become labelled ‘angels’ to prove that they have no power or authority. Their
use in evolutionist arguments often leads to strange conclusions. For example,
Welch states that: ‘The angels become little more than symbols and extensions
of divine power.. ,’[XXVIII]
Why is this surprising? This is exactly what angels are and what they are
supposed to be. Welch believes that the Battle of Badr (or the changing of the qibla)
marked a moment in which the angels moved from being conceived as humans to
taking invisible forms.[XXIX]
Again, this is a misunderstanding of the angelology and the result of an
attempt to place Qur’anic angelology in a developmental scheme. A brief survey
of Judeo-Christian literature shows that angels are often conceived in
different ways, with both human and divine forms.[XXX] [XXXI] There is no reason to
suggest that the use of two different iconographies marks a development in the
angelology of the Qur’an. Welch and Waardenburg fundamentally misunderstand
angelology and attempt to force Qur’anic angelology into a developmental scheme
that does not 31 necessarily exist.
G. R. Hawting provides a different account of the use of angels in
antipolytheist polemic in his Idea of Idolatry and the Emergence of Islam.
Hawting’s general thesis in this work is that the Qur’an is not directed towards
Meccan polytheists, but rather, towards other monotheists. The direct reference
to the Banat Allah (Allât, al-cUzza and Manat)
obviously presents problems for this argument: if the Qur’an is aimed at
monotheists, who are these deities? In the final chapter of the book,[XXXII]
Hawting argues that the Banat Allah are actually angels and that the
Qur’an is referring to angel-worship. Hawting argues that, like the Banat
Allah, angels in Judaism are often female and associated with astral
bodies. [XXXIII]
However, there are a number of problems with his argumentation. Firstly, angels
are rarely gendered in Judaism and even when they are given gender, they are
usually conceived as being male. Secondly, the names of the Banat Allah
are clearly native Arabic names, and are not in the standard form of Jewish and
Christian angelic nomenclature.[XXXIV]
Thirdly, Hawting does not take into account any angel-cults that existed in the
Near East prior to the expansion of Islam.[XXXV] Lastly, there is
archaeological evidence that these goddesses did exist in other religions in
the surrounding areas.[XXXVI]
Hawting forces Qur’anic angelology to fit into a larger construct, the same
mistake committed by Welch and Waardenburg. These examples are important to
consider (albeit very briefly), as they show the ways in which angels have been
treated in Islamic Studies. Angelology in Islam is often an afterthought and
has not tended to be considered on its own terms. Furthermore, angelology is
frequently forced to fit within larger theses, leading scholars to come to
false or contrived conclusions.
Beyond Qur’anic Studies angels are most frequently discussed in
the eschatological and micraj literature in which they play a
key role. As with the study of angels in the Qur’an and its exegesis the focus
is not generally on the angels themselves. There is no need to outline the vast
body of scholarship on Islamic eschatology,[XXXVII] but it should be noted
that there are three main areas of study within the field: (i) the events of
the eschaton-[XXXVIII]
(ii) death and personal eschatology;[XXXIX] and (iii) the ascent
literature, including Muhammad’s micrqj.[XL]
In addition to the work done on Islamic eschatology, Biblical and
Jewish Studies have much to offer in regard to the theoretical approaches to
angelology and and beliefs about angels more broadly. These studies could be
incorporated into Islamic studies with beneficial results and the discussions
in Sections 2 & 3 below make much use of this material.[XLI] A large number of works on
angels are available, ranging from studies of Biblical[XLII] and sectarian
angelologies,[XLIII]
apocalypticism and eschatological literature.[XLIV]
To a lesser extent, angels have featured in theological and
philosophical discussions in Islam. These usually focus on particular issues
that were discussed in the mediaeval period, such as the status of angels in
relation to humans;[XLV]
or on the use of angels by philosophers and theologians in a wider cosmology.[XLVI]
However, Islamic philosophy is not of great concern to the angelology of the hadïth
and will not be considered as part of this thesis.
In general, the study of angels in Islam has been quite
restrictive, with scholars only looking at angels as and when necessary. Angels
have rarely been the primary focus of research and any discussion of them tends
to be incidental to other wider issues. The study of angels has also been
largely compartmentalised into specific areas: eschatology, Qur’anic studies,
exegesis, the micraj literature, theology, philosophy and so
on. Surprisingly, there has been virtually no study of angels in non-eschatological
material. There does not appear to be any real reason for this and it simply
seems to be an area that has yet to provoke much interest. One of the aims of
this thesis is to open up the study of the angelic world of the hadïth
beyond the eschatological material and to show the vitality of Muslim beliefs
about angels in Islamic tradition.
The aim of this thesis is to present material about angels
directly, rather than considering their position within a larger schematic
framework. The two approaches to angels in Islamic Studies mentioned above have
focused on the Qur’an or its exegesis rather than Islamic tradition in general.[XLVII]
This thesis hopes to move scholarship away from Qur’anic Studies, focusing
instead on the role of angels in the hadïth literature more generally,
using Jalal al-Dm al-Suyütî’s Al-Haba’ik fï akhbar al-mala’ik as a basis
from which to begin an exploration of Islamic beliefs about angels. Section 2
below will look at the origins and development of Islamic angelology, but without
the constraints that have been placed upon it by scholars in the past.
In past scholarship the study of hadith and hadith
collections by non-Muslims has tended to focus on the isnad and the
authenticity of prophetic hadith,4 but more recently scholars
have turned their focus to the development of the four madhahib and the
role of hadith scholarship in this process.[XLVIII] [XLIX]
However, the actual way in which hadith collections have been put
together has not really been addressed.[L] Andrew Newman’s The
Formative Period of Twelver Shfism is one of the only monographs to discuss
and explore the meanings behind the structure and selection of hadith in
a collection.[LI]
An analysis of the way in which hadith are presented in a collection,
and which sources the author has used will often reflect a compiler’s
intentions for a work. This thesis will attempt to understand the underlying
message behind al- Haba’ik and the ideas that al-Suyuti wished to convey
when he compiled it, through an analysis of the hadith, their themes and
the sources of the work.
1.2
Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti’s Al-Habâ’ik fîakhbâr al-malâ’ik
The great Egyptian polymath Abu ‘l-Fadl cAbd al-Rahman
ibn Abi Bakr ibn Muhammad Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti al-Khudayiï (849/1445 -
911/1505)52 was one of the leading scholars of his day, famous for both his
wide knowledge and his contempt for contemporary scholars. His work is
important, not simply because of his historical context, writing at the end of
the classical period; but because his œuvre was vast, covering many
different subjects: from linguistics and philology, to history, medicine,
cosmology and zoology.[LII]
[LIII]
Al-Suyuti was well respected in his own lifetime (although to a lesser degree
in Egypt and Cairo),[LIV]
with evidence of his influence stretching from East Africa to India.[LV]
Al-Suyuti continues to hold an important place in both Muslim and non-Muslim
studies in Islam, particularly his work on philology and exegesis.[LVI]
[LVII]
Al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ikfi akhbar al-mala’ik is a collection
that is devoted entirely to hadith about angels and complements other
collections of his with similar themes. The compilation includes around 750 hadith
and is followed by a relatively long postscript (khatima) that discusses
theological issues associated with angels, particularly the status of the
angels in relation to humans, a popular theme in tafsir and kalam 51
It appears to have been a relatively popular work, with twenty-one known
manuscript copies still extant.[LVIII]
Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik fi akhbar al-mala’ik
provides one of the most comprehensive catalogues of Islamic traditions about
angels in Arabic literature. Whilst there are a number of works that feature a
great many angels, particularly in the micraj literature and
the Qisas al-anbiya ’, none presents angelic traditions in such a
logical and systematic way. For this reason, Al-Haba’ik fi akhbar al-mala’ik
provides a very useful starting point from which to look at Muslim beliefs
about angels. The work is not, by any means, a corpus of hadith
about angels, but it does provide a significant and fairly representative
sample.
The hadith are organised into short to medium length
chapters, each looking at a particular angel. The chapters begin logically,
with hadith about the necessity of belief in angels, their great number
and the most important angels (Gabriel, Michael, Israfil and the Angel of
Death) appearing first (§1 - 171). Beyond the four archangels there is not any
obvious pattern to the arrangement of the hadïth. The last three
chapters (§493 - 744) are general and do not appear to be arranged with much
intent.
As is al-Suyuti’s usual style, isnads do not precede each hadïth
(except in a few cases), but the traditions are taken from a written source
with the name of the authority given.[LIX] Al-Suyuti typically gives
an author’s name, without citing the work, except in cases where he uses more
than a single text of one author.[LX]
This method of compilation can be seen in most of al-Suyuti’s collections, as
Leon Nemoy comments, concerning al-Suyuti’s Tuhfat al-kiram fïkhabar
al-ahram: ‘Like most Arabic works on matters of antiquity, the treatise is
predominately composed of extracts from older writers, many of whom, in their
turn, depended more or less upon still older authorities, without being too
anxious to indicate the source of their information.’[LXI]
This thesis presents a translation and commentary of a selection
of the hadïth included in the work, with two introductory chapters
introducing the origin and development of angels in Islam, and a study of the purposes
and function of al- Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik fï akhbar al-mala’ik. The whole
collection has not been translated because of the word-limit restrictions of
the thesis. The hadïth that have been translated are of those angels
mentioned in the Qur’an, as it was felt that these would be the most relevant
to translate, namely: Gabriel, Michael, Israfil, the Angel of Death, the
Bearers of the Throne, the Spirit, Ridwan, Malik, the Guardians of Heaven and
Hell, al-Sijill, Harut, Marut and the Sakina.[LXII] A précis of the remaining
hadith has been included in the appendices. The fairly substantial khatima
has also not been included for the same reasons, but the majority of the
theological discussion in the postscript is largely lifted from other authors
and it serves mainly as a recapitulation of beliefs about the status of the
angels and their relationship to humans.
The work’s name follows the pattern of many of al-Suyuti’s works,
using a rhyme, pun or metrical title.[LXIII] [LXIV]
The title Al-Haba ’ikfi akhbar al-mala ’ik is difficult to translate
precisely. Firstly, the most common form of the plural of malak is mala’ika
and the plural mala’ik is, although acceptable in classical Arabic,
relatively rare. Al- Haba’ik is also another rare word. The basic
meaning of the verb habaka means ‘to plait or braid (hair)’, but it is
also used in connection with the courses of the planetary bodies, so there is
an obvious pun linking haba’ik to the celestial beings, rather
than the celestial bodies. The word still poses a problem, especially in
the context of akhbar - how can hadith have a ‘course’ or a
‘trail’? This difficulty may account for a common translation of the work as The
Book of Angels, but this is not that suitable as it avoids a translation of
haba 'ik''6 The best translation, although not entirely
acceptable, appears to be The Arrangement of the Traditions about Angels.
Just as hair is braided and arranged, and the heavenly bodies are ordered in
the heavens, al-Suyütî arranges the hadïth about angels in this
collection. The translation has been based on a modern edition, edited by Abu
Hajir Muhammad al- SaTd ibn Basyun Zaghlul[LXV] and supported by
manuscript evidence; namely, the copy held in the Warner Collection at the
University of Leiden.[LXVI]
The commentary that accompanies the partial translation of Al-Haba’ik
fi akhbar al-mala’ik is divided into two parts. The following two sections
look at the work as a whole, including a discussion of hadïth that have
not been translated. The first looks at the origins and development of
angelology in Islamic tradition, using al- SuyUtî’s collection as a basis from
which to approach the subject in a general way. It looks particularly at the
nomenclature of angels in Islam and the textual iconography of angels. The
second section looks at the purpose and function of the work as a whole,
attempting to understand what al-Suyütî attempted to convey through this
collection, particularly through the angels’ interactions with humans. Much
more could be written about the work, but these two areas have been highlighted
as two of the most important themes.
The commentary that accompanies the translation is aimed at
explaining difficult terms and vocabulary, referring readers to important
concepts, making notes on the text itself and so on. The comments are often
designed only to direct the reader to other literature on the subject, rather
than giving detailed analyses. The principal aim of the commentary is to
provide the reader with a context in which to place the hadïth. Where
possible, references to other Islamic works have been given. There is also
frequent reference to other Jewish and Christian texts: these are not intended
to imply a source for the hadïth, but merely to reflect the
commonalities between Jewish, Christian and Islamic beliefs about angels,
placing Islamic traditions about angels in a wider Near Eastern milieu.
1.3
Contextualizing Al-Suyuti in the
Late Mamluk Milieu
To understand al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba ’ik f akhbar al-mala’ik
more fully, it is important to place al-Suyuti and his works in their wider
historical and social context. The work which is the focus of this thesis
emerged during the waning of the Circassian (BurjT) Mamluk sultanate,[LXVII]
and only a few years after al-Suyuti’s death, the Ottomans had gained control
of the majority of the Near East and North Africa, save Iran. Mamluk society,
especially the relationships between the different classes and
faith-communities, has received much attention in the past[LXVIII] and is important to
consider, when placing al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik fi akhbar al-mala’ik in
its religious and social context.
Whilst the Mamluks faced increasing political, social and economic
problems during the fifteenth century,[LXIX] the scholarly élite
remained relatively strong and productive, with Cairo being the centre of
academic achievement in the Near East.[LXX] Most
importantly, academia in late Mamluk Egypt became increasingly independent and
secure through the establishment of endowments (waqf pl. awqaf);
as Carl Petry comments: ‘The scholarly establishment owed its relative freedom
of action to the autonomy of the endowed academic position, unlike either the
bureaucracy or the judiciary - both of which were tied to the state.’[LXXI]
There were a great number of colleges and institutions of higher education, and
Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti grew up in a highly literate and educated environment.[LXXII]
As Islamic education was primarily based on the personal relationship between
teacher and pupil, most scholars came from Cairene families with a long history
in the scholarly world;[LXXIII]
but some, like al- Suyuti’s father, were able to succeed, having come into
Cairo from the provinces.[LXXIV]
Whilst scholarship was relatively fruitful in this period,
academics and judges were involved in a number of important controversies that
have some bearing on the cultural and religious milieu of the fifteenth
century.[LXXV]
The place of Christians, particularly Coptic Christians, in Mamluk society was
the cause of a number of disputes, both in Cairo and Damascus,[LXXVI]
often involving accusations of blasphemy against the prophet.[LXXVII]
There were particular moments when the tensions between Coptic Christians and
local Muslims became particularly strong, but, generally, the relationship between
each of the groups was one of mutual distrust. Earlier in the Mamluk period,
the secretaries of the court (who were mainly Copts) were legislated against,
largely due to resentment from the Muslim majority and subsequently secretaries
could only be Muslims.[LXXVIII]
This prompted a large number of Copts to convert to Islam, as the court was
their main employer. However, their conversions were not usually whole-hearted,
with many still celebrating Christian festivals, being only Muslim in name.[LXXIX]
[LXXX]
These converts to Islam, especially the second and third generations, would
undoubtedly have brought some Christian material with them into popular Muslim
interpretation of the Qur’an and hadith.
Not only were there Christian converts to Islam, but there was
frequent adoption and celebration of Coptic festivals by the Muslim population
in Mamluk Egypt. The most famous of these is the Nile festival held in January
(c/d al-Ghitas)8 At the same time, there was also
a growth in the observance of other Muslim festivals,[LXXXI] which reformers, such as
Ibn Taymiyya in the previous century had strived to ‘correct’, seeing them as
innovations (bida’) that need to be purged from Islam.[LXXXII]
The celebration of the Prophet’s Birthday (Mawlidal-nabï) and the
practice of tomb visitation (ziyara) are the most prominent of these
innovative practices and there has been much secondary literature written on
both of these topics.[LXXXIII]
What is most interesting is the fact that the scholarly and legal classes did
not present a united front against these ‘innovative’ festivals,[LXXXIV]
and some, such as al-Suyuti, actually argued that some of these practices were
acceptable.[LXXXV]
Mamluk Cairo was not, then, an environment in which there was a
distinct divide between ‘popular’ and ‘orthodox’ religion, but one where the
divisions were much more blurred. Not all the scholars and judges believed that
particular festivals were innovations (bida’), as Michael Winter has
commented: ‘The dividing line between popular and normative Islam is sometimes
unclear. As in every religion, there are within Islam tensions between orthodox
and unorthodox, or popular religion.’[LXXXVI]
Despite this blurring between ‘popular’ and ‘orthodox’ religion,
there was a strong divide between the academic élite and the masses.
Many scholars went at great lengths to attack uneducated purveyors of religious
teaching: especially the preachers (wa^iz, pl. waccaz)
and the story-tellers (qass, pl. qussas).[LXXXVII] Al-Suyutï was one of
many to write treatises attacking such people.[LXXXVIII] Éric Geoffroy comments
of this period: ‘Les culama’, ajoute Suyutï, ont toujours eu
la role ingrate de lutter contre l’ignorance des qussas et de leur
auditoire de bas étage.’[LXXXIX]
Many of these anti- qussas works highlight the fact that the utilization
of hadith required training in the religious sciences, and that without
it (i.e. without an appropriate ijaza), an individual was not allowed to
engage in their study or propagation. There was a strong sense that the
religious scholars had a monopoly on religious knowledge, which they were keen
to maintain.
Scant evidence means that it is difficult to assess whether the
scholarly community was simply attempting to protect its own interests, or
whether it was generally concerned about the religious path along which popular
preachers could lead their followers. Scholars in this period certainly include
a number of more ‘popular’ materials in their works, especially their hadith
collections. Is this an attempt to appeal to the masses, or is it indicative of
the absorption of popular material into normative religion? Is the influence
from ‘popular religion’ to ‘normative’ Islam, or are fifteenth century
academics writing works for their target audience and deliberately including
popular elements to appeal to them? Jacques Waardenburg has argued that popular
elements of religion can become absorbed into ‘normative’ religion;[XC]
but there is also likely to be a conscious effort by scholars of the day to
appeal to the masses and weaken the influence of the preachers and storytellers.
There is some evidence to suggest that scholars in Mamluk Egypt
responded to the needs of the ordinary Cairene public; for example, after a
series of plagues in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries,[XCI]
the genre of ‘books of consolation’ emerged in response to an emotional need of
ordinary people.[XCII]
There are also a wide number of other hadïth collections written by
noted academics that would appear to have a more ‘popular’ audience. Al-Suyuti
wrote many of these more popular works: encompassing short collections of hadïth,
such as his compilation on the merits of cAli, Al-qawl al-jaliyy
fï fada’il cAlï; [XCIII]
religious rulings favouring popular expressions of religion, such as his al-Husn
seen above; and works of a devotional nature, like his cAmal
al-yawm wa-‘l-layla9A This suggests that Mamluk academics were
engaging with the non-academic community, composing and compiling scholarly
works for a wider audience.
The leading scholars of the fifteenth century, such as al-Sakhawi
and al- Suyuti were all involved in the compilation of what are normally
referred to as ‘encyclopaedic’ works (i.e. non-canonical hadith
collections),[XCIV]
[XCV]
and the subject of this thesis, al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik fi akhbar al-mala’ik,
falls into this category. Evidence shows that the Cairene libraries were
extensive,[XCVI]
and these non-canonical hadith collections tend to draw on and develop a
wide range of earlier works.[XCVII]
Scholars, such as al-Sakhawi and al-Suyuti, were very adept at drawing hadith
from a number of different texts into new compilations on new subjects. A. J.
Arberry comments: ‘It must have been a very elaborate card-index of traditions
and traditionists that al-Sakhawi kept, with such excellent cross-references
that he was obviously able at very short notice to compile a new treatise on
the subject to satisfy one or other of the eccentric demands made of him by his
friends and pupils.’[XCVIII]
As will be seen below, al-Suyuti also makes use of a comprehensive range of
sources in his hadith collections.
These encyclopaedic works were common in this period and cover a
wide range of topics. They tend to avoid technical, scholarly subjects, instead
pursuing a more general approach to a subject, and they frequently serve as
summaries of more complex material. The lack of more ‘scholarly’ material would
seem to suggest that they are aimed at a literate, but uneducated audience,
i.e. the Egyptian middle classes.[XCIX]
Similarly, their themes also seem to address more popular devotional and
theological ideas. It is always difficult to suggest a definitive reason behind
the compilation of these works, but they do seem to be both aimed at the
general public and to act as educational tools for the spiritual life of
ordinary people. As it has been argued above, it is also difficult to say
whether this was driven by an attempt by the culama’ to
correct or reform the beliefs of the general public on pure theological
grounds, or whether there was a political motivation, notably the curbing of
the growing power of popular preachers and story-tellers: it is likely to be a
mixture. Late mediaeval authors also seem keen to involve themselves in
self-promotion: writing popular pamphlets and short encyclopaedic works would,
undoubtedly, have played a key role in this.[C] Whilst the scholarly élite
were a well defined and relatively insular section of Cairene society, the
scholars do appear to be actively engaged with those outside its circle,
particularly in the spiritual education of the middle classes.
Al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik fi akhbar al-mala’ik should,
therefore, be seen as emerging in this complex social and religious
environment. Firstly, al-Suyuti was an important scholar in his day, producing
a number of important works in the fields of Qur’anic commentary,[CI]
philology,[CII]
history[CIII]
and philosophy.[CIV]
Secondly, as part of the scholarly élite, he was concerned with protecting the
scholarly monopoly on religious teaching and wrote works that explicitly argue
for this, such as his, Tahdhir al-khawass min akadhib al-qussas. But,
al-Suyuti was also engaged in compiling hadilh collections, with an
educative motivation, encouraging the people of Cairo to return to proper
‘Islamic’ beliefs. Al-Suyuti was not, by any means, similar to figures such as
Ibn Taymiyya and Ibn Hazm, yet there are similarities: all of these authors
(including al-Suyuti’s contemporaries, like al-Sakhawi) were attempting to
promote a renewed Islam. Al-Suyuti took his ‘reformist’ credentials to their
limit, portraying himself as the mujaddid of the fifteenth century.[CV]
The main difference is that the earlier reformist figures of Ibn
Hazm, Ibn al- Hajj, Ibn al-Jawzi and Ibn Taymiyya were more forceful in their
attacks on ‘popular’ religion and innovations (bida’),[CVI]
whilst the authors in the fifteenth century are, in most cases, more muted in
their objections and are seen to engage with popular religion, rather than to
attack it openly and directly. Their aims may have been largely similar (i.e.
the ‘reform’ of Islam), but al-Suyuti and Ibn Taymiyya went about it in very
different ways. Furthermore, Ibn Taymiyya typically attacks specific
non-Islamic practices, whereas al-Suyuti and his contemporaries seem more
interested in encouraging the religious education of the wider public.
Why does al-Suyuti approach ‘popular’ religion in this way?
Firstly, the fact that al-Suyuti was a sufl may be crucial to
understanding his interaction with popular religion.[CVII] This aspect of
al-Suyuti’s life is one that has received very little attention, but a number
of his works, such as his exegetical Ayat al-kursl macanlha wa-
fada’iluha, do have distinct sf characteristics. Secondly, al-Suyuti
was a SliaffT, rather than a Hanbali, which may account for his less vitriolic
attacks on popular religion. His more popular works definitely seek to
encourage religious belief and ‘proper’ practice, rather than criticising
specific actions. Al-Suyuti, as well as many of his contemporaries, appears to
have been more willing to accept and interact with popular religion.
1.4
Jalal al-Dïn al-Suyutï: Methodology
and Sources
There has been relatively little study of al-Suyuti and his
approach to hadlth, despite his popularity. Furthermore, the sheer
quantity of his output makes it difficult to suggest any firm conclusions about
his methods of hadlth compilation. However, it is feasible to analyse
al-Suyuti’s methods in al-Haba’ik fl akhbar al-mala’ik and through a
heuristic approach come to some conclusions about al-Suyuti’s methodology. It
is also hoped that it will be possible to come to some understanding of the
intended audience of al-Suyuti’s al-Haba’ik, placing it within the more
general religious and social context of Mamluk Egypt seen above.
Al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik is divided into two sections: (i)
the collection of around 750 hadïth and (ii) a fairly substantial
postscript (khatima) on theological issues regarding angels. The sources
of these two sections need to be treated separately, as they draw on different
scholarly disciplines. The relationship between the hadïth and the
postscript also needs to be explored. Lastly, the actual content of hadïth
and the khatima will also indicate what issues al-Suyuti was engaging
with, which, in turn, will aid understanding of al-Suyuti’s target audience.
Al-Haba’ik fï akhbar al-mala’ik looks at the angelic world, but it is not the only compilation to
focus on the mysteries of the supernatural. There are, for example, works on jinn,
Islamic cosmology, the Mahdï and the events in the grave.[CVIII]
His Al-Haba’ik fï akhbar al-mala’ik seems to complement these
other works, although it is difficult, if not impossible, to know whether
al-Suyuti intended these works to be read in conjunction with each other. What
these works do show is that al-Suyuti was clearly interested in exploring the
divine world and that he devoted a number of hadïth compilations to the
topic.
With a large number of works in a similar area, it might be
expected that al- Suyuti used material he had included in other works. However,
there is remarkably little cross-over between some of these collections. For
example, both his Al-Haba’ik and his Al-Hay’a al-saniyya fi ‘l-hay’a
al-sunniyya contain hadith stating that angels accompany raindrops
as they fall from heaven and record where they land and which humans benefited
from them. However, there is not a single hadith that is repeated verbatim
in both collections. Take, for example, the two hadith below, which are
very similar, taken from the same source (Abu ‘l-Shaykh’s Kitab al-cazama),
yet are quite different:
‘There is no year more abounding in
rain than another year; but God directs it wherever He wishes. And with the
rain He sends down such and such of the angels in order to note down where that
rain falls, whom it provides with sustenance, and what results from every
drop.’[CIX]
‘He sends down with the rain [such
and such] from the angels, more numerous than the sons of Adam and the sons of
Iblis. [The angels] record every raindrop, where it falls and who is sustained
by that plant.’[CX]
Each of the hadith includes the same basic matn
(’...He sends down with the rain [such and such] from the angels. [The angels]
record every raindrop, where it falls and who is sustained by that plant.’),
but the hadith included in each of the works is slightly different and
are suited to their respective works. The hadith in al-Hay’a focuses
on the physical phenomenon of rain, and the hadith in al-Haba’ik,
which is in the chapter entitled ‘The Great Abundance of Angels’, emphasises
the quantity of angels, using raindrops as a comparison.
Although this is just one example, it is a very revealing one. It
shows that al- Suyuti employed hadïth very carefully, using the most
appropriate version of a hadïth for a particular work. This would also
seem to suggest that al-Suyuti was conscious of which hadïth had been
included in his other collections and may indicate that these two works were
compiled at the same time, or at the very least, relatively closely together.
Al-Suyuti often gave different sections of larger works individual titles,[CXI]
so it is possible that Al-Haba’ik may be linked to other works or be
part of a larger one. Above all, it shows that there can be great subtlety in
al- Suyuti’s method of hadïth compilation.
It is a great help that al-Suyuti provides details of the authors
and works from which he has taken his hadïth, making it possible to gain
some insight into the way in which he worked and engaged with primary sources.
In al-Habâ’ik al-Suyuti draws on eighty-three different authors for his hadïth,[CXII]
[CXIII]
which gives an average of one author for every nine hadïth, and he
mentions thirty-two theologians in the khâtima11 This shows
how knowledgeable al-Suyuti was in these fields, and the wide variety of
sources that he utilized.
As a writer of the ninth / fifteenth century, it might have been
expected that al-Suyuti would have drawn on collections of hadïth
compiled in later periods, but the table below shows that the majority of the
authors that al-Suyuti cites, died in the third and fourth centuries A.H. This
is important to note, as it shows that al-Suyuti turned to works written in the
‘golden’ period of Islamic literature and hadïth science, shunning later
hadïth compilations. A similar use of sources can be seen in al-
Suyuti’s Al-Hay’a. Al-Suyuti’s sources are, however, quite
different in the khatima. Here al-Suyuti makes much more use of later
sources, predominantly from the seventh and eighth centuries A.H, with no
sources at all coming from the first to third centuries. This change in the
types of sources in the hadith and the khatima reflects the
different genres, audiences and milieu of each of the sections.
Author Date of Death [Century (A.H.)] |
Al-Haba ’ik (Hadith) |
|
Al-Haba ’ik (Khatima) |
|
Al-Hay’a |
|||
No. |
% |
No. |
% |
No. |
% |
|||
First |
1 |
1.2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
||
Second |
2 |
2.4 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
||
Third |
25 |
30.2 |
0 |
0 |
18 |
43.9 |
||
Fourth |
29 |
34.9 |
2 |
6.2 |
13 |
31.7 |
||
Fifth |
11 |
13.3 |
7 |
21.9 |
5 |
12.2 |
||
Sixth |
6 |
7.2 |
3 |
9.4 |
2 |
4.9 |
||
Seventh |
3 |
3.6 |
9 |
28.1 |
0 |
0 |
||
Eighth |
0 |
0 |
8 |
25.0 |
0 |
0 |
||
Ninth |
2 |
2.4 |
2 |
6.3 |
0 |
0 |
||
Unknown |
4 |
4.8 |
1 |
3.1 |
3 |
7.3 |
Fig (i) Table of al-Suyuti’s Sources in
his Al-Haba ’ik and al-Hay’a
Fig. (ii) Graph of al-Suyuti’s sources in al-Haba’ik
The most important period in hadith collection was in the
third to fourth centuries A.H, when the collections of authentic hadith
were compiled and the hadith sciences were developed.[CXIV]
The majority of hadith compilations after this period were commentaries
on established works,[CXV]
[CXVI]
or musannaf works, which took hadith from various collections on
a specific theme, as al-Suyuti does in al-Haba’ik. As a result of this
intense period of studying hadith, Islamic scholarship produced a vast
corpus of (authentic) hadith from which figures like al-Suyuti could
draw. Al- Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik fi akhbar al-mala’ik is a representation
or reorganisation of hadith, from earlier, respected and reputable
scholars on a ‘new’, more focused, subject area. Al-Suyuti is not including
‘new’ hadith, but arranging old hadith in a new way. In the khatima,
however, al-Suyuti places his discussion of the angels in Islamic theology in
the wider context of past theological debate. Theology, unlike the hadith,
is not static. Al-Suyuti was not attempting to reflect the theological opinions
of a specific period, but engages instead with various theological opinions
about the angels. It is also a possibility that the authors cited in the khatima
reflect those studied in the madrasas.
Whilst al-Suyuti cites a great many authors in al-Haba’ik,ll<6
there is a tendency to focus on a few authors in particular. For example, in
the hadith section the authors Abu ‘l-Shaykh and al-Bayhaqi are key
sources, with Abu ‘l-Shaykh being
the source of 185 hadith (24.6%) and al-Bayhaqî 103 hadith
(13.7%).[CXVII]
A similar trend can be seen in al-Suyuti’s Itqan, although a direct
comparison cannot be made, as the text integrates both hadith and usül
al-din material. A comparison can, however, be made with al-Hay’a:
Name in Text |
Al-Haba’ik |
Al-Hay’a |
||
No. |
% |
No. |
% |
|
Abu ‘l-Shaykh |
185 |
24.6 |
191 |
73.2 |
Bayhaqi, al- |
103 |
13.7 |
4 |
1.5 |
Tabarani, al- |
87 |
11.6 |
14 |
5.4 |
Ibn Abi Hatim |
72 |
9.6 |
68 |
26.1 |
Ibn Jarir [al-Tabari] |
62 |
8.3 |
18 |
6.9 |
Ibn al-Mundhir |
55 |
7.3 |
16 |
6.1 |
Ahmad |
49 |
6.5 |
6 |
2.3 |
Ibn Abi Shayba |
41 |
5.5 |
3 |
1.1 |
Ibn cAsakir |
40 |
5.3 |
6 |
2.3 |
Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya |
37 |
4.9 |
10 |
3.8 |
Ibn Mardawayh |
30 |
4.0 |
12 |
4.6 |
Hakim, al- |
29 |
3.9 |
9 |
2.3 |
Abu Nucaym |
28 |
3.7 |
2 |
0.8 |
cAbd ibn Hamid |
27 |
3.6 |
4 |
1.5 |
Muslim |
27 |
3.6 |
1 |
0.4 |
Daylami, al- |
25 |
3.3 |
1 |
0.4 |
Tirmidhi, al- |
22 |
2.9 |
3 |
1.1 |
cAbd al-Razzaq |
21 |
2.8 |
4 |
1.5 |
Bukhari, al- |
19 |
2.5 |
8 |
3.1 |
Ibn Maj ah |
17 |
2.3 |
1 |
0.4 |
Sa'T'd ibn Mansur |
16 |
2.1 |
3 |
1.1 |
Abu Da’ud |
14 |
1.9 |
1 |
0.4 |
Dinawari, al- |
13 |
1.7 |
0 |
0 |
Nasa’i, al- |
12 |
1.6 |
1 |
0.4 |
Bazzar, al- |
11 |
1.5 |
3 |
1.1 |
Fig. (iii) Authors cited as a source in al-Haba
’ik (more than 10 times) and in
al-Hay’a
Hay'a
■ Habai'k
Fig (iv) Chart of al-Suyuti’s sources in al-Haba
’ik and al-Hay ’a
The data reveal some interesting trends. Firstly, Abu ‘l-Shaykh is
the most cited author in both al-Hay’a and al-Haba ’ik, but
especially so in al-Hay’a, where Abu ‘l-
Shaykh dominates the work. K. E. Nolin’s study of al-Suyuti’s
sources for his Itqan shows that he adapted and enlarged al-Zarkashi’s Burhan;
the data above seem to reveal a similar relationship between his al-Hay’a
and Abu ‘l-Shaykh’s Kitab al- cazama. The same relationship
is not so evident in al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik, although the work does also
feature prominently. There are also a great number of common authors, with only
four out of forty-one authors appearing in al-Hay’a that do not appear
in al-Haba’ik1* Despite this, the frequency of the authors
being used in each of the works shows only a weak correlation. This evidence
suggests that al-Suyuti had a core set of works which he consulted for his hadïth
collections, but the frequency of their use depends on the hadïth that
they contain, and their usefulness to a particular work. It also suggests that
al-Suyuti, as Nolin has shown, uses one or two particular works as a basis from
which to compile a larger collection: in the case of al-Hay’a, it
appears to be based exclusively on Abu ‘l-Shaykh, whereas al-Haba’ik focuses
on the works of Abu ‘l-Shaykh and al-Bayhaqi.[CXVIII] [CXIX]
The khatima shows a slightly different relationship between
al-Suyuti and his sources, which is more difficult to analyse empirically. As
it has been seen above, the khatima draws on a wide range of sources,
collecting and presenting various mediaeval materials on angels in kalam.
Al-Suyuti makes extensive citations throughout the khatima with little
personal comment, from both brief statements of doctrine, such as
al-Kalabadhi’s Kitab al-tacarruf li-madhhab ahl al-tasawwuf,
in which al-Kalabadhi’s thoughts are not reproduced in full,[CXX]
to the citations of entire chapters, such as the thirty-third chapter of Fakhr
al-Din al-Razi’s Kitab al-arbacïn: Fï an al-mala ’ika afdal aw
al-anbiya’ .[CXXI]
Such extensive quotation suggests that the khatima was
written to act as a primer, presenting the views of past scholars on the issue
of the precedence of angels and prophets. A number of such works were composed
in this period, and it was common to include such a large amount of cited
material: ‘By the later medieval period, scholars in institutions of higher
learning established in several cities and towns of the Mamluk empire had
generated myriad texts, treatises, commentaries, handbooks, and primers for
curricular use.’[CXXII]
Furthermore, the relative lack of analysis or ideas on al-Suyuti’s part would
seem to suggest that it was not necessarily aimed at the scholarly community.
It is true that extensive quotation is common in later theological works; yet,
there is a tendency to engage with the material and challenge it significantly
at some juncture in the work. Al-Suyuti does include some personal comment
towards the end of the khatima, but it is much more limited than in
other kalam works of the period. Despite the high consideration of his
own abilities, al-Suyuti never really considered himself to be a mutakallim[CXXIII]
Muhammad Jalal Abu ‘l-Futuh Sharaf provides an extremely useful portrayal of
al-Suyuti’s relationship with kalam, He states:
‘There is no doubt that al-Suyuti’s
position on the discipline of kalam was one of suspicion and mistrust of
its influence on the doctrines of Islam and its capability to mislead and cause
deviant [views]. But it will be seen that al-Suyuti distinguishes between the
disciplines of kalam that are founded on pure senseless debate, which
can be seen in the mutakallimun of the innovators and between kalam
that is based on the Book, the Sunna and defence of Islamic doctrines
and the refutation of the innovators and those that have deviated [from
Islam].’[CXXIV]
For al-Suyütî kalam did have its benefits for the study of
Islam, but he distanced himself from speculative theology. Kalam was
acceptable, as long as it sought to support the Qur’an, the Sunna and
the creeds.[CXXV]
In the khatima in al-Haba’ik, al- Suyütî engages with elements of
kalam that support the sunna, but not necessarily kalam as
a discipline in its entirety. The khatima presents a summary of kalam
arguments that support orthodox beliefs, rather than advancing new ideas
into the field.
However, the khatima is not the only section that deals
with philosophical and theological issues. The presence of an early chapter in al-Haba’ik
with the title: ‘The Origin of the Creation of the Angels and the Proof that
their Substance is in Contradiction to the Philosophers’ [CXXVI] suggests an engagement
with Islamic peripatetic philosophy in the hadith section as well.
Although only three hadith (0.4%) are included in this chapter, it
clearly shows that it was an issue of concern. The opposition of Islam to Greek
philosophy in some quarters is well known,[CXXVII] and al-Suyütî wrote a
number of works against the use of Greek logic himself.[CXXVIII] The issue at stake in al-Haba’ik
concerns the physical substance of angels: in Islamic philosophy some held that
angels were intellects and were incorporeal.[CXXIX] The most famous
philosopher to deny angels bodies was Ibn Sina, who in his al-Shifa’ explicitly
refers to angels as incorporeal intellects.[CXXX] Al-Suyuti’s chapter
stresses that the angels are corporeal and that they are made of fire or light,
the tradition understanding of angelic substance.[CXXXI]
There is little to suggest that al-Suyuti is responding to a
specific text that propounds the belief in the incorporeality of angels, and he
simply appears to be reiterating the case against Islamic peripatetic
philosophy. However, interest in Muctazilï theology was
revived from the thirteenth century onwards,[CXXXII] Na.sïr al-Din al-Tusi
(d. 672 / 1274)[CXXXIII]
being a notable example. This synthesis became the basis of the Isfahan School,
which came to dominate Twelver philosophy a century after al-Suyuti’s death.[CXXXIV]
In the intervening period, a number of scholars advanced such theological
thinking, including Jamal al-Din al-Hilli[CXXXV] (d. 726 / 1325) and Ibn
Abi Jumhur al-Ahsa’i (d. 906 / 1501).[CXXXVI] [CXXXVII]
Likewise, the angels were held to be incorporeal in Jewish kabbalah 11
but it would seem unlikely that al-Suyuti is engaging with medieval Jewish
philosophy in al-Haba’ik specifically. There is no doubt that
speculative theology was being pursued in al-Suyuti’s lifetime.
However, as al-Suyütî does not refer to any specific texts or
authors, it is difficult to ascertain whether he is engaging with these mutakallimün.
If al-Suyütî was not responding to any specific text, it is conceivable that he
became aware of a resurgence in the belief in the incorporeality of angels in
general terms and so responded to that; but this can only be conjecture.
However, its presence and placement at the beginning of the collection do show
that al-Suyütî believed it was an important issue to discuss.
This survey of al-Suyütî’s use of sources has shown a number of
important aspects of al-Suyütî’s methodological approach, although much more
work needs to be done to understand it more fully. Firstly, al-Suyütî appears
to have used an Urtext for his compilations, around which he adds,
removes and expands material. In some cases, this Urtext is extremely
prominent, in others, such his al-Haba’ikfiakhbar al- mala’ik, it is
less so. Secondly, al-Suyütî applied different types of sources in the hadith
and kalam sections. The hadith are sources from an early period,
the third to fourth centuries hijri, whereas the kalam material
is derived principally from material from the seventh century onwards. This
appears to reflect the need for the hadith to be taken from the
formative period of hadith collection, and the kalam material to
reflect more contemporary discussions. Lastly, the khatima makes use of
extended citation, and appears to have the reproduction of key ideas and
expositions of the theological problem being discussed as its main aim.
1.5
The Purpose of Al-Haba’ik
and its Audience
The purpose of al-Suyuti’s hadlth compilations and their
audience can, at times, be a little difficult to ascertain. The discussions
above have shown that the hadlth section and the khatima utilise
different types of sources and approaches, and that the historical milieu of
fifteenth-century Cairo was complex and dynamic. There are many different
audiences to which al-Haba’ik could be aimed: the masses, the literate
public, students or academics. The juxtaposition of the hadlth and the khatima
does little to help resolve the issue.
Éric Geoffroy has commented that: ‘...[al-Suyuti] prefigures the
modern period by certain aspects, such as being partly an autodidact,
presenting to the public, which he wanted to be widened, manuals which were
centred around precise themes.’[CXXXVIII]
If his works were intended for the general public, some of them certainly
required a degree of learning: the khatima that follows al-Haba’ik,
for instance, contains detailed theological discussions. Yet, at the same time,
there is a tension in his collections between the use of this overtly scholarly
material and his frequent reliance on weak and non-Prophetic hadlth,[CXXXIX]
as well as elements of folklore.[CXL]
As it has been seen above, there is textual evidence that
al-Suyuti was engaged in promoting scholarly hadlth studies during his
lifetime and that he attacked those who used hadith without having had
any proper training in the field.[CXLI] However, Marlis Saleh
suggests the best explanation; she comments that: ‘Al-Suyuti came to feel that
he had been born into an age of widespread ignorance and scholarly decline, and
that as the most knowledgeable person of his time he had a special mission to
assemble and transmit the Islamic cultural patrimony before it disappeared
entirely due to the carelessness of his contemporaries.’[CXLII] It would seem that
al-Suyuti was engaged in two different activities at the same time: firstly,
promoting particular ideas about different subjects (in these case, angels) to
the wider Muslim public; and, secondly, addressing more academic and
theological issues, preserving them for future generations of scholars and
students. It is, perhaps, for this reason that in al-Haba ’ik the
theological arguments are kept within the confines of the khatima; those
who did not understand kalam, or were not interested in it, could simply
ignore it.
The hadith found in al-Suyuti’s al-Haba’ik are often
part of the qisas al- anbiya’ genre. As has been seen above, al-Suyuti
and his contemporaries like al- Sakhawi were involved in attempts to combat the
growth of the preachers and the story-tellers. These popular preachers, in the
opinion of the culama’, were using hadith
inappropriately. The qussas narrated stories in the qisas al-anbiya’
tradition, which itself had a strong association with ‘popular religion’: ‘The
classification of Kisai’s [Qisas al-anbiya’] as popular religious
literature may be suggested by its tendency to simplify Biblical-Quranic
legends for the education and enjoyment of the masses...’[CXLIII] The use of qisas
material in al-Haba’ik may be an indication of its target audience: such
material is being used in attempt to wean the general public of the qussas
onto the works of the orthodox, acceptable and scholarly culama
’.
Naturally, much of this qisas material is also found in the
tafslr works, but al- Suyuti does appear to have utilized this material
much more frequently than scholars of earlier generations. This trend can been
in both his general encyclopaedic hadlth collections and his more formal
exegeses, such as his al-Durr al-manthur. Such a blurring between formal
and popular works was common in late Mamluk literature, which ‘.transcends
boundaries: the boundaries between the everyday and literary communication;
between popular and high literatures; between poetry and prose; between the
private and public; between theory and praxis.’[CXLIV] Whether or not such a
blurring was a direct response to the growth of the wuccaz
and the qussas is difficult to ascertain, but there certainly seems to
be an engagement with ‘popular’ material in this period, which al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba
’ik also exhibits.
This more ‘popular’ material is juxtaposed with the khatima
- a section that clearly requires a high degree of intellectual ability. Al-Suyuti
refers to the khatima in his introduction to the work as the whole, and
states: ‘I have ended it with a useful lesson, which will make those who see it
glad.’[CXLV]
Al-Suyuti clearly intended it to be read, but by whom? The material in the khatima
and its recapitulation of the work of earlier mutakallimun seems to
suggest that the postscript was aimed towards students, acting as a primer or
summary of kalam arguments about angels. The relationship between the hadlth
section and the khatima is difficult to comprehend, because, except for
the presence of the angels, the two sections appear to have little in common in
their approach, sources and contents. There is, however, one quite general
theme that can take both the hadith and the kalam materials into
account. Over the whole text there is a sense that work is attempting to
outline all beliefs about angels in Islam, both those raised in the hadith
and in Islamic theology, making the work almost a ‘text book’ on belief in
angels.
All of this would seem to suggest that al-Haba’ik was aimed
at a literate audience, but not necessarily those at the highest level of
academia. It is not really an ‘academic’ work in that sense. It has already
been seen that al-Suyuti wrote many works that could be considered as being
fully academic, engaging in logic, law, exegesis and the usul al-din,
among many other subject areas. This material is quite different in nature and
form to al-Haba’ik. Furthermore, an analysis of al-Suyuti’s works shows
that he also wrote much material that could be considered as being more
popularist. Al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik fi akhbar al-mala’ik sits somewhere
in between these two audiences: neither fully academic, nor aimed entirely at
the masses, but whether it was aimed at the literate general public or students
specifically is difficult to ascertain. It would seem likely that both groups
would have benefited from the work.
Appreciating al-Suyuti’s target audiences produces some
interesting insights on al-Suyuti as an author. He appears to have been engaged
with a wide range of different groups of society: academics, students and the
general public. His arrogant nature may not have enamoured him to the Cairene intelligentsia,
but he does appear to have achieved a degree of fame and reputation, a fact not
missed by Reynold Nicholson. After discussing his various disputes with
contemporary scholars, Nicholson comments: ‘Be this as it may, he saw what the
public wanted. His compendious and readable handbooks were famed throughout the
Moslem world...’[CXLVI]
Al-Suyuti knew what sort of books and hadith collections were wanted,
and he obligingly responded, writing works for a wide range of different social
groups in Mamluk Cairo.
Others, such as al-Sakhawi and Ibn Hajar al-Asqalam, appear to
have acted similarly;[CXLVII]
this would seem to imply that scholars of the late Mamluk period were more
deeply involved in the world outside academia than previous generations of
scholars. This period is often accused of being a period of stagnation and intellectual
malaise;[CXLVIII]
but, authors such as al-Suyuti show an awareness and interaction with the whole
range of audiences in Mamluk Cairo. The Mamluk era was a period of great
intellectual activity, not stagnation, seen especially in the interaction of
scholars with the wider community - an academic model that, perhaps, has much
to resonate with the contemporary world.
The Origins of Islamic Beliefs
About
Angels
66
2. The Origins of Islamic Beliefs about Angels
Although angels appear in the Qur’an, with Gabriel and Michael
explicitly named, the traditions included in Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ikfi
akhbar al-mala’ik show a great increase in the number of angels. The
question naturally arises about how these traditions entered Islam and from
where they originated. Understanding the provenance of these hadith will
provide a basis for comprehending the wider interactions between Islam and
other religious traditions of the Near East, and allows a particular motif or
concept to be placed in context: in what ways is an Islamic motif similar or
different to its use in Judaism or Christianity?
The aim of this section is not to analyse the hadith in
source-critical terms, as this would not actually achieve very reliable results
for a number of reasons: firstly, the majority of Isra’iliyyat
traditions passed into Islam through oral transmission,[CXLIX] often through
a number of different sectarian and language groups. [CL] This makes literary
comparison or any source-critical approach difficult and of questionable value.
Secondly, hadith present material in a different way to Jewish and
Christian texts. There is no real counterpart to the hadith collection
in Jewish or Christian literature; hadith collections reproduce isolated
fragments of information, usually with little in the way of contextualisation.[CLI]
[CLII]
At most, a hadith collection will offer a short narrative unit, such as
the Death of Moses or the story of Harut and Marut151 Furthermore,
even if a Judeo-Christian story or motif is found in a Muslim text, it is often
adapted and changed to suit its new religious environment. In his discussion of
al-Thaclabi’s version of the death of David, Kees Wagtendonk
comments: ‘As is the case with Wahb b. Munabbih’s David stories, parts of these
stories are derived from or influenced by Jewish or Christian sources. But this
does not necessarily determine their intentions. We have to judge them by their
new context.’[CLIII]
When approaching the hadith in this collection in an attempt to
understand the origin of Muslim beliefs about angels, a number of parallels
will be made between the hadith and Jewish, Christian and other texts.
However, the purpose is not to attribute sources to particular beliefs or
motifs in the hadith, but to highlight commonalities and differences
between Islam and other religious traditions in general terms.[CLIV]
It is also important to place any commonalities in the context of their
differences, so that a general and full picture about the interaction between
Islam with other faiths can be seen.
At a basic level, Islamic beliefs about angels have largely been
attributed to Jewish and Christian ones,[CLV] but there has not been
much subsequent study of Islamic angelology as a whole. In order to understand
the origins of Muslim beliefs about angels, a wide range of traditions need to
be analysed so that a general picture of the situation can be taken. A study of
a specific tradition may indicate an influence from one particular source or
tradition, but that source may play a very minor role in the influences on
Islamic angelology as whole. The study that follows looks at the hadlth
presented by al-Suyuti in his Al-Haba ’ik fi akhbar al-mala ’ik in an
attempt to assess the influences on Islamic angelology, through (i) the
analysis of angelic nomenclature and (ii) a comparison of the depiction and
iconography of the angels in al-Haba ’ik. What will be seen is that the
influences on Islamic angelic traditions are more varied than may have been
expected.
The way in which objects and people are named often reveals much
about both the object (or the person) and the one that did the naming. The
modern discipline of semiotics is based on this principle and to a certain
extent played a part in classical Arabic linguistic theory. Many mediaeval
Arabic linguists attempted to find the etymological origins of the names of
places and animals etc., so they could understand the word more clearly.[CLVI]
Likewise, a study of the way that angels are named reveals two key aspects:
firstly, the physical origin of the angelic name; and secondly, the way in
which the angel was perceived by a particular group.
What is evident from the angels found in al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba
’ikfiakhbar al- mala’ik is that there is a relatively large quantity of
angels that are singled out and ‘named’ (albeit not always with individual
personal names), and that the way in which this is done varies greatly. This,
in itself, suggests that angels were incorporated into Islam in different ways
and that the origins and development of Islamic beliefs about angels are more
complex than some scholars have believed in the past. There are four main ways
in which Islamic angels are named: (i) use of the suffix ‘-il’; (ii) function
names using the formula ‘the Angel of X’; (iii) function names formed without malak,
which are often derivations from concepts or (physical) objects and (iv) other
miscellaneous names of varied or complex origin.
The main sources for Jewish and Christian angelic names are the
Talmud, Midrash and other rabbinic texts, Old and New Testament Pseudepigrapha,
the Dead Sea Scrolls, as well as other magical incantation texts and later
Jewish and Christian mystical treatises.[CLVII] In Judaism the most
common form of an angelic name is one composed with the suffix ‘-el’, a
suffix that is maintained in both Jewish and Christian angelic names in other
non-Semitic languages. These types of angelic names have meanings associated
with God [’el]; for example, Mika’el, means ‘one like God’ and Gabrï’ël
means ‘power of God’. In the Bible named angels only appear in the post-exilic
book of Daniel and were developed in the inter-testamental period, perhaps
influenced by Zoroastrianism, [CLVIII]
and culminated in Pseudepigraphical texts.[CLIX] In his commentary on lEnoch
George Nickelsburg highlights a number of reasons why named angels became
popular in the interTestamental period, concluding that: ‘In general, however,
it has the effect of reifying the heavenly world. If it does not give
personalities to these beings, it does give definition and an increasing sense
of reality to these beings - whether they be good or evil - concretizing their
functions on their names.. ,’[CLX]
Another important way that angelic names were given in Judaism
arose out of exegeses of passages in the Hebrew Bible.[CLXI] In these instances,
heavenly objects found in scripture become angelic, often forming a group of
angels, rather than individuals. As a result, these groups usually take the
form of the standard Hebrew plural (-m) of the hypostasised object. For
example, the wheels of God’s chariot become the group of angels called the opanmm
[‘the wheels’].[CLXII]
These two forms of angelic nomenclature are the most common, but angelic names
not taking either of these forms can be found. These angels are usually
conceptual, i.e. anthropomorphic (or rather angelomorphic) representations of
abstract ideas such as ‘Death’, ‘Wisdom’ and so on;[CLXIII] or are ultimately
derived from other non-Semitic languages, such as Greek.
This section will look at the different types of angelic names
included in al- Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ikfi akhbar al-mala’ik, attempting to
locate their origin and the significance of their nomenclature.
A number of angelic names included in Al-Haba ’ik derive
from Hebrew (or NorthWest Semitic equivalents), with some changes in
vocalisation. Angelic names in Hebrew, Aramaic and Syriac are most often
compounds formed with the termination -’ël, meaning ‘X of God’. The most
common theophoric name in Islam is, of course, Gabriel / Jibril. The
Qur’anic mushaf reads Jibril for the angel Gabirel, but there are
a number of variations extant, including: jabra’il, jabril, jabrall, jabrm[CLXIV]
These variations suggest that the name is of foreign origin and it was thought
to be either Hebrew or Syriac in traditional lexicography.[CLXV]
Despite the retention of the ending -il (the Arabic
equivalent of the Hebrew ’ël), the angelic name often loses its original
meaning when transferred to Arabic and, even when it could be retained, the
original Hebrew sense is usually ignored. For example, §89 states that:
‘Gabriel’s name [means] servant of God; Michael’s name [means] servant of God;
and Israfïl’s name [means] servant of the Merciful.’[CLXVI] The hadith gives
the three names meanings that are not strictly correct in the Hebrew sense; but
the new names are revealing. Whereas the Hebrew names enhance the power and
might of God, the Arabic names highlight the angels’ subservience to God.[CLXVII]
These translations do, however, still retain the correct translation of ’ël/
’ilas ‘God’.[CLXVIII]
The -il ending is also given an ‘incorrect’ definition in
two of the hadith found in al-Haba’ik: §37 states that ‘every
name has Il in it, and this means ‘the Temple of God.’[CLXIX]
Again, this translation (or definition) shows some ingenuity, as ’ël is
the Hebrew word for God and il is not in Arabic, it had to be translated
or interpreted in a different way. To say that il means the ‘temple of
God’ circumvents this problem. It also avoids the introduction of another,
non-Islamic, name for God. However, in the Arabic lexicographical tradition il
is usually given the simple explanation ‘a name of God, Most High.’[CLXX]
Al-Haba’ik includes eleven angelic names
ending in -il: Jibril (Gabriel), Mika’il (Michael), Israfil,
Ismacil, Riyafil, Ramya’il, Sharahil, Harahil, Artiya’il, cAzra’il/
cIzra’il and Rufil. The origin of the angels Jibril
/ Jibra’il (Hebrew: Gabri’ël) and Mika’il (Mika’ël) are both
well-known and have been frequently discussed.[CLXXI] The use and adaptation
of Judeo-Christian theophoric names would, at first sight, produce a strong
case for a Judeo-Christian influence on this type of Islamic nomenclature.
However, there are a number of idiosyncrasies in the Arabic names that make
this relationship more complex.
A number of the names included in al-Haba’ik have strong
etymological links with Jewish angels,[CLXXII] but other names are
philologically further removed. For example, Artiya’il, an angel responsible
for removing grief from humans, bears some philological similarity to the angel
Uriel (Hebrew: ’uri ’êl).[CLXXIII] An etymological
relationship between the two is potentially possible as the Arabic name only
includes the addition of the infix ‘-ti- and some minor vowel
modifications. The initial alif is left without any diacritical marks
and is usually vocalised with a fatha; however, a kasra (i.e.
Irtiya’il) would, perhaps, make more sense - linking it to VIII R-W-À, (to
quench one’s thirst), which is what this angel does in an abstract way.
However, it must be stressed that this is only conjecture, as there is no other
textual evidence available to gain a fuller understanding of the name’s origin.
Another example relates to the two angels Rufil (also given as
Rufa’il)[CLXXIV]
and Riyafil, which both appear to derive from the Hebrew Rupa’êl
(Aramaic Rapa’êl) with a fairly straightforward etymology.[CLXXV]
There are, however, a few problems with the origins of the name Rufil. Firstly,
did the Hebrew Rupa’êl generate two different angels, Rüfil and Riyafil?
With only very limited source material available it is difficult to come to any
firm conclusions; although it does seem likely, etymologically at least, that Rupa’ël
is related to both Rüfil and Riyafil. Another problem arises with
this angel; Raphael is a prominent angel in both Judaism and Christianity,[CLXXVI]
but in Islam Rufil and Riyafil are not. Furthermore, whilst Riyafil performs a
role similar to Raphael,[CLXXVII]
Rufil is the Angel of the Clouds, a role not played by either the Jewish or
Christian Raphael. In this case, a strong etymological link can be established
between Rufil / Riyafil and Raphael, but the Jewish and Christian conceptions
of the angel are not assimilated with the name.
Similar problems are encountered with the pair of angels Harahil
and Sharahil (§409 - 410), the angels responsible for the sun and the moon. In
Judeo-Christian tradition the Angel of the Sun is often associated with Uriel,[CLXXVIII]
but in 1 Enoch 8:3[CLXXIX]
there is reference to the two demons Shamshiel and Sarahiel.[CLXXX]
In Enoch, however, Sarahiel is not an angel, as such, but the fallen angel or
demon that taught humans the courses of the moon (i.e. astrology).[CLXXXI]
The Arabic Sharahil is clearly derived from Sarahiel, with the only change
being sin to shin (a common and easily acceptable alteration).[CLXXXII]
Whilst this accounts for the angel of the moon, the angel of the sun (Harahil)
is not included in the pairing of demons found in 1 Enoch 8:3, which uses the
name Shamshiel. The reason why the Enochic Shamshiel was not
appropriated into Islam along with Sarahi’ël is unclear, especially as
the name means ‘Sun of God’ and could easily be converted into *shamsa’ll
or *shamsil in Arabic. It is deeply unsatisfactory for a pairing of
angels to be adopted incompletely, but with no other sources extant that can
attest to the origins of Harahll, the reasons behind it must remain
unknown.
The Angel of Death is occasionally given the theophoric name cAzra’1l
or cIzra’ll (both of these vocalisations are found).[CLXXXIII]
This name came to prominence after the coming of Islam in both Islamic and
Jewish literature and folklore,[CLXXXIV]
and from its form appears to have been assimilated into Arabic from Judaism.
Attempts have been made in the past to identify the cAzra’ll
/ cIzra’ll with a Jewish (or Christian) angel and the most
likely candidate is that it is a corruption of cAsri’el, which
was suggested by the eminent Islamic scholar, A. J. Wensinck.[CLXXXV]
The only change to the name is the consonant shift from samekh to zayin,
one that was relatively common in the move from Biblical to Rabbinic Hebrew.[CLXXXVI]
However, there are also attestations of the name cAzra’ël
extant in five Aramaic incantation texts;[CLXXXVII] but, because of the
nature of these incantation texts, there is no evidence to link the name to the
angel’s (Islamic) function as the angel of death, as the name simply appears in
lists amongst many others. Generally, these Aramaic incantation texts found in
Mesopotamia and the Levant are thought to date to around the seventh century
CE,188 however, there is some archaeological evidence to suggest an earlier
date.[CLXXXVIII]
[CLXXXIX]
These incantation texts are important because they reflect an angelology that
was a popular and integral part of folk-religion in the Near East on the eve
of, and during, the expansion of Islam. Such a popular aspect of religious
belief must have had some impact on the formation of Islamic folk-religion and
early traditions about angels, and by extension the names of the angels
themselves.
A survey of the theophoric names reveals some interesting
perspectives on Islamic angelology. Firstly, the use of theophoric names is
limited, with only a few instances in the entire collection. Some of these
names are important Judeo-Christian angels, such as Gabriel and Michael; others
are much more obscure, such as Sharahîl and Irtiya’il. This creates a confusing
picture of the way in which angelic names were used by the Muslim community.
The use of Gabriel and Michael in the Qur’an clearly point to usage in the
earliest nascent community, but is this the case for other theophoric names for
angels? Some names such as Israfil are very common and can be found easily in tafsirs
and other hadllh collections, others are much rarer. It would seem
plausible to suggest that the more popular angels and angelic names probably
entered Islamic tradition early on in the development of its angelology, whilst
the rarer names were adopted at a later stage. The retention of the -il
ending would seem to indicate closer connections with Hebrew, Aramaic or Syriac
angelic nomenclature, possibly made known through magic incantation texts,
popular in mediaeval period or through other Jewish or Christian texts. The way
in which the names were appropriated into Islamic tradition remains, at best,
speculative; particularly in cases where no other attestations of the name
exist. However, Jewish folk-religion, as reflected in magical incantation texts
must present an important influence on the use of some of these theophoric
names in Islam. However, it is necessary to contextualise the relatively
limited use of theophoric names for angels in Islam against the large volume of
names formed by the formula the Angel of X. This would seem to suggest
that Islamic nomenclature favours that construction, which, in turn, makes
angelic neologisms formed with -Il endings less likely.
The way in which angels are named in Islam is predominately by
their function: i.e. The Angel of X. This is important as it means the
angel is nameless, which is in direct conflict with the main trend in
Judeo-Christian angelology of giving angels an actual name.[CXC] In Jewish angelology the
power and authority of God is seen in the theophoric element of the name. When
the theophoric element becomes meaningless (as it does when it has been
translated into Arabic), the angel achieves some degree of independence as a
named being and the preference for descriptive functionformulae may reveal an
attempt in Islamic thought to move the focus from the angel to God directly. In
al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik there are thirty-two angels (or pairs of angels)
whose names are formed in this way, reflecting a wide range of angelic
functions. There are four main groups to consider: (a) angels of abstract
concepts; (b) cosmological angels; (c) angels of specific things and places;
(d) other angels. The idea that there are angels responsible for different
things is common to both Judaism and Zoroastrianism.[CXCI]
Function is an important concept in Islamic angelology and it
should be noted that in the hadïth it can be seen that no angel has
multiple functions; situations in which multiple functions could occur are
given two angels. For example, the Angel of Death is responsible for the taking
of souls and nothing else (§107 - 171); there are two Scribes that do two
different jobs (§312 - 406). In some other cases there are multiple angels
performing the same roles, but in each of these cases the group of angels only
performs one task. The angels’ functions are important, as Fehmi Jadaane
comments: ‘La plupart du temps les Anges sont définis par leur fonction et non
par leur essence; ce sont précisément des êtres fonctionnels.’[CXCII]
The idea that angels can only perform one task is, generally speaking, a rule
throughout the hadïth in the collection, the only exceptions being two
of the four archangels (ru’üs al- mala’ika), Gabriel and Michael.[CXCIII]
The belief that angels can only carry out one function is also found in
Rabbinic thought.[CXCIV]
There are a number of angels of abstract concepts included in the
work: the angels of death, faith, life, livelihood, weeping, righteousness and
unrighteousness, health, suffering, wealth, nobility, murü ’a, loathing,
ignorance, war (the Angel of the Sword) and courage. The Angel of Death is the
only angel in this group that plays a prominent role in Islamic angelology and
the last ten angels only appear in one hadïth (§472). The
personification of abstract ideas is common to many late antique religions
including Zoroastrianism,[CXCV]
Christianity and Judaism,[CXCVI]
and is particularly common in representations of these ideas in the art of the
late-antique and early mediaeval period.[CXCVII] Angels representing
abstractions also bear some similarity to some pre-Islamic pagan deities such
as Manat (Fate).[CXCVIII]
This group of angels is relatively straightforward to consider, although it is
important to draw attention to the fact that these angels of abstraction
include the specifically Arabian concept of murü’a. However, it should
be noted that the rarity of this angel seems to suggest it was not commonly
personified either in the Islamic period or before. At the very least, this
reference to the Angel of murü’a attests to the relative ease with which
abstract concepts could be turned into angels in Islamic thought.
Cosmological angels form the largest group of angels with this
particular style of nomenclature. Al-Haba ’ik includes references to
angels of rain, mountains, the leaves of trees, thunder, clouds, lightning, the
sun, shadow, plants and the sea.[CXCIX] The angels
have similar roles in Jewish tradition, particularly in Pseudepigraphical
texts, such as Jubilees and Enoch.20 However, as
Harold Kuhn comments: ‘These references indicate that the writers in question
thought of angels as controlling intermediaries between God and the inanimate
world; and further that they considered them to be rather indistinct
personifications of powers, rather than as clear-cut personalities.’[CC]
[CCI]
These angels are not individuals, like gods or demigods, but are merely
designated as the beings that control an aspect of meteorology or cosmology.[CCII]
This depersonalisation is made clearer in Islam where the angels are stripped
of a personal name, reversing the reification process of the Jewish theophoric
names highlighted by Nickelsberg above. As a result, these meteorological
angels reflect God’s influence and power over the created world, which is a
particularly strong and well-known theme of the Qur’an.
Five angels in al-Haba’ik using this descriptive formula
are connected with specific objects and places: the veil (§178), cemeteries
(§413 - 414), the Yemeni Column (§458 - 460), the three jimar at Mina
(§461) and the Prophet’s Tomb (§448 - 449). These are all sites and objects
with particular religious significance in Islam and it is only natural that
angels were made responsible for maintaining them and noting whomever performed
the rituals associated with them. For example, the Angel responsible for the
Yemeni Column says to whoever passes it: ‘Amen! Amen!’[CCIII] Likewise, the seventy
thousand angels that visit the Prophet’s tomb each day demonstrate its
sanctity.[CCIV]
The Angel of the Veil is the angel responsible for the veil which surrounds God
in the Seventh Heaven. Whilst there may be similar angels in Jewish and
Christian traditions,[CCV]
it is difficult to establish the extent to which these ideas influenced Islamic
angelology.
There are also a number of angels that cannot be easily placed
into any of the groups discussed thus far. Some of these refer to specific
incidents in the history of angelic interaction with humans, such as The
Angel of the Prophet of the River (§256) and The Angel of Hasan and
Husayn (§478 - 484). There are also a number of angels responsible for
certain ritual actions, namely: The Angel of the Qur’an (§462 - 465), which
corrects in an individual’s ‘book’ any misreading of the Qur’an that he or she
makes when reciting the Qur’an; the Angel of the Blessing of the Prophet, who
records any occasion when someone says: ‘God have mercy upon him and grant him
salvation’; the Angel who is responsible for whoever says: ‘The Most Merciful
of those that are merciful’ (§466); the Angel of Private Prayer (§467 - 470);
the Angel of Ritual Prayer (§474); the Angels of Funerary Rites (§475 - 477),
and the Angel of the Prophet’s Prayer (§449 - 457), who tells Muhammad about
who has blessed him. These angels seem to work in addition to the noble
watching Scribes (al-hafizari) and they provide an extra encouragement
and motivation for Muslims to perform certain ritual practices.[CCVI]
Other angels have more obscure functions. The Angels of the Womb
and the Embryo (§436 - 444) are the two angels involved in instilling God’s
predetermined course for the individual and in protecting the embryo throughout
gestation. Another example is found in hadïth that describe the
formation of the world. The world stands on a succession of different layers,
at the bottom of which is a fish, which is itself supported by an angel. In
other conceptions a rock is at the very bottom, but in this case the rock has
an angel associated with it.[CCVII]
There is another angel that ‘...creates pieces of jewellery for the people in
the Garden from the Day of the Creation until the Resurrection Hour.’[CCVIII]
Another hadïth also states that crying is the result of an angel rubbing
an individual’s liver with its wing.[CCIX] These angels are
difficult to classify: they are often very rare and the hadïth
themselves tend to be very short, and accordingly hard to place in a wider
context.
What these function formulae show is that Islam often associated
events, physical things, meteorological phenomena, abstract ideas and ritual
behaviour with angels. The construction of the name allows this to be done
relatively easily and, whilst there are sometimes parallels with Jewish and
Christian angelology, the link is weak and unlikely to be the result of
significant influence. For example, the Jewish angel Sandalfon is said
to make crowns of flowers from the prayers of the faithful,[CCX] which bears
some resemblance to the Islamic angel who creates jewellery for those in
paradise; but there is unlikely to be any ‘genetic’ link between the two angels
and, at the very most, one can only note the similarity between the two ideas.
The use of angels, particularly in the case of these functional
angels, creates a bridge between this world and God’s world, between the
heavenly and the earthly. The nomenclature gives religious authority to certain
ritual actions, particular places, and, in the case of the Angel of the Womb,
also restates theological ideas, such as predestination. In these hadith,
the angelic world penetrates almost all forms of human experience and the use
of the function name formula goes further and associates individual angels with
a large number of specific actions, places and phenomena.
2.1.3 Function Names without Malak
There are a few angels named in al-Haba’ikfiakhbar al-mala’ik
which have names linked to their function, which are not expressed by the
angelic formula. These angels include: the Bearers of the Throne, The
Spirit, The Cockerel, The Sakina, The Tempters of the Grave, The Scribes, The
Scroll, The Cherubim and The Guardians of the Wind. These angels are
all closely associated with the Qur’anic text itself, and were developed in
Islamic traditions and exegesis.[CCXI]
The Bearers of the Throne (§179 - 206) are mentioned in Q 40:7 & 69:17[CCXII]
in a relatively general way, and the material presented in the exegetical
literature is much more developed.[CCXIII] Q 69:17 states that
there are eight bearers of the Throne, but some hadith state there are
only four (e.g. §189, 190, 192, 193, 197), whilst some take a middle position,
arguing that there are four bearers of the Throne, who are replaced by another
four on the Day of Resurrection (§188, 191). On the whole, there is no attempt
to name the Bearers of the Throne with personal names, although the angel
Israfil is occasionally believed to be one of the Bearers (§ 194 & 195).
This trend highlights the importance of the angels’ function, as the majority
of the angels in this group remain unnamed.
The Spirit is an angel that has aroused much debate in both
Qur’anic and Islamic studies,[CCXIV]
as the Qur’an varies in the ways in which it both uses and conceives the
Spirit. In the exegetical material the Spirit is most often associated with
Gabriel, but it is also often conceived as being an angelic being in its own
right.[CCXV]
This confused picture can be seen in the chapter on the Spirit in Al-Suyuti’s al-Haba’ik
(§210 - 228). Some of the hadith state that the Spirit is a single
angelic being[CCXVI]
and others that al-Ruh refers to a species of angel.[CCXVII] The interpretation of al-Ruh
as a group of angels rather than a single angel appears to be a development in
later exegesis[CCXVIII]
and the fact that the term arwah (spirits, plural of ruh)[CCXIX]
is also found in Islamic tradition makes this usage of al-Ruh quite
unusual. To a certain extent it is difficult to determine the original place
and role of the Spirit in the Qur’an and early tradition, so
understanding its origins is problematic; but Jewish and Christian influences
are plainly evident. Strong Christian, and particularly, Jewish influences can
also be seen in the karrabiyun (Cherubim) and the Sakina (§295 -
297). The Sakina fulfils much the same role as the Shekina in
post-Biblical Jewish thought.[CCXX]
The Cockerel (al-Dik) appears only in Islamic tradition
and there are fifteen hadith in al-Haba’ik (§280 - 294) devoted
to the cockerel.[CCXXI]
The nomenclature in this case is simple; the dik is an enormous angel in
the form of a cockerel, which gives the times of prayer to the angels and the
human world (via earthly cockerels), a motif also found in 3 Baruch.[CCXXII]
Likewise the angel al-Sijill (§243 - 247, ‘the scroll’), is an angel
that is in the form of a scroll. The Tempters of the Grave fattan al-qabr), the
Scribes (al-hafizan), and The Guardian of the Wind (khaznat al-rih)
are angels that have obvious functions and their names reflect this.
Angels with names not formed by with the suffix -il, or by
the angelic formula the angel of X are, on the whole, some of the more
important angels in Islamic tradition. In most cases the angelic names are
derived from the Qur’an itself and its exegesis. Saul M. Olyan has highlighted
the important role of exegesis in the development of Jewish angelic
nomenclature,[CCXXIII]
and this trend is replicated in the Islamic exegetic tradition. Although some
of these angels may have equivalents in the Judeo-Christian tradition (e.g. the
Spirit and the Sakina), their development as angels in Islam is
most likely to be entirely internal, with a less prominent influence from
Judaism and Christianity.
2.1.4 Other Miscellaneous Angelic Names
The majority of the angelic names that have been encountered thus
far have been named by their function, with only eleven having personal,
theophoric names. There are other names that are not formed in a logical
manner, which have either been borrowed from other cultures, or originate
within Islam itself. The angels with no formal nomenclature include: Ridwan,
Malik, Harut, Marut, Sadluqan, Dhu ‘l- Qarnayn, Dhu ‘l-Nurayn, Duma, Mîtatrüsh,
Qa’id, Munkar, Nakir (with the variants Ankar and Nakur) and Ruman. Some of
these are important in Islamic angelology, especially Ridwan, Malik, and the
two pairs of angels Harut & Marut and Munkar & Nakir; whilst others
only appear in a limited number of hadith, namely: Sadluqan (§274),
Qa’id (§323), Dhu ‘l-Qarnayn as an angel (§277 & 278) and Dhu ‘l-Nurayn
(§279). This section will briefly look at their etymological history and
attempt to understand the way in which the names entered Islamic tradition.
The most interesting etymological history is that of the two
angels Harut and Marut (§248 - 255). Harut and Marut are two angels that wished
to experience human life, after complaining that humans were sinning and
boasting that they did not; the two angels are then tricked by al-Zuhara
(Venus) into drinking and they subsequently commit murder and fornication. The
story is alluded to in the Qur’an,[CCXXIV] but the story is
greatly expanded by the exegetes and in the Qisas al- anbiya’
literature.[CCXXV]
The two names are quite different to other angelic names found in both the
Qur’an[CCXXVI]
and other traditional material and various attempts have been made to suggest
an origin. A. J. Wensinck suggested a possible Syriac origin, but it is now
generally thought that the names originate from the Zoroastrian Amasha
Spantas Haurvatat and Amretetat, through an intermediary language, possibly
Middle Persian, Sogdian or Armenian.[CCXXVII] Direct influence from
the Persian tradition can be seen in two hadith (§251 & 253), in
which there are direct references to Anahid, a Zoroastrian yazata
that was associated with both fertility, love and the planet Venus.[CCXXVIII]
Another hadith contains the following exchange: ‘[Al-Zuhara] said:
“Regarding faith, it is not right for anyone to come to me, without being the
same.” The two said: “What is your faith?” She said: “Zoroastrianism (majusiyya)”’[CCXXIX]
All of this suggests a strong Zoroastrian influence on the names of the two
angels; however the actual story of Harut and Marut has other characteristics
in common with Jewish and Christian stories about the fall of the angels,
particularly the two angels Shamhazai and Azael.[CCXXX]
The fattan al-qabr (Tempters of the Grave) play an
important part in Islamic beliefs about life after death. Most commonly, there
are two tempters of the grave, traditionally given the names Munkar and Nakir.
There are two variants included in al-Haba’ik, Ankar (§309) and Nakur
(§309, 310); although these variants appear to be very rare. A third angel,
Ruman, is occasionally associated with the two angels (§309 & 310) and one
hadith states that Nakir and Nakur are two different angels (§310). The names
do not appear until relatively late in Islamic tradition, and in the early
creeds, there are no angels associated with the punishment in the grave, as
Wensinck argues: ‘... there seem to be four stages in the traditions regarding
the subject: the first without any angel being mentioned, the second mentioning
“the angel”, the third two angels, the fourth being acquainted with the names
Munkar and Nakir.’[CCXXXI]
The origin of the names is not at all clear, although some have suggested that
both the names are related to the base root NKR, but Wensinck felt this
was unlikely.[CCXXXII]
[CCXXXIII]
Two other angels, Ridwan and Malik, the guardians of Heaven and Hell (§229 -
247), have similar etymological histories and roles in Islamic angelology. The
name Ridwan may simply be a personified abstraction of ridwan23
and Malik, a reference to his dominion over Hell.
The remaining five angels included in Al-Haba’ik fi akhbar
al-mala’ik are only referred to once and have a wide range of influences.
Dhu ‘l-Qarnayn is generally associated with Alexander the Great and much has
been written about this tradition.[CCXXXIV] However, there is very
little evidence in Islamic tradition to suggest the belief that Dhu ‘l-Qarnayn
was an angel (as given in §277)[CCXXXV]
was in any way a mainstream belief, as Minoo Southgate concludes: ‘In spite of
his higher roles as a sage, a protector of mankind, a fighter for religion, and
a prophet, the Alexander of Persian romances remains essentially human.’[CCXXXVI]
Dhu ‘l-Nurayn is normally used in reference to the caliph cUthman,
who had two beautiful wives who were the Prophet’s daughters,[CCXXXVII]
but the reference in §279 to Dhu ‘l-Nurayn being an angel is clearly not a
reference to cUthman. Al-Nurayn is sometimes used,
particularly by Shicïs, to refer to Muhammad and cAli,[CCXXXVIII]
but, again, this does not appear to be intended, particularly in the phrase Dhu
‘l-Nurayn. Dhu ‘l- Nurayn is sometimes used in relation to the nur cala
nur of the Light Verse (Q. 24:35), although there is almost nothing to
suggest that Dhu ‘l-Nurayn was commonly believed to be the name of an
angel.[CCXXXIX]
[CCXL]
Duma is the ‘Angel who is responsible for souls of the
unbelievers.. ,’240 The same angel appears in the Babylonian Talmud
with the same function,[CCXLI]
confirming the authority of the hadith being ‘a Man of the Book.’ The
Angel of the Veil is also given the name Mltatrush, which is a close
transliteration of the Hebrew Mltatron (Metatron).[CCXLII]
240
241
§301
cf. ‘But
these and those [the wicked and the intermediate] are delivered to Dumah.’
Shab. 152b,
p.
A Jewish origin seems possible for another angel, Sadluqan
(§274), although the etymology is rather more complex. Making the analysis more
complicated is the fact that the hadith about the angel Sadluqan
is relatively short: ‘God has an angel and it is said that He has Sadluqan;
the seas of the world are one ninth the size ofhis big toe.’ This angel appears
to be very rare in Arabic tradition and the fact that the Leiden MS (fol. 203r,
ll. 4 - 5) vocalises the name would seem to imply that Muslim readers were
unfamiliar with the name. The name could be derived from the Jewish angel Sandalpon,[CCXLIII]'13
the ‘partner’ of the important Jewish angel Mitatron. Both Sandalpon
and Sadluqan are said to be gigantic and Sandalpon is said to
have his feet on the earth and his head under the Throne of God.[CCXLIV]
Sandalpon is also associated more directly with feet, which is
appropriate within the context of this hadith: ‘Sandalfon was also
thought of as the “shoe” of the Shekhina, that is to say the angel on
which the feet of the Shekinah rested.’[CCXLV] However, the
etymological history of the name is not clear, and there are no other
attestations of the name in any other Semitic language through which its
development can be traced. The loss of the nun can be explained by the
assimilation of the nun to the following dal; probably through
another Northern Semitic language, possibly Syriac as both Aramaic and South
Semitic favour nasalization.[CCXLVI]
The change from pê to qaf is less clear. Some similar Aramaic
words show a change from pê to kaf: e.g. sandalponin
(gems) has the variant form sandalkônim[CCXLVII]'7
but such a form is unattested for sandalpon, and a number of factors
still remain unexplained. Islamic exegetes did also associate the mala’ika
muqarrabun with the karrubiyyun (i.e. q-r-b and k-r-b), but this
appears to be an isolated example.[CCXLVIII] However, whether or
not Sadluqan is actually Sandalpon is not that important. The
fact that Sandalpon, an important angel in later Judaism, was not
appropriated into Islam (save this one, rare example), shows that the influence
of Jewish angelology on Muslim beliefs about angels was limited.
The survey of angelic names provides an interesting background to
Islamic beliefs about angels. The picture is more complicated than may, at
first sight, be expected. When angels are given personal names, there is a
strong Judeo-Christian influence present. However, Jewish, Christian and, in
the case of Harut and Marut, Zoroastrian influences are relatively limited. In
Islam there is a strong preference to use the formula ‘Angel of X, which
is a uniquely Islamic form of nomenclature. In the past there has been a
tendency for scholars to stress the Judeo-Christian influences on Islamic
angelology, presumably because of the importance of angels such as Gabriel and
Michael. Whilst these angels are important, and are clearly taken from Judaism
and/or Christianity, it is important to contextualise these influences with the
relatively limited amount of named angels in Islamic tradition. Furthermore,
the influence of the Judeo-Christian tradition is often restricted to the
etymology of the name and frequently the conception of the angels and their
roles are markedly different after their assimilation into (popular) Islamic
belief.
2.2 The Iconography of the Angels in Al-Habâ’ik fïakhbâr al-malâ’ik
Just as the way in which angelic nomenclature can reveal something
about how angels are conceived in Islam, iconography too can act as a similar
tool for looking at the development of, and influences on Islamic angelology.
Angels are very rarely the focus of a particular work and this is where the
originality and usefulness of al- Suyütî’s Al-Haba ’ik fi akhbar al-mala ’ik
lies, as it provides a relatively large number of descriptions of different
angels in one place.
A number of studies in Jewish and Biblical studies have attempted
to understand the meaning of angelic elements in different texts through the
use of particular motifs that indicate (or, at the very least, could
indicate) angelic status.[CCXLIX]
Sometimes it is only through specific descriptions and allusions that a
particular character in a narrative can be understood to be angelic, [CCL]
or to have angelic qualities.[CCLI]
As such, a vocabulary or iconography of angels evolved in which certain
features are designated as being related to angels. It is these features and
their use in Islamic angelology that will be discussed in this section.
Angels are normally included in texts for specific purposes. For
example, in apocalyptic texts angels are used most often to confirm the
veracity of a prophetic vision.[CCLII]
The visions of the throne (merkebah visions) in the Bible (viz.
Isaiah 6; Ezekiel 1 and 10; Daniel 7) typify this use of angels: the angels are
present, but there is a clear focus on God. The angels are there to express
divine power and authority, as well as the need for God to be worshipped. As
George Nickelsburg comments, ‘[The transcendence of God] is understood in the
descriptions of the heavenly throne room, in the accounts of Enoch’s call and
ascent, and in the references to the eschatological theophany.’[CCLIII]
Angels become very useful signifiers of the fact that the seer is witnessing a
vision of the divine world. Although both angelologies and iconographies can
differ from one text to another,[CCLIV] a number of
supernatural, nonhuman characteristics were used in Jewish and Christian texts
to distinguish angels from humans. It is this angelic iconography, developed
further in the intertestamental period, which alerts both the visionary and
the reader that they are encountering the divine.[CCLV] Angels are not simply
used to confirm the reality of a vision, but they are also used to confirm the
righteousness of the visionary. For example, in the Testament of Levi,
the visionary is robed in priestly garments by angels, which ‘...is meant to
reinforce the divine favour of the priesthood for his descendents, to
legitimate Levi in his priestly duties.’[CCLVI] [CCLVII]
Angels are not important in and of themselves, but they are used in Biblical
and Pseudepigraphical texts to convey certain ideas or beliefs.
Islamic texts behave in similar ways. The micraj
literature draws on similar imagery and the Prophet’s tours of heaven have
their origin in Pseudepigraphical texts, such as the Apocalypse of Peter
and the Apocalypse of Paul21 Angels are used in these tours
of Heaven and Hell (Jewish, Christian and Muslim) to portray the power and
might of God and the consequences of human action, in the hope that the reader
would return to righteousness or even convert, as Vuckovic argues: ‘Through
these descriptive tales, the scholars establish narratives that reiterate the
moral code of the Quran and convey a careful set of expectations, warnings, and
exhortations for the members of Muhammad’s community.’[CCLVIII]
It should be noted, however, that symbols and emblems typically
used to describe angels in Islamic literary works are not necessarily found in
other forms of religious expression, such as art. For example, both Byzantine
and Islamic art have specific motifs to describe angels that are not found in
their respective textual traditions. For this reason, the symbols that make up
the ‘angelic language’ are not necessarily universal throughout different
media. In Islamic art angels are often seen to wear crowns or coronets,[CCLIX]
an image that is not found in any of the hadith in al- Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik.[CCLX]
When Islamic Art developed in the East, much of the imagery and iconography of
angels was influenced by East-Asian symbolism.[CCLXI] This is important to
acknowledge, because it stresses the flexibility of the depiction of angels.
Although set motifs did emerge, the supernatural origin of the angels allows
for freedom to refer to different (symbolic) attributes.[CCLXII] Whilst these
differences are observed most profoundly across the different media of one
particular religion, the same can also be seen within a textual tradition; even
in Al-Haba’ik fi akhbar almala ’ik there are a number of examples where
different hadith provide contradictory information about a particular
angel. To give a basic example, Munkar and Nakir are
said to be blue in §302, but black in §3 05.[CCLXIII] The colour motifs are
used to convey the terrifying form that the two angels take, the actual colour
(be it blue or black) is not important.
In Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik, there are actually
very few hadith in the collection that give full descriptions of what
angels look like, with most of the information only given in passing. This
creates a slight methodological problem in that different hadith may
have different conceptions of a particular angel (or even angels in general),
so care must be taken when attempting to reconstruct the image and form of
particular angels. However, this section attempts to focus on some general
trends in the depiction of angels, ignoring the fact that other individual hadith
could be cited to the contrary.
2.2.1 The Physical Form of Angels
In Islam, as in Judaism and Christianity, angels are often
represented in anthropomorphic forms. In the Old Testament, God’s angels are
usually seen in the role of a messenger and there is actually no philological
or textual distinction between divine and human messengers.[CCLXIV] It is only in the
prophetic literature that angels begin to adopt more supernatural features:
wings, animal characteristics etc., culminating in the literature of the
inter-testamental period and beyond, in which angels began to be described in
both human and heavenly forms.[CCLXV]
The following extract from the early Pseudepigraphical text Joseph and
Aseneth combines anthropomorphic and supernatural elements:
‘And Aseneth raised her head and
saw, and behold, (there was) a man in every respect similar to Joseph, by the
robe and the crown and the royal staff, except that this face was like
lightning, and his eyes like sunshine, and the hairs of his head like a flame
of burning torch, and hands and feet like iron shining forth from a fire, and
sparks shot from his hands and feet.’[CCLXVI]
In this example, the angel is described with divine imagery, such
as having a face ‘like lightning’ and ‘eyes like sunshine’, alongside the
comment that the angel was a ‘man in every respect similar to Joseph’. The
anthropomorphic form of the angel is the most common form in both Jewish and
Christian religious writings,[CCLXVII]
and it is an obvious form for the angel to take, as for both Christians
and Jews, God created humans in his own image.[CCLXVIII] In early Jewish and
Christian art angels were depicted without wings until the fifth century, as
Glenn Peers comments: ‘In Early Christian art, angels were most often depicted
in this earthly guise, as a man either bearded or unbearded, and, in this way,
artists described one comprehensible aspect out of the many that scripture
ascribes to angels’.[CCLXIX]
Even in the later development of Jewish angelology, the angels continued to
retain two different forms: human and supernatural.[CCLXX]
Angels in Islam are no different and in the Qur’an angels are
described in both explicitly human and supernatural forms.[CCLXXI] Throughout al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik
fi akhbar al-mala ’ik there are numerous references to angels being in
human form, or, at the very least, having a number of human characteristics.
These anthropomorphic images are balanced with images rooted in the
supernatural and the heavenly: wings, zoomorphic forms, wearing or bearing
heavenly articles, being of a great size, and so on. These make the
anthropomorphisms less human; the angel still remains ‘like a human’, but the
imagery plants the angel firmly in the divine world.
In the collection there are a number of general references to
angels being in human form.[CCLXXII]
[CCLXXIII]
The anthropomorphic form is normally associated with great beauty (cf. Q 12:31)
and this is echoed in al-Haba"ilc~' with one hadïth even
likening the angel Gabriel to Dihya al-Kalbi.[CCLXXIV] The angels are given a
number of different body parts, particularly important ones, such as the head,
feet, legs, hands, and face.[CCLXXV]
There are a number of references to facial features, including the mouth,
nose, forehead, teeth, hair, ears and eyes.[CCLXXVI] Added to this are some
references, but more limited, to other areas of the body; including: the neck,
shoulders, collarbone and heart.[CCLXXVII] There are 129 hadïth
with direct references to angels being in human form or having human body
parts, which is roughly 17% of the collection. This is a relatively high
percentage, and it shows the important place that anthropomorphic imagery had
in Islamic traditions. It contrasts strongly with the relatively few references
to angels having wings, with only 30 hadïth (around 4%) explicitly
referring to them.[CCLXXVIII]
[CCLXXIX]
The notion that angels have wings is a common one, but there are
few references to angels having wings in either the Qur’an or the hadïth1'19
In this collection, some of the hadïth do not give much more information
other than the fact that the angels have wings,[CCLXXX] with one simply stating
that the angel’s wings are feathered.[CCLXXXI] Other references to
the angels’ wings are used by the hadïth to express the great size of
the angels by stating they stretch from the East to the West, for example:
‘.[Israfil] has four wings, [and] from them are two wings, one of which is in
the East, and the other of which is in the West.. ,’[CCLXXXII] As will be seen
below, the wings are given further detailing, including: being strung with
precious stones (§45 & 49), being green (§54), being like peacock’s
feathers (§49), and two references to a wing serving to cover the angel’s
modesty (§93 & 744). However, with only six hadîth mentioning such
specific details, this finer detailing is relatively rare. There are a number
of hadîth that refer to the number of wings that each angel has, but the
numbers vary, including: two (§50, 54 & 743), three (§94 & 743), four
(§93, 189 & 743), six (§744), twelve (§53), and seventy thousand (§511).
Although the Qur’an gives the number of angels’ wings as ‘two, three and four’ (mathna,
wa-thulath, wa- rubâf), [CCLXXXIII]
in Islamic tradition many more wings were added.[CCLXXXIV] These hadîth highlight
an important aspect: the actual physical details about the wings are not
necessarily generally agreed. This is because such detailing is there to
express a theological idea, rather than giving a concrete description of what
angels look like; for example, take the following hadîth:
[54] ‘... [Gabriel’s] two wings are
green and his feet are immersed in green, and the form which he takes fills the
horizon. [The Prophet] (God bless him and grant him salvation) said: “I wanted
to see you in your true form, Spirit of God.” Then he transformed himself and
filled the horizon.’
In this hadîth, the finer detailing is not aimed at giving
the reader a full description of what an angel looks like, but the references
to green feet highlight the divine origin of the angel and the size of
the angel focuses the reader on the marvels of God’s creation.[CCLXXXV]
Beyond the angelomorphic imagery and the basic idea that angels
have wings, there are a few references to angels having the forms of animals.
One of the most interesting examples is that of the Bearers of the Throne
(hamlat al-carsh), who are associated with two forms; the first
is that of the four-faced angel, which is derived from the Jewish hayyot
(‘living creatures’) that bear the Throne or Chariot of God; the second is that
the four Bearers of the Throne are in the form of a mountain goat (wrfil).
In Judaism, the hayyot take the forms of a bull, a lion, a human, and an
eagle.[CCLXXXVI]
The use of animal-angels in the imagery of God’s Throne may have its
antecedents in pagan deities,[CCLXXXVII]
but, in Judaism and Christianity, the four hayyot came to represent the
whole of creation, as Richard Bauckham comments: ‘Their representative function
is to worship on behalf of all creatures, and therefore it is fulfilled when
the circle of worship expands to include not only humans, but “every creature
in heaven and on earth and under earth and in the sea” (5:13).’[CCLXXXVIII]
There are six hadith in Al-Haba ’ik that describe the Bearers
of the Throne in these zoological forms,[CCLXXXIX] although, amongst
these there is no consensus, as four state that each angel has four faces and
the other two that there are four different angels with one single form.[CCXC]
One of the hadith alludes to the idea that the four angelic forms refer
to creation as a whole:
‘...An angel from amongst them has
the likeness of a human, which intercedes for the children of Adam in their
need, and an angel has the likeness of an eagle, which intercedes for birds in
their need, and an
103 angel has the likeness of a
bull, which intercedes for livestock in their need, and an angel has the
likeness of a lion, which intercedes for predatory animals in their need.. ,’[CCXCI]
As noted above, six of the hadith in the collection refer
to the Bearers of the Throne having horns like mountain goats or looking like
mountain goats.[CCXCII]
David Halperin suggests that similar hadith may be referring to a
passage in the Babylonian Talmud (Hag 13a), which refers to the horns of
the hayyot, but can draw no further conclusions. [CCXCIII] This imagery remains
unclear, but horns did have religious significance in Semitic religion,
particularly as representations of divinity,[CCXCIV] and such iconography is
also found in a Greek temple to Apollo on the island of Delos.[CCXCV]
In relation to the divine throne, there are some images of Semitic gods
seated on zoomorphic thrones and some evidence of thrones being supported by
horns, [CCXCVI]
but it is difficult to ascertain whether the Islamic image of the Bearers of
the Throne like goats is related to these wider Semitic and pagan ideas.
292
293
294
Beyond these cases of zoomorphic images of angels in al-Haba’ik,
there are also two other hadith that include a reference to IsrafTl
making himself smaller
‘.until he has become like a small sparrow (wasc),..’[CCXCVII]
[CCXCVIII]
and the Angel of the Thunder having a tail (§267). These are only minor
references and it is difficult to draw further conclusions from them. There is
also the angelic cockerel (al-dïk);29S however, this angel
should be treated differently, as the imagery is purely of a cockerel, rather
than that of an angel with certain features of a cockerel.
On the whole, the angels in al-Haba’ik have human, rather
than animal, characteristics. The hadïth frequently draw on
Judeo-Christian imagery and the Bearers of the Throne are a prominent
example of such an influence. The trend, however, is quite a general one.
Images do not appear to be derived from Jewish or Christian images, rather
general ideas about angelic iconography are adapted by Islam from Judaism and
Christianity. This is seen most clearly in the use of the anthropomorphic
angel: the image is clearly indebted to a Judeo-Christian iconography, but is
adapted, used and developed in Islamic traditions independently.
297
298
299
small
sparrow), see §53.
Whilst many Jewish, Christian and Islamic texts that feature
angels usually include very little in the way of descriptions, one of the most
common motifs is that the angels are of great size and very rarely are they
said to be small. This general scheme is found in al-Suyqtl’s Al-Haba’ik,
with only one hadïth (§5) stating that a ‘single angel is smaller than a
fly.’[CCXCIX]
There are a number of ways in which their vast size is described,
with four of the most common being: (i) describing measurements in terms of
travelling long distances; (ii) stating that the angel has a wing in the East
and a wing in the West; (iii) descriptions of the angel filling the horizon;
and (iv) describing the angel stretching from the earth to the heavens. There are
a number of Jewish and Christian texts that portray angels in similarly large
scale terms, which becomes an important theme in the fifth / sixth century Hebrew
Apocalypse of Enoch (3 Enoch): ‘The vast size of angels is a theme of
3En...In the Hekhalot texts size conveys the idea of majesty and sublimity. It
is found not only in the motif of the measurements of the angels, but in Sicur
Qomah, the measurements of the body of God, and in the motif of the dimensions
of the heavens.’[CCC]
The following extract from 3 Enoch is a typical example, the prophet
Enoch says: ‘I was enlarged and increased in size till I matched the world in
length and breadth. He made me to grow on me 72 wings, 36 on one side and 36 on
the other, and each single wing covered the entire world.’[CCCI]
A common method that the hadith use to describe the angels’
huge size is to give the length between two points in terms of the distance
equivalent to many years’ travel. This often takes the form: ‘the distance from
Xto Y is a journey of N hundred years.’ This phrasing
appears some twenty times through the compilation.[CCCII] Both the two points of
reference for the distance and the distance itself vary from hadith to hadith,
as can be seen in the table below.
§ |
Angel |
From |
To |
Distance (in years) |
20 |
Bearers of the Throne |
Head |
Throne |
100 |
51 |
Gabriel |
Shoulder |
Shoulder |
700 |
180 |
Bearers of the Throne |
Balls of Feet |
Ankles |
500 |
180 |
Bearers of the Throne |
Tip of Nose |
Collarbone |
500 |
180 |
Bearers of the Throne |
Tip of Nose |
Earlobe |
500 |
180 |
Bearers of the Throne |
Earlobe |
Shoulder |
700 |
183 |
Bearers of the Throne |
Inner part of eye |
Outer part of eye |
500 |
197 |
Bearers of the Throne |
Horns |
Head |
500 |
202 |
Bearers of the Throne |
Ankles |
Bottom of the foot |
500 |
209 |
Bearers of the Throne |
Bottom of Horn |
Top of Horn |
500 |
231 |
Keepers of the Fire |
Shoulder |
Shoulder |
100 |
231 |
Keepers of the Fire |
Shoulder |
Shoulder |
500 |
485 |
Bearers of the Throne |
Ankles |
Shoulder |
500 |
490 |
Cherubim |
Earlobe |
Collarbone |
500 |
494 |
Unnamed Angel |
Shoulder |
Head |
100 |
499 |
Bearers of the Throne |
Horn |
Horn |
500 |
500 |
Unnamed Angel |
Wing |
Wing |
300 |
500 |
Unnamed Angel |
Earlobe |
Shoulder |
400 |
545 |
Unnamed Angel |
Earlobe |
Collarbone |
7000 |
Fig(i): Distances between body parts in Al-Haba ’ik ft akhbar
al-mala ’ik
The table shows that a distance of five hundred years is the most
common and that there is no general trend in the body parts used for the
measurements. Generally, the measurements given are usually short distances
making the angels appear even larger. Some of the hadïth also use
further phrases to clarify the distance, such as §71, in which it is said that
the distance is ‘ajourney of seven hundred years for a bird.’[CCCIII]
The phrase is used most often in connection with the Bearers of the Throne
and, by extension, of God’s Throne and, ultimately, God. Such imagery is
typified in the Jewish Shicür Qomah texts, which give similar
measurements, not of an angel, but of God,[CCCIV] although there is some
debate about what the exact intention is of the text giving these measurements.[CCCV]
Just as in the hadith in al-Haba’ik, a wide number of different
measurements are made; for example one of the Shfûr Qomah texts, Siddur
Rabbah,[CCCVI]
includes the following measurements:
l. |
P. |
From |
To |
Distance (in parasangs) |
4 |
38 |
Right eye |
Left Eye |
33,000 |
5 |
38 |
Let Arm |
Right Arm |
770,000 |
57 |
44 |
Souls of Feet |
N/A |
30,000 |
58 |
44 |
Foot |
Ankle |
120,000,000 |
58 |
44 |
Ankle |
Knee |
450,000,000 |
63 |
44 |
Knees |
Thigh |
600,002,000 |
65 |
45 |
Thigh |
Shoulder |
600,000,080 |
67 |
45 |
Shoulder |
Neck |
190,000,000 |
67 |
45 |
Neck |
N/A |
180,000,000 |
68 |
45 |
Head (circumference) |
N/A |
500,000,333 |
75 |
46 |
Forehead |
N/A |
180,000,000 |
76 |
46 |
Pupil |
N/A |
11,200 |
78 |
46 |
White of the eye |
N/A |
22,000 |
90 |
48 |
Lips |
N/A |
21,000 |
92 |
48 |
Left Shoulder |
Right Shoulder |
120,000,000 |
93 |
48 |
Right Arm |
N/A |
150,000,000 |
96 |
48 |
Hand |
N/A |
70,000,000 |
97 |
48 |
Right Arm |
Left Arm |
770,000,000 |
98 |
49 |
Fingers |
N/A |
300,000,000 |
103 |
49 |
Right Foot |
N/A |
10,000,000 |
Fig.(ii): Table of Distances between Body Parts in Siddur
Rabbah
A basic comparison between the hadith in Al-Haba’ik fi
akhbar al-mala’ik and Siddur Rabbah shows the practice of giving
measurements between specific body parts of cosmic proportions is common to
both texts; but there is a notable difference in that Siddur Rabbah, as
well as the Shicur Qomah in general, do not tend to give the
measurements in years, but by physical units of distance (usually parasangs).[CCCVII]
The usage of measuring the distance between two specific body parts is less
common in other Jewish and Christian texts[CCCVIII] and in these cases the
distances are given in actual physical measurements, rather than ‘years’. [CCCIX]
However, anthropomorphic representation of the divine on a cosmic scale is a
belief generally held in the Ancient world.[CCCX]
Another way that the hadlth describe the great size of the
angels is by stating that the angels (or the angels’ wings) stretch from the
East to the West, which is fairly common throughout the work, appearing
explicitly fifteen times. [CCCXI]
This
description is only applied to named angels and is only used in
reference to Gabriel, Israfil, the Spirit, the Angel of Death and the Cockerel.
The phrase normally comes in the form: the angel has a wing in the East and
a wing in the West. This phrase occurs eleven out of the fifteen times, but
is only used of the Cockerel and the angel Israfil.[CCCXII] Gabriel is said to have
‘filled the space between East and West’ (§42); the Angel of Death is said to
have a spear that reaches from the East to the West (§158 & 159) and the
stride of the Angel of Death is said to stretch from the East to the West
(§202). Although this phrase is only used of Gabriel twice (§42 & 53),
another related description, stating that Gabriel filled the horizon, is used
more frequently (§43, 46, 47 & 54).
So far the gigantic size of the angels has been described by
measurement and breadth (i.e. East to West), but height is also used relatively
frequently.[CCCXIII]
Some of the hadith refer to great height in a general way; for example,
Gabriel is said to fill ‘the space between Heaven and Earth’ in §41.[CCCXIV]
However, the most common way to express height is to say that the angel’s feet
are on the (Seventh) Earth and its head in the (Seventh) Heaven.[CCCXV]
The concept of the angels’ heads reaching heaven is found in the Acts of
John where it is said of an angel that: . .his feet [.] were whiter than
snow, so that the ground was lit up by his feet, and his head stretched up to
the heaven.’316
312
313
314
315
316
ActsJ 90; NTA, vol. 2, p. 180 - 181.
The concept of angels as being of a great size is common in
Judeo-Christian angelology. Numerous texts, particularly Pseudepigrapha, often
describe angels in this way.[CCCXVI]
There are a number of texts that refer to angels being of a great size in
general terms, such as the Gospel of Philip, in which it is said that:
‘...when [Jesus] appeared to the disciples in glory on the mountain, he was not
small - he became great - but he made the disciples great, that they might see
him in his greatness.’[CCCXVII]
Although only a general comment, this passage from the Gospel of
Philip reveals, quite clearly, the meaning of the angel of great size: the
size is a sign of the truth of the vision.
It is unlikely that direct sources could be traced for the hadlth
found in al- Haba’ik, but the description of these massive angels
clearly owes a large debt to the vocabulary and imagery of Judeo-Christian
angelology. This is important as it shows that Islam did not only ‘borrow’
angelic imagery from Jewish and Christian traditions, but Islam developed and
utilised this angelic imagery, with the angels Israfil and al-Dik
the most notable examples.
.
2.2.3 Finer Detailing: Clothing, Jewellery & Colours
The majority of the descriptions about angels in Al-Haba’ik
are fairly general, usually emphasising the size of the angel. However,just as
the size of the angel attests to the reality of the vision, certain
iconographical details are used to highlight and refine the image of the angel.
An angel is often only distinguishable from another angel by certain props
or other characteristics. It is in the use of these different props that an
iconographie vocabulary emerges.[CCCXVIII] The use of
iconographie details is more important in visual media, as a picture, mosaic,
or carving tend not to make use of written names; for example, in Byzantine art
angels are often pictured holding a sceptre and robed in priestly garments.[CCCXIX]
Clothing is an important iconographical detail, as the way in which someone is
clothed often reveals much about their status,[CCCXX] as well as
distinguishing individuals from others, since clothing ‘...serves to preserve
the boundaries among persons of different statuses.’[CCCXXI] Likewise,
vestments play an important part in the iconography of angels in Islamic art,
although this is usually expressed in different ways to the literary tradition.[CCCXXII]
In al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik fi akhbar al-mala’ik there is some evidence
that Islamic tradition developed its own iconographic vocabulary, with a number
of angels being associated with particular accessories, colours and clothes.
The most prominent item of clothing is a robe, with which angels
are particularly associated in Jewish and Christian scriptures, as well as
visual media.[CCCXXIII]
In Jewish tradition, the robe is normally believed to be white,
developing out of exegeses of Ezekiel 1 and Daniel 7:9.[CCCXXIV] [CCCXXV]
The imagery of a white robe is transferred into the Old and New Testamental
Pseudepigraphical literature, such as the book of Jannes and Jambres36
Similar imagery can by found in al-Haba’ik, e.g. ‘Gabriel came to me
just as a man comes to his friend in a white gown.. ,’[CCCXXVI] The white of the
angels’ gowns normally reflect two main ideas: the purity of the angels’ faith
and their dazzling brightness.[CCCXXVII]
In Islam, white also carries connotations of purity, as Khalil cAthamina
comments: ‘.white garments symbolize the modesty incumbent upon all Muslims in
their attitude toward the Creator, especially during prayer. It is for this
reason Muslims of all social strata and walks of life have followed the practice
of praying in white as a sign of their modesty and piety.’[CCCXXVIII] Colour is used to
convey certain characteristics of the angel as colours had important meanings
in Islamic culture.
White is not the only colour used of angels in al-Haba’ik
and there are some references to green (akhdar).[CCCXXIX] Gabriel, for example,
is associated with the colour
with one hadîth stating that the ‘soles of his feet are
green’[CCCXXX]
and another that Gabriel wore a green headband.[CCCXXXI] The use of green, the
Prophet’s colour, gives these angelic traditions a more Islamic symbolism,
distancing the imagery from Judaism and Christianity. Green is also an
important colour because of its associations with paradise, as David Alexander
comments: ‘In the Qur’an green is associated with life itself and as one of the
signs of God. Green evoked the idea of tranquillity and refuge.’[CCCXXXII]
Although green is used to designate paradise in other religions of the Near
East (particularly Zoroastrianism),[CCCXXXIII] the association of
green with paradise in an arid environment is quite obvious.[CCCXXXIV]
The symbolism of the colour does not appear to have played such an important
part in Jewish and Christian angelic imagery. More generally, the colour green
simply carries notions of creation and the physical order of the universe in
Judaism and, by extension, the divine - in the sense that the world is God’s
creation.[CCCXXXV]
[CCCXXXVI]
However, green can have negative connotations, for example, in 3 Enoch
the souls of the ‘intermediates’ in Hell are „ 337 green.
331
332
333
334
‘El
Viaje Espiritual al «Espacia Verde»: el «Jardin de la Vision» en el Sufismo’
Convivium 20 (2007)
Jewels also play an important part in the Islamic iconography of
angels. In al- Haba’ik, Gabriel’s clothing is often described as being
encrusted with jewels (normally rubies, pearls or chrysolite), which is a sign
of his status in the angelic world. The Cockerel, although not wearing a robe
or gown, is also described as having body parts made out of precious metals and
jewels.[CCCXXXVII]
Precious stones play an important part in Jewish and Christian iconography and
they are usually associated with God or those that have dealings with the
divine, such as priests. [CCCXXXVIII]
For example, in the Letter of Aristeas, an account of the
dedication of the Jewish Temple, the High Priest was said to be robed in
‘...all the glorious vestments, including the wearing of the “garment” with
precious stones upon it in which he is vested..,’[CCCXXXIX] and that the ‘..
.house faces east, and the rear of it faces west. The whole foundation was
decked with (precious) stones.’[CCCXL]
The Letter of Aristeas describes the earthly temple, but the heavenly
temple and those making the journey to heaven are also described in similar
terms in other Pseudepigraphical works.[CCCXLI] The importance of
precious stones is their association with wealth, power and majesty. Certain
angels, particularly Gabriel in Islamic tradition, are given status through the
use of jewels and precious stones. Such imagery is natural and widespread in
religious iconography of the divine in general.
There are two further motifs in al-Haba’ik that are
slightly unusual. The first is that some angels wear turbans and a second which
describes one of the angels’ clothing like a pair of sarawïl (trousers').
The turbaned angels are the angels that helped the Muslim community at Badr.[CCCXLII]
This imagery is not found in the Judeo- Christian tradition to any great
extent, so the use of turbans marks a distinctly Islamic image and it reflects
the association of angels with contemporaneous dress.[CCCXLIII] The image of the angel
being covered with a wing has obvious resonances with the seraphim in
Isaiah 6:3; [CCCXLIV]
but the motif appears to be very uncommon (only appearing three times) and is
only used in reference to Gabriel and Israfil.[CCCXLV]
The last form of finer detailing that will be discussed here is
the use of props and accessories, some of which have already been mentioned.
Props and accessories are normally used to symbolise a specific angel or a
particular function of an angel, a trend that is seen most clearly in the
visual arts. Israfil is the most notable example of this trend; Israfil is
associated with the Trumpet that announces the Last Day, and so he is often
described as holding it.[CCCXLVI]
Other angels, such as the Angel of Death, the Guardian of the Fire and the
Angel of the Thunder, are also associated with objects relating to their cosmic
function. The Angel of Death is said to hold a spear, with which ‘he cuts the
vein of life.’ The Guardians of Hell and the angel Malik are believed to have
spears or rods with which to persecute those in Hell.[CCCXLVII] Lastly, the Angel of
the Thunder (who is, also, responsible for the clouds) is said to have a whip
made of iron (or light) and a rope, with which he moves the clouds through the
sky.[CCCXLVIII]
Occasionally the relationship between the object and the angel is
different, with the object not reflecting the function of the angel, but the
status of the angel. Gabriel is said to have a belt strung with pearls (§50
& 54) and Israfll is associated with the Preserved Tablet (al-lawh
al-mahfuz), the Qur’an and the Throne of God.[CCCXLIX] The
closeness of Israfll to God explains both his prestige and his function as it
is Israfll who delivers the messages of God to His angels.
The use of finer detailing allows the hadiïh to highlight
certain aspects of an angel. Clothing, jewellery and props allow the reader to
understand both the angel’s function and status. Such detailing is common to
Islam, Judaism, and Christianity in almost all media. In visual media, finer
details are often used to distinguish one angel from another. [CCCL]
This resulted in the development of a specific iconographic language, in which
different angels are represented by different objects. In textual material,
however, the ability to name angels verbally makes the use of specific
iconographies less important; but a set language did appear to develop, in
which objects came to signify certain characteristics, especially references to
colour, costume and precious stones.
The basic and most common iconographical form of an angel in Islam
is the same as that found in Judaism and Christian, that of an
anthropomorphized angel. However, the way in which the angel is
anthropomorphised is different in Islamic tradition. In Judaism and
Christianity, there are fewer references to specific body parts in the description
of angels and their anthropomorphic form is achieved by stating the angels are
‘like a man’. References to body parts are not unknown in Judaism and
Christianity but they are much rarer, so their use distinguishes Islamic
iconographic vocabulary from the other Abrahamic faiths. This is seen further
in particular angelic motifs, such as the great size of the angels. These
general motifs can be found elsewhere, but the way in which this motif is
expressed in Islam is unique. The use of divine measurements can be found in
Jewish works (e.g. the Book of Elchasai, the Shicur Qomah
traditions), but they are not frequently used when referring to or describing
angels.
The influence of Jewish and Christian beliefs about angels should
not, however, be underestimated. In a number of specific examples, the Islamic
traditions draw on Jewish (and Christian) motifs directly. The Bearers of
the Throne, for example, appear to have been assimilated directly from
Jewish and Christian apocalyptic literature. Angels robed in white, the trumpet
that heralds the Last Day, the use of precious stones and so on, all relate to
Judeo-Christian angelic imagery as well. This should not be surprising, because
the use of props, accessories, clothing, and actions are part of a wider symbolic
framework. Particular objects are used metonymically to tell the reader what
the function of a particular angel is and other finer details are used to
confirm the status and divine origin of an angel. When Islamic traditions about
angels began to develop, it was only natural that they developed within the
same symbolic framework; Islamic traditions grew in a similar milieu and so
similar symbolism is often encountered.
2.3 Conclusions: The Origins of Islamic Beliefs about Angels
The two discussions above about angelic nomenclature and
iconography suggest Islamic traditions about angels are both similar to and yet
distinct from Jewish and Christian beliefs about angels. Why? And how can these
be explained?
It would seem sensible to suggest a certain number of traditions
drew on a common, natural vocabulary that is more universal in nature, rather
than specific to the Judeo-Christian tradition. Precious stones, for example,
will be associated naturally with wealth and power; things of a great size with
the supernatural and the realm of the divine, and so on. These types of
iconographic details can be seen throughout Semitic religion in general, as
well as beyond.[CCCLI]
They are commonsense and basic images of power and, by extension, the power of
the divine. Other images, such as the anthropomorphic form of the angel, would
appear to be more closely aligned with Jewish and Christian thought.
These basic symbols of the divine and the Judeo-Christian emphasis
on anthropomorphic angels form the foundation from which the Islamic
iconography of angels developed. However, Islamic beliefs about angels also
developed independently, which can be seen particularly clearly in the way in
which some angels are named. The theophoric name is clearly indebted to
Judaism, but whilst an Arabic theophoric name may resemble a Jewish angelic
name, its function and status often do not. The angel Raphael, for example,
plays an important role in Jewish angelology, but is essentially absent in
Islamic angelology; even the angels Rufl and Riyâfil, which could
be etymologically associated with Raphael, have markedly different roles to
their Jewish counterpart. The opposite occurs with Israfil; whilst the Islamic
angel may be etymologically related to an angel such as Seraphiel, the Islamic
Israfil is much more developed in Islamic tradition, so much so that Israfil
bears little resemblance to any angel in Jewish or Christian literature.
Not all of Islam’s angels have their origins in Judaism or
Christianity, especially angels such as Harut and Marut, the angel Israfil and
the Cockerel (D/7<). However, the influences of other religions
traditions, such as Zoroastrianism, are markedly weaker and appear to affect
only a few, specific examples.[CCCLII]
Islamic angelic nomenclature does present a unique approach to
angelology: whilst both Islamic and Jewish traditions believe that there is an
angel responsible for a whole range of natural phenomena, ranging from
lightning to the sea, Judaism has a tendency to give these angels a personal
name, usually, but not exclusively, a theophoric one. Islam, on the other hand,
prefers to use the generic, non-theophoric formula: ‘the Angel of X’. This,
again, reveals the tension between the influence and independence of Islamic
beliefs about angels. Islam often has the same angels as Judaism (and, to a
lesser extent, Christianity), but names them in a completely different way.
The reason behind this tension could be rooted in the history of
Islam itself. The references to angels in the Qur’an clearly indicate some knowledge
of Jewish and Christian beliefs about angels, especially the direct references
to Gabriel and Michael. From the foundation of the Qur’an, the Islamic
exegetical tradition proceeded to generate a number of distinct beliefs about
angels. This is reflected by the fact that there are sixty-four hadlth
in the work (c. 9%) that include direct Qur’anic quotations in their mitan,[CCCLIII]
with many more than these more loosely based in the Qur’anic exegetical
tradition; eighty-eight hadlth (c. 11%) are attributed to one of the
principal sources of Islamic exegesis, Ibn cAbbas and so on. All
this indicates that exegesis was, as in Judaism, an important springboard from
which Islamic beliefs about angels developed. There is, however, a slight
difference in the ways in which Jewish and Islamic exegesis developed their
angelologies. Jewish angelology is typified by a tendency to turn objects, such
as the wheels of God’s chariot, into angels. This is not found in Islam; the qalam
always remains as a ‘pen’ (albeit a divine pen), and al-lawh al-mahfüz,
always remains a tablet - there is no attempt to turn these into angels, the
only example of this in al-Haba ’ik is al-Sijill.
The similarity between Jewish and Islamic angelology is seen more
strongly in the traditional material rather than exegesis, particularly the
Pseudepigrapha, the Talmud and the Midrashim. In these types of texts, the
angels become responsible for various objects in the human world, maintaining
them and protecting them, on behalf of God. This is also found in Islamic
angelology and much of the traditional material that developed out of the
exegetical movement turn to this sort of interpretation. Traditional material,
both the various collections of hadlth in Islam and the Jewish midrashim,
often reflect a popular expression of beliefs about angels, which is
corroborated by similar beliefs found in magic incantation texts and studies of
Jewish and Muslim folklore. The nature of these types of texts does, however,
make it extremely difficult to assess how Islamic, Jewish, and Christian
beliefs about angels in the later mediaeval period interacted; but at a basic
level, it must be assumed there was a fairly high level of cultural exchange in
this area.
As a result of the nature of hadïth, it is hard (if not
impossible) to gain a detailed understanding of how particular beliefs
developed; however, beliefs about angels appear to have been influenced by a
number of different factors and at different stages. The first stage is the
pre-Qur’anic and Qur’anic periods in which Judaism and Christianity played an
important part in shaping the celestial world of seventh century Arabia. This
stage seems to have been followed by a period of largely internal exegesis of
the Qur’an, during which beliefs about angels were developed with a limited
amount of influence from Judaism and Christianity. This is seen particularly
clearly in the development of a distinctively Islamic system of angelic
nomenclature, traditions about angels that are peculiar to Islam, angels
derived from the Qur’an, and so on. However, this does not mean to say that
Jewish and Christian beliefs had no influence on Islamic angelology during this
period; Isra’iliyyat traditions often reflect Jewish and Christian
angelology and popular beliefs must also not be underestimated. The third stage
shows the return of stronger Jewish and Christian influences. It is difficult
to tell whether this was a result of a greater understanding of Judaism and
Christianity by the educated classes; a wish by Muslim scholars to find Jewish
and Christian attitudes to certain angels or phenomena; a generally higher
degree of interaction between the faiths; or, the percolation of popular
folkloric beliefs into formal works. In this later period, it becomes
increasingly more difficult to know which faith influenced the other; the Near
East became a place where ideas, especially ones about subjects that interested
both those in the academic and popular strata of society, were freely and
commonly exchanged.
The interaction between Islamic beliefs about angels and their
Jewish and Christian counterparts is complex. Many commentators have simply
argued that Islamic angelology has its origins in Judaism and Christianity.
When looking at the Qur’an, the influence of Judaism and Christianity is
certainly unmistakable, but surely this is not surprising. However, the
influence of Judaism and Christianity appears to diminish during the formative
period of Islamic theology and Qur’anic exegesis. Above all, Islamic angelology
always remains distinctly Islamic and this distinctiveness cannot be
attributed to Jewish and Christian influences. The two other Abrahamic faiths
may have provided some basic core beliefs, imagery and conceptualisations, but
the Muslim community developed them in their own unique way.
The Angelic World of Al-Haba ’ik
fl
akhbar al-mala ’ik
124
3. The Angelic World of al-Habâ’ik
fîakhbâr al-malâ’ik[CCCLIV]
[CCCLV]
Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba ’ikfiakhbar al-mala ’ik is
unusual when compared to other mediaeval hadith collections concerned
with visions of the heavenly world, such as al-Ghazali’s (alleged) work, Al-Durra
al-fakhira35<6 cAbd al-Rahim al-Qadi’s, Daqa
’iq al-akhbar fi dhikr al-janna wa-‘l-nar,[CCCLVI] other apocalyptic or
eschatological works,[CCCLVII]
and the accounts of Muhammad’s ascension (micraj) collected
by scholars such as Ibn Ishaq in his Sirat Rasul Allah[CCCLVIII]
These eschatological and micraj works usually act as a
warning against certain modes of behaviour by describing the future rewards of
heaven and the punishments of hell, as Vuckovic comments: ‘Through these
descriptive tales, the scholars establish narratives that reiterate the moral code
of the Qur’an and convey a careful set of expectations, warnings, and
exhortations for the members of Muhammad’s community.’ [CCCLIX] Al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik
uses similar supra-mundane material, but approaches it from a different angle.[CCCLX]
The purpose of Al-Haba’ik is to describe the function of the angels in
the universe and their intermediation between God and humans. The aim is to
present an angelic world, not of the potential future (as in the eschatological
and micraj works), but of the contemporary world, to the
extent that narratives about both past and future events are used to illustrate
what the angels are doing in the present. For example, Israfil, the angel
responsible for blowing the trumpet on the Last Day, is not described as
actually blowing the trumpet, but is portrayed as kneeling, waiting for the
command from God to do it.[CCCLXI]
This angelic present is used to explain how God interacts with the human
world, how humans are judged, how they die, how revelation is given and how
ritual actions should be performed. This is a very different way of presenting
the heavenly world and its inhabitants.
This section will comprise two main sections: the first will look
at the angels’ roles in the life-cycle of a human, from birth to death and
beyond; and the second will look at the angels’ roles in ritual law. The
principal aim of this section is to present the material contained in Jalal
al-Dm al-Suyuti’s collection and to highlight its main trends.
3.1
The Angels’ Roles in Human Life
In Al-Haba’ik f akhbar al-mala’ik angels play a role in a
human’s life from conception in the womb until death. There are four main
groups of angels that need to be considered: (i) the angels of the womb; (ii)
the scribes (al-hafizan al-katiban); (iii) the Angel of Death and (iv)
various post-mortem angels. These four groups of angels amount to 207 hadith
(c. 28%). This is a significant portion, especially when a large number of the
remaining hadith play similar roles.[CCCLXII]
The interaction between angels and humans begins before birth and
al-Suyuti includes nine hadith (§436 - 444) about one particular
ante-natal event. Soon after conception, God sends an angel to the mother’s
womb, which then forms the foetus and records what God has ordained for that
child. The hadith do not provide a strict consensus about when this
happens precisely, but it is said to happen at some stage between forty and
seventy-two days.[CCCLXIII]
The majority of the hadith say that only one angel is sent to the womb,[CCCLXIV]
but one hadith (§436) states that: ‘God, Most High, has made an angel
responsible for the womb; [he said] that is, one responsible for the sperm, one
responsible for the clot and one responsible for the embryo.’ The hadith discuss
two important ideas: the first provides an account of traditional embryology
and the second concerns the issue of predestination.
Five of the nine hadith included describe the early stages
in the growth of the embryo in basic terms.[CCCLXV] These hadith are
similar to the Qur’anic accounts, especially Q 23:12 - 14[CCCLXVI] and reflect a
‘...further development of the thought found already in some Koranic passages
dealing with the stage of the development of the embryo.’[CCCLXVII] Here is a
representative example from the hadith: ‘...When forty-two nights have
passed by the semen, God sends an angel to it, and it shapes it, and creates
its ears, its eyes, its skin, its fat and its bones.’[CCCLXVIII] The development of
the embryo and the stages outlined in this example played an important part in
the classical Islamic law of torts, especially in attempting to rule when
compensation is
liable in cases of injury that subsequently induce a miscarriage.[CCCLXIX]
However, whilst the scientific understanding behind these texts is interesting
in and of itself, there are greater theological points being made; birth and
ante-natal development are all driven by God. The creation of human life, as
well as creation more generally, only occur as a result of God’s will, as Dirk
Bakker comments: ‘Allah’s power manifested in the creation of man is not
restricted to divine initiative, but is active in each stage of development.
There is no phase in the process of man’s origin in which Allah is not
concerned creatively.’[CCCLXX]
God’s will is equally important in the concept of predestination
alluded to in these few hadith[CCCLXXI]
The most important aspect of the Angel of the Womb is that in the womb, God
preordains certain aspects of the foetus’ life; take the two following hadith:
‘...The [the angel] says: ‘Lord, it
is male or female?’ And your Lord decrees what He wills, and the angel writes.
Then he says: ‘Lord, what will his sustenance be?’ Your Lord decrees what He
wills, and the angel writes. Then the angel leaves the page on his hand, and
never ceases from the command nor shakes it off.’[CCCLXXII]
‘And [the angel] says: ‘Lord, is it
male or female? Lord will it be wretched or happy?’ And God decrees what He
wills. Then the one responsible says: ‘What is its time?’ And God decrees what
He wills. Then he closes the book and it is not opened until the Day of
Resurrection.’374
These two hadith show that some aspects of a human’s life
are preordained: gender, sustenance (rizq), happiness or wretchedness,[CCCLXXIII]
and life-span (ajal). Montgomery
Watt calls this type of predestination ‘modified fatalism’,
because the elements that are predestined for the individual are limited in
scope: ‘Here not everything a man does is predetermined, but only the date of
his death and the outcome or general effect of his activity.’[CCCLXXIV]
Some of these preordained elements of life, such as the ajal can be
found in pre-Islamic religion (cf. dahr),[CCCLXXV] but as Smith and
Haddad note, ‘.. .the emphasis is not on an impersonal determinism but on
divine prerogative; God ascertains the life-spans of persons and of
communities, and in His hands lies the fate of all that He has brought into
being.’[CCCLXXVI]
There is a strong focus on God and the juxtaposition of the statements about
embryogenesis and this modified determinism seek to place God at the centre of
human existence. Although Montgomery Watt
374
375
§440.
The
meaning intended here is not necessarily referring to the individual’s final
destiny (i.e. Heaven
209 -
238.
378
Smith and Haddad, Death and Resurrection, p. 5.
doubts that the types of hadith seen above were originally
intended to be interpreted so forcefully,[CCCLXXVII] predestinationist hadith
such as these became important in the subsequent theological disputes over the
issue,[CCCLXXVIII]
with whole chapters on qadar appearing in the canonical hadith
collections[CCCLXXIX]
and whole works devoted to the subject.[CCCLXXX] Above all, the modified
determinism of these hadith highlight God’s control of and power
over creation, as well as the role of the angels in the process. The angels act
as God’s emissaries and act on his behalf, revealing the close relationship
between God, man and angels, even from the very beginnings of life.
Having been born, every human is accompanied by (two) angels (al-hafizan),
usually called the ‘Watchers’ or the ‘Scribes’ in English. The function of
these angels is given simply in §313: ‘...They record against you your
livelihood (rizq), your deeds (camal) and your time (a/al).’[CCCLXXXI]
The Scribes are associated with four verses of the Qur’an in particular: 6:61;
13:11; 50:17 - 18 and 82:10 - 12. The majority of the information about the
Scribes in the mediaeval Islamic exegeses is found in the entry for Q 13:11,[CCCLXXXII]
although more detail can be found on specific issues in the tafsirs of
the other three passages. The hadlth included in
al-Suyuti’s collection (§312 - 406)385 and the tafslrs agree
that the hafizan are angels and are responsible for writing down the
actions that humans take. The Scribes are the angels most closely associated
with humans and the hadlth show that angels are integrated into everyday
life. Despite the fact that the deeds recorded by these Scribes will affect the
human’s eschatological future, al-Suyuti presents the hafizan as being
very much part of the present throughout his collection.
The hadlth (in both the exegeses and al-Haba’ik)
differ from the Qur’anic presentation of the material in the descriptions of
the technical and practical ways in which the Scribes behave. For example, a
number of hadlth state there are two sets of angels, two for the day and
two for the night.386 The development of such technicalities can be
seen particularly clearly in the exegeses of Q 50:17 - 18. The Qur’anic verse
states there are two angels ‘sitting one on the right and one on the left.’387
The hadlth in al-Haba’ik and the exegeses388 add that:
‘The one on his right writes down the good deeds and the one on his left writes
down the sins.. ,’389 This moral distinction between left and right
is not explicit in the original Qur’anic verse; but the notion that the left is
bad (and so the angel that writes down bad deeds is on the left) is a very
traditional and ancient distinction that is mentioned frequently in the Qur’an.390
Al-Qurtubi, Abi
cAbd Allah Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Ansari, Al-Jamic li-ahkam al-Qur’an (Cairo:
Matbacat Dar al-Kutub al-Misriyya, 1357-1369/1938-1950) vol. 7, p. 6; vol. 9,
pp. 291 - 295; vol. 17,
pp. 8 - 13 and
vol. 19, pp. 245 - 246.
385
386
387
388
389
This is the
longest chapter on a named angel in al-Haba ’ik.
E.g. §314, 315,
318, 319, 331.
Arberry, Koran,
p. 540.
e.g.
al-Qurtubi, al-Jamic, vol. 17, p. 9.
See §319.
390 yamin
appears 16 times in the Qur’an - see cAbd al-Baqi, Muhammad Fucad, Al-Mucjam
al-
mufahras
li-alfaz al-Qur’an al-karim (Cairo: Dar al-Hadith, 1417/1996) p. 862. The
opening of Sura 56 is a good example of the discourse of left and right; see
Arberry, Koran, pp. 560 - 561. For more
545.
§335.
§336.
Some
exegetes include a hadïth that combines these two positions; e.g. al-Qurtubï,
al-Jamic, vol.
The actions of the angelic scribes are further expanded by the hadlth
to show God’s mercy to his creations. In §335 the Scribes are said not to
record any transgressions for six hours after a sin has been committed and ‘If
[the person] repents and seeks forgiveness from God, Most High, then He casts
[the sin] away from him...’[CCCLXXXIII]
[CCCLXXXIV]
This hadlth attests to God’s mercy and also encourages repentance. This
same emphasis on God’s mercy is repeated in §336 with a slight difference in
that: ‘If a servant does a good act, he writes it down ten times.’[CCCLXXXV]
Here good actions are given extra weight, thereby making entrance into
Paradise, technically at least, a little easier. Despite the fact that these
two hadlth are different in some specific details, the general theme of
the hadlth - that God is merciful and allows time for repentance - is
common to a great many included in al-Haba’ik. To a certain extent these
hadlth could be described as being contradictory,[CCCLXXXVI] but the differences
in detail are not problematic; rather, the underlying aim of these hadlth
is to encourage repentance after the committing of a sin, as well as
encouragement to act righteously in the first place. The focus on the ethical
value of righteous and unrighteous actions can be seen particularly clearly in
another hadlth that states: ‘.When a servant tells a lie, the angel [of
good deeds] is separated from him by a mile from the stench which comes from
him.’[CCCLXXXVII]
Here, an unrighteous action is manifested by a (physical) smell.[CCCLXXXVIII]
In this way, the hafizan are no longer simply angelic ‘by-standers’ or
‘witnesses’ dispassionately recording a human’s deeds; the Scribes are being
used to condition human behaviour, urging both the pursuit of righteous deeds
in the first instance and repentance for those who commit unrighteous actions
in the second. [CCCLXXXIX]
The hadïth in both al-Suyuti’s collection and the
exegetical literature seen above have expanded the Qur’anic concept of the
angelic Scribes in minor and logical ways. However, some hadïth seem to
move away from the Qur’anic descriptions of the Scribes a great deal; for
example, §345 says that ‘When God puts a servant to the test during an illness;
he says to the companion on the left: ‘Go away!’ And He says to the companion
on the right: ‘Write down for my servant the good deeds that he does.’ Not only
is this further evidence of divine mercy, but it can also be viewed in terms of
a legal response to a question of ethical and jurisprudential concern: is one
culpable of acts committed whilst ill, including any resultant sins of
omission? Are the actions of the insane counted against them? In Islamic
criminal law for an individual to be culpable of a crime, the person must ‘have
had the power to commit or not to commit the act (qudra); he must have
known (Ulm) that the act was an offence; and he must have acted with
intent (qasd).’[CCCXC]
The same applies to ritual law and to the judgement that God gives on the Last
Day, with the result that during illness (and logically by extension, madness)
unrighteous ritual (and criminal) actions, as well as sins of omission are not
counted against an individual.
The hadith also include information which at first sight
does not appear to be the primary intention of the Qur’an. For example, §371
says: ‘whoever uncovers his genitals, the angel [of good deeds] has turned away
from him.’[CCCXCI]
This is not implied by any of the descriptions of the Scribes in the Qur’an
discussed above, to the extent that Q 13:11 says: ‘he has attendant angels,
before him and behind him, watching over him by God’s command...’[CCCXCII]
and Q 50:18 says of a human ‘...not a word he utters but by him is an observer
ready.’[CCCXCIII]
According to these verses of the Qur’an, the Scribes are ever-present with a
human, but this particular hadith states that they are absent when a
human is naked: is this contradictory? Not necessarily so; the Qur’an does also
say: ‘Successful indeed are the believers.. who guard their private parts.’[CCCXCIV]
Q 23:5 clearly prohibits exposing the genitals and this hadith uses the
concept of the Scribes to emphasize this position: i.e. if one exposes oneself,
any good actions performed cannot be recorded; and so, it is clearly in the
interest of an individual not to let his or her genitals be revealed. Although
the Scribes are not referred to in the various tafsirs on Q 23:5,[CCCXCV]
al-Qurtubi does include a brief discussion about angels and nakedness,
including a hadith stating that: ‘If a servant enters a bath without an izar,
then his angel will curse him.’[CCCXCVI]
In these hadith about nudity there is a slight difference in the way
that the Scribes are employed: rather than the hadith being used to
expand and explain the roles of the Scribes, the Scribes are used to enforce
and interpret a specific legal injunction against nudity. Again, the exposure
of the genitals could be projected into an eschatological punishment in the
future, but these hadith are firmly rooted in the present and the
habitual actions of the Scribes.
The hadith included in al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik
regarding the Scribes are used in different ways to describe similar concepts.
The main ideas contained in the hadith are (i) the specific details
regarding their location and their functions; (ii) God’s mercy towards the
repentant; (iii) answers to specific questions of theological and legal
concern; and (iv) the use of angels in matters of (ritual) law. The hadith
show that the Scribes were not simply recorders of human deeds, but are used to
encourage certain modes of righteous behaviour. The stress on the intimacy of
the angels with individuals is great, as is their place in the human world. The
final result of these angels’ work will send the individual to Paradise or the
Fire, but al-Suyuti’s Al- Haba’ik focuses on the present and what these
angels are doing in this world, at this very moment.
The portrayal of ‘Death’ in anthropomorphic or angelomorphic terms
is common to a number of belief systems and Islam is no exception.[CCCXCVII]
Despite the fact the death is an important theme of the Qur’an,[CCCXCVIII]
there is only one reference to the Angel of Death. [CCCXCIX] In Islamic tradition,
however, the Angel of Death became very important and was recognized as one of
the four Islamic archangels (ru ’üs al-mala ’ika). [CD] This is reflected in
al-Suyuti’s al-Haba’ik, with the chapter on the Angel of Death being one
of the longest, containing sixty-five hadlth (c. 9%).[CDI]
The hadlth included give a wide range of information about the angel,
which can be divided into three different categories: (i) physical descriptions
of the Angel of Death; (ii) the function and processes of the Angel of Death
and (iii) narratives about the Angel of Death meeting various prophets. Running
throughout these hadlth is the sense that death is imminent and that
death is part of human existence, with eight explicitly stating that ‘...the
Angel of Death studies every person, without exception, twice a day.’[CDII]
Death is an inescapable, inevitable and ever-present part of this world.
There are relatively few physical descriptions of the Angel of
Death in al- Haba ’ik. The angel is said to have been visible in the
times before the Prophet Moses, until, for various reasons, the angel became
invisible and disease was ‘invented’ (§146 - 148); other hadlth describe
the angel in human terms (e.g. §150, 168); one describes the angel as having
‘two eyes in his face and two eyes on the back of his head’;[CDIII]
the angel is also said to hold a spear (§158, 159); and some describe the angel
as being huge.[CDIV]
Three related hadlth (§120 - 122) also describe the angel as
having two forms (one for believers and one for non-believers) and
one of these three (§122) gives more detail. For believers, the Angel of Death
is described as looking like ‘.a young man, the most beautiful of face, the
most fragrant and [wearing] a white gown;’ and for non-believers: ‘.[he was] a
black man, his head reaching the sky, and flames of fire were coming out of his
mouth...’[CDV]
These descriptions of the Angel of Death lack much detail, which is quite
surprising as graphic descriptions of the angel can be found in other works
with similar themes. [CDVI]
The absence of extended descriptions of the Angel of Death reflects the collection’s
focus on the angel’s junction, rather than the form of the angel.
413
414
415
Occasionally the Angel of Death is caricatured, for example in
§118 the Angel of Death states that: ‘.if the servant, to whom he has been
sent, laughs, then he says: ‘Wonderful! I have been sent to take his soul while
he is laughing!’[CDVII]
Above all, this stresses the inescapable nature of death; even when
someone is laughing, if the appointed time (ajal) comes, the person will
die. In §112 the Angel of Death appears almost arrogant, saying to a grieving
family: ‘There is no sin for me [in doing this] against you! I am one with
orders. By God! I have not eaten your food (rizq), I have not reduced
your age, and I have not shortened your appointed time (ajal). I am
going to return to you, and I will return to you again and again until there is
none of you left!’”[CDVIII]
These hadith emphasise the nature of the angel’s work and the lack of
compassion reflects the impersonality of ‘Death’ and its inevitability. Above
all, the Angel of Death is not a judge, only a functionary of God and cannot
act independently.
Many of the hadlth ask the practical question: just how
does the Angel of Death collect everybody’s souls? What, asks one hadlth,
does the Angel of Death do ‘...when there is a war in the East and a famine in
the West?’[CDIX]
The hadlth have three answers. The first is that the Angel of Death is
huge, and that ‘.[The earth] was made like a bowl, and he takes out of it when
he wants.’[CDX]
The second answer is that God created helpers for the Angel of Death, who
collect people’s souls and then hand them over to the Angel of Death (§127).
The third answer is that the Angel of Death ‘calls it and the soul comes to
him.’[CDXI]
Although each hadlth tends to suggest one way or another, these answers
are sometimes combined (e.g. §125). On the actual process of death, the only
descriptions in the Qur’an are in Q 56:82, in which the soul is described as
moving to the throat of the deceased and Q 6:93, which talks of the ‘ghamarat
al-mawt.’ which Arberry translates as ‘the agonies of death’.[CDXII]
[CDXIII]
However, the actual process of death is not described in great detail by the hadlth
included in this particular collection and often the Angel of Death simply ‘takes
the soul’ (qabada al-rüh)A4'! As noted above,
there are also two hadlth that say that the angel has a spear and that
‘he cuts the vein of life with it.’[CDXIV] Again, this lack of
information is quite unexpected as many texts go into great detail about the actual
physical process of death.[CDXV]
416
417
418
419
420
421
422
(Cairo:
Matbacat Tsa al-Babï al-Halabï, 1348/1929-30) vol.4, pp. 421 - 426; Winter, T.
J. (tr.), The
There are a number of hadlth that describe the way in which
the Angel of Death is informed who is to be killed and when. There are two main
theories: firstly, that God instructs the Angel of Death who is to be killed at
the moment before death;[CDXVI]
or, the Angel of Death is informed about the deaths that are to occur during
the whole year during the month of Shacban.[CDXVII] Despite these two
positions, both stress the idea that it is God, and God only, who decides when
an individual’s life is to come to an end, as Smith and Haddad write: ‘It is
clear in these eschatological materials that the angel of death himself, as
God’s instrument, has no responsibility for determining the moment of the
individual’s death.’[CDXVIII]
This emphasises that the Angel of Death is not acting independently, which also
means that the Qur’anic statement in Q39:42 that ‘Allah takes the souls at the
time of their death’[CDXIX]
remains valid. Obedience to God is a key characteristic of all angels, in all
monotheist religions and disobedience is often perceived as the origin of evil.[CDXX]
As Awn comments: ‘[The angels] act only in accordance with God’s will, and
function as His instruments. For them to rebel is unimaginable, and in fact,
impossible...’[CDXXI]
This idea that the Angel of Death does not act independently is also found in
Judaism, in which ‘...God is regarded as ultimately responsible for the
individual’s death, since Hebrew monotheism could not allow for the existence
of an evil principle or a deathgod that operated among men, contrary to the
will of God.’[CDXXII]
The hadïth are, however, more explicit when it comes to a
description of the differences between the Angel of Death’s treatment of
believers and non-believers;
take this hadith: ‘When the Angel of Death comes to take
the soul of a believer, he says: “Your Lord says to you: Peace!”[CDXXIII]
This seems to be a reference to Q 16:32 in which God says to the winners
on the Day of Judgement: ‘Peace be on you! Enter Paradise for that you were
doing.’[CDXXIV]
A similar statement can be found in §134:
‘...angels from amongst the angels
of mercy and angels from amongst the angels of suffering are with him; when he
receives a good soul, he gives it to the angels of mercy, and when he receives
a wicked soul, he gives it to the angels of suffering.’[CDXXV]
These hadith suggest some form of pre-figured punishment or
reward for the individual, exacted before the formal judgement of the Last Day.
Souls of the believers are also said to be subsequently handed over to an angel
called Ramya’il and the souls of the unbelievers to an angel called Duma.[CDXXVI]
§165.
Arberry,
Koran, p. 261.
§134;
the Angel of Death is also seen to act compassionately to believers, and in one
hadith the
Sixteen of the hadith about the Angel of Death included in
al-Suyuti’s Al- Haba ’ik are part of the Qisas al-anbiya ’
tradition. These hadith are all comparatively long and form two
narrative groups: (i) the Angel of Death and its role in the creation of humans
and (ii) the Angel of Death’s interaction with various prophets.[CDXXVII]
These mythic tales are important for two reasons: firstly, they show Islamic
interaction with the wider Judeo-Christian mythic tradition; [CDXXVIII]
and secondly, they reveal some important information about the role and
function of the Angel of Death.
The first two hadith in the section on the Angel of Death
do not, as one may expect, give descriptions of how the Angel of Death takes
the souls of humans or how the angel looks, but begin with a story about the
creation of Adam. In this story, God commands various angels to collect some
mud from the Earth, out of which Adam is created. Various angels fail in their
mission and only the Angel of Death succeeds.[CDXXIX] This story is important
because it establishes a link between the birth and death of human life. The
Angel of Death was involved in the creation of Adam and is likewise responsible
for the ‘termination’ of Adam and his children; or as Haim Schwarzbaum notes
‘...at the very moment of his birth man already carries within himself the
germs of death.’[CDXXX]
This narrative was very popular in both Jewish and Muslim tradition and
testifies to the high degree of interaction between Judaism and Islam in this
particular mythic narrative.[CDXXXI]
In Judaism and Christianity, the characterization of ‘death’ or
the ‘Angel of Death’ in works such as the Testament of Abraham marks a
further development in the personification of Death, in which prophets
interact directly with an anthropomorphic or angelomorphic version of Death and
attempt to challenge it.[CDXXXII]
This challenge ultimately fails and the prophet succumbs to the
authority of God and dies. This narrative theme is also prominent in Islamic
tradition.
Hadi th §120 - 122 describe the Angel of
Death appearing to Abraham in two different forms:440 the first, for
the believers in which the Angel of Death ‘...[was] made of light and radiance,
of a kind that only God, Most High knows.’441 The second form for
the unbelievers was, as has been seen above, terrifying; even ‘Abraham was so
afraid that he trembled and his stomach clung to the Earth, and his soul was
about to leave.’442 Here, the narrative of Abraham’s meeting with
Death (or rather the Angel of Death) is used to describe a wider ethical
dimension: ease in the death for the faithful and pain in death for the
unfaithful - a common idea in earlier Judaism.443
One common theme in these stories is the attempt by various
prophets and people to escape death: Enoch, Moses, Abraham and a friend of
Solomon all attempt to evade the Angel of Death and prolong their appointed
time (ajal). Enoch and Abraham both seek confirmation from God that they
are supposed to die; Moses challenges the angel directly by slapping him and
gouging out his eye and Solomon’s friend asks Solomon to transport him to
India, so that the Angel of Death does not know where he is.444 All
these attempts are futile, as all are taken by the Angel of Death at their
appointed time (ajal). This is part of a wider theological position in
which the moment of death and the length of a human’s appointed time are
conceived as being immoveable and unchangeable. Montgomery Watt comments: ‘Both
[ajal and rizq] are thought as determined by God, but, once they
have been determined, they seem to have a certain fixity and there is no
question of God’s altering them.’445
editions of the
text in its various extant languages (Greek, Coptic, Arabic, Ethiopic, Slavic
and Romanian).
440 These two
images are also found in the Testament of Abraham 17:12 - 13: ‘Then Death put
off all
his beauty and
loveliness and all his glory and his sun-like form that he had worn. And he put
on a
robe of
tyranny, and he made his face gloomy, more fierce that all wild beasts and more
unclean than
all
uncleanness.’ Allison, Testament, p. 334; see also Ludlow, Jared W., Abraham
Meets Death:
Humor in the
Testament of Abraham (Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 2002) pp. 95 - 118.
441
442
443
444
§121.
§121.
Cf. Ket. 104a,
pp. 664 - 665; Cf. §134 - 135 & 163 - 166.
Enoch: §149;
Abraham: §150; Moses §146; Solomon’s friend: §167 - 168.
If the hadïth on wine-drinking is disregarded,446
the last two hadïth of the section on the Angel of Death describe the
events surrounding the death of Muhammad. Some elements of these two hadïth
can be found in the other prophets’ meetings with the Angel of Death. When the
Angel of Death takes Abraham’s soul, the angel says: ‘Your Lord has ordered me
to take your soul in the most peaceful way that I have taken the soul of a
believer.’ 447 Likewise, in the story of Muhammad’s death, the Angel
of Death seeks permission to enter the Prophet’s house, and the hadïth
concludes: ‘It reached me that the Angel of Death did not greet anyone before
him, and will not greet anyone after it.’448 Although different in
detail, the two hadïth use similar expressions to describe the honour in
which the prophets are held. This honour is made even more explicit in §167 in
which the Angel of Death is made an actual servant of Solomon.449
However, the main difference between the encounters of Muhammad and the other
prophets with the Angel of Death is that the death of Muhammad is treated with
a great deal more emotion, where the pain and suffering of the Prophet are
stressed.[CDXXXIII]
Muhammad, when asked by Gabriel how he feels, replies: ‘Gabriel, I find myself
distressed, and I find myself scared.’[CDXXXIV] Muhammad is also one
of the only prophets (save David)[CDXXXV] not to challenge the
Angel of Death in an attempt to live a longer life. In §170, the Angel of Death
says to Muhammad:
Watt, W.
Montgomery, ‘Suffering in Sunnite Islam’ SI 50 (1979) pp. 5 - 19, p. 15.
The section on
the Angel of Death ends with a hadïth (§171) already included in the section on
Michael (§84), which simply contains the matn: ‘The one addicted to wine is an
idolater.’ The hadïth
is included in
the section on the Angel of Death, because the Angel of Death features in the
isnad; see
§84 & 171.
447
448
§150.
§168; cf. the
death of Moses in Pseudo-Philo, in which the angels do not sing their heavenly
hymn
after his
death: ‘...nor was there such a day from the one on which the LORD made man
upon the earth, nor shall there be such forever, that the hymn of the angels
should stop on account of men; because he loved him very much. And he buried
him with his own hands on a high place and in the light of all the world.’
Ps.-Philo 19:16, OTP vol. 2, p. 323 449 §167; cf. Ket. 77b, pp. 488 - 489.
‘God has sent me to you, and has
commanded me to obey you; if you command me to take your soul, then I will take
it; but if you do not want [me to], then I will leave it.’ [Muhammad] said: ‘Do
[it], Angel of Death.’ He said: ‘Yes, as you command.’
In the hadïth there is juxtaposition between the honouring
of Muhammad as a prophet and his depiction as an ordinary human being, fearing
death. In this way, Muhammad becomes an example of human behaviour: accepting
of God’s will, yet simultaneously fearful of it. Even the Prophet, the exemplar
of human submission to God, experiences pain and fear of death itself; as
al-Ghazali writes:
‘Did you think that the office of
Prophethood would ward off from him that which was destined? Did the Angel
respect his family and relations for his sake? ...Absurd! Rather he followed
that which he found inscribed upon the Tablet.’[CDXXXVI]
The importance of these narratives of the prophets is particularly
evident in the fact that a quarter of the hadïth about the Angel of
Death are in this form. What is most interesting about the use of these mythic
narratives is that many of them are not simply graphic descriptions of death
and its processes. The hadïth make important statements about the
subject within a rich narrative framework, allowing important concepts about
death to be made more subtly.
As a whole, the section on the Angel of Death in al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik
focuses on four main areas: (i) the imminence of death; (ii) the fixed
nature of the ajal; (iii) the treatment of humans by the Angel of Death
based on belief; and (iv) the practical question of how the Angel of Death can
take everyone’s souls. This section is one of the longest sections in
al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik fi akhbar al-mala’ik and it contains much
information in a variety of different formats: exegeses of the Qur’an, simple
statements, longer narratives, etc. However, much information has not been
included. The hadïth do not give much detail about the physical
appearance of the Angel of Death or about the physical process of death and the
time spent in the grave.
After burial, there are a number of angels that interact with an
individual after death and in the afterlife; namely, the fattan al-qabr
(Tempters of the Grave, §302 - 311) and the guardians of Heaven and Hell, Ridwan
and Malik (§229 - 242), along with their subordinates.
Soon after someone has been buried, they are visited by angels and
their faith is tested; if they have been believers, they are rewarded and if
they are not, they are punished.[CDXXXVII] Although it should be
noted, as F. E. Peters comments, that ‘...the events following an individual
Muslim’s death unfold in a somewhat confused fashion in the literature on the
subject.’[CDXXXVIII]
In Islamic tradition the two angels that come to the deceased are normally
named as Munkar and Nakir. However, some other names are given in al-Haba’ik:
Ankar, Nakur, Ruman[CDXXXIX]
and they are also referred to more generally in §308 as ‘.two angels from the
Angels of Mercy, and one angel from the Angels of Torment.’ These angels do not
appear in the Qur’an, but became an important part of traditional Islamic
beliefs about the afterlife.[CDXL]
The angels are described as having a terrifying form, having blue or black skin
(§302 & 305) and that:
‘Their voices are like roaring
thunder, and their glance is like a flash of lightning; they walk on their
hair, and they dig with their fangs; the two of them have a rod of iron; if the
people of Mina were to gather together, they would not be able to lift it up.’[CDXLI]
This terrifying image has something in common with both the form
that the Angel of Death takes for unbelievers (see above) and the forms of the
anti-Christ, al-Dajjal49 Despite their form, Munkar and Nakir
are not ‘evil’ angels, nor are they devils. Their function is to test the soul
of the deceased by asking simple, basic questions of the individual’s beliefs,
e.g. §303: ‘The two will sit with him and ask him what he used to worship, and
who his prophet was.’ These are fundamental questions, relating directly to the
beliefs of the shahada, rather than a judgement based on an individual’s
actions. The responses to the questions asked by the two angels receive either
a punishment or reward; in §302 the reward and punishment is related directly
to Heaven and Hell: ‘.. .the door to the Garden is opened for him, and it is
roomy for him in his grave’ and ‘.the door to the Fire is opened for him.’
The implication is that the period of questioning in the grave
acts as a preliminary stage of judgement during which those who can never enter
heaven are separated from those that can. Those that pass the test will
subsequently be judged on the Day of Resurrection according to their actions,
as collected by the Scribes. This would seem to highlight the primacy of belief
and the punishment of disbelief; i.e. kufr automatically results in
punishment in Hell. However, this is not at all clear and statements such as
‘.his torment does not end until God calls him from that bed of his...’ in
§302, suggest that the individual is not immediately consigned to Hell during
this period, but it would seem extremely unlikely that he or she could gain
admittance to Heaven.
The guardians of Heaven and Hell are also named
in Islamic tradition as Malik and Ridwan, and, although their names are derived
from the Qur’an, they are [CDXLII] not fully developed until the hadith literature.[CDXLIII]
They also both figure fairly prominently in the micraj
literature.[CDXLIV]
Of the few hadith in al-Haba’ik about postmortem events, only
§237 and §242 are explicitly about Ridwan, and only §241 about the guardians of
Heaven. The majority are descriptions of the individuals responsible for Hell:
(i) Malik, the angel in charge of Hell; (ii) the guardians who punish hell’s
inhabitants; and (iii) the zabaniyya, another group of angels who are
also responsible for punishments. Like the Angel of Death and Munkar and Nakir,
they are described as having a terrifying form:
[229] God, may he be praised and
glorified, created Malik, and he created as many fingers as the numbers of
people in the Fire for him, noone in the Fire is tortured without Malik
torturing him with his fingers;
and by God! if Malik were to place
one of his fingers in heaven, then it would melt it.
[234] There are nineteen angels,
and in the hand of every one of them is an iron rod, with two prongs, and he
beats [people] vigorously with it, with it coming down on seventy thousand
[people].
These descriptions are designed to make individuals aware of the
consequences of their actions in this world. Such descriptions are common in
both Jewish and Christian apocalyptic and eschatological texts.[CDXLV]
The hadith included in Jalal al-Dm al-Suyuti’s collection
concerning the postmortem angels are actually very few, only amounting to
twenty-four hadith (3%).
This is quite surprising as both the angels Malik and the two
tempters of the grave were extremely popular in Islamic tradition.[CDXLVI]
Being angels, al-Suyqtl could not exclude them from this collection, but their
actions in the post-mortem world, that of the eschatological future, appear to
jar with the immediacy and everyday focus of the rest of the hadith in
the collection.
The role of the angels in the everyday lives of humans is an
important theme in Islamic tradition and many of the hadith in al-Haba
’ik fl akhbar al-mala ’ik deal with this issue. The hadith show that
angels are continually in contact with humans from the very beginnings of life.
One hadith shows this with particular clarity:
[304] ‘...when God, may He be
praised and glorified, wanted to create him, He said to an angel: ‘Write down
his blessings (rizq)! Write down his report (athar)! Write down
his allotted time (ajal)! Write him down as damned or blessed!’ Then
that angel ascends and God sends an angel, and it sustains him until he reaches
puberty, then that angel ascends.
Then God assigns two angels to him,
who write down his good deeds and his misdeeds. When he is in the presence of
death, those two angels ascend, and the Angel of Death comes to him to take his
soul. When he enters his grave, the spirit returns to his body, and the two
Angels of the Grave come to him and test him. Then the two ascend. When the
Hour comes, the Angel of Good Deeds and the Angel of Misdeeds come down to him
and they untie the bound books on his neck. Then the two are with him and one
drives him and the other bears witness.’
There has been a tendency in Islamic (as well as Biblical and
Jewish) Studies to focus on the angels’ roles in eschatology. Christopher
Rowland has argued that Jewish and Christian apocalyptic literature is not
simply about the future, but is also concerned with the present: ‘Such elements
point to apocalyptic being not merely a movement which was concerned primarily
with the future of the world but with the world above, its secrets and its
glory.’[CDXLVII]
But it is not simply apocalyptic texts that are interested in angels and the
divine world, Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik f akhbar al-mala’ik is
a case in point. The compilation is clearly not apocalyptic, far from it in
fact; yet it is deeply interested in the angelic world. Al-Haba’ik is
not simply concerned with, as Rowland puts it, the secrets and glory of heaven,
but with the interaction of the divine with the human; the relationship between
the angels and people, at all times. This relationship is reciprocal: whilst
the angels constantly supervise and note down human actions, a close link is
also established between the human and the divine worlds and along with it a
sense of protection. Whilst it is angels that are the celestial beings that
interact with God, there is a constant stress in the hadlth that they
are mere functionaries. All of the angels’ actions originate from God.
So far, angels have been seen to watch over human activity on
behalf of God, recording human actions in readiness for the Day of Judgment.
The angels do, however, also relate to the contemporary world (that is, the
world of the now) in a different way. Rather than perceiving angels as
coming down to the earthly realm, humans can also look up to the angels in heaven
to seek guidance in the ways and forms of ritual.
The idea that the earth is a replica of the divine is an important
and common concept in the ancient world and the temple in Near Eastern religion
marked a place of direct connection between the human and divine realms.[CDXLVIII]
As Nicholas Wyatt comments: ‘The point of the junction is communication between
the two, allowing the benefits of cult to reach the god (they were seen as
being fed by their servants, like great lords), and for their power to be
transmitted downwards as a blessing... ’[CDXLIX] Associated
with the precise locus of this divine place on earth (the holy of
holies in the Jewish Temple) and its environs were a number of rites and
rituals concerning how it should be engaged with by humans. Jewish ritual law
(as well as much criminal and civil law) is associated with these regulations
and came to have a profound effect on the daily lives of both the priestly and
non-priestly classes. After the destruction of the two Jewish temples, but
particularly after that of the Second Temple, the locus of this
divine-human interaction was lost, but the ritual laws and the means of
approach to God remained.[CDL]
In the literature of the inter-testamental and post-biblical
periods the concept of heaven as the template for human action on earth became
important in the description and performance of certain rituals. Texts such as
the Testament of Levi portray earthly ritual actions being performed in
heaven by angels.[CDLI]
The role of the angels in these texts is to act as an exemplar for human
behaviour; the way in which the angels worship God, should be how humans
worship God. In these works the visionary ascends to heaven and brings down
revelation to the rest of humanity concerning God and the rituals associated
with His worship. There is also, however (as seen above with the Scribes), a
movement in the opposite direction: angels are also used to deliver prayers of
the faithful to God and to keep information about the ritual actions of
individual humans. This movement is seen particularly clearly in the mediaeval Exodus
Rabbah: ‘When they have all finished [praying], the angel appointed over
prayers collects all the prayers that have been offered in all the Synagogues,
weaves them into garlands and places them upon the head of God.. ,’[CDLII]
Ritual also forms the basis of Islamic spiritual life, and there
has been much literature written about the history and development of Islamic
ritual.[CDLIII]
However, the role of angels in ritual law and belief has yet to be tackled,
which is somewhat surprising as the use of angels to encourage and discourage
certain actions is neither obscure, nor solely the domain of popular, folkloric
material. For example, Malik ibn Anas includes a number of hadith that
use angels for these purposes in his Muwatta ’.[CDLIV]
There are 224 hadith (around 30%) included in Al-Haba’ik,
which relate to ritual issues. This is a significant proportion and therefore
the subject needs to be addressed comprehensively. This section will look at
the roles that angels play in ritual behaviour, looking at the topic from two
directions: (i) humans looking up towards heaven for templates of ritual
action,[CDLV]
and (ii) heavenly beings coming down to earth, covering both the effects
of certain human actions on angels[CDLVI] and the angelic
encouragement of correct behaviour.[CDLVII]
3.2.1 Heaven as a Template for the Performance of Ritual
One of the most important roles for angels is to show believers
how they should behave, both in general terms and in specific ritual contexts.
The importance of angels outside Islam is best seen in the Qumran community and
their liturgical work, Songs of the Sabbath Sacrifice.[CDLVIII]
At Qumran human worship replicates the angelic community and both humans and
angels pray and worship simultaneously. Martha Himmelfarb comments that: ‘The
recitation of the Sabbath Songs with their description of the liturgy in
the heavenly temple was intended to create a feeling of participation in the
service on high.’[CDLIX]
As will be seen, this is also a key part in the understanding of the role of
angels in Islamic ritual.[CDLX]
Before looking at the role of angels in specific ritual actions,
it is important to highlight the way in which angels are held to be exemplars
of faith. In Al-Haba’ik the angels are said to be continually praising
and worshipping God. There are a number of hadith that state: ‘There is
no place in heaven without an angel, be it bowed down in worship or standing
upright until the Hour comes.’[CDLXI]
Here Heaven is described as a world crammed full of angels, constantly praising
God.[CDLXII]
This is seen further in another hadith:
[22] ‘God, Most High, divided the angels
into ten parts, nine parts are the Cherubim, and they are the angels who bear
the Throne, and they are also those who worship God night and day, without
rest. He said: The remaining angels are for God’s orders and messages.’
Of all the angels that are in existence the great majority praise
and worship God, with a mere ten percent given specific tasks - the roles
normally associated with angels.[CDLXIII] In one of
the hadith it says explicitly that the main purpose of the angels is to
worship:
[549] ‘I said to Kacb:
‘What is your opinion about the Word of God: ‘glorifying Him by night and in
the daytime and never failing’[CDLXIV]
- particularly regarding those that are occupied with [delivering] messages and
those that are occupied with [seeing to people’s] needs?’ He said: God gave
them worship, just as [he gave] you souls. Have you not eaten and drunk, and
stood up and sat down, and come and gone, and talked while you breathed? In
that way, He created worship for them.’
The worship and praise of God is a natural function of the angel.
The actual words of the angels are also important and often reflect invocations
used commonly in Muslim ritual, again something seen in Jewish and Christian
contexts.[CDLXV]
[CDLXVI]
The most important of these is the saying of the tasbïh43
which is an integral part of Muslim devotional practices: ‘Muslim
prayer-manuals show that for the Muslim worshipper too, his act of praise is a
sharing in the worship of “angels and men in a wonderful order”.’[CDLXVII]
This perpetual worship and glorification of God are personified
particularly strongly in the angel al-Ruh:
‘The Spirit is an angel. It has
seventy thousand faces, and every face has seventy thousand tongues, and every
tongue has seventy thousand languages, which praise God in all of those
languages; God creates an angel from every praise, which flies with the angels
until the Day of Resurrection.’[CDLXVIII]
The image here shows the multitude of praises from one being
towards one object and it is no surprise that such an image should be included
by Ibn Tufayl in his Hayy ibn Yaqzan as the ultimate goal for all those
who wish to worship God.[CDLXIX]
At a basic level, the angels are beings created to worship God and do so
naturally. Indeed, many theologians saw obedience and worship of God as such an
innate part of the angels’ being that Iblis’ refusal to prostrate to Adam had
to be reinterpreted.[CDLXX]
As worship of God, as well as obedience and submission to God, are part of the
angelic nature, the angels then become the epitome of the way in which Muslims
should worship.
Thus far, the hadïth have just outlined two basic
principles: firstly, that praise and worship of God should be constant and,
secondly, that certain expressions and devotions are used by the angels.
However, the angels also play important roles in more technical aspects of the
worship of God, especially the ritual prayers and the rites of the hajj.
One of the most important themes in Islamic tradition is the idea
that there is a heavenly counterpart to the Kacba, often
called the bayt al-macmur (the ‘inhabited house’). W. McKane
comments that in Islamic visions of heaven, ‘There is a doctrine of heavenly
prototypes and earthly copies; thus a heavenly Ka'aba, a heavenly mu'addin
and an angel in the form of a cock who regulates the crowing and silence of all
earthly cocks.’[CDLXXI]
This heavenly prototype is believed to be directly above the earthly Kacba,
or as one hadïth puts it: ‘.if it were to come down, then it would come
down on top of it.’[CDLXXII]
The Temple was the primary focus of the cult in ancient religion, generally,
and particularly in Judaism because of the direct link between the one temple
and God.[CDLXXIII]
Likewise, in al-Haba’ik the earthly Kacba is a representation
of a heavenly version.[CDLXXIV]
The traditions often use the bayt al-ma milr to describe the great
number of angels that worship in it, for example:
‘...It is called The Inhabited
House because seventy thousand angels pray in it every day; then they come
down, when they have spent the night [there], they circumambulate the Kacba,
then they bless the Prophet (God bless him and grant him salvation), then they
leave and they do not have another turn until the coming of the Hour.’[CDLXXV]
This does not, at first, appear to establish a model of any
particular rite of the hajj; the hajj is not performed every day.
However, this hadïth and others like it place the bayt al-macmur,
and by extension the earthly Kacba, at the heart of angelic
worship. The angels are not instituting any particular rite, but are stressing
the holiness and sanctity of the location.[CDLXXVI] Of course, in Islam
the locus of the ‘temple’ as the house of God is a key component of the
worship of God as the qibla is directed to the Kacba:
‘The central gesture of this body language is the facing of the direction of
prayer, in Arabic, tawliyat al-wujh, the turning of one’s face (to the
house of God).’[CDLXXVII]
As the angels focus their activities of worship on the bayt al-macmûr,
the Muslim community looks in the same direction.[CDLXXVIII]
The Inhabited House is also used explicitly as the template
for the earthly Kacba in §519 and §687:
[519]‘...The Angel took me up into
the Seventh Heaven, until we reached a building. I said to the angel: ‘What is
that?’ And he said: ‘This building is His building. God has angels, seventy
thousand, who enter it every day. They glorify God and praise Him, and they do
not come back to it.’
[687] ‘When God sent Adam down from the Garden, he said: “Adam, I
have built a house for me, opposite my house which is in heaven. You
can worship me in it, and your children, just as my angels worship
around my Throne.” So the angels came down to him, and he dug until
he reached the Seventh Earth, and the angels threw the rock down until it
towered over the face of the earth.’ [CDLXXIX]
These two hadïth both establish a direct link between the
earthly and heavenly Kacbas, but they are quite different in
approach. The first (§519) is part of the micraj genre;
during Muhammad’s ascension he sees God’s ‘house’. It is not described, but
Muhammad’s failure to understand the building that he is shown is quite
unusual. Had the building been a direct replica of the earthly Kacba
one would expect him to know, or at least recognise, what he has seen.
Nonetheless, the building is clearly the inhabited house. Why does
Muhammad not recognise it? The answer probably lies in the fact that it is part
of the micraj genre, in which the unknown is made known. The
importance is not the fact that it is in the form of the earthly Kacba,
but that the building is revealed to be God’s building. The focus is on
the association of the locus with the divine, not on the physical form
of the building. Likewise the location of the building is important in §687, in
which the Kacba is associated with Adam. In his recent
monograph, Brandon Wheeler comments that: ‘Adam’s role in instituting the rituals
of the pilgrimage, and in particular the boundaries of the sanctuary,
establishes a link between Mecca and the lineage of the prophets. The
observance of the pilgrimage rites and prohibitions of the sanctuary by the
prophets reiterates the association of Mecca and Eden.’[CDLXXX] Whilst the association
with Eden (and ‘heaven’
more generally) is important, it is the building’s specific
relationship with God and the fact that the Kacba/bayt al-macmur
is God’s dwelling that is more important: the focus is on God, rather than
Heaven. The Kacba is not ‘heaven on earth’ but ‘God’s
dwelling on earth’.
The hadith do not only describe the bayt al-macmur
in general terms, but they also show the angels performing or supporting
specific rituals associated with the Kacba. The angels are
said to have been the first to perform a circumambulation (tawwaf) of
the Kacba:
‘Adam (peace be upon him)
circumambulated the Holy House, and the angels said: ‘Your piety obeys [God],
Adam, we have circumambulated this House before you, for two thousand years.’[CDLXXXI]
Adam, as the first man and the first to come into contact with the
Kacba, is associated with its rituals. However, there is also
a deeper sense that the Kacba is a form of recompense for
Adam’s expulsion from paradise, as Adam is not left abandoned by God. Another hadith
(§624) establishes a link between the practice of, tawwaf in heaven and
on earth:
‘And [Adam] walked around it, just
as he had walked around the Throne, and he performed the prayers by it, just as
he had performed them by the Throne.’[CDLXXXII]
The angels are also said to wear the izar (§625), to
protect the jimar (§461) and to circumambulate in the air above the
earthly Kacba during Ramadan (§736), bless those who say a
prayer as they pass the Yemeni column of the Kacba (§458 -
460) and surround the tomb of the prophet (§488). These hadïth validate
the use of these specific ritual and devotional acts by the Muslim community.
Given the infrequency with which most Muslims have the opportunity
to perform the hajj, the role of the angels in the performance of the
ritual prayers is, perhaps, more important. One of the overarching themes in
the hadïth is that the angels are present whenever a Muslim prays and
that they support the community. The idea of God sending angels to help and
support the Muslim community is an early one, found both in the Qur’an and in hadïth[CDLXXXIII]
For example, during the Battle of Badr God sent a contingent of angels to help
the outnumbered Muslims:
‘...and God most surely helped you
at Badr....“Is it not enough for you that your Lord should reinforce you with
three thousand angels sent down upon you? Yea if you are patient and
godfearing, and the foe come against you instantly, your Lord will reinforce
you with five thousand swooping angels.”’[CDLXXXIV]
The idea that angels support a community both in military,[CDLXXXV]
but especially ritual and liturgical affairs, is not new and is an extremely
important concept in the Dead Sea Scrolls.[CDLXXXVI] In both the Judaism
of the Qumran community and in Islam the angels’ participation and support of
the community are crucial to understanding the relationship between God and his
creations.
In al-Haba ’ik there are a number of hadith that
reflect these themes. Some hadith state the ritual prayers are performed
in heaven, e.g.: ‘When Israfil glorifies God, he cuts off the ritual prayers
and the hearing of all the angels in heaven.’[CDLXXXVII] There are
also more specific hadith that give the role of angelic imam and angelic
mu’adhdhin to specific angels: §39 states that Gabirel is imam,
whereas in §83 Michael is imam and Gabriel is the mu’adhdhin and
in §102 Israfil is the mu’adhdhin. These contradictions are not
important, rather the fact that there is an imam and a mu’adhdhin
in heaven shows that the earthly practices of the Muslims are a copy of those performed
in heaven. [CDLXXXVIII]
The idea that earthly practice is a mirror of the heavenly, is seen most
clearly in §83:
[83] ‘The mu’adhdhin of the heavenly host is Gabriel, and
Michael is
their Imam, who leads them in the prayers in the inhabited house, and the
angels of the heavens congregate and circumambulate the Inhabited
164 House, and they perform
the prayers and pray for forgiveness. God gives their reward, their forgiveness
and their praise of God to the community of Muhammad (God bless him and grant
him salvation).’
Here a whole number of Muslim ritual practices can be seen: the salat,
the direction of the qibla and the circumambulation of the house.
Furthermore, the Muslim community actually benefits from these angelic actions.
The hadith associated with the celestial cockerel (al-Dik; §280 -
294) also locate the origin of the earthly adhan in heaven:
[§282] ‘God has a cockerel; its
feet are on the Seventh Earth and its head passes through the Seven Heavens,
and it praises God at the times of prayer; there is no cockerel on Earth that
does not reply to it.’
The words of the angels are also important, as they often form the
template of Islamic prayers and devotions. This is seen clearly in §275:
‘Dhu ‘l-Qarnayn (peace be upon him)
had a friend from amongst the angels, and it is said he was Riyafil. He used to
come to him, and visit him, and he said to him: ‘Tell me, how do you serve
[God] in heaven?’ He said: ‘In heaven angels stand upright, and they never sit
down; and among them [are those that are] prostrating, and they never raise
their heads, and there [are those that are] kneeling down, and they never stand
upright. However, there is one who raises his face, but he never looks astray.
He says: ‘Praise be [to God], the King, the All-Holy,[CDLXXXIX] the Lord
165 of the Angels and the Spirit,
Lord, we have not worshiped you, as worship of you demands. ’
In the hadïth concerned with ritual the angels are used to
legitimise set forms of worship. The earthly and divine rituals are identical
and performed simultaneously. This creates a sense of harmony and a deep
relationship between heaven and earth in the performance of ritual. Esther
Chazon has highlighted three different ways in which the angels and the
community of Qumran interact: (i) humans invite angels to praise God, because
of their inability to praise God as well as the angels; (ii) humans pray like
angels, using their words and (iii) humans join the angels, and they become one
choir praising God.[CDXC]
All three of these positions can be seen in the hadïth: (i) prayer and
worship are innate characteristics of angels, but not of humans; (ii) specific
rites and invocations of the Muslim community were established by the angels;
(iii) the heavenly and earthly communities praise God simultaneously. This
testifies to the different types of relationship that exist between humans and
angels in the sphere of ritual. Much of this is concerned with the
‘correctness’ of ritual: the correct forms of worship are those performed in
heaven.
3.2.2 Commanding Right and Forbidding Wrong?
Muslims’ lives are constantly regulated by the principle of sharfa,
the divine law, which thefuqaha’ strive to interpret and understand. Sharïa
does not simply govern criminal, civil and ritual law, but it also addresses
ethical and moral concerns more
generally.[CDXCI]
In Al-Haba’ik there are a number of hadïth that attempt to
discourage certain types of behaviour in a whole range of different situations
and circumstances, ranging from people’s bad habits during the ritual prayer to
questions of purity. In this collection angels are used to warn believers of
the consequences of certain practices in a number of ways: (i) stating that it
offends the angel that writes down good deeds (with the implication that this
may affect the individual’s own record of good deeds); (ii) by stating that
angels do not come into the presence of certain things; and (iii) stating that
the angels curse individuals for certain actions.
Ritual purity is an important part of both Jewish and Islamic
religious life. In Judaism the ritual purity laws of Leviticus (especially Lev.
11 - 16) were primarily directed at the priestly class, because the priests
were required to be ritually clean before coming into contact with the divine
in the Holy of Holies.[CDXCII]
However, as Judaism developed, there was an increasing trend for the laity to
adopt the same, or, at the very least, similar purity regulations; as Eyal
Regev has concluded: ‘Purity is necessary in order to achieve holiness. Thus,
we conclude that those who voluntarily observed purity in order to eat, pray
and read Scripture were seeking holiness in their everyday life, outside the
realm of the Temple and the priestly system.’[CDXCIII] Impurity, or
uncleanness, is derived from a whole range of different things, but the
principal sources of impurity are corpses and bodily discharges (including
urine, faeces and menstrual blood).[CDXCIV] After coming into
contact with these polluting substances ritual cleansing (in Islam wudu’,
ghusl or tayammum) is required before performing ritual actions.[CDXCV]
Islamic notions of ritual impurity are believed to be related to either
Rabbinic or Zoroastrian ideas;[CDXCVI]
however, what is important to note is that Islamic purity regulations are
usually deemed to be less rigorous than those of Judaism and Zoroastrianism.
For example, ritual impurity can be derived from both physical substances and
through contact with an unclean person or place; but in Islam, impurity is
derived solely from substances.[CDXCVII]
In Judaism and Zoroastrianism, ritual impurity is of major spiritual importance
and the notions of purity and holiness became sacralised; but the
concept of purity in Islam is much more basic, as Janina Safran suggests: ‘The
Islamic system of purity is focused on ritual worship and treats the defilement
of the body, often by bodily acts and substances, as a regular circumstance of
the human condition.’[CDXCVIII]
It should also be stressed that the concept of purity in Islamic law is ritual
and not hygienic[CDXCIX]
What, then, do the hadlth in al-Haba’ik add to the
subject of ritual purity? The hadlth in the collection are mostly
concerned with individuals in a state of ritual impurity and the effects of
that pollution on human interaction with angels. Take the following hadlth:
‘...Angels do not stay in the presence of someone in a state of ritual impurity
(junub'), nor [are they in the presence of someone who has been]
anointed with khalûq until both [types] have been washed.’[D]
At first, this hadlth may not appear to be of great concern; however,
the absence of angels does have profound effects on the person concerned. If
angels are driven away from an individual, any righteous acts that the Scribe
of good deeds would normally record cannot be included in the person’s ‘book’.
This hadlth essentially denies those in a state of junub the
ability to perform credited righteous actions. It is also made clear in other
hadlth (e.g. §365) that this applies to only ‘one of your angels which is with
you’[DI]
(i.e. the angel of good deeds); consequently, bad actions are still recorded
during this state of impurity.
In Al-Haba ’ik the absence of angels is attributed to a whole
range of different things, including:
i.
urine / bowls of stagnant urine (§588 & 589)
iii.
nakedness (§364 - 366; 371, 372 & 388)
iv.
those who are junub (§368, 592 & 595)
v.
those who have had sexual intercourse (§367 & 368)
vi.
houses with dogs (§584, 586 & 595)
vii.
houses with idols (§582 - 585 & 595)
viii.
houses with tambourines (§590 & 591)
ix.
men anointed with khaluq (§592)
x.
the funerals of unbelievers (§593)
xi.
the funerals of individuals remaining junub (§593)
xii.
the funerals of those who have been anointed with saffron (§593)
xiii.
animals with bells (§512, 585 - 587, 596 & 597)
xiv.
those people who have severed ties from the community (§594).
There are a number of important points raised by these hadith.
Firstly, in his article on touching the penis in Islamic law, Brandon Wheeler
emphasises the point that to many of the jurists simply touching the penis did
not necessitate wudü’, nor was wudu’ necessary, except before
ritual actions.[DII]
The idea behind this is that ritual purity is only obligatory before ritual
actions, such as the salat, are actually performed. Reinhart has also
shown that, tahara (ritual purity) is a negative concept; someone who is
in a state of, tahara is someone that does not have to perform an
ablution. In theory, ablutions are not necessary to perform the salat if
the individual is already in , tahara.[DIII]
The hadith cast Islamic notions of ritual impurity in a
different light, for not only is someone made impure by coming into contact with
a polluting substance, but the substance can also affect the ritual purity of
an entire dwelling.[DIV]
This is at odds with the standard understanding of ritual impurity, as
discussed by scholars such as Katz and Reinhart. For example, the consequences
of pollution by urine would not be met until a ritual action was performed;
these hadïth say otherwise, since the individual (as well as any guests
and family members) are gravely affected prior to the performance of any ritual
action. Being in a state of junub, for example, does not only mean that
failure to perform the ghusl before a ritual makes that action invalid,
it also prevents the individual from obtaining merit for any righteous deeds
performed from the moment of pollution.
Whilst the absence of angels is usually associated with impure
bodily substances, such as urine, semen, menstrual blood etc., animals and
other objects (e.g. idols and tambourines) and certain actions (such as being
naked) are quasi-polluting, as they have consequences for the individuals
concerned equal to the angels’ reactions to ritual impurity. Although in these
cases, the removal of the offending item or the cessation of the action will
allow the angels to return without the performance of any ritual cleansing;
i.e. if an individual is naked, he is not ritually impure, but needs to be
covered before the angels will return; but if an individual has had sexual
intercourse, then ritual purification is required.
Some of these ‘prohibitions’ are quite easily understood: for
example, the ritual impurity of dogs in Islam has often been seen to be a shibboleth
to their favour in Zoroastrian culture;[DV] the ownership of idols is
clearly prohibited as shirk, and so on.[DVI] The ban against playing
tambourines is more obscure, but the prohibition of dancing and tambourines was
debated in Islamicjurisprudence.[DVII] Whilst saffron plays an
important role in Islamic society and is not normally considered to be
‘impure’, Jamsheed Choksy notes that: ‘.[the use of saffron-dyed shrouds] was
intended to prevent a Muslim’s corpse from being confused with that of a nonMuslim
(Zoroastrians, Christians and Jews in particular were required by Islamic
governments to wear a yellow coloured cloth during medieval and premodern times
to distinguish them from the Muslim socio-political majority)...’[DVIII]
The statement that angels do not accompany people travelling with animals with
bells attached to them seems a little strange, especially as none of the hadith
provide much context. Take §512 as an example: ‘God has angels, which descend
every night to experience the weariness of a cavalry horse, except a riding
animal which has a bell around its neck.’ The ‘prohibition’, however, has quite
a simple origin that had practical implications for the nascent Muslim
community. Edward Lane includes a translation of §585 in his lexicon, with the
comment: ‘...the reason is said to be, because it guides others to them; for
Mohammad liked not to let the enemy know of his approach until he came upon
them suddenly.’[DIX]
Thus far, angels have been seen to react negatively to certain
circumstances and objects, and will remain absent until the offending item has
been removed. At first sight, this may appear to be simply a device to correct
and regulate human behaviour; however, there is an important ethical aspect
that needs to be considered. Brandon Wheeler discusses aspects of purity in
Eden, concluding that: ‘Urination, defecation, bleeding, and other natural
bodily functions require wudü’ because Adam’s and Eve’s bodies did not
produce impure substances in the Garden of Eden.’[DX] It was only after their
expulsion from the Garden that impurity became a concern. By extension, the
divine world, of which the Garden was a part, does not come into contact with
impurities. This explains the behaviour of the angels in the human world, if
angels are unable to come into contact with pollutants. Similar ideas can be
found in Jewish texts, such as Jubilees, in which Adam and Eve are
created outside of paradise; Martha Himmelfarb comments that: ‘One reason that
Jubilees delays Adam and Eve’s entrance into the Garden is its discomfort with
the idea of sexual relations in the Garden, which.. .it understands as a holy
place, equivalent to the sanctuary.’[DXI] The behaviour of the
angels in al-Haba’ik can be understood in this sense: angels cannot
morally and physically come into the presence of certain actions and substances
because of their innate nature.
The angels are not, however, just used to discourage certain
behaviour by their absence, the angels are also said to be affected by
individuals’ actions in other ways. There are some hadith that describe
actions as hurting or embarrassing angels. The majority of these hadlth
in al-Haba’ik are concerned with ritual prayer. Fiddling with stones,
placing sandals on the ground, spitting and resting on the qibla are all
addressed.[DXII]
There is no consensus on how these misdemeanours affect the angels; for
example, regarding fiddling with stones during the ritual prayer, §359 states
that: ‘Fiddling with stones in the mosque [causes] pain to an angel.’ And §361:
‘Do not fiddle with stones during the ritual prayers, for that [habit] is from
the devil.’ These two hadlth clearly indicate that those praying should
concentrate on their actions, albeit expressed in different ways.
The hadlth discussed so far have looked at events and
substances that cause a reaction from the angels. However, generally, the
discouragement of certain actions is usually done in less explicit ways. The
story of Harut and Marut is a good example of a narrative that is used
to warn of the consequences of certain behaviour, particularly drinking
alcohol. It is only after the angels have become drunk that they worship
Zuhara’s idols, fornicate with her and commit murder. Whilst the Qur’an focuses
on the two angels and their introduction of magic,[DXIII] the stories of Harut and
Marut are more concerned with human propensity to sin and the dangers of
alcohol. Their story is used as an example of how not to behave, as Annemarie
Schimmel writes: ‘The traditional Sufi leaders recognised seven gates to hell:
pride, cupidity, lust, anger, envy, avarice, and hatred, and the story of the
two fallen angels, Harut and Marut, as told in the Koran (Sura 2:96f.), could
well illustrate the danger of followings one’s own sexual desires.’[DXIV]
The two angels are not inherently ‘evil’ (as Jacques Waardenburg seems to
suggest),[DXV]
they simply fall foul to the problems and difficulties of human life.
The consequences of ritual impurity have often been viewed as less
important in Islam than in other religions (especially Zoroastrianism and
Judaism). This notion is based primarily on the fact that impurities, or more
correctly, substances that cause pollution, do not cause a person to be
immediately impure. The Islamic jurists also stress the fact that impurity is
confined to the impure individual and that the pollution is not transferable.
These hadïth, however, paint a rather different picture. Although
impurity is still not transferred by contact with the polluted, anyone who
comes into contact with the polluted individual does still suffer,
albeit technically remaining clean.[DXVI] Pollution and polluting
substances such as urine and excrement, therefore, do have a significant effect
on others. The effect is manifested in the alienation of the angel that records
the good actions of an individual: essentially, when an individual comes into
contact with polluting substances or individuals, any good action that is
performed cannot be recorded. The deepest effect, however, is on the polluted
individual. Anyone who does not cover himself or herself, leaves urine to
stagnate, or does not perform the ghusl after intercourse cannot perform
any good actions. Whilst the individual is not legally impure until he
or she performs a ritual action that requires ablutions (such as the salat),
the individual remains eschatologically disadvantaged, as the state of
pollution has clear consequences in the life to come.
There is also a clear purpose to these hadïth; they attempt
to dissuade individuals from remaining in a state of ritual purity, as it not
only affects their own judgement, but the judgement of those that come into
contact with them. The notion of forbidding the wrong is well known in
Islam, but in these circumstances there is not necessarily any direct wrong. It
is not illegal to be ritually unclean until the performance of the salat
or other rites, but these hadlth imply that ritual impurity is morally
or ethically wrong, or, at the very least, has negative consequences,
encouraging the individual to avoid them.
If the angels are used to discourage certain types of negative
behaviour, they are also used to encourage positive actions performed by a
human. For example, the angel of good deeds writes down righteous deeds more
often and the angel of misdeeds allows time for repentance.[DXVII] There are a number of
other specific actions that generate a positive response from the angels,
either the individual’s scribes or other angels. The angels bless: pious young
men (§604); those who wear turbans on Friday (§621 & 628); those that seek
knowledge (§622 - 623) ; those who say ‘the Lord of the Two Worlds’ after
someone sneezes (§634 & 635); those who perform the fast in Ramadan (§665
& 718); those who remember God (§666); those who put on a sword for the jihad
(§672); those who make their way to Mecca for the hajj on foot (§676);
those who pray for the deceased (§712); those who attend the Friday prayers and
hear the sermon (§719 - 722 & 728); and those who circumambulate the Kacba
(§671). The role of the angels is also to encourage certain positive actions
through praise, support or blessing.
On more specific issues there are a number of hadlth that
encourage Muslims to recite the Qur’an in its entirety or on set occasions.[DXVIII]
The recitation of the Qur’an was an important part of the ritual of the early
Muslim community and there are numerous hadlth describing the merits of
the Qur’an fada’il al-Qur ’an).[DXIX] The reading and
recitation of the Qur’an is important as it is the word of God, and as
Frederick Denny comments: ‘Reciting the Qur’an is akin to a sacramental act in
that divine power and presence are brought near.’ [DXX] This divine presence is
made particularly manifest in al-Haba’ik with the presence of the
angels, who are seen to aid the believers in their recitation or memorisation
of the Qur’an, e.g. §708: ‘The house in which the Qur’an is recited comes into
the view of the people of heaven, just as the stars come into the view of the
people of earth.’[DXXI]
This hadlth and others like it attempt to show a reward for reciting the
Qur’an, but whilst this just refers to the recitation of the Qur’an in the
home, §713 states that: ‘If the servant finishes the Qur’an, sixty thousand
angels pray for him...’ If there is intention to memorise the Qur’an and an
individual dies before being able to do so, §696 says that: ‘...an angel comes
to him, and teaches it to him in his grave, and so he meets God, Most High, and
he knows it by heart.’ An angel is also responsible for ‘correcting’ any
misreading that a Qur’anic reciter may make (§462 - 495), showing that the
intention of reciting the Qur’an is more important than necessarily achieving a
perfect vocalisation of the text. There are also a number of hadïth that
refer to specific verses and suras of the Qur’an being particularly
associated with angels, e.g. §699: ‘The [Sura of the] Cow is the hump of the
Qur’an, and its climax. He sent down eighty angels with every verse.’[DXXII]
All these hadïth help to encourage Muslims to read and recite the
Qur’an, by highlighting the benefits of doing so and the angels act as the
mediators of these blessings.
Just as Qur’anic recitation and knowledge of the Qur’an are an
important part of Islamic spirituality, the performance of the ritual prayers
plays a central role. The prayers act as a ‘.. .bridge between the human being
and God. In their essential form, the canonical prayers in Islam are an
affirmation, as indeed all faith is, of God’s mercy and majesty.’ [DXXIII]
It has already been seen that the angels are used in Al- Haba ’ik fï akhbar
al-mala ’ik as a template for the pattern and form of earthly ritual and
that individuals need to be ritually clean before performing the prayers. The
angels are also seen in this collection to bless and support Muslims in the salat.
In Al-Haba’ik, the majority of the hadith on this subject are
positive, showing angelic support or praise for reciting the Qur’an,[DXXIV]
although §695 does say that: ‘.if he does not finish [the ritual prayers], the
two [scribes] hit him on his face.’ The main manifestation of this support is
the presence of angels with Muslims as they pray:
‘When a man stands up to perform the prayers in the desert of the
Earth, he performs the prayers with two angels behind him. If he is called to
prayer, and stands up to perform the prayers, angels like the
mountains are behind him.’[DXXV]
The angels are also said to continue praying for an individual who
has performed the ritual prayers,[DXXVI] and to say ‘Amen’.[DXXVII]
One hadith also states that the angels say ‘O God forgive him! O God,
have mercy upon him’ for ‘as long as [he] is in his place of prayer;[DXXVIII]
encouraging Muslims to spend more time at prayer. The hadith also praise
other supererogatory acts of devotion and piety, including: blessing the
Prophet;[DXXIX]
[DXXX]
saying a prayer whilst passing the Yemeni corner of the Kacba
(§458 - 460); saying ‘The Most Merciful of those that are Merciful’ (§466); and
praying for the dead (§467 - 470). The idea behind all of these hadith
is not simply to encourage adherence to the prescribed regulations of ritual
law (i.e. the performance of the ritual prayers), but to add to the religious
and spiritual development of the individual. Above all, these actions play a
key role in the daily remembrance of God (dhikr): ‘As long as man is
occupied with the remembrance (dhikr) of God, he is free from worldly
concerns, and thus there is little chance for Satanic insinuation and
temptation (waswas).''r
544
545
546
Angels, therefore, play an important role in the
encouragement and support of the community to perform both obligatory and
supererogatory prayers and worship. The angels pray and worship with humans on
earth, which creates harmony between divine and human devotions. Angels
encourage certain types of behaviour by stating that if humans behave in a certain way, the angels will pray for
them. Other hadith state that good actions are given more weight in the
individual’s book. All these indicate that certain actions give
individuals a sense of baraka.
The notion of commanding right and forbidding wrong is an
important and well- known concept in Islam, and the hadith included in
al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ikfi akhbar al-mala ’ik go to some lengths to
describe what behaviour should be encouraged and discouraged. The performance
of ritual and the role of angels as the template or archetype for human ritual
is an obvious example of commanding right. The visions of the heavenly
world seek to authenticate the proper modes of ritual worship. The hadith
establish the sanctity of the Kacba as God’s house, the
necessity to constantly worship God and specific rituals associated with the
pilgrimage.
If the Kacba is the House of God, then
Muslims need to understand how they should approach it. When approaching God,
it is necessary that the individual is in a state of, tahara and a
number of different ‘events’ require an individual to cleanse himself or
herself in preparation for encountering the divine. The rules that govern this
approach to God are also applicable to the angels; the angels cannot come into
contact with certain substances and states. The concept of, tahara has
traditionally been seen as only important for the performance of the ritual
prayers, but the hadith in al-Habaik clearly show that
individuals are affected negatively before this. Whether or not being in a
state of ritual impurity is ‘wrong’ (technically it is not until tahara
is obligatory), the hadith clearly imply that it could be equated with a
‘wrong’. The hadith do not ‘forbid’ these actions or states, but they do
firmly discourage them.
Just as angels are used to discourage particular actions, they are
also used to encourage others. All of the actions that the angels encourage are
those that focus the individual on God: recitation of the Qur’an, the
performance of the salat, listening to the Friday sermon, saying
particular invocations etc. The performance of these actions generates
blessings and prayers from the angels, which have clear benefits for the
individual in his or her individual eschatological future.
3.3
The Purpose and Function of Al-Habâ’ik
fîahkbâr al-mala’ik
The main focus of this chapter is the concept of time (or more
specifically the notion of temporality) in the collection, in an attempt to
understand the function of the work. Jalal al-Dm al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik f
akhbar al-mala’ik is quite different to other eschatological works of
mediaeval Islam and the reason why needs to be addressed.
The first section of this chapter has looked at the roles of the
angels in the lives of every human and the second at their roles in Islamic
ritual. The underlying theme is that the collection is concerned with everyday
life. The work could be called eschatological in the sense that it is
concerned with the final judgement, but it is not eschatological in the
normal understanding. In Biblical Studies, Christopher Rowland has argued that
eschatology is not simply concerned with the future, but can reflect contemporary
events.[DXXXI]
However, even in Rowland’s understanding of eschatology, the eschatology of the
present still remains eschatological. Willem Bijlefeld, who applies the
notion of eschatology in Biblical Studies to an Islamic context, comments that:
‘Most scholars in this field reject this narrow interpretation of the term and
see it as applicable to statements regarding the world to come and the last
day(s) as well as to pronouncements regarding decisive turning points at a
future date with the ongoing history of this world.’[DXXXII] Even with a modified
understanding of eschatology, Al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik still remains quite
distinct and cannot really be considered to be eschatological, despite
being concerned with the divine world.
What is important to consider is the fact that simply describing
the divine world or divine creatures does not necessarily mean that a text is
eschatological or apocalyptic.
This compilation is primarily focused on what angels are doing now,
looking at what could be called the angelic present. This shifts the
temporality of the compilation from an eschatological future to a contemporary
reality. The work is not interested in the angelic future; there are no
descriptions of the eschaton or the Final Day and even the post-mortem
world of Munkar and Nakir, heaven and hell etc. are limited to only a
few hadlth. Similarly, the work is not concerned with the angelic
past, and any references to the past, such as the creation of Adam, are
cited because of their relevance to what angels do now.
What does this mean for the function of the work? Al-Suyuti seems
to be aware of the importance of angels in human action and the work attempts
to understand the angelic world and its relation to the human realm. The
interaction between humans and angels occurs in a number of different ways, but
is seen most clearly in the use of angels in ritual. The angels are both
physically and contemporaneously present with the Muslim community as
they perform ritual actions; the angels pray at the same time, the angels
worship with individuals and so on. The collection also discusses how humans
should behave given this continual contact with the angelic world. The angels
react to certain types of human behaviour, both positively and negatively, and
humans need to know about these, as they have important ramifications for an
individual’s future judgement.
It is misleading to suggest that Al-Haba’ik fl akhbar
al-mala’ik is not at all concerned with the eschatological future, as much
of the information provided in the hadïth is related to an individual’s eschatological
future. [DXXXIII]
However, the compilation continually contextualises this eschatological
future in terms of the interaction of humans and angels at this very moment
in time. The tours of hell genre (including the mfraj literature)
tend to use Heaven and Hell generally - warning Muslims of the consequences of
right and wrong actions, and exhorting them to follow the true path.
Vuckovic comments: ‘These stories of reward and punishment play an integral
role in the micraj narratives and in the ongoing dialogue
regarding appropriate morality, behaviour and even political allegiance.’[DXXXIV]
Al-Haba’ik and the micraj literature are both
didactic, in that they attempt to teach and inform their readership, but they
differ in their approaches. The micraj literature tends to be
parabolic; the descriptions of heaven and hell, although a future reality, are
used to describe a potential future to which the reader must respond in
order to avoid the punishments described. Al-Haba’ik is not parabolic;
rather it is descriptive of the current realities of this world,
with the belief that certain actions will affect the individual’s personal
eschatology. Essentially, al-Haba ’ik informs its readers that the
angels are ever present with humans in this life, at this very instant, and
that human actions affect their relationship with the angels.
This chapter has focused on the interaction between humans and
angels, but much of the information provided by the hadïth is
encyclopaedic, explaining who the angels are, what they do, what they are
called, what they look like and so on. This helps individuals to understand the
angels and to identify with them, which is not the aim of the micraj
and eschatological works.
Jalal al-Dîn al-Suyütï’s Al-Haba’ik f akhbar al-mala’ik
draws together hadïth from a number of different areas of Islamic
thought and practice (e.g. purity, folklore, science, law and visions of heaven
and hell), seeking to understand the celestial world and the functions that the
various angels perform. Beyond the specific details of the interactions between
humans and angels, the hadïth make clear that the angels are
intermediaries and that all of their actions are performed on behalf of God and
not independently. This is essential, as the creation of individual, free
angels would threaten Islamic monotheism. This focus on the angelic present
is the main purpose and function of the work, distinguishing it from other hadïth
collections about the divine world and attesting to the originality of
al-Suyütï’s approach to hadïth and their compilation.
Translation and Commentary
186
Al-Suyuti, Al-Haba ’ik fiakhbar al-mala ’ik; Leiden
University, Or. 474 (28) fol. 187v.
188
4.1 A Note on the Supporting Manuscript
University of Leiden, Or. 474(28) fol 187v - 245r (Legatum
Warnerarium)555,
The manuscript is a collection of forty-one texts, of which forty
are attributed to Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti and they are all dated to 987 AH /
1579 - 1580 CE. The manuscript has had a relatively stable history, being
collected by Levinus Warner (1619 - 1665), an ambassador of the Dutch Republic
at the Ottoman court and held by the University of Leiden since 1669.[DXXXV]
[DXXXVI]
This makes this manuscript of Al-Haba’ik fi akhbar al-mala’ik a suitable
basis for an Urtext.[DXXXVII]
The Leiden MS and the modern edition edited by Abu Hajir Muhammad al-SaTd ibn
Basyuril Zaghlul are largely similar, with occasional exclusions, additions and
use of synonyms.[DXXXVIII]
The text is written in a clear nakhsh with a text box
containing thirty-one lines per folio. The text is written in black ink, with
titles and the opening of each hadith (i.e. akhraja) usually
written in coloured ink. Throughout the text hamza is never written over
a kursi but is simply marked by the long vowel, or, very occasionally,
not at all. Alif maqsura is also usually written as a final-ya’.
Most of the lines are justified, but occasionally the titles of some sections
(but not all) are centrally justified with indentations. There are also
occasionally added notes referring to the chapter headings in the margins,
although these are fairly rare and were added later. There are no miniatures or
ornamentations, apart from the occasional addition of text-stops.
Please also note the following:
(Arabic text) Arabic terms are occasionally
added to clarify the translation.
[ ]N Textual variants are shown in square
brackets, with a footnote.
[ ] Square brackets (without a footnote)
indicate phrases that have been
added to clarify the translation.
(?) A dotted line with a question mark is used
to mark places where the text appears to be corrupt.
[Nb] The numbering system of the
DKI Edition has been followed. Any hadith inserted by the Leiden MS have
been marked with a ‘b’; i.e. §2b is inserted by the MS after hadith §2
in the DKI Edition.
Jalal al-Din cAbd
al-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr
al-Suyuti al-Shafici
Al-Habâ’ik fi akhbâr al-mala’ik
(The Arrangement of the Traditions
About Angels)
192
In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful.[DXXXIX]
‘Praise belongs to God, who appointed the Angels to be messengers,
having wings, two, three and four...’[DXL] Blessings and peace upon
our lord Muhammad, and upon the House, the Companions and the Successors. I
have put together this small compilation of traditions about the righteous
angels. I have included in it those traditions and narrations which mention
them, and I have ended it with a useful lesson, which will make those who see
it glad. I have called it: The Arrangement of the Traditions About Angels[DXLI]
By God, the Helper![DXLII]
Trust is in him!
4.2.2 The Necessity of Belief in Angels[DXLIII]
God, Most High, says: ‘The Messenger believes in what was sent
down to him from his Lord, and the believers; each one believes in God and His
angels’[DXLIV]
Al- Bayhaqî[DXLV]
[DXLVI]
says in Shucab al-iman'56 Belief in angels
incorporates [the following] ideas: firstly, faith in their existence;
secondly, [that] their being sent down [by God] is their status [in the
universe] and a proof that they are servants of God. He created them like
humans and jinn, ordered and entrusted [with a task]. They have no authority,
save that over which God gives them authority and it is right that they should
die;[DXLVII]
but God, Most High, has given them an end in distant time; indeed, he will not
receive them until they reach it.[DXLVIII] They are not described
by anything that would, through describing them by it, lead to them being
associated with God, Most High; and so they are not called gods, as the
ancients called them.[DXLIX]
Thirdly: recognition that from amongst [them are messengers, which
he sends to whichever human he wishes, and it is also allowed that he sends
some of them to some;][DL]
from recognition of that, it follows that among them are the Bearers of the
Throne, the Rangers, the Guardians of Paradise, the Guardians of Hell, the
Recorders of Deeds, and the Cloud Drivers; indeed the Qur’an shows all of it or
most of it.
[1] We related[DLI] from Ibn cUmar
[from cUmar][DLII]
from the Prophet (God bless him and grant him salvation), when he was asked
about faith; he said: Believe in God, His angels, His Book and His messengers.[DLIII]
4.2.3
The Origin of the Creation of the
Angels and the Proof that their
Substance is in Contradiction to the
Philosophers[DLIV]
[2] [Muslim][DLV] from cA’isha; she said: The Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him
salvation) said: The angels were created out of light, the Father of the Jinn[DLVI]
was created out of a mixture of fire and Adam was created out of what
characterizes you.
[2b][DLVII]
Abu ‘l-Shaykh in his Kitab al-cazama[DLVIII]
from ibn cAmr; he said: God created the angels out of light.
[3] Abu ‘l-Shaykh in Kitab al-cazama
from cIkrima; he said: The angels were created from the light of the
Glorious One.
[4] Abu ‘l-Shaykh[DLIX] from Zayd ibn Ruman; that
he heard that the angels were created from the spirit of God.
4.2.4 The Great Abundance of the Angels
[God] Most High said: ‘And none knows the hosts of the Lord but He.’[DLX]
[5] al-Bazzar, Abu ‘l-Shaykh and Ibn
Mandah in Kitab al-radd cala al-jahamiyyah from Ibn cAmr;
he said: God created the angels out of light and He brought them to life out of
it. Then He said: ‘Let there be a thousand thousands of you.’ A single angel is
smaller than a fly[DLXI]
[DLXII]
and there is nothing more numerous than the angels.
[6] al-Bayhaqi in Al-Shucab
from Ibn Mascud; he said: There is no place in the heavens without a
face of an angel or its two feet; then he recited: ‘we are the rangers (safuna).'’519
[7] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Sacid
ibn Jubayr; he said: There is no place in heaven without an angel, be it bowed
down in worship or standing upright[DLXIII] until the Hour comes.
[8] Ahmad, al-Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah, and
al-Hakim from Abu Dharr; he said: The Messenger of God[DLXIV] (God bless him and grant
him salvation) said: Heaven groaned - and it could do nothing but groan![DLXV]
There is no place in [heaven] to set four fingers except upon the place of an
angel’s forehead.[DLXVI]
[9] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from cA’isha; she said: the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him
salvation) said: There is nowhere to place a foot in heaven, except upon an
angel prostrating or standing upright - and so the Word [of the Most High]:[DLXVII]
‘None of us is there, but has a known station; we are the rangers’.[DLXVIII]
[10] Ibn Abi Halim, al-Tabarani,
al-Diya’ in al-Mukhtara, and Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Hakim ibn Hizam; he
said: While the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) was
with his friends, he said to them: ‘Did you hear what I heard?’ They said: ‘We
have not heard anything.’ He said: ‘Indeed, I heard the creaking of the
heavens, and it is not to blame for its creaking; there is no place in it [for
a foot],[DLXIX]
except upon an angel bowed down in worship or standing.’
[11] al-Tabarani from Jabir ibn cAbd
Allah; he said: the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation)
said: There is no place for a foot in the Seven Heavens,[DLXX] nor a hand outstretched,
nor a palm of the hand, without an angel standing or an angel prostrating in
[that place]; when it is the Day of Resurrection, they will say [together]:[DLXXI]
‘We worship you! We have only worshipped You in a manner worthy of You. We have
not associated anything with You.’[DLXXII]
[12] al-Dïnawârï in al-Mujalasa
from cAbd al-Rahman ibn Zayd ibn Aslam; he said: There is nothing
more numerous in God’s creation than the angels: [for] none of the sons of Adam
are without two angels,[DLXXIII]
the driver who drives him, and the watcher, who watches him;[DLXXIV]
therefore, there are twice the number of the sons of Adam; then in addition to
that, the heavens [and the earth][DLXXV] are crammed full, and
beyond the heavens are yet still [more]: those around the Throne[DLXXVI]
are more numerous than those which are in the heavens.
[13] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Abu SacTd
from the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation), he said: In
the Garden [there is] a river[DLXXVII]
and Gabriel does not enter it, get out and shake himself, without God creating
an angel from every drop that falls from him.[DLXXVIII]
[14] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Wahb ibn
Munnabih; he said: God has a river in the air, covering the earths, all of
them. Seven times [a day] God sends into that river an angel from heaven, and
it gets into it, immersing the whole of its body, then it washes in it; when it
gets out, rain [falls] from it; rain is from light, and from every raindrop
emanates[DLXXIX]
an angel, which praises God; all of creation praises God.[DLXXX]
[15] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from ai-A\vz<TT;
he said: Moses (peace be upon him) said: ‘Lord, who is with you in heaven?’ He
said: ‘My angels.’ He said: ‘How many are there, Lord?’ He said: ‘Twelve
tribes.’ He said: ‘How many does each tribe add up to?’ He said: ‘The sum of
the dust [of the earth].’
[16] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Kacb;
he said: Nothing trickles from an angel’s eye unless there is an angel flying
from the fear of God.[DLXXXI]
[17] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from al-cAla’
ibn Harun; he said: Every day, Gabriel is immersed in the al-Kawthar,[DLXXXII]
and then he shakes himself; and so every raindrop is created from an angel.
[18] Abu ‘l-Shaykh through the
intermediary of Mujahid from Ibn cAbbas from the Prophet (God bless
him and grant him salvation); he said: There is no creation of God more
numerous than the angels; there is nothing that grows without an angel being
responsible for it.
[19] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from al-Hakam; he
said: I heard that He sends down with the rain [such and such] [DLXXXIII]
from the angels, more numerous than the sons of Adam and the sons of Iblis.
[The angels] record every raindrop, where it falls and who is sustained by that
plant.
[20] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Wahb; he said:
The Seven Heavens are filled with angels; if you measured a hair,[DLXXXIV]
you would not be able to compare it with something you had already measured;[DLXXXV]
amongst them one is standing still, one prostrated and one worshipping,
terrified and shaking their wings in fear[DLXXXVI] of God. Not even the
blink of an eye disobeys him. The distance between the back and the head of one
of the Bearers of the Throne is a journey of a hundred years.
[20b][DLXXXVII]
Ibn Abi Hatim from Kacb; he said: There is no place [the size] of
the eye of a needle[DLXXXVIII]
without an angel being responsible for it, raising knowledge about it up to God
and the angels of heaven; [the angels] are more numerous than the number of
specks of dust and as small.
[21] Ibn al-Mundhir in his Tafsir
from cAbd Allah ibn cAmr; it was attributed to
[Muhammad]; he said: The angels are in ten parts: nine parts are Cherubim, who
glorify God night and day, without rest; and one part is responsible for
everything that is hidden. There is no place in the heavens without a
worshipper or an angel bowing; and the sacred place is around the Throne, and
the Inhabited House[DLXXXIX]
is around the Kacba; if it were to come down, then it would come
down on top of it. Every day seventy thousand angels pray in it;[DXC]
then they do not come back to it.
[22] Ibn al-Mundhir from cAmr
al-Bakali; he said: God, [Most High],[DXCI] divided the angels into
ten parts, nine parts are the Cherubim, and they are the angels who bear the
Throne, and they are also those who worship God night and day, without rest. He
said: The remaining angels are for God’s orders and messages.[DXCII]
[23] Ibn Abi Hatim through the
intermediary of Khabib[DXCIII]
ibn cAbd al-Rahman ibn Salman Abu ‘l-A°Ts from his father; he said:
Humans and jinn are in ten parts, humans form one part and jinn nine parts; the
jinn and the angels are in ten parts, the jinn are one part, the angels nine;
the angels and the Spirit are ten parts, the angels are one part, the Spirit
nine; the Spirit and the Cherubim are ten parts, the Spirit forms one part of
it, the Cherubim are nine parts.[DXCIV]
[24] Abu ‘l-Shaykh, al-Bayhaqi in Shucab
al-iman, al-Khatib and Ibn cAsakir thorough the intermediary of cUbbad
ibn Mansur from cAdi ibn Arta from one of his worthy friends - cUbbad
said: I have forgotten his name - from the Messenger of God (God bless him and
grant him salvation); he said: God has angels which tremble [in fear of Him].[DXCV]
There is no angel from amongst them that does not shed a tear from its eyes,
except an angel found standing, praising God. Angels were prostrating when God
created the heavens and the earth and they did not raise their heads,[DXCVI]
and they will not raise them until the Day of Resurrection; angels were bowing,
and they did not raise their heads, and they will not raise them until the Day
of Resurrection; and those that were posted, they have not left their posts,
and they will not leave them until the Day of Resurrection. Thus, when it is
the Day of Resurrection, it will be made manifest to them by their Lord (may He
be praised and glorified) and they will look at Him, and they will say, ‘Praise
be to You, we have served You just as we should.’
[25] Ibn Mandah in al-Macrifa
and Ibn cAsakir from cAbd al-Rahman ibn al-cÀla’ from Banu Sacada from his father al-cÀla’ ibn Sacd, from someone who submitted on the Day of
Victory[DXCVII]
that the Prophet (God bless him and grant him salvation) said one day at a
social gathering, ‘Did you hear what I heard?’ They said: ‘What have you heard,
Messenger of God?’ He said, ‘I heard the sky groan, and it could do nothing but
groan! There is no place for a foot in it without an angel standing or bowing
down or prostrating in [that place]; then he recited: ‘We are the rangers,[DXCVIII]
We are they that give glory.’[DXCIX]
[26] Ibn Jarir from al-Rabic
ibn Anas concerning His Word: ‘And he taught Adam the names, all of them’[DC]
he said: The names of the angels.
4.2.5 The Four Archangels[DCI] who are in charge of the command of
the World
[27] [Ibn Abi Shayba],[DCII]
Ibn Abi Hatim, Abu ‘l-Shaykh in al-cAzama, al-Bayhaqi in al-Shucab
from Ibn Sabit; he said: Four are in charge of the command of this world:
Gabriel, Michael, the Angel of Death and Isrâfïl.[DCIII] As for Gabriel, he is
responsible for the winds and the army;[DCIV] Michael[DCV]
is responsible for the rain and the plants;[DCVI] the Angel of
Death is responsible for the taking of the souls; and Isrâfïl, he is sent down
to them with the command [of God].
[28] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Ibn Sabit; he
said: ‘In the Umm al-Kitab, everything will be in existence until the
Day of Resurrection, and three of the angels are responsible for preserving
[existence]: Gabriel is responsible for the Book, which he brings down to the
Messengers, and Gabriel is also responsible for the acts of destruction when
God has willed [Gabriel] to annihilate peoples; and he is responsible for
victory in battle.[DCVII]
Michael is responsible for preservation [of life], rain and the plants of the
earth. The Angel of Death is responsible for the taking of the souls. When this
world comes [to an end], they,[will,.cp.mp.ar.el.what. they. .have,
pr.e.s.e.rve.d.. to .the.Umm.al- Kitab.. C?),[DCVIII] and they will find it
to be the same. Ibn Abi Shayba narrated it.[DCIX]
[29] Al-Bayhaqi, al-Tabarani and Abu
’l-Shaykh from Ibn cAbbas; he said: While the
Messenger of God CGod bless him and grant him salvation) was with
Gabriel, who was confiding in him; [DCX] suddenly, the highest
heaven was split open and Gabriel began to become smaller and [an angel][DCXI]
drew close and came nearer to the earth, and there was an angel standing
directly in front of the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him
salvation), he said: ‘Muhammad, your Lord greets you; and He gives you the
choice between becoming an angelic prophet or a human prophet.’[DCXII]
The Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) said: Then
Gabriel beckoned to me with his hand that I should be humble,[DCXIII]
and I knew that he was my guide, so I said: ‘A human prophet.’
Then that angel ascended into heaven, and I said: ‘Gabriel, I have
wanted to ask you about this, but seeing your form[DCXIV] distracted me from my
asking the question. Who is this, Gabriel?’ He said: ‘This is Israfil. On the
day of his creation, God created him with his feet lined up directly in front
of him; he does not look up; between him and the Lord are Seventy Lights; and
from these there is no light close to Him, save it being consumed by fire;
between his hands is the Preserved Tablet;[DCXV]
when God allows anything in heaven or in earth, that tablet ascends,
[descends][DCXVI]
and it hits [Israfil] on the forehead. Then [Israfil] sees and if there
is anything for me to do, he orders me to do it; and if there is anything for
Michael to do, he orders him to do it; and if there is anything for the Angel
of Death to do, he orders him to do it.’
I said: ‘Gabriel, What are you responsible for?’ He said: ‘For the
winds and the army.’ I said: ‘What is Michael responsible for?’ He said: ‘For
the plants and the rain.’ I said: ‘What is the Angel of Death responsible for?’
He said: ‘For the taking of the souls.’ [Muhammad said]: ‘And I do not think
that [Isrâfïl] will descend [to earth] until the coming of the Hour. What you
have seen [in the way of my behaviour] is nothing but fear of the coming of the
Hour.’
[30] Abu ‘l-Shaykh in al-Azama
from Jabir ibn cAbd Allah; he said: the Messenger of God (God bless
him and grant him salvation) said: The creations closest to God are Gabriel,
Michael and Israfïl; the distance between them and God is a journey of fifty
thousand years:[DCXVII]
Gabriel is on his right and Michael on the other, with Israfïl between them.
[31] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Wahb; he said:
These four are angels:[DCXVIII]
Gabriel, Michael, Israfil and the Angel of Death; [they were] the first of the
creations of God, [and they will be] the last whom God will cause to die; [and]
the first of those whom God will bring to life; they are the ones who organize
a command,[DCXIX]
and they are the ones who carry out an order.[DCXX]
[32] [DCXXI] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Khalid ibn Abi cImran; he said:
Gabriel is the agent of God to His messengers, and Michael receives the Book
which is sent up concerning the deeds of the people; and Israfil is in the role
of the gatekeeper.
[33] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from cIkrima
ibn Khalid that a man said: ‘Messenger of God, which angel is the dearest to
God?’ He said: ‘I do not know.’ Gabriel came to him, so he said: ‘Gabriel,
which of the creations is dearest to God?’ He said: ‘I do not know.’ So Gabriel
ascended, then descended and said: ‘Gabriel, Michael, Israfil and the Angel of
Death. As for Gabriel, he is responsible for war and the messengers; as for
Michael, he is responsible every raindrop that falls, every leaf that grows and
every leaf that falls; as for the Angel of Death, he is responsible for the
taking of the soul of every servant on land and sea; and as for Israfil, he is
the intermediary of God between Him and between them.’
[34] al-Tabarani and al-Hakim from Abu
‘l-Malih from his father, that he was performing the two ritual prostrations of
the morning prayers with the Prophet (God bless him and grant him salvation),
and he was praying near him; and the Prophet (God bless him and grant him
salvation) performed two lively prostrations, and I heard him say three times:
‘O God, the Lord of Gabriel, Michael, Israfil and Muhammad, I take refuge in
you from the Fire.’[DCXXII]
[35] Ahmad in al-Zuhd from cA’isha that the Prophet (God bless him and grant him salvation)
fainted while his head was in her lap,[DCXXIII] and she began to
stroke his face and pray for him to be cured. When he came to, he said: ‘No! Do
not ask God! The highest companion is with Gabriel, Michael, Israfil - peace be
upon them.’
4.2.6 Gabriel (peace be upon him)[DCXXIV]
[36] Ibn Jaiïr and Abu ‘l-Shaykh from cAli
ibn Husayn; he said: Gabriel’s name [means] ‘Servant (abd) of God’,
Michael’s name [means] ‘Servant (iibayd)'[DCXXV]
of God’, and Israfil [means] ‘Servant (abd) of the Merciful’; Everything
derives from Il, that is the temple of God[DCXXVI] - may He be praised and
glorified.
[37] Ibn Jarir from Ibn cAbbas;
he said: Gabriel [means] ‘the Servant of God’; Michael [means] ‘the Servant of
God’; every name has Il in it, and this means ‘the Temple of God.’
[38] Ibn Abi Hatim and Abu ‘l-Shaykh
from cAbd al-Aziz ibn cUmayr; he said; Gabriel’s name
amongst the angels is ‘Servant of His Lord’ - may He be praised and glorified.
[39] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Musa ibn Abi cA’isha;
he said; I heard that Gabriel is the Imam of the people of Heaven.
[40] Al-Tabarani from Ibn cAbbas;
he said: the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) said:
Indeed, I tell you that the best of the angels is Gabriel.
[41] Muslim from Ibn Mascud;
he said: the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) saw
Gabriel, in a green[DCXXVII]
robe; he filled the space between Heaven and Earth.
[42] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from cA’isha
that the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) said: I saw
Gabriel descending and he filled the space between East and West, wearing a
silk gown[DCXXVIII]
encrusted with pearls and rubies.[DCXXIX]
[43] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from cA’isha
(God be pleased with her); [DCXXX]
she said: the
Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) said to
Gabriel: ‘I would like to see you in your image.’ He said: ‘You would like
that?!’ He said: ‘Yes.’ He said: ‘Your appointed time is on such and such a
night at Baqic al-Gharqad.’[DCXXXI] So he met him at the
appointed time, and he spread out one of his wings,[DCXXXII] and it blotted out the
horizon until he could not see anything in the sky.
[44] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Ibn Mascud
concerning His Word: ‘Indeed he saw him another time.’[DCXXXIII] He said: The
Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) saw Gabriel hanging in
the air, on his feet were pearls, like raindrops on the grass.
[44b][DCXXXIV]
Al-Tabararil from Ibn cAbbas from Waraqa al-Ansan; he said: I said:
‘Muhammad, how does the creature, [which comes to you],[DCXXXV] come to you?’ - meaning
Gabriel; He said: ‘He comes to me from the sky, his two wings are pearls and
the soles of his feet are green.
[45] Abu ‘l-Shaykh and Ibn Mardawayh
from Anas; he said: The Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him
salvation) said to Gabriel: ‘Do you see your Lord?’ He said: ‘Between me and
Him there are seventy veils[DCXXXVI]
of fire and light, if I were to see the lowest of them, I would be consumed by
fire.’
[46] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Shurayh ibn cAbd
Allah that the Prophet (God bless him and grant him salvation) when he ascended
into Heaven, saw Gabriel in [his] true form,[DCXXXVII] his wings strung with
chrysolites, pearls and rubies; he said: ‘It seemed to me that the space
between his eyes filled the horizon, but I used to see him before that in a
different form and more often I used to see him in the form of Dihya al- Kalbi,[DCXXXVIII]
and sometimes I used to see him just as a man sees his friend through the
bottom of a sieve.[DCXXXIX]
[47] Ahmad, Ibn Abi Hatim and Abu
‘l-Shaykh from Ibn Mascud that the Messenger of God (God bless him
and grant him salvation) only saw Gabriel in his true form twice; as for the
first time, he asked to see his soul, and he saw his soul, and it filled the
horizon; as for the other, it was on the Night Journey ‘by the Lote-Tree.’[DCXL]
[48] Abu ‘l-Shaykh the intermediary of[DCXLI]
cAta’ from Ibn cAbbas from the Prophet (God bless him and
grant him salvation) said: The space between Gabriel’s shoulders is a [journey
of ][DCXLII]
five hundred years for a quick-flying bird.
[49] Abu ‘l-Shaykh through the
intermediary of Ishaq al-Hashimi[DCXLIII] from Ibn cAbbas
from the Prophet (God bless him and grant him salvation); he said: Gabriel has
six hundred wings [adorned] with pearls and he spread them out like peacocks’
feathers.660 [DCXLIV]
[50] Ibn Jaiïr from Hudhayfa, Ibn Jurayj[DCXLV]
and Qatada - the Tradition came from amongst them: Gabriel has two wings, and
he has a belt strung with pearls;[DCXLVI] his front teeth shine
like a bald forehead; his head is platted tightly like small pearls, and the
pearls are like snow; his feet are greenish.
[51] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Wahb ibn
Munnabih that he was asked about the creation of Gabriel; he reported that the
space between his shoulders, from this one to that one, is [a journey][DCXLVII]
of seven hundred years for a bird.
[52] Ibn Sacd and al-Bayhaqi
in al-Dala’il from cAmmar ibn Abi cAmmar that
Hamza ibn cAbd al-Muttalib said: ‘Messenger of God, show me Gabriel
in his true form.’ He said: ‘You are not able to see him.’ He said: ‘Yes, but
show him to me.’ He said: ‘Sit down!’ So he sat down; [then] Gabriel [came down
and][DCXLVIII]
was on a piece of wood in the Kacba. The Prophet (God bless him and
grant him salvation) said: ‘Raise your eyes and look!’ So he raised his eyes
and looked and he saw his feet, like green chrysolite; and he fell down
unconscious.
[53] Ibn al-Mubarak in al-Zuhd
from Ibn Shihab that the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him
salvation) asked Gabriel to show himself to him in his true form. Gabriel said,
‘You will never be able to bear it.’ He said, ‘I would like you to do it.’ So
the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) went to pray on a
moonlit night and Gabriel came to him in his true form. And the Messenger of
God (God bless him and grant him salvation) fainted as soon as he saw him, then
he came round while Gabriel supported him, placing one of his hands upon his
chest and the other between his shoulder blades, and the Messenger of God (God
bless him and grant him salvation) said: ‘I did not think that there could be a
creation like that!’ Gabriel said: ‘Just imagine what it would have been like
if you had seen Israfil! He has twelve wings, of which one is in the East and one
is the West; the Throne is on the nape of his neck, and sometimes, for the
glory of God, he makes himself smaller until he has become like a small sparrow[DCXLIX]
so that only [God’s] glory can carry His Throne.[DCL]
[54] Ibn Mardawayh from Ibn cAbbas
that the Prophet (God bless him and grant him salvation) said: Gabriel came to
me just as a man comes to his friend in a white gown,[DCLI] hemmed with pearls and
precious stones, his head is like a mountain[DCLII] and his hair like small
pearls, and he is the colour of snow,669 [DCLIII] [he has a] bald
forehead [which] is [like] the glistening of the front teeth, and he [wears]
two belts made of strung pearls, and his two wings are green and his feet are
immersed in green, and the form which he takes fills the horizon. [The Prophet]
(God bless him and grant him salvation) said: ‘I wanted to see you in your true
form, Spirit of God.[DCLIV]’
Then he transformed himself and filled the horizon.
[55] Ibn cAsakir in a weak
chain of authority [DCLV]
from cÀ’isha; she said: the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant
him salvation) said: God created Gabriel’s skull as large as the oasis of
al-Ghuta.[DCLVI]
[56] al-Tabararil from Ibn cAbbas;
he said: the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) visited a
man from among the Ansar; when he came near to his home, he heard him
talking in the doorway. After he had sought permission [to enter], he entered,
but he did not see anyone. The Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him
salvation) said to him: ‘I heard someone other than you talking.’ He said:
‘Messenger of God, [I entered, worried by [the sound] of someone talking, which
I sought sanctuary from][DCLVII]
and he came to me. I have never seen a more noble man after you sitting there
and there is no better narrator than him.’ He said: ‘That is
Gabriel. From amongst you there is a man; if one of them swears an
oath by God, then [Gabriel] will fulfil it.’[DCLVIII]
[57] Abu Nucaym in al-Hilya
from cIkrima; he said: Gabriel (peace be upon him) said: ‘If my Lord
sends me to do something, and I then go to it; I find the being, but He has
arrived there before me.’
[58] Al-Tabarani from Maymuna bint Sacd;
she said: I said: ‘Messenger of God, can someone in a state of ritual impurity[DCLIX]
go to sleep?’ He said: I do not like him to go to sleep until he has performed
the ritual ablutions, for I fear that if he dies, then Gabriel will not be with
him.
[59] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Wahb; he said:
The angel closest to God is Gabriel, then Michael. If God singled out a servant
for a very good action that he did; He says so- and-so has done such-and-such a
pious act, My blessings are upon him; then Michael asks Gabriel: ‘What did our
Lord say?’ And he says: ‘So-and-so was singled out for a very good action that
he did, and the blessings of God are upon him.’ Then Michael asks: ‘Which of
the people of heaven can see him?’ They say: ‘What did our Lord say?’ And he
says: ‘So-and-so was singled out for a very good action that he did, and the
blessings of God are upon him.’ And it continues to descend from heaven to
heaven until it reaches the earth. If God singled out a servant for a very bad
action that he did; he says: ‘My servant, so-and-so, has done such-and-such a
disobedient act, my curse is upon him.’ Then Michael asks Gabriel: ‘What did
our Lord say?’
And he says: ‘So-and-so was singled out for a very disobedient action
that he did, and the curse of God is upon him.’ And it continues to descend
from heaven to heaven until it reaches the earth.[DCLX]
[60] al-Saburil in al-Mi’atayn
and al-Bayhaqi in Shucab al-iman from Jabir ibn cAbd
Allah, from the Prophet (God bless him and grant him salvation); he said:
Gabriel is responsible for the human desires. If a believer prays, then [God][DCLXI]
says: ‘Gabriel withhold from my servant what he wants,[DCLXII] for I love him and I
love his voice.’ If a non-believer prays, God says: ‘Gabriel, give my servant
what he wants, for I hate him and I hate his voice.’
[61] al-Bayhaqi from Thabit, he said; we
heard that God, Most High, made Gabriel (peace be upon him) responsible for the
needs of the people. When a believer asks for something, He says: ‘Gabriel, withhold
from my servant what he wants, for I love his prayer.’ If a non-believer asks
for something, God says: ‘Gabriel, give my servant what he wants, for I hate
his prayer.’ Al-Bayhaqi said this is how it was given [to me] (mahfuz).
[62] Ibn Abi Shayba through the
intermediary of Thabit from cAbd Allah ibn cUmar;[DCLXIII]
he said: Gabriel is responsible for needs; if a believer asks his Lord for
something, He says: ‘Hold back! Hold back out of love for his prayer, so that
[his prayer] may increase.’ If an unbeliever asks for something, He says: ‘Give
it [to him]! Give it [to him] out of hatred for his prayer.’
[63] al-Hakîm al-Tirmidhi from Abu
Dharr; he said; When God says: ‘Gabriel, take away from the believing heart of
my servant the sweetness which I used to find. He said: ‘The faithful servant
has become a confused disciple, whose soul used to be protected. I have sent
him misfortune, the like of which had never been sent to him before.’ When God
saw him in that state, he said: ‘Gabriel, go back to the heart of my servant. I
did not take it away from him. Indeed, I have put him to the test, and I find
him truthful, and I will help him increasingly from my heart.
[64] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from cAmr
ibn Murra; he said: Gabriel is on the South Wind.
[65] Ibn cAsakir in his Ta’rïkh
from cAli; he said: the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant
him salvation) said: I did not choose to see Gabriel (peace be upon him)
perched on the curtains of the Kacba, as he said: ‘O the one who
finds, O illustrious one; you never cease from blessing me; yet you bestow it
upon me, without having seen Him.’
[66] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from cAbd
al-Aziz ibn Abi Ruwad; he said: God looked at Gabriel and Michael, and the two
of them were crying; so God said: ‘What has made you cry? You know that I have
not committed an outrage.’ The two said: ‘Lord, we do not feel safe from your
devising.’ And He said this, and they were affected by it: ‘The only ones who
feel safe from my devising are all the losers.’[DCLXIV]
[67] Imam Ahmad in al-Zuhd from
Abu cImran al-Jawni that he heard that Gabriel came to the Prophet
(God bless him and grant him salvation) crying and the Messenger of God (God
bless him and grant him salvation) said to him: ‘What is making you cry?’ He
said: ‘Why should the mouth of God not make me cry? I did not dry my eyes when God
created the Fire; for fear that I might disobey him, he threw me into it.’
[68] [DCLXV] al-Bayhaqi in Shucab al-îmân, Abu Muhammad cAbd
Allah ibn Yusuf al- Isfahani[DCLXVI]
informed us, Abu Bakr Ahmad ibn SacTd ibn Fardakh al-Akhmimi
informed me in Mecca; al-Walid ibn Hamad told us; [Abu Muhammad cAbd
Allah ibn al-Fadl ibn cÀsim ibn cUmar ibn Qatada ibn
al-Nucman al-Ansari; Abu ‘l-Fadl narrated it from his father cÀsim
from his father cUmar from Qatada ibn al- Nucman; he
said: The Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) said:][DCLXVII]
‘God sent Gabriel (peace be upon him) down in the most beautiful form of
what had come to me in form, and he said: ‘God salutes you, Muhammad, and He
says to you: “I revealed to the world, in such a way that [the world] should be
bitter, troubling, oppressive and that it should act harshly towards my close
associates, so that they want to meet me; and that [the world] should be [made
comfortable, agreeable, and good for my enemies, so that they are loathe to
meet me].[DCLXVIII]
Indeed, I created it as a prison for my friends and a paradise for my enemies.’
Al-Bayhaqi said: We only write it with this isnad and there are unknown[DCLXIX]
things, in. it(?).[DCLXX]
[69] Ibn cAsakir from Wathila
ibn al-Asqac; he said: the Prophet (God bless him and grant him
salvation) came to a curly-haired, [DCLXXI] cross-eyed,
short-necked, feet- deformed, small-eared,[DCLXXII] left-handed, emaciated
Yemeni who walked with his legs apart, he said: ‘Messenger of God, explain to
me what God has given me.’ When he told him, he said: ‘I swear to God that I
will not do any more religious duties.’ He said: ‘Why [do] that?’ He said:
‘Because he created me, and created me deformed.’ Then he ran away. So Gabriel
came to [Muhammad] and said: ‘Muhammad, where is the one who rebuked [God]? He
rebuked a beautiful Lord, so He has castigated him. [God] said: ‘Say to him:
Truly, [Messenger of God],[DCLXXIII]
he should be happy that God will send him in the image of Gabriel on the Day of
Resurrection.’ So he said [this] to him; and he said: ‘Yes, Messenger of God, I
am rebuking God for not making my body sufficiently strong to do any of the
duties that please God except what the deeds that I have done for him.’ On this
[hadith] al-cAla ibn Kathir said: al-Bukhari did not accept
this hadith69
[70]
[DCLXXIV] [DCLXXV] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Sa'T'd ibn Jubayr concerning His Word: ‘Save
only to such a messenger as He is well-pleased with: then He despatches before
him and behind him watchers.’[DCLXXVI]
He said: He only sends down Gabriel for the Revelation, and with him are four
angelic hufaza.
[71] al-Tabarani in a chain of trusted
authorities (bi-‘snad rijalihi thiqat)[DCLXXVII] from Umm Salama that
the Prophet (God bless him and grant him salvation) said: In Heaven there are
two angels; one of the two is responsible for misery and the other is
responsible for tenderness; the appropriate ones responsible are Gabriel and
Michael. And there are two Prophets, one of the two is responsible for
tenderness and the other is responsible for misery, the appropriate ones are responsible,
[and he said that these are Abraham and Noah. I have two companions; one of the
two is responsible for tenderness and the other for misery.][DCLXXVIII]
The appropriate one is responsible and he mentioned Abu Bakr and cUmar.[DCLXXIX]
[72] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Ibn Mascud;
he said: Gabriel came to the Prophet (God bless him and grant him salvation)
and he said: ‘Gabriel, I think that I have good standing with you.’ He said:
‘Of course - by the One who sent you in Truth! I have not been sent to a
prophet whom I have loved more than you.’ He said: ‘I would like you to tell me
about my standing with you here.’ He said: ‘I am able to do that.’ He said: ‘By
the One who sent you in truth! I was drawn unprecendetly close to my Lord
[regarding my standing], and I have never approached the like of him before.
And He had decreed that I could approach Him. It was a journey of five hundred
years. The closest creation of God (may he be praised and glorified) is
Israfil. And [Israfil] decreed that [Muhammad] could approach [Israfil]; the distance,
.[b.etwe.e.n. .Is.râfïl. .and GodC?).][DCLXXX] is a journey of seventy
years; among them are seventy lights and the lowest light blinds the eyes, so
how could I have come to know what is beyond that? But it appeared to me on the
Tablet;[DCLXXXI]
then he called us and then sent us away.
[73] Ahmad in al-Zuhd from
Rabbah; he said: I narrated that the Prophet (God bless him and grant him
salvation) said to Gabriel: ‘You only come to me looking like you are
grieving.’[DCLXXXII]
He said: ‘I have not laughed since the Fire was created.’[DCLXXXIII]
[74] al-Firyabi[DCLXXXIV] and Ibn Mardawayh
from Anas; he said: the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him
salvation) said: ‘For the trumpet[DCLXXXV] shall be blown and
whosoever is in the heavens and whosoever is in the earth shall swoon, save
whom God wills.’701 702 [DCLXXXVI]
They said: ‘Messenger of God, who are these whom God, may he be praised and
glorified, will exclude?’ He said: ‘Gabriel, Michael, the Angel of Death,
Israfil and the Bearers of the Throne. For when God grasps the souls of the
created beings, he will say to the Angel of Death: ‘Who remains?’ And he will
say: ‘I praise you, my Lord, and I extol the One of Glory and Generosity.
Gabriel, Michael, Israfil and the Angel of Death remain.’ And he will say:
‘Take the soul of Israfil!’ So he will take the soul of Israfil. And God will
say to the Angel of Death: ‘Who remains?’ And he will say: ‘I praise you and I
bless my Lord and extol the One of Glory and Generosity. Gabriel, Michael and
the Angel of Death remain.’ And He will say: ‘Take the soul of Michael!’ So he
will take the soul of Michael, and he will fall down like a great mountain. And
He will say: ‘Angel of Death, who remains?’ He will say: ‘Gabriel [and][DCLXXXVII]
the Angel of Death.’ And He will say: ‘Die, Angel of Death!’ and he will die.
Then He will say: ‘Gabriel, who remains?’ And he will say: ‘Your eternal and
everlasting face remains.’ And Gabriel is about to die and pass away. He said:
it was necessary for him to die, and he fell down prostrating, his wings
flapping.
He said; the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him
salvation) said that he preferred his creation over the creation of Michael as
a great mountain.
[75] Ibn Mardawayh and al-Bayhaqî in al-Bacth
from a hadith attributed to Anas concerning His Word: ‘For the trumpet
shall be blown...’[DCLXXXVIII]
(and the rest of the verse); he said: From these God, may He be praised and
glorified, will exclude three: Gabriel, Michael and the Angel of Death. God,
the most knowledgeable, will say: ‘Angel of Death, who remains?’ And he will
say: ‘Your eternal and compassionate face remains and your servant Gabriel, and
Michael and the Angel of Death.’ He will say: ‘Take the soul of Michael.’ Then
God, the most knowledgeable, will say: ‘Angel of Death, who remains?’ And he
will say: ‘Your eternal face remains and your servant Gabriel and the Angel of
Death.’ He will say: ‘Take the soul of Gabriel.’ Then He, the most
knowledgeable, will say: ‘Angel of Death, who remains?’ And he will say: ‘Your
eternal and generous face remains and your servant the Angel of Death.’ When he
is about to die, he will say: ‘Die!’ Then he will proclaim: ‘I began the
creation then I take it back.’
[76] Ibn Abi Hâtim from cAtâ’
ibn al-Sâ’ib; he said: The first among those who are held to account is Gabriel
because he is the faith of God to His messengers.
[77] Ibn Jarir from Hudhayfa; he said:
The one responsible for the Scales[DCLXXXIX] on the Day of
Resurrection is Gabriel (peace be upon him).
4.2.7 Michael (Peace be upon him)
[78] Ibn al-Mundhir[DCXC] from cIkrima;
he said: Gabriel’s name [means] Servant (abd) of God, Michael’s name
[means] Servant (ubayd) of God.[DCXCI]
[79] Ahmad and Abu ’l-Shaykh from Anas
that the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) said to
Gabriel: ‘Why have I never seen Michael laughing?’[DCXCII] He said: ‘Michael has
not laughed since the Fire was created.’
[80] al-Hakim al-Tirmidhi in Nawadir
al-usul from Zayd ibn Rafic; he said: Gabriel and Michael came
to the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) while he was
cleaning his teeth and the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him
salvation) gave Gabriel the toothpick.[DCXCIII] He said: Gabriel said,
‘God is Great!’ Al-Hakim said: that is, [Muhammad] gave [it] to Michael and
then [Gabriel] said: ‘God is Great!’
[81] al-Hakim from Abu Sa^id; he said;
the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) said: My two
ministers from the heavenly world are Gabriel and Michael and from the earthly
world are Abu Bakr and cUmar[DCXCIV]
[82] al-Bazzar, al-Tabarariî, and Abu Nucaym
in al-Hilya from Ibn cAbbas; he said: the Messenger of God
(God bless him and grant him salvation) said: God supports me with four
ministers: the two from the heavenly world are Gabriel and Michael, the two
from earthly word are Abu Bakr and cUmar.
[83] al-Daylami[DCXCV] through the intermediary
of al-Saiï ibn cAbd Allah al-Sulami from cAbd al-Hamid
ibn Kanana from Abu Umama from cAli ibn Abi Talib; ascribing it to
the Prophet, [he said]: The muezzin of the heavenly host is Gabriel and Michael
is their Imam,[DCXCVI]
who leads them in the prayers in the Inhabited House. The angels of the
heavens congregate and circumambulate the Inhabited House and they
perform the ritual prayers and pray for forgiveness. God gives their reward,
their forgiveness and their praise of God to the community of Muhammad (God
bless him and grant him salvation).
[84] Ibn al-Najjar said in his Ta’rtkh:
I swear by God that Abu cAbd Allah al-Adib related to me an oral
tradition in Isfahan from Abu Tahir ibn Abi Nasr al-Tajir that cAbd
al-Rahman ibn Muhammad ibn Ishaq ibn Mandah related to him; he said: I swear by
God that Abu cAbd Allah al-Husayn ibn Muhammad ibn al-Husayn al-
Dinawari[DCXCVII]
informed him; he said: I swear by God that Abu ‘l-Qasim cAbd Allah
ibn Ibrahim al-Jurjâriî informed him; he said: Abu ‘l-Hassan Muhammad ibn cAli
al- Husayn ibn al-Qasim ibn al-Hassan ibn Zayd ibn cAli ibn
al-Husayn ibn cAli ibn Abi Talib informed him; he said: I swear by
God that Ahmad ibn cAbd Allah al-Shucabi al-Baghdadi told
him; he said: I swear by God that al-Hassan ibn cAli al-cAskari
told him; he said: I swear by God that Abu cAli ibn Muhammad told
me; he said: I swear by God that Muhammad ibn cAli ibn Musa [told
me; he said: I swear by God that Abu cAli ibn Musa][DCXCVIII]
[told me; he said: I swear by God that Abu Musa ibn Jafar][DCXCIX] told me; he
said: I swear by God that Jafar ibn Muhammad told me; he said: I swear by God
that Abu Muhammad ibn cAli told me; he said: I swear that Abu cAli
ibn al- Husayn [told me; he said: I swear by God that Abu cAli ibn
Abi Talib][DCC]
told me; he said: I swear by God that Muhammad, the Messenger of God (God bless
him and grant him salvation) [told me; he said: I swear by God that Gabriel][DCCI]
told me; he said: I swear by God that Michael told me; he said: I swear by God
that Israfil told me from the Preserved Tablet that God the Blest and the Most
High said: The winedrinker is like the idolater.
The hafiz Ibn Hajar said in his Lisan al-mizan: This
matn with this aforementioned isnad is [attributed] to cAli
ibn Musa; Abu Nucaym excludes him from his isnad in al-Hilya.
Whoever does not know its status [see] al-Hasan al- cAskari as well,
but he only mentions Gabriel; Muhammad said: ‘The wine addict is like the
idolater.’[DCCII]
Ibn Hibban attributed the matn in his Sahih to a hadlth of
Ibn cAbbas.
4.2.8 Israfïl (peace be upon him)
[85] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Wahb; he said:
God, Most High, created the Trumpet[DCCIII] out of white pearls
with the purity of glass; then he said to the Throne: ‘Take the trumpet and
keep hold of it.’ Then He said: ‘Be!’ And Israfil came into being, and He
ordered him to take the Trumpet, so he took it and it had a hole for the number
of every created soul (rüh) and spirit (nafs) that is born; two
souls do not go through one hole. In the middle of the Trumpet there is an
aperture like the roundness of the Heaven and the Earth. And Israfil placed his
mouth over that aperture. Then the Lord said to him: ‘I have made you
responsible for the Trumpet, and yours is the blowing and the shouting.’[DCCIV]
And Israfil came before the Throne, placed his right foot under the Throne and
his left foot; he has not looked away since God created him, so that he can
wait for what He commands him [to do].
[86] al-Tirmidhi and declared it to be
fair (hasan), al-Hakim and al-Bayhaqi in al- Bacth
from Abu SaTd al-Khudri; he said: the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant
him salvation) said: ‘How can I be happy when the possessor of the trumpet has
already put the mouthpiece to his mouth, tilted his head and inclined his ear?
He will wait until he is commanded to blow it.’ They said: ‘What should we
say?’ He said: ‘Say: “God is sufficient for us; an excellent Guardian is he”[DCCV]
“In God have we put our trust.”’[DCCVI] [DCCVII]
[87] al-Hakim and he declared it to be
sound (sahth), Abu ‘l-Shaykh and Ibn Mardawayh from Abu Hurayra; he
said: the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) said: The
Possessor of the Trumpet looks fixedly whilst he is responsible for it.
Prepared, he looks towards the Throne, fearing that [if he were to look away],
he would be ordered to let out a cry before he [could] return his gaze; his
724
eyes are two milky stars.
[88] Ibn Abi Hatim from Abu Sa'Td
al-Khudri;[DCCVIII]
he said: the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) said: The
two Possessors of the Trumpet[DCCIX]
do not stop holding onto the trumpet, waiting until they are ordered [to
blow it].
[89] al-Daylami from Abu Umama; he said:
the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) said: Gabriel’s
name [means] servant (abd) of God;[DCCX] Michael’s name
[means] servant (ubayd) of God; and Israfil’s name [means] servant (cabd)
of the Merciful.
[90] al-Tabarani, Abu Nucaym
in al-Hilya and Ibn Mardawayh from Abu Hurayra; that a Jew said:
‘Messenger of God, tell me about the angel of God which is near him.’ [He said:
‘The angel which is near Him is][DCCXI] Israfil, then Gabriel,
then
Michael, then the Angel of Death.’
[91] Ahmad, al-Hakim [and Ibn Mardawayh]
[DCCXII]
from Abu SaTd; he said: the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him
salvation) said: Israfil is the Possessor of the Trumpet and Gabriel is on his
right and Michael is on his left.[DCCXIII]
[92] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Abu Bakr
al-Hudhali; he said: No created thing is closer to God than Israfil, and
between him and between God are seven veils. And he has a wing in the East, and
a wing in the West; a wing on the Seventh Earth and a wing on his head. His
head is placed between his two wings. When God gives him an order, the tablets (alwah)
are lowered down to Israfil with God’s command [written] on them, then Israfil
will look at them; Gabriel then calls out and [Israfil] answers him. As none of
the angels can hear his voice without being made unconscious, when they come
round, they say: ‘What [was that]?’ [Israfil] says: ‘[It was] your Lord.’ They
will say: ‘The Truth, and He is the All-High, the All-Great.’[DCCXIV]
The Angel of the Trumpet (who is the one responsible for it)[DCCXV]
[has] one of his feet on the Seventh Earth, whilst he kneels on his knees,
staring fixedly at Israfil. He has not looked up since God made him; he will
look when he is given the signal and then he will blow the Trumpet.
[93] Ibn Abi Zamanin in al-Sunna
from Kacb; he said: The closest of the angels to God is Isrâfïl; he
has four wings: a wing in the East, a wing in the West, he is covered[DCCXVI]
by the third [wing] and the fourth is between him and the Preserved Tablet (al-lawh
al-mahfuz). If God wants to reveal a command, the Preserved Tablet comes
down until it slams into Israfïl’s forehead; and he raises his head and looks;
when the command is written, he calls out to Gabriel and he responds. And he
says: ‘You are commanded to do such and such an order.’ Gabriel does not
descend from one heaven to another without its people becoming terrified with
fear of the Hour, until Gabriel says: ‘the Truth is from the Truth!’[DCCXVII]
And he descends to the Prophet and gives the revelation to him.
[94] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from cAbd
Allah ibn al-Hanth;[DCCXVIII]
he said: I was with cA’isha, while Kacb was with her and
she said: ‘Kacb, tell us about Israfïl.’ And he said: ‘He is the
Angel of God. There is nothing in his presence. He has a wing in the East and
he has a wing in the West, and a wing is on the nape of his neck and the Throne
is on the nape of his neck.’ cA’isha said: ‘I heard the Prophet (God
bless him and grant him salvation) say the same.’ Kacb said: ‘The
Tablet is on his forehead, so when God wants to give a command, he writes it on
the Tablet.’
[95] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from cAbd
al-Rahman ibn al-Harith that Kacb said to cÀ’isha: ‘Did
you hear the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) [say
anything about Israfil?’ She said: ‘Yes, I heard the Messenger of God (God
bless him and grant him salvation)][DCCXIX] saying, “He has four
wings, [and] from them are two wings, one of which is in the East, and the
other of which is in the West; and the Tablet is between his eyes, so if God
wants to write a revelation, He inscribes it between his eyes.”’
[96] Abu ‘l-Shaykh and Abu Nucaym
in al-Hilya from Ibn cAbbas that the Messenger of God (God
bless him and grant him salvation) said: It is said that one of the Bearers of
the Throne[DCCXX]
[is Israfil]; and that Israfil has one of the corners of the Throne on the nape
of his neck; his feet go down to the lowest part of the Seventh Heaven and his
head passes through the highest part of the Seventh Heaven.
[97] Al-Bayhaqi in Shucab
al-iman from al-Muttalib that the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant
him salvation) said: I said to Gabriel: ‘Gabriel, why have I not seen Israfil
laughing? None of the angels have come to me without me seeing them laughing.’
Gabriel said: ‘We have not seen that angel laughing since the Fire was
created.’[DCCXXI]
[98] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Ibn cAbbas;
he said: the Prophet (God bless him and grant him salvation) heard a crash,[DCCXXII]
and he said: ‘Gabriel, is the hour coming?’ He said: ‘No, this is Israfil
coming to earth.’
[99] cAbd ibn Hamid, al-Tabarani in al-Awsat and Abu ‘l-Shaykh
from cAbd Allah ibn al-Harith; he said: I was with cA’isha
while Kacb al-Habr[DCCXXIII]
was at her house, and he mentioned Israfil. cA’isha said: ‘Tell me
about Israfil.’ Kacb said: ‘Feel free to ask.’[DCCXXIV] She said: ‘By all
means! So tell me.’ Kacb said: ‘He has four wings; two wings are in
the air, a wing, with which he is clothed,[DCCXXV] and one wing is in the
nape of his neck; the Pen is on his ear; when He sends down revelation, the Pen
writes, then the angels wipe it off [the Tablet]. The Angel of the Trumpet is
lower than him, and he genuflects on one of his knees and he raises the other;
and he puts the Trumpet to his mouth, bending his back and his side towards
Israfil. When he has been ordered, he will look at Israfil, and when
[Israfil’s] two wings are closed, [the Angel of the Trumpet] will blow into the
Trumpet. cA’isha said: I heard the Messenger of God (God bless him
and grant him salvation) [talking][DCCXXVI] in this way.
[100] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from ai-AwzTT; he
said: When Israfil glorifies God, he cuts off the ritual prayers and the
hearing of all the angels in heaven.
[101] Also from him;[DCCXXVII] he said: None of
God’s creations have a better voice that Israfil; when he begins to glorify
God, he cuts off the ritual prayers and praising of the people of the Seven
Heavens.
[102] [Abu ‘l-Shaykh] through the
intermediary of al-Layth; Khalid told me from SaTd; he said: I was told that
Israfil is the muezzin of the people of heaven,[DCCXXVIII] and he makes the
call to prayer [twelve times during the day][DCCXXIX] and twelve times at
night; and at every hour’s proclamation, whoever is in the Seven Heavens and
whoever is in the Seven Earths hears his proclamation, except jinn and humans.
Then he, the greatest of the angels, goes to the front of them and performs the
ritual prayer for them. [SaTd] said it reached me that Michael leads the angels
in the Inhabited House.
[103] Ibn al-Mubarak in al-Zuhd
from Ibn Abi Jabala in his Isnad; he said: The first of those to be
called on the Day of Resurrection is Israfil; God will say, ‘Have you delivered
my covenant?’ And he will say, ‘Yes, Lord, I delivered it to Gabriel.’ And he
will summon Gabriel, and it is said: ‘Did Israfil deliver my covenant to you?’
He will say, ‘Yes.’ So he will leave Israfil. And he will say to Gabriel, ‘What
did you do with my covenant?’ And he will say, ‘Lord, I delivered it to the
Messengers.’ So he will summon the Messengers, and it will be said to them:
‘Did Gabriel deliver my covenant to you?’ And they will say, ‘Yes.’ So he will
leave Gabriel.
[104] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Abu Sinan; he
said: The created thing closest to God is the Tablet, and it is suspended from
the Throne; and if God wants to reveal something, He writes on the [Preserved]
Tablet [and the Tablet moves][DCCXXX],
and the Tablet goes [down] until it hits Israfïl’s forehead;[DCCXXXI]
Isrâfïl covers his head with his wings so that he does not raise his eyes to
the majesty of God and looks at [the Tablet]; if it is [a command] for the
people of the heaven, then he hands it over [to Michael; if it is [a command]
for the people of the earth, then he hands it over][DCCXXXII] to Gabriel. The first
to be called to account on the Day of Resurrection is the [Tablet. It is called
by Him. Its whole body trembles in fear, and it will be said to it: ‘Did you
send out [my commands]?’ It will say: ‘Yes.’ It will be said: ‘Who saw you?’
And it will say, ‘Israfïl.’ Then Israfïl][DCCXXXIII] will be called and
his body will tremble with fear. And it will be said to him: ‘Did the Tablet
send [my commands to] you?’ When he has said ‘yes’ the Tablet says: ‘Praise be
to God, who saved me[DCCXXXIV]
from evil reckoning.[DCCXXXV]
Then like that.’
[105] Ibn Abi Hatim and Abu ‘l-Shaykh
from Damra; he said: I heard that the first to bow down to Adam[DCCXXXVI]
(peace be upon him) was Israfïl; God rewarded him by putting the Qur’an on his
forehead.
[106] al-Tabaranï in al-Awsat,
al-Bayhaqï in al-Asma ’ wa-‘l-sifat and al-Bazzar from Ibn cAmr;
he said: A group of people came to the Messenger of God (God bless him and
grant him salvation) and they said: ‘Messenger of God, Abu Bakr claimed that
righteous actions are from God and unrighteous actions are from humans, but cUmar
has said that both righteous actions and unrighteous actions come from God, and
a group follows this one and a group follows that one.’[DCCXXXVII] The Messenger of God
(God bless him and grant him salvation) said: ‘The judgment between you both is
[found] in the judgment of Israfil between Gabriel and Michael: Michael said
the words of Abu Bakr; and Gabriel the words of cUmar; Gabriel said
to Michael: “When the people of the heavens differ, [or] the people of the
earth differ, we should seek a legal ruling from Israfil.” And so the two of
them went to seek a legal ruling from him and he made a ruling between the two
of them concerning the truth about predestination: “His kindness, His
wickedness, His sweetness and His bitterness, all of them come from God.” Then
[Muhammad] said: ‘Abu Bakr, if God did not want disobedience then he would not
have had created Iblis.’ Abu Bakr said: ‘God and His Prophet have spoken the
truth.’
4.2.9 The Angel of Death[DCCXXXVIII] (peace be upon him)
[107] SacTd ibn Mansur, Ibn
al-Mundhir and Ibn Abi Hatim from Abu Hurayrah; he said: When God, may He be
praised and glorified, wanted to create Adam,[DCCXXXIX] He sent an angel from
the Bearers of the Throne to fetch some dust from the earth.[DCCXL]
When [the angel] came down to take [it], the Earth said: ‘I implore you, by the
One who sent you, not to take anything from me today, part of which is to be
for the Fire tomorrow.’ So [the angel] left it, and when he ascended to his
Lord; He said: ‘What prevented you from fetching what I ordered you to fetch?’
He said: ‘The Earth sought Your [protection] and I was worried about bringing
back something that had been protected [by You].’ So He despatched another
[angel] to [the Earth], and it said the same thing until He had sent all of
them;[DCCXLI]
and so He sent out the Angel of Death and [the Earth] said the same to him; so
[the Angel of Death] said: ‘The One who sent me is more deserving of obedience
than you.’ So he took [mud] from the face of the whole Earth, from its goodness
and its wickedness, and took it to his Lord, and He poured water of the Garden
onto it and it became moulded mud[DCCXLII] and he created Adam
from it.
[108] Ibn Jarir, al-Bayhaqi in al-Asma’
wa-‘l-sifat and Ibn cAsakir through the intermediary of al-Suddi
from Abu Malik, Abu Salih, Ibn cAbbas, Murra, Ibn Mascud
and some of the Companions;[DCCXLIII]
they said: God sent Gabriel to the Earth to fetch some clay from it. The Earth
said: ‘God protect me from you from [mud] being taken away[DCCXLIV] from me!’ So [Gabriel]
returned without taking anything; and he said: ‘O Lord, [the Earth] took your
protection, so I respected [the protection that it sought].’ So He sent Michael
and it was as before; and so He sent the Angel of Death, and [the Earth] sought
protection from him; but he said: ‘I seek God’s protection that I may return,
without not having carried out His command.’ And he took [mud] from the face of
the Earth.
[109] al-Daylami from Zayd ibn Thabit; he
said: The Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) said: If you
were to learn of the moment of [your] death (ajal),[DCCXLV] and know how far it
were away, then you would come to hate hope and its deception; there is no-one
of any family without the Angel of Death coming to them twice every day; and
whoever senses him, then indeed the moment of death has come. He takes his soul
(rüh),[DCCXLVI]
and if his family cries and mourns, he says: ‘Do not cry and do not mourn! By
God! I have not lessened your age, nor have I kept your livelihood from you,
and there is no sin[DCCXLVII]
for me [in doing this], and I will return to you again and again, until there
are none of you left.’
[110] cAbd al-Razzaq, Ahmad in a/-Zuhd, Ibn Jaiïr, Ibn al-Mundhir,
Ibn Abi Hatim and Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Mujahid; he said: There is no tent,[DCCXLVIII]
nor any mud-brick house on the surface of the Earth, without the Angel of Death
circumambulating it twice a day.
[111] Ibn Abi Shayba in al-Musannaf
and cAbd Allah ibn Ahmad in Zawa’id al- Zuhd from cAbd
al-cAla al-Tamimi; he said: There is no inhabitant of a house,
without the Angel of Death studying them twice a day.
[112] Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya in Dhikr
al-mawt and Abu ‘l-Shakyh from al-Hasan; he said: Every day without
exception, the Angel of Death studies every house three times, and if one of
them senses him, then his life (rizq) has indeed come to an end, and his
appointed time of death (ajal) has come; [the Angel of Death] takes his
soul (rüh) and [when he has taken his soul],[DCCXLIX] his family draws near
to him wailing and crying; and the Angel of Death takes hold of two posts of
the doorframe and says: ‘There is no sin for me [in doing this] against you![DCCL]
I am one with orders. By God! I have not eaten your[DCCLI] food (rizq), I
have not reduced your age, and I have not shortened your appointed time (ajal).
I am going to return to you, and I will return to you again and again until
there are none of you left!’ Al-Hasan said: By God! If they were to see his place
or hear his words, then they would forget their dead and cry for their own
souls.
[113] Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya and Abu ‘l-Shaykh
from Zayd ibn Aslam; he said: The Angel of Death watches every house five times
every day and he studies the face of the sons of Adam every day. He said: And
from [this experience] is the terror which hits people, meaning[DCCLII]
shaking and shuddering.[DCCLIII]
[114] Ibn Abi Hatim and Abu ‘l-Shakyh
from cIkrima; he said: Every day without exception, the Angel of
Death studies the Book of people’s lives.[DCCLIV] Some say [cIkrima]
said three times, and some say he said five times.
[115] [DCCLV] Ibn Abi Hatim from Kacb; he said: There is no-one in
any house,[DCCLVI]
without the Angel of Death being at his door seven times every day, [DCCLVII]
looking to see whether there is anyone in it, whom He has ordered to be taken
[up to God].
[116] SacTd ibn Mansur and
Ahmad in al-Zuhd from cAta’ ibn Yisar; he said: There is no
person in a house, without the Angel of Death studying them five times every
day [to see] if he has been commanded to take anyone from among them.
[117] Abu Nucaym in al-Hilya
from Thabit al-Banani; he said: Night and day, [all] twenty four hours, there
is not a single hour that passes one who breathes,[DCCLVIII] without the Angel of
the Death standing over [the soul]; if he has been ordered to take [a soul],[DCCLIX]
he takes it; otherwise he goes away.
[118] Ibn al-Najjar in his Ta’rikh
from a hadith attributed to the Prophet[DCCLX] given by Anas that the
Angel of Death looks upon the faces of the servants of God seventy times a day;
if the servant [of God], to whom he has been sent, laughs, then he says:
‘Wonderful! I have been sent to him to take his soul (rüh) while he is
laughing!’
[119] Al-Tabaram in al-Kabir, Abu
Nucaym, Ibn Mandah, both of them in their works called al-Macrifa
through the intermediary of Jafar ibn Muhammad from his father, from al-Harith
ibn al-Khazraj [from his father]; [DCCLXI] he said: I heard the
Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) say, as he looked at
the Angel of Death while he was [standing by] the head of one of the ansar:
‘Angel of Death, be kind to my friend, he is a believer.’ The Angel of Death
said: ‘Be of good cheer! Be happy! I am kind to every believer, and know,
Muhammad, that I am going to take the soul of [every] son of Adam! If he gives
out a great shout; then I come to the house, and his soul (rüh) is mine.
And I say: “What is this cry? By God! We have not wronged him,[DCCLXII]
and we have not [taken his soul] before his appointed time (ajal), nor
have we hastened his destiny (qadar). There is no sin for us in taking
his soul.” If they are pleased by what God has arranged [for them], then they
are rewarded; if they are displeased, then they are sinning and transgressing.
We will return to you, again and again, so be on your guard! There is no person
who lives in a tent, or in a mud house, on the land, or on the plain, or on the
mountain, without me studying them every day and night until I know the
trivialities and the great things in their souls; by God! If I wanted to take a
soul of a mosquito,[DCCLXIII]
I could not do it until God had let it be - He is the One who orders its
taking.’
Jafar ibn Muhammad said: I heard that when [the Angel of Death]
studies [people] during the appointed times for the ritual prayer, if [someone]
is about to die,[DCCLXIV]
[DCCLXV]
and if he is one of those who remembers the ritual prayers, then the angel
approaches him and drives Satan away from him, and the angel whispers the talqm71
to him at that great moment: ‘There is no god, but God, and Muhammad
is the Messenger of God.’
[120] Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya in his Kitab
dhikr al-mawt from cUbayd ibn cUmayr; he said: While
Abraham (peace be upon him) was in his house one day, suddenly a man of
beautiful appearance came into his presence, and [Abraham] said: ‘Servant of
God, who admitted you into my house?’ He said: ‘Its Lord admitted me into it.’
He said: ‘Its Lord is the most right [to do] that. Who are you?’ He said: ‘The
Angel of Death.’ He said: ‘Things have been described to me about you [that I
cannot see in you][DCCLXVI].’
[Abraham] said: ‘Turn around.’ And so he turned around, and there were eyes at
the front and eyes at the back and every one of his hairs were like people
standing on end. So Abraham begged God for protection against that and said: ‘Return
to your first form.’ He said: ‘Abraham, when God sends me to someone He wants
to meet, He sends me in the form which you saw first.[DCCLXVII]
[121] Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya from Kacb;
he said: Abraham (peace be upon him) saw a man in his house, and he said: ‘Who
are you?’ He said: ‘I am the Angel of Death.’ Abraham said: ‘If you are right,
then show me a sign so that I might know that you are the Angel of Death.’ The
Angel of Death said: ‘I shall appear before you.’ And he appeared, then
[Abraham] looked and he saw [the Angel of Death] in the form in which he takes
the believers; he saw that he was made of light and dazzlement, which only God,
Most High, could have told him about. Then [the Angel of Death] said: ‘I will
appear before you.’ And he appeared before him, then [Abraham] looked and the
Angel of Death showed him the form in which he takes unbelievers and
adulterers; and Abraham was so afraid that he trembled and his stomach clung to
the Earth, and his soul (nafs) was about to leave.
[122] [Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya] from Ibn Mascud
and Ibn cAbbas; the two said: When God, Most High, took Abraham as a
friend, the Angel of Death asked his Lord for permission to send [Arbraham] the
good news [about it].[DCCLXVIII]
And so he came to Abraham and gave him the good news about it, and he said:
‘Praise be to God!’ Then he said: ‘Angel of Death, show me how you take the
souls of the unbelievers.’ He said: ‘Abraham, you will not be able to bear it.’
He said: ‘On the contrary!’ He said: ‘I will come before you.’ And [the Angel
of Death] came before him, then [Abraham] looked [and there was] a black man,
his head reaching the sky, and flames of fire were coming out of him; there
were no hairs on his body, except it being in the form of a man coming out of
him, with flames of fire coming out of his ears. Abraham fainted. When he came
round, the Angel of Death had changed back into his previous form. Then he
said: ‘Angel of Death, if an unbeliever, in his grief and distress, saw only
your form, then that would be enough for him! Show me how you take the believers.’
[The Angel of Death] said: ‘I will come before you.’ And he came before him,
then [Abraham] looked and he was a young man, whose face was very beautiful,
the most pleasing of odour, [wearing] a white gown. [Abraham] said: ‘Angel of
Death, if a believer at the moment of death saw in the way of happiness and
kindness only this face of yours, then that would suffice!’
[123] Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya and Abu ‘l-Shaykh
in al-cAzama from Ashcath ibn Aslam; he said:
Abraham (peace be upon him) asked the Angel of Death, whose name is Azra’il,[DCCLXIX]
and who has two eyes in his face and two eyes on the back of his head;[DCCLXX]
[Abraham] said: ‘Angel of Death, what do you do if there is a soul (nafs)
in the East and a soul in the West, whilst a plague[DCCLXXI] strikes a [particular
place on] earth and two armies meet - how do you deal with them?’ He said: ‘I
call the spirits (arwah), by the permission of God, and they are between
these two fingers of mine.’ He said: The earth is flattened for him, it was
made like a basin,[DCCLXXII]
and [the Angel of Death] takes out of it when He wants.
[124] Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya from al-Hakam that
Jacob (peace be upon him) said: ‘Angel of Death, is [it right that] from every
person’s soul (nafs) without exception, you take its spirit (ruh)T
He said: ‘Yes.’ He said: ‘How? While you are here with me, souls (anfus)
are in the outermost parts of the Earth?’ He said: ‘God has flattened the Earth
for me, and it is like a bowl placed in front of one of you, and He takes
whoever is at its outermost parts [that He] wants.[DCCLXXIII] That is how the
world is for me.’
[125] cAbd al-Razzaq, Ahmad in al-Zuhd, Ibn Jarir, Ibn al-Mundhir,
Abu ‘l-Shaykh in al-cAzama and Abu Nucaym in al-Hilya
from Mujahid; he said: The Earth was created for the Angel of Death like a
bowl; [God] takes from it whenever He wishes, and He created helpers for [the
Angel of Death], who receive the souls; then [the Angel of Death] takes [the
souls] from [the helpers].
[126] Ibn Jarir and Abu ‘l-Shaykh from
al-Rabic ibn Anas that it was asked of the Angel of Death whether it
is he alone who takes the souls (arwah). He said he is the one who is
responsible for the [fulfilment of the] command of the souls (arwah)[DCCLXXIV]
but he has helpers for that; however, the Angel of Death is in charge and
every stride of his [goes] from the East to the West.
[127] Ibn Abi Shayba, Ibn Jarir, Ibn
al-Mundhir, Ibn Abi Hatim and Abu ‘l-Shaykh in his Tafsir from Ibn cAbbas
concerning His Word, Most High: ‘Our messengers take him.’[DCCLXXV] He said: The helpers
of the Angel of Death are from the angels.
[128] cAbd ibn Hamid, Ibn Jarir, Ibn al-Mundhir, Ibn Abi Hatim and Abu
‘l-Shaykh in his Tafsir from Ibrahim al-Nakha^i concerning His Word:
‘Our messengers take him.’[DCCLXXVI]
He said the angels take the souls (anfus), then the Angel of Death takes
[the souls] from [the angels] afterwards.
[129] cAbd al-Razzaq, Ibn Jarir and Abu ‘l-Shaykh in al-Azama from
Qatada concerning His Word: ‘Our messengers take him.’[DCCLXXVII] He said: The Angel
of Death has messengers, and he makes the messengers responsible for taking
[the souls] then they hand them over to the Angel of Death.
[130] Abu ‘l-Shaykh in al-cAzama
from Wahb in Munabbih; he said that the angels who are associated with the
people[DCCLXXVIII]
are the ones who receive them and they write their time [of death]; when they
take the soul [to God], they hand them over to the Angel of Death, who is like
the one who comes after[DCCLXXIX]
- meaning the tax collector,[DCCLXXX]
who draws up to himself what is beneath him.
[131] Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya, Abu ‘l-Shaykh and
Abu Nucaym in al-Hilya from Shahar ibn Hawshab; he said: The
Angel of Death is sitting and the world is between his knees, and the Tablet is
in his hands, on which is [written] the appointed times of death of the sons of
Adam; with angels standing in front of him, he studies the Tablet, not raising
his eyes. And when he comes to an appointed time of a servant [of God],[DCCLXXXI]
he says: ‘Take this one!’
[132] Ibn Abi Hatim and Abu ‘l-Shakyh
from Ibn cAbbas that it was asked about [a situation in which] two
souls that came to die in the twinkling of an eye, one in the East and the
other in the West; how is the Angel of Death in a position to deal with them
both? [Ibn cAbbas] said: The ability of the Angel of Death to [deal
with] creatures in the East and the West, in darkness, in the air and in the
seas is always like a man with a table in front of him, taking from it whatever
he wishes.
[133] Ibn Abi Hatim from Zuhayr ibn
Muhammad; he said: It was said: ‘Messenger of God, the Angel of Death is alone;
but [there are] two armies meeting between the East and the West, and in the
area between that there are the fallen and the dead?’ He said: ‘God, may He be
praised and glorified, made the Angel of Death able [to cope]: He made [the
Earth] like a bowl between one of your hands, and [the Angel of Death] can pass
over anything in it.
[134] Juwaybir from Ibn cAbbas;
he said: The Angel of Death is the one who takes all of the souls [to God];
indeed he has power over what is on the earth, just as one of you has power
over his leisure; angels from amongst the angels of mercy and angels from
amongst the angels of suffering are with him; when he receives a good soul, he
gives it to the angels of mercy; when he receives a wicked soul, he gives it to
the angels of suffering.
[135] Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya and Abu ‘l-Shakyh
from Abu ‘l-Muthanna al-Him.si; he said: The world, with its lowlands and its
mountains, is between the thighs of the Angel of Death, and with him are angels
of mercy and angels of suffering. When he takes the souls (arwah), these
hand over to these, and those over to those, meaning the angels of mercy and
the angels of suffering. It is said [that] if there is a fierce battle and the
sword is like lightning, then [he said], he summons them and the souls come to him.
[136] al-Dïnawaiï in al-Mujalasa
from Abu Qays al-Azdi; he said; It was said to the Angel of Death: ‘How do you
take the souls?’ He said: ‘I summon them, and they come to me.’
[137] Ibn Abi Shayba from Khaythama; he
said: The Angel of Death came to Solomon, son of David,[DCCLXXXII] while he had a
friend with him and Solomon said to him: ‘Why is it that you either come to a
household and take them all together, or you go away from a household, leaving
them alone, without taking anyone from them?’ He said: ‘I do not know what I
take from them, rather I am under the Throne, and He sends down the deeds[DCCLXXXIII]
on which are the names.
[138] Ibn cAsakir from
Khaythama; he said: Solomon, son of David, said to the Angel of Death: ‘When
you want to take my soul (rüh), would you let me know about it?’ He
said: ‘I do not know when it is your [time].[DCCLXXXIV] It is something
written that comes down to me, which names who is going to die.’
[139] Ahmad in al-Zuhd and Ibn Abi
‘l-Dunya from Macmar; he said: It reached me that the Angel of Death
does not know when the appointed time of a person’s death is going to happen
until he is ordered to take it.
[140] Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya from Ibn Jaiïr; he
said: It reached me that it is said to the Angel of Death: ‘Take so-and-so at a
certain time on a certain day!’
[141] Ibn Abi Hatim from cIkrima
concerning His Word, Most High: ‘It is He who recalls you by night.. ,’[DCCLXXXV]
He said: He receives souls during sleep; there is no night - by God! - without
Him grasping souls - all of them; and He asks every soul about what its owner
did during the day, then He calls the Angel of Death, and he says: ‘Take this
one! Take this one!’
[142] Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya from cAta’
ibn Yisar; he said: When it is the middle night of Shacban,[DCCLXXXVI]
He hands over a page to the Angel of Death, and it is said: ‘Take from those on
this page!’ If the servant is lying in bed, or couples marry, or someone builds
a building,[DCCLXXXVII]
[he does so] while his name has already been copied into the [book of the]
dead.
[143] Ibn Jarir from cUmar
Mawla Ghafara; he said: [The names of] whoever is going to die on the Night of
Power[DCCLXXXVIII]
until the following one[DCCLXXXIX]
is copied to the Angel of Death; and [the Angel] will find the man who has
married a woman, and the man who has planted the plant; but [only] when the
name is amongst the dead.
[144] al-Dinawari in al-Mujalasa
from Rashid ibn SacTd that the Prophet (God bless him and grant him
salvation) said: On the middle night of Shacban, God reveals to the
Angel of Death [information] regarding the taking of every soul that He wants
to be taken during that year.
[145] al-Khatib and Ibn al-Najjar from cA’isha;
she said: the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) used to
abstain[DCCXC]
during the whole of Shacban until Ramadan; but he only fasted for a
whole month during Shacban.[DCCXCI] She said: ‘Messenger of
God, is it because Shacban is the dearest month for you that you
fast during it?’ He said: ‘Yes, cÀ’isha, the taking [of souls] is
written for the Angel of Death during it; I do not want my name to be deleted,
so I fast.
[146] Ahmad, al-Bazzar and al-Hakim and
he declared the hadith to be authentic (sahlh) from Abu Hurayrah from
the Prophet (God bless him and grant him salvation); he said: The Angel of
Death used to come to people manifestly, but he came to Moses and he [Moses]
slapped him and gouged out his eye, and [the Angel of Death] went to his Lord;
and he said: ‘Lord, your servant Moses has gouged out my eye. Unless you favour
him, tear him open.’ He said to him: ‘Go to my servant [Moses] and say to him
that he should place his hand on a skin of an ox, and then he will have a year
for every hair that his hand has covered.’ So he came to him and [Moses] said:
‘What is after this?’ He said: ‘Death.’ And he said: ‘Let it be now.’ And so
[the Angel of Death] smelt [Moses], took his soul and God gave him back his
eye. After that he came to people in stealth.[DCCXCII]
[147] Abu Nucaym from al-Acmash;
he said: The Angel of Death used to be visible to people, but he came to [one
particular] man, saying: ‘Finish your business, for I want to take your soul.’
And [the man] made a complaint; consequently, [God] then sent down disease and
made death a secret.
[148] al-Marwazi in al-Jana’iz,
Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya and Abu ‘l-Shakyh from al- Shactha’ Jabir ibn Zayd
that the Angel of Death used to take souls without pain, but the people cursed
him and worried about him, so he complained to his Lord. Consequently, God
established diseases and they forgot about the Angel of Death. It is said
someone dies like this or like that.[DCCXCIII]
[149] Ibn Abi Hatim from Ibn cAbbas
that an angel sought permission from his Lord to go down to Enoch;[DCCXCIV]
and he came to him and greeted him, and Enoch said to him: ‘Is there anything
between you and the Angel of Death?’ He said: ‘He is one of my brother angels.’
He said: ‘Are you able to help me with something concerning him?’ He said: ‘[If
you want to] delay [death] any [amount of time],[DCCXCV] or hasten it, then no,
but I will ask him for you, and he will treat you kindly concerning death.’ He
said: ‘Ride between my wings!’ So Enoch rode and ascended into the highest
heaven, and he met the Angel of Death, with Enoch between his wings; and the
angel said to him: ‘I have need of you.’ He said: ‘I already know about your
need; you spoke to me about Enoch, [and what remains of his age,][DCCXCVI]
but his name has been wiped out, and none of his appointed term[DCCXCVII]
remains, save half the blinking of an eye, and then Enoch died between
the wings of the angel.
[150] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Muhammad ibn
al-Munkadir that the Angel of Death said to Abraham (peace be upon him):[DCCXCVIII]
‘Your Lord has ordered me to take your soul in the most peaceful way that I
have taken the soul of a believer.’ He said: ‘I ask you in the truth of the One
who sent you that you consult Him about me.’ He said: ‘Your friend[DCCXCIX]
asked that I consult with you about him.’ [God] said: ‘Go to him and say to
him: Your Lord says: the Friend wants to meet His friend.’ So he came to him,
and he said: ‘I was in pain when you ordered him [to take my soul].’ He said:
‘Abraham, have you drunk wine?’[DCCC]
He said: ‘No.’ Then [the Angel of Death] asked him to breathe over him[DCCCI]
[and] he took his soul (nafs) in that way.
[151] Ahmad from Abu Hurayrah that the
Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) said: David[DCCCII]
(peace be upon him) was extremely jealous,[DCCCIII] and he had
the habit that when he went out, the doors [of his harem] would be shut. No-one
would go into his family until he returned. One day he went out and returned,
and there was a man standing in doorway of his house. [David] said to him: ‘Who
are you?’ He said: ‘I am the one who does not revere kings, and the one who is
not prevented from passing through the veil.’ David said: ‘You, therefore, by
God! - are the Angel of Death. [I] welcome the command of God!’ And David
hurried[DCCCIV]
to his place [before the Angel of Death] and his soul was taken.
[152] Ibn Majah from Abu Umama; I heard
the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) saying: God, may
He be praised and glorified, made the Angel of Death responsible for the taking
of the souls (arwah) except those martyred at sea - He takes charge of
the taking their souls Himself.[DCCCV]
[153] Juwaybir from Ibn cAbbas;
he said: The Angel of Death is responsible for the taking of human souls, and
he is the one who orders the taking of their souls; and [there is] an angel for
the Jinn, an angel for the Shaytans, and an angel for the birds,
wild animals, the predatory animals, the large fish and the ant; so there are
four angels. Angels die in the first strike of the lightning. The Angel of
Death is responsible for taking of their souls, then [the angel] dies. As for
those who are martyred at sea, God is responsible for the taking of their
souls; He does not give the responsibility for that to the Angel of Death, for
their honour is with Him when they travel through the depths of the sea for His
sake.
[154] Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya from Muhammad ibn
Kacb al-Qurzi; he said: It reached me that the last to die is the
Angel of Death; it is said to him: ‘Angel of Death, die!’ So with that he will
let out a cry, (if the creatures of the heavens and the earth were to hear it,
they would die of fright); then he will die.[DCCCVI]
[155] Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya from Ziyad
al-Numayri; he said: I have read in a certain book that death is harder for the
Angel of Death than it is for the rest of the creations.
[156] al-cUqayli in al-Ducafa’,
Abu ‘l-Shaykh in al-cAzama and al-Daylami from Anas; he said:
the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) said: The allotted
time (ajal) for all livestock and insects of the earth is [devoted to]
the worship of God. When their glorification of God is completed, God takes
their souls and there is nothing for the Angel of Death [to do] in that.
[157] al-Khatib in Ruwat Malik
from Sulayman ibn Macmar al-Kilabi; he said: I was with Malik ibn
Anas, when a man asked him about fleas: ‘Does the Angel of Death take their
souls (arwah)?’ He bowed his head for a long while and then said: ‘Do
they have a soul (nafs)T He said: ‘Yes.’ He said: ‘Then the Angel of
Death takes their souls (arwah) [and] God receives their souls (anfus')
in full when they die.’
[158] Abu Nucaym in al-Hilya
from Mucadh ibn Jabal; he said: The Angel of Death has a spear,[DCCCVII]
which has the space from the East to the West in its reach, and when the
appointed time of death of a servant of the world comes, he hits his head with
that spear and he says: ‘Now the army of death is called upon you.’
[159] Ibn cAsakir from Ibn cAbbas
which is traceable to the Prophet (marfuc'); that the Angel
of Death has a poisoned spear, which has one end in the East, and another end
in the West, and he cuts the vein of life with it.[DCCCVIII]
[160] Ibn Abi Hatim from Zuhayr ibn
Muhammad; he said: The Angel of Death sits on a ladder between Heaven and Earth
and he has messengers[DCCCIX]
from amongst the angels. When the soul (nafs) is in the throat[DCCCX]
the Angel of Death sees him from his ladder, and he looks intently at him, then
another which dies sees him.
[161] Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya from al-Hakam ibn
Uban; he said: cIkrima was asked: ‘Does a blind man see the Angel of
Death when he comes to take his soul (rUh)?’ He said: ‘Yes.’
[162] Abu Nucaym in al-Hilya
from Mujahid; he said: A servant does not get ill from any illness without the
messenger of the Angel of Death being with him until there is another illness
which the servant gets ill from; the Angel of Death comes to him, and says:
Messenger after messenger has come to you, but you did not care about them, and
now a messenger has come to you, who will cut your ties[DCCCXI] with this world!’
[163] Abu ‘l-Husayn Ibn al-cArif
in his Fawa’id, and Abu ‘l-Rabic al-Mascudi in his
Fawa’id from Anas ibn Malik; he said: the Messenger of God (God bless
him and grant him salvation) said: When the Angel of Death comes to a friend of
God, Most High, he greets him and his greeting is to say: ‘Peace be upon you,
friend of God. Rise and leave your house, which you have left in ruin,[DCCCXII]
[and go] to your house which you have built [with your good deeds].’[DCCCXIII]
When it is not a friend of God, he says to him: ‘Rise and leave your house,
which you have made comfortable, and [go] into your house, which you have
ruined [with your misdeeds].’[DCCCXIV]
[164] Abu ‘l-Qasim ibn Mandah in Kitab
al-ahwalwa-‘l-iman concerning a question from Ibn Mascud; he
said: When God, may He be praised and glorified, wants to take a soul of a
believer, He reveals to the Angel of Death: ‘Recite to him from me: “Peace!”’
And when the Angel of Death comes to take his soul, he recites: ‘Your Lord says
to you: Peace!’
[165] al-Marwazî in al-Jana’iz,
Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya and Abu ‘l-Shaykh in his Tafslr from Ibn Mascud;
he said: When the Angel of Death comes to take the soul of a believer, he says:
‘Your Lord says to you: Peace!’
[166] [DCCCXV] Ibn Abi Shayba, Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya, Ibn Abi Hatim, al-Hakim and he
declared it to be sound (sahih) and al-Bayhaqi in Shucab
al-lman from al-Bara’ ibn cÀzab concerning the Word, Most High:
‘[Their greeting], on the day that they shall meet Him, will be “Peace!”’[DCCCXVI]
He said: On that day, they will meet the Angel of Death; whoever is a believer,
[the Angel of the Death] will take their soul more peacefully for him.
[166b] Ibn al-Mubarak in al-Zuhd, Abu ‘l-Shaykh in al-cAzama,
Abu ‘l-Qasim ibn Mandah in Kitab al-ahwal and al-Bayhaqi in Shucab
al-lman from Muhammad ibn Kacb al-Qurayzi he said: When the soul
of the believing servant is spent, the Angel of Death comes to him and says to
him: ‘Peace be upon you, Friend of God! God says to you: Peace!’ Then he
recites this verse: ‘...whom the angels take while they are godly saying,
‘Peace be on you!’[DCCCXVII]
Al-Silafi said in al-Mashyakha al-Baghdadiyya: I heard Abu
Sacid al-Hasan ibn cAli al-Waciz saying; [I heard
Muhammad ibn al-Hasan saying;][DCCCXVIII]
I heard my father saying: I saw in a book that God, Most High, makes the phrase
‘In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful’ appear on the palm of the
Angel of Death in writing of light; then He commands [the Angel of Death] to
stretch out his hand to the Knower[DCCCXIX] at the time his death,
and that writing is shown to him; when the soul of the one who knows sees it,
it flies towards Him[DCCCXX]
more quickly than a blink of an eye.
[167] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Da’ud ibn Abi
Hind; he said: It reached me that the Angel of Death was made responsible for
Solomon (peace be upon him), and he was told: ‘Go into his presence every day,
and ask what he needs; then do not leave him until you have performed it.’[DCCCXXI]
He used to enter upon him in the image of a man, and he would ask him how he
was. Then he would say: ‘Messenger of God, do you need anything?’ If he said:
‘Yes’, then he did not leave him until he had done it; and if he said: ‘No’,
then he left him until the following morning. One day he entered upon him while
there was an old man with him. [Solomon] stood up, and greeted [him], then [the
Angel of Death] said: ‘Do you need anything, Messenger of God?’ He said: ‘No.’
The [angel] glanced at [the old man] and the old man trembled; the Angel of
Death left and the old man stood up and said to Solomon: ‘I beg you, by the
truth of God! to command the wind[DCCCXXII] to carry me and throw
me down on the furthest lump of mud in the land of India!’ So [Solomon]
commanded it and it carried him [there]. The Angel of Death came into Solomon
the next morning and asked him about the old man. [The Angel of Death] said:
‘His book[DCCCXXIII]
came down to me yesterday, [saying] that I should take his soul tomorrow at the
rising of dawn in the furthest lump of mud in the land of India; but when I
came down, and thinking that he was there, I then found him with you. I was
astonished and could not think of [anything] other than him;[DCCCXXIV]
I came down to him today at the break of dawn and found him on the highest lump
of mud in the land of India, and he trembled, and I took his soul (rwh).’
[168] Ibn Abi Shayba from Khaythama; he
said: The Angel of Death went into Solomon and began to look at one of his
companions who continued to look at him. When he left, the man said: ‘Who was
that?’ He said: ‘That was the Angel of Death.’ He said: ‘I saw him looking at
me as if he wanted me.’ He said: ‘What do you want [me to do]?’ He said: ‘I
want to you to carry me on the wind until you put me down in India.’ So
[Solomon] called the wind and he carried him upon it, and he put him down in
India. Then the Angel of Death came to Solomon, and [Solomon] said to him: ‘You
were looking at the man from my companions.’ He said: ‘I was astonished by him.
I was ordered to take him in India and he was with you!’
[169] al-Tabaram from Ibn cAbbas;
he said: The Angel of Death went to the Prophet during the illness which he
contracted[DCCCXXV]
and he sought permission to enter [his presence] while his head was in cAli’s
lap.[DCCCXXVI]
He said: ‘Peace be upon you, and the mercy of God and his blessings.’ cAli
said: ‘Come back again [at another time]! We are too busy[DCCCXXVII] to deal with you.’
The Prophet (God bless him and grant him salvation) said: ‘Do you know who this
is, Abu ‘l-Hasan? This is the Angel of Death. Bring him in, in good faith.’
When [the Angel of Death] entered, he said: ‘Your Lord says to you: Peace!’
[Muhammad] said: ‘Where is Gabriel?’ He said: ‘He is not near me, but he is
coming.’ The Angel of Death left until Gabriel came down to him. And Gabriel
said to him while he was standing at the door: ‘Why did he expel you,
Angel of Death!’ He said: ‘Muhammad asked for you.’ When the two sat down,
Gabriel said: ‘Peace be upon you, Abu ‘l-Qasim![DCCCXXVIII] This is a farewell
for you and for me.’ It reached me that the Angel of Death did not greet anyone
from a household before him, and will not greet [anyone][DCCCXXIX] after it.
[170] al-Tabaram from al-Husayn that
Gabriel came down to the Prophet (God bless him and grant him salvation) on the
day of his death, and he said: ‘How do you find yourself?’ He said: ‘Gabriel, I
find myself distressed and I find myself scared.’ The Angel of Death sought
permission to enter from the door. Gabriel said: ‘Muhammad, this is the Angel
of Death, who is seeking permission to enter your house. He has not sought
permission from me [to come to] a human before you, and he will not seek
permission from me [to come to] a human after you.’ [Muhammad] said: ‘Give him
permission!’ So [Gabriel] let him in. [The Angel of Death] approached until he
stood before [Muhammad] and said: ‘God has sent me to you and has commanded me
to obey you; if you command me to take your soul (nafs), then I will
take it; if you do not want [me to take it], then I will leave it.’ He said:
‘Do [it], Angel of Death.’ He said: ‘Yes, as you command.’ Gabriel said to [Muhammad]:
‘God indeed desires to meet you.’ Then the Messenger of God (God bless him and
grant him salvation) said: ‘Carry out what you have been commanded [to do] by
Him’
[171] Ibn al-Najjar in his Ta’rikh
said: Yusuf ibn al-Mubarak ibn al-Hamil al-Khafaf told me; he said: I bear
witness by God and I bear witness to God that Muhammad ibn cAbd
al-Bâqï al-Ansan told me; he said: I bear witness by God and I bear witness to
God that Abu Bakr Ahmad ibn cAli ibn Thabit al-Khatib told me; he
said: I bear witness by God and I bear witness to God that al-Qadi Abu al-cAla
Muhammad ibn cAli al-Wasiti told me;[DCCCXXX] he said: I bear
witness by God and I bear witness to God that Abu Muhammad cAbd
Allah ibn Ahmad ibn cAbd Allah[DCCCXXXI] ibn al-Mulih al-
Sajazi told me; I bear witness by God and I bear witness to God that cAli
ibn Muhammad al-Haruwi told me; I bear witness by God and I bear witness to God
that cAbd al-Salam ibn Salih told me; I bear witness by God and I
bear witness to God that cAli ibn Musa al-Radi told me; he said: I
bear witness by God and I bear witness to God that Abu Musa ibn Jacfar
told me; he said: I bear witness by God and I bear witness to God that Abu Jacfar
ibn Muhammad told me;[DCCCXXXII]
he said: I bear witness by
God and I bear witness to God that Abu Muhammad ibn cAli
told me;[DCCCXXXIII]
he said: I bear witness by God and I bear witness to God that Abu cAli
ibn al-Husayn told me; he said: I bear witness by God and I bear witness to God
that Abu cAli ibn Abi Talib told me; he said: I bear witness by God
and I bear witness to God that the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant
him salvation) told me; he said: I bear witness by God and I bear witness to
God that Gabriel told me; he said: I bear witness by God and I bear witness to
God that Michael told me;[DCCCXXXIV]
he said: I bear witness by God and I bear witness to God that cAzra’il
told me; he said: he said: I bear witness by God and I bear witness to God that
God, Most High, told me; he said: The one addicted to wine is like the slave of
an idol.[DCCCXXXV]
4.2.10 The Bearers of the Throne[DCCCXXXVI](peace be upon them)
The Most High said: ‘eight shall carry above them the Throne of
thy Lord.. ,’[DCCCXXXVII]
[DCCCXXXVIII]
[179] cAbd ibn Hamid, cUthman ibn SacTd al-Darimi
in Kitab al-radd cala al- jahmïya,*55 Abu Yacla,
Ibn al-Mundhir, Ibn Khuzayma, Ibn Mardawayh and al-
Hakim who declared to be sound (sahïh) [in al-Kitab
al-radd cala al-jahmiyyah]'56 from al-cAbbas[DCCCXXXIX]
[DCCCXL]
ibn cAbd al-Muttalib concerning His Word: ‘[eight] shall carry above
them the Throne of thy Lord’ - Eight angels in the form of goats.[DCCCXLI]
[180] cUthman ibn SaTd from Ibn cAbbas: The Bearers of the
Throne have horns, which have corners like the corners of spears. The space
between one of their balls of their feet to their ankles is the distance that
it would take to travel five hundred years; and the space between the tip of
his nose to his collarbone is the distance that it would take to travel five
hundred years; and the distance from the tip of his nose to the earlobe is five
hundred years. [DCCCXLII]
[181] cUthman ibn SaTd and Abu Yacla in a sound chain of
authorities from Abu Hurayrah; he said: the Messenger of God (God bless him and
grant him salvation) said: Listen to me! I was told about an angel whose two
legs pass through the Seven Earths and that the Throne was on his shoulders,
[this angel] says: ‘I worship you, where you are and where you will be.’
[181b][DCCCXLIII]
Abu Daud, Abu ‘l-Shaykh and al-Bayhaqi in al-Asma’ wa-‘l-sifat from
Jabir that the Prophet (God bless him and grant him salvation)
said: Listen to me! I was told about one of the angels who carry the Throne;
the distance between his earlobe to the shoulder is a distance of seven hundred
years.
[182] Abu Daud, Abu ‘l-Shaykh and
al-Bayhaqi in al-Asma’ wa-‘l-sifat from Jabir that the Prophet (God
bless him and grant him salvation) said: Hear me, that I was told about one of
the angels who carry the Throne: his two feet are on the lowest Earth and the
Throne is on his horn; and [the space] between his earlobe and his shoulder is
the distance it would take a bird to fly for seven hundred years. That angel
says: ‘I worship you wherever[DCCCXLIV]
you are!’
[183] Abu ‘l-Shaykh through the
intermediary of Abu Qabil that he heard cAbd Allah say: The Bearers
of the Throne; the space that is between the inner corner of one of their eyes
to the outer corner of his eye is the distance of five hundred years.
[184] cUthman ibn SaTd, Ibn al-Mundhir and Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Hassan ibn cAtiyya;
he said: The Bearers of the Throne are eight. Their feet are firmly fixed on
the Seventh Earth, their heads pass through the Seventh Heaven, their horns are
the same as their height and on top of [their horns] is the Throne.
[185] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Zadhan;[DCCCXLV]
he said: The Bearers of the Throne; their feet are on the limits [of the
universe]. They are not able to look up because of the beams of light.[DCCCXLVI]
[186] Ibn al-Mundhir, Abu ‘l-Shaykh and
al-Bayhaqî in Shucab al-lman from Harun ibn Ri’ab, he said:
The Bearers of the Throne are eight and they call back to each other in
merciful voices; four of them saying: ‘We worship You and [we are] in praise of
You for Your clemency after Your knowledge [of sins committed]!’; and [the
other] four saying: ‘We worship You and [we are] in praise of You for Your
forgiveness of sins, according to Your decree!’
[187] cAbd ibn Hamid from al-Rabic concerning His Word: ‘eight
shall carry above them the Throne of thy Lord.’[DCCCXLVII] [Eight][DCCCXLVIII]
from the angels.
[188] Ibn Jarir from Ibn Zayd; he said:
the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) said: Four carry
him today, eight [will carry him] on the Day of Resurrection.[DCCCXLIX]
[189] cAbd al-Razzaq, cAbd ibn Hamid, Ibn al-Mundhir and Abu
‘l-Shaykh from Wahb; he said: The Bearers of the Throne: the ones that carry
him are four angels, and each angel has four faces and four wings, with two
wings on its face, which [prevent it from][DCCCL] looking at the Throne,
[for if it were to look] it would be struck unconscious, and two [other] wings,
with which they fly. Their feet are on the ground and the Throne is on their
shoulders. Each one of them has a face of a bull, a face of a lion, a face of a
human and a face of an eagle.[DCCCLI]
They do not say a word, except that they say: ‘Holy! God Almighty, your glory
fills the heaven and the earth!’[DCCCLII]
[190] Abu ‘l-Shaykh through the
intermediary of al-Suddi from Abu Malik; he said: The rock which is under the
Earths[DCCCLIII]
is the extent of creation and on its limits are four angels; each one of them
has four faces: a face of a man, a face of a lion, a face of an eagle and a
face of a bull; while they are standing on it, they encompass the heavens and
the earth and their heads are under the Throne.
[191] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Wahb; he said:
The Bearers of the Throne: today they are four, but when the Day of
Resurrection comes, they will be supported by four others. An angel from
amongst them has the likeness of a human, which intercedes for the children of Adam
in their need; an angel has the likeness of an eagle, which intercedes for
birds in their need; [DCCCLIV]
an angel has the likeness of a bull, which intercedes for livestock in their
need and an angel has the likeness of a lion, which intercedes for predatory
animals in their need. Each angel has four faces: a face of a human, a face of
an eagle, a face of a bull and a face of a lion; and when they carry the
Throne, they fall down onto their kness because of the glory of God. They
whisper: ‘There is no power and no strength save in God.’ And standing up on
their feet they are the same height.
[192] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Makhul; the
Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) said: There are four
angels amongst the Bearers of the Throne; an angel is in charge of the forms
and he is the human;[DCCCLV]
an angel has the likeness of the master of the predatory animals, and he is the
lion; an angel is in the likeness of livestock, he is the bull (and he has been
angry since the day of [the worship of][DCCCLVI] the calf[DCCCLVII]
until now);[DCCCLVIII]
and an angel has the likeness of the master of the birds, and he is an eagle.
[193] cUthman ibn SacTd al-Darimt and al-Bayhaqi in al-Asma’
wa-‘l-sifat from cUrwa; he said: The Bearers of the Throne - one
of their forms is in the likeness of a man; one of their forms is in the
likeness of an eagle; one of their forms is in the likeness of a bull and one
of their forms is in the likeness of a lion.
[194] Ibn Abi Hatim from Ibn Zayd; he
said: There is no-one higher amongst the Bearers of the Throne, save Israfil.
He said: Michael is not one of the Bearers of the Throne.
[195] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Ibn cAbbas
that the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) came up to
his friends and said: ‘Why are you meeting?’ And they said: ‘We have come
together to remember our Lord and we are contemplating his glory.’ He said:
‘You will never [be able to] continue meditating on his glory, unless I tell
you about something of the glory of your Lord.’ They said: ‘Indeed, Messenger
of God!’ He said: ‘An angel from amongst the Bearers of the Throne, it is said
Israfil, has one of the corners of the Throne on the nape of his neck, his feet
pierce the lowest Seventh Earth and his head pierces the highest Seventh
Heaven; the created world of your Lord is in his likeness.
[196] al-Daylami from cAli; he
said: the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) said: When
the month of Ramadan begins, [God, Most High,][DCCCLIX] orders the
Bearers of the Throne to refrain from saying the tasbih and they ask
[God’s] forgiveness for the community of Muhammad and the believers.
[197] al-Dinawari in al-Mujalasa
from Malik ibn Dinar; he said: I heard that in a part of the heavens there is
an angel which has eyes the number of little pebbles [on earth];[DCCCLX]
there is no eye among them that does not have a tongue and two lips underneath
it, which praise God, the Blessed and the Most High, in a language which is not
understood by its neighbours. The Bearers of the Throne have horns between
their shoulders. Their horns and their heads are a distance of five hundred
years apart and the Throne is above that.
[198] al-Dïnawaiï from Abu Malik
concerning His Word: ‘His Throne comprises the heavens and the earth’[DCCCLXI]
He said: The Rock which is under the Seventh Earth; on its four sides are four
from amongst the angels; each of the angels has four faces: a face of a human,
a face of a lion, a face of an eagle, and the face of a bull; they stand on its
sides and they surround the Earth and the Heavens; their heads are under the
Seat and the Seat is under the Throne.[DCCCLXII]
[199] al-Dinawari from Khalid ibn Macdan;
he said: The Throne has been heavy for the Bearers of the Throne from the very
begining; when those who are praising [God] stand up, it becomes lighter for
them.
[200] al-Bayhaqi in Shucab
al-iman through the intermediary of Qutayba from Bakr ibn Madr from Sakhr
ibn cAbd Allah from Ziyad ibn Abi Hayya; he said: I heard that
regarding the Bearers of the Throne, there streams from [one of their] eyes the
likeness of rivers of tears.[DCCCLXIII]
When one raises its head, it says: ‘I worship You! We do not fear You as much
as You deserve to be feared!’ God, may He be praised and glorified, says: ‘But
those who swear falsely by My name are liars, they do not know [that they
should be fearful].’
[201] Ibn Mardawayh from Umm Sacd;
she said: I heard the Prophet (God bless him and grant him salvation) say: The
Throne is on an angel made of pearls in the image of a cockerel, its feet are
on the limits of the earth, and its two wings are in the East and his neck is
under the Throne.[DCCCLXIV]
[202] cAbd ibn Hamid, Ibn Mardawayh, al-Bayhaqi in al-Asma’
wa-‘l-sifat from Ibn cAbbas; he said: The Bearers of the Throne:
the [distance] between one of their ankles to the bottom of their foot is the
[time it would take to travel] five hundred years. He mentioned that the stride
of the Angel of Death [reaches] from the East to the West.
[203] cAbd ibn Hamid from cIkrima; he said: All of the Bearers
of the Throne are sawr. Tkrima was asked: ‘What is meant by sawr?
He said: ‘He bows his cheek a little.’[DCCCLXV]
[204] cAbd ibn Hamid from Maysara; he said: The angels who carry the
Throne are not able to look at what is above them because of the beams of
light.
[205] cAbd ibn Hamid from Maysara; he said: ‘[Concerning] the feet of the
Bearers of the Throne; their feet are on the lowest earth and their heads
pierce the Throne; they are humble and do not raise their eyes; they have a
more intense fear [than the people of the Seventh Heaven, and the people of the
seventh heaven have a more intense fear than][DCCCLXVI] the people of the
heaven which is below, and that which is below [that] has a more intense sense
of fear than that which is beneath it.
[206] Ibn Abi Shayba in al-Musannaf
from Abu Umama; he said: The angels who carry the Throne talk in Persian.[DCCCLXVII]
[207] cAbd ibn Hamid and Ibn al-Mundhir from Maysara concerning the Word
of the Most High: ‘eight shall carry above them the Throne of Thy Lord.’[DCCCLXVIII]
He said: Their feet are on the limits [of the earth] and their heads are with
the Throne. They are not able to raise their eyes because of the beams of
light.
[208] Ibn Jarir, Ibn al-Mundhir and Ibn
Abi Halim from Ibn cAbbas concerning His Word: ‘eight shall carry
above them the Throne of Thy Lord.’[DCCCLXIX] He said: Eight ranks
of angels - only God knows their number.
[209] cAbd ibn Hamid from al-Dahhak concerning the verse;[DCCCLXX]
he said: It is said: Eight ranks, only God knows their number.[DCCCLXXI]
[209b] [DCCCLXXII]
[cAbd ibn Hamid and Ibn al-Mundhir from Maysara concerning the
verse];[DCCCLXXIII]
it is said: The heads of the eight angels are with the Throne in the Seventh
Heaven and their feet are on the lowest Earth; they have horns like mountain
goats and the distance between the roots of their horns to their tips is a
journey of five hundred years.
4.2.11 The Spirit (peace be upon him)
The Most High said: ‘in it the angels and the Spirit descend’[DCCCLXXIV]
and He said: ‘Upon the day when the Spirit and the angels stand in ranks’.[DCCCLXXV]
[210] Ibn Jarir, Ibn al-Mundhir, Ibn Abi
Hâtim, Abu ‘l-Shaykh and al-Bayhaqi in al- Asma’ wa-‘l-sifat through the
intermediary of Ibn Abi Talha from Ibn cAbbas; he said: The Spirit
is a creation from the greatest of the angels.[DCCCLXXVI]
[211] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from al-Dahhak; he
said: The Spirit is the veil[DCCCLXXVII]
of God, [Most High];[DCCCLXXVIII]
he will stand in front of God on the Day of Resurrection, and he is the
greatest of the angels; if he were to open his mouth, there would be enough
room for all of the angels together. The creations look to him; but out of fear
of him, they are not able to raise their eyes to what is above him.
[212] Ibn Jarir, Ibn al-Mundhir, Ibn Abi
Hatim, Abu ‘l-Shaykh and al-Bayhaqi in al-
Asma’ wa-‘l-sifat in a weak isnad from cAli
ibn Abi Tâlib; he said: The Spirit is an angel. It has seventy thousand faces;
every face has seventy thousand tongues; every tongue has seventy thousand
languages, [DCCCLXXIX]
which praise God in all of those languages; and from every act of praise God
creates an angel, which flies with the angels until the Day of Resurrection.
[213] Ibn Jarir, Ibn al-Mundhir and Abu
‘l-Shaykh through the intermediary of cAta’ from Ibn cAbbas;
he said: The Spirit is an individual angel;[DCCCLXXX] [DCCCLXXXI]
he has ten thousand wings; two wings [span the distance] between the East and
the West; he has a thousand faces and every face has a thousand tongues, and
two eyes, and two lips, which praise God until the Day of Resurrection.
[214] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Wahb; he said:
The Spirit is one of the angels; he has ten thousand wings, two wings of which
[span the distance] between the East and the West; he has a thousand faces, and
every face has a thousand tongues and two lips, which will praise God until the
Day of Resurrection.
[215] Ibn al-Mundhir and Abu ‘l-Shaykh
from Muqatil ibn Hayyan; he said: The Spirit is the most exalted angel, and the
nearest of them to the Lord, and he is the one responsible for revelation (wahy)S9S
[216] Ibn Jarir from Ibn Mascud;
he said: The Spirit is in the Fourth Heaven and he is greater than the heavens,
the mountains and the angels. He praises God every day by saying ‘I praise you’
ten thousand times; God, Most High, creates an angel from every act of praise.
He will come in a rank by himself on the Day of Resurrection.[DCCCLXXXII]
[217] Muslim, Abu Da’ud, al-Nasa’i from cÀ’isha
that the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) used to say
during his kneelings (rukuj and prostrations (sujud): ‘Glory to
the Holy One, the Lord of the Angels and the Spirit.’[DCCCLXXXIII]
[218] cAbd al-Razzaq, cAbd ibn Hamid, Ibn Jarir, Ibn
al-Mundhir, Ibn Abi Hatim, Abu ‘l-Shaykh and al-Bayhaqi in al-Asma’
wa-‘l-sifat from Mujahid; he said: The Spirit was created in the likeness
of a human.[DCCCLXXXIV]
[219] cAbd al-Razzaq, cAbd ibn Hamid, Ibn al-Mundhir, Abu
‘l-Shaykh from Mujahid; he said: The Spirits eat;[DCCCLXXXV] they have two hands,
feet and heads, whereas the angels do not.
[220] cAbd ibn Hamid and Ibn al-Mundhir from cIkrima; he said:
The Spirit is the greatest creation from among the angels and no angel descends
without the Sprit.
[221] cAbd ibn Hamid and Abu ‘l-Shaykh through the intermediary of
Mujahid from Ibn cAbbas; he said: The Spirit was created from the
creations of God in the image of a human; an angel does not come down[DCCCLXXXVI]
from heaven without one of the Spirits (wahid min al-ruh) with him.
[222] Ibn Abi Hatim, Abu ‘l-Shaykh and
Ibn Mardawayh through the intermediary of Mujahid from Ibn cAbbas
that the Prophet (God bless him and grant him salvation) said: The Spirit is an
army amongst the armies of God; they are not part of the angels; they have
heads, two hands and feet. Then he recited: ‘Upon the day when the Spirit and
the angels stand in ranks’[DCCCLXXXVII]
[DCCCLXXXVIII]
and he said: These are an army and these
... 905
are an army.
[223] cAbd al-Razzaq, cAbd ibn Hamid, Ibn al-Mundhir, Abu
‘l-Shaykh and al- Bayhaqi in al-Asma’ wa-‘l-sifat from Abu Salih; he
said: The Spirits are a creation similar to people, but they are not people;
they have two hands and feet.
[224] Ibn Abi Hatim and Abu ‘l-Shaykh
from cAbd Allah ibn Burayda; he said: The Jinn, the humans,
the angels and the devils do not make one tenth of the Spirit.[DCCCLXXXIX]
[225] Ibn Abi Hatim, Abu ‘l-Shaykh from
al-Shacbi concerning His Word: ‘Upon the day when the Spirit and the
angels stand in ranks.’[DCCCXC]
He said: Both of them are ranks[DCCCXCI]
of the Lord of the Two Worlds; on the Day of Judgement there will be a rank of
the spirits and a rank of angels.
[226] Abu ‘l-Shaykh from Salman; he said:
Humans and jinn are ten parts: humans make one part and the jinn
make nine parts; the angels and the jinn are ten parts: jinn make
one part and the angels make nine parts; the angels and the spirits are ten
parts: the angels make one part and the Spirit makes nine parts; [the Spirit
and][DCCCXCII]
the cherubim are ten parts: the Spirit makes one part and the cherubim make
nine parts.[DCCCXCIII]
[227] Ibn Abi Hatim from Ibn Abi Nujih;
he said: The Spirit is the hafiz of the angels.[DCCCXCIV]
[228] Ibn al-Anbari in Kitab al-addad
from Mujahid; he said: The Spirits are a creation amongst the angels, but the
angels do not see them; just as you do not see the angels.
4.2.12 Ridwan, Malik and the Keepers of the Fire (peace be upon them)
The Most High said: ‘And they shall call, ‘O Malik, let thy Lord
have done with us!’ He will say, ‘You will surely tarry.’[DCCCXCV] And the Most High
said: ‘And those who are in the Fire will say to the keepers of Gehenna’[DCCCXCVI]
and the rest of the verse; and the Most High said: ‘and over which are harsh,
terrible angels’[DCCCXCVII]
and the rest of the verse; and he said: ‘over it are nineteen. We have
appointed only angels to be masters of the Fire’[DCCCXCVIII] and the rest of the
verse; and the Most High said: ‘the guards of hell’. [DCCCXCIX]
[229] al-Qutbi[CM] in cUyûn
al-akhbar from Tawus[CMI]
that God, may He be praised and glorified, created Malik[CMII] and he created as many
fingers as the numbers of people in the Fire for him; no-one in the Fire is
tortured without Malik torturing him with one of his fingers; by God! if Malik
were to place one of his fingers in heaven, then it would melt it.
[230] al-Diya’ al-Maqdisi in Sifat
al-nar from Anas; I heard the Messenger of God (God bless him and grand him
salvation) saying: By the one who [holds] my soul in his hand![CMIII]
The Angels of Hell were created a thousand years before Hell itself; every day
they increase their power.
[231] cAbd Allah ibn Ahmad in Zuwa ’id al-Zuhd from Abu cImran
al-Jawni; he said: I heard that there are nineteen Keepers of the Fire.[CMIV]
The space between one of their shoulders is a journey of a hundred autumns;
there is no mercy in their hearts; indeed, they were made for torture, one of
these angels beats one of inhabitants of the Fire[CMV] vigorously, then
he leaves him crushed [like dust] from his head to his feet.
[232] Ibn Jarir from Kacb; he
said: The space between the shoulders of one of the Keepers is a journey of
[five][CMVI]
hundred years; every of them has a pole with two prongs, and he prods [the
inhabitant of Hell] vigorously with it; he harasses seven hundred thousand
[people] with it.
[233] Ibn al-Mundhir from Mujahid; he
said: I was told that the Prophet (God bless him and grant him salvation)
described the Guardians of Hell; he said: Their eyes are like lightning, and
their mouths are like cockerels’ spurs, their hair trails [on the floor],[CMVII]
they are as strong as humans and jinn[CMVIII] and one of them
receives a [whole] community of people [and] he herds them; on his neck is a
mountain, until he casts them into the Fire, and he throws the mountain on top
of them [afterwards].
[234] Ibn al-Mubarak in al-Zuhd,
Ibn Abi Shayba, cAbd Ibn Hamid, Ibn al-Mundhir and al-Bayhaqi in al-Bacth
through the intermediary of al-Azraq ibn Qays from a man from the Banu Tammim;
he said: We were with Abu ‘l-cAwam, when he recited this verse:
‘over it are nineteen.’925 [CMIX] He said: ‘What do you
say: nineteen angels or nineteen thousand?’ I said: ‘There is no doubt:[CMX]
nineteen angels.’ And he said: ‘How do you know that?’ I said: ‘For God, Most
High, said: ‘and their number we have appointed only as a trial for the
unbelievers’[CMXI]
He said: ‘You are right. There are nineteen angels, and in the hand of every
one[CMXII]
of them is an iron rod, with two prongs, and he beats [people] vigorously with
it, with it coming down on seventy thousand [people]. Between the shoulders of
every angel is a distance of this much.’ Al Qurtubi said: ‘The intention of His
Word is nineteen of their heads, as for the number of the Keepers, no-one knows
their number, except God, may He be praised and glorifed!’[CMXIII]
[235] Hannad ibn al-Saiï in Kitab
al-zuhd from Kacb; he said: When men are ordered into the Fire,
a hundred thousand angels await him.
[235b][CMXIV]
al-Firyabi, cAbd al-Hamid, Ibn Jarir, Ibn al-Mundhir and Ibn Abi
Hatim from Mujahid concerning His Word: ‘the guards of hell’[CMXV]:
[They are] angels.
[236] al-Firyabi, cAbd
al-Hamid, Ibn Jarir, Ibn al-Mundhir and Ibn Abi Hatim from cAbd
Allah ibn al-Harith;[CMXVI]
he said: The myrmidons (al-zabaniyya)[CMXVII]
their feet are on earth and their heads are in heaven.
[237] [CMXVIII] al-Wahidi in Asbab al-nuzûl and Ibn cAsakir in
his Ta’rikh through the intermediary of Ishaq ibn Bashar from Juwaybir
from al-Dahhak from Ibn cAbbas; he said: When some polytheists
reproached the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) for
being poor, they said: ‘What ails this Messenger that he eats food and goes in
the markets?’[CMXIX]
The Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) was saddened by
that, so Gabriel came down to him[CMXX] and said: ‘Peace be upon
you, Messenger of God, the Lord of Power says to you: “Peace!” And He says to
you: “We have not sent any messengers before you who did not eat food whilst
walking in the markets.”’ While Gabriel and the Prophet (God bless him and
grant him salvation) were talking to each other, Gabriel suddenly made himself
smaller[CMXXI]
until he was like a bird.[CMXXII]
The Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) said: ‘Why have
you made yourself smaller until you are like a bird?’ He said: ‘Muhammad, one
of the gates of heaven has opened and it had not been opened before [I did]
that.’[CMXXIII]
Suddenly Gabriel returned to his [normal] state, and he said: ‘Muhammad, I
introduce you to this [angel], Ridwan, the Guardian of the Garden.’ Then Ridwan
drew closer until he greeted [him]. He said: ‘Muhammad, the Lord of Power says
to you: “Peace!”’ (And he had with him, a basket of light,[CMXXIV] which
glistened) ‘And your Lord says to you: “These are the keys to the treasuries of
the this world,[CMXXV]
however, whatever [you take] will not decrease your reward which will be with
you in in the next world, [for me] it is like the wing of a flea.”’[CMXXVI]
Then the Prophet (God bless him and grant him salvation) looked at Gabriel,[CMXXVII]
who was like the advisor to him,[CMXXVIII] and Gabriel hit him
to the ground with his hand; and he said: ‘Humble yourself before God!’
[Muhammad] said: ‘Ridwan, there is nothing that I need on earth.’ Ridwan said:
‘You are right, God is with you.’ They saw that this verse was sent down by
Ridwan: ‘Blessed be He who, if He will, shall assign to thee better than that -
gardens underneath which rivers flow, and he shall assign to thee palaces.’[CMXXIX]
[238] al-Bukhari and Muslim from Ibn cAbbas;
he said: the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) said:
During my night journey I saw Moses, son of cImran with me, as a
tall man with curly hair, as if he were a man form the tribe of Shanu’a;[CMXXX]
and I saw Jesus, son of Mary, [who as of medium height],[CMXXXI] and of moderate complexion,
[ranging between] red and white; and his hair was lank; and I saw Malik, the
Guardian of Gehenna and al-Dajjal in the verses [of the Qur’an] that God
showed.[CMXXXII]
[239] Ibn Mardawayh from cUmar;
he said: When the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation)
travelled by night,[CMXXXIII]
he saw Malik, the Keeper of the Fire; when a person frowns, [Malik] can see the
anger in his face.
[240] Abu Bakr al-Wasiti in Fada’il
Bayt al-Maqdis from Abu Salama; he said: I saw cUbada ibn
al-Samt east of the Holy House, crying; and it was asked of him: ‘What is
making you cry?’ He said: ‘In this place, the Messenger of God (God bless him
and grant him salvation) told me that he saw Malik[CMXXXIV] turn over a live coal
like bunch [of fruit].’
[241] al-Daylami from cAli; he
said: the Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him salvation) said: When
God wants a servant to be good, he sends an angel from the Keepers of the
Garden to him; [the angel] wipes his back and bestows his soul (nafs)
with purity.
[242] al-Khalili in his Mashyakha
from Anas; he said: The Messenger of God (God bless him and grant him
salvation) said: I will be the first [person] to knock on the Gate of the
Garden, and the Keeper will stand up and say: ‘Who are you?’ And I will say: ‘I
am Muhammad.’ And he will say: ‘I will go and open it for you. I have not got
up for anyone before you, and I will not get up for anyone after you.’
4.2.13 Al-Sijill [CMXXXV] (peace be upon him)
[243] cAbd ibn Hamid from cAli concerning the Word of the Most
High: ‘as a scroll is rolled’[CMXXXVI]
He said: Malik.
[244] cAbd ibn Hamid from cAtiyya;[CMXXXVII] he said: Al-Sijill
is an angel’s name.[CMXXXVIII]
[245] Ibn Jarir and Ibn Abi Hatim from
Ibn cUmar; he said: Al-Sijill is an angel, when forgiveness
ascends, he says: ‘Write it in light!’
[246] Ibn Jarir and Ibn Abi Hatim from
al-Suddi; he said: Al-Sijill is an angel responsible for the pages; when
a person dies, he hands over his book to Al-Sijill and he shuts it and
keeps it until the Day of Resurrection.
[247] Ibn Abi Hatim and Ibn cAsakir
from Abu Jafar al-Baqir; he said: Al-Sijill is an angel, and Harut and
Marut[CMXXXIX]
were amongst his helpers, and every day he would glance three times, by which
he would look at the Umm al-Kitab, and he would have a look. [The book]
is not his, but [one day] he caught sight of some information in it about the
creation of Adam,[CMXL]
and what is in [the Umm al-Kitab] concerning them; and he secretly told
Harut and Marut about it, and when the Most High said: ‘“I am creating on earth
a viceroy.” They said, “What, wilt Thou set therein one who will do corruption
there.”’[CMXLI];
the two of them said: ‘That is disrespectful to the angels.’
4.2.14 Harut and Marut[CMXLII] (peace be upon them)[CMXLIII]
[248] Ahmad ibn Hanbal, cAbd
Ibn Hamid in their Musnads, Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya in Kitab al-caqubat,
Ibn Hibban in his Sahih and al-Bayhaqi in Shucab al-iman
from cAbd Allah ibn cUmar that he heard the Messenger of
the God (God bless him and grant him salvation) saying: Concerning Adam; when
God brought him down to earth, the angels said: ‘What, wilt Thou set therein
one who will do corruption there, and shed blood, while We proclaim Thy praise
and call Thee holy?’ He said, ‘Assuredly I know that you know not.’[CMXLIV]
[The angels] said: ‘Our Lord, we are more obedient than the Children of Adam.’
God, Most High, said to the angels:[CMXLV] ‘Pick out two angels. We
will send them down to Earth and see how the two [angels] will do. The angels
said: ‘Our Lord, Harut and Marut!’[CMXLVI] And so both of them
were sent down to Earth, and al-Zuhara appeared to the two of them[CMXLVII]
as the most beautiful woman.[CMXLVIII]
She came to the two of them and they asked her for her soul, and she said: ‘No!
By God! Not until you accept the worship of idols.’[CMXLIX] The two of them said:
‘No! By God! We will never associate anything with God.’ So she went away from
them. Then she returned with a baby boy,[CML] whom she was carrying; and
they asked her for her soul, and she said: ‘No! By God! Not until you kill this
baby boy.’[CMLI]
And the two of them said: ‘No! By God! We will never kill him!’ So she went
away and then she returned with a glass of wine, which she was carrying. They
asked her for her soul and she said: ‘No! By God! Not until you have drunk this
wine.’ So they drank,[CMLII]
became drunk, fornicated with her,[CMLIII] and killed the boy.
When the two woke up, the woman said: ‘By God! You have not left anything! You
both denied me it, but you did it when you were drunk!’ As a result the two had
to make a choice between the punishment of this world or the next and they
chose the punishment of this world.
[249] al-Bayhaqi in Shucab
al-lman from Ibn cUmar; he said: the Messenger of God (God bless
him and grant him salvation) said: The angels looked down upon this world and
they saw the children of Adam being disobedient. They said: ‘Lord! How ignorant
these [humans] are! How little knowledge they have of your Majesty!’ God, may
He be praised and glorified said: ‘If you were in their skin, then you would
disobey me.’ They said: ‘How can this be? We worship Your praiseworthiness and
we glorify You.’ He said:[CMLIV]
‘Choose two angels from amongst you!’ And they chose Harut and Marut; then the
two of them came down to earth and [the earth] roused in them human desires. A
woman presented herself to them but they did not disobey until they fornicated
with her. God said: ‘Choose between the punishment of this world or the next!’
And one of the two looked to his friend and said: ‘Whatever you say, I will
choose.’ He said: ‘I say that the punishment of this world will end, but the
punishment of the next world will not end.’ So, the two chose the punishment of
this world.’ The two are those two whom God mentions in His Book: ‘and that
which was sent upon Babylon’s two angels.. ,’[CMLV] and the rest of the
verse.[CMLVI]
[250] al-Hakim in al-Mustadrak and
he declared it to be sound (sahlh) from Ibn cUmar that he
used to say: ‘Has the red one[CMLVII]
appeared yet?’ When he saw it, he said: ‘It is not welcome.’[CMLVIII]
Then he said: ‘Two angels from amongst the angels, Harut and Marut, asked God
if they could go down to earth. So they went down to earth,[CMLIX] and judged the people.
When they got to a point where they could say words,
they went up from [earth] to heaven. God[CMLX] sent to them the most
beautiful woman. She asked them a question about desire and she asked them a
question about their souls; and they did not leave until she promised them a
meeting. Then she came to them for the meeting and she said: “You two can teach
me the word which allows you to ascend.” And they taught her [the word].[CMLXI]
She said it and ascended into heaven. She was transformed and made just as you
have seen. At the very moment that the two said the word, they could not
ascend, so [God] sent them [a message] that the two should choose between the
punishment of the afterlife or the punishment of this world; and one of the two
said to the other: “Indeed, we should choose the pain of his world.”’
[251] Ishaq ibn Rahwayh in his Musnad,
cAbd ibn Hamid in his Tafsir, Ibn Abi ‘l- Dunya in his Kitab
al-caqubat, Ibn Jarir, Abu ‘l-Shaykh in al-Azama and
al-Hakim in al-Mustadrak and he declared it to be sound (sahih)
from cAli ibn Abi Talib; he said: This is Al-Zuhara: the
Arabs call her al-Zuhara and the Persians call her Anahïd[CMLXII]
The two angels were passing verdicts on the people [of Earth]. She came to the
two of them, and they saw[CMLXIII]
her. Al-Zuhara said to the two: ‘Will the two of you not tell me by what means
you go up to heaven and by what means you come down to earth?’ (And the two
said ‘In the name of God, the Greatest.’ [to go up to heaven and down to
earth).[CMLXIV]
She said: ‘I will not leave you[CMLXV]
until you teach it to me.’ One of the two said to his companion: ‘Teach it to
her!’ The [other angel] said: ‘How severe God’s punishment will be for us?!’
The [other angel] said: ‘We will hope in the great abundance of God[’s mercy]![CMLXVI]’
So [one of the angels] taught it to her; she said it and she flew to heaven. An
angel of heaven was terrified by her ascent; so he bowed his head and did not
sit down afterwards; God transformed her and she became a star.
[252] Ibn Rahwayh and Ibn Mardawayh in
his Tafsir from cAli; he said: the Messenger of God (God
bless him and grant him salvation) said: God cursed al- Zuhara, for it was she
who seduced the two angels Harut and Marut.
[253] Ibn Abi Hatim from Ibn cAbbas;
he said: The people of the lowest heaven looked down on the Earth[CMLXVII]
and they saw them acting disobediently, so they said: ‘Lord, the people of
Earth are acting disobediently.’ God, may He be praised and glorified, said:
‘You are with me, but they are hidden from me.’ And it was asked of them:
‘Choose three of you.’[CMLXVIII]
So they chose three from them on the condition that they came down to earth and
judged between the people of earth. Human desire would be aroused in them, but
they were ordered that they could not drink wine, that they could not kill
anyone, that they could not fornicate, and that they could not prostrate
themselves before idols. And from them was one that wished to be released [from
this task], and he asked and two were sent down to the earth.[CMLXIX]
The most beautiful woman came to the two of them and it was said she [was
called] Anahîd, and the two together fell in love with her. Then the two
came to her house, they met with her and they wanted her. She said [to them]:[CMLXX]
‘Not until you drink my wine, kill my neighbour’s son and bow down before my
idols.’ The two of them said: ‘We will not bow down [to your idols].’ Then the
two drank the wine, killed [the boy], then they bowed down [before the idols].
The angels in the sky looked down at them, and she said to them: ‘Tell me the
word which, if you both say it, the two of you can fly away.’ And they told
her,[CMLXXI]
and she flew away then she was turned into live coal, and this is al-Zuhara.
As for the two, Solomon, son of David, sent for them, and they had to make a
choice between the punishment of this world and the [pains of the][CMLXXII]
next. They chose the punishment of this world and they are suspended
between heaven and earth.
[254] Ibn al-Mundhir, Ibn Abi Hâtim,
al-Hâkim, and he declared it to be sound (sahih) and al-Bayhaqi in Shucab
al-iman from Ibn cAbbâs; he said: When the people after Adam
fell into the situation that they fell into and began to be disobedient and to
not believe in God, the angels in Heaven said: ‘The Lord of This World, who
created them; you only created them to worship you and to obey you, but they
now fall into the situation that they have fallen in to, committing unbelief,
commiting suicide, eating unlawful food, fornicating, stealing and drinking
wine; they have begun to curse each other, and they do not circumcise
themselves.’ [Some, .sources] say. .that. they. .were.in .hiding. .(?.)[CMLXXIII]
and they did not circumcise themselves. And it was said to them: ‘Choose from
amongst you the two best angels and I will give the two of them of them a task;
and I will prohibit the two of them [from doing certain things].’ And they
chose Harut and Marut. So the two of them were sent down to Earth and the
desires of the sons of Adam were aroused in them. [God] ordered the two that
they should serve Him and not associate anything with Him. He banned them from
killing prohibited individuals, from eating prohibited foods and from
fornicating, stealing and drinking wine. The two remained on the Earth for a
time ruling the people with justice. This was during the time of Enoch.[CMLXXIV]
And at that time there was a woman, who was the most beautiful woman, just as
the beauty of Venus is amongst the rest of the stars. The two of them came to her,
spoke softly to her,[CMLXXV]
and wanted her on her own; but she refused unless the two took her orders
and her faith. So the two asked her about her faith and she brought out to them
an idol and said: ‘This is what I worship.’ And the two said: ‘There is no need
for us to worship this.’ So they went and stayed away[CMLXXVI] for a while. Then the
two came to her and they wanted[CMLXXVII]
her on her own [and she said as she had said before, so they went away. Then
they came to her [again] and they wanted her on her own,][CMLXXVIII]
and when she saw that they refused to worship the idol, she said to the two of
them: ‘Choose one of the three faults:[CMLXXIX] worshiping this idol,
killing this person, or drinking wine.’ And the two said: ‘None of these are
right, but the least contemptible of the three is the drinking of the wine.’ So
they drank the wine. [The wine][CMLXXX]
was taken from them both and they fornicated with the woman. The two then
feared that the person[CMLXXXI]
would reveal what they had done, so they killed him. When the drunkenness
lifted from them and they realised what sin they had done, they wanted to go up
to heaven; but they could not, as it had been made inaccessible to them.[CMLXXXII]
And the cover that was between the two of them and between the people of heaven
was lifted up,[CMLXXXIII]
and the angels looked down at what had come to pass. They wondered with great
wonder and they came to understand that whoever is hidden [from God], is the
one with less fear. After that they began to ask for forgiveness for whoever
was on the earth.
It was said to the two of them: ‘Choose[CMLXXXIV] between the
punishment of this world and the punishment of the next.’ The two said: ‘As for
the punishment of this world, it will come to an end and it will pass. As for
the pain of the next world, it will not come to an end.’ So they chose the
punishment of this world. The two stayed in Babylon and they were punished.
[255] Ibn Abi Hâtim from Mujahid; he
said: I was camping with cAbd Allah ibn cUmar during a
journey, when, one night, he said to his servant: ‘Look the red one has
risen. There is no welcome in it, nor any greeting; God does not give life to
it; it is the friend[CMLXXXV]
of the two angels.
The angels said: ‘Lord, how can you ignore the disobedience of the
sons of Adam, while they are shedding blood unlawfully, violating your
prohibitions and spreading corruption in the land?’ He said: ‘Indeed, I have
put them to test; perhaps if I tested you in the same way as I have tested
them, you would do as they have done.’ They said: ‘No!’ He said: ‘Choose two
from the best of you.’ So they chose Harut and Marut. He said to the two of
them, ‘I [am going to permit] your going down to earth. I am going to make you
swear that you will not associate [anything with Me], that you will not
fornicate and that you will not act treacherously. So they came down to earth
and lust overwhelmed them both. Al-Zuhara came down to them, in the form of a
most beautiful woman, and paraded herself in front of them, and they wanted[CMLXXXVI]
her on her own. She said: ‘Regarding faith, it is not right for anyone to come
to me, without them being the same [religion as me].’ The two said: ‘What is
your faith?’ She said: ‘Zoroastrianism (majusiyyd).’ The two said: ‘This
is idolatry.[CMLXXXVII]
We cannot associate ourselves with it.’ So she left them for a period of time.
Then she came up to them, and they wanted her by herself. She said: ‘What you
wish is only [the right of] a husband of mine. I would not like it if [someone]
were to catch sight of me doing this; [as] this [would cause me] to be
dishonoured.[CMLXXXVIII]
If you two profess my faith to me and you promise that you will take me up to
heaven, then I will do it.’ So they professed her faith to her, and they came
to her [whilst she was in the form that] they saw; then the two took her up to
heaven, and when they got to heaven, she grabbed them and cut off their wings,
and the two fell [down to Earth] frightened, remorseful, and crying.
On earth is a prophet, who spent hit time in personal devotion
from one Friday to the next, and on Friday his prayers would be answered. The
two said: ‘If we come to somebody, we will ask him to teach us [how to] repent.
And they came to him, he said: ‘May God have mercy upon you both!’ How can
inhabitants from the earth teach an angel?!’ And they said: ‘Indeed, we have
been put to the test.’ He said: ‘Come to me on Friday.’ So they came to him and
he said: ‘I have nothing to say to you. Come to me on the following Friday!’ So
they came to him, and he said: ‘Choose! Indeed, you must choose if you want to
be released from the earth and [receive] the punishment of the afterlife; or if
you want the punishment of this life, the judgement of God will be upon you
both on the Day of Resurrection.’ One of the two said: ‘This world will only
last a short time.’ And the other one said: ‘Woe unto you! I have obeyed you
from the beginning, so I will obey you now.’ So the two chose the pain of this
world.
This story can be enhanced by many other chains of transmission (turuq);W06
the hafiz Ibn Hajar[CMLXXXIX] [CMXC]
collected them into a single section and he said in his book Al- Qawl
al-musaddad f-‘l-dhabb can musnad Ahmad, that anyone who had
concerns about [the story], could attest with certainty to the veracity of this
story, because of the many different chains of transmission and the strength of
their sources.[CMXCI]
He said that he had studied a portion of these, which Ahmad had compiled, and
he mentioned over ten different chains of transmission; and [Ibn Hajar said:] I
collected the different chains of transmission from exegeses and I reckoned
them to amount to some twenty-odd chains.
4.2.15 The Sakina[CMXCII] (peace be upon it)[CMXCIII] [CMXCIV]
[295] al-Tabaram in al-Awsat from cAli
(may God be pleased with him); he said: When the pious are mentioned, be quick
to mention cUmar. We, the Companions of the Prophet, did not think
it unlikely that the Sakina articulated itself on the tongue of cUmar
(may God be pleased with him). Ibn al-Athir said in al-Nihaya: The Sakina
is an angel.
[296] al-Tabarâriî from Usayd ibn Hudayr
that he came to the Prophet (God bless him and grant him salvation) and he
said: ‘Messenger of God, yesterday I recited Surat al-Kahf°n
and something came and covered my mouth.’ The Prophet (God bless him and grant
him salvation) said: ‘That is the Sakina. It came to hear the Qur’an.’[CMXCV]
[297] al-Tabaram from Abu Salama; he said:
When Usayd ibn Hudayr al-Ansaiï was praying - he said[CMXCVI] - when it was night;
[he said]: Suddenly [something] like a cloud covered me, and in it were things
like lights, and [my] wife was sleeping beside me and she was pregnant; the
horse was tethered in the courtyard and I feared that the horse[CMXCVII]
would bolt away; [my] wife was terrified and she delivered her child; so I
concluded my prayers.’ So [the Prophet] [CMXCVIII] said: ‘Recite, Usayd!
That was an angel that listens to the Qur’an.’
298
Conclusions
The main aim of this thesis has been to widen the study of angels
in Islam beyond that of Qur’anic studies and Islamic eschatology. The study of
angels in Islam has tended to be restricted to these two areas. Jalal al-Dm
al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik fi akhbar al-mala’ik provides a corpus of hadith
that focus Islamic angelology in Islamic tradition more generally. The
translation and commentary have shown that the relationship between humans and
angels is a very close one, far closer than one may have expected.
The hadith in Al-Haba ’ik do however reveal a
complex mix of ideas. Every human has two (or more) recording angels; this
establishes a direct relationship between angels and humans; yet despite their
closeness to humanity, the angels always retain their unique angelic character.
This is seen particularly clearly in the angels’ reactions to ritual impurity.
Ritual impurity acts as a shibboleth between humans and angels: after
the expulsion of Adam from the Garden, humans defecate, copulate, menstruate,
and so on, and live in a world of impurity. Angels, as creatures of the divine
world, remain ritually pure and cannot come into contact with impurity. This
relationship, as I have argued in Section 3, has important consequences in
Islamic ritual law. Being unclean is not technically sinful, but impurities do
still have an effect on angels, and individuals can become eschatologically
disadvantaged by their inability to perform credited actions. This
intricate relationship with the angels is not, however, entirely negative for
humans, as the angels pray for the Muslim community, bless and pray for pious
devotional behaviour, give more weight to good actions and so on. The angels,
therefore, also enable humans to be eschatologically advantaged by
certain actions.
Despite the fact that the relationship between humans and angels
has a bearing on an individual’s eschatological future, al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik
is quite different from the standard Islamic eschatological material (as well
as Jewish and Christian apocalyptic literature). Traditionally, descriptions of
heaven and hell are used as a warning, focused on the potentiality of
punishment and reward. Hell is the potential future for those that do
not return to the straight path, heaven is the reward for those that do.
Sins and crimes in this kind of literature tend to be quite general, or when
they are specific, refer to major sins such as murder, kufr and so on.
Crudely, these works argue: Do not [commit murder], because those who
[commit murder] will be sent to the Fire; and those that do not [commit
murder] will be admitted into the Garden. In contrast, Al-Haba’ik
does not refer to major sins, but discusses the relationship between humans and
angels at a much more basic, everyday level; and raises the question of the
effects that certain human actions have on angels. The collection says that
angels are present in this world and that the reader should be aware of their
existence as human actions have an effect on their behaviour, and consequently,
on the reader’s eschatological future. This is a very different
argument.
Section 2 raised the question of the origins and development of
Islamic angelology through an analysis of angelic nomenclature and iconography.
Past scholarship has usually portrayed Islamic angelology as being entirely
derived from Jewish and Christian beliefs. However, the hadith in Al-Haba’ik
show that this relationship is much more complex. The naming of angels in
Islam, except for a few isolated borrowings, shows a particularly Islamic
approach, especially the use of the formula: The Angel of X. Whilst
there are a number of angels derived from divine hypostases in Judaism, some of
the angels, such as al-Sijill are purely Islamic, derived form the text
of the Qur’an. Likewise, the iconography of angels in Islam has both commonalities
with the Judeo-Christian tradition, but also some unique elements. This would
seem to suggest that Islam, whilst aware of the role and iconography of angels
in Judaism and Christianity, adapted these ideas for its own use, and
consequently an Islamic angelology evolved. The inclusion of a number of less
well known angels in Islam, such as Sadluqan and Mitatrush (Sandalphon and
Metatron) suggest a much later borrowing, after Islamic angelology had
developed and established itself.
The work appears to have been aimed at either a literate public or
students, both of whom would have found al-Suyuti’s approach of spiritual and
educational benefit. The world in which al-Haba’ik was written was in a
state of political and social decline, with the Mamluks falling to the rising
power of the Ottomans only a few years after al-Suyuti’s death. However, the culama’
and the higher education establishments in Cairo were able to flourish in this
period, a result of their independence through the waqf system. There also
seems to have been a deeper engagement with society at large in this period,
with whole genres emerging to reflect the needs of the contemporary society.
Many of these trends in late-Mamluk scholarship can be seen in
a-Suyuti’s Al-Haba ’ik JI akhbar al-mala ’ik, both in the main body of
the hadith compilation, as well as in the theological khatima
that follows it. The two sections act to convey the importance of angels in
Islam, belief in their existence, and their place in the universe. Al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba
’ik acts as a compendium of information about angels, suitable for both the
growing literate public and the significant amount of students that passed
through the Cairene higher education establishments.
Al-Suyuti is famed for his ability to compile collections of hadith
in original subject areas, and al-Haba’ik is no exception. Al-Suyuti’s
wide knowledge of hadith is shown throughout, with the work drawing a
wide range of authors and texts. Likewise, the khatima shows a strong
familiarity with many mutakallimun. There has been some analysis of
al-Suyuti’s use of sources in the past, and the analysis of the sources in al-Haba
’ik shows that the hadith are principally drawn from the formative
period of hadith scholarship in Islam, namely the third and fourth
centuries hijri; whereas the sources for the khatima are much
later. This shows that al-Suyuti wished to engage with more contemporary
sources in the theological postscript and accepted reputable collections of hadith
in the main body of the text. The analysis of the sources also suggests that
al-Suyuti used the works of Abu ‘l-Shaykh and al-Bayhaqi as Urtexte for
his new compilation. Although, the great number of other works incorporated in al-Haba’ik
shows that it was not simply an act of plagiarism. Above all, an analysis of
al-Suyuti’s sources in al-Haba’ikfiakhbar al-mala’ik reveals the
impressive skill that al-Suyuti demonstrates in the arrangement and compilation
of material. Al-Suyuti takes material from diverse sources and reshapes them
into an accessible and readable resource.
It is hoped that this thesis has widened the study of Islamic
angelology beyond the accounts of Muhammad’s micraj, the
Qur’an and the eschatological literature. Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik
fi akhbar al-mala’ik reveals the wonders of the angelic world, as well as
its intimacy with this world. At the heart of this relationship is that
fact that the angels are God’s emissaries, and that everything that the angels
do is done on behalf of God. The angels act as intermediaries between humans
and God and this intermediation works in both directions: the angels keep watch
over human actions on God’s behalf, but the angels also bring blessings to
humans, and pray for humanity, especially pious Muslims. It has not been
possible to explore all of the questions that the angelology of the hadïth
raise, but it is hoped that this thesis has brought the possibility of further
research into this interesting and exciting area of Islamic belief and
spirituality.
305
306
Appendix F
Summary of the Hadtth Not
Translated
388
Summary of Hadîth Not Translated
172 - 177 The Angel of the Rain
172
al-Baghawi and al-Tabarariî
An angel comes to Muhammad and
tells him that his community will kill Husayn at Karbala’.
An angel comes to Muhammad and
tells him that his community will kill Husayn at Karbala’.
When Abraham was cast into the fire
of Nimrod, the Guardian of the Rain prayed for him.
An angel drives the clouds and he has a rope.
176
al-Tayalisi, Ahmad and Muslim
A man hears a voice in the clouds
and then follows the clouds to Yemen; he then meets the Angel of the Rain.
When Abraham was cast into the fire
of Nimrod, the Guardian of the Rain prayed for him.
178 Ishaq ibn Rahwayh,
Ibn al-Mundhir, Ibn Abi Hatim, al-Tabarani and Abu ‘l-
Shaykh
The heaven of this world has
invisible waves; the Second Heaven is made of white marble; the Third Heaven is
made of iron, the Fourth Heaven is made of copper; the Fifth Heaven is made of
silver; the Sixth Heaven is made of gold; and the Seventh Heaven is made of
rubies; above that is a desert of light and no one knows what is above it
except God, Most High. The angel responsible for the veil is called Mitatrush.
256 Ibn Abi Shayba
A pious man wishes to worship God
in the sea and he is taken there by a group of people. The man asks to be left
by a tree in a river. An angel wanted the pious man to go to heaven, so God
commands the Angel of Death to take his soul.
257 - 267 Thunder and Lightning
Ahmad, al-Tirmidhi, al-Nasa’i, Ibn
al-Mundhir, Ibn Abi Hatim, Abu ‘l- Shaykh, Ibn Mardawayh, Abu Nucaym
and al-Diya’
An angel is responsible for the
clouds; the angel has a whip to drive the clouds; thunder is the sound of his
voice.
Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya
Thunder is an angel and lightning
is the sound of the clouds being driven with a whip.
Ibn al-Mundhir and Abu ‘l-Shaykh
Thunder is an angel.
al-Bukhari and Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya
Thunder is an angel.
Ibn Jarir and Ibn Mardawayh
Thunder is an angel; his voice is thunder and lightning is his
whip.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
Thunder is an angel.
Ibn Mardawayh
An angel is responsible for moving
the clouds; lightning is the raising of the angel’s whip and thunder is the
sound of the whip being cracked.
Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya
Lightning is an angel coming into view.
Ibn Abi Hatim and Abu ‘l-Shaykh
Thunder is the sound of the Angel
of the Cold clapping and lightning is when he looks at the people on Earth.
Ibn Mardawayh
There is an angel responsible for moving the clouds; he is called
Rufil.
Ibn Ab i Hatim
Lightning is an angel; the angel
has four faces: a face of a human, an eagle, a lion and a bull; lightning is
when the angel flicks its tail.
268 al-Tabarani and Abu
‘l-Shaykh
There is an angel in heaven called IsmaTl who is in charge of
70,000 angels.
269
Ibn Jaiïr, Ibn al-Mundhir, Ibn Abi Hatim, Ibn Mardawayh and
al-Bayhaqi During the micraj Muhammad sees Ismacil,
who is responsible for the Second Heaven; he is in charge of 70,000 angels;
each angel has an army of 100,000 angels.
There is an angel in heaven called Ismacil.
Before the Prophet’s death, Gabriel
comes to him three times; on the third day Gabriel shows Muhammad the angel
Ismacil, who is the Angel of Death.
Ismacil is an angel that
has command over 100,000 angels; each of these angels has command over 100,000
angels.
Ismacil is an angel that
has command over 70,000 angels; each of these angels has command over 70,000
angels.
274 Abu ‘l-Shaykh
Sadluqan is an angel; his toe is a ninth of the size of the seas.
275 - 276 Riyafil
275 |
Abu ‘l-Shaykh Riyafil was the angel that
accompanied Dhu ‘l-Qarnayn; he tells Dhu ‘l- Qarnayn how the angels worship
God in heaven. |
276 |
Ibn Ab i Hatim Dhu ‘l-Qarnayn asks Riyafil about the Water of Life. |
277 Ibn Abi Hatim
Dhu ‘l-Qarnayn was an angel.
278
Ibn cAbd al-Hakam, Ibn al-Mundhir, Ibn Abi Hatim and
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
Dhu ‘l-Qarnayn was an angel.
Dhu ‘l-Nurayn was an angel.
There is an angel in heaven in the
form of Cockerel; when the Cockerel praises God in heaven, the earthly
cockerels reply.
The Cockerel is underneath the
Throne; its claws are made of pearls, and its spurs are made of green
chrysolite; it causes the cockerels to crow at dawn.
The Cockerel’s feet are on the
Seventh Earth and it passes through the Seven Heavens.
283
al-Tabarâriî, Abu ‘l-Shaykh and al-Hakim
The Cockerel’s feet are on the
Seventh Earth and it passes through the Seven Heavens.
The Cockerel’s feet are on the
Seventh Earth, its head is under the Throne and its wings are in the air.
God has a Cockerel in the lowest
heaven; its chest is made of gold, its stomach is made of silver, and its legs
are made of sapphires, its claws are made of emeralds, and its claws are under
the lowest earth. It has a wing in the East and a wing in the West, its neck is
under the Throne and its crest is made of light, protecting the space between
the Throne and the Seat; it flutters his wings every night, three times.
God has a Cockerel; its two wings
are ornamented with chrysolite, pearls and sapphires. It has a wing in the East
and a wing in the West, its feet are on the lowest earth and its head is under
the throne. It causes the cockerels to crow at dawn. On the Day of Resurrection
it will be told to stop beating its wings.
287
al-Tabarâriî and Abu ‘l-Shaykh
The Cockerel’s feet are on the Seventh Earth and its neck is under
the Throne.
It calls out to the Earth three times each night.
Cockerels reply to the angels and praise God.
When the angel says ‘Praise the
Holy One’, the cockerels on earth flap their wings.
A cockerel crowed in the presence
of Solomon and he told people that it was praising God.
God has a Cockerel under the
Throne; its wings are in the air and its claws are on the earth; when it is
dawn, and it is the time of the call to prayer, it flaps its wings and the
cockerels praise God.
The Cockerel’s feet are on the
extremities of the Earth and its neck is under the Throne. It calls out to the
Earth three times each night.
God has a Cockerel; its claws are
on the lowest earth and its neck is under the Throne. It calls out when it is
the time for the ritual prayers; the cockerel calls out to the heavens: ‘Exalt!
Exalt!’ Then the Cockerel of the heavens and the cockerels of the earth call
out.
The Throne is on an angel made of
pearls in the image of a cockerel; its feet are on the boundaries of the lowest
[earth] and its neck is under the throne; its wings are in the East and the
West; when that angel worships God, there does not remain anything except the
praise of God.
298 - 299 The Angel of the
Mountains
298
Ahmad, al-Bukhari and Muslim
Ibn cAbd Yalayl ibn cAbd
Kalal was approached by Muhammad to enter into a treaty, but he refused. At
Qarn al-Thacalib Muhammad looked to heaven and saw Gabriel. Gabriel
tells him that God has sent him the Angel of the Mountains to help Muhammad.
The Angel of the Mountains asks Muhammad if he would like him to cause the
mountains to fall up Ibn cAbd Yalayl and his people. Muhammad says
no, but asks that their children may become Muslims.
Gabriel informs Muhammad that God
has sent him the Angel of the Mountains to help Muhammad. The Angel of the
Mountains tells Muhammad that he can do anything he wants. Muhammad says that
he does not want anything, other than for people to profess tawhld. The
Angel tells Muhammad that he is very merciful.
Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya
The souls of the believers are handed over to Ramya’il.
Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya
The souls of the unbelievers are handed over to Duma.
al-Tirmidhi, Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya, al-Àjum and al-Bayhaqi
An account of the events in the grave.
al-Tabarani and Ibn Mardawayh
A description of Munkar and Nakir.
Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya and Abu Nucaym
An account of human interaction
with angels, including references to: The Angel of the Womb, the angel that
accompanies an individual until puberty, The Noble Watching Scribes and the
Angels of the Grave (unnamed).
al-Bayhaqi
A description of Munkar and Nakir.
al-Tabarani
The names of the two angels who come to the grave are Munkar and
Nakir.
Ibn Ab i ‘l-Dunya
A description of Munkar and Nakir.
Juwaybir
An account of what happens at the
moment of death and the questions asked by the angels in the grave.
Abu Nucaym
There are three Angels of the Grave: Ankar, Nakur and Ruman.
Abu ‘l-Hasan al-Qattan
There are four Angels of the Grave:
Munkar, Nakir, Nakur and their master, Ruman.
Ibn al-Najjar
The angels of the daytime are kinder than the angels of the night.
Ibn al-Mundhir and Abu ‘l-Shaykh
There are two angels: one writes
down good deeds, the other bad deeds. The angel of good deeds is on the right,
the angel of bad deeds is on the left. If the person is walking, one is in
front and the other is behind; if the man is sitting, one is on the left and
the other is on the right; if the man is sleeping, one is by the man’s head and
the other is by his feet. There are two angels responsible for the man at night
and another two responsible for him during the day; a fifth angel is with the
man continuously.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
An exegesis of Q 6:60.
Ibn Abi Zamanin
There are four scribes: two for the
night and two for the day; they come together at the dawn prayers.
Malik, al-Bukhari, Muslim, al-Nasa’i
and Ibn Hibban
Angels follow people at night and
day and they come together at the dawn prayers.
Ibn al-Mundhir and Ibn Abi Hatim
An exegesis of Q 13:11; the scribes note down individuals’ deeds.
Ibn Jarir, Ibn al-Mundhir and Ibn Abi Hatim
An exegesis of Q 13:11; the scribes note down individuals’ deeds.
Ibn Jatïr and Ibn al-Mundhir
An exegesis of Q 13:11; the scribes note down individuals’ deeds.
[Ibn Jarir][CMXCIX]
[M]
and Ibn al-Mundhir
An exegesis of Q 13:11; the angels alternate between day and
night.
[Ibn Jarir] and Ibn al-Mundhir[MI]
An exegesis of Q 13:11 & 50:17;
if the person is walking, one is in front and the other is behind; if the man
is sitting, one is on the left and the other is on the right; the angel on the
right, writes things down without the approval of the angel on the left, but
the angel on the left has to seek approval from the angel on the right. if the
man is sitting, one is on the left and the other is on the right; if the man is
sleeping, one is by the man’s head and the other is by his feet.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
An exegesis of Q 13:11; the Scribes are ordered by God to do what
they do.
Ibn Jaiïr
An exegesis of Q 50:17; there are
two angels: one writes down good deeds, the other bad deeds. The angel of good
deeds is on the right; the angel of bad deeds is on the left.
al-Daylami
The two angels sit on the teeth,
and the person’s tongue is their pen and his spit their ink.
Abu Nucaym
The name of the Scribe of Misdeeds is Qacîd.
Ibn Jarir and Ibn Abi Halim
An exegesis of Q 50:17; the scribe writes
down everything that a person talks about; but on Thursday, the scribe notes
down both what the individual says and does.
Ibn Abi Shayba, Ibn al-Mundhir, Ibn
Abi Hatim, Ibn Mardawayh and al- Hakim
An exegesis of Q 50:17; the angel
only writes down deeds and sins, it does not write down mundane things.
Ibn al-Mundhir
The angel of good deeds only writes
down actions that reward and strengthen his companion.
Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya
The scribe of good deeds is on the
right and the scribe of bad deeds is on the left. When an individual does a
good deed, the angel writes it down ten times; when an individual does a bad
action, the angel of good deeds tells the angel of bad deeds to hold off
writing it against the individual until Thursday, in case the person repents.
Ibn Abi Shayba and al-Bayhaqi
Once a man was riding a donkey and
it stumbled and the man said: ‘I have stumbled’; the angel of bad deeds said
that it was a bad action and the angel of good deeds thought that it was a good
action; the angel of bad deeds was called away, but the angel of good deeds
remained and wrote it down.
Ibn al-Mundhir
The angels write down everything an individual says, even in
illness.
al-Khattib
The angels write down everything an individual says, even in
illness.
Ibn Jaiïr
There are two scribes at night and two during the day.
Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya
The human’s tongue is the angel’s pen and his spit his ink.
Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya
An exegesis of Q 50:17; the angel
on the right writes down good deeds and the one on the left, bad deeds.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
If an individual does a sinful act,
it is not recorded for three hours, so that the person can seek forgiveness.
al-Tabarani and Abu Nucaym
If an individual does a sinful act,
it is not recorded for six hours, so that the person can seek forgiveness.
al-Tabarani, Ibn Mardawayh and
al-Bayhaqi
Good actions are written down ten
times, but bad actions are only recorded once; if an individual does a sinful
act, it is not recorded for six or seven hours, so that the person can seek
forgiveness.
Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya and Ibn cAsakir
When a person dies, the angels
remain with the individual in the grave, in case the person seeks forgiveness.
Ibn Ab i ‘l-Dunya and al-Hakim
The first to know of an
individual’s death are the scribes, as they descend every day with the
individual’s rizq; when it is not given, they know that the person will
die.
Ibn Mardawayh
When the angels hand over their
reports, the angel of bad deeds leaves his records in al-Sijjm.
al-Tabarani
At the end of the day, the angel
looks at the devil’s book; if the angel finds any good actions recorded in the
devil’s book, the angel wipes it out and records it as a good action ten times.
When individuals go to sleep they should say 33 takbirs, 34 tahmids
and 33 tasbihs.
Ahmad
A man said ‘Praise be to God’ many
times and the angel noted it down and magnified them.
cAbd Allah and al-Dinawari
The angels take their records up to heaven after the evening
prayers.
Ibn al-Mubarak, Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya and Abu ‘l-Shaykh
When the angels hand over their
reports, the angel of bad deeds leaves his records in al-Sijjin and the
angel of good deeds leaves his records in cIlliyun.
al-Daylami
God told the scribes not to record anything while an individual is
angry.
Ibn Abi Shayba and al-Bayhaqî
The angel of bad deeds departs from
an individual when he is ill, and the angel of good deeds is instructed to note
down what the person normally did when he was not ill.
Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya and al-Bayhaqi
The angel of bad deeds does not
record anything when an individual is ill, and the angel of good deeds is
instructed to note down what the person normally did when he was not ill.
Ahmad, Ibn Abi Shayba and al-Bayhaqi
The angel of good deeds is
instructed to note down what the person normally did when he was not ill.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
Concerning how the angels write down their records.
al-Tirmidhi
When a servant tells a lie, the
angel is separated from him by a mile form the stench which comes from him.
Ibn Ab i Shayba
The angel of good deeds is
instructed to note down what the person normally did when he was not ill.
Ibn cAsakir
The angel of bad deeds does not
record anything when an individual is ill, and the angel of good deeds is
instructed to note down what the person normally did when he was not ill.
al-Hakim
When a person is ill, God reveals
to the Scribes: ‘I have bound my servant in some of my chains. If I take him, I
will forgive him; if I keep him alive, during the time of his illness I will
stop his sin being recorded.’
al-Tabarani
The angel of good deeds is
instructed to note down what the person normally did when he was not ill.
Ibn Abi Shayba, al-Tabarani,
al-Dâraqutriî and al-Bayhaqi
The angel of good deeds is
instructed to note down what the person normally did when he was not ill.
Ahmad and al-Bukhari
When an individual stands to pray,
he should not spit in front of him, for that is the direction of God; and he
should not spit on his right, as there is an angel on his right; he should spit
on his left or under his foot.
SacTd ibn Mansur
Individuals should keep their sandals
on their feet or place them in front of them; there is an angel on their right
and there is their brother’s angel on their left.
Ibn Abi Shayba
When an individual stands to pray,
he should not spit in front of him; and he should not spit on his right, as
there is an angel on his right; he should spit on his left or under his foot.
Ibn Abi Shayba
The Prophet saw spit on the qibla,
and he reproached the people and told them not to spit in front of them, or to
their right.
cAbd al-Razzaq and Ibn Abi Shayba
Fiddling with stones causes pain to an angel.
Ibn cAsakir
A man is told to spit on his left, not on his right.
Ibn Ab i Shayba
Fiddling with stones during prayer is a habit from the Devil.
Ibn Majah and al-Tabarani
A man says a prayer and the scribes
seek confirmation from God whether it is a good or bad action.
al-Bazzar
The Scribes record all actions.
al-Tabarani
Angels get embarrassed by nudity
and if there are any children present when an adult reveals him or herself, the
child could be taken by a devil.
al-Bayhaqi
Angels get embarrassed by nudity.
al-Bayhaqi
Angels remain with individuals
constantly, except when two people have sexual intercourse.
cAbd al-Razzaq
Angels stay away from two things: human excrement and sexual
intercourse.
al-Bazzar
Angels get embarrassed by nudity;
angels stay away from three things: human excrement, those in janaba and
those that need a major ritual ablution (ghusl).
Ibn Mardawayh
A man is praised for performing tayammum;
angels stay away from an individual in two cases: when he is on the toilet and
when he is with his wife; a person should conceal himself behind a wall or a
camel.
al-Dinawari
If a man finishes the Qur’an, the angel kisses him between the
eyes.
Ibn Abi Shayba
Whoever uncovers his genitals, the angel has turned away from him.
cAbd al-Razzaq and Ibn Abi Shayba
The angels never look when you reveal yourself.
Ibn Ab i Shayba
When a man goes to bed virtuously, the angel anoints him.
al-Bayhaqi
The angel of good deeds is
instructed to note down what the person normally did when he was not ill.
al-Tayalisi and al-Bayhaqi
The angel of good deeds is
instructed to note down what the person normally did when he was not ill.
al-Hakim
The angel of good deeds is
instructed to note down what the person normally did when he was not ill.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh and al-Bayhaqi
When an individual dies, the angels
go up to heaven, but God tells them to return to the graves of the faithful and
worship God there.
al-Daraqutm
When an individual dies, the angels
go up to heaven, but God tells them to return to the graves of the faithful and
worship God there.
Ibn al-Jawzi
When an individual dies, the angels
go up to heaven, but God tells them to return to the graves of the faithful and
worship God there.
Ibn Ab i ‘l-Dunya
The angels thank or curse their
companion when he dies, depending on whether the person has lived a godly or
ungodly life.
Ibn Ab i ‘l-Dunya
The angels thank or curse their
companion when he dies, depending on whether the person has lived a godly or
ungodly life.
Ibn cAsakir
When a servant repents, God makes the Scribes forget his sin.
cAbd al-Razzaq, Sammuya and
al-Tabarani
Believers should keep their beards and teeth clean for the
Scribes.
Abu Nucaym
Believers should keep their beards and teeth clean for the
Scribes.
Abu Nucaym
Believers should clean their teeth,
as they are the seats of the Scribes; there is nothing more harmful to them
than a remnant of food.
al-Shîrazi
Whoever takes a bath uncovered, the two angels curse him.
al-Dinawari
When an individual thinks about doing
a good action, it is written down once; when the individual does it, it is
written down ten times; when a servant thinks of doing a bad action, it is not
written down, but is written down once, when he does it. The angels know about
an individual’s intentions by smell.
al-Dinawari
Every person has five angels: one
on the left, one on the right, on in front and one behind and one above him.
al-Dinawari
An exegesis of Q 50:18; the angels are between a person’s two
canines.
Ahmad
A person does not speak good things, without the angels saying
much of it.
al-Daylami
Believers should refrain from
kneeling down after sunset as it is painful for the two angels.
Ibn Jarir
There is an angel on the right,
which is responsible for good deeds and which has authority over the angel on
the left. If a person does a good action, it is recorded ten times; when a
person does a bad action, the angel asks the one of the right if it can write
the action down; the angels on the right says, ‘No’ as the person may seek
forgiveness. The angel on the left asks the angel on the right three times,
after which the angel on the right tells the angel on the left to write it
down.
An exegesis of Q 50:18 & 13:11;
there is an angel on a person’s forehead; when he bows down, the angel raises
him; when the person is proud, the angel beats him. There are two angels on a
person’s lips and they only record when a person says: ‘God bless him and grant
him salvation.’ There is an angel standing on your mouth which prevents snakes
from entering; and
two angels on your eyes. There are
ten angels and two sets for the day and the night, making twenty angels in
total.
cAbd al-Razzaq, al-Firyabi, Ibn
al-Mundhir and Ibn Abi Halim
An exegesis of Q 13:11; when a person dies, the angels leave an
individual.
Ibn Janr, Ibn Abi Hatim and Abu ‘l-Shaykh
An exegesis of Q 13:11; the angels protect an individual from jinn.
Ibn Jaiïr
The angels protect an individual
while he sleeps; nothing can kill him until his ajal.
Ibn Jaiïr
The angels protect an individual
while he sleeps; nothing can kill him until his ajal.
Ibn Jaiïr
The angels protect an individual
while he sleeps; nothing can kill him until his ajal.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
An exegesis of Q 13:11; every
individual has two angels during the day and two angels during the night; they
guard the individual.
Sacid ibn Mansur, Ibn Jarir, Ibn al-Mundhir and Ibn Abi
Hatim
An exegesis of Q 13:11; concerning a variant reading of Ibn cAbbas.
Ibn Jaiir
An exegesis of Q 13:11; concerning a variant reading of Abu Ibn Kacb.
Sacid ibn Mansur, Ibn Jarir and Ibn Abi Hahin
An exegesis of Q 13:11; concerning a variant reading of Ibn cAbbas.
Ibn al-Mundhir and Abu ‘l-Shaykh
An exegesis of Q 13:11; the angels
protect an individual; nothing can kill him until his ajal.
Abu Da’ud, Ibn Abu ‘l-Dunya and Ibn
cAsakir
The angels protect an individual;
nothing can kill him until his ajal.
Ibn Ab i ‘l-Dunya
Three hundred and sixty angels are
responsible for a believer, which protect him; these include: an angel for sight,
seven angels who drive away events which have not been ordained. If you were
able to, you would see devils everywhere stretching their hands out to take
people.
404
Ibn Jaiïr and Abu ‘l-Shaykh
If you were able to, you would see
devils everywhere stretching their hands out to take people.
The angels show people the rewards
of the pious and the punishments of the impious, so that they may learn.
A believer and an unbeliever go
fishing. The believer says a prayer to God before casting his net, and the
unbeliever prays to his gods, before casting his. The unbeliever catches many
fish, but the believer does not. Eventually the believer catches a fish, but
when he picks it up, it wriggles out of his hand and returns to the sea. The
believer’s angel complains to God, but God shows the angel the places set for
the believer and the unbeliever in heaven, and the angel sees that the believer
receives a great reward.
407 - 408 The Angels Responsible for the Leaves of the Trees
Angels write down and record details about leaves as they fall off
trees.
An angel helps a Muslim to find his way when he is lost on his way
to Mecca.
409 - 410 Sharahil and Harahil
Sharahil is the angel responsible
for the night; Harahil is the angel responsible for the day.
Unnamed angels are responsible for the coming of the day and the
night.
411 Ibn cAsakir
Irtiya’il removes grief from human hearts.
412
Ibn Ab i ‘l-Dunya and Ibn cAsakir
Irtiya’il removes grief from human hearts.
413 - 414 The Angel responsible for Cemeteries
An angel is responsible for
cemeteries; the angel calls to those burying the deceased.
An angel is responsible for
cemeteries; the angel calls to those burying the deceased.
415 - 422 The Angel which bears the Fish and the Rock
415
al-Bazzar, Ibn cAddi and Abu ‘l-Shaykh
Under the earth is a sea, which is above a rock, which is above a
fish.
Under the earth is a sea, which is above a rock, which is above a
fish.
Under the earth is a sea, which is above a rock, which is above a
fish.
Four angels surround the rock at the bottom of the Earth.
Under the earth is a sea, which is above a rock, which is above a
fish.
There are four angels responsible for each of the corners of the
rock
The distance between each of the
earths is 500 years and under the Seventh Earth is a sea, which is above a
rock, which is above a fish.
Q 68:1; under the earth is a fish;
under the fish is a sea; under the sea is an angel; the angel is on a rock; and
the rock is on the wind.
423 - 429 The Guardians of the Winds
423 Ibn Ab i Hatim and
al-Hakim
The wind is kept in the Second
Earth and was released when God destroyed the people of cÀd.
The wind was released when God destroyed the people of cÀd.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh,
al-Daraqutm, Ibn Mardawayh and Ibn cAsakir
Water and wind
are only dropped onto the Earth by a set amount, except for Noah’s flood and
the destruction of the people of cÀd.
al-Firyâbî,
cAbd ibn Hamid and Ibn Jarir
Water and wind
are only dropped onto the Earth by a set amount, except for Noah’s flood and
the destruction of the people of cÀd.
Ibn Jarir
Water and wind
are only dropped onto the Earth by a set amount, except for Noah’s flood and
the destruction of the people of cÀd.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
The wind was
released when God destroyed the people of cÀd.
Ibn cAsakir
The wind was
released when God destroyed the people of cÀd.
430 - 434 The
Angel of the Sun
430
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
The noblest
angel is the Angel of the Sun and he is the most influential over the Angel of
Death.
431
Ibn Ab i Shayba
The sun is
driven by 360 angels.
432
al-Tabarani,
Abu ‘l-Shaykh and Ibn Mardawayh Seven angels are responsible for the sun.
433
Ibn al-Mundhir
The sun does
not rise until 70,000 angels have called out to it.
434
Ibn Ab i Hatim
and Abu ‘l-Shaykh Two angels are responsible for the sun.
435
The Angel of
the Shade
Abraham was protected by the Angel
of the Shade when he was thrown into the Fire of Nimrod.
436 - 443 The Angel of the Womb
436
Ahmad, al-Bukharî and Muslim
One angel is responsible for the
sperm, another for the clot and another for the embryo; God predestines whether
the individual will be happy or wretched, male or female, and the individual’s rizq
and ajal.
After 40 days and angel comes to
womb and writes down whether the individual will be happy or wretched, male of
female, short or tall; and the individual’s rizq, health and ajal.
438
al-Bazzar, Abu Yacla and al-Daraqutm
God predestines whether the
individual will be happy or wretched and male or female.
After 42 days an angel comes to the
womb; an account of embryogenesis; the angel writes down whether the individual
will be male or female and the individual’s rizq.
After 40 days an angel comes to the
womb; an account of embryogenesis; the angel writes down whether the individual
will be male or female and the individual’s ajal.
After 72 days an angel comes to the
womb; an account of embryogenesis; the angel writes down whether the individual
will be male or female and the individual’s ajal.
442
cUthman ibn Sacid
al-Darimi
After 40 days an angel comes to the
womb; an account of embryogenesis; the angel writes down whether the individual
will be wretched or happy.
An account of embryogenesis.
444 Abu ‘l-Shaykh
An angel is responsible for the
foetus; when the mother lies down, the angel raises the foetus’ head so that it
does not drown in blood.
445 - 447 The Angel responsible for the Blessing of the Prophet
If a Muslim blesses the Prophet,
God blesses him with a blessing that is worth ten good deeds and which cancels
out ten bad deeds.
Whenever anyone blesses the Prophet, the angels bless the
individual tenfold.
Whenever anyone blesses the Prophet,
the angels bless him tenfold; whenever anyone wishes the Prophet peace, the
angels wish the individual peace tenfold.
448
The Angels which Creates Jewellery
for the People in the Garden
448 Abu ‘l-Shaykh
God has an angel that makes jewellery for the inhabitants of
paradise.
449 - 457 The Angel of the Prophet’s Prayer
449
al-cUqayli, al-Tabarani, Abu ‘l-Shaykh and Ibn
al-Najjar
An angel stands on the Prophet’s
grave and tells the Prophet who has blessed him.
An angel stands on the Prophet’s
grave and tells the Prophet who has blessed him.
An angel stands on the Prophet’s
grave and tells the Prophet who has blessed him.
An angel stands on the Prophet’s
grave and tells the Prophet who has blessed him.
An angel stands on the Prophet’s
grave and tells the Prophet who has blessed him.
An angel stands on the Prophet’s
grave and tells the Prophet who has blessed him.
An angel stands on the Prophet’s
grave and tells the Prophet who has blessed him.
An angel stands on the Prophet’s
grave and tells the Prophet who has blessed him and extra blessings are granted
for those that do so on Friday and Friday nights.
457
Ahmad, al-Nasa’i, Ibn Hibban, al-Tabarani, al-Hakim, Abu ‘l-Shaykh
and al- Bayhaqi
God has angels that tell the Prophet of the peace of the
community.
458 - 460 The Angel of the Yemeni Corner
458
Ibn Abi Shayba and al-Bayhaqi
An angel prays for Muslims as they pass the Yemeni Corner of the
Kacba.
An angel prays for Muslims as they pass the Yemeni Corner of the
Kacba.
An angel prays for Muslims as they pass the Yemeni Corner of the
Kacba.
461 The Angel responsible for the Stoning Pillars of Mina
An angel is responsible for the jimar.
462 - 465 The Angel responsible for the Qur’an
If someone pronounces the words of
the Qur’an incorrectly whilst reciting it, an angel corrects it.
If someone pronounces the words of
the Qur’an incorrectly whilst reciting it, an angel corrects it.
If someone pronounces the words of
the Qur’an incorrectly whilst reciting it, an angel corrects it.
If someone pronounces the words of
the Qur’an incorrectly whilst reciting it, an angel corrects it.
466 The Angel Responsible for saying ‘The Most Merciful...’
466 al-Hakim
An angel blesses and grants the
requests of those that say: ‘The Most Merciful of those that Merciful’ three
times.
467 - 470 The Angel responsible for the prayer of those hidden 467 Ibn Sacd
Two angels are responsible for dealing with prayers for the
deceased.
468
Ibn Ab i Shayba, Muslim, Abu Da’ud and Ibn Majah
An angel prays for someone who prays for the deceased.
An angel prays for someone who prays for the deceased.
An angel prays for someone who prays for the deceased.
471 The Angel responsible for Crying
A human does not cry until an angel rubs the individual’s liver
with his wing.
472 The Angels responsible for Faith, Life and other things
After the scattering of the people
of Babel, a number of angels disperse to different areas of the world.
473 The Angel responsible for Livelihoods
Angels are responsible for giving sustenance to humans.
474 The Angel responsible for Ritual Prayer
474
al-Tabaran and al-Diya’ al-Maqdisi
God has an angel that calls out to humans at the times of the
ritual prayers.
475 - 477 The Angel responsible for funerary rites
Angels walk with funerary processions.
Angels walk with funerary processions.
Angels walk with funerary processions.
478 - 484 The Angel that delights Hasan and Husayn
478
al-Tabaranl and Ibn cAsakir
Muhammad is told that Hasan and
Husayn will be responsible for the young men in heaven.
Muhammad is told that Hasan and
Husayn will be responsible for the young men in heaven and that Fatima will be
responsible for the women.
480
Ibn Mandah, Abu Nucaym and Ibn cAsakir
Muhammad is told that Hasan and
Husayn will be responsible for the young men in heaven and that Fatima will be
responsible for the women.
If an angel comes down to earth, it has never been down to earth
before.
Muhammad is told that Hasan and
Husayn will be responsible for the young men in heaven.
Muhammad is told that Hasan and
Husayn will be responsible for the young men in heaven.
Muhammad is told that Hasan and
Husayn will be responsible for the young men in heaven.
485 The Angel responsible for the plants
Angels are responsible for plants;
the distance between the ankles and shoulders of the Bearers of the Throne is a
distance of 500 years.
486 - 487 The Angel responsible for the Sea
486 Ahmad and Abu
‘l-Shaykh
An angel is responsible for the
sea; when it puts its foot into the sea, the sea rises and when it lifts it
out, the sea falls; this is the ebb and flow of the sea.
487 |
Ibn Abi Hatim An angel is responsible for the
sea; if it did not hold it back, it would flood the earth. |
488 - 489 The Angel responsible for the Noble Tomb
488 |
Abu ‘l-Shaykh Angels visit the Tomb of the Prophet. |
489 |
Al-Azraqi 70,000 angels pray in the Bayt
al-macmur, then they circumambulate the Kacba. |
On the cherubim; the distance
between their collar bone and their earlobes is a distance of 500 years.
The Spirit is under the wings of the Cherubim, who carry the
Throne.
492 al-Bayhaqi
The spirits are in the Seventh
Heaven; on the Night of Power they descend to Earth and pray for all those who
are praying in the mosque.
493 - 545 On the Characteristics of the Angels
An unnamed angel can devour the world in one bite.
The distance between an unnamed
angel’s shoulder and ear is a distance of 100 years.
Concerning an angel made of light and snow.
Concerning an angel made of snow and fire.
Concerning an angel made of snow and fire.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
The angels fall silent when they see an unnamed angel with 360
heads.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
The angels fall silent when they
see an unnamed angel, which has a vast number of eyes and tongues which praise
God. The Bearers of the Throne have horns, and the distance between the horns
and their heads is 500 years.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
There are 70,000 angels standing in ranks.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
Concerns eight angels which praise God.
Ibn cAsakir
The Prophet saw an angel that was the same size as the Kacba.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
The angels watch and comment on the behaviour of humans.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
Concerning the angel at the gate of Heaven.
Abu Ya’la and Ibn cAsakir
The angels say ‘Praise the Holy Angel’ every morning.
Ibn cAsakir
The angels say ‘Praise the Holy Angel’ every morning.
al-Tabaranî
An angel says ‘Praise the Holy Angel’ every morning.
Ahmad, al-Bukhari, Muslim,
al-Tirmidhi, Ibn Hibban and Abu Nucaym Concerning the judgement of humans.
cAbd ibn Hamid and al-Hakim
Angels come down from heaven and stop to listen to people
remembering God.
Ibn al-Najjar
Angels come down from heaven and stop to listen to people
remembering God.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
The Throne is made of rubies; angels have 70,000 wings
al-Tabarani
Angels accompany cavalry
detachments, except groups in which the horses are adorned with bells.
Ibn Lal
Concerning the creation of the angels.
al-Daylami
God has made angels responsible for the haram.
al-Daylami
Angels talk about what humans say.
al-Daylami
Angels cry out every night: ‘Sons
of the forty seeds, the time for harvest is approaching.’
al-Hakim and al-Bayhaqi
The bayt al-macmur
is in the Seventh Heaven and 70,000 angels visit it everyday and will not
return to it.
al-cUqayli, Ibn al-Mundhir, Ibn Abi Hatim and Ibn
Mardawayh
Gabriel enters a river of paradise
and from the drops of rain, angels are created. The bayt al-macmur
is in the Seventh Heaven and 70,000 angels visit it everyday and will not
return to it.
al-Tabarani and Ibn Mardawayh
Concerning the micraj;
Muhammad is shown the bayt al-macmur in the Seventh Heaven;
he is told that 70,000 angels visit it everyday and will not return to it.
Ishaq ibn Rahwayh, Ibn Jarir, Ibn
al-Mundhir, Ibn Abi Hatim and al-Bayhaqi The bayt al-macmur
is in the Seventh Heaven and 70,000 angels visit it everyday and will not
return to it.
al-Bayhaqi
The bayt al-macmur
is in the Seventh Heaven and 70,000 angels visit it everyday and will not
return to it.
al-Jindi
The bayt al-macmur
is in the Seventh Heaven and 70,000 angels visit it everyday and will not
return to it.
cAbd al-Razzaq, Ibn Jarir, Ibn
al-Mundhir and al-Jindi
Adam is shown the bayt al-macmur
and told to build the Kacba in the same form.
Ibn Jaiïr
The Kacba is built in the
place where Adam descended to earth and it is in the same form as the bayt
al-macmur.
al-cAzraqi
When Adam feared Satan, he sought
help from God and God sent angels to protect him in the Kacba and
made it a sacred site.
Hannad al-Sari
There are two angels in heaven who comment on hypocrisy and greed.
Ibn Majah
Gabriel tells Muhammad that the
angels seen at the Battle of Badr were the best of the angels.
al-Tabarani
Gabriel tells Muhammad that the
angels seen at the Battle of Badr were the best of the angels.
Ibn Jarir, Abu Yacla,
al-Hakim and al-Bayhaqi
At the Battle of Badr, Gabriel came
down with 1000 angels on the Prophet’s right hand side, and Michael and Israfil
came down with 1000 angels each on the Prophet’s left hand side.
Ibn Ab i Shayba
Angels have not died, except at the Battle of Badr.
al-Tabarani
A detachment of angels came down to
Earth at the Battle of Badr, wearing white turbans; at the Battle of Hunayn
they wore red turbans; the angels have not been hit on any day other than the
Battle of Badr.
Ibn Ab i Hatim
The angels killed at Badr by hitting people on their necks.
al-Tabarani
The detachment of angels wore black
turbans at the Battle of Badr and red turbans at the Battle of Hunayn.
Ibn Jaiïr
The angels wore yellow turbans at the Battle of Badr.
Ibn Ab i Shayba and Ibn Jarir
The angels were the first rank at the Battle of Badr.
Ibn Abi Shayba, Ibn al-Mundhir and Ibn Abi Hatim
The angels’ horses had white wool on the sides of their faces and
their noses.
cAbd ibn Hamid and Ibn Jarir
Q 3:125; The angels’ horses had
white wool on the sides of their faces and their noses.
Ahmad and Muslim
A Muslim became harassed by a
polytheist and then he heard the cracking of a whip behind him, and the sound
of horse and the polytheist was struck by the whip and went green. The Prophet
told him it was from the auxiliaries in the Third Heaven.
Abu Nucaym al-Bayhaqi
At the Battle of Hunayn someone saw a man in white.
al-Wahidl and al-Bayhaqi
Muhammad asks Gabriel about the angels at the Battle of Badr.
Abu Nucaym
A vision concerning Abu Bakr and cUmar.
al-Hakim
The Prophet has a dream about a black sheep; Abu Bakr interprets
the vision
Ibn Sacd
The Prophet has a vision in which
he sees Hanzala ibn Abi cAmir being washed by angels.
al-Tabarani and Abu ‘l-Shaykh
The Prophet sees a vision of an
angel standing on earth, with one foot on the ground and the other on top of
the sky.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
The space between an angel’s
earlobe and collarbone is a distance of 7000 years.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
Angels are created and do not have hearts.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
Q 21:20; angels were created to glorify God.
al-Bukhari
Angels were created to be God’s servants.
Ibn al-Mundhir, Ibn Abi Hatim, Abu ‘l-Shaykh and al-Bayhaqi
Q 21:20; angels were created to serve and worship God.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
A prayer of the angels.
al-Bayhaqi
Angels were created standing in ranks, kneeling and prostrating.
Ahmad
Devils are warded off with the words ‘What God wills’.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
Concerning the creation of the angels.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
The angels worship God in heaven during the night.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
God does not talk to the angels.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
The decrees of God pass through the heavens.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
Wahy sounds like ringing to the angels and when they hear it, they
think it is the Day of Resurrection.
al-Tabaranî, Ibn Mardawayh, Abu ‘l-Shaykh and al-Bayhaqi
The decrees of God pass through the
heavens and wahy sounds like ringing to the angels; when they hear it,
they think it is the Day of Resurrection.
Abu Nucaym
An angel on earth does not go up to
heaven without saying ‘There is no power or strength, save in God.’
al-Khattib and al-Daylami
An angel on earth does not go up to
heaven without saying ‘There is no power or strength, save in God.’
Abu ‘l-Shaykh and Ibn cAsakir
cUmar wished to punish a hypocrite, who performed the ritual
prayers sitting down.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh, al-Hakim and al-Bayhaqi
Angels were created standing in
ranks, kneeling and prostrating; an angelic prayer.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh.
Angelic prayers.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
Angelic prayers.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
A description of each of the Seven Heavens and the forms of the
angels.
al-Shafi^i
Adam performs the pilgrimage and is
told by the angels that they have been performing it for 2000 years.
SacTd ibn Mansur, Ibn Abi Shayba and al-Bayhaqi
Angels are present with humans when they pray.
al-Bayhaqi
Angels are present with humans when they pray.
cAbd al-Razzaq and Sacid
ibn MansUr
Angels are present with humans when they pray.
cAbd al-Razzaq
Angels are present with humans when they pray.
cAbd al-Razzaq
Angels are present with humans when they pray.
Ahmad ibn cAbd al-Rahman ibn cAmir
A Muslim sees angels praying in a mosque at dawn.
SacTd ibn MansUr and Ibn Abi Shayba
A Muslim sees angels praying in a mosque at dawn.
SacTd ibn MansUr and Ibn Abi Shayba
The angels dislike those who rested
on the qibla after two prostrations during the dawn prayers.
al-Daylami
God made the acceptance of tawhid incumbent on humans and
angels.
al-Bayhaqi
Angels pray for humans for as long as they are prostrating.
AbU cUbayd
cUmar recited Surat al-Fatiha and said that it was the
prayer that the angels said during the night.
SacTd ibn MansUr
Angels are present with humans when they pray.
al-Bayhaqi
Angels are present with humans when they pray during the night.
al-Daylami
Angels are present with humans when they pray.
ai-Rai’icT
A description of an unnamed angel
with 1000 heads, each head with a 1000 faces (etc.)
Malik, al-Bukhaiï and Muslim
A house with idols is not entered by angels.
Malik, Ahmad, al-Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah
A house with idols is not entered by angels.
Ibn Majah
A house with idols and dogs is not entered by angels.
al-Baghawi, al-Tabarani and Abu Nucaym.
Angels do not accompany travellers with bells.
Ahmad, Muslim, Abu Da’ud and al-Tirmidhi
Angels do not accompany travellers with bells or a dog.
Ahmad
Angels do not accompany riding beasts with bells or go into houses
with bells.
Sacid ibn Mansur
Angels do not enter a house with urine in it.
al-Tabarani
Angels do not enter a house with urine in it.
Ibn Ab i Shayba
Angels do not enter a house with a tambourine in it.
Ibn Ab i Shayba
Angels do not enter a house with a tambourine in it.
al-Tabarani
Angels do not enter a house with
someone who is in a state of junub or anointed with khaluq in it.
Ahmad and Abu Da’ud
Angels do not attend the funerals
of unbelievers, or those anointed with saffron or who are ritually impure.
al-Tabarani
An angel does not come near a group that has severed the bonds of
kinship.
Abu Da’ud, al-Nasa’i and al-Hakim
Angels do not enter a house with
someone who is in a state of junub in it, or if there is a dog or idols
in it.
al-Nasa’i
Angels do not accompany travellers who are carrying a cowbell.
Abu Da’ud
Angels do not accompany travellers who are carrying a cowbell.
al-Bayhaqi
Angels pray for individuals for as long as their tables are set.
al-Bukhaiï, Muslim and al-Bayhaqi
Angels do not go near someone who has eaten garlic, onion or leek.
al-Bayhaqi
Angels are hurt by whatever hurts humans.
SacTd ibn Mansur
A person is told to wash the head
of someone who has died with water and to sprinkle his bed with water.
Ibn Mandah
A man says a prayer before going to bed.
al-Tirmidhi, al-Hakim and al-Bayhaqi
An angelic prayer.
Ahmad
The angels are proud of pious men.
Ibn cAsakir
Angels reward those who bless the prophet on Thursday and Friday
nights.
Ibn cAsakir
Angels come to Damascus on Friday nights and pray for the sick.
al-Bayhaqi
Angels reward those who bless the prophet on Thursday and Friday
nights.
al-Daylami
Angels reward those who bless the prophet on Thursday and Friday
nights.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
Adam performs the pilgrimage and is
told by the angels that they have been performing it for 2000 years.
Ibn Ab i Shayba
When a specific prayer of
supplication is used, 70,000 angels pray for the believer to be forgiven.
Ibn Abi Shayba and al-Khara’iti
People are protected from the
devils if they say different prayers; the angels comment that they have acted
correctly.
Ibn Sasari
People are protected from the
devils if they say different prayers; the angels comment that they have acted
correctly.
Ibn Majah
People are protected from the
devils if they say different prayers; the angels comment that they have acted
correctly.
al-Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Da’ud,
al-Tirmidhi, al-Nasa’i and Ibn Majah Whoever says ‘Amen’ after the imam, the
angels say ‘Amen’ and the individual’s sins are forgiven.
al-Nasa’i and Ibn Majah
Whoever says ‘Amen’ after the imam,
the angels say ‘Amen’ and the individual’s sins are forgiven.
cAbd al-Razzaq
Whoever says ‘Amen’ after the imam,
the angels say ‘Amen’ and the individual’s sins are forgiven.
cAbd al-Razzaq
Whoever says ‘Amen’ after the imam,
the angels say ‘Amen’ and the individual’s sins are forgiven.
Malik, al-Bukhaiï, Muslim, Abu Da’ud, al-Tirmidhi and al-Nasa’i
Whoever says ‘Amen’ after the imam,
the angels say ‘Amen’ and the individual’s sins are forgiven.
SacTd ibn Mansur and Ibn
Abi Shayba The first rank is like a rank of angels
Muslim
The ranks of angels are crammed tight, one after the other.
Ibn cAsakir
The angels bless those who wear turbans on Fridays.
al-Tayalisi
The angels stretch out their wings for those who seek knowledge.
al-Bayhaqi
The angels stretch out their wings for those who seek knowledge.
al-Tabarani
The angels do not see any human entertainment except for betting
and fighting.
al-Daylami
The angels wear the izar when they are in the presence of
God.
al-Tayalisi and al-Bayhaqi
The angels were wearing turbans at the battles of Badr and Hunayn.
Ibn cAsakir
The angels wear turbans.
al-Tabarani
The angels wear turbans.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
Concerning the creation of horses.
cAbd al-Razzaq, cAbd ibn
Hamid and Ibn Jarir
The angels wore yellow turbans and
rode black and white horses at the Battle of Badr.
al-Bayhaqi
When a believer is ill, two angels are responsible for the
individual.
Malik and al-Bayhaqi
When a believer is ill, two angels are responsible for the
individual.
al-Tabarani and Ibn al-Sunni
When someone sneezes and says ‘Lord
of the Two Worlds’, the angels bless the individual.
al-Bayhaqi
When someone sneezes and says ‘Lord
of the Two Worlds’, the angels bless the individual.
al-Bukhari
The angels come down to Earth in the clouds.
al-Tabarani
Angels give people wisdom.
al-Bazzar and al-Bayhaqi
Angels give people wisdom.
Abu ‘l-Fath al-Azdi
God listened to the prayers of Moses.
al-Khara’iti
On the right hand side of the
Throne is someone who calls out to the Seven Heavens.
Abu Nucaym
If God loves a servant, He casts
His love into the hearts of His angels; if God hates a servant, He casts His
hate into the hearts of the angels.
al-Tabarani
The angels bless the child of a slave-girl.
al-Tabaranî
When a daughter is born to a man,
the angels bless the family and cover her in their wings.
Muhammad ibn Nasr, Abu Yacla’,
Ibn Hibban and al-Hakim
When someone goes to bed, an angel
comes to him and encourages him to do a good action as his last action of the
day; a devil also comes to him and encourages him to do a bad action as his
last action of the day. Whichever action the individual chooses, the respective
angel or devil remains with him for the night. The same happens when the
individual wakes in the morning.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
When someone wakes up in the morning,
an angel comes to him and encourages him to do a good action as his first
action of the day; a devil also comes to him and encourages him to do a bad
action as his first action of the day. Whichever action the individual chooses,
the respective angel or devil remains with him for the day.
al-Tabaranî
The angels reward the saying of a particular prayer during the
ritual prayers.
al-Tabaranî
The angels reward the saying of a particular prayer during the
ritual prayers.
al-Tabaranî
The angels reward the saying of a particular prayer during the
ritual prayers.
al-Bayhaqî
A man should not engage in trade or
military leadership until he is able to do so.
al-Bayhaqî
When God hates a servant, God sends
an angel to the individual to surround him with luxury.
al-Tabaranî and al-Bayhaqî
God puts believers to the test.
Ibn cAddî
The angels rejoice in believers who dye their hair green (i.e.
with henna)
cAbd al-Razzaq and al-Bayhaqi
A devil comes to a man in human
form and befriends him. An angel also comes to him in human form and befriends
him. The devil recognises that the angel is an angel, but the man does not. The
angel then kills the devil. The man and the angel then receive hospitality and
the angel steals a silver bowl. The man says that he can not be a friend of
someone who commits murder and steals. The angel then explains to the man that
the other ‘human’ was a devil who wanted to kill him.
al-Bayhaqi and Ibn cAsakir
Concerning the creation of Adam and the protests of the angels.
al-Bayhaqi
The angels do not have names in heaven.
al-Tabarani
Concerning the creation of Adam and the protests of the angels.
Ibn cAsakir
Concerning the creation of Adam and the protests of the angels.
al-Bukhari and Muslim
Angels are ashamed of nudity.
al-Tabarani
Angels bear witness to God in heaven.
al-Tabarani
Angels led Solomon to making the correct legal judgments.
Ahmad and Ibn Majah
There is no servant that prays for
the Prophet, without the angels praying for him.
al-Tabarani, al-Hakim and al-Bayhaqi
The first to enter the Garden are
martyrs and the angels will praise God for them.
Ahmad
The first to enter the Garden are
martyrs and the angels will praise God for them.
Ibn Majah
The Prophet tells someone about the Gates of Heaven.
al-Tabarani
The angels are proud of the Muslims during Ramadan.
Ahmad, Muslim, al-Tirmidhi and al-Nasa’i
Muhammad berates a group for
sitting down whilst praising God and tells them that Gabriel boasts about the
Muslims in heaven.
al-Bazzar, Ibn Jarir and al-Bayhaqi
On the Day of Resurrection, God will boast to his angels about his
creations.
al-Daylami
God boasts about humans to the angels.
Ibn Hibban, al-Hakim and al-Bayhaqi
God boasts about humans to the angels.
Ahmad and al-Tabarani
God boats about humans to the angels.
Ibn cAddi, Abu Nucaym and al-Bayhaqi
God boasts about humans and those
that circumambulate the Kacba to the angels.
al-Khattib
God boasts about humans and those
that fight in His path to the angels; the angels pray for a human as he fights
in God’s path.
Ahmad
When a servant sleeps whilst prostrating, God boasts about him to
the angels.
al-Bayhaqi
On the Night of Power, Gabriel
comes down to Earth with a troop of angels who pray for all those who are
praying and remembering God. When it is cId, God boasts about them
to the angels.
al-Bayhaqi
On the Night of Power, Ridwan opens
the Gates of Heaven and Malik shuts the gates of Hell. Gabriel comes down to
earth with a troop of angels and places a green flag on top of the Kacba.
Gabirel has 600 wings.
al-Bayahqi
The angels bless those who are
performing the pilgrimage and embrace those who make the journey on foot.
Ahmad
Angels curse people who make a sign to their brother with an iron
object.
Ibn Jarir, Ibn Abi Hatim and Abu ‘l-Shaykh
The angels were created on
Wednesday, the jinn were created on Thursday and Adam was created on Friday.
Ibn Jarir
A narrative concerning the creation of Adam.
Ibn Ab i ‘l-Dunya
A narrative concerning the creation of Adam.
Ibn Jafir, Ibn Abi Hatim and Ibn cAsakir
When the Earth was created, it was spread
out from the Kacba and the angels were the first to circumambulate
it.
682
683
684
685
686
687
688
689
690
691
692
693
694
744 On the Circumambulation of the Holy House
al-Jindî
God sent an angel to circumambulate the Kacba.
al-Jindi
Adam is told by the angels that they had been circumambulating the
Kacba for 2000 years.
al-Azraqi
Concerning the creation of Adam, the protestation of the angels
and the building of the Kacba and the bayt al-macmur.
al-Azraqi
There are fifteen houses of God, one in each of the seven heavens
and earths and God’s house. They are all directly above each other.
al-Azraqi
Angels circumambulate the Kacba.
al-Azraqi
Adam is told to worship God in the Kacba, just as the
angels worship God in the bayt al-macmur.
al-Tabaram
The angels performed the first circumambulation of the Kacba.
Ibn Abi Shayba and al-Bayhaqi
The angels performed the first circumambulation of the Kacba.
al-Azraqi
Muhammad sees Gabriel wearing a green headband, which is covered
by dust. Gabriel tells him that he has been prostrating at the bayt al-macmur
and the beating of the angels’ wings beat dust into the air.
Ibn Majah
Angels curse those who sell faulty goods.
Abu Nucaym
Angels are with those who finish reciting the Qur’an.
Ibn al-Sunm
The angels curse those who pray in a name other than their own.
Ibn cAsakir
The angels curse those who give
religious rulings, whilst knowing that a different ruling is the correct one.
al-Daraqutriî
No place of prayer is without an
angel: one on the left and one of the right of the person praying.
Abu ‘l-Husayn ibn Bashran and Ibn al-Najjar
An angel teaches the Qur’an to
whoever had intended to learnt it by heart, but who died before being able to
do so.
Abu Yacla
Concerning cUthman ibn cAffan.
Muhammad ibn Nasr
Angels are with anyone who recites the Qur’an in the Kacba
Ahmad and al-Tabaram
Eighty angels were sent down with the Sura of the Cow.
al-Tabaranî and al-Mardawayh
The Sura of the Cow was accompanied by angels.
al-Hakim [al-Tirmidhi] and al-Bayhaqi
The Sura of the Cow was accompanied by angels.
Ahmad, Muslim and al-Tirmidhi
God’s commands pass through the
heavens and the jinn hear, but do not pay heed them
al-Bukhari, al-Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah
God’s commands pass through the heavens.
Muslim
Two angels receive the soul of the deceased.
Ibn cAsakir
A vision of an angel.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
Angels do not listen to humans, except with the permission of God.
al-Hakim al-Tirmidhi
The houses of believers light up for the angels.
al-Bayhaqi
Houses in which the Qur’an is being recited look like stars to the
angels.
Ahmad and al-Tirmidhi
God came to Muhammad in the most beautiful form.
al-Tabaranî
There is no house in a city without
an angel standing over the lintel with its sword unsheathed to prevent the
Anti-Christ entering the house.
Ahmad, al-Bukhari and Muslim
When a woman makes the midday-bed of her husband, angels help her.
Ahmad, Muslim, Abu Da’ud, al-Tirmidhi, al-Nasa’i and Ibn Majah
When someone is in the presence of
the deceased, the angels say ‘Amen’ to whatever prayers are said.
al-Daylami
If someone finishes the Qur’an, 60,000 angels pray for him.
Ahmad, al-Bukhari and Muslim
Cockerels crow when they see angels; donkeys bray when they see a
devil.
al-Bazzar
Angels curse a Muslim who unsheathes his sword against another
Muslim.
al-Bayhaqi
Angels pray for people performing
the ritual prayers for the length of time that they remain praying.
al-Khattib
Angels are present at the ritual prayers.
Ahmad, al-Tirmidhi, Ibn Hibban and al-Bayhaqi
Angels pray for someone who is fasting who comes into the presence
of food.
Ahmad, al-Bukhan, Muslim, al-Nasa’i and Ibn Majah
Angels record who attends the mosque on Fridays.
Ahmad, Abu Da’ud and al-Bayhaqi
Angels record who attends the mosque on Fridays.
Ahmad, Abu Yacla and al-Tabarani
Angels record who attends the mosque on Fridays.
Abu ‘l-Shaykh
Angels record who attends the mosque on Fridays.
al-Hasan ibn Sufyan, al-Bawardi and al-Tabarani
Angels call out to Muslims on the Day of Fitr.
al-Tabarani
The angels rejoice at the passing of winter.
al-Shîrâzî
The angels prayed for Adam.
al-Daraqutriî and Ibn cAsakir
Gabriel and the angels prayed for
Adam (on the day of the prostration to Adam) and Gabriel then understood the
significance of Adam’s role as God’s khalif.
al-Daylami
Concerning the events of the Day of Resurrection.
Ibn Majah
Angels pray for those who attend the Friday prayers.
Ibn al-Najjar
Angels sit on the tent pegs of tented mosques.
cAbd al-Razzaq and al-Bayhaqi
Angels sit on the tent pegs of tented mosques.
Ibn cAsakir
God has knowledge of the hidden.
Muhammad ibn Nasr al-Marwazi
A Muslim heard someone reciting a
prayer; the Prophet told him that it was an angel.
Muhammad ibn Nasr
A Muslim heard someone reciting a prayer.
Ahmad and al-Tabarani
God’s blessings on his creations pass through the heavens.
Ibn cAsakir and Abu Bakr al-Wasiti
A Muslim sees Gabriel, Michael and other angels praying in the Kacba.
al-Bayhaqi
During Ramad an, the angels circumambulate the Kacba.
SacTd ibn Mansur, Ibn al-Mundhir and al-Bayhaqi
The angels greet people on the Night of Power.
SacTd ibn Mansur and Ibn al-Mundhir
During the night, the angels pass over all the believers and pray
for them.
Ibn al-Mundhir
Angels beat their wings in peace on the Night of Power.
Ahmad
On the Night of Power and other
days the angels on the earth are more numerous than the pebbles.
741 |
al-Daylami The angels perform the ritual prayers. |
742 |
al-Tabaranl Angels do not like a spirit of copper. |
743 |
cAbd ibn Hamid, Ibn Jarir and Ibn
Abî Hâtim An exegesis of Q 35:1; the angels have two, three or four wings. |
744 |
Ibn al-Mundhir The angels have two to twelve
wings and they are feathered. Gabriel has six wings. |
430
Appendix G
Images of Angels in Islamic Art
Six images from Islamic Art have been included below, simply to
give an idea of the standard forms of angelic iconography.
Mfrâjnâma [BNF Turc 190 fol unknown]
This is one of only a few images that show the huge size of the
angel Gabriel. This image is taken from an account of Muhammad’s ascension (micraj)
and he is seated on Buraq.
Source: Colby, Frederick S., The Subtleties of the Ascension:
Early Mystical Sayings on Muhammad’s Heavenly Journey (Louisville: Fons
Vitae, 2006).
Album [TSMK Hazine 2154] fol. 61v
A picture of the angel, al-Dïk, one of the few purely
zoomorphic angels; here the image is simply that of a cockerel. In the hadith, al-Dïk
is given more angelic attributes. One of these attributes is the cockerel’s
great size, which can be seen to some degree in this image, as it is a twice
the size of Muhammad. The cockerel is also associated with precious stones,
which cannot be seen in this image.
Source: Ettinghausen, Richard, ‘Persian Ascension Miniatures of
the Fourteenth Century’ in Richard Ettinghausen (ed. Myriam Rosen-Alayon), Islamic
Art and Archaeology: Collected Papers (Berlin: Gebr. Mann Verlag, 1984) pp.
244 - 267; fig. (i), p. 247.
Al-Qazwini, cAja’ib al-makhluqat [British
Library Or. 47011 fol 38r]
There are a number of illustrated manuscripts of al-QazWîni’s Kitab
caja’ib al- makhluqat, which have a similar form for the angels.
It is often difficult to distinguish between different angels and often the
only means to tell the angels apart is by their place in the Arabic text.[MII]
Source: Jones, Dalu et. al. (eds.), The Arts of Islam:
Haywood Gallery 8th April - 4th July 1976 (London:
Arts Council of Great Britain, 1976), p. 347
Shahnama [Bibliothèque Nationale de France, MS Persan 490 fol 62r]
Persian images of angels tend to have more slender wings, as in
this miniature. The angels are often depicted with their hair worn up,
ornamented with pearls. Although Gabriel’s hair is said to look ‘like white
pearls’ (e.g. §50), there are no hadith that actually suggest that the angels’
hair were adorned with them. This is likely to be a reflection of contemporary
dress.
Source: Bernus-Taylor, Marthe, L’Etrange et le Merveilleux en
terres d’Islam: Paris, musée du Louvre 23 avril - 23 juillet, 2001 (Paris :
Editions de la Réunion des Musées Naionaux, 2001) p. 206.
Siyar-i Nabi [Louvre MAO 149] loose leaf
This image depicts Gabriel revealing Sura 8. Angels are often
exactly the same size as the humans in the miniature, as can be seen here (as
well as some of the images included in this small selection). This image also
shows the angel with four wings, this is quite rare as angels are usually given
two wings in Islamic art.
Source: Bernus-Taylor, L’Etrange et le Merveilleux, p. 284.
Rashid al-Din, Jamic al-Tawarikh [EUL Arabic MS
20 fol 22r]
Angels are very rarely depicted in a completely anthropomorphic
form, this is one of only a few examples (another good example is from a Siyar-i
Nabi [TSMK Hazine 1222 fol. 155r]).[MIII] The image follows the
description of al-Rüh (identified with Gabriel) coming to Mary as a basharan
sawiyan; cf. Q 19:17.
Source: Rice, David Talbot, The Illustrations to the ‘World
History’ of Rashid al-Din (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 1976) p.
85.
Indexes
440
7.1 Index of al-Suyuti’s Sources1
cAbd al-Razzaq
cAbd ibn Hamld
Abu Bakr al-Wâsitï
Abu Da’ud
Abu 'l-Husayn ibn al- cArïf
Abu 'l-Rabf al-
Mascûdï
Abu 'l-Shaykh
Abu Nucaym
Abu Yacla
Ahmad
Bayhaqï, al-
Bazzar, al-
Bukharï, al-
Darimï, al-
Daylamï, al-
Dïnawarï, al- al-Diya’ al-Maqdisï
Firyabï, al-
Hakim, al-
110, 125, 129, 189,
99, 128, 179, 187, 189, 202-205,
207, 209, 218-221, 223, 234, 235b, 236, 243, 244, 248
240
181b, 182, 217, 402
163
163
2b, 3-5, 7, 9, 10, 13 -20, 24, 27 -
33, 36, 38, 39, 42-44a, 45-49, 51, 59, 64, 66, 70-72, 79, 85, 87, 92, 94-96,
98-102, 104, 105, 110, 112-114, 123, 125, 126 - 132, 135, 148, 150, 156, 165,
166b, 167, 178, 181b, 182-186, 189-192,
195, 210-215, 218,
57, 82, 84, 90, 96, 117, 125, 131,
147, 158, 161
179, 181
8, 35, 47, 67, 73, 79, 90, 110,
111, 116, 125, 139, 146, 151, 231, 248
1*, 1, 6, 24, 27, 29, 52, 60, 61,
68, 75, 86, 97, 106, 108, 166, 166b, 181b, 182, 186, 193, 200, 202, 210, 212,
218, 223, 234, 248, 249, 254
5, 82, 106, 146
238
179
83, 89, 109, 156, 196, 241
12, 136, 144, 197 - 199
230
74, 235b, 236
8, 34, 81, 86, 87, 91, 146, 166,
179, 250, 251, 254
1 This index refers to those authors
cited in the translated hadïth.
Hakïm, al-, al- Tirmidhï |
63, 80, 86 |
Hannad ibn al-Sarï |
235 |
Ibn Abï al-Dunya |
112, 113, 123, 124, 130, 135, 139, 140, 142, 148, 154, 155, 161, 165, 166, 248 |
Ibn Abï Hatim |
10, 20b, 23, 27, 38, 47, 76, 88,
105, 107, 110, 114, 115, 127, 128, 132, 133, 141, 149, 160, 166, 194, 208,
210, 212, 218, 222, 224, 225, 227, 235b, 236, 245-247, 253255 |
Ibn Abï Shayba |
27, (28), 62, 111, 126, 137, 166, 168, 206, 234 |
Ibn Abï Zamanïn |
93 |
Ibn al-Anbarï |
228 |
Ibn al-Mubarak |
53, 103, 16b, 234 |
Ibn al-Mundhir |
21, 22, 78, 107, 110, 125, 127,
128, 178, 179, 184, 186, 189, 207, 208, 210, 212, 213, 215, 218-220, 223,
233, 234, 235b, 236, 254 |
Ibn Hajar |
84 |
Ibn Hibban |
84, 248 |
Ibn Jarïr |
26, 36, 37, 50, 77, 108, 110, 125-129, 143, 188, 208, 210,
212, 213, 216, 218, 232, 235b, 245, 246 |
Ibn Kathïr |
69 |
Ibn Khuzayma |
179 |
Ibn Majah |
8, 152 |
Ibn al-Najjar |
84, 118, 145, 171 |
Ibn cAsakir |
24, 25, 55, 65, 69, 108, 138, 159, 237, 247 |
Ibn Manda |
5, 25, 164, 166b |
Ibn Mardawayh |
45, 54, 74, 75, 87, 89, 91, 179, 201, 202, 222, 239, 252 |
Ibn Sacd |
52 |
Ishaq ibn Rahwayh |
178, 251,252 |
Juwaybir |
134, 153 |
Khalïlï, al- |
242 |
Khatïb, al- |
24, 145, 157 |
Marwazï, al- |
148, 165 |
Muslim |
2, 41, 176, 217, 238 |
Nasa’ï, al- |
217 |
Qutbï, al- (Ibn
Qutayba) Sâbûnï
, al-
Sacïd ibn
Mansur
Silafï, al-
Tabaranï, al-
Tayalisi, al-
cUqaylï, al-
al-Wahidï
229
60
107, 116
166b
10, 11, 29, 34, 40, 44b, 56, 57,
71, 82, 90, 99, 106, 169, 170, 172, 178, 295 - 297
176
156
237
7. 2. Index of Qur’an Quotations in the Translated Text
2:30 |
247, 248 |
35:1 |
Preface |
2:31 |
26 |
|
|
2:102 |
249 |
37:165 |
6, 9 |
2:255 |
198 |
37:166 |
25 |
2:285 |
Preface |
|
|
|
|
39:68 |
74, 75 |
3:173 |
86 |
|
|
|
|
40:49 |
229 |
6:60 |
141, 313 |
|
|
6:61 |
127, 128, 129 |
43:77 |
229 |
7:89 |
86 |
50:17 |
312, 319, 321, 324, 325, |
|
|
333 |
|
10:85 |
86 |
50:18 |
389, 391 |
13:11 |
316b, 317, 318, 319 |
52:4 |
21 |
|
(bis), 320, 391, 392, |
|
|
|
393, 397, 398, 399, 400 |
53:13 |
550 |
|
(bis), 401 |
53:14 |
47 |
13:18 |
104 |
|
|
|
|
66:6 |
229 |
15:26 |
107 |
|
|
|
|
69:17 |
179, 187, 207, 208 |
16:32 |
166b |
|
|
|
|
72:27 |
70 |
17:78 |
314 |
|
|
|
|
74:3 |
5 |
18 |
296 |
74:30 |
229, 234 |
|
|
74:31 |
234 |
21:104 |
243 |
|
|
|
|
78:38 |
210, 222, 225 |
25:7 |
237 |
|
|
25:10 |
237 |
82:10 |
312 |
33:44 |
166 |
96:18 |
235b, 236 |
34:23 |
92 |
97:4 |
210 |
7. 3 Index of Authorities |
Abu Umama cÀ’isha |
|
al-Acamash |
147 |
|
al-cAbbas ibn cAbd |
179 |
al-cAla’ ibn Harun |
al-Muttalib |
|
cAli [ibn Abi Talib] |
cAbd al-cAla al- Tamïmï |
111 |
|
cAbd Allah |
183 |
cAli ibn Husayn |
cAbd Allah ibn |
224 |
cAmmar ibn Abi |
Burayda |
|
cAmmar |
cAbd Allah ibn al- |
94, 99, 236 |
cAmr al-Bakali |
Harith |
cAmr ibn Murra |
|
cAbd Allah ibn cAmr |
21 |
Anas |
cAbd Allah ibn cUmar |
62, 248 |
|
Abu ‘l-cAwam |
234 |
Anas ibn Malik |
cAbd al-Aziz ibn Abi |
66 |
Ashcath ibn Aslam |
Ruwad |
|
cAta ibn al-Sa’ib |
cAbd al-Aziz ibn |
38 |
cAta’ ibn Yisar |
cUmayr |
|
cAtiya |
Abu ‘l-Muthna al- |
135 |
ai-AwzacT |
Himsl |
|
al-Bara’ ibn cAzab |
cAbd al-Rahman ibn |
23 |
al-Dahhak |
Salman1 |
|
Damra |
cAbd al-Rahman ibn |
12 |
Da’ud ibn Abi Hind |
Zayd ibn Aslam |
|
Hudhayfa |
Abu cAli ibn Abi |
84, 171 |
al-Hakam |
Talib |
|
al-Hakam ibn Uban |
Abu Bakr al- |
92 |
Hakim ibn Hizam |
Hadhdhali |
|
Harun ibn Ri’ab |
Abu Dharr |
8, 63 |
al-Hasan |
Abu Hurayrah |
87, 90, 107, |
Hasan ibn cAtiya |
|
146, 151, 181 |
al-Husayn |
Abu cImran al-Jawni |
67, 231 |
Ibn Abi Jabala |
Abu Jacfar al-Baqir |
247 |
Ibn Abi Najih |
Abu Malik |
108, 190, 198 |
Ibn cAbbas |
Abu Qays al-Azdi |
136 |
|
Abu Sacid |
13, 81, 91 |
|
Abu SacTd al-Khudri
(or Kudhri) |
86, 88 |
|
Abu Salama |
240, 297 |
|
Abu Salih |
223 |
|
Abu Sinan |
104 |
|
89, 152, 206 2, 9, 35, 42, 43, 55, 95, 145, 217
17
65, 83, 196,
212, 241, 243, 251, 252, 295 36
52
22
64
45, 74, 75, 79, 118, 156, 230, 242
163
123
76
116, 142
244
15, 100, 101
166
209, 211
105 167
50, 77
19, 124
161
10
186
112
184
170
103
227
18, 29, 37, 40, 48, 49, 54, 56, 82, 97, 98, 108, 122, 127, 132,
134, 149, 153, 159, 169, 180, 195, 202, 208, 210, 213, 221, 222, 237, 238, 253,
254
1 Khabîb ibn cAbd
al-Rahman ibn Salman Abu ‘l-Acis from his father.
Ibn cAmr
Ibn Jaiïr
Ibn Jurayj
Ibn Mascud
Ibn Sabit
Ibn Shihab
Ibn cUmar
Ibn Zayd
Ibrahim al-Nakha0!
cIkrima
cIkrima ibn Khalid
Jabir
Jabir ibn cAbd Allah
Kacb
Khalid ibn Abi cImran
Khalid ibn Macdan
Khaythama al-Khazraj (father of al-Harith ibn al- Khazraj)
Macammar
Makhul
Malik ibn Dinar
Maymuna bint Sacd
Maysara
Mucadh ibn Jabal Muhammad ibn al-
Munkadar
Muhammad ibn Kacb
al-Qurzi
Mujahid
Muqatil ibn Hayyan Murra
Musa ibn Abi
cÀ’isha
2b, 5, 106 |
Qatada |
50, 129 |
140 |
Qatada ibn al- |
68 |
50 |
Nucman |
|
6, 41, 44, 47, |
Rabah |
73 |
72, 108, 122, |
al-Rabic |
187 |
164, 165, 216 |
al-Rabic ibn Anas |
26, 126 |
27, 28 |
Rashid ibn SacTd |
144 |
53 |
Sa^id |
102 |
1, 245, 249, |
Sa°Td ibn Jubayr |
7, 70 |
250 |
Salman |
226 |
188, 194 |
al-Shactha’ Jabir ibn |
148 |
128 |
Zayd |
|
3, 57, 78, 114, |
Shahar ibn Hushab |
131 |
141, 203, 220 |
al-Shucabi |
225 |
33 181b, 182 11, 30, 60 16, 20b, 93, |
Shurayh ibn cAbd Allah |
46 |
Sulayman ibn |
157 |
|
95, 115, 121, |
Macammar al- |
|
232, 235 |
Kilabi |
|
32 |
al-Suddi |
246 |
Ta’us |
229 |
|
199 |
Thabit |
61 |
137, 138, 168 |
Thabit al-Banani |
117 |
119 |
cUbayd ibn cUmayr |
120 |
|
cUmar |
239 |
|
cUmar Mawla |
143 |
139 |
Ghafara |
|
192 |
Umm Sacd |
201 |
197 |
Umm Salama |
71 |
58 |
cUrwa |
193 |
205, 207, |
Usayd ibn Hudayr |
296 |
209b |
Wahb ibn Munnabih |
14, 20, 31, 51, |
158 |
|
59, 85, 130, |
150 |
|
189, 191, 214 |
|
Waraqa al-Ansari |
44b |
154, 166b |
Wathala ibn al- Asqa’ |
69 |
110, 125, 162, |
Zadhan (or Zadan) |
185 |
218, 219, 228, |
Zayd al-Aslam |
113 |
233, 235b, |
Zayd ibn Rafic |
80 |
255 |
Zayd ibn Ruman |
4 |
215 |
Zayd ibn Thabit |
109 |
108 |
Ziyad al-Numayri |
155 |
39 |
Ziyad ibn Abi Hiyya |
200 |
|
Zuhayr ibn Muhammad |
133, 160 |
Unknown 24
Unknown (father of 34
Abu ‘l-Malih)
Unknown (some 108
companions)
Some of the hadîth include transmission through a limited isnad,
frequently with the words "min. tarlq... ’; these individuals are
listed below:
83 95 34 183 24 48, 213 234 200 237 119 210 49 237 119 237 23 |
cAbd al-Hamid ibn Kanana cAbd al-Rahman ibn al-Harith
Abu ‘l-Malih Abu Qabil cÂdî ibn Arta cAta’ al-Azraq ibn
Qays Bakr ibn Madr al-Dahhak al-Harith ibn al-Khazraj Ibn Abi Talha Ishaq
al-Hashimi Ishaq ibn Bashar Jafar ibn Muhammad Juwaybir Khabib ibn cAbd
al-Rahman ibn Salman Abu ‘i-A°Ts |
102 102 119 |
Khalid al-Layth Muhammad (father of Jafar ibn Muhammad) |
18, 221, 222 200 200 83 108, 190 62 24 234 |
Mujahid Qutayba Sakhr ibn cAbd Allah al-Sari ibn cAbd Allah al-Sulami Al-Suddi Thabit cUbbad ibn Mansur Unknown (man from Banu Tammim) |
Authorities Mentioned in Full
Isnads (§68, 84 & 171) (The authorities have been
left in the same order as they appear in the isnad.) 68 Abu Muhammad cAbd
Allah ibn Yusuf al-Isfaham
68 Abu Bakr Ahmad ibn Sacîd ibn Fardakh al-Akhmimi
68 Abu Muhammad cAbd
Allah ibn al-Fadl ibn cÀsim ibn cUmar ibn Qatada ibn
al-Nucma al-Ansan
68 Abu ‘l-Fadl
68 cÀsim (father of Abu ‘l-Fadl)
68 al-Walid ibn Hamad
84 Abu cAbd Allah al-Adib
84 Abu Tahir ibn Abi Nasr al-Tajir
84 cAbd al-Rahman ibn Muhamad ibn Ishaq ibn Mandah
84 Abu cAbd Allah al-Husayn ibn Muhammad ibn al-Husayn
al-Dïnawaiï
84 Abu ‘l-Qasim cAbd Allaal-JuijanT
84 Abu ‘l-Hassan Muhammad ibn cAli
al-Husayn ibn al-Qasim ibn al-Hassan ibn Zayd ibn cAli ibn al-Husayn
ibn cAli ibn Abi Talib
84 Ahmad ibncAbd Allah al-Shucabi
al-Baghdadi
84 Al-Hassan ibn cAli al-cAskari
84 Abu cAli ibn Muhammad
84 Muhammad ibn cAli ibn Musa
84 Abu cAli ibn Musa
84 Abu Musa ibn Jacfar
84 Jacfar ibn Muhammad
84 Abu Muhammad ibn cAli
84 Abu cAli ibn al-Husayn
171 Yusuf ibn al-Mubarak ibn al-Hamil al-Khafaf
171 Muhammad ibn cAbd al-Baqi al-Ansari
171 Abu Bakr Ahmad ibn cAli ibn Thabit al-Khattib
171 Al-Qadi Abu al-cAla’ Muhammad ibn cAli
al-Wasiti
171 Abu Muhammad cAbd Allah ibn Ahmad ibn cAbd
Allah ibn al-Mulih al-
Sajazi
171 cAli ibn Muhammad al-Haruwi
171 cAbd al-Salam ibn Salih
171 cAli ibn Musa al-Rad i
171 Abu Musa ibn Jacfar
171 Abu Jacfar ibn Muhammad
171 Abu Muhammad ibn cAli
171 Abu cAli ibn al-Husayn
Bibliography
450
8.1.1 Journals, Encyclopaedia and
Monographs
AAS AB AELex AI AJCP AJSLL AO ArOr ATR BAEO BDB |
African and Asian Studies Analecta Bollandiana Lane, Arabic-English Lexicon Annales Islamologiques Alif: Journal of Comparative Poetics American Journal of Semitic Lanugages and Literatures Acta Orientalia Archiv Orientalni Anglican Theological Review Boletin de la Asociacion Espanola de Orientalistas Brown, Driver and Briggs, A
Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament |
BHS BJMES BSOAS CA CHAL CHI CTM DDD DSD EA EAL ED EdAM EHR EI1
EI2 EI3 EIr EJ EphThL EQ ER2 ERE EWIC
FGA GAS GS HR HTR |
Hebrew Bible; Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies Cahiers Archéologiques Cambridge History of Arabic Literature Cambirdge History of Iran Wensinck, Concordance et indices de la Tradition Musulmane Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible Dead Sea Discoveries Etudes Asiatiques Encyclopedia of Arabic Literature Encyclopedia of Death Enciclopedia dell’arte Medievale The Economic Historical Review Encyclopaedia of Islam (First Edition) Encyclopaedia of Islam (Second Edition) Encyclopaedia of Islam (Third Edition) Encyclopaedia Iranica Encyclopaedia Judaica Ephemerides Theologicae Lovanienses Encyclopedia of the Qur’an Encyclopedia of Religion (Second Edition) Encyclopaedia of Religion and Ethics Encyclopedia of Women and Islamic Cultures Freer Gallery of Art Sezgin, Geschichte des arabischen Schrifttums Goldziher (ed. DeSomogyi), Gesammelte Schriften History of Religions Harvard Theological Review |
HUCA |
Hebrew Union College Annual |
IA |
Islamic Art |
IC |
Islamic Culture |
ICMR |
Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations |
IIJ |
Indo-Iranian Journal |
IJMES |
International Journal for Middle Eastern Studies |
ILS |
Islamic Law and Society |
IOS |
Israel Oriental Studies |
IrS |
Iranian Studies |
IS |
Islamic Studies |
Isl. |
Der Islam |
JAAR |
Journal of the American Academy of Religion |
JAIS |
Journal of Arabic and Islamic Studies |
JAL |
Journal of Arabic Literature |
JAOS |
Journal of the American Oriental Society |
JBL |
Journal of Biblical Literature |
JE |
Jewish Encyclopaedia |
JESHO |
Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient |
JHB |
Journal for the History of Biology |
JHMAS |
Journal for the History of Medicine and Allied Sciences |
JIH |
Journal of Interdisciplinary History |
JIS |
Journal of Islamic Studies |
JJRL |
Journal of the John Rylands Library |
JMMA |
Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs |
JNES |
Journal of Near Eastern Studies |
JQR |
Jewish Quarterly Review |
JQS |
Journal of Qur’anic Studies |
JR |
Journal of Religion |
JRAS |
Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society |
JRS |
Journal of Ritual Studies |
JSAI |
Jerusalem Studies in Arabic and Islam |
JSJ |
Journal for the Study of Judaism |
JSNT |
Journal for the Study of the New Testament |
JSOT |
Journal for the Study of the Old Testament |
JSP |
Journal for the Study of the Pseudepigrapha |
JSQ |
Jewish Studies Quarterly |
JSS |
Journal of Semitic Studies |
LA |
Ibn Manzur, Lisan al-arab |
ME |
Medieval Encounters |
MS |
Manuscript |
MSR |
Mamluk Studies Review |
MW |
Muslim World |
NB |
New Blackfriars |
NRSV |
Bible (New Revised Standard Version) |
NT |
Novum Testamentum |
NTS |
New Testament Studies |
OTr |
Oral Tradition |
OTP |
Charlesworth, Old Testament Pseudepigrapha |
PAAJR |
Proceedings of the American Academy for Jewish Research |
PEW |
Philosophy East and West |
PP |
Past and Present |
PT |
Poetics Today |
QA |
Qisas al-anbiya’ [used for al-Tha’labi, al-Kisa’i &
al-Rabghuzi] |
RAC |
Reallexikon für Antike und Chrsitentum |
RB |
Revue Biblique |
RC |
Religion Compass |
RHR |
Revue de l’Histoire des Religions |
RMP |
Rheinisches Museum für Philologie |
RP |
Revue Philosophique |
RZBK |
Reallexikon zur byzantinischen Kunst |
SI |
Studia Islamica |
TA |
Al-Zabidî, Taj al-carus |
TGUOS |
Transactions of the Glasgow University Oriental Society |
TPAPA |
Transactions & Proceedings of the American Philological
Association |
UBS |
Greek New Testament; United Bible Society (4th Edition) |
VC |
Vigiliae Christianae |
VT |
Vetus Testamentum |
WdI |
Die Welt des Islams |
ZDMG |
Zeitschrift der deutschen morgenlandischen Gesellschaft |
8.1.2 Abbreviations (Ancient Texts)
1 En.
1Th. 2En 2Cor 3Bar 3En ActsJ ApAb ApEl ApIs ApPaul ApZeph BB CantR DeutR
DialSav Ezk. GenR GPhil Hag JanJam JosAsen Jub.
First Enoch (Ethiopie)
First Letter to the Thessalonians
Second Enoch (Slavonic)
Second Letter to the Corinthians
Third Baruch
Third Enoch (Hebrew)
Acts of John
Apocalypse of Abraham
Apocalypse of Elijah
Apocalypse of Isaiah
Apocalypse of Paul
Apocalypse of Zephaniah
Baba Bathra
Song of Songs (Qohelet) Rabbah
Deuteronomy Rabbah
Dialogue of the Saviour
Ezekiel
Genesis Rabbah
Gospel of Philip
Hagigah
Jannes and Jambres
Joseph and Aseneth
Book of Jubilees
Ket. |
Ketuboth |
LadJac |
Ladder of Jacob |
LAE(V) |
Life of Adam and Eve (Vita) |
LamR |
Lamentations Rabbah |
Men. |
Menahot |
MK |
Mo’ed Katan |
NumR |
Numbers Rabbah |
Q. |
Qur’an |
QuesEzra |
Questions of Ezra |
San. |
Sanhedrin |
Shab. |
Shabbat |
Sib. Or. |
Sibylline Oracles |
Ta’ |
Ta’anith |
Tob. |
Tobit |
Yom |
Yoma |
Abu Layth Samarqandî (d. 373 /
983), Kitab haqa’iq wa’-l-daqa’iq; MacDonald, John (tr.), Islamic
Studies 3 (1964) pp. 285 - 308 & 485 - 519 ; 4 (1965) pp. 55 - 102
& 137 - 179 ; 5 (1966) pp. 129 - 197 & 331 - 383.
Abu Hanîfa, Wasiyyat Abi
Hariïfa; Wensinck, A. J., The Muslim Creed: Its Origin and Historical
Development (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1932) pp. 125 - 131.
al-Ashcaiï, Abu ‘l-Hasan
Ahmad ibn Ibrahim, Kitab shajarat al-yaqin; Castillo Castillo,
Concepcion (ed. & tr.), Kitab Sayarat al-Yaqin: Tratado de eschtologia
musulmana - Estudio, ediciôn, traducciôn, notas y indices (Madrid: Instituto
Hispano-Arabe de Cultura, 1987).
al-Ashcaiï, Abu ‘l-Hasan
cAli ibn IsirnTTi, Maqalat al-islamiyyin; Watt, W. Montgomery
(tr.), Islamic Creeds: A Selection (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University
Press, 1994) pp. 41 - 47.
al-Baydawi, cAbd Allah ibn cUmar, Anwar al-tanzilwa-asrar
al-ta’wil; Fleischer, H.
O. (ed.), Commentarius in Coranum (Leipzig: Vogel, 1846 -
1848)
al-Bayhaqi, Ahmad ibn al-Husayn, Al-Jamic
shucab al-iman (Bombay: Al-Dar al- Salafiyyah, 1986).
al-Bïrüriî, Abu ‘l-Rayhan Muhammad
ibn Ahmad, Kitab al-tafhim li-awa’il sinacat al-tanjim; R.
Ramsey Wright, The Book of Instruction in the Elements of the Art of
Astrology (London: Luzac & Co., 1934).
al-Bukhaiï, Abu cAbd
Allah Muhammad ibn Ismacil; Abu Suhayb al-Karmi (ed.), Sahih
al-Bukhari (Riyadh: Bayt al-Afkar al-Dawliyya, 1998).
Kitab al-ducafa’ al-saghir (Aleppo: Dar al-Wa^i, 1976).
al-Damiri, Muhammad ibn Musa, Hayat al-hayawan al-kubra
(Cairo: s.n., 1963).
al-Dhahabi, Abu cAbd
Allah Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn cUthman (attr.), Tibb al- Nabbi;
Elgood, Cyril (tr.), Tibb-ul-Nabbi or Medicine of the Prophet (Bruges:
Ex Officina “De Tempel”, 1962).
al-Fiqh al-akbar I; Wensinck, A. J., TheMuslim Creed: Its Origin and Historical
Development (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1932) pp 103 - 104.
al-Fiqh al-akbar II; Wensinck, A. J., The Muslim Creed: Its Origin and Historical
Development (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1932) pp. 188 - 197.
Watt, W. Montgomery (tr.), Islamic
Creeds: A Selection (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 1994) pp. 62 -
68.
al-Ghayti, Najm al-Din, al-Micraj
al-kablr; Jeffrey, A. (tr), A Reader on Islam (‘S- Gravenhage:
Mouton & Co., 1962) pp. 621 - 639.
al-Ghazali, Abu Hamid Muhammad ibn
Muhammad ibn Muhammad, Kitab ihya’ culum al-din.
(Cairo: Matbacat cIsa al-Babi al-Halabi, 1348/1929-30)
Winter, T. J. (tr.), The
Remembrance of Death and the Afterlife (Cambridge: Islamic Texts Society,
1989).
Abul Qaseem, Muhammad (tr.), The
Recitation and Interpretation of the Qur’an: Al-Ghazall’s Theory (Kuala
Lumpur: University of Malaya Press, 1979).
Al-Durra
al-fakhira fl kashf culum al-akhira; Smith, Jane I. (tr.), The Precious Pearl (Missoula:
Scholars’ Press, 1979).
al-Hallaj, Abu ‘l-Mughith al-Husayn
ibn Mansur, Tawasln; Massignon, Louis (tr. H. Mason), The Passion of
al-Hallaj: Mystic and Martyr - Vol. 3. The Teaching of Al-Hallaj
(Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1982) pp. 282 - 326.
Ibn Abi ‘l-Dunya (reconstructed
Leah Kinberg), Kitab al-mawt wa-kitab al-qubur (Haifa: University of
Haifa, 1983).
Ibn al-cArabi, Muhyi
al-Din, Kitab canqa’ mughrib; Gerald T. Elmore, Islamic
Sainthood in the Fullness of Time: Ibn al-cArabl’s Book of the
Fabulous Gryphon. (Leiden: Brill, 1999).
Ibn ‘Ata’ Allah, Ahmad ibn
Muhammad, Kitab al-hikam; Victor Danner (tr.), Ibn cAta
’illah’s Sufi Aphorisms (Leiden: Brill, 1973).
Ibn Ishaq, Muhammad, Slrat Rasul
Allah; Guillaume, A. (tr), The Life of Muhammad (Repr. Lahore :
Oxford University Press, 2006).
Ibn Khaldun, cAbd
al-Rahman ibn Muhammad al-Maghribi (ed. Mustafa Fahmi al- Kutbi), al-Muqaddima
min al-kitab al-cibar wa-‘l-diwan wa-‘l-akhbar fl ayyam al-carab
wa-‘l-ajam wa-‘l-barbar wa-man casarahum min dhawl al-sultan al-
akbar wa-huwa tarlkh wahld casrih (Cairo: Matbacat
al-Taqaddam bi-Sharh Muhammad cAli, n.d.).
Rosenthal, Franz (tr.), The
Muqaddimah: An Introduction to History (Second Edition) (Princeton:
Princeton University Press, 1967).
Ibn Khallikan, Wafayat al-acyan
wa-anbac abna ’ al-zaman; (tr. MacGukin de Slane), Ibn
Khallikan’s Biographical Dictionary (London: Johnson Reprint Corporation,
1842 - 1871).
Ibn Maj ah, Abu cAbd
Allah Muhammad ibn Yazid al-Qazwîriî (ed. Muhammad Fucad cAbd
al-Baqi), Sunan ibn Majah (Cairo: Babi al-Halabi, s.d.).
Ibn Manzur, Abu ‘l-Fadl Jamal
al-Dina Muhammad ibn Mukarram al-Afriqi, Lisan al-cArab
(Bulaq: al-Matbaca al-Kubra al-Miriyya, 1300 - 1308 / 1883 - 1891).
Ibn al-Marzuban, Kitab fadl
al-kilab cala kathlr mimman labisa al-thiyab; Smith, G. R. &
Abdel Haleem, M. A. S. (eds. & trs.), The Book of the Superiority of
Dogs over many of those who wear clothes (Warminster: Aris & Philips
Ltd., 1978).
Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyah, Muhammad
ibn Abi Bakr, Kitab shifa ’ al-alil fi masa ’il al-qada’ wa’l-qadar
wa’l-himah wa-’l-ta’lil (Riyadh : Maktabat al-Riyad al- Haditha, 1323 /
1905).
Kitab al-ruh fi ‘l-kalam cala arwah al-amwat wa-‘l-ahya
’ bi-‘l-dala ’il min al- Kitab wa-‘l-sunnah wa-‘l-athar wa-‘l-aqwal al-culama’
al-akhyar (Hyderabad: Matbacat
Majlis Da’irat al-Macarif al-cUthmamyya, 1357 / 1939).
Ibn al-Sabbagh, Muhammad ibn cAli,
Durrat al-asrar wa-tuhfat al-abrar; Elmer H. Douglas (tr.), The
Mystical Teachings of al-Shadhili (Albany: State University of New York
Press, 1993).
Ibn al-Salah al-Shahrazuri, Kitab
macrifat anwac cilm al-hadith; E. Dickinson (tr.), An
Introduction to the Science of the Hadith - Kitab macrifat anwac
cilm al-hadith (Reading: Garnet Publishing, 2005).
Ibn Sina, Abu cAli
al-Husayn ibn cAbd Allah, Kitab al-shifa ’; Michael E.
Marmura (ed. & tr.), Avicenna: The Metaphysics of The Healing
(Provo: Brigham Young University Press, 2005)
Ibn Taymiyya, Taqi al-Dm Abu ‘l-cAbbas
Ahmad ibn cAbd al-Halim ibn cAbd al- Salam, ‘Ma taqulu
al-sada al-aclam’ in cAbd al-Rahman ibn Muhammad ibn
Qasim al-cAsimi and Muhammad ibn cAbd al-Rahman ibn Qasim
(eds.), Majmuc fatawa Shaykh al-Islam Ahmad ibn Taymiyya
(Mecca & Riyadh: Matabic al-Riyad, 1961 - 1967) Vol. 11, pp. 558
- 586.
Kitab al-sama wa-‘l-raqs; Michot, Jean R., Musique et Danse selon Ibn Taymiyya: Le Livre
de Samâ’ et de la Danse (Kitâb al-Samâ’ wa-‘l-Raqs) compile par le Saykh
Muhammad al-Manbiji (Paris: Librairie Philosophique J. Vrin, 1991).
Ibn Tufayl, Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn cAbd
al-Malik, Risalat Hayy ibn Yaqzan (Beirut: Al-Matbacat
al-Kâthülïkiya, 1963).
Ikhwan al-Safa’, Rasa ’ilIkhwan al-Safa ’ (Beirut: Dar
Sadir, n.d.).
al-Jahiz, Abi cUthman cAmr
ibn Bahr, Kitab al-hayawan (Cairo: Mustafa al-Bâbî al- Halabi, 1939 -
1945).
al-Jalalayn [al-Mahallî, Jalal
al-Dîn ibn Muhammad ibn Ahmad & al-Suyuti, Jalal al- Dîn cAbd
al-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr], Tafsir al-Qur’an (s.i.: Maktabat al- Muthanna,
c. 1920).
al-Jawâlïqî, Abu Mansur ibn Ahmad
ibn Muhammad ibn al-Khidr (ed. Ahmad Muhammad Shakir), Al-Mucarrab
min al-kalam al-acjami cala curuf al-mucjam
(Tehran; s.n., 1966).
al-Jazuli, Muhammad ibn Sulayman, Dala’ilal-khayrat (si.:
s. n, s.d).
al-Kalabadhi, Abu Bakr Muhamad, Kitab al-Tacarruf
li-madhhab ahl al-tasawwuf;
Arberry, A. J. (tr.), The
Doctrine of the Siifis (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1977).
al-Kindi, Yacqub ibn
Ishaq, Kitab A kimiya’ al-citr wa-‘l-tascidat
(Leipzig: Brockhaus, 1948).
al-Kisa’i, Muhammad ibn cAbd
Allah, Qisas al-anbiya’; Eisenberg, Isaac (ed.), Qisas al-anbiya’
(Leiden: Brill, 1922 - 1923).
Kitab ahwal al-qiyama; Wolff, M., Muhammedanische Eschatologie (Leipzig:
Commissions- verlag von F. A. Brockhaus, 1872).
al-Mahalli, Jalal al-Din ibn
Muhammad ibn Ah mad, Tafsir al-Qur’an, see al- Jalalayn.
Malik ibn Anas, al-Muwatta’;
Muwatta’ al-imam Mâlik wa-sharhuhu tanwlr al- hawalik (Cairo: Matbacat
al-Akhira, 1370 / 1951).
Bewley, Aisha Abdurrahman (tr.), Al-Muwatta
of Imam Malik ibn Anas: The First Formulation of Islamic Law (Granada:
Madinah Press, 1992).
al-Mascudi, Abu ‘l-Hasan
cAli ibn al-Husayn ibn cAli (ed. cAbd al-Amir cAli
Muhanna), Muruj al-dhahab wa-macadin al-jawahir, (Beirut:
Mu’sassat al- Aclamiyya li-‘l-Mutbucat, 1421/2000).
Micrajnama; de Courteille, Abel Pavet (ed. & tr.), Mirâj-Nâmeh: Récit
de l’Ascension de Mahomet au Ciel Composé A.H. 840 (1436/1437) (repr.
Amsterdam: Philo Press, 1975).
al-Muhâsibï, al-Harith ibn Asad, Kitab
al-tawahhum; Roman, André (ed. & tr.), Une Vision Humaine des Fins
Dernières (Paris: Librairie Klincksieck, 1978).
Muslim, Ibn al-Hajjaj al-Qushayri, Sahh
Sahih Muslim bi-sharh al-Nawawl (Beirut: Dar al-Kitab al-cArabi).
al-Nasafi, Najm al-Din Abu Hafs, 'Aqlda:
Watt, W. Montgomery (tr.), Islamic Creeds: A Selection (Edinburgh:
Edinburgh University Press, 1994) pp. 80 - 85.
al-Nawawi, Abu Zakariyya Yahya ibn
Sharaf, Al-Tibyan fl adab hamalat al-Qur’an; Furber, Musa (tr.), Etiquette
of the Qur’an: Al-Tibyan fl adab hamalat al- Qur’an (Illinois: Starlatch,
2003).
Matn al-arbacln; Abdassamad Clarke (tr.), The Complete Forty Hadith (London:
Ta-Ha, 1998).
al-Qabïsï, Abu al-Saqr cAbd
al-cAziz ibn cUthman cAli al-Mawsili (ed.
& tr. Charles Burnett &al.), Kitab al-mudhal ila sinacat
ahkam al-nujum (London & Turin: The Warburg Institute & Nino Aragno
Editore, 2004).
al-Qadi, cAbd al-Rahim
ibn Ahmad, Daqa ’iq ai-akhbarp dhikr al-janna wa-‘l-nar; A’isha cAbd
al-Rahman at-Taijumana (sic) (tr.), Islamic Book of the Dead (Norwich:
Diwan Press, 1977).
al-Qayrawani, Ibn Abi Zayd, Risala;
Watt, W. Montgomery (tr.), Islamic Creeds: A Selection (Edinburgh:
Edinburgh University Press, 1994) pp. 69 - 72.
al-Qazwïriî, Zakariya ibn Muhammad
ibn Mahmud, Aja ’ib al-makhluqat wa ghara ’ib al-mawjudat (Cairo:
Mustafa al-Babi al-Halabi, 1956).
al-Qurtubi, Abi cAbd
Allah Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Ansari, Al-Jamic li-ahkam al- Qur’an
(Cairo: MatbacatDaral-Kutub al-Misriyya, 1357-1369/1938-1950).
al-Rabghuzi, Nasir al-Din ibn
Burhan al-Din; Boeschoten, H. E., O’Kane, J. & Vandamme, M., Al-Rabghuzl:
The Stories of the Prophets - Qisas al-anbiya ’ - An Eastern Turkish Version
(Leiden: Brill, 1995).
al-Razi, Fakhr al-Din Muhammad ibn cUmar,
Mafatlh al-ghayb [Tafslr] (Cairo: s. n., 1889 - 1891).
Kitab al-arbacln fl usül
al-dln (Hyderabad: Matbacat
Majlis Da’irat al-Macarif al-cUthmâriîyah, 1353 / 1934).
al-Sakhawi, Shams al-Din Muhammad
ibn cAbd al-Rahman, Al-Daw’ al-lamic li-ahl al-qarn
al-tasic (Beirut: Dar al-Maktaba bi-‘l-hayat, 1966).
al-Shahrastani, Abu ‘l-Fath
Muhammad ibn cAbd al-Kanm (ed. M. Tufiq), Al-Milal wa-‘l-nihal
(Cario: Matbacat Hijazi bi-‘l-Qahira, 1948).
al-Sulami, Abu cAbd
al-Rahman, Mas’ala bayan lata ’if al-micraj; Colby, Frederick
S. (ed. & tr.), The Subtleties of the Ascension: Early Mystical Sayings
on Muhammad’s Heavnely Journey (Louisville: Fons Vitae, 2006).
al-Suyutî, Jalal al-Dîn cAbd
al-Rahman, (ed. Muhammad Abu ‘l-Fadl Ibrâhîm), Kitab ithaf al-khasa
bi-fada’il al-masjid al-aqsa; tr. Reynolds, James, The History of the
Temple of Jerusalem (London: A. J. Valpy, 1836).
Al-Itqan T culüm al-Qur’an (Cairo: Maktabat wa-Matbacat al-Mashhad al- Husaynî,
s.d.) al-Mutawakkilî; Bell, William Y. (ed & tr.), The
Mutawakkili of as-Suyuti (Cairo: Nile Mission Press, 1924).
Sunan al-Nasa ’î bi-sharh al-hafiz
Jalal al-Dîn al-Suyütî wa-hashiyyat al-imam al-Sindî (Cairo: al-Matbacat al-Misriyya, 1348/1930).
cAmalal-yawm wa-‘l-layla (Cairo: Mustafa al-Babi Halabi, 1946).
Muwatta ’ al-Imam Malik wa-sharhuhu tanwîr al-hawalik (Cairo: Matbacat al- akhîra, 1370 / 1951).
Tarîkh al-khulafa’ (Cairo: Maktabat al-Tajariyya
al-Kubrâ, 1389 / 1969).
Tahdhir al-khawass min akadhib
al-qussas (Riyadh: al-Maktab al-Islami,
1972).
Al-Iqtirahfîcilm usülal-nahw (Istanbul: Jamicat Istanbul, 1975).
Al-Tahadduth bi-nicmat Allah; Sartain, E. M. (ed.), Jalal al-Dîn al-Suyütî: Biography and
Background (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1975). Asrar tartîb
al-Qur’an (Cairo: Dâr al-Ictisam, 1396 / 1976).
Jarret, H. S. (tr.), History of the Caliphs (repr. Karachi:
Krimsons, 1977).
Lubab al-taqül fîasbab al-nuzül (Tunis: Dâr al-Tunisiyya, 1981).
al-Hay’a al-sanîya fî 'l-hay’a
al-sunnîya; Heinen, Anton M. (tr. & ed.), Islamic
Cosmology: A Study of as-Suyütî’s al-Hay ’a as-sanîya fi l-hay’a as-sunnîya (Beirut:
Franz Steiner Verlag, 1982).
Ayat al-kursîmacâmhâ wa-fada ’iluha (Cairo: Dâr al-‘Itisad,1983).
Al-Tacallulwa’l-itfa’ li-nar al-tutfa’ (al-Zarqa’: Maktabat al-Manar, 1987).
Bushra al-ka’îb bi-liqa’ al-habîb (al-Zarqa’: Maktabat al-Manar, 1988).
Al-Haba’ik fî akhbar al-mala’ik; (ed.) Muhammad al-Sacîd ibn Basyûriî Zaghlul (Beirut:
Dar al-Kutub al-cIlmîyya, 1408 / 1988).
Al-Qawl al-jaliyy fîfada ’il cAlî (Beirut: Mu’ssasat Nadir, 1990).
Al-Husn al-maqsid fî camal
al-mawlid; Kaplan, N. J. (tr.), Muhammad’s
Birthday Festival: Early History in the Central Muslim Lands and the
Development in the Muslim West until the 10th / 16th
Century (Leiden: Brill, 1993) pp. 48 - 67.
Al-Dibaj cala Sahîh Muslim ibn Hajjaj (al-Khubar: Dar ibn cAffan, 1996). Al-Durr
al-manthür fî ‘l-tafsîr bi-‘l-ma’thür (Beirut: Dar al-macrifa,
s. d.).
Kitab al-Itqan fî culüm
al-Qur’an (Cairo: Maktabat wa-Matbacat
al-Mashad al- Husayni, s.d.).
Sawn al-mantiq wa-‘l-kalam canfann
al-mantiq wa-‘l-kalam (Beirut: Dar al- Kutub al-cIlmiyya,
s.d.).
ATiJabd'ikfi akhbar al-mala’ik; Or. 474(28) fol. 187v - 245r, University of Leiden.
Tafsîr al-Qur’an, see al-Jalalayn.
al-Tabari, Abu Jafar Muhammad ibn
Jarir, Jamic al-bayan can ta’wîl al-Qur’an (Cairo:
s.n., 1388/1968).
Muhammad Abu ‘l-Fadl Ibrahîm (ed.),
Ta’rîkh al-rusul wa-‘l-mulük; (Cairo: Dar al-Macarif bi-Misr,
1960).
Rosenthal, Franz (tr.), The
History of Al-Tabari: Volume 1 - From the Creation to the Flood (Albany:
State University of New York Press, 1989).
Brinner, W. M. (tr.), The
History of al-Tabari: Volume III - The Children of Israel (Albany: State
University of New York Press, 1991).
Poonawala, Ismail K. (tr.), The
History of al-Tabari: Vol. IX - The Last Years of the Prophet (New York:
State University of New York Press, 1990).
al-Tahawi, cAqida;
Watt, W. Montgomery (tr.), Islamic Creeds: A Selection (Edinburgh:
Edinburgh University Press, 1994) pp. 48 - 56.
al-Tawhidi, cAli ibn
Muhammad Abu Hayyan Kitab al-imla wa-‘l-mu’anasa; Kopf, L. (tr.), ‘The
Zoological Chapter of the Kitab of Abu Hayyan al-Tawhidi (10th Century)’
Osiris 12 (1956) pp. 390 - 466.
al-Thaclabi, Abi Ishaq
Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Ibrahim, cAra’is al-majalis fi qisas
al-anbiya’ (Beirut: Dar al-Kutub al-cIlmiyya, 1985).
William M. Brinner (tr.), cAra’is
al-majalis fi qisas al-anbiya’ or “Lives of the Prophets” (Leiden: Brill,
2002).
al-Waqidi, Muhammad ibn cUmar,
Kitab al-maghazi; Jones, Marsden (ed.), Al- Waqidi: Kitab al-maghazi
(London: Oxford University Press, 1966).
Yahya ibn Adam, Kitab al-kharaj
(Cairo: al-Matbacat al-Salafiyya wa-maktabtuma, 1347 / 1928-9).
al-Zabidî, Muhammad ibn Muhammad
Murtada, Taj al-carus min jawahir al-qamus (Kuwait: Matbacat
Hukuma al-Kuwayt, 1965 - 2001).
al-Zamakhshaiï, Abu ‘l-Qasim Jarr
Allah Mahmud cUmar, Al-Kashshaf can haqa’iq al-tanzil
wa-cuyun al-aqawilfiwujuh al-ta’wil (Cairo: Matbaca
al-Kubra, 1318 - 1319).
8.3 Primary Sources (Non-Muslim)
1 Enoch; Isaac, E., ‘1 (Ethiopic Apocalypse of) Enoch’ in James R.
Charlesworth
(ed.), The Old Testament
Pseudepigrapha (London: Darton, Longman and Todd, 1983 - 1985) Volume 1,
pp. 5 - 89.
2 Enoch; Andersen, F. I., ‘2 (Slavonic Apocalypse of) Enoch’ in James R.
Charlesworth (ed.), The Old
Testament Pseudepigrapha (London: Darton, Longman and Todd, 1983 - 1985)
Volume 1, pp. 91 - 213.
3 Baruch; Gaylord, H. E., Jr., ‘3 (Greek Apocalypse of) Baruch’ in James R.
Charlesworth (ed.). The Old
Testament Pseudepigrapha (London: Darton, Longman and Todd, 1983 - 1985)
Volume 1, pp. 653 - 679.
3 Enoch; Alexander, P., ‘3 (Hebrew Apocalypse of) Enoch’ in James R.
Charlesworth (ed.), The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha (London: Darton,
Longman and Todd, 1983 - 1985), Volume 1, pp. 223 - 315.
4Q491 (War Scroll); Baillet,
M (ed.); Wise, M., Abegg, M. and Cook, E., with Gordon, N. (trs.), ‘4Q491’ in
Donald W. Barry and Emmanuel Tov (eds.), The Dead Sea Scrolls Reads: Texts
Concerned with Religious Law (Leiden: Brill, 2004)pp.249 - 265.
Acts of John; Schaferdiek, Knut, ‘The Acts of John’ in W. Schneemelcher (ed.)
(tr. R. McL. Wilson), New Testament Apocrypha (Cambridge: James Clark,
1992) Volume 2, p. 152 - 212.
Apocalypse of Abraham; Rubinkiewicz, R (tr.) and Lunt, H. G. (rev.) ‘Apocalypse of
Abraham’ in James R. Charlesworth (ed.), The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha (London:
Darton, Longman and Todd, 1983 - 1985) Volume 1, pp. 681 - 705.
Apocalypse of Elijah; Wintermute, O. S., ‘Apocalypse of Elijah’ in James R. Charlesworth (ed.), The
Old Testament Pseudepigrapha (London: Darton, Longman and Todd, 1983 -
1985) Volume 1, pp. 721 - 753.
Apocalypse of Paul; Duensing, Hugo and Aurelio de Santos Otero (trs.) ‘The
Apocalypse of Paul' in W. Schneemelcher (ed.) (tr. R. McL. Wilson), New
Testament Apocrypha (Cambridge: James Clark, 1992) Volume 2, pp. 712 - 748.
Apocalypse of Zephaniah; Wintermute, O. S., ‘The Apocalypse of Zehpaniah’ in James R.
Charlesworth (ed.), The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha (London: Darton,
Longman and Todd, 1983 - 1985) Volume 1, pp. 497 - 515.
Berakoth; Simon, Maurice (tr.), Berakoth (London: Soncino Press,
1948); from the series I. Epstein (ed.), The Babylonian Talmud.
Bekoroth; Miller, L. and Simon, Maurice (trs.), Bekoroth (London:
Soncino Press, 1948); from the series I. Epstein (ed.), The Babylonian
Talmud.
Bible; New Revised Standard
Version: Anglicized Edition (Oxford: Oxford University Press,
1995).
Kitab al-cahd al-jadid (Cambridge: JanfTwat al-tawrâ al-brïtâriîyya wa-‘l- ajnabiyya,
1917
Greek New Testament; Aland, Kurt et.
al. (eds.), The Greek New Testament: United Bible Society (Fourth
Edition) (Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 1993).
Hebrew Bible (Tanakh); Alt,
A. et. al. (eds.), Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia (Stuttgart:
Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 1997).
Mount Sinai Codex 151; Staal, H.
(ed.), Mt. Sinai Codex 151 - I:Pauline Epistles (Louvain: E. Peeters,
1983).
Book of Elchasai; Irmshcer, Johannes, ‘Book of Elchasai’ in W. Schneemelcher (ed.)
(tr. R. McL. Wilson), New Testament Apocrypha (Cambridge: James Clark,
1992) Volume 2, p. 685 - 690.
Callimachus, Eiç Ano/./.ova;
William, F., Callimachus. Hymn to Apollo: A Commentary (Oxford:
Clarendon Press, 1978).
Canons of the Council of Laodicea; Pervical, H.enry, R., ‘Synod of Laodicea’ in Henry R.
Percival (ed. & tr.), The Seven Ecumencial Councils of the Undivided
Church (Repr. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1960),
pp. 123 - 160.
Coptic Gospel of Thomas; Blatz, Beate, ‘The Coptic Gospel of Thomas’ in W. Schneemelcher
(ed.) (tr. R. McL. Wilson), New Testament Apocrypha (Cambridge: James
Clark, 1992) Volume 1, pp. 110 - 113.
Enûma Elish; Heidel, Alexander (tr.), The Babylonian Genesis: The Story of
the Creation (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1942).
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154.
[III] Murata,
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324.
[IV] Belief in angels features in many of the credal
statements: cf. Al-Ashcan §1 & 24; al-Tahawi §20 & 24; al-Fiqh
al-akbar II §1; Al-Qayrawani §28 and al-Nasafi §23; Watt, W. Montgomery, Islamic
Creeds (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 1994) pp. 41, 43, 52 - 54,
62, 72 & 83. In the contemporary world, disbelief in angels is still
regarded as leading to kufr; for example, it was cited (fairly or
unfairly) in the case of Nasr Abu Zayd; see Najjar, Fauzi M., ‘Islamic
Fundamentalism and the Intellectuals: The Case of Nasr Hamid Abu Zayd’ BJMES
27 (2000) pp. 177 - 200, p. 194.
[V] Q 2:97;
Arberry, A. J., The Koran Interpreted (Oxford: Oxford University Press,
1998), p. 12; cf. Q 2:161, 177, 285 and 4:136; see also Abdel Haleem, M. A. S.,
‘Qur’an and Hadith’ in Tim Winter (ed.), The Cambridge Companion to
Classical Islamic Theology (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2008)
pp. 19 - 32, p. 27 and Boubakeur, Hamza, Traité moderne de théologie
islamqiue (Paris: Editions Maisonneuve & Larose, 1985) pp. 63 - 71.
[VI] Cf.
al-Zabïdï, Muhammad ibn Muhammad Murtada’, Taj al-arus min jawahïr al-qamus.
(Kuwait: Matbacat Hukuma al-Kuwayt, 1965 - 2001) vol. 28, pp. 45 -
4; see also Reichmuth, Stefan, ‘Murtada al-Zabïdï (D. 1791) in Biographical and
Autobiographical Accounts. Glimpses of Islamic Scholarship in the 18th
Century’ Wdl 39 (1999) pp. 64 - 102.
[VII] Jeffery,
Arthur, The Foreign Vocabulary of the Qur’an (Baroda: Oriental Institute,
1938).
[VIII] cf.
Noldeke, Theodor with Schwally, Friedrich, Geschichte des Qorans (Repr.
Hildescheim: Georg Olms Verlagsbuchhandlung, 1962) pp. 6 - 20; Torrey, C. C., The
Jewish Foundation of Islam (New York: Jewish Institute of Religion Press,
1933) and Bell, Richard, The Origin of Islam in its Christian Environment
(London: Macmillan, 1926); prior to these, there were a number of more polemic
studies, obvious examples include Geiger, Abraham, Was hat Mohammed aus dem
Judenthume aufgenommen. (Repr. Leipzig: M. W. Kaufmann, 1902); Tisdal,
William St. Clair, The Original Sources of the Qur’ân (London: SPCK,
1905) and Speyer, Heinrich, Die Biblische Erzâhlungen im Qoran (Repr.
Hildescheim: Georg Olms, 1988).
[IX] These
polemic works often attributed ‘sources’ to the Qur’an without much analysis.
They often made connections between the Qur’an and Jewish or Christian works
simply on account of a similar theme. The establishment of parallels in source
criticism was also popular in Old Testament Studies, where links were made
between the Old Testament and Ancient Near Eastern texts. For a discussion of
the problems of establishing parallels between two different texts, see
Sandmel, Samuel, ‘Parallelomania’ JBL 81 (1962) pp. 1 - 13.
[X] E.g.
Newby, Gordon D., ‘The Drowned Son: Midrash and Midrash Making in the Qur’an
and TafsïF in William M. Brinner & Steven D. Ricks (eds.), Studies
in Islamic and Judaic Traditions (Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1986) vol. 1,
pp. 19 - 32; Waldman, Marilyn Robinson, ‘New Approaches to “Biblical” Materials
in the Qur’an’ in Brinner & Ricks (eds.), Studies in Islamic and Judaic
Traditions, vol. 1, pp. 47 - 64; Sachedina, Abdulaziz, ‘Early Muslim
Traditionists and their Familiarity with Jewish Sources’ TafslF in
Brinner & Ricks (eds.), Islamic and Judaic Traditions, vol. 2, pp.
49 - 59; Halperin, David J., The Faces of the Chariot: Early Jewish
Responses to Ezekiel’s Vision (Tübingen: J. C. B. Mohr (Paul Siebeck),
1988) pp. 467 - 476 and Wagtendonk, Kees, ‘The Stories of David in al-Thaclabï’s
Qisas al-anbiya” in Robert Mantran (ed.), La signification du Bas
Moyen Age dans l’histoire et la culture du monde musulman: Actes du 8eme
Congrès de l’Union Européenne des Arabisants et Islamisants, Aix-en-Provence,
1976 (Aix-en-Provence : Edisud, 1978) pp. 343 - 352.
[XI] Wasserstorm,
Steven M., Between Muslim and Jew: The Problem of Symbiosis under Early
Islam (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1995) and Wassertrom, Steven
M., ‘Jewish Pseudepigrapha and Qisas al-Anbiya’’ in Benjamin H. Hary, John L.
Hayes and Fred Astern (eds.), Judaism and Islam: Boundaries, Communication
and Interactions: Essays in Honor of William M. Brinner (Leiden: Brill,
2000) pp. 237 - 253.
[XII] For
example, Brannon Wheeler concludes in his study of Moses in tafsir that
early scholars actively used Jewish and Christian material: ‘The Muslim
exegetical use of the Torah, Gospel, and other non- Quranic sources does not
appear to be a confused or haphazard “borrowing” of Jewish and Christian
ideas.’ Wheeler, Brannon M., Moses in the Qur ’an and Islamic Exegesis
(London: RoutledgeCurzon, 2002) p. 123.
[XIII] Cf.
Seligsohn, M., ‘Adam’ EI1 vol. 1, p. 127; Zwemer, ‘The
Worship of Adam by Angels’; Pederson, J. ‘Adam’ EI2 vol. 1, pp. 176 - 178; MacDonald, D. B., ‘Mala’ika’ 189; Husayn, Muhammad Kamil, ‘Story of
Adam’ MW 54 (1964) pp. 4 - 13; Jung, Leo, ‘Fallen Angels in Jewish,
Christian and Mohammedan Literature’ JQR 15 (1925) pp. 467 - 502; 16
(1926) pp. 45 -88; 171 - 205; 287 - 336; Schimmel, Annemarie, ‘Creation and
Judgement in the Koran and in Mystico- Poetical Interpretation’ from Schimmel
& Falaturi (eds.), We Believe in One God (London: Burns & Oates,
1979) pp. 148 - 180; Tottoli, Roberto ‘Muslim Attitudes to Prostration (sujud).
1. Arabs and Prostration at the beginning of Islam and in the Qur’an’ SI
88 (1998) 5 - 34 and Mir, Mustansir, ‘Adam in the Qur’an and Islamic
Literature’ IC 62 (1998) pp. 1 - 11.
[XIV] Cf.
Vadet, J.-C., ‘La création et 1’investiture de l’homme dans le sunnisme ou la
légende d’Adam chez al-Kisâ’ï’SI 42 (1975), pp. 5 - 38, pp. 27-28;
Kister, M.J., ‘Adam: A study of some legends in tafsir and hadith
literature’ IOS 13 (1993) pp. 113 - 174; Chipman, Leigh N. B., ‘Adam and
the Angels: An Examination of Mythic Elements in Islamic Sources’ Arabica
93 (2001) pp. 5 - 25; Chipman, Leigh N. B., ‘Mythic Aspects of the Process of
Adam’s creation’ Arabica 49 (2002) pp. 429 - 455 and Wassertrom, ‘Jewish
Pseudepigrapha’.
[XV] Cf.
Seligsohn, ‘Adam’ p. 127 and Pederson, ‘Adam’ p. 177.
[XVI] Tisdall,
Sources, p. 196; cf. Speyer, Erzahlungen, pp. 54 - 58 and Katsh,
Abraham, Judaism in Islam (New York: New York University Press, 1954)
pp. 32 - 33.
[XVII] Kister,
‘Àdam’, p. 115.
[XVIII] Schimmel,
‘Creation and Judgement’ pp. 159 - 160.
[XIX] The most
notable example is al-Hallaj, Abu ‘l-Mughith al-Husayn ibn Mansur, Tawasin; Massignon,
Louis (tr. H. Mason), The Passion of al-Hallaj: Mystic and Martyr - Vol. 3.
The Teaching of Al-Hallaj (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1982) pp.
282 - 326, especially pp. 306 - 316. See also Awn, Peter, Satan’s Tragedy
and Redemption: Iblis in Sufi Psychology (Leiden: Brill, 1983) for a full
discussion of this theme.
[XX] Tottoli,
‘Attitudes to Prostration’.
[XXI] E.g.
Mir, ‘Adam in the Qur’an’ and Chipman, ‘Mythic aspects’.
[XXII] Islamic
eschatology will be dealt with below.
[XXIII] The
Egyptologist Wallis Budge also suggests that Islamic angelology may be related
to Egyptian polytheism; see Budge, Wallis E. A., The Gods of the Egyptians
(repr. New York: Dover, 1969) vol. 1, p. 6.
[XXIV] Chelhod,
Joseph, Les Structures du Sacré chez les Arabes (Paris: G. P.
Maisonneuve et Larose, 1965); Waardenburg, J., ‘Changes of Belief in Spiritual
Beings, Prophethood and the Rise of Islam’ in Hans G. Kippenburg (ed.), Struggles
of Gods: Papers of the Groningen Work Group for the Study of the History of
Religions (Berlin: Mouton, 1984) pp. 259 - 290 and Welch, Alford T., ‘Allah
and Other Supernatural Beings: The Emergence of the Qur’anic doctrine of tawhid’
JAAR 47 (1979) pp. 733 - 758; see also Hawting, G. R., The Idea of
Idolatry and the Emergence of Islam: From Polemic to History (Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 1999).
[XXV] Cf.
Q 34:40; 37:149 - 152; 43:19; 45:43 and 53:21.
[XXVI] Evolutionist
views consider societies to be ‘.. .in a process of evolution during which they
became more complex and more rational and less simple and “primitive”; but some
seemed to have got stuck at lower steps of the escalator.’ Gellner, David N.,
‘Anthropological Approaches’ in Peter Connolly and Ninian Smart (eds.), Approaches
to the Study of Religion (London: Cassell, 1999) pp. 10 - 41, p. 10.
[XXVII] Cf.
‘It should be obvious from my summary of Noldeke and Schwally’s work that,
plausible as their scheme may seem, it is based on very little hard-and-fast
evidence. In fact, many of the surahs are extremely hard to date accurately.’
Robinson, Neal, Discovering the Qur’an: A Contemporary Approach to a Veiled
Text (London: SCM Press Ltd., 1996) p. 80; for more on Western dating of
the verses see pp. 76 - 96.
[XXVIII] Welch,
‘Allah and Other Supernatural Beings’ p. 750.
[XXIX] Welch,
‘Allah and Other Supernatural Beings’ p. 748.
[XXX] See
Section 2.2 for a discussion of these themes.
[XXXI] Other
accounts of the origins and development of Arabian monotheism do not force
angelology into a developmental framework; Watt’s ‘High God Theory’ is the most
notable; see, Watt, W. Montgomery, ‘Belief in a “High God” in pre-Islamic
Arabia’ JSS 16 (1971) pp. 35 - 40, p. 40; see also Watt, W. Montgomery,
‘The Qur’an and belief in a “High God”’ Isl. 56 (1979) pp. 205 - 211 and
Fahd, Toufic, Panthéon de l'Arabie centrale à la veille de l'hégire
(Paris: Librairie Orientaliste Paul Geuthner, 1968).
[XXXII] Hawting,
Idea of Idolatry, pp. 130 - 149.
[XXXIII] Hawting,
Idea of Idolatry, pp. 146 - 147.
[XXXIV] See
section 2.1 for a longer discussion of angelic nomenclature.
[XXXV] Angelolatry
was evidently a problem for the Early Church with the Council of Laodicea (343
- 381) explicitly banning the practice; see Canon §35: ‘Christians must not
forsake the Church of God, and go away and invoke angels and gather assemblies,
which things are forbidden. If, therefore, any one shall be found engaged in
this covert idolatry, let him be anathema; for he has forsaken our Lord Jesus
Christ, the Son of God, and has gone over to idolatry.’ Percival, Henry R.,
(tr.), ‘Synod of Laodicea’ in Henry R. Percival (ed. & tr.), The Seven
Ecumencial Councils of the Undivided Church (Repr. Grand Rapids: William B.
Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1960), pp. 123 - 160, p. 151.
[XXXVI] Cf.
Healey, John F., The Religion of the Nabateans: A Conspectus (Leiden:
Brill, 2001) pp. 80 - 119 and Ryckmans, Jacques, ‘Le Panthéon de l’Arabie du
Sud Pré-Islamique’ RHR 206 (1989) pp. 151 - 170, pp. 155 - 156.
[XXXVII] For a
good overview, see Chittick, William C., ‘Eschatology’ in Nasr (ed.), Islamic
Spirituality: Foundations, pp. 378 - 409; Hermansen, Marcia, ‘Eschatology’
in Tim Winter (ed.), The Cambridge Companion to Islamic Theology
(Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2008) pp. 308 -324 and Danner, Victor,
‘The Last Days in Judaism, Christianity and Islam’ in Arvind Sharma (ed.), Fragments
of Infinity: Essays in Religion and Philosophy - A Festschrift in Honour of
Professor Huston Smith (Bridport: Prism, 1991) pp. 63 - 86; as well as
various articles in encyclopaedias, e.g. Gardet, L., ‘Kiyama’ EI2, vol. 5,
pp. 235 - 238; Leemhuis, F., ‘Apocalypse’ EQ vol. 1, pp. 111 - 114; and
Lewinstein, Keith, ‘Gog and Magog’ EQ, vol. 2, pp. 331 - 333.
[XXXVIII] Cf.
Makino, Shinya, Creation and Termination: a semantic study of the Structure
of the Qur’anic World View (Tokyo: The Keio Institute of Cultural and
Linguistic Studies, 1970); Galloway, D., ‘The Resurrection and Judgment in
Qur’an’ MW 12 (1922) pp. 348 - 372; Kinberg, L., ‘Interaction between
this world and the after world in Islamic tradition’ Oriens 29 (1986)
pp. 285 - 308 and Bashear, Suliman, ‘Muslim Apocalypses and the hour: a
case-study tradition re-interpretation’ IOS 13 (1993) pp. 75 - 99.
[XXXIX] O’Shaugnessy,
Thomas, Muhammad’s Thoughts on Death (Leiden: Brill, 1964); Smith, Jane
I., and Haddad, Y. Y., The Islamic Understanding of Death and Resurrection
(Albany: State University of New York Press, 1981); Casanova, Paul, Mohammed
et la Fin du Monde: Étude Critique sur l’Islam Primitif (Paris: Librairie
Paul Geuthner, 1911); Gardet, Louis, Dieu et la Destinée de l’Homme
(Paris: Librairie Philosophique, 1967) pp. 237 - 257; Smith, Jane I.,
‘Reflection on aspects of immortality in Islam’ HTR 70 (1977) pp. 85 -
98 and eadem, ‘The understanding of nafs and ruh in
contemporary Muslim considerations on the nature of sleep and death’ MW
69 (1979) pp. 151 - 161
[XL] Cf.
Vuckovic, Brooke Olson, Heavenly Journey, Earthly Concerns: The Legacy of
the Mfraj in the Formation of Islam (London: Routledge, 2005); Nünlist,
Tobias, Himmelfahrt und Heiligkeit im Islam: Eine Studie unter besondere
Berücksichtigung von Ibn Sïna’s Micraj-nameh (Berlin: Peter
Lang, 2002); Asin Palacios, M., La Escatologia Musulmana en la Divina
Comedia: Seguida de la Historia y Critica de una Polémica (Madrid: Escuelas
de Estudios Arabes de Madrid y Granada, 1943) also available in translation:
Sutherland, H. (tr.), Islam and the Divine Comedy (London: John Murray,
1926); El-Azma, N., “Some notes on the impact of the story of the Mi‘raj
on Sufi literature”, Muslim World 63 (1973) pp. 93 - 104; Morris, James
Winston ‘The Spiritual Ascension of Ibn cArabi and the Micraj
- Part I’ JAOS 107 (1987) pp. 629 - 652 & 108 (1988) pp. 63 - 77;
van Ess, Josef, ‘Vision and Ascension: Surat al-Najm and Its
Relationship with Muhammad’s m'i'raj' JQS 1(1999) pp. 47 - 62 and
Halperin, David J., ‘Hekhalot and Micraj: Observations on the
Heavenly Journey in Judaism and Islam’ in John J. Collins & Michael A.
Fishbane (eds.), Death, Ecstasy, and Other Worldly Journeys (Albany:
State University of New York Press, 1995) pp. 269 - 288.
[XLI] Willem
Bijlefeld has adapted some of these ideas; see, Biljefeld, Willem A.,
‘Eschatology: Some Muslim and Christian Data’ ICMR 15 (2004) pp. 35 -
54.
[XLII] Olyan,
Saul M., A Thousand Thousands Served Him (Tübingen: J. C. B. Mohr (Paul
Siebeck), 1993); Tavard, Georges, with Caquot, André & Michl, Johann, Die
Engel (Freiburg: Herder, 1968) and Mach, Michael: Entwicklungsstadien
des jüdischen Engelglaubens in vorrabinischer Zeit (Tübingen: J. C. B. Mohr
(Paul Siebeck), 1992).
[XLIII] Davidson,
Maxwell J., Angels at Qumran: A Comparative Study of 1 Enoch 1 - 36, 72 -
108 and Sectarian Writings from Qumran (Sheffield: JSOT, 1992); Sullivan,
Kevin P., Wrestling with Angels: A Study of the Relationship Between Angels
and Humans in Ancient Jewish Literature and the New Testament (Leiden:
Brill, 2004); Schafer, Peter, Rivalitat zwischen Engeln und Menschen:
Untersuchungen zur rabbinischen Engelvorstellung (Berlin: De Gruyter,
1975); Tuschling, R. M. M., Angels and Orthodoxy: A Study of their
Development in Syria and Palestine from the Qumran Texts to Ephrem the Syrian
(Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2007); Rowland, Christopher, The Open Heaven: A
Study of Apocalyptic in Judaism and Early Christianity (London: SPCK, 1982)
and Elior, Rachel, ‘Mysticism, Magic and Angelology: The Perception of Angels
in Hekhalot Literature’ JSQ 1 (1993) pp. 3 - 53.
[XLIV] Gruenwald,
Ithamar, Apocalyptic and Merkevah Mysticism (Leiden: Brill, 1980);
Himmelfarb, Marthta, Tours of hell: An Apocalyptic Form in Jewish and
Christian Literature (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1983);
Himmelfarb, Martha, Ascent to Heaven in Jewish and Christian Apocalypses
(Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1993); Collins, John J., The Apocalyptic
Imagination: An Introduction to Jewish Apocalyptic Literature (Grand
Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1998); there also a number of
collections of articles, which are very useful, particularly, Collins &
Fishbane (eds.), Other Worldly Journeys; Collins, John J. (ed.), Apocalypse:
The Morphology of a Genre in Semeia 14 (1979) and Bauckham, Richard,
The Fate of the Dead: Studies on the Jewish and Christian Apocalypses
(Leiden: Brill, 1998). From a philosophy of religion perspecitive, see Culianu,
Ioan P., Psychanodia I: A Survey of the Evidence Concerning the Ascenion of
the Soul and Its Relevance (Leiden: Brill, 1983).
[XLV] Jadaane,
Fehmi, ‘La place des Anges dans la théologie musulmane’ SI 41 (1975) pp.
23 - 62; Lupti, Ibrahim, ‘The Questions of the Superiority of Angels and
Prophets between Az-Zamakhshan and al- Baydawf Arabica 28 (1981) pp. 65
- 75; Stern, S. M., Studies in Early Ismacïlism (Leiden: E.
J. Brill, 1983) and Webb, Gisela, ‘Hierarchy, Angels, and the Human Condition
in the Sufism of Ibn ‘Arabi’ MW 81 (1991) pp. 245 - 253.
[XLVI] Cf.
Netton, Ian R., Allah Transcendent: Studies in the Structure and Semiotics
of Islamic Philosophy (Richmond: Curzon, 1994) and Sweetman, J. Windrow, Islam
and Christian Theology: A Study of the Interpretation of Theological Ideas in
the Two Religions (London: Lutterworth Press, 1947) Part I, vol. 2, pp. 75
- 79 and Burge, Stephen R., ‘The Provenance of Suhrawardian Angelology’ ArOr
76 (2008) pp. 435 - 457.
[XLVII] To
see a discussion of these two themes, see Burge, S. R., Qur’anic Angelology.
MSc. Dissertation, University of Edinburgh, 2004.
[XLVIII] E.g.
Goldziher, Ignaz, (tr. S. M. Stern), Muslim Studies (repr. London:
Aldine Transaction, 2006); Schacht, Joseph, On the Origins of Muhammadan
Jurisprudence (Oxford, Oxford University Press, 1950); Horovitz, Josef, ‘The
Antiquity and Origin of the Isnad’ in Harald Motzki (ed.), Hadith: Origins
and Development (Ashgate: Variorum, 2004), pp. 151 - 158 and Robson, James,
‘The isnad in Muslim tradition’ TGUOS 15 (1953) pp. 15 - 26.
[XLIX] Motzki,
Harald, Die Anfânge der islamischen Jurisprudenz (Stuttgart: Franz
Steiner, 1991); Melchert, Christopher, The Formation of the Sunni Schools of
Law (Leiden: Brill, 1997), Dickinson, Eerik, The Development of Early
Sunnite Hadith Criticism (Leiden: Brill, 2002) and Dutton, Yasin, The
Origins of Islamic Law (Richmond: Curzon, 1999); Brown, Jonathan, The
Canonization of al- Bukhari and Muslim (Leiden: Brill, 2007).
[L] There
has, however, been structural analysis of narrative hadith considered
independently; e.g. Speight, R. Marston, ‘Narrative Structures in the Hadith’ JNES
59 (2000) pp. 265 - 271.
[LI] Newman,
Andrew, The Formative Period of Twelver Shi’ism: Hadith as Discourse Between
Qum and Baghdad (Richmond: Curzon, 2000). Newman argues that the three main
early Shi’i hadith collections (of al-Kulayni, al-Saffar and al-Barqi)
differed in content and arrangement, suggesting differing or competing
statements about theological truth in Twelver Shi’ism; see pp. 193 - 201. A
similar structuralist approach has been made by Hilary Kilpatrick in her study
of the composition of the Kitab al-aghani; see Kilpatrick, Hilary, Making
the Great Book of Songs: Compilation and the author’s craft in Abû l-Faraj
al-I.sbahânî's Kitâb al-aghânî (London, 2003).
[LII] For a
biography of al-Suyuti (including his own autobiography Al-Tahadduth bi-nicmat
Allah), see Sartain, E. M., Jalal al-Dïn al-Suyütï: Biography and
Background (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1975) and Saleh, Marlis
J., ‘Al-Suyuti and His Works: Their Place in Islamic Scholarship from Mamluk
Times to the Present’ MSR 5 (2001) pp. 73 - 89.
[LIII] The
number of works of al-Suyuti (including short tracts and fatwas) is not
agreed, with estimates ranging from 550 - 980; see Jackson, Roy, Fifty Key
Figures in Islam (London: Routledge, 2006) pp. 137 - 141; Geoffroy, E.,
‘Al-Suyuti’ EI2 vol. 9, pp. 913
- 916 and Goldziher, Ignaz, ‘Zur Charakteristik Gelâl ud-dîn us-Sujûtî’s und
seiner literarischen Thatigkeit’ GS vol. 1, pp. 52 - 73 (available in
translation, see Hunwick, J. O (ed.) and Barry, Michael (tr.), ‘Ignaz Goldziher
on Al- Suyuti’ MW 68 (1978) pp. 79 - 99).
[LIV] Marlis
Saleh comments: ‘It appears that this recognition was more readily granted by
those who were separated from al-Suyuti by either time or distance.’ Saleh,
‘Al-Suyuti’ p. 78 and Irwin, R., ‘Al- Suyuti (849 - 911 / 1445 - 1505)’ EAL
vol. 2, p. 746. For a contemporary and negative assessment of his work see,
al-Sakhawi, Shams al-Din Muhammad ibn cAbd al-Rahman, Al-Daw ’
al-lamic li-ahl al- qarn al-tasic (Beirut: Dar
al-Maktaba bi-‘l-hayat, 1966) vol. 4, pp. 65 - 71.
[LV] For
example, al-Suyuti is known to have had frequent dealings with scholars in East
Africa; cf. Sartain, E. M., ‘Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti’s Relations with the People
of Takrur’ JSS 16 (1971) pp. 193 - 198; John Voll also comments that
almost all isnads during the eighteenth century in the area around the
Mediterranean were attributed to al-Suyuti, Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani (from whom
al-Suyuti received his ijaza) and Zakariya al-Ansari; see Voll, John O.,
‘Hadith Scholars and Tariqahs: An Ulama Group in 18th Century Haramayn and
their Impact on the Islamic World’ AAS 15 (1980) pp. 264 - 273, p. 265.
[LVI] Cf.
Musa, Sulaiman, ‘The Influence of Tafsir al-Jalalayn on Some Notable
Nigerian Mufassirun in the Twentieth-Century Nigeria’ JMMA 20
(2000) pp. 323 - 328. Works of al-Suyuti are commonly cited in both Muslim and
non-Muslim scholarly works on almost any subject. For an assessment of his
reception in modern Islamic thought, see Saleh, ‘Al-Suyuti’ pp. 80 - 82.
[LVII] Cf.
Ibrahim, ‘The questions of the superiority of angels’ and Jadaane, ‘La place
des anges’.
[LVIII] See
Brockelmann, Carl, Geschichte der arabischen Literatur (Berlin: Emil
Feber, 1898 - 1902 and (Supplement) Leiden: Brill, 1937 - 1942), vol. 2, p.
147, §51 and Khazinda, Ahmad & Shaybani, Muhammad, Dalil makhtutat
al-Suyuti wa-amakin wujudiha (Kuwait: Maktabat ibn Taymiyya, 1403 / 1983)
p. 144; in addition to the MSS detailed by these two catalogues, there are two
other MSS held in (i) the Mingana Collection, Birmingham, MS 651 and (ii) The
British Library, Or. 9026/1 fol. 1r - 76v.
[LIX] For
the use of books in the Mamluk period, see Berkey, Jonathan, The
Transmission of Knowledge in Medieval Cairo: A Social History of Islamic
Education (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1992) pp. 24 - 30.
[LX] Details of
the the authors and their works can be found in the Appendix.
[LXI] Nemoy,
Leon, ‘The Treatise on the Egyptian Pyramids (Tuhfat al-kiram fï khabar al-ahram)’
Isis 30 (1939) pp. 17 - 37, pp. 17 - 18; because of his compositional style
some of al-Suyuti’s contemporaries accused him of plagiarism; see Saleh,
‘Al-Suyuti’ p. 79.
[LXII] The
section on the noble watching Scribes (al-hafizan al-katiban) could not
be included because of its length.
[LXIII] E.g.
Kitab ithaf al-khasa bi-fada ’il al-masjid al-aqsa; al-Hay ’a al-saniyafi
’l-hay ’a al-sunniya; Al- carf al-wardifi akhbar al-Mahdi; Laqt
al-marjanfi akhbar al-jann etc.
[LXIV] Although
Brockelmann’s entry for al-Haba’ik suggests that the word is not always
found in the manuscripts; see Brockelmann, GAL vol. 2, p. 147, §51.
[LXV] Al-SuyUti,
Jalal al-Dîn, (ed. Abu Hajir Muhammad al-Sacîd ibn Basyünî Zaghlül),
Al-Habaik fi akhbar al-mala ’ik (Beirut: Dar al-Kutub al-cIlmiyyah,
1408/1988).
[LXVI] A
note on the manuscript can be found below.
[LXVII] See
Holt, P. M., ‘Mamluks’ EI2, vol. 7, pp. 321 - 331, especially
pp. 323 - 325; Ayalon, David, ‘The Circassians in the Mamlük Period’ JAOS
69 (1949) pp. 135 - 147; Garcin, Jean-Claude, ‘The Regime of the Circassian
Mamluks’ in C. F. Petry (ed.), The Cambridge History of Egypt - vol. 1:
Islamic Egypt, 640 - 1517 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998) pp.
290 - 317; Lapidus, Ira M., Muslim Cities in the Later Middle Ages
(Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1967) pp. 32 - 43 and Staffa, Susan
Jane, Conquest and Fusion: The Social Evolution of Cairo. A.D. 642 - 1850 (Leiden:
Brill, 1977), pp. 101 - 226.
[LXVIII] Schimmel,
Annemarie, ‘Some Glimpses of the Religious Life of Egypt During the Late Mamluk
Period’ IS 4 (1965) pp. 353 - 392; Little, Donald P., ‘Religion under
the Mamluks’ MW 73 (1983) pp. 165 - 181; Winter, Michael, ‘Popular
Religion in Egypt Since the Mamluks’ The Arabist 9 - 10 (1994) pp. 103 -
118 and Frenkel, Yehoshua, ‘Popular Culture (Islam, Early and Middle Periods)’ RC
2 (2008) pp. 195 - 225.
[LXIX] See
Little, Donald P., ‘Communal Strife in Late Mamluk Jerusalem’ ILS 6
(1999) pp. 69 - 96; Shoshan, Boaz, ‘Exchange-Rate Policies in Fifteenth Century
Egypt’ JESHO 29 (1986) pp. 28 - 51; idem, ‘Money Supply and Grain
Prices in Fifteenth Century Egypt’ EHR 36 (1983) pp. 47 - 67; idem, ‘Grain
Riots and the Moral Economy’ JIH 10 (1980) pp. 459 - 478
[LXX] Jonathan
Berkey comments: ‘... the immense number of manuscripts that survive from, say,
the fifteenth century, testify to the important role of the book in a highly
literate academic world that ... [was] vibrant throughout the Middle
Ages.’ Berkey, Transmission of Knowledge, p. 24; see also Petry, Carl
F., ‘Scholastic Stasis in Medieval Islam Reconsidered: Mamluk Patronage in
Cairo’ PT 14 (1993) pp. 323 - 348.
[LXXI] Petry,
Carl, ‘Geographical Origins of Academicians in Cairo during the fifteenth
Century’ JESHO 23 (1980) pp. 119 - 141, p. 140.
[LXXII] For
more on Islamic higher education, see Makdisi, George, The Rise of the
Colleges: Institutions of Learning in Islam in the West (Edinburgh:
Edinburgh University Press, 1981).
[LXXIII] See
Petry, ‘Geographic Origins of Academicians’ p. 119; Jonathan Berkey comments:
‘The person connection - the education model relying not simply on close study
of a text, but on intensive, personal interaction with a shaykh - has always
been central to Islamic education, not simply in Mamluk Egypt.’ Berkey, Transmission
of Knowledge, p. 21.
[LXXIV] Petry,
Carl F., The Civilian Elite of Cairo in the Late Middle Ages (Princeton:
Princeton University Press, 1981) p. 50; see also Waardenburg, Jacques,
‘Official and Popular Religion as a Problem in Islamic Studies’ in Pieter H.
Vrijhof and Jacques Waardenburg (eds.), Official and Popular Religion:
Analysis of a Theme for Religious Studies (The Hague: Mouton, 1979) pp. 340
- 346, pp. 361 - 362.
[LXXV] Maribel
Fierro has used scholarly literature written against innovations (bida’)
to attempt to understand Muslim society in medieval Spain; likewise, through
the output of the Egyptian scholars, it is possible to gain an understanding of
contemporary practices, as well as the preoccupations and concerns of the
scholarly élite; see Fierro, Maribel, ‘The treatises against innovations (kutub
al-bidac)’ Isl. 67 (1992) pp. 204 - 246, especially pp. 238 -
240.
[LXXVI] For
more on these disputes, see Perlmann, M., ‘Notes on Anti-Christian Propaganda
in the Mamluk Empire’ BSOAS 10 (1939 - 1942) pp. 843 - 861; Little,
‘Communal Strife’; idem., ‘Coptic Conversion to Islam Under the Bahn
Mamluks, 625 - 755 / 1293 - 1354)’ BSOAS 39 (1976) pp. 552 - 569 and idem.,
‘Religion Under the Mamluks’. For the place of Jews in Mamluk society, see
Cohen, Mark R., ‘Jews in the Mamluk Environment: The Crisis of 1442 (A Geniza
Study)’ BSOAS 47 (1984) pp. 425 - 448.
[LXXVII] Cf.
Wiederhold, Lutz, ‘Blasphemy Against the Prophet Muhammad and his Companions (Sabb
al- rasul, sabb al-sahabah): The Introduction of the Topic into Shafici
Legal Literature and its Relevance for Legal Practice under Mamluk Rule’ JSS
42 (1997) pp. 39 - 70.
[LXXVIII] Little
comments: ‘In Egypt, for example, the Copts from time to time during the Mamluk
period incurred the wrath of the populace and consequently the government in
Egypt, either by displays of conspicuous consumption in violation of Muslim
sumptuary laws, by playing too prominent a role in the financial bureaux, or by
acts of blasphemy or terrorism. Because such acts disrupted the political and
social stability that the Mamluks were so keen to maintain, they attracted the
interest of Muslim historians, both Egyptian and Syrian.’ Little, ‘Communal
Strife’ p. 70; see also Little, ‘Coptic Conversion’ and O’Sullivan, Shaun,
‘Coptic Conversion and the Islamization of Egypt’ MSR 10:2 (2006) pp. 65
- 79.
[LXXIX] Little,
‘Religion under the Mamluks’ p. 179.
[LXXX] See
Huda, Lutfi, ‘Coptic Festivals of the Nile: Aberrations of the Past?’ in Thomas
Philipp and Ulrich Haarmann (eds.), The Mamluks in Egyptian Politics and
Society (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998) pp. 254 - 282.
[LXXXI] For a
comprehensive list of different popular practices and brief analyses of them,
see Frenkel, ‘Popular Culture’, especially pp. 198 - 204. There are articles
available on specific practices such as tahnïk, e.g. Gilcadi,
Avner, ‘Some notes on Tahnïk in Medieval Islam’ JNES47 (1988) pp.
175 - 179.
[LXXXII] Cf.
Memon, Muhammad Umar, Ibn Taymiyya’s Struggle Against Popular Religion: with
an Annotated Translation of his Kitab iqtida ’ as-sirat al-mustaqïm
mukhalafat ashab al-jahïm (The Hague: Mouton, 1976), especially pp. 2 -
7.
[LXXXIII] The
most extensive study is of the Mawlid is Kaplan, N. J., Muhammad’s
Birthday Festival: Early History in the Central Muslim Lands and the
Development in the Muslim West until the 10th / 16th Century
(Leiden: Brill, 1993); see also Kaptein, Nico, ‘Materials for the History of
the Prophet’s Birthday Celebration in Mecca’ Isl. 67 (1992) pp. 193 -
203 and Katz, Marion Holmes, The Birth of the Prophet Muhammad: Devotional
Piety in Sunnï Islam (London: Routledge, 2007). On tomb visitation see Meri,
Josef W., The Cult of Saints Among Muslims and Jews in Medieval Syria
(Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002) and Taylor, Christopher S., ‘Saints, Ziyara,
Qissa, and the Social Construction of Moral Imagination in Late Medieval
Egypt) SI 88 (1998) pp. 103 - 120.
[LXXXIV] Shaun
Marmon comments: ‘In opposition to Ibn Taymiyya, the vast majority of the
mamluk ulama valorized the petitioning of the holy dead and the visiting of
their tombs. The ulama also set forth a careful etiquette for these activities,
an etiquette which, judginig (sic) by the learned complaints, ordinary
people, especially women, often ignored.’ Marmon, Shaun E., ‘The Quality of
Mercy in Mamluk Society’ SI 87 (1998) pp. 125 - 139, p. 129.
[LXXXV] See
al-Suyuti, Jalal al-Din, Al-Husn al-maqsid f camal al-mawlid;
translated in Kaplan, Muhammad’s Birthday Festival, pp. 48 - 67.
[LXXXVI] Winter,
‘Popular Religion’ p. 115; for a more extensive discussion of these ideas, see
Shoshan, Boaz, ‘High Culture and Popular Culture in Medieval Islam’ SI
73 (1991) pp. 67 - 107.
[LXXXVII] Pellat,
Ch., ‘Kass’ EI2 vol. 4, pp. 733 - 734; Radtke, B., and Jansen, J. J. G.,
‘Wa’iz’ EI2 vol. 11, pp. 56 - 57; Berkey, Jonathan P., Popular
Preaching and Religious Authority in the Medieval Middle East (Seattle:
University of Washington Press, 2001), idem., ‘Tradition, Innovation and
the Social Construction of Knowledge in the Medieval Islamic Near East’ PP
146 (1995) pp. 38 - 65; idem., ‘Storytelling, Preaching, and Power in
Mamluk Cairo’ MSR 4 (2000) pp. 53 - 74 and Shoshan, Boaz, ‘On Popular
Literature in Medieval Cairo’ PT 14 (1993) pp. 349 - 365.
[LXXXVIII] See al-Suyûtï, Tahdhir al-khawass min akadhib
al-qussas (Riyadh: al-Maktab al-Islamï, 1972).
[LXXXIX] Geoffroy,
Éric, Le Soufisme en Égypte et en Syrie Sous les Derniers Mamelouks et les
Premiers Ottomans: Orientations Spirituelles et Enjeux Culturels (Damascus:
Institut Français de Damas, 1995) p. 49.
[XC] Waardenburg,
‘Official and Popular Religion’ pp. 363 - 371.
[XCI] See
Dols, Michael W., ‘The Second Plague Pandemic and its Recurrences in the Middle
East: 1347 - 1894’ JESHO 22 (1979) pp. 162 - 189.
[XCII] See
various articles by Avner Gilcadi; ‘Islamic Consolation Treatises
for Bereaved Parents: Some Bibliographical Notes’ SI 81 (1995) pp. 197 -
202; ‘Sabr (Steadfastness) of Bereaved Parents: A Motif in Medieval
Muslim Consolation Treatises and Some Parallels in Jewish Writings’ JQR
80 (1989) pp. 35 - 48 and ‘ “The Child was small...Not so the Grief for Him”:
Sources, Structure and Content of al-Sakhawi’s Consolation Treatise for
Bereaved Parents’ PT 14 (1993) pp. 367 - 386. Al- Suyuti wrote in this
genre, e.g Bushra al-ka’ïb bi-liqa’ al-habïb (al-Zarqa’: Maktabat
al-Manar, 1988) and al-Tacallul wa’l-itfa’ li-nar al-tutfa ’
(al-Zarqa’: Maktabat al-Manar, 1987).
[XCIII] Al-Suyuti,
Al-qawl al-jaliyy fï fada’il cAlï (Beirut: Mu’ssasat Nadir,
1990); the brevity of the work implies that it was for popular consumption, cf.
al-Nawawi, Yahya ibn Sharaf, Matn al-arbacïn; Abdassamad
Clarke (tr.), The Complete Forty Hadith (London: Ta-Ha, 1998).
[XCIV] Al-Suyuti,
cAmal al-yawm wa- ‘l-layla (Cairo: Mustafa al-Babi Halabi,
1946); this is a collection of prayers and devotions.
[XCV] For
al-Sakhawi, see Petry, C. F., ‘al-Sakhawi’ EI2 vol. 8, pp.
881 - 882.
[XCVI] See
Eche, Youssef, Les Bibliothèques Arabes: Publiques et Semi-Publiques en
Mésopotamie, En Syrie et en Egypte au Moyen Age (Damas: Institut Français
de Damas, 1967) pp. 249 - 264; and Arberry, A. J., Sakhawiana: A Study Based
on the Chester Beatty Ms. Arab. 773 (London: Emery Walker Ltd., 1951).
[XCVII] Jonathan
Berkey comments: ‘Intellectual activity in the civilizations on both sides of
the Mediterranean... consisted largely of replicated, and commenting upon, the
literary productions of previous generations.’ Berkey, Transmission of
Knowledge, p. 25
[XCVIII] Arberry,
Sakhawiana, p. 32.
[XCIX] Al-Suyuti’s
Al-Haba ’ik does include a ‘postscript’ (khatima) concerning
angels in Islamic theology (kalam), and the function and purpose of this
will be discussed below.
[C] Not
achieving wide acknowledgement in Cairo itself, al-Suyuti became extremely well
known outside Egypt; Nehemia Levtzion comments: ‘Al-Suyuti’s eminence was not
universally acknowledged by the ulama’ of Cairo, with some of those he
was in conflict. He must have been gratified by his reputation in Takrur.’
Levtzion, Nehemia, ‘Mamluk Egypt and Takrur (West Africa)’ in M. Sharon (ed.), Studies
in Islamic History and Civilization (Jerusalem: Cana & Leiden: Brill,
1986) pp. 183 - 207, p. 200.
[CI] E.g.
Al-Suyuti, al-Durr al-manthurfi ‘l-tafsir bi-‘l-ma’thur (Beirut: Dar
al-macrifa, s. d.); Kitab al- Itqan f culum al-Qur ’an
(Cairo: Maktabat wa-Matbacat al-Mashhad al-Husayni, s.d.); Asrar
tartib al- Qur’an (Cairo: Dar al-Ictisam, 1396 / 1976); Lubab
al-taqul fi asbab al-nuzul (Tunis: Dar al- Tunisiyya, 1981); as well as
exegeses of specific verses, such as his Ayat al-kursi macaniha
wa- fada’iluha (Cairo: Dar al-‘Itisad, s.d.).
[CII] al-Mutawakkili;
Bell, William Y. (ed & tr.), The Mutawakkili of as-Suyuti (Cairo:
Nile Mission Press, 1924) and al-Iqtirah ficilm usul al-nahw
(Istanbul: Jamicat Istanbul, 1975).
[CIII] His most
famous work is his Tarikh al-khulafa’ (Cairo: Maktabat al-Tajariyya
al-Kubra, 1389 / 1969).
[CIV] Most of
his works on philosophy were concerned with logic, e.g. Sawn al-mantiq wa-‘l-kalam
can fann al-mantiq wa-‘l-kalam (Beirut: Dar al-Kutub al-cIlmiyya,
s.d.).
[CV] Landau-Tasseron,
Ella, ‘The “Cyclical Reform”: A Study of the Mujaddid Tradition’ SI
(1989) pp. 79 - 117, especially pp. 87 - 88; Jansen, J. J. G., ‘Tadjdid’ EI2
vol. 10, pp. 61 - 62 and Van Donzel, E., ‘Mudjaddid’ EI2 vol.
7, p. 290.
[CVI] Ibn
Taymiyya frequently found himself in prison for his beliefs; cf Laoust, H.,
‘Ibn Taymiyya, Taki al-Din Ahmad ibn Taymiyya’ EI2 vol. 3,
pp. 951 - 955; Little, Donald P., ‘Did Ibn Taymiyya Have a Screw Loose?’ SI
41 (1975) pp. 93 - 111 and Little, Donald P., ‘The Historical and
Historiographical Significance of the Detention of Ibn Taymiyya’ IJMES 4
(1973) pp. 311 - 327.
[CVII] Al-Suyuti
was a member of the Shadhill order; cf. Ibn al-Sabbagh, Durrat
al-asrar wa-tuhfat al- abrar; Elmer H. Douglas (tr.), The Mystical
Teachings of al-Shadhill (Albany: State University of New York Press, 1993)
and Lory comments that it was successful because its ‘...strictly orthodox
Sunnism and the respect for all exoteric tradition which it professed, its
social discreetness (absence of distinctive garb or of spectacular public
festivals or of begging), all of these aroused confidence and fervour.’ Lory,
P., ‘Shâdhiliyya' EI2 vol. 9, pp. 172 - 174, p. 173. For an
analysis of al-Suyuti as a sufl, see Sartain, Jalal al-Dln al-Suyutl,
pp. 33 - 37 and Geoffroy, Soufisme en Égypte, p. 49.
[CVIII] viz.
Heinen, Anton M., Islamic Cosmology: A Study of as-Suyutï’s al-Hay ’a
as-sanïya f l-hay’a as- sunnïya (Beirut: Franz Steiner Verlag, 1982);
the MS of Al-Haba’ik held in the British Library is bound with his Al-carf
al-wardï fï akhbar al-Mahdï and al-Suyuti’s abridgment of a compilation by
Muhammad ibn cAbd Allah al-Shibli, entitled, Laqt al-marjan fï
akhbar al-jann; see Vassie, R. (ed.), A Classified Handlist of Arabic
Manuscripts Acquired Since 1912: Volume 2 - Qur’anic Sciences and Hadïth
(London: The BritishLibrary, 1995) §416 - 418, p. 63.
[CIX] Al-Suyütï,
al-Hay’a VII:27; see Heinen, Islamic Cosmology, p. 163.
[CX] Al-Suyütï,
al-Haba ’ik §19.
[CXI] Saleh,‘Al-Suyuti’
p. 85.
[CXII] This
does not include the authors and hadïth found in the khâtima;
this is because it is difficult to ascertain whether al-Suyuti or another
author is making the citation.
[CXIII] This
is the number of authors mentioned, rather than the number of works explicitly
cited.
[CXIV] See
Burton, John, An Introduction to the Hadith (repr. Edinburgh: Edinburgh
University Press, 2005) pp. 119 - 147.
[CXV] Al-Suyuti
made many such commentaries on earlier works: Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti, Muwatta’
al- Imam Malik wa-sharhuhu tanwir al-hawalik (Cairo: Matbacat
al-Akhira, 1370/1951); idem, Sunan al- Nasa’i bi-sharh al-hafiz Jalal al-Din
al-Suyuti wa-hashiyyat al-imam al-Sindi (Cairo: al-Matbacat al-
Misriyya, 1348/1930); idem, al-Dibaj cala Sahih Muslim ibn Hajjaj
(al-Khubar: Dar ibn cAffan, 1996). For more on commentaries, see Cf.
Tokatly, Vardit, ‘The A’lam al-hadith of al-Khattabi: A Commentary on
al-Bukhari’s Sahih or a polemical treatise?’ SI 92 (2001) pp.
53-91, pp. 53 - 55.
[CXVI] 123
in total: 83 in the hadith and 32 in the khatima, with two
featuring in both sections (al-Bayhaqi and al-Hakim).
[CXVII] However,
it should be noted that the two authors are not responsible for 38.3% of the hadith,
as some hadith cite both authors as sources.
[CXVIII] Ibn
al-Harith, Ibn Abi Zamil, al-Qurtubi and Abu cUbayd.
[CXIX] A
future area of research would be an analysis of al-Suyuti’s sources in a much
larger sample.
[CXX] Cf
Al-Suyuti, Al-Haba’ik, p. 240 and Arberry, A. J. (tr.), The Doctrine
of the Sufis (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1977) p. 53.
[CXXI] Cf.
Al-Suyuti, Al-Haba ’ik, pp. 207 - 226; al-Razi, Fakhr al-Din Muhammad
ibn cUmar, Kitab al- arba'ï.nff. usul al-dïn (Hyderabad:
Matbacat Majlis Da’irat al-Macarif al-cUthmaniyyah,
1353 / 1934) pp. 368 - 384.
[CXXII] Petry,
‘Scholastic Stasis’ p. 324; see also Berkey, Transmission of Knowledge,
pp. 24 - 25.
[CXXIII] In
his autobiography, al-Suyuti highlights eighteen of his works as being
particularly important, none of these are in the field of kalam; see
Sartain, Jalal al-Dïn al-Suyutï, vol. 2, p. 105 and Saleh, ‘al-Suyuti’
pp. 86 - 87.
[CXXIV] Sharaf,
Muhammad Jalal Abu ‘l-Futuh, Jalal al-Dïn al-Suyutï: manhajuhu wa-ara’uhu
al- kalamiyya (Beirut: Dar al-Nahda al-cArabiyya, 1981) p. 73
[tr. Burge].
[CXXV] Cf.
Sharaf, al-Suyuti, pp. 113-116.
[CXXVI] Mabda’
khalq al-mala’ik wa-‘l-dalala cala anhum ajsam khalafan
li-‘l-falasifa’; al-Suyütî, al- Haba’ik,pp. 10-11, §2-4.
[CXXVII]See Goldziher, Ignaz, ‘Die Stellung der alten
Orthodoxie zu den antiken Wissenschaften’ GS vol. 5, pp. 357 - 400 and
Watt, W. M., Islamic Philosophy and Theology (Edinburgh: Edinburgh
University Press, 1985) pp. 133 - 148.
[CXXVIII] See
Ali, Mufti, ‘A Statistical Portrait of the Resistance to Logic by Sunni Muslim
Scholars Based on the Works of Jalal al-Dîn al-Suyütî (849-909/1448-1505)’ ILS
15 (2008) pp. 250 - 267 and Ali, Mufti, Muslim Opposition to Logic and
Theology in the Light of the Works of Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti (d. 911/1505),
PhD. Thesis, University of Leiden, 2008.
[CXXIX] See
Corbin, Henry (tr. W. R. Trask), Avicenna and the Visionary Recital
(London: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1961) pp. 46 - 122 and Netton, Allah
Transcendent, pp. 162 - 172.
[CXXX] Ibn
Sina refers to ‘al-mala’ika al-rühaniyya al-mujarrada allatï tasmiyya caqülan’
[‘...spiritual angels denuded [of matter] that are called “intellects”.’
Michael E. Marmura (ed. & tr.), Avicenna: The Metaphysics of The
Healing (Provo: Brigham Young University Press, 2005) p. 358.
[CXXXI] Shihab
al-Din al-Suhrawardi combines Islamic peripateticism and traditional notions of
angels in Islam in his illuminationist philosophy; see Burge, ‘Suhrawardian
Angeology’ for a discussion of these ideas.
[CXXXII] See
Cooper, John, ‘From al-Tusi to the School of Isfahan’ in Seyyed Hossein Nasr
and Oliver Leaman (eds.), History of Islamic Philosophy (London:
Routledge, 1996) pp. 585 - 596.
[CXXXIII] Daiber,
H., and Ragep, F. J., ‘Al-Tusi, Nasir al-Din, Abu Djacfar Muhammad’ EI2 vol. 10 pp. 746 - 752.
[CXXXIV] For
more on the Isfahan School, see Dabashi, Hamad, ‘Mir Damad and the founding of
the “School of Isfahan”’ in Nasr and Leaman (eds.), History of Islamic
Philosophy, pp. 597 - 634.
[CXXXV] Jafri,
S. H. M., ‘al-Hilli, (1) Djamal al-Din’ EI2 vol. 3, p. 390; see also Schmidtke, Sabine, The
Theology of al-cAllama al-Hillï (d. 726 /1325) (Berlin: Klaus
Schwarz Verlag, 1991).
[CXXXVI] See
Madelung, W., ‘Ibn Abi Djumhur al-Ahsa’i’ EI2 vol. 12, p.
380; Madelung, W., ‘Ibn Abi Gumhur al-Ahsâ’is synthesis of kalam,
philosophy and Shi’ism’ in Mantran (ed.), La signification du Bas Moyen Age,
pp. 147 - 156 and Schmidtke, Sabine, Theologie, Philosophie und Mystik in
zwôlferschiitischen Islam des 9./15/ Jahrhunderts: Die Gedankenwelten des Ibn
Abï Gumhür al- Ahsa ’ï (um 838-1434-35 - nach 906/1501) (Leiden: Brill,
2000).
[CXXXVII] See
Tirosh-Samuelson, Hava, ‘Philosophy and Kabbalah: 1200 - 1600’ in Daniel H.
Frank and Oliver Leaman (eds.), The Cambridge Companion to Medieval Jewish
Philosophy (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003) pp. 218 - 257, p.
227.
[CXXXVIII] Geoffroy,
‘al-Suyuti’ p. 914.
[CXXXIX] cf.
Bauer, Thomas, ‘Islamische Totenbücher. Entwicklug einer Textgattung im
Schatten al-Gazalis’ from S. Leder (ed.), Studies in Arabic and Islam
(Leuven: Uitgeverij Peeters, 2002) pp. 421 - 436, p. 424.
[CXL] There
has been much secondary literature written on popular Islamic literature: e.g.
Abdel-Malek, Kamal, ‘Popular Religious Narratives’ CHAL vol. 6, pp. 330
- 346; Reynolds, Dwight F., ‘Popular Prose in the Post-Classical Period’ CHAL
vol. 6, pp. 245 - 269; Knappert, Jan, Islamic Legends: Histories of the
Heroes, Saints and Prophets of Islam (Leiden: Brill, 1985) and Brinner,
William M., ‘Popular Literature in Medieval Jewish Arabic’ in Norman Golb
(ed.), Judeo-Arabic Studies: Proceedings of the Founding Conference of the
Society for Judeo-Arabic Studies (Amsterdam: Harwood Academic Publishers,
1997) pp. 59 - 71.
[CXLI] See
Berkey, Jonathan P., ‘Tradition, Innovation and the Social Construction of
Knowledge in the Medieval Islamic Near East’ PP 146 (1995) pp. 38 -65,
pp. 61 - 65 and Berkey, ‘Storytelling, Preaching, and Power’.
[CXLII] Saleh,
‘Al-Suyuti’ p. 76.
[CXLIII] Shoshan,
‘High Culture’, p. 85.
[CXLIV] Bauer,
‘Mamluk Literature’, p. 130.
[CXLV] Al-Suyuti,Al-Haba’ik,
p. 9.
[CXLVI] Nicholson,
R. A., A Literary History of the Arabs (repr. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press, 1953) p. 455.
[CXLVII] Cf.
Rosenthal, F., ‘Ibn Hadjar al-Askalani’ EI2 vol. 3, pp. 776 -
778 and Petry, ‘al-Sakhawi’.
[CXLVIII] Gardet
commented: ‘Elle semble avoir marqué l’entrée de la pensée religieuse musulmane
en une longue période de stagnation.on peut situer au cours de ce IXe siècle de
l’hégire le début effectif de l’ankylose qui se prolognera plus de quatre
siècles.’ Gardet, Louis, ‘De quelle manière s’est ankylosée la pensée
religieuse de l’Islam’ in R. Brunschwig and G. E. von Grunebaum (eds.), Classicisme
et Déclin Culturel dans l’Histoire de l’Islam (Paris: Editions Besson,
1957), pp. 93 - 105, p. 95. Such a position is now being questioned, see Bauer,
Thomas, ‘Mamluk Literature: Misunderstandings and New Approaches’ MSR
9:2 (2005) pp. 105 - 132.
[CXLIX] See
Nagel, T., ‘Kisas al-anbiya’’ EI2 vol. 5, pp. 180 - 181 and
Vajda, G., ‘Israiliyyat’ EI2 vol. 4, pp. 211 - 212; for a
discussion of the term Israiliyyat, see Tottoli, Roberto, ‘Origin and
Use of the Term Isra ’iliyyat in Muslim Literature’ Arabica 46
(1999) pp. 193 - 210.
[CL] Steven
Wasserstrom comments: ‘Rarely if ever will it be certain that an ancient Jewish
pseudepigraph was taken over into Muslim narrative without such Christian
intermediation.’ Wasserstrom, Steven M., ‘Jewish Pseudepigrapha in Muslim
Literature: A Bibliographical and Methodological Sketch’ in John C. Reeves
(ed.), Tracing the Threads: Studies in the Vitality of Jewish Pseudepigrapha
(Atlanta: Scholars’ Press, 1994) pp. 87 - 114, p. 99.
[CLI] Rabbinic
texts are often collections of the sayings of the sages, but they are almost
always placed within a wider legal or exegetical context (halakha and haggadah);
see Maccoby, Hyam, Early Rabbinic Writings (Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press, 1988) pp. 1 - 48. Some Christian texts, such as the Coptic
Gospel of Thomas and the Gospel of Philip are also collections of
the sayings of Jesus, but this form is relatively rare in Christian texts.
[CLII] Eg.
§146 & 248 - 255; cf. El Calamawy, Sahair, ‘Narrative Elements in the Hadith
Literature’ CHAL vol. 1, pp. 308 - 316.
[CLIII] Wagtendonk,
‘Stories of David’ p. 344; see also Wasserstrom, ‘Jewish Psuedepigrapha and Qisas
al-Anbiya ’’.
[CLIV] After
a period in Biblical Studies where many studies were untaken drawing parallels
between the Old Testament and Ancient Near Eastern literature, Sandmel
highlighted the problems that can be encountered when undertaking such work;
see Sandmel, ‘Parallelomania’.
[CLV] For
example, Gaudefroy-Demombynes comments: ‘From Judaism and Christianity, Islam
learned the names of spirits not known before, and it gave them definite
forms...' Gaudefroy-Demombynes, M., ‘Demons and Spirits (Muslim)’ in ERE
vol. 4, pp. 615 - 619, p. 615.
[CLVI] See
Stetkevych, Jaroslav, ‘Name and Epithet: The Philology and Semiotics of Animal
Nomenclature in Early Arabic Poetry’ JNES 45 (1986) pp. 89 - 124.
[CLVII] For
a comprehensive survey of angelic names see Michl, J., ‘Engel V (Katalog der
Engelnamen) RAC vol. 5, coll. 200 - 239; Petersen, Erik, ‘Engel- und
Damonennamen. Nomina Barbara.’ RMP 75 (1926) pp. 393 - 421 and Davidson,
Gustav, Dictionary of Angels (London: Collier-Macmillan, 1967). Julia
Creswell’s recent popular The Watkins’s Dictionary of Angels (London:
Watkins, 2006) contains many angelic names and some details about them, but has
little information regarding sources.
[CLVIII] See
Winston, David, ‘The Iranian Component in the Bible, Apocrypha, and Qumran: A
Review of the Evidence’ HR 5 (1966) pp. 183 - 216, pp. 189 - 192. Some
early commentators argued that Jewish angelology developed during the period of
exile in Persia; e.g. Kohut, A, ‘Was hat die Talmudische Eschatologie aus dem
Parsismus aufgenommen?’ ZDMG 21 (1867) pp. 552-91 and Kohut, A., Ueber
die jüdische Angelologie und Daemonologie in ihrer Abhanigkeit vom Parsismus
(Leipzig: F. A. Brockhaus, 1866). However, this influence is no longer seen to
have been as strong as nineteenth century scholars, such as Kohut, suggested;
cf. Barr, James, ‘The Question of Religious Influence: The Case of
Zoroastrianism, Judaism and Christianity’ JAAR 53 (1985) pp. 201 - 236.
[CLIX] E.g.
l Enoch contains a great number of angelic names formed in this way.
[CLX] Nickelsburg,
George E., 1 Enoch 1: A Commentary on the Book of 1 Enoch (Minneapolis:
Fortress Press, 2001) p. 45.
[CLXI] Cf.
Olyan, A Thousand Thousands. Olyan, however, does have a tendency to
overstate the role of exegesis in the development of Jewish angelology, as C.
R. A. Morray-Jones comments: ‘Beliefs about angels were not simply generated,
within a religious and social vacuum, by anomalies in the text of Scripture.’
Morray-Jones, C. R. A., ‘Review of Saul M. Olyan, A Thousand Thousands
Served Him: Exegesis and the Naming of Angels in Ancient Judaism" JSS
42 (1997) pp. 154 - 159, p. 159.
[CLXII] See
Olyan, A Thousand Thousands, pp. 34 - 41 and Halperin, David J., 'The
Exegetical Character of Ezek. X 9 - 17' VT 26 (1976) pp. 129 - 141.
[CLXIII] Cf.
Brandon, S. G. F., ‘The Personification of Death in some Ancient Religions’ JJRL
43 (1960 - 1961) pp. 317 - 335 and Ringgren, Helmar, Word and Wisdom:
Studies in the Hypostasation of Divine Qualities and Functions in the Ancient
Near East (Lund: H. Ohlsson, 1947).
[CLXIV] See
Jeffrey, Foreign Vocabulary pp. 100 - 101 & 275 - 276. Variants of
the Gabirel can be found in the Codices of Ubai ibn Kacb, cAlï,
Ibn cAbbâs, cAlqama, cIkrima and al-Acmash
on Q 2:97 - 98; see Jeffery, A., Materials for the History of the Text of
the Qur’an (Leiden, Brill, 1937) pp. 119, 189, 195, 242, 269 & 315; see
also al-Suyutï, Jalal al-Dïn (ed. Muhammad Abu ‘l-Fadl Ibrâhîm), Al-Itqan f culum
al-Qur’an (Cairo: Maktabat wa-Matbacat al-Mashad al-Husaynï,
s.d.) vol. 4, p. 68 and al- Jawâlïqï, Abu Mansur ibn Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn
al-Khidr (ed. Ahmad Muhammad Shakir), Al- Mucarrab min al-kalam
al-acjami cala curuf al-mucjam
(Tehran; s.n., 1966) pp. 113 - 115 & 327.
[CLXV] See
al-Zabïdï, TA, vol. 28, pp. 45 - 46; Jeffrey suggests Syriac as the
vocalisation (Gabri’ël) is closer to the Arabic; Jeffery, Foreign
Vocabulary, p. 100; cf. Payne-Smith, Robert, Thesaurus Syriacus
(Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1879) vol. 1, p. 648.
[CLXVI] §89;
cf. §36 - 38 & §78; these translations are also found in Al-Zabïdï, TA,
vol. 28, pp. 45 - 46.
[CLXVII] Rabbinic
texts do, however, still stress that angels are ‘lower’ than humans, because of
their inability to do other than that which God has commanded them to do; cf.
Schechter, S., ‘Some Aspects of Rabbinic Theology’ JQR 7 (1895) pp. 195
- 215.
[CLXVIII] Some
Arabic texts do not attempt to give a precise meaning for the name, for example
in one text about the micraj, Michael says to Muhammad, ‘I am
called Mika’il simply because I am appointed over the rain and the plants.’
McKane, W., ‘A Manuscript on the Micraj in the Bodleian’ JSS
2 (1947), pp. 366 - 379, p. 370.
[CLXIX] §37;
§36 also has a similar statement.
[CLXX] Al-Zabïdï,
TA, vol. 28, p. 45 ; see also al-Suyutï, Itqan, vol. 4, p. 68 and
al-Tabarï, Tafsir, vol. 1, pp. 436 - 438.
[CLXXI] See
Jeffery, Foreign Vocabulary, pp. 100 - 101 and 275 - 276; Pedersen, J.,
‘Djibra’il’ EI2 vol. 2, pp. 362 - 364 and Wensinck, A. J.,
‘Mïkal’ EI2 Vol 7, pp. 24 - 25.
[CLXXII] Viz:
Jibril = Gabri’ël; Mika’il = Mïka’ël; Ismacil = Samacël;
Israfïl = Sarapi’ël; Ramya’ïl = Rami’ël; Sharahïl = Sarahi’ël.
[CLXXIII] In the
Pseudepigraphical text the Life of Adam and Eve, Uriel is involved in
the burials of Adam and Abel, although it should be noted that the text does
not directly associate Uriel with comforting the grieving: cf. LAE(V)
48:3, OTP, vol. 2, p. 290.
[CLXXIV] A
similar hadïth appears in al-Suyutï’s Al-Haya’ al-saniya, VIII: 11 where
the name is given as Rufa ’ll; see Heinen, Islamic Cosmology, p.
31 [Ar.]; Heinen suggests that this is Raphiel, see p. 232.
[CLXXV] See
Barton, George A., ‘The Origin of the Names of Angels and Demons in the
Extra-Canonical Apocalyptic Literature to 100 A.D.’ JBL 31 (1912) pp.
156 - 167, p. 158; 1En 10:4; 13:1.
[CLXXVI] For a
survey of the role of Raphael see Barker, Margaret ‘The Archangel Raphael in
the Book of Tobit’ in Mark Bredin (ed.), Studies in the Book of Tobit
(London: T&T Clark, 2006) pp. 118 - 128.
[CLXXVII] §275 -
276; Riyafil is the angel that accompanies Dhu ‘l-Qarnayn, in much the same
that Raphael is Tobit’s guide; cf. Tob. 5:16, NRSV p. 6.
[CLXXVIII] Cf. NumR
II:10, p. 39; 1 En. 75:3, OTP vol. 1, p. 54
[CLXXIX] 1 En
8:3, OTP vol. 1, p. 16.
[CLXXX] The
two demons are also linked to a Mandaic incantation bowl, see Bhayro, Siam
‘Noah’s Library: Sources for 1 Enoch 6 - 11’ JSP 15 (2006) pp. 163 -
177; pp. 172 - 173.
[CLXXXI] See
Kuhn, Harold B., ‘The Angelology of the Non-Canonical Jewish Apocalypses’ JBL
67 (1948) pp. 217 - 232, p. 226. These two demons bear some resemblance to the
story of Harut and Marut, [Q 2:102; Arberry, Koran, pp. 12 - 13] in
which the angels are said to have taught humans magic; cf. Bauckham, Richard,
‘The Fall of the Angels as the Source of Philosophy in Hermias and Clement of
Alexandria’ VC 39 (1985) pp. 313 - 330.
[CLXXXII] For the
relationship between s, s and s in the Semitic language group,
see Moscati, Sabatino et. al., An Introduction to the Comparative Grammar of
the Semitic Lanaguages (Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, 1964) §8; pp. 33 -
37.
[CLXXXIII] Cf.
al-Zabidi, TA, vol. 13, p. 27 and Lane AELex, p. 2035.
[CLXXXIV] See
Wensinck, A. J. ‘cIzra’il’ EI2 vol. 4, pp. 292-293; El-Shamy, Hasan M., Folk
Traditions of the Arab World: A Guide to Motif Classification (Bloomington:
Indiana University Press, 1995) vol. 2, p.2:36 and Nov, Doy, ‘Angel of Death’ EJ
vol. 1, coll. 952 - 956, col. 955.
[CLXXXV] Wensinck,
A. J., ‘cIzra’il’ EI1 vol. 2, pp. 570 - 571 (however, this derivation is not
found in EI2); see also Bowman, John, ‘A British Museum Arabic Eschatological Fragment’
MW 38 (1948) pp. 198 - 217, pp. 206 - 207.
[CLXXXVI] Cf. Péréz
Fernandez, Miguel (tr. John Elwolde), An Introductory Grammar of Rabbinic
Hebrew (Leiden: Brill, 1997) p. 13.
[CLXXXVII] Isbell,
Charles D., Corpus of the Aramaic Incantation Bowls (Missoula: Scholars
Press. 1975) §12:14 & 41:7, pp. 44 & 98 and Naveh, Joseph and Shaked,
Shaul, Amulets and Magic Bowls: Aramaic Incantations of Late Antiquity
(Jerusalem: Magnes Press, 1985) §1:13; 2:16; 7:3, pp. 40 - 41, pp. 46 - 47
& 68 - 69. The name also appears in a much later amulet on parchment; see
Casanowitz, I. M., ‘Two Jewish Amulets in the United States National Museum’ JAOS
37 (1917) pp. 43 - 56, p. 55.
[CLXXXVIII] See
Isbell, Aramaic Incantation Bowls, pp. 3 - 12 and Yamuchi, Edwin M.,
‘Aramaic Incantation Bowls’ JAOS 85 (1965) pp. 511 - 523, p. 511.
[CLXXXIX] Concerning
Naveh & Shaked §2 & 3, they comment: ‘It seems likely to us that the
two amulets belong to the later part of the occupation of the Building 300,
i.e. late 6th or early 7th century C.E.’ Naveh & Shaked, Amulets, p.
46.
[CXC] Although
the name usually reflects the function of the angel; e.g. Baraqiel = ‘Lightning
of God’ and is the angel responsible for lightning.
[CXCI] Joshua
Trachtenberg comments: ‘...the personality of the angels was more clearly
delineated through an effort to describe them, to name the more important ones,
and to accord them peculiar spheres of influence, so that we have “princes” of
fire, of hail, of rain, of night, of the sea, of healing and so on.’
Trachtenberg, Joshua, Jewish Magic and Superstition: A Study in Folk
Religion (New York: Atheneum, 1982) pp. 71 - 72.
[CXCII] Jadaane,
‘La place des Anges’ p. 43.
[CXCIII] See
§27 - 35; the other two are Israfrl and the Angel of Death.
[CXCIV] Cf. GenR
50:1, p. 434.
[CXCV] The
Zoroastrian Amasa Spantas are personifications of abstract ideas; see
Geiger, Bernhard, Die Amasa Spantas - Ihr Wesen und ihre ursprüngliche
Bedeutung (Vienna: Hof- und Universitâts- Buchhândler, 1916) and Clark,
Peter, Zoroastrianism: An Introduction to an Ancient Faith (Brighton :
Sussex Academic Press, 1998) pp. 27 - 58.
[CXCVI] Wisdom
is the most common example, which is personified in the wisdom literature of
the Hebrew Bible (e.g. Proverbs); see Camp, Claudia V., Wisdom and the
Feminine in the Book of Proverbs (Sheffield: Almond, 1985).
[CXCVII] Cf.
Downey, Glanville, ‘Personifications of Abstract Ideas in the Antioch Mosaics’ TPAPA
69 (1938) pp. 349 - 363.
[CXCVIII] See
Fahd, Panthéon, pp. 123 - 126. In early twentieth century scholarship,
it was thought that many beliefs in angels and spirits were rooted in early
animistic beliefs; cf. Langton, Edward, Good and Evil Spirits: A Study of
the Jewish and Christian Doctrine, Its Origin and Development (London:
SPCK, 1942) and Zwemer, Samuel S., ‘Animism in Islam’ MW 7 (1917) pp.
245 - 255.
[CXCIX] §172
- 177 (rain and clouds); §298 - 299 (mountains); §407 - 408 (leaves); §257 -
268 (thunder and lightning); §409 - 410; 430 - 434 (sun); §435 (shadow); §485
(plants) and §486 - 487 (sea / tide).
[CC] E.g. Angels of fire (Gabriel), hail (Baradiel),
wind (Ruhi’el), lightning (Baraqiel), whirlwind
_c__"_i\ _c_ ryc'î-lz;-- r7_c_"5_izi i-»_c_
(Za
amiel), thunder (Ra ami el), Ziqi el (comets), Zi i el (tremors), Za api el
(hurricanes), Ra asi el (earthquakes), snow (Salgi’el), rain (Matari’el), day
(SimSi’el); night (Laili’el), sun (Galgalli’el), moon (‘Opanni’el), stars (Kokabi’el)
and constellations (Rahati’el) can be found in 3 En. 14:3 - 4, OTP vol.
1, p. 266 - 7.
[CCI] Kuhn, ‘Angelology’ p. 226.
[CCII] There are a number of meteorological gods in
Semitic and pre-Islamic Arabian religion, but these divinities have individual
power over the phenomenon, whereas the meteorological angels in Jewish and
Muslim thought have none. Cf. Green, A. R. W., The Storm God in the Ancient
Near East (Winona Lake: Eisenbaums, 2003) and Brown, David Allan, The
Deities Worshipped in Central and North-West Arabia at the Advent of Islam,
their temples and rituals. (PhD. Thesis, University of Cambridge, 1968.)
pp. 529 - 549.
[CCIII] §458 - 460.
[CCIV] §488
- 489.
[CCV] In
Samaritanism, the heavenly temple is surrounded by an angel that is later
associated with the Angel of the Lord; see Fossum, Jarl, ‘The Angel of the Lord
in Samaritanism’ JSS 46 (2001) pp. 51 - 75.
[CCVI] This
will be discussed in more detail in Part 3.
[CCVII] §415
- 422.
[CCVIII] §448
[CCIX] §471
[CCX] See
Scholem, G., ‘Sandalfon’ EJ vol. 14, coll. 827 - 828.
[CCXI] Exegesis
played a similar important role in Judaism, as Olyan argues: ‘The
interpretation of texts of the Hebrew Bible by ancient and medieval exegetes is
certainly responsible for the vast majority of angelic brigade designations,
and many angelic personal names.’ Olyan, A Thousand Thousands, p. 118.
[CCXII] See
Arberry, Koran, pp. 481 & 604; the Qur’an also refers to angels
surrounding the Throne of God in Q 39:75; Arberry, Koran, p. 479.
[CCXIII] For a
discussion of the imagery of the Throne and the Throne Bearers see
O’Shaughnessy, T., ‘God’s Throne and the Biblical Symbolism of the Qur’an’ Numen
20 (1973) 202 - 221, particularly 206 - 207; for a discussion of various
traditions about the hamlat al-carsh and Jewish material, see
Halperin, Faces of the Chariot, pp. 467 - 476.
[CCXIV] See
O’Shaugnessy, T., The Development of the Meaning of Spirit in the Koran
(Roma: Pont. Institutum Orientalium Studiorum, 1953); MacDonald, D. B., ‘The
development of the idea of Spirit in Islam’ AO 9 (1931) 307 - 351;
Calverley, E. E., ‘Doctrines of the soul (Nafs and Ruh) in Islam’
MW 33 (1943) pp. 254 - 265 and Sells, Michael A., ‘Sound, Spirit and
Gender in Surat al-Qadr’ JAOS 111 (1991) pp. 239 - 259.
[CCXV] Al-Tabari
refers to three main interpretations of al-ruh al-qudus: (i) Gabriel;
(ii) the Injil (Gospel) or (iii) God. Al-Tabari argues that it refers to
Gabriel; al-Tabari, Tafsir, vol. 1, pp. 403 - 406 [Q 2:87]. The idea
that the Spirit (of God) is an angel began to become popular in Hellenic
Judaism, see Levinson, John R., The Spirit in First Century Judaism
(Leiden: Brill, 1997).
[CCXVI] E.g.
§216: ‘The Spirit is in the Fourth Heaven, and he is greater than the heavens
and the mountains and the angels. He praises God every day by saying ‘I praise
you’ ten thousand times; God, Most High, creates an angel from every saying of
‘I praise you’. He will come in a rank by himself on the Day of Resurrection.’
[CCXVII] E.g.
§225: ‘.. .concerning His Word: ‘Upon the day when the Spirit and the angels
stand in ranks.’ [Q 78:38] He said: Both of them are ranks of the Lord of the
two worlds; on the Day of Judgement there will be a rank of the Spirit and a
rank of angels.’
[CCXVIII] See
O’Shaughnessy, Meaning of Spirit, pp. 16 - 24.
[CCXIX] Arwah
is normally used to refer to a human’s spirit, but it is used of a species of
angelic being in some traditions; see Wensinck, A. J., CTMvol. 2, pp.
317 - 318.
[CCXX] The sakina
is mentioned in the Qur’an: 2:248; 9:26, 40; 48:4, 18; see Arberry, Koran,
pp. 35, 182, 184, 531 & 533. There have been a number of studies on this
word: e.g., Goldziher, Ignaz, ‘La notion de la Sakina chez les Mohamétans’ GS
vol. 2, pp. 296 - 308. In the Qur’an the sakina is usually associated
with the invisible help which came to the Muslims’ aid in battle; however in Q
2:248, the sakina carries the Jewish association with the Ark of the
Covenant. See Patai, Raphael, ‘The Shekina’ JR 44 (1964) pp. 275 - 288
and Rubin, Uri, ‘Traditions in transformation: The Ark of the Covenant and the
Golden Calf in Biblical and Islamic Historiography’ Oriens 36 (2001) pp.
196 - 214.
[CCXXI] See
Tottoli, Robert, ‘At Cock-Crow: Some Muslim Traditions About the Rooster’ Der
Islam 76 (1999) pp. 139 - 147; and for the cosmic cockerel see, pp. 142 -
143. This article is a survey of another hadith collection of Al-Suyûtï, Kitab
al-wadik f fadl al-dik.
[CCXXII] Cf. ‘This
is what wakens the cocks on earth, for just as articulate beings do, thus also
the cock informs those on the earth according to its own tongue. For the sun is
being prepared by the angels and the cock is crowing.’ 3Bar. 6:16; OTP,
vol. 1, p. 671.
[CCXXIII] Olyan, A
Thousand Thousands Serve Him.
[CCXXIV] ‘And
they follow what the Satans recited over Solomon’s kingdom. Solomon disbelieved
not, but the Satans disbelieved, teaching the people sorcery, 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.’ Q 2:102;
Arberry, Koran, pp. 12 - 13.
[CCXXV] E.g.
al-Thaclabï, QA, pp. 50 - 54; William M. Brinner (tr.), cAra
’is al-majalis fi qisas al-anbiya ’ or “Lives of the Prophets” (Leiden:
Brill, 2002), pp. 86 - 91; cf. al-Tabarï, Tafsir, vol. 1, pp. 454 - 459;
see also Margoliouth, ‘Harut and Marut’ MW 18 (1918) pp. 73 - 79.
[CCXXVI] There
are a few personal names that follow this pattern found in the Qur’an: viz.
Jalut (Saul), Yajuj (Gog), Majuj (Magog), Talut
(Saul), Da ’ud / Dawud (David). Some of the names have origins in
Hebrew or Aramaic (Jalut, Da ’ud), but the derivation of the others
remains unclear. For a longer discussion of these names, see Carter, Michael,
‘Foreign Vocabulary’ in Andrew Rippin (ed.), The Blackwell Companion to the
Qur’an (Oxford: Blackwell, 2006) pp. 120 - 139, pp. 134 - 137.
[CCXXVII] See
Wensinck, A. J., ‘Harut and Marut’ EI1 vol. 2, pp. 272 - 273; Vajda, G., ‘Harut wa-Marut’ EI2
vol. 3, pp. 236 - 237 and Brinner, Willam M., ‘Harut and Marut’ EQ
vol. 2, pp. 404 - 405. For a fuller analysis of the etymology of the names see
de Menasce, P-J., ‘Une légende indo-iranienne dans l’angélologie
judéo-musulmanne: a propos de Harut et Marut’ EA 1 (1947) pp. 10 - 18;
Uhl, Patrice, ‘Guillaume IX d’Aquitaine et le Sorcellerie de Babel - à Propos
des Vers Arabes de la Chanson V (MS. C) -’ Arabica 38 (1991) pp.
19 - 39, pp. 19 - 20; Henning, W. B., Sogdica (London: s.n., 1940) pp.
16 & 19 and Jeffrey, Arthur, Foreign Vocabulary, pp. 282 - 283 and
Shabazi, Shapur A., ‘Harut and Marut’ Elr. vol. 12, pp. 20 - 22.
Al-Jawalïqï states that the names are foreign, al-Mucarrab,
pp. 317 & 349.
[CCXXVIII] For more
on Anahïd, see Choksy, Jamsheed K, ‘Ancient Religions’ IrS 31 (1998) pp.
661 - 679, p. 663 and Boyce, M., Chaumont M. L. & Bier, C., ‘Anahïd’ Elr.
vol. 1, pp. 1003 - 1011.
[CCXXIX] §255.
[CCXXX] See
Jung, ‘Fallen Angels’ JQR 16 (1926) pp. 287 - 295. Georges Dumézil
argues that the Harut and Marut story has a close parallel with a story found
in the Mahabharata, but this seems less likely; see Dumézil, G., Naissance
d’Archanges (Jupiter Mars Quirinus III) (Paris: Librairie Gallimard, 1945)
pp. 158 - 170.
[CCXXXI] Wensinck,
A. J., ‘Munkar wa-Nakir’ EI2 vol. 7, p.
577; for more on the angels, see also Gardet, Destinée de l’Homme, pp.
247 - 253.
[CCXXXII] Wensinck,
‘Munkar wa-Nakir’, p. 577.
[CCXXXIII] See
Raven, W., ‘Ridwan’ EI2 vol. 8, p. 519.
The name is usually associated with Q 3:15.
[CCXXXIV] See
Southgate, Minoo S., ‘Portrait of Alexander in Persian Alexander-Romances of
the Islamic Era’ JAOS 97 (1977) 278 - 284 and Stoneman, Richard,
‘Alexander the Great in the Arabic Tradition’ in Stelios Panayotakis, Maaike
Zimmermann and Wyste Keulen, The Ancient Novel and Beyond (Leiden:
Brill, 2003) pp. 3 - 22.
[CCXXXV] ‘Dhu
‘l-Qarnayn was one of the angels, whom God sent down to earth...’; see also
al-Suyutï, Itqan, vol. 4, p. 69.
[CCXXXVI] Southgate,
‘Portrait of Alexander’ p. 284.
[CCXXXVII] Schimmel,
Annemarie, Islamic Names (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 1989)
p. 33.
[CCXXXVIII] Tritton,
A. S., ‘Popular Shi’ism’ BSOAS 13 (1951) pp. 829 - 839, p. 829.
[CCXXXIX] The only possible example is found in Ibn al-cArabï’s Kitab
canqa’ mughrib, and Gerald Elmore suggests that the reference is
to Ibn al-cArabï himself (Gerald T. Elmore, Islamic Sainthood in
the Fullness of Time: Ibn al-cArabï’s Book of the Fabulous
Gryphon. (Leiden: Brill, 1999) p. 590 n.10). The particular reference
in question reads: ‘On his precious Right was the “Faithful One” (al-Siddlq [sci.
Abu Bakr]); on his most-holy Left was the “Discriminator” (al-Faruq [sci.
cUmar ibn al-
Khattab]); and before him knelt the Seal [sci.
Jesus], recounting to him the story of the Female (hadlth al-untha) as cAlï
[b. Abï Talib] (May God bless him and keep him!) was translating the seal’s
[words] into his own language, while “He of the Two Lights" (dhu
l-nurayn), wrapped in the mantle of his modesty (rida’ haya’ihi),
for his part [also] faced the Prophet Muhammad.’ Elmore (tr.), Islamic
Sainthood, p. 590.
[CCXLII] For
more on the name see, Scholem, G., ‘Metatron’ EJ vol. 11, coll. 1443 -
1446 and Black,
Matthew, ‘The Origin of
the Name Metatron’ VT 1 (1951) pp. 217 - 219.
[CCXLIII] See
Scholem, ‘Sandalfon’; Davidson, Dictionary of Angels, p. 257 and
Schafer, Peter, Der verborgene und offenbare Gott (Tübingen: J. C. B.
Mohr (Paul Siebeck), 1991) pp. 99 - 101.
[CCXLIV] cf.
Hag 13b, p. 78
[CCXLV] Scholem,
G., ‘Sandalfon’ col. 828.
[CCXLVI] Cf.
Southern, Mark and Vaughn, Andrew G., ‘Where have all the nasals gone? nC
> CC in North Semitic’ JSS 42 (1997) pp. 264 - 282.
[CCXLVII] Jastrow,
Marcus, Dictionary of the Targumim, Talmud Balbi and Yerushalmi and the
Midrashic Literature (repr. Peabody: Hendrickson, 2005) vol. 2, p. 1005.
[CCXLVIII] See
Wansbrough, John, Quranic Studies: Studies and Methods of Scriptural
Interpretation (Repr. Amherst: Prometheus Books, 2004) p. 30 - 31.
[CCXLIX] E.g.
Pinero, A., ‘Angels and Demons in the Greek Life of Adam and Eve’ JSJ 14
(1993) pp. 191 - 214; Brooke, G. J., ‘Men and Women as Angels in Joseph and
Aseneth JSP 14 (2005) pp. 159 - 177 and Ruffatto, Kristine J., ‘Raguel as
Interpreter of Moses’ Throne Vision: The Transcendent Identity of Raguel in the
Exagoge of Ezekiel the Tragedian’ JSP 17 (2008) pp. 121 - 139.
[CCL] Ithamar
Gruenwald highlights six key elements found in Throne Visions, two of which are
the presence of angels around God’s throne and the singing of hymns by angels;
see Gruenwald, Mysticism, p. 31. Gruenwald, also, gives the Apocalypse
of Isaiah 6:10 - 12 as an example of the importance of angels in attesting
to the veracity of a vision: ‘Isaiah goes into some detail when he describes
the glory of that angel....Obviously, this remark is directed to distinguish
between this vision - which entailed a heavenly ascent - and the one in Isaiah
vi, which the writer apparently believed to entail no such experience.’
Gruenwald, Mysticism, p. 58.
[CCLI] In
some texts, humans are given angelic attributes or are described as being like
angels to illustrate their righteousness, in these cases the individuals are
not angels, but iconographic details associated with angels are used to
describe them. This is seen particularly strongly in the Qumran community; cf.
Davidson, Angels at Qumran, pp. 316 - 319.
[CCLII] Whilst
discussing the opening of the Throne-Vision in the Testament of Levi,
Paulo Augusto de Souza Nougeira comments that the vision of heaven ‘.. .shows
too that the seer has special access to hidden secrets and the knowledge of
these secrets is crucial, and should have immediate consequences for the
everyday lives of his readers.’ See de Souza Nougeira, Paulo Augusto,
‘Celestial Worship and the Ecstatic-Visionary Experience’ JSNT 25 (2002)
pp. 165 - 184, p. 166.
[CCLIII] Nickelsburg,
1 Enoch 1, p. 40.
[CCLIV] Cf.
Kuhn, ‘Angelology’, pp. 217 - 232; Kasher, Rimmon, ‘Angelology and the
Supernatural Worlds in the Aramaic Targums to the Prophets’ JSJ 27
(1996) pp. 168 - 191 and Shinan, A., ‘The Angelology of the Palestinian Targums
on the Pentateuch’ Sefarad 43 (1983) pp. 181 - 198.
[CCLV] Cf.
Gruenwald, Mysticism, p. 31.
[CCLVI] Segal,
Alan F., ‘Heavenly Ascent in Hellenic Judaism, Early Christianity and their
Environment’ in Hildegard Temporini, Wolfgang Haase and Joseph Vogt (eds.), Aufstieg
und Niedergand der romischen Welt (Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 1972) pp.
1333 - 1394, p. 1361; see also and Charlesworth, James H., ‘The Portrayal of
the Righteous as an Angel’ in George W. E. Nickelsburg & John J. Collins
(eds.), Ideal Figures in Ancient Judaism (Chico: Scholars Press, 1980)
pp. 135 - 151.
[CCLVII] See
Cook, David, ‘Moral Apocalyptic in Islam’ SI 86 (1997) 37 - 69, pp. 37 -
38.
[CCLVIII] Vockovic,
Heavenly Journeys, p. 97; cf. Alan Segal on 1En: ‘Though the
workings of the physical universe are described, the most important message of
Enoch is that the unrighteous will be punished and that the suffering of the
righteous has meaning.’ Segal, ‘Heavenly Ascent’ p. 1360. See also Porter, J.
R., ‘Muhammad’s Journey to Heaven’ Numen 21 (1974) pp. 64 - 80, p. 75
and Martha Himmelfarb’s two key studies, Tours of Hell and Ascent to
Heaven.
[CCLIX] Cf.
al-Bel’ami MS [Freer Gallery of Art 57.16] foll. 182a & 184a; see Soucek,
Priscilla P., ‘The Life of the Prophet: Illustrated Versions’ in Soucek,
Priscilla P. (ed.), Content and Context of Visual Arts in the Islamic World
(London : Pennsylvania State University Press, 1988) pp. 193 - 217, and the
Saray-Album (Topkapi Museum) MS Hazine 1221, fol. 223b; Hazine 2152, fol. 60b;
Hazine 2154, foll. 61b, 121a; see Ipsiroglu. M. §, Das Bild im Islam
(Vienna: Schroll, 1971) pl. 23, 38, 39 and 104; and BNPer. 174, foll. 69r,
113r, 121v; Barrucand, Marianne, ‘The Miniatures of the Daqa’iq al- haqa’iq
(Bibliothèque Nationale Pers. 174): A Testimony to the Cultural Diversity of
Medieval Anatolia’ IA 4 (1990 - 1991) pp. 113 - 142. For brief analysis
of angels in Islamic art, see Milstein, R., ‘Angels in Islamic Art and
Architecture’ EI3.
[CCLX] Some
of the hadith, albeit very few, do refer to angels wearing turbans (§626 - 628
& (yellow turbans) 630), and these are also found in Islamic Art (cf. FGA
57.16 fol. 138a, 170b; see Soucek, ‘Life of the Prophet’). However, whether the
angels’ wearing of turbans is related to Islamic tradition or other external
infuences is difficult to ascertain.
[CCLXI] Cf.
Esin, Emel, ‘An Angel Figure in the Miscellany Album H. 2152 of Topkapi’ in
Oktay Aslanapa (ed.) Beitrage zur Kunstgeschichte Asiens: in Memoriam Ernst
Diez (Istanbul: Istanbul Universitesi Edebiyat Fakultesiu, 1963) pp. 264 -
282. Esin also includes other information on other motifs used for angels in
Islamic and their influence from East-Asian culture.
[CCLXII] For
example, in the miniatures of the Daqa ’iq al-haqa ’iq, a number of the
angels are depicted carrying different objects, representing the objects or
seasons over which the angels have influence; see Barrucand, ‘Miniatures of the
Daqa ’iq\ Also, in one version of the Micraj-nama
(Tokapi, Hazine 2154, fol. 61b), a miniature depicting Muhammad’s encounter
with the Cockerel (al-Dik) includes an angelic choir, a motif that is
not found in any available text of the Micraj-nama remaining
extant; see Ettingahusen, Richard, ‘Persian Ascension Miniatures of the
Fourteenth Century’ in Richard Ettinghausen, Islamic Art and Archaeology:
Collected Papers (Berlin: Gebr. Mann Verlag, 1984) pp. 244 - 267, pp. 246 -
248.
[CCLXIII] Blue
and black are often ‘negative’ colours in folklore; cf. Ugochukwu, Françoise
‘The Devil’s Colors: A Comparative Study of French and Nigerian Folktales’ OTr
21 (2006) pp. 250 - 268, p. 260.
[CCLXIV] ‘Divine
messengers are usually depicted as indistinguishable from human beings...’
Meier, S. A., ‘Angel I’ p. 48.
[CCLXV] See
also VanderKam, James C., ‘The Angel of the Presence in the Book of Jubilees’ DSD
7 (2000) pp. 378 - 393 and Quispel, Gilles ‘Ezekiel 1:26 in Jewish Mysticism
and Gnosis’ VC 34 (1980) pp. 1 - 13.
[CCLXVI] JosAsen
15:9, OTP vol. 2, p. 225.
[CCLXVII] See
Meier, ‘Angel I’ pp. 45 - 50 and van Henten, J. W., ‘Angel II’ DDD vol.
1, pp. 50 - 53. The two forms (celestial and anthropomorphic) are also found in
Gnositc and Hermetic texts, see Stroumsa, Gedaliahu G., ‘Form(s) of God: Some
Notes on Metatron and Christ’ HTR 76 (1983) pp. 269 - 288.
[CCLXVIII] See
Sullivan, Wrestling with Angels, p. 83.
[CCLXIX] Peers,
Glen, Subtle Bodies: Representing Angels in Byzantium (London:
University of California Press, 2001) p. 23. See, also, Bussagli, M., ‘Angelo’ EdAM
vol. 1, pp. 629 - 638 and Pallas, D. I., ‘Himmelsmachte, Erzengel und Engel’ RZBK,
vol. 3, coll. 13 - 119, coll. 43 - 56. For depictions of angels with wings in
Jewish art, see Landsberger, Franz, ‘The Origin of the Winged Angel in Jewish
Art’ HUCA 20 (1947) pp. 227 - 254.
[CCLXX] Cf.
Stoumsa, ‘Form(s) of God’ p. 274f.
[CCLXXI] Cf. Q
19:16 - 19 & 35:1; Arberry, Koran, pp. 303 & 444.
[CCLXXII] §46,
54, 56, 120 - 124, 151, 160, 167, 175, 218, 220 & 223.
[CCLXXIII] §46, 120
& 122 (Gabriel and the Angel of Death).
[CCLXXIV] Dihya
al-Kalbi is said to have been of ‘such outstanding beauty that the Angel
Gabriel took his features.’ Lammens, H. [-Pellat, Ch.], ‘Dihya’ EI2
vol. 2, p. 274.
[CCLXXV] head:
§50, 54, 55, 92, 96, 104, ,122, 184, 190, 195, 197, 219, 222, 243, 234, 494,
498, 499 & 684; feet: §29, 44a, 44b, 50, 52, 54, 96, 180, 181, 184,
195, 202, 205, 219, 222, 223, 274, 415, 485 & 486; legs: §180, 544
& 625; hands: §29, 166, 219, 222, 229, 234, 257, 269, 306, 487, 653
& 684; andface: §122, 189, 212 & 214.
[CCLXXVI] mouth:
§211, 233, 303, 305, 306, 493, 498 & 500; nose: §180; forehead:
§54, 94, 104 & 105; teeth: §50; hair: §54, 120, 122, 233, 305
& 306; ears: §99, 122, 181, 270, 490 & 545 and eyes: §87,
95, 120, 123, 146, 183, 197, 199, 233, 303, 305, 306 & 499.
[CCLXXVII] Neck:
§53, 94, 96, 99, 195 & 233; shoulders: §48, 51, 181, 231, 494 &
499; collarbone: §490 & 499 and heart: 549.
[CCLXXVIII] §20, 43,
45, 49, 50, 53, 54, 92 - 95, 99, 104, 149, 189, 213, 214, 284 - 287, 294, 416,
499, 511, 622, 623, 743 & 744.
[CCLXXIX] See
Burge, S. R., ‘Angels in Sürat al-Mala’ika: Exegeses of Q 35:1’ JQS
10 (2009) pp. 50 - 70. This is, also, reflected in Jewish and Christian
literature, where there are only a few references to angels having wings: cf. 2En
12:2 & 72:9, OTP vol. 1, pp. 122 - 123 & 210 - 211; 3En
9, OTP vol. 1, p. 263; ApAbr 18:6, OTP vol. 1, p. 698; QuesEzra
27 - 30, OTP vol. 1, p. 598 and LadJac 2:15, OTP vol. 2,
p. 408.
[CCLXXX] Eg.
§20, 94, 99,149, 416, 622, 623, 690 & 744.
[CCLXXXI] §744; some
modern commentators have argued against conceiving angels as being like birds,
e.g. ‘We need not suppose that angelic “wings” have muscles and feathers, like
the wings of birds.’ Ali, Y. H., The Holy Qur’an (Lahore: Sheikh
Muhammad Ashraf, 1938, p. 1152, n. 3871.
[CCLXXXII] §94; see
also §43, 92 - 95, 213, 214 & 499.
[CCLXXXIII] Q 35:1;
Arberry, Koran, p. 444.
[CCLXXXIV] E.g.
During the micraj, Muhammad sees Gabriel with six hundred
wings; see, al-Bukhan, Sahîh (Riyadh: Bayt al-Afkar al-Dawliyya, 1998),
§4856, p. 593; al-Qurtubi, Al-Jamic, vol. 14, pp. 319 - 320
and al-Baydawi, cAbd Allah ibn cUmar, Anwar al-tanzîl
wa-asrar al-ta’wîl; Fleischer, H. O. (ed.), Commentarius in Coranum
(Leipzig: Vogel, 1846 - 1848) vol. 2, p. 148. The increase in wings is
justified through the exegesis of the phrase ‘yazîdu fî’l-khalqi ma yasha ’U
in Q 35:1; cf. al-Tabari’s exegesis of this phrase: ‘.He increases what He
wills for his creation, whatever He wills for it; and he decreases as He wills,
what ever He wills for a creation; His is the creation, and the power, His is
the ability and the authority.’ Al-Tabari, Tafsîr, vol. 22, p. 114.
[CCLXXXV] See below
for a discussion of the significance and symbolism of the colour green in
Arabic.
[CCLXXXVI] Ezk. 1:5 -
14; Rev. 4:6 - 8; Apoc. Abr. 18:3 - 7, OTP, vol. 1, p. 698.
[CCLXXXVII] Cf.
Eggler, Jürg, Influences and Traditions Underlying the Vision of Daniel 7:2
- 14 (Fribourg: University Press / Gottingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht,
2000) pp. 42 - 54.
[CCLXXXVIII] Bauckham,
Richard, The Theology of the Book of Revelation (Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press, 1993) pp. 33 - 34.
[CCLXXXIX] §189 - 193
& 198; the Angel of the Thunder is, also, described like this, see §267.
[CCXC] Single
form: §192 & 193; (four faces): §189 - 191; 198.
Cook, Stanley A., The Religion of Ancient
Palestine in the Light of Archaeology (London: Oxford University Press,
1930) p. 29; see also Obhink, H. Th., ‘The Horns of the Altar in the Semitic
World, Especially in Jahwism’ JBL 56 (1937) pp. 43 - 49; see, also,
Coudert, Allison, ‘Horns’ ER2 vol. 6,
pp. 4130 - 4131 and Litvinski, B. A. (tr. Sylvia Juan), ‘Sheep and Goats’ ER2
vol. 12, pp. 8309 - 8312.
[CCXCV] The
altar is called the keratinos bumos; see Brureau, Philippe, Recherches
sur les cultes de Délos à l'époque hellénistique et à l'époque impériale
(Paris: Editions E. de Boccard, 1970) pp. 22 - 29. The altar was destroyed, but
is referred to by the poet Callimachus; see Callimachus, EigAnoXXcova,
l. 61; William, F., Callimachus. Hymn to Apollo: A Commentary (Oxford:
Clarendon Press, 1978) pp. 59 - 60. The altar of the Jerusalem temple, also,
had stone ‘horns’, see Milgrom, Jacob & Lerner, Blalik Myron, ‘Altar', EJ
vol. 1, coll. 760 - 771.
[CCXCVI] See
Cornelius, Izak, The Iconography of the Canaanite Gods Reshef and Bacal:
Late Bronze Age and Iron Age Periods (c. 1500 - 1000 BCE) (Fribourg: University
Press & Gottingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1994) pp. 245 - 253 and
Metzger, Martin, Konigsthron und Gottesthron: Thronformen und
Throndarstellungen in Àgypten und in Vorderen Orient im dritten und zweiten
Jahrtausend vor Christus und deren Bedeutung für das Verstandnis von Aussagen
über den Thron im Alten Testament (Kevelaer: Verlag Butzon & Berkcer;
Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener Verlag, 1985) p. 253.
[CCC] Alexander,
P.,‘3 (Hebrew Apocalypse of) Enoch’ OTP vol. 1, p. 293 n. 9c.
[CCCI] 3En
9:2 - 3, p. 263.
[CCCII] 20,51,180
(three times), 181, 183, 197, 202, 209, 231 (bis), 485, 490, 494, 499 (four
times) & 545.
[CCCIII] See,
also, §181 (bird); §231 (100 autumns); §490 (quick-flying bird going
downwards); §494 (angel flying) and §545 (quick-flying bird).
[CCCIV] The
scales are enormous; for example R. Ishmael b. Elosha is said to have remarked
that ‘...the entire measurement (of the Creator) is 2,000,000,000,000,000,000
(i. e. 2 x 1018) parasangs in height, and 10,000,000,000 parasangs
in width.’ Sefer Hashicür, ll. 5 - 6; Cohen, Martin Samuel, The
Shicür Qomah:Texts and Recensions (Tübingen: J. C. B. Mohr (Paul
Siebeck), 1995) p. 29. The date of these texts is unclear [cf. Stemberger,
Günter (tr. Markus Bockmuehl), Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash
(Repr. Edinburgh: T. &. T. Clark, 1997), pp. 348 - 349], the tradition
appears to have its origins in the period after the Babylonian Talmud
(5th Century), but, significantly, before the time of the philosopher Saadia
Gaon (d. 942); see Cohen, Shicur Qomah, pp. 1 - 2 and Cohen,
Martin Samuel, The Shicur Qomah: Liturgy and Theurgy in
Pre-Kabbalistic Jewish Mysticism (London: University Press of America,
1983) pp. 51ff
[CCCV] Some
commentators believe the Shicur Qomah texts may, actually, be
an unusual attempt to de- anthropomorphise God. Gedaliahu Stroumsa argues that
the texts appear to be referring to an archangelic divine hypostasis, rather
than the actual essence of God (see Stroumsa, ‘Form(s) of God’ p. 277/.);
Joseph Dan argues that the measurements are so exceptionally incomprehensible,
they become meaningless; see Dan, Joseph, ‘Concept of Knowledge in the Shicur
Qomah in Siegfried Stein and Raphael Loewe (eds.) Studies in Jewish
Religious and Intellectual History Presented to Alexander Altmann,
(Alabama: University of Alabama Press 1979) pp. 67-73.
[CCCVI] Cohen,
Shicur Qomah (1985), pp. 38 - 53.
[CCCVII] In Siddur
Rabbah ‘years’ are not used, but in another text, Sefer ha-Shicur,
there is one distance given in ‘years’ amongst many measurements taken inparasangs:
‘The distance that a man can walk in a (single) day is ten parasangs, which is
to say that, in a year consisting of 365 parasangs, (he can) walk 3,656
parasangs (!). In ten years, the sum totals 36,400 parasangs, and (therefore,)
in one hundred years, it reaches, 365,000 parasangs, and in five hundred years,
it reaches 1,825,000 parasangs - this is the span of the Creator, may He be
blessed”.’ Siddur Rabbah ll: 9 - 12; Cohen, Shicur Qomah
(1985) pp. 28 - 29.
[CCCVIII] The
distance ‘shoulder to shoulder’ does, however, appear in the Book of
Elchasai: an angel is said to be 96 miles high (24 schoinoi) and the
distance from shoulder to shoulder to be 6 schoinoi (14 miles): NTA,
vol. 2, p. 687; this fragment is taken from Hippolytus, Refutatio omnium
haeresium, IX:13.2; Marcovich, Miroslav (ed.), Hipplytus: Refutatio
Ominum Haeresium (Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 1986) p. 357.
[CCCIX] Although
year-measurements can be found, usually in relation the size of the
earth. In addition to the use in Sefer ha-Shicur (see above),
it can, also, be found in DeutR 2:10, p. 29 and CantR 6:9 §2 - 3,
p. 266. See, also, Gandz, Solomon, ‘The Distribution of Land and Sea on the
Earth’s Surface According to Hebrew Sources’ PAAJR 22 (1953) pp. 23 -
53; especially p. 33. This use can be found in al-Mascudï, Abï
al-Hassan cAlï ibn al-Husayn ibn cAlï (ed. cAbd
al-Amrr cAlï Muhanna), Muruj al- dhahab wa-macadin
al-jawahir (Beirut: Mu’sassa al-Aclamï li-‘l-Matbucât,
1321 / 2000) §I:16; vol. 1, p. 172
[CCCX] Cf.
Stroumsa, ‘Form(s) of God’ p. 269; see also Jackson, Howard M., ‘The Origins
and Development of Shicur Qomah Revelation in Jewish
Mysticism’ JSJ 31 (2000) pp. 373 - 415. Jackson looks at representations
of the divine in other, non-Jewish, religious traditions.
[CCCXI] §42,
53, 92 - 95, 158 - 159, 201, 202, 213, 214, 285, 286 & 294.
[CCCXVI] For a
short discussion of this see: De Conick, April D., ‘The “Dialogue of the
Savior” and the Mystical Sayings of Jesus’ VC 50 (1996) pp. 178 - 199,
pp. 190 - 193.
[CCCXVII] GPhil
26a; NTA, vol. 1, p. 191. Cf. DialSav 42 & 67; NTA,
vol. 1, pp. 4 - 11
[CCCXVIII] Cf.
Swartz, M. D., ‘The Semiotics of the Priestly Vestments in Ancient Judaism’ in
Albert I Baumgarten (ed.), Sacrifices in Religious Experience (Leiden:
Brill, 2002) pp. 57 - 80. Garments were, also, used to distinguish gods from
mortals in Semitic religion: see Oppenheim, A. Leo, ‘Golden Garments of the
Gods’ JNES 8 (1949) pp. 172 - 193.
[CCCXIX] For a
comprehensive list of various iconographic details associated with angels, see
Pallas, ‘Himmelsmachte’ RZBK vol. 3, coll. 34 - 43. Another interesting
article by Catherine Jolivet-Lévy discusses the semiotics of dress in Byzantine
art and particularly the way in which the Imperial costume of the angels was
also used to stress the worldly power of the Emperor; see Jolivet-Lévy,
Catherine, ‘Note sur la representation des archanges en costume impérial dans
l’iconographie byzantine’ CA 46 (1998) pp. 121 - 128.
[CCCXX] For a
discussion of the place of clothing in Judaism and Christianity, see Kim, Jung
Hoon, The Significance of Clothing Imagery in the Pauline Corpus
(London: Continuum, 2004). For an important work on the semiotics of clothing
and dress (in general), see Rubinstein, Ruth P., Dress Codes: Meaning and
Messages in American Culture (Oxford: Westview Press, 1995).
[CCCXXI] Rubin,
Nissan & Kosman, Admiel, ‘The Clothing of the Primordial Man: Adam as a
Symbol of Apocalyptic Time in the Midrashic Sources’ HTR 90 (1997) pp.
155 - 174, p. 163.
[CCCXXII] Emel
Esin includes a discussion of angelic dress in Islamic art and its East-Asian
influences, see Esin, ‘Angel Figure’ p. 269f.
[CCCXXIII] For a
discussion of angelic clothing in Byzantine art, see Parani, Maria G., Reconstructing
the Reality of Images: Byzantine Material Culture and Religious Iconography (11th
- 15th Centuries) (Leiden: Brill, 2003) pp. 42 - 50.
[CCCXXIV] ‘As I
watched, thrones were set in place, and an Ancient One took his throne; his
clothing was white as snow and the hair of his head like pure wool.’ NRSV
p.843 Cf. 20:12; ‘and he saw two angels in white.’ NRSV p.111, Martha
Himmelfarb discusses the use and symbolism of God’s white gown and argues that
there are two main ideas: (i) judgement and (ii) purity; she, also, alludes to
the wearing of a plain white robe by the Jewish High Priest on the Day of
Atonement; see Himmelfarb, Ascent to Heaven, pp. 16 - 18; see also
Rowland, Christopher, ‘A Man Clothed in Linen: Daniel 10.6ff and Jewish Angelology’ JSNT 24 (1985) pp.
99 - 110.
[CCCXXV] Cf: JanJam
25a, OTP vol. 2, p. 437 and ApEl 5:5 - 6 ‘Then Gabriel and Uriel
will become a pillar of light leading them into the holy land. It will be
granted to them to east form the tree of life. They will wear white
garments..and angels will watch over them.’ OTP, vol. 1, p. 750. This
text is referring to the righteous, rather than angels, but the intention of
the white garments is to signify their righteousness and their place in heaven.
[CCCXXVI] §54; see
also §122 (Angel of Death)
[CCCXXVII] ‘[WeiB]
bezeichnet jede Art von Helligkeit, darunter auch die Helligkeit des WeiB, aber
ebenso des Strahlen und Leuchten des Lichts und das Funkeln und Schillern
reflektierender Gegenstânde.’ Fischer, Wolfdietrich, Farb- und
Formbezeichnungen in der Sprache der altarabischen Dichtung: Untersuchungen zur
Wortbedeutung und zur Wortbildung (Wiesbaden: Otto Harassowitz, 1965) p. 244.
[CCCXXVIII] cAthamina, Khalil, ‘The Black Banners and the
Socio-Political Significance of Flags and Slogans in Medieval Islam’ Arabica
36 (1989) p. 311.
[CCCXXIX] Akhdar
can, also, refer to blue (see Fischer, Farb- und Formbezeichungen, p.
306), but, in these texts, ‘green’ is clearly intended.
For a discussion of the symbolism of colours in
Near Eastern cultures, see Carbo, Antoni Gonzalo, pp. 65 - 90.
[CCCXXXIV] §42, 44b,
45 & 54; Green robes are, also, said to be worn by those in paradise: e.g.
Q 18:31 ‘...and they shall be robed in green garments of silk and brocade. ’
Arberry, Koran, p. 292; see also Q 55:76 & 76:21; Arberry, Koran,
pp. 559 and 622; see also cAthamina, ‘Black Banners’ pp. 325 - 326.
[CCCXXXV] ‘The
color green is symbolic of the beginning of the things, of the creation, of the
physical order and also of the fundamental wisdom which underlies creation.’
Bokser, Ben Zion, ‘The Thread of Blue’ PAAJR 31 (1963) p. 11
[CCCXXXVI] ‘Moreover,
the faces of the intermediate were a greenish colour, on account of their
deeds, for they are tainted until purified of their iniquity by fire.’ 3En
44:5; OTP, vol. 1, p. 295.
[CCCXXXVII] §281,
285, 286 & 294.
[CCCXXXVIII] See
Royalty, Robert M., The Streets of Heaven: The Ideology of Wealth in the
Apocalypse of John (Macon: Mercer University Press, 1998) pp. 45 - 58. For
the use of precious stones in a whole range of different religions, see Kunz,
George Frederick, The Curious Lore of Precious Stones (London: s.i.,
1913) pp. 225 - 274.
[CCCXXXIX] Let
Aris 96, OTP vol. 2, p. 19; cf. Ex 28:4, 27 - 31.
[CCCXL] Let
Aris 88, OTP vol. 2, p. 18; see also Let Aris, 52 - 82, OTP
vol. 2 pp. 16 - 18.
[CCCXLI] Cf. 1En
14:11 & 24:2, OTP vol. 1, pp. 20 & 26; 3En 12, OTP
Vol 1, p. 265 ; 2Bar 5:7 OTP Vol 2, p. 623; ApAb 11:1 - 3,
OTP vol. 1, p. 694 and Ps.-Phil. 26:9 - 10 OTP vol. 2, p.
338.
[CCCXLII] §626 -
628 & 630. cf. Q3:123 - 124; Arberry, Koran, p. 61; Ibn Ishaq, Sïra,
pp. 303ff.; Al-Wâqidï,
Muhammad ibn cUmar (ed. Marsden Jones), Kitab al-maghazï
(London: Oxford University Press, 1966) vol. 1, pp. 56 - 57, 79, 113 and Malik
ibn Anas, al-Muwatta; Muwatta’ al-Imam Malik wa- sharhuhu tanwïr al-hawalik
(Cairo: Matbacat al-akhira, 1370 / 1951) vol. 1 pp. 291 - 292;
Bewley, Aisha Abdurrahman (tr.), Al-Muwatta of Imam Malik ibn Anas: The
First Formulation ofIslamic Law (Granada: Madinah Press, 1992) §20.81.254,
p. 171; for more on the significance of turbans, see Kister, M. J., ‘“The
Crowns of this Community”.. .Some Notes on the Turban in Muslim Tradition’ JSAI
24 (2000) pp. 217 - 245.
[CCCXLIII] This is
also found in Western art, as Stephen Prickett comments early renaissance art:
‘Biblical characters (once clothed) always wore contemporary dress and appeared
in the local context.’ Prickett, Stephen, ‘The Bible in Literature and Art’ in
John Barton (ed.), The Cambridge Companion to Biblical Interpretation
(Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998) pp. 160 - 178, p. 165.
[CCCXLIV]Cf. Kaiser, Otto (tr. R. A. Wilson), Isaiah 1
- 12 (London: SCM Press, 1972) p. 76 and Oswalt, John, The Book of
Isaiah: Chapters 1 - 39 (Grand Rapids: W. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company,
1986) p. 179.
[CCCXLV] §93, 99
& 744.
[CCCXLVI] §85 -
88, 91, 92 & 99; see also Wensinck, A. J., ‘Israfil’ EI2
vol. 4, p. 211.
[CCCXLVII] §234
& 234.
[CCCXLVIII] §257, 258,
261 & 263.
[CCCXLIX] See §85
- 106.
[CCCL] For
example, in Byzantine art different kinds of holy people (martyrs, monks,
warrior saints, bishops etc.) are dressed in different clothing to
differentiate them; cf. Walter, Christopher, Warrior Saints in Byzantine Art
and Tradition (Aldershot: Ashgate, 2003) pp. 270 - 274, 285 - 290 and
Maguire, Henry, The Icons of Their Bodies: Saints and Their Images in
Byzantium (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1996).
[CCCLI] George
Kunz looks at a wide range of different religions’ uses of precious stones,
ranging from Egyptian to Chinese; see Kunz, Curious Lore, pp. 225 - 274.
[CCCLII] For a
discussion of the influence of Zoroastrianism on on Islam, see Stepaniants
Marietta, ‘The Encounter of Zoroastrianism with Islam’ PEW 52 (2002) pp.
159 - 172.
[CCCLIII] §1, 9,
25, 26, 44, 56, 74, 75, 128, 129, 141, 187, 198, 207, 208, 222, 225, 234, 237,
243, 247, 248, 249, 313 - 321, 324, 325, 333, 389, 391 - 393, 397, 399 - 401,
417, 422, 425 (bis), 426 (bis), 458 - 460, 537, 437, 549, 555 (bis),
617, 619, 678, 679, 743 & 744.
[CCCLIV] Parts
of this chapter will be published in 2009: Burge, S. R., ‘The Angels’ Roles in
Death and Judgement’ in Amanda Philips, Richard Radcliffe & Refqa
Abu-Remaileh (eds.), New Voices, New Visions: The Work of Young Scholars in
British Middle East Studies (Cambridge: Cambridge Scholars Publishing,
forthcoming).
[CCCLV] Al-Ghazali,
Durra al-fakhira fi kashf culüm al-akhira; Smith, Jane I.
(tr.), The Precious Pearl (Missoula: Scholars Press, 1979).
[CCCLVI] Al-Qadi,
cAbd al-Rahim ibn Ahmad, Daqa ’iq al-akhbar fi dhikr al-janna wa-
‘l-nar; A’isha cAbd al-Rahman at-Tarjumana (sic) (tr.), Islamic
Book of the Dead (Norwich: Diwan Press, 1977).
[CCCLVII] Anon., Kitab
ahwal al-qiyama; Wolff, M., Muhammedanische Eschatologie (Leipzig:
Commissionsverlag von F. A. Brockhaus, 1872); al-Muhasibi, al-Harith ibn Asad, Kitab
al- tawahhum; Roman, André (ed. & tr.), Une Vision Humaine des Fins
Dernières (Paris: Librairie Klincksieck, 1978) and al-Ashcari,
Abu ‘l-Hasan Ahmad ibn Ibrahim, Kitab al-shajarat al-yaqin; Castillo
Castillo, Concepcion (ed. & tr.), Kitab Sayarat al-Yaqin: Tratado de
eschtologia musulmana - Estudio, edicion, traduccion, notas y indices
(Madrid: Instituto Hispano-Arabe de Cultura, 1987) [this work is also attributed
to Abu ‘l-Hasan cAli ibn Ismacil al-Ashcan].
[CCCLVIII] Ibn
Ishaq, Sira; Guillaume, Life of Muhammad, pp. 181 - 187;
cf. al-Ghayti, Najm al-Din, al- Micraj al-kabir; Jeffrey, A.
(tr), A Reader on Islam (‘S-Gravenhage: Mouton & Co., 1962) pp. 621
- 639. Versions of the the micraj were important in Sufism,
cf. al-Sulami, Abu cAbd al-Rahman, Mas’ala bayan lata ’if al-micraj;
Colby, Frederick S. (ed. & tr.), The Subtleties of the Ascension: Early
Mystical Sayings on Muhammad’s Heavenly Journey (Louisville: Fons Vitae,
2006) and Morris, James Winston, ‘The Spiritual Ascension: Ibn cArabi
asnd the Micraj’ JAOS 107 (1987) pp. 629 - 652 & 108
(1988) pp. 63 - 77; it also appears in a number of different Islamate
languages, e.g. Anon., Mirajnama; de Courteille, Abel Pavet (ed. &
tr.), Mirâj-Nâmeh: Récit de l’Ascension de Mahomet au Ciel Composé A.H. 840
(1436/1437) (repr. Amsterdam: Philo Press, 1975).
[CCCLIX] Vockovic,
Heavenly Journeys, p. 97; see also Lange, Christian, Justice,
Punishment, and the Medieval Muslim Imagination (Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press, 2008) pp. 101 - 175.
[CCCLX] Other
larger works occasionally include sections on the angels, which bear a
resemblance to al- Suyuti’s Al-Haba’ik, such as al-Bayhaqi, Ahmad ibn
al-Husayn, Al-Jamic shucab al-iman (Bombay: Al-Dar
al-Salfiyyah. 1986) vol. 1, pp. 407 - 446. However, to my knowledge, al-Haba’ik
is the only hadith collection devoted to angels.
[CCCLXI] E.g.
§85.
[CCCLXII] For
example, there is an angel that records the names of those that say ‘sala
allah calayhi wa- sallam’ - which is a role similar to, but
separate from, that of the scribes (al-hafizan). See §445 - 447 &
449 - 457; for more on this, see Malik, Muwatta’ vol. 1, pp. 137 - 138;
Bewley, al-Muwatta’ §9.22.69 - 71, p. 62; Padwick, Constance E., ‘The
Language of Muslim Devotion I’ MW 47 (1957) pp. 5 - 21 and de la Puente,
Christina, ‘The Prayer Upon the Prophet Muhammad (Tasliya): A Manifestation of
Islamic Religiosity’ ME 5 (1999) pp. 121 - 129.
[CCCLXIII] 40 Days:
§437,440 & 442; 42 Days: §439; 72 Days: §441. Forty days is also an
important time period in Greek Medicine (cf. Hippocratic Treatises, On the
Nature of the Child, §18 - 19; see Lonie, Iain M., (tr. & commentary), The
Hippocratic Treatises “On Generation”, “On the Nature of the Child, “Diseases
IV” (Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 1981) pp. 9 - 11 & 190 - 194); forty
days is also important in rabbinic law (probably a result of the influence of
Greek medicine); for example, a woman who miscarries before forty days have
passed does not have to perform the rites of ritual purity associated with
miscarriages and birth, as it is not considered an embryo before forty days;
see Bek. §21b, p. 140.
[CCCLXIV] §437 -
443.
[CCCLXV] §437,
439, 440, 441 & 443; cf. Nid. §31a, p. 214 & Yom. §95a,
p. 420; for more on embryogenesis in Greek and Jewish thought Kottek, Samuel
S., ‘Embryology in Talmudic and Midrashic Literature’ JHB 14 (1981) pp.
299 - 315; Needham, Joseph, A History of Embryology (Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 1934) pp. 13 - 65 and Jones, David Albert, The
Soul of the Embryo: Enquiry into the Status of the Human Embryo in the
Christian Tradition (London: Continuum, 2004) pp. 6 - 42.
[CCCLXVI] ‘We
created man of an extraction of clay, then We set him, a drop, in a receptacle
secure, then We created of the drop a clot, the We created of the clot a
tissue, then We created of the tissue bones, then We garmented the bones in
flesh.’ Arberry, Koran, p. 343; for other accounts of embryogenesis, cf.
al-Râzï, Fakhr al-Dïn Muhammad ibn cUmar, Mafatih al-gahib
[Tafsir al-kabir] (Cairo: s. n., 1889 - 1891) vol. 6, pp. 188 - 190 and
Ikhwan al-Safa’, Rasa ’il Ikhwan al-Safa ’ (Beirut: Dar Sadir, n.d.)
vol. 2, pp. 203 - 208. The accounts of the development of the embryo in the
Qur’an and the hadïth has been discussed frequently, see O’Shaugnessy, T., Creation
and the Teaching of the Qur’an (Rome: Biblical Institute Press, 1965) pp.
10 - 29; Bakker, D., Man in the Qur’an (Amsterdam: Drukkerij Holland
N.V., 1965) pp. 9 - 19; Haas, Samuel S., ‘The “Creation of Man” in the Qur’an’ MW
31 (1941) pp. 268 - 273; Arnaldez, R., ‘Insan’ EI2 vol. 3, pp. 1237 - 1239 and Ebrahim, Abul Fadl Mohsin,
‘Biology as the Creation and Stages of Life’ EQ vol. 1, pp. 229 - 232.
[CCCLXVII] Ringgren,
Helmer, Studies in Arabian Fatalism (Uppsala: A.-B. Lundequistska
Bokhandeln, 1955) p. 119
[CCCLXVIII] §439; Cf.
Abu cAbd Allah Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn cUthman al-Dhahabï
(attr.), Tibb al-Nabbi §23; see Elgood, Cyril (tr.), Tibb-ul-Nabbi or
Medicine of the Prophet (Bruges: Ex Officina “De Tempel”, 1962) pp. 165 -
175. This work has been attributed incorrectly to al-Suyutï, and it is believed
to have been compiled by al-Dhabahï; see Savage-Smith, Emilie, ‘Attitudes to
Dissection in Medieval Islam’ JHMAS 50 (1995) pp. 67 - 110, p. 73, n.
14.
[CCCLXIX] See
Katz, Marion Holmes, ‘The Problem of Abortion in Classical Sunni fiqtf
in Brockopp, Jonathan E. (ed.), Islamic Ethics of Life:Abortion, War and
Euthanasia (Columbia: University of South Carolina Press, 2003) pp. 25 -
50; see especially pp. 30 - 34; for a modern Islamic perspective on these
issues see, Bowen, Donna Lee, ‘Abortion, Islam and the 1994 Cairo Population
Conference’ IJMES 29 (1997) pp. 161 - 184.
[CCCLXX] Bakker,
Man in the Qur’an, p. 18; the importance of birth and death is also
reflected in Jewish literature, in which it is said that: ‘Three keys are in
the hands of the Holy One, Blessed be He! - the Keys of burial [i.e.
resurrection], rain and the womb.’ GenR. 73:4, p. 670, cf. DeutR
7:6, p. 137.
[CCCLXXI] Edward
Salisbury’s early article on predestination and freewill in Islam contains a
useful survey of these themes in pre-Islamic poetry, the Qur’an, hadith and kalam;
see Salisbury, Edward E., ‘Materials for the History of the Muhammadan Doctrine
of Predestination and Free Will; compiled from original sources’ JAOS 8
(1866) pp. 105 - 182; for hadith, see pp. 122 - 147.
[CCCLXXII] §439.
[CCCLXXIV] Watt, W.
M., ‘Free Will and Predestination in Early Islam’ MW 36 (1946) pp. 124 -
152, p. 131; see also Smith and Haddad, Death and Resurrection, p. 5;
Ringgren, Arabian Fatalism, pp. 117 - 121 and Watt, W. Montgomery, Islamic
Philosophy and Theology (Second Edition) (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University
Press, 1995) pp. 25 - 31.
[CCCLXXV] William Thomson argues that Muslim tradition appropriated
pre-Islamic ideas into its belief system, and he concludes: ‘The
characteristics of Time became in due season the characteristics of God as the
Lord of Time and the Controller of History...’ Thomson, William, ‘The Concept
of Human
Destiny in Islam’ MW 35 (1945) pp. 281 -
299, p. 299; for more on pre-Islamic concepts of dahr, see Bravmann, M.
M., The Spiritual Background of Early Islam (Leiden: Brill, 1972) pp.
288 - 295 Goldziher, Ignaz (tr. S. M. Stern), Muslim Studies (repr.
London: Aldine Transaction, 2006) vol. 1, pp.
[CCCLXXVII] ‘It
is hardly conceivable that the words “whether he is to be miserable or happy”
were originally interpreted in the way in which a Muslim would normally
interpret them, as referring to Hell and Paradise.’ Watt, W. Montgomery., Free
Will and Predestination in Islam (London: Luzac, 1948) p. 25
[CCCLXXVIII] Cf.
van Ess, Josef, Zwischen Hadlt und Theologie: Studien zum Entstehen
pradestinatianischer Uberlieferung (Berlin: De Gruyter, 1975), pp. 16 &
24 - 25.
[CCCLXXIX] E.g.
al-Bukharï, Abu cAbd Allah Muhammad ibn Ismacïl; Abu
Suhayb al-Karmï (ed.), Sahih al- Bukhari (Riyadh: Bayt al-Afkar
al-Dawliyya, 1998) Kitab al-qadar, §6594 - 6620, pp. 1261 - 1265; for a
collection of different hadïth on the subject, see de Vlieger, A., Kitab
al-qadr: Materiaux pour servir à l’étude de la doctrine de la prédestination
dans la théologie musulman (Leiden : Brill, 1902).
[CCCLXXX] E.g. Ibn
Qayyim al-Jawziyyah, Muhammad ibn Abï Bakr, Kitab shifa ’ al-calil
fi masa ’il al-qada ’ wa’l-qadarwa ’l-himahwa ’l-ta’lil (Riyadh : Maktabat
al-Riyad al-Hadïtha, 1323 / 1905).
[CCCLXXXI] Similar
‘recording angels’ can be found in Jewish and Christian texts: e.g. 2En.
19:5, OTP vol. 1, pp. 132 - 133; ApZeph. 3:1 - 9 & 7:1 - 8, OTP
vol. 1, pp. 510 - 511 & 513; ApPaul 7, NTA vol. 1, p. 718.
[CCCLXXXII] Cf.
Al-Tabari, Abu Jacfar Muhammad ibn Jarïr, Jamic
al-bayan can ta’wil al-Qur’an (Cairo: s.n., 1388/1968) vol. 7,
pp. 216 - 218; vol. 13, pp. 114 - 123; vol. 26, pp. 157 - 160 and vol. 30, p.
88 and
on the left-right distinctions in Islam and religion
generally, see Hertz, R., ‘La prééminence de la main driote: étude sur la
polarité religieuse’ RP 68 (1909) pp. 553 - 558 and Chelhod, J.,
‘Contribution au problème de la prééminence de la droite, d’après le témoignage
arabe’ Anthropos 59 (1964) pp. 529 -
17, p. 10 [on Q 50:17].
[CCCLXXXVII] §349.
[CCCLXXXVIII] For
a discussion of the concept of smell in religious thought, see Evans, Suzanne,
‘The Scent of Martyr’ Numen 49 (2002) pp. 193 - 211.
[CCCLXXXIX] There
are further hadith that give different details but the same concepts: e.g ‘..
.when a man goes to bed virtuously, the angel anoints him.’ §373; p. 101.
[CCCXC] Peters,
Rudolph, Crime and Punishment in Islamic Law (Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press, 2005) p. 20; see also Dols, Michael W., Majnun: The Madman
in Medieval Islamic Society (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1992) p. 442ff.
and Powers, Paul R., Intent in Islamic Law: Motive and Meaning in Medieval
SunnïFiqh (Leiden: Brill, 2006).
[CCCXCI] §371;
Yedida Stillman highlights the differences in attitude to nakedness between the
pre-Islamic and Islamic societies: ‘The new Islamic sensibilities which were in
marked contrast to Jahili society’s easygoing attitude to nudity and very much
in line with the biblical notions of propriety (cf. Exodus 20:23) would not
permit the exposure of a man’s genitalia.’ Stillman, Yedida Kalfon, Arab
Dress: A Short History (Leiden: Brill, 2000) p. 11.
[CCCXCII] Arberry,
Koran, p. 240.
[CCCXCIII] Arberry,
Koran, p. 540.
[CCCXCIV] Arberry,
Koran, p. 343.
[CCCXCV] The tafsirs
on Q 23:1 - 5 are chiefly concerned with the question of nudity and marriage;
see al- Tabari, Abu Jacfar Muhammad ibn Muhammad, Jamic
al-bayan can ta’wil al-Qur’an [Tafsir] (Cairo: Mustafa al-Babi
al-Halabi, 1968), vol. 18, p. 4 and Al-Qurtubi, Muhammad ibn Ahmad, Al-Jamic
li- ahkam al-Qur’an (Cairo: Dar al-Kutub al-Misriyya, 1948), vol. 12, pp.
102 - 111.
[CCCXCVI] Al-Qurtubi,
al-Jamic, vol. 19, p. 246.
[CCCXCVII] See
Brandon, ‘Personifications of Death’ and Lonetto, Richard, ‘Personifications of
Death’ ED pp. 205 - 206.
[CCCXCVIII] See
O’Shaughnessy, Muhammad’s Thoughts on Death; Muhammad Abdul Haleem also
comments: ‘The after-life is not treated in the Qur’an in a separate chapter at
the end of the book, or as something on its own, for its own sake, but always
in relations to life in this world.’ Abdel Haleem, Muhammad, ‘Life and Beyond
in the Qur’an’ in Dan Cohn-Sherbok and Christopher Lewis (eds.), Beyond
Death: Theological and Philosophical Reflections on Life After Death
(London: MacMillan, 1995) pp. 66 - 79, p. 66.
[CCCXCIX] Q 32:11;
‘Say: “Death’s angel, who has been charged with you, shall gather you, then to
your Lord you shall be returned.”’ Arberry, Koran, p. 424.
[CD] For a
basic survey see Wensinck, A. J., ‘cIzra’tl’ EI2 vol. 4, pp. 292 - 293.
[CDI] §107 -
171.
[CDII] §111;
the number of times varies, cf. §109 - 113, 115 - 119. Other hadith in this
section make similar statements, but in less explicit terms.
[CDIII] §123;
p. 42; another hadith states that the angel has multiple eyes in the back and
front of his head, see §120.
[CDIV] E.g.
§126, 131 - 133 & 135.
§112; notice that these are the components
of Watt’s ‘modified fatalism’, and are written down by the Angel of the Womb; see above.
Cf. Al-Ghazalï, Abu Hamid
Muhammad ibn Muhammad ibn Muhammad, Kitab ihya ’ culüm al-dln
Remembrance of Death
and the Afterlife (Cambridge:
Islamic Texts Society, 1989) pp. 121 - 132.
[CDXVI] E.g.
‘.the Angel of Death does not know when the appointed time of a person’s death
is going to happen until he is ordered to take it.’§139.
[CDXVII] E.g.
‘.On the middle night of Shacban, God reveals to the Angel of Death
regarding the taking of every soul that he wants to be taken during that year.’
§144.
[CDXVIII] Smith
and Haddad, Death and Resurrection, p. 35.
[CDXIX] Arberry,
Koran, p. 476.
[CDXX] In
Islam the obedience of angels presented a problem for understanding the failure
of Iblis to bow to Adam. If all angels obey God by their nature, why did Iblis
not bow down? These issues are discussed in Awn, Satan’s Tragedy, pp. 24
- 33.
[CDXXI] Awn, Satan’s
Tragedy, p. 27.
[CDXXII] Brandon,
‘Personification of Death’ p. 325.
angel says: ‘Be of good
cheer and feel consoled, for I am friend to every believer.’ See §119.
[CDXXVI] See
§300 & 301; Duma is a Jewish angel (meaning ‘silence’); in Hag 5a,
the Angel of Death states: ‘I, have charge over them till they have completed
the generation [i.e. their life] and then I hand them over to Dumah' Hag
5a, p. 18; see also San 94a, Shab. 152b and Ber. 18b.
[CDXXVII] Creation:
§107 - 108; Prophets: Enoch (§149), Abraham (§120 - 123; 150), Moses (§146),
Solomon (§ 137 - 138, 167 - 168), David (§151) and Muhammad (169 - 170).
[CDXXVIII] For more
on the interaction between hadith and rabbinic literature, see Rosenblatt,
Samuel, ‘Rabbinic Legends in Hadith’ MW 35 (1945) pp. 237 - 252.
[CDXXIX] §107 -
108; Al-Thaclabi includes a version of this hadith, but begins the
chapter acknowledging that: ‘qala al-mufassiruna bi-alfazi mukhtalafati
wa-macanin mutafaqati (‘The commentators have said in different
words but similar meanings’); Al-Thaclabi, Qisas al-anbiya ’
p. 26; Brinner, Lives, p. 43. The narrative was a popular one and is
frequently included in Islamic histories; e.g. al-Tabari, Abu Jacfar
Muhammad ibn Jarir (ed. Muhammad Abu ‘l-Fadl Ibrahim), Ta’rikh al-rusul
wa-maluk (Cairo: Dar al-Macarif bi-Misr, 1960) vol. 1, pp. 89 -
90; Rosenthal, Franz (tr.), The History of Al-Tabari: Volume 1 - From the
Creation to the Flood (Albany: State University of New York Press, 1989)
pp. 258 - 259 and al-Mascudi, Muruj al-dhahab, vol. 1, pp. 35
- 36. For a fuller list of references to this narrative in Arabic literature
see Jeffery, A., ‘Ibn al-’Arabi’s Shajarat al-Kawn (Continued)’ SI
11 (1959) pp. 113 - 160, p. 113, n. 1; and for references in Jewish and
Christian literature see Chipman, ‘Mythic aspects’ pp. 10 - 13.
[CDXXX] Schwarzbaum,
Haim, ‘The overcrowded earth’ Numen 4 (1957) pp. 59 - 74, p. 65.
[CDXXXI] See
Schwarzbaum, Haim, ‘Jewish and Moslem Sources of a Falasha Creation Myth’ in
Raphael Patai (ed.) et. al., Studies in Biblical and Jewish Folklore
(Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1960) pp. 41 - 58 and Ullendorf,
Edward, ‘The “Death of Moses” in the Literature of the Falashas’ BSOAS
24 (1961) pp. 419 - 443.
[CDXXXII] TestAbr.,
OTP, vol. 1, pp. 871 - 902; for a commentary on the text see Allison, Dale,
C., The Testament of Abraham (Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 2003). See
Allison, Testament, pp. 53 - 54 for
[CDXXXIII] Other
pseudepigraphical, apocryphal and hagiographical works also treat death with
great emotion: e.g. The History of Joseph the Carpenter §14ff; Cowper,
B. Harris (tr.), TheApocryphal Gospels (London: David Nutt, 1897) pp. 99
- 127, pp. 111 ff.
[CDXXXIV] §170.
[CDXXXV] §151; In
Jewish and Muslim tradition, David is believed to have been very pious and
devout, see Pomykala, Kenneth E., The Davidic Dynasty Tradition: Its History
and Significance for Messianism (Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1995) and
Xeravits, Géza, ‘The Figure of David in the Book of Ben Sira’ Henoch 23
(2001) pp. 27 - 38, especially pp. 30 - 32.
[CDXXXVI] Al-Ghazali,
Ihya ’, vol.4, p. 399; Winter, Remembrance of Death,
p. 58.
[CDXXXVII] For a
basic summary, see Halevi, Leor, Muhammad’s Grave: Death Rites and the
Making of Islamic Society (New York: Columbia University Press, 2007) pp.
197 - 233 and Wensinck, A. J., ‘Adhab al-kabr’ EI2 vol. 1, pp. 186 - 187.
[CDXXXVIII] Peters, F.
E., Islam: A Guide for Jews and Christians (Princeton: Princeton
University Press, 2003) pp. 256 - 257.
[CDXXXIX] Cf. §309:
‘Abu Nucaym from Damra ibn Habib; he said: There are three Angels of
the Grave: Ankar, Nakur and Ruman.’ And §310: ‘Abu ‘l-Hassan al-Qattan in al-Tawalat
from Damra ibn Habib; he said: There are four Angels of the Grave: Munkar,
Nakir, Nakur and their master, Ruman.’ It should be noted that these other
names appear to be very rare, and that both §309 & §310 are attributed to
the same source, Damra ibn Habib.
[CDXL] Cf. Al-Fiqh
al-akbar II §23: ‘The interrogation of the dead in the tomb by Munkar and
Nakir is a reality and the reunion of the body witht the spirit is a reality.
The pressure and punishment in the tomb are a relity that will take place in
the case of all infidels and a reality that may take place in the case of some
sinners belonging to the faithful’ Wensinck, A. J., The Muslim Creed: Its
Origin and Historical Development (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,
1932) pp. 195 - 196. Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya also devotes much of his Kitab
al-ruh to a discussion of the trial of the grave, possibly in reaction to
groups (such as the Kharijites and some Mu’tazilites) who denied
the existence of Munkar and Nakir; Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya, Muhammad ibn Abi
Bakr, Kitab al-ruh (Haydarabad: Matbacat Majlis Da’irat al-Macarif
al-cUthmaniya, 1357 / 1939). Birgit Krawietz comments that: ‘[Kitab
al-ruh] was written in response to requests for clarification, since the
question of the createdness and essence of the soul, etc., had always stirred
discussions.’ Krawietz, Birgit, ‘Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyah: His Life and Works’ MSR
10 (2006) pp. 19 - 64, p. 35.
[CDXLI] §307;
cf. §303 & 305 where there are similar images.
[CDXLII] See Saritopak, Z., ‘The Legend of Al-Dajjal
(Anti-Christ): The Personification of Evil in the Islamic Tradition’ MW
93 (2003) pp. 291 - 307 and Halperin, D. J., ‘The Ibn Sayyad Traditions and the
Legend of al-Dajjal’ JAOS 96 (1976) pp. 213 - 225.
[CDXLIII] Malik:
Q 43:77; Arberry, Koran, p. 511; Ridwan: Q 3:15; Arberry, Koran,
p. 47.
[CDXLIV] Cf.
Wolff, Muhammedanische Eschatologie, p. 134ff. Vockovic comments:
‘...Malik is a character that Muhammad meets occasionally, and he is the one,
when asked who shows Muhammad hell.’ Vuckovic, Heavenly Journeys, p. 37.
[CDXLV] See
Himmelfarb, Tours of Hell, pp. 68 - 105.
[CDXLVI] E.g.
al-Ghazali, Ihya’, vol. 4, pp. 426 - 430; Winter, Remembrance of
Death, pp. 135 - 147; see also Smith and Haddad, Death and Resurrection,
pp. 41 - 49.
[CDXLVII] Rowland,
C., ‘The Visions of God in Apocalyptic Literature’ JSJ 10 (1979) pp. 138
- 154, p. 138.
[CDXLVIII] E.g. Enûma
Elish VI:107 - 122; Heidel, Alexander (tr.), The Babylonian Genesis: The
Story of the Creation (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1942) p. 39.
[CDXLIX] Wyatt,
Nicholas, Space and Time in the Religious Life of the Near East
(Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 2001) p. 161; see also Wensinck, A. J.,
‘The Significance of Ritual in the Religion of Israel’ in H. Kraemer, P. A. H.
de Boer and W. C. van Unnik (eds.), Semietische Studiën uit de Nalatenschap
van Prof. Dr. A. J. Wensinck (Leiden: A. W. Sijthoff’s
Uitgeversmaatschappil NV, 1941) pp. 51 - 60.
[CDL] See
Stone, Michael E., ‘Reactions to the Destructions of the Second Temple:
Theology, Perception and Conversion’ JSJ 12 (1981) pp. 195 - 204.
[CDLI] For
a discussion of these themes, see Himmelfarb, Ascent to Heaven.
[CDLII] ExodR
21:4, pp. 262 - 263.
[CDLIII] E.g.
Katz, Marion Holmes, Body of Text: The Emergence of the Sunni Law of Ritual
Purity (Albany: State University of New York Press, 2002).
[CDLIV] Cf.
Malik, Muwatta; vol. 1, pp. 72, 82 - 85, 134, 141 - 142, 165 - 166 and
vol. 2 p. 241; Bewley, Al-Muwatta §3.2.14; 3.11.47 - 50; 9.18.54;
9.24.85; 15.7.25; 54.3.6; 54.3.8; pp. 11, 26, 47 - 50, 60, 64, 80 & 407.
[CDLV] 62
hadith: §7, 21, 22, 24, 34, 39, 83, 100, 101, 102, 196, 212, 275, 282, 289 -
290, 458 - 470, 475 - 477, 486, 489; 518 - 528, 549, 566, 567, 575, 609, 625,
683 - 685, 687 - 690, 708 & 736.
[CDLVI] 69
hadith: §58, 60 - 63, 84, 120 - 122, 145, 171, 229, 248 - 255, 302, 312, 319,349,
355 - 361, 364 - 368, 371,372, 386, 387,391, 503, 512,574, 582 - 597, 624, 650,
658, 691, 693 - 695, 698 & 715.
[CDLVII] 124
hadith: §59 - 62, 65, 119 - 122, 212, 302, 312, 319, 329,330, 333 - 336, 341,
344 - 347, 351 - 354, 369, 370,373, 375, 376, 382, 387, 391, 430, 445 - 470,
474 - 477, 503, 568 - 573, 576, 578 - 580, 598, 599, 604, 609, 614, 615, 617,
618, 621 - 623, 628, 634, 644, 645, 653, 665, 666, 671, 673, 676, 682, 695,
696, 698 - 701, 708, 710 - 722, 738 - 730, 732.
[CDLVIII] 4Q400
- 4Q407 and Maslk; for a translation of these texts with a
commentary, see Davila, James R., Liturgical Works (Grand Rapids &
Cambridge: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2000) pp. 83 - 167.
[CDLIX] Himmelfarb,
Ascents to Heaven, p. 49; see also Gzella, H., ‘Beobachtungen zur Angelologie
der Sabbatopferlieder im Spiegel ihrer theologiegeschichtlichen
Voraussetzungen’ EphThL 78 (2002) pp. 468 - 481.
[CDLX] See
also Roff, William R., ‘Pilgrimage and the History of Religions: Theoretical
Approaches to the Hajj’ in Martin (ed.), Approaches to Islam, pp. 78 -
86.
[CDLXI] §7;
cf. §8 - 12, 18, 21 and 22 - 25.
[CDLXII] In 1En
60:1, there are said to be ‘ten thousand times a million and ten million times
ten million’ angels; cf. 1En 71:8, 13; OTP vol. 1, pp. 40 & 50; 2En.
18 - 19 OTP vol. 1, pp. 130 - 134 ; 3En. 17 - 40 OTP vol.
1, pp. 269 - 292 QuesEzra. 27 - 30, OTP vol. 1, p. 598 and LamR
3:23, §8, p. 201
[CDLXIII] E.g.
Andrea Pires defines angels in this way: ‘...the word “angel” applies to ranks
of spiritual or heavenly beings which serve as intermediaries between the
earthly and divine worlds.’ Pires, Andrea (tr. Paul Ellis), ‘Angels’ ER2
vol. 1, pp. 343 - 349, p. 343.
[CDLXIV] Q
21:20; Arberry, Koran, p. 324.
[CDLXV] For
example, ‘3 Enoch represents the celebration of God’s holiness through the
recitation of the Qedussah (the Sanctus) as the central act of heavenly
worship. 3 Enoch 35-40 is devoted entirely to this subject.’ Alexander, P., ‘3
(Hebrew Apocalypse of) Enoch: Introduction’ OTP vol. 1, p. 245.
[CDLXVI] Tasbih
normally refers to the phrase: ‘subhan allah' (cf. Muslim, Sahih, K.
al-dhikr; B. 18 (Subhan allah) §6575 - 6580) but according to S. M. Zwemer
in relation to the Muslim ‘rosary’, ‘[The tasbih] generally consists in
saying subhan Allah thirty-three times, al-hamdu-lillahi
thirty-three times, and Allahu akbar thirty-three times.’ Zwemer, S. M.,
‘The Rosary in Islam’ MW21 (1931) pp. 329 - 343, p. 330 and Goldziher,
I., ‘Le roasaire dans l’Islam’ GS vol. 2, 374 - 379. For more on its use
during the ritual prayers see Padwick, Constance E., Muslim Devotions: A
Study of Prayer-Manuals in Common Use (London: SPCK, 1961) pp. 65 - 74.
[CDLXVII] Padwick,
Muslim Devotions, p. 67.
[CDLXVIII] §212; see
also §213 - 216.
[CDLXIX] Ibn
Tufayl, Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn cAbd al-Malik, Risalat Hayy ibn
Yaqzan (Beirut: Al- Matbacat al-Kâthûlïkïya, 1963) p. 85.
[CDLXX] See
al-Zamakhsharï, Abu ‘l-Qasim Jarr Allah Mahmud cUmar, Al-Kashshaf
can haqa’iq al-tanzïl wa-cuyun al-aqawïl fï wujuh
al-ta’wïl (Cairo: Matbaca al-Kubra, 1318 - 1319) vol. 3, p. 18
and al- Baydawï, cAbd Allah ibn ‘Umar
(ed. W. Fell), Commentarius in Coranum (Leizig: Vogel, 1878), vol. 2,
pp. 191 - 192 [both on Q 38:75] and the discussion of these themes by Ibrahim,
‘Superiority of Angels’.
[CDLXXI] McKane,
‘Manuscript on the Micraj’ p. 375; for more on the history of the Kacba,
see Rubin, Uri, ‘The Kacba: Aspects of its ritual function asnd
position in pre-Islamic and early Islamic times’ JSAI 8 (1986) pp. 97 -
131.
[CDLXXII] §21; see
also §498 & 522. §685 states that there are fifteen ‘houses’, one for each
of the seven heavens and earths, and one for God and that if one of the houses
were to fall, ‘. then it would fall one of them on top of the other until the
borders to the lowest earth.’
[CDLXXIII] See
Wyatt, Space and Time, pp. 159 - 182.
[CDLXXIV] As James
Davila has commented on the heavenly temple in the Dead Sea Scrolls: ‘The Songs
of the Sabbath Sacrifice envisions a macrocosmic Temple conceived on the model
of the earthly Tabernacle and the Temple in Jerusalem. (Of course, the
composers of the work would see it the other way around: the cosmic Temple is
the archetype and model for the earthly sanctuaries.)’ Davila, James R., ‘The
Macrocosmic Temple, Scriptural Exegesis and the Songs of the Sabbath Sacrfice’ DSD
9 (2002) pp. 1 - 19, p. 1.
[CDLXXV] §489;
cf. §21, 519 - 521.
[CDLXXVI] Gustave
von Grunebaum comments: ‘The cosmological sanctity of Muhammad’s birth-place is
underpinned, as it were, by its soteriological sanctity as the cradle of Islam.’
Von Grunebaum, Gustave E., ‘The Sacred Character of Islamic Cities’ in Dunning
S. Wilson (ed.), Islam and Medieval Hellenism: Social and Cultural
Perpsectives (London: Variorum Imprints, 1976) §5, p. 34. However, it
should also be noted that Jerusalem still remained an important site in Islam,
with many fada ’il works written about it; cf. al-Suyuti, Kitab ithaf
al-khasa bi-fada ’il al-masjid al-aqsa; tr. Reynolds, James, The History
of the Temple of Jerusalem (London: A. J. Valpy, 1836).
[CDLXXVII] Neuwirth, A.,
‘Face of God - Face of Man: The Significance of the Direction of Prayer in
Islam’ in A. I. Baumgarten, J. Assmann and G. G. Stroumsa (eds.), Self, Soul
and Body in Religious Experience (Leiden: Brill, 1998) pp. 298 - 312, p.
302; see also Ashraf, Syed Ali, ‘The Inner Meaning of the Islamic Rites:
Prayer, Pilgrimage, Fasting, Jihad’ in Nasr (ed.), Islamic Spirituality,
pp. 111 - 130 and Wensinck, A. J., ‘Kibla: Ritual and Legal Aspects ’ EI2 vol. 5, pp. 82 - 83.
[CDLXXVIII] There are
a number of works about Mecca and its merits, see Wüstenfeld, Ferdinand, Geschichte
der Stadt Mekka (Leipzig: F. A. Brockhaus, 1861); Wüstenfeld’s work
includes an edition of Al- Azraqi, Abu Walid Muhammad ibn cAbd
Allah, Kitab akhbar Makka; Rudi Paret comments: ‘Die Gebetsrichtung nach
Mekka, die Qibla, symbolisiert seither die Eigengesetzlichkeit des Islam. Mekka
mit seinen Heiligtümern ist das geistige Zentrum, der Richtpunkt der betenden
Gemeinde.’ Paret, Rudi, Symbolik des Islam (Stuttgary: Anton Hiersemann,
1958) pp. 16 - 17.
[CDLXXIX] See also
§523 & 524; for this and other stories associated with the Kacba,
see Alexander, Grant, ‘The Story of the Kacba’ MW 28 (1938)
pp. 43 - 53; Zwemer, Samuel S. M., ‘Al-Haramain: Mecca and Medina’ MW 37
(1947) pp. 7 - 15; Wheeler, Brandon M., Mecca and Eden: Ritual, Relics and
Territory in Islam (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2006) pp. 82 -
87; Campo, Juan Eduardo, ‘Authority, Ritual and Spatial Order in Islam’ JRS
5 (1991) pp. 65 - 91; Lazarus-Yafeh, Hava, ‘The Religious Dialectics of the
Hadjdj’ in Hava Lazarus-Yafeh, Some Religious Aspects of Islam (Leiden:
Brill, 1981) pp. 17 - 37 and Pavlovitch, Pavel, ‘Qad kunna la nacbudu
’llaha wa-la nacrifuhu. On the Problem of the Pre-Islamic Lord
of the Kacba’ JAIS 2 (1998 - 1999) pp. 49 - 74.
[CDLXXX] Wheeler,
Mecca and Eden, p. 85; Marion Katz argues that the association of Adam
with the Kacba, gives the pilgrimage a role in the Islamic notion of
salvation history, Katz, Marion, ‘The Hajj and Islamic Studies of Ritual’ SI
98/99 (2004) pp. 95 - 129, pp. 111 - 112. In Judaism myths associated
with early prophets are
also used to explain rituals, for a discussion of this theme see, Weitzman,
Steven, ‘Revising Myth and Ritual in Early Judaism’ DSD 4 (1997) pp. 21
- 54.
[CDLXXXI] §609; see
also §683, 684 & 688.
[CDLXXXII] Note that
this hadith uses ‘throne’: in this case the Kacba is a
representation of God’s Throne, rather than the bayt al-macmur.
However, in §684 it is said that ‘God, may he be praised, placed a House under
the Throne, on four pillars made of green jewels, and he covered them in
rubies, and he called the House “The Remote Place” (al-dirah). Then God
said the angels: “Circumambulate around this House and pray to the Throne.” The
angels circumambulated the House, and they left the Throne...’
[CDLXXXIII] For early
hadith on angelic support in prayer, cf. Malik, Muwatta ’, pp. 72, 82 -
85, 134, 141 - 142; Bewley, Al-Muwatta, 3.12.14; 3.11.47 - 50; 9.18.54;
9.24.85, pp. 11, 26, 47 - 50, 60, 64, 80 & 407.
[CDLXXXIV] Q3:123 -
124; Arberry, Koran, p. 61; cf. Ibn Ishaq, Sira, pp. 303ff.; for a discussion of the historiographical
issues, see Booth, Newell S., ‘The Historical and Non-Historical In Islam’ MW
60 (1970) pp. 109 - 122, pp. 110 - 113.
[CDLXXXV] E.g. 4Q491
(War Scroll) l. 10: ‘Each man who is not [clean in regard to his
genitals] that [nig]ht [shall] no[t g]o out with them to battle. For the holy
angels are with their battle lines to[gether ].’ See also Davidson, Angels
at Qumran pp. 212 - 234 and Gleason, Randall G., ‘Angels and the
Eschatology in Heb 1 - 2’ NTS 49 (2003) pp. 99 - 107.
[CDLXXXVI] For a
discussion of the role of angels in Qumran liturgical works, see Davidson, Angels
at Qumran, pp. 235 - 254; Fletcher-Lewis, Crispin H. T., All the Glory
of Adam: Liturgical Anthropology in the Dead Sea Scrolls (Brill: Leiden,
2002); Chazon, Esther G., ‘Liturgical Communion with the Angels at Qumran’ in
Daniel K. Falk et. al. (eds.), Sapiential, Liturgical and Poetical
Texts from Qumran: Proceedings of the Third Meeting of the International
Organization for Qumran Studies, Oslo 1998 (Leiden: Brill, 2000) pp. 95 -
105 and Chazon, Esther G., ‘Human and Angelic Prayer in the Light of the Dead
Sea Scrolls’ in Esther G. Chazon (ed.), Liturgical Perspectives: Prayer and
Poetry in Light of the Dead Sea Scrolls, Proceedings of the Fifth International
Symposium of the Orion Center for the Study of the Dead Sea Scrolls and
Associated Literature, 19 - 23 January 2000 (Leiden: Brill, 2003) pp. 35 -
47. For similar ideas in the Hekhalot literature, see Elior, Rachel,
‘From Earthly Temple to Heavenly Shrines: Prayer and Sacred Song in the
Hekhalot Literature and Its Relation to Temple Traditions’ JSQ 4 (1997)
pp. 217 - 267.
[CDLXXXVII] §100;
see also §101 & 102 which contain the same idea.
[CDLXXXVIII] There
are a number of hadith that describe the angelic adhan, usually
witnessed by Muhammad during his micraj; these are often used
in the arguments between different Muslim groups, especially Twelver and Sunni fiqh,
concerning the wording of the adhan; cf. Howard, I. K. A., ‘The
Development of the Adhan and Iqama of the Salat in Early
Islam’ JSS 26 (1981) pp. 219 - 228, especially pp. 226 - 227. For the
role of an angel leading the heavenly worship of God in Judaism, see Orlov,
Andrei A., ‘Celestial Choirmaster: The Liturgical Role of Enoch-Metatron in 2
Enoch and the Merkebah Tradition’ JSP 14 (2004) pp. 3 - 29.
[CDLXXXIX] Cf. ‘He is
God; there is no god but He. He is the King, the All-holy, the
All-peaceable...’ Q 59:23; Arberry, Koran, p. 576. The words of the
angels are the basic form of the tasbih and ‘The last two nouns are a
Qur’anic couplet, and the quddus is one of the Ninety-nine Names, but no
one has traced the origin of this constantly recurring and haunting phrase.’
Padwick, Muslim Devotions, p. 66
[CDXC] Chazon,
‘Human and Angelic Prayer’ pp. 46 - 47. Esther Chazon implies that these three
positions are discrete, but it would seem feasible for a community to hold
these positions simultaneously.
[CDXCI] There
have been a number of works on Islamic ethics (both philosophical and
Qur’anic), e.g. Fakhry, Majid, Ethical Theories in Islam (Second Edition)
(Leiden: Brill, 1994); Izutsu, Toshihko, Ethico-Religious Concepts in the
Quran (Montreal: McGill University Press, 1966) and Cook, Michael, Commanding
Right and Forbidding Wrong in Islamic Thought (Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press, 2000).
[CDXCII] See
any commentary on Leviticus for a discussion of these issues, e.g. Porter, J.
R., Leviticus: A Commentary (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,
1971) and Noth, Martin, Leviticus: A Commentary (London: SCM Press Ltd.,
1965); see also Neusner, Jacob, Purity in Rabbinic Judaism: A Systematic
Account (Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1994) pp. 27 - 50.
[CDXCIII] See
Regev, Eyal, ‘Pure Individualism: The Idea of Non-Priestly Purity in Ancient
Judaism’ JSJ 31 (2000) pp. 176 - 202, p. 187.
[CDXCIV] Neusner,
Purity, pp. 53 - 82 and Harrington, Hannah K., The Impurity Systems
of Qumran and the Rabbis (Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1993).
[CDXCV] For a
discussion of these terms in relation to the Qur’an, see Burton, John, ‘The
Qur’an and the Islamic Practice of Wudü” BSOAS 51 (1988) pp. 21 - 58 and
Maghen, Ze’ev, ‘Close Encounters: Some Preliminary Observations on the
Transmission of Impurity in Early Sunnï Jurisprudence’ ILS 6 (1999) pp.
348 - 392.
[CDXCVI] Cf.
Wensinck, A. J., ‘Die Entstehung der muslimischen Reinheitsgesetzgebung’ Der
Islam 5 (1914) pp. 62 - 80; Goldziher, Ignaz, ‘Islamisme et Parsisme’ GS
vol. 4, pp. 232 - 260 and Katz, Body of Text, pp. 3 - 13.
[CDXCVII] ‘Sunnï
Islam has in fact constructed what may be the only religious purity code extant
which does not recognize - let alone emphasize - the category of
ceremonially contagious or contaminating human beings... ’ Maghen, ‘Close
Encounters’ p. 350.
[CDXCVIII] Safran,
Janina M., ‘Rules of Purity and Confession Boundaries: Maliki Debates about the
Pollution of the Christian’ HR 42 (2002) pp. 197 - 212.
[CDXCIX] The
idea that ritual purity laws were based on hygiene regulations was popular in
the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, but this has largely been
discredited; see Douglas Purity and Danger: An Analysis of the Concept of
Pollution and Taboo (Repr. London: Routledge, 2002) pp. 36 - 50; Reinhart,
‘Impurity / No Danger’ HR 30 (1990) pp. 1 - 24, p. 6; Wheeler, Brandon,
‘Touching the Penis in Islamic Law’ HR 44 (2004) pp. 89 - 119; Reinhart,
Kevin A., ‘Tahara’ EI2 vol. 10, p. 99 and Maghen, Z.
‘Ablution’ EI3; for an analysis of some modern approaches to
Islamic purity, see Gauvain, Richard, ‘Ritual Rewards: A Consideration of Three
Recent Approaches to Sunni Purity Law’ ILS 12 (2005) pp. 333 - 393.
[D] §592.
[DI] §365:
‘.One of your angels which is with you gets embarrassed, just as someone gets
embarrassed in front of two virtuous neighbours, who are both with him night
and day.’
[DII] Wheeler,
‘Touching the Penis’ p. 119.
[DIII] See
Reinhart, ‘Purity / No Danger’ pp. 5 - 6.
[DIV] In both
Judaism and Zoroastrianism pollution can occur around a pollutant and through
intermediaries. For example, in both religions, to remain ritually clean a set
distance must be kept from a menstruating woman; cf. Shayast la-Shayast,
III:1 - 35 (especially v. 13), in West, E. W., Pahlavi Tests: The
Bundahisn-Bahman Yast and Shâyast lâ-Shâyast (Oxford: Oxford University
Press, 1860) pp. 217 - 221. For a thorough discussion of these issues in
Judaism, see Neusner, Jacob, A History of the Mishnaic Law of Purities: Part
22 - The Mishnaic System of Uncleanness (Leiden: Brill, 1977).
[DV] Cf.
Miller, Geoffrey David, ‘Attitudes to Dogs in Ancient Israel: A Reassessment’ JSOT
32 (2008) pp. 487 - 500 and Moazami, Mahnaz, ‘The dog in Zoroastrian religion: Vidëvdad
Chapter XIII’ IIJ 49 (2006) pp. 127 - 149. However, there are Arabic
works that praise the dog, e.g. al-Jahiz, Abl cUthman cAmr
ibn Bahr, Kitab al-hayawan (Cairo: Mustafa al-Babï al-Halabï, 1939 -
1945) and Ibn al- Marzûbân, Kitab fadl al-kilab calâ kathïr
mimman labisa ‘l-thiyab; Smith, G. R. & Abdel Haleem, M. A. S. (eds.
& trs.), The Book of the Superiority of Dogs over many of those who wear
clothes (Warminster: Aris & Philips Ltd., 1978).
[DVI] Cf. Malik,
Muwatta’ vol. 2, p. 241; Bewley, al-Muwatta’ §54.3.6 - 8, p. 407.
[DVII] Ibn
Taymiyya is one scholar to prohibit men playing the tambourine: ‘...rakhasa
li-'l-nisa’ an yudrabna bi-‘l-daff fl al- ’acras wa-‘l-afrah wa-amma
al-rijal cala cahdihi, fa-lam bakan ahad minhum bi-darab
bi-daff wa-la yasfaqu bi-kaff [... it was permitted for women to beat a
tambourine at weddings and parties, but as for men during [the Prophet’s] time,
they did not beat a tambourine or clap their hands]. Ibn Taymiyya, Taqï
al-Dïn Abu ‘l-cAbbas Ahmad ibn cAbd al-Halïm ibn cAbd
al- Salam, ‘Ma taqulu al-sada al-aclam’ in Majmuc
fatawa Shaykh al-Islam Ahmad ibn Taymiyya (Mecca & Riyadh: Matabic
al-Riyad, 1961 - 1967) vol. 11, pp. 558 - 586, p. 565. This is also found in
his Kitab al-sama wa-‘l-raqs; see Michot, Jean R., Musique et Danse
selon Ibn Taymiyya: Le Livre de Samâ ’ et de la Danse (Kitâb al-Samâ’
wa-‘l-Raqs) compilé par le Shaykh Muhammad al-Manbiji (Paris: Librairie
Philosophique J. Vrin, 1991) pp. 62 - 63. See also Shehadi, Fadlou, Philosophies
of Music in Medieval Islam (Leiden: Brill, 1995) pp. 100 - 101; Cook, Commanding
Right, pp. 90 - 91 and Lewisohn, Leonard, ‘The Sacred Music of Islam: Samc
in the Persian Sufi Tradition’ Ethnomusicology Forum 6 (2007) pp. 1 -
33.
[DVIII] Choksy,
Jamsheed K., ‘Funerary Practices: Iran and Afghanistan’ EWIC, pp. 119 -
122, p. 119; see also Halevi, Muhammad’s Grave, pp. 85 - 100.
[DIX] Lane, AELex,
p. 409.
[DX] Wheeler,
‘Touching the Penis’ p. 103; the idea that the Garden was ritually clean can be
seen in al- Tabari’s Ta’rikh in which it is stated that: ‘It was a tree
which made whoever ate from it defecate. He continued. But there must be no
faeces in Paradise.’ Rosenthal (tr.), From the Creation to the Flood, p.
279; al-Tabari, Ta’rikh, vol. 1, p. 110.
[DXI] Himmelfarb,
Martha, ‘Sexual Relations and Purity in the Temple Scroll and the Book of
Jubilees’ DSD 6 (1999) pp. 11 - 36, p. 27.
[DXII] Stones:
§359 & 361; Sandals: §356; Spitting: §355, 357, 358 & 360; Qibla: §574.
[DXIII] Cf.
Bauckham, ‘Fall of the Angels’.
[DXIV] Schimmel,
Annemarie, ‘“I take off the dress of the body”: Eros is Sufi Literature’ in
Sarah Coakley (ed.), Religion and the Body (Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press, 1997) pp. 262 - 288, p. 265.
[DXV] ‘Among
the angels only Harut and Marut (S. 2:102), because of their action in Babel,
are bad...’; Waardenburg, ‘Changes of Belief’ p. 280.
[DXVI] i.e.
if an individual enters a house in which there is a man in the state of junub,
his angel would depart, but the individual remains clean when he has left the
presence of the other person.
[DXVII] See
§312, 319, 333 - 336, 341, 369, 382, 387, 391 & 445, as well as the
discussion of this theme above; cf. §59 - 63, 503. §445 shows that it is not
just the scribes that give preference to good actions, e.g. the angel that is
responsible for noting who blesses Muhammad: ‘Gabriel came to me and said:
‘Muhammad, whoever blesses you from your community, God, Most High, writes a
blessing for him, in it are ten good deeds, and it cancels out ten
misdeeds....’
[DXVIII] §692,
695, 696, 698 - 701, 708 & 713; there is also an angel that is responsible
for correcting an individual who mispronounces something in the Qur’an, §462 -
465.
[DXIX] Cf.
al-Nawawï, Abu Zakanyya Yahya ibn Sharaf, Al-Tibyan f adab hamalat al-Qur’an;
Furber, Musa (tr.), Etiquette of the Qur’an: Al-Tibyan f adab hamalat
al-Qur’an (Illinois: Starlatch, 2003) and al-Ghazalï, Abu Hamïd Muhammad
ibn Muhammad, Ihya culum al-dln (Cairo: Matbacat cIsa
al- Babï al-Halabï, 1348/1929-30) vol. 1, pp. 244 - 247; Abul Qaseem, Muhammad,
The Recitation and Interpretation of the Qur’an: Al-Ghazali’s Theory
(Kuala Lumpur: University of Malaya Press, 1979). See also Juynboll, G. H. A.,
‘The Position of Qur’an Recitation in Early Islam’ JSS 19 (1974) pp. 240
- 251 and Afsarrudin, Asma, ‘The Excellences of the Qur’an: Textual Sacrality
and the Organisation of Early Islamic Society’ JAOS 122 (2002) pp. 1 -
24. Qur’an recitation remains an important part of Muslim devotional piety and
is encouraged by the religious community through events such as Qur’anic
recitation competitions; cf. Gade, Anna M., ‘Motivating Qur’anic Practice in
Indonesia by “Competing in Goodness”’ JRS 18 (2004) pp. 24 - 42.
[DXX] Denny,
Frederick M., ‘Islamic Ritual: Perspectives and Theories’ in Martin (ed.), Approaches
to Islam pp. 63 - 77, p. 76; the story of Usayd ibn Hudayr and his
experience of the Sakina is an extreme example of this; see §297 and
Muslim, Sahih, vol. 5, pp. 82 - 83 for a fuller account.
[DXXI] §708;
cf. §692 & 698.
[DXXII] See
also §700 & 701, which say much the same about Q6 (Cattle).
[DXXIII] Ayoub,
Mahmoud, ‘Thanksgiving and Praise in the Qur’an and in Muslim Piety’ Islamochristiana
15 (1989) pp. 1 - 10, p. 2.
[DXXIV] See
§568 - 573, 576, 578 - 580, 598, 599, 614, 615, 617, 618, 716 & 717.
[DXXV] §568; see also §569 - 572; although the number
of angels differs from four thousand (§571) to seventy thousand (§569), or just
‘many’ (§570).
§446, 447, 449 - 457; e.g. §447
‘...Gabriel came to me and said: ‘God said: “Whoever blesses you,
I will bless him, I and
my angels tenfold; whoever wishes you peace, I and my angels will wish him
peace tenfold.”’ See also Robson, J., ‘Blessings on the Prophet’ MW 26
(1936) pp. 365 - 371.
[DXXX] Nakamura,
Kojiro, Ghazali on Prayer (Tokyo: University of Tokyo, 1973) p. 11.
[DXXXI] Rowland,
‘Visions of God’.
[DXXXII] Biljefeld,
‘Eschatology’, p. 36.
[DXXXIII] Cf.
‘That in the Qur’an, and in general in Islam, the emphasis lies on individual
or personal eschatology is undeniable.’ Bijlefeld, ‘Eschatology’ p. 36.
[DXXXIV] Vockovic,
Heavenly Journeys, p. 120.
[DXXXV] I have
been unable to study the MS personally, and the summary of the MS made below is
based on observations of a facsimile copy of the text and on the information
provided by Jan Just Witkam in his Inventory of the Oriental Manuscripts of
the University of Leiden - Volume 1- Manuscripts Or. 1 - Or. 1000 (Leiden:
Ter Lugt Press, 2007) pp. 208 - 210. As a result, I am unable to provide
details about the dimensions of the manuscript.
[DXXXVI] See
Witkam, Inventory, p. 110; Witkam, Jan Just, ‘The Oriental Manuscripts
of the University of Leiden' BJMES 8 (1981) pp. 60 - 64.
[DXXXVII] The MS
held by the Mingana Collection in Birmingham [MS Ar. 651i] is much later,
dating to 1666 - 1667 CE; The MS held in the British Library [Or. 9026/1]
is earlier than the Leiden MS and dates to 973 AH / 1566 CE; however, I have
been unable to attain a facsimile of the MS and as the text dates to roughly
the same period as the Leiden MS, I have principally used the Leiden MS as my Urtext.
[DXXXVIII] This is
referred to throughout as the ‘DKI Edition’. A list of textual variants has
been included in the Appendix.
[DXXXIX] This
introduction follows a standard format employed by al-Suyutï in his hadïth
collections, consisting of: a relevant Qur’anic quotation, laudations, a
description of the work’s contents, its title and a prayer or oath; cf. his al-Hay’a
al-sanlyafl-‘l-haya’ al-sunnlya; Heinen, Islamic Cosmology, p. 1.
[DXL] Q
35:1; Arberry, Koran, p. 444.
[DXLI] For
a discussion of the title, see Section 1.3 above.
[DXLII] cf.
Q 12:18; Arberry Koran, p. 227.
[DXLIII] The
section is given the full title: dhukira wujub al-lman bi-‘l-mala’ika =
What is mentioned [concerning] the necessity of belief in angels.
[DXLIV] Q
2:285; Arberry Koran, p. 43
[DXLV] See
the Appendix for notes on each of al-Suyûtï’s sources.
[DXLVI] The
text that starts here and ends after the first hadïth in the collection is
lifted directly from al- Bayhaqï’s Shucab al-lman; see
al-Bayhaqï, Ahmad ibn al-Husayn ibn cAlï, Al-Jamic
al-shucab al-lman (Bombay: Dar al-Salifiyya, 1986) vol. 1, pp.
405 - 406.
[DXLVII] Lit:
‘death is upon them rightly...’
[DXLVIII] i.e.
the ajal of the angels is, like that of humans, fixed and immovable.
[DXLIX] In
the Qur’an, the Meccans are told that their deities are not divine, but are
merely angels; cf. Q 34:40 & 43:19; Arberry, Koran, pp. 442 &
506. See also Hawting, The Idea of Idolatry and Welch, ‘Allah and Other
Supernatural Beings’ pp. 733 - 758.
[DL] Omitted
in the Leiden MS; fol. 187v, l. 12.
[DLI] Almost all
of the hadith begin with the Arabic akhraja to introduce each hadith;
this has not been translated, but its absence is noted. In this case the hadith
is preceeded by wa-rawayna.
[DLII] Omitted
in the Leiden MS; fol. 187v, l. 14.
[DLIII] cf.
Q 2:285 & 4:136; this is the end of the quotation from al-Bayhaqi’s Shucab
al-iman.
[DLIV] In
Islamic philosophy, angels were believed to be Intellects and were incorporeal;
for a discussion of this see Corbin, Henry (tr. W. R. Trask), Avicenna and
the Visionary Recital (London: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1961) pp. 46 -
122 and Netton, Allah Transcendent, pp. 162 - 172.
[DLV] Omitted
in the Leiden MS; fol. 187v, l. 16.
[DLVI] al-Jann;
this can be used as the collective noun for jinn, or as a reference to
Iblïs. See Lane, AELex pp. 462 & 2704; al-Zabïdï, TA vol. 34,
pp. 370 - 371 and Zbinden, Ernst, Die Djinn des Islam und der
altorientalische Geisterglaube (Bern: Verlag Paul Haupt, 1953) pp. 3 - 8.
[DLVII] Added
in the Leiden MS; fol. 187v, ll. 18 - 19.
[DLVIII] Sezgin
says that the Kitab al-cazama is ‘ein mystiches Buch, in dem
er sich auf den sahabï cAlï b. Salam beruft, dem die
Schriften des Propheten Daniel in die Hande gefallen sin sollen.’ Sezgin, GAS
vol. 1, p. 201.
[DLIX] Al-Suyutï
does not cite the book from which the hadïth is taken again, unless two
books have been used (as will be seen later). This hadïth is from the Kitab
al-cazama.
[DLX] Q
74:3; Arberry Koran, p. 617.
[DLXI] Flies
are used as the generic term for something incredibly small, e.g. Q 22:73;
‘Surely those upon whom you call, apart from God, shall never create a fly...’
Arberry, Koran, p. 341.
[DLXII] Q
37:165; Arberry, Koran, p. 462.
[DLXIII] This
and the following hadith with the same phrase could be an allusion to Q 22:26
or 39:9; Arberry Koran, pp. 336 and 472.
[DLXIV] The
Leiden MS reads ‘al-nabi’; fol. 187v, l. 31.
[DLXV] attat
/ ta ’itta [’-T-T]. This is a relatively rare root meaning to groan or
creak, often with particular reference to camels (be it the camel itself or a
saddle &c. ). This particular hadïth is usually cited as an
example in the lexicons - see Ibn ManzUr, LA, vol. 19, pp. 164 - 165 and
Lane, AELex, p. 66.
[DLXVI] This
same hadith also appears in al-Thaclabi, QA, p. 17; Brinner, Lives,
p. 28.
[DLXVII] Added
in the Leiden MS; fol. 188r, l. 1.
[DLXVIII] Q
37:164 - 165; Arberry, Koran, p. 462.
[DLXIX] Omitted
in the Leiden MS; fol. 188r, l. 4.
[DLXX] The
concept of ‘Seven Heavens’ is also important in Judaism and Christianity; see
Collins, Adela Yarbo, ‘The Seven Heavens in Jewish and Christian Apocalypses’
in Collins and Fishbane, Other Worldly Journeys, pp. 59 - 93.
[DLXXI] Omitted
in the Leiden MS; fol. 188r, l. 6.
[DLXXII] cf.
al-Thaclabï, QA, p. 14; Brinner, Lives, p. 23.
[DLXXIII] § 312 -
406 deal with the Srcibes in more detail.
[DLXXIV] Cf. Q
50:21: wa-ja’at kullu nafsin macaha sa’iqun wa-shahidun; ‘And
every soul shall come, and with it a driver and a witness.’ Arberry, Koran,
p. 540.
[DLXXV] Omitted
in the Leiden MS; fol. 188r, ll. 9 - 10.
[DLXXVI] These
angels are presumably additional to the hamlat al-carsh
(Bearers of the Throne).
[DLXXVII] In the
pre-Islamic pantheon Allah was both the creator of the world and the
rain-god; the Qur’an emphasises the supremacy of Allah as the creator
and the life-sustainer, as it is He and He alone that provides humans with
water, and by extension life: ‘[Water] reveals aspects of the dependence of
creation on him, his dealings with it, and its duty to serve him.’ Johns,
Anthony H., ‘Water’ EQ vol. 5, p. 462.
[DLXXVIII] Although
containing a few hadïth that locate the origins of rain in heaven, al-Suyutï’s al-Hay’a
does not include this hadïth (nor any others included in this collection);
see Heinen, Islamic Cosmology, pp. 160 - 164.
[DLXXIX] The
Leiden MS reads ‘fa-khalaqa min kulla qatra malakan [‘He creates an
angel from every raindrop or An angel is created (fa-khuliqa)
from every raindrop]; fol. 188r, l. 14.
[DLXXX] See
also §172 - 177 for hadith on the Angel of the Rain. Rain was believed to come
from angels, e.g. al-Shahrastani, Abu ‘l-Fath Muhammad ibn cAbd
al-Karim, Al-Milal wa-‘l-nihal (Tufiq, M. (ed)), (Cario: Matbacat
Hijazi bi-‘l-Qahira, 1948), vol. 2, p. 111; for secondary material, see
Lawrence, Bruce B., ‘Shahrastani on Indian Idol Worship’ SI 38 (1973),
pp. 61 - 73, p. 67 and for this belief in modern practice, see: Basgoz. Ilhan,
‘Rain-Making Ceremonies and Seasonal Festivals’ JAOS 87 (1967) pp. 304 -
306, p. 305. The Angel of the Rain is named as Ridya in the Babylonian
Talmud; see Ta’ 25b, p. 133 and Yom. 21a, p. 90. A similar hadith
to this appears in Al-Thaclabi, QA p. 16 - 17; Brinner, Lives,
p. 23. However, the hadith is attributed to Abu Hurrayah, and Gabriel immerses
himself in a bahr min nur (a sea of light). Ibn Khaldun also includes
similar imagery when describing Jesus’ return at the end of time, see Ibn
Khaldun, cAbd al-Rahman ibn Muhamamd al-Maghribi (ed. Mustafa Fahmi
al-Kutbi), al-Muqaddima min al-kitab al-cibar (Cairo: Matbacat
al-Taqaddam bi-Sharh Muhammad cAli, n.d.) p. 259; Rosenthal, Franz
(tr.), The Muqaddimah: An Introduction to History (SecondEdition)
(Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1967) vol. 2, p. 194.
[DLXXXI] In the
Qur’an and the hadith weeping is generally not discouraged; cf. Chittick,
William C., ‘Weeping in Classical Sufism’ in Kimberley Christine Patton and
John Stratton Hawley (eds.), Holy Tears: Weeping in The Religious
Imagination (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2005) pp. 132 - 144,
pp. 132 - 134.
[DLXXXII] A river
in paradise, also shown to Muhammad during the Micraj. See
Alvorado, Salustio, ‘Sobre al-Kawtar y Otros Rios del Paraiso en la
Eschatologia Islamica y Cristiana’ BAEO 41 (2005) pp. 247 - 253;
Horovitz, J [-Gardet, L.], ‘Kawthwar’ EI2 vol. 4, pp. 805 -
806; and El-Zein, Amira, ‘Water of Paradise’ EQ vol. 5, pp. 466 - 467;
cf. GenR 78:1, p. 714 - 715 and LamR 3:2 §8, pp. 201 - 202.
[DLXXXIII] This has
been inserted on the basis of an extremely similar hadïth which appears in
al-Suyutï’s Al- Hay’a al-samya. The hadïth reads: ‘...wayanzilu maca
kadha wa-kadha min al-mala’ika yatukbuna haythu yaqacu dhalika
‘l-matar wa-man yarzuquhu wa-ma yakhruju minhu maca kulla qaj.ra.'
§VI:27; Heinen, Islamic Cosmology, p. 26.
[DLXXXIV] cf.
al-Thaclabï, QA, p. 13; Brinner, Lives, p .22.
[DLXXXV] i.e. the
angel’s hair is immeasurable.
[DLXXXVI] The
Leiden MS uses the slightly stronger ‘faraqan (terrified); fol. 188r, l.
25.
[DLXXXVII] The Leiden
MS inserts this hadith; fol. 188r, ll. 26 - 28.
[DLXXXVIII] A common
metaphor in Islam; cf. Q 7:40; Arberry, Koran, p. 147 (although the
phrase is samm al- khiyat); much has been written about this Qur’anic
phrase: cf. Bishop, Eric F. F., ‘The Eye of the Needle’ MW 31 (1941) pp.
354 - 359 and Rippin, A. ‘Qur’an 7:40: «Until a Camel Pases through the Eye of
the Needle»’ Arabica 27 (1980) pp. 107 - 113.
[DLXXXIX] Q. 52:4;
the bayt al-ma’mur is thought to be the seventh heaven and it is said to
be located directly above the Kacba. See Porter, ‘Muhammad’s Journey
p. 77 and Morris, ‘The Spiritual Ascension of Ibn cArabi’ JAOS
107 (1987) pp. 636, n. 35 & JAOS 108 (1988) p. 69 n. 169; cf. also
Al-Thaclabi, QA p. 16 - 17; Brinner, Lives, p. 27.
[DXC] 70,000
is a traditional number in Islamic tradition for the size of an angelic army;
cf. Al-Thaclabi, QA p. 14; Brinner, Lives, p. 23.
[DXCI] Omitted
in the Leiden MS; fol. 188v, l. 2
[DXCII] There
is a scribal error in the Leiden MS with a repition of ‘and they are the angels
who bear the Throne, and they are also those who worship God night and day,
without rest...’; fol. 188v, ll. 4 - 5.
[DXCIII] Given
in the Leiden MS as ‘Ibn Khabib ibn cAbd al-Rahman...’; fol. 188v,
l. 6.
[DXCIV] If
these numbers were read as ‘for every one human there are ten jinn’ the final
number of Cherubim would be 10,000 (a myriad - which is a traditional number
for counting angels, cf. Deut. 33:2 and Rev. 5:11) for every human; however, as
read, the total number are 6,561 cherubim for every human.
[DXCV] Omitted
in the Leiden MS; fol. 188v, l. 10.
[DXCVI] cf.
Al-Thaclabi, QA p. 14; Brinner, Lives, p. 23.
[DXCVII] Namely,
the conquest of Mecca - see AELex (1984) p. 2328; cf. Ibn Ishaq, Sïra;
Guillaume, Life of Muhammad, p. 533.
[DXCVIII] Added
in the Leiden MS; fol. 188v, l. 18.
[DXCIX] Q
37:166; Arberry, Koran, p. 462.
[DC] Q 2:31;
Arberry, Koran, p. 5.
[DCI] Although
there is no designation of ‘archangel’ in Islamic angelology as such, the Greek
ap/ay%s2oç is translated into Arabic as ra’ïs mala’ika; cf. 1Th.
4:16; UBS p. 703; and the Mount Sinai Codex 151 (dated to 867 C.E.),
Staal, H. (ed.), Mt. Sinai Codex 151 - I:Pauline Epistles (Louvain: E.
Peeters, 1983) p. 173. This is also the standard translation in modern
translations of the Bible into Arabic: see Kitab al-ahd al-jadïd
(Cambridge: Jamciyyat al-tawra al-brïtâmyya wa-‘l- ajnabiyya, 1917)
p. 233.
[DCII] Added
in the Leiden MS; fol. 188v, ll. 20 - 21.
[DCIII] Gabriel
is mentioned three times in the Qur’an CQ 2:97, 98 and 64:4), Michael once CQ
2:98); the Angel of Death once CQ 32:11) and Isrâfïl is not mentioned.
[DCIV] Gabriel
has a similar role in the Talmud; cf. BB 74b, p. 297 and San.
19b, p. 99 & 95b, p. 644.
[DCV] The
Leiden MS reads ‘Isrâfïl’ in error; fol. 188v, l. 22.
[DCVI] In
Islamic tradition, Michael is frequently associated with nature and the
sustenance of humans, cf. al-Qazwïni, Aja ’ib, p. 37.
[DCVII] Cf.
the Battle of Badr; Ibn Ishaq, Sira, pp. 303ff.; Al-Wâqidï, Kitab al-Maghazi vol. 1,
pp. 56 - 57, 79 and 113.
[DCVIII] The
Leiden MS reads: ‘.. ..al-dunya jamc bayn hufzihim wama fi umm
al-kitab fa-yajidunahu siwa ” fol. 188v, l. 23. However, both the Arabic of
the Leiden MS and the DKI edition are unclear, and the hadïth appears to be
corrupted.
[DCIX] Ibn
Abï Shayba is mentioned at the start of the hadïth in the Leiden MS; fol. 188v,
l. 20.
[DCX] In
Islamic tradition Muhammad is often alone when he encounters Gabriel, e.g. in
the narrative of the first revelation, Muhammad seeks seclusion on Mount Hira’
before meeting the angel; see al- Bukharr, Muhammad ibn Ismacrl, Sahih
(Riyadh: Bayt al-Afkar al-Dawliyya, 1998), §3, pp. 3 - 4.
[DCXI] As
Gabriel is already with Muhammad, it must be the other angel (Israfrl) who is
approaching.
[DCXII] Lit.
: ‘servant prophet’.
[DCXIII] Lit.:
‘you should be humble’ - but this does not make sense.
[DCXIV] Lit.:
‘state’ or ‘condition’ - i.e. when Gabriel became small.
[DCXV] This
is generally considered to be above the Seventh Heaven. Daniel Madigan notes
that, ‘Taken literally, [these images of writing] are difficult to read as a
whole. Alternatively, they can be read, and often are in the Islamic tradition,
as complementary, symbolic representations of God’s knowledge and will.’
Madigan, Daniel A., ‘Preserved Tablet’ EQ vol. 4, p. 262.
[DCXVI] This
is not included in the text, but the Tablet needs to come back down to Israfrl.
[DCXVII] The
Leiden MS reads ‘five thousand years’; fol. 189r, l. 12.
[DCXVIII] Amlak:
the plural of paucity (jumc al-qilla) for malak- i.e.
referring to 3 - 10 angels. Elsewhere in the text no number is given, as it is
here. For more on these plurals see Ratcliffe, Robert R., The Broken Plural
Problem in Arabic and Comparative Semitic (Amsterdam : J. Benjamins, 1998)
p. 69f and cAbbas Abu ‘l-Sucud, Al-Faysal f
alwan al-jumuc (Cairo: Dar al-Macarif bi-Misr, 1971)
pp. 33 - 44.
[DCXIX] Cf. Q
79:5 and al-Tabarï, Tafsir vol. 30, pp. 30 - 31; the mudabbirat
are said to be angels.
[DCXX] Cf.
Q 51:4 and al-Tabarï, Tafsir vol. 26, pp. 187 - 188; the muqassimat
are said to be angels.
[DCXXI] This
hadith is omitted in the Leiden MS; fol. 189r, l. 15.
[DCXXII] This
is said as part of the prayers said during the circumambulation of the Kacba
during the hajj; see Kamal, Ahmad, ‘The Sacred Journey’ in A. de L. Rush (ed.),
Records of the Hajj - Vol. 1: Prayer, Invocations and Rites (London:
Archive Editions), p. 159; it is also reminiscent of Q 11:47; 23:97 and 23:98;
Arberry, Koran, pp. 216 and 350.
[DCXXIII] cf.
al-Bukhari, Sahih §2, p. 3.
[DCXXIV] This
and almost all of the chapters that follow, begin with the phrase ‘ma ja
'aft...' = ‘what is said / found concerning...’. This has not been
translated.
[DCXXV] cUbayd is the diminutive of cabd (see Lane, AELex,
p. 1935); the use of the diminutive may be being used to lower the status of
Michael, who is the dominant angel in Judaism (cf. Hag 12b & Ber 4b) and
promote Gabriel. This trend can be seen in other Islaimc eschatological texts,
see Bowman, ‘Eschatological Fragment’ pp. 203 - 204.
[DCXXVI] From
the Hebrew ‘el which is the standard word for ‘God’ not ‘temple of God’;
see BDB, p. 41. The TA does not contain any of these temple
etymologies, and simply states that it is a name of God; see al-Zabïdï, TA
vol. 28, pp. 45 - 46.
[DCXXVII] khadra’
can also indicate blue: ‘Das Wort bezeichnet die den ganzen dunklen Farbbereich
umfassende Grundfarbe, sowohl ‘grün’ als auch ‘blau’.’ Fischer, Wolfdietrich, Farb-
und Formbezichnungen in der Sprache der altarabischen Dichtung (Wiesbaden:
Otto Harrassowitz, 1965) p. 306. It would seem more likely to be green as in
the Qur’an green is closely associated with God and paradise - see Rippin,
Andrew, ‘Color’ EQ vol. 1, pp. 361 - 365. Ibn Khaldun also includes a
hadith in which Khadijah says: ‘...green and white are the colours of goodness
and the angels.’ Ibn Khaldun, Muqaddima, p. 74; Rosenthal, Muqaddimah,
vol. 1, p. 186.
[DCXXVIII] Silk was
very expensive and in the Qur’an it is associated with the paradise and
redemption: ‘Clearly referring to the cultural context of the qur’anic
revelation, a recurrent image presents the redeemed as garbed in silk or other
fine fabrics and wearing valuable jewels.’ Golnaldez, V., ‘Silk’ EQ vol.
5, p. 11. Being described in this way, Gabriel is firmly rooted in the divine
world. For more on silk and the development of the silk-trade in early Islamic
history see: Lombard, Maurice, Les textiles dans le monde musulman: VIIe
-XIIe siècle (Paris: Mouton Editeur, 1978) pp. 79 - 104.
[DCXXIX] Rubies,
pearls and coral are the only precious stones mentioned in the Qur’an and they
are only used in passages about paradise; see Troupeau, Géerad, ‘Metals and
Minerals’ EQ vol. 3, pp. 383 - 384. Pearls are also associated with the
First and Seventh Heavens - see MacDonald, John, ‘Paradise’ IS 5 (1966),
p. 344.
[DCXXX] Omitted
in the Leiden MS; fol. 189v, l. 16.
[DCXXXI] The
oldest cemetery in Medina in the South-East of the town; for more information,
see Wensinck, A. J. [-Bazmee Anasri, A. S.], ‘Bakf al-Gharkad’ EI2
vol. 1, pp. 957 - 958.
[DCXXXII] Gabriel
is also believed to have six hundred wings; cf. al-Rabghuzi, Nasir al-Din ibn
Burhan al- Din; Boeschoten, H. E., O’Kane, J. & Vandamme, M., Al-Rabghuzi:
The Stories of the Prophets - Qisas al-anbiya ’ - An Eastern Turkish Version
(Leiden: Brill, 1995) vol. 2, p. 596.
[DCXXXIII] Q 53:13;
Arberry, Koran, p. 550.
[DCXXXIV] The DKI
edition includes two hadith with the number 44; so as to maintain the DKI
numbering, the second 44 has been labelled 44b; it is not an edition of the
Leiden MS.
[DCXXXV] Omitted
in the Leiden MS; fol. 189v, l. 12.
[DCXXXVI] Here, as
in the Qur’an, hijab refers to a dividing curtain as opposed to a face
veil; see Toorawa, Shawkat M., ‘Clothing’ EQ vol. 1, pp. 346 - 347.
[DCXXXVII] This is a
common theme of the micraj literature: cf. al-Rabghuzi, QA,
vol. 2, pp. 595 - 596.
[DCXXXVIII] Dihya
al-Kalbi is said to have been of ‘such outstanding beauty that the Angel
Gabriel took his features.’ Lammens, ‘Dihya’ p. 274; cf. Al-Rabghuzi, QA,
vol. 2, p. 595.
[DCXXXIX] Ghirbal
can also mean a tambourine (see TA vol. 30, pp. 87 - 89), but the
haziness of looking through the bottom of a sieve is the main idea here.
[DCXL] Q
53:14; Arberry, Koran, p. 550; according to Al-Thaclabi this
is the abode of Gabriel, see Al- Thaclabi, QA p. 17; Brinner,
Lives, p. 28.
[DCXLI] A
number of the hadith include the phrase ‘min,tarlq... ’= ‘through the
intermediary of...’; see Appendix E for more information on these
intermediaries.
[DCXLII] Omitted
in the Leiden MS; fol. 189v, l. 23.
[DCXLIII] The
Leiden MS gives the fuller name; fol. 189v, l. 24.
[DCXLIV] The Yezïdïs
(a Kurdish sect) venerated a peacock angel (malak tacus); see
Ebeid, R. Y., and Young, M. J. L., ‘An Account of the History and Rituals of
the Yazidis of Mosul’ Le Muséon 85 (1972) pp. 481 - 522; see also Ahmed,
Sami Said, The Yazidis: Their Life and Beliefs (Miami: Field Research
Projects, 1975). For more general information on the Yezïdïs see Kreyenbroeck,
Philip G., ‘Religion and Religions in Kurdistan’ in Philip G. Kreyenbroeck and
Christine Allison (eds.), Kurdish Culture and Identity (London: Zed Books
Ltd, 1996) pp. 85 - 110. However, the more likely influence is Byzantine /
Christian, as peacocks were associated with heaven and paradise and
appropriated into Islamic iconography, see al-Khamis, Ulrike, ‘An early Islamic
bronze ewer examined’ Muqarnas 15 (1998) pp. 9 - 19, particularly p. 12.
[DCXLV] Given
as Ibn Jarir in the Leiden MS, but this appears to be an error; fol. 189v, l.
26.
[DCXLVI] A belt
is referred to once in the Talmud, Men. 29a, p. 188.
[DCXLVII] khafq
al-tayr = the beating of (the wings of) the bird.
[DCXLVIII] Added in
the Leiden MS; fol. 190r, l. 1.
[DCXLIX] Al-waS
or al-wasac; a small bird, like a sparrow (cusfur);
see Ibn Manzur, LA, vol. 10, p. 276; Ibn Manzur also cites this hadith.
[DCL] This
hadith is also in the short section on Gabriel in al-Qazwini’s cAja
’ib, p. 37.
[DCLI] This
is a motif carried through into Islamic tradition from Judeo-Christian imagery:
cf. Ezekiel 9:3; 10:2; Daniel 7:9; John 20:12 &c.
[DCLII] The
Leiden MS reads ‘ka-‘l-hubk' (cf. Q 51:7), but the meaning is unclear;
the DKI reading is more suitable; fol. 190r, l. 12.
[DCLIII] Lit.:
‘his colour is like snow...’
[DCLIV] Gabriel
is frequently identified with the ruh al-qadus; see Griffith, Sidney H.,
‘Holy Spirit’ EQ vol.
2, pp. 442 - 444 and
Webb, Gisela, ‘Gabirel’ EQ vol. 2, pp. 278 - 280.
[DCLV] The
hadith scholar Ibn al-Salah defines a weak hadith simply as one which is
neither sound (sahïh) nor fair (hasan) i.e. any hadith in which
there are questions concerning the veracity of one of the authorities in the isnad;
see Ibn al-Salah al-Shahrazûrï (tr. E. Dickinson), An Introduction to the
Science of the Hadïth - Kitab macrifat anwac cilm
al-hadïth (Reading: Garnet Publishing, 2005) p. 25.
[DCLVI] An
area of orchards and gardens in Damascus fed by the Barada; thought to be one
of the four earthly paradises; see Elisséeff, N. , ‘Ghuta’ EI2 vol. 2, pp. 1104 - 1106.
[DCLVII] Added
in the Leiden MS; fol. 190r, l. 20.
[DCLVIII] In the
DKI Edition, this is marked as a Qur’anic quotation, but it is not.
[DCLIX] Particularly
ritual impurity after sexual intercourse, after which ablutions are necessary;
for more on ritual purity laws see Burton, ‘Practice of wuduc ’.
[DCLX] A
similar hadith to this appears in the Qisas al-anbiyya’ - see Al-Thaclabi,
QA p. 153 - 154; Brinner, Lives, p. 255.
[DCLXI] Omitted
in the Leiden MS; fol. 190v, l. 5.
[DCLXII] Lit.:
‘Hold back the need of my servant’ and ‘Fulfill the need of my servant’. In
Islamic belief, having ones needs fulfilled can lead to faithlessness in God;
cf. ‘Sometimes He gives while depriving you, and sometimes He deprives you in
giving.’ Ibn ‘Ata’ Allah, Ahmad ibn Muhammad, Kitab al- Hikam; Victor
Danner (tr.), Ibn cAta’illah’s Sf Aphorisms (Leiden: Brill,
1973) §83, p. 36.
[DCLXIII] Given
as cAbd Allah ibn cUmayr in the Leiden MS; fol. 190v, l.
10.
[DCLXIV] This is
almost a direct quotation of Q 6:99 ‘None feels secure against God’s devising
but the people of the lost.’ Arberry, Koran, p. 155.
[DCLXV] In
both the DKI edition and Leiden MS, there is no 'akhraja' at the
beginning of this hadith; fol. 190v, l. 26.
[DCLXVI] Al-Suyuti
occasionally includes the whole isnad, if there is some concern over the
isnad (see the end of this hadith).
[DCLXVII] The
Leiden MS gives a slightly different version of the section of the isnad:
Muhammad ibn cAbd Allah ibn al-Fadl ibn cÀsim from cAmr
ibn Qatada ibn cUmar ibn Qatada ibn al-Nucman al-Ansari
form his father, Qatada ibn al-Nucman; he said: the Messenger of God
(God bless him and grant him salvation) said...’; fol. 190v, ll. 27 - 29.
[DCLXVIII] Omitted
in the Leiden MS; fol. 191r, l. 1.
[DCLXIX] The
validity of a hadith that includes an unknown transmitter (majhul) is
disputed in Hadith scholarship; see Ibn al-Salah, Kitab macrifat,
p. 85; however the Arabic text does not appear to be be referring to isnad.
[DCLXX] This
appears to refer to the various isnads, but one would normally expect -ha
instead of -hum.
[DCLXXI] Evil is
traditionally portrayed by ugliness, for example the Antichrist (al-Dajjal)
is described as a human with a number of deformities, so much so that ‘...even
a Jewish man named Ibn Sayyad (d. 683) was believed to be the Antichrist and
was nearly killed by Omar.’ Saritoprak, ‘Legend of al- Dajjal’ p. 292. However,
this hadith is more likely to simply be describing someone with the most
afflictions possible, rather than portraying him as being evil.
[DCLXXII] The
Leiden MS reads ‘adjam’, which according to Lane is ‘.having a nose that
inclines towards one side of the face.’ (i.e. a crooked nose), see Lane, AELex,
p. 1770; fol. 191r, l. 3.
[DCLXXIII] Added in
the Leiden MS; fol. 191r, l. 7.
[DCLXXIV] Munkar
is used both of rejected and unfamiliar hadith; many hadith scholars rejected
hadith attributed to transmitters designated munkar, e.g. Muslim, Ibn
al-Hajjaj al-Qushayri, Sahih; Sahih Muslim bi-sharh al-Nawawi (Beirut:
Dar al-Kitab al-cArabi) vol. 1, pp. 55 - 56; however some hadith
scholars did accept these hadith, see Ibn Salah, Kitab macrifat,
p. 59, n. 1. See also, Juynboll, G. H. A., ‘Muslim’s Introduction to his Sahih,
Translated and Annotated with an excursus on the chronology of the fitna
and bid’a’ JSAI 5 (1984) pp. 263 - 302, p. 269, n. 9.
[DCLXXV] In the
Leiden MS there is an empty space left between akhraja and Abu
‘l-Shaykh, an author’s name may be missing; fol. 191r, l. 9.
[DCLXXVI] Q 72:27;
Arberry, Koran, p. 613.
[DCLXXVII] Thiqat
is the technical term for reliable authorities, as opposed to an unreliable
authorities (ducafa ’); various hadith scholars collected
volumes listing reliable and unreliable authorities, e.g. al- Bukhari, Kitab
al-ducafa ’ al-saghir (Aleppo: Dar al-Waci, 1976).
[DCLXXVIII] Omitted in
the Leiden MS; fol. 191r, l. 14.
[DCLXXIX] For a
discussion of Abu Bakr and cUmar, cf. Al-Suyuti (ed. Muhammad Muhyi
al-Din cAbd al- Hamid), Ta’rikh al-khulafa’ (Cairo: Maktabat
al-Tajariyya al-Kubra, 1389 / 1969) pp. 44 - 48; Jarret, H. S. (tr.), History
of the Caliphs (repr. Karachi: Krimsons, 1977) pp. 40 - 41.
[DCLXXX] The text
is unclear here.
[DCLXXXI] i.e.
Muhammad approaches God, but can only go as far as Israfrl, the angel nearest
to God. Muhammad is told what exists beyond Israfrl by the Tablet.
[DCLXXXII] See Lane
for a discussion of this idiomatic expression, AELex, p. 1673.
[DCLXXXIII] This
hadith appears again with Michael and Israfrl being the angels who do not
laugh; see §79 & 97.
[DCLXXXIV] This could
be either Abu Bakr Jacfar ibn Muhammad ibn al-Hassan al-Firyabi (d.
301 / 913) or Abu cAli Muhammad ibn Yusuf ibn Waqid al-Firyabi (d.
212 / 827). Abu Bakr was a hadith collector and Abu cAli was an
exegete; as this is an exegetical hadith it is difficult to ascertain which al-Firyabi
is meant; See Sezgin, GAS, vol. 1, pp. 40 & 166.
[DCLXXXV] For more
on the trumpet that heralds the resurrection see: Smith, Jane I., ‘Eschatology’
EQ vol. 2, pp. 47 - 48.
[DCLXXXVI] Q 39:68;
Arberry. Koran, p. 479.
[DCLXXXVII] This
appears to be an error in the text and ‘wa-’ has been added following earlier
examples above.
[DCLXXXVIII] Q
39:68; Arberry, Koran, p. 479.
[DCLXXXIX] Cf. Q
42:17 & 55:7-9, Arberry; Koran, pp. 500 & 557.
[DCXC] Given
as Ibn cAbd al-Mundhir in the Leiden MS, this seems to be an error;
fol. 191v, l. 10.
[DCXCI] See
§36 for a discussion of the use of cabd and cubayd.
[DCXCII] For
the negative attitude to laughing in the Qur’an and hadith, see Chittick,
‘Weeping in Classical Sufism’ pp. 133 - 134.
[DCXCIII] Teeth-cleaning
is an important part of Islamic ritual purity, cf. al-Bukhari, Sahih
§244 - 245; p. 69; and Malik, Muwatta’, vol. 1, pp. 64 - 65 (Bewley, Al-Muwatta’,
§2.32.115—117, p. 23). For more secondary sources on this see: Risplet-Chaim,
Vardit, ‘The siwak: A Medieval Islamic Contribution to Dental Care’ JRAS
2 (1992) pp. 13 - 20 and Janot, Francis, Vezie, Philippe &
Bottero-Cornillac, Marie-Jeanne, ‘Le siwak (bâtonnet frotte-dents), instrument
à usages religieux et médical’ AI 32 (1998) pp. 101 - 123.
[DCXCIV] Cf.
Al-Rabghuzi, QA, vol. 2, pp. 569 - 572.
[DCXCV] There
are a number of authors with the name al-Daylami, but the reference to
al-Sulami indicates that this is Shams al-Din al-Daylami, as he made a
commentary on al-SarT ibn cAbd Allah al-Sulami’s al-Sirr ft anfas
al-sufya; see Sezgin, GAS, vol.1, pp. 647 - 648; Brockelmann, GAL,
vol. 2, p. 207 and Arberry, A. J., ‘The Works of Shams al-Din al-Dailami’ BSOAS
29 (1966) pp. 49 - 56.
[DCXCVI] Cf.
hadith §39, which says that Gabriel is the Imam of heaven.
[DCXCVII] Omitted
in the Leiden MS; fol. 191v, l. 25.
[DCXCVIII] Omitted
in the Leiden MS; fol. 191v, l. 30.
[DCXCIX] Omitted
in the Leiden MS; fol. 191v, l. 30.
[DCC] Omitted
in the Leiden MS; fol. 191v, l. 32.
[DCCI] Added
in the Leiden MS; fol. 191v , l. 32 - fol. 192r, l. 1.
[DCCII] This
hadith is well-known, although the following matn is more common: wa-man
shariba al- khamr fi-‘l-dunya, fa-mata, wa-huwayudumnuha; see Wensinck, CTM,
vol. 2, p. 144. The matn found here (and in §171) is found in Ibn Maj a,
Abu cAbd Allah Muhammad ibn Yazid al-Qazwini (ed. Muhammad Fucad
cAbd al-Baqi), Sunan Ibn Maja (Cairo: Babi al-Halabi, s.d.)
vol. 2, p. 1120, §3375. However, the isnad is different: Abu Bakr ibn
Abi Shayba & Muhammad ibn al-Sabbah - Muhammad ibn Sulayman al-Asbahani -
Suhayl - Abu Suhayl - Abu Hurayrah.
[DCCIII] This
is the trumpet that announces the end of the world; it is mentioned ten times
in the Qur’an (Q 6:73; 18:99; 20:102; 23:101; 27:87; 36:51; 39:68; 50:20; 69:13
and 78:18); a description of Israfil can also be found in al-Rabghuzi, QA,
vol. 2, p. 596.
[DCCIV] Cf. Q
36:50 - 55; Arberry, Koran, p. 453.
[DCCV] Q
3:173; Arberry, Koran, p. 67.
[DCCVI] Q
7:89 and 10:85; Arberry, Koran, pp. 154 and 207.
[DCCVII] Milk,
like pearls, is used to represent holiness; see Rippin, ‘Color’ EQ vol.
1, pp. 361 - 365.
[DCCVIII] Given
as ‘al-Khudhri’ in the Leiden MS; fol. 192r, l. 18.
[DCCIX] This
hadith and others do not explain who the two angels of the trumpet are. Israfil
is normally the only angel associated with the Trumpet, but occasionally others
are also associated with it - see §99.
[DCCX] As
before, see §36, 37 & 87 above.
[DCCXI] Omitted
in the Leiden MS; fol. 192r, l. 23.
[DCCXII] Added
in the Leiden MS; fol. 192r, l. 23.
[DCCXIII] cf.
Al-Thaclabi, QA p. 29; Brinner, Lives, p. 47. In this
section of the Qisas al-anbiyya ’ Adam ascends to heaven on the horse
al-Maymun: Gabriel takes the reins, Michael is on the right and Israfil is on
the left. This is a different context but it does highlight the fact that these
three angels are often mentioned together and that their positions vary. See
also Al-Thaclabi, QA p. 103; Brinner, Lives, p. 175.
[DCCXIV] Q
34:23; Arberry, Koran, p. 440.
[DCCXV] Note
that in this hadith the Angel of the Trumpet is not Israfil, as elsewhere.
[DCCXVI] The sarawil
is an undergarment used to cover male and female genitalia; see Stillman, Arab
Dress, pp. 10 - 11, and for pictures of earlier and later sarawil
see Scarce, Jennifer, Women’s Costume of the Near and Middle East
(London: RoutledgeCurzon, 2003), pp. 33 & 74 - 75. Although normally
referring to ‘trousers’ specifically, sarawil can have a more general
meaning, e.g. the TA describes a sirwal as a qamis, darc
or ‘kulla ma htbisa' Al-Zabïdï, TA, vol. 29, p. 196. The
association of the sarawil with personal modesty implies that the wing
is being used to cover the Israfïl’s genitalia, in the same way that the
seraphim in Is. 6:3 ‘cover their feet’. The same hadïth, with a slightly
different isnad and matn, appears below (§99), but Israfïl’s wing
is said to be ‘clothed’ (tasarbala [Form II srbl] ) as opposed to
‘trouser-ed’ (tasarwala [Form II srwl] ).
[DCCXVII] cf. Q
8:32; Arberry, Koran, p. 172.
[DCCXVIII] The
Leiden MS gives the name as ‘Abd al-Harth’; fol. 192r, l. 11.
[DCCXIX] Omitted
in the Leiden MS; fol. 192r, l. 12.
[DCCXX] The
Bearers of the Throne are referred to in Q 40:7; Arberry, Koran, p. 481;
see also Elias, Jamal, ‘Throne of God’ EQ vol. 5, p. 276 - 278.
[DCCXXI] This is
almost identical to §79.
[DCCXXII] This
appears to be related the various ‘I heard the heavens groaning’ hadith above
(§10 & 25).
[DCCXXIII] i.e. Kacb
al-Ahbar; ahbar is the plural hibr / habr and is used as a
compliment; the word is derived from the Hebrew haber, a title of an
Jewish scholar below that of Rabbi; see Schmitz, M., ‘Kacb al-
Ahbar, Abu Ishak b. Mati’ b. Haysu’ / Haynu’’ EI2 vol. 4, p.
316; for more on the Jewish haber, see Spiro, Solomon J., ‘Who was the Haber?
A New Approach to an Ancient Institution’ JSJ 11 (1980) pp. 186 - 216.
[DCCXXIV] Lit: ‘The
knowledge is yours’ - an Arabic idiom.
[DCCXXV] cf. §93;
see note above.
[DCCXXVI] Added in
the Leiden MS; fol. 192v, l. 29.
[DCCXXVII] i.e. Abu
‘l-Shaykh from al-Awzaci.
[DCCXXVIII] This is
said to be Gabriel in §83.
[DCCXXIX] Omitted
in the Leiden MS; fol. 193r, l. 2.
[DCCXXX] Added in
the Leiden MS; fol. 193r, l. 10.
[DCCXXXI] The
Leiden MS reads ‘wajh for ‘ra’s’; fol. 193r, l. 11.
[DCCXXXII] Omitted in
the Leiden MS, but is an error; fol. 193r, l. 12.
[DCCXXXIII] Omitted in
the Leiden MS; fol. 193r, l. 12.
[DCCXXXIV] cf. Q
23:28; Arberry, Koran, p. 345.
[DCCXXXV] Q 13:18;
Arberry, Koran, p. 242.
[DCCXXXVI] The
principal Qur’anic narratives of the prostration to Adam can be found at Q 2:29
- 34 & 38:71 - 75; Arberry, Koran, pp. 5 &469. See also Jung, Fallen
Angels for a discussion of the narrative’s origins. Some texts say that
Gabriel or Michael were the first to bow down - see Tottoli, Roberto ‘Muslim
Attitudes to Prostration’ p. 30, n. 96.
[DCCXXXVII] This
is a famous hadith; see van Ess Zwischen Hadit und Theologie, pp. 160 -
178.
[DCCXXXVIII] For
basic information on the Angel of Death, see Wensinck, ‘cIzra’il’ EI1 & EI2; cf. the short section on the angel in al-Qazwini, cAja
’ib, pp. 37 - 38.
[DCCXXXIX] This and
the next hadith have different mitan but are essentially the same story.
Al-Thaclabi includes a different version, but begins the chapter
acknowledging that: ‘qala al-mufassiruna bi-alfazi mukhtalafati wa-macanin
mutafaqatf (‘The commentators have said in different words but similar
meanings’); Al-Thaclabi, QA p. 26; Brinner, Lives, p.
43. The narrative was a popular one and is frequently included in Islamic
histories; e.g. al-Mascudi, Muruj al-dhahab, vol. 1, pp. 35 -
36.
[DCCXL] The
Qur’an includes many references to Adam being made of earth: e.g. Q 2:264;
3:59; 16:59; 18:37; 22:5; 30:20: 35:11; 40:67 &c. For an analysis of these
narratives and their relation to Jewish and Christian literature see, Chipman,
‘Mythic Aspects’.
[DCCXLI] i.e.
all of the Bearers of the Throne.
[DCCXLII] See Q
15:26, 27 & 33; Arberry translates this as ‘mud moulded’, Koran, pp.
254 - 255; Adam is also said to have been made from a clot (alaq) in Q
96:2; Arberry, Koran, p. 651. However, the calaq is
not prominent in these narratives of Angel of Death and the creation of Adam.
[DCCXLIII] i.e.
this is not an isnad but a hadith with multiple narrators.
[DCCXLIV] The
Leiden MS reads yunaqqisu (fol. 193v, l. 2).
[DCCXLV] The
concept of dahr [fate] was important in the pre-Islamic concept of
death; Jacques Waardenburg notes that ‘In the Qur’an it is not dahr
[fate] but God who decides the appointed time (ajal) of each individual
and who causes the person to die...’ Jacques Waardenburg, ‘Death and the Dead’ EQ
vol. 1, p. 508. See also Goldziher, I., Muslim Studies, p. 230;
Goldziher, I., ‘Ajal’ EI1 Vol 1, p. 140; Watt, ‘Suffering in
Sunnite Islam’ pp. 14 - 15; O’Shaughnessy, Muhammad’s Thoughts on Death
and Smith & Haddad, Death and Resurrection; cf. also MK 28a,
p. 183.
[DCCXLVI] Nafs
and rüh are usually seen as being synonymous (e.g. Calverly, ‘Doctrines
of the Soul’ p. 254 and Tritton, A. S., ‘Man, Nafs, Rüh, cAqT
BSOAS 34 (1971) pp. 491 - 495, p. 491). The hadith in this collection,
particularly in this section, uses the terms both as synonyms and as terms
applying to different parts of soul (e.g. §124); see also Smith and Haddad, Death
and Resurrection, pp. 17 - 21.
[DCCXLVII] For a
discussion of the different meanings of Arabic words for ‘sin’, see Padwick,
Constance E., ‘The Language of Muslim Devotion III’ MW 47 (1957) pp. 194
- 209.
[DCCXLVIII] Bayt
shacr = house of hair; this is a Bedouin tent.
[DCCXLIX] Added by
the Leiden MS (fol. 193v, l. 14).
[DCCL] If
read as dhanab (dependant) rather than dhanb (sin, misdeed) this
would mean: ‘Why should I care about your family?’ [Lit: ‘What are your
dependents to me?].
[DCCLI] The
Leiden MS reads la-ha for li-kum throughout; (see fol. 193v, l.
16).
[DCCLII] The
Leiden MS reads: wa-min-ha instead ofycfnï; see fol. 193v, l. 20.
[DCCLIII] The
Leiden MS reads: al-inqibad (depression, gloom) for al-intifad;
see fol. 193v, l. 20.
[DCCLIV] There
are a number of different things to which ‘al-kitab’ can apply, here it
is the book of an indiviudal’s deeds, as recorded by the scribes; see Berg,
Herbert, ‘Tabari’s Exegesis of the Qur’anic Term al-Kitab JAAR 63 (1995)
pp. 761 - 724, p. 763.
[DCCLV] In
the Leiden MS §115 comes after §116; fol. 193v, ll. 22 - 24.
[DCCLVI] Lit:
‘There is not in any house anyone...’
[DCCLVII] The
Leiden MS omits kullayawm; fol 193v, l. 25.
[DCCLVIII] dhu
ruh = ‘one who has ruh.’
[DCCLIX] Or:
‘If He [i.e. God] has ordered the taking of [a soul]...’
[DCCLX] marfuc
= ‘raised’. This is a hadith that is attributable to the Prophet; see Ibn
Salah, Macrifat, p. 31.
[DCCLXI] Added
by the Leiden MS; fol. 193v, l. 32.
[DCCLXII] Cf. Q
7:101; ‘And We wronged them not, they have wronged themselves...’ Arberry, Koran,
p. 223; in this case the third person plural verb appears to refer to the Angel
of Death; the use of plural may indicate the Angel of Death’s helpers (cf.
§127), especially considering the Angel of Death has already used the first
person singular in this hadith.
[DCCLXIII] Cf. Q
2:26: ‘God is not ashamed to strike a similitude even of a gnat, or aught above
it.’ Arberry, Koran, p. 4.
[DCCLXIV] The
Leiden MS reads: fa-idha nazara (see fol. 194r, l. 8); = ‘if he sees
Death with him... ’
[DCCLXV]‘It was sunna to whisper the shahada
in the ear of a dying man whose face is turned towards Mecca.’ Tritton, A. S.,
‘Djanaza’ EI2 vol. 2, pp. 441 - 442, p. 441.
[DCCLXVI] Omitted
in the Leiden MS; see fol. 194r, l. 13.
[DCCLXVII] Al-Suyûtï
also includes other accounts of the death of Abraham in his Fada ’il
al-masjid al-aqsa, pp. 346 - 352.
[DCCLXVIII] Omitted in
the Leiden MS; see fol. 194r, l. 23.
[DCCLXIX] Both
spellings cAzra ’il and cIzra ’ll can be
found; see al-Zabïdï, TA, vol. 13, p. 27 and Lane, AELex, p.
2035.
[DCCLXX] qifahu
- more precisely the ‘back of the neck’. See AELex, pp. 2991 - 2292.
[DCCLXXI] waba
’ is used as a general major epidemic, as opposed to. laiin which is
used for the plague specifically; see Conrad, Lawrence I., ‘Tdcm
and Waba’: Conceptions of Plague and Pestilence in Early Islam’ JESHO
25 (1981) pp. 268 - 307, p. 271.
[DCCLXXII] ,
tast: a large basin, which is used by al-Kindï for the preparation of musk
and according to Lane is used for washing hands before a meal; see al-Kindï, Yacqub
ibn Ishaq, Kitab fl klmlya’ al-citr wa-‘l- tafldat (Leipzig:
Brockhaus, 1948) p. 5 and Lane, E. W., Account of the Manners and Customs of
the Modern Egyptians (repr. London: Constable, 1973) pp. 142 - 143.
[DCCLXXIII] The hadith
could either be referring to God or to the metaphorical person (i.e. one of
you) with the bowl between his legs.
[DCCLXXIV] Note that arwah
is used both of human ‘souls’ or ‘spirit’ and the (angelic) spirits that aid
the Angel of Death.
[DCCLXXV] Q. 6:61;
Arberry, Koran, p. 128.
[DCCLXXVI] Q. 6:61;
Arberry, Koran, p. 128.
[DCCLXXVII] Q.
6:61; Arberry, Koran, p. 128.
[DCCLXXVIII] i.e.
the Scribes; see §312 - 406.
[DCCLXXIX] al-cÀqib
(in the sense of ‘follower’ or ‘successor’) is a significant title: in a hadith
Muhammad says that it is one of his five names; see Al-Bukhari, Sahih,
§3532, p. 679; the epithet is also used in devotional literature, cf.
al-Jazuli, Muhammad ibn Sulayman, Dala’il al-khayrat (si.: s. n, s.d) p.
23 and Ebeid, R. Y. and Young, M. J. L., ‘A List of the Appellations of the
Prophet Muhammad’ MW 66 (1976) pp. 259 - 262, p. 260.
[DCCLXXX] The cashar
was the collector of the cushr land tax, which was paid by
Muslims; non-Muslims paid the kharaj land tax; see Lokkegaard. Frede, Islamic
Taxation in the Classical Period (repr. Philadelphia: Porcupine Press,
1978) p. 78; for more details on these two land taxes see Yahya ibn Adam, Kitab
al-kharaj (Cairo: al-Matbacat al-Salafyya wa-Maktabtuma, 1347 /
1928/9) pp. 24 - 31; and Duri, cAbdal cAziz, ‘Notes on
Taxation in Early Islam’ JESHO 17 (1974) pp. 136 - 144. Although the use
of this term for the Angel of Death is rare (cf. Wensinck, CTM, vol. 4,
pp. 224), it is reminiscent the Qur’anic use of metaphors derived from commerce
and daily life; see Rippin, A. J., ‘The Commerce of Eschatology’ in Stefan Wild
(ed.), The Qur’an as Text (Leiden: Brill, 1996) pp. 125 - 135.
[DCCLXXXI] Or: ‘When
it comes to an appointed time of a servant [of God]...’
[DCCLXXXII] For
the death of Solomon in the Qisas al-anbiya’ see Al-Thaclabi,
QA pp. 326 - 328; Brinner, Lives, pp. 544 - 548; a similar story
appears in Shab. 30a, p. 133.
[DCCLXXXIII] sikak
(plural of sakk) - derived from the Persian chak [see Steingass,
F., A Comprehensive Persian-English Dictionary (London: W. H. Allen
& Co., 1892) p. 386] - are normally used in connection with legal documents
and pensions; however Lane notes that the middle of Shacban was also
called laylat al-sakk, and on this day God allots the rizq for every
human being; see Lane, AELex, p. 1709.
[DCCLXXXIV] Ma
ana uclimu bi-dhalika min-ka = I do not know about that
concerning you.
[DCCLXXXV] Q.
6:60; Arberry, Koran, p. 128.
[DCCLXXXVI] i.e.
15th Shacban. Some scholars have considered that this
night may have been influenced by a pre- Islamic New Year festival; Wensinck
also notes that ‘According to the hadith, Muhammad practised superogatory
fasting by preference in Shacban.’ Wensinck, ‘Shacban’ EI2,
vol. 9, p. 154. See also von Grunebaum, G. E., Muhammadan Fesitvals
(London: Curzon Press, 1976) pp. 52 - 53.
[DCCLXXXVII] In
a Prophetic hadith about another unnamed prophet, people who have married,
built a house and acquired new livestock are exempted from fighting in battle
(see Al-Thaclabi, QA, p. 249; Brinner, Lives, p. 412);
here these people are not exempted from death.
[DCCLXXXVIII] Note
that there is not any consensus on the date when this happens (cf. §142). The
Night of Power is the evening of 27th Ramadan - see Plessner, M.,
‘Ramadan’ EI2 vol. 8, pp. 417 - 418 and Marcotte, Roxanne D.,
‘Night of Power’ EQ vol. 3, pp. 537 - 539.
[DCCLXXXIX] Lit.:
‘...until its likeness.’
[DCCXC] Sheila
McDonough comments that ‘Drawing close to God requires abstaining or fleeing
from all that might inhibit the human response to the divine initiate.’
McDonough, Sheila, ‘Abstinence’ EQ vol. 1, p. 19. Cf. Q 66:1, Arberry, Koran,
p. 593.
[DCCXCI] i.e.
Shacban was the only month during which he performed superogatory
fasting for its entirety.
[DCCXCII] This
hadith is found in many Arabic sources; see Al-Thaclabi, QA,
p. 247; Brinner, Lives, p. 409; cf. al-Kisa’i, QA, pp. 237 - 240;
al-Tabari, Ta’rlkh, vol. 1, p. 434; Brinner, W. M. (tr.), The History
of al-Tabari: Volume III - The Children of Israel, pp. 87 - 88. This
popularity of this tradition can be seen in its influence on the Falsahas of
Ethiopia, see Ullendorf, Edward, ‘Literature of the Falashas’. There are many
examples in extra-Biblical Jewish and Christian literature of Prophets
(particularly figures such as Abraham, Moses, David and Solomon) meeting the Angel
of Death before they die. The Testament of Abraham is a good example of
this genre (see Ludlow, Abraham Meets Death). Narratives including
highly anthropomorphised and comic depictions of the Angel of Death are still
found in Arab folktales, cf. El-Shamy, Hasan M., Folktales of Egypt
(London: University of Chicago Press, 1980) pp. 117 - 122 and Hanauer, J. E., Folk-Lore
of the Holy Land: Moslem, Christian and Jewish (London: The Sheldon Press,
1935) pp. 32, 36 - 39.
[DCCXCIII] Lit: it
was said that so-and-so died in that way and in that way.
[DCCXCIV] Al-Thaclabi
includes one continuous narrative of Enoch; this hadith contains a number of
similar elements, but some differences too; see al-Thaclabi, QA,
pp. 49 - 50; Brinner, Lives, pp. 83 - 85; cf. al- Kisa’i, QA, pp.
81 - 85 and al-Rabghuzi, QA, vol. 2, pp. 49 - 52.
[DCCXCV] Amma
an yu ’khiru shay ’an aw yuqdamuhu fa-la = (lit.) ‘As for delaying anything
or arriving at it, then no.’
[DCCXCVI] This is
added in the Leiden MS; fol. 195v, l. 13,
[DCCXCVII] Ajal
refers to both the appointed moment of death, and the total time allotted for
life.
[DCCXCVIII] For a
different account of the death of Abraham, see al-Thaclabï, QA,
pp. 97 - 98; Brinner, Lives, pp. 164 - 165.
[DCCXCIX] Abraham
is designated the khall allah and the portrayal of Abraham as the
‘friend of God’ is important in Judaism, Christianity and Islam; see Guthrie,
A., ‘The Importance of Abraham’ MW 45 (1955) pp. 113 - 120; p. 118 and
Bishop, Eric F. F., ‘The Qumran Scrolls and the Qur’an’ MW 48 (1958) pp.
223 - 236, pp. 225 - 226.
[DCCC] sharab
is used by jurists to indicate wine; see Lane, AELex, p. 1528; cf. §171.
[DCCCI] istankaha
(X) is relatively rare and refers to the action of breathing over someone’s
nose so that they can smell the individual’s breath; see Hava, J. G., Fara’id
al-duriya (Beirut: Catholic Press, 1964) p. 799.
[DCCCII] For
the death of David in the Qisas al-Anibiya ’, which is relatively
similar, see al-Thaclabï, QA p. 292; Brinner, Lives,
pp. 489 - 490; al-Kisâ’ï, QA, pp. 277 - 278; al-Rabghuzï, QA,
vol. 2, p. 397.
[DCCCIII] ghayra
refers to sexual jealousy specifically; see Lane, AELex, p. 2316. For
analysis of a similar story in the Qisas al-anbiya ’ see Wagtendonk,
‘The Stories of David’ p. 349. This tradition is also told of Abraham; see
al-Ghazalï, Ihya ’, vol. 4, p. 395; Winter (tr.), Remembrance of
Death, p. 44 - 45.
[DCCCIV] zamala:
‘He was as though he limped, by reason of his briskness, or sprightliness...’
Lane, AELex, p. 1252; see also Ibn Manzur, LA, vol. 13, p. 328
and al-Zabidï, TA, vol. 29, p. 135.
[DCCCV] Although
sea trade routes existed before and after the advent of Islam, the Arabs relied
on land trade most heavily; however, sea-trade and naval forces did develop -
see Hourani, George Fadlo, Arab Seafaring (Princeton: Princeton
University Press, 1951) pp. 53 - 55.
[DCCCVI] The
Leiden MS may read lam for thumma, but the writing is not clear
(fol. 196r, l. 1); thumma makes more sense here.
[DCCCVII] The
Angel of Death is said to have a spear ( ’idra ’) in CantR. 4:7,
although the exact meaning of ’idra’ is disputed. Cf. Cohen (tr.), p.
117 and Bender, A. P., ‘Belief, Rites and Customs of the Jews, Connected with
Death, Burial and Mourning’ JQR 6 (1894) pp. 317 - 347, p. 323.
[DCCCVIII] The way
in which the Angel of Death kills humans is similar to the way in which humans
kill animals in ritual slaughter (dhabh); see Bousquet, G.-H., ‘Dhabiha’
EI2, vol. 2, pp. 213 - 214.
[DCCCIX] The
Leiden MS reads rusul for rasul; fol. 196r, l. 13. A large number
of angelic helpers would seem more appropriate; cf. § 125, 127 - 129 & 135.
[DCCCX] Thughrat
al-nahr = fossa jugularis; see Fonahn, A., Arabic and Latin
Anatomical Terminology (Kristiana: Jacob Dybwad, 1922) §3282, p. 152; cf. Q
50:16 ‘....and We are nearer to him than the jugular vein.’ Arberry, Koran,
p. 540.
[DCCCXI] Lit.
‘footprint’.
[DCCCXII] The
text could read ‘which I have left in ruin etc.’ However, this hadith appears
to express the idea that a pious Muslim should be paying more attention to
remembering God, than making their home comfortable; and that the good actions
of an individual prepares their place in heaven.
[DCCCXIII] camara carries positive meanings (e.g. flourishing, full of
camels etc.); see Lane, AELex, p. 2153 - 2154.
[DCCCXIV] Cf. Ket.
104a, pp. 664 - 665: ‘When a righteous man departs from the world he is
welcomed by three companies of angels. One exclaims, ‘Come into peace’; the
other exclaims, He who walketh in his uprightness, while the third
exclaims, ‘He shall enter into peace; they shall rest on their beds'. When
a wicked man perishes form the world he is met by three groups of angels of
destruction. One announces, ‘There is no peace, saith the Lord, unto the
wicked’, the other tells him, ‘He shall lie in sorrow’, while the
third tells him, ‘Go down and be thou laid with the uncircumcised’.’ See
also Shab. 152b, p. 779.
[DCCCXV] This
follows the Leiden MS fol. 196r, l. 27'f. In the DKI edition, the isnad
of §166 used with the matn of 166b.
[DCCCXVI] Q.
33:44; Arberry, Koran, p. 432.
[DCCCXVII] Q. 16:32;
Arberry, Koran, p. 261.
[DCCCXVIII] This is
included in the isnad in the Leiden MS; fol. 196v, l. 3.
[DCCCXIX] Al-cÀrif
is not a name of God, but is commonly used to refer to Sufi mystics; see
Shah-Kazemi, Reza, ‘The notion and significance of macrifa in
Sufism’ JIS 13 (2002) pp. 155 - 181, p. 157.
[DCCCXX] Or ‘to
the Angel of Death’.
[DCCCXXI] i.e.
until he had fulfilled Solomon’s needs.
[DCCCXXII] Solomon
is believed to have had magic powers, including the command of the winds, which
were given to him by God. See Johns, Anthony H., ‘Air and Wind’ EQ vol.
1, pp. 51 - 55; Soucek, Priscilla, ‘Solomon’ EQ vol. 5, pp. 76 - 78 and
Walker, J., [-P. Fenton], ‘Sulayman b. Dawud’ EI2 vol. 9, pp.
822 - 824. This power is mentioned in the Qur’an; cf. Q 21:81; 34:12 and 38:36;
Arberry, Koran, pp. 329, 438 & 467.
[DCCCXXIII] This is
the book that contains the details of the individual’s ajal; see Berg,
‘Tabari’s Exegesis’ p. 763.
[DCCCXXIV] Lit.: ma
li hammun ghayrihi ‘I had no concerns other than him.’
[DCCCXXV] This
hadith and the following do not appear in the Sira (see Guillaume, A., The
Life of Muhammad pp. 678 - 683) nor al-Tabari’s account of the Prophet’s
death (see al-Tabari, Ta ’rikh, vol. 3, pp. 183 - 199; Poonawala, Ismail
K. (tr.), The History of al-Tabari: Vol. IX - The Last Years of the Prophet (New
York: State University of New York Press, 1990) pp. 162 - 183). The death of
Muhammad became important in Muslim spirituality as Muhammad accepted death
willingly; cf. al-Ghazali, Ihya ’ vol. 4, p. 399; Winter, Remembrance
of Death, p. 58. Al-Rabghuzï’s Qisas al-anbiya ’ includes similar
material to these hadïth, see al-Rabghuzï, QA, vol. 2, pp. 671 - 679,
especially pp. 673 - 678.
[DCCCXXVI] Some
hadïth say that this was cÀ’isha; cf. al-Tabarï, Ta’rïkh,
vol. 3, p. 199; Poonwawala, Last Years of the Prophet, p. 183 al-Ghazalï,
Ihya ’, vol. 4, p. 403; Winter, Remembrance of Death, p. 65.
[DCCCXXVII] mashaghïl
in the mafacïl form is a broken plural of mashghul;
see Wright, W., A Grammar of the Arabic Language (repr. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 2004) vol. 1, §305a, p. 229.
[DCCCXXVIII] Qasim
was one of Muhammad’s sons by Khadïja, and Abu ‘l-Qasim was his kunya;
see Déclais, Jean-Louis, ‘Names of the Prophet’ EQ vol. 3, pp. 501 -
505, p. 501.
[DCCCXXIX] Omitted by
the Leiden MS; fol. 196v, l. 29.
[DCCCXXX] Omitted
from the isnad in the Leiden MS; fol. 197r, l. 6.
[DCCCXXXI] ‘Ibn cAbd
Allah is missing from this person’s name in the Leiden MS, however the rest of
the name is present; fol. 197r, l. 7.
[DCCCXXXII] Omitted
from the isnad in the Leiden MS; fol. 197r, l. 9
[DCCCXXXIII] The
DKI edition includes Abu Muhammad ibn cAli twice in the isnad;
the Leiden MS does not include him at all; see fol 197r, l. 10.
[DCCCXXXIV] Michael
is omitted from the isnad in the Leiden MS; fol. 197r, l. 14.
[DCCCXXXV] This
hadith has already appeared above (§84) in the section on the Angel Michael;
the isnad is different in each of the hadith, but they have a common
link in Abu Musa ibn Jacfar. The ‘angelic isnad" is
also different, with the chain going through Israfrl in §84 and cAzra’il
in §171.
[DCCCXXXVI] In
the Old Testament Pseudepigrapha the angels that carry God’s Throne are given
as Gabriel, Michael, Rafael / Rufael and Fanuel / Penuel (cf. 1 En.
40:2, 9-10; 71:7- 13; OTP, vol. 1, pp. 32 & 50 and Sib. Or.
2:215; OTP, vol. 1, p. 350); in the Qur’an and Islamic tradition, however,
the Throne Angels are distinct from other named angels, which bears a closer
resemblance to later Jewish exegesis in which aspects of God’s Throne become
angelic (e.g. the opannïm and the galgallïm are derived from the
wheels of the Throne); see Olyan, A Thousand Thousands pp. 31 - 69 and
Barton, ‘Names of Angels and Demons’ pp. 156 - 159.
[DCCCXXXVII] Q.
69:17; Arberry, Koran, p. 604.
[DCCCXXXVIII] Added
by the Leiden MS; fol. 197v, l. 22.
[DCCCXXXIX] Omitted
by the Leiden MS; fol. 197v, l. 23.
[DCCCXL] Given
as ‘Ibn cAbbas’ in the Leiden MS; fol. 197v, l. 23.
[DCCCXLI] The
origin of the belief that the bearers are in the form of goats is unclear, see
Halperin, Faces of the Chariot, p. 470.
[DCCCXLII] ‘The vast
size of angels is a theme of 3En. ...In the Hekalot texts size conveys the idea
of majesty and sublimity. It is found not only in the motif of the measurements
of the angels, but in Sicur Qomah, the measurements of the body of
God, and in the motif of the dimensions of the heavens.’ Alexander, ‘3 Enoch -
Introduction’, p. 263 n. 9c. See also the discussion about the size of the
angels in Chapter 3.
[DCCCXLIII] This
hadith is added in the Leiden MS; fol. 197v, l. 30 - 198r, l. 1.
[DCCCXLIV] The Leiden
MS reads ‘ayna’ for 'haythu'; ‘haythU seems more appropriate;
fol. 198r, l. 4.
[DCCCXLV] Given as
‘Zadan’ in the Leiden MS; fol. 198r, l. 8.
[DCCCXLVI] God is
often described in these terms in Islam; cf. The Light Verse; Q 24:35; Arberry,
Koran, pp. 356 - 357.
[DCCCXLVII] Q.
69:17; Arberry, Koran, p. 604; cf. Rev. 4:6, where there are four
bearers of the Throne.
[DCCCXLVIII] Added
by the Leiden MS, fol 198r, l. 13.
[DCCCXLIX] Cf. Q
69:17: ‘...and the angels shall stand upon its borders, and upon that day eight
shall carry above them the Throne of thy Lord.’ Arberry, Koran, p. 604.
There is some debate in the exegetical literature about what this meant
exactly, e.g. al-Qurtubi, Al-Jamic li-ahkam al-Qur’an (Cairo:
Dar al- Kutub al-Misriyya, 1948) vol. 12, pp. 266 - 267; al-Tabari, Jamic
al-bayan can ta’wll al-Qur’an [Tafsir] (Cairo: Mustafa al-Babi
al-Halabi, 1968), vol. 29, pp. 58 - 59; and al-Razi, Fakhr al-Din Muhmmad ibn cUmar,
Mafatlh al-ghayb [Tafsir] (Cairo: Matbacat al-cAmira
al-Sharafiyya, c. 1906) vol. 8, p. 200.
[DCCCL] Omitted
in the the Leiden MS; fol. 198r, ll. 15 - 16.
[DCCCLI] Cf.
Ezk. 1:10 and Rev. 4:8; this Arabic text is very close to Ezekiel’s first
Throne Vision (Ezekiel 1:1 - 2:11). The four different faces represent creation
as a whole rather than just humans; cf. Richard Bauckham on Rev. 4:9: ‘Their
representative function is to worship on behalf of all creatures, and therefore
it is fulfilled when the circle of worship expands to include not only humans,
but “every creature in heaven and on earth and under earth and in the sea”
(5:13).’ Bauckham, Richard, The Theology of the Book of Revelation
(Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993) pp. 33 - 34.
[DCCCLII] This is
almost a direct translation of the trisagion of the Seraphim in Is. 6:3.
[DCCCLIII] The
Leiden MS reads ‘ardlri; fol. 198r, l. 22. For a discussion of the rock
under the earth, see al- Tabari, Tafslr, vol. 1, p. 194 (on Q 2:29); see
also Mahmoud, Muhammad, ‘The Creation Story in Surat al-Baqara, wihh
Special Refernce to Al-Tabari’s Material: An Analysis’ JAL 26 (1995) pp.
201 - 214, pp. 202 - 203. The idea of the earth being diving into seven layers,
with a rock and a sea below is also found in Judaism; see Gaster, T. H.,
‘Earth’ EJ vol. 6, coll. 338 - 340 and Lane-Poole, Stanley, ‘Cosmogony
and Cosmology (Muhammadan) ERE vol. 4, p. 174.
[DCCCLIV] See
Halperin, Faces of the Chariot, pp. 471 - 472.
[DCCCLV] This
alludes to the human dominion over animals.
[DCCCLVI] Omitted
in the Leiden MS; fol. 198r, l. 30.
[DCCCLVII] Cf.
‘...he said, “and I seized a handful of dust from the messenger’s track, and
cast it into the thing [i.e. the calf]. So my soul prompted me.”’ Q 20:96;
Arberry, Koran, p. 318. A tradition of Ibn Mascud interprets
the phrase athar al-rasul as athar faras al-rasul; David Halperin
argues that this could be related to a Jewish tradition, in which the dust from
the footstep of the ox-hayyah was added to the image of the calf (see
Halperin, Faces of the Chariot, pp. 176 - 187 and 478 - 479), and
concerning the original Jewish tradition comments: ‘The Israelites draw the
living essence of the merkevah ox, through the dust of its footprint,
into the molten calf that they have made.’ Halperin, Faces of the Chariot,
p. 178.
[DCCCLVIII] ‘this hour
of mine’, i.e. the time of the Prophet.
[DCCCLIX] Omitted
in the Leiden MS; fol. 198v, l. 9.
[DCCCLX] In
Jewish tradition the Cherubim and the Hayyot are said to have many eyes:
cf. 2En 21:1, OTP, vol. 1, pp. 134 - 135; ApAbr. 18:3 - 7.
OTP, vol. 1, p. 698; 3En 22, OTP, vol. 1, p. 278; these
images are largely based on the desriptions of God’s chariot in Ezk. 1 &
10. Having many eyes is a symbol of omniscience and God bestowing this power on
his creations. Cf. God transforming Enoch into a creature with 365,000 eyes in 3En.
9; 25:2 & 26:6, OTP, vol. 1, p. 263, 278 - 280; see also Ulmer,
Rivka, The Evil Eye in the Bible and Rabbinic Literature (Jerusalem:
Ktav, 1994) pp. 21 - 23.
[DCCCLXI] Q.
2:255; Arberry, Koran, p. 37.
[DCCCLXII] There is
some debate in Islamic tradition about the differences between the Throne (carsh)
and the Seat (kursi); the kursl is often interpreted as
‘footstool’ as it is a more general word for a ‘support’. See Hurat, Cl.
[-Sadan, J.], ‘Kursi’ EI2 vol. 5, p.
509; Elias, ‘Throne of God’ and Vitestam, Gosta, “Arsh and kursi.
An Essay on the Throne Traditions in Islam’ in Jakob H. Gronbæk et al.
(eds.), Living Waters: Scandinavian Orientalistic Studies (Copenhagen:
Museum Tusculanum Press, 1990) pp. 369 - 378, p. 374.
[DCCCLXIII] Cf. GenR
78:1, pp. 714 - 715 & LamR 3:2 §8, po. 201 - 202; the rivers of
paradise are said to be fed by the perspiration of the hayyot, caused by
their bearing the Throne.
[DCCCLXIV] Al-Suyûtï
devotes a chapter to the Cockerel (§280 - 294) as well as part of his
collection Kitab al- wadik f fadl al-dik. (Tottoli, ‘At Cock-Crow’ pp.
142 - 143). The ‘cosmic cockerel’ has been mentioned in passing by a number of
scholars, but the significance of the ‘cosmic cockerel’ has not been discussed.
Asin Palacios comments: ‘El gallo de la layenda musulmana es también de gigantesco
tamano, y se ofrece a los ojos de Mahoma llendano el cielo; sus alas agitanse
igualmente al entonar sus canticos religiosos excitando a los hombres a la
pratica de la oracion, y reposan después...’ Asin Palacios, M., EscatologiaMusulmana,
pp. 31 & 52; Kopf, ‘Dik’. The cockerel does, however, have a long history
of being associated with the divine, especially the light or the sun - see
Ehrenburg, Erica, ‘The Rooster in Mesopotamia’ in Erica Ehrenburg (ed.), Leaving
No Stones Unturned (Winona Lake: Eisenbrauns, 2002) pp. 53 - 62.
[DCCCLXV] ‘sawf
is a general term for ‘bowing’ or ‘inclination’ and as such does not describe
the inclination or bowing of a particular part of the body, see AELex,
p. 1744.
[DCCCLXVI] Omitted in
the Leiden MS; fol. 199r, l. 1.
[DCCCLXVII] This
is unusual as the Arabic language of the Qur’an is seen as paramount in
Qur’anic selfperception (see Jenssen, Herbjorn. ‘Arabic Language’ EQ
vol. 1, pp. 127 - 135; especially, pp. 132 - 134), to the extent that
non-Arabic loanwords in the Qur’an were viewed as obscure Arabic words by
Islamic scholars (see Kopf, L, ‘Religious Influences on Islamic Philology’ SI
5 (1956) pp. 33 - 59). Likewise angelic speech (a form of divine revelation) is
normally associated with a faith’s language of revelation, as a symbol of the
faith’s claim on true religion, (cf. The Pseudepigraphical work Jubilees 12:25
- 27). Steve Weitzmann has commented that: ‘To understand Hebrew, according to Jubilees,
is to belong to a divinely selected group with access to esoteric knowledge
inherited from the age before Babel. In Jubilees Hebrew is also said to
connect those who use it to the heavenly community.’ Weitzman, Steve, ‘Why did
the Qumran community write in Hebrew?’ JAOS 119 (1999) pp. 35 - 45, p.
41. There are some other Biblical and Pseudepigraphical texts that believe that
angels speak in an esoteric language that humans cannot understand (e.g. ApAbr.
15:7; 2En. 17:1, 2Cor. 12:4). In this case, however, the angels
are speaking in a language other than Arabic that was understood by a large
number of Muslims. For more on the relationship between Persian and Arab
literature and culture see Danner, Victor, ‘Arabic Literature in Iran’ CHI,
vol. 4, pp. 566 - 594.
[DCCCLXVIII] Q
69:17; Arberry, Koran, p. 604.
[DCCCLXIX] Q 69:17;
Arberry, Koran, p. 604.
[DCCCLXX] i.e. Q
69:17; Arberry, Koran, p. 604.
[DCCCLXXI] This
interpretation is relatively common, e.g. Tabari, Tafsïr, vol. 29, pp.
58 - 59.
[DCCCLXXII] This
is given as a separate hadith in the Leiden MS; fol. 199r, l. 8.
[DCCCLXXIII] Added
in the Leiden MS; fol. 199r, ll. 8 - 9. The verse being referred to is Q 69:17.
[DCCCLXXIV] Q
97:4; Arberry, Koran, p. 652.
[DCCCLXXV] Q
78:38; Arberry, Koran, p. 627. In Judaism, particularly in the Hellenic
period, the ‘spirit of God’ was considered in angelic terms; for a discussion
of this in Philo and others see Levinson, John R., ‘The Prophetic Spirit as an
Angel according to Philo’ HTR 88 (1995) pp. 189 - 207. In Islam, the
Spirit was often identified with Gabriel, rather than being a separate angel;
cf. al-Qazwini, cAja ’ib, p. 37.
[DCCCLXXVI] The
Leiden MS reads: al-ruh malak min aczam al-mala ’ika
khalqan; fol. 199r, ll. 14 - 15.
[DCCCLXXVII] The
veil is related to the veil that separated the Holy of Holies from the rest of
the Temple in Judaism (for a full discussion of the Veil of the Temple, see
Légasse, S., ‘Les voiles du Temple de Jérusalem: Essai de Parcours Historique’ RB
87 (1980) pp. 560 - 589). Some Jewish, Christian and Samaritan texts describe
the Veil of the Temple as an angel, for a full discussion of these descriptions
see Fossum, ‘Angel of the Lord’. For a discussion of the veil in Islam see
Winter, Tim, ‘The Chador of God on Earth: the Metaphysics of the Muslim Veil’ NB
85 (1996) pp. 144 - 157.
[DCCCLXXVIII] Added
in the Leiden MS; fol. 199r, l. 20.
[DCCCLXXIX] Cf.
Ibn Tufayl, Hayy ibn Yaqzan, p. 85.
[DCCCLXXX] Some
commentators believed that al-Ruh refers to a species of angel; cf.
§219, 222 - 228.
[DCCCLXXXI] wahy
is an intimate, non-verbal form of revelation (as opposed to nuzul, inzal
&c.); see Izutsu, Toshihiko, God and Man in the Koran: Semantics of the
Koranic Weltanschauung (Tokyo: Keio Institute of Cultural and Linguistic
Studies, 1964) pp. 158 - 162; Wensinck [-Rippin] ‘Wahy’ EI2 vol.
11,
pp. 53 - 56 and Nwyia, Paul, Exégèse Coranqiue et Language Mystique
(Beirut: Dar el-Machreq, 1970) pp. 56 - 57. Gabriel is usually associated with
revelation that is communicated to prophets by tanzil whereas the Spirit
is associated with wahy (“inspiration”).
[DCCCLXXXII] A
literal reading of Q. 78:38 mentioned above.
[DCCCLXXXIII] Cf.
‘All that is in the heavens and the earth magnifies God, the King, the All-Holy...’
Q 62:1; Arberry, Koran, p. 583.
[DCCCLXXXIV] Cf.
‘...then we sent to her Our Spirit that presented himself to her a man without
fault.’ Q 19:17; Arberry, Koran, p. 303.
[DCCCLXXXV] Note
the plural verb; this hadith is referring to al-Ruh as a species or
class of angel, rather than as an individual angel; as such the translation
‘Spirits’ seems to be preferable, although the Arabic does strictly say ‘the
Spirit’.
[DCCCLXXXVI] The
Leiden MS reads: ma nazala; ‘an angel has not come down from heaven...’
fol. 199v, l. 7.
[DCCCLXXXVII] Q.
78:38; Arberry, Koran, p. 627.
[DCCCLXXXVIII] The
Jalalayn gloss ‘yaqumu al-ruh’ with: ‘Jibril aw jund allah' /
‘Gabriel or an army of God.’ al- Jalalayn [al-Mahali, Jalal al-Din ibn Muhammad
ibn Ahmad & al-Suyuti, Jalal al-Din cAbd al- Rahman ibn Abi
Bakr], Tafsir (s.i.: Maktabat al-Muthanna, c. 1920), p. 499; whereas
al-Baydawi is even vaguer: ‘.the spirt is an angel responsible for the spirits (arwah)
or a group of them, or Gabiel or a creation mighter than the angels (khalq
’aczam min al-mala’ika).' al-Baydawi, Commentarius, vol.
2, p. 383.
[DCCCLXXXIX] Cf
§21 - 23.
[DCCCXC] Q.
78:38; Arberry, Koran, p. 627.
[DCCCXCI] Read simata
for simata and likewise simat (bis), cf. Leiden MS fol. 199v, l.
17; = ranks of people, see AELex, p. 1427.
[DCCCXCII] Omitted
in the Leiden MS; fol. 199v, l. 20.
[DCCCXCIII] Cf. §23
above; al-Suyuti has taken the same hadith from a different source (Ibn Abi
Hatim), but the authority is the same (given as Salman Abu ‘l-Acis).
[DCCCXCIV] Note the
ambiguity between the singular al-Ruh and the plural noun in apposition (hafaza).
Al-Ruh is strictly singular - the correct plural is arwah - but
is considered as a plural is certain places.
[DCCCXCV] Q 43:77;
Arberry, Koran, p. 511; Malik has normally been interpreted as an
actual name (although it could simply mean ‘possessor’), a variant reading of Mal,
would seem to support this, see al- Baydawi, Commentarius, vol. 2, p.
243 and Bell, Richard (ed. C. E. Bosworth & M. E. J. Richardson), A
Commentary on the Qur’an (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1991),
vol. 2, p. 248.
[DCCCXCVI] Q 40:49;
Arberry, Koran, p. 486.
[DCCCXCVII] Q
66:6; Arberry, Koran, p. 594.
[DCCCXCVIII] Q
74:30; Arberry, Koran, pp. 616 - 617.
[DCCCXCIX] Q 96:18;
Arberry, Koran, p. 651.
[CM] This is
possibly Ibn Qutayba, who wrote a work called, cUyün al-akhbar;
see Brockelmann, GAL vol. 1, p. 120.
[CMI] The Leiden
MS reads: Tawüs /Ta ’üs, fol. 199v, l. 2.
[CMII] The
Leiden MS reads: malakan; ‘created an angel’; fol. 199v, l. 28.
[CMIII] Cf.
‘So Glory be to Him, in whose hand is the dominion and unto whom you shall be
returned’ and ‘Blessed by He in whose hand is the Kingdom - He is powerful over
everything, who created death and life...’ Q36:83 & 67:1 - 2; Arberry, Koran,
pp. 455 & 596.
[CMIV] The
number nineteen has, as Bell comments ‘...given much rise to questioning and
speculation.’ Bell, Commentary, vol. 2, p. 453. Al-Baydawi says that the
number could refer to angels 'malakan' or a species of angels ‘sanfan
mala ’ika’ that are responsible for punishing different types of sinners or
that the nineteen are responsible for punishing the people in the Fire for an
hour each, with five hours left aside for the ritual prayers, see Al-Baydawi, Commentarius,
vol. 2, p. 396. Karl Ahrens associated with the number nineteen with the twelve
signs of the zodiac and the seven planets, citing Mandaean beliefs as a
possible source, see Ahrens, Karl, Muhammad als Religionsstifter
(Leipzig: Deutsche Morgenlandischen Gesellschaft, 1935) pp. 30 - 31.
[CMV] Lit:
‘the angel from amongst them beats the man from amongst the people of the
Fire.’
[CMVI] The
Leiden MS reads, ‘ma ’ia’; fol. 200r, l. 4.
[CMVII] Cf.
the descriptions of Munkar and Nakir, §302 - 311.
[CMVIII] The thaqalayn
are humans and jinn; see Lane, AELex, p. 344.
[CMIX] Q
74:30; Arberry, Koran, p. 616.
[CMX] The
Leiden MS reads, ‘ba-lff; fol. 200r, l. 11.
[CMXI] Q
74:31; Arberry, Koran, p. 617.
[CMXII] The
Leiden MS reads, ‘malak’; fol. 200r, l. 13.
[CMXIII] See
al-Qurtubi, Al-Jamic, vol. 19, p. 79. This hadith is also
mentioned in his tafsïr of this verse, see al-Qurtubi, Al-Jamic
vol. 19, p. 78.
[CMXIV] The
Ledien MS includes this hadith; fol. 200r, ll. 16 - 18.
[CMXV] Q
96:18; Arberry, Koran, p. 651.
[CMXVI] A
different list of sources is given in the Leiden MS (fol. 200r, ll. 18 - 19):
al-Firyabi, Ibn Abi Shayba, Ibn Jarir, Ibn al-Mundhir and Ibn Abi Hatim from cAbd
Allah ibn al-Harith.
[CMXVII]Al-zabamya (Arberry = ‘the Keepers of Hell’; Q 96:18, Koran,
p. 651); the word poses questions about its root (c.f. al-Baydawi, Commentarius,
vol. 2, p. 411) and it is believed to be foreign, derived from either Syriac or
Persian, see Jeffrey, Foreign Vocabulary, p. 148 (Syriac) and Eilers,
Wilhelm, ‘Iranisches Lehngut im arabishen Lexikon: Über einige Berufsnamen und
Titel’ IIJ 5 (1962) pp. 203 - 232, p. 220 (Persian). Tor Andrae
associates the word with the Syriac shabbaya, ‘bodyguards’, see Andrae,
Tor (tr. Jules Roche), Les Origines de l’Islam et le Christianisme
(Paris: Librairie d’Amerique et d’Orient Adiren Maisonneuve, 1955), p. 159.
[CMXVIII] The
opening 'akhraja' is omitted in the Leiden MS; fol. 200r, l. 20.
[CMXIX] Q.
25:7; Arberry, Koran, p. 362.
[CMXX] Q
25:7 - 8 continues the Meccans’ words with: ‘Why has an angel not been sent
down to him, to be a warner with him, or why is not a treasure (kanz)
thrown to him, or why has he not a Garden to eat of?’ Arberry, Koran, p.
363. Although not focusing on the life of Muhammad, Michael Bonner has written
an article that looks at the importance of poverty in the theology of the
Qur’an, see Bonner, Michael, ‘Poverty and Economics in the Qur’an’ JIH
35 (2005) pp. 391 - 406.
[CMXXI] In
Classical Arabic dhaba [al-jism] can have the meaning ‘to become thin’;
see Lane, AELex, p. 986.
[CMXXII] The
Leiden MS reads ‘huda throughout; fol. 200r, ll. 25 - 26.
[CMXXIII] Cf. §29
& 53 above; in these cases the angel Israfrl appears.
[CMXXIV] Safat
al-nur; a basket that is formed by weaving leaves together, which was,
appropriately for Ridwan, also used in burials in pre-Islamic times; see Lane, AELex,
p. 1372.
[CMXXV] Cf.
‘Three keys are in the hands of the Holy One, Blessed be He! - the Keys of
burial [i.e. resurrection], rain and the womb.’ GenR 73:4, p. 670; see
also DeutR 7:6, p. 137.
[CMXXVI] Cf Q
2:26; Arberry, Koran, p. 4.
[CMXXVII] The
Leiden MS omits ‘ila jibrlP; fol. 200r, l. 30.
[CMXXVIII] Angels
frequently take on this role (the angelus interpres) in Jewish and
Christian apocalyptic literature; Wansbrough comments: ‘In Muslim, as in
Rabbinic, tradition one of Gabriel’s primary functions is that of pedagogue: as
he had been guide and mentor to Joseph....and to Moses...so too for Muhammad he
performed thie rites of initiation into prophethood, instructed him during his
ascension to heaven and arranged from him the conent of revelation during
meetings in Ramadan.’ Wansbrough, Quranic Studies, p. 63; see also
Hannah, Darrell D., Michael and Christ: Michael Traditions and Angel
Christology in Early Christianity (Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 1999) p. 47.
[CMXXIX] Q.
25:10; Arberry, Koran, p. 363.
[CMXXX] More
commonly known as the cAzd Shanu’a; see Strenziok, G., ‘Azd’ EI2
vol. 1, pp. 811 - 813, p.
812.
[CMXXXI] This is
included because it is found in the hadith in al-Bukhan’s, Sahih, §3229,
p. 621 and in the context of Moses being described as tall, makes sense here.
[CMXXXII] Al-Bukhari
includes Q 32:23; ‘...so be not in doubt concerning the encounter with him.’
Arberry, Koran, p. 425.
[CMXXXIII] The two
events of the isra ’ (Night Journey) and the micraj
(Ascension) were sometimes combined, and sometimes separated; for a discussion
of these themes, see Nünlist, Himmelfahrt und Heiligkeit.
[CMXXXIV] The
Leiden MS reads, ‘malakarf; fol. 200v., l. 9. Cf. §229 and fol. 199v, l.
28.
[CMXXXV] This
Chapter heading is not given in the DKI edition, but given in the Leiden MS;
fol. 200v, l. 14.
[CMXXXVI] Q 21:104;
Arberry, Koran, p. 331. Jeffrey comments that sijill is only used
of the ‘divine scroll’, whereas sifr is used for earthly books; see
Jeffrey, A., ‘The Qur’an as Scripture’ MW 40 (1950) pp. 41 - 55, p. 47
n4. A similar phrase occurs in Is. 34:4, but here the Hebrew word sëfer
(Ar. sifr) is used; (see BHS, p. 725). There is some debate about
the derivation of sijill, but it is now generally accepted to have been
derived ultimately from the Latin sigullum, and reached Arabic through
Greek, Aramaic, Syriac or Armenian. For a full discussion of its etymology see
Vacca, V., ‘Sidjill ’ EI1 vol. 4, p. 403; de Blois, F. C.,
‘Sidjill - In Kur’anic and Early Arabic Usage’ EI2 vol. 9, p. 538; Ambros, Arne A., with Prochazka, A
Concise Dictionary of Koranic Arabic (Wiesbaden: Reichert Verlag, 2004), p.
129; and Jeffery, Foreign Vocabulary, pp. 163 - 164. Al-Suyuti believed
it to be a foreign word, see al- Suyuti (ed. & tr. William Y. Bell), al-Mutawakkill
(Cairo: Nile Mission Press, 1924) pp. 19 & 41.
[CMXXXVII] The Leiden
MS omits ‘can cAtiyya”; fol. 200v, l. 16.
[CMXXXVIII] Some
exegetes believed that al-Sijill referred to an angel others that it
refers to a scribe of Muhammad, e.g. al-Tabari, Tafslr, vol. 17, pp. 99
- 100. Al-Suyuti also states al-Sijill is an angel in his Itqan, vol. 4,
p. 69.
[CMXXXIX] The
Leiden MS occasionally uses the form Harüt instead of Harüt (e.g.
fol. 200v, ll, 20, 22; 201r, l. 8 etc.) and these instances will not be noted
further.
[CMXL] Al-Sijill
sees a reference to the creation of Adam in the Umm al-Kitab, before God
reveals to the angels his intentions, regarding his creation.
[CMXLI] Q
2:30, Arberry, Koran, p. 5.
[CMXLII] Al-Thaclabi
devotes a whole chapter to Harut and Marut, which provides a useful comparison
for these stories; see al-Thaclabi, QA, pp. 50 - 54; Brinner,
Lives, pp. 86 - 91; al-Kisa’i, QA, pp. 45 - 48; al-Rabghuzi, QA,
Vol .2, pp. 52 - 55; see also al-Qazwini, Aja ’ib, pp. 40 - 41.
[CMXLIII] The
Leiden MS adds: calayhuma al-salam’ fol. 200v, l. 23.
[CMXLIV] Q 2:30,
Arbeny, Koran, p. 5. The DKI edition marks the Qur’anic quotation from ‘in
Adam lamma...' This is an error, the Qur’anic quotation begins at ‘ayy
rabb... ’ Also note that this hadith combines two separate narratives (that
of the creation of Adam and the Harut and Marut narrative). The story of Harut
and Marut is most frequently placed during the lifetime of the Prophet Idris
(e.g. §255). There is a certain disjunction between the image of Harut and
Marut in the Qur’an and Islamic tradition.
[CMXLV] The
Leiden MS adds: li- ‘l-mala ’ika (fol. 200v, l. 28).
[CMXLVI] For a
discussion of the origin of the names Harut and Marut, see Section 2 above.
[CMXLVII] The
hadith in this section present two versions of the same story, firstly that
al-Zuhara was a woman who then became the star/planet Venus and secondly (e.g.
§255) that al-Zuhara / Venus came down from heaven to seduce and test the two
angels. The story is not, however, aetiological.
[CMXLVIII] Al-Zuhara
is associated with Anahid (= Amretatat) in §251, and Anahid was associated with
great beauty: cf. Yast V:78 ‘Ardvi Sûra Anâhita hastened unto him
[Vistaru] in the shape of a maid, fair of body, most strong, tall-formed,
high-girded, pure, nobly born of a glorious race, wearing shoes up to the
ankle, with all sorts of ornaments and radiant.’ For more on Amretatat see
Herzfeld, Ernst, Zoroaster and His World (Princeton: Princeton
University Press, 1947) pp. 356 - 368. In Astrology, Venus is also associated
with beauty, fornication, prostitutes and fermented drinks (among other
things), cf. al-Qabïsï, Abu al-Saqr cAbd al-cAziz ibn cUthman
cAli al-Mawsili (ed. & tr. Charles Burnett &al.), Kitab
al-mudhal ila sinacat ahkam al-nujum (London & Turin: The
Warburg Institute & Nino Aragno Editore, 2004), pp. 74 - 75 and al-Biruni,
Abu ‘l-Rayhan Muhammad ibn Ahmad, Kitab al-tafhlm li-awa’il sincfat
al-tanjim; R. Ramsey Wright, The Book of Instruction in the Elements of
the Art of Astrology (London: Luzac & Co., 1934) pp. 232, 240, 245 and
251.
[CMXLIX] Lit:
Not until you say this word about idolatry.
[CML] al-sabl;
a baby that has not yet been weaned; see Lane, AELex, p. 1650.
[CMLI] The
Qur’an takes a strong position against infanticide, suggesting that it was
common in pre- Islamic Arabic; for a discussion of this theme, see Giladi,
Avner, ‘Some Observations on Infanticide in Medieval Islamic Society’ IJMES
22 (1990) pp. 185 - 200, especially pp. 186 - 188.
[CMLII] Cf.
Q 5:91; ‘Satan only desires to precipitate enmity and hatred between you in
regard to wine and arrow-shuffling, and to bar you from the remembrance of God,
and from prayer.’ Arberry, Koran, p. 114. Although the Harut and Marut
narratives could be appropriate in the passages forbidding the consumption of
wine, the narratives are usually found in the tafslrs of Q 2:102; cf.
al-Tabari, Tafslr, vol. 1, pp. 456 - 459; vol. 2, pp. 356 - 375; and
vol. 7, pp. 32 - 35.
[CMLIII] The
association of sexual immorality was also connected with the pagan worship of
Venus / Aphrodite; cf. Moore, Michael S., ‘Jesus Christ: “Superstar” (Revelation
xxii 16b), NT 24 (1982) pp. 82 - 91, p. 86.
[CMLIV] The
Leiden MS reads qalu for qala (fol. 201r, l. 8); this appears to
be a scribal error.
[CMLV] Q
2:102; Arberry, Koran, p. 12.
[CMLVI] None
of the hadïth in this section actually refer Harut and Marut teaching people
magic, as mentioned in Q 2:101, but are all concerned with the fall of Harut
and Marut. The fall-narratives are often attached to this verse in the
exegetical tradition without much elaboration. Incidentally, a number of
Christian theologians attributed the teaching of Greek philosophy to fallen
angels, see Bauckham, ‘The Fall of the Angels’ and Margoliouth, ‘Harut and
Marut’.
[CMLVII]Al-Hamra’ usually refers to the planet Mars, but in this hadith (as
well as §255) Venus is clearly intended.
[CMLVIII] This
would make more sense if al-Hamra ’ were understood to be the planet
Mars, as Mars (and Jupiter) were traditionally seen as brining bad luck in Near
Eastern astrology. Cf. Reiner, E., Astral Magic in Babylonia
(Philadelphia: The American Philosophical Society, 1995) p. 4 - 7, Jastrow,
Morris, ‘Signs and Names of the Planet Mars’ AJSLL 27 (1910) pp. 64 -
83, Al-Qabïsï, K. al-mudhal, pp. 68 - 69. The planet Venus is not
normally seen as bringing bad luck, but is associated with immorality; this is
probably what cUmar is referring to.
[CMLIX] The
Leiden MS adds ‘fa-ahbata harut wa-marut illa ‘l-ard’ (fol. 201r, l.
l4).
[CMLX] The
Leiden MS omits Allah (fol. 201r, l. 16).
[CMLXI] The
Leiden MS adds ‘al-kalima’ (fol. 201r, l. 18).
[CMLXII] Also
known in Persian as Bidukht; see Mocin, Muhammad (ed.), Lughatnama
(Tehran: Chapkhaneye Daneshgah-e Tehran, 1959 - 1975) Fasc. 87, p. 264 and
Fasc. 174, p. 479.
[CMLXIII] The
Leiden MS reads ‘fa-aradahff (fol. 201r, l. 22); ‘...they wanted
her...’.
[CMLXIV] The
phrase ‘In the name of God, the Greatest’ acts as a password for entering and
leaving heaven.
[CMLXV] The
Leiden MS reads ‘bi-mawtaykumff (fol. 201r, l. 23).
[CMLXVI] The
Leiden MS reads: 'scàat rahmat allah' (fol. 201r, l. 24).
[CMLXVII] The
Leiden MS reads ‘cala ahl al-ard’ (fol. 201r, ll. 28 - 29).
[CMLXVIII] The third
angel is possibly al-Sijill (cf. §247), although this appears to be rare
and most accounts of this story only refer to Harut and Marut being selected.
[CMLXIX] The
could possible be al-Sijill; cf. §247.
[CMLXX] The
Leiden MS omits ‘la-humff (fol. 201v, l. 3).
[CMLXXI] The
Leiden MS reads ‘fa-akhbaraha - ‘it was told to her’ (fol. 201v, l. 5).
[CMLXXII] The
Leiden MS reads ‘wa-cadhab al-akhira (fol. 201v, l. 6).
[CMLXXIII] The text
is a little confused here.
[CMLXXIV] The story
of Harut and Marut is most often placed during the time of Enoch (Idris);
cf. al-Thaclabi, QA, pp. 50 - 54; Brinner, Lives, pp.
86 - 91.
[CMLXXV] Cf. Q
33:32; ‘If you are godfearing, be not abject (takhdacna) in
your speech, so that he in whose heart is sickness may be lustful, but speak
honourable words.’ Arberry, Koran, p. 430; the verb also has a strong
connotation of love, see Lane, AELex, p. 757.
[CMLXXVI] The
Leiden MS reads ‘ghabarff for 'ghaba (fol. 201v, l. 17), ghaba
is more suitable here.
[CMLXXVII] The Leiden
MS reads ‘fa-aradahff (fol. 201v, l. 17) but the dual in the DKI edition
is more suitable.
[CMLXXVIII] The Leiden
MS is missing a portion of the text from ‘fa-facalat mithl
dhalik....fa-aradaha cala nafsihff (fol. 201v, l. 18). This
appears to be a scribal error.
[CMLXXIX] Note the
woman’s avoidance of words such as dhanb etc.; khilal is a
general word, which does not necessarily carry any religious overtones, see
Lane, AELex, p. 780.
[CMLXXX] Khamr
can be both masculine and feminine (see Lane, AELex, pp. 808 - 809).
[CMLXXXI] i.e. a
witness; in §255 the angels kill a man (most likely al-Zuhara’s husband) so
that their crime is not revealed; in other versions (e.g. §248) the two kill a
child.
[CMLXXXII] For the
idiomatic expression, see Lane, AELex, p. 674. This is reminiscent of Q
34:53: ‘And a barrier is set between them and that they desire...’ Arberry, Koran,
p. 443.
[CMLXXXIII] Cf. Q.
50:22; ‘Thou wast heedless of this; therefore We have now removed (fa-kashafna)
from thee they covering (ghita’), and so thy sight today is piercing.’
Arberry, Koran, p. 540.
[CMLXXXIV] The Leiden
MS uses a 2 m. pl. imperative (ikhtaru) for the DKI dual (ikhtara),
fol. 201v, l. 24; the dual is preferable.
[CMLXXXV] Or
‘master’; which could be appropriate in this context.
[CMLXXXVI] The Leiden
MS reads ‘fa-aradaha1 (fol. 202r, l. 2) but the dual in the
DKI edition is more suitable.
[CMLXXXVII] Zoroastrianism
held an unusual place in Islamic theory: ‘Sura XXII, 17 merely lists
[Zoroastrians] along with ahl al-kitab and mushrikun, and it was
eventually decided in Muslim theory that the Madjus were intermediate between ahl
al-kitab and mushrikun since they had no real prophet or revealed
scripture.’ Morony, M., 'Madjus’ EI2 vol. 5, pp. 1110 - 1118,
p. 1110. See also Bürgel, J. Christoph, ‘Zoroastrians as Viewed in Medieval
Islamic Sources’ in Jacques Waardenburg (ed.), Muslim Perceptions of Other
Religions (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999) pp. 202 - 212.
[CMLXXXVIII] Much
has been written on the death penalty for adultery in Islam ftqh; e.g.
Burton, John, ‘The Origin of the Islamic Penalty for Adultery’ TGUOS 26
(1978) pp. 16 - 27 and Burton, John, ‘Law and exegesis: The Penalty for
Adultery in Islam’ in G. R. Hawting & Abdul-Kader A. Shareef (eds.), Approaches
to the Qur’an (London: Routledge, 1993) pp. 269 - 284.
[CMLXXXIX] The Leiden
MS highlights this is red (fol. 202r, l. 12).
[CMXC] Al-Suyûtï’s
father studied with Ibn Hajar, and al-Suyûtï believed that he may have attended
‘the majlis (gathering, here probably a kind of seminar is meant) held
by an old man whose name he had not been able to remember, but he had thought
that it must have been the famous scholar Ibn Hajar al- cAsqalanï.’
Sartain, Al-Suyuti, p. 26. Al-Suyûtï was evidently well acquainted with
his work and considered him one of his teachers.
[CMXCI] Ibn
Hajar uses word play, referring to ‘entrances’ and ‘exits’: the ‘entrances’ are
clearly the chains of transmission, but the ‘exits’ are more vague, perhaps
referring to the sources (i.e. texts and compilations) in which the hadïth are
found.
[CMXCII] The sakina
is mentioned in the Qur’an: 2:248; 9:26, 40; 48:4, 18; see Arberry, Koran,
pp. 35, 182, 184, 531 & 533. There have been a number of studies on this
word: e.g., Goldziher, ‘Notion de la Sakina’. In the Qur’an the sakina
is usually associated with the invisible help which came to the Muslims’ aid in
battle; however in Q 2:248, the sakina carries the Jewish association
with Ark of the Covenant, see Bell, Commentary, vol. 1, p. 52.
[CMXCIII] Note
the masculine, rather than feminine, suffix; this is because the Sakina
is an angel, which is masculine.
[CMXCIV] Q. 18;
Arberry (1998) 288 - 301. Surat al-kahf is recited for protection
against the anti-Christ (al- Dajjal); Massigon also states that the entire sura
is recited every Friday at the congregational prayers ; see Massingon, Louis,
‘Les “Septs Dormants”, Apocalypse de l’Islam’ AB 68 (1949) pp. 245 -
260; cf. Muslim, Sahih, vol. 18, p. 65.
[CMXCV] The sakina
is associated with the recitation of the Qur’an; cf. al-Bukhari, Sahih,
§5011, p. 996; see also Firestone, Reuven, ‘Shekina’ EQ vol. 4, pp. 589
- 591, p. 591.
[CMXCVI] Added
by the Leiden MS; fol. 204r, l. 15.
[CMXCVII] The
Leiden MS reads faras and the DKI hiscur. fol. 204r, l. 16.
[CMXCVIII] This
hadith is quite famous, but here the matn is omits some information; in
the fuller narrative, Usayd tells the Prophet about his experience, asks what
it was and what he should have done; cf. Muslim, Sahih, vol. 5, pp. 82 -
83.
[CMXCIX] Added
in the Leiden MS; fol. 205v, ll. 12 - 14.
[M] Added
in the Leiden MS; fol. 205v, l. 14.
[MI] The
Leiden MS combines §318 & 319 (fol. 205v, l. 15); the DKI edition also
omits akhraja, so this hadith appears to be a continuation of §318.
[MII] For a discussion of these images, see Baidee,
Julie A. D., An Islamic Cosmography: The Illustrations of the Sarre Qazwini
(PhD. Thesis, University of Michigan, 1978).
[MIII] See: Blair, Sheila S., and Bloom, Jonathan M., The
Art and Architecture of Islam: 1250 - 1800 (London: Yale University Press),
p. 246 and Ipçiroglu, Das Bild im Islam, p. 142.
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