Children of the Black Flame

Wouldn’t it be wonderful to have a genie of your very own? You could order it to clean your house, bring you all the latest computer games, do your income tax . . .

Oops! You’d better think twice before unsealing that mysterious old bottle or rubbing that lamp. Not all genies are friendly and helpful. The ancient people of Egypt, Turkey and North Africa believed that they were the source of sickness, accidents, and natural disasters.

The genie in Aladdin’s lamp was one of the ancient race of the “jinn”, powerful spirits who were created from a black smokeless fire thousands of years before humans. The male is called a “jinni”; the female is a “jinniyah”. Jinn are lower than the angels: they need food and drink, and can be killed. Like humans, they mate, form communities, and have free will to choose good or evil.

There are five orders of jinn: Marid, Efrit, Shaitan, Jinn and Jann. The Marid are the most powerful, and the Jann are the weakest. Jinn can assume human or animal forms, pass through solid walls, and even visit the lower heavens to overhear the conversations of angels. Some people believe that jinn built the pyramids and King Solomon’s magnificent temple.

They are usually invisible to humans. When they reveal themselves, they appear as a cloud or pillar of smoke which condenses to a solid form. Whirlwinds of sand in the desert are believed to be fleeing jinn.

They live everywhere: in stones, trees, ruined houses, water cisterns, rivers, wells and crossroads. They are easily offended and delight in punishing humans for real or imagined wrongdoing. They throw bricks from roofs and windows, kidnap beautiful women, and pilfer provisions. Someone who moves into an abandoned house may experience many problems from the jinn who have made it their home.

Sometimes, humans have received favours from jinn in exchange for flattery and worshipful admiration. The seal of Solomon can be used to imprison jinn in a container such as a bottle or chest. With the proper magical spells, they can be forced to serve a master.

If you are lucky enough to persuade a jinni or jinniyah
to grant you a wish, be careful what you ask for! You may not get exactly what you expected.