Seadet-i Ebediyye - Endless Bliss Third Fascicle

‘’alaihimussalâm’ and Awliyâ saw Satan and spoke with him. No
matter in what guise, if the person who sees a genie looks at him
all the time, the genie cannot change his guise, nor can he
disappear. He can ask him questions and get the answers. But if he
looks elsewhere for a moment, the genie returns to his own guise
and disappears. Imâm-i Shâfi’î ‘rahmatullâhi ’alaih’ said: “A
person who claims to have seen a genie in his own appearance is
not acceptable as a witness.” For, people with strong imaginations
imagine seeing things that do not exist. They think of illusions as
something. Also, bewitched people see such illusions and think of
them as objects. Ugly things seem beautiful to fanciful people.
Their ugly sides do not appear to them. Likewise, everything
worldly seems so to those who are fond of the world. Ugliness
seems beautiful to them. But people who are vigilant, keen-sighted
see the truth of everything and do not get deceived.
Man’s knowing genies or making friends with them is not
something valuable, and it is harmful. Speaking with them is like
making friends with sinners. Not a single person who has known
them has benefited from them. Muhyiddîn-i ’Arabî ‘quddîsa
sirruh’ says in the fifty-first chapter of his book Futûhât: ‘Not a
single person has acquired any information concerning Allâhu
ta’âlâ from genies. For, genies have very little religious knowledge.
A person who thinks of acquiring worldly knowledge from them is
wrong, too. For, they will cause him to waste his time on useless
things. People who make friends with them become arrogant. And
Allâhu ta’âlâ dislikes an arrogant person.” ’Abdulghafûr-i Lârî,
the Khalîfa of Hadrat Molla Jâmî, says in Rashahât that
Muhyiddîn-i ’Arabî said as follows in one of his booklets: “The
first father of the genies is not Iblis [Satan]. Satan is from a tribe of
genies. Genies are very fine because they are created from fire and
air. They act fast. When man strikes at them slightly, they die
immediately. For this reason, their lives are short. Their religious
knowledge is quite limited. Because they are arrogant, they always
fight among themselves. They are not affected by fire. Genies who
will go to Hell will be tormented in Zamharîr, which is the cold
Hell. Iblîs and his children will inspire you to do right, blessed
deeds, too. But when doing these there will be hypocrisy,
ostentation in your nafs, or they will cause you to miss the fard
(obligatory) actions, thus making you sinful.” We should not have
the fancy to make an acquaintance with genies, but we should try
to benefit from the exalted souls of Awliyâ. The souls of Awliyâ,
without being seen or by appearing in their own figures, are useful
– 143 –