Can we see the jinn? Do they have a real form?

Praise be to Allaah.

The question is composed of two parts.

1 – Do the jinn appear in human form?

2 – Do the jinn have a real form?

With regard to the first question, it may be said:

Firstly: it should be noted that the basic principle concerning the jinn is that they are concealed from mankind, hence they are called jinn, because the Arabic root janna refers to a single original meaning which is to cover and conceal, as Ibn Faaris said in Maqaayees al-Lughah. The jinn are so called because they are concealed from mankind, and the foetus is called janeen in Arabic because he is concealed in his mother’s womb, and a garden is called jannah because it is concealed by trees, and an insane person is called majnoon because his mind is covered, and so on in all derivations from this root.

Allaah has told us of this when He said (interpretation of the meaning):

“O Children of Adam! Let not Shaytaan (Satan) deceive you, as he got your parents [Adam and Hawwaa’ (Eve)] out of Paradise, stripping them of their raiments, to show them their private parts. Verily, he and Qabeeluhu (his soldiers from the jinn or his tribe) see you from where you cannot see them”

[al-A’raaf 7:27]

Secondly: can they appear in human form?
The answer to that is that it is proven in the Sunnah and from real life that the jinn appear in different forms, such as the forms of people and animals, etc. Among the clearest evidence of that from the Sunnah is the story narrated by al-Bukhaari (3275) from Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him) who said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) put me in charge of guarding the zakaah of Ramadaan. Someone came to me and started scooping up some of the food, and I said, “By Allaah, I will take you to the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him).” He complained of being in need and having dependents, so Abu Hurayrah took pity on him and let him go. This happened three times, and on the third occasion, Abu Hurayrah said: “I will take you to the Messenger of Allaah. This is the third time and each time you say that you will not come back, then you come back.” He said, “Let me go and I will teach you something by means of which Allaah will benefit you.” I said: “What is it?” he said: “When you go to bed, recite Aayat al-Kursi, ‘Allaah! Laa ilaaha illa Huwa (none has the right to be worshipped but He), Al-Hayyul-Qayyoom (the Ever Living, the One Who sustains and protects all that exists)…’ [al-Baqarah 2:255] until you complete the verse, then you will always have a protector from Allaah, and no devil will come near you until morning comes. So I let him go, and the next morning I told the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) what had happened. The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “He told you the truth, although he is a liar. Do you know who you have been speaking to for three nights, O Abu Hurayrah?” He said: “No.” He said: “That was a devil (a shaytaan).”

Al-Haafiz ibn Hajar said in al-Fath: This hadeeth teaches us a number of things… that one of the characteristics of the Shaytaan is lying, and that he may appear in various forms that may be seen, and that the words of Allaah, “Verily, he and Qabeeluhu (his soldiers from the jinn or his tribe) see you from where you cannot see them” [al-A’raaf 7:27], apply to when he is in the form with which he was created.

It was narrated that the Shaytaan appeared to Quraysh in the form of Suraaqah ibn Maalik ibn Ju’sham and encouraged them to fight the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). That happened during the battle of Badr. Ibn Jareer al-Tabari narrated in his Tafseer (12564) that ‘Urwah ibn al-Zubayr said:

When Quraysh decided to march, mention was made of what was between them and Bani Bakr – i.e., war – and that almost made them change their minds. Then Iblees appeared to them in the form of Suraaqah ibn Ju’sham al-Madlaji, who was one of the nobles of Banu Kinaanah, and said: “I will protect you against Kinaanah so that Kinaanah will not be able to do you any harm.” So they went ahead with their plan. This was also quoted by Ibn Katheer in al-Bidaayah wa’l-Nihaayah, 5/62.

In Saheeh Muslim (2236) it is narrated that Abu Sa’eed al-Khudri (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: I heard the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) say: “In Madeenah there is a group of the jinn who have become Muslim, so whoever sees any of these creatures let him give it a warning three times, then if it appears after that he may kill it, for it is a devil.”

The word translated as “creatures” here refers to kinds of snakes that appear in houses; they are not to be killed until they have been given a warning three times, because they may be jinn. See Ghareeb al-Hadeeth by Ibn al-Atheer.

Al-Nawawi said: What this means is that if they do not disappear after being warned, then they are not the kind of creatures that inhabit houses and they are not among the jinn who have become Muslim, rather that is a devil so there is no sin on you if you kill it and Allaah will never give the Shaytaan a way to prevail over you by taking revenge, unlike the creatures (snakes) and jinn who have become Muslim. And Allaah knows best. Sharh Muslim, 14/236.

There have been many such incidents. Shaykh al-Islam (Ibn Taymiyah) said: The jinn may appear in human and animal form, so they may appear as snakes and scorpions etc, or in the form of camels, cattle, sheep, horses, mules and donkeys, or in the form of birds, or in the form of humans, as the Shaytaan came to Quraysh in the form of Suraaqah ibn Maalik ibn Ju’sham when they wanted to set out for Badr. Majmoo’ al-Fataawa, 19/44.

Thirdly: The jinn have led many people astray by appearing in the forms of awliya’ (“saints”) and righteous people etc. Shaykh al-Islam said: The Shaytaan often appears in the form of the person who is being called upon and asked for help, if he is dead or sometimes if he is alive, without the person who called upon him realizing it. Indeed the Shaytaan may appear in his form and the misguided mushrik who is seeking that person’s help may think that the person himself has responded to him when in fact it is the Shaytaan. This also happens to the kuffaar who seek the help of those of whom they think well, whether they are dead or alive, such as the Christians who seek the help of George or others of their saints, and it happens to those so-called Muslims who commit shirk and follow misguidance by seeking the help of those who are dead or absent. The Shaytaan appears to them in the form of the one upon whom they call, without him realizing that… More than one person has told me that they sought my help, and each of them told me a different story. I told each one of them that I did not answer any one of them and I did not know that they were seeking my help. It was said that this was an angel, but I said: Angels do not help mushriks, rather that was a devil who wanted to misguide him.

Majmoo’ al-Fataawa, 19/47-48.

One of the greatest ways in which a Muslim may seek help against the devils is to “fortify” himself with adhkaar and reciting Aayat al-Kursiy, as stated in the hadeeth of Abu Hurayrah quoted above