STORIES FROM THE QURAN : HARUT AND MARUT; CONCLUDED

Narrated Ibn Jarir: I was told by Muhammad Ibn`Abdel A`la As-San`ani that he was told by Al-Mu`tamir Ibn Sulaiman who said: I heard ` Imran Ibn Jarir who narrated from Abu Majliz as saying: Sulaiman (Peace be upon him) took from every living creature a covenant. So when any person gets afflicted with anything, he (Sulaiman) asks Allah with that covenant and the person recovers. Unfortunately, the people added to this sorcery and magic and said: this is what Sulaiman Ibn Dawud used to act upon. Thereupon, Allah the Almighty revealed His Saying: {They followed what the Shayatin (devils) gave out (falsely of the magic) in the lifetime of Sulaiman (Solomon). Sulaiman did lot disbelieve, but the Shayatin (devils) disbelieved, teaching men magic and such things that came town at Babylon to the two angels, Harut and Marut but neither of these two (angels) taught anyone (such things) till they had said, "We are only for trial, so disbelieve not (by learning this magic from us)." And from these (angels) people earn that by which they cause separation between man and his wife, but they could not thus harm anyone except by Allah's Leave. And they learn that which harms them and profits them not. And indeed they knew that the buyers of it (magic) would have no share in the Hereafter. And how bad indeed was that for which they sold their own selves, if they but knew}.



Narrated Ibn Abu Hatim: I was told by `Isam Ibn Rawwad after Adam after Al-Mas`udi after Ziyad the freed slave of Ibn Mus` ab after Al-Hasan pertaining to Allah's Statement: {They followed what the Shayatin (devils) gave out (falsely of the magic) in the lifetime of Sulaiman (Solomon)}, as saying: one-third of poetry, one-third of sorcery (magic), and one-third of soothsaying. And, he said: I was told by AI-Hasan Ibn Ahmed after Ibrahim Ibn `Abdullah Ibn Bshshar Al-Wasiti after Surur Ibn Al-Mughirah after `Abbad Ibn Mansur after Al-Hasan pertaining to Allah's Statement: {They followed what the Shayatin (devils) gave out (falsely of the magic) in the lifetime of Sulaiman (Solomon)}, as saying: they were the Jews who followed what they gave out in the lifetime of Sulaiman (Peace be upon him). Prior to that the people knew sorcery, but it was only followed in the lifetime of Sulaiman.

That was a summary of the sayings and narrations of the godly earlier scholars concerning this and it is obvious that there is no clear contradiction between any of them, may Allah guide us all to the Right and Straight Path of His!

Allah's Statement: {They followed what the Shayatin (devils) gave out (falsely of the magic) in the lifetime of Sulaiman (Solomon)}, i.e. the Jews ­who were given an earlier Divine Scripture -gave their backs to it and rejected Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) and followed {what the Shayatin (devils) gave out (falsely of the magic)},what the Shayatin (devils) gave out (falsely of the magic), i.e. what was narrated and related by the devils {in the lifetime of Sulaiman (Solomon)}.

It is true that magic existed before the time of Sulaiman Ibn Dawud (Peace be upon them) because magicians were found in the lifetime of Musa (Moses) (Peace be upon him) and that Sulaiman came after Musa (Peace be upon them both). Allah the Almighty says: {Have you not thought about the group of the Children of Israel after (the time of) Musa (Moses)? When they said to a Prophet of theirs, "Appoint for us a king and we will fight in Allah's Way." He said, "Would you then refrain from fighting, if fighting was prescribed for you?" They said, "Why should we not fight in Allah's Way while we have been driven out of our homes and our children (families have been taken as captives)?" But when fighting was ordered for them, they turned away, all except a few of them. And Allah is All-Aware of the Zalimun (polytheists and wrong-doers)}. (Al-Baqarah, 246) then, Allah mentioned the story in which, {and Dawud (David) killed Jalut (Goliath), and Allah gave him [Dawud (David)] the kingdom [after the death of Talut (Saul) and Samuel] and Al-Hikmah (Prophethood), and taught him of that which He willed}. (Al-Baqarah, 251) and, the people of Salih who existed before Ibrahim (Peace be upon him) said to their Prophet Salih: {You are only of those bewitched!}. (Ash-Shu' ara', 153)

Allah the Almighty says: {and such things that came down at Babylon to the two angels, Harut and Marut but neither of these two (angels) taught anyone (such things) till they had said, "We are only for trial, so disbelieve not (by learning this magic from us)." And from these (angels) people learn that by which they cause separation between man and his wife), i.e. the Jew falsely claimed that Allah Almighty revealed magic on the tongues of Gabriel and Michael to Sulaiman Ibn Dawud, but Allah belied them and showed their falsehood. Moreover, Allah informed His Messenger Muhammad (Peace be upon him) that neither Gabriel, nor Michael has descended with magic and He declared the innocence of Sulaiman (Peace be upon him) from sorcery and black magic. Allah told the whole people that magic is nothing but the work of devils who teach it to the people in Babylon. And, that the two men who used to teach it to the people there were called Harut and Marut.

The Related Hadith

(And Comments)

Narrated Imam Ahmed (May Allah rest his soul) in his Musnad: I was told by Yahya Ibn Bakir after Zuhair Ibn Muhammad after Musa Ibn Iubair after Nafi after `Abdullah Ibn `Umar (May Allah be pleased with them) that he heard Allah's Messenger (Peace be upon him) as saying: "When Adam (Peace be upon him) was put down on earth, the angels said: 0 Lord! {Will You place therein those who will make mischief therein and shed blood, -while we glorify You with praises and thanks and sanctify You}. (Al-Baqarah, 30) They continued: Our Lord! We obey You more than man does. Allah the Almighty said to them: Appoint two angels from amongst you to descend to earth. The angels said: Our Lord! (We chose) Harut and Marut. They went down to earth where the flower appeared to them in the form of the most beautiful woman on earth. They asked her to have sexual intercourse with them. But, she said: only after you disbelieve in Allah. They refused and she went away for a while. Then, she came back holding a child in her arms and they asked her for the second time. She said: first, you must kill this boy. They refused to and she went away for a while and then, came back holding a glass of wine. They asked her for the third time. She said: First, you must drink this glass of wine. They drank the wine, committed adultery with her and finally killed the boy. When they restored their conscience, the woman said: By Allah! After you had drunk the wine, you committed all that which you refused to do at first. Thereupon, they were given the choice between receiving the torment of this like or that of the Hereafter. They' chose that of the present life."

(Narrated by Imam Ahmed) The same was narrated by Abu Hatim Ibn Hibban in his Sahih after Al-Hasan after Sufyan after Abu Bakr Ibn Abu Shaibah after Yahya Ibn Bakir. However, this Hadith is an Unfamiliar[2] one from this Chain of Transmission.

[2] The Unfamiliar Hadith: That is narrated only by one narrator even if he were in one class. Many scholars name the Unfamiliar Hadith as (the Single). (Translator)

All its narrators are trustworthy but the one named Musa Ibn Iubair.

Very Important:

Many scholars and transmitters narrated various stories and narrations pertaining to the story of Harut and Marut, but all the details they mentioned could be traced down to the narrations made by the Children of Israel. However, there is not a single Hadith or Narration that can be traced down to Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him), the infallible one who says nothing but the truth. In addition, the text of the Glorious Qur'an does not relate this story in details, and thus we believe in what is mentioned in the Glorious Qur'an as it is without any increase or decrease. Finally, Allah knows best!

Allah Almighty says: {But neither of these two taught anyone (such things) till they had said, "We are only for trial, so disbelieve not (by learning this magic from us) "}, Ibn 'Abbas (May Allah be pleased with him) said: they used to warn anyone who came to them to learn magic and say to him: {We are only for trial, so disbelieve not (by learning this magic from us)}, that they knew what is good, bad, belief and disbelief and thus they knew that magic is of disbelief. Ibn 'Abbas (May Allah be pleased with him) continued: if they could not dissuade him, they told him to go to such and such place. There he could find Satan who teaches him. The same time one is taught magic, his belief (symbolized as light) gets out of his body and he could see it flying away in the sky. Upon this, he would say: woe to me! In addition: Al-Hasan Al-Basri said: the two angels were sent with magic to teach the people as a test for them and Allah took their covenant that they do not teach anybody {till they had said, "We are only for trial, so disbelieve not (by learning this magic from us)"}. (Narrated by Ibn Abu Hatim)

Narrated Qatadah: The Covenant was taken from them that they don't teach anyone till they say: {We are only for trial, so disbelieve not (by learning this magic from us)}. Moreover, As-Sadiy said: they used to warn anyone who came to them to learn magic and say to him: {We are only for trial, so disbelieve not (by learning this magic from us)}. But, if he insisted, they would say: Go to that pile of ashes and "squeeze the lemon thereon". If the man goes and does what he was ordered, he would see a light coming out of that ashes and flies till it reaches the sky -verily, this is belief. Instead, there would come a black object that would look like smokes and enters his ears and the whole of his body -verily, this is Allah's Wrath. After that, the man tells them of what happened and they consequently teaches him magic. This is the interpretation of Allah's Saying: {But neither of these two (angels) taught anyone (such things) till they had said, "We are only for trial, so disbelieve not (by learning this magic from us)." And from these (angels) people learn that by which they cause separation between man and his wife, but they could not thus harm anyone except by Allah's Leave. And they learn that which harms them and profits them not. And indeed they knew that the buyers of it (magic) would have no share in the Hereafter. And how bad indeed was that for which they sold their own selves, if they but knew}.


In the interpretation of this Qur'anic Verse, Sunaid Ibn Hajjaj narrates after Ibn Juraij his saying: there is no one who practices magic but a disbeliever. As for the word "trial", it means a test and an ordeal. Some scholars found a textual proof in this Verse that whosoever practices magic; he becomes a disbeliever. This is supported by the Prophetic Hadith that has been narrated by Al-Hafiz Abu Bakr Al-Bazzar after Muhammad Ibn Al-Muthanna after Mu'awiyah after Al-A'mash after Ibrahim after Hammam on the authority of 'Abdullah as saying: "Whosoever attends himself to (or comes to) a soothsayer or a magician and believes in what he says: he will become a disbeliever in what has been sent to Muhammad (Peace be upon him) ". (An Authentic Hadith)

Allah the Almighty says: {And from these (angels) people learn that by which they cause separation between man and his wife}, i.e. the people learns from Harut and Marut the magic by which they cause separation between man and his wife though they (the man and his wife) have some kind of affinity and passion. This is caused by cunning of the devils as transmitted in Imam Muslim's Sahih from the Hadith narrated by Jabir Ibn
'Abdullah that the Prophet (Peace be upon him) says: "Iblis places his throne upon water; he then sends detachments (for creating dissension); the nearer to him in rank are those who are most notorious in creating dissension. One of them comes and says: I did so and so. And he says: You have done nothing. Then one amongst them comes and says: I did not spare so and so until I sowed the seed of discord between a husband and a wife. The Satan goes near him and says: 'You have done well. "Al-A'mash said: "He then embraces him." The dissension between a husband and his wife can be created through magic in that the devil let each one of them imagine something bad -a view, or manner, etc. -about the other.

Allah the Almighty says: {But they could not thus harm anyone except by Allah's Leave}, Abu Sufyan Ath-Thawri said: they could not thus harm anyone except by Allah's Decree. In addition, Muhammad Ibn Ishaq said: they could not thus harm anyone except in case Allah enables them to do so.

Al-Hasan Al-Basri (May Allah be pleased with him) said: {But they could not thus harm anyone except by Allah's Leave}, i.e. whomsoever Allah wants to be affected, he will be affected. And, whomsoever Allah does not want to be affected, he will not be affected. In addition, they cannot harm anyone except by Allah's Leave and Decree.

Allah the Almighty says: {And they learn that which harms them and profits them not}, i.e. they learn that which harms their religion and faith and profits them not. Allah says: {And indeed they knew that the buyers of it (magic) would have no share in the Hereafter}, i.e. the Jews who took magic instead of following Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) knew that anyone who did as what they have done, he would have not share in the Hereafter. Allah Almighty says: {And how bad indeed was that for which they sold their own selves, if they but knew. And if they had believed and guarded themselves from evil and kept their duty to Allah, far better would have been the reward from their Lord, if they but knew!}, that they took magic instead of following Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him), {And if they had believed and guarded themselves from evil and kept their duty to Allah, far better would have been the reward from their Lord} , i. e. if they had believed in Allah and His Messengers and did not violate His Boundaries, they would have received a far better reward from Allah Almighty. This is compatible with Allah's Saying that reads: {But those who had been given (religious) knowledge said: "Woe to you! The Reward of Allah (in the Hereafter) is better for those who believe and do righteous good deeds, and this none shall attain except those who are As­ Sabirun (the patient in following the truth) "}. (Al-Qasas, 80)

Some scholars found textual proof that a magician is a disbeliever in the Qur'anic Verse that reads: {And if they had believed and guarded themselves from evil and kept their duty to Allah}. Other scholars viewed that a magician is not a disbeliever, but his neck must be cut off. `Amr Ibn Dianr narrated from Bajabla Ibn `Abdah as saying: `Umar Ibn Al-Khattab ordered every magician and witch to be killed. Thereupon, they killed three witches. In addition, it is true that the Mother of the Faithful, Hafsah was bewitched by a maid. Consequently, Hafsah ordered that she had to be killed. Moreover, Imam Ahmed Ibn Hanbal said: it was transmitted from three of the Prophet's Companions that a magician must be killed. Besides, At-Tirmidhi narrated from Isma'il Ibn Muslim after Al-Hasan after Jundub Al-Azdi as saying: Allah's Messenger (Peace be upon him) says: "The Prescribed Penalty set for a magician is a blow with the sword."

It was narrated that Al-Walid Ibn 'Uqbah had a magician who used to make shows before him. He used to cut off a man's head, then calls it to get back to its proper place. The people said: Glory be to Allah! The magician revives the dead. However, a man from the pious migrants saw him and intended something. The next day he came and cut the magician's head and said: if he is truthful, he can revive himself! And, he recited Allah's Statement that reads: {Will you submit to magic while you see it}. (Al-Anbiya', 4) Consequently, Al-Walid raged because the migrant did not ask for his permission first (to kill the magician), he imprisoned him for a while, then set him free. Allah knows best!

Imam Abu Bakr Al-Khallal said: One of the princes used to have a magician who makes shows of his magic and one day Jundub came and killed him saying: I believe he was a magician.