Samūm

Samūm (Arabic: سموم‎ also spelled Simoom or Semum; from the root س م م s-m-m, سم "to poison") is a Quranic term referring to infernal heat and in Extra-Quranic accounts, also to a kind of demon. In Quran 56:42 the tormenting fires of Jahannam are called samūm and it is also mentioned in Quran 15:26 as the origin of Jann. In non-Arabic Qur'anic translations, the term is often translated with "scorching fire" or "scorching winds", because apart from its Islamic usage, samūm also refers to a hot, dusty desert wind.[1][2] Both terms may be linguistically related to Samael[3], an Archangel in Talmudic and post-Talmudic literature, who envied humanity and in charge of destructive demons, similar to the Islamic legends about demons created from samūm, envying Adam.

Material of samūm

Tabari offers many interpretations for the nature of samūm. In one interpretation he provides, samūm is "hot wind which kills" and in another "the flame of the fire of the hot wind" and yet in another he relates it to "night-wind" in opposition to harur (day-wind). Further he states, some hold samūm to be the hell-fire (nar jahannama). On the authority of Abu Ubaidah, samūm is the fire that "penetrates the pores due to its fineness in the day-time as well as at night". Abu Sãlih is reported as saying that samūm is smokeless fire located between the heavens and the veil. According to Ibn Abbas, the samūm is "the worst hot fire which kills". On the authority of 'Amir ibn Dinar, samūm is the fire of the sun.[4] According to Ibn Kathir, samūm is the "flame of the fire", which is "the best fire".

Demon samūm

In one narration, the samūm is a sapient creature, which stayed loyal to God until the creation of Adam. Afterthat, they envied mankind and their ardor turned into hatred, therefore they were cast away from God's mercy. Satan, who also disaproved the creation of mankind, became their leader and the samūms his most loyal servants.[5]

Tabari recorded a similar story authorized by Ibn Abbas, that a pre-adamitic creature was once loyal to God and subordinative to Iblis, and fought against the Jinn. But after God created humanity, they envied the new creation and became demons. However Tabari called these demons Hinn instead of "samūm". But depicted "samūm" as their origin in contrast to the Jinn, who were created from smokeless fire.[6]

Furthermore, some legends relate "samūm" to the mother of demons, created by God as a wife for Iblis, after the latter was banished from heaven.[7]

The 2008 Turkish horror film Semum is about "samūm", allegedly based on different independently narrations about possessed people, claiming to encountered a samūm.[8]

See also

References

  1. ↑ John Penrice A Dictionary and Glossary of the Koran: With Grammatical References and Explanations of the Text Biblo & Tannen Publishers 1969 ISBN 978-0-819-60252-7 page 72
  2. ↑ Rashid al-Din Rashid al-Din's History of India: Collected Essays with Facsimiles and Indices Walter de Gruyter 1965 ISBN 978-3-111-71602-2
  3. ↑ John Hamilton Warrack, John Warrack Carl Maria Von Weber CUP Archive 1976 ISBN 978-0-521-29121-7 page 214
  4. ↑ Egdunas Racius ISLAMIC EXEGESIS ON THE JINN: THEIR ORIGIN, KINDS AND SUBSTANCE AND THEIR RELATION TO OTHER BEINGS pp. 133
  5. ↑ https://www.mailce.com/semum-nedir.html (turkish)
  6. ↑ Mahmoud M. Ayoub The Qur'an and Its Interpreters: Surah 1 and 2 Islamic Book Trust 2012 ISBN 978-9-675-06290-2 page 74
  7. ↑ Patrick Hughes, Thomas Patrick Hughes Dictionary of Islam Asian Educational Services 1995 ISBN 978-8-120-60672-2 p. 137
  8. ↑ Gönül Dönmez-Colin The Routledge Dictionary of Turkish Cinema Routledge 2013 ISBN 978-1-317-93726-5 page 130
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