haji
lala
amira el-zein. Islam, Arabs, and the Intelligent World of the Jinn. Syracuse, NewThe present volume surveys both the historical and the mod-
ern role of jinn in the Muslim (and to a large extent Sufi) view of the uni-
verse, in which there is constant renewal of the universe by the Creator and
a fusion of the mental and physical realms. In this context, the jinn are the
bridge between the seen and unseen worlds, constantly reminding humans
that physical reality is not the only reality.
To understand this world of the jinn, one must understand the traditional
Islamic hierarchical view of the cosmos, in which the universe is composed
of three realms: the celestial realm, the intermediate or imaginal realm, and
the terrestrial or material realm of human existence. The jinn occupy the
intermediate or sublunary realm, and while they cannot trespass into the
celestial realm above them (the realm of angels), they can operate in the
terrestrial realm. Jinn are usually invisible, but can be invested with a physical
corporeality, often taking the forms of animals or even humans. There could
in fact be love affairs between humans and jinn, and the author devotes an
entire chapter to this fascinating topic.
York: Syracuse University Press, 2009. Pp. xxiii 215.