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Computer recreation of the lost city of Ubar
Jinn and the City of the Pillars
(1) Supernatural Spirits
A Jinni (or genie, plural Jin)
"in Arabic mythology was a supernatural spirit below the level of angels and devils. Ghul (treacherous spirits of changing shape), 'ifrit (diabolic, evil spirits), and si'la (treacherous spirits of invariable form) constitute classes of jinn.
"Jinn are beings of flame or air who are capable of assuming human or animal form and are said to dwell in all conceivable inanimate objects--stones, trees, ruins--underneath the earth, in the air, and in fire. They possess the bodily needs of human beings and can even be killed, but they are free from all physical restraints."
- Encyclopaedia Britannica
"The Semitic belief in genii and in spirits which cause good or evil is well known, and traces of it are to be found in the Bible. Thus the pestilence which devastated Israel for David's sin in numbering the people is attributed to an angel whom David is said to have actually seen (II K., xxiv, 15-17), and more explicitly, I Par., xxi, 14-18). "
- Hugh Pope, The Catholic Encyclopedia
"So the LORD sent a plague on Israel, and seventy thousand men of Israel fell dead. And God sent an angel to destroy Jerusalem. But as the angel was doing so, the LORD saw it and was grieved because of the calamity and said to the angel who was destroying the people, "Enough! Withdraw your hand." The angel of the LORD was then standing at the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. David looked up and saw the angel of the LORD standing between heaven and earth, with a drawn sword in his hand extended over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders, clothed in sackcloth, fell facedown."
- 1 Chronicles 21:14-16
"Even the wind rustling in the tree-tops was regarded as an angel (II K., v, 23, 24; I Par., xiv, 14, 15). This is more explicitly stated with regard to the pool of Probatica (John, v, 1-4), though these is some doubt about the text; in that passage the disturbance of the water is said to be due to the periodic visits of an angel."
- Hugh Pope, The Catholic Encyclopedia
(The portions in italic appear in some less important manuscripts.)"Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades. Here a great number of disabled people used to lie--the blind, the lame, the paralyzed --and they waited for the moving of the waters. From time to time an angel of the Lord would come down and stir up the waters. The first one into the pool after each such disturbance would be cured of whatever disease he had."
- John 5:2-4
The prototype of the Jinn are desert whirlwinds, so common to Arabia. The whirling Jinn served as a warning not to enter the trackless expanse of the empty quarter.
"Jinn delight in punishing humans for any harm done them, intentionally or unintentionally, and are said to be responsible for many diseases and all kinds of accidents; however, those human beings knowing the proper magical procedure can exploit the jinn to their advantage."
"Belief in jinn was common in early Arabia, where they were thought to inspire poets and soothsayers. Even Muhammad originally feared that his revelations might be the work of jinn. Their existence was further acknowledged in official Islam, which indicated that they, like human beings, would have to face eventual salvation or damnation. Jinn, especially through their association with magic, have always been favourite figures in North African, Egyptian, Syrian, Persian, and Turkish folklore and are the centre of an immense popular literature, appearing notably in The Thousand and One Nights. In India and Indonesia they have entered local Muslim imaginations by way of the Qur'anic descriptions and Arabic literature."
- Encyclopaedia Britannica
"Jinn were powerful creatures of Arab myth. The Jinn, according to legend, came down from heaven (the sky) in the time before Adam. Therefore, they pre-exist mankind and thus called 'Preadamites'. 'Infidel pagans' worship these incredibly powerful beings. The Jinn can 'beget young on mankind'. The Jinn are usually invisible to normal men. They apparently want great influence on Earth. Much of the magick used in Arab countries concerns the Jinn (protection spells against, or spells to call them up)."
"In A Dictionary of Islam Jinn are said to have come the Earth ages before man existed. They were the first of Earth's masters. They built huge cities whose ruins still stand in forgotten places. Aeons later many Jinn were forced to flee Earth while other were imprisoned. Still others roam desolate places to this day. The Jinn are said to be invisible to normal men. They are, however able to interbreed with humans but the human parent may suffer when the dark offspring is born (shades of the "Dunwich Horror"). The Jinn will, according to legend survive mankind (the last of Earth's masters?)"
- Parker Ryan, "The Necronomicon and Ancient Arab Magick"
"Ifrit, also spelled AFREET, AFRIT, AFRITE, or EFREET, Arabic (male) 'IFRIT, or (female) 'IFRITAH, in Islamic mythology, a class of infernal jinn (spirits below the level of angels and devils) noted for their strength and cunning. An ifrit is an enormous winged creature of smoke, either male or female, who lives underground and frequents ruins. Ifrits live in a society structured along ancient Arab tribal lines, complete with kings, tribes, and clans. They generally marry one another, but they can also marry humans. While ordinary weapons and forces have no power over them, they are susceptible to magic, which humans can use to kill them or to capture and enslave them. As with the jinn, an ifrit may be either a believer or an unbeliever, good or evil, but he is most often depicted as a wicked and ruthless being.
"The rare appearance of the term ifrit in the Qur'an (the sacred scripture of Islam) and in Hadith (eyewitness narratives recounting Muhammad's words, actions, or approbations) is always in the phrase ' the ifrit of the jinn' and probably means ' rebellious.' The word subsequently came to refer to an entire class of formidable, rebellious beings, but, in the confused world of chthonic (underworld) spirits, it was difficult to differentiate one from another. The ifrit thus became virtually indistinguishable from the marid, also a wicked and rebellious demon."
- Encyclopaedia Britannica
(2) The Lost City
"...It is the common view of the Fathers that by 'the prince of the Kingdom of the Persians' (Dan. x, 13; x, 21) we are to understand the angel to whom was entrusted the spiritual care of that kingdom, and we may perhaps see in the 'man of Macedonia' who appeared to St. Paul at Troas, the guardian angel of that country (Acts. xvi, 9). "
- Hugh Pope, The Catholic Encyclopedia
"During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, 'Come over to Macedonia and help us.'"
- Acts 16:9
"...The Bible certainly sanctions the idea of certain angels being in charge of special districts (cf. Dan. x, and above). This belief persists in a debased form in the Arab notion of Genii, or Jinns, who haunt particular spots. A reference to it is perhaps to be found in Gen. xxxii, 1,2: 'Jacob also went on the journey he had begun: and the angels of God met him: And when he saw then he said: These are the camps of God, and he called the name of that place Mahanaim, that is, "Camps.'"' Recent explorations in the Arab district about Petra have revealed certain precincts marked off with stones as the abiding-laces of angels, and the nomad tribes frequent them for prayer and sacrifice. These places bear a name which corresponds exactly with the 'Mahanaim' of the above passage in Genesis (cf. Lagrange, Religions Semitques, 184, and Robertson Smith, Religion of the Semites, 445). Jacob's vision at Bethel (Gen. xxviii, 12) may perhaps come under the same category."
- Hugh Pope, The Catholic Encyclopedia
"He had a dream in which he saw a stairway [or ladder] resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it."
- Genesis 28:12
"Irem is very important to Arab magick. 'Irem Zhat al Imad' (Irem of the Pillars) is the city's name in Arabic. It is popularly believed by the Arabs that Irem was built by the Jinn under the direction of Shaddad, Lord of the tribe of Ad. The tribe of Ad, according to legend, was a race roughly equivalent to the Hebrew 'Nephilim' (giants). In some versions of this myth Shaddad and the Jinn built Irem before the time of Adam. The Muqarribun (Arab magicians) have important beliefs about Irem and it's significance. The Muqarribun, whose traditions predate Islam, believe that Irem is a locale on another level of reality, rather than a physical city like NY or Tokyo. The 'Pillars' in 'Irem of the Pillars' has a hidden meaning. Among Arab mystics pillar is a code name for 'elder' or 'old one'. Thus 'Irem of the Pillars' is really 'Irem of the Old Ones'."
"In Arab legend Irem is located in the Rub al Khali...To the Muqarribun, the Rub al Khali also has a 'hidden' meaning (incidentally the art of encoding and decoding 'hidden' meanings in Arab mystical or magickal writing is called Tawil). Rub al Khali translates as 'the empty Quarter'. In this case empty refers to the VOID and is the same as AIN in the Cabalistic traditions. Rub al Khali is the 'secret' door to the Void in Arab magickal traditions. It is the exact Arab equivalent to DAATH in the Kabbalah. To the Muqarribun the Rub al Khali is the secret gate (Daath) to the Void (Ain) in which is the 'city of the Old Ones'."
- Parker Ryan, "The Necronomicon and Ancient Arab Magick"
Modern archaeologists have identified ruins at Shisha, Oman as those of Irem, better known as the lost city of Ubar. This was a fortress city not of "pillars" but "towers" (which is the same word in Arabic). It served to protect the caravans traveling the frankincense route from the gum tree groves through the land of Ad into the Rub al Khali. Founded 5,000 years ago, Ubar was built around a natural cistern of water which provided a unique oasis in the Empty Quarter. 150 people lived in the fortress surrounded by perhaps 3,000 travellers encamped in black tents, resting before continuing their journeys. The city disappeared around 300 CE. According to legend, the buildings were thrown down as punishment by Allah for the wickedness of its ruler.
- From Nova, "Lost City of Arabia", 1996 WGBH
"The 'Rub al Khali' (not the physical desert, but the Arab equivalent of Daath) was entered in an altered state of consciousness (some where between dreams and the complete absence of thought) by the Muqarribun. Irem represents that part of the "Empty Quarter" that acts as the connection to the Void. It is from this place (Irem) that the communion with the Void and that which inhabits it can happen. The 'monsters of death' and protective spirits...are the Jinn. The Muqarribun can interact with these entities when he is in the 'Rub al Khali' or 'Irem'. When the Muqarribun passes through Irem to the Void he achieves Annihilation (fana). Annihilation is the supreme attainment in Sufi and Muqarribun mysticism. During Annihilation the magician's entire being is devoured and absorbed into the Void. The self or 'soul' (nafs i ammara) is utterly and completely destroyed by this process. This is probably the sources of stories regarding the soul eating demons (associated with Irem) in Arab legend."
- Parker Ryan, "The Necronomicon and Ancient Arab Magick"
| Related Sites |
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Lost City of Arabia Nova Online - Map, pictures of artifacts, interview with Dr. Yuris Zarins NASA's Observatorium - The Search for Ubar The legend and how remote sensing helped find a lost city |
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