DISCLAIMER: I am a white man from Europe and my parents seemed totally uninterested in having my siblings and I learn about other cultures. Despite this I’ve tried my best to educate myself on this blogposts topic, but I might have made mistakes or unintentionally reproduced harmful orientalism. If you spot anything wrong or disrespectful, please let me know so I can edit the post to amend such issues.
I have been dreading this one. Jinn (all accounts I have found romanize it without the ‘d’) have a very different cultural background than the monsters we have looked at so far. They are also the first that are canonized by a widely practised religion: Islam. There are a lot of people that genuinely believe in the existence of Jinn, not in the least because according to the Quran, Satan isn’t a fallen angel but the prideful Jinn Iblis.
That isn’t to say all Muslims believe in the existence of Jinn, but to explain why belief in some variant of them is so prevalent among people of cultures strongly influenced by the Islamic faith.
Fortunately, islam is not contentious at all in Europe (where I’m from) or the Americas (who seem to make up my primary audience), and there are no conflicts going on that fuel baseless hatred and fear of Muslims. So going into this as a person without a Muslim background will be super easy and chill and there is absolutely no reason to be stressed about being insensitive about my approach to Jinn for use in silly elf games whatsoever.
‘All Djinn are aerial creatures and have not the powers typically credited to them in fairy tales. They fight as Giants with a -1 as far as damage is concerned, thus doing from 1-11 points of damage when hitting. They can carry up to 6,000 Gold Pieces in weight, walking or flying (the latter for short periods only). They can create food which is nutritionally sound. They can create drinkable beverages. They can create soft goods and wooden objects of permanence, but metalic [sic] items last but a short time when created by them (the harder the metal the shorter its life), so that Djinn-GoId lasts but one day. They can create illusions which will remain until dispelled by touch or magic, and they need not concentrate upon the illusions to maintain them. They can form a whirlwind 1’’ base diameter, 2" top diameter, and 3" in height which otherwise is like that of an Air Elemental. Djinn are also able to become invisible or assume gaseous form.’ (Monsters and treasure p.19)
Amount: - - - - - - - ; AC: 5; Movement: 9/23; HD: 7+1; In Lair: never; Treasure type: none (ibid. p.4)
This… sucks… right?
For starters, wtf do they mean ‘amount: - - - - - -’? Based on the fact that some of the other creatures with their amount listed as - - - - - - are either closer to environmental hazards (green slime) or mounts and pack animals (various kinds of horses and mules), are we to assume Jinn are similarly either more of a hazard or (more likely imo) a servile being like pack animals and mounts are? Does that mean we are to assume they come in lamps and lead-sealed pots? Or as servants of folks in possession of such items?
Also, wtf is ‘have not the powers typically credited to them in fairy tales’? Which ones! Given the weirdly specific description of their creative powers and powers of illusion I am going to assume wish fulfilment is what is meant with this, but are there any others?
It feels like the authors were trying to be economical, relying on common sense understandings of Jinn (based on the Galland version of A thousand and one nights), but then decided that wishes would be too strong, leaving us with this mangled abomination of a description. I hate this so much.
Doing better than the LBB should be easy, they placed the bar at the bottom of the Mariana Trench. However, there is still a minor difficulty: What people believe Jinn to be isn’t unified among those that believe in them. Given that Islam is the dominant religion in countries as diverse as Oman, Burkina Faso, Kazakhstan and Indonesia this shouldn’t come as a surprise.
So rather than try to find a single definitive understanding of Jinn as a reference for my qualitative version, I am taking a highly specific understanding of Jinn as my point of reference. Specifically I will refer to Jinn as they are conceived by Buffi healers from a Moroccan shrine dedicated to the saint Ben Yeffu as described by Mohammed Maarouf in his work Jinn eviction as a discourse of power.
In the second chapter of this book Maarouf describes the characteristics of Jinn according to the Buffi and the ways in which these characteristics coincide with and differ from his reading of Jinn as described in the Quran and Hadith.
Based that chapter here is a list of the qualities of Jinn:
- They live in ‘subterranean abodes’ p.83
- They tend to leave these abodes after al-asr (the afternoon prayer) ibid
- They are not referred to using the proper name ‘Jinn’ out of fear this will offend them and cause retaliation. Instead the use of euphemisms is common. ibid
- Buffi healers are immune to Jinn due to their blood ties to the saint Ben Yeffu (despite the fact that they almost all have family members with similar blood ties who are affected by Jinn possession). p.84
- Jinn ‘eat, drink, make sex and die’ p.85
- They like unsalted food, especially sweet food. Also they drink blood. ibid
- They live in groups such as cities and tribes composed solely of Jinn. ibid
- They differ among one another in type (satanic or divine), sex, religion (Muslim, Jewish, Christian, Pagan), race and language. ibid
- They can speak either through a possessed person or a shapeless voice. ibid
- They can take the form of humans, animals and human-animal hybrids. p. 85-86
- Their eyes are located on the forehead or (if Jewish) on the fingernails (I am unsure if this is only when they posses a host or if these are the locations on their own bodies as well). p.87
- They can travel great distances instantly, pass through walls and (contrary to what is said in the Quran and Hadith) divine the future. ibid
- Healers can negotiate labour contracts with Jinn, which are binding for both parties, i e. healers have Jinn that work for them p.90
- Jinn haunt places and need to be placated during construction and before human occupation of these constructions. p.91
- They vary in shape and colour p.94
- They actively control their hosts (contrary to what is said in the Quran and Hadith where they can only manipulate humans through temptation). p.101
- They can have human-like occupations. The book mentions doctor, judge, engineer, teacher and police. p.103
- As part of their eviction they are tried in a court. p.105-106
- They each prefer different colours, which are often symbolically associated with their behaviour (e.g. red for a butcher) p.109
- They are assumed to be made of fire as opposed to humans which are made of clay (just like in orthodox Islam). p.96
- Satan is believed to be a defiant Jinn originally called Iblis (just like in orthodox Islam). ibid
- There are no Jinn prophets (according to the Quran and Hadith). p.97
- They can perform physical labour as it is written in the Quran they build king Solomon statues and synagogues. ibid
- According to the Quran they try to gain divine knowledge from heaven but are thwarted in their attempts by shooting stars (which is amazing). p.98
What I really like about this conception is the mixture of the mundane (Jinn doctors live in Jinn cities with their Jinn families, and presumably work in Jinn hospitals, while visiting Jinn mosques on friday afternoons) and the supernatural (invisible creatures that can move through walls, travel great distances instantaneously, shapeshift, and have a thirst for blood). The idea of having to negotiate a contract with a Jinn is also really enticing to me.
So let's see if we can make a Jinn that is a bit less orientalist and a bit more faithful to the way they are conceived of by Moroccan culture, specifically the maraboutic Buffi tradition.
Jinn
Traits:
- Medium (like a human), fast (like the flicker of a flame), invisible (like the wind)
Strengths:
- Incorporeal bodies: Physical matter is inconsequential to them. It neither hurts nor halts them.
- Possessive minds: They can possess a living being, taking direct control of their actions. Also get overly attached to people, places and objects.
Weaknesses:
- Bound by words: They have to honour any agreement made, unless it was broken by the other party first.
- Salt-phobia: They cannot abide salt. Consuming it undoes possession, circles of it function like barriers.
Ecology:
- Parallel Existence: Born from fire, they reside in the higher strata of our world, in incorporeal cities and invisible lands.
- Ideational Beings: Lacking physicality seems to have led to a propensity for concepts and narratives, knowledge and fables.