Thread by @aaolomi

King Solomon was granted dominion over the birds, humans, and the jinn. He ruled through the power of a mighty ring.

But not all the jinn were obedient to Solomon the Wise. There was one who plotted against him in secret.

A thread on the jinn usurper-

Solomon was granted mastery over the jinn.

It is said the angel Jibrail drove hosts of jinn from their caves and mountains and lined them before the prophet.

They came in tribes and nations to swear fealty

His dominion was completed through a ring, a seal he wore upon his finger.

Through this divinely-granted ring he could command the hordes of jinn; those that flew, those that crawled, and those that stalked.

But not all were quick to obey.

King Solomon had a habit when he went into his private chambers to spend some amorous time with his wives, he would remove his ring and give it to Al Aminah to hold until he was done.

One day while Solomon was getting busy, the wily jinn Sakhr or Habiqiq took on his form and came upon Aminah, asking for the ring.

Unable to see through the disguise, she handed it over.

The jinn took the ring and with it Solomon’s power.

He sat upon Solomon’s throne as a secret usurper for none could see the truth

When the real Solomon came to Aminah, she could not recognize him for the jinn’s magic had done is job.

In horror, Solomon realized his ring and therefore his power had been taken!

He rushed from person to person telling them that he was Solomon their king only to be rebuffed.

Resigned to his fate, he began working on the docks carrying fish for the fisherman in payment for two fishes for himself.

For forty days Solomon languished with the wily jinn passing judgement in his place.

While Habiqiq lived the kingly life, the jinn wasn't exactly thriving.

For though he had taken the power of King Solomon, he lacked his wisdom.

His judgements and decisions were so out there, Solomon’s advisers began to notice something was amiss.

Fearing his ruse was caught, the jinn changed his form to a bird and quickly took flight heading over the sea from where he drew his power.

Flying over the waters he flung the mighty ring into the sea where it was swallowed by a fish.

The fish was caught by a fisherman who in turn gave it to Solomon as part of his daily payment.

When Solomon opened the fish he found his ring.

Donning it with gratitude and repentance he was restored to power.

He sent forth his mighty jinn servants to catch Habiqiq the Usurper.

They found the rebellious spirit and Solomon bound him in rock, iron, and lead, casting him into the deep.

The story recounts the dominion of Solomon over the jinn.

His wife, the Queen of Sheba, Bilqis, would be one of the few other people who also had dominion over the jinn.

The story of Solomon’s troubles is recounted in al-Tabari’s great Tarikh. He cites al-Suddi who remarked on the Qur’anic verses on Solomon (38:34).

The story is important for several reasons.

Firstly, it’s drawn from the Rabbinic story of Solomon and Ashmedai.

How was a Jewish legend included in an Islamic history uncovers the dynamic process in which Islamic history was conceived and recorded.

While much, though not all, of contemporary Muslim thought is shaped by modern and puritan anxieties which attempt to restrict “Islamic” to an imagined, homogenous, singular tradition stretching back in time.

This is contrary to the impulse of medieval Muslim writers who were integrative and drew together threads from Jewish, Christian, Zoroastrian elements to weave together an Islamic history.

Secondly what we are seeing is a universal history, a grand narrative.

Tabari’s history is built dialogically through a process of incorporating the local and the already existing, into the Islamic.

It is an intellectually open and diverse understanding of “Islamic.”

The histories recorded by medieval Muslim writers, the way they drew upon what came before, their intellectual curiosity, and their integrative impulse all demonstrate their beautiful relationship to knowledge and history.

For those interested, I covered the narratives of the Islamic apocalypse on patreon in a podcast

I’ve also posted the interpretations of the dodecatemoria for the more astrologically-minded
patreon.com/headonhistory

I shall continue exploring Islamic history and cosmology in future threads