A Discussion of the Narrations

1) Disbelief and Arrogance, the First Sin

One narrator reported: I asked Abū al-Ḥasan (a.s.) about disbelief (kufr) and polytheism (shirk), which of them is older? He said to me: I did not know that you dispute with the people. I said: Hishām ibn Sālim told me to ask you about that. He said: Disbelief is older, and it is denial. God Almighty said: “Except Iblīs; he refused and was arrogant and became one of the disbelievers.”(39)

From Abū ʿAbdullāh (a.s.): Indeed, the first disbelief was disbelief in God when God created Adam. Iblīs disbelieved when he rejected God’s command.(40)

From Masʿada ibn Ṣadaqa, he said: I heard Abū ʿAbdullāh (a.s.) being asked about disbelief and polytheism, which of them is older? He said: Disbelief is older, and that is because Iblīs was the first to disbelieve, and his disbelief was without polytheism because he did not call anyone to the worship of someone other than God. Rather, he called to that afterwards and associated partners.(41)

From al-Ṣādiq (a.s.): The first one to make analogies was Iblīs, and he was arrogant. Arrogance is the first disobedience by which God was disobeyed.(42)

Comment:

a) By attributing the first sin to Iblīs, it becomes clear that what transpired from the angels before that was just an inquisitive question, which is protected from any kind of disobedience.

b) Iblīs’ refusal and arrogance were preceded by his hidden disbelief. Therefore, the first sin was not considered refusal and arrogance, but rather it was considered disbelief.

c) Since the first sin was the disbelief of Iblīs, then Iblīs is the first disbeliever.

d) What is meant by the first sin is in relation to the current generation tracing back to Adam and Eve, not in relation to all generations, both past and present.

2) Iblīs’s Arrogance towards Adam (a.s.)

From al-Bāqir (a.s.): God created Adam, and he remained in form for forty years. The cursed Iblīs would pass by him and say, “For what purpose were you created?” The knower said: So Iblīs, may God curse him, said, “If God commands me to prostrate to this, I will disobey Him…”(43)

When God created Adam, He cast his body in the heaven without a spirit in it. When the angels saw it, they were startled by what they saw of his creation. Iblīs came to him. When he saw his upright creation, he was startled. He approached him and kicked him with his foot. Adam rang hollow. He said, “This is hollow, there is nothing to him.”(44)

Comment: Iblīs’s self-conceit and whim-pandering became the source of issuing specific commands and prohibitions. One who takes his whim as a god: “Have you seen the one who takes his whim as his god?” (45:23). He formulates an ill-omened law according to the edict of whim. The command that issued from the source of caprice was for Iblīs to say, “I am better than him” (7:12). And the prohibition that descended from the authority of whim was for him not to comply with God’s command. Abandoning obedience to the command of God the Glorified was accompanied by two other vices: one was arrogance towards God, and the other was haughtiness towards Adam. What was mentioned regarding Iblīs’s concealed disbelief can be inferred from the aforementioned ḥadīth.

3) An Analysis of the Prostration of the Angels before Adam (a.s.)

From al-Ḥusayn ibn ʿAlī (a.s.): … Even if God made His angels prostrate before Adam, their prostration was not a prostration of obedience, as if they worshipped Adam instead of God Almighty. Rather, it was an acknowledgment of Adam’s virtue and God’s mercy upon him. And Muḥammad (s.a.w.) was given what is superior to this. Indeed, God Almighty prayed in His Majesty, and the angels in their entirety, and the believers worship through prayer upon him (s.a.w.). So this is an additional honor for him.(45)

From al-Riḍā (a.s.): … Indeed, God, blessed and exalted is He, created Adam and deposited us in his loins, and commanded the angels to prostrate out of reverence for us, honoring us and in obedience due to our being in his loins. So how can we not be superior to the angels when they have all prostrated before Adam altogether?(46)

From Ibn ʿAbbās: He commanded them to prostrate, so they prostrated before him as an honor from God by which He honored Adam.(47)

From al-ʿAskarī (a.s.): … Their prostration was not to Adam. Rather, Adam was their qibla (direction) towards which they prostrated to God Almighty. And through that, he was revered and exalted. It is not befitting for anyone to prostrate to anyone other than God, submitting to him as one submits to God…(48)

Comment:

a) Submission accompanied by belief in lordship and divinity is worship, and such a meaning is not inherently taken in the reality of prostration. Therefore, prostration will not inherently be worship.

b) The prostration of the angels before Adam was neither an act of obedience to him nor worship of him. Rather, it was only as an act of obedience to God and worship of Him, even if it was out of reverence and honor for Adam.

c) The ultimate stages of prostration, as well as the prostration of those brought near, are in terms of the ultimate stage of the perfect human being, of which the infallible Ahl al-Bayt (a.s.) are an example.

d) What was mentioned regarding Adam (a.s.) being a qibla was to remove the possible misconception of worship. Otherwise, Adam was the one prostrated towards (masjūd lahu), not the one prostrated to (masjūd ilayhi). Of course, devotional prostration is exclusively allowed for God, the Glorified.

4) The Submission of Angels before the Perfect Human Being

From ʿAbdullāh (a.s.): When the Messenger of God (s.a.w.) was taken on the night journey and it was time for prayer, Gabriel called the adhān and iqāma for prayer and said, “O Muḥammad, go forward.” The Messenger of God (s.a.w.) said to him, “You go forward, O Gabriel.” He said to him, “We do not go ahead of the children of Adam since we were commanded to prostrate before Adam.”(49)

Comment:

a) The story of Adam was not a time-bound personal event. Rather, the criterion is the submission and service of the angels in the domain of the perfect or perfected human being, and the rebellion of Iblīs and his obstruction against the travelers on the path of human perfection. Therefore, the angels are always intent on honoring, doing good, and serving the lofty or ascending human being, while Iblīs and his offspring are always intent on destroying, threatening, tempting, and misguiding those who stray from the path.

b) What is narrated from the account of the Prophet’s (s.a.w.) Ascent (Isrāʾ or Miʿrāj) is based on this same aforementioned principle. That is why it is mentioned in the present tense, indicating continuity, and it is stated as such: “We do not go ahead…” (innā lā nataqaddam…).

c) The suggestion of the Messenger of God (s.a.w.) regarding Gabriel leading the prayer was not to correct giving precedence to the inferior over the superior, but rather had the character of teaching etiquette and the manner of interaction.

d) The expression of Gabriel has an analytical generality; meaning, each one of us will not go ahead of that human individual who is superior to us. Because just as prophets and messengers have ranks, angels also have levels: “There is none among us except that he has a known station” (37:164). The believing and committed human beings who strive on the path of divine perfection between fear and hope, contraction and expansion, have stages: “For them are ranks” (8:4), “ranks upon ranks” (3:163). Therefore, the distribution of the levels of angels and the division of the degrees of human beings are fully taken into account in precedence and deferment.

5) The Manner of Addressing and Commanding Prostration

Al-Ṣādiq (a.s.) was asked about what God has encouraged His creation towards—whether the misguided are included in it. He (a.s.) said: Yes, and the disbelievers are included in it. Because God, blessed and exalted is He, commanded the angels to prostrate to Adam, so the angels and Iblīs were included in His command. For Iblīs was with the angels in heaven worshipping God, and the angels thought he was one of them, but he was not one of them… So it was said to him (a.s.): How did the command apply to Iblīs when God only commanded the angels to prostrate to Adam? He said: Iblīscf was among them by allegiance, but he was not of the genus of angels.(50)

From Jamīl: Al-Ṭayyār used to say to me: Iblīs is not one of the angels, and the angels were commanded to prostrate to Adam! So Iblīs said, “I will not prostrate.” So why is Iblīs disobeying by not prostrating when he is not one of the angels? May I be sacrificed for you! What God Almighty has encouraged the believers towards in His saying “O you who believe”—are the hypocrites included with them in that? He (a.s.) said: Yes, and the misguided and everyone who acknowledged the apparent call. And Iblīs was one of those who acknowledged the apparent call with them.(51)

From Ibn ʿAbbās: …Then He said to the angels who were with Iblīs specifically, apart from the angels in the heavens: “Prostrate to Adam.”(52)

God created Adam in the lowest heaven and He only made the angels of the lowest heaven prostrate to him, and the angels of the [higher] heavens did not prostrate to him.(53)

Comment:

a) Assigning religious duties (taklīf) to a disbeliever, hypocrite, or sinner is not inherently problematic, because they all rebel by choice, not out of compulsion or coercion. Establishing their religious duties in each case requires verbal or implicit evidence. There is reliable verbal and implicit evidence in the Qur’an and Sunnah indicating the commonality of religious duties between the obedient and disobedient, believer and disbeliever, sincere one and hypocrite.

b) The duty of Iblīs is sometimes presented as his inclusion under the command related to the angels: “We said to the angels, ‘Prostrate to Adam,’” and sometimes as an independent command. However, proving an independent command requires reliable evidence, and deriving it from the verse “When I commanded you” (7:12) is not easy. What can be deduced from the aforementioned ḥadīth is the unity of the command and the inclusion of Iblīs in that same single command directed at the angels. However, the chain of transmission of such reports is not reliable. When the intent of the Qur’an cannot be established with a solitary report in matters of belief and the like, proving it with reports that are lesser than akhbār will be even more difficult. The general and absolute term “angels” can only be dismissed when reliable evidence is presented to restrict it to the angels of the nearest heaven.

6) The Place of Prostration of the Angels

From Amīr al-Muʾminīn (a.s.): “The first spot on which God was worshipped was the vicinity of Kufa. When God commanded the angels to prostrate to Adam, they prostrated near Kufa.”(54)

Comment: Establishing non-secondary knowledge with a ḥadīth that has a chain of transmission is difficult, let alone with a ḥadīth with an incomplete chain (mursal). What can be the basis for such aḥādīth, assuming their reliability, is representation (tamaththul); that is, the submission of the angels to the perfect human is represented in the form of prostration in a specific place or time. On the other hand, a specific place or time can be considered a manifestation of what occurred in the world of the malakūt. Therefore, some places and times are endowed with special sanctity, respect, and blessings.

7) The Nature of Iblīs and His Background

From Abū ʿAbdullāh (a.s.): … Iblīs was with the angels in heaven worshipping God, and the angels thought he was one of them, but he was not one of them. When God commanded the angels to prostrate to Adam, what was in the heart of Iblīs—envy—came out. Then the angels realized that Iblīs was not one of them. It was asked: How did the command apply to Iblīs when God only commanded the angels to prostrate to Adam? He (a.s.) said: Iblīs was with them by allegiance but was not of the genus of angels. This is because God created beings before Adam, and Iblīs was one of them, ruling on earth. They rebelled, corrupted, and shed blood, so God sent the angels, who killed them and captured Iblīs, raising him to heaven; he remained with the angels, worshipping God until God, blessed and exalted, created Adam.(55)

From the Knowledgeable One (a.s.): God created Adam, and he remained in form for forty years. The cursed Iblīs would pass by him and say, “You were created for some purpose! If God commands me to prostrate to this, I will disobey Him…”(56)

From Jamīl ibn Darrāj: I asked Abū ʿAbdullāh (a.s.) about Iblīs—was he one of the angels or did he have any authority over the affairs of heaven? He said: He was not one of the angels, nor did he have authority over anything in the heavens, nor honor…(57)

From al-Ṣādiq (a.s.): The angels thought Iblīs was one of them, but it was in God’s knowledge that he was not. So, God exposed what was in his soul through his zeal and anger, and he said: “You created me from fire and created him from clay.”(58)

From the Commander of the Faithful (a.s.): … He was asked about the name of Iblīs when he was in heaven, and he said: His name was al-Ḥārith. He was also asked about the first one to disbelieve and originate disbelief, and he replied: Iblīs, may God curse him.(59)

From al-Riḍā (a.s.): The name of Iblīs is al-Ḥārith, and God Almighty only says: “O Iblīs,” meaning “O disobedient one.” He was named Iblīs because he despaired (ablasa) of the mercy of God Almighty.(60)

The fathers are three: Adam, who begat believers; the calf, who begat both believers and disbelievers; and Iblīs, who begat disbelievers and has no typical offspring; rather, he lays eggs that hatch, and his children are males with no females among them.(61)

Beware of anger, for it is the key to all evil. Iblīs was with the angels and was thought to be one of them, but in God’s knowledge, he was not. When commanded to prostrate to Adam, he became heated and angry, so God exposed what was hidden in his soul through his zeal and anger.(62)

From al-Bāqir (a.s.) in response to a questioner asking: Why was Iblīs named Iblīs? He said: Because he despaired (ablasa) of the mercy of God Almighty and does not hope for it.(63)

From Ibn ʿAbbās: Iblīs was from a tribe of the angels called the Jinn, created from the fire of scorching winds among the angels, and his name was al-Ḥārith. He was a treasurer among the treasurers of Paradise. All the angels were created from light, except for this tribe. The first to inhabit the earth were the Jinn, but they caused corruption and shed blood, killing one another. So God sent Iblīs to them with an army of angels, and he fought them until he drove them to the islands of the seas and the edges of the mountains. When Iblīs did that, he became deceived with himself and said, “I have done something that no one has done.” God was aware of what was in his heart, but the angels were unaware. God said to the angels, “I am placing a vicegerent on earth.” The angels said, “Will You place therein one who will cause corruption and shed blood, as the Jinn had done?” He said, “I know what you do not know; I have seen in the heart of Iblīs what you have not seen of his arrogance and self-deception…”(64)

From Ibn Masʿūd: When God finished creating what He loved, He settled on the Throne. He made Iblīs the king of the heaven of the world, and he was from a tribe of angels called the Jinn. They were called Jinn because they were the treasurers (khazāʾin) of Paradise, and Iblīs, along with his kingship, was also a treasurer. Pride swelled in his chest, and he said, “God has not given me this except due to an increase or a distinction for me.” So God became aware of that in him and said to the angels, “I am placing a vicegerent on the earth.” They said, “Our Lord, will You place in it one who will cause corruption and shed blood…” He said, “I know what you do not know.”(65)

From the Prophet (s.a.w.): When God wanted to create Adam… He then called Iblīs, whose name that day among the angels was Ḥabāb, and said to him, “Go and take a handful of earth for Me.” He went until he came to it, but it said to him the same as it had said to those before him from the angels. So he took a handful from it and did not listen to its plea. When he returned, God Almighty asked, “Did it not seek refuge in My names from you?” He replied, “Yes.” God asked, “So which of My names was it that would have given it refuge from you?” Iblīs said, “Yes, but You commanded me, and I obeyed You.” God then said, “I will create from it a creature that will upset your face…”(66)

Comment:

a) Apart from issues of transmission and the weakness of the chain of narration, and aside from the difficulty of proving non-subsidiary knowledge with such reports or traditions, some exegetes, like Ṭabarī and the author of al-Manār, are of the view that the difference between angels and jinn is one of type, not of kind. Therefore, although Iblīs is considered among the jinn, he is still of the angelic kind.(67)

A group of scholars considers the differences between them to be essential to their nature but regard Iblīs as belonging to the type of angels. They infer from the verse commanding the angels to prostrate and their compliance, with the exception of Iblīs considered as connected, and the verse “…he was of the jinn” (18:50), which they interpret based on the comprehensive meaning of jinn that includes every hidden and concealed being. They also draw support from the verse “And they have made a kinship between Him and the jinn” (37:158), arguing that since the polytheists regarded the angels as the daughters of God, they established a kinship between God and the angels, applying the term jinn to the angels. No one considered the jinn to be the daughters of God, so being a jinn, in this sense, is compatible with being an angel. The term jinn is also applied to Satan: “from among the jinn and mankind” (114:6). The details of the discussion can be found in the exegesis of Fakhr al-Dīn al-Rāzī.(68)

b) The reports and narrations are inconsistent in explaining the nature of Iblīs. However, since the ultimate reference in such matters is the Noble Qur’an, and the apparent meaning of the verse “…he was of the jinn” suggests that Iblīs belongs to the genus of jinn, the Qur’an’s comprehensive message implies an essential difference between angels and jinn. Their contrasting effects confirm their essential contrast, suggesting that Iblīs being a jinn and separate from the type of angels is closer to reality.

c) The difference in the names of Iblīs in the heavens and the earth does not alter his essence, just as the Arabic origin of the word Iblīs is also uncertain. Although in some mursal reports (narrations with an interrupted chain of narrators), the reason for naming him Iblīs is mentioned as his despair (iblās) and hopelessness (yaʾs) of divine mercy.

8) God’s Respite to Iblīs

From Zurāra from Abū ʿAbdillāh (a.s.): “… ‘For what did Iblīs deserve from God that He gave him what He gave him?’ He said: ‘Something for which God thanked him.’ I said: ‘And what was it, may I be your ransom?’ He said: ‘Two rakʿas that he prayed in heaven for four thousand years.’”(69)

From Ibn ʿAbbās: Iblīs’ name was ʿAzāzīl, and he was one of the noblest angels, one of those with four wings; then he despaired (ablasa) afterward.(70)

Before committing disobedience, Iblīs was one of the angels named ʿAzāzīl. He was one of the inhabitants of the earth and was among the most diligent and knowledgeable angels. That led him to arrogance. He was from a tribe called Jinn.(71)

Iblīs was one of the treasurers of Paradise and used to manage the affairs of the lower heaven.(72)

Iblīs was among the noblest angels, from their greatest tribe, and he was the treasurer of the gardens. He had authority over the lower heaven and authority over the earth. He perceived this as a sign of his greatness and authority over the inhabitants of the heavens, harboring arrogance in his heart that only God knew. When God commanded the angels to prostrate to Adam, his concealed arrogance emerged.(73)

From the Prophet (s.a.w.): “Indeed, God commanded Adam to prostrate and he prostrated. So He said: ‘Paradise is for you and for whoever prostrates from your progeny.’ And He commanded Iblīs to prostrate, but he refused. So He said: ‘The Fire is for you and for whoever refuses to prostrate from your offspring.’”(74)

From Ibn ʿUmar: Iblīs met Moses and said, “O Moses! You are the one God chose for His messages and spoke to directly. I have repented and I want to repent. So intercede for me to my Lord to accept my repentance.” Moses said, “Yes.” Moses prayed to his Lord. It was said, “O Moses! Your need has been decreed.” Moses met Iblīs and said, “You have been commanded to prostrate at the grave of Adam, and your repentance will be accepted.” But he was arrogant and angry and said, “I did not prostrate to him when he was alive, should I prostrate to him when he is dead?”(75)

The Prophet (s.a.w.) said: “When God Almighty commanded Adam to descend, Adam and his wife descended, and Iblīs descended without a wife, and the serpent descended without a mate. So Iblīs, may God curse him, was the first to commit sodomy with himself, and his offspring came from himself.”(76)

“Iblīs was the first to sing, the first to lament, and the first to chant. When he ate from the tree, he sang. When he descended, he chanted. And when he settled on the earth, he lamented, remembering what was in Paradise.”(77)

Comment:

a) Reconciling some reports, apart from their chain of transmission, is not easy. For example, the justification of God’s bestowal in recognition of two special units of prayer by Iblīs is questionable. Neither did any sincere worship come from Iblīs, nor was any favor granted to him by God. Granting respite for the purpose of tempting and misguiding people is a compounded affliction, not a blessing.

b) The notion that the offspring of Iblīs came from his own person, born from him alone without intercourse with a spouse, requires excessive contemplation and extraordinary elaboration. Likewise, attributing the first singing, chanting, and lamentation to Iblīs requires reliable evidence, although the appropriate consideration is what has been mentioned.

9) The Way and Method of Worship and Servitude

From al-Ṣādiq (a.s.): “… Iblīs said: ‘O Lord, excuse me from prostrating to Adam, and I will worship You with a worship that no angel brought near nor prophet sent has worshipped You with.’ So God, Blessed and Exalted is He, said: ‘I have no need for your worship. I want to be worshipped as I want, not as you want.’”(78)

Comment: Determining the way and identifying the method of servitude, like the essence of servitude itself, is in the hands of the Worshipped, not the servant. One who conveys a specific way or particular method for worshipping God is afflicted with multiplicity of gods and is captive to clear shirk (polytheism); because he has entrusted part of God’s authority to desire (hawā). Such a person has taken his own desire as his god, and Iblīs too, according to the mentioned ḥadīth, was afflicted with such dualism. Some of these points were covered in the section on subtleties and allusions.