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Iblis
Iblīs (Arabic إبليس), is the name given to the primary devil in Islam.
Etymology
The word may be derived from the Arabic verbal root balasa بَلَسَ, meaning "he despaired"; therefore, the linguistic meaning of Iblis would be "he/it that causes despair".[1] However, some maintain an etymological derivation from the Greek "Diabolos".[2]
Origin
In contrast with the Christian tradition, the Qur'an names Iblis as a jinn [3] rather than an angel. The Jinn are created from fire [4], and in the Islamic tradition are considered to have free will; in Islam, angels are seen as messengers who do not possess free will.[citation needed]
Iblis was given power close to that of the angels by God, because he was at one point a pious and humble jinn. When God commanded all of the angels to bow down before Adam, Iblis, full of hubris, jealously refused to obey God's command (seeing Adam as being inferior in creation).[5] Prior to this act of disobedience, Iblis was called by the name of Azazel.[6]
He then claims that if the punishment for his act of disobedience is to be delayed until the day of Judgment, he will convert many of Adam's own descendants during the period of respite.[7] God accepts the claims of Iblis and guarantees recompense to Iblis and his followers in the form of Hellfire. God, to test mankind and jinn alike, allowed Iblis to roam the earth to attempt to convert others.[8]
He was sent to earth along with Adam and Eve, eventually luring them into eating the fruit from the forbidden tree.[9]
Depiction
Iblis attempts to corrupt humans through temptation and through false suggestion. At the day of Judgment, Iblis will be sent to Jahannam (the Islamic depiction of Hell) along with the "Companions of the Fire". Muslims believe that through Islam, those who successfully follow a righteous path will be rewarded with the pleasures of Jannah (Paradise).
The Qur'an does not depict Iblis as the enemy of God, for God is seen as supreme over all of his creations and Iblis is just one of his creations.[citation needed] A commonly shared belief in both Islam and Christianity is that the universal existence of evil in the personal lives of individuals is ultimately caused by the work of the devil.[10]
He is more often referred to in the Qur'an as the Shaitan, a general term which is also sometimes used to refer to all of the evil spirits in alliance with Iblis. Iblis is mentioned by name 11 times, whereas Shaitan ("al-Shaitan") is mentioned 87 times.
In popular culture
In the Star Wars Expanded Universe, there exists a character named Garm Bel Iblis. Curiously, though, he is a sympathetic character. In the Dune prequels science fiction series there is a corrupted high priest named Iblis Ginjo.
In the original Battlestar Galactica, there was an alien known as Count Iblis. He was seen to be a science fiction equivalent of the Devil and was also the voice of the Cylon Imperious Leader.
In Sonic the Hedgehog (2006 game), Silver (the newest character in the Sonic Series) believes that Sonic is the mysterious 'Iblis Trigger'. Iblis is a fiery demon who destroyed the world. In Sonic and the Secret Rings, Iblis, as in the Devil, is mentioned in the spell used by the Erazor Djinn to summon the Ifrit Golem.
The second installment in the Quest for Glory series of adventure games, Trial by Fire, the antagonist Ad Avis plots to release a djinn by the name of Iblis. Releasing him will result in the destruction of the world as well as a gameover. Iblis can only be freed according to a strict prophecy involving the Hero from the East, being you the player. There is a character in the Star Wars universe named Garm bel Iblis (Garm being the hellhound, like Cerberus, in Norse mythology, and Bel (Baäl) a pagan god). He first appeared in Timothy Zahn's Thrawn trilogy. In contrast to the original Iblis, he was a highly moral senator who opposed Palpatine, and later played vital roles in the Rebellion and New Republic.
In the Playstation 2 exclusive game Primal, in which there are four demon worlds for the user to explore the fourth and most dangerous world Volca is home to the Djinn who are ruled by their King, King Iblis.
In the Wheel of Time series, the Nae'blis is Shai'tan's regent on Earth.
In World of Warcraft there is a sword called Iblis, Blade of the Fallen Seraph.
In the Tom Clancy novel "The Teeth of the Tiger", a federal hero/agent invokes the name of Iblis while forcing a dying Islamic terrorist to hold pigskin in order to induce fear and insult. MF Grimm has an album entitled The Downfall of Ibliys: A Ghetto Opera. In Zone of the Enders the Fist of Mars, the Black Frame's true identity is Iblis.
A story arc in the Trinity Blood anime is known as The Ibelis (possibly a reference to Iblis) and is inferred in the third such episode in the arc to be a weapon, though what the "Ibelis" is exactly is never elaborated on.
See also
References
1 [1]
2 [2]
3 [Qur'an 18:50]
4 [Qur'an 7:12], [Qur'an 38:76]
5 [Qur'an 17:61]; [Qur'an 2:34]
6 [3]
7 [Qur'an 17:62]
8 [Qur'an 17:63-64]
9 [Qur'an 7:20-22]
10 [4]