Dreaming of Genie

[qatar]

A Saudi family is suing a jinni that has been harassing them. Jinn, according to the Quran, are a species of creature much like ourselves, with free will and the ability to be good or bad. However, we can't see them because they're made of fire and we're made of earth

Comments

[materjibrail]

Two fairly flippant responses to stir things- I reserve the right to write more thoughtfully later.
1. When my name was Gabriel ( not a jinn but an angel) my friends used to ask me how I liked being named after a literary device. (Footnote probably necessary- angels are often seen by Christians as literary devices to avoid anthropomorphising God.)
2. Isn't this a bit like the question whether there is life on other planets in galaxies far far away etc. We will almost certainly never know. Sorry SETI.

God vs. Jinn

[shmuelisms]

I'm not sure that "believing" in the existence of the two is at all comparable. Regarding Djinn, as you say their "supposed interactions with the world CAN be explained in other, more scientific ways"". I'm not at all certain this is true of G-d. It's more than just a manner of scale, micro vs. macro, but that is certainly part of it. Do we really have answers for all of the Big Questions

Re: God vs. Jinn

[foobart]

Do we really have answers for all of the Big Questions?

Certainly not. But "No one knows how ______ works" isn't support for "there is a god", to say nothing of "there is a god with these characteristics".

[aleffert]

I can't say I believe in God or jinn, but it seems to me that there are arguments that god exists that don't apply to jinn. For example, the ontological argument of Saint Anselm, Clearly that "proof", as it assumes that it's talking about the best possible thing, doesn't apply to your average every day run of the mill jinni. Of course this argues for the existence of god, not the nonexistence of jinn, but it's a start.

You might be able to do some interesting things arguing about why God would allow jinn to exist, but I think you have to postulate a lot more about the nature of God.

[anonymous]

There are, in most societies, things like the genie/ Jinn. In Iceland (if I remember the country correctly...it might be Greenland), a survey must be done of the land to ensure that no elves are living on the property before construction can begin (it is law). Animism is a part of many belief structures; and by no means does it make it true, but it seems that these are held on a very different level than a creator (even within the culture). A sort of universal mover, to me, is a whole different creature; your point still stands (but then again I gave up my Christian beliefs as well, so might be a bit like preaching to the choir)

[lynn_thomas]

Hmmmm, it made me Anon. Somehow, that just kinda hurts my feeling. Grump at you LJ, Grump.