The Children of Satan

Can a descendant of Satan find redemption and serve the cause of God? This article explores the remarkable account of Ham Ibn Haym, a member of the Jinn and great-grandson of Iblis, who repented and sought the path of righteousness.

The text details Ham's interactions with various prophets, from assisting Prophet Yusuf (a) in the well to conveying the salutations of Prophet Isa (a) to Prophet Muhammad (s). A central focus of the narrative is Ham’s meeting with the Messenger of Allah (s), who entrusted Imam Ali (a) with teaching him the Quran. The article examines historical reports suggesting that Ham’s journey of faith ultimately led him to fight alongside Imam Ali (a) during the Battle of Siffin. By citing both Shi’a and Sunni sources, this resource provides a unique perspective on the nature of the Jinn, the universality of repentance, and the recognized status of the Divinely appointed successors.

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The Children of Satan

Answer Provided By

The Porch of Wisdom Institute

Under The Guidance Of Ayatullah Shaykh Hadavi Tehrani

The below Question and Answer was extracted from:

http://islamquest.net/fa/archive/question/fa27111 [9]

Translated by Saleem Bhimji

Edited by Arifa Hudda

Published by the Islamic Publishing House - iph@iph.ca [10]

Question

Did Satan have a child who was martyred in the Battle of Siffin fighting alongside the Commander of the Faithful ʿAli? If he did, please explain this event, and cite the textual sources from where the narration comes from.

Answer

From some of the traditions (ahadith) we come to the conclusion that a majority of the Devils from among the Jinn are actually the biological children of Iblis; and from those children of his - only one of them accepted true faith (in religion) and that was Ham Ibn Haym Ibn Laqis Ibn Iblis [هام بن هیم بن لاقیس بن ابلیس].1 The acceptance of true faith of this individual has been mentioned in both the Shi’a and also the Ahl as-Sunnah sources.

It has been mentioned in many traditions, with slight variations in them2 in regard to an event which transpired with Ham Ibn Haym Ibn Laqis Ibn Iblis. In one source that relates to the discussion at hand, specifically in regard to the exegesis of the verse of the Qur’an which states:

وَ الْجَانَّ خَلَقْناهُ مِنْ قَبْلُ مِنْ نارِ السَّمُوم

And as for the Jinn, We created them before [the creation of the human being] from a smoke-less fire (15:27) 3

The following incident has been narrated through a chain of narrators.

Imam as-Sadiq said, “The Messenger of God, prayers of Allah be upon him and his family, saw an individual standing on the mountain of Tihamah4, with a long staff, whose length was that of a date tree, in his hand.” The Prophet [upon hearing a noise] said, “This is the sound of a Jinn.”

The Jinn replied, “I am Ham Ibn Haym Ibn Laqis Ibn Iblis.”

The Prophet asked him, “Are there two generations separating you from Iblis (Satan)?”

The Jinn replied, “Yes.”

The Prophet then asked him, “Tell me a little about what you have seen.”

The Jinn replied, “I have spent a lot of my time in idleness, except for a small portion of my life. I have been around since the days when Cain (Qabil) killed [his brother] Abel (Habil). [When that event transpired] I had the ability to speak out and say something, however at that time in my life, I did not have a firm grasp to the rope of Allah, and as such [when I saw this act take place], I ended up roaming around in the groves, going through the hills and began to invite people to sever all ties with their close family members and encouraged people to consume impermissible wealth.”

The Prophet then asked, “What a disastrous path to choose in your life! [This is the] way an elderly person who in his old age, sits and reflects [on how he spent his life], and the ways of a youth who in his adolescence, spends his days and nights drowned in yearnings and aspirations [but does not work to attain them].”

The Jinn then said, “However, I have repented [to Allah]. I actually rebuked Noah during the time when I was on his ark, and he made supplication against his own nation. At that time, Prophet Noah also advised me to seek forgiveness.

After him, I was with [Prophet] Hud and along with him was someone else who had believed in him and his message. I was in the masjid with him and witnessed him make supplication against his own nation and I also rebuked him.

I was also alongside Ilyas in the sandy desert. Similarly, I was with Ibrahim when his people began to deceive him and prepared to throw him into the fire [that they had kindled]. I was between the catapult and the fire at that particular time when Allah made the fire cool and a means of comfort for him.

After this, I was alongside Yusuf when out of sheer jealousy; his brothers threw him into the well. I delivered him into the depths of the well and gave him food and interacted with him as a friend would do [with another friend]. After this, I was his close and cherished friend while he was in prison, until the time that Allah granted him freedom from there.

After this, I was alongside Musa and he even taught me a portion of the Torah and said to me, ‘If you live until the time of Prophet ʿIsa, then convey my regards to him.’ I also met ʿIsa and as requested, I conveyed Musa’s regards to him and remained with him for some time until he taught me portions of the Evangel and said to me, ‘If you live until the time of Prophet Muḥammad then convey my regards to him.’ So then, O Messenger of Allah! I am conveying the regards of Prophet ʿIsa to you!”

The Messenger of Allah then said, “Peace be upon ʿIsa, the Spirit of Allah (Ruhullah) and His Word, from that day that he ascended into the events until the day he returns back to the Earth, and also upon you be peace, O Ham, who has conveyed the salutations from all those previous individuals. If you have anything you wish to ask from me, then go ahead and ask.”

Ham then said, “My own wish and desire is that Allah protects you for your nation and that they (your nation) become virtuous, worthy and righteous and that they are granted fortitude to stand firm so that they are able to stay strong and determined alongside your successor, as the previous nations were destroyed due to their turning away from their Divinely appointed successors. My only longing is that O Messenger of Allah, you teach me a chapter of the Qur’an which I may recite in my salat.”

The Messenger of God turned towards Imam ʿAli, peace be upon him, and said, “Teach Ham (a chapter of the Qur’an) and be compassionate with him.” At this point, Ham said, “O Messenger of God! Who is this person whom you are entrusting me [to teach me the Qur’an]? We the assembly of the Jinn are not permitted to follow anyone other than a prophet or his Divinely appointed successor.”

The Prophet of God replied, “O Ham! Whom did you find in The Book, to be the successor of Adam?”

Ham replied, “Sheeth.”

The Prophet then asked, “And the successor of Noah?”

Ham replied, “Sam.”

The Prophet asked, “And the successor of Hud?”

Ham replied, “Yuhna Ibn Hannan – his cousin.”

The Prophet continued and asked, “And the successor of Ibrahim?” Ham replied, “Isma’il and his successor was Ishaq.”

The Prophet asked, “And the successor of Musa?”

Ham replied, “Yusha the son of Nun.”

Then the Prophet asked, “And the successor of ʿIsa?”

Ham replied, “Shimon the son of Ḥamun Safa – the cousin of lady Mariam.”

The Prophet then asked him, “How do you know that these were the rightful successors of the prophets?”

Ham replied, “As they were the most ascetic people in the world during their era and the most desirous of attaining the next world.”

The Prophet then said, “In The Book, who did you find to be the successor to Muhammad?”

Ham replied, “In the Torah, I found his name to be Ilyast.”

The Prophet then told him, “This Ilyast whom you refer to is ʿAli – my successor and my brother. He is the most ascetic of people in the temporal world and the most desirous of meeting Allah and attaining the next world.”

Ham conveyed his regards to ʿAli and said, “O Messenger of God! Does he [ʿAli] have any other name [that he is known by]?”

The Messenger replied, “Yes, he is also known as Haydar.”

After this, ʿAli proceeded to teach Ham various chapters of the Qur’an.

Ham then said, “O ʿAli! O successor to Muḥammad! Is this what you have taught me from the Qur’an sufficient for me [to use] in my salat?”

Imam ʿAli replied, “Yes, [know that] even a little bit of the Qur’an is abundant.”

In addition to this event, there is another time that Ham came to the Messenger of God greeted him and bade him farewell and then returned back to where he had come from, and after this he never again saw the Noble Prophet until the Prophet left this world.5

In other traditions, the above-mentioned event continues and mentions that on the evening known as Laylatul Harir (the night when the Prophet made his migration from Mecca to Medina), Ham came to Imam ʿAli6 and in yet other traditions, it has been stated that he fought alongside the army of Imam ʿAli and was martyred in the battle.7

As for the chain of narrators of this tradition, the report which is contained in the book Basa’ir al-darajat fi fadail al Muhammad8, contains the most complete chain and it is as follows: Ibrahim Ibn Hashim, Ibrahim Ibn Ishaq, ʿAbdullah Ibn Hammad, and ʿUmru Ibn Yazid Bayyaʿ al-Sabiri, all of whom have been regarded as reliable and trustworthy and some of them are even considered as being highly respectable and reliable individuals.

From another aspect, the text and content of this tradition does not hold any theological problems and it does not go against the sources and foundations of the Shi’a creed.

In addition, generally speaking, we know that the Jinn can sometimes play a role in the life of the human being; and there are some humans who can also affect the life of the Jinn; and according to other traditions which have been narrated, they (the Jinn) were in contact with the Prophets and the A’immah – and this was but one such example.

Thus, the Jinn are able to be contact with some human beings just as we have seen in this tradition.

We also see that Ham Ibn Haym Ibn Laqis Ibn Iblis – who was one of the Jinn and was from the off-spring of Satan – had repented (to Allah) through the intervention and assistance of Prophet Noah and eventually met the Noble Prophet and Imam ʿAli and was in touch with them.9

In a tradition from the Noble Prophet, it has been narrated that Ham Ibn Haym Ibn Laqis Ibn Iblis will be one of the inhabitants of Paradise.10

O Allah! Send Your prayers upon

Muhammad and the family of Muhammad!

- 1. Al-Majlisi, Muhammad Baqir, Hayat al-qulub, vol. 3, pg. 635, Surur Publication, Qum, Iran, 6th edition.

- 2. Ibn Ahʿath, Muhammad ibnee Muhammad, al-Jaʿfariyat (al-Ahʿaththiyat), pg. 175 & 176, Maktabat al-naynawa al-hadithiyyah, Tehran, Iran, 1st edition; al-Bayhaqi, Abu Bakr Ahmad Ibn Huayn, Dala’il al-nubuwwah wa maʿrifat ahwal shib al-hariʿat, reearched by ʿAbdul Muʿti al-Qalaʿchi, vol. 5, pg. 418 – 420, Dar al-kutub al-ʿilmiyyah, Beirut, 1st Edition; al-ʿAqalani, Ahmad Ibn ʿAli Ibn Hajr, al-Isabat fi tamiz al-sahabah, reearched by ʿAbdul Mawjud, ʿAdil Ahmad, Muʿawiḍ and ʿAli Muhammad, vol. 6, pg. 408, Dar al-kutub al-ʿilmiyyah, Beirut, 1t edition.

- 3. Suratul Hijr, verse 27. Refer to ʿAli Ibn Ibrahim Al-Qummi, Tafsir al-Qummi, researched and edited by Musawi Jaza’iri, and Tib, vol. 1, pg. 375, Dar al-kitab, Qum, 3rd edition; Muhammad Ibn ʿAli Sharif Lahiji, Tafsir Sharif Lahiji, researched by Muhaddith Mir Jalal al-Din Armawi Husayni, vol. 2, pg. 667-668, Dad Publishing House, Tehran, Iran, 1st edition.

- 4. In Dehkhuda Dictionary it is mentioned Tihamah is the flat coastal plain region which stretches from its northern tip of the Sinai Peninsula all the way down to the southern area of Yemen and covers the cities of Mecca, Najran, Jeddah, and Safa, and it is for this reason that the Grand city of Mecca is also referred to as Tihamah. There were many different tribes which inhabited this region in the pre-Islamic days, and this area also contained many mountains and as such, this locality is also well-known by the name of the Mounts of Tihamah. Also refer to Muhammad Ibn ʿAbdul Munʿim al-Humayri, Al-Rawd al-maʿtar fi khabar al-aqtar, pg. 141, Maktabat Lubnan, Beirut, 2nd Edition; Shihab al-Din Abu ʿAbdullah Yaqut al-Humayri, Muʿjam al-buldan, vol. 2, pg. 63-64, Dar Sadir, Beirut, 2nd print.

- 5. Al-Saffar, Muhammad b. Hasan, Basa’ir al-darajat fi fadail al Muhammad; Researched and Corrected by Muhsin Ibn ʿAbbas ʿAli Kuchebaghi, vol. 1, pg. 98 & 99, Published by the Ayatullah Marʿashi Najafi Library, Qum, 2nd Printing; Qutb al-Din al-Rawandi, al-Khara’ij wa al-Jara’ih, vol. 2, pg. 856-858, Imam al-Mahdi Publishers, Qum, 1st Print.

- 6. Tafsir al-Qummi, vol. 1, pg. 376; al-Khara’ij wa al-Jara’ih, vol. 2, pg. 858; Abu al-Fadl Ibn Jibra’il Ibn Shadhan al-Qummi, al-Rawdah fi fadhail Amir al-Mo’minin ʿAli b. Abi Talib, peace be upon him; Researched and Corrected by ʿAli Shikarchi, pg. 223, al-Amin Publications, Qum, 1st print; Muhammad Ibn Shah Murtada Faidh al- Kashani, Tafsir al-Safi, Researched and Corrected by Husayn Aʿlami, vol. 3, pg. 107, as-Sadr Publications, Tehran, 2nd edition, ʿAbdul ʿAli Ibn Jumʿah al-ʿUrusi al- Huwayzi, Tafsir Nur ath-Thaqalayn, Researched and Corrected by Hashim Rasuli Mahalati, vol. 3, pg. 8, Ismaʿiliyan Publications, Qum, 4th Edition.

- 7. al-Rawdah fi fadhail Amir al-Mo’minin ʿAli b. Abi Ṭalib, peace be upon him, pg. 223.

- 8. This book was written by Muhammad b. Hasan Al-Saffar (d. 290h) and was one of the Shi’a Imamiyyah scholars and a companion of Imam Hasan al-ʿAskari, peace be upon him, and this work was written to give an overview of the A’immah and the specialities of each of the Imams.

- 9. For further details on this, please see Iʿdad Wali Zarbin Shahzaldin, al-Jinn fi al-kitab wa al-sunnah, Dar al-basha’ir al-islamiyyah, Beirut, First Edition; ʿAbdul Amir ʿAli Mahanna, al-Jinn fi al-kitab wa al-sunnah, al-Aʿlami Publishers, Beirut, First Edition, ʿAbdul Rahman Muhammad al-Rifaʿi, al-Jinn bayna al-isharat al-quraniyyah wa ʿilm al-fiziya’, Marbusi al-saghir Publishers, First Edition; ʿAli Rida Rijali Tihrani, Jinn wa Shaytan, Nubugh Publishers; Abu ʿAli Khodakarami, Stories about the Jinn.

- 10. al-Jaʿfariyat (al-Ashʿaththiyat), pg. 176; al-Isabah fi tamiz al-sahabah, vol. 6, pg. 408.

Topic Tags:

- Satan [7]

Translator(s):

- Saleem Bhimji [6]

Compiler(s):

- Saleem Bhimji [6]

Publisher(s):

- The Islamic Publishing House (IPH) [2]

Person Tags:

- Mahdi Hadavi Tehrani [8]

Source URL: https://al-islam.org/children-satan

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