Do angels teach magic/occult sciences/witchcraft/sorcery???

[Mubashir]

Do angels teach magic/occult sciences/witchcraft/sorcery???

2:102 [Asad]

and follow [instead] that which the evil ones used to practice during Solomon's reign - for it was not Solomon who denied the truth, but those evil ones denied it by teaching people sorcery -; and [they follow] that which has come down through the two angels in Babylon, Hurut and Marut-although these two never taught it to anyone without first declaring, "We are but a temptation to evil: do not, then, deny [God's] truth!" And they learn from these two how to create discord between a man and his wife; but whereas they can harm none thereby save by God's leave, they acquire a knowledge that only harms themselves and does not benefit them - although they know; indeed, that he who acquires this [knowledge] shall have no share in the good of the life to come. For, vile indeed is that [art] for which they have sold their own selves -had they but known it!

Or, the angels do not do such thing and it was a rumour:

[Parwez]

102    The fact is that these people never adhered to Allah's Books and remained preoccupied with their self-created myths and legends. One of these myths was that Solomon had turned away from the Divine Truths and became devoted to magical practices and sorcery.

   How could Solomon act in such a K'afir-like manner? Such evil practices were followed not by Solomon but by those mischievous ring-leaders who taught witchcraft to people themselves and attributed it to Solomon. Another myth was that in Babel there were two Malaika named Haroot and Maroot who had been sent by Allah. People approached them to learn magic by which they could cause dissension between spouses. Before complying, however, the Malaika would warn the people clearly that they were a fitna and that they should not learn magic and become Kuff'ar. (But despite this warning, people learned magic such was its fascination.) All these were nothing but fanciful stories, for there were no such Malaika in Babel nor had Allah taught Haroot and Maroot any magic.
   As far as magical charms or spells are concerned, they cannot harm anyone since all good or evil occurs in accordance with the Divine Laws. Those who profess to practice magic acquire some worldly benefits but ultimately they are the losers since temporary gains are insignificant in comparison to the eternal happiness. Alas! if only they could understand such an evident truth.
   
103    If, instead of being entangled in these myths, these people had believed in Quranic truths and followed Divine Laws, they would have received excellent benefits from Allah. Alas! if only they could understand such an evident truth.

[Shabbir]

(They followed conjecture in the past as well.) Some rebellious people spread a rumor in the Kingdom of Solomon. Solomon never disbelieved in the Divine Laws, but the rebellious ones did. They fabricated a story that two angels Harut and Marut had descended in Babylon and taught magic to people. That they used to warn people, "We are only a temptation, therefore be not oblivious to the rational Divine Laws." The rumor further stated that people learned magic from these two angels how to create discord between a man and his wife. (This entire story is nothing but falsehood. Magic, amulets, ghoul, demon-possession, exorcism, witchcraft, evil eye, fortune telling, astrology, palm reading, clairvoyance, voodoo are nothing but conjecture). These things can neither harm nor benefit anyone since they are contrary to the Divine Laws in Nature ((3:123-127), (6:73), (7:54), (45:22)). (Superstitions can harm people by becoming self-fulfilling prophecies). And that which they try to learn only harms them and profits not. They are well aware that any person indulging in this trade (of the so-called "Occult sciences") will be a loser in the long run, and shall have no portion in the Hereafter. And surely, evil is the price for which they (magicians, diviners, clairvoyants, fortune tellers and claimants to witchcraft) sell their humanity, if they but knew better.

Or did they only taught how to counteract the effects of magic?.

[Dr Kamal Omar]

 And they accepted (without investigation) what the satans propagated against the empire of Sulaiman (Solomon), although Sulaiman did no blasphemy, rather the devils rejected (the Original). They teach magic to people and what was delivered at Babel (Babylon) to two angels - Harut and Marut. And these two provided no knowledge (to counteract magic) to any one till the twain warned: 'We are on trial, so do not blaspheme (by misusing this knowledge).' Then they gain knowledge from the two by which they cause separation between man and his wife. And they could not thus harm any one except by Allah's permission. And they are learning which harms them and does not benefit them. And they certainly knew that whoever purchased this (magic) would have no happiness in the Hereafter. And filthy it is for which they have sold their selves, if they had been knowing (the punishment).

[Truth Seeker]

Salaam,

I see that some of the translations you have provided interpolate that the two angels and what they taught was just part of a 'myth'.

The arabic however is clear in that the verses deal with people who are corrupted and ignore the scripture, choosing to learn the 'dark arts'.

The angels mentioned  (Harut and Marut) are real and did indeed teach people such things, but if you read the verses as a whole, you can see that they are there for a 'test'. For people who wanted to learn magic that sowed discord between man and wife.

The most important thing to note is that the angels said to those that approached them:  ''Surely we are only a trial, therefore do not be a disbeliever."
A final chance has been given to them to take heed and turn back but those who were perverted proceeded and then they were taught.

This action taken by some men meant that they in effect had condemned themselves to hellfire (2.102):

"..and they learned what harmed them and did not profit them, and certainly they know that he who bought it should have no share of good in the hereafter and evil was the price for which they sold their souls, had they but known this."

The angels knew that these men, after having been told to stay away, would be condemned.

I don't see that the angels were going about 'offering' the magic to people. It seems that upon hearing about the magic, those who had 'corrupted hearts' approached the angels, who gave them an open disclaimer so to speak. They are clearly telling the people that they are a trial and if they proceed they would become disbelievers.

If after this they transgress, then so be it. On the Day of Judgement, they will not have any excuse.

[Sardar Miyan]

To sum up pl tell us what is the  moral of this story ? The basic reason for this message? Thanks for sharing

[Sardar Miyan]

Assalam Br JAI I need your reply to my post to pl tell me the moral of this Aya? Were the Angels were fake or Allah is describing peoples opinin ? Thanks

[Joseph Islam]

Dear brother Sardar,

Salamun Alaikum.

My apologies, I did not realise that your post was directed to me specifically.

There is much tradition, folklore and myths associated with this story. I personally only take whatever information and wisdom (God willing) that can be gleaned from the Quran and leave it to that.

Some insights that I personally extract from the verses are:

(1) Prophet Solomon is vindicated from any wrong-doing. This could be related to the myths and beliefs that existed regards him amongst the People of the Book of his lapse into idolatry (1 Kings 11) and / or any myths associated with his involvement in evil sorcery (evil magic).

(2) The Quran clarifies that it was the evil ones (Shayatin) who 'disbelieved', not Prophet Solomon and it was they who were the ones that taught humans 'sihr' (magic). Therefore, by confirming this, the Quran also acknowledged the existence of occult arts (good and bad). What the angels taught was a form of knowledge with a proviso. This does not mean they taught 'evil magic'. It was the evil ones that made use of this knowledge for evil purposes and became disbelievers. In this way, what the angels imparted was knowledge and simply gave a choice. Evil is based on volition. Also worth nothing is the separation of 'shayateen' and 'naas' in verse 2:102. It is quite possible therefore that the 'shayateen' were from the 'jinn'. In this way the 'jinn' would have learnt the ability to make use of occult arts from the malaika (angels) which they then in turn taught humans. There is nothing conclusive in the Arabic text to suggest that the humans learnt occult arts directly from the two angels.

(3) The two entities that the Quran refers to as 'angels' clearly had knowledge of such occult arts and were recognised as being sent as a trial to Babylon. No exact time frame is given. This is not unusual; God can send whoever He wishes for a trial. Note verse 18:65 where an 'abd' (servant) was sent to teach Prophet Moses wisdom. There is no reason to assume this was a mortal man, certainly given the power he had. Angels are also servants of God. Also the names 'Harut' and 'Marut' are names in Arabic. This does not mean these were their actual names. These are the names that the primary Arab audience of the Quran were possibly familiar with. Hence, there is a possibility that there was some folklore attached to these entities. However, no name is furnished in 18:65 with regards the servant of God that Prophet Moses met.

(4) The evil ones (shayateen) learned magic but misused it for evil intended purposes to cause discord between spouses. It can be argued that occult knowledge can be used for both positive and negative uses and some of it can be so severe that it can break marital bonds. The capacity of evil magic therefore has broad limits. There is also much information in the Quran where Prophet Solomon made use of the unseen for positive uses (Jinn - 34:13). The scope of 'Sihr' can also be gleaned from what Pharaoh's magicians were able to accomplish.

(5) However, no harm can come to anyone without the will of God. Absolute power rests with God. Therefore He is the one we must ask for assistance and protection if ill befalls us. Surah Falaq (Chapter 113) also gives some indication of the kind of evil magic people attempt to accomplish such as those that 'blow on knots'. (sharri-nafathati-fil'uqad).

(6) Those that indulge in such evil magic have been likened to selling their souls (2:102). This may imply that they profit from these arts wrongfully in this life (Duniya) which is supported by verse (6:128).

(7) Regardless of what guidance may befall on some, there are those that never revert from their strayed ways but rather continue to incline to evil.

There is much more that can be extracted. Hopefully you will see there are many morals to the story which can be acquired from the Quran without needing to indulge in fanciful folklore.

Regards,
Joseph,