Ramadan Articles - The Devils are Shackled, Ramadan is Here - III

As for whispers inRamadan, scholars said that there are different
kinds of whispers, some of which are pathologicalwhispers
)compulsive(, whispers of the inner self, and devilish whispers.
Pathological whispersare compulsive obsessions that a person cannot
ward off completely, until he/she receivesthe due treatment.
Whispers of the inner selfare inner obsessive thoughts.
Shaykhul-IslamIbn Taymiyyah, may Allaah gave mercy on him, said,"Souls
also whisper to man, inciting him to commit sins."Allaah The Exalted
Says:}And We have already created man and know what his soul whispers
tohim, and We are closer tohim than ]his[ jugular vein.{]Quran 50:16[
Devilish whispers are from the devil, whether the devil is inside or
outside the person's body. This issue is a subject of confusion for
some people. How can the devils whisper to man during the month
ofRamadan, while they areshackled?
The answer to this question is thatchaining the devils does not
prevent them from whispering to humankind. The shackleddevils can
still whisper to people. Shaykh Abu Al-Hasan Al-Qaabisiwas asked about
the meaning of the words of the Prophet,, when hesaid:"The devils are
chained up in Ramadan."He replied,"The devils may still whisper to
people even if they are shackled."
Shaykhul-Islam Ibn Taymiyyahsaid,"If the shackled devils can still
harm people while being chained up, no doubt they can whisper to them.
If the shackled devils can harm people, they can, definitely, whisper
to them."
As for the convulsions that some may experience due to being possessed
by theJinn, there are two ways in whichJinnoverpower or defeat a human
being: it may beout of strength orout of weakness.
1- TheJinn, possessing a human beingoverpowers or defeats a human
beingby tempting him to commit sins, abstain from doing righteous
deeds, renouncing self-reproach, and yielding to his quick-temper. In
this case, theJinnis more powerful than the possessed person and
becomes abletooverpower and defeathim.
However, theJinnmay get help from some of the devils among theJinn,
outside of the possessed human's body. TheJinnthat is possessing the
human becomes more powerful due to this help and becomes able
tooverpower and defeatthe possessed human being. In fact, in both
cases theJinnoverpowers and defeatsthe human being out ofstrength.
2- WhenRuqyah)healing with the help of reciting the Noble
Quran(,Thikr)remembrance of Allaah The Almighty(, supplications, or
the like are recited over the possessed person, this confines
theJinninside the possessed body. It weakens and undermines theJinn's
power and control over the body. Consequently, theJinnis overpowered
and defeated and the possessed person goes intoconvulsions as a
consequence of overpowering and defeating theJinn; as thelatter is
possessing the human's body entirely. It is worth mentioning thatthe
possessed persongoes intoconvulsions because of overpowering and
defeating theJinnthat is possessing his body. The possessed person is
not overpowered or defeated by theJinn.
Therefore, the convulsions, which some people may experience during
the month ofRamadandue to overpowering and defeating theJinnthat is
possessing their bodies isout of weakness on the part of theJinn. This
does not contradict the shackling of the devils and
rebelliousJinnduring the month ofRamadan; since the possessed
persongoes intoconvulsions because of overpowering and defeating
theJinnthat is possessing his body. The possessed person is not
overpowered or defeated by theJinn– Allaah knows best.
Another point that should be mentioned in this regard is thatshackling
the devils does not prevent them from harming people. Shaykhul-Islam
Ibn Taymiyyahsaid,"In the month of Ramadan, the devil's power wanes
due to being chained up.Therefore, the devils become unable to incite
people and harm them inthe month of Ramadan asthey do in other times.
However, they are shackled and not dead orkilled. The Prophetstated
that the devils are shackled, yet they can still harm people."
Sometimes the shackled devils' harm may be too much to be endured by
some people due to the extreme weakness of their faith. In this case,
the shackled devils will be able to overpower and defeat them – Allaah
knows best.
However, fasting weakens the effects of the devil'swhispers on a
person. Accordingly, the devil becomesunable to incite people and harm
them, especially inRamadan, the way it can at others times. Therefore,
a fasting person should make full use of the weakness of the devils
during fasting. He should also take advantage of his strength, energy,
and therevival of faith, which he experiences in order to conquer the
devil, warding off its perils, overcoming ]spiritual[ diseases and
wiping away other psychologicaland marital problems incurred by the
devil's evil plots and power.
People should be encouraged and motivated to recite the Noble Quran
more frequently in the month ofRamadan. For instance, people could
organize competitions among individuals, families and neighbourhoods
for the recitation of the Noble Quran observing the rules
ofTajweed)science of reciting the Quran( or memorizing the first or
the second chapter of theQuran. Benefactors and charitable people
could sponsor such competitions in order to offer valuable prizes for
the winners on the night or the day of'Eed. Perhaps this would help
putting an end to the state of apathy and laziness that many Muslims
experience after two or three days of the beginning ofRamadan.