Dr. Warren Larson Lecture: Fetishes and Charms in Folk Islam (Pt. 2)
Dr. Warren Larson delivered a lecture on the fetishes and charms in Folk Islam during a CIU course. Here, Larson presents the uses of fetishes and charms in folk Islam for mechanisms of protection (e.g., physical elements), using the Qur’an as protection.
Here starts the auto-generated transcription of Dr. Warren Larson Lecture: Fetishes and Charms in Folk Islam (Pt. 2).
In 32 lecture, the, the the ongoing topic is has to do with fetishes and charms, the objects that we’re so on. And I, thought I would just read a little story from one of my former students in Chad. He says, last Tuesday, we picked up our vehicle and, and drove it back to our homes to our home city. Soon as we pulled in the yard, one of our guards asked Tim if this was our new vehicle. As soon as Tim said yes, the guard proceeded to fake spit, see, along the vehicle doors.
He explained that this would keep the car from accidents and that Tim should give him a gift, a gift of narcotic leaf that he likes to chew as payment for his service. The next day, another man explained to Tim that everyone throws a big party when they buy a new car. They slaughter a slaughter a goat so the people come and eat the meat and pray for swift safety on the road. Later that day, Tim asked our house helper about this party idea, and she further added that the people also break an egg on the new car for good luck. See?
And Tim tried to say that we trust in god, not a broken egg, but the house helper quickly responded, of course, but you also break an egg. Now I’m not sure exactly what she meant, but, see, they they can’t quite understand us, can we? In other words and and when we’re working among Muslims, even I suppose some of the things that we do could be misinterpreted, so we have to, to, to watch our step. Not that we live on pins and needles, but that we’re just just be aware of the worldview and be aware of some of these things, before we even get there. Tim and Jen are trying to fit in here, but, in that country, but, you know, it is difficult.
I shouldn’t have said Chad. It’s not Chad, and I won’t mention what country it is. But, let’s continue on then as to what Muslims do for protection. Well, in provision, the provision, that is often used is the verse 2255. You see?
This is a great, great verse for protecting yourself from, you know, harm, and and this is called the throne verse. Surat Al, not Surat, but the ayah ayah al Kursi. Kursi is the word for throne, also the word for chair. Ayah al Kursi 2 and 255, and it’s a long, long verse. It says, who can intercede, as but but as he permits, you know, you see, that’s always the the the the the, know, the camel gets his head in the the tent through that as he in other words, as he god permits.
But in the middle of the verse, it says, except as he his throne doth extend. That’s the throne verse. Gotta remember that, you know, in Islam, god is king, isn’t he? He’s not father. He’s king, and it’s a good thing to be king.
I mean, god is king. There’s no question. But, the the fact that god, you see, is king, he’s sitting on his throne, and, so, we use that verse as a protective charm. See? Another one is writing, reciting the 2nd Sura, which is called Baqarah.
It’s a long, long Sura, long, long chapter. It’s called the heifer. You wonder might wonder why that is these why they’re given such names. Others would say the cow, but remember that something in that chapter mentions the heifer or the cow or something like that, and so that’s how the sutta got its name. One idea is that if you recite the second sudah at night, it gives all his protection from jinn until the morning.
Well, you would also be interested in having some kind of, you know, chronic reading to forgive your ancestors. And the deterrent to diseases is 113. Remember, we, just read that a minute ago, 113 and 114 in the last, lecture. Power to counteract psychic affliction. You know, mental disorders are are troubling in the Muslim world and troubling to everyone, particularly when you think of the fact, of the trauma.
Think of the trauma that’s going on in Muslim circles right now. Great trauma has occurred in Afghanistan and now Syria and people and children. In other words, you know, psychic affliction is is a horrible thing. What do Muslims do? Oftentimes, they are turning to the Quran in their desperation, but what a, you know, what a hopeless thing to do, to turn to the Quran, to something like that for help and healing.
In other words, it’s, it’s you you you pray that god would would bring real hope, the hope of the gospel through to Muslims who are so troubled by, the things that are going on. Now a morning recitation, remember that that’s what Quran means. Quran is Iqra, the the recitations, so that’s really what it is and, you know, Muslims, they memorize it and recite it. A morning recitation of 94, that’s surah 94, the name of which is Al Shar, would, would be, helpful, or another name for that Sura, and sometimes these Suras are given 2 names. It’s another one is al inshara inshara inshira, rather.
What does it mean? Well, it means expansion of the breast. If you look, and I wanted to take you back to the introduction here in, Yusuf Ali. He says this short Surah, that is now the introduction to 94, and they have a you know, he gives an introduction to each chapter. This short Surah gives a message of hope and encouragement in time of darkness and difficulty.
It was revealed to the holy prophet soon after the last Sura, al Duha, whose argument it supplements. And the father the prophet’s mind and heart had indeed been expanded and purified. The burden which pressed on his soul had been removed, and his name exalted in this world and the next. For this, the righteous man, there is no trouble. Now what it had this goes back to the history and and, Muhammad said one time, according to the tradition, Angel cut him open, took out a black spot, and they call that the expansion of the breast.
So I guess that’s why it is considered to be a, a a suit of hope, al Shar or al inshira. Now, excuse me. Another one is 105 and that’s called alphyl, the elephant. Gotta know a little history here too, because, in the year that Mohammed was born, that is 5/17, supposedly. There was an army coming up from the south to make war against Mecca, and, they were traveling on elephants.
And then, according to traditions and so on, the legend, some birds came along and disrupted the whole party and so the whole thing fell through. So so but that’s mentioned in the Quran 105, and so, possibly, that’s the reason because, you know, if god can do something like that, he can obviously protect us as well. See the point? And then, then surah 72, which is al jinn, the jinn that’s used to protect against evil jinn. You know, all jinn are not evil, but, some of them are and so we need protection against them.
Here are some, amulets with verses from the Quran. They it doesn’t of course, they’re not not quite clear, what they are, but that’s, basically what these amulets are versus from the Quran that Muslims would use for protection. You have versus to you know, for protection from the Quran from various and sundry other problems. For headaches interesting. Who doesn’t get headaches?
Well, one verse is 6 and 13. To him belongs all that dwells in the night and the day. Miserable headaches. You know, some people have migraine headaches. What are you gonna do?
Don’t always have, Ibuprofen and Advil and stuff like that. And so Muslims do resort to this kind of protection, protection against slander. And the verse there, 3665 through 66, that day we, meaning god, set a seal on their mouths. We remembering that we is here, the, plural of majesty in Arabic, we set a seal on their mouths. That verse seems to me to be pretty, precise and clear, so I can see how that would be hope that that would protect from from slander.
Now here’s one for toothache. Whoever reads 94 or 105, and in the in the morning, prayers will never suffer pain in his teeth, comes out of Zwemer, Samuel Zwemer, remembering those 2 sodas that we talked about last lecture, 94 and 95, both of them, supposedly in reference to Mohammed. Alright. Toothache. And then 114 in a box with valuables, presumably, you know, something like jewelry.
Well, how do you protect the jewelry? You do it through magic. And another verse, 2 and267, just a portion of it, Allah is free of all wants. So in other words, jewelry is pretty valuable. Put in there the short verse, of Allah is free of all wants.
He doesn’t want anything, so why should anyone want the jewelry? Another one is supposed to keep out moths and, 2 and, I guess, 15 to 16. It says, Allah will throw back their mockery on them and give them hope in their trespasses, so shall they wander like a bird. Now I I’m not sure the relevance of that, but, you know, it’s it’s, lots of verses that Muslims are using, for various and sundry problems. And here are some here are a few references from the the Hadith, and we’re talking about Mishkit here to illustrate what we’re what we’re saying.
Abu Huayah, and this is often the person through whom the tradition came, reported god’s messenger saying, do not make your houses your houses graveyards. The devil flies from the house in which Surah Al Baqarah is recited. And so, Abu Huwara reported it and Muslim transmitted it. So you see, you shouldn’t only find this in Mishkit, which is not one of the canonized sets. In fact, it’s one of the, you know, it’s it’s the the 6 that are canonized, but but a lot of them are the same.
In other words, Muslim transmitted it, so you should find it in Muslim as well, Al Muslim as well as al Bukhari. Abu Umama said he heard god’s messenger say, recite the Quran for on the day of resurrection, it will come as an intercessor for those who recite it. And recite the 2 shining ones, specifically. You know, 2, al Surah Al Baqarah and Surah Imran. Imran comes from the name, by the way, who is the father, I believe, of Moses and Aaron as well as as Miriam.
So the the 2 shining ones, those 2 suitas are pretty powerful suitas. And then here’s another one, Mishkat, volume 1, page 451. Aisha said and who’s Aisha? Aisha is also one through whom many, traditions I’m sorry. Yes.
Traditions come. Every night when the prophet went to his bed, he joined his hands like this, if you can see them, breathed into him, reciting into them, and says, he is God, 1. I seek refuge in the lord of the dawn and say, I seek refuge in the Lord of men, then he would wipe as much as his body he could with his hands, beginning with his head, his face, and the front of his body, doing that three times, and that is Bukhari and Muslim. So there is this, I guess, this magical part of it. Now, you know, I don’t see anything wrong with holding your hands out like that to receive the blessing, but I don’t think that there is a magical effect, in in doing that.
Now there are chronic amulets that are used against the evil eye and we’ve talked about this before, haven’t we? We’ve mentioned that in this famous this famous amulet here, in the center is Quran, Surah 6851 through 52. On the margins, there are, you know, certain parts of the Quran, and then in the 4 declarations in the corners that we’ve talked about before, Quran 112 through 114. So this is a, a famous ambulance in the Middle East against the evil eye. Maybe someday you’ll see this in person rather than just, hearing about it in Islam through the spirit world of Islam.
Wouldn’t that be, somethings? Keep your eyes open. And, then as we mentioned before, there is if you look close, there is Ali at the top. So here, there’s something you see in this this one here for everyone, Ali being the favorite among the the favorite among the, the Shiites.