with the prayer formula, “I seek refuge in God
from the reviled Satan,” followed by the basmala.
The word “reviled” (rajim) literally means “pelted
with stones.” Indeed, the stoning of three pillars in
Mina that represent Satan is one of the concluding
rituals of the annual haJJ. It is linked to the story of
Abraham’s near sacrifice of his son, when Abraham
repelled Satan with stones for trying to persuade
him to disobey God. Millions of pilgrims perform
this ritual each year when they go to mecca.
See also abraham; allah; creation; satanic
verses; Women.
Further reading: Peter J. Awn, Satan’s Tragedy and
Redemption: Iblis in Sufi Psychology (Leiden: E.J. Brill,
1983); Fazlur Rahman, Major Themes of the Quran
(Minneapolis, Minn.: Bibliotheca Islamica, 1980);
Ahmad ibn Muhammad al-Thalabi, Arais al-majalis fi
qisas al-anbiya, or “Lives of the Prophets.” Translated by
William M. Brinner (Leiden: E.J. Brill, 2002): 43–57;
Alford T. Welch, “Allah and Other Supernatural Beings:
The Emergence of the Quranic Doctrine of Tawhid.”
Journal of the American Academy of Religion 47 (1979):
733–758; T. J. Wray and Gregory Mobley, The Birth of
Satan: Tracing the Devil’s Biblical Roots (New York: Pal-
grave Macmillan, 2005).
Satanic Verses
Euro-American Islamic studies scholars in the 20th
century coined the term Satanic Verses for certain
verses Muslim sources say sata n attempted to have
mUhammad include in the qUran. A number of
respected early Quran commentaries and historical
writings provide testimonies about this incident,
including Said ibn Jubayr (d. 714,), Ikrima (d.
723), al-Suddi (d. 745), Ibn Ishaq (d. 767), al-
Waqidi (d. 823), and al-Tabari (d. 923). Although
they differ in detail, these accounts state that when
Muhammad was still preaching in mecca, Satan
deceived him into delivering “false” revelations that
recognized the existence of Allah’s three daughters.
After reciting Q 53:19–20 (“Have you seen al-Lat,
al-Uzza, and another, Manat, the third?”), Muham-
mad reportedly said, “Indeed, these are the exalted
cranes/the exalted maidens (gharaniq), and their
intercession is desired.” (The double meaning of
gharaniq here may have been a rhetorical device, or
it may indicate that the cranes were symbols for the
goddesses. Birds in Middle Eastern lore are animals
that link heaven and earth.) By mentioning the three
goddesses, Muhammad appears to admit that they
had the power to act for the benefit of those who
worshipped them. This has been seen as an effort
to appeal to members of the qUraysh who were
unhappy with Muhammad’s attacks against their
gods and goddesses. The historical reports go on to
say that Muhammad later realized he had made a
mistake and repudiated the verses in question. They
also indicate that he received a subsequent revela-
tion in which God declares that Satan was respon-
sible for his error, and that he (God) had allowed it
to happen as a test of faith (Q 22:52–54).
Muslim scholars increasingly rejected the his-
torical truth of this incident and their views have
prevailed until the present time among most Mus-
lims. The first generations of scholars opposed to
the veracity of the Satanic Verses incident included
such notable Quran commentators as Abu Bakr ibn
al-Arabi (d. 1148), Fakr al-Din al-Razi (d. 1210),
and Ibn Kathir (d. 1373). They argued that the
incident portrayed Muhammad as a flawed prophet,
one who made a mistake by recognizing that there
were other deities besides God and who could not
tell the difference between the word of God and the
word of Satan. The correct doctrine in their view,
which was gaining widespread acceptance, was that
God had made all prophets, including Muhammad,
incapable of error and free of sin. Muhammad,
therefore, could never have been misled by Satan
and would never have endorsed idolatry. The attri-
bution of infallibility (isma) to Muhammad affirmed
the truth of the Quran and Muhammad’s sUnna,
both of which had already become essential bases of
Islamic law (fiqh). Moreover, the doctrine was rein-
forced by the popular veneration for Muhammad
and other Muslim holy men and women connected
with the spread of sUFism.
In 1988 the award-winning Indian author
salman rUshdie (b. 1947) published an English-
language novel entitled The Satanic Verses, whichSatanic Verses 605 J