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Quran · Surah 55:14–15; 15:26–27

Jinn made of smokeless fire

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ReferenceSurah 55:14–15; 15:26–27
Written610–632 CE, collected by c. 650 CE
SetBefore humans
He created man of clay like the potter's, And the jinn did He create of smokeless fire.

Translation: Pickthall, 1930 · About the translator

Read it literally

A second intelligent species, made of energy instead of matter, older than us. Invisible, with free will.

What scholars say

Muslims hold the Quran as revelation; historians date the text to Muhammad's lifetime, with early manuscripts carbon-dated to the 600s.

Spirits and jinn
People and places hereMuhammad

Quick answers about Surah 55:14–15

Where is Surah 55:14–15 found?

Surah 55:14–15; 15:26–27 (Quran). Translation quoted: Marmaduke Pickthall, The Meaning of the Glorious Koran (1930).

When was Surah 55:14–15 written?

610–632 CE, collected by c. 650 CE.

What do scholars say about Surah 55:14–15?

Muslims hold the Quran as revelation; historians date the text to Muhammad's lifetime, with early manuscripts carbon-dated to the 600s.

Files in this passage

BeingJinnA second species, made of smokeless fire and hidden from sight, shares the world with us, the Quran says. They eat, marry, die and choose whether to believe; one chapter claims they once sat in listening posts in heaven, until meteors drove them off. What were they trying to overhear?

Sources

  1. Marmaduke Pickthall, The Meaning of the Glorious Koran (1930)Primary text
  2. Quran 55:14–15; also 72:1–9 and 37:6–10, trans. Marmaduke Pickthall, The Meaning of the Glorious Koran (1930)Primary text

Scholarly dates are rounded. The wording follows the named public-domain translation.

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