SAY: "I seek refuge with the Sustainer of men,
Asad Translation Note Number :
"the Sovereign of men,
Asad Translation Note Number :
"the God of men,
Asad Translation Note Number :
"from the evil of the whispering, elusive tempter
Asad Translation Note Number :
"who whispers in the hearts of men1 -
Asad Translation Note Number :
"from all [temptation to evil by] invisible forces as well as men."2
Asad Translation Note Number :
I.e., "Satan" in the widest meaning of this designation, as pointed out by Razi (quoted in surah {14}, note [31]).
The above is perhaps the oldest Qur'anic mention of the term and concept of al-jinnah (synonymous with al-jinn), which has been tentatively explained in Appendix III. In the above context, the term probably denotes the intangible, mysterious forces of nature to which man's psyche is exposed, and which sometimes make it difficult for us to discern between right and wrong. However, in the light of this last verse of the last surah of the Qur'an it is also possible to conclude that the "invisible forces" from which we are told to seek refuge with God are the temptations to evil emanating from the blindness of our own hearts, from our gross appetites, and from the erroneous notions and false values that may have been handed down to us by our predecessors.
