Answer
Salam Brother,
Thank you for your question and for contacting Ask About Islam.
Angels and the jinn belong to the domain of the Ghayb (or the Unseen world) in Islamic terminology.
By definition they are not perceptible to the five senses of humans; which means that they cannot be seen, heard, touched, etc. Even the very word “jinn” means “hidden”.
From this point of view, both angels and jinn are not the subject of our experience in this world. Materialistic philosophies rule out the possibility of existence to anything that is not perceptible to the five senses.
But the essence of religion is belief in the Unseen. The Noble Quran refers to the God-conscious people as “those who believe in the Unseen […]” (Quran 2:2)
And for a Muslim, belief in the angels is an important article of the Islamic creed. One may say that Allah Almighty revealed Himself to the prophets through the angels, particularly through the chief among them namely Jibreel (PBUH).
Angels in Islam
As for the interaction between humans and angels, Allah says in His Noble Quran:
{For each there are (angels) in succession, before and behind him: they guard him by the Command of Allah […]} (Quran 13:11)
{But verily over you (are appointed angels) to protect you; Kind and honorable, writing down (your deeds): They know all that you do!} (Quran 82:10-12)
The foregoing means that to each human being, Allah Almighty has appointed angels, who record the deeds they do.
These angels perform the task they are given by God, unseen and unknown by us. There is no way we can talk to them or seek their help in need; nor is there any reliable record of such things happening.
But angels have communicated with prophets who have received divine revelations too. At times they have appeared before them in human form. However, this is a prophetic privilege, which we ordinary humans cannot aspire to.
Such miracles of angels directly coming in contact with humans is over as is the time of the prophets.
It is also important to note that we have no right to invoke any unseen being whether angel, jinn, or dead souls to render us help. Because only Allah Almighty can helps us. So, we must pray only to Allah (May He be exalted and glorified!).
Allah says in the Quran:
{That is Allah, your Lord; to Him belongs sovereignty. And those whom you invoke other than Him do not possess [as much as] the membrane of a date seed. If you invoke them, they do not hear your supplication; and if they heard, they would not respond to you. And on the Day of Resurrection they will deny your association. And none can inform you like [the One] Acquainted [with all matters].} (Quran 35:13-14)
Jinn in Islam
The jinns are Allah’s creatures who are hidden from us. Allah says in the Quran:
{And We did certainly create man out of clay from an altered black mud. And the jinn We created before from scorching fire.} (Quran 15:26-27)
The jinns are different from angels; they are like humans gifted with free will in that they can choose to be good or bad. And Allah says:
{And I did not create the jinn and mankind except to worship Me.} (Quran 51:56)
The good jinns believe in Allah and follow His commandments; while the evil ones disbelieve and disobey His commandments. The evil jinns are called shayateen – the plural of shaytan (satan).
The bad jinns tempt humans to lead bad lives by disobeying God; they make evil things attractive and inviting and present good things as tiresome and unappealing; thus they lead people along the wrong path – the path to hell fire.
Allah says:
{And the Word of your Lord has been fulfilled: “Surely, I shall fill Hell with jinns and men all together.” } (Quran 11:119)
{And [mention, O Muhammad], the Day when He will gather them together [and say], “O company of jinn, you have [misled] many of mankind.” And their allies among mankind will say, “Our Lord, some of us made use of others, and we have [now] reached our term, which you appointed for us.” He will say, “The Fire is your residence, wherein you will abide eternally, except for what Allah wills. Indeed, your Lord is Wise and Knowing.”} (Quran 6:128)
We read in the Quran how Allah Almighty blessed Prophet Sulaiman (Solomon-PBUH) with the ability to control the jinns and to have them work for him. We see, for instance, how he wanted a jinn to bring the heavy and beautiful throne of Queen Bilqis before him.
And it was done for him by a jinn, “before he got up from where he was sitting”. All of this happened by the grace of Allah. But such miraculous events belonged to the life and times of a Prophet; and after the time of the Prophets, we do not see anything of the kind.
As ordinary humans, we can never hope for any such miracle either.
As has been said above about angels, it is not permissible for us ordinary humans to seek the help of the angels or jinns in any matter. There is no report about the Prophet, his companions or those who followed them, that they at any time sought the help of the jinns in any matter.
And Allah knows best. I hope this helps answer your question.
Please keep in touch. Salam.
(From Ask About Islam archive)
Please continue feeding your curiosity, and find more info in the following links: