An Interview with a Sorcerer

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Magic is a strange world, full of danger. A sorcerer draws near to the devil in ways he desires, and explicit scriptural evidence has come showing the disbelief of the sorcerer and of those who go to him. Because of all this, I wished to present what the author of السحر والسحرة (Magic and Sorcerers: pp. 52, 56) transmitted when recounting a discussion with one of the sorcerers, clarifying the danger of this affliction and its impact on the individual, the family, and the Muslim community. He says:

“Our session was a search for all the ways to obtain the keys to this unknown and strange world. The deeper the sorcerer led us into his world, the more things became blurred. I suddenly remembered what he told me at the beginning — that the world of magic is a strange one known only to its own people. Yet, driven by the need to understand everything important, he began the session by saying:

‘People are always in a state of panic, terror, and fear — of one another and of the future. People are always searching for the shortest path to success and deliverance. Everyone who comes to me complains, fearful, wanting to know the future, discover where their good lies, and know who is with them and who is against them. That is the condition of people: they need a mediator, a supporter. We face problems but we overcome them, because we must be honest with the jinn on one side, and with the customers on the other — especially now that this craft has become a refuge for every unemployed person.’

Question: Does this mean that magic exists?

Sorcerer: Of course. God mentioned it in many noble verses.

Question: And how do you allow yourself to practice magic when you already know it is prohibited?

Sorcerer: Honestly, my conscience torments me. I live in conflict, full of contradictions and emotions. But maybe I am no different from many others whose lives have exhausted them and whose needs have tormented them as they searched for a livelihood. This is my fate in this world. My heart is full of love, and although this profession is not free of sensitivity, I try not to cause harm. My prescriptions are amulets and incense. I won’t hide from you that from time to time I think about quitting this craft — but where would I go? What would I eat? How would I face the expenses of life?

Question: So you admit that you are a sorcerer in every sense of the word? And what if we asked you for a pass into your strange world?

Sorcerer: It is a world of a different kind, understood only by practitioners. It is hard for you to grasp its details and symbols. Magic is more practical than theoretical — a world full of symbols and charts. You could write down what I dictate to you letter by letter, but in the end you would find you understood nothing.

The sorcerer passes his right hand over his forehead and continues spontaneously:

There are three types of magic: white, black, and red.

White magic: used in matters of love and bonding between two hearts — strengthening love between a married couple or bringing them together.

Red magic: used for evil in general — destruction, ruin, breaking homes, scattering families. I do not use this last type because of its harm to humans.

Question: And what is the essential material used in red magic?

Sorcerer: Blood.

Question: Blood of what?

Sorcerer: Animals and insects. That is why it is called red magic.

Question: What about black magic?

Sorcerer: Its materials are many and vile — tar, asphalt, certain drugs, black goat hair, monkey hair. This type is used on Saturdays. Unfortunately, black magic is used to separate a husband from his wife, and to destroy a person’s life, wealth, condition, and work.

Red and black magic are both violent.

Question: And what do you say about white magic?

Sorcerer: Its main ingredient is hyena brain. Some write with it after it dries, along with the head of a hoopoe bird and certain kinds of incense. White magic is used for bringing a man and a woman together. But after less than a year, signs of its effect appear on one of them.

Question: Who is most vulnerable to magic?

Sorcerer: Mostly young boys, women, and the ignorant.

Question: And what do you write in the amulets and other items?

Sorcerer: Certain verses, letters written in blood, and symbols found in books about magic.

Question: What are the primary materials a sorcerer relies on?

Sorcerer: Underclothes, photographs, and soil from a person’s footsteps.

Question: And what do you rely on the most?

Sorcerer: Exploiting the customer’s emotional state and circumstances.

Question: What does the cemetery represent for you?

Sorcerer: Some sorcerers instruct their clients to bury something in the cemetery — especially those using red and black magic. They insist on burying something among graves or in dry water channels, or generally in abandoned places, because these places are essential components of the prescriptions the sorcerer gives. Cemeteries, canals, abandoned areas — all are elements specified by the jinn themselves.’

(The author comments: The main reason for using such locations may be that they are far from people, making it difficult to find and destroy the magic. God knows best.)

Question: Is the effect of magic long-term or short-term?

Sorcerer: Perhaps the most dangerous type is the one prepared as a drink.

Question: How so?

Sorcerer: Some sorcerers write charts, symbols, and amulets using hyena blood, frog blood, snake blood, or any insect blood. They write symbols on paper which is then dissolved into a particular drink. Whoever consumes it is affected — he may suffer neurological damage, paralysis, or lose consciousness.

Question: And your customers?

Sorcerer: They are diverse — men and women.

Question: And who are more?

Sorcerer: In the past, women were more than men. But since the mid-1980s, I think 60–70% of those who use magic are men.

Question: What have you noticed among your customers?

Sorcerer: I noticed that women are most often accused of practicing magic, yet among my customers are merchants and businessmen — some even deny magic publicly but practice it secretly.

Question: In your experience, why do these people resort to magic?

Sorcerer: It’s simple: these people — men and women — are weak-willed and failures in life and society. They cannot achieve their dreams and ambitions through work, persistence, and patience, so they seek easy, short paths to fulfill their desires.

Question: And does magic actually achieve those goals for them?

Sorcerer: Not all of them.

Question: Why not?

Sorcerer: Because there are things that break magic — religious scholars undo the prescriptions we provide.

(The author comments: One must understand this important matter. God alone is capable of nullifying magic. Scholars have no power in fighting magic except through turning to God and applying the legitimate ruqyah found in the Qur’an and Sunnah, as well as lawful physical means for treatment. The Almighty says: “When they cast their spells, Moses said, ‘What you have brought is sorcery. God will nullify it. God does not set right the work of corrupters.’” [Yunus 10:81]. The author continues: This is an implicit admission from the sorcerers themselves of this absolute truth. Would that Muslims believed in this and turned to lawful means — spiritual and physical — to solve their problems, gaining God’s pleasure and happiness in this life and the next.)

Question: And what are the most important elements or materials a sorcerer relies on in all his work?

Sorcerer: Underclothes, of course — they are among the most important elements in almost every operation because their effect is strong. The devil is found in them.

Question: And who actually performs the magic? The human? The sorcerer? Or who?

Sorcerer: In reality, the jinn devils are the ones who perform the magic. Every sorcerer has a pact with Iblis. The kings and queens of the jinn also acknowledge this pact that binds them to their sorcerer-allies.’

The author concludes: I deliberately presented this encounter to fulfill goals, the most important of which is that people may know the reality of magic and what practices and rituals surround it — especially the details that emphasize the danger of this great affliction and its destructive effect on society. God knows best. Our final prayer is: praise be to God, Lord of the worlds, and may God’s blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his companions.