What are the Jinn?

Who was the historical John the Baptist? Beyond the Gospel stories, John was a Jewish prophet and baptizer whose movement rivaled that of Jesus himself. In this episode, we look at what historians can actually say about him, from the accounts of Josephus and the New Testament to ...  Show more

In this episode, we explore the history of witches and witchcraft, from ancient sorceresses and magic in Mesopotamia and Rome, through medieval ideas about heresy, demons, and folk magic, to the demonology and panic of the 15th-17th centuries that produced the witch as we know it ...  Show more

Forget everything you learned about 'genies' from Aladdin - tales of the Jinn, also called Djinn, are ancient and not at all as family-friendly as Disney might have you believe. So what are these mysterious creatures, exactly? Join the guys as they delve into the strange story ...

The Djinn that appear in the Qu'ran and throughout Arabic mythology are far more terrifying and dangerous than the wish-granting entities known as genies. They’re complicated spirits with incredible powers and free will, able to grant immense fortune… or gruesome death. Learn mor ...  Show more

"Ghouls, ifrits and a panoply of other jinn have long haunted Muslim cultures and societies. These also include demonic doubles (qarīn, pl. quranā'): the little-studied and much-feared denizens of the hearts and blood of humans. Muḥyī al-Dīn Ibn 'Arabī (d. 1240) wrote on jinn in ...  Show more