The Faith Healer

The Saturday morning was as fresh as everything was new. The dew drops on tree leaves were glistening radiantly in a multi-color prism. A breeze swept over the tops of the Tamarind trees grown on either side of the avenue to make them sway gently. Maybe it was the slight stirring of a breeze, maybe the temperature dropped as the glorious sunrise glowed yellow on the horizon. As Sam was waiting desperately for Dr. Jerome to arrive, every plying past car with its revving up engines was grabbing his attention. In a couple of minutes, the wait was over and the Chevrolet was there. Perched on the front passenger seat next to Dr. Jerome was a middle-aged man with a long beard, wearing a throb and a turban. Sam greeted them and seated them on the rear passenger seat. Dr. Jerome introduced Sam and Hammad Syed to each other. Then a dead silence remained until the car halted in front of Jennifer's house.

Standing in front of the gate, Sam asked Hammad Syed, "Have you learned about Jennifer?"

"Yes..." A very short reply was let out from his mouth.

"Are you sure she is … I mean Jennifer is under possession?" Sam briskly asked.

"Can't say until I perform the Ruqyah on her," He replied categorically.

"Science doesn't believe it. It calls it a myth," Sam tried to poke him.

"Science doesn't believe in the unseen… but it's there… Islam entails the issue of 'faith' which requires believing in things that are invisible or unseen such as Angels, Jinns, Heaven, and Hell. We Muslims are convinced in the existence of the unseen and believe that believing in the unseen does not contradict the mind because the unseen simply transcended over the realm of the mind but does not contradict mind…" Hammad Syed's solemn reply was rather convincing.

"She is not in there… I think … I've been knocking… no response," Dr. Jerome said impatiently.

"Shall I climb over the wall to see what exactly is going on inside?" Sam suggested.

"No… it's unethical and uncivilized and maybe a crime," Dr. Jerome replied. "Call her on the phone."

"Ok…" Sam made a call to Jennifer.

"Hi Jennifer … We've been waiting outside your house… please come and open the gate," Sam talked to Jennifer on the phone.

"Why have you brought him? I'll never open the gate…" Jennifer was infuriated.

"Who do you mean, Jenni?" Sam was rather puzzled.

"This turbaned buffoon!" Jennifer jibed.

"See he's for your treatment…" Sam argued.

"Get lost now! Or I'll treat you people… right there… right now," She slammed the phone down in Sam's ear.

"How did she come to know that Hammad Syed is with us? I don't believe there is any surveillance camera outside her house," Sam looked at Dr. Jerome in wonder.

"I think … the demon has seen us and whispered into her ear… I believe," Hammad Syed replied to Sam.

"No way… it's not plausible. Although I believe in their existence, I doubt their capabilities of communicating like humans," Dr. Jerome put up his viewpoint.

"According to Islamic belief, jinns are supernatural beings created by God from the fire of scorching wind or "smokeless fire as mentioned in the Holy Quran in several places. They are capable of causing physical and mental harm to human beings. An example of such harm is possession; an individual is entered by an alien spirit, which then controls the person and alters that person's actions and identity. In case of companionship, they even help their victims, communicate with them, and pass information to them," Hammad Syed explained.

"What to do now?" Sam was perplexed.

"Don't worry… things will be normal. Could you bring me a bottle with some water in it?" Hammad replied calmly.

When he was handed in a bottle filled with water, he began reciting something under his lips… he then opened its lid and blew air from his breath into the bottle. He repeated this act three times, held the bottle in his right hand, the lid in his left hand, and then sprinkled all the water onto the gate. Crackle… hiss… splutter…splitter… the iron gate oozed out a wailing cry as if water was poured on burning embers. Hammad Syed took a step back, his victorious glance rested on us and a broad grin captured his face.

With a creak, the gate half opened… and brought nervous smiles on the two faces, whereas the third one remained expressionless. Although the gate had opened, there was a big question on the two faces how it could be possible… no one was seen and the gate had opened.  Sam pondered where Jennifer was and wanted to inform Hammad Syed, but then kept mum due to unknown reasons… Hammad Syed led the team into the house and then asked Sam to guide them into Jennifer's bedroom. An audible eerie sound; a mixture of cacophony and euphony was heard at her bedroom entrance. The team halted there out of sheer fear. Sam peeped into the room and instantaneously forced himself backward.

"What bothered you?" Reading the daunting expressions on Sam's face, Dr. Jerome asked.

"Jennifer… Jennifer is standing on her bed!" Sam looked frightened.

"So… what's wrong with it?" Dr. Jerome was calm.

"She is on her bed upside down!" Sam repeated a little louder.

"You mean on her head! Why?" Dr. Jerome was intrigued.

"No idea…" Sam shrugged his shoulders.

"Let's check her out…" Hammad Syed encouraged them.

"How will you carry out your treatment?" Before entering her bedroom, Dr. Jerome threw a question at Hammad Syed.

"The rite of exorcism will have to be performed. Jinns or genies are frequently held to cause both madness and epilepsy which have symptoms such as morbid fears, forgetfulness, and lack of energy. I'll employ a range of religious interventions to treat the affliction by the jinn. This is called 'Ruqyah'. It's an Arabic word, which means seeking refuge with Allah (God) by reciting certain verses from the glorious Quran (Holy Book of Muslims)," Hammad Syed explained.

When the team of three led by Sam entered Jennifer's room, she was calmly sitting on her bed. "You're intruders… how come you entered my house without permission?" She flew into a fury.

"How could it be dear? You opened the door… and we followed you here... you forgot? Sam made a subterfuge.

"I have no memory for it... OK… what do you want now?

"We merely want to have a session with you. He is Hammad Syed; the faith healer… He will guide what to do," Sam looked at Hammad Syed.

"Ms. Jennifer! Please keep sitting on the bed… I'm sitting on a chair in front of you… don't move…. Just listen to my recitation attentively…If you feel some power trying to take possession of you, don't panic and focus to remain in control of your mind if possible. The bodach seemed to be very crafty and certainly, he is a sly, manipulative entity. If you loosen yourself physically and mentally, he will dominate you, making you do anything he wishes. He will make all efforts to distract you from the recitation yet you remain steadfast and keep listening.  " Hammad Syed gave some instructions to her.

Jennifer glowered at Hammad Syed with impetuous fiery eyes, yet she remained silent. Hammad Syed began the recitation from the first chapter (Sura-e-Fatihah) of the Holy Quran. His voice was sonorous and piercing. Jennifer was stunned with fear and lost her faith for a moment as she was engaged in a spiritual battle. Hammad Syed was loud, solemn, and focused. As the 'Ruqyah' progressed and reached the second chapter (Sura-e-Baqara), Jennifer began rubbing her both hands, more and more rubbing her hands together so that her fingers stretched out and interlaced. She was fidgety, looked restless, and wanted to run away. Her effect was anxious, and her thought process was tangential. The theme of jinn possession was notable in her thought content.

Out of the blue, the unseen winged demon tore out from the light of the day, swooping down from the sky like a thief in the night as if some hidden power pulling him down towards Jennifer. Encompassing with rage, the demon stood by the side of Jennifer, and then with the progressive influence of the powerful Ruqyah was pulled into Jennifer's body. On the spur of the moment, she started crackling with laughter. Then there was a sudden change in her posture; bizarre rippling took place in her whole body. She jolted and opened her eyes, sat cross-legged holding both knees vigorously with both hands, her head clicked, eyes cocked up with arrogance, and scowled at the Raqi (the faith healer).

"Are you interested to bury her with the dead?" Jennifer spoke in a raspy, hoarse male voice and acted like a jinn. Her demeanor and tone of voice changed, "Why are you bothering me? What have I done?

Sam just froze the moment he noticed Jennifer's changed posture, voice, and tone. Dr. Jerome began panicking quite a lot and the Raqi knew that speaking inside Jennifer's body was an entity; not a human.

"Why have you possessed her?" the Raqi, instead of replying, paused Ruqyah (healing) and asked him in a loud solemn voice.

"I like her," the jinn (Jennifer)  looked at the Raqi and then at Sam with intense shrewdness and giggled.

"But she does not like you… She wants to get rid of you," the Raqi replied with rancor.

"You lie. She also likes me," the jinn (Jennifer)  replied with pride.

"You like her because you've seen her. Has she seen you in real?"

"No… but she likes my being with her. She loves my affection. She adores the ways I make her feel. She gets tickled with my whispering endearments."

"How can she like you? You dark ugly creature…Get lost! You were between her and her husband. You caused her divorce! Now you're not letting her into another relationship."

"I'm her husband; I'm in a relationship with her. I won't allow anyone to play gooseberry." The jinn (Jennifer) glared at Sam and then sniggered shrewdly, "He disturbs her. I protect her from him. He is a malicious hooligan."

"No way! This relationship is unnatural and orthodox. You are a Jinn creature and she is a human. This can't be done. Let her get tied in wedlock with a human creature. You must get away from her life." The Raqi rebuked the jinn (Jennifer).

"What's wedlock?" We just believe that love is wedlock and I'm tied to her with that."  The jinn (Jennifer) chuckled slyly.

"It's not possible. Get out of her body! Get lost!" The Raqi scowled at her.

"Never! I'll never leave her in her life. I won't harm her. I just live with her. I'm with her all the time. I'm her companion. My presence gladdens her.

"No way! Only her husband… her human husband can live with her. Not you!" The Raqi then intensified the recitation of the last three chapters of the Holy Quran. (Sura Ikhlas, Sura Falak, Sura Naas). This exasperated Jinn severely. He showed his fist to the Raqi and slapped the floor constantly. The Raqi then began reciting the Verse of the Throne (Ayat-ul-Kursi) and this made such a perpetual impact on the demon that he became agitated, developed jerking movements, and eventually, began moaning and groaning as if was rolling in a blaze with excruciating pain.

This continued for three hours until the demon flew away, leaving the body. The stiffness of the body then diminished and the posture returned to normal. Jennifer felt slight dizziness and regained freshness.

When Hammad Syed, the Raqi figured out that the demon had left her, he asked Jennifer, "How're you holding up now?

She took a long pause to respond and then spoke at a low volume. "I'm O.K. burden free, but every vein in my body is aching." She denied hearing voices or seeing things during the whole process of exorcism. She knew that it was a spiritual problem. "I am possessed by a demon, I don't need any medicines." She replied softly.

"No medicines... No worries…  You'll be fine soon In Sha Allah (If God wills)," Hammad Syed then stood on his feet to bid adieu. "Why do jinns possess humans?" Sam wanted to grab the opportunity to learn more about demons.

"Not all Jinns possess humans, in most cases only bad or an evil Jinn (demon) enters the human body or takes charge of it without that person's will; the possessed individual's actions and emotions are then believed to be under the Jinn's control. There are three reasons for Jinn's possessions. Firstly, if they fall for humans they possess them to live with them forever. Secondly, if they are harmed in any way, they possess the bodies of humans to take revenge. Lastly, because of witchcraft or black magic, a sorcerer sends them to possess certain humans to harm them, " Hammad Syed replied.

"In case of love, do Jinns sleep with humans, I mean do they copulate?" Sam was fascinated.

"Unfortunately, I'm not an expert on Jinns but from my limited understanding….yes they can… and they do."

"How?"     

"Just like humans do."

"And do they bear children with humans?"

"Yes… they can…By Muslim lore, there are indeed hybrids… and the children are part humans, part Jinns. They are said to be either only half-visible, have humans-bodies but Jinn-like desires, or have human-like desires but Jinn-bodies. The Queen of Sheba is said to be a hybrid too."

"How do they enter human bodies?"

"Jinns shape-shift into the invisible gaseous matter and can enter and exit the body through pores of the skin."

"I think night is the best time for them to enter human bodies?"

"There is a theory that the ease of possession is the victim's awareness and weakness. Sometimes a Jinn waits until the person is psychologically or spiritually weak to possess them. A person can weaken via lust, anger, extreme happiness, and when one is in the state in between sleep and wakefulness."           

"Will this demon leave Jennifer… Forever?

"Exorcism will continue until the demon stays… hopefully he will leave after a few sessions and will never return In Sha Allah (If God wills). But you'll have to condone her misdemeanor for quite some time and then she'll be alright. This Saturday is my next session…" The Raqi said goodbye and left.

After the Raqi had gone, Sam and Dr. Jerome spent quite some time with Jennifer to console and encourage her in the most troubling part of her life. She promised Sam that she would join him at dinner this Thursday. Momentarily, they took a nod from Jennifer and set off.

On the way to the office in Dr. Jerome's car, Sam opened up his skepticism about Jennifer, " Doctor … I don't know why my mind is clouded that Jennifer was also involved with the Jinn."

"Haven't you paid heed to what the Raqi said that an evil Jinn enters a human body or takes charge of it without that person's will; the possessed individual's actions and emotions are then believed to be under the Jinn's control," Dr. Jerome, who was at the wheel, was certain that Jennifer was not guilty.

"Oh my Gosh!" The car swerved off the deserted road and crashed against a tree and they both were knocked unconscious. A spurt of blood splashed on the windscreen of the car."

Fortunately, the accident was not fatal; both of them were saved but injured. Lying in the hospital bed when Sam regained his consciousness, he informed no one of the cause of the crash, not even Jennifer, but Hammad Syed who visited them, "While we were riding back home on a deserted road, all of a sudden, a dark shadow projected against the windshield. It grew before our eyes. It was huge, black, and terrifying form. Our car began shaking. Gradually, everything became blurred. Suddenly, the car had a devastating impact, a loud bang and I heard that the front window was shattered before everything went black. Thank God we survived because Dr. Jerome was driving slowly and carefully."

"Don't worry… things will be alright… it happens when you insert your bare hand into a honeycomb…when you try to take the bull by the horns." Hammad Syed comforted Sam and divulged his premonition.

"What do you mean?" Sam asked.

"Remember! We're dealing with a demon, a supernatural… He will try his best to harm us to halt our progression… But don't worry Allah (God) is with us." Hammad Syed solaced him.

"I wonder how you're unharmed even though you're the one who performed an exorcism on the entity." Sam looked perplexed.

"The sacred verses of the Holy Book I keep reciting are the shields from all evils. Allah (God) protects me from all the devils when I recite certain verses from the Holy Quran after every prayer." Hammad Syed let Sam know the secret of his being protected.

After two weeks, Sam, who sustained minor injuries, recovered, but Dr. Jerome had a fractured leg, which would take three months to heal. Soon after his recovery, Sam made a call to Jennifer to make her fulfill the promise she made; to celebrate his new life at 'Tai Pan Restaurant' this Thursday. She agreed.

Tai Pan is situated on a very busy road in the city. The building has a seating capacity of 60 guests. It has a large entry and a bright, open dining area. All available food items are fresh and delectable.

Jennifer looked quite relaxed and content on her first date after a long time. Along with Chicken Manchurian, she ordered Fried Rice and Dumplings. She avoided a glass of juice and a cold drink but enjoyed a cup of Cappuccino at the end.  Sam was craving the vibe to turn romantic but Jennifer had something in mind, "During the Ruqyah session, I saw the demon, transparent and fuzzy looking, hovered in the room, and then I felt it inside me. I could feel my organs being moved. Sometimes it was painful. I was nervous that if I accompanied you to the dinner, the entity might harm me. Luckily, it didn't deter me and I'm here with you."

On Saturday Sam rang Hammad Syed and they both reached Jennifer's house.

Jennifer was waiting desperately to let Raqi know about her condition, "Since you conducted your last session I've had a lot of restlessness; I've become increasingly withdrawn, slept poorly, remained tearful and agitated all the time. Small irrelevant matters bother me. At times, I become violent towards everything. I've started to have nightmares, which wake me up after midnight. I dream of strange creatures of all sizes and shapes. Last night, I felt that someone was choking me by sitting on my chest and I woke up screaming in perspiration."

"These symptoms are the mischief of the demon in the house, which could be created at night as well. He's now on his toes; he is seeking vengeance for your betrayal." Hammad Syed cautioned her.

"I've never been in love with that fiend," Jennifer poured her heart out.

"It might have happened that you gave the Jinn some space because of your loneliness within the confines of your home or your husband's callousness or maybe because of some other reasons… I can't say," Hammad Syed shared his thoughts.

"My husband was away, but I never intended to cheat on him. I was sure they were my dreams." Jennifer continued to speak her heart out.

"Since your mind was in the demon's control, you were forced under misapprehensions that you were getting down with your husband in your dreams, but those actions were real involving the Jinn; nasty demon tactics." Hammad Syed replied to her questions and then asked her to get ready for the session. Both took the same positions.

The Raqi began, "I take refuge in Allah (God) from evil or disaster. In the name of Allah (God) the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful." The moment the Raqi began reciting the first chapter (Sura Fatiha) of the Holy Quran, Jennifer's condition altered; She jolted opened her eyes, sat cross-legged holding both her knees vigorously with both of her hands, her head clicked, eyes cocked up with indignance and her face grimaced.

"You people come every day. What's your problem? Don't disturb me. Go away!" the jinn (Jennifer) frowned.

"No… just stay!" The Raqi spoke softly and continued the Ruqyah.

"Stop please…stop!" the entity pressed his both palms together before the Raqi (the faith healer) to apologize intermittently.

"No!… Stay!… and face the music…" The Raqi continued his recitation of the Holy Quran.

The entity remained in torment … Being in excruciating pain, the Jinn kept begging to stop the recitation… then out of sheer pain, lay on the floor, writhing in agony, suppressing his annoyance, and kept slamming his right palm on the floor. This continued for fifteen minutes and then in his total fury, the demon in Jennifer's body sat up. intending to brawl with the Raqi, who figure out the lout's intention, stood on his feet and gripped the Jinn's (Jennifer's) nap with his left hand, and began the gesture of slitting the top of her head with his right hand (as if holding a knife and slitting her head).

"Loosen the grip…. I would deal with you….. you would face the repercussions…" A loud and angry outburst came from the demon (Jennifer).

The faith healer continued his gesture of slitting the top of her head with his right hand and then….she took a sigh of relief and uttered, "Thank God! I'm relieved…"

Hammad Syed then sat on his seat and asked Jennifer, " How're you feeling now?"

"I've been relieved as if a mountain of the burden removed from my shoulders…" Jennifer was much more relaxed and elated.

"Such demons can go away from you… when only you intend to get rid of them…In this bottle, there is exorcism water, which you have to drink, to sprinkle at your door and the windows every morning and at sunset to cast away any demon entrance and presence. This is a must … regularly….No demon will ever harm you In Sha Allah (If God wills)." Hammad Syed handed in the water bottle to her.

"Jennifer, would you like to serve us that burgundy drink to cheer this moment? Sam bantered with Jennifer.

"Burgundy drink!" I never prepared one… I would just keep one, two, or more empty glass tumblers in the kitchen, and within five minutes they would get filled… must be from the Caucasus Mountains…Haha..ha…ha.." Jennifer burst into a giggle.

"I'm profoundly gleeful to see you the first time in full-fledged laughter… forget about the past…You're mine and you will be mine forever... I mean it!" Sam poured out his heart to Jennifer.

Then in the presence of the Raqi, Sam proposed marriage to Jennifer.

She thoughtfully uttered "Yes" with a nuptial bliss on her face.