Shams al-Ma'arif - The Most Dangerous Book in the World?

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Filip Holm
Experia
Ethan Sloan
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i’ve never heard an english speaking native pronounce Arabic this great!!! Truly impressive!!! Subbed.

I envy your will of learning and researching for this video alone. I'm a muslim myself yet these matter is foreign to me.

They learned what harmed them and did not benefit them-although they already knew that whoever buys into magic would have no share in the Hereafter. Miserable indeed was the price for which they sold their souls, if only they knew! (Quran 2:102)

Finally it makes sense now. In my childhood, there was a man of my mother's village could summon Jinn mostly for healing people from illness. The jinn was known to be good unlike Satan/evil-nature but little bit ill-tempered. As urban residents, me, my father & everyone else laughed hearing such things. We decided to witness the attempt. One of my aunt was infertile. Doctor said she may haven't give birth ever. Her father couldn’t bear it. He called that man to arrange a summoning in hope that if Jinn could help. Luckily we were there too. In the full moon. There was almost 15-20 people in my aunt's house locked inside including me & my parents. Completely dark. Not a single drop of light except few aromatic joss stick. One of my grand father was holding the man tightly so that he can not do tricks by himself. The man were supposed to recite some sort of verses for quite a long time. Although he told us before starting rituals that how the jinn will enter. Exactly that happened after few minutes. Something suddenly started walking on the roof. It was so heavy that the whole house was shaking. Than it feels like somebody threw a heavy stone. It fell just in the middle of us directly from the roof . Later we saw it was a huge rock but got puzzled that how did it invaded the roof & fell upon a place full of people but nobody got hurt! Thn we felt that the thing jumped onto the ground, opned the main door which was locked inside, took a chair & sat in the center of room. Remember it was completely dark. Well thn he gave Salam to everybody. I was like shivering after listening his voice. No human can have this kind of voice. It was nasally & too sharp. He was talking bengali but in different dialect which was not familiar to me. Than he calmly heard all the problems & questions whoever asking & replied accordingly. My mother, one who is fearless lady i have ever seen, was asking some questions that results are yet to come in near future. The jinn scolded her saying "we can not tell about prophecies. That power is not given to us. We are another species just like you made by Allah with a certain special powers." my another aunt had been trying hardly to see him in the dark. He noticed instantly. Said, "you tried to see me since the very first time. Can you bear the effect after seeing my avatar? If we are in hiding, that is for a good reason. So let us be." when he was gone, he took almost half of mann fish as his charge. After the ceremony, when the light came back, we were like numb. Couldn't find any loophole that could convice us that it was fake & staged. No third person could enter in the house territory. Even if anybody stays hidden in outside, how could he open the heavy main door which was locked inside. What is the explaination of the throw. How it fell through the roof! But the most interesting part is, my infertile aunt for whom the jinn was summoned is a mother of four children now. Later the jinn appeared again by the same ceremony. Gave her some rituals to follow & told to perform her prayer regularly.
So this is how the jinn was summoned by that man. He might have chanting those verses. My nana told me that the summoner had some book which is forbidden. Sometimes he may recited the verses from The Qura'n in reverse (Nawjubillah). Nana said, although the man meant to help people but it is wrong & forbidden in Islam. No one is supposed practice such things like magic or summoning Jinn.
Thanks & Appreciating your efforts from Bangladesh 🇧🇩

Truly appreciate your efforts at presenting valuable knowledge in an objective, thorough yet respectful way. I am fascinated as to the way mystics from many different religions have accessed common, universal truths. For example it seems cryptograms were used in many cultures to reinforce faith in the spiritually alchemical properties contained in sacred scriptures. Best wishes.

You clearly put a lot of effort into research and learning the correct pronunciation of Arabic names and words and it shows. I applaud your dedication

For those who do not know: in Arabian countries, especially among the older generations, just the mention of this book brings out a very negative, fearful reaction. I once joked with an older person that I was reading this book and he scowled and told me not to joke about things like this. The fact that this is being covered outside is a very interesting and refreshing take! Thanks for this video!

I adore this channel. your videos are so informative and well-researched. and I really appreciate how you present your knowledge without passing judgement on the cultures you talk about. it's clear that you put a lot of effort and time into your work, and it's always brilliant. even as an Arab Muslim, I'm learning so much from you that no one here ever mentioned. also, excellent pronunciation!

One of my relatives had a copy of a black magic book (I don’t know if it was specifically this one). One night, he had such a horrifying experience with the paranormal that he ordered his son to submerge the book in water in order to smear the ink so that the curses could no longer be read. ‘Islamic’ occultism is serious stuff, not at all like the things they show in Hollywood movies with pentagrams and inverted crosses.

This is my first time on your channel. I must say, you’re pronunciation in Arabic is impressing. I am a language nerd (passionated by linguistics). Through languages I get to explore culture and through culture religion. Somehow I haven’t dived into the Islamic world yet. You showed me beauty today, wisdom and faith in God. I really should learn more about the Arabs.

i'm very happy and thankful to you that you made sure to differentiate between what is islamic and what is "islamicate", because for me as a Muslim, all these things of magic and occultism break very fundamental rules of islam, that those people chose to translate and understand in a bit of a different way.

I heard from my father and his sisters that their grandfather (my great-grandfather) used to do some magic (black magic) from Quranic verses. There are many stories circulating about him in our family. It is rumored here that a person who does these kind of thing never dies until unless he loses his sons (at young age). My great-grandfather had 3 sons. All died at the age of 40 approximately. Then he died after burying all his sons. My father was 10 years old when my grandfather died.
We live in a family house (my great-grandfather also used to live in this house). About a year ago we were going through an old book storage. We found a book. It was all about black magic (it could be this book or a similar book). It was really creepy. We decided to burn that book. Because there are still people in our family who would've loved to have these books 😢. People still tell stories of paranormal activities in our house. But these activities died out approximately 20 years after the death of my great-grandfather😢.

Finally someone who cares about proper pronunciation. It's hard to take someone's information seriously if they're butchering the names of what they're talking about.

Holy moly, I’m so happy I came across this channel. Thank you for making such quality content. You definitely has me as a subscriber.

Philip you have done a wonderful job, the pictures of painting as an artist a tour through the Islamic art from miniature, two point perspectives to a transition to realism was a bonus to watch the video,
Your research and source material with Citations are spot on, it was a very well spoken, well informed talk with correlation between the sacred text and Islamic astrological and scientific side of the world.
Not much impress me in life, but your work was commendable, your look beautiful, you speak like a clear water with beautiful Arabic and English pronunciation.
Keep up the Good work mate!
Zohair

Thanks for your great research and narration work. Just to add a small detail on what you mentioned at the beginning, Al.Buni is from Buna (Bône), which is nowadays Annaba city in North east city où Algeria (where the basilic of Saint-Augustin is).

One of my relatives had found a similar book which he got from his dad. He began to read it for spiritual purposes. But things got quickly out of hand. He would experience really scary dreams at first with jins violently taking him under the earth. Then after he really got very ill and doctors got real confused with his conditions because to them they couldn't diagnose the medical problem. Things really became a lot messy and crazy afterwards.!

Your vids are so great, I love learning from your great explanations and study ❤

Although being a non native Arabic speaker yourself, your pronunciation is pretty much smooth in itself. Goes to show your true dedication for not murdering these words.

I find it interesting that in Malaysia we call a djinn community commonly associated to be living in different dimensions of local forests as orang bunian or “Bunian people”. (“Orang” means “people” and bunian is considered as a special noun with no particular meaning in malay language) there’s always tales & reports in which humans gets kidnapped or accidentally enter their dimension. and the bunian people are always being portrayed by oral tradition as peaceful communities (& for some reason with beautiful females) who just want to coexist peacefully with humans but we still shouldn’t do or say things to upset them especially in nature / forests / rivers in which it is believed to be their home.
I wonder if the usage of this term “bunian people” has any ties with Ahmad Al-Buni’s work since the influence of sufiism is still evident in religious practices in Malaysia to this day. It’s also not uncommon for the ancestors of muslim malays to keep “good djins” as their companions which is said to be passed down from one generation to another. Today’s generation have been educated is an act of shirk, but acts of sihr and or getting help from djinns is quite known to be practiced by people, although of course is forbidden and frowned upon. But pretty common to the point if someone is actually diagnosed with schizophrenia or experiences psychotic episodes, still a large part of the community would think it’s sihr or djinn instead of a treatable mental illness.

Beautifully presented and narrated. Gives an insightful and objective perspective of a subject rarely discussed.

this is such a quality video the way you give a warning when your quoting something also is so considerate and your pronounciation is really good for a non native speaker you gained a new sub !

We need more channels like this with useful informations and legit sources

As a Muslim and an Arab, I want to thank you for the respect you showed me by dedicating a substantial amount of effort to making sure that you get a decent pronunciation of the Arabic Language and researching the most dangerous book on earth to help everybody get a clear understanding of the context of the book and story behind it. Also, you, as a non-Muslim and a non-Arab, have educated me about the power and value contained inside the Arabic Language and sentences of the Quran, you have honestly brought me closer to God and to my religion which is something that you’ll be given good deeds for and not forgotten on the day of judgement.

It's high time someone did a series like this. As a westerner there are big holes in my historical knowledge of this part of the world, especially pertaining to magic.

Excellent analysis of the book and the cultural and folk influence on its content.

Facts. When you grow up in Africa you see all kind of things they do with the Quran (Good and bad) from forced love to bringing big misfortune to people. This video is really accurate actually because some people use Jinns power to do their things. Of course free for everyone not to believe in this but growing up in Africa you see all kind of mystical things :)

This video essay is really profound. You explained it really well and spoke through the eyes of a believer. It really puts a different perspective about the context of the book. Especially when you said the book were not meant for the common people (somewhere along the line). Allahuakbar. There were no bias in the video but only well plain explainations for us to experience the book without reading it and not have misconceptions about the book. May Allah guide you and give peace and blessings.

I've always heared about it as a dangerous magic book,but never knew the truth about it,thx for the great explanation 👏🏼

I love your channel. Thanks. I couldn’t help but be reminded of various Kabbalistic texts and beliefs I’ve come across. Has there been any studies examining these two traditions for influences?

as someone who's studied islam my whole life i've been warned about this book by almost every person i learned from even in my highschool they warned us about this book to a point that i was even hesitant to click on this video 💀💀

I know it's scary, but by reading Quran and having faith in Allah you can be protected from these things as long as you don't delve into them.

It's truly remarkable how well informed you about these stuff.

❤❤❤ Thank you so much for sharing I love learning about other cultures and knowledge Enjoyed this alot. Planetary square magic and sigils are big part of my craft

Wooow, what a fantastic work you've done here, sir, absolutely fantastic 👍🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
Thank you so much for sharing this with us.

Warning: Anyone reciting the verses differently( as in adding stuff to them, removing stuff, murmuring b/w verses) may be practicing Sihr. Also if any of you have talismans of anysort, check them for numbers unusual words and verses, shapes etc. Allah Hu Aalam

This book and other books full of talismans and incantations were collectively known as "al kutub al safraa" (the yellow (paged) books). Being found with one in your possession was enough to have you accused of heresy or witchcraft and sent to jail.
I once saw one of these books and was able to go through the various spells inside and actually found one particularly notorious spell: the one to use to make a woman you desire come to you. It involves drawing certain talismans and symbols on your member and calling out the loved one's name at night.
Anyway, they say a man was desperately in love with a woman called "Barda'a" (Arabic for saddle, Bedouins often named their daughters similar names). So someone recommended that he try this particular spell after seeing how much he desired this woman. Our friend was not a learned or religious person, he knew little about Djinn and occult things, but he decided to give it a try if there was any chance he could be with the woman he wanted.
So he went to a secluded hovel or shack outside of the village he lived in. He drew the figures as best he could from the book on his penis. Then he sat there in the dark and started saying, "Barda'a, Barda'a" again and again in the quiet of the night.
Suddenly he heard a noise outside the door. His heart leapt with fear, excitement and hope all at once. Could this actually be Barda'a outside the door? He stood up and slowly opened the door and right there in front of his shack was a donkey saddle suspended in the air. 😂
They say he was never the same after that night in the shack outside the village.

Historians and history lovers have always amazed me with the accuracy of the pronunciation of names

Very good presentation, thank you. Although I know too little about this topic and my best course of action is to stay away from such practices especially because if I want something I don't reap the benefits of writing such talismans, etc. instead all I have to do is open my hands and heart and sincerely pray to God as prayer is a Believers biggest weapon and Allah is the most merciful.
And there is the issue of wanting something from other than Allah which makes these practices problematic.
I would ultimately deem these practices unnecessary when compared to Dua/ Prayer.
The interesting part in my opinion are all the (
theories behind it. For example ((that every creation essentially is a word, a number that Allah commanded so they have "hidden" meanings and powers on their own that one can utilize)).
Edit: for those wanting to say that you're supposed to take everything in the Quran word for word. Are implying to understand God's word just through reading? You are not capable of that. In the Quran it mentions "those who study the script". If you want to understand the Quran one must study it.
And Sufism is and especially back in the day was that. Trying to understand.
And Allah knows best.

Your research was dead on right! I know a lot! I love how respectfully you have made this video and presented the info😍

Thank you for this video, as I've been searching for this knowledge for a while. This is very important for establishing a paradigm distinct from our corrupt society, and bringing people to God.

My great great grandfather was fluent in Arabic and spent many years in Egypt. I wish he was around to talk to.

Just wanted to also chime in to also say that as an Arabic speaker, your pronunciation is excellent and such a breath of fresh air to hear once in a while!

Love your channel. Definitely appreciate the English studies of Islamic paranormal phenomenon ideas

To all those wondering, Yes in Islam we strongly believe in other beings like Djinns who can be either bad or good i nature. To take shelter or staying safe from any kind of evil, there are few Surah (verses) we are told by Allah and Prophet (pbuh) to recite, especially after early morning prayer and last prayer before we sleep. Here in Pakistan, we have extreme ignorance among various illiterate ppl who use islam and then practice magic. It is totally forbidden and can even place u out of the religion if one practices.

Thank you for revealing this book. There are many people in Indonesia and Malaysia who are still practicing this Sufism, and there are some traditional midrash that teaches this to selected students mostly who are proficient in Arabic and able memorize the Quran. This Sufism is one of the hardest practice of Sufism that requires seclusion and long fasting, and some of the spells are in Aramaic and Hebrew language written in Arabic. Many of the students cannot stand the temptation of modern materialism. Nowadays only a few in Indonesia that can recreate the "Staff of Moses" and "Ring of Solomon" talisman made of copper plate without touching the plate, or bring a Golem to live, or something that modern people call "teleportation", that can transfer a disease from a patient to a sacrificial animals. The traditional midrash mostly teaches healing a person from physical disease, or disease caused by unseen beings.

A student asked me about this book just before winter break. I told him I would look into it (and forgot) until I stumbled on this video while exploring the playlists for your channel, which I stumbled on through Esoterica (which I stumbled on via Religion for Breakfast). Thanks for this! You have a new subscriber and loyal viewer.

I enjoyed the detailed scholarly account of the (in)famous anthology. Thank you for inspiring me.

As an Algerian myself (north of the sahara) we do not mention this book much at all not because of its dangers but because we are uneducated about this stuff 😑. So thanks for this video.

You have a remarkable ability to spell Arabic words with such accuracy. Amazing.

My sister-in-law's brother somehow got hold of a copy of this book. He read the book without the knowledge of his family. I guess he must've summoned the Jinn because he changed and became an entirely different person like those people who see things that are not supposed to be real like in the movies. He would get scared being left alone so his family always had someone around him. He eventually ended up committing suicide. It was very tragic.

Informative and well made. Truly thought-provoking. Thank you for sharing, friend.

it's a well know book every Arabian knows it,me myself even the name of it gives me the chills

Interesting and well presented channel sir. Subbed, thanks for all the research and work

Your pronunciation of the works and names in Arabic is so satisfying, thank you for making such effort to say them right! Being an Arabic native speaker, I know how hard some letters and vocals can be to non-Arabic speakers.

Heyy man... I really Love your explanation and your work....
It is amazing stuff ❤

Such an amazing knowledge presented right here.

Thank you for spreading such valuable knowledge

I've always had a fascination towards this sort of stuff. I find it kinda funny how the majority of "Don't read this you'll be cursed" mostly comprises of doing this x hundred times on a specific lunar phase and when x planet is alligned with x constellation. Things that make me instinctively go "okay grandpa let's get you to bed".

Great video it got recommended to me out of the blue, if they call this book dangerous then they should really really contemplate on Quran which was written my Allah Himself and every Harf of Quran has powerful meanings and it fits perfectly on each aspect if you read with keen interest

I have really been loving this channel for the past few months. I do not have a post secondary education so I’m really starting from scratch here. I have always been interested in subjects such as these and this channel is a quick and good way to get a handle on things.

How have you gotten all that knowledge?! I mean how did you learn all that sensitive information?!, Cause I believe that you've mentioned a very sensitive correct informations!, You are absolutely amazing, and I also would like to thank Sarah in the comment section for her clarification about the Islamic religion and that it is so far away from Sofisim as you've also mentioned about the islamicate

My grandma used to own this book, My older brother mentioned that he and his friend who knows alot about magic and the book opened it. And as soon they did he started hearing sound around him and fast moving creatures which are believed to be jins.

Thanks! very interesting! have you read about Tazkirat al Awliya? , it could be a good subject for another research and video.

Thank you so much for raising awareness and true essence of our ancestral wisdom that is very universal, pure, sacred and true in its own nature and creation! Very insightful episode. 🙏

When i visited the Philippines, i was introduced to a man who claims to be a direct descendant of Ahmad al-buni. He can perform miracles and heal the sick by magical means. Everyday, people would line up in front of his house just to be treated and to get relief from their ailments. People call him al-bularyo.

"Shame unto anyone who has this book and reveals it to a stranger."
Let's talk religion: So I heard of this book..

Beautifully explained. Very well done study by the presenter.

Great video because all these ancient books are vital for understanding the nature of humanity and the realms beyond. Majority of these books will change you but Ya Allah respects risk takers ; I don’t think a burning desire to learn about the sacredness of God and his Creation is a crime. The Mysterious Creator of Creation brings these desires.
We all just want to be heard, understood and respected.
It’s really about restoring, re creating , and sustaining everything humanity needs to thrive.

Thank you for this amazing explanation!

As you have discussed this book, I see that it is more of a help to people who are are distressed one way or the other.

People from other cultures have no idea how scary this book is for us 😅
I'm not even a devout Musilm, and I consider myself a man of logic and science, but the mere idea of watching a video about this book gave me the creeps 😅
And seeing the pages and the symbols made it even worse 🤣

From a Muslim here who is from an Arab country and has a descent knowledge about the religion, for those who think that this book is religious in anyway or who think they will get some kind of powers from Allah or the words of Allah, I’d tell them to not be fooled by these thoughts. This book has nothing religious in it! People see the verses and names of Allah and they think “then this book must be a good Islamic book”.
Just think about this, what if a Quranic verse is written backwards that doesn’t make it from the Quran anymore. Or if this book tells you to repeat something specific numbers of times, then it changes what is supposed to be holy to something else. Remember, if the prophet didn’t do it nor his companions then that’s just mere innovation and people are fooled thinking it is “religious and holy” to do these rituals. And calling upon Jinn is just pure shirk as we say.
Remember that whatever this book is telling you about things and stories is just mere lies to convince you that doing these rituals and playing with the Quran like that is ok and religious.
Ask any scholar and they would tell you this book is basically nothing from Islam.
Not to mention the dangers this book brings. You keep it at home and you will see and feel things change and happen. You will also hear things. You will never know peace.
I had 3 family members who were fools enough to think they could learn stuff from the book and they thought they can control Jinn. Well, it turned against them, they got literally mentally ill to the point they had to have them restrained otherwise they might hurt someone or hurt themselves. Eventually all of them died after a long time of suffering with mental illness.
Just stay away from this book or you will regret it. And remember that if you try to read the book and use its rituals then you will be tested. And if you can’t handle those tests then you will end up like those 3 family members I had.

The book faces a bad reputation because of the people who use it to harm people. The writer warned against using these powers except against unjust people and those who deserve pain, but unfortunately the powers of the book are used to harm innocent people.

I’ve only met someone from Thailand who practiced the Islamic faith. Their outlook on the occult was a lot different then I guess you could say the traditional. It was more along the lines of the things that can go bump in the night are also gods creatures or at least know of a creator god so they are to be respected and worked around when needed.

Well researched and well explained. Very academic.

Magic square talisman is very common in my neighbour.. Some people even sell it from $25 - $2500 depend on how many time they recite and ritual.. The effect is powerful..

I am amazed with your Arabic pronunciation and amazing presentation! Kudos!

Magic is simply energy. Its like anything can be used for whatever purpose.

This was a very well researced historilogical discourse! Can you do the Picatrix next?

Just discovered your channel, and most certainly has caught my attention with increasing interest. 😊

That's so funny. I wasn't even raised Muslim but I read all spirit books like you. That's the catchiest one that really rolled off my tongue so well I remembered it without having to write it down. Bismallah!

The more I listen to it, the more similarities I find with Chinese magick and occult ❤ very interesting ❤

Your explanation is amazing
Btw this Shamsul Ma'arif book is still being studied in several traditional Islamic boarding schools (Pesantren) in Indonesia, it's only to be learned but not to be practiced because this book is also considered as controversial book by Indonesian Sunni scholars.

love your explanation, and the book! now I'm intrigued to find my self a copy! I tried to read the pages you showed, I know I could, but it feels like there will be a good chunk of time spent just decoding the handwriting and then some more to be understandable - by me that is-

Shams al-Ma’arif is the magic practitioner entry to the world of magic. It is a book for the beginners and it's one of the easiest understanding books of magic

I once knew a guy who was a really big comic book fan, and he told me he intentionally turns his brain off anytime someone like Dr. Strange says any magical words. He literally chooses to read comic books about magic, and then lets his cognitive dissonance prevent him from experiencing even fake magic.
It's weird, man. People are weird.

Great. Must read Persian literature. 📚

Your pronouncinations of arabic always amazes me! Great job as always :)

I came across one f these books when i was a teenager then me and my friends checked it out and wanted to see if the spells inside would work or not. al the spells in the book were so complicated and so difficult to understand that we gave up in the end xD

There is a similar story of a secret version of H.P. Lovecraft's Necronomicon. With stories of even young children slashing their wrists after reading it.

Is there a playlist where we can follow the series that this video is part of? I can't find it on the Playlists tab. Thank you for the amazing work btw!

Thank you for presenting the book in a scientific and not superstitious way, as it is in the Arabic videos that are full of fallacies. This is a book that does not contain any danger, as it is spread among the ignorant and simple.

Thanks. We westerners usually forget that other cultures do have their own occult traditions. I had never thought about the occult and mystical traditions of the Islamic world, except in the vague figures of the Sufi. This is truly compelling stuff. The way you describe how the Universe is contained in the Quran, the Quran within a chapter, and so on, was breath taking.

Excellent upload, thanks very much, extremely informative and interesting.

My great grandfather had a copy of this book. At night he used to go out in the mountains of Yemen and move stones that can only be moved by bulldozers these days. I’ve seen the size of the boulder it still lays there today. It’s about the size of a Toyota Prius (a little smaller). He would control whole tribes of Jinn to help him move these stones and build walls for mountain terraces for fields to farm. His grandson (my uncle) has the book now. Right when he opened it a black cat ran through the window and jumped from wall to wall before jumping out. After that he stayed sick for 2 months. These books are real and hold very dark sprites. You must be very strong willed to dare to read the words or it will either make you go crazy or very sick. I believe this is how ancient Egyptians and ancient cultures built structures with huge building blocks and impossible methods of moving these stones. Black magic. It’s the only explanation.

I know some one who has this book. The stories I’ve heard about him and this book are scary.

Super impressed by your research and your pronunciation! Your pronunciation is flawless.

just kinda wondering, does the book actually have a related stuffs with the hurufism that would emerged later on? since both of these take special attention for how powerful the Huruf/ Arabic Letters are