Master of the Black Pen, Summer 2025
The following is a summary of the three views of motives. Each one represents its own view of what motivates the choices and actions of Iblis.
The Three Faces of Iblis
I.
The Obdurate Face of Iblis
The motive is doctrine, creed, or dogma.
Iblis refuses homage or fealty to Adam because humanity is made from a mixture of altered black mud and divine spirit. When he sees humanity, Iblis insists to God that Adam is a terracotta statue to whom homage would be idolatry.
Behind the face of divinity, Iblis pronounces judgement on mankind.
In this view, Iblis is the primordial fomenter, ultraist, sectarian, or usurper.
Behind the face of divinity, Iblis pronounces judgement on mankind.
In this view, Iblis is the primordial fomenter, ultraist, sectarian, or usurper.
II.
The Illuminated Face of Iblis
The motive is fidelity, fealty, or loyalty.
The motive is fidelity, fealty, or loyalty.
Iblis refuses homage to Adam because divinity alone is worthy of it. It is insolence, blasphemy, or polytheism to regard anything but divinity this way.
Before the face of divinity, Iblis acts so as to enlighten mankind.
In this view, Iblis is the primordial steward, warden, or disciple.
III.
The Maligned Face of Iblis
The motive is nativity, origins, or descent.
This is the traditional or mainstream view of Iblis in his motives.
Iblis refuses to bow to Adam due to their origins. In Hasidic or Christian apocrypha, Iblis is from fire or spirit and Adam is from dirt or mud. In Islamic theology, Iblis is of a lineage risen from fire and Adam is of a lineage risen from clay.
Beyond the face of divinity, Iblis acts so as to extinguish mankind.
On this view, Iblis is the primordial nativist, linealist, or primevalist.
