Sut

Sut (Arabic: مسوط, romanized: Musawwaṭ), also spelled Musawwat, is a shaitan (devil) in Islamic demonology, described as one of the five sons of Iblis (Satan).^[1] According to traditions in Quranic tafsirs, he is tasked with inciting humans to lie and encouraging dishonesty.^[2] His siblings include Thabr (who promotes imitation of pre-Islamic ignorance), al-A'war (associated with illicit sexual relations), Dasim (who sows discord between spouses), and Zalambur (who causes forgetfulness in prayer).^[1] These accounts originate from early Islamic exegeses, such as those attributed to Mujahid ibn Jabr, illustrating the roles of Iblis's offspring in tempting humanity away from righteousness.^[3] Sut's name derives from the Arabic root related to lying or falsehood, reflecting his function in demonic hierarchy. While not directly mentioned in the Quran, the concept draws from verses like Surah al-Kahf 18:50-51, which refer to Iblis's offspring as enemies of humanity.

In Islamic Demonology

Parentage and Family

In Islamic demonology, Sut is regarded as one of the five primary sons of Iblis, also known as Shaytan, the chief devil who refused to bow to Adam in defiance of God's command. This lineage establishes Sut's demonic heritage within the broader narrative of Iblis's fall from grace as a jinn leader of the shayatin.^[1] The four brothers of Sut are Awar, who promotes debauchery and adultery by making illicit acts appear appealing; Dasim, who instigates discord and hatred, particularly between spouses, by entering homes and exaggerating faults; Zalambur, who oversees fraudulent business dealings and dishonesty in markets; and Thabr, who induces laziness, despair, and calamities such as personal losses or mourning rituals.^[1] These roles are delineated in a narration attributed to the early exegete Mujahid ibn Jabr (d. 104 AH / c. 722 CE), preserved in Abu Ash-Shaykh al-Asbahani's Al-'Azamah (vol. 5, p. 1682).^[1] This familial structure is alluded to in Quranic commentary on Surah Al-Kahf (18:51), which states that God did not enlist Iblis and his offspring as witnesses to the creation of the heavens, earth, or themselves, emphasizing their exclusion from divine processes and their role as misleaders. Interpretations in classical tafsirs, such as those drawing on Mujahid's report, link this verse to the naming and functions of Iblis's progeny, including Sut and his siblings, to illustrate their inherent opposition to humanity.^[4] A parallel narration from Ibn Abbas is recorded in Al-Ayni's Sharh al-Bukhari, reinforcing the traditional attribution of these offspring to Iblis without authentic Prophetic hadith confirmation.^[1]

Role and Attributes

In Islamic demonology, Sut, also known as Miswat or Musawwat, serves as a specialized shaitan tasked with promoting lies and falsehoods among humans. As one of the five sons of Iblis, he operates by whispering insidious suggestions (waswas) that encourage individuals to distort the truth for personal advantage, such as fabricating excuses to evade responsibility or concealing misdeeds to avoid accountability. This subtle influence manifests in everyday scenarios, where Sut prompts people to deceive others in conversations, withhold honest testimony, or invent narratives that foster mistrust within communities.^[1] Sut's attributes emphasize his role as a master of deception, working insidiously through internal promptings rather than overt confrontation, aligning with the broader Islamic understanding of satanic temptations that exploit human weaknesses. Unlike more aggressive demons, he specializes in eroding moral integrity by making dishonesty appear innocuous or necessary, thereby leading individuals toward habitual deceit that corrupts personal and social ethics. Theological interpretations portray Sut's actions as integral to Iblis's overarching plan to divert humanity from tawhid—the oneness of God—by undermining trust, honesty, and communal harmony, ultimately fostering a cycle of moral corruption that distances believers from divine guidance.^[1]

Name and Etymology

Arabic Terminology

In Islamic demonology, the primary Arabic name for Sut is مسوط (Masut), commonly transliterated as Sut in English contexts.^[5] This form serves as a proper noun designating one of the five sons of Iblis, the demonic entity associated with deception. In classical Arabic texts, مسوط appears specifically in demonological discussions as this entity's name, differentiated from unrelated terms like سوط (sut), denoting a "whip."^[6]

Interpretations and Meanings

The name Sut, known in Arabic as Masut (مسوط), is associated with the dissemination of falsehoods and rumors. In medieval Quranic exegeses, such as those by al-Tabari and al-Qurtubi, Sut is portrayed as the devil tasked with disseminating unfounded rumors and false reports among people.^[7] Al-Tabari specifically identifies Sut as the "owner of news," who implants baseless information to divert individuals from verity, serving as a cautionary emblem against the gradual infiltration of lies into social and personal spheres.^[7] These scholarly analyses emphasize Sut's role in perpetuating deception, urging vigilance to preserve integrity amid its quiet encroachments. Within folk Islamic traditions, Sut's nomenclature resonates in proverbial expressions and didactic stories that admonish against mendacity, thereby bolstering ethical precepts centered on sidq (truthfulness) as a bulwark against moral erosion. Such cultural motifs portray the demon's influence as a metaphor for the risks of verbal excess in falsehood, reinforcing communal values of honesty through narrative warnings.^[4]

Theological and Cultural Significance

Mentions in Sources

In medieval Islamic cosmology, Sut, rendered as Masut (مسوط), is described as one of Iblis's five sons in Zakariya al-Qazwini's Ajā'ib al-makhlūqāt wa-gharā'ib al-mawjūdāt (c. 13th century), where he is identified as the lord of lies, inspiring deception among humans.^[8] This attribution appears in folklore and tafsir traditions, with variations; for instance, narrations attributed to Imam Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj (d. 875 CE) list Sut among the five sons of Iblis, assigning him the role of suggesting lies and encouraging dishonesty. Other sources, such as certain hadith commentaries, substitute Miswat or Musawwat for the liar role, highlighting inconsistencies in oral and written traditions.^[1] These depictions portray Sut as a shaytan (devil) within the jinn hierarchy, operating under Iblis to tempt humanity.

Comparisons to Other Demons

In Islamic demonology, Sut stands out among the shayatin for his specialized role in inspiring lies and false promises, setting him apart from his fellow offspring of Iblis who target distinct vices. Medieval scholar Zakariya al-Qazwini describes Sut (also rendered as Masut) as the lord of lies in his cosmological work Ajā'ib al-makhlūqāt wa-gharā'ib al-mawjūdāt, contrasting him with brothers like al-A'war, who oversees adultery, lust, and seduction; Dasem, who provokes strife; Birah, who governs catastrophes; and Zalnabur, who manipulates fraudulent business dealings.^[8] Note that names and exact roles vary across Islamic traditions, with some sources listing Thabr for calamities instead of Birah, and Miswat for lies in place of Sut. Cross-religiously, Sut's attribute of deception through falsehoods parallels the temptations employed by Satan in Christian theology, particularly the biblical account in Genesis 3 where the serpent (identified as Satan) lies to Eve by distorting God's prohibition, promising godlike knowledge without consequence. However, unlike the autonomous chief adversary in Christianity—who is a fallen angel wielding broad accusatory and destructive power—Iblis and his subordinate Sut operate within Islam's framework of limited demonic agency, where Iblis as a jinn leads phased temptations from major sins to subtle neglect of good deeds, all ultimately subject to divine permission.^[9] This subordination underscores Islam's monotheistic emphasis on God's sovereignty over evil influences. The formalized depiction of Sut as Iblis's progeny draws from and refines pre-Islamic Arabian folklore, where jinn functioned as invisible tricksters capable of shape-shifting into human forms to deceive and harm, often targeting travelers by misleading them in desolate areas or inspiring false prophecies through poets and soothsayers.^[10] In the Islamic tradition, these chaotic pre-Islamic entities are restructured into a disciplined demonic lineage under Iblis, transforming folkloric deceivers into theological agents of temptation aligned against prophethood and revelation. In broader comparative religion, Sut's role highlights a recurring motif of deception as a demonic tool across traditions, akin to how Christian Satan twists truth to alienate from God or how pre-Islamic jinn's treachery evolves into structured Islamic warnings against falsehood, emphasizing vigilance through faith and scripture in monotheistic contexts.^[9]

Sut