she wept and exclaimed, “By Allah, you are that very man! My father used to weep and pray, ‘O Allah, marry my daughter to the one who returned the necklace to me,’ and Allah has granted him his request.”

She then died, so I took the necklace and my inheritance and made my way back to Baghdad (1).

He also related another incident about himself: “We owned a house in al-Zafariyyah. Whenever people moved into it, they were found dead the next morning. One day a Qur’an-reciter came, rented the place, and found it agreeable. He spent the night there and came out alive, which astonished the neighbors. He stayed for some time, then moved out. When they asked him why, he said:

‘On my first night there I performed the night prayer and recited some Qur’an. Suddenly a young man climbed up from the well and greeted me with salam. I was taken aback, but he said, “Do not be afraid; teach me some Qur’an.” So I began teaching him.

‘Then I asked, “What is the story of this house?”

‘He replied, “We are Muslim jinn— we recite the Qur’an and pray. Only the profligate rent this house; they gather here to drink wine, so we strangle them.”

‘I said, “At night I am afraid of you. Come only in the daytime.”

‘He agreed. After that he would climb out of the well during the day, and I became familiar with him. While he was reciting one day, a conjurer passed through the alley calling out, “I remove creeping things, the evil eye, and the jinn!”

‘The jinn asked, “What is that?”

‘I answered, “A sorcerer.”

‘He said, “Bring him here.”

‘So I went and brought the man in. As soon as he entered, the jinn turned into a snake that clung to the ceiling. The conjurer began his incantations, and the snake kept lowering itself until it dropped into the middle of his ritual circle. The man stepped forward to seize it and put it into his basket, but I stopped him.

‘He protested, “Will you deny me my catch?”

‘I gave him a dinar and sent him away. The snake shuddered, the jinn emerged, now weak, pale, and almost dissolved. I asked, “What is the matter with you?”

‘He replied, “That man has nearly killed me with those names. I doubt I shall survive. Keep watch tonight: when you hear screaming from the well, flee.”

‘He continued, “That very night I heard…’"}