9 – Al-Hasan ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAziz al-Jarawī narrated to me; al-Ḥārith ibn Miskīn narrated to us; Ibn Wahb narrated to us; ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Zayd ibn Aslam said:

Two men from the tribe of Ashjaʿ set off for their bride. When they reached a certain spot—he named the place—a woman said, “What are you two after?” They replied, “A bride of ours that we are preparing.” She said, “I know everything about her affair; once you have finished, pass by me.”

When they had finished, they did pass by her. She said, “I will go along with you,” so they lifted her onto one of their camels and took turns riding the other until they came to a sand dune.

She said, “I have a need.” They made the camel kneel down for her and waited a while, but she took so long that one of them went after her and was himself delayed.

He said: I then set out looking for him, and there she was, crouched over his body, eating his liver. When I saw that, I hurried back, mounted, took another route, and urged the animal on—but she blocked my way.

She said, “You certainly hurried!” I replied, “I saw you were late, so mount up.” She noticed that I kept sighing and asked, “What is the matter with you?” I said, “Ahead of us lies a tyrannical, unjust ruler.”

She said, “Shall I not teach you a supplication which, if you invoke it against him, will destroy him and restore your right from him?” I said, “What is it?” She said, “Say:

‘O Allah, Lord of the heavens and all they shade, Lord of the earths and all they bear, Lord of the winds and all they scatter, Lord of the devils and all they lead astray. You are al-Mannān, the Originator of the heavens and the earth, Possessor of Majesty and Honor. You take the right of the oppressed from the oppressor—so take my right from So-and-so, for he has wronged me.’ ”

I said, “Repeat it for me.” She kept repeating it until I had memorized it; then I called upon it against her, saying, “O Allah, she has wronged me, and she has devoured my brother.”

Then a fire came down from the sky upon her private parts and split her in two; one half fell here and the other there.

He said: She was a saʿlī that eats people, whereas the ghoul is from the jinn—it merely appears, plays tricks on people, and breaks wind; it does no more than that.