Legends tell of jinn living in a hidden realm alongside ours, but some jinn live among us, mingling with humans.

A thread on Barqan the wandering jinn king of Mercury

Barqan is the mysterious lord of Mercury or al Utarid. He is associated with learning, language, and travel. He is said to have a massive carnelian and gold palace, but he rarely is found there. Unlike the other jinn kings, Barqan actually prefers to spend his time among humans.

He is of indeterminate age and can appear young or old, but conceals himself among humans who he observes and teaches. He finds humans curious.

He's probably one of the more mysterious jinn kings.

He is the master of magic, knowing secret and powerful arts. He on occasion shares such mysteries with humans.

He works closely with the angel Mika'il.

His nature is mixed, at times favoring the severity of the jinn king of Saturn and other times the benevolence of the jinn king of Jupiter

In the body of lore, the jinn become guardians of the natural world. In an epistle related by El Zein, humans arrive on an island and promptly begin hunting the animals to near extinction.

The creatures cry out to the jinn king and the humans are brought before the jinn court where they must plead their case.

The humans agree to scale back their hunting and be mindful of the consequences of their actions.

This is the actions of Barqan.

Like the jinn king of Jupiter, he is a master of the law and philosophy, but where Shamhurish sits as a Qadi, Barqan is an arbiter and mediator

Barqan is also known as the Black King because he often takes the form of a man with black hair, or a black cat or black dog

He is said to appear sometimes as a stranger, showing up testing humans in their generosity and wisdom and then disappearing suddenly.

Barqan originally was said to be a Zoroastrian before converting to Islam, though he was the last of the Jinn kings to convert

He's the most powerful sorcerer among the jinn kings, reputed to have a spear inscribed with incantations and magic names which can slay any foe should he desire it.

The spear is said to crackle with lightning.

Many jinn have a connection with weather phenomenon. Shamhurish is said to come with thunder while Zawb'ah the jinn king of Venus travels by whirlwind. Zawba'ah literally means tornado or whirlwind.

Barqan appears with lightning. He appears and disappears in a flash

His skills in magic extend beyond the weather. He is said to know all charms in existence and 99 secrets.

So great is his power that mages would invoke his name to magically lock doorways so none could pass, or unseal any lock.

If one were to make his secret ring of power when the Moon is in Virgo making good aspects in the hour of Mercury, you would be granted dominion over the weather, mastery of all languages, and granted many charms

Barqan is also related to various mysteries. He is said to be an ally of Khidr, the famed saint. The two are said to converse for days at a time.

He's also connected to the prophet Idris and it is said, he taught hidden knowledge to him.

Additionally, Barqan is said to have deeply admired the mystic and theologian Abdul Qadir Gilani and once a year attends his Gyarvi Sharif where he appears as a stranger wearing all black.

Finally, Barqan is said to be the master astrologer among the jinn kings.

His knowledge of talismans is said to surpass even that of the jinn king of Saturn

As a figure, Barqan offers a unique way of understanding how Muslims divided up knowledge. If the jinn king of Venus represented natural knowledge, and the jinn king of the Sun represented gnosis, then Barqan is like Greek techne--knowledge that makes.

We also see the integration of local folk beliefs and the Islamizing of jinn lore. Barqan as guardian of small animals and ancient haunts likely is a remnant of a pre-Islamic belief, while his connection to Idris, Khidr, and Gilani all talk to his integration into Islam

Finally, astrological he demonstrates the relationship of Mercury to the other planets especially Saturn, Jupiter, the Sun, and Venus

For a more in-depth look at the history of astrology in the Islamic world check out my latest episode on patreon where I'll also be sharing a love talisman and mercury talisman: https://www.patreon.com/headonhistory 

I'll cover the rest of the jinn kings in future threads