Why does the popular imagination associate “Sous Al-Alameh” with magic and sorcery rituals?

The Souss region and its jurists are associated in the popular imagination of Moroccans and foreigners alike with magic and sorcery, which is reflected in some popular sayings that support this approach, such as “the Souss jurist is a correct jurist,” or “their Souss struck them correctly.” According to those interested, this stereotype is due to a set of starting points and determinants that have made some descriptions seem closely associated in the general mentality with “the learned Souss.”

The most prominent of these starting points is the scientific and intellectual movement witnessed in the Sous region and the ancient schools spread there, which are exploited by some magicians and sorcerers who harm the image of these schools that have deceived many scholars; in addition to the Soussi people’s skill in traditional medicine and their contact with the Jews who are believed to have been skilled in these works.

Cognitive impairment and academic failure

In this context, Jami Benider, a researcher in history and author of the book “Magic and Witchcraft in Sous”, said that “the association of the Sous region with magic and witchcraft rituals in the popular imagination of many Moroccans is linked to a group of factors, the most prominent of which is the skill of those called ‘jurists’ in exploiting some of the knowledge they have received in order to delude people and convince them of their supernatural abilities.”

“The matter may also be related to the spread of ancient schools, and this does not mean at all that these schools produce magicians and sorcerers, as their graduates are of two types. There is the scholar who has gone far in religious sciences, and his likes are few, then the jurist who is a bearer of the Book of God and his knowledge is very limited, which is what drives him to magical acts,” Benider added, stressing that “those who practice magic and sorcery are among the weakest and most failed jurists in Sous.”

The spokesman told Hespress that “these sorcerers exploit their moral status in order to deceive people and delude them with their ability to freeze water. There are those who believe them and have faith in their ability to detect and treat psychological and family problems, while they are only playing on the generalities of these problems that any stable family can experience. They are also children of their environment and are aware of the nature of the disputes and problems in their society.”

Scientific movement and Jewish magic

For his part, Ibrahim Al-Tahiri, a researcher in religious and social history, explained that “Sous witnessed an ancient scientific intellectual movement since the end of the fifth century AH, and this explains the presence of many ancient schools that graduate an elite group of scholars who are well-versed in religion, which contributed to establishing this stereotypical image of the region and of the Soussi jurist.”

Al-Tahiri recorded that “the Soussi jurists were skilled in alternative medicine, and wrote in this field. We mention the writings of Al-Azarfi on ophthalmology, and the writings of Muhammad ibn al-Arabi al-Adouzi and others, as the jurists were the ones who supervised treatment, which opened the door wide to issues that modern medicine does not recognize, and which fall under the category of legal exorcism and treatment with talismans,” stressing at the same time that “those who practice magic and sorcery are far from jurisprudence and from the ancient scientific schools as a whole, although the popular mentality linked them to these schools.”

Among the factors explaining the connection between “Sawasa” and magic, the same speaker pointed out that “there is another hypothesis, which is the presence of many Jews in the Sous area, while there are those who believe that they practiced magic and taught it to some Muslims,” adding that “magic, sorcery and alternative medicine are two parallel lines, and magic is known in all societies, not just in Soussi or Moroccan society; however, there are some stereotypes and claims that have no evidence, such as considering Morocco the cradle of the jinn and the seat of their kings.”

categorical rejection and distortion of image

Al-Hussein Al-Omari, a professor and researcher in sociology and anthropology, said, “The people of Sous were involved in sciences, especially Quranic sciences, and alongside them other sciences, especially the science of benefits, which includes magic and subjugating the jinn and so on, due to the large number of scientific schools in which these sciences spread; however, we do not know where this science was acquired from, while there are those who say that there are books that teach it, with other accounts in this regard.”

Al-Omari, speaking to the electronic newspaper Hespress, noted that “the Moroccan and Eastern imagination links Sous with magic and sorcery, but many jurists disavow these practices and reject them categorically, despite their belief that magic exists according to the text of the Qur’an and the hadith of the Prophet.”

The spokesman explained that “some of those who commit these satanic acts distort the image of the Soussi jurist who is knowledgeable about religious matters, who contributes to spreading the teachings of the Islamic religion and explaining them to people, as the Sousse jurists had a great role in spreading Islam and fighting heresies and shameful practices,” explaining that “people’s willingness to believe in the abilities of this or that sorcerer is what reinforces such images and ready-made judgments.”