Um-Duwais: The Myth of deadly temptation

by Kamal Ghazal

The popular folklore in the United Arab Emirates and other parts of the Arabian/Persian Gulf region tells a myth about a female of jinn who called "Um-Duwais", she is described as most beautiful women that can be experienced by a man because she own all signs of beauty and tenderness and sexy talking, her fragrance aromas emits from her tide movements with slowness and serenity. 

Etymology The origins of the name Um-Duwais is related to a killing tool she uses and it is similar to the sickle that is called "Das" in the local dialect of UAE, and Um-Duwais means woman of sickle.

Her descriptions Um-Duwais is embodied in a figure of a very beautiful girl, elegant, graceful, smells of various types of beautiful perfumes and incense, one of her legs is a donkey leg, and the other is "Das", and there are those who say that both of her feet are donkey legs and her hands are in the shape of (Desan) which means two sickles . In spite of her breathtaking beauty and magnificence of her features she has the eyes of a cat. 

  Places of her appearance 

Um-Duwais appears in residential populated neighborhoods and in the large cities, small towns , small villages, and she may appear in deserts , prairies , orchards and in gardens, which means that she appears almost in all places which are inhabited with human beings whom can be seduced and killed by her. 

Her stories 

Popular literature of UAE is full of hundreds anecdotes about Um-Duwais .

Tale no.1 A lady says that she has a unique story with Um-Duwais, As she says: "We used to go out every morning to fetch water from wells which are near the old city, and we have been saying "walk tell" and each group of girls meet each other in one of our houses and we go together to the needed well which called "Altawa", in one night I heard a knock on our door and I got up to the sound of the knocking and when I went out I found a strange girl on the door then I asked about her need, she said that my colleagues have sent her to hasten for going to the usual place! , and I believed her because I was still under the influence of sleep, I pardoned her to bring my water skin and when I came back , I had doubts about some strange things which I discovered in this girl as her clothes were very clean and elegant and her eyes are like cat's eyes and her way of speaking and her suspicious and frightening looks, then I gave her my water skin and I requested her to wait me for little minutes as I had forgotten something important at my house, I entered my house and closed the door tightly and I fled to my room and closed down well too, then she Um-Duwais felt that I have discovered her and that I ran away, then she stayed knocking the door and crying at me to get out but I was committed to the silence. Then she threatened me to tear the water skin but I proceeded with silence, and soon I heard the sound of tearing the water skin, can you imagine that?! , Tearing bottle of thick skin, but she is strong and powerful as she can do anything, and thank God that I still tell my story and I'm alive and in the best case. 

 Tale no.2 

At the end of the seventies, It was one of the people who said: "I and my companion were on our way from "Sharjah" to "Batna" in Sultanate of Oman, and we were boarding a Land Rover car then we lost the road and we did not know in which direction we should go as the sky was cloudy and there is nothing in it that we could be guided by, even no star or moon light, Suddenly we saw headlights of a car back "red lights" which was lighting in the distance then we followed it and hope renewed, but we found that the distance between us and the car does not change, as we do not approach it at all, but we proceed hope that we may reach, and suddenly the car which we pursue is stopped and we have been approaching it slowly, then the hope renewed and we rejoiced again, till we were in near to access to the mentioned , and what a horror Surprise!, we got to the place of the lights and saw two women marching and dress some sort of illuminated clothes. from the back like a red lamp of a car, then we have been shocked by the severity of fear, and we got frightened as we never feel like that before, So we tried to pass through them quickly and I tried to look at their faces, but my friend pulled me violently screaming at me "You crazy! Do not look at her face, she is Um-Duwais". then we fled from the scene, but it is strange that she did not catch us, and when we got to the first resting place in the way of (Albatna), we told some people there about what we have seen, then we have been told that we should have gone through of a haunted path "place haunted by the jinns" , so we thanked God, and the attendants wished us safety. 

 Tale no.3 Someone was traveling between 2 towns riding a donkey, coming from )Khor Fakkan) to (Kalba), and on his road towards the mountain which is located at the entrance to "Khor Fakkan" he saw a beautiful girl walking gently beside him, then she raised her face and nodded for him to follow her, as he says: "I began to follow her, but I awakened from my unawareness quickly and I said to myself who is she? and how she came to this desolate and far place which has no person in it? , then I realized that she was Um-Duwais, Afterwards I looked away, and I seek refuge with God from the accursed Satan and started to read the enchanter spells Mu'Aawazat (several protective Souras) and other verses of Holy Quran which I keep by heart then she disappeared".

Fact or fiction ?! 

People of the UAE discussing the existence reason of Um-Duwais saying: "She is the panacea and successful protection anti-vice and obscenity and she is the deterrent and the defense against the deviation and counter-ions from epidemics and against abhorrent moral calamities, as the surrendered to glamour and vices is surrendered to Um-Duwais and who is surrendered to her is surrendered to death, although the majority of people of the UAE acknowledge and believe in the fact of the existence of Um-Duwais, there are some older people who are known for their religiosity doubt about that and saying that it is just created superstitions to deter young people from vice, and there is a mother tells about Um-Duwais saying: "My father was calling the name of Um-Duwais on one of our female neighbors because she was using too much perfumes and if she passed through , she was known of her fragrance, and when she was passing in front of our house , we were able to smell her fragrance then my father was shouting from inside the house with a loud voice to make her hearing him "says": "Um-Duwais,…Um-Duwais" and when I ask him why you brand her with this name, he said: "Her over-usage of perfumes is that which Um-Duwais doing and there is no God-feared Muslim woman can do that , as she is deviating men with this act, and she is sinner for that act ! ". 

TV film 

Sharjah Satellite TV channel (Sharjah is the 3rd biggest city in UAE) presented a short TV film (45 minutes) during the month of Ramadan, under the title "The return of Um-Duwais" which is written bySaleh Al Marzouqi and directed by Jommaa Al Sahli , this film hilights on Um-Duwais myth, As you can see some footages of that film on Female Students of Emirates forum. 

Sources 

- Forums.

- Female Students of Emirates forum

- Al Sharjah TV