Chapter 26

246Díwán, ed. by Derenbourg, p. 83; Nöldeke'sDelectus, p. 96.

247He means to say that Nu‘mán has no reason to feel aggrieved because he (Nábigha) is grateful to the Ghassánids for their munificent patronage; since Nu‘mán does not consider that his own favourites, in showing gratitude to himself, are thereby guilty of treachery towards their former patrons.

248Diwán, ed. by Derenbourg, p. 76, ii, 21. In another place (p. 81, vi, 6) he says, addressing his beloved:—"Wadd give thee greeting! for dalliance with women is lawful to me no more,Since Religion has become a serious matter."Wadd was a god worshipped by the pagan Arabs. Derenbourg's text hasrabbí,i.e., Allah, but see Nöldeke's remarks inZ.D.M.G., vol. xli (1887), p. 708.

248Diwán, ed. by Derenbourg, p. 76, ii, 21. In another place (p. 81, vi, 6) he says, addressing his beloved:—

"Wadd give thee greeting! for dalliance with women is lawful to me no more,Since Religion has become a serious matter."

Wadd was a god worshipped by the pagan Arabs. Derenbourg's text hasrabbí,i.e., Allah, but see Nöldeke's remarks inZ.D.M.G., vol. xli (1887), p. 708.

249Aghání, viii, 85, last line-86, l. 10.

250Lyall,Ten Ancient Arabic Poems, p. 146 seq., vv. 25-31.

251Ahlwardt,The Divans, p. 106, vv. 8-10.

252Ḥamása, p. 382, l. 17.

253Nöldeke,Beiträge zur Kenntniss der Poesie der alten Araber, p. 152.

254Nöldeke,ibid., p. 175.

255The original title isal-Mukhtárát(The Selected Odes) oral-Ikhtiyárát(The Selections).

256Oxford, 1918-21. The Indexes of personal and place-names, poetical quotations, and selected words were prepared by Professor Bevan and published in 1924 in the E. J. W. Gibb Memorial Series.

257Ibn Khallikán, ed. by Wüstenfeld, No. 350 = De Slane's translation, vol. ii, p. 51.

258See Nöldeke,Beiträge, p. 183 sqq. There would seem to be comparatively few poems of Pre-islamic date in Buḥturí's anthology.

259Ibn Khallikán, ed. by Wüstenfeld, No. 204 = De Slane's translation, vol. i, p. 470.

260Many interesting details concerning the tradition of Pre-islamic poetry by theRáwísand the Philologists will be found in Ahlwardt'sBemerkungen ueber die Aechtheit der alten Arabischen Gedichte(Greifswald, 1872), which has supplied materials for the present sketch.

261Aghání, v, 172, l. 16 sqq.

262This view, however, is in accordance neither with the historical facts nor with the public opinion of the Pre-islamic Arabs (see Nöldeke,Die Semitischen Sprachen, p. 47).

263See Wellhausen,Reste Arab. Heidentums(2nd ed.), p. 88 seq.

264Ḥamása, 506.

265Ibid., 237.

266Díwánof Imru’u ’l-Qays, ed. by De Slane, p. 22 of the Arabic text, l. 17 sqq. = No. 52, ll. 57-59 (p. 154) in Ahlwardt'sDivans of the Six Poets. With the last line, however,cf.the words of Qays b. al-Khaṭím on accomplishing his vengeance: "When this death comes, there will not be found any need of my soul that I have not satisfied" (Ḥamása, 87).

267Aghání, ii, 18, l. 23 sqq.

268Aghání, ii, 34, l. 22 sqq.

269See Von Kremer,Ueber die Gedichte des LabydinS.B.W.A.,Phil.-Hist. Klasse(Vienna, 1881), vol. 98, p. 555 sqq. Sir Charles Lyall,Ancient Arabian Poetry, pp. 92 and 119. Wellhausen,Reste Arabischen Heidentums(2nd ed.), p. 224 sqq.

270I prefer to retain the customary spelling instead of Qur’án, as it is correctly transliterated by scholars. Arabic words naturalised in English, like Koran, Caliph, Vizier, &c., require no apology.

271Muir'sLife of Mahomet, Introduction, p. 2 seq. I may as well say at once that I entirely disagree with the view suggested in this passage that Muḥammad did not believe himself to be inspired.

272The above details are taken from theFihrist, ed. by G. Fluegel, p. 24, l. 14 sqq.

273Muir,op. cit., Introduction, p. 14.

274With the exception of the Opening Súra (al-Fátiḥa), which is a short prayer.

275Sprenger,Ueber das Traditionswesen bei den Arabern,Z.D.M.G., vol. x, p. 2.

276Quoted by Sprenger,loc. cit., p. 1.

277Quoted by Nöldeke in the Introduction to hisGeschichte des Qorâns, p 22.

278See especially pp. 28-130.

279Muhamm. Studien, Part II, p. 48 seq.

280The reader may consult Muir's Introduction to hisLife of Mahomet, pp. 28-87.

281Ibn Hishám, p. 105, l. 9 sqq.

282This legend seems to have arisen out of a literal interpretation of Koran, xciv, 1, "Did we not open thy breast?"—i.e., give thee comfort or enlightenment.

283This name, which may signify 'Baptists,' was applied by the heathen Arabs to Muḥammad and his followers, probably in consequence of the ceremonial ablutions which are incumbent upon every Moslem before the five daily prayers (see Wellhausen,Reste Arab. Heid., p. 237).

284Sir Charles Lyall,The Words 'Ḥaníf' and 'Muslim,'J.R.A.S.for 1903, p. 772. The original meaning ofḥaniacute;fis no longer traceable, but it may be connected with the Hebrewḥánéf, 'profane.' In the Koran it generally refers to the religion of Abraham, and sometimes appears to be nearly synonymous withMuslim. Further information concerning the Ḥanífs will be found in Sir Charles Lyall's article cited above; Sprenger,Das Leben und die Lehre des Moḥammed, vol. i, pp. 45-134; Wellhausen,Reste Arab. Heid., p. 238 sqq.; Caetani,Annali dell' Islam, vol. i, pp. 181-192.

285Ibn Hishám, p. 143, l. 6 sqq.

286Agháni, iii, 187, l. 17 sqq.

287See p. 69supra.

288Tradition associates him especially with Waraqa, who was a cousin of his first wife, Khadíja, and is said to have hailed him as a prophet while Muḥammad himself was still hesitating (Ibn Hishám, p. 153, l. 14 sqq.).

289This is the celebrated 'Night of Power' (Laylatu ’l-Qadr) mentioned in the Koran, xcvii, 1.

290The Holy Ghost (Rúḥu’l-Quds), for whom in the Medína Súras Gabriel (Jibríl) is substituted.

291But another version (Ibn Hishám, p. 152, l. 9 sqq.) represents Muḥammad as replying to the Angel, "What am I to read?" (má aqra’u or má dhá aqra’u). Professor Bevan has pointed out to me that the tradition in this form bears a curious resemblance, which can hardly be accidental, to the words of Isaiah xl. 6: "The voice said, Cry. And he said, What shall I cry?" The question whether the Prophet could read and write is discussed by Nöldeke (Geschichte des Qorâns, p. 7 sqq.), who leaves it undecided. According to Nöldeke (loc. cit., p. 10), the epithetummí, which is applied to Muḥammad in the Koran, and is commonly rendered by 'illiterate,' does not signify that he was ignorant of reading and writing, but only that he was unacquainted with the ancient Scriptures;cf.'Gentile.' However this may be, it appears that he wished to pass for illiterate, with the object of confirming the belief in his inspiration: "Thou" (Muḥammad) "didst not use to read any book before this" (the Koran) "nor to write it with thy right hand; else the liars would have doubted(Koran, xxix, 47).

292The meaning of these words (iqra’ bismi rabbika) is disputed. Others translate, "Preach in the name of thy Lord" (Nöldeke), or "Proclaim the name of thy Lord" (Hirschfeld). I see no sufficient grounds for abandoning the traditional interpretation supported by verses 4 and 5. Muḥammad dreamed that he was commanded to read the Word of God inscribed in the Heavenly Book which is the source of all Revelation.

293Others render, "who taught (the use of) the Pen."

294This account of Muḥammad's earliest vision (Bukhárí, ed. by Krehl, vol. iii, p. 380, l. 2 sqq.) is derived from ‘A’isha, his favourite wife, whom he married after the death of Khadíja.

295Ibn Hishám, p. 152, l. 9 sqq.

296See p. 72supra.

297This interval is known as the Fatra.

298Literally, 'warn.'

299'The abomination' (al-rujz) probably refers to idolatry.

300Literally, "The Last State shall be better for thee than the First," referring either to Muḥammad's recompense in the next world or to the ultimate triumph of his cause in this world.

301Islámis a verbal noun formed fromAslama, which means 'to surrender' and, in a religious sense, 'to surrender one's self to the will of God.' The participle,Muslim(Moslem), denotes one who thus surrenders himself.

302Sprenger,Leben des Mohammad, vol. i, p. 356.

303It must be remembered that this branch of Muḥammadan tradition derives from the pietists of the first century after the Flight, who were profoundly dissatisfied with the reigning dynasty (the Umayyads), and revenged themselves by painting the behaviour of the Meccan ancestors of the Umayyads towards Muḥammad in the blackest colours possible. The facts tell another story. It is significant that hardly any case of real persecution is mentioned in the Koran. Muḥammad was allowed to remain at Mecca and to carry on, during many years, a religious propaganda which his fellow-citizens, with few exceptions, regarded as detestable and dangerous. We may well wonder at the moderation of the Quraysh, which, however, was not so much deliberate policy as the result of their indifference to religion and of Muḥammad's failure to make appreciable headway in Mecca.

304Ibn Hishám, p. 168, l. 9. sqq.

305At this time Muḥammad believed the doctrines of Islam and Christianity to be essentially the same.

306Ṭabarí, i, 1180, 8 sqq.Cf.Caetani,Annali dell' Islam, vol. i, p. 267 sqq.

307Muir,Life of Mahomet, vol. ii, p. 151.

308We have seen (p. 91supra) that the heathen Arabs disliked female offspring, yet they called their three principal deities the daughters of Allah.

309It is related by Ibn Isḥáq (Ṭabarí, i, 1192, 4 sqq.). In his learned work,Annali dell' Islam, of which the first volume appeared in 1905, Prince Caetani impugns the authenticity of the tradition and criticises the narrative in detail (p. 279 sqq.), but his arguments do not touch the main question. As Muir says, "it is hardly possible to conceive how the tale, if not founded in truth, could ever have been invented."

310The Meccan view of Muḥammad's action may be gathered from the words uttered by Abú Jahl on the field of Badr—"O God, bring woe upon him who more than any of us hath severed the ties of kinship and dealt dishonourably!" (Ṭabarí, i, 1322, l. 8 seq.). Alluding to the Moslems who abandoned their native city and fled with the Prophet to Medína, a Meccan poet exclaims (Ibn Hishám, p. 519, ll. 3-5):—They(the Quraysh slain at Badr)fell in honour. They did not sell their kinsmen for strangers living in a far land and of remote lineage;Unlike you, who have made friends of Ghassán(the people of Medína),taking them instead of us—O, what a shameful deed!Tis an impiety and a manifest crime and a cutting of all ties of blood: your iniquity therein is discerned by men of judgment and understanding.

They(the Quraysh slain at Badr)fell in honour. They did not sell their kinsmen for strangers living in a far land and of remote lineage;Unlike you, who have made friends of Ghassán(the people of Medína),taking them instead of us—O, what a shameful deed!Tis an impiety and a manifest crime and a cutting of all ties of blood: your iniquity therein is discerned by men of judgment and understanding.

They(the Quraysh slain at Badr)fell in honour. They did not sell their kinsmen for strangers living in a far land and of remote lineage;

Unlike you, who have made friends of Ghassán(the people of Medína),taking them instead of us—O, what a shameful deed!

Tis an impiety and a manifest crime and a cutting of all ties of blood: your iniquity therein is discerned by men of judgment and understanding.

311Súrais properly a row of stones or bricks in a wall.

312See p. 74supra.

313Koran, lxix, 41.

314Nöldeke,Geschichte des Qorâns, p. 56.

315I.e., what it has done or left undone.

316The Last Judgment.

317Moslems believe that every man is attended by two Recording Angels who write down his good and evil actions.

318This is generally supposed to refer to the persecution of the Christians of Najrán by Dhú Nuwás (see p.26supra). Geiger takes it as an allusion to the three men who were cast into the fiery furnace (Daniel, ch. iii).

319See above, p. 3.

320According to Muḥammadan belief, the archetype of the Koran and of all other Revelations is written on the Guarded Table (al-Lawḥ al-Maḥfúẓ) in heaven.

321Koran, xvii, 69.

322See, for example, the passages translated by Lane in hisSelections from the Kur-án(London, 1843), pp. 100-113.

323Ikhláṣmeans 'purifying one's self of belief in any god except Allah.'

324The Prophet's confession of his inability to perform miracles did not deter his followers from inventing them after his death. Thus it was said that he caused the infidels to see "the moon cloven asunder" (Koran, liv, I), though, as is plain from the context, these words refer to one of the signs of the Day of Judgment.

325I take this opportunity of calling the reader's attention to a most interesting article by my friend and colleague, Professor A. A. Bevan, entitledThe Beliefs of Early Mohammedans respecting a Future Existence(Journal of Theological Studies, October, 1904, p. 20 sqq.), where the whole subject is fully discussed.

326Shaddád b. al-Aswad al-Laythí, quoted in theRisálatu ’l-Ghufránof Abu ’l-‘Alá al-Ma‘arrí (see my article in theJ.R.A.S.for 1902, pp. 94 and 818);cf.Ibn Hishám, p. 530, last line. Ibn (Abí) Kabsha was a nickname derisively applied to Muḥammad.Ṣadáandhámarefer to the death-bird which was popularly supposed to utter its shriek from the skull (háma) of the dead, and both words may be rendered by 'soul' or 'wraith.'

327Nöldeke,Geschichte des Qorâns, p. 78.

328Cf.also Koran, xviii, 45-47; xx, 102 sqq.; xxxix, 67 sqq.; lxix, 13-37.

329The famous freethinker, Abu ’l-‘Alá al-Ma‘arrí, has cleverly satirised Muḥammadan notions on this subject in hisRisálatu ’l-Ghufrán(J.R.A.S.for October, 1900, p. 637 sqq.).

330Journal of Theological Studiesfor October, 1904, p. 22.

331Ibn Hishám, p. 411, l. 6 sqq.

332Ibid., p. 347.

333L. Caetani,Annali dell' Islam, vol. 1, p. 389.

334Nöldeke,Geschichte des Qorâns, p. 122.

335Translated by E. H. Palmer.

336Ibn Hishám, p. 341, l. 5.

337Muḥammad's Gemeindeordnung von Medina in Skizzen und Vorarbeiten, Heft IV, p. 67 sqq.

338Ibn Hishám, p. 763, l. 12.

339Koran, ii, 256, translated by E. H. Palmer.

340Muhamm. Studien, Part I, p. 12.

341See Goldziher's introductory chapter entitledMuruwwa und Dîn(ibid., pp. 1-39).

342Bayḍáwí on Koran, xxii, 11.

343Die Berufung Mohammed's, by M. J. de Goeje inNöldeke-Festschrift(Giessen, 1906), vol. i, p. 5.

344On theOrigin and Import of the Names Muslim and Ḥaníf(J.R.A.S.for 1903, p. 491)

345See T. W. Arnold'sThe Preaching of Islam, p. 23 seq., where several passages of like import are collected.

346Nöldeke,Sketches from Eastern History, translated by J. S. Black, p. 73.

347See Professor Browne'sLiterary History of Persia, vol. i, p. 200 sqq.

348Ṭabarí, i, 2729, l. 15 sqq.

349Ibid., i, 2736, l. 5 sqq. The words in italics are quoted from Koran, xxviii, 26, where they are applied to Moses.

350‘Umar was the first to assume this title (Amíru ’l-Mu’minín), by which the Caliphs after him were generally addressed.

351Ṭabarí, i, 2738, 7 sqq.

352Ibid., i, 2739, 4 sqq.

353Ibid., i, 2737, 4 sqq.

354It is explained that ‘Umar prohibited lamps because rats used to take the lighted wick and set fire to the house-roofs, which at that time were made of palm-branches.

355Ṭabarí, i, 2742, 13 sqq.

356Ibid., i, 2745, 15 sqq.

357Ibid., i, 2747, 7 sqq.

358Ibid., i, 2740, last line and foll.

359Al-Fakhrí, ed. by Derenbourg, p. 116, l. 1 to p. 117, l. 3.

360Ṭabarí, i, 2751, 9 sqq.

361Ibn Khallikán (ed. by Wüstenfeld), No. 68, p. 96, l. 3; De Slane's translation, vol. i, p. 152.

362Mu‘áwiya himself said: "I am the first of the kings" (Ya‘qúbí, ed. by Houtsma, vol. ii, p. 276, l. 14).

363Al-Fakhrí, ed. by Derenbourg, p. 145.

364Ya‘qúbí, vol. ii, p. 283, l. 8 seq.

365Mas‘údí, Murúju ’l-Dhahab(ed. by Barbier de Meynard), vol. v. p. 77.

366Nöldeke'sDelectus, p. 25, l. 3 sqq., omitting l. 8.

367TheContinuatioof Isidore of Hispalis, § 27, quoted by Wellhausen,Das Arabische Reich und sein Sturz, p. 105.

368Ḥamása, 226. The word translated 'throne' is in Arabicminbar,i.e., the pulpit from which the Caliph conducted the public prayers and addressed the congregation.

369Kalb was properly one of the Northern tribes (see Robertson Smith'sKinship and Marriage, 2nd ed., p. 8 seq.—a reference which I owe to Professor Bevan), but there is evidence that the Kalbites were regarded as 'Yemenite' or 'Southern' Arabs at an early period of Islam.Cf.Goldziher,Muhammedanische Studien, Part I, p. 83, l. 3 sqq.

370Muhammedanische Studien, i, 78 sqq.

371Qaḥṭán is the legendary ancestor of the Southern Arabs.

372Aghání, xiii, 51, cited by Goldziher,ibid., p. 82.

373A verse of the poet Suḥaym b. Wathíl.

374TheKámilof al-Mubarrad, ed. by W. Wright, p. 215, l. 14 sqq.

375Ibn Qutayba,Kitábu ‘l-Ma‘árif, p. 202.

376Al-Fakhrí, p. 173; Ibnu ’l-Athír, ed. by Tornberg, v, 5.

377Ibid., p. 174.Cf.Mas‘údi,Murúju ’l-Dhahab, v, 412.

378His mother, Umm ‘Áṣim, was a granddaughter of ‘Umar I.

379Mas‘údí,Murúju ’l-Dhahab, v, 419 seq.

380Ibnu ’l-Athír, ed. by Tornberg, v, 46.Cf.Agání, xx, p. 119, l. 23. ‘Umar made an exception, as Professor Bevan reminds me, in favour of the poet Jarír. See Brockelmann'sGesch. der Arab. Litteratur, vol. i, p. 57.

381The exhaustive researches of Wellhausen,Das Arabische Reich und sein Sturz(pp. 169-192) have set this complicated subject in a new light. He contends that ‘Umar's reform was not based on purely ideal grounds, but was demanded by the necessities of the case, and that, so far from introducing disorder into the finances, his measures were designed to remedy the confusion which already existed.

382Mas‘údí,Murúju ’l-Dhahab, v, 479.

383The Arabic text and literal translation of these verses will be found in my article on Abu ’l-‘Alá'sRisálatu ’l-Ghufrán(J.R.A.S.for 1902, pp. 829 and 342).

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