This concludes the consideration of the exegesis of the Qurán, a book difficult and uninteresting for a non-Muslim to read, but one which has engaged and is still engaging the earnest thoughts of many millions of the human race. Thousands of devout students in the great theological schools of Cairo, Stamboul, Central Asia and India are now plodding through this very subject of which I have here been treating; soon will they go forth as teachers of the book they so much revere. How utterly unfit that training is to make them wise men in any true sense of the word, how calculated to render them proud, conceited, and scornful of other creeds, its rigid and exclusive character shows. Still, it is a marvellous book; for twelve hundred years and more it has helped to mould the faith, animate the courage, cheer the despondency of multitudes, whether dwellers in the wild uplands of Central Asia, in Hindustan, or on the shores of the Mediterranean. The Turanian and the Aryan, the Arab and the Negro, alike learn its sonorous sentences, day by day repeat its opening clauses, and pray in its words as their fathers prayed before them.
Next to the act of testifying to the unity of God, the Qurán is the great bond of Islám. No matter from what race the convert may have come, no matter what language he may speak, he must learn in Arabic, and repeat by rote portions of the Qurán in every act of public worship.
The next subject for consideration is that of theTraditions, or the second branch of the science of 'Ilm-i-usúl. The Traditions contain the record of all that Muhammad did and said. It is the belief of every Muslim, to whatever sect he belongs, that the Prophet not only spake but also acted under a divine influence. The mode of the inspiration is different from that of the Qurán. There the revelation was objective. In the Prophet's sayings recorded in the Traditions the inspiration is subjective, but still a true inspiration. This belief places the Traditions in a place second only to the Qurán; it makes them a true supplement to that book, and thus they not only throw light on its meaning, but themselves form the basis on which doctrines may be established. Without going so far as to say that every Tradition by itself is to be accepted as an authority in Islám, it may be distinctly asserted that there can be no true conception formed of that system if the Traditions are not studied and taken into account. So important a branch of Muslim theology is it, that the study of the Traditions is included in the 'Ilm-i-usúl, or science of exegesis. Some account of them, therefore, naturally forms part of this chapter.
The first four Khalífs were called the Khulafá-i-Ráshidín that is, those who could guide others aright. They had been friends and Companions of the Prophet, and the Faithful could always appeal to them in cases of doubt. The Prophet had declared that Islám must be written in the hearts of men. There was therefore an unwillingness to commit his sayings to writing. They were handed down by word of mouth. As no argument was so effectual in a dispute as "a saying" of the Prophet, the door was opened by which spurious Traditions could be palmed off on the Faithful. To prevent this, a number of strict rules were framed, at the head of which stands the Prophet's saying, itself a Tradition: "Convey to other persons none of my words except those which ye know of a surety. Verily, he who purposely represents mywords wrongly will find a place for himself nowhere but in fire." To enforce this rule, it was laid down that the relator of a Tradition must also repeat its "Isnád," or chain of authorities, as: "I heard from such an one, who heard from such an one," and so on, until the chain reaches the Prophet himself. Each person, too, in this "Isnád," must have been well known for his good character and retentive memory. This failed, however, to prevent a vast number of manifestly false Traditions becoming current; so men set themselves to the work of collecting and sifting the great mass of Tradition that in the second century of Islám had begun to work untold evil. These men are called "Muhadisín," or "collectors of Tradition." The Sunnís and the Wahhábís recognise six such men, and their collections are known as the "Sihah-Sittah," or six correct books. They are the following:—
(1). TheSahíh-i-Bukhárí, called after Abu Abdullah Muhammad Ibn-i-Ismá'íl, a native of Bukhárá. He was bornA.H.194. He was a man of middle height, spare in frame, and as a boy totally blind. The grief of his father was on this account intense; but one day in a dream he saw the Patriarch Abraham, who said to him: "God on account of thy grief and sorrow has granted sight to thy son." The sight being thus restored, at the age of ten he went to school, and began to learn the Traditions by heart. After his education was finished, a famous Muhadis named Dákhlí came to Bukhárá. One day the youthful Bukhárí ventured to correct the famous man. It was an astounding piece of audacity, but the youth was proved to be in the right. This set him on the work of collecting and sifting the Traditions. At the early age of sixteen he was able to remember fifteen thousand. In course of time he collected 600,000 Traditions. The result of his examination and selection was that he approved of seven thousand two hundred and seventy-five. These are now recorded in his great work, the Sahíh-i-Bukhárí. Itis said that he never sat down to examine a Tradition without first performing a legal ablution, and repeating two rak'at prayers. He then said: "O Lord, let me not make a mistake." For sixteen years he lived in a mosque and died much respected at the age of sixty-four.
(2).Sahíh-i-Muslim.Muslim Ibn-i-Hajjáj was born at Nishápúr, a city of Khorásán. He collected about 300,000 Traditions, from which he made his collection. He is said to have been a very just man, and willing to oblige all who sought his advice. In fact, this willingness to oblige was the indirect cause of his death. One day he was sitting as usual in the mosque when some people came to ask him about a Tradition. As he could not discover it in the books he had with him, he went to his house to search there. The people brought him a basket of dates. He went on eating and searching, but unfortunately he ate so many dates that he died. (A.H.261.)
(3).Sunan-i-Abu Dáúd.Abu Dáúd Sajistání, a native of Seistán, was bornA.H.202. He was a great traveller, and went to all the chief places of Musalmán learning. In knowledge of the Traditions, in devotion, in piety, he was unrivalled. He collected about 500,000 Traditions, of which he selected four thousand eight hundred for his book.
(4).Jámí'-i-Tirmizí.Abu Isa' Muhammad Tirmizí was born at Tirmiz in the yearA.H.209. He was a disciple of Bukhárí. Ibn Khallikan says this work is "the production of a well-informed man: its exactness is proverbial."[61]
(5).Sunan-i-Nasáí.Abu Abd-ur-Rahman Nasáí was born at Nasá, in Khorásán, in the yearA.H.214, and diedA.H.303. It is recorded of him, with great approbation, that he fasted every other day, and had four wives and many slaves. This book is considered of great value. He met with his death in rather a sad way. He had compiled a book on the virtues of 'Alí, and as the people ofDamascus were at that time inclined to the heresy of the Khárigites, he wished to read his book in the mosque of that place. After he had read a little way, a man arose and asked him whether he knew aught of the praises of Muavia, 'Alí's deadly enemy. He replied that he did not. This answer enraged the people, who beat him so severely that he died soon after.
(6).Sunan-i-Ibn Májah.Ibn Májah[62]was born at 'IrakA.H.209. This work contains 4,000 Traditions.
The Shía'hs reject these books and substitute five books[63]of their own instead. They are of a much later date, the last one, indeed, having been compiled more than four hundred years after the Hijra.
The belief which underlies the question of the authority of the Traditions is that before the Throne of God there stands a 'preserved Table,' on which all that can happen, and all that has ever entered, or will enter, the mind of man is 'noted in a distinct writing.' Through the medium of Gabriel, the Prophet had access to this. It follows then that the words of the Prophet are the words of God.
Of the four great "Canonical Legists" of Islám, Ahmad Ibn Hanbal was the greatest collector of Traditions. It is said that he knew by heart no less than one million. Of these he incorporated thirty thousand into his system of jurisprudence. That system is now almost obsolete. Abu Hanífa, who is said to have accepted only eighteen Traditions as authentic, founded a system which is to this day the most powerful in Islám. The Hanifites, however, as well as other Muslims, acknowledge the six standard collections of Traditions as direct revelations of the will ofGod. They range over a vast number of subjects, and furnish a commentary on the Qurán. The Prophet's personal appearance, his mental and moral qualities, his actions, his opinions, are all recorded over and over again. Many questions of religious belief are largely founded on the Traditions, and it is to them we must go for an explanation of much of the ritual of Islám. It is very difficult for any one, who has not lived in long and friendly intercourse with Muslims, to realize how much their religious life and opinions, their thought and actions, are based on the Traditions.
Having thus shown the importance of the Traditions, I now proceed to enter a little into detail on the question of the rules framed concerning them. The classification adopted by different authors may vary in some subordinate points; but the following account is adopted from a standard Muhammadan work. A Tradition may be Hadís-i-Qualí, that is, an account of something the Prophet said; or Hadís-i-Fa'lí, a record of something which he did; or Hadís-i-Taqrírí, a statement of some act performed by other persons in his presence, and which action he did not forbid.
The Traditions may be classed under two general heads:—
First.—Hadís-i-Mutawátír, that is, "an undoubted Tradition," the Isnád, or chain of narrators of which is perfect, and in which chain each narrator possessed all the necessary qualifications for his office.[64]Some authorities say there are only a few of these Traditions extant, but most allow that the following is one: "There are no good works except with intention," for example, a man may fast, but, unless he has the intention of fasting firmly in his mind, he gains no spiritual reward by so doing.
Second.—Hadís-i-Ahád.The authority of this class istheoretically somewhat less than that of the first, but practically it is the same.
This class is again sub-divided into two:—
(1).Hadís-i-Sahíh, or a genuine Tradition. It is not necessary to go into the sub-divisions of this sub-division. A Tradition is Sahíh if the narrators have been men of pious lives, abstemious in their habits, endowed with a good memory, free from blemish, and persons who lived at peace with their neighbours. The following also are Sahíh, though their importance as authorities varies. I arrange them in the order of their value. Sahíh Traditions are those which are found in the collections made by Bukhárí and Muslim, or in the collection of either of the above, though not in both; or, if not mentioned by either of these famous collectors, if it has been retained in accordance with their canons for the rejection or retention of Traditions; or lastly, if retained in accordance with the rules of any other approved collector. For each of these classes there is a distinct name.
(2).Hadís-i-Hasan.The narrators of this class are not of such good authority as those of the former with regard to one or two qualities; but these Traditions should be received as of equal authority as regards any practical use.[65]It is merely as a matter of classification that they rank second.
In addition to these names, there are a number of other technical terms which have regard to the personal character of the narrators, the Isnád, and other points. A few may be mentioned.
(1).Hadís-i-Z'aíf, or a weak Tradition. The narrators of it have been persons whose characters were not above reproach, whose memories were bad, or who, worse still, were addicted to "bid'at," innovation, a habit now, as then, a crime in the eyes of all true Muslims. All agree that a"weak Tradition" has little force; but few rival theologians agree as to which are, and which are not, "weak Traditions."
(2).Hadís-i-Mua'llaq, or a Tradition in the Isnád of which there is some break. If it begins with a Tábi' (one in the generation after that of the Companions), it is called "Mursal" the one link in the chain, the Companion, being wanting. If the first link in the chain of narrators begins in a generation still later, it has another name, and so on.
(3). Traditions which have various names, according as the narrator concealed the name of his Imám, or where different narrators disagree, or where the narrator has mixed some of his own words with the Tradition, or has been proved to be a liar, an evil liver, or mistaken; but into an account of these it is not necessary to enter, for no Tradition of this class would be considered as of itself sufficient ground on which to base any important doctrine.[66]
It is the universally accepted rule, that no authentic Tradition can be contrary to the Qurán. The importance attached to Tradition has been shown in the preceding chapter, an importance which has demanded the formation of an elaborate system of exegesis. To an orthodox Muslim the Book and the Sunnat, God's word direct and God's word through the mind of the Prophet, are the foundation and sum of Islám, a fact not always taken into account by modern panegyrists of the system.
It is a commonly received but nevertheless an erroneous opinion, that the Muhammadan religion is one remarkable for the absence of dogma and the unanimity of its professors. In this chapter I propose to show how the great sects differ in some very important principles of the faith, and their consequent divergence in practice. There is much that is common ground to all, and of that some account was given in the first chapter on the "Foundations of Islám."
It was there shown that all Muslim sects are not agreed as to the essential foundations of the Faith. The Sunnís recognise four foundations, the Wahhábís two; whilst the Shía'hs reject altogether the Traditions held sacred by both Sunní and Wahhábí. The next chapter will contain a full account of the doctrines held by the Sunnís, and so no account of this, the orthodox sect, is given in this chapter.
The first breach in Islám arose out of a civil war. The story has been so often told that it need not be reproduced here at any length. 'Alí, the son-in-law of Muhammad, was the fourth Khalíf of Islám. He is described as "the last and worthiest of the primitive Musalmáns who imbibed his religious enthusiasm from companionship with the Prophet himself, and who followed to the last the simplicity of his character." He was a man calculated by his earnest devotion to the Prophet and his own natural graces to win, as he has done, the admiration of succeeding generations. A strong opposition, however, arose, and 'Alí was assassinated in a mosque at Kúfa. It is not easy, amid the conflicting statements of historians of the rival sects, to arrive at the truth in all the details of the events which happened then;but the generally received opinion is, that after the assassination of 'Alí, Hasan, his son, renounced his claim to the Khalifate in favour of his father's rival, Muavia. Hasan was ultimately poisoned by his wife, who, it is said, was instigated by Muavia to do the deed, in order to leave the coast clear for his son Yezíd. The most tragic event has yet to come. Yezíd, who succeeded his father, was a very licentious and irreligious man. The people of Kúfa, being disgusted at his conduct, sent messengers to Husain, the remaining son of 'Alí, with the request that he would assume the Khalifate. In vain the friends of Husain tried to persuade him to let the people of Kúfa first revolt, and thus show the reality of their wishes by their deeds. In an evil hour Husain started with a small band of forty horsemen and one hundred foot-soldiers. On the plain of Karbalá he found his way barred by a force of three thousand men. "We are few in number," said Husain, "and the enemy is in force. I am resolved to die. But you—I release you from your oath of allegiance; let all those who wish to do so leave me." "O Son of the Apostle of God!" was the reply, "what excuse could we give to thy grandfather on the day of resurrection did we abandon thee to the hands of thine enemies?" One by one these brave men fell beneath the swords of the enemy, until Husain and his infant son alone were left. Weary and thirsty, Husain sat upon the ground. The enemy drew near, but no one dared to kill the grandson of the Prophet. An arrow pierced the ear of the little boy and he died. "We came from God, and we return to him," were the pathetic words of Husain, as with a sorrowful heart he laid the dead body of his son on the sand. He then stooped down to drink some water from the river Euphrates. Seeing him thus stooping, the enemy discharged a flight of arrows, one of which wounded him in the mouth. He fought bravely for a while, but at last fell covered with many wounds. The schism between the Sunní and the Shía'h was now complete.
The ceremonies celebrated during the annual fast of Muharram refer to these historical facts, and help to keep alive a bitter feud; but to suppose that the only difference between the Shía'h and the Sunní is a mere dispute as to the proper order of the early Khalífs would be a mistake. Starting off with a political quarrel, the Shía'hs have travelled into a very distinct religious position of their own. The fundamental tenet of the Shía'h sect is the "divine right" of 'Alí the Chosen and his descendants. From this it follows that the chief duty of religion consists in devotion to the Imám (or Pontiff); from which position some curious dogmas issue. The whole question of the Imámat is a very important one. The word Imám comes from an Arabic word meaning to aim at, to follow after. The term Imám then becomes equal to the word leader or exemplar. It is applied in this sense to Muhammad as the leader in all civil and religious questions, and to the Khalífs, his successors. It is also, in its religious import only, applied to the founders of the four orthodox schools of jurisprudence, and in a restricted sense to the leader of a congregation at prayer in a mosque. It is with the first of these meanings that we have now to deal. It is so used in the Qurán—"When his Lord made trial of Abraham by commands which he fulfilled, He said: 'I am about to make of thee an Imám to mankind;' he said: 'Of my offspring also?' 'My covenant,' said God, 'embraceth not the evil-doers.'" (Súra ii. 118.) From this verse two doctrines are deduced. First, that the Imám must be appointed by God, for if this is not the case, why did Abraham say "of my offspring also?" Secondly, the Imám is free from sin, for God said: "My covenant embraceth not the evil-doer."
The first dispute about the Imámat originated with the twelve thousand who revolted from 'Alí after the battle of Siffin (657A.D.), because he consented to submit to arbitration the dispute between himself and Muavia. Some years after they were nearly all destroyed by 'Alí. A fewsurvivors, however, fled to various parts. Two at last settled in Omán, and there preached their distinctive doctrines. In course of time the people of Omán adopted the doctrine that the Imámat was not hereditary but elective, and that in the event of misconduct the Imám might be deposed. 'Abdullah-ibn-Ibádh (744A.D.) was a vigorous preacher of this doctrine, and from him the sect known as the 'Ibádhiyah takes its rise. The result of this teaching was the establishment of the power and jurisdiction of the Imám of Omán. The 'Ibádhiyah seem to have always kept themselves independent of the Sunní Khalífs of Baghdád, and, therefore, would consider themselves free from any obligation to obey the Sultán of Turkey. From the ordinary Shía'hs they differ as regards the "divine right" of 'Alí and his children. The curious in such matters will find the whole subject well treated in Dr. Badger's "Seyyids of Omán."
The term Khárigite (Separatist) has since become the generic name for a group of sects which agree as to the need of an Imám, though they differ as to the details of the dogma. In opposition to this heresy of the Khárigite stands what may be termed the orthodox doctrine of the Shía'h. The Shía'hs hold that the Imámat must continue in the family of 'Alí, and that religion consists mainly in devotion to the Imám. The tragic end of 'Alí and his sons invested them with peculiar interest. When grieving for the sad end of their leaders, the Shí'ahs found consolation in the doctrine which soon found development,viz., that it was God's will that the Imámat should continue in the family of 'Alí. Thus a tradition relates that the Prophet said: "He of whom I am master has 'Alí also for a master." "The best judge among you is 'Alí." Ibn Abbás, a Companion says: "I heard the Prophet say: 'He who blasphemes my name blasphemes the name of God; he who blasphemes the name of 'Alí blasphemes my name.'" A popular Persian hymn shows to what an extent this feeling deepened.
"Mysterious being! none can tellThe attributes in thee that dwell;None can thine essence comprehend;To thee should every mortal bend—For 'tis by thee that man is givenTo know the high behests of heaven."
"Mysterious being! none can tellThe attributes in thee that dwell;None can thine essence comprehend;To thee should every mortal bend—For 'tis by thee that man is givenTo know the high behests of heaven."
"Mysterious being! none can tell
The attributes in thee that dwell;
None can thine essence comprehend;
To thee should every mortal bend—
For 'tis by thee that man is given
To know the high behests of heaven."
The general idea is, that long before the creation of the world, God took a ray of light from the splendour of His own glory and united it to the body of Muhammad, to which He said: "Thou art the elect, the chosen, I will make the members of thy family the guides to salvation." Muhammad said: "The first thing which God created was my light, and my spirit."[67]The body of the Prophet was then in some mysterious way hidden. In due time the world was created, but not until the birth of Muhammad did this ray of glory appear. It is well known to all Musalmáns as the "Núr-i-Muhammadí"—light of Muhammad.
This "Núr" is said to be of four kinds. From the first kind God created His Throne, from the second the Pen of Fate, from the third Paradise, and from the fourth the state, or place of Spirits and all created beings. According to a statement made by 'Alí, Muhammad said that he was created from the light of God, whilst all other created beings were formed from the "light of Muhammad."[68]
This "light" descended to 'Alí, and from him passed on to the true Imáms, who alone are the lawful successors of the Prophet. Rebellion against them is sin; devotion to them the very essence of religion.
The doctrine of the Imámat has given rise to endless discussion and dissension, as the numerous sub-divisions of the Shía'h sect will show. They are said to be thirty-two in number. The Shía'h proper is the largest and most influential of them. The following are the Shí'ah tenets regarding the Imám, based on one of their standard books ofdivinity.[69]The Imám is the successor of the Prophet, adorned with all the qualities which he possessed. He is wiser than the most learned men of the age, holier than the most pious. He is the noblest of the sons of men and is free from all sin original or actual: hence the Imám is called ma'sum (innocent.)[70]God rules the world by wisdom, hence the sending forth of prophets was a necessity; but it was equally necessary to establish the Imámat. Thus the Imám is equal to a prophet. 'Alí said: "In me is the glory of every prophet that has ever been." The authority of the Imám is the authority of God, for (I quote the Hyát-un-Nafís) "his word is the word of God and of the Prophet, and obedience to his order is incumbent." The nature of the Imám is identical with the nature of Muhammad, for did not 'Alí say: "I am Muhammad, and Muhammad is me." This probably refers to the possession by the Imám of the "light of Muhammad." The bodies of the Imáms are so pure and delicate that they cast no shadow.[71]Theyare the beginning and the end of all things. To know the Imáms is the very essence of the knowledge which men can gain of God. "The Holy God calls the Imáms His word, His hands, His signs, His secret. Their commands and prohibitions, their actions too, He recognises as His own." As mediums between God and man they hold a far higher position than the prophets, for "the grace of God, without their intervention, reaches to no created being." These extravagant claims for the Imáms culminate in the assertion that "for them a pillar of light has been fixed between the earth and heaven, by which the actions of the Faithful are made known to them." The Imám is the supreme Pontiff, the Vicar of God on earth. The possession of an infallible book is not sufficient. The infallible guide is needed. Such wisdom and discernment as such a guide would require can only be found amongst the descendants of the Prophet. It is no longer, then, a matter of wonder, that in some cases, almost, if not entirely, divine honour is paid to 'Alí and his descendants.[72]
The Usúl, or fundamental tenets of the Shía'h sect are five in number. (1) To believe in the unity of God, (2) To admit that He is just, (3) To believe in the divine mission of all the prophets, and that Muhammad is the chief of all, (4) To consider 'Alí the Khalíf next in order after Muhammad, (5) To believe 'Alí's descendants from Hasan to Mahdí, the twelfth Imám, to be his true successors, and to consider all of them in character, position and dignity as raised far above all other Muslims. This is the doctrine of the Imámat.
The first principal divisions of the Shía'h sect are the Ismá'ílians and the Imámites. The latter believe in twelve Imáms, reckoning 'Alí as the first.[73]The last of the twelve Abu'l-Qásim, is supposed to be alive still, though hidden in some secret place. He bears the name of Al-Mahdí, "the guided." It is expected that he will reappear at the second advent of Christ. They say that he was born near Baghdád in the year 258A.H.He afterwards mysteriously disappeared. When he was born the words, "Say: 'truth is come and falsehood is vanished: Verily falsehood is a thing that vanisheth,'" (Súra xvii. 83) were found written on his right arm. When he came into the world, he pointed with his fingers to heaven, sneezed, and said: 'Praise be to God, the Lord of the world.' A person one day visited Imám Hasan 'Askarí (the eleventh Imám) and said: 'O son of the Prophet who will be Khalíf and Imám after thee?' He brought out a child and said: 'if thou hadst not found favour in the eyes of God, He would not have shown thee this child; his name is that of the Prophet, and so is his patronymic,' (Abu 'l-Qásim). The sect who believe Mahdí to be alive at present, say that he rules over cities in the far west, and he is even said to have children. God alone knows the truth.[74]
The other large division, the Ismá'ílians, agree with the Imámites in all particulars save one. They hold that after Sádiq, the sixth Imám, commenced what is called the succession of the "concealed Imáms." They believe that there never can be a time when there shall be no Imám, but that he is now in seclusion. This idea has given rise to all sorts of secret societies, and has paved the way for a mystical religion, which often lands its votaries in atheism.[75]
The Ghair-i-Mahdí (literally "without Mahdí") are a small sect who believe that Al-Mahdí will not reappear. They say that one Syed Muhammad of Jeypore was the real Mahdí, the twelfth Imám, and that he has now gone never more to return. They venerate him as highly as they do the Prophet, and consider all other Musalmáns to be unbelievers. On the night called Lailat-ul-Qadr, in the month of Ramazán, they meet and repeat two rak'at prayers. After that act of devotion is over, they say: "God is Almighty, Muhammad is our Prophet, the Qurán and Mahdí are just and true. Imám Mahdí is come and gone. Whosoever disbelieves this is an infidel." They are a very fanatical sect.
There is another small community of Ghair-i-Mahdís called the Dá,irí, settled in the province of Mysore, who hold peculiar views on this point. About four hundred years ago, a man named Syed Ahmad collected some followers in the dominions of the Nizám of Hyderabad. He called himself the Imám Mahdí, and said that he was superior to any prophet. He and his disciples, being bitterly persecuted by the orthodox Musalmáns, fled to a village in the adjoining district of Mysore where their descendants, fifteen hundred in number, now reside. It is said that they do not intermarry with other Musalmáns. The usual Friday service in the mosque is ended by the leader saying: "Imám Mahdí came and went away," to which the people respond: "He who does not believe this is a Káfir" (infidel).
There are several Traditions which refer to the latter days. "When of time one day shall be left, God shall raise up a man from among my descendants, who shall fill the world with justice, just as before him the world was full of oppression." And again: "The world shall not come to an end till the king of the earth shall appear, who is a man of my family, and whose name is the same as mine." When Islám entered upon the tenth century of its existence, there was throughout Persia and India a millenarian movement. Mendeclared that the end was drawing near, and various persons arose who claimed to be Al-Mahdí. I have already mentioned two. Amongst others was Shaikh 'Aláí of Agra. (956A.H.) Shaikh Mubarak, the father of Abu'l-Fazl—the Emperor Akbar's famous vizier, was a disciple of Shaikh 'Aláí and from him imbibed Mahdaví ideas. This brought upon him the wrath of the 'Ulamá who, however, were finally overcome by the free-thinking and heretical Emperor and his vizier. There never was a better ruler in India than Akbar, and never a more heretical one as far as orthodox Islám is concerned. The Emperor delighted in the controversies of the age. The Súfís and Mahdavís were in favour at Court. The orthodox 'Ulamá were treated with contempt. Akbar fully believed that the millennium had come. He started a new era, and a new religion called the 'Divine Faith.' There was toleration for all except the bigoted orthodox Muslims. Abu'l-Fazl and others like him, who professed to reflect Akbar's religious views, held that all religions contained truth. Thus:—
"O God, in every temple I see people that seek Thee, and in every language I hear spoken, people praise Thee!Polytheism and Islam feel after Thee,Each religion says, 'Thou art one, without equal.'If it be a mosque, people murmur the holy prayer, and if it be a Christian Church, people ring the bell from love to Thee,Sometimes I frequent the Christian cloister, and sometimes the mosque,But it is Thou whom I search from temple to temple."
"O God, in every temple I see people that seek Thee, and in every language I hear spoken, people praise Thee!Polytheism and Islam feel after Thee,Each religion says, 'Thou art one, without equal.'If it be a mosque, people murmur the holy prayer, and if it be a Christian Church, people ring the bell from love to Thee,Sometimes I frequent the Christian cloister, and sometimes the mosque,But it is Thou whom I search from temple to temple."
"O God, in every temple I see people that seek Thee, and in every language I hear spoken, people praise Thee!
Polytheism and Islam feel after Thee,
Each religion says, 'Thou art one, without equal.'
If it be a mosque, people murmur the holy prayer, and if it be a Christian Church, people ring the bell from love to Thee,
Sometimes I frequent the Christian cloister, and sometimes the mosque,
But it is Thou whom I search from temple to temple."
In this reign one Mír Sharíf was promoted to the rank of a Commander of a thousand, and to an appointment in Bengal. His chief merit in Akbar's eyes was that he taught the doctrine of the transmigration of souls and the close advent of the millennium. He was a disciple of Mahmúd of Busakhwán, the founder of the Nuqtawiah sect. As this is another offshoot of the Shía'hs I give a brief account of them here. Mahmúd lived in the reign of Timur andprofessed to be Al-Mahdí. He also called himself the Shakhs-i-Wáhíd—the Individual one. He used to quote the verse, "It may be that thy Lord will raise thee up to a glorious (mahmúd) station." (Súra xvii. 81). From this he argued that the body of man had been advancing in purity since the creation, and that on its reaching to a certain degree, one Mahmúd (glorious) would arise, and that then the dispensation of Muhammad would come to an end. He claimed to be the Mahmúd. He also taught the doctrine of transmigration, and that the beginning of everything was the Nuqtah-i-khák—earth atom. It is on this account that they are called the Nuqtawiah sect. They are also known by the names Mahmúdiah and Wáhídiah. Shah 'Abbás king of Persia expelled them from his dominions, but Akbar received the fugitives kindly and promoted some amongst them to high offices of State.
This Mahdaví movement, arising as it did out of the Shía'h doctrine of the Imámat, is a very striking fact. That imposters should arise and claim the name and office of Al-Mahdí is not to be wondered at, but that large bodies of men should follow them shows the unrest which dwelt in men's hearts, and how they longed for a personal leader and guide.
The whole of the Shía'h doctrine on this point seems to show that there is in the human heart a natural desire for some Mediator—some Word of the Father, who shall reveal Him to His children. At first sight it would seem, as if the doctrine of the Imámat might to some extent reconcile the thoughtful Shía'h to the Christian doctrine of the Incarnation and Mediation of Jesus Christ, to His office as the perfect revealer of God's will; and as our Guide in life; but alas! it is not so. The mystic lore connected with Shía'h doctrine has sapped the foundation of moral life and vigour. A system of religious reservation, too, is a fundamental part of the system in its mystical developments, whilst all Shía'hs may lawfully practise "takía," or religiouscompromise in their daily lives. It thus becomes impossible to place dependence on what a Shía'h may profess, as pious frauds are legalised by his system of religion. If he becomes a mystic, he looks upon the ceremonial and the moral law as restrictions imposed by an Almighty Power. The omission of the one is a sin almost, if not quite, as bad as a breach, of the other. The advent of Mahdí is the good time when all such restrictions shall be removed, when the utmost freedom shall be allowed. Thus the moral sense, in many cases, becomes deadened to an extent such as those who are not in daily contact with these people can hardly credit. The practice of "takía," religious compromise, and the legality of "muta'h" or temporary marriages, have done much to demoralise the Shía'h community. The following words of a recent author descriptive of the Shía'h system are in the main true, though they do not apply to each individual in that system:—
"There can be no stronger testimony of the corrupting power and the hard and hopeless bondage of the orthodox creed, than that men should escape from it into a system which established falsehood as the supreme law of conduct, and regarded the reduction of men to the level of swine as the goal of human existence."[76]
"There can be no stronger testimony of the corrupting power and the hard and hopeless bondage of the orthodox creed, than that men should escape from it into a system which established falsehood as the supreme law of conduct, and regarded the reduction of men to the level of swine as the goal of human existence."[76]
The Mutazilites, or Seceders, were once an influential body. They do not exist as a separate sect now. An account of them will be given in the next chapter.
In the doctrine of the Imámat, common to all the offshoots of the Shía'h sect, is to be found the chief point of difference between the Sunní and the Shía'h, a difference so great that there is no danger of even a political union between these two great branches of Islám. I have already described, too, how the Shía'hs reject the Sunnat, though they do not reject Tradition. A good deal of ill-blood is still kept up by the recollection—a recollection kept alive by the annual recurrence of the Muharram fast—of the sadfate of 'Alí and his sons. The Sunnís are blamed for the work of their ancestors in the faith, whilst the Khalífs Abu Bakr, Omar, and Osmán are looked upon as usurpers. Not to them was committed the wonderful ray of light. In the possession of that alone can any one make good a claim to be the Imám, the Guide of the Believers. The terrible disorders of the early days of Islám can only be understood when we realise to some extent the passionate longing which men felt for a spiritual head—an Imám. It was thought to be impossible that Muhammad, the last—the seal—of the prophets should leave the Faithful without a guide, who would be the interpreter of the will of Allah.
We here make a slight digression to show that this feeling extends beyond the Shía'h sect, and is of some importance in its bearing upon the Eastern Question. Apart from the superhuman claims for the Imám, what he is as a ruler to the Shía'h, the Khalíf is to the Sunní—the supreme head in Church and State, the successor of the Prophet, the Conservator of Islám as made known in the Qurán, the Sunnat and the Ijmá' of the early Mujtahidín. To administer the laws, the administrator must have a divine sanction. Thus when the Ottoman ruler, Selim the First, conquered Egypt, (A.D.1516) he sought and obtained, from an old descendant of the Baghdád Khalífs, the transfer of the title to himself, and in this way the Sultáns of Turkey became the Khalífs of Islám. Whether Mutawakal Billál, the last titular Khalíf of the house of 'Abbás, was right or wrong in thus transferring the title is not my purpose now to discuss. I only adduce the fact to show how it illustrates the feeling of the need of a Pontiff—a divinely appointed Ruler. Strictly speaking, according to Muhammadan law, the Sultáns are not Khalífs, for it is clearly laid down in the Traditions that the Khalíf (or the Imám) must be of the tribe of the Quraish, to which the Prophet himself belonged.
Ibn-i-Umr relates that the Prophet said:—"The Khalífs shall be in the Quraish tribe as long as there are twopersons in it, one to rule and another to serve."[77]"It is a necessary condition that the Khalíf should be of the Quraish tribe."[78]Such quotations might be multiplied, and they tend to show that it is not at all incumbent on orthodox Sunnís, other than the Turks, to rush to the rescue of the Sultán, whilst to the Shía'hs he is little better than a heretic. Certainly they would never look upon him as an Imám, which personage is to them in the place of a Khalíf. In countries not under Turkish rule, the Khutbah, or prayer for the ruler, said on Fridays in the mosques, is said for the "ruler of the age," or for the Amír, or whatever happens to be the title of the head of the State. Of late years it has become more common in India to say it for the Sultán. This is not, strictly speaking, according to Muhammadan law, which declares that the Khutbah can only be said with the permission of the ruler, and as in India that ruler is the British Government, the prayers should be said for the Queen. Evidently the law never contemplated large bodies of Musalmáns residing anywhere but where the influence of the Khalíf extended.
In thus casting doubt on the legality of the claim made by Turkish Sultáns to the Khalifate of Islám, I do not deny that the Law of Islám requires that there should be a Khalíf. Unfortunately for Islám, there is nothing in its history parallel to the conflict of Pope and Emperor, of Church and State. "The action and re-action of these powerful and partially independent forces, their resistance to each other, and their ministry to each other, have been of incalculable value to the higher activity and life of Christendom." In Islám the Khalíf is both Pope and Emperor. Ibn Khaldoun states that the difference between the Khalíf and any other ruler is that the former rules according to divine, the latter according to human law. The Prophet in transmitting his sacred authority to the Khalífs, his successors, conveyed tothem absolute powers. Khalífs can be assassinated, murdered, banished, but so long as they reign anything like constitutional liberty is impossible. It is a fatal mistake in European politics and an evil for Turkey to recognize the Sultán as the Khalíf of Islám, for, if he be such, Turkey can never take any step forward to newness of political life.[79]
This, however, is a digression from the subject of this chapter.
There has been from the earliest ages of Islám a movement which exists to this day. It is a kind of mysticism, known as Súfíism. It has been especially prevalent among the Persians. It is a re-action from the burden of a rigid law, and a wearisome ritual. It has now existed for a thousand years, and if it has the element of progress in it, if it is the salt of Islám some fruit should now be seen. But what is Súfíism? The term Súfí is most probably derived from the Arabic word Súf, "wool," of which material the garments worn by Eastern ascetics used to be generally made. Some persons, however, derive it from the Persian, Súf, "pure," or the Greekσοφια, "wisdom." Tasawwuf, or Súfíism, is the abstract form of the word, and is, according to Sir W. Jones, and other learned orientalists, a figurative mode, borrowed mainly from the Indian philosophers of the Vedanta school, of expressing the fervour of devotion. The chief idea is that the souls of men differ in degree, but notin kind, from the Divine Spirit, of which they are emanations, and to which they will ultimately return. The Spirit of God is in all He has made, and it in Him. He alone is perfect love, beauty, etc.—hence love to him is the onlyrealthing; all else is illusion. Sa'dí says: "I swear by the truth of God, that when He showed me His glory all else was illusion." This present life is one of separation from the beloved. The beauties of nature, music, and art revive in men the divine idea, and recall their affections from wandering from Him to other objects. These sublime affections men must cherish, and by abstraction concentrate their thoughts on God, and so approximate to His essence, and finally reach the highest stage of bliss—absorption into the Eternal. The true end and object of human life is to lose all consciousness of individual existence—to sink "in the ocean of Divine Life, as a breaking bubble is merged into the stream on the surface of which it has for a moment risen."[80]
Súfís, who all accept Islám as a divinely established religion, suppose that long before the creation of the world a contract was made by the Supreme Soul with the assembled world of spirits, who are parts of it. Each spirit was addressed separately, thus: "Art thou not with thy Lord?" that is, bound to him by a solemn contract. To this they all answered with one voice, "Yes."
Another account says that the seed of theosophy (m'arifat) was placed in the ground in the time of Adam; that the plantcame forth in the days of Noah, was in flower when Abraham was alive and produced fruit before Moses passed away. The grapes of this noble plant were ripe in the time of Jesus, but it was not till the age of Muhammad that pure wine was made from them. Then those intoxicated with it, having attained to the highest degree of the knowledge of God, could forget their own personality and say:—"Praise to me, is there any greater than myself? I am the Truth."
The following verse of the Qurán is quoted by Súfís in support of their favourite dogma—the attaining to the knowledge of God: "When God said to the angels, 'I am about to place a viceregent on the earth,' they said: 'Wilt Thou place therein one who shall commit abomination and shed blood? Nay; we celebrate Thy praise and holiness.' God answered them, 'Verily I know that ye wot not of.'" (Súra ii. 28.) It is said that this verse proves that, though the great mass of mankind would commit abomination, some would receive the divine light and attain to a knowledge of God. A Tradition states that David said: "'Oh Lord! why hast Thou created mankind?' God replied, 'I am a hidden treasure, and I would fain become known.'" The business of the mystic is to find this treasure, to attain to the Divine light and the true knowledge of God.
The earlier Muhammadan mystics sought to impart life to a rigid and formal ritual, and though the seeds of Pantheism were planted in their system from the first, they maintained that they were orthodox. "Our system of doctrine," says Al-Junaid, "is firmly bound up with the dogmas of the faith, the Qurán and the Traditions." There was a moral earnestness about many of these men which frequently restrained the arm of unrighteous power, and their sayings, often full of beauty, show that they had the power of appreciating the spiritual side of life. Some of these sentences are worthy of any age. "As neither meat nor drink," says one, "profit the diseased body, so no warning availsto touch the heart full of the love of this world." "The work of a holy man doth not consist in this, that he eats grain, and clothes himself in wool, but in the knowledge of God and submission to His will." "Thou deservest not the name of a learned man till thy heart is emptied of the love of this world." "Hide thy good deeds as closely as thou wouldst hide thy sins." A famous mystic was brought into the presence of the Khalíf Hárún-ur-Rashíd who said to him: "How great is thy abnegation?" He replied, "Thine is greater." "How so?" said the Khalíf. "Because I make abnegation of this world, and thou makest abnegation of the next." The same man also said: "The display of devotional works to please men is hypocrisy, and acts of devotion done to please men are acts of polytheism."
But towards the close of the second century of the Hijra, this earlier mysticism developed into Súfíism. Then Al-Halláj taught in Baghdád thus: "I am the Truth. There is nought in Paradise but God. I am He whom I love, and He whom I love is I; we are two souls dwelling in one body. When thou seest me, thou seest Him; and when thou seest Him thou seest me." This roused the opposition of the orthodox divines by whom Al-Halláj was condemned to be worthy of death. He was then by order of the Khalíf flogged, tortured and finally beheaded. Thus died one of the early martyrs of Súfíism, but it grew in spite of bitter persecution.
In order to understand the esoteric teaching of Súfíistic poetry, it is necessary to remember that the perceptive sense is the traveller, the knowledge of God the goal, the doctrines of this ascent, or upward progress is the Tarikat, or the road. The extinction of self is necessary before any progress can be made on that road. A Súfí poet writes:—