The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1882-11-23
Moslem Forms and Ceremonies.

interviewer with forms and ceremo- |
nieS, and the law of the Koran or some |
such sacred words seems forever on |
his lips, mixing most freely with all
secular matters. No action, however |
trivial, may be commenced without !
commenting it to Allah. A Moham-
medan will not even light lamp
without blessing the name of ths
prol he. Even the cries of the street.
hawkers bring in frequent illusions to
spiritual market, as when the poor
water-carrier offers a cup of cool, re-
freshing water to all passers-by, cry
ing aloud, "Oh may God reward
meW Whatever be the matter in
hand. one of the company will GER
tainly utter some such reminder as
"Semmoo," and his friends will reply
Bismillah," meaning in the name of
God. In truth, the fatalism of which
we hear so much seems little else than
a strong faith; power Of living calmly
as in the presence of God Gust
as the strongest practical characteristic
of a poor Hindoo's faith seems to be a
simple submission to the will of the
Almighty, under whatever name he
may recognize Him). SO faith or ia.
talism seems well nigh to merge, and
our own Scotch expression of 1T
was been to be" seems tolerably akin
to the "Kismet" of the East. Iremem-
ber an old housemaid being sorely per-
turbed at having knocked over and
smashed a valuable china vase; but q
few minutes later she recovered her
equanimity and exclaimed, "Weel,
weel ! it had been langf the family,
and it was been to be broke - so laying
this lattering JUNCTION to her soul she
went calmly on with her dusting.
Lane. speaking Of this continual allu-
sion to the providence Of God, men
tions that no Moslem will speak Of any
future event or action without adding,
IF it be the will of God" lie explains
the cries of the night Waterman, whose
deep-toned voice resound through the
dark hours. One man cries, "Oh,
Lord Oh, Everlastingv Another
says, az eXtol the perfection of the
living king, who sleepeth not, nor
dieth." He tells, too, of a mode of
entertaining party Of guests in Cairo
by the recital of a khatmeh, which
means the whole of the Koran chanted
by men hired for the occasion. Just
imagine inviting party in London
to hear the whole Bible chanted as a
pastime, with an accompaniment of
pipes and coffee. Mr.. Lane also speaks
of the reverence with which the holy
book is treated--always placed on some
high, clean place, where no other book
or anything else may be laid above it.
He attributes the Mohammedan's dis
like to printing their sacred books to the
dread lest impurity should attach to the
ink, the paper, or, above all, lest the ink
should be applied to the holy name with
| brush made of hog bristles. Worse
than all, the book, becoming thus COM
mon, is in double danger of being
touched by infidels. This dread of dis.
honoring sacred names extends even
to the ninety-nine titles of the Prophet
and the names of those near of kin tC
him. Thus one man will refuse tC
stamp his name upon his pipe-bowls
because it bears one of the names OF
the Prophet, which will thus be
made to pass through the fire. An
other man, less scrupulous, is blamed
because he has branded his name
which is also sacred name
on certain camels and horses. The
sin thus committed is three-fold First
the iron brand is put in the fire, whicl
is horrible sacrilege; secondly, it is ap
piled to the neck Of the camel, causing
blood to flow and pollute the sacreC
name; thirdly, the camel is certain
some day, in lying down, to rest his
neck on something unclean. Thi'
dread of casting holy things into thu
fire does not, however, seem to apply
to such as can be consumed. A Mo
hammedan, finding q fragment O
paper covered with writing, will burr
it so that if holy words should b'
thereon inscribed, the flames may. bea,
them up and the angels carry them t
Observation-Disclosures Udgaziae.