THE
SPIRIT
OF ISLAM
A HISTORY OF
THE EVOLUTION
AND
IDEALS
OF
ISLAM
WITH
A LIFEOF THE
PROPHET
BY
AMEER
ALI,
SYED,
P.G.,
LL.D.,
D.L.,
CLE.
MEMBEROFTHEJUDICIAL COMMITTEEOF HIS MAJESTY'S PRIVY COUNCIL
AUTHOROF 'ASHORTHISTORY OFTHESARACENS
'MOHAMMEDANLAW,' ETC.
"Whatmattersitwhetherthewords thouutterestin
prayer areHebreworSyrian, orwhetherthe place in
which thouseekestGodisJiLbalka or Jabalsa."
—
Samit
LONDON
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PREFACE
IN
ofthe following pagestheevolutionof IslamI have attemptedasaworld-religiontogive; the historyofitsrapidspreadandtheremarkableholditobtained over the
con-scienceand mindsof millions ofpeople within a short spaceof
time.
The
impulse itgaveto theintellectual development ofthe
human
race isgenerallyrecognised.But
itsgreatwork
intheuplifting of
humanity
iseitherignoredornot appreciated;nor are its rationale, its ideals
and
its aspirations properlyunderstood. It has been
my
endeavour in the survey ofIslam to elucidate its true place in the history of religions.
The
reviewofitsrationale andideals, howeverfeeble,may
beofhelptowanderers in quest ofaconstructivefaith tosteady the
human
mind
afterthestrain of the recentcataclysm; itis also hoped that to those
who
followthe Faith of Islam itmay
be of assistance in the understanding and exposition ofthe foundationsoftheirconvictions.
My
outline ofthe life andministry of theProphet is basedon the Sirat-ur-Rasul of Ibn Hisham,
who
died in 213a.h.(828-9A.c), barely two hundred years after the death of the
Prophet,supplemented by,
among
otherworks, Ibn ul-Athir'smonumental
history, the Chronicles of Tabari, the Insdn ul-'Uyun of al-Halabi(commonly
known
as Sirat-ul-Halabia).Two
new
chapters have been added in this edition : one onthe
Imdmate
("The
Apostolical Succession "), the otheron"
The
IdealisticandMysticalSpirit inIslam."Considerable
Chapter X., Part II. I take this opportunity of expressing
my
gratitude tomy
esteemedfriend, ProfessorE. G.Browne
of Cambridge, one of our foremost Orientalists, for his
most
valuablecriticismsonthelastchapter, and to Mr.
Mohammed
Iqbal,
Government
of India Research Scholar at Cambridge,for his careful revision of the proofs and the compilation of
the Index. I also desire to express
my
acknowledgments toMr. Abdul
Qayum
Malik fortranscribing forthe Printers the Arabic quotations for thenew
chapters and verifying theKoranic references, and to the Publishers for theirunvarying
courtesyand patienceover adifficultpublication.
The work
has beencarried through the Press under heavypressure of public duties, and I claim, on that ground, the indulgenceof
my
readersforanymistake thatmay
havepassed uncorrected.N.B.
—
A
fewwordsarenecessarytoexplainthesystemof translitera-tionadoptedin thiswork. Ihavetriedtoadherewith small modificationtothesystemIhavepursuedin
my
previouspublications. TheletterCj (pronounced bythe Arab with alisplikethin thin)toanon-Arab
conveys a sound almost identical with s in sin, and he accordingly
pronouncesitas such. Nor, unlessanArabicscholar,doeshe perceive
any difference between d> and stn or ^o (sdd).
He
pronouncesthem all alike. Similarly i (zal), j (Zay), lyJh {Zad
—
pronounced by the Arab something like dhad), and ]b [zoi), convey to thenon-Arabalmost identicalsounds; certainly hecannot help pronouncing
them identically.
He
also perceives no difference betweeny^, (soft/)andAs(toi),or between the hard aspirate _, (in Ahmed, Mohammed,
Mahmud, etc.) and the softerused in Harun. Ihave therefore not
attempted todifferentiate these letters by dots or commas, which,
howeveruseful forpurposesof translation intoArabic,Persian,Turkish
or Urdu,isonly bewilderingtothe general readerunacquaintedwith the
Arabic alphabetandpronunciation. Ihavegiven thewordsascommonly
pronounced bynon-Arabs. In the caseof wordsspelt with a
o
incommon
useinIndiaandPersiasuchas hadis,masnavi,Isna-'asharia,etc., I have not considered itnecessary to denote the Arabic
TheordinaryfathaIhaverepresentedbya(pronouncedasuin'cut'
or 'but
'), excepting insuch words as are now commonlywrittenin
Englishwithane,asSeljuk (pronouncedSaljuk), Merwan(pronounced
Marwan), etc.; the ordinaryzammabyupronouncedlikeuin 'pull,'
or inBuldan; theordinary kasra with theletteri, as in Misr. Aliph
with the fathaisrepresentedbya,as in'had'
; Aliph with thezamma,
by mas inAbdul-Muttalib; with a kasvabyias inIbnAbi'lJawari.
Waw
(withazamma) byo and sometimesby6. Although likeKufa and several other words, the last syllables in Mahmud, Harun andMamun
are spelt with awaw, tohaverepresented them by ano or 6would have conveyed a wholly wrong notion of the pronunciation,
whichislikeoo; I have, therefore, useduto represent
waw
in suchwords.
Waw
with a.fatha Ihave represented by an, as inMaudud.Yawith akasra,whenusedinthe middleofa word,Ihaverepresented
by i, as in Arish. Butin Ameer Ihave kept theclassical and time
honouredee. Yawith afatha, similarly situatedbyaias in Zaid. Ya
with a fatha at the beginning of a word is represented byye, as in
Yezid; with a zamma byyu, as in Yusuf. Excepting such names
as are commonlyknown to be speltwithan'ain(c),asAbdinAbdul
Malik,AbdurRahman,Arab, Abbas,Aziz, Irak,etc., I haveused the
inverted
comma
todenote thatletter.Withregardto names which have become familiar in certaingarbs
I have made no alteration, such as Kaaba, Omar, Abdullah, Basra,
spelt with a sdd, etc. Ghain (c) is represented by gh; but I
have not attempted to differentiate between i») and jj, and made
noalteration inthetime honouredspelling ofthe Koran. The
com-mon
g (thePersiangdf) andp haveno placeinthe Arabic alphabet,andtherefore the Persian gandp are transformedinArabicintojor
ft andborph [f), as in Atabek and Isfahan. ^ is represented by
kh.
The/ofatwhen occurring before certain letters (technically called
shamsUh) is assimilated with them in sound, as ash-Shams, ad-din, ar-Riza, as-Salat,etc. Ihave used theword "Moslem" inpreference to"Muslim,"asmost Europeansunacquainted with Arabicpronounce
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
The continuity ofreligious development
—
Bactiia (Balkh) supposedtobe theoriginalseatofthehumanrace
—
Dispersionofthe races—
Fetishismand Pantheism
—
TheEasternand Western Aryans—
TheAssyrians
—
Babylon andthe Jews—
Hinduism
—
Zoroastrianism—
The Cult of Isis and of Mythra—
Judaism
—
Christianity—
Gnosticism
—
Manich^ism—
Degradation of theearlier creeds—
The tribes of Arabia,their origin, theirdiversityofcultureand
religious conceptions—Idolatryamong theArabs
—
The folk-loreof Arabia
—
The advent of Mohammed, a necessity of religiousdevelopment^
---PART
ITHE
LIFE
AND
MINISTRY
OF
THE
PROPHET
CHAPTER
IMOHAMMED
THE PROPHET
Mecca,itsfoundations
—
Kossay,hisdescendants
—
AbdulMuttalib
—
TheMeccan decemvirs—
TheAbyssinianinvasion—
TheEraoftheElephant
—
Thebiithof Mohammed—
'Okaz—
ThedepravityoftheArabs
—
Mohammed'smarriage—
Formationofthe LeagueoftheFuziil
—
Mohammed'sdesignationof Al-Amin—
Theperiodof probation, of communion, of inspiration
—
Commencementofthe Ministry
—
Persecution by the Koreish—
Moral evidences ofMohammed'sMission
—
Koreishitehostility—
Theyearofmourning ICHAPTER
IITHE
HEGIRA
Visit to Tayef
—
Ill-treatment—
Return to Mecca—
First pledge of'Akaba
—
VisionoftheAscension—
Secondpledgeof'Akaba—
Thedays of persecution
—
Thedeparturefor Medina (the Hegira) - 41xii
CONTENTS
CHAPTER
IIITHE PROPHET
AT
MEDINA
PAGES
ErectionofthefirstMosqueinIslam
—
ThepreachingsoftheProphet—
Hispersonality---____
--5!
CHAPTER
IVHOSTILITY
OF
THE
KOREISH
AND THE
JEWS
Three parties inMedina
—
Moslems, Mun&fikin, Jews
—
ThecharteroftheProphet
—
AttackbytheKoreish—
BattleofBadr—
VictoryofIslam
—
Ideasregarding angelsin IslamandinChristianity - 56CHAPTER
V
THE
INVASIONOF
MEDINA
BattleofOhod
—
DefeatoftheMoslems—
Barbaritiesofthe Koreish—
Jewish treachery
—
The Bani-Kainuka', their expulsion—
TheBani Nazir, their banishment
—
Coalition against the Moslems—
Beleagurement of Medina—
Bani-Kuraizha, their defection—
SuccessoftheMoslems
—
Punishmentofthe Kuraizha - - 66CHAPTER
VITHE
PROPHET'SCLEMENCY
Charter grantedtothemonks of St.Catherine
—
Cruelty prohibited—
Peace of Hudaibiya
—
The Prophet's message to Heraclius andParviz
—
MurderoftheMoslemenvoybythe Christians - - 83CHAPTER
VIITHE
DIFFUSIONOF
THE
FAITHContinued hostilityof the Jews
—
Expedition against Khaibar—
TheJews sue for forgiveness
—
Pilgrimage of Accomplishment—
Violationby the Meccans of theTreatyof Hudaibiya
—
FallofMecca
—
TreatmentoftheMeccans—
DiffusionoftheFaith - - 92CHAPTER
VIIITHE YEAR
OF
DEPUTATIONS
Deputations to Medina
—
Apprehension of a Greek Invasion—
Ex-pedition to Tabuk
—
Conversion of Orwa—
His martyrdom—
TheBani Tay, their conversion
—
Adoption of the Faith by Ka*bIbn-Zuhair
—
His eulogium of the Prophet—
IdolatersprohibitedCONTENTS
xiiiCHAPTER
IX
FULFILMENT OF
THE
PROPHET'SWORK
PAGES
His superiority over his predecessors
—
His appeal to reason—
HisSermon ontheMount
—
Instructions to thegovernors—
Thefalseprophets
—
LastillnessoftheProphet; hisdeath—
Hischaracter- 109CHAPTER
X
THE
APOSTOLICAL SUCCESSIONThe Imamate
—
TheSunnidoctrineoftheCaliphate—
Thetitleof theOsmanliSultanstotheCaliphate-
...
122PART
IITHE
SPIRIT
OF
ISLAM
CHAPTER
ITHE
IDEAL
OF
ISLAMIslam,itssignification
—
Theethicalprinciples ofIslam—
Ideaof God-head among the different religionists of the world—
Mariolatryand Christolatry
—
Modern idealistic Christianity—
Koranic con-ceptionofGod—
Primaryaimofthenewdispensation—
Itsmorality 137CHAPTER
IITHE
RELIGIOUSSPIRITOF
ISLAMIts practical duties
—
Conception of prayer—
Among theMago-Zoro-astrians and Sabeans, Jews, Christians
—
Islamic conception ofprayer
—
Of moral purity—
Institution of fasting—
Of pilgrimageto Mecca
—
Their raison d'etre—
Intoxication and gamblingfor-bidden
—
Ethicalcode ofIslam, itsdisciplinaryrules—
TheIslamof Mohammed, its aims and aspirations
—
Faith and Charity—
Reprobation ofhypocrisyand falsehood—Nodifference between
true ChristianityandtrueIslam
—
Reasonof theirpresent diverg-ence—
Defects of modern Mohammedanism - - - - 159SumptuaryregulationsofMohammed(NoteI.) - - - 187
CHAPTER
III•THE
IDEAOF
FUTURE
LIFE INISLAMTheidea of a future existence, resultof development
—
The idea offuture existenceamongtheEgyptians, the Jews, the Zoroastrians
CONTENTS
belief
—
Characterofthe Christian traditions—
Strongly-developedideaofan immediatekingdomofheaveninthemindofJesusand
the earlydisciples
—
ParadiseandHell,according to the traditionalwordsof Jesus
—
Themillenarian dream—
How
ithasdied away—
The Islamicconception of a future existence—
The parabolic characterofmanyversesoftheKoran—
Progressivedevelopmenta necessityofhumannature
—
TheKoranicconceptionofpresentandfuturehappiness
--
--
188CHAPTER
IVTHE CHURCH
MILITANTOF
ISLAMIts wars purely defensive
—
Toleration in Islam—
Intolerance of the Jews, Christians, Mago-ZoroastriansandHindus—
Islam opposedtoisolationandexclusiveness
—
WarsofIslamaftertheProphet—
The capture of Jerusalem by the Moslems compared with its
capturebytheCrusaders 204
CHAPTER
V
THE
STATUSOF
WOMEN
IN ISLAMPolygamy,itsorigin
—
Practisedbyallthenationsofantiquity—
Poly-gamy amongthe Christians
—
Opinion of St. Augustineand theGermanreformers
—
PolygamyamongtheArabs and theJews—
TheProphet's regulations
—
Monogamy,resultof development—
Compatibilityof the Koranic rulewith eveiy stageof
develop-ment
—
Mohammed's marriages examined—
Status of women inearlyChristianity
—
Conceptionof Jesusaboutmarriage—
Divorceamong the Romans and the Jews
—
Among the Christians—
RegulationsoftheProphet onthe subject
—
Concubinageforbidden—
Custom of female seclusion—
Idealisation of womanhood—
Prophecy andchivalry, offspring of the desert
—
The women ofIslam
—
Improvement effected bythe Prophet in the status ofwomen
---_.__.
CHAPTER
VIBONDAGE
INISLAMSlavery existedamongallancient nations
—
PositionofslavesamongtheRomansandtheJews
—
Slaveryamongthe Christians—
RegulationsoftheProphet aboutslavery
—
SlaveryabhorrenttoIslam - - 258CHAPTER
VIITHE
POLITICAL SPIRITOF
ISLAMDegradedconditionsofhumanityatthetimeofthe Prophet'sadvent
—
Serfdomandvilleinage—
AbsenceofhumanlibertyandequalityCONTENTS
xv
messageoftheProphet to the Christiansof Najran
—
The char- pacesacterofthe early Republic
—
Administrationof theCaliphs AbuBakr and Omar
—
Equality of men inculcated by Islam—
SpainundertheArabs - - 268
CHAPTER
VIIITHE
POLITICAL DIVISIONSAND
SCHISMSOF
ISLAM Owed theirorigin to clannicand desert-feuds, fostered bydynasticdisputes
—
Osman's partiality forthe Ommeyyades—
Hisdeath—
Accessionof Ali
—
RevoltofMu'awiyah—
Thebattleof Siffin—
ThearbitramentofAmribn-ul-'Asand Abu Musaal-Asha'ri
—
Assas-sinationof Ali—
TheusurpationofMu'awiyah—
ThebutcheryofKerbela
—
The triumphof paganism—
Thesack of Medina—
TheriseoftheAbbasides
—
Theorigin oftheSunniChurch—
Mamun—
ThequestionoftheImamate
—
Shiahism—
Sunnism—
Theprincipal Shiah sects— The Zaidias—
The Isma'ilias—
The Isnd-'asharias—
-The Paulicians—
The doctrine of Abdullah ibn-Maimunal-Kaddah
—
The Grand Lodgeof Cairo—
Theassassins of Alamut—
The Isna-'Asharias divided into UsMis and Akhbdris, theirrespective doctrines—TheSunnis divided into Hanafis, Mdlikis,
Shdfeis,andHanbalfc
—
TheKhdrijis—
Bdbism-CHAPTER
IX
THE
LITERARY
AND
SCIENTIFICSPIRITOF
ISLAMTheArabianProphet'sdevotiontoknowledgeandscience
—
Hisprecepts—The
Caliph Ali'ssayings—
Learningandartsamongtheprimi-tive Moslems
—
The school of Medina—
Imam Ja'far as-Sadik—
The foundation of Bagdad—
Mamun, the Augustus of the Saracens—
Al-Mu'iz li-din-illah—
The Ddr-ul-Hikmat of Cairo—
Astronomyand mathematics among theArabs
—
Architecture—
History
—
Poetry—
The Koran—
The intellectual achievements ofthe Moslems
—
Their present stagnation, its causes—
the terribledestructioncommittedbythe Tartars
—
theresult oftheCrusades—
TheUsbegsand Afghans---
360CHAPTER
X
THE
RATIONALISTICAND
PHILOSOPHICAL
SPIRITOF
ISLAMThe Koranic teachings about free-will anddivine government
—
TheProphet's sayings
—
Theexpositionof theCaliph Ali and of the earlydescendantsoftheProphet—
TheJabarias or predestinarians—
The Sifdtias—
The Mu'tazilas—Mu'tazilaism the same as the teachingsofthe philosophersofthe familyoftheProphet— Ration-alism in Islam—
The reign of Mamun—
Philosophy among thexvi
CONTENTS
philosophy in Islam
—
Its causes—
Mutawakkil—
His alliance pageswith patristicism
—
The triumph of patristicism—
Abu'l HassanAli al-Asha'ri
—
Hisretrogressive teachings—
Abu Hanifa, MalikShafe'i, and Ibn Hanbal
—
Ilm-ul-Kaldm
—
The Ikhwan us-Safa.("TheBrethrenofPurity")
—
Their teachings - 403CHAPTER
XI
IDEALISTIC
AND
MYSTICAL
SPIRIT IN ISLAMItsorigintraceableto theProphet
—
TheKoranic ideas—
The CaliphAli'sEnunciation—Neo-Platonism
—
The EarlyMystics—
Imamat Ghazzali—
Hislifeandwork—
The LaterMystics—
TheBrother-hoodsand Lodges
—
MoslemIdealism 455Appendices
....
- 479General Index- 499
xviii
THE
SPIRIT
OF ISLAM
"messengers of Heaven."
They came
among
their peopleas the children of their time; they represented the burning
aspirations of the
human
soul for truth, purity, and justice.Each
was anembodiment
of the spiritual necessities of hisage; each
came
to purify, to reform, to elevate a degradedrace, a corrupted commonwealth.
Some came
as teachers ofa smallerculture, to influencea smaller sphere; others
came
withaworld-widemessage
—
amessagenot confinedtooneraceor nation, but intended for all humanity. Such
was
Mohammed.
His mission was not to the Arabs alone.He
was
notsent foroneage or clime,but" forallmankind
totheendof the world."
The
advent of thisgreat Teacher, whoselifefromthe
moment
of hisMinistryisaverifiablerecord,was
not a mere accident, an unconnected episode in the history
ofthe world.
The same
causes,thesamecryingevils,thesame
earnest
demand
for an "assured trust " in an all-pervadingPower, whichled to the appearance on the shoresof Galilee,
in the reign of Augustus Caesar, of a Prophet whose life is a
tragedy, operated with greater force in the seventh century
of the Christian era.
The
beginning of the seventh century,as has been rightly said,
was
an epoch of disintegration"—
national, social, and religious: its
phenomena
were such ashave always involved afresh form ofpositive faith, to recall
allwanderingforcestotheinevitabletrackof spiritualevolution
"towardsthe integrationofpersonal worship."
They
allpointedtothe necessityofa
more
organicrevelation ofdivinegovern-ment
thanthatattainedby
Judaismor Christianity.The
holy flames kindledby
Zoroaster, Moses, and Jesushad
been quenched in the blood of man.A
corrupt Zoroastrianism,battling for centuries with a still
more
corrupt Christianity,had
stifledthe voice of humanity, and convertedsome
ofthe happiest portions of the globe into a veritable Aceldama.Incessant
war
for supremacy, perpetual internecine strife, combined with the ceaseless wrangling of creeds and sects,had
suckedthelife-bloodout ofthe heartsofnations, and the people of theearth, troddenunder the iron heels of alifelesssacerdotalism, were crying to
God
from the misdeeds of theirmasters. Never in the history of the world
was
the need soorder, therefore, to appreciate thoroughly the achievement
of
Mohammed
in the moral world, it is necessary to take a rapidsurveyofthereligiousandsocialconditionofthe nationsof the earth previous to, and about the time of, the Islamic Dispensation.
The
high table-landofBactria,appropriatelystyledby Arab
geographers
Umm
ul-Bildd, or "mother of countries," issupposedtobethecradle ofhumanity,theoriginal birth-place ofcreeds andnations.
Through
thefaintandshadowy
light, which comparative ethnology throws on the infancy ofman-kind,
we
perceive groupsoffamiliescongregatedin thisprimevalhome
of thehuman
race, gradually coalescinginto clans and tribes, and then forcedby
the pressure of increasingpopula-tion, issuing in successive waves to people the face of the
globe.
The
Hamitic branch were apparently the first toleave their ancient habitations.
They
were followedby
the Turanians, or, as theyare sometimescalled,the Ugro-Finnish tribes,supposedtobe anoffshot ofthe Japheticfamily.Some
of
them
apparentlyproceedednorthwards, andthen spreading themselvesinthe East,foundedthe presentMongolianbranchof the
human
race. Another section proceeded westwardand settled in Azarbaijan,
Hamadan, and
Ghilan, countriesto thesouth andsouth-west of the Caspian, better
known
inancient history as Media.
A
portion of these descending afterwards into the fertile plains of Babylonia, enslaved theearlier Hamitic colonies, and in course oftime amalgamating
with them, formed theAccadian nation, the Kushites of the
Jewish andChristian Scriptures. This composite race created
Babylon,
and
gave birth to a form of religion which, in itshigher phases,
was
akin to natural pantheism. In its lower phases, with its pan-dsemonism, its worship of the sun-godsand
moon-gods, closely associated with the phallic cult andthe sexual instincts, the sacrifice of children to Baal and
Moloch, of virginity to Beltis and Ashtoreth, it marks an
epoch
when
high material civilisationwas
allied to grosslicentiousness, and cruelty was sanctioned
by
religion.The
Semites were the next to leave the primeval home.They
also,followinginthe footstepsoftheTuranians,migrated towards the West, and apparently settled themselves in thenorthern part of the Mesopotamian Delta. Increasing in
numbers
and strength, they soon overthrew the Babylonian kingdom, and founded a far-reaching empire which wieldedits
sway
over all the neighbouring States. In their seat ofpower between the two great rivers of Western Asia, the Assyriansat timesrose to apositivemonotheistic conception. Their system of celestialhierarchy furnishes indications of a
distinct recognition of one
Supreme
Personality.Whilst the
main body
ofthe Semitic colonywas
developingitself in the upper parts of the Delta, a small section
had
penetratedfar intoadistrict calledUr, within the boundaries
oftheChaldaeanmonarchy.1
The
patriarchof thistribe,whose
self-imposedexileand wanderings havepassedintothereligious
legends of
more
than one creed,became
the father of the future makers of history.2The
Japhetic family seems to have tarried longest in itsancienthabitation. Whilst the otherraces, which
had
brokenaway
fromtheoriginal stock,were formingempiresandevolvingcreeds,the Japheticbranch underwentadevelopmentpeculiar
to itself.
But
themarch
of nations once set on foot wasnevertocease; actuated
by
thatspirit ofunrestwhich works inbarbaroustribes,orinfluencedby
the pressureofpopulationand the scarcity of space in their old haunts forthe pursuit
of their pastoral avocations, tribe after tribe
moved
away
towards theWest.
Among
the first werethe Pelasgians andthe Celts. Other tribes followed, until the Aryans proper
were left alone in the old haunts.
One
section apparentlyhad
its abode near Badakhshan, the other towards Balkhproper, where for centuries they lived almost isolated from
the neighbouring nations, unaffected
by
their wars or theirmovements.
The
light of history which hasdawned
on theWesternraces,thefoundersofkingdoms andcivilisations,also
falls
upon
these ancient dwellers of the earth, and reveals,though indistinctly and as through a mist, several clans
gathered together on that plateau; just emerged from
1Rawlinson,Ancient Monarchies,
p. 23.
2IntheArabian
traditionsthe fatherofAbrahamiscalledAzar, whichis
evidentlythesameasAsshur; andthe beautifulidols ofAzarare frequently
referredto in Moslem literature. These traditionsconfirm the belief that
savagenessintobarbarism,theyarebecomingalive tothe sense
ofanUniversalIdeality. Innumerableidealitiesaretaking the placeofthe naturalobjects,hithertoworshippedwithfearand
trembling.
With some
ofthem
the host of abstractions andpersonifications of the powers of nature are subordinated to
two comprehensive principles
—
Light and Darkness.The
sun, the bright harbingeroflifeand light,becomesthesymbol
ofa beneficent Divinity, whosepower, thoughheld in check,
is eventually to conquer the opposing principle of Evil
and
Darkness.
With
others,theidealitieswhichtheynow
impresson the fetish they worshipped before, merge in each other;
at one time standing forth as distinct personal entities, at
another time resolving themselves into a hylozoic whole. Gradually the clouds lift, and
we
see the tribal andclan-formations giving
way
tomonarchicalinstitutions; agriculturetaking
by
slow degrees the place of pastoral avocations;primitive arts being cultivated; the use of metals gaining
ground, and, above all, the higher conception of a
Supreme
Personality forcing itself
upon
the yet unopened mind. Kaiumurs, Hoshang,andtheotheroldkingsofwhom
Firdousisings with such wondrous power, are types of an advancing
civilisation.
The
introduction ofthe monarchical institutionsamong
theAryans properseemstobecoevalwith thatreligiousconflict betweenthe
two
branches oftheAryan
familywhichled tothe expulsionofthe Easternbranchfrom theirBactrian
home.
A
powerful religious revolutionhad
beeninauguratedamong
theWestern Aryansby
a teacherwhosename
hasbeenpreservedintheliterature of his religion asCitamaZarathustra.
The
sharp religious conflict, which resulted from thismove-ment, has left its
mark
in the deep imprecations heapedby
theVedic hymn-singersonthe
enemy
of theirraceandcreed,the Djaradashti of the Vedas.
The
attitude of the Vedichymn-singers towardsthereformedfaith, even
more
thanthe extraordinary coincidence in names, furnishes the strongest proof that the religious divergence was the immediate causeof the split between the twobranches of the Aryansproper. In this, probably the first religious
war
waged among
man-kind, the Western dualistic clanswere successful in driving
Paropamisadae.
The
EasternAryansburstinto India, driving beforethem
theearlierblack races, massacring and enslavingthem, treating
them
always as inferior beings, Dasyus andSudras, slaves and serfs.
The
difference between the Vedicand the Zoroastrian religions was, however, purely relative.
Zoroastrianism substitutedforthe worshipof thephenomena,
the adoration of the cause. It converted the gods of the
Vedas into
demons
and the deva-worshippers into infidels;whilst the Vedic hymn-singer, onhisside, calledthe
Ahura
oftheAvesta an evilgod,anAsura, apowerhostile to the gods,
and
heapedburning maledictionson thehead of Djaradashti. Whilst the place and time of the early Zoroaster's birth areenwraptinmystery,underDariusHystaspesarose anotherteacher, who, under the
same
name, revived, organised, andenlarged the basis ofthe ancient teachings.
Retracing oursteps fora
moment,
we
seethetide ofAryan
conquestinIndia flowingeastward and southwardfor centuries.
The
oldAryan
religion, which the invadershad
brought fromtheir ancient homes, consisted chiefly in the worship of the
manes
andthe adoration of the powers ofNature symbolisedin visible phenomena. In the land of the Five Rivers the
spiritual conception developed further;
we
can read in theVedas the
march
of progress untilwe
arrive at the zenithof
Hindu
religiousideas inthe Upanishads, whichoften intheintensity of spiritualyearningapproachthe highestmonotheism.
The
Upanishads dwell not only on theimmanence
of God, a conception which gave birth in later times to the materialpantheism of India; but also teach that the
Supreme
Spiritis the protectorof all beings and sovereign over allcreation,
that he dwells in the heartsof men,
and
finally absorbs the individualsoul in infinity " as theocean absorbs the river ";when
that absorption takes place thehuman
soul loses allconsciousness of its experience in the earthly frame.
But
theseinteresting recordsof
human
progress contained within themselves unquestioned germs of spiritual decadence whichsoon reversed the process of evolution; andthus instead of
observing a further uplifting,
we
seea progressive declension.The
Upanishadsmake
way
for the Puraniccults, which againThe
ideatowhichthe Upanishadsfrequently give expression that theSupreme
Spirit manifests Himself in various forms gave rise to the conception of the Avatars or incarnations.Justas intheWesternpagan worldphilosophyfailedto satisfy
the cravingof the popular
mind
for a personalGod
who
had
dwelt
among mankind
andheldfamiliardiscourse withthem,the theistic aspirations of the Upanishads did not appeal to
the heartortouchtheemotionsofthemassesofIndia.
And
a hero-godwas
soon found in amember
of the warrior caste,who
came
beforelongtobeidentifiedwith theSupreme
Spiritand
to be regarded in his earthly existence as an incarnate god.The
developmentofthe Krishna-cult,likethatofits rival,the worshipofthe"dreadMother," illustrates forciblynotmerelythe religious welter which prevailed in India in the seventh
centuryof the Christian era,but also the gulf which divided the mindsof the philosophers
who
composedthe Upanishadsand
the Bhagavad-Gita; "the Song of Faith,"l from the
thoughts andfeelings ofthe populace. Itis abundantlyclear
that long beforetheyburstinto Hindustan proper, the
Aryan
settlers in the Punjab or their priests
and
religious teachersmade
the most stringent rules to prevent the intermixture ofthe invaders
and
their descendants with the races theyhad
conquered and enslavedin their steadyandprolonged
march
towardsthe East.
The
touch ofthe latter,who
wereturnedinto the lowest
and
servile caste,was
pollution; all thereligious ritespeculiar to the three higher castes were strictly
forbidden to them.
Among
all the flow and ebb ofAryan-Hindu
thought inthe regionofpantheism theworship of the
manes
hasalwaysclung to the
Hindu
mind
as an essential part of hisreligio-socialsystem.
The
Sudrawas
permitted to offeroblationstohisdead ancestors,butno
Brahman
couldofficiateattheriteswithout incurring the heaviest penalties. If a Sudra
over-hearda
Brahman
recitingtheVedas,hewastobe punishedby
having molten lead poured into his ears; if he happened to
siton the
same
benchwith theBrahman
hewas
liable to be1
A
recent writerremarksthattheBhagavad-Gitano doubt showstracesofbranded. Whilst unions, legitimate or illegitimate, between
the "twice born," as the three superior castes were called,
andthe Sudras were interdictedunderthe cruellest penalties.
No
legislation, however, could prevent their religious ideasand
practices being influencedby
the primitive beliefs. Incourseoftime thedivinitiesofthepre-Aryan tribesandraces
wereincorporatedintothe
Hindu
pantheon,and
theirworshipbecame
part of theHindu
daily ritual.The
amalgamationsof diverse beliefs of unequal growth and varying tendencies
had
their inevitable result in the debasement of the complexand
abstruse pantheism the philosophers were endeavouring through ages to evolve.Before the followers of Islam lifted the veil behind which
India
had
livedenshroudedinmysteryforthousandsofyears,she possessednohistory. It is impossible tosay
when
Vasu-deva-Krishnalived, or tojudgeof his personality. Thereareinnumerable legends which verge on the absurd
and
puerile,legends evidently manufactured
by
the priests,who
had
become
theequals,ifnot thesuperiors, ofthegods; and whoseinterestit
was
tokeepthemindsof the vulgar fascinatedand
enthralled.
The
place which Vasudeva-Krishna occupies inthe
Hindu
pantheon is that of the incarnation of Vishnu,andassuch he formsthecentral figure in the devotional part
of the Bhagavad-Gita.
He
is evidently a composite divinity;oneof the man-gods associatedwith
him
being the gay herowho
livedamong
the cowherds of Gokuland
disportedhim-self in the famous groves of Brindabun with his merry companions.1
The
cult of Vasudeva-Krishna inculcated absolute dharmaorfaith asthekeytosalvation ; thebeliever in thisincarnate
Vishnu, whatever his conduct in life, was assured of eternal
happiness.
The
doctrine of perfect faith gave birth to practices andbeliefs which are still current in India.
As
righteousness1Krishna
is usuallycalledtheGopala-Krishnaor Cowherd Krishna; his
femalecompanionsarecalledthegopis, the"milkmaids." Manya pretty
legendiswovenroundtheadventuresofthishero-godof the Ahirs, the cow-herd casteofUpperIndia. Krishna hasbeensomewhatinaptlycalledthe Apollo ofthe Hindus, thoughit is difficultto clothe himwith thepoetry
consists inthe concentrationofthe
mind
inone'sselfas identicalwith the
Supreme
Spirit represented in Krishna, thegymno-sophic ascetic practices acquiredin the eyes of the people a superlative merit.
To
sit for 3'ears in the forest with theeyes fixed on one spot of the
human
body
and themind
onKrishna; tostandforyearson oneleg; tobe
swung
roundby
hooks fixed inthe fleshwereacts of devotionwhich curedall sins.
To
expiate a sin or to fulfil avow
aman
might be employed tomeasureby
the length of hisbody
the distancefrom the abode of the penitent to the temple of the deity.
To
read theBhagavad-Gita with true faithor to bathein theGanges or
any
holy pool, absolved everyman
orwoman
fromall breaches ofthe morallaws.
It is difficulttotell
when
Saktismacquiied the predominantholdit
now
possessesonlargemassesoftheHindu
population.The
Sakti is the female half andactive creative side of eachHindu
deity.The
Sakti,orspouseof Siva,isthedread goddessknown
under various names, such as Parbati, Bhavani,Kali, Maha-Kali, Durga,
Chamunda.
The
worship of thisgoddess, as described in the
drama
of Bhavabhuti, written apparently in the seventh century of the Christian era, wascelebrated with
human
sacrificesand
other revolting rites. There is nothing of the "mater dolorosa " in the spouse ofSiva,
by
whatevername
sheisinvokedor inwhateverformsheisworshipped; she possessesnone ofthe attributes of
human
pity or
sympathy
withhuman
suffering, the Alexandrianworshipper associated withIsis"thegoddessofmyriad names."
This awe-inspiring, not to say, awful concept of a decadent
religious mind, evidentlyborrowed from thepre-Aryan races,
who
delights inhuman
blood and revels inhuman
misery,has few parallels in the paganism of the world; for even
Cybele, the
magna
materof theRomans,
was not somerciless ortooksomuch
pleasurein inflictingpain asthe Saktiofthe "God
of destruction"1This deity is worshipped according
to the ritual of the Tantras, which
may
be regarded as thebible of Saktism.
Many
of the Tantrichymns
areimbued
with considerable devotional spirit, and the invocations
ad-dressedtothegoddess often appealtoher pity; but whatever
mysticalmeaningtheTantras
may
possessforthe philosopher, the peoplecommonly
accept the worship in its most literalsense.1
From
thetwogreat epics,oneofwhichtellsthe storyofthewar
betweenthePandus
andtheKurus,andthe other the legendofthe abductionof Sita
by
the kingof Ceylon,we
can formafairly accurate idea of the popular creedsof the time.
Both
represent a developed society and considerable material progress combined with great moral decadence.
Thus
long before theappearance of Gautama,the founderof Buddhism,religious worship
among
the masses of Indiahad
sunk intomere mechanical performance of sacrifices and oblations at
which the ability of the ministering priest, without whose
services their observance
was
not permissible, toperform the"god-compelling" rites with the appropriate incantations,
rather than the conduct or pietyof the worshipper, supplied
the test of merit.
The
revolt ofGautama
and of Mahavira(Mahabir) represented the natural uprise of the
Hindu
mind
againstaselfishsacerdotalism.
Both
denya CreativePrincipleand the existence of a
Supreme
Intelligence governingand
regulatingthe universe, both affirm the eventual annihilation
ofindividuallife; bothdwellonthe meritof
work
inbringingabout this blissful consummation.
But
whilst Jainism hashung
on to the skirts ofBrahmanism and
isnow
practicallya Brahmanical sect,
Buddhism
struck out boldly anew
pathfor itself. It placed
Karma
in the forefront of its schemeofsalvation; and its great teacher tried to fulfil its claims in his
own
life. Its conception of the destiny ofman
after1Thereare twochief divisions of Tantric worshippers: the
Dakhshina-chariand Vamachari, orrightand lefthand ritualists; theworshipofthe
former is public, and not otherwise noticeable thanas addressed to other
goddesses, such as Lakshmior Mahalakshini, the Sakti ofVishnu. In the
left hand worship, specially called Tantrika, the exclusive object of
adoration is Kali. This worship is private and is saidto be celebrated
with impure practices. This particular cult has an enormous number of
followers all over India and branches into various subdivisions. In the seasonoftheDurgaPuja,whichisusually celebratedinthemonthofAugust,
theimageofDurgaiscarriedaboutseatedona throne. InUpperIndia she
ispainted as yellowofcomplexion; inBengalsheisrepresented as absolutely
black,withfourhands, seatedonatiger. In thetempleofKalighat (from
whichCalcutta derivesitsname)drippingskullsmight beseenhanging from
her neck. Inoneofthe templesatJeyporethegoddessmaybeseenwith her
headtwistedround; the traditionisthat the ladyturnedher faceindisgust
death
was
quite opposed to Brahmanical doctrines; andits occult mysticism soon passed into other creeds.
But
in the land of its birth, after a short but glorious
existence
Buddhism
met
with a cruel fate; and themeasure of punishment that
was
meted
out to itby
atriumphant
Brahmanism
isdepictedonthetemplesofSouthernIndia. It
must
be admitted, however, that in its pristinegarb
Buddhism
did not possess the attractionsHinduism
offered to its votaries. It never claimed to be a positive
religion,
and
its "rewards" and "sanctions," itspromise ofbliss ina future existence, its penalties for failure toperform
duties in this life, were too
shadowy
to stir the heart of themasses. It
had
soon toabandon
its contestwith the outsideworld or to arrive at a compromise with the religion it
had
tried to supplant; andit
was
not long before the religion thatBuddha
preachedhad
to allow its lay-votaries to substitute prayer-wheelsforpiouswork,or totaketoTantrismtosupple-ment
itsown
barren efforts. Its failure under the mostfavourable circumstancesin theland of its nativitysealedits
fate as a rousing religious system, although in
some
of itsmystical aspects it exercised considerable influence on the philosophies of WesternAsiaand Egypt.
On
the expulsion ofBuddhism
from India,Brahmanism
regained its supremacy; the long
shadow
under which ithad
livedwhilstthereligionofBuddha
dominatedthecountryhad
brought no improvement in its spiritual conceptions;and
thelifelessformalism against whichBuddha had
revoltedwas
now
re-established on a stronger foundation; the livesof
men
andwomen
were under the restored Brahmanicalregime regulated
more
closely than everby
a sacrificial cultwhich appealedto their senses,perhapsto theiremotions, rather
than to their spiritual instincts.
Among
themasses religiousworship
became
a daily round of meaningless ritual. Forthem
"thechiefobjectsofworship werethepriests,themanes
and, for form's sake, the Vedicgods." Fetishism, as a part
ofthe aboriginalbelief,
was
never eradicatedfromthe Indiancontinent
by
philosophicalHinduismorby
practicalBuddhism. Itnow
entered into the inner life of allcastes; trees, stonesfamilygods, the householdpenates andthe ancient divinities
were symbolised, shared the adorationof the populace.
The
great Code of Manu, of which Hinduismis justlyproud, and
which
became
in later centuriesthemodelforthelegaldoctrinesof other Eastern races, represents a legislation for a state of
society where a great advance in material civilisation
was
combined with the absolute domination of the priestly caste
and an astonishing moral decadence amongst the masses. Like the priest the king
was
now
a divinity. In thesecond centuryoftheChristian era,whilst Manu's Code was stillheldin reverence andtreated as the final authority, its place
was
taken
by
theCommentary
ofYajnavalkya,"theContemplativeMaster."
To him
castewas
as iron-bound as toManu
; andtheSudra as impure as in early times.
Femaleinfanticide,as
among
thepaganArabs,was
common.
There is no record
when
widow-burningwas
firstintro-duced, but it
must
have beencommon
inthe seventh centuryof the Christian era.
To
thewidow
death, however terrible, must have been a welcome release, for.unless shewas
themotherofchildren her lot
was
oneof diremisery.A
woman
was
debarredfromstudying the Vedasorpartici-patinginthe oblationstothemanes,or inthesacrificestothe
deities.
The
wife's religionwas
toserveherlord; hereternalhappiness depended on the strict performance of that duty.
And
the faithful wife,who
sacrificed herself on the funeralpyreofher deadspouse,found a nichein the heartsofall the
votaries ofHinduismasoneofthebestandnoblestofher sex;
and often
became
herself the object of worship.Whilst thinking minds
saw
in the puerile practices of thereligionadeepermeaning;whilst their souls floated farabovethe
ceremonialism ofthe creed theyprofessed,notone philosopher
or priest viewed with horror the cruel immolations of the
helpless widow, usually no
more
than a child. Religiousassociations,generallycomposedof bothsexes andnot always
remarkable for austerity of life,
had
already sprungup
; andnumerouscelibatebrotherhoodsworshippingdifferent divinities
had come
into existence.They
invariably congregated inmonasteriesinto which
women
were admitted aslaymembers.established about the
same
time, the professed celibacywas
more
nominal than real, honoured in its breach rather thanin its observance. Large
numbers
of the mendicantbrother-hoodslived incomfort
and
easeintemplesand muths. Others,likethebeggingfriarsoftheMiddleAgesandthevulgar cynics
of the Flavian period, wandered in search of meritfrom the
doles of the devout. Their sole recommendation to the
charity of the pious consisted in their matted locks, their
unkempt
beard, the ochre-coloured shirt thathung
overtheirshoulders, the ash-covered naked bodies and the inevitable
beggar's gourd and staff.
As
the divinities loved musicand
dancing, alargenumber
ofdancinggirlswereattachedtothe temples,
who
wereby
nomeans
vestal,and
whose services were at the disposalof the ministrants of the cult.Women
occupied a very inferiorposition in early
Hindu
legislation, and Manu's extremedenunciationofthesexcan be
compared
only tothefanaticalpronouncement of the Christian Saint Tertullian, "
Women,"
says Manu, "have impure appetites; they
show
weak
flexi-bility
and bad
conduct.Day
and
nightmust
they bekeptinsubjection."
As
regards the Sudras,he declared, almostin thewords ofthe Pandects, that the Creator
had
made
them
slavesandthat aman
belonging tothat caste, evenwhen
he is emancipatedby
his master, cannot be free; for bondage being natural tohim,
who
candeliverhim
fromit?Such in brief
was
thereligious and social conditionamong
thepeopleofoneofthemostgiftedsections ofthe
Aryan
raceatthetime
when
theProphet ofIslambroughthis Messagetothe world.
Letus turn
now
toPersia—
acountrywhich,by
itsproximityto the birthplace of Islam, and the powerful influence it has
always exercised on
Mohammedan
thought, not to speak ofthe character and tone it
communicated
to Judaism andChristianity, deservesour earnestattention.
Consolidatedintoa nation and witha
new
spiritualdevelop-ment,thewesternAryanssoon bursttheirancientbounds,
and
spread themselves over the regions of
modern
Persia andmostoftheHamiticandKushiteracesinhabitingthosetracts,
andgradually reached theconfines ofthe Caspian,where they found the
more
tenacious and hardy Turanians settled inMedia and Susiana. Before, however, they
had
succeeded insubjugating the Turanians, they themselves fell under the
yoke ofaforeigninvader,Kushite orAssyrian,
more
probablythelatter,underwhoseiron
sway
they remainedforaconsider-able time.1
With
the expulsionof the foreignerscommenced
thatconflictbetweenIranandTuran whichlastedwithvarying
fortunesfor centuries,
and
endedwith the partial subjugationoftheTuraniansinMedia andSusiana.2
The
frequent contactofthefollowers ofAfrasiaband Kai-Kausin thefield
and
thehallexercisedalastingeffectonthePersicfaith.
The
extremematerialism of the Turanians did not fail to degrade the yet
undeveloped idealism of their Iranian rivals and neighbours,
who, whilst they succeeded in superimposing themselves on
the ancient settlers of Media,
had
partially to incorporateTuranianworshipwiththeirown.
And
thus, whilst in Persia,Ormuzd
alonewas
adored andAhriman
heldup
to execration, in Media, the goodand
the evil principle were both adoredat the altars. Naturally, the Turanian population
was more
inclined to worshiptheir ancient national god thanthe deity
of their
Aryan
conquerors; and in the popular worship,Ahriman, or Afrasiab, took precedence of Ormuzd.
The
Assyrian empirehad
fallen before a coalition, the firstofitskind
known
in history,oftheMedes andtheBabylonians, but thereligionofAsshur,fromitslongdominationovermany
ofthe parts occupied
by
theAryans, leftanineffaceablemark
on the conceptionsof theZoroastrians.
The
complex systemof celestial co-ordination and the idea prevalent
among
the Assyriansofa divine hierarchy engrafteditselfonZoroastrian-ism.
Ormuzd
was
henceforthworshippedasa secondAsshur;andthePersian'ssymbolofthe
God
oflight,theall-beneficentpower,
became
a winged warrior, withbow
and lifted hand, enclosed in the world-circle. Their symbol of growth also,1Accordingto'the Persiantraditions, Zahhakruled over Iranforover a
thousandyears,andthisissupposedbyseveral scholarstorepresent the exact
period of Assyriandomination. Therise of Faridun would, according to
thisview,be synchronouswith the downfallofNineveh.
the tree with the candelabrabranches ending upwardsin the pine-cone,
was
converted into the Persian fir-cone. Before theriseofCyrusin Farsistan andhis consolidating conquests, the symbolic worship in vogueamong
the early emigrantsandsettlers
became
degradedamong
themassesintopyrolatry,or took the form of Chaldseo-Assyrian Sabaeism.
The
city of Asshur,—
whichhad
ruled Western Asiaup
totheconfines of Indiafornearly a thousand years, andalmost
wrested from the Pharaohs the empire of Egypt,
—
the city of the mighty Sargon and the great Sennacherib,had
fallenbefore thecombined forces ofthe Babylonian andthe Mede,1
never again to raiseits head
among
thenationsof the world.Babylon, which afterits early rivalrywith Nineveh
had
been reducedto adependency ofAssyria,became
again the centreof Asiaticcivilisation. Shegathered
up
the arts andsciencesofa thousandyearsofgrowth,
and
theproduct of "interfusedraces and religions, temples and priesthoods," and supplied
the connectinglink between the inorganic faiths of antiquity
and
themodern
beliefs. Assyria had, with the civilisationand
literature of the early Accadians, also borrowedmuch
oftheir religion. Babylon, rising into
more
potent grandeurfrom the ashes of Nineveh, centred in herself the essence of
the Assyrian and Chaldaean cults.
Under
Nebuchadnezzarthe empire of Babylonia attained the zenith of its power;
Judaea fell,
and
the flowerofthe nationwas
carriedintocap-tivitytolament
by
thewatersof Babylonthe downfallofthekingdom
of Jehovah.The
mighty conqueror penetratedintoArabia,
and
overwhelmed andnearlydestroyed theIshmaelites;he smote the Tyrians,
and
broke the power of the Egyptian Pharaoh. In spite ofthe maledictionsheapedupon
her headby
theHebrew
patriot, Babylonwas
by
nomeans
such ahard taskmaster as Egypt.2The
Israelites themselves bear
testi-mony
to the generosity of their treatment.Not
until theredeemer
was
nigh with his mighty hosts, marching to the conquest of thedoomed
city, did the children of Israel raisetheir voice against Babylon.
Then
burst forth the storm ofimprecations, of predictions of woe, which displayed the
characteristics of the race inits pristine savagery. "
By
therivers ofBabylon, there
we
satdown
; yea,we
weptwhen
we
remembered
Zion. Daughter of Babylon!happy
shall hebe
who
dasheththylittleones against thestones."1Under
Nebuchadnezzar, Babylonwas
indisputably the centre of allexistingcivilisations.And
the influencewieldedby
her priesthood did not ceasewith theempireofBabylonia.The
mark
of the Babylonian conceptions is traced inunmis-takable charactersinboththe Judaical
and
Christian systems.The
long exile of the Jewsamong
the Chaldaean priesthood,theinfluencewhich
some
oftheHebrews
obtainedinthe courtof the Babylonian king, and the unavoidable interfusion of
the two peoples, tended to impart a
new
character to laterJudaism.
They
were carried to Babylon in a state ofsemi-barbarism; they returned to Zion after theirlong probation inthe landof exilea
new
people,advancedinfaithanddoctrine,with larger aspirations and their political vision extended.
With
the conquestofBabylon begins anew
era in religiousdevelopment. Henceforth the religion of dualism holds the
empire of Asia.
The
grand toleration which Cyrus extended towards the Jews naturally led to his exaltation as "the Messiah," "the Redeemer," "the anointed Saviour of the world."The
captivityoftheHebraictribes,and
theirenforced settlement neartheseat ofPersiandomination,andtheir sub-sequent intermixture under Cyrus with the Persians, most probably gave impetus to that religious reformamong
the Zoroastrians which occurred during the reign of DariusIJys-taspes. There
was
mutualactionandreaction.The
Israelitesimpressed on renovated Zoroastrianism a deep and abiding conceptionofa Divine Personalityovershadowingtheuniverse.
They
received from the Iranians the notion of a celestialhierarchy,andthe ideaofa dualityof principlesinthe creation
of good and evil. Henceforth it is not the Lord
who
puts a lying spirit into themouths
of evil-doers; Satan, likeAhriman,fromthistime takes aprominentpartinthereligious
and
moralhistory oftheHebrews.The
reign ofCyruswas
oneofconquest,hardlyof organisation.The
reign ofDariuswas
oneofconsolidation; sternworshipperofOrmuzd,to
whom
heascribesallhis victories,heendeavouredINTRODUCTION
xxxiiitopurify thefaith of Zoroasterof allitsforeign excrescences, to stamp out the
Magism
of the Medes from its stronghold,andtoleave
Aryan
Persiathedominant powerofthecivilisedworld. Nothing, however, could arrestthe process of decay. Before a hundred years
had
gone by, Zoroastrianism had imbibedto thefulltheevilswhichithad
fought againstinitsinfancy.
The
scourgers of idolatry, the uncompromisingiconoclasts, who, in their fiery zeal,
had
slaughtered theEgyptian Apis and overturnedits shrine, soon absorbed into
theworshipof
Ormuzd
the Semiticgodsof theirsubjectstates.The
old Magianelement-worshipwas
revived,and
ArtaxerxesMnemon,
oneoftheimmediatesuccessorsofDarius,introducedamong
the Zoroastrians the worship of that androgynousMythra
—
the Persian counterpart of the Chaldaean Mylitta orAnaitis, with its concomitant phallic cult.
The
developmentof thisMythra-cultinto the gorgeousworshipof the beautiful
Sun-God
is one of the marvels of history.The
resplendentSun
ascending over the cleft mountains, chasing the Bullintoitslair andwithitsblood atoning
human
sins,is a conceptionwhich has left its ineffaceable
mark
on one of the dominantreligions of the world. This worship of
Mythra was
carriedby
theRoman
legionaries from the valley of the Euphratesto the furthest corners of Europe,
and
in the reign ofDiocletian it
became
the state-religion ofRome.
Never
was
the condition ofwoman
so bad, neverwas
she heldundergreatersubjection,—
aslave tothe capriceofman,—
thanunderthe Mago-Zoroastrians.
The
lawsofManu
imposedcertain rules of chastity, and the stringency of primitive
ex-ogamy
exercised a restraining effectupon
human
passions.The
Persian in the relations of the sexes recognised no lawbutthatof his
own
will.He
couldmarry
hisnearestkindred,and divorce hiswives at his pleasure.
The
system of femaleseclusion
was
not confinedtothe Persians alone.Among
theIonic Greeks,
women
were confined within the gynaikonitis,often kept under lock
and
key,and
never allowed to appearin public.
But
the Greek gynaikonomoi were not, until latertimes, mutilated specimens of humanity. In Persia, the
custom of employing eunuchs to guard the
women
prevailedxxxiv
THE
SPIRIT
OF ISLAM
a recognised social institution,
and was
interwoven with the foundationsof society.The
Persian, however, never allowed lewdness to be incorporated with the national worship.He
worshipped no Aphrodite
Pandemos
; norwas
Zoroastriansociety tainted with that "moral pestilence,"1
the most
degrading of all vices, which
was
universal in Greece, whichspreaditselfafterwardsin
Rome,
andwas
notevenrooted outby
Christianity.With
the downfall of the AchsemenianEmpire
ended thevitality of Zoroastrianism as a motive power in the growth
of the world.
The swarms
of conquerors,who
swept likewhirlwinds over the face of Persia, destroyed all social and moral life.
The
Macedonian conquest, with the motleyhordes which followed on its footsteps, the influx of all the dregsofLesserAsia,Cilicians,Tyrians,Pamphylians,Phrygians,
and
variousothers, halfGreeks, halfAsians,obeying no morallaw, thehasty andrecklesstemperoftheconquerorhimself,
—
allled tothedebasementofthe Zoroastrianfaith.
The
Mobeds,the representativesof the nationallife,were placedunderthe
ban
ofpersecutionby
theforeigner, the aimofwhoselifewas
to hellenise Asia.
Alexander's career
was
splendidly meteoric. Shorn of the legendswhich have surrounded his life and turnedit into anepopee, hestands before us a
man
of giganticconceptions andmasterly purposes, possessedof atowering ambition, a genius
which overpowered all opposition,
and
a personality whichenabled
him
tomould
theminds ofall aroundhim
accordingto his
own
will. Hiswas
anature full of contradictions.A
disciple of Aristotle,
who
aimed at the hellenisation of Asia,withhimselfasthecentral figure inthe adorationofthe world,
an associate of philosophers
and
wise men, his lifewas
dis-graced
by
excesses of a revolting type. "The
sack of Tyreand
the enslavement of its population, the massacresand
executions in India and Bactria, the homicide of Clytus, the
death warrants of Philotas
and
the faithful Parmenio, theburning of Persepolis
and
the conflagration of its splendidlibrary at the instigation of a courtezan, are acts," says an
apologist and an admirer, " for whichno historianhas found
1
INTRODUCTION
xxxv
a palliation."
With
the conquest of Alexander and theextinction of the Achsemenian dynasty, Zoroastrianism gave
way
to Hellenismand
the worst traditions of Chaldaeancivilisation.
The
extreme partiality of the hero ofmany
legendstowards Babylon,
and
hisanxiousdesireto resuscitatethat cityand
make
itthe centre ofa mightierandmore
com-plete civilisation, led
him
to discourage all creedsand
faiths,all organisations, religious or political, which militated with
his one great desire.
Under
the Seleucidae, the process ofdenationalisation went on apace. Antiochus Epiphanes, the
cruelpersecutoroftheworshippersofJehovah,
won
forhimselffrom
them
aswellasthe Zoroastrians, the unenviabledesigna-tion ofAhriman.
Even
theriseoftheParthianpower tendedto accelerate the decline
and
ruin of Zoroastrianism.The
SeleucidaeruledontheTigris andthe Orontes; theParthians
formedforthemselves a
kingdom
in themiddleportionoftheAchaemenian empire; the Graeco-Bactrian dynasties were in
possession of the eastern tracts,viz.Bactria
and
thenorthern partof Afghanistan.The
state-religion of the Seleucidaewas
amixture of Chaldaeo-Hellenism.
The
Jewsand
Zoroastrianswereplacedunderthe
ban and
ostracised.Under
the Parthians,Mazdism, though not actually extinguished,
was
compelledtohideitselffromthegazeoftherulers. In quiet
and
settledparts, Zoroastrianism
became
mixed
with the old Sabaeism ofthe Medes
and
the Chaldaeans; or, where kept alive in itspristinecharacter,it
was
confinedtothe heartsofsome
ofthosepriests
who
had
taken refuge in the inaccessible recesses oftheir country.
But
with Parthia enlarged into an empire,and the Parthian sovereigns aspiring to the title of Shah-in-shah, persecutiongave
way
to toleration,andMago-Zoroastrian-ism again raised its head
among
the religions of the world.And
the riseof the Sasanides gaveit another spell of power.The
founderofthenew
empireplaced theMobeds
at theheadof the State. Last sad representatives of a dying faith!
Around them
clustered the hopes of a renovated religiousexistence under the auspices of the Sasanide dynasty.
How
farthe brilliant aspirations ofArdeshir
Babekan
(ArtaxerxesLongimanus), the founder of the
new
empire, were realised,is a matter of history.