Page:A Moslem seeker after God - showing Islam at its best in the life and teaching of al-Ghazali, mystic and theologian of the eleventh century (IA moslemseekeraft00zwem).pdf/35

 of Mosul and Bagdad the lesson of obedience. Rescued from his enemies, the alliance between the Caliph and the Sultan was cemented by the marriage of Togrul's sister with the successor of the Prophet. In 1063 Togrul died and his nephew Alp Arslan succeeded him. His name, therefore, was pronounced after that of the Caliph in public prayer by all the Moslems of the Near East.

The character of his rule Gibbon gives us in a sentence: "The myriads of Turkish horse over spread a frontier of 600 miles from Taurus to Erzeroum, and the blood of 136,000 Christians was a grateful sacrifice to the Arabian prophet." The " valiant lion," for that is the significance of his name, displayed at once the fierceness and gener osity of a typical Oriental ruler. Christians suf fered dreadful persecution. Enemies were assas sinated; but the learned, the rich, and the favoured were lavishly rewarded. Arslan was a valiant warrior of the faith and as eager for the battle field as those whom Moore describes:—

Armenia was laid waste in the crudest manner