Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 16.djvu/631

Rh KORAN. J MOHAMMEDANISM 603 short sentences with tolerably pure but rapidly-changing rhymes. The oaths, too, with which many of them begin, were largely used by the soothsayers. Some of these oaths are very uncouth and hard to understand, some of them perhaps were not meant to be understood, for indeed all sorts of strange things are met with in these chapters. Here and there Mohammed speaks of visions, and appears even to see angels before him in bodily form. There are some intensely vivid descriptions of the resurrection and the last day which must have exercised a demonic power over men who were quite unfamiliar with such pictures. Other pieces paint in glowing colours the joys of heaven and the pains of hell. However, the siiras of this period are not all so wild as these ; and those which are conceived in a calmer mood appear to be the oldest. Yet, one must repeat, it is exceedingly difficult to make out any strict chronological sequence. For instance, it is by no means certain whether the beginning of xcvi. is really, what a widely-circulated tradition calls it, the oldest part of the whole Koran. That tradition goes back to the Prophet s favourite wife Aisha; but as she was not born at the time when the revelation is said to have been made, it can only contain at the best what Mohammed told her years afterwards, from his own not very clear recollection, with or without fictitious additions. And, moreover, there are other pieces mentioned by others as the oldest. In any case xcvi. 1 sqq. is certainly very early. Accord ing to the traditional view, which appears to be correct, it treats of a vision in which the Prophet receives an injunction to recite a revelation conveyed to him by the angel. It is interesting to observe that here already two things are brought forward as proofs of the omnipotence and care of God : one is the creation of man out of a seminal drop an idea to which Mohammed often recurs ; the other is the then recently introduced art of writing, which the Prophet instinctively seizes on as a means of propagating his doctrines. It was only after Mohammed encountered obstinate resistance that the tone of the reve lations became thoroughly passionate. In such cases he was not slow to utter terrible threats against those who ridiculed the preaching of the unity of God, of the resur rection, and of the judgment. His own uncle Abu Lahab had rudely repelled him, and in a brief special sura (cxi.) he and his wife are consigned to hell. The siiras of this period form almost exclusively the concluding portions of the present text. One is disposed to assume, however, that they were at one time more numerous, and that many of them Avere lost at an early period. Since Mohammed s strength lay in his enthusiastic and fiery imagination rather than in the wealth of ideas and clearness of abstract thought on which exact reasoning depends, it follows that the older suras, in which the former qualities have free scope, must be more attractive to us than the later. In the suras of the second period the imaginative glow perceptibly diminishes ; there is still fire and animation, but the tone becomes gradually more prosaic. As the feverish restlessness subsides, the periods are drawn out, and the revelations as a whole become longer. The truth of the new doctrine is proved by accu mulated instances of God s working in nature and in history ; the objections of opponents, whether advanced in good faith or in jest, are controverted by arguments ; but the demonstration is often confused or even weak. The histories of the earlier prophets, which had occasion ally been briefly touched on in the first period, are now related, sometimes at great length. On the whole, the charm of the style is passing away. Th 6 There is one piece of the Koran, belonging to the begin- Fatiha. n ing of this period, if not to the close of the former, which claims particular notice. This is i., the Lord s Prayer of the Moslems, and beyond dispute the gem of the Koran. The words of this sura, which is known as al-fdtiha (&quot; the opening one &quot;) are as follows : (1) In the nr.me of God, the compassionate eompassioner. (2) Praise be [literally &quot;is&quot;] to God, the Lord of the worlds, (3) the compassionate eompassioner, (4) the Sovereign of the day of judgment. (5) Thee do we worship and of Thee do we beg assist ance. (6) Direct us in the right way ; (7) in the way of those to whom Thou hast been gracious, on whom there is no wrath, and who go not astray. The thoughts are so simple as to need no explanation ; and yet the prayer is full of meaning. It is true that there is not a single original idea of Mohammed s in it. Several words and turns of expression are borrowed directly from the Jews, in particular the designation of God as the &quot; Compassioner,&quot; Rahman. This is simply the Jewish Rahman. Rakmdnd, which was a favourite name for God in the Talmudic period. Mohammed seems for a while to have entertained the thought of adopting al-Rahmdn as a proper name of God, in place of Allah, which was already used by the heathens. 1 This purpose he ultimately relinquished, but it is just in the suras of the second period that the use of Rahman is specially frequent. It was probably in the first sura also that Mohammed first introduced the formula, &quot; In the name of God,&quot; etc. It is to be regretted that this prayer must lose its effect through too frequent use, fcr every Moslem who says his five prayers regularly as the most of them do repeats it not less than twenty times a day. The suras of the third Meccan period, which form a Latest pretty large part of our present Koran, are almost entirely Meccan prosaic. Some of the revelations are of considerable suras - extent, and the single verses also are much longer than in the older suras. Only noAv and then a gleam of poetic power flashes out. A sermonizing tone predominates. The suras are very edifying for one who is already recon ciled to their import, but to us at least they do not seem very well fitted to carry conviction to the minds of unbe lievers. That impression, however, is not correct, for in reality the demonstrations of these longer Meccan suras appear to have been peculiarly influential for the propaga tion of Islam. Mohammed s mission was not to Europeans, but to a people who, though quick-witted and receptive, were not accustomed to logical thinking, while they had out grown their ancient religion. When we reach the Medina period it becomes, as has Medinau been indicated, much easier to understand the revelations suras, in their historical relations, since our knowledge of the history of Mohammed in Medina is tolerably complete. In many cases the historical occasion is perfectly clear, in others we can at least recognize the general situation from which they arose, and thus approximately fix their time. There still remains, however, a remnant, of which we can only say that it belongs to Medina. The style of this period bears a pretty close resemblance to that of the latest Meccan period. It is for the most part pure prose, enriched by occasional rhetorical embellish ments. Yet even here there are many bright and impres sive passages, especially in those sections which may be regarded as proclamations to the army of the faithful. For the Moslems, Mohammed has many different messages. At one time it is a summons to do battle for the faith ; at another, a series of reflexions on recently experienced success or misfortune, or a rebuke for their weak faith ; or an ex hortation to virtue, and so on. He often addresses himself to the &quot;doubters,&quot; some of whom vacillate between faith and unbelief, others make a pretence of faith, while others 1 Since in Arabic also the root fj signifies &quot; to have pity,&quot; the Arabs must have at once perceived the force of the new name.