Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 28, 1917.djvu/323

Rh which had never quite lost adherents. These last are the more interesting section: in century XI. after the death of mad Hakim of Egypt a religion was preached in the Lebanon which has lasted till to-day. He too was a 'vehicle of deity,' and had not died but only disappeared. His envoy Darazi preached this creed with success among the tribes which were to bear the name 'Druze.' Here in addition to the influences of which we have spoken, there is a distinct neo-Platonic current. God makes himself known by a series of avatars; and the number is raised from 7 to 70, Caliph Hakim being the last of these embodiments. Our Lord finds a place in the list but Mahomet is excluded.

The visible world emanates from the Divine Reason: Hakim here takes the place of Ali as its vehicle. But underneath this theology a pure nature-worship is still carried on: there are shrines on the hill-top in Hauran and sacred stones; goats are sacrificed in secret to an evil spirit; a calf's image is said to be kept in a niche, and traces of phallic cult are confidently spoken of.

14. The Nosairis are much more faithful to Ali: he is the last avatar of God in the seventh and last world-age: 'I bear witness,' says the initiated, 'that there is no god but Ali ibn abu Talib,' who is Mana, idea,. Ali created Mahomet, and the two together with Salman ul Farisi form a trinity. One division (the Shamalis) identify these with heaven, sun, and moon—a very clear proof that Elyun is in their minds. The good Nosairi go to the stars, the bad suffer a longer series of transmigration; but even the good have (like Istar and the Gnostics) to be transformed seven times before they can reach heaven. Like the Ismaili in general they divide the world-history into seven ages corresponding to the seven planets of later Chaldeism: in each appears an embodiment of deity.