Page:Khwaja Kamal-ud-Din - Ethics of War.djvu/7

 the waste-paper basket. They are honoured more in the breach than in the observance. We need a word from God Himself on this subject which may act as an article of our faith. This is not a mere theory. The history of warring peoples has proved it. Those who were once an embodiment of oppression and a curse to humanity on account of their prowess became as gentle as lambs under the salubrious influence of Divine Revelation, and won the title of the "Gentleman Soldier" from the world. They were once reckless in the matter of life, and wielded their swords ruthlessly; but these unscrupulous people became clean fighters under the teachings of God.

The country surrounding the Caspian Sea has produced fighting people from the very beginning. They were a nomad race in olden days, and filled others with terror. They were the Gog and Magog of the ancient days, and Darius of Persia had to build a wall between the Caucasian Mountains as a protection against their incursions. Later on, they appeared under the name of Scythians. Even India did not remain safe from their inroads at that time. They overran Europe under another name; in the days before Jesus they appeared in Europe as a