Page:Outlines of European History.djvu/423

 The Mohammedans 361 Mohammed is his prophet." Secondly, he must pray five times a day — just before sunrise, just after noon, before and after sunset, and when the day has closed. It is not uncommon to see in well-furnished houses in this country the so-called " prayer rugs " brought from Mohammedan countries. These are spread down on the ground or the flat roof of the oriental house, and on them the worshiper kneels to pray, turning his face toward Mecca and bowing his head to the ground. The pattern on the rug indicates the place where the bowed head is to be placed. 'J'hirdly,the Moham- medan must fast during the whole month of ramadan ; he may neither eat nor drink from sun- rise to sunset, for this is the. month in which God sent Gabriel down from the seventh heaven to bring the Koran, which he revealed, paragraph by paragraph, to Mohammed. Fourthly, the Mohammedan must give alms to the poor, and, pilgrimage fifthly, he must, if he can, make a pilgrimage to Mecca at least once during his lifetime. Tens of thousands of pilgrims flock to Mecca every year. They enter the great courtyard surrounding the Kaaba, which is a plain, almost cubical, building, supposed to have been built in the first place by Abraham. The sacred black stone is fixed in the outside wall at the southeast corner, and the pilgrims must circle the build- ing seven times, kissing the black stone each time as they pass it (Fig. 144). Fig. 143. Mohammedan kneeling on A Prayer Rug to Mecca