Persian Literature, Ancient and Modern

by Elizabeth A. Reed

Christianity had long been partially established in Arabia, and some of the more important tribes had embraced it, but neither Christianity nor Judaism was generally accepted by these restless sons of the desert; the logic of the sword, however, is an argument that every man can appreciate, and Mohammed proved to be a successful military leader, giving the spoils of war to his followers in this world as well as promises of reward in the next. Knowing the value of unity of action among his followers, he never abandoned his designs upon Syria, and thus the turbulent tribes of the desert found ample scope for their warlike propensities, while a successful raid was always rewarded with rich booty. The triumphs of Islām were largely due to the love of exciting raids, and the desire for the spoils of conquest.

THE AUTHOR OF THE KORĀN.

However fiercely the contest may be waged around the origin of the Zend Avesta, there is no question among scholars in relation to the authorship of its successor. The individual portions of the Korān were not always written down immediately, as Mohammed often repeated them several times, sometimes forgetting the original statement, and sometimes changing it; he says, however: “Whatever verse we may annul or cause thee to forget, we will bring a better one than it or one like it.”[^[206]] It is seriously questioned among the Arabs whether he could read or write—one party claiming that he could and the other maintaining that he could not. On some occasions he certainly employed an amanuensis, and tradition claims that he would frequently direct in which sūrah the passage dictated should be placed. The arrangement of the Korān, however, was left to those who came after him.

The exact date of Mohammed’s birth is uncertain,[^[207]] but he began life in the shadow of poverty; all that he inherited from his father being five camels and a slave girl. The boy having lost his mother when he was only six years old was obliged, in his youth, to attend the sheep and goats of the Meccans in order to obtain a livelihood, and this position is still considered by the Bedawīn to be very degrading to any one except a woman. At the age of twenty-four he married a rich widow, who was fifteen years his senior, and it is said that this marriage was eminently a happy one. Three years after her death he married Āyesha, who was in the habit of saying that she never was jealous of any of his wives except the first. Six children were born of this marriage, two of whom were sons, but they died at an early age.

FIRST REVELATIONS.

Mohammed had reached his fortieth year when he claimed to receive the first revelations. Perhaps they might be considered the natural result of his mode of life, his habits of thought and especially of his physical condition. For many years he had suffered from nervous troubles, and tradition claims that the disease was epilepsy. Medical men of to-day would, perhaps, be more likely to diagnose the case as one of the forms of hysteria, which is often accompanied with hallucination, and also with a certain amount of deception, both voluntary and otherwise. Persons who were thus afflicted were supposed by the Arab to be possessed by an evil spirit, and the complaint is made in various places in the Korān that he was regarded in this light by his own people. His faithful wife Hadigah[, however, believed in him from the first. The earlier chapters of the Korān are full of enthusiasm, and they indicate that the author at that time believed in the reality of his revelations. His daughters soon became converts to his teachings, and they were followed by other relatives and friends. Although his first converts were mostly women and slaves, he afterward secured the adhesion of influential chiefs. But the new faith incurred the open hostility of the great majority of the Meccans, and the position of its converts became critical. While the more powerful were comparatively secure, the weaker ones, especially the slaves and women, were severely persecuted, and in some cases they suffered martyrdom.

The surroundings became so dangerous that Mohammed advised his little band of followers to seek safety in flight, and they emigrated to the Christian country of Abyssinia until the colony there numbered about one hundred souls. The Qurāiś were much annoyed by the escape of the Muslims, and sent a deputation to the king of Abyssinia demanding the return of the fugitives. The request was refused, and the failure of their attempt increased the hostility of the Qurāiś toward those who still remained in Mecca.

Being left almost alone, and exposed to constant danger, Mohammed conceived the idea of a compromise. The Qurāiś promised that if he would recognize the divinity of their three principal idols—Allāt, Al ’Huzzā and Manāt, they would acknowledge him to be the apostle of Allāh. He, therefore, recited one day before a public assembly, the following words from the Korān:[^[208]] “Have ye considered Allāt and Al ’Huzza and Manāt the other third?” He then added: “They are the two high-soaring cranes, and verily their intercession may be hoped for.” When, therefore, he came to the last words of the chapter, “Adore God, then, and worship,” the Meccans, true to their promise, prostrated themselves to the ground and worshipped as they were bidden.

A great political victory was thus gained, at the sacrifice, however, of the very principle that many of his followers had given their lives to maintain. He keenly felt his own humiliation in the matter, and on the morrow he hastened to recant from his new position, and condemned his own cowardice in a manly way, declaring what he undoubtedly believed, that the words had been put into his mouth by Satan. The recantation brought upon him redoubled hatred, and at last his whole family were placed under a ban to such an extent, that they could not join the Meccan caravans, and being unable to equip one of their own, they lost their means of livelihood. At last they took refuge, with what few provisions they could collect, in a ravine in the mountains, being able to sally forth for food only during the sacred months, when every man’s person and property were safe. After two years of privation their foes became tired of the restriction which they had placed upon the clan, and voluntarily allowed the prisoners to mingle with the rest of the world.

Mohammed, however, again incurred the contempt of the public by adding another wife to the three he already possessed. It was not the number of his household that created the Arabian scandal, but the fact that the new candidate for his favor had been divorced from her husband with this object in view—having been surrendered by him when he learned that Mohammed admired her.