The Thistle and the Cedar of Lebanon

by Habeeb Risk Allah

The first thing to be done after the birth of the child

is to fix upon a name. This name, if it be the firstborn son, is usually the name of the child’s paternal grandfather, or else, if the birth takes place on the anniversary of any great saint’s day, it is called after him; as for instance, Paul, or John, or Peter, and that saint becomes his patron through life; this necessary preliminary being arranged, the child is baptised within a week of its birth for fear it should sicken or die. The priests usually come to the house, sometimes the child is taken to the church. The godfathers and godmothers, two of each, and all the relatives assemble, a large basin of water (made tepid in cold weather), is placed upon a table and duly consecrated by the priests; the mother undresses the infant, and hands it naked, as it was born, to the hands of the officiating priest, and this minister, repeating prayers over it, in which he is assisted by others, immerses the whole body of the infant into the water three successive times in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Consecrated oil is then used, and the mark of the cross made with it on the forehead and chest of the infant. This also is done three times, the sponsors standing by and answering for the child. It is then wiped dry and carefully swaddled up again, and in a few minutes the ceremony terminates with the priest’s blessing.

The rest of the day is usually devoted to pleasure, and the parents now feel more at their ease, as the child has been admitted within the pale of the Church, and in case of any untoward event, would be entitled to Christian burial. The father, if this be a first son, drops the name by which he was formerly known; thus, supposing the name to have been Yusuf or Michali, and his friends used to call him Sowajar Michali (the father of Joseph), now that his son has

been christened by the name of Yacob, for instance, they call him Aboo Yacob, or the father of Yacob—a proud title for a Syrian; for not to have children is looked upon as the greatest misfortune and disgrace that can happen to a married couple; whereas, however poor the family, a multitude of children (especially if they be males) is considered a blessing. The greatest pride of an old man in Syria is to sit at the doorway of his house, or at the city gate, of an evening, pipe in hand, surrounded by his sons and grandsons. From the day of the Psalmist David down to the present day, it may truly be said in Syria, Blessed are they that have their quiver full of them. “Lo children and the fruit of the womb are an heritage and gift that cometh of the Lord. Like as the arrows in the hand of the giant: even so are the young children. Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them; they shall not be ashamed when they speak with their enemies in the gate” (Psalm cxxvii. 4, 5, 6).

Although from the first the infant is tenderly cared for, still, it must, however healthy, have occasionally some slight ailment, and then great consternation prevails in the household. The devices to heal it are many. In every Christian family a remnant of the holy palm-leaves, distributed on Palm Sunday, are very carefully preserved to serve on such occasions; these are now mixed with olive-leaves, salt, and aloes, and the whole is then thrown into a small brazier of charcoal, and the smoke thereof constitutes an incense supposed to expel the evil eye. [236] Sometimes, strange to say, the ashes of this composition bear strict resemblance to a human eye. This is taken and crushed on the floor with the

child’s slipper, and the mother expresses a wish that the eyes of the envious which have brought the illness on the child, may be destroyed in like manner. After this, if the child is not better, the family priest is in this interval sent to, and offers up prayers for its welfare. Oil of almonds is usually applied externally, and rubbed in warm, generally with very beneficial results. There is also a peculiar kind of soft, fine earth in Syria, which is much sought after by mothers; this, when collected, is brought and warmed near the fire; it is then placed in the cradle, and, being covered with a fine counterpane, the infant, wrapped in its swaddling clothes, is laid on this, the warm earth retaining dryness and heat for many hours. Many of the poorer people lay their infants on the earth itself, and then cover them over warmly. In all cases it appears to have a beneficial effect on children, who seldom or ever catch cold. If you wish to incur the displeasure and dislike of a young mother in Syria, there are two certain methods of gaining this end; the first is to step across any baby-linen that may be lying about the ground; the second is to rock the cradle when the child is not in it; both these are considered very unfavourable to the child, and some mothers carry these ridiculous superstitions to such an extent, that they dislike any notice being taken of their children, even though the praise be accompanied with the indispensable “mashallahs”; but if there is one thing more than another that young mothers have a superstitious horror of, it is the visits or enquiries of a barren woman; she, it is supposed, must entertain a jealousy of those more fortunate than herself, and her praises be insincere and terrible.

To such an extent do these ridiculous superstitions prevail, that if, by any misfortune, a child should

happen to die, even though it be a year after any remarks may have been applied to it by a childless woman, these have been, nevertheless, treasured up, and the evil is laid at her door. Children are usually weaned in their fourteenth or fifteenth month, and then they are for a short time nourished principally on cow’s or goat’s milk; but by the time a child is eighteen months old, it has learned to eat all manner of dishes, and they are so pampered and indulged in this respect, that from the minute they awake, till they fall asleep again, their stomachs have hardly any respite. Fruit, bread, cheese, meat; anything and everything is set before them from the very false notion that, the more they eat, the faster and the stronger they will grow.

This notion prevails throughout Syria, and it is imagined that strength cannot be gained except by hearty eating. So that when a man is very ill, and a doctor is sent for, his friends are all clamorous and anxious to tell him how many hours has elapsed since he last partook of food, and beg of him to insist on the patient’s eating something forthwith, or to give him some medicine that will give him an appetite. It is quite beyond their comprehension to understand that in some instances food would be very injurious in its effects. A man or a child has only to say, “Ena-juaan,” or “I am hungry,” and it would be considered a heinous sin not to gratify this craving instantly. All this, however, is pardonable when the real motives, those of sincere love and pity for the sufferer, are considered, mistaken though they may be; but time and education can alone remedy this evil. So soon as the boy is able, unaided, to run about and talk, he is then taken in hand by his father; his dress is always of the best obtainable materials, and if his father be a merchant or shopkeeper, he accompanies

him to his office, and there, seated cross-legged, begins to ape the actions and conversation of his father. He is early instructed in lessons of sedateness and self-respect, and if not cheerfully willing to obey and listen, a few taps of the rod soon bring him to his senses. For the Syrian father acts upon the proverb, which says, “If you wish the tree to grow up straight and be fruitful you must prune its branches when young.” Slight castigations are generally inflicted by them in the absence of the mother, for otherwise they would be of no effect. Some mothers are very attached to their first-born so that they would willingly sacrifice their own lives rather than that their darling should suffer ever so slight an affront. Whipping a child in a mother’s presence would invariably lead to high words and ill feeling, and the result would be, that the child, whipped by one parent and petted by the other, would naturally imagine itself very ill used—hate the father and love the mother. The good effects of the punishment would be lost, and the child only grow more wary and naughty. To avoid these family broils, the father early accustoms his son to accompany him to his place of business; bearing the key in the same manner as it was done in the days of the prophets, upon his shoulder. Is. xxii. 22. There, unseen by the mother’s eye, the child soon learns implicit obedience to his father’s will, and as this obedience is at first always rewarded by some small present of fruit or so forth, the boy grows in love as well as in obedience. It is surprising what sage little fellows, of only five years old, one meets perched up cross-legged in the shops of their fathers; they are so well versed in the every-day business of the profession, that the father can repose every confidence in them, and leave them for hours together to deal with customers,