At 4 P.M. on the last day the marching ceases, and the throng halts by some tents pitched in the middle of a public square. The population of the city is gathered round about. There is not even standing room for all, and hundreds or thousands of people are gathered at windows or on housetops near by. Perhaps 20,000 people are present. The sword and chain strikers approach the tents and with a shout of victory, utter the names of Ali, Hassan and Hussein, then set fire to the tents and burn them and their contents to the ground. They imagine that their enemies were in those tents, and now that they have been destroyed it is a time of great rejoicing. The marching clubs disband and the active ones are soon found at the mosques drinking sharbat, a sweet drink, as a sort of a reward for performing their religious duties.
SINGERS.
The closing hours of the last day are given to the singing of poems by the best musicians, gathered at the mosques. The singing band usually numbers from twenty to thirty men. They sing poems about the last utterances of Hussein and other martyrs, or about the sayings and weeping of the relatives of these martyrs.
It is not very safe for Christians to mix with the crowds on these last days, unless in company with some honest Mohammedan. If one is seen laughing at the ceremonies he is apt to be beaten by some one whose fanatical spirit is thoroughly aroused. Our missionaries sometimes ask the privilege of using a roof by which the procession passes. This is always granted. The three nights are considered holy and the most religious Moslems do not retire until midnight. Services are held in the mosques, reciting traditions. The audience is composed of men only. It would not be safe for the women to attend, owing to the wickedness of the men. The audience is frequently deeply moved by the tragic tales, and weep angry tears. They curse and revile their enemies and their enemies' wives and daughters. The last night is called watch night, and many Moslems do not even slumber during the night. It is holy night in which Hussein and other martyrs were buried in their tombs. It is a dishonor, and even a sin, for them to go to bed without meditation on their prophets. In the mosque services the people shout: "O Hassan and Hussein, let my soul be a sacrifice for thee." They believe the observance of that night is absolute remission of sins; that the gates of heaven are open to all believers for the sake of martyrs. Some pious Moslems preserve the tears of that night in small bottles, as it is believed they will cure disease when applied to the brows of sick men. These tears are prized as a most holy relic. The Musselman says: "Even David the prophet believed in the efficacy of tears when he wrote in the Psalms, 'Put thou my tears in thy bottle, O God.'"
On the last night many Shiite Moslems walk to the mosque in bare feet, wearing sackcloth. Often a governor or lord accompanied by 40 to 100 servants, all barefooted, will be seen slowly treading their way toward a mosque. Wearied by the great exertions of the past ten days it is difficult to keep awake during the last night; so many men will be seen coming out of the mosques during the night to walk around and keep awake. At daybreak these solemn ceremonies end. In all these ten days of special religious services not one word is said in condemnation of sin. There is no moral teaching. Nothing is taught about man's duty to God, or his duty to fellow-men. Nothing is said to strengthen his character, to make him a purer and nobler man. The only teaching is in tragic tales of martyrs; the only inspiration is hatred to enemies.
Compare this religion with that of our blessed Savior, Jesus Christ, God-man. He gave His life for all nations, even His enemies. He calls mankind to sacrifice, but it has a practical object: that they may be purer and live a higher and nobler life. Christianity is as the sun shining in its fulness, while Mohammedanism, in its ignorance and superstition, is as the darkness of midnight.
CHAPTER XI.
HEAVEN AND HELL.
HEAVEN.