“Is any thing known of their initiatory ceremonies?”
“But little; Marco Polo, indeed, gives us a curious account of the garden of Alamoot bearing a very strong likeness to that of Aloaddin, whither the fedavee was borne under the influence of opiates, before being sent on any important mission; and where, on awakening, he found himself surrounded with every earthly pleasure. This, he was persuaded, is but a foretaste of the joys of paradise, which were to be the reward of his faithful performance of the mission. And thus buoyed up, the fedavees confronted danger in every form, and executed the commands of their chief in despite of countless difficulties.”
“Their name, I suppose, is but the corruption of that of their leader, Hassan,” remarked Thompson.
“Here doctors disagree,” replied Herbert; “some are content with this origin; whilst others, explaining the visions in the garden of Alamoot as the effects of an intoxicating herb, derive the name of the society from hashish, the opiate of hemp-leaves, supposed to have been so freely used by the sheikh in deluding his victims.”
“How long did this strange society exist?” asked Lathom.
“After a time they divided into two branches; the eastern one remaining at Alamoot, whilst the western spread into Syria. Both branches became too powerful and dangerous to be endured. After repeated attempts, the eastern branch was destroyed by the Monguls, about a century and a half after its foundation; whilst the western branch lasted only fourteen years longer, and fell about 1270, under the power of the Mamluke sultans of Egypt.”
“It was far easier to root out their strongholds than their principles,” remarked Lathom.
“It was so found by their conquerors: the mountains of Syria, especially, gave shelter to many of the society, and the tenets of the order are still believed to linger among a branch of the Koords. But come, we are wandering from our tales, and if we do not leave off our remarks Lathom will close the evening without another specimen of the old story-teller.”
“We have not yet heard the moral of the magician’s garden,” said Thompson.
“The application is plain,” replied Lathom: “the magician is the world; the luxuries and beauties of his garden are the world’s rewards and riches; worldly people think that they have grasped its gifts; anon, they open their hands, and find them empty.”