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means the slightest. Hence we begin by stating what
is known of these sectaries, who are mentioned again
in Surah II., Al Baqarah, 59.
Our knowledge of the Sabians is slight, but sufficient
for our purpose. An early Arabic writer, Abu ‘Isa'l
Maghribi, is quoted by Abu'l Fida as giving the following
account of them. "The Syrians are the most ancient
of nations, and Adam and his sons spoke their language.
Their religious community is that of the Sabians, and
they relate that they received their religion from Seth
and Idris (Enoch). They have a book which they ascribe
to Seth, and they style it ‘The Book of Seth.’ In it
good ethical precepts are recorded, such as enjoin truth-speaking
and courage and giving protection to the stranger and
such like: and evil practices are mentioned and command
given to abstain from them. The Sabians had certain
religious rites, among which are seven fixed times of
prayer, five of which correspond with that of the
Muslims. The sixth is the prayer at dawn, and the
seventh a prayer, the time for which is at the end of
the sixth hour of the night. Their prayer, like that
of Muslims, is one which requires real earnestness and
that the worshiper should not let his attention wander
to anything else when offering it. They prayed over
the dead without either bowing down or prostration,
and fasted thirty days; and if the month of the new
moon were a short one, then they kept the fast for twenty-nine |
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days. In connexion with their fast they observed
the festivals of Fitr" (breaking the fast
at the end of the month) "and Hilal"
(new moon), "in such a way that the festival of
Fitr occurred when the sun entered Aries. And
they used to fast from the fourth quarter of the night
until the setting of the disk of the sun. And they had
festivals at the time of the descending of the five
planets to the mansions of their dignity. The five planets
are Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Venus, and Mercury. And they
used to honour the House of Mecca" (the Ka'bah)1.
From this account we see clearly that the Muslims
have borrowed from this obscure sect not a few of their
religious practices all of which they believe were taught
them by Muhammad at the command of God through the Angel
Gabriel. For example, the Ramadan fast of the Muslims
lasts 2 a month, from sunrise to sunset,
though the rule as to the exact moment when each day
begins and ends is, as we shall see 3, derived
from the Jews. In Persia and some other countries a
gun is fired at dawn and sunset to announce the beginning
and end of each day's fast during the holy month. The
Fitr feast at the end of the month is still celebrated
by the Muhammadans. They have, as is well known, five
stated times of prayer each day, but they have also
two other times each day at which |
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