Tota natura, repeats Malpighi, existit in minimis.
Amongst the Romans, Tellus or Terra was a female deity,
anthropomorphised according to their syncretic system, which furnished
with strange gods their Pantheon, but forgot to append the scroll
explaining the inner sense of
[p.423]the symbol. And some modern philosophers, Kepler, Blackmore, and
others, have not scrupled to own their belief in a doctrine which as
long as "Life" is a mere word on man's tongue, can neither be proved
nor disproved. The Mohammedans, as usual, exaggerate the dogma,-a Hadis
related by Abu Hurayrah casts on the day of judgment the sun and the
moon into hell fire.
Jabal Ohod owes its present reputation to a cave which sheltered the
Apostle when pursued by his enemies[FN#12]; to certain springs of which
he drank,[FN#13] and especially to its being the scene of a battle
celebrated in Al-Islam. On Saturday, the 11th Shawwal, in the third
year of the Hijrah (26th January, A.D. 625), Mohammed with seven
hundred men engaged three thousand Infidels under the command of Abu
Sufiyan; ran great personal danger, and lost his uncle Hamzah, the
"Lord of Martyrs." On the topmost pinnacle, also, is the Kubbat Harun,
the dome erected over Aaron's remains. It is now, I was told, in a
ruinous condition, and is placed upon the "pinnacle of seven
hills[FN#14]" in a position somewhat like that of certain buildings on
St. Angelo in the Bay of Naples. Alluding to the toil of reaching it,
the Madani quote a facetious rhyme inscribed upon the wall by one of
their number who had wasted his breath:-
"Malun ibn Malun
Man tala'a Kubbat Harun!"
Anglice, "The man must be a ruffian who climbs up to Aaron's dome."
Devout Moslems visit Ohod every Thursday morning after the dawn
devotions in the
[p.424]Harim; pray for the Martyrs; and, after going through the
ceremonies, return to the Harim in time for mid-day worship. On the
12th of Rajab, Zairs come out in large bodies from the city, encamp on
the plain for three or four days, and pass the time in feasting,
jollity, and devotion, as is usual at pilgrimages and at saints'
festivals in general.
After half an hour's ride we came to the Mustarah or resting-place, so
called because the Prophet sat here for a few minutes on his way to the
battle of Ohod. It is a newly-built square enclosure of dwarf
whitewashed walls, within which devotees pray. On the outside fronting
Al-Madinah is a seat like a chair of rough stones. Here I was placed by
my Muzawwir, who recited an insignificant supplication to be repeated
after him. At its end with the Fatihah and accompaniments, we remounted
our asses and resumed our way.
