God. They range over a vast number of subjects, and furnish a commentary on the Qurán. The Prophet's personal appearance, his mental and moral qualities, his actions, his opinions, are all recorded over and over again. Many questions of religious belief are largely founded on the Traditions, and it is to them we must go for an explanation of much of the ritual of Islám. It is very difficult for any one, who has not lived in long and friendly intercourse with Muslims, to realize how much their religious life and opinions, their thought and actions, are based on the Traditions.

Having thus shown the importance of the Traditions, I now proceed to enter a little into detail on the question of the rules framed concerning them. The classification adopted by different authors may vary in some subordinate points, but the following account is adopted from a standard Muhammadan work: A Tradition may be Hadís-i-Qualí, that is, an account of something the Prophet said; or Hadísi-Fa'lí, a record of something which he did; or Hadís-iTaqrírí, a statement of some act performed by other persons in his presence, and which action he did not forbid.

The Traditions may be classed under two general heads :— First.-Hadis-i-Mutawútír, that is, "an undoubted Tradition," the Isnád, or chain of narrators of which is perfect, and in which chain each narrator possessed all the necessary qualifications for his office. Some authorities say there are only a few of these Traditions extant, but most allow that the following is one : "There are no good works except with intention," for example, a man may fast, but, unless he has the intention of fasting firmly in his mind, he gains no spiritual reward by so doing.

Second.-Hadis-i-Ahád. The authority of this class is

1. If the Isnád is good, internal improbability carries with it little weight against the genuineness of a Tradition. There is a saying current to this effect:"A relation made by Sháfa'í on the authority of Málik, and by him on the authority of Nafi, and by him on the authority of Ibn Omar, is really the golden chain."

theoretically somewhat less than that of the first, but prac tically it is the same.

This class is again sub-divided into two:

(1). Hadis-i-Sahih, or a genuine Tradition. It is not necessary to go into the sub-divisions of this sub-division. A Tradition is Sahíh if the narrators have been men of pious lives, abstemious in their habits, endowed with a good memory, free from blemish, and persons who lived at peace with their neighbours. The following also are Sahíh, though their importance as authorities varies. I arrange them in the order of their value. Sahíh Traditions are those which are found in the collections made by Bukhárí and Muslim, or in the collection of either of the above, though not in both; or, if not mentioned by either of these famous collectors, if it has been retained in accordance with their canons for the rejection or retention of Traditions; or lastly, if retained in accordance with the rules of any other approved collector. For each of these classes there is a distinct name.

(2). Hadis-i-Hasan. The narrators of this class are not of such good authority as those of the former with regard to one or two qualities; but these Traditions should be received as of equal authority as regards any practical use. It is merely as a matter of classification that they rank second.

1

In addition to these names, there are a number of other technical terms which have regard to the personal character of the narrators, the Isnád, and other points. A few may be mentioned.

(1). Hadis-i-Z'aíf, or a weak Tradition. The narrators of it have been persons whose characters were not above reproach, whose memories were bad, or who, worse still, were addicted to "bid'at," innovation, a habit now, as then, a crime in the eyes of all true Muslims. All agree that a

1. Núr-ul-Hidayah, p. 5.

"weak Tradition" has little force; but few rival theologians agree as to which are, and which are not, "weak Traditions."

(2). Hadis-i-Mua'llaq, or a Tradition in the Isnád of which there is some break. If it begins with a Tábi' (one in the generation after that of the Companions), it is called "Mursal," the one link in the chain, the Companion, being wanting. If the first link in the chain of narrators begins in a generation still later, it has another name, and so on.

(3). Traditions which have various names, according as the narrator concealed the name of his Imám, or where different narrators disagree, or where the narrator has mixed some of his own words with the Tradition, or has been proved to be a liar, an evil liver, or mistaken; but into an account of these it is not necessary to enter, for no Tradition of this class would be considered as of itself sufficient ground on which to base any important doctrine.1

It is the universally accepted rule, that no authentic Tradition can be contrary to the Qurán. The importance attached to Tradition has been shown in the preceding chapter, an importance which has demanded the formation of an elaborate system of exegesis. To an orthodox Muslim the Book and the Sunnat, God's word direct and God's word through the mind of the Prophet, are the foundation and sum of Islám, a fact not always taken into account by modern panegyrists of the system.

1. A full account of these will be found in the preface to the Núr-ulHidayah, the Urdu translation of the Sharh-i-Waqáyah.

CHAPTER III.

THE SECTS OF ISLÁM.

It is a commonly received but nevertheless an erroneous opinion, that the Muhammadan religion is one remarkable for the absence of dogma and the unanimity of its professors. In this chapter I propose to show how the great sects differ in some very important principles of the faith, and their consequent divergence in practice. There is much that is common ground to all, and of that some account was given in the first chapter on the "Foundations of Islám."

It was there shown that all Muslim sects are not agreed as to the essential foundations of the Faith. The Sunnís recognise four foundations, the Wahhábís two; whilst the Shía'hs reject altogether the Traditions held sacred by both Sunní and Wahhábí. The next chapter will contain a full account of the doctrines held by the Sunnís, and so no account of this, the orthodox sect, is given in this chapter.

The first breach in Islám arose out of a civil war. The story has been so often told that it need not be reproduced here at any length. 'Alí, the son-in-law of Muhammad, was the fourth Khalíf of Islám. He is described as "the last and worthiest of the primitive Musalmáns who imbibed his religious enthusiasm from companionship with the Prophet himself, and who followed to the last the simplicity of his character." He was a man calculated by his earnest devotion to the Prophet and his own natural graces to win, as he has done, the admiration of succeeding generations. A strong opposition, however, arose, and 'Alí was assassinated in a mosque at Kúfa. It is not easy, amid the conflicting statements of historians of the rival sects, to arrive at the truth in all the details of the events which happened then ;

but the generally received opinion is, that after the assassination of 'Alí, Hasan, his son, renounced his claim to the Khalifate in favour of his father's rival, Muavia. Hasan was ultimately poisoned by his wife, who, it is said, was instigated by Muavia to do the deed, in order to leave the coast clear for his son Yezíd. The most tragic event has yet to come. Yezíd, who succeeded his father, was a very licentious and irreligious man. The people of Kúfa, being disgusted at his conduct, sent messengers to Husain, the remaining son of 'Alí, with the request that he would assume the Khalifate. In vain the friends of Husain tried to persuade him to let the people of Kúfa first revolt, and thus show the reality of their wishes by their deeds. In an evil hour Husain started with a small band of forty horsemen and one hundred foot-soldiers. On the plain of Karbalá he found his way barred by a force of three thousand men. "We are few in number," said Husain, "and the enemy is in force. I am resolved to die. But you-I release you from your oath of allegiance; let all those who wish to do so leave me." "O Son of the Apostle of God!" was the reply, "what excuse could we give to thy grandfather on the day of resurrection did we abandon thee to the hands of thine enemies ?" One by one these brave men fell beneath the swords of the enemy, until Husain and his infant son alone were left. Weary and thirsty, Husain sat upon the ground. The enemy drew near, but no one dared to kill the grandson of the Prophet. An arrow pierced the ear of the little boy and he died. "We came from God, and we return to him," were the pathetic words of Husain, as with a sorrowful heart he laid the dead body of his son on the sand. He then stooped down to drink some water from the river Euphrates. Seeing him thus stooping, the enemy discharged a flight of arrows, one of which wounded him in the mouth. He fought bravely for a while, but at last fell covered with many wounds. The schism between the Sunní and the Shía'h was now complete.