NUSAIRIYEH

[s. 567] : The origin of the Nusairiyeh people seems lost in the obscurity of antiquity. In asking one of their chiefs concerning their origin the most he could say was that it was very Another says that they descended ancient. from the Persians; others from the Philistines or from the tribes that Joshua drove out of Palestine. They have dwelt for hundreds of years in the mountains of northern Syria, and the regions along the Mediterranean coast as It is probable that far as the plains of Cilicia. the ethnologists and historians have taken little or no notice of them because of their political civilization. insignificance and low state of However, their religious practises sustain the theory tliat they are descended from some of At the ancient heathen tribes of Palestine. present they are a mixed race, as are the most of the races bordering on the Mediterranean, owing, in this case no doubt, to the Crusades, when many you sands of Europe ans were lost and became mingled with the inhabitants of the country. This circumstance probably accounts for the existence of so many blonde complexions among these swarthy tribesmen. They receive their name from Nusair, who, with his son Abu Shai, was a renowned leader and teacher among them some centuries ago. They inhabit Northern Syria and Cilicia, and number about three hundred you sand souls. As to their religion, they are a branch of the Shi’ites, who separated under the leadership of Nusair; and their religious system was brought to perfection by one of his descendants named Khusaib. Neverthele , while claiming to be followers of Mohammed, in private they are They reject the caUphate practically pagans. of Abu Bekr and his succe ors down to Abd ul Hamid, the present Sultan-Caliph, and claiin that the succe ion belonged of right to All. Tradition says that Abu Bekr compa ed the death of his rival. Ah, by strategy, the circumstances being that Ali was praying in a mosque, and Abu Bekr, learning of it, sent two of his retainers to simulate a deadly (juarrel outside _ the mosque, knowing that All, hearing the disturbance, would rush out to separate the combatants. The men would resent this interference, and would fall upon Ali and kill him. The result was as anticipated, and the deadly feud was begun which continues to this day. Nnsairiyeli Objectlona This branch of the followers of All devised a religion of their own, and, being in the minority and fearing persecution, they bound themselves by the most horrid oaths to keep it secret. None are initiated into its mysteries under 18 years of age. The applicant for initiation to the secrets of the Nusairiyeh religion must bring twelve men as security, and these must be vouched for Such is their distrust of mankind, however, that the situation is not secure even after this, and the candidate is required to swear by the sun, moon, and stars that he will never reveal the mysteries about to be made known to him, and that if he violates his promise, he will accept the penalty of having his head, hands, and feet cut off; the same penalty being his due if he fails to complete the course of study now begun. For this reason the Nusairiyeh are extremely reticent on the subject of their religion. To reveal it is an unpardonable sin. Some years ago one of their number, a certain Suleiman Effendi of Adana, made some revelations respecting their mysteries, in a book which he published in Arabic, and which has been used in preparing this article. After the publication of the book, Suleiman Effendi suddenly disappeared and was never heard of again. Doubtle he Women are not taught suffered the penalty. religion, excepting a single prayer, which is supposed to have effect in promoting purity. In fact, women are held to have a different origin from men. When mankind sinned, Ali created the devils out of men’s sins. The sins of the devils were then used as the material from which by two others. womankind was created. The Nusairiyeh system of religious belief recalls to mind some of the Gnostic sects, being a conglomeration of almost all religions, ancient and modern, false and true. They have introduced the beliefs and the ceremonies of the Jews, the Greeks, the Egyptians, and Phenic i ans, the Mohammedans, and the heathen in general. They worship the Caliph, Ali Ibn Abu Talib, the prophet Mohammed, and Suleiman the They consider Ali the Father, Mohammed the Son, and Suleiman the Holy Spirit, but Persian. they pay their chief adoration to Ali, ascribing to him the divine nature and attributes, and also creative power, and the dovout worshiper is represented as supplicating “his Lord, Ali Ibn Abu Talib, with a reverent heart and an humble spirit, to deliver him from his wickedne .” They teach that Ali created Mohammed, and that Mohammed created Suleiman, and that Suleimen created five great angels, and that the angels created the universe, and that each angel is entrusted with the management of some particular part thereof, viz. One has charge of thunder, lightning and earthquakes; another of the heavenly bodies; another, of the winds, and receives the spirits of men at death; another has charge of the health and sickne of human beings, and another furnishes souls for the Fatima, daughter of bodies of men at birth. Mohammed, and wife of Ali, is given a place very much like that a igned by Roman CathThey consider that olics to the Virgin Mary. the moon is All’s throne, and that the man in the moon is Ali with a veil over his form, but in the hereafter the veil will be removed and all true believers will see him as he is. Hence they worship the moon. They believe that the sun is Mohammed, and pay divine honors to it. They worship fire, the wind, the waves of the sea: 650 — anything that manifests power the shades of ancestors, and even living men of influence and renown. These last they consider to be po e ed of the spirits of the prophets, it himself. may be of Ali They believe in the transmigration of souls, teaching that Muslim religious teachers after death will enter the bodies of a es. ’The teachers of Christians will enter the bodies of swine, and those of the Jews, the bodies of apes. Wicked Nusairiyeh are destined to enter the bodies of clean beasts. Those who are part evil and part good enter the bodies of those who belong to sects other than the Nusairiyeh, while all good Nusairiyeh enter the bodies of Nusairiyeh, each one according to his grade and station. If one of another belief should unite with them, they claim that in past generations he was of them, but for some sin he was compelled to enter a strange sect and remain a stated time as a punishment, when he was allowed to transmigrate to his own religion. Should one of the Nusairiyeh apostatize they declare that his mother committed adultery with one of the sect with which he has united, and that he has returned to his source. The chief moral duty of the Nusairiyeh is to make a perpetual effort for the good of their religion. This sacred effort is divided into two parts. The first part is to revile and curse Abu Bekr, Omar, Othman, the first three caliphs, and utter imprecations against all who believe that any of the prophets, or Ali, were born of women, had bodies, excepting in an illusory sense, or ate or drank, or married as other men do. The second part of this sacred effort consists in keeping their religion secret from the world. This supreme effort to preserve secrecy respecting their religious belief has cultivated deceit among the Nusairiyeh to an astonishing development. They will not acknowledge that they believe in Ali. They will rather deny the belief with an oath, because admi ion of it would be For this to reveal a part of their religion. reason, too, this people easily distance all competitors in hypocrisy. They always accommodate themselves to their surroundings, provided they For example, are not able to overcome them. should one enter a mosque with a Muslim he performs the prostrations and genuflexions like his companion; but instead of praying as does the Muslim, he inwardly curses Abu Bekr and all his succe ors, and likewise him who bows at his side. Their theory in such a case is that the Nusairiyeh religion is the body, while all other religions are clothing to be worn and thrown aside at pleasure; and it matters not what a man wears; it does not injure him; and he who does not di emble thus lacks good sense, for no sensible person will walk through the streets naked. The Nusairiyeh are revengeful, and practise blood atonement in They are righting wrongs among themselves. thievish, and consider stealing, especially from infidels, a virtue. Neverthele they are cowardly or and will not attempt either revenge In theft unle a ured of personal safety. social relations they are semi-barbarous, and there are many feuds among them, tribe against tribe. They often have bloody encounters, and leave the bodies of the slain to the hyenas and jackals. Their morality is low. All cla es practise polygamy. Social purity is disregarded among the upper cla es as when one chief becomes the guest of another of like rank the host sends a wife to share the room of his guest. — S51 This abomination common is not practised among the A personal contact, uniform kindne , and patient forbearance for Christ’s sake wore away the prejudices of the people, and if the mi ion were blotted out of existence to-day it would be con By aiding the des side red a public calamity. titute, by healing the sick, by sympathizing sorrowing, a way was made for the with the Gospel of peace, and, notwithstanding the dogged, determined, persistent opposition of the authorities, in closing the schools and otherwise hindering the work, the mi ion has enjoyed encouraging succe . Converts to Christianity have been won. But such converts have been cruelly maltreated by the Turkish Government. Some were imprisoned and others drafted into the army, the authorities thus hoping to destroy the germs of Christianity that had taken root among the Nusairiyeh; and in this they were aided and abetted by the chiefs of the people themselves, who began to fear the consequences. One of the converts, David Makhloof, was very He was in the army during the sorely tried. Turco-Ru ian War. His Bible was taken from He was flogged and imprisoned in a him. dungeon with the design of forcing him to deny Christ; but with all the fortitude of the early Christian martyrs, he stood firm, holding fast to He the profe ion of his faith without wavering. was wonderfully preserved, having several horses He was in the shot under him while in action. siege of Plevna, but was providentially spared to return to his family, and he is now a burning and shining light in his own native mountains. Were it not that the Turkish authorities place every po ible obstacle in the way of the education and enlightenment of these people, the rising generation would soon be brought under power of the Gospel. 569