The deceased must have been
a man of mark, for the crowd preceding the bier was composed largely of
beggars, on their way to the cemetery, where a gift of food would be
distributed. Following their master's remains came two slaves, newly
manumitted, their certificates of freedom borne aloft in cleft sticks to
testify before all men to the generosity of the loudly lamented. Doubtless
the shroud of the dead had been sprinkled with water brought from the well
Zem Zem, which is by the mosque of Mecca, and is said to have been
miraculously provided for Hagar, when Ishmael, then a little boy, was like
to die of thirst in the wilderness.
I watched the procession wind its way out of sight to the burial-ground by
the mosque, whose mueddin would greet its arrival with the cry, "May Allah
have mercy upon him." Then the dead man would be carried to the cemetery,
laid on his right side looking towards Mecca, and the shroud would be
untied, that there may be no awkwardness or delay upon the day of the
Resurrection. And the Kadi or f'K'hay[44] would say, "O Allah, if he did
good, over-estimate his goodness; and if he did evil, forget his evil
deeds; and of Thy Mercy grant that he may experience Thine Acceptance; and
spare him the trials and troubles of the grave.
Pages:
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193