Observations on the Mussulmauns of India: Descriptive of Their Manners, Customs, Habits and Religious Opinions Made During a Twelve Years' Residence in Their Immediate SocietyMeer Hasan Ali, Mrs.
Islamic
Observations on the Mussulmauns of India: Descriptive of Their Manners, Customs, Habits and Religious Opinions Made During a Twelve Years' Residence in Their Immediate Society
Meer Hasan Ali, Mrs.
India -- Social life and customs; Muslims -- India
By this method of calculating time, you will understand that they have no
occasion for those useful, correct, mechanical time-keepers, in general
use in Europe; but they have a simple method of measuring the hour, by
means of a brass vessel, with a small aperture at the bottom, which, being
floated on a tank or large pan of water, one drop to a second of time
forces its way through the aperture into the floating vessel, on which
marks are made outside and in, to direct the number of ghurries by the
depth of water drawn into it; and in some places, a certain division of
time is marked by the sinking of the vessel. Each hour, as it passes, is
struck by the man on duty with a hammer on a broad plate of bell-metal,
suspended to the branch of a tree, or to a rail;--the gong of an English
showman at the country fairs is the exact resemblance of the metal plates
used in India for striking the hours on, and must, I think, have been
introduced into England from the East.
The durwaun (gate-keeper), or the chokeedhars (watchmen), keep the time.[3]
In most establishments the watchmen are on guard two at a time, and are
relieved at every watch, day and night. On these men devolves the care of
observing the advance of time by the floating vessel, and striking the
hour, in which duty they are required to be punctual, as many of the
Mussulmauns' services of prayer are scrupulously performed at the
appointed hours, which will be more particularly explained when their
creed is brought forward in a future Letter; and now, after this
digression, I will pursue my subject.
When a member of the Mussulmaun family dies, the master of the house
mourns forty days, during which period the razor is laid aside.[4] In the
same manner the devout Mussulmaun mourns every year for his martyred
Emaums; this, however, is confined to the most religious men; the general
practice of the many is to throw off their mourning garb and restore the
razor to its duties on the third day after the observances of Mahurrum
have terminated.
It is stated, on the authority of ancient Arabian writers, on whose
veracity all Mussulmauns rely, that the head of Hosein being taken to
Yuzeed, one of his many wives solicited and received the head, which she
gave to the family of the martyred leader, who were prisoners to the King,
and that they contrived to have it conveyed to Kraabaallah, where it was
deposited in the same grave with his body on the fortieth day after the
battle.[5]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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