The Contemporary Review, January 1883: Vol 43, No. 1Various
Science
The Contemporary Review, January 1883: Vol 43, No. 1
Various
Arts -- Periodicals; Literature -- Periodicals; Political science -- Periodicals
It is no doubt perfectly legitimate for a Caliph, especially for one
whose title depends upon the strength of his sword, to stir up the
enthusiasm of his people and attract their attention to himself as their
leader. He cannot be blamed for improving every occasion to defend their
rights and interfere in their behalf. If he is strong enough to do so,
it is no doubt in full accord with the example and teaching of the
Prophet that he should lead them against the infidels. It is not strange
that a man of faith should be so dazzled by the possibility of such a
crusade as to forget his own weakness. As he sits in his palace
to-night,[7] and hears the roar of the guns announcing the great
festival of Courban Beiram, and thinks that more than two hundred
millions of the faithful are uniting with him in the sacrifice, and
confessing their faith in the Prophet of whom he claims to be the
successor and representative, it will be strange if he does not dream of
what might be if he could but rally them round his throne; strange if he
does not catch something of the inspiration of the Prophet himself, who,
with God on his side, dared alone to face all Mecca, and with a few
half-naked Arabs to brave the world. There is nothing in the Palace
unfavourable to such a dream as this, and there will be nothing in the
pomp and ceremony of the homage to be paid to him to-morrow morning to
recall him from it. What a contrast it will be to come back from such a
dream of universal dominion, and the triumph of the true faith, to the
discussion of the sixty-first Article of the Treaty of Berlin and the
rights of the Armenians! It is perfectly legitimate for a Caliph to have
such dreams, and perfectly natural for him to prefer to try to realize
them, rather than to give his attention to the reform of his empire; but
without blaming the Caliph we may well doubt whether it is altogether
wise for the Sultan of Turkey to indulge in such dreams.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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