[85] The word Darvish, or Darwish, is of Persian origin. It is derived from 'dar,' a door, and 'wiz' the root of the verb 'awikhtan,' to hang; hence the idea of hanging about doors, or begging. The 'z' is changed into 'sh' and the word becomes 'Darwish.' Some Musalmans, however, do not like this idea of holy men being called by a name which implies the habit of begging, and so they propose another derivation. They derive it from "dur," a pearl, and "wish," like; and so a durwish is one 'like a pearl.' The wish is from wash, a lengthened form of wash, an affix of common use to express similitude; or the long vowel in wash may by a figure of speech, called Imala, be changed into the i of wish. I think the first derivation the more probable. A good Persian dictionary, the Ghias-ul-Lugbat, gives both derivations. [86] For a very interesting account of this religious ceremony, see Hughes' Notes on Muhammadanism, Chapter 51. [87] La Poesie Philosophique et Religieuse chez les Persans, par M. Garcin de Tassy, p. 7. [88] Sufi doctrines of the Moolla Shah by Tawakkul Beg. Journal Asiatique 6me Serie, tom. 13. [89] "That Omar in his impiety was false to his better nature we may readily admit, while, at the same time, we may find some excuse for his errors, if we remember the state of the world at that time. His clear strong sense revolted from the prevailing mysticism where all the earnest spirits of his age found their refuge, and his honest independence was equally shocked by the hypocrites who aped their fervour and enthusiasm; and at that dark hour of man's history whither, out of Islam, was the thoughtful Muhammadan to repair? No missionary's step, bringing good tidings, had appeared on the mountains of Persia; the few Christians who might cross his path in his native land, would only seem to him idolaters." Speaking, too, of Sa'di's life the reviewer says: "almost the only point of contact with Christendom is his slavery under the Crusaders at Tripoli. The same isolation runs through all the golden period of Persian Literature"--_Calcutta Review_, No. lix. [90] The following are the names of the Wahhabi chiefs:--Muhammad-Ibn-Saud, died A.D. 1765; 'Abd-ul-Aziz, assassinated, 1803; Saud-Ibn-'Abd-ul-Aziz, died 1814; 'Abd-Ullah-ibn-Saud, beheaded 1818; Turki, assassinated 1830; Fayzul, died 1866; 'Abd-Ullah, still living. Hughes Notes, p. 221. [91] Palgrave's Arabia, vol. ii. p. 10. [92] According to the latest Census Report there are 4,000 in the Madras Presidency, where the total Musalman population is about 2,000,000. [93] Mudarij-un-Nabuwat, p. 149. [94] Palgrave's Arabia vol. i. p. 369. [95] Palgrave's Arabia, vol. i. p. 372. [96] Ibid, p. 372.