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is RELIGIOUS ENCYCLOPEDIA Druses

who have lived at various times under various names, are regarded, however, merely as bearers of the one unchanged idea. The first of these administrators was Will, a figure of perfect purity

g. The created by God from the light which " Adminis- streams from him, and from it all else trators." comes. It is also universal Wisdom, from which all truths are an emanation. Although it is a " speaker," it has appeared at vari ous times as an Imam, its last incarnation being Hamzah, who had attended Adam as Shatniel, Noah as Pythagoras, Abraham as David, and who was Eleazar, the true Messiah, in the days of Jesus. When, however, Wisdom saw that he had no equal, he became proud, and thus was born Darkness, the author of disobedience in every form. Wisdom then implored forgiveness, and at his prayer God created as the second administrator the universal Soul, who received the knowledge of truth from Wisdom, to whom she stands in the relation of a wife, the other administrators deriving their exist ence from her. The soul has likewise been incar nate at certain times, as in Enoch and Hermes, white Hamzah regarded his contemporary Abu Ibrahim Ismail ibn Muhammad as an incorpora tion of this principle. The union of Wisdom and Soul produced the Word (in the Neoplatonic sense), while Soul's need of assistance against the adversary resulted in the fourth administrator, the " Pre ceding," or " Left Wing." On this principle the writings of the Druses are vague and scanty, al though it is apparently derived from the allegorism of the Bataniyyah. The fifth and last adminis trator, called the " Following," or the " Right Wing," is important as being identified with the last noteworthy author of the sect, Abu'1-Hassan Ali, surnamed al-Muktanah or Baha al-Din, who established the doctrines of the Druses on a dog matic basis about 1038.

A subordinate hierarchy must be distinguished from the one just described. On the "Following" are dependent the spiritual leaders of the Druaea, who are called, in decreasing order, Da'i (" missionary "), Ma'dhun (" he to whom it is permitted "), and Mukassir (" breaker," i.e., of the doctrines of other beliefs). These subordinate hierarChs are invariably regarded as men. The five celestial administrators are opposed, furthermore, by five principles of error, who have been incarnate in Mohammed, Ali, and others.

Both the universe and man were created in their present form, so that they are as immutable as God himself. Man is composed of two essentials, wisdom and soul, and of one accident, body. The souls have been created from eternity, but are later than universal Wisdom. The number of souls, like that of men, remains invariable; when a man dies his soul enters another body, generally without remembrance of the past, the souls of

6. Nature unbelievers again becoming infidels of the and the souls of the faithful remainSoul. ing believers. They do not, however, enter the bodies of animals, but are reincarnated in better or worse human forms according to their deeds in their former life. The number of Druses, therefore, neither increases nor

diminishes, but they also believe that in the far thest parts of China coreligionieta live, where the soul of a dead Druse may find its reincarnation. Souls pass through a certain process of purification until the end of time, when al-Hakim and Hamzah will again appear and when the souls will commingle in the Imam.

True knowledge consists in insight into the nature and dogmas of unitarianism, the cardinal feature of the religion of the Druses. It is divided into five parts, two concerned with nature, especially with the healing of men and animals, and two with religion. The first of the latter is understanding of external religion, or revelation, and was the function of the " speakers," Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and Mohammed. The second religious y. gnowl- truth is that each of these " speakers "

edge. had an seas (" foundation," a synonym for the " silent ones"), who repre sented the interpretation of revelation. These " speakers " all typified true religion or the uni tarianiam of the Drusea, which is also taught in the Pentateuch, in the Psalms, in the Gospel, and in the Koran, although these books are a mixture of truth and falsehood and have been superseded by the teaching of the Drusea. In their knowledge of religion the Druses are divided into " initiates " ('ukkdl) and " ignorant " (juhhal), the former having a much higher rank, and the latter being denoted by distinctive clothing. There are also apparently many intermediate grades. The places of worship of the Druses are situated in lonely spots outside the villages. The initiates gather there frequently, but the nature of worship in these khalwas is unknown. They are often said to rev erence a calf, which, if true, may representta princi ple of evil.

In conformity with their doctrine of the immutability of bodies and spirits, the Druses make no religious propaganda whatever. When al-Hakim returns, however, he will either destroy or subjugate the miabelievera, and will found an earthly kingdom in which his followers will rule in wealth. The time of the coming of this Messianic kingdom is unknown, although signs will herald its approach, one portent being a period when the Druses are in a most pitiable plight and the Christians have gained power over the Mohammedans.

The ethics of the Druses are closely connected with the practise of their faith, but the Mohammedan prescriptions of prayer, fasting, pilgrimage, and the like, already allegorized away by the Bataniyyah, are altogether discarded. According to De Sacy, the seven religious duties of the Druses are as follows: to speak the truth; to watch over their mutual safety; to follow the religion

8. Ethicswhich they have professed, and to and renounce the faith and worship of Customs. vanity and falsehood; to separate themselves from evil spirits and men of false creed; to confess the unity of God, as it has existed throughout the centuries; to be content with the acts of God, whatever they may be; and to sub mit entirely to the divine guidance in weal and wo. They are also enjoined to abstain from unlawful gain, to be dignified, and to refrain from cursing.