Edward William Lane

“ It is true that they do not consider it necessary, or even delicate, to consult the choice of a girl under age previously to giving her away in matrimony; but it is not less true that a man of the middle or higher classes, almost always, makes his choice of a wife from hearsay, or as a person blindfold; having no means of seeing her until the contract is made and she is brought to his house. It is impossible, therefore, that there should be any mutual attachment before marriage. Both sexes, in truth, are oppressed by tyrannical laws and customs ”

“ Often, indeed, if mutual attachment subsist between her and her master, the situation of a concubine-slave is more fortunate than that of a wife: for the latter may be cast off by her husband in a moment of anger, by an irrevocable sentence of divorce, and reduced to a state of poverty; whereas a man very seldom dismisses a female slave without providing for her in such a manner that, if she have not been used to luxuries, she suffers but little, if at all, by the change: this he generally does by emancipating her, giving her a dowry, and marrying her to some person of honest reputation ”

“ But I have not yet mentioned all that contributes to the pleasures of an Eastern carousal. For what is the juice of the grape without melodious sounds? "Wine is as the body; music, as the soul; and joy is their offspring." ”

“ It is forbidden to utter, in slaughtering an animal, the phrase which is so often made use of on other occasions, “In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful!” because the mention of the most benevolent epithets of the Deity on such an occasion would seem like a mockery of the sufferings which it is about to endure. Some persons in Egypt, but mostly women, when about to kill an animal for food, say, “In the name of God! God is most great! God give thee patience to endure the affliction which He hath allotted thee!” ”

“ The fine for depriving a man of any of his five senses, or dangerously wounding him, or grievously disfiguring him for life, is the whole price of blood.
The Mohammadan law ordains that a person who is adult and of sound mind, if he steals an article of the value of a quarter of a deenár (or piece of gold) from a place to which he has not ordinary or free access, shall lose his right hand; but this punishment is not to be inflicted for stealing a free child, or anything which, in the eye of the law, is of no pecuniary value, as wine, or a musical instrument ”

“ The Bedawees are so attached to their deserts, and have so great a contempt for people who reside in towns, and for agriculturists, that it is a matter of surprise that so many of them were induced to settle even upon the fertile banks of the Nile. The modern Egyptians, though mostly descended from Bedawees, while they resemble their ancestors in love of their native country, have a horror of the desert. One journey in the desert furnishes them with tales of exaggerated hardships, perils, and wonders, which they are extremely fond of relating to their less experienced countrymen. ”

“ Few modern Arab musicians are so well contented with extraordinary payment and mere sweet sherbet as with a moderate fee and plenty of wine and brandy; and many of them deem even wine but a sorry beverage.
It was usual with the host and guests at wine-parties to wear dresses of bright colours, red, yellow, and green; [168] and to perfume their beards and mustaches with civet, or to have rose-water sprinkled upon them; and ambergris or aloes-wood, or some other odoriferous substance, placed upon burning coals in a censer, diffused a delicious fragrance throughout the saloon of the revels. ”

“ A slave, however, according to most of the doctors, cannot have more than two wives at the same time. As a slave enjoys less advantages than a free person, the law, in some cases, ordains that his punishment for an offence shall be half of that to which the free is liable for the same offence, or even less than half: if it be a fine, or pecuniary compensation, it must be paid by the owner, to the amount, if necessary, of the value of the slave, or the slave must be given in compensation. An unemancipated slave, at the death of the owner, becomes the property of the heirs of the latter ”

“ I hope I have shown that though I consider polygamy as necessary in the constitution of Muslim society, to prevent a profligacy that would be worse than that which prevails to so great a degree in European countries, where people are united in marriage after an intimate mutual acquaintance, I consider it as a necessary evil. ”

“ It is seldom that the wife of a Muslim is guilty of a criminal intrigue without being punished with death if there be four witnesses to the fact, and they or the husband prosecute her; and not always does she escape this punishment if she be detected by any of the officers of justice: in the latter case, four witnesses are not required, and often the woman, if of a respectable family, is put to death, generally in private, on the mere arbitrary authority of the government: but a bribe will sometimes save her ”

“ In what may be termed the Middle Age of Arabic literature, beginning with the triumph of the Mohammadan religion and extending to the foundation of the Empire of Baghdád, the power of eloquence over the educated classes of the Arabs probably increased in proportion as it became less familiar to them: for early in this age they began to simplify their spoken language in consequence of their intercourse with strangers, who could not generally acquire the difficult, old dialect of their conquerors, which consequently began to be confined to literary compositions. ”

“ INDUSTRY. It is melancholy to contrast the present poverty of Egypt with its prosperity in ancient times, when the variety, elegance, and exquisite finish displayed in its manufactures attracted the admiration of surrounding nations, and its inhabitants were in no need of foreign commerce to increase their wealth, or to add to their comforts. Antiquarian researches show us that a high degree of excellence in the arts of civilized life distinguished the Egyptians in the age of Moses, and at a yet earlier period. ”

“ A slave, among Muslims, is either a person taken captive in war, or carried off by force, and being at the time of capture an infidel; or the offspring of a female slave by another slave or by any man who is not her owner, or by her owner if he does not acknowledge himself to be the father: but the offspring of a male slave by a free woman is free. A person who embraces the Mohammadan faith after having been made a slave does not by this act become free, unless he flies from a foreign infidel master to a Muslim country and there becomes a Mohammadan. ”

“ The usual mode of summoning a servant or other attendant who is not present is by clapping the hands, striking the palm of the left hand with the fingers of the right: the windows being of open lattice-work, the sound is heard throughout the house.—The subjects of conversation are generally the news of the day, the state of trade, the prices of provisions, and sometimes religion and science. Facetious stories are often related; and, very frequently, persons in the best society tell tales, and quote proverbs, of the most indecent nature. ”

“ Very few Muslims of the higher classes have condescended to study music, because they would have been despised by their inferiors for doing so; or because they themselves have despised or condemned the art. Ibraheem, the son of the Khaleefeh El-Mahdee, and competitor of El-Ma-moon, was a remarkable exception: he is said to have been an excellent musician and a good singer.
In the houses of the wealthy, the vocal and instrumental performers were usually (as is the case in many houses in the present age) domestic female slaves, well instructed in their art by hired male or female professors. ”

“ LANGUAGE, LITERATURE, AND SCIENCE. The metropolis of Egypt maintains the comparative reputation by which it has been distinguished for many centuries, of being the best school of Arabic literature, and of Muslim theology and jurisprudence. Learning, indeed, has much declined among the Arabs universally; but least in Cairo: consequently, the fame of the professors of this city still remains unrivalled; and its great collegiate mosque, the Azhar, continues to attract innumerable students from every quarter of the Muslim world. ”

“ Many doctors have argued that destiny respects only the final state of a certain portion of men (believers and unbelievers) , and that in general man is endowed with free will, which he should exercise according to the laws of God and his own conscience and judgment, praying to God for a blessing on his endeavours, or imploring the intercession of the Prophet or of any of the saints in his favour, and propitiating them by offering alms or sacrifices in their names, relying upon God for the result, which he may then, and then only, attribute to fate or destiny. ”

“ It is often the case that the man thus employed is so pleased with the beauty of the woman to whom he is introduced on these terms, or with her riches, that he refuses to give her up; and the law cannot compel him to divorce her, unless he act unjustly towards her as her husband; which of course he takes good care not to do. But a person may employ a mustahall without running this risk. It is the custom of many wealthy Turks, and of some of the people of Egypt, to make use of a slave, generally a black, their own property, to officiate in this character. ”

“ Their services are commonly light: the usual office of the male white slave, who is called "memlook," is that of a page or a military guard. Eunuchs are employed as guardians of the women, but only in the houses of men of high rank or great wealth. On account of the important and confidential office which they fill, they are generally treated in public with especial consideration. I used to remark, in Cairo, that few persons saluted me with a more dignified and consequential air than these pitiable but self-conceited beings. ”

“ As to the restraint which is exercised towards the women, I have before remarked that it is in a great degree voluntary on their part, and that I believe it to be less strict in Egypt than in any other country of the Turkish empire: it is certainly far less so than it has been represented to be by many persons. They generally look upon this restraint with a degree of pride, as evincing the husband’s care for them; and value themselves upon their being hidden as treasures. ”

“ The answer to this is that our actions are judged good or evil according to our intentions, if we have faith: good actions or intentions, it should be added, only increase, and do not cause, our happiness if we are believers; and evil actions or intentions only increase our misery if we are unbelievers or irreligious: for the Muslim holds that he is to be admitted into heaven only by the mercy of God, on account of his faith, and to be rewarded in proportion to his good works. ”

“ The utmost solemnity and decorum are observed in the public worship of the Muslims. Their looks and behaviour in the mosque are not those of enthusiastic devotion, but of calm and modest piety. Never are they guilty of a designedly irregular word or action during their prayers. The pride and fanaticism which they exhibit in common life, in intercourse with persons of their own, or of a different faith, seem to be dropped on their entering the mosque, and they appear wholly absorbed in the adoration of their Creator ”