A peep at Turkey cannot be complete without a passing reference to the religious beliefs of its people, but space will only allow me to mention those of Mahomedans.

Broadly speaking, without counting Arabia, there are 13,000,000 Mahomedans or Moslems, as they are also called; 12,000,000 Christians; and 1,000,000 Jews and members of other persuasions. In Asiatic Turkey, Mahomedans form the majority, but only the minority in European Turkey.

Moslems are the followers of Mahomet, who was born in Mecca, Arabia, in the year 569 of our era, and declared himself to be the Prophet of God, sent to introduce a fuller revelation of Him, which was to supersede Judaism and Christianity.

The Koran, which was the great book of his faith, was declared to have been revealed to him by the Archangel Gabriel. The Koran claims to be the completion of the Law and the Gospel, and it proclaims Mahomet to be the last and greatest of the line of prophets, among whom is included Jesus Christ, but whose divinity is denied.

INTERIOR OF THE MOSQUE OF SULTAN AHMED I.

The new faith, which received the name of Islam, implying submission to God, was a protest against the heathenish practices of his countrymen in Arabia, and the worship of the Saints and the Virgin Mary among the Christians. The corner-stone was the unity of God, and its leading dogma was expressed in the formula, "La illah il Allah" ("There is no God but God"), to which was added, "Mohamet Resoul Allah" ("Mahomet is the Prophet of God").

In addition to the unity of God, Moslems believe in the existence of good and evil spirits, in the efficacy of prayer, and in a future life with its rewards or punishments.

Prayer with them is homage which the worshippers are required to offer five times a day, according to a fixed ritual, with prescribed genuflections, prostrations, and touching of the ground with the forehead.

When the hour of prayer arrives they will suspend their occupations, spread a rug facing Mecca, and pray wherever they happen to be, shaming Christians by their disregard of ridicule.

The summons to pray or to attend the mosque is made by the muezzim or crier, who ascends the minaret or tower, attached to the mosque (see frontispiece), and from its balcony proclaims the Unity of God, and invites believers to prayer, as follows: "Come to prayers, come to prayers. God is great. There is no God but God." To which, at dawn of day, the exhortation is added: "Prayer is better than sleep, prayer is better than sleep."

Before prayer Turks wash their hands, feet, and faces, and remove the shoes from off their feet. Lines of fountains are found outside the mosques for these ablutions. The head of the worshipper remains covered.

Among the observances enjoined upon Moslems are those of charity, fasting, and pilgrimage.

They are bidden to lay aside one-tenth of their income for religious or charitable purposes. Their fasting takes place during the holy month of Ramazan, and lasts from morning twilight to sunset. Abstinence from food, drink, and smoking must be total. At sunset a gun announces that the day is over, and feasting commences and lasts all night. The day is thus transformed to night, and the night to day.

The pilgrimage enjoined is to Mecca, and has to be performed by every Moslem at least once in his lifetime, either in person or by proxy. He then acquires the title of Hadji, or Pilgrim, which he prefixes to his name. The shrine or temple visited at Mecca is called the Caaba, and tradition records that it was there Hagar discovered the well Zem Zem, which saved Ishmael's life, and that the latter, assisted by Abraham, built a tabernacle. An angel brought the corner-stone, which all pilgrims go and kiss. It was originally of crystalline whiteness, but is now coal-black, owing to its absorption of the sins of worshipping pilgrims. On the Day of Judgment it will testify in favour of those who kissed it, whether men or women.

The first mosque was built by Mahomet in Medina, and was of a very simple structure. But as his successors grew wealthier and more powerful, they vied with one another in the magnificence of the buildings erected for God's worship. They were more or less on the model of the Greek churches around them, lofty, and surmounted with a circular dome imitating the canopy of the sky. The dome is covered with lead and on the spike that crowns it is a gilt crescent. The apex of each minaret is also covered with lead and tipped with gold. The dome and the minarets standing side by side remind one of the umbrella pine-tree and the cypress—so characteristic of an Eastern landscape.

The interior of a mosque is a mixture of simplicity and grandeur. The dome is supported by columns, which, in the case of the mosque of Sultan Achmet, represented in the illustration facing this chapter, are inlaid with coloured tiles, and decorated with verses from the Koran. The sunlight streams in from the numerous windows encircling the dome, or from those on the walls of the mosque, many of which are of beautiful stained glass, but without figures of any kind, as Moslems consider this would be breaking the commandment relating to images.

All mosques point toward Mecca, and at the Mecca end stands a mihrab, or niche, from which the imam conducts the devotions. Beside it, supported by pillars, is a terrace for the choir, which consists entirely of men. They chant, seated cross-legged on rugs. South of the mihrab is the minber, or pulpit, from which prayers and addresses are delivered on Fridays. The pulpit in Sultan Achmet's mosque (see illustration) is a masterpiece in marble, and a copy of that in Mecca. Stands for Korans, shaped like the letter X, and inlaid with tortoiseshell and mother-of-pearl, are placed about the building for public reading, and from the roof hang chandeliers on which are attached numerous lamps fed with olive oil. Interspersed among the lamps are ostrich-eggs and glass-ball ornaments.

Mosques are not seated, but mats and carpets are laid on the stone floor for the use of the faithful. "The luxurious inhabitant of the East, who in his selamlik is wont to recline on cushions, does not pass into the House of God to tenant a crimson-lined and well-padded pew; he takes his place among the crowd—the effendi stands beside the water-carrier, the bey near the charcoal-vendor—he is but one item among many; he arrogates to himself no honour in the temple where all men are as one family."

There is a mistaken idea that Moslems consider that women have no souls, and need not perform devotions. The Koran is explicit to the contrary. They may not worship in the mosques with the men, but groups of them are met, worshipping apart, and during the Ramazan special services are held for women.

Among the various Orders of Dervishes, or Moslem Monks, are those of the Ruffai Order, or Howlers, illustrated in Chapter XI. They are the most fanatical, and meet in a rectangular building to perform their devotions, the idea being to produce such an ecstasy of the soul as will separate it from the body and enable it to contemplate God.

Their sheik, or chief, takes his seat on a carpet, while his followers sit in front of him and repeat passages from the Koran. They then stand and repeat their formula of faith, "La illah," etc., bending forward and backward at each syllable. This recital, which is at first slow, becomes more and more rapid, until you can only distinguish the syllables il and lah. The sheik then stamps his foot, and the Dervishes, growing frantic, quicken their swinging motion, shouting lah, and interposing every now and then the exclamation Hu yia hu, implying "He, O He" (is God). The ninety-nine names or attributes of God are then recited, while the sheik counts the ninety-nine beads of his chaplet.

When the last bead is reached their fury knows no bounds, and, holding each other's hands in a circle, they swing forwards and backwards until they foam at the mouth, and, falling exhausted to the ground, lie in an apparent trance. This they claim to be spiritual ecstasy!

Another sect, the Mevlevis, find this ecstasy in whirling until they sink exhausted. The third Order the Bektashis, who are the most tolerant, maintain that the contemplation of God can be best attained by their carrying out their motto, "Keep thy tongue, thy hand, and thy heart," and by the observance of His precepts.