The History of Antiquity (Vol. 1-6). Duncker Max

from the South, who pastured their flocks on the oasis of Duma (p. 320), worshipped Canopus; the Lachmites, who were driven towards Hira, on the lower Euphrates, worshipped the fortunate star Jupiter; and the Chozaa, who settled to the north of Mecca, worshipped Sirius.[470]

With regard to the religious rites of the tribes derived by the Arabs from Adnan, we learn that the Benu Bekr, who forced their way from Neshd towards the Euphrates, worshipped the god Audh, i.e. the burning one; an ancient form of oath used by this tribe runs as follows—"I swear by the blood streams round Audh and the stones set up beside Suair." The Kinana and the Benu Gatafan in Hidyaz worshipped the goddess Uzza, a name which is said to signify "the mighty one" in a sacred tree.[471] The tribe of the Takif (near Taif, southward of Mecca) worshipped the goddess Allat, in whose name we can, without difficulty, recognise the Alilat of Herodotus: Alilahat means "the goddess." Among the palms of the valley of Nachlah rose the mighty tree of the goddess, "presented with sacred offerings;" but the Takif also prayed to this goddess under the form of a white stone. A third goddess, of the name of Manat, held sway in the district of Medinah; she was worshipped in a black shapeless stone. The Kuraish swore by Allat, Uzza, and Manat.[472] Among other tribes of the desert the goddess Halasah, or Venus, was worshipped. According to the Western writers the Nabatæans are said to have worshipped the sun and the war-god Dusares.[473] "His image is a black, undressed, rectangular stone, four feet high and two feet broad, on a pedestal of beaten gold. To this stone they offer sacrifice and pour libations with the blood of the victims; such are their libations; the whole temple is filled with gold and votive offerings." Modern scholars identify this god Dusares with the Du'sharah of Arabian writers.[474] Herodotus has already told us that on the conclusion of agreements the stones between the two parties were smeared with blood; and, as according to this evidence, the idols also were sprinkled with the blood of the victims, we can explain the oath of Benu Bekr by the bloodstreams round Audh. The statement of Herodotus that the Arabs worshipped Urotal and Alilat only, and the statements of Strabo and Arrian that they worshipped Zeus, and Dionysus, and the sky, must apparently be limited to the migratory tribes of the north.

Of the gods worshipped by the tribes bordering on Syria we have more definite knowledge. The Midianites and Amalekites who possessed the sandstone plateau of Sinai, and the deserts of Shur in the north, and Sin in the south, worshipped on the highest peaks of that district which the Hebrews called Horeb and Sinai (i.e. the Sinian), the god Baal, who was also worshipped by the Syrians. At the foot of Sinai there still remains the well-watered palm grove, with its rich black earth, of which Agatharchides and Diodorus told us above (p. 309). It is the oasis of Firan, and from the palms the mountain above it is still called Serbal, i.e. "the palm forest of Baal."[475] The Moabites invoked Baal on Mount Peor, and in times of distress appeased his wrath by human sacrifices. In the same way the Ammonites worshipped their god Milkom; the female deity of the Moabites was Astor, the Astarte of the Syrians, who was also worshipped by the Kedarites.[476] That the Baal of Sinai was a god who gave fruits and water in the desert is clear from the fact that Herodotus could compare the god of the Arabs with Dionysus, and Strabo and Arrian could ascribe the worship of Dionysus to the Arabs.

      From a general view of these scanty notices it becomes clear that the basis of the religious conceptions current among the Semitic tribes of Arabia was not widely different from that of the Semitic tribes by the Euphrates and Tigris, or in Syria, which will be found to be connected with each other. It is easy to understand that the rites of the tribes bordering on Syria were nearer to the rites of the Syrians, and it has been already remarked that the worship of the southern tribes appears to be most closely allied to the rites of the Babylonians. Here, as there, we find the worship of Astarte; Herodotus expressly calls the goddess of the Arabs by the name of Mylitta, the Bilit of the Babylonians, whom, as we shall see, the Canaanites also worshipped with much zeal. We saw that in Babylon her power was recognized in the evening gleam of the planet Venus, that all young things, fountains, and pools, belonged to this goddess; and we shall find her worshipped in Syria on the shady heights of Lebanon. The tribes of the Arabian deserts also consecrated lofty trees to this goddess, their Allat, or Halasah; and just as they believed that the power of this, as of other deities, was present in stones, so shall we find a similar custom prevailing among the Syrians. That the tribes of the deserts should pay especial reverence to the deities of the stars—we have seen how systematised was the worship of stars in Babylon—cannot surprise us. With the refreshing dew of evening not Venus only or the moon, but the whole glory of the starry heaven met the eye and touched the spirit of the Arabs. High above the tents and resting flocks, above the nocturnal ride and waiting ambuscade, and all the doings of men the stars passed along on their glittering courses. They guided the Arabs on their way through the deserts; certain constellations announced the wished-for rain, others the wild storms, the changes of the seasons, the time for breeding in their herds and flocks. As these stars at one time brought abundance and good pastures for their flocks, and at another dried up the springs and scorched the meadows, so could they also bring joy and happiness or trouble and pain to men. Hence to the tribes of the desert especially brilliant stars appeared as living spirits, as rulers over nature and the fortunes of mankind.

      The life of the roving tribes in the interior whom the Arabs denote by the general name of Badawi (Bedouins), i.e. "sons of the desert," has undergone few changes; at the present day but slight deviations have been made from the customs and conditions of the ancient time. Their life was regulated according to their descent in patriarchal forms, and the basis of it was the natural affection of the family. At the head of the tribe stood the chief of the oldest family, from which the rest derived their origin. All descendants of the patriarch who had given the name to the tribe gave a willing obedience to his nearest descendants, for the claims of primogeniture were sacred. The wealth in horses of excellent breed, camels, and cattle is the pride of these tribal chiefs and the symbol of their supremacy. Surrounded by the council of the elders, the heads of the other families, the chiefs maintained peace in the tribe, settled quarrels, led out the youth of the tribe on plundering expeditions and in feuds, and divided the spoil. They alone had the right to assemble the tribe, to carry the standards under which the tribe fought, and give the command in battle. In rare instances the remembrance of a common origin keeps several tribes together in a kind of union under the chief of the oldest tribe, from which the others have branched off, but as a rule the tribes hold proudly aloof and are hostile to each other. They attack each other, plunder the tents, carry off the women, children, and servants, and drive away the flocks. When a feud has once broken out and members of a tribe have been slain, it is incumbent on the family and tribe to which the dead belonged to revenge the fallen, and kill at least as many members of the hostile tribe. This duty of revenge is hereditary on either side, and descends from generation to generation until the chief of a third tribe is chosen to decide the quarrel and become a peace-maker by fixing a fine of cattle or other property.

      In such a mode of life, which, in its general features, has remained unchanged for thousands of years, the Arabs of the desert exercised the virtues of reverence, piety, and attachment to their tribal chiefs; thus there grew up among them a steadfast, manly character; they were true to their promise when once given, and displayed a noble hospitality. If any one came in peace to their tents, drink was given to him by the daughters of the tribe from the fountains, the men took him as a friend into their tents and shared their store of dates with him, or entertained him with a sheep from the flock. When the stranger had once set his foot in the tent, the host guaranteed his safety with his own life. When the night came on with her refreshing coolness, the stranger was required to sit in the starlight in the circle of the tribesmen. He was expected to tell of his origin, his race, and tribe; and then the hosts also told the fame of their ancestors and sang the deeds of their fathers and themselves, the feuds and encounters in which their tribe had been victorious, the virtues of their favourite horses, and the swiftness