Getting into touch with the natives—The missionary’s style of
life—Visiting and receiving visitors—Philanthropic work—Poor
relief—School work—Medical work.
In Persia the missionary has no right to teach and preach in public
places. He cannot take up his stand in the bazaars and proclaim the
Gospel. He can talk to the people who come to his house, and to a certain
extent he can talk with crowds in open caravanserais or in the villages,
but anything approximating to public teaching is only done on sufferance,
and without any established licence. So the ordinary evangelistic
missionary’s first task is to get on terms of social intercourse with
a sufficiently large number of natives to afford him a field for work.
Afterwards he may arrange for services, either in his own house or
in the house of some other European, and so his visitors will become
congregations and his talks sermons.
Now, although it is obvious that such work can only be carried on when it
is acceptable to the natives, the work may be accepted for very various
reasons. If the missionary knows enough of the Persian language, of
native ideas, and above all of the message he has come to deliver, he
will, in a town like Yezd, without the help of school or medical work,
attract a large number of people to his house. In Persia there is just
now a great seeking after truth, which, though due in part to traceable
causes, seems in its entirety to be simply one of those mysterious
movements which God evokes at certain seasons in all lands for the
furtherance of His Kingdom. One class attracted by such a man as I have
described would therefore be real enquirers, and with them would be mixed
a second class of people who have been called religious sightseers. These
men though not apparently so good a field for work as the first class,
would still, if properly handled and directed, prove a perfectly possible
sphere for serious missionary operations. So also would the third class
of callers, who would be men not primarily interested in religious
questions at all, but who would nevertheless follow the fashion of
calling on the newly-arrived foreigner, and would be generally willing
to follow any line of conversation that was agreeable to their host.
Of course a man who did not intend to engage in school or medical work
would naturally be careful to take full advantage of such contacts as
these, and of others that he would naturally make from time to time; he
would order his life in such a way as to get day by day into close touch
with the people of the town; and he would equip himself with a material
outfit that would enable him to exchange courtesies with natives of
various classes. I am not speaking of a man who elected to spend most of
his time itinerating in the villages: of such work as this I have little
experience: but I am convinced that a stationary missionary, fairly well
equipped at all points, does not in a town like Yezd absolutely need the
help of more elaborate aids to enable him to get into touch with his
work. To suppose this is to ignore the extraordinary preparation which
God has made in Persia for the preaching of the Gospel.
Before passing on to the very real demand for missionaries of a somewhat
different kind, it will be well to mention some points connected with
the life of the European missionary in the country. There are probably
very few men or women at present working in Persia, who have not at the
outset of their work felt doubtful whether the details of their household
life could not be simplified, so as to bring them into closer touch with
the poorer part of the population. It is hardly possible to write a
serious book on missionary conditions without expressing an opinion on
this question. There is, I think, no doubt that it is a great mistake for
a missionary in Persia to be known as one who is leading the life of a
wealthy man. It is considered by many of the enquirers to be absolutely
inconsistent with Christianity, and I am not sure that this judgment
is incorrect. Temporary advantages might sometimes be gained by such a
reputation, but in the end the work would suffer.
Generally speaking, however, it is the habit of missionaries in the
Persian stations to live as economically as is compatible with European
style, so far as their strictly personal expenses are concerned. Many
things which appear at first sight to be luxurious prove on closer
acquaintance to be mere substitutes for the ordinary necessaries of the
simplest English life. Other things prove to be absolutely essential
to health in a hot climate, while yet another class are not exactly
necessary, but they are comforts of the cheapest kind. People who are
economising seriously in Eastern lands have to put up with so much that
is really difficult that they make a great mistake if they unnecessarily
deny themselves small things which can be had for the asking, simply
because they have regarded such things as luxuries in England. But
although the existence of careful economies on European lines may be
sufficient to prevent an intelligent enquirer from thinking that the
missionary is untrue to his creed, such economies can never bring the
missionary into touch with the poor of the East in the same way that
living in a model lodging-house might under some circumstances bring a
home clergyman into close touch with the English poor. The real analogy
would be for the missionary to live as an Eastern dervish, or as a native
of the artisan class, and although this might be sometimes helpful
and advisable, the principle of its general advisability could not be
accepted. To begin with, it would be only possible for a bachelor, and,
in a country where no man can possibly give individual instruction to
women, the bachelor is at a great disadvantage. Secondly, it must not be
forgotten that, although the missionary living the life of an European
has been accepted in Persia, the missionary wearing Persian dress and
living like a native has not yet been accepted, and would probably find
himself not only at variance with the consular authorities but also
regarded with a great deal of suspicion by the natives themselves. In
a matter of this kind it is impossible to ignore apostolic precedent,
and one thing that cannot but strike the student of the missionary
methods of the period covered by the Acts of the Apostles is that the
apostles generally, and notably St Paul, seem never to have adopted a
method of missionary work which would have seemed to the inhabitants of
the district to be _outré_, when some more natural method of work was
equally possible. Nothing would strike the Persian as more _outré_ than
for the ordinary European to drop the form of life which is expected
of the Ferangi, and to adopt the manners and customs of the native of
Persia, particularly as he would probably have to periodically re-assume
European clothes. If he was going to work among the Mussulmans as a
Christian missionary, I suppose he would have to choose between life as
an Armenian and life as a Mussulman. Life as an Armenian would have this
advantage over the other, that he would not be supposed to be hiding his
religion. But the life of the Armenian in a town like Yezd is the life
of a stranger in a foreign town, and would not bring the missionary into
very much closer touch with the Mussulmans than life as a European. By
assuming the dress and manners of an Armenian of any class whatsoever,
one would simply forfeit the respect that is usually paid by the Persian
to the Ferangi, without gaining anything that could not have been
gained by other and more ordinary methods. On the other hand, life as a
Mussulman would be attended with serious difficulties. In a town where
there was a Ferangi colony wearing European dress, such a man would very
possibly be regarded as a soldier is regarded who attempts to mix with
the enemy without his uniform. I can conceive circumstances which might
make an experiment of this kind worth trying, but it would be madness for
any one to attempt it for missionary purposes, who had not extraordinary
experience of the country and a full mastery over the language.
I think then we must take it for granted that the kind of life which
missionaries are living in Persia at the present time will have to
be accepted, with such modifications as future events and further
experience may suggest, as the normal method for Europeans who wish to
carry on missionary work in the country. There are one or two tasks which
lie before the pioneer missionary which seem to be made more easy by the
possession of an ordinary European household. First of all, he has to be
prepared to work amongst the European colony. Secondly, it is well for
him to possess sufficient influence and standing in the town to be able
to help the converts or enquirers in time of trouble. Thirdly, he wants
to be in touch with all classes of natives, and this would probably only
be possible for a man who stood in the highest rank as a native, or for
one who stood outside native rank altogether.
Every missionary has to do a good deal of visiting. All visits have not
got to be returned, but a certain number must be. It is well not to
return all visits, for otherwise it is difficult to get secret enquirers
to come to your house, or people who are too poor to receive you in their
own houses. The usual Persian habit is never to pay a visit without
first of all asking leave, but though this rule has to be observed
towards others, it is best to make it clear that your own house is an
office, and only to insist on notice for visits of civility when they
are made by people who are likely to prove awkward. Paying visits to
Persian houses has a certain value to the missionary, as it introduces
him to Persian life and manners, and puts him on easier terms with the
natives, but it seldom affords the evangelistic missionary who is working
amongst men his best opportunity for direct missionary work. There is
too much publicity, and too many interruptions. The best missionary
work is usually done on one’s own premises; and in Yezd I have known
enquirers and visitors begin coming at six o’clock in the morning, and
go on almost without intermission till ten o’clock at night; but at that
time I was connected with scholastic work, which, although requiring only
superintendence, advertised my presence in the town to a considerable
degree. One of the things that is therefore most necessary in a place
like Yezd for the evangelistic missionary is an absolutely well-ordered
household. Everything ought to go by clockwork. Almost every visitor has
to be treated as an ordinary social guest, and unless the arrangements
are nearly perfect, either his attention or the missionary’s will be
called away from the conversation. A missionary in such a position
ought to pay close attention to the number and description of his
tea-cups and pipes. One class of visitors ought to be properly served
with silver-mounted hookahs and three tiny cups of very hot tea, brought
in at intervals of ten minutes, and this without any previous notice to
the servant. Another class of visitor ought to have a European cup of
tea holding about three times as much as the Persian cup, and a box of
cigarettes, so that he and his host may be able to talk without further
interruption till the end of the interview. A third class of visitor,
who has given notice, ought to be prepared for beforehand, and served
with iced sherbet. Then again, a decision has to be made according to the
status of the guest as to whether the missionary shall be served with tea
at the same time or not. All this requires the most careful training of
servants, and any inattention to detail may produce an atmosphere which
makes teaching exceedingly difficult. Further, the servants have to know
who should be shown into a private room, and who can be allowed to mix
with other guests. These are just a few of the minor points which are
nevertheless of real importance. To come to points which are obviously
more serious. Servants have to be procured who can act with firmness when
people attempt to take liberties, and who are at the same time absolutely
civil. Servants in a Christian household have to be good-tempered; and
in order to effect this they have to be kept well occupied without being
overworked, in a house where the chief work is meeting emergencies. They
have to be taught some consistent and systematic line that is to be
observed in dealing with the countless beggars who every day come to your
house. They have to be rendered as truthful as possible in every matter
connected with the missionary’s business. They have to be paid a rate of
wages which will make honesty and contentment possible, and which will
neither spoil the market, nor be incompatible with reasonable economy.
It is needless to say very much more about these matters; sufficient
has already been said to make it plain that the problem of household
arrangement is an exceedingly difficult one, particularly as the servants
sleep in their own houses at a distance, all but one, who stays for the
night; and they generally expect to go home for their mid-day meal. My
own impression is that as the evangelistic missionary’s house is almost
his parish, he may be excused if he thinks right to expend a very great
deal of time over its arrangements, and to consider this just as much
missionary work as the teaching of enquirers. If the missionary intends
to aim at anything that is likely to be satisfactory in this matter, he
certainly needs an enormous degree of faith, and will do well to make his
efforts in this direction the subject of very earnest prayer.
[Illustration: SCENES OF YEZDI LIFE.
The centre of these three pictures represents two men smoking opium.
Behind them is a _qalian_, or hookah, for tobacco; in front is a sherbet
bowl, and also a small tea-table with sweets underneath.
The picture on the left represents two men; one holding a rosary, and the
other holding a hookah.
The single figure on the right is a Jew, with his book for divining. The
Persians use the Jews as diviners a good deal.]
Another difficulty in seeing enquirers in the house is the arrangement of
times. Missionaries are sometimes blamed for not sufficiently consorting
with Europeans in the ordinary amusements of the colony, but there is one
great difficulty about this. The times when you naturally take exercise
in the East are the times when the native artisan or shopkeeper is off
work. Supposing that the evangelistic missionary is seldom at home at
such times as these, the more industrious Persians get to regard him as
inaccessible, and his enquirers begin to consist of people who for some
reason or other have very little to do. It is hardly necessary to enter
into the difficulties that may follow.
We have been hitherto speaking only of directly evangelistic methods
of missionary work; but almost all missionaries have something to do
with philanthropic work also. These philanthropic efforts are not solely
undertaken as means to an end. In most cases they are treated as an end
in themselves by the missionary, and generally speaking they are things
which could not well be left undone. Medical missionaries will tell you
that their standing orders are to heal the sick and preach the Gospel;
but I think we may say very much more generally that the presentation
of the Gospel without adequate and proportionate care for the minds and
bodies of those surrounding us, would be impossible. For the Gospel is
the message of our Saviour, and any message that was so delivered would
entirely fail to represent that Saviour’s attitude. I doubt whether any
one would call in question this aspect of the case, but when we come to
discuss how much philanthropic work is really necessary, we are face to
face with a difficult problem. In matters like this the decision must
depend not only upon the needs of the people with whom the missionaries
are brought in contact, but also upon the nature of the church or
congregation of Christians that supports them, and whose material as
well as spiritual force they are appointed to convey to the mission
field. There is a great difference between the position of a band of men
sent out by an infinitesimal body of earnest Christians who have the
greatest difficulty in subscribing the means of their support, and that
of a band sent out by an exceedingly wealthy Christian church.
Present-day missionaries sent out by the Church Missionary Society
have passed outside the conditions of the first class, but they cannot
be said to fully belong to the second. They are supported by a large
number of people, but those who give most are generally those whose
purses are least elastic. In the countries to which they go they are
treated with the greatest courtesy by British officials, and accepted as
representatives of the religion of England by their fellow-countrymen.
Naturally the native expects more from them than they are really able
to give, and this increases the difficulty when they have to decide
what they are bound to do as ministers of Christ and as representatives
of those who send them, for the people committed to their charge.
Naturally, and I think rightly, they do not wholly shut their eyes to
the attitude and expectations of the natives. But, unfortunately, the
Persians think that there ought to be no difficulty about anything. The
average native cannot get out of his head the idea that we are sent by
the Government, or, if not by the Government, by the whole nation under
its religious authorities. Those who know anything of English thought
and feeling realise that foreign missions are now well established in
the popular regard in England, and many Yezdis have a confused notion
that in our country education, medical attendance, and support in old
age are free to everybody, irrespective of class, and that as Christians
we are all anxious to extend this system as far as we can to other
nations. Of course views like this are variable, but it may be seen after
a moment’s consideration that in a country where the need for schools,
for hospitals, and sometimes for relief is very real, and where the
native is capable of believing such absurdities about the European as
have been stated, if the missionary does not to a large extent take up
the white man’s burden, he is likely to lose any influence which God may
have given him. Consequently I think we may say that the philanthropic
work of missionaries in Persia must not only be regarded as a means to
evangelisation, although this is an aspect which must largely determine
its importance. Primarily it is a spiritual necessity created by three
things, the comparative wealth of the Christians who send out the
missionaries, the comparative poverty of the natives who are ready to be
relieved, and the obvious commandment of Almighty God.
Philanthropic work in Yezd is of three kinds; medical work, school work,
and the work of poor relief. The last is of course not recognised or
supported by the Church Missionary Society. It is not within the scope of
this book to deal with either of these three provinces of work in detail.
All that I wish at present to explain is the way in which they seem to
strike the Persian mind, and contribute to the general campaign of the
mission.
Relief work is of all the three most absolutely necessitated by the
essential difference between the circumstances of the missionary and
his supporters on the one hand, and those of a certain section of the
natives on the other. But from an evangelistic standpoint it is the least
directly productive in effect; so we have never in Yezd used for this
purpose any funds not specially subscribed for it, and such money has
been collected almost entirely from the resident Europeans. There is a
very great deal of terrible poverty in Persia which is not touched by
the native charities. In Yezd, particularly towards the end of our stay
in the town, things were in a very bad way. Yezd is really an industrial
town, and not less than half of the grain supply comes from outside,
chiefly from the Shiraz district. Most of the people are silk weavers.
The silkworms used to be reared in the Yezd district, but the extreme
droughts rendered this source of supply very insecure, and after the
great famine that occurred some years ago there were not sufficient
trees left for the business to be continued in this way. Cocoons were
then brought from Rasht, and this system proved more satisfactory till
lately, when the Rasht cocoons were diverted to France and Italy. The
natural result was a great deal of poverty in Yezd, which was most felt
among the poor Jews, who since the famine year have had no looms but have
devoted themselves to winding and spinning the silk. Then again, after
the Babi massacre of 1903, something had to be done for the large number
of widows and orphans. In this work the Europeans were by no means alone,
for the sufferers were helped both by the Babi merchants and also by a
large number of the Parsis. The Parsis are generally very good in looking
after their own poor, but the Mussulmans give money so indiscriminately
that their charities cause more poverty than they relieve. Although the
work of poor relief is not as a rule the direct means of bringing in
converts, it helps the evangelistic work enormously by saving valuable
time. Before it could be organised the number of begging enquirers who
had the very smallest interest, if any, in the Gospel message, was so
large as to seriously impede more important work. It is much easier
and better to keep the two things more separate, and to be able to say
to a man, “If you want to read with me, well and good, but if you want
material help, then you must do so and so.” This does not necessarily
mean that the man who is relieved gets no chance of hearing the Gospel.
The Jews, who came in a body, used always to have a chapter of the Gospel
read to them by my mirza, and any man who showed a disposition to come
as a real enquirer after his case had been looked into and relieved
was thoroughly welcomed. But the practice of trying to earn a _kran_ by
wasting hours of the missionary’s time was effectually discouraged.
I think also that the practice of separating poor relief as much as
possible from the work with enquirers helps to explain to the native
our view of the Christian Church. That some explanation is necessary
is undoubted. During a severe famine in Kirman, over two hundred
respectable Mussulmans, chiefly shopkeepers, came into the courtyard of
the Consulate, and wanted to take protection under the British flag.
Major Phillott was then Consul, and they explained to him that the price
of bread was so prohibitive that they could not live any longer under
the regulations of the Persian officials. Their leader was a Seyid.
Major Phillott tried to explain that, although he sympathised with
them greatly, he could do nothing for them unless it was to give them
pecuniary help. He offered them a hundred _krans_, but they explained
that they were not beggars. They further said that they were quite ready
to become Christians if they could only get cheap bread. The end of the
whole business was that the Consul paid an unofficial visit to the
Governor, and got him to promise that bread should be lowered to a more
or less normal price by gradual reductions spread over a period of ten
days. It is easy to understand that people who could go to a Consul in a
famine and ask to be accepted as Christians in order to be able to buy
bread at a fair price, thinking I suppose that Consular pressure would
then be brought to bear upon the Governor on their behalf, might easily
get an absolutely wrong notion of what was going on, if circumstances
forced the missionary whose general business was seeing enquirers to use
funds for poor relief without carefully separating these two branches
of work. Even the practice of giving occasional relief to very poor
enquirers from one’s own purse is liable to great misinterpretation and
abuse. Men will frequently come to you and ask for support, so as to
enable them to leave their ordinary trades and listen to your teaching.
Myself, I think that there are occasions when poor people have come from
a distance and are certainly interested, where something of this kind
has to be done, the man if possible being made to work for his money;
but it is easy to see how extremely dangerous it would be to encourage
expectations, and how easily natives might get the idea that enquiry, and
still more Christianity, entitled them to payment. Consequently, even if
it could not be demonstrated that an actual saving of time was effected
by making of poor relief a distinct organisation, there would be still a
very great deal to be said for the practice.
To administer poor relief in a town like Yezd on anything approaching
to a sound system necessitates a great deal of reliance upon native
information, and also a certain amount of high-handed dealing. Any food
or clothing given must be of a class only acceptable to the very poorest,
for otherwise the candidates for relief would be too numerous to deal
with in even the roughest fashion. These considerations will explain two
things; first of all it will be readily understood that it is much easier
to give systematic relief to members of a native community which is more
or less down-trodden, such as the Jews or Babis; for although a certain
number of mistakes will be made in dealing with these peoples, they will
be much less resented, and will militate much less against the success
of the whole effort. Secondly, it will be obvious that such relief will
not call forth very much gratitude from the recipients. The very fact of
investigation gives the idea to the Persian mind that charity is given
grudgingly. Also it is impossible to handle a hundred screaming women in
a small compound without a certain amount of what appears to be stern
dealing, and after all in most instances the relief given is not as much
as we ourselves would like it to be. Added to this, most of the people
receiving relief are under the impression that we are simply dispensing a
small part of the large supplies sent to us for the purpose from abroad;
and the Jews, of whom nearly a hundred families were receiving relief
in Yezd last winter, believed that all that was given to them came from
their co-religionists in Europe. The Babis of course looked upon the
matter rather differently, but people who hold the theory of _savabs_
in the way in which Persians do, have always a feeling that anything
given to them means one for them and two for the giver. At the same time
Persians who are interested in Christianity, and who are not themselves
candidates for poor relief, see a great deal more in the system than do
those who are more intimately concerned with it. They often understand
that the willingness to take trouble in localising need, and the absolute
recklessness with which we incur as many curses as blessings in the
performance of our work, points to an utterly different ideal from that
which is accepted in Islam; and whether they are prepared to approve
it or not, anything which shows the native part of the fundamental
distinction between Islam and Christianity must in the end be of enormous
assistance in missionary work.
School work in Yezd is very greatly appreciated by a somewhat limited
class, but it means continual friction. The whole Mussulman clerical
class as a body are keenly opposed to it. More curiously it aroused the
greatest opposition from a small but not unimportant section of the
Parsis. The Parsis are a puzzling people. For though they are strong,
intelligent, thrifty, industrious, grateful, and comparatively honest,
they seem to have a tendency to produce in their community a sufficient
number of exceptionally disagreeable specimens of humanity to greatly
check their natural progress. I myself believe that this is due to
the prevalence of agnosticism amongst them, but, however that may be,
the result is that the Yezd community is always pestered by internal
intrigues. I do not think that the opposition to my school was religious,
for the _dastūrs_, that is the Zoroastrian priests, were always very
friendly. I have always put it down rather to internal intrigue.
My school work was originally undertaken at the explicit request of
the natives, and the boys came chiefly, but not wholly, from the upper
classes. It would be difficult, and very questionably advisable, to
start school work in a town like Yezd except under pressure from the
natives. Even when the work has been forced on one, it is very difficult
to maintain it. Not only is there still opposition from such quarters
as I have mentioned, but it is only with the greatest difficulty that
competent native assistance can be secured. If native assistance cannot
be secured, the missionary who has work with enquirers will have
difficulty in finding time even for short classes. Short classes may be
the best thing under certain circumstances, but in a town like Yezd they
do not meet the whole need. Boys are brought to you in Persia in most
cases primarily to be taught English, but this demand for English is
not the only requirement, nor is it the only need that is felt by the
Persians. Persians will frequently tell you that they bring their boys
to you for education in the largest sense; but we made it a practice in
Yezd only to accept boys who wished to learn English, and whose parents
could show that the knowledge of English was likely to be of some use to
them. Very frequently poor lads would come, under the impression that the
town was going to be occupied by Europeans, and that all who had learnt
English would get remunerative employment in Yezd. The only thing to do
under such circumstances was to explain the true state of affairs, and
then to insist on payment being made in advance for all books, and also
upon the payment of a six months’ fee. The first argument was generally
rather ineffectual, but supported by the second it always had the desired
result. If it could be shown that a poor boy was likely to reap advantage
from a knowledge of English, fees were always remitted, and in some cases
books were provided.
The ordinary fees were very small, but had to be paid in advance
for the half year. The education given comprised Persian subjects,
arithmetic, English, and elementary geography. The Bible was read in
Persian, night and morning, and the boys were expected to be present
during the Bible reading and prayers. Latterly the whole routine work
was put into the hands of natives, but I paid as much attention not
only to superintendence but also to conversational classes as my other
engagements would allow. Naturally there was a great difference in the
efficiency of the school at different times. At first it was with the
greatest difficulty that the work could be carried on at all, and what I
was able to do was of the most trivial character. In the end, owing to
the excellent work done by my Armenian assistants, and by Mihraban, my
Parsi mirza, the results were really excellent. On the whole, I think I
may say that the confidence reposed in the school system by the natives,
was greater than I could have expected, and in many things both boys and
parents proved excessively forbearing.
[Illustration: THE SCHOOL.
This was drawn when the school was quite small.
The figure on the left sitting in a chair is Mesak, my first Armenian
schoolmaster. I am on the right leaning against a desk. The thing in my
hand is a pointer and not an instrument of punishment. There is a wall in
front of me on which was hung the thing to which I was pointing. I should
perhaps mention that the square fire-place coming forward into the room
is not of a usual shape: fire-places are generally let into the wall. All
the boys in this picture are Mussulmans.]
In the matter of gratitude they showed discrimination, but the gratitude
that was shown me by the pupils who stuck to the school for any time,
and by their parents, was extraordinary. The lads themselves, both Parsi
and Mussulman, were on the whole intelligent and teachable. I had,
however, very much greater success in dealing with them when I had not
myself to undertake the routine work of the schoolmaster. Possibly this
was due partially to my not being suited for such work, but I am inclined
to think that in most cases elementary school work is not quite the
proper field for the European missionary in Persia. There is perhaps no
harm in the evangelistic missionary who has not yet perfected himself
in the language devoting more of his time to it; but, considering the
enormous value of the work from a spiritual point of view, there should
be no difficulty in getting funds to employ extra native assistants
where the European missionary feels himself in a position to organise
and superintend a school for native boys. These remarks do not apply to
schools for girls, for which properly qualified native teachers can only
be found with the greatest difficulty. My feeling is that not only can
the fully qualified European missionary be more usefully employed if
his time is not too largely given up to school work, but also much of
the actual work of the school is better done by natives under European
management, and the influence of the missionary with the boys may be
rather increased than checked by his not having to teach them their
ordinary lessons. It is, however, very difficult to separate what may
be taken as a general principle in Persia from what was true of our
particular circumstances in Yezd. I have before mentioned that I do not
consider myself very fitted for ordinary school work.
In the boys’ school in Yezd we had at first a custom of never admitting
a child until his father had been seen, and had thoroughly understood to
what extent he would receive religious teaching. I used to pledge myself
to teach nothing to the boy of Christian tradition apart from what could
be found in the _Kalāmu’llah_, that is, the Word of God accepted by the
Mohammedans, an expression which was thoroughly understood to include
the whole of the Christian Bible. This may seem at first sight to have
been merely a quibble, but it must not be forgotten in dealing with
the Mussulman, that he is afraid of something like Romanism which will
stand out in political as well as religious rivalry to Islam, and that
he knows very little of the special tenets of Protestants. My assurance
would at least have satisfied him that no attempt would be made to draw
the boy into a foreign politico-religious system. The fathers were
also told that the boys would be expected to attend prayers. Latterly,
as the school and its methods got better known, the necessity for these
precautions disappeared. However, when boys at the school came to me,
as they frequently did, and told me that they wished to know more about
Christianity, I invariably insisted that their fathers or guardians
should be informed before they received special instruction. Of course
they were always free to come to the Sunday School, which was held for
them by my Armenian assistant, and which was attended by a few boys from
other schools as well, and occasionally by one or two men. Many of the
boys also were extremely regular in their attendance at the services,
which we held at first in our houses, and afterwards in a chapel which
was built in the hospital.
Our school work in Yezd was in every way a thoroughly effective
evangelistic agency. It brought me into touch with scores of adults who
without it would never have entered my house. By increasing the general
business with which I was surrounded, it also greatly facilitated my
contact with those who came to me as regular enquirers. All this was
additional to the direct effects of the school work, which I have reason
to believe were exceedingly satisfactory. Altogether school work proved
in Yezd to be one of the most effective forms of missionary effort.
At the same time one or two things have to be borne in mind about it.
First of all, it is extremely difficult for the evangelistic missionary
to organise school work for the teaching of Persian subjects only that
will successfully compete with the native schools. Further, the need
for such work is not greatly felt by the natives. But the teaching of
English is one of those things which missionaries are distinctly asked to
undertake, and which they are able to undertake with great advantage. In
a short time I have no doubt that industrial education will be an even
more pressing need. The argument for schools as against classes is that
their effect upon the moral character of the boys is much greater, and
that the qualified missionary has by himself time for neither, unless
indeed the classes are to be very short ones, and the staff that would be
needed to properly undertake classes might just as well manage a school.
With regard to fees, it seems to me that when assistants are employed
fees should be charged; but to get fees that would really cover the
expenses would be impossible, and I personally think that the lower
the fee the more easy it is to enforce its payment, and to keep the
arrangements of the school entirely in one’s own hands. This, however,
is a matter over which there is plenty of room for difference of
opinion. Of one thing I am certain, and that is that in the up-country
towns educational work must begin amongst classes who can support the
missionary against Persian intrigues and the direct opposition of the
Mulla class. In starting a school in a Mussulman country the object
of the missionary must always be to get the establishment regarded as
a settled fact, consequently certain things which would otherwise be
unimportant become matters of extreme moment. For instance, if anything
should happen to the teaching staff, the school must be kept running,
even if the pupils cannot under the circumstances make great progress.
At one time I had to keep the school going when I was myself laid up in
a sick room, and had no assistant capable of teaching much more than the
primers. The day’s work for the first class was written out by my wife,
and sent into the school by a servant. However, the school survived,
and some while later, when it was again properly staffed, we saw the
effects of our persistence, for while the town was absolutely under mob
law, the school was never without a certain number of boys attending at
the regular hours. Again, when the position of the school is temporarily
assured, nothing can be better than some sort of public Speech Day,
which both advertises its existence, and makes people understand that
you regard its permanence as a matter of course. The fact is that in
Persia all opposition and persecution is spasmodic, and if you can manage
to go your own way for a sufficient time and then take your position
for granted, you will be allowed to do things which vastly exceed your
recognised rights and liberties.
Medical mission work in Persia has been described by those who have been
actively engaged in it. Under these circumstances I intend to speak very
much less about it than I have done about other methods of work, though
it is at least as important as any. It would be possible to divide the
provinces of medical work in several ways, but it seems to me to be best
treated under three heads: hospital work, dispensary work, and medical
visiting. The branch of medical work which is most obviously necessary,
and also perhaps least productive of direct spiritual results is the
work of the dispensary. A doctor settled in a Persian town is primarily
expected to see all comers and to provide them with medicines. Indeed the
Persian will come to the European for treatment whether he is a doctor
or not. The business of the dispensary affords an excellent opportunity
for giving an address on religious subjects, but comparatively little for
systematic teaching of individuals, though contacts may be made during
dispensary hours that may lead to further enquiry, and of course even
systematic teaching can be given during dispensary hours by a determined
worker.
Medical visiting is just what the missionary is able to make it. The
over-worked doctor with more visits than he can pay in the day has to
be content with a very occasional reading and a word here and there
as opportunity offers; but there is no doubt that the opportunity is
unique, and if time can be made during medical visits for more systematic
spiritual teaching, such teaching is likely for several reasons to carry
exceptional weight. Although perhaps medical visits give a better
opportunity to the doctor who wishes to himself follow up the work with
religious teaching, dispensary work affords a much better opportunity
for the bringing of other evangelists into such touch with the patients
as will make it possible to find out any serious enquirers and to rouse
others to further interest. The great difficulty in dispensary work
and medical visiting, regarded as evangelistic agencies in Persia, is
that the number of contacts is almost too large to handle. To begin
with, the staff of missionaries is inadequate, and the difficulty is
further increased by the peculiarities of the Persian, who in most
cases is almost untouched by any teaching that is not systematic, and
that does not go somewhat deeply into fundamentals. Of course these
kinds of medical work produce more contacts than does anything else,
but the difficulty in Persia is not to bring people within the hearing
of the Gospels, but to convey to them something of the meaning of the
Gospel. What makes the medical mission of the present time in Persia
all-important is not that it is absolutely necessary for the purpose of
bringing the evangelist into touch with the native, though in certain
times and places it may be still greatly needed for this purpose; but
the great point is that it has often explained the meaning of Christ
crucified to men and women who without it seemed unable to grasp the
Christian idea. This I believe to be true of all branches of medical
mission work that I have mentioned, but at the same time it must be
owned that the branch which has hitherto proved most satisfactory as a
direct evangelistic agency is that connected with the hospital. Nobody
can speak too highly of the potentialities of hospital work in Persia. It
is almost inconceivable what misunderstanding of the doctor’s attitude
is possible in out-patient work in a Mussulman country. He is a bad man
trying to work off his sins. He is sent out by the English Government at
a high salary. He is making a very good profit out of the work. He is an
instance of the subjection of the infidel to the Mussulman by the power
of God. All these notions gradually die away under the systematic life
and discipline of the hospital, with its atmosphere of trust and repose.
Day by day men meet the doctor and his assistants and learn to know them;
they see the quiet persistence of their kindness, and its penetration
into the smallest detail; best of all, they hear the Word of God day
by day brought into a connected story and an intelligible system of
salvation. In the best conducted hospitals the only misconception that is
likely to remain is the belief that the missionaries as a body are trying
to win a high place in Heaven by _savabs_. This dies very hard, and
all we can say is that the hospital system, perhaps partly by its more
definite discipline, tends to eradicate it. It is true that some workers
have produced similar results by importing the atmosphere of Christian
hospital work into the medical visit or the dispensary; but the point to
be noted is that what is natural in the Christian hospital has in other
forms of medical work to be deliberately and persistently fostered.
In these if the highest spiritual results are to be obtained, there
must be on the part of the worker a determination rather to guide the
organisation towards them, than to depend on its essential qualities as a
missionary force. It is not that hospital equipment is an essential for
a doctor who wants to preach the Gospel, but no matter what a missionary
may be, clergyman, lay evangelist, or medical, it is only by getting into
close touch with the native, and by systematic and persevering teaching,
that he can expect to extend Christ’s Kingdom in Persian towns.
Of course the position of the medical missionary who is invited to the
town by those in authority, as is frequently the case, is very different
from that of most other missionaries. There may be a real demand for
school teaching, but even when school work has been started and placed
on a satisfactory footing, it never appeals so generally to the interest
of all classes as to be superior to any intrigue that may arise, or to
bursts of fanatical bigotry. At the same time the medical missionary who
has gone to a new station finds that even when invited he is on trial.
When free medicines are given, as on some occasions they have been for
a short period, two-thirds of the people throw them away without using
them. Even those who have invited him are quite ready to turn against
him, at any rate behind his back. These difficulties, although real, are
minor ones, and there are very few European doctors, possessed of an
ordinary amount of common-sense and a good material equipment, who cannot
get over them in a short while. The real danger is lest the missionary by
regarding these difficulties as more serious than they really are should
become too absorbed in his efforts to overcome them. Medical work is
really an enormous power. It may make possible, under God’s providence,
steps and measures which would otherwise be utterly impossible. But if
it is to be fully used to God’s glory, these God-given powers must be
realised, and put forth to their full extent.
Medical and school work have one other advantage besides those that have
been mentioned, for they enable a class of men to participate in mission
work who as ordinary evangelistic missionaries would be useless. In
the first place, there is the newly-arrived European, who imperfectly
understands the language, and who yet may do more or less effective
work while he is still studying, if he is connected with a medical or
educational organisation. Secondly, if it were not for schools and
medical work it would be exceedingly difficult for the Persian missions
to employ natives, except in menial capacities or in positions attended
with the gravest peril. Here to my mind we have one of the greatest
arguments for medical and school work, and this from the directly
evangelistic standpoint.
This brings the subject of methods of work in Persian towns like Yezd to
a conclusion. It is not impossible to work as a simple evangelist, but
it needs certain qualifications and abilities. Generally speaking, the
ordinary missionary must be prepared to use both hands and both feet, and
to enter in whatever way seems most expedient into the life of the town.
There is no room for university work, and technical instruction has not
yet been tried, but elementary school work and medical work are both much
needed and much appreciated, and they further afford an abundant field
for directly evangelistic labour.
CONCLUSION.
We have now seen something not only of the Yezdi’s life, of his
character, and of his mental attitude towards the missionary, but also
something of the way in which the modern missionary attempts to meet this
attitude. Of course it cannot be claimed that the estimate of the Yezdi’s
position that has been made in these pages is in any way final, or that
it is one with which all acquainted with the subject would certainly
concur. To have limited myself to the greatest common measure of opinion
on such a matter would have prevented me altogether from touching on
many questions, and would have left me very little to say on others. As
the book stands, I can claim that it is truthful in matters of fact, and
in other things sufficiently sound to form a basis for other people’s
corrections; and as many find it less easy to state their own views than
to combat those of other persons, I am not without hopes that it may be
useful, even if my conclusions should prove altogether unacceptable. Also
it may be pointed out that, though I have throughout spoken of the Yezdi
and of Yezd, these have been taken as special instances of a Persian and
his town. Other places in central Persia may differ in particulars, but
there will in most cases be a general similarity.
Perhaps a short summary of the points which have been noted in the
preceding pages may not be without value. We have seen first of all the
strange staccato effect of Persian scenery, particularly of that which
meets the eye of the Yezdi, and have noticed how this has influenced the
Yezdi’s mind. Then we have seen the extreme insularity of the town, and
how this has given rise to symptoms which resemble intense fanatical
bigotry, but on the other hand how this insularity may be utilised by
the foreigner when it is once understood. Then we have tried to discover
the essential system of Islam, and to decide whether or not the Persian
Shiah has been greatly influenced by the prophet’s life and teaching.
My own opinion is that Persia is most strongly Mohammedan, but seeing
that the point of this book is not so much to express opinions as to
give the facts that have led to their formation, I must not complain if
many of my readers do not agree with me. An attempt has also been made
to explain the religiosity of the Mohammedan, and to show that it is
neither hypocrisy, nor yet religion in the Western sense. Then there was
a chapter on the Yezdi’s character, and I think that in this my main
point was to show how superficial is the judgment that pronounces the
Persian thoroughly weak and effete. He really shows great strength of
purpose when he has a purpose, he has some peculiar abilities, and is at
bottom thoroughly likeable and loveable, but he is spoilt by the unhappy
circumstances of his existence and very specially by his creed.
After that there was an attempt to show the peculiar nature of the search
after truth that is just now going on in Persia, and very particularly in
Yezd. That this is God’s doing, intended to prepare the way for Christian
teaching, I have in my own mind no doubt at all; but I have tried to
describe it as a phenomenon, and sometimes to trace it to immediate
causes where such causes are easily discoverable. Lastly, I have tried
to show that towns like Yezd present a field, not only workable by one
class of missionary organisation, but approachable in many different ways.
I sincerely trust that those who have followed the argument of these
chapters will have come to my own conclusion, that, although there are
enormous difficulties in missionary work in Persia, there are also
enormous opportunities, and that there is great reason to expect that
in such a country things will one day come with a rush: further, that
when the barrier of Mohammedanism is removed, there are grounds for
hoping that Persian character will recover its equilibrium and the
nation prove by no means decadent. If in addition the spiritual force
of Christianity be brought to bear upon the people, Persia may prove in
the future the missionary power of the near East. Persia at this moment
is full of religious enquirers, willing to make immense sacrifices for
their convictions; and behind these there is a mass of simple people,
religiously minded and yet utterly dissatisfied with their present creed.
There are of course great prejudices still existing against Christianity,
but these prejudices have been by God’s blessing broken down in
individual instances, and when their nature is better realised they may
more generally disappear. It is not necessary to give actual statistics
with reference to converts: it is enough to say that the number of those
who have come forward in Yezd is sufficient to prove two things; firstly,
that God is willing to bless the work very fully, and secondly, that we
are not quite ready for His blessing.[7]
If any further proof were needed of God’s willingness to forward the work
of the Yezd mission, it would be found in the history of the Christian
institutions in the town. The medical work was founded by Dr Henry
White about six years and a half back, he having been in the Isfahan
district for about twelve months previous to his arrival in Yezd. There
is now not only a men’s hospital and dispensary in the town, but also
two dispensaries in the outlying villages, and a women’s hospital and
dispensary under Dr Elsie Taylor. In connection with the medical work one
can hardly help mentioning the name of Miss Bird, who really founded the
work amongst the women, and that of Dr Griffith, who did most valuable
work during the furlough of Dr White.
The site for the men’s hospital was given to the Society shortly after
Dr White’s arrival, by the late Mr Gudarz, a prominent Parsi merchant in
the town. The medical mission in Yezd may be said to be quite as firmly
established as the Government.
I myself came to Yezd six months later than Dr White, without any
previous experience of Persia. My successor, Mr Boyland, has now under
his charge a school of about sixty boys, Mussulmans, Babis and Parsis,
with a staff of native masters. The boys in spite of their religious
differences play football together. The religious teaching in the school
is given without the slightest concealment. There is also a school for
Parsi girls more lately established by Miss Brighty. In this school
religious instruction is also given. When I left Yezd the number of the
pupils was about forty.
I may also mention that in the chapel which we have built in the hospital
we often have congregations of over a hundred Persians. The chapel cost
something under a hundred pounds, and the funds were subscribed, all but
twenty-five pounds, by the members of the European colony.
It is a great mistake to regard such work as we have in Yezd as primarily
of a preparatory nature in view of some future opportunity. Babiism,
which is in some ways more opposed to Christianity than the religion
of the average Persian Mussulman, is fast gaining ground, and the
exceptional opportunity, which is occasioned by the preparation of the
soil by Babi missionaries who have not yet been successful in planting
their ideas, is fast passing away. It has been already pointed out that
there is not much hope of real religious liberty under native rule.
Some people think that there are shortly going to be changes in Persia
which will entirely deprive the British missionary of his opportunity.
If we take this view we ought to act quickly. Taking a second and more
hopeful view of the future, other political developments which might make
religious liberty in any sense a reality, would find us by no means in
a position to make the best use of them, unless we had a native church
gathered in time of stress and strain upon whose judgment to rely.
Consequently mission work in Persia is a matter which demands most
careful consideration, most unsparing effort, and most earnest prayer.
We ought not to lack recruits. That there are difficulties to be solved
is true, but when all has been said the overwhelming horror of modern
Mohammedanism, the intense hopefulness of Persian character, and last but
not least, the obvious preparation made by God in this country for human
evangelistic labours, all together present a situation which cannot but
appeal to the Christian Englishman.
FOOTNOTES
[1] The author has, with a few exceptions, accentuated native words
_only_ where they first occur in the book.
[2] The dates given with regard to this persecution are approximately
correct; but, although reasonable care has been taken to find the exact
year in which the changes of restriction were made, the absolute accuracy
of some of these dates cannot be guaranteed.
[3] The Yezdi realises the link of a common language, but by this he
means a common dialect. Consequently I have included this idea in
fellow-townsmanship; it in no way takes the place of the bond of country.
[4] I was informed, however, by Dr Griffith that the Mussulmans of Kirman
welcomed his coming and the work of the medical mission on the ground
that his _savabs_, being the _savabs_ of an infidel, would be credited
not to him but to the account of the Mohammedans of the town, who stood
rather sorely in need of them.
[5] This only refers to visits of ceremony. When people found that they
could come to my house without notice, I often had a continual succession
of visitors throughout the day.
[6] Certainly the Light also operates inside Islam. During the Babi
massacre a number of women who had been horrified by the sights in the
streets said to my wife, “They say that we can’t be Mussulmans if we mind
these things, but cannot these things sicken even Mohammedans?”
[7] The opinion that Persia is changing its religion, or at least its
form of Mohammedanism, is not confined to missionary circles.
GLOSSARY
_Aivān_ A kind of portico, or roofed recess.
_Anjuman_ Assembly, committee.
_Arkhālūq_ Under-coat.
_Bābī_ Follower of the Bāb.
_Bād-gīr_ Air-shaft.
_Bāgh_ Enclosed cultivation.
_Behāī_ Follower of Behāu’llah.
_Chādar_ Sheet; especially the cotton shawl worn over the
head and whole body by the women.
_Chārvādār_ Muleteer, or donkey caravan driver.
_Dastūr_ Parsi priest.
_Dīv_ Demon.
_Farrāsh_ Literally a carpet-sweeper. Really a servant,
chiefly outdoor.
_Ferangī_ Frank, European.
_Firmān_ Government order.
_Islām_ Resignation to God. The name given by Mohammed to
his religion.
_Jazīya_ Poll tax levied by Mohammedans on non-Mohammedan
monotheists living in their country.
_Jin_ Genius; a being composed of fire.
_Kajāva_ A kind of wooden pannier with a hood.
_Khān_ A hereditary title.
_Krān_ A coin worth about 4½d., the tenth part of a tomān.
_Kursī_ Wooden stool. Especially one used over a pan of
charcoal to support a quilt.
_Lāla_ A spring candlestick with a globe.
_Lūtī_ A rough; a bad character.
_Man’_ A weight varying in different towns. In Yezd it is
about 13 lbs.
_Manzil_ Halting-place.
_Mazra’_ A piece of cultivated land.
_Mirzā_ Clerk, secretary.
_Muballigh_ A missionary. The word is generally used of the
Behāī missionaries in Yezd.
_Mujtahid_ The highest class of the Mohammedan clergy.
_Mullā_ A word very like our term “clerk.” It is generally
used of the clergy, but it is sometimes a mere
courtesy title, and sometimes means a man who
can read.
_Mussulmān_, _Muslim_ A believer in Islam. One who is resigned to God.
_Nakhl_ A religious implement.
_Nijāsat_ Ceremonial uncleanness.
_Paighambar_ Message bearer, prophet.
_Paighambarī_ Prophethood.
_Qabā_ Outer coat.
_Qalāntar_ Head-man. The title is used in Yezd for the
head-man of the Parsis.
_Qaliān_ Persian hookah.
_Qan’āt_ Underground water-channel.
_Raiyat_ Agriculturist, a tenant farmer who pays rent in
kind. It also means a subject.
_Rūza khānī_ Religious recitation.
_Saughāt_ A traveller’s present.
_Savāb_ Work of merit.
_Seyid_ A descendant of Mohammed.
_Shiah_ Nonconformist. However, there is a Shiah sect held
orthodox in Persia.
_Sunnat_ Ancient traditions and Commentary on the Quran
accepted by the Sunnis.
_Sunnī_ A member of the Mohammedan sect accepting the
Sunnat, who are considered orthodox in Turkey,
India, and Africa, as opposed to the Shiahs of
Persia and elsewhere.
_Taqdīr_ Predestination.
_Taqīya_ Concealment of faith by denial in times of danger.
_Tauhīd_ Assertion of the Divine Unity.
_Tomān_ A sum of money, 10,000 dinars, equivalent to about
3s. 8d.
_Yailāq_ Summer quarters, generally a village in the hills.
_Zardūshtī_ Follower of Zardūsht or Zoroaster, the Parsi
prophet.
INDEX
Abbās, 67
Abu Jahl, 67
Abu Tālib, Mohammed’s uncle, 67
_Aīvan_, 18
Ali, Imam, 75-77
Ali Mohammed (Bab), 90, 91
_Anjuman_, 49
Arbāb Jamshīd, a wealthy Parsi at Tehran, 51
Arches, 16
_Arkhālūq_, 45
Armenian Christians, 58, 107
Aryan Parsis, 62
Atmosphere, absence of moisture in, 13
Bāb, gate of knowledge, 73
——, first book-bearer of the Behāīs, founder of the Babi sect, 90, 91
Babis, the, 79, 86, 88, 91, 94, 108, 177, 187, 193, 212;
massacre of, 104, 155-157, 186;
martyrs, 138, 139
_Bād-gīr_, 14, 15, 46
_Bāgh_, 9-11
Bazaars, 11
Behāīs, the, 61, 81;
massacre of, 44, 52, 87-89, 104;
tenets of, 86, 90, 92-96, 104, 114
Behaū’llah, first book-bearer of the Behāīs, 81, 87, 89, 90, 92, 95, 193
Bigotry, in Yezd, 44
Bird, Miss, 260
Boyland, Mr, 261
Brighty, Miss, 261
Browne, Professor E. G., translator of the _Tārīkhi Jadīd_, 91
Bruce, Canon, 58, 59
Carpenters, of Yezd, 23
Carpets, 22
Caspian Sea, 2
_Chādar_, 122
Chairs, 24
_Church Missionary Intelligencer_, 95
Church Missionary Society, 55, 230, 232
Cleanliness, of Yezdis, 26
Converts, problem of, 196-198, 212-215
Crime, indifference to, 184
Curtains, 21
Deserts, salt and sandy, 2, 3
Dīnyār, _Qalāntar_ of the Parsi Committee, 49
Divorce, 178
_Dīvs_, 121, 122
Doors, 19, 20
Etiquette and Manners, of the Yezdis, 158
European colony, in Yezd, 55
Evil Eye, 122
Fanaticism, of Yezdis, 54
_Farrāsh_, 47
Fireplaces, 21
Fittings of houses, 21
Flower-beds, 33, 34
Forgiveness of sins, Mohammed’s teaching on the, 98
Furniture, 21-26
Gardens, 9
Griffith, Dr, 100, 260
Gudarz, Mr, a prominent Parsi merchant of Yezd, 261
Gypsum, 17
_Hakim Khānum_, lady doctor, 102
_Hanifs_, reformers, 65, 66, 68, 70
Hasan, Imam, 133, 134
Heaven and Hell, Mussulman idea of, 98, 99
Hill villages, 31, 32
Hookahs, Persian, 25
Houses, 13-33; built for heat, 29, 30
Husain, Imam, 133, 134
Huts, mud, 28
Ibn Ishāk, the biographer, 68
Ibrāhīm Qalīl Khān, 50
Imam Ali, 75-77
—— Hasan, 133, 134
—— Husain, 133, 134
Imams, the, 73, 76, 77
Industrial missions—a suggestion, 197-201
Infidels, Persian attitude towards, 130
Insularity, of Yezd, 36
Isaiah, quoted, 95
Isfahan, 36
Isfahanis, and Yezdis, 38
Isfandiār, a Parsi schoolmaster at Taft, 51
Islām, doctrine of, 64, 65, 80-82, 96, 97, 110, 132, 133;
has ruined Persia, 112
Isolation, of Yezd, 36
_Jadīd_, a convert from Parsiism, 62
Jalālu’d Daula, the, 52, 183
_Jazīya_, 47, 49
Jews, in Yezd, 44, 52;
Mohammed’s dealings with, 71
_Jins_, 121, 122
Julfa, a suburb of Isfahan, 58
_Jus Paternum_, in Yezd, 181
Ka’aba, a heathen temple of the Meccans, 65
Kāshān, 7, 43
Khadīja, wife of Mohammed, 66
Khalīfs, the, 72, 76
_Khauf u jizā_, fear of hell and expectation of heaven, 98
Kirmān, 7, 36
Koelle, _Life of Mohammed_, 67, 68, 71
Kūcha Biyuk, village, 49
_Kursī_, 22, 30
_Lāla_, 25
Lamps, 25
Language, Persian, 152
Lāristān, 43
Lattices, 19
Ledges, 16
Looking-glasses, 21
_Lūtīs_, 51, 58
Mahdi, or Mehdi, the last of the Imams, 72, 73, 75
Mānukjī Limjī, Parsi representative in Tehran, 48, 50
_Manzil_, 34
Marriages, Persian, 178
_Mazra’_, 4, 5
Mecca, 63, 65, 69, 70
Medical Missions, in Yezd, 55, 229, 248-254
Medina, 63, 70, 71
Mihraban, a Parsi, 64
Miracle play, Muharram, 126, 134
Missionary in Persia, the, his difficulties, 188-216;
the problem of converts, 196-198, 212-215;
his tasks and duties, 217-255;
philanthropic work, 229-232;
poor relief, 232-239;
school and medical work, 239-254
Missions, Christian, tolerated in Yezd, 55, 56;
industrial, 197-201
Mohammed, 63-72, 84, 85, 90, 91, 96, 97, 112, 113, 128, 130;
his birth, 65;
his wife, 66;
head of the _Hanif_ movement, 67;
his admiration of the Jews, 124
Mohammedanism, Persian, 60, 64-114;
aspects in Yezd of, 115-135
Monogamy, 177, 178
Mountain streams, 5
_Muballigh_, teacher and missionary, 88, 89
Mud, use of, 12;
huts of, 28
Muhammad Hasan Khan, Governor of Yezd, 48
Muharram, 133
_Mujtahid_, 46-48, 56, 58, 73-75, 88
Mulla Bahrām of Khuramshār, a Parsi, 48
_Munāfiqīn_, hypocrites, 80
Mushīru’l Mamālik, the, 51
Mussulman _v._ Armenian morality, 118
Muzaffaru’d Dīn, Shah, 49
_Nakhl_, 134
Nāsiru’d Dīn, Shah, 48
Nāsiru’d Dīn, Mulla, and his mule, story of, 149
_Nijāsat_, 132
Non-conformity in Persia, 61
Oasis, 3, 4
Omar, Khalīf, 76, 135
Opium trade, 170
Ornamentation, of houses, 17
_Paighambarī_, 84, 85, 96, 110, 127
Parsis in Yezd, oppression and persecution of, 44-52
Pilgrimages, Mussulman, 118, 128
Plain, a typical Persian, 7
Polygamy, 177
Poor relief, 232-239
Postal arrangements, in Yezd, 36
_Qabā_, 45, 48
_Qalāntar_, 49
_Qaliān_, 25
Qum, 119
_Qurān_, the, 73, 74, 76, 77, 92, 93, 105, 107-109, 119, 120, 124, 130
Rainfall, 6, 29
Ramazān, Mohammedan Fast, 78
Rasht, 43, 233
Rice, Rev. W. A., 95
Rustami Ardishīri Dīnyār, a Parsi, 49
_Rūza khānī_, 126, 196
Sahāmu’l Mulk, 51
_Sāhibi kitāb_, a book-bearer, Mohammed regarded as the last, 72
Salāmat, a Parsi, 51
Salt and sandy deserts, 2, 3
_Saughāts_, 162
_Savābs_, 98-105
School work, in Yezd, 239-248
_Seyid_, a descendant of Mohammed, 50, 101, 102
Shaikhi sect, the, 91
_Shahr_, a town, 39
Shiahs, or nonconformists, 60, 73-78, 86, 87, 93-98, 103, 105-109, 124,
128, 134, 177, 212
Shīrāz, 36, 43
Silkworms, 233
Soldiers, Persian, 156
Streams, mountain, 5
Subhi Azal, second book-bearer of the Behāīs, 90, 92
Sufis, sect of the, 86, 108
Summer buildings, 15, 29
_Sunnat_, 73, 74
Sunnis, and their creed, 63, 72, 74, 77, 80, 94, 106
Superstition, 121-123
Tables, 23, 24
Taft village, 51, 134
_Tālār_, summer portico, 14, 15
_Tāqchas_, ledges, 16, 24-26
_Taqdīr_, 97
_Taqiya_, 212
_Tārīkhi Jadīd_, 91
_Tauhid_, 127
Taylor, Dr Elsie, 260
Teheran, 2
Telegraph line, native, 37
Tīrandāz, a Parsi, 49
_Tomān_, 47
Trinket boxes, 26
Turners, of Yezd, 23
Uncleanness, degrees of, 130-132
Untruthfulness of Persians, 116, 142
_Vatan_, home-district, 39
Villages, 8;
hill-, 31, 32
Walls, house-, 16
Waraka ibn Nawfal, a prominent _Hanif_, 66
Water system, 6
White, Dr Henry, 204, 260, 261
Windows, 19, 20
Winter rooms, 18
_Yailāq_, 31
Yazīd, 134
Yezd district, houses in, 1-35;
its isolation and insularity, 36
Yezdis, and Isfahanis, 38;
their religion, 111, 120-126;
character of the, 136-187;
systematised inconsistency, 137;
loyalty, 138;
sense of shame, 147;
humour, 148;
their disregard of time, 150;
difficulties of their language, 152;
lack of initiative, 154;
their courage, 155;
etiquette and manners of, 158;
their triviality, 160;
pride, 165, 166;
kindliness, cruelty, 166;
dishonesty, 142, 168;
lack of business habits, 171;
fatalism, 173;
latent strength, 176;
their family ties, 177;
_jus paternum_, 181;
religious liberty, 181-183;
indifference to crime, 184;
open-handness, 184
Zaid, 71
Zaid ibn Amr, 66
Zainab, 71
Zardūshtī (Zoroastrian), 50
Zillu’s Sultān, 50, 52
Zoroastrians, in Yezd, 46-53, 113
PRINTED AT THE EDINBURGH PRESS, 9 AND 11 YOUNG STREET.
[Illustration: CENTRAL PERSIA illustrating FIVE YEARS IN A PERSIAN TOWN.
By the Rev. Napier Malcolm.]
End of Project Gutenberg's Five Years in a Persian Town, by Napier Malcolm