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Almighty Judge, will last a thousand years. At that time will Huzrut Esau descend to judge the world, and to commit idolaters to hell-fire, from which they will never be delivered. But he will give up the faithful to our holy prophet, Ali Ol Salam, who will mediate between them and God. Then will all mankind," added the Sheik Olislam, "stand assembled, some say a thousand, some fifty thousand, years, looking up to heaven, but without receiving any information from thence. And, in the mean time, the torments of the just and of the unjust will be very grievous; but those of the former will be most terrible."

Now I saw, in my dream, that, when Goonah Purist heard this terrible account of the last day, he groaned within himself. Moreover, the burden on his back began to press more heavily upon him, while the leprosy in his body caused him to appear more and more foul in his own eyes; yet he spake not.

So the Sheik Olislam proceeded in his discourse, and spake thus:-" When all mankind assembled have waited the appointed time, then will God appear to judge them. He will be surrounded by his angels, and will produce the books wherein the actions of every person stand recorded by their guardian angels. Then every one will be examined according to his works; and every man shall give an account to God of the manner in which he spent his time on earth: of his riches, how he gathered and how he employed them; of his body, how he exercised it; of his talents and learning, to what purposes they were applied."

"If this be so," said Goonah Purist, "we are all undone; for whose actions can stand so dreadful a trial?"

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'It is thy business," answered the Sheik Olislam, "to see that thy works are rendered fit to stand the trial; for there can be no doubt, but that things

will be as I have represented them, since I take them from this holy book which now lies before me, and which, as I before said, was dictated by the angel Gabriel to our holy prophet, Huzrut Mahommed, Ali Ol Salam."

Goonah Purist fetched a deep groan; and then, with his eyes fixed on the ground, hearkened to the Sheik Olislam, who thus went on:

"In that day, even the day of judgment, the angel Gabriel will stand with a balance in his hand of immense magnitude. In this will the actions of every individual be weighed; and those persons whose good actions shall be found to preponderate against their evil works will be saved."

Then said Goonah Purist, "In that case, I shall be inevitably condemned; seeing that the weight of my sins is even now too heavy for me to bear. But, my Lord, what will follow the last judgment?"

"When the trial is over," replied the Sheik Olislam, "such of the believers as are to be admitted into paradise will take the right-hand way, while those who are destined to hell-fire will turn to the left: but both of them must pass the bridge Al Sirat, which is laid over the midst of hell. This bridge is finer than a hair, and sharper than the edge of a sword. The righteous will be enabled to pass over it with ease; but the wicked will miss their footing, and fall headlong into hell, whose flaming jaws will be gaping wide beneath them."

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And will they remain for ever in hell?" asked Goonah Purist.

The Sheik Olislam replied, "Of those who fall from Al Sirat, such as have been true believers, and yet have been guilty of crimes, will be received into Jehennam, which is the first hell, (for there are seven,) whence, after having expiated their crimes by ages of fiery suffering, they will be taken up into a state of happiness. But the rest, who have not been true believers, bearing the name only of

Mussulmaun, while hypocrisy was in their hearts, will fall into the seventh, or lowest hell, from whence they can never be delivered."

I perceived then, in my dream, that, when Goonah Purist heard of the difficulties which even true believers must encounter before they can be admitted to happiness, difficulties which appeared to him absolutely insurmountable, inasmuch as those who were to be saved must, in a great measure, owe their salvation to their own good works and deservings; being filled with horror and consternation, he cried out to this effectSeeing all these things are so, what shall I do to be saved?"

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Then answered the Sheik Olislam, "If thou art in earnest to become a Mussulmaun, renouncing thine abominable idolatries, I will inform thee what thou must do." He then made him understand, that their religion required frequent washings and ablutions; earnest prayer, which was duly to be observed seven times a day; abstinence from pork, and frequent alms-giving, with the regular observance of appointed fasts, together with various other ceremonies.

Then answered Goonah Purist, "Many of these things have I done, and more than you have mentioned; if they could have availed me any thing. I have not only refrained from the flesh of swine, but, also, from that of the cow, from my infancy; I have observed long fasts, and made use of frequent ablutions: but what have all these external rites availed me? I am in no way cleansed or purified from the leprosy of sin: neither is the grievous weight of my burden at all diminished by prayer, or by giving of alms; for these last," added he, "being no more than just and necessary duties, or rather debts due to him that giveth all things, how can they afford satisfaction for past trespasses? I feel that the state of mankind on

earth is such as to demand a powerful atonement, yea, such an atonement as no created being can provide, and such a method of purification from their pollutions as the whole creation cannot supply."

"Do you mean to insinuate," replied the Sheik Olislam," that our holy faith does not afford what your necessities require? You cannot, then, trust our great prophet as a mediator to stand between you and God? and you deem our pure law and holy rites insufficient for your purification?"

I saw then, that the Sheik fell into a great rage, asking him how he could presume to reason with him, or to express a doubt of the sufficiency of their great prophet, and their holy faith. The disciples, too, of the Sheik began to revile the trembling enquirer. Then was Goonah Purist greatly terrified; and, perceiving that the religion of Mahommed pointed out no adequate satisfaction for sin, nor any probable means of inward purification; and that, according to it, man must rise and fall by himself alone; and feeling also, that if he trusted to his own good works he must be utterly lost; he resolved to go elsewhere in search of salvation. So he arose, and came away in haste from the house of the Sheik Olislam.

Now I looked, and behold, when Goonah Purist was come out into the street, and had got a little way from the house of the high-priest, and from the chief mosque, he was met by an immense concourse of people, (for it was the month called Mohurrum,) who were going about with timbrels, and drums, and trumpets; before which they danced and capered like men frantic, exclaiming, "Hussein! Hossein! Hussein! Hossein!" And presently followed a company of persons clashing their swords, as in a mock fight; and these having passed by, others followed, bearing on their shoulders beautiful models of tombs and sepulchres,

formed of light and splendid materials. So Goonah Purist was obliged to stand back, since he could not pass on, by reason of the immense crowd of people; and, being heavily pressed with grief, and the weight of his burden, he sat down on one side, in the dust of the street, waiting till the throng should be passed, and the uproar should cease. But behold, the people continued going and coming till sun-set; and at sun-set, the confusion became still greater, for the streets were thronged all night, by people intoxicated with strong liquor, and with opium, and with bang; and every man did what was right in the sight of his own eyes: so that the city was filled with abominations.

Now Goonah Purist became anxious to know what all this might mean; and he looked this way, and that way, for one who could explain the matter to him. At length, seeing a religious mendicant standing at some distance from him, he ventured to put the question to him.

Then answered the mendicant, "Friend, where hast thou lived until now, seeing that thou art ignorant that this is the holy feast of the Mohurrum, and that the people are gathered here to commemorate the deaths of Hussein and Hossein?"

Goonah Purist. And who may these persons be?

Mendicant. Child of ignorance and folly, knowest thou not, that these are the sons of Fatima, the daughter of our holy prophet, Ali Ol Salam, and the wife of Ali; and, that she, on the day of judgment, will present herself before the throne of the Almighty, with the head of her murdered son in one hand, and the heart of her poisoned son in the other, and will claim, on account of their deaths, the acquittal of their followers?

I saw then, in my dream, that when Goonah Purist heard these words, he was pleased.

And do you affirm," said he, "that all such

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