File 756/1917 Pt 2-3 ‘ARAB BULLETIN Nos 66-114’ [‎290v] (589/834)

4 —
The Tkhwan do not control the Wahhabi movement ; they
are the instrument of its leaders of whom the chief is Ibn Sand ;
being Badawin with bees in their bonnets they are not always
easy to control. •>
Their deliberations are not held in secret; I have frequently
witnessed them, especially during Ramadan when they were held
on the open roof of the palace ; they are naturally attended
almost exclusively by the Ikhwan themselves because they are a
little too strenuous for ordinary people ; they consist of Quran,
Hadith and Tafsir readings (particularly passages relating to the
terrors of Hell and the delights of Paradise) and sermons by
Ibn Saud and Abdullah ibn Abdul Wahhab ; Ibn Saud has fre
quently repeated to me in extenso sermons delivered by him on
such occasions. Questions such as the Hail offensive and Ibn
Sand’s motives in holding the Nejd Ikhwan back from Khurma
were also common subjects of discussion. I never heard of any
death sentence for betrayal of the proceedings ; on the contrary
they are freely discussed in public.
As regards dress and personal appearance the ideal of the
Ikhwan is to imitate the practice of Mohammed as nearly as
possible ; their dress is the dress of the ordinary Badawin—seldom
more than a dirty smock girt with a cartridge belt; they do not
shave their moustaches but trim them so as to be clear of the
upper lip ; they trim their beards and wear the ordinary kajiya
headdress with a fillet of white linen in place of the compressed
woollen Aqal.
The word Ikhwan is used to denote Badawin who have
entered the inner circle of Wahhabism ; the rest are Hanbalis ;
the word Mutawwa is restricted to the priests or LI lama of the
sect. Non-Ikhwan sometimes contemptuously use the word
Mutawwa of Ikhwan generally, just as the non-Wahhabis {e.g.
people of Mecca) use the words Wahhabi or Mutawahhabin of
the Hanbalis (Wahhabis).
The word Mutawwa denotes one who makes others to obey
{the law of God) not one who is utterly submissive. Tak — to
obey; Tawwdk = to make to obey.
They have no wish to cast off the name Muslim ; on the
contrary they claim to be the only true Muslimin ; the ordinary
salutation of the Ikhwan is “ Salam alaikum ya Muslimin”.
TheWahhabis adhere strictly to the marriage laws of the Quran.
Within the fold of matrimony the greatest license is permitted ;
without it none. In Nejd adultery, fornication, sodomy and
drunkenness are punishable with death and are practically
unknown.
They do go on pilgrimage, as the obligation to do so is
imposed on them by the Quran. The House of God is sacred to
them in spite of its pollution by the visits of the Mushrikin.
Ziyara to the tomb of Mohammed as indeed to any burial place
of their own people is permitted, but worship of any tomb is
idolatry.