Historical Statements of the Koran [pp. 195-230]

226 Historical Statenaments of tlte Koran.
sertion of some tenets, as peculiar to themselves-such as,
that God is one, that there are not three Gods, that Jesus
Christ was the servant of God-tenets which all true Christians hold as fully and as firmly as any Socinian or Mussulman on earth. It is but just, however, to repeat, that the
Arab's creed breathes too much of a fire-and-faggot spirit to
please the fastidious taste of a latitudinarian.
We believe we have now noticed all the fragments of the
sacred history, occurring in the Koran. It must be observed,
however, that some of the stories are repeated half-a-dozen
times over, in as many different places. In that case, we
have selected the most minute and circumstantial of the narratives, adding the facts which it omitted from the parallel
passages.
Besides the statements which may thus be traced to scriptural
originals, there are a number of stories and allusions in the
Koran which derive their origin exclusively from profane
history, rabbinical traditions, monastic legends, or the romantic fictions of Arabia itself. It is true, that even those purloined from Scripture have received embellishments from all
these quarters, but we now refer to such as rest entirely upon
that foundation. Of this kind are the celebrated story of the
Seven Sleepers, the account of the Prophets Hud and Saleh,
the obscure and scanty notices respecting Dhu'lkarnein, com monly supposed to be Alexander the Great, and other minor
passages in historical form. How far some of these might be
identified as mutilated fragments of the Bible and Apocrypha,
we do not now inquire. At first view they have no such as pect, and our only object here has been to give a connected
view of those whose pedigree is obvious.* We are aware
that we have been employed upon a very humble task, in col lecting and arranging the absurdities and falsehoods of an im pudent impostor. Perhaps, however, we have done for
our readers what they would not have been willing to do for
themselves, and what some of them may find it just as well to
be acquainted with. Our hasty and imperfect, but methodi cal synopsis will, at least, present a clearer view of the Mo hammnedan belief upon the points in question, than could pos sibly be gained by a continuous perusal of the book itself.
* In doing this we have confined ourselves, in almost every in stance, to the text of the Koran. The commentators explain every
thing abundantly, as may be learned from the specimens in Sale. We
have chosen rather to exhibit its native imperfection and obscurity.