Continuation of the Memoirs Of Mr. Hempher,
The British Spy To The Middle East
PART FIVE
Hempher says:
It was on one of those days when Muhammad of Najd and I had become very intimate friends that I received a message from London ordering me to leave for the cities of Kerbelaa and Najaf, the two most popular Shiite centers of knowledge and spirituality. So I had to put an end to my company with Muhammad of Najd and leave Basra. Yet I was happy because I was sure that this ignorant and morally depraved man was going to establish a new sect, which in turn would demolish Islam from within, and that I was the composer of the heretical tenets of this new sect.
'Alee, the fourth Khaleefa of the Sunnites, and the first one according to the Shiites, was buried in Najaf. The city of Koofa, which was a distance of one fersah (league), i.e., an hour's walk from Najaf, was the capital of 'Alee's caliphate. When 'Alee was killed, his sons Hasan and Huseyn buried him outside Koofa at a place called Najaf today. In the course of time, Najaf began to grow, while Koofa gradually fell into decay. The Shiite men of religion came together in Najaf. Houses, markets, madrasas (Islamic schools and universities) were built.
The Khaleefa in Istanbul was kind and generous to them for the following reasons:
1- The Shiite administration in Iran was supporting the Shiites. The Khaleefa's interfering with them would cause tension between the states, which in turn could lead to warfare.
2- The inhabitants of Najaf included a number of armed tribes supporting the Shiites. Although they did not have much significance in terms of weaponry and organization, it would be unwise for the Khaleefa to run the risk of getting into trouble with them.3- The Shiites in Najaf had authority over the Shiites all over the world, particularly those in Africa and India. If the Khaleefa disturbed them, all the Shiites would rise against him.
Huseyn bin 'Alee, the Prophet's grandson, i.e., his daughter Faatima's son, was martyred in Kerbelaa. The people of Iraq had sent for Huseyn in Medina and invited him to Iraq to elect him their Khaleefa. Huseyn and his family were in the territory called Kerbelaa when the Iraqis gave up their former intention and, acting upon the order given by Yazeed bin Muaawiya, the Umayyad Khaleefa living in Damascus, set out with the intention of arresting him. Huseyn and his family put up a heroic last-ditch fight against the Iraqi army. The battle ended in their death, so the Iraqi army was the winning side. Since that day, the Shiites have accepted Kerbelaa as their spiritual center, so that Shiites from all over the world come here and form such a huge crowd that our religion of Christianity does not have a likeness to it.
Kerbelaa, a Shiite city, contains Shiite madrasas. This city and Najaf support each other. Upon receiving the order to go to these two cities, I left Basra for Baghdad, and thence to a city named 'Hulla' situated alongside the Euphrates.
The Tigris and Euphrates come from Turkey, cut through Iraq, and flow into the Persian Gulf. Iraq's agriculture and welfare are due to these two rivers.
When I was back in London, I proposed to the Ministry of Colonies that a project could be drawn up to change the beds of these two rivers in order to make Iraq accept our proposals. When the water was cut off, Iraq would have to satisfy our demands.
From Hulla to Najaf I travelled in the guise of an Azerbaijani tradesman. Establishing close friendships with Shiite men of religion, I began to mislead them. I joined their circles of religious instruction. I saw that they did not study science like the Sunnites, nor did they have the beautiful moral qualities possessed by the Sunnites. For example:
1- They were extremely inimical towards the Ottoman State. For they were Shiites and the Turks were Sunnites. They said that the Sunnites were disbelievers.
2- The Shiite scholars were entirely absorbed in religious teachings and had very little interest in worldly knowledge, as was the case with priests during the period of standstill in our history.
3- They were quite unaware of Islam's inner essence and sublime character, nor did they have the smallest notion of the time's scientific and technical improvements.
I said to myself: What a wretched sort of people these Shiites are. They are sound asleep when the whole world is awake. One day a flood will come and take them all away. Several times I attempted to entice them to revolt against the Khaleefa. Unfortunately, no one would even listen to me. Some of them laughed at me as though I had told them to destroy the earth. For they looked on the Khaleefa as a fortress impossible to capture. According to them, they would get rid of the caliphate with the advent of the promised Mahdi.
According to them, Mahdi was their twelfth imaam, who was a descendant of Islam's Prophet and who disappeared in the Hijree year 255. They believed he was still alive and would one day reappear and rescue the world from this state of utter cruelty and injustice, filling it with justice.
It is consternating! How come these Shiite people believe in these superstitions! It was like the superstitious doctrine, "Jesus Christ will come back and fill the world with justice," held by our Christians.
One day I said to one of them: "Isn't it fard for you to prevent injustice like the Islamic Prophet did?" His reply was: "He managed to prevent injustice because Allah helped him." When I said, "It is written in the Qur'aan, If you help Allah's religion, He will help you in return.' "If you revolt against the torture of your shaahs, Allah will help you" He answered, "You are a tradesman. These are scientific matters. You cannot understand this."
The mausoleum of Alee the Emeer-ul-mu'mineen was profusely decorated. It had a splendid yard, a gold-covered dome, and two tall minarets. Every day great numbers of Shiites visited this mausoleum. They performed namaaz in jamaa'at in it. Every visitor first stooped in front of the threshold, kissed it, and then greeted the grave. They asked for permission and then entered. The mausoleum had a vast yard, which contained numerous rooms for men of religion and visitors.
There were two mausoleums similar to that of 'Alee's in Kerbelaa. One of them belonged to Huseyn and the other belonged his brother Abbaas, who had been martyred with him in Kerbelaa. In Kerbelaa the Shiites repeated the same practices as they did in Najaf. The climate of Kerbelaa was better than that of Najaf. It was surrounded with graceful orchards and lovely brooks.
During my mission to Iraq I met with a scene that gave relief to my heart. Some events heralded the end of the Ottoman Empire. For one thing, the governor appointed by the administration in Istanbul was an uneducated and cruel person. He acted as he wished. The people did not like him. The Sunnites were uneasy because the governor restricted their freedom and did not value them, and the Shiites felt indignant over being governed by a Turk while among them there were sayyeds and shareefs, the Prophet's descendants, who would have been a much better choice for governorship.
The Shiites were in an utterly woebegone situation. They lived in squalid and dilapidated environments. The roads were not safe. Highwaymen always awaited caravans, and attacked whenever they saw that there were no soldiers escorting them. For this reason, convoys would not set out unless the government would appoint a detachment to escort them.
The Shiite tribes were mostly warlike with one another. They killed and plundered one another daily. Ignorance and illiteracy were dreadfully widespread. This state of the Shiites reminded me of the time when Europe had been under an ecclesiastical invasion. With the exclusion of the religious leaders living in Najaf and Kerbelaa and a small minority, who were their votaries, not even one out of every thousand Shiites knew how to read or write.
The economy had collapsed entirely, and the people were suffering utter poverty. The administrative system was quite out of order. The Shiites committed treasons against the government.
The State and the people viewed each other with suspicion. As a result, there was no mutual aid between them. The Shiite religious leaders, totally given to vituperating the Sunnites, had already relinquished knowledge; business, religious and worldly alike.
I stayed in Kerbelaa and in Najaf for four months. I suffered a very serious illness in Najaf. I felt so bad that I completely gave up hope of recovery. My illness lasted three weeks. I went to a doctor. He gave me a prescription. Using the medicine, I began to recover. Throughout my illness I stayed in an underground room. Because I was ill, my host prepared my medicine and food in return for an insignificant sum of money and expected great thawaab for serving me. For I was, so to speak, a visitor of 'Alee the Emeer-ul-mu'mineen. The doctor advised me to have only chicken broth during the first few days. Later on he permitted me to eat chicken as well. The third week I had rice soup. After becoming well again I left for Baghdad. I prepared a report of one hundred pages on my observations in Najaf, Hulla, and Baghdad and while on the way. I submitted the report to the Baghdad representative of the Ministry of Colonies. I waited for the Ministry's order on whether I should remain in Iraq or return to London.
I wished to go back to London. For I had been abroad for a long time. I missed my homeland and my family. Especially, I wanted to see my son Rasputin, who had been born after my departure. For this reason, I appended to my report a petition for permission to return to London for a short time at least. I wanted to give an oral report of impressions about my three years' mission in Iraq and to get some rest in the meantime. The Iraq representative of the Ministry advised me not to call on him often lest I should arouse suspicion. He also advised to rent a room in one of the inns alongside the Tigris River, and said, "I shall inform you of the Ministry's answer when we receive the mail from London." During my stay in Baghdad I observed the spiritual distance between Istanbul, the capital of the caliphate, and Baghdad.
When I left Basra for Kerbelaa and Najaf, I was very much anxious that Muhammad of Najd would swerve from the direction I had led him. For he was an extremely unstable and nervous person. I feared that the aims I had built upon him might be spoilt.
As I left him he was thinking of going to Istanbul. I did my best to dissuade him from the notion. I said, "I am very anxious that when you go there you may make a statement whereby they will pronounce you a heretic and kill you."
My apprehension was quite the other way round. I was anxious that upon going there he should meet profound scholars capable of setting his fallacies right and converting him to the Sunnee creed and thus all my dreams should come to naught. For there was knowledge and Islam's beautiful morality in Istanbul.
When I found out that Muhammad of Najd did not want to stay in Basra, I recommended that he go to Isfahan and Sheeraaz. For these two cities were lovely. And their inhabitants were Shiites. And Shiites, in their turn, could not possibly influence Muhammad of Najd. For Shiites were inefficient in knowledge and ethics. Thus I made it certain that he would not change the course I had charted for him.
As we parted I said to him, "Do you believe in Taqiyya?" "Yes, I do," he replied. "The unbelievers arrested one of the Sahaaba and tormented him and killed his parents. Upon this he made Taqiyya, that is, he said openly that he was a polytheist. (When he came back and said what had happened), the Prophet did not reproach him at all." I advised him, "When you live among the Shiites, make Taqiyya; do not tell them that you are Sunnee lest they become a nuisance for you. Utilize their country and scholars! Learn their customs and traditions. For they are ignorant and stubborn people."
As I left, I gave him some money as zakaat. Zakaat is an Islamic tax collected in order to be dealt out to the needy people. In addition, I gave him a saddled animal as a present. So we parted.
After my departure I lost contact with him. This made me utterly uneasy. When we parted we decided that both of us were to return to Basra and whichever party was back first and did not find the other party was to write a letter and leave it with Abd-ur-Reedaa.
PART SIX
I stayed in Baghdad for a time. Then, receiving the message ordering me to return to London, I left. In London, I talked with the secretary and some officials of the Ministry. I told them of my activities and observations during my long mission. They rejoiced greatly at the information I gave about Iraq and said that they were pleased. On the other hand, Safiyya, the girl friend of Muhammad of Najd, sent a report agreeing with mine. I found out also that throughout my mission I had been followed by men from the Ministry. These men also sent reports concurrent with the reports I had sent and with the account I had given to the secretary.
The secretary made an appointment for me to meet the Minister. When I visited the Minister, he met me in a manner that he had not shown towards me upon my arrival from Istanbul. I knew that I occupied an exceptional place in his heart now.
The minister was very pleased to know that I had obtained Muhammad of Najd. "He is a weapon our Ministry has been looking for. Give him all sorts of promises. It would be worth while if you spent all your time indoctrinating him," he said. When I said, "I have been anxious about Muhammad of Najd. He may have changed his mind," he replied, "Don't worry. He has not given up the ideas he had when you left him. The spies of our Ministry met him in Isfahan and reported to our Ministry that he had not changed." I said to myself, "How could Muhammad of Najd reveal his secrets to a stranger?" I did not dare to ask this question to the Minister. However, when I met Muhammad of Najd later, I found out that in Isfahan a man named Abd-ul-kereem had met him and ferreted out his secrets by saying, "I am Shaikh Muhammad's [meaning me] brother. He told me all that he knew about you."
Muhammad of Najd said to me, "Safiyya went with me to Isfahan and we cohabited with mut'a nikaah for two more months. Abd-ul-kereem accompanied me to Sheeraaz and found me a woman named Asiya, who was prettier and more attractive than Safiyya. Making mut'a nikaah with that woman, I spent the most delightful moments of my life with her."
I found out later that Abd-ul-kereem was a Christian agent living in the Jelfa district of Isfahan and working for the Ministry. And Asiya, a Jewess living in Sheeraaz, was another agent for the Ministry. All four of us coordinated to train Muhammad of Najd in such a way that in future he would do what was excepted from him in the best way.
When I related the events in the presence of the Minister, the secretary, and two other members of the Ministry whom I did not know, the Minister said to me, "You have deserved to receive the greatest award of the Ministry. For you are the best one among the most significant agents of the ministry. The secretary will tell you some State secrets, which will help you in your mission."
Then they gave me a ten-day leave during which I could see my family. So I went home right away and spent some of my sweetest moments with my son, who resembled me very much. My son spoke a few words, and walked so elegantly that I felt as if he were a piece from my own body. I spent this ten-day leave so cheerfully, so happily. I felt as if I were going to fly from joy. It was such a great pleasure to be back home, to be with my family. During this ten-day leave I visited my old paternal aunt, who loved me very much. It was wise of me to visit my paternal aunt. For she passed away after my departure for my third mission. I felt so sad about her decease.
This ten-day leave elapsed as fast as an hour. Whereas cheerful days such as these go by as quickly as an hour, days of grief seem to take centuries. I remembered the days when I had suffered that illness in Najaf. Those days of affliction had seemed like years to me.
When I went to the Ministry to receive new orders, I met the secretary with this cheerful face and tall stature. He shook my hand so warmly that his affection was perceptible. He said to me, "With the command of our minister and the committee in charge of Colonies, I shall tell you two State secrets. Later you will benefit very much from these two secrets. No one except a couple of confidential people know these two secrets."
Holding my hand, he took me to a room in the Ministry. I met with something very attractive in this room. Ten men were sitting around a round table. The first man was in the guise of the Ottoman Emperor. He spoke Turkish and English. The second one was dressed in the attire of the Shaikh-ul-islaam (Chief of Islamic Matters) in Istanbul. The third one was dressed in an attirement identical with that of the Shah of Iran. The fourth one was in the attire of the vizier in the Iranian palace. The fifth one was dressed like the great scholar leading the Shiites in Najaf. The last three of these people spoke Persian and English. Each of these five people had a clerk sitting beside him to write down whatever they would say. These clerks were imparting to the five men the information collected by spies about their archetypes in Istanbul, Iran, and Najaf.
The secretary said, "These five people represent the five people there. In order to know what their archetypes think, we have educated and trained these people exactly like their archetypes. We intimate the information we have obtained about their originals in Istanbul, Teheran and Najaf to these men. And these men, in their turn, imagine themselves to be their originals in those places. Then we ask them and they answer us. We have determined that the answers given by these people are seventy-percent agreeable with the answers that their originals would give.
"If you like, you may ask questions for assessment. You have already met the scholar of Najaf." I replied in the affirmative, for I had met the great Shiite scholar in Najaf and asked him about some matters. Now I approached his copy and said, "Dear teacher, would it be permissible for us to wage war against the government because it is Sunnee and fanatical?" He reflected for a while, and said, "No, it is not permissible for us to wage war against the government because it is Sunnee. For all Muslims are brothers. We could declare war on them (Sunnite Muslims) only if they perpetrated cruelty and persecution on the Ummat (Muslims). And even in this case we would observe the principles of Amr-i-bi-l-ma'roof and Nahy-i-ani-l-munkar. We would stop interfering with them as soon as they stopped their persecution."
I said, "Dear teacher, may I have your opinion concerning the matter that Jews and Christians are foul?" "Yes, they are foul," he said. "It is necessary to keep away from them." When I asked the reason why, he replied, "It is done so in retaliation for an insult. For they look on us as disbelievers and deny our Prophet Muhammad 'alaihis-salaam'. We therefore retaliate for this." I said to him, "Dear teacher, isn't cleanliness an issue of eemaan? Despite this fact, the avenues and streets around the Sahn-i-shareef [the area surrounding hadrat 'Alee's mausoleum] are not clean. Even the madrasas, which are the places of knowledge, cannot be said to be clean." He replied, "Yes, it is true; cleanliness is from eemaan. Yet it cannot be helped because the Shiites are negligent over cleanliness."
The answers given by this man in the Ministry were precisely concurrent with the answers I had received from the Shiite scholar in Najaf. Such accurate identity between this man and the scholar in Najaf amazed me utterly. In addition, this man spoke Persian.
The secretary said, "If you had met the archetypes of the other four personages, you would talk to their imitations now and see how identical they are with their originals." When I said, "I know how the Shaikh-ul-islaam thinks. For Ahmad Efendi, my hodja in Istanbul, gave a detailed description of the Shaikh-ul-islaam to me," the secretary said, "Then you can go ahead and talk with his model."
I went near the Shaikh-ul-islaam's model and said to him, "Is it fard to obey the Khaleefa?" "Yes, it is waajib," he replied. "It is waajib, as it is fard to obey Allah and the Prophet." When I asked what evidence he had to prove this, he answered, "Didn't you hear about Janaab-i-Allah's aayat, 'Obey Allah, His Prophet, and the Ulul amr from among you'?" I said, "Does this mean that Allah commands us to obey the Khaleefa Yazeed, who permitted his army to plunder Medeena and who killed our Prophet's grandson Huseyn, and Waleed who drank alcoholic spirits?" His answer was this: "My son! Yazeed was the Ameer-ul-mu'mineen with Allah's permission. He did not command the killing of Huseyn. Do not believe in the Shiite lies! Read the books well! He made a mistake. Then he made tawba for this (he repented and begged for Allah's forgiveness and mercy). He was right about his ordering Medina-i-munawwara plundered. For the inhabitants of Medina had become quite unbridled and disobedient. As for Waleed; yes, he was a sinner. It is waajib not to imitate the Khaleefa, but to obey his commandments compatible with the Sharee'at." I had asked these same questions to my hodja Ahmed Efendi and received identical answers with slight differences. Then I asked the secretary, "What are the ultimate reasons for preparing these models?" He said, "With this method we are assessing the mental capacities of the (Ottoman) Sultan and the Muslim scholars, be they Shi'ee or Sunnee. We are searching for the measures that will help us cope with them. For instance, if you know what direction the enemy forces will come from, you will make preparations accordingly, post your forces at suitable positions, and thus rout the enemy. On the other hand, if you aren't sure about the direction of the enemy assault you will spread your forces here and there in a haphazard way and suffer a defeat. ... By the same token, if you know the evidences Muslims will furnish to prove that their faith, their madh-hab is right, it will be possible for you to prepare the counter-evidences to rebut their evidences and shock their belief with those counter-evidences."
Then he gave me a book of one thousand pages containing the results of the observations and projects carried out by the aforenamed five representative men in areas such as military, finance, education, and religion. He said, "Please read this book and return it to us." I took the book home with me. I read through it with utmost attention during my three-week holiday.
The book was of a wonderful sort. For the important answers and the delicate observations it contained sounded genuine. I think that the answers given by the representative five men were more than seventy percent agreeable with the answers that their archetypes would have given. Indeed, the secretary had said that the answers were seventy percent correct.
Having read the book, I now had more confidence in my State and I knew for certain that the plans for demolishing the Ottoman Empire in time shorter than a century had already been prepared. The secretary also said, "In other similar rooms we have identical tables intended for countries we have been colonizing as well as for those we are planning to colonize." When I asked the secretary where they found such diligent and talented men, he replied, "Our agents all over the world are providing us intelligence continuously. As you see, these representatives are experts in their work. Naturally, if you were furnished with all the information possessed by a particular person, you would be able to think like him and to make the decisions he would make. For you would be his substitute now."
The secretary went on, "So this was the first secret I was ordered by the Ministry to give you.
"I shall tell you the second secret a month later, when you return the book of one thousand pages."
I read the book part by part from the beginning to the end, focusing all my attention on it. It increased my information about the Muhammadans. Now I knew how they thought, what their weaknesses were, what made them powerful, and how to transform their powerful qualities into vulnerable spots.
Muslims' weak spots as recorded in the book were as follows:
1- The Sunnite-Shiite controversy; the sovereign-people controversy; the Turkish-Iranian controversy; the tribal controversy; and the scholars-states controversy.
2- With very few exceptions, Muslims are ignorant and illiterate.
3- Lack of spirituality, knowledge, and conscience. 4- They have completely ceased from worldly business and are absorbed in matters pertaining to the Hereafter.
5- The emperors are cruel dictators.
6- The roads are unsafe, transportation and travels are sporadic.
7- No precaution is taken against epidemics such as plague and cholera, which kill tens of thousands of people each year; hygiene is altogether ignored.
8- The cities are in ruins, and there is no system of supplying water.
9- The administration is unable to cope with rebels and insurgents, there is a general disorderliness, rules of the Qur'aan, of which they are so proud, are almost never put into practice.
10- Economical collapse, poverty, and retrogression.
11- There is not an orderly army, nor adequate weaponry; and the weapons in stock are classical and friable. [Are they unaware of the systematic army established by Orhan Ghaazee, who ascended to the (Ottoman) throne in 726 (C.E. 1326), Yildirim (The Thunderbolt) Baayezeed Khan's immaculate army, which routed the great army of crusaders in Nighbolu in 799 (C.E. 1399)?]
12- Violation of women's right.
13- Lack of environmental health and cleanliness(42).
After citing what was considered as Muslims' vulnerable spots in the paragraphs paraphrased above, the book advised to cause Muslims to remain oblivious of the material and spiritual superiority of their faith, Islam. Then, it gave the following information about Islam:
1- Islam commands unity and cooperation and prohibits disunion. It is stated in the Qur'aan, "Hold fast to Allah's rope altogether."
2- Islam commands being educated and being conscious. It is stated in the Qur'aan, "Travel on the earth."
3- Islam commands to acquire knowledge. It is stated in a hadeeth, "Learning knowledge is fard for every Muslim, male and female alike." 4- Islam commands to work for the world. It is stated in the Qur'aan, "Some of them: O our Allah! Allot to us whatever is beautiful both in the world and in the Hereafter."
5- Islam commands consultation. It is stated in the Qur'aan, "Their deeds are (done) upon consultation among themselves."
6- Islam commands to build roads. It is stated in the Qur'aan, "Walk on the earth."
7- Islam commands Muslims to maintain their health. It is stated in a hadeeth, "Knowledge is (made up) of four (parts): 1) The knowledge of Fiqh for the maintenance of faith; 2) The knowledge of Medicine for the maintenance of health; 3) The knowledge of Sarf and Nahw (Arabic grammar) for the maintenance of language; 4) The knowledge of Astronomy so as to be aware of the times."
8- Islam commands development. It is stated in the Qur'aan, "Allah created everything on the earth for you."
9- Islam commands orderliness. It is stated in the Qur'aan, "Everything is based on calculations, orders."
10- Islam commands to be strong economically. It is stated in a hadeeth. "Work for your world as though you would never die. And work for your hereafter as if you were going to die tomorrow."
11- Islam commands to establish an army equipped with powerful weapons. It is stated in the Qur'aan, "Prepare as many forces as you can against them."
12- Islam commands to observe women's rights and to value them. It is stated in the Qur'aan, "As men legally have (rights) over women, so women have rights over them."
13- Islam commands cleanliness. It is stated in a hadeeth, "Cleanliness is from eemaan."
The book recommended to degenerate and to impair the following power sources:
1- Islam has negated racial, lingual, traditional, conventional, and national bigotry.
2- Interest, profiteering, fornication, alcoholic spirits, and pork are forbidden.
3- Muslims are firmly adherent to their 'Ulamaa (religious scholars).
4- Most of the Sunnee Muslims accept the Khaleefa as the Prophet's representative. They believe that it is fard to show him the same respect as must be shown to Allah and the Prophet.
5- Jihaad is fard.
6- According to the Shee'ee Muslims, all non-Muslims and Sunnee Muslims are foul people.
7- All Muslims believe that Islam is the only true religion. 8- Most Muslims believe that it is fard to expel the Jews and Christians from the Arab peninsula.
9- They perform their worships, (such as namaaz, fast, hajj...), in the most beautiful way.
10- The Shi'ee Muslims believe that it is haraam (forbidden) to build churches in Muslim countries.
11- Muslims hold fast to the principles of the Islamic belief.
12- The Shi'ee Muslims consider it fard to give one-fifth of the Humus, i.e. booties taken in Holy War, to the 'Ulamaa.
13- Muslims raise their children with such education that they are not likely to abandon the way followed by their ancestors.
14- Muslim women cover themselves so well that mischief can by no means act on them.
15- Muslims make namaaz in jamaa'at, which brings them together five times daily.
16- Because the Prophet's grave and those of Alee and other pious Muslims are sacred according to them, they assemble at these places.
17- There are a number of people descending from the Prophet, [who are called Sayyeds and Shereefs]; these people who remind of the Prophet and who keep Him always remain alive in the eyes of Muslims.
18- When Muslims assemble, preachers consolidate their eemaan and motivate them to do pious acts.
19- It is fard to perform Amr-i-bi-l-ma'roof [Advising piety] and nahy-i-ani-l-munkar [admonishing against wrongdoing].
20- It is sunnat to marry more than one women in order to contribute to the increase of Muslim population.
21- Converting one person to Islam is more valuable to a Muslim than possessing the whole world. 22- The hadeeth, "If a person opens an auspicious way, he will attain the thawaabs of people who follow that way as well as the thawaab for having attained it," is well known among Muslims.
23- Muslims hold the Qur'aan and hadeeths in very profound reverence. They believe that obeying these sources is the only way of attaining Paradise.The book recommends to vitiate Muslims' staunch spots and to popularize their weaknesses, and it prescribed the methods for accomplishing this.
It advised the following steps for popularizing their vulnerable spots:
1- Establish controversies by inducing animosity among disputing groups, inoculating mistrust, and by publishing literature to further incite controversies.
2- Obstruct schooling and publications, and burn literature whenever possible. Make sure that Muslim children remain ignorant by casting various aspersions on religious authorities and thus preventing Muslim parents from sending their children to religious schools. [This British method has been very harmful to Islam].
3-4- Praise Paradise in their presence and convince them that they need not work for a worldly life. Enlarge the circles of Tasawwuf. Keep them in an unconscious state by encouraging them to read books advising Zuhd, such as Ihyaa-ul-'uloom-id-deen, by Ghazaalee, Mesnevee, by Mawlaanaa, and various books written by Muhyiddeen Arabee.
5- Wheedle the emperors into cruelty and dictatorship by the following demagogic falsifications: You are Allah's shadows on the earth. In fact, Aboo Bakr, 'Umar, 'Uthmaan, 'Alee, Umayyads and Abbasids came to seize power by sheer force and the sword, and each of them was a sovereign. For example, Aboo Bakr assumed power with the help of 'Umar's sword and by setting fire to the houses of those who would not obey him, such as Faatima's house. And 'Umar became Khaleefa upon Aboo Bakr's commendation. 'Uthmaan, on the other hand, became the president with 'Umar's order. As for 'Alee; he became head of the State by an election held among bandits. Muaawiya assumed power by the sword. Then, in the time of the Umayyads, sovereignty was turned into an inheritance transferred through paternal chain. So was the case with the Abbasids. These are the evidences for the fact that in Islam sovereignty is a form of dictatorship.
6- Delete death penalty for homicide from the penal code. [Death punishment is the only deterrent to homicide and banditry. Anarchy and banditry cannot be prevented without death penalty]. Hinder the administration in punishing highwaymen and robbers. Make sure that traveling is unsafe by supporting and arming them.
7- We can make them lead an unhealthy life with the following scheme: Everything is dependent on Allah's foreordination. Medical treatment will have no role in restoring health. Does not Allah say in the Qur'aan, "My Rab (Allah) makes me eat and drink. He cures me when I am ill. He alone will kill me and then resurrect me." Then, no one will recover from an illness or escape death outside Allah's will.
8- Make the following statements for encouraging cruelty: Islam is a religion of worship. It has no interest in State matters. Therefore, Muhammad and his Khaleefas did not have any ministers or laws.
9- Economic decline is a natural consequence of the injurious activities advised so far. We can add to the atrophy by rotting the crops, sinking the trade ships, setting fire to the market places, destroying dams and barrages and thus leaving agricultural areas and industrial centers under water, and finally by contaminating their networks of drinking water.
10- Accustom statesmen to such indulgences as [sex, sports,] alcohol, gambling, corruption which cause sedition and intriguing, and spending the State property for their personal advantages. Encourage the civil servants to do things of this sort and reward those who serve us in this way. Then the book added the following advice: The British spies assigned this duty must be protected secretly or openly, and no expense must be spared to rescue the ones arrested by Muslims.
11- Popularize all sorts of interest. For interest not only ruins national economy, but also accustoms Muslims to disobeying the Koranic rules. Once a person has violated one article of law, it will be easy for him to violate the other articles, too. They must be told that "interest is haraam when in multiples, for it is stated in the Qur'aan, 'Do not receive interest in multiples.'Therefore, not every form of interest is haraam." [The pay-off time of a loan must not be appointed in advance. Any extra payment agreed on (at the time of lending) is interest. This type of interest is a grave sin, be the extra payment stipulated worth only a dirham. If it is stipulated that the same amount (borrowed) must be repaid after a certain time, this is interest according to the Hanafee madh-hab. In sales on credit, time of repayment must be appointed; yet if the debtor cannot pay off at the appointed time and the time is protracted and an extra payment is stipulated, this kind of interest is called Mudaa'af. The aayat-i-kareema quoted above states this type of interest in trade]. 12- Spread false charges of atrocity against scholars, cast sordid aspersions against them and thus alienate Muslims from them. We shall disguise some of our spies as them. Then we shall have them commit squalid deeds. Thus they will be confused with scholars and every scholar will be looked upon with suspicion. It is a must to infiltrate these spies into Al-Az-har, Istanbul, Najaf, and Kerbelaa. We shall open schools, colleges for estranging Muslims from scholars. In these schools we shall educate Byzantine, Greek and Armenian children and bring them up as the enemies of Muslims. As for Muslim children; we shall imbue them with the conviction that their ancestors were ignorant people. In order to make these children hostile towards Khaleefas, scholars, and statesmen, we shall tell them about their errors and convince them that they were busy with their sensuous pleasures, that Khaleefas spent their time having fun with concubines, that they misused the people's property, that they did not obey the Prophet in anything they did.
13- In order to spread the calumniation that Islam abhors womankind, we shall quote the aayat, "Men are dominant over women," and the hadeeth, "The woman is an evil altogether."
14- Dirtiness is the result of lack of water. Therefore, we must deter the increasing of the water supplies under various schemes.The book advised the following steps for destroying Muslims' strongholds:
1- Induce such chauvinistic devotions as racism and nationalism among Muslims so as to retract their attention towards their pre-Islamic heroisms. Rejuvenate the Pharaoh period in Egypt, the Magi period in Iran, the Babylonian period in Iraq, the Attila and Dzengiz era[tyrannisms] in the Ottomans. [They contained a long list on this subject].
2- The following vices must be done secretly or publicly: Alcoholic spirits, gambling, fornication, pork, [and fights among sports clubs.] In doing this, Christians, Jews, Magians, and other non-Muslims living in Muslim countries should be utilized to a maximum, and those who work for this purpose should be awarded high salaries by the treasury department of the Ministry of the Commonwealth.
3- Sow suspicion among them concerning Jihaad; convince them that Jihaad was a temporary commandment and that it has been outdated.
4- Dispel the notion that "disbelievers are foul" from the hearts of Shiites. Quote the Koranic verse, "As the food of those given a (heavenly) Book is halaal for you, so is your food halaal for them," and tell them that the Prophet had a Jewish wife named Safiyya and a Christian wife named Maariya and that the Prophet's wives were not foul at all. 5- Imbue Muslims with the belief that "what the Prophet meant by Islam' was 'a perfect religion' and therefore this religion could be Judaism or Christianity as well as Islam." Substantiate this with the following reasoning: The Qur'aan gives the name 'Muslim' to members of all religions. For instance, it quotes the Prophet Joseph (Yoosuf 'alaihis-salaam') as having invoked, "Kill me as a Muslim," and the Prophets Ibraaheem and Ismaa'eel as having prayed, "O our Rab (Allah)! Make us Muslims for Yourself and make a Muslim people for Yourself from among our offspring,"and the Prophet Ya'qoob as having said to his sons, "Die only and only as Muslims."
6- Repeat frequently that it is not haraam to build churches, that the Prophet and his Khaleefas did not demolish them, that on the contrary they respected them, that the Qur'aan states, "If Allah had not dispelled some people by means of others, monasteries, churches, synagogues, and mosques wherein Allah's name is mentioned very much would have been annihilated (by now)," that Islam respects temples, that it does not demolish them, and that it prevents those who would otherwise demolish them.
7- Confuse Muslims about the hadeeths, "Deport the Jews from the Arabic Peninsula," and, "Two religions cannot coexist on the Arabic peninsula." Say that "If these two hadeeths were true, the Prophet would not have had a Jew wife and a Christian one. Nor would he have made an agreement with the Najran Christians."
8- Try to hamper Muslims in their worships and make them falter about the usefulness of worships by saying that "Allah does not need men's worships." Prevent them from their worship of Hajj as well as from any sort of worship that will bring them together. Likewise, try to obstruct construction of mosques, mausoleums and madrasas and the restoration of Ka'ba.
9- Mystify the Shiites about the rule that one-fifth of the ghaneema property taken from the enemy in combat is to be given to the 'Ulamaa and explain that this one-fifth belongs to the ghaneema property taken from (Daar-ul-harb) and that it has nothing to do with commercial earnings. Then add that "Humus (the one-fifth mentioned above) is to be given to the Prophet or to the Khaleefa, not to the 'Ulamaa. For the 'Ulamaa are given houses, palaces, animals, and orchards. Therefore, it is not permissible to give them the (Humus)." 10- Insert heresies into Muslims' creedal tenets and then criticize Islam for being a religion of terror. Assert that Muslim countries are retrogressive and that they have undergone shocks, thus impairing their adherence to Islam. [On the other hand, Muslims established the greatest and the most civilized empire of the world. They declined as their adherence to Islam deteriorated].
11- Very important! Alienate children from their fathers, thus depriving them of their elders' education. We shall educate them. Consequently, the moment children have parted from their fathers' education, there will no longer be any possibility for them to maintain contact with their belief, faith, or religious scholars.
12- Provoke the womenfolk to get rid of their traditional covers. Fabricate such falsifications as "Covering is not a genuine Islamic commandment. It is a tradition established in the time of the Abbasids. Formerly, other people would see the Prophet's wives and women would join all sorts of social activities." After stripping the woman of her traditional cover, tempt the youth towards her and cause indecencies between them! This is a very effective method for annihilating Islam. First use non-Muslim women for this purpose. In the course of time the Muslim woman will automatically degenerate and will begin to follow their example.
13- Exploit every opportunity to put an end to performing namaaz in jamaa'at by casting aspersions on the imaams in mosques, by revealing their mistakes, and by sowing discord and adversity between them and the jamaa'ats (groups of Muslims) who perform their daily prayers of namaaz behind them.
14- Say that all mausoleums must be demolished to the ground, that they did not exist in the Prophet's time. In addition, deter Muslims from visiting the graves of Prophets, Khaleefas and pious Muslims by arising doubts about visiting graves. For instance say, "The Prophet was buried by his mother and Aboo Bekr and 'Umar were buried in the cemetery called Baakee'.'Uthmaan's grave is unknown. Huseyn's head was buried at (a place called) Hannana. It is not known where his body was buried. The graves in Kaazimiyya belong to two caliphs. They do not belong to Kaazim and Jawaad, two descendants of the Prophet. As to the one in Tus (city); that grave belongs to Haarun, not to Ridaa, a member of the Ahl-i-Bayt (the Prophet's Family). The graves in Samerra belong to the Abbasids. They do not belong to Haadee, Askeree, and Mahdee, members of the Ahl-i-Bayt. As it is fard to demolish all the mausoleums and domes in Muslim countries, so is it a must to bulldoze the cemetery called Baakee'."
15- Make people feel skeptical about the fact that Sayyeds are the Prophet's descendants. Mix Sayyeds with other people by making non-Sayyeds wear black and green turbans. Thus people will be perplexed in this matter and will consequently begin to distrust Sayyeds. Strip religious authorities and Sayyeds of their turbans so that the Prophetic pedigree will be lost and religious authorities will not be respected any more. 16- Say that it is fard to demolish the places where Shiites mourn, that this practice is a heresy and aberration. People should be prevented from visiting those places, the number of preachers should be decreased and taxes should be levied on preachers and owners of the places for mourning.
17- Under the pretext of love of freedom, convince all Muslims that "Everyone is free to do whatever he likes. It is not fard to perform Amr-i-bi-l-ma'roof and Nahy-i-anil-munkar or to teach the Islamic principles." [On the contrary, it is fard to learn and teach Islam. It is a Muslim's first duty]. In addition, imbue them with this conviction: "Christians are to remain in their own faith (Christianity) and Jews are to abide by theirs (Judaism). No one will enter another person's heart. Amr-i-ma'roof and Nahy-i-anil-munkar are the Khaleefa's duties."
18- In order to impede Muslims from increasing in number, births must be limited and polygamy must be prohibited. Marriage must be subjected to restrictions. For instance, it must be said that an Arab cannot marry an Iranian, an Iranian cannot marry an Arab, a Turk cannot marry an Arab.
19- Make sure to stop Islamic propagations and conversions to Islam. Broadcast the conception that Islam is a religion peculiar to the Arabs only. As an evidence for this, put forward the Qur'aanic verse which reads, "This is a Dhikr for thee and thine people."
20- Pious institutions must be restricted and confined to the State monopoly, to the extent that individuals must be unable to establish madrasas or other similar pious institutions. 21- Arouse doubts as to the authenticity of the Qur'aan in Muslims' minds; publish Koranic translations containing excisions, additions, and interpolations, and then say, "The Qur'aan has been defiled. Its copies are incongruous. A verse one of them contains does not exist in another." Excise the verses insulting Jews, Christians and all other non-Muslims and those commanding Jihaad, Amr-i-bi-l-ma'roof and Nahy-i-anil munkar.Translate the Qur'aan into other languages such as Turkish, Persian, Indian, thus to prevent Arabic from being learned and read outside Arabic countries, and again, prevent the (Ad-haan), (Namaaz), and (Duaa) from being done in Arabic outside Arabic countries.
Likewise, Muslims will be made to feel doubts about hadeeths. The translations, criticisms and interpolations planned for the Qur'aan should be applied to hadeeths as well.
When I read through the book, which was entitled How Can We Demolish Islam, I found it really excellent. It was a peerless guide for the studies I was going to carry on. When I returned the book to the secretary and told him that it afforded me great pleasure to read it, he said, "You can be sure that you are not alone in this field. We have lots of men doing the same job as you have been carrying on. Our Ministry has assigned over five thousand men to this mission. The Ministry is considering increasing this number to one hundred thousand. When we reach this number we shall have brought all Muslims under our sway and obtained all Muslim countries."
Sometime later the secretary said: "Good news to you! Our Ministry needs one century at the most to realize this program. We may not live to see those happy days, but our children will. What a beautiful saying this is: I have eaten what others sowed. So I am sowing for others.' When the British manage this they will have pleased the whole Christian world and will have rescued them from a twelve-century-old nuisance."
The secretary went on as follows: "The crusading expeditions which continued for centuries were of no use. Nor can the Mongols [armies of Dzengiz] be said to have done anything to extirpate Islam. For their work was sudden, unsystematic, and ungrounded. They carried on military expeditions so as to reveal their enmity. Consequently, they became tired in a short time. But now our valuable administrators are trying to demolish Islam by means of a very subtle plan and a long-range patience. We must use military force, too. Yet this should be the final phase, that is, after we have completely consumed Islam, after we have hammered it from all directions and rendered it into a miserable state from which it will never recover again and fight against us." The secretary's final words were these: "Our superiors in Istanbul must have been very wise and intelligent. They executed our plan precisely. What did they do? They mixed with the Muhammadans and opened madrasas for their children. They built churches. They were perfectly successful in popularizing alcoholic spirits, gambling, indecencies, and breaking them into groups by means of instigation [and football clubs.] They aroused doubts in the minds of young Muslims. They inserted controversies and oppositions into their governments. They spread mischief everywhere. They depraved administrators, directors, and statesmen by filling their houses with Christian women. With activities of this sort they broke their forces, shocked their adherence to their faith, corrupted them morally, and disrupted their unity and communication. Now the time has come to commence a sudden war and extirpate Islam."
PART SEVEN
Having enjoyed the first secret, I was looking forward to knowing the second secret. Eventually one day the secretary explained the second secret he had promised. The second secret was a fifty page scheme prepared for the high ranking officials working in the Ministry for annihilating Islam altogether within a century's time. The scheme was comprised of fourteen articles. The scheme was closely guarded for fear that it might be obtained by Muslims. The following are the articles of the scheme:
1- We have to form a well-established alliance and an agreement of mutual help with the Russian Tsar in order to invade Bukhaara, Taajikistaan, Armenia, Khorasan and its neighborhood. Again, a sound agreement must be established with Russians in order to invade their neighbor, Turkey.
2- We must establish cooperation with France in demolishing the Islamic world both from within and from without.
3- We must sow very ardent rows and controversies between the Turkish and Iranian governments and emphasize nationalistic and racist feelings in both parties. In addition, all the Muslim tribes, nations and countries neighboring one another must be set against one another. All the religious sects, including the extinct ones, must be recovered and set against one another.
4- Parts from Muslim countries must be handed over to non-Muslim communities. For example, Medina must be given to the Jews, Alexandria to the Christians, Imaara to the Saaiba, Kermanshah to the Nusayriya group, who have divinized 'Alee, Mousul to the Yazeedees, the Iranian gulf to Hindus, Tripoli to the Druzis, Kars to the Alawees, and Masqat to the Khaarijee group. The next step should be to arm these groups so that each of them will be a thorn on the body of Islam. Their areas must be widened till Islam has collapsed and perished.
5- A schedule must be concocted to divide the Muslim and Ottoman States into, as small as possible, local states that are always at loggerheads with one another. An example of this is today's India. For the following theory is common: "Break, and you will dominate," and "Break, and you will destroy."
6- It is necessary to adulterate Islam's essence by adding interpolated religions and sects into it, and this we must devise in such a subtle manner that the religions we are to invent should be compatible with the sensuous tastes and aspirations of the people among whom we are going to spread them. We shall invent four different religions in the Shiite countries:1- A religion that divinizes hadrat Huseyn;
2- A religion that divinizes Ja'fer Saadiq;
3- A religion divinizing Mahdi;
4- A religion divinizing Alee Ridaa. The first one is suitable for Kerbelaa, the second one for Isfahaan, the third one for Samarra, and the fourth one for Khoraasaan. In the meantime, we must degenerate the existing four Sunnite madh-habs into four self-standing religions. After doing this, we shall establish an altogether new Islamic sect in Najd, and then instigate bloody rows among all these groups. We shall annihilate the books belonging to the four madh-habs, so that each of these groups will consider themselves to be the only Muslim group and will look on the other groups as heretics that are to be killed.7- Seeds of mischief and malice, such as fornication, pederasty, alcoholic spirits and gambling, will be scattered among Muslims. Non-Muslims living in the countries concerned will be used for this purpose. A tremendous army of people of this sort is on requisition for the realization of this goal. 8- We should spare no effort to train and educate vicious leaders and cruel commanders in Muslim countries, to bring them into power and thus to pass laws prohibiting obedience to the Sharee'at (religious injunctions). We should put them to use, to the extent that they should be subservient enough to do whatever the Ministry (of the Commonwealth) asks them to do, and vice versa. Through them we should be able to impose our wishes on Muslims and Muslim countries by using laws as an enforcement. We should establish a social way of life, an atmosphere wherein obeying the Shari'at will be looked on as a guilt and worshipping as an act of regression. We should trick Muslims into electing their leaders from among non-Muslims. For doing this, we should disguise some of our agents as Islamic authorities and bring them into high positions so that they may execute our wishes.
9- Do your best to prevent the learning of Arabic. Popularize languages other than Arabic, such as Persian, Kurdish, and Pushtu (Pashto). Resuscitate foreign languages in the Arabic countries and popularize the local dialects in order to annihilate literary, eloquent Arabic, which is the language of the Qur'aan and the Sunna.
10- Placing our men around statesmen, we should gradually make them secretaries of these statesmen and through them we should carry out the desires of the Ministry. The easiest way of doing this is the slave trade: First of all we must adequately train the spies we are to send forth in the guise of slaves and concubines. Then we must sell them to the close relatives of Muslim statesmen, for instance, to their children or wives, or to other people liked or respected by them. These slaves, after we have sold them, will gradually approach the statesmen. Becoming their mothers and governesses, they will encircle Muslim statesmen like a bracelet girding a wrist.
11- Missionary areas must be widened so as to penetrate into all social classes and vocations, especially into such professions as medicine, engineering, and book-keeping. We must open centers of propaganda and publication under such names as churches, schools, hospitals, libraries and charity institutions in the Islamic countries and spread them far and near. We must distribute millions of Christian book free of charge. We must publish the Christian history and intergovernmental law alongside the Islamic history. We must disguise our spies as monks and nuns and place them in churches and monasteries. We must use them as leaders of Christian movements. These people will at the same time detect all the movements and trends in the Islamic world and report to us instantaneously. We must institute an army of Christians who will, under such names as 'professor', 'scientist', and 'researcher', distort and defile the Islamic history, learn all the facts about Muslims' ways, behavior, and religious principles, and then destroy all their books and eradicate the Islamic teachings.
12- We must confuse the minds of the Islamic youth, boys and girls alike, and arouse doubts and hesitations in their minds as to Islam. We must completely strip them of their moral values by means of schools, books, magazines [sports clubs, publications, motion pictures, television], and our own agents trained for this job. It is a prerequisite to open clandestine societies to educate and train Jewish, Christian and other non-Muslim youngsters and use them as decoys to trap the Muslim youngsters.
13- Civil wars and insurrections must be provoked; Muslims must always be struggling with one another as well as against non-Muslims so that their energies will be wasted and improvement and unity will be impossible for them. Their mental dynamisms and financial sources must be annihilated. Young and active ones must be done away with. Their orders must be rendered into terror and anarchy.
14- Their economy must be razed in all areas, their sources of income and agricultural areas must be spoilt, their irrigation channels and lines must be devastated and rivers dried up, the people must be made to hate the performance of namaaz and working, and sloth must be made as widespread as possible. Playgrounds must be opened for lazy people. Narcotics and alcoholic spirits must be made common.[The articles we have cited above were explained very clearly with such aids as maps, pictures and charts]. I thanked the secretary for giving me a copy of this magnificent document.
After a month's stay in London, I received a message from the Ministry ordering me to go to Iraq to see Muhammad of Najd again. As I was leaving for my mission, the secretary said to me, "Never be negligent about Muhammad of Najd! As it is understood from the reports sent by our spies up until now, Muhammad of Najd is a typical fool very convenient for the realization of our purposes.
"Talk frankly with Muhammad of Najd. Our agents talked with him frankly in Isfahaan, and he accepted our wishes on terms. The terms he stipulated are: He would be supported with adequate property and weaponry to protect himself against states and scholars who would certainly attack him upon his announcing his ideas and views. A principality would be established in his country, be it a small one. The Ministry accepted these terms."
I felt as if I were going to fly from joy when I heard this news. I asked the secretary what I was supposed to do about this. His reply was, "The Ministry has devised a subtle scheme for Muhammad of Najd to carry out, as follows:
"1- He is to declare all Muslims as disbelievers and announce that it is halaal to kill them, to seize their property, to violate their chastity, to make their men slaves and their women concubines and to sell them at slave markets.
"2- He is to state that Ka'ba is an idol and therefore it must be demolished. In order to do away with the worship of hajj, he is to provoke tribes to raid groups of hadjis (Muslim pilgrims), to plunder their belongings and to kill them.
"3- He is to strive to dissuade Muslims from obeying the Khaleefa. He is to provoke them to revolt against him. He is to prepare armies for this purpose. He is to exploit every opportunity to spread the conviction that it is necessary to fight against the notables of Hedjaz and bring disgrace on them.
"4- He is to allege that the mausoleums, domes and sacred places in Muslim countries are idols and polytheistic milieus and must therefore be demolished. He is to do his best to produce occasions for insulting Prophet Muhammad, his Khaleefas, and all prominent scholars of madh-habs.
"5- He is to do his utmost to encourage insurrections, oppressions and anarchy in Muslim countries.
"6- He is to try to publish a copy of the Qur'aan interpolated with additions and excisions, as is the case with hadeeths."
After explaining this six-paragraph scheme, the secretary added, "Do not panic at this huge programma. For our duty is to sow the seeds for annihilating Islam. There will come generations to complete this job. The British government has formed it a habit to be patient and to advance step by step. Wasn't Prophet Muhammad, the performer of the great and bewildering Islamic revolution, a human being after all? And this Muhammad of Najd of ours has promised to accomplish this revolution of ours like his Prophet."
A couple of days later, I took permission from the Minister and the Secretary, bid farewell to my family and friends, and set out for Basra. As I left home my little son said, "Come back soon daddy!" My eyes became wet. I could not conceal my sorrow from my wife. After a tiresome journey I arrived in Basra at night. I went to Abd-ur-Ridaa's home. He was asleep. He was very pleased when he woke up and saw me. He offered me warm hospitality. I spent the night there. The next morning he said to me, "Muhammad of Najd called on me, left this letter for you, and left." I opened the letter. He wrote the was leaving for his country, Najd, and gave his address there. I at once set out to go there, too. After an extremely onerous journey I arrived there. I found Muhammad of Najd in his home. He had lost a lot of weight. I did not say anything this concerning this to him. Afterwards, I learned that he had gotten married.
We decided between us that he was to tell other people that I was his slave and was back from some place he had sent me. He introduced me as such.I stayed with Muhammad of Najd for two years. We made a programma to announce his call. Eventually I fomented his resolution in 1143 Hijri [A.D. 1730]. Hence by collecting supporters around himself, he insinuated his call by making covert statements to those who were very close to him. Then, day by day, he expanded his call. I put guards around him in order to protect him against his enemies. I gave them as much property and money as they wanted. Whenever the enemies of Muhammad of Najd wanted to attack him, I inspirited and heartened them. As his call spread wider, the number of his adversaries increased. From time to time he attempted to give up his call, especially when he was overwhelmed by the multitude of the attacks made on him. Yet I never left him alone and always encouraged him. I would say to him, "O Muhammad, the Prophet suffered more persecution than you have so far. You know, this is a way of honor. Like any other revolutionist, you would have to endure some difficulty!"
Enemy attack was likely any moment. I therefore hired spies on his adversaries. Whenever his enemies meant harm to him, the spies would report to me and so I would neutralize their harm. Once I was informed that the enemies were to kill him. I immediately took the precautions to thwart their preparations. When the people (around Muhammad of Najd) heard about this plot of their enemies, they began to hate them all the more. They fell into the trap they had laid.
Muhammad of Najd promised me that he would implement all the six articles of the scheme and added, "For the time being I can execute them only partly." He was right in this word of his. At that time it was impossible for him to carry out all of them.
He found it impossible to have Ka'ba demolished. And he gave up the idea of announcing that it (Ka'ba) is an idol. In addition, he refused to publish an interpolated copy of the Qur'aan. Most of his fears in this respect were from the Shereefs in Mekka and the Istanbul government. He told me that "If we made these two announcements we would be attacked by a powerful army." I accepted his excuse. For he was right. The conditions were not favorable at all.
A couple of years later the Ministry of Commonwealth managed to cajole Muhammad bin Su'ood, the Ameer of Der'iyya, into joining our lines. They sent me a messenger to inform me about this and to establish a mutual affection and cooperation between the two Muhammads. For earning Muslims' hearts and trusts, we exploited our Muhammad of Najd religiously, and Muhammad bin Su'ood politically. It is an historical fact that states based on religion have lived longer and have been more powerful and more imposing.
Thus we continuously became more and more powerful. We made Der'iyya city our capital. And we named our new religion the WAHHABI religion. The Ministry supported and reinforced the Wahhaabee government in an underhanded way. The new government bought eleven British officers, very well learned in the Arabic language and desert warfare, under the name of slaves. We prepared our plans in cooperation with these officers. Both Muhammads followed the way we showed them. When we did not receive any orders from the Ministry we made our own decisions.
We all married girls from tribes. We enjoyed the pleasure of a Muslim wife's devotion to her husband. Thus we had stronger relations with tribes. Everything goes well now. Our centralization is becoming more and more vigorous each day. Unless an unexpected catastrophe takes place, we shall eat the fruit we have prepared. For we have done whatever is necessary and sown the seeds.
