| | | " " Nejd, Assir, and Hasa, most | | | of them Wahhabites | ... | 5,000 | 4,000,000 | | | " " Hejaz, of these perhaps | | | 10,000 Meccans | ... | 22,000 | 2,000,000 | | | Negroes from Soudan | 2,000 | ... | 10,000,000(?) | | | " " Zanzibar | 1,000 | ... | 1,500,000 | | | Malabari from the Cape of Good Hope | 150 | ... | | | | Persians | 6,000 | 2,500 | 8,000,000 | | | Indians (British subjects) | 15,000 | ... | 40,000,000 | | | Malays, chiefly from Java and Dutch | | | subjects | 12,000 | ... | 30,000,000 | | | Chinese | 100 | ... | 15,000,000 | | | Mongols from the Khanates, included in | | | the Ottoman Haj | ... | ... | 6,000,000 | | | Lazis, Circassians, Tartars, etc. | | | (Russian subjects), included in the | | | Ottoman Haj | ... | ... | 5,000,000 | | | Independent Afghans and Beluchis, | | | included in the Indian and Persian | | | Hajs | ... | ... | 3,000,000 |-----------------|------------ Total of Pilgrims present at Arafat | 93,250 | Total Census of Islam |175,000,000

The figures thus roundly given require explanation in order to be of their full value as a bird’s-eye view of Islam.  I will take them as nearly as possible in the order in which they stand, grouping them, however, for further convenience sake under their various sectarian heads, for it must be remembered that Islam, which in its institution was intended to be one community, political and religious, is now divided not only into many nations, but into many sects.  All, however, hold certain fundamental beliefs, and all perform the pilgrimage to Mecca, where they meet on common ground, and it is to this latter fact that the importance attached to the Haj is mainly owing.

The main beliefs common to all Mussulmans are—­

1.  A belief in one true God, the creator and ordainer of all things.

2.  A belief in a future life of reward or punishment.

3.  A belief in a divine revelation imparted first to Adam and renewed at intervals to Noah, to Abraham, to Moses, and to Jesus Christ, and last of all in its perfect form to Mohammed.  This revelation is not only one of dogma, but of practice.  It claims to have taught an universal rule of life for all mankind in politics and legislation as well as in doctrine and in morals.  This is called Islam.

4.  A belief in the Koran as the literal word of God, and of its inspired interpretation by the Prophet and his companions, preserved through tradition (Hadith).[1]