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The Works of Washington Irving (6); Mahomet and His Successors, V.1-2. V.7. Knickerbocker's New York. Salmagundi
The Works of Washington Irving Mahomet and His Successors V12 V7 Knickerbocker's New York Salmagundi - 6 Author:Washington Irving Volume: 6 General Books publication date: 2009 Original publication date: 1881 Original Publisher: G.P. Putnam's sons Notes: This is a black and white OCR reprint of the original. It has no illustrations and there may be typos or missing text. When you buy the General Books edition of this book you get free trial access to Million-Books.com... more » where you can select from more than a million books for free. Excerpt: CHAPTER III. Traditions concerning Mecca and the Caaba. Adam and Eve were cast forth from Paradise, say Arabian traditions, they fell in different parts of the earth ; Adam on a mountain of the island of Serendib, or Ceylon; Eve in Arabia en the borders of the Red Sea, where the port of Joddah is now situated. For two hundred years they wandered separate and lonely about the earth, until, in consideration of their penitence and wretehedness, they were permitted to come together again on Mount Arafat, not far from the present eity of Mecca. In the depth of his sorrow and repentance, Adam, it is said, raised his hands and eyea to heaven, and implored the elemency of God; entreating that a shrine might be vouchsafed to him similar to that at which he had worshipped when in Paradise, and round which the angels used to move in adoring processions. The supplication of Adam was effectual. A tabernaele or temple formed of radiant elouds was lowered down by the hands of angels, and placed immediately below its prototype in the celestial paradise. Towards this heaven-dogcended shrine, Adam thenceforth turned when in prayer, and round it he daily made seven circuits in imitation of the rite of the adoring angels. At the death of Adam, say the same traditions, the tabernacle of clouds passed away, or was again drawn up to heaven; but another, of the same form and in the same place, was built of stone and clay by Seth, the sou of Adam. This was swept away by the deluge. Many generations afterwards, in the time of the patriarchs, when Hagar and her child Ishmael ...« less