SODOM. Arabic Sadūm (سدوم‎). Heb. ‏סְדוֹם‎ Sedōm. “The City of Lot.” The Qāmūs says it is more correctly Ẕaẕūm. The city is not mentioned by name in the Qurʾān, but it is admitted to be one of the “overturned cities” referred to in Sūrahs ix. 71; lxix. 9. Amongst Muḥammadans, this city is associated with sodomy, or unnatural crime, called in Arabic liwāt̤ah. Pæderastia, is held to be forbidden by Muslim law, and the reader will find a discussion on the subject in Hamilton’s Hidāyah, vol. ii. p. 26. The prevalence of this vice amongst Muḥammadans is but too well known. (See Vambéry’s Sketches of Central Asia, p. 192.)

SOLOMON. Arabic Sulaimān (سليمان‎). Heb. ‏שְׁלֹמֹה‎ Shelōmōh. Both according to the Qurʾān and the Muḥammadan commentators, Solomon was celebrated for his skill and wisdom. The following is the account given of him in the Qurʾān, with the commentators’ remarks in italics, as given in Mr. Lane’s Selections from the Ḳurʾán (2nd ed. by Mr. Stanley Lane-Poole):—

“And We subjected unto Solomon the wind, blowing strongly, and being light at his desire, which ran at his command to the land that We blessed (namely Syria); and We knew all things (knowing that what We gave him would stimulate him to be submissive to his Lord). And We subjected, of the devils, those who should dive for him in the sea and bring forth from it jewels for him, and do other work besides that; that is, building, and performing other services; and We watched over them, that they might not spoil what they executed; for they used, when they had finished a work before night, to spoil it, if they were not employed in something else.” (Sūrah xxi. 81, 82.)

“We gave unto David Solomon his son. How excellent a servant was he! For he was one who earnestly turned himself unto God, glorifying and praising Him at all times. Remember when, in the latter part of the day, after the commencement of the declining of the sun, the mares standing on three feet and touching the ground with the edge of the fourth foot, swift in the course, were displayed before him. They were a thousand mares, which were displayed before him after he had performed the noon-prayers, on the occasion of his desiring to make use of them in a holy war; and when nine hundred of them had been displayed, the sun set, and he had not performed the afternoon prayers. So he was grieved, and he said, Verily I have preferred the love of earthly goods above the remembrance of my Lord, (that is, the performance of the afternoon prayers,) so that the sun is concealed by the veil. Bring them (namely the horses) back unto me. Therefore they brought them back. And he began to sever with his sword the legs and the necks, slaughtering them, and cutting off their legs, as a sacrifice unto God, and gave their flesh in alms; and God gave him in compensation what was better than they were and swifter, namely the wind, which travelled by his command whithersoever he desired. And We tried Solomon by depriving him of his kingdom. This was because he married a woman of whom he became enamoured, and she used to worship an idol in his palace without his knowledge. His dominion was in his signet; and he pulled it off once and deposited it with his wife, who was named El-Emeeneh (Amīnah); and a jinnee came unto her in the form of Solomon, and took it from her. And We placed upon his throne a counterfeit body: namely that jinnee, who was Ṣakhr (Ṣak͟hr), or another. He sat upon the throne of Solomon, and the birds and other creatures surrounded him; and Solomon went forth, with a changed appearance, and saw him upon his throne, and said unto the people, I am Solomon:—but they denied him. Then he returned unto his kingdom, after some days, having obtained the signet and put it on, and seated himself upon his throne. He said, O my Lord, forgive me, and give me a dominion that may not be to anyone after me (or beside me); for Thou art the Liberal Giver. So We subjected unto him the wind, which ran gently at his command whithersoever he desired; and the devils also, every builder of wonderful structures, and diver that brought up pearls from the sea, and others bound in chains which connected their hands to their necks. And We said unto him, This is Our gift, and bestow thou thereof upon whomsoever thou wilt, or refrain from bestowing, without rendering an account. And verily for him was ordained a high rank with Us, and an excellent retreat.” (Sūrah xxxviii. 29–39.)

“We bestowed on David and Solomon knowledge in judging men and in the language of the birds and other matters; and they said, Praise be to God who hath made us to excel many of His believing servants, by the gift of prophecy and by the subjection of the jinn and mankind and the devils. And Solomon inherited from David the gift of prophecy and knowledge; and he said, O men, we have been taught the language of the birds, and have had bestowed on us of everything wherewith prophets and kings are gifted. Verily this is manifest excellence. And his armies of jinn and men and birds were gathered together unto Solomon, and they were led on in order, until, when they came unto the valley of ants, (which was at Et-Táïf [at̤-T̤āʾif], or in Syria, the ants whereof were small or great), an ant (the queen of the ants), having seen the troops of Solomon, said, O ants, enter your habitations, lest Solomon and his troops crush you violently, while they perceive not. And Solomon smiled, afterwards laughing at her saying, which he heard from the distance of three miles, the wind conveying it to him: so he withheld his forces when he came in sight of their valley, until the ants had entered their dwellings: and his troops were on horses and on foot in this expedition. And he said, O my Lord, inspire me to be thankful for Thy favour which Thou hast bestowed upon me and upon my parents, and to do righteousness which Thou shalt approve, and admit me, in Thy mercy, among Thy servants, the righteous, the prophets and the saints.

“And he examined the birds, that he might see the lap-wing, that saw the water beneath the earth, and directed to it by pecking the earth, whereupon the devils used to draw it forth when Solomon wanted it to perform the ablution for prayer; but he saw it not: and he said, Wherefore do I not see the lapwing? Is it one of the absent? And when he was certain of the case he said, I will assuredly punish it with a severe punishment, by plucking out its feathers and its tail and casting it in the sun so that it shall not be able to guard against excessive thirst; or I will slaughter it; or it shall bring me a manifest convincing proof showing its excuse. And it tarried not long before it presented itself unto Solomon submissively, and raised its head and relaxed its tail and its wings: so he forgave it; and he asked it what it had met with during its absence; and it said, I have become acquainted with that wherewith thou hast not become acquainted, and I have come unto thee from Seba (a tribe of El-Yemen) with a sure piece of news. I found a woman reigning over them, named Bilḳees (Bilqīs), and she hath been gifted with everything that princes require, and hath a magnificent throne. (Its length was eighty cubits, and its breadth, forty cubits; and its height, thirty cubits: it was composed of gold and silver set with fine pearls and with rubies and chrysolites, and its legs were of rubies and chrysolites and emeralds: upon it were closed seven doors: to each chamber through which one passed to it was a closed door.) I found her and her people worshipping the sun instead of God, and the devil hath made their works to seem comely unto them, so that he hath hindered them from the right way, wherefore they are not rightly directed to the worship of God, who produceth what is hidden (namely, the rain and vegetables) in the heavens and the earth, and knoweth what they [that is, mankind and others] conceal in their hearts, and what they reveal with their tongues. God: there is no deity but He, the Lord of the magnificent throne, between which and the throne of Bilḳees is a vast difference.

“Solomon said to the lapwing, We will see whether thou hast spoken truth or whether thou art of the liars. Then the lapwing guided them to the water, and it was drawn forth by the devils; and they quenched their thirst and performed the ablution and prayed. Then Solomon wrote a letter, the form whereof was this:—From the servant of God, Solomon the son of David, to Bilḳees the queen of Seba. In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful, Peace be on whomsoever followeth the right direction. After this salutation, I say, Act ye not proudly towards me; but come unto me submitting. He then sealed it with musk, and stamped it with his signet, and said unto the lapwing, Go with this my letter and throw it down unto them (namely Bilḳees and her people): then turn away from them, but stay near them, and see what reply they will return. So the lapwing took it, and came unto her, and around her were her forces; and he threw it down into her lap; and when she saw it, she trembled with fear. Then she considered what was in it, and she said unto the nobles of her people, O nobles, an honourable (sealed) letter hath been thrown down unto me. It is from Solomon; and it is this:—In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful. Act ye not proudly towards me: but come unto me submitting.—She said, O nobles, advise me in mine affair. I will not decide upon a thing unless ye bear me witness.—They replied, We are endowed with strength and endowed with great valour; but the command belongeth to thee; therefore see what thou wilt command us to do, and we will obey thee. She said, Verily kings, when they enter a city, waste it, and render the mighty of its inhabitants abject; and thus will they do who have sent the letter. But I will send unto them with a gift, and I will see with what the messengers will return, whether the gift will be accepted, or whether it will be rejected. If he be merely a king, he will accept it; and if he be a prophet, he will not accept it. And she sent male and female servants, a thousand in equal numbers, five hundred of each sex, and five hundred bricks of gold, and a crown set with jewels, and musk and ambergris and other things, by a messenger with a letter. And the lapwing hastened unto Solomon, to tell him the news; on hearing which, he commanded that bricks of gold and silver should be cast, and that a horse-course should be extended to the length of nine leagues from the place where he was, and that they should build around it a wall with battlements, of gold and silver, and that the handsomest of the beasts of the land and of the sea should be brought with the sons of the jinn on the right side of the horse-course and on its left.

“And when the messenger came with the gift, and with him his attendants, unto Solomon, he (Solomon) said, Do ye aid me with wealth? But what God hath given me (namely, the gift of prophecy and the kingdom) is better than what He hath given you, of worldly goods; yet ye rejoice in your gift, because ye glory in the showy things of this world. Return unto them with the gift that thou hast brought; for we will surely come unto them with forces with which they have not power to contend, and we will surely drive them out from it, (that is, from their country, Seba, which was named after the father of their tribe,) abject and contemptible, if they come not unto us submitting. And when the messenger returned unto her with the gift, she placed her throne within seven doors, within her palace, and her palace was within seven palaces; and she closed the doors, and set guards to them, and prepared to go unto Solomon, that she might see what he would command her to do. She departed with twelve thousand kings, each king having with him many thousands, and proceeded until she came as near to him as a league’s distance; when he knew of her approach, he said, O nobles, which of you will bring unto me her throne before they come unto me submitting? An ʾefreet (ʿIfrīt) of the jinn, answered, I will bring it unto thee before thou shalt arise from thy place wherein thou sittest to judge from morning until mid-day; for I am able to do it, and trustworthy with respect to the jewels that it compriseth and other matters. Solomon said, I desire it more speedily. And thereupon he with whom was knowledge of the revealed scripture (namely his Wezeer, Aṣaf the son of Barkhiya, who was a just person, acquainted with the most great name of God, which ensured an answer to him who invoked thereby) said, I will bring it unto thee before thy glance can be withdrawn from any object. And he said unto him, Look at the sky. So he looked at it; then he withdrew his glance, and found it placed before him: for during his look towards the sky, Aṣaf prayed, by the most great name, that God would bring it; and it so happened, the throne passing under the ground until it came up before the throne of Solomon. And when he saw it firmly placed before him, he said, This is the favour of my Lord, that He may try me, whether I shall be thankful or whether I shall be unthankful. And he who is thankful is thankful for the sake of his own soul, which will have the reward of his thankfulness; and as to him who is ungrateful, my Lord is independent and bountiful.

“Then Solomon said, Alter ye her throne so that it may not be known by her, that we may see whether she be rightly directed to the knowledge thereof, or whether she be of those who are not rightly directed to the knowledge of that which is altered. He desired thereby to try her intelligence. So they altered it, by adding to it, or taking from it, or in some other manner. And when she came, it was said unto her, Is thy throne like this? She answered, As though it were the same. (She answered them ambiguously like as they had questioned her ambiguously, not saying, Is this thy throne?—and had they so said, she had answered, Yes.) And when Solomon saw her knowledge, he said, And we have had knowledge bestowed on us before her, and have been Muslims. But what she worshipped instead of God hindered her from worshipping Him; for she was of an unbelieving people. It was said unto her also, Enter the palace. It had a floor of white, transparent glass, beneath which was running water, wherein were fish. Solomon had made it on its being said unto him that her legs and feet were hairy, like the legs of an ass. And when she saw it, she imagined it to be a great water, and she uncovered her legs, that she might wade through it; and Solomon was on his throne at the upper end of the palace, and he saw that her legs and her feet were handsome. He said unto her, Verily it is a palace evenly spread with glass. And he invited her to embrace El-Islám, whereupon she said, O my Lord, verily I have acted unjustly towards mine own soul, by worshipping another than Thee, and I resign myself, with Solomon, unto God, the Lord of the worlds. And he desired to marry her; but he disliked the hair upon her legs; so the devils made for him the depilatory of quick-lime, wherewith she removed the hair, and he married her; and he loved her, and confirmed her in her kingdom. He used to visit her every month once, and to remain with her three days; and her reign expired on the expiration of the reign of Solomon. It is related that he began to reign when he was thirteen years of age, and died at the age of three and fifty years. Extolled be the perfection of Him to the duration of whose dominion there is no end!” (Sūrah xxvii. 15–45.)

“We subjected unto Solomon the wind, which travelled in the morning (unto the period when the sun began to decline) the distance of a month’s journey, and in the evening (from the commencement of the declining of the sun into its setting) a month’s journey. And We made the fountain of molten brass to flow for him three days with their nights in every month, as water floweth; and the people worked until the day of its flowing, with that which had been given unto Solomon. And of the jinn were those who worked in his presence, by the will of his Lord; and such of them as swerved from obedience to Our command We will cause to taste of the punishment of hell in the world to come (or, as it is said by some, We cause to taste of its punishment in the present world, an angel beating them with a scourge from hell, the stripe of which burneth them). They made for him whatever he pleased, of lofty halls (with steps whereby to ascend to them), and images (for they were not forbidden by his law), and large dishes, like great tanks for watering camels, around each of which assembled a thousand men, eating from it, and cooking-pots standing firmly on their legs, cut out from the mountains in El-Yemen, and to which they ascended by ladders. And We said, Work, O family of David, in the service of God, with thanksgiving unto Him for what He hath given you:—but few of My servants are the thankful. And when We decreed that he (namely Solomon) should die, and he died, and remained standing, and leaning upon his staff for a year, dead, the jinn meanwhile performing those difficult works as they were accustomed to do, not knowing of his death, until the worm ate his staff, whereupon he fell down, nothing showed them his death but the eating reptile (the worm) that ate his staff. And when he fell down, the jinn plainly perceived that if they had known things unseen (of which things was the death of Solomon), they had not continued in the ignominious affliction (that is, in their difficult works), imagining that he was alive, inconsistently with their opinion that they knew things unseen. And that the period was a year was known by calculating what the worm had eaten of his staff since his death in each day and night or other space of time.” (Sūrah xxxiv. 11–13.)

Mr. Sale, quoting from the commentators al-Jalālān and al-Baiẓāwī, has the following remarks on the foregoing account of Solomon:—

“Some say the spirits made him (Solomon) two lions, which were placed at the foot of his throne; and two eagles, which were set above it; and that when he mounted it, the lions stretched out their paws; and when he sat down, the eagles shaded him with their wings; and that he had a carpet of green silk, on which his throne was placed, being of a prodigious length and breadth, and sufficient for all his forces to stand on, the men placing themselves on his right hand, and the spirits [or jinn] on his left; and that when all were in order, the wind at his command took up the carpet and transported it with all that were upon it wherever he pleased; the army of birds at the same time flying over their heads and forming a kind of canopy to shade them from the sun. The commentators tell us that David, having laid the foundations of the Temple of Jerusalem, which was to be in lieu of the tabernacle of Moses, when he died, left it to be finished by his son Solomon, who employed the genii in the work; that Solomon, before the edifice was quite completed, perceiving his end drew nigh, begged of God that his death might be concealed from the genii till they had entirely finished it; that God therefore so ordered it that Solomon died as he stood at his prayers, leaning on his staff, which supported the body in that posture a full year; and the genii, supposing him to be alive, continued their work during that term, at the expiration whereof, the temple being perfectly completed, a worm, which had gotten into the staff, ate it through, and the corpse fell to the ground and discovered the king’s death. That after the space of forty days, which was the time the image had been worshipped in his house, the devil flew away, and threw the signet into the sea: the signet was immediately swallowed by a fish, which being taken and given to Solomon, he found the ring in its belly, and, having by this means recovered the kingdom, took Ṣakhr, and, tying a great stone to his neck, threw him into the Lake of Tiberias. The Arab historians tell us that Solomon, having finished the Temple of Jerusalem, went in pilgrimage to Makkah, where having stayed as long as he pleased, he proceeded towards al-Yaman; and leaving Makkah in the morning he arrived by noon at Ṣanʿāʾ, and being extremely delighted with the country rested there; but wanting water to make the ablution, he looked among the birds for the lapwing which found it for him. Some say that Bilqīs, to try whether Solomon was a prophet or not, drest the boys like girls and the girls like boys, and sent him in a casket a pearl not drilled and an onyx drilled with a crooked hole; and that Solomon distinguished the boys from the girls by the different manner of their taking water, and ordered one worm to bore the pearl, and another to pass a thread through the onyx.”

SON. Arabic ibn (ابن‎), pl. banū; Heb. ‏בֵּן‎ bēn; walad (ولد‎), pl. aulād; Heb. ‏וָלָד‎ wālād. The evidence of a son in favour of his parents in a court of law is not admissible. A son cannot be the slave of his father. A father can slay his son without punishment being inflicted upon him for the murder.

According to the law of inheritance of both Sunnī and Shīʿah, when there are several sons they divide the property of their deceased father equally, the eldest son being according to Shīʿah law, entitled to take possession of his father’s sabre, Qurʾān, signet-ring, and robes of honour. (Personal Law, by Syed Ameer Ali, p. 74.)

For the Muslim doctrine regarding the son-ship of Christ, refer to article JESUS CHRIST.

SORCERY. [MAGIC.]

SOUL. There are two words used in the Qurʾān for the soul of man, rūḥ (روح‎), Heb. ‏רוּחַ‎ rūak͟h, and nafs (نفس‎), ‏נֶפֶשׁ‎ nephesh; e.g.:—

Sūrah xvii. 87: “They will ask thee of the spirit (rūḥ). Say, the spirit proceedeth at my Lord’s command, but of knowledge only a little to you is given.”

Sūrah iii. 24: “Each soul (nafs) shall be paid what it has earned.”

Muslim theologians do not distinguish between the rūḥ and nafs, but the philosophers do. Nafs seems to answer the Greek ψυχή, “soul or life,” human beings being distinguished as an-nafsu ʾn-nāt̤iqah, “the soul which speaks”; animals as an-nafsu ʾl-ḥaiwānīyah, “the animal life”; and vegetables as an-nafsu ʾn-nabātīyah; whilst rūḥ expresses the Greek πνεῦμα, “spirit.” Man thus forming a tripartite nature of جسم‎ jism, “body”; نفس‎ nafs, “soul”; and روح‎ rūḥ, “spirit”; an idea which does not find expression in the Qurʾān, but which is expressed in the New Testament, 1 Thess. v. 23: “And I pray God your whole spirit and soul, and body be preserved blameless until the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” This tripartite nature of man is used by Dr. Pfander, and other controversialists, as an illustration of the Trinity in Unity. [SPIRIT.]

SPEAKING. [CONVERSATION.]

SPIDER, The. Arabic al-ʿAnkabūt (العنكبوت‎). The title of the XXIXth Sūrah of the Qurʾān, in the 40th verse of which is given the parable of the spider: “The likeness for those who take to themselves guardians instead of God is the likeness of the spider who buildeth her a house: But verily, frailest of all houses surely is the house of the spider. Did they but know this!”

SPIRIT. Arabic (روح‎). The word rūḥ (pl. arwāḥ), translated “spirit,” is the Arabic form corresponding to the Hebrew ‏רוּחַ‎ rūak͟h. It occurs nineteen times in the Qurʾān:—

1. Sūratu ʾl-Baqarah (ii.), 81: “We strengthened him (Jesus) by the Holy Spirit (Rūḥu ʾl-Qudus).”

2. Sūratu ʾl-Baqarah (ii.), 254: “We strengthened him (Jesus) by the Holy Spirit (Rūḥu ʾl-Qudus).”

3. Sūratu ʾn-Nisāʾ (iv.), 169: “The Masīḥ, Jesus, son of Mary, is only an apostle of God, and His Word which He conveyed into Mary and a Spirit (proceeding) from Himself (Rūḥun min-hu).”

4. Sūratu ʾl-Māiʾdah (v.), 109: “When I strengthened thee (Jesus) with the Holy Spirit (Rūḥu ʾl-Qudus).”

5. Sūratu ʾn-Naḥl (xvi.), 2: “He will cause the angels to descend with the spirit (Rūḥ) on whom He pleaseth among his servants, bidding them warn that there be no God but me.”

6. Sūratu ʾn-Naḥl (xvi.), 104: “The Holy Spirit (Rūḥu ʾl-Qudus) hath brought it (the Qurʾān) down with truth from thy Lord.”

7. Sūratu ʾl-Miʿrāj (xvii.), 87: “They will ask thee of the spirit. Say: The spirit (ar-Rūḥ) proceedeth at my Lord’s command, but of knowledge only a little to you is given.”

8. Sūratu ʾsh-Shuʿarāʾ (xxvi.), 193: “The faithful Spirit (ar-Rūḥu ʾl-Amīn) hath come down with it (the Qurʾān).”

9. Sūratu ʾl-Muʾmin (xl.), 15: “He sendeth forth the Spirit (ar-Rūḥ) at His own behest on whomsoever of His servants He pleaseth.”

10. Sūratu ʾl-Mujādilah (lviii.), 23: “On the hearts of these (the faithful) hath God graven the Faith, and with a spirit proceeding from Himself (Rūḥun min-hu) hath He strengthened them.”

11. Sūratu ʾl-Maʿārij (lxx.), 4: “The angels and the Spirit (ar-Rūḥ) ascend to Him in a day, whose length is fifty thousand years.”

12. Sūratu ʾl-Qadr (xcvii.), 4: “Therein descend the angels and the Spirit (ar-Rūḥ) by permission of their Lord for every matter.”

13. Sūratu ʾsh-Shūrā (xlii.), 52: “Thus have we sent the Spirit (ar-Rūḥ) to thee with a revelation, by our command.”

14. Sūratu Maryam (xix.), 17: “And we sent our spirit (Rūḥa-nā) to her, Mary, and he took before her the form of a perfect man.”

15. Sūratu ʾl-Ambiyāʾ (xxi.), 91: “Into whom (Mary) we breathed of our Spirit (min Rūḥi-nā).”

16. Sūratu ʾt-Taḥrīm (lxvi.), 12: “Into whose womb (i.e. Mary’s) we breathed of our Spirit (min Rūḥi-nā).”

17. Sūratu ʾs-Sajdah (xxxii.), 8: “And breathed of His Spirit (min Rūḥi-hi) into him (Adam).”

18. Sūratu ʾl-Ḥijr (xv.), 29: “And when I shall have finished him (Adam) and breathed of my Spirit (min Rūḥī) into him.”

19. Sūratu Ṣād (xxxviii.), 72: “And when I have formed him (Adam) and breathed of my Spirit (min Rūḥī) into him.”

Of the above quotations, all Muslim commentators are agreed in applying Nos. 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 11, 12, 14, to the angel Gabriel; Nos. 3, 15, 16, are said to be Jesus, the Rūḥu ʾllāh, or “Spirit of God”; Nos. 17, 18, 19, the Rūḥ, or “Life,” given to Adam; Nos. 9, 13, “the Spirit of Prophecy”; No. 10 is held to mean God’s grace and strength. With reference to No. 7, there is some discussion. The K͟halīfah ʿAlī is related to have said that it was an angel with 7,000 mouths, in each mouth there being 7,000 tongues, which unceasingly praised God. Ibn ʿAbbās held that it meant the angel Gabriel. Mujāhid, that it meant beings of another world.

The Commentators al-Kamālān say the Jews came and asked Muḥammad regarding the spirit of man, and the Prophet replied, “The Spirit proceedeth at my Lord’s command, but of knowledge only a little to you is given,” from which it is evident that it is impossible for the finite mind to understand the nature of a spirit.

The philosophical bearings of the question are fully discussed, from an Oriental standpoint in the Kashshāfu Iṣt̤ilāḥāti ʾl-Funūn, A Dictionary of Technical Terms used in the Sciences of the Mussalmāns, edited by W. Nassau Lees, LL.D., 1862, vol. i. p. 541; also in the Sharḥu ʾl-Mawāqif, p. 582.

Muḥammadan writers hold very conflicting views regarding the state of the soul or spirit after death. All agree that the Angel of Death (Malaku ʾl-Maut), separates the human soul from the body at the time of death, and that he performs his office with ease and gentleness towards the good, and with force and violence towards the wicked, a view which they establish on the testimony of the Qurʾān, Sūrah lxxix. 1, where the Prophet swears by “those who tear out violently and those who gently release.” After death the spirits enter a state called al-Barzak͟h, or the interval between death and the Resurrection, the ᾍδης of the New Testament. The souls of the faithful are said to be divided into three classes: (1) those of the Prophets who are admitted into Paradise immediately after death; (2) those of the martyrs who, according to a tradition of Muḥammad, rest in the crops of green birds, which eat the fruits and drink of the waters of Paradise; (3) those of all other believers, concerning the state of whose souls before the Resurrection there is great diversity of opinion. Some say they stay near the graves, either for a period of only seven days, or, according to others, until the Day of Resurrection. In proof of this, they quote the example of Muḥammad, who always saluted the spirits of the departed when passing a grave-yard. Others say, all the departed spirits of the faithful are in the lowest heaven with Adam, because the Prophet declared he saw them there in his pretended ascent to heaven. [MIʿRAJ.] Whilst others say the departed spirits dwell in the forms of white birds under the throne of God (which is a Jewish tradition).

Al-Baiẓāwī says the souls of the wicked are carried down to a pit in hell called Sijjīn [SIJJIN]; and there is a tradition to the effect that Muḥammad said the spirits of the wicked are tormented until the Day of Resurrection, when they are produced with their bodies for judgment.

The author of the Sharḥu ʾl-Mawāqif (p. 583), says that some Muslim philosophers state that after death the spirit of man will either be in a state of enlightenment or of ignorance. Those who are in a state of ignorance will go on from worse to worse, and those who are in a state of enlightenment will only suffer so far as they have contracted qualities of an undesirable character when in the body, but they will gradually improve until they arrive at a state of perfect enjoyment. This view, however, is not one which is tenable with the views propounded by the Qurʾān, in which there are very decided notions regarding the future state of heaven and hell. [SOUL.]

SPITTING. According to the Traditions, Muslims must spit on the left side, and cover it over with earth. Spitting in mosques is forbidden. (See ʿAbdu ʾl-Ḥaqq’s Commentary on the Mishkāt, vol. i. p. 295.)

Muḥammad said: “Spit not in front, for you are in God’s presence. Spit not on the right hand, for there standeth the angel who recordeth your good actions.”

SPOILS, The. Arabic al-Anfāl (الانفال‎). The title of the VIIIth Sūrah of the Qurʾān, in which are given instructions regarding the division of the spoils taken at the battle of Badr, a dispute having arisen between the young men who had fought and the old men who had stayed under the ensigns; the former insisting they ought to have the whole, and the latter that they deserved a share. [PLUNDER.]

STANDARDS. Arabic ʿalam (علم‎), pl. aʿlām. Regarding the standards used by Muḥammad, there are the following traditions:—

Jābir says: “The Prophet came into Makkah with a white standard.”

Ibn ʿAbbās says: “The Prophet had two standards, a large black one and a small white one.”

Al-Barāʾ ibn ʿĀzib says: “The standard, I remember, was a square one, and black spotted with divers colours.”

In the struggle between the Shīʿahs and the Sunnīs, the Fatimides adopted green as the colour of their standard, whilst the Banī Umaiyah assumed white for theirs.

In Central Asia, the ordinary Muslim standards are either black or green, and are triangular. The sign of the crescent, as it appears on Turkish standards, was adopted after the taking of Byzantium; for, long before the conquest of Constantinople, the crescent had been used in the city for an emblem of sovereignty, as may be seen from the medals struck in honour of Augustus and Trajan. [CRESCENT.]

There is a standard still preserved at Constantinople amongst the ancient relics, and called as-Sinjaqu ʾsh-sharīf, which is held to be a most sacred emblem, and is only produced on very special occasions. It is said to be the ancient standard of the Prophet.

A modern writer, describing this flag, says: “It is made of four layers of silk, the topmost of which is green, those below being composed of cloth, embroidered with gold. Its entire length is twelve feet, and from it is suspended the figure of a human hand, which clasps a copy of the Qurʾān, transcribed by the K͟halīfah ʿUs̤mān. In times of peace, the banner of the Prophet is kept in a chamber appropriated to the purpose, along with the clothes, teeth, the venerable locks, the stirrups, and the bow of the Prophet.”

In the Muḥarram, when the martyrdom of al-Ḥasan and al-Ḥusain is celebrated, numerous standards are carried about in the procession.

The origin of the horse-tail standard borne by modern Turks, appears to have been from the people bearing the horse-tail as a distinction of rank, the two ranks of pashas being distinguished respectively by two and three tails, and a further distinction of rank being marked by the elevation of one of the tails above the others.

According to the Traditions, the Mahdī, in the Last Days, will appear from the direction of K͟horasān with black ensigns, and there seems to be every reason to regard the black standard as the primitive ensign of Islām, although the Wahhābīs have generally carried green standards.

STATUES. [SCULPTURE.]

STONING TO DEATH. Arabic rajm (رجم‎). In Muslim law, the punishment of lapidation is only inflicted for adultery. (Under the Jewish law idolaters and bearers of false witness were also stoned.) It is founded, not upon the Qurʾān, where the only punishment awarded is one hundred stripes (Sūrah xxiv. 2), but upon the Traditions (Mishkāt, book xv. ch. 1), where Muḥammad is related to have said, “Verily God hath ordained for a man or woman not married one hundred lashes and expulsion from their town one year, and for a man or woman having been married one hundred lashes and stoning.” ʿAbdu ʾl-Ḥaqq says the hundred lashes, in addition to the stoning, is abrogated by the express example of the Prophet, who ordered stoning only; for ʿAbdu ʾllāh ibn ʿUmar relates the following tradition:—

“A Jew came to the Prophet and said, ‘A man and woman of ours have committed adultery.’ And the Prophet said, ‘What do you meet with in the Book of Moses in the matter of stoning?’ The Jew said, ‘We do not find stoning in the Bible, but we disgrace adulterers and whip them.’ Then ʿAbdu ʾllāh ibn Salām, who was a learned man of the Jews, and had embraced Islām, said, ‘You lie, O Jewish tribe! verily the order for stoning is in the Book of Moses.’ Then the book was brought, and opened; and a Jew put his hand upon the revelation for stoning, and read the one above and below it; and ʿAbdu ʾllāh said, ‘Lift up your hand.’ And he did so, and behold the revelation for stoning was produced in the book, and the Jews said, ‘ʿAbdu ʾllāh spoke true, O Muḥammad! the stoning revelation is in the Book of Moses.’ Then the Prophet ordered both the man and woman to be stoned.” (Mishkāt, book xv. ch. i.)

The author of the Hidāyah (vol. ii. p. 9) gives the following instructions as to the correct way of carrying out the sentence:—

“It is necessary, when a whoremonger is to be stoned to death, that he should be carried to some barren place void of houses or cultivation, and it is requisite that the stoning be executed—first by the witnesses, and after them by the Imām or Qāẓī, and after those by the rest of the bystanders, because it is so recorded from ʿAlī, and also because in the circumstance of the execution being begun by the witnesses there is a precaution, since a person may be very bold in delivering his evidence against a criminal, but afterwards, when directed himself to commence the infliction of that punishment which is a consequence of it, may from compunction retract his testimony; thus, causing the witnesses to begin the punishment may be a means of entirely preventing it. Ash-Shāfiʿī has said that the witnesses beginning the punishment is not a requisite, in a case of lapidation, any more than in a case of scourging. To this our doctors reply that reasoning upon a case of lapidation from a case of scourging is supposing an analogy between things which are essentially different, because all persons are not acquainted with the proper method of inflicting flagellation, and hence, if a witness thus ignorant were to attempt, it might prove fatal to the sufferer, and he would die where death is not his due, contrary to a case of lapidation, as that is of a destructive nature, and what every person is equally capable of executing, wherefore if the witnesses shrink back from the commencement of lapidation the punishment drops, because their reluctance argues their retraction.

“In the same manner punishment is remitted when the witnesses happen to die, or to disappear, as in this case the condition, namely, the commencement of it by the witnesses, is defeated. This is when the whoredom is established upon the testimony of witnesses: but when it is established upon the confession of the offender, it is then requisite that the lapidation be executed, first by the Imām or the Qāẓī, and after them by the rest of the multitude, because it is so recorded from ʿAlī. Moreover, the Prophet threw a small stone like a bean at G͟hamdīyah who had confessed whoredom. When a woman is to be stoned, a hole or excavation should be dug to receive her, as deep as her waist, because the Prophet ordered such a hole to be dug for G͟hamdīyah before mentioned, and ʿAlī also ordered a hole to be dug for Shuraha Hamdiānī. It is, however, immaterial whether a hole be dug or not, because the Prophet did not issue any particular ordinance respecting this, and the nakedness of a woman is sufficiently covered by her garments; but yet it is laudable to dig a hole for her, as decency is thus most effectually preserved. There is no manner of necessity to dig a hole for a man, because the prophet did not do so in the case of Māʿiz. And observe, it is not lawful to bind a person in order to execute punishment upon him in this case, unless it appears that it cannot otherwise be inflicted.

“The corpse of a person executed by lapidation for whoredom is entitled to the usual ablutions, and to all other funeral ceremonies, because of the declaration of the Prophet with respect to Māʿiz. ‘Do by the body as ye do by those of other believers’; and also, because the offender thus put to death is slain in vindication of the laws of God, wherefore ablution is not refused, as in the case of one put to death by a sentence of retaliation; moreover the Prophet allowed the prayers for the dead to G͟hamdīyah, after lapidation.” (Hidāyah, book ii. p. 9.)

This punishment of lapidation for adultery has become almost obsolete in modern times; even in Buk͟hārah, where the institutes of Muḥammad are supposed to be most strictly observed, it is not inflicted.