PAN-ISLAM
MACMILLAN AND CO., Limited
LONDON . BOMBAY . CALCUTTA . MADRAS
MELBOURNE
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY
NEW YORK . BOSTON . CHICAGO
DALLAS . SAN FRANCISCO
THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, Ltd.
TORONTO
PAN-ISLAM
BY
Author of "The Land of Us," "Arabia Infelix."
MACMILLAN AND CO., LIMITED
ST. MARTIN'S STREET, LONDON
1919
TO
MY WIFE
PREFACE
I have written this book to present the main factors of a many-sidedproblem—political, social and religious—in a form which the generalpublic can easily grasp.
Modern democratic principles tend to give the public increasing controlof international and inter-racial affairs, and therefore anycontribution to public knowledge on such questions is in the interestsof sound administration.
The book is not intended to advise those who actually handle theseaffairs: I give such advice, when required, in more detail and notthrough the medium of a published work.
"Pan-Islam" is an elementary handbook, not a text-book—still less anexhaustive treatise, but the questions it discusses are real enough. Myqualifications for writing it are based on a quarter of a century'sexperience of the subject in most parts of the Moslem world, and I havestudied the question in areas which I have not actually[viii] visited throughintercourse with pilgrims from those parts.
I have no axe to grind or infallible panacea to advocate; I merely laythe result of my researches before the public for its information, asfailing health has warned me to "pass the ball when collared," and Iwould like to think that the land where most of my life's work hascentred will not be mishandled by cranks and opportunists after I haveleft the game.
An arm-chair is a sorry substitute for an Arab pony, and a garden plotfor the highlands of Arabia Felix, but the human mind is not necessarilyconfined by such trammels, and if my environment is narrow I hope mybook is not.
G. Wyman Bury.
Helouan, 27th July, 1919.
CONTENTS
PAGE
CHAPTER I
ITS ORIGIN AND MEANING 11
CHAPTER II
ITS BEARING ON THE WAR 24
CHAPTER III
ITS STRENGTH AND WEAKNESS 83
CHAPTER IV
MOSLEM AND MISSIONARY 110
CHAPTER V
A PLEA FOR TOLERANCE 187