ran. The _Muwahhidin_ (Unitarians), as
the Druses call themselves, believe that there is one and only one God,
indefinable, incomprehensible, ineffable, passionless. He has made
himself known to men by successive incarnations, of which the last was
Hakim, the sixth Fatimite caliph. How many these incarnations have been
is stated variously; but seventy, one for each period of the world,
seems the best-attested number. Jesus appears to be accepted as one
such incarnation, but not Mahomet, although it is agreed that, in his
time, the "Universal Intelligence" (see later) was made flesh, in the
person of Mikdad al-Aswad. No further incarnation can now take place: in
Hakim a final appeal was made to mankind, and after the door of mercy
had stood open to all for twenty-six years, it was finally and for ever
closed. When the tribulation of the faithful has reached its height,
Hakim will reappear to conquer the world and render his religion
supreme. Druses, believed to be dispersed in China, will return to
Syria. The combined body of the Faithful will take Mecca, and finally
Jerusalem, and all the world will accept the Faith. The first of the
creatures of God is the Universal Intelligence or Spirit, impersonated
in Hamza, Hakim's vizier. This Spirit was the creator of all subordinate
beings, and alone has immediate communion with the Deity. Next in rank,
and equally supporting the throne of the Almighty, are four Ministering
Spirits, the Soul, the Word, the Right Wing and the Left Wing, who, in
Hakim's time, were embodied respectively in Ismael Darazi, Mahommed ibn
Wahab, Selama ibn Abd al-Wahal and Baha ud-Din; and beneath these again
are spiritual agents of various ranks. The material world is an
emanation from, and a "mirror" of, the Divine Intelligence. The number
of human beings admits neither of increase nor of decrease, and a
regular process of metempsychosis goes on continually. The souls of the
virtuous pass after death into ever new incarnations of greater
perfection, till at last they reach a point at which they can be
re-absorbed into the Deity itself; those of the wicked may be degraded
to the level of camels or dogs. All previous religions are mere types of
the true, and their sacred books and observances are to be interpreted
allegorically. The Gospel and the Koran are both regarded as inspired
books, but not as religious guides. The latter function is performed
solely by the Druse Scriptures. As the admission of co