ABSTRACT
On the following day all the Moors, having heard the news, went to the mosque to say their prayers. But first some, deputed to this office, mounted the tower of their church, as is the custom amongst them three or four times a day, and, instead of bells, began with a loud voice to call the others to this same prayer, keeping one finger constantly in their ear and saying : “ Alla u eccubar, Alla u eccubar, aialassale aialassale aialalfale aialalfale Alla u eccubar leilla illala esciadu ana Mahometh resullala,” 1 that is, “ God is great, God is great, come to the church, come to the church, come to praise God, come to praise God, God is great, God is great, God was, God will be, Mahometh the messenger of God will rise again.” And they took me also with them, saying to me that they wished to pray to God for the Moors ; and so they set me publicly to make the prayer, which you shall hear, which prayer is as common with them as the Pater Noster is with us, and the Ave Maria. The Moors stand all in a row ; but there are many rows, and they have a priest as we have, who, after they have well washed, begins to pronounce the prayer in this manner, saying: “ Un gibilei nimi saithan e regin bizimilei erachman erachinal hamdulile ara blaharami erachman erachin malichi iaum edmi iachie nabudu hiachie nesta himi edina sarathel mostachina ledina ana antha alyhin gayril magdubin alehy-
1 Alldhu dkbar ! Alldhu dkbar ! H ie ’ala ’s-sald ! H ie ‘ala ’s-sald ! Hie *ala ’l-faldh ! H ie *ala ’l-faldh ! Alldhu dkbar ! La ildh ilia AUdh; wa-ash-hadna Muhammed rasAl Alldh. God is most Great ! God is most G reat! Come to prayer ! Come to prayer ! Come to secu rity ! Come to security ! There is no god but the God, and I testify that Muhammed is God’s Apostle! This is the ordinary adhdn or call to prayer, chaunted by the maddh-dhin from the minaret o f the mosque.
