i88i] A JOURNEY IN THE HEjAZ 583 



A very curious mode of expiation called the Naga is 

 practised by those who cannot afford the any. It does 

 not apply to murder, but only to injuries of a lesser kind. 

 With bare and shaven head the offender appears as a 

 penitent at the door of the injured person, holding a 

 knife in each hand, and says 



En-naga naggana wan-naga nagga-er rijal 



illadhy kamana. 



That is, the naga purges us ; yea, it purges the man 

 who is like us viz. not a wicked and unrepentant 

 offender. Saying this, he repeatedly gashes his head 

 with both knives ; or, if he has not nerve enough, may 

 get another to do so for him. Then drawing his hands 

 over his bloody scalp, he wipes them on the door-post. 

 Then the injured man must come out, cover the wounded 

 head with a semada, kill a sheep, and make a feast. 

 The common meal ends the feud, and the offender s face 

 is again white. The naga is practised even in the towns, 

 in Mecca, and in Taif. In the ceremony of entering a 

 man s protection I have mentioned that one form is to 

 lay hold of the beard. This symbolical action has many 

 applications. For example, if an Arab has to pass through 

 a hostile encampment, he will lurk at the outskirts till 

 he sees a little child. Calling the boy, he gives him a 

 small present to accompany him, lifts him on his camel, 

 and rides safely through the camp, the child grasping 

 his chin. The Bedouins have a curious way of expressing 

 their feelings of goodwill or reluctance by touching the 

 beard or the back of the neck respectively. The former 

 is a good sign, but if a Bedouin, in approaching you or 

 in answering a request, puts his hand behind his neck, 

 you may be sure he bears you no goodwill, however 

 fairly he may say Marhabdn. 



The law of blood revenge applies to the practice of 

 war, and certainly tends to diminish bloodshed in the 

 constant forays of the restless and turbulent tribes. In 

 Arabic warfare, a pitched battle is comparatively rare. 



