1848.] Notice of the Ikhwan al safd. 191 



angels and of the blessed in paradise, as it is said in the Qoran : " They 

 (women) said by God, this (Joseph) is not a man, he is an exalted angel." 

 Bad morals are the peculiarity of devils and the tenants of hell, who 

 envy each other, as it is said in the Qoran : — " And the seduced shall 

 say to their seducers, verily ye shall not be bidden welcome ; ye have 

 brought it upon us ; and a wretched abode is hell." They will be to- 

 gether in hell. 



Know, O brother (may God help thee !) that the faculties or qualifi- 

 tions of the mind of our brothers with reference to the matter to which 

 we allude, are four ; first, purity of the substance of the soul : the quick- 

 ness of perception and impressiveness ; this qualification is necessary for 

 the artisans of our republic as mentioned in the second book. This is 

 the faculty of intellect which distinguishes between the objects observed 

 by the senses ; it comes after the faculty of speaking at an age of about 

 fifteen years ; an allusion is made to it in the Qoran : " When your 

 children have attained puberty they have no longer free access." We 

 call man of this class in our memoirs " pure" and " kind." Above 

 this class is the class called " masters," who are the rulers, that is to say, 

 the guardians of the brothers. They treat them with mildness and 

 kindness, this is the administrative faculty which is acquired after the 

 intellectual faculty at an age of thirty years. God alludes to it in the 

 words (28, 13.) "And when Moses had attained his age of full strength 

 and was become a perfect man, we bestowed on him wisdom and know- 

 ledge." We call this class in our memoirs our ' ' distinguished and 

 good brothers." The third class is above this. It is the class of 

 reigning kings who are able to defend themselves against opposition by 

 kindness and mildness and by contributing to the welfare of their ene- 

 mies. This is the religious turn of mind (administrative faculty or the 

 talent of ruling) which developes itself after about the fortieth year 

 of age. To this refer the words of the Qoran ; — " And when he had 

 attained the age of strength, that is to say, when he was forty years, he 

 (Solomon) said, O Lord, bestow knowledge upon me that I may thank thee 

 for the favour which thou hast conferred upon me and upon my parents, 

 and that I may perform good works which thou shalt approve of." 

 We have called this class in our memoirs " distinguished and honored 

 brothers." The fourth class is above this, and may one of our brothers 

 in whatever class he may be aim at it. Men of this class are completely 



2 p 



