Bedouin Polytheism.
Bedouin Polytheism.
The word ‘Bedouin’ comes from the Arabic word for someone who dwells in the desert and also are known as Nomads. In the time of pre-Islamic Arabia, Nomads were constantly travelling and they never settled in one place. Some people settled near rivers but Nomads just lived in desserts and moved according to the seasons from place to place in search of food, water and land. Living on the fringes of the desert was a benefit because they could find enough food for their animals there and living in dry places such as deserts meant they could farm crops and search widely to find forage for their animals. They earned income by trading with the Sedentary/Pastoral tribes and transported goods like Camels and products like hand-made rugs.
Bedouins are known as the primary inhabitants of the Holy land and it is believed that Abraham and Jacob were probably Bedouins. They are seen as the ‘’ideal’’ Arabs because of their herding lifestyle and their traditional code of honour. Wattan (2003) states ‘’Bedouin polytheism was the religion of the majority of the population ’’ This shows that most of Arabia followed the Bedouin religion and culture as it was the orthodox and popular religion at that time. They were animistic and believed in Jinns. As they were polytheistic, they worshipped more than one God and believed that gods lived in the sky. Gods that they worshipped were al’Manat and al’Uzza. There was no holy literature and hardly any organised worship which shows Bedouin Polytheism had very little religious content.
Bedouins believe in ‘Hasset’ which means the evil eye and they take this very seriously. They believe children are very vulnerable and someone might cast an eye of harm to them. Protective amulets were attached to children’s clothing so they are not be targeted. Another Bedouin tradition is that they slaughter animals such as a Goat or a Sheep when a child is born and they call this ritual ‘Foo-ela’. The Bedouins that are of southern
The word ‘Bedouin’ comes from the Arabic word for someone who dwells in the desert and also are known as Nomads. In the time of pre-Islamic Arabia, Nomads were constantly travelling and they never settled in one place. Some people settled near rivers but Nomads just lived in desserts and moved according to the seasons from place to place in search of food, water and land. Living on the fringes of the desert was a benefit because they could find enough food for their animals there and living in dry places such as deserts meant they could farm crops and search widely to find forage for their animals. They earned income by trading with the Sedentary/Pastoral tribes and transported goods like Camels and products like hand-made rugs.
Bedouins are known as the primary inhabitants of the Holy land and it is believed that Abraham and Jacob were probably Bedouins. They are seen as the ‘’ideal’’ Arabs because of their herding lifestyle and their traditional code of honour. Wattan (2003) states ‘’Bedouin polytheism was the religion of the majority of the population ’’ This shows that most of Arabia followed the Bedouin religion and culture as it was the orthodox and popular religion at that time. They were animistic and believed in Jinns. As they were polytheistic, they worshipped more than one God and believed that gods lived in the sky. Gods that they worshipped were al’Manat and al’Uzza. There was no holy literature and hardly any organised worship which shows Bedouin Polytheism had very little religious content.
Bedouins believe in ‘Hasset’ which means the evil eye and they take this very seriously. They believe children are very vulnerable and someone might cast an eye of harm to them. Protective amulets were attached to children’s clothing so they are not be targeted. Another Bedouin tradition is that they slaughter animals such as a Goat or a Sheep when a child is born and they call this ritual ‘Foo-ela’. The Bedouins that are of southern