'History of the imâms and seyyids of 'Omân by Salîl-ibn-Razîk, from A.D. 661-1856; translated from the original Arabic, and edited with notes, appendices, and an introduction, continuing the history down to 1870, by George Percy Badger, F.R.G.S., late chaplain in the Presidency of Bombay.' [‎396] (557/612)

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APPENDIX B.
body of the Faithful, an obstinate attachment to the memory of
their founders, and one or two shibboleths of party, standing
them in the stead of the most rigid orthodoxy.
Withregardto religious ordinances and ceremonial, the Ibadhiyah
do not appear to differ in any important respect from the orthodox,
except perhaps that their observance of them is characterized by
a greater simplicity. Mr. Palgrave says that " their 4 Mezars,'
or buildings set apart for religious veneration, supply the de
ficiency of' Mesjids,' or regular mosques, but they very rarely
assemble for any stated form of worship ; their prayers are
uttered in a low and inaudible voice, accompanied by inflections
and prostrations different from those employed in Mahometan
devotion. 1 " I am satisfied that this is a mistaken judgment,
based upon a very limited acquaintance with the habits of the
people generally, and derived from the author's experience of
M^skat alone, a seaport where a large proportion of the popula
tion consists of foreigners, and, like seaports in other parts of the
world, not much given to religion. 2 The reader will have re
marked how frequently mention is incidentally made in this
History of the Friday services ; of the observance of the stated
times of prayer, with their accompanying ablutions and postures ;
of the duty of alms-giving, the Hijj, and the devout reading of
the Kuran. Mosques {Jdma') exist in most of the principal
towns, and Mdsjids (Oratories or Places of Worship) in localities
of lesser note. The word Mazdr (literally, a Place of Visitation)
occurs only two or three times throughout this narrative, and is
properly applied to the building over a tomb ; but not the least
hint is given that these shrines are used for a purpose different
to that which prevails in other Muslim countries, where they are
occasionally visited either with the view of paying honour to the
deceased, or for the sake of urging some special petition through
their intercession ; certainly, they are not used in 'Oman as
places for congregational worship.
1 Central and Eastern Arabia, vol. ii. p. 262-3.
2 In another place Mr. Palgrave says of Maskat : " Religion is here of
all kinds and denominations; but the golden calf counts, I think, more
sincere worshippers at Mascat than any other divinity soever." Ibid.,
p. 366.