"كتيّب بلاد الرافدين. المجلد I. ١٩١٨" [‎١‎٢‎٧] (٥٦٨/١٣٦)

RELIGIONS
127
ascendancy which the recognized Mujtahids enjoy is very remark
able. Among Shiahs their word is law: they disburse large sums
received from their co-religionists for sacred and charitable pur
poses ; and occasionally they exercise strong political influence,
even in opposition to the established government of the country.
The Mujtahids of Nejef and Kerbela are the most distinguished,
their authority predominating throughout the entire Shiah world
over that of all other Mujtahids: collectively they are known as
Aatabah, 1 the Threshold Though some 2,000 claimants to the
title exist at Nejef and 200 at Kerbela, inquiries made in 1903
elicited the fact that not more than 41 enjoyed undisputed authority.
(6) Sun
The historical origin of the differences between Sunni and Shiah
has been noted above (p. 123). For most non-Arab Sunnis the Sultan
of Turkey is Caliph, but his claim is little regarded by most Arabs.
The Sunnis profess an unquestioning faith in the Koran, and in the
accepted Tradition {sunna}, which is a record of the sayings and
doings of the Prophet that serves as a supplement to the Koran. On
this basis four principal systems of Sunni law have arisen. The
official code of the Ottoman Empire, in so far as it is still truly
Moslem, is that of the Hanifite school. The Shiahs in theory reject
the authority of the Sunni Tradition altogether, but in fact their
law is to a great extent borrowed from the Sunni schools.
The Arab Sunnis of Mesopotamia are said to be on the whole not
fanatical. Sunni feeling is now apparently stronger among the
Kurds. The Government of Constantinople has done much in
recent years to encourage Sunnism among the Kurdish tribes, in
the hope of increasing their respect for the Sultan as Caliph. This
policy apparently had a considerable measure of success in Abdul
Hamid's reign. The most important Sunni shrine in Mesopotamia
is that of Sheikh Abdul Qadir Gilani, at Baghdad. This Abdul
Qadir ( a. d . 1077-1165) was a Sufi preacher of renown in his day,
being credited with miraculous powers. His mosque and tomb,
honorifically known as ' Janab Ghauth el-Adham Dastgirform not
only one of the principal sights of Baghdad, but a religious centre
lyi frequented by Sunni Mussulmans from regions as remote as Afghani-
L : stan and India. Poor pilgrims are gratuitously supported, and
', sometimes as many as 4,000 loaves of bread issue in a single day
from the kitchens of the Pir-i-Dastgir. Other 'Sunni shrines exist
in Irak, but none comparable with that of Sheikh Abdul Qadir,
such being the Maqam Yunas at Kufeh and tomb of Ezekiel at Kifl,