Self-torturing Darweeshes.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XLVII, Issue 22, 29 May 1912, Page 57

Self-torturing Darweeshes.

The preparations were complete; the miracles were about to commence. Three of the darweeshes stripped to the waist, and came forward. The Master sheikh examinedi them, rubbing over their bodies with his hands, seizing their heads and staring into their eyes for perhaps ten seconds. (I offer a suggestion that he may have mesmerised them, wholly or partly.) The sheikh then thrust an iron spike through both cheeks of one of the men ; while doing so, he seized the cheeks with his other hand. The spike was inserted very near the mouth, and its point came out at the opposite cheek to the extent of about one-eighth of an inch.

This spike was followed by anotnei fr in. the opposite direction, inserted in 1 same manner. Spikes were then th i through the lobes of the ears, through the skin on the shoulders, until I were, all told, no less than seven -ph. •- in him. The second man was treated in much the same way except that t. > spikes were driven through the sup'rfiuous fat on his sides just above the hips, coming out behind. The third ;. . ■

was treated !n the same luannev fl* the second except that lie was pierced with only one spike on his right side. But this was driven in apparently so much in the centre uf his stomach ( the slight mark of the hole afterwards was exactly in the centre of the abdomen) that it seemed almost impossible that it could have avoided wounding a vital spot. I noticed, however, that both tin* sheikh and the man himself made great efforts (n pushing, as it were, the stomach itself over to the (man’s) left, so that (apparently) only fat and skin should remain. Notwithstanding this, however, the effect of the darweesh standing there unmoved with the driven (seemingly) through his body, was startling, to say the h ast of it. The sheikh then removed -the spikes, one bv one. holding the flesh tightly as l.e diil -o. As soon a* the spike was withdrawn he licked his finger and placed it <>n the spot. No blood came forth. Neither of the three nun displayed any signs of pain, and 1 had ample opportunity of judging this, as of other features. as the whole performance took place at a distance of about four feet in front of me. The three men were again felt over by the Master, who again looked into their eyes, and dismissed them with a puff of breath in the face. They then rejoined their companions as if nothing unusual hail occurred. —From “The Daiweeslip- of Damascus." by T. Fowlo, in the “t’ornhill Magazine’’ for April. ______