THE 'LAW'

DAILY PRAYERS

Sabians had daily prayers with units, bowing down and prostration (Islam adopted this practice). They prayed three times daily; before sunrise, at noon, and at the sunset. These were obligatory (Islam in the beginning had same number of daily prayers but later on the number was increased to five times daily). There were three more which were not obligatory but thought of as 'proper' to perform: At the second hour of the day; at the ninth hour of the day; and at the third hour of the night. Sabians started their daily prayers by expressing their intent / resolve to pray (Islam adopted it exactly). The prayer at the funeral is without bowing down and prostration (Islam adopted it exactly). Ablution before the prayers was necessary in the Sabian belief system (Islam adopted it exactly). Sabians had the 'call' to prayer (Islam adopted it exactly). Sabians turned towards a certain direction during their prayers: Sabians of Haran turned to the north pole, and the southern Iraqi Sabians turned to the constellation of Capricorn. Sabians of our time kept this practice (Islam adopted this practice by establishing 'Al-Kuds' - Jerusalem - as the direction to turn to in the beginning and when Mohamed was enraged by the behaviour of the Jews, Islam changed the direction to Mecca). Spenta Mainyu pointed out that the Sabians needed canonical purification of the body before each prayer (In other words, an ablution; the general word for cleanliness / purification is called 'taharoth' in Judaism and 'taharat' in Islam). Therefore, following a sexual union, bodily cleaning is necessary. Sabians were obliged to immerse themselves fully in the flowing water to get this bodily cleaning. Urinating, passing bowels, breaking wind, touching a woman having a period, touching a woman in the forty-day period following the childbirth, touching a foreigner, and the bleeding of the nose neccessitated ablution (accept touching a foreigner Islam adopted these conditions exactly). According to the Sabians, prayers - seven times daily - were made compulsory to Adam, and this practice continued until John the Baptist changed it to three times daily.

FASTING

There is fasting in the Sabian belief system. It lasts for 30 days. This period is tied to the movement of the Moon. Their rule was 'see the moon and start fasting, see the moon and start rejoicing.' (Islam adopted the period of fasting, and the rule of 'fasting-rejoicing' exactly).

TEMPLES

Islamic scholars, especially Ab'ul Fida, writes that Sabians showed great respect towards the 'House of God' in Mecca and the temple in Haran and visited them periodically (Islam adopted this practice exactly). Some orientalists point out that among the traditions of Hacc as accepted by Islam, there exist traditions originating from the ceremonies of the sun cult. They claim that the 'stoning of the devil' adopted by Islam originated from the practice of driving away the 'ifrit' (jinn, satan) which pesters the sun.

SACRIFICIAL OFFERINGS

Sabians have sacrificial offerings. The special attention shown by the Sabians to the character of the sacrificial offering to their moon God Sin is worth noting. They use the name 'Rabb' especially for the God Sin. It is clear that Sin symbolizes the true 'sole God'. One kind of sacrificial offering, 'offering of the first-born' child, is very important in the Sabian belief system (Believers in the Old Testament and the New Testament, here you have the origin of the stories of the 'first born child' you read in your Books). This offering was made for the most important representation of the God in the month of August. Here let us refresh our memories on 'messenger' Abraham and his attempt to offer his son Isaac. Abraham's making an altar, arranging the logs in an orderly fashion, then tying up his son and laying him down on this pile of wood is in full compliance with the Sabian tradition, because the Sabians used to kill the child first and then burn it. Sometimes his flesh was taken away and mixed with dough and cooked, and the rest of the carcass, hair, bones and nerves were burnt. So if Abraham really attempted to sacrifice his son, it must have been because of his faith. He has to comply with the tradition being a Sabian. Remember! He was a Sabian prophet.

SWEARING

There is 'swearing' in the Sabian Belief System. The God of Qoran likes very much to swear on practically everything (Qoran 91:1-8; 95:1-3).

BODILY CLEANSING

There is full body cleansing in the Sabian belief system. It is necessary following sexual union. This type of bodily cleansing is fundamentally a tradition of immersion in water. It is done to the new born following the birth, and the new born is immersed in water. This is basically the 'baptism' of the Christianity. In addition to the bodily ablution, ablution for daily prayers is a must in the Sabian Belief system. (Bodily ablution and before-prayer,ablutions are adopted by Islam exeactly).

MONOGAMY OR POLYGAMY?

The Sabians in Haran and those Sabians which tow the line of Haran believe in the marriage with a single women. But among the Sabians elsewhere, marriage with more than one women is possible if 'all the woman are treated equally.' Christianitly adopted the first solution; ancient Judaism and Islam adopted the second solution. A Sabian can only marry another Sabian. Those who married strangers or people from another belief system are considered 'given up' their religion (Judaism accepted both rules). Marriage bond was finalized in front of witnesses (Judaism and especially Christianity and Islam have accepted this rule).

ADULTERY

Adultery is one of the fundamental 'prohibitions.' Judaism and Islam have very heavy penalties for adultery. It is in some cases a cause for death.

DIVORCE

Among the Sabians living in Haran and the Sabians who recognize the authority of Haran, divorce is considered impossible without adultery or without the concrete proof of it. It is almost identical in Christianty. But for those Sabians among whom ownership is understood to have developed, theft, not washing during menstruation and not carrying out daily prayers were also considered as causes for divorce.

CIRCUMCISION

Circumcision is very important social imperative among 'Hanifs' who are beyond doubt one of the main branches of Sabianism. This brahch is also called as the 'Sabians of Abraham'. Circumcision existed even before Judaism, in Egypt among the Egyptian Sabians. It must have passed to Judaism from there (This Sabian practice is adopted exactly by Judaism and Islam):

FORBIDDEN FOOD

There are animals the flesh of which are forbidden to eat according to the Sabian belief system, which are; all kinds of carcasses; all animals killed without the blood flowing out; all kinds of carnivors with two canine teeth; especially pigs and dogs, birds of prey and donkeys. (These are banned. The are 'haram' in Islam as well; Check Qoran 5:3). Pig is banned in Judaism, and consequently in Islam (The Old Testament Leviticus; Deuteronomy 14:8). The pig ban comes from those ages predating the Old Testament, and the Sabians. It is a subject of totem ban. Pig is a totem animal. The members of a clan establish a tie between the totem animal and themselves. According to these people this totem animal has extraordinary, superhuman attributes, and protects the members of the clan. That is why this animal should not be killed, its flesh should not be consumed (Check the Taboo and Totemism page). According to Herodotus pig was the animal of another God who was the enemy of Osiris. And that God was called 'pig.' It was the God of night and evil. In those moonlit nights pigs were sacrificed to that God and its meat consumed at these ceremonies. According to Ibn Nadim, Sabians used to sacrifice pigs to their Gods once every year and consumed pig meat (Pig meat prohibition is a matter of totem taboo and has nothing to do with the trichina worm.)

DO NOT EAT BLOOD !

This is the 'animism' taboo of the primitive communities. The Old Testament story on this subject has the clues: The Hebrew God (God of Islam as well) speaks in Leviticus 17:10: 'And whatsoever man there be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among you, that eats any manner of blood; I will even set my face against that soul that eats blood, and will cast him off from among his people.' Why, you may ask, he gives his reason in Leviticus 17:11: 'For the life of the flesh is in the blood and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that makes an atonement for the soul.' So that's that! The taboo left over from animism has become a taboo for the Hebrews.

INTEREST

Interest and profits based on interest is definitely banned in the Sabian belief system. This ban was taken over by the writers of the Old Testament, and the writers of Qoran adopted it into their belief system. Here we need to explain what is not allowed and what should be acceptable. This interest, or profit based on interest is called 'ribã' in Arabic. This practice called 'ribã' incurred a disproportionate responsibility on the borrower when it came to pay the interest. Since this disproproportionate part was not in return for something 'real' it is decreed 'haram'/banned. In the Arab community before Islam a person who was unable pay back in time had to pay a second 'ribã.' Thus he was made to pay more than he borrowed. This made rich richer, poor poorer. This is banned. Today the interest payed by the banks in return for deposits is nothing like this. Money has a 'cost.' Those who use this money for their purposes has to pay the ''cost.' Today's interest is this 'cost' of money, it has nothing to do with the Arabic 'ribã.'

As could be seen Sabian belief system is one of those fundamental systems of religious 'law' which had a permanent effect on the Judaic, Christian and Islamic systems.