MEDINA, a small city 215 miles from Mecca, where Mahomed died and was buried, A.D. 622, and the succeeding khalifs, Abubakr and Dinar, are interred at his side. The building which en closes the tombs is hung with silk. It has 500 houses, with about 8000 population.
Medina is about a day's journey distant from the port of Jambo, in lat. 24° N., and long. 40° 10' E., with indifferent walls, and situate in a sandy plain. Before the days of Mahomed it was called Yathreb, but it was re-named Medinat un-Nabi, the City of the Prophet. The tomb of Mahomed is in the corner of a large mosque, and is held in respect by the Muhammadans, but they are not obliged to visit it in order to the performance of any devotional exercises. Muham madans attach much importance to, and consider sanctity derivable from, burial in particular spots, though the notion appears so entirely contrary to the spirit of their religion. Great numbers of dead are sent continually from all parts of Persia for interment, at the sepulchre of All on the frontier of the Arabian desert. The prevailing idea is that, by being buried near a holy saint, they will be raised along with him at the resur rection, and receive his protection and counten but the opinion is certainly heterodox. A
similar idea seems to have been received in Israel of yore ; the old prophet of Bethel desired to be buried beside the man of God that came from Judah, whom he had deceived into his destruction, and Acts vii. 15, 16 is to the same effect. One traveller relates that he met a caravan of dead. Each mule bore two dead bodies slung like port manteaus on either side ; and by the time they could reach their destination their burdens would be in a loathsome state. • A few of the friends and relatives of some of the deceased were accompany ing this mournful caravan, but by far the greater number of the corpses had been consigned to the muleteers, without any one else to look after them. Mr. John F. Keene, of whose visit to Mecca mention was made under that name, shortly after wards visited Medina, and his account of his journey was supposed to be authentic.—Niebahr's Travels, ii. pp. 39, 40.