Читать книгу A Dictionary of Islam. Being a cyclopedia of the doctrines, rites, ceremonies, and customs, together with the technical and theological terms, of the Muhammadan religion онлайн

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It is lawful to hunt with a trained dog, and the sign of a dog being trained is that he catches game three times without killing it. The dog must be let slip with the ejaculation: Bismillāhi ʾllāhi Akbar! “In the name of God, the great God!” when all game seized by him becomes lawful food. This custom is founded upon a verse in the Qurʾān, Sūrah v. 6: “Lawful for you are all good things and what ye have taught beasts of prey to catch, training them like dogs; ye teach them as God taught you. And mention the name of God over it.”

Rules for hunting with dogs will be found in Hamilton’s Hidāyah, vol. iv. p. 170.

DOG STAR. Sirius, or the dog star, was an object of worship amongst the ancient Arabs, and is mentioned in the Qurʾān, under the name of ash-Shiʿra, Sūrah liii. 50: “He (God) is the Lord of the Dog Star.”

DOWER. Arabic, mahr (مهر‎), Heb. (‏מֹהַר‎). Dower is considered by some lawyers to be an effect of the marriage contract, imposed on the husband by the law as a mark of respect for the subject of the contract—the wife; while others consider that it is in exchange for the usufruct of the wife, and its payment is necessary, as upon the provision of a support to the wife depends the permanency of the matrimonial connection. Thus, it is indispensable a fortiori, so much so, that if it were not mentioned in the marriage contract, it would be still incumbent on the husband, as the law will presume it by virtue of the contract itself, and award it upon demand being made by the wife. In such case, the amount of dower will be to the extent of the dowers of the women of her rank and of the ladies of her father’s family. Special beauty or accomplishments may, however, be pleaded for recovering a larger award than the customary dower, where the amount of dower is not mentioned in the contract. There is no limit to the amount of dower; it may be to a very large amount, considering the position and circumstance of the bridegroom, but its minimum is never less than ten dirhams; so where it is fixed at a lesser amount, the law will augment it up to ten dirhams. The dower need not invariably be in currency, or even in metal; everything, except carrion, blood, wine, and hog. Also the bridegroom’s own labour, if he is a free man, being held by the law to be a good dower.