Research Catalog

Title

Bedouin bisha'h justice : ordeal by fire / Joseph Ginat.

Author

Ginat, J.

Publication

Brighton ; Portland, Or. : Sussex Academic Press, ©2009.

Items in the Library & Off-site

Details

Description

xvi, 229 pages, 6 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (some color), map; 24 cm

Summary

"Trials by ordeal, a judicial practice in which the guilt or innocence of the accused is determined by subjecting them to a painful task, have taken place from ancient Mesopotamia until the present day. This volume focuses on a special type of ordeal by fire called the bisha'h ceremony, which originated in Bedouin societies and continues to be practiced in Egypt today. In Bedouin and Arab rural societies, when somebody suspects another person of theft, property damage, murder, manslaughter, illicit sexual relations, rape, or witchcraft, and there are no witness to the crime, this individual can request the suspect or suspects to accompany him to the mubasha', a Bedouin notable who conducts the ordeal by fire." "The bisha'h ceremony was previously performed in Jordan and in Saudi Arabia as well as in Egypt. In Jordan, the late King Hussein banned the ordeal by fire in 1976. In Saudi Arabia, the mubasha' died in the late 1980s, without leaving a successor." "Today, in Egypt, near Ismaliyya, a mubasha' continues to practice the ceremonial ordeal in which the suspect licks a ladle that is heated to between 600 900 degrees Celsius. If the suspect s tongue blisters, they are deemed guilty. If the tongue is clear, they are declared innocent. The author observed 169 of such ordeals, many of which are documented and illustrated in this volume. People who take part in the bisha'h ceremony come not only come from various regions in Egypt, but also from other North African countries, and from several Middle Eastern countries, including the Gulf States. Most of the cases involve rural peasants rather than Bedouin, but in some cases city dwellers take part in the ordeal."--Jacket.

Subject

• Law, Bedouin
• Customary law > Egypt
• Ordeal
• Bedouins > Egypt > Social life and customs
• Bedouins > Social life and customs
• Customary law
• Law, Bedouin
• Ordeal
• Beduine
• Feuerprobe
• Customary law > Egypt
• Bedouins > Egypt > Social life and customs
• Egypt
• Bedouin
• Customary law
• Justice
• Egypt
• Ägypten

Bibliography (note)

• Includes bibliographical references (p. 202-219) and index.

Contents

Introducing the bishaʻh ceremony -- The mubashaʻ's family, khams (co-liable group), and family traditions -- A review of trials by ordeal throughout history -- Introduction to the case histories -- Theft, drugs and property damage cases -- Murder and manslaughter cases -- Illicit sexual relations and rape cases -- Marbut : inability of the groom to perform on his wedding night -- Charms, witchcraft, and healing ceremonies -- Concluding remarks.

ISBN

• 9781845192693
• 1845192699

LCCN

2008036892

OCLC

• ocn244059796
• 244059796
• SCSB-8931237

Owning Institutions

Princeton University Library