The Lure of Islamic Paradise
told him he would rather see his sons killed before his eyes than
turnedover to Mehmed's pleasures. Mehmed obliged him, and then had
Notarashim-self beheaded."How to gain entry into Paradise
As wehave see n, the Qura ns sure st guar ante e of Para dise is give n to
th osewho "slay and are slain" for Allah: "for theirs in return is theGarden
of Paradise , .. a promise binding on Him in truth" (Qur'an9:111),
Muhammad also proclaimed: 'Know that Paradise is under the shades of
sword s (jih adin Allah 's cause ). It assu resthose on earth that those
whodiefor Allah are not dead, but more alive than ever: "And saynotof
those who are slain in the way of Allah: 'They are deed.' Nay, they are
living,-thoughyeperceive it not" (Qur'an 2:154).
The Assassins and the lure of Paradise
Aro und the tim e of the Cru sad es the re flo uri she d a not ori ous sec t of
Ismai li Shiit e Musli ms known as the Assass ins. Althou gh they did not
invent political assassination, by murdering numerous key figures that
opposed their movement, they introduced it on a large scale into thepolite-
ics of the Islamic world and the Crusades themselves. After carrying out
these murders, the Assassins almost alwaysplacidly allowed themselves
to be caught, although at that time this meant certain death."
What enti ced young men to join this sect and sacr ific e their live s in
this way? For one thing, the Ismail is prese nted themse lves as the expo-
nents of "pure Islam,,,which they were giving their lives to restore. Butit
is also possible that the lure of Islamic paradise was among these
motivations. When Marco Polo traver sed Asia in the late thirte enth
centur y,he reported what he had heard "told by many people" about the
shadowy leader of the Assassins, the Old Man (or Sheikh') of the Mountain:
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