Page 125 - Histories of City and State in the Persian Gulf_Neat

Ordering space, politics and community in Manama, 1880s–1919 105

1909 Shaykh ‘Isa resorted to ‘Abd al-Nabi Kazeruni to provide for its
upkeep as part of the conditions imposed on the sale of a piece of land to
the Persian entrepreneur. The price demanded by the ruler was excep-
tionally low but Kazeruni had to endow part of the property as a waqf after
his death for the benefit both of the mosque and of the Persian ma’tam
located in the vicinity. 73
The political controversies which surrounded the family of the Sunni
qadi Qasim al-Mahzah epitomised the relations of power between Sunnis
and Shi‘is and underlined the importance of sectarian worldviews in
Manama’s political life. Their monopoly of religious office dated back to
1853 when Qasim’s father was appointed imam of the personal mosque of
Shaykh ‘Ali ibn Khalifah (r. 1868–9). At least since 1904 his youngest son
Ahmad served as the imam of Manama’s Friday mosque, while Qasim
presided over the court. The family had a reputation for being partisan;
the piety and moral probity of Qasim al-Mahzah continued to be cele-
brated by Sunnis of his generation, but his cruelty, greed and vanity
became notorious among the Shi‘i population. Stories still circulate
about the severity of his punishment of offenders and his occasional
beatings of women brought to his court accused of practising prostitu-
tion. 74 The influence of the al-Mahzah brothers decreased alongside that
of the ruling family, especially after 1904 when Ahmad was blacklisted by
the British agency for having instigated violence between Persians and
Arabs. 75
Religious buildings in Manama were largely an attribute of mercantile
power, a symbol of wealth and an integral part of the welfare services
offered by notables. ‘Abd al-‘Aziz Lutf ‘Ali Khunji, the merchant from
Lingah who sponsored the large mosque in the suq, was one of the most
prominent religious philanthropists in town. He became famous for the
several mosques he founded for the benefit of destitute Persian and
Baluchi immigrants in the shanty towns of eastern Manama, the most
popular being an open air mosque on empty land known as Masjid al-‘Id.
Around 1900 he surrounded the property with a low wall and paid for the
construction of a minbar (pulpit) to conduct the prayers. 76 Styles of

73
Khalifah Sulaybikh, Hikayat min al-Hurah (Manama: [n.pub.], 2004), pp. 17–18; taqrir
al-bai‘ (sale registration), 16 Jumada al-Thaniyyah 1327/4 July 1909, BA.
74
Belgrave to Political Agent Bahrain, 25 Rabi‘ al-Thani 1346/21 October 1927, n. 328/27,
R/15/2/130 IOR; minutes by Political Agent Bahrain, 15 November 1932, R/15/2/1896
IOR; Political Resident Bushehr to Bombay Government, 8 February 1905, L/P&S/10/81
IOR; conversation with former residents of Farij al-Jami‘, Manama, June 2000; al-Khatir,
al-Qadhi al-Ra’is Qasim ibn Mahzah.
75
See pp. 153–6.
76
Oral history collected by ‘Ali Akbar Bushehri from ‘Abd al-Husayn Muhammad Tahir al-
Sharif (b. 1916).