7/53 130-137) will fix the position of these ambiguous Christians; Assemannus (Bibliot. 607-614) may explain their tenets. But it is a slippery task to ascertain the creed of an ignorant people afraid and ashamed to disclose their secret traditions. * Note: The Codex Nasiraeus, their sacred book, has been published by Norberg whose researches contain almost all that is known of this singular people. But their origin is almost as obscure as ever: if ancient, their creed has been so corrupted with mysticism and Mahometanism, that its native lineaments are very indistinct .-- M.] [Footnote 59: The Magi were fixed in the province of Bhrein, (Gagnier, Vie de Mahomet, tom.iii.p. |