Yet later tradition minimises his
faults and weakness, and surrounds his person with a halo of glory
that makes him appear sinless and almost divine. All the doubtful
incidents of his life are either eliminated and ignored, or
assiduously supported and defended by his pious, misguided followers.
It is a point in his favour that he never claimed infallibility for
his actions or opinions; and his habit of attempting to cover or
justify his glaring faults by suitable revelations, although
indefensibly immoral, reveals the fact that he was conscious of his
own shortcomings. When he was at the zenith of his power, "revelation"
became merely an instrument of self glorification, licensing him in
every whim and fancy, because it gave him, as the prophet of God,
exemption from all law and order. His scheme was characteristically
ingenious and immoral. Had he known of the divine effulgence with
which he was afterwards encircled by his fanatical followers, he
would, in all probability, have strongly discountenanced it. The
incongruous sanctity with which his commonplace utterances and petty
actions were invested would have caused fear lest it became derogatory
to his creed of divine unity.
TRADITION.
As a source of information, the traditions are obviously unreliable,
for they are coloured by the excessive zeal and irrational bias of
men whose judgment was warped by irrepressible fanaticism.
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