تحفة النظار في غرايب الامصار وعجايب الاسفار 13.83.1

13.83.1

The people of these islands are people of righteousness, religion, sound faith and sincere intention; their food is lawful and their prayers are answered. When a person sees one of them, he says to him: 'God is my Lord, Muḥammad is my Prophet, and I am a poor unlettered man.' Their bodies are weak, they have no experience of fighting and warfare, and their weapon is prayer. Once, when I ordered the hand of a thief to be cut off there, a number of them who were in the assembly fainted. The robbers of Hind do not raid them or frighten them, because they have found by experience that whoever takes anything from them is struck by swift misfortune. When enemy vessels come to their region, they seize whomever they find of other people but do no harm to any of them. If one of the infidels takes so much as a lemon, the amīr of the infidels punishes him and beats him severely, fearing the consequences of it. Were it not for this, they would be the easiest of people for anyone who attacked them, because of their weak build.