"Sh. Abdullah’s sons were not priests and did not aim for that office. One of them worked for the national Iran Oil Company. Twenty-three years later, on my second trip to the Mandaeans in Ahwaz, the yalufa Sh. Salem Choheili told me that Sh. Abdullah — who had long since died — had appeared to him in a dream, asking why his son had tied up all the sheikh’s books and texts with rope and put them in a box. There, hidden and subject to decay, the texts were weeping. Sh. Choheili had then told the man’s sister about his dream, asking her to inquire on the matter with her brother. A suggestion was put forth: the next time I come visiting, I ought to bring money to pay the son, so that I could inspect the books to see if they are still all right."

"I begin to sense Sh. Salem’s status, the respect he enjoys in the community. Several days later, in fact, I ask him why he didn’t become a priest. He answers, “Then, I could not work with someone like you.” I understand his mediating role; he does not have to abide by the priestly, strict rules for interaction with outsiders."

"The Mandaeans of Iraq are in terrible distress and therefore many of them left their towns and escaped because food had almost disappeared. There is no security and [civil war] skirmishing continues, leading to massacres and slaughter. The Iraqi ruler is called Saddam Hussein. Due to him, many Mandaeans have departed Iraq to settle in Australia, America and Europe. O ye ganzibras, disciples and Mandaeans. Some Iraqi disciples have [already] changed the faith (i.e., rituals and tradition) because they no longer baptize in the river."

"Sheikh Salah ... traveled there [to Australia] twice to perform rituals for the emigrated Mandaeans and to ready himself for his move. The sheikh’s travels astonished me. The risk! On his first air segment, Sheikh Salah ate nothing but stopped over in Malaysia to rest, eat, and purify himself. Coming from Ahwaz, he had entered the Tehran airport carrying two bottles of water from the river Karun, only to have one bottle rendered useless by a customs official who suspected liquor. The presence of Mandaean leaders, with their white clothes and dignified long beards, made a deep impression on the airport personnel, who whisked them through the electronic controls."

"Sh. Abdullah’s sons were not priests and did not aim for that office. One of them worked for the national Iran Oil Company. Twenty-three years later, on my second trip to the Mandaeans in Ahwaz, the yalufa Sh. Salem Choheili told me that Sh. Abdullah — who had long since died — had appeared to him in a dream, asking why his son had tied up all the sheikh’s books and texts with rope and put them in a box. There, hidden and subject to decay, the texts were weeping. Sh. Choheili had then told the man’s sister about his dream, asking her to inquire on the matter with her brother. A suggestion was put forth: the next time I come visiting, I ought to bring money to pay the son, so that I could inspect the books to see if they are still all right."