YHWH v. Allah

According to Sir James George Frazer (The Golden Bough):

��Nowhere was this crude conception of the secrecy and magical virtue of the divine name more firmly held or more fully developed than in ancient Egypt [whence emigrated Moses] �  For it was believed that he who possessed the true name possessed the very being of god or man, and could force even a deity to obey him as a slave obeys his master. Thus the art of the magician consisted in obtaining from the gods a revelation of their sacred names ��

            Ref:  http://www.bartleby.com/196/59.html

From the Jewish Encyclopedia:

�The pronunciation of the written Name [of God] was used only by the priests in the Temple when blessing the people (Num. vi. 22-27); outside the Temple they used the title �Adonai� � The high priest mentioned the Name on Yom Kippur ten times � the sages delivered to their disciples the key to the Name once in every Sabbatical year � The restriction upon communicating the Name proper probably originated in Oriental [read Egyptian] etiquette .��  (bold emphasis added)

            Ref:  http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=52&letter=N

Finally, Josephus writes this of the Essenes of his day:

�The Essenes observed strict religious orders. They functioned as scribes and prophets, studying and preserving the Scriptures, the books of their sect, and the names of angels. Their work of healing involved ascribing properties to stones and roots for protection. And they were expert at foreseeing future events.�  (bold emphasis added)

Ref:  http://www.bible.org/page.php?page_id=3975

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