The Assassins' paradise
Editorial contextDescribing the Ismaili state the Mongols destroyed in 1256, Chang De repeats the story that its soldiers were all assassins, trained by being drugged, shown music and women in a hidden chamber, and told they would enjoy such bliss after death. It is the Chinese version of the 'Old Man of the Mountain' legend that Marco Polo tells, and it is hearsay.
The soldiers of that country are all assassins. Their custom is that when they see a brave, strong man, they lure him with gain and make him kill his own father or elder brother with his own hand; then he is enrolled as a soldier. They make him drunk, carry him into a cave chamber and entertain him with music and beautiful women, indulging his desires for several days, then put him back where he was. When he wakes, they ask what he saw and teach him that if he can become an assassin, at death he will enjoy bliss like that.
Working translation
Original wording
其國兵皆刺客俗見男子勇壯者以利誘之令手刄父兄然後充兵醉酒扶入窟室娱以音樂羙女縱其慾數日復置故處既醒問其所見教之能爲刺客死則享福如此
About Ismailis (Mulahida), conquered by Hulegu's Mongols
Keep in mind
A hostile legend about the Ismailis, told by their conquerors; not an eyewitness account.