Author: Hazrat Mirza Bashiruddin Mahmud Ahmad, Khalifatul Masih IIra
Publishers: Islam International Publications Ltd.
Hazrat Mirza Bashiruddin Mahmud Ahmad, Khalifatul Masih IIra delivered an extremely enriching address at the Jalsa Salana of 1939. This Jalsa marked 25 years of his Khilafat and, as he explained at the start of the address, he felt that it was time to reflect on the blessings that Allah had bestowed upon the Jamaat through this Divinely guided institution.
Huzoorra started the address by first explaining the concept of Khilafat-e-Rashidah [Divinely guided Khilafat] and shedding light on the Khilafat of the Holy Prophetsa. It is difficult to summarise the early phase of Khilafat, the onset of its dissolution and the ending up of Khilafat in the form of kingdoms and emirates in such a brief and comprehensible way.
Huzoorra then goes on to explain how Khilafat-e-Ahmadiyya was established and how it had gone through very turbulent times right at the very onset. Following is an excerpt from this address which also brings to light the baseless assumptions lodged as an attempt to invalidating the institution of Khilafat:
“Now I turn to the Khilafat which was established after the Promised Messiahas. The Ahmadiyya Jamaat was in the same state of mind during the lifetime of the Promised Messiahas as were the Companions of the Holy Prophetsa during his lifetime. All of us believed that the Promised Messiahas would not die as yet. As a result, we never thought, even for a moment, about what would happen after his demise. I, at that time, was not a child. I was a young man, I used to write articles and was editor of a magazine. I say on oath that I never thought, for a minute, or even for a second, that the Promised Messiahas would die, even though, in the last years of his life, there were a series of revelations about his demise. In his last days, such revelations increased manifold. Despite the fact that there were revelations and visions specifying the date etc. of the demise of the Promised Messiahas, and we used to read Al-Wasiyyat [The Will], we still presumed that these things would probably happen after two centuries. Thus, the thought of what would happen after the demise of the Promised Messiahas never crossed our minds. Since we had assumed that he would not die in our lifetime, it was difficult for us to accept the reality of his demise when it happened.
“I clearly remember that after his demise, he was given a bath and was wrapped in a shroud. It is common that one’s clothes and moustache etc. move with the blowing of the wind. Some of the companions would come running, saying that the Promised Messiahas was alive as his clothes or moustache was moving. Some said that they saw his shroud moving. Anyhow, the body of the Promised Messiahas was brought to Qadian and was placed inside a house in a garden. Around eight or nine o’clock, Khawaja Kamaluddin arrived in the garden, took me aside, and asked me, “Miyan! Have you thought of what will happen after the demise of the Promised Messiahas?” I replied to him, “Something should happen, but as to what it should be, I cannot say anything”. He said to me, “In my opinion, we should give Bai‘at to Hazrat Maulvi [Nuruddin] Sahibra”. At that time, due to my age and lack of knowledge, I said, “The Promised Messiahas did not mention anywhere that we should take the Bai‘at of someone after him, so why should we take the Bai‘at of Hazrat Maulvi Sahibra”? (Though it was mentioned in Al-Wasiyyat, it did not occur to me at that time.) On this, he started arguing that the Jamaat would be destroyed if the Bai‘at was not taken at the hand of one person. He added that after the demise of the Holy Prophetsa, the people took the Bai‘at of Hazrat Abu Bakrra, so the same should be done now, and there is no one more suitable in the Jamaat than Hazrat Maulvi Sahibra. He also told me that Maulvi Muhammad Ali Sahib had the same viewpoint. Finally, the whole Community unanimously requested Hazrat Khalifatul Masih Ira to accept the Bai‘at of the people. Then, all the people gathered in the garden and Hazrat Khalifatul Masih Ira addressed them and said, ‘I have no wish for Imamat [leadership] and in my opinion, the Bai‘at of someone else should be taken.’ For this purpose, he first proposed my name, then the name of our maternal grandfather, Mir Nasir Nawab Sahib, then the name of our brother-in-law, Nawab Muhammad Ali Khan Sahib, and then the names of some other people, but we all unanimously told him that he himself was entitled to the post of Khilafat. Then, everyone took Bai‘at on his hand.”
It must be remembered that Khawaja Kamaluddin Sahib and Maulvi Muhammad Ali Sahib later became instrumental in trying to impose the idea that the Jamaat did not need a Khalifa. It must also be remembered that the proponents of a “non-Khalifa” theory have ended up with very little following, while the Jamaat led by Khalifatul Masih continues to flourish and prosper, now in millions, spread in all continents and in 210 countries and dominions of the world. History, as they say, is surely the best evidence.
This remarkable address of Hazrat Khalifatul Masih IIra is a must read to get a deeper insight into the concept of Khilafat. The address, published in book form, can be read in full at: