About two and half years before his demise, the Promised Messiah, peace be upon him, foretold in his booklet, Al-Wasiyyat (The Will) that the time of his passing was near. Moreover, he announced in various periodicals of the Ahmadiyya Jamaat, presenting countless revelations of God Almighty that his time of departure was close and he had been promised an age of around eighty years.
In the presence of all these prophecies and divine visions, it is impossible for a noble person to deny the truthfulness of the Promised Messiah and Imam Mahdi, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmadas of Qadian.
In spite of all that, certain opponents of the Promised Messiahas consider his demise to be a sign of their truth and suggest that his death happened according to their (own) prophecies.
One such person was Mian Abdul Hakim of Patiala. Mian Abdul Hakim Patialvi remained a follower of the Promised Messiahas for 20 years.
Once, he wrote a letter to the Promised Messiahas and enquired whether a person who did not believe in the prophethood of the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, but acted righteously and had faith in the unity of God, would be pardoned?
In response, the Promised Messiahas stated that this belief was absolutely evil because God Almighty had established His authority upon mankind through the Holy Prophetsa and thus, whosoever did not believe in him would not be forgiven as virtuous deeds could not be performed without submitting to the Holy Prophetsa.
Thereupon, Mian Abdul Hakim became enraged and left no stone unturned to abuse and accuse the Promised Messiahas as false. He did this to the extent that 12 months after the publication of Al-Wasiyyat, observing the revelations and prophecies of the Promised Messiahas about his close demise, Abdul Hakim predicted the death of the Promised Messiahas and stated:
“Allah Almighty told me in a revelation on 12 July 1906, ‘Mirza is a transgressor, a great liar and a cheat. The mischievous shall be annihilated before the truthful and the prescribed time period was conveyed to be three years.” (Elan-e-Haq wa Itmam-ul-Hujja wa Takmila, Dr Abdul Haqim Khan, p. 4 [second edition])
In reply to this, the Promised Messiahas issued an announcement on 16 August 1906 under the title, “May Allah help him who is truthful.”
It was published in his book, Haqiqatul-Wahi:
“Against this is the prophecy conveyed to me by God Almighty about Mian Abdul Hakim Khan, Assistant Surgeon, Patiala in the following words:
خدا کے مقبولوں میں قبولیت کے نمونے اور علامتیں ہوتی ہیں۔اور وہ سلامتی کے شہزادے کہلاتے ہیں۔ ان پر کوئی غالب نہیں آسکتا فرشتوں کی کھینچی ہوئی تلوار تیرے آگے ہے۔ پر تو نے وقت کو نہ پہچانا نہ دیکھا نہ جانا۔ ربّ فرّق بین صادق و کاذب۔ انت تریٰ کلّ مصلح و صادق۔
[Those accepted by God carry with them incidents and signs of acceptance. They are known as the princes of peace. No one can overcome them. The drawn sword of angels is in front of you, but you have not recognised nor seen nor appreciated the needs of the time. O my God, do create a distinction between the truthful and the liar. You recognise every reformer and truthful one.]” (The Philosophy of Divine Revelation, pp. 505-506)
Soon after the above announcement, God Almighty began to expose Abdul Hakim and he annulled his three year prophecy about the death of the Promised Messiahas, stating:
“Mirza did not become cautious at all by those [predictions which in view of Abdul Hakim were revelations]. So, Allah Almighty reduced ten months and eleven days from his three years’ punishment that was to be fulfilled on 11 July 1909, because of his impertinence and disobedience and [God] told me on 1 July 1907, ‘14 months from now, Mirza will be thrown in hell receiving the punishment of death.’” (Elane-Haq wa Itmam-ul-Hujja wa Takmila, Dr Abdul Haqim Khan, p. 6 [second edition])
Responding to the above statement, the Promised Messiahas issued an announcement on 5 November 1907 and stated:
“… And [God] said:
لکم البشری فی الحیٰوۃ الدنیا۔۔۔وضعنا عنک وزرک الذی انقض ظھرک ورفعنا لک ذکرک۔ انی معک ذکرتک فاذکرنی وسع مکانک حان ان تعان وتعرف بین الناس انی معک یا ابراھیم انی معک ومع اھلک انک معی واھلک انی انا الرحمان فانتظر قل یا خذک اللہ۔
“Meaning that glad tidings for you in this world and the Hereafter. Your ending will be good … We shall remove your burden which broke your back and we shall exalt your name. I am with you. I recalled you, so remember me as well and expand your abode. That time is near when you will be helped and your name will be called with honour and exaltedness in the people. I am with you, O Ibrahim and likewise, with the people of your house. You are with me and likewise, your people of the house. I am Merciful. Wait for my help and tell your enemy that God will take revenge from you. And stated in Urdu at the end:
میں تیری عمر کو بھی بڑھا دوں گا
“This means that those of my enemies who say that only 14 months of my age are left after July 1907 or prophesy my death within a certain time, I shall prove them false and increase your age as well, so as to demonstrate that I am God and everything is under His control.” (Badr, 10 November 1907, pp. 5-7)
The words, “I shall prove them false” and “increase your age” are of significant importance. It shows that the demise of the Promised Messiahas was due before 1 September 1908 in accordance with the revelations of Allah Almighty but in order to prove the enemy false, God gave the glad tiding of increasing his age.
It indicates that the glad tiding of increasing his age was to prove the falsehood of the opponents. Thereafter, according to Dr Abdul Hakim, God sent him another revelation on 30 November 1908 [he mistakenly wrote 1908 as other predictions before and after it, showed the year 1907 in a sequence];
“The foundation of Mirza will be uprooted.”
Then he received another one on 8 December 1907:
ولا یردباسنا عن القوم المجرمین
And one more on 17 December 1907:
“Mirza will die of lung disease.”
(Elane-Haq wa Itmam-ul-Hujja wa Takmila, Dr Abdul Haqim Khan, pp. 7-8 [second edition])
Once again, confused by the announcement issued by the Promised Messiahas on 5 November 1907, Abdul Hakim changed his prophecy and stated:
“On 16 February 1908, I received a revelation, ‘Mirza will die by 21 Sawan [the fifth month of the Bikrami calendar corresponding to July-August] 1965 [corresponding to 4 August 1908].”
When Abdul Hakim published the above prediction, the Promised Messiahas was writing his book Chashma-e-Marifat. He stated:
“In response to his prophecy, Allah Almighty has conveyed to me that he himself would be cast into torment and Allah will annihilate him and I shall remain secure from his mischief.” (Chashma-e-Marifat, Ruhani Khazain, Vol. 23, p. 337)
Then again, Abdul Hakim made alterations in his prediction and stated about the Promised Messiahas:
“… His boldness and transgression did not diminish … so the time limit of 21 Sawan 1965, corresponding to 4 August 1908 has been annulled as well.” (Elan-e-Haq wa Itmam-ul-Hujja wa Takmilah, Dr Abdul Haqim Khan, pp. 8-9 [second edition])
As per his practice, Abdul Hakim Khan could not adhere to his prediction of 4 August 1908, which was made by him on 16 February 1908 as a result of his so-called revelation. Many months later, Abdul Hakim announced another prediction about the Promised Messiahas through a letter dated 8 May 1908, in various newspapers.
We found two of those newspapers: The Daily Paisa Akhbar and Akhbar Ahl-e-Hadith, in which the following prophecy of Abdul Hakim was published:
“Mirza will fall prey to a fatal illness and shall die on 21 Sawan 1965 [i.e. 4 August 1908].” (The Daily Paisa Akhbar, 15 May 1908 and Akhbar Ahl-e-Hadith, 15 May 1908)
Hence, Abdul Hakim annulled all of his previous predictions and announced that in his view, God had revealed to him the exact date of the demise of the founder of the Ahmadiyya Jamaat, i.e. 4 August 1908.
On the contrary, the Promised Messiahas passed away on 26 May 1908 in accordance with the revelations vouchsafed to him by God Almighty and thus the falsehood of Dr Abdul Hakim Khan of Patiala was demonstrated by Allah Himself.
Lastly, we present an acknowledgement of the above fact in the words of a bitter enemy of the Promised Messiahas, Maulvi Sanaullah of Amritsar. Soon after the demise of the Promised Messiahas, he stated in his newspaper:
“In rejection of Dr Sahib’s [Abdul Hakim’s] prophecy, expressing the limit of 14 months, Mirza Sahib stated in the same announcement [of 5 November 1907], ‘God told me that I shall increase your age, i.e. those of my enemies who say that only 14 months of my age are left after July 1907 or prophesy my death within a certain time, I shall prove them false and increase your age, so as to demonstrate that I am God and everything is under His control.’
These words clearly show that the age of Mirza will prolong against the prophecy of Dr Sahib that expressed the limit of 14 months which was to end on September 1908. … Till this point, the prophecy of Dr Sahib holds great perfection, but we cannot refrain from saying what is true.
“Had the Dr Sahib stopped at what he had stated earlier, i.e. after his prediction of Mirza’s death within 14 months, if he had not fixed a specific date as he has done which is published in 15 May, Ahl-e-Hadith that Mirza will die on 21 Sawan, i.e. 4 August, then those objections could have never been raised as are being raised on Dr Sahib’s prophecy today by the respected editor of Paisa Akhbar in the publication of 27 [May 1908].
Wherein it is teasingly stated that had the prophecy been left as ‘up to the 21 Sawan’ and not altered to ‘on 21 of Sawan’ it would have, indeed, been wonderful. Hence, had he left his earlier revelations unaltered, without giving a specific date, then today, there could have been no objection.” (Ahl-e-Hadith, 12th June 1908)
(Research conducted by the Research Cell. Translated by Al Hakam)