Al Fazl, 30 November & 4 December 1922
Hazrat Sheikh Mahmud Ahmad Irfanira (1897-1944)
I have deliberately refrained from publishing my reports in the newspapers [of the Jamaat]. The reason is that I haven’t done much work to present it before my nation. Nevertheless, the current situation [of the Jamaat in Egypt] is as follows:
Egyptian newspapers speak of Ahmadis
On my suggestion, an English newspaper, the Egyptian Gazette, published a detailed article about the Promised Messiahas entitled “Messenger to the Whole World”. This newspaper has a circulation of more than 20,000 and is highly respected in Egypt.
The second article has been published by an illustrated magazine, Al-Lataif Al-Musawwarah, which is read by around 50,000 people. They have published a book review of A Present to His Royal Highness – The Prince of Wales and expressed that the efforts of the Ahmadiyya Jamaat are commendable. The editor of this magazine is a Christian.
There are many people who are discussing Ahmadiyyat and getting acquainted with it.
The condition of Egyptians
The situation here [in Egypt] is very different and people are completely oblivious to religion. Not only are they oblivious, but they even mock religion. 75 per cent of people drink alcohol and women are also included in this. There is so much freedom to commit adultery that may God save us. A great deal of money is spent on lotteries and gambling. […]
New Arab converts
On the day I arrived in Cairo, I did not see a single person who was an Ahmadi or who would come to me and say he was an Ahmadi, but soon after, by the grace of God, the doors of His blessings were opened and today I am able to announce there is a jamaat of Ahmadis in the city of Cairo. Praise be to Allah, who made it all possible.
No matter how much I praise God for this blessing, it will never be enough. He has established a jamaat through me by His sheer grace and the number of men alone has reached eight. There is a separate count of the number of their family members. Friends are requested to pray that may Allah grant them perseverance and make them sincere Ahmadis.
Anjuman Ahmadiyya Cairo
A jalsa will be held next week and the inauguration of Anjuman Ahmadiyya Cairo will take place. A proper system for the collection of chanda will be established and arrangements for Friday prayers will be made. In this way, God has established a camp for the servants of the Promised Messiahas on the banks of the river Nile. May Allah bless our efforts forevermore.
Change of address
The Anjuman here [in Egypt] will be called “Al-Harakatul Ahmadiyya Cairo”. I have moved house and my current address is as follows:
Al-Harakatul Ahmadiyya, Sheikh Mahmud Ahmad Ahmadi.
A letter with my address in the Urdu language on it is not received here and is mostly lost. When I moved, some letters were lost due to the mistake of the postman and I do not even know who wrote to me and what was written in the letters. If any friend wrote a letter to me and did not receive a reply, please write to me again.
Anjuman Ahmadiyya Alexandria
In this month [of October], the Anjuman Ahmadiyya Alexandria will be inaugurated. The arrangements for offering the five daily prayers and the system for collecting chanda will also be organised there, insha-Allah.
Hamamat-ul-Bushra (The Harbinger of Good News)
I am very grateful to Anjuman Ahmadiyya Secunderabad Deccan, as they acknowledged my appeal and sent me seven pounds to print the book, Hamamatul-Bushra (The Harbinger of Good News). In a few days’ time, Hamamatul-Bushra will be printed in a beautifully typeset script and published for the sole purpose of spreading the message of Ahmadiyyat.
Those who want to buy this beautiful book and want to take part in preaching by publishing it in Arabic-speaking countries can get it from me. Those who want it to be distributed free of charge here [in Egypt] can inform me by submitting the money in the office of Talif-o-Ishaat, Qadian. The cost of three books will be 1 rupee.
Library
The establishment of a library here is very important. I have started it on a small scale and people are benefitting from it. However, the need of the hour is that those to whom God has granted wealth should help me in this work.
Currently, at least the bound volumes of The Review of Religions (English) are required. If eight to ten people buy and send two volumes each, then, by the grace of God, all the volumes of The Review of Religions [English] can be collected here.
My effort is to establish a permanent markaz [centre] in Egypt. This centre will soon be self-reliant, but in its formative years, some funds are required. The people are benefiting a lot from the books.
There is a great number of people who are starting to have positive opinions about the Jamaat. When Allah wills, He will surely grant them true understanding, but I appeal to those who have a hunger for preaching to pay attention to sending me the volumes of The Review of Religions. The collection of books that I possess at the moment have been given to me by my kind father, Sheikh Yaqub Ali Irfani Sahib[ra]. I have opened a small library. If a complete library of the Jamaat is established, it will be a great help for those whom God will send to preach here in the future.
Request for prayers
In the end, I request all my friends to pray that in Cairo, which is the centre of Egypt, may God establish a great jamaat by His grace and continue to give me the opportunity to serve His religion.
Mian Muhammad Saeed has come from Jeddah. His health is weak, so members of the Jamaat are requested to pray for him. Moreover, there are some disputes in certain matters of trade which are affecting his business, pray that Allah may protect him from their bad effects and make him successful in every way.
Sheikh Mahmud Ahmad. Khaleej Al-Misri, St. 505, Cairo, [Egypt]. 29 October 1922.
Al Fazl, 4 December 1922
Muslims of India and tabligh of Islam
The famous contemporary newspaper, Paisa Akhbar (11 November 1922), in its editorial entitled “Pressing Need for the Propagation of Islam”, urging the conversion of impoverished nations to Islam, writes:
“At present, there is only one Ahmadiyya Jamaat in the country, which is doing the proper work of propagating Islam.”
Regarding the other Muslims, it states:
“The rest of the Muslims have no association (anjuman) for the propagation of Islam.”
This has happened because Muslims do not pay attention to religion and to them, everything is politics. They have become completely indifferent to religion by getting involved in politics. On the contrary, the Hindus, who are also participating in politics, are not negligent in spreading their religion and they are also using political means for it. Consequently, a lot of money is spent from the Congress fund to convert impoverished nations and the Hindu leaders of the Congress take great interest in it. How great it would be if Muslims gave preference to their religion over everything else […], so that they could participate in the spread of Islam! Otherwise, it is impossible that any of their efforts in this regard will meet with success, as is evident from their past history to date.
(Translated by Al Hakam from the original Urdu, published in the 30 November and 4 December 1922 issue of Al Fazl)