Maulana Sardar Misbahuddin Sahib (1899-1988)
Maulana Sardar Misbahuddin Sahib was born in October 1899 and received his early education in his native village before pursuing further studies in Sialkot. His deep commitment to faith led him to the guidance of Hazrat Maulvi Faiz Uddinra, shaping his spiritual and intellectual development.
In 1910, he travelled to Qadian, where he took bai‘at at the hand of the first Khalifa, Hazrat Hakeem Noor-ud-Deenra and immersed himself in Islamic studies, forming close ties with esteemed scholars.
In 1922, under the directive of Hazrat Khalifatul Masih IIra, he was appointed to the London Mission, marking the beginning of his significant contributions to the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat. His efforts for the tabligh of Islam Ahmadiyyat included personal outreach, public gatherings, and diplomatic engagements – most notably, his meeting with Abdullah I bin Al-Hussein, the King of Jordan, to introduce the message of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahamdas, the Promised Messiah and Mahdi.
After serving in England for over two years, Sardar Misbahuddin Sahib returned to Qadian with Hazrat Khalifatul Masih IIra, continuing his dedicated service. He passed away on 1 August 1988, leaving behind a legacy of religious devotion and missionary work.
شریعت کے پیمان جو ہم نے توڑے
وہ لے دے کے سب اہل یورپ نے جوڑے
[“The covenants of sharia (divine law) that we broke were upheld, in the end, by all of Europe.”]
Observing certain aspects of the practical life of the English people, this verse from Musaddas-e-Hali would often come to mind while I was in England. Although Europe does not explicitly acknowledge it, the reality remains that its political, material, and intellectual progress is rooted in the teachings of Islam. By adhering to these principles, the people of Europe have attained their current stature. The pinnacle of their advancement has been reached through the very ladder that was constructed centuries ago by an unlettered Arab community.
The world is well aware that, over the past thousand years, Islam has been the only religion that has provided comprehensive guidance in governance, commerce, and the pursuit of knowledge. Europe, in particular, has firsthand experience of this truth: as long as it remained bound by the teachings of Christianity, it consistently lagged in the race for progress. However, the moment it cast off the yoke of Christian dogma and practically embraced the eternal and natural truths brought by Islam, it ascended from a state of obscurity to their zenith.
At this moment, I do not intend to recount the historical causes of Europe’s advancement, as this is an extensive subject that cannot be adequately addressed within the confines of a newspaper column. Rather, my purpose is to highlight a single truth conveyed by the Holy Prophet Muhammadsa – a truth that England today is actively implementing and promoting.
Since the Conservative group has once again come into power (1925), it takes great pride in the fact that its presence in the House of Commons has grown to such an extent that the possibility of a new election within the next four or five years is virtually impossible. However, alongside this sense of triumph, there is also a looming concern: if, within these next four or five years, they fail to establish their foundations on a solid footing, their very existence will be permanently at risk.
For this reason, the government and its members are implementing strategies and proposals aimed at, on the one hand, eradicating the influence of the Labour Party’s ideology and, on the other, uniting public opinion across the nation. The objective is to transform the Conservative group from merely representing a particular ideological faction into the representative body of all of England.
To achieve this objective, a series of articles is currently being published in The Daily Telegraph, one of England’s most renowned newspapers. In these articles, certain policymakers, disregarding all philosophical debates on “free will,” have declared it essential for their survival to adopt the teachings of an “unlettered Arab Prophet” [may thousands upon thousands of peace and blessings of Allah be upon him].
They have begun emphasising the need for a system through which all young children in the country can be controlled and indoctrinated with political ideology from an early age. Parents have been instructed that, instead of telling their children fairy tales or stories about birds and animals, they should raise them within the framework of their own political traditions. When children reach the age of eight, they should receive systematic instruction, and by the time they complete their education at fifteen, they should be thoroughly grounded in their political ideology. The ultimate goal is that, by the time they turn seventeen or eighteen, they will be ready to vote in the next election in favour of the Conservative group.
Those in Europe who once objected to the Holy Prophet’ssa teaching – that a newborn should hear the azan in their ears and that by the age of 7 or 8, they should be taught prayer and adherence to a particular faith – should now reflect upon their own stance. If indoctrinating children at an early age with a specific creed is deemed essential for sustaining a temporary worldly order, then why should it be considered meaningless to instil in them the teachings necessary for eternal and everlasting life?
– Misbahuddin Ahmed
(Translated by Al Hakam from the original Urdu, published in the 3 March 1925 issue of Al Fazl)