In this third year of Al Hakam, we will present a selection of incidents from the blessed life of the Promised Messiah, peace be upon him, this time, with some more details
14 August 1903: A Christian belonging to Bannu by the name of Gul Muhammad came to Qadian and indulged in a discourteous argument with the Promised Messiahas before returning with the same attitude. After he left, the Promised Messiahas saw in a dream that Gul Muhammad was applying collyrium to his eyes. The Promised Messiahas said that this was an indication that he would be guided aright. Several years later, it was heard that he had reverted to Islam. In this regard, Hazrat Mufti Muhammad Sadiqra added that he had received a postcard from the widow of the well-known Dr Pennell of Bannu, wherein she stated that Gul Muhammad had left Christianity and had reverted to his original faith, Islam.
14 August 1907: On this date, the Promised Messiahas received an Urdu revelation:
آج ہمارے گھر میں پیغمبر صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم آئے، آگئے، عزّت اور سلامتی
“Today the Holy Prophet, on whom be the peace and blessings of Allah, came to our house. Along came honour and security.”
15 August 1898: The enemies of the Promised Messiahas were always thinking of new ways of derision and injury against him. Once, they reported against him by wrongfully suggesting that he was not paying income tax to the government, in spite of the fact that he was liable to be assessed for it. While investigating this income tax case, Munshi Tajuddin Sahib Tehsildar of Batala, District Gurdaspur visited Qadian on this day. He recorded the account of the Promised Messiahas and some locals too. Later, the Promised Messiahas summed up this legal battle as a fresh sign.
16 August 1888: The Promised Messiahas guided a notable Muslim cleric of his time, Munshi Syed Mazhar Hussain of Allahabad, while replying to his letter on the principles of commentary of the Holy Quran. Hazrat Ahmadas shed light upon two main groups of verses of the Holy Quran and steered him towards the right path so that he could avoid further misunderstanding.
16 August 1902: The Promised Messiahas explained to Hazrat Haji Seith Allah Rakha Abdur Rahmanra, while replying to his letter, the true philosophy of prayers, trust in God, steadfastness against all forms of adversities and blessings and bounties of Allah for his true servants. Huzooras stated that he had prayed for him, so much so that if such fervent prayers had been done for a dried branch of a tree, it would have been restored to life. Huzooras said that even so, he was not exhausted.
17 August 1884: The Promised Messiahas conveyed to Hazrat Munshi Rustam Alira that his two letters were received earlier, but he was suffering from multiple health issues. Hazrat Ahmadas stated that these ailments were shaking him so much that he was considering spending at least one month in an area of high altitude to beat the harshness of summer.
17 August 1887: The Promised Messiahas wrote a letter to Hazrat Hakim Maulvi Nuruddinra expressing his curiosity about the well-being of Hazrat Hakim Sahibra as he was not in contact for quite some time. Hazrat Ahmadas updated him regarding unprecedented rainfall in Qadian as some old folks of Qadian had stated that they had never experienced such a heavy downpour in their entire lives. In this letter, Huzooras wrote to Hazrat Hakim Sahibra to search for a job in Kashmir for one of his personal workers. Hazrat Ahmadas sent basic information of the said person, which depicts Huzoor’sas gracious care and deep observation for his personal helpers.
17 August 1895: The Promised Messiahas updated Hazrat Munshi Rustam Alira about the ongoing printing stage of his two books: Nur-ul-Quran and Minan-ur-Rahman. In this letter, Huzooras also mentioned that the time since Hazrat Munshi Sahib’sra last visit to Qadian had been substantial, so he should consider visiting Qadian by availing any approaching holidays.
17 August 1895: The Promised Messiah, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmadas says that one day, when he was reading the Holy Quran and pondering over it with deep concentration, his eyes stopped at a certain verse regarding Mecca. This verse appeared before his eyes extraordinarily and Huzooras felt as though it was a treasure of knowledge and of spiritual secrets. Hazrat Ahmadas became very glad and exclaimed, “Alhamdolillah!” Huzooras says that it was made clear to him that that verse pointed towards the excellence of the Arabic language and also to the fact that Arabic is the mother of all languages. It is this theme that he has expounded on and explained in his book Minan-ur-Rahman. Hazrat Ahmadas intended this book to be published in December 1895, but for some reason it could not be published in his lifetime. It eventually was published in 1915. Later, Hazrat Sheikh Muhammad Ahmad Mazhar Sahib produced a series of books on this topic, on the origin of languages in light of this above-mentioned book of the Promised Messiahas.
17 August 1899: The editor of Al Hakam, Hazrat Sheikh Yaqub Ali Irfanira recorded a faith-inspiring and interesting incident of someone from Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh. He stated:
“A few days ago, someone wrote to the Promised Messiah from Bareilly, enquiring, ‘Are you the same Promised Messiah foretold in the various ahadith of God’s Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him? Respond by taking an oath on God Almighty.’ As was the custom, I responded to the person with a few lines from Tiryaq-ul-Qulub, a book of the Promised Messiahas, which should have been a sufficient response. The individual was not satisfied. He wrote to me again and addressed me saying, ‘I would like Hazrat Mirza Sahib to write on oath, with his own hand, as to whether he is the same Promised Messiah who has been mentioned in the ahadith and the Holy Quran.’
“After the evening Prayer, I placed an ink-pot, pen and paper before the Promised Messiahas and submitted that a certain individual had written such and such request. Huzooras took the paper at once and wrote the following lines:
‘Previously, I have already written the following declaration clearly in my books as an oath before the people, but once again, on this document, I swear by God Almighty, in Whose hand is my life, and write that I am the same Promised Messiah who has been foretold by the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and who has been mentioned in the authentic ahadith recorded in Sahih Bukhari, Sahih Muslim and other books from among the six authentic books of hadith.
وکفیٰ باللہ شھیدا
“‘[And Allah is sufficient as a witness.]
“‘The writer, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad. May Allah forgive him and support him. 17 August 1899.’
“In relating this account, I have two objectives in mind. Firstly, so that the faith of our own community may be increased and so that they too can experience the same joy and pleasure that the fortunate ones present here at the time felt. Those of us present here at the time must wholeheartedly profess that our faith was revived. Secondly, those who reject the Promised Messiahas and think ill of him ought to reflect with a calm heart and contemplate on whether a committed liar and a self-made deceiver can possess the grace and courage to swear in this manner by God, the Possessor of Glory, in such a gathering? Allah is the greatest! Allah is the greatest! Indeed, Allah is the greatest!”
17 August 1903: The Promised Messiahas embarked on a journey towards Gurdaspur, after offering Zuhr and Asr prayers in congregation. The purpose behind this was to attend the hearing of a lawsuit filed by Karam Din. Hazrat Mirza Bashiruddin Mahmud Ahmadra was also part of the entourage. Hazrat Ahmadas made a night-stay in Batala at a lodging situated near the railway station. Maghrib and Isha prayers were offered there in congregation.
18 August 1888: The Promised Messiahas replied to a letter of Hazrat Hakim Maulvi Nuruddinra. In the reply, Huzooras mentioned the improving health of his son, Bashir Awwal and also advised Hazrat Hakim Sahibra to be cautious before further dealing with Huzoor’sas elder son, Mirza Fazl Ahmad Sahib, who was serving in Kashmir in those days, where Hazrat Hakim Sahibra was residing. Hazrat Ahmadas mentioned and lamented his family members’ inappropriate approach towards divine and religious matters.
18 August 1902: Mirza Ahsan Baig Sahib formally requested to be part of the Ahmadiyya Jamaat. He was the brother-in-law of Muhammadi Begum.
19 August 1893: In response to a letter from Hazrat Munshi Rustam Alira, the Promised Messiahas detailed the account of when Huzooras was in Amritsar for a religious debate. Huzooras expressed his curiosity as to why Hazrat Munshi Sahibra was not aware of the actual account of events. Many opponents rose against the Messiah of the age, but they all faced their own humiliating ends at their destined hours. During this aforementioned trip, Maulvi Abdul Haq, Maulvi Muhammad Hussain of Batala, Mian Abdul Hayye of Lakhokay and Maulvi Abdul Jabbar were invited for a mubahala (prayer dual) through registered post, which was responded to by these individuals respectively. Thousands of local residents of Amritsar witnessed this historic episode unfold, which also included some Christian missionaries who reached the location set for mubahala out of their curiosity.
19 August 1896: The Promised Messiahas wrote to Hazrat Haji Seith Allah Rakha Abdur Rahmanra and confirmed that his donation of 300 rupees reached him three days ago. Hazrat Ahmadas expressed his utmost appreciation and prayed for his abundant rewards in both worlds. Huzooras stated that he had been occupied in compiling some research papers, which Huzooras mentioned in his previous letter to Seith Sahibra. Hazrat Ahmadas wrote that to fortify his research regarding certain topics, he needed testimonies of different Jewish scholars. Huzooras wrote that only one point was left, which Hazrat Munshi Zainuddin Muhammad Ibrahimra promised to help obtain from a certain Jewish source.
20 August 1885: The Promised Messiahas shared his famous supplication with Hazrat Hakim Maulvi Nuruddinra, while replying to his letter, which runs as follows:
اے میرے محسن اور اے میرے خدا!میں ایک تیرا ناکارہ بندہ پرمعصیت اور پر غفلت ہوں۔ تو نے مجھ سے ظلم پر ظلم دیکھا اور انعام پر انعام کیا اور گناہ پر گناہ دیکھا اور احسان پر احسان کیا۔ تو نے ہمیشہ میری پردہ پوشی کی اور اپنی بےشمار نعمتوں سے مجھے متمتع کیا۔ سو اَب بھی مجھ نالائق اور پُر گناہ پررحم کر اور میری بے باکی اور ناسپاسی کو معاف فرمااور مجھ کو میرے اس غم سے نجات بخش کہ بجز تیرے اور کوئی چارہ گر نہیں۔ آمین ثم آمین
“O Benevolent God! I am a worthless, sinful and heedless servant of Yours. You have seen me commit injustices upon injustices, yet always bestowed rewards upon rewards. You have seen me commit sin upon sin and yet You conferred Your favour upon favour. You have always concealed my flaws and granted me countless bounties. Thus, even now, grant mercy to this unworthy and sinful one and forgive me my boldness and ungratefulness. Alleviate this sorrow of mine – for there is none else save You who can help.”
20 August 1899: The Promised Messiahas replied to a letter of Hazrat Haji Seith Allah Rakha Abdur Rahmanra, in which Seith Sahibra informed Huzooras about success in a certain journey. Hazrat Ahmadas wrote that he did not know about the motive of his aforementioned journey, but he prayed fervently for the success of his wishes.
20 August 1903: The Promised Messiahas arrived back in Qadian from Gurdaspur from the aforementioned journey.
20 August 1904: The Promised Messiahas departed for his journey of Lahore, during the course of which he delivered the historic lecture now famously known as Lecture Lahore.