24-30 July

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

24 July 1885: The Promised Messiah^as provided guidance to his close friend, Hazrat Munshi Rustam Ali^ra about the subtleties of istikhara, enhancing his understanding in this regard.

25 July 1883: The Promised Messiah^as replied to a letter of Mir Abbas Ali Sahib of Ludhiana, containing gems of guidance for true servants who strive and brave sufferings in the cause of Allah. Every sentence of this letter is an aphorism derived from the verses of the Holy Quran. This letter was written on 20 Ramadan 1300 AH.

25 July 1892: The Promised Messiah^as shared his heartfelt and earnest bonding with Hazrat Munshi Rustam Ali^ra, while replying to his letter. Huzoor^as stated that his cordial love and connection with him was only for the sake of Allah. Huzoor^as assured him that he could not forsake praying for him, which signifies the immense love Hazrat Ahmad^as had for his companions.

25 July 1898: On this date, Maulvi Muhammad Hussain of Batala dispatched his periodical Ishaat-us-Sunnah of 1895 (volume 18, numbers 5 to 12) with Muhammad, the son of Chughta – who belonged to the Awan people, a resident of Hammu, Ghakhar – in which many unjust attacks were made against the Promised Messiah^as. In the afternoon, the Promised Messiah^as returned the original copies of these bound periodicals to the messenger and wrote the following on the top of the front page:

رب ان کان ھذا الرجل صادقا فی قولہ فاکرمہ وان کان کاذبا فخذہ، آمین

“O my Lord! If this person is true in what he says, then grant him honour, but if he is false, then seize him. Amin.”

Indeed, this was a most apt response to the abusive language he received.

26 July 1887: The Promised Messiah^as wrote a comprehensive letter to Hazrat Hakim Maulvi Nuruddin^ra regarding a very pressing and urgent issue. Hazrat Hakim Sahib^ra was in Kashmir and had earlier sent Chanda worth 560 rupees. After duly thanking him, Hazrat Ahmad^as diverted his attention to the recent rebuttal of Barahin-e-Ahmadiyya compiled by Pandit Lekhram. Huzoor^as, after mentioning his already occupied schedule, directed him to prepare a rejoinder to the recent compilation of Pandit Lekhram. Huzoor^as also commented on the rough style and unsatisfactory standard of the book and instructed Hazrat Hakim Sahib^ra, step by step, as to how to tackle this new fabrication by Pandit Lekhram to safeguard the ordinary population from deception. Huzoor^as reiterated that responding to the enemies of Islam was as worthwhile and essential a task as donating money in the cause of Allah.

26 July 1891: The Promised Messiah^as wrote to Hazrat Mian Abdullah Sanauri^ra to purchase and bring with him some needed items worth 5 rupees and wrote minute details of the required items for his convenience. Hazrat Ahmad^as was staying in Iqbal Ganj, Ludhiana in those days.

26 July 1897: The Promised Messiah^as expressed his cordial thanks to Hazrat Haji Seith Allah Rakha Abdur Rahman^ra in a letter after receiving 100 rupees sent by him. Huzoor^as also briefed him about the printing process of his books, which was on halt, owing to the month of Ramadan and hoped that printing would be back on track after Ramadan. At the end, Hazrat Ahmad^as shared his feeble health, which intensified especially as the sun approaches to set in the evenings.

26 July 1898: The Promised Messiah^as replied to a letter of Hazrat Nawab Muhammad Ali Khan^ra and assured him that Huzoor^as had been praying for him in his daily prayers and otherwise. While praying for his earliest and complete recovery from illness, Hazrat Ahmad^as shared his medical knowledge regarding the connection between measles and smallpox with the plague.

26 July 1898: The Promised Messiah^as replied to a letter of Hazrat Haji Seith Allah Rakha Abdur Rahman^ra. In it, Hazrat Ahmad^as shared his unyielding trust in God and acceptance of prayers and stated that he had witnessed His manifestation countless times. After bringing the attention of this grief-stricken follower toward the revelation, “Mighty is the King Who puts together a broken affair”, Huzoor^as said that the unmeasurable amount of trust he had in prayers was a secret that remained between him and his Lord; it was completely unknown to people.

26 July 1904: The Promised Messiah^as was in Gurdaspur and on this day, he received the following guests from Lahore: Mian Hidayatullah Sahib (a poet) and two clerks from the general office in Lahore, one of whom was Christian.

27 July 1886: The Promised Messiah^as directed Hazrat Mian Abdullah Sanauri^ra regarding purchasing certain commodities from Amritsar through a letter as this devout companion was in the city for some other tasks. One thing that Huzoor^as asked for was specific building material for a mosque, which was most likely Masjid Mubarak, Qadian. This letter also mentions Munshi Imamuddin Sahib, who happened to be Huzoor’s copyist to rewrite the manuscripts of his book prior to their printing. In those times, Huzoor^as used to pay him 20 rupees as a monthly wage, beside free food and accommodation in Qadian.

27 July 1896: The Promised Messiah’s^as prophecy about Abdullah Atham was fulfilled on this day, when this Muslim-born Christian missionary departed the world in Firozpur. He was a representative of the Christian camp against the Promised Messiah^as at Amritsar during the famous debate, Jang-e-Muqaddas of 1893.

28 July 1901: The Promised Messiah^as expressed his endless gratitude for Hazrat Mian Abdullah Sanauri^ra and his wife through a letter on this date as this ardent devotee donated a gold ornament of his wife, upon the call of his beloved Imam^as. Hazrat Ahmad^as lauded his and his wife’s contribution as they made the enormous effort of sending jewelry, owing to a lack of funds. Huzoor^as also instructed him to visit Qadian and stay for one month in the coming winter months as the plague was battering people in unexpected manners.

29 July 1897: The Promised Messiah^as appealed to his followers to contribute towards the extension of Masjid Mubarak, Qadian, which had become too small for the increasing number of worshippers. Accordingly, a room was built towards the north. The following are a few names of the persons who contributed towards the fund:

Ibrahim Sulaiman Sahib of Madras, Seith Ishaq Ismail Sahib of Bangalore, Zainuddin Muhammad Ibrahim Sahib of Bombay, Qurban Ali Sahib of Calcutta, Pir Faiz Ali Sahib of Manipur, Karam Ilahi Sahib of Shimla, Sheikh Karam Ilahi Sahib of Patiala, Maulvi Muhammad Yusuf Sahib of Sanaur, Khan Muhammad Ali Khan Sahib of Malerkotla, M Qadir Bakhsh Sahib of Ludhiana, Ali Gauhar Sahib of Jalandhar, Muhammad Khan Sahib of Kapurthala, Muhammad Ismail Sahib of Amritsar, Sheikh Rahmatullah Sahib of Lahore, Nabi Bakhsh Sahib of Batala, Sheikh Muhammad Jan Sahib of Wazirabad; Nawab Khan Sahib of Jhelum, Jalaluddin Sahib of Gujrat, Shadi Khan Sahib of Sialkot, Khawaja Nuruddin Sahib of Jammu; Mirza Niaz Baig Sahib of Multan, Azizullah Sahib of Nadaun, Chaudhry Rustam Ali Sahib of Gurdaspur, Fateh Muhammad Khan Sahib of Dera Ismail Khan, Afzal Baig Sahib of Kasur and Mullah Abdur Rahim Sahib of Ghazni.

29 July 1903: The Promised Messiah^as was told in an Arabic revelation, “The mention of your forefathers will be cut off and, after you, the chain of descendants will be counted from you.”

29 July 1906: The Promised Messiah^as replied to a letter of Hazrat Syed Nasir Shah^ra and shared that owing to severe health issues, he could not be prompt in replying to his letters. Hazrat Ahmad^as told him that he prayed for him and so he should remain in constant contact.