On 28 February 2021, Waqf-e-Nau university students from Majlis Khuddam-ul-Ahmadiyya UK were given the opportunity to meet with Hazrat Khalifatul Masih Vaa in a virtual meeting.
The students were situated in the Baitul Futuh Mosque, London and a live stream connected them with Hazrat Amirul Momineenaa in Islamabad, UK.
The meeting started with the waqifeen-e-nau presenting a portion of the Holy Quran, a hadith, an extract from the writings of the Promised Messiahas and an Urdu poem written by Hazrat Musleh-e-Maudra.
A short video presentation was then shown to Hazrat Amirul Momineenaa, showcasing highlights of the MKA Waqf-e-Nau Virtual Retreat 2021, which took place on 27 February.
Hazrat Khalifatul Masihaa then opened the floor for the Waqf-e-Nau students to ask what they wished.
The first question was by Hamaad Muin Ahmad Sahib, a medical student, who wanted to know what medical students could do to ensure they became the best doctors for the Jamaat. In response, Huzooraa said:
“A medical student should study – whether Waqf-e-Nau or not. If you do not study, you will not get the degree. That is why – whether a medical student or a student of any other field – you should concentrate on your studies; secondly, pay great attention towards prayers, improve your connection with Allah and offer your five daily prayers at their prescribed times.
“If an atheist studies and works hard, then even if he doesn’t believe in God Almighty, it doesn’t matter; Allah the Almighty will give him the reward for studying. However, an Ahmadi Muslim who claims to believe in Islam, believe in Allah and believe that Allah the Almighty helps them, must, along with their studies, prove they have a connection with Allah too.
“This is why when an Ahmadi couples their hard work with prayers, they will achieve success. Do not think that ‘an atheist has received success, therefore I will also be successful’; there is a difference between the two and you have to bear in mind this difference; it is a very subtle difference, which you must keep in mind and if you keep it in mind, you will be able to develop a connection with Allah the Almighty and pay attention to studies. As a result, you will be able to achieve your targets.”
Hamaad Sahib’s second question was what specialisation Huzooraa recommended for Waqf-e-Nau doctors to pursue. Huzooraa answered by saying:
“We need all types of specialists. So if you are going to Africa, we need general surgeons there. If we send you to Pakistan, Rabwah, then we need cardiologists – interventional cardiologists or simple cardiologists. It depends on various factors, which is why every waqif-e-nau who is becoming a doctor should write back – when they complete their degree – to seek guidance again as to what specialisation they should pursue.
“It is not a general principle – we cannot say that all the waqifeen-e-nau should go into this field or that field. It depends on where there are requirements, what is needed and what each person’s interests are; I guide each person accordingly.”
Huzooraa then asked Hamaad Sahib what his interests were in terms of specialisation, to which he replied that he had an interest in cardiology and ENT but was unsure what to go into. Huzooraa recommended that he pursue cardiology, to which Hamaad Sahib expressed his gratitude.
Another student, Muhammad Abdul Wasay Sahib, spoke next. As he began asking his question, Hazrat Amirul Momineenaa desired to see his face and asked him to remove his mask temporarily so that he could recognise him. With great love and affection, Huzooraa said, “It has been a long time since I have seen your faces”.
Muhammad Abdul Wasay Sahib said he was studying architecture and was in his final year. He wanted to know whether Huzooraa recommended for him to pursue an apprenticeship scheme after his studies.
In response, Hazrat Amirul Momineenaa said:
“Yes, after completing your education, you should enter an apprenticeship – do an apprenticeship for two to three years, gain experience and then do waqf. If you ask me, come after at least receiving training for three years, after gaining experience and working in a good company so that your vision broadens.”
Muhammad Abdul Wasay Sahib thanked Huzooraa for the guidance.
Next, Mudasar Zafri Sahib asked Huzooraa whether it was necessary for a waqifeen-e-nau to reconfirm their waqf at the age of 15. Hazrat Khalifatul Masihaa responded by saying:
“Yes, it is necessary because if you do not, then how will we know if you want to continue or not?
“There is no force. Your parents dedicated you, but the Jamaat cannot enforce this, that because they did the waqf, you must work for the Jamaat. Here, you are given an option, your mind is now mature – it is an option for you, whether you want to continue your waqf or not.”
Huzooraa highlighted that it was necessary for waqifeen-e-nau to tell the centre if they wished to continue so that the data could be accurate with regard to those continuing their waqf and those who wish to follow other pursuits.
Huzooraa said:
“We should not have any kind of deceptive data. If you [a Waqf-e-Nau] do not give us information, then our data will be wrong and we will not be able to plan properly. The Jamaat needs to plan too, right? … If we don’t even know who wants to continue their waqf and who does not, then our planning will be inaccurate.”
Nauman Ahmad Sahib asked Huzooraa if waqifeen-e-zindagi [life devotees] could pursue part-time jobs. Hazrat Amirul Momineenaa replied by saying:
“If you have done waqf and you are serving as a regular waqif-e-zindagi in the Jamaat, then you will have to seek permission. If you are permitted to work outside, as a part-time employee, you can continue. Otherwise, if you are not permitted to do it, then you cannot. Normally we do not allow waqifeen-e-zindagi to work outside. In certain, special cases, we give permission, but it is not a general principle.”
Nauman Mubarak Sahib asked if waqifeen-e-nau could work in the business sector. Huzooraa replied by explaining that when a waqf conveys their qualifications to the Jamaat and if the Jamaat is not in need of that qualification for the time being, then permission can be sought from the Jamaat to do one’s own work or set up a business and in such cases, permission is given.
Talking about business, Hazrat Amirul Momineenaa emphasised that a business should not be started by taking a large loan from the bank, getting bankrupt by wasting that loan and then spending one’s whole life paying off the debt.
Abdul Bari Mughal Sahib asked Hazrat Amirul Momineenaa whether a waqif-e-nau, who is studying and also has a responsibility in the Jamaat, should prioritise their studies or Jamaat work. Huzooraa answered by saying:
“If they are studying, or in university, then they should see if they can, along with their studies, do justice to their [Jamaat] responsibility or not. If they cannot do justice to such a responsibility, they should tell the [Jamaat] authorities that at the moment, especially during the exam period, ‘I cannot give my full time as I am going through exams’. Then at such a time, concentrate on your studies.”
Huzooraa said that after exams, on weekends or during any such spare time, one should give time to the Jamaat, instead of wasting it. But for someone to use the excuse that they are not studying due to Jamaat work, is wrong. Huzooraa said to give precedence to studies and to serve the Jamaat in any spare time. However, when studies are finished, a waqif-e-nau should write to the Jamaat and say, “I am ready to serve the Jamaat now.”
Huzooraa said, “Then, without any greed, fulfil your waqf too.”
Hazrat Amirul Momineenaa emphasised that whenever a waqif-e-nau finishes their studies, they should inform the Jamaat and seek further guidance on whether to find work or whether the Jamaat requires them.
Huzooraa said that those waqifeen-e-nau who are working outside the Jamaat’s system should give more time to serving the Jamaat compared to other Khuddam and Ahmadis, for example, they should help more in Khuddam-ul-Ahmadiyya etc.
Majid Ahmad Bhatti Sahib said that graduates were currently finding it difficult to find jobs and asked Huzooraa if there were any prayers to secure a job.
In response, Huzooraa said:
“Offer your five daily prayers and pray, while in sajda, ‘O Allah, ease things for us’. Apart from this, there is no other prayer. The greatest of prayers are the five daily prayers. Allah the Almighty did not say to offer such and such prayer, only then would He accept it. Allah the Almighty has said to offer the five daily prayers, fulfil your obligationsand offer your prayers alongside them; [once this has been achieved] then He will accept them.”
Mashood Ahmad Sahib asked what sacrifices waqifeen-e-nau could give to the Jamaat and how one could ensure those sacrifices were accepted.
Hazrat Amirul Momineenaa asked Mashood Sahib what he was studying and whether he was born in the UK. Mashood Sahib said he was studying English literature and was born in Oxford, England. Huzooraa then answered his question by saying:
“Any good deed done for the sake of Allah the Almighty is accepted by Him. Anything you are doing to please Allah the Almighty, for the sake of Allah, He will accept it. Allah even says that ‘if you put a morsel of food in the mouth of your wife, to gain My pleasure, then that will be considered your sacrifice too’ and will please Allah the Almighty. So, Allah’s mercy is to this extent.”
Huzooraa further said:
“Whatever you are doing to achieve the love of Allah and for the sake of Allah, [then] Allah will accept it and consider it as your sacrifice for Him.”
A question regarding civil service was asked and what Huzooraa had meant when he said waqifeen-e-nau should pursue careers in the civil service.
Hazrat Amirul Momineenaa explained that it was up to the central Waqf-e-Nau department to explain to waqifeen what civil service meant. Huzooraa said civil service included public service, from the local council level to the prime minister’s secretariat level – all these offices fall under civil service.
Discussing the benefits of civil service, Huzooraa said:
“Your exposure with politicians is increased and one is acquainted with the country’s policies. As a result, one can benefit the Jamaat and Ahmadis. A good talented public servant is then kept as an advisor too. Then, for the benefit of the country, acting with absolute justice, he can properly advise his superiors and he can work honestly in the public and carry out justice wherever there is a defect.
“This is why I said public service starts from the council level up to the prime minister’s house level – the secretariat level.”
Aside from this, Hazrat Amirul Momineenaa said that while waqifeen-e-nau could go into the army or police and that it was important to work with law-enforcement agencies, he explained that his advice for Waqf-e-Nau to go into civil service did not mean the army or police etc.; rather, it meant public service, as civil service and public service are the same thing.
Hazrat Amirul Momineenaa then asked about some of the demographics of Waqf-e-Nau students who were present.
Huzooraa asked the medical students more about what they wanted to specialise in and addressing engineering students, Huzooraa said to gain a few years’ experience and then write back to the Jamaat to serve.
Hearing one Waqf-e-Nau student, Aqib Javed Rashid Sahib, say he is pursuing a PhD in cyber security, Hazrat Khalifatul Masihaa remarked, with a smile:
“Masha-Allah, this is very good. These days, in Pakistan, the cyber security people are constantly after us.”
Huzooraa said that if Ahmadis watch MTA in Pakistan, the cyber security people come after them; if they browse or use the alislam.org website in any way, the cyber security people immediately arrest them.
Huzooraa said, “If [Ahmadis] mention Allah or His Prophetsa, they are immediately arrested in Pakistan.”
Talking to Aqib Javid Rashid Sahib, with a smile, Huzooraa said:
“If you are doing a PhD, then find an antidote to what they are doing too.”
The student responded by saying “Yes, Huzoor; insha-Allah.”
Huzooraa then asked Aqib Javid Sahib more about his work and research. During the discussion, Huzooraa asked about the likelihood for a virus to enter a device even after a software update.
Aqib Sahib responded by saying that currently, it was very difficult to put a percentage on this chance as there was always room for viruses to enter devices. He said the current research on this, to his knowledge, was scarce and no one really could predict the possibility of malware and viruses after software updates.
Huzooraa lovingly remarked, “An Ahmadi scholar should solve difficult problems – solve this. Do some research on this and then tell me.”
Aqib Javaid Sahib responded by saying he would definitely do so, God willing.
Before the conclusion of the mulaqat, Daud Ahmad Khan Sahib asked Huzooraa a question. When he stood up, Huzooraa asked him to show his face and commented:
“Have you all attended my classes before? You have all grown up and now have beautiful beards, maybe that is why I cannot recognise you all. And it has been a long time too, right? Since a [waqf-e-nau] class … I was not able to meet you either [due to the widespread pandemic]. I am looking at your faces and you have grown, maybe some have even married. Anyhow, you all look good masha-Allah, but I cannot recognise your faces – maybe if I look at some childhood pictures of you all, I will recognise you.”
The love and affection Huzooraa has for waqifeen-e-nau becomes manifest from this remark. Since their childhood, Huzooraa has been graciously giving them advice at every step of their upbringing and education. Indeed, this remark by Huzooraa is in need of no further comment but prayers only.
Daud Ahmad Khan Sahib asked whether Waqf-e-Nau students studying live sciences such as physics, chemistry and biology, should pursue teaching or research.
Huzooraa replied:
“We need people in all fields. Ahmadi scholars should go into research too, especially those studying physics. And those studying biology will do biomedical science and then they can go into research. If a student of biology or chemistry does not get into medicine, then they can go into biomedical sciences. A chemistry student should also go into research.
“And those who cannot do research – not everyone can get into research as each person has their own calibre and talent – then their second preference should be teaching. The first preference should be research and the second, teaching.
“However, from waqifeen-e-nau, we need teachers in every field too. But a certain percentage …”
Hazrat Amirul Momineenaa said good Ahmadi teachers could also help schools in the UK as, through this, they could display their high morals along with imparting knowledge.
On teaching as a profession, Huzooraa said:
“The more Ahmadi teachers teach in schools, the more moral training will take place of the children in those schools – whether those children are Christians, Buddhists, atheists or Ahmadis … Wherever an Ahmadi [teacher] is, apart from their subject, they will be giving moral training to children too. That is why teaching is a very good profession.”
With this, the meeting came to an end and before conveying salaam, Hazrat Khalifatul Masihaa prayed, “May Allah be the Protector and Helper of everyone.”
(Report prepared by Al Hakam)