Al Fazl, 11 December 1952
Dr Alfred W Parker (America), Executive Secretary of the International World Peace Day Company, requested Hazrat Amirul Momineen, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih II[ra], that as their committee is observing Peace Day on 6 August 1952, members of the Ahmadiyya Jamaat should also be asked to pray for peace in the world.
Hazrat Khalifatul Masih[ra] accepted their request and suggested a prayer. He instructed members of Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya present in Pakistan and abroad to say this prayer on Friday, 6 August [1952]. The words of the prayer are as follows:
اے خدا ہمیں سیدھا راستہ دكھا۔ ایسا راستہ جس پر مختلف اقوام كے چنیدہ لوگ جنہوں نے تیرى رضامندى كو حاصل كرلیا تھا چلے تھے۔ ہمارے ارادے پاكیزہ ہوں۔ ہمارى نیتیں درست ہوں۔ ہمارے خیالات ہر بدى سے پاك ہوں اور ہمارے عمل ہر قسم كى كجى سے منزہ ہوں۔ سچائى اور صداقت كے لیے ہم اپنى سارى خواہشات اور رغبتیں قربان كردیں۔ ایسا انصاف جس میں رحم ملا ہوا ہو ہمارے حصے میں آئے اور ہم تیرے ہى فضل سے دنیا میں امن قائم كرنے والے ہو جائیں۔ جس طرح كے تیرے برگزیدہ بندوں نے دنیا میں امن كیا۔ اور تو ہمیں ایسے تمام كاموں سے محفوظ ركھ جن كى وجہ سے تیرى ناراضگى حاصل ہوتى ہے۔ اور تو ہمیں اس بات سے بھى بچا كے ہم جوش عمل سے اندھے ہوكر ان فرائض كو بھول جائیں جو تیرى طرف سے عائد ہوتے ہیں اور ان طریقوں سے بے راہ ہو جائیں جو تیرى طرف لے جاتے ہیں۔
“O God, show us the right path – that path which was taken by those chosen ones of different nations who attained Your pleasure. May our aims be pure and our intentions, right. May our thoughts be clear from all evil and our actions be free from all kinds of corruption. May we sacrifice all our desires and longings for truth and justice. May we secure such impartial justice that is laced with mercy. In the same way as Your chosen ones established world peace, may we become ensurers of peace in the world through Your blessings. Please keep us away from all those practices that give rise to Your displeasure. Pray, save us from being blinded by zealous actions and forgetting our duties that You have made compulsory for us. [Do not let us] go astray from those ways that lead to You.”
Dr Alfred W Parker sent this prayer to the leader of the Anania-Kys movement (which is based in Japan and is looking for ways to establish peace in the world). They published this prayer in their monthly Anania issue of September 1952 and sent it along with some literature to be presented before Hazrat Khalifatul Masih.
Hazrat Khalifatul Masih II[ra] sent them the following reply, which is being published for the benefit of the people:
“Dear friend! I received your literature. May Allah the Almighty grant you the best of rewards.
“At present, we do not have anyone who knows Japanese, so we cannot know much about you. However, I am glad to know from the English section that my proposed prayer for the establishment of world peace has been published in your magazine.
“Surely, the world is in dire need for true peace to be established. However, true peace can never be established without spiritual uplifting. The world is trying to maintain harmony and peace with weapons, laws or reason, but these three things, though necessary in one respect, are not enough.
“True peace cannot be established unless these three things are combined with spirituality. Maintaining peace with weapons is not possible because it leads to an arms race. Then it becomes a usual practice that those nations who are trying to establish harmony, continue to accumulate weapons even after reconciliation.
“The case of arsenal-collecting nations is like that of a rich man who cannot travel without a wallet full of money, whereas a poor man sets out on a journey with a few pennies. These nations continue to collect armaments even when they no longer need them, because they develop a constant fear of their neighbouring countries and their hearts are not satisfied without a lot of weapons.
“The law [alone] cannot establish peace because the law rules the external side and not the inner self. Rationality cannot establish peace because it is not subject to morality and it only sees what can benefit it or its friend. It does not realise that some apparent benefits lead to inward harms and near affiliations ruin the remote future.
“However, spirituality is the only thing that keeps man inclined towards eternal goodness because spirituality is the name of natural tendencies channelled into morality. When these tendencies are molded into morals, then rationality is a certain part of them. Consequently, a permanent bond is created which cannot be moved from its place by any greed, evil desire or fear.
“I am glad that you are attracted to religion, but I want to inform you that religion is not a name of a few apparent things. In fact, religion is the name of a practical relationship with God Almighty and this kind of relationship is not found anywhere in the world today except for Islam.
“Thus, I invite you and your colleagues to study Islam and reflect on its practical aspects because it unites [mankind] with Allah the Almighty in this very world. Moreover, it grants such powers to human beings that even the most powerful governments of the world and the mightiest of earthquakes cannot cause them any harm.
“Reasoning [alone] cannot work in this world. Man has altered the arguments for his own benefit. Only the hand of God Almighty can establish peace in this world and remove anxiety from the hearts of the people.
“I therefore invite you to the Living God of Islam, Who is still the Sovereign of this world as He was in ancient times. We need not adhere to the accounts of Prophet Mosesas, Jesusas, Confuciusas and Buddhaas. The God of Confuciusas, Buddhaas, Jesusas and Mosesas is the same God Who exists today and He should exhibit the same powers in present times as He used to in the past.
“I assure you that God still manifests the same [attributes], but the only need of the hour is to utilise the right means and carry out an in-depth study of Islam, which is the last religion sent by Him.”
(Translated by Al Hakam from the original Urdu in the 11 December 1952 issue of Al Fazl)