100 Years Ago… – The Ahmadiyya and Woking missions: A glance at the results of their efforts

London Mission

Alhakam

24th May 2019

100 Years Ago… – The Ahmadiyya and Woking missions: A glance at the results of their efforts

Al Fazl, 27 May 1919

Khawaja Kamaluddin Sahib went to the UK in order to convey the message of Islam which he had acquired from the Promised Messiah^as. At least that is what he revealed to Ahmadis, but God knows what he disclosed to the people over there and what they perceived from his discourse.

Nonetheless, Khawaja Sahib reached the UK and began his efforts. Ahmadis were committed and ready to do as Khawaja Sahib directed. However, once he got there, he perceived that Ahmadiyyat was a narrow passage and the Ahmadiyya Jamaat was an insignificant group. Therefore, he declared that the tabligh of Ahmadiyyat and mentioning the name of the Promised Messiah^as in the UK was a hurdle in the promulgation of Islam and it acted as a deadly poison.

Hence, he carried on with the mission of converting Christians into Muslims, abandoning the way of God, about Whom he admitted that He had saved him from converting to Christianity and in fact rescued him from the pit of Christianity. Abiding by a wrong and erroneous way of preaching, he had not only imagined, but in fact believed that he would be able to attract countless people into the pale of Islam. However, regardless of his cunningness, the outcome of his efforts turned out to be futile as was destined. It became evident like daylight that it was the corruption of Khawaja Sahib’s heart and faith which led him to declare that mentioning the name of the Promised Messiah^as in the UK acted as a deadly poison in the way of propagating Islam.

If it has really been the matter, then our mission which was solely based to present before the European nation that very Islam which was taught by the Promised Messiah^as and to spread his name across the globe, would never have gained a strong foothold over there, resulting in the unsuccessful return of our missionaries. Moreover, the people of that region would not have considered them worthy of having any discussion or listening to their discourse, but instead they would have avoided them as one keeps away from a deadly poison.

On the contrary, nobody can claim that our missionaries were unsuccessful in the task of conveying that same message of Ahmadiyyat, the true Islam, which was declared a deadly poison by Khawaja Sahib. [Can anybody prove] that Khawaja Sahib turned out to be successful by avoiding this poison as a result of which he abandoned the message of Ahmadiyyat? We would like to present a detailed description of this matter:

There was a very short span of time between the second visit of Khawaja Sahib and Mufti Sahib’s first visit to London. The former was well aware of the UK’s conditions because he had previously resided there and believed that mentioning the name of Ahmadiyyat was extremely detrimental in that place and it acted as a hurdle in the tabligh of Islam. The second person under discussion is the one who was totally unaware of the conditions of that region and was instructed by his imam, whom he considered worthy to be obeyed, in the following manner:

“Convey the truth [Ahmadiyyat]. This is your mission. It is not your responsibility to make them accept or embrace it.”

These were the words of Hazrat Khalifatul Masih II addressed to Mufti Sahib while delivering a lecture in a general gathering. In other words, the only responsibility of Mufti Sahib was to present before the European nation that Ahmadiyyat, which, according to Khawaja Sahib, acted as a deadly poison for the promulgation of Islam.

When we compare the outcome of Khawaja Sahib’s efforts with our missionaries, our hearts are filled with praise and gratitude to Allah the Almighty that He, through His benevolence, granted success to our missionaries, which was never achieved by the other party, in spite of possessing every kind of apparent means of success. In the span of two years, the total number of people who have accepted Islam, according to Khawaja Sahib, amounts to just 20.

No matter what sort of people Khawaja Sahib claims to have accepted Islam; whether they seek to develop the true teachings of Islam in themselves or not, whether they consider the drinking of wine as lawful, whether they seek to distort the very beliefs of Islam rather than adopting them after entering the pale of Islam or whether their moral conditions appear to be in the weakest possible state after declaring themselves to be a Muslim; no matter what Islamic beliefs these Muslims possess, the number Khawaja Sahib claims to have accepted Islam in the period of two years does not exceed the figure of 20. Perhaps, Khawaja Sahib is only “compelling them to accept God” and does not obligate those who become Muslims to abide by the doctrines of Islam. Competing with him on the other side are Mufti Muhammad Sadiq Sahib and his associate Qazi Muhammad Abdullah Sahib who have never extended their hand before any non-Ahmadi and never desired to receive stipends from any government, but rather their expenses are managed from the pockets of a handful of poverty-stricken Ahmadis.

Considering these Ahmadis as insignificant, Khawaja Sahib trustingly looked towards other governments and non-Ahmadis and ended up rusting his own hands. Owing to the efforts of our missionaries, with the blessings and benevolence of Allah the Almighty, in the same two-year period, around 70 individuals embraced Islam and each one of them is an Ahmadi who considers the Promised Messiah^as to be a true prophet of God.

Nobody could ever have imagined the magnificence of this success and it becomes all the more significant when we compare the approach of our missionaries with those of the Woking mission. As mentioned earlier, the difference between the two separate ways of conveying the message of Islam is poles apart. The Woking mission is limited to compel (the people) to accept God and does not make any effort to obligate its Muslim converts to abide by the doctrines of the Shariah (divine law). More shockingly, the whereabouts of several of these converts are not revealed.

On the other hand, it is mandatory upon our missionaries that immediately after they have persuaded someone to accept God, they must commit him to believe in prophethood and do not consider him a Muslim on a verbal admission unless he makes an effort to practically abide by the doctrines of Islam. Hence, these people who become considerably close to Islam are called musaddiq (one who attests to the truth).

The Woking mission, however, defines Islam as merely verbally accepting God and the Prophet^sa. If someone verbally admits that God is one and Muhammad^sa was a prophet, it is put to paper by the Woking mission and an announcement is made that a lady or a gentleman has converted to Islam. Even by adding such kind of Muslims, the number of their new Muslim converts in two years does not exceed the figure of 15 or 20. However, four times more persons have converted to Islam by the efforts of Mufti Sahib and Qazi Sahib and there is not a single individual among them who has been considered (a Muslim) on verbal admission. Each one of them has faith in God and firmly believes in the true prophethood of Muhammad^sa, moreover they accept the prophethood and messengership of Hazrat Ahmad^as, the prophet of the age.

It is a matter of great happiness that several persons whom Khawaja Sahib has left after converting them to his lot of Muslims drank of this “deadly poison” [Ahmadiyyat] which was avoided by Khawaja Sahib as he considered it harmful, and they attained that renewed life which was once attained by Khawaja Sahib.

Has it not been proved that the assumption of Khawaja Sahib about the message of Ahmadiyyat that it acts as a deadly poison in the UK turned out to be an erroneous and futile perception? If this notion had been true, it would have certainly resulted in the failure of our missionaries. In fact, it appears that Khawaja Sahib’s idea was right in a certain way because if he had mentioned the name of that Messiah who is being mentioned in the Heavens with love by God Almighty and about whom He desired that his acceptance should spread across the globe, then this mention would have acted as a deadly poison for his [Khawaja Sahib’s] earnings which he used to receive from the non-Ahmadis.

It seems that Khawaja Sahib is in a state of shock for the reason that his efforts were not productive enough, regardless of having a great deal of money. Above all, he is grief stricken at the sight of what he considered to be a deadly poison for the people of the UK acting as an antidote for him.

Those conveying the message of Ahmadiyyat are successfully performing their tasks. The sum of the Woking mission’s lectures is very low in comparison to the lectures of our missionaries. Perhaps, this type of circumstances had an impact on his health. He has returned to India because he is unable to perform any work. We are sympathetic towards him over his failing health. However, we cannot stop ourselves from asking, will he still not learn a lesson from the kind of circumstances that have affected his health? And will he still retain his views that the message of Ahmadiyyat acts as a deadly poison for Europe, even after observing his failure and the success of those conveying the message of Ahmadiyyat?

Mufti Muhammad Sadiq Sahib, during his stay in London, repeatedly invited Khawaja Sahib for a discussion regarding the issues of mutual dispute. Mufti Sahib went so far as to give him a challenge of mubahalla (prayer duel) but he did not dare to come before him. Now it is unclear as to which battlefield he suggests for himself or, acting upon his old approach, whether he prefers to take part in politics or not. However, if he stimulates the issues of mutual dispute, he would realise that the age has passed when people are deceived by him.

(Translated by Al Hakam)

Original Urdu – Huzoor’s exclusive words about Mubarak Mosque and the institution of Khilafat

Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad
EXCLUSIVE

Alhakam

24th May 2019

Original Urdu – Huzoor’s exclusive words about Mubarak Mosque and the institution of Khilafat

Hazrat Khalifatul Masih V’s exclusive words about the Mubarak Mosque and the institution of Khilafat

Caliphate: Validity in Question

History of Islam Ahmadiyyat

Alhakam

24th May 2019

This is an extract from the final chapter of the book Islamic Caliphate: The Missing Chapters. This recently launched book is a comparative study of three models of caliphate: The Ahmadiyya, the Ottoman and the ISIS. This study reveals that while the Ottoman and the ISIS caliphates both claimed to be successors of the Holy Prophet^sa of Islam, both failed to deliver the claim when it came to practice. However, the Ahmadiyya caliphate – with its very humble resources – ran parallel to both (1908-1924 and then 2014-2017) and served the cause of the Islam in the best possible way by taking forward the mission of the Holy Prophet^sa of Islam.

In the opening chapters, we have seen that caliphate, as a term, is taken to mean the successorship of the Holy Prophet Muhammad^sa. We have also seen that after the first four Rashidun, hundreds of caliphs from a number of dynasties claimed the office. We have also seen that all of them – the Ummayads, the Abbasids and the Ottomans – practiced the rule of inheritance in passing down the title.

Before delving further into the question of who can be justly called the successor of the Prophet^sa, we stop here and observe that dynastical rule could and can in no way be a valid formula of successorship of the Prophet Muhammad^sa. The office is a spiritual one and hereditary succession can in no way guarantee the successor to be spiritually capable of taking on the position.

We see that the Ahmadiyya caliphate has practiced the method of Shura for succession of caliphs by ensuring that the person elected is fully capable in terms of religious understanding, spiritual leadership and administrative decision-making. This makes the Ahmadiyya caliphate the only one that followed the method of succession advised by the Prophet^sa himself and practiced by his first four Rashidun caliphs.

Then there is the issue of defining successful leadership; success being inherent in the concept of caliphate as discussed in light of Islamic canonical sources and their classical, medieval interpretations. History bears witness that the Ummayads, the Abbasids and the Ottomans spent most of their time, energy, resources and human resources in warfare and territorial occupation.

Their contribution towards secular learning cannot be undermined as it was during the rule of the Ummayad and the Abbasid dynasties that Muslim scholars prospered in the fields of philosophy, mathematics and sciences. But to align any success of any caliphate, the spiritual decline and constantly emerging sectarian cleavages at the hands of the clergy cannot be just put aside. Caliphs are meant to lead the nation just as the Holy Prophet^sa did – morally, spiritually and religiously. The caliphs from the three main dynasties failed to do so. What was witnessed instead was a spiritual decline in Muslims who subsequently became weary of Islamic Shariah and resorted to innovations in the name of tariqa (mystic practices).

We have seen in the preceding chapters that the Ahmadiyya caliphate, on the other hand, always called Muslims to the fundamental teachings of Islam. One has to pledge that they will practice all tenets and pillars of faith to be accepted in the allegiance of the caliph (Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad^aa, Conditions of Bai‘at and Responsibilities of an Ahmadi). The migration of the Ahmadiyya caliphate from their headquarters in Pakistan to London was for the reason that the anti-Ahmadiyya laws did not allow the caliph to practice as a Muslim – breaching the law meant imprisonment and hence the termination of his caliphal role (https://www.hrw.org/news/2007/05/06/pakistan-pandering-extremists-fuels-persecution-ahmadis). Most of the millions of pages of literature produced by the Ahmadiyya caliphate calls its adherents to have a living relationship with God, to pray to Him, to practice every command of God and to live their lives according the Quran (www.ahmadiyya-islam.org/khalifa).

What services a caliph renders for the cause of propagation of Islam is another decisive factor in terms of validity of the claim to the office of the caliphate of the Holy Prophet^sa of Islam. Thousands of mosques (built in every continent of the world), thousands of missions, hundreds of health and educational facilities for the underprivileged parts of the world, humanitarian projects like providing water to the underdeveloped areas (www.amjinternational.org/activities/humanitarian-projects), translations of the Quran in hundreds of languages spoken across the globe, printing and publishing literature to educate the world about Islam (www.amjinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/A4_Report_2014_03_Web.pdf), and the lectures and addresses delivered by the caliph himself to various parliaments and congregations around the world, are all witness to the fact that no other claimant to Islamic caliphate has ever been able to render services for Islam at such a scale (www.ahmadiyya-islam.org/khalifa).

The moral character of a person is another touchstone to determine how much they qualify for a position sacred enough to be the successorship of the Holy Prophet^sa. Books of history testify that many caliphs from the Ummayad, Abbasid and Ottoman dynasties were immersed in the habits of drinking and womanising. As “Amirul Momineen” – leader of the faithful – they would feel free to point to a “believing” girl and have her in their harems; women of the disbelieving subjects were taken to be more of an object and any of them could be summoned to satisfy the desires of the so-called caliphs. Some Ottoman caliphs are said to have had up to five hundred women as concubines in their harems – all waiting to be called for a lucky night. Sultan Abdel Hemid II (1842-1918) is said to be born to a Russian concubine of his father, Sultan Abdul Mejid, who, when informed of the child’s birth, did not even know which woman had given birth to his child – the heir to the throne as next “caliph”. Illegitimate conjugal relations, leading to illegitimate birth of future caliphs, is something that no Muslim would want to associate to the successor of the Holy Prophet^sa of Islam (Shahab ud-Din an-Nuwayri, Niahayat al-Arab fi Funoon al-Adab [commonly known as Nihaya], Vol. 4).

The characters of the Ahmadiyya caliphs, on the other hand, have always been seen with great respect by their followers and non-followers alike. This one factor should, again, be helpful in understanding the true nature of caliphate.

The list of decisive factors is long. (Contemporary Muslim writers like Haroon Mughal have discussed how the caliphates that followed the Rashidun were not representative of the Islamic definition of caliphate and that a true caliph is required to lead the ummah [www.qz.com/546973/only-a-real-islamic-caliphate-can-stand-up-to-the-sham-of-isil].)

I conclude this work with one last factor. At a time when the Prophet^sa of Islam and the religion of Islam come under attack by a vast population of the world; when Islam becomes a symbol of terror and the Prophet^sa of Islam is branded as the founder of religious fanaticism, who is it that comes forward as a defender of Islam? As seen in preceding chapters, it has always been the Ahmadiyya caliph. The British Parliament, the Parliament of New Zealand, the Canadian Parliament, Capitol Hill in the USA, the Irish Parliament, African heads of states, all invite Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad^aa, the Ahmadiyya caliph to speak to them about the Islamic viewpoint on various contemporary world issues.

We find no other example from the Muslim leadership – if there does exist one – to have approached all influential heads of states and faith leaders in as systematic a manner to invite them to understand the true teachings of Islam and to play their role in eradicating religious differences for a better, pluralistic world; the only Islamic leader to have done so has been Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad^aa, the Ahmadiyya caliph, who not only did so but also publicised the correspondence to set an example (World Crisis and the Pathway to Peace – Included are letters written by Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad^aa to the Pope, the Queen of England and the heads of states of Israel, Iran, USA, France, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Germany and Canada).

The intention is not to end this work by giving a judgmental answer. It is rather to invite members of the academia and those interested in the subject to come up with an analysis of their own. The motive is to open an avenue for academics to research and fill a gap in the scholarly study of Islamic caliphate.

Another intention of this work has been to draw attention to the astounding and bitter fact that the international media all along seemed more interested in the work of a caliphate that stood for hate, violence, terrorism and brutality. Why the work of the caliphate that stood for love, peace, harmony and interfaith collaboration never got the same level of media interest is a question we would want to, at the least, be raised if not answered.

If the circles of both the academia and the media reply by way of judging the status of Ahmadiyya as a “heretic” movement, or a sect that is declared “out of the pale of Islam” by the orthodox Muslims, I would advise that the theological debate be left aside as almost all Islamic sects have declared each other the same.

The Ahmadiyya caliphate was around and fully functional in the later years of the Ottoman caliphate; it was around and globally functional when the ISIS caliphate rose and fell. However, it never got to be studied in a systematic, academic and scholarly manner as it deserves.

No claims have been made in this work. It is not being presented as a complete work on the topic of Islamic caliphate in the modern day. This work is just a means to provide a steppingstone for those who wish to carry out research in this field.

(The book Islamic Caliphate: The Missing Chapters is available at www.amazon.co.uk and other regional Amazon outlets)

The New World Order and Hazrat Khalifatul Masih V a.a.

Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad

Alhakam

24th May 2019

Nauman Hadi

Missionary Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat

rsz_1huzurs_trip_2012_usa_-_capitoal_hills-_20120627_-_104749_-_3771.jpg

Though mankind had been bestowed a perfect social, economic and political order when the final verses of the Holy Quran were revealed to the Holy Prophet Muhammad^sa fourteen centuries ago, it was during the time of the Messiah of the Muhammadan dispensation that such an order was to take a universal scope.

The Holy Quran points towards this prevalence of Islamic teachings over all religions in the latter days:

“He it is Who has sent His Messenger with the guidance and the Religion of truth, that He may cause it to prevail over all religions, even if those who associate partners with God hate it. (Surah al-Saff, Ch.61: V.10)

Hence, it was in 1905 when the Promised Messiah^as wrote Al-Wasiyyat that the foundations of the final world order were established. Added to the spiritual and economic system outlined therein was also the mention of Khilafat that would act as the vicegerent of the Promised Messiah^as.

Accordingly, it was in 1934 that his second successor launched Tahrik-e-Jadid,which would “serve to strengthen the foundations of human society”, as explained by Hazrat Khalifatul Masih II^ra in Nizam-e-Nau (The New World Order); Tahrik-e-Jadid would be a forerunner to the scheme of Al-Wasiyyat paving the way for the world to benefit from it. It would be an “Elijah to the Messiah of the New Order”.

It is a question worth addressing as to how a financial system established within a religious community can claim to be the architect of the future peace infrastructure of not just its own people, but the whole of mankind?

To arrive at an answer, all one needs to do is ponder over the social-economic order outlined in the Holy Quran for it is the propagation and establishment of these teachings that is the objective of Wasiyyat.

It suffices to mention here that the Holy Quran has explained dealings in international relations and the manner of economic enterprise much to the need of man. Hence, Wasiyyat means the embedding of a world order, designed to alleviate mankind from its troubles of juggling between several social orders. It would be fitting to place here the comments of Hazrat Khalifatul Masih II^ra when he explained how Wasiyyat would be a system for the whole world:

“A careful study of Al-Wasiyyat compels one to exclaim, ‘Praise be to you, O Mirza! You have made firm the foundations of Islam. You have made firm the foundations of humanity.’” (The New World Order, p. 136)

This blessed successorship continues till this day. It is Hazrat Khalifatul Masih V^aa who tirelessly advocates for mankind to adopt this divine wisdom today. On a spiritual front, he has been directing and counselling his Jamaat to adopt the virtues that the founder of the Ahmadiyya Jamaat wanted his community to adhere to. No Friday goes by without a wisdom-filled sermon from Hazrat Amirul Momineen^aa in which he draws the attention of his followers towards adopting measures of piety, of bringing a spiritual reformation in oneself on a personal level as well as on a community level so that, in the wake and backdrop of ever increasing inclination towards the baser self, a life of righteousness becomes the customary practice of mankind. After all, the primary aim of partaking in the financial system outlined in Al-Wasiyyat is just that.

Moreover, just as all the previous Khulafa before him, the current head of the Ahmadiyya Community has also been addressing another front – the socio-economic political one, though the common denominator always remains one in which audiences are advised to turn towards their Creator. Hazrat Khalifatul Masih V^aa has waged what can only be described as a determined and ardent holy war against injustice – it is simply the 21^st century’s Jihad practiced in its truest form.

Since being elected as Khalifatul Masih, he has travelled the globe delivering lectures and addresses to audiences of a wide range, arguing the case for justice to prevail for the sake of humanity. He has, before the highest echelons of power in almost all continents of the world, directed to adopt the Quranic principles of establishing peace while advocating the case for belief in God as being intrinsically attached to the pursuit of happiness.

Hazrat Khalifatul Masih V^aa has demonstrated the practical application of the system of Wasiyyat within the Ahmadiyya Jamaat itself. The Jamaat is established all over the world and humanitarian efforts are a central tenet of its belief.

Working for the betterment of mankind and giving humanity a social and economic system upon which they can rely for safeguarding their rights while establishing a relationship with God is the hallmark of the system of Wasiyyat. It is for this reason that when Hazrat Khalifatul Masih II^ra began to outline the importance of Wasiyyat in Nizam-e-Nau in 1943, he did so in light of prevalent political systems such a capitalism and communism.

Hazrat Khalifatul Masih V^aa, in his concluding address of Jalsa Salana UK 2004, stated:

‘If you wish to ascertain the importance of this institute [Wasiyyat] from a worldly perspective, then 60 years ago, Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra delivered a speech at Jalsa which is a book published by the name of Nizam-e-Nau [The New World Order]. If one reads this book, they realise that all the worldly orders of today which are being championed are lost causes and if there is a revolutionary system which can be a means of tranquillity for the world, for the soul and can, in reality, claim to serve mankind, then it is the system of Wasiyyat as presented by the Promised Messiah^as.”

It was at this occasion that Huzoor^aa directed his community to produce a further 15,000 musis (those part of the system of Wasiyyat who dedicate between a tenth and a third of their wealth and income for this cause) within a year. Furthermore, by 2008, which would be the centenary year of Khilafat, Huzoor^aa called for 50% of all Chanda payers in every country where the community was established to join this heavenly scheme.

The Messiah^as of the latter days was to bring together the whole of mankind under his banner. Hence, it is befitting that the order he established in the final years of his life be for the whole world, not just as a spiritual sustenance, but also as a robust edifice of socio-economic order.

Original Urdu – Hazrat Khalifatul Masih V – A loving father, a unique role model

Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad
EXCLUSIVE

Alhakam

24th May 2019

Original Urdu – Hazrat Khalifatul Masih V – A loving father, a unique role model

Prophecies of the Promised Messiah a.s.: “We shall leave no trace of anything that might cause your humiliation”

Prophecies
Revelations

Alhakam

24th May 2019

Prophecies of the Promised Messiah a.s.: “We shall leave no trace of anything that might cause your humiliation”

لَا نُبْقِیْ لَکَ مِنَ الْمُخْزِیَاتِ ذِکْرًا

(We shall leave no trace of anything that might cause your humiliation. [Al Hakam, 30 November 1905, p.1 and Badr, 8 December 1905, p.2])

The Promised Messiah^as stated regarding the above-mentioned revelation:

“It should be remembered here that when God Almighty says that He will not leave behind any such objections against me as might be the cause of my disgrace and defamation, the statement has two meanings: First, that He shall refute and wipe out all objections which are published with the intention of defaming me, and second, those who raise such objections and do not refrain from mischief, nor desist from vilification, We shall rid the world of their presence and wipe them off the face of the earth, with the result that with their destruction, their objections would also be wiped out.” (The Will, pp. 2-3).

Referring to the above cited extract, opponents of the Jamaat and Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, the Promised Messiah^as claim that nothing much has changed because allegations are still raised against the Promised Messiah^as and they enquire that those prophecies which have not been fulfilled, will they come to pass anywhere in the near future? Moreover, they assert that it was compulsory for the prophecy mentioned in the aforementioned citation to be fulfilled in the very life of the Promised Messiah^as, so that afterwards, nobody could have said that it was about the future.

Opponents proclaim that allegations are being levelled against the Jamaat and the founder of the Ahmadiyya Jamaat in the same manner as they were raised in earlier times and even today, this attitude remains unchanged.

Allah the Almighty states in the Holy Quran:

وَقُلْ جَاءَ الْحَقُّ وَزَهَقَ الْبَاطِلُ ۚ إِنَّ الْبَاطِلَ كَانَ زَهُوقًا

“And say, ‘Truth has come and falsehood has vanished away. Falsehood does indeed vanish away fast’” (Surah Bani Israil, Ch.17: V.82). What does vanishing of falsehood signify here? Does it mean that idolatry, Judaism and Christianity etc. vanished? Certainly not. Then how did falsehood vanish? Surely, it means that falsehood saw its demise by conclusive arguments.

In the same way, the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be on him, said:

اَنَا المَاحِی الَّذِیْ یَمْحُو اللّٰہُ بِی الْکُفْرَ

“I am al-Mahi, the one through whom Allah the Almighty shall wipe out the disbelief.” (Sahih al-Bukhari, Kitab al-Tafsir)

Despite the fact that 1400 years have passed since the demise of the Holy Prophet^sa, disbelief remains and the number of disbelievers exceeds those who believe in Islam. Therefore, what was meant by the Hadith is that disbelief would be defeated and wiped out through conclusive arguments. As it is stated in the Holy Quran:

لِيَهْلِكَ مَنْ هَلَكَ عَن بَيِّنَةٍ وَيَحْيَى مَنْ حَيَّ عَن بَيِّنَةٍ

“So that he who had already perished through a clear Sign might perish, and he who had already come to life through a clear Sign might live” (Surah al-Anfal, Ch.8: V.43). This verse indicates two ways of dying or being destroyed: 1. Death and destruction through a conclusive argument 2. Natural death.

In light of the verse mentioned above, if we examine the words of the Promised Messiah^as that, “He [Allah the Almighty] shall refute and wipe out all objections which are published with the intention of defaming me”, it becomes evident that those opponents who publish allegations with the intention of causing humiliation will never succeed in their objectives, and their objections will prove to be false.

The above explanation is supported by various verses of the Holy Quran. Thus, Allah the Almighty states in the Holy Quran regarding Jesus^as:

وَمُطَهِّرُكَ مِنَ الَّذِيْنَ كَفَرُوْا

“And [He] will clear thee from the charges of those who disbelieve” (Surah Aal-e-Imran, Ch.3: V.56). Did Jews refrain from levelling allegations against Jesus^as? Is it not the case that Jews still do not hold back from raising objections against Jesus^as? Did their uncertainties come to an end?

The actual meaning of the verse implies that Allah the Almighty would save Jesus^as from the harmful impacts of their evil intentions and haughty advances and falsify their objections.

Again, Allah the Almighty states in the Holy Quran regarding Jesus^as:

وَجِيهًا فِي الدُّنْيَا وَالْآخِرَةِ وَمِنَ الْمُقَرَّبِينَ

“Honoured in this world and in the next, and of those who are granted nearness to God” (Surah Aal-e-Imran, Ch.3: V.46). Although allegations were levelled against Jesus^as and even today objections are raised against him, he was honoured by Allah the Almighty in both worlds. Then, it is stated regarding Hazrat Maryam^ra:

يَا مَرْيَمُ إِنَّ اللّٰهَ اصْطَفَاكِ وَطَهَّرَكِ وَاصْطَفَاكِ عَلَىٰ نِسَاءِ الْعَالَمِينَ

“O Mary, Allah has chosen thee and purified thee and chosen thee above the women of all peoples” (Surah Aal-e-Imran, Ch.3: V.46). Even though Jews raise allegations against her, Allah the Almighty dignified her status.

Allah the Almighty states while addressing the members of the Holy Prophet’s^sa house:

إِنَّمَا يُرِيدُ اللّٰهُ لِيُذْهِبَ عَنكُمُ الرِّجْسَ أَهْلَ الْبَيْتِ وَيُطَهِّرَكُمْ تَطْهِيرًا

“Surely, Allah desires to remove from you all uncleanliness, O Members of the Household, and purify you completely” (Surah al-Ahzab, Ch.33: V.34).

Even in the presence of this verse, Shiites continue to level allegations against the Azwaj-e-Mutahirat (dignified wives of the Holy Prophet^sa). Likewise, Khawarij and several other individuals continue to raise objections against Hazrat Ali^ra, Hazrat Imam Hassan^ra and Hazrat Hussain^ra. In view of our opponents, do these poisonous allegations and reproaches by Shiites and Khawarij etc., against those purified souls nullify the aforementioned verse of the Holy Quran?

One should take into account this fact that the only matter of humiliation for someone divinely commissioned or a messenger is that he does not succeed in his aims and objectives. Did the Promised Messiah^as failed to achieve his goal? Surely not! By the blessings and benevolence of Allah the Almighty, the Ahmadiyya Jamaat is spreading by leaps and bounds, and it has been established in more than 200 countries across the globe.

The Promised Messiah^asstates:

“It becomes apparent from:

لَا نُبْقِیْ لَکَ مِنَ الْمُخْزِیَاتِ ذِکْرًا

that [Allah the Almighty] shall not leave behind any such objections which are a cause of disgrace. This revelation holds a glad tiding which signifies that We [Allah the Almighty] shall render the ultimate cause of your appearance to flourish. As far as someone divinely appointed or a messenger is concerned, a matter of disgrace for them can only be that he fails to achieve his goals and objectives. Hence, Allah the Almighty gave a glad tiding that He would fulfill the purpose and objective of my appearance. However, it is the way of Allah for all those who are divinely appointed in the world that it is not considered compulsory for their mission to be successful within their age, but in fact, there are countless objectives that are achieved through the hands of their followers, and that accomplishment is deemed to be at their hands. Even in the age of the Holy Prophet’s^sa prophethood, Islam had only spread in Mecca, Medina and certain neighbouring towns. However, in the era of Hazrat Abu Bakr^ra and Hazrat Umar^ra, Islam spread far and wide and many objectives were accomplished at the hands of the Companions^ra that was in fact the success of the Holy Prophet^sa and an achievement at his blessed hands. Consequently, through the efforts of Banu Umayya and other monarchs, these successes progressed…

“Thus, it is the way of Allah regarding the one who is divinely appointed that it is not essential for every objective to be achieved in his era. Who can claim to be greater than the Holy Prophet^sa? The Holy Prophet^sa said that the keys of Caesar and Khosrow were handed over to him. However, these keys were handed over to Hazrat Umar^ra after the demise of the Holy Prophet^sa. Suggesting that these keys were not handed over to the Holy Prophet^sa is erroneous because it has been generally acknowledged that the victories and accomplishments of the followers are in fact the victories of the one who is followed.” (Malfuzat, Vol. IV, pp. 574-575)

As far as those enemies and opponents are concerned, particularly those who do not refrain from their mischievous endeavours, the above-mentioned prophecy of the Promised Messiah^as regarding their death and destruction was fulfilled in the very life of the Promised Messiah^asand it is still being fulfilled after his demise. During the lifetime of the Promised Messiah^as, prominent examples from those who were destroyed when they stood before prophets of God invoking death and destruction include Ghulam Dastagir Kasuri, Ismail Ali Garhi, Chiragh Din Jamuni and Fakir Mirza etc. Allah the Almighty repeatedly fulfilled the following promise:

اِنِّيْ مُهِيْنٌ مَّنْ اَرَادَ اِهَانَتَكَ

“I shall humiliate him who seeks to humiliate you”, and He has done so, even after the demise of the Promised Messiah^as, and shall continue to do so, Insha-Allah. However, to observe these signs, one must possess a fair eye which is free from prejudice, stubbornness, recalcitrance and enmity. Those who raise allegations in order to cause disorder and humiliation, Allah the Almighty never lets them succeed in their objectives.

Now we come towards the second set of allegations. Opponents ask of those prophecies which were not fulfilled, whether they will ever come to pass in the future? Then they assert that the prophecies mentioned earlier should have been fulfilled in the life of the Promised Messiah^as so that nobody could have easily said that such and such prophecy was about the future.

The extract and revelation of the Promised Messiah^as mentioned at the beginning is quite clear. Is any condition attached with the prophecy? Did he claim that it was bound to be fulfilled in his own life? Of course not. As a matter of fact, Allah the Almighty, through this revelation, gave the Promised Messiah^as a glad tiding that he would successfully achieve his mission’s objectives while the adversaries would try to humiliate him, but they would fail to achieve their evil plots. Allah the Almighty promised to Jesus^as:

وَمُطَهِّرُكَ مِنَ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا

“And [He] will clear thee from the charges of those who disbelieve” (Surah Aal-e-Imran, Ch.3: V.56). Did this prophecy come to pass during Jesus’ supposed 33 years of life which are even acknowledged by non-Ahmadi Muslims? Even today, allegations are being levelled against Jesus^as.

Is it mandatory that a prophecy must be fulfilled in the very life of the prophet? In the Holy Quran, we observe that Allah the Almighty states, addressing the Holy Prophet^sa:

وَإِمَّا نُرِيَنَّكَ بَعْضَ الَّذِي نَعِدُهُمْ أَوْ نَتَوَفَّيَنَّكَ فَإِلَيْنَا مَرْجِعُهُمْ ثُمَّ اللّٰهُ شَهِيدٌ عَلَىٰ مَا يَفْعَلُونَ

“And if We make you witness a part of what We promised them or cause you to die before that, to Us shall be their return; then will Allah stand witness against what they do” (Surah Yunus, Ch.10: V.47).

This verse highlights the fact that not every prophecy of a prophet is fulfilled during his lifetime. There are countless prophecies in the Holy Quran which were fulfilled after the demise of the Holy Prophet^sa. For instance, the prophecy of assembling dispersed Jews in Palestine (Surah Bani Israil, Ch.17: V.105), the prophecy of rendering camels useless (Surah al-Takwir, Ch.81: V.5), the prophecy of publication of books in abundance (Surah al-Takwir, Ch.81: V.11), the prophecy of progressive zoo cultures (Surah al-Takwir, Ch.81: V.6), the prophecy of the world becoming a global village (Surah al-Takwir, Ch.81: V.8) and the prophecy of new transportation inventions (Surah al-Nahl, Ch.16: V.9) etc., all the above prophecies were fulfilled after the demise of the Holy Prophet^sa.

Likewise, Allah the Almighty gave glad tidings to the Holy Prophet^sa during the “Battle of the Trench” that the castles of Caesar and Khosrow would be conquered and foretold the victory over the Midian and Yemen. Was this prophecy fulfilled in the life of the Holy Prophet^sa? No. These prophecies were fulfilled in the time of the Khulafa that came after the Holy Prophet^sa. That is why the Promised Messiah^as stated:

(Research conducted by a panel of scholars at the Research Cell, Rabwah. Translated by Al Hakam)

The person who takes care of an orphan

Hadith

Alhakam

24th May 2019

The Holy Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:

“I will be like this in Jannah with the person who takes care of an orphan.”

The Holy Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, raised his forefinger and middle finger by way of illustration.

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Kitab al-Adab)

Men of Excellence

Friday Sermon

Alhakam

24th May 2019

Friday Sermon

26 April 2019

Delivered from Baitul Futuh Mosque

Men of Excellence

After reciting the Tashahud, Ta‘awuz, and Surah al-Fatihah, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih V^aa stated:

In the previous sermon, while narrating the account of the life of Hazrat Usman bin Mazoon^ra, I concluded by saying that he was the first person to be buried in Jannatul Baqi. (Usdul Ghaba, Vol. 3, p. 591, Usman bin Mazoon^ra, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 2003)

The following details have been found regarding the inception and establishment of Jannatul Baqi:

At the time of the arrival of the Holy Prophet^sa in Medina, there were many graveyards. The Jews used to have their own graveyards, while the various Arab tribes had their respective graveyards. The holy city of Medina was divided into various neighbourhoods at the time, every tribe used to bury their dead in an open field in their own area. Quba had its own graveyard, which was more prominent. However, there were some other smaller graveyards as well. The tribe of Banu Zafar had their own graveyard. Banu Salma had their own separate graveyard. Among other graveyards, there was the graveyard of Banu Saaidah, where Sooq an-Nabi was established later on. The location in which Masjid-e-Nabawi [the Prophet’s^sa Mosque] was built also had some date trees, where there were a few graves of the idolaters. Baqi-ul-Gharqad was the oldest and most famous amongst all these graveyards. The Holy Prophet^sa chose it as the graveyard of the Muslims, and since then it holds a unique and prominent position, which remains till today and shall always do so.

Hazrat Ubaidullah^ra bin Abi Rafey narrates that the Holy Prophet^sa was looking for a place, which would be designated for the graves of only the Muslims. The Holy Prophet^sa inspected various places and visited them for this purpose. However, this honour was decreed for Baqi-ul-Gharqad. The Holy Prophet^sa declared, “I have been commanded to choose this place i.e. Baqi-ul-Gharqad.” Baqi-ul-Gharqad used to be called Baqi-ul-Kahbkhabah in those days.

It had countless gharqad trees and wild bushes growing within. It had an abundance of mosquitoes and other insects and when the mosquitoes rose, due to the muddy land or the jungle, it seemed as if clouds of smoke had covered it from above. The first person to be buried there, as has already been mentioned, was Hazrat Usman^ra bin Mazoon. Whilst placing a stone at the head of the grave, the Holy Prophet^sa said, “He has preceded us”. Thereafter, whenever someone passed away, people would ask the Holy Prophet^sa where they should be buried. The Holy Prophet^sa would answer, “Near Usman^ra bin Mazoon, who has preceded us”.

In Arabic, baqi is a place in which there is an abundance of trees. This place was known in Medina as Baqi-ul-Gharqad as there was an abundance of gharqad trees. Apart from that it was rich in wild-growing bushes. It was also called Jannatul Baqi. In Arabic, the word jannat carries the meaning of a garden or paradise. For this reason, it was better known among the non-Arabs as Jannatul Baqi.

Abdul Hameed Qadri Sahib has given the aforementioned explanation. He then states that one must not forget that the Arabs would call their burial grounds Jannat. Another name given was Maqabirul Baqi, and this title of was more commonly used by the Bedouins. (Justeju-e-Medina az Abdul Hameed Qadri Sahib, p. 598, Oriental Publications, Lahore, Pakistan, 2007)

Hazrat Salim^ra bin Abdullah narrates from his father that whenever someone passed away, the Holy Prophet^sa would say, “Send him forth to those who have passed on from us. What an excellent pioneer Usman^ra bin Mazoon was from among my Ummah!” (Al-Mu‘jam Al-Kabir Li At-Tabarani, Vol. 12, p. 228, Hadith 13160, Dar Ihyaa Al-Turath Al-Arabi, Beirut, 2002)

Hazrat Ibn Abbas^ra relates that when Hazrat Usman^ra bin Mazoon passed away, the Holy Prophet^sa approached his body, lowered his head three times, then raised his head and loudly proclaimed, “O Abu Saib! May Allah forgive you! You passed away from this world without being affected by its impurities.”

Hazrat Aisha^ra narrates that when the Holy Prophet^as kissed the body of Hazrat Usman^ra bin Mazoon, he was extremely emotional and tears were flowing from his eyes. The Holy Prophet^sa was in a very emotional state at the time and both of his eyes were shedding tears. Hazrat Aisha^ra relates that the Holy Prophet^sa kissed Hazrat Usman^ra bin Mazoon after he passed away. She states that she saw the tears of the Holy Prophet^sa falling on the cheeks of Hazrat Usman^ra bin Mazoon. The Holy Prophet^sa shed so many tears that they were falling on the cheeks of Hazrat Usman^ra. When the son of the Holy Prophet^sa, Ibrahim, passed away, the Holy Prophet^sa said:

اَلْحِقْ بِالسَّلَفِ الصَّالِحِ عُثْمَانَ ابْنَ مَظْعُوْن

That is, “May you be in the company of our righteous and dear friend, Usman bin Mazoon.” (Usdul Ghaba, Vol. 3, p. 591, Usman^ra bin Mazoon, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 2003) (Al-Tabaqaat-ul-Kubra li ibn Saad, Vol. 3, p. 303, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1990)

Hazrat Usman^ra bin Affan narrates that when the Holy Prophet^sa led the funeral prayer of Hazrat Usman^ra bin Mazoon, he recited the takbeerat four times [i.e. reciting Allahu Akbar]. (Sunan Ibn Majah, Kitabul Jana’iz Arba’an, Hadith 1502)

Some people are of the opinion that more than three takbeerat cannot be said, however it is possible to recite it aloud four times as well. Muttalib narrates, “When Hazrat Usman^ra bin Mazoon passed away, his funeral was taken outside for burial. Upon this, the Holy Prophet^sa ordered an individual to bring a rock. He was unable to lift the rock as it was rather heavy. Hence, the Holy Prophet^sa went himself and stood beside the stone and rolled up both of his sleeves.” Muttalib, who is narrating this incident of the Holy Prophet^sa, states, “It seems as if I am still able to see the white complexion on the skin of both the Holy Prophet’s arms, i.e. I am still able to recall the incident.” He further states, “The arms of the Holy Prophet^sa were beautiful and I am still able to see the white complexion of his skin after the Holy Prophet^sa had rolled up his sleeves. Following this, the Holy Prophet^sa lifted that rock and placed it beside the head of the grave of Hazrat Usman^ra bin Mazoon and then said, ‘I will recognise the grave of my brother through this rock and whoever passes away from among my family, I will bury them near it.’” This is a narration from Sunan Abi Dawood. (Sunan Abi Daud, Kitabul Jana’iz, Bab fi Jam’il Mautaa fi Qabr Wal Qabr Yu’lam, Hadith 3206)

I will now mention some aspects in relation to Hazrat Usman^ra bin Mazoon’s demise as related by Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad^ra. Mentioning incidents of the second year after Hijra, Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad^ra states:

“To the end of this year, the Holy Prophet^sa proposed the creation of a graveyard in Medina for his Companions which was referred to as Jannatul-Baqi’. After its creation, the Companions were generally buried in this very graveyard. The first Companion to be buried in this graveyard was Usman^ra bin Mazoon. Usman^ra was from among the most pioneer Muslims and was extremely righteous and pious. He was a man of ascetic disposition. On one occasion, after becoming a Muslim, he submitted to the Holy Prophet^sa, ‘If the Holy Prophet^sa kindly grants permission, it is my desire to abandon the world completely and separate myself from my wife and children, so that I may devote my life wholly to the worship of Allah.’ However, the Holy Prophet^sa did not permit him to do so.”

I have already mentioned the details of this in my previous sermon. Nevertheless, Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad^ra further writes, “… the Holy Prophet^sa was deeply saddened upon the demise of Usman^ra bin Mazoon. There is a narration that after his demise, the Holy Prophet^sa kissed his forehead and at the time there were tears in the eyes of the Holy Prophet^sa. After his burial, the Holy Prophet^sa fixed a stone at the head of his grave to serve as a marking, and then, every so often, he would visit the Jannatul Baqi and pray for him. Usman^ra was the first Muhajir [migrant from Mecca to Medina] to pass away in Medina.” (Sirat Khatamun-Nabiyyin, Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad^ra, pp. 462-463)

The wife of Hazrat Usman^ra bin Mazoon wrote the following elegy at his demise:

یَا عَیْنُ جُوْدِیْ بِدَمْعٍ غَیْرِ مَمْنُوْنِ

عَلٰی رَزِیّۃِ عُثْمَانَ بْنِ مَظْعُوْنِ

عَلَی امْرِیءٍ بَاتَ فِیْ رِضْوَانِ خَالِقِہٖ

طُوْبٰی لَہُ مِنْ فَقِیْدِ الشّخْصِ مَدْفُوْنِ

طَابَ الْبَقِیْعُ لَہٗ سُکْنٰی وَ غَرْقَدُہٗ

وَأَشْرَقَتْ اَرْضُہٗ مِنْ بَعْدِ نَعْیَیْنِ

وَأَوْرَثَ الْقَلْبَ حُزْنًا لَا انْقِطَاعَ لَہٗ

حَتّی الْمَمَات فَمَا تَرْقٰی لَہٗ شُوْنِیْ

(Usdul Ghaba, Vol. 3, p. 591, Usman^ra bin Mazoon, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 2003)

The translation is as follows:

“O eye! Shed endless tears on the demise of Usman, who spent his nights in accordance with the pleasure of his Creator. Glad tidings be given to this unique and exceptional individual who has now been buried. Baqi and Ghardaq has been purified by this inhabitant and its surroundings have become illuminated following his burial. Your demise saddened the heart to such an extent that it will not heal until I die and this state of mine will not change.” (Usdul Ghaba, Vol. 3, p. 495, Dar-ul-Fikr, Beirut)

These were the sentiments expressed by his wife.

Hazrat Umme Alaa^ra, who was amongst the ladies from the Ansar and had pledged allegiance to the Holy Prophet^sa, narrated, “When the Ansar were drawing lots from among the names of the Muhajireen to select their places of residence, we received the name of Hazrat Usman^ra bin Mazoon.”

Meaning that they were to arrange accommodation for him in their house. She further narrates, “Hazrat Usman^ra bin Mazoon stayed with us. We also looked after him when he was unwell and when he passed away, we buried him in his clothes. The Holy Prophet^sa came to meet us, and I said, ‘May Allah have mercy on you O Abu Saib.’”

Abu Saib was the title of Hazrat Usman^ra bin Mazoon. She repeated these words in the presence of the Holy Prophet^sa and further stated, “I bear witness that Allah has certainly honoured you.” She also repeated this in front of the Holy Prophet^sa. When the Holy Prophet^sa heard this, he enquired, “How have you come to know that God Almighty has most certainly exalted him?” She responded, “O Messenger^sa of Allah! May by parents be sacrificed for your sake, I am not certain about this, but this is how I felt. Hence, I was expressing my feelings.” Upon this, the Holy Prophet^sa responded, “As far as Usman^ra is concerned, he has passed away and I hope for his prosperity (and that may God Almighty honour him). However, by God, even I do not know what will happen to Usman.”

Even though he had offered prayers for Hazrat Usman^ra, he said, “I am a prophet of God but even I am not certain of what will happen to Hazrat Usman^ra.” When Hazrat Umme Alaa^ra heard this, she stated, “By God! I will not consider anyone pious in this manner again.”

Meaning that she would not say again that God had certainly pardoned someone. She further stated, “This made me sorrowful and I fell asleep in this state.” She was very close to Hazrat Usman, and the emotions were strong. In any case, she states, “At night I saw in a dream that there is a flowing fountain which belongs to Hazrat Usman^ra.” She states: “After seeing this dream, I visited the Holy Prophet^sa and narrated my dream to him. The Holy Prophet^sa responded, ‘Such were his actions.’” (Sahih Bukhari, Kitab Al-Shahadaat, Bab Al-Qur’ah fil Mushkilaat, Hadith 2687)

Meaning that God Almighty showed the flowing spring to inform her that he was in paradise and the fountain was a manifestation of his actions.

Hence, this was the Holy Prophet’s^sa way to train others that one should not claim with such confidence and belief that God Almighty has forgiven someone. However, when Hazrat Usman^ra bin Mazoon’s pious deeds were manifested to Hazrat Umme Alaa^ra in a dream, the Holy Prophet^sa testified to this. The Holy Prophet^sa was already aware that God Almighty was pleased with his Companions^ra who had participated in the Battle of Badr. Also, the prayers of the Holy Prophet^sa for Hazrat Usman^ra bin Mazoon in which he expressed his emotions elaborate on the fact that he was sure that God Almighty would accept these prayers and Hazrat Usman bin Mazoon^ra will be enumerated amongst those who attain nearness to Allah Almighty, but regardless of this, he advised her not to make such claims.

This account has also been mentioned in Musnad Ahmad bin Hanbal in the following manner:

Kharijah bin Zaid mentions a narration from his mother that when Hazrat Usman^ra bin Mazoon passed away, Kharijah bin Zaid’s mother said, “Abu Saib, you are virtuous man. Your good days were very exceptional indeed.” The Holy Prophet^sa heard this and enquired, “Who said this?” She responded: “It is I who said this”. The Messenger^sa of Allah stated, “What led you to this conclusion?” She replied, “O Messenger^sa of Allah! It was Hazrat Usman bin Mazoon’s^ra deeds and acts of worship which led me to believe that God Almighty has certainly treated him with forgiveness and forbearance.” The Holy Prophet^sa stated, “We did not see anything but goodness in Usman bin Mazoon.” However, he also stated, “Bear in mind that I am a Prophet of God, but by God, even then I am not certain as to what will happen to me in the hereafter.” (Musnad Ahmad bin Hanbal, Vol. 8, p. 872, Hadith Ummul Ulaa al-Ansar, Hadith 28006, Alamul Kutub, Beirut, 1998)

No one was more beloved to God Almighty than the Holy Prophet^sa, but his level of fear of God and the realisation of His grandeur and greatness was such that the Holy Prophet^sa said even he was unaware of what his condition would be in the hereafter. Therefore, if this was the state of the Holy Prophet^sa, then how much should we fear? In fact, we should be greatly concerned about performing good deeds and directing our attention towards the worship of God, and even then we should never take pride in this, instead we should progress in humility and we should always beg God Almighty for His grace and mercy, so that He may grant us His forgiveness.

In another narration of Musnad Ahmad bin Hanbal, Umme Ala states, “Usman bin Mazoon became ill whilst residing with us. We looked after him till he passed away and we buried him in the clothes he was wearing. The Messenger^sa of Allah visited us. I stated, ‘O Abu Saib, may Allah have mercy on you. I bear witness that Allah has greatly honoured you.’ The Messenger^sa of Allah stated, ‘How do you know that God Almighty has honoured him?’ I said, ‘I am not sure, O Messenger^sa of Allah! May my parents be sacrificed for your sake!’ The Holy Prophet^sa then said, ‘As far as Usman^ra bin Mazoon is concerned, he has passed away and I hope for his prosperity that Allah Almighty will grant him good. However, by God, even though I am the Messenger of Allah but even I do not know about my own state in the hereafter.’” Umme Ala further states, “I replied, ‘I will not proclaim anyone to be holy after this.’” After this, she continued to describe as was narrated in the aforementioned account regarding her state of anxiousness and also her dream which she related to the Holy Prophet^sa. (Musnad Ahmad bin Hanbal, Vol. 8, pp. 871-872, Hadith Ummul Ulaa al-Ansar, Hadith 28004, Alamul Kutub, Beirut, 1998)

This account has been recorded in two different books of Ahadith.

God Almighty has indeed granted the companions a lofty station. Further they were recipients of the prayers of the Holy Prophet^sa. May God continue to elevate their status and may we emulate their example as well.

The next companion whom I shall mention is Hazrat Wahab bin Saad bin Abi Sarah^ra. His father’s name was Saad and he belonged to the Banu Aamir bin Lowi tribe. Hazrat Wahab^ra was the brother of Abdullah bin Wahab bin Sarah. His mother’s name was Mahana bint Jabir and she belonged to the Ashari tribe. (Al-Tabaqaat-ul-Kubra li ibn Saad, Vol. 3, p. 217, Wahab bin Saad, Dar Ihyaa al-Turath al-Arabi, Beirut, 1996)

Abdullah bin Saad bin Abi Sarah, the brother of Hazrat Wahab^ra, was the same katib-e-wahi [scribe who would write down revelations] who became an apostate. Regarding Hazrat Wahab’s brother, Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra has written the following details:

“From among the scribes of the Holy Prophet^sa, one of them was named Abdullah bin Abi Sarah.”

In Siratul Halabiyyah it is written that he was the foster brother of Hazrat Usman^ra bin Affan. Nonetheless, Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra further says:

“When the Holy Prophet^sa would receive a revelation, he would call for him and ask for it to be written down. One day, the Holy Prophet^sa was dictating verses 14 and 15 of Surah Al-Muminun. When he reached the verse:

ثُمّ اَنْشَاْنٰہُ خَلْقًا اٰخَرَ

Abdullah, (the scribe being referred to) spontaneously said:

فَتَبَارَکَ اللّٰہُ اَحْسَنُ الْخَالِقِیْنَ

This is mentioned in Surah al-Mominoon, verse 15. The Holy Prophet^sa said that this is exactly the verse that was revealed and asked him to write it down. This wretched individual did not realise that in fact the verse he recited was in fact a natural sequence in relation to the previous verses.

From this, he inferred that just as the Holy Prophet^sa had considered his uttered words as divine revelation, the Holy Prophet^sa himself was [God forbid] fabricating the entire text of the Quran. He thus became an apostate and left for Mecca. Abdullah bin Abi bin Sarh was among those individuals for whom the Holy Prophet^sa had stipulated the capital punishment. Abdullah bin Abi bin Sarah was one of them. Hazrat Usman^ra however, gave him refuge. Details of the nature of this refuge are as follows:

At the occasion of the conquest of Mecca, when Abdullah bin Abi Sarah came to know that his execution had been ordered, he went to his foster brother, Usman bin Affan^ra seeking refuge and said, ‘O brother, grant me refuge from the Holy Prophet^sa, before he has me killed.’” This is recorded in Siratul Halabiyyah.

Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra further writes,

“He remained in hiding at Hazrat Usman’s^ra residence for three or four days. One day as the Holy Prophet^sa was taking the oath of allegiance from some Meccans, Hazrat Usman^ra brought Abdullah bin Abi Sarah in the presence of the Holy Prophet^sa and requested him to accept his pledge of allegiance. For a moment, the Holy Prophet^sa remained quiet, after which he accepted his pledge of allegiance. Like this, Abdullah bin Abi Sarah once again accepted Islam.” (Tafsir-e-Kabir, Vol. 6, p. 139) (Al-Sirat al-Halabiyyah, Vol. 3, p. 130, Bab Dhikr Maghaziyah/Fath Makkah, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 2002)

There were many other reasons why the initial instruction to execute him had been given. He had fanned the flames of discord and disorder. The commandment of execution was not given because he had become an apostate but in fact there were many other crimes of his.

Asim bin Umar relates that when Hazrat Wahab^ra migrated from Mecca to Medina, he stayed at the house of Hazrat Kulthum bin Hidam^ra. The Holy Prophet^sa had established a bond of brotherhood between Hazrat Wahab^ra and Hazrat Suwaid bin Amr^ra. These two, i.e. the recently established brothers, were both martyred in the Battle of Mautah. Hazrat Wahab^ra participated in the battles of Badr, Uhud, Khandaq, Treaty of Hudaibiyyah and Khaibar and he passed away in Jumada al-Ula 8 AH in the Battle of Mautah. He was 40 years of age on the day of his demise. (Al-Tabaqaat-ul-Kubra li ibn Saad, Vol. 3, p. 217, Wahab bin Saad, Dar Ihyaa al-Turath al-Arabi, Beirut, 1996)

What was the Battle of Mautah and what were the causes behind it? This has been mentioned in Tabaqaat al-Kubra.

This battle took place in Jumada al-Ula in 8AH. The Holy Prophet^sa sent Harith bin Umair with a letter as a messenger to the King of Busrah. When they reached the place called Mautah, they met with Shurahbeel bin Amr Ghassaani, who was one of the governors of Syria appointed by the roman emperor, this is according to Sirat-ul-Halabiyyah. He stopped them and martyred them. Other than Harith bin Umair, no other messenger of the Holy Prophet^sa was martyred. When news of this tragedy reached the Holy Prophet^sa, it bore heavily on his heart and he was aggrieved on account of his demise. The Holy Prophet^sa called upon the people to gather for battle. The people gathered, and the total number of the army was 3,000. The Holy Prophet^sa declared that the leader of this group would be Hazrat Zaid^ra bin Haritha, and after preparing a white flag and handing it to Zaid^ra, the Prophet advised, “Go to the place where Hazrat Harith^ra bin Umair has been martyred and invite the people there to Islam. If they accept it, then fine, but if they do not, then seek Allah’s help against them and engage with them in battle.” (Al-Tabaqaat-ul-Kubra li ibn Saad, Vol. 2, p. 314, Siryah Mautah, Dar Ihyaa al-Turath al-Arabi, Beirut, 1996) (Al-Sirat al-Halabiyyah, Vol. 3, p. 96, Bab Dhikr Maghaziyah/Ghazwah Mautah, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 2002)

Hazrat Wahab^ra was also a part of this battle. (I will further elaborate the details of this battle.) Hazrat Abdullah^ra bin Umar states that the Holy Prophet^sa appointed Hazrat Zaid^ra bin Harith a during the expedition of Mautah as their leader, and said “If Zaid is martyred, then Jafar will be your leader, and if he is also martyred, then Abdullah bin Rawahah shall take his place.” This group of men was also known as the Infantry of Leaders. (Sahih Bukhari, Kitabul Maghazi, Bab Ghazwah Mautah Ard al-Sham, Hadith 4261) (Musnad Ahmad bin Hanbal, Vol. 7, p. 505, Hadith 22918, Musnad Abu Qatadah Ansari, Alamul Kutub, Beirut, 1998)

Whilst elaborating on this, Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra has written that according to one narration, a Jew who was sitting nearby, heard what the Holy Prophet^sa had just said and approached Hazrat Zaid^ra and said to him, “If Muhammad^sa is true then none of the three of you shall return from the battle alive.” At this, Hazrat Zaid^ra replied, “Regardless of whether I return from this battle alive or not, it as an undeniable truth that the Prophet Muhammad^sa is a true Messenger and a truthful Prophet of God.” (Fareezah-e-Tabligh aur Ahmadi Khawatin, Anwarul Ulum, Vol. 18, pp. 405-406)

The news about the martyrs of this battle was conveyed through divine revelation to the Holy Prophet^sa. Regarding this there is a narration, in which Hazrat Anas^ra bin Malik relates that the Holy Prophet^sa stated, “Zaid took up the holding of the flag and he was martyred, after which Jafar took hold of the flag and he, too, was martyred, and after this, Abdullah bin Rawahah took hold of the flag and he was also martyred.” While telling this to the people, tears were flowing from the eyes of the Holy Prophet^sa. After this the Prophet^sa went on to say, “Thereafter, from among the ranks, Khalid^ra bin Waleed stepped up and took hold of the flag and they were ultimately granted victory.” (Sahih Bukhari, Kitabul Janaiz, Bab Al-Rajulu Jan’aa ilaa Ahlil Mayyit bi Nafsihi, Hadith 1246)

May God Almighty continue to raise the spiritual status of these Companions^ra of the Holy Prophet^sa. After having mentioned these companions, I shall now mention some deceased ones whose funeral prayers I shall also be leading today.

The first funeral is of Respected Malik Muhamad Akram Sahib, who was a missionary of the community. He passed away yesterday, 25 April, in Manchester; to Allah we belong and to Him shall we return. His funeral is present here and after the prayers, Insha-Allah, I will lead his funeral prayer outside [the mosque].

He was born on 2 April 1947, in Malkwaal in the district of Gujrat. In 1961 he performed Bai‘at [pledge of allegiance] and entered the Jamaat. His elder brother, Master Azam Sahib had accepted Ahmadiyyat prior to this and Akram Sahib also performed the Bai‘at after him.

I remember he wrote an article in which he wrote that he only came to Rabwah for his studies but having been influenced by the atmosphere of Rawbah, he performed the Bai‘at. Nonetheless, in 1962, after he had performed Bai‘at, he dedicated his life for the Jamaat. After completing his BA, he received his Shahid degree and also Maulvi Fazil degree. He was assigned as a missionary in 1971.

In 1970, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih III^rh led his nikah which was settled with Amatul Karim Sahiba, daughter of Maulvi Abul Basharat Abdul Ghafoor Sahib. Akram Sahib had the opportunity to serve as a missionary in different places in Pakistan as well as countries outside of Pakistan. He served in various Jamaats across the UK for approximately 30 years, including Oxford, Manchester, Glasgow and Cardiff. His total service spans approximately 48 years. In the UK, he served as Naib Afsar Jalsa Gah for many years.

From 1971 to 1973, he served in various places throughout Pakistan. From 1973 to 1977 he served in The Gambia. From 1977 to 1979 he served in Karachi, Pakistan after which he served in Rabwah in Wakalat-e-Tabshir from 1979 to 1980. Between 1980 and 1983, he served as the principal of the Missionary College in Hilaro, Nigeria, after which he returned to Pakistan and stayed in Rabwah until 1989. From 1989 until 2018 he had the opportunity to serve in the UK. Initially in 2007 he reached the official age of retirement but was re-employed in February 2007 and had the opportunity to serve until 2018. Although a Waqf-e-Zindagi always remains in his capacity as a life devotee, however recently due to illness he was unable to actively carry out his duties and therefore he retired. Nonetheless, we can say that he only spent a few months without being in active service and in this way he served until his last breath.

Amir Sahib UK [National President] writes, “He was very hard working, obedient and had a pleasant nature. Whichever Jamaat work that was assigned to him, he would complete it with great effort and diligence. It was his habit to immediately compile a full report and send it. He was appointed to serve in Manchester. Malik Sahib worked tirelessly to collect funds for the Darul Aman mosque when it was being constructed.”

Ataul Mujeeb Rashed Sahib writes, “Akram Sahib was a man of principle and possessed many qualities. He was very pious, honest and an extremely loyal Ahmadi. He was a passionate missionary who would work diligently. He was a servant of the Community who displayed the highest levels of obedience for Khilafat.”

Majeed Sialkoti Sahib writes, “He possessed many qualities, the foremost that he was an extremely loyal servant of Khilafat. He had a passion for tabligh [propagating the message of Islam].” Sialkoti Sahib further writes, “When we were students, during the holidays he once visited our village and said that they ought to go out for tabligh, and became involved in tabligh activities. He had sacrificed his holidays to perform tabligh with Khuddam and Ansar. He always displayed obedience throughout his life.”

Aslam Khalid Sahib, who is serving in the private secretary’s office in London, writes, “He became a close relation of mine (they were both related through marriage). Wherever he was appointed, he would win the hearts of the people through his affection. He even served throughout his illness and he would especially speak lovingly about the people of Manchester. He had a loving relationship with the youth and children of the Jamaat.”

Giving one example of this, Aslam Khalid Sahib says, “He once told me an incident regarding one of the children who grew up with him and then later married; from among them one of the youths was expecting their first child. When the child was born, he called him at 2:30am or 3am informing him that his first child had been born. Akram Sahib said that he thought to himself that this was not an appropriate hour to inform him via telephone and he could have easily called in the morning. However, it was the love the youth had for his missionary and who had played a significant part in his upbringing. He said he was left speechless by his next comment. The youth said, ‘Murabbi Sahib! I had vowed that whenever God Almighty would grant me a child, you would be the first person I would inform. Now that I have told you, I will inform my father.’”

This was the love and affection people had for him and his love for the Jamaat members. May God Almighty continue to elevate his status, shower His forgiveness on him and grant his loved ones steadfastness and courage to bear this loss. His funeral is present, as mentioned earlier, I will go outside to lead his funeral prayer.

The second funeral prayer is of Chaudhry Abdul Shakur Sahib who was a missionary of the Community. He was the son of Chaudhry Abdul Aziz Sahib Sialkoti. He passed away on 12 April; to Allah we belong and to Him shall we return.

He was born on 10 November 1935 and was an Ahmadi from birth. His paternal grandfather pledged allegiance in 1901. Respected Abdul Shakur Sahib completed his FA [Intermediate] examinations, after which he completed his Shahid and Maulvi Fazil and dedicated his life in 1956. Prior to this, he worked in the Railway Division as a typist. In 1962 he passed his Maulvi Fazil examination and in 1963 he graduated from Jamia Ahmadiyya with a Shahid degree. In July 1963, he was appointed in Wakalat-e-Mal Thani after which he had the opportunity to serve in various offices in Rabwah. In 1964, he was sent to Sierra Leone for the propagation of Islam and he served there until 1968. From December 1970 to December 1973 he remained in Ghana. From 1975 to 1978 he served in the Gambia. From February 1980 to April 1986 he served in Liberia. In these countries, the deceased had the opportunity to serve as amir [national president] and missionary in-charge. In 1990, he was appointed as Naib Wakil-ul-Tabshir. In addition to this, he served as Naib Wakil-ul-Mal Thalith, Secretary Committee Abadi and Naib Wakil-ul-Mal Thani. After retirement in 1995, he continued to work until 2004. Owing to pain in his eyes due to glaucoma, he retired in 2004.

His son, Dr Abdul Sabur Sahib, who resides in USA, says, “My father was a very hard working and simple man. I saw him spreading the message of Islam and involved in moral training in Liberia as Amir and missionary in-charge. He would always prepare his sermons diligently using references from the Holy Quran, Ahadith, books of the Community, the Bible etc. He would preach to the Christians and other Muslims with arguments and would always speak politely.” He further writes, “He spent on all our educational needs despite having limited resources and ensured all of us siblings were given an excellent education.”

Mahmud Tahir Sahib, Qaid Amoomi for Ansarullah, Pakistan, writes, “He would always work quietly and without drawing attention to himself and was an influential figure.”

Naib Wakil-ul-Tabshir, Sheikh Harris Sahib, writes, “He had a balanced temperament and had a noble character. He had a meticulous nature and was an extremely loyal and devoted servant of Ahmadiyyat and Khilafat.”

Haider Ali Zafar Sahib, who is currently serving as Naib Ameir of Germany, writes: “Abdul Shakur Sahib possessed many qualities. He was very loyal, had a balanced temperament and hard working. He would always be mindful when spending money of the Jamaat. He was pious and a man of principal. Whilst in Liberia, he managed the bookshop of the Jamaat in a most excellent manner. From the earnings of the book shop, he built a new mosque and accommodation for the missionary. In a small area he built a complex which included a library, a guest room and separate space in the mosque for men and women to offer their prayers. Alongside this there was a residence for the missionary. During the construction he would join in with the workers. Initially, he generated the revenue himself and had the complex built but he also joined in alongside the workers in building the complex as well.”

Haider Ali Sahib further says, “In 1986 when I took charge from him, we held a farewell ceremony. During the ceremony it was mentioned that he worked very hard in order to build the mosque and the mission house. In response to this he said with great humility, ‘The missionary before me had the opportunity to acquire the land and God Almighty granted me the opportunity to see the project to completion. Now you are able to hold various tabligh activities. In short, it is all down to the blessings provided by God Almighty.’”

The deceased was a musi [part of the institution of Al-Wasiyyat]. Aside from his wife, he is survived by two daughters and three sons. May God Almighty elevate his status.

The third funeral in absentia is of respected Muhammad Saleh Muhammad Sahib, who was a Muallim of Waqf-e-Jadid. He passed away according to the will of Allah on 21 April 2019; to Allah we belong and to Him shall we return.

His great grandfather was Malik Allah Bakhsh Sahib, who was a companion of the Promised Messiah^as. He witnessed the sign of the solar and lunar eclipse and travelled by foot to Qadian from Lodhran and had the honour of doing the Bai‘at at the hand of the Promised Messiah^as. His father, respected Ghulam Muhammad Sahib, was also a Muallim and in fact he was from among the early Muallimeen.

Muhammad Saleh Sahib was born in 1959 and in 1976 applied to enrol in Jamia Ahmadiyya, however his application was unsuccessful as he was past the age set for admission. He then worked in a mill in Kotry. His son writes that our grandfather, Malik Ghulam Muhammad Sahib once went to Kotry to visit him and did not like the atmosphere there. He immediately instructed him to leave the job and to devote his life as a Muallim under the Waqf-e-Jadid scheme. Thus, he left the job and returned. He was already married at the time and was earning 450 rupees from that employment which was a significant amount in those days, however he left and came back and joined the Muallim class. When he qualified as a Muallim, the allowance set by the Jamaat at the time was 135 rupees, however he considered this as a great honour that God Almighty had granted him the opportunity to serve the faith. Thus, initially he was working for worldly gains but then devoted his life and was earning almost a quarter or a third of what he was earning before.

In 1989 he was appointed to Nagarparkar and had to endure very difficult conditions there. His son, who is a missionary, writes, “My mother told me that when they were appointed to the village in Nagarparkar, the Muallim house had been left shut for many years and the house had fallen through. And so, during the day their father would travel quite a distance to bring sand and water and gather it there and then in the night both husband and wife would prepare bricks from it. Once the bricks had dried up, they both constructed their accommodation themselves as there was no place to stay at the time.”

These early Muallimeen in the area of Sindh rendered great sacrifices and endured those conditions. Thus, they first travelled long distances to gather the water and sand, thereafter they would mix it and prepare bricks from it and then they themselves built a room from it for them to live in and did not make any demands from the Jamaat. His son further writes,

“They told me that in Nagarparkar they had no facilities as such since they lived in a remote area. Therefore, when they would come for meetings, they would have to purchase their rations for the entire month and also homeopathy medication and other items. Once, he came to attend the meeting and got lost on his way back. Since the area is dessert terrain, one has to follow the footprints on the ground to determine the way. However, he could not correctly follow the footprints and strayed from the path. It is extremely hot in that area and the water he was carrying with him finished. Owing to extreme thirst and fatigue he became unconscious and fell. He was lying on the floor, when two people riding on camels approached and saw that it was Dr Sahib. Since he administered homeopathy medication to the locals in Nagarparkar, therefore he was referred to as Dr Sahib by the locals. The two individuals who saw him were also his patients and so they gave him some water and took him back to their village. He spent the night there and then the next day took him back to the centre in Nagarparkar.”

His son further writes:

“He always reminded his children to offer their five daily prayers. He regularly offered the Tahajjud prayer and even on the day he passed way, he offered the Tahajjud prayer and also woke my mother to pray as well. He was extremely courteous and showed great love to people. If anyone wronged him, he would bear it with patience and would never respond. He was also very good at making connections with people and was very well-known amongst people. He was very trustworthy and people would trust him with their possessions and leave them with him. If there was any discord amongst the members of the family, he would always seek to reconcile.”

The deceased was a musi and leaves behind his wife, three sons and three daughters. One of his sons, Mubarak Ahmad Munir Sahib is currently serving as a missionary in Burkina Faso and therefore could not go back to Pakistan upon the demise of his father. May God Almighty elevate his station and grant him His mercy and forgiveness. May He also enable his progeny to serve their faith with the same passion and spirit of sacrifice.

The fourth funeral prayer in absentia is of respected Mwishehe Jummah Sahib of Tanzania. He passed away on 13 March; To Allah we belong and to Him shall we return. He was born in 1933/34 in Morogoro Region of Tanzania. He joined the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community in 1967. The account of his acceptance to Ahmadiyyat is as follows:

There was a tradition amongst the Sunni Ulema of the area that if a child passed away, they would carry out the Khatam ceremony and also the Aqiqa. However, he was opposed to such traditions such as the Khatam ceremony and also the Aqiqa of a child who had passed away. Some of the Sunni Ulema were of the opinion that the Aqiqa of a new-born, who had recently passed away, ought to be performed as quickly as possible as opposed to performing the Aqiqa of a child still alive, this was so that there could be more opportunities for them to eat. However, Mwishehe Sahib had not come across such an Islamic teaching which supported this practise of the Maulvis and therefore was greatly saddened and appalled at the pitiable state of the Muslims.

He would always pray to God Almighty to send down Jesus^as, so that he would once again revive Islam. The missionary in-charge writes that Mwishehe said that when he met the missionary of the area, who at the time was Jamil-ul-Rehman Rafiq Sahib and is currently serving as a Wakil-ul-Ishaat in Pakistan, he informed him of the saying of the Holy Prophet^sa in which he said that one who dies without having recognised the Imam of the age, dies a death of ignorance. This led him to reflect upon the fact that he had not accepted the Imam of the Age and therefore was not a true Muslim and so immediately accepted Ahmadiyyat. Thereafter, he went back to his village and gathered everyone and conveyed the message of the Promised Messiah^as, including to his siblings, other family members and friends. In that same year, his brother, Idi Salman Sahib, who has passed away now and also Jummah Sahib’s wife, accepted Ahmadiyyat as a result of his tabligh efforts. The deceased had to endure great hostility as well but gradually with time people began to enter the fold of the Jamaat. Now, Ahmadiyyat is also well-established in the neighbouring villages to his village of Mkuyuni.

The missionary in-charge writes that the Mkuyuni Jamaat is one of the most exemplary Jamaats in the Morogoro Region and this Jamaat was established through his efforts. After accepting Ahmadiyyat and right till his demise, his every action demonstrated his deep love for Khilafat. He also showed great respect towards the missionaries and office-bearers of the Jamaat. He strictly followed the Nizam-e-Jamaat. He had great passion for tabligh and would never let any opportunity for tabligh go to waste. He was at the forefront of those who paid their Chanda. In fact, he would always be thinking about giving Chanda whenever he would receive any money. He would often say that this world is temporary and has no value.

He was a musi and would also urge others to join this blessed scheme. He was exemplary in regard to prayers and would offer the five daily players and also urged his children and grandchildren to offer their daily prayers.

He offered the Tahajjud prayer with great passion. He had memorised many prayers of the Holy Prophet^sa and had great passion to read the books of the Promised Messiah^as. His son, Shamoon Jummah Sahib, who is a teacher at Jamia Ahmadiyya Tanzania, writes, “From 1987 to 1990, all three of us brothers studied in Jamia Ahmadiyya Tanzania (they teach the Mubasher course there). I recall that once during the holidays we decided that one of us brothers would leave Jamia studies and return home and help our parents in their daily chores. When we mentioned this to our father, he was extremely displeased with this.” Shamoon Jummah Sahib writes, “I can never forget that day. My father became very passionate and he told us that we should place our trust in God Almighty and continue with the Jamia studies and to not leave.”

Thus, he instilled a spirit of serving the Jamaat in all three of his children.

May God Almighty grant him His mercy and forgiveness and elevate his status. May He enable his progeny to also become true servants of Islam. As I mentioned that after the prayers, I shall lead their funeral prayers. The funeral of Malik Akram Sahib is present here and so I will go out of the mosque to lead the funeral prayer and members should remain in the mosque and join the prayer from here.

(Translated by The Review of Religions. Original Urdu published in Al Fazl International, 17 May 2019, pp. 5-9)

Practises of the Promised Messiah a.s. in Ramadan – Part IV

The Promised Messiah

Alhakam

24th May 2019

Hazrat Mir Muhammed Ismail^ra related to Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad^ra that regarding Lailatul Qadr, the Promised Messiah^as would mention, “The night is characterised by some clouds or light drizzle. And one can also sense some signs of heavenly blessings and light.”

Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad^ra later explained, “Though these signs have been mentioned in the Ahadith, clouds and drizzle being mandatory in every case is most probably not what the Ahadith suggests. In my view, it is also possible for Lailatul Qadr to occur in various areas, at different nights. The fact is that creating the environment for Lailatul Qadar also depends on the state of the person to an extent. Lailatul Qadr may occur for one person whilst not for another. But Allah knows best.”

Hazrat Mir Muhammad Ismail^ra mentioned to Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad^ra, “The Promised Messiah^as had myopia [nearsightedness]. For this reason, he was unable to sight the moon of the first night. However, he could read small-sized letters from up close to his last age and never experienced the need for glasses. All of the children of the Promised Messiah^as inherited this eye condition of struggling to see far.”

Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad^ra adds, “I remember that when the moment would come to sight the moon of the first night of Ramadan or Eid, he would ask for someone else’s glasses and try to sight it.”

Hazrat Nawab Muhammed Ali Khan^ra narrated to Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad^ra through writing:

“It was around 1894 when the solar and lunar eclipses occurred in Ramadan. On the day of the solar eclipse, I was amongst those present in prayer in Qadian. Hazrat Maulvi Muhammad Ahsan Amrohi had led the prayer and the worshippers were weeping profusely. This Ramadan unfolded thus; from 2am, a flurry of activity would happen in Chauk-e-Ahmadiyya [a crossroads in the heart of Qadian]. The majority of people used to be in their homes whilst some would travel to Masjid Mubarak where the Tahajud prayer would occur. People would partake in sehri and the morning prayer would be offered promptly. Afterwards, the Holy Quran would be recited for a period of time and after 8am, the Promised Messiah^as would head out for a walk. All his servants would be alongside Huzoor^as, and this would come to an end at around 11am. Then, the Azan for the Zuhr prayer would be called out and the prayer would conclude before 1pm. The Asr prayer would also be offered promptly. There only used to be free time between Asr and Maghrib. Following Maghrib, after dinner had finished, the Isha prayer would conclude between 8pm and 8:30. Thereafter, the place would become deserted as if completely uninhabited. But everyone would awake at 2am and the bustle of activity would occur once again.”

Hazrat Mian Rahmatullah^ra, son of Hazrat Mian Abdullah Sanauri^ra narrated to Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad^ra through writing:

“Once, the Promised Messiah^as travelled to Ludhiana. It was the month of Ramadan. The following account occurred when Huzoor^as came from Dehli and occurred in 1905 or prior to it. I also reached Ludhiana with my late father. The scene [we observed] when [our] vehicle arrived was bizarre. In spite of the hue and cry of clerics for no one to visit Huzoor^as, they themselves were hastening for that very purpose. Outside the station, the Promised Messiah^as was assisted to board a carriage, with great difficulty. As the crowd of people was substantially large, he was sat in a room upon the ground with his servants, in his temporary residence. One Maulvi submitted that people were coming to visit him in great multitudes and requested him to take a seat on a chair. The Promised Messiah^as approved and a chair was brought forth. He sat upon it and began talking of the scholars of Dehli, the words of which I am unable to remember. As it was the month of Ramadan, we had all travelled to Ludhiana after keeping a fast in Gausgarh. Huzoor^as enquired of this from my late father or it came to his knowledge from another individual [this I do not recall] that all who had come from Gausgarh were fasting. Huzoor^as said, ‘Mian Abdullah! The manner in which God has commanded to fast, he has also ordained to desist from fasting on a journey. All of you should break your fasts.’ This event took place after Zuhr. The following day, Huzoor^as delivered a lecture. During the speech, Huzoor^as would repeatedly strike his hand on his stick. Afterwards, a poor person mentioned a dream concerning the truthfulness of the Promised Messiah^as. Huzoor^as instructed to send for Hazrat Khalifatul Masih I^ra from Qadian. Thus, he reached Ludhiana quickly too. Hazrat Khalifatul Masih I^ra said, ‘I came as soon as I received the instruction and did not even visit my home.’”

Hazrat Chaudry Hakim Ali^ra (numbardar) narrated to Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad^ra, by means of Maulvi Muhammad Ismail Fazil, Professor of Jamia Ahmadiyya:

“I once fell ill in the month of Ramadan in Qadian around 1898 to 1899 and was unable to fast. At the time, my residence was situated at the corner of a pond. I came to know that the Promised Messiah^as had come for a walk and was at the corner of the pond. I was very weak, but with great endeavour and difficulty, I reached Huzoor’s^as presence and submitted sadly that I could not fast at the time due to illness. Huzoor^as replied, ‘You will receive reward twofold.’ I asked, ‘How can this be?’ The Promised Messiah^as said, ‘Firstly due to the fact that you continually pray whilst ill and secondly because when you shall fast in days outside of Ramadan, you will be rewarded for it.’”

Hazrat Malik Maula Baksh^ra (pensioner), through Maulvi Abdur Rahman Sahib Mubashir, wrote:

“The Promised Messiah^as once came to Amritsar in the month of Ramadan and his lecture took place in Mando Babu Ghanya Lal (now known as Vande Mataram Hall). Due to the journey, Huzoor^as had not kept a fast. During the lecture, Mufti Fazlur-Rahman Sahib presented a cup of tea. Huzoor^as did not notice it and so, Mufti Sahib moved it forward. Still, Huzoor^as remained occupied in his lecture. Then Mufti Sahib placed the cup right in front of Huzoor^as, upon which Huzoor^as took a sip of the tea. This led to an uproar among the audience. Is this the sanctity of Ramadan? He doesn’t even fast! People began talking all sorts of nonsense. The lecture came to a halt and Huzoor^as receded behind the curtains. The vehicle was brought to the second exit door. Huzoor^as sat in it. Chaos erupted. People started to throw bricks and stones, shattering one of the glass windows of the vehicle, however Huzoor^as reached his destination safely. Later, it was revealed that a non-Ahmadi maulvi had said, ‘Today, the people have made Mirza a prophet’ but I myself did not hear this.

“We left the building with Hazrat Hakim Maulvi Nuruddin^ra and mentioned to him that people were still pelting bricks and stones and that he should wait a while. He replied, ‘The one who they were targeting has now left. Why would they want to hit me?’

“As it was Mufti Fazlur-Rahman Sahib’s presentation of tea that caused this chaos, everyone would ask him, ‘Why did you do that?’ I also asked him this. The poor man became tired of hearing this. The late Miyan Abdul Khaliq Sahib informed me that when the matter was presented to Huzoor^as that Mufti Sahib had disrupted the lecture, Huzoor^as said: ‘Mufti Sahib did nothing wrong. It is a command of Allah that during journeys, fasts should not be kept. Allah granted me an opportunity to carry out and exhibit this command to the masses, which makes Mufti Sahib a hero.’”

(Taken from the compilation of narrations related to the life of the Promised Messiah^as, Sirat-ul-Mahdi, compiled by Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad^ra. Translated by Fateh Alam, London.)

24-30 May

This Week in History

Alhakam

24th May 2019

24 May 1924: Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra decided to travel to Europe upon the invitation of the Wembley Conference’s organisers. Huzoor^ra informed members of the Jamaat that the main focus of this sojourn would be to devise a proper scheme for the propagation of Islam in Western countries in the years to come.

24 May 1932: Hazrat Mir Muhammad Ishaq^ra read out his research paper in Lahore during a session arranged by Sanatam Dharam Hindus.

24 May 1935: From the early days of its establishment, members of the Jamaat patiently bore all hardships of opponents due to the constant prayers and guidance of their Imam^ra. On this day, Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra delivered a Friday Sermon and foretold that the enemies were about to be defeated and that he could see that their days were numbered. Time proved him to be correct and even adversaries confessed to this.

25 May 1941: Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra delivered a speech about the situation prevailing in Iraq in those times due to the Second World War. Huzoor’s^ra detailed analysis was broadcast from Lahore radio station along with Delhi and Lucknow radio stations.

26 May 1906: A baby boy was born in the house of Hazrat Mirza Bashiruddin Mahmud Ahmad, Musleh-e-Maud^ra. He was named Mirza Naseer Ahmad, but unfortunately this grandson of the Promised Messiah^as died in infancy.

26 May 1908: Hazrat Hakim Maulvi Nuruddin^ra led the funeral prayer of the Promised Messiah^as in Lahore at noon. On the same day, in the evening, the rail-journey started from Lahore Station to shift Hazrat Ahmad’s^as coffin to Qadian for burial.

26 May 1908: Hazrat Mirza Bashiruddin Mahmud Ahmad^ra made the famous resolution to fulfill the mission of his deceased father on this day. He said that even if no one helped him, he would alone sacrifice his entire being and every fibre of his body for his late father’s great cause.

26 May 1926: The publication of The Ahmadiyya Gazette started from Qadian which continued regularly for the next few years.

26 May 1960: Mr Tunku Abdul Rahman visited the Ahmadiyya mosque in The Hague and lauded the efforts of the Ahmadiyya mission. Mr Tunku Abdul Rahman is widely regarded, even by his critics, as Malaysia’s founding father, the architect of Malayan independence and the formation of Malaysia. As such, he is often referred to as the father of Malaysia. He served the nation in the capacity of prime minister from 1957 to 1963.

27 May 1908: Hazrat Hakim Maulvi Nuruddin^ra was unanimously elected as the first Khalifa of the Promised Messiah^as. He addressed the Ahmadis before accepting their Bai‘at. Afterwards, he led the funeral prayer of the Promised Messiah^as and the burial proceedings were completed under his guidance. All Ahmadis entered into the Bai‘at and the Jamaat was again united under one hand to spread the message of Islam.

27 May 1935: The Hong Kong mission of the Jamaat saw the first of its fruits when a local Chinese gentleman entered the fold of Ahmadiyyat due to the efforts and prayers of Sufi Abdul Ghafoor Sahib, the missionary there.

28 May 1924: Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra received a Christian missionary Samuel Marines Zwemer who was visiting Qadian. During the meeting, he asked some questions, which were answered by Huzoor^ra.

28 May 1934: Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra began his journey towards Lahore, which lasted until 7 June.

29 May 1942: Subedar Khush Hal Khan Sahib was martyred in Sawabi, a city in the north-western part of present day Pakistan.

29 May 1950: Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra laid the foundation stone of his personal residence in newly-built Rabwah.

29 May 1951: Lala Malawamal Sahib died in Qadian on this day. He was a Hindu neighbour of the Promised Messiah^as and used to spend his time in the company of the Promised Messiah^as. He witnessed many heavenly signs, including some that were pertaining to him, and even travelled many times with Hazrat Ahmad^as.

30 May 1931: An Afghan tourist had the blessed opportunity to meet Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra in Qadian.

30 May 1955: On this day, Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra went to Geneva during his tour of Europe in which he acquired medical treatment as well as analysing the missionary activity of those countries.

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