Labeed Mirza, Student Jamia Ahmadiyya UK
The Promised Messiah – Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmadas – appeared during the era of the British empire’s rule, especially in India.
Just as Jesusas emerged when Rome had established Latin and Greek as languages of power across its territories, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmadas appeared when the British Empire had made English its lingua franca throughout its global dominions. In both eras, language was an important means for divine messages to transcend their origins. This is a key parallel between the two Messiahs.
For this reason, the Promised Messiahas explains that the hadith stating “the sun will rise from the West” in the latter days should not be interpreted in a literal or physical sense. Rather, it foretold a spiritual illumination; the light of Islam would dawn upon the Western nations, with the Promised Messiahas at the heart of this spiritual renaissance.
The Messiah and the two jaws of the Dajjal
The prophecy finds additional support in Surah al-Kahf with regard to Gog and Magog. The Promised Messiahas tells us in the commentary of Surah al-Kahf that one of the interpretations of Gog and Magog would be the spread of Christianity. By designating the Promised Messiahas as Dhul-Qarnain, divine wisdom equipped him to challenge this evil force.
The spread of Christian missions in the East was an integral part of the British imperial project. Is it a coincidence that the Messiah was sent at this very age? Of course not.
William Carey, often regarded as the pioneer of the modern missionary movement, arrived in India in 1793 – just 96 years prior to the establishment of the Ahmadiyya Jamaat.
It is no coincidence that the spread of the Christian Mission would be in such proximity to the coming of the Promised Messiahas because the latter-day messiah was foretold to battle the Dajjal and the Promised Messiahas has told us that it was the Christian missionaries and Western philosophers that would make up the two jaws of the Dajjal:
“Dajjal in fact is none other than the people known as Christian missionaries and European philosophers. They act like the two jaws of the Promised Dajjal with which he devours people’s faith like a python. First, it is the common and ignorant people who get caught in the wiles of the missionaries; and then, those who happen to escape their clutches being disgusted with the disgraceful and false beliefs, are caught in the net of the European philosophers. I see that the common people are more vulnerable to the lies of the clergy, whereas the intellectual ones are more susceptible to the falsehood spread by the philosophers.” (Kitab-ul-Bariyyah, Ruhani Khazain, Vol. 13, pp. 252-253)
English language and atheism
Keeping this quote in mind, it is interesting the Promised Messiahas also noted how the influence of the latter jaw of the dajjal – the European philosophers – manifested through the English language as well.
Regarding the English language, he wrote:
“No matter how much progress one makes in the English language alone, the result is nothing but the world. Consider the case of children whose parents are British—what benefit can their proficiency in the English language give them in matters of faith? This is not a language to be proud of. […]
“I do not mean that English should not be studied. There are many who can speak English in our Jamaat who have attained education to the level BA and MA degrees and are employed in prestigious government positions. On the contrary, I wish that virtuous benefits should be drawn from it while avoiding its evil philosophy which makes a person an atheist.
“Everything has an effect. Many books in the English language present atheism or atheistic thinking. Without some strong guidance and Divine grace, they will inevitably be influenced by it to some degree. Nowadays, effort beyond measure is exerted to acquire the world, but all doors for gaining a livelihood are open. Any extreme does not lead to good results. Many people in the world falsely claim to believe in God. Do they strive and sacrifice earnestly for the Hereafter as they do for worldly things? They do not even know that they will also have to deal with that side.” (Malfuzat [English], Vol. 7, pp. 201-202)
The Promised Messiahas – in making this statement – was forming a rebuttal to the patronising academics of the West who insisted that English was the necessary language of academia and showed how English literature of that time in particular often led to atheism.
Nonetheless, the Promised Messiahas was commissioned to battle the two jaws of the antichrist and therefore, it became imperative that he would enter the battlefield on the same front that the antichrist had set camp and battle with them using their own weapons.
It was for this very reason that the Promised Messiahas established The Review of Religions magazine. A magazine to spread Islam specifically in the English language.
Discussing English on another occasion, the Promised Messiahas said:
“I would also like to advise my community to learn the Arabic language, because without a knowledge of Arabic, one cannot enjoy the Holy Quran. Therefore, you ought to make an effort to learn Arabic little by little, insofar as it is necessary to understand the translation of the Holy Quran. In this day and age, easy methods to learn Arabic have been introduced. When reciting the Holy Quran is compulsory for every Muslim, what excuse does a person have to not endeavour to learn the Arabic language and for one to waste away their entire life learning English and other languages?
“Having said that, it should also be borne in mind that since the rule established in this country has taken on the form of a national government, the language of a national government, therefore, also possesses national importance. Therefore, it is imperative that you learn English as well, so that you are able to fully communicate your views and opinions to the government, and so that you are able to offer it benefit and support.” (Malfuzat [English], Vol. 2, pp. 17-18)
Here the Promised Messiahas also shows why it’s necessary to learn English alongside Arabic.
In fact, addressing his Jamaat, the Promised Messiahas said:
“If Allah grants us knowledge of the English language, we would travel ourselves and preach far and wide, dedicating our entire lives to this mission – even if it means facing death in the process.” (Malfuzat [Urdu], Vol. 3, 2022, p. 90)
Yet, he also said that he had not undertaken learning English as he wanted his Jamaat to take part in this blessing and preach to the English-speaking people. (Malfuzat [English], Vol. 3, p. 148)
Hazrat Sheikh Yaqub Irfanira narrates that the Promised Messiahas said:
“Forty days of Tahajjud prayers can lead to learning English.”
However, the Promised Messiahᵃˢ stated that if he himself undertook preaching in English, what opportunity for gaining divine reward would remain for his followers? (Hayat-e-Ahmad, Vol. 1, 2013, p. 276)
Seeing his name in two languages
Once the Promised Messiahas saw in a vision that half his name was being written in Arabic and half in English which he said indicated towards migration.
The Promised Messiahas recalled:
“Twenty-five or twenty-six years ago, I saw in a dream that someone was writing my name. He wrote half of it in Arabic and half in English. Migration is also a characteristic of Prophets but some of the dreams of a Prophet are fulfilled through him in his own time, and others are fulfilled through a descendant or a follower of his. For instance, the Holy Prophet, on whom be the peace and blessings of Allah, was given the keys of the treasuries of Caesar and Chosroes and these countries were conquered in the time of Hazrat ‘Umarra.” (Tadhkirah [English], 2019, pp. 773-774)
He stated himself that this would either refer to his own, or the migration of his followers.
Learning English
The Promised Messiahas did spend a little and insignificant time learning English in earlier years. In “Life of Ahmad” by Hazrat Maulana Abdur Raheem Dardra, we find that when the Promised Messiahas was working in Sialkot, special classes were held for the staff at the court he worked at. However, this would only be inasmuch as to teach him the English alphabets and basic words. (Life of Ahmad, 2008, p. 48)
In fact, Hazrat Sheikh Yaqub Ali Irfanira narrates that after the Promised Messiahas claimed to be the Messiah he briefly thought of learning English and a small booklet for learning English was prepared by Hazrat Mufti Muhammad Sadiqra for the Promised Messiahas. However, Huzooras did not take interest in it. It was in these days that he said he could learn English from Allah by praying for 40 days however he desired for his Jamaat members to take part in this blessing of preaching in English. (Hayat-e-Ahmad, Vol. 1, 2013, p. 276)
Revelations in English
Books of history are ridden with emphasis that the Promised Messiahas did not know the English language – which lends further credence to his truthfulness. The Promised Messiahas received several revelations in the English language. Is it not a miracle that someone unfamiliar with the language received revelations in it?
The revelations vary from single words, such as “Association”, “Life”, and “Word”, to short phrases comprised of two to four words, like “Fair man”, “I love you” and “I am with you”. There are also a few longer phrases, such as “I shall give you a large party of Islam”, and “The days shall come when God shall help you”.
At this point, it is apt to respond to a baseless claim of our opponents, who often criticise the English prophecies of the Promised Messiahas, making remarks on the grammar used.
Some critics have suggested that language limitations of the Promised Messiahas affected these English revelations, claiming there is a sense of suspicion surrounding the English revelations because they were typically only a few words in length and often included phrases with questionable grammar.
This allegation is not alien to true believers just as the Holy Quran records what opponents would say to Hazrat Shuaibas: “‘O Shu‘aib, we do not understand much of that which thou sayest.’” (Surah Hud, Ch.11: V.92)
Furthermore, people have opposed the grammar of the Holy Quran too. In his book Nuzul-ul-Masih, the Promised Messiahas elaborates:
“This is a strange matter that some of the sentences of revelation from God do not apparently follow the man-made rules of syntax and morphology, but with slight concentration it can be brought into conformity. It is for this reason that some ignorant people have made criticisms on the Holy Qur’an based on their fictitious grammar, but all such criticisms are outrageous. Knowledge of language is known to God the All-Knowing; not anyone else.” (Ruhani Khazain, Vol. 18, p. 436)
If anything, the Promised Messiahas not knowing the English language and yet receiving revelations in it is parallel to the Holy Prophetsa who, despite being unlettered had the Holy Quran revealed to him. Just as it was impossible for an unlettered individual to bring forth such a book, it is similarly impossible that the Promised Messiahas would be able to construct so many revelations himself in the English language.
These ignorant opponents should make it clear upon themselves to not play God. True knowledge belongs to God, and He is not obliged to follow any man-made rule of syntax or morphology.
English newspapers
The Promised Messiahas also had various newspapers and journals sent to Qadian. Among these, he frequently quoted from several English magazines and journals. Notably, he referenced publications that remain well-established today, such as The Lancet and the Civil and Military Gazette.
The Promised Messiahas fully grasped both the gravitas of his message and the nature of his audience. This is because, in the words of the Promised Messiahas the people of the West understood a truthful man when they saw one. This is exactly why he would include a picture of himself when propagating his message to the West. Interestingly, we find him discussing the issue of his photograph being taken himself in the fifth volume of Barahin-e-Ahmadiyya:
“I have noticed that when the people of Europe want to read someone’s book, they desire to see a picture of its author first. This is because knowledge of physiognomy is quite developed in Europe, and most of them can tell just from looking at a picture whether the claimant is truthful or a liar.” (Barahin-e-Ahmadiyya [English], Part 5, p. 490)
And these words of the Promised Messiahas would ring true. Notably, the famous Russian novelist and playwright Leo Tolstoy was given some literature of the Promised Messiahas by Hazrat Mufti Muhammad Sadiqra to which he responded by saying:
“Dear friend! Your letter along with Mirza Ghulam Ahmad’s picture and a sample of the magazine Review of Religions has been received. […] In the specimen number, I approved very much two articles, ‘How to get rid of the Bondage of Sin’ and ‘The Life to Come’, especially the second. The idea is very profound and very true.” (Al Hakam [English], 3 September 2024, Vol. 7, Issue 339; www.alhakam.org/tolstoy-ahmadiyya/)
Promised Messiah’s interaction with English people
The Promised Messiah’sas interaction with English people would start well before he was commissioned to prophethood. In fact, during his short-spanned career working in the courts in Sialkot he would often engage in debates with Christian reverends and priests.
Notably, we find mention of Reverend John Tayler, a learned scholar who was very impressed by the intellect of the Promised Messiahas and held him in high esteem.
When Reverend Tayler was returning to England, he came to the Deputy Commissioner’s office for a farewell visit. When the Deputy Commissioner enquired about the reason for this visit, he replied he had come to meet with the Promised Messiahas and wanted to visit him one last time. He visited the Promised Messiahas at his place of work and sat on the ground with him before departing. (history.ahmadiyya.uk/early-life-a-brief-stay-in-sialkot-and-the-defence-of-islam-2/)
The Promised Messiahas endeavour in breaking the cross through reason and logic would continue much throughout his work as the Messiah of the age. Notably the famous “Jang-e-Muqaddas” debate was also held in 1893 where the Promised Messiahas represented Islam against Dr Henry Martyn Clark, an Afghan-born British Christian Missionary. Again, the Promised Messiahas was commissioned to fight both jaws of the antichrist; Christianity and Atheism.
The Promised Messiahas tackled much of atheistic thought in his debates with people of the Arya and Brahmu Samaj sects of Hinduism. However, he interacted with some of the pioneers of modern-day atheism. In 1885, the Promised Messiahas invited Charles Bradlaugh to Qadian. Bradlaugh was an English political activist known for his relentless atheism; he founded the National Secular Society in 1866.
Bradlaugh’s main arguments in favour of his atheistic views were the two-fold:
- Lack of proof of the higher being
- Frustration against organised religion interfering with politics
The Cork Constitution of 8 June 1885, reported on the invitation from the Promised Messiahas, they said:
“Mr Bradlaugh has received a curious invitation, which many people will probably hope he may accept, Mirza Gulam Ahmad as who says that he has been commissioned by the Almighty, has sent the junior member for Northampton by registered letter an invitation to visit the Punjab.”
Similarly, Henry Olcott is another key figure for modern-day atheism. Olcott was an American Military Officer and founder of the Theosophical Society. Theosophy is not a religion in itself but it is the idea that humans can achieve higher wisdom through spirituality. Olcott’s establishment of theosophy separated spirituality from God.
The story of Olcott and the Promised Messiahas is an interesting one too. Olcott was also invited to Qadian to witness the truth of Islam. Olcott, however, indicated he could not go to Qadian. Firstly, as a theosophist, he fundamentally could not accept that only one religion and one religious text contained a true path to God. Secondly, he was unwilling to adhere to the condition that a sincere seeker after the truth who had observed heavenly signs would need to either embrace Islam or at least proclaim the existence of supernatural powers.
In the September 1886 edition of “The Theosophist” – the official magazine of the theosophical society, even until the present day – we find mention of the Promised Messiah’s invitation. (history.ahmadiyya.uk/time-line/eighteen-sixty-six/)
Olcott mentions that he would not accept the invitation because the Promised Messiah’s claim relied on him performing miracles. Something which a theosophist could simply not reason with. In the end, the Promised Messiahas wrote “Now, if you do not come you will yourself be answerable to God.” (Majmua Ishtiharat, Vol. 1, pp. 36-40)
The reason I mentioned Bradlaugh’s and Olcott’s views is that the misconstrued idea of spirituality presented by Olcott and Bradlaugh’s ignorance of the proofs of God has become the two common questions and concerns of atheism around the world even today.
- Does God exist if we cannot see Him nor prove Him?
- Do we need God to exist to achieve a higher level of wisdom?
Is it any coincidence that modern-day atheistic thought found fertile ground in the time of the Promised Messiahas, and also the Promised Messiahas would personally invite early pioneers of atheism to Qadian to witness the truth themselves?
It was not just so-called freedom thinkers that would be granted the coveted invitation to witness the truth of Islam by the Promised Messiahas. Rather, this invitation was extended to various orientalists too.
Interestingly, though Olcott rejected the invitation of the Promised Messiahas, members of the Theosophical society did accept the invitation. Amongst these being Clement Wragge, a famous English meteorologist, and Alexander Russell Webb, an American writer, who would both later convert to Islam.
Olcott may have rejected the invitation, but upon reading the publication of the invitation in the magazine “The Theosophist”, Alexander Russell Webb initiated correspondence with the Promised Messiahas and after accepting Islam began propagating Islam in America.
Clement Wragge revolutionised weather forecasting by pioneering systematic data collection. He was amongst one of the last people to have had the honour of meeting the Promised Messiahas. His last meeting with the Promised Messiahas was just days prior to his demise. In these meetings he would inquire about spirituality, science and religion, the hereafter and nature of souls from the Promised Messiahas.
Abdullah Quilliam was amongst the first British Christians to convert to Islam and become a staunch preacher of Islam. He was a pivotal figure in shaping the British-Muslim community in England after he founded the Association of British Muslims. He was also an editor for “The Crescent” which was a periodical for British Muslims. Interestingly, we find advertisements for The Review of Religions in this periodical and similarly, advertisements for The Crescent in the Review of Religions are found.
On 16 September 1903, he wrote:
“The August number of the Review of Religions published at Qadian, India, is full of interesting matter. The article refuting charges made by the ignorant Christians with reference to our Holy Prophet is one of the ablest we have ever read upon the subject, and cordially commend it our readers attention.” (The Crescent, 16 September 1903)
The Promised Messiahas also faced opposition from the West as his message continued to spread far and wide. A striking example of this is John Alexander Dowie, who vehemently opposed him and claimed superiority. Yet today, in what was once Dowie’s so-called “great city” of Zion, it is not his legacy that stands tall, but instead the Fateh Azeem Mosque of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat, while his name has faded into obscurity, buried along with him.
It is important to note that the Promised Messiah’sas engagement with the English language and people was not incidental, it was key to his divinely appointed mission and his efforts laid the foundation for Islam’s spread in the West, utilising the very language and structures of the British Empire to fulfil a higher purpose.