This Week in History: 2-8 June

A glimpse into the rich history of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat

2 June 1934: On this day, Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra delivered a lecture at the town hall in Lahore about the need for religion. Surendra Kumar Datta MBE, the then principal of Forman Christian College, Lahore, presided over the session, attended by more than a thousand people. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 6, pp. 181-182)

2 June 1948: On this day, after the partition of India, Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra instructed that books from Qadian’s library should be shifted to Chiniot as soon as possible. Huzoor^ra gave minute details about this important project to preserve the Jamaat’s literature. Upon this, the concerned officials transferred this treasure to Chiniot before mid-June. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 11, p. 415)

3 June 1946: On this day, Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra went to the site of the Precision Manufacturing Company in Qadian. Huzoor^ra laid the foundation stone and led a silent prayer. It was a project of his younger brother, Hazrat Mirza Sharif Ahmad^ra. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 9, p. 620)

4 June 1978: On this day, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih III^rh delivered the concluding address at the Deliverance From the Cross Conference in London. (Silsila-e-Ahmadiyya, Part 3, p. 607)

4 June 2005: On this day, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih V^aa set out on a journey through Western Canada. He travelled from London to Vancouver. This was Huzoor’s^aa first visit to this city and province. (Al Fazl International, 17 June 2005, p. 8)

5 June 1893: On this day, the final paper was read out in the debate between the Promised Messiah^as and Abdullah Atham as described in Jang-e-Muqaddas (The Holy War). In it, the Promised Messiah^as announced that a decisive sign would be shown. He wrote: 

“Nevertheless, I kept praying for this, and last night it was made clear to me after I had prayed to Allah the Almighty with great humility and beseeched Him to give a verdict in this matter and that we are humble servants and can do nothing without His verdict. So, He gave me this Sign in the form of a glad tiding that in this debate, whichever party from among the two is deliberately adopting falsehood and abandoning the True God and is making a mere mortal into God, will be cast into Hell and utterly disgraced corresponding to the very days of this debate – in other words, taking one month for each day, meaning, within fifteen months – on the condition that he does not return to the Truth; and the one who is on the path of Truth and believes in the True God, his honour will be manifested through this; and at the time this prophecy will come to pass, some of the blind will begin to see, and some of the lame will begin to walk, and some of the deaf will begin to hear..” (The Holy War [Jang-e-Muqaddas], pp. 287-288)

5 June 1931: On this day, upon the completion of 40 years since the publication of the Promised Messiah’s^as book Fath-e-Islam (Victory of Islam), Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra emphasised that every member of the Jamaat should become regular in Tahajjud prayer and strive for the propagation of Islam’s message. During his Friday Sermon, Huzoor^ra expressed his gratitude to Allah for His extraordinary support. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 5, pp. 282-283)

5 June 2000: On this day, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih IV^rh inspected the Ahmadiyya mosque in Wittlich, Germany, which was the first mosque built under the 100-Mosque Scheme of Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya Germany. (Silsila-e-Ahmadiyya, Part 4, p. 902)

6 June 2014: During his Friday Sermon on this day, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih V^aa shed light on the blessings of Khilafat and the need for obedience.

Huzoor^aa said:

“Let me make it clear to every Ahmadi, every new convert, and all youngsters that there is a huge difference between the leadership of Khilafat and dictatorship. Khilafat has been established after accepting the Imam of the Age, according to the promises of Allah the Almighty. Moreover, every adherent makes a pledge to preserve the institution of Khilafat. There is no compulsion in religion. When a person willingly accepts the religion, then it is necessary for one to fulfil the pledge to establish the Faith – which an Ahmadi makes for the establishment of Khilafat – and that is essential for the community’s solidarity and unity. They are obliged to fulfil the pledge to obey Khilafat since they are required to make a united effort, under the leadership of an Imam, to inculcate the Kingdom of God Almighty in people’s hearts.” (“Abide by the words of Khalifatul Masih: Hazrat Khalifatul Masih V’s advice to Ahmadis”, Al Hakam, 10 February 2023, Issue 256, pp. 10-13)

7 June 1897: When the young Hazrat Mirza Bashir-ud-Deen Mahmood Ahmad^ra finished his first reading of the Holy Quran, the Promised Messiah^as composed the well-known poem Mahmud ki Amin for this occasion. The poem was published on this day. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 1, pp. 611-612)

7 June 1915: On this day, Hazrat Maulvi Ghulam Rasul Rajeki^ra announced the nikah of the youngest daughter of the Promised Messiah^as, Hazrat Nawab Amatul Hafeez Begum^ra with Hazrat Nawab Abdullah Khan^ra, son of Hazrat Nawab Muhammad Ali Khan^ra. This nikah was announced at the Aqsa Mosque in Qadian. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 4, p. 175)

8 June 1970: On this day, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih III^rh returned to Rabwah after his tour of West Africa and Europe. He left Karachi for Lahore at 8:15am and landed at Lahore airport at 9:35am. Then he left Lahore for Rabwah at 10:15am. On his way back, he stayed in Sheikhupura and reached Rabwah at 1:45pm.

8 June 1989: On this day, the Sierra Leonean government issued a commemorative postage stamp on the occasion of the centenary celebrations of Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya. This stamp was released as a souvenir to mark the special event. (Silsila-e-Ahmadiyya, Part 4, p. 856)