This Week in History: 26 January – 1 February

A glimpse into the rich history of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat

26 January 1940: In the past, several calendars have been introduced for timekeeping. A Hijri-Shamsi calendar, prepared under the auspices of Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra, was first published in Al Fazl on this day, and it quickly became popular in the Jamaat. In 1939, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih II^ra formed a committee to work out the proposed calendar; its members were Hazrat Syed Mir Muhammad Ishaq^ra, Hazrat Hafiz Mirza Nasir Ahmad^rh, Hazrat Maulvi Abul Ata and Maulvi Muhammad Ismail Sahib. 

This solar calendar begins with the year of the migration [hijrah] of the Holy Prophet Muhammad^sa from Mecca to Medina, and each month of this calendar is based on an important event in early Islamic history. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 8, p. 8)

26 January 1973: On this day, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih III^rh initiated the planting of trees to make Rabwah a lush green city and announced a scheme to plant 10,000 trees. (Khutbat-e-Nasir, Vol. 5, pp. 19-34)

27 January 1944: On this day, Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra returned to Qadian from Lahore. The return to Qadian was momentous, as in Lahore Huzoor^ra had been informed by Allah through a vision that he was in fact the Musleh-e-Maud^ra (Promised Son).

According to Al Fazl (29 January 1944), on this auspicious and historic occasion, many friends and members of the Jamaat were present at the Ahmadiyya chowk of Qadian to welcome Huzoor^ra.

27 January 1954: On this day, a copy of the Dutch translation of the Holy Quran was presented to Mr Ghulam Muhammad, Governor-General of Pakistan. This valued gift was from Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra and was delivered by a special delegation of Jamaat members. The delegation consisted of Sahibzada Mirza Mubarak Ahmad Sahib, Hazrat Malik Ghulam Farid^ra, Syed Shah Muhammad Sahib and Maulvi Abdul Maalik Khan Sahib. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 16, p. 413)

27 January 2012: During his Friday Sermon on this day, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih V^aa mentioned Ravil Bukharaev Sahib of Russia, who had passed away on 24 January.

He was a well-known Russian poet, journalist, writer, translator and devout member of Jamaat. He worked for BBC Russian Service and after his retirement, he devoted his life to the Jamaat. He translated many books of the Jamaat into the Russian language. (“Ravil Bukharaev”, www.ahmadipedia.org)

28 January 1892:  On this day, the Promised Messiah^as published an announcement in which he stated that he had deemed it appropriate to hold a jalsa-e-aam (open meeting) to elucidate certain doubts and misunderstandings and to refute false objections that were raised against him, that he had claimed to be a law-bearing Prophet, denied miracles, and various other baseless allegations. Huzoor^as mentioned the location of this jalsa and stated that it would take place at 1:30 pm on 31 January 1892. (Majmu‘ah-e-Ishtiharat, [2019] Vol. 1, p. 328)

28 January 1944: During his Friday Sermon on this day, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih II^ra announced that he was termed the Musleh-e-Maud by God. Huzoor^ra shared details of his vision with Jamaat members in public. (Khutbat-e-Mahmud, Vol. 25, pp. 49-65)

28 January 1945: On this day, a group of Buddhists arranged a multi-faith event in Kanpur. An Ahmadi missionary also attended and shared the Jamaat’s views about other religions.

On behalf of Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya, Maulvi Ghulam Ahmad Arshad Sahib delivered a speech on the topic of Islam being the universal religion. In the end, Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud’s^ra sermon, Paigham-e-Sulh (A Message of Peace) was also distributed among all the attendees. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 9, p. 559)

29 January 1926:  On this day, a special jalsa was held in Qadian, which included 24 speeches in different languages. This jalsa was special as it was the first of its kind. Hazrat Mufti Muhammad Sadiq^ra supervised the project. The final speech of this unique jalsa was delivered by Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra.

In his speech, Huzoor^ra alluded to a prophecy of Jesus’^as disciples that they would speak in different languages. He said that the meeting and the speeches made in it were clear proof of the truthfulness of the Promised Messiah^as. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 4, p. 553)

29 January 1956: On this day, a delegation comprising of students from Government College Lyallpur (now Faisalabad) visited Rabwah and enjoyed the blessed audience of Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra.

On this occasion, Huzoor^ra gave them some advice at their request. These valuable guidelines serve as a beacon of guidance for youth and Muslim students, some of which can be read in volume 17 of Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat (pp. 386-390).

30 January 1956: On this day, the Society of Servants of God, a group based in Mumbai, invited a missionary from the Jamaat to their annual convention.

This annual event of the Society of Servants of God was held in Pune until 2 February 1956. On behalf of the Jamaat, Maulvi Sharif Ahmad Amini Sahib gave a lecture on Islam and peace. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 18, p. 281)

31 January 1909:  Among one of the most remarkable accomplishments of Hazrat Khalifatul Masih I^ra was the establishment of the true status of Khilafat in the hearts and minds of Jamaat members and opponents alike. From the outset, certain individuals who were against the institution of Khilafat tried to stir unrest within the Jamaat.

On this day, to firmly settle this debate, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih I^ra called a special session of shura, which was attended by around 250 representatives. He delivered a powerful speech uprooting all doubts and misconceptions about the divine institution of Khilafat. He also invited certain members to reaffirm their bai‘at.

In Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, volume 3 (p. 258), this incident has been described in detail and has been named “Yaum al-Furqan”.

1 February 1897: On this day, the Promised Messiah^as published an announcement in Persian which had a message for Shiites, like Haji Sheikh Muhammad Raza Tehrani Najfi, who came up with a way of examining the truth of a claimant of prophethood. Haji Sahib had suggested that the claimant should jump from the roof of Shahi Mosque Lahore, and if the claimant was honest, they would survive the fall. Objections regarding the death of Jesus^as and the solar and lunar eclipses were answered in the same announcement. (Majmu‘ah-e-Ishtiharat, [2019] Vol. 2, p. 194)

1 February 1945: On this day, Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra selected 22 young missionaries to be sent to foreign lands for the propagation of Islam Ahmadiyyat. Huzoor^ra also selected nine more missionaries to pursue advanced studies in academic fields. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 7, pp. 107-108)

1 February 1988: The President of Liberia had a meeting with Hazrat Khalifatul Masih IV^rh on this day. During this tour of West Africa, Huzoor^rh arrived in Liberia on 31 January. (Silsila Ahmadiyya, Vol. 4, p. 845)