This Week in History: 4-10 March

4 March 1914: After the Asr prayer, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih I^ra suddenly started feeling very weak and asked Hazrat Syed Sarwar Shah^ra to bring a pen and inkpot. Then,while lying on his bed, he wrote his will for his children and for the next Khalifa. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 3, p. 506)

4 March 1961: A delegation of the Jamaat met the governor of the state of Maharashtra, India and gave him a copy of the English translation of the Holy Quran. This delegation consisted of six Jamaat members. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 21, p. 353)

5 March 1944: Hazrat Syeda Umm-e-Tahir, Maryam Begum Sahiba^ra passed away. She was the respected wife of Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra and mother of Hazrat Khalifatul Masih IV^rh. Before her demise, she had been ill for some time and was undergoing treatment in a hospital in Lahore. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 8, p. 523)

5 March 1953: Master Manzur Ahmad Sahib was martyred in Baghban Pura, Lahore, Pakistan. In the atrocities against Ahmadis in Lahore, Master Manzur Sahib was that martyr who was martyred before the implementation of martial law by the government to stop planned attacks on Ahmadis. (Friday Sermon, 7 May 1999)

6 March 1953: A frightening and merciless wave of anti-Ahmadiyya agitations, lootings, arsons, murders and brutal attacks on the life and properties of Ahmadis spread across Pakistan. In Lahore alone, three Ahmadis embraced martyrdom: Muhammad Shafi Sahib, Jamal Ahmad Sahib and Mirza Karim Baig Sahib. Later, the government’s inquiry commission labelled this day similar to the Saint Bartholomew’s Day Massacre of France in 1572. Due to the failure of civil authorities, a curfew was imposed on this day at 1:30 pm in an attempt to prevent the ongoing systematic killings of Ahmadi Muslims in Pakistan. This Martial Law was lifted on 15 May.

Muhammad Shafi Sahib of Burma was martyred in Mughalpura. Mian Jamal Ahmad was an FSC student at the time of his martyrdom and was 17 years old. The mob that attacked gave him a chance to denounce his faith and declare himself a non-Ahmadi; however, this brave young man remained firm in his faith.

Mirza Karim Baig Sahib was martyred after being stabbed on Fleming Road, Lahore, Pakistan. A fire was started by the opposition. They began by looting furniture from shops belonging to Ahmadis. Mirza Karim Baig Sahib’s body was thrown into the fire by the cruel men. (Friday Sermon, 7 May 1999)

7 March 1921: Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra travelled to Malir Kotla, India. Hazrat Nawab Muhammad Ali Khan^ra, Hazrat Nawab Muhammad Abdullah Khan^ra and some other members were present at Malir Kotla railway station to meet Huzoor^ra. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 4, p. 277)

7 March 1980: Hazrat Khalifatul Masih III^rh, while delivering the Friday sermon in Karachi, Pakistan, directed that every Ahmadi household should have a copy of Tafsir-e-Saghir.

8 March 1944: Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra visited and prayed at the grave of the Promised Messiah^as for 40 consecutive days. Huzoor^ra would visit Bahishti Maqbara after Asr prayer and fervently pray for the triumph of Islam. A large number of Jamaat members started joining Huzoor^ra in this practice. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 8, p. 629)

8 March 1953: Two members of the Jamaat were martyred in Lahore, Pakistan, on this date: Hawaldar Abdul Ghafoor Sahib and an Ahmadi chemist. (Friday Sermon, 7 May 1999)

9 March 1921: Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra delivered a speech in Malir Kotla, India, about the truthfulness of Islam. 

The lecture was held at the house of Hazrat Nawab Muhammad Ali Khan^ra and was attended by many people. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 4, p. 278)

9 March 1928: Administrators of the French Mandate in Syria issued expulsion orders for Jalaluddin Shams Sahib, the Ahmadi Muslim missionary appointed there. He was told to leave Damascus within 24 hours. This was because a group of Syrian Muslim scholars met with the government and demanded the expulsion of this Ahmadi life-devotee and preacher. On the instructions of the Markaz, he moved to Haifa, Palestine and resumed his missionary duties there. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 5, p. 100)

10 March 1912: Hazrat Khalifatul Masih I, Hakim Maulvi Nuruddin^ra made special supplications for the participants of his Dars-ul-Quran sermons and shared that God Almighty would shower His love and pleasure on them. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 3, p. 391)

10 March 1954: A teenager was brainwashed to assassinate Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra. On Wednesday, 10 March 1954, the boy was able to stand in the first row behind Huzoor^ra during the ‘Asr prayer. Immediately after the prayer had ended, he lunged forward and attacked Huzoor^ra by stabbing him twice with a dagger. Huzoor^ra sustained severe injuries but thankfully survived. Huzoor^ra was rushed to his residence at once and from there, Huzoor’s^ra first order was that his attacker should not be harmed. This attack was reported by Radio Pakistan, the BBC and many other media outlets. Ahmadis living in Pakistan and around the globe at once became occupied in supplications for the safety and prompt recovery of their beloved Imam. Political and religious leaders condemned this attack in strong words. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 16, p. 230)