This series, Zikr-e-Habib, explores the life of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmadas, the Promised Messiah and Mahdi, and his sayings, shedding light on his noble character and the impact of his teachings on his followers and the world at large.
M Adam Ahmad, Al Hakam
Exploring Prophet Ahmad’sas life and works reveals that his fervour to spread the message of God knew no bounds. His strong commitment to humanity’s spiritual enlightenment and divine assurances granted him the required strength and assistance to expand his mission beyond geographical boundaries, as the Promised Messiahas says:
“My Lord has revealed to me and has promised me that He shall certainly help me until my mission has spread throughout the east and west. The oceans of truth shall surge forth and onlookers will be astounded by the ferociousness of the foaming waves.” (The Ocean of Light [Lujjatun-Nur], p. 67)
Prophet Ahmadsa put his heart and soul into preaching Islam and persistently proclaimed the truth using a variety of means, including writing, correspondence, announcements, and debate. His teachings not only provided profound insight into reviving Islam but also extended invitations to people of other faiths, encouraging them to follow the path that leads to God Almighty. Owing to his all-consuming efforts for the cause of Allah, Hazrat Maulana Abdur Rahim Dardra narrates that God spoke to him in the following words:
“Perchance thou wilt destroy thyself in thy anxiety that they should become believers.” (Life of Ahmadas, p. 279)
Broadening horizons of faith
Delineating Prophet Ahmad’sas universal vision and utilisation of modern means to reach the West, Iain Adamson explains that Prophet Ahmadas shifted from dealing with personal opposition to taking part in global matters. He observed the significance of contemporary communication techniques and the necessity of reaching millions of people who were not familiar with Islam. Newspapers became an indispensable instrument that allowed people to communicate beyond traditional boundaries and in a variety of languages. Since English was the language of India’s educated and administrative classes, it provided access to the United States and the British Empire, as well as the entire West. The Promised Messiahas also recognised the potential of English literature to reach people across continents, and he envisioned it engaging with intellectual audiences globally. This highlights Prophet Ahmad’sas strategic vision and his commitment to reaching a worldwide audience with the message of Islam. (Ahmad[as], The Guided One, p. 256)
Revealing a minuscule endeavour pertaining to the execution of his divine task within and beyond frontiers, the Promised Messiahas states:
“[…] 20,000 leaflets were printed in English and Urdu. Thereafter, a little over 12,000 of these were sent by name to the leaders of opposition groups through registered mail, leaving not even a single Christian missionary throughout the land of India who was not sent the leaflet by registered mail.
“Moreover, these leaflets were also dispatched to the countries of Europe and America through registered mail, satisfying the duty of fully conveying the argument [of Islam’s truth].” (The Victory of Islam [Fath-e-Islam], p. 22)
Two groups shall join the Messiah
Extreme views of aversion and exaggeration had distorted Islam in the time of Prophet Ahmadas. One group moved towards the extreme of rejecting Islamic practices and teachings due to their disbelief. They disregarded the fundamentals of Islam and denied miracles and prophecies. However, another group went against the teachings of the Quran and filled Islam with false stories. They spread false ideas like the physical return of Jesusas, even though evidence from the Quran and hadiths suggested otherwise. The true teachings of Islam were concealed by these extremes, which resulted in misunderstandings. The Promised Messiahas states:
“It was to counter both these extremes of aversion and exaggeration that God established this Community upon the earth and it is loved by every man possessive of a compassionate heart, owing to its truth, beauty, and moderation. Thus, this prophecy – that a group of those who were already Muslims would enter this Ahmadiyya Jamaat, and another group of new converts from among the disbelievers of Europe, America, and other nations would also enter this Jamaat – has been fulfilled twenty-five years after it was made.
“Keep in mind that the Arabic words of this prophecy that were revealed to me through the revelation from Allah and were published in the previous parts of Barahin-e-Ahmadiyya twenty-five years ago are:
ثُلّةٌ من الاوّلين وثُلّةٌ من الاٰخرين
“[There is a group from among the first ones and a group from among the last ones]. This means that two types of people would join my Community. The first are those who were Muslims already, who have been called Awwalin [the first ones] and about 300,000 of whom have already joined the Community, and, secondly, there are new Muslims – people who would enter Islam from among the Hindus, Sikhs, and Christians from Europe and America. A group of those has also already joined this Community, and they go on joining.” (Barahin-e-Ahmadiyya Part V, p. 133)
Spiritual weapons
Explaining how God Almighty supported his messenger and members of the Ahmadiyya Jamaat with a divine arsenal of compelling arguments, the Promised Messiahas said:
“When Allah bestows dominance upon someone, He also blesses him with weapons. Nowadays, Europe is entirely dominant in the secular sense, but don’t you see that it is Europe indeed that has invented amazing weapons of every kind to the extent that even if the Sultan of Turkey needs any weapon, he sends the request to them?
“In the same way, the spiritual weapons are now in our hands. How can one dominate without possession of the required weaponry? […] God Almighty has conferred spiritual weapons upon us. It is a special blessing of God Almighty. A nation without weapons is bound to be destroyed.
“Bear in mind that weapons mean spiritual powers and irrefutable arguments. Physical materials are not needed in religious matters. Look, if the weapon of the death of Jesus were not there, you would not stand a chance against them.” (Malfuzat [English], Vol. 10, p. 71)
Hazrat Abdur Rahim Dardra MA states:
“The Christian nations of Europe have indeed traversed the whole earth. They have distorted the simple teachings of Jesusas, and their missionaries have taken the cross, with amazing speed over land, across the seas and in the air to every nook and corner of the world.
“It is, however, gratifying to note that Ahmadas, the Promised Messiah, has now broken the Cross, in accordance with the prophecy [of the Holy Prophetsa], by refuting the doctrine of the crucifixion of Jesusas. He has proved beyond the shadow of doubt that Jesusas did not die on the cross and that he left Palestine and died a natural death in Srinagar (Kashmir), where his tomb still exists.” (Life of Ahmadas, p. 238)
‘Sun shall rise from the West’
Taking maximum advantage of spiritual arms, the Promised Messiahas set out on a quest to defend Islam on every front. Iain Adamson writes:
“[Prophet] Ahmad[as] also received the revelation that among his tasks was the conversion of the West. [The Promised Messiahas said]:
“‘The rising of the sun from the West means that Western countries, which have for centuries been in the darkness of unbelief and error, shall be illumined by the sun of righteousness, and shall share in the blessings of Islam.’
“In less than a decade, [Prophet] Ahmad[as] was to set about the conversion of the West. However, the confrontation with Christians had already begun. The Church of England’s Church Missionary Society had established a base in India as early as 1799. It was followed by many others and varied missionary organisations including the Church of Scotland, the American United Presbyterian Church, English Baptists, American Methodists and the United Brethren of Germany.” (Ahmad[as], The Guided One, p. 128)
As the Promised Messiahas refused to let any criticism of Islam go unanswered in India, Iain Adamson writes, “[Prophet] Ahmad[as] now refused to let any criticism of Islam go unanswered in the United States or Great Britain.” (Ibid., 259)
The two false claimants of Messiahship, one from Great Britain, John Hugh Smyth Pigott, and the other from America, John Alexander Dowie, succumbed to divine wrath when they faced the true Messiah, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmadas. The challenges of the Promised Messiahas gained huge publicity in Europe and America, resulting in the spread of God’s message well beyond borders.
God Almighty reversed all the attacks of the opponents upon them, as the Promised Messiahas relates:
“I saw (in my dream) a swollen river which wound its way along like a serpent from the west to the east and then while we were looking, it reversed its direction and began to flow from the east to the west.” (Tadhkirah [English], p. 605)
Explaining how the spiritual sun of Islam will rise from the West, Prophet Ahmadas states:
“The days are approaching when the sun of truth will rise from the West and Europe will recognise the True God. Thereafter the door of repentance will be closed, for those who wish to enter will have entered eagerly and only those will remain outside whose hearts are by nature sealed, and who are in love, not with light, but with darkness.
“The time is near when all religions will perish except Islam. All weapons will be broken except the heavenly weapon of Islam for it will neither be broken nor will it be blunted till it has broken all Antichrist tendencies to bits. The time is near that the true Unity of God, which is perceived within their nature even by those who dwell in the desert or are completely unaware of any teaching, will spread through all regions. On that day there will remain no artificial atonement nor an artificial god. A single stroke of God will frustrate all the plans of disbelief, not by any sword, nor by any gun, but by bestowing light on eager souls and by illumining the pure hearts. Then will there be an understanding of all that which I say.” (Tadhkirah [English], pp. 377)
Miraculous expansion
The Promised Messiahas recorded a divine vision in his book, Izala-e-Auham, in which he saw himself delivering a well-reasoned speech from a pulpit in London, outlining the truth about Islam in the English language, and thereafter, catching a number of white birds that were perched on little trees. (Ibid., p. 239) Hazrat Abdur Rahim Dardra narrates:
“When the vision was published, the Christian religion was so powerful that it overawed Muslims. Not only did European and Christian writers prophesied the complete annihilation of Islam by Christianity in the course of a century, but Muslim writers also had begun indirectly to admit that this might be so. Some Muslims, under the guise of religious reform, started a movement for a mutual understanding between Islam and Christianity on the basis of the assumption that both were true and of the necessity of avoiding collision between them, for these men feared that Islam could not withstand Christianity.” (Life of Ahmadas, p. 285)
Expounding on the above-mentioned promise of God Almighty, Prophet Ahmadas states:
“I interpreted this vision as meaning that though I would not be able to travel to that country, my writings will be published among them and many righteous English people will be attracted by the truth.” (Tadhkirah [English], p. 239; Izala-e-Auham, Ruhani Khazain, Vol. 3, p. 377)
Allah the Almighty’s words were fulfilled to the letter. Hazrat Abdur Rahim Dardra states:
“No doubt in the vision it was he [the Promised Messiahas] himself who was delivering the speech, but as a Prophet is represented by his followers, particularly by his successors (Khulafa), the vision meant that he or one of his representatives or successors would proceed to England to call men to Islam, and indicated that Islam and Ahmadiyyat would be preached from a pulpit or a stage and that men would accept it and be blessed. All this has happened according to the vision. His own son and successor, [Hazrat Mirza Bashir-ud-Din, Khalifatul Masih IIra] visited London in 1924.” (Life of Ahmadas, p. 285)
Mentioning another promise of God Almighty about the expansion of his mission, the Promised Messiahas writes:
“The […] prophecy is in English, a language with which I am not acquainted. And the fact that I received a revelation in this language is in itself a miracle. It is:
‘I love you. I will give you a large party of Islam.’
“The first party would be from among those who were already Muslims, and the second would be of those who came from outside Islam, such as Hindus, European Christians, and American Christians, or from other peoples. […]
“Similarly, for some time my Jamaat has been gaining acceptance among the traditional Christians of Europe and America. Only recently a respectable English gentleman of 200–202, Worth Street, New York, in the United States of America, whose earlier name was FL Anderson, but who has been named Hasan after he became a Muslim, wrote to me by his own hand to ask that his name be entered into my Jamaat. He reads my books that have been translated into English. He can read the Holy Quran in Arabic and can also write in Arabic.
“There are many more Westerners who are full of praise for this Jamaat, and express their agreement with it. For instance, Dr A George Baker of 404 Susquehanna Avenue, Philadelphia, USA, read about me in the Review of Religions, and wrote that he totally agrees with the views of this Imam, who has presented Islam to the world in exactly the same form as the Holy Prophetsa had done. And a woman from America wrote about me in her letter, ‘I love to look at his picture all the time; it appears to me to be exactly the picture of the Messiah.’
“Similarly, an English lady, whose earlier name was Elizabeth and who is the wife of a friend of ours, has also entered this Jamaat.
“Moreover, I constantly receive letters from America, England, Russia, and other countries, all of which I preserve in order to silence my bigoted critics. Not a single one of them has been discarded and day by day there seems to be a growing zeal among the people of these countries to establish contact with me.” (Barahin-e-Ahmadiyya Part V, pp. 131-132)
Unfolding how the people of Europe and America thronged towards Ahmadiyyat, Prophet Ahmadas states:
“The wonder is that they learn about our Jamaat on their own and the Gracious and Merciful Lord is infusing their hearts with love and devotion and inspiring a good opinion to surge within them which shows that the people of Europe and America are preparing to enter our Jamaat. They hold it in great esteem and are as happy to learn about it as one who – nearing death from hunger and thirst –suddenly discovers food and water.” (Ibid.)
Conclusion
By the Grace of Allah, the Jamaat of Prophet Ahmadas has now become a powerful religious force in the world. Every Ahmadi, regardless of age or position, views himself as a missionary prepared to respond to the call of the Promised Messiahas, as “The time is not far – nay, it is very near – when you will witness armies of angels descending from the Heaven upon the hearts of Asia, Europe, and America.” (The Victory of Islam, pp. 56-57)