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
Prophets are those chosen few of God Almighty who are distinguished by their unshakeable faith in the Creator. They manifest absolute love for Allah the Almighty and are blessed with an unbreakable divine bond that shapes every aspect of their life.
The unparalleled commitment and profound admiration demonstrated by the messengers of God surpasses all earthly affections and compulsions. Their Maker is the object of their highest commitment, leading them to carry out their holy task with complete devotion and selflessness.
No one excelled Prophet Muhammadsa in manifesting love and affection for God Almighty. The entire life of the Holy Prophetsa is an epitome of perfect obedience and submission to God’s will, making it a testament to divine love. The very foundation of Prophet Muhammad’ssa mission was established on his close relationship with Allah the Almighty, guiding every word and action of his. Consequently, the disbelieving Quraish and the idol worshipers of Mecca were compelled to say:
أِنَّ مُحَمَّدًا عَشِقَ رَبَّہٗ
“Surely, Muhammad[sa] is passionately in love with his Lord.” (Al-Munqidh min al-Dalal by Imam Al-Ghazali, p. 265)
The Holy Prophetsa, through the teachings of the Holy Quran and the examples of his blessed sunnah, demonstrated the significance of expressing one’s love for the Supreme Being of Allah, ultimately satiating many parched souls and inspiring all the more to follow his deep admiration for God Almighty. Prophet Muhammad’ssa absolute trust in God is a timeless model of spiritual greatness, serving as a reminder to humanity of the beauty of a life lived in service to Allah as well as the transformational power of divine love. The following prayer of the Holy Prophetsa is a reflection of his profound reverence to God Almighty:
اَللّٰھُمَّ اِنِّيْ أَسْأَلُكَ حُبَّکَ وَ حُبَّ مَنْ يُّحِبُّکَ وَ عَمَلَ الَّذِيْ يُبَلِّغُنِيْ حُبَّکَ،اَللّٰھُمَّ اجْعَلْ حُبَّکَ اَحَبَّ اِلَيَّ مِنْ نَفْسِي وَاَھْلِيْ وَ مِنَ الْمَاءِ الْبَارِدْ
“O Allah! Bestow upon me Thy divine love, along with the love of those who love Thee, and the love of those deeds which may enable me to attain Thy love. O Allah! Make Thy love dearer to me than my life, my family, and the most refreshing cold water.” (Jami‘ at-Tirmidhi, Hadith 3490)
Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmadas, the Promised Messiah and Mahdi, followed Hazrat Muhammadsa like a never-departing shadow and carried on his legacy to the people of this age.
A community to establish the love of God
Providing insight into the purpose of founding the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, Hazrat Maulana Abdur Rahim Dardra narrates:
“In March 1889, [Prophet] Ahmadas went to Ludhiana, and there issued a leaflet on the fourth of that month. In it, he said that he would stay in the town up to 25 March at a house near that of Munshi Ahmad Jan of Muhalla Jadid. Those who wished to become his followers should for this purpose reach Ludhiana after 20 March. After 25 March, such people should come to Qadian [to take bai‘at]. He also explained the meaning, the necessity and the importance of bai‘at. He also proposed to keep a regular record of the name and address of every follower. He said further:
“‘God wishes to found a Community of the Faithful, to manifest His Glory and Power. He will make the Community grow and prosper to establish the Love of God, righteousness, purity, piety, peace and goodwill among men. This shall be a group of men devoted to God. He shall strengthen them with His own Spirit, and bless them and purify them. […]’” (Life of Ahmadas, p. 203)
The present head of Ahmadiyya Jamaat, Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad, Khalifatul Masih Vaa said:
“In fact, Allah the Almighty has vouchsafed His promise to the Promised Messiahas that He shall grant him and his Jamaat victories either very soon or after some time.
“Indeed, if we bring about a revolutionary change within ourselves; worship Allah the Almighty alone and make Him our sole objective and our beloved whilst understanding the true spirit of لَآاِلٰہَ اِلَّا اللّٰہُ; if we give precedence to our love for God Almighty and to attaining Him over our love for the world, then we can bring about this revolutionary change sooner. Allah the Almighty is not dependent on anything and has certain conditions in His promises [that need to be fulfilled]. Thus, we will need to pledge to instil a permanent change within ourselves.” (Friday Sermon, 14 April 2023; Al Hakam, 12 May 2023, Vol. 6, Issue 269)
Advising his Community to truly revere God Almighty, the Promised Messiahas says:
“Anyone can claim to love God, but only those love Him, whose devotion is testified to by heaven. Everyone claims that their religion is true, but only the religion of such a one is true who is bestowed heavenly light in this very life. Everyone claims that they will attain salvation, but only such a person is true in their word who sees the heavenly light of salvation in this very world. Strive, therefore, to become the beloved of God so that you may be saved from every affliction.” (Noah’s Ark, p. 133)
Never forsake God
Hazrat Maulvi Abdul Karimra Sialkotinarrates:
“Whether it was the ungrateful and impetuous people of Delhi, or whether in the face of the collective, novel, hurtful efforts of opponents in Patiala, Jalandhar, Kapurthala, Amritsar, Lahore and Sialkot, the astonishing patience, forbearance and steadfastness of His Holiness, [the Promised Messiahas] is such that he has never, either in seclusion or in public, even slightly mentioned that so and so person or community has committed such and such impropriety against him or that such and such person has made so and so comments about him. I could always see, quite clearly, that he was a mountain; feeble, cowardly mice simply do not have the capacity to make burrows in this mountain. On one occasion, His Holinessas said in Jalandhar:
“‘At a time of trial, it is the weak-hearted from among my Community for whom I worry. My state of affairs is such that even if I were to hear a clear voice saying, “You are forsaken and not a single one of your desires will be fulfilled,” I swear by God’s Being that there would be no decrease in my passion and love for God or in my service to the Faith, because I have already seen God.’
“Then, he recited the following verse:
ھَلْ تَعْلَمُ لَہٗ سَمِيًّا
“‘Dost thou know any equal of His?’ [Surah Maryam, Ch.19: V.66]” (Life of the Promised Messiahas, p. 90)
One should be sincere in the love of God Almighty and bear all hardships with patience. In this regard, the Promised Messiahas said:
“Those people who are impatient fall into the clutches of Satan. A righteous person must battle with impatience as well. In Bustan, there is mention of a worshipper. Whenever this individual stood for worship, he would hear an angel’s voice from the unseen saying: ‘You have been rejected and forsaken.’ On a certain occasion, one of his disciples heard this voice from the unseen and said: ‘Now the verdict has been passed. What then is the use of futile action?’ The man wept profusely and said: ‘If I am to leave God, where else should I go? If accursed I am, then so be it. At least I am fortunate enough to be called accursed.’ These discussions were still underway with his disciple, when a voice was heard saying: ‘You have been accepted.’ So all this was the result of sincerity and patience, which is a condition for one who is righteous.” (Malfuzat [English], Vol. 1, p. 23)
Prophet Ahmadas further said:
“It gives me great pain to observe that in this day and age, there is no love for worship, virtue and piety. The reason for this is the poisonous, widespread effect of evil custom. It is for this reason that the love of Allah Almighty is falling cold and people do not experience the pleasure they ought to in worship. There is nothing (in the world) which according to the design of Allah Almighty does not give pleasure or satisfaction in some form. […]
“Allah the Exalted has created man so that he may worship Him. Why then would there be no pleasure and delight in this worship? There is definitely pleasure and delight in worship, if only there were those who would take it.” (Ibid., p. 156)
Wake-up call
Prophet Ahmadas encouraged many to develop a close spiritual bond with Allah the Almighty and manifested in his words and actions the immense love he possessed for the Eternal Lord. In one of his writings, the Promised Messiahas states:
“How unfortunate is the man, who even now, is unaware that there is a God who has power over all things. Our paradise lies in our God. Our highest delight is in our God for we have seen Him and found every beauty in Him. This wealth is worth procuring though one might have to lay down one’s life to procure it. This ruby is worth purchasing though one may have to lose oneself to acquire it. O ye, who are deprived! Hasten to this fountain as it will satiate you. It is this fountain of life that will save you. What am I to do? How shall I impress the hearts with this good news? What sort of a drum am I to beat in the streets in order to make the announcement that this is your God, so that people might hear? What remedy shall I apply to the ears of the people so that they should listen?” (Noah’s Ark, p. 35)
Prophet Ahmadas said:
“Islam is a truly blessed faith that guides man to the God who is neither born from the womb of a woman like the god of Christians, nor is He so powerless that He cannot grant salvation like the god of the Aryas. […] The Almighty God of Islam is so Holy and Powerful that it would be impossible for anyone on the face of the Earth to find any flaw in Him. Our God is the Creator of all the worlds. He is free from all imperfections and defects, as the one who possesses any imperfection cannot be considered God.” (Al Hakam, 6 January 1908, pp. 2-3)
God: Our highest delight
The Promised Messiahas lacked interest in worldly affairs, and his father, despite all his efforts, could not convince him to chase material pursuits. Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmadra MA relates that a Sikh landlord, whose estate neighboured Qadian, once recounted an incident that a government official enquired of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Murtaza Sahib regarding Hazrat Ahmad’sas whereabouts. With a smile on his face, the Promised Messiah’sas father replied:
“Yes, I have a younger son. But he is very shy like newlywed brides, and he is seldom seen about. If anyone desires to see him, he is only to be found in some corner of the mosque for he is a maseetar [i.e., devoted to prayer].” (Sirat-e-Tayyibah, pp. 6-7)
Consequently, Prophet Ahmadas, from a very early age, possessed such profound attraction to God Almighty that was second to none in his time. Huzooras says:
“My father gave up all hope for me and regarded me as little better than a guest who ate his bread and did nothing for him. Like a kind father he painted before me worldly greatness in very vivid colours, but in this matter found me quite deaf and blind. For me these pleasures had no attraction because I was attracted to the source of all enjoyment – the love of God.” (Ahmad[as], The Guided One, p. 30)
Iain Adamson relates, “[Prophet] Ahmad[as] was interested in a different life. He recalled that when he was ‘Quite young, I [the Promised Messiahas] found myself powerfully attracted towards my Lord and there dawned upon me the dim consciousness of a future when God would use me as His instrument in carrying out one of His great plans. I was like gold hidden in dust which, at some time in the future, was to display its brightness.’” (Ibid.)
Servant of the Highest Ruler
An old Hindu, after mentioning his father’s tireless efforts to persuade young Ahmadas into securing some worldly profession, relates:
“All he [the Promised Messiahas] had to say to his father’s repeated requests was, ‘Father, let me know whether one who is the servant of the Ruler of the Rulers, should care a bit for these worldly services. All the same, father, you will always find me amenable to the least of your wishes.’” (The Review of Religions [English], January & February 1922; Al Hakam, 14 January 2022, Vol. 5, Issue 200)
Adoring God’s nature
Prophet Ahmadas visited the hill station Dalhousie several times throughout his early years. Discussing his impressions of these excursions, the Promised Messiahas used to say:
“Whenever I would go to Dalhousie, upon seeing the lush green hills and flowing waters, a spontaneous fervour to praise Allah the Almighty would arise within me, and the worship of God would become a sheer delight for me.” (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 1, p. 76)
Describing Prophet Ahmad’sas visits to Dalhousie, Hazrat Abdur Rahim Dardra narrates:
“Not only did Ahmadas come in contact with the outside world [in Dalhousie], but the majestic mountain scenery with its beautiful verdure and running water filled his pure heart with the infinite beauty and glory of God. He loved the solitude of the mountains and felt that there he was nearer to his Creator.” (Life of Ahmadas, p. 45)
Conclusion
The entire life of Prophet Ahmadas radiated with love for God Almighty, motivating his followers through his words and actions to follow suit, and hence, the Promised Messiahas says, “If you become one with God, rest assured that God too will be yours. God Almighty shall remain awake for you as you sleep. God shall watch over your enemy and frustrate their designs, while you are unmindful of him. You still do not know the extent of God’s powers. Had you known, not a single day would you have grieved over the world. Does he who owns a treasure weep, cry and become sorrowful unto death over the loss of a single coin? Had you been aware of this treasure and knew that at every time of need, God is able to fulfil your requirements, why would you look to the world so restlessly? God is a precious treasure; appreciate Him accordingly, for He is your Helper at every step. You are nothing without Him, nor do your resources and your schemes amount to anything.” (Noah’s Ark, pp. 35-36)