Many prophets of God had been sent for the purpose we have just briefly analyzed. The last of them who brought the most comprehensive and most perfect codes of conduct is Muhammad Mustaphasaw. The name of the rules and regulations sent through him as known to us all is the Holy Qur’an. Despite the perfectness of this Holy Book, man today, especially the supposed followers of this Law still continue in the old odd way of human being- disobedience to the norm.
This is confirmed in form of a Prophecy that:
And the Messenger will say, ‘O my Lord, my people indeed treated this Qur’an as a discarded thing
Q25:31
But this code of conduct, being the last and the most perfect, the like of which will never emerge till eternity, God promises to protect and safeguard it. So much, that no extraneous teaching or law will have its way into its pristine teachings. This is confirmed through what Allah says that:
Verily, We Ourself have sent down this Exhortation, and most surely We will be its Guardian
Q15:10
A major way through which Allah uses to impress His teaching upon His servants is by sending prophets to the world. Having foreseen what would be done to the teachings of Holy Qur’an, and of course, which is the teaching of the Holy Prophet Muhammadsaw, He had readily made promises through the Holy Prophet himself of the way the situation would be rescued.
All of us are living witnesses of the condition of the Muslims, and indeed the entire world today. Without reading through any book of history, any book of tradition, a blind can also testify to the fact that the Holy Qur’an has been abandoned by the vast majority of its adherent. And the assurance given by Allah to sanitize the situation is that He would send the Promised Messiahas. This promise is not limited to Islamic books and exegesis. It cuts across all the religious chronicles. Therefore, that the Promised One will arrive is not limited to the Muslims circles, but he is also being expected by other followers of great religions of the world. This tradition of somebody coming for the rejuvenation of faith is also found among the traditional religions of Africa.
However, one holy personage has already been sent to re-touch the mind of man with the brush and paint of the Holy Qur’an, being the last law to abide by man till the end of time. That holy personage is Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadianas. He lived from 1835 through 1908 and established Ahmadiyya Community in March 1889, when he was about 54 years of age. Ghulam Ahmadas belonged to a noble and ancient Mughal family of the Punjab which had migrated to India from Samarkand in or about the reign of the Emperor Babar. The first ancestor of Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmadas to come to India was Mirza Hadi Baig.
Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmadas of Qadian, the Holy Founder of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community received his first revelation regarding his appointment as a Divine Reformer in 1882. In obedience to Divine command he declared that he was the Mujaddid (Reformer) of the 14th century of the Islamic era. In 1891 he claimed, on the basis of Divine revelation to be the Promised Messiah and Mahdi whose advent was foretold by the Holy Prophet Muhammadsaw. He asserted that Almighty God had sent him to give spiritual life to the people.
Having briefly introduced us to who this claimant to the office of Promised Messiah was, his mission and responsibility vis-à-vis the community he established; there is need to look at the proof of his truthfulness. This would be advantageous in two ways. Firstly, those of us who are already believers in him would be more integrated and have more certainty like Hadhrat Ibrahimas who says:
And remember when Abraham said, ‘My Lord, show me how Thou givest life to the dead.’ He said, ‘Hast thou not believed?’ He said, ‘Yes, but I ask this that my heart may be at rest.’ He answered, ‘Take four birds and make them attached to thyself. Then put each of them on a hill; then call them; they will come to thee in haste. And know that Allah is Mighty, Wise (Q2:261)
Secondly, that those who are still doubtful of his claim may be relieved of any kind of excuse they may want to advance in rejecting this holy personage from God.
This little time we have, will however not be enough to delve more into the different subjects of proof of truthfulness of the Promised Messiahas; and according to the limitation of this assignment, we shall be taking our proofs from the Holy Qur’an and Ahadith. Even then we will only take a drop from ocean because the entire Qur’an is the proof of the truthfulness of the Promised Messiahas.
The first evidence that readily come to mind from the Holy Qur’an has to do with the time of advent of the Promised Messiahas. A prophet of God is sent when the scale of corruption of man has already outweighed his good deeds. This was what happened at different period and era during which all the prophets of God were sent. Allah says in the Holy Qur’an chapter 30 verse 42 that:
Corruption has appeared on land and sea because of what men’s hands have wrought, that He may make them taste the fruit of some of their doings, so that they may turn back from evil.
Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih IIra says of this point in his book, Invitation to Ahmadiyya pg. 63 that:
The first argument bearing on the truth or falsehood of a claimant to divine leadership is based on the need of the hour. A well- established divine law tells us that an act of God is neither out of place nor out of time. A new idea does not descend from God unless the world is in need of it. On the other hand, when the need for an idea has become clear, it can be withheld no longer. The law holds good in the physical world. There is no physical need that God has left unprovided for. The smallest need is included in the divine design. What is true of the physical needs of man must also be true of his spiritual needs. It would be against the beneficence and bounty of God were it not so. It is inconceivable that He should provide for the body of man but not for his spirit. The body is mortal. Its needs are short-lived. Its function and purpose are limited. In contrast the spirit is destined for eternal life. The aspirations of the spirit are without limit. The ends which the spirit seeks and the means by which it seeks them can be infinite.
He further makes it more elaborate in pg. 70 that:
Now, dear reader, may God open your heart to the acceptance of His truth! It is up to you to see whether the present is not the time for the advent of a divine reformer. It appears from the Traditions that the need for such a reformer recurs every hundred years. Every hundred years we are to have a reformer to interpret the Holy Quran and Islam to all and sundry. But now it is not the beginning but the middle of a century. Even if we ignore the Prophet's Tradition, we cannot ignore facts as we find them. Looking at facts, we are persuaded at once that a reformer is surely needed at this time. If Muslims and other nations were spiritually as well off as they might be, if they could be trusted to go on without divine guidance, we would not have needed to pay any attention to any claimant to spiritual office. But if the spiritual condition of Muslims demands a reformer and if the enemies of Islam have exceeded all previous records of enmity, we have to admit that the present is the time for a divine reformer to come, to teach Islam again, to fight its enemies, to bring Muslims back to the true Islam, to re-create in their hearts the old love of religion; in short, to demonstrate once again the living power of Islam. On the general condition of Muslims today and the aims of the enemies of Islam, there can be no two opinions. Everyone who has no cause to hide the truth, everyone who can discriminate between good and evil, will admit that intellectually as well as spiritually, in belief as well as in action, Muslims have strayed far from Islam.
Hadith also talks of this period of decadence among Muslims:
- حدثنا عبد الله حدثني أبي حدثنا وكيع حدثنا الأعمش عن سالم بن أبي الجعد عن زياد بن لبيد قال:
-ذكر النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم شيئا فقال وذاك عند أوان ذهاب العلم قال قلنا يا رسول الله وكيف يذهب العلم ونحن نقرأ القرآن ونِقرئه أبناءنا ويُقرئه أبناؤنا أبناءهم إلى يوم القيامة قال ثكلتك أمك يا ابن أم لبيد إن كنت لأراك من أفقه رجل بالمدينة أوليس هذه اليهود والنصارى يقرؤون التوراة والإنجيل لا ينتفعون مما فيهما بشيء.
.Musnad Ahmad Bin Hambal Vol. 4
Can we all bear witness that our own period too is also the continuation of those evil days when no one pay attention to the purpose of life but only to dine, wine, sing and dance.
Having established that the time, according to the Holy Quran, is also bearing witness to the truthfulness of Hadhrat Promised Messiahas, there is need to proof whose head does the cap of messiah fits for the work of reformation. Without much ado, that one will only be able to tell us to do what is good who has the audacity and full authority to cite his life example as illustration for others to follow. Reading through the Holy Qur’an, it is the position and claim of every true prophet of God that his people should flash back to his personal life from childhood till the time of claim to gauge his seriousness and truthfulness.
The Holy Quran commands the Chief Prophetsaw that:
And when Our clear Signs are recited unto them, those who look not for the meeting with Us say, ‘Bring a Qur’an other than this or change it.’ Say, ‘It is not for me to change it of my own accord. I only follow what is revealed to me. Indeed, I fear, if I disobey my Lord, the punishment of an awful day.’ Say, ‘If Allah had so willed, I should not have recited it to you nor would He have made it known to you. I have indeed lived among you a whole lifetime before this. Will you not then understand?’ (12:16-17)
The criterion set forth in these verses is the high moral status of one appointed by Allah. If morally a person is found wanting, God would never have appointed such as a guide for others to follow. This criterion therefore is always alive and fresh to judge the truthfulness of the Promised Messiahas. Although this writer was not a living witness to the life of Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmadas, yet what we read from those who were closer to him from among the family members, neighbours and friends, even those who latter opposed him, all bear witness that he indeed was an epitome of the teachings of the Holy Qur’an and the morals of the Holy Prophetsaw.
Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih IIrd writes:
Everything is bound by continuity. It grows. It cannot jump from one stage to another. Without going through the stages which lie in between. A good man becomes good and attains goodness by stages. So a bad man becomes bad and drops to a depth of evil by stages. A man who has been running westward will not suddenly find himself at the eastern horizon. A man who has been running southward will not find himself at the northern horizon (invitation to Ahmadiyya, pg. 122-123)
He latter goes on to give a very apt interpretation and intent of the above Quranic criterion: Holy Prophetsaw was made to declare:
I have spent a lifetime among you. I was a child and I grew up in your midst. I became an adult and I lived among you. I arrived at middle age and I am among you. You have seen me in public and in private. Whatever I have said or done is known to you. There is none amongst you who imputed to me before this any lies, excesses, intrigues, fabrications, transgressions, any attempt to seek power or dominion over others. You have observed me in many different contexts and have tested and tried me in many different ways. In every context and in every way you found me stable and steadfast in my regard for truth and honesty. You found me free from every evil, every impurity. My friends as well as my present enemies knew and addressed me as the 'trusted' or the truthful one. I could be trusted for honesty and truthfulness until yesterday. I could not lie about anything. I would sacrifice myself for the sake of truth. My life, in fact, was an honour and embellishment for truth. You trusted me in all things, great and small. You accepted anything I told you. But now suddenly you turn on me and tell me I am the worst of human beings, the most hardened liar, and so on. I did not lie about men, but now suddenly have I started Iying about God? Is such a sudden change ill one's character possible? Does human experience offer any example of it? If I had been truthful and trustworthy for a day or so or even for a year or so, you could have said I had put on an appearance, had adopted an external bearing, to mislead and to misguide others. But I could not have maintained such an appearance for a lifetime. You have seen me as Child and as man. Can a Child put on an appearance of good conduct? The years of childhood are the years of innocence. No child can put on an appearance of conduct which is not natural to him. Then during adolescence when one is subject to impulses and passions, how could I conceal my real character behind a facade? You must think and tell me how I could possibly fabricate a character which was not my own. If on thinking about it you find all my earlier life spotless and clean, an embodiment, in fact, of integrity and honesty, then you have no right to brand me a liar and a dishonest person today. Seeing the sun you cannot deny that it is day. Seeing its light you cannot complain of darkness. Do you need evidence of my truth? My life until today lies open before you. What more evidence do you need? My character is my witness. My life is my evidence. Consult your conscience; hear your own inner voice. You will hear it say to you that my life is truth personified. I am the truth and the truth is me. I honour truth and truth honours me. To prove my truth I need no argument, because I am my own argument. If you want the proof of the sun, you have to look at the sun. The proof of the sun is the sun. (Invitation to Ahmadiyya, pg 123-124)
The argument of truthfulness of Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmadas citing his life character as a witness is also within the ambit of the above. His life history is opened for all seekers of truth to verify how he lived his life before prophethood.
The last point within the time frame of this topic is the place of the advent or origin of the Promised Messiahas. First and foremost, it should be well established that Allah alone decides where and who deserves to take the rare mantle of prophethood. He says:
And when there comes to them a Sign, they say, ‘We will not believe until we are given the like of that which Allah’s Messengers have been given.’ Allah knows best where to place His Message. Surely, humiliation before Allah and a severe punishment shall smite the offenders because of their plotting. Q6:125
With regards to the place or origin Allah Himself gives and explains it:
He it is Who has raised among the Unlettered people a Messenger from among themselves who recites unto them His Signs, and purifies them, and teaches them the Book and wisdom, although they had been, before, in manifest misguidance;
And among others from among them who have not yet joined them. He is the Mighty, the Wise. Q62:3-4
Hadith Nabawi has the following to say on the above two verses:
حدثني عبد العزيز بن عبد الله قال: حدثني سليمان بن بلال، عن ثور، عن أبي الغيث، عن أبي هريرة رضي الله عنه قال:
كنا جلوسا عند النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم فأنزلت عليه سورة الجمعة: {وآخرين منهم لما يلحقوا بهم}. قال: قلت: من هم يا رسول الله؟ فلم يراجعه حتى سأل ثلاثا، وفينا سلمان الفارسي، وضع رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يده على سلمان، ثم قال: (لو كان الإيمان عند الثريا، لناله رجال، أو رجل، من
هؤلاء)
Narrated Abü Hurairah: While we were sitting with the Prophet when Surat Al-Jumu 'ah was revealed to him, and when the Verse, "And [He (Allah) has sent
him (Prophet Muhammad ) also to] others among them (Muslims) who have not yet joined them.....(V.62 :3) was recited by the Prophet , I said, "Who are they, 0 Allah's Messenger?" The Prophet did not reply till I repeated my question thrice. At that time, Salman Al-Fãrisi was with us. So Allah's Messenger j put his hand on
Salman, saying, "If Faith were at (the place of) Ath-Thuraiyya (pleiades, the highest star), even then (some men or man) from these people (i.e., Salman's folk) would have taken it.
The verse is:
Behold, you are those who are called upon to spend in the way of Allah; but of you there are some who are niggardly. And whoso is niggardly, is niggardly only against his own soul. And Allah is Self- Sufficient, and it is you that are needy. And if you turn your backs, He will bring in your stead a people other than you, then they will not be like you.
2|3184| حَدَّثَنَا عَلِيُّ بْنُ حُجْرٍ أَنْبَأَنَا إِسْمَعِيلُ بْنُ جَعْفَرٍ حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ جَعْفَرِ بْنِ نَجِيحٍ عَنْ الْعَلَاءِ بْنِ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ عَنْ أَبِيهِ عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ أَنَّهُ قَالَ قَالَ نَاسٌ مِنْ أَصْحَابِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ مَنْ هَؤُلَاءِ الَّذِينَ ذَكَرَ اللَّهُ إِنْ تَوَلَّيْنَا اسْتُبْدِلُوا بِنَا ثُمَّ لَمْ يَكُونُوا أَمْثَالَنَا قَالَ وَكَانَ سَلْمَانُ بِجَنْبِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ فَضَرَبَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فَخِذَ سَلْمَانَ وَقَالَ هَذَا وَأَصْحَابُهُ وَالَّذِي نَفْسِي بِيَدِهِ لَوْ كَانَ الْإِيمَانُ مَنُوطًا بِالثُّرَيَّا لَتَنَاوَلَهُ رِجَالٌ مِنْ فَارِسَ - Tirmidh.
I like to close this address with the saying of the Mirza Ghulam Ahmadas, the Promised Messiah himself that states:
Gentlemen, I would now say something about my own claims which I have published in this country. Reason and history bear witness to the fact that when the darkness of sin overshadows the earth, when all sorts of transgressions prevail in the world and evil is supreme, when the spiritual sensibilities are deadened, when the earth growing impure with immoral practices and the love of God being numbed in the hearts of men, a poisonous wind begins to blow, the mercy of God then ordains that life should again be breathed into dead hearts and the earth should be quickened afresh…
Since God created man, it has been His unchangeable law that He sheds His light upon mankind through one of their own number, so that there may be a unity and oneness among them. The person Who is thus chosen, receives the light of perfect Divine knowledge from God, drinks deep at the fountain of His perfect love, is spoken to by Him, made to walk in the path of His perfect pleasure and granted a deep-seated zeal to draw others to the light, the knowledge and the love which have been granted him. Thus drawn by him and sharing in his knowledge because of their close connection with him, other people are also kept back from sins and guided to the path of piety and righteousness. In accordance with this time-honored law, Almighty God prophesied by the mouth of His prophets that after nearly six thousand years from the time of Adam when great darkness would prevail upon earth and an irresistible flood of passions would make the love of God wane and iniquity predominate, God would, breathe into a man the soul of truth and love and knowledge spiritually after the likeness of Adam, and he would be called the Messiah, because God would Himself anoint his soul with the ointment of His love- This Messiah who on account of the promise of God concerning his appearance is called the Promised Messiah in sacred books, would, it is foretold, be made to stand against Satan, and between him and the evil one there would be a mighty struggle, the final struggle between good and evil. For this spiritual fight Satan would bring all his hosts into the field and gather together all his power and make use of all his resources. Never shall a fight like this have occurred between good and evil before, for on that day the tricks of Satan and the means by which he can mislead people, would all be exhausted. After a heavy fight, the Messiah of God would drive back the powers of darkness, and the glory, majesty, unity and holiness of God would be proclaimed upon earth and would continue to be so declared for a thousand years, the seventh day of the Holy books of God. Then will be the end. I am that Messiah: let him who will, accept me. (Claims and Teachings of Ahmad The Promised Messiah and Mahdi, 1922, pgs. 180-181; 183-185 ) (Emphasis mine.)
May Allah Never cease to be our Guide and Guard. May the peace be upon those who accept and follow guidance. Aameen.
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