In the Service of Islam

In the Service of Islam

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CLAIM AS MUJADDID

BORN IN 1835 in Qadian, India, the Founder had, by the 1880's, become known for his piety, sterling character, extremely religious life-style, and absorption in prayer and other requirements of Islam, and his deep and life-long study of the Holy Qur'an and other Islamic literature. He was also known and highly regarded for his services in the defense of Islam, which was, in the nineteenth century CE, under severe attack from Christian missionaries and orientalists, and like-minded opponents of Islam (such as the Hindu Arya Samaj). So that when, during the years 1880-1884, he wrote his famous book Baraheen-e-Ahmadiyya, it was acclaimed by all and sundry among the Muslims (including the Ulema) as the best book on Islam in a long time. To quote Maulvi Muhammad Hussain Batalvi, leader of the then powerful and active Ahle Hadith Muslims:

'In our opinion, this book in this age, and to meet the present circumstances, is such that the like of it has not been written up to this time in Islam, and nothing can be said about the future, Allah may (if He wishes) bring about another matter (like this). Its author, too, has proved himself to be firmly staunch in helping the cause of Islam with his money, with his pen and his tongue, and with his personal religious experiences³. And he has done this (service) to such an extent that an example of it is rarely met with among the Muslims who have gone before. If anyone considers these words of ours to be Asiatic exaggeration, let him point out to us at least one such book as has in it such forceful refutation of all classes of the opponents of Islam, especially the Arya Samaj, and let him give us the particulars of two or three persons as the helpers of the cause of Islam who, besides serving Islam with their money and their personal efforts and their pens and their tongues, have also come forward with their religious experiences and have proclaimed, as against the opponents of Islam and the deniers of revelation, the manly challenge that whoever doubted the truth of revelation might come to them and witness the truth thereof, and have made (even) the non-Muslims witness the same.' (Isha'at-us-Sunnah, Vol. 7, June-November l884; italics ours).

Could there be a more glowing testimonial to the man, his services to Islam and his spiritual attainments than the above, from the pen of an eminent Aalim (Maulana) of the time?

It should be evident from the above enthusiastic testimonial that the Founder had by then laid claim to Divine revelation. No exception had been taken to it by any religious leader of Islam. And how could any exception be taken, because:

(a) The Holy Qur'an and the Hadith speak of revelation continuing in Islam as evidence of its being the only religion (others having been corrupted) which can make man attain to Allah, the sign of which always was that Allah spoke to such a man. What terminated with the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was wahy an-nubuwwat (the revelation of prophethood which brought revealed books). But wahy al-wilayat (the revelation of sainthood) continues in Islam as the sign of its acceptance to Allah.

(b) Several saints, before Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Sahib, had also laid claim to receiving revelation, and they are revered throughout the world of Islam.

Mujaddid

In the same masterly book Baraheen-e-Ahmadiyya, Hazrat Mirza Sahib had mentioned towards the end that he had been appointed by Allah to be the Mujaddid (reformer) of the fourteenth century Hijra. And nobody took exception to that. Again, how could anybody do that, because the institution of Mujaddid is well-recognized and well-established in Islam? Apart from indirect references in the Holy Qur'an, the Holy Prophet's announcement is clear on the subject:

'Verily, Allah shall raise for this Ummat (community), at the beginning of every one hundred years, one who will reform for it its religion' (Abu Dawood, Kitab-us-Sunan, chapter 'Al-Malahim,' Vol. 2, p. 241).

The scholars of Hadith are unanimous in declaring this Hadith to be sound. And its correctness is further corroborated by the fact that in each century Hijra the Reformer of that century, sometimes more than one, laid claim to be the Divinely appointed Mujaddid. These Mujaddids (whose list is given in the Appendix) were the most outstanding Muslim saints of their times. And so was Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Sahib. That is why no exception was taken to his claim. It is worth noting that no other person claimed to be the Mujaddid of the fourteenth century Hijra (which is now ended). So we ask the question, to which no reply has been given by any opponent of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Sahib: If he was not the Mujaddid of the fourteenth century Hijra, who else was?

And neither has any Muslim scholar had the courage to deny the correctness of the Hadith about Mujaddids or the truthfulness of those who claimed to be Mujaddids before Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Sahib.

The question remaining to be answered on our part is: After being accepted as Mujaddid and the recipient of Divine revelation by hundreds of thousands of Muslims, including outstanding Ulema, who joined him, and also by others who did not join him but took no exception to his claims, why was Hazrat Mirza Sahib later denounced and condemned by his opponents? For the answer, please see Chapter 3, 'The Promised Messiah.' But before that, certain preconditions for the advent of the Promised Messiah have to be explained, as in the next chapter.

AHMADIYYAT IN THE SERVICE OF ISLAM by N.A. Faruqui Ahmadiyya Anjuman Isha'at Islam, Lahore, Inc. 36911 Walnut Street, Newark California 94560 USA Copyright© by Ahmadiyya Anjuman Isha'at Islam Lahore, Inc. 1983. First published in 1983 by the Ahmadiyya Anjuman Isha'at Islam Lahore, Inc. (USA) 36911 Walnut Street Newark, California 94560 USA Library of Congress catalog car number: 83-71698 ISBN 0-913321-00-1 All rights reserved. Cover Design: Details of Wall Mosaics in the Mosque of El Bordeyhy (17th century) From Dover Pictorial Archive Series Arabic Art in Color (Dover 1978). Typeset by Linguatype Limited, Slough, Berks, England.

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	In the Service of Islam Indeks Islam \| Indeks Ahmadiyyah \| Indeks Lahore \| Indeks Artikel \| Tentang Pengarang ISNET Homepage \| MEDIA Homepage \| Program Kerja \| Koleksi \| Anggota
	CLAIM AS MUJADDID BORN IN 1835 in Qadian, India, the Founder had, by the 1880's, become known for his piety, sterling character, extremely religious life-style, and absorption in prayer and other requirements of Islam, and his deep and life-long study of the Holy Qur'an and other Islamic literature. He was also known and highly regarded for his services in the defense of Islam, which was, in the nineteenth century CE, under severe attack from Christian missionaries and orientalists, and like-minded opponents of Islam (such as the Hindu Arya Samaj). So that when, during the years 1880-1884, he wrote his famous book Baraheen-e-Ahmadiyya, it was acclaimed by all and sundry among the Muslims (including the Ulema) as the best book on Islam in a long time. To quote Maulvi Muhammad Hussain Batalvi, leader of the then powerful and active Ahle Hadith Muslims: 'In our opinion, this book in this age, and to meet the present circumstances, is such that the like of it has not been written up to this time in Islam, and nothing can be said about the future, Allah may (if He wishes) bring about another matter (like this). Its author, too, has proved himself to be firmly staunch in helping the cause of Islam with his money, with his pen and his tongue, and with his personal religious experiences³. And he has done this (service) to such an extent that an example of it is rarely met with among the Muslims who have gone before. If anyone considers these words of ours to be Asiatic exaggeration, let him point out to us at least one such book as has in it such forceful refutation of all classes of the opponents of Islam, especially the Arya Samaj, and let him give us the particulars of two or three persons as the helpers of the cause of Islam who, besides serving Islam with their money and their personal efforts and their pens and their tongues, have also come forward with their religious experiences and have proclaimed, as against the opponents of Islam and the deniers of revelation, the manly challenge that whoever doubted the truth of revelation might come to them and witness the truth thereof, and have made (even) the non-Muslims witness the same.' (Isha'at-us-Sunnah, Vol. 7, June-November l884; italics ours). Could there be a more glowing testimonial to the man, his services to Islam and his spiritual attainments than the above, from the pen of an eminent Aalim (Maulana) of the time? It should be evident from the above enthusiastic testimonial that the Founder had by then laid claim to Divine revelation. No exception had been taken to it by any religious leader of Islam. And how could any exception be taken, because: (a) The Holy Qur'an and the Hadith speak of revelation continuing in Islam as evidence of its being the only religion (others having been corrupted) which can make man attain to Allah, the sign of which always was that Allah spoke to such a man. What terminated with the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was wahy an-nubuwwat (the revelation of prophethood which brought revealed books). But wahy al-wilayat (the revelation of sainthood) continues in Islam as the sign of its acceptance to Allah. (b) Several saints, before Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Sahib, had also laid claim to receiving revelation, and they are revered throughout the world of Islam. Mujaddid In the same masterly book Baraheen-e-Ahmadiyya, Hazrat Mirza Sahib had mentioned towards the end that he had been appointed by Allah to be the Mujaddid (reformer) of the fourteenth century Hijra. And nobody took exception to that. Again, how could anybody do that, because the institution of Mujaddid is well-recognized and well-established in Islam? Apart from indirect references in the Holy Qur'an, the Holy Prophet's announcement is clear on the subject: 'Verily, Allah shall raise for this Ummat (community), at the beginning of every one hundred years, one who will reform for it its religion' (Abu Dawood, Kitab-us-Sunan, chapter 'Al-Malahim,' Vol. 2, p. 241). The scholars of Hadith are unanimous in declaring this Hadith to be sound. And its correctness is further corroborated by the fact that in each century Hijra the Reformer of that century, sometimes more than one, laid claim to be the Divinely appointed Mujaddid. These Mujaddids (whose list is given in the Appendix) were the most outstanding Muslim saints of their times. And so was Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Sahib. That is why no exception was taken to his claim. It is worth noting that no other person claimed to be the Mujaddid of the fourteenth century Hijra (which is now ended). So we ask the question, to which no reply has been given by any opponent of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Sahib: If he was not the Mujaddid of the fourteenth century Hijra, who else was? And neither has any Muslim scholar had the courage to deny the correctness of the Hadith about Mujaddids or the truthfulness of those who claimed to be Mujaddids before Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Sahib. The question remaining to be answered on our part is: After being accepted as Mujaddid and the recipient of Divine revelation by hundreds of thousands of Muslims, including outstanding Ulema, who joined him, and also by others who did not join him but took no exception to his claims, why was Hazrat Mirza Sahib later denounced and condemned by his opponents? For the answer, please see Chapter 3, 'The Promised Messiah.' But before that, certain preconditions for the advent of the Promised Messiah have to be explained, as in the next chapter.
	AHMADIYYAT IN THE SERVICE OF ISLAM by N.A. Faruqui Ahmadiyya Anjuman Isha'at Islam, Lahore, Inc. 36911 Walnut Street, Newark California 94560 USA Copyright© by Ahmadiyya Anjuman Isha'at Islam Lahore, Inc. 1983. First published in 1983 by the Ahmadiyya Anjuman Isha'at Islam Lahore, Inc. (USA) 36911 Walnut Street Newark, California 94560 USA Library of Congress catalog car number: 83-71698 ISBN 0-913321-00-1 All rights reserved. Cover Design: Details of Wall Mosaics in the Mosque of El Bordeyhy (17th century) From Dover Pictorial Archive Series Arabic Art in Color (Dover 1978). Typeset by Linguatype Limited, Slough, Berks, England.
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