In the Service of Islam
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TRIBUTES TO AHMADIYYAT
(BY NON- AHMADIS)
(BY NON- AHMADIS)
THE HISTORICAL work of great importance to Islam done by the Promised Messiah was carried on, after his death, by his able lieutenants such as Hazrat Maulana Nur-ud-Din Sahib, Hazrat Maulana Muhammad Ali Sahib and Hazrat Khwaja Kamal-ud Din Sahib. As a result, Ahmadiyyat became the unrecognized leader of enlightened Islam in the subcontinent and even abroad.
Even the extremist and misguided views of the Qadian (now Rabwah) Jamaat came to be tolerated, until its leader Mirza Mahmood Ahmad Sahib dabbled in politics and fell foul of the Ahrar group and later on of even the other Muslims. Thus began the troubles of Ahmadiyyat into which even our Lahore Jamaat was dragged in, although we believe in the complete finality of prophethood in the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) in that no new, and not even an old, prophet can possibly come after him, and we believe all those who recite the Kalima: La ilaha ill-Allah Muhammad-ur-Rasool Allah to be Muslims. However, before this unfortunate turn of events, our Lahore Ahmadi Jamaat enjoyed the confidence and appreciation of enlightened non-Ahmadis, as will be clear from the tributes which follow. In winning this esteem of the enlightened Muslims, the leading part was played by the founder of the Lahore Jamaat, Hazrat Maulana Muhammad Ali Sahib, MA LL.B., its President and Ameer from 1914, when he broke away along with the senior followers of the Promised Messiah (on the two issues mentioned above), till his death in 1951. He won acclaim and esteem through his most enlightened and timely presentation of Islam, in all its respects, and through his most valuable literature on all aspects of Islam, which still enjoys wide popularity among enlightened Muslims throughout the world. Tributes paid to him are therefore included below as they are also tributes to the Lahore Ahmadiyya Jamaat which backed and aided his work. Let us begin with the Christians, and that too their leading Churchmen and Orientalists, for a tribute won from your opponent is the most hard won tribute.
The Reverend H. Kraemer, in the periodical The Muslim World (April 1931, pp. 170-71), wrote:
'The Lahore group who have seceded from the original community on the ground that they venerated their founder as a Mujaddid (renewer of religion) and not as a prophet, are therefore more acceptable to public opinion in Islam. They have the same spirit of opposition against Christianity as the Qadianis, but their activity is more exclusively concentrated on the proclamation of Islam as the only religion that is in conformity with reason and nature. The crisis of Christian Europe gives them much material to expose this religion and to extol Islam É In their bitter aggressiveness they mete out the same treatment to Christianity that has often been meted out by Christianity to Islam É Their influence is far wider than their numbers would suggest. Their vindication of Islam is accepted by many educated Muslims as the form in which they can remain intellectually loyal to Islam.'
Other Western Christians wrote (as retranslated from Urdu):
'The Ahmadis are at present the most active propagandists of Islam in the world' (Indian Islam, p. 217).
'Ahmadiyyat is determined to prove the character of the Prophet to be free from all blame' (Influence of Islam, p. 1 09) .
'The Ahmadiyya Movement has become essentially a Moslem propagandist society, though still looked upon with suspicion by the orthodox "Ulema"' (Whither Islam?, p. 353).
'The Ahmadiyya are an interesting exception to the general prevailing communal spirit of Islam É In this respect they are a very remarkable group in modern Islam, the only group that has purely missionary aims. They are marked by a devotion, zeal and self-sacrifice that call for genuine admiration' (The Moslem World, April 1931, p. 170).
'They [the Ahmadiyya Jamaat] are certain that it [i.e., Islam] can appeal to the Western nations -an appeal which has succeeded to a certain extent even now. If it is thought that this success is not appreciable, then it must be remembered that in Hindustan [now India and Pakistan] itself where the Muslim nation is so large that no other country can compare with it, the propagation of Islam began very slowly' (Islam at the Crossroads, p. 108).
'Ahmadiyyat has divided up into two parts . . . The Lahore Jamaat, which is more active, has decided to test how far the presentation of Islam in the Western world would succeed' (Influence of Islam, p. 109).
Now we come to the Muslim non-Ahmadi opinion in which the pride of place must be given to the views of Qaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the Founder of Pakistan, who in a press conference in Kashmir in 1944 made his views clear:
'He said it is wholly wrong to put a ban on the participation of Ahmadis in the Muslim Conference or the All-India Muslim League. Whoever agrees with the objectives and programme of the Muslim League, and pays two annas as its annual membership fee, cannot be stopped from joining the Muslim League. He also advised the Kashmir Muslim Conference not to create factional differences but to collect all those who recite the Kalima under one flag' (the daily Inqilab, Lahore, dated 3rd June, 1944).
Next in order comes Doctor Sir Muhammad Iqbal, world-famous poet and philosopher. He was in the beginning a great admirer of the Founder of Ahmadiyyat (as already quoted in the previous chapter) and of the Movement, about which he said in 1910, when the aberration of Qadianism had not taken place:
'The true example of the Islamic character has appeared in the Punjab in the Jamaat of Qadian, (lecture at Stratchley Hall, MAO College, Aligarh, reproduced in Millat Baiza par ek Imrani Nazar, p. 84).
And he sent his son to the Ahmadiyya Jamaat's school at Qadian. Later, when the Qadiani Jamaat went wrong, Dr. Sir Muhammad Iqbal turned against it. Even then he made an exception in the case of the Lahore Jamaat:
'As for the Ahmadiyya Movement, in my view in the Lahore Jamaat I know many persons who are Muslims sensitive to the honour of Islam. And I am a sympathizer of their efforts for the propagation of Islam' (Iqbal Mama, Part 2, collection of the letters of Iqbal, p. 232).
Maulana Sayyid Abul Ala Maudoodi, founder of the Jamaat-e-Islami:
'Among the followers of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Sahib I do not include in one category the Qadianis and the Ahmadis [i.e., the Lahore Jamaat]. The Qadiani group is in my opinion outside the pale of Islam. But the Ahmadi group must be counted among the followers of Islam' (letter dated 23rd Muharram 1357 A.H.).
He gave the same verdict in his book Islami Riyaat ke Bunyadi Asool.
Dr. Asrar Ahmad, now an outstanding religious scholar in Pakistan, said:
'To call Lahori Ahmadis as kafirs is not in any way correct' (Tehrik-e-Jamaat-e-Islami, p. 190).
Allama Mahmood Shaltut, Shaikh-ul-Azhar, Cairo:
'Al-Ustad Shaltut said vehemently and with great emotion: Ahmadis are our Muslim brothers. They have faith in the same Kalima Tayyiba in which we have.' (East African Times, 1st September, 1963.)
Jamaat can do very easily É It is necessary that the Muslims should learn a lesson from the example set by the Ahmadis' (paper Tanzeem, Amritsar, dated 28th November, 1926).
Maulana Muhammad Ali Jauhar:
'To call Ahmadis kafirs (heretics) and apostates is cruelty and injustice when they call themselves Muslims. Now-a-days there are two Jamaats of the Ahmadis. The articles of faith of the Lahori Jamaat are wholly like those of the general body of Muslims. They believe Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Sahib to be a Mujaddid only. And perhaps even the Maulvis who are so fond of making others kafirs don't call them kafirs or apostates, (Daily Hamdard of Delhi, 1924).
Maulana Zafar Ali Khan, Lahore:
'The Muslims of Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya are rendering invaluable services to Islam. The sacrifices, devotion, good intentions and faith in Allah which they show are, if not without a parallel in Hindustan [now India and Pakistan], at least deserving of unlimited honour and appreciation. While our Pirs [hereditary Muslim leaders] and Sajjada Nashins [keepers of the tombs of saints] are lying down without any feelings or action, this Jamaat with its high resolve has demonstrated magnificent services to Islam' (the daily Zamindar of Lahore, dated 24th June, 1923).
Doctor Khalifa Abdul Hakeem MA, LL.B., Ph.D., Lahore:
'It is the result of the intensive efforts of the Ahmadi Jamaat that the Muslims who had signed their own death warrants in the 19th century are, by the grace of Allah, now feeling a current of new life in them and are proclaiming that the 20th century is, in every place where Muslims exist, the beginning of the renaissance of Islam' (magazine Istiqlal, Lahore, p. 10, quoted on p. 50 of the booklet of Shahadat-e-Haqqa).
Doctor Saifuddin Kitchlow, political leader of Amritsar:
'Although the number of members of this Jamaat is small, but the quantum of its deeds and sacrifices is very large. The work which the dis-spirited crores [a crore is equal to 10 millions] of Muslims cannot do, this well-disciplined small.'
Malik Abdul Qayoom, Bar-at-Law, Principal Law College, Lahore:
'The Ahmadi Jamaat is in this age the flag-bearer of the renaissance of Islam.'
Chaudhri Afzal Haq, President Majlis-e-Ahrar, Lahore:
'There are hundreds, nay thousands, of maktabs [religious schools] in Hindustan [now India and Pakistan] but there is no fervour for the propagation of Islam among non-Muslims except in the Ahmadi schools. Is it not a matter of surprise that in the Punjab there is no scheme for the propagation of Islam except in the Ahmadi Jamaat?' (book Fitna-e-Irtidad aur Political Qalabazian).
Mian Bashir Ahmad, Bar-at-Law, Lahore:
'The Ahmadis in this country have, in many languages, presented Islam to irreligious Muslims and non-Muslims. For the propagation of Islam they have started work on a permanent basis in England [Woking] and America, and produced literature in the English language. This Jamaat observes the Islamic injunctions about prayer, fasting, etc. They look at Islam from the rational angles. And they are restless and impatient to spread the message of Islam throughout the whole world' (the monthly magazine Bumayun, Lahore, May 1927).
Doctor Inamul Haq Ph.D., Head of the Department of Bangla Language, Rajshahi University, Bangla Desh:
'It is the great effort of the Ahmadis to convert the Christians of the East and West to Islam. The Jamaat's founder was Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian in East Punjab. In this age, of all the religious movements, this movement has the greatest influence. Outside Hindustan [now India and Pakistan] in various corners of the world, you find the missionaries of this movement who have dedicated their lives to the propagation of Islam. The followers of this Jamaat are progressive and highly educated people. That is why the influence of this movement is daily increasing in the English educated classes' (book Islam in East Pakistan, chapter on the Ahmadiyya movement).
Colonel Doctor Sir Hassan Suhrawardy, Vice-Chancellor, Calcutta University:
'I have for a long time been an admirer of the religious services rendered by the Ahmadiyya Anjuman Ishaat-i-Islam Lahore. Although I have heard Fatwas of kufr [verdicts of heresy] from biased Muslims, in my view the services to Islam rendered by this Anjuman and the work it is doing, are very valuable. I respect this Anjuman from the bottom of my heart' (message to the paper Paigham-e-Sulh, dated 15th December, 1933).
Sayyid Abdul Qadir MA, Professor of History, Islamia College, Lahore:
'From the beginning there has been a clash between the Cross and the Crescent. Christianity has not only been using its sword freely against the Muslims, but it has strained every effort with its tongue and its pen also to give a bad name to Islam and the Muslims. Those who have some knowledge of the Christian literature of the Middle Ages know that there was no falsehood or slander that the Christian authors did not use against Islam and the Holy Prophet. If the Muslims were to come to know a little bit of their slanders and calumnies they would lose control over themselves because of anger and sorrow É Whether the Ahmadis are Muslims or not, there is no need for me to join this controversy. But there is no doubt that the Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya Lahore, has striven hard to tear to pieces the falsehoods and slanders of the Christian missionaries. And they deserve hundreds, nay thousands, of thanks and appreciations. Because of this Jamaat's literature, not only have the shadows of falsehoods and slanders disappeared from the face of Islam, but its light is beginning to enlighten the dens of darkness in the West with Islam's bright and holy glory. And it is very necessary that this good work should be carried on a permanent basis. The general body of Muslims, oblivious of the demonic powers working against them, are busy in making one another kafirs [heretics]. In spite of that the Ahmadi Jamaat should remain engrossed in the work of producing literature and propagating Islam. And they should expect no reward or appreciation from any worldly power but only from Allah' (Paigham-e-Sulh, Lahore, December 1934).
Khwaja Hasan Nizami, religious leader of Delhi:
'For a long time I have admired the services to Islam being rendered by the Ahmadiyya Jamaat, Lahore. Although I do not believe in those tenets of this Jamaat which are against my old beliefs, even so the work which the Lahore Ahmadiyya Jamaat is doing, and has been doing, for the propagation of Islam deserves to be very highly praised É Whatever other people may say, I say with complete freedom that the work of this Jamaat for the defense of Islam, and for the propagation of Islam, is very likable and very good and very sincere' (Majaddid-e-Azam, Vol. 3, pp. 323-324).
Mr. Muhammad Marmaduke Pickthall, translator of the Holy Qur'an into English, and editor of the magazine Islamic Culture, Hyderabad, Deccan, India:
'Probably no man living has done longer or more valuable service for the cause of Islamic revival than Maulana Muhammad Ali of Lahore. His literary works, along with those of the late Khwaja Kamal-ud-Din, have given fame and distinction to the Ahmadiyya Movement. In our opinion the present volume [The Religion of Islam] is his finest work . It is a description of Al-Islam by one well-versed in the Sunnah who has on his mind the shame of the decadence of the past five centuries and in his heart the hope of the revival, of which signs can now be seen on every side. Without moving a hair's breadth from the traditional position with regard to worship and religious duties, the author shows a wide field in which changes are lawful and may be desirable because here the rules and practices are not based on an ordinance of the Qur'an or an edict of the Prophet (peace be on him) and should be altered when they cease to meet the needs of the community. Such a book is greatly needed at the present day when in many Muslim countries we see persons eager for the reformation and revival of Islam, making mistakes through lack of just this knowledge. This work is well-printed and handsomely got-up, a credit to the Lahore publishers. We recommend it as a stimulus to Islamic thought. To use an old-fashioned word, it is an edifying book' (Islamic Culture monthly, October 1936).
Mr. Justice Abdur Rashid, later the Chief Justice of Pakistan:
'It [the book The Religion of Islam] reveals great learning, deep research and a thorough mastery of the subject. The religion of Islam, its principles, laws and regulations have all been exhaustively discussed in this comprehensive book. The conclusions of the learned author are amply supported by authority, and every controversial doctrine has been critically examined' (letter dated 5th January, 1936).
Dr. Sir Muhammad Iqbal MA, Ph.D., Bar-at-Law, a philosopher, poet and scholar of religion:
'I have glanced through parts of it [the book The Religion of Islam] and find it an extremely useful work, almost indispensable to the students of Islam' (letter dated 6th February, 1936).
The Honourable Shaikh Sir Abdul Qadir, Bar-at-Law and Member of the Secretary of State for India's Council:
'The Ahmadiyya Anjuman Ishaat-e-Islam has for a long time been performing invaluable services for the propagation of Islam. Its leader and president is Maulana Muhammad Ali Sahib who, by publishing his English translation and commentary of the Holy Qur'an, has placed the English-knowing world under a deep debt of gratitude. He is a venerable gentleman who has true love for Islam. And the people of Islam, without distinction of party or creed, view with great respect his unselfish services to Islam, and appreciate them. This Jamaat has presented in foreign countries such a picture of Islam that Muslims of all sects recognize it' (book Islam ka Daur-e-Jadid, p. 50).
One could go on citing hundreds of more tributes to the Ahmadiyya Jamaat, Lahore, and its Founder, but for the sake of brevity we refrain from it. We would, however, ask a simple question to those who call us kafirs (disbelievers): How is it that such universally recognized and appreciated services to Islam have been rendered by a kafir Jamaat? We can only end this chapter on a Persian couplet of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Sahib:
'After the love of Allah' I am intoxicated by the love of Muhammad;
'If this is kufr (disbelief) then by Allah I am an inveterate kafir (disbeliever).'
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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