By A. Abdul Aziz.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Ahmadi Muslims believe in all the fundamentals in Islam, the Kalima, five Pillars of Islam, the six Articles of faith etc. In fact whatever was given to us by Allah and His beloved Holy Prophet, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, we accept and try our best to follow. We believe that there is no difference between us and what the Holy Prophet Muhammad, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, taught and practiced. But, there are many differences between us and present day Muslims. One of the purposes of the coming of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, may peace be upon him, the Promised Messiah and Mahdi, was to remove the innovations and customs which have crept into Islam over the years and bring Muslims back to the true teachings of Islam.

We are Muslims.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Our religion is Islam and everything that we believe is according to the Holy QurƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢an and the Sunnah and Ahadith of our beloved Holy Prophet, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him. That being the case, then why do we call ourselves Ahmadi Muslims and why have we created a sect in Islam?

Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, may peace be upon him, the Promised Messiah and Mahdi, was sent to revive Islam, remove the customs and innovations that over the years have crept into its teachings and to bring about unity and enable Islam to prevail over all religions.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ But the problem was that there were so many different sects in Islam.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ From the beginning of Islam, within twenty years of the Holy Prophet passing away, sects started to be formed as different groups of Muslims, out of regard for their special beliefs and outlook, adopting different names.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Two main groups developed ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” Sunnis and ShiƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ites and then from those groups came other groups, despite the Holy QurƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢an clearly informs us:

As for those who split up their religion and became divided into sects, thou hast no concern at all with them. Surely their case will come before Allah, then shall He inform them of what they used to do. ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Holy Qur’an, Chapter 6, verse 160

Although Islam is based on Unity; there is One God and One Brotherhood/sisterhood. Sadly, from very early on in the time of Hazrat Uthman, may Allah be pleased with him, that changed and now there are so many different sects in each major party. Our beloved Prophet, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, knew that Islam would be divided and described the state of Islam that it would become by saying:

“Verily, the Israelites were divided into 72 sects, but my people will be divided into 73 sects. All of them will be in the Fire except one.ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ The Companions asked, “Who are they, O Messenger of Allah?” The Holy Prophet, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-They are the people who will follow my Sunnah (practice) and that of my companionsƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ Tirmidhi

So with so many sects in Islam, the question is how can we return to the unity promised by the Holy Prophet, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,?

We know that Allah will keep protecting His faith over time; it is understood from sayings (Hadith) that the Holy Prophet Muhammad, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:

Verily God will continue for ever to raise for this Ummat (Community) in the beginning of every century one who will restore for it its faithƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  Abu Daud ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” Kitabul-Fitan

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ From this tradition which supports the verse of the Holy QurƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢an:

…We Ourself have sent down the Exhortation, and most surely We will be its Guardian Holy Qur’an, Chapter 15, verse 10

We can see that Allah will not only protect His QurƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢an but will also protect His faith by sending spiritual reformers at the beginning of every Century. Alhamdulillah, during those 1300 years we have had great reformers like Hadhrat Junaid of Baghdad, Syed Abdul Qadir Jilani, Shaikh Shahab-ud-Din Naqshbandi, Shaikh Ahmad Sirhindi, Kwaja Moin-ud-Din Chisty, Hadhrat Shah Wali Ullah of Dehli and others. These great scholars helped rejuvenate Islam, despite some of them being rejected and persecuted.

But who was the reformer for the 1400 Century Hijra?

There was only one claimant ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian. http://www.alislam.org/topics/messiah/index.php

We also see that the Holy QurƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢an warns us, that despite these great men coming ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-O my Lord, my people indeed treated this QurƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢an as a thing abandoned.ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ Al-Furqan, Ch 25, verse 31.

They were not able to bring back the unity of Islam or stop the slow decline, hence the warning of ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”the latter daysƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢, a time that would be so immoral and ungodly that the Holy Prophet Muhammad, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, has said:

A time will come when nothing will remain of Islam except its name and nothing will remain of the QurƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢an except its script. Mosques will be full of worshippers, but as far as righteousness is concerned they will be empty and deserted. Their ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”UlamaƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ (religious scholars) will be the worst of creatures under the canopy of the heavens. Evil plots will originate from them and to them will they return. Mishkat

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ We know from such sayings (Hadith) and from the Holy QurƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢an, that when the Latter Days arrive, that is the time when the Promised Messiah & Mahdi will bring the Muslims back to the true teachings of Islam and Unity once again. There is also a prophecy found throughout the Holy QurƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢an concerning the Promised Messiah and Mahdi:

He it is Who sent His Messenger with guidance and the religion of truth, that He may make it prevail over every other religion, even though the idolaters may dislike it (Holy QurƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢an: 9;33) – see also 48:29, 61:10

This victory of Islam, – when Islam will ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”prevail over all other religionsƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢, will happen in the latter days. That can only happen if Islam is unified and becomes One, not 73. That unity can only happen if Allah chooses someone to unite the Muslims, thus the importance of the need of the Promised Messiah & Mahdi.

But if Muslims choose a leader to unite them, then there is no way a Sunni will accept a ShiƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ite leader and vice versa, likewise there is no way a Wahabbi will accept an Ahle-Hadith as a leader etc. So the only answer has to be if Allah chooses that leader.

Now if Allah chooses, then all Muslims should look into that claim and then if it is true, accept that leader. That leader will be guided by Allah ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” thus he will be the Imam Mahdi ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” the Guided One. Through accepting this leader of the Muslims, then the Muslims can unite and the promised victory of Islam can be achieved, which is the role of the Promised Messiah.

Therefore our understanding is that these two titles ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” Mahdi and Promised Messiah will be actually the same person, having to two different roles, as supported by the Holy Prophet, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,:

The Mahdi is none other that the Messiah Sunan Ibn-e-Majah. Kitabul Fitan

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ This will not be achieved through the sword, but through the pen i.e. the beautiful teachings of Islam being practised and explained. The Holy Prophet Muhammad, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, has told us:

By Him in Whose hands is my life, the son of Mary will soon appear among you. He will administer justice. He will break the cross, kill the swine, abolish war (for the sake of religion, under Divine guidance) distribute wealth, but no one will accept it. In those days one prostration before Allah will be better than the world and what it contains. Bukhari

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Again the Holy Prophet has said:

Beware, there will be no prophet or messenger between Jesus, the son of Mary, and me. Remember, he shall be my Caliph after me to my people. Remember, he will kill Anti-Christ, break the Cross, abolish the taking of Jizia (tax collected from defeated people), as there would no longer be any war. Remember whoever meets him should convey my greetings to him. Tabraani

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ So we understand by these sayings of Prophet of Islam (Hadith) that fighting, terrorism etc. will not bring about this victory. It will be through peaceful methods – spreading the beautiful message of Islam. Again the Holy Prophet has said:

What a (wretched) state you will be in when the son of Mary will descend among you while he will be your Imam (religious leader) from among you? Or ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”He will lead you from among youƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ Bukhari

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Finally, the importance of accepting him when he comes is related in this sayings of Prophet of Islam (Hadith):

When you find the Mahdi, perform baiƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ah (Pledge of allegiance) at his hands. You must go to him, even if you have to reach him across icebound mountains on your knees. He is the Mahdi and the Caliph of Allah. Ibn Maajah

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Therefore to sum up, for Islam to achieve the ultimate victory of Islam, it can only happen by Unity – which can only be achieved through accepting the Promised Messiah & Mahdi and then by following the beautiful teachings of Islam. Thus by our example and word, mankind will see the true teachings of Islam being practiced and, Insha’Allah, accept that wonderful message.

The name Ahmadiyyat

First and foremost, if anyone claims to be a Muslim, no matter what sect or belief they have, then they are a Muslim! We cannot and must not, decide who is a Muslim or not. This is totally unIslamic. It is for Allah and Allah alone to judge whether or not a person is a Muslim.

Our beloved Prophet, the Holy Prophet Muhammad, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, made this very clear after the incident with Usama, when he killed a person after that person recited the Kalima (the basic tenet of Islam). The Holy Prophet, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, kept repeating, “did you see inside his heart?” In other words, how did Usama know what the person really believed? Only Allah can see inside our hearts. Therefore it is not the right of anyone, whether it is a Muslim or Government or anyone else living on this earth to decide whether a person is a Muslim or not – no matter which sect they belong to. If the person himself declares that he is not a Muslim that is another thing.

We have mentioned the state of Islam when Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, may peace be upon him, was informed by Allah that he was the Promised Messiah & Mahdi. He was commissioned to guide the Muslims back to the right path, but there was a need to distinguish his followers from the other Muslim groups. Otherwise, how would anyone know what are his teachings from those of any other Muslim? If we just called ourselves Sunni Muslims, which we are, then unfortunately there are some Sunni Muslims who are committing terrorism, killing fellow Muslims etc. How will anyone know if this is what is taught by Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, may peace be upon him?

An opportunity presented itself in 1901, when India compiled a census of the whole country. Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, may peace be upon him, informed his followers that when putting down a religion, they should state ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”Ahmadi MuslimsƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ and he coined the name of Ahmadiyyat for the JamaƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢at. In this way they could distinguish themselves from other Muslims.

Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, may peace be upon him, chose the name Ahmadiyya as Ahmad is the other name of the Holy Prophet, may peace and blessing of Allah be upon him, and out of respect for the Holy Prophet and as he was appointed to continue the blessed work of our beloved Holy Prophet, therefore it seemed the most appropriate name for his community.

The Holy QurƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢an relates in Chapter Al-Saff (Chapter 61, verses 7-10):

And call to mind when Jesus, son of Mary, said, ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”O Children of Israel, surely, I am AllahƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s Messenger unto you, fulfilling that which is before me of the prophecies of the Torah, and giving glad tidings of a Messenger who will come after me, his name being AhmadƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚¦ He it is Who has sent His Messenger with the guidance and the Religion of truth, that it may cause it to prevail over all religions.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ From these verses of the Holy QurƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢an we see that Jesus prophesied the coming of Ahmad, who is referred to in the Holy Bible as ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”ParacleteƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ or ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”the ComforterƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ (John 14:15-26 & 16:7-14). This refers to the Holy Prophet MuhammadƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s, may peace and blessing of Allah be upon him, other name ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”AhmadƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ who came and brought the Religion of Truth ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” Islam – which will ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”prevail over all religionsƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢. That will happen in the time of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, may peace be upon him, and so it is dual prophecy relating to the coming of the Holy Prophet ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” Ahmad and the fulfilment of the Holy ProphetƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s message in the time of the Promised Messiah ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” Ahmad.

So the Ahmadiyya community has been named after the Holy ProphetƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s name ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” Ahmad.

Many Muslims will address us as Qadiani or Mirzai.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ This is because they do not want to call us by the Holy ProphetƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s other name Ahmad and so they refer to the place of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam AhmadƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s may peace be upon him, birth ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” Qadian or his cast ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” Mirza.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ But we do not accept these names, why should we?ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ We are named after our beloved Holy Prophet and are proud to be so.

If you were born in Qadian (Punjab, India), then perhaps you could call yourself a Qadiani, but if you are born in the UK, letƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s say London, you donƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢t refer to yourself as a Londoner or a Londoni.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Similarly, if you are born in Colombo, you donƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢t refer to yourself as a Colombon. That is a place name, not our faith.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Likewise if you are called Mirza, then you may call yourself a Mirzai, but again that is not relating to your faith.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ So if someone wants to refer to our faith, then we are an Ahmadi Muslim!

Again it is important that we are Ahmadi Muslims, belonging to the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ We are followers of our beloved Holy Prophet, may peace and blessing of Allah be upon him, as well as followers of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, may peace be upon him, and Allah gave us the name Muslims:

ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚¦He has named you Muslims both before and in this bookƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ Chapter 22:79

Allah also gave us the name of our religion: ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚¦and have chosen for you Islam as religionƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ Chapter 5:4

Therefore we are not like the Christians who openly declare they have nothing to do with Judaism. We are MuslimsƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  and our faith is Islam and no one can take that away from us, no matter what they want to call us or what laws they enact, this is our belief. The names Ahmadi, Ahmadiyyat, Ahmadiyya Muslim Community are merely to distinguish Ahmadi Muslims from other Muslims and Ahmadi interpretation from other interpretations of Islam.

Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, may peace be upon him, the Promised Messiah and Mahdi writes:

The name which is appropriate for my Community and which we prefer for ourselves is Muslims of the Ahmadiyya sect. We have chosen this name because the Holy Prophet had two names, Muhammad and Ahmad; Muhammad was his name of glory, and Ahmad was his name of beauty. In the name of Muhammad was implicit a prophecy that the Holy Prophet, would punish with the sword such enemies as would attack Islam with the sword and slaughter hundreds of Muslims. His name Ahmad indicated that he would spread peace and security in the word. God so arranged the life of the Holy Prophet, that his Meccan life was a manifestation of his name Ahmad and Muslims were taught patience and endurance. In his life in Medina, his name Muhammad was manifested. But there was a prophecy that name Ahmad would be manifested again in the Latter Days that a person would appear through whom the qualities of beauty, which characterise Ahmad, would be manifested, and all fighting would come to an end. For this reason it has been considered appropriate that the name of this JamaƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢at should be Ahmadiyya sect, so that everyone hearing this name should realise that this Community has come into being for the spread of peace and security and that it would have nothing to do with war and fighting. Tabligh-i-Risalat Vol. IX, pp 90-91

(The writer can be reached at: adampakch@gmail.com or via: 0094 777 753440.)

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