CHAPTER 79: LOVE OF PROPHET MUHAMMAD

The signs of love

Hazrat Mirza states in a couplet:

After the love of Allah, I am intoxicated by the love of Muhammad; If this is disbelief, then by Allah, I am an inveterate unbeliever.

This couplet is a statement of fact, and not a mere poetic exaggeration. There are certain self-evident signs of love which I believe that every intelligent person will acknowledge, and these are:

1. The lover is colored in the color of the beloved.
2. The lover frequently speaks of his beloved. He considers his beloved to be imbued with the best qualities and portrays them as such.
3. A lover cannot bear to hear anything adverse about his beloved and considers the beloved’s honor sacrosanct.
4. The lover is always prepared to make all kinds of sacrifices for the beloved.
5. If the lover is a God-fearing person, then he prays for his beloved with all his heart, and strives fully with his body, mind and wealth to fulfill the mission of the beloved.

If anyone desires to test Hazrat Mirza’s love for the exalted Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) using the above cri- teria, then he should examine the evidence and it will become manifest to him that Hazrat Mirza’s love for the Holy Prophet was at the highest stage of excellence.

(1) First Sign: Being colored in the color of the beloved

Hazrat Mirza’s every deed and spoken word was in accordance with the Quran and tradition of Prophet Muhammad and this is the most manifest proof that he was colored in the color of Prophet Muhammad. Whether it be acts of worship or affairs of the world, Hazrat Mirza was always mindful of following the Holy Quran and sunnah (the way of Prophet Muhammad). He greatly abhorred innovations in matters of religion. WhenI took the pledge at the hands of Hazrat Mirza, I asked him toprescribe some incantations for the purification of the soul. He stated, “Perform your daily prayers with the utmost understanding and attention. And perform the Tahajjud (late night) prayer, for this is the tradition of the Prophet.” Hazrat Mirza completely shunned the incantations that contemporary pirs (hereditary religious lead- ers) and faqirs have innovated into religion. Referring to such practices, he would say: “In matters of worship, they have practically instituted a new law (shariah).” Hazrat Mirza’s morals were unmistakablyimbued with the morals of Prophet Muhammad, some of which I have narrated in this book as a sample.

(2) Second Sign: Frequently referring to the qualities of Prophet Muhammad

As a rule, the lover speaks often, and highly, of his beloved. This was true of Hazrat Mirza — it was his pastime to speak about the qualities of Prophet Muhammad. He would try to use every possible opportunity to men- tion some quality of Prophet Muhammad, in one way or another. Regardless of the religion or religious leader that formed the current topic of discussion, Hazrat Mirza was sure to bring in a comparison of the greatness and excel- lence of Prophet Muhammad.

In the period prior to his claim of being the Promised Messiah, Hazrat Mirza was in Ludhiana for an extended stay. In those days, The Temperance Society was the new talk of the town. The Society was arranging lectures and conducting dramas in various cities. One such function was being held in Ludhiana, and the secretary of the Temperance Society personally visited Hazrat Mirza, and invited him to speak against the use of alcohol and other intoxicants in their function, but with the proviso to confine his speech to the moral aspects of the problem without in any way referring to any religious characteristics. 

Hazrat Mirza declined the invitation by stating:

How is it possible for there to be a lecture against the use of intoxicants, and in support of temperance, without the mention ofthe greatest man in the world, Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), who with one indication caused a whole nation to throw away their goblets and break their pitchers of wine, and by declaring the use of all intoxicants as religiously prohibited did a great favor to the world? I cannot bear to speak about temperance without the mention of such a benefactor.

Praise of Prophet Muhammad based upon factual events

Without a doubt, great Muslim scholars, Sufis and poets have written prose and poetry praising and extolling the virtues of Prophet Muhammad, and each in his own way has done a commendable job. But in this regard, Hazrat Mirza’s praise for Prophet Muhammad possesses a distinctive quality and majesty that is to be found only sparingly in the works of others. Hazrat Mirza’s work is distinctive in that he did not confine his praise to expressing his devotion or manifesting his love in a poetic way; his poetic work is wholly free of metaphorical plethora, such as mere praise of Prophet Muhammad’s physical stature, hair, height, etc. Whether it be poetry or prose, it was always Hazrat Mirza’s effort to present to the world the great- ness of Prophet Muhammad based upon factualevents. He presented Prophet Muhammad’s morals, custom, teachings, speech and deeds to the people of the world in a correct way, free from any additions and in their true essence, so that their beauty and brilliance may become evident for every intelligent and pure natured person. This was Hazrat Mirza’s style from an early age, and this was the style that was conspicuous in his debates and discussions with the Christian clergy, Arya Hindus and others.

The signature quality of his poetic work is the true portrayal of Prophet Muhammad’s character, morals, piety, and blessings in such a beautiful and attractive style that a person’s spirit spontaneously calls out “May Allah’s blessings be upon him.” His work wasfar removed from poetic exaggeration and verbal effusion; his style was to merely portray facts and events in verses that throw light on the real glory and status of Prophet Muhammad. It would be impossible for a person with a righteous disposition to read his work andnot incline irresistibly in reverence towards the greatest man who ever lived. Poems paying tributes to Prophet Muhammad are read and heard in abun- dance, but I reproduce below a few verses by way of a sample from a poetic tribute written by Hazrat Mirza, and leave it to the reader to decide if there could be a better articulation on the basis of facts. There is neither exagger- ation, nor poetic coloration, but merely a collage of facts that are highly effective and impressive:

At that juncture, the world had grown replete with disbelief and poly- theism;

With the exception of this king (Prophet Muhammad), nobody else’s heart was burdened with this sorrow

Nobody was aware of the impurity of polytheism, or the foulness of idol-worship;

It was only Ahmad (Prophet Muhammad), whose heart was immersed in the love of God, who became aware of this fact

Who is aware of the lamentation and grieving for this world By the Prophet, in the Cave of Hira?

I cannot assess the immense pain and sorrow;

That agonised him and brought him to the Cave of Hira

Neither was he afraid of the darkness, nor of being alone;

Neither was he fearful of dying, and nor did he feel imperiled by snakes and scorpions

He felt deeply for the distressed humanity;

Entirely unconcerned with any harm that might befall his own person

He heaved sighs of distressed anguish for God’s creation; He cried before God, day and night

His humbleness and prayers created a tremendous commotion, and the heavens grew astir;

Tears welled up in the eyes of even the angels, and they cried because of the Prophet’s sorrow

Finally, because of his humble supplications and wailing; God turned an eye of mercy upon the world.

Before the advent of Prophet Muhammad, the world was sunk in the darkness of polytheism, evil deeds and disbelief. The loving kindness of Allah was brought into motion by the supplications and lamentations of Prophet Muhammad, and guidance was sent to mankind through him. The preceding verses by Hazrat Mirza, depict this in a most stirring manner.

Produced highly cogent literature on the truthfulness of Prophet Muhammad

Poetry is an expression of the love and passion in a person’s heart that bubbles out from time to time in the form of poems, but Hazrat Mirza’s real solid contribution was the literature in prose that he produced out of the love of Prophet Muhammad. In this literature, he presented arguments and evi- dence for the truthfulness, greatness and glory of Prophet Muhammad that areincontrovertible. Among this wealth of literature is a book titled Barahin Ahmadiyya, in which he has furnished powerful arguments and irrefutable reasons for the truthfulness of the Quran and Prophet Muhammad. Hazrat Mirza offered a prize of ten thousand rupeesfor anyone who could rebut even a single argument therein. No one has dared to rise to the challenge. This is the same book regardingwhich even a person like Maulvi Muhammad Husain Batalvi had to write that in thirteen hundred years no other book has been pub- lishedthat compares to this in rationality and comprehensive arguments.

Throughout his life, Hazrat Mirza remained busy in the work of writing and compiling books, publishing announcements and making speeches. And this was also the subject of discussion around him day and night. His driving pas- sion was how to manifest the respect, the glory and the majesty of Prophet Muhammad to the world. In all of this striving and struggle, he proved three things about Prophet Muhammad that are incomparable.

(A)  Prophet Muhammad combined all the excellent qualities of previous prophets

Hazrat Mirza especially emphasized the fact that the various excel- lences that were bestowed on different prophets from time totime in accordance with the needs of the time, and the requirements of their nations were all comprehensively combined by Allah in theperson of Prophet Muhammad in their highest and most perfect form. As an article of faith, most Muslims have held this belief since the beginning as evidenced by the following verses of an ancient poet:

O Prophet of God! You possess the beauty of Joseph, as well as the miracles of Jesus and Moses;

You alone have all the qualities that the loved ones of God possessed.

But in practice, the Muslim scholars were very liberal in attributing superiority to various prophets over Prophet Muhammad. For example, in certain sections of the Muslim populace a concocted belief prevailed that, at the moment when Allah will appear on Judgment Day, all prophets with the exception of Moses, will faint, even Prophet Muhammad. Moses will continue to gaze at God and will not faint. Another notion that prevailed was that the magic of the enchanters had no effect on Moses, but magic had acted on Prophet Muhammad. Other notions included the belief that jinni and fairies were subservient to Solomon and carried his throne through the air, that Khizr (al-Khidr) was immortal, and that no birth, with the exception of Jesus and his mother, was free from the touch of the devil. In addition, there were innumerable ways in which Jesus was accorded superiority over Prophet Muhammad. Among thecommonly held beliefs about Jesus were the notions that he created some birds, healed the blind and the lepers, brought the dead to life, had knowledge of the future, announced his prophethood in the cra- dle, ascended to the heaven with his physical body and resides there without aging, and in the end of time will come as a savior for the followers of Prophet Muhammad. The list goes on and on. In this matter the Muslim scholars have outdone the Christians themselves!

Thus, Muslim scholars had attributed many excellences to the various prophets over Prophet Muhammad. Some people stoopedso low that, on the

basis of utterly absurd stories, they attributed, God forbid, certain frailties to him. It is Hazrat Mirza’s grand achievement that hequashed all such preposterous and unfounded fables. By revealing the fatuousness of the fanciful qualities that Muslims had attributed to the prophets, Hazrat Mirza put an end to the supposed excellences of the other prophets over Prophet Muhammad. He showed manifestly that all the excellences and rewards that were ever accorded to any prophet by God, were bestowed in their best and most perfect form to our Prophet Muhammad. Hazrat Mirza did not make this statement merely on the basis of mindless devotion, but wrote countless pages on these matters, pursuing each issue until he had substantiated his claim with proofs. This is not the place for details but those who desire to look into them are referred to Hazrat Mirza’s original writings.

Hazrat Mirza’s writings venerating Prophet Muhammad in response to the Prophet’s critics were not apologetic in tone. He did not seek to find excuses for certain acts of the Prophet nor did he try to dodge the issue by making counter charges. Instead he presented what could be proved on the basis of the Quran and the reliable traditions in such a correct and rational manner that not only did thecriticisms disappear but everything that the crit- ics had disapproved was proven to be very civil and the right course of action for thegiven circumstances.

Hazrat Mirza wholeheartedly regarded Prophet Muhammad as the resplendent beacon of righteousness and all lofty moral virtues. He considered Prophet Muhammad’s uprightness to be so manifestly obvious that it was not in need of validation from others. Once someone wrote Hazrat Mirza a letter in which he mentioned that a prophecy existed in the Vedas (religious books of Hinduism) regarding Prophet Muhammad. Hazrat Mirza replied:

Prophet Muhammad is the radiant sun of righteousness, and the evi- dence for the advent of the sun is the sun itself. The signs of Prophet Muhammad’s truthfulness are so manifest that he does not stand in any need of validation by the Vedas. But if a prophecy regarding Prophet Muhammad exists in the Vedas, then it has to be acknowledged that at least the portion of the Vedas, which contains the prophecy, is indeed from Allah. Hence the beneficiaries are the Vedas and not Prophet Muhammad. ProphetMuhammad’s life is such a convincing argument of his righteousness that it does not stand in need of any external sub- stantiation.But the one who substantiates does reap a benefit in that he has to be acknowledged as genuine in his statement.

Hazrat Mirza has expressed the same sentiment in the verses:

If you seek proof of the Prophet’s integrity then become his devotee, Because Muhammad himself is his own proof.

(B)  Prophet Muhammad is the Seal of the prophets, and is the living Prophet

The second thing that Hazrat Mirza emphasized was that Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is categorically the Seal of the prophets and the third thing he emphasized was that he is the Living Prophet.

While Muslims had believed all along that Prophet Muhammad was the Seal of the prophets in the sense of being the last prophet, but there were many flaws in this doctrine, which Hazrat Mirza rectified in a way that the doctrine of the Seal of Prophethoodwas perfected in all aspects.

1. The first flaw was that all Muslim scholars believed that Jesus would descend from the heaven after Prophet Muhammad had passed away — the same Jesus that the Quran had described as a prophet. Thus, the notion prevailed among the Muslims that after Prophet Muhammad, a former prophet would return to this world and hold the office of prophethood for forty years. This belief wasgravely damaging to Islam because it implied that the spiritual blessings of Prophet Muhammad would not continue till the Day of Judgment, and because of their ter- mination at some point, God would have to send Jesus back to the earth. This belief makesJesus the last prophet and not Prophet Muhammad. Hazrat Mirza, however, proved that Prophet Muhammad is the last prophet,and no one else. He showed that the prophethood of Prophet Muhammad extends up to the Day of Judgment, and there is no scope for any prophet, whether former or new, to step on this earth because the blessings of the prophethood of Prophet Muhammad will continue till the end of time. As for Jesus, he has died and is buried in Srinagar, and those who die do not come back to earth.
2. The second flaw was that although Muslims regarded Prophet Muhammad as the last prophet, they had not proven their claim with satisfying arguments. Hazrat Mirza presented convincing and com- pelling arguments whereby it became manifestly clear that Prophet Muhammad was indeed the last prophet. There is a couplet by Hazrat Mirza, lauding Prophet Muhammad, that is a key to the arguments in support of his being the last of the prophets. He says:
   Every excellent quality reached its pinnacle in your person, Prophet Muhammad;
   So it is necessary that prophethood should also have reached its conclusion in your person.
   Hazrat Mirza did not let the matter rest merely by writing these vers- es, but he demonstrated with arguments and proofs thatall the excellences of prophethood reached their consummation in the person of Prophet Muhammad. He further argued that when the best exemplar for mankind, in whom all aspects of humanity had reached perfection, had already appeared, there was no further need for anoth- er prophethood.
3. The third flaw in perfecting the Seal of prophethood doctrine was the status and the utility of the teachings of the previous prophets. Even if it is accepted that Prophet Muhammad is the last of the prophets, and that his spiritual blessings will endure till Judgment Day, what is the proof that the spiritual blessings of former prophets have ceased to exist? If their blessings still endure,then it follows that the last prophet sent to each nation is the Seal of the prophets for that nation. This was the reason why HazratMirza emphasized very strongly that now Prophet Muhammad alone is the sole living prophet for the whole world because it isonly his blessings that continue uninterrupted while the blessings of previous prophets have come to an end. Hence, there is no religion besides Islam that is capable of producing people who have a relationship with God.

There is no doubt that this aspect of the finality of prophethood was magnificently resolved by Hazrat Mirza. He announcedforcefully and with great emphasis that:

The blessings of former prophets have come to an end and Prophet Muhammad is the last prophet for all nations i.e., the living and final prophet whose spiritual strength and blessings of prophethood continue today as they will continue till the end of time. After the advent of Prophet Muhammad, it is only among his followers that people have been born who through the blessing of following him perfectly have achieved nearness to God and have been blessed with communication with Him. Andsuch people will continue to be born among the followers of Prophet Muhammad. And in this era, I am the living proof of this assertion. I have attained nearness to Allah through the blessing of following Prophet Muhammad and have received the honor of communion with Him. If there is any spiritual life and the blessing of prophethood left in other religions, the followers of those religions should bring forward some individ- uals against me who have achieved nearness to God by following that religion and have been blessed with communion with the Lord. However, they would never be able to rise to thischallenge because there is no living faith, other than the faith of Islam, and there is no Living Prophet whose spiritual blessingsstill endure, with the exception of Prophet Muhammad.

Accordingly, Hazrat Mirza threw a challenge to followers of all religions in a poem that stated beautifully:

We have tirelessly pondered along all avenues of thought; Yet we have not found a Faith like the faith of Muhammad

There is no other faith that can show true signs;

This fruit we tasted only from the orchard of Muhammad

We have veritably tried Islam for ourselves;

Wake up and see, we tell you, it is truly a radiant light

We never saw anything superior to it in the world; And we freed our heart from those foreign to it

There was no light when we looked at other faiths; Let somebody come forth if we have hidden the truth

We have grown weary now, telling these things repeatedly; In every direction, we extended invitations to Islam

Nobody came to verify our claims;

Although we invited every opponent to a challenge

O people! Come hither, and you shall find the light of God; There, we have shown you the path to satisfaction

Today, those lights are in full force in this humble man, We colored the heart with every color of this light

On Mustafa, may Your unbounded peace and mercy alight, From him, O Lord, we have taken this light.

It was not only in poems, but also in books, and through public announcements that Hazrat Mirza kept giving this challenge, but no one dared to accept it. In this connection, those who witnessed the defeat and humiliation of Bishop Lefroy, a resident of Lahore, are not likely to forget that sight. The incident has previously been narrated in detail in the first vol- ume of this biography. Recapping theevents briefly, Rev. Lefroy, the Bishop of Lahore, challenged the Muslims to a debate on “The Living Prophet.” At first, the non-Ahmadi Muslims of Lahore invited Maulvi Sanaullah of Amritsar to represent the Muslims. When Maulvi Sanaullah evaded therequest, the intelligentsia of Lahore realized that they would not be able to compete with a Christian priest when their own beliefs dictated that Jesus was alive in heaven while Prophet Muhammad was interred in the ground. So the intelligentsia approached HazratMirza regarding this matter.

Hazrat Mirza prepared a lecture for the debate, titled “The Living

Prophet,” and on the appointed day, it was read out before the audience. The substance of the lecture was:

Prophet Muhammad is the only “Living Prophet and Messenger” because the Living Prophet is the one whose blessing andbeneficence are alive, and by following whom people even today can attain nearness to God and make a connection with Him. In thisera, I am a living example of this. Anyone who desires may test the veracity of this statement. In contrast, not only has Jesus died, but his spiritual blessings have also ceased to exist. If this is not the case, then produce a single Christian who has attainednearness to God by following Jesus to compete with me. But you will not be able to produce any because the prophethood of Jesus wasfor a particular time and a particular nation, and his time has passed and his blessings have ceased. Hence, with the exception ofProphet Muhammad, there is no Living Prophet whose blessings still endure.

When the Bishop heard this lecture replete with compelling arguments and challenges, he was utterly flabbergasted. He made a few incoherent remarks and then sat down. Later, Hazrat Mirza once again vigorously chal- lenged Bishop Lefroy to debate him on the “Innocent Prophet” and “Living Messenger,” but the Bishop took refuge in flight. Bishop Lefroy was not alone; there was not a single scholar of any religion who had the courage to take on Hazrat Mirza on the subject.

Hazrat Mirza manifested with great clarity this aspect of the finality of prophethood viz. that not only is Prophet Muhammad the final prophet in a temporal sense in whom all the excellences of prophethood were brought to perfection, but also in the sense of the continuance of the blessings of prophethood, which makes him the last and only “living” prophet. The prophethoods of all previous prophets now stand terminated. It is Prophet Muhammad’s prophethood alone which is a living prophethood for all nations and for all times, and whose teaching is eternal and whose blessings endure. Whatever rank of nearness to Allah that can now be achieved, and whatever communion with Allah that can now be established can only be through the spiritual blessings of Prophet Muhammad’s prophethood.

These were the points which were a unique characteristic of the reli- gious philosophy of Hazrat Mirza. Only that person canissue forceful challenges that Prophet Muhammad is the Seal of the prophets and is today the Living Prophet, who is himself a man ofspiritual experience, possesses a clear inner light, and has traversed all the stages of faith and Divine knowl- edge. This is simply not the task for a cleric or a philosopher. It is the work of those select souls whom God Himself raises for the reformation and vali- dation of His religion. Blessed is he who identifies such select souls, and joins them in serving Islam.

The effect of Hazrat Mirza’s love for Prophet Muhammad upon his disciples

The deep love that Hazrat Mirza harbored for Prophet Muhammad influenced his disciples as well, because what emanates from the heart is bound to affect the hearts of others. Whoever associated with Hazrat Mirza also became intoxicated with the love of Prophet Muhammad. Hazrat Mirza has noted this in one of his verses:

Seeing the Prophet’s intoxicating milieu as a sanctuary for the soul; I covetously pressed my lips against that vessel ofspirituality.

The attributes of a mentor seep into the mentee as well. The glow from the flame of the Prophet’s love that lighted up HazratMirza’s heart also filled and lighted up the hearts of his disciples. There can be no more con- vincing evidence for a man of understanding than that the entire body of Hazrat Mirza’s disciples became intoxicated with this love, and devoted themselves to the service of religion, and stood ready to sacrifice their body, soul and wealth for the honor, glory and propagation of the name of God andHis Prophet. A tree is recognized by its fruit. If the hearts of the members of an organization are aglow with the love of the Prophet, then how much stronger must be the luminescence of this love in the founder and leader of the organization.

(3) Third Sign: Sanctity of Prophet Muhammad’s honor dear to Hazrat Mirza

The third sign of love is the sanctity that a lover feels for the beloved’s honor, the violation of which is totally intolerable for thelover. Hazrat Mirza had tremendous forbearance and self-control when a matter related to his own person. Sometimes vile-natured people came and addressed him rudely face to face and even resorted to abusive language, but Hazrat Mirza remained cool like a block of ice, and not even the slightest hint of any annoyance or anger crossed his countenance. If a disciple tried to respond, Hazrat Mirza would stop him and counsel patience. But Hazrat Mirza could not tolerate any disrespect for Prophet Muhammad.

In his younger days, Hazrat Mirza sometimes used to visit his aunt, the wife of the late Mirza Ghulam Haider. Once she made some disparaging remark about Prophet Muhammad. This pained Hazrat Mirza greatly. He never visited that aunt again and severed all ties with her. Similarly, the rea- son that Hazrat Mirza was displeased with his cousins Mirza Imam-ud-Din, Mirza Nizam-ud-Din, and others was that they were irreligious and dispre- spectful towards Prophet Muhammad.

From an early age, it was Hazrat Mirza’s practice that before he debated with an Arya Hindu or a Christian he would get theiragreement that the arguments would be solely limited to principles, and that no disparaging remarks would be made about ProphetMuhammad. Unfortunately, it was the practice with Christian clergy and Arya Hindus that when they were losing the argument on principles, they would resort to such petty tactics. The fact was that the Christian clergy and the Hindu Aryas had nothing substantive tosay except such absurdities and so invariably they would step out of the bounds of the discussion to vilify Prophet Muhammad. This Hazrat Mirza could not bear and sometimes very unpleasant situations resulted. In the early period of Hazrat Mirza’s religious crusade, he debated Pundit Kharak Singh, an Arya Hindu in Qadian on the relative merits of the Quran and Vedas. Pundit Kharak Singh, after being totally routed in principled argu- ments, resorted to making disparaging remarks about Prophet Muhammad. Hazrat Mirza was greatly grieved and his speech began to exhibit his anger. The debate had to be halted to prevent any further unpleasantness.

In short, Hazrat Mirza was not the least bit perturbed even if someone disparaged and vilified him to his face, but if someone was disrespectful to the Prophet or he came across a document critical of the Prophet, he would get so aggravated that it would simply astonish the observer. He became red in the face and would lecture for hours rebutting the charges and praising and extolling the qualities of Prophet Muhammad. He would then write a rebut- tal, and did not rest easy until he had done so.

When a Christian clergyman wrote the pernicious and filthy book titled Ummahat-ul-Momineen which did not contain a singlerational argument and consisted only of hurtful and absurd nonsense against the honor of Prophet Muhammad and his pure wives,Hazrat Mirza was tormented beyond description. He stated: “My peace has been shattered. It is easier for me to bear patiently the loss of my wealth or the slaughter of my children before my eyes rather than to watch and be patient at the disparagement and defamation ofProphet Muhammad and his religion.”

Hazrat Mirza’s warning prophecies regarding Abdullah Atham and Lekhram were the consequence of their disparagement ofProphet Muhammad. At the time of announcing the prophecy about Abdullah Atham, Hazrat Mirza clearly stated during the debate that because Abdullah Atham had called Prophet Muhammad as Dajjal (Antichrist) (I seek Allah’s protec- tion from from saying so) in his book Andaruna Bible, Abdullah Atham would be consigned to hell within fifteen months for this impertinence, unless he repents. In response, Abdullah Atham touched his ear lobe, stuck out his tongue (a gesture of repentance) and said: “I did not say that.” This denialwas a recanting of his earlier statement in the book and amounted to repentance. In a like manner, when Lekhram’s impertinence againstthe honor of Prophet

Muhammad exceeded all bounds, Hazrat Mirza made the famous prophecy exactly in accordance with which Lekhram was assassinatedwithin six years. Hazrat Mirza had addressed Lekhram in verse as follows:

Beware! O foolish and misguided enemy; Fear the cutting sword of Muhammad

Although miracles are not seen any more;

Yet come hither and see them performed by the slaves of Muhammad.

Hazrat Mirza was once returning to Qadian from Lahore. He was per- forming ablution at the railway station in Lahore whenLekhram unexpectedly turned up and greeted him. Hazrat Mirza ignored him. Someone from Hazrat Mirza’s party prompted: “Sir! Lekhram is here and is greeting you.” Hazrat Mirza responded: “It is meaningless to greet me when he vilifies my master. I do not want to even set eyes on such a disrespectful and insolent person.” Hazrat Mirza expresses this sentiment beautifully in the following versesof his poem:

I am passionately in love with that spiritual light and completely devoted to him;

He (Prophet Muhammad) is of the essence, I am naught, and this is final.

The Arya Hindus of Lahore once invited Hazrat Mirza to their Convention of Religions, and assured Hazrat Mirza that theywould not make any disparaging remarks about the Prophet. So Hazrat Mirza wrote a speech to be read on his behalf, and gave it to adelegation of his disciples who were proceeding to Lahore for the Convention, under the leadership of Maulvi Nur- ud-Din. Hazrat Mirza’s lecture was highly sensible and written in a very civilized tone, and was gracefully read out to the audience at the Convention ofReligions. But the Arya Samajist speaker following this lecture made impu- dent and absurd remarks about Prophet Muhammad in keeping with their normal practice. The delegation from Qadian and other members of Hazrat Mirza’s Organization, who had come from the environs for the Convention, sat through the Arya lecture with great patience and forbearance. When the delegation returnedto Qadian and gave Hazrat Mirza an account of what had happened, his face turned red with displeasure and he expressed such anguish ashad not been seen before. He said: “How did your sense of honor allow you to sit quietly when the honor of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, was being sullied. If you could not have stopped him, you should have just left. What was the point of sitting through it?” Maulvi Nur-ud-Din, who had led the delegation to Lahore, was so embarrassed that he could not face Hazrat Mirza for several days. It was this anger that motivated Hazrat Mirza to write one of his masterpieces, Chashma Marifat, inwhich he shook the very foundations of Arya Hinduism.

Steadfastness in the love of the Prophet

Steadfastness in love is an important quality, and Hazrat Mirza exhib- ited this to perfection. In this new age of enlightenment, thetide of naturalist philosophy swept away many sensible people. Some Muslims, who were proponents of this new enlightenment, developed the notion that the only requirements for salvation are a belief in the Unity of God and righteous deeds, and that it was not necessary to believe in Prophet Muhammad. Dr. Abdul Hakim Khan of Patiala, a disciple of Hazrat Mirza, became an adher- ent of this school of thought as well. He wrote a letter to Hazrat Mirza strongly supporting this notion. He was probably thinking that as HazratMirza was the leader of a big religious organization, the propagation of this notion with his support would be most effective in disseminating it. Hazrat Mirza was grieved by this letter. He explained gently to Dr. Abdul Hakim Khan that such a belief was erroneous and would lead one astray. A disputa- tious person, Dr. Abdul Hakim Khan remained intransigent, and in fact became increasingly hostile and insolent in his conduct towards Hazrat Mirza. Finally, when Hazrat Mirza realized that Dr. Abdul Hakim Khan was not going to disavow his belief, Hazrat Mirza expelled him from the Ahmadiyya organization. Hazrat Mirza then proceeded to write the book, Haqiqat-ul-Wahy, in which he established with cogent arguments that it is impossible to achieve salvation without following Prophet Muhammad. A small extract from this book will help to establish Hazrat Mirza’s creed about Prophet Muhammad:

So there is no doubt that the world obtains the treasure of the Unity and knowledge of God through the prophets, without whose intercession it would be impossible. The best example in this regard was shown by our Prophet. He raised a nation that was sitting on filth and took them to a garden of flowers and he placed before those who were going to die from spiritual hunger and thirst the highest quality nutrition and sweet syrups. They were savages and he made them humans; then from ordinary humans he made them cultured people, and then from cultured people he made them perfect . He manifested so many signs for them that God became visible to them and he effected a transformation in them that raised them to the status where they veritably shook hands with the angels. No other prophet effected such a change in his nation because those in the ambit of their influence remained deficient. I marvel at how high must be the status of this Arabian prophet whose name is Muhammad (thousands upon thousands of blessings and peace be upon him), but the truth is that it is not possible to conceive the great- ness of his status, and the effect of his holiness is beyond human conception. It is a pity that his high status has not won the recognition that it deserves. He is the stalwart who brought the doctrine of God’s Unity back into the world after it haddisappeared. He loved God to the highest degree possible. His life was consumed by grief because of the compassion and the sadness that he felt for a fallen humanity. For this reason, God, Who was aware of the secret yearning in his heart made him excel over all prophets and all people in all ages and in all times, and granted him his heart’s desires during his lifetime. He is the foun- tainhead of all blessings. Anyone who claims a blessing without acknowledging a debt of gratitude to him is not from the humans but a progeny of Satan because the key to every blessing has been given to him and all the treasures of knowledge have been granted to him. He who does not receive through him suffers eternal deprivation. What are we and what is our reality! Wewould be ungrateful for the great bless- ing if we do not acknowledge that we received the doctrine of real Divine Unity throughthis Prophet and we gained the recognition of the living God through this perfect Prophet and through his spiritual light. The honor of communion with God that enables us to visualize His countenance is made available to us through this Holy Prophet. A rayfrom this brilliant sun of guidance falls upon us, and we can remain radiant in its glow only as long as we stand facing it.

(4) Fourth Sign: Sacrifice

The entire life of Hazrat Mirza is testimony to the fact that he sacri- ficed all his wishes for that one objective, which was that the beautiful character and teachings of Prophet Muhammad should become known to the world, and that his religion should dominate allother religions of the world

— Hazrat Mirza sacrificed his everything for the attainment of this goal. He expressed these sentiments beautifully in the followingpoem:

O Prophet of Allah! I am wholly devoted to you;

If I were granted a hundred thousand lives, I would sacrifice each life in your path

I am aware of your immeasurable eminence;

Thus, while there may be others who are your servants too, I am one who is prepared to sacrifice his life for you

If truth be told, it is to follow you and to love you

That’s the balm for wounded lives, and the elixir for the soul

In your love, I do not fear death itself;

See my steadfastness, I’m marching happily under the cross

As for those who are enlightened, the ultimate notes of their enlighten- ment are immanent in your person;

As for the righteous people, the pinnacle of their devoutness lies in their being steadfast in your way

There is none who can gain the wealth of enlightenment without you; Even if that person dies while struggling in such anendeavor

O Prophet! We’ve turned to you with hope, looking to your mercy;

There are hundreds of thousands of other people like me who come with this aspiration on your doorstep

O Allah’s blessing! we were desirous of your mercy and with your acceptance came under your blessing,

O you at whose doorstep thousands like us stand in wait

Ever since I have been shown the glowing brilliance of the blessed Prophet;

Love for the Prophet wells up in my heart like water in a cascading waterfall

My heart has been in a state of rapture, ever since the Prophet appeared in a true dream;

May my life and my very existence be sacrificed upon the Prophet’s blessed countenance

In the dimple of his chin I see the visages of a thousand Josephs;

Through the Prophet’s blessings, countless saintly people appeared in this world.

In another poem, Hazrat Mirza wrote:

May my very existence be sacrificed in the love of Prophet Muhammad;

This then is my wish, my prayer, and my heartfelt resolve.

As for the especially lofty status and rank of the Prophet that has been made known to me;

I would certainly discourse upon it, if only I were to come across a per- son with a righteous disposition.

(5) Fifth Sign: A godly person never ceases supplicating for his beloved

The fifth sign of love is that a person, who is godly, never tires of

supplicating for his beloved. This was the case with Hazrat Mirza, who sup- plicated day and night for Prophet Muhammad and for hisreligion, and never tired from doing so. The salutation for Prophet Muhammad is the well known As-sala ala-n-Nabi (called darud sharif in Urdu). There are several versions of this salutation, but their summary is the same, which is: “O Allah! Bestow your special mercy, blessings and peace on Prophet Muhammad and his fol- lowers; certainly you are Praised and Magnified.” Although all Muslims recite this supplication, but to do so as a ritual without consciously thinking of its meaning is one thing, while reciting it thoughtfully from the depth of one’s heart as a prayer is quite another. Merely reciting As-sala ala-n-Nabi with the tongue while the mind is engaged elsewhere negates to a large extent the objective of the supplication. Hazrat Mirza’s practice was to recite the As-sala ala-n-Nabi with rapt attention and with such heartfelt emotion that it moved him to a state of tears. Hazrat Mirza recited the As-sala ala-n-Nabi not only with feelings, but also profusely. He wrote in the Barahin Ahmadiyya¹:

One night, this humble man recited the As-sala ala-n-Nabi with such abundance that the mind and soul were drenched with its fragrance. That same night, I saw in a dream that goatskin bags filled with lucid water glowing with a heavenly light are beingbrought into this humble man’s house. One of the deliverers said: “These are the same blessings that you had sent on Muhammad,peace and blessings of Allah be upon him and his followers.”

It was because of this profound love of the Prophet that Hazrat Mirza was accorded the glorious and exalted office of the Religious Leader of the Era. Hazrat Mirza stated in the Barahin Ahmadiyya²:

I remember another similar remarkable incident. I once received a Divine revelation to the effect that the angels are in a state ofstrife. The intention of God is to revive the religion, but till now the angels have not been able to discern the reviver, hence they are in a state of contention. In the meantime, I saw in a dream that people are searching for a reviver, and a person came face toface with this humble man. He pointed to me and said: “This is the man who loves the Messenger of Allah.” The meaning of this remark was that the primary requirement of this office (of the reviver) was love of the Messenger. So that quality is positivelyfound in this person.

It was the result of this love and the salutations sent on the Prophet that

Hazrat Mirza had the privilege of seeing Prophet Muhammad in a state of wakeful visions. Accordingly, he addresses the Prophet in one of his poems with great love and fervor:

O Prophet Muhammad! Of all mankind, I have a most profound spiri- tual relationship with you;

You have spiritually nurtured me, akin to the mother who nurtures her child in her lap

Recall the time when, in a true vision, you showed me your counte- nance;

Recall too another occasion wherein you came to greet me with enthu- siasm

Recall the kindness and benevolence with which you treated me; And the glad tidings from God that you conveyed to me

Recall too the time when, in my state of wakefulness, you showed me the splendor of your blessed countenance;

That countenance that is the envy of the most splendid springtime.

Hazrat Mirza’s heartfelt concern for propagating the religion of Prophet Muhammad is also evident from the following two verses:

Speak to me neither of heaven, nor of hell;

I spend my life like a man who is deranged with sorrow and concern for the religion of Muhammad

Whenever the task of the restoration of the Faith is turning through my mind;

I become completely oblivious to the joys and sorrows of this temporal world.

Effect of Prophet’s love when in solitude

An incident narrated by Maulvi Abdul Karim throws tremendous light on Hazrat Mirza’s great love for Prophet Muhammad. Maulvi Abdul Karim relates:

One afternoon I entered Mubarak mosque and found the mosque deserted except for Hazrat Mirza who was strolling in the mosque by himself and humming the following verses by Hazrat Hassaan bin Sabit:

You were the pupil of my eye, and your death has blinded me;

Now whoever dies may die; I dreaded only your death and that has transpired;

Hazrat Mirza was holding a handkerchief to his face. The sound of my footsteps startled him, and as he looked up in my direction, the hand holding the handkerchief dropped revealing his countenance. I saw that tears were streaming down his face. Hazrat Hassaan bin Sabit was a poet and a companion of Prophet Muhammad. He composed these verses on the death of Prophet Muhammad. The verses depict the pain and sorrow of the poet in a most natural and heart- felt manner. The love of thepoet is obvious, but how intense must be the love of the soul who thirteen hundred years later was so moved by the verses toshed tears uncontrollably in solitude where none was present to witness except God.

Footnotes

1. Barahin Ahmadiyya, Volume IV, page 502
2. Ibid.