Khilafat

Our Khalifa – My Story with the Khalifa in Norway; a Change in Perception

Berevan Saeed, Norway

I am from Kurdistan of Iraq, and currently reside in Norway. I was born to a Sunni Muslim family.

In April 2011, I pledged allegiance to the Fifth Successor of the Promised Messiah and Mahdi (as), our master Hadhrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad (aba).

I was introduced to the Ahmadiyya Community through MTA3 Al-Arabiyya. I did not know back then that the Community was established in Norway, and that there are Ahmadi Muslims who live here, so I sent my Bai’at (allegiance) form via e-mail to the community’s headquarters in the UK.

‏I swore allegiance straight away without even reading the books of the Promised Messiah and Mahdi, our master Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian (as). Moreover, I did not ask any Sheikh or scholar if this community was truthful or not, as it was more than sufficient for me to look at the photo of the Promised Messiah (as) and to listen to his poems on MTA. Thus, by Allah’s grace, I did not hesitate for a moment, nor did I have any shadow of doubt about the truth of this great man, may peace of Allah be on him, whom I’ve been waiting for since my childhood.

In September 2011, less than five months after I signed the Bai’at, Huzoor (His Holiness) (aba) visited Norway. My knowledge of the status of Khilafat (the Caliphate), its significance, and the sanctity of the Caliph (aba) was very superficial at the time, and so initially I did not understand what I saw from afar; the way in which Ahmadis spoke about the Caliph (aba). It was very strange to me to see how they expressed their love and relationship with the Caliph (aba), and how Ahmadi men would kiss his blessed hand. I was so confused, and many questions occurred in my mind… What is this that I see? And why? Is what they do part of the religion?

After three days of Huzoor’s (aba) arrival in Norway, the day when my children and I were to meet our beloved Huzoor (aba) for the first time had arrived. It would become a day which is now imprinted in our memories forever.

When we entered His Holiness’ (aba) office, I saw immediately the light radiating from his blessed face. I cannot describe the feelings we had and the spiritual munificence which penetrated our hearts at those moments due to that light we witnessed; even if I used words of description from all the languages in the world, it would still be impossible for me to describe that feeling!

At that moment, I understood and felt the great love that the community members have towards beloved Huzoor (aba). Any reservation, any question that I had no longer remained, as I understood what true love of Khilafat meant.

My children were 11 and 13 years old at the time. After we came out of Huzoor’s (aba) office, the first thing my youngest son said was ‘I will not wash my hands as long as I am alive so that the traces of his hand will remain on them.’ As for my older son, he insisted that we cannot leave the mosque as long as the Caliph (aba) is here. I told him we cannot sleep in the mosque, he said ‘let us sleep in the car, so in the morning we can see Huzoor again!’

We live in a city far from the mosque, so it was difficult for us to come to the mosque the next day to bid farewell to Huzoor (aba), which caused pain in my heart and my kids’ hearts, as we were not able to stay until our beloved Khalifa (aba) left.

‏The impressions of my children, their innocent expressions and feelings and the amount of love and the positive energy we obtained in that mulaqat was an abundance of blessings and bounties that God Almighty showered us with on that day, which have continued to this day and will continue with Allah’s Grace as long as we live under the patronage of the Caliphate and know its value and essence. We understood on that day its importance and necessity in our lives. It became more precious for us than all the treasures of the world and all that is in it.

Praise be to Allah for the blessing of the Khalifa.

O people! O Muslims! The Ummah of our beloved Master Muhammad (sa); do not deprive yourselves of the light that Allah Almighty has brought down in this time.

I invite you with sincerity and love to come and live this experience, to taste what true faith is, and smell the fragrance of flowers of the spiritual life that the companions of the Holy Prophet (sa) lived. At the end, I want to say that after joining the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, the true Islam, and enjoying spiritual experiences under the shadow of the blessed Caliphate, nothing in this world can replace it. I often cry at the threshold of Allah asking him why did He not show me this light of Khilafat earlier; that unfortunately the past years of my life went without knowing the true Islam. But I can’t thank Him enough that He guided me to the truth and did not leave me misled like so many other Muslims.