Aeysha Nusrat Jahan, The Netherlands & Sumrin Naz, Germany
ادۡعُوۡنِیْ اَسْتَجِبْ لَکُمۡ
Pray unto Me; I will answer your prayer [1]
The 23rd of March is a very special day in the history of Ahmadiyyat as this was the day when the very first oath of allegiance was taken at the hands of the Promised Messiah (as) in 1889 and the day the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community was formally established.
For Sumrin Naz and her husband, Waseem Ahmad, from Flörsheim, Germany, this date also brings back beautiful memories of their wedding day, when a young couple began their marital journey on the 23rd March 1995 in Pakistan. Some years after their wedding, the couple emigrated to start a new life in Germany. After the initial time period of settling in a new country had passed, their focus turned towards starting a family. As they eagerly and patiently waited for the blessings most of us take for granted, days turned into weeks, weeks into months and months into years and despite medical intervention and all sorts of homeopathic and herbal treatments the couple were unable to conceive.
Through the years the couple held on tightly to hope and prayers and their faith never faltered in their Creator and the prayers of their Caliph. They used to write to the Fourth Caliph, Hazrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad (rh), asking for prayers regularly and he would always remind them to keep faith and not lose hope. In one of his replies to her he said:
‘Na umeed nahi hona Insha’Allah waqt aye ga’
‘Do not lose hope, God-willing your prayers will be accepted one day.’
Sumrin had longed to be part of the Waqf-e-Nau scheme ever since she was very young and had promised herself that when she would have children in the future, she would devote them to the service of Islam. She used to repeatedly write to Hazrat Khalifatul Masih (the Caliph) expressing her wish and, to this day, cherishes her letters from the Fourth Caliph (rh) and then after his demise, the Fifth Caliph, His Holiness, Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad (aba), responding with prayers and stating that Allah will surely bless her with the gift of a child.
The Fourth Caliph (rh) advised her to recite these Qur’anic prayers regularly:
رَبَّنَا ھَبۡ لَنَا مِنۡ اَزۡوَاجِنَا وَ ذُرِّیّٰتِنَا قُرَّۃَ اَعۡیُنٍ وَّ اجۡعَلۡنَا لِلۡمُتَّقِیۡنَ اِمَامًا
‘Our Lord, grant us of our wives and children the delight of our eyes, and make us a model for the righteous. [2]
رَبِّ لَا تَذَرۡنِیۡ فَرۡدًا وَّ اَنۡتَ خَیۡرُ الۡوٰرِثِیۡنَ
‘My Lord, leave me not childless, and Thou art the Best of inheritors.’ [3]
Sumrin also recalls her Mulaqat (private audience) with His Holiness (aba) in 2004, during which Huzoor (His Holiness) graciously took a considerable amount of time speaking to the couple and reiterated that they should keep their focus on prayer and to never lose hope or trust in Allah.
All married couples go through their share of marital challenges and usually the most significant and binding factor is their mutual love of their children. For childless couples, the desire and struggle for a child can even create highly emotional conflicts that can cause even the closest of couples to drift apart from each other. By the sheer grace of Allah, this couple did not allow despair and hopelessness to enter their hearts and remained not only patient but firmly committed to each other and steadfast in their trust in Allah.
Sumrin told us that in 2009 her mother passed away and shortly afterwards she found out that she was expecting. She subsequently lost her baby. Whereas some of us would surely crumble emotionally under the weight of these immense losses, Sumrin felt very strongly that although she had been tested greatly, Her Creator had also given her glad tidings that she was physically able to become a mother. She believes that on the one hand she had suffered unimaginable pain but on the other God Himself had placed a healing hand on her wounded heart. She considered it as a sign that maybe not at that moment in time, but at some point, in the future, Allah would surely bless her with a child. As a result of this remarkable belief, she became closer to God than ever before. She also had some dreams which indicated to her that the time would come when her prayers would be answered but that there was still time and also that it demanded sacrifice from her. As a result of her dreams, she decided to become part of the scheme of Wassiyat. She was on a car journey with her husband once and suddenly the words اَسۡتَجِبۡ لَکُم came into her mouth repeatedly from nowhere. Unaware of the meanings of these words, she was shocked to learn that they mean ‘I will answer your prayer’.
Sumrin had to go through costly and painful invasive fertility treatments which sadly were not successful, yet they both remained strong in their faith and kept fervently praying to Allah to bless them with a child. They also made pledges to several financial schemes such as Tehrik-e-Jadid, Waqf-e-Jadid, and offered her gold jewellery set for Germany’s Hundred Mosques scheme on behalf of their not yet conceived child. Sumrin had promised herself that she would contribute at least the same amount of money she had spent on her fertility treatment towards a good cause on behalf of her baby, and in 2012, when an appeal was launched for a building to be acquired with the purpose of converting it into a mosque for her local community in Floersheim, she did exactly that. In fact, when there was a shortfall in the funds required for the mosque development, she immediately took off her gold bangles and pledged them on behalf of her baby towards the mosque fund. His Holiness (aba) named the mosque Ata Mosque, meaning God’s gift.
She remembers clearly, the Friday morning in Ramadan in 2012, when her doctor first gave them the news that she was expecting. They were both naturally overwhelmed with simultaneous feelings of gratitude and fear, but through the next months, kept their focus on praying for their baby’s safe arrival and blessed life.
Sumrin humbly recalls that Allah listened to their supplications and rewarded them for their patience, prayers and unfaltering trust in the Almighty and on the 23rd of March 2013, after exactly 18 years of marriage, Allah blessed them with a healthy, beautiful baby boy. This little bundle of Allah’s blessings was given the name Kamraan Ahmad by His Holiness (aba). When Ata Mosque was inaugurated on the 24th of June 2013 by His Holiness (aba), another precious gift of God, the now three-month-old Kamraan was present himself to witness the blessed event. The little boy was lucky enough to meet with Beloved Huzoor (aba) who fondly placed his blessed hand on the baby’s face.
Sumrin made a very poignant and inspiring remark during our conversation. She stated that through this long wait, she had always felt that she is blessed to be an active member of Jama’at (the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community) in two ways: firstly, she was a recipient of the prayers of the Caliph (aba); secondly, if someone serves the Jama’at in any way, then that person is, by the grace of God, protected from feelings of despair and negativity. Sumrin feels that due to these two factors, she could face any difficulties or trials that life throws at her without falling into negativity or depression.
She told us that she was once asked by a family member if she had any other desire in life and she immediately responded that all she wants now is for Kamraan to be a pious and God-fearing Ahmadi Muslim, and for the prayers of His Holiness (aba) to be accepted in his favour.
As she recounted her emotional journey on the phone, many times her voice would break and she would have to pause and compose herself as she would be flooded by overwhelming feelings of gratitude. She has learned that God works in unique and mysterious ways, and most times we cannot comprehend His wisdom. Experience has taught her how important it is to always be content in Allah’s will.
Her love for her child, Khilafat, and above all her love for her Creator, were evident in every single word she spoke. It was clear from speaking to her that she never once gave up hope and always kept praying. Undoubtedly, Allah has blessed her with one of His most beautiful rewards: the gift of motherhood.
During the course of our interviews with her, we could hear the now seven-year-old Kamraan Ahmad happily chatting and playing away in the background. This intelligent and vibrant young boy is about to complete his first reading of the Holy Qur’an in a few days, and is a testament to a living God Who listens to the prayers of His loyal servants and answers them. Alhamdulillah (all praise belongs to Allah).
About the Author: Aeysha Nusrat Jahan lives in the Netherlands with her family. She has a degree in French and Psychology. Aeysha serves the Woman’s Auxiliary of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community in various capacities, and has also worked as a program producer for MTA (Muslim Television Ahmadiyya). Aeysha is a regular contributor for The Review of Religions online.
ENDNOTES
[1] Holy Qur’an (40:61)
[2] Holy Qur’an (25:75)
[3] Holy Qur’an (21:90)
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