Raziullah Noman, Canada
وقت تھا وقتِ مسیحا نہ کسی اَور کا وقت
میں نہ آتا تو کوئی اَور ہی آیا ہوتا
This was indeed the appointed time for none other than The Messiah;
Had I not been appointed, someone else would surely have appeared! [1]
The Holy Prophet Muhammad (sa) made countless prophecies regarding the signs for the end times and the downfall of the Muslim ummah [people]. These prophecies number in the hundreds and are accepted by the Muslim scholars of every sect. Whether they are Sunni or Shia, they all agree that near the end of times, Muslims would distance themselves from the faith and no longer retain the Islamic spirit. Even the learned people and scholars of Islam were included in these prophecies by the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sa). In fact, they are described as the root cause of the problem. The Holy Prophet Muhammad (sa) prophesied:
يُوشِكُ أَنْ يَأْتِيَ عَلَى النَّاسِ زَمَانٌ لَا يَبْقَى مِنَ الْإِسْلَامِ إِلَّا اسْمُهُ وَلَا يَبْقَى مِنَ الْقُرْآنِ إِلَّا رَسْمُهُ مَسَاجِدُهُمْ عَامِرَةٌ وَهِيَ خَرَابٌ مِنَ الْهُدَى عُلَمَاؤُهُمْ شَرُّ مَنْ تَحْتَ أَدِيمِ السَّمَاءِ مِنْ عِنْدِهِمْ تَخْرُجُ الْفِتْنَةُ وَفِيهِمْ تَعُود
‘A time will come upon the people, when nothing will be left of Islam except its name, and nothing would be left of the Qur’an except its script. Their mosques would be full of worshippers but devoid of guidance. Their ulama (religious scholars) will be the worst of creatures under the canopy of the heavens. Evil plots will hatch from them, and to them they will return.’ [2]
The Holy Prophet Muhammad (sa) did not leave the Muslim ummah without a cure. He instructed that when such a state of affairs came about, Muslims should join that divine community of Muslims with an Imam. It is narrated that someone asked the Holy Prophet (sa):
فَمَا تَأْمُرُنِي إِنْ أَدْرَكَنِي ذَلِكَ قَالَ ” تَلْزَمُ جَمَاعَةَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ وَإِمَامَهُمْ ”. قُلْتُ فَإِنْ لَمْ يَكُنْ لَهُمْ جَمَاعَةٌ وَلاَ إِمَامٌ قَالَ ” فَاعْتَزِلْ تِلْكَ الْفِرَقَ كُلَّهَا، وَلَوْ أَنْ تَعَضَّ بِأَصْلِ شَجَرَةٍ، حَتَّى يُدْرِكَكَ الْمَوْتُ، وَأَنْتَ عَلَى ذَلِكَ
‘What do you order me to do if such a state should take place in my life?’ He said, ‘Stick to the group of Muslims and their Imam (ruler).’ I said, ‘If there is neither a group of Muslims nor an Imam (ruler)?’ He said, ‘Then turn away from all those sects even if you were to bite (eat) the roots of a tree till death overtakes you while you are in that state’. [3]
This divine community is the same community which was to form with the coming of the Imam Mahdi and Latter-Day Messiah. Allah the Almighty revealed the following verses to the Holy Prophet (sa) which also relate to this divine community:
هُوَ الَّذِي بَعَثَ فِي الْأُمِّيِّينَ رَسُولًا مِنْهُمْ يَتْلُو عَلَيْهِمْ آيَاتِهِ وَيُزَكِّيهِمْ وَيُعَلِّمُهُمُ الْكِتَابَ وَالْحِكْمَةَ وَإِنْ كَانُوا مِنْ قَبْلُ لَفِي ضَلَالٍ مُبِينٍ وَآخَرِينَ مِنْهُمْ لَمَّا يَلْحَقُوا بِهِمْ ۚ وَهُوَ الْعَزِيزُ الْحَكِيمُ
He it is Who has raised among the Unlettered people a Messenger from among themselves who recites unto them His Signs, and purifies them, and teaches them the Book and wisdom, although they had been, before, in manifest misguidance; And among others from among them who have not yet joined them. He is the Mighty, the Wise. [4]
The Holy Prophet Muhammad (sa) himself provided an explanation for this verse. It is narrated:
كُنَّا جُلُوسًا عِنْدَ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم فَأُنْزِلَتْ عَلَيْهِ سُورَةُ الْجُمُعَةِ {وَآخَرِينَ مِنْهُمْ لَمَّا يَلْحَقُوا بِهِمْ}
قَالَ قُلْتُ مَنْ هُمْ يَا رَسُولَ اللهِ فَلَمْ يُرَاجِعْهُ حَتَّى سَأَلَ ثَلاَثًا، وَفِينَا سَلْمَانُ الْفَارِسِيُّ، وَضَعَ رَسُولُ اللهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَدَهُ عَلَى سَلْمَانَ ثُمَّ قَالَ ” لَوْ كَانَ الإِيمَانُ عِنْدَ الثُّرَيَّا لَنَالَهُ رِجَالٌ ـ أَوْ رَجُلٌ ـ مِنْ هَؤُلاَءِ
‘We were sitting with the Holy Prophet (sa) when this chapter [i.e. Surah Al-Jumu’ah – Chapter 62 of the Holy Qur’an] was revealed. I enquired, ‘Who are the people to whom the words and among others of them who have not yet joined them refer?’ The Prophet (sa) did not reply till I repeated my question thrice. Salman, Persian was sitting among us. The Holy Prophet (sa) put his hand on Salman and said. ‘If faith were to go up to the Pleiades, a man from among these would surely find it.’ [5]
From this blessed incident, the Companions of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sa) understood that Allah had promised two advents of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sa); the first advent took place in Arabia, through which the companions became like glittering stars. The wilderness of Arabia was transformed into a garden. The Companions understood the second advent when Holy Prophet Muhammad (sa) put his blessed hand on Salman the Persian (ra) and said that if faith ascended to the highest star in the sky, someone from among his people would bring it back. The Companions had asked about the people who would be blessed with the second coming, but the answer of the Holy Prophet (sa) clarified that he would not return himself, rather someone would come in his likeness. This person was to be of Persian lineage and he was to resemble the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sa). He would be sent to the latter-day Muslims to reform them, as the Holy Prophet (sa) reformed the earlier people. This person was none other than Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as) of Qadian – The Promised Messiah.
The Promised Messiah (as) writes:
‘It was laid down in the Word of God that the second part of this ummah will be the Jama‘at [community] of the Promised Messiah. This is, indeed, why God Almighty mentioned this Jama‘at by singling it out from the rest as He says:
وَآخَرِينَ مِنْهُمْ لَمَّا يَلْحَقُوا بِهِمْ [Surah al-Jumu’ah, 62:4]
meaning that, there is also another sect as part of the Ummah of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sa), that are still to come in the Latter Days. And authentic hadith [saying of the Holy Prophet (sa)] records that at the time of revelation of this verse, the Holy Prophet, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, patted [Hadrat] Salman the Persian’s back and said
لو كان الايمان معلقا بالثريا لناله رجل من فارس
[Even if the faith had left (the earth) for the Pleiades, a man of Persia would bring it back’].
It was a prophecy about me. As recorded in Barahin-e-Ahmadiyya, as a testimony to the authenticity of this prophecy, God vouchsafed the same hadith to me in the form of revelation. According to the revelation, there was no specified person before me to whom this hadith applied. The revelation of God singled me out. فالحمد لله على ذلك (So Allah be praised for all this). [6]
Allegation: Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as) Was Not Persian
One of the baseless allegations that is raised is that Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as) was not of Persian lineage. Hazrat Maulana Abdur Raheem Dard (ra) beautifully answers this allegation. He writes:
‘The Promised Messiah (as) belonged to a most distinguished family. He was a descendant of Haji Barlas who was the uncle of Amir Timur (commonly known as Tamerlane in the West). It is an established fact of history that Timur belonged to the famous tribe of Barlas which had lived and ruled in Kish for two hundred years. This part of the world was known in ancient times as Sogdiana of Samarkand was the capital. The Encyclopedia Britannica says that the Sogdians were a tribe of Iranians. The word Samarkand itself is of Iranian origin. The word Barlas also is Iranian and means ‘A brave man of noble stock.’ Hence the Promised Messiah (as) was Iranian by race and not Mughal as is generally supposed.’ [7]
Muhammad Hussain Batalvi was one of the biggest opponents of the Promised Messiah (as) and did everything in his capacity to oppose the Community. He writes referring to the Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as):
اور مؤلف قریشی نہیں فارسی الاصل ہیں
‘And the writer is not Quraishi, rather of Persian Lineage’ [8]
Furthermore, the revelation of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as) also clarified that he is of Persian lineage. The Promised Messiah (as) writes:
‘As is generally understood, this family is known as a Mogul family, but God, the Knower of the unseen, who is aware of reality, has repeatedly affirmed in His holy revelation that this is a Persian family and has addressed me as a descendant of Persians.’ [9]
‘All these divine statements prove that my family is, in reality, Persian, not Mogul. I do not know by what misunderstanding the family became known as Mogul. According to my information our family tree runs as follows. My father’s name was Mirza Ghulam Murtada, his father’s name was Mirza ‘Ata Muhammad; Mirza ‘Ata Muhammad’s father was Mirza Gul Muhammad; Mirza Gul Muhammad’s father was Mirza Faid Muhammad; Mirza Faid Muhammad’s father was Mirza Muhammad Qa’im; Mirza Muhammad Qa’im’s father was Mirza Muhammad Aslam; Mirza Muhammad Aslam’s father was Mirza Dilawar; Mirza Dilawar’s father was Mirza Allah-Din; Mirza Allah-Din’s father was Mirza Ja‘far Baig; Mirza Ja‘far Baig’s father was Mirza Muhammad Baig; Mirza Muhammad Baig’s father was Mirza ‘Abdul-Baqi; Mirza ‘Abdul-Baqi’s father was Mirza Muhammed Sultan; Mirza Muhammed Sultan’s father was Mirza Hadi Baig. It appears that Mirza and Baig were bestowed upon them as titles, as Khan is bestowed as a title. In any case, what God has manifested is indeed correct. Man can fall into error from a minor mistake, but God is free from omission and error.’ [10]
Allegation: The Prophecy Refers to Imam Abu Hanifa (rh)
Some non-Ahmadi Muslims raise the allegation that this prophecy made by the Holy Prophet (sa) regarding the Latter-Day Messiah was fulfilled in Hazrat Imam Abu Hanifa (rh). As Ahmadi Muslims, we love Imam Abu Hanifa (rh) and Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as) praised him for his piety and knowledge. He writes:
‘The fact is that the aforementioned Imam Sahib [Imam Abu Hanifa], in terms of his aptitude of ijtihad [hermeneutics], comprehension of hadith, understanding and wisdom was superior and greater than the other three imams [i.e. Hazrat Imam Malik (rh), Hazrat Imam Shafi‘I (rh) and Hazrat Imam Ahmad (rh) bin Hanbal]. His God-given decision-making skills were so refined that he knew how to differentiate between evidence and lack of evidence. His reasoning skills had a special power to understand the Holy Qur’an and his nature had a deep familiarity with the word of God, elevating him to the highest stage of God-realisation. It is for this reason that in terms of ijtihad and deduction, he was accepted as the highest authority, something which the rest were unable to attain.’ [11]
However, despite his greatness, this prophecy cannot refer to him. The reason is that this would go against the ahadith [sayings] of the Prophet Muhammad (sa) and his guidance for the Muslims. The Holy Prophet (sa) stated:
خَيْرُكُمْ قَرْنِي، ثُمَّ الَّذِينَ يَلُونَهُمْ، ثُمَّ الَّذِينَ يَلُونَهُمْ ـ قَالَ عِمْرَانُ لاَ أَدْرِي ذَكَرَ ثِنْتَيْنِ أَوْ ثَلاَثًا بَعْدَ قَرْنِهِ ـ ثُمَّ يَجِيءُ قَوْمٌ يَنْذُرُونَ وَلاَ يَفُونَ، وَيَخُونُونَ وَلاَ يُؤْتَمَنُونَ، وَيَشْهَدُونَ وَلاَ يُسْتَشْهَدُونَ، وَيَظْهَرُ فِيهِمُ السِّمَنُ
‘The best of you (people) are my generation, and the second best will be those who will follow them, and then those who will follow the second generation.’ Imran [the narrator] added, ‘I do not remember whether he mentioned two or three (generations) after his generation.’ He added, ‘Then will come some people who will make vows but will not fulfil them; and they will be dishonest and will not be trustworthy, and they will give their witness without being asked to give their witness, and fatness will appear among them.’ [12]
The Holy Prophet Muhammad (sa) states that the first three generations of the Muslims would be the best generations for Islam. Hazrat Imam Abu Hanifa (rh) was from among these Muslims and was from the best of them. How can one then claim that faith had already ascended to the Pleiades during this time, when that was to occur at the end of times? This would mean that the prophecy of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sa) for the greatness of the ummah would, God forbid, have failed and it would also mean that the Muslims of the first three generations were the worst, not the best. Furthermore, Imam Abu Hanifa (rh) never made the claim to be this prophesied Messiah, nor did Allah inform him of this.
Allah the Almighty informed Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as) that he was the fulfilment of this prophecy.
انت سلمان و منّي يا ذا البركات
‘You are Salman and from me, O Blessed one’
The Promised Messiah [as] said: ‘This was said by the Holy Prophet, on whom be the peace and blessings of Allah, on one occasion when he put his hand on the shoulder of one of his companions, whose name was Salman and who was a Persian.’ [13]
Allegation : The Arabic Word Rijal [men] is Used and this is Plural
Some raise the allegation that the word rijal is used which means ‘men’ and not a man. This word is plural. Firstly, the prophecy speaks of the second coming of the Prophet Muhammad (sa) who was one man, which shows that the original fulfilment would also take place through one man, who was to be the latter-day Messiah and Imam Mahdi. The singular is also mentioned in some versions, like Sahih Muslim. It is narrated:
لَوْ كَانَ الدِّينُ عِنْدَ الثُّرَيَّا لَذَهَبَ بِهِ رَجُلٌ مِنْ فَارِسَ – أَوْ قَالَ مِنْ أَبْنَاءِ فَارِسَ – حَتَّى يَتَنَاوَلَ
‘If the faith were at the Pleiades, even then a person from Persia would have taken hold of it, or one amongst the Persian descent would have surely found it.’ [14]
As for the plural being used, this is in favour of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community’s argument presented for the truthfulness of the Caliphs (successors of the Promised Messiah (as)). This prophecy spoke of the Latter-Day Messiah, his successors and supporters. The Second Caliph of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community Hazrat Mirza Bashiruddin Mahmud Ahmad (ra) explains:
یعنی ایک خاص موعود کی طرف اشارہ کیا گیا ہے – ان سب روایات کو ملا کر معلوم ہوتا ہے کہ ایک خاص موعود شخص جو فارسی الاصل ہوگا آخری زمانہ میں ایمان کے اٹھ جانے کے بعد پھر ایمان کو واپس لائے گا – اور اس کے اس کام میں بعض اور فارسی الاصل لوگ بھی اس کے مؤید ہوں گے
‘This refers to a specific promised person. After putting all of these narrations together, we learn that a special promised person of Persian lineage would bring the faith back after it had been gone away. And in this task of his, there would be other people of Persian lineage who would support him.’ [5]
Allegation: The Arabic Word لو [if] Is Only Used for Possibility, It Doesn’t Actually Happen
One of the allegations raised is that the Arabic word لو is a conditional word which means that there is a possibility, but it would never happen. Such an allegation is completely baseless. This rule does not apply to every instance and can most certainly not apply to a prophecy. This Arabic rule is only applied to some sentences using this word, not all. A prophecy is meant to be fulfilled and shows the truthfulness of the prophets. If this was a rule for لو in every instance, why would the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sa) interpret the verse of the Qur’an with a prophecy that was not going to take place? Why would the Companions be so interested in this prophecy if it was never going to be fulfilled? The greatest scholars of the Arabic language also believed in the fulfilment of the prophecy. We must remember that because prophecies are for the future, they are at times misunderstood and the truth regarding them only becomes completely evident once they have been fulfilled. For this reason, some of the Arab scholars mistook this prophecy to be about Imam Abu Hanifa (rh).
While speaking on Imam Abu Hanifa (ra), Imam Suyuti writes:
وقد بشر بالإمام ابي حنيفة فى الحديث
‘The Prophet Muhammad (sa) has given glad tidings of Imam Abu Hanifa (ra) in this hadith’ [16]
The point here is that they too believed in this as a prophecy which was to be fulfilled and did not believe in such rules of Arabic.
Allegation: Meaning of the Word لَنَالَهُ
Some of the ignorant anti-Ahmadis raise the allegation that the word لَنَالَهُ means to attain, and not to bring back. They fail to realize that throughout the history of Islam, Muslim translators always give commentary translations to show what the ahadith are implying. In this hadith, the revival of faith is being implied. What benefit would a reformer have if he only attains the faith and leaves it at the Pleiades? What benefit would such a reformer have who attains faith himself but does not benefit the Muslims who would be in their worst condition at that time? His entire advent would be useless if we interpret the word لَنَالَهُ as some of the anti-Ahmadis.
In the end, we pray that Allah the Almighty enables the Muslims and non-Muslims to recognize the Imam of the age, Ameen.
Endnotes
[1] Durre Sameen, p. 160.
[2] Mishkat al-Masabih, Vol. 1, p. 91.
[3] Sahih al Bukhari, Book of Afflictions and the End of the World, Hadith #7084
[4] Holy Qur’an, 62:3-4
[5] Sahih al-Bukhari, The Book of Prophetic Commentary on the Holy Qur’an Hadith #4897
[6] Haqiqatul Wahi, The Philosophy of Divine Revelation, p. 499 Footnote
[7] https://rorenglish.wpengine.com/1573/forefathers-of-the-promised-messiahas/
[8] Ishaatus Sunnah, vol. 7,p. 193
[9] Haqiqatul Wahi, The Philosophy of Divine Revelation, p. 103
[10] Haqiqatul Wahi, The Philosophy of Divine Revelation, p. 104
[11] Izala-e-Auham, Ruhani Khazain, Vol. 3, p. 385, translated by Al Hakam from the Original Urdu in Tarikh Afkar-e-Islami, https://www.alhakam.org/hazrat-imam-abu-hanifa/
[12] Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of Oaths and Vows, Hadith #6695
[13] Tadhkirah, p. 833, Badr, vol. 2, no. 11, dated March 16, 1906, p. 2 and al-Hakam, vol. 10, no. 9, dated March 17, 1906, p. 1
[14] Sahih Muslim, The Book of the Merits of the Companions, Hadith #2546 a
[15] Tafsir-e-Kabeer, vol. 4, p. 494
[16] Tabyeed al-Sahifah, Manaqib Abi Hanifa, p. 32
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