Contents April 2003, Vol.98, No

Special contributors:Amatul-Hadi AhmadFarina Qureshi

Proof-reader:Shaukia Mir

Design and layout:Tanveer Khokhar

Publisher:Al Shirkatul Islamiyyah

Distribution:Muhammad Hanif

Mansoor Ahmed Shah.Basit Ahmad Bockarie Tommy KallonDaud Mahmood KhanFareed AhmadFazal AhmadFauzia BajwaMansoor Saqi Mahmood Hanif Mansoora Hyder-MuneebNavida ShahidSarah WaseemSaleem Ahmad MalikTanveer Khokhar

Views expressed in this publication are not necessarily the opinions of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community.

All correspondence shouldbe forwarded directly to:

The EditorReview of Religions

The London Mosque16 Gressenhall RoadLondon, SW18 5QL

United Kingdom

© Islamic Publications, 2002ISSN No: 0034-6721

An Obituary of Hadhrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad – Rafiq Ahmad Hayat – Amir UK. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

The Beginning of Khilafa in the Ahmadiyya Community – An excerpt from The Willabout the Divine promise of the Second Manisfestation of His Power: Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad(as) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Two Memorable Quotations – Quotations from Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih III and Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih IV regarding the Divine protection of the continuationof Khilafat: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Milestones in a Life lived to the Full – A brief look at the life of the extraordinary life of Hadhrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad (Khalifatul Masih IV): . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Man of God – Extract from the book of the same name detailing the amazing journey from Pakistan to the UK by Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih IV in the wake of the country’sPresident ordering his immediate arrest: Iain Adamson. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Life Sketch and Services of Hadhrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad – Khalifatul Masih V:A brief introduction to the new Head of the worldwide Ahmadiyya Movement and his election as the new Khalifa to lead the Community: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

The First Address of Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih V – The English translation of a speech given in Urdu just before the inaugural pledge of allegiance and allegianceat the hands of the new Khalifa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Contents April 2003, Vol.98, No.4

1

Chief Editor and Manager Chairman of the Management BoardNaseer Ahmad Qamar

We re g ret to announce thedemise of our spiritual head,Hadhrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad at9:30 am on the 19th of April,2003. S u rely to Allah do webelong and to Him do we return.

Hadhrat Mirza Tahir Ahmadhad served as the fourth headof the worldwide AhmadiyyaMuslim community from June1982. He was born onDecember 18th, 1928 inQadian, India, the son ofHadhrat Mirza Bashir-ud-DinMahmud Ahmad, theP romised Reformer, and sec-ond Successor to HadhratMirza Ghulam Ahmad, theFounder of the AhmadiyyaMuslim community. HadhratMirza Ghulam Ahmad was thePromised Messiah and Mahdi,as foretold by the Holy Prophetof Islam (peace be upon him).

Hadhrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad’searly education was in Qadian,India, and then at GovernmentCollege Lahore, and Rabwah,Pakistan. In 1955 he came toEngland to compete his studiesat The School of Oriental andAfrican Studies, University ofLondon.

Hadhrat Mirza Tahir Ahmadserved the community invarious capacities, includingP resident of the CentralAuxiliary Organization forYouth, and President of theCentral Auxiliary Associationfor the Elders of theCommunity. He was also anInternational Secretary on theCentral Executive Board. Hewas elected as the fourthsuccessor to Hadhrat MirzaGhulam Ahmad, on 10 June1982. Religious persecutionforced him to leave Pakistan inApril 1984, from which time he

2 The Review of Religions – April 2003

An Obituary of Hadhrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad

By Rafiq Ahmed Hayat, National President Ahmadiyya Muslim AssociationUK and former Editor of the Review of Religions

3


The Review of Religions – April 2003

Hadhrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad Khalifatul Masih IV

lived in Southfields, London, atthe Fazl Mosque. This thenbecame the centre of theAhmadiyya Community’sactivities from which all affairsworldwide were conductedand supervised by him.

Hadhrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad’sleadership was characterisedby a vibrancy and dynamismthat became the hallmark of his21 year tenure of office. Hemade himself accessible tomembers of the communitythrough his extensive travelsworldwide. His indefatigablee fforts on behalf of thecommunity inspired itsmembers to attain new heightsresulting in a period oftremendous progress in manyfields. Through his own nobleexample he renewed the spiritof commitment and serviceamongst all his followers.Foremost among his achieve-ments was the creation of aninternational satellite televisionstation, called MuslimTelevision Ahmadiyya,International (MTA). Thisstation broadcasts a variety ofprograms 24 hours a day in

most of the world’s majorlanguages, including his FridaySermons telecast live from theFazl Mosque. Since hisimmense and varied know-ledge enabled him to answerquestions on a diverse range ofsubjects during the frequentlytelevised “Question andAnswer Sessions,” it alsoe n d e a red him to his manyaudiences globally. Hisactivities proliferated with therapid spread of the communitythroughout 174 countries of theworld. The community expe-rienced a dynamic period ofg rowth, increasing its mem-bership from 10 million tomore than 200 million mem-bers.

An internationally acclaimedt h i n k e r, and scholar ofcomparative religions, he had aprofound understanding of theHoly Qur’an, the Bible, andother scriptures. Under hisguidance, the Holy Qur’an wastranslated into most of themajor languages. He himselfpersonally translated the HolyQ u r’an into the Urd ulanguage. He wrote exten-

4



sively, and among his scholarlyworks is his magnum opus,Revelation, Rationality, Know-ledge and Truth, published in1998.

A discerning student of worldhistory and a keen observer ofthe international politicalscene, he urged peace andtolerance among all nationsand all peoples. He care ddeeply about global humanrights, championed the causeof the persecuted and dis-possessed, and advocatedIslam as the solution to allcontemporary political, social,spiritual and economic prob-lems. In addition to hisreligious and spiritual duties,he was also a homeopathicphysician, a prolific writer, andgifted poet and a keensportsman.

His beloved wife, Syeda AsifaBegum passed away in 1992.He is survived by fourdaughters and severalgrandchildren.

The Community’s ElectoralCollege convened in London

on Tuesday, April 22 to electthe next Successor, HadhratMirza Masroor Ahmad,Khalifatul Masih V who led thefuneral prayer at Islamabad,Tilford, Surrey on Wednesday23 April 2003. The service washeld at 2:00pm. More than40,000 people from around theworld attended the service. _________________

This stop press issue of theReview of Religions focuses onthe institution of Khilafat andthe recent change in the Headof the world wide AhmadiyyaJama’at. Ed.

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In this journal, for theinformation of non-Muslimreaders, ‘(sa)’ or ‘sa’ after thewords, ‘Holy Prophet’, or thename ‘Muhammad’, are used.They stand for ‘Salallahu alaihiwassalam’ meaning ‘Peace andBlessings of Allah be uponhim’. Likewise, the letters ‘(as)’or ‘as’ after the name of allother prophets is anabbreviation meaning ‘Peacebe upon him’ derived fromAlaihi salato wassalam’ for therespect a Muslim reader utters.

All praise belongs to Allah, Lord of all the worlds; and peace andblessings be upon His Messenger, Muhammad, and upon all hiscompanions and progeny.

Since God Almighty has informed me, through re c u r re n trevelations, that the time of my demise is near, and since theserevelations have been of such force as to shake me to the very coreof my being – rendering my heart cold to this life – I have deemedit appropriate to write a few words of admonition and advice formy friends and such other persons as may derive benefit from myw o rd s .

To begin with I commit to writing the revelation that informed meof my impending demise and thus motivated me to undertake thistask. The revelation, which was received in the Arabic language, isas follows:


The Beginning of Khilafa in theAhmadiyya CommunityAn extract from The Will by Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad(as), thePromised Messiah and Mahdi, Founder of the Ahmadiyya Movementin Islam

‘Your departure from this world is imminent and We shallleave no trace or sign of any matter that may be a cause ofignominy or infamy for you. Very little time remains of theordained limit set for you by God and We shall dispel allobjections and will leave nothing behind that may be used tobring your name into disrepute. We possess the power to eithershow you something of the prophecies We made concerningyour opponents or to cause you to die. You will die in such astate that I will be totally pleased with you. Your time has comebut clear and distinct signs of your endorsement will remainmanifest forever. What has been promised to you is near.Describe to others the blessings that your God has bestowed onyou. One who adopts the fear of Allah and remains patient,Allah does not waste the reward of such devout people.’

It should be remembered that the Almighty God says here that Hewill not leave behind any such criticisms of my person as shouldprove a source of disgrace to me. This has two meanings:

1. All objections published by my opponents for the sole purpose ofbringing me into disrepute shall be refuted and brought to naught.

2. All those who do not refrain from their mischief and who do notrefrain from speaking ill of me, shall be wiped out of existenceand along with them their foul objections shall be annihilated.

Then Allah gave me the following tidings in Urdu about mydemise:

7

The Beginning of Khilafa in the Ahmadiyya Community


‘Very few days remain. On that day a great melancholy willdescend upon all. This shall happen; this shall happen; this shallhappen; then after this your incident will come to pass. Once allthe tribulations and all the miracles of nature have been shown,then shall occur your event.’

The knowledge that I have been given about the ‘tribulations’refers to the fact that death will grip the Earth on all fronts. Allaround, earthquakes of such calamity will occur as to provide aforetaste of the Last Day. The land will be turned upside down andthe lives of many will become harsh. Then, those who repent andforsake sin – to them Allah will show mercy. Every Prophet hasgiven tidings of this Day; it is, therefore, incumbent that all thisshould come to pass. But those who set their hearts aright,betaking themselves to the paths that are pleasing to God, theywill have no occasion for fear or grief.

Addressing me God Almighty has said: ‘Thou art a Warner fromMyself. Indeed I sent you so that the sinners may be separatedfrom the righteous.’ He said: ‘A Warner came to this world and theworld did not accept him. But God will accept him and God willestablish the truth of his claims with mighty onslaughts.1 And Ishall bless you to the extent that Kings will seek blessings fromyour garments.’

God informed me of another pending earthquake which will be ofutmost severity. He said: ‘Again, the spring came and once againthe word of God was fulfilled.’ This means that anothertremendous earthquake will occur, but the righteous will beprotected from it. Become righteous, therefore, and fear God sothat you may be saved. Fear God today that you may remain inpeace on that Day. Indeed the Heavens and the Earth will eachbring forth their signs. But the ones who fear the Lord will besaved.

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God has told me that many misfortunes will occur; many disasterswill strike the earth, some during my lifetime and some after Ihave gone. He will bless this Movement with prosperity, some atmy own hand and some after my departure.

It has always been the way of God, a way He has demonstratedsince the day He created mankind, that He comes to the aid of HisApostle and Messengers and grants them predominance. He hasstated in the Holy Qur’an:

Allah has decreed: ‘Most surely I will prevail, I and my Messengers.(Surah Al-Mujadilah Ch. 58:v 22)

‘Prevalence’ or ‘dominance’ in this context can be explained asfollows: It is the fervent desire of all Prophets that arguments infavour of God become firmly established on the Earth in such amanner that none should be able to refute them. So, with mightysigns, God makes manifest their truth and at their hands He sowsthe seed of righteousness they wish to spread. However, He doesnot complete this mission at their hands. Instead He causes themto die in such circumstances and at such a time when it wouldseem as if they had failed in their mission. This gives theopponents the opportunity to heap ridicule on them. But oncethese people have had their laugh, He shows anothermanifestation of His power and creates a set of circumstances thateventually lead to the fulfilment of those partially achieved aims.In short, His power is manifested twice:

1.During the lifetime of His Apostles and through their works, Heshows the power of His Hand.

2.After the demise of His Apostles, when their followers are

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subjected to various hardships. The enemy gains force andbegins to think that the mission of the Prophet has been fatallywounded. They even begin to believe that the community of hisfollowers will be destroyed. Even some of these followers fallp rey to doubt (as if their backs had been broken.) Someunfortunate ones take to the path of apostasy. Then, once again,God shows His Power and His Might and He saves the falteringcommunity. So, he who is steadfast to the last witnesses thismiracle of God Almighty.

This is similar to what happened at the time of Hadhrat AbuBakr(ra). The death of the Holy Prophet(sa) was considered untimelyand many ignorant Bedouin turned apostate. The companions ofthe Holy Prophet(sa) were consumed with grief. At that criticalhour, Allah made Hadhrat Abu Bakr(ra) stand firm and, throughhim, He once again showed a manifestation of His Power. Islamwas thus saved from annihilation and His following promise wasfulfilled, which said:

And that He will surely establish for them their religion which He haschosen for them; and that He will surely give them in exchangesecurity and peace after their fear.(Surah Al-Nur Ch.24: v 56)

This is what happened at the time of Moses(as). Moses (as) died en-route from Egypt to Canaan and so did not reach his promiseddestination. The Israelites were grief stricken. It is recorded in theTorah that they mourned for forty days at this appare n t l yuntimely death and at their unexpected separation from Moses(as).The same happened at the time of Jesus(as); after the crucifixion, allhis disciples dispersed and one even turned apostate.

So dear friends! It has always been the way of God Almighty toshow two manifestations of His Power. He thereby demolishes

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two false joys of the opponents. It is impossible that He shouldnow change this long established Divine practice. Grieve not,therefore, at what I am telling you. Nor should you be heartbrokenas you are destined to witness the second manifestation of HisPower. This second manifestation will be better for you as it iseverlasting and will remain unbroken until the Day of Judgement.The second manifestation cannot occur until after I am gone. Butonce I have departed, God will bring about for you the secondmanifestation of His Power and it will remain with you forever.

This is as promised by God and recorded in Braheen-e-Ahmadiyya,a promise not for me personally, but for you. For God has said thatHis followers will be vouchsafed prevalence over others until theDay of Judgement.

It is essential that the day of my separation from you shouldapproach so that the day of God’s everlasting promise may arrive.Our God is true to His Word; He is sincere and He is true. He willshow you all that He has promised. Albeit, these are the last daysof the world, and many disasters are destined to occur, yet it isinevitable that the world will remain in existence until God’sdecree is fulfilled.

I came from God as a manifestation of His Power. So gathertogether in prayer and await the second manifestation. Righteouscommunities in every land should gather together and busythemselves in prayer so that the second manifestation of powershould descend from the Heavens and show you how mighty isyour Lord. Consider your death to be near, for you do not knowwhen its hour will approach. After me, let the pure and righteoussouls of the community accept Bai’at (oath of allegiance) in myname.2

I came from God as a manifestation of His Power. It is God’s wish

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that all people of pious nature living in various parts of the world– regardless of whether they belong to Europe or Asia – bebrought together under the banner of Tawheed (the Unity of God).It is His intention that all His servants be gathered into onereligion and it is for the fulfilment of that goal that I have been sentinto this world. So strive for that goal, but always with gentleness,high morals and with prayers. Until such a time when one shouldstand up from among you with the Holy Spirit from the Lord, youshould work together and co-operate with one another.

(pp 5-12 from The Will, by Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, Urduedition published 20 December 1905. English translation, IslamInternational Publications 1997, ISBN 1 85372 602 8).

FOOTNOTES:1. Had the world opened its eyes, it would have seen that I appeared at the

beginning of a century. Nearly one quarter of the fourteenth century haselapsed. In accordance with what has been written in the Ahadith(Traditions of the Holy Prophet peace and blessings of Allah be upon him),after I made my claim, a solar and lunar eclipse occurred during the samemonth of Ramadan. A plague has ravaged the land; many earthquakes havestruck and there are many more to follow. Alas! Those who endeared thisworld to their hearts refused to accept me.

2 Such persons will be selected by consensus of opinion among the believers.If forty believers agree on a particular individual then he becomes entitledto accept Bai’at in my name. Such a person should be an exemplar to others.God has informed me that a person from my progeny will lead myfollowers. He will be granted distinction through Divine revelation andnearness to God. Through him, the truth will spread and many will acceptit. So wait for those days. Remember such a one can only be recognised inthe fullness of time. Before that time, he may appear to be an insignificantperson. Or, on the basis of a misunderstanding, he may even seemobjectionable, as indeed the most perfect man is at one time a mere seed orclot of blood in his mother’s womb.

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Only Allah makes a KhalifaHadhrat Mirza Nasir Ahmad,Khalifatul Masih III(ra), said:

It is our doctrine that aKhalifa is made by a GodA l m i g h t y. Had the choicebeen left to the people, thenwhosoever was foremost inthe view of the peoplewould have been made aKhalifa by them. But GodHimself makes a Khalifaand there is no defect in Hischoice. He selects a weakperson of His, a personwhom they considerinsignificant. Then havingselected him, Allah mani-fests His Glory andG reatness, and whateverthe person was andwhatever he had, Allahleaves none of it. In thepresence of His Majesty andG reatness, the personbecomes totally attired inthe mantle of the love ofGod and selflessness.(Al-Fazl 17 March 1967)

No danger will ever overtakeKhilafat in Ahmadiyya Hadhrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad,Khalifatul Masih IV(ra), gave theglad tidings to the communitywhen he said:

Now Insha Allah (Godwilling), no danger willever overtake Khilafat-i-Ahmadiyya. The commu-nity has reached a stage ofmaturity in the sight of God.No eye of the enemy, noheart of the opponent, noattempt by the oppositionwill be able to harm it ina n y w a y. Khilafat-i-Ahmadiyya shall InshaAllah continue to flourishwith just as much glory asthe glory promised to theP romised Messiah ( a s ). ThisJama’at (community offollowers) shall live for atleast a thousand years. So,p r a y, sing songs of Hispraise and renew yourp l e d g e s .(Al-Fazl 28 June 1982)

13The Review of Religions – April 2003

Two Memorable Quotations

Thou O soul at peace! Returnto thy Lord well pleased withHim and He well pleased withthee. So enter thou among Mychosen servants, and enterthou My Garden.(Al-Fajr Ch 89: v.28-31)

Hadhrat Sahibzada Mirza Ta h i rAhmad Sahib was born inQadian on Tu e s d a y, 18December 1928 (corre s p o n d i n gto 5 Rajab 1347), one day beforethe town’s celebration for thearrival of the railway service inQadian (India). He used to jokethat it was he who brought thetrains to Qadian. His father wasthe Promised Reformer,Hadhrat Mirza Bashiru d d i nMahmud Ahmad, KhalifatulMasih II( r a ), the son of theFounder of the AhmadiyyaMuslim Jama’at (community offollowers), Hadhrat MirzaGhulam Ahmad( a s ) of Qadian,the Promised Messiah andMahdi (1835-1908). He was

thus the grandson of theP romised Messiah ( a s ). Hismother was Hadhrat SyedaMaryam Begum Sahiba (knownm o re popularly as Umm-i-Ta h i r, the mother of Ta h i r ) .

Hadhrat Sahibzada Mirza Ta h i rAhmad grew under the caringsupervision of his parents anddid his primary education inQadian. He passed his matric-ulation at Talimul Islam HighSchool in Qadian in 1944 andhis FSc at Government CollegeL a h o re but studied privatelyfor his BA. His mother, towhom he was greatly attached,passed away on 5 March 1944but his upbringing was suchthat he re g a rded the otherwives of his father also as hismothers. While in Qadian, heused to recall that he used topray near the entrance to themosque so that as soon asprayers finished, he couldmake his way straight to the


Milestones in a Life Lived to the FullA brief look at the life of Hadhrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad (1928 – 2003)Khalifatul Masih IV (10 June 1982 – 19 April 2003)

home. During the 1947 par-tition of India, he performedsecurity duties in Qadian andthen migrated with his fatherand the rest of the family toPakistan.

On 7 December 1949, hee n rolled into the JamiaAhmadiyya (the theosophicalacademy) Rabwah andobtained his qualification in1953 as a Shahid. In 1955, hep roceeded for furthereducation to London where heenrolled for a course in Englishat the Languages section of theSchool of Oriental and AfricanStudies, linked to theUniversity of London. Hedeveloped many friends at theSOAS with whom he con-tinued correspondence formany years. He is recalled astruly inspirational, kind, wise,compassionate, understanding,h u m o rous – all the qualitiesthat people strive to acquire.His cousin bro t h e r, HadhratMirza Nasir Ahmad (later tobecome Khalifatul Masih III)was studying at the BalliolCollege in Oxford and the twoof them used to turn up

regularly at the Fazl MosqueLondon. He was a marksmanand a keen sportsman with aninterest in Kabadi, squash andcricket and his adventuro u sinclinations made himhitchhike his way thro u g hmost parts of Europe.

On 14 October 1957, HadhratSahibzada Mirza Tahir AhmadSahib returned to Pakistan andon 5 December 1957, his Nikahwas announced with HadhratSyeda Asifa Begum Sahiba, thedaughter of Amatul SalamSahiba and Sahibzada MirzaRashid Ahmad Sahib. Thewedding took place on 9December and his walima feastwas held two days later. Hewas blessed with fourdaughters: Sahibzadi ShaukatJehan Sahiba , Sahibzadi FaizaLuqman Sahiba, SahibzadiYasmin Rahman Mona Sahibaand Sahibzadi Atiya-tul-HabibTooba Sahiba.

In 1958, the Waqf Jadid schemewas launched and amongst itso ffice bearers, HadhratKhalifatul Masih II put downhis name first and then

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Milestones in a Life lived to the Full


appointed him as NazimIrshad Waqf Jadid, a post thathe held till his election as theKhalifatul Masih IV.

In 1960, he delivered his firstpublic address at the AnnualConvention in Rabwah. He hada charming personality, was agifted poet and a lively oratorwho always carried theaudience with him all the way.Those attending the AnnualConvention made it a specialpoint to listen to his addresses.(Lajna Imaillah published hiscollection of poems (Kalami-i-Tahir) in 1995, a second revisionwas published in 1997, anupdated version was publishedby the Jama’at in Germany in1998 and the fourth revised andupdated edition was publishedin 2001.)

Hadhrat Sahibzada MirzaTahir Ahmad Sahib’s bookMadhhab Ke Naam Par Khun(also available in English asMurder in the Name of Allah)was published in 1962. It is avibrant and lively informedrejection of the philosophyp ropounded by Maulana

Maududi of Jama’at Islami thatdisbelievers should be given nochoice other than to eitheraccept Islam or face the sword.The author proved Maududi’sphilosophy mirrored Marxism.The use of force can never bejustified by a religion literallymeaning peace.

F rom 1966 to 1969, HadhratSahibzada Mirza Tahir AhmadSahib served as Sadr MajlisKhuddamul Ahmadiyya( C e n t r a l ) , an auxiliary org a n i -sation of the community’s malemembers between the ages of 15and 40. In 1970, he wasappointed as the Director FazlUmar Foundation. Then in1974, under the leadership ofHadhrat Khalifatul Masih III, heparticipated in the great debateas a re p resentative on behalf ofthe Ahmadi delegation in theNational Assembly of Pakistan.He also travelled to London toattend the symposium on the‘Deliverance of Jesus from theC ross’. He used to recall withg reat pride that the first task heundertook at the Centre was togo through all the files at theC e n t re and this gave him an

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excellent insight to the mainissues.

In 1975, his compilation of thefirst volume on the Life of FazlUmar was published. On 1January 1979, HadhratSahibzada Mirza Tahir AhmadSahib was elected as SadrMajlis Ansarullah (Central), anauxiliary organisation of thecommunity for men over 40years of age. He held this posttill his election as the KhalifatulMasih IV. In addition, heserved the community byrunning a homeopathic clinicand many persons attendingthe Annual Convention inRabwah recall having beent reated by his excellentremedies. He also served formany years as Naib Afsar JalsaSalana in Rabwah.

In September 1980, hea d d ressed gatherings inRawalpindi, Multan, Chak 366B, and in October inFaisalabad, Muzaff a rg h a r. Atthe Majlis Ansarullah Ijtima’a,there was simultaneous trans-lation in English andIndonesian languages of his

a d d resses. At the AnnualConvention 1980, his addresswas the Noble Example of theHoly Prophet in the Battles. InJanuary 1981, he addressed theSeeratun Nab Jalsa, Rabwah, inF e b ruary he toured Sanghar,Multan, Wahri, in March Chak38 south Sargodha in additionto presiding at the Jalsa YaumMasih Maud in Rabwah. InApril, he toured Jehlum, inMay in Karto, Sheikhupura,Sambriyal, Raipur in Sialkot, inJune Phahaywali, October inGujranwala, November inTakht Hazara, and on 27 May1982, he presided at the JalsaYaum Khilafat in Rabwah. Hisbook, Wasal Ibn Maryam waspublished.

On the hot and sultry day of 10June 1982, the Electoral Collegeconvened in Masjid Mubarak,Rabwah, under the chair-manship of Sahibzada MirzaMubarak Ahmad, and pur-suant to its rules, electedHadhrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad asthe Khalifatul Masih IV. Thefirst person to pledge theinaugural oath of allegianceand initiation at his hands was

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a Companion of the PromisedMessiah(as), residing in London,H a d h r atChaudhry MuhammadZ a f rulla Khan ( r a ). There a f t e r,25,000 participated in theinaugural pledge of allegiance.He led the Asr prayers and inthe Qasr Khilafat, SayedaAmatul Hafeez BegumSahiba(ra) put on his finger theP romised Messiah’s ringinscribed with his firstrevelation. On the same date,Hadhrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad,Khalifatul Masih IV, led thefuneral prayers of hisp re d e c e s s o r, Hadhrat MirzaNasir Ahmad, KhalifatulMasih III(ra), who was buried inBahishti Maqbara Rabwah. Thenext day, he delivered his firstFriday sermon as the KhalifatulMasih and advised the Jama’atnot to pass customaryresolutions but to pledge towork with piety andrighteousness. On 13 June 1982,the Daily AlFazl carried hisspecial message to and prayersfor the people of Palestine.

In July 1982, he left Pakistan fora tour of Europe. On 1 August1982, he addressed the

community in Oslo, on 8August Gotenburg, 11 Augustin Copenhagen, 13 August inHamburg, 19 August at a pressconference in Frankfurt, on 31August in Zurich on TheF u t u re of Mankind, on 4September in The Hague andon 10 September he performedthe grand opening of the firstAhmadiyya mosque, BasharatMosque, in Pedroabad, Spain,whose foundation stone hadbeen laid by HadhratKhalifatul Masih III. On 22September he met the Scottishorientalist, Sir MontogomeryWatt, and then opened variousJama’at centres in the UK.Upon his return to Pakistan, helaunched the Buyutul Hamdscheme. Its purpose was toprovide accommodation facil-ities in commemoration of thethanks-giving centenary cele-brations to deserving membersof the community. On 15December 1982, he launched anappeal for five new missionc e n t res (now called tablighc e n t res) in America. On 25December 1982, he started theMajlis Sehti Jismani (PhysicalHealth). From 26 to 28

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December 1982, the first JalsaSalana (Annual Convention)under Khalifatul Masih IV washeld in Rabwah. His address atthis Convention was on thet h ree creative principles andentitled: ‘Adl, Ihsan and Ita’iDhil Qurba (justice, grace, andto give like the giving of kin tokin). This theme was publishedin English in 1996 as AbsoluteJustice, Kindness and Kinship.

On 28 January 1983, HadhratKhalifatul Masih IV started theDawati ilillah (a schemecommitted to making the callto Allah and conveying the

message of true Islam amongstseekers of the truth; additionali n s t ructions involving theentire community in this nobletask were issued in subsequentyears). On 1 April 1983, the firstMajlis Shura under his Khilafawas held. He established thisinstitution on very firmfootings while still preservingthe traditions on which it hadbeen founded and used toremind members that MajlisShura ranked next inimportance to Khilafat. InAugust 1983, HadhratKhalifatul Masih IV started histour to the Far East and

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Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih IV making his first speech after being elected as Khalifaof the worldwide Ahmadiyya Movement in 1982. On the extreme right with his handon his beard is the distinguished Chaudhry Muhammad Zafrulla Khan.

Australia where he laid thefoundation stone of BaitulHuda, Sydney. Between 26 and28 December 1983, the last JalsaSalana (Annual Convention)was held in Rabwah at whichmore than 275,000 participants(the highest gathering to date)took part. From 30 March to 1April 1984, the last MajlisShura of his Khilafat was heldin Rabwah and the last FridaySermon delivered by him wason 20 April 1984.

On 26 April 1984, GeneralZiaul Haq issued the notoriousanti-Ahmadiyya Ordinance XXrendering it a criminal offencepunishable with fines andimprisonment for Ahmadis toengage in certain acts ofworship or use certain Islamicterminologies. After Isha(night) prayers on 28 April1984 at the Masjid Mubarak inRabwah, he addressed theworshippers and on 29 April1984 he left his home inRabwah and arrived mirac-ulously in London safely on 30

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Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih IV’s remarkable gift was being able to make everyone,young or old, feel close to him. His affection, concern and welfare for Jama’atmembers was always evident by the hundreds of Community functions he attended.

April 1984. (See extract fromthe Man of God in this issue.)The first thing that he did wasto summon a meeting of thecommunity and asked themembers to pull up their socksfor the challenges ahead. Thefirst Friday sermon deliveredin London after his arrival inthe UK was at the Fazl Mosqueon 4 May 1984. Additional staffjoined him later and offices anddesks were created for specifictasks.

On 20 July 1984, the govern-ment of Pakistan issued itsWhite Paper terming theAhmadiyya community aninety years cancer that had tobe terminated. Hadhrat MirzaTahir Ahmad, Khalifatul MasihIV rose to the challenge andt h rough a series of sermons(now available as D h a h a q a lBatil), he minced no words andpulled no punches as hep roduced evidence anddestroyed piece by piece eachfalse allegation levelled againstthe Founder of the communityor its beliefs. This was furthersupplemented by appealsmade to leading parliamen-

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Hadhrat KhalifatulMasih IV’s love ofbrisk walking as a form of exercise was aregular habit performed each morningjust after Fajr prayer.

tarians, human rights org a n -isations and AmnestyInternational and his tru s t e dfriend, Mr Aftab Ahmad Khan,Amir UK, and bro t h e r,Sahibzada Mirza Muzaff a rAhmad, Amir USA, assistedhim in this task. On 14 March1986, he launched the SyednaBilal Fund for the families anddependants of prisoners in thecause of Allah and them a r t y red. On 20 September1986, he laid the foundationstone of Baitul Islam , MapleOnt., Canada.

On 3 April 1987, anticipatingthe challenges the next centuryis likely to pose and to hastenthe spiritual revolution whichAhmadiyyat had been divinelycommissioned to bring about,he launched the Waqf NauScheme. Members of theJama’at were invited todedicate children after or evenbefore birth to the services ofIslam. The communityresponded with great fervourto the initial target of 5,000(increased two years later to15,000), both surpassed. In1992, a separate Wakalat Waqf

Nau was created. At 8.15 pmon 14 June 1987, a lecture wasd e l i v e red in the Germanlanguage from his Urdu notesat the Oule University ofZurich which became the basisfor his later magnum opus,Revelation, Rationality, Know-ledge and Tr u t h published in1998. On 1 August 1987, at theUK Annual Convention, twokings of Nigeria were givenpieces from the garments of thePromised Messiah(as) (who hadp rophesied that kings shallseek blessings from hisgarments).

In January 1988, HadhratKhalifatul Masih IV started hisfirst tour of various countriesin West Africa and gavefriendly advice to the leaders ofthe African nations. Hefollowed this up with a tour ofEast Africa in August andMauritius in September-October that year. On Friday 10June 1988, a revelation seen bymany Ahmadis earlier ofsomething significant tohappen on Friday the Tenth,was fulfilled when on behalf ofthe Ahmadiyya Jama’at, he

22



issued a challenge to aM u b a h i l a (a prayer duel)specifically mentioningGeneral Ziaul Haq as a partyand refuting many falseallegations, such as the murderof Aslam Qureshi, to theleaders of the opponents ofAhmadiyyat as a result ofwhich many signs proving thet ruth of Ahmadiyyat wereobserved. Maulana AslamQ u reshi whose kidnap andm u rder was alleged to havebeen committed by HadhratKhalifatul Masih IV suddenlyre a p p e a red alive in Pakistanand was seen on Pakistan TV.On 17 August 1988, reportedthe next day’s The Sun, ‘ZiaBlown Out Of The Sky’. The

Financial Times reported ‘Asthe coffin containing only histeeth (nothing else of himcould be found) was loweredinto the grave, a 21-gun salutesounded.’ In February 1989, theIranian authorities issued their‘fatwa’ of death on SalmanRushdie for his blasphemywhen he wrote the S a t a n i cVerses but instead of demon-strations and book burning,Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih IVadvised the Muslims to refutethe allegations made againstthe Holy Prophet of Islam(sa)

and said that no one on earthhas been granted an authorityto punish the offence ofblasphemy.

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Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih IV authored many books especially subjectsdealing with Islamic perspectives on modern-day problems, situations andcurrent-affairs.

On 23 April 1989, he led thecommunity in the thanksgivingcelebrations of the firstcentenary of Ahmadiyyat. Thishad been preceded the nightbefore by a dinner in London atwhich leading dignitaries werep resent whom he addre s s e d .The Pakistan authorities,h o w e v e r, put a ban on thecelebrations in Rabwah withsome ridiculous re s t r i c t i o n swith which we shall not boreour readers. In July 1989, hedeparted on a tour of the FarEast and on 3 November 1989,

he established the system ofSadarat (presidency) of allauxiliary organisations report-ing directly to him. On Friday10 1989, the Berlin Wall cametumbling down.

On 24 February 1990, hedelivered a lecture on Islam’sResponse to Contemporary Issues(since published) at the QueenElizabeth II Conference Centrein London attended by 800guests. Between 3 August 1990and 15 March 1991, hedelivered a series of 17 Friday

24



Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih IV receiving a rapturous welcome from the UK Jama’atafter his historic return from the 1992 Jalsa Salana (Annual Convention) in Qadian

sermons as the Gulf Crisispolarised the Muslim worldf rom countries like SaudiArabia and Kuwait and theinjustices unfolded beforethem. The advice given by himto the Muslim world in the lastdecade of the millennium wasthe most valuable piece ofadvice to prepare the Muslimsfor the next millennium. (Thesesermons were translated inEnglish and published in 1992).In December 1991, HadhratMirza Tahir Ahmad, Khalifatul

Masih IV undertook hishistoric journey to India anda d d ressed the 100th JalsaSalana (Annual Convention) inQadian asking mankind to putaside inter-communal strifeand put the mutual interest ofhumanity first.

On 31 January 1992, his FridaySermon was telecast live bysatellite across Europe. On 3April, his wife, Hadhrat SyedaAsifa Begum Sahiba, passeda w a y. However, he did not let

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The highlight of the Annual Convention held in the UK each year was the livetelevised International bait which was broadcast all over the world. Under theleadership of Hadhrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad, the worldwide Ahmadiyya Communityhad grown from a few thousand to over 200 million members ... and is still growing.

this deter him from carrying outhis duties and led the Eidprayers the next day. She wasburied in Brookwood, Surre y.Hadhrat Mirza Tahir Ahmadchose to remain a widower forthe rest of his life. The UKAnnual Convention wastelecast live that year and on 21August, Huzur’s sermonsbegan to be telecast in fourcontinents. He opened BaitulZikr in To ronto on 17 October1992. Huzur addressed JalsaSalana Qadian (26-28 December1992) live from London and thefirst ba’iat was telecast live.

At the UK Annual Convention,200,000 new Ahmadis who hadjoined Ahmadiyyat fro mAugust 1992 to July 1993 tooktheir bai’at on 31 July 1993. Till2002, this number swelled inleaps and bounds to:

400,000 in 1994800,000 1995

1,600,000 19963,000,000 19975,000,000 1998

10,000,000 199940,000,000 2000 to80,000,000 2001 and20,000,000 2002

On 31 December 1993, HadhratMirza Tahir Ahmad, KhalifatulMasih IV, delivered his FridaySermon in Mauritius andMuslim Television Ahmadiyyacommenced its 12-hourcoverage on satellite. On 7January 1994, MTA startedoperations in full and Al-FazlInternational was launched inLondon. On 23 March 1994,Homeopathy class and on 15July 1994, Ta r j a m a t u l( Translation) Qur’an classstarted on MTA. MTA began totransmit his addre s s e s ,sermons and the popularM U L A Q AT, MAJLIS IRFA Nand LIQA MA’ AL-ARAB(featuring Question andAnswer sessions whichcontributed so much to thedynamic expansion of thecommunity) and Urdu Class (ateach yourself language classusing the way a mother teachesher children their mothertongue) and Saturday Class forthe children. He alsospearheaded the rewriting of acomprehensive compact book,Salat, The Muslim Prayer Book,an unmatched introduction toevery form of Islamic worship.

26



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Muslim Television Ahmadiyya was started by Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih IV and iswatched by many from all over the world. His contribution to MTA’s programmingwas immense and included Homeopathy teaching, Question and Answer for Arabicviewers (top picture); Q/A with ladies (picture above); Q/A for children, and forFrench, German, Bangladeshi, Bosnian and English viewers. International Questionand Answer were also often shown with people from all religions and backgroundsparticipating in televised Q/A sessions.

On 14 October 1994, BaiturRahman, Maryland USA, wasopened and on the same datean MTA earth station wasestablished in the USA. On 5July 1996, MTA’s programmesbegan to be transmitted on theglobal beam. In 1997, hismasterpiece Christianity: aJourney From Fact to Fictionshowing how far Christianityhad deviated from the messageconveyed to Jesus waspublished. By that year, hediligently completed addi-tional footnotes to thetranslation of the Holy Qur’anin English prepared by MaulwiSher Ali truer to the actualmeaning and without addingan explanatory commentary,w h e re necessary. On 24F e b ruary 1999, Huzurcompleted the 305 hoursTarjamatul Qur’an class. On 19October 1999, he laid thefoundation stone of Europe’slargest mosque in Morden, UK.

The year 2000 is perh a p sre m e m b e red for his historic tourof Indonesia and the warmreception with which the peopleof Indonesia welcomed him.

The UK Annual Convention2002 was his last Jalsa Salana.Since his migration to the UK,13,065 mosques and 985 missionhouses (or tabligh centres) hadbeen built in various overseascountries. He provided anexcellent trans-lation of the HolyQ u r’an in Urdu (revised andrepublished with an expandedindex in 2002). The Holy Qur’ a nhad been translated in 56languages in addition to the 100languages in which selectedverses from the Holy Qur’ a nhad been translated. The seed ofAhmadiyyat had been sown in84 new countries (175 ina g g re g a t e ) .

On 21 February 2003, helaunched the Maryam ShadiFund to give financial help togirls in poor families. HadhratMirza Tahir Ahmad, KhalifatulMasih IV, delivered his lastFriday Sermon at the LondonMosque on 18 April 2003 andthat same evening, attended aMajlis Irfan (Question &Answer session). At 9.30 am on19 April 2003, he passed awayin his residence. INNA LILLAHIWAINNA ALAIHI RAJIOON.

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Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih IV

Zia Seizes PowerIn July, 1977, Mr Bhutto'sPakistan Peoples Party, whichhad been returned to power witha truly astonishing majority,reached an agreement with thenine opposition parties. The PPPwould relinquish a number ofseats in the National Assemblyand so end the complaints thatthe elections had been rigged.The agreement was to beannounced in a joint statementwhich was now being pre p a re d .

At 6 a.m. one morning GeneralZia-ul-Haq, Commander- i n - C h i e fof the Pakistan Army, arrested MrBhutto and his ministers and allthe leaders of the nine oppositionparties. General Zia and thegenerals commanding the fiveregions of Pakistan announcedthe imposition of martial law.New elections would be heldwithin 90 days.

People were at first willing tohope that he was telling thetruth – that he intended to sweepaway corruption and, as quicklyas possible, return the country toparliamentary democracy.

Soldiers, in the norm, live theirlives by simple rules - they obeyorders, they protect the country,they do not seek to makefortunes because of the powerthat is in their hands. It is smallwonder that they despise thetwistings and turnings ofu n s c rupulous politicians andbelieve they could do better.

Absolute power is said toc o r rupt absolutely and thedictum proved true with Zia.The 90 days passed and therewere no elections. There weremore promises. One by one thegenerals who had helped Zia fellaway. Zia had deceived them,they said.


Man of GodThe following is an extract from the book A Man of God by Iain Adamson(published by George Shepherd, Bristol, copyright reserved)which dealswith the exceptional Divine assistance in the journey from Pakistan toEngland which Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih IV had to endure after a warrantfor his unlawful arrest was issued by the government of Pakistan.

Condemned by world opinionfor his overthrow of ademocratic government - even ifit were inefficient and corrupt -Zia struggled to find legitimacyfor his illegal government. Hefound it by imposing onPakistan supposedly funda-mental Islamic laws. With theselaws he obtained the backing ofthe ulama and so at firstp resented to the world theappearance of being supportedby the religious leaders of themajority of the nation. Publicfloggings and other barbaricmedieval punishments wereintroduced.

They satisfied the funda-mentalists and silenced with fearthe rest of the population. Ziahad become a dictator. He hadbeen corrupted absolutely.

To divert the attention of thepopulation from their re a lgrievances a well-known strat-agem of dictators is to pick areligious or ethnic minority andfan the embers of intoleranceinto flames.

So it was with Zia. Persecutionmounted against the Ahmadiyya

C o m m u n i t y, their shops werepillaged and set on fire and mobsrioted outside their mosques.Some were broken into andb roken up. The discriminationpractised by Bhutto againstAhmadis in every governmentservice was stepped up.Ahmadis, innocent of any off e n c eagainst public and privatemorality save their re l i g i o u sbeliefs, were beaten up by mobsand individual thugs.

Other Ahmadis were murdered.The police, in some instances,appeared to do little to preventorinvestigate these crimes.

A parallel of similar re l i g i o u spersecution in recent history andthe enormous price the worldhad to pay for remaining silentreadily presents itself.

The Khalifa urged restraint onhis followers. Do not respond tothese provocations. Defendyourselves, but do not attackyour persecutors either phy-sically or verbally. He remindedthem that The Pro m i s e dMessiah(as) had foretold that theywould be persecuted andabused. But he had also foretold

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that the Ahmadiyya Movementwould triumph in the end.

But though he urged forbear-ance on his followers he did notuse the same restraint himself.He condemned Zia’spersecution. He denounced insermon after sermon theinjustices that Zia was inflictingnot only on the AhmaddiyyaCommunity but on all thepeople of Pakistan. He wasinflicting wounds on the entirec o u n t r y. He was stirring uprivalries, creating enmity,dividing families, destro y i n gc o m m e rce, depriving thecountry of good citizens anddesecrating and befouling thew o rd ‘Peace’ which was thename of Islam.

God would punish him if hecontinued in his evil ways, saidthe Khalifa. God's wrath wouldbe terrible.

One poem he wrote created af u ro re in Zia’s entourage andwas reprinted again and againfor distribution in theC o m m u n i t y. Ahmadi childre nlearned it by heart. One Ahmadiwas to say, ‘There are momentsin history when a speech, apoem or a song seems to inspirea people. They appear to bedefeated, all around them ischaos and despair, yet suddenlythis speech or poem will rally anation. Suddenly there is hope.

‘ Winston Churchill's speech,when Britain appeared to bedefeated, when he pro m i s e d“blood, sweat and tears” but

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Man of God


THE ELDERS OF THE COMMUNITY ASKED THE KHALIFA

TO BE LESS PLAIN-SPOKEN. ZIA WAS KNOWN FOR THE

U N R E L E N T I N G, C O L D F I E R C E N E S S O F H I S A N G E R

AGAINST THOSE WHO OPPOSED HIM......THE KHALIFA

R E F U S E D. I T WA S H I S D U T Y T O O P P O S E ZI A, H E

DECLARED. GOD WOULD HELP THEM. GOD WOULD

NEVER FORSAKE THEM.

also promised final victory, wassuch a speech. It put new heartinto Britain.

‘The poem by the Khalifa wassimilar. It put new heart into us.It gave vent to our pain andanguish. it recognised ourdespair, but it gave us hope. Itpromised us final victory - andthe downfall of Zia's tyranny.’

It is difficult to translate a poem.It needs a poet to do so and eventhen the flavour is lost. Itbecomes a new poem rather thana translation.

In his poem, the Khalifa urgedhis followers to be patient. Thedark storms of persecution thatwere raging would collide withthe prayers they were offeringand then the storms wouldd i s a p p e a r, almost as thoughthey had never been. Thedarkness and peril of theirpersecution would pass awayand tranquillity would light thedawning day.

Continue to pray humbly, theKhalifa urged. Prayer hadd e s t royed Nimrod the tyrant,the prayers of Moses ( a s ) h a d

humbled the great Pharaohs.The sword of prayer was morepowerful than any worldlyweapon. Even if destru c t i o nappeared to be entering in at thedoor, do not give up hope. Prayharder. God would curse andoverturn the tyrant.

Zia was a well-read soldier. Hebecame almost beside himselfwhen it was reported that hewas being compared to Nimrod.

The elders of the Communityasked the Khalifa to be lessplain-spoken. Zia was knownfor the unrelenting, coldfierceness of his anger againstthose who opposed him.Moderate your language theysaid for the sake of theCommunity. They needed him.They would be nothing withoutthe Khalifa.

The Khalifa refused. It was hisduty to oppose Zia, he declared.God would help them. Godwould never forsake them.

In March, 1984, a telephone callwas received at the head-quarters of the AhmadiyyaMovement in Rabwah. It was

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Man of God


from the United States embassy.A member of a U.S. missionwould be passing near Rabwahshortly and would welcome theopportunity to meet the Khalifa.

It seemed to the Khalifa thatthere was not much reason for ameeting, but he gave hisa g reement and the Americanand some officials of the UnitedStates Embassy in Islamabadturned up shortly afterward s .When he heard where they hadbeen, it seemed to the Khalifathat they had not been passingnearby, but had come speciallyto meet him. And as thediscussion progressed it seemedto the Khalifa that they were inpossession of some knowledgethat might affect the future of theCommunity.

They talked for an hour and ahalf. ‘What put me on my guardwas his insistent interest in whatwould be my reaction if theGovernment did this or didthat’.

‘So I said, What do you mean bythis and that?’

He replied, ‘Well, you know that

everybody is crying for yourhead. And the Government cansuccumb to the pre s s u re andtake certain measures. In such acase what will be the reaction ofthe Ahmadiyya Movement?’

‘I replied that we were apeaceful community. We willbehave in the best traditionsa c c o rding to our past expe-rience. Anyway, it was veryobvious that he knew somethingand was trying to gauge myreactions before reporting toWashington. So I decided to goto Islamabad and try to find outwhat was happening.’

The Khalifa had many friendst h e re among the diplomaticcommunity, some dating fromwhen he represented the ThirdKhalifa, others since he had beenelected khalifa.

He would stay for two weeks hedecided. He talked to manypeople. ‘I had contacts with theBritish, French, Canadian,Chinese and many otherembassies.’

All were delighted to see him.Some he met at their off i c e s .

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Man of God


Others he met privately for theydid not want to jeopardise theirrelations with the government ofZia. Something was definitelygoing to happen he gathered.But no one seemed to knowexactly what.

Opponents of the Movementw e re being transported intoIslamabad from the North WestProvince by buses and lorries.Crowds had started to gatheroutside the house where theKhalifa was staying.

‘Then I received a messagefrom General Zia via anofficer of the IntelligenceBureau. What it said wasthat the ulama weremaking a lot of noise but Ishould not worry. Once hehad dealt with a certainpolitician he would put theulama in their place. Sot h e re was no need toworry.

This was a very strangemessage – it was the onlymessage I ever re c e i v e dfrom Zia – though he wasto send an emissary to melater. It seemed to say that I

could stay in Islamabadand there was no danger.’

At the same time as Ireceived the message fromZia, I received anothermessage from an officer ofthe Intelligence Bureau. Hegave me his personaladvice to leave Islamabadimmediately.

Now the two messageswere contradictory, but itwas obvious that he knewwhat was planned and thathe was a gentleman andthat he did not want to beinvolved in trickery.

The Khalifa was to receive afurther personal call from afriend in police intelligence. Thegist of the message was:

‘Leave Islamabad immediately’.

Yet another person who seemedto know a little more thananyone else was an official of theF rench Embassy. The Khalifamet him at his home. French isstill the language of diplomacyand the French are masters of theart of saying something

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Man of God


diplomatically even when theya re talking English – for theKhalifa did not speak French.

The conversation seemed almostnon-consequential. ‘How longa re you staying?’ asked theFrench counsellor. ‘Two weeks,’answered the Khalifa. ‘I thinkthe weather is not all thatpleasant here at this time of they e a r,’ the French counsellorobserved. ‘I have no doubt thatyou will be wanting to leave assoon as possible.’

The visit lasted only fifteenminutes and then the Khalifareturned to the house where hewas staying. Within the hour, heleft for Rabwah.

The Infamous OrdinanceOn Thursday, April 26th, 1984,the Gazette of Pakistan recordedthe introduction of Ord i n a n c eTwenty made under martial lawby the President of Pakistan,General Zia-ul-Haq. It wasdesigned, it said, to amend thelaw to prohibit the Quadianig roup, Lahori group andAhmadis from indulging in anti-Islamic activities.

It began: ‘Whereas it isexpedient to amend the law top rohibit the Quadiani gro u p ,Lahori group and Ahmadis fromindulging in anti-Islamicactivities: and whereas theP resident is satisfied that thec i rcumstances exist whichrender it necessary to takeimmediate action: now there -f o re, in pursuance of theProclamation of the fifth day ofJuly, 1977, and in exercise of allpowers enabling in that behalf,the President is pleased to makeand promulgate the followingOrdinance.’

The title of the ordinance was tobe ‘The Anti-Islamic Activities ofthe Quadiani Group, LahoriG roup and Ahmadis (Pro h i b i t i o nand and Punishment) Ord i n a n c e ,1984’. It would come into force atonce and it would override anyo rders or decisions of courts.

The following new sections wereadded to the Pakistan penal codeunder section 298B:

‘Misuse of epithets, descriptionsand titles, etc reserved forcertain holy personages andplaces.

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Man of God


‘1. Any person of the Quadianig roup or the Lahori gro u p(who call themselves“Ahmadis” or by any othername) who by words, eitherspoken or written, or byvisible representation,

(a) refers to, or addre s s e s ,any person, other than aCaliph or companion ofthe Holy Pro p h e tMuhammad (Peace beupon his name), as“ A m e e r- u l - M u m i n e e n ” ,“ K h a l i f a - t u l - M u m i n e e n ’ ,“Khalifatul Muslimeen,“Sahaabi” or Razi AllahAnho;

(b) refers to, or addre s s e s ,any person, other than awife of the Holy ProphetMuhammad (peace beupon him), as “Ummul-Mumineen”;

(c) refers to, or addre s s e s ,any person, other than amember of the family ofthe Holy Pro p h e tMuhammad (peace beupon him) as Ahle-bait;or.

(d) refers to, or names, orcalls, his place of worshipas “Masjid”;

shall be punished withimprisonment of eitherdescription for a term whichmay extend to three years, andshall also be liable to a fine.

2. Any person of the Quadianigroup or Lahori group (whocall themselves ‘Ahmadis” orby any other name) who byw o rds, either spoken orwritten, or by visiblere p resentation, refers to themode or form of call toprayers followed by his faithas “Azan” or writes “Azan” asused by the Muslims, shall bepunished with imprisonmentof either description for a termwhich may extend to thre eyears, and shall also be liableto a fine.’

The final section of theordinance said:

‘Any person of the Quadianig roup or the Lahori gro u p(who, call themselves'Ahmadis' or by any othername) who, directly or

37

Man of God


indirectly, poses himself as aMuslim, or calls, or refers to,his faith as Islam, or preachesor propagates his faith, byw o rds, either spoken orwritten, or by visible repre-sentations, or in any mannerwhatsoever out-rages thereligious feelings of Muslims,shall be punished withimprisonment of eitherdescription which may extendto three years and shall also beliable to a fine.’

World reaction to the ordinancewas one of incredulity. AmongPakistan lawyers, teachers,diplomats and businessmenthere was sadness – sadness thattheir country was sinking intototal religious intolerance,sadness that their country'sname was becoming synony-mous with infamous re g i m e sthat oppressed its citizensbecause of their colour orreligion.

There were military and com-mercial considerations as well.Pakistan was regarded by theU.S. and other Western countriesas a bulwark against commu-nism. How could their

governments sanction thedelivery of arms in the name offreedom while minority groupsin Pakistan were beingpersecuted?

The sheer illogicality of the lawd e p ressed the lawyers andjudges of Pakistan. They hadtried, in the main, to hold on tonotions of justice and liberty.

How, they asked, could a stateabrogate to itself the ability todefine what was, and what wasnot, Islam?

How could a particular numberof Islamic divines, even thoughthey were in the majority,consider that they, and theyalone, could interpret the wordof God as revealed in theQur’an?

How could a state justify itss u p p ression of the right of anyg roup of people to proclaim itsname and its beliefs, provided noanti-social or criminal off e n c ehad been committed?

And most important of all, howcould any judge or jury decidethat someone was posing as a

38

Man of God


believer in any religion if all thathe did was pray and observe thetenets of that re l i g i o n ?

The Sunni, Shafie, Hanafite,Wahhabi and Ahmadi Imams allgive the Azan or call to prayer.How was it that only theAhmadi Imam was posing as aMuslim?

Certainly there was a fun-damental difference between theAhmadiyya Movement and allthe other sects of Islam. But thereare seventy-three sects in Islamand at various times theirdivines have issued decrees orfatwas declaring that such andsuch a sect was heretical.

How could the state decide whowas posing as a Muslim andwho was not?

It pre-supposes a kind oft h o u g h t - c o n t rol of Orwelliandimensions with thought-policeable to see into people’s mindsand decide which of thoseoffering the daily prayers of theSalat are true Muslims andwhich are only posing asMuslims!

Indeed it put the judges whodecided in such a case ascommitting shirk, consideringthemselves equal to God.

An American journalist,admitted to Zia’s presence forwhat was supposed to be aneulogistic interview, taxed himwith violating Pakistan’sconstitution and the UnitedNations’ Declaration on HumanRights. Zia shrugged hisshoulders in indiff e rence. ‘Sowhat,’ he said.

In Rabwah the Khalifa hadsummoned his most seniorcounsellors to a meeting.Recalling the meeting theKhalifa said:

‘I was never in any way scaredof General Zia. I had criticisedhim very openly in mysermons. I had told him,“Mend your ways and yourattitude. Cease this perse-cution or you will face theWrath of God.

But with this ordinance it was ad i ff e rent kind of situation. Itwas not my safety that was atstake, but my ability to speak

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Man of God


out. With this law Zia couldsilence me as the effective headof the Community. I couldremain in Pakistan and speakout and then be put into prison.When I came out I could speakout again and be put away foranother three years.

In Ahmadiyyat you cannotchoose another head while thefirst is living, even if he isimprisoned and completelyout of touch. So that wouldmean a headless community.

The Khalifa is guided by Godin his decisions so he cannotdelegate his decisions to acommittee. Some decisionshave to be taken by the Khalifaand that decision is final. If hew e re not able to take anydecisions that could be a verydangerous situation. ‘

The advice of his counsellorswas unanimous – he shouldleave Pakistan immediately.

Zia's MistakeThe Khalifa accepted the adviceof his amirs and othercounsellors that he should leavePakistan but on one condition –

at the time he left no warrantshould be out for his arrest andno official notice should havebeen served on him requiringhim to appear before anycommission re g a rding anyalleged crime.

If any such warrant were issuedthen he would not leave thecountry, he said. The price thatthe Community would have topay for his safety would be toohigh.

‘My departure in thosec i rcumstances would allowpeople to malign the khalifat,p e rhaps not dire c t l y, butcertainly by rumour. It wouldbe said that I was guilty ofsome crime and that was whyI had run away. That was myfear and I was not prepared toallow that to happen.’

Reluctantly the amirs acceptedhis decision. The pre p a r a t i o n sfor his escape were put into thehands of a retired senior armyo ff i c e r. He decided that theKhalifa should leave Pakistan byKLM, the Dutch airline withwhich he normally travelled. Amessenger was sent to Karachi

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Man of God


to book the seats rather thanreserving them by telephone forthey knew their telephone linesw e re tapped and all conver-sations were recorded.

There were two KLM flights toEurope that week from Karachi,one that left very early in themorning on Monday, April 30th,the other on Wednesday, May2nd. The Khalifa had proposedthat he take the flight on theWednesday because it wouldgive him more time to preparehis departure, but when themessenger came back hereported that the KLM managerwanted him to take the flight onthe Monday morning.

T h e re were plenty of seatsavailable on the We d n e s d a yflight but none on the Monday.H o w e v e r, the KLM manager saidthat he would make sure that atleast six seats were available onthe Monday flight. He did notgive his reasons, but his advicewas accepted. It was not untillater that he explained that theWednesday flight touched downin a Gulf state whereas theMonday flight went straight toA m s t e rd a m .

If the Pakistan government putout an alert naming the Khalifaas a wanted criminal it could bethat he would be arrested anddetained in the Gulf state.

At that time the headquarters ofthe Community at Rabwah wasunder the surveillance of fived i ff e rent security agencies ofGeneral Zia. They covered allroads in and out of Rabwah.

It was not very difficult to spotthem. One group, from the army,w e re dressed as beggars. Butthey were probably the onlygroup of beggars in history whoall wore stout army boots!

The Khalifa insisted that thereshould be no lies or duplicityabout his departure. He wouldnot be disguised nor use a falsepassport. However, if Zia’sintelligence agencies made thewrong deductions then that wastheir affair.

Early in the morning, therefore,shortly after the first prayers, theKhalifa’s car was seen leavingRabwah. A man dressed in thewhite topcoat or achkan andwearing the winged white

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pugree or Punjabi turban, withthe gold centrepiece that was thenormal dress of the Khalifa, wassitting in the back seat.

The Khalifa’s car had its normalescort – one car in front and twocars behind. His personalsecurity staff, well-known to theintelligence agents and com-pletely visible to them, sat insidethese cars.

It was presumed by theAhmadis in the streets that theKhalifa was on the way toIslamabad, some 200 miles away.It was also the presumption offour of the five intelligenceagencies who were watchingRabwah.

They reported that the Khalifawas en route for Islamabad and,

as was normal, his convoy wasbeing shadowed. Some time laterthe cars following the convoyreported that the Khalifa was notgoing straight to Islamabad viaPindi. He appeared to be goingto Jehlam where his cousin,Mirza Munir Ahmad, owned ac h i p b o a rd factory.

Jehlam was some 70 miles east ofIslamabad and it was presumedthat he would stay the night athis cousin’s – as he had doneoccasionally in the past – andcontinue his journey toIslamabad the next day.

If he had continued straight toPindi or Islamabad theGovernment would have sent anofficial to meet him. But it wasnot the Khalifa who sat in theback of the Mercedes, but his

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AT T H AT T I M E T H E H E A D Q U A RT E R S O F T H E

C O M M U N I T Y AT R A B WA H WA S U N D E R T H E

SURVEILLANCE OF FIVE DIFFERENT SECURITY AGENCIES

OF GENERAL ZIA.......IT WAS NOT VERY DIFFICULT TO

S P O T T H E M. O N E G R O U P, F R O M T H E A R M Y, W E R E

DRESSED AS BEGGARS. BUT THEY WERE PROBABLY THE

ONLY GROUP OF BEGGARS IN HISTORY WHO ALL WORE

STOUT ARMY BOOTS!

t h i rd oldest bro t h e r, MirzaMunawwar Ahmad.

Three hours earlier, at 2 a.m.,when it was completely dark,two other cars had left Rabwah.They took a minor road that ledto the little town of Lalian andthen on to Jhang and finally tothe main highway to Karachi,which was 750 miles away. Inthe first car were other membersof the Khalifa's security staff. Inthe second car was the Khalifa.

The re t i red army officer hadinsisted that only those who hadan absolute need to knowshould be told of the Khalifa’sfinal decision to leave and thatthe number of those who knewthe details of his departureshould be even more restricted.

Even those who had beenconsulted about his departureand most members of his familytherefore did not know of hisdecision to leave.

It was not a question of trust, there t i red officer insisted, justnormal security. If people didnot know then they could not letanything slip out accidentally.

God had already told twopeople, the Khalifa was to saylater.

Shortly after the decision of howand when he would leave –which was in two days’ time - aletter was delivered from anelderly Ahmadi called UsmanChou. Mr Chou had had ad ream that he did notunderstand, but which hebelieved contained some kind ofmessage for the Khalifa.

He wrote that in his dream hehad seen that the Khalifa’s carwas about to leave forIslamabad. He had approachedin order to pay his respects, butwhen he looked in the sidewindow he saw that the car wasempty.

‘I was shocked and cried out,“The Khalifa is leaving and hiscar is leaving, but he is not in thecar.” Then a voice told me thatthe Khalifa had left by anotherroute and that he had goneabroad. So I accompanied the carand instead of going directly toIslamabad we went to Jehlamwhere it stayed for one night.’

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That was the dream recounted inthe letter of Usman Chou. Itcontained the secret plan whichhad just been decided on somehours earlier!

‘I knew then,’ the Khalifa saidl a t e r, ‘that the plan wouldsucceed. God had approved it. Iwas therefore absolutely withoutfear of its success.’

The second person who receiveda message re g a rding hisdeparture, though neither he norshe appreciated it at the time,said the Khalifa, was his seconddaughter Faiza. She was then 23.No one in the family knew of hisimminent departure but the daybefore he left, Faiza related withpuzzlement the dream she hadhad the night before.

She had seen two cars on alonely road and though theywere not the Khalifa’s usual carsshe had known that the Khalifawas there and he was leaving ona journey. The two cars sloweddown as they approached aplace where it appeared that theroad was being re p a i re d .H o w e v e r, there was no workbeing done and indeed no

workmen could be seen, justmounds of gravel which forcedthe cars to slow down.

As they did so she suddenly sawsome beggars approaching. Shedid not like their looks andbecame extremely panicky.Suddenly she saw a hand leanout from the car in front andscatter some one rupee notes.Most of the beggars ran for themand the cars moved forwardagain, past the piles of gravel,and then on to the main road toKarachi.

What actually happened, theKhalifa said, was that betweenLalian and Jhang, there weresome areas where flood waterhad washed away most of theroad. They were being repaired,but very slowly. The armyintelligence group had takenadvantage of this natural roadblock and installed theirsurveillance group, dressed asbeggars, at that point.

The two cars occupied by theKhalifa and his security grouphad slowed down and out hadrushed the so-called beggars,some dressed as dervishes and

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wearing only a gown. But alllooked extremely healthy andthey all wore army boots!

The beggars were movingt o w a rds the second car andalmost certain discovery of theKhalifa, who was sitting in theseat beside the driver, when oneof his security staff in the first caropened his window and threwout a handful of one rupee notes.The beggars ran to pick them upand the Khalifa's car movedf o r w a rd, skirted the piles ofgravel then gathered speed andwas on its way again.

Some of the beggars had notb o t h e red to scramble for thelargesse dropped in the road, buthad gazed intently at theoccupants of the cars.

Later that day the armyintelligence unit reported that theKhalifa was thought to have beenin a car that was seen headingt o w a rds Jhang and so could be onthe way to Karachi. But the re p o r twas ignored for the other fourintelligence agencies hadreported as a fact that the Khalifaand his security staff were on theway to Islamabad and had

stopped at his cousin’s home inJehlam for the night.

The KLM flight to Amsterdamleft at 2 a.m. and the Khalifa’s750 mile journey to the airportwas accomplished withoutdifficulty, but not without worryfor his security staff.

En route they had stopped at adrivers’ pull-in where theycould buy some tea and food.His driver stopped the car at thevery edge of the pull-in and saidhe would bring the tea and foodto the Khalifa because he wastoo easily recognisable.

The Khalifa was having none ofthat. He knew the man who ranthe cafe very well. He had oftenstopped there before he waselected Khalifa. He therefore gotout of the car and exchangedmemories with the cafe ownerwhile drinking his tea. Then theygot on their way again.

At the airport he was shown to aprivate room and one hourb e f o re the scheduled take-offtime he went through passportcontrol. He then waited for thecall to board the aircraft. It did

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not come. Instead there was anannouncement that there wouldbe a delay in departure. In hisprivate room, the Khalifa satwaiting. The minutes draggedslowly by.

The KLM manager had assuredhim that the plane would takeoff on time. Now he arrived tosay that the delay was theresponsibility of the airportauthorities. They had not givenpermission for the plane to takeoff.

The Khalifa sat waiting. His wifeand his security men tried toconceal their anxiety. His twoyoungest daughters, too youngto understand what was goingon, fell asleep. The minutesdragged slowly by. An hourafter the scheduled departuretime, their flight was

announced. The Khalifa, his wifeand two daughters, ChaudhryHameed Nasrullah Khan, theAmir of Lahore, and the retiredarmy officer settled down for theeight hour direct flight toAmsterdam.

T h e re was no doubt that thedelay had been due to theKhalifa’s presence, but it was notuntil months later that it waslearned how near the Khalifahad been to arrest. The passportofficers had in front of them aletter issued directly fro mGeneral Zia. It had gone to all airand seaports and frontier posts.It stated that ‘Mirza NasirAhmad who calls himself theKhalifa of the AhmadiyyaMovement’ was not to beallowed to leave Pakistan. It waslittle wonder there had been thedelay.

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Man of God


HE [THE KHALIFA] REACHED THE LONDON MOSQUE JUST

BEFORE 12.30 WHERE SOME 300 AHMADIS, ALERTED BY

WORD OF MOUTH, HAD ALREADY GATHERED TO MEET

HIM. HIS CLOTHES WERE CRUMPLED, HIS EYES RED-RIMMED AND HIS FACE SHOWING SIGNS OF FATIGUE.BUT HE WENT STRAIGHT TO THE MOSQUE TO LEAD THE

ZUHR PRAYER.

General Zia had dealt most oftenwith the Third Khalifa and so itwas his name, Mirza NasirAhmad, that he had written bymistake on the banning order,not that of the Fourth Khalifa!

HE HAD BANNED THETHIRD KHALIFA, WHO HADBEEN DEAD FOR TWOYEARS FROM LEAVING THECOUNTRY!

The Fourth Khalifa’s passportstated quite clearly that his namewas ‘Mirza Tahir Ahmad’ andthat he was Head of theAhmadiyya Community.

During the hour they hadwaited, Passport Control hadtried to get someone inIslamabad to sort out theconfusion, but at two o’clock inthe morning, no one could bereached who could solve theproblem. It must be an out-of-date order it was suggested.A n y w a y, there was off i c i a linformation that the Khalifa wason his way to Islamabad.

Finally permission was given forthe plane to take off.

At 3 a.m. the telephone rang inthe apartment of the Imam of theLondon Mosque, Ataul MujeebRashed. Mr Rashed picked it up.

‘Get ready,’ said the voice on thetelephone.

‘I am ready. But what for?’ MrRashed asked. He had re c o g -nised the voice on the telephoneas that of Masud Ahmad, theDirector of Foreign Missions inRabwah.

Mr Ahmad told him that theKhalifa had left Pakistan fourhours ago. They had wanted tobe sure the plane wasa p p roaching Europe beforetelephoning London.

Mr Rashed recalls that he waso v e rcome with emotion. Hiswife asked him what waswrong, but before he replied heknelt down to thank God for theKhalifa’s deliverance. He thenset about organising hisreception. The senior officials ofthe Movement in London weretelephoned and an emergencymeeting arranged for 4.30 a.m. atthe Mosque.

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Man of God


Meanwhile, his wife had startedclearing the apartment for thearrival of the Khalifa. Into bedsheets went all their clothes andpossessions which were knottedand made into bundles. Thesame thing happened in hisoffice.

Members of the Movement weretelephoned in Holland and toldof the Khalifa’s imminentarrival. Then came the news thathe had landed and of theconnecting flight he wascatching to London.

He reached the London Mosquejust before 12.30 where some 300Ahmadis, alerted by word ofmouth, had already gathered tomeet him. His clothes werecrumpled, his eyes red-rimmedand his face showing signs offatigue. But he went straight tothe mosque to lead the Zuhrprayer. His voice was hoarse, heexplained later. In Rabwah, inthe mosque he had been obligedto speak very loudly because theuse of loudspeakers wasforbidden.

Meanwhile in Rabwah theb ro t h e r-in-law of Mr Kahlon

was puzzling over a telex whichhad been sent as soon as theKhalifa’s plane had landed atA m s t e rdam. It said, ‘Va l u a b l epackage sent to Amsterdam hasarrived safely. Will arriveLondon shortly.’

His bro t h e r-in-law could notunderstand the message. Afterasking round the office hetelephoned his wife. ‘I don'tknow what your bro t h e r’ stalking about. He has sent me atelex saying that a valuablepackage has arrived. But no oneknows anything about it. Haveyou sent him anything?’

His wife began saying ‘No’, thenpaused and said there wererumours that the Khalifa had leftPakistan. He should take thetelex to the amir, she suggested.

It was the news that the fewpeople who had been in thesecret had been waiting for. Andsoon the news had spre a dt h rough Rabwah and then toevery Ahmadi in Pakistan.

The news that the Khalifa hadleft Pakistan sent Zia wild withrage. The senior officials of the

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Man of God


immigration department inKarachi were suspended.Enquiries were launched in alldirections. There must have beencollusion Zia raged. The peopleresponsible would pay dearly.

The senior police officer in theJhang district and a friend weresitting in his office on themorning of his escape when ad i rect call came in fro mIslamabad and he was told tospeak to the President ofPakistan. Zia's voice was quiteclear to the visitor.

Where was Mirza Tahir Ahmad?Zia demanded. He must beproduced immediately.

The visitor said later that thepolice officer was visiblytrembling as he answered, ‘Sir, Ihave no idea.’

Zia exploded. ‘What do youmean you have no idea? You areresponsible. He is in yourdistrict. Why has he left fors o m e w h e re without yourknowing it? I hold youresponsible. He must be pro -duced immediately.’

The senior police officer repliedas soothingly as possible that hewould launch an immediateenquiry to discover the Khalifa’swhereabouts.

Zia’s answer was a tirade ofthreats and abuse that went onfor several minutes.

In London, the head of securityat the Pakistan embassytelephoned a former ambas-sador and asked if he kneww h e re the Head of theCommunity was.

The former ambassador parriedhis question with another. ‘Whya re you asking me this?’ he said.The embassy security head saidthat he had received a re p o r tf rom Pakistan that the Khalifahad left Pakistan secretly forSwitzerland but his contacts inSwitzerland had said there wasno trace of him.

The former ambassador thenreplied that the Khalifa had leftPakistan as an ord i n a r ypassenger on a normal flight andwas now in London.

The news of his escape made

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Man of God


f ront-page news all over theworld. In Pakistan and India,Muslims were to hear the detailsof his escape and his plans for thef u t u re in his own words for theBBC World Service in bothEnglish and Urdu broadcast atwelve minute interview withh i m .

Zia had hoped to silence theAhmaddiyya Movement. Insteadhe had presented it with itsg reatest opportunity. London wasthe cro s s roads of the world. Fro mLondon, the Khalifa had theopportunity to lead theAhmadiyya Movement in itsmission to convert the world toI s l a m .

‘God's ways are wonderful,’ saidthe Khalifa later.

It is believed that the Khalifaescaped arrest by some 12 hours.B e f o re news of his escapebecame known, the Governor ofthe Punjab telephoned and left amessage saying that the Khalifahad to report immediately to hisoffice in Lahore. If he had doneso, he would have been arrested.

Reproduced from the book, A Man of Godby Iain Adamson, published by GeorgeShepherd Publishers UK. ISBN: 1-873083-01-7

All rights reserved by the publishers. Thisextract is by way of introduction to thisexcellent and vobrant account of the lifeof Hadhrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad. Copies ofthis book are available in the UK from theSecretary Isha’at UK, 16 GressenhallRoad, London SW18 5QL or from Al-Shirakatul Islamaiyyah, SheephatchLane, Tilford, Surrey GU10 2AQ.

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Man of God


CorrectionWe re g ret that due to anoversight, an article on thePromised Messiah’s(as) Love ofthe Holy Prophet(sa) featuredin the March 2003 editionattributed to Hadhrat MirzaTahir Ahmad on the contentspage, should have read a byTommy Bockarie Kallon. Ed.


Sahibzada Mirza Masro o rAhmad Sahib was born on 15September 1950 in Rabwah,Pakistan, the AhmadiyyaMuslim community’s head-quarters. He is the son ofHadhrat Sahibzada MirzaMansoor Ahmad Sahib andhis mother’s name isHadhrat Sahibzadi NasiraBegum Sahiba. SahibzadaMirza Masroor Ahmad Sahibwas also the great grandson ofthe Founder of theAhmadiyya Muslim com-m u n i t y, Hadhrat MirzaGhulam Ahmad of Qadian,the Promised Messiah(as), andthe grandson of HadhratMirza Sharif Ahmad Sahib(ra),the youngest son of theP romised Messiah( a s ).Sahibzada Mirza Masro o r

Ahmad Sahib is also thematernal grandson of HadhratKhalifatul Masih II( r a ).Sahibzada Mirza Masro o rAhmad Sahib did his primaryeducation at Taleem-ul-IslamHigh School Rabwah, andobtained his BA from Taleem-ul-Islam (TI) College Rabwah,Pakistan. In 1976 he earned hisMasters of Science degree inAgricultural Economics fromthe Agriculture UniversityFaisalabad, Pakistan.

Sahibzada Mirza Masro o rAhmad Sahib got married on31 January 1977 to SyedaAmtul Sabooh (BegumSahiba), the daughter of theLate Begum Sahibzadi AmtulHakeem and Mr Syed DaudM u z a ffar Shah. His walima

Life Sketch and Services of HadhratMirza Masroor Ahmad –Khalifatul Masih V

We are pleased to introduce readers of the Review of Religions to the newHead of the worldwide Ahmadiyya Muslim community, Hadhrat MirzaMasroor Ahmad, Khalifatul Masih V, who was elected by an electoral collegeat its session in the London Mosque on 22 April 2003.

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Life Sketch and Services of Hadhrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad – KhalifatulMasih V


feast was held two days afterhis marriage. He is the fatherof a daughter, Mrs AmtulWaris Fateh who is married toMr Fateh Ahmad Dahiri ofNawabshah and they have ayoung son and a daughter.Sahibzada Mirza Masro o rAhmad Sahib also has oneson, Mr Mirza Waqas Ahmad,c u r rently studying accoun-tancy in England.

At the young age of seventeen,Sahibzada Mirza Masro o rAhmad Sahib became a Moosi(that is to say that he signedup for Wasiyyat or a will,under the plan initiated by theP romised Messiah( a s ), thuscommitting a portion, not lessthan one-tenth, of his lifetimeearnings and any property tothe cause of Islam.) In 1977, hedevoted his life (that is to saythat he became a Wa q f - i -Zindagi) for Islam, and asd i rected by Hadhrat MirzaNasir Ahmad, KhalifatulMasih III, Sahibzada MirzaM a s roor Ahmad Sahib,proceeded to Ghana under theNusrat-Jahan Scheme. This

social, educational and eco-nomic development schemesupports a large number ofhospitals and schools in WestAfrica.

Sahibzada Mirza Masro o rAhmad Sahib was thefounding principal of theAhmadiyya Secondary SchoolSalaga, a school in thenorthern region of Ghana,where he served for two years.This school is progressing verywell to this day. His success atthis school made him theobvious choice for theprincipal of the AhmadiyyaSecondary School at Essarkyirwhere he served for a furtherfour years. This school is in thecentral region of Ghana.

Sahibzada Mirza Masro o rAhmad Sahib was appointedas the manager of theAhmadiyya Agricultural Farmin Depali, in the northernregion of Ghana, for 2 years.First experiments hadrevealed that wheat could notg row in Ghana. ButSahibzada Mirza Masro o r

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Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih VMirza Masroor Ahmad

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Ahmad Sahib continuedrelentlessly. Another AhmadiMuslim, Mr Qasim Ahmad,joined him in this series ofexperiments. The efforts ofthis team of Ahmadiagriculturalists finally paiddividends. The first successfulexperiment of planting,growing and nurturing wheatas an economic crop in Ghanawas exhibited at aninternational trade fair and theresults were submitted to theMinistry of Agriculture ofGhana. It stands as a gre a tcredit to his personal efforts inthese experiments thatsuccessive presidents ofGhana have commended theAhmadiyya Muslim com-munity for these highlysuccessful experiments whichrevolutionised the country’seconomy and paved the wayfor self sufficiency.

In 1985, Sahibzada MirzaM a s roor Ahmad Sahibreturned to Pakistan and on 17March 1985, he was appointedas Wakilul Maal II,Department In-Charge of

Financial Affairs II. On 18thJune 1994 he was appointed asNazir Ta’leem (Director ofEducation).

On 10th December 1997,Hadhrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad,Khalifatul Masih IV,appointed Sahibzada MirzaM a s roor Ahmad Sahib asNazir A’la (chief executived i rector) of Sadr AnjumanAhmadiyya Pakistan and localAmir.

[Since readers of the Review ofR e l i g i o n s may not be fullyfamiliar with this admin-istrative body, we hope thatthe following note is helpful.Sadr Anjuman Ahmadiyyawas established in Qadian(India) in 1906 by thePromised Messiah, peace beupon him. Its primarypurpose was to create a bodyto administer the financialaffairs of the community andto propagate the message ofIslam to the whole world. TheAnjuman worked under hisd i rect supervision. After hisdeath, the Anjuman has been

55



working under the super-vision of his Khulafa (i.e.successors). Following thepartition of India in 1947, theAhmadiyya Muslim commu-nity shifted its headquarters toPakistan and there f o re SadrAnjuman AhmadiyyaPakistan was establishedunder the directions ofHadhrat Khalifatul Masih II tocontinue this work. TheAnjuman comprises a Boardof Directors nominated byHadhrat Khalifatul Masih andthe directors are answerable tohim. They work under hisdirections and guidance. ThePresident of this Anjuman isknown as the Sadr AnjumanAhmadiyya. The Nazir A’la isthe chief executive of SadrAnjuman Ahmadiyya. TheAnjuman has manydepartments known asNazarats with sections knownas S i g h a s and institutionsknown as Idaras. The head of adepartment is known as aNazir].

Sahibzada Mirza Masro o rAhmad Sahib’s pre d e c e s s o r

Nazir A’la was his fatherSahibazada Mirza MansoorAhmad Sahib. Recalling whata simple and devoted andpious person Sahibzada MirzaMansoor Ahmad Sahib was,Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih IVstated with tears in his eyesthat he had observed thatwhen he met him he wase x t remely happy. When heenquired about the source ofhis happiness, SahibzadaMirza Mansoor Ahmad Sahibsaid, ‘Why should I not behappy: today the Khalifa ofthe time is happy with myc h i l d ren and my family.’ Inthis sermon, he also paidwarm tribute to SahibzadaMirza Masroor Ahmad Sahib.Till his election as Khalifa,Sahibzada Mirza Masro o rAhmad Sahib remained theNazir A’la and local Amir.

In administrative matters anda disciplined approach towork, he has no parallel. Hehas the unique quality ofgetting down to the heart ofthe matter and dealing with its q u a re l y. But these charac-

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teristics were not acquire dm e rely because of the fore -going but a thoro u g hupbringing as set out below.Sahibzada Mirza Masro o rAhmad Sahib served in manyother capacities. As Nazir A’la,he was also serving as NazirDhiyafat (Hospitality) andNazir Zira’at (Agriculture). InAugust 1988 he had beenappointed as Sadr (President)Bahishti Maqbara and MajlisK a r p a rdaz Masalaih Qabristan(the executive committee man-aging the Bahishti Maqbarahand related matters).

F rom 1994 to 1997, he wasChairman Nasir Foundation.At the same time, SahibzadaMirza Masroor Ahmad Sahibwas President of Ta z a e e nRabwah Committee (commi-ttee for the beautification ofRabwah). He expanded theGulshan-e-Ahmad Nurseryand his personal efforts led toreforming Rabwah from itsbarren to its lush green image.Sahibzada Mirza Masro o rAhmad Sahib also served as amember of Qadha (Juris-

p rudence) Board from 1988 to1995.

In Central Khuddam-ul-Ahmadiyya, an auxiliary bodyof the Ahmadiyya Muslimcommunity comprising menbetween 15 and 40 years of age,Sahibzada Mirza Masro o rAhmad Sahib was theMuhtamim (Secretary) Sehat-e-Jismani (Physical Health) 1976-77, Muhtamim Tajneed (censusand membership re c o rds) 1984-85, from 1985-86 to 1988-89Muhtamim Majalis Bairo o n( S e c retary External Chapters),and in 1989-90 Naib Sadr (Vi c eP resident) Khuddam-ul-Ahmadiyya Pakistan.

In Majlis Ansarullah Pakistan,an auxiliary organisation ofthe Ahmadiyya Muslimcommunity comprising menover 40 years of age,Sahibzada Mirza Masro o rAhmad Sahib was the QaidZahanat (intellectual) andSehat-e-Jismani (PhysicalHealth) in 1995, and QaidTa l i m - u l - Q u r ’an (QuranicEducation) from 1995 to 1997.

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In 1999, Sahibzada MirzaMasroor Ahmad Sahib had theadditional honour ofbecoming a prisoner in thename of Allah, in Rabwah,Pakistan, when he, along withCol. Ayaz Mahmood, ageneral establishment officer,were arrested on a charge ofblasphemy and maintenanceof public order re s p e c t i v e l yunder the growing wave ofpersecution of AhmadiMuslims in Pakistan. The sonof Maulwi Manzoor Chinioti,a fanatic religious obscurantistin his own right, complainedto the local police that theabove two officials wereresponsible for defacing theverses of the Holy Qur’ a n .Maulvi M. Ilyas, the son ofMaulwi Manzoor Chinioti,threatened the police with theun-Islamic demand that hewould start a fast in protest ifno action was taken. Thepolice immediately registeredcases against the two.

The above named eminentmembers of the AhmadiyyaMuslim Community in

Pakistan were arrested alongwith two others who went tothe court to assist them inarranging ‘bail-before - a r re s t ’ .Maulvi M. Ilyas the son ofMaulwi Manzoor ChiniotiM PA hatched this vile andcontemptible scheme. MaulwiManzoor Chinioti MPA ,himself, was the instigator andmain driving force to changethe name of Rabwah town.They are all members of theMajlis Tahafaze KhatmeNabuwwat, an organisationthat has sworn to destro yAhmadiyya Muslim commu-nity. Mr Rafiq Tarar, the thenPresident of Pakistan and RajaZafrul Haq the Minister forReligious Affairs, alsobelonged to the advisorycouncil of this organisation.

When the defendants arrivedat the Court of Sessions inChiniot District to have theirbails validated (provisionallyapproved by the High Court),the Session Judge refused thebails and instead issued arrestwarrants. As a result, all fourwere arrested and sent to jail,

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before any investigation wasconducted as to the tru t h -fulness of the complaints. Thisfabricated case was registeredunder PPC-295B (defacing theverses of the Holy Qur’an),which could lead to lifeimprisonment. It is ominousthat these arrests took placesoon after the promulgation ofthe contro-versial Anti-Te r rorist Act (amendment)Ordinance 1999. Newspapersin Pakistan covered the storywidely in their 1st Mayeditions.

Nawai Waqt Daily ( ap rominent newspaper inLahore) wrote:

‘Acting Head of the AhmadiyyaCommunity in Pakistan hasbeen arrested along with hist h ree colleagues. They areaccused of having defaced thename of Chanab Nagar(formerly Rabwah) which alsocontained Qur’anic verses. TheSession Judge cancelled ‘bail-b e f o re - a r rest’ and issuedwarrants to arrest the accused.Mauvi Manzoor Chinioti, in his

Friday Sermon, paid tribute tothe prosecuting advocate and theSession Judge for performingtheir duties. He promised tosend the Advocate on Umra (areligious visit to the sacre dplaces in Saudi Arabia) on hisown expenses. (Unconfirmedreports suggest that theGovernment of Saudi Arabia hasoffered to invite all police andcourt officials to perform Umraas guests of the Royal House as areward for their services to thecause of Islam.)

Daily Jurrat (a massc i rculation newspaper ofLahore) wrote:

‘Highest members of theAhmadiyya Muslim leader-ship arrested on the charge ofdefacing the Qur’anic verses.On the complaint of MaulviIlyas Chinioti, four pro m i n e n tmembers of the AhmadiyyaMuslim Community, werea r rested under PPC295-Bwhen the Session Judgecancelled their ‘bail-before -a r rest’. The accused includeMirza Masroor Ahmad, acting

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Head of Ahmadiyya MuslimCommunity in Pakistan, Col.( retd) Ayaz Mahmood,General President of R a b w a hbranch, Mohammad Akbarand a school teacher by thename of Mohammad Hussain.They had already arrangedtheir bail from the High Court,but the Session Judge cancelledthat bail and issued arre s twarrants instead. This newss p read like a wild fire in thec i t y, but the Ahmadiyyaleadership refused to commenton this development.G e n e r a l l y, the public thinksthat this is a case without anyfoundation and a conspiracy tos p read sectarian hatre d . ”

Sahibzada Mirza Masro o rAhmad Sahib who had beencharged with blasphemy wasduly imprisoned on 30th Aprilbut was released on 10th May1999.

On 22nd April, 2003 at11:40pm London Ti m e ,Sahibzada Mirza Masro o rAhmad Sahib’s election asKhalifatul Masih V (Fifth

Successor to the Pro m i s e dMessiah) was announced byMr Ataul Mujeeb Rashed,S e c retary Majlis Shura, asfollows:

‘It is announced for theinformation of allmembers of the world-wide Ahmadiyya Muslimcommunity that followingthe Maghrib (dusk) andIsha (night) prayers, theMajlis Intikhab Khilafat(the Electoral College)estab-lished by HadhratKhalifatul Masih II,Musleh Maud (thePromised Reformer)(Allah be pleased withhim) convened at the FazlMosque London today,Tuesday 22nd April 2003,under the chairmanship ofRespected ChaudhryHameed Ullah Sahib.Pursuant to the rules andregulations, each membertook an oath of allegianceto Khilafat-i-Ahmadiyya.After this, they elected themost respected SahibzadaMirza Masroor Ahmad,

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may his Lord keep him inpeace and security, asKhalifatul Masih V. Themembers of the MajlisIntikhab Khilafat immedi-ately had the honour oftaking the pledge ofinitiation at the blessedhand of Hadhrat AmirulMominneen KhalifatulMasih V, may Allah assisthim with His Mighty helpand Allah grant him a longlife, and have also had thehonour of meetingHadhrat AmirulMomineen.

Alhamdolillah (All praisebelongs to Allah). MayAllah the Exalted inapproval make thiselection most blessed.Amin. O ur Merciful andGracious God! O ourNoble and Loving Lord,we are grateful to You thatYou have bestowed uswith Your Grace and theSecond Manifestation andhave once again changedour state of fear to that ofpeace. O our Possessor of

Power and Authority andSelf-Subsisting and All-Sustaining God, we bearwitness that once againYour Messiah and Mahdi’sprophecy as stated in thejournal A l - Wa s i y y a t h a smaterialised with fullglory and magnificence.All Praise belongs toAllah.

Ataul Mujeeb Rashed,Secretary Majlis Shura11.40 p.m. 22nd April2003.’

F i n a l l y, we pray that Allahs t rengthen his hands andgrant him a long, prosperouslife leading the Community.And may Allah continue toshower this community withHis Blessings and make itg row by leaps and bounds.Amin.

‘In the Name of Allah, theGracious, the Merciful,D e a rest community of thePromised Messiah, on whom bepeace. O everg reen extensions of hisbeingAssalamu alaikum warahmatullahwabarakatuhu

Our hearts are saddened and oureyes are tearful because a mostloving personality has departedfrom us. However, we submit tothe Divine Command of ‘k u l l uman ‘alaiha faan’: ‘All that is on it(earth) will pass away.’ [HolyQur’an 55: v.27]

The spectacular advancement ofthe Jama’at (community) wewitnessed during the FourthKhilafat warrants no explanation.Pursuant to the method taught tous by Hadhrat Khalifatul MasihIV (Allah have mercy on him), on

how to bid farewell to the onedeparting and to welcome theincoming one, I stand here todayand in its compliance, request youthat we make a pledge that, ‘Oyou, the one who has departed -the swiftness you employed toadvance the mission of thePromised Messiah(as) to enable thefaith of the Holy Pro p h e t( s a ) t odominate the world – we shallalways continue to makesacrifices, all kind of sacrifices, forthe advancement of this mission.We bear witness that you mostcertainly honoured yourcommitment. May thousands ofblessings and grace be on yoursoul. Amin.

Next, in welcoming the incoming[Khalifa], we make a pledgebearing witness to Allah theExalted that in order to convey themessage of peace and security ofthe Holy Prophet(sa) to the world


The First Address of Hadhrat KhalifatulMasih IV

Hadhrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad, Khalifatul Masih V, delivered a briefaddress in Urdu before the inaugural pledge of allegiance and initiation atthe gathering at Islamabad, Tilford, Surrey on 23 April 2003 and the funeralprayers of Hadhrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad, Khalifatul Masih IV. Its Englishtranslation is set out below:

and to assemble the entire worldunder his banner, and likewise tosupport the establishment of theAhmadiyya Khilafat, we shall beready to make any sacrifice. Forthis, we will always support you[the Khalifatul Masih] withprayers.

Pray that Allah the Exalteddisplays more than before theSecond Manifestation of Divinesupport and triumph that He hasalways exhibited to theCommunity. May He forgive our

shortcomings and ingratitude andmay He cover our inadequacies.With His grace alone, indeed withHis grace alone, may He cover myshortcomings.

May He never remove His Handof mercy from us, never remove it,never remove it! Amin, Ya Rabbul‘Aalamin!

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The First Address of Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih V


Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih V making his first address at Islamabad, Surrey,UK which was simultaneously broadcast live all over the world

63

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Contents April 2003, Vol.98, No

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