Al Hakam - 24 January 2020

Responding to Allegations

The world examined

Hadith in Commentary

From the Markaz

The Messiah of Islam

An eventful 2020, anti-dengue mosquitoes and Neanderthals

Islam’s view on charms, superstition and bad omen

Young Waqf-e-Nau seek guidance from Hazrat Khalifatul Masih

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THE WEEKLY

www.alhakam.org AL HAKAM | Friday 24 January 2020 | Issue XCVII Ahmadiyya Archive & Research Centre (ARC), 22 Deer Park Road, London, SW19 3TL. UK info@alhakam.org | F: +44(0)208 544 7673

BBC’s touch test: “Who gets to call the boundary?”

A major new study by BBC Radio 4 investigating the role of touch “in its many forms” was launched by Claudia Hammond on Tuesday, 21 January. The research project aims to explore touch across various forms, for example how touch is vital for medical students.

The tabooed “consent of touch” was also addressed during the radio discussion

by Professor of Medical Ethics at St Georges University Deborah Bowman, Laura Bates from the Everyday Sexism Project and Professor of Psychology at

Goldsmiths University of London Michael Banissy.

The #metoo campaign was discoursed upon as being a possible reason that universities are now discussing consent without its professional context. Laura Bates championed the “courageous speaking out by survivors” of sexual harassment but noted how it is easy for people to suggest that “the problem has gone away”, just because there is a Continued on page 2

Waqf-e-Nau delegation from Australia spends time in Huzoor’s company On 20 January, a group of 21 Waqifeen-eNau from all over Australia had a mulaqat with Hazrat Khalifatul Masih V, may Allah be his Helper, where they all had the opportunity to ask Huzooraa various types of questions and sought advice for their future professions.

The mulaqat commenced with the recitation of the Holy Quran. Following this, a young man from Brisbane, whose parents are originally from Ghana, asked Hazrat Amirul Momineenaa about his experience in Ghana and his fondest moments.

Answering the young boy, Huzooraa said, “The entire time I spent there was my favourite experience. Everyday, I would see new things. When I was there, Ghana was economically totally crippled. To buy loaf of bread in the village, a van would come and you would have to line up outside [to purchase bread].” Due to the large amount of people waiting for bread and not knowing if you would get it or not, Huzooraa said, “Those who wouldn’t get the bread would then simply leave.” Alluding to the patience shown by the Ghanaians at such times, Huzooraa said, “I like the level of patience of Ghanaians.”

A young boy, whilst conveying his desire of fulfilling his waqf, asked Huzooraa what

other fields one could enter apart from Jamia, whereby they can still fulfil their waqf. Hazrat Amirul Momineenaa said that one can fulfil their waqf in other fields too. Huzooraa asked if he was interested in science and being a doctor, to which the boy replied in the affirmative. Huzooraa further said that once you have become a doctor, then you can see which field you wish to specialise in.

A young gentleman asked what Huzoor’saa most precious and memorable moment was with Hazrat Khalifatul Masih IVrh. Answering this, Huzoor said, “In 1993, when I came to the UK, I went with Hazrat Khalifatul Masih IVrh for a walk, up north in Yorkshire. We walked in the rain and walked up a steep hill. I recall that Hazrat Khalifatul Masih IVrh and I found no difficulty in it, but many others who were present did.”

Alluding to Huzoor’s imprisonment in 1999, one person asked Hazrat Khalifatul Masihaa how he felt during that time.

Answering the question, Huzooraa stated, “The sanction raised against me was of such nature that they would have either hanged me or I would have received life in prison.

Thus, I was mentally prepared to stay there and serve the rest of my life in prison.

Continued on page 3

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Friday 24 January 2020 | AL HAKAM

This Week in History

Continued from page 1

24 - 30 January A selection of brief incidents from the first and second era of Khilafat-e-Ahmadiyya

24 January 1929: Hazrat Babu Roshan Din, may Allah be pleased with him, from Sialkot passed away. He was a companion of the Promised Messiah, peace be upon him.

24 January 1951: Alhaj Abdul Wahab al Askari visited Rabwah and spoke to the students and staff of Jamiatul-Mubashireen. He was the editor of an Arabic magazine, Al Salam al Baghdadia and was assigned to represent Iraq at meetings of Muslim states.

25 January 1929: Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud, may Allah be pleased with him, reviewed the recent developments in Afghan politics and gave guidance to Muslims on crucial issues.

25 December 1934: Hazrat Musleh-e-Maudra addressed a gathering in Qasur, talking about the principles of Ahmadiyyat.

25 January 1935: An organisation named ‘‘All India National League’’ was initiated in Lahore. Its aim was to establish rights, while abiding by the law of the land. Sheikh Bashir Ahmad Sahib was assigned as its president.

25 January 1936: Maulvi Ramzan Ali Sahib departed from Qadian for Argentina to establish a mission there.

26 January 1920: Hazrat Mufti Muhammad Sadiq, may Allah be pleased with him, caught a ship from England for the USA. He reached Philadelphia in the second week of February to preach the message of the Jamaat.

26 January 1926: Hazrat Musleh-e-Maudra delivered a speech at the boarding house of Madrasa Ahmadiyya.

His speech was later published under title of Zarreen Hadayat.

25 January 1937: Hazrat Munshi Abdur Rahman from Kapurthala India, may Allah be pleased with him, passed away at the age of 98. He was a companion of the Promised Messiahas.

27 January 1929: The Brahmu Samaj convened a twoday conference of religions in Kolkata where a paper

by Hazrat Mufti Muhammad Sadiqra was read out.

27 January 1944: Hazrat Musleh-e-Maudra arrived back in Qadian from Lahore. The return to Qadian was

momentous as in Lahore, he had been informed by Allah through a vision that he was the Musleh-e-Maud (the Promised Son).

27 January 1946: The Ahmadiyya Intercollegiate Association organised a session at the historic YMCA hall in Lahore. The event was attended by Hazrat Sir Chaudhry Zafarulla Khanra. He spoke on some aspects of the Palestine issue.

27 January 1954: A copy of the Dutch translation of the Holy Quran was presented to Mr Ghulam Muhammad, Governor General of Pakistan. This valued gift was from Hazrat Musleh-e-Maudra and was delivered by a special delegation of Jamaat members.

28 January 1929: The main hall of Talim-ul-Islam High School in Qadian held a first-of-its-kind event where a joint prize distribution ceremony was held, comprising of almost every central institute. Hazrat Musleh-e-Maudra graciously blessed the event with his attendance and handed out prizes.

28 January 1944: Hazrat Musleh-e-Maudra announced during his Friday Sermon that he was informed by God that he was the Musleh-e-Maud. Huzoorra shared details of his vision with Jamaat members in public.

28 January 1945: A group of Buddhists arranged a multi-faith congress in Kanpur. An Ahmadi missionary also attended and shared the Jamaat’s view about other religions.

28 January 1955: Hazrat Musleh-e-Maudra unveiled a new scheme designed for graduates of Jamia to enhance their skills and abilities in other spheres of life and not solely in religious matters.

29 January 1926: A special Jalsa was held in Qadian, which included 24 speeches in different languages.

Hazrat Mufti Muhammad Sadiqra supervised the project.

The final speech of this unique Jalsa was delivered by Hazrat Musleh-e-Maudra.

29 January 1932: Hazrat Musleh-e-Maudra commenced his trip towards Lahore.

29 January 1934: The Malabar area of Southern India saw yet another wave of shameless persecution against the already sidelined Jamaat members. Several cruelties were committed, including a burial of an Ahmadi being stopped.

29 January 1936: Hazrat Sheikh Nur Ahmadra passed away. He was a companion of the Promised Messiahas.

29 January 1943: Hazrat Musleh-e-Maudra introduced a scheme of life devotion. Through this, a vast network of missionaries was established who spread the message of Islam Ahmadiyyat to far off villages across the Indian subcontinent.

29 January 1944: The first ever Musleh-e-Maud Day was held in Qadian. The main event was organised at Masjid Aqsa and was addressed by scholars of the Jamaat.

Continued on page 10

conversation on consent and touch now.

She said, “The truth is that we know that inappropriate touch, unwanted touch, different forms of abuse and assault through touch are still extraordinarily common, for women and girls in particular.” Statistics also prove that sexual harassments and undesired touch is soaring, according to Laura.

The TUC’s study was referred to that shows nearly two in three (63%) young women in the UK have experienced sexual harassment at work. The survey also points out that 23% (nearly a quarter) of women have experienced “unwanted touching”. These results show that “we really are talking about an epidemic if you look at the statistics”, said Laura Bates.

She went on to talk about how the disempowerment of social norms for young women and girls was also seen as a huge blow for addressing the issue, as women are told not to “make a fuss” about harassment.

Professor Deborah Bowman asked the question, “Who is the touch for?” and “Who gets to call the boundary?”

The answer, she said, was, “Of course the recipient.”

The social construct and makeup that Islam projects ingrains barriers that inhibit possible harassment and unwanted touch, especially for women.

Over the years, many have raised eyebrows against the Islamic philosophy of touch, particularly handshakes between men and women. Islam teaches men and women to abstain from shaking hands with the opposite sex. Of course, this goes for all other forms of touch as well.

Touch, in all its forms (that are outside the professional constructs of touch, such as for medical purposes), is barred in Islam.

Islam goes a step further and instructs both men and women in the Holy Quran to “Lower their gazes” (Surah al-Nur, Ch.24 V.31-33) – amplifying the boundaries of touch itself. This is so because Islam is a religion coupled with human nature, and God, being the All Knowing and the Creator of mankind, has the perfect knowledge to draw the line in the sand for us.

When society goes unchecked and opposes the laws of God, the inevitably dark and heart-breaking results begin to manifest.

The discussion on BBC Radio 4 on Tuesday night led to a panelist saying, “We often expect young children simply to accept touch ... but if we’re teaching children from a very young age, ‘Your body is public property; you don’t have a choice in this’”, then this can cause problems down the line.

Islam protects a person from the formation of a society where people allow themselves to think that others are “public property”. It guards and protects the whole society at large and calls mankind to create a moral and decent atmosphere in which people are not subjugated to the will of others. For us, God “calls the boundaries”.

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Friday 24 January 2020 | AL HAKAM

Continued from page 1

However, Allah had other plans for me and now I am here.”

A young gentleman asked Huzooraa if he preferred the Fazl Mosque or Islamabad.

Addressing the question, Huzooraa answered, “They both have their own unique beauty.

Due to the vast amount of work and offices, the Fazl Mosque lacked space.” Huzooraa added, “The Fazl Mosque has its own status and significance as four of the Khulafa have offered their prayers there.”

Further adding to this, Huzooraa said, “The land is more open here and more facilities are available. Now we can say that the Jamaat has attained a place where we have more facilities, the Khalifa’s residence, a mosque, residence for workers and places for meetings. Thus, it has its own identity now.”

One boy asked about the nature of taqdir (divine destiny). Answering the question, Huzooraa explained that there are two types of taqdir. The first type is which can be altered and the second is that which cannot be evaded. For example, it is destined that every human being shall perish and die, this type of taqdir cannot be evaded. And there is also a tadqir that can be evaded by prayer and good deeds.

A question was asked about trials and tribulations and how we know whether a trial is a punishment from God or a trial.

Answering the question, Huzooraa said that all prophets went through trials and tribulations. The Holy Prophetsa and the Companionsra also went through many hardships. Huzooraa further gave his own example and said, “When I was in jail, I had no worry as I knew that it was a trial from God. However, at the same time, there were many others also in prison who

would cry and hope they would survive somehow. Thus, if a person’s intentions are pure, they themselves will know within the heart of their hearts whether it is a trial or punishment from God.” A Waqf-e-Nau gentleman asked Huzooraa how one can improve concentration during Salat. Huzooraa answered, “This is very common with everyone. For this, whenever you lose concentration you should repeatedly recite ‘Ihdinas-siratal-mustaqim’ [Guide us on the right path] and keep trying. With the passage of time, you will become experienced and be able to focus and concentrate.” Huzooraa further stated, “You should focus upon the words of Surah al-Fatihah and the words you utter during Salat. This is what is meant by aqimus-Salah [observe prayer].”

A question was asked about the importance and significance of wearing a turban. Upon this, Huzooraa stated that there is no significance in wearing a turban.

Huzooraa further stated that the Promised Messiahas, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih Ira and Hazrat Khailfatul Masih IIra used to wear turbans. At that time, it was customary to wear turbans. Now, Huzooraa said, it has become a tradition of Khulafa.

A Waqf-e-Nau expressed his desire of joining Jamia and asked what he could do to prepare and ensure that he was ready. Huzooraa said, “You should learn the translation of Salat, memorise some chapters of the Holy Quran and read the books and different excerpts of the Promised Messiahas.”

A khadim asked Huzooraa how he, as well as those who do not live in UK and do not have the opportunity to meet with Huzooraa regularly, could increase their relationship with Khilafat. Hazrat Khalifatul Masihaa answered by saying, “There are many people

Hadith-e-Rasul – Sayings of the Holy Prophet Muhammadsa

The decline of Muslims Harzat Ali, Allah be pleased with him, relates that the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: “A time will come when nothing will remain of Islam except its name and nothing will remain of the Quran except its script. Mosques will be full of

worshippers, but as far as righteousness is concerned, they will be empty and deserted. Their ulema [religious scholars] will be the worst of creatures under the canopy of the heavens. Evil plots will originate from them and to them will they return.”

(Mishkat)

Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmadas, In His Own Words

Conditions for the acceptance of prayer However, pay heed with an attentive heart that there are certain preconditions for the acceptance of prayer. Some of them relate to the person making the supplication and some relate to the person for whom supplication is made. It is necessary for a person who solicits someone else to pray for them to first fear Allah Almighty themselves; such people must remain in awe of God’s Being as He is the Independent and Besought of all; they must make peaceful relations and worship

in Africa who have not yet met me. They are only able to listen to the sermons I deliver as other content is not yet available in there languages. Even people who travel from here to Africa see that many people there, even in villages, express their relationship

of God a practice of life; they must please Allah with righteousness and piety. When this is the case, the gate of the acceptance of prayer is opened to such a one. If a person displeases God Almighty, ruins his relationship with Him and wars with Him, his mischief and evil deeds become an obstruction or a mountain that stands in the way of prayer. As a result, the door of acceptance is closed to such a person.

(Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmadas, Malfuzat, Vol. 1, p. 104)

with Khilafat. Thus, this is a matter of the heart and you should ask your heart in regard to this.”

Thus, the mulaqat came to close with a group photo with Hazrat Amirul Momineenaa.

Friday 24 January 2020 | AL HAKAM

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The world examined An eventful 2020, anti-dengue mosquitoes and Neanderthals This series scans the latest research and developments in the realms of science, academia, technology and geopolitics, providing a glance at the ever changing world

GEOPOLITICS

An eventful 2020, so far!

For all the wrong reasons, 2020 has been pretty eventful and you’ll be forgiven for not keeping up. The early days of January caught everyone off guard with the worry of whether the US and Iran would clash in an all-out war.

Devastating bushfires across Australia have killed dozens of people, destroyed millions of hectares in land and also caused millions of animals to die. Raising concerns on how much world powers are contributing towards climate change.

More recently the stalemate over Trump’s impeachment continues while the USA has also signed phase one of the economic deal with China. And in relation to China, the world has its eyes on Wuhan, to see if the Coronavirus can be contained.

In the Middle East, Lebanon has formed a new government, after Hezbollah finalised a deal with the cabinet; the country is also undergoing an economic crisis.

Not far from Lebanon, Saudi’s MBS has been accused of hacking into Jeff Bezos’ (CEO of Amazon) phone through a WhatsApp message.

Today, the World Economic Forum in Davos comes to an end where world leaders, executives, academics, charity heads and celebrities have tried to discuss and impact the global agenda; climate change being the talking point of the forum.

Whatever the future holds, one thing is for sure, we are certainly not heading towards a more peaceful and happier 2020.We, once again, urge not only world leaders but the general populace to take heed to the words of Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmadaa who is the Khalifa of the Ahmadiyya Movement in Islam.

His top-of-the-list concern is not climate change, but rather the catastrophe the world can undergo if a world war erupts – a carnage that will be swifter than climate change.

HEALTH

Worries with Coronavirus in Wuhan, China

The perturbing coronavirus which has been connected to a market in the city of Wuhan that was selling seafood and live animals is spreading. Cases of the epidemic have been found in China, USA, South Korea, Japan, Thailand, Australia and will possibly spread to other countries.

The following precautions have been advised: Wash hands with soap regularly, cover mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing, thoroughly cook meat and eggs, avoid On top of this, the Lunar New Year has commenced, contact with anyone showing flu-like symptoms and avoid which is the largest human migration on earth – hundreds unprotected contact with animals. (WHO) of millions will travel across china and aboard throughout the month. There is fear that the Lunar New Year holiday

SCIENCE

Anti-Dengue mosquitos

Synthetically engineered mosquitoes have been created that inhibited the spread of the four known types of the dengue virus. The dengue virus is spread by Aedes aegypti mosquitos and causes 25,000 annual global deaths, while infecting approximately 390 million people every year, most prevalent in tropical and subtropical areas.

Led by biologists at the University of California San Diego, an international team has now used a human antibody to supress the virus in mosquitos, addressing all the four strains of the virus. The achievement was published in the journal PLOS Pathogens.

Associate professor, Omar Akbari from the University of California San Diego said, “This development means that in the foreseeable future there may be viable genetic approaches to controlling dengue virus in the field, which could limit human suffering and mortality”.

Further, co-author of the study, James Crowe MD said, “It is fascinating that we now can transfer genes from the human immune system to confer immunity to mosquitoes.

This work opens up a whole new field of biotechnology possibilities to interrupt mosquito-borne diseases of man”. (sciencedaily.com, 16 January 2020)

PSYCHOLOGY A group consisting of members from the University of Wurzburg, Germany and Peking University, China have found that women respond less strongly to fearful sounds if someone else is nearby. The journal, Proceedings of the Royal Society B published the findings of the group. Skin conductance response (SCR) was used to measure the chemical responses of the participants when they were in states of fear; the women were asked to sit at a desk and listen to scary noises through headphones. “SCR showed that the women experienced less fear when there was another person present – even if they did not know that person. It also showed that the effect was stronger when the volunteer judged the nearby person as dissimilar to themselves, regardless of their gender or race.” The results of the experiment showed that “humans instinctively put themselves on higher alert when alone.” (medicalexpress.com, 22 January 2020)

ARCHEOLOGY

Neanderthals: Our swimming and diving relatives

travel period will cause the virus to spread across the world.

Homo sapiens (us!) and Neanderthals are two species from the later stages of human evolution. The Neanderthal were huntergatherers whereas Homo sapiens leaned towards agriculture and a domestic lifestyle. A recent discovery in Italy has shown that

Neanderthals were not only land-hunters, but they swam and even dived down to 6-13 feet to collect live clams. The discovery was of 170 clam shells in Italian caves; the shells had been shaped into tools and scrapers. “Our findings enlarge our knowledge of the range of capacities Neanderthals had,” said Sylvain Soriano, an archaeologist at Paris Nanterre University. Another archaeologist from the Autonomous University of Madrid, commending the findings, said, “This study is further evidence of the rich behavioral complexity of this human species, and their great capability to adapt to the environment and to exploit at best the resources that were available.” (Nytimes.com, 15 January 2020)

GOOD TO KNOW

The Drake Equation Dr Frank Drake, an astronomer and astrophysicist, developed an equation that would estimate the probability of extraterrestial intelligent life (that could communicate) within the Milky Way by multiplying variables. It reads: N=R*fp*ne*fl*fi*fc*L The probability of life beyond earth, according to the Drake Equation, estimates as very high, with some astronomers approximating 10,000 intelligent civilisations within our galaxy. Since the equation, astronomers have discovered that the number of planets exceed the number of stars considerably, with some astrophysicists saying that advanced civilisations within the universe are “uncountable”.

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Friday 24 January 2020 | AL HAKAM

“Good friends will have a good influence and bad friends will have a negative influence” – Huzoor graces young Waqifeen in Bustan-eWaqf-e-Nau On 19 January, a group of approximately 600 young Waqifeen-e-Nau and Waqifaate-Nau from the UK had a sitting with Hazrat Khalifatul Masih V, may Allah be his Helper.

Al Hakam’s correspondent spoke with the National Waqf-e-Nau team about the event and how it came about. They told us, “In the beginning of December, when the office had its first refresher course for national secretaries, Hazrat Khalifatul Masihaa guided the team and said that the Waqf-e-Nau classes ought to be conducted in January and February and held in the Masroor Hall in Islamabad as it is suitable and can accommodate a larger number of individuals.”

The class commenced with the recitation of the Holy Quran, followed by hadith and a choral poem.

Thereafter, a speech was delivered on the responsibilities of belonging to the Waqfe-Nau scheme, along with quotes and advice given by Huzooraa on what it means to be a true Waqf-e-Nau. Further, alluding to the Friday Sermon that Hazrat Amirul Momineenaa delivered in Canada on 28 October 2016, Waqifeen expressed the inner transformation they made within

themselves and how they have inculcated Huzoor’saa words and advice into their lives.

After this, the Waqifeen had the opportunity to ask Huzooraa numerous questions. The first question was presented by a young girl who asked Huzooraa if he ever felt worried or stressed and how Huzooraa handled such situations. In response, Huzooraa said, “I pray to Allah that He helps me and removes all my difficulties and problems.”

A young child then asked whether God still speaks to us. Answering the young child, Huzooraa stated, “God speaks, but He has different ways in which He speaks to man.” Huzooraa further added that God speaks to man through dreams, angels, revelations etc. He said that God is not a physical being, but He is Nur (light) and He has His different ways in which he communicates with man.

A question was asked about the black stone, known as Hajr-e-Aswad; where it came from and why pilgrims kiss it. Huzooraa explained that it is often described as a meteorite that fell from the sky. The stone was placed on the Ka‘bah’s wall, which symbolises that the tawaf

(circumambulation) of the Ka‘bah starts and begin from here. Regarding pilgrims kissing the stone, Huzooraa explained that it is recorded that the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, kissed the stone when starting the circuit of the Ka‘bah. Huzooraa further added that the stone does not have any significance itself and mentioned the hadith where it is narrated that once, Hazrat Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, was seen kissing the stone and said, “No doubt, I know that you are a stone and can neither harm anyone, nor benefit anyone. Had I not seen Allah’s Messenger [Muhammadsa] kissing you, I would not have kissed you.”

A question was asked to Huzooraa about whether he was aware that he would become the Khalifa and if he received any sign from God that he would become the Khalifa. Answering the young boy, Huzooraa said, “No. Neither was I aware when I was young, nor old, nor on the day that I was elected.”

Talking about the status between prophets and angels, one Waqf-e-Nau boy asked whose status was higher, the Promised Messiah’sas or angels.

Huzooraa answered by quoting a couplet of a famous Urdu poet. The meaning of the couplet was that man has the ability to achieve a higher status than angels, but the endeavour is far greater.

Huzooraa further added, “The status of all prophets that have walked the earth is higher than the status of the angels”.

A young Waqf-e-Nau child asked Huzooraa what the best advice was that his mother had given. Huzooraa said, “To speak the truth and never lie.” Huzooraa further added that once a person asked the Holy Prophetsa to tell him one bad deed he should refrain from and by doing so, would make him a better person. Upon this, the Holy Prophetsa said to the man that he should refrain from lying. By doing this, the man was able to break bad habits

and other vices which he would have otherwise committed.

A young girl, who completed the recitation of the Holy Quran at the age of ten, expressed to Hazrat Khalifatul Masihaa that she had not had her Amin ceremony.

Upon this, Huzoor replied, “You may come with your family to my office and have your Amin there.”

A question was asked about what Waqf-e-Nau children should do if a world war breaks out. Huzooraa said, “You should pray that God guides the leaders of those countries that are on the brink of war.” Huzooraa further said that if the war does break out then “you should pray for minimal damage … at your age, you can only pray.”

A Waqf-e-Nau girl asked Huzooraa if she could be friends with atheists.

In response, Huzooraa said, “If you feel that your faith in God is strong and you won’t waver, and you can bring the atheist towards God, then it is fine.” Huzooraa further added, “However, if you are in doubt that God exists, then it is possible that the atheists’ belief will influence you too.”

Huzooraa then went on to narrate a famous incident about a student who once approached the Promised Messiahas and said that his belief in God was wavering.

Upon this, the Promised Messiahas told him to change his seat in college. When the student did this, his faith in God came back. When he told the Promised Messiahas about this, the Promised Messiahas explained to him that his friend who he used to sit next to in college was in fact an atheist and his character was having an influence over him. Huzooraa then added, “Good friends will have a good influence and bad friends will have a negative influence over one’s character.”

With this the Bustan-e-Waqf-e-Nau class concluded.

Friday 24 January 2020 | AL HAKAM

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Hazrat Imam Shafi‘i Part II Malik Saif-ur-Rahman 1914-1989

Imam Shafi‘i’srh journey to Egypt Hazrat Imam Shafi‘irh lived in Baghdad for around three years, though he never really considered it home. The Mu‘tazillites were gaining influence in the area and had submitted to Mamun al-Rashid. Aside from this, after the defeat of Al-Amin [son of Harun al-Rashid], the Arabic influence over the area began to diminish and Mamun al-Rashid gained the support of the people of Khorasan and Persia, who had great influence over him. The people of the Quran and Sunnah, therefore, began to face difficulties.

In such circumstances, Imam Shafi‘irh did not deem it suitable to continue living in Baghdad and after consulting some of his peers, he decided to shift to Egypt as it was far away from Baghdad, the Markaz, and also because the students of his contemporary, Hazrat Imam Malikrh resided there, who he hoped to live peacefully with. Egypt at the time still had an Arabic foothold.

Another reason for his decision to move was that the Governor of Egypt, Abbas bin Abdullah Abbasi held him in high regard.

Thus, bearing this in mind, he migrated from Baghdad to Egypt in 199 AH. The journey was extremely long and arduous.

The situation he faced in Egypt was no less difficult as he faced many challenges.

During his journey to Egypt, in fact, he expressed his thoughts in a qaseeda, of which two couplets are: ْ َ​َ َْ ْ َ​َ ٰ ‫ت ن َ ْف ِس ْی ت َ ُت ْو ُق ا‬ ‫ِلی ِم ْص ِر‬ ‫لقد اصبح‬ َْْ َ َْ ُ ْ َ َ ْ ُ ْ َ َ ِ‫و ِمن دونِہا قطع المہا ِم ِہ والقفر‬ ٰ ٰ ‫فَ َواللّ ِہ َما اَ ْد ِر ْی اَل ِل ْ َف ْو ِز َوال ْ ِغ‬ ‫نی‬ َ ُ ُ َْْ َ ُ ُ َ ‫ا َساق اِل ْی َہا ا ْم ا َساق اِلی القب ِر‬ “I wish to journey to Egypt, yet the path between is dangerous and full of desert. By God, I do not know whether peace and tranquillity awaits me or if fate has something else in store; I am oblivious to this.”

When Imam Shafi‘irh arrived in Egypt, he experienced immense success.

The governor of Egypt approved a set allowance for him from the “Sahm-eZawil-Qurba” part of the treasury. A student of Imam Malikrh, Abdullah bin Abdul Hakam, who was affluent and an influential figure in the government, helped him a great deal and extended all sorts of comforts for him.

Here, he got the chance to proofread his books and start a school, however divine decree did not allow much time for this as his time quickly approached.

Due to a severe bowel illness, he became extremely weak. There began rebellions in Egypt and he faced severe opposition on behalf of Malikis.

As he faced these challenges, this star of knowledge left this world for the Hereafter in 204 AH at the relatively young age of 54. َ ْ َ َّ َ ّٰ َّ َ ‫اج ُعوْ َن‬ ِ ‫ف ِانالِل ِہ و ِانا ِالی ِہ ر‬ [Surely to Allah we belong and to Him shall we return.]

Allah had blessed him with talented students and sincere friends, both in Baghdad and Egypt. His students at Baghdad spread his school of thought to the regions of Persia, Khorasan and Ma Wara al-Nahr [Transoxiana]. Here, they faced the Hanafi school of thought, which gave them a tough time. Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni followed his fiqh order. The Sunni Kurds of Iran today are mostly followers of his fiqh school of thought.

Students and followers of Imam Shafi‘irh His students gained much acclaim in the East and had the chance to serve their nations on intellectual levels. Imam Ahmadrh bin Hanbal especially had this honour, who was a permanent imam of this order. Al-Za‘farani had the opportunity to spread his Kutub al-Baghdadiyya in these areas.

Apart from these, hundreds of worldrenowned scholars associated themselves with his fiqh school of thought, for example, Imam-ul-Haramain Abdul Malik bin Abdullah al-Juwayni, HujjatulIslam Imam Muhammad al-Ghazali, Allama Fakhr al-Din al-Razi, Abu Hamid al-Asfara‘ini, Taqi al-Din al-Subki, Allama al-Mawardi Sahib-ul-Ahkam alSultaniyya, Sultan al-Ulema Allama, Izz al-Din ibn Abd al-Salam, Ibn Daqiq al-‘Id, Nizam al-Mulk Tusi and commentator of Sahih Muslim Allama Nawawi. All these scholars were affiliated with the Shafi‘i order and through their efforts, his school of thought spread far and wide.

A debate with Imam Shafi‘irh Imam Shafi‘irh had no comparison when it came to argumentation and debates.

Once, Imam Muhammad bin Hasan al-Shaybani somewhat teasingly said to him, “I have heard that you consider my view of ghasab [seizing] to be incorrect.”

At first, Imam Shafi‘irh apologised and decided to avoid directly answering the question as he had immense respect for Imam Muhammad and also because he wanted to avoid any argument. However, Hanafis are of the view that debates should be pursued as they open up new avenues of knowledge and matters become clearer.

When Imam Muhammad pressed a little

harder, Imam Shafi‘irh became ready to debate on the topic.

With regard to ghasab, Hanafis are of the view that: 1. If the item that has been seized is still intact, then it should be returned to the person from whom it had been seized 2. If the seized item has been rendered useless, then it should be paid for 3. If the seized item has been transformed into something else (for example, a building is erected on a plot of land, paper was seized on which a book has been written, gold was stolen and moulded into jewellery, cloth was seized and sewn into a shirt or trousers), then the owner will still be paid the full worth of the original item. However, if the originally seized item has something else now attached to it (for example, a cow was stolen which gave birth to a calf) then the originally seized item will be returned along with its by-product Shafi‘i’s are against the third point.

They say that in such a scenario, the

rightful owner has the right to take back what belongs to them, however if the one who seized the item desires, they may destroy the erected house and take the debris.

Nonetheless, the debate ensued in the following manner: Imam Muhammad: If a person seizes another person’s plot of land and builds a beautiful building, worth hundreds of thousands of rupees, but the plot of land is worth a lot less, then what is your view?

Imam Shafi‘irh: The land should be returned to the rightful owner, however if the one who seized the land wishes, they may take the debris with them. In any case, the owner cannot be forced to purchase the house or sell off the land.

Imam Muhammad: Let’s say a person seized some planks of wood and fixed one of his boats with them and the boat has now set sail with passengers on board.

If the person who owned the planks of wood demands for them to be returned in the middle of their journey, what is your

7

Friday 24 January 2020 | AL HAKAM verdict in such a case?

Imam Shafi‘irh: The owner’s demand to return the wood immediately would be inappropriate in such a case. When the boat reaches the shore, however, then it will be the owner’s right to have the planks returned, even if taking them apart from the boat causes harm to the structure of the boat.

Similar questions were posed to Hazrat Imam Shafi‘irh, the contents of which is extremely detailed.

The final argument posed by Imam Muhammad was, “If the owner demands for the property [built on their land] to be destroyed and its debris to be removed, then it goes against the principle of …

‘La dharara wa la dhirara [One must not harm themselves, nor harm others]’. To destroy such an expensive house is a waste of resources and the punishment for this outweighs the crime, especially when the person is prepared to pay for the original cost of the land and the owner apparently has no loss to face.”

Imam Shafi‘irh: Alright, then let us consider that a wealthy man belonging to an affluent and respectable family entices a slave-girl belonging to a poor family and marries her whilst the owner of the slavegirl does not give his consent. The slavegirl eventually gives birth to ten boys who go on to become successful and educated employees of the government. Tell me, if the slave-girl’s owner demands that as the girl belonged to him, the girl should be returned to him, what would be your decree?

Imam Muhammad: The slave-girl and all the boys she gave birth to would be returned to the owner, who would become the property of the owner … The entirety of the slave-girl’s wealth is the property of the owner.

Imam Shafi‘irh: Where has your “La dharara wa la dhirara” principle gone?

Is the demolition of the property more harmful or is it more harmful to bring ten intellectual and well-educated young men into slavery and subject them to such degradation?

Imam Muhammad was unable to answer this and fell silent.

Imam Shafi‘irh and physiognomy Imam Shafi‘irh was an expert in physiognomy and had studied it. Once, he had the chance to put this knowledge to the test.

He visited Yemen to run some personal errands and arrived there in the evening. He was passing by the bazaar, when he noticed a person with blue eyes and a peculiar look standing outside his house. Imam Shafi‘irh thought that person to be of an evil and impure disposition and nature. As dawn was approaching and he had to reside somewhere, he asked that man whether there was any place for him to stay. The person replied, “Why of course! I shall offer my house to you.”

That person showed great hospitality and offered a nice, clean bed, appetising meals and fodder for the animals that brought him to Yemen. In this manner, he spent the night in immense comfort. His heart felt great remorse over his earlier

thoughts in that he had suspicions of a pious and sincere gentleman. Thus, he thought of the science of physiognomy as useless.

As he got ready to leave after breakfast, he thanked the gentleman for he had brought him great comfort. He prayed that God may bless him in return for his pious deeds.

The owner of the house replied, “Don’t thank me. The hospitality I extended to you cost me this much. My wife and I spent last night in great discomfort and sacrificed our comfortable room for your sake, for which the rent is this much, the food was this much and the fodder cost this much.”

In this manner, he demanded a much higher price than what was reasonable.

Imam Shafi‘irh later said that his physiognomic analysis was in fact correct and told his servant at the time to give whatever the man demanded and leave the place immediately.

Accusations against Imam Shafi‘irh Some accusations that have been raised against Imam Shafi‘irh have been cited above. One accusation against him was that he was a Shiite as he would often express his love for Hazrat Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, and his offspring.

However, history testifies against him ever being a Shiite.

Imam Shafi‘irh revered the Khulafae-Rashidin [four rightly guided Khulafa – Hazrat Abu Bakr, Hazrat Umar, Hazrat Usman and Hazrat Ali, may Allah be pleased with them all] and believed in their high spiritual ranks and supremacy.

In contrast to other Sunni Muslims of the time, however, he would condemn Amir Muawiyyah’sra rivalry with Hazrat Alira and considered his actions as disobedience.

Aside from this, whilst commentating on Islam’s teachings for dealing with rebels, he referred to Hazrat Ali’sra response as an example in his book Al-Siyar because it was Hazrat Alira who had to deal with Muslim rebels for the first time.

Some people have considered this interpretation to be inaccurate and have accused Imam Shafi‘irh of being influenced

by Shia Islam. In answer to similar accusations, he once cited the couplet: َ ُّ ُ ً ْ َ َ َ ْ ‫ٓال ُم َح ّم ٍد‬ ِ ‫ِان کان رفضا حب‬ ّ َ َ َ َّ َ ْ َ ْ َ ‫ان انِ ْی َرافِ ِض ْی‬ ِ ‫فلیشہ ِد الثقل‬

[If love for the people of Muhammadsa is to be considered heresy, then I swear by the two things held sacred (in Islam; i.e. the Quran and the Ahl-e-Bait) that I am a heretic.]

After returning from Medina, Hazrat Imam Shafi‘irh married a paternal granddaughter of Hazrat Usmanra named Hameeda, from whom he was given a son. He called him Muhammad and he gave him the appellation of Abu Usman, which proved that he had immense love for Hazrat Usmanra.

Imam Shafi‘irh was of average height, yet he had a towering figure and personality. He was extremely generous and loved giving to others. Whenever he received any monetary gift from a friend or the rulers of the time, he would

Ghana Holds 88th Jalsa Salana

Abass Bin Wilson Ghana Correspondent

The 88th Jalsa Salana of Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya Ghana was held from 3 to 5 January 2020, at the Mission’s Farm, Bagh-e-Ahmad (Garden of Ahmad). The theme was, “Corruption – A threat to national development, peace and security”. The total attendance was over 35,000.

Delegations from other countries, including Nigeria, Sierra Leone and South Africa, also attended the event.

The Jalsa was attended by prominent personalities including the Vice President of the Republic of Ghana HE Alhajj Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, Special Guest of Honour for the occasion and the Vice President of National House of Chiefs Daasebre Kweku Ewusi VII who was the guest of honour.

In his special message to the participants, Hazrat Amirul Momineenaa urged members to strive for a high degree of piety and righteousness.

Huzooraa said: “You should offer the five daily prayers regularly.

You should not lie nor hurt anyone with your tongue. You should not let even a thought of mischief, wrongdoing or transgression pass through your minds.”

Huzooraa advised the Ahmadi Muslims to shun every type of sin, offence, undesirable speech and action as well as egoistic passions and unruly behaviour. Huzooraa said that they should become pure-hearted, harmless and meek servants of Allah Almighty and that no poisonous germ should flourish in

distribute the amount among his students and those that deserved it or he would purchase books from it.

The details of his school of fiqh have been mentioned earlier.

Imam Shafi‘i’srh achievements Imam Shafi‘i’srh views were based on the principle that the foundations of the Shariah were built on either nass [injunction] or qiyas [deductive analogy]; all matters should effectively be based on evidence found in the nass and access to it should not be difficult for a mujtahid [a person who does ijtihad (exerting one’s mental faculty to find an answer)].

One of his most remarkable achievements was the compilation of principles of fiqh and the determination

their beings.

Huzooraa drew the attention of Ahmadi Muslims to the importance of Khilafat and charged them to strengthen their attachment and loyalty to the institution. Huzooraa said: “Today, the mission for the revival of Islam and indeed the attainment of world peace can only be achieved by adhering to the system of the institution of spiritual succession of the Community.”

Huzooraa admonished Ahmadi Muslims to establish a close relationship with Allah as the true purpose of life was for man to open the window of his heart to his Creator.

Huzooraa said that a person who has developed true love for Allah in his heart has an unwavering belief that if he leads his life within the confines of the commandment and prohibitions of Allah, he shall become a recipient of his blessings. Huzooraa said: “Such a person has a strong faith that if he continues to show perfect obedience to Allah, follows the path of righteousness and fulfills the rights of Allah and His creation, the Almighty Allah will be pleased with him”.

Alhajj Dr Mahamadu Bawumia commended the community and urged

other religious bodies and civil society organisations (CSOs) to continue to speak and generate awareness on corruption.

His Excellency also charged Ghanaians to resist any attempt from any individual or group to whip up sentiment of one religion against another, stressing that peace and stability were key pillars for religious tolerance.

of such regulations that form the commandments of the Shariah. Scholars have written that Hazrat Imam Shafi‘irh was the founder of the science of fiqh principles. Other schools of thought focused their attention on his school of fiqh after he had passed away. This honour was given to him as he was the first to do it. Regarding governance, his view was the same as other imams of fiqh, the details of which have been presented earlier.

(Translated by Al Hakam from the original Urdu in Tarikh Afkar-e-Islami, authored by Malik Saif-ur-Rahman Sahib)

Friday 24 January 2020 | AL HAKAM

8

Detroit Public Library: “Real talk about Islam” Muhammad Ahmad Detroit

100 Years Ago...

How can atheist Europe accept Islam The second part of the speech of Qazi Muhammad Abdullah Sahib BA, BT, which he read out at Jalsa Salana Qadian 1919 before members of the Jamaat.

Al Fazl, 12 and 19 January 1920 Qazi Muhammad Abdullah

The Detroit Public Library held a programme titled “Real Talk about Islam” on 11 January 2020 at their main branch located at the Woodward Ave. This is one of the oldest libraries in the State of Michigan that was opened for service on 25 March 1865. The library is situated in a large historical building within walking distance to the Wayne State University campus.

Library Director, Meghan McGowan welcomed the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community to the library and then, after a brief introduction, she invited Shamshad Nasir Sahib (Missionary) to talk on the subject of “Real Talk about Islam”.

Shamshad Nasir Sahib, along with Secretary Tabligh, Muhammad Ahmad and Secretary Publication, Ahsan Aziz represented Ahmadiyya Muslim Community of Detroit.

A brief summary of the fundamental Islamic beliefs and the five pillars of Islam was given by Shamshad Nasir Sahib: “Islam means peace. When we greet each other, we say ‘Assalamo Alaikum’, which means peace be on you. Every aspect of Islamic teaching revolves around unity of God Almighty, His worship, prayers and peace. Peace with oneself, peace with fellow human beings and peace in a home as a family and in the society. Islam is a religion of nature. Every aspect of the religion, may it be prayers, fasting, relationships, all are based on nature”.

An open forum was also held for the public to ask questions. Many of the attendees asked questions regarding some of the rituals done during the Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca, Hajj.

One attendee asked specifically regarding women and their treatment and rights in Islam and another attendee wanted to know more about what humanitarian activities the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community was doing.

The Jamaat presented various books and leaflets to the attendees, including Life of Muhammadsa, Islam’s response to contemporary issues, World crisis and pathway to peace.

Flyers on the introduction to Islam, Ahmadiyyat, Jihad and other information leaflets were also given out After the formal proceedings, attendees had an informal conversations with the Jamaat members where they continued to ask questions on various topics and removed many of their misunderstandings.

A great problem which is an impediment in explaining the characteristics of Islam is the bad example of the present Islamic empire. They consider the Turks and Islam one and the same. The flaws and weaknesses of Turkey are considered to be the weakness of Islam. The only reason behind it is that certain self-centered persons have misinformed the general public that the cruelties of the Turks, which are presented in a very hurtful way, are due to the religion of Islam.

Right now, there is only one remedy for this. That our nation, which has already embraced the true Islam, becomes an excellent role model [of Islam] and our missionaries become practical role models in the UK. There is a great need for it. Not only for persuading other people to accept Islam by exhibiting good examples, but in order to reform ourselves as well and to achieve great heights. It is a divine saying: َّ ْ َ ْ ُ َّ ُ َ ْ َ ْ ُ ُ ‫اس‬ ِ ‫كنتم خير أم ٍة أخ ِرجت ل ِلن‬ [You are the best people raised for the good of mankind].

Then, what is the reason that we, in “khair”, i.e. in every aspect of perfection and advancement – whether it is worldly business, monetary dealings with others, acquiring of higher education, household relations, treatment of our wives with kindness, providing our necessities with hard work and attention, showing compassion towards our brothers, aiding the poor and destitute, establishing generous relationships with other countries and religions – do not prove ourselves before every nation to be special and good in every matter which is necessary for our religious and worldly progress?

Prove yourselves to be distinctive in every manner if you want to give this pure water from the fountain of knowledge to the thirsty and those who have been stagnant in muddy streams for centuries.

I do not want to deviate from the topic but I still consider it necessary to draw your attention towards two things: 1. By the grace of God Almighty, we are the Jamaat that has been planted by the hands of the Promised Messiahas. We have been granted that spirit which has been absent in other nations. We are that seed, regarding which God has promised that it will grow, become great, spread and advance. We will surely progress by the blessing of God Almighty, but it is required that our own time, abilities and wealth is not spent individually. Wasting time is such a destructive impediment in the way of advancement that God Almighty has specially promised to the Promised Messiahas: ٗ ْ ُ َُ َ ‫اع َوق ُتہ‬ ‫لا یض‬ [His time shall not be wasted.]

Organisation and then combined organisation bring such accomplishments that cannot be achieved independently, even by a hundredfold increase in individual strength.

For instance, the recent war taught that individually, no general was able to prevail over the enemy until the Italians, French, Americans, Belgians and English carried out a combined attack against the enemy under the command of one person.

All the things that I have mentioned above can easily be achieved under a combined organisation. We are thankful to God Almighty that this work has already been started by the appeal of Hazrat Khalifatul Masih. As soon as your contribution is given, it would be of value to prove the ummah of Islam as “the best”.

2. The second matter which is of great significance for us at the moment is the education and edification of our generation.

I draw your attention towards this very important question. I assure you that you will bring an extraordinary revolution across the globe in a time of 25 years, i.e. you will find people drawn towards Islam in large numbers. The achievement of high ranked posts is not the only purpose of education but in fact, the tarbiyat [upbringing] of children should be carried out in such a way that they become exceptional human beings and Muslims.

Recognise your responsibilities, who we are and what we have to do! Do not lag behind anyone in providing for your necessities. Those benefits which are achieved by sending children to the madaris [sing. madrasa: religious institutions] of Qadian are not hidden from anyone.

Experience shows that those children who acquire education from here, even though they initially lag behind in religious studies, when they complete their schooling, souls of eminent Christian scholars even tremble before them.

Presently, the question of education is under consideration in all the countries of Europe. The progress of any nation is significantly dependent on the generations to come. As the performance of the future generations is determined by their primary education, we should give special attention towards it.

Another great difficulty in performing our tasks is that certain dajjal [antichrist] natured, self-centered individuals have painted a very bad picture of Islam and its doctrines before the people of Europe. They want to achieve two goals from it. Firstly, portraying an ugly image of Islam would inhibit the populace to pay heed towards Islam. They are aware of the fact that it is only Islam which is present to compete with them and they are fearful about it.

Secondly, they can collect significant

amounts of money in the name of spreading Christianity and by telling people about the great need of the time. For instance, they have rumoured that (God forbid) we worship Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him. Moreover, they go as far as associating us with Hindus in their worshiping the Sun. The attributes of our God have been described as extremely bad. For example, [they express that (God forbid) He is] very severe, furious, merciless and a tyrant who cannot let go without punishing, whereas the Holy Quran states: َ ُ ‫َر ْح َمتِي َو ِس َع ْت ك َّل ش ْي ٍء‬ [My (God’s) mercy encompasses all things] Further, God Almighty’s attributes of compassion and mercy are frequently mentioned throughout the Holy Quran.

It is quite surprising that despite God being perfect and faultless, they present the God of Islam in a negative light and at the same time, they forget the god of the Bible, who crucified his only son by the hands of his enemies, neglectful of his hues and cries.

Another great objection is that Islam has acted harshly in wars. God save us from what the “civilised” Europe did in the recent war! Thousands of people were killed on slight suspicion. Women and children were brutally murdered. Hundreds of individuals who were praying in the churches were killed when Paris was bombarded by the long cannon. In the same way, enemy planes would bomb the city of London time and again, mercilessly annihilating innocent children and women on a regular basis. A bomb dropped near a museum when the first airstrike happened in London and caused a lot of damage. On the contrary, Islam did everything to defend itself and only attacked when there was no other way.

Another objection is that according to the teachings of Islam, women are soulless etc. However, [we challenge the accusers] to show where those rights, which the Holy Quran has given to women in domestic affairs, monetary dealings and moral and spiritual matters, have been given in the Bible. If these rights were present, then why did the suffrage movement, a women’s rights society, have to take such harsh steps and break the office windows of ministers, many times over? After many years of effort and struggle, they were given the right to sit in the Parliament last year, but not a single lady was elected in the general election.

However, yesterday’s news had it that a lady has been elected.

In order to answer these objections, it is necessary to distribute our leaflets and pamphlets among these people in large numbers, thereby revealing the truth upon them.

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Friday 24 January 2020 | AL HAKAM

Hadith in Commentary

Islam’s view on amulets, superstition and bad omens

New Jamia campus and MTA studios in Indonesia Hafiz-ur-Rahman, Indonesia Correspondent

Hazrat Mir Muhammad Ishaqra

Ignorant opponents of Islam raise objections against the hadith in which the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said that the dwellers of paradise will be those who: َ ‫ون َولاَ ی َ َت َط�َّ ُر‬ َ ُ‫ین لاَ � َ ْس� َ ْرق‬ َ ‫� ُ ُ� الَّﺬ‬ ‫ون‬ ِ Which means that they will not use or believe in lucky charms or bad omens.

Opponents say that charms are very beneficial worldly means and should be used and question why they would be prohibited.

The reality is that amulets, or charms, are not useful and helpful means; they are mere superstition. The Shariah [Islamic law] does not prohibit using worldly means while also acknowledging that core trust and reliance should be placed in God Almighty above any other means. After trust has been placed in God, worldly means can be used but not amulets, bad omens or superstition.

It is clear from the Holy Quran that the disbelievers are those who take bad omens: ُ َ َّ َ َ َّ ‫اِنا تط� ۡرنا ﺑِﻜ ۡﻢ‬ (They [disbelievers] said, ‘Surely we augur evil fortune from you…”)

In this manner, Islam prohibits erroneous superstitions and useless worldly means. On the other hand, making use of the proper means to counteract illnesses has neither been prohibited by God Almighty, nor his Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him. In fact, the Holy Prophetsa clearly instructed the following: َ ‫ت َ َد‬ ‫او ْوا‬ (Treat illnesses.) However, this does not mean that if someone falls ill, they immediately go and consume some sand from a particular place (as a lucky charm) or they approach a tree in the morning and “give” the illness to the tree, as people practice this. If this is not delusion, then

what is?

There are numerous and diverse superstitions found amongst different peoples and areas. Calling such superstitions legitimate worldly means is an insult to the law of nature and disrespectful to the world of medicine.

Using true and proper worldly means is not only allowed but is stressed upon by Allah the Almighty and his Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him. In turn, they have prohibited from erroneous and delusional superstitions and have labelled those who use such superstitions as disbelievers and irreligious.

workshop and expressed their views and their plans to serve the Jamaat.

Academic competitions were also held in which Waqf-e-Nau boys and girls were divided into groups according to their age.

After lunch and Zuhr and Asr prayers, the final session was held in which a presentation was displayed by Mikael Zaki Ahmad Sahib, titled “My journey to the land of Prophets”. He had visited historical places in Israel and Palestine organised by the Atfal Explorers Club UK.

After this, Farukh Ahmad Arshad Sahib, the representative from the Central Waqf-eNau Department, addressed the gathering followed by question and answer session.

Moaz Ahmad Sahib, regional coordinator for Waqf-e-Nau in Scotland, presented the Ijtema report.

This successful Ijtema ended with a final speech and silent prayer by Daud Ahmad Quraishi Sahib, missionary Scotland, followed by a group photo. A total of 23 boys and 28 girls attended this Ijtema.

(Originally published in Al Fazl on 22 Febuary 1940 in the form of notes taken by Mahmood Ahmad Khalil Sahib from the lectures on hadith by Hazrat Mir Muhammad Ishaqra, a scholar of hadith and brother-in-law of the Promised Messiahas)

Regional Waqf-e-Nau Ijtema Scotland Arshad Mahmood Scotland The Scottish regional Waqf-e-Nau Ijtema was held at Baitur Rahman Mosque, Glasgow on 21 December 2019.

The Ijtema started at 10am with an opening session chaired by Farukh Ahmad Arshad Sahib, representative from the Central Waqf-e-Nau Department.

After tilawat and nazm, Regional Amir, Muhammad Ahsan Ahmad Sahib addressed Waqf-e-Nau boys and girls and highlighted the responsibilities assigned to them by the Jamaat.

A Waqf-e-Nau workshop was organised

by Rohan Cheema Sahib in which he mentioned his studies, a mulaqat with Huzooraa and his career as a Waqif-e-Nau. Many Waqifeen-e-Nau took part in this

On 12 January 2020, Amir Jamaate-Ahmadiyya Indonesia laid the foundation stone of the new buildings of Jamia Ahmadiyya Indonesia and MTA Indonesian studios. The event was well attended.

In accordance with the guidance of Hazrat Khalifatul Masih V, may Allah be his Helper, Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya Indonesia is carrying out a project to establish a new complex which will consist of MTA studios and offices, Jamia campus, offices, dormitories, an indoor and outdoor sports centre and a number of houses for teachers.

This complex will be built on an area of 0.96 hectares and will be accomplished within three years, Insha-Allah.

As tabarruk, Huzooraa affectionately sent blessed stones which were brought by

Luqman Ahmad Kishwar Sahib, In-charge International Waqf-e-Nau Department, who also attended the national Waqf-eNau Ijtema here. Those stones have been the foundations of the new buildings which will become a beacon for the true teachings of Islam, Insha-Allah.

In his letter to Amir Sahib, Hazrat Amirul Momineenaa wrote and prayed that Allah the Almighty may enable us to accomplish our projects. Huzooraa also wrote that by the grace of Allah the Almighty, Jamaate-Ahmadiyya Indonesia had been actively striving to enhance financial sacrifices and to encourage members of the Jamaat to contribute towards chanda sincerely and wholeheartedly.

May Allah the Almighty fulfil the desire of our beloved Huzooraa and establish this new complex as a means of spreading Islam Ahmadiyyat throughout Indonesia.

Friday 24 January 2020 | AL HAKAM

10 Continued from page 2

29 January 1946: Hazrat Hakim Abdul Aziz Khanra, the owner of Tibya Ajaib Ghar, Qadian passed away. This companion of the Promised Messiahas took oath of allegiance in 1905 and served the community by providing medicine.

Responding to Allegations

The Messiah of Islam

29 January 1954: Hazrat Musleh-e-Maudra departed for Lahore, where his stay remained until 4 February.

29 January 1956: A delegation comprising of students from Government College Lyallpur (now Faisalabad) enjoyed the blessed audience of Hazrat Musleh-e-Maudra.

29 January 1959: The first All Pakistan Basketball Tournament kicked off in Rabwah. Hazrat Hafiz Mirza Nasir Ahmadrh inaugurated the three-day national event. The awards ceremony on the final day was graced by Hazrat Chaudhry Zafarulla Khanra.

30 January 1935: The District Magistrate of Gurdaspur imposed section 144 in Qadian. The section empowered him to prohibit an assembly of more than four people in an area.

This callous move withheld the rights of Jamaat members to move freely in their own town.

Yet the opponents of the Jamaat were set free to roam in the town until 2 April, when the High Court dismissed this executive order of the magistrate after hearing both sides.

30 January 1950: The first ever Jamaat college outside of Pakistan was established and successfully run in Ghana. Dr Safiruddin Bashir of London was appointed as its pioneer principal.

30 January 1956: A delegation of three established scientists from Russia and America visited Rabwah for two days. Prof Brotof from Lenin Grad, Prof Skateman and Prof Emparess from the USA visited Talim-ul-Islam College and addressed the faculty members and students at the campus.

They later enjoyed the blessed company of Hazrat Musleh-eMaudra.

30 January 1956: The Society of Servants of God, an entity based in Mumbai, invited a missionary from the Jamaat to an event to discuss similarities.

30 January 1959: A school established in Free Town, Sierra Leone started operating. The school was jointly run by the Jamaat and the government.

Impressed by the success which followed the divine mission of the Promised Messiahas after his religious debate with Christian clergy at Amritsar in 1893, opponents of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmadas claim that he could not be considered “the messiah” commissioned by God Almighty because two of his followers converted to Christianity during his debate with Abdullah Atham, representative for the Christian community.

Further, due to the rise of immodesty throughout the world, opponents suggest that the founder of Islam Ahmadiyyat did not “kill the swine”, figuratively speaking.

Surrounded by all sorts of confusions and subjected to modern-day dilemmas, those who oppose the Promised Messiahas thoughtlessly raise objections against his prophethood and in doing so, they let the enemies of Islam (and religion) to question the truthfulness of earlier prophets as well.

Allah the Almighty explained a basic principle in the Holy Quran regarding prophets: َ َْْ ُ ّ ٌ َ ْ ْ َ َ َ َ ْ َ َ ‫اب‬ ِ ‫لقد کان �ِ� قص ِص ِہم ِعبرة لِ�و�ِ� ال�لب‬ “Assuredly, in their narrative is a lesson for men of understanding.” (Surah Yusuf, Ch.12: V.112) The assertion that the Promised Messiahas cannot be a true Prophet of God because some of his followers converted to Christianity could be considered reasonable and a legitimate objection if no one from among the followers of earlier prophets renounced their teachings or faith. However, if some followers of earlier prophets also renegaded and they are still considered true prophets of God in the Holy

Quran, then the rebellion of any individual from the Jamaat of the Promised Messiahas cannot make him a false prophet.

Abdullah ibn Jahash, of the early Companionsra of the Holy Prophetsa who migrated to Abyssinia, converted to Christianity. Likewise, Abdullah ibn Saad ibn Abi Sarah, who used to be a scribe of the Holy Quran for the Holy Prophetsa rebelled and ran from Medina when the following verse was revealed: ّٰ َ َ َ َ َ َ ‫الل ُہ أَ ْح َس ُن ال ْ َﺨالِق‬ ‫فتبارك‬ ‫ِين‬ There were many who accepted Islam in the life of the Holy Prophetsa and pledged allegiance, but then it left their hearts and all that remained was disbelief. However, they continued to endorse themselves as Muslims and are called munafiq [hypocrites] and they were in huge numbers and resided in Medina and outside of it. Regarding them, Allah Almighty states: َ​َ ْ ُْ َ َ ُ َ َ ‫لَق ْد قالوا کل َِمة الک� ِ� َوک� ُ�وا بَ ْع َد ِإ ْسلَا ِم ِہ ْم‬ “They did certainly use blasphemous language, and disbelieved after they had embraced Islam.” (Surah al-Taubah, Ch.9: V.74) ُ َ َ َْ ُ َْ​َ ْ َ ُ َ َْ َ ‫یمانِک ْم‬ ‫لا �عت ِذروا قد ك��تم بعد ِإ‬ “Offer no excuse. You have certainly disbelieved after your believing.”(Surah alTaubah, Ch.9: V.66) The Holy Quran further state: َ ً َ ّٰ َ ُ َ َ َ َ ‫َو َمن یَنقل ِْب َعل ٰی َعق َِب ْی ِہ فلن �� ّر الل َہ ش ْیﺌا‬ “And he who turns back on his heels shall not harm Allah at all.” (Surah Al-eImran, Ch.3: V.145) Several Arab tribes rebelled after the demise of the Holy Prophetsa but their rebellion does not invalidate his

prophethood. Some people abandon their religion out of fear of opposition or to save themselves from monetary and life sacrifice. Certain others do so owing to their inner filth, hate and haughtiness at heart. These actions of theirs do not debase the truthfulness of any prophet of God Almighty.

Below is the announcement issued by the Promised Messiahas on 5 October 1894 about those two individuals who are mentioned by the opponents to have converted to Christianity: “The ninth objection is that even if Bishop Wright saw his demise within the time frame of the prophecy made by the opposite party, many of your near ones converted to Christianity. Answer, O Sahib. Listen attentively as we speak the truth. May the curse of Allah be upon the liar that none of our close companions or faithful associates in allegiance converted to Christianity. However, indeed two immodest, inwardly evil and blind persons with no interest in religion had hypocritically entered into the fold of Bai‘at, but we expelled them from our house when we recognised that they were indecent and mean spirited persons and finding them impure, removed them from the chain of allegiance. Now tell [me], what association do they have with us and how hurtful was their rebellion for us?” (Anwar-ul-Islam, Ruhani Khazain, Vol. 9, p. 82) The outcome of the religious debate with Abdullah Atham is on the record.

This debate started on 22 May 1893 and concluded on 5 June 1893. Soon after in 1894, the statement of Lord Bishop of Gloucester and Bristol, the Right Reverend

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Friday 24 January 2020 | AL HAKAM Charles John Elliot in the International Clergy Conference, London (mentioned in the previous article of Responding to Allegations) clearly indicates that the Promised Messiahas was considered a rising force against Christianity.

Hence, it is irrational to question the prophethood of the Promised Messiahas if some immodest hypocrites embraced Christianity.

The second objection is that the Promised Messiahas did not perform the task of annihilating the swine from the face of the earth.

The prophecy of the Holy Prophetsa, which mentions that one of the tasks of the Messiah of the latter days would be to annihilate the swine, cannot be taken literally because it is against the honour of a Prophet of God to wander across the globe, slaying swine and boars.

The Holy Quran states regarding those Jews who transgressed and acted wickedly that they are like monkeys and swine. Allah Almighty says: َ َ ّٰ َ َّ َ​َۡ َ ۡ ۡ ‫َم ۡن ل َعن َُہ الل ُہ َو ﻏ ِض َب َعل ۡی ِہ َو َج َع َل ِمن ُہ ُم ال ِ� َ� َدة َو الﺨنازِیۡرَ َو َع َب َد‬ َّ َ َ ۡ َ ُّ َ َ َّ ً َ َّ ٌّ َ َ � ُ َ ۡ ُ ّ ‫الس ِب ۡی ِل‬ ‫الﻄاﻏوت � اول ِ�ک شر م�انا و اﺿل عن سوٓا ِء‬ “They are those whom Allah has cursed and on whom His wrath has fallen and of whom He has made apes and swine and who worship the Evil One. These indeed are in a worse plight, and farther astray from the right path.” (Surah al-Maidah, Ch.5: V.61).

This verse does not mean that their bodies physically transformed into monkeys and pigs, rather it signifies that they carried the qualities and traits of these animals. Therefore, in the very next verse, it is stated: َ َ َ َ ّٰ ْ ُ ْ ُ َ َ َ َّ َ ُ َ ْ ُ ُ َ َ َ ‫ٓامنا َوقد ّدخلوا ِبالک� ِ� َو ُہ ْم ق ْد خ َر ُجوا ِب ِہ � َوالل ُہ أ ْعل ُم‬ ‫و ِإذا جاءوکم قالوا‬ َ‫ب َما کَانُوا یَ ْک ُت ُمون‬ ِ “And when they come to you, they say, ‘We believe,’ while they enter with unbelief and go out therewith; and Allah best knows what they conceal.” (Surah al-Maidah, Ch.5: V.62).

This verse evidently proves that they were humans because there is not a single mention in the ahadith or the books of history which shows that monkeys or swine used to sit in the company of the Holy Prophetsa.

Highlighting the beliefs of non-Ahmadi Muslims about the second coming of the Messiah and explaining the actual meaning of killing the swine, Hazrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad, Khalifatul Masih IVrh, states: “The last gory act of Jesus [according to non-Ahmadis] upon the earth will be to annihilate the species of swine. No quarter will be granted to pigs. All boars and all sows and all their brood will be put to the sword – each one of them. Hand on sword, fire in breath, Jesus will visit every township, every village, every street, every house, every shack and every sty in search of the hiding rascals. He will visit every wilderness, will thrash all the bushes of Africa, and will hunt for them in the rainforests of South America. China will not be spared for that matter, nor will Japan.

The islands of the South Pacific will also be combed where the flesh of pig is considered a highly prized delicacy.

“Evidently no prophet of God in the entire history of mankind has ever

performed such bloody, filthy feats as are attributed to the Jesus Christ envisioned by the Muslim orthodoxy. This is what the clergy in Islam have done to the profound wisdom of the Holy Prophetsa. They have failed to penetrate across the bodies of letters to reach the soul and spirit of the prophecy they contained.

“The real task assigned to the Promised Christ in this prophecy was to purify the human society from inhuman behaviour and some evil habits which the swine symbolises. There are many animals and birds which steal the fruits of the farmer’s labour for the sake of their survival but do not destroy the crops and trees just for the fun of it. The swine stands out among all the animals in this destructive tendency.

The swine is also notorious for eating the corpses of its young ones. No other nonmarine animals are known to devour their young ones when they die. A bloodthirsty lion, or even a ferocious wolf, will rather die of hunger, woefully sitting beside the dead bodies of their brood, than to even dream of eating their flesh. Dogs do not eat the corpses of their dead puppies either. Pigs and boars, it should be remembered, are vegetarians, yet by some devilish instinct they relish eating the corpses of their young ones. Evidently therefore, the message implied in this prophecy has to be to wage a Holy War against the perverted habit of humans to be inclined to genocide and to feel free to usurp the rights of the weak.

The pig’s habit of eating its own piglets could be likened to the child abuse of the modern age. Child abuse may be directed against one’s own children or against the children of others, either way it is swinish in character. Recently it has become a subject of common talk in modern society, so needs no further elaboration. No other animal can match humans in this ugliness.

“War against evil has always been the occupation of prophets. As such, Jesus Christ in his second advent would be no oddity among them if his second advent is understood to be metaphorical. But a Jesus such as the one who is idolised by the Muslim clergy – a literal murderer of the swine – is what they need and await to welcome. The moment this apple of their eyes arrives and discharges his task of eliminating the pig species from the animal kingdom, he must needs be applauded. So will he be applauded and befitting homage would be paid to his last glorious days spent on the planet earth.” (Revelation, Rationality, Knowledge and Truth, pp. 705-706) Hence, the annihilation of the swine means the purification of the corrupt and wicked practices. It indicates that the Promised Messiahas would bring about moral reformation across the globe.

Following the downfall of Christianity through powerful and conclusive arguments of the Promised Messiahas, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, under the guidance their Khalifa, Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad, Khalifatul Masih V, may Allah be his Helper, is engaged in eradicating ills of the societies and restoring world peace.

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14th inter-religious conference in France

Mansoor Ahmad Mubashir France Correspondent

The 14th Inter-Religious Conference of Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya France was held on 12 January 2020 at Mubarak Mosque, Saint Prix.

The topic of this year’s event was “The importance and ways of worship, prayer and remembrance of God in a religion”.

The conference started at 3pm and guests were given a tour of the books display, where a brief introduction to the Jamaat was also presented.

Later, the guests were invited to the main hall for the proceedings.

Ashfaq Rabbani Sahib, National Amir, chaired the session while Talha Rashid Sahib was the moderator.

Ata-ul-Hayee Sebastian Sahib recited the Holy Quran with its French translation

after which an introductory presentation was given.

There were a total of eleven speakers, including eight religious leaders: Gaura Bakta, a Hindu, Lambrou Thierry, a Sri Lankan Buddhist, Eric Goslan, a Jewish leader, Sosthene Makita, an Evangelical church representative, Bekram Jeet Singh, a Sikh Guru, Venerable Thich Minh Dinh, a Vietnamese Buddhist, Pierre Machenaud, a Catholic priest and Naseer Ahmad Shahid Sahib, Missionary-in-charge of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, France.

Three guests of honour also attended, including Jean-Francois Moulinet, Vice president of FPU, Brice Julien, from the World Alliance of Religions’ Peace and Jacob Jan a Pasteur Church of the new Alliance..

There were 40 non-Ahmadi guests present, while 485 people watched this event on the live stream via YouTube.

Friday 24 January 2020 | AL HAKAM

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Trust in Allah: A lesson from a Turkish Sultan Ataul Fatir Tahir London

For you, me and Joe Bloggs down the street, “life” looks at us with unseemly endless worries, uncertainty and trials. It’s not all bad however; after all, waves of joy and happiness most definitely rejuvenate our human will to continue pushing through life’s obstacles. Yet it’s still the times of distress and uncertainty that ultimately test our mettle.

Today, statistics frequently spur out rises in anxiety and depression, while suicide rates continue to haunt modern-day society.

The human race, it seems, has spiraled into constant uncertainty and fear about “what the future holds”.

For believers, tawakkul, or trust and reliance in God, is an actual solace we are taught to practice and develop; the confidence that God can and will take care of things.

In fact, the active participle form of the Arabic word tawakkul is used in the Holy Quran 38 times. Allah continuously reminds Muslims to put “thy trust in the Mighty, the Merciful” (Surah al-Shu‘ara, Ch.26: V.218) and hallmarks believers as those who say, “In Allah do we put our trust’” (Surah Yunus, Ch.10: V.86). Even Prophet Mosesas is described in the Holy Quran as counselling the Jews by saying, “O my people, if you have believed in Allah, then in Him put your trust, if you indeed submit [to His will].”

(Surah Yunus, Ch.10 :V.85) Professor Katherine Hawley PhD, a professor of philosophy at the University of St Andrews, Scotland, noted that “when we trust, we make ourselves vulnerable, and although that can bring rich rewards in the right relationship, it can be disastrous when our trust is misplaced (psychologytoday.com, 13 May 2016). With God, trust can never be “misplaced” in terms of accepting His will. By putting trust in Him, believers do not make themselves “vulnerable”; far from it. An assurance on God’s powder is relied upon and the guarantee that He will bring about the best results.

Having said that, trust, or tawakkul, is not easy. Our ancestral “fight or flight” response always puts us on the edge, throwing us into the darkness of uncertainty and worry, no matter how well we have prepared. It’s a constant battle. A degree of uncertainty and anguish lingers in any project or feat that

we embark upon, despite the immense hard work.

The difficulty of practising trust also rises when the stakes are higher, however Muslims are taught to protrude the anxiety and “leave a section for God”, as Sultan Abdul Hamid of Turkey put it.

The story of Sultan Abdul Hamid was much admired by the Promised Messiah, peace be upon him, who would often narrate it. I originally heard this during a Friday Sermon delivered by Hazrat Khalifatul Masih V, may Allah be his Helper, who had narrated it from Hazrat Khalifatul Masih II, peace be upon him.

The incident the Promised Messiahas enjoyed was when the question of a war with Greece and Turkey arose. Sultan Abdul Hamid, the Turkish leader, desired to fight and confront the Greeks but his court advisers and ministers differed, raising objections and excuses against going into battle. They would say that though most preparations were in place for war, a crucial aspect was missing. Hazrat Musleh-e-Maudra noted that his advisors most likely warned of all the European powers who were ready to assist Greece in the case of a war breaking out.

The Promised Messiahas would say that when the advisers and ministers presented their views and enumerated the difficulties for such a war, Sultan Abdul Hamid responded by saying, “We should leave some room for God as well”. Hazrat Musleh-e-Maudra noted that the Promised Messiahas would take great pleasure from this statement by Sultan Abdul Hamid.

Therefore it is necessary for a believer to leave room in his plans for God and rely on him. Huzooraa deliberated that in reality no human, a believer or not, can reach a stage of certainty where they can say that no weakness or flaw remains and everything will pan out perfectly. Such a declaration would be an act of stupidity.

The sermon went on to describe the essential components that make trust in God legitimate. The aim, for believers, is not to sit back, relax and say God will do everything.

One must exert all God-given capabilities towards achieving the desired results and only then put the rest to God. Hazrat Musleh-e-Maudra described the two extremes prevalent in the world.

Western nations have neglected God and

AMRA Global Challenges workshop Muddassar Rashid

On 11 January 2020, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Research Association (AMRA) held the first in a series of workshops aimed at supporting Ahmadi researchers to reach the highest echelons of their respective fields, as directed

by Hazrat Khalifatul Masih Vaa: “… I have instructed Ahmadi students either directly, or through Majlis Khuddam-ulAhmadiyya, to enter the field of academia and research and to endeavour to reach the highest echelons of their fields.” (AMRA Conference, 14 December 2019) There were multiple objectives of the workshop. Firstly, it was to disseminate information concerning a forthcoming funding opportunity that was focused on addressing global challenges i.e. Sustainable Development Goals, as defined by the United Nations. This aligned with Huzoor’saa direction that: “You must reflect upon how you can develop a greater understanding of the world and develop new technologies or systems through which humanity can benefit.” (AMRA Conference, 14 December 2019) A second objective of the workshop was to provide a taster to those in attendance about Design Thinking and User Centred Design, which are processes composed of a set of tools and ways of thinking focused on ensuring any solutions developed directly to address root problems and user needs.

This was a much enjoyed component of the workshop and a more in depth session focused on further education of this toolset is planned in the imminent future. During the course of the workshop, the delegates

were able to progress from generating some problem themes through to conceptual but testable solutions!

The workshop also served as an opportunity for networking for researchers where academics from widely different disciplines were able to interact and exchange ideas.

In total, there were 14 attendees with backgrounds ranging from quantum physics through to public health. The platform that AMRA provided offered members a safe space for dialogue and conversation and this culture resulted in positive discussions where a strong sense of collaboration was felt by all.

The fourth and final objective of the workshop was to help AMRA understand how it can best serve the needs of Ahmadi researchers and pave the way for a set of workshops that ultimately will deliver Spiritual Scientists. Hazrat Khalifatul Masih Vaa, in his address to AMRA, said: “… the research of a secular person is based on a purely worldly approach and they use their intellect for the sake of material progress.

Their efforts can lead to scientific advancement, but the research of a believer has a far greater potential impact.

Their research will not only lead to scientific progress and the development of modern technologies, but will also serve to offer proof of the existence of God Almighty.” (AMRA Conference, 14 December 2019) The AMRA workshop series will continue to run sessions throughout the year, Insha-Allah.

rely solely on technology for success while Muslims are steeped in the second extreme and have adopted the wrong concept of relying on God – abandoning any effort on their part.

Hazrat Khalifatul Masih Vaa said that as a result, doubts are raised in the minds of Muslim youth even today, who think that the progress of Western nations is due to their distancing from God. And Muslims are lacking due to their diligence towards religion. However, the whole approach towards tawakkul, in the Muslim world, is currently flawed.

The Holy Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, would prepare for battle to the fullest; taking weapons, horses, shields and at times, would wear two layers of armour.

He would do this despite God’s promise of protecting him (Surah al-Maidah, Ch.5, V.68). This is the essence of trust upon God that Hazrat Musleh-e-Maudra explained.

The sermon by Huzooraa, in a nutshell, encapsulated that “trust in God” is an essential solace for Muslims, but only when they have expelled all God-given capacities.

After all is done, it is then that should Muslims “leave some room for God as well”.

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Friday 24 January 2020 | AL HAKAM

Friday Sermon Men of Excellence 27 December 2019 After reciting the Tashahud, Ta‘awuz and Surah al-Fatihah, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih Vaa stated: I was relating the accounts of Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah in the last sermon. Today, I will continue to narrate some further details about him. Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah was one of the twelve leaders appointed on the occasion of the second Bai‘at at Aqabah.

(Al-Tabaqaat-ul-Kubra li ibn Saad, Vol. 3, p. 461, Saad bin Ubadah, Dar-ul-Kutub alIlmiyyah, Beirut, 1990) Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad Sahibra writes the following about him in Sirat Khatamun-Nabiyyin: “He was from the Banu Sa‘idah dynasty of the Khazraj tribe and was the chieftain of the entire Khazraj tribe. In the blessed era of the Holy Prophetsa, he was counted among the most eminent of the Ansar. So much so that after the demise of the Holy Prophetsa, some of the Ansar held him worthy of caliphate (i.e. his name was proposed from among the Ansar) … He passed away during the caliphate of Hazrat Umarra.” (Sirat KhatamunNabiyyin, Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmadra, p. 230) Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah, Munzirra bin Amr and Abu Dujanahra accepted Islam, all of them broke the idols of their tribe Banu Sa‘idah. (Al-Tabaqaat-ul-Kubra li ibn Saad, Vol. 3, p. 461, Saad bin Ubadah, Darul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1990) At the time of his migration towards Medina, as the Holy Prophetsa was passing by the houses of Banu Sa‘idah, Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah, Hazrat Munzirra bin Amr and Hazrat Abu Dujanahra submitted to the Holy Prophetsa, “O Messengersa of Allah! Please come to us. We have honour, wealth, strength and power.” Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah also said, “O Messengersa of Allah! There is nobody in my nation who would have more date orchards or more wells than me along with wealth, power and large numbers.” Upon hearing this, the Holy Prophetsa replied, “O Abu Thabit!

Make way for the camel. It has been ordered to follow a certain path. Thus, it will go where it pleases.” (Subul al-Hudaa Wa alRashaad, Vol. 3, Ch. 6, Fi Qudumuhi Batin

al-Madinah…, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1993) It is said that there was no house in the tribe of Aus and Khazraj where four consecutive generations of their men had displayed such high levels of generosity and openheartedness, except for Dulaim, then his son Ubadah, then his son Saad, then his son Qais. There were many famous accounts about the generosity of Dulaim and his family. (Usdul Ghabah, Vol. 2, p.

441, Saad bin Ubadahra, Dar-ul-Kutub alIlmiyyah, Beirut, 2003) When the Holy Prophetsa came to Medina, Saadra used to send a big bowl daily for the Holy Prophetsa of either meat or thareed. The thareed which would consist of pieces of bread cooked in meat.

The thareed would also be made of milk or from vinegar and olives. Hazrat Saadra also used to send a bowl of fat/tallow, but most often the bowl would consist of meat.

Hazrat Saadra would also send the bowl of food to the houses of the wives of the Holy Prophetsa. (Al-Tabaqaat-ul-Kubra li ibn Saad, Vol. 3, p. 461, Saad bin Ubadah, Darul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1990) According to some narrations, there were some days where there would be no food in the household of the Holy Prophetsa. (Sahih al-Bukhari, Kitabul Hibati wa Fadliha…, Bab Fadlul Hibati, Hadith 2567)

Thus, it may well be that Hazrat Saadra would send food majority of the time rather than on a daily basis, or that he used to send the food in the early days, or that perhaps, out of his generosity and concern for the poor, the Holy Prophetsa would distribute the food amongst the lessprivileged or offer it to his guests, which is why no food would remain in his home.

In any case, there is another narration in which Hazrat Zaidra bin Thabit states: “When the Holy Prophetsa stayed at the home of Hazrat Abu Ayyub Ansarira, he had nothing to offer. So the first thing I presented from myself to the Holy Prophetsa was a bowl of thareed, consisting of wheatbread, meat and milk. I presented it to the Holy Prophetsa and said, ‘O Messengersa of Allah, my mother has sent this bowl for you’. The Holy Prophetsa replied, ‘May Allah grant His blessings upon it’. The Holy Prophetsa then called his Companionsra and they also ate from it. I had only just reached the door when Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah also came with a bowl, which was being carried upon the head of one of his servants, as it was large bowl. I stood at the door of Hazrat Aby Ayyubra and I lifted the cloth from the bowl to see what was inside. I saw a bowl of thareed which also contained bones, which the servant then presented before the Holy Prophetsa.”

Hazrat Zaidra further narrates:

“We lived in the neighbourhood of Banu Malik bin Najjar and three or four of us would take turns to bring food every evening to the Holy Prophetsa during the seven months that the Holy Prophetsa resided in the house of Hazrat Abu Ayyub Ansarira. In that period, food would arrive to the Holy Prophetsa on a daily basis without fail from Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah and from Hazrat Asadra bin Zurarah.”

This particular narration has also clarified somewhat that food was brought to the Holy Prophetsa every day for the first seven months. It was no doubt also sent after that period, but perhaps without the same regularity. Hazrat Zaidra then further states: “Seeing as the Holy Prophetsa had stayed at the house of Umm-e-Ayyub for seven months, when asked with regard to which of the food was the favourite of the Holy Prophetsa, she answered, ‘I never witnessed the Holy Prophetsa ever requesting for something specific to be prepared for him.

Similarly, I never saw the Holy Prophetsa criticise the food that was brought to him.’

Hazrat Ayyubra told me that one night, Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah sent a bowl for the Holy Prophetsa which contained tafaishal (a type of broth) which he drank to his fill. Apart from that occasion, I never once saw the Holy Prophetsa eating to his fill. Following this, we would also prepare the same dish for the Holy Prophetsa.”

If food was ever brought to the Holy Prophetsa, he would never request for anything, or ask for anything specific to be prepared or criticise the food in any way, nevertheless, he really liked this particular dish that was sent and enjoyed eating it.

Thereafter, when the Companionsra learnt that the Holy Prophetsa enjoyed this meal, they would prepare their food accordingly.

Hazrat Zaidra then states: “We would also prepare harees, a wellknown dish made from wheat and meat, which the Holy Prophetsa also enjoyed.

For the evening meal, there would always be between five to sixteen Companionsra

Friday 24 January 2020 | AL HAKAM

14 with the Holy Prophetsa, depending on the amount of food prepared.” (Subul alHudaa Wa al-Rashaad, Vol. 3, p. 275, Fi Qudumuhi Batin al-Madinah…, Dar-ulKutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1993) (Subul al-Hudaa Wa al-Rashaad, Vol. 3, p. 279, Fi Qudumuhi Batin al-Madinah…, Dar-ulKutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1993) (Lughaatul-Hadith, Vol. 1, p. 82, Awqiyah, Vol. 4, p.

572, Ali Asif Printers, Lahore, 2005) Whilst mentioning the time the Holy Prophetsa resided at the home of Hazrat Abu Ayyub Ansarira, Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad Sahibra writes: “The Holy Prophetsa stayed in this home for seven months, or according to Ibni Ishaq, he remained here until the month of Safar 2 AH. In other words, the Holy Prophetsa remained here until the construction of Masjid-e-Nabawi, and the adjacent living-quarters of the Holy Prophetsa. Abu Ayyubra would present food to the Holy Prophetsa, and then, whatever would remain of it, he would eat himself.

Due to his love and sincerity, he would eat from where the Holy Prophetsa had taken his food. Other Companionsra would also present food to the Holy Prophetsa. As such, among these people the name of Saadra bin Ubadah, chieftain of the Khazraj tribe, has been mentioned particularly in history.”

(Sirat Khatamun-Nabiyyin, Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmadra, p. 268) Hazrat Anasra relates that Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah said to the Holy Prophetsa, “O Messengersa of Allah, come and visit our home”. So the Holy Prophetsa went with Hazrat Saadra to his house. Hazrat Saadra brought dates and sesame seeds for the Holy Prophetsa, then a bowl of milk, which the Holy Prophetsa drank.” (Subul alHudaa Wa al-Rashaad, Vol. 7, p. 200, Ch. 4, Fi Aklihi At‘imah Mukhtalifah, Dar-ulKutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1993) Qais bin Saadra, the son of Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah, relates, “When the Holy Prophetsa came to meet us at our home, he greeted them, saying ‘Assalamu Alaikum Wa Rahmatullah’ (peace and blessings of Allah be upon you)”, i.e. the Holy Prophetsa conveyed his peace to them. Qaisra then further narrates, “My father, Saadra replied in a low voice. So I asked him, ‘Will you not call the Holy Prophetsa inside?’ Hazrat Saadra answered his son, saying ‘Allow the Holy Prophetsa to send down further blessings upon us.’ The Holy Prophetsa then greeted them once more before departing.”

That is to say when the Holy Prophetsa conveyed his peace, he answered in a low tone so that the Holy Prophetsa would once again convey his greetings, and in turn, their home would be blessed again. In any case, he narrates, “The Holy Prophetsa departed after saying Salaam once more, so Saadra followed behind and said, ‘O Messengersa of Allah, I heard your greetings and answered in a low voice so that you may send down further blessings upon us.’

Hence, the Holy Prophetsa returned with Hazrat Saadra. Hazrat Saadra then asked the Holy Prophetsa if he would like some water to wash, and so he did. Hazrat Saadra then presented the Holy Prophetsa with a cloth dyed with saffron or wars, a yellow plant which grows in Yemen, which is used to dye clothes. The Holy Prophetsa wrapped it around himself, then raised his hands and

prayed, ‘O Allah, send down your blessings and mercy upon the progeny of Saadra bin Ubadah.’” (Usdul Ghabah, Vol. 2, pp. 441442, Saad bin Ubadahra, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 2003) (Umdatul Qari Sharh Sahih al-Bukhari, Vol. 2, p. 222, Daul Fikr, Beirut) In relation to this account, the narration of Hazrat Anasra states that once the Holy Prophetsa wished to enter the house of Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah and said, “Assalamu Alaikum Wa Rahmatullah”.

Hazrat Saadra replied, “Wa Alaikumus Salam Wa Rahmatullah” in a low voice, which the Holy Prophetsa did not hear. The Holy Prophetsa then conveyed his Salaam three times and each time Hazrat Saadra answered in the same manner, whereby the Holy Prophetsa could not hear him.

Therefore, the Holy Prophetsa returned.

Hazrat Saadra then went after the Holy Prophetsa and said, “O Messengersa of Allah, may my parents be sacrificed for you, every time you said Salaam, I heard it with my own ears and answered in a way whereby you could not hear my voice. My only desire was to receive as much of your prayers and blessings as possible.” He then brought the Holy Prophetsa to his home and presented raisins before him. The Holy Prophetsa ate them and said, “May the pious people continue to eat from your home, may the angels send down their merciful prayers and may those observing the fast open their fasts in your home.” i.e. the Holy Prophetsa prayed for him. (Musnad Ahmad bin Hanbal, Vol. 4, pp. 356-357, Musnad Anas bin Malik, Hadith 12433, Alamul Kutub, Beirut, 1998) Allama ibn Sireen states, “When night would descend, the Companionsra would take one or two people from the Ashaabe-Suffa to their homes and give them food.

Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah would take 80 companions home and feed them.” (AlIsabah Fi Tamyeez Al-Sahabah, Vol. 3, p.

56, Saad bin Ubadah, Dar-ul-Kutub alIlmiyyah, Beirut, 1995) In other words, this would be the case on many occasions, however, there are narrations in which it is recorded that there were days in which the Ashab-eSuffa Companionsra would remain without food. Nonetheless, the Companionsra would look after these poorer companions, who would sit near the home of the Holy Prophetsa. Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah would especially take care of these Companionsra.

A year after migrating to Medina, in the month of Safar, the Holy Prophetsa set out for Abwah, which is located 23 miles from Juhfa, in the direction of Mecca from Medina. This was also the place where the grave of Hazrat Amina, the mother of the Holy Prophetsa, was situated. The colour of the Holy Prophet’ssa flag was white. On this occasion, the Holy Prophetsa appointed Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah as his amir [representative] in Medina. (Al-Tabaqaatul-Kubra li ibn Saad, Vol. 2, p. 5, Ghazwatul Abwaa, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1990) (Atlas Sirat Nabwisa, p. 84, Darul Islam, 1424A.H.) Another name for Ghazwah Abwah is Ghazwah Waddan.

Whilst mentioning Ghazwah Waddan, Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad Sahibra writes in Sirat Khatamun-Nabiyyin:

“At times, it was a custom of the Holy Prophetsa to set out with the Companionsra himself and on some occasions, he would dispatch a company in the leadership of a Companion. Historians have given separate names to each one of these two types of campaigns. As such, a campaign in which the Holy Prophetsa personally took part has been termed a ghazwah by historians. A campaign in which the Holy Prophetsa did not personally take part is referred to as a sariyyah or ba‘ath. However, it should be remembered that in a ghazwah or sariyyah, it is not necessary to set out specifically for the purpose of Jihad by the sword. Rather, every such journey in which the Holy Prophetsa personally participated, whilst in a state of war is known as a ghazwah, even if it was not specifically for the purpose of fighting. In the same manner, every such journey which was undertaken by a community as per the command of the Holy Prophetsa is known as a sariyyah or ba‘ath in the terminology of historians, even if its fundamental purpose was not of battle. However, out of ignorance, some people consider every ghazwah and sariyyah to be a battle campaign, which is incorrect. (It has already been mentioned in the previous sermons) that divine permission of Jihad by the sword was granted in the month of Safar, during the second year of migration. Since immediate action was required to protect the Muslims from the dangerous intentions and threatening schemes of the Quraish, the Holy Prophetsa set out from Medina with a community of the Muhajireen, in the name of Allah the Exalted. Prior to departure, the Holy Prophetsa appointed Saadra bin Ubadah, Chief of the Khazraj, as the Amir of Medina in his absence, and set out towards the south-west of Medina on the road to Mecca until he finally reached Waddan (the details of this account have previously been mentioned as well).

The people of the Banu Damrah resided here. This tribe was a branch of the Banu Kinanah and in this manner these people were the paternal cousins of the Quraish.

Upon reaching here, the Holy Prophetsa engaged in discussions with the chieftain of the Banu Damrah, and settled a treaty by mutual agreement. The conditions of this treaty were that the Banu Damrah would maintain friendly relations with the Muslims and would not aid an enemy against the Muslims. Furthermore, when the Holy Prophetsa called upon them (i.e. the Banu Damrah) in support of the Muslims, they would come immediately.

On the other hand, on behalf of the Muslims, the Holy Prophetsa agreed that the Muslims would maintain friendly relations with the Banu Damrah and would aid them whenever it was required.

This treaty was formally written and signed by both parties. After an absence of fifteen days, the Holy Prophetsa returned. Another name for the Ghazwah of Waddan is also the Ghazwah of Abwah. This is because the village of Abwah is closely situated to Waddan and this was the same place where the noble mother of the Holy Prophetsa passed away. Historians write that in this Ghazwah, along with the Banu Damrah, the Holy Prophetsa was conscious of the Quraish as well. This means that

in actuality, this campaign of the Holy Prophetsa was to put down the threatening schemes of the Quraish. Furthermore, its objective was to dispel that poisonous and threatening influence, which the caravans of the Quraish, etc., had created against the Muslims amongst the tribes of Arabia (the Quraish would spread false propaganda against the Muslims among other tribes) and due to which the state of the Muslims was extremely vulnerable during these days.” (Sirat Khatamun-Nabiyyin, Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmadra, pp. 327-328) With regard to Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah participating in the Battle of Badr, there are two varying opinions. Waqidi, Madayini and ibn Kalbi are of the opinion that Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah participated in the Battle of Badr, however, according to Ibn Ishaaq, Ibn Uqbah and Ibn Saad, he did not participate in the Battle of Badr.

Nonetheless, a narration of At-Tabaqat AlKubra sheds further light on this incident.

It states that Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah was not present in the Battle of Badr. He was making preparations for the battle and would visit various houses of the Ansar to ensure they were prepared for the battle. However, before the army left for Badr, Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah was bitten by a dog and as a result of this he was not able to participate in the battle.

The Holy Prophetsa stated that although Saadra did not participate in the battle, he desired fully to partake and thus granted him a share from the spoils of the battle.

Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah participated in all the battles alongside the Holy Prophetsa including the battles of Badr, Uhud and Khandaq. (Al-Isti’ab, Vol. 2, p. 594, Saad bin Ubadah, Dar-ul-Jeel, Beirut, 1992) (Al-Tabaqaat-ul-Kubra li ibn Saad, Vol. 3, p. 461, Saad bin Ubadah, Dar-ul-Kutub alIlmiyyah, Beirut, 1990) (Siyar as-Sahaba, Vol. 3, p. 377, Saad bin Ubadah, Darul Isha‘at, Karachi, 2004) A narration of Al-Mustadrak has recorded that during the Battle of Badr, the flag of the Ansar was carried by Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah. (Al-Mustadrak Ala AlSahihain, Vol. 3, p. 574, Kitab Marifatu Al-Sahaba, Bab Dhikri Manaqib Saad bin Ubadah, Hadith 5096, Dar-ul-Kutub Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 2002) When departing for the Battle of Badr, Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah gifted a sword called adhab to the Holy Prophetsa, which the Holy Prophetsa then used during this battle. (Subul al-Hudaa Wa al-Rashaad, Vol. 4, p. 24, Ghazwah Badr al-Kubraa, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1993) Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah also presented the Holy Prophetsa with a donkey as a gift. (Subul al-Hudaa Wa al-Rashaad, Vol. 7, p. 406, Fi Bighhalihi wa Hameerihi, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1993) The Holy Prophetsa had seven chain armours, one of which was named “Zaatul-Fudhool” owing to its length. Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah gave this chain armour to the Holy Prophetsa when he had departed for the Battle of Badr. This chain armour was made of iron and it was the same chain armour that the Holy Prophetsa gave to Abu Shaham, a Jew, as assurance, in exchange for barley weighing 30 saa‘ [a unit of measure equal to approximately 2.5 kilograms]. This chain armour was kept

15

Friday 24 January 2020 | AL HAKAM as assurance with him for one year. (Subul al-Hudaa Wa al-Rashaad, Vol. 7, p. 368, Fi Duru’ihi wa Mighfarihi wa Baidatihi, Darul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1993) Hazrat Ibn Abbasra narrates, “During battles, the flag of the Holy Prophetsa would be carried by Hazrat Alira and the flag of the Ansar would be carried by Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah. When the battles would intensify, the Holy Prophetsa would be near the flag of the Ansar.” (Musnad Ahmad bin Hanbal, Vol. 1, p. 917, Musnad Abdullah bin Abbas, Hadith 3486, Alamul Kutub, Beirut, 1998) In other words, the enemy would concentrate their efforts towards the flag of the Ansar because the Holy Prophetsa would position himself near their flag.

Hazrat Usama bin Zaidra narrates that on one occasion, the Holy Prophetsa was riding a donkey and underneath him was a blanket that was made in Fadak. The Holy Prophetsa placed Hazrat Usama bin Zaidra behind him and they made their way to enquire about Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah, who was ill at the time. During those days, Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah was in the compound of Banu Harith bin Khazraj.

The incident being narrated took place prior to the Battle of Badr. Hazrat Usama bin Zaidra relates that whilst travelling they went past a gathering in which Abdullah bin Ubayy bin Salool was also sat – at the time he had not become a Muslim. This is the very incident in, which Abdullah bin Ubayy bin Salool was discourteous towards the Holy Prophetsa. Nonetheless, whilst the Holy Prophetsa was riding past, the dust from his mount fell on the gathering that was seated beside the road, Abdullah bin Ubayy bin Salool covered his nose and said “Do not cast dust upon us!”

The Holy Prophetsa offered greetings of Salaam [peace] and stopped and dismounted. The Holy Prophetsa then invited them towards Allah and recited the Holy Quran. Abdullah bin Ubayy bin Salool replied, “Is there nothing better than what you say. Even if this were true, do not come to our gathering and disrupt it.

There is no need to say these things in our gathering, (I have narrated this incident before as well) rather go back to where you came from and inform those who come to you.” Upon hearing this, Hazrat Abdullahra bin Rawaha, who had accepted Islam and was a companion, stated, “Nay, O Prophetsa of Allah! You should come to our gatherings and recite this to us as we greatly enjoy this.” Consequently, the Muslims, idolaters and Jews began to quarrel with one another and were almost about to attack one another, however the Holy Prophetsa continued to calm them down. Eventually, they stopped and the Holy Prophetsa mounted his animal and set off and reached Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah.

The Holy Prophetsa asked Hazrat Saad bin Ubadahra, “O Saad! Have you heard what Abu Hubaab said to me today?” The Holy Prophetsa was referring to Abdullah bin Ubayy bin Salool. The Holy Prophetsa then related to him the entire incident.

Hazrat Saad bin Ubadahra replied, “O Messengersa of Allah! Forgive him and overlook [this act of his]. I swear by Him, Who has revealed the Holy Quran to you that God Almighty has now established the

truth which He has bestowed upon you. The people of this town had previously decided to appoint him, i.e. Abdullah bin Ubayy, as their leader and to place the crown of leadership upon his head. However, when Allah the Almighty did not allow this to happen owing to the truth which God Almighty has revealed to you, he began to burn in his fire of jealousy. This is the reason why he uttered this.” i.e. he was about to be appointed as the leader, however, with the arrival of the Holy Prophetsa, this was taken away from him. That is why he was jealous of the Holy Prophetsa and said the aforementioned. Upon hearing this, the Holy Prophetsa forgave him.

When the idolaters and the People of Book would cause affliction to the Holy Prophetsa and his Companionsra, they would in turn forgive them as per the commandment of God Almighty: َ ‫ل َ ُت ْب َلوُ َّن فِ ْی اَ ْموَال ُِک ْم َواَنْ ُف ِس ُک ْم َول َ َت ْس َم ُع َّن ِم َن الَّذیْ َن اُ ْوتُوْا ال ْ ِک َت‬ ‫اب ِم ْن‬ ِ َ ٰ َّ َ ْ ُ َّ َ َ ْ ُ ْ َ ْ َ ً ْ َ ً َ ْ ُ َ ْ َ َ ْ َّ َ َ ْ ُ ْ َ ‫قب ِلکم و ِمن ال ِذین اشرکوا اذى ک ِثیرا۔ و ِان تصبِروا وتتقوا ف ِان ذل ِک‬ ُْ ْ َ ِ‫ِم ْن عز ِم الا ُموْر‬ “You shall surely be tried in your possessions and in your persons and you shall surely hear many hurtful things from those who were given the Book before you and from those who set up equals to God. But if you show fortitude and act righteously, that indeed is a matter of strong determination.” [Surah Al-e-Imran, Ch.3: V.187] God Almighty then stated: َّ ُ ُ َُ ُ ْ َ ْ َ​َ ‫َو ّد ک ِثی َ ٌر ِّم ْن أ ْہ ِل ال ِک َت‬ ‫اب لَوْ یَرُ ّد ْونک ْم ِّم ْن بَ ْع ِد ِإیْ َمانِک ْم کف ًارا َح ٰ َس ًدا ْ ِّم ْن‬ ِ َ ْ ْ ُ َ ُ ُ َ ّ َ ْ ّ َ ّ َ َ ُ ّ ْ ْ ُ َ ْ َ ُ ْ َ َ َ ْ ْ ْ َ ‫ِعن ِد أنف ِس ِہم ِمن ٰبع َِد ما تبین ٰلہم الحق فاعفوا واصفحوا حتى یأ ِت َی‬ َ َ ُ ّ ّ َ ‫الل ُہ ِبأ ْمرِ ِہ ِا ّن الل َہ َع ٰلى ک ِ ّل ش ْی ٍء ق ِدیْ ٌر‬ “Many of the People of the Book wish out of sheer envy from their own selves that, after you have believed, they could turn you again into disbelievers. But forgive and turn away from them, till Allah brings about His decree. Surely, Allah has the power to do all that He wills.” [Surah al-Baqarah, Ch.2: V.110] The Holy Prophetsa would always prefer to forgive, just as God Almighty had commanded him to do so. Eventually, God Almighty granted them permission to confront the disbelievers in the Battle of Badr and through this battle, God Almighty brought an end to the leaders of the Quraish. Consequently, Abdullah bin Ubayy bin Salool and other idolaters said that this community [i.e. the Muslims] was now beginning to succeed. Upon witnessing the defeat of the disbelievers, they affirmed belief in the Holy Prophetsa and pledged allegiance to him, thereby became Muslims. (Sahih al-Bukhari, Kitabut Tafsir, Tafsir Aal-e-‘Imraan, Hadith 4566) In a narration by Hazrat Anasra, the Holy Prophetsa sought counsel from the Companionsra about the Battle of Badr, Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah also gave his advice. When the Holy Prophetsa was informed that Abu Sufyan was heading towards them, he sought advice from the Companionsra. The narrator states, “Hazrat Abu Bakrra gave his advice, but the Holy Prophetsa did not agree. Similarly, Hazrat Umarra wished to give his advice, but again the Holy Prophetsa did not accept it. Then, Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah stood up and said: ‘O Messengersa of Allah! You seek counsel from us. I swear by Him in Whose

hand is my life, if you command us to jump into the sea with our horses, we will do so.

If you command us to chase the enemy all the way to Barkul Ghimaad, we will do so.’” (This is a coastal city of Yemen, which is situated at a distance of five days travel from Mecca). The narrator then says, “The Holy Prophetsa gathered the people and they began the journey until they reached Badr.”

Having heard Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah’s submission, the Holy Prophetsa began the journey along with his Companionsra until they reached the plains of Badr. When they reached there, the people assigned to collect water for the Quraish were also there. Among those assigned was a boy with dark complexion from the Banu Hajjaj. The Muslims captured him and enquired about Abu Sufyan and his army. Initially they had heard that Abu Sufyan was travelling with a large army or group. Nonetheless, they enquired about Abu Sufyan from him. He said that he had no knowledge about Abu Sufyan, however, Abu Jahl, Utbah, Shaibah and Umayyah bin Khalf were certainly present in the army.

When he said this, they began to hit him and so he said, “Alright, I will tell you about him. Abu Sufyan is also among them.” However, when they let go of him and again enquired where Abu Sufyan was, he replied with the same response that he had no knowledge where Abu Sufyan was, although Abu Jahl, Utbah, Shaibah and Umaiyyah bin Khalf were among the army which had camped near Badr but Abu Sufyan was not with them. And so, when he repeated this statement of his, they again began to hit him. The Holy Prophetsa was offering his prayers at the time and when he became aware of this situation, he concluded his prayers and stated, “I swear

by Him, in Whose hands is my life, when he speaks the truth, you beat him and when he utters falsehood, you let him go.”

The narrator [of this tradition] states that the Holy Prophetsa then stated, “Whatever this young man is saying, is the truth.” The Holy Prophetsa then pointed towards the exact spot with his hands where certain individuals from the enemy were going to fall in the battlefield of Badr. The narrator states that every single one of them was killed and fell in the exact spot where the Holy Prophetsa had already pointed out from before where they were going to die. (Sahih Muslim, Kitabul Jihad wa alSiyar, Bab Ghazwah Badr, Hadith 1779) (Farhang Sirat, p. 57, Zawwar Academy Publications, Karachi, 2003) Prior to the Battle of Uhud, on a Friday evening, Hazrat Saadra bin Muaz, Hazrat Usaidra bin Huzair and Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah stood guard outside the door of the Holy Prophetsa in Masjid Nabwi until Fajr. When the Holy Prophetsa was about to leave from Medina, he mounted his horse, placed his bow on his shoulder and grabbed hold of his spear. Hazrat Saadra bin Muaz and Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah began to ride ahead of the Holy Prophetsa. Both of these companions were wearing their armour, while the rest of the people were on the right and left of the Holy Prophetsa.

(Al-Tabaqaat-ul-Kubra li ibn Saad, Vol. 2, pp. 28-30, Ghazwah Rasulillahsa Uhud,

Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1990) Whilst describing the conditions at the time of the Battle of Uhud, Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad Sahibra writes: “After observing the Asr Salat, the Holy Prophetsa set out from Medina with a large community of the Companionsra. The chieftains of the Aus and Khazraj tribe, Saadra bin Muaz and Saadra bin Ubadah proceeded along, running slowly, just ahead of the mount of the Holy Prophetsa, and the rest of the Companionsra moved forward-positioned to the right, left and behind the Holy Prophetsa.” (Sirat Khatamun-Nabiyyin, Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmadra, p. 486) Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah was among those Companionsra who stood resolutely with the Holy Prophetsa during the Battle of Uhud. (Subul al-Hudaa Wa al-Rashaad, Vol. 4, p. 197, Dhikri Thubaat Rasulillahsa, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1993) When the Holy Prophetsa returned to Medina from the Battle of Uhud and dismounted his horse, he was supported

by Hazrat Saadra bin Muaz and Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah to his house. (Subul al-Hudaa Wa al-Rashaad, Vol. 4, p. 229, Bab Ghazwah Uhud, Dhikri Raheel Rasulillahsa ilaa al-Madinah, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1993) The Holy Prophetsa had sustained injuries, therefore when he dismounted his horse, he took the support of these two companions.

Hazrat Jabirra bin Abdullah relates that during the Ghazwah of Hamra-ul-Asad, their main provisions for food were dates.

The Ghazwah of Hamra-ul-Asad took place in Shawwal, 3 AH. When the Holy Prophetsa returned from the Battle of Uhud, the Quraish stopped at Rauha, which is situated approximately 36 miles from Medina. Whilst here, the Quraish thought that since the Muslims had suffered greatly, therefore they should return and launch a sudden attack on Medina. Owing to the loss suffered by the Muslims, they would not be able to fight back. Subsequently, when the Holy Prophetsa learnt about their intentions, he decided to set out and pursue the Quraish and reached Hamra-ul-Asad.

Hamra-ul-Asad is approximately eight miles from Medina towards the direction of Dhul-Hulaifah. When the army of Quraish learnt that the Holy Prophetsa was approaching, they quickly ran towards Mecca. When they found out that instead of showing weakness, the Muslims were in fact coming to attack them, they ran away. The narrator of this tradition states that Hazat Saadra bin Ubadah brought 30 camels and dates to Hamra-ul-Asad, which was more than sufficient for their needs. Among the camels he brought, two or sometimes three camels would be slaughtered daily which they would all eat from. (Subul al-Hudaa Wa al-Rashaad, Vol. 4, p. 310, Bab 14, Fi Ghazwah Hamra al-Asad, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1993) (Farhang Sirat, p. 106, Zawwar Academy Publications, Karachi, 2003) (Sirat Khatamun-Nabiyyin, Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmadra, p. 354) (Sharh Zurqani Alaa al-Mawahib al-Deeniyyah, Vol. 2, p. 464, Ghazwah Hamra al-Asad, Darul Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1996) The Ghazwah of Banu Nazir took place

Friday 24 January 2020 | AL HAKAM

16 in Rabi-ul-Awal, 4 AH in which the Holy Prophetsa besieged the fortresses of the Banu Nazir for 15 days. The Holy Prophetsa expelled them [from Medina] and sent to Khayber. When the Holy Prophetsa received the spoils on this occasion, he called for Hazrat Thabitra bin Qais and told him to bring his people. Hazrat Thabitra bin Qais submitted, “O Prophetsa of Allah!

Do you mean the people of Khazraj?”

The Holy Prophetsa replied, “No, bring all the people of Ansar.” Hence, he went and called the people of Aus and Khazraj. The Holy Prophetsa praised Allah the Almighty which He is most worthy of and then recounted the favours of the Ansar which they conferred upon the Muhajireen whereby they allowed them to stay in their houses and gave the Muhajireen precedence over themselves.

Thereafter, the Holy Prophetsa stated that if they wished, he would evenly distribute the spoils from the Banu Nazir, which the Muslims acquired without engaging in any actual battle against them, between the Ansar and Muhajireen. The Holy Prophetsa further stated that if he distributed this wealth equally between the Ansar and Muhajireen then in such a case, the Muhajireen would continue to live in their houses and partake of their wealth and will be afforded their rights which had been established owing to the bond of brotherhood that was formed between them. However, if they wished, he could distribute all the wealth among the Muhajireen as a result of which they would leave their houses. In other words, they would receive the entire share of the wealth but would then leave the houses of the Ansar and will no longer have any of the rights they previously had as a result of the bond of brotherhood that was established between them.

Upon this Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah

and Hazrat Saadra bin Muaz submitted to the Holy Prophetsa that the Holy Prophetsa could distribute the entire wealth among the Muhajireen and not give anything to the Ansar, but even then they could still continue to live in their houses as they were living before and the rights which were established for them as a result of the bond of brotherhood that was formed between them would also remain, i.e. they could continue to live freely in their houses. All of the Ansar unanimously agreed to this.

Upon this the Holy Prophetsa stated, “O Allah! Grant Your mercy to the Ansar and their sons.”

Hence, the spoils granted to the Holy Prophetsa on this occasion were distributed among the Muhajireen. Apart from two companions from among the Ansar, nothing was given to the Ansar. The two companions were Hazrat Sahlra bin Hunaif and Hazrat Abu Dujanara who were in need of it. Hazrat Saadra bin Mauz however was granted the sword of Abu Huqaiq. (Subul al-Hudaa Wa al-Rashaad, Vol. 4, p. 325, Dhikri Khuruj Bani Nadheer min Ardihim, Dar-ul-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1993) (Atlas Sirat Nabwisa, pp. 264-265, Darul Islam, 1424A.H.) (Umdatul Qari, Vol. 12, p. 204, Kitabul Wakalah, Dar Ihyaa alTurath al-Arabi, Beirut, 2003) Hazrat Saad’sra mother, Hazrat Hamrahra bint Masud was from among the female companions. She passed away when the Holy Prophetsa had left for the Ghazwah of Domat-ul-Jandal. This Ghazwah took place in Rabi-ul-Awal, 5 AH. Hazrat Saadra accompanied the Holy Prophetsa in this Ghazwah. Saeed bin Musayyab relates that Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah’s mother passed away when the Holy Prophetsa was not in Medina. Hazrat Saadra received the news almost a month later. When he leant of the news of his mother’s demise, he requested Holy Prophetsa to lead her funeral prayer

and the Holy Prophetsa led her funeral prayer.

Hazrat Ibn Abbasra relates that Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah sought guidance from the Holy Prophetsa in regard to an oath his mother had pledged but passed away before she could fulfil it. The Holy Prophetsa stated that he should fulfil it for her.

Hazrat Saeed bin Musayyab relates that Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah presented himself before the Holy Prophetsa and submitted, “My mother has passed away but she did not leave any inheritance. If I were to offer some Sadaqah [charity/alms] on her behalf, will that grant any benefit to her?” The Holy Prophetsa replied in the affirmative. He then submitted, “Which type of Sadaqah do you prefer most?” The Holy Prophetsa replied, “to provide water”.

(Al-Tabaqaat-ul-Kubra li ibn Saad, Vol. 3, pp. 461-462, Saad bin Ubadah, Dar-ulKutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1990) It seems that at the time, there was an extreme shortage of water and there was a great need for it. According to another narration, it is reported that Hazrat Saadra dug a well and stated that this well was on behalf of Umme Saad.

Allama Abu Tayyab Shams-ulHaq Azeem Abadi has written in the commentary of Abu Daud that when the Holy Prophetsa mentioned to Hazrat Saadra that the greatest form of Sadaqah is to provide water it was because there was a great shortage of water at the time. Also, it could be because out of all things, the need for water is generally required more. He further writes that the reason why the Holy Prophetsa considered providing water as the greatest form of Sadaqah was because water is most beneficial in religious as well as worldly needs, and particular in countries where the climate is hot. It is for this reason that Allah the Almighty has mentioned this favour of His in the

following verse: َ ً َ َ َّ َ َ ْ َ ْ َ َ ‫اء ﻃ ُہ ًور‬ ‫وأنﺰلنا ِمن السما ِء م‬ “and We send down pure water from the sky” [Surah al-Furqan, Ch.25: V.49] Due to its general need, extreme heat and shortage of supply, water was greatly valued in Medina. (Aun al-Ma’bud Sharh Sunan Abi Daud, Vol. 3, pp. 65-66, Kitab al-Zakaat, Fi Fadli Siqal Maa, Dar-ulKutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 2002) In fact, even today water is greatly valued and governments are always urging to take care of it. However, Hazrat Saadra did not just simply dig a well but in fact Hazrat Ibn Abbasra states that Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah was from among the Banu Saidah and when his mother passed away, he was not present at the time. He went to the Holy Prophetsa and said, “O Messengersa of Allah! My mother has passed away and at the time I was not with her…” (He learnt of her demise upon his return – earlier perhaps I said that he learnt of this news whilst he was still travelling, but in any case, he was not present at the time of her demise). He came to the Holy Prophetsa and said, “I was not present at the time of her demise. If I offer some Sadaqah on her behalf will this grant her any benefit?”

The Holy Prophetsa replied, “Yes.” Hazrat Saadra then stated, “O Messengersa of Allah!

I call you to witness that I will donate my orchard, Mikhraf, on her behalf.” (Sahih alBukhari, Kitabul Wisaya, Bab al-Ashaad Fi al-Waqf wa al-Sadaqah, Hadith 2762) Hazrat Saadra bin Ubadah spent very generously and openheartedly in charity and for the needy. I will continue to relate his account in the future sermon, Godwilling.

(Original Urdu published in Al Fazl International, 17 January 2020, pp. 5-9.

Translated by The Review of Religions.)

Haqiqatul-Wahi (The Philosophy of Divine Revelation) In this book, the Promised Messiah, on whom be peace, discusses the philosophy of divine revelation, the three categories of people who claim to receive revelation and the distinction of the truthful from the false. He then establishes his truthfulness by documenting over 200 Signs, including the fulfillment of prophecies made by the Holy Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, other men of God, earlier scriptures and his own revelations spanning over 25 years.

The author cites numerous examples of his enemies who publicly predicted his downfall

and demise, only to become the very victims of their own prophecies. God, however, protected him against every assault, while continuously reassuring him of His promise to bless his Community – a promise which continues to bear the seal and testimony of history.

The author also appeals to the followers of different faiths to read this book cover to cover to appreciate and accept this evidence as proof that God is One and the Holy Prophet Muhammadsa is the Messenger of God, and that he is the Promised Messiah raised to unite humanity under the banner of Islam.

Editor: Qaasid Muin Ahmad | Design & Layout: Jalees Ahmad | Sub-Editorial: Ataul Fatir Tahir | News: Ata-ul-Haye Nasir | © Al Hakam 2020