Nuruddin's Advice

In the life of the Mirza as well as in the history of Qadianism, the year, 1891 is very crucial. It is in the beginning of this year that Nuruddin, in one of his letters, advised the Mirza to proclaim himself to be the Promised Messiah. (Although in his letter Nuruddin used the expression Replica of the Messiah, the study of Fath-i-Islam and Izalat,al-Awham shows that Replica of. the Messiah and Promised Messiah were treated as synonymous terms and were used by the Mirza interchangeably. To cite an instance:) We have not been able to see this letter of Nuruddin, but the reply sent by the Mirza refers to this advice of Nuruddin. This letter of the Mirza is included in the collection of his letters and is dated January 24, 1891. This letter reveals the intellectual sources, the behind-the-scene director of the play, the actual author of Qadianism. The following is an excerpt from this historic letter:

"It has been said by you, Sir, that there is no harm in proclaiming myself to be the Promised Messiah even independent of the one referred to in the Damascene Hadith. This humble one has no need of becoming a replica of the Messiah. I merely- want Allah to include me among His humble and obedient servants. But we cannot escape from being put to test. The Exalted Allah has made trial the only way to advancement, as He says: "Do men think they will be left alone on saying 'We believe, that they will not be tested ? (Maktubat-i-Ahmadiyah Vol. V, No. 2, p. 85.) (xxix, 2)

"This descent does not mean the real descent of the Messiah, the son 6f Mary; it is only a figurative expression which, informs the coming of the one like the Messiah which, according to Divine pronouncements and inspirations, is this humble one."

What were the real motives of this advice ? Was it merely Nuruddin's farsightedness and ambitious nature, or had it been made on some kind of encouragement from the powers-that- were? It is difficult now to say what actually lay behind the advice. As for the latter possibility, it appears nor far-fetched at all if we bear in mind the historical background of the rise of this new movement. The -situation was that the British had witnessed the religious movement of Sayyid Ahmad Shahid and had been put to considerable difficulty owing to that. In more or less the same period of time, there had risen another movement in the Sudan, led by the Sudanese Mahdi, and this too had given the British a very hard time. It is not unlikely that the British should have hit upon the desirability of the rise of a reliable religious leader of their choice. If such a leader was able to win the confidence of the Muslims through his -services to the cause of Islam, and capture, the religious imagination of people by his religious zeal, he could serve as a good means to secure the British against the threat of anti-British religious movements. And since the Muslims already believed in the advent of the Messiah, their acceptance of such a person as the Messiah could not have been ruled ' out as impossible. Such a Messiah, if lie preached loyalty to the powers-that-were in the name of God and Islam ' could be of great service to the cause of the British. Nothing, however, can be said with complete certainty. Nevertheless the above cited letter of the Mirza remains a significant document, and might have the clue to the origin of Qadianism.

What is worth remembering at this point is that so far as the prophets of God are concerned, their mission does not depend on outside suggestions. They receive revelation from the heaven and are categorically informed of their position and mission. Their hearts are full of conviction and from the very first day they announce and keep on stressing what they believe to be the truth. Neither their own faith, nor their summons, depends upon someone else's drawing their attention towards it. From the very first day they keep on saying:

This am I commanded and I am the first of those who bow to His Will. (vi : 163)

 Belief about Jesus

 The return of Jesus is an established article of creed in Islam. (The ascension of Jesus to the heavens and his return to the 'World in the future is one of those beliefs of Muslims which have their basis in Qur'an and is also proved by Prophetic Traditions, and in which Muslims have believed consistently. Ibn Kathir says that the Prophetic Traditions regarding the return of Jesus are numerous enough to be regarded as one supported by an unbroken chain of transmission. Ibn Hajar also quotes Abul Husain Abari in Fatah-al-Bari regarding the lawatur of Traditions on this question. Shawkani has written a treatise just on this subject entitled Tasdiq fi ma ja fi al-muntazir wa at-Dajjal wa al-Masih. None of the important religious personalities has been recorded as denying this belief, not even the Mutazilah. Ibn Hazm,in his renowned work Al-Fisal fi al-Milal wa al-Nihal writes that this belief is established by the unbroken continuity of transmission. 'I his question has been discussed in detail in. Anwar Shah Karhmiri's Aqidat al-Islam. As for the rational aspect of the question, if one accepts the omnipotence of God and affirms the perfection of His Attributes one can have no reason to doubt the possibility of statements found in those traditions whose authenticity and continuity are established. In an age of such tremendous scientific progress as ours when a number of things which were considered hitherto impossible are taking place before our own eyes, when man-made satellites revolve round the world after every few hours, when man has begun to pace the outer space, the idea that a man should ascend to the heavens and stay there alive for a certain period of time can hardly be regarded as inconceivable l'o put forward objections which are based on Greek concepts of astronomy or on other worn-out notions appears palpably childish in this age of scientific advancement. Muslims have known this and have believed in it.

 Traditions from the Prophet mention it and, moreover, owing to the adversity of circumstances the Muslims had developed a mood to expect that some great, divinely inspired personality would appear suddenly and set things right for them. As the, thirteenth century of hijrah drew close to its termination, this state of expectancy became even more intense. Nuruddin, therefore, had reasons to presume that in view of the popularity won by the Mirza by his religious services his claim to be the Messiah was likely to be accepted by Muslims..

 The Mirza accepts the suggestion

The manner in which the Mirza declined to accept the suggestion made by Nuruddin, and the spirit of humility' and piety which he evinced in his letter on that subject are very valuable and add to his prestige. But for anyone who studies his works in a chronological order it is hard to retain this feeling of respect for long. For we find him quite soon accepting the suggestion of Nuruddin-which he had turned down earlier-of proclaiming himself to be 'the Replica of the Messiah.'

If we survey the works of the Mirza, the can be very easily divided into two phases. The first phase consists of those works in which he seeks merely to prove, the validity of Is am and repudiate other religions. In these works there is no claim of being the Messiah'. This is followed by the phase when he, did make that claim, and went on making several other claims about himself, each more boastful and grandiose than the 'previous one. The first book that he wrote during this phase is Fath-i-Islam, published in 1891, the year which marks a major turning-point in the career of the Mirza. In this work we find him claiming to be the Replica of the Messiah and the Promised Messiah. (Mirza Bashir Ahmad writes in Sirat al-Mahdi: "The Promised Messiah had written Fath-i-Islam towards the end of 1890. This is the first treatise in which he mentioned himself to be the Replica of Messiah and that the Messiah of Nazareth had died. In other words, this was the first proclamation of the claim of being the Promised Messiah." (Vol. 1, pp. 267-268). This shows that the author too regards 'Replica of Messiah' and 'Promised Messiah' to be synonymous terms.)

(7. See Barahin-i-Ahmadiyah, Surmah-i-Chashm-I-arya and Shahna-i-,Haq. )

"If you are honest, then be thankful and make prostrations of gratitude for this' is the time for which your noble fore-fathers kept waiting until they passed away, the time which was awaited by innumerable souls who have journeyed (to the next world) ; for, verily, you have found that time. Now it is for you to value it or not, to benefit from it or not. I shall say this again and shall not cease announcing that I am he who has been sent at the proper time in order to reform people so as to revive religion afresh in their hearts. I have been sent in the same way as the one who was sent after Kalim Allah ......... and whose soul, after great many pains during the rule of Herodius, was raised to the heavens. So, when the second Kalim Allah, who, indeed, was the first; and the leader of the Prophets, came for the suppression of other Pharaohs, the one concerning Whom it has been said -. We -have sent to you (O men) an Apostle, to be a witness concerning you even as we sent an apostle to Pharaoh; (LXXXXX : 15) then he too, who - is similar to the first Kalim in respect of his work, and yet nobler in rank than he was -promised a Replica of the Messiah. And this Replica of the Messiah, -having been given the power, nature and characteristics of the Messiah, the son of Mary descended from' the heaven in an age, similar to his age, and around almost the same time that elapsed' between the first Kalim and Messiah, son of Mary, i. e, in the fourteenth century. And this descent was spiritual in the same way as after having risen; perfect people come down in order to reform people. And he too came down in a, period. similar in every respect to the period of the descent of the Messiah, the son of Mary, order that it remain a sign for those Might those who understand.' (Fath-i-Mdm, pp. 6 and 7.)

Even though, this piece of the Mirza's writing is terribly puzzling and complicated (and perhaps deliberately so) it clearly, shows his new claim that he is the 'Replica of the Messiah' Three of his works, namely Fath-i-Isram, Tuwdih-i-Matram, and Izala-i-Awham, all deal with the same subject and frequently repeat this claim. In Fath-i-lsam at another place the Mirza writes:

So aside from the resemblance 'With other venerable ancestors bestowed on this humble being, there, is also a special resemblance with the nature of Hazrat Masih (upon him be peace) and it is because of this resemblance that' this humble one was sent after the name of the Messiah in order to shatter to pieces the crucifixional belief. Hence, I have been sent to shatter the cross 'and exterminate the pigs.. I have come down from the beavens-accornpanied by angels on my right and left. (Ibid., p. 9 n.)

In his Tawdih-i-Marzam, which is his next book after fath-i-lsam he makes this explicit statement:

With a certain degree of disagreement Muslims and Christians believe that Messiah, the son of 'Mary was raised from this elemental existence to the heavens and that in some other age be will tome down from the heavens. I have written about the error of this notion in my treatise and have also stated that this descent does not-mean the actual descent of Messiah, the son of Mary; it is rather a metaphorical, expression informing of the advent', of Replica of the Messiah and which on the basis of information and inspiration from God, applies to this humble one. (Tawdih-i-Mardm,p.2.)

Since Nuruddin had a wide knowledge of the Traditions from the Prophet he used to draw the attention of the Mirza towards the difficulties in justifying his. claims and also used to help him in solving those difficulties. The, problem as to how to relate the attributes which had been . mentioned with regard- to the Messiah required extraordinary intelligence. Here are a few examples of this intelligence-and of its having run riot.

The Traditions on which the Mirza based, his claim, of Messiahship also mention a number of details relating to the descent of the Messiah. One of these is that the Messiah, would descend in Damascus. Now, if the, Mirza was the, promised. Messiah, how could this be justified in the light of the above- mentioned tradition? It is obvious that Damascus and Qadian are far away from one another. Nevertheless, the paradox did not occur to the Mirza. It is Nuruddin who drew his attention to it. Let us refer once more to the Mirza himself on this question:

"This humble one had so far not occupied himself with trying to find out the signification of this (i. e. Damascus), when a friend and trusted lover, Maulavi Hakim Nuruddin came here to Qadian and he made a request to turn towards God to reveal the significance of Damascus and the two other ambiguous terms which occur in the Tradition concerned in Muslim. Since in those days I was sick, and my mind was incapable of strenuous exertion I was unable to attend to these matters. Only a little bit of effort I to the explanation of a word that is, the reality of Damascus was revealed to me. (Izala-i-Awham, pp. 32-33.)

Later, he explains his inspired discovery of the meaning of Damascus in these terms.

Thus, it should be clear that in the interpretation of the word 'Damascus' it was revealed to me by God that that town has been called Damascus which is inhabited by a people who have the nature of Yazid, who follow the practices and ideas of the filthy Yalzid, in whose hearts-there is no love for God and the :'Prophet, no veneration for the commandments of God, Who have become wont to follow their desires, whose enslavement to. the commands of the baser self is such that even the blood of the pure and the sacred appears to them as easy and trifling, who do not believe in the Hereafter and for whom the existence of God is. a complicated problem which eludes their understanding. And since the physician should come to the sick, it was essential that the. Messiah should. appear among such people. (Ibid. pp. 33-34n.)

Thus, 'the descent of the Massiah in Damascus' clearly indicates that there is someone who is a Replica of the Messiah, who also resembles Husain owing_ to the resemblance between these two venerable personalities (the Messiah and Husain), and who will, descend in order to warn the Yazidis for they are akin to the Jews. (Ibid p. 34.)

Later, be writes "Damascus has been used merely in a metaphorical way. (Ibid., p. 34.)

He also adds:

"Then He told me that these people had the nature of Yazid and this town (Qadian) is similar to Damascus. So, the Exalted Allah sent this humble one down to this Damascus for a great purpose (at the eastern side, next to the. white minaret of the mosque wherein whosoever entered became safe. Blessed is the One who sent me down at this place). (Ibid., p. 68.)

 Two yellow sheets

In interpreting the Traditions which mention certain details of the descent of the Messiah and in applying them to himself, the Mirza indulges in great extravagance of imagination, puts forward the most far-fetched meanings, and comes forward with the most ridiculous notions-as if he were sure of the absolute gullibility of his readers. For instance, his opponents pointed out that the Traditions on the basis of which he had argued his case and upon which he had based his claim also stated that at the time of his descent-the Messiah would be clad in two yellow sheets. Replying to that, he says:

"I am a permanently sick man. And the two yellow sheet s which have been mentioned in the Traditions as those which would be worn by the Messiah when he would come down, these two sheets are with me .-and these are, according to the science of interpretation of dreams, two ailments. Hence, one of these sheets is on my upper part so that headache and giddiness and insomnia and palpitation of the heart come to me in the form of fits. The other sheet which is on the lower part of my body is diabetes which has afflicted me for quite a long time so that often I have urinated a hundred times during the night and day, and due to this frequency of urination I am afflicted with all those ailments of debility which generally result from such a disease. (Appendices of Arbacin, Nos. 3 and 4, p. 4. )

Traditions from the Prophet also mention the eastern minaret of Damascus as the place where the Messiah would descend. Instead of interpreting it in some other fanciful manner' as was his wont, what he did in this case, was to have a minaret- constructed in the eastern part of Qadian. He made this decision in 1900, according to Sirat al-Mahdi, and invited people to donate generously. (See the announcement regarding the'Minaret of Messiah', in Khutba-i- Ilhamiyah, P. 1. )In 1903, he even laid its foundation. (Sirat al-Mahdi, Vol. 11., p. 154.) Its completion, however, could not take place during his life-time, and was Accomplished by his son Mirza Bashiruddin Mahmood.

The three above-mentioned works also crudely reveal the Mirza's bad temper. They are full of satire and ridicule directed against opponents and contain such bitter vituperation that these books can hardly be reckoned among the books befitting the dignity of any serious cause. The style and mode of expression adopted by the Mirza in these is not even becoming of sober and dignified writers, not to speak of prophets and religious reformers. The manner in which he scoffs at belief in the survival and the return of the Messiah to the earth and at those who subscribe to it reminds one of the type of wit associated with court-jesters rather than with serious intellectuals. Moreover, the kind of debating skill and quibbling which he employs had nothing to do with the prophetic mode of expression. While trying to point out the rational impossibility of the Messiah's survival in the heavens, he writes:

"Among others, one objection is that even if we were to assume that the Messiah did reach the heavens, along with his terrestrial body, then it would force us to admit that that body is bound to be affected in the heavens, by the effects of time, like all other human and animal bodies and that this passage of time will inescapably and inevitably lead some day to his death. Thus in such- a case, it will have to be accepted in respect of the Messiah that after having completed his course of life, be must have expired in the heavens (In the Mirza's days neither the, physical sciences had developed to the present extent nor was man in possession of that 'extent of empirical knowledge about the outer space and other planets so as to visualise that terrestrial concepts of time and space are not absolute, and that measurements of time and space beyond the gravitational sphere of the earth might be quite different. He, therefore, could neither appreciate the possibility that a thousand years of this world could be equal to just a moment in some other world" or, that there might be a world which is quite different from. our own' in respect of change, death, feelings, requisites for survival, etc. Man seems to have the inalienable weakness of having blind faith in the knowledge and information of his own time and tends to deny all that has not been known or experienced till that time. In the words of the Qur'an 'Nay, they charge with falsehood that whose know ledge they cannot compass, even before the elucidation thereof hath reached them.' and must have been buried in the graveyard of the inhabitants of some planet (the possibility of habitation on which is being accepted in the present times). And even if we were to assume his being alive, there can be no doubt that he would by now have become a decrepit old man and will hardly be capable of rendering any religious service. Under such circumstances, his coming down to the earth seems hardly of any consequence except an unavailing botheration. (Izala-i-Awham, pp. 25-26.)