Islam swears by a Living
Allah. He is Merciful and Compassionate and hears and answers the prayers of
His servants. Divine Mercy encompasses the whole world. So much so that there
has never been any nation that has not received its share of divine guidance. The
Holy Qur’an testifies that all communities have witnessed the appearance of Divine
Messengers among them. It is an enduring Divine practice that Allah raises His
Messengers and servants whenever He finds the community of people in disarray
due to lack of unity and real spirituality in society.
There is little doubt
among thoughtful people that the Islamic world is witnessing such an era. The
signs are unmistakably apparent- obvious to every one except the ones who have
veils over their eyes. The fortunes of the Muslim Ummah have touched the lowest
ebb. The ravaging of Arab lands- American occupation of Iraq, Afghanistan and
the prolonged suffering of Palestine under Israeli colonial domination and the
ongoing encircling of Iran, all points to this state of decline and crises.
Allah raised Musa (as) to take on the Pharaohs of his times. Prayer was his ultimate armament. In an age
when everything is upside down, a Man of Allah appears to show the way, to teach
the people the real path of sublime spirituality. Such a Servant of Allah seeks
the protection against the worst enemies of people through reciting fervent prayers.
In March 2003, Allah, the Most High guided His Chosen Messenger of the
era Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib of Mauritius (atba) to organize a special spiritual retreat- an event that has
since come to be known as “Safar Zikrullah”. For a few days, the close
disciples of Hadhrat Sahib and some other truth seekers joined him to spend
time in Divine remembrance and to offer fervent prayers for the destruction of modern
Pharaohs like Ariel Sharon who has since then
been reduced by Allah the Almighty to a miserable state in this very life! Safar Zikrullah
is thus one of the most important spiritual events of the last decade.
Beyond the external impact
of the prayers of a Man of God manifesting in the world at large, it is remarkable
to note that this extraordinary event has had an internal dimension as well.
The disciples of Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba), each one of them who
attended the Safar Zikrullah Programme, witnessed at their own levels one Divine sign or the
other that testified to the veracity of the chosen Messenger of Allah. All
Praise belongs to the Almighty Alone!
The biographical essay on the life and message of Hadhrat Munir
Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) contains a narrative on Safar Zikrullah.
Read the relevant
extracts:
The revelation to go for a Safar Zirullah was received by Hazrat
Munir Ahmad Azim (atba) and therefore in the first week of March 2003, the
whole Jamaat Ahmadiyya Al Mouslemeen along with Amir’ul Mumineen Munir Ahmad Azim (atba) and Zafrullah Domun Sahib
(addressed as ‘Mokarram Zafrullah Sahib’) went for the Safar Zikrullah.
The purpose of the Safar Zikrullah was for Zikrullah and to pray
(our greatest armament) for the defeat of the enemies of Islam (Bush, Ariel
Sharon etc.) who were fighting against the Muslim countries and killing
thousands of Muslims in Iraq, Palestine etc. Allah even revealed duas to recite on this occasion (so that
we, the Muslims overcome the enemies of Islam).
Each moment witnessed and
lived by all disciples of the Amirul
Mumineen were of exquisite nature. They all
received signs and divine manifestations in favour of the veracity of the Man
of God of this era. They witnessed the descent of revelations in Creole,
English and even Chinese (or Mandarin) upon Hazrat Munir Ahmad Azim (atba).
On 08 March 2003, the
third night of the Safar Zikrullah, Hazrat Munir Ahmad Azim (atba) supplicated
Allah to honour his brother Zafrullah Domun Sahib along with him, and therefore
he (Hazrat Munir) without receiving any revelation from Allah, humbly dedicated
the title of Amir’ul Mumineen to
Mokarram Zafrullah Domun Sahib in a special program with the Jamaat. On the
spot, he received divine reprimand whereby Allah told him, who has given him
permission to dedicate that title which Allah has given him to Mokarram Sahib?
After much Istigfaar,
Allah then turned in Mercy to His Chosen One and told him that He has now
accepted his prayers and that now there are to be two Amirul Mumineens, Allah
not having annulled Hazrat Munir’s rightful claim to being Chief of the believers,
and that just like Hazrat Musa (as) pleaded with Allah to honour his brother
Harun (as), therefore the relationship between the two men were like Prophet
Musa (the one to get the most vital revelations from Allah) and Harun (as). At
another time, Allah even said that the two of them were like twin brothers, the
two of them confirming each other and Zafrullah Domun Sahib as being his right
hand.
Our brother Late Seid Ahmad was responsible for the audio
recording of the event. He was very close to Hazrat Munir Ahmad Azim (atba) and
used to be constantly by his side so that he may not miss any divine revelation
which may come upon the Chosen Servant of Allah at any moment. Once (during the
Safar), after Tahajjud and the Fajr prayers, while the Amirul Mumineen Munir
Ahmad Azim (atba) was making a Darus Quran, and talking, with the members all
around him, suddenly late Seid Ahmad and
other members of the Jamaat witnessed the crashing down from the sky of a
piercing light on earth near the place where they were sitting.
Likewise, many more divine signs and manifestations were witnessed
by the disciples whereby not only revelations were witnessed, but also such
signs as Kashafs (visions), true dreams, seeing the name of Allah everywhere
(in Arabic), hearing the voice of angels in the wind and in Salat, witnessing the oozing of perfume
from the person and hands of the Man of God (despite strong wind, the perfume
becoming much more intense, especially during Salat), witnessing the special meeting of Hazrat Sahib with Allah
whereby Allah gave instructions to His Chosen One to come forward for a meeting
with Him, and just like Hazrat Musa (as) removed his shoes to meet Allah,
Hazrat Munir Ahmad Azim (atba) did just like Prophet Musa (as) after receiving
such instruction.
At that time, the members were enjoying a lunch made of Brianni (special dish relished by
Mauritian Muslims). When the instruction came, everybody stopped eating and
looked forward, seeing Hazrat Munir Ahmad Azim (atba) going to meet and converse
with Allah (at a distance). After his meeting with Allah, Hazrat Sahib made a Sijda (prostration), and upon seeing him
prostrating, all his disciples also maximised this moment of blessings by
prostrating before Allah like him.
It was during this Safar Zikrullah also that he first got
the revelation of being a “Muhyi-ud-Din”
(Reviver of Faith). The revelations which he got from Allah were
read in special sessions presided by Mokarram Zafrullah Domun Sahib. As the
revelations were private and confidential (at that moment), therefore these
revelations were confided only to the Jamaat members. It was only on 06 December 2003 that
this title became official, whereby Allah gave
instructions to His Muhyi-ud-Din to
proclaim himself as such, and to take Bai’at
from all his disciples.