Revelations in Corona Times

'When the sentence of doom is given against them, We shall bring a creature out of the earth, which will speak to them: people had no faith in Our revelations'. (27:83)

'...It was not God who wronged them, they wronged themselves. Those who take protectors other than God can be compared to spiders building themselves houses- the spider's is the frailest of all houses- if only they could understand'. (29:41-2)

Novel Coronavirus. The global pandemic is an occasion to reflect on the dire state of our world: how precarious our calculations are, how deeply vulnerable we are. The hidden forces of nature can suddenly emerge to shatter our lives at any moment in time. Since the new virus was first identified in China last year, it has caused considerable international concern as it is spreading fast across regions, races and religions- Italy, Iran, South Korea, Spain, the United States, etc. The death-toll from the disease- that jumped from animals to humans- has crossed 7000 as of today, just as infection rates have surged in recent days. Now there are more reported cases outside of mainland China than inside, pointing to the evolving nature of this pandemic. [Inset: As part of a long-running effort to see what viruses bats harbor, researchers in China examine one temporarily captured in a cave in Guandong. (c) ECOHEALTH ALLIANCE].

Media reports show that countries around the world are rushing to implement emergency measures in an effort to contain the virus and enforce social distancing, including nationwide lock-downs, imposing border and travel restrictions, school closures and ordering restaurants, cafes and bars to close or reduce services. 'We have never lived through anything like this. And our society, which had grown used to changes that expand our possibilities of knowledge, health and life, now finds itself in a war to defend all we have taken for granted', Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez told Parliament. "This is a once-in-a- hundred-year type event," said Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, warning the crisis could last six months as his nation gears up for changes in life, as it is changing all around the world. The global pandemic is amongst the several disasters striking humanity today. As humanity stands humbled by the emergence of a microorganism, and the outbreak of a pandemic consuming thousands, we need to pause and it should also occasion an intense and thoroughgoing soul-searching amongst us on what is wrong with our world that is turning upside down on all fronts. The microorganism is literally 'speaking'/ asking us to reclaim the values of global inter-dependence and solidarity,  collective security, and shared progress. In a world riven by arrogant conceptions of 'national interest' and 'nation first' where 'leader' after 'leader' is speaking the language of racist intolerance and xenophobia, the reach of the epidemic is shaking the existing order to its core, bringing 'tall' icons down to their crumpling fate. 

Throughout history, Divine messengers brought sublime guidance on righteous living; they called their people to an exalted, heavenly destiny of inner peace, by recognizing the higher values of life and  respecting the restraints of Divine Law. Most people, however, are often dominated by a materialistic, 'earthly'-outlook on life, and they choose their fate by turning their backs to the pure messages on offer: the materialist outlook that these people embrace trigger evil impulses in its own way to destroy human soul, public health and the social order. We can reclaim our world only by reverting our preoccupations and lifestyles back to the path of moderation and balance as ordained by the Creator and Sustainer of the worlds, and by following the Divine Elects of our times who are there to lead us in the correct and straight path. In a Special Address delivered on 11 March 2020 ~ 16 Rajab 1441 AH, Imam- Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam Hadhrat Muhyi-ud-Din Al Khalifatullah Munir A. Azim (atba) of Mauritius spoke about recent Divine revelations vouchsafed to him against the backdrop of the global pandemic: a message that contains perennial truths on the mission of the savants of Faith; good news for those who keep to the middle course in life; and for those drunk on pelf and power, severe warnings about the Days of God. 

Read the Special Address Below:

Divine Revelations on Disasters

As the Lord and Sustainer of all the worlds, God's commandments are binding on all of humanity in life's varied settings, including in man's relationship with fellow humans, animals and the wider natural environment. Trampling upon, or interfering with the sublime Order of the Universe as Will-ed or created by the Exalted Lord in a balanced, harmonious, and ultimately equitable way, can and does upset the entire universal equilibrium, and threatens the very existence of humans in this small world. In an age of extraordinary disasters and upheavals turning the world upside down thanks to human interference, it is critical for humanity to reclaim the values of humility, justness, balance and equity, peace, harmony and residual goodwill in order to set things rightly among all humans, as well as to protect our social and natural environment.

The Holy Qur'an emphatically testifies that Elects of God are raised in every era of human kind in order to call people to the correct and straight mode of living- recognizing and worshipping the Lord, and respecting the dues of His creatures amidst whom humans spent their days in this world. The messengers invite people to their God, by explaining and demonstrating the normative underpinnings of a just and ethical life at peace and harmony with fellow beings and the natural environment. These messengers invariably advice people to remain within the bounds of the Shariah, and be upright in all their undertakings, and warn humankind against the dangers and pitfalls of injustice and imbalance, including the unsustainable exploitation of natural environment.

It might astonish people who come to discover this fact: an Elect of God lives amongst us, and His Creator had foretold him about the most important incidents that took place in the last two decades- devastating floods and natural disasters such as Hurricane Katrina, Tsunami of 26 December 2004, forest fires, outbreak of pandemics, huge accidents involving airplanes, etc. In his Friday Sermon of 13 March 2020~ 18 Rajab 1441 AH, Imam- Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam Hadhrat Khalifatullah Munir. A. Azim (atba) of Mauritius succinctly summarizes some of these Signs as they have unfolded after being foretold in Divine revelations vouchsafed to him. Based on recurring Divine revelations, Hadhrat Saheb (atba) warns about severe disasters that will put humanity on a dangerous curve in its very existence on planet earth. Hadhrat Saheb (atba) further prays for forgiveness and mercy for all humanity- for it to be able to return from the brink of disasters, and for the ultimate establishment of the Divine Way in human hearts, Insha Allah, Aameen. 

Read the Friday Sermon Below: 

'Daughters, Work for Divine Approval'

Alhamdulillah, Summa Alhamdulillah, the Siraj Makin- women’s wing of the Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam- in Kerala recently organized a Deen-i-Ta’lim programme, the second of a series of study-circle meetings being planned for the year. The Sadr of the Kerala Jamaat, Rajeena Sadiq Ali Saheba, and Na’ib Sadr Fauzia Jamal Saheba led the meeting proceedings and several activities at the historic Noor’ul Islam Masjid, Mathra on Saturday, 07 March 2020. 

In a special message on the occasion, International Sadr of the Siraj Makin Hadhrat Ummul Mu'mineen Fazli A. Varsally Saheba encourages women comrades of the Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam to transform themselves into inspirational role models for all true devotees and lovers of God Almighty. Critical to bringing about this profound change at the personal level is the individual believer's ability to identify with, and to renew in their own lives and social circles, the extraordinary legacy of the early Muslim women who sacrificed their all for their faith/convictions- seeking only the pleasure of God, notes Hadhrat Saheba in this discourse.  

Read the Special Message below: 

'Siraj Makin': The Road Ahead

Alhamdulillah, Summa Alhamdulillah, the Siraj Makin- women’s wing of the Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam- in Kerala recently organized a Deen-i-Ta’lim programme, the second of a series of study-circle meetings being planned for the year. The Sadr of the Kerala Jamaat, Rajeena Sadiq Ali Saheba, and Na’ib Sadr Fauzia Jamal Saheba led the meeting proceedings and several activities at the historic Noor’ul Islam Masjid, Mathra on Saturday, 07 March 2020. 

In a special message on the occasion, Imam- Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam Hadhrat Muhyi-ud-Din Al Khalifatullah Munir A. Azim (atba) of Mauritius underscores the importance of taking personal reform and religious duties seriously. 'When you become a light of Allah, you would be able to enlighten the whole world', notes Hadhrat Saheb (atba) in the discourse. 

Read the text of the special Address below: 

The Divine Mission @ 20

All Praise Belongs to the Almighty Alone. That is the defining thought for us as  the Divine Manifestation in Mauritius in the person of our beloved Imam Hadhrat Muhyi-ud-Din Al Khalifatullah Munir Ahmad Azim (atba) marks the completion of the first two-decades of its spiritual mission this week. Even as the world marked the end of the second millennium after Jesus (as), and commenced a new century in the trajectory of time in the year 2000-01, spiritually-illumined dreams, sublime mystical visions and Divine revelations were bestowed upon this most humble man who already made it his life’s vocation to devote all his time and energy in sharing the Word of God to the people near and far.  As the Divine Manifestation enters its twenty-first year; this week also marks for the Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam International, the 12th anniversary of its distinct identity as a spiritual commune, Alhamdulillah, Soumma Alhamdulillah.

The Divine Manifestation of Mauritius is in perfect accordance with the finest traditions of Islamic spirituality. Indeed, it is a living, thriving example of the vitality of Islam as a religion and way of life. The deeply-rooted belief in the Islamic world- and the experience of the distinct Muslim communities around the world- regarding the appearance of Divinely-imbued souls among the believers finds one of its clearest manifestations in the spiritual circle of the Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam today. 

An Inspired, Divine Mission

Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Saheb (atba) is a born-soldier of Islam, having had with him from a relatively very young age of his blessed life, an abiding interest in religious matters and an intuitive understanding of effective preaching and an exceptional drive to spread further and further the true message of Islam for all of humanity. Years before the Divine call, as a devout Daai-e-Ilallah, Hadhrat Munir was the ambassador of the Promised Massih (as) to several communities and peoples of the Indian Ocean Island-states, including Reunion Island (1990), Mayotte (1997) and Seychelles (2000), helping to establish the Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya in these distant lands. During those years, through his fervent prayers and the Divine Grace over his ardent preaching efforts,  hundreds of people in these nations got the opportunity to recognize the sublime path of true Islam. Indeed, in the annals of Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya, the extraordinary services rendered by this humble servant of Islam to the mission of the Promised Massih (as) had been recorded by the then (Fourth) caliph Hadhrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad Sahib himself. Even more importantly, Allah (twa) showed His deep appreciation and profound satisfaction for the sincere and earnest efforts, when Allah (swt) took him under His wing of Mercy at the age of 40 when he became a frequent recipient of divine revelations and spiritually-infused messages from the Unseen. 

By the Grace of Allah (swt), for the last two decades now, Hadhrat Munir (atba) has been blessed with an abundance of Divine communications and spiritual messages, to a level and scale unheard of in the records of the Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya since the times of the Promised Massih (as) in the previous century.  Like the Promised Messiah Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as) of Qadian (1835-1908 CE) in the previous era, Hazrat Munir (atba)  claims Divine revelations and messages as the authority behind his spiritual titles and religious claims in this era. Allah (swt)  bestowed upon him several spiritual titles in this era- Hazrat, Amir-ul-Mu’mineen, Muhyi-ud-Din Khalifatullah; Mujaddid, Messiah, etc. He is charged with a Divinely-inspired mission of reclaiming and revitalizing the enduring message of Tawheed in this new century of the Islamic Era. 

The Attributes of Allah- III

By the grace of Allah I continue my 3^rd part of the Friday Sermon on the attributes of Allah and it is only Allah (swt) Who can give me the grace, the opportunity and the knowledge to elaborate this subject in depth. Without His help and His divine grace it will not be possible for me, weak creature that I am to speak on such an important subject. And this subject is important in the lives of all believers so that they know Allah (swt) through His attributes, and we must make it our duty to read His attributes every day [especially in these difficult times that we are living today]. Insha-Allah.

I continue the subject where someone lies to receive praise, to accomplish his greed, to receive honour, greatness, and grab property that does not belong to him. He does nothing to get it all; he does not work hard to earn it all honestly, but he acts dishonestly, and lies in order to steal the property of his neighbour or brother or the property of his sister. He is greedy; he likes that he alone wins all that and so, in order to reach to this end, he tricks his brothers or sisters, and makes them sign documents to grab their wealth and then he turns his back on them and pushes them away in order to enjoy alone these riches.

If we look at the example that the Qur’an gives us, we will find that there are people who lie and use flattery to gain praise because of greed and you see these situations also in religion. 

Hindu-Muslim Amity in India

We took a pledge from you, ‘Do not shed one another’s blood or drive one another from your homelands’. You acknowledged it at the time, and you can  testify to this. Yet here you are, killing one another and driving some of your own  people from their homes, helping one another in sin and aggression against them..’ (2: 92)

‘Lord, we fear he will do us great harm or exceed all bounds’ (20:45)

‘We have put our trust in God. Lord! Do not make us an object of persecution for the oppressors’ (10: 85)

‘Lord, we have put our trust in You; we turn to You; You are our final destination. Lord, do not expose us to mistreatment at the hands of the disbelievers. Forgive us, Lord, for You are the Almighty, the All Wise’.  (60:6) 

‘Truly those who persecute believing men and believing women, then do not repent, theirs shall be punishment of Hell, and theirs shall be the punishment of burning’. (85:11) 

An Unjust World

Today, millions of people suffer injustice, persecution and slaughter at the hands of unjust regimes around the world. In several nations- whether they are Muslim-majority or non-Muslim majority, minority communities are facing legal discrimination and political oppression. Consider the recent events impacting certain peoples, the harrowing accounts of systematic oppression are mind-numbing, and make for depressing reading: genocide of the Bosnian Muslims in Europe in the 1990’s; the ‘ethnic cleansing’ of Muslims in Central African Republic; the high-handedness of the  Myanmar/Burma regime vis-a-vis the Rohingya Muslims; the inhuman treatment being meted out to the Uighur Muslims in China;  the throttling of civic, political and economic freedoms of Muslim- majority provinces in Russia (the situation of Chechnya/ Dagestan, Crimean Tartars, etc); the volatile situation in Kashmir; the fifth-generation/ long-suffering Palestinian refugees;  the situation of millions of refugees from, and internally displaced persons in, Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, Turkey, Libya, Yemen,  etc.  

The mindset of the self-exalting Pharaohs, hell-bent on persecuting the hapless children of Israel in ancient times, seems to be alive, as if it were, and bedevil, almost every nation and generation of people. The denial of human rights and community interests and political oppression is often serviced in the name of superior race; majority religion; superior caste; pure ethnicity; national culture; secular law, popular will, etc. Not just under despotic regimes, but also under so-called democracies, minority communities and their interests are trampled upon. The national ‘self’ is imagined in such a narrow way that the minorities are treated as the ‘other’ and the law is unleashed to deny and deprive the basic rights of such persons: citizenship, civic and political rights, economic, social and cultural rights, etc. Hence, in the name of socially-codified communal prejudices in such democracies, the human dignity, basic identity, fundamental rights and other collective interests of the minority is unrecognized, and often, criminalized. 

The Darkness in Delhi

As I write this, my city, Delhi, is limping back to ‘normalcy’ after the dastardly, orchestrated, anti-Muslim violence of last week that claimed over 50 innocent lives, and critically- injured hundreds of others, ordinary people going about their everyday lives. Shops and establishments, vehicles and other properties, houses and the mosques of the Muslim community were particularly targetted by the criminal thugs on steroid. The communal fire and riots were ignited and perpetrated with a clear and malicious intent to destroy the peaceful and dignified co-existence of the Hindus and the Muslims of the city for several decades. By attacking the very livelihood of the minority community, the marauders and their political dons hope to break the harmony in society. With every communal violence, the 'distance' between communities increase, leading to 'apartheid-cities' segregating the people from one another, further and further. [Inset: 'A mosque in Delhi's Ashok Nagar was torched and a saffron flag associated with the Hindu far right was placed on the minaret' [File: Sajjad Hussain/AFP/Al Jazeera]