Divine Messengers: Trials and Rewards

Islam presents a Most Compassionate and Ever Merciful Lord Almighty. The enduring practice of the raising of Divine Messengers among human communities testifies to the all-encompassing Mercy of Allah. Yet, when a Messenger presents himself before the community, they reject him. In the times of a Messenger, most people would revel in inequities under a veil of ignorance. The pride of riches, vanity of material favours, hubris of mundane power and social influence, arrogance of family inheritance- all seem to keep them away from God and His Messenger. Unfortunately for man, ingratitude and ungratefulness seem to be deeply embedded and ingrained as part of his DNA!

In his Friday Sermon of 26 April 2013, the Khalifatullah Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius gave a profound discourse on the Divine Law of raising of Messengers. Drawing upon the sacred traditions of the Holy Prophet of Islam (sa), the Khalifatullah (atba) points out that for Allah and His Messengers, it does not really matter how many will follow them, for the Messenger’s duty is to convey the Divine revelations and Message. History bears testimony that some prophets, rejected by their own people, found acceptance after their death and departure from this world. Some others may have had few disciples only. Yet, the situation did not and will not cast any shadow on their truthfulness or the veracity of their claims.  

The denial and rejection of Divine Messengers in the past notwithstanding, Allah the Almighty will continue with His enduring practice: of raising Messenger(s) who will call to Unity of God and the eternal well-being of Man through God-consciousness. Islam offers the glad tiding of heavenly bliss for the early believers in Divine Messengers, whose faith and practice will testify to their gratitude to Allah who raised the Divine Messenger, sincerity of heart and good deeds. Alhamdulillah, these blessings are available for believers in this age as well. Likewise, divine punishments await a generation that rejects the Divine revelations and Message. The contemporary situation of horrifying disasters and havocs visiting almost all the world should be fodder for serous reflection for all. For, these events are taking place at a time when the Messenger of Allah has been and is warning us against the evils of our times.  

  

Read the Extracts from the Friday Sermon:

And there came to them a Messenger from among themselves but they falsely rejected him; so the wrath seized them even in the midst of their iniquities. (16: 114)

Why God Allow Suffering?

The human condition seems to be riddled with the mystery of unconscionable suffering. For, disasters are striking the world and the people are being caught up in the maelstrom everywhere - in the land, on the air or even at the sea! Almost on a daily basis, innumerable events are taking place- earthquakes, devastating floods, hurricanes, horrifying forest fires, building collapses, accidents of colossal magnitude, terror bombings, deliberate (racial, ethnic or genocidal) killings on a horrendous scale, fresh outbreak of long-forgotten/contained epidemics, etc. How does one look at and begin to explain the occurrence of these incidents that inflict much pain and loss on the humanity of our times? Are they mere natural disasters or do they belong to the grave category of divine punishments when occurred after clear warnings and exhortations from the Divine Messenger of the times? In his Friday Sermon of 19 April 2013 the Khalifatullah Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim (aba) of Mauritius discussed profoundly and provided illuminating insights on the subtle subject of ‘natural’ disasters in the times of a Divine Messenger.   

Read the Extracts from the Friday Sermon:

وَ لَوۡ اَنَّ  اَہۡلَ الۡقُرٰۤی اٰمَنُوۡا  وَ اتَّقَوۡا لَفَتَحۡنَا عَلَیۡہِمۡ بَرَکٰتٍ مِّنَ السَّمَآءِ وَ الۡاَرۡضِ وَ لٰکِنۡ  کَذَّبُوۡا فَاَخَذۡنٰہُمۡ بِمَا  
کَانُوۡا  یَکۡسِبُوۡنَ ۝

“And if people of the towns had believed and feared Allah, then certainly, We would have opened for them the blessings of the heaven and the earth, but they disbelieved. So We seized them for what they used to earn.” (Al-Araf 7: 97)

Divine Prophecies for Our Times

Allah raises His Messenger to guide people to their Lord and to warn them against evil. The Divine Messenger is, then, given special knowledge about matters of the Unseen and he makes his prophecies accordingly. Some of the prophecies so made, shall find their fulfilment in the very lifetime of the Messenger. Some prophecies may, however, remain unfulfilled in his lifetime. From the grand scheme of Divine Plan, the fulfilment of prophecies or their deferment to another time and space, make little difference. After all, everything depends upon Divine Will and Decree of Allah. And the Messengers have only the duty to convey the message. This is the enduring Divine practice emerging from spiritual history.

Several verses of the Holy Qur’an indicate these different possibilities in the aftermath of Divine prophecies. With full confidence in the ways of the Lord and with absolute detachment, the Holy Qur’an declares the principles: 

“…And if he be a liar, on him will be the sin of his life; but if he is truthful, then some of that which he threatens you with will surely befall you…” (40:29).

“…And if We show you in your lifetime the fulfilment of some of the things with which We have threatened them, you will know it; or if We cause you to die before that, then to Us is their return, and you will see the fulfilment in the next world; and Allah is Witness to all that they do”.  (10:47). 

“Allah effaces what He wills, and establishes what He wills, and with Him is the source of all decrees. And whether We make you see the fulfilment of some of the things with which We threaten them or whether We make you die, it makes little difference, for on you lies the delivery of the Message, and on Us the reckoning”. (13: 40-41)

When a Divine Messenger arrives and delivers his spiritual message, it is for the people to consider and ponder over its import. It is for them to take positive and proactive-action to benefit from it. It is also for them to move away from proceeding in a direction being forewarned against in the message. Yet, history and the Holy Qur’an testify that most people are/will be heedless in the times of a Messenger, chained as they are/will be, in their family beliefs and religious traditions. They are familiar with and ‘comfortable’ at the old ritual practices in which they found their fathers indulging in. Indeed, they are glued to these rituals so completely that their beliefs are like ‘chains around their necks’ ‘reaching unto the chins’. It is the baggage of inherited notions, ideas and beliefs that comes us a barrier to the appreciation of pure belief/spiritual philosophy being articulated by the Divine Messenger. In short, their truth-perception ability itself comes under a veil.   

 

Consider our own times. Most Ahmadis are under wonder-struck that a Divine Messenger has been raised among them in the person of Hadhrat Khalifatullah Munir Ahmad Azim (aba) Mauritius. They are glued to their inherited notions and traditional practices so much so that they deify their elected Khalifa. They exalt him in defiance of Allah’s decree which has caused the coming of a Messenger in our times.  Regardless their wishes, Allah in His Infinite Wisdom, has set in motion a chain of events, including the fulfilment of Divine Prophecies vouchsafed to the new Messenger of our times. Alhamdulillah, like in the times of previous Messengers, there are many instances of fulfilment of Divine Prophecies in our times, as we have noted in recent weeks in the Sahih Al Islam Blog.

TEN YEARS of the Divine Manifestation

From the long and great history of the arrival of Divine Messengers in the world, believers have numerous lessons and insights to keep in mind. Every Messenger has to go through countless trials- his own people will turn back on him and boycott him. His own people, who may have received countless signs and blessings, may desert him in the hour of need. Countless years may pass by, before the world begins to take notice of the Divine Message in full measure, just as it happened in the time of Jesus (as). It may also happen that those who desert the Messenger may later realise their mistakes. They might return to the path of rectitude eventually, as did the brethren of Yusuf (as) in another time and space.        

The need for the appearance of a Divinely-raised Messenger in this era among the Ahmadi Muslims has been fulfilled with the raising of the Khalifatullah Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius. Thus, 19 April 2013 (08 Jamad’ul Aakhir 1434 Hijri) marks an important milestone in the sacred history of modern Islam. For, it was on this day in 2003 that the Jamaat of the Divine Manifestation took their first Bai’at in the hands of the Khalifatullah (atba). The first Bai’at was held in the house of Hazrat Ummul Mumineen Sadr Sahiba Fazli Amena on the second storey, at Louvet Avenue, Quatre-Bornes.

The fact that the Divine Manifestation in Mauritius has completed 10 years in relative obscurity will only surprise those who have no knowledge or understanding about the working of the spiritual realm. The duty of the Divine Messenger is only and merely to convey the Message; Allah the Most High is the Reckoner. There are indeed many spiritual lessons and lofty insights to be derived by observing and understanding the Divine favour on the Khalifatullah and how he goes about with his deep and unwavering commitment to advance the cause of Allah and His Message in the last ten years.  

It is instructive for Ahmadis to understand that the emergence of the Divine Manifestation in Mauritius coincided with the decline in physical health, spiritual faculties and eventual death of the Fourth Khalifa of the Jamaat-e- Ahmadiyya, Hadhrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad Sahib. In his last years, the ageing Khalifa was already in a zone of his own, where he was in constant need of sound advice for prudent governance of Jamaat affairs. Yet, as it happened, he was badly advised regarding the nature and character of the Divine Manifestation then emerging in the horizon of Mauritius. Unscrupulous and scheming people, who worked behind the corridors of influence, suggested vanity of office and pride of legacy. Instead of showing humility and open heart to understand the lofty claims and spiritual verities on offer, the Khalifa chose the other road. May Allah forgive him for his blurred vision in his last days, Ameen.

Islamic Ethics on Business Transactions

One of the fundamental problems facing the world today is the lack of ethics and fair-dealing. In politics, administration, business, media, academia and public life- virtually everywhere- the tentacles of corruption manifest itself in different ways and forms. So much so that most countries in the world are neck deep in irregularities and corrupt practices. Sadly, Muslims or their countries cannot absolve themselves from blame and shame in this connection. Yet, the teachings of Islam and the noble example of the Holy Prophet of Islam (sa) points to the value of integrity and ethics and fair dealing in all that we do and Islam prescribes a normative code of conduct for economic activities. In his Friday Sermon of April 12, 2013 the Khalifatullah Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) profoundly expounded on these ethical principles in the backdrop of the high profile-corruption and fraud cases in Mauritius and elsewhere.  

Read the Extracts from the Friday Sermon:

In the Holy Quran Allah says:

“Do not usurp one another by unjust means, nor bribe with it the judges to wrongfully deprive others of their part.”  (Al-Baqara 2: 189)

“… give full measure and weight in justice and do not deprive the people of their due and do not commit abuse on the earth, spreading corruption.” (Hud 11: 86)

“Give full measure, when you measure, and weigh with even scales. That is fair and better in the end.” (Ar-Rahman 55:  10)

Fraud and Corruption in Mauritius

The predictions and warnings issued by the Khalifatullah (atba) in recent months delivered a Divine message to the world, which may be summarized as follows: The synthetic happiness of material pleasures shall have a blinding impact on people. The greed for accumulation of property and resources will lead to the pursuit of unjust enrichment. Bribery and corruption, fraud and embezzlement- all would appear mere ‘ways’ to reach where one wants to go. Ethics and fairness, prudence and caution – all the  ‘values’ shall reach the vanishing point from the mind-space of man, with consequences for his mental peace and physical happiness,  only to find oneself  among the lost at the end of the day! By the Grace of  Allah the Most High, His Chosen Messenger Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius could comprehend  the national events and understand the shady dealings waiting to unfold among his own people, especially on the great frauds and astounding corruption in society.

Recent weeks have witnessed the unfolding of a spate of corruption cases in Mauritius.  In the tangled web of fraud and deception, duplicity and embezzlement, are the ‘big’ people of society- politicians, corporate honchos and other influence-peddlers such as media-pundits. They have dirtied their hands with ‘shady’ deals and ‘black’ money, or embezzled public funds from the exchequer or defrauded the people by indulging in bribery or corruption. An account of the financial corruption scenario in Mauritius and the fulfilment of the predictions in this regard, emerge from the Friday Sermon of April 12, 2013 delivered by the Khalifatullah (atba).

A Messenger in Service of Humanity

Divine Messengers are human beings, with the simple but profound and quiet but substantial difference that they are recipients of Divine revelations as against the ordinary folks like us. They work among the people day in and day out, calling them to an ethical and spiritual life that draws its sustenance from an abiding faith in the Unicity of Allah the Almighty. They bear witness to their times and their people by inviting to prudent conduct. They deliver glad tidings to those who follow guidance. And they caution the world against the egregious violations of ethical norms. When their warnings are fulfilled and disaster strikes the land, they are pained at the suffering humanity, even as they recognize that the nature and the times are witnessing to their truthful prophecies and warnings. Such is the image of the Divine Messengers of the past emerging from their lived history as recorded by the Holy Qur'an. 

The Divine Messenger of our times Hadhrat Khalifatullah Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius has predicted and warned against great calamities waiting to unfold in Mauritius and elsewhere, in recent months. The DELUGE in Mauritius, the tragedy and loss of which shook the nation to its core last week and led to collective mourning, in its own way, testified to the majesty and might of the Lord  who descended the Message on His Messenger. In the aftermath of the Great calamity of stunning proportions- "NABAA AL AZIM", to use a Qur'anic metaphor [78: 3]- in Mauritius, Hadhrat AZIM Sahib (atba) himself led the relief and social work undertaken by the members of Jamaat Ul Sahib Al Islam. 

The DELUGE in Mauritius and the Ark of Noah

Rejection of the Divine Message entails evil consequences for a people. When the Divine advices and instructions are being trampled upon and the Messenger is being ignored, it questions the majesty and wisdom of God Who causes the Message to be revealed to the Messenger in the first place. Such mindless and reckless rejection triggers a process of events that inexorably manifests Divine anger and wrath which affects individual destiny and alters national fortunes. All of spiritual philosophy and secular history bear witness to this. For instance, the Deluge in the times of Hadhrat Noah (as) continue to remain deeply imprinted in the spiritual psyche of Jews, Christians and Muslims. And the Holy Qur’an repeatedly confirms: “We never punish until We raise a Messenger”.   

In his Friday Sermon of April 05, 2013 the Khalifatullah Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius reflected upon the recent Deluge in Mauritius, which he himself predicted in 2012 December. Drawing upon Qur’anic principles, Hadhrat Sahib throws searching spiritual light on the concept and special features of Divine punishment as against incidents of natural disasters that take place in the world. Hadhrat Sahib points out that in the case of Divine punishment; it is foretold before its actual occurrence by a Messenger of Allah. We hope and pray that this incident of extraordinary nature that has destroyed property, resources and precious human lives in Mauritius will lead to much soul-searching by men of intelligence and purity of heart, everywhere.  

                                                                                                                         

Read the Extracts from the Friday Sermon:

Mauritius has since last week (Saturday 30 March 2013) lived till date its worst days in the form of a unique kind of deluge which came and upturned the lives of many inhabitants, especially in Port-Louis, the Capital of Mauritius. Non-stop rainfall which the climate experts define as “deluge” as the rain water kept rising second by second, not diminishing in any case.

Experiences of Divine Revelation: Then & Now

“And it is not for a man that Allah should speak to him except

by revelation or from behind a veil or by sending a Messenger

to reveal by His command what He pleases. Surely, He is High, Wise.”

                                                                             -  [Holy Qur’an, 42:52]

Allah the Almighty raises His Elects in every era. The sublime purpose is to guide and lead the people in the Straight Path of Divine Favour.  To teach them wisdom and judgement, Allah (swt), thus, reveals His Messages to His chosen servants and the miraculous power of the Lord Almighty is experienced by the people in countless ways.  The great blessing of Divine revelations and guidance with which the Messengers are invariably blessed with, point to their Divine nearness, help and succour. The shadow of Divine Mercy and Grace protects the Messengers from harm in the complex contingencies of their everyday lives. Truth seekers know that the Promised Massih Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as) of Qadian had left a graphic portrait of aspects of Divine revelations as he experienced it. Indeed it would be spiritually uplifting and intellectually enlightening for common folks like us to look for similarities in the experiences of Divine revelation by claimants to this august office. Today, we have thus an extraordinary opportunity: to see and bear witness to the magnificent, living reality of Divine revelations! For, we are living in the times of a Messenger of Allah in the person of Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius who is a recipient of this uncommon and precious privilege of Divine Mercy. Alhamdulillah Rabbul Aalameen! 

It is astonishing to note that there are remarkable similarities between the Promised Massih Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as) of Qadian and his spiritual progeny, the Khalifatullah Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius, although their times are separated by a century or so. In this article, we discuss one such similarity.

Mukarram Zafrullah Domun Sahib, who at one point of time in his life led the Jamaat-e- Ahmadiyya Mauritius as its National Amir for almost a decade, had written a personal, comprehensive and scholarly testimonial to the truthfulness and veracity of Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) and his claims. This document is an authentic, living testimonial/record of an intimate witness to the phenomena of Divine revelations descending upon a man who claims for over a decade now on the basis of the Divine Mandate that he is indeed the Imam of the Age. This testimonial touches upon, and captures the essence of, the experience of Divine revelations descending upon Hadhrat Khalifatullah Sahib (atba) in the early days of the Divine Manifestation. We reproduce below extracts from this document and also, place before you, similar extracts from the writings of the Promised Massih (as) pertaining to the experience of Divine revelations. It is, of course, for the discerning readers to read and reflect upon and derive appropriate conclusions from here. 

Zafrullah Domun Sahib records in his official Declaration: “During the course of those conversations I understood that he was receiving several revelations and that through the dreams, visions and revelations we were being told about matters of which we knew not. Our attention was being drawn to several verses of the Holy Quran, to known and unknown ahadiths , to several prayers of the Holy Prophet Muhammad  (s.a.w), to prayers, the source of which we were unaware of, and also to extracts from the Promised Messiah's books or from his malfoozaaat. At the same time we received long texts on particular topics pertinent to spiritual understanding and elevation: what is Islam, what is the meaning of God being close to man, zikr , tawhid , the condition of humanity, international current affairs, religious reform, the necessity of revelation, and many others. I have to confess here that later on we became aware that many of the texts received already existed in one form or other in some books or articles but we were not aware of them when they were being received. As far as we are concerned many of these materials were new to us and they were spiritual delights.

These revelations were sometimes received in English or in French or in Urdu or even in Arabic or Persian or sometimes even in our local dialect Créole but most of them were in French or English. Whatever was received in Urdu or Arabic or Persian was followed by a translation so that we might understand the message….” 

Now, it would be interesting to observe the experience of the Promised Massih Hadhrat Ahmad (as) on the matter of Divine revelations descending upon him: 

“During the process of writing Arabic, hundreds of complete sentences descend upon my heart, either in the form of verbal revelation or in the form of a writing on a paper which is shown to me by an angel. Some of these sentences are verses of the Holy Qur’an, or similar to them with minor modification. Sometimes I only find out later that a certain Arabic sentence that had been revealed to me by God was in fact present in a certain book. God, being the Lord of everything, has the authority to reveal to my heart a fine sentence from some book, or an exquisite verse from some book of poetry. So much for Arabic, but even more surprising is the fact that I receive revelations in languages like English, Sanskrit or Hebrew, with which I have no familiarity whatsoever. Some specimens of these were included in Baraheen-e- Ahmadiyya. God, in Whose hand is my life, is my witness that this is how He has been dealing with me. This is one of the signs pertaining to matters of the unseen that continue to be revealed to me in various forms. My God cares not if any phrase that is revealed to me happens to figure in some Arabic, Sanskrit or English book, because for me it is a matter of the unseen…”  -[ Nuzul-ul Masih, Ruhani Khasa’in, vol. 18, pp. 434-436; Essence of Islam, vol. V, p.157]

Prophecy on Disasters in Mauritius

ISLAM theorises that the clear knowledge of the unseen is only given to His chosen Messengers. The Holy Qur’an confirms: “He is the Knower of the unseen, and He does not grant anyone ascendency over His domain of the unseen, Except him whom He chooses as His Messenger. And in front of him and at the back of him march angels as sentinels.”  [Surah Al-Jinn, 72: 27-28]. Thus, Allah the Almighty raises His Chosen Messenger in every era to warn the people about their excesses, shake their conscience about their irresponsible behaviours and greed and to take precaution against terrible events waiting to unfold as a consequence of what their hands have earned. The Holy Qur’an testifies: “We never punish until We have sent a Messenger” [Surah Bani Isra’il, 17:16].

When the All Powerful, Almighty, Allah raises His Divine Messenger, heaven and the earth will bear witness to the truth of the Messenger. His veracity and truthfulness will be established through powerful signs. Consequentially, heavenly signs may appear, illuminating the whole sky in a flash, or the earth may tremble so powerfully as to turn everything over it upside down! In this age of climate change, people have neglected the ecological insights of the Holy Qur’an. The theology of ecology that Islam teaches has been completely ignored by the ‘Muslims’ themselves. The abuse and mistreatment of the environment is beginning to catch up with us, everywhere in the world. The effects of human greed, environmental degradation and irresponsible exploitation of natural resources overwhelm communities with death and devastation on a colossal scale.

On 30 December 2012, the Khalifatullah Hazrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib made some predictions for the year 2013 during the reading of the second part of his Appraisal of Events 2012. It is to be recorded that the following has been fulfilled:

The Prophecy on ‘Qamaran Munira'

Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as), the Promised Massih and Mahdi of Islam was vouchsafed many glad tidings and Divine Prophecies regarding the brilliant and successful future of his physical and spiritual progeny. The spiritual progeny of the Promised Massih (as), who shall speak with the Holy Spirit, will spread the message of Islam to the ends of the earth and the victory of the Divine Path over all other material ideologies will take shape under their hands. Among the Ahmadi Muslims, there is no doubt or difference on this basic postulate, though the believers differ among themselves on the interpretation and application of this general principle. Among the prophecies vouchsafed to the Promised Massih Hadhrat Ahmad (as) in this regard include the following:  

“He gave me the glad tidings: you shall have a son,

Who shall one day become My darling.

I shall dispel all darkness through this Moon,

And demonstrate the transformation of a world;

It’s not just a glad tiding, but it is the very sustenance of my soul,

Holy is He who disgraced the enemies!”                                             

                                   - [ DURR-E-THAMIN, p. 50; Essence of Islam, Vol. V, p.51 ]

“THE MOON OF PROPHETS SHALL COME, and your task shall be accomplished. A son will be born to you and Divine grace shall be brought closer to you. In other words, he will be the source of Divine Grace…” -[TIRYAQ-UL-QULUB, Ruhani Khaza’in, vol.15, p.220; Essence of Islam, Vol. V, p.51]