Eid-ul-Adha Retreat at Mathra: A Report

The Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam, Kerala (India) organized a Three-Day spiritual retreat programme at the historic Noor'ul Islam Masjid at Mathra earlier this month- October 04-06 2014, on the sacred occasion of Eid-ul-Adha. Sincere members of the Community enthusiastically participated n the Programme with the sole objective of renewal of spiritual brotherhood as disciples and followers of the Imam Muhyi-ud-Din Khalifatullah Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius. Reproduced below is the extracts from the main parts of an Official Report written about the Programme.



DAY ONE (04.10.2014)

All brothers and sisters assembled before dawn at the Noorul Islam Masjid at Mathra and observed the Tahajjud prayers. Later, Namaz-e-Fajr was conducted at 5.30 am . This was followed at 5. 45 am , by Darz-ul-Qur’an - led  by the Amir Jamaat,  Mukarram  R. Jamluddeen Sahib.   At 12. 50 pm, Namaz-e-Dhuhr was observed by the congregation. It was followed by a study session of a recent Friday Sermon delivered by the Khalifatullah Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius. The Amir Sahib. in his explanatory note on the Friday Sermon, exhorted all participants to keep in mind the grave responsibilities of faith and spiritual life in all our every day deeds and dimensions, as underscored by the Imam  (atba) in the original sermon.   

At 4.30 pm , Salat-ul-Asr  was performed and it was followed by a study session on sacred Ahadith on Namaz-  Mukarram Fazil Jamal Sahib based his explanations on the subject on the basis of Hadhrat Imam  Nawawi’s  classic text, Riyadh-ul-Swaaliheen.

At 7.00 pm, Maghrib–Isha’ namaz were performed  in combination with one another. The prayer session was followed by a special speech of the Mukarram Amir Sahib.  In his speech , the  Amir Sahib called attention to the significance of the month of Dhul-Hajj in the Islamic tradition, especially the first 10 days of the month of Hajj.  Basing himself upon the observations of the Khalifatullah (atba) on earlier occassions on the significance of the first ten days of Dhul- Hajj, the Amir Sahib observed that we have chosen the same period for a spiritual retreat at the Masjid, with the sole purpose of spending more time in devotion, special prayers and  spiritual discussions. As Hadhrat Khalifatullah  (atba) has approved and encouraged such a spiritual gathering of devout members at this point of time,  the Amir Sahib maintained that all those who said “Labbaik” to His Messenger, were  essentially saying “Labbaik” to the Almighty Allah (swa). 

DAY TWO (05.10.2014)

Before dawn, Tahajjud  prayers were observed  by all worshippers at the Masjid. Namaz-e-Fajr was performed at 5. 30 am. This was followed by Dharz-ul-Qur’an session, led by the Mukarram  Amir Sahib.

At 7. 30 am , brothers and sisters reassembled for Eid-ul- Adha  prayers at the Masjid. The Amir Sahib explained at length a special Eid-ul-Adha sermon of Hadhrat Khalifatullah (atba) that was delivered on a similar occassion in 2009. Later,  the ritual Qurbani was performed and the meat was distributed among families and peoples in the neighbourhood . Namaz-e-Dhuhr  was conducted at 1.00 pm and it was followed by a study session on sacred Ahadith, led by Mukarram  Fazil Jamal Sahib. 

Subsequently, special Eid- feasting was offered at the home of the Amir Sahib for all those who have assembled on the occasion.

At 4.30 pm , Salat-ul-Asr  was performed and later, visiting Ahmadi relatives and other guests were warmly received at the  home of the Amir Sahib. At 7.45 pm , Maghrib – Isha’ namaz were performed  in combination with one another. The prayer session was followed by a speech of the Mukarram Amir Sahib, exposing  on Surah Yaseen. 

DAY THREE (06.10.2014)

Before dawn, Tahajjud  prayers were observed  by all worshippers at the Masjid. Namaz-e-Fajr was performed at 5. 30 am. This was followed by Dharz-ul-Qur’an session, led by Mukarram  Fazil  Jamal Sahib, expalining the qualities of true and devout servants of Allah (swa), as emerging from a  reading of the final verses of  Surah Al Furqan.  

At 9.00 am, members assembled again at the Masjid and the Amir Sahib took special session on “Nadaafat”  (Cleanliness, Heigiene and Purity).  This was followed by a cleaning session in and around the Masjid premises, cleaning/washing of the prayer mats and the building surroundings in general . At 1.00 pm , combined prayers of Dhuhr and Asr were offered at the Masjid.

This was followed by the final session of the Retreat, in which the participating, outstation members expressed happiness and pride at the commitment of the Amir Mukarram Jamaluddeen Sahib in particular, to the incremental improvement in infrastructural  facilities in and around the Masjid premises, as is apparent from the construction of an additional floor in the Masjid for the benefit of the Kerala Jamaat and the construction of a washroom/toilet complex for the visiting members. All participating members agreed to the idea of conducting the annual Jalsa at the Noorul Islam Masjid in December 2014, with the permission and subject to the approval of  our beloved Khalifatullah (atba),  Insha Allah.

On a special note, on the final day of the Retreat, a truth seeker who recently accepted Ahmadiyyat, joined us over telephone from Kochi and had a long conversation with our representative about the doctrinal differences with the Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya Qadian and the material evidences involved  in the formation of Jamaat-ul-Sahih-al-Islam.  After an hour long spiritual discussion, the truth seeker is convinced about the need for reexamining the premises of his spiritual understandings and has expressed a wish to examine the matter in even more detail with the help of the texts and materials suggested by our brother who attended the phone and to continue the conversation in future, Insha Allah.  The Amir Sahib feels that we may pray for the Hidayat of those who are willing to approach the truth only for the sake of Allah.