The Concept of Khalifatullah

In his Friday Sermon of 25 May 2012, Hadhrat Khalifatullah Munir Ahmad Azim (atba) of Mauritius gave a discourse on the concept of Khalifatullah or the Vicegerent to Allah on earth. The speech is especially important for Ahmadi Muslims to ponder over, for the extraordinary light it throws on the concept of Khilafat in Islam and the insights it provides on the circumstances in which the favour of Allah deserted the man-elected Khilafat system and resulted in the emergence of the current Divine Manifestation in Mauritius.  

Islam offers the spiritual history of countless prophets in the Holy Qur’an as a living testimonial to an enduring Divine practice: Allah the Most High raises His Messengers, who (did and) would call people to the sublime path of spirituality. These Messengers would teach people the Divine Word and invite them to partake of the Divine blessings that pour down like a heavenly rain on a parched earth. Depending on the depth of their immersion in the Divine waters, these holy men of God are decorated by Allah the Most High Himself with spiritual titles of magnificent proportions- Rasulullah, Nabiullah, Khalifatullah, Muhyi-ud-Din, Mujaddid etc.  

Read the Extracts from the Sermon:  

“The word Khalifatullah can be explained with reference directly to Allah (swt) or with reference to an earlier prophet. The Khalifatullah is created on earth by the word of God and he is vicegerent to Allah, or a deputy to Allah. Hazrat Adam (as) is referred to as Khalifatullah and it (that is, the title and seat of Khalifatullah) came to its perfection in the person of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sa) and that also is the meaning of Khataman-Nabiyyeen. This is one understanding of the word Khalifatullah.

The Decline of Muslim Spirituality- II

The task of real spirituality is to restore the sublime faith in Allah the Almighty and to reflect the Divine attributes through the moulding of purified individuals. Islam perfected and preserved in itself the purpose of all religions which preceded it by recognizing the divine revelations of the past. Further, it channelized the continuity of Divine revelations through itself for all times to come. Leading the world on spiritual purification was the heavy responsibility cast on the shoulders of the Muslim Ummah by the Creator of the Universe. Contemporary Muslim leaders have failed to recognize the extraordinary magnitude of the task, nor could they preserve the solid faith of the early Muslims.

In his Friday Sermon of April 06, 2012 Khalifatullah Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius continued his discourse on the ways in which true faith has deserted the present day Muslims. Drawing upon the prescient prophecies of the Holy Prophet (sa), he sketches the causes of spiritual decline. The preservation of the true faith and real spirituality is a Divine Promise engraved upon the Holy Qur’an by Allah the Almighty Himself. At a time when the sectarian divisions have proliferated among Muslims and the spirit of Islam has gone away from the life of Muslims, the raising of a Khalifa by Allah- Khalifatullah- is in tune with the enduring Divine practice.

Read the Extracts from the Sermon:

“By time, indeed, mankind is in loss, Except for those who have believed and done righteous deeds and advised each other to truth and advised each other to patience.” (103: 1-4)

Like I explained in my sermon last Friday, history has proved that the first Muslims reached the highest degrees of honour and glory whereas Muslims today have taken the opposite route. It is clear according to these verses that the first Muslims reached such a dignified status in life because their faith was solid and they had excellent character.

In contrast, today the situation of the Muslims has become deplorable because there is lots of weakness in our faith and character. It is the opposite of what was found in the first Muslims. Therefore it would not be untrue to say that nowadays, we have just preserved our names as Muslims! In the same context, the truthful Messenger of Allah the Almighty, Hazrat Muhammad (sa) foretold: “There shall be a time soon when Islam shall exist in name only, and the Quran shall exist only in writing.”

Nizaam-e-Jamaat: Evolving a Parallel ‘Culture’

‘‘Within a century after the departure of a Mujaddid, his followers lose their spiritual self. They become creatures of the earth, lusting after material riches and vain pursuits’. 

This prescient observation of the Promised Massih (as) is today staring the Jamaat-e- Ahmadiyya in its face- the same Jamaat that he established to revive the faith of Islam more than a century back in India. 

While Ahmadis continue to delude themselves that they remain in the right path, a parallel ‘culture’ has developed within the Jamaat that has corroded and subverted its inner core of sublime spirituality. The empty shell of Khilafat as it exists today is virtually incapable of stopping the eroding ground beneath its feat. Forget about reversing the tide altogether! 

In his Friday Sermon of January 06, 2012 the Khalifatullah Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius confirms what thoughtful Ahmadis have feared for years- the development of a parallel ‘culture’ within. The sermon contains a searing critique of the gross mismanagement and the resultant disarray within the rank and file of the Nizaam-e-Jamaat. It describes the apparent features of this parallel ‘culture’ that has eaten into the vitals of Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya's value systems, corroded the ethics of its members and has come to define their ill-informed decisions and wrong choices today.

Read the Extracts from the Sermon:

“The fifth Caliph is not taking care of the Jamaat of the Promised Messiah (as) like the latter had established the management of the Jamaat. The Caliph is basing himself on false reports of his amirs and mullahs. It is his so-called mullahs and amirs who are leading the Jamaat astray and the caliph is not taking the right decisions for the cause of Allah and according to the precepts of Islam. It is those around him who are taking the major decisions, especially about whom the Ahmadis should greet salaam or not, and boycott.

Ahmadis: From 'Khalifa' To 'Khalifatullah'

Most Ahmadis today believe that their system of Ahmadiyya Khilafat is the embodiment of Divinely- appointed spiritual leadership, as prophesied for and among the Muslims of the Later Days.  

This 'doctrinal' understanding and inherited belief is essentially based on what they have been taught by their leaders and scholars from the early days of the Khilafat system, invented by the Community. As is mostly typical within the Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya Qadian, instead of individual Ahmadis thinking for themselves on religious matters, they are content with endorsing what they have inherited from their fathers. Almost every other Qadiani Ahmadi, unfortunately today, belong to this unthinking category of people, like the Qur'an speaks off: ‘We found our fathers following a certain course, and we are guided by their footsteps’ (43:23). So, the spiritual doctrines- their meaning, interpretations, nuances and implications- remain largely un-examined within the Community.

With the appearance of a new Reformer among the Ahmadis, with the grand mandate of being the Messenger of Allah of our times, in the person of Hadhrat Khalifatullah Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius, the spiritual and intellectual landscape of Ahmadiyya theology is increasingly being redrawn.

Ahmadi youth have begun to question their inherited religious notions and hitherto un-examined understandings and common convictions in the light of the Divine Manifestation and the spiritual light that emanates from his teachings. It is in this backdrop that we should view the recent series of articles/ extracts from the speeches of the previous Khulafa etc. that are being published in the AL HAQ, the monthly organ of the Ahmadiyya youth wing Majlis Khuddamul Ahmadiyya, Kerala. In recent months, the journal is on a campaign mode among Ahmadi youth. The campaign objective is to instill the Ahmadiyya concept of Khilafat among the youth.

The Misguiding 'Sathyadoothan' !

Sathyadoothan’ [in Malayalam, it means “True Messenger”] is the Malayalam organ of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community in Kerala. This venerable journal, established in the early part of the last Century by very distinguished Ahmadi elders, has had an enviable record of enlightening the people of Kerala on the mission and message of the Promised Massih (as) through its elegant articles. Of late, however, unfortunately, the journal is repeatedly drifting away from its high standards, even making blatant errors in the interpretation and understanding of the views of the Promised Massih (as). It is now virtually misleading and misguiding Ahmadis on the most important spiritual issue of the day: the future of Divine Guidance.

In its quest for elevating the status of the current Khilafat arrangement in the Community among its common members, the monthly journal is on a campaign mode:  that Allah cannot and will not raise a Mujaddid in the new century because the current and Fifth Khalifa is Divinely- appointed and guided. It argues that the status of the Khalifa is even above that of Mujaddidin who appeared in every century of Islam. And the institution of Mujaddidiyat is inexplicably dismissed as a mere “temporary phenomenon” that happened to last through the entire Islamic Era. Astonishingly, it put the Khilafat of early Islam (that lasted only 30 years after the death of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sa) and in spite of its perceived absence for over a millennium from among the Muslims) as the “enduring phenomenon” which made a reappearance after the death of Hadhrat Ahmad (as) with the institutionalization of Khilafat in the Community in 1908.

While dismissing the very need for Mujaddidin in the presence of the “permanent” Ahmadiyya Khilafat, the Journal is cautious enough to acknowledge that prophets can come even in future as the Holy Qur’an keeps the door open for revelation and prophethood through its several verses. It begets a pertinent question: Will the coming Messenger of Allah not be the Mujaddid of his era? Why only the Khulafa elected by men can be raised to these Divine offices as Elects of Allah when the Holy Qur’an offers this possibility of spiritual elevation for ALL righteous believers? 

Even while describing Hadhrat Ahmad (as) as the Mujaddid of the Millennium, the current Khalifa of the Community is on record stating that an Ahmadiyya Khalifa can declare himself as the Mujaddid if and when Allah so informs him through revelation [Friday Sermon of June 10, 2011]. In other words, even the Khalifa does not believe that a Mujaddid will not be raised in future. This is in spite of what his own disciples and scholars of the Jamaat are expressly holding forth in their articles in the Sathyadoothan.   

Fifth Khalifa on Khilafat and Mujaddidiyat

[This is the second and final part of the official response issued by Dr. E. Thahir Sahib of the Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam, Kerala (India) in the aftermath of the Friday sermon of the present Ahmadiyya Khalifa Mirza Masroor Ahmad Sahib on the subject of Khilafat and Mujaddidiyat. The first part appeared on July 11, 2011 and can be accessed here].   

After stating that “each Khalifa is a Mujaddid during his era”, Mirza Masroor Ahmad Sahib says:  “If God so wills, He can give the status of Mujaddid to a Khalifa of the time at the turn of a century, and enable him to declare this”.

So, now he says that at the turn of a century “If Allah so wills” a Mujaddid is raised. Even then, the assembly of the faithful will elect a Khalifa first and then, Allah will have no choice other than to ask the so-elected Khalifa to declare himself as Mujaddid! Why is it that there is no proclamation of Mujaddidiyat from Mirza Masroor Ahmad Sahib in spite of his being ‘qualified’ in terms of the time?  He further states: “Being a Mujaddid does not alter the station of Khilafat; the status of Khilafat comes before that of a Mujaddid”. 

Hadhrat Ahmad (as) says in every century Mujaddidin will come to revive the faith. Now, Mirza Masroor Ahmad Sahib states that the assembly- elected Khulafa has more importance than the divinely sent Mujaddidin. He also stated that every Ahmadiyya Khalifa is also a Mujaddid only to clarify later that “if Allah so wills” at the turn of a century. In short, the divine office of Mujaddidiyat is exclusively reserved for Ahmadiyya Khulafa and nobody outside this circle including common Ahmadis can be Mujaddidin in future.  

Ahmadis usually employ two arguments to oppose the coming of Mujaddidin: Khilafat is on the precept of Nubuwwat and there is no need for “Tayammum” when water is at hand. But then, can the water be utilized even when it is muddy and impure? Has Mirza Masroor Ahmad Sahib any claim to Nubuwwat? Is he a recipient of divine revelations? If there is nothing, is the “water” pure or impure? 

Ahmadi Youth on Facebook

In the Friday Sermon of March 11, 2011 Hadhrat Khalifatullah Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius called the attention of the Muslims, especially the Ahmadi youth, to the   moral dilemmas and ethical perils associated with the mindless usage of contemporary social networking sites, including the Facebook. Alarmed with verifiable and recurring reports about the  indulgence of Ahmadi persons in immoral practices over the social networking sites, the Messenger of Allah for our times reminded the current head of the Ahmadiyya Community on his patent and abject failure in reining in the erring members within the fold of his regulatory control and appealed to his better sense and moral consciousness: “...fear Allah O Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad, fear Allah and wake up from your long sleep of ignorance before it is too late for you!” 

Read the Extracts from the Friday Sermon:

Since some time we are constantly witnessing the emergence of newer and so-said social networking which is to connect people all round the world with colleagues, friends, family etc. Facebook, being the major e-company to have the larger part of the social networking market has over 500 million people connected to it. Created in 2004, it has over the years become so popular that now all and sundry have access to it, and instead of doing good use of such internet and communication facilities, people are more and more sharing such vital information and personal photos, including intimate and even indecent ones which makes a fracas to morality and decency and it questions the purpose of religion and the responsibility of religious leaders to bar such en masse decadence.

It is a pity that the Ahmadiyya youths have fallen prey to such attractions, and it is even more a pity that their caliph cannot make them leave these sites and concentrate on more religious matters. As a matter of fact, religious matters have become secondary, while mundane attractions, such as chatting, involving oneself in illicit relationships, through public chats with Non-Mahram women and men; all these are the truth which have unfortunately seized the once pure Jamaat of the Promised Messiah (on him be peace) and the Muslim Community as a whole. The decadence of the Ahmadi people is ever on the front.

'Opinions of the Khalifa are not Gospels'

One question that troubles many common Ahmadis when they hear about the appearance of an Elect of Allah is this: How can there be a new Massih when the Ahmadiyya Khulafa have written and taught us differently?  In a recent speech, Hadhrat Khalifatullah Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib has addressed the matter from a Qur’anic perspective: 

“Now, one must bear in mind that opinions of someone cannot be considered as the TRUTH unless his words are revealed words from Allah. This is especially true in our case, just like it was in the times of the Promised Messiah (as). The Promised Messiah (as) confirmed the words of the Qur’an and the Hadiths of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sa) when he did not close the doors of revelation, prophethood and Mujaddidiyat.

It must be borne in mind that while some of the Khulafa of the Ahmadiyya Jamaat have given their personal opinions on the questions of the coming of Mujaddids, that there shall never be again a Mujaddid who shall come after the Promised Messiah (as). But, has not the Promised Messiah (as) refuted all their claims himself by saying, that had he not come, Allah would have sent another one as Messiah for the fulfilment of this divine mission? Moreover, had he not say that even after him, it is quite possible that there appear 10,000 Messiahs?

The Legacy of Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya

Every Ahmadi believes that the Promised Massih (as) came with a Divine Mission to restore the teachings of Sahih Al Islam. And the Ahmadiyya Khilafat was instituted with the objective of taking the message of the Promised Massih (as) to the whole world. After the first Khilafat, what began as a tussle over the doctrinal interpretations culminated into differences over the form of leadership- Anjuman versus Khilafat. Inevitably, there was a split in the Community, leading to the separation of ways of the disciples of the Promised Massih (as) and the formation of two groups.

The Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement (LAM) under the Imaarat of Maulvi Muhammad Ali Sahib (ra) identified itself more closely with the mainstream Islamic world, hoping to dilute and bridge the doctrinal claims of the Promised Massih (as) so to find accommodation and acceptance within the prevailing Muslim orthodoxy and its standards of legitimacy. Thus, they emphasised the Mujaddid claims of the Promised Massih (as) and explained away the concept of his being an “Ummati Nabi” and declared that no prophet whatsoever can ever come after the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sa).

In Defence of Hadhrat Khalifa Sani (ra)- III

Abdul Ghaffar Janbah Sahib of Germany, the man who claims to be the Mujaddid of the Fifteenth Century and the Imam of the Age, has a disciple by the name of Mansoor Ahmed Sahib.  In a recent article, the latter has responded to the first part of my essay “In Defence of Hadhrat Khalifa Sani (ra)- I& II”, published here at the Sahih Al Islam Blogspot, on May 02- 03, 2011. 

From the response article [available at their website: www.alghulam.com ], it is absolutely clear:  The entire claim of Janbah Sahib hangs precariously on a string of a feeble, single argument: that Hadhrat Khalifa Sani (ra) completed only 22 years and six months after claiming to be the Musleh Maoud and did not complete 23 years as per the Qur’anic Law on the subject as perceived by him!

The term “satanic theory” was used in my essay to describe Janbah Sahib’s theory to malign the reputation of Hadhrat Khalifa Sani (ra). Now Mansoor Ahmed Sahib has taken righteous indignation at the use of the term “satanic theory”. He seems to think, wrongly in my opinion, that the term “satanic theory” has been used in the essay to describe the very Qur’anic principle in this regard. Willful misrepresentation or deliberate distortion cannot be the objective or the intention of a believer. So, I assume that the writer is under a genuine misconception about the issue. Let me explain it for him.

Mujaddidiyat: Three Ahmadis, Three Views!

[This article is the third in the series on Kerala Ahmadis and the New Mujaddid, critically examining the response of Kerala Ahmadiyya leadership to the coming of a Mujaddid in the new Century and the establishment of the Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam, Kerala in 2010.  The previous installments were published here on May 14 & 15, 2011].

"My community will not agree on misguidance"-   Prophet Muhammad (sa) 

The senior leadership of the Ahmadiyya Jamaat has spoken. The Naib Nazir A’la Maulana Muhammad Umar Sahib is convinced that Ahmadiyya Khilafat is the permanent institution till the Day of Judgement. Man elected/ selected Khulafa may have erred on the doctrine and practice of Islam in the past. But the Ahmadiyya Khulafa are infallible human beings, incapable of delivering injustice in administrative matters nor can they move away from Sahih Al Islam through their pronouncements. All evidences to the contrary should be buried and ignored!

A Response to Maulana Umar Sahib

[This article is the second part of the series on 'Kerala Ahmadis and the New Mujaddid'. The first part was published yesterday, May 14, 2011 and can be accessed here. The series of articles analyses the strategies deployed by the Ahmadiyya leadership to put out the Light of Allah in the form of the new Mujaddid in Mauritius and his disciples in Kerala].   

Maulana Muhammad Umar Sahib is currently the Naib Nazir A’la, Sadr Anjuman Ahmadiyya, Qadian. He is one of the leading scholars of the Indian Ahmadiyya Jamaat and among the first to officially respond to the coming of a Mujaddid in our times. Soon after the Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam was formed and legally registered as an organization in Kerala, he wrote an article entitled “Khilafat and Mujaddidiyat” in the December 2010 issue of Sathyadoothan,  the official Ahmadiyya Journal. In spite of his profound learning and remarkable scholarship, the Maulana Sahib has come up with a deeply disturbing argument.  In the editorial abstract of the article, it is written: “The coming of Mujaddidin is irrelevant because the Khilafat system established by the Mahdi Massih is thriving”.(Sathyadoothan, p.13).

Perspective on Ahmadiyya Khilafat

In a recent mail, an Ahmadi critic wrote: “…on one side the community that you belong to, keeps a view that this present Ahmadiyya Khilafath is not supported by Holy Quran, meanwhile on the other, it accepts this khilafath as divinely ordained, partially. That stand is too bizarre to be understood even…”

For the understanding of seekers after truth, we are providing below an extract from an Interview Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius granted to Mubashar Dar Sahib of Ahmadiyya News in 2006 wherein as the Mujaddid of the new Century of Islamic Hijri, he explained his position on Ahmadiyya Khilafat.  

Ahmadiyya News: What is your opinion towards the Khulafa of the Jama'at Ahmadiyya. Their ability and approach towards achieving the ultimate victory of Islam and Ahmadiyyat as prophesied by the Promised Messiah a.s.?

Munir Ahmad Azim:

I believe in the Khalifas of Jamaat Ahmadiyya like I said above: Hazrat Moulvi Hakim Nooruddin, Hazrat Mousleh Ma'oud Mirza Bashiruddin Mahmood Ahmad, Hazrat Mirza Nasir Ahmad, and also Hazrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad. Although they were not directly divinely appointed by God Almighty, Allah was their help as long as they were on the right path and preaching the true teachings of Islam. Allah gave them true dreams and revelations to help them in their task, because they were righteous in their devotion to help the cause of Allah Ta'ala and Allah blessed them with great knowledge and Insight.

Mubahala Challenge to Maulvi Ismail

Maulvi Muhammad Ismail HA, one of the leading Ulema of the Ahmadiyya Community in Kerala, has been spreading canards against the new Messenger of Allah and his disciples in Kerala, India for some time now.  In order to retain the loyalty and blind faith of ordinary Ahmadis in the system itself, he converted the sacred precincts of Mosques into theaters of cheap wit and abused his position to raise spurious charges against the Khalifa of Allah. [Inset: the Pazhayangadi Mosque and the Maulvi Sahib] In his Friday Sermon of March 11, 2011, Khalifatullah Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius thus publicly challenged this Maulana for a Mubahila Duel "so that the world, the Ahmadi people and his caliph may know who really the liar is”.  

We are presenting below the relevant extracts from the Sermon:

"I have gotten the needed information about the one who spread the false rumour of financial corruption on this humble person. He is none other than the Molvi Muhammad Ismail H.A (the senior Muballigh of the Ahmadi in Kerala). He is the foremost person to have spread this false rumour and verily soon he shall taste of the evil consequences of his actions.  He not only spread such lies on this humble self but he also is playing God as to say that the death of someone is due to his father’s disobedience to the Ahmadiyya Caliphate and his acceptance of the New Messenger of this era. God forbid, according to this so-called Maulana, the father commits sin whereas the son pays for it? Now, he is spreading the words that beware of forthcoming deaths of the sons of the disciples of this humble Messenger.

‘Khilafat on the precept of Prophethood’

Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius has been claiming for more than a decade now that Allah (swt) has indeed raised him with a Divine Mission, as His Khalifa and Mujaddid of this new century of the Islamic Era. He has been loudly proclaiming before the entire world that he has come as a blessing from the Lord Almighty for the Ahmadis and others who recognize the divine manifestation in this era, who has come in fulfillment of the glad tidings vouchsafed to the Promised Massih Hadhrat Ahmad (as) and also to the Musleh Maoud Hadhrat Mirza Bashir-ud-Din Mahmud Ahmad (ra). “Verily, We have ever been sending Messengers, as a mercy from thy Lord. Verily, He is the All Hearing, the All Knowing”. (44:6-7). 

We are presenting below certain extracts from the Friday Sermon of May 29, 2009 delivered by the Khalifatullah (atba) of our times. The sermon explains the role and status of a Divinely-raised Khalifatullah and points out that the coming of a Khalifatullah is within the purview of ‘Khilafat on the precept of Prophethood’:   

“A Khalifatullah govern between the people by that which Allah the Almighty has revealed to him, and follow not their vain desires. The Khalifatullah must beware in case the opponent seduce him from just some part of that which Allah the Almighty has revealed to him. Khalifatullah means the Representative of Allah (God), and according to Islam he comes from Allah to guide mankind towards the Creator, thus by this means becomes the representative of the people spiritual and mundane welfare. He is God’s vicegerent, that is to say by virtue of the powers delegated to him, and within the limits prescribed by the Qur’an and the teaching of the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him). The Khalifatullah is required to exercise divine authority, he is not just an individual ruler who has to be restored, but is man’s representation of God’s authority on earth, and also by uniting Muslim nations through divine instructions and peaceful political action.

'Qudrat-e-Saniya': 'Khilafat is Ever-Lasting'

In their quest for perpetuating the authority of the their assembly-elected "Khalifa" within the Community, Ahmadis today deny the possibility of Allah sending any Mujaddid in future as His Elect to guide the community of Muslims. Further, they have raised the status of their elected Khalifa even above that of an Elect of Allah such as a Mujaddid. Since Hadhrat Ahmad (as) was an Elect of Allah and the Mujaddid of the Fourteenth Century, where does the Ahmadiyya Khulafa stand in spiritual status vis -a- vis him? Can their status be equal to, or even be above, the status of Hadhrat Ahmad (as)?! Are we to consider that given the lofty position to which Ahmadiyya Khulafa have been elevated, they have  every right to alter, bend and modify and thereby destroy the original teachings of Hadhrat Ahmad (as)? It is striking to note the manner in which the mainstream Ahmadiyya Community has moved away from the teachings of Hadhrat Ahmad (as) while claiming to be his ideal disciples.

We are presenting below certain extracts from the Friday Sermon of May 22, 2009 delivered by the Muhyi-ud-Din Khalifatullah Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius. This sermon graphically chronicles the original beliefs of the Promised Massih Hadhrat Ahmad (as) on the future divine guidance of the Muslims and asks some pertinent questions for Ahmadi friends to reflect upon:

“In his book Shahadat’ul Quran (on pg. 48 - 60), the Promised Messiah (on him be peace) said: “‘Qudrat-e-Saniyah’ is everlasting and will end till the day of Judgement”. The meaning of the Promised Messiah (on him be peace), in this sentence concerning the word “Qudrat-e-Saniyah” implies to “Khilafat”. And according to the Promised Messiah (on him be peace), “Khilafat” does not only implies to “Khilafat-e-Rassool” but it also implies to “Mujaddid”. The Promised Messiah (on him be peace) believes that “Khilafat” includes “the four rightly guided successors of Rassool” and Allah willed that it should continue to exist permanently till the Day of Judgement.

Thus, the Promised Messiah (on him be peace) has not declared the “Ahmadiyya Khilafat” everlasting in his writings. What he has declared everlasting are two things: (1) Qudrat-e-Saniyah (2) Islamic Khilafat.

(1) Qudrat-e-Saniyah includes “Khilafat” and not just the “Ahmadiyya Khilafat”, because the Promised Messiah (on him be peace) wrote in the same book Al-Wassiyat that this Qudrat is similar to the Qudrat which appeared in the form of Hazrat Abu Bakr, the first Islamic Khalifa which means “Qudrat-e-Saniyah” is comparable to the “Islamic Khilafat”.

Abu Baker Siddique: First Sermon as Khalifa

The Islamic Khilafat of the past began with Hadhrat Abu Baker Siddique (ra) and continued during the time of the other rightly guided Khulafa, Hadhrat Omar Ibn Khattab (ra), Hadhrat Usman (ra) and Hadhrat Ali (ra). These devout companions of the Holy Prophet (sa) were intensely conscious about their material and spiritual mandates as the head of the Muslim community when they were thrust with the mantle of leadership. And also the inherent limitations attached to their specific situation as leaders because of the lack of divine revelations in guiding the community at a time when an Elect of Allah was not among them.

Devout Ahmadis consider that the Ahmadiyya Khilafat is established in the best tradition of the Islamic Khilafat of the early days. Yet, the Ahmadis today are guilty of blurring the subtle and profound distinction that separates the true spiritual and material condition between a Divine servant in communion with Allah (swa), and the actual leaders they elect as Khulafa. For instance, most Ahmadis assume and believe without any shred of evidence that the present Khalifatul Massih Mirza Masroor Ahmad Sahib is a recipient of Divine revelations and that there can never arise anyone with Divine revelations so long as they have the Khulafa elected by the community of people.

Khalifatullah and Khalifatul Massih

Historically, the institution of Khilafat emerged within the early Muslim community with the election of Hadhrat Abu Baker Siddiq (ra) as Khalifatul Rasul after the death of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sa). In the history of Islam, there has been three types of Khulafa. Like, mentioned above, the early Khulafa/Caliphs who upheld the faith and its values with sincere and complete devotion after having been taught by the Holy Prophet (sa) himself and they having spent their lives as his companions during the lifetime of the Holy Prophet (sa). These caliphs- Hadhrat Abu Baker Siddiq (ra), Hadhrat Umar (ra), Hadhrat Uthman (ra) and Hadhrat Ali (ra)- are collectively known as the rightly-guided caliphs-Khulafa-ur-Rashidun. 

The second type of Khulafa are those who came after these pious caliphs. Those who came after the Khulafa-ur-Rashidun were also leaders of the Muslim Ummah, having sovereignty and political authority over the nation. While many of them practiced their religion as they understood their faith, but the Ummah in general do not consider them to be spiritual models, to be emulated like the early exemplars. They were a manifestation of the material glory of the Ummah as a political and religious community as against the other-worldly preoccupations of true saints and believers. 

The third type of Khulafa are the Divine Reformers or Mujaddidin who appeared in different lands of Islam at different points of time, in the history of Islam. They were the spiritual deputies of the Holy Prophets (sa) who were Divinely-raised, with revelations, inspirations, visions and dreams to guide the Ummah and to be the practical models of a living Islam in their respective communities. As per the Islamic tradition, Allah (swa) will raise a Mujaddid at the turn of every century to preserve the true spirit of Holy Qur'an and the Islamic teachings among the believers and this Divine scheme will continue to serve the spiritual purpose till the Day of Judgement. As these men are Divinely-ordained, they are also known as Khalifatullah or the Vicegerent of Allah. Hence, one of the titles of the Promised Massih (as) is as Khalifatullah.