23 March: Bia'at Day

     

March 23 is an important day in the annals of the Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya. For it was on this historic day in the beginning of the 14th century of Islam that the Promised Messiah Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as) of Qadian formally began to initiate his disciples through the system of Bia’at into the spiritual Order of Silsila Ahmadiyya, a community of true believers who will be sincere helpers and supporters of the larger causes of Islam in the modern world. The first Bia’at into the Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya took place in Ludhiana on Rajab 20, 1306 AH ~23 March 1889.

        Historically speaking, the idea of Bia’at in the then, newly-established Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya, in many ways, resembled the practice in Sufi Orders of the medieval Islamic world where disciples formed a chain of spiritual relationship with their spiritual preceptor and Imam through Bia’at, the rite of initiation of a disciple into the Sufi spiritual path or Tariqah. In the Sufi traditions, Bia’at denotes ‘Wilayah’ or the transmission of the spiritual power, from the Prophet to certain of his Companions and through them to one generation after another of those seeking to follow the spiritual path.     

       

As a spiritual concept and practice, Bia’at has strong and deep antecedents in the faith traditions of Islam. Indeed, the Holy Qur’an speaks of the original covenant of humanity with God through the Prophets: ‘[Prophet], when your Lord took out the offspring from the loins of the Children of Adam and made them bear witness about themselves, He said, ‘Am I not your Lord?’ and they replied, ‘Yes, we bear witness.’ (7:173)

“And remember God’s blessing upon you, and His covenant by which He bound you, when you said, ‘We hear and we obey.’ And reverence God. Truly God knows what lies within breasts” (5:8).

“Fulfill My covenant, and I shall fulfill your covenant, and be in awe of Me.” (2:41)

Our Covenant with God

 

In theory, a social contract binds the State and the citizen; defining nature of relations, prescribing rules of engagement, and allocating the rights and duties of the Parties involved. In our societies, the basic social unit of family and kingship is also rooted in marriage contracts between husbands and wives; like the Qur’an reminds: “they have taken from you a firm and solemn covenant (by marriage)” (4:22). Similarly, the Qur’an speaks of humanity’s covenant with God through history: an original covenant that prescribes duties that we owe to God and to fellow beings, in return for Divine approval and rewards in this world and the world to come. In the Divine scheme of things under the covenant, those who refuse to respect the terms of engagement by leading a Godless life in this world, and those who ignore His warnings and go on to persecute His believing servants are the real law-breakers, and they are condemned to severe punishment, as per the Will of Allah (swt).

 

Human servitude to the Lord Almighty

Islam teaches us that Allah (swt), the Creator and Sustainer of all the worlds, raised humans with a certain purpose of life, and through Revelations sent via prophets and messengers, He granted clear guidance on how best to spend our days in this world. The Creator, in His infinite kindness, imprinted all human souls with a deep yearning in quest of Him, and the human heart and mind are designed to be truly inclined to recognize the Lord; an intuitive capacity is ingrained in all persons to observe and reflect and recognize and understand the beauty and wisdom of His revelations sent through the prophets and the sages; to find peace and tranquillity by being mindful of His commandments. The Qur’an says: ‘And when your Lord took from the children of Adam, from their loins, their progeny and made them bear witness concerning themselves, “Am I not your Lord Who sustains you?” They said, “Yea, surely, we bear witness (to it and acknowledge it).” (7:173)