Ramadan: A Gift

 

A Gift in Bliss and Misfortune

Whether a Muslim is happy or sad, in trials or bliss, God Almighty, lovingly called by His personal name: ALLAH (The One without any partner) in Islam, is sure to bring him out of this state, on and off to make him realise that without Him, he is powerless, without Him no true happiness can be reached.

Allah says twice in Chapter Ash-Sharh of the Holy Quran: “So truly where there is hardship there is also ease; truly where there is hardship there is also ease.”

The blessed month of Ramadan is one such gift, one such ease, one such month when the true believer gets to live peace in both his spiritual and worldly lives. This month comes once a year, but the sincere one yearns it so much, that is, that opportunity to have his sins forgiven, to get the pleasure and approbation of Allah, and finally to accede to Allah Himself through his selfless sacrifice. Such a believer is a model among the believers. Such a believer follows in the footsteps of his beloved prophet and mentor, the Honourable Messenger of Allah, Muhammad (pbuh).

Khalifatullah at Sirajum Munir Masjid 2023

 

Alhamdulillah, Summa Alhamdulillah, the Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam official YouTube Channel has just unveiled a photo and video report on the recent India visit of Imam-Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam International Hazrat Munir Ahmad Azim (aba) of Mauritius, and the International Sadr of the Siraj Makin Djawaharatul Kamal Hazrat Ummul Mu’mineen Fazli Amena Varsally Saheba in January- February 2023. The photos and videos taken since the blessed arrival of the holy servants of Allah (swt) in India, especially in Tamil Nadu and North Kerala are blended together to form not just a journey report but also an excellent introduction to the inner world of the Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam in the country, Masha Allah, Allah-u-Akbar! 

The spiritual sons of the Khalifatullah (aba) and leaders of the Jamaat in India, Hazrat Mukarram Amir Saleem Saheb and Hazrat Mukarram Naib Amir Shahul Hameed Faisal Saheb received Hazrat Saheb (aba) and the Hazrat Saheba on their arrival  at the Mumbai Airport, in the second week of January 2023, Alhamdulillah. Later, for the first time, we have had a historic Jumuah Namaz and Qutubah led by Hazrat Khalifatullah (aba) at Mumbai, Summa Alhamdulillah.

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)

Poem: ‘A Hymn to God’

 

 Lo! How manifest is the Light of God,

Who is the Ultimate source of all Light

The whole universe is turning into a reflective mirror

For the eyes to perceive Him.

 

                               Last night while watching the Moon

I became so agitated

In the beauty of the Moon

Were the traces of the beauty of my Beloved.

 

Under the influence of that consummate beauty

My heart is in a state of turmoil

Mention not to me

the comeliness of the Turk or the Tartar.

 

O my Beloved,

How wonderfully is Your

Creative power manifested everywhere

Whichever way I look I find

Every road leading to Your presence.

A Kashf on ‘Divine Hug’

 

True devotees are a sign of Living Faith. Love of God drives them to respect and act upon Divine commands and prohibitions as they should be. For instance, they offer regular prayers at specified times of the day; they recite the Holy Qur’an at dawn. Moreover, they sincerely engage in remembrance of God all the time. In the pure quest for the grand favour and blessings of Divine nearness, they even wake up at night and pray as an extra offering of their own: in the long hours of the night prostrating before God and weeping in supplication, nurturing their souls even in a state of exhaustion. Like the Holy Qur’an notes, Allah Himself indicates the standards of readiness and rewards of sincerity: 

‘O you who are bearing a heavy responsibility, stand up in Prayer at night except a small portion thereof—Half of it, or make it a little less than that, or make it a little more than that—and recite the Qur’an slowly and thoughtfully.’ [73: 2-5]. 

‘O Ye who believe! Offer Tahajjud prayer in the latter part of the night. It may be that your Lord will raise you to a highly praised status.’ (17: 80) 

True devotion to God, or Divine Love, has beneficial consequences for the believer when God gazes at the heart of the sincere soul with forgiveness, mercy, kindness and indulgence. A famous Hadith-e-Qudsi reads as follows:  

Hazrat Abu Hurairah (ra) narrates that the Holy Prophet (sa) said: “Allah the Almighty says … ‘My servant can be close to Me through the things that I love and that I made obligatory upon him. By offering Nawafil, My servant gets so close to Me that I start loving him. When I make him a friend of Mine, I become the ears with which he hears, the eyes with which he sees, the hands with which he holds and the feet with which he walks. Thus, I fulfil all that he desires. If he begs of Me, I provide for him; if he seeks My protection, I grant him protection. (Sahih al-Bukhari, Kitabul Riqaq, Bab-ul-Tawazu)

Indeed, the pious men and women who are steeped in Divine waters and absorb themselves in Divine remembrance and sublime invocations- the special servants and friends of God; it is they who are blessed to partake in the subtle mysteries of this universe, and special signs of Divine nearness appear in and among their circle. Indeed, at the highest levels of this mystical journey, the believer will become alone with the Alone, almost 'lose' himself in God. With such depths of Faith in a Divinely-imbued servant, the blessings of the Islamic Way will be demonstrated- it is  as if the heaven and the earth are renewed through his presence and work for the sake of Allah (swt) as the new ‘Adam’, the ‘Khalifatullah’ of the era.

 

Today, Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam International with a Divinely-appointed ‘Khalifatullah’ [who speaks with the help of ‘Roohul Qudus’ at the head of the Jamaat] strives for the creation of a new heaven and earth; in its own humble and sincere way of pure devotion and submission to the Will and Decision of Allah (swt), it is a stunning example of the kind of Divine Manifestations that have had been witnessed through the centuries in different lands, with the advent of prophets and messengers and saints of God who strove to uphold the pristine truth about God through a correct appreciation of the eternal teachings of Faith, Alhamdulillah, Summa Alhamdulillah.   

 

Reproduced Below is a mystical experience of special Divine Nearness reported by none other than our Promised Messiah Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as) of Qadian [1835-1908] in the previous era- at a time when Allah (swt) raised him as the commissioned one of the age to demonstrate the blessings and favours of the living religion of Islam:

Interview: Jamaat @ 15

The Muslims of our times, especially the new generation of spiritually-inquisitive minds, search for pure role models in Faith. As against the self-serving leaders and myopic scholars of traditional religion who merely trade in the external symbols and rituals of their specific community, the changing times and dismal fortunes of the wider Ummah requires a renewal of the Divine Way of Islam: yes, what we need is an exemplary reflection of the original spirit of the Faith as taught and practiced by the Holy Prophet of Islam (sa); someone who can teach and preach the holy principles of the lofty Book of revelations in this era. Most certainly, the appearance of spiritual savants in every era of Islam is a deeply-held, sanctified belief among the Muslims around the world as the Holy Prophet of Islam (sa) famously foretold this perpetual path of purified guidance as a great Divine favour on the Ummah. That is why devout Muslims eagerly await the advent of a Mujaddid [Divinely-appointed spiritual reformer and exemplar of the Faith] in every century of Islam to revive and renew the days of the Prophet (sa) among the believers.

  

A special Divine Manifestation takes place in an era when a servant of God who follow in the enlightened footsteps of the Holy Prophet (sa), experience pure Divine communion in the depths of his heart and soul, and share the Divine communications that he receives on matters of faith and practice for the benefit of the community at large. Over the centuries, devout Muslims have welcomed the appearance of ‘Muhyiuddin’ among them with much spiritual fervour- indeed it is as though they are witnessing the very return of the Holy Prophet (sa) in the new era of Islam! Hence, the appearance of a Khalifatullah- a Divinely-imbued soul who speaks with the help of Roohul Qudus- is the greatest spiritual gift for a community of believers in any era.

Milk: The Elixir of Life

 

‘In livestock, too, you have a lesson– We give you a drink from the contents of their bellies, between waste matter and blood, pure milk, sweet to the drinker’. (16:67)

‘There is a lesson for you in livestock: We produce milk for you to drink from their bellies. And they have many other benefits: you eat them and you ride on them, as you do in ships.’ (23: 22-23)

‘Can they not see how, among the things made by Our hands, We have created livestock they control, and made them obedient, so that some can be used for riding, some for food, some for other benefits, and some for drink? Will they not give thanks?’ (36:72-74)

Divine Blessings abound in this world. It is the extraordinary convergence of so many beneficial elements that make life possible on planet earth. The Holy Qur'an calls attention to the grand creations of God Almighty that sustain life: the Sun, the Moon, the stars and their orbital sojourns; the wind and the clouds; the rain and the seasons, the mountains and the rivers; the oceans and the giant ships, the plants and the fruits, the insects and the animals, etc. For instance, as mentioned in the aforesaid Qur'anic verses, cattle provides many benefits for the human beings: beauty,  warmth, clothing and furnishings, riding and transporting goods, food and the milk. In the Islamic tradition, apart from the benefits in this world, milk is one of the four rivers of the Garden in the Hereafter. Moreover, it is mentioned in the traditions that the Holy Prophet of Islam (sa) chose milk during his Night Journey when he was offered a choice between milk and wine. Indeed, milk is the symbol of the drink of primordial purity, the drink of Fitra in Islam.   

All these blessings and benefits of a life-time should make man reflect on his utter dependence on the Almighty for everything. Indeed, man should recognize the wisdom and incomparable kindness of the Lord in assembling all those benefits, and remain grateful to His Lord, submitting to the Divine commands, the will and wisdom of the Creator and Sustainer of the worlds; he should reject Satanic temptations that make him forget his true condition and feel 'self-sufficient' and ignore God, betraying arrogance and hubris. Remaining a true servant of God on earth, all believers should be thankful and grateful for all the blessings of this world that come their way by the sheer kindness and mercy of the True Master and Lord of All the worlds.   

Reproduced Below is a fascinating essay written by Imam- Jamaat Ul sahih Al Islam International Hazrat Muhyiuddin Al Khalifatullah Munir Ahmad Azim (aba) of Mauritius on the significance of Milk and Milk products for humanity; the very many benefits of milk consumption for human beings, for their health and well-being, as a medicine and elixir of life: