Attributes of a Divine Seeker

How does one traverse the narrow path of spiritual proximity in a mundane world? How does one attain nearness to Allah, the Most High? What are the qualities that transformed common human beings into Divine Messengers and raised them to the elevated status of friends of Allah?

The precepts of faith are to be practiced in an everyday life, beset with troubling choices and complex questions. In the solitude of man, he is often troubled by perceptions of his own capability and material circumstances in shaping the outcomes. Islam theorises that without the command and permission of Allah the Most High, not even a leaf moves where it does. Thus, Islam offers the empowering idea of Divine Help and succour to the believer who offers fervent prayers to Allah, the Most High and does her best. Yet, a linear understanding of this idea, which does not take account of the Divine Will, would be a mistake. In his Friday Sermon of 11 January 2013, the Khalifatullah Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib of Mauritius (atba) provides illuminating insights onto the difficult and complex questions of Divine proximity.

In the service of religion and humanity, a Divine seeker has purity of heart, sincerity of intention, and selflessness in practical action. Regardless of mundane circumstances, they move ahead with their noble responsibilities, with only faith as their armour. They have the courage to walk alone amidst the storms of life and the grace to grow over individual sufferings and afflictions. They have the capability to stare down the prejudices of the self and display unpretentious humility and lack of arrogance defines them in personal life. These are amongst the qualities of real Divine seekers who attains spiritual proximity and becomes the friends of Allah, says the Khalifatullah (atba). Those who adopt these attributes come under the shadow of Divine Help and communion in the varied circumstances of this present life itself, points out the Messenger of Allah of our times.  

Read the Extracts from the Sermon:

“Our Lord, we have wronged ourselves, and if You do not forgive us and have mercy upon us, we will surely be among the losers.” (7: 24)

'Become A Plant of Allah'

Islam promises the dawn of a new era in human relations through its ethical vision and spiritual teachings. As the reform of the world is through the reform of the individual, Islam insists upon personal reform as the way forward. By creating a community of people who restrain themselves from the evil whispering of Satanic impulses and do perform good deeds for the sake of their own souls and the progress of humanity, Islam seeks to achieve the larger goal of a progressive spiritual community. 

In the times of a Messenger of Allah, the heavy responsibility of calling mankind to the path of the Lord Almighty and the way in which He has designed and created the human nature, falls on the humble shoulders of the faithful who follow the Messenger.Yet, the spiritual project is not without its share of doubts and concerns for the individual believer in his or her every day life. By looking at the sheer magnitude of the tasks and responsibilities ahead- both at individual and collective, societal level, a believer may even become overwhelmed by a sense of  incapacity and helplessness. How to negotiate these spiritual anxieties and ethical concerns at the individual level?

In his Friday Sermon of January 04, 2013 the Khalifatullah Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius offers profound guidance on the matter. Continuing on the theme of seeking to purify oneself from the evil inclinations of the lower self, the Khalifatullah (atba) exhorts the believers to seek Divine Forgivemess for personal and collective fallibilities by reciting the prayers taught by Allah Himself in His Holy Qur’an. One ought to become a real ‘plant’ of Allah, to be watered and nursed  and preserved by the Lord Himself against all odds and adverse circumstances. A real sense of devotion, love, affection, humility and sincerity in the path of Allah are personal qualities that can open one’s path of Divine Favour, underlines the Messenger of Allah of our times.

Read the Extracts from the Friday Sermon :

“Our Lord, we have wronged ourselves, and if You do not forgive us and have mercy upon us, we will surely be among the losers.” (7: 24)

Imam of the Age: Qualities and Faculties

More than a century back, the Promised Massih Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as) wrote an important essay on the Need for the Imam. This tract provides illuminating insights into the spiritual order of Imamat that Islamic ethics prescribes for perpetual Divine guidance for the common folks who seeks to strive in the straight and narrow path of pure spirituality.

Read the Extracts from the Book:

   

"Now, an important question arises: Who is to be called the Imam of the age? What are his hallmarks? And why is he to be preferred over other recipients of revelations, dreams and visions? The answer to this question is that the Imam of the age is the one for whose spiritual training God Almighty Himself assumes charge. He imbues his nature with such a light of Imamat that he takes on all the rationalists and philosophers of the world, and vanquishes them in a comprehensive debate.

Sustained as he is by God Almighty, he answers all subtle and abstruse questions in such an excellent manner, that one has to admit that he has come to this transient world equipped with all the provisions for its reform. As a result, he does not have to suffer embarrassment before an opponent. Spiritually speaking, he is the Commander-in-Chief of the forces of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sa) and it is God Almighty’s Will that through him faith should once again become victorious. All those who gather under his flag are also vouchsafed with capabilities of the highest order. He is blessed with all the necessary conditions essential to reform, and all the knowledge necessary for refuting objections, and for presenting the beauties of Islam.

‘Restrain from Evil Inclinations’

In his Friday Sermon of 28 December 2012, the Khalifatullah Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius gave a profound discourse on the hidden pearls of wisdom underlying the Qur’anic teachings on keeping away from evil inclinations and Satanic tendencies. Belivers are those who do good deeds and prefer the welfare of others even over their own personal comforts. They keep away from selfish desires and other evil inclinations and constantly seek to deny giving any corners for Satan to cast his evil whisperings.

“When you, the believers, leave behind the temporary attractions of this world and refuse to follow Satan in his path, and you give Allah preference over all things, it is then that the divine blessings are bestowed upon you; Allah sends down extraordinary blessings, and along with these you reap the good of your good deeds and you get a complete Iman (faith)”, exhorts the Messenger of Allah of our times.

Read the Extracts from the Speech:    

This is enlightenment for mankind and guidance and mercy for a people who are certain (in faith). (45: 21)

In this Quranic verse, Allah says that this Quran and the words therein contain such clear proofs for humanity, that is, when someone studies it with Taqwa (fear of Allah) and in whichever he wants, then he shall certainly see clear proofs (of the truth) in it.

Afterwards Allah says that it is guidance and mercy for the holders of faith, those who have complete faith in it. In the next verse, Allah says: “Or do those who commit evils think We will make them like those who have believed and done righteous deeds– (make them) equal in their life and their death? Evil is that which they judge.” (45: 22)

The Dead Sea Scrolls Are Now ‘Online’

The Dead Sea Scrolls or the Qumran Manuscripts are an important source of historical information regarding the material and spiritual life in an early Community of Believers during the Biblical times. According to many scholars, the Scrolls offer illuminating insights on the beliefs and practices of the historical Essene Community of Jewish people to which, it is said, the Hadhrat Jesus (as) belonged. The majority of the Scrolls, preserved at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem, are now available online and can be accessed by all here.

Dating from the third century BCE to the first century CE, the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered between 1947 and 1956 in eleven caves on the northwestern shores of the Dead Sea, Palestine/Israel. 

The manuscripts are generally attributed to an isolated Jewish sect, referred to in the scrolls as "the Community," who settled in Qumran in the Judean desert. The Dead Sea Scrolls, which include the oldest known biblical manuscripts in existence, offer critical insight into Jewish society in the Land of Israel during the Second Temple Period, the time of the birth of Christianity and Rabbinic Judaism.

Remembering Professor Abdus Salam

Professor Abdus Salam (1926-1996) was one of the leading scientists of his generation and his outstanding contributions to the world of theoretical physics were widely recognized, including by way of the Nobel Prize for Physics, 1979. He made seminal contributions to the development of science and technology in his own country-Pakistan- and yet, Pakistan as a nation has not given its due to him, thanks to his unwavering personal faith in the messages of the Promised Massih Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as) of Qadian. In a country that has legalised intolerance and the persecution of people and systemically prosecute the Ahmadi Muslims for their essential personal convictions, the memory of the great scientist is sought to be erased even from his tombstone!

For the benefit of our readers, we reproduce below an article written by columnist Mohammad Ahmed in the Pakistani newspaper The News on November 21, 2012 on the 16^th death anniversary of Professor Abdus Salam.

Unmourned in his own country

Today is the death anniversary of one of Pakistan’s ablest sons, Dr Abdus Salam. Unfortunately, his achievements and services remain unacknowledged in his own country, where he was made an alien because of the belief into which he was born, although they are celebrated around the world.

The True Purpose of Education

In a special sermon on 06 October 2012 the Khalifatullah Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius called the attention of one and all to the true meaning and purpose of education in life. Based on a specific message received from Allah the Almighty, the Messenger of our times points to the gaping holes in the contemporary education system. The students are merely acquiring degrees and do not understand the real significance of education. Modern educational system, on the whole, has become centres of factory production of graduates, limiting its functional effectiveness in resolving the complex contingencies of modern life. It has made people self-centred and individualistic, rather than socially-oriented and empathetic to the less-fortunate in society.

“True education”, says the Khalifatullah “is that which develops your inner vision, provides spiritual illumination and helps you experience everlasting bliss”. Such an education focuses on the moral and spiritual growth of the individual who acquires noble qualities and keeps under control his sensory organs.  “Only when you achieve sense control can you become a learned man in the real sense of the term. Hence, control your senses and become a master of the world”, reminds and exhorts the Khalifatullah.

Read the Extracts from the Sermon:

“By the grace of Allah, I am presenting before you today, especially our youths and the parents, a message which I initially received from Allah during a Safar Zikrullah in the Divine Manifestation of this era, so that you may profit from the same blessings and advices which come from both Allah and His humble Muhyi-ud-Din of this era. And that you may keep away from the harm which Allah and His Muhyi-ud-Din are warning you about, and that you may reform yourselves in such a way that you become the true soldiers of Islam. I know that it is not easy to just reform all at once, but when there is a will, there is a way. When there is trust and firmness in Allah, then Allah Himself shall help you. Therefore listen carefully to what Allah and this humble self have to tell you: