Thursday, January 26, 2012

Preaching of Islam: Ethical Guideposts


Islam does not enjoin upon every Muslim to devout himself wholly to the preaching of Islam; for if it were so, Muslims could not earn their livelihood nor take part in other healthy pursuits of life. Whereas all should try to preach and propagate the truth of Islam, only a section of the community is required to devote itself exclusively to work of propagation. Though all must contribute their quota, there should be a party of men among Muslims who should be entirely devoted to this work'. 

The Holy Qur’an provides guidelines for preaching the message of Islam and the Khalifatullah Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius gave a profound discourse on the subject in his Friday Sermon of January 20, 2012.  

Read the Extracts from the Sermon:

“Call to the way of your Lord with wisdom and goodly exhortations and argue with them in a way that is best, surely your Lord knows best who has strayed from His way, and He knows those who are rightly guided.” (16: 126)

The word “Hikma” (wisdom) in the verse means: (1) knowledge or science; (2) Equity or justice; (3) Forbearance or clemency; (4) Any saying or disclosure dealing with the exigencies of the occasion; (5) Gift of prophesy; and (6) What prevents or restrains from ignorant behaviour.

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Freedom of Conscience: An Islamic Value


As a religion and spiritual order, the ideology of Islam is essentially an appeal to the human conscience and its inherent capacity to embrace the right and reject the wrong. Allah, the Most High has extended to all human beings the faculty of reasoning and the intellectual capability of judgement -Free Will- to choose his or her path in life. It is entirely up to a person’s conscience whether (s)he wants to profit from the spiritual guidance on offer in the form of divine revelations. And there shall be no compulsion in matters of faith. 

In his Friday Sermon of January 20, 2012 Khalifatullah Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius expounded on the principle of freedom of conscience in Islam.Read the Extracts from the Sermon:

“And had your Lord willed, those on earth would have believed - all of them entirely. Then, would you compel the people in order that they become believers?” (10: 100)

In essence, every religion possesses a missionary character. It starts with an individual and seeks to persuade and convince others of its truth and of the beneficent nature of the values it expounds. It must, therefore, stand for freedom of conscience, including the freedom to change one’s religion and the other freedoms which are conducive to the beneficent adjustment of human beings. The Holy Quran explains that it is only within the competence of God, the All-Knowing, the Almighty, to make a person believe, but even He does not force anyone to believe. He leaves everyone to exercise his or her reason and judgement.

Sunday, January 22, 2012

Questions about Ahmadi Doctrines

[Janab R. Jamaluddin Raother, the respected Amir Sahib of the Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam, Kerala (India) received a bunch of questions through e-mail from an Ahmadi brother who described himself as a “truth seeker”. 

These questions cover a number of issues that are pertinent to the central ideas underpinning the current Divine Manifestation in the person of Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius. They include issues such as the continuity of divine revelations and the coming of Mujaddidin and other divinely raised souls in Islam, the historic trajectory of the current Divine Manifestation, especially the episode involving the establishment of Jamaat Ahmadiyya Al Muslimeen and the issues pertaining to our previous relations with (and present views on) Zafrullah Dumun Sahib, etc.

Reproduced below is the first installment of an edited transcript of the views shared by this humble writer in response to the questions raised by the brother who sought “clear cut one by one answer for (his) questions”. Some of the responses include added material as well.].       

1. I heard that Mr. Munir Azim (is) claming to be Mujaddid, Like that Mr. Nasir Ahmed Sultani, Abdul Gaffar Janba also claiming. All are denying each other. If so, what is the measurement to understand true one and fake one?

To understand and recognize the Imam of the Age, a truth seeker should ideally learn the nature and scope of the views being clearly articulated by the respective persons who says they have a Divinely ordained mission to fulfill. He should examine the claims in the light of the noble teachings of the Holy Qur’an, the path of the Holy Prophet (sa) and the explanations to these teachings given by the Promised Massih Hadhrat Ahmad (as). Based on a careful study of the views being articulated by the claimants and by applying the spiritual logic to the issues involved, a truth seeker could reach his conclusion. To dispel doubts still remaining, if any, in his mind, he should invoke the ultimate solution of prayer to Allah as famously suggested by the Promised Massih (as).

2. Both this Respected Mr. Munir Ahmed Azim sahib and Mr. Zafarulla Domun were together before, why did they separate? Or (Do you) Still accept Zafarullah Domun as your Imam.

Zafrullah Domun Sahib was the first person to recognize and accept the Divine Manifestation in the person of Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba). He was the first person to take Bai’at at the hands of Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib as well.

In the recently published Biographical Essay on the life of Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib, one can read about an extraordinary event which throws searching light on the special spiritual relationship they shared in the past:    

“On 08 March 2003, the third night of the Safar Zikrullah, Hazrat Munir Ahmad Azim (atba) supplicated Allah to honour his brother Zafrullah Domun Sahib along with him, and therefore he (Hazrat Munir) without receiving any revelation from Allah, humbly dedicated the title of Amir’ul Mumineen to Mokarram Zafrullah Domun Sahib in a special program with the Jamaat. On the spot, he received divine reprimand whereby Allah told him, who has given him permission to dedicate that title which Allah has given him to Mokarram Sahib?