The Review of Religions (April 2010)

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MANAGEMENT BOARD: Munir-ud-din Shams (Chairman) • Mansoor Shah(Secretary) • Naseer Ahmad Qamar • Mubarak Ahmad Zafar • Mirza Fakhar Ahmad• Abdul Baqi Arshad

CHIEF EDITOR & MANAGER: Mansoor Ahmed Shah

EDITORIAL BOARD: Adam Walker • Amer Safir • Bockarie Tommy Kallon •Fareed Ahmad • Fauzia Bajwa • Fazal Ahmad • Khullat Munir • Mansoor Saqi •Sarah Waseem • Tanveer Khokhar

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All correspondence should be forwarded to the editor at:The Review of ReligionsTahir House22 Deer Park RoadLondon, SW19 3TLUnited KingdomTELEPHONE AND FAX: + 00 44 20 8544 7614

The Review of Religions: April 2010, Vol.105, No.4

2 Revelation, Inspiration, Visions and DreamsTrue knowledge of God cannot be gained through dry logic and reason, butthrough revelation alone(Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad(as), the Promised Messiah and Mahdi)

12 Calendar of Religious Events and Festivals - April 2010

13 Hadhrat ‘A’ishah Siddiqah(ra) and the Holy Prophet(saw) – A Relationship of LoveA glance at the affectionate and loving relationship that existed between Hadhrat‘A’ishah(ra) and her husband,the Prophet of Islam(saw)

(Hamdah Sanori Farooqi, UK)

30 Iqamatus Salat – The Observance of Prayer in IslamAn exposition of the significance of observing the Prayer in Islam(Maulana Ataul Mujeeb Rashed, UK)

51 Death on the CrossA ten-point elucidation, using historical and Biblical evidence, proving thatJesus(as) did not die on the cross(Hadhrat Maulana Abulata Jallandhari)

© Islamic Publications, 2010ISSN No: 0034-6721

[email protected]

Views expressed in thispublication are notnecessarily the beliefsof the AhmadiyyaMuslim Community

THE ESSENCE OF ISLAM

Revelation, Inspiration, Visions And Dreams

This series sets out, in the words of the Promised Messiah(as),Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, a summary of his expositionof some outstanding topics inlcuding: ISLAM; ALLAH, THEEXALTED; THE HOLY PROPHET(saw) and THE HOLYQUR’AN. The original compilation, in Urdu, from which theseextracts have been translated into English, was collated withgreat care and diligence by Syed Daud Ahmad Sahib(ru). TheEnglish rendering is by the late Sir Muhammad ZafrullaKhan(ra), and is quoted from The Essence of Islam, Volume 2.All references throughout, unless otherwise specificallymentioned, are from the Holy Qur’an.

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The Essence of Islam – Revelation, Inspiration, Vision and Dreams

The Review of Religions – April 2010

The Book of Revelation is theOnly Open BookObserving its effectiveness, the wayof following revelation is open andwide. It is well known that a speechis charged with blessings andeagerness and power and greatnessand attraction according to thedegree to which the step of thespeaker is planted high in the stagesof certainty, sincerity and fidelity.This perfection can be discoveredonly in the speech of a person whodoubly possesses Divine under-standing. Every wise personrealises that a forceful speech, to beeffective, issues from the mouth ofa person when his heart is full of theeagerness of certainty and onlythose words take possession of thehearts which surge forth from thehearts of those who believe withperfect certainty. This also showsthat from the point of view ofeffectiveness, training in Divinerevelation is the opener of doors. Inshort, from the point of view of thevastness and vigorousness of effect,it is only the book of revelation thatis proved to be open. It is obviousthat only such a person proveshimself the greatest benefactor ofGod’s creatures who combines inhimself revelation and reason. Hehas the ability to benefit every type

of temperament and nature. Aperson who seeks to draw people tothe right path through logicalarguments only can produce aneffect, if at all, on those who arehighly educated and able and canfollow his learned discourses. Theaverage person has not theintelligence to follow philosophicaldiscourses. Thus the grace of hisknowledge is confined to the fewwho can understand his logic andonly those can benefit from it who,like him, are familiar with methodsof reasoning. This can be proved bya comparison of the achievementsof reason and Divine revelation.

Those who are aware of thecircumstances of past philosophersknow very well how they failed topropagate their teachings widelyand how their constricted andincomplete exposition failed toaffect the hearts of common people.Compare this with the higheffectiveness of the Holy Qur’an.How powerfully it has filled thehearts of its true followers with theUnity of God and in what awonderful manner its splendidteachings rooted out the habits andcustoms of hundreds of yearsstanding, which had become likesecond nature, from the hearts of

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The Essence of Islam – Revelation, Inspiration, Visions and Dreams


people and by sweeping out theirlower passions from their heartsgave them to drink of the sweetdraught of the Unity of God. Thishappened in the case of millions ofpeople. It is the Holy Qur’anwhich, by displaying its effec-tiveness and producing good andlasting results by the evidence ofits matchless power, compelled itsenemies to confess its peerlessexcellences. Even those who wereconfirmed in their disbelief wereso deeply affected that they wereforced to confess while repudiatingit: this is nothing but plain sorcery.It is the Holy Qur’an whoseattraction overcame confirmedhabits and so pulled the hearts toGod that millions of God’screatures set the seal of their bloodon the Unity of God. In thismanner from the beginning it isrevelation that has proved theguide and which has fosteredhuman reason. Otherwise, greatphilosophers and wise men havefound it difficult, even impossible,to discover the details ofmetaphysics. Those who are notequipped with normal reason, andhave not had available to them themeans of making efforts in thatdirection, have remained withoutany knowledge of these matters.

The facilities which God’s true andperfect revelation – that is to say,the Holy Qur’an – has furnished toreason, and the confusion fromwhich it has delivered reflectionand observation are facts for whichevery wise person must begrateful. Considering that therecognition of God began throughrevelation, and that the revival ofthe understanding of the Divinehas always taken place throughrevelation, and that relief from thedifficulties of the way can only beprocured with the help ofrevelation, every wise person iscompelled to confess that the waywhich is clear and straight and isalways open and has always led tothe goal is Divine revelation. Tohold that it is not an open book isclear folly.

We have explained in detail that therecognition of God by the BrahmoSamajists, based upon reason, islimited to ‘should be’ and that theyfall short of the perfect stage of ‘is’.This also shows that the clear andopen way of the recognition of theDivine is discovered only throughthe Word of God and cannot bereached by any other means. If anewly born child is deprived ofeducation and left only to the book

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of nature, which according to theBrahmo Samajists is an open book,he would achieve littleunderstanding and would possessno recognition of God. Experiencehas shown that if a person is notguided through his sense ofhearing by revelation to theexistence of God, he is not able todetermine whether there is anyCreator of this universe and, if hedoes pay any attention to searchingfor the Creator, he ends up bydeifying some part of creation likewater, fire, moon or sun as iswitnessed by the wild tribes. It isonly the grace of revelationthrough the blessings of whichman has recognised the Peerlessand Matchless God as befitted HisPerfect and Faultless Being. Thosewho were uninformed of reve-

lation and had no revealed book toturn to, and had available no meansof knowing about revelation,achieved no understanding of theDivine, despite the fact that theypossessed eyes and hearts. Theygradually forsook humanness andapproximated to senseless animalsand derived no advantage from thehook of nature. It is obvious that ifthat book had been an open one,the wild tribes would have takenadvantage of it and would haveachieved equality with those whohad recognised God throughDivine revelation. Then whatgreater proof is needed of the factthat the book of nature is a closedone than that whoever relied solelyupon it, and never heard of Divinerevelation, was altogether deprivedof the recognition of God and even

Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad(as)

The founder of the Ahmadiyya Muslim community In 1891, he claimed on the basis of Divine revelation,that he was the Promised Messiah and Mahdi whoseadvent had been foretold by Muhammad, the HolyProphet of Islam (peace and blessings of Allah beupon him) and by the scriptures of other faiths.

His claim constitutes the basis of the beliefs of theAhmadiyya Muslim community.

remained ignorant of humanmanners? If by the book of naturebeing open is meant that it isphysically visible, this is irrelevantto the point under consideration.When it is seen that no one bycontemplating the book of naturecan derive any spiritual benefitfrom it and cannot find God unlesshe is guided by revelation, itmatters not that nature is visible allthe time. (Baraheen-i-AhmadiyyahVol.III, (Amritsar, Safir HindPress, 1882); now published inRuhani Khaza’in, Vol.1 (London,1984) Baraheen-i-Ahmadiyyah,pp.191-206, footnote 11).

Historians know well that in pastages whenever anyone acquiredfull knowledge of God and Hisperfect attributes, he did sothrough revelation and that theUnity of God was neverpropagated through reason. That iswhy those people who had noacquaintance with revelationremained unaware of the name ofGod and remained uncultured anduncivilised like animals. Who canpresent to us a book which in anypast age was written aboutknowledge of the Divine andcomprised real verities, the authorof which might have claimed that

he did not discover the straightpath of the recognition of Godthrough revelation, nor was heinformed through his sense ofhearing of the existence of the OneGod, and that in discovering Godand learning about Divineattributes he derived help onlyfrom his reason and reflection anddiligence and that, without havingrecourse to any other resource, hediscovered the Unity of God andthat his mind of itself arrived at thetrue recognition and understandingof God Almighty? Who can proveto us that there was an age whenDivine revelation was unknownand there was no Holy Book andthe people of that age believed inthe Unity of God and recognisedHim merely through contem-plation of the book of nature? Whocan inform us of the country whosepeople, being unaware ofrevelation, were guided to God bytheir reason alone and believed inthe Unity of the Divine by theexercise of their reflection andobservation? (Baraheen-i-Ahmadiyyah Vol.III, (Amritsar,Safir Hind Press, 1882); nowpublished in Ruhani Khaza’in,Vol.1 (London, 1984) pp.200-201,footnote 11).

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The True Unity of God Cannotbe Realised Without DivineRevelationWhy the pure Unity of God cannotbe learnt without Divine revelation,and why one who denies revelationis not cleansed of paganism,becomes apparent when oneobserves the reality of DivineUnity. Unity means that one shouldbelieve that the Being and attributesof God are free of any associationand that we should believe that thatwhich can be accomplished byGod’s Power cannot be accom-plished by the power of anyoneelse. It is because of letting go ofthis Unity that fire worshippers, sunworshippers and idol worshippers,etc., are called pagans inasmuch asthey supplicate their idols anddivinities concerning matters thebestowal of which is in the hands ofGod alone. It is obvious that thosewho deny revelation also believe,like the idol worshippers, thatcreatures are invested with theattributes of the Divine. Theybelieve that the powers of the All-Powerful are possessed by humanbeings. They imagine that theydiscovered God through theirreason and that in the beginning itwas human beings who thought ofappointing a God and that it was by

their efforts that God emerged fromthe state of being unknown and wasrecognised and was worshipped. Hewas unknown before and no onewas aware of His existence. It wasthrough wise people that He cameinto His own. Is this anythingdifferent from the belief of the idolworshippers? Indeed not. The onlydifference is that the idolworshippers appoint other things astheir benefactors and these peopleconsider their smoky reason as theirguide and benefactor. In one waythese latter go beyond the idolworshippers. Though the idolworshippers believe that God hasbestowed great powers on theirdeities and that on accepting avariety of offerings they bestowupon their worshippers that whichthey ask for, yet they have neveralleged that God was discovered bythese deities and that the existenceof God was known only throughthem. It was left to those who denyrevelation to claim God as one oftheir inventions and to announcethat God has never affirmed: I ampresent; and that it was their greatachievement that, without beingtold and informed, they found Himon their own. He was silent like oneasleep or dead and they discoveredHis track by the exercise of their

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own reflection. Thus in effect theyrepudiate any obligation to God, butin a way put Him under anobligation to themselves, in that,without having been informed thatGod exists and without fullcertainty that disobedience of Himwould subject them to such andsuch torment and obedience toHim would attract such and suchbounty, they have submitted to thisfictitious god. According to themGod was so weak and infirm thatHe could not announce His Ownexistence and could not furnishany reassurance concerning Hispromises. He was hidden and thesepeople disclosed Him; He wasunknown and they made Himknown. He was silent and theyworked on His behalf. HisGodhead has become known onlysince a short time and that alsothrough their efforts. Every wiseperson would appreciate that suchan affirmation goes beyond thatwhich the idol worshippers allege.The idol worshippers believe intheir deities as their benefactors,but those who deny revelationallege that reason which is theirdeity is the benefactor not only ofpeople but also of God inasmuchas God became known onlythrough the exercise of reason. It is

thus clear that by denyingrevelation they not only believe inGod in a doubtful way and areinvolved in diverse errors, but theyare also deprived of belief in theperfect Unity of God and arestained with paganism. What is theassociation of partners with Godexcept to attribute to others thefavors and bounties bestowed byGod? (Baraheen-i-AhmadiyyahVol.III, (Amritsar, Safir HindPress, 1882); now published inRuhani Khaza’in, Vol.1 (London,1984) Footnote 11.)

The Type of People WhoExperience Heavenly SignsThere are three types of peoplewho experience heavenly signs.First, those who possess no meritand have no relationship with GodAlmighty, but who on account oftheir intellectual appropriatenesssee some true dreams and aregranted some true visions whichcontain no indication that they areaccepted of God and are loved byHim, nor do they derive anybenefit from their dreams andvisions. Thousands of the wickedand evil ones share with them suchmalodorous dreams and visions…Secondly, there are those who havesome relationship with God

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Almighty, but that relationship isnot perfect. Their dreams andrevelations resemble the exper-ience of a person who on a darkand very cold night espies the glowof a fire from afar and thereby isable to avoid walking along a pathwhich is full of pits and thorns androcks and along which serpentsand wild beasts abound. But theglow of the fire cannot safeguardhim against the cold and death. Ifhe cannot reach the warm circle ofthe fire, he is destroyed like theone who walks in the dark.

Thirdly, there are people whoseexperience of dreams andrevelations resembles that of aperson who on a dark and verycold night not only finds the brightglow of the fire and walks in itslight, but entering its warm circleis safeguarded fully against thecold. This stage is reached by thosewho burn up their passions in thefire of Divine love and adopt a lifeof bitterness for the sake of God.They perceive death ahead of themand run towards it and choose it forthemselves. They accept everytorment in the cause of God and forthe sake of God they become theenemies of their ego and treadingcontrary to it exhibit such power of

faith that even the angels aresurprised at the strength of theirfaith. They are spiritual championsand all attacks of Satan come tonothing in opposition to theirspiritual power…The perfectrevelation which is of the thirdtype and descends upon perfectindividuals resembles the ray ofthe sun that falls on a clean mirrorwhich is adjusted towardsit…Then that ray is magnified tentimes and its light becomesunbearable for the eye.

When revelation descends in thesame way on a purified soul itsextraordinary light shines forth andthe reflection of Divine attributesis exhibited in that soul and thecountenance of the Divine One isfully disclosed…

The lights of Divine revelation areaccepted in their perfect conditionby a soul which is perfectlypurified. Mere dreams orrevelation do not indicate anyexcellence in the recipient unless,his soul being perfectly purified,he exhibits this reflection and thecountenance of the True Beloved isdisplayed in his soul (HaqiqatulWahi (Qadian, Magazine Press1907), now published in Ruhani

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Khaza’in (London, 1984) Vol. 22,pp.20-22).

Three Kinds of DreamsDreams are of three kinds –egoistic, Satanic and Rahmanic.Egoistic dreams are a reflection ofone’s own thoughts like a catdreaming of flecks of meat. ASatanic dream is wild andfrightening. A Rahmanic dream is amessage from God. Their proof is amatter of experience. These areDivine matters far distant from thisworld. If we judge them by reasonanother person cannot understandthem and we cannot make himunderstand. These are signs of theexistence of God Almighty whichHe casts upon the heart from theunseen. When we find that what wewere told has come to pass, webegin to believe in it. An instrumentof this world cannot recognise thesethings. These are spiritual mattersand are recognisable onlyspiritually. A true dream bearswitness to its own truth (Al-BadrVol.2 No.1 January 30, 1903, nowprinted in Malfuzat, Vol. IV, pp.368-369).

The dreams and visions of all arenot alike. The perfect visiondescribed in the Holy Qur’an is as

the disclosing of the unseen is like aperfect circle and is not bestowedupon everyone, but only upon theelect. The vision or revelation thatcomes to a defective person is itselfdefective and puts him to shame.Disclosing the unseen is anexperience like that of a person whomounts to the top of a high buildingand observes the surroundings andcan easily distinguish everything. Aperson who desires to see the samethings from a low level missesmany of them. It is the way of Godwith His elect that He elevates theirsight to a height whence they canobserve everything easily and areable to give information of the end.One standing at a low level cannotpredict the end. That is how Balaamwas deceived concerning Moses(as),and he failed to discern his highstatus which would have inducedhim to be respectful (HaqiqatulMahdi (Qadian, Ziaul Islam Press1899), now printed in RuhaniKhaza’in (London, 1984) Vol.14pp.16-1).

Revelation of Trial andRevelation of ExaltationIt should be borne in mind thatrevelation is of two kinds, therevelation of trial and the revelationof exaltation. The revelation of trial

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sometimes brings about the ruin ofthe recipient as happened withBalaam, but the recipient of therevelation of exaltation is neverruined. Even the revelation of trialis not bestowed upon everyone.Some human temperaments aredeformed as some people are borndeaf and dumb and blind. In the

same way, the spiritual faculties ofsome are extinct and they carryalong as a blind person carriesalong with the guidance of others(Haqiqatul Wahi (Qadian,Magazine Press 1907), nowpublished in Ruhani Khaza’in(London, 1984) Vol.22., p.9).

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NOTE FOR THE REVIEW OF RELIGIONSVerse references to the Holy Qur’an item count ‘Bismillah...’ (In theName of Allah...) as the first verse of each Chapter. In some non-standardtexts, this is not counted. Should the reader refer to such texts, the versequoted in The Review of Religions will be found a verse earlier, i.e. at oneverse less than the number quoted in this journal.

For the ease of non-Muslim readers, ‘(saw)’ or ‘saw’ after the words,‘Holy Prophet’, or the name ‘Muhammad’, are used normally in smallletters. They stand for ‘Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam’ meaning ‘peace andblessings of Allah be upon him’. Likewise, the letters ‘(as)’ or ‘as’ afterthe name of all other prophets is an abbreviation meaning ‘peace be uponhim’ derived from ‘Alaihis salatu wassalam’ which are words that aMuslim utters out of respect whenever he or she comes across that name.The abbreviation ‘ra’ or (ra) stands for ‘Radhiallahu Ta’ala anhu and isused for Companions of a Prophet, meaning Allah be pleased with him orher (when followed by the relevant Arabic pronoun). Finally, ‘ru’ or (ru) forRahemahullahu Ta’ala means the Mercy of Allah the Exalted be upon him.

In keeping with current universal practice, local transliterations of namesof places are preferred to their anglicised versions, e.g. Makkah insteadof Mecca, etc.

12 The Review of Religions – April 2010

Day Event Significance

2 Good Friday(Christianity)

The Friday before Easter – The day thatJesus(as) was put on the Cross and takendown, presumed dead.

4 Easter Sunday(Christianity)

Most significant festival for Christians.Christians remember the resurrection ofJesus(as) and his return from death – as istheir belief.

6 Final day of Passover(Judaism)

The eighth and final day of Passover. InIsrael, Passover lasts for seven days. Oneof the most important festivals for Jews,Passover is celebrated in remembranceof the liberation of the Children of Israelfrom Egypt by Moses(as).

13 Vaisakhi (Sikhism) Festival commemorating Sikh new year.Also called Baisakhi.

23 St. George’s Day(Christianity)

St. George is the patron Saint ofEngland.

Calendar of Religious Events & Festivals (April 2010)

www.LoveForAllHatredForNone.org

13The Review of Religions – April 2010

A RELATIONSHIP OF LOVE:Hadhrat ‘A’ishah Siddiqah(ra) and theProphet Muhammad(saw)

(Part 2 in series on Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra)’s life)

Life in MadinahThe Holy Prophet(saw)’s home wasadjacent to the Mosque. As thewalls were quite thin, conversationin the small mosque was audible inthe house. The mosque was thefocus of constant activity. Therewere prayers, visitors to the HolyProphet(saw), religious and educa-tional instructions, administrativeand judicial decision making andpreaching amongst other activitiesthat took place.

Due to her exemplary upbringing,Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra) was no noviceto spiritual pursuits. She comfor-tably took on her role in the sacredhome of the Holy Prophet(saw). Her

life revolved around her most noblehusband whom she observedclosely, and she committed hiswords to memory.

When asked about the behaviour ofthe Holy Prophet(saw), Hadhrat‘A’ishah(ra) is reported to havereplied: “He excelled all men ingentle speech, smiling countenanceand cheerful temperament.” (Sahih Muslim Mawahib-ud-Dunya.Vol.1, p.293)

Tirmidhi has recorded that Hadhrat‘A’ishah(ra) was asked what the HolyProphet(saw) did when he was in thehouse. She responded:

Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra), daughter of Hadhrat Abu Bakr(ra), was one of thewives of the Holy Prophet of Islam(saw). Because of her young age, she wasable to observe the Messenger of Allah from close and recall many thingsabout her husband’s life. This article provides a brief synopsis of heraffectionate relationship including a full exposition of the calumnyattributed to her.

By Hamdah Sanori Farooqi

“He was a man like other men;he would look after his clotheshimself, he would milk thegoat, he attended to hispersonal needs himself.”

In another report, in response to asimilar question by Aswad binYazeed, she said:

“He helped the members of hisfamily in whatever they weredoing and when he heard theAdhan [Call] for Prayers heproceeded to the Mosque.”

Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra) is also reportedto have said that the HolyProphet(saw) was exceptionallymodest. When he consorted with awife he prayed:

“Lord, safeguard us againstSatan, and keep Satan awayfrom that which Thou mightestbestow upon us.” (Muhammad, Seal of Prophets,Zafrulla Khan p.280)

Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra) observed thatwhen the Holy Prophet(saw) wasserved food, he never found faultwith what he was given (Tirmidhi).

Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra)’s house was asmall room with a little space for a

courtyard. Imam Bukhari hasrecorded that Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra)

stated that the bedding in her homeconsisted of a mat made of leatheror camel-hair (Bukhari, Vol.1, Bab-us-Salat).

The Holy Prophet(saw) created apious atmosphere in his home.Masnad Ahmad bin Hanbal hasrecorded that upon entry into hisprivate quarters, the HolyProphet(saw) would often proclaim;

“If the son of Adam had twovalleys full of treasure in hispossession, he would desire athird one! The greed of hismouth can only be silencedwith dust. Allah the Almightysays: We have created wealthso that it will remind man ofhis Creator and for providingsustenance for the needy. Theone who turns towards Allahthe Almighty will find thatAllah the Almighty turns tohim.”

This was his reminder to everyonelistening that even in their privatemoments, indulgence was not theaim of life, but rather to turn toAllah the Almighty in order to seekreal pleasure.


A Relationship of Love: Hadhrat ‘A’ishah Siddiqah(ra) and the Prophet Muhammad(saw)


The Relationship of Love betweenthe Holy Prophet(saw) and Hadhrat‘A’ishah(ra)

Arabs at that time looked uponwomen as worthless possessionsand objects for sexual gratification.

The Holy Prophet(saw) introduced atotally new form of decorumtowards women. In general, hewould observe no formality orformal protocol when meetingpeople. He used to say: “I am not ofthose who adopt unnecessaryformality.” He would sit on the floornext to Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra) anddrink from the same part of the bowlthat she had drunk from. When theyate, he would sometimes suck thepiece of bone she had sucked, as ademonstration of his affection. Thelove Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra) had for theHoly Prophet(saw) was evident ineverything she did. Also, prior toher nine years of married life, shehad observed and inherited the loveof her father, Hadhrat Abu Bakr(ra),later to become the First Caliph, forhis beloved friend, the HolyProphet(saw).

Due to her young age, the HolyProphet(saw) was especially kind andgracious towards Hadhrat‘A’ishah(ra). She has also, veryhonestly, put on record any mistakes

she made where he admonished her.These incidents have become aguide for Muslim people. MayAllah the Almighty Bless andreward her abundantly, for passingon those precious pieces of advice!

Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra) would lovinglyprepare the food for the HolyProphet(saw) herself, and she wouldgrind the flour and cook the flatbread. She would clean and tidy thehouse and comb the HolyProphet(saw)’s hair, and she wouldapply perfume to his clothes. Sheattended the religious instructionsand commentaries given in themosque and would attentively listento them in their entirety. As a result,she was able to relate over twothousand Ahadith (Traditions) forthe understanding of the faith ofIslam.

Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra) relates:

“One day, the Holy Prophet(saw)

was mending his shoe and Iwas working on the spinningwheel. As I looked up I sawthat the forehead of the HolyProphet(saw) was glistening withsweat and I saw a lightgleaming in his forehead,which continued to grow andspread. It was a sight to



behold! I was watching withfascination. The HolyProphet(saw) looked up andasked: ‘‘A’ishah why are youlooking so astonished?’ I said:‘O, Prophet of Allah! I saw thatyour forehead is glisteningwith sweat and there is a lightshinning in it. I was totallyspellbound. I swear in thename of Allah the Almightythat if the poet Abu KabeerHazli was able to see you, hewould have realised that youare the true portrayal of hisverses’, and I read thefollowing verses:

He is free from any maligningresidue of birth or growth.When you look at the creases ofhis illumined brow you find hisface brighter in luminoussplendour than the puresparkle of lightning itself.”

Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra) relates:

“When the Holy Prophet(saw)

heard this, he put downwhatever was in his hand andkissed her forehead and said:‘Your delight could not havebeen as much as the delightyou have given me!’” (Madarij-ul-Salikeen, Imam

Ibn Qayyim p.177, Mutahher‘Aeli Zindagi p.38)

Once the Holy Prophet(saw) racedagainst Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra). At thattime, she was very slim, and she wonthe race. After some time, they racedeach other again, and this time theHoly Prophet(saw) won the race andsaid jokingly: “‘A’ishah! Now thescore is settled!” (Abu Da’ud).

Bukhari relates an incident where itis said that either the HolyProphet(saw) related a story to Hadhrat‘A’ishah(ra) or she narrated it to him.The story consisted of the tales ofeleven women who decided to sharetheir experience of what theirhusbands were truly like. It was quitea long story, with each wife spellingout the good and bad qualities of herhusband and his behaviour towardsher. Most were filled with pathos, butthe last one who spoke said: “Myhusband’s name is Abu-Zar’a”; shedescribed at length how kind andgood her husband was to her, andhow he provided everything for her.She related that she had no worries,as he never scolded her, even if shespoke sharply, and that he neverpicked fault with her and wouldshower her with attention and gifts.Her home was a picture of peace andtranquillity!



Listening to this, the HolyProphet(saw) asked: “‘A’ishah! Am Ilike Abu-Zar’a in your favour?”Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra) immediatelyexclaimed: “O, Prophet of Allah!May my mother and father besacrificed on you! You are fargreater than that!”

In an Arabic Qaseedah, thePromised Messiah(as) has exquisitelyformulated the emotion whichsprings to the heart on reading aboutthis incident:

What a man! How noble! HowGracious!The fragrance emerging fromhim wins over the heart!God Almighty is visible in hisface;The Graces of the Almighty areso evident in every move hemakes!

This Hadith also illustrates the HolyProphet(saw)’s humbleness. He didnot point out to Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra)

how very fortunate she was to bemarried to a man like him, a Prophetof God, who could not be comparedto any other human being. Hadhrat‘A’ishah(ra) in turn demonstrated herrecognition of his status and graceby her reply to him, which showedthat the Holy Prophet(saw) was dearer

to her than any other love she held.

The Holy Prophet’s(saw) regard forHadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra)

Hadhrat Amar bin ‘Aas(ra) hasrelated:

“I asked the Holy Prophet(saw),‘Who do you love mostamongst the people?’He replied ‘‘A’ishah!’I said, ‘Out of the men?’ Hereplied, ‘‘A’ishah’s Father!’ Isaid: ‘Who after that?’ Hereplied, ‘‘Umar bin Al-Khattaab’, and then hementioned some more names.”

For the Arabs of that era, it wastotally alien to express such honourfor any woman. This Hadith speaksvolumes, not only of Hadhrat‘A’ishah(ra), but also shows that theHoly Prophet(saw) had no qualmsabout repeating Hadhrat‘A’ishah(ra)’s name. In response tothe second query, which thequestioner expressed in anembarrassed fashion, theProphet(saw) could have easily said:“Abu Bakr!” i.e. Hadhrat‘A’ishah(ra)’s father’s name, but thechoice of words was in order todemonstrate to the questioner, andto the world at large, that it wasquite all right to honour women! For



this gracious attitude to women, thefollowing sentiment mostbeautifully expressed by thePromised Messiah(as) encapsulatesthe feelings of the followers of theHoly Prophet(saw).

O Allah, Our Almighty Lord!Continue forever to sendcountless blessingsupon your Holy Messenger, inthis world and in the hereafter!

The Holy Prophet(saw) was extremelygentle and kind to his wives. On oneoccasion he said to Hadhrat‘A’ishah(ra):

“‘A’ishah, whenever you areupset with me I always knowit.”

Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra) enquired

“How is that?”

The Prophet(saw) replied:

“I have noticed that when youare pleased with me then in thecourse of conversation if youhave to refer to God, you referto Him as ‘the Lord ofMuhammad.’ But if you are notpleased with me you refer toHim as the Lord of Abraham.”

At this Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra) laughedand said he was right.(Bukhari Kitab-ul-Nikah,Introduction to the Study of the HolyQur’an, Hadhrat Mirza Bashir-ud-Din Mahmud Ahmad(ra), p.323)

Depicting the general attitude ofmen towards women, ImamBukhari has quoted a statement ofHadhrat ‘Umar Farooq(ra):

“In Makkah we despisedwomen as lowly creatures. InMadinah the people accordedslight status to them, but whenIslam arrived, we were madeaware of the honour and statusof women.” (Sahih Bukhari, Vol.1, p.869)

This change was brought about infavour of women, for the first timein the history of the world.

The wives lived adjacent to themosque in their own quarters andeach one had a day assigned tothem. Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra) relatesthat the Holy Prophet(saw) was verymeticulous in visiting them all inturn. He would also drop by to seeeach one every day in order to tendto their needs (Mutahher ‘AeliZindagi, p.125).



The training thus received by theseladies was a source of learning pietyand righteousness for Muslims. TheHoly Prophet(saw) is reported to havesaid:

“I am leaving two thingsamongst you which holdtremendous weight: Theforemost is the Book of Allahthe Almighty and then themembers of my family!”

The Holy Prophet(saw)’s life was theHoly Qur’an in practice, and thesepious ‘Mothers of the Believers,’ asAllah the Almighty has called them,were the source of guidance andnurturance for the Ummah (Muslimpeople).

The Great Lie (Al-’Ifk)The Holy Qur’an has recorded thisincident as the “Ifk” (‘the lie’).

Masjid Nabawi in Madinah. ©dreamstime.com


The background to this calumnywas an incident that occurredaround the Fifth Year aftermigration when the Muslimsreturned after a battle with thetribe of Banu Mustaliq. TheQur’aish, the most powerful tribein Makkah, were inciting varioustribes against the Muslims. One ofthose was the Banu Mustaliq, abranch of the Banu Khuza‘ah tribe.Their chief, Al-Harith bin AbiDirar, persuaded the other tribes toattack Madinah.

The Holy Prophet(saw) receivednews that a large contingent of theenemy was preparing to attack. Heleft Madinah to counter thembefore they could attack.

When the enemy realised thatMuslims had arrived in a largecontingent, they were overcomewith fear and then all the tribesdispersed, apart from the BanuMustaliq.

The Holy Prophet(saw) announcedthat the Muslims would returnwithout harming them if theypledged to accept Islamicgovernance. However, the BanuMustaliq refused and attacked theMuslims.

The Holy Prophet(saw) directed thearmy in such a way that the enemywas encircled and had to lay downits weapons. Only one Muslim andten enemies lost their lives.

The Holy Prophet(saw) decided tostay a few days in the area, but anincident occurred which brought tolight the animosity and malicewhich the chief of the hypocritesharboured in his heart for the HolyProphet(saw).

Two men quarrelled with eachother and Muslims of various tribesran for help. Although the tensionwas defused, the chief of thehypocrites, ‘Abdullah bin Ubayybin Salul, tried to incite hatredagainst the Holy Prophet(saw). Heannounced:

“Let us return to Madinah.Then will the most honouredamong its citizens (meaninghimself) expel the mostdespised (meaning the HolyProphet(saw)).”

The Holy Qur’an has recorded thisin Surah Al-Munafiqun. An insultof this magnitude would haveenraged the Muslims to the point ofputting this man to death.However, when he and his



companions were asked, theydenied having said it.

The Holy Prophet(saw), forgave theman, but as passions were runninghigh, the Holy Prophet(saw),contrary to his normal practice,instructed the Muslims to leaveduring the middle of the day. Theparty marched for a day and a half.When they halted for a break,almost every one fell into a deepsleep.

‘Abdullah bin Ubayy’s son stoppedhis father from entering Madinahuntil he made the admission that hewas the most despised amongst thepeople and the Holy Prophet(saw)

was the most honoured. ‘Abdullahbin Ubayy, who had accompaniedthe Muslims to try and stir uptrouble, returned writhing andraging inwardly, as had the HolyProphet(saw) not arrived in Madinah,he would have been crowned theruler of Madinah. He falsely triedto find a point to attack the honourof the Holy Prophet(saw) and thusdiminish the strength and morale ofthe Muslims.

The next incident was vouched in arevelation in the Holy Qur’an.Hadhrat ‘A’ishah’s(ra) version ofwhat happened has been taken

from the most reliable narrator ofTraditions in Islam, Sahih Al-Bukhari. (See Seerat Khatam-ul-Nabiyyeen by Hadhrat MirzaBashir Ahmed(ra), and Muhammad:Seal of the Prophets by ChaudhryZafrullah Khan(ra)).

The Incident of Ifk as related byHadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra)

Hardhat ‘A’ishah(ra) relates:

“It was the practice of theHoly Prophet(saw) thatwhenever he was about toproceed on a journey he wouldpick by means of a draw thename of which of the wiveswere to accompany him.Once, on such an occasion, thename was picked out of thedraw [and] my nameappeared, so I was taken alongon this Battle. The injunctionfor purdah [covering] hadalready been revealed, so Iused to sit on the camel withcurtains tied around the seat(called a Hawdah), whereverthe caravan stopped, theHawdah was lifted down and Icould come out, and when thecaravan had to leave, the menwould lift the Hawdah to thetop of the camel while I wassitting in it.



On the return journey whenafter the Battle, we hadarrived near Madinah. Latein the evening the HolyProphet(saw) gave orders to theparty to march on. When Iheard this announcement, Iproceeded to answer a call ofnature and then returned tomy camel. I then realised thatmy necklace had gonemissing. I returned to lookfor the necklace; it took mesome time. While I wasaway, the men appointed tolift my Hawdah lifted it andmounted it onto the camel,assuming that I was inside it,and the caravan moved away.The reason the men did notnotice was that due to thescarcity of food and difficulteconomic situation, womenwere very light in weight:they could not put on muchflesh on the body, and also Iwas quite young at the time.

When I returned to the spot, Ifound that the caravan wasgone and the field wasempty. I was extremelydistressed, but then I thoughtthat I should stay at the spot,and when it will be realisedthat I am not in my carriage

they will come looking forme. I sat down to wait. Aftera long time waiting, I fellasleep. It so happened thatSafwan bin Mu’attal, whoseduty was to follow thecaravans for security and sothat he could pick upanything that had fallen offthe camels or had been leftbehind, reached the spot inthe early hours of themorning and saw mesleeping by the wayside. Hehad seen me before theadmonishment of purdah hadbeen revealed, and so herecognised me. He was sodisturbed that he exclaimed,surely to Allah we belongand to Him shall we return.When I heard thisexclamation I woke up with astart and quickly covered myface with my cloak. I swearin the name of Allah theAlmighty that he did notutter another word andneither did I hear him sayanything. He brought hiscamel in front of me andmade it sit down then. Heplaced his foot on the kneesof the camel so that it couldnot rise suddenly. I climbedonto the back of the camel



and Safwan started walkingin front of the camel holdingthe reins, until we met upwith the caravan where it hadcamped. This is the wholeincident.

Thereafter when we arrivedin Madinah with the HolyProphet(saw), it so happenedthat I became ill afterarriving in Madinah andcontinued to be ill for amonth. During this time, themischief mongers continuedto spread the maliciousrumour against me, but I wastotally unaware of it. Theonly thing which I felt andwas grieving about was thatthe Holy Prophet(saw) was notas affectionate as was hispractice. He would comehome and offer greetings andenquire about my health andwould return after that. Thispractice hurt me very much,but my illness had made mevery weak so I did not sayanything.

By coincidence, one day Ifound out from Umm Mistah,who was a relative of ours,that her son was involved inthe mischief mongering of

spreading the accusationabout me.”

Syed Salman Nadawi writes in hisbiography of Hadhrat ‘A’ishahSiddiqah(ra) that when she heardthis accusation, she could notbelieve it, but then a lady from theAnsar tribe repeated the wholestory as it was being spread inMadinah. On hearing this, Hadhrat‘A’ishah(ra) was so shocked that shefainted. Hadhrat ‘A’ishah’s(ra) ownaccount continues thus:

“When the Holy Prophet(saw)

came as usual and enquired:‘How are you feeling now?’, Isought his permission to retirefor some days to my parents’house. He gave me per-mission, and I went home tothem. My purpose in goinghome was to find out whatwas being said about me. Ispoke to my mother and shesought to comfort me, bysaying, ‘Daughter, do notgrieve, it often happens thatwhen a man has more than onewife, and he is fonder of oneof them then some scandal ishatched against her.’ I thenunderstood that scandal wasbeing spread against me and Ibegan to weep and spent the



whole night crying, grieved tothe soul.”

About the next day, the HolyProphet(saw) summoned Hadhrat‘Ali bin Abu Talib(ra) and Usamahbin Zaid(ra), seeking their counsel,because no revelation had beenreceived for some time, and theHoly Prophet(saw) was worried. Heenquired from the two as to whattheir advice would be. Both theseyoung men had grown up in thehousehold of the Holy Prophet(saw),and in those small houses, whichwere built almost open-plan, thecomings and goings of any naturewould not have missed theirscrutiny. Times were tense and forreasons of security these peoplewere alert at all times.

Upon enquiry Hadhrat Usamah(ra)

said:

“O Prophet of Allah! ‘A’ishahis your wife.” (meaning thatAllah the Almighty chose herso she must be worthy of thathonour)

He added:

“I swear in the name of Allahthe Almighty that we are notaware of anything about

‘A’ishah except for herrighteousness.”

Hadhrat ‘Ali(ra), probably seeing thegrief that the Holy Prophet(saw) wasexperiencing replied:

“O Prophet of Allah! There isno hardship placed on you byAllah the Almighty, andbesides ‘A’ishah there is noshortage of women. I do notknow anything about thismatter. You may enquire from‘A’ishah’s maid; she can tellyou the truth.”

So Bareerah was sent for, who was‘A’ishah(ra)‘s personal maid. Uponenquiry she said:

“I swear in the name of Allahthe Almighty who has sent youwith the Truth, I have neverseen any vice in my mistress,only that in household choressometimes she is not carefuland leaves the doughunprotected and goes to sleep,and the goat (of theneighbours) comes in and eatsthe dough.”

Syed Salman Nadawi has quotedanother report stating that Bareerahalso added:



“Holy is Allah! Like thejeweller recognises true gold, Irecognise her (as pure).”

Another person who was asked tomake her views known about thecharacter of Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra),was Hadhrat Zainab bint Jahash(ra), acousin of the Holy Prophet(saw) andalso his wife. Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra)

has stated that Hadhrat Zainab(ra)

was the only wife of the HolyProphet(saw) who used “to treat mewith rivalry, but it was herrighteousness which protected herfrom falling in the pit of sin” (bybecoming party to the accusation).

Hadhrat Zainab(ra)’s own sister,Hamna bint Jahash, was amongstthose spreading the maliciousaccusation. The Holy Prophet(saw)

enquired from Hadhrat Zainab(ra)

what she thought of Hadhrat‘A’ishah(ra)’s character. She replied:

“O Prophet of Allah! I feel that‘A’ishah is a pious andrighteous woman.”

Hadhrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad(ra)

states in his book, Seerat Khatam-ul-Nabiyyeen:

‘This was an accusation quitelike the accusation faced by

Sita wife of Ram Chandra Ji inthe history of Hinduism andthe calumny faced by HadhratMaryam (Mary), mother ofJesus Christ(as).’

Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra) continues withher account of events:

“The Holy Prophet(saw) pro-ceeded to the Mosque the nextday and addressed thecommunity. He said: “I havebeen grieved with the mali-cious attack on my family. Isthere any one who can put anend to this? I swear in the nameof Allah the Almighty that I amnot aware of anything aboutthis wife of mine except herbeing good and pious, and theother person who is facing theallegation in this regard whomI consider to be a righteousperson, has never visited myhouse in my absence.”

Upon listening to this statement ofthe Holy Prophet(saw), the chief ofthe tribe of Aus, Sa’ad bin Mu‘adhstood up and said:

“O Prophet of Allah! I will putan end to it. If the person guiltyof this slander is one of mytribe, I declare him guilty of a



capital offence and will puthim to death. If the culprit isfrom amongst our brothers, i.ethe tribe of Khazraj, thenwhatever punishment youadvise we will carry it out!’

This speech gave rise to the oldheld animosities these tribes hadwith each other, so therepresentative of Khazraj took it asan attack on them and heatedexchanges ensued. The HolyProphet(saw) calmed them down andproceeded home (The mischief hadreached a point where it wouldhave started a fight amongst theyoung Muslim community).

Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra) says:

“I was in continuous agony,and my tears were notstopping; it had been twonights and one day in thatstate, while it had been amonth of being ill. I felt thatmy heart would burst withgrief. I was crying, sittingwith my parents, when anAnsar lady came to visit us.She also started crying insympathy with me. While wesat thus, the Holy Prophet(saw)

arrived. He came and sat nextto me. For a month since the

accusation had beencirculated, he had not sat nextto me. The Holy Prophet(saw)

recited the Shahadah[Declaration of Faith] andglorified Allah the Almighty,then he addressed me and said‘‘A’ishah! Maligning reportshave been relayed to meagainst you. If you areinnocent of the allegation thenI am hopeful that Allah theAlmighty will uphold yourinnocence. If you havecommitted a mistake then youshould seek forgiveness ofAllah the Almighty and turn toHim in repentance, becausewhen a servant of Allah theMerciful Lord, bows to Him,confessing his or her mistakeand seeks His forgiveness,then Allah the Almighty turnsto that servant with acceptanceof his/her repentance and ismost merciful to thatservant.’”

Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra) states:

“On hearing the words, mytears stopped. I asked myparents to make a response.They both said: ‘We swear inthe name of Allah theAlmighty that we do not know



what to say!’ At that time ofmy life I was a young girl, Idid not know a great deal ofthe Holy Qur’an. I lost hope inmy parents that they wouldspeak on my behalf, so I spokeup myself with utmosthumility and said to the HolyProphet(saw): ‘I realise that youhave been affected by whatpeople have been saying , so ifI were to protest myinnocence, you might doubtme, and if, although my Godknows that I am innocent, Iwere to confess myself guilty,you might believe me. I swearby Allah the Almighty that tome my case seems to be likethat of Joseph’s father, whohad said: ‘It behoves me to besteadfast. It is Allah aloneWhose help can avail againstthat which you assert, andHim shall I beseech for help!’After saying this, I laid downon my bed, turning my faceaway from every one, in thefull certainty that as I wasguiltless, God would soonproclaim my innocence. WhatI had in mind was that Godwould assure the HolyProphet(saw) of my innocencethrough some dream or vision.I had no notion that revelation

might be vouchsafed on mybehalf or Allah the Almightywould state my innocence inHis divine words. But I swearin the name of Allah theAlmighty that only a fewmoments had passed, whilethe Holy Prophet(saw) was stillin our house, I observedperspiration over his face likeit used to be at the time he wasreceiving revelation, and inspite of the cold weather,droplets of perspiration startedto trickle down his face. Aftera while the state ceased andsmilingly he looked at me andsaid: ‘‘A’ishah! Allah theAlmighty has declared youinnocent!’ On hearing thewords, my mother imme-diately said: ‘‘A’ishah! Get upand thank the HolyProphet(saw).’ But my heart wasbrimming with gratitude toAllah the Almighty, so I said‘Why should I thank him? Iwill offer my gratitude toAllah the Almighty Who hasdeclared my innocence!’”

When Hadhrat ‘A’ishah’s motherinstructed her to thank the HolyProphet(saw), this was a demon-stration of how the Companions,men and women, loved the Holy



Prophet(saw) more than all otherrelations. Hadhrat UmmRumman(ra) (Hadhrat ‘A’ishah’s(ra)

mother) was keen to the HolyProphet’s(saw) grief and the intenseprayers he would have made in thisregard, which had attracted theMercy of Allah the Almighty. Thisis why she told her daughter tothank the Holy Prophet(saw).

The revelation that had just beenreceived was the ten verses ofSurah Al-Nur of the Holy Qur’an,which read as follows:

Verily, those who broughtforth the lie are a party fromamong you. Think it not to bean evil for you; nay it is goodfor you. Every one of themshall have his share of whathe has earned of the sin; andhe among them who took thechief part therein shall havea grievous punishment.

Why did not the believingmen and believing women,when you heard of it, thinkwell of their own people, andsay, ‘This is a manifest lie?’

Why did they not bring fourwitnesses to prove it? Sincethey have not brought the

required witnesses, they areindeed liars in the sight ofAllah!

Were it not for the grace ofAllah and His mercy uponyou, in this world and theHereafter, a great punish-ment would have befallenyou for the slander intowhich you plunged.

When you received it andthen talked about it with yourtongues, and you uttered withyour mouths that of whichyou had no knowledge, andyou thought it to be a lightmatter, while in the sight ofAllah it was a grievous thing.

And wherefore did you notsay, when you heard of it, ‘Itis not proper for us to talkabout it. Holy art Thou, OGod, this is a grievouscalumny!’

Allah admonishes you neverto return to the like thereof, ifyou are believers.

And Allah explains to you thecommandments; and Allah isAll-Knowing, Wise.



Those who love thatimmorality should spreadamong the believers, willhave a painful punishment inthis world and the Hereafter.And Allah knows, and youknow not.

And but for the grace ofAllah and His mercy uponyou and the fact that Allah isCompassionate and Merciful,you would have been ruined.(Ch.24:Vs.12-21)

Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra) has relatedthat:

“When my innocence wasestablished, my father, whoused to support Mistah binAthathah due to his povertyand his relationship, sworethat as Mistah had been aparty to the slander againstme, he would not help himagain. But soon thereafter, theHoly Prophet(saw) receivedrevelation that this was notpleasing to Allah theAlmighty, upon which heresumed his support of Mistahand vowed never to stop it.”

The attack on Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra)

was, in actual fact, an attack on the

Holy Prophet(saw) and an attack onIslam. Allah vindicated not onlyHadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra), but alsoupheld the honour of all mankindwhenever they are faced with falseaccusation against their virtue. SirWilliam Muir has summed up theallegation:

‘Little remark is neededregarding the character of‘A’ishah… her life both beforeand after, must lead us tobelieve her innocent of thecharge!’(Life of Muhammad, p.304)

Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra) used to countthis as a foremost blessing that theLord and Master of the universespoke in this divine revelation,thereby putting on record that shewas as pious and virtuous as hersacred and noble husband, the HolyProphet(saw), had declared on oath inthe Mosque:

“I swear in the name of Allahthe Almighty that I knownothing about this wife ofmine except her being goodand pious.”



Introduction The topic of Iqamatus Salat, theobservance of Prayer, is based onjust two words, yet its subjectmatter entails a diverse ocean ofwisdom and understanding. Thesetwo words encompass a funda-mental commandment of Allah theExalted; in fact, they entail thepurpose for mankind’s creation andthe means of acquiring this purpose.The first injunction for mankindmentioned in the Holy Qur’an is to

worship Allah. Islam has made itcompulsory for Muslims to observea specified form of worship, calledSalat, one of the five pillars of Islamand a fundamental requirement offaith. The topic of Iqamatus Salatpossesses a major significance inthe life of a Muslim. It has beenmade the responsibility of everyMuslim that he firmly acts upon thiscommandment, enlightening him-self with its true understanding andfulfilling this purpose of his life,

Iqamatus SalatObservance of Prayer in IslamBy Maulana Ataul Mujeed Rashed – (Imam of the London Mosque)

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Iqamatus Salat – Observance of Prayer in Islam


when he hears the call,

And thou, O soul at peace!Return to thy Lord well pleasedwith Him and He well pleasedwith thee. So enter thou amongmy chosen servants, and enterthou My garden.(The Holy Qur’an,Ch.89:Vs.28-31)

Significance of Prayer The entire Holy Qur’an is full of theemphatic mention of prayer. Prayerpossesses central significance in theprophetic Traditions, the Sunnah,and there is abundant mention ofprayer in the Hadith of the HolyProphet(saw) as well. Benefitting fromall three of these means of guidance,and becoming saturated by thatfountain of knowledge andunderstanding, the beautiful mannerin which the Promised Messiah(as),the Imam of the Age, has mentionedprayer is a faith-inspiring expositionand one that should be pondered.

The Promised Messiah(as) has stated:

‘In reality, Salat is but a namefor plunging into a fire, andafter plunging into a fire ofDivine love and fear of Allah, toburn one’s being and burneverything except Allah; and it

is but a name for such a statewherein God, and only Godremains in sight; and manprogresses to such a statewherein he speaks when Godwishes, and walks when Godwishes; the whole of his movingor remaining still, his per-forming an action or abandon-ing an action begins to conformto Allah’s will; and the ego isannihilated.’1

‘Prayer does not imply thatprayer which is observed by thecommon people as a meretradition, rather, prayer is thatby which the heart of man istendered, and falls before theDivine threshold becoming soimmersed that it begins tomelt.’2

Then he states:

‘What is prayer? It is asupplication, which is humblyimplored with Tasbih[glorifying Allah], Tahmid[praising Allah], Taqdis[proclaiming His Holiness],Istighfar [seeking Hisforgiveness] and Durud[invoking blessings on the HolyProphet(saw)].’3

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Furthermore, the PromisedMessiah(as) writes:

‘What is prayer? It is to presentone’s humility and suppli-cations and weaknesses beforeGod and to desire the fulfilmentof needs from Him; at times, tostand before Him respectfully,to pay homage to Hismagnificence and fulfil hiscommandments; at times, to fallbefore him in prostration withcomplete humility and modesty,to implore one’s needs fromHim – this is Prayer. Just like abeggar, to praise Allah saying,‘You are like so and you are likesuch and such’. To express Hismagnificence and majesty andinducing His mercy, thenimploring of Him.’4

He states:

‘A prayer in which there is nohumility, no attraction towardsGod the Exalted, no weepingsupplication before God theExalted, is in itself a deficientprayer. Prayer is that in whichone feels pleasure insupplication. Stand before Godthe Exalted with such attentionthat a state of emotion over-comes you, as if an individual is

detained in a dreadful lawsuitand a verdict of imprisonmentor hanging is to be announced.What is his state before thejudge? Similarly, one shouldstand before Allah with afearful heart. A prayer in whichthe heart is at one place, whilethe thoughts are somewhereelse, and the mouth sayssomething, is a curse, which isthrown back in the face of man,and is not accepted…Trueprayer is that which feelspleasurable. It is this veryprayer, in the description ofwhich, it has been said thatprayer is the spiritual apex –Mi‘raj – of a believer. Prayer isthe means of spiritual progressfor a believer.’ 5

Significance of Observing Prayer The observance of prayer is afundamental pillar of Islam, thefulfilment of which is obligatoryupon every true Muslim. In thebeginning of the Holy Qur’an, Allahsays that true believing and virtuouspeople are those who possess theattribute of Yuqimunas-Salat, whoobserve Prayer (Ch2:V.4). Later onin the Qur’an, Allah emphaticallystates:

… observe Prayer, and be not

33



of those who associatepartners with God.6

On the day of resurrection, when thewrongdoers will be asked what ledthem to Hell, their answer shall be:

… ‘We were not of those whooffered Prayers,’7

In the sight of Allah the Exalted,beloved and accepted worshippersare those:

…who are constant in theirPrayer8

Who are humble in theirPrayers,9And those who are strict intheir observance of Prayer.10

Consistency in prayer, humility inprayer, and the safeguarding ofprayers are the fundamental pillarsof Iqamatus Salat. Similarly, theoffering of prayer in congregationand its timely observance, and thefulfilment of all the conditions withfirm assiduousness are essential forthe fulfilment of Iqamatus Salat.Regarding the consideration oftime, the Qur’an states:

… verily prayer is enjoined onthe believers to be performedat fixed hours.11

With regards to the safeguarding ofprayer, Allah the Almighty’scommandment is:

Watch over Prayers, and themiddle Prayer, and stand beforeAllah submissively.12

In other words, the moreengagements to which one is tied, thegreater the significance becomes ofobserving prayers on time.Abandoning all other engagements,granting precedence to the prayerand assembling for its observance ontime is in actuality the true meaningof Iqamatus Salat. This shall be theapparent expression of the oathwhich every Ahmadi Muslim, by thegrace of God, undertakes, namelythat ‘I shall give precedence to myfaith over all worldly affairs.’

It is mentioned in Hadith: “Onewho does not offer his prayersintentionally has committed infi-delity.” And in another Hadith:“On the day of resurrection, thefirst thing one shall be called toaccount for is the prayer”13.Elsewhere in the Hadith it ismentioned that the thing whichseparates a believer from an infidelis the observance of prayer.Furthermore, it is stated: “Salat isthe pillar of religion”

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In other words Salat is thefoundation of Islam, without whichthe edifice of faith cannot remainerect.

The books of the PromisedMessiah(as) are replete withresounding instructions pertinent tothe observance of prayer. Forentrance into the Community, in theten conditions of Bai‘at (Initiation),formulated by the PromisedMessiah(as), the third condition statesthat every individual who doesBai‘at:

‘Shall regularly offer the fivedaily Prayers in accordancewith the commandments of Godand the Holy ProphetMuhammad(saw)’

Then the Promised Messiah(as)

writes:

‘One who does not assiduouslyoffer the five daily prayers isnot from my community.’14

Then he states:

‘Prayer is the right of Allah;fulfil it well…Even if the entirehouse is destroyed, let it be, butdo not discard the prayer. TheHoly Qur’an speaks of two

paradises, one of which is theparadise of this world, which isthe Prayer.’15

True Meaning of Iqamatus SalatThe idiom used in the Holy Qur’anfor the observance of prayer isIqamatus Salat. This phraseologyhas not been used in the Holy Qur’anmerely once or twice; rather, it hasbeen used forty seven times, bywhich one can fathom itssignificance and greatness. The word‘Iqamah’ is a complete and eloquentword that houses a world ofmeanings. In Tafsir-e-Kabir, HadhratMirza Bashir-Ud-Din MahmudAhmad(ra), Second Khalifa of theAhmadiyya Muslim community, hasmentioned various meanings ofIqamatus Salah:

1. Regular Observance of Prayer

‘The meaning of Iqamatus Salat isto observe prayer regularlybecause the meaning of Qama‘alal amri means to remainconstant in something. Therefore,the meaning of Yuqimunas-Salatwould be that ‘they do not intermitin offering their prayers’. A prayerwherein there is an intermittenceis not considered true prayer inIslam, because prayer is not oftemporary deeds, rather, it is

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considered a complete deed ifthere is no intermittence from thefirst prayer after repentance orafter reaching an age of maturity,until the last prayer before one’sdemise. All the prayers of thosepeople who tend to miss theirprayers in between are rejected.Therefore, it is the obligation ofevery Muslim that when hereaches an age of maturity, orwhen Allah enables him to do so,from that time until his demise, heshould not miss a single prayer,because prayer is equivalent tomeeting Allah, and he whorefrains from meeting his beloved,passes a judgement contrary to hisso-called claim of love byhimself.’16

2. Observance Along with the Fulfilment of all Requirements

‘The second meaning ofIqamah is of equilibrium andrectitude, i.e., the virtuous offertheir prayers according to itsapparent conditions, and do notbreak the rules set for it. Forexample, in a state of health orin the availability of water, theyoffer their prayers after per-forming Wudhu’ (ablution), andeven then, they perform theirWudhu’ properly according to

the conditions set by theShari‘ah. Similarly, they offertheir prayers at the appointedtime, and perform the actions ofQiyam, Ruku‘, Sajdah andQa‘dah correctly. They recitethe appointed passages andprayers upon their proper placeproperly and correctly.Therefore, they pay consid-eration to all the apparentconditions and fulfil themproperly.

At this place, it should beremembered that although theShari‘ah states that the prayershould be offered with its setconditions, this does not meanthat when the fulfilment ofthese conditions is not possiblein extreme circumstances, oneshould abandon the prayeraltogether. The prayer itself is inany case precedent to theconditions. If someone does nothave clean clothes, he may offerhis prayers in dirty clothes, andespecially, to abandon theprayer on the basis of suspicionis completely illogical...Untilthe fulfilment of the conditionsis possible, to disregard them issin. However, when it isimpossible to fulfil the con-ditions, to abandon prayer due

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to their unavailability is a sin,and such a man shall not beconsidered excused, rather, onewho abandons the prayer.’17

3. To Erect a Falling Prayer

‘The third meaning of Iqamahis to erect something, i.e., theworshipper does not let hisprayer fall. They remainforever adamant in offeringtheir prayer correctly and asper the stipulated conditions. Ifin his prayer someone…isassailed by thoughts ofdifficulty, he should not bedismayed, and should notconsider his prayers useless,because Allah the Exalted onlyexpects sacrifice from hisservant to the extent of hiscapacity. Therefore, thoseworshippers, whose thoughtsremain dispersed, if theycontinue to try and beautifytheir prayers and remainattentive, they will be strivingto erect their prayer wheneverit is falling. Allah the Exaltedshall not waste their prayers,rather, He shall accept them,and shall include one whoendeavours to erect his prayeramong the virtuous.’18

4. To Encourage and Motivate othersfor Prayer

‘Another meaning ofYuqimunas-Salat is that thevirtuous encourage others topray, because one manner inwhich to erect something is tomake it common and toencourage others to it.Therefore, the virtuous who actupon Yuqimunas-Salat are thosewho in addition to prayingthemselves, keep instructingothers to pray as well, and makethose who are negligent promptand vigilant.’

5. Prayer in Congregation

‘Wherever the Holy Qur’an hasenjoined prayer, it hasinstructed for prayer to beoffered in congregation.Nowhere is it ordered that onesimply offers prayers alone. It isevident therefore that prayer incongregation is a significantprinciple of faith, rather, theHoly Qur’an…states thatprayer is only observedcorrectly if offered incongregation, unless there is anuncontrollable restraint. Assuch, an individual whoabandons prayer in congre-

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gation, except in the case that heis ill, out of town, or otherMuslims are not present, even ifhe offers his prayer at home, itshall not be accepted, and heshall be considered as one whoabandons the prayer.’

In the Holy Qur’an...the actualinstruction is that thecompulsory prayers be offeredin congregation, and prayer insolitude is permitted onlyunder extreme circumstances.If one cannot offer the prayersstanding, he is permitted to doso whilst sitting. However, justas if someone who possessesthe ability to stand and pray butdoes so whilst sitting, he shallbe considered a sinner,similarly, one who can offerthe prayer in congregation, butdoes not offer his prayer incongregation, he too shall beconsidered a sinner.’19

6. To offer Prayer with CompleteAttention, Togetherness, andVigilance

‘Another meaning ofYuqimunas-Salat is also thatthe prayer be offered in a livelymanner and with vigilance,because thoughts are dispersed

as a result of laziness andnegligence, and the essence ofprayer is lost.’20

An Important Matter With regards to Iqamatus Salat, itshould be remembered that for aMuslim to observe prayer on hisown is not sufficient, rather, prayermust be established as a communalworship, and this system shouldcontinue generation after gener-ation. This issue is so important thatAllah the Exalted especiallyinstructed his beloved HolyMessenger(saw):

And enjoin Prayer on thypeople, and be constanttherein…21

It should be remembered that everyindividual who attributes himself tothe Holy Prophet(saw) and makes aclaim of love and devotion to him,is included in this injunction. Tocontinually instruct members of thehousehold to offer prayer is aresponsibility and a quality which isgreatly liked by Allah the Exalted.Whilst alluding to HadhratAbraham(as), Allah the Almightystates:

He used to enjoin Prayer andalmsgiving on his people, and

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he was well-pleasing to hisLord.22

It is necessary to keep this aspect ofIqamatus Salat in consideration, forit is the means of securing a goodfamily and good children.

A Beautiful Prayer Iqamatus Salat is such an excellentquality and so very necessary for atrue Muslim, that the prayer whichHadhrat Abraham(as) offered for thispurpose, was so liked by Allah theBlessed and Exalted, that He madeit a part of the Holy Qur’an, thuspreserving it for all eternity. In thismanner a message has been given toevery individual of the MuslimUmmah (Community) that if youwish to acquire the Muqam-e-Ibrahim (the lofty status ofAbraham) in your worship, if youwish to attain the Muqam-e-Mahmud (the highly commendedstatus) , then it is incumbent thatyou fasten this Abrahamic prayer toyour soul. Moreover, not onlyshould a Muslim adopt IqamatusSalat in his own life, but wish andpray for the same in the lives ofone’s future generations as well.What a beautiful prayer it is, whichhas been taught to us:

My Lord make me observe

Prayer, and my children too.Our Lord! Do accept my prayer.Our Lord, grant forgiveness tome and to my parents and thebelievers on the day when thereckoning will take place.’23

A Few Points of Wisdom I present two points of profoundwisdom from the PromisedMessiah(as) that shed further light onthe topic under discussion. Firstly, inorder for a Muslim to establish hisprayer, sacrifice is necessary. Thestrictness and discipline inflictedupon the soul also becomes a meansof reward and blessings. ThePromised Messiah(as) states:

‘Opposing the self is also aform of worship. When man issleeping, he desires to sleepmore, but he opposes the self,and goes to the Mosque. Thisopposition is also worthy ofreward.”24

Secondly, in a youthful age whenone’s health is good and the body isstrong, one should especially payattention to worship. The PromisedMessiah(as) states:

‘If he spent this period (i.e., theperiod of his youth) in theworship of Allah, the

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reformation of the self, andobedience to God, the fruitwhich he shall reap is that in hisold age, when he shall beunable to perform any worship,and inactivity and tardinessshall overcome him, the angelsshall continue to record thesame prayer, fasting, Tahajjud(pre-dawn Prayer), etc., whichhe used to offer in his youth.And this is the grace of Allah,that despite the fact that he isunable to perform deeds, Godconsiders him exempt, and thesame deeds are recorded in hisaccount.”25

Seven Stages in the SpiritualJourney of the Observance ofPrayer There are seven stages in the spiritualjourney of the observance of prayer.The right of the establishment ofprayer can fully be offered only afterone passes through these stages.Hadhrat Mirza Bashir-ud-DinMahmud Ahmad(ra) has elaboratedupon this exquisite topic in aremarkable manner. He states:

‘The first stage, below whichthere is no stage whatsoever, isthat man offers his five dailyprayers regularly. A Muslimwho offers his five daily prayers

and does not break in between,acquires the lowest level offaith.

The second stage in prayer isthat all five prayers are offeredat the stipulated time. When oneoffers his five daily prayers ontime, he steps to the secondladder of faith.

The third stage is that the prayerbe offered in congregation. Bythe congregational observanceof prayer, man steps to the thirdladder of faith.

The fourth stage is that manobserves the prayer whilstunderstanding its meaning. Anindividual who does not knowthe translation of prayer, shouldlearn the translation andobserve prayers. Moreover, onewho does know the translation,should offer the prayer slowly,until he understands that he hasdone justice to the prayer.

Then, the fifth stage is that manbecomes fully engrossed in theprayer. Just as one plunges intowater, man should plunge intohis prayer, until he acquires oneof the two ranks: either that heis seeing God, or if not, he

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firmly believes that God theExalted is seeing him.

After this, the sixth stage ofbelief is that an individualoffers the Nawafil (VoluntaryPrayers). One who offers theNawafil expresses to God theExalted, that he has offered hisobligation, but he has not yetbecome satisfied by them, andhe says, ‘O God, it is my desireto remain in Your royal courtbeyond the times ofobligation.’

The seventh stage of belief isthat man not only offers hisfive daily prayers and observesthe Nawafil, but also praysTahajjud (Late night/pre-dawnprayer) during the night. Theseare the seven stages by whichprayer is deemed complete.

Hence, it is necessary for anindividual to attain these sevenstages. It is the responsibilityof every individual that heobserves prayer on time. It isthe responsibility of everyindividual that he observes theprayer in congregation. It is theresponsibility of every indivi-dual that he observes theprayer whilst understanding it,

and after learning itstranslation. It is theresponsibility of every indi-vidual that in addition to theobligatory prayer timings, heoffers the Nawafil during thenight and day......Then everyindividual should offer hisobligatory and supereroga-tory(Nawafil) prayers with suchassiduousness that even hisnights become days. Similarly,one should try to acquire thegreatest possible advantagefrom the suppli-cations ofTahajjud. Until and unless onedoes not safeguard his prayersin this manner, for one to thinkthat one can please God isnothing more than a fallacy.’26

Curing Insipidity in Prayer When alluding to the topic ofIqamatus Salat, the question canarise that if one finds no pleasure inoffering the prayers, how can onehabituate oneself to it? The answerhas been provided most beautifullyby the Promised Messiah(as):

‘Whenever such a state persiststhat the love and pleasurewhich was once felt in prayerno longer remains, one shouldnot tire, and should not bedismayed and lose strength but

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should be concerned as to howthis lost wealth can bereacquired, and the cure isTaubah, Istighfar (repentance)and supplication. One shouldnot abandon prayer due toinsipidity, rather, shouldincrease prayer even further.Just as when an alcoholic is notintoxicated, he does notabandon drinking, but drinksmore and more, until finally, heexperiences pleasure andsatisfaction; likewise, someonewho feels insipidity in prayer,should offer prayer in furtherabundance, and it is notappropriate to tire. Ultimatelya state of pleasure shall comeabout through that veryinsipidity.

Look at how deep one must diginto the earth to acquire water;those who tire are leftdeprived, while those who donot, ultimately acquire it.Therefore, in order to attainthat pleasure Istighfar, anabundance of prayer andsupplication, readiness, andsteadfastness are necessary.’27

The Promised Messiah(as) has notonly prescribed supplication inorder to acquire pleasure and

attention in prayer, but has alsotaught the specified words whichare to be prayed:

‘One should supplicate beforeAllah the Exalted in extremeemotion and passion, sayingthat just as You have endowedus with the various pleasures offruits and other things, let meonce taste the pleasure ofprayer and worship as well.’ 28

In other words, one shouldsupplicate in the following words:

‘O God, I receive the pleasuresof this world everyday; grantme the pleasurable taste ofworship once as well.’

Then he states that one should standin every Rak‘ah of the prayer andsupplicate in the following words:

‘O Allah the Exalted, theOmnipotent, the Possessor ofMajesty, I am a sinner, and thepoison of sin has affected myveins to such an extent that Iam devoid of emotion andattention in prayer. Forgive memy sins with Thy blessing andgrace, and forgive me mylapses, and soften my heart,and place Your greatness and

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Your fear, and Your love in myheart, so that my hard-heartedness may be dispelled,and I am granted attention inmy prayer.’29

Then the Promised Messiah(as) statesthat one should pray in the followingwords:

‘O Allah, you see how blindand lacking of sight I am, andat this time I am in a completestate of death. I am aware thatsoon hereafter, I shall receivemy calling, and will return toyou. At that time, there shall benone who will be able to stopme. My heart is blind andignorant. Send down such aflame of light upon it, as yourlove and attraction aredeveloped in it. Bless me suchas I am not raised withoutsight, and do not becomeamongst the blind.

He said: When a mansupplicates in such a way withcontinuity, he shall see thatsuch a time will come whensomething of heaven willdescend upon his insipidprayer, which shall produceemotion.’30

Hadhrat Mirza MasroorAhmad(aba) on the subject ofIqamatus SalatEver since the initial stages of hisappointment to the exalted status ofKhilafat, Hadhrat Mirza MasroorAhmad(aba), Khalifatul Masih V,Head of the Ahmadiyya Muslimcommunity, has repeatedly laid stresson supplication, worship andespecially Iqamatus Salat. I presenttwo of these instructions as areminder:

“Worship Allah the Exalted,and worship him as is His right.Do not associate anyone withHim. During the timings ofprayer, as is His instruction,keep your full attention towardsthe prayers. Your engagementsor other excuses should notbecome a hindrance in youroffering prayers. Do not leaveyour prayers because of yourwork, rather, leave your workfor the prayers. This is also aform of hidden Shirk(associating partners with God),because if you leave yourprayers because of your workthis means that your worldlyengagements are more dear toyou than the worship of yourGod.”

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Then he states:

“Every individual who wishesto become a worshippingservant of Allah the Exalted –wishes to acquire His nearness,wishes to purify himself and hisfuture generations, wishes tosave himself from theonslaughts of Satan – there isonly one method, and that is,pay attention to worship, andthe most important aspect ofthis is the congregationalprayer.”31

Model of the Holy Prophet(saw) inIqamatus SalatThus far a brief exposition on thedetails of Iqamatus Salat has beenprovided. Now let us see the actualexamples of Iqamatus Salat in thereal world. The personality, whichthe Creator of the universe, Allah,has presented as a perfect model isthat of the Holy ProphetMuhammad(saw). The HolyProphet(saw) fulfilled the right ofIqamatus Salat so beautifully thatAllah testified that his prayers, hisworship, his living and dying, wereall for His sake, the Lord of all theworlds, and even the enemies of theHoly Prophet(saw) publicly announced‘Ashiqa Muhammadun Rabbahu,that Muhammad(saw) has fallen in

love with his Lord! The HolyProphet(saw) has stated, “O People! Ilike three things from this world, butI tell you that Qurratu ‘aini fis-salatthat the delight and pleasure of myeyes is in the observance of prayer.”

In Iqamatus Salat, the perfectexample of the Holy Prophet(saw) isspread throughout his life. Thesystem of congregational prayerbegan since the inception of Islam,after which, throughout the whole ofhis life, the Holy Prophet(saw) did notlet any lapse interfere in thisobligation, whether in a state oftravel or residence, health or illness,or in a state of war or peace. In a stateof travel, the Prophet(saw) would stopthe travelling caravan and shorten orcombine the prayers. In the case ofrain, he would also offer his prayersupon his ride, and would not let anyexcuse interfere with observingprayer.

On one occasion the HolyProphet(saw) was severely woundedafter falling off a horse. It wasimpossible for him to offer hisprayers while standing, but the HolyProphet(saw) did not like that heshould miss the congregationalprayer, and led the prayer whilesitting.32 At the Battle of Badr, thesupplications which the Holy

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Prophet(saw) made in a small pavilion,to this day, warm the hearts. Thestate of his engrossment was such ashis mantle would fall off his backagain and again, but this worshipperof the One God was above all that,and remained engaged in hisinvocations. In the Battle of Uhud,the Holy Prophet(saw) was weakenedby severe wounds. He was alsogrieved by the martyrdom of seventyof his Companions, yet the HolyProphet(saw) offered his prayers incongregation even on that day, as perhis custom. Due to the engagementsof war during the Battle of Ahzab,when the Zuhr (Noon Prayer) and‘Asr (Afternoon Prayer) prayerscould not be offered on time and thesun declined, due to his exceedinglove for Iqamatus Salat, theexpression which spontaneouslycame to the blessed lips of the HolyProphet(saw) was that, Allah destroythis enemy, due to whom a delay hasoccurred in our prayers.33

Another aspect of Iqmatus Salat isfear and humility. This magnificencewas at its peak in the prayers of theHoly Prophet(saw). With eyes ofperception, just observe the youngman who would abandon theattractions, beauty and pleasure ofthis world, and retire to the cave ofHira’ in complete solitude to find

pleasure of heart in worship. In thedarkness of night he would enlightenthe rays of spirituality with hisworship and would strain his soul.Someone asked Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra),the blessed wife of the HolyProphet(saw), to narrate the state of theHoly Prophet(saw)’s prayer. Sheresponded:

“Where shall I find the words todescribe the beauty and lengthof those prayers?”34

The Holy Prophet(saw) would stand inprayer for so long that his blessedfeet would become swollen. Whensomeone suggested that he take rest,he responded saying, “Shall I not bea thankful servant to my Lord?” Thestate of his prostrations to Allah werealso something to behold. Thenarrator relates that the state of theHoly Prophet(saw) in prostration waslike a pot fervently boiling upon thestove, or like two millstones in agrinder hitting each other. To think ofthis causes the body to tremble andthe following supplication comesfrom the heart:

“The emotion that existed inthe supplications ofMuhammad(saw), if only aglitter of it were granted to myprostrations as well.”

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Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra) was the dearestand most beloved wife of the HolyProphet(saw). She narrates: One night,when I woke up, I noticed the HolyProphet(saw) was not in bed. I thought,perhaps he had gone to the house ofanother wife. As I looked here andthere, I found the Holy Prophet(saw)

had left his comfort and bed, and wason the ground, prostrating at somedistance and was engaged insupplications. Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra)

states: When I saw this, I was verydisappointed at myself and I said tomyself, O ‘A’ishah(ra), what thoughtsare you preoccupied with, whereaslook at the state in which theMessenger of Allah is in35. In anothernarration it is mentioned that shefound the Prophet(saw) prostrating in anearby graveyard in the darkness ofthe night.

Hadhrat ‘A’ishah(ra) mentionsanother incident: One night theHoly Prophet(saw) came to my house.That night, it was my turn for theHoly Prophet(saw) to spend the nightwith me. When the Holy Prophet(saw)

entered the quilt in the cold night ofwinter, he said, “O ‘A’ishah! Do youpermit me to spend this night in theworship of Allah?” I responded, “Idesire your happiness, I happilygrant you permission.” Therefore,the Holy Prophet(saw) immediately

stood up, performed his Wudhu’ andbegan to offer prayer, and he spentthe whole night in worship andinvocations, until his place ofprostration became wet with tears36.

With regards to prayer, theattachment and interest of the HolyProphet(saw) was such as even in hisfinal illness, he was suffering from asevere temperature, and was driftingin and out of a state consciousness.In anxiety, he would ask again andagain, “Is it time for prayer?” Hewas told that the companions werewaiting for him in the mosque. Inorder to decrease the severity of histemperature he asked that coldwater be put on his body, and as hegot up to go to the mosque, he fellinto a state of unconsciousnessagain. Upon regaining conscious-ness, he once again asked about theprayer. He was told that thecompanions were waiting in themosque. He had cold water put onhis body again. The temperature fellto some extent, but he becameunconscious again. Afterwards,when his state became a bit better,he placed both hands on twoCompanions and went to themosque in such a state that his feetwere being dragged behind him.The Holy Prophet(saw) led theprayers sitting beside Hadhrat Abu

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Bakr(ra) (later to become the FirstKhalifa of Islam) and thus set suchan example of Iqamatus Salat that itshall remain unparalleled until theend of time.

Model of the Promised Messiah(as)

in Iqamatus Salat Let us study the state of IqamatusSalat in the blessed life of thePromised Messiah(as) in light of onlya few examples. The most luminousaspect of the life of the PromisedMessiah(as) was his love of Allah.The whole of his life was absorbedin this very love and the observanceof worship and prayer was hisspiritual food. His observance ofprayer in congregation wasunparalleled. In the days of hisyouth, he was referred to as aMasitar, i.e., one whose time isprimarily spent in the mosqueengaged in worship. Hadhrat PirSirajul Haq Nu‘mani(ra) writes: Ipresented myself before thePromised Messiah(as) in 1882 andremained in his presence until a fewmonths prior to his demise. I alwaysfound the Promised Messiah(as)

compliant to the observance ofcongregational prayer37. It isnarrated by Hadhrat MuftiMuhammad Sadiq(ra) that two orthree years prior to the demise of thePromised Messiah(as), whenever the

Promised Messiah(as) could not comeout for the Maghrib (evening prayer)and ‘Isha (night Prayer) he wouldgather the women and children inthe home and offer the prayers incongregation38. In his early days, thePromised Messiah(as) would keepHafiz Mu‘inuddin with him for themere purpose that in this way, hewould receive the opportunity tooffer prayer in congregation. Duringthe law-suits that he faced, thePromised Messiah(as) never missed aprayer. He would seek permissionfrom the court and offer his prayerson time.

The Companions of the PromisedMessiah(as) have described awonderful image of the prayers ofthe Promised Messiah(as). There is anarration of Hafiz Hamid ‘Ali thatthe Promised Messiah(as) would offerhis prayers with great preoccupationand interest. He would repeat thewords Ihdinas-siratal mustaqim(Guide us in the straight path) veryoften and would repeat the words Yahayyu ya qayyumu birahmatikaastaghith (O Living and SelfSustaining Allah, I beseech ThyMercy). He would repeat these wordsagain and again with great emotionand passion as if someone asking forsomething of his superior, andweeping, asking for his desired item

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again and again. Generally, hisprostrations before Allah in prayerwere very lengthy and at times itseemed that he would melt and flowaway in his emotions.

Another description of the prayerand supplication of the PromisedMessiah(as) is found in a narration ofHadhrat Maulawi ‘Abdul KarimSialkoti. He narrates that it was thedays when the plague was rampant inthe Punjab and people were fallingprey to this disease. This was theplague which had been manifested asa sign of the truthfulness of thePromised Messiah(as), but due to hislove for mankind, he was engaged inprayer for them. The manner inwhich the Promised Messiah(as) waspraying astounded Maulawi Sahiband he said:

“There was such grief andemotion in this prayer of thePromised Messiah(as) that theheart of the listener melted, andthe Promised Messiah(as) wasweeping before the Divinethreshold in such pain just as awoman in childbirth. Uponlistening more attentively, Inoticed that the PromisedMessiah(as) was praying for thesalvation of mankind from thepunishment of the plague. The

Promised Messiah(as) wassaying, ‘If these people aredestroyed in this chastisement,who shall worship you39?’”

In addition to Tahajjud, the PromisedMessiah(as) would sit in completeseclusion for the worship of Allahduring a part of the day. In his lastyears, when he had the Baitul Du‘abuilt, he would shut the door and sitinside for about two hours andengage himself in the worship ofAllah. Many a time, in search ofseclusion, he would go out andwould sit and worship his Lord inseclusion.

Another aspect of Iqamatus Salat isthat when the time for prayer arrives,it should be given precedence overall other engagements. I present abeautiful example of this from thelife of the Promised Messiah(as).Hadhrat Sayyidah Nusrat JahanBegum Sahibah(ra), the blessed wifeof the Promised Messiah(as), statesthat the Promised Messiah(as) said toher:

‘Once, I travelled for a law-suit.Other cases were being dealtwith, while I waited under a treeoutside. Since it was time forprayer, I began to offer myprayer right there. However,

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during my prayer I began tohear my name being summonedby the court, but I continuedpraying. When I completed myprayer, I noticed an attendantof the court standing next tome. As soon as I completed it,he said, ‘Mirza Sahib!Congratulations, you have wonthe case.’40

Despite being in severe pain andillness, the Promised Messiah(as)

always paid due regard to IqamatusSalat. I present one example of this.The Promised Messiah(as) wasauthoring a book called Nurul Haqin response to a book written by aChristian. Only four or five pageshad been written when the PromisedMessiah(as) was struck with a severeheadache. The pain increased somuch that the Promised Messiah(as)

could not come to the mosque forthree days. On the fourth day, afterfeeling slightly better, he came forthe Fajr (morning) prayer andoffered the congregational prayerwith great difficulty whilst sitting.The state of his illness was such thatthe Promised Messiah(as) washeavily perspiring, and he was soweak that after the prayer he couldnot even sit any longer, and laydown in the mosque41.

The great care of the PromisedMessiah(as) regarding the issue ofIqmatus Salat reminds us of theperfect example of the HolyProphet(saw) at every step. The soul isentranced to see how this trueservant followed his Master, theHoly Prophet(saw) at every step.Furthermore, his state is such, thatafter fulfilling his responsibility ofworship to the maximum limits ofhis capacity, he still feelsembarrassment and shame. There isan incident in the era of thePromised Messiah(as) when a dancer,who was invited to a non-Muslim’shome for a wedding, sang anddanced all night long. When thePromised Messiah(as) was informedof this, he enquired, “Why don’tyou find out how much this poorlady earned for the night?” It wasdiscovered that she earned fiverupees. When the PromisedMessiah(as) came to his Companionsthe next morning, he said:

“I was embarrassed all nightlong that this lady worked sohard for a mere five rupees. Wereceive thousands and thou-sands, nay, countless gifts andrewards from our benefactorand protector, Allah theExalted and we still do notwork as hard. Similarly, when I

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hear the security guard at night,I become embarrassed that hewatches guard all night longfor a mere four or five rupees amonth. He does not even restduring the shorter nights, hedoes not care about the cold orrain. On the other hand, someof us sleep so negligently incomparison to him. Manshould do justice to himself inhis own heart.”42

The final action of this blessedindividual was prayer. In his lastmoments the Promised Messiah(as)

became very weak. Hadhrat MirzaBashir Ahmad(ra), his son, describesthese last few moments:

“When the time for morningprayer arrived…[The PromisedMessiah(as)] asked in a faintvoice, ‘Is it time for prayer?’ Aservant responded, ‘YesHudhur, it is time.’ Uponhearing this, the PromisedMessiah(as) touched the sides ofhis bed, to perform Tayyamum(an alternative for ablutionwhen water is unavailable) andintended for prayer whilstlying, but fell unconscious.When he regained hisconsciousness he enquiredagain, ‘Is it time for prayer?’ It

was said that, ‘Yes Hudhur, it istime.’ Then he intended forprayer again and offered hisprayer whilst lying there.”43

Conclusion This point is especially worthy ofremembrance, that there is a veryclose relationship betweenIqamatus Salat and the institution ofKhilafat. In the Ayat-ul-Istikhlaf, bystating Ya‘budunani la yushrikunabi shai’a (“They will worship Me,and they will not associate anythingwith Me” – Ch.24 V.56), Allah haspromised the believers that throughthe blessings of Khilafat they shallobserve their worship merely for thepleasure of Allah the Exalted. Thecommunity of believers, under theshade of Khilafat shall become acommunity of worshippers, andevery individual of this communityshall be an exemplary model of thedivine injunction of Iqamatus Salat.This is why they shall receive areward for standing firm upon thewholehearted unity of Allah theExalted.

Today, God has placed the crown ofKhilafat-e-Ahmadiyyah upon thiscommunity and it is we who havebeen granted this great reward.Therefore, O lovers and devotees ofKhilafat! Come, let us express our

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gratitude for this divine blessing andlet us express our attachment,loyalty and obedience to Khilafat-e-Ahmadiyyah by leaving thisassembly with a resolute intentionthat we shall apply the divine orderof Iqamatus Salat upon ourselves insuch a manner that every aspect ofthis topic holds true to ourpersonalities. May prayer becomeour soul food. May prayer becomethe delight of our eyes and may ourhearts find pleasure in prayer. May

Allah make it so that we stand firmon this oath with a true heart, firmdetermination and true loyalty suchas every one of our prayers falls trueto every level of Iqamatus Salat.May we remain alive with livelyand life-giving prayers, and may wehand over our lives to our Lordwhilst offering such acceptableprayers.

References1 Malfuzat, Vol.10, pp.314 2. Malfuzat, Vol.5, pp.402-403 3. Kishti-e-Nuh, Ruhani Khaza’in,

Vol.19, pp.65 4. Tafsir Masih-e-Mau‘ud, Vol.3, pp.612,

published in Rabwah, new edition 5. Malfuzat, Vol.5, pp.44-45 6. Holy Qur’an, Ch 30:V.327. Holy Qur’an, Ch 74:V.448. Holy Qur’an, Ch 70:V.249. Holy Qur’an, Ch 23:V. 310. Holy Qur’an, Ch 70:V.3511. Holy Qur’an, Ch 4:V. 10412. Holy Qur’an, Ch 2:V.23913. Al-Nisa’i 14. Kishti-e-Nuh, pp.19, Ruhani Khaza’in,

Vol.19 15. Malfuzat, Vol.2, pp.370 16. Tafsir Kabir, Vol.1, pp.104 17 Tafsir Kabir, Vol.1, pp.104 18 Tafsir Kabir, Vol.1, pp.105 19. Tafsir Kabir, Vol.1, pp.105-106 20. Tafsir Kabir, Vol.1, pp.106 21. Ch 19:V.56

22 Ch 19:V.5623. Ch 14: Vs.41-4224. Malfuzat, Vol.2, pp.552, new edition 25. Malfuzat, Vol.4, pp.199 – footnote,

new edition 26. Tafsir Kabir, Vol.2, pp.135-136 27. Malfuzat, Vol.5, p.432 28. Malfuzat, Vol.1, pp.163 29. Fatawa Hadhrat Masih Mau‘ud, pp.37,

published in 1935 30. Malfuzat, Vol.2, pp.616, new edition 31. Al-Fazl International London, 28

January 2005 32. Bukhari 33. Bukhari 34. Bukhari, Kitabus Saum 35. Al-Nisa’i 36. Suyuti37. Tadhkiratul Mahdi, pp.70 38. Speech at Jalsa Salana, 1930 39. Sirat Masih-e-Mau‘ud, Vol.3, pp.395 40. Siratul Mahdi, Vol.1, pp.15 41. Tadhkiratul Mahdi, pp.48-49 42. Al-Fazl, 16 August 1998 43. Silsilah Ahmadiyyah, pp.182


The Birth of Jesus(as)

Strangely enough, the three greatreligions of the world Judaism,Christianity and Islam are atvariance with one another aboutboth the birth and the death ofJesus Christ(as), who was bornamong the Jews. The Jews declarehis birth to be illegitimate and areguilty of uttering a grievouscalumny against Mary, mother ofJesus(as). They declare him to beunfit to “enter the congregation ofthe Lord” because of hisillegitimate birth, God forbid. TheChristians on the other hand,believe that Jesus Christ(as) wasborn without the agency of anearthly father and that he was theSon of God Himself. This showsthat both the Jews and theChristians have gone to theopposite extremes as regards thebirth of Jesus(as). The Muslims ontheir part believe that Jesus(as) wasborn without the agency of anearthly father, but he was not theSon of God. A fatherless birth maybe a strange incident but it is notunnatural. There have been cases inmedical history where innocentvirgins have given birth to babies.Even Adam(as), the progenitor ofthe modern human race is

Death on the Cross

By Hadhrat Abulata Jallandhari

Hadhrat AbulataJallandhari (1904-1977)studied at the TheologicalCollege of Qadian anddedicated his life for thecause of Islam. He startedworking as a missionary in1927 and was posted inPalestine (1931 to 1936)where he startedpublishing the magazine‘Al-Bushra’ in Arabic. Hewas the founding Editor ofthe Urdu magazine ‘Al-Furqan’ and remainedEditor for 26 years untilhis death. He also servedas Principal of theTheological Colleges ofQadian, India, andRabwah, Pakistan.)

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unanimously believed by the threegreat religions of the world, to beborn without the agency of eitherfather or mother. The Muslimsbelieve that Jesus(as) was a trueprophet of God. His birth withoutthe agency of man has nothing todo with his sonship or his divinity.He was human, pure and simple.Jesus(as) invariably calls himself the‘Son of man’ in the NewTestament.

The Death of Jesus(as)

The death of Jesus(as) is an equallycontro versial affair with the Jews,the Christians and the Muslims.The Jews believe that Jesus(as) diedon the cross because he was a falseprophet. In this connection theyquote the Bible.

‘And if a man have committed asin worthy of death, and he beto be put to death, and thouhang him on a tree his bodyshall remain all night upon thetree, but thou shalt in any wisebury him that day; for he that ishanged is accursed of God…”’(Deuteronomy 21:22-23)

According to them, Jesus(as) was afalse prophet, therefore he died on

the cross as the accursed of God.

The Christians also believe thatJesus(as) was hanged on the crossand died an accursed death. Paulsays:

‘Christ hath redeemed us fromthe curse of the law, being madea curse for us: for it is written,cursed is every one that hangethon a tree.’ (Galatians 3:13)

But the Holy Qur’an declares thatChrist did not die on the Cross. Godsaved him from death bycrucifixion, in the same way Hesaved His dear ones fromtribulations. Did not Jonah(as), theProphet, come out alive from thebelly of the whale? The fact of thematter is that Jesus Christ(as) onlyfell into a swoon on the cross, butwhen he was taken down from it,he re covered, then died a naturaldeath at the age of 120.

On the strength of their belief thatJesus(as) was a false prophet, theJews, particularly the Pharisees ofhis time, brought serious politicalcharges against him, alleging thathe was disloyal to the RomanEmperor, and that he had claimed


himself to be the King of the Jews.The governor, Pilate, was notconvinced of his guilt, but beinginfluenced by the tumult ofmultitude, he delivered Jesus(as) tobe crucified. They put him on thecross where he remained, at themost, for three or four hours onlyand then was taken down in acomatose state and placed in asepulchre in a garden nearby. Inthose times, it took several days forcrimi nals to die by crucifixion.They suffered the pangs of hungerand thirst and in most cases theirlegs were broken. They died alingering death, extending over

several days. But it was not so inthe case of Jesus Christ(as). He wasput on the cross on a Friday after -noon. The following being theSabbath day, a day of religiousobservance for the Jews, and nocriminal could remain on the crosson that holy day, he was takendown from it after about three orfour hours. The loss of blood fromthe wounds caused him to fallunconscious. He was taken for adead man. His body was placed ina sepulchre in a garden by Josephof Arimathaea, his own disciple.Jesus(as) being still alive in thesepulchre, left it on the third day in

Jerusalem ©dreamstime.com

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disguise, met his disciples atGalilee and ate with them. Hiswounds were healed by theapplication of an ointmentespecially prepared by his disciplesfor the purpose. This is the realstory of the crucifixion of Jesus(as).

The Christian version of his deathis not only inaccurate but is alsoagainst historical evidence – theybelieve that Jesus(as) actually diedon the cross and on the third day herose up to the heavens. What aparadox! What a myth! ModernChris tianity rests on the belief thatJesus(as) died on the cross. But if it isproved that he did not die on thecross nor did he rise from the dead,then the whole edifice of Chris -tianity crumbles to the ground.Paul, who is the real founder ofmodern Christianity, himself says:

‘And if Christ be not risen, thenis our preaching vain and yourfaith is also vain.’(1 Corinthians 15:14)

The late Dr. Zwemer, the well-known American missionary, says:

‘If our belief in the death ofChrist on the cross is wrong

then the whole of Christianity isa farce.’

I – The Sign of Jonah(as)

Now we proceed with argumentsfrom the Bible itself, which showthat Jesus(as) did not die on thecross. We read in the NewTestament:

‘And when the people weregathered thick together, he(Jesus(as)) began to say, this is anevil generation: they seek asign: and there shall no sign begiven to it but the sign of Jonahthe prophet. For as Jonah was asign unto the Ninevites, so shallalso the Son of man be to thisgeneration.’ (Luke 11:29, 30)

Again:

‘But he answered and said untothem: an evil and adulterousgeneration seeketh after a signand there shall no sign be givento it, but the sign of the prophetJonah: For as Jonah was threedays and three nights in thewhale’s belly; so shall the Sonof man be three days and threenights in the heart of the earth.’(Matthew 12:39, 40)

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Jesus Christ(as) is here comparinghis own fate with that of theProphet Jonah(as). Now what wasthe sign given by Jonah(as) to theNinevites? The Bible says:

‘Now the Lord had prepared agreat fish to swallow up Jonah.And Jonah was in the belly ofthe fish three days and threenights.’

‘Then Jonah prayed unto theLord his God out of the fish’sbelly. And said, I cried byreason of mine affliction untothe Lord, and he heard me outof the belly of hell cried I, andthou heardest my voice.’(Jonah 1:17, & 2:1, 2)

According to this verse in theBible, Jonah(as) was swallowed upby a big fish, where he remainedfor three days and three nights andthen came out alive from the bellyof the fish. It was a sign given to theNinevites. Jonah(as) prayed to Godfor deliverance while in the belly ofthe fish. The Lord heard his prayerand Jonah(as) came out alive.Jesus(as) says that no sign shall begiven to the evil and adulterousgeneration of his time except that

of Jonah(as). Now what is theresemblance between the two signsof Jonah(as) and Jesus(as)? It isnothing but going alive into thebelly of the fish and the heart of theearth and coming out alive. BothJonah(as) and Jesus(as) cried byreason of their respective afflictionsand prayed to their Lord fordeliver ance. The prayers of bothwere heard. If Jesus(as) did not enterthe heart of the earth (sepulchre)alive, and come out alive, where isthe resemblance of the two signs?Jesus(as) promised to show only onesign to the generation of his time,but even if that sign is not proved tobe true, is there any thing also toprove the truth of his claim to be aprophet? Jesus(as)’s reference to thesign of Jonah(as) simply means thathe would not die on the cross.Therefore, there is every reason tobelieve that the swoon theory is notbased on a wrong hypothesis.

II – Pontius Pilate’s Wife Sees aDream

‘When he (Pilate) was set downon the Judgement seat, his wifesent unto him, saying, Havethou nothing to do with that justman (Jesus(as)): for I havesuffered many things this day in

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a dream because of him.’(Matthew 27:19)

Pilate’s wife’s dream was very trueand quite opportune. It purports tomean that Christ be saved from theaccursed death on the Cross. Godsaves his dear ones by showingdreams to other people, as was thecase with Joseph(as) who wasreleased from jail havinginterpreted the two dreams of theking. God wanted to protectJesus(as) against his enemies, hencethe dream of the Ro mangovernor’s wife which influencedhis judgement.

III – The Roman Governor’sSympa thetic Attitude The Jews presented the case ofJesus Christ(as) to Pontius Pilate, theRoman governor of Palestine. Heheld a judicial inquiry into the caseand declared that Jesus(as) was notguilty of the charges broughtagainst him. He said to them:

‘Ye have brought this man untome, as one that perverteth thepeople: and behold, I, havingexamined him before you, havefound no fault in this mantouching those things whereof

ye accused him.’(Luke 23:14)

‘He went out again unto theJews and saith unto them, I findin him no fault at all. But yehave a custom, that I shouldrelease unto you one at thepassover: will ye, therefore, thatI release unto you the King ofthe Jews? Then cried they allagain, saying, Not this man, butBarabbas. Now Barabbas was arobber.’(John 18: 38, 40)

‘And from thenceforth Pilatesought to release him: but theJews cried out, saying, if thoulet this man go, thou art notCaesar’s friend: whosoevermaketh himself a king speakethagainst Caesar.’(John 19:12)

From the references given above, itis evi dent that the Governorregarded Jesus(as) in nocent of all thecharges brought against him by theJews. He tried his utmost, to releasehim but when the Jews threatenedto report him to the Caesar inRome, he yielded to them andhanded Jesus(as) over to them, but

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secretly took measures to see thatJesus(as) should be saved. He had hiswife’s dream before him and heknew full well that the chief priestshad conspired against him becauseof envy.

IV - Pontius Pilate’s Attempts toSave ChristPilate, the Governor, wasthoroughly con vinced of theinnocence of Jesus Christ(as). Hetherefore, had devised a scheme tosave Jesus(as)’s life. As a responsibleofficial of the Roman Empire, hecould not openly come to theforefront, but he was the mas -termind of the whole scheme andthe lead character in the drama.Other characters of the show wereJoseph of Arimathaea, anhonourable councillor and discipleof Jesus Christ(as). He had alreadyhad a sepul chre hewn out in a rockgarden nearby. Another actor in thedrama, was a learned Jew namedNicodemus, who was also privy tothe whole matter. We read of him inSt. John:

‘And there came alsoNicodemus, which at the firstcame to Jesus by night andbrought a mixture of myrrh and

aloes about a hundred poundweight.’ (John 19:39)

It was very wise of Pilate to chooseFriday afternoon as the time forJesus(as)’s crucifixion so that hecould not remain on the cross aftersunset, the following day beingSab bath, a holy day to the Jews. Hese lected Joseph and Nicodemus asthe most trusted friends to executethe pre-arranged scheme. Allnecessary measures were adoptedto bring Jesus(as) to consciousness.Otherwise, what did Nicodemusmean by bringing the mixture ofmyrrh and aloes? Jesus(as) wasshown to have died in officialrecords, to pacify the Jews and theImpe rial government in Rome.Joseph of Arimathaea, boldly askedthe Governor to hand over the‘body’ of Jesus(as), a request hereadily granted. If the plan was notpre conceived, how could theGovernor hand over the ‘body’ ofJesus(as) to a stranger from outside?There is reason to believe, thatJesus Christ(as) himself must havebeen informed of the plan, so thathis prophecy might come true;“That as Jonah was three days andthree nights in the whale’s belly, so

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shall the Son of man be three daysand three nights in the heart of theearth.” Nicodemus’ meeting withJesus Christ(as) the previous nightbrings into light the whole story.

V – Duration of CrucifixionThe period of time Jesus(as)

remained on the Cross was not longenough to war rant his death bycrucifixion. Criminals gen erallytook several days to die a lingeringdeath on the cross, on account ofthe loss of blood from the woundson hands and feet, the physicalexhaustion, pain, pangs of hungerand thirst. The minimum time ofdeath on the cross ranged between24 and 28 hours but in some casesit took several days to die on thecross. In such cases they used tobreak the legs of the criminals witha cruciflagrum so that death may behastened by internal haemorrhage.Further investigation into thematter of Jesus Christ(as) tells us thatJesus(as) remained on the cross for afew hours only. The actual du rationof the time Jesus(as) remained on thecross was not more than three orfour hours. Jesus Christ(as), who wasin the prime of his youth (33 yearsold) and enjoyed excellent health,could not be expected to have died

within such a short time, espe ciallywhen his legs were not broken aswas done in the case of the tworobbers cruci fied with him thesame day. It may not be out of placehere to note that, according to theRoman calendar, the day beganwith the rising of the sun and endedwith its setting. The same custom isin vogue even to this day in Arabcoun tries. According to John(19:14) it was about the sixth hourof the day (Friday) that Pilate spokelast to the Jews about Jesus(as)’scrucifixion and handed him over tothem.

‘And when the sixth hour wascome, there was darkness overthe whole land until the ninthhour. And at the ninth hour,Jesus cried with a loud voice,saying, Eloi, Eloi, LamaSabachthani? My God, My Godwhy hast thou forsaken me?’(Mark 15:33, 34)

This clearly shows that Jesus(as)

retained his consciousness up to theninth hour of the day and then hefell into a swoon or lostconsciousness. This is what theNew Tes tament writers call “givingup the ghost.” None of the writers

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were present on the spot to stand aseye-witness. The ‘swoon’ wastaken to be ‘death’ and ‘death onthe cross’ means an accursed death.Do we not read in the Bible, “for hethat is hanged is accursed of God.”(Deut. 21:23) What an audacity onthe part of Christians to call a trueprophet of God accursed of God!

VI – Blood and water‘Then the soldiers came andbroke the legs of the first and ofthe other, who was crucifiedwith him. But when they cameto Jesus, and saw that He was‘dead’ already, they did notbreak his legs. But one of thesoldiers with a spear pierced hisside, and forthwith came thereout blood and water.’(John 19:32, 33, 34)

The soldiers did not break the legsof Jesus(as) for they took him for adead man, while actually he was ina state of swoon, or just to silencethe angry Jews he was declared tobe a ‘dead’ man. But one of thesoldiers “pierced his side andforthwith there came out bloodand water,” which is a sure sign oflife, for blood and water do notcome out of a dead man’s body

due to the absence of bloodpressure being exerted by theheart. There is much food forthought for those who care toponder over it.

VII – No eye-witnessesThree writers of the Gospels statethat there was darkness over all theland from the sixth to the ninthhour and that there was anearthquake and the rocks were rentand the veil of the temple was rentin twain. It is a matter of commonexperience, that at the time of asevere dust storm, accompa niedby an earthquake, people generallyhasten to go home and they do notenjoy the luxury of a bloody sight-seeing. Now imagine for amoment, who could stand as aneye-witness to tell the story thatJesus(as) ac tually died on the cross?The Jews, if at all there were anyon the spot, must have run away atthe sight of the rising storm andthe shaking of the earth must havefrightened them to turn on theirheels and hasten to their homes.As to the disciples they hadalready fled from the scene of thecrucifixion.

‘Peter began to curse and to

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swear saying, I know not thisman (Jesus) of whom youspeak.’(Mark 14:71)

‘And they all forsook him(Jesus) and fled.’(Mark 14:50)

To be brief, there was no onepresent of substance on the scenewho could definitely and certainlysay that he saw Jesus(as) ‘giving upthe ghost.’ This is all mereconjecture and imagination.

VIII – Jesus(as)’s mission to thelost sheep of Israel

‘For the Son of man is come toseek and to save that which waslost.’ (Luke 19:10)

‘And other sheep I have, whichare not of this fold: them also Imust bring, and they shall hearmy voice; and there shall be onefold and one shepherd’(John 10:16)

‘And he said unto them, I mustpreach the Kingdom of God toother cities also; For therefore I

am sent.’(Luke 4:43)

‘But he answered and said, I amnot sent but unto the lost sheepof the house of Israel.’(Matthew 15:24)

From the quotations given above, itis clear that Jesus(as)’s mission wasto preach to all the twelve tribes ofIsrael scattered in the easterncountries extending from Palestineto India at the time of Jesus(as)’s ap -pearance. Of the twelve tribes ofIsrael there were at that time, onlytwo tribes in Palestine, while theother ten were found scattered inthe lands stretching from Pal estineto the confines of India. Jesus(as)

cannot be said to have beensuccessful in his mission, if hedoes not address and preach to theten lost sheep of Israel. The sup -posed death of Jesus(as) on thecross at the early age of 33 yearsdeals a shattering blow to themission on which he was sent. Thetruth of the matter is that, after hisescape from the cross, JesusChrist(as) migrated to the East insearch of the lost sheep, for whichthere is ample historical evidenceand has recently been supported

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by the modern finds ofarchaeology. Jesus(as) found his lostsheep in Persia, Afghanistan andKashmir, preached to them andcomparatively, he was much moresuccessful there than in Palestine.He died a natural death and wasburied in Srinagar, Kashmir.

IX – Jesus(as)’s victory over hisenemiesAddressing his disciples Jesus(as)

says:

‘Behold, the hour cometh, yea,is now come, that ye shall bescattered, every man to hisown, and shall leave me alone:and yet I am not alone, becausethe Father is with me. Thesethings I have spoken unto you,that in me ye might havepeace. In the world you shallhave tribulation but be of goodcheer; I have overcome theworld.’ (John 16:32, 33)

Now what does Jesus(as)’s victoryconsist of? Was it in his death onthe cross, or in his escape from thecross? If he died on the cross, thenthe Jews were successful becausetheir very aim was to prove that he

was false, in calling himself theMessiah. They had in their supportthe Biblical statement that,

‘...he that is hanged is accursedof God’(Duet. 21:23)

But if we believe that he wastaken down from the cross alive,(in a state of swoon, of course)and he entered the heart of theearth alive and came out of italive, then he can rightly be saidto have overcome his enemies andfrustrated all their evil designs.Jesus(as) said:

‘For as Jonah was a sign untothe Ninevites, so shall also theSon of man be to thisgeneration.’ (Luke 11:30)

In other words, Jesus(as) said to theJews that God Almighty wouldsave him from the clutches ofdeath, in the same way as He hadsaved Jonah from the belly of thewhale. The similarity between thetwo in cidents can be real andgenuine only when Jesus(as) entersthe heart of the earth (grave) aliveand comes out alive.

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X- His prayer was heardFrom the study of the Bible welearn that God listens to the prayersof his apostles and saves them fromtribulations and tri als. In the NewTestament we read:

‘...The effectual fervent prayerof a righteous man availethmuch”. Elias was a man subjectto like passions as we are, andhe prayed earnestly that it mightnot rain: and it rained not on theearth by the space of three yearsand six months. And he prayedagain and the heaven gave rain,and the earth brought forth herfruit.’(James 5:16-18)

Again we read:

‘…And Jesus lifted up his eyesand said Father I thank Theethat Thou hast heard me. And Iknew that Thou hearest mealways: but because of thepeople which stand by I said itthat they may believe that Thouhast sent me.’(John 11:41, 42)

‘And he said, Abba, Father, allthings are possible unto Thee;

take away this cup from me:nevertheless not what I will butwhat Thou wilt.’(Mark 14:36)

From the quotations given above,it is clear that Jesus(as) was terriblyafraid of being put on the cross, sohe fervently prayed that the bittercup be taken away from him.Jesus(as) passionately and ferventlyprayed to God that he might besaved the accursed death on theCross. How could he then say thathe overcame the world? If he haddied on the Cross, the mission ofhis whole life would have come tonaught and wrong doers couldchallenge his claim to prophet-hood. The thought of death on thecross was unacceptable to him.Being a righteous prophet, he wasnot afraid of mere death; he wascertainly afraid of dying on thecross, as such a death could beinterpreted to mean an accurseddeath, which was the verynegation of his pro phetic mission.

‘In the days of his flesh, whenhe had offered up prayers andsupplications with strongcrying and tears unto him thatwas able to save him from

Death on the Cross

death and was heard in that hefeared.’ (Hebrews 5:7)

Hence, we must presume that hisearnest prayer was, no doubt,heard and he miracu lously escapeddeath by crucifixion and lived longenough to preach his mission tothe lost sheep of the Israelites inthe East:

‘And he said unto them, I must

preach The Kingdom of God toother cities also; for therefoream I sent.’(Luke 4:43)

Dear People! These argumentsprove that the idea of the death ofChrist by crucifixion cannot bejustified even from the Biblicalpoint of view. Therefore, it isevident that the present Christianfaith based on this erro neous ideacannot hold ground.

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