Today’s Friday sermon was delivered by Khalifatul Masih V (May Allah be his Helper) from Baitul Futuh mosque, London. After Tashahhud and Surah Fātiḥah Huzoor proceeded as follows:
In talking about the Promised Messiah (peace be on him) and his daily routine Hazrat Musleh Maud says that The Promised Messiah (peace be on him) worked hard to maintain his health and to keep his body very active. He was not lazy or inactive at all. Instead he was very hard working and very much liked to be in seclusion. He did not ever shun the hard work and many a times it happened that whenever he had to go on a journey then the horse was sent by the servant ahead of him and he used to walk on foot, sometimes covering 20 to 25 miles he would reach the destination. Rather many times he used to travel on foot and very rarely he would ride at the back of the mount. This habit of walking on foot remained till the end of his life and when he was over 70 years of age with a number of diseases yet he used to go out for fresh air and walk about 4 to 5 miles, even upto 7 miles. He used to mention that at the time before his old age he used to get up early before the Fajar prayer and would undertake a walk from Qadian to Wadala. While on the walk, the call for Fajar prayer used to happen at around 5.5 miles of the journey near a village where he used to offer the supplication. So this is the example for us and particularly for the devotees of life who have been handed over the responsibility of various jobs in Jama’at.
Most importantly these include the missionaries who should exercise or at least walk very regularly in order to take care of good health and to inculcate hard working skill in them. If they are unable to go out for walk due to time constraints or any other reason they should specially take out time for at least some exercise. There are some missionaries who are young but their bodies reveal that they do not undertake any exercise. When enquired, they would answer that we used to do it in the past but have quit it since some time now. The important and most responsible jobs entrusted to our missionaries require very active beings for which exercise is very essential and must be given attention. The missionaries and other Jamias around the world after finishing their education are sent to Rabwah for training where the medical tests for them are undertaken. Dr. Noori Sahib who is the heart specialist has written to me that MashaAllah the murabiaans are very good in every aspect but there were many amongst them who were in alarming/dangerous weight zones due to obesity. Therefore, they need to pay attention to it. When they go into field, it becomes more important for them to consider this aspect. So firstly it is essential for the devotees of life and missionaries to undertake exercise. Secondly, in these western countries unhealthy and junk food is also very common which must be avoided. These factors must be considered and taken care of! If they are single and live by themselves, they can at least find some time for exercise while living in mission house and should know techniques of cooking healthy food. I am not only advising Jama’at members I exercise regularly on the exercise cycle/other machines and Allah Almighty is enabling him to continue it on regular basis.
We need healthy and active missionaries and murabiaans. Therefore, they should take care of their health and should not be ignoring this important aspect of healthy living in order to perform their duties in the best possible manner.
There is another incident with reference to the Promised Messiah ( peace be on him) that Hazrat Musleh Maud has mentioned. In today’s world we can easily convey our voice to all the places through the PA system and due to which most of us are not in the habit of speaking very loud or can speak aloud to a certain limit. However, especially the missionaries should practice speaking in a loud clear manner which is required when they go out to field for tabligh and the sound systems are not available mostly in the poor countries. In the olden times, these technological facilities were not available and one had to make an effort to speak really loud and convey the message to large crowds. Thus the people used to do practice for this purpose. Hazrat Messiah Maud normally used to converse and speak very softy but when the occasion demanded and the teachings of Islam had to be conveyed to the people so then what was his condition is described by Hazrat Musleh Maud that when Promised Messiah (peace be on him) stood up to deliver his speech in Lahore in the biggest hall which was full of people and there was so much crowd that the doors had to be kept open so the voice could reach the people outside sitting in the canopies. In the begining according to his routine, the voice was low and soft. The crowd made some noise as well but later on when he was speaking it appeared that a bugle is being played from the heavens and the people were sitting with immense concentration. Therefore, high pitch of voice for the service of Islam is considered normality. Sometimes it is required to raise the pitch of ones voice for service of Islam. Therefore, everyone entrusted with such responsibilities must give special attention to this aspect.
Sometimes, some people express great concern about this thing that the status of their virtue and goodness does not remain all the time and are very much worried about it. This is a very good thing from this point of view that a person should undertake a self-analysis that this condition of low standard of piety is in me or the dedication and zeal one had in the prayers before are no more existent. One should analyze the reasons leading to such a condition and should try to cure and improve on it so that it should not remain like that for long. Any ways this is very good but sometimes it not that there is something bad but just piety or less piety or good or less goodness and such conditions come and go. A companion came to Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) and said O Prophet of Allah I have become a hypocrite. When I sit in your company then my condition is totally different and when I go somewhere else my condition is different. That is to say that the condition of piety and purity of heart is not the same as it was when I was in your company. Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) said that actually this is the condition of a ‘Momin’ and a ‘Believer’ and that you are not a hypocrite. So it was the impact of Holy Prophet’s (peace be upon him) company and his spiritual power that impressed the people in his company. The pious people who sat in his company became very pure hearted and sat there to learn and to increase the standard of their relationship with Allah Almighty. So when these people left the Holy Prophet’s (peace be upon him) company the standard used to slightly go down. But anyways, that sahabi who brought this up had fear and devotion of Allah so therefore became very concerned about it that this condition of the piety when decreases and may not prolong so he was not going away from the religion and was being a hypocrite was his main concern. And when the pious condition is there a person gets help of prayer and astaghfaar, seeking forgiveness from Allah and pays attention to self-reformation.
Hazrat Musleh Maud while describing this subject says that the Promised Messiah (peace be on him) used to say that the health of certain children is very good due to the concern of their mothers. If the child has minutest of a problem, the mother immediately recognizes it and the result of which is that the mother always takes care of the treatment and the child is saved from the adverse impacts of the disease. However, some mothers get to know of their child’s adverse health condition when the disease has become dangerous so Promised Messiah (peace be on him) said that this particular concern of the mother is very good for the health of the child. Likewise this concern in one’s consciousness that one particular spiritual problem may lead to dangerous levels is very good and rewarding. For example if there a decrease in spirituality, prayers or good deeds and the person has concern for its diminishing levels and concern for going away from the remember of Allah, then this consciousness and concern is very useful.
Promised Messiah (peace be on him) said that like this a person is prepared and ready to combat the point of danger and protects oneself from such a danger of losing spirituality. So as a matter of fact, the people who advance in their good deeds and those who take care of their conditions and set them up according to the will of God, are those people who just like in the case of mothers and child are worried about their spiritual health and that there is no decrease or slackness in their prayers. It may not be because of certain sin or weakness on their part and it may not make them such a spiritual patient which is beyond the cure and that the sickness has become very prolonged. The companions of the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) were so fortunate that whenever considering their own conditions they became worried they always used to go to his company and cure themselves through the spiritual power of the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him). But we being in this concern of not losing our spiritual connection with God must adopt the method of worship, prayers and astaghfaar and through this try to cure ourselves. This concern and worry of losing spirituality is far better than carelessness which at times can take a person away from God, and then slowly and steadily away from the religion and make him/her an incurable spiritual patient. So in this respect there is need to pay attention to this.
Once Hazrat Musleh Maud explained that happiness and sorrow are related to person’s sentiments. If there is a marriage in one’s family then for the purpose of happiness of marriage one even goes to the extent of taking loan and other members of the family also join in this happiness. But the people who are not related to him, it does not matter to them that they be involved in his happiness or undertake loan or any other pain to join in the happiness.
Similarly if the guardian of a family passes away then there is mourning in that house. But the people who are not related to that family, for them the demise of that person is not anything significant. Thousands of people die every day, and despite getting the news of their deaths we don’t feel the pain just because we are not related to them. However, when somebody close to you passes away then we feel it very strongly. And there are some people who are cause of great unrest for people such as the robbers and the thieves and when these people die a section of society is very happy upon their demise but the people close to them feel the pain.
Hazrat Musleh Maud says that this is a very unique system of the feelings and the sentiments and one really feels for such moments. For some people there is a moment of great happiness and joy while the same moment brings mourning to others. And there are many people who do not take part in the happiness or in the mourning. He said that Promised Messiah (peace be on him) taught me this subject in just one sentence. Promised Messiah (peace be on him) used to read the newspaper daily which is also something important for us to do. Especially the people who are entrusted with the responsibility of spreading religion that they should study the newspapers regularly and also keep a look out for items of news.
In 1907, once while he was reading the newspaper he called me by my name ‘Mahmood’ and he called me as if there is something urgent. When I went to him the Promised Messiah read out a news item to me that a person (whose name I do not remember) has passed away. Hazrat Musleh Maud says that I just laughed on that and said that what do I have to do with that. Promised Messiah ( peace be on him) said that his family would be mourning and you say that you don’t have any concern with that. So what is the reason behind it? The reason is that the person to whom you are not concerned you do not feel any impact of the sorrow or happiness of that person. Hazrat Musleh Maud mentioned this incident at the marriage (nikkah) ceremony of Mian Abdus Salam, the son of the first Khalifa, Hazrat Maulvi Noorudin Sahib. Hazrat Musleh Maud expressed his feelings at that time that if Hazrat Khalifatul Masih I would have been alive how he would have been celebrating his joy and he would have been praying so much for this occasion. And therefore all other people would have been motivated to pray as well. So this moment and this thinking creates a special feeling and passion in our hearts. And when someone close and dear to us is happy then this creates a sort of emotion and a feeling in our hearts that how this one who is dear to us would be praying for his dear ones. So at that time a wave of happiness pulses within us. So this point should be remembered that you should pray for those who are your benefactors and their progenies particularly at their moments of happiness and sorrows. Also for the members of the Jama’at we should have such feelings and we should express our joy and sorrow because Jama’at is one body, one entity which can be felt only when we share the sentiments of other members of the community. And this is the thing which creates unity among the members of the community.
Hazrat Musleh Maud describes an incident which reflects upon the obedient nature of Hazrat Khalifatul Masih I. He says that I remember about Hazrat Khalifatul Masih I that he used to have very loveable feelings towards a Abdul Hakeem sahib when he was a practicing Ahmadi. He in return also shared a distinctive closeness towards Hazrat Khalifatul Masih I. The feelings were so strong that when Abdul Hakeem became an apostate and opposed the Promised Messiah even at that time he wrote that in the community of the Promised Messiah (peace be on him) apart from Noor-ud-din sahib there is no one else who is the example of the companions of the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him). This man is indeed a glory for the Jama’at. He had also written a commentary of the Holy Quran and took a lot of help and advice from Hazrat Khalifatul Masih I.
When Abdul Hakeem announced his renunciation of Ahmadiyyat, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih I called upon his students and asked them to take out Abdul Hakeems’s commentary from his library so that Allah Almighty be not unhappy or angry to me because of that. Although it was the commentary of the Holy Quran and the commentary of several verses were written in consultation with Hazrat Khalifatul Masih I but still he ordered such an action because he had left the religion and so the wrath of Allah is on him. So according to his personal feeling and thinking he said that this particular book might make other books impure as well. So this is the fear of Allah that he had in his heart and indeed a very good example for all of us to follow.
Some people make an objection that when there is sort of a punishment from the Jama’at towards someone or some action has been taken, then that person says that the action taken against me is wrong and presents a comparative situation where other people have not been penalized.This objection is not something new. In every era, such objections have arisen. People do it today and have been doing it in the past too. Therefore, mentioning such people Hazrat Musleh Maud says that the fact of the truth is that in order to keep the system right there is one circle of unity and oneness. It maybe that one difference appears to be very big but it may not be causing disorder so then such a person may be allowed to join the community but if another person is such that he differs but not to that degree but his difference of opinion causes friction and difficulty in the Jama’at then he/she should be taken out of the Jama’at. Somebody asked the Promised Messiah (peace be on him) that I have just come out of Shia-ism and because of my previous belief I consider Hazrat Ali superior to Hazrat Umer and Hazrat Abu Bakar. So can I do thebai’at having all these sentiments still in my heart? Promised Messiah ( peace be on him) wrote to him that he can do the bai’at but as compared to that Promised Messiah (peace be on him) once he expelled some people from Qadian and he also printed a leaflet about them. The reason was only that they were not regular in offering their five daily prayers and some of them were such that people used to enjoy their meetings for entertainment and hobnobbing and smoking . Hazrat Musleh Maud writes that now tell me whether considering Hazrat Ali superior to Hazrat Abu Bakar is more important while rating an ill action or smoking a pipe is? Definitely everyone will think that considering Hazrat Ali superior to Hazrat Abu Bakar is a higher level of sin than smoking a pipe. However, yet the Promised Messiah (peace be on him) after this significant difference allowed one person to come and join the community while the other who was smoking the oriental pipe was expelled from Qadian. So he says that on one occasion Promised Messiah (peace be on him) arranged smoking apparatus for some people who were fond of it. This is when the Turkish diplomat Hussain Qaami visited Qadian and a meal was arranged for him, Hazrat Musleh Maud says that I was young but I remember it vividly that in one of the meetings, Maulvi Abdul Kareem Sahib discussed that these people are fond of cigarettes and if we do not arrange for it then the diplomat might feel uncomfortable. So the Promised Messiah (peace be on him) said that there is nothing wrong in it because it isn’t amongst such forbidden things such as drinking alcohol. So upon using such things which are not forbidden as the alcoholic drinks, the Promised Messiah (peace be on him) expelled one person from the Jama’at but on the other hand despite he himself having the belief that Hazrat Abu Bakar is superior to Hazrat Ali he allowed the person with a different opinion undertake the bai’at.
Hazrat Musleh Maud says that certain things due to their particular trial (fitna) are considered very significant due to the specific situation. Due to the trial which is instantly there, sometimes the actions are taken in a very different way. But the people who criticize the decisions they do not consider this and are simply very fond of criticizing. Many people say like this and then they gather supporters, thus these punished people are not aware of the. Therefore there is no need of interference without any justification or understanding and there is no need to make any recommendations but when the analysis is taken on the Jama’at basis then the apology is accepted. However, there are critics around even today who when punished upon committing a sinful act instead of being sorry over it start to talk against the institution. And then their demands are that they will remain the way they are (rather than correcting themselves) and they should be considered as part of the Jama’at. I must clear this again that although Promised Messiah( peace be on him) allowed accommodating for cigarettes for the Turkish diplomat but he himself did not like the act of smoking at all and many a times had expressed aversion to this habit.
What methods should be adopted for spreading the word of God (tabligh) and how shall this be done? Regarding this Hazrat Musleh Maud has mentioned that at this time the preaching work is done through distribution of pamphlets and brochures but these pamphlets cannot be carried for long due to their weight. At the time of the Promised Messiah ( peace be on him), preaching was conducted through the hand bills which were on a total of 2 to 4 pages. Through them there used to be a lot of commotion in the entire country. They were published in large numbers and according to those times ‘large numbers’ refer to a total of 1000 to 2000 copies. At times a total of 10,000 hand bills were also published. But comparatively now are community is 20 times larger and the propaganda for the hand bills should be that around 50,000 to 100,000 copies be published. And then see for yourself how these hand bills catch people’s attention. Now by the grace of Allah according to some information the number of these hand bills has reached millions and this has its impacts on other countries as well. There was information from America that a news agency in Sweden has contacted our representative regarding ‘Islam in Sweden’. Now attention is being given so that people should find out what is the reality about it and therefore they would like to conduct an interview. So like this the word is being spread and even during his visit to Sweden millions of people got the message. Thus through the hand bills, press and the media our message is being conveyed at a very large scale which might have not been achievable through common literature. Hazrat Musleh Maud says that if before the pamphlets were published 12 times in a year then now if they are published in total quantities of millions for 2 or 3 times in a year with the pages being increased to 2 to 4, then it can create many a times more significant impact and the rippling affect is very much visible. Some people say what is the benefit of giving advertisement in the newspapers? There is a benefit of doing that because due to the circulation of the newspapers, many people are introduced to the institution of Ahmadiyyat. Comparatively, the message spread through the hand bills distributed with immense hard work in a total time of 2 months, the same message is spread in a day with a single newspaper amongst many more people. In today’s world, by the grace of Allah, the Jama’at is being introduced through many newspapers. The press and media department of the Jama’at is also playing a very essential role regarding this aspect and it is being conducted on very large scales throughout the world. So it is the duty of the tabligh department that they should utilize this introduction and the real message of Islam be conveyed to the people. It should not be that you put something once in the newspaper but then it is the responsibility of the tabligh department that they should use this methodology for spreading the word. This introduction should be used for proper tabligh. And for this purpose new ways and methods shoul be adopted
Once Hazrat Musleh Maud wrote an article on the up-brining and education of children in which he mentioned a story of the Promised Messiah (peace be on him). He wrote that our revealed leader, the Promised Messiah (peace be on him) on September 5th, 1898 after the Asr prayer at my request told me the following story that reflects that dependence and trust in Allah Almighty and having the righteousness, blesses the person so much so that Allah Himself fulfills his needs in such a manner that no one knows about it. Promised Messiah (peace be on him) said that once a saintly person was travelling and he walked through a jungle that was inhabited by a thief who would rob every traveller that would pass by. According to his habit he was just about to rob the saint when the saint said: ‘And in heaven is your sustenance, and also that which you are promised.’ (51:23)
So if you depend on Allah the provision would come from the God so abandon this ill action of theft. And if you trust Allah and become righteous, Allah will look after your need. He was very much impressed and he left the saint and worked upon his advice. So much so that upon coming to the righteous path he was served meals in gold and silver pots. After eating the food he would throw those utensils outside. When once again the saint travelled through his place he revealed the entire incident to the saint and requested that he be told some other verse from the Holy Quran. The saint said: ‘And by the Lord of the heaven and the earth, it is certainly the truth, even as it is true thatyou speak.’ (51:24) This impressed the person so much that considering the might of Allah and His gloriousness he repented and passed away.
Promised Messiah ( peace be on him) revealed this story to a child who was at that time 8 or 10 years of age who is then telling it to other children through the article is saying that adopting the righteousness brings immense change in a person. The Allah who provides sustenance in the heaven and the earth is there any doubt about His existence. He is the pure and true God who nourishes us. Thus have fear of Him and depend on Him for all your needs and adopt the right path. This was the condition of children and their education during the time of the Promised Messiah ( peace be on him). They were given such pious lessons and told about subjects that are difficult for the people to understand even in an older age. So we should all remember to adopt righteousness and have immense faith and trust on Allah. We must not forget that He is the one who looks after us and providing for us the needs to grow and develop. He is the pure and true God and we must fear only Him, repent only to Him, pray to Him and this is what righteousness is all about, and should be adopted by a Muslim. This topic has far more important for the elders than the children especially during this time when we are forgetting such topics and at times go astray from righteousness and instead of entrusting God they tend to depend upon other humans. Therefore, the real trust and dependence shall be only on Allah Almighty. May Allah enable us to have this quality of virtue and righteousness in us (Ameen).
After the prayers, Huzoor led two namaz-e-janaza in absentia of Mukkaram Al Haaj Idrees Bakoora Sahib (Naib Ameer of Sierra Leone) who passed away on July 3rd, 2016 after a short illness. And also of Mansoor Begum sahiba wife of Khalid Saifullah sahib (Naib Ameer of Australia) who passed away recently in Australia. Surely, to Allah we belong and to Him shall we return. (2:157).
