The latest addition is my response on 5th January 2004.
Zahid Aziz
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aaiil |
E-mail exchange with Dr Tahir Ijaz |
Lead | |
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I am quoting below a series of e-mail exchanges between Dr Tahir Ijaz and myself on topics relating to the differences in beliefs between the Lahore Ahmadis and the Qadiani Jamaat. I have obtained his permission to make these e-mails publicly accessible.
The latest addition is my response on 5th January 2004. Zahid Aziz |
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aaiil |
From Dr Tahir Ijaz, October 28 | ||
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E-mail from Dr Tahir Ijaz, October 28, 2003:
In the discussion forum on muslim.org, re: book Prophecy Continuous I have a comment. In the book, Prof Friedmann shows that Muhammad Ali Sahib changed his belief on concept of prophethood. Similarly, another book by an outsider, Spencer Lavan, entitled Ahmadiyya Movement, came to the same conclusion. There are a number of additional quotes from Muhammad Ali in the online book "Truth Prevails" on the al-islam.org website that are disturbing in that they show an apparent change in Ali's belief. For instance, the verse of the Quran in which Hazrat Isa relates the advent of a future prophet Ahmad, Muhammad Ali interprets that this can apply to Ahmad, the Promised Messiah, though his commentary on the Quran published later made no mention of this. While I know he himself has dismissed the previous quotes as a misunderstanding, that the term Nabi was only a metaphorical expression, when I read and re-read the various quotes, I find the explanation difficult to accept, and I mean that sincerely. |
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aaiil |
From Zahid Aziz, October 28 | ||
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Response from Zahid Aziz, October 28:
The two books that you refer to are badly researched, and in case of 'Prophecy Continuous' the author has not made any reference to several of our important publications, which shows that his knowledge of our viewpoint is very limited and is in fact based largely on Qadiani sources. Maulana Muhammad Ali refuted this false allegation (that he ever believed Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad to be a prophet) several times. The following is one of his articles about this: www.aaiil.org/text/books/...ings.shtml (Near the very end of this article a quotation has been omitted on this webpage which I can provide you with if you so wish. I will get it filled in on that page as well.) About 3 years ago the Qadiani website www.alislam.org published an article making these same allegations. I compiled a response consisting of two web pages: (1) some general points and (2) dealing with specific quotes presented by them. You can read these two from this link: www.muslim.org/qadis/det-rep.htm In part (2) of my response I dealt with five or so of the quotes presented by the Qadianis. Some time later, before I had finished my reply, I noticed that the Qadianis had removed their article from their website (the link to their article that I give within my reply is broken as a result). As you will see by reading the references given within part (1) of my reply above, it is in fact the Qadiani leaders who changed their beliefs. Moreover, it will also be useful for you to read a section from Maulana Muhammad Ali's biography which is at this link: www.muslim.org/books/m-kabir/mjk3-6c.htm This shows how strongly he challenged the Qadiani beliefs and how, in response to Qadiani demands, he even went so far as to take oaths in Allah's name to the effect that he had always held the same beliefs. But Qadiani leaders refused to take a similar oath about their beliefs. As you will see, for several months in 1944, every week he boldly published the same statement accusing the Qadiani leader of lies and fabrication. You write: > For > instance, the verse of the Quran in which Hazrat Isa > relates the advent of a future prophet Ahmad, > Muhammad Ali interprets that this can apply to > Ahmad, the Promised Messiah, though his commentary > on the Quran published later made no mention of > this. This is simply absurd and laughable for the simple reason that even Qadianis had to stop holding this belief (that Ahmad in this verse applied to Mirza Ghulam Ahmad) after Maulana Muhammad Ali had refuted this wrong interpretation very strongly. You can read their change of belief on their website. First please read what Mirza Mahmud Ahmad wrote in his book "The Truth about the Split" about this: Quote:(See under: www.alislam.org/library/s...nnovations ) Now read the interpretation of this verse given in their English translation of the Quran. Please go to this link: www.alislam.org/quran/taf...132®ion=EN which shows footnote 3037 on page 1132. As you see, most of the footnote is devoted to showing that the Holy Prophet Muhammad fulfilled this prophecy. Near the end it is written: "Thus the prophecy mentioned in this verse applies to the Holy Prophet, but as a corollary it may also apply to the Promised Messiah..." In the "Split" book, Mirza Mahmud Ahmad says that the prophecy speaks *directly* about the Promised Messiah and *indirectly* about the Holy Prophet Muhammad. In the Quran commentary they say exactly the opposite, that it actually applies to the Holy Prophet but as a corollary it may apply to the Promised Messiah. This complete turn-about came because the Qadianis could not justify their belief. The change in belief that they are accusing Maulana Muhammad Ali of making, is in actual fact exactly what they did themselves! I hope that just as you have studied the sources that you refer to in your e-mail, you will now go through our material whose links I have given. (I do not wish to overload you but there is another booklet you could look at, when you have time, which is readable at this link: www.muslim.org/bookspdf/split/conts.htm but you can also obtain it from us in print.) Additonal reply This is further to my earlier reply to you. I have looked up 'Prophecy Continuous'. On page 17 Friedmann writes: "In a book published in 1906, Muhammad Ali clearly supports Ghulam Ahmad's claim to prophethood in the same sense in which Ghulam Ahmad himself advanced it." Of course! The Maulana always, to the end of his life, supported Hazrat Mirza's claim *as he himself advanced it*, and NOT as the Qadiani Jamaat advances it. The claim, as Hazrat Mirza advanced it, was that of being "muhaddas". A muhaddas, according to Hadith, possesses "partial prophethood". (Partial means that he has the one quality which prophets also have, of receiving communication from God, although a muhaddas' communication is of a lower standing than a prophet's.) This is what we have always held, since Hazrat Mirza's time till today. Friedmann further says on the same page in 'Prophecy Continuous' about Maulana Muhammad Ali: "... and explicit acceptance of Ghulam Ahmad's prophetic claim can be found also in his later works" and here, in a footnote, Friedmann refers to the Maulana's Urdu booklet whose title means "Which group is guilty of changing its beliefs?". But this booklet was written by the Maulana in September 1915, more than a year after the Split, in reply to the Qadianis' allegation against him that he had called Hazrat Mirza as "prophet" in his earlier articles in "The Review of Religions". So according to Friedmann, the Maulana was explicitly accepting Hazrat Mirza as prophet in the very booklet that he wrote to refute the charge that he had earlier believed Hazrat Mirza to be a prophet! This is a truly bizarre statement! It just shows that the author of 'Prophecy Continuous' does not understand what claim the Maulana was accepting and what he was denying. However, it proves one thing: the author of 'Prophecy Continuous' sees no difference between what the Maulana wrote in 1906 about Hazrat Mirza's claim and what he wrote after the Split (when actually arguing with the Qadianis) in 1915. This is a point absolutely in the Maulana's favour. |
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aaiil |
From Dr Tahir Ijaz, October 29 | ||
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From Dr Tahir Ijaz, October 29:
yes, I have read the links. But I am not certain it really addresses the quotes in "Truth Prevails": Please see all of chapter 1. www.alislam.org/library/b...ion_1.html Also on the topic of "Ahmad in the Quran", Maulana Ali is quoted as saying, "who is Mirza Ghulam Ahmad? In the words of the Holy Quran we reply, 'He will come after me, his name being Ahmad" (Review of Religions vol 12, no 7) So his interpretation of the verse is Muhammad only or also include the Promised Messiah? The discussion is in Chapter 4: www.alislam.org/library/b...ion_1.html Incidentally, the book as you know is a rebuttal to Faruqi work, "Truth Prevails"; is that book available for purchase? I have not seen it advertised on the web site. |
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aaiil |
From Zahid Aziz, October 29 | ||
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From Zahid Aziz, October 29:
Just a quick response to one point for the moment. I went to chapter 4 of "Truth Prevails", and on the first page it says: Quote:This is exactly the opposite of the statement by Mirza Mahmud Ahmad in "The Truth about the Split" which I quoted to you in my first reply, and whose link I also gave, as follows: Quote:(Capitalisation is mine. See under: www.alislam.org/library/s...novations) I can't see how anyone can deny that these two statements are exactly the opposite of each other. It is a fact that the Qadianis were forced to recant this belief (as expressed in the "Truth about the Split") because of the powerful arguments against it given by Maulana Muhammad Ali. The quotation they give from the Maulana's writings about this is so short that we cannot draw any conclusion from it without seeing the whole article itself. |
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aaiil |
From Dr Tahir Ijaz, October 30 | ||
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From Dr Tahir Ijaz, October 30:
Yes, it can be confusing, but I interpret the words to mean though Hazrat Ahmad is mentioned by name in the Quran, which even Hazrat Ahmad admits it applies to him (references given in the chapter), he is only a mirror of the Holy Prophet, on whom be peace. On his own he is absolutely nothing. Thus when Hazrat Ahmad admits the Quranic verse applies to him, it should not detract from the fact the Holy Prophet is the master, and obviously also Ahmad - the original Ahmad so to speak - of which Mirza sahib was only a copy. It is a little less confusing, I think, if one notes and reflects that Hazrat Ahmad himself wrote the Quranic "Ahmad" refers to him , as stated in Al-Hakam magazine, quoted in Nazir's book. Thus the Qadian Quran commentary is correct to include Hazrat Ahmad as literal fulfillment of the prophecy, BUT need to note Mirza Mahmood Sahib's words in Qaul-e-Faisal quoted earlier on in Chap ter 4 in Nazir Sahib's book. |
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aaiil |
From Zahid Aziz, October 30 | ||
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From Zahid Aziz, October 30:
I didn't realize that you would be supporting the Qadiani Jamaat's interpretation, since I thought that you were evaluating both sides' viewpoints from a neutral position. For your perusal I am attaching herewith the section of Maulana Muhammad Ali's book "The Split", written just after the Split, dealing with this issue. He quotes Mirza Mahmud Ahmad's pronouncements of the time such as "Ahmad" was not a name of the Holy Prophet Muhammad) and refutes them. Two pdf files are attached which I hope you can read. (1 and 2). As to your earlier question about the quotations from M.M. Ali sahib, one project I have in mind is to get hold of the original articles from "The Review of Religions" and give extended quotes from them to show that he regarded Hazrat Mirza sahib as mujaddid. In fact, what the Qadiani website should do is to make available online the entire articles from which the quotations are drawn, so that everyone can see the quotations in context. Perhaps you can suggest that to them. However, I also believe that my general response is quite sufficient, when I gave you those links. One of those, which I again refer you to, in fact settles the whole issue. It is here: www.muslim.org/qadis/sadiq.htm Here Mufti Muhammad Sadiq (later of the Qadiani Jamaat) has explained to a famous Muslim scholar, Maulana Shibli, the sense in which the word "prophet" was being used in the Ahmadiyya Movement for Hazrat Mizra sahib. Further, he has quoted the then Head, Maulana Nur-ud-Din, in his support. So this is like an official explanation. Mufti sahib gave this explanation in 1910, after M.M. Ali's quotations in question had appeared (which are dated 1904 to 1908 ). So this explanation applies also to those quotes. As that explanation plainly shows, those Ahmadis who used the word "prophet" about Hazrat Mirza sahib also believed that no prophet can come after the Holy Prophet Muhammad and that Hazrat Mirza sahib was a Mujaddid and was one of those Muslims who are gifted with Divine revelation. |
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aaiil |
From Dr Tahir Ijaz, November 2nd | ||
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From Dr Tahir Ijaz, November 2nd:
I looked at the quote from Mufti Muhammad Sadiq you sent me, and the comments of Maulvi Nurrudin on nabuwwat. Please note the words of Maulvi Nurrudin. This is VERY important. He considers Mufti Sahib's writing a rebuttal to the prevailing and mistaken concept among Muslims at the time that every nabi must bring a shariah. The Promised Messiah himself said in his writings to his opponents that he was not a nabi in the sense they ascribed to the word. He was NOT a law bearing prophet. Please see page 34, 35 for details and quotes, Truth about the Split, Mahmud. Now please note pages 83, 84 of the same book. In 1910, Mufti Sahib and Sadruddin Sahib together went on a missionary tour to preach to a non-Ahmadi maulvi and the comments of Mirza Mahmud. It was a style of tabligh and argumentation to broach the subject of nabuwwat with non-Ahmadis. It was argued that nabis/rasuls DO NOT have to bring a law or book. Nabi means, after all, having the gift of prophecy and has no relationship with necessariy delivering a new shariah. Now, DO NOT make the conclusion that only metaphorical expression of nabi applies to Promised Messiah. That the dictionary meaning AND theologic meaning applies is clear even from the writings of Maulvi Muhammad Ali Sahib. I give two examples (bold emphasis is mine): "The editor of this journal (Tashizul Azhan) is Mirza Bashiruddin Mahmud Ahmad, son of the Promised Messiah...the gist of the article is that at times evil spreads in the world and people leave the path of truth and virtue, stray into wickedness...become altogether oblivious of the needs of higher life...IT HAS ALWAYS BEEN THE WAY OF ALLAH THAT, OUT OF THOSE PEOPLE THEMSELVES, HE RAISES A PROPHET ENTRUSTED WITH A MISSION TO SPREAD RIGHTEOUS TEACHING...these people heap ridicule on what what they hear about him...The prophet declares beforehand that they all would be crushed...THIS HAS ALWAYS BEEN THE WAY OF ALLAH, AND THIS IS WHAT HAS COME ABOUT IN OUR OWN TIME.. (Review of Religions, 1906) See page 69, 70 Truth about the Split for details. If nabi is a metaphor, then in the history of religion, only nabis in the metaphoric sense have been raised! Does this make sense? Another quote is just as remarkable, from Badr, July 1908: "We also have been asked to submit to this wide prayer...We hold firmly hold to the view that Allah can raise prophets; he can bestow siddiq, shahid, saleh..." See Truth Prevails page 35. On this same verse, Maulvi Ali later denied the possiblity and wrote so in his commentary! If it is metaphoric prophets, then it is metaphoric siddiq, metaphoric shahid metaphoric saleh also! |
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aaiil |
From Zahid Aziz, November 4 | ||
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From Zahid Aziz, November 4:
The statements of both Mufti sahib and Hazrat Maulana Nur-ud-Din begin by declaring clearly that Hazrat Mirza sahib was not a prophet. Mufti sahib says this in the words: no prophet can come after the Holy Prophet Muhammad, neither new nor old. Maulana Nur-ud-Din says this by his oath that he believes Hazrat Mirza sahib to be Mujaddid of this century. It is AFTER having made this clear that they then go on to explain how, despite the fact that he is not a prophet, the word prophet can be applied to him. In those days, whenever the word prophet was applied to him, it was done in the clearly understood context that the no prophet can come after the Holy Prophet Muhammad and that Hazrat Mirza sahib was a Mujaddid. It was in that same context that Maulana Muhammad Ali (and of course Hazrat Mirza sahib himself as well) used the word prophet about him. Unfortunately, the Qadiani Jamaat detaches this context away from the use of the word 'prophet'. When Shibli objected that even this literal use of prophet could be confusing to the public, Mufti sahib's reply was to the effect: we neither require Ahmadis to believe that he was a prophet nor do we preach to people that he was a prophet. (He did not say, for example, we tell people he was not a prophet with a shariah but one without a shariah.) One fails to understand how, if someone is a prophet, his prophethood should not be preached, nor should his own followers be required to accept it! I have read the passage you referred to from "The Truth about the Split", pages 83, 84. Regarding the above answer given by Mufti sahib, M. Mahmud Ahmad writes: "It seemed to me undesirable that such a dubious mode of expression should find general currency in the Community." It is clear from this that M. Mahmud Ahmad is concerned that this answer conveys a different impression from his own belief in Hazrat Mirza sahib's prophethood. So even he seems to be supporting, to some extent, our view of this answer. Moreover he writes here: "... the literal significance and the theological connotation of the term Nabi are identical, ..." This is exactly the opposite of what Hazrat Mirza sahib wrote, which is: "And he who discloses news of the unseen, having received it from God, is known as nabi in Arabic. The meanings in Islamic terminology are different. Here only the literal meaning is intended." Arbain, published December 1900, No. 2, p. 18, footnote. He announced in a public declaration addressing Muslims that the words nabi and rasul about him: "are not to be taken in their real sense, but have been used according to their literal meaning in a straight-forward way; otherwise, I lay no claim whatever to actual prophethood." (Majmu`a Ishtiharat, v. 1, p. 312 to 314) As to the quote from M. Muhammad Ali that whenever people leave the path of virtue Allah raises a prophet to spread righteous teaching, please note that according to Hazrat Mirza sahib this function of prophets is performed in the Muslim Umma by saints (muhaddas, wali, etc.), who have replaced the prophets of the past. He has discussed this extensively in his book "Shahadat-ul-Quran" in which he writes: 1. "... mujaddids and spiritual khalifas are needed by the Muslim people in the same way as were the prophets required from ancient times ..." 2. " ... the mujaddid of the time comes with the powers, faculties and qualities upon which depends the reformation of the prevalent evils. God will ever continue to do this, as long as He pleases, so that signs of righteousness and reform remain in the world." 3. "And the mujaddid whose work bears striking similarity to the appointed task of one of the messengers, is called by the name of that messenger (rasul) in the sight of God." 4. "Prophets certainly cannot arise among the Muslims, but if khalifas of the Holy Prophet do not come either, showing the marvels of spiritual life from time to time, then the spirituality of Islam comes to an end." 5. "As our Master and Messenger, may peace and the blessings of God be upon him, is the Khatam-ul-anbiya, and after him there cannot come any prophet, for this reason saints (muhaddas) have been substituted for prophets in this religious system." So when M. Muhammad Ali's statement is applied to pre-Islamic times it refers to the raising of real prophets, and when it is applied to the Muslim Umma it refers to the raising of the saints of this Umma, who have replaced the prophets of the past in performing this function of guidance (as stated by Hazrat Mirza sahib), and may be called 'prophet' in its literal meaning or as a metaphor. Similarly in the July 1908 statement in Badr, the word "prophet" is applied to a Muslim saint in its literal meaning of one who receives revelation. The fact that he says "prophets" in the plural also shows this, because according to Qadiani beliefs only one prophet was raised among the Muslims. The only "prophets", in the plural, who were raised among Muslims are the Muslim saints. I note with interest the source and date of this statement, because in the same paper Badr, in its issue dated 11 June 1908, there is an article by Dr Khalifa Rashid-ud-Din from which it is absolutely clear that Hazrat Mirza sahib was regarded as a Mujaddid and not prophet. Please see it here: www.muslim.org/qadis/krash.htm Please notice also that we, as in this case, have reproduced images of complete articles, and not just quoted words taken out of them, to show that we are not quoting out of context. Finally, on the issue of the prophecy about the coming Ahmad, I am reading Mirza Mahmud Ahmad's book Anwar-i-Khilafat where he discusses it from page 18 to page 52. He writes there that the Holy Prophet Muhamamd never claimed that he fulfilled the prophecy of the coming Ahmad, and that Muslims have made a mistake in considering this prophecy to be the same one as the one given in the Gospels about Paraclete. |
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aaiil |
From Dr Tahir Ijaz, November 5 | ||
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From Dr Tahir Ijaz, November 5:
1. Again, I completely disagree with how you interpret Mufti Sahib's statements. Of course, no prophets can come now. But this should be understood in context; Maulvi Nuruddin Sahib does, to his credit, clarify the issue. He states a SHARIAH NABI cannot come anymore, i.e., one who alters or brings in a new shariah: he plainly states: "the dictionary meaning of the word nabi, we believe, is one who gives news, having received knowledge from Allah, NOT ONE WHO BRINGS A NEW SHARIAH". Read Page 35, The Truth about the Split, quoting from Badr March 1908 and Misunderstanding Removed, by Promised Messiah, Mirza Mahmoud Sahib writes: "The promised Messiah says to his opponents that he was not a nabi in the sense they ascribed to that word, but he was a nabi in the sense of the word in which the former prophets were called nabis" Consider this statement from Maulvi Muhammad Ali Sahib, in the Introduction section, of the book entitled "History of the Prophets: "The Arabic word for prophet is nabi, which is derived from naba...the word nabi in its literal significance is applicable to anyone to whom prophecies about the future are revealed, BUT IN THE TECHNICAL LANGUAGE OF ISLAM IT IS APPLICABLE ONLY TO A MAN WHO IS CHOSEN BY GOD TO DELIVER HIS MESSAGE TO MANKIND." Needless to say, the capitalized words apply to the Promised Messiah also. Raised by Allah directly (not by community consensus) and addressing fellow-men to join his community. It is certain though that some elements in the jamaat started to entertain ideas that the Promised Messiah was in a position below what was the reality. That is, perhaps not a real prophet in the Islamic sense. This is clear from Paigham-i-Sulha, 1913, quoted in Truth Prevails Chapter 1 p.3. Please see it. The words stand as a rebuttal. He was real prophet. See also Mirza Mahmud's quotes from 1911, page 84, 85, published in Badr, which was a speech in the presence of Muhammad Ali Sahib. Your rebuttal to Maulvi Muhammad's Ali 1906 admission is feeble. First of all Shahadat-ul-Quran is from 1893. Quotes AFTER 1901 saying specifically saints will do the work for Islamic revival in place of nabi, would be FAR more convincing. Chapter 3 of Truth Prevails by Nazir goes into tremendous detail on the phased revealment of nabuwwat to the Promised Messiah, and in fact serves as an extensive rebuttal for much of the material on your website. Muhammad Ali states quite clearly, in this 1906 quote, paraphrasing, "that's the way it happened in the past, and that's the way it is in this case". In fact, the 1906 writing of Muhammad Ali was a review of one of Mirza Mahmud's booklets, explicitly stating the Promised Messiah was a nabi, and he received revelation from Allah and who raised him for mankind, just like other previous prophets. Therefore to say, a saint would do this in place of a prophet now is absurd. Most astonishingly, there is a quote I found in Nazir's book, regarding a time when Muhammadi Ali was confronted by non-Ahmadis in 1936. He was asked if his views on Promised Messiah had changed (they were rightly suspicious): "the beliefs of our section (Lahore) are available in print...they have no connection with any writing of mine thirty years ago." Paigham--Sulah, Jan 1936, quoted in Truth Prevails, page xi. Thirty years ago, makes it 1906. Thus we find him backing away from his previous writings of the time period in question! Re: issue of Badr quote from 1908. You say "Qadianis believe only one prophet was raised among the Muslims". So far, yes. I am not sure that is actually true for the future. Only Allah knows. Can the door to revelation, and the top rank spiritually, among the four mentioned in the Quran, ever close? If it is, then the Muslims cannot attain siddiq, shahid, saleh either, if you read the text of the Quran! But just to finish for now (yes, getting late!), you wanted a copy of Badr showing Muhammad Ali also believed that "Ahmad" referred to the Promised Messiah. I will try. However, it should be noted, the Promised Messiah said the very same thing, three years before, and thus I have no reason to doubt the authencity and context. The Promised Messiah writes: "These people inquire again and again where, in the Holy Quran, has the name been mentioned. They do not seem to be aware that ALLAH NAMED ME AHMAD. The pledge of baiat is taken in the name of Ahmad. IS NOT THIS NAME FOUND IN THE QURAN? (Al Hakam, Oct 17, 1905, page 10). |
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aaiil |
From Zahid Aziz, November 7 | ||
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From Zahid Aziz, November 7:
1. Maulana Nur-ud-Din declares right at the start, as a sworn statement, that: "I believe Mirza sahib to be the Mujaddid of this century." The question he then proceeds to answer is how a Mujaddid can be called a prophet. The booklet "A Misunderstanding Removed" (Ayk Ghalati Ka Izala) has been translated by us and every point in it explained. See: www.muslim.org/noclaim/gh-trans.htm As to your quote from Mirza Mahmud Ahmad, "but he was a nabi in the sense of the word in which the former prophets were called nabis", the Promised Messiah actually wrote to the contrary, as follows: "... we do not mean by prophethood what is meant by it in the former scriptures." (Haqiqat al-Wahy, Supplement, p. 16; Ruhani Khaza'in, v. 22, p. 637) 2. Regarding M. Muhammad Ali's statement in "History of the Prophets", only the most elementary thought and logic is required to see that it is being misrepresented. The words: "applicable only to a man chosen by God..." mean that it (nabi in Islamic technical sense) is NOT applicable to anyone who is NOT chosen by God. It is a statement of the negative, as to when this term does NOT apply technically. It cannot be reversed into meaning that everyone chosen by God to deliver a message is a nabi in the technical sense. Examples abound in everyday life of such statements containing the word "only". To give an example from the Quran, it says: "Only those can accept the truth who listen" (Qadiani Jamaat's translation, 6:36 or 37). This means: those who don't listen certainly cannot accept the truth. It does not mean that all those who listen will accept. 3. You have rejected my quotes from Shahadat-ul-Quran because this book is from before 1901. The issue of whether he changed his claim in 1901 is so fundamental to our differences that it should be discussed as a separate topic, and I would be happy to do so in a new e-mail thread if you wish. The Qadiani Jamaat's belief is that he changed his claim in 1901 from a non-prophet saint to prophet. But this doesn't invalidate his previous general statements about what saints can do. For example, he wrote in 1898: "We can prove to every seeker-after-truth, conclusively and definitely, that from the time of our master and leader, the Holy Prophet Muhammad, till the present day there have been, in every century, godly persons through whom God has shown heavenly signs to other communities to guide them ... the heavenly signs that have appeared and are appearing in Islam through the auliya of this Umma in support of Islam and in witness of the truthfulness of the Holy Prophet have no parallel at all in other religions." (Ruhani Khaza'in, vol. 13, pages 9192) The historical facts described here could not change in 1901. For your satisfaction, I can give quotes after 1901: "God speaks to, and communicates with, His saints (auliya) in this Umma. They are given the colour of prophets, but they are not prophets in reality because the Holy Quran has completed all the requirements of the shariah. They are given nothing but the understanding of the Quran; they do not add to the Quran, nor take anything away from it." (Mawahib ar-Rahman, January 1903, p. 66) Then in Haqiqat-ul-Wahy (1907) he divides people who receive revelation into three levels, and it is obvious from reading it that the saints are in the third, the highest, level. About the qualities of such a man he writes: "The word of God descends upon him as it descends upon the holy prophets and messengers of God, being free from doubt and absolutely certain" (Ruhani Khaza'in, v. 22, p. 18 ) In his book "Tuhfah Golarwiya" he has likened Hazrat Abu Bakr to the prophet Joshua and written: "Just as God showed Joshua the same assistance as He previously showed to Moses, similarly God blessed the works of Hazrat Abu Bakr in front of all the Companions, and his glory shone like that of prophets." (RK, vol. 17, p. 186) Note "his glory shone like that of prophets". In the same section he writes that the crisis of rebellion that Hazrat Abu Bakr overcame was worse than that which Joshua had faced: "A storm like this [one faced by Joshua], rather, more severe than it, was faced by Hazrat Abu Bakr ... this storm was much worse than the storm of water that Joshua had to face ... Then just as the word of God gave strength to Joshua ... so did Hazrat Abu Bakr receive strength from God at the time of the storm of rebellion." (pages 187188 ) I am not clear whether the Qadiani Jamaat considers the book "Tuhfah Golarwiya" as pre-1901 or post-1901. So I am requesting you to let me know which category you place this book in. So this is the position and the achievement of non-prophets in Islam according to Hazrat Mirza sahib. I am sorry to observe your statement: "Therefore to say, a saint would do this in place of a prophet now is absurd." This comment, regrettably, attributes absurdity to the Promised Messiah's views. 4. You then say: "Most astonishingly, there is a quote I found in Nazir's book, regarding a time when Muhammadi Ali was confronted by non-Ahmadis in 1936." I have consulted the original source, and what astonishes me is the gross misrepresentation that the Qadiani Jamaat has committed. Maulana Muhammad Ali was answering, in writing, a set of questions sent by the Anjuman Himayat-i-Islam, who had been asked by Allama Iqbal to change their rules to declare members of the Ahmadiyya Anjuman Ishaat Islam Lahore (AAIIL) as non-Muslims and to expel them from its membership. The answers were published by the Maulana himself in our organ Paigham Sulah. The quote you have given is part of his answer to the second question: "Has your belief about Mirza sahib been the same from the beginning till today, or has it ever changed, and if so why did it change?" His reply is in three numbered points: "1. I have answered this in reply to the first question." He writes this because in answer to the first question ("Since the time you took the bai`at of Mirza sahib till today what is your belief about his claim?") he had already stated: "I took the bai`at upon these beliefs and I still hold these beliefs even now." (And those beliefs are stated by him in answer to the first question to be that: Hazrat Mirza sahib claimed to be the coming Messiah mentioned in Hadith, who is a muhaddas, and a muhaddas can be called prophet metaphorically, and that Hazrat Mirza sahib wrote that his claim was not of being a prophet but a muhaddas.) His second point is as follows, from which the Qadiani Jamaat has quoted incompletely: "2. If you want to issue a fatwa about the Ahmadiyya Jamaat Lahore, the published beliefs of the Jamaat are before you. My personal writings of thirty years ago have no connection with it. Give whatever fatwa you wish about them on the basis of those beliefs." This is a perfectly proper point. A fatwa about members of an organisation must be based on that organisation's declared, corporate beliefs, and not on someone's individual writings before that organisation came into existence. Then comes his point (3) as follows: "3. If it is a question of a fatwa about me personally, then a fatwa of Kufr based on writings of thirty year ago will not prove useful. Especially at this time, when an exalted personality like Iqbal has declared a man to be kafir whom just four years ago he made the president of a Muslim committee. Sir Muhammad Iqbal was in the forefront in making Mirza Mahmud Ahmad president of the Kashmir committee. And the Jamaat which he declared as a true model of Islamic life some 16 or 17 years before that in his speech at Aligarh, today he calls it kafir. So it is appropriate that whatever fatwa you give, it should be based on writings of the present day." He is telling them: you are questioning me about my writings of 30 years ago, while the man who has asked you to declare us as kafir (Iqbal) believed us to be Muslims and even good Muslims at that time, and he believed this till even four years ago. The Anjuman Himayat-i-Islam's campaign against Ahmadis only came into existence because Iqbal completely reversed his stance from considering Ahmadis as good Muslims to declaring them as non-Muslims. This Anjuman had also always treated Ahmadis as Muslims and made them its committee members. So this Anjuman and Iqbal must first explain why their belief has changed before they can question whether Maulana Muhammad Ali changed his beliefs. So you see Maulana Muhammad Ali gave a 3 part reply: (1) that his beliefs about Hazrat Mirza sahib's claim were always the same; (2) that the question whether he changed his beliefs is irrelevant in determining whether members of the organisation A.A.I.I.L. are Muslims or not; (3) that Anjuman Himayat-i-Islam is not even justified in seeking an explanation from him about previous beliefs because they regarded him and Ahmadis as Muslims all through this time. 5. You seem to misunderstand when you write: "You wanted a copy of Badr showing Muhammad Ali also believed that "Ahmad" referred to the Promised Messiah." I had said that the Qadiani Jamaat, to support its allegations, should make available the entire article from "The Review of Religions", in each case, where he has used the word "prophet", so that people can see in in context. Regarding the "Ahmad" issue, the question I am posing is whether the following views of Mirza Mahmud Ahmad are supported by the Promised Messiah or even supported by the Qadiani Jamaat for the last so many years. I quote these now from his book "Anwar-i Khilafat": Quote:I hope you will reflect on the above. The Promised Messiah or Maulana Muhammad Ali never wrote anything like this. This e-mail has been lengthy, of necessity. |
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aaiil |
From Zahid Aziz, addendum to above | ||
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From Zahid Aziz, addendum to above
I hope you will allow me to add a further comment briefly on two of the points. The statement of the Promised Messiah quoted from Badr March 1908 that "he was a nabi in the sense of the word in which the former prophets were called nabis" occurs in Mulfazat, vol. 10, p. 127. If you turn to page 155 of the same volume, the Promised Messiah says, referring to Hazrat Mujaddid Alif Sani, that whoever has dreams and revelations in abundance is called muhaddas. So he affirms being a muhaddas, while using the word nabi about himself. Regarding the quote from Maulana Muhammad Ali's book History of the Prophets about who is a prophet in the technical language of Islam ("chosen by God to deliver His message to mankind"), that is not the only attribute he mentions as being required of prophets. On the next page he writes: "To every prophet was given a book for the guidance of his people", and quotes verses 2:213 and 57:25 in support. So this excludes the Promised Messiah from being a prophet in the Maulana's definition. |
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aaiil |
From Dr Tahir Ijaz, November 16 | ||
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From Dr Tahir Ijaz, November 16
Dr Tahir Ijaz sent his response as a Word file. It can be read here, converted to html format for our visitors' convenience. |
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aaiil |
From Zahid Aziz, November 30 | ||
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From Zahid Aziz, November 30
I e-mailed my response to Dr Tahir Ijaz on November 30th as a Word file. It can be read here, converted to html format for our visitors' convenience. |
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aaiil |
From Dr Tahir Ijaz, December 9th | ||
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I have received a response from Dr Tahir Ijaz on December 9th as a Word document. It is available below in two formats.
It can be read here, converted to html format for our visitors' convenience. Here it is in pdf format, looking exactly like the original Word document (with page numbering). |
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aaiil |
From Zahid Aziz, January 5th (2004) | ||
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From Zahid Aziz, January 5th (2004)
Here is my response to the contribution by Dr Tahir Ijaz of December 9th, which I have e-mailed to him as a Word document. It can be read in two formats as below. html format. pdf document. Please note that my response refers at various points to Dr Tahir Ijaz's December 9th document by page number of his document. So I have made his December 9th response available in pdf format as well (see last post), which shows his original page numbering. |
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aaiil |
From Dr Tahir Ijaz, January 29th, 2004 | ||
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I have received a response from Dr Tahir Ijaz on January 29th as a Word document. It is available below in two formats.
Here it is converted to html format, for our visitors' convenience. Here it is in pdf format, looking exactly like the original Word document (with page numbering). |
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aaiil |
From Zahid Aziz, February 16th, 2004 | ||
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Response by Zahid Aziz, February 16th, 2004
Dr Tahir Ijaz and I have agreed that we should now submit just a summary of our positions, no more than 2 pages in length. My summary is given below, in two formats. HTML format. PDF Format. |
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aaiil |
Addendum from Dr Tahir Ijaz, of February 2nd, 2004 | ||
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Note: Dr Tahir Ijaz had submitted an addendum to his response of January 29th. I did not post it because my response would not have fitted into my 2-page summary (given above). I also pointed out to him by e-mail that the key point he was presenting was actually against the standpoint of his Jamaat during the past fifty years, and I asked him to reconsider whether he wanted it posted on this forum.
As he has insisted that I post it here, I have done so and have also given my response. Addendum by Dr Tahir Ijaz Response to Addendum by Zahid Aziz |
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aaiil |
From Dr Tahir Ijaz, 20 March 2004 | ||
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aaiil |
From Zahid Aziz | ||
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Having posted the summary above by Dr Tahir Ijaz, this debate is now closed.
While not re-opening any of the issues, I note that his style in several cases is that first he puts forward a standpoint, then when I refute it he adopts my standpoint, and starts putting it forward as if it were his own and as if I am the one who doesn't accept it! Example: In his first paragraph of his summary he says that Muslim saints are of a greater rank than many of the Israelite prophets and that according to the Promised Messiah thousands of these saints attained the rank of prophethood. In fact, it was I who made these points in refutation of his posts when he kept on highlighting that Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad was the only one chosen to be called nabi and referring to sainthood as being a "mere muhaddas". Another example is that he first quoted Maulana Nur-ud-Dins letter to argue that we must not make a distinction between those who do not believe in a law bearing prophet and those who do not believe in a non-law bearing one, and he highlighted these words. When I showed that his own Jamaat has not been holding this stand for the past fifty years, he now says that Maulana Nur-ud-Din meant that there is a distinction between them and that the disbelievers of the Promised Messiah do not have the same status as disbelievers in Prophet Muhammad, the opposite of what he was arguing before. Dr Tahir Ijaz has offered to readers to answer their questions. But his answers carry no authority because he has himself said that he does not speak as a representative of his Jamaat. Nor does he have any personal expertise in these issues, as shown by his changes of stance when he learnt things he didnt know before. |
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