allah is the greatest,allah is the greatest i bear witness that there isnone worthy of worship except allah. i bear witness thatmuhammad (saw) is the messenger of allah. come to prayer come to success allah is the greatest,allah is the greatest. there is none worthyof worship except allah. peace be upon you all, i bear witness that there isnone worthy of worship except allah
he is alone and has no partner and i bear witness thatmuhammad (saw) is his servant and messenger after this i seek refuge withallah from satan the accursed. in the name of allah,the gracious, the merciful. all praise belongs toallah, lord of all the worlds. the gracious, the merciful. master of the day of judgment. thee alone do we worship andthee alone do we implore for help. guide us in the right path
the path of those on whomthou hast bestowed thy blessings, those who have notincurred thy displeasure, and those who have not gone astray. hazrat ayesha (ra) narratesthat [the holy prophet (saw) said,] “a deceased person, for whom ahundred muslims observe the funeral prayer “and all of whom intercede with allahand ask him for forgiveness for the deceased, “will have their intercession accepted.†there is a further narrationthat once when a funeral passed by and the deceased was praised by people,
and the holy prophet (saw) said,“paradise has become certain for him.†i had thought that as i will lead two funeralprayers today, before mentioning the deceased, i would present some further ahadith aswell as quotes from the promised messiah (as) and islamicjurisprudence on matters relating to the funeral process,preparation and burial of the deceased. however, it would be impossible to presentall the hadiths and extracts on this topic today. the reason for this is thevast material that has been received about the servant of thecommunity and devotee of life - who fulfilled his vow of devotion(waqf) and was ever obedient to khilafat.
i intend to speak about him andalso to lead his funeral prayer in absentia. so much material has been sent bypeople that even that will be difficult to convey. i have probablyselected one fifth of that material and i will likely not beable to present even that much. these incidents are,in their own right, a guide in many respects for every life-devotee (waqf-e-zindagi), for the members of thefamily of the promised messiah (as), for office-bearers and for members ofthe community and are a worthy of emulation. as you are aware, a few day ago,respected sahibzadah mirza ghulam ahmad sahib,
son of hazrat sahibzada mirza azizahmad sahib (ra) passed away at the age of 78. surely, to allah webelong and to him shall we return. his demise was caused by a heart attack. although he had been sufferingfrom a heart disease for a long time, he passed away athome due to cardiac arrest. respected mirza ghulam ahmad sahib was the paternal great-grandsonof the promised messiah (as). he was the grandson ofhazrat mirza sultan ahmad sahib, the eldest son of thepromised messiah (as).
he was the son of hazratmirza aziz ahmad sahib (ra). he was the maternal great-grandsonof hazrat mir muhammad ishaq sahib. he was also my brother-in-law. his mother, sahibzadi naseerah begum, was the eldest daughter ofhazrat mir muhammad ishaq sahib. all these relationships are notthe reason why he is worthy of mention. what makes theserelations worthy of mention are his attributes andcharacteristics, which i will relate. he was a servant of the faithand a life-devotee (waqf-e-zindagi).
nowadays, when i appointed himto the post of nazir-e-aala, despite weakness, illness and sufferingfrom the effect of his brother’s demise, he fulfilled all his duties diligentlyand he remained in attendance at the office. likewise, he continued to attend events. a day before [his demise], he attended afunction at madrasat-ul-hifz, where certificates were to be distributed among successful hafiz[those who memorise the holy quran entirely). he then attended another event bykhuddam-ul-ahmadiyya in the evening. even in the morning on the day of his demise,he visited many sick people at their homes. further, he also offered allthe five prayers at masjid mubarak.
his life as a waqf-e-zindagi [lifedevotee] commenced in may, 1962. he completed his ma in politicalscience from government college lahore. following this, he sat the examinationfor the public service commission ccs, which he passed with flying colours. as a matter of fact,he personally told me that “i merely sat this examination as people usedto say that this is a very difficult examination "and it is very difficult to pass it. “i did so in order to devote my life afterhaving been successful in worldly terms as well “and so that no one is able to say that icame here as i was unable to find anything else.â€
despite this success, he did not pursue any government job,nor did he join the public service commission. rather, he devoted his life andas i mentioned, he did so in 1962. following this, hazrat khalifat-ul-masihii (ra) entrusted him with the responsibility of serving as the managingeditor of the review of religions. furthermore, hazrat khalifat-ul-masih ii (ra)also told him that “alongside secular knowledge, “which you have already acquired,you should also acquire religious knowledge.†hence, he studied hadith and religiousmatters from hazrat sayyid mir daud ahmad sahib. hazrat sayyid mir daud ahmad sahibwas the editor of the review of religions
as well as his maternal uncle. initially he wasnamed mirza sa’eed ahmad. hazrat musleh maud (ra) later named himmirza ghulam ahmad upon the request of his mother. she had read anaccount in seerat-ul-mahdi and in relation to this she thought that heshould not be given the name mirza sa’eed ahmad. mirza sa’eed ahmad was a brother fromhis first mother and passed away at a young age. he also came here to study in uk and wasthe class fellow of mirza muzaffar ahmad sahib. she also told hazrat muslehmaud that if his name is changed then hazrat mirza ‘azizahmad sahib will be saddened.
hence, he should also be consoled. hazrat musleh maud said that “in that case, we will give him aname which will not grieve his father.†following this,he named him mirza ghulam ahmad and he also said that “wewill call him by the name 'ahmad'." “the reason for this is that the promisedmessiah (as) passed away not too long ago and "it is very difficult for me to callhim by the name ghulam ahmad.†in 1964, he wasmarriage was settled with my sister and maulana jalal-ud-din shamssahib led their nikah [marriage contract]
as hazrat khalifat-ul-masih ii (ra)was ill in those days. he has three sons and two daughters. two sons are life-devotees. mirza fazl ahmad is the nazirta’leem [director of education] in rabwah, whereas mirza nasir inam isthe principal in the jamia here in uk. mirza ihsan ahmad is in america. even though he has a secular job, he is alsoserving the jama’at there as the finance secretary in the national ‘amila [administrativebody] as well as the officer jalsa gah. one of his daughtersis amatul wali zubdah and
the other daughter is amatul ali zahrah,who is married to mir mahmood ahmad sahib, son of mir mas’ood ahmad sahib. he is also a life-devotee and currentlyserving as the nazir sehat [director of health]. mirza ghulam ahmad sahib servedas the nazir taleem [director of education], additional nazir islah-o-irshad muqami for severalyears and he also served as the nazir diwan. as a matter of fact,he served as the nazir diwan until he was appointed as thenazir-e-aala, that is from 1996 until 2018. furthermore, he alsoserved as the sadr majlis karpardaz [president of the committee for thebahishti maqbarah] from 2012 until 2018.
then, following the demiseof mirza khurshid ahmad sahib, i appointed him as the nazir-e-aala,the local president and sadr anjuman ahmadiyya. even prior to this, during thetime of hazrat khalifatul masih iv (rh), he was enabled to serve as theacting nazir-e-aala [executive director] as well as the acting localpresident on several occasions. similarly, he was a memberof the committee for waqf-e-jadid and served as the president of thecommittee for waqf-e-jadid from 2016 until 2018. as part of ansarullah, he was included in the‘amila [administrative body] of various regions. he was entrusted tosupervise various regions.
furthermore, he also servedas the vice president of saff-e-dom, following which hebecame the vice president. then, he was enabled to serve as the presidentof ansarullah pakistan from 2004 until 2009. as part of khuddam-ul-ahmadiyya,he served as the mohtamid during various years. furthermore, he served as the vicepresident of khuddam-ul-ahmadiyya markaziyya, following which he also served as the president ofkhuddam-ul-ahmadiyya markaziyya from 1975 to 1979. he also served as the editor of thereview of religions after mir daud ahmad sahib. he rendered his services as the privatesecretary for hazrat khalifat-ul-masih iii (rh). he was the president of thecommittee for the khilafat library
as well as the president of thebuyoot-ul-hamd society, rabwah. he also served as thedirector of the fazl ‘umar foundation. he was enabled to render his services andoffer duties during jalsa salanas for many years. as long as jalsas were held in rabwah, he served as the vice officer jalsa salana as wellas the nazim mehnat [supervisor of diligent work]. the task of the nazim mehnat [supervisorof diligent work] demands great effort, where they have to deal withlabourers who are non-ahmadis, such as those who preparethe roti, naan [bread] and dough and they also have todeal with ill-mannered people.
to supervise them properlyis a great task during the jalsa. by the grace of allah the exalted, he was enabledto render this service in a most dignified manner. he was the president of thecommittee of tabarrukat [relics]. he was a member of thecommittee of the register of the narrations of the companions ofthe promised messiah (as). he was a member ofthe board of jurisprudence. he was a member of thecommittee of the history of ahmadiyyat. he was the secretaryof the khilafat committee. he also served as the supervisingmanaging director of al-sharikat-ul-islamiyah.
he was entrusted with many responsibilities,such as overseeing these committees, alongside the tasks of his department. in 1989, he, along with mirza khurshidahmad sahib and two other workers in the anjuman had the honour of being imprisoned for a fewdays in the cause of allah under the article 298c. following the tragedy thatoccurred in lahore on 28th may, 2010, where many ahmadis were martyred, mirza ghulam ahmad sahib served as the amir ofthe delegation that was immediately sent to lahore at that time by nazir-e-aala sahib inorder to console and reassure the jama’at, to visit the families of those martyredand in order to visit those that were injured.
he had already reached lahore whenthe martyrs were being taken to hospital. he stayed in lahore forapproximately the following two weeks. he personally supervised the arrangementsthat were made for [the jama’at in] lahore. this delegation went todar-uz-zikr [name of the mosque] and fulfilled its responsibilitieswith great awareness and diligence. he also supervised thetreatment of those that were wounded and also visited thehomes of those that were martyred. he called a meeting of the ‘amila [administrativebody] in dar-uz-zikr on the very same day and also announcedthe election of the new amir.
he led the maghrib and‘isha prayers in that very mosque so people would be assured that the mosquewas not to be abandoned following the attack. when he was in hospital there in orderto visit and speak to those that were wounded, salman taseer sahib,the governor at that time, came to visit. he expressed his condolence. however, mirza ghulam ahmad sahib broughthis attention towards the fact that the attack was a result of hate-filledpropaganda being spread against the jama’at and that as the governor,it is his duty to pay attention towards this. similarly, the provincialminister for minorities, javaid michael,
also came in order toexpress his condolence. even on this occasion, he said to theaforementioned minister with great resolve that “you have come in order to expressyour condolence and we thank you for that. “however, it should remain evident that wedo not at all consider ourselves to be a minority. "we are muslims!†upon this the minister said that “as a matter of fact, i am also minister of humanrights and have come in that capacity as well.†furthermore, he said to him thathe should raise his voice in the cabinet in order for the government toeliminate the campaign against the jama’at.
anyway, this was an occasion where he broughttheir attention towards their responsibilities. in fact, our attention is everdrawn towards allah the exalted and it is only he, who can improve thesecircumstances, insha’allah [god willing]. on 29th and 30th may,they also held a press conference there. on 2nd june, they participatedin a live programme on express news, called “point blankâ€, from eleveno’clock until twelve o’clock in the evening. they gave interviews forthe swiss national tv, bbc and other services such as voice ofamerica, sahara tv, channel five and dunya tv etc. nevertheless, this delegation remainedthere until 12th june and returned following this.
during this trip he clearlytold them that we are muslims and no one candeprive us from being muslims. in one of his sermons, hazrat khalifatulmasih iv (rh) narrated one of his dreams. while speaking about this dream andmentioning mirza ghulam ahmad sahib, he stated: “i was thinking about increasing my engagementsand that night i saw mian ahmad in a dream. “mirza ghulam ahmadsahib always gives good adviceâ€. hazrat khalifatul masih iv (rh) says “it was miansahib who advised me regarding the holy qur’an “that instead of writing notestowards the end of tafsir-e-sagheer, "i should produce a newtranslation of the holy qur’an.
“by the grace of allah almighty,he enabled me to finish this translation “and a lot of issueswere resolved through it.†there are other things in thisvery comprehensive dream that mian ahmad sahib shared with hazrat khalifatulmasih iv (rh) and how he could be of assistance. there was a discussion about marital issues andemployment for boys as well as other suggestions. once, hazrat khalifatul masih iv (rh)wrote a letter to mian ahmad which read: “i have received the letter in which you expressedworry. i will, very humbly, pray for you. “god almighty has instilled honesty and felicityin your nature. he never lets such a human perish. “may allah almighty continue tobless you with immediate spiritual progress
“and may he grant you theparadise of obtaining peace of mind.†similarly, in another letter hazratkhalifatul masih iv (rh) wrote to him: “i remember you in my prayers. “this is your right and you are also one ofmy prominent helpers in terms of serving faith. “may allah almighty always keep you underhis protection, grant you health and security. “may you never face any worry or anxiety.â€then he wrote: “also remember me in your prayers. “it is my ardent desire thatpeople accept ahmadiyyat soon.†then he wrote: “mta is being transmittedworldwide and serving as a vital instrument. "it is practically fulfilling my desire.
“so produce such amazing programs formta that become a source of guidance everywhere "and so that satan and his evilforces are seized completely during ramadan.†amtul qudus sahib, his wife, says: “when hazrat khalifatul masih ii (ra) was ill,he would go for duty at night on daily basis.†this is prior to their marriage. similarly, he was very much attached with hazratkhalifatul masih iii (rh) during his khilafat. hazrat khalifatul masih iii(rh) trusted him greatly and in 1974, mirza khurshid ahmad sahib and he stayed there[close to huzoor] for several days and nights. they did not havepermission to even return home.
in 1973 and particularly in 1974 andafter becoming sadr of khuddamul ahmadiyya, he was working with hazrat khalifatul masih iii(rh) and would not return home for a long time. even before that, he would leave in themorning and return home at around ten at night. once, during an ijtema, when he requested hazratkhalifatul masih iii (rh) to lead the pledge, hazrat khalifatul masih iii (rh)responded by saying: “you should lead the pledge†and hazrat khalifatul masihiii (rh) made him lead the pledge. hazrat khalifatul masih iii (rh) repeated afterhim like all the khuddam [youth] present there. at the time of mirzakhurshid ahmad sahib’s demise, i stated that hazratkhalifatul masih iv (rh) had mentioned
“[these] two individuals arevery loyal to me and to every khilafat.†mian ahmad sahib had written to me[about this] but had also informed verbally. he hesitated to include his name in thisso i did not mention his name during jummah. only mirza khurshidahmad sahib’s name was mentioned. but in actuality, hazratkhalifatul masih iv (rh) had said about mirza ghulam ahmad and mirza khurshid ahmadthat they are faithful to him and every khalifa. he was called when hazrat khalifatulmasih iv’s (rh) ring was lost to help find it. he would say: “hazrat khalifatulmasih iv (rh) mentioned my name ‘ahmad’ first "then he said ‘khurshid’.
“they are both amongst those upon whom i putmy trust and they are faithful to every khalifa.’†his wife says: “he would cry and weepwhilst offering his nawafil [voluntary prayers] "with such intensity thatwould shake the entire house. “he would pray for the holy prophet (saw), thepromised messiah (as), the khalifah of the time, “the entire jama’at, his parentsand siblings, his children and relatives. “he would repeat certain wordsof surah fatihah countless times.†he had a strong relationwith his parents and siblings but there was neverany injustice between them. he ensured that hisfamily respected his wife
and that his wife established arelationship with his family members. that is to say, he maintained abalance between these two relations. he expressed gratitudeupon receiving the smallest gifts. he would either return the favour by sendinga gift to the sender, or go the sender’s house and thank them inperson or write to them. one of his great qualities wasthat once he was entrusted with a task, he would not rest until it was completed. his knowledge was vastand his memory was excellent. she [his wife] says: “whether it was a narrationor deciphering family links, he would know.â€
she says: “i was fond oftraveling and he would certainly take me out “whether our financialsituation or health was stable or not. “he would do so to fulfill thedue rights towards me as his wife.†his wife, who is my sister, writes:“the wife of ‘abdur rahman anwar sahib says: “‘abdur rahman anwar sahib saw in adream that the entrance of his mother’s house “‘has been decorated withtwo vines of countless roses “‘and there arecountless beautiful flowers there.’†by the grace of allah thealmighty this dream was fulfilled. his wife writes: “upon receiving his salary,the first thing he would spend on would be chanda
“and after that he woulduse his salary for other expenses. “he would offer his wassiyyatpayments on the property from the earnings that “both him and his wife hadreceived from our mother or father. “after offering chanda he would informme: ‘i have offered chanda on the property.’ “hence, in this way he paid the entirechanda amount that was due on my property “and this was never a burden upon me.†even for his children,he bought houses for his son and daughter and paid the wassiyyatamount due on their properties as well. many people have written to me,
and i have been witness to this myselfthat these two brothers always remained together. our sister writes that the wife of mirzadawood ahmad sahib would always say that “whenever i saw ahmad andkhurshid going somewhere together, “i could tell there was some issuewithin the jamaat, which is why both are going.†at the time of every crisis they would actwith great forbearance, understanding and wisdom. he was very obedient to khilafat. despite being very weakhe attended the jalsa here. i told him to use a walking stick so he began using itimmediately, as it has now been instructed.
a few years ago i instructed thenaziraan that they should visit different jamaats and convey mymessage greetings in every house. the province ofsindh was allocated to him. his wife says that “when hereturned we was walking with a limp, “so when i enquired as to the reasonhe replied: ‘i fell from the stairs of a house.’†when it was shown in the fazl-e-umarhospital the bone in his small toe was cracked and there was a slight crack in the ankleof his other foot or it was injured slightly. there was a slight fracture. she says: “i asked himif he was feeling any pain.â€
he replied “i felt pain but as thekhalifa’s instruction was to convey his message “door-to-doorâ€. he replied: “ididn’t feel the pain for 11 days.†hence he returnedhaving completed his task. his elder son writes that after themigration of hadrat khalifatul masih iv (rh) the cassette for hissermons came to ahmad sahib first and he would gather everyone in a veryorganised manner and relay the sermon before them. even after the sermons were shown onmta, he would especially listen to them again and would ensure that all themembers of the house would listen to the sermons, including the house workers.
furthermore, he wouldarrange for loudspeakers or even a tv in order for thoseworking outside to listen to the sermon. his son narrates an incident thatwhen he went to the mayo hospital in lahore, there was a rush and those in theambulances were setting their own rates. he then announced out loud that thesadr anjuman ahmadiyya will make arrangements for all the burials in rabwah,for the coffins to be taken there and if there are any other placesyou wish to take them to then, god willing, you will have permission to do so. in any case, the people weremuch relieved after hearing this.
he visited the homes of all the injured, the martyred and made foodarrangements for all those not earning. there were some reports from certainagencies that certain people were after him, the agencies said that there is danger to hislife so he was called back to return from there. however the following friday after the28th may he went there again to darul zikr and led the friday prayer himself so thatthe members of the jamaat remained resolute. he would take great careof the poor and his old friends. during his youth one of his classfellows was unable to complete his studies and started working asa painter in various houses.
he took a lot of care of him and after his demisemian sahib looked after his children as well. in 1989 he was arrested and thereason was that khuddamul ahmadiyya were holding an ijtema [gathering] and miankhurshid ahmad sahib was nazir umoor-e-aama. at the time he was outside ofrabwah and the magistrate called him while mian ghulam ahmadsahib was serving as his deputy. the magistrate toldhim to close down the ijtema. he replied by saying “since you gave us writtenpermission to hold the ijtema so we will end it “only when you give it in writing.â€
he said that it is a verbalinstruction for you to end it. he answered by saying “we will notterminate it based on a verbal statement.†thus, in the evening mirzakhurshid sahib returned and he too was called. he gave the same answer andas a result, as i mentioned previously, mirza ghulam ahmad spent a few daysin prison. he was arrested and put in prison. his daughter writes: “our fatherstrived to the utmost to remain loyal to khilafat “and also advised us to do the same. “once my father veryanxiously requested me for prayers “and continued toremind me for several days.
“i was not aware of the situation “but i was under theimpression that the khalifa was slightly upset. “as a result my father prayed sofervently that it left a lasting impression on me “and my statebecame the same as my father.†then when hadratkhalifatul masih iv (rh) migrated, his mother sayyeda naseera begum sahibawas very ill and her condition was deteriorating. the night of the migrationseemed to be the last night of his mother, but he was busy in the affairsof the jamaat and the migration, so he was unable to even go to her room andcontinued dealing with the affairs of the jamaat.
similarly, in the timeof the khilafat-e-khamisa, his bond of obedience andloyalty always remained the same with me. in fact, when he was askedby his son he responded by saying “do you not see thetruthfulness of khilafat “and how the support ofallah is with khilafat-e-khamisa?†one of his sons writes “he would wake us upfor prayers and was normally very strict in this. “however, in his final days he would do sowith such kindness which showed his affection.†his son writes that whatever letter heand his wife would receive from his mother and from the khalifa,he would copy them and place them in a file.
then he would entrust themto all his children telling them that these are the valuable assets ofour time so keep these letters with you. mirza anas sahib relates that “when mian ahmad sahib passed away, isaw in my dream that mian ahmad and mian khurshid “have gone towards allah the almighty “and they are meeting the holyprophet (saw) and the promised messiah (as). “in that moment it was a longing of minefor allah to make my meeting the same as this, "so i said ‘o allah call me also into yournearness.’ god almighty said ‘come forward.’" he says that “i have had along-lasting relationship with mian ahmad
“and we are approximately the same age. “when i look at the gooddeeds he carried out i am embarrassed “asking god almighty togrant me the same opportunity. “whenever he was upset with me over somethinghe would always be the first to beg pardon.†likewise, he writes that “thestate of his prayers was such that “when i saw him praying with suchfervency that i would become envious.†he was extremelyintelligent and responsible. he was enabled to attend all five prayers inthe mosque, help the poor and be of use to them and exert all his strengthsin spending in the way of allah.
chaudhary hameedullah sahib wrote that “he possessed great insight inall matters, a man of great advice and, “more often than not, his suggestionsproved to be decisive in all consultations.†he possessed deep understanding ofthe literature of the community and its history. whenever the occasion would arise, he wouldbe in the front line in rendering his services. during the turmoil of 1974, for several months hefully assisted hadrat khalifatul masih iii (rh). he was present in all the internationaltrips of hadrat khalifatul masih iii (rh). on one occasion he waspart of huzoor’s delegation, representing the centralmajlis khuddamul ahmadiyya.
one of his workers inqadian, akram sahib writes: “i went to pay my condolences to him at thedeath of his brother mirza khursheed ahmad sahib “and he said with greatbenevolence to also pray for him in qadian “and to request the other elders to pray for himas he felt alone after the death of mian khursheed “and that may allah enablehim to fully assume his duties.†in this way he wouldcontinue to request for prayers. whenever he wouldtravel to qadian he would visit the homes of the darwesh (those appointedto safeguard qadian during the partition). similarly he would strive to serve thewidows and orphaned children of the darwesh.
he had great knowledge ofthe sacred sites around qadian. akram sahib writes that “whenever he would reach qadianhe would offer nawafil (voluntary) prayers “where the promised messiah (as) usedto pray and would advise me to do the same “saying, ‘you people arefortunate to live in this holy site. “‘therefore, offer yourprayers here profusely.’†he rendered greatservices to khuddamul ahmadiyya as the president andvisited the youth in all areas. gondal sahib wrote that “mianahmad sahib once went to visit sindh
“but there were certain places wherethe vehiclecould not pass, nor could the cars. “he went on foot throughthe jungles to reach the khuddam, “which deeply impressed thekhuddam and even now they remember that.†similarly, asfandyar muneebsahib, the department of history in-charge, writes that he was of specialbenefit for the history of ahmadiyyat. he was a pillar ofthe consultation panel. he would look at thehistorical manuscripts with great attention and would give veryvaluable guidance and advice. he was well-versed in the background andminute details of the events of the community.
muhammad deen naz sahib,the additional nazir islah-o-irshad writes: “when he was appointed asthe nazir-e-aala, i entered his room “and he was sat on theseat of the nizarat-e-ulya. “his state was one worthseeing that his eyes were filled with tears, “his face seemed overwhelmedand absorbed by the emotions of prayer. “and with great humility herequested me to also pray or him.†zahid qureshi sahib writes: “i was once sent to him while he wasserving as the president of khuddam-ul-ahmadiyya “for some work by the qaidof khuddam-ul-ahmadiyya lahore.
“i went to his office inaiwan-e-mahmood and handed over the documents. “it was a mid-afternoonduring the summer season “and after i received thedocuments, he asked me if i had eaten. “i replied that after completing thiswork, i will go to dar-ul-ziafat and eat. “he replied, ‘no, come with me, just sit here fora little while and the arrangements will be made.’ “i thought that perhaps arrangements forfood were going to be made in aiwan-e-mahmood, “however after a short while he went outside andtook out his cycle and asked me to sit behind him. “on the way i even said that i will get offand go to dar-ul-ziafat as it comes on the way, “however he said, ‘no, remain seated’.
“he rode the cycle home in thescorching heat and fed me in his house “and after that gaveme permission to leave.†he had a personal bond with every khadim while hewas serving as president of khuddam-ul-ahmadiyya. similarly, many people wrote that they learnt manyof the skills and methods of how to work from him. dr sultan mubasher sahib writes: “we learnt manytechniques of how to work from him. “it was his practise to conduct allhis work in a very meticulous manner.†dr sultan mubasher sahib further writes: “after the [anti-ahmadi]ordinance was passed in 1984,
“mian ahmad sahib wasoverseeing the arrangements to lodge an appeal “in the federalshariat court of pakistan. “i recall that once miansahib came to aiwan-e-mahmood “and i was playingbadminton there at the time. “he said to me, ‘we sometimesrequire certain books in the lahore court “‘which need to beprovided from our library. ‘it is yourresponsibility to take them there.’†“therefore, whicheverbook they required from rabwah “they would note themon the phone from lahore
“and mian sahib himself wouldalso personally assist the library staff “with great effort insearching for those books “and arrange for them to be delivered. “it was not the case that hesimply give an instruction and left “but it was his practise tothen actively take part in the work.†he would take great careof the orphans and widows. dr sahib states: “just today i met a lady inthe outdoor [clinic], bushra sahiba from rabwah. “she suffers from diabetes andblood pressure and after checking her results, “i told her that by the grace of godalmighty your results are completely normal,
“however uponhearing this she began to cry. “i looked at her inastonishment and she said in an emotional tone, ‘dr sahib, no doubtmy diabetes has improved ‘but two individuals who took on theexpense of all my medical treatment have gone; ‘mirza khursheed ahmad sahib and mirzaghulam ahmad sahib have both departed this world.’ “i reassured her that by the grace ofgod almighty her medical treatment will continue “as it is by the nizam-e-jama’at[administration of the community], “however she kept onremembering them and crying.†imam of the fazl mosque,atual mujeeb rashid sahib states:
“towards the end of 1973, when hazratkhalifatul messiah iii (rh) appointed me as the “national president of khuddam-ul-ahmadiyyaafter seeking consultation from the “majlis shura of khuddam-ul-ahmadiyya, “mirza ghulam ahmad sahib at thetime was serving as deputy president. “owing to his vast experience, “i also recommended his name to serveas deputy president in my executive committee. “mirza ghulam ahmad sahib was senior to me inrespect to knowledge, experience, age and status, “however when he was appointed asdeputy president, he worked with great humility “and extended hisco-operation in every task.
“at no point did he everexpress his seniority over me.†shahid abbas sahib from malaysia writes: “i performed the bai’at [oath of initiation]in 2005 and went to visit the headquarters. “mirza ghulam ahmad sahib was going to his officeand the mualim [local preacher], daniyal sahib “who was with me said, ‘he is avery close relative of the khlaifa of the time. “‘you should request him for prayers.’ “i approached him and told him that i haveaccepted ahmadiyyat from a sect among the shia “and request you to pray for me. “he embraced me and then firmly grippedmy hand and said with a very passionate voice,
“ ‘should i not inform you of a person whom ialso request for prayers?’ i enquired who that is. “he replied, ‘the khalifa of thetime. you should write to him for prayers.’†this new ahmadi convert further states: “the love and passion i witnessed in his eyes forthe khalifa of the time was extremely impressive “and those few momentshave become etched in my memory.†anjum pervez sahib, who is serving asa missionary here in the arab desk writes: “one day chaudhry muhammad alisahib told me that once mian ahmad was cycling “in the intense heat of the mid-afternoonsearching for someone who worked as a painter. “he asked him who hewas searching for and he replied,
“ ‘i have prescribed someone the wrong homeopathicmedication and now i am searching for him “ ‘before he eats it and i maygive him the correct medication. “ ‘therefore, i amsearching for him myself so that “i can give him the correctmedicine, however i cannot find him.’†he discharged everyresponsibility he had and the many roles he was assigned toserve in an excellent manner. people have writtenmany accounts in regards to this. similarly, those who workedwith him in the office have said that he would get work from themin a very caring and loving manner.
he would show compassion as muchas he possibly could to those who were facing difficulty, suffering from grief and the needy,and he would seek to alleviate their difficulties. he had a very fine understating ofmatters and had such god-given faculties that he would very quicklyget to the core of the matter and (as i mentioned earlier that it was his practise)that he would then act on it immediately. similarly, just a few days prior to his demise,a few youths came to the office with a complaint that some of the security personnelemployed for the security of the headquarters had acted unjustly and hitthem or treated them harshly. one of them had sustained many injuries.
he [mirza ghulamahmad sahib] asked him that whether he had been tothe hospital to get it checked. he replied no and so he said, “first goto the hospital. the offices are closed today, “however when they open again ishall inshallah conduct a full investigation, “and regardless of whether the culpritis an office-bearer, they will be punished.†he started this enquiry straight away andsent the youths to the hospital to get treatment. iqbal bashir sahib writes: “when mian ahmad sahib was appointed as nazirdeewan [director of human resources and records], “there was only a few office staff whichconsisted of two office clerks and an assistant.
“many a times when the workload would increase,mian ahmad sahib would come and sit with us “and help with the checkingand dispatching of the letters.†riaz mahmood bajwa sahib,who was a missionary and now retired writes: “one day i was sitting in theoffice and during our conversation, “a degree of strictnessappeared in mian sahib’s tone. “i did not have any resentment and norwas i surprised at this as such things can happen. “i came home and later in theevening there was a knock on the door. “i went outside and saw that mianahmad sahib was standing there and said, ‘i spoke to you today in a strongmanner and therefore have come to apologise.’
“i was not even aware that he did so and sincethen i am in admiration of his great character.†similarly, an assistant worker and an employeewrote the same that he first told them off but then later apologised. a similar incident hasbeen written by someone: “i committed an error inoffice and was told off as well, “later at home while i was recitingistighfar [seeking forgiveness] the door knocked. “he then turned aroundand sat back in his car and left.†mubaher ayyaz sahib writes: “i was the editor of the khalid magazine
“and the late mahmood bengali sahibhad come from australia and i took his interview. “he related an incident that when mianahmad sahib was president [khuddam-ul-ahmadiyya], “mahmood bengali sahibwas in-charge of the tarbiyyati class [religious and moraltraining for khuddam]. “when the tarbiyyati class was overhe presented the total budget and a few ‘ana’, “which means a few pence had been overspent andthe bill was rejected by the president stating, ‘this bill cannot be approved’. “he says, ‘i personally went tohim and said that it is not a huge issue, ‘only a few pence have beenoverspent and this is not a huge amount.
‘if you are unable to give it,then i shall pay for it from my own pocket.’ he replied, ‘it is not a case ofspending from your own pocket, ‘however the fact is that iwant to make you understand ‘that you should be cautiouswhen spending from the jam’at’s money ‘and you should follow therules and regulations of the jam’at. ‘therefore, if you required more money ‘then you should have soughtpermission first and then spent the money.’ bengali sahib says,‘this had a lasting impact on me.’†he also had a great bond with khilafat.
once, an issue regarding the zakatnot being applicable on horses, i believe, was being discussed in the judiciarycommittee and a report had been compiled. however, i rejected this report and said that itshould be reviewed again and requires a consensus. many committees were formed and eachtime long debates would ensue amongst the scholars and they would failto arrive at a conclusion. the president then made him the head ofthe committee and again some of the scholars came with great preparation in order to presentan alternative view to what i had initially said. he heard thediscussion for a short while and then mubasher ayyaz sahib statesthat with a very passionate voice he said,
“when the khalifa of the time hasmade a decision then how can we even think “to say something against this?†“he rejected all their arguments “and did not care how eminent thescholars were and what they was saying.†he continues by saying: “whenit came to the history of the jama’at “and incidents that are connected withthe jama’at he was like an encyclopaedia.†he says: “at present i am writing about thelife and character of the promised messiah (as). “if i would ever encounterany difficulty i would consult him, “as he was well versed in thissubject and was an authority in these matters.
“similarly he had vast knowledgeof the [historical] sites around qadian. “whilst in qadian, if anyone requestedhim to show the historical sites of qadian, “he would happily grant them a tour. “on one occasion he had twisted hisankle and was injured, however despite this, “he did not let anyone knowand continued to show them around.†mubashar ayyaz sahib says: “when hebegan to climb the stairs we realised, in fact, “he himself stated thathe felt pain [in his ankle]. “we were embarrassed at the factthat we had caused him so much pain.†similarly there areseveral other incidents.
whenever he was sent for an official duty,he did not think about any obstacles in his way. on one occasion, there was a disagreement betweentwo parties regarding a certain official matter. he was sent to reconcile the two parties,however, the journey to reach them was difficult. there was no through access by car. mirza khurshid ahmad sahib and mirza(ghulam) ahmad sahib along with the missionaries sat in a trailer of a tractor. along the route, there was asection of the journey where it was dangerous for the tractor to proceed. after disembarking, they then resumed the journeyby foot and eventually reached their destination.
when they reached the villagethey assembled everyone in the mosque and pronounced theirverdict and also prayed for the matter. by the grace of allah,when the people saw that they travelled from afar having undertaken a difficult journey, the feud that had lasted several yearswas resolved due to his sacrifice and prayers. there are many other incidentssimilar to this and others that are new, but there is notenough time to relate them. he would always show love to hisworkers and this was mentioned by all of them. he would care for eventhe smallest of their needs.
he then served as naib nazirta’leem [deputy director for education]. it is narrated “whenever an allowanceof any student was rejected by the khalifa “owing to certain circumstances “he would say that you shouldattribute the approval for student allowances “or other good news to the khalifa, “and if someone’s application had been rejectedor any disapproval should be attributed to us.†zafar ahmad zafar sahib, who is amissionary, also narrated the incident that when he fractured his foot, he did notworry for it even though it began to swell up. saleem sahib writes: “during thekhilafat of hazrat khalifatul masih iii (rh),
“he served as private secretary. “when the post would pile up “he would say for everyone tocollate all the post and distribute it again. “in the distribution hewould take a pile for himself. “as private secretary, he would takemore post than all of our office workers. “he would respond andcomplete all the work before we would.†he had a special skill for drafting lettersand his handwriting was very neat and organised. as i mentioned earlier hehad a special ability to draft letters. a worker in wakalat-e-maal sani writes:
“we were writing up the history of tehreek-e-jadidincluding about financial sacrifice. “after ironing out themistakes and preparing the final version, the wakeel-ul-maal [director of finance] “asked me to give the final copy to mian ahmadsahib, so that he can check for any mistakes. “i thought to myself that once we givethis 150 to 200 page book to mian ahmad sahib, “we will be relieved forthe next four or five days.†he then writes: “when ireached the office the next morning, “the envelope was on mytable, complete with all the corrections. “he had managed to complete all the correctionsin one night and returned the document.â€
this was his the level of hisefficiency, which is an example for all workers. he also served as sadr majlis karpurdaz and would thoroughly assesthe matters pertaining to this office. samiullah zahid sahib writes: “when he served asnazir islah-o-irshad muqami, “he asked me to make a listof families of all the missionaries. “when i gave him the list,he went to visit all the families and said to them ‘since your husbands arecarrying out their missionary work in the field, ‘if you have any worries,concerns or if you need anything,
‘you should not worrythem, instead come and tell me.’†fareed-ur-rahman sahib, who is aworker in wakalat-e-ta’meel-o-tanfeez writes: “i worked on composingchaudhry muhammad ali sahib’s book. “when i prepared the final draft chaudhrysahib sent me to him [mirza ghulam ahmad sahib]. “when i presented him the booki remained behind for a short while. “he asked me, ‘what is the matter?’ nervously,i said to him that my mother had an operation.†he then writes: “i had only said this much thathe immediately asked how much money i required “and took the chequebook of the treasuryfrom the drawer and placed it on his desk. “i told him that irequire seven thousand rupees.
“if you can lend me the money nowyou can deduct it later from my salary. “he then gave me the money from hispersonal account and said: ‘i will also pray. ‘you do not need to worry whether itneeds to be deducted from your salary or not. ‘take this and if you requireany more do not hesitate to ask me.’ hafiz sahib has also written stating: “he had a special connection withkhilafat which was visible on all occasions. “when he was made nazir-e-aala, in his firstaddress to the naziran [directors] of the anjuman “he said ‘i do not need torequest you for your cooperation, ‘as you are allserving in your capacities.
‘however, since hazratkhalifatul masih (aba) has appointed me, ‘i am in urgent need of your prayers, ‘as it is extremely difficult tofollow in the footsteps of certain people.’ similarly when he wastransferred from nazarat-e-diwan and appointed asnazir-e-aala one of the workers says: “before leaving from the office he personallycame to meet us and requested permission to leave. “hearing these wordsmade us emotional and we said: ‘mian sahib, stay herewith us or take us with you.’ at this he smiled and said:
‘how can i take you with me, i am only goingon the command of hazrat khalifatul masih (aba), ‘then after a short while,i will meet my creator with his permission.’ may allah thealmighty elevate his status. he has departed to go to a place whereeach one of us will go at the appointed time. however, fortunate are those who spend their livesstriving to attain the pleasure of god almighty. may allah the almighty elevate his status and enable his children tocontinue his virtuous deeds. also all the waqfeen [devotees oflife] and office bearers should strive to fulfil their waqf [pledge fordevoting ones life] with sincerity,
just as he did and alsoto continue their services. may allah grant everyone theopportunity to fulfil their pledges. may allah continue to grant thejamaat pious and righteous workers who serve with sincerityand passion in the future as well. the second funeral that i will leadtoday is of debaanu farakhut sahiba, who passed away on26th january at the age of 47. [arabic] to him webelong and to him shall we return. she passed away due to high bloodpressure and an infection in her intestine. although she underwent an operation,however, she passed away after one week.
she was ill for quite some time and when she was fifteen,both her kidneys stopped functioning properly. despite this, from thetime she accepted ahmadiyyat, she would offer her prayers on time as well as offering thetahajjud [pre-dawn voluntary] prayers. she would regularly recite the holy qur’an,despite having converted from christianity. she accepted islam in 2004 and sincethen she was regular in her obligatory prayers, recitation of the qur’anand also tahajjud prayers. assessing the condition of the muslims,
she realised that there was amajor issue [with certain muslims]. she had accepted the holyprophet (saw) before ahmadiyyat. she later became an ahmadi muslim. she began to research about the signs of thelatter days as mentioned by the holy prophet (saw) and thus accepted ahmadiyyat. she said herself that she felt asthough she was edging towards her end, to the extent that when she accepted islam,she felt as though she was on the verge of death. her doctors who arenon-muslims would say that ever since she has foundallah, it has breathed new life into her.
before accepting ahmadiyyat she developedhepatitis c, however, having performed the bai’at, god almighty grantedher a miraculous recovery. she would mention hermiraculous healing to members of her family. she has met me on two occasionsand always exhibited sincerity and loyalty. ameer sahib [national president]writes: “when i went to meet her a few days ago “she has prepared a meal for me. “when i expressed to her that there wasno need to go to all this trouble she said that “it was the first time ihad come to her house, “and that i had come as arepresentative of the khalifa.â€
in her home she wouldalways have mta on the tv. may allah the almighty elevate her statusand forgive her by showering his mercy on her. may allah fulfil her wish and desire,which was for her family to accept ahmadiyyat. all praise is due to allah. we laud him, we beseechhelp from him and ask his protection; we confide in him, we trust him alone and we seek protection againstthe evils and mischief of our souls and from the bad results of our deeds. whomsoever he guides on theright path, none can misguide him;
and whosoever he declares misled,none can guide him onto the right path. and we bear witness that nonedeserves to be worshipped except allah. we bear witness thatmuhammad is his servant and messenger. o servants of allah!may allah be merciful to you. verily, allah commands you to act withjustice, to confer benefits upon each other and to do good to othersas one does to one 's kindred and forbids evil whichpertain to your own selves and evils which affect others andprohibits revolts against a lawful authority. he warns you against being unmindful.
you remember allah;he too will remember you; call him and he willmake a response to your call. and verily divineremembrance is the highest virtue.