The Light of the Holy Qur'an

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the Light of the holy Qur’an Numbers I & II

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The Light of the Holy Qur’an (N u rul-Qur’ a n) Numbers I & II Hadrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad The Promised Messiah and Mahdi as Founder of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community

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ISLAM INTERNATIONAL PUBLICATIONS LTD The Light of the Holy Qur’an, Numbers I & II English translation of N u rul-Qur’ a n Numbers I & II Written by Hadrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad The Promised Messiah and Mahdi, peace be upon him, Founder of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community N u rul-Qur’ a n Number I —First published in Urdu in India, 1895 N u rul-Qur’ a n Number II —First published in Urdu in India, 1899 First English translation published of both Numbers in the UK, 2022 Translated by: Saeed-ur-Rahman & A.M.Raja © Islam International Publications Ltd.All rights reserved.No part of this publication may be repro- duced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording or any information storage and retrieval system, without prior written permission from the Publisher, Islam International Publications Ltd.Published by: Islam International Publications Ltd Unit 3, Bourne Mill Business Park, Guildford Road, Farnham, Surrey, GU9 9PS, UK Printed at: Cover designed by: Usman Nasir Choudhary For further information please visit www.alislam.org ISBN: 978-1-84880-572-9 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

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Contents Front matter About the Author........................................................ix Publisher’s Note...........................................................xi Foreword...................................................................xvii The Light of the Qur’an Number One Announcement—The Book Minanur-R a h m a n...........5 Guidance.....................................................................11 The First Proof............................................................15 Footnote from Page 25...............................................37 Footnote from Page 31...............................................53

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NURUL-QUR'AN vi The Light of the Qur’an Number Two An Important Announcement for Our Readers........69 The Journal—Fateh Masih..........................................73 The Sympathy of the Maulaw i s of Amritsar for Islam................................................................94 The Remaining Objections of Padre Fateh Masih which he Put Forth in his Second Letter...........100 A Vision of the Late Hadrat Abdullah Ghaznavi Regarding Sheikh Muhammad Husain Batalawi....162 Back Matter Glossary....................................................................167 Names of Prophets in this Journal............................169 Index.........................................................................171

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Hadrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian The Promised Messiah & Mahdi as

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About the Author Hadrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad as was born in 1835 in Qadian, India.From his early life, he dedicated himself to prayer and the study of the Holy Qur’an and other scriptures.He was deeply pained to observe the plight of Islam, which was being attacked from all directions.In order to defend Islam and present its teachings in their pristine purity, he wrote more than ninety books, thousands of letters, and participated in many religious debates.He argued that Islam is a living faith which can lead man to establish com- munion with God to achieve moral and spiritual perfection.Hadrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad as started experiencing Divine dreams, visions, and revelations at a young age.In 1889, under Divine command, he started accepting initiation into the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community.Divine revelations continued to increase and God commanded him to announce that He had appointed him to be that very Reformer of the Latter Days as prophesied by various religions under different titles.He claimed to be that very Prophet who the Holy Prophet Muhammad s as said would be raised as the Promised Messiah and Mahdi.The

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NURUL-QUR'AN x Ahmadiyya Muslim Community is now established in more than 200 countries.After his demise in 1908, the second manifestation of Divine power was demonstrated, and the institution of Khilafat (Successorship) was established to succeed him in fulfilment of the prophecies made in the Holy Qur’an, presented by the Holy Prophet Muhammad s as , and in the book of the Promised Messiah as , al-Wa s iyyat.Hadrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad aba is the Fifth Successor to the Promised Messiah as and the present Head of the International Ahmadiyya Muslim Community.

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Publisher’s Note Please note that, in the translation that follows, words given in parentheses ( ) are the words of the Promised Messiah as.If any explanatory words or phrases are added by the translators for the purpose of clarification, they are put in square brackets [ ].Footnotes given by the publisher are marked ‘[Publisher]’.The translators’ primary objective was to adhere to the author’s original text as strictly as possible.Contemporary nineteenth cen- tury lexicons were utilized to precisely define Urdu, Arabic, and Persian words and phrases.To preserve the author’s writing style, and particularly his points of emphasis, we have retained his orig- inal underlined and bold text styling.However, to facilitate read- ability for an English speaking audience, punctuation and pauses were inserted as considered necessary, and lengthy paragraphs and sentences were broken into smaller ones.Grammatical rules, literary conventions, and presentation were generally applied in conformity to The Oxford Guide to Style.References to the Holy Qur’an contain the name of the S u rah followed by a chapter and verse number(s), e.g.S u rah al-Jumu‘ah,

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NURUL-QUR'AN xii 62:4, and count Bismill a hir-Ra h m a nir-Ra hi m [‘In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful’] as the first verse in every chap- ter that begins with it.Where we have included verses from the Bible, all references are taken from the King James Version (KJV).The following abbreviations have been used: s as s allall a hu ‘alaihi wa sallam, meaning ‘peace and blessings of Allah be upon him’, is written after the name of the Holy Prophet Muhammad s as.as ‘alaihis-sal a m, meaning ‘peace be upon him’, is written after the names of Prophets other than the Holy Prophet Muhammad s as.ra ra d iyall a hu ‘anhu/‘anh a /‘anhum, meaning ‘Allah be pleased with him/her/them’, is written after the names of the Companions of the Holy Prophet Muhammad s as or of the Promised Messiah as.rta ra h matull a h ‘alaih/‘alaih a /‘alaihim, meaning ‘Allah shower His mercy upon him/her/them’, is written after the names of those deceased pious Muslims who are not Companions of the Holy Prophet Muhammad s as or of the Promised Messiah as.aba ayyadahull a hu Ta‘ a la bina s rihil-‘Az i z, meaning ‘Allah the Almighty help him with His powerful support’, is written

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xiii P U BL I S h E R ’ S No T E P U BL I S h E R ’ S No T E after the name of the present head of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, Hadrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad aba , Khal i fatul- Mas ih V.Readers are urged to recite the full salutations when reading the book.In general, we have adopted the following system estab- lished by the Royal Asiatic Society for our transliteration.ا at the beginning of a word, pronounced as a, i, u preceded by a very slight aspiration, like h in the English word honour.ث th – pronounced like th in the English word thing.ح h – a guttural aspirate, stronger than h.خ kh – pronounced like the Scottish ch in loch.ذ dh – pronounced like the English th in that.ص s – strongly articulated s.ض d – similar to the English th in this.ط t – strongly articulated palatal t.ظ z – strongly articulated z.ع ‘ – a strong guttural, the pronunciation of which must be learnt by the ear.غ gh – a sound similar to the French r in grasseye, and to the German r.It requires the muscles of the throat to be in the ‘gargling’ position to pronounce it.ق q – a deep guttural k sound.ء ’ – a sort of catch in the voice.

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NURUL-QUR'AN xiv Short vowels are represented by: a for __ َ ___ (like u in bud ).i for __ ِ ___ (like i in bid ).u for __ ُ ___ (like oo in wood ).Long vowels by: a for __ ٰ ___ or آ (like a in father ).i for ی __ ِ ___ or __ ٖ ___ (like ee in deep ).u for و __ ُ ___ (like oo in root ).Other vowels by: ai for ی __ َ ___ (like i in site ).au for و __ َ ___ (resembling ou in sound ).The consonants not included in the above list have the same phonetic value as in the principal languages of Europe.As noted above, the single quotation mark ‘ is used for transliterating ع which is distinct from the apostrophe ’ used for ء.We have not transliterated some Arabic words which have become part of English language, e.g.Islam, Qur’an, hadith, Mahdi, jihad, Ramadan, and ummah.The Royal Asiatic Society’s rules of transliteration for names of persons, places, and other terms, are not followed throughout the book as many of the names contain non-Arabic characters and carry a local translitera- tion and pronunciation style.

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xv P U BL I S h E R ’ S No T E P U BL I S h E R ’ S No T E Acknowledgements The initial English translation of N u rul-Qur’ a n, Numbers I & II was carried out by members of Wak a lat-e-Ta s n i f led by Saeed- ur-Rahman.This translation was revised by A.M.Raja, Khalil Malik and Waseem Sayed of the English Translation Section of the Additional Wak a lat-e-Ta s n i f.Valuable services were ren- dered by Munawar Saeed, Naser-ud-Din Shams, Bushra Shahid, Naeemuddin Tahir, Fouzan Pal, Hassan Khan, Nasira Naseem, Rawan Malas, Maryam Bhatti, Mirza Abdul Wahab, and oth- ers.Considerable support for researching and referencing was provided by Wak a lat-e-Ta s n i f and the Research Cell.May Allah reward them all.A m i n.

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Foreword In 1895, Hadrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, peace be upon him, ini- tiated a periodical named N u rul-Qur’ a n ( The Light of the Holy Qur’an ) with the express intent of disseminating the truths and verities of the Divine Word.He adopted the requirement that any claim or argument he presented in this journal would originate directly from the Holy Qur’an itself, so that people might know that the Holy Qur’an alone maintains the miraculous quality of articulating its claims as well as their corroboration.In N u rul-Qur’ a n —Number I, the Promised Messiah as demon- strates that the Holy Qur’an not only makes the emphatic claim of its Divine origin and the prophethood of the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, but it also proves this very claim with exceedingly potent and powerful arguments.These proofs are then set forth in detail within this issue of the periodical.In N u rul-Qur’ a n —Number II, the Promised Messiah as expresses his great regret that he was compelled to rebut the filthy and sordid allegations that were heaped upon the Holy Prophet s as

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NURUL-QUR'AN xviii by one Fateh Masih, a Christian missionary whose slanders said more about himself than his intended target.It was, therefore, solely to redress such foul-mouthed people that the Promised Messiah was compelled to pay them back in their own coin.The Promised Messiah’s rebuttal exposes the hypocrisy, ignorance, and blind bigotry of this so-called Christian scholar.It had been the intent of the Promised Messiah as to publish this periodical on a regular basis but his busy schedule and rig- orous regimen allowed only two issues to be published during his lifetime.Both these issues of N u rul-Qur’ a n are now being published together for the first time in English with the express permission of Hadrat Khalifatul Masih V aba.al- Ha j Munir-ud-Din Shams Additional Wak i l-ut-Ta s n i f, London July 2022

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the Light of the holy Qur’an (N u rul-Qur’ a n) Number I

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Facsimile of the original title page for N u rul-Qur’ a n, Number 1 , printed in 1895

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Announcement This journal, N u rul-Qur’ a n, shall be published quar- terly as for now, and this issue is of the three months June, July, and August 1895.Its price remains ONE Rupee per annum.Undersigned—The humble one, Sirajul-Haqq Jamali No‘mani printed by D iy A ’ul-islam press, qadian Under the supervision of H Ak I m fazl din bhervi Translation of the original title page for N u rul-Qur’ a n Surely, the true religion with Allah is Islam The Light of the Holy Qur’an

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1  2 نَحۡمَدُہ ٗ وَنُصَلِّي Announcement— The Book Minanur-Ra h m a n This is a most wonderful and extraordinary book, towards which my attention was drawn by some insightful verses of the Holy Qur’an.And this is also a great benefaction of the Glorious Qur’an upon the world that it has set forth the true etymology of linguistic differences and informed us of this fine point as to which wellspring and treasure trove the human languages issued forth from, and how those people were misled who did not accept the fact that the origin of human language is the instruction of God Almighty.Let it be known that it has been established in this book through linguistic investigation that the Holy Qur’an is the only book in the world that has been revealed in that language 1.In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful.[Publisher] 2.We praise Him (Allah), and invoke blessings (on His Noble Messenger).[Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 6 which is the mother of all tongues, is itself revealed, and is the wellspring and fountainhead of all languages.It is evident that every beauty and superiority of a Divine Book lies in it being in a language that proceeds from the mouth of God Almighty, excels all languages in its beauties, and is perfect in its own linguistic syntax.And when we encounter within a language such perfec- tion whose creation is beyond human capability and man’s inge- nuity, and see those beauties that other languages are completely deprived and devoid of, and witness those characteristics which— apart from the eternal and true knowledge of God Almighty— the mind of no created being could be the author of, then we are forced to accept that that language is from God Almighty.Thus, it is learned after proficient and profound investigations that that language is Arabic.Although many people have exhausted their lives in the research of these topics and have expended great effort to dis- cover which language is the mother of all tongues, they could not succeed because their efforts did not pursue the right course and, moreover, they were not granted the ability by Almighty God.Another reason was also that their full attention was not directed towards the Arabic language, rather there was a parsimonious attitude; therefore, they remained deprived of recognizing the truth.Now, the Holy and Pure Word of God Almighty, the Holy Qur’an, has guided us to the point that that revealed language and the mother of all tongues—for which the Parsis and the Hebrews and the Aryas each laid claims from their standpoint, that theirs is indeed that language—is the eloquent Arabic Language and all other claimants are in error and in the wrong.I have not expressed this opinion cursorily.On the contrary,

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AN NO U NC E M E N T—T HE B O OK M INANU R-R A AN NO U NC E M E N T—T HE B O OK M INANU R-R A H H M M A A N N 7 I have, from my standpoint, conducted thorough investigations and—comparing thousands of Sanskrit words and hearing from the books of expert linguists of every kind, and after looking rather profoundly into the matter—I have reached this conclusion that besides the Arabic language, languages like Sanskrit etc.have no beauty whatsoever.On the contrary, the words of these languages when compared with the words of Arabic, appear lame, crippled, blind, deaf, and leprous, and, as if suffering from elephantiasis, have completely lost their natural linguistic syntax.They do not maintain within themselves a sufficient wealth of root words which is a mandatory requirement for a perfect language.Nevertheless, if we are in the wrong in the opinion of some Arya or Christian priest and if, in their opinion, these investiga- tions of mine are not authentic because I am not well versed in those languages, then first I would answer that the way I have set- tled this debate did not require me to be well versed in the syntax and semantics of Sanskrit and other such languages.I only needed the root words of Sanskrit etc., and I have amassed quite a large collection of them and have ascertained their meanings as much as possible with help from a number of Pandits and European linguists and even listened carefully to the books written by British researchers.And I clarified these things by putting them to rigorous enquiry.Then, once again, I obtained the testimony of Sanskrit linguists etc.which proved that Vedic Sanskrit and other such languages actually lack, and are bereft and devoid of, all the excellences which the Arabic language demonstrably possesses.The second answer is that if some Arya or any other opponent for that matter does not agree with my research, then I hereby inform them through this announcement that I have set out in

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 8 detail the arguments concerning the superiority and excellences of Arabic that make it the mother of all other languages in this book.These are as follows: 1.The system of root words in Arabic is perfect.2.Arabic has excellent intellectual reasons for naming things; a truly extraordinary quality.3.The uniformity of Arabic root letters is perfect and complete.4.Arabic compositions contain less words and more meanings.5.The Arabic language inherently possesses the quintessential capability to illustrate a complete picture of the innermost thoughts of the human mind.Now, after the publication of my book, everyone has the right to prove, if possible, that these excellences exist in Sanskrit or some other language, or after receipt of this announcement, one is also free to inform me as to how and in what manner he can become satisfied himself.Moreover, if he objects to the excellences men- tioned above or wants to point out some inherent beauties of Sanskrit etc., he can do so freely, for we will listen to him with care.Since many such suspicious-minded people are found in every nation who assume that perhaps Sanskrit etc.might have some hidden excellences that are known only to those who study and teach the books of these languages, I have, therefore, also pub- lished an announcement guaranteeing a prize of five thousand rupees alongside this book.This prize of five thousand rupees is not mere talk; rather, this money shall be deposited upon the request of some Arya gentle- man or any other person at a place where that person is completely

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AN NO U NC E M E N T—T HE B O OK M INANU R-R A AN NO U NC E M E N T—T HE B O OK M INANU R-R A H H M M A A N N 9 satisfied and feels that he shall receive this money without delay in case of victory.However, it must be kept in mind that the request for depositing money should come after the book on linguistic research has been published and the person who is requesting the money to be deposited will have to give a written affidavit that if he shies away from the contest after the five thousand rupees have been deposited, or if he is unable to fulfil his idle claims, then he shall have to pay the damages which are incurred by freezing financial assets for a certain period of time.وَالسَّلَم ُ عَلٰی مَن ِ اتّبَع َ الْھُدٰی [And peace be unto those who follow the guidance.] Announced by Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian, 15 June 1895 CE

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1 Guidance Given the variety of false notions that have spread in this present age across every nation in such a manner that their evil influence pushes naive souls to the brink of annihilation—in whom the image of religious philosophy is not yet perfectly developed, or has been so superficially drawn that it can be quickly erased by the equivocations of sophistry—it was out of sheer pity for the pre- vailing plight of the age that I sought to publish these discourses in this monthly journal which contain sufficient remedy for such sorry circumstances; and which should be the means for knowing, perceiving, and recognizing the straight path; and through which that true philosophy should become known that confers comfort 1.In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful.We praise Him, and invoke blessings (on His Noble Messenger).[Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 12 upon hearts, soothes the soul, imparts tranquillity, and transforms faith into cognition.Since the specific intent of this publication is to inform people of the truths and verities of the Divine Word, it has been made a permanent requirement that any claim or argu- ment presented in this journal shall not proceed forth from my own self, but rather from the Noble Qur’an which is the Word of God Almighty and has been revealed to dispel the darknesses of this world so that people might know that the Holy Qur’an alone maintains the unique miraculous quality that it itself articulates its claims and corroboration.And this is indeed the one foremost Sign of its being from Allah, that it always presents its own proof from every aspect—it itself presents claims and it itself presents the proofs for those claims.I desired to publish this miraculous quality of the Qur’an in this journal so that through this measure all those religions might be evaluated whose adherents—in oppo- sition to Islam—are praising such books which are completely bereft of the ability to prove their claims with evidence.It is manifestly clear that the first Sign of a Divine Book is intellectual prowess and it is absolutely impossible that a book— being, in fact, a Revealed Book —should yet be unable to expound any of the truths concerning the essentials of religious beliefs, or that it should be found in a pit of darkness and defi- ciency when compared to a human book.Rather, the foremost Sign of a Divine Book is indeed that it should also rationally sub- stantiate the prophethood and belief that it has laid the founda- tion of; for, if it does not prove its claims but rather hurls man into a maelstrom of perplexity, then asking people to believe in such a book will fall under [the realm of ] coercion and compulsion.Now, it is fairly simple and easy to understand that a Book that in

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G U I d AN c e G U I d AN c e 13 reality is Divine does not put any such burden on human dispo- sitions, nor does it present any matters contrary to reason whose acceptance involves coercion and force, because no sound intel- lect can accept as correct the proposition that force and coercion be permissible in faith.That is why Allah, the Lord of Glory, has said in the Noble Qur’an 1 ۤاَل َهاَرْكِا يِف ِنْيِّدلا ۤاَل َهاَرْكِا يِف ِنْيِّدلا.When we justly reflect upon how a Divine Book should be, the light of our heart emphatically testifies that the true complex- ion of a Divine Book’s countenance is indeed that it should itself, through its own light, openly manifest the path of H aqqul-Yaq i n [True Certainty] from among [all] intellectual and practical methods, and by bestowing perfect insight, establish a model of heavenly life in this very world.For, the only living miracle of a Divine Book is indeed that it be a teacher of knowledge, wisdom, and true philosophy, and should include all the verities that a seeker can learn about the spiritual truths by pondering over them.It should not merely put forward claims, but should prove each of its claims in a thoroughly satisfying manner, making it abundantly clear that—no matter how deeply or critically it is analysed—it is really miraculous in that it is the ultimate facilitator for advancing human insight in [comprehending] spiritual phenomena and is its own advocate for all its affairs.Finally, I would like to address all my opponents and openly warn them that if they truly consider their books to be from Allah and believe them to have originated from that Perfect Being— who would rather not allow His Holy Book to be the target of 1.There should be no compulsion in religion ( S u rah al-Baqarah, 2:257).[Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 14 such shame and ignominy that it be regarded as a mere collection of absurd and baseless claims with no supporting evidence—then they should take the opportunity to continuously put forward their arguments to counter ours; for, by examining contrary view- points, the truth is perceived all the sooner, and the distinction between the weak and the strong and the flawed and the flawless becomes apparent when the two books are compared.Nevertheless, it should be borne in mind that they them- selves are not to be self-appointed spokesmen [for their book]; but rather—as we have done—they should present the claims and corroboration from their book.And in conformity with the rules of the debate, it is imperative to understand that whatever evi- dence I now advance, they must prove the existence of this very evidence in their rebuttal, extracting it from their [respective] book.Likewise, with the publication of each issue of our journal, they must present the very same argument in favour of their book, which we have presented in that issue.Through this arrangement, a rather quick conclusion will be drawn regarding which of these books itself proves its own truth and holds an infinite ocean of verities within itself.Now, seeking the grace of God Almighty, I begin the first issue and pray that, ‘O my Allah, make truth triumphant and expose falsehood by bringing about its disgrace and defeat.’ ْ ي ِّ الْعَظ�ِ ِي وَل َ حَوْل َ وَل َ قُوَّة َ إِل َّ بِاهلل ِ الْعَل [And there is no power nor strength except from Allah the High, the Exalted.] A m i n.

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The First Proof An Argument in Favour of the Qur’an & Prophethood of the Holy Prophet, Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon Him The Holy Qur’an has most emphatically proclaimed that it is the Word of God and our lord and master, Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, is His true Prophet and Messenger upon whom that Holy Word had descended.Accordingly, this claim is very well comprehended and clearly explained in the fol- lowing verses: َلَّزَن َكْيَلَع َبٰتِكْلا ِّقَحْلاِب ُهّٰللا ۤاَل َهٰلِا اَّلِا َوُه١ۙ ُّيَحْلا ُمْوُّيَقْلا۰۰ؕ َّٓمٓلا۰۰ۙ 1 A l-e-‘Imr a n, 1–2 Meaning that, Allah indeed is He beside Whom there is no God, everything is sustained and maintained in existence by Him.He has sent down to thee the Book with the truth when it was truly needed.1.c ounting Bismill a h— ِمْسِب ِهّٰللا ِنٰمْحَّرلا ِمْيِحَّرلا —as the first verse, the refer- ence is S u rah A l-e- ‘ Imr a n, 3:2–4 [Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 16 Then He says: 1 Part No.6, S u rah an-Nis a’ — اَهُّيَاٰۤي ُساَّنلا ْدَق ُمُكَءٓاَج ُلْوُسَّرلا ِّقَحْلاِب Meaning, O people, this Prophet has come to you with truth and when truly needed.Then He says: 2 Part No.15 — َو ِّقَحْلاِب ُهٰنْلَزْنَا َو ِّقَحْلاِب َلَزَن Meaning that, We have sent down this Word when it was truly needed and it has descended in accordance with genuine need.Then He says: — اَهُّيَاٰۤي ُساَّنلا ْدَق ْمُكَءٓاَج ٌناَهْرُب ْنِّم ْمُكِّبَّر َو ۤاَنْلَزْنَا ْمُكْيَلِا اًرْوُن اًنْيِبُّم۰۰ 3 (Part No.6, S u rah an-Nis a’ ) [Meaning that] O ye people! This manifest proof has indeed come to you, and We have sent down to you a clear light.Then He says: 4 (Part No.9) — ْلُق اَهُّيَاٰۤي ُساَّنلا ْيِّنِا ُلْوُسَر ِهّٰللا ْمُكْيَلِا اًعْيِمَج 1.S u rah an-Nis a ’, 4:171 [Publisher] 2.S u rah Ban i Isr a’i l, 17:106 [Publisher] 3.S u rah an-Nis a ’, 4:175 [Publisher] 4.S u rah al-A‘r a f, 7:159 [Publisher]

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T H e F I r S T Pr o o F T H e F I r S T Pr o o F 17 Meaning that, Say to the people that I have come as a Messenger to you all.Then He says: َو َنْيِذَّلا اْوُنَمٰا َو اوُلِمَع ِتٰحِلّٰصلا َو اْوُنَمٰا اَمِب َلِّزُن ىٰلَع ٍدَّمَحُم َّو َوُه ُّقَحْلا ْنِم ْمِهِّبَّر١ۙ َرَّفَك ْمُهْنَع 1 (Part No.26) — ْمِهِتٰاِّيَس َو َحَلْصَا ْمُهَلاَب۰۰ Meaning that, those people who believe and do good works and believe in this Book which has been revealed to Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him—and it is indeed the truth—God will remove their sins and reform their conduct.Similarly, there are hundreds of other verses wherein it is very clearly claimed that the Noble Qur’an is the Word of God and the Holy Prophet Muhammad, the Chosen One, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, is His true Prophet.Presently, I consider writing this much appropriate and sufficient, but at the same time, I would like to remind my opponents that the force with which the Holy Qur’an makes this claim is certainly not to be found in any other book.I eagerly await if the Arya can even prove this much from their Vedas that the four Vedas have claimed to be the Word of God and have clearly stated that they were revealed to such and such a person at such and such a time.To prove that a book is from Allah, the first essential matter is indeed that that book should itself claim to be from Allah as well; for, attributing a book to the Lord Almighty when the book itself in no way points to being from Allah, is misplaced meddling.The second matter worth discussing is that the Noble 1.S u rah Mu h ammad, 47:3 [Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 18 Qur’an has not just made a claim regarding its Divine origin and the messengership of the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him; rather it has also proven this claim with exceedingly powerful and strong arguments.I shall, by the will of Allah, the Exalted, write down all those arguments one by one and I now present the first of these arguments in this very essay so that seekers of truth may, first of all, compare other books with the Qur’an in respect of this particular argument.I also challenge every single opponent that if this kind of proof, whose presence in a book is an evident testament to its truth, is also found in their books and regarding their prophets as well, then they must present it through their publications and newspapers, or else they will have to concede that their books are bereft and devoid of this proof of such lofty calibre.And I say with full con- viction and confidence that this kind of proof is certainly not to be found in their religion.Therefore, if I am wrong, they should prove my error.The details of the first argument that the Holy Qur’an has advanced in favour of its being from Allah are as follows: Sound reason considers it to be a most worthy argument in accepting a book as being true, and in accepting a person as being true and a Messenger sent by Allah that their advent should take place at such a time when the world is engulfed in darkness and people have adopted idolatry instead of Tau hi d [Oneness of God], sin- fulness in place of virtue, tyranny in place of justice, and igno- rance instead of knowledge.And there should be an urgent need for a Reformer and then that Messenger [Reformer] should depart from the world at such a time when he has impeccably

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T H e F I r S T Pr o o F T H e F I r S T Pr o o F 19 discharged the task of reformation.And until he has completed the task of reformation, he should have been kept safeguarded from the enemies, and like servants, he should have come and gone under Divine command.In a nutshell, he should appear at a time when the very age should be crying out that there is a need for the coming of a heavenly Reformer and a Book, and then he should be called back through revealed prophecy at such a time when he should have firmly established the plant of reformation and a grand magnificent revolution should have taken place.Now, I affirm this with a great sense of pleasure and pride that the manner in which this argument has so very brilliantly man- ifested in favour of the Qur’an and our Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, it has certainly never done so in favour of any other prophet or book.The Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, claimed that he came for all peoples; therefore, the Holy Qur’an took all nations to task for indulging in all kinds of idolatry, sinfulness, and debauchery as it says: 1 َرَهَظ ُداَسَفْلا يِف ِّرَبْلا َوِرْحَبْلا Meaning that, corruption has appeared on land and sea, and then it says: 2 َنْوُكَيِل َنْيِمَلٰعْلِل اًرْيِذَن 1.S u rah ar-R u m, 30:42 [Publisher] 2.S u rah al-Furq a n, 25:2 [Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 20 Meaning that, We sent thee so that you may warn all people of the world; that is, admonish them that due to their sins and beliefs they are counted as great sinners before God Almighty.Remember, the word نَذِيْر [warner] that has been employed in this verse respecting all the nations of the world, means to warn the sinners and wrongdoers.It is certainly understood from the use of this particular word that the Qur’an claimed that the entire world had been corrupted and that everyone had left the path of truth and righteousness, for the context of ْ اِنْذَار [ indh a r — to warn] applies to sinners, idolaters, and evil-doers.Warning and admonishing is meant to reprimand only the guilty, not the righteous.Everyone knows that it is always only the rebellious and the faithless who are warned and the practice of Allah has always been such that the Prophets are bearers of glad tidings for the righteous and warners for the sinful.Thus, when one Prophet became a warner for the entire world, then it has to be accepted that the Prophet’s revelation declared the whole world as immersed in immorality.This kind of claim has not been made by either the Torah regarding Moses or the Gospel regarding the time of Jesus, peace be upon him; rather, it has only been made by the Holy Qur’an.Then it says: 1 ْمُتْنُك ىٰلَع اَفَش ٍةَرْفُح َنِّم ِراَّنلا Meaning that you had reached the brink of the pit of hell before the advent of this Prophet, and it also admonished the Christians 1.S u rah A l-e-‘Imr a n, 3:104 [Publisher]

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T H e F I r S T Pr o o F T H e F I r S T Pr o o F 21 and the Jews for interpolating the Books of God through their deception, and declared them the leaders of all nations in every mischief and sin.And it also charged the idolaters time and again that you worship rocks, mortals, stars, and the elements, and have forgotten the True Creator; and that you devour the wealth of the orphans, murder children 1 ٭ , oppress your near relatives, and have exceeded the limits of moderation in every matter.Then it says: 2 اْۤوُمَلْعِا َّنَا َهّٰللا ِيْحُي َضْرَاْلا َدْعَب اَهِتْوَم Meaning that you should keep in mind that the entire earth had died and now God shall quicken it anew.In short, the Qur’an charged the whole world of associating partners with God, moral corruption, and idolatry, which are the mothers of all sins.It declared the Christians and the Jews to be the root of all evils 1.٭ Footnote: As He says: ٗهُّسُدَي يِف ِباَرُّتلا [ S u rah an-Na h l, 16:60] Meaning that, the polytheist buries his daughter alive and God says: ِّيَاِب ٍبْۢنَذ ْتَلِتُق َو اَذِا ُةَدٗءْوَمْلا ْتَلِٕىُس [ S u rah at-Takw i r, 81:9–10] Meaning that, the girls who had been buried alive shall be asked on the d ay of Judgement as to what sin they had been killed for.This is an indication of the prevailing circum- stances of the country in which such evil deeds were being committed.The same has been alluded to by an ancient Arab poet Ibn al-A‘r a b i who says: ِ ِ اُمّه ْ ظُلْم ُ مِن َ الْمَوْؤُد لَقِی ُمَا وَعَامِر َ جَمِیْعًا ُ ذُھْل لَقِیْت كَمَا Meaning: The girl buried alive suffers not as much injustice from her mother as was perpetrated against d huhal and ‘ A mir.—Author 2.S u rah al- H ad i d, 57:18 [Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 22 throughout the world and made mention of every single type of their evil deeds.And by painting such a picture, it manifested the misdeeds of the contemporary age such that ever since the creation of the world, no age resembled it except that of Noah.The extent to which I have written the verses here furnish conclusive arguments of the highest standard.Therefore, I have not written down each and every verse for fear of elongation.Readers should study the Holy Qur’an attentively so that they may realize how emphatically and effectively the Holy Qur’an is pointing out in many places that the whole world had been corrupted—that the entire earth had [spiritually] died and peo- ple were standing on the brink of hell.And see how it repeat- edly urged [the Holy Prophet s as ] to warn the whole world that their condition was indeed most fearful.A study of the Qur’an certainly reveals that the world was rotting in shirk [associating partners with God], misconduct, idol worship, and all manner of sins, and had become drowned in the deep well of evil deeds.It is quite true that the Gospels also mention some of the sins of the Jews, but nowhere did Jesus say that all the people living on the face of the earth—who can be referred to as all the worlds—had been corrupted and had died; that the world had been filled with shirk [associating partners with God] and misconduct; nor did he make a universal claim to messengership.So it is clear that the Jews, who were the addressees of Jesus, were a very small nation.In fact, they alone were the focus of the Messiah’s attention and populated just a few villages.But the Noble Qur’an has made mention of the death of the whole world and it describes the

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T H e F I r S T Pr o o F T H e F I r S T Pr o o F 23 evil condition of all nations and clearly states that the earth had died 1 ٭ due to all manner of sin.The Jews were descendants of the Prophets and professed faith in the Torah, though they were deficient in acting upon it; but at the time of the Qur’an , in addition to all sorts of cor- ruption in conduct, their doctrines too had been corrupted.Thousands of people were atheists, thousands denied revela- tion and Divine inspiration, and all sorts of evils were rife on the earth and a vicious storm of corruption in faith and doctrine was raging in the world.Yes! Jesus did make some mention of the misconduct of his peo- ple—the Jews—who were a small nation, which shows that a par- ticular nation of the Jews was then in need of a Reformer.However, the argument that we put forth in the case of the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, to affirm that he was commissioned by Allah —namely, that the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, came at the time of univer- sal corruption and was called back after effecting a perfect reform, and the presentation of both these aspects by the Qur’an itself, and calling the attention of the world to it itself—is lacking not only in the Gospel, but indeed, apart from the Holy Qur’an, it is similarly lacking in all earlier books.1.٭ Note: If anyone says, ‘The present age is no less steeped in evil, faith- lessness, and misconduct, then why has no prophet appeared in this age?’, the reply is that that age was utterly devoid of Tau hi d [ o neness of God] and righteousness while in the present age there exist four hun- dred million souls who profess ُ ل َٓ اِلٰہ َ اِلَّاللّٰہ ُ ل َٓ اِلٰہ َ اِلَّاللّٰہ [‘There is no one worthy of wor- ship except Allah’] and further, God Almighty has also not deprived this age of a Mujaddid [ r eformer].—Author

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 24 These arguments are put forth by the Holy Qur’an itself and it states itself that its truth is established by looking at both these aspects.That is to say, the first is the one [aspect] that I have just pointed out; that is, the Holy Qur’an appeared at a time when all kinds of evil deeds and false doctrines had become widespread and the world had drifted far away from truth, reality, Tau hi d [Oneness of God], and purity.The truth of this claim of the Holy Qur’an is corroborated when the history of every nation of that age is studied.This universal testimony takes shape as a conse- quence of every nation’s admission that, in fact, that age was so full of darkness that every people had succumbed to creature-wor- ship and this is indeed the reason that when the Qur’an declared all peoples to be misguided and evil, not one of them was able to prove their innocence.Observe how forcefully Allah the Exalted speaks of the vices of the People of the Book and describes the death of the entire world and says: اْۤوُمَلْعِا َّنَا َهّٰللا ِيْحُي َضْرَاْلا َدْعَب اَهِتْوَم١ؕ ْدَق اَّنَّيَب ُمُكَل ِتٰيٰاْلا ْمُكَّلَعَل َو اَل اْوُنْوُكَي َنْيِذَّلاَك اوُتْوُا َبٰتِكْلا ْنِم ُلْبَق َلاَطَف ُمِهْيَلَع ُدَمَاْلا ْتَسَقَف ْمُهُبْوُلُق١ؕ َو ٌرْيِثَك ْمُهْنِّم َنْوُقِسٰف۰۰ 1 (Part No.27, Ruk u ‘ 17 , S u rah al- H ad i d) — َنْوُلِقْعَت۰۰ Meaning that the believers should not behave like the People of the Book.They were given the Book before them.Thus, the term was prolonged for them and their hearts became hardened and most of them remain, in fact, sinful and wicked.Remember this 1.S u rah al- H ad i d, 57:17–18 [Publisher]

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T H e F I r S T Pr o o F T H e F I r S T Pr o o F 25 also, that the earth had died and that now God is bringing it back to life anew.These are Signs of the need and truth of the Qur’an which have been set forth so that you might recognize them.Now, ponder and realize that this argument that we have put forward is not an invention of our mind, but that it is the Holy Qur’an itself that puts it forward and after setting forth both parts of the argument, it says itself: 1 ْدَق اَّنَّيَب ُمُكَل ِتٰيٰاْلا ْمُكَّلَعَل َنْوُلِقْعَت۰۰ Meaning that, this is also another Sign in support of this Messenger s as and this Book being from Allah, which We have manifested so that you might reflect and understand and reach the truth.2 ٭ The second aspect of this argument is that the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, was called back from this world to his Lord at such a time when he had thoroughly accomplished his mission and this fact is well established through the Holy Qur’an as Allah, the Lord of Glory, says: 3 َمْوَيْلَا ُتْلَمْكَا ْمُكَل ْمُكَنْيِد َو ُتْمَمْتَا ْمُكْيَلَع ْيِتَمْعِن َو ُتْيِضَر ُمُكَل َماَلْسِاْلا اًنْيِد Meaning that, I have this day—through the descent of the Holy Qur’an and the perfecting of souls—perfected your religion for 1.S u rah al- H ad i d, 57:18 [Publisher] 2.٭ See footnote given by the author on pages 37–52.[Publisher] 3.S u rah al-M a ’idah, 5:4 [Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 26 you and have completed My favour upon you and have chosen for you Islam as your religion.The crux of the meaning is that whatever extent of the Glorious Qur’an that was to be revealed had been sent down and it had brought about the most extraordinary and wonderful changes in worthy and willing souls and had perfected their train- ing and completed its favour upon them.Verily, these two essen- tials are indispensable, which are the ultimate cause for the advent of a Prophet.Now, see how this verse proclaims emphatically and forcefully that the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, certainly did not depart from this world until the reli- gion of Islam had been perfected 1 ٭ through the revelation of the Qur’an and the perfection of souls.And this is indeed a special sign of being from Allah which is never bestowed upon a liar.Indeed, before the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, a standard of this lofty degree of perfection had never been exhibited even by any true Prophet, that on the one side, the Book of Allah be completed in peace and security, and on the other side, the souls [of believers] be perfected—all the while disbelief facing defeat on all fronts and Islam enjoying victory in every way.1.٭ Footnote: God Almighty addressed the c ompanions [of the Holy Prophet s as ] in the Noble Qur’an saying that He had perfected their reli- gion and completed His favour upon them.And He did not construct the verse to say that, ‘ o Prophet! This day I have perfected the Qur’an.’ The wisdom in this is that it may be made clear that not only had the Holy Qur’an been perfected, but those people who were made to re- ceive the Holy Qur’an had also been perfected, so that the very need for prophethood was fulfilled to perfection.—Author

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T H e F I r S T Pr o o F T H e F I r S T Pr o o F 27 At another place He says: ْحِّبَسَف ِدْمَحِب َكِّبَر اَذِا َءٓاَج ُرْصَن ِهّٰللا َو ُحْتَفْلا۰۰َۙو َتْيَاَر َساَّنلا َنْوُلُخْدَي ْيِف ِنْيِد ِهّٰللا اًجاَوْفَا۰۰ۙ 2 , 1 ٭ َو ُهْرِفْغَتْسا١ؕ ٗهَّنِا َناَك اًباَّوَت۰۰ Meaning that, when the help and victory—that had been prom- ised—comes, and you witness people entering the religion of Islam in troops, then praise and glorify God—that is, say that this is not from me, but rather from the grace, beneficence, and assis- tance of Allah—and offer a parting istighf a r [seeking Allah’s for- giveness], for He is Oft-Returning with compassion.When Prophets are urged to do istighf a r, it is total foolishness to conclude that this means they have to seek forgiveness like ordi- nary sinful people.In their case, it is a confession of their insignif- icance, humility, and weakness and is a respectful way of seeking 1.٭ Footnote: This verse shows that the Holy Prophet, peace and bless- ings of Allah be upon him, had an intense zeal to see Islam spread around the world during his lifetime, and it was abhorrent to him that he should leave for the Hereafter before establishing the truth upon the earth.Thus, God Almighty gives the Holy Prophet, peace and bless- ings of Allah be upon him, glad tidings in this verse that, ‘Look! I have fulfilled your desire.’ e very Prophet had this desire, more or less, but as they did not have this degree of zeal, neither Jesus as nor Moses as re- ceived this glad tiding; rather, he alone received it in whose favour the Holy Qur’an says: َكَّلَعَل ٌعِخاَب َكَسْفَّن اَّلَا اْوُنْوُكَي َنْيِنِمْؤُم۰۰ Meaning, will you grieve yourself to death over why these people be- lieve not [ S u rah ash-Shu‘ar a ’, 26:4, Publisher].—Author 2.S u rah an-Na s r, 110:2–4 [Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 28 His help.This chapter [of the Qur’an] affirms that the purpose of the advent of the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, had been fulfilled; that is to say, thousands of people had accepted Islam.It also alludes to the [approaching] demise of the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him— accordingly, he died within a year [of this revelation].Thus, it was inevitable that just as the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, was pleased with the revelation of this verse, he would also be grieved, for the garden had been planted, but what arrangement had been made for its eternal irrigation [into the future]? Hence, God Almighty, in order to remove this very concern, gave him the directive to do istighf a r.Since in the lexicon such ‘covering up’ is said to be the means through which man is safeguarded from calamities, it was for this reason that mighfar —which has the meaning of ‘helmet’—was derived from this very idea, and the meaning of seeking maghfirat [forgiveness] is that [in relation to] the calamity that is feared or the sin that elicits anxiety, God Almighty may stop that calam- ity or that sin from becoming manifest and may keep it covered.Therefore, in regard to this istighf a r, the promise was given that he should not grieve over this faith; God Almighty would not let it go to waste and would forever turn to it with mercy and hold back those calamities which could befall at any time of weakness.Most ignorant Christians, having failed to grasp the true essence of maghfirat, believe that anyone who seeks forgiveness is a transgressor and a sinner.However, after careful reflection upon the word maghfirat , it is clearly understood that he alone is a trans- gressor and a sinner who does not seek maghfirat from Allah.For, when every single unadulterated purity is conferred by Him alone

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T H e F I r S T Pr o o F T H e F I r S T Pr o o F 29 and He alone protects and preserves against the storm of sensual passions, it absolutely behoves the righteous servants of God Almighty to seek maghfirat during every single moment from this True Guardian and Protector.If we seek an analogy of maghfirat in the physical world, we can find no better simile than maghfirat being akin to a powerful, impregnable dyke that is built to stave off storm surges and floods.Hence, since all power and all author- ity is reserved for God Almighty and man is weak and frail, phys- ically as well as spiritually, always requiring that Immortal Being to water the tree of his life, without Whose grace he just cannot survive at all; therefore, istighf a r in the above sense is an essential part of the human condition.And just as a tree spreads forth its branches in all four directions as if spreading its hands towards the spring that surrounds it, saying, ‘O spring! Help me and let me retain my verdure and save my fruits from going to waste!’—This is the very condition of the righteous.Asking for life-giving water from the Fountain of True Life in order to protect and preserve spiritual verdure or to enlarge it, is something that has, in other words, been termed istighf a r in the Noble Qur’an.Ponder over the Holy Qur’an and read it carefully and you shall discover the lofty essence of istighf a r.As I have just pointed out, maghfirat, according to the lexicon, means an act of such covering up by which the aim is to seek safety from some calamity.For example, water is an element of maghfirat in favour of trees; that is, it covers up their defects.Imagine an orchard deprived of water for a couple of years; what will it look like? Is it not true that its beauty will totally fade away and its greenery and fresh- ness will disappear without a trace? It will never bear fruit on time and will wither from within.Nor will it flower and bloom and

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 30 its soft, green, fresh leaves will dry up and drop off in a matter of days and when smitten by aridity, all of its limbs will begin to fall off slowly like those of lepers.Why would all these calamities befall it? Because the water, upon which its life depended, did not irrigate it.It is in reference to this very issue that Allah, the Lord of Glory, says: 1 ًةَمِلَك ًةَبِّيَط ٍةَرَجَشَك ٍةَبِّيَط Meaning that, a good word is like a good tree.Just as a fine and noble tree cannot flourish without water, similarly the pure words uttered from the lips of a righteous person cannot manifest their full verdure, nor can they develop and grow, until that pure Spring flows through its roots, irrigating them from the stream of istighf a r.Hence, man’s spiritual life rests upon istighf a r, coursing through whose channel, the True Spring reaches the roots of humanity and saves them from withering away and dying.Any religion that does not express this philosophy is in no way from God Almighty.And the person who has turned away from this Spring—despite being called a prophet, a messenger, a truthful or a righteous one—is not at all from God Almighty.Rather, he has come from Shai ta n [Satan] instead of God Almighty.For, the root word shai t [from which Shai ta n is derived] means ‘dying’; therefore, the one who has not sought to draw this True Spring towards himself in order to irrigate his spiritual garden and has failed to fill the stream of istighf a r to the brim from this Spring is 1.S u rah Ibr a h i m, 14:25 [Publisher]

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T H e F I r S T Pr o o F T H e F I r S T Pr o o F 31 a shai ta n; that is, a dying one, because it is impossible for a verdant tree to survive without water.Every arrogant one who does not seek to make his spiritual tree verdant from this Spring of Life is a satan and shall perish like Satan.No righteous Prophet came to the world who turned away from the true essence of istighf a r and did not wish to be irrigated by this True Spring.Of course, our Lord and Master, the Seal of the Messengers, the pride of the Earlier Ones and the Later Ones, Muhammad the Chosen One, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, sought this verdure more than anyone so God made him more fragrant and verdant than all his peers.Returning now to my earlier objective, I state that a most lofty and bright proof of the prophethood of the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and of the truth of the Noble Qur’an arises from the argument that the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, was sent into the world at such a time when the world itself was crying out for a magnificent Reformer and thereafter, he did not die nor was he killed until he had established the truth upon the earth.1 ٭ When he appeared as a Prophet, he at once proved to the world that he was needed and pointed out to every people the guilt of their paganism, misguidance and wrongdoing.The Noble Qur’an is replete with such statements; for instance, just ponder over this verse where Allah the Exalted states: 2 َكَرٰبَت ْيِذَّلا َلَّزَن َناَقْرُفْلا ىٰلَع ٖهِدْبَع َنْوُكَيِل َنْيِمَلٰعْلِل اًرْيِذَن۰۰ 1.٭ See footnote given by the author on pages 53–63.[Publisher] 2.S u rah al-Furq a n, 25:2 [Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 32 Meaning that, Most Blessed is He Who has sent down the Holy Qur’an upon His servant so that he may be a Warner to all the worlds; that is, so that he should make them aware of their false doctrines and evil ways.Thus, this verse is explicit proof that this is the very claim of the Qur’an, that the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, appeared at such a time when the whole world and all the people had been corrupted, and his opponents have accepted this claim not only by their silence, but also by their confession.It follows from this clearly that the Holy Prophet, peace and bless- ings of Allah be upon him, had, in fact, come at a time when a true and perfect Prophet should have appeared.Similarly, when we consider the second aspect—the time at which he was called back—we find that the Holy Qur’an very clearly and explicitly says that he was called back when he had completed his task.That is, he was called back after the verse was revealed that the code of teaching for the Muslims had been per- fected and all that had to be revealed in religious teachings had been revealed.Not only this, but it was also announced that the support of God Almighty had also been perfected and that people in large numbers had accepted Islam.And these verses had also been revealed that God Almighty had filled their hearts with faith and righteousness and had made them averse to disobedience and vice.And they had become imbued with pure and good morals and a great transformation had taken place in their morals, con- duct and spirit.Then, after all these incidents, S u rah an-Na s r was revealed, the very purport of which was that all the objectives of prophet- hood had been fulfilled and Islam had achieved a victory over

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T H e F I r S T Pr o o F T H e F I r S T Pr o o F 33 peoples’ hearts.Then, the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, announced publicly that this S u rah indicated the approach of his death.He then performed the Pilgrimage and called it the Farewell Pilgrimage, in which, mounted on the back of a camel, he delivered a long address in the presence of thou- sands and said that: ‘Listen! O servants of God! I had received these commandments from my Lord so that I may convey them all to you.Therefore, are you able to bear witness that I have con- veyed to you all the commandments?’ Then, everyone affirmed in a loud voice that he had conveyed everything to them.The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, then pointed to heaven and said three times: ‘O God! Bear witness of these things.’ He then said that he had admonished them at length as he might not be with them in the following year, and they might not find him at that place next year.He then returned to Madinah and died the following year.ْ اَللّٰھُـــم َّ صَـــل ِّ عَلَیْـــہ ِ وَبَـــارِك ْ وَسَـــلِّم [‘O Allah! Send down Your blessings and peace upon him’].All these indications are actually given in the Holy Qur’an and all its details are con- firmed by the unanimously agreed history of Islam.Now, can any Christian, Jew or Arya in the world put forward the instance of any of their Reformers whose advent was at the time of a universal and great need, and whose departure was after the fulfilment of that need, and whose opponents, to whom he was sent as a Messenger, bore witness to their own unrighteousness and mis- conduct? I know that no one outside of Islam can offer this proof.It is obvious that Moses was sent for the punishment of Pharaoh, and to liberate his own people, and to guide them along the right path.He was not concerned with the presence or absence of the

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 34 corruption of the whole world.It is true that he liberated his people from the subjugation of Pharaoh, but he could not liberate them from the subjugation of Satan, nor was he able to lead them into the Promised Land.The Children of Israel were not able to purify themselves at his hands and they repeatedly fell into disobedience, till Moses died while they were still in that condition.So far as the disciples of Jesus are concerned, the Gospel bears witness to their condition—no further explanation is needed.Nor is it a matter unknown as to how little Jesus was able to guide the Jews for whose guidance he had been sent as a Prophet in his lifetime.If the prophethood of Jesus were to be judged by this measure, one would be compelled to affirm with great sadness that it is in no way established by this standard.1 ٭ For, the first prerequisite of a Prophet is that he should arrive when the reli- gious condition of the people to whom he is sent is really gone to ruin.However, Jesus could not charge the Jews with such blame that might prove that they had changed their beliefs or that they had become thieves, adulterers, and gamblers etc.or that they had abandoned the Torah and adopted some other book to follow.Rather, he himself testified that the scholars and the Pharisees sat on the seat of Moses, and the Jews, too, for their part, did not admit to being guilty of misconduct and immorality.1.٭ The c hristians are very proud of the d octrine of Atonement but those who are versed in c hristian history are not unaware that before the suicide of Jesus there were at least some righteous c hristians, as they themselves claim; but after the suicide, it was as if their sins burst through the barrier.Is the present generation of those who believe in Atonement in e urope, even remotely similar to those who had accom- panied c hrist before the Atonement?—Author

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T H e F I r S T Pr o o F T H e F I r S T Pr o o F 35 Then, another strong argument in support of the truth of a Prophet is that he should bring about perfect reform on a large scale.So when we examine the life of Jesus and try to determine what reform he initiated and how many hundreds of thousands— or even thousands of men—repented at his hand, we see very little of it [in his lifetime].True, he had twelve disciples, but when we study their misdeeds, our hearts shudder.One feels sadness, what type of people were these who, after having laid claim to great sin- cerity, manifested such unholiness the like of which is not found in the world.Taking thirty pieces of silver and delivering a true prophet and beloved guide into the hands of murderers—was this the essence and meaning of being called a disciple? What was it that compelled his principal disciple, Peter, to abuse and curse him to his face for the sake of this transitory life? Was it appro- priate for all the disciples to desert him and go their own ways as soon as Jesus was arrested and not to show patience even for a whit? Should those whose beloved Prophet is apprehended on a capital charge show such signs of ‘truthfulness’ and ‘sincerity’ as exemplified by the disciples at the time? Afterwards, creature wor- shippers invented all sorts of stories and elevated Jesus to heaven, but the record of their own lack of faith is still preserved in the Gospels.Thus, the proof of the truth of a righteous Prophet is not to be found in the case of Jesus.Had the Holy Qur’an not confirmed his prophethood, we would have no way to count him among the true Prophets.Can one who taught that he was the son of God—even God Himself— and that he did not have to worship anyone and his reason and understanding was so defective as to make him imagine that peo- ple would be delivered from sin by his suicide, be considered for

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 36 one moment as a wise person who follows the straight path? But praise be to Allah that the teachings of the Holy Qur’an have revealed to us that all these are calumnies against Ibn Maryam [the Son of Mary].There is no trace at all of the Trinity in the Gospel.The common expression ‘Son of God’ which had been applied to thousands of people from Adam as downwards in the scriptures was applied to Jesus as well.Later, it was exaggerated and seized upon for the deification of Jesus.Even though he never claimed Divinity nor did he express a desire for suicide.If he had done so, his name would have been erased from the list of the righteous, in accordance with the words of God.It is also difficult to believe that these shameful lies had their root in the erroneous thinking of the Disciples.Thus about them, even if what the Gospel says is true that they were men of average intelligence and could easily fall into error, we cannot reconcile ourselves to the notion that having kept company with a Prophet they were capable of propagating such nonsense.The truth appears to be—and this can be gathered from a study of the writings that are complementary to the Gospels—that all this was a device of Saint Paul who employed deep cunning like political schemers.Ibn Maryam [The Son of Mary] who is mentioned in the Holy Qur’an was bound by the eternal guidance that had been prescribed for mankind from the beginning.Therefore, whatever doubts or suspicions the Gospels may raise concerning his prophethood, the testimony of the Holy Qur’an is enough to establish it.وَالسَّلَم ُ عَلٰی مَن ِ اتَّبَع َ الْھُدٰی [And peace be upon him who follows the true guidance!] Written by the humble one, Ghulam Ahmad

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Footnote from page 25 At the time of its revelation, all the evils that the Holy Qur’an men- tioned of these Christians etc.who were present at that time—all these peoples had themselves acknowledged these and indeed they did so repeatedly that they were guilty of these bad deeds.A study of the history of Arabia establishes that except for the forefathers of the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, whom Allah, the Lord of Glory, had safeguarded from polytheism and other evils through His special grace, all other people, swayed by the reprehensible example of the Christians and affected by the evil influence of their conduct, had become engrossed in all kinds of shameful sins and vices.And the amount of sinfulness and misconduct that had seeped into the Arabs was actually not a result of their inherent nature.The fact is that an extremely sinful and morally corrupt people came to live in their midst who, by relying on the false ploy of Atonement, considered every sin to be like mother’s milk.They vigorously promoted crea- ture worship, wine drinking, and every kind of vice in the world and were liars, cheats, and evil-doers of the first degree.On the face of it, it is quite difficult to decide whether the Jews of those times were the foremost in every sin, corruption, and misconduct, or the Christians.However, a little reflection would reveal that

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 38 it was actually the Christians who took the lead in all kinds of vice, misconduct, and polytheistic practices, because the Jews had been weakened due to the continuous humiliation and blows they had faced, and had little opportunity to commit those evils which mean and wretched people indulge in on account of their power, wealth, and national glory, and they were not able to commit the vices that depended on abundant wealth and money.However, the star of the Christians was on the rise and their newfound wealth and power prodded them at every instance to acquire all the prerequisites that are naturally ever present in the aiding and abetting of evil.So, this is the reason why the Christians of those times exceeded everyone in sinfulness and debauchery.This is such a well-known fact that even Reverend Pfander, despite his extreme prejudice, was not able to conceal it, and was forced to admit the sins of the Christians of that age in his book Mizan ul Haqq.However, other British historians have described their sins in great detail; one of them is [John] Davenport whose book has been translated and published in this country as well.In short, it is a proven fact that due to their newly acquired power and sov- ereignty, and motivated by the noxious doctrine of Atonement, the Christians of that age were at the forefront of all evils.All of them adopted their own way of transgression and sin according to their own nature and temperament.Their boldness in sin shows that they had lost all hope in the truth of their religion and were indeed covert atheists.Their spirituality suffered gravely as the gates of the world were opened to them and there was no pro- hibition of wine and gambling in the teachings of the Gospels.Together, these poisons destroyed them.Their coffers were filled

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Fo o T N o T e F r o M PAG e 25 Fo o T N o T e F r o M PAG e 25 39 with riches and they had political power in their hands and they invented different kinds of wine.1 ٭ What transpired thereafter? They indulged in all kinds of misdeeds under the influence of this ‘mother of sins’.I have not said these things on my own, rather esteemed British histori- ans have testified to this fact and continue to do so.The revered Reverend Bosworth and the esteemed Bishop Taylor have recently given lectures on these very things and have clearly and vehemently demonstrated that the past evils of the Christian faith have destroyed it.Accordingly, Bishop Bosworth, the pride of the nation, says loud and clear that the Christian people are being accompanied by three curses that have hindered their pro- gress.What are those? Adultery, alcohol, and gambling! In short, in this age it was the due right of these Christians over all others that they remain ahead of everyone in the realm of evil deeds.For, in this world man can eschew sin only due to three reasons: (1) that he should fear God Almighty, (2) that he should save himself from the blight of an abundance of wealth which is the means of evil, and (3) that he should lead a humble and modest life with- out seeking political power.The Christians, however, had been freed from these three barriers and the doctrine of Atonement had emboldened them to sin openly while their political power and wealth aided them in their transgression.Thus, since worldly comforts, bounties, and riches were liberally bestowed upon them and they also came into possession of a great empire, whilst 1.٭ Note: Making wine is regarded as a miracle of Jesus c hrist, and drink- ing alcohol plays an important role in the c hristian faith, like for exam- ple during the e ucharist.—Author

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 40 beforehand they had been suffering from poverty, starvation, and gruelling hardships; therefore, when they came into power and wealth, a powerful flood of sin and debauchery swept over them.Just as dykes are broken under heavy floods, inundating the surrounding farms and villages, the same occurred in those days when the Christians found themselves provided with all the means of debauchery, while they were at the top in the whole world in political power, wealth and monarchy.Just as a mean and wretched person—afflicted with poverty and starvation—shows his true colours when he gets hold of power and wealth; similarly, these people exposed their true colours.First, they committed horrific acts of bloodshed like barbarians and tyrants, putting hundreds of thousands of innocent men to the sword and com- mitting such acts of unspeakable torture that send shudders down one’s spine.Having achieved peace and freedom, they began to spend their days and nights in consuming alcohol, committing adultery, and gambling.Because of their wretched luck, the doc- trine of Atonement had already emboldened them to the com- mitting of evil and their abstinence, if any, was for lack of means; so now, when wealth also came into their homes, they fell hard upon the doing of every evil deed like a mighty torrent that rages hard upon finding a totally open path for it to flow through.They exerted such an evil influence on the entire country that naïve and heedless Arabs were swept away under their evil influence.Unlettered and illiterate as they were, when they found them- selves surrounded by the misdeeds of the Christians, they came under their spell.Thorough research has established that gam- bling, alcoholism, and adultery were introduced to the Arabs by the Christians.The Christian, al-Akh t al, was the eminent poet

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Fo o T N o T e F r o M PAG e 25 Fo o T N o T e F r o M PAG e 25 41 of the age.His anthology of verse is held in high regard and has recently been printed and published widely with great care and elegance by a Christian group in Beirut and has also come to this country.This anthology contains many a verse as a reminder of that age which shows the internal state of the Christians of those times.Among those verses is the following: ُ لْتُه َّ ِبَان َ الشَّبَاب ُ و َ رُبَّمَا عَل بِالْغَانِیَات ِ وَبِالشَّرَاب ِ الَْصْھَب Meaning that, youth departed from me and to arrest its departure I oftentimes resorted to the ruse of keeping myself occupied with beautiful women and red wine.Now, this verse clearly shows that this person, despite being advanced in years and being called an eminent Christian sage, indulged in the evil practice of fornica- tion.What is even more shameful is that he did not abstain from his evil conduct in spite of his advancing years; and that was not all, he was also a chronic alcoholic.Those who have studied the life of al-Akh t al are well aware that among the Christians of the time, it was as if he stood out as one of a kind in terms of prestige, knowledge, and excellence.It is clear from his writings that not only did he versify the thinking which he had acquired from the doctrine of Atonement, but he also enjoyed the status of priests.It is believed that he would regularly visit all the churches that he has mentioned in his writings in his capacity as a leading priest and all the people followed in his footsteps.Is it not proof enough of his being unique among the Christians of that age that from among millions of Christian laymen and priests of those times he is the only one whose memorial was found in this age, hav- ing survived the passage of thirteen hundred years? Indeed, it is

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 42 only al-Akh t al from among the Christians who left us a specimen of the Christian conduct of those times.Not only did he leave us a personal example, but he also testified that the same was the condition of all the Christians of that age and, in fact, that same conduct has continued to be practiced in Europe until now.The cradle of the Christian faith was Canaan from whence it reached Europe, attended by all the above evils.Hence, the collection of al-Akh t al’s poetry is indeed worth appreciating, for it exposed the character of the Christianity of that age.History does not tell us whether the Christians possess the writings of anyone else belonging to that age.A study of the life of al-Akh t al compels us to accept that he was well versed in the Gospel, for he—among all the Christian laity and clergy of that age—exhibited such schol- arship and excellence that none were able to match at the time.Anyhow, we have to admit that he is a select specimen of the Christians of that age.However, as you have just read, he admits through his own words that he would relieve the depression of old age through beautiful women and fine wine.It was a common idiom among the poets of the time that they would describe their vices in such phrases.They were not like the naïve poets of the present day who versify only fantasies; rather, they would paint a picture of their real life events.This is why their poetical col- lections were not considered worthless in the eyes of the research scholars.On the contrary, they were accorded the status of histor- ical works.They express, in detail, the traditions, customs, emo- tions, and thoughts of the olden times and this is the reason why Muslims, who are lovers of knowledge, did not destroy their lyri- cal and poetical collections so that people of every generation may see with their own eyes what the condition of the Arabs was before Islam and how after it, the All-Powerful God imbued them with

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Fo o T N o T e F r o M PAG e 25 Fo o T N o T e F r o M PAG e 25 43 piety and purity! If those verses from al-Akh t al, D i w a n H am a sah, As-Sab‘ul-Mu‘allaq a t , 1 and the Agh a n i collection composed by the poets of the age of Ignorance before Islam and recorded in old books like Lis a nul-‘Arab and S i hah Jauhar i are kept in view and studied in comparison with Islam, it will become evident that in that dark age, Islam suddenly rose like the sun out of impenetrable darkness.This comparison shows such a spectacle of Providence that our hearts exclaim that Great indeed is Allah! How desper- ately the Holy Qur’an needed to be revealed at that time! In point of fact, this powerful argument has crushed all opponents under its feet.To return to the subject at hand, it is possible that some naive person may ask why it is improbable for al-Akh t al to have wed many beautiful women in his old age and in that case how could he be blamed for adultery? The answer to this is that al-Akh t al did not at all express in his verses that those beautiful women were his wives, rather he spoke of them the way a debauchee and an evil- doer usually does.That is why he has mentioned fine wine along- side beautiful women, because wine is one of the prerequisites of debauchery.Besides, it is no secret that the Christian religion only permits one wife, so how was it possible that his people gave him beautiful girls against their religion and customs? True, he was the best of his people in respect of knowledge and scholarship, just as in our age a senior bishop is revered among his people.He enjoyed the same reverence, or perhaps even more, and he was the leader, guide, and elect of his people.However, it is in no way possible 1.The Suspended o des, or Mu‘allaqah, are seven famous masterpieces of Arabic poetry that were hung in the Ka‘bah during pre-Islamic times.[Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 44 that people would have willingly given him their beautiful daugh- ters in marriage contrary to their old custom.The above verse of his is saying out loud that he committed all these illicit acts by way of adultery.That is why he continued to indulge in drinking and gluttony.Can anyone accept that despite his being an old man and parents being apprehensive of the second wife status of their daughter and despite giving their daughter contrary to their reli- gion and custom, people would continue to give this al-Akh t al their beautiful daughters blindly in marriage and bring with them a couple of casks of wine as well? Indeed, no one would accept this impossible idea.The truth is precisely that which I have already written, the examples of which are currently found in Europe not in their hundreds, but hundreds of thousands! On the way to Europe this spectacle becomes evident everywhere the moment we cross the ocean.Furthermore, this is not the only verse of al-Akh t al on the subject; rather, there is another one even more offensive in his collection, which we present now for the perusal of the readers: َوْمًا ي َ دْخُل ُ الْكَنِیْسَة َّ ي ْ َاِن َّ مَن َ ظَبَاء و جَاذِرًا فِیْھَا َلْقَی ي The translation of this couplet is that if a person visits our church someday, he shall find a number of deer and young hinds there.In other words, he will feast his eyes upon many young, nubile women who are pretty and slim.It is as if this al-Akh t al is urging people to go visit the church and to relish the view.Two things are to be inferred from this verse.The first is that al-Akh t al had built a church for his people which he used to visit

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Fo o T N o T e F r o M PAG e 25 Fo o T N o T e F r o M PAG e 25 45 in his capacity as a bishop and, it seems that, holding the Gospel in his hands, he would lecherously ogle the daughters and daugh- ters-in-law of his laity and then enter into illicit relationships with them.The second conclusion is that his people took no offence at his illicit relationships and did not turn such a pervert out of the church, nor did they defrock him, even though at least they would have known that he was a person with an impure heart and harboured unclean intentions, for his filthy verses that spoke of illicit love affairs were not hidden from them.So what greater evi- dence would there be to support the fact that the whole people were steeped in sin and debauchery? Their churches were like the brothels and there was no better place for their impure and per- verted men and women to get together than these churches.In other words, they found the opportunity to satisfy their carnal passions in these very churches.Not only was al-Akh t al himself a slave of his own carnal passions, but he also did not consider any Christian woman or girl to be chaste.In his biography, pub- lished together with D iwa n al-Akh t al by the Christian historians, it is written that he was once also imprisoned in the Church of Damascus in connection with his affairs with women and it was alleged that he did not consider Christian women to be chaste.However, on the word of a noble and eminent Muslim the bishop of Damascus released him.But al-Akh t al did not change his opin- ion till his death.His verses concerning Christian women are too well known even today.On page 339 of the same book on the life of al-Akh t al, it is written that he was prolific in praising wine in his poetry and was well acquainted and experienced in the benefits of alcohol.Then, on page 337 of the biography, it is written that al-Akh t al was a

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 46 staunch Christian who held firmly to his faith and would keep the commandments of the church and hang the cross from his neck at all times and was, therefore, known among the people as Dhu s - S al i b [Possessor of the Cross].Then, it is mentioned on the same page that once Sultan Abdul M a lik bin Marw a n, in whose court he also served, asked him to accept Islam, to which he answered, ‘If you make drinking permissible for me and if I can forego the fasts of Ramadan as well, then I am ready to become a Muslim.’ Now look, they just mentioned that he was a staunch Christian and was known as Dhu s - S al i b, yet now they write that he was ready to sell the Christian faith for a cup of wine! In short, his biography bears out that he was an alcoholic and he admits in his own verses that he could not abstain from frequenting strange women and he further admits that in those times, the character of Christian men and women was not chaste and a kind of covert adultery was rampant among them.True, he does have the boldness to openly bring to light the debauchery and the immorality of Christians; he calls their churches places of ill repute and does not even hide his own debauchery.Hence, It is mentioned on page 337 of the same book that once, when asked by Abdul M a lik, what he got from drinking wine, he at once read out these two verses: ْمِی عَلَنِی ثُم َّ عَلَنِی ي ِ ُاِذَا مَا نَد ْر ي ِ َّ ھَد ٍ لَھُن َ زُجَاجَات ثَلَث ْل َ مِنِّی كَاَنَّنِی ي َّ ُ جَعَلْت ُ اَجُر ُّ الذ َ اَمِیْر ُ الْمُؤْمِنِیْن َ اَمِیْر عَلَیْك That is, as the cup bearer gave me three bottles of fine wine that pop when opened, I strutted around intoxicated as if I ruled over you, O Am i ral-Mu’min i n! As Muslim leaders never forced anyone to accept Islam, therefore, except being preached to, al-Akh t al was

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Fo o T N o T e F r o M PAG e 25 Fo o T N o T e F r o M PAG e 25 47 never taken to task and he continued to receive rewards worth thousands of rupees from the court of the Marwan dynasty.He was born in the time of our Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and had witnessed the era of the four [Rightly Guided] Caliphs, may Allah be pleased with them.He resided in Levant and died at a ripe old age.He has rendered this excellent job of depicting the true character of Christians in his poetry and clearly testified that the Christians of that age had indulged in the vilest of debaucheries and were beset by drinking and every other kind of vice.As the Levant, wherein he resided and whose con- dition he has depicted, is the source and origin of the Christian religion, this makes it clear how false and delusive the doctrine of Atonement is, which from its early years, is proven to have led the Christian people into every kind of immorality.The time of al-Akh t al was not far removed from the time of the Messiah, peace be upon him—only six hundred years had elapsed—but al-Akh t al’s testimony and his personal admission clearly establish that the Christians of that time had fared even worse than the idol- aters in immorality.So, when Atonement had such an effect in its early age, then those people are extremely foolish who expect any good to come from this well-tried doctrine of Atonement in the nineteenth century.There is also the lyrical ode composed by Amr bin Kulth u m Taghlabi about the character of the Christians of that time which is the fourth one among the As-Sab‘ul-Mu‘allaq a t.It is no secret for any historian that the tribe of Ban i Taghlab was Christian and they were viewed as the foremost in all of Arabia in immorality, debauchery, tyranny, and oppression.So this ode is a complete testimony to the character of Ban i Taghlab; telling how bloodthirsty, warmongering, spiteful, immoral, and alcoholics of

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 48 the worst kind they were who squandered money on their car- nal passions and were openly boastful of their debauchery.Here we reproduce by way of example only a couple of verses from the aforementioned Taghlabi that are included in the fifth of the As-Sab‘ul-Mu‘allaq a t; let whosoever will, read it from there.The verses are: نَـا ی ِ ي بِصَحْنِك ِ فَاصْبَح ِّ ُب ھ َ ل َ أ َنْدَرِينَـا أ َ ال خُمُـور َ تُبْقِي ل َ ٍّو ُ بِبَعْلَبَك ْ شَرِبْت ٍ قَد وَكَأْس َ وَقَاصِرِينَا دِمَشْق فِي وَأُخْرَى Meaning that, O my beloved! (And his beloved was actually his own mother) rise up with a cup of wine and make me drink of all the wines that are distilled in the village of Andreen, and be certain that not a drop remains in the cellars.Then he says that he drank a lot of wine in Baalbek and then in Damascus, and then in Qasreen.The truth is that the Christians had nothing to do except drink wine since it formed a major part of their faith and was included even in the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper.What is most surprising is that this Christian fell in love with his real mother.Readers should keep in mind that Andreen is a village in Levant where Christians used to distil all kinds of vintages and then export them to far-off countries.Drinking wine was not only allowed in their religion, but just like the Bam Margi sect of Hindus, it was an integral part of their faith and no one could become a Christian without it.Therefore, the Christians have had much to do with wine since ancient times and in the present age as well, it is the Christians who are the producers of a variety of vintages.It has been established that it was the Christians who brought wine to Arabia and ruined the country.It appears that

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Fo o T N o T e F r o M PAG e 25 Fo o T N o T e F r o M PAG e 25 49 the notion of idolatry was also reinforced by the notion of wor- shipping Jesus, and the Arabs became more entrenched in crea- ture worship in imitation of the Christians.It should be kept in mind that the nomadic people of Arabia did not know anything about wine, but when Christians arrived there they gifted it to some of the new converts.Then, this evil habit spread among the people like wildfire and five times of drinking were prescribed just like the five times of Prayer.Hence, 1— J a shriyyah is the wine drunk at dawn before sunrise; 2— S ub uh is the wine drunk after sunrise; 3— Ghab u k is the name of the wine drunk at noon and in the afternoon; 4— Q i l is the wine drunk at midday; while 5— Fa h m is the name of wine drunk at night.With its advent, Islam effected a change and replaced these five times of drinking with five Prayers, replaced every evil with virtue and taught the name of God Almighty in place of creature worship.To deny this holy transformation is the work of a most evil-natured individual and not that of a righteous person.Can any other religion present an example of such a great transformation? Certainly not! Now, for the time being, such self-confessional Christian poetry should suf- fice, but if anyone takes issue with this, then hundreds of similar verses shall be presented to them.However, I am sure none will respond on this occasion; for, how can thousands of verses that consist of the admission of guilt in these sins remain hidden? Now, someone should ask Reverend Thakar Das, who in his extreme prejudice, has unjustly spouted nonsense against the need of the Qur’an, and inquire whether he has now been informed about the need for the Qur’an or not? Have we not established that the Holy Qur’an was revealed at a time when all the Christians were rotting away like lepers and other people too had perished

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 50 due to their love for the Christians? True need is the label that can be given to this and not that which is presented for the Gospels.No sooner had the Messiah passed away that the condition of the Christians grew even worse than before.Should Thakar Das demand, I can present up to ten thousand such verses wherein the opponents have admitted their sins.Even now the Christians are foremost in certain vices.For example, consider the mother of all evils: alcohol.Just in the city of London, there are so many wine shops, that it was approximated that if they were placed from end to end they would stretch for 75 miles.Adulterous women are so numerous in England that their number in London alone may exceed a hundred thousand.On top of that, the illegitimate children born in secret due to the audacity of ‘chaste ladies’ are, according to some estimates, seventy-five per cent of all births.And the Lord have mercy, gambling is so rampant that it appears as if the Majesty of the Almighty has totally abandoned the hearts of this nation.They have deified a mere mortal and have mistaken vices for virtues.The truth of the matter is that the notion of Jesus’ suicide has destroyed them and the doctrine of Atonement has liberated them from the need to follow all the commandments of the Torah in respect of treading the paths of righteousness and eschewing evil.They have such enmity for Islam as Satan has for Truth.No one from among them reflects: what new thing has Islam presented that is worthy of objection? Moses killed hun- dreds of thousands of innocent children, but no Christian ever says that he was guilty of any evil deed.But our lord and mas- ter, the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, raised the sword against those who had already raised it against him.He killed those who had already killed many Muslims

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Fo o T N o T e F r o M PAG e 25 Fo o T N o T e F r o M PAG e 25 51 and—even then—not on his own initiative, but only when they pursued him and committed aggression.He never killed children nor the elderly, rather he punished only those who had already committed crimes.This punishment appears so very offensive to the Christians; every now and then they raise a hue and cry against it.Does this not prove that their hearts are darkened by malice? What a shame! They do not shudder when they call a humble mortal God.And they do not fear the Day of Reckoning at all.If Jesus were to return from the dead for a day and it is said that, ‘Look! Here is your God, now, shake his hands.’ They would simply die of shame.Look at what these wretched creature wor- shippers have made humble humans into after their death! They have no shame! Nor do they have fear of God Almighty! They do not even pause to think what exactly Jesus showed that was greater than the previous Prophets.Which works of Divinity did he perform? Was it an act of Divinity that he bawled his eyes out for the whole night, yet his prayer went unanswered? He gave up the ghost crying Eli, Eli [my God, my God (Matthew 27:46)] but the Father took no pity on him! Most of his prophecies remained unfulfilled and his miracles were cast into suspicion by the [account of ] the pool [of Bethesda].The Pharisees grilled him with questions and he failed to answer them! He could not offer a reasonable interpretation regarding the second coming of Elijah and was unable to raise Elijah from the dead in order to ful- fil the literal sense of the prophecy.He departed from this world in utter hopelessness, crying لما سبقتانی [ lama sabachthani— why have You forsaken me?] Even the Hindu god Ramchandra fared better than this ‘God’; he was able to take revenge against Ravan while still alive and did not stop until he had killed him and burnt

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 52 his city.True, the deception of Atonement was forged after Jesus, but let us see what benefits it brought.The Christians became all the more emboldened in sin.What evil did they desist from [as a result]? Just what impurity did they not indulge in? Alas, the suicide [of Jesus] went in vain!—Author

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Footnote from page 31 Here seemingly an objection arises; namely, if an idolater says: ‘Even though I concede that idolatry was uprooted at the hands of the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, I do not accept that idolatry was bad.On the contrary, I say that it alone was the right path from which the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, barred them.Thus, it follows that he did not reform the world, rather he erased the path of goodness.’ Similarly, if a Zoroastrian says that: ‘I accept that in reality the Holy Prophet s as truly abolished fire worship, and also totally erased the name and any vestige of sun worship, but I will not accept that this was a good deed, rather that was indeed the true path that he erased.’ Likewise, if a Christian says that: ‘Even though I admit that the Holy Prophet s as uprooted the Christian doctrine from Arabia, I cannot categorize this as an act of refor- mation and that it was a good deed whereby the worship of Jesus and his mother was prohibited and the crosses and images were broken, rather the path that was opposed was the only righteous path.’ Similarly, gamblers, alcoholics, adulterers, murderers of girls, misers, spendthrifts, those who prefer to commit all kinds of atrocities and dishonest acts, together with thieves, thugs, and dacoits advance arguments of their own, saying that even though

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 54 they admit and accept that Islam dealt with their sects very effi- ciently and meted out strict punishments to thousands of thieves, liberating vast swathes of land from their evil and mischief, yet in their opinion, they were unjustly persecuted.For, they used to steal and rob by putting their lives on the line.Therefore, the looted goods that they seized after so much effort were lawful for them and they were unjustly persecuted and an age-old custom, which had become a religious ritual, was abolished.The reply to all these groups is that no one from among these sects will admit any wrongdoing on their part, but some of them stand witness against others.For example, a person who worships Ramchandra and Krishna Jee and deifies them, will never repent of it and declare them mere mortals, but will continue to stress the point that both these sages possessed the light to the Universal Soul and were Divine despite being mortals.They embodied within them one aspect of creation and one aspect of Divinity.Their [aspect of ] creation was temporal and the shortcomings of creation—like death, grief, and eating or drinking—were all tem- poral, but their Divinity is eternal and the attributes of Divinity are also eternal.However, if it is said to them: ‘Gentlemen! If this is the case then please also accept the Divinity of Ibn Maryam [the Son of Mary], and take pity on the poor Christians who pro- mote this propaganda day and night as the proverb goes, وچن ٓاب از زہ ہچ ابتشل � �ی� � رس ذگتش ہچ � [When water passes over the head, then what difference does it make if it is a cubit over the head or a yard?]’ In response, these people reject the Messiah with such disrespect that let alone Divinity, they even deny his prophethood.More than that, they often go so far as to abuse him, and say: ‘What compari- son does he bear with Shri Maharaj Barham Moorat Ramchandra

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Fo o T N o T e F r o M PAG e 31 Fo o T N o T e F r o M PAG e 31 55 Jee and Krishan Gopal Rudder? He was a mere mortal who made a false claim to prophethood.What earthly comparison is there between Shri Maharaj Krishan Jee and Jesus, Son of Mary?’ And surprisingly, if these two great avatars are mentioned before the Christians, they too, not only deny their Divinity, but also show disrespect even though these two sages were the very first to lay the foundation of deification in this world and they were progen- itors of the lesser gods.The Son of Mary and others came after them and are their offshoots.The Christians, in deifying Jesus, have followed in the footsteps of these very people who had dei- fied the above Mahatmas, as has been pointed out by the Noble Qur’an.See the verse: ِتَلاَق ُدْوُهَيْلا ُرْيَزُع ُنْب۟ا ِهّٰللا َو ِتَلاَق ىَرٰصَّنلا ُحْيِسَمْلا ُنْبا ِهّٰللا١ؕ َكِلٰذ ْمُهُلْوَق ْمِهِهاَوْفَاِب١ۚ َنْؤُـِهاَضُي 1 Juzw No.10 — َلْوَق َنْيِذَّلا اْوُرَفَك ْنِم ُلْبَق١ؕ ُمُهَلَتٰق ُهّٰللا١ٞۚ ىّٰنَا َنْوُكَفْؤُي۰۰ Meaning that, the Jews say that Ezra is the son of Allah, and the Christians say the Messiah is the son of Allah; they are but words of their mouth.They imitate those people who disbelieved before them by deifying men.Oh how the people cursed by Allah are turned away! So, this verse pointedly refers to the Hindus and the Greeks, saying that these were the people who had deified men before.Then, as the ill luck of Christians would have it, these doctrines reached them and they thought, why should they stay behind these nations? It was their wretched luck that the Torah already contained an expression in which men had been referred to as ‘sons of God’ at certain places, and even ‘daughters of God’, 1.S u rah at-Taubah, 9:30 [Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 56 and some of the earlier ones were even called ‘god’.In keeping with this common expression, the Gospel applied this word to Jesus as well and this proved to be a deadly poison for the fool- ish.The entire Bible is proclaiming emphatically that this word is not reserved for the Son of Mary alone, but has been used for every Prophet and righteous one, with Jacob even being called the Firstborn Son.But when an unfortunate person is caught in a trap, he cannot escape it.And curiously enough, all the rules prescribed for the Divinity of Jesus Christ—namely, that he is both God and man—had already been set down with regard to Krishna and Ramchandra in the [sacred] books of the Hindus.This new [Christian] teaching is so much similiar [to the earlier one of Hindus] that we cannot but express the view that all this was an imitation of the Hindu doctrines.The Hindus, also, held the doctrine of Trimurti which alluded to the Triad of Brahma, Bishnu and Mahadev.Hence, the doctrine of Trinity appears to be a mirror image of this doctrine.What is surprising is that what- ever logical hair-splitting the Christians were offering in order to make Jesus into God and to avoid rational objections and what- ever links they are inventing between the humanity and divin- ity of Christ with the view of somehow circumventing rational objections—still, they cannot avoid them and finally they try to get away by consigning it to Divine mysteries—exactly the same is the case with Hindus who declare Ramchandra and Krishna to be I shvara [also spelled ‘Eshwara’—god].This means that they also give the same explanations as do the Christians and when they completely run out of arguments they claim that this is the secret of I shvar that is revealed only to those who practice yoga, renounce the world, and engage in ritual [Hindu] worship.But

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Fo o T N o T e F r o M PAG e 31 Fo o T N o T e F r o M PAG e 31 57 they do not realize that this secret was exposed the minute these false gods were unable to demonstrate any sign of their Divinity which men had not demonstrated before.It is true that the Granths are full of stories about these Avatars performing extraor- dinary wonders; they resurrected the dead and lifted mountains on their head, but if we accept these stories as true, even then on their own admission, it is established that there were such men who had worked miracles and yet who did not claim Divinity.For example, just think whether the works of Jesus were greater than those of Moses.On the contrary, his miracles were tarnished by the account of the pool [of Bethesda].Are you gentlemen not aware of the miraculous pool that existed at that time? And have there not appeared such Prophets amidst the Israelites, whose mere touch resurrected the dead? Then what reasons are left to brag about Jesus’ ‘Divinity’? What a Shame!!! The Hindus have attributed many extraordinary feats to their Avatars and have tried to establish their Divinity without any rhyme or reason.Since their tales are no less absurd than those of the Christians and even if we assume that there is some truth in them, still a humble man, who is by nature fragile and weak, cannot become Parmeshwar, and literal resurrection of the dead is itself false and runs counter to the Divine Books.However, mirac- ulous resurrection, which does not concern one’s actual returning to the world and staying therein, is possible, but not an evidence of Divinity, for its claimants are common.There have been many in the past who could communicate with the dead but this phe- nomenon belongs to the vision of the dead.But the Hindus do hold a kind of superiority over the Christians and we recognize it.This superiority consists in their being the forerunners of

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 58 Christians concerning the deification of men and it is their inno- vation that the Christians have also followed.We cannot hide the fact that whatever justifications the Christians have invented in order to escape rational objections are not their own creations; rather, they have plagiarized them from the Granths and the Shastars.This entire fabrication scheme, which came in handy for the Christians, had already been devised by the Brahmans with regard to Krishna and Ramchandra.Therefore, the notion that the Hindus may have plagiarized from Christian books is demonstrably false, for their scriptures date back to a time when Jesus did not even exist, so we have no choice but to accept that the Christians themselves are plagiarists.[ John] Davenport, too, acknowledges that: ‘Trinity is the result of following an errone- ous thought according to Plato.But the fact of the matter is that [ancient] Greece and India were like mirror images of each other in their doctrines.It is quite probable that such an abundance of idolatry would have first made its way from India to Greece in the form of Vedic knowledge, and then from there the naïve Christians stole them and grafted them onto the Gospel and thus tried to set their affairs in order.’ To return now to the actual meanings, I would like to point out that since each of these sects rejects the other, there remains little doubt that each of them believes in demolishing the beliefs of their opposing sect in order to reform the world, and each holds that the doctrines of its opponents are completely wrong and cor- rupt.Thus, when every religion acknowledges this corruption by viewing its opponents, therefore, all religions are compelled to acknowledge that the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, brought about a universal reform of the world and

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Fo o T N o T e F r o M PAG e 31 Fo o T N o T e F r o M PAG e 31 59 he was, in fact, the Greatest Reformer.Moreover, the scholars of every faith agree that at that time, the adherents of their respective faiths had fallen into all manner of corruption and misguidance.For instance, Reverend Pfander in his book Mizan ul Haqq, and researcher Davenport in his book, and Padre James Cameron Lace in his lecture published in May 1882, all agree on this fact.Furthermore, those who recognize true righteousness and the right path, know that all these religions are wallowing in a pit of darkness 1 ٭ and none of their gods, whom these naïve people have set up as gods, is the True God.If they had truly been ‘Gods’ the history of their lives should have manifested the magnificence and glory as the heaven and earth are manifesting the grandeur of a True and Illustrious God.However, these humble and suffering gods are totally lacking in this sign.Can sound reason accept that a frail mortal can be God in any respect? Certainly not! Never! Rather, the True God is One whose Immutable attributes are eternally seen in the mir- ror of the world.He is the One Who is in no need of a son who should commit suicide so that people may be saved through it.Rather, since time immemorial, there has always been one true path for redemption, which is free from innovation and deceit.Those who follow this path attain true salvation and its fruits in this very world, and witness its manifestation in their own selves.In other words, that true path is that one should accept the divine herald and follow in his footsteps in such a way that one’s selfish 1.٭ Note: Pandit d ayanand has also made this admission in his book Satyarath Prakash and Pandit Ji accepts that the Hindu nation was steeped in idolatry in that age.—Author

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 60 being should die and thus pay one’s own expiation.This alone is the way that God Almighty has ingrained in the nature of the seekers of truth from the very beginning.Since ancient times, and ever since man was created and granted the means of this spiritual sacrifice, and with his nature being inherently endowed with these means, the physical sacrifices, too, have been ordained in order to remind him of this.This is the true reality which the short- sighted and ill-fated Hindus and Christians have not understood.They did not reflect upon spiritual realities and fell into extremely evil, abominable and dark thoughts.Nothing has ever surprised me more than the plight of these people who have abandoned the Perfect and Living God, the Self Subsisting One and the Sustainer of all, only to follow these absurd beliefs and take pride in them.To return now to the basic issue, as I have already pointed out, the reform that was carried out by our lord and master, the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, is very sweep- ing and general and is acknowledged by all.This degree of reform had not been achieved by any previous Prophet.If anyone stud- ies the history of Arabia, he will come to know how bigoted the idol worshippers, Jews, and Christians of the time were, and how much their reform had been despaired of for centuries.Then, look up and see how the teachings of the Holy Qur’an, which were wholly opposed to them, proved so effective that they swept aside every false doctrine and every vice.Drinking, which is the mother of all evils, was abolished, gambling was discarded, female infan- ticide was ended, and everything that was opposed to compassion and justice and purity was rectified.Moreover, the criminals were suitably punished for their crimes.No one can, therefore, deny the greatness of the reform that was carried out.

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Fo o T N o T e F r o M PAG e 31 Fo o T N o T e F r o M PAG e 31 61 Here, it should also be kept in mind that when some con- temporary Christian missionaries, who are apt at concealment of truth, realized that such sweeping reform occurred at the hands of the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, as could not be concealed, and in contrast, the reform brought about by Jesus Christ in his time was negligible, they became wor- ried; for, to reform the misguided and bring the sinful back into the fold of righteousness is the authentic hallmark of the True Prophet, and it was carried out in such a perfect and complete manner by the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, that the reformation effected by Jesus bears no com- parison with it.Seeing this, they tried to veil the Sun with their deceitful schemes.As Reverend James Cameron Lace has pub- lished in his lecture, they misled the ignorant by saying that the people [of Arabia] had already been prepared for this reformation and that idolatry and shirk had already fallen from grace in their eyes.But, if those who express this view are right in their opinion, it is incumbent upon them to back it up with the kind of proof that is advanced by the Noble Qur’an against them.It says: [S u rah al- H ad i d, 57:18] — اْۤوُمَلْعِا َّنَا َهّٰللا ِيْحُي َضْرَاْلا َدْعَب اَهِتْوَم And after declaring all of them dead, Allah attributes their resur- rection to Himself alone and says repeatedly at various instances that they were shackled in the chains of misguidance and We freed them, that they were blind and We gave them sight, and that they were in the dark and We granted them light.These statements were not made in secret; they all heard the Holy Qur’an, and they did not deny any of these statements, nor did they ever profess that

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R ON E 62 they had already been prepared for this and that the Holy Qur’an did them no favour.If the opponents possess any written opposing testimony in favour of their position, that has existed for the past thirteen hundred years alongside the Noble Qur’an, then they should produce it; otherwise, it is just an imposture arising out of Christian nature and nothing more.This is the statement of James that has been published in the book Religions of the World; what is more, certain Christian missionaries have shown even greater ‘understanding of truth’.They say that there is no such thing as reform nor has it ever been carried out.The teaching of the Torah was not meant for reformation, rather it was meant to show that the sinful man cannot follow Divine commandments, the same goes for the teachings of the Gospel, for turning the other cheek after being slapped has never occurred, nor ever will.They ask if Jesus had brought any new teaching, then they themselves answer that the teaching of the Gospel was already present in the Torah as it was constituted by putting together different parts of the Bible.So why did Jesus then come? To this they reply, only to commit suicide, but it is amazing indeed that he even shrank from this sui- cide, crying لی لما سبقتنی ي لی ا ي ا [ Eli Eli lama sabachthani— My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?] It is also strange to think what would person Y gain by the sui- cide of person X? If someone’s near relation is ill in his house and he stabs himself in sorrow for him, will this useless action then cure the relative? Or, for example, if someone’s son has colic pain and his father, out of sorrow for him, smashes his head on a rock, will such a foolish deed cure the son? It is also incomprehensible that X should be strung upon the cross in expiation for the sin that Y has committed.Is it justice

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Fo o T N o T e F r o M PAG e 31 Fo o T N o T e F r o M PAG e 31 63 or mercy? Pray! Some Christian should inform us about this! We do affirm that sacrificing one’s life for the welfare of the serv- ants of God or being ready to do so is a high moral condition, but it would be sheer folly if the useless act of suicide were to be included in this category.A suicide like this is strictly prohibited and it is the work of the ignorant and the hasty.Of course, the most commendable way of sacrificing one’s life is manifest from the life of the perfect Reformer whose name is Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, the Chosen One.—Author

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the Light of the holy Qur’an (N u rul-Qur’ a n) Number Two

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Facsimile of the original title page for N u rul-Qur’ a n, printed in 1896

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Translation of the original title page for N u rul-Qur’ a n But there is no blame on those who defend themselves after they have been wronged.for the months of September, October, November, & December 1895 and January, February, March, & April 1896 The humble one, Muhammad Sirajul-Haqq Jamali No‘mani Printed at the d iy a’ ul-islam Press, Qadian, under the auspices of H ak i m Fazl Din, the proprietor 700 copies printed Price of one copy 8 annas َو ِنَمَل َرَصَتْنا َدْعَب ٖهِمْلُظ َكِٕىٰٓلوُاَف اَم ْمِهْيَلَع ْنِّم ٍلْيِبَس The Light of the Holy Qur’an Number II

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An Important Announcement for Our Readers It is with regret that I disclose the fact that this number of N u rul- Qur’ a n has been issued in rebuttal to a person who, instead of using civilized language, has employed abusive insults against our lord and master, the Prophet, may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and has falsely imputed, out of his own inherent wickedness, such outright calumnies against this Im a m- ut- T ayyib i n [Leader of the Righteous] and Sayyidul-Mu t ahhar i n [the Leader of the Pure] that a pure-hearted person would shud- der upon hearing them.It was, therefore, solely to redress such foul-mouthed people that I was compelled to respond in the same coin.I wish to make it clear to our readers that our doctrine regard- ing the Messiah, peace be upon him, is a highly virtuous belief, and we maintain the conviction with all our hearts that he was a true Prophet of God Almighty and His beloved.And just as the Holy Qur’an informs us, we have faith in the fact that for his own

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 70 salvation, he had believed with all his heart and soul in our lord and master, Muhammad, the Chosen One, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him; and that he too was a sincere servant out of the hundreds of servants of the shariah [religious law] of Moses, peace be upon him.We, therefore, accord him all due respect according to his status.The Christians, however, have presented such a Yas u ‘ who claimed Divinity and deemed everyone—outside of his own self—to be accursed from the first to the last; that is, he consid- ered them guilty of the evil deeds whose punishment is l a‘ nat [curse].I, likewise, consider such a [fabricated] character [Yas u ‘] to be deprived of Divine mercy.The Holy Qur’an has nowhere informed us of this insolent and foul-mouthed Yas u ‘ [Christ].I am astounded at the character of this individual who considered dying appropriate with respect to God while himself claiming to be God, and vilified such godly people as were thousands of times better than he.So, I am referring to this fictitious Yas u ‘ of the Christians in my writing in every instance.In my harsh rebukes, I am not at all referring to ‘ I s a ibn Maryam [Jesus son of Mary], a humble servant of God and Prophet who is mentioned in the Holy Qur’an.I have adopted this course after constantly listening to the invectives of the Christian clergymen for forty years.Some igno- rant maulaw i s, who ought to be called blind and sightless, con- sider the Christians to be innocent, saying that these poor souls never utter a disparaging word and are never guilty of any disre- spect towards the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.It has to be remembered, however, that the Christian

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A N I M P O r TAN T A N NO u N c e M e N T FO r O u r r e AD e r S A N I M P O r TAN T A N NO u N c e M e N T FO r O u r r e AD e r S 71 missionaries are, in fact, at the forefront of reviling, disparaging, and insulting [the Holy Prophet s as ].I have a whole stockpile of books of such missionaries who have filled their writings with hundreds of invectives.Any maulaw i who so desires, may come and see.And it should be noted that going forward, should any Christian missionary refrain from this abusive attitude and speak respectfully, I too will treat him with respect.At the moment they themselves are attacking their Yas u‘ by refusing to abstain from vituperation and abuse.I have grown weary of listening to it.If someone abuses one’s father, does the wronged person not have the right to abuse the other person’s father as well? Besides, whatever I have said is factual.ِ مَا الَْعْمَال ُ بِالنِّیَّات َّ وَاِن [And actions are judged by their intentions].1 Humbly, Ghulam Ahmad 20 December 1895 1.S a hih al-Bukh a r i , B a b Bad’ul-Wa hy i, Kaifa k a na bad’ul-Wa hy i il a r as u lill a h s allall a hu ‘alaihi wa sallam, Hadith 1.[Publisher]

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The Journal— Fateh Masih 1  2 ذِیْن َ اصْطَفٰی َّ لَم ُ عَلٰی عِبَادِہ ِ ال َّ اَلْحَمْد ُ لِلّٰہ ِ وَالس ذِیْن َ اصْطَفٰی َّ لَم ُ عَلٰی عِبَادِہ ِ ال َّ اَلْحَمْد ُ لِلّٰہ ِ وَالس After this let it be clear that since Padre Fateh Masih, currently stationed at Fate h garh, District Gurdaspur, sent me an extremely filthy letter wherein he falsely accused our lord and master, Muhammad, the Chosen One, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, of adultery, and also employed numerous derogatory and abusive words, it was, therefore, deemed appropriate to pub- lish a rejoinder to his letter.Accordingly, this journal was written.It is hoped that Christian clergymen will read it carefully without feeling offended by its words as this entire style is the consequence of Mr.Fateh Masih’s sordid language and overly vulgar invectives.Nonetheless, I do have regard for the hallowed status of the Messiah, peace be upon him.It is only in retaliation 1.In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful.[Publisher] 2.All praise belongs to Allah, and peace be upon His chosen servants.[Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 74 against the harsh words employed by Fateh Masih that the ficti- tious Christ [of the Christians] has been evaluated in compari- son, and that, too, out of utmost compulsion as this imbecile has abused the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, most vehemently inflicting pain upon my heart.I now set out the response to his letter in the following.It is as follows: My dear Priest! Formalities aside, at this moment I have very little time at my disposal, but when I saw the letter you had sent to our brother Maulaw i Abdul-Karim, I considered it fitting to personally give you the glad tidings of this journal of mine which is being written, so that you won’t have to trouble yourself much.Rest assured, the journal will be of such a calibre that you will find yourself so very pleased.Owing to those ‘kind’ regards of yours which are so plentifully found in your letter this time around, I have firmly resolved that the purpose behind publish- ing this journal is strictly to uphold your very own request; for, the article that I am now prepared to write, might have come out sometime later had I not received this letter of yours wherein you have used filthy language against the Holy Prophet, Hadrat Ayeshah Siddiqah, and Saudah.This is an immense act of kind- ness on your part in that you yourself have become the instigating agent.It is expected that the other missionaries will be immensely pleased with you, and it would be of no surprise should you even receive some promotion after the issuance of my journal.Reverend Sir! I lament your predicament as you were already so utterly wanting in the Arabic language, but you were also proven to be completely bereft with respect to those fields of science which hold some affiliation with theology, such as phys- ics and medicine.Mentioning Hadrat Ayeshah Siddiqah, Allah

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 75 be pleased with her, you have written of her marriage ceremony at the age of nine.First of all, there is no evidence of the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, himself saying that she was nine years old, nor is there any Divine revelation to that effect, nor is it established through narration that are muta- w a tir [i.e.possessing multiple chains of transmission] narrations that she was indeed nine years old.It is only quoted from one nar- rator.The Arabs, being illiterate, did not keep written calendars and a variance of two or three years is, therefore, insignificant in view of their circumstances.The same is the case in our country where most of the illiterate people cannot accurately account for a difference of two to four years.Nevertheless, even if we concede under the assumption that it was precisely nine years by counting every day, even then no intelligent person would object.There is, however, no cure for stupidity.I will demonstrate this to you within my journal by proving that there is a consensus of opinion among contemporary research physicians that girls can attain puberty even by the age of nine years.In fact, the bearing of children can take place even as early as seven years of age.Physicians have proven this through a great many observations.Moreover, hundreds of people have person- ally witnessed this fact with their own eyes in this very country that there are girls aged eight and nine years who have given birth to children.Nevertheless, upon you be no pity whatsoever—nor should there be!—for not only are you an absolute bigot, but also an imbecile of the highest degree.To this day you still fail to realize even this much that the laws of government are framed in accord- ance with the wishes of the people in keeping with their traditions

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 76 and the prevailing norms of society.They are not subject to inves- tigations in the manner of philosophers.As for your repeated mention of the British government, it is absolutely true that we are grateful to the British government and are its well-wishers and will remain so as long as we live.However, we do not consider this government immune from error, nor do we consider its laws to be based on scholarly research.On the contrary, the basis for promulgating laws is the majority opinion of [its] subjects.No revelation descends upon the government, exempting it from error in [the promulgation of ] its laws.Had these laws been so infallible, why would newer and newer laws perpetually continue to be promulgated? In England, the age for female puberty has been declared to be 18 years, but in tropical regions the girls attain puberty much earlier.Should you consider the laws of the government as revela- tion from heaven, being immune to the possibility of error, then please do inform me through reply mail so that I—by presenting a brief comparison between the Gospel and these laws—might be of some service to you.In short, the government has not yet issued any such proclamation that its laws are also free from error and oversight like the Torah and the Gospel.Should you be in receipt of any such declaration, then kindly send me a copy of it as well.Thus, if the laws of the government are not free from error like the Books of God, then the reason behind quoting them is either stupidity or prejudice, but you are incapable [of compre- hending this].If the government had such confidence in its laws, why didn’t it censure those physicians who recently declared after extensive research in Europe, that the age of puberty is nine years; nay, rather, seven for some women? Also, in objecting to [a girl

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 77 marrying at] the age of nine, you could not cite any reference from the Torah or the Gospel; you merely mentioned an ordinance of the government.This shows that you no longer believe in the Torah and the Gospel, for you should have otherwise proved the prohibition [of marriage] at the age of nine either from the Torah or the Gospel.Reverend Sir! This indeed is sophistry, that you have cited an ordinance of the government in matters pertaining to revealed scriptures.If your opinion holds that all aspects of the govern- ment’s law are free from error and are similar to revealed Books— nay rather, even superior —then I ask you what treatment this government would have meted out to those Prophets as , had they been living today, who slaughtered hundreds of thousands of suckling infants in breach of British law? And if those who had plucked and eaten the ears of corn from fields belonging to others, were summoned before this government along with the one who gave them permission to do so [i.e.Jesus], what sentence would the government hand down against them? I then ask, if the man who had rushed to eat the fruit of a fig tree—and it is substanti- ated by the Gospel that the fig tree was not his property, but it was another’s property—had perpetrated this act before this govern- ment, what punishment would this government award him? It is also evident from the Gospel that the Messiah killed a great many swine—which, according to Reverend Clark, numbered 2,000— that were the livestock of others.Now, please do explain what its punishment is under the penal code? This much should suffice for the time being.Pen your reply without fail so that many other questions may be posed.Reverend Sir! Your contention that intercourse with a nine

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 78 year old girl falls under the purview of adultery, is completely wrong.It would have been honesty on your part to prove this from the Gospel.However, the Gospel shoved you aside and when nothing there fell into your hands, you fell instantly upon the feet of the government.Keep in mind that these vituperations are merely out of satanic prejudice.This calumny of falsely accusing the Honourable Holy Prophet s as of adultery and debauchery is the wont of satans.Some filthy and wicked wretches have cast horrendous slanders upon both of these sacred Prophets: the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and the Messiah, peace be upon him.These vile people, ْ لَعْنَۃ ُ الل ِّٰ عَلَیْھِم [the curse of Allah be upon them], declared the first Prophet s as to be an adulterer—as did you—and they called the latter a bastard, as did the foul-natured Jews.You should abstain from such defamation.And the objection that the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, had resolved to divorce his wife, Saudah, on account of her advancing years, is completely wrong and contrary to facts.Those who have reported such accounts could not pro- vide the evidence as to whom the Holy Prophet, peace and bless- ings of Allah be upon him, had revealed such an intention.The fact of the matter, as recorded in credible books of Hadith, is that Saudah, on her own, felt apprehensive in her heart that due to her old age, her condition was no longer attractive, and that the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, on account of the natural revulsion that is expected of human nature, would perhaps divorce her.It is also possible that she had imagined some other basis for the revulsion on account of which the fear of divorce took root in her heart; for, the psyche of women is beset

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 79 with much suspicion and doubt in such situations.Therefore, she submitted on her own that she desired nothing other than being raised in the Hereafter as one of his wives.Accordingly, the fol- lowing hadith is narrated in Nailul-Au ta r on page 140: ِ ْه ی َ الله ُ عَل َّی ُفَارِقَهَا رَسُوْل ُ الله ِ صَل ی ْ ت ْ وَخَافَت ْ أَن َّ ْن َ أَسَن ی ِ قَالَت ْ سَوْدَة ُ بِنْت ُ زَمْعَة َ ح ِ ْه ی َ الله ُ عَل َّی ُفَارِقَهَا رَسُوْل ُ الله ِ صَل ی ْ ت ْ وَخَافَت ْ أَن َّ ْن َ أَسَن ی ِ ُ قَالَت ْ سَوْدَة ُ بِنْت ُ زَمْعَة َ ح ْد ی ِ ْضًا ابْن ُ سَعْد ٍ وَسَع ی َوْمِي ْ لِعَائِشَة َ فَقَبِل َ ذٰلِك َ مِنْهَا…وَرَوَاه ُ أَ ی ِ َا رَسُوْل َ الله ی َ م َّ ُ وَسَل ْد ی ِ ْضًا ابْن ُ سَعْد ٍ وَسَع ی َوْمِي ْ لِعَائِشَة َ فَقَبِل َ ذٰلِك َ مِنْهَا…وَرَوَاه ُ أَ ی ِ َا رَسُوْل َ الله ی َ م َّ ُ وَسَل َات ی وَا ِّ اق ِ قَال َ الْحَافِظ ُ فِي الْفَتْح ِ فَتَوَارَدَت ْ هٰذِه ِ الر َّ ز َّ رْمِذِي ُّ وَعَبْد ُ الر ِّ ُ بْن ُ مَنْصُور ٍ وَالت َات ی وَا ِّ اق ِ قَال َ الْحَافِظ ُ فِي الْفَتْح ِ فَتَوَارَدَت ْ هٰذِه ِ الر َّ ز َّ رْمِذِي ُّ وَعَبْد ُ الر ِّ بْن ُ مَنْصُور ٍ وَالت 1 لَق َ فَوُهِبَتْ.َّ هَا خَشِيَت ْ الط َّ أَن ی َ عَل لَق َ فَوُهِبَتْ.َّ هَا خَشِيَت ْ الط َّ أَن ی َ عَل Meaning that, when Saudah bint Zam‘ah grew apprehensive that she would perhaps be separated from the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, due to her advancing years, she said to the Messenger of Allah that she had conceded her turn to Ayeshah, and he accepted her request.Ibn Sa‘d, Sa‘ i d ibn Man su r, Tirmidhi , and ‘Abdur-Razz a q have also reported the same narration.And it is written in Fat h ul-B a r i that the reports concur in stating that Saudah had on her own grown apprehensive of being divorced.Now, it is clearly evident from this hadith that there was actually no intent expressed by the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.Rather, it was Saudah herself who had persisted in this belief out of her very own accord, reflecting upon her condition of advancing 1.There is a scribal error in the first edition; the original words of the hadith have been inserted here in conformity with the actual text as they appear in Nailul-Au ta r, Kit a bul-Wal i mah wal-bin a ’ ‘alan-Nis a ’ wa ‘ishratihinna, B a b al-Mara’tu Yaumah a li d arratih a ’ au-Tu sa li- huz-Zauja ‘al a isq a tih i , p.140–141, by Muhammad bin Ali ash-Shukani.[Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 80 years.Even if we ignore the concurrence and mutually supporting nature of these narrations, and assume that the Holy Prophet s as had resolved to divorce Saudah due to the natural revulsion on account of her old age, there is still nothing wrong in it, nor does this fact run contrary to any moral state, because logically it is not objectionable for a husband—when he is not able to fulfil the obligations of the marital relationship due to the development of some impediment of any kind in the fundamental premise on which the relationship between a husband and wife is estab- lished—to take appropriate action, while constrained by the pre- cepts of righteousness.Reverend Sir, with regard to your question as to what the British government would have done with a person like the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, had he lived today in the time of this government, let it be clear to you that had Sayyidul- K aunain [the Lord of both worlds] lived in the time of this government, this felicitous government would have con- sidered it an honour to carry his shoes, just as the Byzantine Emperor [Heraclius] had stood up merely upon seeing his portrait.It is your worthlessness and wretchedness that you har- bour such misgivings against this government as if it is an enemy of God’s holy ones.This government extends respect to the very least of the Muslim nobles in this present age.Just look at how our Empress of India, may her glory be everlasting, had honoured Nasrullah Khan, who does not even hold the stature equivalent to the slaves of the Holy Prophet s as ! Then, if His Most Exalted Holiness s as , who held such a stature even in worldly life that even kings would fall upon his feet, had been present in this age, this government

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 81 would have undoubtedly interacted with His Eminence respect- fully and courteously.Human governments have no recourse but to render obeisance and deference to Divine Government.Are you unaware that the Byzantine Emperor —who was a Christian monarch during the time of the Holy Prophet s as , and was no less in grandeur than this government— proclaimed that if he could have the good fortune to remain in the company of that Magnificent Prophet, he would have occupied himself with the washing of his feet? This felicitous government would have certainly said the very same statement that the Byzantine Emperor said; nay, rather it would say even greater than this! If you can prove that even a lowly landlord of the time had uttered these words with regard to the Messiah that the Byzantine Emperor uttered with regard to the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him—which are preserved to this day recorded in highly accurate historic accounts and authentic a ha d i th —then I shall give you one thousand rupees cash as a reward right now.However, if you are unable to furnish this evi- dence, then death ought to be better for you than such an abased life because I have proven that the Byzantine Emperor was equal in status to this government; rather, history shows that there was no other power in the world equal to his power at that time— whereas our government has not reached such a status.Still, when the Caesar, with all of his majesty, heaves a sigh and proclaims that had he been able to reach that Hallowed and August Personage s as [the Holy Prophet], he would have washed his feet —would this government have done any less? I assert with full conviction that this government would have felt honoured to kneel at the feet of such a king [as the Holy Prophet], for this government does not

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 82 deny the Divine King in comparison to Whose powers man does not amount to so much as a dead insect.From a reliable source I have heard that our Empress of India, may God make her honour endure, actually loves Islam and holds the utmost respect for the Holy Prophet, peace and bless- ings of Allah be upon him, in her heart.She even studies Urdu from a Muslim scholar.Upon hearing such praises about her, I had addressed Her Majesty the Queen with a special invitation to Islam.Therefore, it is a grave error that you people consider this government which appreciates [the dignity of one’s] rank, to be akin to a mean and ignoble Christian priest.Those whom God grants dominion and wealth are also granted sagacity and wisdom.Of course, if the question is posed, ‘What measures would the government take against any such person who raises a clamour throughout the jurisdiction of this government that he is God or the Son of God? ’, then its reply is verily that this benevolent government would either consign him to the care of some doctor so that his mind be set aright, or con- fine him to that big asylum in Lahore where many such people are housed together.When we compare the Messiah with our Holy Prophet Kh a tamul-Anbiy a ’ [the Seal of the Prophets], peace and bless- ings of Allah be upon him, in another respect also, viz how their contemporary governments treated them and the magnitude of impact displayed by their divine awe or heavenly support, we are forced to admit that the Messiah— in contrast to His Holiness, the Blessed Prophet Kh a tamul-Anbiy a ’ [the Seal of the Prophets], peace and blessings of Allah be upon him — did not even possess the prophetic majesty, let alone divine grandeur.

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 83 When the epistles of the Holy Prophet were dispatched to the kings, the Byzantine Emperor heaved a sigh and said that he was in the clutches of the Christians, and that if he could escape from that place, he would consider it an honour to present him- self before His Holiness and occupy himself in the washing of his feet in the manner of slaves.On the other hand, the vile and foul-hearted king, the Chosroes —the ruler of Persia—in his rage, dispatched his soldiers to arrest him.They arrived close to the evening and submitted that they had been ordered to arrest him [the Holy Prophet s as ].Ignoring this preposterous statement, he told them to accept Islam.At that time he was sitting in the mosque with only a few of his companions, yet both soldiers were trembling like a cane due to his divine awe.Ultimately, they asked what the reply of His Holiness [the Holy Prophet] was with regard to their ruler’s command; i.e.his arrest, so that they could at least convey a response.The Honourable Prophet of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, told them that they would receive its reply the next day.When they presented themselves the next morning, the Holy Prophet s as said that the one to whom they kept referring as ‘lord and lord’ is not the Lord.The Lord is the One Who is never overtaken by death and destruction, whereas their ‘lord’ was killed the night before.He informed them that his true Lord had given Shīrūya [Sheroe], the son of the one they referred to as their lord, dominion over him and thus their lord had been killed by Sh i r u ya that night.This, indeed, is the reply.This was a great miracle.Having witnessed it, thousands of people of that country accepted Islam, for Khosrow Parvez —that is, Chosroes —had indeed been killed that very night.It should be kept in mind that

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 84 this statement is not like the confused and baseless accounts of the Gospel.Rather, it is substantiated by authentic a ha d i th, historical evidence, and the admission of the opponents.For instance, Mr.Davenport has also mentioned this episode in his book.On the other hand, the respect of the Messiah in the estima- tion of the kings of his time is not hidden from you.Those pages may still be present in the Gospel which narrate that Herod sent up the Messiah to Pilate like a criminal and he was kept in the royal detention for a time.His ‘Divinity’ did not help him at all.No king said that he would be honoured to stay in his service and wash his feet.Instead, Pilate handed him [ Jesus] over to the Jews.Was this the ‘Godhead’? It is a strange comparison! Two persons faced comparable circumstances but they are proven totally distinct from one another due to their respective outcome.In the case of one person, an arrogant despot is roused by the instigation of Satan to arrest him, but is finally overtaken by the curse of God and gets assassinated in abject humiliation by his own son, whereas the other person—who, in contravention to his real claims, has been raised to the heavens by those given to extreme exaggeration—actually gets arrested, indicted, and trans- ported in a dishevelled state from one town to another in the custody of cruel centurions.Alas! This age of enlightenment and such absurd beliefs! Shame! Shame! Shame! Should you inquire where it is recorded that the Byzantine Emperor expressed his yearning that if he had been able to reach His Holiness [the Holy Prophet], peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, he would have busied himself by washing his feet like a humble servant, I quote the following reply from S a hih

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 85 al-Bukh a r i , the most authentic of books after the Book of God.Just open your eyes and read, for it is: ْ ه ُ خَارِج ٌ لَم َّ وَقَد ْ كُنْت ُ أَعْلَم ُ أَن ْ ه ُ خَارِج ٌ لَم َّ ْوَقَد ْ كُنْت ُ أَعْلَم ُ أَن مْت ُ لِقَاءَه ُ وَلَو ْ كُنْت ُ عِنْدَه ُ لَغَسَلْت ُ عَن َّ ْه ِ لَتَجَش ی َ ی ْٓ أَخْلُص ُ إِل ِّ ي ْ أَعْلَم ُ اَن ِّ ه ُ مِنْكُم ْ فَلَو ْ أَن َّ ْأَكُن ْ أَظُن ُّ أَن مْت ُ لِقَاءَه ُ وَلَو ْ كُنْت ُ عِنْدَه ُ لَغَسَلْت ُ عَن َّ ْه ِ لَتَجَش ی َ ی ْٓ أَخْلُص ُ إِل ِّ ي ْ أَعْلَم ُ اَن ِّ ه ُ مِنْكُم ْ فَلَو ْ أَن َّ أَكُن ْ أَظُن ُّ أَن قَدَمَیْهِ.قَدَمَیْهِ..See page 4.1 Meaning: ‘I knew that the Prophet of the Last Age was about to come, but I had no information that he would be born among you (O, people of Arabia).Had I been able to reach him, I would have strived very hard to seek the honour of beholding him, and were I in his presence I would have occupied myself in the washing of his feet.’ Now, if you have any sense of honour and shame, then present an instance of such reverence being directed towards the Messiah by any king of his time, and receive 1 ,000 rupees cash from me.You do not need to necessarily furnish it from the Gospel; you may present even a piece of paper picked from a pile of garbage— if you can.But if you can’t cite a king or ruler, then just cite a low-level prince; however, remember that you will never be able to present [any such example].This torment is no less than the torment of Hell in that you yourself are accused of the very issue that you yourself raised.Well done! Bravo! Well Done Indeed! What a great clergyman you are! What was the character of Christ in your own assessment: a glutton, a drunkard; neither a recluse nor a devotee, nor an espouser of truth; arrogant, vain, and a claimant to Divinity? [God-forbid.] Nevertheless, many a claimant to Divinity has come and gone before him; one of them appearing even in Egypt.Setting aside the claims, can you simply present any moral 1.S a hih al-Bukh a r i , B a b Bad’ul-Wa hy i, Kaifa k a na bad’ul-Wa hy i il a r as u lill a h s allall a hu ‘alaihi wa sallam, Hadith 7.[Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 86 excellence which is actually substantiated, so that the truth might be known? One’s mere words cannot be counted as his morals.You object that the apostates—who were themselves mur- derers and worthy of punishment for their deeds—were merci- lessly killed but you forgot to recall that the Israelite Prophets killed even suckling infants, and not one or two, but hundreds of thousands! Do you deny their prophethood? Or was that not the commandment of God? Or was there a different God at the time of Moses as and a different One at the time of Holy Prophet Muhammad Mustafa [the Chosen One], peace and blessings of Allah be upon him? O cruel cleric! Feel some shame; ultimately everyone has to die.The poor Messiah cannot be held answerable in your stead.You alone will be seized for your deeds; he will not be questioned at all [for them].O imbecile! You see the mote in your brother’s eye, but why don’t you see the beam in your own eye? What is wrong with your eyes that you cannot see your own eyes? As for the story about the marriage with Zainab ra , which you have so unjustly cited as adultery, what can I say other than: دب رہگ از اطخ اطخ ہن دنک Ill of nature does not commit crimes by mistake.O unworthy one! Marrying the divorcee of one’s adopted son is not adultery.No one becomes an actual son or father or mother just by saying so.For instance, if a Christian calls his wife ‘mother’ in a fit of anger, would she become unlawful for him and would a divorce be effected thereby? Of course, he will continue to have

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 87 conjugal relations with his so-called ‘mother’.Thus, he who said that divorce cannot take place for any reason other than adultery, did concede that calling someone ‘father’ or ‘son’ or ‘mother’ is inconsequential; otherwise, he would have surely stated that divorce becomes effective if one calls his wife ‘mother’.But perhaps the Messiah did not have the wisdom that Fateh Masih has.It is now incumbent upon you to prove from the Gospel that calling one’s wife ‘mother’ effects a divorce, or concede that the teachings of your Christ were flawed, or prove according to the Gospel that an adopted son literally becomes a son and becomes an heir like a biological son.But if you are unable to furnish any such proof, then I can only say ی لَعْنَـــۃ ُ اللّٰـــه ِ عَلَـــ ی َلَعْنَـــۃ ُ اللّٰـــه ِ عَلَـــ ْـــن ی ِ َالْكٰذِب ْـــن ی ِ الْكٰذِب [‘The curse of Allah be upon the liars’].The Messiah curses you too , for nowhere in the Gospel did he say that calling one’s wife ‘mother’ effects a divorce.You are well aware that all of these three cases are similar.If no one can become one’s mother just by being called so, then no one can become one’s father or one’s son in this way either.Now, if you have any shame, either accept the testimony of the Messiah or produce a rebuttal, but remember that you shall never be able to produce one even if you die ruminating over it; for, you are a liar and the Messiah as is disgusted with you! As for your satanic insinuation that all four [obligatory] Prayers were missed while the Trench was being dug, firstly, such is the sorry state of knowledge of you people that you have used the word qa da.O ignorant one, qa da means to offer a Prayer; skipping a Prayer is never referred to as qa da.If someone is not able to offer a Prayer, then the word faut [expired] is used.This is the reason why I published an announcement offering a reward

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 88 of five thousand rupees, because even such ignorant people raise objections against Islam who till now have not even come to know the meaning of qa da.How can an imbecile, who cannot even articulate words in their proper context, be qualified to quib- ble over intricacies? As far as the objection of four Prayers being combined at the time when the Trench was being dug is concerned, the answer to this idiotic cavil is that God Almighty says religion does not encumber; that is, it does not impose such stringency as would cause man’s ruin.This is why He has ordained that Prayers should be combined and shortened in exigencies and afflictions.Regarding this particular occasion, however, there is no trust- worthy hadith which mentions that four [obligatory Prayers] were combined.In fact, it is written in Fat h ul-B a r i Shar h S a hih al-Bukh a r i , that what happened was that one Prayer—that is, the ‘A s r Prayer —was offered later than usual when its time was run- ning out.Had you been standing right now in front of me, I would have sat you down and asked you whether there is a consensus regard- ing the narration concerning the lapse of four Prayers.Combining four Prayers is in itself permissible according to the Shariah; namely, Z uhr with ‘A s r , and Maghrib with ‘Ish a ’.Yes, in one d a ‘i f [weak] narration it is mentioned that Z uhr , ‘A s r , Maghrib , and ‘Ish a ’ were offered together, but other s a hih [authentic] a ha d i th refute it.The only thing proven is that the ‘A s r was offered at the very last minute.You are utterly bereft of any knowledge of Arabic and are extremely ignorant.Just come to Qadian and meet me, so then at least the books may be presented before you in order to somewhat chastise the lying slanderer, even if it be

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 89 the punishment of embarrassment—albeit such people do not even feel ashamed.Was it right for the revered Disciples to eat stolen goods in front of your Christ ; that is, plucking the ears of corn from some- one else’s field? If during some battle, the ‘A s r prayer was offered in the nick of time due to the threat of the infidels and the perilous situation, its only significance was that—when simultaneously presented with two acts of worship—priority was given to the act of worship which involved repulsing the dangerous attack of the infidels, and the rightful and justified defence of personal rights, nation, and country.And it was all undertaken by the person who was the bearer of the Shariah, and it was perfectly in consonance with the purport of the Noble Qur’an.God Almighty says: 1 َو اَم ُقِطْنَي ِنَع ىٰوَهْلا ۰۰ ْنِا َوُه اَّلِا ٌيْحَو ىٰحْوُّي ۰۰ Meaning that, every act of the Prophet is with the command of God Almighty.The time of a Prophet is the time for the reve- lation of a shariah, and whatever actions the Prophet carries out actually turn into the shariah.If this were not so, all the acts of the Messiah which are in contravention to the Torah—his disre- gard even for the Sabbath and his not washing his hands before eating—all indict the Messiah.Can you justify all this from the Torah? Christ had branded Peter as Satan.Why then did he for- get his own words and why did he continue to keep Satan amidst his disciples? Then it is your objection that keeping many wives and bond 1.S u rah an-Najm, 53:4–5 [Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 90 maidens is debauchery and impiety.O imbecile! Have you for- gotten the wives of Prophet David as who has been praised in the Sacred Book [Bible]? Was he committing adultery to the end of his days? Isn’t the person in whom you place your trust [for sal- vation], the holy progeny of this very ‘adulterer’? Did God, who reprimanded David about Uriah’s wife, remain oblivious to this crime of David as which he continued to commit until his last breath, and instead bestowed upon him one more girl to warm his bosom? Furthermore, the testimony of your God is on record that David is righteous in all his affairs except in the matter of Uriah.Can any sensible person accept that if polygamy was considered evil in the estimation of God, wouldn’t He have reprimanded the Israelite Prophets—who excelled all others in polygamy—at least once for this act? Thus, it is extremely dishonest to mischievously and wickedly object to one thing concerning the life of the Holy Prophet, when the exact same thing is veritably present in ear- lier Prophets and God has not pronounced it to be objectionable.Sadly, these people are so shameless that they do not even realize that if having more than one wife is tantamount to adultery, then serious doubt arises regarding the purity of the birth of Christ , who is called the progeny of David , and who would be able to prove that his ancestral maternal great grandmother was indeed David’s first wife? You then object by citing Hadrat Ayeshah Siddiqah ra that it was against the Shariah for His Exalted Holiness, the Prophet of Allah s as to touch his body with hers and suck her tongue.To what extent must I lament such sordid bigotry? O imbecile! All such acts are permissible in a lawful and proper marriage.What

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 91 sort of an objection is this? Don’t you know that virility and mas- culinity are praiseworthy qualities of a man? Being a eunuch is not any meritorious quality , just as being deaf or mute is not counted as merit.Of course, this objection is very serious that the Messiah, peace be upon him, being devoid of the greatest of masculine traits, could not demonstrate any practical example of the sincere and perfect interaction with one’s wife.And this is why European women, taking advantage of extremely shameful licentiousness, exceeded the limits of moderation in every direc- tion.Ultimately, it amounted to unspeakable promiscuity and debauchery.O imbecile! To be amorous towards your wives out of human nature and its true and pure emotions, and to utilize all the law- ful means of a comely relationship is a natural and instinctive quality of man.The founder of Islam, peace and blessings be upon him, also utilized it and set an example for his followers.The Messiah , on account of his deficient teaching, left this short- coming in his words and deeds, but as this was a natural instinct, Europe and Christianity had to devise rules for it on their own.You can now see, in all honesty, what it was that resulted in this filthy promiscuity.Country upon country—has turned into a sordid brothel of harlots.Thousands upon thousands are seen mounting each other in broad daylight like animals in places like Hyde Park.And finally—being fed up with this illicit freedom—lamenting and regretting, having suffered the consequences of cuckold- ing and dark deeds for years, they eventually had to get laws of divorce promulgated.What is this the result of ? Is it the consequence of the social

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 92 code given by the blessed Mu t ahhar [Holy] and Muzakk i [who purifies others], the Umm i Nab i s as [Unlettered Prophet] whom you criticise at the instigation of the wickedness of your inner self ? Is it the Islamic countries that are permeated with this stench and toxic atmosphere? Or is it the effect of the unnatu- ral and half-baked teachings of a gravely defective and unworthy book, the Pauline Gospel? Now, go kneel and picture the Day of Reckoning and reflect.Indeed, as for the objection that exists against the ancestral paternal and maternal grandmothers of the Messiah , has a reply ever crossed your mind at any moment? For myself, I have grown weary thinking about it.Thus far, no good answer has come to mind.What a great ‘God’ he is whose paternal and maternal grandmothers are of this calibre! Be forewarned that I shall write this treatise as—according to your own words—a ‘valiant war- rior’ and will show you what is called ‘uprooting evil suggestions’.What is the big deal in defeating a misguided imbecile who makes a mortal into God? Nevertheless, do make it a point to graciously reply to the few items I have inquired about.And do not take affront at the words that have been used, for the words are befit- ting the occasion and are suitable to your stature.Given that you, despite your ignorance and lack of scholar- ship, have falsely accused the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him— Sayyidul-Mu t ahhar i n [ the Leader of the Pure] —of adultery, the very reply to this filthy lie and slander was exactly what has been given to you.I had eagerly hoped that you people might become courteous and refrain from hurling abuses, but you do not heed.You unjustly hurt the feelings of Ahl-e-Islam [the followers of Islam].You fail to realize that according to us,

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 93 the fool who comes forth from the womb of a mortal yet claims to be ‘God’ is far worse than every adulterer.Had you been the well-wishers of the Messiah , you would have shown some respect while speaking to us about His Exalted Holiness the Prophet.It is mentioned in an authentic hadith 1 that [the Holy Prophet s as said,] ‘Do not abuse your father!’ The people asked, ‘Does anyone abuse their father?’ He replied, ‘Yes.When you abuse someone else’s father, he would certainly abuse your father too.And that abuse won’t be from him but from you.’ Similarly, you people wish your feeble and false ‘God’ to be taken to task.Let this letter serve as a notice from me that if you ever use such foul words again and if you ever slander the Holy Prophet, peace and blessing of Allah be upon him, then I too shall hunt down your fictitious and fake god in such a way that all of his godhead will be cast into the filth of ignominy.O unworthy one! Do you dare to falsely accuse the Chief of Prophets, may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, of adultery and call him a debaucher and a sinful transgressor in your letter, tormenting my heart thereby! We do not and will not turn to any [worldly] court, but do counsel you for the future to renounce such blasphemous deeds and to fear God to whom all must return.And do not abuse the Messiah either, because what- ever evil you utter against the Holy Prophet s as will certainly be said about your fictitious Christ as well.I, however, regard and believe the true Messiah to be holy, venerable, and pure, who 1.S a hih al-Bukh a r i , Kit a bul-Adab, B a b l a yasubbur- r ajulu W a lidaihi, Hadith 5973 [Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 94 neither claimed to be God nor the Son [of God], and fore- told the advent of Muhammad, the Chosen One, Ahmad, the Exalted One, may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and in whom he believed.That is all.The Sympathy of the Maulaw i s of Amritsar for Islam The maulaw i s of Amritsar, who number no more than six or seven, namely Maulaw i Abdul Jabb a r Ghaznavi, Maulaw i Sanaullah Amritsari, Maulaw i Ghulam Rasool Amritsari, and Maulaw i Ahmadullah , etc.have argued against signing the petition which is to be sent to the authorities seeking extension of Ordinance 298 of the Indian Penal Code as well as the inclusion of two extra provisions.They have exposed, through their unwarranted opposition, how steadfast enemies of Islam and fiercely hostile to Islamic interests they really are.I have heard that Muslims at large have been deeply grieved by this inappropriate action of theirs.Most of the people vehemently rebuked and reproached as to what kind of maulaw i and Muslim these are who, only on account of one internal dispute, refrained from endorsing a simple, straight- forward, and extremely appropriate petition that was completely in the interest of Islam and which would slam the door shut to all the vile abuse, unfounded calumnies, and base insults in the future that the foul-mouthed Aryas and Christian priests level at our Prophet, Kh a tamur-Rusul [the Seal of the Messengers], peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.It appears, however, from the announcement published by these maulaw i s that they consider the Aryas and Christian priests to be totally blameless in

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 95 using invectives and reviling the religion [of Islam].They lay the entire blame on this humble one, saying that firstly, I was the one who abused their elders, and, thereupon, these ‘good people’ had no recourse but to say something.Had this false charge been somewhat concealed or worthy of consideration, I would have given an elaborate and detailed reply, but how do I respond to a blatant lie that does not contain even an iota of truth? I am at a loss as to how I may describe this degree of falsehood; should I term it dishonesty, or should I call it innate wickedness, or should I put it down as bigoted frenzy? What should I say!!! Who does not know that all these excesses are being perpe- trated in India and Punjab for at least 45 years? Our lord and master, Kh a tamul-Anbiy a ’ [the Seal of the Prophets], Sayyidul- Mu t ahhar i n [the Leader of the Pure], Af d alul-Awwal i n wa A khir i n [Superior to all the Earlier and Latter ones], Muhammad, the Chosen One, may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, has been targeted with such vile abuse, and the Noble Qur’an is attacked with such wanton derision and mockery that no one has used such words even for the lowest and most contemptible person in the world.Such books are not just one or two, rather they have mushroomed into thousands.Anyone who is aware of the content of these books and still does not show any indignation on behalf of Allah, the Lord of Glory, and His Holy Messenger, is an accursed man and not a maulaw i, and is a foul beast and not a human being.Do bear in mind that many of these books are from before the days even of my adolescence, and no one can prove that they were written because I or some other Muslim vilified the

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 96 Messiah, peace be upon him, as a consequence of which Padre Pfander and Safdar Ali, and Padre Thakur Das and Imad-ud-Din and Padre Williams Rivary were outraged and wrote those books.If the abuse and scorn contained therein were all collected, they would form a book spanning one hundred juzw.1 Similarly, no one can prove that all the abuse and scorn which Pandit Dayanand heaped at our lord and master, the Prophet, may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and the vilification of the faith of Islam that he perpetrated in his book Satyarath Prakash , were the result of some outrage provoked by me.Similarly, the filthy literature being published to this day by people like Lekh Ram from among the Aryas, is also not really because I had abused the Vedic Rishis.Rather, whatever I penned in Bar a h i n[-e-Ahmadiyya] about the Vedas was written with the utmost decency.And it was written at a time when Dayanand in his Satyarath Prakash , Kanahiya Lal Alakh Dhari of Ludhiana in his books, and Indarman Muradabadi in his foul writings, had already hurled thousands of abuses upon the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and their books had already been published.Some wretched and sightless Muslims even had become Aryas.Islam had been ridiculed to the extreme, and yet even then I did not forgo decency in writing Bar a h i n.Even though my heart had been tormented—and tormented deeply —yet I did not resort to slander or harshness of tone in my book at all, and only quoted those incidents that were veritable and relevant.How could I abuse the Vedic Rishis in retaliation to the abuses of the Aryas? 1.A juzw comprises sixteen pages.[Publisher]

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 97 I have still not discovered to this day whether these Rishis of the Vedas even existed—where they lived, in which city they dwelt, what their life history was, and what kind of events their lives consisted of.How could I criticize them? I still doubt their very existence.It is my belief that Agnu, Vayu, Adat, etc., who are considered Rishis of the Vedas, are mere fictitious and imaginary names.I have no knowledge as to who these people were.Had they any physical existence, their life story would have, of course, been written.It appears that the writers of the Vedas were the same people whose names are present at the heading of the parts of the Vedas.How then could I abuse the Rishis whose circumstances are concealed and whose whereabouts are unknown? It is not the way of Islam to use invectives.On the other hand, our opponents have unfairly and unjustifiably written so many books full of invectives that if these were placed in a pile, its height would be no less than 1,000 feet.And it has not yet stopped.Thousands of magazines, books, and newspapers, full of contempt, abuse, and invectives, are published every month.So, my lament at the plight of these maulaw i s —who say that whatever is happening should be allowed to continue and that there is no harm in it—is that had any such obscenity been directed at their mothers as is directed at our beloved Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, or had the same false allegation been levelled at their fathers as is levelled against the Sayyidur-Rusul [the Chief of the Messengers], Muhammad the Chosen One, may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him —would they have remained silent like this? Not at all! Rather, they would have immediately approached the courts and

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 98 tried their best to ensure that the slanderer was duly punished.The honour of the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, on the other hand, means nothing to them.The travesty is that sixty million books have already been written by the adversaries in repudiation and denigration of Islam, and there has been no limit to the abuse and vilification, yet these people say that there is no harm in it; whatever is hap- pening, let it continue! The heavens may well-nigh be torn asun- der on account of these expletives, but these maulaw i s do not care.Shame on such claims of Islam and their calling themselves Muslims that they say there is no harm in it at all.Thousands have become apostates on account of these false accusations and yet they think there is no need for some proper measures [to stop the false accusations].O Lord! Why have these people gone blind? I cannot find the reason why they have gone deaf ! I simply have no clue! O Mighty Lord, Protector of the religion of Mustafa [the Chosen One]! Heal the leprosy of their hearts and grant sight to their eyes, for You can do all that You will, and nothing is impossible before You.I trust Your grace.You are, indeed, Most Compassionate and All-Powerful.Dear readers, listen to another absurdity.They have written in their announcement that getting a law promulgated to the effect that no person shall level against another religion any objec- tion that is also applicable to his own, is a ruse to implicate only them.O, cruel maulaw i s ! Rest assured that I shall never sue you for your lies and calumnies, even up to my last breath.But, for the love of God, do not cause harm to Islam with your treacher- ies.It is absolutely true that whatever objections are being levelled

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 99 against Islam by the Christians and others, the same are also appli- cable to their own scriptures.Thus, it is obvious that if the fear of the law becomes a deterrent, such criticism shall cease to exist in the future, and the ones which have been levelled in the past, shall stand exposed.And by taking this approach, the brilliant face of Islam shall become visible to all, and the artifices of the charlatans shall be unravelled.So do not hide the truth and do not be dis- honest, and fear Him whose wrath is a consuming inferno.I have also heard your statement that you cannot sign this petition since you have already been terribly embarrassed in the matter of Abdullah Atham.How can I respond to this except to say that you have, indeed, been terribly embarrassed in the matter of the prophecy relating to Atham, and you have nothing left.I agree that it is absolutely true that you lost face by this prophecy and great humiliation visited you, but I still do not know what, in your estimation, is the cause of this embarrassment and humilia- tion.However, by looking at the events related to the prophecy and your obduracy, it appears that this humiliation is necessarily due to two reasons, and there is no third reason.1.Firstly, your heart was thrashed by the fact that Atham, through his words and deeds, and through his own confes- sion, proved the veracity of this prophecy.And by shirking from taking the oath, he drew the attention of people towards the stipulation mentioned in the prophecy, which unequivo- cally stated that if he turned to the truth , this chastisement would not befall him.Therefore, if you are embarrassed at the fact that—contrary to your desire—the Christians are so van- quished that they cannot show their faces, then your condition

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 100 is undoubtedly pitiable.Rather, I am indeed surprised that you did not die of this shock, for it is no small shock that, despite your cajoling, Atham could not clear himself by taking the oath and is still sitting like a corpse.This, indeed, was the occasion for shame.You can be excused for this.Further, the publication of the booklet D iy a’ ul- H aq heaped even more dirt upon your head.2.The second reason for your embarrassment appears to be the fact that neither Atham nor you have been able, to this day, to provide any proof of the three assaults on him [Atham] that he alleged had taken place implying that he was fearful due to those attacks and not due to the Islamic awe of the Prophecy.So it was clearly proven that, by being greatly terrified of the Islamic prophecy and having been overawed by the truth, Atham fulfilled the prerequisite of ruj u ‘ ilal- h aqq [turning towards the truth].Hence, there is no reason why you should not be embarrassed.Rather, no embarrassment should be too great.You got decimated.You lost face.What is left? The Remaining Objections of Padre Fateh Masih which he Put Forth in his Second Letter One objection is that the Holy Prophet, may the peace and bless- ings of Allah be upon him, had sanctioned lying in three circum- stances and had clearly commanded in the Qur’an to conceal one’s faith, whereas the New Testament has not permitted the conceal- ing of one’s faith.The Reply : So let it be clear that the Holy Qur’an has laid so much emphasis on truthfulness that I do not believe

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 101 the Gospel contains even a tiny fraction of it.About twenty years ago I published an announcement in this regard, wherein I cited some Quranic verses and pledged to give the Christians and oth- ers a substantial amount of money as a reward if they could cite verses from the Gospel that have similar emphatic insistence on truthfulness.However, the Christian clergymen have remained so silent as if they are devoid of life.Now, after a long time, Fateh Masih has spoken out from the coffin.Perhaps, owing to the lengthy passage of time, he did not recall that announcement of mine.Reverend Sir, you wish to turn chaff and hay into gold, yet you run hither and thither swerving away from the goldmine; if this is not misfortune, then what else is? The Holy Qur’an has equated falsehood to idolatry, as Allah says [in the Holy Qur’an]: 1 اوُبِنَتْجاَف َسْجِّرلا َنِم ِناَثْوَاْلا َو اْوُبِنَتْجا َلْوَق ِرْوُّزلا ۰۰ Meaning: ‘Shun the abomination of idols, and shun all words of untruth.’ On another occasion, He says, اَهُّيَاٰۤي َنْيِذَّلا اْوُنَمٰا اْوُنْوُك َنْيِمّٰوَق ِطْسِقْلاِب َءٓاَدَهُش ِهّٰلِل َو ْوَل ىٰۤلَع ْمُكِسُفْنَا ِوَا ِنْيَدِلاَوْلا 2 Part Number 4 َو َنْيِبَرْقَاْلا— Meaning: ‘O ye who believe! be strict in observing justice and 1.S u rah al- H ajj, 22:31 [Publisher] 2.S u rah an-Nis a ’, 4:136 [Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 102 truthfulness; and being witnesses for the sake of Allah, even though it be against yourselves or against parents and kindred who suffer loss on account of these testimonies.’ Now—O ye who fail to fear God! —just open the Gospel and tell me where it lays such stress on truthfulness.Had there been any such admonition, why would Peter, the foremost among the Apostles, have lied, and why would he, by swearing a false oath and cursing Jesus the Messiah , disavow him saying he did not know him? The Companions, Allah be pleased with them, of the Holy Prophet, may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, were constantly martyred merely for speaking the truth, and they never concealed Divine testimony even though the earth turned red with their blood.On the other hand, it is proven from the Gospel that your Yas u ‘ [ Jesus] himself kept concealed the testimony 1 that he was obligated to reveal.He could not even display the level of faith that was shown by the Companions of the Holy Prophet, may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, during the time of the hardships in Makkah.I hope you will not deny this, but if you do dishonestly deny this, then I shall present to you all the instances.For the present I have written this only as specimen of the evidence.You then go on to write that the Holy Prophet, may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, has sanctioned lying in three circumstances.However, you have erred due to your own igno- rance.The fact is that, no hadith sanctions telling a lie at all.On 1.See Matthew 16:20.[Publisher]

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 103 the contrary, the hadith has the words, 1 َ اِن ْ قُتِلْت َ وَاُحْرِقْت ; meaning, ‘You should not abandon truth even if you are killed or burned.’ Now, when the Qur’an says that you should not abandon justice and truth even if you lose your lives for it, and the hadith says that you should speak the truth even if you are burned and killed, then even if we assume that some hadith does exist that is at odds with the Qur’an and s a hih a ha d i th [authentic sayings of the Holy Prophet s as ], it will not be worthy of attention, for we accept only that hadith which is not in contravention with the s a hih a ha d i th and the Noble Qur’an.It is true that some a ha d i th contain a semblance of justifica- tion for tauriyah , but the same has been termed as falsehood in order to create aversion to it.Now, if an ignorant and extremely foolish person finds a word with dual meaning in some hadith, he might take it to mean actual falsehood, for he is unaware of the categorical verdict that in Islam, actual falsehood is considered an abomination, unlawful and akin to idolatry [associating partners with God].But tauriyah is not actual falsehood, though it bears a semblance of falsehood.Justification for it can be inferred from [some] hadith for common people in desperate circumstances.Even then it is written that those people are indeed superior who abstain even from tauriyah.In Islamic terminology, tauriyah means that, in order to con- ceal a fact lest it lead to mischief or in order to keep a secret for some other exigency, a statement is made in such a way and in such a fashion that while the astute would understand what is meant, the obtuse would not and his mind would turn away from the 1.Musnad Ahmad bin H anbal, Hadith 22075 [Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 104 real message of the speaker.And, upon close scrutiny, it should be evident that what the speaker had said is sheer truth and not a lie.Also, it should not have even an iota of falsehood mixed, nor the [speaker’s] heart should have even slightly inclined towards falsehood.For instance some a ha d i th justify tauriyah to bring about reconciliation between two Muslims; or to save one’s wife from some hardship, domestic discord, or dispute; or to keep one’s aims hidden from the enemy in a battle or to distract the enemy.Notwithstanding this, it is clear from many other a ha d i th that tauriyah is incompatible with the righteousness of the higher order, and that unmitigated truthfulness is still preferable even if one were to be killed or burned on account of it.Sadly, such tauriyah is plentiful in the words of your Yas u ‘ [ Jesus] and the entire Gospel is brimming with it.Therefore, we have to accept that if tauriyah is lying, then there has been no greater liar in the world than Yas u ‘.The statement of Jesus that he could demolish the Temple of God and then rebuild it within three days is one such statement that is called tauriyah.So is his saying that there was an owner of a house who planted a vineyard.All these are varieties of tauriyah , and there are plenty of examples of this in the discourses of Yas u ‘ because he always minced words when he spoke and his statements had duplicity.A sublime example of the teaching of our lord and master, the Honourable Holy Prophet, is established here and it is that the same tauriyah of which your Yas u ‘ availed himself throughout his entire life as if mother’s milk—had been admonished by the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, to avoid as far as possible, so that the purport of a statement should not resemble

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 105 a lie even in its outward form.But what can I say and what can I write about your Yas u ‘ who could not uphold such assiduity in truthfulness? A person who lays claim to Divinity should have come into the world like a roaring lion, instead of adopting tauriyah during his entire life and making all his statements in a manner akin to lies, thereby proving that he is not among the perfect personages who announce themselves in the face of their enemies showing no concern for death.They trust God fully and never exhibit coward- ice at any stage.I am verily reduced to tears when I imagine how I would respond if someone were to object to the timid state and use of tauriyah —which is a form of falsehood—of such a weak- hearted Yas u ‘.When I envision Sayyidul-Mursal i n [the Chief of the Messengers] while being all by himself during the Battle of Uhud, and proclaiming, in the face of drawn swords, that I am Muhammad s as , I am the Prophet of God, I am the son of Abdul Muttalib, and on the other hand I envision your Yas u ‘ while trembling, admonishing his disciples not to tell anyone that he is Jesus the Christ— which ran contrary to reality even though this statement would not have led anyone to kill him—I am drowned in an ocean of bewilderment and ask: ‘O my God! Even this per- son is called a Prophet when such is his standard of courage in the path of God?’ In short, Fateh Masih has exposed his own ignorance quite well.Rather, he even struck a blow on his Yas u ‘ by presenting some of those a ha d i th that mention the justification for tauriyah.Even if tauriyah has been erroneously referred to as falsehood in some hadith, it would be the height of ignorance for someone to

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 106 consider that it means actual falsehood when the Holy Qur’an and all authentic a ha d i th unanimously declare actual falsehood to be strongly prohibited and foul, and a ha d i th of higher quality are describing the issue of tauriyah explicitly.Then, even if we suppose that in some hadith the word kizb [‘falsehood’] has come in place of tauriyah , how can this— God forbid —mean actual falsehood? Rather, it would be an indica- tion of the meticulous righteousness of its proponent that he con- sidered tauriyah to be akin to falsehood and used the word ‘false- hood’ as the alternative.It is necessary for us to follow the Qur’an and the authentic a ha d i th.If something is in conflict with it, we will not accept the meaning which is contrary [to the Qur’an and authentic a ha d i th ].When taking a ha d i th into consideration, it is essential not to trust the a ha d i th that are contrary to and incom- patible with the a ha d i th whose authenticity has been established to a high degree.And not to trust those a ha d i th either that are blatantly discordant, incongruous, and inconsistent with the clear, explicit, and decisive dictate of the Holy Qur’an.It would be an act of hypocrisy and mischief to raise an objection—on the basis of inference from some absurd account, or some question- able and unauthentic hadith or some dubious impression—con- cerning an issue which the Holy Qur’an and authentic a ha d i th have consensus upon, and which has been described explicitly in religious tomes.The truth is that it is these kind of mischiefs that have ruined the Christians.They do not have the ability to study the hadith themselves.The most they can do is to read some translation of the Mishk a t and then raise an issue which they can find fault with in their flawed understanding.The fact is that the books of hadith

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 107 have all kinds of material—accurate and inaccurate.One who uses the hadith as a criterion faces the need to scrutinize them.And this is a very delicate matter to find the authentic a ha d i th from among all sorts of a ha d i th , and then try to ascertain its true mean- ing and then to search for its correct context.The Qur’an has cursed the liars.Furthermore, it states that liars are the companions of Satan, that liars are devoid of faith, and that satans descend upon the liars.And it does not just say ‘do not lie’, it also says that you should eschew even the company of liars, not take them as your friends and comrades—fear God and associate with the truthful.At one place it says that when you speak, your speech should be all truth, and should not be admixed with falsehood even jokingly.Now, tell me where do we find such teachings in the Gospel? Had there been such teachings, why would such gross practices as ‘April Fools’ persist among the Christians to this day? Note how terrible a practice April Fools is in which it is considered dec- orous to tell a lie.Such are the Christian values, and such are the teachings of the Gospel! It appears that the Christians really love falsehood a great deal.Accordingly, their practical condition bears witness to it.For example, while there is only one Qur’an in the hands of all Muslims, the number of Gospels is said to be somewhat in excess of sixty.Bravo, Christian clergy! This is what is called attaining proficiency in falsehood.Perhaps you have heard the saying of one of your holy elders that lying is not only permissible, it is worthy of divine reward.With respect to justice, which cannot be achieved without strict adherence to the path of truthfulness, God Almighty says:

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 108 1 اَل ْمُكَّنَمِرْجَي ُنٰاَنَش ٍمْوَق ىٰۤلَع اَّلَا اْوُلِدْعَت١ؕ اْوُلِدْعِا١۫ َوُه ُبَرْقَا ىٰوْقَّتلِل Meaning: ‘Let not a people’s enmity incite you to act otherwise than with justice.Be always just, in this alone is righteousness.’ Now, you do know how hard it is to be equitable in dealing with such nations who torture you unjustifiably and cause injury to you, and cause bloodshed, and pursue you, and kill women and children—as the Makkan infidels had done—and then do not cease their warmongering! But the Quranic teaching did not usurp the rights even of such mortal enemies, and admonished in favour of justice and equity.But you are fallen in the pit of preju- dice, how could you understand such holy teachings? The Gospel does say ‘love your enemy’, but they do not say that the hostility and cruelty of the nations who are hostile to you should not deter you from justice and truthfulness.I state it quite truthfully that it is easy to treat an enemy cordially, but it is quite difficult and, befitting only of the gallant, to safeguard the rights of enemies and not to forsake justice and equity in litiga- tions.Most people love their rival kinsmen, and treat them with sweet words, but usurp their rights.A brother loves his brother, but under the guise of that love, he defrauds him and deprives him of his rights.For example, if he happens to be a landowner, he slyly gets his brother’s name not recorded in the title deed, while show- ing such affection as though he is eager to sacrifice his life for him.Thus, in this verse, God Almighty did not mention love, but mentioned the touchstone of love, for one who renders justice unto his mortal enemy and does not compromise truthfulness 1.S u rah al-M a’ idah, 5:9 [Publisher]

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 109 and equity, is really the one who holds sincere love as well.Your ‘God’, however, was not mindful of this teaching that he should have stressed justice even for tyrannical enemies, as emphatically as the Holy Qur’an did.He did not emphasize the need to extend an equitable deal to the enemy and to hold truthfulness as invi- olable as assiduously as the Qur’an did, and he did not teach the subtle paths of righteousness.It is regrettable that what he taught, was the teaching of deceit and he could not help establish [his followers] on the straight path of righteousness.I say this with reference to your imaginary Jesus Christ , a few of whose disarrayed pages is all you have in your possession; and who got crucified in the end while contin- uing to proclaim his godhead, and who tearfully supplicated all night long to be saved somehow but was not.Our lord and master, the Prophet of the Last Age, may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, prayed on his own accord that he be taken from this world, saying 1 ی ٰ َعْل ْأ ْق ِ ال ی فِ َّ أَلْحِقْنِي ْ بِالر [i.e.I do not wish to live here, I wish to go to my God].Your ‘God’, on the other hand, loved this transient mortal world so much that he spent the entire night praying that he may be permitted to go on living.In fact, even on the cross , words of assent and acceptance [of the will of God] did not come out of his mouth.The only words that escaped his lips were Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? 2 ‘My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?’ and God did not reply to him at all, that He had forsaken him.1.Sunan Ibn-e-M a jah, Kit a bul-Jan a’ iz, B a bu m a j a’ fi Dhikre Mara d i r as u lill a h, Hadith 1619.[Publisher] 2.See Matthew 27:46 and Mark 15:34.[Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 110 But it is quite obvious that he made a claim to being God and showed arrogance, so he was forsaken.The Holy Prophet, may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, was given the choice at the end that if he wished he could live in this world, and if he wished, he could come to Him.The Holy Prophet s as submitted: ‘O my God! I now desire that I should come to You.’ And the last words that he uttered while his blessed soul departed were فِیْق ِ الَْعْلٰی َّ بِالر فِیْق ِ الَْعْلٰی َّ بِالر.Meaning that, ‘I do not wish to live here now; I wish to go to my God.’ Now, compare these two statements.Your ‘God’ not only spent the entire night praying for mortal life but even on the cross he cried and cried out loud to be saved from death, but who was listening to him? On the other hand, our Master, the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, did not pray for mortal life at all.God Himself gave him the author- ity that if he desired this life, the same would be done.But he said that he did not wish to live in this world anymore.Is this the ‘God’ you depend on? You ought to die of shame!!! And your contention that the Qur’an commands people to hide their faith is merely a false accusation and calumny that has no basis in reality.The Qur’an , in fact, curses 1 ٭ those who wilfully hide the testimony of faith, and it curses those who lie.Perhaps, on account of your ignorance, you have misconstrued this verse of the Holy Qur’an which is in S u rah an-Na h l: 1.٭ Note: َ الْكٰذِبِيْن لَعْنَةُ اللّٰہِ عَلَی [The curse of Allah be upon the liars] Tell me whether this verse is found in the Holy Qur’an or in the Gospel.—Author

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 111 1 اَّلِا ْنَم َهِرْكُا َو ٗهُبْلَق َو ٌّۢنِٕىَمْطُم ِناَمْيِاْلاِب Meaning: ‘Whoever disbelieves in Allah shall have a severe pun- ishment; save him who is coerced thereto—that is, he is prevented from performing the tenets of faith due to some tyranny that is beyond the limit of his tolerance—while his heart finds peace in his faith, such a person is excusable in the estimation of God.’ The purport of this verse is that if a tyrant inflicts some very painful and unbearable wounds on a Muslim, and in this agony, he utters some words that are tantamount to disbelief in the eye of the disbeliever, while the Muslim did not intend to utter words of disbelief—rather his heart brims with faith and his only inten- tion is to conceal his faith due to the unbearable torture—and it is not wilfully but unwittingly when he is out of his senses and is almost delirious due to the unbearable torture to which he has been subjected; then, in this state, upon seeking forgiveness, God shall forgive him with the stipulations recorded in the following verse, because God is Most Forgiving and Merciful: َّمُث َّنِا َكَّبَر َنْيِذَّلِل اْوُرَجاَه ْۢنِم ِدْعَب اَم اْوُنِتُف َّمُث اْوُدَهٰج َو اْۤوُرَبَص١ۙ َّنِا َكَّبَر ْۢنِم اَهِدْعَب ٌرْوُفَغَل 2 ٌمْيِحَّر ۰۰ Meaning: ‘Those who hide their Islam during unbearable torture, their sin shall be forgiven on the condition that they migrate after having suffered this torture—that is, they should move away from such an environment or such a country wherein faith is being 1.S u rah an-Na h l, 16:107 [Publisher] 2.S u rah an-Na h l, 16:111 [Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 112 coerced—and then they strive very hard in the cause of God and show perseverance in the face of hardships; then God shall forgive their sin, for He is the Most Forgiving, Ever Merciful.’ Now, it becomes clear from all these verses that even a per- son who hides the declaration of the faith of Islam in the face of unbearable torture at the hands of the enemy is still a sinner in the eyes of the Almighty God.However, after performing honourable deeds, and after leaving such an environment or country wherein coercion is used, and after showing perseverance and steadfast- ness, his sin shall be forgiven, and God shall not let him go to waste, for He is Most Gracious, Ever Merciful.In short, God does not speak of this concealment [of one’s faith] as something praiseworthy; rather, He has designated it a sin and has described the means to atone for it in the above verse.And, as I have already written, God praised believers at many places who do not conceal the testimony of faith even if they lose their lives for it.On the other hand, He also does not desire to cast aside a person who, due to the limitation of his capacity and unbearable torture, conceals the testimony of his faith while being tortured.Rather, He accepts such an individual on the condition that in the future he parts from such an environment and such a country where he is coerced, and seeks to win the pleasure of his Lord through sincerity, steadfastness, and spiritual striving.Then the sin of concealing one’s faith shall be forgiven, for the God who created mere mortals is most Benevolent and Merciful and does not cast anyone away from Himself for minor shortcomings.This, indeed, is the Quranic teaching which perfectly corre- sponds to the Divine attributes of Graciousness and Forgiveness.

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 113 However, it seems from your own admission that such is not the teaching of the Gospel, and the verdict according to the Gospel is that if a Christian does not give testimony of the Christian reli- gion with his tongue in the face of overwhelming torture, then he will forever become accursed, and the Gospel shall no longer accommodate him among its community, and there is no restitu- tion for him.Bravo! Bravo! Today you have set the seal with your own hand that the Gospel you hold in your hand is a false Gospel.Be that as it may, you still won’t be spared my strike, for you should either refute what I am going to write below, or else—should you have any semblance of dignity— renounce the Christian Religion.The objection is that if, according to you, that teaching can- not be from God which promises forgiveness, and does not deny the mercy of God to a person who has hidden his faith—albeit upon the condition that he should repent, do good deeds, and show steadfastness and perseverance—then how far from truth must the teaching of the Gospel be which accepted Peter despite his most abominable misconduct, making a false statement, vehe- ment denial, taking a false oath, cursing the Messiah, and conceal- ing his faith? 1 ٭ Your objection was merely that the Qur’an did not turn away even such people from Islam who verbally reject Islam under some duress, whereas the Gospel has crossed all limits in this regard by taking back into its fold a person who not only con- cealed his faith, but clearly renounced it, and falsely swore that he 1.٭ l et alone the concealing of testimony or keeping it secret, the c hristians even take back the apostates of the Gospel upon reaffirma- tion of their faith.—Author

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 114 was telling the truth.Indeed, he even cursed Jesus! If you say that the teachings of the Gospel did not accept him and that he is still accursed and excommunicated from the faith, then you should publicly announce this doctrine.Tell me now, have you not been punished to some extent for criticizing the Holy Qur’an? You have written in your letter that it is one thing to give a response, but quite another to give a logical response.So tell me whether or not these replies are logical, and whether or not the time has come for me to say َ ْن ی ِ الْكٰذِب ی َ لَعْنَۃ ُ الل ِّٰ عَل [‘The curse of Allah be upon the liars’]? You have also written in your letter that Muhammadans do give a reply but they do not meet the standards of logic.Now that all of my answers are before you, please show them to a few arbi- ters and ask them whether or not they meet the standards of logic.Do you hope to be able to give some reply to the objections that I have raised against the Gospel? It’s absolutely impossible! The day will never dawn upon you when you can discharge your duty of refuting these objections.Then, one false notion of yours is that a comprehensive description of sin is found only in the Gospel.However, should you ponder, you will realize that the Gospel could not describe the paths of righteousness comprehensively, nor did the Gospel make any such claim.The Holy Qur’an, on the other hand, has claimed it to be the very purpose of its revelation—to teach the paths of righteousness, as Allah the Exalted says: 1 َكِلٰذ ُبٰتِكْلا اَل َبْيَر١ۛۖۚ ِهْيِف١ۛۚ ىًدُه َنْيِقَّتُمْلِّل۠ ۰۰ 1.S u rah al-Baqarah, 2:3 [Publisher]

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 115 Meaning that: ‘This book has been revealed so that the ones who eschew sin, should be informed of the subtlest of sins so that they can eschew even the evil acts that are not visible to everyone.Rather, they can only be seen through the microscope of ma‘rifat [true cognition], and the obtuse eye fails to see them.’ For example, Matthew records the saying of your Yas u ‘ [ Jesus] that, ‘But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.’ However, the Holy Qur’an teaches never to cast a glance upon the face of other women—neither with lust nor without lust—and not to hear their conversations, and not to listen to their voices, and not to give ear to the tales of their beauty; for, eschewing all these situations will protect one from stumbling, as Allah the Exalted, says: 1 ْلُق َنْيِنِمْؤُمْلِّل اْوُّضُغَي ْنِم ْمِهِراَصْبَا َو اْوُظَفْحَي ْمُهَجْوُرُف١ؕ َكِلٰذ ىٰكْزَا ْمُهَل Meaning that: ‘Say to the believers that they should restrain their eyes from watching those who are n a me h ram 2 and guard their ears and their private parts.’ That is to say, they should keep even their ears from listening to their tender voices and the tales of their beauty, for all these things could cause them to stumble.Now, if the poison of dishonesty is not present in your heart, compare this teaching with the teaching of Yas u ‘ and also con- sider the outcomes.By granting the permission of general freedom 1.S u rah an-N u r, 24:31 [Publisher] 2.N a Me h ram is a man or woman with whom marriage is permissible.[Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 116 and by ignoring all the necessary safeguards, the teaching of Yas u ‘ has ruined the whole of Europe, so much so that promiscuity and debauchery spread among them all like among the swine and dogs.Shamelessness amassed to such an extent that words like, ‘O my love! Give me a kiss’, are now written on candies and other Western treats.Who bears the weight of all this sin? Indubitably, it is upon the shoulders of that Yas u ‘ who imparted the teaching that a young man or woman may cast a glance at each other, but should not intend to commit adultery.O ignorant one! Is intent to commit adultery within one’s control? A man who continues to freely gaze upon unrelated women, will eventually look upon them one day with an evil intent, because carnal passions are innate within every human being, and experience tells us in loud voice—rather, screams at us—that gazing upon unrelated women never leads to anything good.What is the reason that the European continent is brimming with adultery? It is exactly that gazing at unrelated women with- out any compunction became a norm.At first, adultery of the eye occurred, then it became an ordinary thing to also embrace them.Then, advancing from that, kissing became a habit to the point that in Europe now, teachers take grown-up girls to their homes and kiss them with abandon and no one stops them.Obscene and immoral phrases are written on sweets, and pornography is por- trayed in pictures.Women themselves advertise how pretty they are and how their nose looks and how their eyes look, and novels are written about their lovers.There is such a torrent of promiscu- ity that one cannot protect one’s ears, or eyes, or hands, or mouth.

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 117 This is the teaching of Yas u ‘ [Christ]! If only such a per- son had never entered the world, so that these adulterous deeds would have never occurred! This person murdered chastity and piety, and spread heresy and licentiousness throughout the entire land.There is no worship, no spiritual discipline except for eating and drinking and gazing sinfully, and there is no concern of any kind at all.And to make matters even worse, he made people more daring in sin by giving them the hope of spurious atonement.Who among the sensible can believe that if X were given a purgative, it would cause toxins of Y to be purged? Evil is truly removed only when virtue takes its place.This is indeed the Quranic teaching.How can one person’s suicide benefit another? How ignorant and contrary to eternal law is this notion that was advanced by your revered Christ! Did his eating bread serve to fill the bellies of his disciples? How then could his suicide be of benefit to others? The entire corpus of the teaching of the Gospel is so uncouth and flawed that each and every word is profoundly objectionable and its author has absolutely no idea of what is called taqw a [right- eousness] and what the subtle levels of sin are.The poor soul only babbles like a child.Unfortunately, I do not have the time at the moment to expose all these teachings of Christ but, God willing, I will do so on some other occasion and prove how this person is totally ignorant of the path of piety and that his teachings cannot irrigate any branch of the human tree.He has absolutely no idea of what the faculties are with which man has been sent into this temporary abode.He has no knowledge that it is not the purpose of God that all these abili- ties be wasted; rather, His purpose is for them to be nurtured in a

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 118 balanced way.In short, to present such a flawed teaching, in jux- taposition to the Holy Qur’an, is extreme bigotry, blindness, and shamelessness.Your statement that the Holy Prophet s as has taught that recit- ing the words 1 ّٰ سُوْل ُ الل َّ د ٌ ر َّ الل ُّٰ مُحَم َّ ل َٓ اِلٰہ َ اِل dispels all sins, is absolutely true.This indeed is the truth that whosoever considers only God to be One without partner, and believes that Muhammad, the Chosen One, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, has been sent by the same Omnipotent and Unique God, then— without any doubt—if such a person meets his end upholding this belief, he will surely attain salvation.There is absolutely no salvation under the heavens through the suicide of someone else.Certainly not! And who could be more insane than one who even entertains such a thought? However, to hold the belief that God is One and has no partner, and that He is so Compassionate that—showing great mercy—He sent His Messenger, whose name is Muhammad, the Chosen One, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, to deliver the world from its error is such a doctrine that believing in it dispels the darkness of the soul, egotism is eliminated, and Tau hi d [Oneness of God] takes its place.And, ultimately, the passion of Tau hi d so engulfs the heart that the life in Paradise begins in this very world.Just as you see that darkness cannot survive when light arrives, in the same way, when the luminosity of 2 ُّٰ الل َّ ل َٓ اِلٰہ َ اِل falls 1.There is no one worthy of worship except Allah; Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.[Publisher] 2.There is no one worthy of worship except Allah.[Publisher]

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 119 upon a person’s heart, all the passions of the darkness of the ego become, as if, extinct.The reality of sin is none other than that there should be a cacophony of egoistic passions admixed with rebellion, and a person is labelled a sinner when he is in the state of subservience to them.And the meanings of ُّٰ الل َّ ل َٓ اِلٰہ َ اِل that we understand from the usage of Arabic lexicons are ُّٰ الل َّ ل َ مَطْلُوْب َ لِی ْ و َ ل َ مَحْبُوب َ لِی ْ و َ ل َ مَعْبُوْد َ لِی ْ و َ ل َ مُطَاع َ لِی ْ اِل Meaning that, with the exception of God, there is none whom I desire, or whom I love, or whom I worship, or whom I obey.Now, it is clear that these meanings are completely at odds with the essence of sin and the real source of sin.Therefore, the per- son who allows these meanings to occupy his soul with heartfelt sincerity, the meaning counter to it [i.e.submitting to false idols] will, of a necessity, leave his heart, because two opposites cannot coexist at one place.Thus, when egoistic passions get purged, then this is precisely the state that is called true piety and real righteousness.And the need to believe in the one sent by God—which is the purport of the second part of this declaration of faith—is that faith in God’s word should also be attained.This is because it is necessary for anyone who declares that he wishes to become obedient to God, that he should also believe in His commandments.And it is not possible to believe in His commandments without believing in the person through whom the commandments came into the world.This is the true purport of this declaration of faith.Even your Yas u ‘ [ Jesus] has pointed to this and has declared the basis of salvation to be the belief in God and in the Yas u ‘ whom He had sent.But, since you people are blind, even what

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 120 is written in the Gospel is not visible to you due to the frenzy of bigotry.As for your asking how sins can be washed away by perform- ing the wu du [ablution]—O ignorant one!—why don’t you pon- der over the divine scriptures? Have you turned into a beast after having been a human being? Ablution is merely the washing of hands, feet, and face, and had this been the only purport of the Shariah that washing of hands and feet washes away sins, then this Holy Shariah would have considered all the unholy people who are refractory to Islam to be free of sin upon washing their hands and feet because sins are removed by ablution.This, however, is not the purport of the Lawgiver [the Holy Prophet], peace be upon him.What he means is that even the small commandments of God are not futile and carrying them out also washes away sins.If I were to give a counter-accusatory answer at this time, I could write much to put the critic to shame.However, the time is short and there are still some questions left.Just write something in response to what I have written here, then you will be given a fine prize from your own books.Rest assured! Also, why have you become so averse to falsehood? Have you forgotten the falsehood of the Gospel? Is it true that Christ could not find a place to rest his head? Is it a fact that if all of the works of Jesus were written down, those books could not fit in the world? Now, tell me, does the Gospel not excel in falsehood, or is there still something wanting? Take note that sin has not been treated lightly in the Holy Qur’an, for it says again and again that one cannot have salvation unless he cultivates genuine abhorrence of sin.The Gospel, on the other hand, does not teach genuine

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 121 abhorrence [of sin].The Gospel does not emphasize at all that sin is a lethal poison and one should create some antidote within oneself as expiation for it.Instead, this interpolated Gospel has accepted the suicide of Jesus Christ to be an adequate substitute for virtuous deeds.How absurd and mistaken a notion this is that no attention is paid to attaining true righteousness! On the contrary, the Gospel actually teaches to become a Christian and do whatever you please, for [the Christian doctrine of ] the Atonement is not a defective method such that any vir- tuous deeds may be needed.Now just think, can there be a more effective means than this to spread evil? The Holy Qur’an, on the other hand, says that you shall not enter that Holy Abode until you have purified yourself, while the Gospel says to commit every evil, for the suicide of Jesus is sufficient for you.Now, pray tell which of these takes sin lightly, the Qur’an or the Gospel? The God of the Qur’an does not proclaim anyone to be right- eous until righteousness takes the place of sinfulness, whereas the Gospel has created total chaos.It has slighted and belittled all the commandments related to righteousness and piety through the Doctrine of Atonement.And now the Christians have no need for them.What a pity, what a pity! How sad, how sad! Your second question is that the teaching regarding Paradise is purely sensual in nature which cannot satisfy a godly person.The Reply: Let it be clear that it is exceedingly self-evident, acceptable to reason, and consistent with the norms of justice that just as at the time of committing crimes or earning goodness or performing righteous deeds in the world, man does not do any- thing with his soul alone but does so both with his soul and his body; in the same way, the reward or punishment should also

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 122 affect both of them, that is, both the body and the soul should have, each corresponding to its own condition, their share of the recompense in the Hereafter.But strange indeed is the case of the Christians for they accept this principle as it is applied to punish- ment.They concede that the punishment of those who incurred the displeasure of God through ignominious deeds and faithless actions would not be confined only to the soul.Rather, both the soul and the body shall be cast into Hell, and the bodies shall be scorched with the flames of sulphur and there will be much wail- ing and gnashing of teeth, they shall burn with thirst but will not be given any water.And when Christian gentlemen are asked why the bodies shall burn in fire, they reply that both the soul and the body worked like labourers in this world.Hence, when they both acted dishonestly in their Master’s work jointly, they both became deserving of punishment.So, O ye who are blind and derelict in pondering over divine scriptures! I indict you by your own statement that when God, whose mercy prevails over His wrath, did not spare the body at the time of punishment, was it not necessary that He should have remembered this principle at the time of dispensing the reward? Is it really becoming for us to entertain this suspicion against the Merciful God that though at the time of punishing He will be so wrathful as to cast even our bodies into the inferno, but that when it comes time to dispensing reward His mercy will not be of the same degree as His wrath will be at the time of dispensing punishment? Had He set aside the body from punishment, then He could very well set it aside from the reward too.But when He cast the body into the blazing fire, considering the body to be the

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 123 accomplice in sin, then—O ye who are blind and short-sighted!— would He also not reward the body for its share in faith and virtu- ous deeds? When the dead shall be brought back to life, shall the dwellers of Paradise be given bodies frivolously? It is also self-evident that when the body, with all its facul- ties, shall be joined with the soul, then those bodily faculties will either be in bliss or in torment, because it is not possible that both these conditions [of bliss or torment] should be done away with.Thus, it has to be accepted that just as the body will suffer tor- ment in case of punishment, so shall it necessarily partake of a kind of bliss in case of reward.And it is this bliss that is detailed in the Noble Qur’an.But yes, God Almighty also says that the bounties of Paradise are beyond comprehension and you have not been granted their true knowledge.And you shall be blessed with bounties that are as yet veiled from you, that no one in the world has seen, nor heard of, nor has any idea of them passed through the heart of anyone.All of these veiled phenomena shall only be understood with all their mysteries, when they come to pass.All the promises contained in the Qur’an and the a ha d i th are in the form of similes and are accompanied with the state- ment that these matters are hidden and are not known to anyone.So, had those pleasures been only like the pleasure of drinking a sweet elixir or wine, or the pleasure of consorting with a woman in this world, then God Almighty would not have said that these are things that no eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has ever conceived.Therefore, we Muslims believe that Paradise, which is the place of reward for both the body and the soul, is not an imperfect and incomplete place of reward.Rather, both the body and the soul shall receive their reward in it according to

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 124 their condition, just as both will receive their punishment in Hell, each according to its condition.We consign the factual details of these to God, and we hold the belief that the reward and punish- ment shall be both in physical and spiritual ways.This indeed is the doctrine that is in accord with reason and justice.It is mischievous, wicked, and villainous in the extreme to allege that the Qur’an only promises a physical Paradise.The Qur’an clearly says that whosoever enters Paradise shall receive both kinds of reward, physical and spiritual; and just as one shall receive physical bounty, so shall he receive the pleasure of behold- ing the Divine, and this is the highest pleasure in Paradise.There shall be the pleasure of ma‘ a rif [divine insights] too, and the pleas- ure of anw a r [lights] of all kinds and the pleasure of worship too, but, along with it, the body shall also reach the zenith of its bliss.I can say with full conviction that the Gospel does not describe the details of the spiritual rewards for the dwellers of Paradise to the extent as the Qur’an has done.Anyone who doubts this should come and compete with me and hear them from me and let me hear the teachings of the Gospel from him.And if he prevails and proves that the spiritual reward of the dwellers of Paradise are described in the Gospel better than they are in the Qur’an, then I declare on oath that he shall forthwith be given one thou- sand rupees in cash.He can have the amount secured wherever he wishes after submitting an affidavit.O blind ones! The Gospel is nothing in comparison to the Qur’an.Why do you bring ignominy upon yourselves? Stay at home and relax.Now the time for your humiliation has arrived.Does anyone of you have the courage to come and debate with me calmly and like a gentleman on whether the

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 125 Gospel contains a more detailed description of the spiritual rewards of Paradise or the Qur’an? And if there are more details in the Gospel, then such a person can take a thousand rupees in cash from me, and deposit it anywhere he wants.I do not expect anyone will come to face me.By God! How cruel and deceitful this nation is who has become oblivious to the Hereafter for the sake of the life of this world! Just let them drink from the cup of death and then they shall see where Yas u [ Jesus Christ] and his atonement stand.Alas! These people have made a mere mortal—the son of a hum- ble woman—into God, and condoned all things unworthy as being applicable to the Holy Lord.There came into the world only one who brought the true and perfect Oneness [of God], but they showed hostility to him.And it is also totally false to say that the Gospel does not allude to physical reward at all.See how elaborately the Gospel of Matthew records the statement of Yas u regarding physical reward and it is verse 29: ‘And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name’s sake, shall receive an hundredfold and shall inherit everlasting life.’ [Matthew] Chapter 19, verse 29.This is such a clear commandment, and it even gives the tid- ing that if a Christian woman leaves her husband for the sake of Yas u [ Jesus Christ], she shall be given a hundred husbands on the Day of Resurrection.Had it been contrary to Divine majesty to promise physical rewards, then such rewards would not have been promised at all in Exodus 3:8, Deuteronomy 6:3, 7:13 and 8:17, Judges 9:12, Deuteronomy 32:14, Deuteronomy 16:20, Leviticus 26:3, Leviticus Chapter 25, Job 20:15.

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 126 Didn’t Yas u ‘ say that he would drink pressed grapes in Paradise? Strange is this Yas u ‘ who wishes to enter the Paradise of Muslims which contains physical bounties too.Stranger still is the fact that he fell only upon the physical bounties and did not mention anything about beholding God.Try to recall the inci- dent of Lazarus being asked for water.If Paradise is not supposed to have any water, then the mention of water in its context is like the proverb, ‘A liar has no memory.’ It is true that the dwellers of Paradise will become like the angels, but where has it been proven that they, by changing their attributes, will become angels in actu- ality 1 ٭ and will discard their human attributes? Of course it is true that marriages are not solemnized in Paradise as in this world, but there indeed will be bodily pleasures in the heavenly context, as even Yas u ‘ did not deny.He passed away hoping to drink pressed grapes.It is evident from the Torah that it is God’s way to bestow physical rewards too.How then is it possible for the Immutable God to change His ways on the Day of Resurrection? The third objection of yours is that Islam teaches that until someone commits a sin, he shall not be held accountable, and God shall not chastise anyone merely based on his thoughts, whereas the Gospel teaches to the contrary; that is, even the desires of the heart shall be punished.The Reply: Let it be clear that if such is indeed written in the Gospel, then such Gospel can never be from God.The truth is indeed that which Allah the Exalted has stated in the Noble Qur’an, that the thoughts of the human heart that 1.٭ It is one thing to become angels in actuality, and it is quite another to acquire resemblance to them in terms of purity.—Author

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 127 keep arising spontaneously do not render him a sinner.Rather, there are only three ways one becomes a sinner in the eyes of God: 1.First, that his tongue utters unholy words that are against faith, truth, and justice.2.Second, that his limbs—that is, his physical body parts— carry out acts of disobedience.3.Third, that his heart resolves to be disobedient; that is, he makes a firm resolve that he would surely commit a certain foul act.It is in reference to exactly this that Allah the Exalted says: 1 َو ْنِكٰل ْمُكُذِخاَؤُّي اَمِب ْتَبَسَك ْمُكُبْوُلُق Meaning that the sins which the heart acquires by its resolve, shall be brought to account, but mere thoughts shall not be brought to account, for they are not under the control of human nature.The Merciful God does not hold us to account for thoughts that are beyond our control, but only apprehends us when we follow those thoughts with our tongues or hands, or the commit- ment of our hearts.Indeed, we are sometimes rewarded for such thoughts.And God Almighty has not merely mentioned the sins of hands and feet in the Noble Qur’an, He has mentioned the sins of the ears, the eyes, and the heart too, as He states in His Holy Scripture: 1.S u rah al-Baqarah, 2:226 [Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 128 1 َّنِا َعْمَّسلا َو َرَصَبْلا َو َداَؤُفْلا ُّلُك َكِٕىٰٓلوُا َناَك ُهْنَع اًلْؤُـْسَم ۰۰ Meaning that the ear, the eye, and the heart—all these shall be called to account.Now, consider that just as God Almighty has mentioned the sins of the ears and eyes, so does He speak of the sins of the heart.The sins of the heart, however, are not just the thoughts and insti- gations, for these are not under the control of the heart.Rather, the sin of the heart is in making a firm resolve [to commit a sin].2 ٭ Only those thoughts that are beyond a person’s control are not counted as sin.They will, however, be counted as sins when one becomes firm on them and resolves to commit them.At another occasion, Allah, the Lord of Glory, similarly speaks of secret sins and says: 3 ْلُق اَمَّنِا َمَّرَح َيِّبَر َشِحاَوَفْلا اَم َرَهَظ اَهْنِم َو اَم َنَطَب Meaning that, God has forbidden both the open and secret foul deeds.I now say this by way of a challenge that this excellent teach- ing is also absent from the Gospels —that it should have made mention of the sins pertaining to all the organs and that it should have drawn the distinction between the resolve [to commit sin] 1.S u rah Ban i Isr a’i l , 17:37 [Publisher] 2.٭ Note: We receive Divine reward when we counter our inner thoughts, which incite us towards evil, with good deeds and act contrary to their beckoning.—Author 3.S u rah al-A‘r a f, 7:34 [Publisher]

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 129 and the risk [of committing sin].It was not even possible for the Gospel to have this teaching, for this teaching is based on refined and wise principles, whereas the Gospel is a compilation of crude ideas that every just critic is now becoming averse to.Yes, your revered Yas u ‘ did, however, come up with a good excuse to cover up his shortcomings by saying, between the lines, that his teaching was not that great, and that it would be derided in the future, so they had better wait for the coming of the one whose teaching would meet all standards of wisdom.Bravo to you, O Christian priests! What a way to act upon this enduring advice! You continue to hang on to the same teaching which even your own revered Yas u ‘ admits to be objectionable, and gives the glad tiding of the coming of a Holy Prophet in the future.Tell me—does the admission of your Jesus not prove that his teaching is deficient or does it leave some doubt? Whereas Yas u ‘ [Jesus] himself admits that his teaching is incomplete and imperfect, now you ought to heed the excel- lences of Islamic teachings outlined by me, keeping the proph- ecy of your master in mind—the prophecy of Yas u ‘ is tantamount to falsehood unless such a Prophet is raised in the world whose teaching is superior and more comprehensive than the teaching of the Gospel.Do not prove your Yas u ‘ to be a liar.That Holy Prophet has indeed come but you have failed to recognize him.Ponder over my writings so that you may under- stand that the perfect teaching which the Messiah was waiting for is the Qur’an.Moreover, even if this prophecy did not exist, the flawed nature of the Gospel and the perfection of the Qur’an did itself serve as a Divine verdict.Therefore, fear the fire of Hell

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 130 and accept the Prophet who was to come concerning whom the Messiah gave the glad tiding, and whose perfect teachings he praised.Yet, there is in this no favour done by your Yas u ‘ [ Jesus], since the mighty one has itself felled the weak.Now it is only the lack of understanding; otherwise, there is no room now for the Gospel to get a foothold.(4) The fourth objection is that there is no commandment anywhere in the Islamic teachings to love people of other reli- gions; rather, the commandment is to love no one but a Muslim.The Reply: It should be clear that it is all on account of the evil effects of the flawed and incomplete Gospel that the Christians have deviated far from truth and reality.Otherwise, if we ponder deeply as to what is love and what are the occasions when it should be exercised, and what is hatred and what are the occasions when it should be utilized, then not only do we get an understanding of the true philosophy of the Noble Qur’an, but our soul attains the perfect light of true insights thereby.It should be understood that love is not something you do with artificiality and pretension; rather, it is one of the human strengths.The essence of love is that the heart is drawn towards something out of admiration for it.And just as the true features of anything are fully appreciated at its climax, so is it true of love that its true wonders become clearly apparent when it reaches its zenith and perfection.Allah the Exalted says: 1 اْوُبِرْشُا ْيِف ُمِهِبْوُلُق َلْجِعْلا 1.S u rah al-Baqarah, 2:94 [Publisher]

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 131 Meaning that, they loved the calf so much that it seemed as if they were made to drink the calf like an elixir.The fact is that when someone is in the utmost love with another, it is as if he has imbibed or assimilated the beloved and thereby he takes on the qualities and character of the beloved.The greater the love, the greater is the natural attraction to the qualities of the beloved, so much so that he becomes the mirror image of his beloved.This is the explanation why the one who loves God, obtains, to the best of his potential, the Light innate in the Being of God.And those who love Satan, obtain the darkness that is innate in Satan.This being the essence of love, how can a true scripture that is from God permit that you may love Satan with the same love that you ought to have for God, and to love the disciples of Satan with the same love that you ought to have for the disciples of Ra h m a n [the Gracious]! Sadly, while at first we had only one argument to prove the falsehood of the Gospel — namely, that it bestows Divinity upon a humble handful of dust— now, these other arguments have arisen too; that is, the other teachings of the Gospel are also repugnant.Can it be a holy teaching that one should love Satan in the same way as one loves God? And if an excuse is offered that these words were mistakenly uttered by Yas u ‘ [ Jesus] as he was igno- rant of theology , such an excuse would be useless and absurd, for if he was indeed ignorant to such a degree then why did he claim to be the reformer for his people? Was he a child that he did not even know that love necessarily requires one to cherish all the features and attributes and adorations of his beloved, and that one should, with all his heart and soul, strive to become lost

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 132 in his beloved so that he may acquire, through his beloved, the life that the beloved has? A true lover loses himself in his beloved.He emerges from within the garment of his beloved and he draws such a picture of the beloved in his own being as if he has soaked his beloved up.It is said that by becoming an image of the beloved and by taking on the hues of the beloved, and by becoming one with his beloved, he has shown to the people that, indeed, he has lost himself in the love of his beloved.Ma h abbat is an Arabic word and its original meaning is ‘to get filled up’.Accordingly, ُ ب َ الۡحِمَار َّ تَحَب [ ta h abbabal- h im a ru ] is a well-known idiom among the Arabs.That is, when Arabs wish to say that the belly of the donkey is filled up with water, they say ُ ب َ الۡحِمَار َّ تَحَب [ ta h abbabal- h im a ru ], and when they wish to say that the camel drank so much water that he was completely filled with water, they say ْ بَت َّ شَرِبَت ِ ا لِْبِل ُحَتّٰی تَحَب [ sharibatil-Ibilu h atta ta h abbabat ] And the word h abb, which is used for seed , is also derived from this very root, because it is filled with the attributes of the earlier seed.On the same basis, ihb a b means ‘sleep’, because one who is filled up with something will for- get himself and go to sleep, as it were, and he will have no sense left of his own self.This being the reality of love , when the Gospel teaches that you should love Satan and the satanic horde too, the purport would be none other than that you join them in their sins.What a teaching! How can such a teaching be from God? It wishes to make a Satan out of man! May God save everyone from this teaching of the Gospel! If it is asked that when it is forbidden to love Satan and those of satanic character, how then should we treat them? The reply

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 133 to it is that the holy word of God, the Holy Qur’an, instructs us to be extremely compassionate towards them, in the same way as a kind-hearted person shows compassion towards the leper, the blind, the handicapped, etc., all those who are suffering.The difference between compassion and love is that in love a person beholds all the words and actions of the beloved as admirable and desires that all those qualities should develop in his own person as well.A compassionate person, on the other hand, beholds the condition of the person he feels compassion for as a source of fear and warning, and is worried lest the latter should die in that pitiable state.It is the sign of a truly compassionate person that he does not always treat the pitiable person with gentleness, but takes appropriate action concerning him as dictated by the need of the time and circumstance—at times being gentle and at times being strict.At times he gives him an elixir to drink, and at others he deems, like an experienced surgeon, amputation of his hand or foot necessary to save his life.Sometimes he gives an incision, and sometimes he applies some balm.If you were to observe the work- ing of an experienced and competent doctor on a given day in a major hospital where hundreds of patients come with all kinds of ailments, I hope you will understand the meaning of being com- passionate.Thus, the teachings of the Qur’an give us exactly the same lesson, that you should love the pious and the righteous, and be compassionate towards sinners and non-believers.Allah, the Exalted, says:

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 134 1 ٌزْيِزَع ِهْيَلَع اَم ْمُّتِنَع ٌصْيِرَح ْمُكْيَلَع Meaning that: ‘O disbelievers! This Prophet is so compassionate that he cannot bear to see your pain, and is ardently desirous that you be saved from these afflictions.’ Then He says: 2 َكَّلَعَل ٌعِخاَب َكَسْفَّن اَّلَا اْوُنْوُكَي َنْيِنِمْؤُم ۰۰ Meaning that, ‘Will you grieve yourself to death as to why these people do not believe?’ The purport is that, your compassion has reached such a level that you are near death in sorrow at their plight.Then, on another occasion, He says: 3 اْوَصاَوَت ِرْبَّصلاِب َو اْوَصاَوَت ِةَمَحْرَمْلاِب ۰۰ Meaning that, true believers are those who exhort one another to perseverance and mar h amat [compassion].This means that they say ‘be patient in face of difficulties’, and ‘be kind to God’s creatures.’ Here, too, mar h amat means ‘com- passion’ because the word mar h amat is used for ‘compassion’ in the Arabic language.Therefore, the true purport of the Quranic teaching is that love, the reality of which is to become coloured in the hues of the beloved, is permitted only when it is for God 1.S u rah at-Taubah, 9:128 [Publisher] 2.S u rah ash-Shu‘ar a’ , 26:4 [Publisher] 3.S u rah al-Balad, 90:18 [Publisher]

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 135 and for righteous people and is otherwise strictly forbidden, as God says: 1 َو َنْيِذَّلا اْۤوُنَمٰا ُّدَشَا اًّبُح ِهّٰلِّل Again He says: 2 اَهُّيَاٰۤي َنْيِذَّلا اْوُنَمٰا اَل اوُذِخَّتَت َدْوُهَيْلا َو ىٰۤرٰصَّنلا َءٓاَيِلْوَا And yet at another occasion He says: 3 اَهُّيَاٰۤي َنْيِذَّلا اْوُنَمٰا اَل اْوُذِخَّتَت ًةَناَطِب ْنِّم ْمُكِنْوُد Meaning that, do not love the Christians and the Jews, nor should you love anyone else who is not righteous.Reading these verses, ignorant Christians get the false impression that Muslims have been commanded not to love Christians and other non-be- lieving sects.However, they do not take into consideration that every word has its context.Love for sinners and disbelievers is only conceivable if one is to partake some of their disbelief and transgression.A person who teaches that you ought to love the enemies of your faith, has to be extremely ignorant.I have written again 1.But those who believe are stronger in their love for Allah ( S u rah al-Baqarah, 2:166).[Publisher] 2.O ye who believe! take not the Jews and the c hristians for friends ( S u rah al-M a’ idah, 5:52).[Publisher] 3.O ye who believe! take not others than your own people as intimate friends ( S u rah A l-e-‘Imr a n, 3:119).[Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 136 and again that love and affection means to behold the words and actions, and habits and morals and faith [of the beloved] with admiration and adoration, and allow them to cast its effect upon one’s heart—something a believer can never do vis-à-vis a disbe- liever.Of course, a believer will have compassion for a disbeliever, and will observe all the subtle demands of sympathy, and will commiserate with him in all physical and spiritual maladies, as Allah says time and again that you should show mercy to people without any regard for their caste or creed, feed the hungry, free the slaves, pay the debts of those who are indebted, share the bur- den of those who are burdened, and discharge your obligation of showing true mercy to humankind.God also says: 1 َّنِا َهّٰللا ُرُمْاَي ِلْدَعْلاِب َو ِناَسْحِاْلا َو ِئٓاَتْيِا يِذ ىٰبْرُقْلا Meaning that, God Almighty enjoins you to do justice, and, even more than justice, you should be doing good to others in the same way as a mother shows kindness to her child or a relative shows kindness to another simply due to the relationship.Again, He says: اَل ُمُكىٰهْنَي ُهّٰللا ِنَع َنْيِذَّلا ْمَل ْمُكْوُلِتاَقُي يِف ِنْيِّدلا َو ْمَل ْمُكْوُجِرْخُي ْنِّم ْمُكِراَيِد ْنَا ْمُهْوُّرَبَت َو 2 اْۤوُطِسْقُت ْمِهْيَلِا١ؕ َّنِا َهّٰللا ُّبِحُي َنْيِطِسْقُمْلا ۰۰ Meaning: ‘God’s admonition against loving the Christians and others should not be taken to mean that He forbids you from 1.S u rah an-Na h l, 16:91 [Publisher] 2.S u rah al-Mumta h inah, 60:9 [Publisher]

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 137 treating them with kindness and goodness and sympathy.No.Rather, be kind and good and just towards those who have not waged war against you to kill you and have not driven you out from your land, be they Christians or Jews.Be kind and good and just towards them by all means, and God loves those who do so.’ Then He says: اَمَّنِا ُمُكىٰهْنَي ُهّٰللا ِنَع َنْيِذَّلا ْمُكْوُلَتٰق يِف ِنْيِّدلا َو ْمُكْوُجَرْخَا ْنِّم ْمُكِراَيِد َو اْوُرَهٰظ ىٰۤلَع ْمُكِجاَرْخِا 1 ْنَا ْمُهْوَّلَوَت١ۚ َو ْنَم ْمُهَّلَوَتَّي َكِٕىٰٓلوُاَف ُمُه َنْوُمِلّٰظلا ۰۰ That is, where God has forbidden you from being kind and friendly, it is respecting only those who have fought against you on account of your religion, and have driven you out from your homelands, and did not cease until, working together, they drove you out.Therefore, friendship with them is forbidden as they wish to wipe out the Faith.A point worthy of note here is that tawalla 2 ٭ is used in Arabic to denote friendship , another word for which is mawaddat, and the true essence of friendship and mawaddat is goodwill and sympathy.Therefore, a believer can have friendship, sym- pathy, and goodwill for Christians, Jews, and Hindus, and treat them with benevolence, but he cannot love them.This is a subtle difference that should be remembered well.Then, you have objected that Muslim people do not even love 1.S u rah al-Mumta h inah, 60:10 [Publisher] 2.٭ Note: The letter ta [ ت ] in tawalla [ تولی ] denotes formality which indicates certain degree of otherness, whereas in ma h abbat there is no ‘otherness’ left whatsoever.—Author

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 138 God in the absence of a selfish motive and that they have not been taught that God is worthy of love by virtue of His noble attrib- utes.The Reply: Let it be clear that this objection, in fact, applies to the Gospel rather than the Qur’an, for the Gospel contains no teaching to the effect that one should have personal love for God and that He should be worshipped with personal love.The Qur’an, on the other hand, is replete with such teaching.The Qur’an has clearly stated: 2,1 ٭ اوُرُكْذاَف َهّٰللا ْمُكِرْكِذَك ْمُكَءٓاَبٰا ْوَا َّدَشَا اًرْكِذ 3 َو َنْيِذَّلا اْۤوُنَمٰا ُّدَشَا اًّبُح ِهّٰلِّل Meaning, remember God like you remember your fathers, even much more than that.It is the hallmark of believers that they love God more than anyone else; that is to say, their love for Him is such that they do not have comparable love even for their father or mother or other loved ones, or even for their own selves.And then He says: 4 َبَّبَح ُمُكْيَلِا َناَمْيِاْلا َو ٗهَنَّيَز ْيِف ْمُكِبْوُلُق 1.٭ Note: According to the Gospel every sinner and transgressor is the son of God, rather he is God himself.The Gospel does not declare some- one to be a son of God because he has the utmost love for God; it con- siders even adulterers to be the sons and daughters of God.—Author 2.S u rah al-Baqarah, 2:201 [Publisher] 3.But those who believe are stronger in their love for Allah ( S u rah al-Baqarah, 2:166).[Publisher] 4.S u rah al- H ujur a t, 49:8 [Publisher]

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 139 That is, Allah has endeared the faith to you and has made it look beautiful to your hearts.Then He says: 1 َّنِا َهّٰللا ُرُمْاَي ِلْدَعْلاِب َو ِناَسْحِاْلا َو ِئٓاَتْيِا يِذ ىٰبْرُقْلا This verse comprises the rights of God and the rights of mankind.Its excellence in eloquence is that God Almighty has firmly ordained both these rights.I have already detailed the part about the obligations towards mankind.In the context of the obligations towards God, this verse means that you should be obedient to God as necessitated by justice, for it is His right that you should obey the One who created you and nurtured you and is continu- ing to do so at every moment.And if you have greater understand- ing than this, you should obey Him not only because of His right but because of your sense of gratitude, for He is the Benefactor and His favours are so many that they cannot be counted.It is obvious that the level above that of justice is where, in rendering obedience, one also takes His favours into account.Constant study and observation of the favours keeps the coun- tenance and attributes of the Benefactor before one’s eyes; there- fore, it is included in the definition of i h s a n [beneficence], that you should worship God in such a way as though you are actually beholding Him.Those who obey God Almighty are, in reality, of three kinds.Firstly, there are those who do not properly appreciate 1.Verily, Allah requires you to abide by justice, and to treat with grace, and give like the giving of kin to kin; ( S u rah an-Na h l, 16:91).[Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 140 the Divine benevolence because they are not very discerning and because they look at tangible causes—neither does that passion develop in them which comes into being when man beholds the grandeur of [God’s] Beneficence; nor does that love stir within them which is aroused upon conceiving the great bounties of the Benefactor.They only acknowledge the rights of God Almighty as the Creator etc.in a general way, but are not cognizant of the details of Divine beneficence at all, the close scrutiny of which brings the True Benefactor before one’s eyes.This is because the dust and pollution of their focus on tangible causes bars them from beholding the full countenance of the Ultimate Cause; hence, they are deprived of the clear vision that could enable them to behold the beauty of the True Giver to the full extent.Thus, their crude cognizance is admixed with the haziness of their regard for physical causes.Moreover, because they cannot observe the favours of God well, they do not show the attentiveness that is required at the time of beholding His favours due to which the countenance of the Benefactor comes before the eyes; rather, their cognizance is simply hazy.The reason is that they do, to some extent, rely on their own efforts and their own means, and to some extent, they admit, as a formality, that God Almighty does have rights over them on account of Him being the Creator and the Provider.Since God Almighty does not burden man beyond the scope of his comprehension, as long as they remain in this state, He only requires of them to render gratitude to Him as His right.The word عَدْل [ ‘adl ] in the verse َّنِا َهّٰللا ُرُمْاَي ِلْدَعْلاِب refers to the obedience that is required by justice.However, there is a higher level of human cognition, as I have

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 141 stated above, at which the human eye, being totally free and clear of the focus on physical causes, vividly beholds the hand of God’s grace and benevolence.At this stage man has completely emerged from all the veils of ‘tangible causes’, and phrases such as ‘My crop grew because of my irrigation ’, or ‘I had this success because of the might of my arm’, or ‘such and such of my objective was achieved because of the benefaction of X’, or ‘I was saved from disaster because of the protection of Y’, begin to appear frivolous and false, and he sees only One Being, One Power, One Benefactor, and One Protector.Then alone does one behold the favours of God Almighty with a clear sight, not clouded by the slightest dust and pollution of the ‘idolatry of relying on tangible causes’.This realization is so clear and certain that, in worshipping such a Benefactor, he does not think of Him as invisible, rather he worships Him while thinking of Him to be present with certainty.Such worship has been described by the Holy Qur’an as i h s a n.The same meaning of i h s a n has been stated by the Holy Prophet , peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, as recorded in S a hih al-Bukh a r i and Muslim.Then, after this stage, there is another stage which is called

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 142 1 ٭ ِئٓاَتْيِا يِذ ىٰبْرُقْلا , the details of which are that when a person con - tinues to behold the favours of God for a prolonged period with- out attributing them to physical causes, and continues to worship Him while considering Him to be Omnipresent and the Direct Benefactor, then, the ultimate effect of this thought and visuali- zation is that he develops a personal love for His Majesty.This is so because enduring observance of unrelenting favours inevitably engenders this effect within the heart of a grateful person to the point that he gradually gets saturated with the personal love for the One whose unlimited favours have encompassed him.In such a state, he does not worship Him only because he is thinking of His favours, but His personal love comes to dwell within his heart, just as a child has personal love for its mother.Thus, at this level, he does not only behold God when worship- ping Him, but, like true lovers, derives pleasure also by behold- ing Him.All his mundane wants are effaced, and a personal love is born within him.This is the level which God has referred to by the phrase ِئٓاَتْيِا يِذ ىٰبْرُقْلا and has alluded to in the verse: 1.٭ Note: The rank of ِئٓاَتْيِا يِذ ىٰبْرُقْلا [treat with grace] results from ob- serving the continuous favours.At this stage, the love for the being of God Almighty develops in the heart of the worshipper to perfection, and all the residual mundane desires are totally eliminated.The truth is that there are only two things that form the core and source of per- sonal love.(1) First is studying in abundance the beauty of someone and recalling his features, the silhouette, and qualities in one’s mind all the time and visualizing them over and over again.(2) Second is visualizing the continuous favours of someone profusely and to keep recalling his varied favours and benefactions and to realize the grandeur of those favours.—Author

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 143 1 اوُرُكْذاَف َهّٰللا ْمُكِرْكِذَك ْمُكَءٓاَبٰا ْوَا َّدَشَا اًرْكِذ In short, this is the interpretation of the verse: 2 َّنِا َهّٰللا ُرُمْاَي ِلْدَعْلاِب َو ِناَسْحِاْلا َو ِئٓاَتْيِا يِذ ىٰبْرُقْلا God has mentioned all the three stages of a man’s enlightenment in it and has termed the third stage to be that of personal love.This is the level at which all mundane objectives are incinerated and the heart brims over with love just as a vial brims over with perfume, and this level has been indicated in the verse: 3 َو َنِم ِساَّنلا ْنَم ْيِرْشَّي ُهَسْفَن َءٓاَغِتْبا ِتاَضْرَم ِهّٰللا١ؕ َو ُهّٰللا ٌۢفْوُءَر ِداَبِعْلاِب ۰۰ Meaning that there are also some from among the believers who sell their own selves in exchange for the pleasure of Allah, and God is indeed Compassionate to such people.4 ٭ Then He says: ىٰلَب ١ۗ ْنَم َمَلْسَا ٗهَهْجَو ِهّٰلِل َو َوُه ٌنِسْحُم ۤٗهَلَف ٗهُرْجَا َدْنِع ٖهِّبَر١۪ َو اَل ٌفْوَخ ْمِهْيَلَع َو اَل ْمُه 5 َنْوُنَزْحَي۰۰ 1.c elebrate the praises of Allah as you celebrated the praises of your fa- thers, or even more than that ( S u rah al-Baqarah, 2:201).[Publisher] 2.S u rah an-Na h l, 16:91 [Publisher] 3.S u rah al-Baqarah, 2:208 [Publisher] 4.٭ Note: The selling of one’s self includes devoting one’s life and one’s comfort for the manifestation of the glory of God and for the service of the Faith.—Author 5.S u rah al-Baqarah, 2:113 [Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 144 Meaning that, saved are those who submit themselves completely to God, and who, keeping in mind His bounties, worship Him as though they are beholding Him; such people shall find their reward with God.No fear shall come upon such, nor shall they grieve.That is to say, God and God’s love becomes their objective, and the bounties of nearness to God is their reward.Then He says at one place: َنْوُمِعْطُي َماَعَّطلا ىٰلَع ٖهِّبُح اًنْيِكْسِم َّو اًمْيِتَي َّو اًرْيِسَا اَمَّنِا ْمُكُمِعْطُن ِهْجَوِل ِهّٰللا اَل ُدْيِرُن ْمُكْنِم ًءٓاَزَج 1 َّو اَل اًرْوُكُش ۰۰ Meaning: The believers are those who, for the love of God, feed the needy and the orphans and the prisoners, and say, ‘We do not desire any recompense or gratitude from you for feeding you, nor do we have any ulterior motive.Our purpose, from all these ser- vices, is only [beholding] the countenance of God.’ Now, one should consider how clearly these verses tell us that the higher standard of worship of God and righteous deeds, as defined by the Holy Qur’an, is that the quest for the love of God and the pleasure of God should be manifested with a sincere heart.However, the question at this point is whether such sub- lime teaching which has been described with great clarity is also contained in the Gospel.I assure everyone that the Gospel has certainly not described it with this clarity and detail at all.God Almighty has named this faith as Islam for the purpose that man should worship God, not out of selfish motives, but out of instinctive passion; for, Islam means to be pleased with the 1.S u rah ad-Dahr, 76:9–10 [Publisher]

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 145 will of God, having cast aside all motives.With the exception of Islam, there is no religion in the world that has these objectives.Without a doubt, God has given the believers promises of vari- ous bounties in order to point out His Beneficence, but to those believers who aspire for the lofty status, He has indeed taught that they should worship God Almighty with a personal love.However, there are clear testimonies in the Gospel that the disciples of your Yas u ‘ were greedy and dim-witted.Hence, the guidance they received was commensurate with their ability and intellect and so was the Yas u ‘ whom they discovered, who dis- suaded the simpletons from worshipping [God] with the hoax of his own suicide.Should you contend that the Gospel , by teaching that God be called ‘Father’, alluded to a personal love for Him, the reply is that this thought is completely erroneous; for, when we reflect upon the Gospel, we find that the Mas ih [the Messiah] used the phrase ‘son of God’ in two ways: (1) Firstly , it was an old custom in the time of Christ that anyone who did good and charitable work and treated people with kindness and compassion, would openly declare that he was a ‘son of God’.His intent in uttering this phrase was that just as God showers His mercy on both the righteous and the sinner, and both the good and the bad benefit from His sun, His moon, and His rainfall; in the same way, it was his habit to show kindness to everyone, the only difference being that while God was Great in these works, he, on the other hand, was small.Hence, the Gospel described God as ‘the Father’ in the sense that He is Great, and described others as ‘sons’, for they are small, but equated them with God in the core feature; that is to

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 146 say, it accepted a difference in their scope, but the ‘father’ and the ‘son’ were one in character.As this was a latent form of idolatry, the Perfect Book—namely, the Holy Qur’an —did not permit this kind of nomenclature.It was permissible for the Jews who were in a crude state, and Yas u ‘, in following them, employed it in his discourses.Hence, there are many places in the Gospel where such references are made that you should show mercy like God, become a peacemaker like God, and, like God, be kind to your enemies as you are to your friends; you shall then be called ‘the sons of God’, for your works will mirror His.The only difference would be that God is Great like a Father, and you are small like a son.Thus, this teaching was actually taken from the scriptures of the Israelites.That is why, even to this day, the Jews object that this is stealing and plagiarism and these things were written in the Gospel having been stolen from the Bible.In any case, firstly, this is a flawed teaching; and, secondly, ‘son’ in this sense has nothing to do with personal love.(2) The second kind of ‘son’ mentioned in the Gospel is the absurd statement like in John chapter 10 verse 34.In this verse everyone in this world, no matter how impious he is, has been made not only son but god, and the argument given is that scrip- tures cannot be false.In other words, the Gospel adopted a word that was well known among its people by following their exam- ple.Besides, the notion that God should be called ‘father’ is itself wrong, and who could be more ignorant and disrespectful than the one who applies the word ‘father’ to Almighty God? I have, by the grace of God, already dealt with this question at length in the book Minanur-Ra h m a n , which will prove to you that it is extremely vile and foul to apply the term ‘father’ to God Almighty.This is why the Noble Qur’an, in order to help people

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 147 understand, did exhort them to remember God with love as they would remember their fathers, but it did not say anywhere to lit- erally consider Him to be a father.Another flaw in the Gospel is that nowhere did it teach that the sublime way to worship is to entertain no selfish motives in the worship; instead, if it taught anything, it was how to pray for bread.On the other hand, the Holy Qur’an taught us the follow- ing prayer: 1 َطاَرِص َنْيِذَّلا َتْمَعْنَا ْمِهْيَلَع اَنِدْهِا َطاَرِّصلا َمْيِقَتْسُمْلا ۰۰ That is, establish us on the path which is the path of Prophets and the Truthful and those who love God.The Gospel, on the other hand, teaches, ‘Give us this day our daily bread.’ I have read the entire Gospel, but there is no sign or trace of such sub- lime teaching.The Fifth Objection [Fateh Masih’s Objection:] Eyes of Muhammad s as fell upon some lady.Thereupon, he came home and went to bed with his wife Saudah ra.How can such a person be considered all perfect who, upon seeing some lady, cannot rein in his carnal self without going to bed with his wife and satisfying his lust? My Statement: I submit that the hadith which the critic has mis- construed is found in S a hih Muslim and its words are as follows: 1.S u rah al-F a ti h ah, 1:5–6 [Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 148 َ ْنَب َ وَهِي ی َ امْرَأَتَه ُ ز ی َ م َ رَأَى ٰ امْرَأَة ً فَأَت َّ ْه ِ وَسَل ی هللا ُ عَلَ َّی رَسُوْل َ هللا ِ صَل َّ عَن ْ جَابِر ٍ أَن 1 حَاجَتَهُ.ی تَمْعَس ُ مَنِيْئَة ً لَهَا فَقَضٰ Saudah ra is not mentioned in this hadith anywhere.What this hadith does say is that the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, saw some lady.He then came to his wife Zainab ra , Allah be pleased with her, who was tanning a hide.Then he qa da ha jatah u [fulfilled his desire].Note that there is absolutely no mention in this hadith any- where that the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, was attracted to the beauty and charm of that other lady.There isn’t even any mention whether that woman was young or old.Nor is it proved that the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, came and went to bed with his wife.The words of the hadith only say that he fulfilled his want with her.The phrase qa da ha jatah u is not exclusive for intimacy in the Arabic lexicon.Answering the call of nature is also called qa da -e- ha jat , and it is used with many other meanings.So, from whence came the knowledge that the Holy Prophet s as , went to bed with his wife? It is clearly mischief to restrict a general phrase to a spe- cific meaning.Besides, it does not state that the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said that he went and had intimate relations with his wife upon seeing some woman.The fact is that there is a hadith in Muslim related by Jabir which is translated as follows: If one of you sees some woman whom he 1.S a hih Muslim Kit a bun - Nik ah, B a bu Nadbe man ra’ a Imra’atan, fa waqa‘at f i nafsih i , ’il a an ya’ti Imra’atahu au J a riyatahu fa yuw a qi‘ah a , Hadith 3407 [Publisher]

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 149 finds attractive, then it is better for him to go home and go to bed with his wife immediately, so no evil thought should enter his mind and the remedy could be administered proactively.It is quite possible that after hearing this hadith, some Companion observed that somewhere the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, came across a young woman, and he also came to know that the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, happened to have had intimate relations with his wife around the same time, so he inferred on his own from this coincidence that the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, had acted in accordance with this hadith.Moreover, even if we were to suppose that the said statement of the Companion was true, it would still be the work of a wicked and vile person to draw a negative conclusion from it.The fact is that the Prophets, peace be upon them, are extremely eager to demonstrate for their followers all good and pious deeds so as to instil a practical example in their minds.Hence, they do some- times condescend to do some good and righteous deeds in which the only intent is to set a practical example, while they have no personal need for it.Such instances are mirrored in the laws of nature among animals too.For example, a hen will peck at a grain with its beak merely to teach its chicks how to pick the grain from the ground.Likewise, it is incumbent upon a perfect teacher to demonstrate a practical example, albeit every action of a teacher doesn’t reflect the state of his heart.Besides, if one inadvertently casts a glance on someone beautiful, there is nothing intrinsically wrong in acknowledging that the person is beautiful.Of course,

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 150 evil thoughts are incompatible with perfect piety.So would it be incompatible with perfection if someone pursues the intricate paths of righteousness and acts to safeguard against evil thoughts as a precautionary measure even before the threats? This teaching of the Holy Qur’an is sublime that: 1 َّنِا ْمُكَمَرْكَا َدْنِع ِهّٰللا ْمُكىٰقْتَا Meaning that, the degree to which a person is mindful of the intricate paths of righteousness, is the very degree that his station is loftier in the sight of God.Hence, it is—without a doubt—a very lofty status of righteousness that steps be taken by means of precaution to safeguard against danger before the threats [of sin] should emerge.If it is asserted that those who are perfect are immune to such threats under all circumstances, and they are not in need of any precautions, then such a claim would be the result of absolute stu- pidity and flawed understanding.This is so because the Prophets, peace be on them, cannot, even for a moment, consciously resolve to commit any sin or disobedience.For them to do so would be like [committing] a cardinal sin.Yet human urges can show their effects in them also, even though they are fully safeguarded from evil suggestions ever becoming evil intents.For example, if a Prophet was very hungry and saw some trees laden with fruits, then—while we concede that he could never extend his hand towards the fruit without the owner’s permission 1.S u rah al- H ujur a t, 49:14 [Publisher]

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 151 nor would he resolve his mind to pick the fruit—such a thought, however, could certainly cross his mind that had the fruit been his own property, he could eat it.Such a thought would not be incompatible with perfection [of his morals].You will recall how your so-called ‘God’ was unable to withstand the pangs of a little hunger and how he hurried towards the fig tree.Can you prove that the tree was his or his father’s property? Thus, the man who could not restrain himself upon seeing someone else’s tree and rushed towards it to satiate his hunger, could not—in your own words—even be a perfect human being, let alone be ‘God’.In short, it is irrelevant if someone admires something for its beauty.Whoever has been bestowed eyes by God, can differenti- ate between beautiful and ugly just as he can differentiate between a flower and a thorn.Perhaps your so-called God was not blessed by nature with this ability to differentiate.However, out of hun- ger, he did rush towards the fig tree without even considering to whom it belonged.How strange that a glutton and a drunkard is not called las- civious, whereas the holy personage [of the Prophet s as ], whose life and whose every deed was for the sake of God, is branded as ‘given to carnal pleasures’ by the filthy people of this age! What a strange age of darkness this is! It is but one example of the sublime teach- ing of Islam that it says one should never deliberately raise one’s eyes to look upon a woman, for it is a prelude to evil thoughts, and if you do, per chance, glance at a beautiful woman and she appears attractive to you, then you should ward off that thought by going to bed with your own wife.

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 152 Remember well that this teaching and exhortation is meant as a preventive measure.For example, if a person takes some medi- cine during the cholera season as a preventive remedy to protect himself from cholera, can we say that he is suffering from cholera or that he is showing the signs of cholera? Rather, this action of his would be considered a sign of his intelligence and it would be understood that he is naturally averse to this disease and wishes to remain far away from it.No one will agree with you that adopting the paths of righteousness is incompatible with perfection.If the Prophets, peace be on them all, do not show an example of right- eousness, then who else should show it? The one who fears God the most, is foremost in adopting righteousness also.He keeps himself away from evil and steers clear of the paths that carry the risk of sin.But what can I say or write about your Yas u ‘ [Jesus ] and for how long should I lament his condition! Was it appropriate for him to give this opportunity to an adulterous woman in the prime of her youth and beauty, to sit close to him with uncovered head, and to so coyly and lov- ingly caress his feet with her hair, and to massage his head with perfume bought with her earnings from prostitution? Had the heart of Yas u ‘ been free of sinful thoughts, he would certainly have stopped a prostitute from coming close to him.But such people who derive pleasure from being touched by prostitutes do not even listen to the counsel of any advisor while they are in such a sensual state.Therefore, when an elder, with a sense of honour cautioned him with a view to stopping him, saying that to do such a thing was not appropriate, Yas u ‘ , realizing from the sternness of the man’s face that he was displeased with this conduct of his,

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 153 he tried to talk away the objection like lewd people and asserted that this prostitute is very sincere and that such sincerity was not found even in the person who was objecting.Praise the Lord! What an excellent reply! Your Yas u ‘ [Jesus ] is praising an adulterous woman saying how pious she is! Claim of Divinity and deeds the like of these! A person who stays intox- icated with wine, intermingles with prostitutes, and is so given to eating and drinking also, being foremost of all, that the people have come to calling him a glutton, what righteousness and piety can be expected from him? Look at the righteousness of our Lord and Master, the Greatest of the Prophets, Best of the Virtuous, Muhammad, the Chosen One, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him! He would not shake hands even with chaste and pious women who came to pledge allegiance to him.Instead, he would seat them at a distance and exhort them only verbally regarding repentance.On the other hand, who among the intelligent and pious would consider such a person to be virtuous who does not eschew the caresses of young women, and while a beautiful prostitute sits so close to him as if she is under his arms —at times stretching her hand to massage perfumed oil in his hair, at times clutches his feet, and at times trailing her beautiful dark hair across his feet, showing herself off in his lap —all the while your revered Yas u ‘ is sitting in a state of ecstasy and even rebukes anyone who tries to object.And what is astonishing is that he is young of age and is given to drinking and then single, and a beautiful prostitute is lying before him, caressing his body with her body.Is this the way of righteous men? And what argument is there to prove that the sensual desire

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 154 of Yas u ‘ was not aroused by the caress of that prostitute? Alas! Jesus did not even have the option of going to bed with a wife of his after having cast his eyes on that prostitute.What sensual desires must have been stoked by the caress and mannerism of that vile prostitute! The rush of sexual desire must have worked to its full extent.That is why Yas u ‘ could not even tell this adul- terous woman to stay away from him.It is proven from the Gospel that she was from among the prostitutes and was notorious for her adultery in the entire town.The Seventh Objection Permission of Mut‘ah and its Subsequent Prohibition The Reply : Ignorant Christians do not know that Islam did not promote mut‘ah, rather it reduced it in the world as much as possible.Before Islam, the practice of mut‘ah was common not only in Arabia but in many nations of the world.It was a practice whereby one contracted a marriage for a specific period of time and divorced the woman at the end of it.One of the reasons why this practice was so widespread was that people who went to other countries with armies, or who stayed abroad for long periods of time for trade, needed time-limited marriage, or mut‘ah.Sometimes the cause was also that the women of foreign lands would inform beforehand of their unwillingness to return with them; therefore, the wedding was contracted with the intent that divorce would become effective on a specific date.Hence, it is true that some Muslims also acted upon this ancient custom on one or

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 155 two occasions.1 ٭ However, this was not on the basis of any reve- lation or Divine communication, but only as a casual following of an ancient custom that was in vogue among the people.Nevertheless, mut‘ah means nothing more than a marriage contracted up to a specified date.Ultimately, it was forbidden by Divine revelation, as I have detailed in my book Arya Dharm.But it is curious why the Christians mention mut‘ah, which is only a time-limited marriage.Why do they not look at the conduct and character of their own Jesus who cast his eyes on such young women, looking at whom was inappropriate for him? Was it per- missible for him to sit in the company of a prostitute? Alas! Had he even practiced mut‘ah, he would have been saved from such untoward acts.Did the paternal and maternal grandmothers of Jesus practice mut‘ah or was it open flagrant adultery? I ask the Christians that a religion which does not permit mut‘ah, namely, a time-bound marriage, nor does it allow one to have a second wife, then how can its warriors—who cannot spend their lives as monks because they need to preserve their vitality, instead they consume wines which incite sensual desire and eat rich diets so that they are able and ready for their soldiering, as is common in the British Platoons —safeguard themselves against illicit deeds? What statutes has the Gospel laid down for them to preserve their chastity? Had there been some law and had there been some remedy mentioned in the Gospel regarding such single people, why did the British government issue the Cantonment Act 13–1889, thereby facilitating the white soldiers to have sex with 1.٭ Note: This act was resorted to at a time of extreme need, just as someone dying of hunger may eat carrion.—Author

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 156 prostitutes, so much so that Sir George Wright, the Commander- in-Chief of the Indian Army, encouraged his subordinates to pro- vide beautiful and young women for the white soldiers for illicit sex.It is obvious that had there been any remedy in the Gospel for such exigencies that forced the authorities to resort to these shameful practices, they would not have abandoned lawful prac- tices in favour of promoting unholy methods among their valiant soldiers.In Islam, the blessings of polygamy saved the Islamic rulers from resorting to such vile practices in every age.Muslim soldiers safeguard themselves against adultery through the practice of nikah [Islamic marriage].If the Christian clergy have knowledge of some secret remedy of the Gospel to guard against adultery, they should stop the authorities from this practice, because The Times (the newspaper) has again started enthusiastically advocat- ing re-enactment of this law.All these facts point to the fact that the teachings of the Gospel are flawed, and that all aspects of social interaction have not been taken into account.The rest later, insh a ’Allah [God willing]! The author: Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 157 [Letter from ‘A d dud-D i n] ُ لٰوۃ َّ ِِّٰ علٰی مَا بَقٰی و َ الص لل ُ ِِّٰ عَلٰی مَا مَضٰی وَالْحَمْد لل ُ حِیْمِ.اَلْحَمْد َّ حْمٰن ِ الر َّ بِسْم ِ الل ِّٰ الر ْت ِ الْمُصْطَفٰی ي َْل َ ب ه د ٍ خَیر ُ الوَرٰی و َ اَ َّ لَم ُ علٰی مُحَم َّ وَالس 1 ہ ِ الْمُجْتَبٰی ِّ وَعَلَی الْمُؤْمِنِیْن َ بِنَبِی Let it be clear to my beloved People of Islam that I have, in the meantime, received the book N u rul- H aq sent by the beloved Imam, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad sahib of Qadian, and I perused it.I also came across some writings of Muhammad Husain of Batala upon seeing which I felt great sorrow that, despite all his perspi- cacity and astuteness and his widespread fame and having had the opportunity to stay in the company of Mirza sahib and having praised Mirza sahib for a while, he suddenly reversed to the extent of condemning him as an infidel.(Look, how great is the differ- ence between the two ways!) Even though the plight of the age is becoming manifest like a mirror, and he can see that the people of the Dajj a l [Antichrist] are practicing their deceptive ways to the maximum extent, and the Hadith of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, are coming true, yet he does not understand the purport of.ی ٰ فِرْعَوْن َ مُوس ِّ لِكُل [Every Pharaoh has a Moses].1.In the name of Allah the Gracious, the Merciful.Praise be to the l ord for all that has passed and all that shall come to pass.Peace and bless- ings be upon the Best of Mankind, Muhammad, and the family of the c hosen One, and upon all the believers, for the sake of His c hosen Prophet.[Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 158 How, indeed, can he understand when Allah the Exalted has said: 1 َمَتَخ ُهّٰللا ىٰلَع ْمِهِبْوُلُق َو ىٰلَع ْمِهِعْمَس١ؕ َو ىٰۤلَع ْمِهِراَصْبَا ٌةَواَشِغ Here we can indeed witness the omnipotence of God, that for whomsoever He sanctions becoming misled, He brings about exactly those corresponding circumstances.The concepts the sagacious scholars viewed as fine points are held by this gentleman to be heresies.He continues to ignore the condition of this age.The person [the Promised Messiah as ] who has raised the banner of our Messenger of the Latter Days [the Holy Prophet Muhammad s as ], who is reviving his religion, who is being our defender and helper and who is subduing the enemies of our faith, who is claiming to show miracles which cannot be seen anywhere else these days; such a one is being labelled with edicts of disbelief.Woe to those who entertain such notions! For the followers of physical philosophy, miracles mean nothing in this age.Strange is the case of the sceptics that whenever this subject is discussed, they immediately say that there is no such thing as miracles and that anyone who believes in them ought to show one.Now, God forbid, if miracles and wonders are considered to be extinct, then how far will the negative impact of that situation carry? It ought to have been an occasion for gratitude that our boat, that had been stuck in a maelstrom, was saved by a sailor, and they should have accepted him instead of accusing him of falsehood and deception.Now, I say that—as I have understood it, and it is indeed 1.Allah has set a seal on their hearts and their ears, and over their eyes is a covering ( S u rah al-Baqarah, 2:8).[Publisher]

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 159 true—our leader, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad is undoubtedly the Mujaddid [Reformer] of this age, and I eagerly look forward to meeting him.I pray to God, the Majestic and Exalted, day and night that if You have indeed sent him with the truth, then bless me with the opportunity to behold him, and may I be counted among the community of his believers.I was hesitant at first, but after having discovered veritable evi- dence, I do affirm that whatever I have written is correct and true and that I consider him to be the True Mujaddid.And peace.The author: ‘A d dud-D i n, from Bachhrayun, District Muradabad The Names of those Gentlemen who are in Attendance to the Perfect Imam these Days [№] [Name] 1 Hadrat Maulaw i H ak i m Noor-ud-Deen of Bhera 2 H ak i m Fazl-ud-Din of Bhera 3 Maulaw i Qutb-ud-Din of Baddomalhi 4 Sahibzada Iftikhar Ahmad l udhiana 5 Sahibzada Manzoor Muhammad l udhiana, 6 Maulaw i Inayatullah, teacher at Man an w a la, district Gujranwala, 7 Qazi Zia-ud-Din of Qazi Kot, district Gujranwala, 8 Khalifah Nur-ud-Din Jammu, 9 Syed N as ir Nawab of Delhi,

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 160 [№] [Name] 10 Sheikh Abdur- r a hi m, 1 ٭ 11 Sheikh Abdul-Aziz 12 Ha ji Viryam of Khushab, 13 Sanaullah of Khushab, 14 Maulawi Khuda Bakhsh of Jalandhar, 1.٭ Sheikh Abdur- r a hi m is a righteous and pious young man.e ven I envy his faith and submission.He suffered severe trials when he con- verted to Islam but he showed great steadfastness and perseverance in the face of these trials and tribulations.He resigned from his civil posi- tion and took the Bai’at at the hand of the Imam of the Age in Qadian, and accepted Islam merely for the sake of God’s pleasure.He has the utmost love for the Holy Qur’an and learned it with translation and commentary from Maulaw i Abdul-Karim in a matter of months.Sheikh Abdullah is a pious young man.Signs of wisdom and piety are visible on his countenance.When he showed an inclination towards Islam he faced severe trials.One of them was that he had to debate l ekh r am, the Arya, on multiple occasions and at last he vanquished l ekh r am.As he was an Arya, he gave up that flawed teaching and enthusi- astically accepted Islam and took the oath of Bai‘at at the hand of the Imam of the Age.He used to tell me that his interest in Islam piqued after reading the Iz a la-e-Auh a m, and when the prophecy of Atham (about him either accepting the truth or dying) was fulfilled by Atham accepting the truth and escaping death, he accepted Islam with a true heart and he was able to recognize the Imam of the Age.Al h amdulill a h [All praise belongs to Allah].—(Sirajul- H aqq) Note: Sheikh Abdul Aziz, also, accepted Islam at Qadian a short while ago.He is a pious and righteous man.Attaining righteousness at this young age is merely due to Divine grace.Many others accepted Islam besides him.Four c hristians accepted Islam and are in l ahore now.—(Sirajul- H aqq)

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 161 [№] [Name] 15 Abdul-Karim, calligrapher, 16 Sheikh Ghulam Muhy-ud-Din of Jhelum, bookseller, 17 Sheikh Ha mid Ali, 18 Mirza Isma’il of Qadian, 19 Syed Muhammad Kab i r of Delhi, 20 Khud a Bakhsh Marhwi, district Jhang 21 Ha ji Ha fi z Ahmadullah Khan, 22 Ha fi z Mueen-ud-Din, 23 Maulaw i Ghulam Ahmad Khabakki, 24 Ha fi z Qutb-ud-Din Kotla Faqeer, Jhelum 25 Maulaw i Syed Mard a n Ali of Hyderabad 26 Maulaw i Sheikh Ahmad, 27 Mirza Ayyub Baig, 28 This humble one Sirajul-Haqq, Sheikh Fazl Illahi of Kalanur.Rules for Purchasing N u rul-Qur’ a n The N u rul-Qur’ a n, Number One, comprising three monthly issues together has already been published.In it, the price was fixed at one rupee per annum.That rule is hereby annulled, and it has, instead, been decided that whatever Number is published from the press, the readers will dispatch the payment of its price as fixed then.This journal can be dispatched via ‘value payable’ or through cash-via money order.Those who dispatch postage stamps, should send the postage stamps of half annas or one anna, they should not send postage stamps of two or four annas.Those

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 162 who reside in far off areas, such as Madras, or Assam, or the cen- tral provinces, should send two annas for registered mail, in addi- tion to the price so that there is no risk of the magazine getting lost.Whosoever receives this magazine, should show it to others too and they should try, as best they can, to create more buyers for it.This is a magazine with a new style that has been published in response to the opponents of Islam, and you will not find another magazine of this style and substance anywhere.The price of this N u rul-Qur’ a n, Number 2, is eight annas.A Vision of the Late Hadrat Abdullah Ghaznavi Regarding Sheikh Muhammad Husain Batalawi Honourable Qazi Zia-ud-Din of Qazi Kot, District Gujranwala, heard [about the following vision] with his own ears, and sent it to Sheikh [Muhammad Husain Batalawi] sahib in writing purely for his spiritual reformation, and which I will now record in this journal.Even though I am certain about Sheikh sahib that he is not going to heed this warning, I have a measure of good faith in a few of his friends and like-minded people that they will benefit from it.وْفِیْق َّ ُ وَلِی ُّ الت هللا َ و [From Allah comes all strength].This vision is detailed as follows.Humbly, Sirajul-Haqq No’mani.1 ْ ی ِّ حِیْمِ.نَحْمَدُہ ٗ وَنُصَل َّ حْمٰن ِ الر َّ ُو َ الۡهَادِیۡ.بِسْم ِ الل ِّٰ الر ه Esteemed Maulaw i Muhammad H usain! Wishing to meet 1.He is the Guide.In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful.We praise Him and call down His blessings (upon the Holy Prophet).[Publisher]

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 163 you! Now, regarding the feverish efforts you are making these days to refute and rebuke the Promised Messiah, Hadrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian, whom you had earlier accepted as the Reformer of this age.And you are so zealous in it that you have ignored even your own article entitled Kufr-o-K a f i r [‘Disbelief and Disbeliever’] published in Ish a ’ah [i.e., Ish a ‘atus-Sunnah ].It is the ill consequence of this effort which has now led to the appearance of clear signs of your evil end.Noticing your plight, my heart has melted, out of sheer human sympa- thy.Therefore, in keeping with the injunction 1 ُ صِیْحَۃ َّ یْن ُ اَلن ِّ اَلد [Religion is sincere advice] I wanted to warn you about this fatal malady, merely for the sake of Allah the Exalted, so that God, who is Gracious and Merciful, may per- chance have mercy on you.In this context, there is one revelation of the late Abdullah Ghaznavi that he had received concerning you.I had informed you of it at that time whether you recall it or not.Now I am going to repeat it to you again.It has been my recurring experience that the maulaw i s are impressed very little by the words of their contemporaries, no matter how beneficial those words may be.He [Maulaw i Ghaznavi] is now deceased, and you, perhaps, had even pledged allegiance to him.It would not be surprising if you were to benefit from his revelation.My intention in all this is none other than human sympathy and reconciliation between Muslims.I 1.Jam i‘ Tirmidhi, Abw a bul-birri wa s - S ilah, B a bo m a j a ’ fin-Na sih ah, Hadith 1926.[Publisher]

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T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO T HE L IGHT OF T HE HOLY Q U R’AN—NUM BE R T WO 164 declare under oath, َفٰی بِالل ِّٰ شَھِیۡدًا ك وَ [and Allah is sufficient as a Witness], that I personally heard this revelation from the late Hadrat Maulaw i Sahib.For the sake of God, listen to it with a sober mind.It is as follows: �ی�دہ اتس النک اپرہ اپرہ دشہ اتس ش �پ�ی�راےنہ الکن وپ� ن ی� حس� م ہک دمحم ن �ب�ی� یم [I see that Muhammad Husain is concealed in a large garment, but it is in tatters].Then he himself gave its interpretation that: اتس ہک اپرہ اپرہ وخادہ دش �پ�ی�رانہ ملع آن [It is the garment of his knowledge that was in tatters].And he would utter the words اپرہ اپرہ [in tatters] with his tongue as he would repeatedly point with both his hands from his chest to the shins of his legs.Then he said to me: آرنا اب �ی دتفگ ہک وتہب رکدہ ابدش [He should be told that he should repent].So, as per his exhortation, I had told you all this.And, in the Chinia n Wali mosque of Lahore, you had taunted me derisively saying, ‘He is making himself into a wali, tell Abdullah to call me also.’ After giving this message, he [Maulaw i Ghaznavi] recorded the said revelation in the presence of Mullah Safar.And I had related it to you word for word at the house of Ha fi z Muhammad Yousuf in Amritsar, wherein Ha fi z Abdul Mannan used to live.I remember it well that you were moved by it at that time and had even stopped reading the book.I had also related it to people of my village in those very days, who can testify to it now.In short, this revelation of a warning is fulfilled in these days and its effect can now be seen in that all your supposed knowledge, when brought against Mirza sahib, has been torn to pieces and all your boasting and bragging about

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T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH T H e J O u r NA l—F AT e H M A S IH 165 your knowledge proved to be worthless.Hence this rev- elation is undoubtedly true.Maulaw i Sahib, I have again reminded you in a timely manner, so that you may heed and repent, and give up your enmity for the Reformer, Rejuvenator and the Perfect Guide, who is the Promised Messiah, may God be his Helper; or, there will only be crying and gnashing of teeth in despair.Now the onus to act is on the one who is obliged to act.A couplet: وی ن ش ن دنپ نم � ی رگ ارموز ا� یم�ان وشی � ش �پ� دان ہک رفدا ن ی ق ی � If you do not pay heed to this advice of mine today, Rest assured you shall regret it tomorrow.الْبَلَغ َّ وَمَاعَلَیْنَا ٓ اِل [Our duty is only to convey the message] The humble writer: Zia-ud-Din, May Allah forgive me.20 December 1895

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Glossary A ha d i th see Hadith Anna Indian currency.A copper coin, the sixteenth part of a rupee.Arya A Hindu sect founded by Pan- dit Swami Dayanand Saraswati in 1875.‘A s r Late afternoon.One of the five daily obligatory Prayers [ S al a t ] in Islam.Bai‘at Oath of allegiance to a re- ligious leader; initiation at the hands of a Prophet or his Khalifah.Bar a h i n Convincing and conclusive arguments, evidence, and proof; the singular is burh a n.Short name for Barahin-e-Ahmadiyya, the five-part magnum opus of the Promised Messiah as.Hadith A saying of the Holy Prophet Muhammad s as.The plural is a ha d i th.Hadrat A term of respect used to show honour and reverence for a person of established righteous- ness and piety.The literal mean- ing is: His/Her Holiness, Worship, Eminence, etc.It is also used for God in the superlative sense.Holy Qur’an The holy Scripture revealed by Allah to the Holy Prophet Muhammad s as for the guidance of mankind for all times to come.It was revealed word by word to the Holy Prophet s as over a period of twenty-three years.‘Ish a ’ Refers to the night Prayer be- fore going to bed; one of the five daily Prayers ( S al a t ) in Islam.Khatamul-Anbiya’ The Seal of the Prophets.A title accorded by God to the Holy Prophet Muham- mad s as in the Holy Qur’an.Vari- ants are Kh a tamun-Nabiyy i n and Kh a tamur-Rusul.

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NURUL-QUR'AN 168 L a ‘nat Curse.Literally means ‘Ab- sence of exaltation’.Maghrib Time of sunset.The term is also used for the prayer ( s al a t ) of- fered after sunset.Maulaw i A Muslim religious cleric.Mujaddid Reformer.Pl.Mujaddi- d i n.Holy personages within Islam who appeared at the head of every century.Mu st af a The Chosen One, a title of honour used for the Holy Prophet Muhammad s as.Quran see Holy Qur’an.Ra h m a n Gracious.An attribute of God as mentioned in S u rah al-F a ti h ah and throughout the Holy Qur’an.The verbal noun of this attribute is Ra h m a niyyat.Rishi A Hindu saint or a spiritual scholar.Shariah Religious law of Islam.The term is also used in the general sense of any revealed law.S u rah A chapter of the Holy Qur’an.Taqw a Righteousness.Fear of God.Tau hi d The Oneness of God—the fundamental Islamic belief that there is no one worthy of worship except Allah.Vedas The most ancient Hindu scriptures, written in Sanskrit and containing hymns, philosophy, and guidance on ritual for the priests of the Vedic religion.There are four Vedas— Rigveda, Samaveda, Ya- jurveda, and Atharvaveda.Z uhr Lit.midday, noon.Refers to the noon Prayer (one of the five daily Prayers in Islam).

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Names of Prophets in this Journal Arabic English A dam Adam Ibr a h i m Abraham D a w u d David Ya‘q u b Jacob ‘ I s a Jesus Ayy u b Job Muhammad Muhammad M u s a Moses N uh Noah

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Index

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I N D e x I N D e x 173 Index of the Verses of the Holy Quran Chapter 1, al-F « a »ti « h » ah verses 5–6............................147 Chapter 2, al-Baqarah verse 3..................................114 verse 8..................................158 verse 94................................130 verse 113..............................143 verse 166.....................135, 138 verse 201.....................138, 143 verse 208..............................143 verse 226..............................127 verse 257................................13 Chapter 3, « A »l-e-‘Imr « a »n verse 104................................20 verse 119..............................135 verses 2-4...............................15 Chapter 4, an-Nis « a »’ verse 63..................................16 verse 136..............................101 Chapter 5, al-M « a » ’idah verse 4....................................25 verse 9..................................108 verse 52................................135 Chapter 7, al-A‘r « a »f verse 34................................128 verse 157................................16 Chapter 9, at-Taubah verse 30..................................55 verse 128..............................134 Chapter 14, Ibr « a »h « i » m verse 25..................................30 Chapter 16, an-Na « h »l verse 91...............136, 139, 143 verse 107..............................111 verse 111..............................111 Chapter 17, Ban « i » Isr « a »’ « i »l verse 37................................128 verse 85..................................16 Chapter 22, al- « H »ajj verse 31................................101 Chapter 24, an-N « u »r verse 31................................115 Chapter 25, al-Furq « a » n verse 3..............................19, 31 Chapter 26, ash-Shu‘ar « a »’ verse 4..................................134 verse 196................................27 Chapter 30, ar-R « u »m verse 41..................................19 Chapter 47, Mu « h »ammad verse 3....................................17 Chapter 49, al- « H »ujur « a »t verse 8..................................138 verse 14................................150 Chapter 53, an-Najm verses 4-5...............................89 Chapter 57, al- « H »ad « i » d verse 18......................21, 25, 61 verses 17-18..........................24 Chapter 60, al-Mumta « h »inah verse 9..................................136 verse 10................................137 Chapter 76, ad-Dahr verses 9-10...........................144 Chapter 90, al-Balad verse 18................................134 Chapter 110, an-Na « s »r verses 2-4...............................27

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I N D e x I N D e x 175 Index of A ha d i th Actions are judged by their intentions 71 ‘Asr Prayer being offered later than usual 88 Courage of Holy Prophet 105 Desire to depart to God 110 farewell pilgrimage 33 On I « h »s« a » n (beneficence) 141 On Tauriyah 104 On abusing one’s father 93 On Byzantine Emperor 84 On « H »a « d »rat Saudah’s appre- hension regarding divorce 79 on S « u » rah an-Na « s »r indicating demise of Holy Prophet 33 On truth 103 On women 147 Religion is sincere advice 163

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I N D e x I N D e x 177 Index of Topics Abdullah Atham maulaw « i »s lost face in prophecy about, 99 proved veracity of prophecy about him 99 unable to provide proof of three assaults on him 100 Ablution (Wu « d » u ) concept of, 120 Adultery committing of, 116 European continent brimming with, 116 indulgence of Christians in, 40 marriage safeguards against, 156 Age (Present) comparison of, with age of Holy Prophet 23 Al-Akh « t »al born in time of Holy Prophet 47 did not consider any Christian woman chaste 45 eminent Christian poet 40 exposed true character of Christians of his time 42, 47 known as Dhu « s » - « S »al « i »b (Posses- sor of the Cross) 46 poetry of, 41, 42, 46 praised wine 45 response to suggestion to accept Islam, 46 vices of, 41, 43, 46 Allah.see God Almighty Arabia Christians brought wine to, 48 concept of Atonement brought sin to, 37 people of, buried daughters alive 21 people of, engrossed in shame- ful sins and vices 37 people of, under evil influence of Christians 40, 49 widespread reform of, 60 Arabic Language arguments concerning superi- ority and excellence of, 8 beauty of, compared to other languages 7 compositions in, 8 fountainhead of all languages 6 has wealth of root words 7 superiority of, 7 Atonement absurdity of doctrine of, 117, 118 concept of, different from sac- rificing one’s life for servants of God 63 concept of, spreads evil 121

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NURUL-QUR'AN 178 false and delusive doctrine of, 38, 39, 47, 50 flaws in concept of, 36, 62 has slighted and belittled com- mandments of righteousness 121 led to great increase in sin among Christians 34 most commendable way of sac- rificing one’s life as opposed to, 63 rationale of, 62 such a suicide strictly prohib- ited 63 Ayeshah Siddiqah, « H »a « d »rat misconceptions about age at marriage of, 75 objection against, 90 Ban « i » Taghlab character of, 47 verses of, 48 Bar « a »h « i »n-e-A « h »madiyya mentions Vedas with utmost decency 96 Battle of Uhud courage of Holy Prophet in, 105 Believers God has given, promises of bounties 145 qualities of, 134, 136, 138, 143, 144 Bible.see Gospel Books thousands of, against Holy Prophet and Holy Quran 95, 97 British Government Byzantine Emperor greater in status than, 81 gratitude to, 76 issued Cantonment Act 13- 1889 155 not immune from error 76 rules for framing laws 75, 76 virtues of, 80 Byzantine Emperor could not accept Islam because of Christians 83 respect for Holy Prophet 80, 81 yearning of, to reach Holy Prophet authenticated by hadith 84 Chosroes (Khosrow Parv « e »z) dispatched soldiers to arrest Holy Prophet 83 incident of killing of, substan- tiated by authentic a « ha »d « i »th 84 Christians accompanied by three curses according to Bishop Bosworth 39 Arabs under evil influence of, 37, 40 at forefront of evil due to doc- trine of Atonement 38 brought wine to Arabia 48 character of Christ according to, 85 churches of, places of ill repute 45, 46 committed horrific acts of bloodshed 40

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I N D e x I N D e x 179 concept of reward and punish- ment 122 condition of, after Messiah passed away 50 deviated from truth because of Gospels 130 drinking wine formed major part of their faith 48 false views on Jesus 70 gambling, alcoholism, and adultery introduced to Arabs by, 40 have become oblivious to Hereafter 125 have followed previous reli- gions on deification of men 55, 57 have great enmity for Islam 50 leaders of nations in mischief and sin 20 newfound wealth led, to sin 38 political power and wealth aided transgression of, 39 practice of ‘April Fools’ amongst, based on falsehood 107 reasons for promiscuity of, in Europe 91, 116 true character of, at time of Holy Prophet 47 used deceitful schemes to hide truth 61 vices of, 50 Coercion not permissible in faith 13 Cognition (ma‘rifat) higher level of human, 140 Holy Quran teaches true, 115 Companions (of Holy Proph- et) never concealed Divine testi- mony 102 were perfected 26 Compassion comparison with love 133 Dajj « a »l (Antichrist) rampant in present age 157 Davenport, John described sins of Christians in detail 38 mentioned killing of Chosroes in his book 84 David, Prophet wives of, 90 Disciples (of Jesus) depiction of, in Gospel 34, 35, 36, 145 unholy acts of, 35 Divine Books concept of resurrection of dead counter to, 57 should manifest path of « H »aqqul-Yaq « i »n (Absolute Certainty of Truth) 13 should prove their claims 12 should themselves claim to be from Allah 17 signs of, 12 Empress of India excellence of, 80 love for Islam 82 Promised Messiah gave invita- tion to Islam to, 82 Europe promiscuity in, 91

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NURUL-QUR'AN 180 Faith concealing of, 111 declaration of, dispels all sins 118 force and coercion not permis- sible in, 13 meaning of selling of one’s self for, 143 true purport of declaration of, 119 Fate « h » Mas « ih » filthy letter of, 73 objections of, 73, 78, 86, 87, 89, 90, 92, 100, 113, 126, 130, 147, 154 Gambling indulgence of Christians in, 40 Girls varied age of puberty of, 75, 76 God Almighty attributes resurrection of spiritually dead to Himself alone 61 chose Islam as religion 26 commandment of, for justice and kindness 136 disrespectful notion of, being called ‘father’ 146 does not burden man 140 does not guide the misguided 158 fulfilled desire of Holy Proph- et to see spread of Islam 27 has ingrained in seekers of truth to follow a Divine Herald 60 in no need of a son 59 language from, 6 love of, 131, 138, 144 man’s claim of being, worst of all 93 Messenger sent by, 18 nearness to, 144 Quranic teaching perfectly corresponds to attributes of, 112 rights of, 139 significance of taking favours of, into account constantly 139 sign of truth of, 59 three kinds of people who obey, 139 Gospel a compilation of crude ideas 129 allude to physical reward 125 cannot describe paths of right- eousness 114 claim made in, regarding Jesus 20 does not teach abhorrence for sin 120 does not teach personal love for God 138 falsehood of, 131 flaws in, 117, 132, 147, 155, 156 lack universality of Holy Qur’an 22 meaning of, describing God as ‘Father’ 145 meaning of phrase ‘son’ in, 145

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I N D e x I N D e x 181 no trace of Trinity in, 36 number of, in excess of sixty 107 on details of spiritual rewards 124 on truthfulness 101 prayer of, regarding bread 147 teaching regarding women 115 term ‘son of God’ used not just for Jesus in, 56 Granths has stories of avatars perform- ing wonders 57 Hadith about Dajj « a » l (Antichrist) are coming true 157 all promises in, in similes 123 Christians do not have ability to study, 106 on falsehood 102 rules for acceptance of, 103, 106 study of, a delicate matter 107 Herod treatment of Messiah 84 Hindus forerunners of Christians on deification of men 57 Pundit Dayanand acknowl- edges idolatry of, 59 unable to explain their deifica- tion of men 56 Holy Prophet Muhammad accusations against, 73, 92, 100 admonishment to avoid tauriyah 104 a Warner to all 32 British government would have respected, 80 came at time of universal corruption 23, 32 came for all peoples 19 Chosroes’ attempt to arrest, 83 Companions of, 102 comparison of, with Jesus 23 comparison with Christ depicted by Christians 82, 105, 109, 153 compassion of, 134 demise of, 28 desire to depart to God 110 did not depart until Islam had been perfected 25, 26, 31, 32 false accusation against, regarding his wife « H » a « d » rat Saudah 78 Farewell Pilgrimage of, 33 forefathers of, were safeguard- ed from polytheism by Allah 37 greatest Reformer 58, 61 marriage to « H »a « d »rat Ayeshah Siddiqah 75 maulaw « i » s’ disregard for, 97 Messiah foretold advent of, 94 proof of prophethood of, 15, 31 reform carried out by, 60 S « u »rah an-Na « s »r indicated ap- proach of demise of, 33 target of vile abuse 69, 71, 95 zeal to see Islam spread 27

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NURUL-QUR'AN 182 Holy Quran accusations against, 100, 110, 113, 130 accusation that, prescribed dissimulation of one’s faith 100 all promises in, in similes 123 appeared at time of universal sin 24 brought about most extraordi- nary change 26 claim regarding its Divine origin 15, 17 claims whole world was steeped in sin 20, 21 confirmed prophethood of Jesus 35 declared Jews and Christians leaders of sin 21 definition of true believers in, 134 desperate need of, 43, 49 exhortation not to literally consider God as ‘father’ 146 first proof in favour of, 15 has cursed liars 107 has informed of source of human languages 5 Jews at time of, 23 on falsehood 100, 101, 107, 110 only book revealed in mother of all tongues 5 on person who is coerced 110 on quest for love of God 144 on testimony of faith 110 on those who hide their Islam 111 on treatment of enemies 108 on treatment towards those of satanic character 133 purpose of revelation 114 signs of need and truth of, 25 speaks of physical and spiritual rewards 124 superiority over Gospel 101, 108, 115, 121, 124, 126, 128, 138, 144, 147 teaches compassion 133 teaches paths of righteousness 114 took all nations to task for indulging in idolatry 19 unique miraculous quality of, 12 urged Holy Prophet to warn whole world of their sinful condition 22 warns sinners and wrongdoers 20 Idolatry Holy Quran equated false- hood to, 101 latent form of, 146 reinforced by notion of wor- shipping Jesus 49 uprooted at hands of Holy Prophet 53 I « h »s« a »n (beneficence) 141 definition of, 139 Islam completion of, has two essen- tials 26 Holy Prophet did not depart until, had been perfected 26

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I N D e x I N D e x 183 Holy Prophet’s zeal to see, spread 27 meaning of, 144 on one who hides his faith 112 perfected by God Almighty 26 replaced five times of drinking with prayers 49 superiority of teachings of, 151 Istighf « a » r (seeking Allah’s for- giveness) a religion that does not express philosophy of, is not from God 30 Holy Prophet sought, more than anyone else 31 meaning of, 28 meaning of, of Prophets 27 reason of Allah’s directive to Holy Prophet to do, 28 spiritual life depends upon, 30 Jacob, Prophet called ‘Firstborn Son’ in Gospel 56 Jesus Christ.see also Messiah, Jesus the tauriyah committed by, 104 admitted flaws of his teaching 129 bound by eternal guidance 36 claim made in Gospel regarding, 20 comparison with Holy Proph- et 27, 84 false view of Christians about, 70 gave glad tiding of coming of Holy Prophet 129 Holy Qur’an removed calum- nies against, 36 idolatry reinforced by wor- shipping of, 49 limitations of reform initiated by, 34, 35 never claimed Divinity 36 only Holy Qur’an confirmed prophethood of, 35 on physical bounties 126 rules for divinity of, same as Krishna and Ramchandra 56 testimony of Holy Qur’an establishes prophethood of, 36 wanted to be saved from death 110 was no greater than previous Prophets 51, 57 Jews condition of, at time of revela- tion of Holy Qur’an 23 focus of Messiah’s teachings 22 had weakened compared to Christians 38 leaders of nations in mischief and sin 21 were descendants of Prophets 23

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NURUL-QUR'AN 184 Justice Gospel on, 108 Holy Quran on, 107, 136 in context of obedience to God Almighty 139, 140 is touchstone of love 108 Kh « a »tamul-Anbiy « a »’ (Seal of the Prophets).see Holy Proph- et Muhammad Language origin of human, is instruction of God 5 Lekh Ram 96 Love concept of, for enemies 135 difference between compas- sion and, 133 essence of, 130, 134, 142 implication in, for Satan 132 meaning of Ma « h »abbat 132 third stage of man’s enlighten- ment is, for God Almighty 143 true, for God Almighty brings pleasure 142 word ‘Father’ in Gospel has no teaching of, for God 145, 146 Maghfirat (Forgiveness).see also Istighf « a »r (seeking Allah’s forgiveness) meaning of, 29 Marriage.see Mut‘ah (Time-limited Marriage) Maulaw « i »s hostile to Islamic interests 94, 98 hypocrisy of, 97 misconceptions of, 70 Messengers are safeguarded from enemies 19 bearers of glad tidings for righteous and warners for sinful 20 come and go under Divine command 19 correct time of advent and de- parture of, sent by Allah 18 first prerequisite of, 34 hallmark of true, 61 should bring about spiritual reform on large scale 35 Messiah, Jesus the a true servant of shariah (reli- gious law) of Moses 70 character of, depicted by Christians 85, 104, 116, 117, 151, 153 condition of Christians after, passed away 50 foretold advent of Muhammad 93 never claimed divinity 93 objection against grandmoth- ers of, 92 qualities of true, 93 respect for, by kings of his time 84 treatment from Herod 84 true doctrine regarding, 69 was waiting for Holy Quran 129 Miracle means nothing to followers of physical philosophy 158 of Chosroes’ death 83 of Divine Book 13

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I N D e x I N D e x 185 Missionaries Christian, at forefront of revil- ing Holy Prophet 71 mischievousness of Christian, 61 Moses, Prophet claim made in Torah regard- ing, 20 limitations of, 34 sent for punishment of Phar- aoh 33 zeal of, compared to Holy Prophet 27 Mu« h »ammad « H »usain of Batala efforts of, to refute Promised Messiah 163 erroneous ways of, 158 reversed views on Promised Messiah 157, 163 warning to, 165 Muslims lovers of knowledge 42 misconception that, have been commanded not to love non-believers 135, 136 objection that, do not love God in absence of a selfish motive 137 thousands have become apos- tates due to false accusations against Islam 98 Mut‘ah (Time-limited Mar- riage) discussed in Arya Dharm 155 Islam did not promote 154 meaning of, 155 practice of, common in Arabia before Islam 154 reason for widespread practice of, 154 Noah, Prophet widespread sin in age of, 22 N « u »rul-Qur’an intent of, 12 rules for purchasing, 161 Opponents Promised Messiah’s warning to, 13 Paradise beholding God highest pleas- ure in, 124 bounties of, beyond compre- hension 123 dwellers of, will become like angels 126 objection on teaching about, 121 reward for body and soul in, 124, 126 Paul deficient teachings of, 92 falsely depicted disciples 36 Persecution friendship with those who indulge in, is forbidden 137 Peter abominable misconduct of, 113 Jesus Christ branded, as Satan 89 lie of, 102 Pfander, Reverend admitted sins of Christians of that age 38, 59

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NURUL-QUR'AN 186 Pilate treatment of Jesus according to Gospel 84 Polygamy practiced by Israelite Prophets 90 saved Islamic rulers from vile practices 156 Prayer(s) accusation of skipping, 87 combining and shortening of, 88 incident of ‘A « s »r, offered later than usual 88 Islam replaced five times of drinking with, 49 of Holy Quran in comparison to Gospels 147 Promised Messiah accusations against, 95 all claims made in this journal from Holy Qur’an 12 challenge to opponents regard- ing divine books 13, 14, 18 challenge to opponents to present the claims and corroboration from their books 14 differentiated between real and fictitious Jesus 70 explains terms ‘Father’ and ‘son’ in Minanur-Ra « h »m « a » n 146 has raised banner Holy Proph- et 158 manner of investigating lan- guages 7 Reformer (Mujaddid) of age 158 rewards offered by, 8, 81, 85, 88, 101, 124 sympathy and remedy for plight of current age 11 Prophets.see also Messengers actions of, become Shariah 89 argument in support of truth of, 35 cannot consciously commit sin 150 every action of, does not reflect state of heart 149 human qualities of, 150 show pious example to follow- ers 149, 152 slanders against, 78 when are, urged to do istighf « a »r 27 Pundit Dayanand abuse of Islam by, not pro- voked by Promised Messiah 96 Punishment.see Paradise Qa « da » meaning of, 87 Queen.see Empress of India Reform certain Christian missionaries have no belief in, 62 initiated by Jesus 35 sweeping, by Holy Prophet, 60

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I N D e x I N D e x 187 Reformer (Mujaddid).see Mes- sengers ; see also Promised Messiah Holy Prophet was greatest, 59 need for, 18, 33 Resurrection miraculous, possible but not evidence of Divinity 57 Rewards.see Paradise Righteousness foremost in, is one who fears God most 152 steps taken to guard, show lofty status 150 teachings of Bible and Quran on, 121 Salvation basis of according to Jesus, 119 method of attaining, 118 no, without abhorrence of sin 120 one true path to, 59 Sanskrit comparison with Arabic Lan- guage 7 Satan liars are companions of, 107 meaning of, 30 treatment towards, 132 Saudah, « H »a « d »rat apprehension of, regarding divorce 78 filthy language against, 74 no intent of Holy Prophet to divorce, 79 Sheikh Abdul-Aziz 160 Sheikh Abdullah 160 Sheikh Abdur-Ra « h »« i » m steadfastness to Islam of, 160 Signs of need and truth of Holy Qur’an 25 Sin description of, 114 description of, of all organs in Holy Quran 127 Gospel doesn’t teach abhor- rence for, 120 is removed only when virtue takes its place 117 man can eschew, due to three reasons 39 not treated lightly in Holy Quran 120 people of Arabia engrossed in, 37 reality of, 119 Sinner Holy Quran teaches compas- sion towards, 133 mere thoughts do not render one a, 127 three ways one becomes, 127 Son of God according to Gospel every sinner a, 138 Holy Quran did not permit use of phrase, 146 meaning of phrase, 145 phrase used by Messiah in two ways 145

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NURUL-QUR'AN 188 Soul concept of punishment of body and, 123 paradise is place for reward of body and, 123 role of body and, 121 S« u »rah an-Na « s » r purport of, 32 Tau « hi »d (Oneness of God) Christians rejected the one who brought, 125 creates paradise in this world 118 need for, 18, 24 Tauriyah meaning of, 103 Torah claim made in, regarding Moses 20 concept of reward in, 126 contained expression ‘sons of God’ and ‘daughters of God’ 55 Trinity Christians consign, as divine mystery 56 imitation of Hindu doctrines 56 no trace of, in Gospel 36 Vedas cannot claim to be Word of God 17 existence of, doubtful 97 Vices people of Arabia engrossed in, 37 Vision of Abdullah Ghaznavi, « H »a « d »rat 162 Wine consumption of, by Christians 40, 50 drinking, formed major part of Christian faith 48 five times of drinking, pre- scribed in Arabia 49 making, regarded as miracle of Jesus 39 many shops of, in London 50 role in Christian faith 39 Worship correct way of, of God Al- mighty 139, 144 described as i « h »s« a »n (benefi- cence) 141 meaning of higher standard of, of God Almighty 144 Zainab, « H »a « d » rat calumny of adultery against, 86 incident regarding, 148

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