Clarification On The Ahmadis
Question: Dear Mufti,
Assalamu Alaikuim
On Thursday 30th October, 2014, The Ahmadiyya Anjuman Isha’at-i-islam incorporated of Trinidad and Tobago published an article in the Trinidad and Tobago Guardian daily newspaper on page A28. It was always my belief that they rejected our beloved Rasool (peace be upon him) as the last and final messenger thus making them non-Muslims. Now I saw in that article, that they uphold that Allah is the one god for all Humankind and that Muhammad( peace be upon him) is his last messenger and that Mirza Ghulam Ahmad simply fulfill different roles. How do we view this group/sect in Islam now?
Answer: Assalamu Alaikum,
The Ahamdis are in reality the Qadianis, and even though they may make the claim that they believe in the finality of the Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w), they firmly believe in Mirza Ghulam as a Prophet and the promised Messiah. These are from the claims of Mirza Ghulam himself, and the Ahmadis hold on these claims.
The following gives an idea of the claim of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad which the Ahmadis believe in:
In one passage, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad wrote: ‘I declare on oath, in the name of Allah in whose hands is my soul, that he has sent me and has named me a Prophet’ (Supplement to Haqiqatul Wahy Pg. 68 Qadian 1934 – Qadianis on Trial. Mufti Taqi Usmani Pg.22).
While explaining such claims that are made by the Ahmadis, the great scholar, Mufti TaqiUsmani has written: ‘ In the beginning, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Qadiani himself held the belief that anyone claiming prophet hood after the Holy Prophet (s.a.w) was a Kaafir. His earlier writings contain his indictments of apostasy against such claimants. The Ahmadis sometimes quote these early writings in order to misguide the Muslims, but the Mirza has made it quite clear in his subsequent writings that he has risen to that highest sanctified position of prophet hood by making a gradual progress from being a Renovator, Muhaddath (one with whom Allah speaks), the promised Messiah, and the promised Mahdi.
We shall quote here his exact words affirming his gradual progress to his claim of prophethood. The following account is given to understand his view point more clearly.
When someone drew his attention towards the contradictions found in his statements and asked, why he called himself a ‘non-Prophet’ (Ghairu Nabiyy) in one statement and ‘Greater that the Messiah in all respects’ in another?
Replying to this objection, he wrote in Haqiqatul Wahy: “Try to understand it carefully that this is the same kind of contradiction as found in Buraheen-e-Ahmadia, where I had written that the Messiah, the son of Mary, would descend from the heaven. But later I wrote that the Messiah who was to come was none but me. The reason for this contradiction was that Allah has given me the name ‘Jesus’ in Buraheen-e-Ahmadia and said, ‘Your coming has been foretold by Allah and his Messenger (s.a.w)’. Since a group of Muslims adhered to the belief that the Christ would descend from Heaven and I, too held the same belief. I did not take this revelation at its face value, but I give it the other interpretation and kept my belief like that of other Muslims and published the same in Buraheen-e-Ahmadia. Later, I was showered with divine revelations saying that the Messiah who was promised by Allah was none but me. Hundreds of signs manifested themselves, in this connection. The heaven and the earth bowed to me. Several other glowing signs forced me to belief that I was the “True Messiah”, who was to come in the last millennium. Otherwise my belief was the same as I had described in Buraheen-e-Ahmadia.
Similarly, in the beginning I held the belief that I was not of any worth when compared to Jesus, the son of Mary. As he was a Prophet and very close to Allah, anything which then appeared confirming my superiority over him, I took it to be a sign of partial superiority only. Later on, when constant revelations deluged me, I could not stick to that belief.
I was clearly given the tittle of ‘prophet’ but in such a way that from one angle I was a Prophet, and from another, a flower of the Holy Prophet. I have as firm a faith in this divine revelation as I have belief in all revelations of Allah, which have come before me. I am only a follower of the revelation of Allah. Until I was given this knowledge, I kept saying what I said in the beginning. After being enlightened by this knowledge, I said just the opposite.”(Haqiqatul Wahy PG. 149, 150 Qadian 1934).
The above quotations are so clear in their support that no elucidation is needed. Now if on the face of this evidence, anyone quotes the writings of that early period when the Mirza used to deny that he was a Prophet, what other conclusion can be drawn except that it was an exercise in imposture?
It is a fact that the belief which the Mirza held at the time the Mirza breathed his last, was that he was a Prophet. His last letter, which incidentally was published in “Akhbar-e-Am” exactly on the day he died, reads as follows: “I am a Prophet as ordained by Allah. If I deny this, I will be a sinner. When Allah has named me a Prophet, how can I deny being one? I will firmly cling to this belief until I pass away from this world.” (Akhbar-e-Am, 26th May 1908, quoted by Mirza Mehmood in Haqiqat-ul-Nabuwwah, Mubahatha, Rawalpindi Pg. 36).
This letter was written on 23rd of May 1908 (three days before his death) and was published in Akhbar-e-Am on 26th of May the day of his death. (Qadianism On Trial Pgs. 23, 24 and 25 – Mufti Muhammad Taqi Usmani- Idaratul-Ma’arif Karachi Pakistan).
From this, we can clearly see that the Ahmadis believe that Mirza Ghulam Ahmad was a Prophet. This means that they support the fact that after the Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w), there was another Prophet who was Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian. In this way, they have denied the finality of the Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) which takes a person out of the pale of Islam.
And Allah Knows Best.
Mufti Waseem Khan.
12/11/2014