In a strategic effort to enhance the spiritual and intellectual impact of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama’at in Nigeria, the Director of Raqeem International Press, United Kingdom and Head of Managers, Raqeem International Press Africa, Mu’allim Muzafar Malik Ahmad, convened a high-level meeting with Isha’at (Publications) Secretaries across the country. The engagement focused on strengthening literature propagation and aligning local publishing efforts with global standards.

The meeting was attended by a distinguished delegation, including the Amir, Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama’at Nigeria, Alhaji Alatoye AbdulAzeez, the Missionary-in-Charge, Mukarram Adnan Tahir, and other senior officials of the Jama’at.

In his remarks, the Amir expressed deep appreciation to the Director of Raqeem Press for the sustained technical support and professional expertise the institution has provided to the Nigerian Jama’at over the years. He described the partnership as instrumental to the growth and effectiveness of the Jama’at’s publication efforts.

Explaining the motivation behind his visit, Mu’allim Muzafar Malik Ahmad disclosed that it followed a recent meeting with the Worldwide Head of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama’at, Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad (aba).
He emphasized that his sole mission in Nigeria was to advance the propagation of the Promised Messiah’s (as) message through high-quality literature. Highlighting the meticulous nature of the work, he noted that translating a single book from Urdu to English can take seven to ten years, underscoring the Jama’at’s uncompromising commitment to accuracy and excellence.

Reflecting on history, the Director recalled that the printing presses in Nigeria and Ghana were among the first of their kind in West Africa. He reminded participants that these presses were established for spiritual service, not commercial gain.

He noted that “the purpose of establishing a printing press is not to generate revenue for the Jama’at, Its primary objective is the propagation of Islam Ahmadiyya. To achieve this, Huzoor has directed that every publication must meet the highest standards of quality.”

A major theme of the address was the urgent need to cultivate a strong reading culture, particularly among the youth. Mu’allim Malik Ahmad encouraged parents and Isha’at Secretaries to introduce children to Jama’at literature from an early age, noting that age-appropriate materials are readily available.

He also called for the production of literature that addresses contemporary social and intellectual challenges, citing Al-Hakam and The Review of Religions as exemplary models of modern Islamic scholarship and engagement.

Bringing the session to a close, Mu’allim Muzafar Malik Ahmad announced that several long-awaited publications had been successfully printed within the year. He charged the Isha’at Secretaries with the responsibility of ensuring the immediate and effective distribution of these books to Jama’at members.

The meeting concluded with an interactive Question-and-Answer session, during which participants raised concerns and sought guidance on local publishing challenges, logistics, and distribution strategies, further reinforcing the collaborative spirit of the engagement.

The post Beyond Printing: Raqeem Press Director Highlights Literature as a Tool of Faith -Charges Isha’at Secretaries on Global Publishing Standards appeared first on Jalsa Salana Nigeria.

The Jalsa Salana Platinum Jubilee has kicked off on December 20, 2024, with a thought-inspiring lecture by Mukarram AbdulJaleel AbdulAzeez who shed light on the role of the Promised Messiah, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as), as a manifestation of Allah’s mercy for humanity.

Citing Suratul Jum’ah verses 4-5, Mukarram AbdulJaleel emphasized that the Promised Messiah’s advent was a divine blessing, bestowed upon whomsoever Allah pleased. He clarified that none is better equipped to fulfill this reformation than the man raised by Allah for this purpose.

The Islamic clergy also highlighted testimonials from renowned scholars, including Sir Allama Iqbal, Pakistan’s national poet, who said: “In Punjab we see a pristine and pure manifestation of Islamic character in the form of a group that we call Qadiani Sect.”

Allama Niaz Fatehpuri, another prominent scholar, also acknowledged the Promised Messiah’s pivotal role in reviving Islamic morality and ethics, stating: “There is no denying of the fact that Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Qadiani has surely rekindled the morality and ethics of Islam and created a community whose life can certainly be considered to be a reflection of the character of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (saw).”

Concluding his lecture, Mukarram AbdulJaleel shared the Promised Messiah’s words, emphasizing his mission to reform people of all faiths – Muslims, Christians, and Hindus. The Promised Messiah said: “Finally, let it be clear that my advent in the present age is not for the reformation of the Muslims alone, but I have come to reform the people of all the three religions: Muslims, Christians and Hindus. Just as God has appointed me the Promised Messiah for the Muslims and Christians, so am I the Avatar for the Hindus.”

This enlightening lecture underscored the significance of the Promised Messiah’s mission, highlighting his role in replicating Allah’s mercy and guidance for all humanity.

The post Jalsa Salana Platinum Jubilee Commences with Inspiring Lecture on Promised Messiah appeared first on Jalsa Salana Nigeria.

اشهد أن لا اله إلا الله وحده لا شريك له واشهد أن محمدا عبده و رسوله،أما بعد فاعوذ بلله من الشيطان الرجيم بسم الله الرحمان الرحيم

مَنْ عَمِلَ صَٰلِحًا مِّن ذَكَرٍ أَوْ أُنثَىٰ وَهُوَ مُؤْمِنٌ فَلَنُحْيِيَنَّهُۥ حَيَوٰةً طَيِّبَةً وَلَنَجْزِيَنَّهُمْ أَجْرَهُم بِأَحْسَنِ مَا كَانُوا۟ يَعْمَلُونَ

Whoso acts righteously, whether male or female, and is a believer, We will surely grant him a pure life; and We will surely bestow on such their reward according to the best of their works.

There have existed remarkable women with outstanding achievements in every part of the world at every point of time in history. However, most of their achievements were not recorded in history books. While just as brilliant, truthful, courageous and God-fearing as men, women in many societies have been valued less and often their contributions were discounted,or attributed to men. Notable exceptions were women produced by the religion Islam that were so extraordinary that their worth could not be ignored or minimized. The number of these women is so large that volumes upon volumes of books would need to be written to complete their accounts. Two of such women are Hadhrat Khadija (ra) and Hadhrat Nusrat Jahan Begum (ra)).

Respected Chairman, dear brothers and sisters,all our invited guests,the topic of my speech is Hadhrat Khadija and Hadhrat Nusrat Jahan Begum: Two pious ladies of great sacrifice.

I would like to draw your attention at the outset to one important advise of His Holiness (atba) in his concluding address at Lajna Imai’llah UK Ijtema 2022, Huzur says:

“Quite often, the examples of righteous people are narrated in   our Jama’at programmes; they are not presented just as stories  from the past to entertain us. Rather, the pious examples of our predecessors should guide and inspire us and our children to take up the mantle of being devoted servants of our faith. We learn from them what qualities and virtues Muslims should adopt so we can join the ranks of true believers.”

Dear audience ‘Behind every great man there’s a great woman’ was a proverb immortalised in the English language by a Texas newspaper in 1946, when it reported on the athlete, Meryll Frost. As Frost received a trophy he said, ‘Behind every great man there’s a woman. While I’m not a great man, there is a great woman behind me.’ (New York Times, November 1, 1946, Section Sports, Page 28)

Indeed, behind the greatest man that ever walked on the surface of the earth, Hadhrat Khaatama Nabiyyin, Muhammad Mustapha (sa) was a great woman whom without, the history of Islam would not be the same. That great woman is none other than Hadhrat Khadija al-Kubra (ra), the first and the most beloved wife of the Holy Prophet (sa).

No one can express in beautiful words the great sacrifice of this remarkable woman better than her husband, Muhammad Mustapha (sa), Hadhrat Aisha (ra) relates:

“Never did I feel jealous of the wives of the Messenger of Allah like I do in case of Khadija, although I did not have the privilege to see her. The Messenger of Allah (sa) used to praise Hadhrat Khadija (ra) most often and stressed her virtues and sacrifices that she had made for the cause of Islam. On one such occasion I could no longer control myself. I said to the Messenger of Allah (sa), O Messanger of Allah! Why do you talk so much of the old lady? God has given you better,younger and attractive wives. The Messenger of Allah was overcome by emotion when he heard this. He said said,Oh,No, Aisha! You have no idea how good Khadija was to me. She believed in me when the whole world refuted me and she attested to my veracity when the whole world accused me of falsehood. She offered me compassion and loyalty with her wealth when everyone else had forsaken me. O Aishah ! What can I do? Love for her runs in my blood and is nestled in my heart. (Musnad Ahmad,vol 6, page 117).”

Firstly, the marriage of Hadhrat Khadija (ra) to the Holy Prophet (sa) was indeed of a great sacrifice on her part. A distinguished, affluent and wealthy businesswoman who was a besought of several respected and influential men of Quraish chosed to marry Hadhrat Muhammad Mustapha (ra) who was a poor man, an orphan and a shepard just because of his noble character and stellar reputation. They were both married for approximately twenty five years. And inspite of the disparity between their economic position and age, as she was fifteen years older than the Holy Prophet at the time of their marriage (Al-Tabakatul Kubra Libni Sa’d, Vol.1, p.131-132; Seeratul Halabiyyah Vol.1, p.224.). The marriage proved to be extremely successful, the like of which history will never be able to produce.

Unlike majority of women, Hadhrat Khadija (ra) never used her status or wealth to bully or exert unduly dominion over the Hadhrat Muhammad Mustapha (saw),but instead humbly submitted herself to his authority and laid at his disposal all her wealth and riches. Hadhrat Musleh Maud (ra) writes:

“After her marriage with the holy prophet (sa), Hadhrat Khadija (ra) felt that she was rich and he was poor and that this inequality between them would not make for happiness,so she proposed to make over her property and her slaves to the holy prophet.” (Life of Muhammad,page 8.)

Allah the Almighty reminded the holy prophet (saw) of this favour when He says in Quran Chapter 93 vs 7

وَوَجَدَكَ عَآئِلًا فَأَغْنَى

And He found thee in want and enriched thee.

Ahmadi women should learn from Hadhrat Khadija (ra) that against the backdrop of general belief, a woman can be richer or have economic advantage over her husband and still yet enjoy a happy and successful marriage. All what is required is taqwa, obedience, submissiveness and respect for the husband. Many homes have broken and many relationships have hit bottom rocks as a result of wife being assertive in relationships because of her economic privilege over her husband.

Furthermore, Hazrat Khadijah (ra) was the first to believe in the Messenger of Allah (saw). Therein lay her principal virtue and merit and an attribute which the holy prophet (saw) always cherished. She would prove to be the Prophet’s steadfast ally at all times. it is narrated in Hadith that after the holy prophet (saw) received his first revelation in the cave Hira. He made his way home to Hadhrat Khadija (ra) trembling and asked her to cover him with a blanket. He was overwhelmed with anxiety and said. Khadija! What is happening to me? Fear of my life is beginning to overtake me. At this critical juncture. Hadhrat Khadija (ra) provided her husband with courage and solace by saying,

كلا وَاللَّهِ مَا يُخْزِيكَ اللَّهُ أَبَدًا، إِنَّكَ لَتَصِلُ الرَّحِمَ، وَتَحْمِلُ الْكَلَّ، وَتَكْسِبُ الْمَعْدُومَ، وَتَقْرِي الضَّيْفَ، وَتُعِينُ عَلَى نَوَائِبِ الْحَقِّ‏.‏

“Never! By Allah, Allah will never disgrace you. You keep good relations with your kith and kin, help the poor and the destitute, serve your guests generously and assist the deserving calamity-striken ones.” (Bukhari, Badaul Wahy.)

No one except Allah of course, knows more about a man than his wife, both his good and his bad qualities, his strengths and his weaknesses. Ibn Ishaq,a famous Muslim historian writes:

“Whenever the prophet (saw) would feel troubled by the accusations and abuse that were meted out against him by people, Hadhrat Khadija (ra) would reassure him,ally his troubles, lighten his burdens and ease his difficulties by her attestation and acceptance of his claim.” (Ibni Hisham, Vol.1, p.416.).

In her belief and support for the Holy Prophet (sa), not only did she have to watch the Prophet of Islam suffer and then suffer herself, but she also has to witness her children undergoing difficulties only because of their father was the true prophet of Allah. The disbelievers of Makkah wished to inflict as much pain upon the Holy Prophet (sa) as they could. Hence,they approached his two sons-in-laws,Utbah and Utaybah, sons of Abu Lahab; influenced them to divorce their wives, Hadhrat Ruqayah and Hadhrat Ummul Khulthum (ra). Both brothers divorced their wives. Thus Hadhrat Khadija (ra) had to endure the pains of two of her daughters being divorced simultaneously.

Dear audience! There’s a famous saying that Islam would not have spread if it was not for the wealth of Khadija. This is not an overstatement but rather a true fact. Firstly, it was after marrying Hadhrat Khadija (ra) that the Holy Prophet (sa) gained financial security. He now had time as he was free from the struggles of making a living. He had time to play more active role in the society and to reflect on the conditions of people and find solutions for their problems and social issues, as it has been generally the practice of the prophets of God. Earning a livelihood and worldly affairs require physical hard work while reflection requires mental exertion and puts a strain on mind. It’s well narrated in Hadith how the Messenger of Allah before his commission as a prophet would go in seclusion in the Cave Hira for days to worship Allah alone and reflect on the conditions of his people. Taking along with him some food and sometimes Hadhrat Khadija would herself provided him food at the Cave.

Secondly, after being commissioned as a prophet of God, this pious lady bequeathed all her wealth at the holy prophet’s (sa) disposal for the propagation of Islam. The majority of the early  Muslims were weak and poor, in fact many were slaves. Hadhrat Mirza Bashir (ra) in his great work, Seera Khatama Nabiyyin writes:

” In  any  case,  the  outcome  of  the  three  to  four  year laborious  endeavour  of  the Holy  Prophet (sa) was  merely  these  few  souls.  However, among  these  ancient  pioneers,  with  the  exception  of  Ḥaḍrat  Abū  Bakr (ra),  there were  none  who  possessed  particular  influence  and  honour  among  the  Quraish.  Some  were  slaves  and  most  of  the  others  were  poor  and  weak.    Some,  however, were  related  to  upper  class  families  of  the  Quraish,  but  even  among  them,  most were  youngsters  and  thus,  were  not  in  a  position  to  cast  an  influence  in  their tribes.    Others  who  were  aged  had  no  influence  due  to  their  poverty  or  other reasons.    For  this  reason,  it  was  a  common  thought  among  the  Quraish  that only  young  and  weak  people  had  accepted  Muḥammad  (peace  and  blessings of  Allāh  be  upon  him).    Therefore,  after  many  years,  when  Heraclius,  the  King of  Rome  inquired  of  Abū  Sufyān,  the  Chief  of  Makkah,  “Does  the  nobility  accept Muḥammad  (peace  and  blessings  of  Allāh  be  upon  him)  or  the  weak  lower  class?”    Abū Sufyān  responded,  “The  weak  and  lower  class  accept  him.”    Upon  which  Heraclius answered – and beautifully indeed,  “In the beginning, it is the lower class who accept the Messenger of God.”(Page 178).

Therefore, it was the wealth of Hadhrat Khadija (RA) that the Holy Prophet (sa) used to fed,clothe, sheltered those weak and poor early converts, and as well for procuring the freedom of some of the early Muslim slaves. The two feasts that the Holy Prophet (sa) arranged for his kinsmen who were more or less 40 people at a time in order to call them towards Islam wouldn’t have been financed by any other person except Hadhrat Khadija. The migration of the early Muslims to Abyssinian wouldn’t have been facilitated without the financial help of Hadhrat Khadija (sa).

Lastly, when the persecution of the Kuffar of Makkah yielded them no results, and they saw Islam spreading despite all of their efforts, they adopted the idea of boycotting the Muslims. The boycott lasted for three years. To read about the difficulties  and  hardships  that  the Muslims  were compelled  to  bear  makes  the  body  tremble. Companions  of  the  Holy  Prophet (sa) narrate  that  sometimes,  like  animals,  they  survived  by  eating  the  leaves  of  wild trees.   As far  as  the  children  were  concerned,  the  sounds  of  their  crying  and  screaming could  be  heard  outside  the  encampment,  and  this  would  please  the  Quraish. (Seera Khatama Nabiyyin,page 231)

Although Hadhrat Khadija(ra) came from a noble and wealthy family, she chose to bear grief and pain for the cause of Allah and His Messanger. It was at that critical moment that Hadhrat Khadija depleted her entire fortune supporting the cause of Islam.

Sadly,few days after the demise of Abu Talib, the uncle of the holy prophet who has been his staunch supporter though not a Muslim, the soul of this great woman, Hadhrat Khadija (ra) rested with her Lord during the month of Ramadan, in 7th Nabawi (619 AD). The year is known in Islamic history as ‘Aamul Huzn i.e “The Year of Sorrow”. Her death appeared to the holy prophet (sa) like a mountain of sorrow, for his foremost supporter and partner in life has departed. May her soul continue to rest in perfect peace !

It has been observed these days that some of our members are not paying great attention to the payment of their monthly Chanda. and those that are paying are not paying the accurate prescribed rate. I wholeheartedly admit that things are very tough in the country . But at the same time the work of God should never and will never stop. Let us all take inspiration from the great sacrifice of Hadhrat Khadija for the cause of Islam, which as a result would grant us the nearness and pleasure of Allah the Almighty. Being pleased by Hadhrat Khadija’ timeless sacrifice, Allah conveyed His salam to her through Angel Jubril (as) and gave her the gladtidings of paradise.

The Promised Messiah (as) writes:

“Doomed are the people who spend hundreds for show and display,but when it comes to spending in the way of Allah,they will find all sorts of excuses. It is shameful indeed that a person should enter this Jama’at and not leave behind his miserliness and meaness. Allah has so ordained, that the party of His men always needs financial assistance.” (Majmua-e- Ishtiharat, Vol 3,page 156).

In this modern era, the sacrifice expected of us by Allah the Almighty has taken another dimension and it is now far beyond sacrificing our wealth and lives. Explaining what is it meant by sacrifice in this day and age, Hadhrat Khalifaful Masih V (atba) in his concluding address at lajna Imai’llah UK ijtema 2023 says:

Some may wonder what is meant by sacrifice in this day and age. It is quite simple: to act upon the commands of Allah the Almighty and the Holy Prophet (sa) at all times. It is to worship Allah five times a day at the appointed times. It is to study and ponder over the meaning of the Holy Qur’an and to act upon its commands. It is to train your children according to Islam’s teachings and instil Islamic values within them.

One pious woman who serves as our modern role model that encapsulates all the aspects of sacrifice required of us today is none other than Hadhrat Nusrat Jahan Begum, also famously known in the Jama’at as Hadhrat Amman Jan (literally mean respected and dear mother), the virtuous wife of the Promised Messiah (as). She’s the modern age Khadija for the entire Muslim Ummah. About her, God revealed to the Promised Messiah (as)

أشكر نعمتي رأيت خديجتي

Be grateful to Me that you have found my Khadijah

This reference to  Hadhrat Nusrat Jahan Begum as “Khadijah”, the name of the first wife of the Holy Prophet Muhammad  (sa

) indicates that there are similarities between these two great ladies.

It is interesting to note that both ladies were indeed married for approximately twenty five years to their spouses and bore 10 children each, (although not all survived to adult age.) Similarly, both this pious ladies because of their great sacrifices for the cause of Islam were both blessed with the glad tidings through their husbands, that they had an abode ready for them in Paradise.

The literal meaning of Hadhrat Nusrat Jahan Begum’s (ra)  birth name is “Helper of the World”, this was to be a Divine intimation of the profound impact this pious lady was to have upon the world as the devoted life companion of our most recent prophet. She held esteemed positions within the Jamaat, being the wife of a Prophet of God, the mother of a Khalifa, grandmother of two Khulafa, and the great-grandmother of Hazrat Khalifatul Masih V(atba). She was a modern-day example of the spiritual, moral and personal excellence which can be achieved by following the commandments of the Holy Qur’an and by the blessings of Allah, the one God.

In the field of financial contributions, Hadhrat Nusrat Jahan Begum can be said to have surpassed all expectations. When we read about the sacrifices made by Ahmadis for the construction of Minarat-ul-Masih, Hadhrat Amma Jan’s(ra) name will always be remembered. In May 1900, when the Promised Messiah (as) announced that he needed a hundred people to donate one hundred rupees each to build Minaratul Masih in Qadian, a total of 10,000 Rupees, Hadhrat Amma Jaan (ra) responded by selling some property in Delhi and gave 1000 rupees. Thus donating one tenth of the entire cost. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 2, p. 117).

Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra) was always at the forefront when it came to donating money for any Jama’at appeal or project: these included mission houses, the “Langar Khanah” (community kitchen), Lajna projects, the London and Berlin Mosques and Tahrik-e-Jadid and lots more. She gave them priority over any personal desires. Hadhrat Musleh Maud (ra) has mentioned how his mother sacrificed all her personal desires. For example, he mentioned that when he had made an appeal for contributions for the Al-Fazl newspaper, Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra) sold some of her land for this cause and gave nearly 1000 rupees for it.

It was perhaps in tribute to Hadhrat Amman Jan‟s extensive financial sacrifices that the first mosque to be built in Scandinavia in Copenhagen, Denmark, was named the “Nusrat Jahan Mosque”. This mosque was purely funded by contributions from the Lajna Imaillah at the time. It was the third mosque in Europe to be financed by the ladies, partly inspired by the exemplary financial contributions Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra) had made throughout her life. It was also an acknowledgement of Hadhrat Amman Jan‟s lifelong commitment to serving humanity that Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih III (ra) was to name a pioneering scheme “The Nusrat Jahan Scheme” in 1970. By launching it, the Third Khalifa (ra) desired to open a substantial number of schools, hospitals, clinics and missions in Africa, particularly in West African countries.This scheme has been a source of enormous blessings for the continent of Africa.

Another great sacrifice of Hadhrat Nusrat Jahan Begum that cannot be overlooked is her extraordinary hospitality towards the guests of the Promised Messiah (as). Allah the Almighty revealed to the the Promised Messiah (as) that

يأتون من كل فج عميق و يأتيك من كل فج عميق،لا تصعر لخلق الله و لا تسئم من الناس

They will come by every distant track and will come to you from afar. Don’t turn away from God’s creatures with disdain and don’t get weary of people. (Lecture Ludhiana,page 5)

The Promised Messiah was instructed by God in another revelation

وسع مكانك يأتون من كل فج عميق

Enlarge  your  house;  people will  come  to  you  from  very  distant  land (Announcement of  February 17, 1897, Majmu‘a-e-Ishtiharat, vol. 2,  p. 327)

In fulfilment of this prophecy, visitors from distant parts of the world, Europe, America Asia etc used to come and stay with the Promised Messiah(as) who already have a very large household. It was Hadhrat Nusrat Jahan Begum (ra) that shared this huge responsibility of hospitality towards them. Hadhrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad(ra) her son relates that she was regularly busy cooking.

For us to catch a glimpse of how many guests that must have visited the Promised Messiah (as) during his life time, the Promised (as) Messiah in his book Fateh Islam written in 1891,writes :During the past seven years, a little over 60,000 guests must have come. (Victory of Islam, page 13)

One of the close acquaintances of Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra), Amatul Qayyum Sahibah relates,

“Like Hadhrat Masih-e-Mau’ud (as), Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra) also made alot of sacrifices – one was that she kept food prepared 24 hours a day for any guests that may come. Hudur would sometimes quickly request some “parathas” (butter flatbreads), tea, “lassi”(yoghurt drink) or curry to be brought in; sometimes pickles, chutney or milk,whatever a visitor may request. It seemed that inside it was like an “Aladdin’s Cave”, anything was available immediately. I have seen myself that Hadrat Amman Jan (ra) would not eat so much herself but was always much happier feeding others.” (Hadhrat Amman Jan ,page 54.

What is so remarkable about Hadhrat Nusrat Jahan Begum is that despite her every day household task of cooking, cleaning, washing and attending to the guests of the Promised Messiah (as), the true passion of her life was worship. She had the highest standards of worship and in this day and age is an excellent example for not only modern women but as well as men living in this materialistic world of ours.

It’s related that Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra) usually remained in a state of ablution in anticipation of the Call to Prayer and in the monthly days when she was not required to offer Salat,she would instead spend the time after the Adhan supplicating and remembering Allah. (Ibid, 38)

Hadhrat Amman Jan’s (ra) daughter Hadrat Nawwab Mubaraka Begum (ra) recalls how Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra) observed her prayers with great enthusiasm, conviction and passion. Not only were her prayers filled with fervent supplications but also the etiquettes of “Salat” were observed meticulously and with inspirational beauty. She further writes that she never recalls seeing her mother rush her prayers. (Ibid 36)

The greatest testimony to the weight and importance Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra) gave to the observance of prayers on time is Hadhrat Amman Jan’s astounding behaviour at the time of the death of her son “Bashir-e-Awwal”. Few mothers could even contemplate thinking of anything else but their child if he happened to be critically ill. Despite the fact that her son was critically ill and appearing to be breathing his last breath,when the time of prayer arose, Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra) did her ablutions and performed her prayers with perfect serenity, happy to be fulfilling Allah Almighty’s Commandments. She physically dissociated herself from the tense situation. After completing the prayers she enquired how her son was, to be told that the little one had taken his last breath. Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra) responded “Inna lillahi wa inna ilaihi rajiun “.After this she was silent. There was no wailing or weeping. There were no shrieks or lamentations of regret at the loss of her child, – a true indication that she was indeed one of Allah Almighty’s loyal servants. (Ibid 35).

On one occasion, a lady visited Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra) with her new born daughter. She relates that she waited some time until Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra) had completed her prayers. Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra) then enquired of the ladies visiting if they had offered their prayers. The lady with the child excused herself, explaining that her baby had wet herself and that she would go home and offer prayers after changing her. At this point, Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra) expressed some wise words. She said,”Never omit prayers using your children as an excuse. In this way, your children become a cause of Allah Almighty’s Wrath, when really, they are a reward from Allah Almighty.” (Ibid 39)

Her worship consisted of two elements; firstly, her strict adherence to the five daily prayers; and secondly the abundant recitation of the Holy Qur’an. Why not? The Promised Messiah (as)  has unequivocally announced to the world that

الخير كله في القرآن

All goodness are in the holy quran

During illness and when her eyesight had diminished, Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra) would request someone to recite the Holy Qur’an to her. Whenever Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra) felt restless or burdened, she found solace in the Holy Qur’an. On one occasion,she said concerning “Surah Yasin”, that it should not be considered for one specific time only (as it is commonly recited near the time of death) but that it is a tonic to relieve one of pain and worries at any time. (Ibid 40)

Amazingly,her request one hour before her demise was “Recite the Holy Qur‟an to me”, (Ibid,41).

Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra) eagerly wished to instil the love of the Holy Qur’an in others. At weddings she would often give the bride a copy of the Holy Quran as a gift. Hadrat Amman Jan (ra) also loved to listen to commentaries of the Holy Qur’an and was eager for all Ahmadi ladies to study it. (Ibid 41).

Lastly, Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra) brought a revolutionary change in the way and manner of children upbringing. At the Indonesian Jalsa of July 2002, Hadrat Khalifatul Masih IV (ra) addressed the Lajna and said that a good method for the successful moral training of our children would be to follow the excellent example of Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra).  He stated,”If you wish to save your children from evil influences then follow the pure example of Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra). This prescription is,without fail; and whoever follows it will be successful.”

In this speech the Fourth Khalifa (ra) mentioned the following salient points: he emphasised that Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra) firstly insisted that her children must never lie despite fearing the worst consequences. She taught that falsehood is indeed a form of “shirk” (idolatry), because the perpetrator does it out of fear of an individual or punishments, which they perceive as greater than Allah Almighty. Hudhur said that Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra) did not stress anything more in her children than “developing repulsion for lying”.

Secondly, like Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra) and the Promised Messiah (as) parents should ensure that their children feel that they have belief and confidence in them. This instils self-confidence and high self-esteem in them. Children believe that if their parents respect them so too will others.

Thirdly, Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra) emphasised the importance of prayer.She prayed continuously, day and night. Almost every utterance and action became a prayer on Hadhrat Amman Jan’s  lips.For example,whilst eating with any of her grandchildren she would put a morsel of food in their mouth uttering, “Oh Allah Almighty make his/her fortune good.” Also, if one of the children was leaving the house Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra) would bid farewell with a prayer, “Go, and may Allah Almighty be your Protector and Helper.” She also instructed them to offer the greeting of “Salam” as they entered and left the house.

Fourthly, Hadhrat Amman Jan (ra) encouraged that the training of the eldest child was really important as younger children then followed the eldest and would easily adopt good habits.

There’s a very famous quotation from Napoleon Bonaparte, “Give me a good mother, and I shall give you a great nation!.”

At the end, we all stand together at our respective auxiliary meetings and functions to declare that we are ready to sacrifice our lives, property, time and children, this should resonate deeply within us. These pledges serve as a reminder of the great responsibility laid on us as Ahmadis especially women. The sacrifice of our women is more and highly paramount as Hadhrat Musleh Maud (ra) has succinctly said, without the sacrifice of women the sacrifice of men shall remain only in words. (Friday sermon ,23rd November 1934).

In one of his Friday Sermon, his Holiness (atba) said:

“We must never become negligent in our worship nor in our financial sacrifices nor in any commandments. Because a purposeful life is one is lived to attain nearness of Allah (Friday sermon 9th January 2009).”

And for us not to be negligent, Hadhrat Musleh Maud (ra) warned that,

“Biggest obstacle blocking the path to victory of any nation or community is if its members gain a lust for money and wealth. Such material cravings can easily corrupt people and weaken their resolve to offer sacrifices for their faith and to fulfil their religious objectives. Always remember, it is the promise of Allah the Almighty to the Promised Messiah (as) that our Jama’at will progress and prosper and that, Insha’Allah, one day, the Holy Prophet’s (sa) banner will be raised worldwide and the Oneness of God will be established with great majesty. The question is whether we will be amongst the fortunate souls who fulfilled their duties to this divine cause. If yes, we are among the fortunate ones.” (Concluding address,MKA UK Ijtema 2023).

The post Jalsa Nigeria 2023 Lecture Four:- HADHRAT KHADIJA AND HADHRAT NUSRAT JAHAN BEGUM: TWO PIOUS LADIES OF GREAT SACRIFICE appeared first on Jalsa Salana Nigeria.

Audhu biLlahi mina-sh-shaytani-r-rajeem, Bismillahir Rahmani Raheem

Ashadu ʾan lā ʾilāha ʾillā -llāhu wahdaHu laa Sherika laHu, wa-ʾashadu ʾanna muḥammadan abduHu wa rasūluHu

I bear witness that there is none worthy of worship, except Allah and that Muhammad, (SAW) is His servant and messenger.

Protocols and beloved fathers, mothers, brothers, and sisters in Islam,

Assalaamu Alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa Barakatuhu.

It is with immense gratitude and humility that I stand before you today as a speaker at this prestigious gathering. I extend my heartfelt appreciation to the organizers for this noble opportunity to address such a distinguished and spiritual gathering.

In a world increasingly interconnected by the marvels of technology, we find ourselves immersed in a digital age where the boundaries of time and space seem to fade away. It is within this context that we turn our attention to a topic of great relevance – “Social Media: Its Benefits and Adverse Effects on Society.”

As we delve into the intricacies of this subject, we recognize that the digital landscape, like any tool, can be a double-edged sword. It offers unprecedented opportunities for global connectivity, knowledge sharing, and humanitarian efforts, yet it also presents challenges that demand our thoughtful consideration.

Our exploration today is framed within the teachings of Islam, seeking to understand how social media aligns with the principles of our faith. We embark on this journey with the intention to discern the blessings that this tool brings to our lives while being vigilant against its potential pitfalls.

Let us reflect on the timeless wisdom of the glorious Quran, the teachings of our beloved Prophet, Muhammad (peace be upon him), and that of the Promised Messiah (May Allah be pleased with him) as well as his Khulafa (May Allah be pleased with them) as we navigate the dynamic terrain of social media, aiming to strike a harmonious balance that aligns with our Islamic values.

To start with, social media is a platform that enhances interaction among people, where they create, share, or exchange information and ideas in virtual communities and networks. Whereas, Islam, in its essence, embraces and welcomes progress as long as it aligns with the instructions of Allah in the Quran and the teachings of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).

Islam appreciates advancements in various forms, provided they remain in harmony with the principles laid out by Prophet Muhammad and the divine guidance from Allah. This inclusive approach encourages Muslims to engage with evolving technologies, such as social media, while ensuring that these interactions uphold the values and teachings of Islam.

The essence of life, according to the Holy Quran (Chapter 51, Verse 57), is worship, as Allah declares,

“And I have not created the Jinn and the men but that they may worship Me.”

This underscores that all actions must ultimately lead to the worship of Allah. Utilizing social media to enhance the understanding of Islam or spread faith globally can result in substantial rewards from Allah. Conversely, if social media impedes one’s worship, it may lead to destructive consequences.

Islam places profound importance on social interaction within prescribed limits and for righteous reasons. Using salat as an example, the Holy Prophet, peace be on him said,

salatul jama’ati tafdhulu salatal fardi bi sab’in wa ishreena darajah … prayer in congregation is better than individual prayer by 27 times. Some other narrations say 25 times. (Sahih al-Bukhari hadith 649).

This hadith emphasizes the superiority of congregational prayer over individual prayer, underlining the significance of physical interaction. Islam’s encouragement of physical gatherings is evident in compulsory prayers like Jumuah and festive occasions such as Eid. Visiting the sick is highly rewarded, and today, you can earn similar reward through a simple WhatsApp message.

In the contemporary era, technology facilitates social networking, allowing you to reach numerous people through the touch of a button. This ease of communication presents an opportunity to earn rewards by spreading positive messages. However, it also highlights the responsibility to avoid spreading negativity, as the same button can be used for harm. Muslims are urged to reflect on their choices in using technology, considering whether they are earning rewards or incurring the wrath of Allah.

Islam encourages meaningful and positive interactions, recognizing the value of human connection and the potential for earning rewards in this life and the hereafter.

In essence, Islam acknowledges the evolving dynamics of social interaction, urging believers to use technological advancements responsibly. Specific Quranic verses and Hadith guide Muslims, emphasizing the principles of worship and righteousness prescribed by Allah and Prophet Muhammad. It is therefore, extremely important to know that this social interaction in Islam is definitely an act of worship if it is done correctly.

THE BLESSINGS OF SOCIAL MEDIA IN ISLAM

In the dynamic landscape of the 21st century, the advent of social media has emerged as a transformative force, weaving a digital tapestry that connects Muslims across the globe. This connectivity which is a manifestation of the unifying power of technology, transcends geographical and cultural boundaries, fostering a sense of unity in our diverse Ummah.

Global Connection:

Social media platforms serve as virtual bridges, enabling Muslims from various corners of the world to come together in celebration of shared values and practices. Whether it be festive occasions or collective prayers, the digital realm allows us to experience the richness of our global Islamic identity. This unity, born out of diversity, is a testament to the potential of social media to strengthen the bonds of brotherhood.

According to a report by Datareportal, social media has become a powerful tool for global connection, with the number of social media users worldwide growing from 4.62 billion in January 2022 to 4.72 billion in January 2023, accounting for a 3% growth. As of October 2023, there are 4.95 billion social media users around the world, equating to 61.4% of the global population. These statistics demonstrate the widespread use of social media and its potential for global connection.

Similarly, the social media makes it possible for members of the Jamaat across the globe to connect and share moments. Members in Nigeria are aware of things that are happening to our brethren in Pakistan, Malaysia, Indonesia, Egypt, Iran, and other countries just as we are able to connect with those in the United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, and other countries. We learn from ourselves and compete in that which is good through the use of social media.

Ultimately, social media gives us the opportunity to connect with our spiritual leader. We can listen to the sermons of Hazrat Khalifat-ul-Masih (aba), we get his instructions as fast as possible. We also learn the values and teachings of the Jamaat all through the social media. In his Friday sermon, delivered on the 20th of May, 2016 at Guttenberg Mosque, Sweden, Huzoor Aqdas, may Allah be his helper, advised members of the Jamaat that:

“Social media must be used as a means to connect with the Khalifah and gain the pleasure of Allah”.

Access to Knowledge:

One of the profound blessings of social media lies in its role as a repository of knowledge. Platforms, ranging from forums to social media groups, democratize access to religious teachings. The accessibility of this knowledge empowers individuals globally, fostering a deeper understanding of Islam and encouraging a continuous journey of spiritual growth.

The rise of online lectures, webinars, and courses has revolutionized Islamic education. Regardless of geographical location, Muslims can now engage in virtual classrooms, contributing to a global exchange of ideas and deepening their understanding of Islam. This virtual connectivity transforms learning from a solitary pursuit to a collective endeavor, enriching the collective intellect of the Ummah.

It must be noted that the Jamaat now employs social media as learning platforms to improve the taleem and tarbiyyat of members of the Jamaat. During his special Jalsa Salana address on the 9th August 2020, Hazrat Khalifat-ul-Masih said:

“The Promised Messiah (peace be upon him) himself established The Review of Religions, and its first edition was published in January 1902. By the Grace of God this magazine has been running for 118 years. It is being printed in English, French, Spanish and German accompanied by a website and social media channels for each language”, contributing to the overall access of knowledge through the social media”.

The sermons of Hazrat Khalifat-ul-Masih as well as other instructions are now sent via WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter, and other social media platforms, making it easy to pass and receive knowledge.

Improving Tabligh Efforts.

Social media platforms provide a dynamic space for intellectual exchange and thoughtful discourse within the Muslim community. Online debates and discussions challenge and expand our understanding of Islam, fostering an environment where diverse perspectives contribute to a more nuanced comprehension of our faith.

In a sermon delivered by Hazrat Khalifat-ul-Masih on the 22nd of July, 2016, he said,

“In today’s world, by the grace of Allah, the Jamaat is being introduced through many newspapers. The press and media department of the Jamaat is also playing a very essential role regarding this aspect and it is being conducted on very large scales throughout the world. So, it is the duty of the tabligh department that they should utilize this introduction and [ensure that] the real message of Islam be conveyed to the people. It should not be that you put something once in the newspaper, but then it is the responsibility of the tabligh department that they should use this methodology for spreading the word. This introduction should be used for proper tabligh. And for this purpose, new ways and methods should be adopted”.

It must be noted that Allah said in the Quran chapter 3 verse 110 that:

“You are the best community ever raised for humanity—you encourage good, forbid evil, and believe in Allah. Had the People of the Book believed, it would have been better for them. Some of them are faithful, but most are rebellious”.

It is therefore the grace of Allah for providing such platform that makes it easy for us to communicate the message of Allah to the world. We can condemn evil and enjoin goodness from the comfort of our homes and through the click of just one button.

Social Media for Good:

The compassionate teachings of Islam find a contemporary expression in the digital realm through charitable initiatives. Muslims leverage social media to raise awareness and funds for humanitarian causes, embodying the spirit of “giving” ingrained in our faith. The power to make a difference extends beyond physical borders, as virtual connections translate into tangible support for those in need.

In times of crisis, social media becomes a rapid-response tool for organizing and coordinating relief efforts. The ability of the Muslim community to swiftly mobilize resources and aid through digital platforms demonstrates the profound impact of collective compassion. Social media, in these instances, emerges as a lifeline, illustrating the potential for positive change that lies within our interconnected digital world.

THE ADVERSE EFFECTS OF SOCIAL MEDIA

In the era of social media dominance, where every click echoes in the virtual corridors of the digital realm, it becomes imperative to scrutinize the potential adverse effects on the fabric of Islamic values. While social media presents a myriad of opportunities, it also poses challenges that demand our vigilant consideration, guided by the principles of our faith.

Spread of Falsehood and Disinformation:

One of the significant challenges in the digital age is the proliferation of misinformation and falsehood. Social media, with its rapid dissemination of information, requires Muslims to be discerning consumers of content. Whereas, the Quran emphasizes the importance of verifying information before accepting and spreading it. Allah says in Quran chapter 49 verse 7 that:

“O People who Believe! If any miscreant brings you some tidings, verify it, lest you unknowingly cause suffering to some people, and then remain repenting for what you did”.

On the contrary, false information has continued to spread widely especially through the use of social media.

Research by MIT Sloan research about social media, misinformation, and elections shows that false rumors spread faster and wider than true information on social media. Falsehoods are 70% more likely to be retweeted on Twitter than the truth, and reach their first 1,500 people six times faster. This effect is more pronounced with political news than other categories.

Another source highlighted the challenges of establishing trusted arbiters of accurate information in Nigeria, noting that:

Social media remains a source of disinformation, and there is growing evidence that older generations of Nigerians are the most avid sharers of disinformation.

The report also noted the exponential growth in the use and availability of mobile phones with internet access in Nigeria, contributing to the spread of disinformation. Writing in 2009, journalist Sola Odunfa noted that

“There is only one industry I know in Nigeria which is completely immune to the vagaries of the national economy and the well-oiled machine of the government security and intelligence services. It is big, it is strong, it never sleeps, and it is unimaginably creative—but it is invisible. I am talking of the Nigerian rumor mill…It is so powerful that it has permeated the conventional media. Many newspapers and magazines publish products of the rumor mill as authentic news”.

Because of the use of social media, the volume of disinformation now circulating in Nigeria is unprecedented, and has further exacerbated pre-existing ethnic and religious tensions that predate the internet. In 2019, a video that circulated on Facebook and WhatsApp showed Hausa farmers sprinkling insecticide on their beans before they were transported to the southeast of the country. The purpose of this was to preserve the produce from pests such as weevils during the long journey. However, interpretations and voice-overs of the video emerged that drew on longstanding tensions between members of the Hausa and Igbo ethnic groups, claiming that the farmers were sprinkling poison, not insecticide. The average person who doesn’t bother to ask critical questions or even verify the news would believe this version of the story and share it with others who are also likely to believe and before you know it, there can be a clash between Hausa and Igbos. This is just one out of several potential damages the social media can cause if information gotten from it are not sieved.

In navigating the sea of online information, Muslims, especially Ahmadis are encouraged to uphold the values of truthfulness and integrity, ensuring that what they share aligns with the teachings of Islam. Similarly, we are encouraged to verify information before sharing so that we do not become one of those who spread false news.

Transcending Privacy:

The digital age brings with it concerns about privacy; a concept highly valued in Islam. The ease with which personal information can be shared and accessed online requires Muslims to exercise caution. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) highlighted the sanctity of privacy, and in the digital space, it becomes essential to safeguard personal information. Responsible use of social media involves being mindful of the potential consequences of sharing private details and ensuring that our online presence reflects the modesty and humility encouraged by our faith.

Huzoor Anwar, during his concluding address at Jalsa Salana Germany on 26th, June 2011, said:

“These days a new method of introduction has been created on the computer and the Internet called Facebook. Though it is not that new, but it was introduced in the last few years. I had previously discouraged you from this practice. I had said in my sermons that it encourages immodesty. It shatters the boundaries among people, boundaries from one another, boundaries around secrets. It exposes secrets and invites indecency. The creator of this site has said, ‘I have created this and I believe that whatever a man is on the outside and inside should be exposed to others.’ In his view, exposing someone means that if someone wants to post a nude picture of himself, he may and even encourages others to comment on it. This is allowed! Innalillah ‘To Allah we return’. Similarly, anyone can post about anything he sees. If this is not extreme moral regression and degradation, then what is? In this state of moral regression and degradation, an Ahmadi has to teach the high standard of morality and virtue.”

Huzoor said:

“It is also obligatory on men to safeguard their piety and modesty. They have been commanded to observe ghade basr (lowering of gaze) and should keep their gaze lowered and hearts and mind safeguarded against impure thoughts and bad intentions. Each Islamic principle is based on wisdom and strong reasoning. Through ghade basr, Islam teaches control of the self. Thus, you should remember that piety is an important characteristic trait of an Ahmadi which can lead one to attain spiritual heights”. (Message for Annual Ijtema Khuddam and Atfal ul Ahmadiyya, India 10 October 2017. Published Weekly Badr Qadian 02 November 2017)

Similarly, he instructed women to not post their pictures online. In fact, these days, the boundaries have been so shattered that clothes can be removed from pictures and posted on social media platforms.

Spreading Vices:

While social media provides a platform for positive engagement, it also presents challenges to the preservation of Islamic values. The potential for the dissemination of inappropriate content, offensive language, or behavior contrary to Islamic principles necessitates a vigilant approach. Muslims are called to be ambassadors of their faith online, embodying the principles of respect, kindness, and moral conduct in their digital interactions. Striking a balance between active participation and maintaining Islamic values requires constant mindfulness and adherence to the teachings of our faith.

In the current age, the circle of wrongdoing is expanding due to the extreme expansion of the communication system. Hence, it is important that members of this community to be very mindful of how they make use of these inventions and how to communicate with people online.

Hazrat Khalifat-ul-Masih, during his sermon delivered on the 6th of Dec, 2013, said:

“These days the practical danger stems from the rampant and uncontrollable spread of the societal ills and, worse, some ills are given legal protection in the name of freedom of expression and speech. Evil was somewhat restricted before this age. The evil of the neighborhood remained in the neighborhood, a city’s evil stayed in the city, and a country’s evil remained in the country. At worst, neighbors would be affected by an evil. Now, however, with the ease of travel, television, Internet and various media these individual and localized evils have turned into international evils. Contacts are forged on the Internet across thousands of miles to spread evil and indecency.”

Again, he said:

“The latest inventions such as TV and Internet have redefined the historically established standards of modesty. Even after showing blatant immodesty, they say it is not so. The standard of modesty of an Ahmadi is not how it is shown on TV and the Internet. This is not modesty: rather, it is people being embroiled in lust and passion. Immodesty and indecency have also changed the standards of modesty in some apparently decent Ahmadi household. In the name of progress, such [vulgar] things are discussed and such [vulgar] actions are taken, which are not permissible for any decent human, even if they are husband and wife. Some matters are such that when they are done in front of others, not only are they unwarrantable, they become sins. If Ahmadi families do not clean their homes of such vulgarities, then they have not honored their pledge, which they had made at the hand of the Imam of this age, and they have wasted their belief”.

The Holy Prophet(sa) clearly said:

Modesty is part of faith.

(Sahih Muslim Kitabul iman baab Shu’aib ul Iman wa Afdaluha Hadith number 59)

Hence, every Ahmadi, most importantly, the youth should be especially cognizant of not getting ensnared by the transgressions shown by the Media; otherwise, they may lose their faith. Under the influence of these indecencies some individuals cross all limits and have to be excommunicated by way of punishment.

Always remember that all your actions should be done to please Allah.

It was related that Holy Prophet (peace be on him) said:

“Indecency makes the perpetrator unsightly and modesty and bashfulness gives a modest person inner and outer beauty and makes him beautiful.”

(Sunan Tirmidhi Kitabul Birr wa Sila Bab maja’a fil Fuhsh wal Tafahhush. Hadith 1974}.

The most disturbing fact is that these vices have continued to increase with the passing of time.

A report from The Guardian noted a significant increase in social media-related crime reports, with complaints to police about alleged crimes linked to the use of Facebook and Twitter increasing by 780% in four years. This included alleged offenses committed on the sites, such as posting abusive messages, and those provoked by postings, including violent attacks

Another study published by the frontiers in public health found that 48% of adolescents used social media for 3 hours or more per day, and 43.7% had moderate to severe psychological distress, with a higher prevalence among females (54%) than males (31%)

We are all aware that in recent time, the social media account of many prominent members of the Jamaat have being hacked. Hence, it is very important that we safeguard ourselves from the harm associated with social media.

STRIKING A BALANCE

In the ever-evolving landscape of social media, finding equilibrium becomes imperative for Muslims seeking to uphold their faith while actively participating in the digital sphere. Striking a balance involves a conscientious approach, aligning our online presence with the teachings of Islam and embracing the concept of moderation as prescribed in the Quran.

Islam, in its wisdom, advocates for moderation in all aspects of life. This principle extends to our engagement with social media. While these platforms offer opportunities for connection and information sharing, excessive use or obsessive attachment can lead one away from the path of moderation. The Quranic principle of

“And thus, We have made you a balanced community that you will be witnesses over the people” (Quran 2:143)

resonates in the call to be a just and balanced community, even in the digital realm.

Huzoor said:

Evils of these days include television and the Internet. You can observe this in most homes that the eldest to the youngest are not offering Fajr Salat on time as they were either watching TV or were online on the Internet until late, watching some program and, as a result, they could not wake up on time. In fact, such people do not even realize that they have to get up for Salat in the morning. Both the Internet and TV and similar useless things not only cause you to miss your Salat once or twice, but those who fall victim to this behavior get into this habit of watching programs until late at night or sitting on the Internet. Then it becomes difficult to get up for the prayer in the morning and [such people] may not even wake up [at a reasonable time]. Some people eventually fail to give any importance to Salat

Besides, it is the duty of every parent to guide their children and ensure that they do not misuse these inventions. Allah says:

O ye who believe! let not your wealth and your children divert you from the remembrance of Allah… (Quran: 63:10).

Regarding this, Huzoor said:

“Sometimes one’s children go against the word of God, which is a type of shirk [associating partners with Allah]. Disobeying a clear commandment of Allah, the Exalted, so that one may agree with the demands of the children is a covert shirk. Such matters make one forget Allah the Exalted. Some people have distanced themselves from Ahmadiyya because of their children. When excessive love for children and freedom given to children made the children leave the faith, the parents themselves left the faith”.

His holiness said:

If the mother and father show weakness, then it will be tantamount to killing their children. In particular, as the head of the household, men have the greatest duty and obligation to save their children from falling in the fire. Allah through His Benevolence, saved you or your elders from suffering the torment of the fire by enabling you or your elders to recognize the Imam of this age. The world and especially other Muslims are anxious to find a leader who can guide them. You have been blessed by Allah that you receive guidance through the Bai’at of the Imam. By staying connected to the Khilafat, you are reminded of staying firm on virtues. Thus, the blessings of Allah demand that when reminded you should say Labbaik [Here I am] and make a pledge to avoid all evils. Establish virtues yourself and instruct your children to do the same and make efforts in this regard.

Always remember this commandment and warning from Allah:

‘O ye who believe! save yourselves and your families from a Fire…’ [Holy Quran 66:7]

In conclusion, the Promised Messiah(as) expects every member of this community to always safeguard themselves from falsehood, fornication, trespasses of the eye, quarrel, cruelty, dishonesty, mischief, and rebellion. We need to constantly evaluate ourselves to see if we are staying away from these evils. Some people consider these things to be trivial and insignificant. They lie in their business and their affairs. They consider falsehood to be insignificant, even though Allah the Exalted has equated falsehood with shirk. The evils of fornication and trespasses of the eyes are common due to the media. In homes, through television or the Internet, such vulgar and obscene films and programs are shown that push a human toward evil. The young boys and girls in some Ahmadi homes have been engaged in such evils. In the beginning, such films are seen in the name of open-mindedness. Then some unfortunate homes get embroiled in these evils. The fornication of the mind and the eyes is real and gradually this behavior leads to actual sin. Parents [sometimes] are not careful in the beginning, but when the matter gets out of control, they lament and cry that our children have gone astray… our progeny has gone astray. Hence, it is important to be watchful. Do not let children sit in front of TV when vulgar programs are shown and be mindful of their use of Internet.

The Holy Prophet (May peace and blessings of Allah be on him) was so concerned about saving the believers from the attacks of Satan that he (May peace and blessings of Allah be on him) taught his companions prayers to save them from Satan, and he taught them comprehensive prayers. A companion has narrated that he (may the peace and blessing of Allah be on him) taught us this prayer:

‘O Allah create love in our hearts, reform us, and make us tread upon the paths of security, and take us to light saving us from darkness, and save us from overt and covert indecencies, and place blessings for us in our ears, in our eyes, in our hearts, in our wives and in our children, and turn to us with mercy. You are the acceptor of repentance and the one who forgives time and again. Make us the ones who are grateful for your favors and appreciate them and accept them. And, O Allah, perfect Your favors on us.’ (Sunnan Abu Daud Kitabus Salat. Bab Al-Tashahud Hadith 969)

Huzoor Aqdas has informed that prayer is meant to help us restrain from being attached to the vanities of this world wrongly. May Allah save us from the punishment that might arise from the wrong use of these advancements and make it very easy for us to use them rightly. Amin

Wassalaamu alaykum warahmatullahi wabarakatuhu.

The post Jalsa Nigeria 2023 Lecture Six:- SOCIAL MEDIA: ITS BENEFITS AND ADVERSE EFFECTS ON SOCIETY. appeared first on Jalsa Salana Nigeria.

Bismillahir Rahmānir Raheem.

Interestingly, the Holy prophet (ﷺ ) roundly prophesized the advent of a great reformer who was to come in the latter days to rejuvenate faith and bring peace back to the world after all the bloodletting and gory killings mankind  would have witnessed.

“The Prophet (ﷺ) said: If only one day of this world remained. Allah would lengthen that day till He raised up in it a man who belongs to me or to my family whose name will be akin to my name, and whose father’s name will be similar to my father’s, he will fill the earth with equity and justice as it has been filled with oppression and tyranny ” (Sunnan Abi Dāud, Kitābul Mahdi, Hadith No 4282).

In the fullness of time, Allah raised Hadrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad as the awaited Mahdi and promised Messiah who was to fill the world with justice and equity, supported by numerous heavenly signs, and after an accomplished lifetime dedicated to the service of Islam, he passed on to the world beyond in the year 1908 leaving behind the institution of prophetic khilāfah (Khilafatun ‘ala minhājin Nubuwwah) in the fold of  Ahmadiyyah which he had founded under divine commandment in the year 1889, and today is firmly established in over 220 sovereign countries of the world under the leadership of the fifth khaleefah, Hadrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad(A.T.B.A).

In his own words, the Promised Messiah(as) has stated in his book titled The Will: “I came from God as a Manifestation of Divine Providence and I am a personification of His Power. And after I am gone there will be some other persons who will be the manifestation of the second Power [of God].’ (Al Wasiyyah, The Will, p. 8)

“The Promised Messiahas has also stated: “It is essential for you to witness the second Manifestation also, and its Coming is better for you because it is everlasting the continuity of which will not end till the Day of Judgement.’ (Ibid, p. 7). This is in clear fulfilment of a grand prophecy of the holy prophet (ﷺ) wherein he says; “Hudhayfah bn Alyaman reports that the prophet[ﷺ] said Prophethood shall remain with you for as long as Allah will, then He shall take it away when He pleases. Thereafter comes successorship under the precepts of prophethood, then He shall take it away when He wishes, then there shall come to being cruel kings, and their rein shall be as long as He wills, after which tyrannical kings shall take their place, then they shall lord as long as He pleases and be taken away when He so desires, and finally, there shall be successorship on the precepts of prophethood(once again)then he( ﷺ) remained silent.[Musnad Ahmad Bn Hanbal,  pg No 18406].

The promise of the institution of another rightly guided khilāfah is firmly rooted in the holy Qur’ān. Allah says in Qur’ān chapter 24 vs 56

” Allah has promised those among you who believe and do good works, that He will most certainly appoint successors (khulafāhu) for them on the earth, as He made successors for those who were before them, and He will most definitely establish for them their religion which He has chosen for them, and He will most surely after their fear, give them security, they shall serve me not associating aught with me, whoever is ungrateful after this, these it is who are the disobedient ones”

In truth to these prophecies, the khilafat-e – Ahmadiyya has been in existence for the past 115 years, spanning through the eras of five rightly guided khulafāhu.

The modern world on the other  hand which is the symbol of the latter days is rife with chaos, warfare, bloodshed, and a host of other palpable crises. In the 19th century, mankind witnessed two destructive world wars(WW1 and WW2) As a matter of fact, 75 million lives were lost in WW2 alone, sadly, majority of the victims were non-combatant civilians. Recently, we had the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, and we’re currently witnessing a massive annihilation of the Palestinians by the Israelis, there is also a heightened tension between China and Taiwan, of course, we also have the cold war between The united States Of America and her cronies and China and her allies, and there is virtually no safe haven today in the whole world. As if all these are not enough, the possibility of a far more destructive WW3 is looming over the globe, it could be said that it is now a matter of when and no longer if. Coupled to this is a host of natural hazards, disasters and calamities across the globe in the form of hurricanes [like Katrina], earthquakes [like the vastly destructive case recently in Turkey and some parts of Syria.], tsunamis [like the Tohoku Tsunami in Ishiomaki, Japan], wildfires [like the one in Australia and New Zealand] and even the deadly pandemic [Covid 19 and her variants] which claimed millions of live globally.

Be that as it may, these aforementioned global unrests and natural disasters were meant to be divine fulfilments of many a prophecy about the latter days as contained in numerous scriptures. For instance, the bible says in Matthew 24 vs 7 that: “For nation shall rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom, and there shall be famines, and pestilences and earthquakes in diverse places”

The Holy Qur’an confirms this in Sūratul Anbiyaah, 21 vs 100: ” And on that day we shall leave some of them in conflict with others, and the trumpet will be blown, so we will gather them all together”

Furthermore, indiscriminate killings will be one of the features of the latter days according to the holy prophet (ﷺ)

” And there shall be much killing” (Saheehul Bukhāri, Kitābu l Fitan, Bābu fi ashrātis sā’hah, Hadith No 1036).

The questions that readily beckon to the mind of every discerning man are where lies the headway? What is the solution to this global pandemonium and disarray? Can global peace and stability ever be achieved in the face of the current myriad of crises bedeviling our world? I make bold to claim that there is only one panacea that answers all these questions, and it is khilafate Ahmadiyyah being the harbinger of justice and peace in the latter days.

For the past 115 years, Khilafat-e-Ahmadiyya has been making great efforts to foster peace in the world, and has granted the world valuable guidance in this regard. Coupled to this, the fourth khaleefatul Maseeh [Hadrat mirza Tahir Ahmad RA] had in 1994 launched “Humanity first”: An international non-governmental organization, to provide aid and relief materials to disaster­-struck and socially disadvantaged individuals and families in the poorer communities of the world cutting across six continents; namely, Africa, Asia, Australasia, Europe, North America, and South America. As such, Humanity First was at some war-torn parts of Africa, Myanmar, Burma, Ishiomaki, Tohoku, Japan, Australia and New Zealand and a host of other places terribly befallen with natural hazards, war, famine and the likes. Need I say that all these services were rendered pro bono of course, without vested interests, preferential treatments, ulterior motives and primordial sentiments.

In 2004, Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad, Khaleefatul Maseeh V[aba] initiated the annual Peace Symposium in the UK where religious leaders, dignitaries, ambassadors, politicians, diplomats, civil rights organisations, parliamentarians, and stakeholders of different backgrounds are invited and Huzoor[A.T.B.A] delivers the keynote speech, addressing guests regarding the bleak situation of the world, the lack of peace, the need for justice and the way forward based on the teachings of Islam, with people from all walks of life who have proven to be good ambassadors of justice and peace also getting awarded.

For the past two decades, Huzoor Aqdas Hadrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad (A.T.B.A) has been granting valuable guidance to world leaders with regard to establishing lasting peace and harmony. He wrote letters to the leaders of various countries, delivered keynote addresses in several parliaments, and addressed various receptions held in his honour around the world. The point that he has always emphasized is that the only pathway for mankind to achieve peace is turning to the One God, the Creator of this universe.

It should be borne in mind that there can be no peace without justice been upheld, and that justice cannot be attained by an individual without God consciousness and piety.

Espousing on this point, On 20^th of March 2010, addressing the peace symposium at the Baitul Futuh Mosque, Huzoor Aqdas ; Hadrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad(A.T.B.A) said: “I wish to make something very clear, and that is that a relationship of mutual love, affection and loyalty between one person and another cannot be established until a relationship of love, affection and loyalty with the Lord Who created us is developed. Distress and anxiety exist nowadays in a large part of the world’s population because the world has forgotten its Creator. People have forgotten the fundamental teachings of their faith. In fact, a great number of people even reject the existence of God.

“The Founder of the Ahmadiyya Muslim community has also taught us that the majority of Muslims and non-Muslims have forgotten their fundamental teachings and have gone far away from God. This growing distance from God and religion is increasing the restlessness in the hearts of people. And he said that he had come, therefore, to remove such distance so that the rights of God may be discharged and the rights of God’s creation may also be discharged with feelings of love and sympathy. When these teachings are acted upon then we will observe real peace; otherwise, agitation will once again bring about utter destruction in the world.” (7th Annual Peace Symposium, www.reviewofreligions.org).

As such, one can only pay the dues of God and fellow humans justly and equitably after a state of piety has been achieved internally, and this is a fundamental requirement for peaceful coexistence both locally and internationally. It could also be said that natural disasters are as a result of Divine wrath, hence it is imperative for mankind to turn in repentance to God, fulfil His rights and the rights of His creations so as to ward off His anger against the world.

His holiness also said that: “True justice requires that the sentiments and the religious practices of all peoples of the  world should  be honoured and respected too. This is the way by which the peace of mind of people can be kept intact. We should remember that when the peace of mind of a person is disturbed then the peace of mind of the society is also affected. As I said earlier, I am grateful to the British legislators and politicians for fulfilling the requirements of justice and for not interfering in this way. This, in fact, is the teaching of Islam that is given to us by the Holy Qur’an. The Holy Qur’an declares that: There should be no compulsion in religion (ch. 2: v. 257). This commandment not only counters the accusation that Islam was spread by the sword, but also tells Muslims that acceptance of faith is a matter between man and his God, and you should not interfere in this in any way. Everyone is permitted to live according to his faith and to perform his religious rituals. However, if there are any practices performed in the name of religion that harm others and go against the law of the land, then the law enforcers of that State can come into action, because if there is any cruel ritual being practiced in any religion, it cannot be the teaching of any Prophet of God. This is the fundamental principle for establishing peace at the local level as well as the international level. Moreover, Islam teaches us that if as a result of your change of faith, any society, or group or a government tries to interfere in the observance of your religious practice, and thereafter the circumstances change in your favour, then always remember that you must carry no malice or ill-will. You should not think of taking revenge but should rather establish justice and equity. The Holy Qur’an says: O ye who believe! Be steadfast in the cause of Allah, bearing witness in equity; and let not a people’s enmity incite you to act otherwise than with justice.  Be always just, that is nearer to righteousness. And fear Allah.  Surely Allah is aware of what you do (ch. 5: v. 9). This is the teaching for peace in society. Never depart from justice even for your enemy. The early history of Islam shows us that this teaching was followed and all the demands of justice were fulfilled. I cannot give too many examples of this but history bears testimony to the fact that after the Victory of Makkah, the Holy Prophet[ﷺ] did not take any revenge from those who had tormented him but forgave them and allowed them to adhere to their respective faiths” [World crisis And Pathway to Peace pg 14 – 15].

A clear violation of this Qur’anic injunction is responsible for the palpable bloodletting and heightened tension in Palestine and the entire Middle East today, It is wrong of the UNGA under every canon of justice  and fair dealing to have voted a part of the Palestinian land to create the Israeli nation in 1947 as contained in the infamous document known as the Balfour declaration, the carnage, gory killings, endless chaos, bloody orgies that the world have always witnessed from that end could have been avoided by only allowing the Israelis to live peacefully in Palestine as foreigners or at best as countrymen to the Palestinians, that is justice and equity.

Still in his book titled; World crisis and pathway to peace, Huzur Aqdas (A.B.A) said “The Holy Qur’an has given some golden principles for establishing peace in the world. It is an established fact that greed causes enmity to grow. Sometimes it manifests itself in territorial expansion or the seizing of the natural resources or, indeed, in impressing the superiority of some upon others. This leads to cruelty, whether it is at the hands of merciless despots who usurp the rights of people and prove their supremacy in pursuit of their vested interests, or it is at the hands of an invading force. Sometimes, the cries and anguish of the cruelly treated people call out to the outside world.

But be that as it may, we have been taught the following golden principle by the Holy Prophet of Islam(ﷺ) which is: help both the afflicted and the cruel. The Companions of the Prophet[ﷺ] enquired that whereas they could understand helping the afflicted, how could cruel person be helped? The Prophet[ﷺ] responded by saying, ‘By stopping his hand from committing cruelty because his excess in cruelty will make him worthy of God’s punishment. So, out of mercy, you try to save him. (Sahih al-Bukhari, Kitabul-Ikrah, Babo Yaminir-Rajule Le Sahibihi, Hadith No : 6592)   Then he goes further to say: “This principle extends beyond the smallest fibres of society to the international level. In this connection, the Holy Qur’an says: And if two parties of believers fight against each other, make peace between them; then if after that one of them transgresses against the other, fight the party that transgresses until it returns to the command of Allah. Then if it returns, make peace between them with equity, and act justly. Verily, Allah loves the just. (ch. 49: v. 10). Though this teaching is about Muslims, yet by adhering to this principle, the foundation of peace on a worldwide basis can be laid. In order to maintain peace, it has been explained at the outset that the foremost requirement is justice. And, despite abiding by the principle of justice, if efforts to make peace are unsuccessful, then unite and fight collectively against the party that has transgressed and continue until such a time that the transgressing party is ready to make peace. Once the transgressing party is ready to make peace, the requirement of justice is: do not seek revenge, do not impose restrictions or embargoes” [Ibid, pg 16]

He continues by saying “By all means, keep an equitable relationship between the warring parties, without fear or favour or giving to any kind of prejudice or primordial sentiment for none of the two warring parties”.

Had this been done in the saga between Israel and Palestine by the super powers of the world, a whole lot of innocent children including infants would have been saved from the throes of bloody death. It is regrettably sad, that, the big powers of the western world condemned the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, imposed sanctions and embargoes on the Russian government, but looked away in the case of Israel and Palestine, and visibly took sides with the Israelis.

He further said: ” Another principle that we have been taught for restoring peace in the world is not to covetously eye the wealth of others. The Holy Qur’an says: “And strain not thy eyes after what We have bestowed on some classes of them to enjoy for a short time—the splendour of the present world—that We may try them

thereby… (ch. 20: v. 132).  Greed or any envy of the wealth of others is a cause of increasing restlessness in the world. On a personal basis, keeping up with the Joneses, as the saying goes, has resulted in unending greed and destroyed social peace. Greedy competition on a national basis started and led to the destruction of world peace. This is proven by history and every sensible person can assess that the desire for the wealth of others causes envy to grow and is the source of loss” [Ibid, pg 17-18].

A good example of the problem exposited herein by His holiness here is the case of the recent multiple coup de ‘tat witnessed in some French speaking countries of Africa, the military mutineers who dethroned democratically elected president cited massive exploitation of their mineral reserves by French authorities and the resultant poverty in their lands as the chief of the reasons for the rebellion.

He goes further to say “Nowadays, the world considers itself more sophisticated, conscious and educated than in the past. Even in the poor countries there are such intelligent souls who have greatly excelled in education in their respective fields. Highly intellectual minds work together in large research centres of the world. Under such circumstances, one should have imagined that people would have joined together and jointly tried to end the wrong ways of thinking and the follies of the past that had resulted in animosities and had led to horrific wars. The God-given intellect and scientific progress should have been used for the betterment of humanity and for devising permissible methods of deriving benefits from one another’s resources. God has bestowed each and every country with natural resources that should have been fully utilised to turn the world into a haven of peace. God has gifted many countries with an excellent climate and environment for growing different crops. Had proper planning been adopted to use modern technology for agriculture, the economy would have strengthened and hunger could have been eliminated from the earth. Those countries that have been endowed with mineral resources should be allowed to develop and trade at fair prices and openly, and one country should benefit from the resources of the other country mutually. So, this would be the right way, the way that is preferred by God Almighty”[Ibid, pg 19-20].

The Qur’an admonishes strong economic giants of the world to empower weak economies from their enormous resources and massive intellectual prowess and not exploit them further under whatever guise, this is another means of establishing justice and peace in the world. Allah [S W T] says “And when it is said to them, spend out of that which Allah has provided you, those who disbelieve say to those who believe, Shall we feed him whom Allah would have fed , if He had so willed ? You are but in manifest error.[Qur’an 36 vs 48].  Commenting on this verse, Hadrat Musleh Ma’ud [RA] says; “The verse seems to imply that Divine punishment referred to in the preceding verses which will overtake the materialistic Christian nations, will take the form of a revolt on the part of the suppressed and starved nations of the East. The Eastern nations will rebel and revolt because the Western nations will have mercilessly exploited them and carried all their wealth to the West and denied them even bare subsistence. It is to this exploitation of the weak Eastern nations by the strong western nations that the reference is made is made in the words “shall we feed him whom Allah would have fed, if He had so willed” [Five – volume commentary, volume 4, pg 2199].

Another guidance of the Holy Qur’an with respect to the subject matter is the equality of all humans, irrespective of race, caste, creed, and social status. Allah The Exalted says in Qur’an 49 vs 14; “O mankind, we have created you from a male and a female, and we have made you into tribes and sub-tribes that you may know one another. Verily, the most honourable among you in the sight of Allah is he who is the most righteous among you, surely, Allah is All- Knowing, All – Aware “   Commenting on this verse, Hadrat Musleh ma’ud [RA] says; “From the subject of Islamic Brotherhood to which reference has been made in the preceding two verses, the surah proceeds to lay down in the verse under comment, the basis of an all-comprehensive, all -pervading brotherhood of man. The verse, in fact, constitutes the Magna Carta of human fraternity and equality. It has firmly laid the axe at the false and foolish notions of superiority, born of racial arrogance or national conceit. All men having been “created from a male and a female” as human beings have been declared equal in the sight of God. The worth of a man is not to be judged by the pigment of his skin, the amount of wealth he posseses or by his rank or social status, descent or pedigree, but by his moral greatness and the way in which he discharges his obligations to God and man. The whole human race is but one family. Division into tribes, nations, races, is meant to give them a better knowledge of one another, in order that they may benefit from one another’s national characteristics and good qualities. This, according to Islam, is the criterion of a person’s greatness and this is the only true and real criterion”. [Five – volume commentary, volume 5 pg 2463]

Beloved brethren, it is my ardent belief that the practical steps as given by His holiness from the guidance of the Holy Qur’an, and outlined above, are capable of upholding justice and potent at restoring the much-coveted global peace and stability even in the face of these current crises.

The mainstream Muslims claim that Islam is the religion of peace, but hold that we must kill the apostate, stone the adulterer/adulteress to death, kill a Muslim who refused to offer Salāh (Obligatory prayers) for certain number of days, lynch the blasphemer of the holy prophet(ﷺ), take to swords against the non-Muslims in jihad, and a host of other bloodthirsty notions ascribed erroneously to Islam. It should be                                                                                                                                                                             stated very unequivocally that all these beliefs are alienated to the true teachings of Islam, and hence, the Islam practiced by such people can never be said to be a religion of peace, so it is not the true Islam, not to talk of being the harbinger of justice and peace in the world. If today the mainstream Muslims were to become the super power of the world; bearing sociopolitical, and economic ascendancy, whilst holding to those bloody notions earlier mentioned, they will further compound the pandemonium and disarray currently enveloping the planet earth, and fresh carnages potentially await mankind, hence there is no single fibre of solution in such Islam, rather it promises to be a bigger problem.

As such, our beloved huzoor[A B A] has said that: “ In this troubled time, where clouds of tensions, fears and dangers hover overhead, let humanity gather under the Divine umbrella of khilafat-e- Ahmadiyyah. It is the umbrella of safety from fear, and of peace and security” [www.theglobaloutreach.net].

Beloved brethren, it is our duty as members of the community of the promised Messiah(A.S) and subjects of the khaleefah of the time(A. T. B.A)who practice the true Islam which radiates  peace and harmony to uphold justice at all levels and  foster peaceful coexistence in our immediate environment and beyond.

Let me leave you with the words of the Second Khaleefatul Maseeh, Hadrat Mirza Basheeruddin Mahmud Ahmad(R.A). During his Friday Sermon on 26 October 1923, Hazrat Mirza Bashiruddin Mahmud Ahmad, Khalifatul Masih II (ra): “said that Allah the Almighty grants certain names to the prophets, and the reflection of those names is also manifested in certain members of their communities: “God Almighty had granted various names to the Holy Prophet (saw). When contemporary Muslims deviated from the right path, this act of theirs displeased God Almighty. Therefore, in order to reform them, He granted all those names of the Holy Prophet (saw) to his perfect reflection [Promised Messiah as], and granted such meanings [to those names] which God Almighty desires to propagate in this era. Therefore, it is the duty of our Jamaat to ponder over those names, and to strive to fulfil the prophecies [which have been indicated therein].

“One of the names that have been granted to the Promised Messiahas is: “The Prince of Peace.’ [Tadhkirah [2009], p. 1061)

“Thus, as I have stated earlier, the [Ahmadiyya Muslim] Jamaat is to become the manifestation of that ‘seed’ which is enclosed therein. And when the Promised Messiahas is called ‘The Prince of Peace’, it implies that the ‘seed’ that has been sown through him, will be manifested in his Jamaat, and that his Jamaat will establish peace in the world at a time of great disorder. As a seed, this characteristic was only present in the Promised Messiahas, however, it will be manifested as a tree within his Jamaat. [ www.alhakam.org/library].

“Therefore, remember that you have been created [as a Jamaat] to establish peace in the world. Currently, we witness that there are disputes and disorders everywhere. It is quite possible that our current generation or the next one might get the opportunity and honour of establishing peace and conciliation during these disputes and disorders, however, it will surely be granted to the Promised Messiah’s (as) Jamaat.

“Hence, I advise you to ponder over this point, keeping in mind this revelation [‘The Prince of Peace’] of the Promised Messiah (as). During the time of the Promised Messiah (as), individuals were united [on his hand], and he emphasised them to inculcate mutual harmony and hence laid the foundation of peace. Now, it is the duty of the Jamaat, which has been gathered at the hand of this ma‘mur [God’s appointee], to foster harmony among nations. And it is quite possible that this responsibility might be given to your current generation. [Ibid]

“Therefore, God desired for the Promised Messiah’s (as) Jamaat to be a source of conciliation between enemies, regardless of the huge numbers of those enemies in comparison to the small number of this Jamaat. This age has exceeded the other eras in terms of the number of disorders; nations and countries are clashing with each other. [www.alislam.org]

I am the tree that bore fruits resembling Dawud [David]; I became Dawud and Jalut [Goliath] is my prey.” (Barahin-e-Ahmadiyya, Part V [English], p. 171).

Commenting on this, during his address at the annual Ijtema of Majlis Khuddam-ul-Ahmadiyya on 24 October 1959, Hazrat Musleh-e-Maudra said: “Jalut [Goliath] implies the one who creates disorder and shatters the peace of society. Therefore, it means that Allah the Almighty will establish peace in the world through the Promised Messiahas, and eradicate all kinds of mischief and troubles. Thus, continue to propagate Islam and hold fast to the system of Khilafat with complete sincerity.[Ibid]

In conclusion, it is evident from the foregoing, that the Khilafate Ahmadiyyah is the panacea to global crisis, nay the harbinger of justice and peace in the latter days. May Allah direct the hearts of the world leaders to embrace the practical steps to uphold justice and thereby promote peace in the world, May He also direct the mainstream Muslims to the ingenuity of khilafate Ahmadiyyah and ultimately accept the Imam of the age, so that together we may all be part of the solution and not the problem, May He unite all mankind and make way for true justice to prevail in the world that we may yet the spared the scourges of another global nuclear war: the consequences of which is better imagined than experienced.

Jazaakumullaahu Khayran for listening!

Was Salaamu Alaykum Warahmatullaahi Wabarakaatuhu.

The post Jalsa Nigeria 2023 Lecture One:- KHILAFAT -E- AHMADIYYAH: THE HARBINGER OF JUSTICE AND PEACE IN THE LATTER DAYS. appeared first on Jalsa Salana Nigeria.

General Sherman lives in California,General Sherman is more than 2000 years old and General Sherman weighs more than 4 million pounds, who is General Sherman?*1

Imagine when the Jews were trying to crucify Hazrar Isa A.S General Sherman was alive. When Abu Jahal thought that he was going to crush Islam, General Sherman was alive. When Columbus discovered America he didn’t discover General Sherman sitting quietly in California, who is General Sherman? It’s a sequoia, a giant and humongous tree. Sequoias are naturally very tall trees but they start with one small little seed. Today General Sherman is 275 feet tall. A typical giant oak tree is 50 to 75 feet tall. This stage is about 20 feet tall, when you go around after the jalsa the tallest tree which you will see General Sherman is probably 4 to 5 times taller than that. If you put these two projection screens together, the trunk of General Sherman is wider than that. You look at that tree and you will think of God that how a tiny and small seed changed into a giant tree.

انفاق فى سبيل الله or spending in the way of Allah is no different than this example.

Allah Almighty says in the Holy Quran

مثل الذين ينفقون أموالهم في سبيل الله كمثل حبة انبتّت سبع سنابل فى كل سنبلة مائة حبة والله يضعف لمن يشاء والله واسع عليم.

The similitude of those who spend their wealth in the way of Allah is like the similitude of a grain of corn which grows seven ears, in each ear a hundred grains. And Allah multiplies it further for whomsoever He pleases and Allah is Bountiful, All Knowing. *2

How beautiful is that. Like the tallest tree in the world took one small seed to grow similarly Allah multiplies whatever a man sacrifices in his way manifolds. According to the Arabic dictionary the word seven is used to signify a large quantity.

My dear brothers and sisters, the topic of my speech is FINANCIAL SACRIFICE: A SECRET OF WINNING CONNECTION WITH ALLAH

In his book The Philosophy of the Teachings of Islam, the Promised Messiah (as) has mentioned eight means of finding and recognising God Almighty and strengthening one’s faith in Him. These means are also necessary to fulfil the purpose of a man’s creation. About these means, the Promised Messiah (as) states: “The fifth means of achieving the purpose of life appointed by God Almighty, is striving in His cause; that is to say, we should seek God by spending our wealth in His cause, and by employing all our faculties in furthering His cause, …; as it is said: Strive in His way with your wealth and your lives and with all your faculties; and Whatever We have bestowed upon you of intelligence and knowledge and understanding and art, employ it in Our cause. We surely guide along Our ways those who strive after Us.” *3

According to a scientific study, the human body starts decomposing within eight to ten minutes after one’s death. *4 . Human body is one of the fastest things to decompose. It’s obvious that the money becomes irrelevant after one’s death but according to a Hadith if the money is used in Sadaqa tul Jariya, his soul will keep getting the Ajr.

The Holy Prophet SAW says.

When a human being dies,  one’s deeds cease, except three: a Sadaqah Jariyah, [religious] knowledge [one leaves behind] from which others benefit, and a righteous child who prays for one” *5

The Promised Messiah (as) says: “It is not possible for you to love wealth as well as to love Allah. You can love only one of them. Fortunate is he who loves Allah. If any of you loves Him and spends his wealth in His cause, I am certain that his wealth will increase more than that of others, ….”

He (as) further stated: “It should be so that every member, every individual of our Community pledges that they shall [regularly] give a certain amount of chandah. Whosoever makes this pledge for the sake of Allah the Exalted, Allah will in turn bless his wealth.” *6

Respected Audience.

During the ninth century, the king of Iraq was trying to kill a rebellion in Iran and many generals before failed to achieve that goal for the king and finally the king selected one of his best generals and sent him to Iran. This general fought valiantly for six to twelve months. He finally was able to regain those territories and the King was super happy. And now he arranges are ceremony where this general is going to be knighted. Shibli was also present in the ceremony. As it normally happens that after a long travel this general was sick, he was coughing and sneezing. In the Royal Palace he was bestowed with gifts including a Royal Robe, while wearing the robe the general coughed and sneezed. Not finding the handkerchief, he cleaned his mouth and nose with that robe. The king saw that. He was furious. He said that you just disrespected the robe that I bestowed on you. I am going to fire you immediately from this position and you take off this robe. This was Shiblis life changing event and he started crying. The king said what happened because I haven’t said anything to you. He said my lord, if I don’t cry then who will? Because this man gave his full year for this service and put his life at risk to please you and you couldn’t forgive his little mistake. So how angry will God be with me when I am disrespectful to God with all the blessings he gave me. So instead I should be trying to spend whatever I have to please God.*7

This pretty much explains that no matter what you do, you cannot make a human being happy but the matter is different with God Almighty. God Almighty says that whosoever spends in my way, i will give him manifolds like

Allah Almighty states

لن تنالوا البر حتى تنفقوا مما تحبون.

Hazrat Khalifatul Masih ATBA says

Promised Messiah (peace be on him) at one time while shedding light on financial sacrifices said that in this world human beings love wealth very much that is why it is written in the books of interpretation of dreams that if in a dream someone takes out and gives his liver that means he had given his wealth. That is why it is said that for to achieve real advancement and faith it is mentioned in the Holy Quran “Never shall you attain to righteousness unless you spend out of that which you love.” Because compassion and hospitality with the creations of God is the second huge part without which the faith cannot be perfect and firm. Unless one sacrifices how one can benefits others. For the benefits and compassions sacrifice is necessary. And in this verse “Never shall you attain to righteousness unless you spend out of that which you love” that teachings and guidance are provided. Thus spending in the cause of God Almighty is also a criterion and right of one’s event and is ones righteousness. *8

Beloved Brothers and sisters, Jihad is an important injunction in Islam. Muslims in the early days did Jihad Bi Saif and did not hesitate to present their lives for Islam in order to attain nearness of Allah the Almighty. The likes of Hazrat Khalid Bin Waleed R.A have been regarded as one of the finest generals that this world has seen even by the non Muslim authors. Hazrat Musleh Maud R.A says

“When you read about Hazrat Khalid, Hazrat Saad, Hazrat Amr Bin Maaz Karb and Hazrat Jarrar, you wish that you had lived at their time and achieved similar feats. What you forget is that for every time and every thing there is a proper place.

In this age, Allah Almighty has opened the door to the Jihad of spreading the faith and Jihad against one’s own self, instead of Jihad with the sword. And we cannot spread the faith without money. You are mujahideen of this age and you deserve the same reward which those people did, and indeed you are getting it. Do what you are told with diligence and also teach others, so that all of you become Mujahideen in the way of Allah. *9

Hazrat Promised Messiah A.S writes about financial sacrifice of Hazrat Maulvi Nurudeen Sahib saying

“First of all, I feel greatly moved to mention a spiritual brother of mine whose name, like the light of his sincerity is Nuruddin (the light of faith). The services he is rendering in the cause of the spread of Islam out of his cleanly earned money makes me envious. Would I also could render such services?” *10

Hazrat Musleh-e-Mau’ud said that his sacrifices were so immense that the Promised Messiah (as) gave him the honour [saying] that you have offered such immense sacrifices for the sake of this Jama’at that you are no longer in need of making any further sacrifices.

Mr President, that is only one part of the story. The second part is that how Allah Almighty used to Bless him because of the connection he made with Him by sacrificing in His way.

Once Hazrat Maulvi Nuruddin Sahib received a telegram from Hazrat Promised Messiah A.S  that “Come immediately”, he left his clinic straight for the Batala Railway Station and he did not have a single penny in his pocket to buy any ticket. One the way he met a cart man who told Maulvi Nuruddin Sahib R.A that he had been sent to him by the tehsildaar (the district head) as his wife was seriously ill. The cart man took him to Batala. Hazrat Maulvi Nuruddin Sahib told the tehsildaar the district head that he had to rush to Delhi by the train, which was due to leave the station in few hours. He said “You examine my wife and prescribe a medicine, and till you do that the train would not move.” Maulvi Nuruddin Sahib examined his wife and gave the necessary medicine. The district head then accompanied him to the station, bought a rail ticket for Delhi and gave him a hundred rupee of cash. *11

How do you explain this event other than the result of his close connection with God Almighty. As He rightly says

ويرزقه من حيث لا يحتسب

Hazrat Musleh Maud R.A narrates an incident about Hazrat Munshi Aroray Khan Sahib R.A, a companion of Hazrat Promised Messiah A.S that “I cannot forget that after the few months of the demise of Promised Messiah A.S, someone told me that somebody is waiting for me at the door. When I came out I saw Hazrat Munshi Aroray Khan Sahib R.A standing, he embraced me warmly and put his hand in the pocket to bring out two or three pounds which he gave it to me saying that I should give them to Hazrat Amma Jaan R.A, the wife of the Promised Messiah A.S. Then he started sobbing and crying straight away. When he felt a bit better, I asked him that what made him cry? He said that I was a poor man but whenever I found a chance, I used to come to Qadian. I used to cover a lot of distance by feet so I can save some money and give it for the service of Jamat but still I used to end up spending one or one and a half rupee. When I used to see rich people spending more for the cause of Jamat, I wished that I could also spend gold instead of silver for Jamat. When my salary was increased, I started saving the money every month. When the money reached to a reasonable amount, I wanted to change it to pounds so that I could present it. Now I have pounds but the Promised Messiah A.S has passed away.*12

Dear brothers and sisters, research shows that when it is asked that are you self aware of what you are doing? About 85 percent of us say yes. But in reality about 10 to 15 percent are actually self aware.

I am starting from myself first that are we self aware of the fact that whatever we are presenting as financial sacrifice is up to the level of sacrifice which Hazrat Khalifatul Masih ATBA wants from us? I think everyone of us should ask this question to ourselves.

Allah Almighty says

يايها الذين  امنوا انفقوا مما رزقناكم من قبل أن يأتى يوم لا بيع فيه و لا خلة و لا شفاعة والكافرون هم الظالمون.

O ye who believe, Spend out of what We have bestowed on you before the day comes wherein there shall be no buying and selling, nor friendship, nor intercession, and it is those who disbelieve that do wrong to themselves. *13

Dear listeners on one hand we see Qarun, Firaun, Namrud and Abu Jahal. One thing is common in all of them that every single one of them was rich and powerful. But when they all died, their wealth and money have no benefit. On the other hand we have the holy example of Hazrat Abu Ubaida Bin Jarah R.A

Umar ibn al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, when he arrived in Syria, he said to Abu ‘Ubaydah, “Let us go to your house.” When he entered his house, he saw nothing. Umar said, “Where are your provisions? I do not see anything but rags, a water-skin, and a dish. You are governor! Do you have food?” Abu ‘Ubaydah went to a bucket and took out some scraps, and Umar wept. It is enough for you to have in the world what lets you reach the final place of rest.”

Hazrat Umar R.A said

کلنا قد غیرتہ الد نیا إلا أنت یا أبا عبیدۃ!‘‘

This world has changed everyone but it could not change you. *14

Hazrat Masih Maud A.S says

“It is now time for all those who count themselves among my followers, that they should help this movement with their money. If someone can only afford one paisa, he should pay one paisa each month for the requirement of the movement, he who can afford a rupee each month should offer a rupee each month”*15

Beloved Brothers and sisters, we have heard now that sacrifice should be according to one’s capacity.

We have the noble examples of Hazrat Abu Bakar and Hazrat Umar R.A in front of us. At the occasion of battle of Tabuk, the Prophet SAW asked his companions to sacrifice their wealth. Hazrat Umar R.A narrates that,

“Incidentally I had a lot of wealth at that time. So, I thought in my mind that there is no better opportunity to overtake Hazrat Abu Bakr R.A in financial sacrifice than today. So, I brought half of my wealth to the Holy Prophet SAW.

Beloved Brothers and Sisters, Prophet SAW did not ask Umar R.A that how much did you bring because it’s possible that he had more wealth to sacrifice at that time as he narrated and Abu Bakar R.A had less belongings to sacrifice. But Prophet SAW asked what did you both leave in your house. Hazrat Umar said that I have left half of my belongings in my home but Abu Bakr R.A said that I have left Allah and His Prophet for my family.*16

We can see that their connection with God was strong that He made them the successors after the demise of Prophet SAW.

Allah Almighty says.

وأنفقوا من ما رزقناكم من قبل أن يأتي أحدكم الموت فيقول رب لو لا أخرتنى إلى أجل قريب فأصدق و أكن من الصالحين.

And spend [in the way of Allah] from what We have provided you before death approaches one of you and he says, “My Lord, if only You would delay me for a brief term so I would give charity and be among the righteous.*17

Modern Science is telling us now what Allah Almighty told us some 1500 years back. Different studies showed that different patients have different regrets.

A study showed that a 87-year-old epilepsy patient unexpectedly passed away during a brain scan, the scan found that his brain seemed to replay memories in the 30 seconds before and after his heart stopped beating.*18

In other words every dying man goes to the flashbacks of his life and regrets not doing several things which he should have.

If we die today, none of our money is going to help us. So instead of regretting later, why should we not understand this warning of God Almighty and spend in his way because God Has clearly said that He will not Give anyone respite when his time has come.

ولن يوخر الله نفسا إذا جاء اجلھا

Hazrat Abu Huraira R.A narrates “O Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ)! Which charity is the most superior in reward?” He replied, “The charity which you practice while you are healthy and afraid of poverty and wish to become wealthy. Do not delay it to the time of approaching death and then say, ‘Give so much to such and such, and so much to such and such.’ And it has already belonged to such and such (as it is too late).”*19

Respected Brothers and sisters,

Spending money in the way of Allah results in making a strong connection with him.

The Promised Messiah A.S says that Allah Describes the third spiritual level by saying

والذين هم للزكاة فاعلون

That Momineen are those who spend their dear money in the way of Allah to purify themselves from the misery.

He further states that spending the hard earned money in the way of Allah is better than the first two conditions of keeping one away from لغو and لهو.* 20

Hazrat Khalifatul Masih ATBA narrated an incident of a young man in Germany who was about to marry and had a burden of loan over him as well. He had collected some money for his marriage but when he was approached for contribution of building 100 mosques in Germany, he happily submitted all the collected sum for that cause.* 21

Dear listeners,

Islam is a perfect religion for all the ages and times. Every injunction of Islam has a deep wisdom. Islam doesn’t allow the circulation of wealth in few hands so that the rich will not get richer and poor will not get poorer. If that mode was followed, we would not be seeing this class difference what we are experiencing now.

According to a recent study, the richest 1 percent of the world has nearly twice as much wealth as the rest of the world put together.*22

To balance this difference Islam initiated Zakat.

The Promised Messiah A.S says

“What is zakat? It is taken from rich and given to poor. It teaches the highest level of human sympathy. Thus by coming together of the rich and the poor, the Muslims gain strength. It is a must for the rich to help the poor, and even if it were not so,it is a demand of human sympathy to do so. But nowadays, I see that people care the least.*23

I will share some faith inspiring incidents regarding financial sacrifice.

Huzur Anwar ATBA says

A Lajna sadr from a jamaat in Canada writes that when the secretary for Tahrik-e-Jadid enquired about the total outstanding amount from the members who were not able to pay, it turned out to be $325 – which is a small amount considering their [Canada’s financial] situation.

She says, “I thought that I would pay it myself. But when I checked my account, I did not have any money left. In fact, the account was in minus as I had spent $3 more.”

She then says, “However, when I checked the account the following day, I was left astonished as there was more than $3,000 in my account.” She says that this was an amount that had been pending for quite some time and there was no chance of receiving this amount. However, when Allah the Almighty saw her intention to pay the remaining amount, He ensured the means so that she immediately received that amount which had been pending for a long time. *24

Another incident which Huzur Anwar ATBA narrated in his sermon was about a young man from Nigeria. He told the missionary that I was jobless for three years. Then I thought that why not I start paying Chanda according to my capacity. He said that when I started paying Chanda, three months didn’t pass that I was offered a job by a marketing company and that recruitme was  first of its kind. He says that I think it’s the blessing of paying Chanda in the way of Allah the Almighty.

Mr Chairman.

We see so many banks and insurance companies with different ads and flashy publicity that if u invest with us you are going to get seven percent or ten percent profit. But Allah Almighty says that whosoever wants to invests with me, I will multiply it to manifolds.

مَّن ذَا الَّذِي يُقْرِضُ اللَّهَ قَرْضًا حَسَنًا فَيُضَاعِفَهُ لَهُ أَضْعَافًا كَثِيرَةً ۚ وَاللَّهُ يَقْبِضُ وَيَبْسُطُ وَإِلَيْهِ تُرْجَعُونَ

Who will lend to Allah a good loan which Allah will multiply many times over? It is Allah ˹alone˺ who decreases and increases ˹wealth˺.*25

The funniest thing with money is that it doesn’t stay at one place. We have seen many people going bankrupt from being millionaires and obviously the vice versa as well. But one thing is for sure that we have not seen anyone spending in Allahs way going bankrupt.

Hazrat Musleh Maud R.A states

During the time when the Promised Messiah A.S had legal cases going on in Gurdaspur, there was a need for extra finances. The Promised Messiah A.S put forward a request to his friends and followers that since the Langar(open kitchen) was being run in two places (Qadian and Gurdaspur) in addition to the money being spent on litigation, hence friends should pay attention towards the financial needs. Incidentally, Dr Khalifa Rasheed ud Din Sahib came to know of this proposal on the day he received his income of 450 rupees. He sent the entire amount to the Promised Messiah A.S. When a friend suggested that he should have kept some amount for his household as well, Dr Sahib replied “How could I keep some amount for myself, when God’s representative is telling me that it is needed for His religion? *26

Dear listeners,

As the Promised Messiah A.S rightfully declared that the age to sacrifice one’s life by means of Jihad has been replaced by the age to sacrifice by means of one’s wealth, this is high time we understand this that we are living in the time of Akhireen.

Think of a child. Any small but sincere sacrifice a child makes only to please his or her parent, delights the heart so much that at times it can feel as though the weight of the entire universe is less when compared to it. Such is the relationship between man and his creator. Never should any one of us think that his or her sacrifice is not making a difference because God loves His servants many more times than our mothers. May Allah Enable us to sacrifice according to our capacity and May He Accepts all our humble efforts.

1. Wikipedia
2. Al Baqara 262
3. Majmua ah Ishtaharat volume 3, page 497,498.
4. Australian Miseum 20/10/20
5. Sahib Muslim
6. (Friday Sermon, 3rd January 2020)
7. Sair e Rohani vol 2, page 160 to 163
8. (Friday Sermon, November 11, 2016)
9. Letter of Hazrat Khalifatul Masih 2nd, to members of Mal Karachi dated March 03,1957.
10. Victory of Islam, Rohani Khazain Volume 3, page 38
11. Hakeem Noor ud Deen page 180,181
12. (Alfazal 28 August 1941, Friday sermon 21 August 1941)
13. Al Baqara Verse 256
14. جاء في كتاب الزهد لأبي داود – من خبر أبي عبيدة
15. Kashti e Nuh, Rohani Kahzaen vol 19 p 83
16. Jami Tirmishi, Kitabul Manaqib Abi Bakr wa umar, Hadith No 3608
17. Al Munifiqoon 12
18. ( By Elaine Velie April 4, 2022 published in Hyperallergic)
19. Bukhari and Muslim
20. Tafseer Hazrat Masih Maud A.S Surat Al Mominoon page 17
21. Friday Sermon, 5 January 2008
22. Oxfam international, Published: 16th January 2023
23. Al badar Qadian October 1908
24. (5 nov 2021) Friday Sermon
25. Al Baqara 246
26. Financial Sacrifice an introduction

The post Jalsa Nigeria 2023 Lecture Five:- FINANCIAL SACRIFICE: A SECRET OF WINNING CONNECTION WITH ALLAH appeared first on Jalsa Salana Nigeria.