By Prof. Henry Francis B. Espiritu, New Age Islam
28 August
2020
I. The
Failure of Hyper-Rationalist Philosophy to Satisfy and Quench the Famished
Hearts of Spiritual Seekers
Theistic
philosophers of varied creedal convictions have composed numerous dissertations
disproving atheism and agnosticism by means of sound philosophical analyses and
logical proofs. However, owing to the overly cerebral and analytically
complicated way in which their treatises were written, they failed miserably in
touching the discerning hearts of spiritually thirsty souls who are seeking for
innate certainty in their pilgrimage of faith. Indeed, there is a grave
spiritual peril in employing philosophy as the basis of refuting atheism and
agnosticism. A philosophical argument used to prove
God’s existence can be logically controverted and counter-arguments can be
likewise deployed to deny the existence of the Supreme Being. Therefore, using
philosophy to prove or disprove the existence of a Supreme Being is not only
desperately tentative and spiritually counterproductive, but also outright
barren.
A Punjabi
Sufi saint of medieval India, Hazrat Fariduddin Ganj-i-Shakar (circa, A.D.,
1173-1266) complained regarding the uncertainty of philosophical reasoning (as
a way of ascertaining the existence of Absolute Truth) in his very emotional
prayer to God. He cried deep within his spirit: “Oh my soul, philosophy is
weariness to the heart—arguments fly here and there and like arrows,
counter-arguments fly in different directions piercing my head heavy with
scholarly suppositions. I searched the Beloved at the gate of philosophy, I
seek my Friend in the winding paths of logic... but alas, the arrows of logical
pros-and-cons have killed me. Oh my Beloved, I seek refuge in You from the confusions
and scruples of my restless mind. Grant me grace to reach Thy vision. It is Thy
Face alone that suffices my parched and barren heart.” (See, Amir Munir Suhrawardy,
Baba Farid ka Munajat [Baba Farid’s Supplications]. Pakpattan, Pakistan:
Khanqah Kitabkhanah, n.d.; p. 38.).
II.
Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad’s Utter Distrust of Human Philosophy’s Claim to Know
the Absolute Truth
Hazrat
Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (circa, A.D., 1836-1908)—another Punjabi mystic and
theologian considered by followers of Ahmadiyyah-Lahori sect of Islam as a
great Mujaddid (Renewer) of Islam—echoed Hazrat Baba Farid’s complaint
regarding the uncertainty of a faith that is solely based on human philosophy.
Philosophy cannot be an indubitable basis of our faith in God because it is
based on the suppositions of the human mind (See Izalah-i Auham, quoted by Dr.
Basharat Ahmad, The Great Muslim Reformer of the Present Age: Hazrat Mirza
Ghulam Ahmad. Hayward, California: Lahore Ahmadiyya Publications, 2001; pp.
31-32.). The human mind alone, if unaided by God’s mercy (Rahmat) and
self-revelation (Ilhaam), cannot fathom the great mysteries of life, the
universe and existence. Philosophy, despite its claim to certainty and
universality, is nothing but a bewildering array of contradicting views and
theories that often change according to times and climes (See at length, Dr.
Basharat Ahmad, op. cit., specifically the sections, “Emergence of
Dialecticians’’ and “The Appearance of the Mujaddid of the Times”; pp. 16-23.).
Hazrat
Mirza Ghulam Ahmad insists that the only way by which humankind can arrive at
the absolute conviction of God’s existence is by reflecting on the
self-revelation of God in the Holy Book (Al Qur-an) as explained and
exemplified by the Holy Prophet Muhammad. The reflective reading of God’s
self-revelation as found in the Holy Qur-an and the reverential devotion
accorded to the Sunnah (Holy Tradition) of the Prophet of Islam, are for Hazrat
Mirza Ghulam Ahmad the potent arsenals in refuting the menace of atheism and
agnosticism in the heart of humanity (See, Naseer A. Faruqui, Ahmadiyyat in the
Service of Islam. Newark, California: Ahmadiyya Anjuman Isha’at Islam Lahore,
1983; pp. 82-85. Compare also Dr. Basharat Ahmad, op.cit., specifically Chapter
II, “The Basis of the Holy Imam’s Dialectics [‘Ilm Al-Kalam]”; pp. 25-49.).
Philosophy
(even if such a philosophy is “theistic”)—as an incomplete vehicle in
ascertaining the existence of God—can only bring the person to a logical and
mental assent of the possibility of Divine Existence. By deductive as well as
inductive reasoning, one is compelled to assent verbally and mentally that
indeed God exists. Theistic philosophy often uses naturalistic arguments in
proving the reality of God’s existence—but this contemplative reflection of
nature is not enough.
One will
accept in a cerebral manner the fact of God’s existence but despite this mental
assent, one’s heart will still be void of absolute certainty (Haqq-Wa-Yaqeen)
of God’s reality. The heart can never be serene and tranquil until it reaches
certainty of faith (Tahqiq-Ul-Iman). Certainty of one’s faith in God can
be only attained by taking hold of the truth of Revelation as found in the Holy
Qur-an, since the Holy Book is God’s self-revelation of His Person to His
creatures. Believing in the truths as found in the self-revelation of God to
humankind is the only way for humans to achieve spiritual firmness and calmness
of the heart (sukun-e-dil).
Grave_of_Mirza_Ghulam_Ahmad_of_Qadian
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III.
Divine Revelation as found in the Holy Quran-an and the Exemplary Life of the
Prophet: Veritable Foundations of Ascertaining Spiritual Truths
Hazrat
Mirza Ghulam Ahmad’s spiritual magnum opus, Barahin-e-Ahmadiyya (Ahmadiyya
Proofs) is a veritable reflective commentary of the Holy Qur-an
(tarjuman-e-Qur'an) that combines his spiritual, mystical, and experiential
insights of Divine enlightenment in the course of his prayerful reading and
introspective meditations of the Holy Qur-an (See, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, A
Brief Sketch of My Life [Kitab-al-Bariyya]. Columbus, Ohio: Ahmadiyya Anjuman
Isha’at Islam Lahore, 1996; Chapters 4 & 5 “Spiritual Experiences” and
“Divine Appointment and Claims”; pp. 16-32.). Furthermore, Barahin-e-Ahmadiyya
and the other spiritual writings of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad utilize the pure
Word of Allah in the Holy Qur-an and the righteous precedents set by Prophet
Muhammad in the Sunnah to elucidate, exemplify, and instantiate in practical
terms the Divine truths found in the pages of the Holy Qur-an. According to
Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, the Holy Book, the perfect exemplary conduct of the
Prophet, and the private revelations of certainty (ilham) vouchsafed by Allah
to His beloved saints (awliya) and reformers (mujaddid) are indeed
indispensable testimonies in proving the existence of God (Ibid.).
God’s
revelation of His Divine Names and Attributes are gifts of grace (ni’mat) and
mercy (rahmat). Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad was aware that apprehending the
divine truths in the Holy Quran can only happen when God bestows His enabling
grace to the person reading and contemplating its message. The holy prophets (Rasul),
saints (Awlia), and regenerators of faith (Mujaddid) encountered
the Supreme Lord in a very intimate and personal way. Their very own virtuous
lives are perfect models and proofs of the Reality of God. Hazrat Mirza Ghulam
Ahmad claims that his divine office as the Renewer (Mujaddid) of Islam for the
fourteenth century of the Islamic Era (Hijrah) is God’s bestowal of mercy on
the Islamic Ummah (community). He understood that his commission as a Mujaddid
is for the revitalization of the Islamic faith, which was attacked by atheism,
agnosticism, colonial missionary-peddlers, positivistic empiricism,
hyper-rationalism and atheistic materialism (See at length; Maulana Muhammad
Ali, The Founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement. Newark, California: Ahmadiyya
Anjuman Isha’at Islam Lahore, 1984; pp. 8-23.).
IV.
Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad's Claim of Being "Mujaddid" (Regenerator)
of Islam and His Office of Upholding and Defending Divine Revelation
The devout
believer can show to the world the reality of God and the truth of His presence
in the universe, because he himself has experienced God in his very own inner
life. Whereas a rationalist philosopher—no matter how theistic he is in his
philosophical commitment, and no matter how well he proves God’s existence in
his characteristic cold, calculative and logical rationalism—can never produce
the spiritual fervour, ecstatic joy, divine faith and exuberant zealousness of
the Prophets and saints.
Through
revelation (Wahy or Ilham); prophets, saints, and regenerators of
the faith perceive in their souls the absolute truth and certainty of
monotheism (Tawheed), as revealed in the pure light of the Holy Quran-an.
Thus, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad as a Mujaddid saint is bold, outspoken and
courageous in his confidence in the truth of Divine Revelation. Furthermore, he
firmly exhorts the faithful to put their trust in the Holy Qur-an and the
Sunnah of the Prophet as indubitable and inconvertible bases of true faith.
Hazrat
Mirza Ghulam Ahmad says: "My dear child, the sterile logic of this world
is a ‘Satan’. And the ephemeral philosophy of this world is like Iblis. It
greatly covers the light of faith and gives rise to bravado and takes one close
to atheism... [G]uard yourself against this and develop a humble and meek heart
and become such that you obey the commandment without dispute and dissent, just
as a child obeys his mother... I have attained this perfection by following the
Qur-an and the Holy Prophet and if the ultimate objective of religion is to
develop a personal relationship with God, I have by following the Quran and the
Holy Prophet, achieved this objective. There is no other religion in the world
that can transport a man to these heights. Islam is the only living and true
faith, a faith by following which, one attains to God-realization."
(Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad in Izalah-i Auham, quoted by Dr. Basharat Ahmad,
op.cit., pp. 41-42.).
During the
British Raj in India, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, through his spiritual and
mystical writings, exerted his utmost to revitalize the faith of Indian Muslims
when anti-Islamic forces from all sides vehemently attacked the foundational
tenets of Islam. By giving rational, mystical, allegorical, as well as
spiritual proofs on the truth of Islam, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad guided the
Muslims of India in that difficult and torturous period of their history.
During the British colonization of India, irreligious forces inimical to Islam
strived to remove the inborn love for Islam and for the Holy Prophet Muhammad
in the heart of the Indian Muslims by conducting slanderous propaganda aimed
against Islam and by imposing laws that endeavoured to efface the beautiful
Islamic heritage that was rooted in the Indian subcontinent for many centuries.
Atheistic
ideologies, sectarian divisions among Indian Muslims, as well as materialistic,
hyper-rationalistic and positivistic empiricist philosophies aided the
anti-Islamic forces of British colonialism in denigrating Islamic faith and
traditions. Against this historical backdrop, the defense and renewal of Islam
were the reasons that impelled Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad to strongly declare
and publicly proclaim his Mujadiddiyyat (divine role of reformation) and
to criticize all human-made philosophies that denigrate the pristine revelation
of Islam (Cf. Maulana Muhammad Ali, True Conception of the Ahmadiyya Movement.
Columbus, Ohio: Ahmadiyya Anjuman Isha’at Islam Lahore, 1996; pp. 1-17,
49-55.). Human knowledge devoid of guidance from the All-Intelligent God will
cause the weakening of faith, degradation of morals, laxity in worship, and
loss of a compassionate heart characterizing a proper human being.
Hazrat
Mirza Ghulam Ahmad—seeing the extreme poverty of human philosophy in explaining
the purpose of life—warned the Muslims not to trust in the directions of those
human philosophers whose minds are not sanctified in the truths of faith. To
quote from Dr. Basharat Ahmad in his assessment of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad’s
scathing critique of mundane philosophy: “A philosopher is like a blind man,
groping in the dark, trying to discover some argument. It is quite possible
that he may or may not find correct arguments by this blind search and he may
or may not draw the correct conclusions from these. That is why God, the Most
High, has differentiated between a prophet and a philosopher in the Qur-an:
‘Can a seeing man and a blind man be alike? (35:19)’... Thus the difference
between a philosopher and a prophet is the same as the difference between a
blind man and a man with his sight... Hence, all those perfect followers [i.e.
saints] of the Holy Prophet who had tasted of the spiritual experience based
their invitation to men on this personal experience of God...” (Dr. Basharat Ahmad,
op .cit., p. 32.).
V.
Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad’s Scathing Criticisms of Hyper-Rationalist
Philosophies as Poor Approximations of the Absolute Truth
Hazrat
Mirza Ghulam Ahmad understood that hyper-rationalist philosophy that is devoid
of Divine Revelation is nothing but a poor approximation of Reality. The
philosophers—with faltering reasoning and error-prone suppositions—can only
best theorize and speculate about Ultimate Reality. On the other hand, the
prophets and the saints (being the inheritors of the wisdom of the prophets)
fully know of Reality since the Almighty God, as the Absolute Truth graciously
deigned to impart these truths to the hearts of the prophets and saints by His
divine favour (Ni’mat). Prophets and saints can impart the truth to the
seeking hearts because they themselves have seen (Deedar) and tasted (Zawq)
the Reality of God in their lives. Thus, the saints’ invitation for us to
partake of the spiritual life is directly based on their very own personal
encounter with the Reality of God in their experiences of daily living. This
personal encounter with God Who is the Absolute Truth, as mediated through
Divine Revelation (Wahy), is poetically expressed by Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad
in this manner: “It is the light of the Quran that turned out to be the most
resplendent of all lights: Pure is He from Whom gushed forth this flood of
light. The entire world have I combed and all shops have I hunted: Of pure wine
of Divine knowledge, have I found this one phial… I live by the Word of God that
comes to me. His message is to me as the food of my soul…” (Ahmadiyya Anjuman
Isha’at Islam of Fiji, Quest After God: Glimpses of the Life of Hazrat Mirza
Ghulam Ahmad. Suva, Fiji: Fiji Ahmadiyya Publications, n.d.; pp. 22, 41.).
Western
philosophy’s claim to knowledge and certainty failed to convince Hazrat Mirza
Ghulam Ahmad. During the British colonization of India, when modern Western
philosophy is outrightly encouraged, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad firmly held to,
and tenaciously defended the truths of Islam. His faith had never been affected
by the constant and consistent bombardments of worldly philosophers against the
Islamic faith. Whenever there is a clash between modernist philosophies and
Islam, he would never become powerless in the face of such mundane
philosophies. His writings courageously protected the creed of Islam by using
sound philosophical truths and Qur’anic expositions to establish the truths of
Islam and pin down the mistakes of Western philosophy (Ibid., pp. 31-32.).
Reading the
many treatises, he authored, one is constantly amazed at how Hazrat Mirza
Ghulam Ahmad—although he was not formally schooled in Western sciences and
philosophies—could with elegance of speech, with profound philosophical
reasoning responded effectively, and dismissed forcefully the assaults raised
by Western philosophy against Islam.
Reading the
Barahin-i-Ahmadiyya, one can notice that Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad was deeply
convinced that his spiritual and mystical writings were God’s bestowment on him
as Ilhaam (personal revelation) for the regeneration of the Islamic faith (Cf.
Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, A Brief Sketch of My Life, op. cit., pp. 16-24.). He
had undergone the purgative and transformative experiences (Riyazat Wa
Mujahadat)—these experiences of spiritual purification culminated in what
Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad calls the “experiences and encounters of spiritual
visions” (Ru’yah and Ilhaam) which gave him the overwhelming
conviction of God’s Reality (Ibid, pp.18-20. Also, see at length Hazrat Mirza
Ghulam Ahmad, Testimony of the Holy Qur’an [Shahadat Al-Qur’an]. Newark, CA:
Ahmadiyyah Anjuman Ishaat Islam, 1989; pp. 1-51, for the complete narrative of
Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad’s conviction of the truth of the Holy Qur’an and his
role as a Mujaddid of Islam.).
This was
the reason why he never became apprehensive whenever he was confronted with the
assaults of Western philosophy against the integrity of the Blessed Qur-an.
Through allegorical examples, metaphorical instantiations, deductive proofs,
inductive reasoning, and most of all; mystical intuitions, personal
revelations, and spiritual visions, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad demonstrated that
he could use philosophy “at its own game” and defeat it by utilizing
philosophy’s own arsenals, and thus upheld the crystal-clear truths of Islamic
belief in Divine Revelation.
VI.
Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad’s View of the Proper Place of Philosophy vis-à-vis
Divine Revelation: “Philosophy as Servant of the Quran-an and not its Master”
Lest we
misinterpret Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad to be an inveterate enemy of philosophy,
let it be understood that what he was against is the philosophy or philosophies
that aim to destroy religious principles—philosophies that are utilized by
anti-Muslims to attack the Islamic faith (e.g., empiricism, positivism,
materialism, agnosticism, atheistic philosophies, etc.). Likewise, Hazrat Mirza
Ghulam Ahmad asserts that philosophies tending to support the logical concept
of a Divine Being (i.e., theistic philosophies, naturalized theologies,
theistic existentialism, etc.), if devoid of the sure guidance of Divine
Revelation, such philosophies still cannot be infallible guides in arriving at
the reality (Haqiqat) or certainty (Yaqeenan) of God’s existence.
The
above-mentioned points must be remembered when one seeks to properly understand
Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad’s cutting criticisms of human philosophies. If one
seriously looks at his spiritual writings, one will clearly notice that Hazrat
Mirza Ghulam Ahmad employed logical reasoning and rational proofs in
elucidating and explaining the Islamic faith. Furthermore, he utilized
philosophical analogies and instantiating metaphors as examples, in the same
way that he deployed deductive and inductive reasoning in expounding the truths
of Islam. For him, the real purpose of philosophy is in giving logical support
and analytic proofs of Divine Revelation. Philosophy finds its nobility in
being a servant to the truths of the Holy Qur-an in the same way that science
is likewise a means to explain theological principles (Cf. Maulana Muhammad
Ali. True Conception of the Ahmadiyya Movement. op. cit., pp. 14-18.).
Hazrat
Mirza Ghulam Ahmad has no sympathy with the movements of modernist and
ultra-rationalist Indian Muslim thinkers, e.g., Sir Syed Ahmad Khan, Syed Amir
Ali, and Prof. S. Khuda Bakhsh. For him, these Western-influenced Muslim
philosophers and modernist ulama made the Quran subservient to mundane
philosophies and materialistic sciences. Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad felt that
these modernists and “neo-Mutazilites” have no qualm in forcing the Qur’anic
Revelation to “tow in line” with modern science. In contrast with these
ultra-rationalist ulama, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad contends that secular
philosophies and sciences are not the “masters” of the Qur’anic truths;
instead, they should serve the cause of Divine Revelation (Cf. Maulana Muhammad
Ali, The Founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement, op.cit., pp 93-94.).
It is
likewise interesting to note that Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad’s view regarding
the superiority of Divine Revelation over and above science and philosophy
perfectly echoes the stance made by another Mujaddid (Regenerator of Islam),
the medieval Muslim theologian Hazrat Imam al-Ghazali (circa, 1058-1111 A.D.)
in his celebrated book, The Incoherence of the Philosophers. In this book,
Hazrat Imam al-Ghazali likewise asserts that without the guiding revelation of
God as found in the Holy Qur-an, the enterprise of human philosophy will simply
self-destruct; since philosophy due to its varied and conflicting theories will
only lead the seeking soul to mental confusions, self-doubts, nihilism,
agnosticism and spiritual turbulence. It is the indubitable guidance of Divine
Revelation alone that can deliver humankind from spiritual uncertainties and
self-deception coming from the human being's own misguided and untamed self
(nafs-e-ammarah) (See Oliver Leamann, A Brief Introduction to Islamic
Philosophy. Oxford: Polity Press, 1999; pp. 24-26.).
VII. By
Defending the Primacy of Divine Revelation over Human Philosophy, Hazrat Mirza
Ghulam Ahmad Had Done a Great Service to all Monotheistic Faiths and Divinely
Revealed Religions
Hazrat
Mirza Ghulam Ahmad’s critique of philosophy in his defense for the truths of
Islamic revelation is geared towards confirming the prophetic foundation of
Islam as an authentic divinely revealed religion. He repeatedly points-out in
his writings that the fundamental basis of Islam is the Holy Quran-an and all
other areas of knowledge are subordinate to and in the service of the Qur’anic
revelation. It is God Himself Who guarantees the truth of the Holy Qur-an since
it is God Who revealed the Quran to the world.
Therefore
faith (Iman) in the One God and confidence placed in the Divine revelation (the
Holy Quran-an) as given by God to the Holy Prophet Muhammad constitute the
foundational grounds of Islamic faith. By defending the truths of the Holy Quran-an
against the onslaughts of secular and hyper-rationalist philosophies, Hazrat
Mirza Ghulam Ahmad performed a great service to all revealed religions in that
he has totally upheld the primacy of Divine revelation (i.e., belief in the
infallibility of prophethood and in the truth of all divinely revealed
scriptures) which is the very basis of all monotheistic faiths; whether
Judaism, Christianity, or Islam (See Dr. Basharat Ahmad, op. cit., p. 54.).
By putting
philosophy and the sciences as servants of Revelation and not masters, he sets
forth his deep conviction that true science and philosophy do not contradict
Divine Revelation but rather support, exemplify, validate, and confirm it.
The great
Sufi mystic, Hazrat Maulana Jalaluddin Rumi advised the philosophers of his day
and age: “Ai-Keh Khwandee Hikmat-I Yunanian...Hikmati Imaniyan Ra Ham
Be-Khwan.” The meaning of this Persian couplet is this: “Oh thou that hast
read the wisdom of the Greeks...do also read the wisdom of the believers”. (In
Dr. Basharat Ahmad, op.cit., p. 1.).
In the same
way, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad counselled the agnostics and sceptics who are
steeped in various mundane philosophies to take guidance from the divine and
sure truths of the Holy Qur-an. The spiritual writings and reasoned proofs for
Islam given by this valiant Punjabi saint as he defended the Qur’anic truths,
made the impartial and sincere spiritual seekers to encounter the reality of
God’s Existence in their lives, thus transforming the gloomy and hopeless
condition of their being to that of a radiant and optimistic life overflowing
with joy (Mabruk) and bliss (Sa'adat). These spiritual boon of
faith (Ni’mat-E-Iman) and grace of certitude (Ni’mat-e-Yaqeen)
that Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad’s proofs of Divine Revelation gave to the
believers, are precious gifts that mundane philosophers cannot provide to the
restless souls of bewildered, agitated, confused and rudderless humanity.
VIII.
Epilogue: Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad’s Life and Message Exemplified Authentic
Service to the Cause of the Holy Quran and Islam
In closing,
permit me to say these words of advice (Naseehat) to one-and-all: we
ought to be grateful to Almighty Allah for the blessed life of the Mujaddid
saint, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad. His saintly life epitomized authentic loyalty
to the cause of Islam despite persecutions, vilifications, various hardships, all
types of sufferings, vicissitudes and adversities coming from the enemies of
Islam. Likewise, we need to be thankful to God for Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad’s
divine office of Mujaddidiyyat (Islamic Reformation). All the bulk of
his spiritual treatises and mystical writings made available to us abundant and
clear proofs of the Reality of God and the truth of Divine Revelation—thereby
chasing away the gloom of agnosticism, scepticism and uncertainty in our
hearts. I hope that owing to the guidance of the Qur’anic revelation and the
writings of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad in defense of Islam, we will be granted
the serene assurance and the absolute affirmation (Yaqeen-e Mutlaq) of
the veracity of our Islamic faith and of the Living Reality and Necessary
Existence of God in our lives.
Now that we
are already armed with the absolute spiritual assurance of our faith, thanks to
the efforts expended by Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad in defending the truths of
the Qur-an from the attacks of hyper-rationalists, modernists, and agnostic
philosophers, we will hopefully turn out to be pious, assiduous and sincere
worshippers of Allah, the Almighty. Insha-Allah, with the assurance and
tranquillity in our spirit (Sukun-e-Dil) wrought by reading the Holy
Qur-an as elucidated by the life and works of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Sahib,
we will become fruitful individuals and responsible members of the Islamic
Ummah (community). Being assured and convinced of the certainty of God’s
existence through the proofs provided to us by Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Sahib
in his spiritual treatises, our lives will abundantly overflow in all goodness
(Aamal-i-Saleehat) in Allah’s service (Khidmat-E-Ilahi),
reformation of our lives (Islah-Un-Nafs), and for the propagation of the truth
of Islam (Dawaat Wa Isha’at-E-Islam) to others who are in need of such
valuable guidance. May it be so. Ameen!
Bibliographical
References:
Ahmad, Basharat. The Great Muslim Reformer
of the Present Age: Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad. Hayward, California: Lahore
Ahmadiyya Publications, 2001.
Ahmad, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam. A Brief Sketch
of My Life [Kitab-al-Bariyya]. Columbus, Ohio: Ahmadiyya Anjuman Isha’at Islam
Lahore, 1996.
__________________________. Testimony of
the Holy Qur’an [Shahadat Al-Qur’an]. Newark, California: Ahmadiyyah Anjuman
Isha’at Islam, 1989.
Ahmadiyya Anjuman Isha’at Islam of
Fiji. Quest after God: Glimpses of the
Life of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad. Suva, Fiji: Fiji Ahmadiyya Publications,
n.d.
Ali, Maulana Muhammad. The Founder of the
Ahmadiyya Movement. Newark, California: Ahmadiyya Anjuman Isha’at Islam Lahore,
1984.
______________________. True Conception of
the Ahmadiyya Movement. Columbus, Ohio: Ahmadiyya Anjuman Isha’at Islam Lahore,
1996.
Faruqui, Naseer A. Ahmadiyyat in the
Service of Islam. Newark, California: Ahmadiyya Anjuman Isha’at Islam Lahore,
1983.
Leamann, Oliver. A Brief Introduction to
Islamic Philosophy. Oxford: Polity Press, 1999.
Suhrawardi, Amir Munir. Baba Farid ka
Munajat [Baba Farid’s Supplications]. Pakpattan, Pakistan: Khanqah Kitabkhanah,
n.d.
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Prof. Henry Francis B. Espiritu is Associate
Professor-7 of Philosophy and Asian Studies at the University of the
Philippines (UP), Cebu City. He was former Academic Coordinator of the
Political Science Program at UP Cebu from 2011-2014. He was former Coordinator
of Gender and Development (GAD) Office at UP Cebu from 2015-2019. His research
interests include Islamic Studies particularly Sunni jurisprudence, Islamic
feminist discourses, Islam in interfaith dialogue initiatives, Islamic
environmentalism, Classical Sunni Islamic pedagogy, the writings of Imam
Al-Ghazali on pluralism and tolerance, Islam in the Indian Subcontinent,
Turkish Sufism, Ataturk Studies, Muslim-Christian dialogue, Middle Eastern
Affairs, Peace Studies and Public Theology.
URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-ideology/an-exposition-hazrat-mirza-ghulam/d/122742
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