The Light & Islamic Review
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"Call to the path of thy Lord with wisdom and goodly exhortation, and argue with people in the best possible manner." (Holy Quran 16:125) The Light & Islamic Review January - February 1993 Exponent of Islam and the Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement for over seventy years. A journal devoted to showing that Islam is: PEACEFUL - TOLERANT - RATIONAL - INSPIRING Vol. 70 CONTENTS No. 1 3 The Message of Peace - proposals for Hindu Muslim harmony, by Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad 6 Names of world religions - No faith gives its name, except Islam, by Maulana Abdul Haq Vidyarthi, 8 The Promised Messiah -fulfilled prophecy of propa gation of Islam to West, by Maulana Muhammad Ali 10 Ahmadiyya Movement in Islam, Nigeria, Visit by our delegation, with photos. 12 Propagation of the faith, by Col. M. Shaukat 14 Freedom from idolatry and advance of knowledge, by Mr. Shahid Aziz 16 Diary: (1) Church of England loses support; (2) Court case in Pakistan on Muslim expressions. 17 Introduction to Islam, by the Editor. 19 To our esteemed readers - a report and an appeal. * Ahmadiyya Anjuman Isha 'at Islam Lahore Inc. US.A. 1315 Kingsgate Road, Columbus, Ohio 43221-1504, U.S.A. www.alahmadiyya.org 2 THE LIGHT ■ JANUARY - FEBRUARY 1993 The Light was founded in 1922 as the organ of the AHMADIYYA ANJUMAN ISHA 'AT ISLAM (Ahmadiyya Association for the About ourselves. propagation of Islam) of Lahore, Pakistan. The Islamic Review The Ahmadiyya Anjuman Isha'at Islam was published in England from1913 forover 50 years, and in the Lahore has branches in the following U.S.A. 1980 to 1991. The present periodical represents the world countries: wide branches of the Ahmadiyya Anjuman Isha'at Islam, Lahore. U.S.A. Canada. ISSN: 1060-4596 England. Germany. Editor: Dr. Zahid Aziz. Format & Design: The Editor. Holland. South Africa. Circulation: Mrs. Samina Sahukhan, Dr. Noman I. Malik. India. Indonesia. I Australia. Fiji. Articles, letters and views are welcome, and should be sent to: Trinidad. Guyana. The Editor, 'The Light', 15 Stanley Avenue, Wembley, Suriname. Middlesex, HAO 4JQ. ENGLAND. The Movement has members and I supporters in many other countries as For circulation matters, contact U.S.A. address on front cover. well. In Berlin, it has a large historical mosque constructed in the mid- l 920s. Beliefs and aims. Achievements: The main object of the A.A.1.1.L. is to present the true, original The Anjuman has produced extensive message of Islam to the whole world - Islam as it is foundin the literature on Islam, originally in English Holy Quran and the lifeof the Holy Prophet Muhammad, obscured and Urdu, including translations of the today by grave misconceptions and wrong popular notions. Holy Quran with commentaries. These Islam seeks to attract the hearts and minds of people towards books are being translated into other lan guages, such as French, German, Spanish, the truth, by means of reasoning, good moral example, and the Russian, Chinese and Japanese. natural beauty of its principles. It neither aspires to gain political power, nor allows the use of force in support of the faith. The Anjuman has run several Muslim missions around the world, including the Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, our Founder, arose to remind first-ever in Western Europe. the world that Islam is: The Movement's unique contribution International: It recognizes prophets being raised among all to Islamic thought is summed up in the nations and requires Muslims to believe in them. Truth and column on the left. goodness can be found in all religions. God treats all human History: beings equally justly, irrespective of race, nationality or 1889: Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad religion. founded the Ahmadiyya Movement. Peaceful: Allows use of force only in unavoidable self 1901: Movement given name Ahmadiyya defence. Teaches Muslims to live peacefully under any rule after Holy Prophet Muhammad's which accords them freedom of religion. other famous name Ahmad. 1905: Hazrat Mirza appoints central body Tolerant: Gives fullfreedom to everyone to hold and practise (Anjuman) to manage the Movement. any creed or religion. Requires us to tolerate differences of 1908: Death of Hazrat Mirza. Succeeded belief and opinion. by Maulana Nur-ud-Din as Head. Rational: In all matters, it urges use of human reason and 1914: Death of Maulana Nur-ud-Din. knowledge. Blind following is condemned and independence Ahmadiyya Anjuman Isha'at Islam of thought is granted. founded at Lahore to continue the original Anjuman, to preserve Hazrat Inspiring: Worship is not a ritual, but provides living contact Mirza's real mission. Maulana with a Living God, Who answers prayers and speaks to His Muhammad Ali elected as Head. righteous servants even today as in the past. 1951: Death of Maulana Muhammad Ali after fifty years of glorious service to Non-sectarian: Every person professingIslam by the words la the cause of Islam. Maulana Sadr-ud i/aha ill-Allah, Muhammad-ur rasul Allah {There is no god Din (d. 1981) becomes head. but Allah, and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah) is a Muslim. A Muslim cannot be expelled from Islam by anyone. Since 1981 Dr. Saeed Ahmad Khan, an eminent doctor and religious scholar, He also taught that no prophet, old or new, is to arise afterthe has led the Movement, at a time when it Holy Prophet Muhammad. However, Mujaddids will be raised by faces intense persecution and opposition. God to revive and rekindle the light of the faith of Islam. THE LIGHT ■ JANUARY - FEBRUARY 1993 3 Japanese, the Europeans and the Americans. For all Message of peace between of them, the earth of God serves as a floor, and for Muslims and Hindus all of them the sun, the moon, and the stars give their light, and perform such other functionsas God Mutual respect for each other's faiths has charged them with. All of them derive benefit from the air, water, fire, earth and other things by Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad created by God, and all of them use the produce of the earth, its corn and its herbs, its flowers and its (Note: Present events in India show the tragic depth of fruits. These liberal ways of God teach us that we hostility that has long existed between the Muslim and Hindu communities of the South Asian sub-continent, also should do good to all mankind and should not which every so often leads to widespread violence and have a cramped outlook, or a confined sympathy. bloodshed. Various political means of solving this deep My friends, know it for certain that if any seated problem, such as the partition of British India or people should fail to honour the divine example, the establishment of a secular state in the republic of India, have all failed. and fail to shape its conduct in accordance with A religious solution was proposed in May 1908 by this pure example, then that people shall soon be Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, in the closing days of his destroyed, and the evil consequences of their life during his stay in the city of Lahore. He wrote his transgression shall be visited not only on them proposals, for a lasting peace between Muslims and selves, but also on their unborn generations. Ever Hindus, in the form of a public lecture entitled 'Paigham-i since the world came into existence, the righteous Sulh' or 'The Message of Peace', to be delivered on 31 ones of all lands have proclaimed that man sur May 1908. However, having completed the bulk of his message, Hazrat Mirza died on 26 May. In the event, his vives by cultivating the fine attributes of God, and followers decided to proceed with the lecture, re-arrang that both the physical and spiritual life of man ing it for 21 June. On that date, Khawaja Kamal-ud-Din depend on his conformity to Divine morals from read out the lecture at University Hall, Lahore, in a mixed which all peace is to be obtained. gathering of several thousand Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs and Christians. An English translation of the lecture was God of all the worlds. also produced at the time, extracts from which are given The Holy Quran opens with the very verse which in the form of the article below. However, to do proper justice to the original and grand ideas contained in the teaches this broad doctrine: "Praise be to Allah, the paper, and to appreciate its inspiring flavour, the booklet Lord of all the worlds" (1:1). The 'worlds' include must be studied in its entirety.) all the different peoples, different ages, and differ ent countries. That the opening verse of the Holy Friends! all of us whether Hindus or Muslims, Quran should embody such breadth of view is a notwithstanding hundreds of differences, are one in reply to those nations who limit, each to itself, the believing in God as the Creator and Master of the universal bounty and providence of God, who world. Moreover, our cause is common not only regard other peoples as though they were not a because we are all human beings, but also because, creation of God, or as though, having once been as we are inhabitants of one and the same land, we created, they have since been forsaken and forgot are related as neighbours to one another. It is but ten completely by Him. Jews and Christians, for proper, therefore, that we should live as true and instance, believe to this day that all the prophets sincere friends, and sympathise with one another, and teachers that have appeared in the world have irt difficulties both temporal and spiritual, and act come only among the Israelites.