“This is not only a prophecy but also a grand heavenly sign which has been manifested by God to demonstrate the truth and greatness of our noble Prophet, the compassionate and merciful, Muhammad, the Chosen One (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). This sign is in fact hundreds of times superior and more potent and majestic and glorious than the sign of bringing a dead person back to life.”[Majm u‘ah Ishtiharat, vol. 1, pp. 98-99; Essence of Islam, Vol 5 page 48]
The Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) explained the importance of the prophecy of the Promised son in the words above; this prophecy is not personal to any one as such, rather it is to do with the second phase of Islam; this prophecy is a great sign of the truthfulness of the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace), who was sent to revive Islam after its true teachings were distorted and its followers had lost sight of the true purpose of their creation.
Significance
Musleh Maud Day is celebrated to commemorate this magnificent Divine Prophecy. The promise of the revival of Islam in the latter days is given in the Holy Qur’an:
The Holy Quran
“And He will raise him among others of them who have not yet joined them. He is the Mighty, the Wise.” (62:4).
When asked about the meaning of this verse, the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) placed his hand on Hadhrat Salman Farsi’s (may Allah be pleased with him) shoulder and said: ‘If Faith were to go up to the Pleiades, a man, or men, from among these would surely bring it back’ (Sahih al Bukhari). The ultimate fulfilment of this verse came in the person of the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace); a Prophet sent by God Almighty. The Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) has foretold that the Promised Messiah will marry and have children. In this there is an indication that Allah will grant him a righteous son, who will resemble his father, and will not defy him, and will be one of the revered servants of Allah. The secret of it is that Allah does not give glad tidings to Prophets or Saints regarding their progeny, unless He has decreed the birth of righteous progeny [Essence of Islam, Vol 5 page 41, Footnote] This was an indication that he will be blessed with such able children who would assist him in his mission.
The background
With his powerful arguments, logic and clear evidence the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) demonstrated the truthfulness of Islam over other religions. He provided evidence for the death of Jesus (on whom be peace) putting an end to the concepts of divinity of Jesus ( on whom be peace) and the false concept of life of Jesus ( on whom be peace) in heavens with a physical body. He produced equally powerful arguments against Sikhism and Arya Samajh. It seemed that logic and evidence were not sufficient for the followers of these religions who demanded a Divine sign as an evidence of truthfulness of the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace).
Chilla and the Prophecy
Imploring for a powerful sign, under Divine guidance, the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) went to Hushiarpur for a period of 40 days of prayers in seclusion called Chilla. At the end of this period, Allah the Exalted gave the prophecy of a most able son who will accomplish major tasks; a Divine sign of the truthfulness of the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace). The Promised son, Hadhrat Mirza Bashirudin Mahmud Ahmad (may Allah be pleased with him) was born within nine years of this prophecy and was only 19 years of age, when he made this pledge to Allah by the side of the noble father’s body, soon after his demise,
Accomplishments
The events spanning over more than half a century after this promise testify that the Promised son did everything in his power to promote the mission of the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) for the revival of the true Islam. The setting up of Ahmadiyya organisational structure, foreign missions, great schemes for financial sacrifice and above all translation of the Holy Qur’an are some of his achievements.
The fulfilment of the grand prophecy
When informed by Allah the Almighty in 1944 that he was the Promised son, Hadhrat Musleh Maud (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “Please do remember that I am not laying claim to any nobility for myself. I am only a Sign of the Transcendent Power of God the Exalted; and for the purpose of establishing the grandeur of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) God the Exalted has designated me as the instrument.”
“It should be remembered that it is not simply about the birth of one person who accomplished great works. The reality of this prophecy will be brighter still when there will be people among us to take this task forward, that is the task for which the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) came and in support of which God declared Khalifatul Masih II to be Musleh Maud (may Allah be pleased with him)”.
[Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih V, Friday Sermon February 18th, 2011]
The grand prophecy and our responsibilities
Our beloved Hudhur (may Allah strengthen his hands) has reminded us of our responsibilities in this regard. It is our task to try and be ‘musleh’ in our own spheres and spread Islam with our knowledge, our word and our deed. We should pay attention towards reformation of the self, reformation of our children and reformation of society. If we spend our lives with this consideration, we will be honouring the dues of Musleh Maud Day, otherwise ours will be hollow speeches. May God enable us to do so. [Friday sermon February 18th, 2011]
“Even if all the people leave you and I am left alone I would stand by you and would face all opposition and onslaughts against your Mission.”
Accomplishments
The events spanning over more than half a century after this promise testify that the Promised son did everything in his power to promote the mission of the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) for the revival of the true Islam. The setting up of Ahmadiyya organisational structure, foreign missions, great schemes for financial sacrifice and above all translation of the Holy Qur’an are some of his achievements.
The fulfilment of the grand prophecy
When informed by Allah the Almighty in 1944 that he was the Promised son, Hadhrat Musleh Maud (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “Please do remember that I am not laying claim to any nobility for myself. I am only a Sign of the Transcendent Power of God the Exalted; and for the purpose of establishing the grandeur of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) God the Exalted has designated me as the instrument.”
The grand prophecy and our responsibilities
Our beloved Hudhur (may Allah strengthen his hands) has reminded us of our responsibilities in this regard. It is our task to try and be ‘musleh’ in our own spheres and spread Islam with our knowledge, our word and our deed. We should pay attention towards reformation of the self, reformation of our children and reformation of society. If we spend our lives with this consideration, we will be honouring the dues of Musleh Maud Day, otherwise ours will be hollow speeches. May God enable us to do so. [Friday sermon February 18th, 2011]
“It should be remembered that it is not simply about the birth of one person who accomplished great works. The reality of this prophecy will be brighter still when there will be people among us to take this task forward, that is the task for which the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) came and in support of which God declared Khalifatul Masih II to be Musleh Maud (may Allah be pleased with him)”.
[Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih V, Friday Sermon February 18th, 2011]
The grand prophecy and our responsibilities
Our beloved Hudhur (may Allah strengthen his hands) has reminded us of our responsibilities in this regard. It is our task to try and be ‘musleh’ in our own spheres and spread Islam with our knowledge, our word and our deed. We should pay attention towards reformation of the self, reformation of our children and reformation of society. If we spend our lives with this consideration, we will be honouring the dues of Musleh Maud Day, otherwise ours will be hollow speeches. May God enable us to do so. [Friday sermon February 18th, 2011]
“I would like to see the truth of Ahmadiyyat shine far and wide in the world. This was not difficult for our Lord to be achieved.”
[Hadhrat Musleh Maud (may Allah be pleased with him)]
“I do claim now again that even if thousands of scholars assembled to compete with me in writing commentaries of Quran, yet the world would accept and acknowledge that my commentary was unique in wisdom of divine truths in depth.”
[Hadhrat Musleh Maud (may Allah be pleased with him)]
“Friends, my last advice would be that all blessings are in Khilafat. Prophethood is a seed after which the Khilafat spreads its benevolence in the world around. Hold on firmly to true Khilafat and spread its blessings in the world. Allah would be merciful to you and would bless you in this world and in the hereafter.”
[Hadhrat Musleh Maud (may Allah be pleased with him)]