His Life: Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (1835-1908), the Promised Messiah and Mahdi (peace be upon him) was born in Qadian, a small village in northern India, to a noble Muslim family. In early childhood, he was inclined towards prayer, spirituality and the study of the Holy Qur’an and other religious texts. His adolescence was spent engaged in worship, study and entering into debates and discussions with Muslim and Christian religionists. While Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad had numerous spiritual experiences at a young age, it was not until 1882 that Allah disclosed to him that he was the awaited reformer of the age. While many of his followers offered to take the oath of allegiance at his hands, he refused until such time as Allah had given him permission to do so. In 1888, he received the command from Allah to begin taking this oath from his followers, which he did on March 23, 1889, when the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama`at was born. Like all prophets before him, his claims were met with ridicule, opposition and persecution. In reply to the hostilities exhibited against him and his followers, his simple message was, “I bear no animosity towards anyone”. Based on his unequivocal message of love and tolerance, the Ahmadiyya Community adopted the motto, “Love for All, Hatred for None.” He passed away on May 25, 1908, and on May 27, 1908, Hadhrat Maulvi Nooruddin became his Khalifa (successor).
His Claim: Based on the prophecies related to his advent, the Promised Messiah and Mahdi claimed to be sent by Allah to revive the true practice and teachings of Islam and to reform the Muslim ummah (community) in this regard. His role was to also lay the foundation for and inspire Islam’s final victory in the world by reviving and attracting people to its teachings of peace and love. As, according to the Holy Qur’an, all religions of the world were founded in truth, and each one awaits a messianic figure and Latter Day reformer, Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad claimed to fulfill the advent of all of these messiahs.
His Message: The study of his life and message shows he had three objectives in life:
One: complete devotion to and love for Allah;
Two: complete devotion to and love for the Holy Prophet Muhammad, love that was only subordinate to his love for Allah; and
Three: to call Muslims and the world to the true teachings of Islam, and turning them away from the distortions and misinterpretations layered onto it over the centuries.
His Gift: His 88 books as well as his poetry were written in Urdu, Persian and Arabic, all of which constituted the height of scholarship and which were responsible for inspiring the revival in Islamic thought and spirituality. His writing career was dedicated to defending Islam from the slurs and attacks of Islamophobes and to presenting the pristine purity of Islam cleansed of the superstitions and distortions imposed upon it by centuries of misguided scholars. His writings have been translated in numerous languages and have successfully guided people towards obtaining a true understanding of the Holy Qur’an and the life of the Holy Prophet Muhammad.
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