Mirza Ghulam Ahmad

Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (Urdu: مرزا غلام احمد; February 13, 1835 – May 26, 1908) was a religious leader who founded the Ahmadiyya movement, a branch of Islam. Ahmadi doctrine is that he was the last prophet, which is based on its interpretation of the Seal of Prophets that non-law-bearing prophets can still come ^[1], as well as the Mahdi and the messiah. He is believed by the Ahmadis to be the mujaddid of the 14th Islamic century.^[2]

Mirza Ghulam Ahmad

Biography

Early life

Ghulam was born in the village of Qadian, in the Punjab region. in the British Raj in 1835 and was the surviving child of twins born to a rich family. He is reported to have spent a lot of time in the mosque and with the study of the Qur'an and his religion, Islam. That did not lead him to fulfill his father's wishes of his son becoming a lawyer or civil servant. He attempted to become a lawyer but failed the test. In his course of studying religious topics, he would often interact with many Muslims and non-Muslims such as Hindus, Sikhs, and Christian missionaries, whom he would engage in debates.

Prior to his claim

When Ghulam was 35 years old, his father died. Ghulam claimed that God had begun communicating with him, often through direct revelation. Initially, Ghulam's writings were then intended to counter what he perceived to be anti-Islamic writings originating from various Christian missionary groups. He also focused on countering the effects of various groups such as the Brahmo Samaj. During this period of his life, he was well received by the Islamic clerics of the time.

Post claim

As time progressed, his writings began to exhibit his claims of being the mujaddid, or reformer of his era. Those writings were compiled in one of his most well-known works: Barahin Ahmadiyya, a work consisting of 5 volumes of the originally-planned 50 volumes. He explained that since there is a difference of only a decimal point between 50 and 5, his promise was fulfilled.^[3] In later volumes, he would essentially claim to be the messiah of Islam. That has since proved to be very controversial, as traditional Islamic thought holds that Jesus is the messiah, who himself will return in the flesh at the end of times. Ghulam countered that by claiming that Jesus was dead and had in fact escaped crucifixion and died in India.

According to Ghulam, the promised mahdi was a spiritual leader, not the military, leader that is believed by most Muslims. With that proclamation, he also began to step away from the traditional idea of militant jihad and redefined it as a “spiritual” battle, rather than a physical one. In addition to those controversial claims, he would later claim that Guru Nanak, the first Sikh Guru, was in fact a Muslim because he had gone to Mecca to take part in the Hajj pilgrimage.

Those writings began to turn the general ulema (Muslim religious clerics) against him, and he was often branded as a heretic. Some accused Ghulam of working for the British, who were trying to use him to remove the concept of jihad from the Muslim populations living under British rule in South Asia.

Ghulam founded the Ahmadiyya movement in 1889. He claimed that the movement stood in the same relation to Islam as Christianity stood to Judaism at the time of Jesus. The mission of the movement, according to Ghulam, was to restore what he considered to be Islam in its pristine form. Ghulam had teachings that differed from other Muslims and can be summarized as follows:

• Muhammad is the last prophet to bring a new law religion but not the last prophet altogether. Prophethood within the Islamic dispensation is continued after him. Ghulam was a prophet and a claimant of Imam Mahdi and the Messiah.
• The Qur'an has no contradictions (or abrogations)^[4] and has precedence over the hadith or traditions. Therefore, one verse of the Qur'an does not cancel another, and no hadith can contradict a verse of the Qur'an. The hadith that appear to contradict the Qu'ran are not accepted by the Ahmadi.^[5]
• Jesus (called Yuz Asaf) was crucified, survived four hours on the cross, and was revived from a swoon in the tomb.^[6] He died in Kashmir of old age while je sought seeking the "Lost Tribes of Israel".^[7]
• Jihad may be used only to protect against extreme religious persecution, not as a political weapon or an excuse for rulers to invade neighbouring territories.^[8][9]
• The messiah and Imam Mahdi are the same person, and Islam will defeat the Antichrist or Dajjal in a period similar to the period of time it took for Christianity to rise from its start (300 years). Mainstream Muslims believe that Jesus was not crucified but was made to look as if he had been and that he ascended to heaven, from where he will return personally in the flesh to revive Islam.^[10][11]

Ghulam is widely acknowledged to have devoted his life to furthering the cause of his movement and countering allegations of heresy against his person until his death at Lahore in 1908.

Origin of name

The Ahmadiyya movement in Islam was founded in 1889, but the name Ahmadiyya was not adopted until about a decade later. In a manifesto dated November 4, 1900, the founder explained that the name referred to Ahmad, the alternative name of the Prophet Mohammed. According to Ghulam, "Mohammed", which means "the praised one", refers to the glorious destiny of the prophet who adopted the name from about the time of the Hegira, but "Ahmad" stands for the beauty of his sermons and for the peace that he was destined to establish in the world through his teachings.

According to Ghulam, both names thus refer to two aspects of Islam, and in later times, it was the latter aspect that commanded greater attention. In keeping with that, he believed that his object was to establish peace in the world through the spiritual teachings of Islam. He believed that his message had special relevance for the Western world, which, according to him, had descended into materialism.

Legacy

One of the main sources of dispute during Ghulam's lifetime that has continued since then is his use of the terms “Nabi” (prophet) and “Rasool” (messenger) to refer to himself. Most Muslims consider Muhammad to be the last of the prophets^[12] and believe that Ghulam's use of those terms is a violation of the concept of the Finality of Prophet hood.^[13] His followers fall into two camps in that regard: the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community believes in a literal interpretation of Ghulam's prophethood with some qualifications.^[14] The Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement believes in a symbolic interpretation of both terms.^[15] That was one of the reasons that caused a split in the movement soon after his death.

Followers of Ghulam have faced relentless persecution of various types over the years.^[16] In 1974, the Pakistani Parliament amended the country's constitution to declare Ahmadi Muslims as non-Muslims for purposes of the Islamic republic.^[17] In 1984, a series of changes in the Pakistani Penal Code's sections relating to blasphemy in essence made it illegal for Ahmadis to preach their religion openly as Islam. That led to thousands of arrests and prosecutions.

Related pages

• Ahmadi
• Ahmadiyya
• Islam
• Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement