Divine Promise of Khilafat — Essence of Islam Vol. 3
Introduction
In this discourse from Essence of Islam (Volume 3), Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (AS), the Promised Messiah and Mahdi, expounds upon Divine Promise of Khilafat, presenting profound spiritual insights and scriptural verities.
Book Series: Essence of Islam (Volume 3)
Author: Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian (AS)
Section: Part 5: Prophethood in Islam
Navigation: Book Table of Contents | « Previous: Fulfilling the Need of Safeguarding the Holy Qur’an | Next: The Messiah and His Second Coming »
Prophethood in Islam 165 ‘O Allah, guide us along the straight path, the path of those servants upon whom Thou has bestowed Thy favours….’
Not only has He taught this prayer, but has also promised in another verse: 138‘Those who strive in Our path—which is the right path— We will surely guide them along Our ways.’ It is clear that the ways of God Almighty are those that have been disclosed to the Prophets.
[Shahadat-ul-Qur’an, Ruhani Khaza’in, vol. 6, pp.339-352]
[Essence of Islam, Vol. 3, p. 165]
There are other verses which also indicate that it is God’s design that spiritual teachers, who are the heirs of the Prophets, should always continue to be available. For instance:
وَعَدَ ٱللَّهُ ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ مِنكُمۡ وَعَمِلُواْ ٱلصَّـٰلِحَٰتِ لَيَسۡتَخۡلِفَنَّهُمۡ فِي ٱلۡأَرۡضِ كَمَا ٱسۡتَخۡلَفَ ٱلَّذِينَ مِن قَبۡلِهِمۡ وَلَيُمَكِّنَنَّ لَهُمۡ دِينَهُمُ ٱلَّذِي ٱرۡتَضَىٰ لَهُمۡ وَلَيُبَدِّلَنَّهُم مِّنۢ بَعۡدِ خَوۡفِهِمۡ أَمۡنٗا ۚ يَعۡبُدُونَنِي لَا يُشۡرِكُونَ بِي شَيۡـٔٗا ۚ وَمَن كَفَرَ بَعۡدَ ذَٰلِكَ فَأُوْلَـٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلۡفَٰسِقُونَ
“Allah has promised to those among you who believe and do good works that He will surely make them Successors in the earth, as He made Successors from among those who were before them; and that He will surely establish for them their religion which He has chosen for them; and that He will surely give them in exchange security and peace after their fear: They will worship Me, and they will not associate anything with Me. Then whoso is ungrateful after that, they will be the rebellious.” (Surah Al-Nur, 24:56)
وَلَوۡ أَنَّ قُرۡءَانٗا سُيِّرَتۡ بِهِ ٱلۡجِبَالُ أَوۡ قُطِّعَتۡ بِهِ ٱلۡأَرۡضُ أَوۡ كُلِّمَ بِهِ ٱلۡمَوۡتَىٰ ۗ بَل لِّلَّهِ ٱلۡأَمۡرُ جَمِيعًا ۗ أَفَلَمۡ يَاْيۡـَٔسِ ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓاْ أَن لَّوۡ يَشَآءُ ٱللَّهُ لَهَدَى ٱلنَّاسَ جَمِيعٗا ۗ وَلَا يَزَالُ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ تُصِيبُهُم بِمَا صَنَعُواْ قَارِعَةٌ أَوۡ تَحُلُّ قَرِيبٗا مِّن دَارِهِمۡ حَتَّىٰ يَأۡتِيَ وَعۡدُ ٱللَّهِ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ لَا يُخۡلِفُ ٱلۡمِيعَادَ
“And if there were a Qur’an by which mountains could be moved or by which the earth could be cut asunder or by which the dead could be spoken to, they would not believe in it. Nay, the matter rests entirely with Allah. Have not the believers yet come to know that, if Allah had enforced His will, He could have surely guided all mankind? And as for those who disbelieve, disaster shall not cease to befall them for what they have wrought or to alight near their home, until the promise of Allah comes to pass. Surely, Allah fails not in His promise.” (Surah Al-Ra‘d, 13:32)
مَّنِ ٱهۡتَدَىٰ فَإِنَّمَا يَهۡتَدِي لِنَفۡسِهِۦ ۖ وَمَن ضَلَّ فَإِنَّمَا يَضِلُّ عَلَيۡهَا ۚ وَلَا تَزِرُ وَازِرَةٞ وِزۡرَ أُخۡرَىٰ ۗ وَمَا كُنَّا مُعَذِّبِينَ حَتَّىٰ نَبۡعَثَ رَسُولٗا
“He who follows the right way follows it only for the good of his own soul: and he who goes astray, goes astray only to his own loss. And no bearer of burden shall bear the burden of another. We never punish until We have sent a Messenger.” (Surah Bani Isra’il, 17:16)
Meaning: ‘O True believers among the followers of Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), Allah has promised those among you who believe and act
righteously, that He will surely make them successors in the earth, as He made successors among those who were before them.’
[Shahadat-ul-Qur’an, Ruhani Khaza’in, vol. 6, pp.352-356]
‘Those who disbelieve will continue to be afflicted with a calamity, physical or spiritual, or would descend close to their dwellings till the Divine promise is fulfilled. Surely Allah doeth not contrary to His promise.’
‘And We send not a punishment till after We have raised a Messenger.’
If a person reflects upon these verses he will realize that God Almighty has clearly promised the Muslims a permanent Khilafat. If this Khilafat were not permanent there would have been no sense in describing it as resembling the Khilafat of the Mosaic dispensation…. A Khalifa is a reflection of a Prophet. As man is mortal, God Almighty designed that Prophets, who are more exalted and honoured than all other beings, should be reflectively preserved forever. For this purpose, God instituted Khilafat so that the world should at no time be deprived of the blessings of Prophethood. He who limits it to thirty years, foolishly overlooks the true purpose of Khilafat, and does not realize that God did not design that the blessings of Khilafat be limited to thirty years after the death of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and that, thereafter, the world may go to ruin…. There are many other verses in the Holy Qur’an, which give tidings of a permanent Khilafat among the Muslims, and there are also several Ahadith to the same effect. But what I have said already should suffice for those who accept established verities as great wealth. There is no worse concept concerning Islam than to say Prophethood in Islam 167 that it is a dead religion whose blessings were confined only to its beginning. Can the Book that opens the door of perpetual good fortune inculcate so discouraging a doctrine that there is no blessing or Khilafat in the future and that everything has been confined to the past? True, there will be no independent Prophets among the Muslims. But if there were also to be no Khulafa’ to demonstrate the proofs of spiritual life from time to time, that would spell the end of spirituality in Islam….It causes one’s heart to tremble to imagine that Islam has now died and that no such people would arise in it, whose spiritual manifestations would be a substitute for miracles and whose inspiration a substitute for revelation, let alone that a Muslim should believe in any such possibility as a doctrine. May God Almighty guide those who are involved in such misguided thinking.
[Essence of Islam, Vol. 3, p. 165]
6 THE MESSIAH AND HIS SECOND COMING
[Essence of Islam, Vol. 3]
[Essence of Islam, Vol. 3, p. 167]
Book Series: Essence of Islam (Volume 3)
Author: Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian (AS)
Section: Part 5: Prophethood in Islam
Navigation: Book Table of Contents | « Previous: Fulfilling the Need of Safeguarding the Holy Qur’an | Next: The Messiah and His Second Coming »