Need for Teachers and Fresh Exposition of the Holy Qur’an — Essence of Islam Vol. 3

14 Sep, 2026 Essence of Islam 0

Essence of Islam Book Cover by Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (AS)

Introduction

In this discourse from Essence of Islam (Volume 3), Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (AS), the Promised Messiah and Mahdi, expounds upon Need for Teachers and Fresh Exposition of the Holy Qur’an, 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: Need of the Company of the Righteous | Next: Fulfilling the Need of Safeguarding the Holy Qur’an »

That is: ‘The Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) teaches the Qur’an and its wisdom to the people.’ At one place it is said:

لَّا يَمَسُّهُۥٓ إِلَّا ٱلۡمُطَهَّرُونَ

“Which none shall touch except those who are purified.” (Surah Al-Waqi‘ah, 56:80)

This means that: ‘The verities and the insights of the Qur’an are revealed only to the purified.’

Prophethood in Islam 161 posed to qal.131 The Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), who was the first teacher of the Holy Qur’an and the true heir of its teaching, demonstrated its teachings to his companions by his own practice and example. For instance, the Divine affirmation that He knows the unseen, accepts prayer, has power to do all that He wills, leads His seekers to the true light, sends His revelation to His sincere servants, and causes His spirit to descend upon whomsoever He wills out of His creatures, are all matters that can be understood only through the example of the teacher himself.
It is obvious that the superficial clerics, who are themselves blind, cannot illustrate these teachings. On the contrary, they teach that all these matters have been left behind and can no longer be experienced. Thus they create doubts in the minds of their disciples concerning the greatness of Islam. They teach that Islam is no longer a living faith and there is no way now to discover its true meaning. It is obvious, however, that if God Almighty designs that His creatures should always drink from the spring of the Holy Qur’an, He would have made provisions for it as He always done. Had the teachings of the Holy Qur’an been limited, as the teaching of an experienced and right thinking philosopher is limited, and did it not comprise the heavenly teaching which can only be demonstrated by practice, then, God forbid, the revelation of the Qur’an was needless. But I know that if one were to reflect upon the distinction between the teaching of the Prophets and the teaching of the philosophers, assuming both to be true, the only distinction that would be 131 Hal here means the practical demonstration of faith, as opposed to qal, which connotes only verbal acceptance. [Publisher] discovered is that a great portion of the teaching of the Prophets is metaphysical and can only be understood and appreciated through practical demonstration, and can be illustrated only by those who have the personal experience of it…. If Allah the Glorious has so willed that this portion of the teaching of His Book should not be confined to the early ages, then He must have arranged for the teachers of that portion to be available at all times, since the portion of the teaching which relates to personal experience cannot be comprehended except through teachers who have experienced it. Therefore, if after the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) teachers who were guided by the reflection of the light of Prophethood had not been available, it would mean that God Almighty, having removed from the world at an early stage those who understood the Holy Qur’an truly and correctly, deliberately let the Qur’an become useless. But this would be contrary to His promise: 132

That is: ‘It is We Who have sent down the Qur’an and We shall continue to safeguard it.’
[Essence of Islam, Vol. 3]
[Essence of Islam, Vol. 3, p. 160]

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Introduction