Distinctive Features of the Movement

A question that suggests itself at the outset is, what purpose is the Ahmadiyya Movement meant to serve in the presence of such a diversity of religions and movements that already exist. I shall, therefore, discuss this question first. Every person who believes in any of the revealed religions, must also believe that God has, at different times, sent various Prophets to the world, and that no nation has been left without a Messenger of God. The spiritual evolution of mankind is due entirely to this class of persons, and but for them there would have been nothing but darkness in the world. In the Holy Quran, God says:

‘There has been no people unvisited by a Warner.’1

Historical research and archaeological discoveries confirm us in this belief, which is proving a great factor in promoting unity among nations, and for which all credit is due to the Holy Quran, because this truth was first proclaimed by that Book. If we try to discover the object for which these Prophets were sent, we shall find that the cause of their advent has always been the spiritual corruption of mankind and the cessation of all direct relations with God. These Prophets always appear like rain-laden clouds which refresh and requicken the earth after a long season of drought. They are, as it were, God’s answer sent down from Heaven to the cries of those who seek after Him. They are like the horn blown by the hunter who spots the quarry, to collect together his scattered companions. The world is called by them back to the Truth; and commences its march towards its real goal under their direction.

We hold the belief that this succession of Prophets will continue in the future as it has done in the past, for reason repudiates a permanent cessation of it. If mankind is to continue to pass through ages of spiritual darkness, ages in which men will wander away from their Maker; if from time to time men are to be liable to go astray from the right path and to grope in the thick darkness of doubt and despair in their efforts to regain it; if they are to continue their search after the light in all such ages and times, it is impossible to believe that Divine torch-bearers and guides, should cease to appear; for it is inconsistent with, Rahmaniyyat, the mercy of God, that He should permit the ill but should not provide the remedy, that He should create the yearning but should withdraw the means of satisfying it. To imagine so would be to offer an insult to the Fountain-head of mercy and compassion, and to betray one’s spiritual blindness.

We believe that the world was in these days in sore need of a guide and preceptor who should point out the way to God, and should lead us, out of doubt and misgiving, to belief and certainty. If mankind was ever in need of a Prophet, it is much more in need of one today, when religion has become an empty phrase and truth is, as it were, dead.

At the present time, with respect to their attitude towards religion, men may be divided into three classes. First, those who deny the need of religion and either repudiate God altogether, or believe in Him just as they believe in rivers and mountains, for this belief does not in any way affect their daily lives. If they were to decide that there is no God, their mode of life would undergo no change whatever, for their belief in God has nothing to do with their acts and conduct. Such people have sometimes gone so far as to declare that they cannot surrender their independence even to God and that they cannot damage their self-respect by praying to, and humbling themselves before, Him.

The second class of people are those who believe in God and His attributes, but they are in the predicament of a thirsty man who has lost his way among the sand-hills of the desert, and who for miles and miles does not meet with a single drop of water. The more he searches for it, the fiercer becomes his thirst and the greater his agony, but his wanderings profit him not; he runs from one deluding mirage to another, but each time his disappointment augments his pain, and in the search of water he wanders farther away from it, till he arrives at the gates of death.

The third class of men are content with their lot and are satisfied with their condition, not because they believe that they have satisfied all their natural yearnings, but because they have lost courage and have despaired of God’s grace. They imagine that God’s bounties were limited to those who have gone before and that they are like stepsons who cannot hope to inherit their stepfather’s property. They are, therefore, content to feed on the crumbs which those, who have gone before, have left for them out of charity.

But none of these conditions is natural. The indifference of the first class of people referred to above, the fruitless efforts of the second, and the contentment born of despair of the last, are alike unavailing and unprofitable. The only thing which can profit the seekers of God is the true recognition and knowledge of Him, which dispels all gloom and removes all that separates man from his Maker and ultimately brings man into the very presence of God. Such knowledge alone can present religion to man in a shape which is acceptable and which the judgment of man can approve; and this has always been done and can only be done by a Prophet of God.

Consider therefore whether there is any religion today, whose followers claim still to possess that which was given to the world through the Prophets? Is it not true that men have either reconciled themselves to the belief that God’s blessings have been exhausted on those who have gone before, or renounced religion altogether, or deluded themselves with the belief that they have arrived at the goal, only, however, like the person in a mesmeric trance, who accepts all absurdities as true which have no reality for the lookers on? If this is so, the world is as much in need of a Prophet today as it was in any previous age. That is why the holy founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement has taught that the door of revelation has ever remained open and will continue to remain open, and that the present age bears emphatic testimony to the need of a Prophet. But we do not base our belief on the testimony of the age alone; we are also supported by the testimony of the previous Prophets.

We find that all religions contain prophecies concerning the advent of a Prophet in this age. The Hindus are awaiting the advent of the Neha Kalank Avatar, which has been foretold in their scriptures; the Christians are awaiting the second advent of the Messiah; the Muslims are looking forward to the appearance of the Mahdi and the Promised Messiah; the Zoroastrians believe in the coming of Mesio Darbahmi, etc., etc. If the advent of Prophets had ceased for the future, how could all these people have agreed on the single fact that a Prophet, whose advent had been foretold, would arise. One peculiar feature of these prophecies is that there is a great deal of similarity between the various signs detailed by different religions indicating the appearance of the promised Prophet. All these prophecies indicate the time of that Prophet by foretelling the spread of evils, multiplication of diseases, falling of stars, eclipses of the sun and the moon, recurrence of wars, etc. Again, it is foretold that these promised Prophets will propagate the truth throughout the world, and that the true religion will manifestly triumph over all other religions in an unprecedented manner. Now, on the one hand, the actual fulfilment of the signs contained in these prophecies show that they cannot be false, and, on the other, the appointed task of all the promised Prophets makes it impossible that at one and the same time all these Prophets should cause their respective religions to triumph over all the others.

The conclusion, therefore, is unavoidable that all these prophecies refer to one and the same person who shall, by means of his spiritual powers, gather together men of all faiths, and guide the nations of the world along the right path. These prophecies also show that whereas the promised one shall be the same for all religions, he shall possess such peculiar distinctions that every nation shall accept him as its own. He shall be so related to India that the Hindus will be able to accept him as their Neha Kalank Avatar; he shall be so related to the Zoroastrians that they will be able to accept him as their Mesio Darbahmi; he shall be so related to the Muslims that they will be able to claim him as their Mahdi; and he shall be so related to the Christians that they will be able to recognize in him the Messiah. This can happen only if he is related to different peoples in different capacities. For instance, he may be connected with one by religion, with another by race, and with a third his relations may be social or political, so that every nation will be prepared to acknowledge him as its own.

Our belief is that all these things are to be found in the holy founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as) whom God raised for the reformation of the present age. He claimed to be the Messiah for the Christians, the Mahdi for the Muslims, Krishna or the Neha Kalank Avatar for the Hindus, and Mesio Darbahmi for the Zoroastrians. In short, he was the promised Prophet of every nation and was appointed to collect all mankind under the banner of one faith. In him were centred the hopes and expectations of all nations; he is the dome of peace under which every nation may worship its Maker; he is the opening through which all nations may obtain a vision of their Lord; and he is the centre at which meet all the radii of the circle. It is ordained, therefore, that the world shall find peace and rest only through him. Being a Persian by race he was the promised one of the Zoroastrians; being an Indian by birth he was the promised one of the Hindus; being a Muslim by faith he was the promised one of the Muslims; and having come in the spirit and power of Jesus (as), bringing remedies for the reformation of the social evils prevailing in Christian countries— evils, which have laid an intolerable burden on the backs of the Christian nations—having been born under a Christian Government, and also having defended the honour of Jesus (as) against the attacks which have been levelled at it for hundreds of years, he was entitled to be recognized as the promised one of the Christians.

All prophecies of previous Prophets were fulfilled in his person and at his hands. When the time for the fulfilment of these prophecies drew near, God informed him of it and thus showed that in him alone were these prophecies to be fulfilled. It had been said that the promised one would appear in the East and so it came to pass.2 Similarly, it had been said that before the coming of the Messiah false prophets would appear and so it came to pass, i.e., before Ahmad (as) announced himself, several persons claimed to be Messiahs, the claims of some of whom well-nigh deceived the wise. Then there were, as had been foretold, wars and pestilences and famines, and in the end was fulfilled that mighty sign which is described in general words in the Bible and in the Jamaspi, the book of the Zoroastrians, as the darkening of the sun and the moon, but which is described in more detail in Islamic books. It had been specified in these books that at the time of the advent of the Mahdi, the sun shall be eclipsed on the second day of the days of its eclipse, and the moon shall be eclipsed on the first of the nights of its eclipse during the month of Ramadan. It had been particularly stated that this sign had not been appointed for any other claimant. This prophecy has also been fulfilled, and its fulfilment has set the seal of truth on Ahmad’s (as) claim to be the Mahdi and the Messiah. These eclipses occurred in 1894 in the month of Ramadan on the dates which had already been foretold, and although many persons had claimed to be the Mahdi or the Messiah before him, this conjunction did not occur during the time of any one of them.

In his time was also witnessed that most extraordinary phenomenon which had been foretold in earlier scriptures, but which had never been experienced before. It had been said that in the time of the promised one, there would be peace, that children would play with snakes and lambs with wolves, but that there would also be wars; in other words, that peace and war would exist side by side. We find that this startling spectacle is presented by the world on every side today. Patriotism, on the one hand, has in most countries put an end to oppression and strife which were only too prevalent in earlier days and has enabled states to put their respective territories in order, and, on the other, international relations are in a state of confusion, causing one nation to live in constant dread and suspicion of another, and international jealousies are at their height.

Besides these prophecies, detailed prophecies concerning the advent of the promised one are given in Islamic books, all of which have been fulfilled. Some of those may be mentioned here. It was foretold, for instance, that in the time of the promised one a new method of transport would render camels useless. This has been fulfilled by the introduction of railways. It was written that news would be carried instantaneously from one part of the world to another. This has been fulfilled by the invention of the telegraph and wireless telegraphy. It was written that women would increase in number and would be employed in large numbers for the sale of goods, that women’s dress would leave exposed those parts of the body which were formerly thought fit to be covered. It was written that three great powers would wage war with three other great powers, and that the victorious three would occupy Constantinople, but that a man would run away from Constantinople to Asia Minor, and would wage a war and would recover his territory. It was written that the Christian nations would be supreme everywhere that Arabia would be severed from the Turkish Empire, and that separate governments would be established in Iraq, Syria and Egypt. It was written that a certain people would shorten the months, the Islamic law would be disregarded, gambling would increase; large police forces would be required; women would dress like men; working classes would come into power; the rich would grudge charity to the poor; Islamic governments would be destroyed; religious condition of Arabia would become deplorable; inanimate objects would speak (this refers to the invention of the gramophone, radio, television, etc.); new modes of conveyance would be invented (this refers to airplanes, etc.). It was written that land lying between two seas, on one side of which there was coral and on the other pearls, would be cut, and thus the seas would be joined and a large number of vessels would pass through the opening. This refers clearly to the Suez and the Panama canals. Again it was written, that books and newspapers would be published in large numbers; several discoveries would be made in astronomy; irrigation canals would be cut out of rivers which would consequently run dry; mountains would be blown up; travelling would increase; in some countries the aboriginal inhabitants would be wiped out; immolation of widows and similar other ancient customs would be abolished by the state. It was foretold that the promised one would suffer from two maladies, one in the upper part of his body and the other in the lower, that the hair of his head would be straight, that he would be wheat-coloured, that he would suffer from a slight stammer in his speech, that he would belong to a family of farmers, that, while talking, he would occasionally strike his hand against his thigh, that he would appear in a village called Kada, and that he would combine in himself the office of the Messiah and the Mahdi. And so it has turned out to be. Ahmad, the Promised Messiah (as), suffered from vertigo and diabetes; he had straight hair, was wheat-coloured, and occasionally stammered in his speech. He had the habit of striking his hand against his thigh while giving a discourse, and belonged to a family of landowners. He was a resident of Kadian or Kade as Qadian is popularly called. In short, when we consider all these prophecies collectively, we find that they apply to no age but to the present, and to no person but to Ahmad (as). It appears clearly that the present age is the age of the advent of the promised one, whose appearance was foretold by the former Prophets, and that Ahmad (as) is the promised one whose advent had been eagerly awaited for centuries. When we see that before most of these signs were witnessed, the holy founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement, having received revelations from on High, foretold the appearance of many of these signs, as, for instance, the approach of the plague, the World War, universal earthquakes, the influenza epidemic, etc., etc., our faith and conviction are further strengthened, and we are compelled to believe, like every person who does not act thoughtlessly but considers and reflects and acts with justice, that God has fulfilled the hopes and expectations of all nations in the person of the holy founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement. The clouds of His mercy have sent down showers of rain, and lands which had been parched have been watered; blessed is he who collects this water in his fields, and renouncing all manner of pride and hypocrisy holds his faith above the riches and glories of this world.

The Ahmadiyya Community is thus to be distinguished from other religious communities and sects by the fact that the members of this community, having considered the appointed signs for the advent of the Prophet and the Reformer of the latter days, have accepted the claims of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as), and that unlike so many other peoples they no longer await the advent of the Messenger of the Latter Days. I proceed now to set out the object of the advent of the holy founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement as described by himself. He says:

‘The task for which God has appointed me is, that I should, by removing the obstacles which have been set up between man and his Maker, reestablish in the hearts of men love and devotion to God, and by making manifest the truth, should put an end to all religious wars and strife and thus lay the foundations of abiding peace, and should acquaint mankind with the spiritual truths which it had forgotten, and should demonstrate to the world the true spiritual life which had been displaced by material desires, and should in my own life manifest those Divine powers with which man has been endowed, but which can be manifested only through prayer and devotion; and above all that I should permanently re-establish that bright and pure Unity of God purified from all polytheistic ideas, which had entirely disappeared from the hearts of men.’3

‘God has filled me with knowledge so that I should warn those who have gone astray and should lead those who dwell in darkness into Light. God has sent me to reform this sad plight and to lead mankind back to His pure Unity. To this end, I have explained all things to you. I have also been sent to give to the world a firmer faith and to demonstrate to the world the existence of God; for faith has withered and belief in the life hereafter has become a fable, and the conduct of man shows that his whole trust is placed in the world and in things material, and that he has no faith in God or the life to come. Men talk of God and of spirituality but their hearts are filled with the love of this world. Jesus (as) had found the Jews in the same state in which I find the world today, and just as lack of faith had driven love of God from the hearts of the Jews and had destroyed their morals, the world today ceased to love God, and I have been sent to restore truth and faith and to revive the love and fear of God in the hearts of men. This alone is the object of my existence. God has informed me that heaven shall again draw nigh to the earth after it had drawn itself away. So I have come to renew these things and have been sent for this purpose.’4

Again, he says that he has been sent to attract men ‘to truth in all things relating to belief, morals, knowledge and conduct, in such manner that they should gain special strength in all these matters.’5

Again, he says, that one of his sons shall be the liberator of captives, that is to say, nations, classes and countries, oppressed by other nations, classes and states, shall through him, be released from the bonds of tyranny and shall obtain their freedom, and God shall remove their difficulties and shall confer on them a life of peace and comfort. Again, he says that it is his duty, firstly, ‘to demonstrate the truth of Islam to all nations,’ secondly, ‘to present to the world the true and unalloyed teachings of Islam, which are full of truth and spirituality, free from all false interpretations and irrelevant interpolations,’ and thirdly, ‘to bestow the light of faith on all those who, from among the nations of the earth, should be eager in their search for it.’

From all this it would appear that his mission was to preach the perfect Unity of God, to establish virtue and righteousness, to restore to the hearts of mankind the fear of God, to strengthen the relationship between man and his Maker, to lead men out of doubt and darkness into the certainty of faith, and to restore peace and calm to troubled hearts, to open the gates of spiritual knowledge, to find a solution for moral, spiritual, intellectual and practical difficulties, to relieve and succour the oppressed through heavenly means, to restore the rights of those who have been despoiled, to abolish war and disorder, to bring about universal peace, to collect all mankind under the banner of one faith and one creed, to propagate the truth among all nations, to purify Islam of extraneous errors and to present the true doctrines of Islam to the world, and finally to demonstrate to the world the glory of God by manifest signs.

A truly splendid mission and a glorious prospect! But has any claimant ever said anything different from this? Every one of them is bound to place before the world equally glorious prospects, for nobody would pay any attention to mere commonplace assertions. Such fine declarations are all considered the more necessary in the present age when every thing depends upon propagation and advertisement. Hence, if the claims of the holy founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement had been supported merely by such declarations, they would have deserved no particular attention and would not have been entitled to any preference over the claims of any other person. But as I shall presently show he has left us such a complete code of instructions and rules of conduct, that all sensible persons will acknowledge that by acting on them the objects of his advent, as above stated, may be easily and fully achieved.

One question, however, presents itself at this stage, and although it is not easy of comprehension, it is impossible, without understanding it, to arrive at a full realization of the true significance of the Ahmadiyya Movement. That question is this. Considering the holy founder of the Movement calls himself a Muslim and is one of the followers of Muhammad (sas) and asserts that his mission is to propagate the true teachings of the Holy Quran, what special significance can be attached to the Ahmadiyya Movement? Is not the holy founder of the Movement, in that case, a mere doctor or sufi, and the Movement, itself a mere intellectual movement, of no special importance? This, however, is far from the truth, and to think so would be entirely to misconceive the scope and significance of the Ahmadiyya Movement.

We believe that Prophets are of two kinds, those who are law-bearers and those who come to interpret and establish the law and to clear away the corruptions that creep into the system of a religion owing to lapse of time. All religious systems accept this distinction, and it is well illustrated by the succession of Prophets who followed Moses (as). The latter was a law-bearer and his contemporary Aaron (as) and his successors Joshua (as) and others, including Jesus (as), were sent only to establish the law revealed through Moses (as). Jesus (as) himself says, ‘Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the Prophets: I am not come to destroy but to fulfil.’6 The fact that the law of Moses (as) was in force in the time of Jesus (as) and was binding on him and his disciples is clearly borne out by the advice which he gave to his disciples and others. He says: ‘The Scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat: all, therefore, whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works, for they say, and do not.’7

No doubt, some of the sayings and teachings of Jesus (as) are said to be different from the teachings of the Torah, but if we study the Torah carefully we can discover in it the basis of all that Jesus (as) taught. He says himself, concerning these teachings, that they are not new and are contained in the Torah. For instance, towards the close of the Sermon on the Mount, which is regarded as laying down rules of conduct not contained in the Torah, Jesus (as) says, ‘for this is the law and the prophets.’8

In short, Prophets are of two kinds, those who are law-bearers like Moses (as) and those who only restore and re-establish the law after mankind have forsaken it; as, for instance, Elijah (as), Isaiah (as), Ezekiel (as), Daniel (as) and Jesus (as) .

The Promised Messiah (as) also claimed to be a Prophet like the latter, and asserted that as Jesus was the last Khalifa (Successor) of the Mosaic dispensation, he was the last Khalifa of the Islamic dispensation. The Ahmadiyya Movement, therefore, occupies, with respect to the other sects of Islam, the same position which Christianity occupied with respect to the other sects of Judaism. We believe that in the Holy Prophet Muhammad was fulfilled the prophecy of Moses (as) which is contained in Deuteronomy (18:18), and which foretells the advent of a Prophet from among the brethren of the Israelites, who would be a law-bearer like Moses (as). Muhammad (sas), being a descendant of Ishmael, one of the brethren of the Israelites, was the bearer of a new law. The Holy Quran refers to the fulfilment of the prophecy of Moses (as) in his person in the following verse:

‘We have sent an Apostle to you who enforces the commandments of the law by superintending your performance of them, as We sent an apostle to Pharaoh.’9

Muhammad (sas), being thus the like of Moses (as), it was necessary that the Messiah (as) of the Islamic dispensation should not only be from among his followers but should come to re-establish and propagate the Quranic law just as Jesus (as) came with no new law but only confirmed the Torah.

I have so far endeavoured to explain the relation of the Ahmadiyya Movement to Islam. I now proceed to explain the significance of the Movement.

I have already indicated that one of the functions of a Prophet who is not the bearer of a new law is to sift all errors and misinterpretations which may have crept into an existing religious system owing to lapse of time, and this in itself is a great task. To discover and restore that which had been lost is almost as great a task as to supply that which is new. But we believe that the Promised Messiah (as) had a much higher mission to perform. In order, however, to understand what that mission was it is necessary first to understand clearly our position with regard to the Holy Quran. Unlike other Muslims we believe that the fountain of Divine knowledge contained in the Holy Quran has not been exhausted, and that the Holy Quran is a complete code. As the work of God is an unlimited treasure house of wonders which are manifested according to the needs of mankind, so should the perfect Word of God be an inexhaustible treasure of wisdom and truth which should provide cures for the moral and spiritual ailments of all times. God does not daily create new things in this world, but every created thing is full of so many virtues and mysteries, that there is not a single thing in the world concerning which it may be said that its secrets have been fully revealed and that it is impossible to discover any new property or virtue in it. Man has not yet been able to lay bare all the mysteries of the human body, let alone a complete knowledge of the virtues and properties of other things. If this is so in the case of material things which are meant to serve comparatively temporary purposes, how much more must this be necessary in the case of the perfect Word of God which relates to the spiritual world. Should we not in the case of the latter be ever prepared to discover in it new and limitless treasures of eternal truths and hidden powers? We, therefore, believe—and every sensible person will agree—that a book which claims to be the perfect Word of God must possess this indispensable quality; and if it lacks this quality, its claim to be a perfect Word of God cannot be accepted.

The Promised Messiah (as), addressing those who believed that the treasures of Divine knowledge contained in the Holy Quran had been fully discovered and made known by those who had gone before, says:

‘Know, therefore, that the open miracle of the Holy Quran which can be demonstrated to the people of all nations and all tongues, and whereby we can convince and confute every person, whether an Indian, Persian, European, American or other, is that it is a limitless treasure of Divine truths and realities, heavenly sciences and spiritual philosophies, which are discovered in it in every age according to the needs of mankind, and which, like armed soldiers, stand ever ready to combat every new falsehood. If the Holy Quran had been limited in its meaning and interpretation, it could not be regarded as a perfect miracle. Mere beauty of diction and purity of language, even if miracles, are not matters which can be appreciated by the literate and illiterate alike. The greatest miracle of the Holy Quran is, that its treasures are inexhaustible, and a person, who does not perceive this miracle, is entirely shut out from real knowledge of the Holy Quran. Remember that this miracle of the Holy Quran is so perfect that it has in every age proved more potent than the sword. The Holy Quran contains a full and complete refutation of every doubt which is suggested by each succeeding age under the ever-changing conditions of the world, and a reply to every criticism which may be based on new knowledge and new discoveries.

No Divine truth has been put forward or can ever be put forward by a follower of any other religion, be he a Brahman, a Buddhist or an Arya, or by a follower of any other school of thought, which truth has not already found a place in the Holy Quran. The treasures of the Holy Quran are inexhaustible, and as the wonders of the book of nature are limitless, and each succeeding age discovers fresh properties and new virtues in nature, the same is in the case with the Word of God, so that there may be no disparity between God’s work and his Word.’10

By pointing out this great miracle of the Holy Quran, the Promised Messiah (as) has effected a revolution in spiritual matters. The Muslims certainly believed that the Holy Quran was perfect, but during the last thirteen hundred years nobody had imagined that not only was it perfect but that it was an inexhaustible storehouse in which the needs of all future ages had been provided for, and that on investigation and research it would yield far richer treasures of spiritual knowledge, than the material treasures which nature is capable of yielding. The holy founder of the Ahamadiyya Movement has, by presenting to the world this miraculous aspect of the Holy Quran, thrown open the door to a far wider field of discovery and research in matters spiritual, than any scientific discovery has ever done in the realm of physical science. He not only purified Islam of all extraneous errors and presented it to the world in its pristine purity and simplicity, but also presented the Holy Quran to the world in a light which served at once to satisfy all the intellectual needs of mankind which the rapidly changing conditions of the world had brought into existence and to furnish a key to the solution of all future difficulties.

Mankind is undoubtedly being harassed by complicated social and political problems and is thirsting for spiritual knowledge. Not finding any solution of these difficulties in current religious literature, some people have become disgusted with religion itself, and others are adding to these difficulties by endeavouring to frame new codes of law. But as you will presently discover, the solution of all these difficulties has been provided for in the teachings of the Promised Messiah (as). It was no doubt, contained in the Holy Quran, but a part of it was like water which had been rendered impure by the introduction of noxious matter (i.e., false and impious interpretations) and a part of it was like a fountain flowing deep under the earth, hidden from the eyes of men. He distilled the impure water and discovered the subterranean channel, and removed the veil from our eyes, and opened wide the door to a vast field of research and discovery, thus providing for the everincreasing needs of mankind, without in the least going outside the scope of the teachings of the Holy Quran and interfering with that form of Islam which was established by the Holy Prophet (sas) and which it is the will of God to preserve till the end of days.

Once this is realized, it will be easy to comprehend that although the Ahmadiyya Movement believes firmly in the Holy Quran and is a Movement of Muslims, it cannot be ranked merely as one of the sects of Islam. On the contrary it claims that it alone presents to the world the real Islam that was revealed over thirteen hundred years ago, and that its special mission is to enrich mankind with the unlimited spiritual treasures contained in the Holy Quran. The existence of this Movement is not the result of the culmination of any particular idea, nor is it the last wave of a natural current set in motion by any particular sect or school of thought. It is an entirely new current which has, on the one hand, moved rapidly back through thirteen centuries and, on the other, is pressing forward through the present into the future, supplying from the inexhaustible treasures of the Holy Quran all the new and varied needs of mankind. It is a current which has united not only the East and the West, but has also brought together the past and the future. We can now confidently assert that the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sas), to whom was revealed the final and perfect code of law, was an Adam for the perfection of the law, and that the Promised Messiah (as), who had been sent by God to demonstrate to the world the vast extent of the spiritual sciences and philosophies of the Holy Quran, which satisfy the needs of every age, was an Adam for the perfection of the interpretation and propagation of the law, as the first Adam was the Adam of the physical perfection of man.

It was necessary for me to dilate on this aspect of the Ahmadiyya Movement, for, as I have indicated, the Ahmadiyya Movement is not the name of any new religion. If I had proceeded to discuss the teachings and principles of the Movement which are wholly based on the Holy Quran, without this preliminary explanation, a certain amount of confusion might have arisen and it might have been difficult to understand whether I was speaking of the Ahmadiyya Movement or of Islam. It must now be perfectly clear that Ahmadiyyat and Islam are one and the same thing, and that by Ahmadiyyat is meant that real Islam which God has manifested to the world through the promised one of the present age. It is based wholly on the Holy Quran and the law of Islam, and yet it is entirely different from the other existing sects of Islam in its teachings and its doctrines. It has first re-discovered many truths which had been altogether lost sight of, and has, secondly, for the first time, revealed to the world many new truths relating to the special conditions and needs of the present age. These truths were presented by the Promised Messiah (as) who has enriched the intellectual and spiritual worlds by discovering many spiritual sciences which lay hidden beneath the words of the Holy Quran. Hence when in the course of this paper I refer to the teachings of Islam I shall be referring to the teachings which are in consonance with the point of view of the Ahmadiyya Movement irrespective of the fact, whether they are accepted by other Muslims or not, and when I refer to the teachings of the Ahmadiyya Movement, the reference will be to the teachings of Islam and not to any new doctrine or teaching.