Manifestation of Worldwide Blessings of the House of Allah Marked by the Advent of the Holy Prophet (sas)

Friday Sermon, May 5, 1967, Mubarak Mosque, Rabwah.

“Allah the Exalted desired to bless the Ka‘bah, so, the House of Allah was blessed by the advent of the Holy Prophet (sas). God Almighty desired to send here a guidance which was to be (a guidance for all peoples) on account of both the completion and beneficence of shariah, and this promise also was fulfilled by the Holy Quran.”

After Tashahhud, Ta‘wwuz and Surah Al-Fatihah Huzoor recited the following verse from the Holy Quran:

“Surely, the first House founded for mankind is that at Becca, abounding in blessings and a guidance for all peoples.”1

And then said:

I am elaborating on how the twenty-three objectives, related to the construction of the House of Allah, have been fulfilled by the advent of the Holy Prophet (sas). In this context, I have already expounded on (founded for mankind) in a previous sermon.

The second objective discussed in these verses is that the Ka‘bah is abounding in blessings. The word “blessed” here implies two things. First, that the Ka‘bah will become an abode for representatives of all the nations in the world. The lions in the field of spiritual matters from all the nations will keep assembling here. It will be the dwelling place for the persevering heroes. History bears testimony that the House of Allah, from this vantage point, has never been blessed for the whole world prior to the advent of the Holy Prophet (sas). That is to say, such love for the House of Allah had never been cherished by them before the advent of the Holy Prophet (sas) as they would be drawn to it. Nor did Ka‘bah have any such means of attraction in it as to endear the hearts of those who would pay a visit to it.

The world saw a revolutionary change in this respect after the advent of the Holy Prophet (sas). Hearts of peoples were drawn to the House of Allah on the one hand, while on the other such means were produced for people to go there and acquire spiritual, rational and religious knowledge from there. That knowledge should be such as to profit spiritually and temporally all nations and all generations in all times. History bears eloquent testimony that this objective has been achieved by the advent of the Holy Prophet (sas); hence, the subject needs not to be expounded further.

The second meaning of the word, (Mubarakan) applied here is that Mecca will be made to be the birthplace of such a shariah, wherein all fundamental verities and guidance found scattered in shariahs of the Prophets of old, will be converged. The Holy Quran is the only shariah that proclaims convergence of all the previous verities in it. None of the shariahs prior to the Holy Quran had made such proclamation, nor could they have ever made it, for their Lord, Who sent them down to His Prophets, knew that they were meant only for a certain people and a certain period of time.

The claim has been made in various verses of the Holy Quran. I would like to present some of them to you now. Allah the Exalted says in Surah Al-An‘am:

“And this is a Book which We have sent down; it is full of blessings. So follow it, and guard against sin that you may be shown mercy.”2

That is, the Quran is such a book and shariah which is (abounding in blessings), and excellences; and fundamental verities of all the Divine books seem to have flowed into it. Now act upon this ‘abounding in blessings’ Book to the best of your abilities whereby you will get two fold benefits from it. Firstly, you will come under the Divine protection; Allah will become your shield and will protect you against all satanic temptations, for, one cannot attain the cognizance of true paths of righteousness unless he follows this blessed Book, and cannot come under Divine protection without treading on these paths. Secondly, you will be entitled to Divine mercy, and as a result of incalculable favours from Allah you will achieve physical and spiritual prosperity.

Likewise in another place Allah the Exalted says:

“And this is a Book which We have revealed, full of blessings, to fulfil that which preceded it, and to enable thee to warn the Mother of towns and those around her.”3

That is, this is a great Book which We have sent down. It is inclusive of every blessing bestowed on the peoples of old, and it has been revealed in keeping with the glad tidings and prophecies found in the previous scriptures. Furthermore, it endorses all the principal verities and guidance found in all the previous shariahs. In other words, it compacts them all.

Similarly, it is the fruit of the sacrifices and supplications made by Hazrat Ibrahim (as). Thus, [God commands the Holy Prophet (sas) to] warn the Meccans and the Arabs that the promise of an immaculate shariah which was made to you has now been fulfilled, and the promised shariah has been sent down to you. If you turned your back on it, then, as you have been forewarned by Hazrat Ibrahim (as), Divine punishment will be meted out to you and you will be forcibly dragged to the chastisement of fire.

The verse therefore explicitly speaks that the word, (abounding in blessings) is related to the person of the Holy Prophet (sas) and prophecies of Hazrat Ibrahim (as). The words, (warn the Mother of towns and those around her) discuss this subject in clear terms. Thus, both the meanings suggest that this House of Allah became (abounding in blessings) only when the Holy Prophet (sas) was raised. People in the world had started feeling love for Mecca and the Islamic shariah was revealed in Mecca to meet the needs of the world.

The third objective of building the Ka‘bah discussed in these verses is that it will be made a centre for the guidance of all peoples. That is to say, a shariah will be sent down here which will not be peculiar to any one people or age, rather it will belong to (all peoples). It will be meant for all peoples, the whole world and all ages.

An important point to be kept in mind in this respect is that at the time of the revelation of former Divine Books, human faculties were frail and unable to bear with the immaculate and perfect shariah. Therefore, none of them had proclaimed to be for all peoples and all ages. None of the shariahs, other than the Holy Quran, had claimed to be for all peoples. And only the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sas) called out that he was a Messenger of God for all mankind. Numerous verses on this subject are found in the Holy Quran. I would like to cite only a few. Allah the Exalted says:

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We have sent down to thee the book to explain everything and every teaching that We wanted to explain for the spiritual progress of mankind. In other words, We have explained in this Book, to Our perfect knowledge, all the teachings necessary for high spiritual progress of mankind. At another point Allah says:

“We have left out nothing in the Book.”5

That is to say, all the necessary teachings for the appropriate development of higher faculties of mankind have been explained in it and nothing has been left out of this Book. For this reason, Allah makes this proclamation in the Holy Quran:

“This day have I perfected your religion for you and completed My favour upon you and have chosen for you Islam as religion.”6

That is, religion has reached its perfection and Divine favours have reached their zenith through the Holy Quran. Now, it is only through Islam that the pleasure of Allah can be attained.

Commenting on the verse the Promised Messiah (as) says:

“The point is obvious in the verse that only the Holy Quran has brought the perfect teaching and it was only the age of the Holy Quran in which perfect teaching was to be given. Thus, the proclamation of bringing a perfect teaching made by the Holy Quran was a prerogative of only the Holy Quran. No Divine Book, other than the Holy Quran, has made such a claim. It is evident to those who can see that the Torah and Gospels both withdraw from making such a proclamation.”7

Expounding on the proclamation the Promised Messiah (as) made regarding the Torah and Gospel, he says, it is written in the Torah that a Prophet will be raised up from among your brethren and will read word of God to you. And whoever will not give heed to his words and will not believe in him will be held accountable to God. Had the Torah been immaculate, there would have been no likelihood of any such shariah after it, whose denial would bring the wrath of God down on man.

And the Gospel withdrew announcing, there are numerous things to be related but you cannot withstand them, as your faculties have not reached perfection yet.

Thus, the Promised Messiah (as) says:

“A compelling argument establishing the veracity of Islam is that it triumphs over every other religion in regard to its teaching, and no other religion can compete it in terms of its perfect teaching.”8

Since the Holy Quran and Islam win over all other faiths, Allah the Exalted declares:

“And say, ‘Truth has come and falsehood has vanished away. Falsehood does indeed vanish’ away fast.”9

Commenting on the verse, the Promised Messiah (as) says that the word (Truth) in this verse stands for Allah the Exalted, the Holy Prophet (sas) and the Holy Quran.

The verse signifies that the majesty of God Almighty was manifested by the Holy Quran and the Holy Prophet (sas). And as a result of the manifestation of the majesty, Satan fled with all its hosts, and all its teachings proved to be mean and contemptible; the filth of evil customs and abominable innovations introduced by him came to light and its host was inflicted a crushing defeat.

Thus, the Holy Quran proclaims that both the Holy Quran and the Holy Prophet (sas) appeared for this very task. Allah the Exalted says in Surah At-Taubah:

“He it is Who sent His Messenger with guidance and the religion of truth, that He may make it prevail over every other religion, even though the idolaters may dislike it.”10

In this connection, I would like to tell that the part of the verse up to (over every other religion) has occurred at three different places in the Holy Quran, and at all these places it signifies a different meaning and subject matter. Allah the Exalted says here that He it is Who is perfect in respect of His Being and attributes; He it is Who sent His Messenger with guidance and true religion; The objective of his advent is, so that He [Allah] may make the shariah and the Messenger prevail over every other religion. Once His true religion prevails the superiority of the Messenger will automatically be proved. Here (that He may make it prevail over every other religion) implies that all the faiths before the advent of the Holy Prophet (sas), which had been distorted, would be defeated whenever they competed with Islam. The Holy Quran has been equipped with such arguments that it is capable of prevailing over a false faith even if it appeared after the Islamic shariah, as the word (religion) in this verse is not confined only to the religions of the past. For instance, Bahais have made a new religion of their own in contrast to the Holy Quran. The Holy Quran claims to also possess the ability to crush the head of any shariah that appears after it, because it is the Word of a God who is Allamul Ghuyub, Who is aware of all that is to occur in future. Thus, Islam is the only religion against which neither any past nor any future religion can compete. It has the potential to prevail over all other religions by its rational arguments, spiritual verities, guidance, heavenly succour and support. Only the Holy Quran proclaims to be , that is, guidance for all the worlds, and it practically proves it too.

I told you, dictionary gives four meanings of (guidance). There is an element of ambiguity in the first meaning discussed in a sermon which has been published now. I would like to elucidate that. The first meaning of the word is the guidance needed for wisdom and sagacity. That is to say, mere faculties which man has been invested with in order to seek intelligence, sagacity, knowledge and its analysis are not sufficient; they all stand in need of the Divine guidance.

This guidance is not a prerogative of any particular faith; it is a common heritage of all mankind. The Holy Quran claims to provide guidance for this common heritage also. Mere wisdom, without the light of revelation, is blind itself. God says, mere physical abilities and spiritual faculties are not enough unless Allah’s grace descends on them providing them with the means for heavenly guidance. Numerous examples have been cited in the Holy Quran to prove this fact. One of them is, “I [God] vouchsafe revelation to a honeybee.” It is not merely a proclamation. Human research has, under Divine influence, substantiated this proclamation of the Holy Quran in a remarkable and exquisite manner. The latest research has brought this fact to light that queen bee is vouchsafed revelation while laying eggs whether larva from an egg will be a male or a female. Different sections are specified for males and females in a hive. The eggs that are to produce male larvae are placed in a different section in the hive, while the eggs which are to produce female larvae are placed in another section. The queen bee lays hundreds of thousands of eggs and each time when she lays an egg she is imparted the knowledge whether the egg will produce a male or a female larva.

Through many such examples Allah the Exalted has taught man the lesson that he should not rely only on his faculties and abilities and merely on his wisdom and sagacity, and his knowledge and research. You cannot achieve true success in any field unless you are blessed with the Divine guidance. Since wisdom has been bestowed by God on all mankind, whosoever observes the Divine law is vouchsafed revelation from God Almighty and is inspired with innovative ideas in terms of wisdom and knowledge. It does not make any difference whether somebody is a Muslim, a Christian, an atheist, or whether he professes any religion or not, for wisdom has been created by God Almighty as a common legacy to be shared by all mankind. In addition to certain other guidance which descends from the heavens, the Holy Quran also proclaims to guide wisdom. The Promised Messiah (as) elaborates on this subject in a very exquisite manner. According to him God Almighty sharpens the human intellect by revelation. Thereafter, the Holy Quran brings into service whatever develops from the brilliant brain. The Promised Messiah (as) says:

“As for the sciences based on rationality are concerned, method of deductive logic has been employed in its entirety in order to understand the Divine attributes such as the existence and creativity of God Almighty, His Oneness, Omnipotence, Benevolence, Self-subsistence and His reward and punishment. And in regard to this logic … all the sciences have been discussed most exquisitely and aptly … it [the Holy Quran] took so sublime service from the above mentioned disciplines as no man has ever taken.”11

Other religions are overawed in front of the sciences in vogue and only the Holy Quran and Islam have this excellence that they are never overawed by any science based on rationality, rather, deeming them as their servant they take service from them.

The second meaning of the word (guidance) is ‘shariah’, which comes down from Allah. Thus, the phrase (a guidance for all peoples) will denote that the shariah is for that is, for all the worlds and all times. Only the Holy Quran is . It is for this reason that the Holy Prophet (sas), addressing the world said, (I am a Messenger to you all from Allah).12 The Holy Quran is replete with this subject that it is meant for all the worlds and all times. This is not a mere claim, it is an irrefutable verity. Expounding on this subject the Promised Messiah (as) says:

“In whatever number are the noble fields of religious knowledge and its pure verities; and in whatever number the fine points and subtleties of the knowledge of Almighty Allah required in this world for the perfection of soul are; similarly, in whatever number the diseases of the self that incites to evil, its passions and its ephemeral and long lasting afflictions are; and whatever ways to cure or reform them, and whatever the methods of purification and cleansing of the self are; and whatever the signs, characteristic features or requirements for the perfect manifestation of moral qualities are; the Holy Quran is replete with all of them to the fullest extent. And never can anyone bring out any verity, or any Divine point, or any formula leading to nearness to Allah, or any unique or pure spiritual exercise of worship of God, which is not already contained in this Holy Book.”13

Huzoor explains this point in detail ahead. Thus, it is only the Holy Quran that claims to possess all sorts of guidance and verities that were required to take human soul to the point of perfection in matters Divine. The Holy Quran asserts that you will become immune from spiritual malaise if you follow its teachings. Doors to spiritual progress will be opened to you and you will attain the perfection of the self.

Any shariah which holds such a claim, rationally it should also make this claim, ‘I open doors to infinite exaltations for you’. The Holy Quran makes this claim right in its beginning. It says: (a guidance for the righteous).14 However lofty and high station one may attain in righteousness, the Holy Quran will open further avenues of progress in righteousness to him.

Such a person then advances farther along the way and achieves even loftier stations. Then come further higher stations of spirituality and he yearns to achieve them also. Leading him the Holy Quran says, ‘follow me’, ‘I will take you to those lofty stations as well’; and this journey continues infinitely without end.

The Promised Messiah (as) explains the above point in two ways. First, that Allah the Exalted has showered innumerable bounties on the Holy Prophet (sas). These bounties cannot be counted. The bounties of the One Being on the Holy Prophet (sas) are innumerable, therefore, those, who, out of love for him, invoke blessings on him, become recipients of countless blessings in proportion to their zeal. Shedding light on this topic the Promised Messiah (as) says:

“I saw in a vision God’s bounties travel in the form of strange light to the Holy Prophet (sas), and are absorbed into his chest and proceed thence in numberless tubes whereby they are communicated to every deserving person according to his share.”15

The claim of the Holy Quran or Islam to be guidance for the righteous and to be able to take human soul to its climax is substantiated in this way that the Holy Prophet (sas) is so noble in the sight of God Almighty that unlimited Divine blessings continue to descend on him. In other words, ceaseless manifestations of Divine attributes are vouchsafed to the Holy Prophet (sas) every moment. So, whoever loves the Holy Prophet (sas) and invokes blessings, God Almighty will bestow upon him share of all these bounties in proportion to his love for the Holy Prophet (sas). Once he will have received something through the Holy Prophet (sas) and being aware of the fact that infinite blessings can be gathered from here, he will yearn to gather more blessings through him. As a result, he will send salutations on the Holy Prophet (sas) with greater zeal and greater hearty love and consequently more blessings will start descending on him.

Secondly, the Promised Messiah (as) says about the Holy Quran that it proclaims to open the doors of infinite light, limitless blessings and endless stations of nearness to God Almighty to those who live up to its teachings and love the Holy Prophet (sas). Allah the Exalted says in the Holy Quran:

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“Those who have believed with him. Their light will run before them and on their right hands. They will say, ‘Our Lord, perfect our light for us and forgive us; surely Thou has power over all things’.”

The verse states that those on whom light has been bestowed in this world by the grace of Allah, by acting upon Islamic teachings and by following in the footsteps of the Holy Prophet (sas), this light will never depart from them even in the next world just as it stays with them in this world and guides them and enlightens the spiritual paths on them. Assume not that living up to the teachings of the Holy Quran to the fullest leads to the doors of infinite bounties and blessings only in this world. The blessings cannot be delimited even after death. The doors of blessings will remain open even in the hereafter. As the Holy Quran says at another place, he who is blind in this world will remain blind in the hereafter too. In comparison to this, the verse states here that he who is enlightened in this world will be accompanied by light in the next world as well. It is not that doors of spiritual progress will be opened to somebody only in this world and will be barred in the next world. It is not true to assume that in the next world it will be similar to the time of gathering harvest after reaping and he will not make any further progress. On the contrary, Allah the Exalted has arranged for the human soul that the enlightenment which is bestowed upon him in this world, by living up to the Quranic teachings and following the Holy Prophet (sas), will accompany him even after his death. Allah the Exalted will keep opening doors of further progress to him and keep illuminating his avenues of spiritual advancement. Nowhere this avenue of spiritual progress is meant to end, for the distances between man and God are endless. How, then, stages of nearness between man and God can be fixed and delimited. The Promised Messiah (as) says:

“Their supplication that their light may be perfected is an indication of limitless progress. It means that when they have arrived at one stage of illumination, they will perceive a higher stage ahead of them and viewing it they will consider the stage in which they are as being inferior and will supplicate for the attainment of the higher stage, and when they arrive at that stage they will perceive a still higher third stage ahead of them and they will supplicate for its achievement. Thus their yearning for constant progress is indicated by the expression: Do Thou perfect our light. In short, this chain of progress will continue indefinitely. There will be no falling away.”17

The Holy Quran not only claimed as such but has proved it. That is, thousands and millions of holy men of God have appeared in Islam who, procuring light from Islam, acquiring illumination from the love of the Holy Prophet (sas), obtaining a spark from the adoration of Allah the Exalted, procured such light that they made infinite achievements in this world. What they will be bestowed on in the hereafter, of which they have been promised, is beyond our imagination. As is recorded in Ahadith, they are such profound favours that they are beyond human imagination in this world.

The fourth meaning of guidance, as I said earlier, is to enjoy good end, that is, attainment of heaven and achievement of the very purpose of life.

Allah the Exalted says:

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“It is they who follow the guidance of their Lord and it is they who shall prosper.”

That is, those who follow the teachings of the Holy Quran and hold fast to it, and stick to the perfect guidance vouchsafed by the immaculate providence of their Lord, that is, it is they who shall prosper. Falah is an Arabic word which means ‘complete success’, which is superior to any other success, which is flawless and has no defect of any kind in it and which is a phenomenal success. The Holy Quran says here that those who hold fast to the guidance from their Lord (Who, nurturing mankind, brought them to a certain lofty station in the time of the Prophet Muhammad (sas) and endowed them with perfect faculties and abilities) achieve a true and a perfect success and surpass all the past nations.

I have expounded on the two objectives associated with the building of the House of Allah in this sermon. First, Allah had wished to bless the Ka‘bah, and with the advent of the Holy Prophet (sas) the House of Allah became blessed from the standpoint of both the meanings. Second, Allah had wished to send there a universal guidance which would be both immaculate and beneficial, and this promise also has been fulfilled by the Holy Quran. Otherwise, there was no other shariah in Mecca at all. But the other shariahs have neither made any claim nor could have they made any. Only the Holy Quran holds such a claim and it has also proved it practically. Millions of holy personages have appeared in Islam whose lives were a testimony to the fact that he who lives by the teachings of the Holy Quran and follows its guidance, which has been declared as (a guidance for all peoples) by God, partakes of the ultimate Divine blessings and certainly meets an enviable end. Anything which is a requisite for the perfection of human soul and its purification is found in the Holy Quran, because we see that those people lived by it and became blessed and perfect in the sight of Allah. The practical testimony of Allah the Exalted is an evidence to the fact that they are truly loved by God. In matters spiritual they are always stepping forward. May Allah make us also join this group.19