5. Fifth Sign [192]

The fifth Sign is the prophecy published in the first part of the back title page of the periodical the Review of Religions, May 1906. The same prophecy is published in the newspaper Badr, vol. 5, no. 19, dated 10 May 1906. Moreover, the same prophecy was published in the newspaper Al-Hakam dated 5 May 1906 and with explanation in the issue dated 10 May 1906. First of all, I reproduce below the prophecy as published in the above-mentioned periodical and both of the newspapers to be followed by the way it was fulfilled. The prophecy and the way it was originally interpreted at that time are as follows.

Revelation dated 5 May 1906:

The spring has arrived again and with it the days of snow.

[Thalj] is an Arabic word. It connotes the snowfall that causes intense cold and is invariably accompanied by rain. This condition is called thalj in Arabic. In this context, the prophecy seems to mean that Allah the Exalted will send down these calamities in our country during the days of spring, quite out of the norm, and that there will be snowfall resulting in intense cold and also heavy rains. (In other words, the snowfall wherever it happens to take place in the world will cause intense cold.) The second meaning of thalj is the attainment of the heart’s satisfaction; that is to say that a man should be furnished arguments and evidence that would completely satisfy his heart regarding an issue. This is why they say that a particular literary composition created thalj, or the heart’s full satisfaction. That is to say, such incontrovertible proof was given as to effect complete satisfaction. Sometimes this word is also used to indicate the happiness and comfort that results from heartfelt satisfaction. It is evident that when a person’s heart is fully satisfied and content regard- ing some matter, it is but inevitable that one feels happy and is at peace.

In short, this prophecy consists of all these dimensions. Reflection upon this prophecy inevitably draws the mind to the feeling that if Allah the Exalted has used the term thalj in its second sense—namely, to dispel all doubt and uncertainty and to accord full conviction—then this [revealed] statement would also mean that since some perverse-natured individuals had raised certain doubts in the recent past about the earth- quakes, thereby depriving themselves of thalj, or perfect tranquility of the heart, a Sign shall appear in the season of spring which will bring about thalj, or tranquility of the heart. All previous doubts and uncertainties shall be dispelled and the message shall be fully conveyed. On further reflection upon this revelation it seems probable that by this spring there will not be manifested just one Sign, but rather many Signs shall be shown. And when the spring season shall arrive, a continuous succession of Signs will captivate the hearts and silence our opponents and the hearts of seekers of truth shall find full satisfaction. And these statements are made interpreting thalj to mean satisfaction and freedom from doubt, but if taken to con- note snow and rainfall, it would mean that Allah the Exalted will send down some other heavenly afflictions. [And Allah knows best].

This prophecy along with its interpretation was published in the periodical Review of Religions and the newspapers Badr and Al-Hakam as many as nine months before its fulfilment, and the time for its fulfilment was fixed to be the season of spring. It has been clearly fulfilled. That is to say, exactly when the spring season arrived and the gardens became laden with flowers and buds, Allah the Exalted fulfilled His promise as follows. There was unusually heavy snowfall in Kashmir, Europe, and America, the details of which we will—God willing— presently write down by quoting excerpts from newspapers. But in exact conformity with the intent of the prophecy, such excessive cold and heavy rain struck this country, and in that particular part of the country indicated in the prophecy, that the whole country cried out in panic. At the same time snowfall was so heavy in some parts of the country that people were left awestruck and wondered what was going to happen. For instance, just today a letter from Kashmir was received by Haji ‘Umar Dar (who is a resident of Kashmir but is currently staying with me here in Qadian; the letter is from his son ‘Abdur-Rahman) saying that snowfall these days has been so heavy that there is a snow cover three yards deep upon the land and the entire atmosphere has been covered by clouds every day. Now this is such a phenomenon that has left the residents of Kashmir amazed because such heavy snowfall in the spring is unusual. And as for the amount of heavy rain that has fallen in this country, some reports are reproduced below from some newspapers testifying to it.

First from Akhbar-e-‘Am, Lahore, dated 21 February 1907, briefly reproduced below is what this paper reported on page 2 about the rains:

The situation in Lahore is such that for more than two weeks the sky has been overcast and instead of making people happy this has caused constant anxiety. For two days, the skies were clear of rain and it seemed that it would now stop raining, but during the latter half of the night between Sunday and Monday, it rained so heavily and in such abundance that people started crying and praying for relief and security, and they were awestruck and afraid that the rain of grace, God forbid, might transform into a torment. Intense lightning also flashed and dazzled the eyes. Together with this, thunder rolled and lightning cracked making hearts tremble. People were perplexed not knowing what God had decided to do. This weather and this rain is, of course, very beneficial from an agricultural point of view, but only within limits. The well-known proverb says that too much of even a good thing can make it harmful. People are afraid lest these unexpected rains, for which they render innumerable thanks, may turn from being a mercy into a blight and totally inundate crops, particularly those in the low-lying areas. All the people are awe- struck, holding their breath not knowing what God’s purpose is. Who can question providence! Man proposes and God disposes. It is strange that only a few days before, small birds like sparrows could be seen greatly enjoying themselves bathing in the water. Despite this intense weather and biting cold, the way these birds were having fun made one wonder how they had generated such warmth within themselves, but people experienced in these things were forecasting, on the basis of these observations, that there would be an excess of rains. And these calculations have proven very correct. The clouds are still covering the skies as before. The people now wish for the rain to stop and the sun to appear. Drought is likely to damage only unirrigated crops whereas, with weather of this kind, both the irrigated and unirrigated crops are in danger of being damaged. Now there is not a single district where there is a need of more rain.1 According to an official report last week, crops in parts of District Gurgaon were damaged somewhat by hail storms. Tonight, the rain was accompanied by thunder and cracks of lightning but the cloud cover continues to be seen as heavy. Such heavy rain poses a threat of damage to the houses in the town also. Roads have been damaged severely and paved surfaces turned into muddy swamps. Water can be seen all over the fields and plains. Trees stand washed clean, beautiful as a bride, green and lovely as if they have just been dressed in new garments. In these days such rains have been bestowed after many a year. (In this sentence the newspaper has borne witness to the fact that these have been extraordinary rains.) The truth is that even in the summer, during the rainy season, such rains are rarely seen. These are the strange and wonderful miracles of God Almighty—this season and this state of affairs!

It must be borne in mind that this newspaper is owned by a Hindu gentleman; it is issued from Lahore. It seems that Allah the Exalted has been pleased to cause his pen and tongue to so very faithfully state these things as a testimony in favour of my prophecy.

And then again, in the same Akhbar-e-’Am on page 6 of its issue dated 26 February 1907, appears this news item:

Although winter this year seemed rather lazy and we had lost all hope, by the end of January (i.e. by spring) it came into its own and started to make its presence felt. In this month the win- ter has never manifested such an amazing phenomenon. From the end of January until today, matters came to such a point that people began to cry for escape; sometimes rain, sometimes snow, sometimes hailstorms, and then piled up clouds seemed as if hiding behind a veil and the people are longing to see the sun and feel its rays. Not a single day passes without the falling of snow or hailstones, and if this does not happen, then it definitely rains. And sometimes during the day it becomes so dark because of intense smoke-like clouds that it is not possible to function without artificial light. And it is so very cold that water, if left in the open at night, freezes and becomes ice by the morning. These days one simply cannot drink water without first warming it up. Simla is now totally snowbound on all four sides and nothing is visible except snow. All trees and houses are buried under layers of snow and it is bitterly cold.

Further on, the same newspaper says:

In this country rains are so widespread that areas which otherwise used to complain of lack of rain have also tasted rain.

Similarly, the newspaper Jasus of Agra reports on page 4 of its issue dated 15 February 1907:

On 6 February 1907, it rained very heavily during the evening in Kanpur. A thunderstorm struck and such a hailstorm occurred that the railway service had to be suspended.

Furthermore, the newspaper Ahl-e-Hadith of Amritsar in its issue dated 22 February 1907, 8 Muharramul-Haram AH 1325, states on page 11:

This week there has been incessant rain in these parts, indeed in the entire length and breadth of Punjab. There was a terrible hailstorm on the night of 19 February [1907]. Lord Krishna of Qadian has received the revelation: ‘The heaven has been rent asunder’, and he says we do not know what is about to happen.

(Thus, he derides the revelation from God 2 ). In any case, this enemy of ours has testified that there have been incessant rains during this week in the whole of Punjab. Also, everyone knows that 22 February is the peak of spring; he has also acknowledged the fulfilment of the above-mentioned revelation.

Similarly, the magazine Hikmat of Lahore, dated 15 February 1907, reports:

It is raining daily in Darjeeling accompanied by thunderstorm.

The newspaper Nayyar-e-A‘zam of Moradabad in its issue dated 19 February 1907 writes:

It has been raining continuously for seven days and hailstones also fell.

The newspaper Azad of Ambala in its issue dated 16 February 1907 states on page 1:

It has been raining constantly in Delhi for the last ten days and hailstones also fell.

Paisah Akhbar Lahore, on page 21 of its issue dated 23 February 1907 reports:

Constant heavy rain has damaged the sugar cane crop in Bengal.

The same paper in its issue dated 29 February 1907 also reports:

In Madras the rains have been heavier than normal.

Public Magazine, Amritsar (1907) says on page 11:

It is biting cold in Amritsar and rain has also started pouring.

The newspaper Samachar Lahore, dated 26 February 1907, reports:

People are now exhausted from this rain.

The daily Paisah Akhbar dated 15 February 1907, page 5 writes:

For the last four days it has been raining constantly. It looks exactly like the monsoon season. The patience of people is being stretched to the limit. They long for the light of the sun.

The daily Paisah Akhbar dated 8 February 1907 reports on page 8:

It has been raining for many days now. Yesterday, there was another torrent of rain. It has gotten colder and a chilly wind is blowing. The roads are a complete shamble.

I have quoted these newspaper reports to bear witness to the prophecy whose fulfilment called for heavy rains. If desired, I could have quoted fifty to sixty similar press reports testifying to the truth of the prophecy, but I think this much testimony from newspapers is sufficient. People at large are well aware that the spring season this year was marked by unusually heavy rains about which no one had any knowledge except Allah the Exalted. On the contrary, highly paid experts in the Government Meteorological Department had already forecast that there would not be any rains except those normally expected during this period; see the official weather forecast published in the Civil and Military Gazette, Lahore, dated 16 December 1906.

Furthermore, the fulfilment of the prophecy about the rain and cold weather is not confined to unusually heavy rain and freezing weather in the spring season, but the prophecy was fulfilled in another sense also in that it rained generally all throughout the country. Indeed, districts where people used to cry for rain earlier also shared this wet weather. Thus, anyone possessing reason, dignity, a sense of justice, and fear of God, will admit without any hesitation that this was indeed an unusual and extraordinary phenomenon which God Almighty had foretold. And in this country, the British Government has a regular department that is responsible for forecasting such unusual circumstances, and there were astrologers, too, but no one gave this forecast that this spring would be marked by such unusual rains and snow. This was prophesied only by the God who had sent our Holy Prophet, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, after all the Prophets so that He may unite all nations under his banner.

This part has been about the heavy rains. Now I shall narrate the part that pertains to the falling of snow, which I have already mentioned to some extent previously, so that it may be realized that this prophecy did not apply to this country alone, but manifested its extraordinary effects in other countries as well, and these are:

The newspaper Wakil, Amritsar, on page 2 of its issue dated 7 February 1907, which corresponds to 23 Dhilhijjah AH 1324, reporting about the weather in Europe says:

In some European countries the cold this year has been so severe that the like of it has rarely occurred in the past. In Belgium, temperatures have fallen below zero and in Berlin, temperatures are said to have fallen 13 degrees below the freezing point, and in Austria and Hungary, 20 degrees below. Many persons have died on account of such intense cold. Railway traffic has been disrupted in parts of Europe because the water pipes of railway engines have burst due to the freezing of the water. The seaports of Danube and Odessa are becoming frozen. In Russia and Great Britain, the temperatures have fallen so low that it has not been the case for many years in the past. The trains between Rome and Naples have had so much snowfall upon them that [we are forced to pray:] God save us! Constantinople has received snowfall many feet thick. Traffic of ships and steamers has been stalled in the Strait of Bosporus. [All] the ships arriving in the channel from various places are totally covered in snow. In the streets of Paris the poor and impoverished are freezing to death. The lakes and canals of Italy are frozen.

Can science and the experts of terrestrial and heavenly phenomena explain this situation in a satisfactory manner that if this grandiose enterprise of nature has eternally been, and is eternally subject to, an established law and that there is no Transcendent, Omnipotent Being with a will of His own exercising control over it, then why is it that every now and then there is a deviation from the day-to-day order of things? Do such occurrences not lead to the conclusion that Islam is the only religion in the world, belief in whose tenets will always save a person from any misstep.3 Not to talk of atheists, even the followers of most existing religions cannot provide any satisfactory rationale for their beliefs on such occasions.

Then again, the newspaper Nur Afshan dated 22 February 1907 reports:

The rain in Hong Kong was so heavy that in the mere space of ten minutes 100 Chinese people perished in the environs of the port.

The [same] paper Nur Afshan dated 23 February 1907 writes:

It rained so heavily at Army News during this week that it was even greater than the rain during the monsoon season; also, twice or thrice there were terrible hailstorms.4

As already pointed out, this prophecy had been published in newspapers on 5 May 1906, or nine months before its fulfilment. Then nine months later, it was so manifestly and plainly fulfilled that all the newspapers of Punjab, India, Europe, and America testified to it. Thus, everyone endowed with reason can reflect and realize that no mere mortal could have such an immensely deep and profound knowledge; nor, for that matter, could an impostor be capable of demonstrating such a manifestation of divine power through fabrication. Indeed, how grand this Sign is that just as God Almighty had previously warned of two earthquakes in the past two springs—namely, the one in 1905 and the other in 1906— so did He forewarn a third time that there would be severe rains, bitter cold, and snowfall in the coming spring season of the year 1907! This was exactly what happened and the prophecy was fulfilled with awe-striking grandeur. [So Allah be praised for all this].

Linked with this prophecy was another prophecy printed and published during those very days in the magazine Review of Religions and [the newspapers] Badr and Al-Hakam, which is as follows:

Look! I shall send for you from the sky and shall produce for you from the earth. Streams shall flow through the courtyard, but those who are opposed to you will be seized. Help will come to you upon every track. People will come to you upon every route so that the track will become deep due to excessive travel and great awe for you shall be created. Woe to every backbiter, slanderer! I shall honour you in a wonderful manner. The heaven has fallen down completely.

All these prophecies pertain to rain. Along with this, it has been fore-old that these heavy rains will be harmful to the enemies. Perhaps this means that these heavy rains will give rise to the plague and a variety of other diseases5 and that crops will also be damaged. And the revelation in Arabic signifies that: ‘After these Signs appear, people will once again turn to you. They will come to you by every route so much so that the roads will develop ruts on account of heavy traffic. And people will send you gifts in cash and kind from distant places and the enemies shall be smitten with great awe. And at that time slanderers and fault-finders will stand condemned and I [God] shall grant you a rare distinction. It will rain so heavily as if the heavens have burst.’