7 March 1908

(During a walk)

Truth About the Change in the Qiblah

Some Arya raised the objection that the Prophet (sas) was, God forbid, not certain and sure about his own wahi and ilhamat [revelations] and that was the reason why the direction of Qiblah [the direction faced during Prayer] was changed.

The Promised Messiah (as) said:

These ignorant people do not understand that Allah the Exalted had the direction of Qiblah changed and these revolutionary things happen in order to show that the Muslims do not worship the Ka‘bah. By making Muslims face away from both of these sacred places [at one time or another]—either of which could have been adopted by some people at some stage as the object of worship due to their esteem and respect—God demonstrated publicly that the Muslims are truly the worshippers of Allah and not the worshippers of the Ka‘bah. And yet, these people continue to accuse Muslims that they worship al-Hajar al-Aswad [the Black Stone (installed in one corner of the Ka‘bah)].

It is obvious that one must face some direction during worship. One person likes one direction out of his own desire and the other turns his face in a specific direction on the command of Allah. Who is the better of these two? One follows the command of Allah and the other follows his own self. So why aren’t these people ashamed of themselves when they accuse Muslims of worshipping the Ka‘bah?

Thus, the change of the direction of the Qiblah by the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, was for the fundamental principle that Muslims are to become strict Unitarians and adherents of the Oneness of God, to eliminate from their minds even the trace of any thought that they were worshipping the Ka‘bah. It was not because of any wavering or lack of conviction, as the ignorant Aryas fancy inasmuch as the Holy Prophet (sas) clearly says:

قُلْ ہٰذِہٖ سَبِیْلِیْۤ اَدْعُوْۤا اِلَى اللّٰہِ۫ عَلٰى بَصِیْرَۃٍ اَنَا وَ مَنِ اتَّبَعَنِیْ .1

Rebuttal to the Allegation That Muslims Made Women Their Slaves Post Wars

There was another objection that it was terrible cruelty and barbarism that Muslims made women their slaves as a result of wars.

The Promised Messiah (as) said:

Whatever Muslims did, it was only subsequent to the tyranny and oppression, transgression and cruelty of the disbelievers of Makkah. One should look at their transgression before criticizing Muslims. One should consider how he [Holy Prophet (sas)] suffered in Makkah. How meekly and humbly the Muslims continued to suffer the persecution and atrocities at the hands of the people of Makkah. And in the end, having become tired of their mischief, he was compelled to leave his beloved homeland. There is the heart-wrenching incident of the tyranny and cruelty of a Muslim woman, a wife, at the hands of the disbelievers of Makkah during that period of time that can illustrate the point. I do not wish to indulge in describing and discussing the details of that cruelty. Those who have read it in the books of history know it quite well how heart-wrenching that incident was.

In short, whatever the Muslims did, it was by way of defence. The opponents had perpetrated all those things first, Muslims did them in response. They were dealt with in exactly the way they had treated the Muslims earlier. جَزٰٓؤُا سَیِّئَۃٍ سَیِّئَۃٌ مِّثْلُہَا2. The fact of the matter is that God Almighty has organized the administration of the world under two governments. One is physical and the other is spiritual. Our Holy Prophet (sas) was bestowed both these governments. Thus, it was necessary to punish the miscreants, rogues, plunderers, highway robbers, etc. for their crimes in order to establish peace in the land. The citizens of Madinah had also accepted him as their worldly ruler at that time. They brought most of their disputes to him for adjudication.

One such dispute was between a Jew and a Muslim and he decided in favour of the Jew. We find that on some occasions, he pardoned the disbelievers for their crimes. He, also, prohibited some of the evil customs unilaterally even during confrontation with the disbelievers. For instance, the disbelievers of Makkah used to dishonour the corpses of Muslims by cutting off their noses and ears. Yet, the Holy Prophet (sas) prohibited Muslims from this evil practice.

These critics ought to be fair in their criticism and make use of both their eyes. They should first take into account the atrocities committed by the disbelievers of Makkah and, then, if it is proven that Muslims committed excesses [beyond fair retribution], they have the right to criticize. The wars fought by Muslims and the way they handled the disbelievers were all defensive in nature. Muslims never initiated any of it.

Now look, the terrorists at the border who attack the life and property of the subjects of this government all the time and create disorder—should the government stay unconcerned and not devise an appropriate strategy to pursue and punish them? This is food for thought!3