The Ocean of Light: Purpose Behind the Book

All praise belongs to Allah, the Lord of the Earth and the lofty heavens; and peace be upon His chosen ones.

This epistle is from the one who is a manifestation of two buruz1 and heir to two prophets2, and a servant of the One God; Abu Mahmood Ahmad (May Allah protect and strengthen him). It is addressed towards God’s righteous, pious and knowledgeable people who reside in Arabia, Persia, the Levant, or the land of the Romans or any other land where there are Islamic scholars. Such people that when the truth reaches them and when divine knowledge and heavenly tidings are presented before them in all their grandeur and brilliance, their hearts become humbled for their acceptance, and, in the spirit of obedience and faith, they hasten towards these teachings. They do not pass them by, turning away like arrogant people.

And when news or words reach them regarding one whom God has ordained for the revival of faith and its succour, their faces radiate with joy and light shines forth from their foreheads. They praise Allah and are thankful that He showed mercy to the weak among the Muslims. They rejoice and fall down prostrate. You see their eyes overflow with tears because they have seen the mercy of the True God and are witness to the Days of Allah for they had spent their entire lives waiting for this. Having thus recognised the truth, they set off on a journey to meet the one who has been ordained. They keep their intentions pure and purify their inner selves, freeing their intentions and their efforts of the desires of the self, hastening towards him, even if he is to be found in China. They are not like the one who is disrespectful towards godly people, and who, when he hears something from them that he thinks is new, within the blink of an eye, hastily carries his suspicions to the extreme, and attacks like an enemy, abusing, reviling and lying, labelling them as infidels, hurting them, igniting the fire of mischief, firing every arrow, and using all the means in his power against them. Such people attack the honour and lives of the men of God and do not fear the day when they will be held accountable and punished. They are the first among the deniers. Whereas the blessed ones are those who are respectful towards Allah the Exalted and towards His men, and who show patience, until the time when the countenance of the Exalted God is revealed unto them. Thus, on account of this attribute, God has mercy on them. They do not lose anything good, nor are they among those who are deprived. They are a people whom God alone recognises. I do not know their names or their faces, other than the fact that I saw in a dream a group of pious believers and fair, righteous monarchs. Some of these belonged to this land while others were from Arabia, Persia, the Levant, Roman lands, and yet others from lands that I do not know of. I was informed by the One Who is Beyond the Beyond that they are the ones who shall testify to your truthfulness, shall believe in you, shall invoke salutations upon you, and shall pray for you; and I shall give you blessing upon blessing until even monarchs shall seek blessings from your garments; and I shall enter them among the chosen ones. This is what I saw in a vision and what was also revealed to me by the All-Knowing God. Thereafter, it was placed in my heart that I should write books which contain everything that has been revealed to me from my Creator and that I should teach them the true facts and the high and pure verities that I have been taught. And that I should bring within their knowledge, all the physical signs, brilliant miracles, and arguments that lead to perfect certainty which my Lord has granted me, so that they may recognise me and become my helpers in the path of the Lord of all the Worlds.

Therefore, My dear people! May Allah have mercy on you! Know that this book of mine is one of the books that I have written to fulfil this purpose, and I present it as a gift to the noblemen of Arabia and the Levant. I convey whatever God has made obligatory upon me, so that the fortunate ones may attain their desire and that the argument may be completed upon those who turn away. I have prayed to God that He makes this book a blessing for the communities of Muslims, and draws peoples’ hearts towards it, and grants his pious servants a great share of goodness through it. He indeed has the power to do all that He wills and is the Most Merciful of those who show mercy. I hope that the knowledgeable and mindful ones will not be hasty in my regard, like some people from this land3 who out of their haste demonstrated meanness and antagonism towards me. Indeed, there is no good in being hasty against men of God and those whom the Almighty Lord has ordained. This invariably results in loss and only increases the wrath of God in this world and on the Day of Judgement. The one who is hasty is never able to discern the path of righteousness and truth. He is honoured neither in this world nor in the next, and he dies an undignified death among the blind. Without doubt, the flesh of the godly ones is like a toxin, therefore anyone who consumes it by back-biting against them or abusing them shall die on the spot. And there are glad tidings for those who eschew and shun such acts.

I have divided this book into chapters so that it does not burden the seeker. At the same time, I have adopted the middle path: it is not so brief that it detracts from the subject, nor is it too long that it bores. O my Lord! Make this book blessed, so that it assuages the hearts of the seekers; and turn it into such a light that illuminates the hearts of those who reflect. Amin!