How excellent would it be if everyone of the Community were a Noor-ud-Deen—
So would it be if every heart were filled with the light of the certainty of faith!
Hazrat al-Haj Maulana Hafiz Hakeem Noor-ud-Deen (1841–1914), may Allah be pleased with him, was the first Khalifah of the Promised Messiah—Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as). He was elected to this blessed office unanimously by the Community on 27 May 1908, shortly after the demise of the Promised Messiah (as). Hazrat Maulana Hakeem Noor-ud-Deen (ra) was born in Bhera, India, and was the 35th direct male descendant of Hazrat ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab (ra), the second Khalifah of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sas). He started studying the Holy Quran at an early age and travelled far and wide in pursuit of knowledge, including Makkah and Madinah. He mastered Arabic and Hebrew, Islamic jurisprudence and philosophy, commentaries on the Holy Quran, and Persian poetry. In addition to his international renown as an Islamic scholar, he was an accomplished physician serving as the Royal Physician of the Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir.
Like so many renowned scholars of the time, he immediately recognized and accepted the Promised Messiah (as), who wrote the following about him:
Ever since I have been commissioned by Allah the Exalted and have been revived by the Ever-Living, the Self-Subsisting One, I have been eager to meet distinguished helpers of the Faith, with an eagerness greater than that of a thirsty one seeking water. I supplicated day and night: ‘Lord, I am alone and helpless—who will be my helper and my assistant?’ When my hands rose repeatedly in supplication, and the atmosphere became charged with my prayer, Allah the Exalted hearkened my entreaty and the mercy of the Lord of the worlds was roused on my behalf, and He bestowed upon me a sincere and faithful friend who is the very eye of my helpers and is the essence of those who are my faithful friends in the cause of the Faith. His name—like his shining qualities—is Noor-ud-Deen [Light of the Faith]. (A’ina-e-Kamalat-e-Islam, Ruhani Khaza’in, Vol. 5, p. 581–582)
His profound insights of the Holy Quran have been compiled in a collection entitled Haqa’iqul-Furqan. His countless services in the cause of Islam Ahmadiyyat include overseeing the compilation of the English translation of the Holy Quran, establishing the Community’s first foreign mission in the United Kingdom, and authoring numerous publications.
A significant aspect of his life was his endless dedication to educating the youth. This was accomplished throughout his life, often at his own expense. The fruit of these efforts culminated in some of the most towering scholarly figures in the history of Ahmadiyyat, including: Hazrat Mirza Bashir-ud-Deen Mahmood Ahmad, Khalifatul-Masih II (ra), Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad (ra), Hazrat Mirza Sharif Ahmad (ra), Hazrat Mir Muhammad Ishaq (ra), Hazrat Haafiz Roshan Ali (ra), and Hazrat Sufi Ghulam Muhammad (ra).
The Promised Messiah (as) cherished his outstanding character and commitment, an expression of which is seen in the following Persian couplet:
How excellent would it be if everyone of the Community were a Noor-ud-Deen—
So would it be if every heart were filled with the light of the certainty of faith!
Hazrat Khalifatul-Masih I (ra) passed away in 1914 and was succeeded by Hazrat Mirza Bashir-ud-Deen Mahmood Ahmad, Khalifatul-Masih II (ra).