Proclamations of the Promised Messiah Mirza Ghulam Ahmad

“I, the claimant of both these dignities, have been among you for twenty-five years. Who then are you waiting for beside me? All these signs refer to the one who is present at the time of their manifestation, and not to someone of whom there is no trace in the world. It is a case of strange hard-heartedness. I simply fail to understand why people still await someone else when my claim has been affirmed by all the relevant signs and all opposition against me has frustrated! …I prophesy that after me and till the end of days, no Mahdi will ever appear from God who will create disturbance in the world through war and bloodshed, nor will there be any Messiah who will descend physically from heaven. You had better bid farewell to both these notions. These are vain desires which the people of this generation will carry with them to the grave. No Messiah will descend and no blood-thirsty Mahdi will appear. He who was to come has come, and I am that one fulfilling God’s promise. He who does not accept me, fights God for having sent me”. [The Essence of Islam vol. 4, pp. 101-102. Majmu’ah Ishtihaarat, vol. 3, p. 520].

“Do remember that the person who was to descend has come at his proper time and all prophecies have been fulfilled. The books of all the Prophets indicate this age… After all these signs, he who rejects me rejects all Prophets and not me alone, and fights God Almighty. It would have been better for him that he had not been born”. [The Essence of Islam vol. 4, pp. 208-209].

“When God saw the world sunk into an abject state and the earth full of wickedness, tyranny and inequity, He sent me with the mission of propagating truth and reforming the world. The point of time was also appropriate, for the fourteenth century (i.e. 19^th century Christian calendar) was approaching fast. Then, under Divine command, I raised my voice through printed announcements and public speeches proclaiming to everyone that I am the one who was destined to be raised by God at the beginning of this century to renovate religion, claiming that I have been sent with the mission to reestablish the faith that has disappeared from the face of the earth and to draw the whole of mankind back to piety and righteousness with the aid of God’s own hand and to reform them and to remove errors of belief and conduct. It was disclosed to me through Divine revelation a few years later that the Messiah that had been promised from the early time to this nation and that the last Mahdi (Reformer) who was destined to appear after the deterioration of Islam and who was to be granted direct guidance from God and who was to provide once again the spiritual nourishment, as had been preordained, and about whom glad tidings had also been given by the Holy Prophet^(saw), himself 1300 years ago, is none other than me. Divine revelations, in this regard, came to me so clearly and persistently that no room for even the least doubt was left in this matter. Every revelation that came in this respect was firmly fixed in my mind like a steel nail and all these revelations contained profound predictions which were fulfilled later with the clarity as of the daylight. Their constant persistence, as also their miraculous powers, constrained me to acknowledge that the words revealed to me were, no doubt, the words of the same One and peerless God who had revealed the Holy Qur’an. I have not mentioned the Torah and the Gospels (Old and New Testament) in this connection because they have suffered so terribly at the hands of the interpolators that they could hardly be called the Word of God now. The revelation that has come to me is so convincing and definitive that I have been able to attain nearness to God through it. This revelation was explicitly true, not only through reinforcement by heavenly signs, but when referred to the Holy Qur’an was found to conform fully to it. Thereafter, heavenly signs from above poured in like the rain drops in support of these revelations”. [The Ahmadiyya Gazette, March, 2001, p. 4-5. Tadhkiratus Shadadatain; Roohani Khaza’in, Vol. 20, p. 1-2].

“Here, a seeker after truth can validly raise a question, namely, what evidence is there to support the claim of me being the Promised Messiah—for every claim requires some evidence, especially in these times when cunning, deceit and dishonesty have become widespread and false claims are being actively promoted. In answer to this question, it would be enough for me to state that the following matters are sufficient as signs and evidence for a seeker after truth:

First of all, there is the prophecy made by the Holy Prophet (peace and blessing of God be upon him) which has consistently been interpreted to mean that, at the turn of every century, God Almighty shall raise a person to revive the faith by removing the weakness that might have crept in and would restore it to its true might and vitality. According to this prophecy, it was necessary that God Almighty should have raised a person at the turn of this fourteenth century (19^th century Christian calendar) who should have striven to reform the ills that have become current. Accordingly, I have been sent at the proper time. Previously, hundreds of saints have been witness, on the basis of revelation, that a Reformer of the fourteenth century (i.e. 19^th century Christian calendar) would be none other than the Promised Messiah. Authentic Ahadith also confirm repeatedly that the Messiah would appear after the thirteenth century (i.e. 18^th century Christian calendar). Then, does not my claim at this point in time clearly conform with the time and the circumstances? Is it possible that the prophecy of the Holy Prophet^(saw) should turn out to be false? I have made clear that if the Promised Messiah were not to appear at the turn of the fourteenth century (i.e. 19^th century Christian calendar), many of the prophecies of the Holy Prophet^(saw) would go unfulfilled and many saints, who were recipients of revelation, would turn out to be wrong. When the divines are asked who else beside me has claimed to be the Reformer of the fourteenth century (19^th century Christian calendar), and who else had announced his advent from God and claimed to be the recipient of revelation and to have been commissioned by God, they have no answer and are unable to name anyone who has made such a claim…

The third sign of the truth of my claim is that, as I have set out in the Nishan-e-Asmani, some men of God, who passed away before me, had given the news of my coming, specifying clearly my name and place of residence and my age.

The fourth sign of the truth of my claim is that I have dispatched approximately twelve thousand letters and announcements to the representatives of other faiths, inviting them to a contest in the blessing of faith. There is perhaps not a single well-known clergyman in Europe, America and India who has not been addressed by registered letter. They were all so over-awed by the truth that not one of them came forward. The criticism leveled against this invitation by the Muslims is in truth based on falsehood and filth. I have been given the glad tiding that if any opponent of Islam comes forward to challenge me, I shall prevail over him and he will be humiliated.

The fifth sign in support of my truth is that I have been informed that I shall ever remain triumphant over all Muslims in the matter of visions and revelation. So those of them who claim to be recipients of revelation come forward to compete with me. If they triumph over me in respect of Divine support and Heavenly grace and signs, I would submit to being slaughtered howsoever they wish”. [Essence of Islam vol. 4, pp. 60-62]

“It is an accepted fact that the means of recognizing the Prophets of God are the miracles and signs which accompany them. Just as an officer appointed by the government is assigned a distinguishing mark, the appointees of God too are given signs which make their recognition easier. I maintain that God has manifested not one, two, or two hundred signs in my favour, but tens of thousands of them. These signs are not unknown and obscure, they have been witnessed by hundreds of thousands of people and I can confidently say that probably hundreds of such witnesses are present in this very meeting (i.e. November 2^nd 1904).

“Signs appeared for me from the heaven and so they did from the earth. The signs which were the conditions precedent to my advent, and which the prophets, including the Holy Prophet^(saw), had foretold, appeared in my support. One of them was the eclipse of the sun and the moon which must have been witnessed by everyone. Indeed this was the prophecy recorded in the authentic tradition according to which both the sun and the moon were to be eclipsed during the month of Ramadan, testifying to the coming of the Mahdi and Messiah. Now come and tell me whether this prophecy has been fulfilled or not? Who can deny having witnessed this sign Another prophecy was that the plague would rage as an epidemic at the time to such an extent that seven out of ten people would die. Now has this sign appeared or has it not? Another prediction on record is that during that time a new form of transport would appear which would render the camels useless. Has not the introduction of the railways (steam engine) fulfilled this prophecy? How many of these signs can I go on recounting, for it is a very long series? Just imagine that whereas I, the claimant, have been called a liar and Anti-Christ isn’t it very strange that all these signs should have duly appeared for me? If somebody else were yet to come, what would be left for him? Be fair for once and fear God! Does He ever grant so much support to a liar? Isn’t it strange that anyone who ever rose to oppose me was defeated and I emerged successful and safe out of every calamity and hardship in which my adversaries tried to implicate me? Can anybody swear and say that this is how liars end up? I regret to say, what has gone wrong with these clerics who oppose me? Why do they not closely study the Holy Qur’an and the Traditions of the Holy Prophet^(saw)? Don’t they know that all the important scholars and divines of the past foretold that the advent of the Promised Messiah would take place in the fourteenth century (19^th century Christian calendar)? The visions of all the recipients of revelation also point to the same period. It is clearly recorded in the book Hujaj-ul-Kiramah that the advent of the Promised Messiah would not exceed the fourteenth century (19^th century Christian calendar). It was these very people, who oppose me today, that used to shout from pulpits that even the beasts prayed for safety from the thirteenth century and that the fourteenth century would be auspicious. How strange that in the fourteenth century (i.e., 19^th century Christian calendar), in which the Promised Imam was to appear, an impostor should appear in his place and that he should be supported by hundreds of thousands of signs and God Almighty should help him to emerge successfully out of every contest and competition! Just pause and think before trying to answer… Another point also worthy of your attention is that God does not grant so long a reprieve to a liar and impostor as exceeds even the period of blessed grace granted to the Holy Prophet^(saw). I am now sixty-seven and it is more than twenty three years since the Call to this office. Had I really been an impostor and a liar, God would not have stretched this period so long?” [Lecture Ludhiana p. 61-63. Delivered by the Promised Messiah before a large audience on 4 November 1905].

“…About ten years ago (a round 1881), some Christian published a prophecy in the British press to the effect that the Messiah’s descent would take place within three years of its publication. Now that God has identified the Messiah who was to come, it is incumbent upon the Christians to be the first and foremost to accept him lest they are guilty of defying their own prophecy…’ [Elucidation of Objectives, p. 6].

“…This is why the Christian world has recently been so agitated about this subject and a number of tracts were published in America asking why the Promised Messiah, who was to have appeared in this age had not yet done so. Some had replied despairingly that since it is already too late, people should consider the Church to be his substitute. The fact that I have appeared in the millennium specified by the Prophets is a testimony to my truth. Had there been no other proof, this alone would have sufficed for a true seeker after truth, and its rejection would imply the rejection of all Divine scriptures. This argument is as clear as day for those who know the Divine Book and ponder over it. Rejecting this argument amounts to rejecting all Prophethood, confounding all calculations, and disturbing the Divine scheme of things…” [Nov. 2^nd 1904. Lecture Sialkot, p.10].

“If I am in error in claiming to be the Promised Messiah, then why don’t you try to make the Promised Messiah you have in mind descend from heaven in these very days, for I am here and he for whom you are waiting is nowhere to be seen. My claim can only be effectively refuted if he descends from heaven and I am proved to be false. If you are indeed truthful, you should supplicate all together that the Messiah, son of Mary, should soon be seen descending from heaven. If you are indeed in the right, your prayer will be heard, for the prayers of the righteous are accepted in contrast to the prayers of the false. But you may be certain that this prayer of yours will not be accepted as you are in error. The Messiah has come but you have failed to recognize him. Your vain hope will never be fulfilled; this age will pass and no one from among you will see the Messiah descending from heaven’ [The Essence of Islam vol. 4, p. 208].

“I solemnly believe that Jesus (peace be upon him) is dead and is in the company of the departed ones. And why should I not believe this, when God Almighty has declared him dead in His Mighty Book, the Holy Qur’an. There is no mention anywhere in the Qur’an of his extraordinarily long life or of his second advent. Rather the Holy Qur’an declares him to be dead and says nothing more. I consider it an utterly false and vain notion that he is alive in his physical body and will appear in this world a second time. I believe this, not only on the basis of the revelations vouchsafed to me, but also because I know that it is opposed to the clear, conclusive and certain testimony of the Holy Qur’an”. [Asmani Faislah, Ruhani Khaza’in, vol. 4, p. 315. / and The Essence of Islam, vol. 3, p. 169].

“…I am the Promised Messiah who is Divinely guided, and who follows the morals of the Messiah (peace be on him.) Everyone should judge me with reference to these morals and should purge his heart of all ill-will concerning me. A careful consideration of the teaching that I have set forth during the last twenty years, from Brahine- Ahmadiyyah to Raz-e-Haqiqat, should testify to my inner purity. I can prove that I have spread these books as far as Arabia, Turkey, Syria and Kabul. I utterly repudiate the doctrine that Jesus (peace be upon him)will descend from heaven to fight the battles of Islam, or that anyone who calls himself Mahdi, and appears from among the descendants of Hadrat Fatima, will be the monarch of the time, and that the two of them will start a reign of bloodshed. God has revealed to me that all these speculations are false. Jesus (peace be upon him) died long ago and lies buried in Mohalla Khanyar in Srinagar, Kashmir. Thus as the descent of the Messiah from heaven is disproved, the appearance of any warrior Mahdi is also falsified. Let him who thirsts for truth accept this”. [Haqiqat-ul-Mahdi, Ruhani Khaza’in, vol. 14, pp. 429-433 / and The Essence of Islam, vol. 3, p. 173]

“Remember very well that no one shall ever come down from heaven. All our opponents who are alive today shall die and none from them shall ever see Jesus, son of Mary coming down from heaven; then their children that are left after them shall also die and none from among them shall ever see Jesus, son of Mary coming down from heaven and then their third generation shall also die and they too shall not see the son of Mary coming down. Then God shall cause great consternation in their minds and they shall then say that even the age of the domination of the cross has passed away and the way of life has changed completely, yet the son of Mary has not come down. Then in dismay the wise among them shall forsake this belief and three centuries from now shall not have passed when those who await the coming of Jesus son of Mary, whether be Muslims or Christians, shall relinquish altogether this conception. Then shall prevail only one religion over the whole world and there shall be only one religious Leader. I come only to sow the seed, which has been planted by my hand. It shall now grow and flourish and there is none that can hinder it”. [Roohani Khazain vol. 120: Tazkiratush Shahadatain p. 67]