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MOSLEM SUNRISE EDITED BY

S U F ! M . R . B E N G A L E E

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Vol. X I . O c t o b e r , i 9 3 9 N o . 4

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A Quarterly Magazine A n n u a l S u b s c r i p t i o n , $ 1 . 0 0 ( E n g l a n d 5~- I n d ! a R s . 3 1 - ) - Single• C o p y 2 5 ¢

F o u n d e d b y D R . M. M. S A D I Q . P u b l i s h e d by S U F I M. R. B E N G A L E E

56 E. C o n g r e s s St . , . S u i t e 1102 . C h i c a g o , IIL~ U . S. A m e r .

., . . r : i~:~ f ~ ; i ~ ! i ~ ' ~ i ~ , ~ . ~ , ; • ~ • ; , ~ ; ! ~ ; ~ i ~ ( ~

The Ahmadiyya Movement The Ahmadiyya gIovement was founded by Hazrat Ahmad, the

Promised Messiah and Mahdi and the expected Messenger of all nations. In the spirit and power of all the-earlier prophets, he came to serve and re-interpret the final and eternal teaching laid; down by God in the Holy Ouran. The Movement therefore represents the True and Real"Islam and seeks to uplift humanity and to establish peace throughoutthe world. Hazrat Ahmad died" in 1908, and the present Head of the Movement is his second successor, Hazrat-Mirza Bashirud-Din Mahmud Ahmad under.whose-directions the Move- ment has established g iissi0ns in many parts of the world, the following being:the addresses of some of them:

II . \FIZ :\.'G. NASIR ~H. A. THE LONDON MOSQUE, • I,:tn,i l),,na D0ni.

63 Melrose Road, 4 (h,mi, 3 Bar Southfields, Nada Ku, Kvbe t Japan)

London. S. \.V. 18, MOHAMMAD SHARIF England. MALIK,

~'a Milazzo No. 3, THE AHMADIYYA Piano. 5, Intenno 22, MOVEMENT IN ISLAM . . . . Rome (italy). Sufi M. R. Bengalee. M.A., MALIK AZIZ AHMAD

56 Congress St . . . . " " : KHAN. , . - Suite 1102, Petodje, Oedik.

Chicago, Illinois; Gang-I, No. 27, U. S., America. Batavia c: :(java).

THE AHMADIYYA Dr. MOHAMMAD DIN, MOVEMENT, Lomina-Street, 49,

P. O. Box 727, : . Belgrade. Lag~os ( S . Nigeria) M. RAMZAN ALI , H.-A.

B. W. Africa-.. CIo Dr. Mohammad Taha, THE AHMADIYYA-: i Venezuela 791, MOVEMENT, Buenos Aires (Argentine).

P. O. Box: 554, Nairobi, M. MOHAMMAD IBkAH!M Kenya Colony , . . Nasir., B.A.

(B. E~: Africa). : Magyarovszagi Iszlam Mission,

THE AHMADIYYA VII. Arena-ut, 7.111 2 MOVEMENT, Budepast, Hungary

Mount Karmal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Haifa (Palestine): " MOVEMENT,

• H. A. K. AYAZ KHAN, Gold Coast, West Africa, B.A., LL.B,. P.O. Box 39,

Boernerowo K/Warszawy, Salt Pond . . No. 18, Teiefoniczna S t r e e t THE AHMADIYYA

V~rarsaw (Poland) N: A. GHAFOOR SOOFI, Esq.,

C/o H. M. H; Esmail, P. O. Box 551,

China Buildings, - H o n ~ ( C M n a ) - -

MOVEMENT, Rose Hill,

Mauritius. THE AHMADIYYA MOVEMENT,

Box :No. 305, G. P. O:, Perth. W. Australia:

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T H - E

M o s l e m S u n

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56 E . C O N G R E S S S T . , S U I T E 1 1 0 2 " " : ( ~ H I C A G O , I L L . , U . S. A .

Vol . X I . . . . O C T O B E R - , i 9 3 9 N o . 4

C o n t e : n t s - : . . . . . : . % . : . . . .

Verses from IIR~ Ho ly :Quran . " . ' . . - 3

The Savings 'eft tlie M a s t e r Prophet Muhammai i , i~ . . : . . . . ' . : . : . . : i : 4

l 'xcerpts fro'm, fl,e Wri t ings o f H a z r a i M i r z a Gimlam :Aliniad~ ~ i . . . ' : 5

l l o w Cat1 Internat ional .Peace be : Secured ?~ . . . .

Moral and Spir i tual Rec0nstructiat l of the W o r l d 13 , B y K l l a n Sah i 'b M , . , l t a u r R a h m ~

W h y i Embraced I s i a m . . v . . . , , r , ; ' - " ".:,, ~' .:" "" " ~ : ' ! - 7 , ' . ~ :19 " - . . . . B v T i t u s S; i t t t l t • : " : . " .

The Great Q u e s t . . . . " . . i . . . ~.. . . : .~: . • . . .~.. : . . . . . ~ .---?-:~-:- • ::-:-')-, ":, ! 18

The Arabg of Paiegt ine . . ~ B't~ ,O1".~ C;i!;e.l.ai'!. ~:~-i. :-. : : - . . . , . : ] ~ ,i. ] • , . . . . . ; - : . . . . . . . . . . " : 2 1

\Vestern "~\. r i ters .0n .the H 0 1 v Pr0phet a'i~i~,hamni~d a n d I s i a m , . , . . . J~ 24

"i'ht~ A h m a d i v v a M o v e m e n t . . ~.::; . - . . . ~ i . . . . . . . : . .-, ; . , . :~. i . , . i~', :.. 28-. : " "~" :-. ~ B V S U ~ M . R . : B e n o a l e e - . : - :, 71. ?: -

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THZ ,~OSL-ZM SUN~XSZ I

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Mosque of ,The Prophet" in Medina ( A r a b i a ) 4

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"':ks l.~lam i.~ an all-embracing religion, so tile raps(Inc, its s~)-'calle(I hotrse of w.rshlp, is the centre of Moslem life. Tiff., first building raised, bv the Moslem was the Mosque in Medina in 623, in the. building of .which tl'le P ro p h e t .hi.m-. .~el~ took part. This mosque was at the same time the meeting place ol the" -- Islfimic Communi ty . It also. seryed as the home where strangers were received and entertained. The Prophet's owfi house was attachi~d t4) it, and here he hes . buried, togetl!er with Abcm Bekr and "Omar, Since then' this first house of worship, the symbol o f tb.e union of religion-and secularism, or soul and body, bf faith, and reason, has been very Often repaired and considerably et~larged, ~o that only the old site of the original buildiug can be identified. It has never-- theless been the model after which other mosques have been built.

To a M()slem mosque a r e u s u a l l y attached a library, school, college• o r a university, a boardlng-house for students and travellers, a d ih ing hall for tile needy, I)athing. and washing roq)ms, and sometimes a hospital, accord ing to whet'her the m"o,~que is large or small. A cemetery with tomb of t h e founder is sometimes a part of it. It' has. of conrse, been the mos t ,important place o[ meeting. The district ~council ttsually meets-here.

"At the beghming the Moslem made use of existi'ng buildings and adapted them to their ueeds. Then they-, made use of materials taken from old build -• ings and ruins. Whim th i s -was exhausted, they were forced to make use of their own mmlded genius. Thus was developed that peculiar style, which differing in tits ar/'angemenks in every country, y e t preserved a general resem- blance in all, a type suggestive of the poet ic Rhapsodies .of the Koran and the exigencies of a system of domestic seclusion a n d myster ies : whose legends. breathed a spirit of pious resignation and gratitude ;-whose-adornments b e w i l d e r e d the eye with their complexity of form and ,colour !~(Scot t ) "

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T H !: M O S L E M S U N R I S E $

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• Verses from the Ho ly Quran T r a n s l i t e r a t i o n -.

: Ya A.vyuha-Iladheena amanoo-s- ta- inoo bi-ssabri wa-ssalah;i Inn,-i- Ilaha maa-ssabireen. " " " . -

\Va-la taquoloo liman yuqtal0 fee sabeelillalu mliwat: b~d ahva-vun wala-killa tash-uroon, i~Va-la nab-luanna-kum-bi:shain mina l khawfi ,~val- jou-i wa !mqsimmin.al-amwali-wal-anf0osi wa- th - thamara t : wa-bash-shi- rissa-bireen. .

Alladheen,~. iza .asabat-hum nmseebatun qualoo Irma lillahi, wa innh ilaihi rajl-oon. .. . . . . . • -

- Ula-ika allaihim salawatum mir-Rabbihim .wa rahmah; \Va ula-ika • humul m u h - t a d o o n . (11-154-158) . ,

• " T r a n S l a t i o n "

:\llal~) ye wi~o. believe seek assistance witli patietice attd p rayer ; Verily i s with the patient.

And say not of.tllose who are slain in: the pa th :o f God that ihey are dead ; nay, they are the living but ye do no t perceive.

-And most certainly ~Ve shall t ry yotl With something o f fear and hunger and loss of wealth and-lives and Crops; b u t bear glad tidings un to those Who are. patient.

Who. when a misfortune befalleth them, say, Verily, we. are Allah's and unto H im most certainly shall we return.

• " Those are they upon whom are:•the blessings from their L o r d , . a n d

• m e r c y and. those are . the tight'Iv guided. " " . .

4 T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E

The Sayings of the Master Prophet. Muhammad

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Abu Kabsha relates that the Holy Prophet said, "There are four kinds of people in the world: f " • "

Firs t : ThOse upon whonl God has l~esto.wed matdrial Wealth as well as kn0wl~dge and wisdom. T h e y fe,qr God i 'egarding tlleir wealth : they give their relatixcs the rights which tlat, y (the relatives) have upon it (upon their wettlth), .They also know well and per- form their du ty toward God With reg'ard to tlfeir wealth. Such people are highest in the sight of f;od.

Second: .Thosc people whom God has blessed with knowledge and learning but they possess no wealth2 l l0we,~-er, they entertain pure and sinccre desire thaL had they been possessed of wealth, they wouhl spen d it ' in good-work. P,;,!'virtue of?thrir generousintent ions~ the second groiip of people will rt"ceivt" the-:amt' rt 'ward and b l e s s i n g s from God as the first. " " -

T h i r d : Those .people- w h o have wealth but no knowledge. O n account o f their ignorance, they stumble and do not fear God with respect to t l leir wealth. They-do not ..~ive t h e i r k i n : f o l k the rights which they (tlie kinsfolk) have Upon it nor do the~; spend it in tilt, path of God, Such pe01)le a re very, low in the sight Of God. -

The fourth: The people w h o ' h a v e neither wealth dot knowledge I n additioii, the 3" ¢1o not entertain ffener0us intentions with r e g a r d t , ; wealth. Thei r des i re is. l ike' the thiFd .~roup of people, hac.l they been rich. ~hev wotild spend their-r iches in pui'suit of their own selfish pleas'ure'pnly. On accotmt o f , t h e i r uncharital~lt, intentions, they will be rej~arded as the third group. (Tirmudhi) .

" O 1 Jabir son of Saleem-relate.~. I c e I h apl~encd to come acros.~ a man who commauded obedience from peoole In evervt.hin ~eo ~lc al,andoncd their, ol,ini,m and followed h i / i n l;referenceTto tl~ci I oxl-n Upon inquiry as to wlio this person' wa.~. I Wa.~ told that he was the prophet of God. -

"T/hen I Went t o h imj and inquired. 'Are you the proiJhet! o f God?' He said in reply. 'I am Hie prophet sc1~t b'v God who removes your troubles when you pray unto Hinl at the t ime of your distress. when v0ur crops fail and x;ou lift your hands in prayers (rot0 Him.- l ie makes your c r o p s g r o w and wh~l ydu lose your riding animal with which you t r a v e r s e t h e t r a c k l e s s d e s e r t al]d you /:all U])on Him. He brillgs v0ur animal ba ck to you . ' Upon hear ing this, .I 1)esaught the Hbly Prophe t to give me s°me wise counsel: T h e Holy P r o p h e t

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said. Ngver abuse , .nv-one. Since I heard the inJunction of the Holy Prophet . I neverTabusedanv 6he- -no t even af foat . T h e . H01y

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P r o p h e t continued. Never behtt le any good dccd regardless of-how small it is . T o meet your brother with a cheerful and a s m i l i n g face

.(Combined on page 28) ]

T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E

Excerpts :From The Writings i_

of i H a z r a t M i r z a Ghulam Abroad . The Promised Messiah .and Mahdi

( 1 8 3 6 . 1 ~ 0 8 ) :

If i s o f suprenm imp0rtance that with t r u e l o v e for.hU- mani ty a n d t h r o u g h self-purification, ye. share in- : the-holy spirit. For without the hoh , spirit, t rue righteousness camlot be a t t a ined . .Wi th complete ]nasterv over your-passions, "adopt

. fi-n" the a t t a inmen t of the Divine pleasure, the pal~h-narrower : thaii which, there is no path. B e not captivated by, the enjoy:

ments o f this material l i f e which separates ~,ou f rom God. In order to do the Divine will. adopt the laard ' l i fe , the. life of remmciation and sacrificel Pain, in Which lies the pleasure o f (kM is bet ter tihan-the pleasure which causes His displeasure.. Defeat in Which lies the pleasure Of God is bet ter than the vic- tory which incurs his wra th . F0rs~tke t h e things the love of which brings you n e a r e r t o the wra th of .God. I f ye come to (;0d with a pure and clean heart, then He will come to help you from all. sides. No enemy will-be a b l e t 6 do un to you any

" l i a r m . Never can. ye attain the pleasure of God un t i l for His sake, ve renounce a l l your . pleasures and-en joyments , your honor~ l~roper~, and-life; and bear all adversities, ' which will br ing before your eyes the spectacle of death. But .if ve meet all difficulties in the path of God xx:itha ca lm resignation. . then ve will be taken into His bosom like a loving child and made-heirs to the r{ghteous who have gone before you, and the doors 0fa l l Div ine blessings Will be opened unto yon. But f ew are those who heed this: God has spoken unto me that righteousness is a t r e e w h i c h must lie planted in the heart. The water Which gives .nourishment to t h e t r e e o f righteousness waters the whole garden o f thespl r i tua l life. Righteousness is a root without which everything iwithers. I f i t remains, everything remains. Of what ava i l are the empty boasts of nmn which

:. he makes with the Words of his mouth that he SeeksGod but p rovesno t his sincerity and fai th by his actions. Hearken, I sav unto you, the roan'is do0med who has a leaven of-worldliness with his faith.. N e a r i s he to hell all of whose intentions are nat for God but some for God and some f o r this world.- If there is a j o t o f worldliness in your faith then all your

• T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E

worship is in vain. I t is Satan that ve follow in that case. and not God. Ne~'er hope, then. for Divine help. Ye are worms of the e a r t h in that case and will per i sh like t h e worms in a shor t t ime. God will no t b e in you but will be pleased to destroy you. But if ve t r u l y br ing a d e a t h upon - ) 'ourselves then ye.,wlll become the mamfes ta t lons o;t God, for He will be with you. Blessed will be t h e house in which ve will live. Blessings of God will descend upon the walls of the house in which . ye wil l live: nay, even the city-will be blessed in which such men lixe. I f vfmr life and x:our death~ Your severity and ),our mildness, nay~ all your movements be for the sake of God, and if ye t ry not your G o d in t imes o f distress and calamity, and sever not your connections with your Lord. ra ther make advancement under all circumstances, then. ye will t ru ly become a favor i te people of God. Ye are men just as I am a man. anti the same God who is mv God is your God also, waste not the powers which God has given unto you. I f ve lean toward God wholly. I declare unto you according to the Divine will . that x e x~;ill become God's chosen people.. Make your hear ts the seat~ of His M a j e s t y a n d proclaim His unity, not only by your tongues, l~ut also 1).v your acti6ns, s~ that God also may sh6wer upon you H i s g race and mercy. Shun vengeance and ill will and show sympa thy-un to all man. kind. Adopt all paths of virtue, for ve knoxx~ not by which path you will gain acc6p[ancewi th God:

I bear unto you t he glad tidings that the~ field for the at- ta inment o f the nearness Of God is vacant. The re is no rival to contest you in that field. The nat ions o f the earth a r e 1 0 s t in their love for this triaterial world. The),, c a r e no t . a fig for : that with which God is pleased. For those who sincerely desire with all their hear t and soul to enter this ga te , - the re ) i s an unique oppor tuni ty to show their me¢it and f ind special f a v o r with God. T h i n k not that Godwi l l suffer you to be destroyed. Ye are a seed of God's. hands Which is sown in the earth. God has spoken unto me that this seed w i l l , g row and bear frui ts and will shoot its branches on all sides, and will become a migh ty t ree . Blessed are those who have fai th i n . t h e w o r d s of God and fear n o t the intermediate trials~ F o r trials mus,t come so t h a t God may t ry you and See who a r e t r u e and who are false in the i r oath of allegiance. H e who stumbles at the trials will not do the least h a r m to t h e Divine cause b u t his ill- luck will take him to hell. Bet ter would it b e that he was not born. But all those who bear patiently till the end, will gain v i c to ry and the d o o r s of the Divine blessings will be

T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E ?

0i~ened unto them, though they will be shaken by the earth- quakes of calamities and s torms of disasters and mocked at by the nations of the earth and hated and abhori-ed by t h e world. God has spoken unto me to convey unto nay followers the message that thosewhose faith is unmixed With the slightest t incture of worldliness, hypocrisy and the weakness of the heart and whose faith does not fall short o f any degree of ~,bedience and submission to the Divine will, are God's chosen people.. These are the People who are truly sincere in the sight of God.

Hearken unto me, Ye people! what is it that God desires ~f you? Only this, that ye must be entirely H i s and set not upany other God with Him, nei ther in heaven nor on the earth. Our God is the God who is living now as H e was living in days

• g0neby. He speaks now as He spoke before. He hears now as He heard before. I t is an unfounded idea tha t H e hears now but speaks n o t . . H e speaks now a s : H e hears. All His attributes are eternal and everlasting. None of them ever does ~,r ever will lie i d l e . H e is the One without a n y p a r t n e r , W h o has neither son nor:wife.

There is none like unto Him, He is the One without a sec- mid.: He is the possessor of the distinctive Divine clualities with which no one else is distinguished: H e is infinite in His State, attributes and omnipotence. Being far He is near, and being near He-is yet very far. He can manifest Himself to the seecs h~ visions. But t l e has no body. form or sh/lpe. H e is above all things, yet ve cannot say that t he re is anything below Him.

" l ie is on the throne in heaven, yet ye c a n n o t s a y that He is not on the earth. He combines in Himself all the perfect attributes. H e is the man i fe s t a t ionof all beauties and fountain of al l goodness. He is omnil)otent and the source of all grace and unto H i m return all things, the King o f all kingdoms, infinite in perfection, free f rom all defects, faults and frailties. [:Ie is the One unto whom belongs .all worship in heaven as well ~ts on the earth. N o t h i n g is impossible with him. All the souls and their faculties and all the particles and their facul t ies are His creation. \Vithont Him nothing can come into existence. H e manifests Himself with His Own power, might and sic,ms. It is only thr6ugh Him that we can find Him. He ever manifests Himself to the righteous and unfolds Unto them the wonders of His power. He can be known on ly through Him.

'The path 0 f . r i g h t e o u s n e s s c a n be known only through Him. H e sees with0ut-physical eyes, H e hears without physical ears a n d speaks without physical tong'u e. H e creates everything

a T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E

How Can International Peace] be Secured?

The world' today is making unprecendented material progress. Man's achievements in his conquest o f -na ture and in harnessiflg her forces for his service are simply staggering. It can well be said thai modern m a n h a s peri 'ormed miracles.-.- Yet.he has utterly: fftilcd to prove t h a t h e is nmch superior to the ancient barbarians whom he so of ten condemns without the slightest compunction of conscience. \Vhat goes by the

-name of civilization is Complicated Savagery. The rule of the jungle prevails in this so-called civilized wo÷ld. I.t is in a s ta te of international gangsterism. :

The horrors of the great war. of 1914-18 have not yet been forgotten. Since then, there has been n o cessation of bloody hostiljtie,4. W a r with all its tragedies has c o n t i n u e d . Many~ parts o£ the world have beeii the Scenes of sheer lawless- hess and butclaely, where thousands .upon thousands o-f in- nocent men, w o m e n a n d children have beeni mercilessly slaugh- " tered. Lethal in s tnmlen t s of destruction proudly produced by modern science in this so-catled age of progress, have'been. r{lthlessly enaployed /or nmss n ' m r d c r . . " - '

So far , these inexplicable t ragedies wi~re confined t o isolated c o u n t r i e s . - B u t now, the much-dreaded general c o n - flagration has broken :out, with-M1 feroci t ,L " Precisely withill twenty, five years, Europe tinds i t se l f plunged into another terrific m.ajor catastrophe, ()f ieshudder,q even to conceive o f the disastrous calamities that are sure to'l~efall"mankind as a result of this bloody Struggle.

The question arises: Ca!a this war be averted and inter-. national peace secured? .Our answer is, man left to himself. cannot. But by following divine guidance; he ca n aver t the

out of nothing. , \ s vc see in dreams mad visioiis. I-Ie creates a world without mat[er and shows nof i -exis tent things ~s ex- isting. Such arc the wonders of His powers. A foo l i s .he who denies the power 91 (,o~!. ( , o d does every th ing .and has the l~ower , to d o. everything except what .is cont rary to H i s own moral qualities or against His own promise. He is alone in His person, m His attributes, in His works, and in His omnipotence.

.. ( A 1 - W a s i y y a t ~ T h e Wil l) :

• T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E - 9 ]

1 danger of this dragon of war and secure international peace. " \Ve set fo r th below some of the injunctions o f the Holy

()uran. the \Vorcl of God for the maintenance of international i~-eace and renunciation of war. as presented b~ Haz ra t Mirza Bashiruddifl Mahmnd :,\Imlad. the present head of - the Ah- madiyya Movement. in h is famous book, The T r u e Islam.

One of-the p r i m a r y canses of-international friction is th'e deeply r.ooted covetousness of one nation toward . the material values possessed bv another. It l i e s i n the indomitable .thirst fo rg reed and self=aggrandizement. I n t h i s connection, Islam lays down a principle which strikes.at the roots of such causes of internati0nal.rtlpturesl The Holy ,Ouran says:. "

"'Lift not thine eves toward those worldv benefits which we haz'e be.~towed npon other nation3r il~ order io trv t h e m . in their actions2 That which your Lord has bestowed-upos~a, ou is best for you and more enduring.'" (.,;.~'/. 29)

In this verse God says that every nation devote all its en- ergies t o t h e developinen} o f its o w n talents and take full ad- vantages of a l l t h e n a t u r a l gifts which GOd has bestowed upon i t . The phmdering of other nations can by n o means b e o f any permanent .benefit and leads t o ultimate distress a n d trouble:

Internat ional dislikes and jealousies constitute another im-- portant cause of international clispntes. Very_ of-ten one nation wrongs.another and a peace is pa tched ,up fo r the time being but the aggrieved nation ' continues to nur.ture a secret grudge against the aggressor and eage r ly awaits for :a -su i tab le op-. portunity, t o inflict in jury upon it. This generally results in- war.

Islam .strongly forbids this and enjoins t ruth-and straight f0rwardness in all international affairs? The Holy Ouran savs:

"'0 believers..act up}'iclhtly, in all ma t t e r s for - thesake of "i God and deal eqtdthble with people; let not hatred o f a people incite you to in.justice. Act justly for that is in accord ~,ith ri.qhtemtsness. M~ake God your Shield. H e is aware of what yo~ do." : (V. 8 ) . "

I f the s ta tesman of:the different countries were to set such a high s t anda rd of truthflflness and m o r a l i n t e g r i t y in t h e i r diplomatic dealings; a larffe number of internati~onal disputes would be easily avoided: ' " . - " " " ~ .i:

Islam lays great emphas i supon the sanctity of treaties and " • ' teaches that treaties should be. resPectednQt only betveeen the

immediate parties which are involved, but also by their respec- " tire allies. I f t reachery is apprehended from any state with

10 T I I E M O S L E M S U N R I S E

which a treaty has been concluded, it should not be attacked suddenly nor should any undue advantage be taken Of it. Afffirst a warn ing must be served to the effect that, as it has been .¢uilty of the b reach of faith, the treaty comes to an end: If the guilty party still persists' in its treachery, then. and only t h e n , may war be declared as a last resor.t.

Islam emphasizes the importanqe of preparedness for war as a means of the maintenance of peace. So long as diverse governments exist-in the w o r l d there will 'always beappre-~ hension of war. Unless you are fully prepared for self-defense, a perfidious enefiay may; taking advantage o f ~-our weakness and unpreparedness, be tempted to at tack you. .~o: Islam does not allow a Mos lem State t o offer temptat ion t o o t h e r nations to make wa, r upon ,it, l~elying upon its neglected defenses. A Moslem nation must therefore ever be.ful ly prepared for self- defense.

N o w we en te r into .the most important phase of the theme - -name ly Islam's solution of the problem engeudered by international" hostilities.- For the . amicable settlement o( international disputes. Islam con;tejnl~lat~d a combi~iation of nations which may actually.be ~termed a League of Nations. This is enjoined upon t h e Mos.lemS and strongly recommended to the non-Moslem. This Islamic Leag~le of Nations would be more comprehensix~e and more far-reaching, in its result than... ~ the present Lea~ le of Nations, as it would be invested wlth far greater powers. T h e following verse in the :HolY Ouran fur- nishes us with the principles of the contemplated:League:

" I f two Moslem nations el~ter into hostilities, other.Mos-. lem Nations should trv~to nlake peace between them. but if one o~ them nevertheless attacks the other, then all of them ,nttst fight ihe former m rtil it'~.~uhmits, makepeace betgveen them and act w#h justice aT~d equity, for God loves the just."

According to this verse,,as soon as there are indications of disagreement between two nations, the other nations, instead

o f taking sides with one or with the other, should a t once de- mand that the disputants submit the i r differences to the abri- t ra t ion of miler nations. I f the contending parties a~'ree, then the dispute will be amicably settled. If , on the other hand, one of them refuse t o submit to arbitration, or having made this submission, refuses to accept the:.ilecision, t h e other nations must unite for the purpose o f Compeling the recalcitrant nations to submit to the decision of the League: I t is obvious tha t however strong a nation may be, it cannot withstand the uni ted forces of all Or many nations and will b e forced to speedy submission. The art~itrators should on no account pla~ the

T H E M O S L E M S U N K I S E 11

role of parties to the dispute and sl~ould not put forward any claims arising out of the conflicts with the refractory states, for, tha twould lay the foundation of fresh dissensions. Scru- pulous care nmst be taken thai perfect justice be exercised in .the Settlement of the terms of peace between the billigerent

.:nations because the arbitrators mu~t-not be influenced b y the :~ fact that one of _the parties had defied their authority.

If a league of Nations were established upon these lines, international peace would be secured a t once. It is a s a d com- mentary upon the conduct o f modern nations that when there is a conflict between two states, the other nations either play the part of anmsed spectators or take sides in the dispute. Such conduct, ins teadof promoting peace, aggravates the situation.

: That is .why the present League-of Nations has met with abject failure.

I t has often been observed that international friction has been caused, by the fact that victorious nations take undue advantage of the vatLquished ones. The victors dictate their own terms to the vanquished and impose onerous conditions of peace which are out of proportion to the original causes of dispute between the belligerent nations and which are nothing short of penalty instead of justice. "

:Another source of international tension should be recognized in the fact that whereas individual conduct is judged by the rules Of-moral integrity, these rules are generally ignored in connection with the national Conduct. The structure of international relations cannot be based upon a solid foundation

" Until such conduct is m~tde to conform to the strict-rules of niol-al integrit X.

The lack of satisfactory adjustnients Of the relations between the different governments-and their subjects often leads to international discord. According to Islam, the subjects of a country nmst show implicit loyalty to their governments. TheY-should either lend their whole-hearted support and cooperation to the government of that country or with ' draw so as not to disturb its peace and order.

The adoption of the Islamic principle would greatlydimin- ish international friction. The aggressive nations would seri- ously count the cost of their aggressive advenfures. The knowledge that the subjects of the states attacked would be willing to make all sacrifices and offer a united front in defense of their country, would undoubtedly: deter aggressive states from wag- ing war upon other nations.

National prejudice plays a conspicuous part in bringing


about international collisions.. Often the subjects, of a nation sympathize with the aggressive policy of its govermnent simply " because i t is their own government, without any. thoughtful consideration of the merit of the quest.ion.

This prompts a govermnent to take its steps lightly in translating in toact ion its aggressive projects, confident that regardless ,of. Whether the policy is right or wrong, it will have the support o5 one's govenament in its policies of injustice and aggression. True patriotism does not consist in encourag- ing government in its wrong course of action but true. patriotism consists in saving the governlnent l rom the lmrsuance o5 such conduct. The Holy Prophet Muhammad says, "Help your brother, be he oppressor or oppressed. Help the Oppressor by preventing him from .conmfitting the acts o5 oppression and the oppressed by res.cuing him from oppression." . Hence, it becomes the sacred duty of the people.of a country not to sympathize with the unjust and aggressive policies of its government but to prevent it wholeheartedly from following an unjust course. True patriotism nmst compel the people to save the country from actions-which would bring it the stigma of oppression. On the otlai:r hand, they nmst be prompted.- by the true love oi humanity ill trying to. enforce tlae observ- ance of the principle,.."Live and let live."

: \n overwhelming ,feeling of national superiority often embitters international relations. "l_he prosperousnations, drunk with power, glory and achie~,*ements, despise the back- ward nations. No nation has been able to realize a uniform record of prosperity and no nation is yet big enough to predict its future security" from the ravages of time. The volcanic. forces that raise ~ nation to the sunmfit of power and glory or bring it downto the lowest depths-of degradation are sti l lat work. Nature pursues its course today as actively as i t has done through e°ns of times past. [nternationalhostilities cannot be

, . t ~ - • . . . , • . - . • • •

ended until this feehng: ot supermrlty-ls totally.eradicated. The Holy '0uran says:

"'Let not one ttation despise another; haply the one which is despised may tm'n out better than, the one which despises.". ( X X X . , I I ) "

Aga~in, "[Ve cal~sd periods o.f adz'or.ally amt prosperity to revol~,c

between different peoples.:" ( I l l . 13) I-Ience2 international peace can be secured only when all

the nations of the earth: come to the flfll realization ])f the fact that all mankind forms one nation, and that all nations nmst be united in things essential for comnaon weal and nmtual

T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E 1 ~

Moral and Spiritual Reconstruction of theWorld

By Khan Sahib M. Ataur Rahman, M.A.

We may now consider how far Islam has provedbeneficial to humani ty and whe the r it has any contribution to make in future toward the moral and spiritual reconstruction of the world. This is t h e t h i r d and the last point of the pre.sent discourse.

Looked a t in the i r r ight perspective, the Prophet 's teach, ings will be found to constitute the vital forces in Islam, forces that have changed the very aspect of a great part of the world. These teach ings have Set up new ideals of life, n e w s t a n d a r d s o f conduct. They have placed the spiritual values above the moral and mater ia l , a n d b y so doing have offered the correct so!ution of the problems o f l i f e as they have arisen in various forms and aspects in different ages since the birth of Islam. This spiritual conception of life---when I say ' l ife ' I do not mean life ' beyond l the grave, to which most of the organized religions With which we are familiar-make more or less an ex- clusive reference, but life on e a r t h w i t h a l l its,'kaleiodoscopic interests and vai'ied activities is at once the s trength and beauty of Islam as a religious system- The fai th itself has

i proceeded f rom the divine source. The Prophet of Islam was hnd0ubtedly a divine agency through which the regeneration of man was, and has to be brought about. The Islamic scripture was a t reasury Of divine revelations that descended upon the Prophet as occasion d e m a n d e d throughout t he twenty-three years of his ministry. T h e laws governing o u r relations with our fellow men as laid down therein or deduced theref rom are as nafich of divine origin as those that direct our relations with

G o d , so that violation of the.ke laws is, in the belief of t h e Moslems, a c r ime agains t God Himself . Indeed, it is this view of life which is responsible for the-inter; twining, to an inseparable l imi t , of the material a n d the Slfiritual in the Islamic polity and the Islamic:social order. The material anal the spir i tual 'are in-fact the warp and the w~)of of the texture of Islam. As a. mat ter o f fact, Islam is not intelligible as a system purely and exclusively religious: nor can Islamic polity, and for the matter of that,. Islamic society be understood out o f relation With the religion of Islam.

~4 T M E M O S L E ~ S U N R I S E

" 'Unfortunately, the re is still an abundant misunderstand- ing," says a recent writer, "of this .religion ( Is lam) in the. \Vestern \Vorld. It is usually thought to be merely a religion. But Islam is not only a religion;-i t is also a civilization. I t not only directs a man's theology, it forms his society.. I t is thus a way of life, a way of thinking and acting, an outlook oll the world whichembraces ever) aspect o f -humanac t iv i ty . " :\ sinfilar misunders tanding of Islam and its problems, I ven- ture to th ink , prevails unfortunately ev.en in our o~vn country, which it should be the endeavor Of all Moslems to clear and remove.

.It will gene ra l l ybe ~:onceded that in the ~ present age the omission o f the spiritual element from our culture and civilization and e v e n from our system .of education, particularly in Western countries, has.bereft: it of its vigor and vitality, and induceil a gangrenous condition as well in our I body politic as in our social order . Islam has so far, b y its employment of,. spiritual s tandards and machinery, neutralized the evil effects of a material, Godless civilization; and, as. such it has proved a veritable blessing to the natidns Of the World. "

This is however n o t t h e onl); way t ha t Islam has counter- acted the Godlessness underlying the group activities o f the prcsent-dav..w0rld. Islam has harmonized conflicting forces both in individuai 'and collective life, and has guided humanity to steer,,clear Of the Oppositt~ extremes. In doing so it has merely functioned as ,Providence int-ended it to f u n c t i o n ~ "and thus have \Ve made yon a imtion to follow the mean Be- tween extremes" (2:144). In religion Islam has t a k e n u p t h e intermediate position between monastic asceticism and hen- ouism, between COmlflete self-almegation and: senseless self- gratification. In ethics: it strikes a mean hetween a cul t of

- relentless retribution and a creed of indiscriminate ff~rgiveness, between the principle of aggressive violence and the doctrine. of supine non-resistance. In economical relations it stands midway between the extremes of individualism and conmmn-: ism ;At'grants the righ t of pr ivate ownership l in tad jus t s it hy ordinances to the requirements of comnmnal well,heing. In the field of politics: [§lam reconciles springs of national activity with international motives and ideals . It is indeed easy to; multiply instances to show how Islmn has throughout i t s long history exerciseil a steadying influence over mdral and spiritual abberrations. It has'established an intel lectual and moral equilibrium between c~mllicting ideals: it has acted as a hallast and has t/i'ten saved the.ship of human destiny .from wreck and ruin. ,~\rhO can doubt t h a t t h e moderat ing influenci~ of

T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E . 15

Islam has been to humanity a blessing of inestimable value? Another priceless benefit which Islam has conferred on

humanity is by recognizing the position of .woman, champion- ing her rights and raising her status. "Mohammad's outstand- ing contribution to the cause of woman,!' says Justice Crabites from hisexperience of the courts in Cairo; "resides in the property rights that he Conferred upon the wives of the people.

T h e judicial status of a wife, if so technical a term may be pardoned, is exactly the same as that of.-the husband. The Moslem spouse, in so far as her property is concerned, is free

a s a bird. The law permits her to do with her financial assets whatever she pleases without consultilig her consort. In such matters he has no greater rights than would have any perfect stranger."

It is to the great Islamic civilization that the worM must ever remain indebted for its achievements in art and literature, science and philosophy. The intellectual enmncipation of l~urope would never have heen possible witho~/t the passionate zeal the Moselms dislflaved for knowledge and without their labours in-transmitt ing' the intellectual wealth of Hellenism tO Europe--#'whic h br6ught it m a . n e w flowering,. , the seeds

e ~ fi-om which contrilmted to the renmssance m emrop . T h e period from the eighth to the twelfth century forms a glorious chapter in the history of Islam. Learning was liberally pro- moted and study of t h e exact, sciences was zealously en- couraged~ Limits of t ime,prevent me from entering upon this fascinating subiect in any measure of detail Which t-would fain have done. I \viii rest content with quotations from two eminent scholars~ Speaking o f the cr~tze for learning that characterised the Abl)asid period Professor Nicholson says: "It seemed as if all the world from the Caliph down to the humblest citizens suddenly became students or at least patrons of literature, in quest of knowledge men travelled over three continents and returned home, like bees laden with honey to impart-the precious stores which they h a d accumulated to crowds of eager disciples, and to. compile With incredible in-

• dustry thoseworks of encvclopcedic range.and erudition from which modern science, in ' the widest sense of theword , has derived far more than i s generally supposed." M: Sedillot writes: "The vast literature which existed dUring this period. thenmltifarious productions of genius, the precious inventions,

. all of whichattest , a marvellous, activity of intellect, just i fy the opinion that theArabs:were our masters in everything."

.As a political system Islam has rendered great service to

1~ T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E

humanity. The government ;of the four first Caliphs was based on the principles of democracy, ahnost austere in nature and form : and although there hax~e heen departures since from the original ideal. Islam has remained till to -day essentially democractic in practice,, • "

Despite what unfr iendly critics say, there is the verdict of history that Islam has seldom. i f ever., been aggressive. The theor3; of Islam hav'ing been slwead at the point of the sword has long since been exploded, . and there is hardly any ntis- unders tanding t6~dav about Jihad of religious war :which was permitted only in self~defence. "God only forhids you" we read in the (-)uran. "to make friends with tho.~e, who on account Of ~ou]" religion have war red against you , and have driven you forth from rout" homes, and have aided those who drove you for th" (60:9").

The non-Moslems living in an Islamic. State were invari- ably treated with justice and considex~ation. T h e y were givel: the fullest freedom. 0ften bv-the i s s u e o f royal character, to practise their religion. They were entitled t o th.e same civic and political r ights as w e r e enjoy, ed by their Moslem fellow- subjects, and were ahsolutely equal in:l;he eye of the law.

No douht, contact with the nations of the \Vest and the influence o f t h e i r culture and civilization have brought abOut important changes in the complexion of the political Constitu- tion of Islam. -National imlmlses have in different Islamic countries stirred the minds of IZhe people to their depth:, they- have in consequence set allout building t h e i r o w n political structures in order to Work out on independent lines their own 1)olitical destiny.. Politically. therefore, the Islamic world has been divided into separate states, each pursuing its own political ideas according to its-o~vn peculiar ,~enitjs.-

These .~enaratist tendencies it cannot be denied .h,-tve g - • I ' " o ' . o

created qn certain countries iwohlems .of semous ma~ort re- volving a conflict between the ideal of combining the Moslems of the world into a commonwealth of-Islamic States under one Caliph and the ideal o f t h e assertion of national a i m s a n d ful- filment of national aspirations. On reflection, howex,er, it will appear that an adiustmt 'n t ~f national ideals to the needs ,ff Islamic unity and solidarity is lw-ne means difficult of solu- lion. Indeed. Islam.-1~ossesses "a ina~nifit.'ent t radi t ion of inter-racial maderstandine and c~H~peration". .and: has. i n the. past. f rankly recognized the right of every nat ion to auto- nomous government and politica I 'self-detem{aination. although the ideal could not. in. the very circumstances of those times..

" . T H E M O S L E M s U N R I S E . 17

be evolved into concrete forms of government as we see them to-day. But every one will adlnit that politics is yet in process of e.~/olution and "that. even now the last word on the subject has not been, and cannot be spoken.

Despite the assertion of national .clemands in separate areas in the Islamic world, despite the assault o f Western thoughts, and ideals on Islani, its Unity-remains unbroken. I n fact, Islam has alreadv realized that nationalism must of course be given full and free play unit but it must at the same time be turned into a source of strength to Islamic unity and st)lidarity. Similarly Islam is never afraid of the impact of Western influences, on its culture and civilization, for these can never weaken the solidarity of Islam. "It may sound strange", so wrote late Salah-ud-Din Khuda Bakhsh, "but it is none the tess tnle that Western influences and Western ex- periendes, instead of weaning us away, draw us closer and vet closer to Islam. And What i s the secret o f its wonderous hold ? To the savage and the Savant Islam appeals with.equal force: for there is nothing in Islam tO hamper or impede the forward step.of man. l+ree from theology-and priest-craft it imposes no rigid Code of law. Destitute of-ril/ual and cere- monial it leaves its votary a perfect and free hand :in worship and devotion. I n its essence, splendidly democratic, it gives the freest and fullest scope to the genius of man. The Ouran. instead Of being a stumbling-block to.advancement, is a book. brimming with-cotinsels Of perfection for all times and all peoples. I t does not restrict but widens the .charity of man."

Islam is not vet a spent force. In.the future'rec0nstruc- tion of the worldgorder Islam has an. important and honorable part to play. similar t o what is played in the hey-day of its g lo ry - - the par t 'of a mediator. -In the.past, it mediated be, tween'Hellenism and Europe in the intellectual and cultural field. In .flit.tire; it mtt.vt mediate l, etzueen the East arid the lVest fntellechtallv, cttlt ,ralIv, and e;,en politically. This ha~ ah-eadvbeen recognized by th ink ing men both of Asia and Eur0pel " I f ever the opposition of the great societies of the East and the: \Vest" writes Professor Gibb of-the University . of LOndon. " i s t o be replaced by co-operation, the mediation of islam is an indispensable condition. In its hands lies very largely the solution of the l~roblem With which Europe is face~l in i ts relations with the East. If thevuni te , thehopes Of a peaceful issue is immeasurably enhancedpbut i f Europe. by reieeting the co-operation of Islam; throws it into the arms of its rival, the issue can only_he d~sastrous fo r hot .

The t?ez,ie~e, o.f ReE.qions.

!11 T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E

The Great Quest By

Omar Cleveland I

A ~visit to the East tillS one with deep respect fo r the religion: o f the ~Moslems, w h o worship Ailah, n o t Sunday only, but daily. That which they seek lives in their souls. They never cease their s t ruggle . to find the Lo rd -o f the Worlds~ With them it is a great • a d v e n t n r e ~ a splendid quest.

The devout praise of the earnest Musselman is genuine: in him there is no pretense when he prost ra tes h imse l f on h i s carpet before the Beneficient, the Merciful, anywhere under the s tarry canopy of heaven.

3,Vithin-the Mosque t'heri: are no pictures or graven images of any kind, lint t he inspiring service is the worship of the O n e and Onh< God, "Thee, only, (h) we worship," and "Of Thee alone do we beg assistance:-direct us in the right way."

These simple lines f rom the 1)eauti ful Fat iha covers everv- thing~ These ,.great t ruths of Islam will appeal to vast number's of men and. women whose intelligence has for too long been trifled with unstable dogmas of l)agan origin.

The snccess of Islam lies in the world wide fellowshi t) which it has been able to realize and also in the consistency of the faith from which it grows.

A Moslem has one:authorized version of the.Holy- Ouran. There is no organized-priesthood in it . Every Moslem is a s tandard bearer of the truth, for Islam is not encumbered with theological subtleties, and may be~expounded bv even the un- versed in theological e.x-pression. Their nobiest- th0ughts:need not be clothed in verbal trappings which are but vain shadows of form and sense. :

Islam provides the world with the necessary rational outlook that is so wanting'-today~ -To those seeke r so f t r u t h ~ I would direct you to just consider your mind a blank, capahle of receiving iinpressions f o r the first time. . " "

Noxf, devote some time }laily f o r awhile to the study of Islam, and t h e worhl will be revealed in .a light t h a t has not been here-to-fore .understood hv you. I n it there is. precept and practice which rebounds to its .greatest glory.

You Will. hecome purged of the wrong ideas formerly entertained about Islam. You will he cnamoured of the .Faith of Mnhammad, ( m a y the peace of Allah be upon him) whol

19

often persecuted, but ahvays persevering, and ever ,gaining faith; tirelessly labored toward immeasurably distant~g oals-

Islam possesses assimilating capabilities to the changing times, which makes its appeal to every age and satisfies the moral, spiritual and social needs o f all mankind. M a n y mis-

:sions have been established in the \Vestern world and Islam is well within its gates. "

It .remains while creeds and civilizations rise and. fal l-- the .eternal priestess of humanity.

- . . " .

Whyl Embraced Islam

(Noorul Islam) ( Titus Smith)

l had abundance of religious training. The home,: the school and the church .-ill tried to impart t o m e Christian education and exert upon me Christian influence. Yet as I grew older.and Older anti began to think for myself, I failed to understand the truth of such Christian doctrines as-"Man was I)orn m sin-and shaped m mlqtnty, . Jesus ts both man as well as G o d " a n d "There arc three (~ods--God,the Father, God the son and God the Holy Ghost, yet these three are equal to one." Above all, 1 ~. could not swallow the. Christian theory of salvation "How the blood of Jesus could bring salvation."

" Doubts and misgivings concering these matters came to my-mind and disturbed m y i n w a r d peace. I prayed to.God fo cahn mv restless Spirit anti make me satisfied with the religion of t~av father, if that was: the true religion from Him. I communicated nay ideas to nay friends and associates and

-had manyfree and frank discussions with them. To my utter surprise.-I discovered that many of nay friends shared my thought, hut would not freely express themselves for fear of incurring the displeasure o f their, friends and-relatives, especially t h e i r elders. .

I often felt alone, cast adrift upon the sea of uncertainty. NOt knowing what tO do, I began to read books on religions other than the one with which I was familiar. As a result of my studies, I . came to the conclusion that there are truths in all religions, the followers of which have been branded as


"lost" and " 'unsaved" by the christ ian preachers. I also found o u t that I was a Chris t ian because my bir th t ook place in a Christ ian country and wag r e a r e d in Chris t ian environment . : \ t this stage, i considered m y s e l f a f ree- thinker :with the right- to do my own c h o o s i n g i n mat ters of f a i th .

III was in th i s . f rame of mind when a f r iend of mine i n f o r m e d me about tlae religion Of Is lam and later in t roduced me to Sufi. 3I. R. Bcngalcc. ,the Ahmadiyy'a Mos lem 3l i ss ionary to : \meri - ca. In the course r,f a conversat ion which I had with him, the miss ionary apswered my questions to my complete satis- faction and invited me to a t tend his nmeting~ a n d leai'n more about the ~ruth. These meet ings proved so at t ract ive to me that I ha~l to. f rcquent nay Visits. Needless to say t h a t the truths, exlmunded/in st,'itely simplicity and in all clearness, im- pressed me heyond descripion. Two things went s t ra igh t to my heart. " " . . . . .

F i rs t : I s iamio conception of God w h i c h was free from- being c logged with inexplicable theological en tang lements . . Islam showed the way to the O n e and tim ()nlv (-;od \Vhom every one can lind for h i m s e l f . -:

Secofid: I w a s . h n d e r the imwess ion tha t - the Moslems do not recog, laize Jesus oL, Nazareth. It was a s ta r t l ing revelation to me to learn that t he followet;s o f Islam not o n l y believe in Jesus btlt in all the Prophets o f God.

Tha t was ahout eight years ago. Since then. by the g r a c e of God I have leanied many more spiritual verities and will con- t inue to do so, as long as I live because I s lan l opens unto us a

l path of ever increasing knowledge~ : .

In conclusion,-; let me s ta te that people everywhere are • save the world t r o m chaos. Confusion seeking desperatel3:"to " " " "

and ruin. They will try in Vain, tmtil they adop t Is lam and. the Holy Oura n which definitely poin t otli to t h e n a t i o n s 0 f the earth, the way to Peace. • -

• . " ..

!

j .

B a c k i s s u e s o f " i . . . .

T H E MOSLEM S U N R I S E ,

m a y be h a d f o r 25C each. ' : " : . . . . -

Tlw_mnnber of copies available is limited. Orders should be-sent in promptly.

The Arabs of Palestine History and archeo!ogv c l e a r l y demonstrate that the

• 'Arabs ~ of I alestine are a 'nfixed race. Many o f them can be traced to se~,eral races that occul)ied the country long before. the Hel)rew invasion, such as the Moabites, (he Jebusites, Hittites. the Philigtines, and the Canaanites. Professor Elihu (;rant, the well-known a-rlzheologist states:

"This will he seen to bean essay in understanding of an almost forgotten folk, the nat ive Canaanite peasantry of :l:>alestlnel the-majority population fbr thousands of years, a farmil~g people of Whom about one hundred thousand still remain"Christians today, while Six for seven hundred thousands are Moslems.

"Brilliant 1)ersonalit ies have come from this peasantry, but I have chosen l~he simplest of their class, a dece.nt country-folk, sot md in body and mind, patient and patri- otic, tile basic stock of the country." It should also be noted.that at no time did the Hebrews

conquer Or occupy all of Palestine. The Philistines were never conquered 1)ut remained masters o f t h e i r portion of the land lonff after the fall of the Kingdom of Judah and the Kingdom of Israel. It i s the irony of history .that the land, of Israel should be called Palestine after t h e Philistines, the arch enemies of the Hebrews.

Palestine was also invaded by. Babylonia, Persia, Egypt, Greece, and Rome. Under all of these:occupations and at all times there lived in some sections of Palestine other races 1)esides the Hebrews. O.f all thege racesl the Hebrews alone were taken into captivity. None : o f ' t h e other races were carried awas~ from the land, or exterminated at the hands of ruthless con~luer0rs- " :\boul: the time of Chr is t and under the Romans, the Gentile population o f Palestine was ve ry large.

Iersulam:fell to Titus:in 70 A.D., and in 13.-) A.D. Hadrian expelled a l l of the Jews from Jerusalem and forbade them to return.

Hebrew influence on the races of Palestine was negligible. I n fact ,these races exercised more influence on the Hebrews. Since the time of Christ and after, the-language spoken=!)y t h e lews of PaleStine was Aramaic and not Hebrew. The

" latter was used in- , thesynago~e and for religious ceremonies only.

u P to t h e Arab conquest the country remained part of


the Roman (Byzant ine) Eml)ire , and .was l)redominantly Christian.

In August 636 A.D. the A r,6.bs trader Omar won a his- toric victor}, at theba t t le of Yarmouk and wrested the country. from the Byzantines. The CoVenant of Omar ~ la ran teed full liberty to :the " inhab i t an t so f Aelia (Jerusalein) , to al l o f them

• without distinction, be. they well disposed o r ill disposed." This document which was signed hy ()mar.aml wimessed by four of his generals is a shining, example of Arab tolerance and states- manship which may wel l be emula ted 'by Brit ish diplomats. Fifteen years later, a Nestorian bishop wrote : "These Arabs to whom God has given the pozoer nowadays, do .not fight Christianity. In fact, they protect our belief> respect onr priests and holy men attd yt've presents to ore" cimrches attd I I I O I I t l S t C F I L S . " "

The benevolent-rule of the Arabs continued u n t i l 1516 : \ .D. when the country became part of the Turkish E m p i r e .

The story of the .Crusaders in. the 1 l t h and 12th centuries is too well known to wa r r an t rel)etifion here. However , it is interesting t0 m.ention tha t , i n spite of their defeat hy Saladin, many of the Crusaders settled in the country. Marlqages hetween them and the native l)Oi)ulation were frequent as is evidenced hv European features no t .uncommon in Palestine today.

Thus, for at least the last 1300 years Palestine has been an 2\tab country.

From the ahove it is evident-that the Palestine Arab is not the wander ing nomad that Zionist p~:opagan!listS have por- trayed to tile western world. H e has c lung tenaciously t o t h e land which he-has dearly h)ved and valiently defended. Turkis-h rule made little impresS~0n0n Arab Palestine except in hinder- ing:its progress. The Palestine Arab is heir to a rich heri tage with a tradition of Chivalry, courage, culture, hospitality and tolerance. Between the 7th and 14th centuries the Arab Em- pire was in its golden era and the Arabs . who ruled an area greater than the Roman Empire, were the custodians of learning and civilization. Scholars: .many of them Jews, flocked from all parts of the world to Arab-seats Of learning, -whert~ they were cordially received, irrespective of race 0r.religion. as-pointed out bv George Dorsev. Numerous Arabic texts were translated into European languages, thn~ render ing possible the g r e a t Renaissance. The Canon of |bn Sina (Avi- cenna) was used as a textbook in medical schools up to-the 17th century. To-day Arab young men and women are flock-

T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E 23

ing to western-universities, and through them the \Vest is paying its debt to the East by furthering the .'\rab renaissance. Six or seven-htmdred- PaleslTine Ar~tb students annually attend F.uropean and e'tmerican institutions of learning, particularly the American University of Beirut. Syria: The influence of these students is strongly felt in the cultural, social, eeonontic and political life of the country. Professor Hocking. in his book "The-Spiri t of \Vorhl -Politics" states: "In thinking Of Palestinian Arabs we must remember their notables, their sch01ars,their tradesmen and their artisans with innate deft- hess and sense of beauty, as well as their farmers, shepherds. nomads." s i r John Hope Simpson-says of the fellah (peas- ant) : "He is ,'i compet_ent and calmbleagriculturist."

Considering his meager land resources, and the lack of modern agricultural implements iit his. disposal, the Palestine Arab: fellah has fal-ed r emarkab lywe l l in comparison with Ame~.'ican farmers of the middle West. nfillions of whom are facing destitution and have to depend cm government sul)sidy" for their bare livelihnod. .- " . Zionist leaders have frequently attempted to just ify their invasion of Palestine by pointing-out the material improvement in the status of tt{e Arab. : I t is well t o s t a t e , however, that a great dealof this imi~rovement is due to Arab initiative.

-which is now asserting itself; The improvement in hospital, sanitation, and educational facilities h a s beefi-brought about by the Brtiish administration aided by the.American Friends. the Church Missionary Society of [rmglandl and other Eu- ropean philanthropic organizations. Malarial. extermination was commenced by the Rockefeller Foundation before the \Vat . . The-rise in .\'rages of Arab labor, as of American labor, is largely due to a World wide rise in the cost of living. The Arab" has benefited little by Zionist economic impro~,.ements and i s denied eniploynaent'ill .lewish ufitlertakings, and membership in Jewish labor unions and marketing cooperatwes.

His own Culture is largely, sufficient for him; and efficient in providing hiin with ari adequate livelihood. The Arab wishes to be left alone and free to avail himself of such external benefits of western civiliz.ation as he is ready toabsorb and assimil- ate. In fact, the Arabs have .long been in contact with western civilization, culture, and science. They clca.nc~ need the inter~ vention Of others to acquaint ithem witla muctFthat they already know, and they value their independence far above any alleged material benefits, and are not willing to sell their birthright for an economic "mess of pot tage ."~( \Vhi ther Palestine)


Western Writers on the Holy Prophet Muhammad- and Islam

"'It was in the year 570 of our Era, that the man M u h a m m a d was born. He was of the family of Hashim, of the O oraish tribe" though poor, connected--with t h e chief persons of his country. Ahnost at his birth he 10st his fa ther" at the age of six" vears his mother too: he fell to t h e charge- of his g randfa the r , an old man. a h u n d r e d years old. : A good old man" M u h a m m a d ' s father, Abduilah, hadl been his young- est favori te son. He saw in Muhammad , with his. oldl if~/ , worn eyes. a century 01d. the 10st Abdul lah Come back a g a i n , all that was left o f ~,\bdultah. He loved the little o rphan box: "

S * great ly: used _to .av. They m u s t take ca r e , o f that beautiful little boy, no th ing in i their kindred, was m0re .p rec ious than he.' At his 'death, while the boy was still b u t two years old. he left him in charge, of Abu .Talib, the eldest of tlle uncles, as to h im that now was head of the house. By th i s unc le ; a .just and rational man as every th ing betokens- M u h a m m a d was brought -up in the best Arab wax-)'

"One other c i rcumstance we mus t not forget : that he had no school-learning: of the th ing we Call school-learning none at all. T h e a r t o f writinK w a s but just in t roduced into A r a b i a it seems" to be the t rue opinion that M u h a m m a d never could write! Life in the Desert , with its experiences, was all" his education. \Vhat of this infinite U n i v e r s e h e , from his dim place, with his o w n eves and thoughts , could take. in. so much and no more of it was he to know. Curi0us, if we will reflect on it. this of hav ing nci b o o k s . . F . x c e p t by what- he could see for himself , or h e a r o f ' b y uncer ta in r u m o r o f .~peech in the obscure Arabian Desert. h'e could know nothing. The wisdom that h a d been before him ~r at a distance f rom him in the world, was in a manne r as ~ood as .not the re for him. Of the grea t brother souls, flame=beacons th rough l a n d s and t imes, no one directly communicates with this Creat soul. He is alone there, deep down in the bosom ¢if the Wilderness: has to .~row up s~r---alone with na ture and his Own thoughts . "

"But, f rom an early age, he had been remarked as a thought fu l man. His compan ions named him' 'Al-Amin, the Fai thful ' . A man o f t r u t h and fidelity: t rue in what he d id . in wha t he spake and t h o u g h l . - They n o t e d t h a t he ahvavs

T H E M O S L E M s U N R I S E 2S • . - . - . . . - - "

meant something. A man rather taciturn in speech; silent. when there was nothing to be said; but pertinent, wise, sincere, when he did speak; always throwing light on the matter. This

• is:the only sort of speech wor th speaking! Through life we lind him to have been regarded as'an altogether solid, brotherly, genuine man. 2k serious, sincere character; yetmniable, cor- dial, companionable, jocose even; a good laugh in him withal: there, are mel~ Whose laugh is as-untrue as anything about

" ' " " ' t ° them; who Cannot laugh. - One hears of Muhammad s beau y; his fine sagacious honest eyes ; - ' I somehow-like too that vein on the brow, which swelled-up black when he was-in anger: like- the 'horse-sh6e vein' in Scott ' s Red-gauntlet. -It was a kind Of feature in the Hashim family,.this black swelling vein in the br6w;~iuhammad had it prominent, as would appear. ?t spontaneous, passionate, yet just, true ,neaningun~an~urFe~l

wil~l-~aculty, fire and light; of wild worth, all. ; working out his life-task in the depths of the-Desert there.

" H o w h e was placed with Khadijah, a rich widow, as her steward, and travelled i n her business,, again t o t h e Fairs of Syria; how he managed all, as one can well understand, with fidelity, adroitness; how her grati tude, her regard for him grew: the story of their marrmge is ~tltogether a graceful intelligible one, as told b~ the Arab authors. He was twenty-

- live;, she forty, though still beautiful. He seems to havelived in a most affectionate, peaceable, wholesome way with his Wedded benefactress; loving her truly, and her alone. It.goes greatly .against the imposter.theory, the fact that he lived in this entirely.unexceptionable, entirely quiet and commonplace way, till the heat of his years was done. Not till he was alreadyold, the prurient heat .of his life all burnt out, and peace growing to be the. chief thing this world could give him, did he start on the 'career of ambition" ;and, belying all his past Char-

- acter and existence, set up as a wretched empty charlatan to- acquire what he could now no longer enjoy!. For my share, l-.have no faith Whatever in that.

-"Ah no : this deep-hearted son of the.wilderness, with his beaming black eyes and open social deep soul, had other thoughts in. him than amhition: A silent great soul.; he was oneof those who cannot but be in earnest; whom Nature-her- self has appointed to be sincere. While otherswalk in formulas and hearSays, contented enough to dwell there, this man could not screen himself in formulas; he was alone with his own sotfl and reality of things. The great Mystery of Exist- ence, • as Isaid. glared-in upon him, wi th its terrors, with its splendors; n6 hearsays could sire that unspeakable fact 'Here


am 1 !'. Such s incer i ty has in very t ru th s o l n e t h i n g o f divine. The world of such a man is a Voice direct f rom Nature ' s own Heart . Men do and nmst listen to that a s t o n 0 t h i n g else; all else is w i n d i u comparison.. F r0m.0 f old, a thousand thoughts , in his pi lgr imings and wanderings, had been in th is m a n : W h a t am I? What i s t h i s unfath0naal3le T h i n g I live in. which men- name Universe? AVhat is L i fe : wha t is Dea th? W h a t am I to believe? \Vhat am I to d o ? . T h e . g r i m rocks of Mount Hara . of Mount Sinai, f l ies te rn sandy solitudes, answered not. The great Heaven rolling silent overhead, with its. blue-glacing

• stars, affswered not. There was no a n s w e r . . The man ' s own soul and what of God's inspirat ion dwelt there, had to answer t',

"Aml3ition? W h a t could-all Aralfia d o f o r this man" with the crown of Greek Herac l ius , of Pe r s i an Chosrces, and all crowns in the Ea r th : : what could t h e y a l l do fo r -h im? It was not of the Ear th he x~;anted to hear tell: .it was-of the Heaven above and of the He l l beneath. All crowns and sov- ereignties whatsoever , where w o u l d they in a . f ew brief years be? To be Sheikh o f Mecca or Aral) ia . 'and have a bit o f g i l t wood put into y o u r h a n d , will that be tree's Salvation? I de- cidedh" think not. We will l e a v e it a l together , - th is- i tnpostor hypotfaesis, as not th-e¢lible" not very tolerable even."

" 'Muhammad had beenwc ,n t to r e t i r e yearly', dm-ing the month Ramadhan, into solittide and silence: as indeed x~;as the Arab cus tom: a praiseworthy" custom, which such a man. a~bove all. wouhl f ind.natural and~useful. C o n m m n i n g with his own heart, in the silence of the mountainS: himself silent; open to the 'small still voices': it Was a r ight natura l cus tom! Muham- mad w a s in his for t ie th . .year , when having w i t h d r a w n to a cavern in Mount H a r a . - n e a r Mecca, d u r i n g the Ramadti~in, to pass the month in prayer , and medi ta t ion on those grea t questions, he one day told his Wife Khad i j ah , t ha t by the un- speakahle special favor o f Heaven he h a d now found it all ()ut: was in doubt and darkness no longer, b u t saw ~t all. T h a t all these Idols and Formulas w e r e n 0 t h i n g , miserahle hits Of wood; t h a t there was O n e God in and ove r all : and we must leave all idols, and look to Him. Tha t God is G r e a t and that there is no th ing els e grea t ! H e is the Reality. \Vooden idols are not real; He is real. He made us at firs{, sustains us yet ; we and all th ings a r e but the shadow of Him:: a t rans i tory ga rmen t veiling the E t e r n a l S p l e n d o r . ' A l l a h A k b a r , God is Great ' : and then also ' Is lam', that we nmst submit tO God. T h a t our whole streng-th lies in resigned submission to Him, whatsoever He do to us. Fo r this world, and for the o ther!

T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E 27

The thing H e sends to us, were it death and worse than death, shall be good, shall be b e s t : w e resign ourselves to God- - ' I f

• ~ / e . ; . this be Islam,' says Goethe, 'do we not all live in Islam ?' " "s all of us. that ha('e any moral life: we all live so. It has ever • been held the highest \visdonl for a man.not-merely" to submit to necessitv~necesSitv will nmke himsuhmit--- lmt to know and believe well that- the stern thing which necessity had ordered was the wisest, the best, the thing wanted there- T6 cease his frantic pretension of scanning this great God's Wor ld in his small fraction o f a hrain: to know that it had verily, though

.deep beyond his soundings, a Just Law. that the soul of it was Good: {hat his part in it Was:to conform to the L a w o f the Whole, and in devout silence follow that: not questioning it. obeying it as unquestionable.

"I say, this is Vet the only true morality known. A man . ~s right and invincil)le, virtuous and 'on the road towards sure con uest, preciselv while he loins himself to the great deep T ~ q n f the \Vorld in spite of all superficial laws; temPorary . . . . . • ~ - , ,'-'---~ ~ ̂. . . . . lculatioiis" he is..vmtormus x~nne appearances; pronr-anu-~u,-:, , - , , . . . . . he co-operates wi th that great central law, not victorious other = wise:=2and surely his ill-st chance of co-operating with iL is getting into the course 0f-it. is to know with his whole soul that .i{ is: that i t is good, and alone good t This is the soul of

Islam." . : " "Fie spoke of h i s -Doc t r ine to this nian and that; but the

most treated it With ridicule, with indifference: in three years, I think,-he-had ga ined l in t t h i r t e en follmvers. His progress was slow enough. His encouragement t.o go on, was altogether the usual encouragement that a man in s u c h a case meets. After some three-vears l of. small success, he invited forty of his-chief kindrecl.to an entertainment: and there stood ui,

• and t01d .them what his pretension was: that he had this t h i n g to promulgate abroad to all men ; that .it w a s t h e highest thing, the 0he thing: vghich o f them would second him in t]aat? Amid the doubt, and silence of :a l l ,young All, as vet a lad of sixteen, impatient 'of thesilence, started up. and exclaimed in passionate fierce language, that he would! The-assembly, among whom was Abu Tabil. Ali's father, could not be unfriendlv to Muham, mad: vet the sight there, of one unlettered elderlY'man, with a lad,of" sixteen, deciding on such an enterprise against all man2 kind. appeared ridiculous to them: the asseml~ly broke-up in laughter. Nevertheless ,it proved not a laughable thing; it

- " e ~ t " _~ " (.Concluded in next issue.) was a very .serious tiara,,,.

\


The Ahmadiyya Movement By Suf i M. R. Bengalee ]

The A h m a d i v v a Movmncnt in Islam was founded in 1890 by H a ~ r a t Mi rza 'Ghu lam A h m a d . f (:.):-\I)IAN. Ibm jab, India, unde r an express divine command. H e claimed to be the Mahdi w h o s e advent was forefohl l~v t lm 'Ho lv Prophe t Mu- h a m m a d and the Mess iah w h o s e advent had 1;een foretold in the Bible and i.n the Moslem Scr iptures . - He :was t h e promised teacher concern ing whose appearence in the last age ahnost all the prophets jo ined hands in prophesyino-.. T h e revelat ion which he received showed that G o d appointed him for t h e r e - .~enera t ion of mankind , i as the Mahdi and 1he lwoinised Messiah. In f a c t , in him was full]lied the promise made b y all the prophets of t h e past.

. - \hmadiyyat (which comprises all the teachings and doc- t r ines of the Admadiy'y;a h i o v e m e n t ) is t h e Is lam which w a s revealed to the world-Over thir teen hundred years ago tl]rottgh the Holy- prophet M u h a m m a d .and the disliensation-whi(:h is. contained in the Hol;c Ouran . Durin,_, the course of cefitnries. hmvever , if h a d been"stll')jected t~) inm"~vations and mis interpre- ta t ions: and o n the o ther hanoi, m a n y o f its a s p e c t s had been entirel\- neg l ec t ed and consequent ly l{ad i :emained Unexploreii. The H:ol.v Founde r of t he Ahmad[yy-a .Mi~vemem removed all innovat ions and ,nisjnterpi 'etat ions and d i scovered a n d imb - lished the w e a l t h o~-sl)irilual t ru ths W h i c h l a y h i d d e n - i n the words o f the H01V_ Ourafi... but tn which people had been unable to obtairi access . In shm:t. A h m a d i v v a t is the t rne Is lam which

T h e Sayings o f the P r o p h e t . M u h a m m a d - " (Coi~cluded from page 4)

--even this is a g,,od detd \\'ear. not your garments in.a way which would en~zender wide and con'ceit in you. fnr God loves not .pride." When any one M m s e s y o u and exposes your defects t-he exposure of which ,~-011 do 'no'. like~ .votf do not retaliate by exposin.~ his° faults. He wilJ suffer from the cnnsequences.of his m~-n. evil.' " (Timmdhi),

It is reported 0n the authority of Avesha that the Holy Prophet said. "By virtue of good Conduct .~md excellent manners, the belie~'er. attains to the status of the man xgho fasts ail day and offers prayers all night." (Alto Daud). - -

I t is, related on the autlmritv-of Ibn Omar t h a t - t h e Holy Prophet said. "Give refuge to those w-ho seek it of you; give alms'to those who a s \ i t of you. accept the in~,-itation when you are invited by any one and when'someonedoes favdrs unto you. do good to him in return but i-f you do n~ot have the power to do go. then pray to God for him." (Abu Daud).

T H E M O S L E M s U N R I S E 29

the Pronfised Messiah and Mahdi presented tO the world in its -pure and original ~orm. Ahmadiyyat and Islam are identi- .tally the sain~e thing. Hazrat Ahmad with all the glory that God gave h im, was only a servant and disciple of the great prophet Muhammad. ~khmadiyyat i s based wholly ola the Holy Quran.and the Law Of Islam.- It has revealed to the world many new truths relating to the special conditions ,.nd n~ds of the present age, These truths were presented bv the Promised Messiah who has enriched the intellectual and spiritual world b y discovering many. spiritual sciences: Agail],

• Armadiyyat. is Islam in its widest sen'se, t ha t is the tsmm wmcn was the: religion of. all the prophets from the earliest daw n of history to the present day.

The object of the foundation o f the, Ahmadiyya movement and the advent of Hazrat Ahmad, the P roiiiised Messiah can best be presented in his own words, t-Ie says, "'The task for which. God has appointed .reel is that I should, by removiJzg the-obstacles which ha~,e l, een:-set up between, man and his maker.: reestablish in 'tlte hearts of .man.: love alzd devotion towm~d God. mtd .b~,.makiug .ma~tife.# the Truth. put an. end to allreligious wars and strife and tlms lay the foundation of abiding peace:.and should discover to the-woHd the spiritual truths'~t,hich it has lost sight of and demonstrate to the world the. true.spiritualli fe which has been displaced by material desire and should in. mY own life man:ifest those divine powers witlzwhich man-is endowed a.ndwhlch can. be manifested only thro.ttgh praver; riah, teousnes,¢and devotion,, aitd above all that [ shottld pel'maiia'utlv reestablish that br ightand mtadu!ter- ated mtit~, 0 f God wliich is :free- from ever3 khtd of association of partners with. God and which had entirely disappeared from the heal~ts o f mankindY

: Again he says that he has:ibeen sent to attract mankind, "to the truth in all things relating to belief, morals,, kn.owled.qe. and conduct in such a man.-ner that they Should gain strength

. in all these matters." . . . . . "'Also I have been sentto clive the world a firmer faith and

demmzstrate to the world the.e:dstence of God, for faith has withered and the l i f e to come has become a mere fable and the cmtduct of mankind shows that their whole trust.iS placed

• . . . . . l" in tlds world and i~t thm qs materm. Again he sax;s, "'God has ordained that human spirits

livilig in different parts of the globe, in Eu~'ope or in Asia. such'of them as are possessed of righteous inclinations, Should

/

50 T H E M O S L F . M S U N R I S i ~ |

be drawn toward the One God and collected around One t"sith~ This bein.q the pm.p'ose of my advent i'nto /he world, it behooves m~ followers to e.rert them.wives for its realization, atways, ho~vever, through hmnilitv, .qood deeds mzd prayers."

The :Holy. Founder o'f the Ahmadiyya ~'lovement e x - plained that t h e object of man's life is unbounded and unlimited advancement. Man is not born with shackles which he cannot break and God never shuts tO him the gates of liberty. and progress.

From all this i t -would appear that his mission was to preach unity o f God; that man should s o regulate his l i f e in conformity w i t h the doctrine as to lead him to mora l and spiritual t~erfectiofi; tha t is to S~,y, "man ~shoUld love no other thing or being with a love g rea te r than that which h e enter- tains for God, arid should place his whole t r u s t in and reliance upon God and should not regard any thing or being as hav ing an), control Over his affairs. .'\ person who believes in the

o

unity of God in this sense and acts upon such belief i s s u r e to experience w moral re~-olution. -\11 weaknesses i n the:world.. proceed f r o m tWo;causes :~ ei ther because-a man loves an ol~ject with such intense love that he regards his existence as useless without it, or because he regards a n Object So injurious and hateful that-he ir.mgines his sa lvat ion depends upon the tie- d structlon of this object. This unreasonable excess of love or hate leads m a n to do things that are inconapatible with righteousness and moral integrity.

] • / - - .

But a person whose fa~th.m the unity of God is perfect, prefers not t~he love of any other Object: o r pe rson to his love for God and hat6s nothing as beinq': led away from Him. Tc~ such person sin becomes .an impossibility. Such. a person wholly resigns himself unto G~d and finds his complete satis- faction and highest bliss in ~ Union with Him. It. is to teach practically such unit~v Of God that Hazra t Ahmad had been sent by Him."

To establisl/ virtue and righl:eousness; to restore to the heart o f mankind t r u e f a i t h and devotion, to ope n t hega t e s of spiritual knowledge, to find a solution for moral , intellectual. social and economic problems, to abolish war and disorder and : bring about the universd.l peace and bro therhood a n d t h u s to demonst ra te to the world the g lo ry o f God and to establish His kingdom upon earth, are the high and t h e n o b l e objects o f t he Promised Messiah 's advent.

A truly splendid mission and a glor ious prospecti The same was the mission of all the prophets of the past. They

s t

came with the same High arid. Noble-Truth. "Truth forever on the scaffold

. Wrong forever on the throne. Yet the scaffold sways the future: Andbehind the dim u n k n o w n J ~ " Standetla God, within the shadow . - keeping watch above"his own" " •

Like.all the divinenlessengers of the past and those who served, the cause 0f unix, ersal truth and humanity, t h e H o l y Founder off the Ahmadiyya Movement .had to-pass through the tier)-ordeal of the bittefestopposition and the severest iJersecution, t eople professing all religions and Creeds united ~n their efforts to disgrace and-harass h im and his followers and to put an- en~l to :his CauSe. A number o f the devoted followers O-f this' World Teacher ~;¢ere Stoned to death simply because they adopted his teachings. His followers were sub- letted to hardships of. alldescriptions for-the simple reason ihat they :-accepted him as their spiritual .guide; But truth cannot l~e suppressed long. The bitterer thefire Of persecution, the brighter does the Truth glow. S o ithappened in this case.

: h i s p i t e of tlle stubborn opposition which the Movement had to Oilcounter in the promulgation of truth, it is making iwogress by leaps anti bounds. -

.It i s a new movement, only about rift)'-years old and yet haS spread to the,uttermost corners of the.globe. It has a membership of nearly two million people representing all races, col01"s, nations, classes and status. The movement maintains regular missions in many parts of theworld including England, North and South America, various pa r t s o f ~ Africa, Itaty, 1 alestine, Dutch East Indies, Straights Settlement, China,

~ apan and Mauritus. It produces literature on a n extensive tale and more than a dozen magazines and newspapers, pub-

lished in diverse languages radiate from its various centers in:thedifferent parts of the worldi The activities of the far- flung movement are daily being inteflsified for :the worldwide expansion of,!sla.m.

A task of incalculable value which the Holy Founder of .the m0vement~performed-was to put an end to all religious strife and conflict.~ -In order to accomplish this high purpose,

?he la id Special emphasis on the teaching of .the Holy Quran which States that, in all countries and in all ages, divine teach-

.ers, the spiritual reformers and prophets appeared for. the guidance of i mankind. H e definitely stressed .the basic and

t fundamental. unity o f all :religions. He made it increasingly

~ 2 T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E "

~ . . "

clear, that .whatever differences .exist .among the votaries ot the various faiths are due to the abuse of. the universal truth which was the One-Mission of the founders of all-religions. These differences are man-made and human corruptions.. The Holy Founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement instilled into his followers a supreme and an eulightenedtolerance toward other faiths by inculcating not only respect for but faith and belief in, all the prophets of God. T h u s he laid solid foundation of abiding religious peace.-

in order t o bring about religious peace Hazrat Ahmad, made certain concrete propositions, which are noted belox~;.

1. The founders and the leaders of: thedif ferent religions must not be referred tO in a manner calculated to wound the reel ingof their foll0~vers. -

2. In the propagation of their faiths, the-inissionaries of each religion must confine themselves to the expounding of the merits, beauties and excellences of their religions Without mak~ ing an)" attack upon other religions. Because to find fault with other religions does by no means prove the truth or superiority of One's own.

3: The followers of a religion must not ascribe to their religion a doctrine or a teaching which is not directly deduc- ible from their scriptures. Both the doctrine and its proof must be cited from the revealed book of the religion.

4. The advocates of different religions must be required not to confine themselves merely to an abstract explanation of the teachings of their religion, butalso to illustrate in practice the results ~h ich can be obtained by acting upon-those teachings, so that people might beable to judge whether- those teachings do or donor l ead to any result,

The greatest single work accomplished by this \Vorld- Teacher is that he implanted a spirit of-righteousness, !noral integrity, spiritual discernment and understanding and indwell- ing.love of Godqn the hear.tsof those who emered into his fold. In fact, he worked a moral'-:revolution among his followers. His teachings have produced such sanctifying and lasting effect upon the lives of his adherents that wherever there is an appreciable number of the memhers of this great movement, although they:do-nOt differ from others.in extern.-il appearence, yet they ai'e easil) recognized by virtue of their excellent moral character, spiritual superiority, sharp intellect and extraordinar3 aptitude for knowledge. A large number of those who. embraced the teachings of Hazrat Ahmad, the promised Messiah and have followed them i n letter and in spirit have been blessed With direct communion with God.

What is Islam? Islam is the religion which"is wrongly called Mohammedanism,

I

1. Islam means: . " "

(1) Peace (2) Resignation " . -

The~ significanceof ttie name Islam is the -attai.mnent of a life of perfect peace, and etei'nal happiness through ~ . complete :resigaaation~ to

the Will of God. ~ . : . . 2. Abs01utelv ~ulcompronfising mbnothelsm is the central teaching

oi Island. ""La4II.'iha. Illallah Mnhammadur-Rasululla." "There i s n o n e worthy of worstfip but one mid the onlV,G0d-(All,fla-), who possesses all excellences(and Muhanunad is His prophet." .This is the ~,~ost important ~octtr 'ne~ a~to,I~la~" wi I1~"~[ m°r~ t I " lr~, 2~elps mU Sd tu°r, ~st a~;~sn a~t h~er~?~e

a.~ our Helper in al l0ur affairs and .undertakings. 3.. Islam requires belief in all ihe prophets and spiritual guides in-

cludingAbraham. Moses, ]'esus. Krishna. Budha and Confucius. Islam represents the completion of the mission of all tl~e' prophets from t h e earliest dawn .of historv i tha t in fact all. tl~e prophets of-God came with one mid the s,'ime mission. T h u s ~slam establishes .peacebetween all reli~ons. . " -

4. The .Quran, the MoSlem Scripture~the word 0f God was revealed to the Master-prophet Muhannnad over thirteen hundred years a~o and has been preserved intact without theslightest•chang e : ~'he~e are millions an& millions of Moslems who know the whole Book y heart, It .is ;an inexhaustible:mine of~sP iritual truths which satisfy the needs of all peoples-of all counmes. " .

5. The establishment o[ true democracx" and universal brotherhood• without any discrimination of caste, creed; colour or country is .the unique and un-rivalled ~listinction o'f Is lam. Islam hasnot only propounded but fulfilled and realized the Splendid principles of democracy in the ,'tctual life andaction of human society.

6. Foilowine are a few of ¼he specific peculiarities of Islam : (a) Libera[ion 0f: women b-~"; establisl~ing .the equality of both sexes.

: safe-guarding their: rights and liberties and raising their status. (b) Absolute veto on a!lintoxicants. - - . . . (c) Solution of economzc problems. (d) The furnishing of humanity with the noblest, practical ethics. (e) The promotion of-science and education; "

7. Following are some of the obligatory duties of Islam: (a) D a i l y prayers . . . . . " : . (b) Fas t ing i n the month of Ramadan. (c) F i x e d a l m s g i v i n g and charity. " " " " " (d) Pi lgrimage. once in one's l ifetime, provided circumstances a l low.

8. ACcordin~ to I s l aml i f e after :death is the continuation of life nn earth. Heaven and Hell be~[n-right from here. Heaven-is eternal and everlasting: while Hell is only temporary. Hell is as a hospital treatment f 0 r t h e human soul whicli.:as ~soon as~it is cured. goes to Heaven. Heaven is the attainment.of-a life of everlasting progress and complete jo~," and har~piness thr.ough .union with God and by the develop- ment of the fine spiritual aualities and the .unlimited capacities that have been implanted in man.

Books for Oriental Scholars In teres ted in .

I s l a m , A r a b i c a n d P e r s i a n :

T h e l ] o h O u r a n . 1,'art 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ~ . . . . . . . . . . ..$2.00 ( E n g l i s h t r a n s l a t i o n wi th c o m m e n t a r y - )

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H o l y P r o p h e t M d h a n m m d . . . . . . . . ~ . . . . . . 1 .25 Li fe a n d T e a c h i n g s o [ t he H o l . w ' P r o p h e t M u h a m m a d l . .25 .Xhflmmmad. ~he L i b e r a t o r o f W o m e n " " 2 5

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M o v e m e n t in I s l a m A h m a d i y y a ' . i " S t r e e t ' 56 E a s t C o n g r e s s '

- S u i t e 1 ! 0 2 " " " " . . . . " "

C H I C A G O , I L L . "

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