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IIAY 9 ~e) ~ T H E

MOSLEM SUNRISE EDITED B Y

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V o l . X I A p r i l , 1 9 3 9 N o . 2 • . . . ..

- - - A Quarterly Magazine

Annual Subscription, $i.00 (England 5/ - India Rs. 3"1-) Single Copy 25c Foun(led bg DR. M; M. SADIQ. Published by SUFI M. R. BENGALEE

56 E. Congress St., Suite 1102. Chicago, IlL, U. S. Amer.

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

Promised Messiah and-Mahdi and the expected Messenger of all nations. In the spirit and power of a l l the earlier prophets, he came to serve ~and re-interpret the final and eternal teaching laid down by God in the Hotv t~uran. The Movement therefore r.epresents the True arid R e a l ' I s l a m and seeks to upl if t humanity and to establish peace throughout the world. Hazrat Ahmad died in 1908, and the presentHead of the Movement is his second successor, Hazrat Mirza Bashirud-Din Mahmud Abroad u~ader whose directions the Move- ~ment has established Missions in many parts of the world, the following being the addresses of some of them: T H E LONDON A . Q . NIAZ.:Esq., MOSQUE, Aotanicho, 2, Chome 601,

63 Melrose Road, Southfields,

London. S. W. 18. England.

T H E A H M A D I Y Y A M O V E M E N T IN I S L A M Sufi M. R . Bengalee; M. A.,

56 Congress St., Suite 1102:

Chicago, Illinois, U. S., America.

Nada Ku, Kobe (Japan). M O H A M M A D S H A R I F MALIK.

z,/a MilaZzo ;No. 3, Piano, 5, Intenno 22.

Rome (Italy); M A L I K AZIZ A H MA D

. K H A N , " Petodje, Oedik.

Gang I, No. 27, Batavia C. (Java) .

T H E A H M A D I Y Y A Dr. M O H A M M A D DIN, M O V E M E N T . . " . Lomina Street, 49,!

P. O. Box 727, Belgrade. • Lagos (S. ~igeria) - M . RAMZAN ,~LI. H. A.

B. \V, Africa. C/0 Dr. Mohammad Taha, " T H ~ AHMA_DIYYA " Venezuela 791,

Buenos Ai re s (Argentine), MOVEMENT, M. M O H A b I M A D I B R A H I M

P. O. Box 554, Nairobi, Nasir. , B.A. Kenya Colony, . • -

(]3. E. Africa). • Magyar°vszagi ISzlam Mission,

T H E AHMADI YYA VII . Arena-ut, 7.-111 2 MOVEMENT,

Mount Karmal, Haifa (Palestine).

H. A. K. AYAZ KHAN. B.A., LL.B,.

Boernerowo KlV~,rarszawy, No. 18, Telefoniczna Street

Warsaw (Poland) N. A. G H A F O O R SOOFI. Esq.,

C/o H. IVl. H. Esmail. P. O. Box 551,

China Buildings, Hongkong (China).

Budepast~ Hungary T H E AHMADIY~YA M O V E M E N T ,

G01d Coast. West Africa P: O. Box 39:

Salt Pond. T H E A H M A D I Y Y A M O V E M E N T .

Rose Hill, Mauritius.

T H E A H M A D I Y Y A M O V E M E N T .

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

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T I I E

M o . s l e m S unr is . e i i i i i i i i I i l I I I l I l i i i i ~ l I I I I I I I l I I ~ i l J i l l l I I I I I I I I i i i i i I I I I I I I I i i i i I i I l I I I I I I i i i i i i i I I l I I I I i I i I I I I I I I I I l I i i i I l l I l I I I I I I I l l I I I I I I I i i l l l l I I I I l i i i I U I I I i i i i I I l I I l i i i

56 E. CONGRESS ST., SUITE 1102 CIRCAGO, ILL., U; S. A.

Vol . X I A p r i l , 1 9 3 9 . N o . 2

C o n t e n t s

Verses from: the Holy Quran . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . :" • " i " " • . . . . . . 3

The Sayings of the Master Prophet Muhammad. ; . ' . . . . : . : i : . . . . . . : i . . 4 . . . - -

- . " . - " " : :

Excerpts from the Writings of Hazrat Mirza Ghuiam :Ahmad~... i 5

A Qur'anie Hymn. i . ~ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ~ ; . . . . . : . : . ' : 9 " . -. B y N i r a m a t Jz ing "

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The Meeean Life.of Muhammad . . . . . . . .

B y S u f i M : R . i

( ~ o m m e n t s and: Appreciation... : - . . . . . . .

T h e W o r l d Driftg Toward U n i t y . : : . . .

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• : i .. . ' w Q. i i . . - t l l . It. . " t _ .

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Verses from the Holy Quran " " . : " . - T r a n s l i t e r a t i o n

Ya AyyauhaUadheena anaanoo la yaskhar quawmun rain quawmin asaa an-vakunoo khairam-nl in-hum wa-la nisaa-um min-nisaa-in asa an-yakunna

• khairana=nain-hunna ; . ~.Vala tahnizoo anfusa-kum-wa-la tanabazoo bil- alqualJ. Bi-sal I smul ft!suooq baadal :Iman, wa-man lam-ya-tuh Fa-ula- ika .hunm-zzalinloon. - . . -

Ya Ayyuhalladhee.na anmnoo-j taniboo kathiram-mlna-zzani , Inna ba- adha-zzina i t lmmn wa-la tajassasoo wa-la vaghtab ba -adhukum b a a d h a ;

.~ A yubibbu ahadu-kum an-yakula i ahma akheehi maitan, Fa ,kar ih tumoohu ; ! \Vattuqullaha hmallaha TawWabur Raheein. -

y a AyTuhannasu I m m Khalaqna=kum .rain zakarin a w unthaa wa jaalnakum shuooban wa quabaila li-taarafoo. Inna ak ramakum indallahi a'..qual~um, innallaha: aleenmn, khabeer. ( X L I X - - 1 1 - - 1 3 ) .

. . . - T r a n s l a t i o n "

O ;,;e who believe, let not one people deride another, , haply, they may " be b d t e r tlian they. ( the deriders) are. N o r let womer~ deride women,

hanl~r, they m a c be better than they are. Nel ther defame one another • nor call one ar iother by n i c k n a m e s . Bad ~s the name .of ~ lckedness a f te r

.' fai(h. And whoso turneth not in repentance, suda a ie eVil=d0ers.

" O . . .Ye Who b e l i e v e . . . . . ~hun m u d v suspicion. Ver i ly . some .suspicions are • .a crinie: And spy no t in other peoples . fa i l ings nor backbite one another. " Would one of you love.t0 eat the flesh, of a dead brother? Ye ' abho r that.

• A n d f~ar Allah. Verily Allah is merciful, ;compassionate. " . " . " . . ,

O Ye people, we have created y o u m a l e and female and have made you na t ionsand tribes that ye may know one another~ :Veri ly most respectable

• among .y0u , in the sight of God, i s themost~.-righte0us of y0u~. Veri ly Allah is wise and knowing . . . . . . ,

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

d..,,.,)l ,.>-

The Sayings of the Master Prophet Muhammad

It is related on the authority of Ahu Hurairah-that tlle Holy, Prophet s,~id, "He who believes in.G0d a n d i n the last day, must speak that which is good when he speaks or else he must hold his tongue." (Bukhari)

XVahab Ihn Abdullah relates that the Holy Prophet established brotherhood between Salaman and Abud Darda. I n other words, Abud Darda was made brother of Salaman. One day, when SMaman went to Abud Darda's house, he found the latter's wife sad anddejected . Salaman inqui red of the lady what was the matter with her. She tokl.him : that her husband had renounced the woHd.. Presently Abud

.Darda came home and ordered meals for Salanmn. \Vhen the food Was brought in, Sa lamansa id to Abud Darda, ' "You eat with me." He replied, " I am fasting.". The guest s a i d , "Then I shall not eat either. I shall eat 0nly if you eat w i t h me." On hearing that Abud Darda broke his fast and a te ,/vith his guest. (It should be n o t e d that that was not tile compulsory,fast Of. the month o f Ramadhan but additional fast Whichthe pious Moslems keep oi~casionally).

When n igh t ca mg and everybody was sleeping Abud Darda got up to say his additional nightly prayers. Salaman asked'l i im to g o to bed as i t w a s t i m e t o sleep. After a little wlaile, Abud Darda go t up again to say his prayers.. Salaman again told him to go to bed as it was still t ime :to sleep,

When the latter part of the night came, Salanian said t o Abud Darda, "Wake up now and let us say PrayersY Then they both performed their prayers. Then ~,~alaman said, " 0 Abud Darda, your God has a right over you,.your self has,a right over yOU and. your wife has a right over.you.; give eyeryone his,r ight ." "~ .-

I.ater on they hoth went to the Holy P rophe t and related the story to him. The Holy Prophet said, "Salam~{n spoke

• the truth." " ( B u k h a r i )

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Excerpts From.-The Writings - - o ~ -

Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Abroad The Promised Messiah and Mahdi

(1836-1908) . " .- .. ..

"Tile God .in XArhom we believe is the Most Merciful and Gracious. :He is Alt-1)owerful and in Him there is no defect or Weakness. He is the .source o f a l l manifestations alid f0unta in-headof all grace and the C1"eator of the whole-universe. He ~s the possessor of all praiseworthy qualities and perfect attributes: He is the "source of all light, the soul of all Soul.s and the sustainer of all tliat exists. He is nearest, to everything, yet it cannot b e said that He is identical with the things themselves. -He is he liighest of all tlaillgs, yet it cannot b e said t ha t . any th ing intervenes between H i m and us. He is the most hidden of all hidden

. Hlings, yet: at t h e same tinie the most manifest of all that Exists. In Him:ai0ne can 1)e found true bliss and t ruehappi- hess and this is the true phi losophy of salvation.

" \V i th re spec t to salvation t h e H 0 1 y Qura.n has taught us that its effect islwitnessed in th is very life. as it says: 'He wlio is bl ind in this life Slaal] a l s 0 - b e b l i n d - i n {he n e x t . ' - I n o ther words, it" is in this-life that a person gets the senses wi th Which he can see God, .and it is here t h a t he finds ac/:ess to the means whereby he Can attain salvation. T h . e I-Toly. Quran llas also repeatedly said that the means whereby a person can-attain to salvation have ex- isted fi'onl eternity as God himself is eternal. It rejects tlie doctrine according to whichl God, a f t e r the lapse of long ages, when h e discov.ered that all o t h e r m e a n s had i?ailed, decided to offer Himself t o death in order to give salvation to mankifid. A person call in-fact be said to have attahaed salvation only when al l his sensual passions are subdued and the w i l l o f God beconles his will. H e i s s o completely annihilated in the 10re iof G o d t h a t he retains no trace of his own self aud knows God to he all i.n all. All. his w(:)rds, deeds, movements :and intentions are for the sake of God. He feels in his heart of hearts that all:his l~appiness is in God.only and that a separation from Him even for an instant is death to him. An intoxication of the

6 T H E M O S L E M ' S U N R I S E

love of God over takes him so COml)letely that all th ings tha t exist .beside God are as naugh t to him. Even if the whole wor ld should a t tack h im With the Sword to f r ighten him with the object of m a k i n g h i m r enounce tlae t ru th , . l ie s tands firm as a rock.. T h e flame of the perfect love of God is l ighted wi th in him and he hates sin as the most detestable th ing in the world. H e loves God with a l o v e far g rea t e r than tha t w i t h which lie loves his wife, chi ldren - and near relativeS. Out of deep and intense love for God lie becomes like a mad man and is wi/ t ing to sulJmit to all kinds of sufferings, t r i a l s and tr ibulat ions. T h e man reaches such a s tage o f the love of God tha t all his sensual

'passions are burned like chaff wi th the fire of his love for God and a migh ty t r ans fo rmat ion is w r o u g h t w i t h i n !lim~ Then he is g r a n t e d - a hear t whicli h e h a d not before a n d : eyes which h e 'did not pOSsess a l ready, and certaint3: o f ' faith so conapletel3,- over takes him that he begins to s e e God in this very life.; W, hen. a m a n - r e a c h e s t h i s stage, t h e bu rn ing cares, wor r i e s and t roubles which niake l i fe a living hell to wor ld ly men are for him t rans formed into a life of perfect con teu tment , happiness arid bliss. Tliis is the condit ion which is t e rmed Sa lva t ionfo r in this condi t ion the soul fal l ing down at t he t h r e sho ld Of God With bu rn ing love for H i m finds ever las t ing rest, and the love Of man being blended with the love of God makes hinl a t ta in that s tage of annihi la t ion which iS beyoiid all descript ion. H u m a n na tu re is so mad, e that it has the love of God latent wi th in i t . and when that 10re is cleansed o f e.very kind of dross by th'e pur i ty of t_he soul and every t inge of darkness is removed from it_b), efforts and exer t ions in the path of God, it becomes a mi r ror for the ref lec t ion of the Divine light. ~.¥hen a mi r ror is placed opposi te the sun, the l ight of the sun is full), reflected i n it and the image of the sun is seen in it so clearly that it mav be mis taken bv the unaccus tomed 'eye for the sun itself. So is the case wi th the l o o k i n g - g l a s s o f human na ture ';vhich reflects the Divine light. T h e word o f God a l s o te l l s us tha't the h u m a n n a t u r e w h i c h absorbs l i gh t f rom the REA.L S U N (God) diffe¢s widely and reflects it var iously accord ing to the capacity: Of the individual nature . Jus t as the smal ler the mirror , the smal ler wi l l be the image of the sun tha t is reflected in it. S o also, is the case of the human na ture and


the Divine l ight reflected in it. The image of the Divine I.ight will be great.or small according as the sphere of the nature of the particular individual is great Or small. Again, thesurface-0f some mirrors may be more or less polished and transparent than that of others. Similar differences in human nature account for t he more o r l e s s perfection in which the;Divine light, is reflected in different men.

" In tliis connection it seems necessary to explain the true nature of what .is termed Shafa-at or intercession. \ ¥ h e n a n opaque body: comes opposite another body which is bright, it also becomes br ight?The same law is in opera- tion in the hunlan world. There are sonle bright natures in which Divine light is reflected as the light of the sun is re-

fleeted in a mirror, .while otlier natures in which "such light is :not reflected :directly from the source 6-f t he light may be said to b e d a r k or opaque. Now when one of these dark natures comes opposite a bright:nature, it is lighted by the rays that are reflected from that bright nature, in the same manner as the rays o f t h e sun reflected from a mirror would illumine the dark places on wh ich such. reflections falls. Such is the true nature of intercession.. The Arabic xxlol"d 8hafa-at (intercession) is derived from the root Shafa xxhich means- One of a pair or couple, or, one with wfiich another is made t o b e a pair or couple. Thus the two per-, sons, thle intercessor and the one for whom intercession is

made , a r ea s at were ,-i pair or couple. iWhenever a person has Such a close connection wi th another whose nature is both pure an d perfect that the two are as it were a pair, he must partake of" the light with which that other is light- ened.

"The deep philosophy Underl~king salvation-is that those who attain to pure and perfect union w i t h God become the manifestations of His eternal light. By casting themselves into the fire of Divine love they lose their own identity. Their example is like: that of a piece of iron which, cast into fire becomes red-hot and looks like-fix:e itself, though in reality it is still iron.- Similarly as the manifestations of t h e g l o r y of God br ing about :a wonderfuI transformation in His lovers, God also becomes, as it .were, changed for

" them. I t is true that God is the same forever and is eter- nally unchangeable. B u t - f o r these godly people, He shows such wonders as though H e were:a n e w God and not the

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

God of the ordinary peolile. ,kS .the righteous servan(s of God move toward i-Iim With their pious actions, sincerity- and faithfulness; and bring a death over their former lives, God also moves toward them and blesses them With honour and suceour. God honours and helps them and shows jettlousy for them, not in an ordinary way but in an extraordinary manner. In fact, He works miracles for t h e l n . " . ~

"It is absolutely impossible and utterly at variance witla the gr/t~ious and merciful nature o f God :that He should: cast into hell any of His servants, who is 10st in .t-Iis love, heart and soul and with perfect sincerity. Such a man can= not be recipient Of punishment, who loves God as h e . 0 u g h t to love Hini, knows that there is none equa l t o Him, considers everything to be naught as against Him, and is ever willing to annihila}e himself in His path. Tile truth is perfect love of God alone is true salx;ation. Is it possible for you intentionally to throw into a fire a child of yours-wh0m y o u love dea rh ' . I t not, how can God wl io is all love cast into fire those of His Servantswho.h{ve Him fro in tl{e depth of tlieir sou] and w l l o s e whoie being is saturated with l)ivine love."

"There is no greater sacrifice.for a man than to :iove God to the extent that exlery fibre of his body tingles and every tissue of h i snerves x ibrates witll the feeiing tliat God i's to him th'e dearest of all and t h a t for tlie sake of ibe love of God he should give up the love of his ownself and submit to a life Of bitterness and suffering."

"When a man has reached this stage of perfection, lae has attained true.salvation. He does not then stand in need of going t h r o u g h t h e course of . transmigration-or of having

a n y one crdcified for his sake. His salvation at this point: of perfectior; is not an i m a g i n a r y t h i n g as in the case of ordinary men. His love for God wlaich is withi n h im tells him at every, step that t h e l o v e of God is: with h i m . M o v i n g . onward in the love of God, he gets peace of mind and con- tentment. Almiglity God deals with him in the same manner as He deals w i t h His bel0ved and .chosen servants . His prayers are beard; he is instructed-in::subtle points of-wis- dom and knowledge and informed of .many d e e p secrets relating to the unseen.Almiglil~y God influences the aftairs

f I , " o . - , ° - ' . • . . o tlae world m accordance wrth the wishes of such:a man, grants him fame in. the world with honor and acceptance,

T H E M O S L E M $ U N R I S E 9

• d i sgraces the p e r s o n w h o does no t f o r s a k e Iris e n m i t y a n d sets h imse l f to d i s g r a c e him, a n d gra~nts lfim e x t r a o r d i n a r y suppor t a n d a s s i s t a n c e . God brea. thes love for h im in the hea r t s of coml t i e s s people a n d m a n i f e s t s w o n d e r f u l s i g n s

• : t l~r0ugh h i m . . \ V i t h h e a v e n l y i n sp i r a t i on .the h e a r t s of m e n are. a t t r a c t e d t o w a r d h im a n d t h e y m a k e has t e to r e n d e r s c r v i c e t 9 h im in e v e r y ~.yay.. A h n i g h t y God speaks to h i m

i in swee t a n d ma je s t i c w o r d s as a f r i end s p e a k s to a f r iend. T h e G o d W h o is h i d d e n f r o m the eye of t h e w o r l d m a n i f e s t s

: H imse l f : t o laim in all His D i v i n e g l o r y a n d s p l e n d 0 u r . T h e w o r d Of God is a sou rce of c o m f o r t t o h im in the d e e p e s t : t f f l ic t i ims .and is ful l of e loquence , s w e e t n e s s a n d power .

:. ( ; 6 d ~tnswers his ques t ions ant i i r i fornis lliln of t l l ings w h i c h ~. ai:e be3,ond the p o w e r a n d k n o w l e d g e of m a n to know. Bu t

it is no t like a s t r o l o g e r s t h a t G o d f o r e t e l l S c e r t a i n th ings , but l i k e a p o W e r f u l K i n g w h o s e w o r d car r ies awe, g l o r y a n d m a j e s t 3 ; w i t h it . H e revea l s to h im l~rophecies w h i c h f o r e - tell laig ~ t r i u m p h a n d . success a n d the disci~mfiture o f his

! enemies . T h u s does Ahn-igla ty God revea l H i m s e l f to H i s -- s e rvan t w i th His w o r d a n d His ac t ions . T h e n be ing c l eansed

,,f e v e r y sin, the lover of God a t t a i n s to t h e pe r f ec t i on fo r ' . Wlaich he has l ieen c r e a t e d , but in no o t h e r w a y can a n y one

be f reed f r o m the b o n d a g e .of s i n . " ( C l m s h m a i - m a r i f a t )

- . . . - -

: A Q u r ' a n l c H y m n ~

- . . . . : :.i Thou- Lord of all Creation i " -

. . . :.i :: ~ When. .he doth wllisper evil : ' 1-nto tile heart o f ' m a n .

:_ .~ ' : : i " i : " . / i ~:' . " - . ; ~ , . . . . • . .

' ~": ' ~: of the li glit ' that dawneth From out the s!iades of Night

" 3[3:i : : - " " -i~Olead ns out of dartcness : .. ? - And guide us to. Thy light ! --

" -' When suceour from Thee corm • " .. -- :R igh t triumphs ove rWrong ; .-

- " - -. • A n d • t h e n ' t i s t h e i r s t h e v i c t o r y , - -. . ! ::.- ~..: . . ~ . : - , i ~ , V l l o s e . f a i t l i is pureand strong. • " i

• ' . : : ~ . - : : : : i 'i - ' " . " - N i z a m a t J u n g , .

• " " • - " ' " " - . (Islamic Culture ) : . .


The MeccanLife of Muhammad

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

,Abdul Muttalib stands out as the m o s t E a r l y L i f e prominent figure in Mecca dur ing the

middle of the sixth century of the Christ- ian Era. He. came of the noblest tribe, Quraish,. the direct descendants o f the Patriarch, Abraham, t h rough his son Ishmael. Abdul Muttalib was the guardian of the Ka'aba, the sacred Shrine of worship, and the custodian Of the well, Zam Zam. On llim devolved the honotlrable office of provid- ing food alld driril~ for the pilgrims who-gathered at Mecca from all distant parts of Arabia. Thus he was virtually the ruling chief of Mecca. It Was in his t ime tha t Abraha , the Governor of Yemari came with a-great force to destroy the sanctuary K~/'aba and met with a crushing defeat. Also, the location of tlie sacred well; Zam Zam, had been lost, but Abdul Muttahb discoveredand restored it. " "

Abdul Muttalib was the father o f t en sons, one of wlaom was Abdulla. who was well known for his piety and.g0od- ness. His father bad him marr ied to a virtuous and ,ac- complished lad), named, Amina, who came Of another noble branch of t h e s a m e illustrious tribe;~-itbe Quraish. To them was born on the 20th-of April, 571 A. D', Muhamnaad, who was to bring such.a naomentous change in the liistorv -of: the world and w/~s to become the master of kings and emperors, and of saints and prophets. A :few months before the child came into the world, his father Weut on a mercautile expedition to Syria from which he never returned; having died on his way bate to-Yathrib'.

For a few days after his birth, M U H A M M A D Was nursed byhis m0ther and Suwayya, a slave of his uncle, Abu Lahab. After..tlial~, according to the cust0ni of Arab-nobles, the child was entrusted to the care.0f a Bedouin nurse, Ha-

Foot Note : - This article is being reproduced from -~Pril=July, 1931, issue of the Moslem

Sunrise, after having been revised by Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad M.A., one Of the greatest living authorities on the life of the Holy Prophet Muhammad.

With this article reprinted, we are now in a position io supply the complete~story. of the life of the .Holy Prophet Muh,3nimad,. in several is.~ucs of the Moslem Sunrise.

T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S ¢ ~ I I

leema, of the tribe of Banu Saad, an offshoot of Hawaz in . At the end of. two years the child was weaned. Ha leema brought him hacl( to his mother . At tha t t ime an epidemic was prevalent in Mecca and as the cl imate Of the town was unheal thful , the sagacious m o t h e r s e n t - h i m back wi th Haleema. M U H A M M A I ) l ived witl"a her for ano the r two or

" three 3'ears and en joyed the blessings of the f resh .a i r of tlie pastoral val leys and had oppor tun i ty to le~.rn the most elo- quent of the _-\talkie dialects. He~re tu rned to. his mo the r when he Was about live years old.

Shor t ly af ter his re turn, his m¢~ther wen t wi th h im on a vis i t to her relatives at Medina. -:.~On her w a y back to Mecca she died. She.Was hm'ied at Abwa, a place o f loving recollectio'n to the P rophe t in h i s later years~ Thus , he was deprived . f . t h e loving care of his m o t h e r and being a l ready fatherless he n o w l~ecame an o r p h a n before h e was six years old. : ..

W h e n the sad t idings Of Amin;i"s demise reached Al~dul 13Iuttalib, h e was exceedingly gr ieved and sent for t he c.hild ~,f h is dead son and took him into his own home. Abdul ~lul~talib t rea ted y o u n g M U H A M M A D w i t h g rea t care and tenderness. Scarcely had three y e a r s passed when t h e o l d man, s t r icken in years, b rea thed his last. So, at the ear ly age

-o f eight, M U H A M M ' A D was bereft of a l l who loved him dearly. " ~ - .

At the t ime of his death, Abdul Mutta l ib gave his beloved g randson into t h e cus tody of h i s s o n , Abu-Tal ib , who sue- ceeded him as the gua rd i an of the Ka 'aba and in all o the r civil

- dignit ies .- The boyhood of M U H A M M A D passed smooth ly , in the care O f !1is. uncle, who w a s very kind to him. Even in his boyllo6d h e w a s conspicuous for the vir tues of s e l f - c o n -

. t r01 ,d igni ty , discret ion and t ruthfulness . Abu Ta l ib ' s maid relates tl~at M U H A M M A D was never found to. contend over food, a habit, which is so Common anmng ' ch i ld ren . H e would-s i t s i lently apar t while o ther clii ldren fought wi th each Other to get the largest slaare. H e w o u l d take wi thou t r emons t r ance wha teve r was g w e n him and eat it wi th pleasure. Abil Tal ib himself relates tha t M U H A M M A D never :quar re led with anybody nor wou ld h e u t t e r a lie. In his ear ly-year s, he some t imes tended his unc le ' s sheep. T h e ownersh ip of . f locks was: t he mark of wea l th in Arabia of t h a t d a y . -

. . - .

1~' T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E

At about the twent ie th 3,ear of his life, M U H A M M A D took part in the War known as Harbe Fi jar which [Kr0ke out between the -Qura i sh and the tribe of Qais. He, l iowever , took tittle part in the actual figtlting. ..

About the same t ime M U H A M M A D joined, the society of what is known as the Hilful-Fuzul , tl~e mend)ers of wlfiCh were required to take a solemn o a t h t o help t h e p o o r : and need3", safeguard t l ie.r ights of t h e o pp re s sed a n d t o espouse the cause of justice.

Dur ing those days there arose the memorable occasion of the rebui lding of the Ka'aba. Th e Sac redBlack Stone, . an object of great venerat ion, was to be m o v e d : There w a s considerable rivalry as to who should h a v e the honour of car ry ing it to the new location. The m e m b e r s of all the different clans cove ted this right, consequen t ly they quar- reled violenth' . Swords were d rawm The danger of blood- shed wi th in t'be precincts of the sanctuary was very graYe. At last they came tO an agreement" The first man who passed b v the Ka'aba was to decide the mat te r and have the honour.

I t so happened that the first man Who was seen. coming toward Ka'aba xyas none o t h e r than M U H A M M A D . ~ All cried out Simultaneously, " T h e Trusty, The .T rus ty ! Decide the mat te r ! " M U H A M M A D asked them to spread a cloth, and when they had done so, he himself put the Black S tone on it. " I t ' s a simple th ing," he said to the heads of all the different clans. :"Carry it, all o f you t o the proper .place and share the hon0ur equally,"' Ins tan t ly it wag done and when the stone was lifted to the required he ight M U H A M - M AD himself p u t it in its p roper place. There was peace everywhere and all felt a thril l of pleasure and w e r e as- toun'ded by his keen sense of j udgmen t , sagacity and tact- fulness . . . .

Even before tliis event took p l a c e M U H A M M A D had launched into commercial enterprises and taken various ex- pedi t ions to Yaman and Syria. He established for himself a rePutat ion for business abil i ty and integri ty. People ha'd sucl~ unquest ioned fa i th . in ,h i s . in tegr i ty that his name had I become a byword for hones ty in Mecca.- They cal led him

I "A1-Ameen . . . . the t rus ty" or " the honest one." "When the puri ty and the nobil i ty 'of his character became general ly

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

k n o w n , h-e was employed by a weal thy Quraish widow, Khadija by name, as her business manager. He made a commercial jou rney to Syria on her behalf. The success won b y him was far beyond the expectations of the lady. M6reover, his slave who accompanied him, gave such an account of

nobi l i ty , purity and diligence of M U H A M M A D that Kha- dija was captivated by the beauty of his character and offered him h e r l iand ' in mai'riage.

He accepted the offer and the wedd ing ceremony was performed. At that t ime he was twenty-five years old and Khadija was fifteen years his senior. T h u s he set.the noble and self-sacrificing example of widow, remarriage which was looked upon wi th some disfavor in Arabia at t h a t time.

Khadi ja presented all She had to her husbandand made laim the :sole master o f herp0ssess ions . Among the first th ings he did was to set at liberty all her slaves. Thus he dealt a fatal blow at the root Of slavery which was the found- ation of the entire social fabric in Arabia.

The D a w n o f l s l a m Arabia was a .count ry entirely cut and the P r o p h e t off from the rest of the-world; For

i n Mecca centuries, before Islam, it had but : little civilization and possessed no

attractions for the outside world. Tha t is what kept Arabia immune from invasion. Infanticide, or chiefly the killing of baby girls, or burying then1 alive, and drinking and gambling were common. Profani ty and profligacy were rampant. Rivalry in versification was great ly developed and excellence in poetical contests was reckoned to be the highest glory. Sanguinary feuds between the tribes were Of common occurrence. Blood revenge and bravery in battle were a physical necessity with the Arabs. Though corrupted Christ ianity

a n d Juda ism had their place, polytheism and idol worship formed the common religion o f Arabia, so m u c h so that therewere three hundred and sixty idols in the sanctuary of the Ka'aba. In short, Arabia was at that time both moral ly and religiously in the lowest depths of degradation.

F r o m his early years, M U H A M M A D was of a thought- ful bent of mind. Wi th added-years, he grew more and more concerned over the ~ e l f a r e . o f h i s countrymen: The evils that were prevalent saddened him. Frequjently he retired to acave at the top O f. a mountain called Hira, some

14 T I L E . M O S L E M S U N R I S E

three miles from Mecca. l le re he devoted taimself tO search after the One and Only God, and prayed ardently, opening his whole heart to his Creator \Vhonl his soul longed to meet. He hecame so fully ahsorbed in the ecstasy of his devotions that he would remain for. days in the mountain cavern, o f t en his devoted wife brought him:food. This went on for a: considerable !ength of time, till at last, in his fortieth 3"ear, there appeared before h i m the Angel of God

_and thus add÷essed him. "Read l . . . . I cannot read," answered MUHAM, MAD. "Read!" repeated the Angel. " I cannot read," was the r ep ly again. ':Read thou!" repeated the Angel, at the same time emhracing the lirophet and hugging him close to his bosom. "Read in the name of Thy Lord, who created man from clots of blood. Read! Thy Lord is the most beneficient, Who hath taught by the pen; He hath taught man what he knoweth not."

The majesty of tlie. revelation, and the appearance of the Angel filled M U H A M M A D with awe, as is usual wi th the prophets ae t he moment of receiving revelation. T h e same was the case with Moses.* So the PrOphet returned home trembling, and related t he whole story to his beloved wife and added, " I am afraid of myself." No sooner had Khadija heard him than she said: "Fear n o t , b u t rejoice! God will not suf feryou to fall in to disgrace; for you have al)vays behaved well toward ),'our kinsfolk, helped t hed i s - tressed, been hospita.ble to guests, kind to the poor and y, our neighbors. You have been ti'ue to your Word andexhib i ted the noblest and rarest 'virtues of man."

.... These observations of h i swi fe throw a strong light on the character of the Prophet. A man can sometimes assume a character not his own in society, but it is impossiblefor him to hide his defei:ts from the ever watchful eye of his wife. A wife has the best Opportunity to watch day a n d night each and every movement of her husband and to know him thoroughly.

Thus comforted by hiswife , M U H A M M A D was con- ducted to \Varaqa, a relative' of K!mdija, and a well-known Bible scholar. On hearing what had happened t o t h e Prophet, W-araqa observed, "This i s ' the s a m e A n g e l who appeared in times long pas t to Moses; VVould that I might still-be alive when you will be turned out of your native city.

~Exodtls Clmp. 3, Verse[6. Acts: Chap. 7, Verse7.

T H E . M O S L E M S U N R I S E 19

I could then help you to m y h e a r t ' s c o n t e n t . " "Shal l I be banished f rom m y nat ive c i ty?" asked the Prophet . "The like of you is ahvays banished," said the old man. This sounded s t r ange i n t h e ears of the P rophe t and he was s truck \vith wonder . H o w c 0 u l d he meet wi th such t r e a t m e n t at the hands of those w h o were the subjects of his cons tant sympathies ? H e h a d a h v a y s t rea ted . then l .kindly, and in his hear t of hear t s cher ished on ly the best wishes . for them. He was r eady even to s take his. life f o r t h e i r good. Moi-eo~cer, he had a h v a y s l e d a pure and: saint ly life. How, then, could people .be at e n m i t y with: h im? This was b e y o n d his u n d e r s t a n d i n g . "

Tile- P rophe t ' s wife, Khadi ja , was the first, soul to em- brace Islam. His cousin, Ali, his uncle Abu Tal ib 's son, a young lad of tweh-.e, also e n t e r e d t h e fold of Is lam. T h e r e was ano the r person, Zaid, s o n of Har i tha , Khad i ja ' s slav e. who had been set free bv the P rophe t a yea r previously. Zaid was so much a t fached to the P r o p h e t and so grea t ly c h a r m e d bY his kindness t h a t lae decl ined to accompany Iris r a t h e r w h e n tlae latter. Came tO t a k e h i m : h o m e . The more the fa ther tried to persuade his son to go with him, the more the hear t o f the .son seemed to b reak . At l a s t the fa ther had to leave Zaid bchind, Such was the magic spell and the m a g n e t i c i n f l u e n c e o f the P rophe t ' s character .

T h e household o f . the P r o p h e t : w e r e the first converts.- The m o s t i m p g r t a n t Of all the e a r l y converts , and ever a f t e r a s tahvar t fol lower of ISlam, was t h e - P r o p h e t ' s in t imate friend, Abu Bakr, a leading m e r c h a n t and a -man of. wea l th and influence.. He was well kn0x~-n for his v i r tues and en- joy-ed the respect of the people. T h e basis o f Abu Bakr 's ins tan taneous accep tance of I s lam was his m o s t i m p l i c i t t rust in the Outs tanding pur i ty of elae P r o p h e t ' s character . Such a man could not tell a lie !

For t he first three years the p reach ing of I s l am was conduc ted ra the r secretly'. M a n y of t h e conver ts were won

.-by the inf luence of Abu Bakr, the mos t p rominen t figure am. o n g the new proselytes. T h e n u m b e r of the Moslems wen t o n increas ing slowly, but s teadi ly . P r aye r s and o t h e r rel igious rites were perfornled in such a m a n n e r as to avoid the not ice 0 f t h e public. T h e Proph.et flsed:to go to t h e foot o f some hill wi th his band of fol lowers and p r a y .


With great surprise one day his uncle Abu Talib, happened to see MU'HAMMAD~engaged in his devotions, a long with his cousin All, Abu Talib's. son. When t!le prayer was over, Abu Talib, wondered at the new nlode of worship and inquired of his nephew. "My nephew!. What is this f lew faith which I see you following?". "This is the religion of the Angels and of theProphe ts . T h e same wa~ the religion of Abraham." H e then explained the doctrine of Islam and. invited his uncle to. adopt the. new faith. Abu Talib had not the courage to renounce the :religion and the customs of his people, but he advised his son All t o adhere to the Prophet and the religion preached by:him, for he knew tha t in no wise \vould his nephew do anything but good. Abu Talib, however, gave his word to stand by thePropl !e t as long as he was alive--even at t he cost of his .life. Things continued thus for three years.

Public M U H A M M A D was now commanded by- Di- Preaching vine Revelation to-promulgate Islam publicly.

Accordingly, one day, he summoned the people of Quraish to the hill of Sara and thus addressed them, "0 , people of the Quraish, were .I to tell you that an army is coming from behind the hill to fall upon you suddenly, would you believe me?" All present unanimously Cried out, "Yes, of course, for. we all know you from-y0ur boyhood t o have always been truthful." Then he invited them to em- brace Islam, saying, "The punishment of God will soon ~:o/ne upon you. So believe in tli~ One and Only God that you may be saved." The assembly dispersed , laughing the Prophet to scorn, and full of wrath. Among them was one of his uncles, Abu Lahab, whose in-dignation knew no bounds. He hurled upon the Prophet contemptuous words.-

The Prophet was by-no means to be daun ted . After a few days, he arranged a dinner to which he ifivited all his relatives. As.~soon as the repast was over, the Apostle of God began to. propound the doctrines of Islam to the assembly saying, "Oi m y people, I have brought to you gifts better than anybody ever brought to his people. Now who will help me by espousing this grea.t cause?" Perfect silence prevailed; no one spoke a word. They began snickering. At last a young man stood forth and sPoke out, with-tears in his eyes: "Though I a m the weakest and youngest of all, I shall champion your cause." It was none other than Abu


Talib's son, AlL Thereupon the whole assenlbly burst into a fit of laughter and left the place mocking and sneering.

.During those days the Prophet.once went to the Ka'aba and expounded the docti-ines of Islam and admonished the people 1o abandon idol worship, which he most vehemently a n d emphatically denounced. The audience became enraged and began to assail the Prophet. Harith, son of Hala, who was a devotedfol lower o£ the Prophet, .came to his rescue, but in the confusion that followed he was killed by some unknown lland. Hari th was the first ~,loslem martyr and his was the first blood that was shed in the cause of Islam.

T h e progress of Islam w a s slow, but steady. T h e Prophet, in spite of stubborn opposit ion,continued the prop- aganda of. his mission with inci'easing zeal and redoubled energy. The:essence of his doctrines was to proclaim the unity of God. The Prophet was the nlessenger of God. and the words of God were revealed to him. It was, therefore, imperative for the~ people to follow him and act accOrding to his commands. Islam was, from the very outset, utterly ~l)pose(1 to all forms of Polytheism. "There is none worthy of worship but Allah; and MUHAMMAD,is the Apostle of God,'.' was the most important formula of the new faith.

The .wrath of the people of Mecca was aroused when they saw that the cause of the Prophet suffered no check. The elders of the different clans of the Quraish, greatly exasperated, sent a delegatiofl t o Abu Talib and besought him to restrain his nephew from speaking against the established religion. Abu Talib, who was very mild and courteous, tactfully appeased the i ranger and sent them away. But as the Prophet did not desist f r o m h i s evangelical and ministerial Work, the heads of the clans approached .Abu Talib.a second time, and th r ea t enedh im with the combined opposition of theQura ish . It was.a very critical moment f o r A b u Talib. All the chiefs of the. Quraish would unite against him in case he espoused the cause of his nephew. Abu Talib was alone arid helpless; so he became most frightened and related the whole Storv-to the Prophet, exhort ing him not to put on his shoulders a burden too heavy for him tobear, t t was plain to the Prophet tha th i s uncle wanted him to give up his mission. I n c a l m majesty th'e P r o p h e t forthwith answered, "My dear uncle, if they should place the-sun in my right .hand and the moon i n m y left, even then I shall not gwe up the

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

. p roc lamat ion-Of the un i ty of God, I s h a l l s e t - u p the t rue fai th of God upon the Ea r th or pei=ish in the a t t e m p t " ' Th i s " was the force of t ru th and. mora l courage . He was as . f i rm a-s a rock a n d ' t h e whole wor ld could no t shake h im f rom liis s t r o n g resolut ion. A b u Tal ib was so m u c h i m p r e s s e d by the s t ead fas tnes s of his n e p h e w t lmt he p romised t-o s t and by h im' t i l l his last breath .

T h e D e p u t a t i o n Tile Qura i sh now began to pe rsecu te the o f U t b a P r o p h e t and .his fo l lowers ru th lessh , .

B u t all t h i s ba rba rous , ty ranny could n o t r e t a rd the p rog res s o f his miss ion. A t this ' thi~ people were e x t r e m e l y puzzled. Vv-laat could t h a t m e a n ? T h e y then de- vised a plan for enti.cin~ the P r o p h e t . T h e y sent a rep- resen ta t ive n a m e d Utba ; a Meccan Chief, who add re s sed the Propl~et in the fo l lowing w o r d s : "O, M U H A M M A D , if v,m w a n t to sit , i n - t h e t h rone of Arahia . we s lml l elect you our n m n a r c h : if you w a n t m o n e y ; w e sha l l give you no end of it, and if you desire to have t h e - h a n d of a beaut i ful w o m a n , we are ready, to p resen t you wi th the.. mos t heaut i fu l lady in the land.Z" T h e P r o p h e t ' w a s far-above any wor ld ly t empta t ions . In reph ' , he reci ted to.-them cer, , - . - -

t a m verses of the H cily "O.uran in which, the g l o w an(1 .unity- o{" God 'we re 1)roclaimed and the claim o f t he P r o p h e t as the t rue Apos t l e of GeM Was set hwth. Tl ie c ha rm of tlae Quraii

aexercised a g rea t influence o n tlle mind . of U t b a and a Change w;is w r o u g h t in him. On. h-is re turn , he asked t h e people to leave the P r o p h e t alone.

M i s s i o n a r y T h e ['r,q~het w a n t e d a place where he coidd H e a d q u a r t e r s a s semble the l i t i le band of h i s fo l lowers

and pe r fo rm the re l ig ious ri tes a n d peace- fully car ry-out his miss ion w i t h o u t fear of moles ta t ion . F o r th i spur l~pse ; l ie Chose his fa i thful fo l lower A r q u a m ' s house . wh ich s tood at a shoi-t dis:tance f rom the Cliff of Safa . Th i s was the ceo-tre of his act ivi t ies for ah0u t th ree years . Some i m p o r t a n t conver t s were won over to I s l am d u r i n g t h e l)eriod of . the P r o p h e t ' s s t a r in tha t house, which was Enown as " D a r u l I s l a m , " or the House o f Is lam.

T h e C o n v e r s i o n A m o n f f : t h e uncles of t h e P r 0 p b e t w a s . o f H a m z a A m e e r I-tamz~a, a hero of mar t i a l spir i t

• and a well k n o w n soldier whose g a l l a n t courage m a d e lama f a m o u s th rou ,Hmut the , • - . g x~ hole o f ~,Iecca.

T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E . 1 9

He xvas.of about the same age as the Prophet, and had been suckled by the same nurse, Suwayya. Hamza entertained a .great love for the Prophet, and was very sensitive to the malt reatnlent of the Prophet by the people. Once, while he was out hunting, Abu Jahl, perhaps t h e m o s t powerful chief in Mecca, and tlie most passionate .. and inveterate enemy of Islam, reviled the Prophet most shamefully. A maid servant of Hamza, who-witnessed tlle affair, related the sad occurrence to him. on his return home. The noble hero-became enraged, and ran, sword in hand, to the Ka'aba and declaiming h is fa i th in ISlam,-he challenged Abu Jahl, to

• oppose him if he had courage to do so. Some o f the latter 's followers were provoked, but .Abu Jahl i~acified them, saying, " I have, indeed treated his nephew. M U H A M M A D

: very roughly." Thus w a s the .famous Ameer: Hamza won for Is lam. It was indeed a mat ter of great rejoicing for the

- Moslems.

The Conversion Omar, a man of tower ing personality, of O m a r o f uncommon strengtli and indomitable

courage, w a s one of the bitterest enemies of Islam. He was very cruel to the new converts, but they were proof against all his rutliless persecution. At last he became tired and resolved tO put an end to the person who was at the root of t h e trouble. Sword in hand, he set

• out in search of Muhammad. On the way, Omar was told by some one that his sister Fat ima and her husband Z a i d had turned Moslem, a n d h e was advised first to set his own house aright. Exasperated, h e ran to his sister's house. While Omar was yet outside, the melodious voice of t h e recitation of the Holy Quran came to his ea~:s. As he entered thehouse , he found Khabbab teaching the couple the Holy Book. O n being asked as to whether tlley had embraced Islam, Omar 's brother- in- law at first g a v e a n evasive answer. Omar began to deal his brother-in~law heavy blows. The wife came to the Succor of her husl)and and received-a blow herself which caused her to bleed: The heroic lady addressed hi~r brother in a voice which melted his hear t and wrought an i n s t an t change : "Brother, we do believe in this t rue religion and the iProphet of God. Do your worst, nothing can shake us . ! ' ;Omar :began to tremble and asked his sister t o hand over to him the book they were reading.

-She decl iued on t h e ground that he had first to purify him-

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

self by l)erforming an abohttion ~or it is the pure alone w h o may touch the Holy Quran. He complied with tile demand and having, gotten tile book, read a portion-of the Quran which convinced him. of the truth of Islam.. He ran now .towards the lodging of the Prophet, but an entirely different man. He started with the determination to kill MUHAM- MAD, but now went to be enlisted as one of t hemos t humble followers of the. newfa i th . The Prophet acco rdedh im a warm reception and a thrill_0f delight went through the whole Moslem community. This was the.same Omar who ° became the secoild successor of the Proi )het .This champion of the faith was destined to win glorious ~,'ict0ries and everlasting faine.

/ / !

Flight to \Vhen the sufferings of the Moslems became Abyssinia unendurable, and it was impossible for them to

practise their religio n in peace and safety, the Prophet thought it expedient to send a group of the converts to take r e fugewi th the Abyssinian king, Negus, whb was renowed for iust ice.~o0dness and generosity. It was • / . ¢ . / ~ ~ - J ¢ .

a great sacrifice on the part of the Prophet, for tile number of the Moslems was still extremely meager. Tlie expulsion of a number of the already small Community would make it thinner and more helpless. That would mean a great reduc- tion of ~their s t reng th . Moreover, it was hear t rending for the Prophet to send away his devoted followers fo r whom to die, would be a pleasure• B u t t h e situation h a d become untenable/and dire circumstances .com'pelled h i m to make the sacrifice. /

/

Among the refugees were the Prophet's daughter, and his son-in-law Othman, a man of wealth and influence, as well as his cousin. Jafar~ son Of Abu Talib, The thirst of. the Quraish for cruelty upon the distressed refugees who fled with their lives was not slaked. The Ouraisla pursued them to

d t Abyssinia by means of a eputation under the leadership of Amar-Ibnal-As, sent to. tile Christian King of Abvssinia.- Through presents and adulation, .they influenced tl{e cour- tiers against the Moslems and requested.ti le king to ex-- tradite their misguided countrymen who had .fallen away from the religion of their f6refathers. The wise King, how.- ever, convened-~an assembly in which the fugitives .were called upon to give anacount .o f their faith. Jafar, who was chosen to be the spokesman of the Moslems, addressed the

- T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E 21

king in the following words: "0 , king, we were the mos.t bai:barous and ignorant idolators and (lid not make any distinction between good aud evil . Imna0rality, robbery, deception and evils of all d6scription were common among us. Our - own kinsfolks, orphans and neighbors were not free from our.highhandedness. I n s h o r t , we had sunk into the lowes t depths of degradation, till at last God in His boundleS~smercv raised up the Prophet M U H A M M A D , Whom we knew from his infancy to be of the purest and noblest character. He taught us to w o r s h i p t h e One and Only God, the Creator of the Heaven and of the Earth. He

enjo ined upon.us to do g o o d a n d abandon evil. This is the .crime o.f which we have been convicted and on account of which We have been subjected to terrible hardships. At last we ~ have been compelled t o bid farewell to our dear hearths and honles. \Ve hope, 0 noble king, that no in- justice would be done to u s u n d e r your kind protection;" Negus was deep ly affected and requested t h e speaker to read to laim a portion of the Quran. T h e b o l d man recited the sixtli part of the Holy Qui'an, On hearing this, the king was moved to tears and was Convinced that the words of tile Holy Quran and tfae revelations O f Jesus Christ sprang from the same fountain. He refused t o h a n d t h e Moslems over to the Quraishites, who became extremely grieved at their failure.. So on tile second (lay Amar-Ibnal-As ap-

- proached the king and poured in his.ears-a story that the Moslem's at t i tude toward. J e s u s was very derogatory. Tile Moslems were sent for again and ca l ledupon to state the ~ doctrines 0f . l s lam regarding J e sus Christ. The daunt- less [afar expounded that the Mt~slems believed Jesus to be one of the honoured. Prophets of God, but d i d not a t t r ibute any particle of. divinity to him. The king, satisfied and convinced, openly declared that he himself did not believe Jesus

' a jot more than .that. Thus the efforts of the deputation were-ut ter ly .frustrated and the Quraishi tes went back to their people sorely disappointed.

The Moslem fugitives lived in peace and:tranquility under the k ind protection of the King of Abyssinia.

:Aftex" some time a fake rumor was spread that the people of.Mecca had entered into the fold of Is lam. Most of. the refugees did not believe this rumor. T h o s e w h o believed it found it-to be.utterly false when they came near Mecca.


Some of them re tu rned to Abyssinia while o thers entered and' remained in the city in strict secrecy.

T h r e e Years ' The failure of the Abrss in ian deputa t ion B a n of the Quraish against the Moslem .fugi-

tives mortified the Ouraish. But they were not to stop thei r mischief. : T h e y formed it league and pledged themseh 'es to a comp!ete lmvcott of the family 6f. Banu Hash im which d e ~ g e d , the Pl:ophet f rom e v e r y m o - lestation. Very stringc{~t-C/s,tipu)itti,,ns formed t h e a r t l c l e s of this covenant . Unless the I~ '~Jhet was g i v e n Over to the- Quraish f o r capi.tal punishnient , the members of .the ex- communica ted clan were to be denied the cgmmon rigiits of citizenship. A l l k i n d s of social relat ions were severed. T h e Propliet 's family was placed in despera te s t ra i t s . The decree was put down in.a scroll which was h u n g on the wall of the Ka'aba. T h e Banu Hash im took refuge in a va le k n o w n as the Vale of A b u Tal ib f rom'which they could !mrdly escape for fear of their lives. T h e y suffered st'arvation;- personal in- dignit ies and humil ia t ion of every description. "]'he piteous cries of the ' f amished children of" t h e Hashini i tcs added to the joy .o f the s tony-hear ted ()uraishites. This siege con- t inued for full three ) ' e a r s . . A t last when t h e l m t c h m e n t o n which the pledge was writt/_m was fimnd to have heen eaten away hy worms the hearts of some of t h e ()Uraishites were softened and "hey were bold enough t o br ing ahout the rescue of t h e innocent sufferers.

~The Yea r of In the ten th 3-ear o f the P rophe t ' s c a r e e r S o r r o w lie r ece ived two severe shocks. His be=

loved uncle and kind protector , Abu Talib, . who had h e e n a fa ther to h i m since t h e death of . -Ahdul Muttal ib ~nd who had defended him agains t the w h o l e of Mecca; als0 his- beloved a n d devoted wife, Khadi ja , w h o

- fa i thful ly and h rave ly ChampiOned the cause of his m i s s i o n and made hini the master, o f i m m e n s e weal th , w e r e , t o his infinite sorrow, taken away froln him by death. Thus. he wa s deplrived of the hJve and SUl~port of( his o n h , Worldly benefactors. His 11eart became so .full of g r i e f ' t h a t tha t year is called " T h e Year of Sorrow." The opposit ion of. the Quraishi tes was now more vehenient . T h e y had n o n e to fear, and left no Stone maturned in an a t tempt to put an end to the ne W religion. :


The Prophet's From these sad bereavements tile Pro- Journey to Tayif p h e t souKht solace in the promulgation

- of truth. In the ardour of his sacred enthusiasm he went out .to Tayif,. an important town in Arabia, about sixty miles from his native city. The people

o f Tayif proved little better than the Meccans. They did not heed his preaehings. On the contrary', they.most shamefully insulted him and hur led upon.him most abusive and contemptuous words. At last he set out for Metca. For several miles a rabble of fanatical you th s pursued the Prophet and stoned him mercilessly until he almost fainted, and his entire body was lacerated 'andbleeding; . The P rophe t ' s devoted s_ervant, Zaid; who was his mas ter ' s companion, tried to help him, but in .vain. I t was a scene of sheerest hrutality.

At last the Prophet took Shelter in the garden of a Meccan named Shaiba, who, seeing the Prophet in great distress, sent .some grapes, w h i c h the' Prophet accepted with grati tude. T h e Prophet was suffer ingsevere agony. He had run three miles not knowing from whence he was coming nor .whither he was going. It was at. this place and= t i m e - w h e n h e was throbbing with pa in - tha t he ardently prayed to God, "My Lord; gulde them, )for they do not know." Wha t a large heart he had! He prayed for those wlio most barharously assaited h i m and from whom he had so narrowly escaped. That was the spirit which en- abled him to overcome the i most tremendous difficulties and made the whole of-Arabia yield to. h im within a few years. H i s implicit trust in God and keen sense of duty took him alone to the city of h i s m o s t implacable enemies,

-from whom he suffered horrible-tortures. From. the garden o f Shaiba-he went to Nakhla where a

group, of chiefs entered the fold of .Islam. T h u s God gave liim ample comPensa t ionfo i ' his sufferings at Tayif. Thence-he went to .the Mount Hira where he made. his abode for some days.

.The Persecution Humani ty recoils at. the very mention o f .the terrible-Calamities, the inhuman

tortures and t l l e rutl~less t y r anny t o which the early ,Moslems and their Prophet w e r e subjected. Even af te r thir teen h u n d r e d long years we shudder a t the imagina- tion of these horrible:events. O n the one hand, one is struck with file staunch faith and the tmflinching steadfast-

2 4 T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E "

. °

ness of the P rophe t and his fol lowers: o11 the other; by the fierce barbar i ty of the enemies of Is lam. The brief account given i n the next few lmragraphs {vill prove the t ru th of the above s ta tement .

A pious Moslem l~lacksmith l,(hubab ,by n a m e was once forced to lie down on a bed of red-hot charcoal i'n his own home, f~-om which bed h,e Was not a l lowed to inove an inch till the fire had d i e d out,

Bil~tl, an A b y s s i n i a n slave, was forced to l i e dow/1 in the scorching rays of the mer id ian sum on Hie fiery sands of the Arabian desert , wliile a large slab of l~umling stone was laid upon his b reas t . Then the p e r g e c u t i n g M e c c a n s whipped him merci lessly and conmlanded lailn t~ renounce his faith. But when he remained firm in his faith and cont inued to say, here is but one Gud," the cruel- Meccans tied him with a rope and d r a g ged him from one end of the city to another .

A Moslem slave YaSir b.v nalne w a s l i teral ly t o rn to I~ieces, when his legs, w e r e ' t i e d to t w o camels aud the beasis~were driven in opl)osite direct ions. "

Not on ly the m e n but also :the women w e r e m a l t r e a t e d . l:tistorv has recOunted !aow, fo r the s iml) le .c r ime of em- bracing Is lam, a p i o u s and respectable Moslem lady, Sumayya , was killed m o s t cruel ly and ' s lmmefu lh , .

T h e persolaal indigni t ies suffered by, the P rophe t were equally brutal and hor r i@ing; h~r instance, once, while he was at prayer , Abu , Jah l put the intes t ines of a camel on liis shoulders. An earlier ' pa ragraph has re la ted how the

.

Prophe t w a s a b o u t to be s t rangled to death in the Ka 'aba while he was e n g a g e d i n p raye r ; and llow bruta l ly h e was s toned for three miles at the t ime of his r e t u r n from :: Tayif . \Vhen the P rophe t wen t ou t people would c r y , "The re goes t h e imposter , the naadman ,and the l ia r !" Ashes were tlarown upon him and thorns were put i n his 3,V a v .

"l~lle cruelt ies of t h e M.eccans which forced thc M0glems to_ flee to Abyssinia and to e n d u r e three yea r s ' ban in the , \:al.e of' Abu Ta l ib have al'i'eady been briefly sketched.

The P r o p h e t Meets It w a s the Proplaet!s cus tom t o preach P i lg r im P a r t y f r o m h is faith a m o n g t h e pi lgrims who

M e d i n a . c a m e annua l ly f rom d i s t a n t par ts of Arabia. In tla~ twelf th 5'ear o f -h i s

/

T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E Z5

mission be met wi th several persons who came from ~_~athrib, a well-known city about two hundred and sev- enty miles north of Mecca. It was the same city which later Came to be known by the name as Medina and which was destined to be t h e seat of Islam, and to be esteemed its a Holy City by the Moslems to, the e n d o f time. Now, these few Medinites to whom the Prophet spoke, readily became Moslems, and on their return home,-served as worthy evangelists, pr6aching*the-faitla.of Is lam in Medina. .The next year more people Came.from there, who, after personally talking with: the Prophet, embraced his faith. The result was tliat a s m a l l comnmnity of sincere and .zealous Moslems was formed in. Medina, and Islam was firmly established in that city:

Plot to Assassinate When the Meccans came to know M u h a m m a d . that the cafis~ of the Prophet was

making rapid and steady progress, their indignation knew:no bounds. T h e y now resorted to a new plan to put an end to the Prophet ' s life and cause. They selected one man from each tribe who pledged himself to assist, in making a u n i t e d assault in ordei ~ to assassinate the Prophet at night when.he was asleep so that the guilt o f the crime would be evenly distributed. -If they could kill the Prophet, they ' believed it would be iml~ossible for the Prophet 's people to stand against tile combined tribes of Mecca.

Emigrat ion MUHAMMAD, however, received a rex, ela- tion, which, warned film. of the danger, and

was commanded by God to leave t h e - t o w n and seek r e f u g e in Medina. A subs t i tu t i0nhad to. be made, so his

cousin All volunteered to lie down upon his master's 1;ed. All fully appreciated the danger o f lying in the Pro- phet's bed at siach a Critical.juncture, bu t if he could give Iris life for his beloved master i t would be a noble and glorious tiring for him to do.

In spite of their fanatical antagonism, the people of Mecca trusted i n the honesty of the P r o p h e t to the: 'ut- most, hence they would take their valuables and belongings to him for protection and custody. W h e n the P r o p h e t left he gave all these goods to Ali With the instructions to deliver them to their owners .

When the Prophet informed Abu Bakr of his intended

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

departure from ,~'Iecca, the latter volunteered to be his master's compamon and offered one of his camels for the

;journey. The Prophet acceded to the Wishes of his devoted friend and follower, and took h im as a companion; but paid the price of the camel.

The Meccans besieged the-Prophet 's .house, but God so contrived tha t in the dead of night they fell asleep. While his foes were sleeping, the~Prophet, left his h o u s e a n d d e - parted. With tears in his eyes he gazed at tlae.Ka'aba and said, "011, Mecca, thou hast been to me the dearest spot in all the world, b u t t h y sons would n 0 t l e t me l ivehere ."

Then t h e Prophet and his companion w e n t to the famous Hill of Thaur, which is about three miles from Mecca. They took refuge. in 3vhat is known as the Cave of Thaur, where- they remained concealed for three clays.

Early in the morning the-Prophet ' s enemies awakened and to their surprise found Ali in his master's bed. They were so a n g r y that they put Ali in confinement, but f ind- ing such procedure useless, they .soon released him. "

A desperate search for the .fugitive was made. Scouts were sent in all tlirections. A trailing party even reached " the mouth. Of tlie cave where the Prophet was hidden.- It was natural for them to peep into t h e cax:e, but a com- bination of circumstance s coupled with some hidden fo_rce caused the pursuers to hesitate. At last they retraced their steps, and did not re turn to.the cave.

While t h e y were hes i t a t i ng whether t6 peep into the .. cavern or not; Abu Bakr's heart Sank and he showed signs of fear. Just one glance and their l iveswould be lost. It was a t : t h i s Critical moment that the Prophet calmly

• spoke, ."Fearnot . G o d is w i th us." S u c h w a s the implicit trust he had in :God. He felt perfectly sure of His protection.

On the fourth da'y when the vigilance Of the Quarish had somewhat slackened they departed fo r Medina. A f t e r a continuous journey of a day and a,night, followed by a short rest, when they were about to r e sume the i r journey, they were seen by a P, edouen, Suraqa, who, _tempted by a fat reward 'of one hundred camels,, had pursued tlae fugitives. When he came near the Prophet his horse stumbled and fell. According to the Arab custom he drew lots to divine whether to continue the chase or. not. I-Ie received an

T H E ' M O S L E M S U N R I S E 27

answer in the negat ive; but the reward Of one hundred camels was too tempting for him to give up the adventure, so he remounted and pursued the Prophet; but when the horse stumbled t h e second time and the feet of the animal sank deep into t h e sand, he .feared to continue the at tempt on the.life of the Prophet. Something w i t h i n h i m told him that the Prophet 's c a u s e w a s o r d a i n e d to triumph, and that endeavor to retard such-a mission was to bring about his o w n destruction. A mortal fear paralyzed his whole being. He. then went to the Prophet :and begged his forgiveness. The P rophe t complied with his request and the man departed in :peace.

While the Prophet and Abu Bakr were on their wav. to Medina t l l ey nlet Zubair, a gallant Moslem, returning from a commercial expedition to Syria, who presented t h e Prophet xvith Some clothes and provisions and assured him that he would also soon come and live with his master in Medina.

After a wearisome journey of eight days, the party reaclled Medina, on the twelf th of Rabiual AWwal. They were accorded a warm recep t ionby the people of Medina, whose joy knew no bounds, and who rent the heavens by tlieir thunderous shouts of g ree t ing . "Al!aho! Akbar! God is most great."

This migration or Hijrat (Hegira) introduced a new epoch in the life of the Prophet. I t was upon. this event that the Mosem chronological SYstem was based.

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Comments and Appreciation ¢ _

T h e M o s l e m S u n r i s e "Edited by Sufi M. R. Bengaleel tiffs journal is doing excellent

w o r k in the United States. The number under review follows its well conceived usual p lau with regard to conten ts : Some verses from the Holy Quran, bear ing on some quest ions Of the momen t or some present need ; a page devo ted to a few selected Ahadis ; excerpts from the writings of the promised M e s s i a h ; the m a i n article, this time. on ~Ahat the Ho ly P rophe t Mulmmnmd A~:comi~lished'; a n d n o t e s and comments o n points of topical interest." - "

• Review of Religious,- March,. t939

"Thank you for sending me the J anua ry 1939 issue of T h e Moslem Sunrise ~, Volume XI , N u m b e r 1. Your Qnar ter ly Mag,'izine-is most ! l luminating a n d inspirational. I t s h o u l d find a wa rm welcome spot. m the hearts o f a l l peoples who worship The One and S a m e G o d - - our God, yours and-mine . Could Jesus and Muhalnmad have l ived on earth in the flesh, a t the same time, they w o u l d b a r e been great friends and would have derived mutual inspi ra t ion from eacil other and from the i r 'One a n d Same God. .

"Tile Excerp ts From the Vtrritings of H a . z r a t M i r z a Ghulam Ahmad are beautiful and wise xs~ritings. :~,Vhat a Wonderful Soul he is. -I. say~ he is, for all gre.at .prophets Lix, e on.

YYour own article on \Vhat the Holy P rophe t M u h a m m a d Ac- c o m p l i s h e d i s a masterpiece. I wish ever 3 c h r i s t i a n might read it and s tudy it."

--TParker Wr igh t Meade, Director, Tlie Po r t of Nat ions-Studio, .

::" " Cleveland, Ohio • " i : " " " - ? " • -

" T l i e s p i , r i t , o f the Moslem Sunr i s e a n d its informative material make every number an event looked, forward_ to with anticipication of good. Most h e a r t Y w i s h e s for Continued service t o this' Cause."

• " - • - Yours ver b, respectfully, " " H e n r y "~V. Litchfield;

• .:' Duxbury, R . D . , Massachuse t t s

-. The Moslem Sunrlse Is g r o w m g bigger-each )'ear. To m e it is hke a candle of- l ight in a black sea o f t r i b u l a t i o n ? '

1 H r s . . E . M . Stiles, - . " Cedar Rapids, Iowa "

.. • - . , . . . .

i

"The Moslem Sunrise is !ike the sunshine after•the r a i n h a s passed."

I Ama tut Lateef, I I , . . . ~ - Day to n, Ohio

T H E MOSLEM S U N R I S E 29

Correspondence W h y I B e c a m e a M o s l e m

Cascade Locks, Oregon, April 3rd, 1939

Sufi M. R. Bengalee. M. A. Suite 1102, 56 E. Congress St., Chicago, Illinois _ " My Dear Brother :

I was born :ff poor b u t h o n e s t : p a r e n t s a n d "oined a Christ ian - , J . . . . church when eighteen years of a g e and worked earnest ly in and for the church-from tha t t ime until in 1935 w h e n b y s t u d y and research

• r . . . . " - - I came to w o n d e r how an ear thborn man, born o f woman, could be a. God. and how God:could give his 0fily begot ten s o n t o die for stoners. Then on •further reading I found that w a s not•an authent ic

-s tory and .since there is •Only One God, Creator of the universe, and t h e r e is- none beside H i m .

S0- I was perplexed until I . m e t an_Ahmad iyya .Mos l em lady and I shall ahvays feel that i t was G o d W h o l e d m e t o ' h e r as I was earnest ly seeking God and the t rue way. - And t h i s dear lady showed me the way of Is lam which appealed to me as more authent ic than my former teachings had been. S 0 I studied fur ther and decided that Is lam is the only ,;ray as Jesus nlust have b e e n a Moslem for We read in many places in: the Bible that on meet ing with his d isc iples he .often greeted them with the words "Peace .be unto you." So as l~e came to br ing peace on ear th and i s lam .means peace, Praise God, which one day, not so .d is tant , wi l l . cover the ear th as the waters

-cover the sea. A n d i t is my earnest hope and sincere desire to at ta in to all tha t God would have m e t o be and serve H i m faithfully in any s ta t ion H e sees fit .to place, me.

Praise H i m forever, and m a y His peace and blessings be on all the Prophets and .our H o l y Prot)het a l s o . .

.I. have t ru ly found . that . the M o s l e m way is a wonderful way and the only t rue . w a y . M a y God's blessings be on t h i s g rea t movement and all its workers . - . -

Yours in. Is lam, Mrs., Inez "Cluff Cascade Locks, Oregon

Dear Sir : " . . : . . . . . . . .

I herewith w i s h ' t o express m y apprec i a t ion 0 f the publication • "The Moslem Sunrise. ' . . . .

T o me this publication has g i v e n some of the best a n s w e r s to Our present e c o n o m i c p rob lems , namely the proper_ solution in the han- dling of inheritances, because u n d e r the presen t System in Amer ica , inheritances a r e a mere m a t t e r o f . State colle~:tion tO be placed in the " co f f e r so f tlie S t a t e to be used b v the polit iciahs to be spent a t their leisure, but under Is lam (and we . in America can take. a grea t lesson from it) inheritances are a mat te r of d is t r ibut ion a m o n g the relat ions of the one who dies. Tllis in Am er i ca would be grea t advantage in doing for the pool by dividing money among, large groups and

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

also would be a method of keeping money in~circnlation which is the ,chief need in America today.

The Zakat tax of Islam has been of great interest to the people with whom I have discussed it. ' In my opinion, it is much of what Dr. F. E. Townsend ires in mindin the tax entitled "The -Townsend National Recovery Plan."

I might also say that there is growing public opinion in tliese United States to prohibit tile use of interest and in that manner I can say economically Islam and the United States are coming into agreement.

I have found that pe0plein general were very much impressed by your article Of some time ago on the Tomb of J'esus, als0:the picture of this tomb in the foreward section oftlffs issne containingyour article. . -

Your magazine; I believe, has done much to eliminate many-of the misconceptions most Christians-have of Islam.

, Very sincerely yours, Harold F. Miller

/ / 203 E; Williams St. Fort ~Vayne, had.

• . : . .

The .World "Drifts" Toward

" " B y Abul Kalam In recent years there have arisen numerous problenas xyith

which it seems that the present Setuli d f the various nations are unable to offer anef fec t ive solution. Within each nation there seems to be instabil i ty and tu rmoi l . I t seems that the so-called democracies are unable to Offer a-solution t o the problems-that con'front them. T h e ari.~tocracies are afflicted wi th a s u p e r i - or i ty complex which chafes those who look t o - t h e m for guidance. "

In earl ier laistoric periods man was ruled by~t tribal chief.- As t ime went oli the chief Obtained g rea t e r p0Wec and was known as the king. I t was presul)l~0sed that the king Would rule for the good o f the people over which h e .presided. As people were born and rea red under this influence the King. be- c a m e m o r e a r rogant and the people became more Submissi.ve. thus broadenihg the line of separation between them. E v e n t u : ally the people r e b e l l e d and formed a s y s t e m Of self-rule wherein " ~ the good of the people was supposed to be t h e g u i d i n g principle. From this . s implebeginn ingarose the democracies as they are kno~,vn today.

T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E 3z

Various peoples have sought Shelter under the protection o£ the democracies. The democracies have had no real

• " " C Y " T " " " " democratm program. No fundamental teachings that if tel- lowed would bring about the desired results. Rather each group Which sought such shelter felt t h a t it offered a n unmolested 9pportunity to further the i r respective ideas. This condition has given rise to all kinds ofconflicting ideas. They have grown to such proportions tha t the foundations of society are being shaken, and the world finds itself on the brink of destruction.

In an effort t o save themselves each nation is realizing that it nmst have some sort of unity, something b y which to mould, sentiment toward uMted action. Hence the rise of dic- tators, communisni etc. etc. Man finds himself, drifting back

into-prehistoric conditions after h.a~'ing thoi'oughly .demon- ~strated his inability to rule himself.

The :people are realizing the need of Unity. Men have risen 0,,:er n ig l i t and captured/the confidence of nations. Be- cause the people were :trained in t he i r pet prejudices a

t h 0 r o u g l i house .Cleaning had to be made. Remember tlie blood purge of Germany and the move against: the.Jews~ If any sort o f national unity, is .to .be obtained, t h rough what ,tlaer method could it be done. Regardless who might rise to lead, a house cleaning .would be necessary and people will

4rove to give up their preconceived prejudices. No leader can lead/t divided force. • , Not only is this true of Germany and Italy, but the last fe~ years in America have-demonstrated that ~('e are drifting to the same conclusion, Whether wel ike it o r n o t . Every nation isbeginning to realize that. it must have some basis upon which to build a common sentiment. I f that nation has no such basis, the one placed in a position of authority nmst proceed to create one. So Hitler has p/'oceeded to reconstruct the religion of Germany to meet what, he. considers to be the good of the German people, and demands cooperation at any cost. I f the Jewish O r Christian religion with all its laws and corn-

! mands was good enough as a guide for the destinies of nations Why did not their advocates apply it long ago! Unity is what is needed in eyery na t ion . The three great institutions that are supposed tO furnish a basis of such unity are: the Churches, Schools and Newspapers. I f they have failed on their sup:

'posed objective What purpose do they serve? We are living in a progressive a g e . . T h e world has never


stood still and it will .not stop now because of any one's ignor- ance and inability to adapt themselves to the changing conditions. We are s.till pressing forward, whether we want:to go or not: There remains only two roads ahead. One leads to a better understanding of-human relationship, by studying the Divine purpose of man's, existence and submitting one's self to the laws relative there to. The other leads back through the period of kings, tribal chiefs and barbarism.

The true soul tries i to turn his face in thedirect ion :of progress in the midst of these condititons~ The only road open to him is that which leadsthrough the realm of true spiritual: itv to a knowledge of God the Creator of usall.

God foresaw flaese conditions tfiat we now face, and caused the prophets to w a r n the people thereof. Moreover, He has sent a Prophet in this age-of dire need. _He is tlie Prophet Ahmad, the Pf'omised Messiah, the founder of the Ahmadiyya.b[ovement in Islam, Servant of the Holy prop- her Muhammad. By giving true interpretation to the Holy Quran and by rev iv ing the faith of Islam he will guide the world to peace :and security.

Strange it is to say in 'view of so many churches, the world has disregarded God for so .long, while o n t h e road of mater- ialism,-tlmt it is totally oblivious t 0 t h e existence of a Living God.

Those Who will not seek shelter under the Promised" Mes- siah will drift towards. unity in their respecti~-e national and tribal prejudices and end in a great conflagration of interna- fional turmoil. Those who do Seek such shelter will be blessed with an understanding of the Divine program for man's .ele- vation. Submitting himseIf.thereto there will be opened to

_him the g/ttes of eternal happiness and peace botfi in this world and in the world to come.

The issue is .put before us, and God has sent us a guide. The Ahm~dyya Movement in Islam is open to all irrespective of their religion or nationality. It-is the only group upon the face of the globe that holds its hands out. t o a l l t h e Jew and Arab, the Gernmn and the French, the Italian and the Abysi n- Jan, the American and the Japanese.

O y e who will be fortunate enough to read-this. Will ye not consider the signs of God that are manifested in the present , day conditions ? Will ye not respond to the call of the Promised Messiah 'and be s a v e d ?

What is Islam? Islam i s t h e religion which is wrongly called Mohanmledanis~

I. Islam means:

t 1) Peace - (2) Resignation

T h e si~lificance Of the name Islam is t h e attMmnent Of a life o{ one and the same mission. Thus lslam establishes peace between all perfect peace, and etegnal l~appiness through complete resignation to

-the \Vill o f God. 2 . Absolutely uno)nlplromising monotheism is the .central teaching

of Is lam. "La-Iiaha. lllallah Mnhammadur-Rasululla." "There is none wortlw of worship but o n e a n d the only God (Allah) , who possesses all excellences, and Muhammad is His prophet." This is the most important doctrine of Islam~ Furthermore. Islam helps us to establish a perma- nent relationship with God and to realize H im during our earthly life as Our Helper:in all our affairs and Undertakings.

3. Islam requires belief in :all the prophets and spiritual guides in- represents thecomplet ion of the mission of all the prophets/~from the earliest dawn of history : that in fact all the prophets of God/c~tme with cluding Abraham. MOses. Jesus. Krishna. Budha and Confucius. Islam religions.-

4. Quran, the Moslem S c r i p t u r e the word of God was revealed to the Master:prophet Muhatmnad over thirteen :hundred years ago and h a s been preserved intact without the slightest change. "i'here are millions and millions o f Moslems. w h o ' k n o w the whole .Book by heart. It is an inexhaustible mine. of spiritual truths which satisfy the needs.-of al lpeoples Of a.ll countries. "

5.. The establishment of true democracy and Universal brotherhood without any discrimination of. caste, creed; :colour or country is the unique and unrivalled distinction of Islam. Islam has not only propounded but fulfilled a n d realized the splendid prinCiples of democraCY in the actual life and action of human society'. "

6. Following are a few Of the specific peculiarities of Is lam: (a) Liberation of women by ,establishing the equality of both sexes.

safe-guarding their rights and liberties and raising their :status. (b) Absolute veto on all intoxicants. (c) Solutlon of 'ecofiomic problems. (d) The furnishing of humanity with the noblest practical ethics. (e) The promotion of science and education. •

7- Fcfllowing-are some of the obliqat0ry duties of Islam : (a) Daily prayers. (b) Fasting in the month o f Ramadan. (e) Fixed almsgiving and charity. (d) Pilgrimage once in one's lifetime, provided circumstances allow.

8. According- to Is lam, l i fe after death is the .continuation o f life on earth.-,-Heaven and Hell be~n r ight from here . H e a y e n is eternal

.and everlasting, while Hell ;is only temporary. H e l l is as a hospital .treatment ,for the human soul which, as soon as it i s cured.--goes to Heaven. Heaven is the attainment .of' a l ife of everlasting progress a n d complete joy and happiness through union with God and by the: develop- ment 0£ the fine spit;itual qualities and the_unlimited capacities tha t have been implanted in man.

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T h e H o l y Q u r a n , P a r t 1 .~. . . . . . . . . . . . : .... . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 2 . 0 0 - ~ ,Engl ish t r a n s l a t i o n w i t h 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 u h a m m a d . . . . . . . . . . . . . , . . . . . ~ . 1.25 L i f e a n d T e a c h i n g s o f the H o l y P r o p h e t M u h a m m a d . ~ .25 M u h a m ' m a d , t h e L i b e r a t o r o f W o m e n . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25

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