Huzur gave a discourse on a Quranic prayer with reference to the Divine attribute of Al Wahab in his Friday Sermon today.

The prayer is in Surah Al e Imran, verse 9. The translation reads; ‘Our Lord, let not our hearts become perverse after Thou hast guided us; And bestow on us mercy from Thyself; surely, Thou art the Bestower.’ (3:9)

Huzur said here supplication is made to Allah by the virtue of His attribute of Al Wahab.

Giving a most beautiful elucidation of the prayer, Huzur said it signifies supplicating as follows; O’ Allah, with Your grace and blessings You have enabled us to accept the true and ardent devotee of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) whose advent You brought about among the Ummah of the Prophet in the latter-days.

O’ Allah the prophecy of Your most beloved person (peace and blessings of Allah be on him), that he certainly made after being informed by You, enlightens us about the eternal system of Khilafat to be established after the Messiah (on whom be peace). O’ Allah You have associated us with this system, do not now deprive us of this blessing due to any negligence of ours.

Man errs; therefore we turn to You O’ Allah and beg You that due to this or any other failing, may we never see the day when our hearts turn perverse or we may do something that displeases You.

Not only may we stay firm on guidance rather, cover us in Your mercy and keep us safe from all evil and increase us in taqwa and in faith.

Huzur said saying this beautiful prayer should be ‘routine’ for every Ahmadi. This will help us keep a conscious eye on our weaknesses. It will help safeguard our Salat and our Salat will, in turn, safeguard us.

As the prayer seeks, may there never be an instance where we may have any negative feeling about the Jama’at. Our deeds should be such that if, due to our human failing, such a situation arises, it may never result in our faith stumbling and for us to have any ill-feeling towards the system of the Jama’at and Khilafat.

Huzur said the Holy Qur’an gives the examples of the people of the earlier prophets of God because they deemed that once they had believed they were not in any need of guidance. This is how the Jews and the Christians are described. They made negative assumptions and this led them to be arrogant about the knowledge they possessed. So much so that they ended up being termed as ‘those who have incurred God’s displeasure’ and ‘those who have gone astray’ as described in Surah Al Fatihah.

Huzur said the recitation of Surah Al Fatihah in each rakat of Salat signifies the importance to learn a lesson and continually seek Allah’s blessings and grace. Otherwise as the earlier people lost their way, so too may we.

Huzur said unfortunately today the majority of those who are called Muslims are treading the ways that lead away from God and the reason for this is the negative assumptions they make [about the Promised Messiah] and their pomposity over the knowledge they have.

Huzur said Ahmadis are the fortunate people who have accepted the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) and thus witnessed the prayer of not being included in ‘those who incur God’s displeasure’ and ‘those who go astray’, may Allah keep us firm on this. However, Allah commands to always engage in prayer to keep one’s heart from being perverse or to be included in those who incur God’s displeasure or those who go astray.

Each Ahmadi should be mindful of this and the others may be enabled as well so that a true one Ummah materialises and each Muslim accepts the Messiah of Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) and may the ummah thus be one who truly comprehends the fundamental message of this prayer.

Huzur said it is evident from Ahadith that the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) used to say this prayer abundantly. He would say that a person’s heart is between two fingers of God, He may guide whomsoever He wishes and lead astray whomsoever He wishes. Huzur said this does not mean that the Prophet’s (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) heart was God forbid, perverse. Certainly not; it is out of the question. His heart was filled with nothing but remembrance of God. It is through him that Allah had it declared: ‘… follow me; then will Allah love you and forgive you your faults…’ (3:32)

Indeed, in following the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) is salvation. He said while his eyes slept his mind was filled with remembrance of Allah. Therefore the fact that the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) said this prayer and others in the same vein was to establish a model for us.

The model was for his ummah to follow, so that when the time of the latter-day Messiah came they would accept him. If only the rest of the Muslims understood this. There is no greater tragedy than to lose one’s way after finding the truth. Muslims should ponder and reflect over this. Their current state of affairs reflects that they have incurred Allah’s displeasure. May Allah have mercy on them.

It is the grace of Allah that in fulfilment of the prayers of Hadhrat Ibrahim and Ishmael (peace be on them both) and of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) the Messiah came but they do not accept him because according to them, they are not in the need of a guide.

The fact of the matter is that it is not in the interest of the so-called mullah that the Promised Messiah is accepted. It would shut down his trade/business. It is only an excuse that acceptance of the Messiah impinges on the ‘finality of prophethood’.

They say they have the Qur’an therefore they do not need a guide. However, it is interesting that they do not deny the need for Khilafat. The ignorant people do not realise that without the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) there can be no Khilafat. The fact that the Messiah came from among the ummah of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) is indeed a testimony that the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) was the Seal of all the Prophets’.

Huzur said the knowledge and insight of the Holy Qur’an is only unfolded to those who are God’s chosen people and in this age the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) is God’s chosen person who elucidated the secrets and insights of the Holy Qur’an to us.

Indeed the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) said that those who do not accept him say they do not need a Messiah and that the Qur’an is sufficient for them, although they know full well that the Qur’an does not give insight to anyone other than the pure.

Huzur said in this age Allah purified the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) with His own hands and gave him comprehension of the Holy Qur’an.

Seeing the state of affairs of the other Muslims, while the Ahmadis should be grateful that they have been enabled to accept the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace), they should also always pray to be saved for all kind of perversity. Just as the world is getting more and more materialistic there is a greater need to say this prayer so that we are never denied the blessing and are kept steadfast.

Reading an extract from the writings of the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) Huzur spoke of the importance of not only seeking protection from perversity but also to join the ranks of Muhsineen (those who do good).

According to the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) Muhsineen are those who do everything with the view that Allah watches over them every moment. The Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) said Muhsineen are those who dissociate themselves from narcissism/egotism. Huzur prayed that may Allah enable us to safeguard our worships and our deeds, may we turn to Allah and avoid narcissism and always keep away from all kinds of perversity so that we may value the blessings that Allah has granted us out of His mercy and may our generations continue to be blessed with this mercy.

Next Huzur informed that soon he is going to travel to Qadian for the Jalsa Salana and asked for prayers in this regard. May Allah bless this trip with success in every way and keep every Ahmadi safe.

Huzur said many people are travelling to Qadian from all over the world for the Jalsa. The government of India has cooperated a lot in issuing visas despite their internal problems.

May those who, despite their intention cannot go, be rewarded for their intention. Huzur said those who are going to Qadian as well as those who are not, should continually pray that may Allah protect from the envier and the mischievous. May Allah keep the inhabitants of Qadian safe.

Huzur said India is a very large country and people from far-off jama’ats can not afford to travel to Qadian. It was their wish that Huzur visited them. Therefore Huzur is also going to visit other cities in India. May Allah make this successful and may it bring forth countless blessings leaving all cunning of the enemy to naught. May Allah cover our faults and may He never deny us His grace and blessings.

Next Huzur announced that after Prayers he would lead two funeral Prayers in absentia, the first for, Bashir Ahmad Mahar sahib, who was a dervish of Qadian and passed away on 13th November. Huzur said he was from the early dervishes. Despite having had the opportunity to leave for Pakistan, where he had ancestral land, he chose to stay in Qadian. Huzur said he was a very simple and pious person with great affection for Khilafat.

The second funeral Prayer was for Muhammad Ghazanfar Chatta sahib from Boraywala Pakistan where he was an inspector for the finance dept of the jama’at. On 18th Nov two unknown motorcyclists attacked him trying to snatch the bag he was carrying. When he resisted, they fired at him and he lost his life. Huzur said he considered his martyrdom associated to the Jama’at because Huzur believed his bag contained Jama’at documents and perhaps also some cash. May Allah forgive him and elevate his station in Paradise.