Hudhur gave a discourse on the Divine attribute of Al Hasib (The Reckoner) in his Friday Sermon today.  Explaining the meanings of the word Hasib, Hudhur said it connotes one who reckons and takes account or who is eminent, sufficient, one who responds with exact measure. Hudhur said all these qualities cannot be found in a human being to perfection, if they can be in a Perfect Being then that Being is God, therefore one of His attributes is Al Hasib.

Hudhur explained the subject by citing verse 87 of Surah Al Nisa; ‘And when you are greeted with a prayer, greet ye with a better prayer or at least return it. Surely, Allah takes account of all things.’ (4:87) and expounded the merit of initiating the greeting of Assalamoalaikum and responding to it in a better way. Hudhur said this basic Islamic commandment is not only a guarantee of fostering good relations within our own but it is also a peerless formula to extend good relations with the outsiders. Muslims are enjoined therein to promote feelings of mutual goodwill and are asked to respond to goodwill in an enhanced and better manner. This is their moral and societal obligation and if they do not follow it, they will be accountable for it. Hudhur said only the religion of Islam has this excellent and purposeful expression of greeting upon meeting each other. It signifies sending peace to the other and wishing them safeguard from all kind of difficulties. When made heart-felt, it promotes feelings of love, affection and brotherhood. It is enjoined to respond to it in a better way, therefore in return to Assalamoalaikum one may say Walaikumassalam warahmatullahe wabarakatahu, i.e. peace be on you too and may God’s mercy and blessings be with you.

Hudhur said the principle of this greeting is such that it promotes societal peace. The Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) strongly stressed upon the need to promote saying of Assalamoalaikum and his Companions would vie with each other in this matter.  A young Companion Qalda bin Hanbal was sent with some food to the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him). He entered the house without seeking permission or any greeting. The Prophet told him to go back outside, say Assalamoalaikum and seek permission to enter. Hudhur said entering someone’s home without permission is wrong and the best way to seek permission is to say out aloud Assalamoalaikum, so that the sequence of prayers may start the meeting.  The Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) had allowed the Companions to sit in the marketplace out of necessity but had explained to them among the ‘etiquette of the road’ is to greet anyone who passes by. This is because a believer is a guarantor of another believer’s peace.  Hudhur remarked it is very unfortunate that Muslims today have forgotten God’s commandment and are killing each other.

Once a Companion of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) came to another and asked him to accompany him to the marketplace. They walked around the marketplace and returned. After a few days the Companion again asked to go out. The second Companion said that if he needed to buy something then he would accompany him, but he saw no point in simply going around the marketplace. To this the first Companion replied that he went out so that he could say his salaam to others, thus pray for them and get some prayers in return and put the commandment of promoting saying of salaam in practise. Such was the state of the Companions that they would take serious note of putting even the minor commandments in practice. Hudhur said Ahmadis should pay specific attention in this regard.

God states that He will reward feelings of goodwill. If one accepts a hand extended in goodwill one will be rewarded for it, if one rejects it, one will be held accountable. Hudhur said the other perspective of this is that the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) came in this age as a guarantor of peace and security. He gave his message of peace through his writings and books with extreme compassion. However, a large part of the Muslim world not only did not respond to his message, rather contrary to the commandment of responding with a better greeting, they were abusive. In spite of his claim that he was from God and had been sent for their good, Muslims got together with people of other faiths and opposed him. What was needed was for them to be the corroborators of the prophecy of the Messiah, to have helped him in spreading the message of piety; message that was originally brought by the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him). However, they did quite the opposite. They trailed the so-called religious scholars and forgot the commandment, not only did they forget it, they responded to peace and accord with extremism.

Hudhur read out the following extract from the writings of the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) to elucidate the compassion and humility with which he expressed his message to the world in order to save it from destruction. He states:

‘Today, for the purpose of conveying the message in a conclusive manner, I have made up my mind to publish forty announcements inviting those who oppose and deny me, so that on the Day of Judgement I should be able to plead before God, the One, that I had fulfilled the purpose for which I had been sent. So, with full respect and humility, I send this announcement to Muslim and Christian divines, and to Hindus and Arya Pundits, informing them that I have been sent to the world for the reformation of moral, doctrinal and spiritual weaknesses and errors. I follow in the footsteps of Jesusas, and, in this sense, I am called the Promised Messiah. I have been commanded to spread the truth in the world through miraculous signs and holy teachings. I am opposed to the use of the sword in support of the faith and the slaying of God’s creatures in the name of religion. I have been appointed that, so far as it may be possible for me, I should remove all these errors from the minds of the Muslims and should call them to pure morals, perseverance, meekness, justice and righteousness. I proclaim to all the Muslims, Christians, Hindus, and Aryas, that I have no enemy in the world. I love human beings with the love that a compassionate mother has for her children and even more so. I am the enemy only of the false doctrines which slay the truth. Human sympathy is my duty, and discarding falsehood, idolatry, every type of misconduct and wrongdoing, injustice, and immorality, is my principle. What has roused my sympathy is that I have discovered a gold mine and have been informed of a deposit of precious stones. In this mine I have been fortunate enough to find a shining and priceless diamond. Its value is so great that if I were to divide its price among the whole of mankind, each of them would become wealthier than the person who owns the largest amount of gold and silver in the world. What is that diamond? It is the True God, and to acquire Him means to recognize Him, to believe in Him truly, to establish the relationship of true love with Him, and to receive true blessings from Him. Having found such great wealth, it would be a great wrong that I should deprive mankind of it and that they should die of hunger while I live in luxury. This I will not do. My heart burns at the contemplation of their poverty and hunger. My soul is in travail at the perception of their darkness and privation. I desire that their houses should be filled with heavenly wealth and that they should acquire so many jewels of truth and certainty that they should be filled to their capacity.’ [Translation taken from Essence of Islam, vo. IV, pp. 164-166. Original Urdu from Arba‘in No. 1, Ruhani Khaza’in, vol. 17] 

Hudhur said God states, ‘… Surely, Allah takes account of all things’. However, He alone knows how He will take account. If the Muslims stop and think about their current condition it would fill them with dread; could it be that God has started holding them to account in this very world. In spite of being ‘the best of people’, they are reduced to begging others and for this reason powers opposing Islam are continuing to force them to have their own way. Hudhur said Ahmadis are certain that Islam will triumph through the true and ardent devotee of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) but it is also their responsibility to inform the rest of the Muslims to understand the Promised Messiah’s (on whom be peace) message and in perfect obedience join his Community. Muslims would then see how much power they will garner, how they would re-establish their lost dignity and how fast the peaceable message of Islam would spread. This would signify the Muslims responding to the great message of goodwill of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) in a great manner. If only the Muslims understood this point. As for those of us who have had the good fortune to come in the bai’at of the Holy Prophet and the Promised Messiah, we need to make tremendous effort to take this message, for which our master (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) had great compassion, to others.

Hudhur quoted verse 128 of Surah Taubah in this regard, ‘Surely, a Messenger has come unto you from among yourselves; grievous to him is that you should fall into trouble; he is ardently desirous of your welfare; and to the believers he is compassionate, merciful.’ (9:128) and explained the unfaltering compassion and goodwill of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) towards those who followed him as well as those who persecuted him. Hudhur said the Promised Messiah’s (on whom be peace) stance, as per the aforementioned extract, too was in total compliance of his master. The cruelty and persecution meted out by the pagan of Mecca did not affect the Prophet’s (peace and blessing of Allah be on him) compassion and sympathy for them. Today this is the emotion followers of his true and ardent devotee should aspire to emulate. Not only should we take the message to others with enthusiasm we should also make earnest prayers for God’s help for our endeavours to bear fruit. According to the commandment of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) by accepting the Imam of the age, we have responded to the message of goodwill and are included among those believers who follow the credentials of the master (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) and in sympathy, show the world the ways to piety. For this we also put ourselves in difficulties, as expressed in our pledge to sacrifice our lives, property and time etc. Hudhur added if anyone is displaced today because of faith, it is the Ahmadi.  Explaining the above verse Hudhur said the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) was not just compassionate and merciful for people of his time. His momentous prayers were for Muslims of all eras till the Day of Judgement. In order to partake of the blessings of his prayers, we too should exhibit models of mutual kindness, forgiveness, pardon and compassion. We may then be able to establish that social order the foundation of which was laid by the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him). Hudhur said in accordance with the pledge of ‘…follow me…’ (3:32) it is our obligation to try and inculcate this thinking.

Citing 129 verse of Surah Taubah, ‘But if they turn away, say, ‘Allah is sufficient for me. There is no God but He. In Him do I put my trust, and He is the Lord of the mighty Throne.’ (9:129) Hudhur explained that triumph of Divinely-guided people and their communities is not hindered by betrayers and such like. God has declared and history of religion has made it clear that those who turn away are the ones who head towards destruction. For God’s Prophets He is Sufficient, just as He was for the Seal of all Prophets (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) on whom Shariah (religious law) was perfected. In explaining verse 9:129 Hudhur said God forbid this does not signify that the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) wanted to establish his own kingdom. God has put it on record here in the verse that He is the Lord of the mighty Throne and the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) but wished to establish the kingdom of God’s Throne, he was the most ardent devotee of Lord of all the worlds, sent to establish God’s kingdom and with the establishment of God’s kingdom was the fulfilment of the kingdom of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) on people’s hearts and minds.

Hudhur said today God is fulfilling His promise through the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) as his followers are endeavouring to take the message to the ends of the earth. Just as our master (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) said God was sufficient for him, with his blessings, we too experience a measure of this because we take his teachings forward in order to establish peace and love, fulfilment of each other’s rights and to create an air of security; the purposes for which the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) came.

Hudhur said these should not be mere pronouncements for us. As we take the message to others, our own condition should make it evident that we are making an effort to be true believers. May Allah enable us to utilise all our capacities and capabilities for this significant objective, may we be distanced from worldly fears and worldly greed and may we continue to endeavour for the objective for which the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) came and should always keep ‘…Allah is sufficient for me…’ and ’… In Him do I put my trust…’ in view.