Voice of British Muslim Women

Sameea Jonnud, Aldershot

Jalsa Salana is the annual gathering of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community and at the International Jalsa held here in the UK, the current seat of Khilafat e Ahmadiyya, “guests of the Promised Messiah” (on whom be peace) travel to join from around the world. The Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) himself viewed them as “guests of Allah” and was concerned about their welfare, that they should be well looked after. These days before each Jalsa, His Holiness, Mirza Masroor Ahmad (may Allah be his Helper) gives a Friday Sermon in which he emphasizes the importance of showing hospitality towards the guests. He explains that guests arriving for Jalsa arrive in accordance with the instruction of the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) and in this way they are the guests of the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace). He has also said that serving the guests and seeing to their comfort is the privilege of each worker and has reminded volunteers to carry out their duties with smiles on their faces.  

For those of us fortunate enough to live near the site of Jalsa Salana here in the UK, hosting guests is a natural part of Jalsa time, both at Jalsa and in our homes. When my parents first moved to Aldershot, Jalsa took place in Islamabad in Tilford, before moving to Hadeeqatul Mahdi, near Alton; they immediately opened up their home to guests, both family members and strangers from abroad that needed a place to stay. For the next thirty years they would get mattresses out and allocate sleeping areas, sometimes leaving themselves to sleep on the treadmill! At the same time my mother served in the Islamabad accommodation department and would often be receiving guests and seeing to their needs until late into the night before returning home to her own by then sleeping guests.  

My daughters and I have also been fortunate to serve in accommodation and hospitality departments of Islamabad and Hadeeqatul Mahdi, receiving and transporting guests and their luggage to the marquees set up for them and making sure they are comfortable. Being part of the camaraderie of the guests and their excitement at being at Jalsa is infectious and makes us want to do as good a job of looking after them as we are able. In recent years I have also been in departments hosting non-Muslim guests of Jalsa, showing them around and talking to them about a Jalsa experience with which they are often unfamiliar.  

In his addresses about Jalsa, as well as speaking to volunteers about the importance of looking after guests, His Holiness Mirza Masroor Ahmad (may Allah be his Helper) reminds guests to listen to the volunteers who are serving at Jalsa so everything runs smoothly. He also reminds them to leave their Jalsa accommodation, whether at the Jalsa site or in private homes, so as not to overstay their welcome and put their hosts to any difficulty. I have never thought of myself as a guest but there have been odd years when I wasn’t able to volunteer and was among the thousands of women who attended and sat in the marquees listening to the programme; however in those years my home was still open to guests from around the world so I was able to look after them.  

I was interested in what Lajna in my family did in the past to look after guests and heard from my aunt about Jalsas in Qadian. She and her sisters would move out of their rooms and spread hay across the floor so guests could put their bedding on it and have a comfortable rest. Every morning and evening they would run to the langar and bring food which they would serve to the guests before clearing everything away. After partition they moved to Pakistan and began attending Jalsa in Rabwah as guests themselves, looked after in the same way.  

In this centenary year of Lajna Ima’illah, it’s been fascinating to prepare to serve the guests of the Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) and learn how women in my family did the same during the early years of Lajna and afterwards. Being part of Lajna Ima’illah gives us so much and regularly looking after Jalsa guests both in our homes and at the Jalsa site has added to our skills as well as hopefully making our guests happy and pleasing God.  

It’s time to start preparing to serve at Jalsa Salana UK, which I am doing by making sure I have my ID card, volunteer duty badge and a smile at the ready.