Voice of British Muslim Women

Maria Anwar, Bradford South

From time immemorial, before the earth and before life as we know it came into existence, the Hand of Allah has been guiding the development of all things. Allah is the “Lord of all the worlds,”ⁱ guiding everything into its perfect place; making water spring forth, fruits grow, positioning the sun and the moon at the perfect distance from the earth – everything has been provided to sustain life on our planet through his Graciousness.

In the same way, He is the Guide on “the right path”.ⁱⁱ In step with evolution the capacity of spiritual enlightenment has also grown, from the God-consciousness innate in every man from the very beginning to the perfect teachings contained in the Holy Quran allowing mankind to reach new heights. Around eight billion people are estimated to live on planet earth today, and in addition, many billions of lives have passed before us. On this sandy beach of past, present and future humankind, we are but an insignificant grain; and being one such insignificant grain, I am astonished at how Allah chose to guide me to Islam Ahmadiyyat.

It started as a voice within, a wish, perhaps a prayer I can say now, but certainly wouldn’t have called it that over twenty years ago. “Why am I here? What is my purpose?” Later this became, “Is there a God?” and then “Where are You?” I observed evolution as described, the passage of time, I marvelled at how our earth is perfect, the universe vast and incomprehensible. Surely, this did not come together by accident. When realisation dawned, it was as if my heart said: “Our Lord, Thou hast not created this in vain.”ⁱⁱⁱ

Like the Promised Messiah, His Holiness Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (peace be on him), came from the unknown village of Qadian, in India, I also come from an unknown village in a completely different part of the world where at that time there were no Muslims and atheism was (and still is) the norm. Despite studying in a capital city in a very multicultural society, it was on a visit back to my small village that I encountered the true Islam. My prayer had ascended to the heavens and Allah’s Hand was at work, His guiding light shining on the path before me. From thereon, Al Hadi, became my Guide in life. Whichever task lays before me, I ask His guidance.

Whenever someone enquires from His Holiness Mirza Masroor Ahmad, Khalifatul Masih V (may Allah be his Helper) about how to gain closeness to Allah or how to find one’s way in life, he always draws our attention to prayer with emphasis on Surah Al Fatiha, verse 6, “Guide us in the right path.” To ask for guidance is imperative and never stops.

But what about people of other religions, people of no faith? Do they not receive guidance? I have witnessed such people seeing true dreams, and yet they do not take this as a sign from God Almighty but brush it off as one of those things we just don’t understand. It has been a reoccurring question for me throughout my life, because I am, as mentioned, just an insignificant grain of sand. There is nothing special about me that I should be guided and others not. I have often wondered why this happens. In his treatise, Elucidation of Objectives, the Promised Messiah, His Holiness Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (peace be on him), says the following about revelation:

“The fact that out of the forty-six parts of the angelic light of Gabriel, only one part covers and is distributed over the entire world. No sinner or evildoer even of the first order is outside its purview … Hence, not a single human being in the world is totally left out in the dark. Even the lowest of the low retains a minuscule particle of this love for his true homeland and the true Beloved ”^iv

All people have this God consciousness inside them. The question is, are we taking God as our Guide when we see the imprint of Him around us or writing it off as a coincidence?

“And He found thee wandering in search for Him and guided thee unto Himself.”^v

References

i The Holy Quran, Chapter 1, verse 2

ii The Holy Quran, Chapter 1, verse 6

iii The Holy Quran, Chapter 3, verse 192

iv Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, Elucidation of Objectives, pp.68-9, 3rd edition English 2005, India.

v The Holy Quran, Chapter 93, verse 8