Ahmadiyyat or Qadianism! Islam or Apostasy? — Page 193
'If the year 1891 AD or 1208 Hijra, when the Messiah [Hazrat Mirza. Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian] declared himself Messiah is supposed to be equivalent to his descent, then he lived for 16 years after his claim. ' 15. The question which one needs to ask this critic is whether there is any justifiable basis for this calculation in Islam and, if there is, where does one find the criterion for this in either the Holy Quran or the Traditions of our beloved Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon Him. . If on the other hand there is no such criterion laid down by either the. Holy Quran or the Traditions of our beloved Prophet, peace be upon him, then on what authority do the opponents of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam. Ahmad calculate his span of prophethood in this manner?. THE QURANIC CRITERION. To determine the span of a claimant's prophethood, one must initially determine that precise moment when the claimant is first deemed to have been chosen as an apostle of Almighty Allah. And what better precedent could there be to determine this than the one set by God. Almighty Himself ?. According to the wisdom of the Holy Quran, our Lord and Master,. Allah the Exalted, bestows apostleship upon whom He chooses. The. Glorious Book states: 'He is the Knower of the Unseen and He reveals not His secrets to anyone except to a Messenger of His whom He chooses. ' 16. Hence, this verse of the Noble Quran suggests that a person can, without fear of contradiction, be called a Messenger of God Almighty from that point in time when he first receives 'knowledge of the Unseen from God' since He does not reveal the 'secrets of the Unseen to anyone except to him whom He chooses as His Messenger. '. To apply this rule to Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian, one 15. Hasan, S: The Truth About Ahmadiyyat: pg 6 194 16. Al Quran 72. 27/28