Ahmadiyyat - The Renaissance of Islam — Page 332
332 AHMADIYY AT which they put in reassuring terms. The speed with which the injury was apparently healed also served to reassure everyone; but its after effects persisted and it 'soon became apparent that he was not able to maintain his activities at the level at which he was accustomed to work. He was 65 years of age, had never been in robust health, had always driven himselfhard and had given himself little respite. He was now called upon to pay part of the price. On the other hand, but for the sheer grace and mercy of God, the injury might have proved instantaneously fatal. ID-deed, the surgeons were sur- prised that his life had been spared. The blade of the knife had penetrated into his neck a distance of four inches and its point had stopped right at the jugular vein. The examination of the surgeons and the X-ray impressions failed to reveal any injury to the vein itself. But as the patient, even after the apparently complete healing of the wound, continued to suffer discomfort and unease, he was riot satisfied that all was well with him; though the repeated examinations carried out by the surgeons disclosed no cause for the discomfort. They hoped that the passage of time would complete the process of inner healing and the slight strain on the nervous system would gradually be eased and would ultimately be removed altogether, but this prognostication was not completely ful- filled, and the Khalifatul Masih decided in 1955 to proceed to Europe and seek expert medical and surgical advice. He was examined very thoroughly by top experts in Zurich, Hamburg and London with such assistance as could be drawn from X-ray impressions, etc. , and the unanimous conclusion was that the point of the knife had broken at the jugular vein and was embedded in'it. The expert advice was that no attempt should be made to extricate it as the risk to his life involved in any such operation was too serious to be worth taking. It was hoped that the pressure on the vein and the consequent effect on the nervous system might be slowly eased and the patient be able to resume his activities at a reduced tempo. He was advised to adopt a restful pattern of ' life and to avoid hard work and long periods of sustained