The Conclusive Argument — Page 75
Mirza Ghulam Ahmad 75 realized what apprehension must have driven him to refer the understanding of [his] arguments to his own mind. I admonish him through this book to deposit 1,000 rupees by the end of June 1894 with Khwaja Yusuf Shah, Sheikh Ghulam Hasan, and Mir Mahmud Shah—that is, with these three col- lectively—and inform me by way of their handwritten receipt wherein they declare that they have received 1,000 rupees and announce that if Mirza Ghulam Ahmad —i. e. the author— proves victorious, this amount will be handed to him without delay and Rusul Baba will have nothing to do with it. This written statement is necessary so that I am fully satisfied that the money has been deposited with the arbitrators; thereafter, I can engage myself in refutation of Maulaw i Rusul Baba’s book. I am even will- ing to accept, to settle the matter once and for all, that Sheikh Muhammad Husain Batalavi, or any other malicious person, is appointed to pass the verdict on this issue. To deliver the verdict, this alone will suffice that Sheikh Batalavi read Maulaw i Rusul Baba’s book as well as mine from start to finish and swear an oath in a public gathering. The content of the oath shall be: ‘Audience! I have seen both the books from start to end and I swear by Allah Almighty that, in fact, Maulaw i Rusul Baba’s book definitively and conclusively proves the life of Jesus and the answers offered by the opponent in his book fail to demolish his [Rusul Baba’s] arguments. If I have lied or concealed in my heart anything con- trary to this statement, then I pray that I may suffer from leprosy within one year, or become blind, or die of some evil affliction. ’ At this, all those present should say out loud three times: a m i n, a m i n, a m i n. Thereupon, the gathering shall conclude. Then, if the one who takes such an oath remains safe from these