The Essence of Islam – Volume III — Page 420
420 Essence of Islam-III me with death within one year. " We shall say Āmīn to this supplication. If the supplica- tion is not fulfilled within one year, and Mr. 'Abdullāh Ātham is not afflicted within that period in the manner in which the false ones are afflicted, I shall pay him one thousand rupees as penalty. [Majmū'ah Ishtihārāt, vol. 2, pp. 23-30] I do not wish to trouble Mr. 'Abdullah Ātham to come to my place of residence in Amritsar. On his invitation, I shall go to his residence with one thousand rupees. . . . He will have to take no trouble whatever. I will also not re- quire him to make his affirmation standing up or sitting down. He may keep lying on his bed and simply make his required announcement three times. [Majmū'ah Ishtihārāt, vol. 2, p. 52] If some bigoted and senseless people should still enter- tain doubts, I hereby make this second announcement, offering an award of two thousand rupees. If Mr. Ātham affirms on oath three times, in a public meeting, that his heart has not in the least been affected by the greatness of Islām during the period of the prophecy, and he has throughout remained an enemy of Islām, having a firm faith in the sonship and divinity of Jesus and in the doc- trine of atonement, I shall immediately pay him two thousand rupees, according to the conditions laid down in my announcement of 9th September, 1894. . . . If Mr. Ātham should still refuse to take the proposed oath, everyone should then note that he has concealed the truth out of his fear of the Christians and that Islām is su- preme and victorious. . . . Our opponents should keep in mind that Mr. Atham will never make the affirmation on oath. Why would he not