Introduction to the Study of The Holy Quran — Page 320
320 that a tree is known by its fruit. The Quran yields its fruits in every age and those who are devoted to it become the recipients of divine revelation and God manifests His powers through them. Why should we not, in our search for the truth, seek assistance not only from reason and reflection but also from our observation of the fruits that other Scriptures yield? The world would be materially assisted in its search for truth if Christians could persuade the Pope or other high Church dignitaries to put forward the revelations received by them as against those received by me for the purpose of determining which of them are true manifestations of God’s power and knowledge. The Pope and other ecclesiastics whose predecessors, in defiance of the pacific teachings of Jesus, were ever eager to incite Christendom to undertake Crusades against Muslim States, should be only too eager to embrace the opportunity of participating in this spiritual crusade. If they were inclined to accept, or could be persuaded by their followers to accept, this invitation, it might prove an effective means for healing the spiritual ills from which mankind has so long suffered. The Majesty and Power of God would then manifest itself in an extraordinary manner and would help to establish the faith of man and guide his spiritual development, Acknowledgements In conclusion I desire to acknowledge the inestimable services rendered by Maulawi Sher ‘Ali, B. A. , who has, in spite of feeble and failing health, devoted so large a portion of his time to the translation of the text into English. I also wish to thank him along with Mirza Bashir Ahmad, M. A. , Malik Ghulam Farid, M. A. , and the late Ch. Abul-Hashim Khan, M. A. , for the labour they have devoted to extracting from my speeches and writings the material upon which the Explanatory Notes are based and to preparing these Notes. I have not had the opportunity of perusing these Notes but, having regard to the experience and devotion of these gentlemen, I am sure they must have interpreted correctly that which I have through divine grace been able to acquire in this behalf directly from the Quran or the teachings of the Promised Messiah. I would also like to take this opportunity of thanking Qadi Muhammad Aslam, M. A. , Professor, Government College, Lahore, and Sir Muhammad Zafrulla Khan, who have rendered this General Introduction from Urdu into English. I pray that God may anoint all of them and their descendants with the perfume of His blessings and should watch over them and help them both in this life and the next. Amen! I also desire to state that since I was a pupil of the late Maulawi Nur-ud-Din, Khalifatul-Masih I, a good deal of what I acquired from him is reflected in the Explanatory Notes. Thus these Notes are, in fact, based upon the interpretation of the Quran by the Promised Messiah, the First Khalifah and myself. Since God had