Invitation to Ahmadiyyat — Page 285
285 matter for a well-known preacher and author to at once fall silent. It was proof that in his heart he knew Islam to be true and was afraid that he had made a mistake in opposing it. His ordeal did not end with his silence, for he was thrown into a spiritual hell and suffered great mental anguish thinking that he had made a grave error. This thought became so ingrained in his mind that he started to have hallucinations. According to what he told his rela - tives, at times he would see snakes or rabid dogs or spear-wielding men about to attack him. These were not real experiences because snakes and dogs cannot be trained to do such things, nor are people in India free to move around carrying arms. This was an inner tor - ment that was caused by his guilt for supporting Christianity and being hostile towards Islam. This was a substitute for the greater Hell to which he would have been consigned had he remained adamant. If his faith in Christianity had been intact and he still considered Islam to be false, why would he suffer from such hal - lucinations where he was being chased by imaginary snakes and dogs? If he did not feel that God was against him, why did He see all creatures as his mortal enemies, and why did he stop speaking and writing on behalf of Christianity and run from town to town? In short, the second part of the prophecy relating to A tham repenting and turning to God—which was seemingly more improbable than the first one—was also fulfilled in an amazing way, so that he began to doubt the divinity of Christ and started to realize the truth of Islam. Even though his inner torment had brought him close to death, God caused him to remain alive for fifteen months so that the prophecy which said that he would be saved if he repented would be fulfilled. This was a powerful prophecy that was enough to open people’s