Khilafat Centenary Souvenir 1908-2008 — Page 154
Khilafat Centenary flogged. Rasheed repeatedl y witnessed men in both circumstances. Personal Gift The second Khalifa ra narrated an incident in which Umar ibn Khattabr a, the second Khalifa to the Hol y Prophet saw gave a ruler suffering from migraines his old cap as a remedy. Although the ruler was accustomed to wearing lavish garments, the cap was old and worn. However the ruler continued to wear the cap because it remedied his migraines, which would return when the cap was taken off. After telling Rasheed this story, the second Khalifa ra gave him his old kulla, the cap around which the turban cloth is wrapped. A piece of a shirt of the Promised Messiah as was sewn into it by the hands of Huzur's wife, Umme-Nasir, the mother of the third Khalifa, Hadhrat Mirza Nasir Ahmad ru. Rasheed has treasured this auspicious cap his whole life, well- aware of its intrinsic value. . Marriage While in Pakistan, Rasheed 's teacher, Master Muhammad Khalil, offered him his youngest daughter, Sairah Qudsia, who was eighteen years old, in marriage, Muhammad Khalil was departing to Sierra Leone for missionary work and wished to see all of his three daughters married before he left. When Rasheed informed the second Khalifa ra that he planned on marrying this woman, he was questioned on how he could know her character when the observance of purdah (veil) was so strong in Rabwah? Huzur ra then arranged for his wife to look into the marriage proposal, and they were both satisfied with Sairah's background. However, Rasheed had a dream which troubled him about this proposa l- He had seen three bottles of milk and the one with the oldest date was being presented to him, while the other two were fresher. Rasheed interpreted this to mean that he was getting the least desirable of the three daughters, since fresh milk is better than old milk. He brought this to the attention of Huzur ra. Huzurra interpreted Rasheed's dream much differently. He stated that if milk represents Islam, then the oldest Islam, that of the Holy Prophet saw , is the best. Therefore , Rasheed was getting the best of the three daughters. Huzur ra proceeded to arrange Rasheed 's marriage with Sairah Qudsia, and took care of all the expenses, including the bride's dress and ring. Sairah gave birth to three children: Mureed Ahmad (1952) , Nasirah Ahmad (1953), and Mahmud Ahmad (1954). As it turned out, Sairah Qudsia outlived both of her sisters, and was most active in thejama'at , serving as a teacher in Nusrat Girl's Academy and also in the Lajna Imaillah (women's auxiliary of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community). 1953 Disturbances In 1953, there were disturbances throughout the Punjab against Ahmadi Muslims. There were hearings by the Pakistani government to investigate the situation. Rasheed was privileged to receive a court floor pass from the court secretary and sat along with the second Khalifa ra andjama'at representatives defending the Ahmadi position. Rasheed witnessed Chief Justice Munir as he pointed out the inability of Muslim scholars to agree on something as fundamental as the definition of 'Muslim'. He ultimatel y, would not rule Ahmadis as non-Muslims because the non-Ahmadi Muslims could not agree on what a Muslim was. This case was heard in the English language. Assassination Attempt On March 10, 19 54 when the Zuhr azan (call to the midday prayer) had just been called, Rasheed arose to go to the mosque. There was a place in Masjid Mubarak which he regularly occupied behind the Khalifa ra and all understood that Rasheed would pray there. However, Rasheed 's wife went into labor and requested Rasheed to find the midwife. On his way to find the midwife , Rasheed discovered that Huzur ra had been stabbed in the neck while in prayer. Rasheed rushed to the mosque. There he saw a group of Ahmadis pouncing upon the would- be assailant and Huzur ra holding the back of his neck with blood dripping down his hand and arm, sa ying (in Urdu) "Don't kill the fool. " In accordance with Huzur's ra instructions, the 154