Lecture Ludhiana — Page 1
1 2 Delivered by the Promised Messiah before a large audience on 4 November 1905 I begin by acknowledging my gratitude to Allah the Almighty Who has once again given me the opportunity to visit this town and convey His message to its citizens. When I was here 14 years ago, I had but a few compan- ions and my opponents were ever so vocal in condemning me as a liar, non-believer and Antichrist. In their eyes I was as one both damned and accursed. They thought it was only a short matter of time before my Jama'at would stand rejected and, as a result, disintegrate to ultimately vanish without a trace. To achieve this end, plots were hatched and extensive efforts were made culminating in a religious edict— fatwa— which declared me and my Jama'at to be outside the pale of Islam. This edict was widely circulated in India, and, I regret to say, that some Muslim clerics from this very town were among the first to pronounce it. But as I can see, and all of you stand witness, they are no 1 ‘In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful. ’ [Translator] 2 ‘We praise Allah and invoke His blessings upon His noble Prophet sa. ’ [Translator]