Life of Ahmad — Page 284
PREACHES UNTO EAST AND WEST as 284 centuries been in the darkness of unbelief and error, shall be illumined by the Sun of righteousness, and shall share in the blessings of Islam. And I once saw myself (in a vision) standing on a pulpit in London and delivering a reasoned speech in English on the truth of Islam and thereafter catching several white-feathered birds sitting on small trees, whose bodies resembled those of partridges. I understood this to mean that, though it may not be given to me to proceed personally to London, my writings would be published among those people and many righteous Englishmen would fall a prey to the truth. Western countries have so far not been conspicuous for their attachment to spiritual truths, as if God had bestowed spiritual wisdom on the East only and wisdom of the world on Europe and America. All the Prophets as from the first to the last have appeared in Asia, and spiritual men other than the Prophets who attained nearness to God have also been confined to the Eastern peoples. But God wishes now to extend His Beneficence to the West'. ( Iz a la’-e-Auh a m , p. 516) The meaning of this passage is perfectly clear. Many years ago God informed the Promised Messiah as that Islam would be propagated in Europe through him, that the means of such propagation would be his writings, and that in the end the West would share the