Mahzarnama (The Memorandum) — Page 164
164 Mahzarnama not offer daily-prayer behind the prayer-leaders of any of the aforementioned sects? For God's sake, do some justice! Have a modicum of fear of God. Have some sense of obligation to being the followers of our lord and master Hadhrat Muhammad, the chosen one sa , who was the personification of justice. Tell us, how far are the atrocities and injustices being perpetrated against Ahmadis by the ulema of the majority of the aforementioned sects, justified? How far such conduct is becoming of a Muslim; how far does it behove any humble follower of the one who was "Mercy for the Universe"? If one does offer prayers behind them, one is branded as kaafir; if one does not offer prayers behind them, one is still branded as kaafir! It is a no-win situation. What is one supposed to do? Is the only way left for one to retain Islam as his faith is to abstain altogether from offering prayer in congregation—as the majority among the generality of Muslim has already done? The sum total of the decrees issued by the ulema of this age seems to be: give up offering daily-prayers, if you want to retain your identity as a Muslim; otherwise, regardless of who you pray behind, you will be determined to be a certified kaafir and Hell- bound. The sole escape-route was to not offer prayer behind any of the aforesaid groups—but, with reference to Ahmadis, even this route has been closed by issuing fataawa to this effect that: those who do not offer prayer behind any other Muslim sect, are declared as kaafirs. A "non-Muslim minority" is kaafir even if it offers daily-prayers; but if it does not offer daily prayers, it still is kaafir! What can one do? Where can one go? As Aatish, the poet, remarked: Unless one courts one's early death, What else is left for one to do? Some wise-man wrote the following sardonic fable to illustrate