Malfuzat – Volume II — Page 170
170 Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad There is a prophecy in the incident mentioned in this verse. Now, I do not wish to prolong the discussion any further. I conclude by stating that the titles ‘Mahdi’ and ‘Messiah’ are two designations for the same individual, and they shed light on the two capacities of one man—namely his duty to repel evil and propagate goodness. It is a shame that while the scholars accept in the spiritual sense the manifestation that will come to propagate goodness, they reject the manifesta- tion of the one whose task it was to repel evil. ” 1 Emphasis on Returning to the Centre Repeatedly In December of 1899 very few people came to attend the Annual Convention (in Qadian). His Holiness, the Promised Messiah, on whom be peace, expressed deep regret and said: “At present, people are ignorant of our objectives and are unaware of what I would like to see them become. The objective that I seek and the purpose for which God Almighty has raised me cannot be fulfilled until peo- ple come here again and again, and do not tire in the least from travelling here. ” Then, the Promised Messiah as said: “Anyone who believes that it is burden- some for them to come here, or who thinks that their staying here will burden me, should fear, for they are guilty of associating partners with Allah. I believe that even if the entire world was to become my household, it is God Almighty who would see to my affairs. I am not burdened in the least. The presence of my friends gives me immense pleasure. Such an idea is an evil thought that must be thrown away from the heart. I have heard people say: ‘Why should we sit here and burden his Holiness? We are useless; why sit here and break bread for noth- ing?’ Such people must remember that these are satanic thoughts which Satan plants in their hearts so that they may be turned away from here. ” One day, Hakeem Fazl Din Sahib ra submitted: “Your holiness, what do I do sitting here idle? If you instruct, I shall return to Bhera. There, at least I can teach the Holy Quran. Here, I feel a sense of extreme embarrassment, because I am of no use to you, and perhaps I may be guilty of sin, sitting here idle. ” The Promised Messiah as said: “Your sitting here is a Jihad and your ‘uselessness’ is a great task. ” In short, the Promised Messiah as expressed his displeasure at those who did not attend with words full of immense anguish and regret. He said: “These people who make excuses are of the same ilk as those who made excuses before his Holi- ness, the Chief of the World, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him saying: 1 Al-Hakam , vol. 5, no. 15, dated 24 April 1901, pp. 1-5