Malfuzat – Volume III — Page 64
64 Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad ‘Our Lord Christ, Our Lord Christ. ’ There was no one who proclaimed the name of God. The great and glorious name of Allah Almighty was hidden behind a million veils. When Allah the Lord of Glory chose to bestow His favour upon the world, He raised Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him. The name of the Holy Prophet sa is Muhammad, which means ‘the one who is exceed- ingly praised. ’ This name is in the measure of the form known as taf ’il in Arabic grammar. 1 The wisdom in this name is that an individual is worthy of praise to a degree that is equal to the level of their work. The Prophets of previous ages were sent to their respective peoples and one significant aspect previously lacking was that a grand reformation of magnificent proportions was not required in those times. For example, when the Messiah, peace be upon him, appeared, he came only to gather the lost tribes of the children of Israel and the Jews already pos- sessed the Torah. These very teachings of the Torah were deemed sufficient for practice at that time. The Jews believed in the commandments and teachings of the Torah and acted upon it; albeit, there were certain moral weaknesses that had taken root in them. Now, it is obviously clear that to merely rid the people of their moral weakness- es and identify their deficiencies is no great achievement. Even an ordinary per- son can do so and be a preacher of good morals. This is why the Messiah was not named Muhammad. For the services of the Messiah were not as great. Similarly, when Moses, peace be upon him, appeared, although he brought a divine law, his major task was to free the children of Israel from servitude to the Pharaoh—even though, after 400 years of bitter affliction, the people themselves as a nation were ready and waiting for a reason to rise up and go forth. The essential groundwork was prepared and the only required element was a motivating spark or catalyst. When any individual is forcibly or unjustly inflicted with pain, they naturally seek a means of deliverance from their suffering and work to free themselves. As such, when the children of Israel were suffering under the bondage of Pharaoh and at a time when they were secretly engaged in thoughts of securing their own freedom anyway, Moses, peace be upon him, who was divinely commissioned by Allah Almighty, announced that he would deliver the children of Israel from the bondage of Pharaoh; and when he did so, the people were ready at once to follow him. If one carefully reflects over the circumstances and accounts that surround 1 In the Arabic language, verbs and nouns in the measure of taf 'il convey a number of additional nuanc- es compared to their basic analogues, including intensity, extensiveness and repetition. [Publisher] p. 58