Malfuzat – Volume III — Page 220
220 Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad His Holiness as : Is it my fault that you do not know Arabic grammar? This is your own fault. I am against turning the Quran into a book that is wrapped up and carried around as a keepsake. The Holy Quran was revealed for the unlettered upon a man who was himself unlettered. If we should not derive argumentation from the Holy Quran, shall we do so from some shastra? The Muslims have a special relationship with Arabic and it is their own misfor- tune that they do not give it the attention it deserves. However, the matter under discussion is so obvious that no intricate knowledge of Arabic mor- phology and syntax is required. Even the ordinary man knows the meaning of mutawaffi. 1 Mahdi Hasan: In the Word of Allah, when tawaffi has been used for the Messiah, on what basis is it established that someone would appear in the likeness of the Messiah? His Holiness as : On the basis of the Quran. Mahdi Hasan: Does your good self believe that the Hadith on this issue are authentic or fabricated? His Holiness as : My principle is that I believe in those Hadith to be authen- tic which accord with the clear and manifest verses of the Holy Quran. However, as for those Hadith which apparently contradict the principles of the Holy Quran, I will endeavour to interpret them in a manner that they accord and agree with the manifest verses of the Book of Allah. If I come across a Hadith that is contrary to the text of the Holy Quran and I am unable to reconcile it in any way with the Quran, I shall disregard such a Hadith as a fabrication and as a statement that is worthy of being rejected. For the rank of the Hadith does not match that of the Holy Quran. Mahdi Hasan: Invariably, this principle is correct, but does my good sir accept the Hadith which specifically relate to the son of Mary, or are they invalid in your view? His Holiness as : I have already said that my principle in relation to the Hadith is that if they contradict the clear pronouncements of the Holy Quran in every respect, I never accept them. So in view of this very principle, if it 1 Al-Hakam , vol. 5, no. 32, dated 31 August 1901, pp. 10-12