Truth Prevails — Page 79
( 79 ) Mohammad Ali has tried his best to turn and twist the meaning, to imply that the son in question would come in the fourth century after the Promised Messiah. So he wrote in his Al-Muslihil-Mau’ud: “The way Hazrat Sahib has attempted to interpret this difficult passage, by trying to fit into it various meanings, such as the possibility that it might mean the promised son in some connection or agency, which, for instance might turn three months, or three hours, into four months, or four hours, similarly it is possible that the true meaning of the passage might well turn out to be the fourth century after the prophecy had been made, and that the Muslih Mau’ud in question might turn out to be one who would turn three centuries into four in the sense that he would follow the Promised Messiah in the fourth century after the prophecy had been made. ” In his Khilafat-i-Mahmud and Muslihil Mau’ud , Mir Qasim Ali took Maulvi Mohammad Ali to task over the point, to the following effect: “Would it not mean, that the agency to turn three centuries into four would be the fourth century, not the person of the Muslihil Mau’ud. Suppose the Muslih Mau’ud is not born in the fourth century; the fourth century, even then, would turn the third century into the fourth century or would it not? After the first century of any era has passed, does not the new century turn the first century into the second century? And does not the next century turn the period into the third century? Every one in his proper senses would perceive that the second century of any era turns the first century into the second century; similarly the third century turns the second one into the third century, and the fourth century would turn the third century into the fourth. No human being can turn the first, or second, or third century into the second, or third, or fourth century, quite irrespective of whether the Muslih Mau’ud had been born, or not. Only the fourth century would be able to turn the third century into the fourth century. This cannot be done by any kind of Muslih Mau’ud. ” ( Khilafat-i-Mahmud , page 40) Again: “The person of the Muslih Mau’ud can form no bar against the advent of the fourth century. If you say that the Muslih Mau’ud would be born at the end of the day of the third century, and at the earliest commencement of the night between the third and fourth century, even then it would not be said, in human parlance, that the person born at this particular time, had turned the third century into the fourth. 1) Because this statement would be just a statement that he would be born on that particular day. There is no argument or reason to establish it. 2) Let us assume that this can happen, and it has actually taken place, even then the person of the Muslih