Why Islam is my choice — Page 143
143 Jam ā ‘at will be paradise bound. It was not a minor incident because it was the first time in the history of Isl ā m in 1974 that such a major infamous decision was taken by a Pakistani government joining hands with all the 72 sects of Muslims. They all got together, all united, and they all fully co- operated with each other to fight against a tiny Muslim A ḥ madiyyah Jam ā ‘at. It was more astonishing to know that prior to their co-operation, all these Muslim Sects differed each other with a great animosity. This incident triggered in my heart to approach the A ḥ madiyyah mosque in a hurry and initiated into A ḥ madiyyat with the help of respected Ghul ā m A ḥ mad Kh ā n, then the president of Chittagong Jam ā ‘at. Even though I took the Bai‘at, I was still not 100% convinced, therefore I felt urge to search more about A ḥ madiyyat. So in 1977, I planned to go to Rabwah, Pakistan, to attend the Annual Convention. Rabwah was also the International Headquarter of the A ḥ madiyyah Muslim Jam ā ‘at. My intentions were not only to attend the convention but also to see for myself the A ḥ madi character. I attended the convention and felt spiritual awakening in my soul. As a guest, I slept in guest quarters, I ate with them and mixed with all social classes of the people. I must confess, I was very pleased with their discipline and their organization, especially how they organized and conducted themselves. I still remember the beautiful and soul moving scene when innocent looking small children were offering water to thirsty guests in the crowd. I also noticed that their overall cleanliness was exceptional despite the fact that there was a crowd of over 200,000. I also felt the loving attention and humble service given to the guests during the convention. It was kind of a living miracle to see 200,000 people being fed breakfast, lunch and dinner in a very short span of time by all volunteer work for the sake of the religion of Isl ā m. All I