Barahin-e-Ahmadiyya Part IV — Page 42
BarĀhĪn-e-a H madiyya — Part Four 42 among the Christians and Jews. On the one hand, they looked at the Holy Prophet and found him totally unlettered, without an iota of training or instruction, and without any exposure to civilized society or the opportunity to attend scholarly discourses. On the other hand, they found that the Holy Quran encompassed not only the narratives contained in the earlier scriptures, but also hundreds of subtle verities that perfected and completed those earlier scriptures. By pondering over the unlettered state of the Holy Prophet, and then, during such a time of darkness, observing his perfect knowledge, and witnessing his manifest and inner light, the truth of the prophet- hood of the Holy Prophet saw became as evident to them as the shining sun. Obviously, if these Christian scholars were not fully convinced that the Holy Prophet saw was unlettered and the recipient of divine help, it would not have been possible for them to renounce their reli- gion—which enjoyed the support of the great Roman Empire, and which had spread beyond Asia into some parts of Europe, and which, because of its idolatrous teachings, appeared attractive and dear to the materialists—merely on the basis of some tenuous conjectures, nor would they have accepted a religion that was detested by all idolaters on account of its teaching of Tau hi d and whose followers were con- stantly under the threat of annihilation and persecution from every direction. Thus, what drew their hearts toward Islam was naught but the fact that they found the Holy Prophet saw totally unlettered, yet fully strengthened by Allah, and found the Holy Quran to be beyond human capabilities. In addition, they used to read glad tidings in the earlier scriptures about that Last Prophet, so God opened their hearts to believe and they proved to be so faithful that they laid down their lives in the path of God. When we look at the circumstances of even those among the Christians, Jews, and Arabs who were ignorant, wicked, and extremely mischievous, we find that they also firmly believed that the Holy Prophet was unlettered. That is why, when they tested his propheth- ood by questioning him about certain biblical stories and invariably