Conditions of Bai'at and Responsibilities of an Ahmadi — Page 12
C ONDITIONS OF B AI ‘ AT AND R ESPONSIBILITIES OF AN A H MAD I 12 does what He desires. All strength and power belong to Him. ( Majm u ‘ah Ishtih a r a t, vol. 1, pp. 196-198) In the same announcement, the Promised Messiah as said that those who wish to make bai‘at should arrive in Ludhiana after March 20, 1889. Beginning of the System of Bai‘at In accordance with the above announcement, the Promised Messiah as took the pledge of allegiance on March 23, 1889 at the house of Hadrat Sufi Ahmad J a n Sahib located in Ma h alla Jad i d. As narrated by Hadrat Munsh i ‘Abdull a h ra of Sanour, a register was prepared to record this historical event. It was called bai‘at for repentance, seeking righteousness and purification. In those days, the Promised Messiah as used to invite people one by one to take bai‘at in a room and then he took bai‘at from each person individually. The first person whose bai‘at was accepted was Hadrat Maul ana N u r-ud-D i n ra. Admon- ishing those who took this bai‘at , the Promised Messiah as said: By joining this Jam a ‘at, you should bring about a complete transformation in your former life so that you have true faith in Allah, and He becomes your Helper in all calamities. You should not take His ordinances lightly, but should rather honour every one of His commandments and prove such honour in your actions. To turn towards worldly means for various reasons and to place your trust in them instead of trusting Allah amount to making partners with Allah, as if you were denying the exist- ence of God. You should consider worldly means only to the