Flowers for the Women Wearing Veils - Volume I — Page 250
! ! 250 the b urqa cannot be blamed. However, the weakness which has developed must be remedied. Thus , it is necessary to reform the se shortcomings. Nothing should be imitat ed blindly. Islam is neither of the East nor of the West, so Muslim s should neither copy Asia n or the West. Therefore, do not blindly follow anyone ; Asia i s not continuing the type of p u rdah which is customary there, nor is Europe in discontinuing p u rdah , bec ause it is not observed there. Instead , we shoul d avoid both extremes and tread upon the right path. (Al - Fazl, December 11, 1928: Number: 47, Volume:16) Address to the Ladies a t the Occasion of Jalsa Salana Hazrat Mirza Bashir - ud - D in Mahmud Ahmad, Khalifat - ul - Masih II ra December 1928 After the recitation of Tashah h ud and Surah Al - Fatihah , Haz rat Khalifa t - ul - Masih II ra stated: I consider it an immense Grace of God that He has enabled me to speak today. If due to illness my voice does not reach anyone, she should not leave. H er reward is based on intention. If she sits with the intention to listen, then the voice will reach her. Regardless , if the intention is there, then at least she will attain her reward. The se gatherings are held for the sake of the religion of God. Thousands, or actually m illions of people travel to M ecc a every year and return after performing Hajj. Some return after making the circuit around the Ka ‘ ba h , whereas others return after perform ing ‘ Umra h , for they do not have the opportunity to perform Hajj. Nonetheless, God Almighty has declared Hajj a grand occasion. N o speech is given there, no lecture, no discourse. Only one sermon is given , which may be heard by a few hundred individuals. God has endowed g reat honor to Hajj. Several people return, having engaged merely in idle talk yet