Lecture Lahore — Page 44
44 the end of the fourteenth century as the time for the ad- vent of the Messiah of the latter day, and most Muslims believe that the time of the dominance of Islam is at hand. I have also heard some Pundits of the San a tan Dharam proclaim that the time is ripe for the coming of their last Avatar who will cause their faith to spread all over the world. The A ryas, even though they do not believe in prophecies, have also been affected by this wind of change, and are exerting all their efforts to spread their faith in Asia, Europe, America, Japan, etc. Oddly enough, even the Buddhists are beginning to cherish such ambi- tions. And, humorous as it may sound, even Ch u r a s , or menials, of this country have been stirred by the desire to protect themselves against the hostility of other communi- ties and to at least protect their own faith. A new wind is thus blowing in the land. Every religion and community is zealously striving for its own suprem- acy at the cost of others, and faiths are grappling with one another like waves in a tempest. This, therefore, is the time when God Almighty had destined to put an end to all religious differences and to bring all religions together into one fold. It is with reference to this time and age, when wave will fall upon wave, that the Holy Quran says: 30 In its context the verse means that when the world will become filled with religious wrangling, and religion will 30 Al-Kahf, 18:100 [Publishers]