Life of Ahmad — Page 822
REMOVES A MISCONCEPTION as 822 new law. He also pointed out that it was not necessary for every Prophet to be a law bearer. He said further: 'Wherever I have denied being a Prophet or a Messenger of God, I have denied only in the sense that I have not brought an independent law. Nor am I an independent Prophet; but I am a Messenger and Prophet of God in the sense that, by acquiring spiritual blessings in following the Holy Prophet sa and getting his name, I have been granted by God, through him, abundant knowledge of the future, without any new law. I have never denied being called such a Prophet. God has indeed called me a Prophet and a Messenger in the same sense. ' He claimed that he was the true and perfect image of the Holy Prophet sa and that, therefore, there was no question of breaking the seal of his prophethood. This leaflet ( Eik Ghala ti K a Iz a la ) marks a very great change in Ahmad’s as conception of prophethood; and in view of the later schism brought about among the community by the Lahore seceders it would not be out of place to throw here some light upon the significance of this change. For the previous ten years Ahmad as had been assuring the world that he did not lay any claim to prophethocd 185 and now in 185 See Iz a la’-i-Auh a m pp. 421, 422, 614; A sm a n i Fai s la pp. 3, 9, 29, 42; Nish a n-e- A sm a n i p. 28; Tu h fa’-e-Baghdad pp. 7, 27;. A ’ i na Kam a l a t-e- Islam , pp. 224, 237-9, 337; Sir a j -e- Mun i r pp. 2, 3; Ayy a mu s S ula h p. 146, Tu h fa Golarwiyya p. 83; Arba'in No. 2 , p. 18; etc.