With Love to Muhammad (sa) - The Khatam-un-Nabiyyin — Page 42
42 With Love to Muhammad sa the Kh ā tam-un-Nabiyy ī n 1. The method of analysis of the words of the Qur’ ā n by Ahmad ī Muslims is erroneous. 2. One must analyze how the Holy Prophet sa defined the word kh ā tam , instead of going to external sources. 3. One must look at how Hazrat Mirz ā Ghul ā m Ahmad as used the word kh ā tam in his writings. These objections will now be discussed one by one. Method of Analysis of Qur’ ā nic Words While discussing the method of analysis of Qur’ ā nic words, Farhan Khan explains that the mufassir ū n [i. e. , writers of commentaries of the Qur’ ā n] would commonly refer to Arabic poetry and literature to understand the meaning of words. He then explains that this is only applicable to Arabic poetry and/or literature from the pre-Isl ā mic period or the period contemporary to the Qur’ ā n. To illustrate his point, he writes that the word “sal ā h” ( ۃ ) used to mean blessing or connection at the time of the Holy Prophet Muhammad sa but over time, it evolved to mean ritual prayer. In other words, in later periods, the Arabic language began to evolve and the usage of certain words, including kh ā tam , began to change. Hence, the meanings of words from later periods cannot be applied to their usage in the Holy Qur’ ā n or ah ā d ī th. In conclusion to his argument, Farhan Khan says, “. . . hypothetically, even if the meaning of Kh ā tam did evolve to mean ‘best,’ the modern evolution of Arabic does not retroactively change the meaning of the Qur’ ā n. ” 24 Although we must give credit to Farhan Khan for his creative ignorance, we are forced to expose his deceit. Our rebuttal to his long ramblings about the alleged evolution of the 24 Khan, With Love , Page 44