Signs of the Living God — Page 22
Hazrat Mirza Bashir-ud-Din Mahmud Ahmad 22 An editorial note which accompanied the prophecy gave particular emphasis to this part of it. It said: The description is of a complex character and its dire details are dreadful enough to cause a shudder and make one’s hair stand on end. . . But the name of [the] Russian Tsar attaches special interest to the predicted event. 21 The prophecy was then republished in the [ Review of Religions ] of September 1914, June 1915 and January 1916. The prophecy was relayed in such clear terms that I need not go into a detailed explanation here. In plain words it stated that during the impending war, the Tsar of the Russian Empire would suffer a miserable plight and become an object of sympathy. In Urdu, the words used to express the condition of the Tsar are— احل زار ( haal-e-zaar )—which mean to lose all of one’s means and become so helpless that one’s misery and ruin are obvious to see. When this prophecy was first published, there was no indication of the events that have suddenly unfolded before us today in 1917. It is true that the Russians were at war with Japan, but [at the time of the prophecy] negotiations for peace had begun 21 Review of Religions, August 1914, p. 307 [Publishers]