The Descent of the Messiah — Page 71
HADRAT MIRZA GHULAM AHMADAS abic, but my condition is that we should first talk verbally about the beliefs in which we differ and that Maulawi Muhammad Hussain should be the arbiter. If the said arbiter then says that the beliefs of Pir Mehr Ali Shah are correct and accurate and he has given sufficient proof of his beliefs, then the opposite party (meaning myself) would be compelled to offer allegiance to Pir Mehr Ali Shah without delay. Thereafter, the contest in writing Tafsir can also be held. " Just look at the craftiness of it! When Maulawi Muhammad Hussain and Pir Mehr Ali Shah already agree on the doctrine of the descent and ascension of the Messiah, how could Maulawi Muhammad Hussain possibly say that the beliefs of Pir Mehr Ali Shah are not correct or that his evidence is false? When they hold the same beliefs, how could he have contradicted Pir Mehr Ali Shah? However, in the matter of eloquence and articulacy, which can be judged by a Muslim as well as a non-Muslim, even an opponent would not dare award a certificate to one whose writing is dull and flimsy and replete with errors of grammar and syntax. Thus, with the publication of the book I'jāzul-Masīḥ, Pir Mehr Ali Shah was again given another opportunity, if pos- sible, to invalidate through his intellectual prowess my brilliance that is leading hundreds of people to enter the fold of allegiance, but he became dumb like someone with whom one can barely talk even in sign language. All he did was present a few sentenc- es out of a book of two hundred pages claiming that these have been plagiarised from the Maqāmāt-e-Harīrī, etc. and cite one or two printing errors as grammatical mistakes, and, owing to his ignorance, labelled some eloquent and elegant structures as inel- oquent and erroneous. Such are the spiritual leaders of this country who, having un- justly usurped the title of Maulawi, have forever placed a dark 71