Khalifatul-Masih I — Page 17
A Thirst for Knowledge Around 1853, when Hazrat Maulawi Noor-ud- Deen ra was 12 years old, he fell ill with diphtheria,² which is a serious bacterial infection. He was in Lahore at that time, where his family had a printing press. Hazrat Maulawi Noor-ud-Deen ra was treated by a well-known physician named Hakeem Ghulam Dastagir. Inspired by Hakeem Ghulam Dastagir, he developed an interest in learning Medicine. His elder brother, Maulawi Sultan Ahmad-who was very well-educated himself—took great interest in the upbringing of Hazrat Maulawi Noor-ud-Deen ra. He sent Hazrat Maulawi Noor-ud-Deen ra to Munshi Muhammad Qasim, a Persian scholar, to learn the Persian language. Hazrat Maulawi Noor-ud-Deenra acquired a good knowledge of Persian. ³ At the same time, he began learning the art of calligraphy. Even