True Teachings Of Islam

Azam Ali, an Ahmadi Moslem

   Chapter 00 – INTRODUCTION

Father

Abba Ji told of several events of my childhood including the following.

Abba Ji took me to our village mosque. I was very young. Everyone started praying in the congregation, but I soon started playing on prayer-mats. Before starting the second set of prayers father scolded me to stop playing and start praying. I joined the prayers but soon again started running around. This time, however, every few seconds I stopped, looked towards him and said, “Abba Ji you ….”  I addressed him repeating his own words with which he had scolded me.

He used to say that I quickly learnt from him what he did, remembered it despite my age, copied him, and continued repeating his words. Children indeed do what they see parents do, not necessarily hear what they say. 

I was about 3. Abba Ji had our family belongings packed in several wooden crates due to his civil service transfer from one city to another. He told my mother to put a hammer and chisel in one box hat could be opened first at our destination and then open other wooden crates easily.

After reaching the destination to which Father had been transferred and unloading the boxes and the crates from the truck, Father asked my mother about the box with the hammer.

My mother with small children, quick packing, travel and several similar looking boxes could not pinpoint the box with the hammer. My father was getting agitated when I moved forward, grabbed his hand, dragged him to a box, and pointed it with my finger. They opened the box and found the hammer. A possibly unhappy episode was diverted before it precipitated.

Abba Ji attributed the incident to my observation while packing, remembering the box, and taking initiative to defuse rising tempers. I had shown early learning what he did all his life — defusing rising angers wherever he saw in his relatives, village or professional field of law.

Father in my eyes

This is a true story of a man addressed as Chaudhri and named Azam Ali. His mission in life was to practice the teachings of the Holy Qor-aan as a real Moslem, an Ahmadi Moslem.

I know a lawyer father who raised all his three children as lawyers. I know a doctor father who raised both his daughters as doctors. I know a businessman father who raised both his sons as businessman. I know a sportsman father who is raising all his three children as sportsmen. No wonder our Ahmadi Moslem father raised all seven of his living children as Ahmadi Moslems.

This true story is of my father. He was born in Buttar family of village Kirto, District (formerly) Sheikhupura, Punjab, Pakistan. We addressed him as Abba Ji. I have talked of him in this book as Abba Ji, Father and my father which all refer to only him.

This true story is how my father stands in my eyes even today – perceived in mind, preserved in memories, and presented in manuscript. All the lasting impressions he left on my mind until his transition in 1980 cannot be put in one document, but that is my perspective.

For example, while entering two steps into my residence, I slipped. I was a strong and sturdy man of 38. Behind me was Father 73, then frail and weak. Instantaneously he extended his hand to hold me from falling. He then asked, “Are you alright?” That was my father to me.

This true story is of a man who loved many in his own way by his conduct, was loved by many in different ways, and yet he seldom used the word love for anyone because in his mind it was equivalent to letting one’s emotions get the upper hand and lose self-control.

This story is not a biography of a great controversial public figure deserving discussion, dissection, discrediting his strengths or describing his shortcomings. He outstandingly changed and marvelously improved the lives of many including his father, brothers, cousins, relatives, friends, village, courts of justice, children and grandchildren.

This life-sketch is of a person who lived a physical life like any other human being but left behind his example of spiritual life as a great legacy. He was an ordinary man who achieved extraordinary results. He provided an inspiration for ordinary folks who want to reach stars.

This is my attempt to show the glimpses of a glorious picture I see, even when it is hard to describe. Not that as a man he had no shortcomings or weaknesses, but he had lot more virtues. His strengths of character caught my eye, and that picture froze in my mind. I have often prayed and will keep on praying for him the following concept (1) with the following words (2).                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 (1)  Lay yo-kauf-fay-ra  al-laa-ho  un  hoom  us-wa-aa  la-zee  aa-ma-loo                                      Wa  yauj-zay-ya  hoom  uj-ra  hoom  bay  ah-sa-na  ul-la-zee                                                    Kaa  noo  yau-ma-loo-n                                 سُوۡرَةُ الزُّمَر   –  Ch: 039, Verse 036

So that He may forgive them all that they did occasionally                                         And award them their reward with the much better one that which                      They used to practice and perform habitually and continually.    039:036

(2)  Ee-yaa  ka  nau-bo-do  wa  ee-yaa  ka  nus-ta-een                                                                                                                    سُوۡرَةُ الفَاتِحَة – Ch: 001, Verse 005                                                                  Only You we worship.  And only You we beseech                 001:005

It is an ever-fresh memory of an ordinary man who lived (1901-1980) in the 20^th century AD, but an extraordinary Moslem who loved and lived in his mind with his mentor, the Best Exemplar (033:022) the Holy Prophet Mohammed s.a.w.

An Historical Fact

Almighty God’s one rule of universal application in the Holy Qor-aan is as follows.

Wa  ja-ul-naa  koom  sha-oo-bun  wa  qua-baa-aiy-la  lay  ta-aa-ra-foo                                                                                                                                       سُوۡرَةُ الحُجرَات  –  Ch: 049, Verse 014  We formed you into tribes and clans so you can identify each other.   049:014

Baba Nanak was a Saint in the 16th Century AD. He was born Hindu and became a Moslem (See the Commentary Religion, Islam and Sikhs). He traveled to and lived in Moslem countries for many years. He denounced several evils prevalent in the religion he had chosen. He attracted the Moslems who shunned the infestations caused by the clergy worshiping objects besides the God Almighty, promoting ignorance, encouraging beggary and living on charity doing no work. Soon every one of his flocks who followed him became known as a Sikh which in the Punjabi language equates with the Command: Learn.

The British government in India had published a book that I saw in 1970’s in the hands of Tom Dowling who was the Vice Counsel in the American Embassy in Lahore. The book was a record of the pedigree of notable families of Punjab. The British always preferred the pedigree when looking for bold, courageous, devoted, loyal and sincere workers to lead masses and control them. They obviously looked for the best genes to run their Empire. The list included the Buttar clan who at that time were mostly Sikh.

The Sikh Maharaja Ranjeet Singh (1780 –1839) had a royal wrestler. The legend runs that he publicized that anyone who defeated his wrestler would be rewarded with whoever he chose. One Buttar accepted the challenge and defeated the wrestler. The reward he chose was all that land which his buffalo whose milk he lived on could circle in a day. His wish was granted. He lived on that land with his sons Kartar Singh and Pandora Singh in a hamlet that became known as Kirto. In time, their progeny grew in number, their hamlet expanded in size, and those living in Kirto returned to Iss-laam. Later an irrigation canal was run through their stronghold and divided it into two villages named Kirto and Pandori. The internet maps of early 21st Century AD showed the names of these villages changed to Kirto Sharif and Pandora Sharif.

Moslem Inheritance law (004:012 and 004:013) by the end of 19th century had led to  the fragmented holdings of land among the Buttars of Kirto. The rivalries and violent revenges earned them the notoriety and history of family squabbles and violent feuds that resembled the fabled violent confrontations of Hatfield’s and Mccoy’s in American folklore.

Abba Ji, I believe was the first in the Kirto-Pandori region to go to college, graduate from a law school, become a lawyer, pass Punjab Civil Service exams and join the judiciary of the British Government of India. Almighty God by his grace made him a good Moslem with sound knowledge, and invested him with the desire, the prayers, the determination, the opportunity and the success in reversing the sad historical trend among the Buttars of Kirto. Being equipped with those blessings helped him to pull the Buttar clan out of the feuds of the dark ages to the world of the education and progress of the modern times.

One big Factor

 Usually, hard work on meeting opportunity strikes the fusion called success. The outcome manifests favorable results and the credit goes to the achiever. Father practiced the principles laid in the Holy Qor-aan. Many sects sell for money their doings they label as Islam although the Holy Qor-aan has clearly prohibited.

            Laa  yaush-ta-roo-na  bay  aa-yaa-tay  il-laa-hay  tha-ma-nun  qua-lee-laa                                                                                          سُوۡرَةُ آل عِمرَان         –  Ch: 003, Verse 200                                  They do not sell the signs of Allah for a paltry price.     003:200

Father followed the Truth all his life. He worked his belief when and where he could. He found that implementing Ahmadiyya principles and precepts made practicing Moslems. With a clear conscience he concluded that this sect practiced  Iss-laam and so he joined them.

Father made us aware where we came from, what we were and which direction we should move. He taught us things that I realized later were called self-awareness, self-esteem and self-respect which must never be compromised or allowed to be roughed up by another human. He trained us to develop, protect and preserve our bodies, health, spirituality, life and let nobody ever violate them. He did not raise his children as arrogant, boastful or proud, but taught what every achiever has learnt: self-confidence, self-control and self-motivation are the pre-requisites to succeed with anything of value.

He cautioned us time and again that it was not without any purpose that Allah had raised the Promised Messiah (peace on him) for the 2nd advent of Islam in Punjab. I’m sure there are many reasons why God raised an Urdu-speaking Messiah. People of Punjab with a lack of knowledge and a lot of pride resembled Arabs of the Age of Ignorance among whom the 1st rise of Islam occurred under the banner of the Holy Prophet Mohammed s.a.w.

Punjabi’s skill with languages is well-known. The ability to get education and gain knowledge depends upon communications. The wheels of words are on which the ideas are rolled, expressed, shared and broadcast. Spoken and written words are on which man’s entire evolutionary progress has been based. Punjabi’s ability to learn language is unparallel.

The language alphabets are 26 in English, 29/30 in Arabic, but (36+8=) 44 in Urdu. Compared with those who speak English and can hardly pronounce more than 26 sounds of their alphabets, or Arabic who can hardly pronounce more than 30 sounds of their alphabets, a Punjabi does pronounce all 44 sounds of Urdu alphabets. The mathematical permutations, combinations and possibilities of forming words and phrases from 26 or 30 alphabets are considerably less than those formed with 44 alphabets of Urdu language (shown below) in which Ahmadiyya literature is produced and which our Father urged us to read and master.

Language &     Words with      Words with      Words with      Words with      Word with Alphabets        2 alphabets       3 alphabets       4 alphabets       5 alphabets       6 alphabets

English – 26      676                  17,576             456,976            1,881,3761       308,915,776  Arabic – 30      900                  27,000            810,000        24,300,000       729,000,000  Urdu – 44        1936                 85,184          3,748,096      164,916,224      7,256,313,856

No wonder Abba Ji wanted all his children to read Urdu writings of the Promised Messiah (peace on him). He offered us cash prizes as incentives. Even if the idea was to bag a lot in prizes, I did read a great many of those books.