(In light of Qadiani’s own Writings)
Mirza Ghulam hated to be exposed as an incompetent debater and an impostor. After a loss, it was his habit to take adds in local newspapers to claim victory, abuse and threaten his opponents, prophecise regarding their death, or challenge them to Mubahala (religious prayer challenge). A group of Muslim scholars, tired of Mirza’s repeated abuse, decided to take him on and accepted his challenge of Mubahala.
Mirza Ghulam refused to participate in the Mubahala, but continued harassing his opponents in newspapers and claimed that Muslim scholars were afraid to accept his challenge of Mubahala!
Wanting to expose his hypocrisy, these same scholars filed a law-suit against Mirza Ghulam. Mirza was ordered to appear in a court of law on February 24, 1899. During the hearing, the judge gave Mirza Ghulam the option of conducting a Mubahala with Muslim Scholars or taking an oath that he would not resort to such shameful tactiques in the future. Mirza Ghulam chose to apologize and promised to stop threatening the lives of his opponents by writing “prophecies” intended to agitate his overzealous followers. He wrote:
“I, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Qadiani, do hereby swear upon God that in future:
- I will refrain from publishing any prophecy whose meaning is such that as if somebody (Muslim, Hindu, or a Christian) is going to be humiliated or he will receive divine punishment.
- I will also refrain from making any such appeal to God that He should humiliate someone or to show such sign that he is afflicted with divine punishment, to reveal that who is truthful and who is a liar in a religious debate.
- I will also refrain from publishing anything pretending it to be a revelation, whose purpose is to show as to who is going to be humiliated or is going to be afflicted with divine punishment.
- As far as is in my power, I will ask all those who are under my influence to follow the same path which I have pledged to take as mentioned above.
Signed: Mirza Ghulam Ahmad
Witness: Khawaja Kamaluddin, BA Llb
Signed: J. M. Dowie, District Magistrate, Gurdaspur
Dated 24th February 1899″
(Roohnay Khazaen, Vol. 15, P. 430-450)
By taking this action, Mirza Ghulam showed that he was indeed afraid of participating in a face-to-face Mubahala with Muslim scholars. However, just a few weeks later, Mirza Ghulam was back running his old gimmick. By restarting his newspaper adds, Mirza Ghulam also showed that he did not put any value on the solemn oath he had taken on Allah(SWT).
Is this what a Muslim would do? Mirza Ghulam was indeed misguided.