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Aal Imran (Family of Imran)

"Say: O Allah, Owner of the Kingdom, Thou givest the kingdom to whom Thou pleasest, and takest away the kingdom from whom Thou pleasest, and Thou exaltest whom Thou pleasest and abasest whom Thou pleasest. In Thine hand is the good. Surely, Thou art Possessor of power over all things. Thou makest the night to pass into the day and Thou makest the day to pass into the night; and Thou bringest forth the living from the dead and Thou bringest forth the dead from the living; and Thou givest sustenance to whom Thou pleasest without measure." (Ch. 3:25,26)

In my previous lesson on these verses I had mentioned that the heavens and earth obviously belong to One Who has created them, and He Who owns them is indeed their real Ruler. Man who comes to this world empty handed from his mother's womb and leaves it in a similar state, is in fact a vicegerent of the real Master. From amongst mankind He gives power to whom he wants, and takes away power from whom he wants, despite the fact that man may exert his utmost effort to stay in power. The Quranic words, "In Thine hand is the good," indicate that Allah gives power to someone for the sake of goodness and if that person loses it, it is his own fault.

Western domination prophesied by the Holy Quran

Power can belong to an individual or a nation. In the last few centuries, on an international level, one cannot site a global historical example similar in scope to the worldwide western domination. A case in point is that of the British who rose as a small island nation and eventually dominated the whole world. They would proudly remark that the sun never sets on the British empire. The British empire was marked in red on the world maps of the era and one could see the red color everywhere on the map.

Besides the British, other western nations had their own colonies spread throughout Africa, Asia and the West Indies. Was such international domination achieved by these nations on there own? This was certainly not the case. The Quranic verses under discussion tell us that the giving of the kingdom is in the hands of Allah the Most High. This was a manifestation of His Will and was prophesied in the Holy Quran ahead of time in the verse:

"Even when Gog and Magog are let loose and they sally forth (yansiloon) from every elevated place" (21:96).

People at the time did not understand or appreciate this exposition of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad. Now, however, they all seem to understand. For example, the famous poet and philosopher of the East, Dr. Sir Muhammad Iqbal, has written:

"All the armies of the Gog and Magog have been let loose, The eye of the Muslim should behold this explanation of the (Quranic) word yansiloon" (See above verse 21: 96).

Maulana Muhammad Ali, the famous commentator of the Holy Quran, has also given a unique explanation of the sallying forth of Gog and Magog from every elevated place. In his book, the Ahmadiyya Movement, on page 114 he states:

"This can have only one meaning, that Europe will dominate the world. In fact, by using the phrase kul-i hadabin (every elevated place), it is indicated that this domination will include not only the land and the physical elements, but will also be inclusive of their influence over the human psyche and their superiority in scientific knowledge, for the word hadab (elevated place) signifies all of this. The dominant influence of Europe over the rest of the world and its way of thinking provides truthful testimony in support of the Quranic statement, 'and they sally forth from every elevated place' (21:96). Thus the matter, which at present has become the apparent means of weakness and domination of Islam, is itself also a clear proof of its truth."

For what purpose did the European colonialist powers use their political and military might and the effect of their scientific development over the thought process of the subject nations? It was obviously utilized to hold and establish their power in the colonies, in fact to perpetuate it forever. To accomplish this, they evolved a premeditated scheme to convert the subject nations to their own religion, Christianity. According to this scheme, hordes of missionaries, doctors with Christian evangelistic fervor and teachers of missionary schools, belonging to both genders, were let loose in the towns and villages of the colonies. They received support from the local European officials who in those days were in charge of every district and branch of Government. The power of government was used to influence people to convert to Christianity. The colonial subjects of the backward African nations could only receive education, employment and medical assistance if they converted to Christianity. The people of the Indian subcontinent, which had not yet divided into the countries of Pakistan and India, were somewhat more sophisticated. They were, however, also enticed to accept Christianity by the offer of educational opportunities and medical assistance through missionary schools, colleges and medical dispensaries. In addition to this, employment opportunities, land grants, favorable business contracts and all other forms of facilities were offered.

Historical and documentary evidence can be sited in support of this statement, that it was the official policy of the British Government to encourage conversion of its colonial subjects to Christianity. In the Urdu publication Ulama-i-haq aur unke mujahiddana kar-namay translated by Syed Muhammad Mian Sahib (administrator of Jamiat-ul-ulema-i-Hind) on page 25 it is stated that a member of the British parliament, Mr. Inglis, while speaking on this subject remarked: "The Lord God this day has made us witness to the British sovereign rule over the Indian empire so that the banner of Jesus the Messiah may fly from its one end to the other. Every individual should spend all of his strength to accomplish the glorious task of converting India to Christianity and should not show any apathy in this matter."

Mr. Charles Wood, the minister for India, who was in charge of the affairs of the Indian Government, remarked in his conversation with a delegation which had met with him on this matter in 1862: "It is my firm belief that every new convert to Christianity in India becomes a new link of unity with England and is a new source of strength for the empire." The British Prime Minister stated in his speech to the parliament: "It is my understanding that we are all united in our purpose. Not only is it our duty, but our own interest lies in this matter that we encourage propagation of Christianity as much as possible and spread it all over India."

Of note also is the opinion of the high ranking British officials in India. For example, the Governor of India Sir Henry Lawrence said: "Nothing can strengthen our rule more then this that we spread Christianity through out India." Sir Donald McLeod, who was the Governor of the Punjab, remarked: "I want to express my firm belief that if we want to safeguard our rule in India, we should strive our utmost to convert this country to Christianity."

When the British Prime Minister, the Minister for India and the Governor were all articulating this policy, it becomes quite obvious that instructions in this matter were also given to the British officers in India who were in charge of all the key positions in the Indian districts and subdivisions. These blatant pressure tactics led to the rebellion of 1857 in India. Sir Syed Ahmad Khan, who was considered a friend and well-wisher of the British, wrote in his book, "The causes of the Indian Mutiny", that the prime reason for the mutiny of 1857 was the blatant pressure of the British officials upon the people to convert to Christianity. The mutiny of 1857 was crushed by the British with their military might in such a manner that the people did not dare to rise again.