The Finality of Prophethood and the Deviation of So-Called Muslims

أن الحمد لله نحمده ونصلى على رسول الله أما بعد أعوذبالله من الشيطان الرجيم بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم قال تبارك و تعالى

ما كان مُحَمَّدٌ أَبَا أَحَدٍ مِّن رِجَالِكُمْ وَلَكِن رَّسُولَ اللَّهِ وَخَاتَمَ النَّبِيِّينَ وَكَانَ اللهُ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ عَلِيماً

O people! None of your men is the father of Muhammad ﷺ, but he is the Messenger of Allah and the Seal of the Prophets, and Allah is fully aware of everything.
When Allah, the Glorious and Exalted, sent any of His servants for the growth and guidance of humanity in this creation, falsehood stood as an obstacle in his path and struggled hard to suppress growth and guidance and to establish its false ideologies. Because Allah, the Glorious and Exalted, has made a firm promise that He will deliver His religion to sincere servants, as the Almighty says:

وَاللَّهُ مُتِمُّ نُورِهِ وَلَوْ كَرِهَ الْكَافِرُونَ

“Allah will perfect His light, although the disbelievers dislike it.”

At another place, it is stated:

يُرِيدُونَ أَن يُطْفِئُوا نُورَ اللَّهِ بِأَفْوَاهِهِمْ وَيَأْبَى اللَّهُ إِلَّا أَن يُتِمَّ نُورَهُ وَلَوْ كَرِهَ الْكَافِرُونَ ‎﴿٣٢﴾

“They want to extinguish Allah’s light with their mouths, but Allah refuses except to perfect His light, although the disbelievers dislike it.”

Therefore, falsehood had to be defeated and destroyed. When Sayyid Adam (peace be upon him) was sent by Allah for the guidance of mankind, Iblis came forward with his satanic intentions and expressed himself thus:

قَالَ فَبِمَا أَغْوَيْتَنِي لَأَقْعُدَنَّ لَهُمْ صِرَاطَكَ الْمُسْتَقِيمَ ‎﴿١٦﴾‏ ثُمَّ لَآتِيَنَّهُم مِّن بَيْنِ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَمِنْ خَلْفِهِمْ وَعَنْ أَيْمَانِهِمْ وَعَن شَمَائِلِهِمْ ۖ وَلَا تَجِدُ أَكْثَرَهُمْ شَاكِرِينَ ‎﴿١٧﴾

He said, “Because You have led me astray, I will surely sit in wait for them on Your straight path. Then I will come at them from before them and from behind them and on their right and on their left, and You will not find most of them grateful.”

When Sayyid Musa (peace be upon him) was given the office of prophethood by Allah to stop the hands filled with the oppression of Pharaoh and to call them to His straight path, Pharaoh came forward with his oppressive behavior and false ideologies against Allah’s beloved servant. Allah’s Quran describes the false ideas of Pharaoh and his people as follows:

فَلَمَّا جَاءَهُم مُّوسَىٰ بِآيَاتِنَا بَيِّنَاتٍ قَالُوا مَا هَٰذَا إِلَّا سِحْرٌ مُّفْتَرًى وَمَا سَمِعْنَا بِهَٰذَا فِي آبَائِنَا الْأَوَّلِينَ ‎﴿٣٦﴾

So when Musa came to them with Our clear signs, they said, “This is nothing but fabricated magic; we have never heard of this among our forefathers.”

At another place, it is stated:

قَالَ الْمَلَأُ مِن قَوْمِ فِرْعَوْنَ إِنَّ هَٰذَا لَسَاحِرٌ عَلِيمٌ ‎﴿١٠٩﴾‏ يُرِيدُ أَن يُخْرِجَكُم مِّنْ أَرْضِكُمْ ۖ فَمَاذَا تَأْمُرُونَ ‎﴿١١٠﴾‏ قَالُوا أَرْجِهْ وَأَخَاهُ وَأَرْسِلْ فِي الْمَدَائِنِ حَاشِرِينَ ‎﴿١١١﴾‏ يَأْتُوكَ بِكُلِّ سَاحِرٍ عَلِيمٍ ‎﴿١١٢﴾

The chiefs of Pharaoh’s people said, “Indeed, this is a learned magician who wants to drive you out of your land. What do you advise?” They said, “Postpone them and their brother and send among the cities gatherers who will bring you every learned magician.”

When Sayyid Ibrahim (peace be upon him) was sent to convey the message of monotheism to the people of the world, Nimrod, the king of the time who called himself God and claimed divine attributes, came before Allah’s friend Sayyid Ibrahim (peace be upon him) as a form of falsehood. However, he could not stand long before the servant of Allah who was imbued with the belief of monotheism, and Allah destroyed his impure body in such a way that it became a lesson for the rest of the world forever. He expressed his impure thoughts before Ibrahim (peace be upon him). Allah’s Quran explains this as follows:

أَلَمْ تَرَ إِلَى الَّذِي حَاجَّ إِبْرَاهِيمَ فِي رَبِّهِ أَنْ آتَاهُ اللَّهُ الْمُلْكَ إِذْ قَالَ إِبْرَاهِيمُ رَبِّيَ الَّذِي يُحْيِي وَيُمِيتُ قَالَ أَنَا أُحْيِي وَأُمِيتُ ۖ قَالَ إِبْرَاهِيمُ فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ يَأْتِي بِالشَّمْسِ مِنَ الْمَشْرِقِ فَأْتِ بِهَا مِنَ الْمَغْرِبِ فَبُهِتَ الَّذِي كَفَرَ ۗ وَاللَّهُ لَا يَهْدِي الْقَوْمَ الظَّالِمِينَ ‎﴿٢٥٨﴾

Have you not considered those who disputed with Ibrahim about his Lord, because Allah had given him kingship? When Ibrahim said, “My Lord is the one who gives life and causes death,” he said, “I give life and cause death.” Ibrahim said, “Indeed, Allah brings up the sun from the east, so bring it up from the west.” So the disbeliever was overwhelmed. And Allah does not guide the wrongdoing people.

When Sayyid Ibrahim (peace be upon him) was building the Kaaba, he made some supplications, one of which was:

رَبَّنَا وَ ابْعَثُ فِيهِمْ رَسُولاً مِّنهم

“O our Lord, send among them a messenger from themselves.”

Allah, the Majestic and Generous, honored Ibrahim’s supplication and when the land of Arabia was full of oppression and tyranny, human rights were completely lost, and people were deprived of freedom living their lives in slavery, oppression, and disgrace, the Creator of the universe sent the embodiment of mercy, the Prophet ﷺ, as the light of guidance for the growth and guidance of mankind. When the Noble Prophet ﷺ declared prophethood at the age of forty, those who used to sacrifice wealth and life became ready to treat him worse than foreigners:
The one to whom everything was sacrificed as his own,
Today he turned out to be the enemy of my life.
Some were those who, despite knowing the prophethood of Muhammad ﷺ, could not believe in it due to personal enmity, such as the chiefs of Quraysh. Some denied the prophethood of the Noble Prophet ﷺ and tried to declare themselves prophets. The Prophet ﷺ foretold that thirty false prophets would appear until the Day of Judgment, as the prophetic saying is:

ان بين يدى الساعة ثلاثين كل آبا رجالا كلهم يزعم أنه نبی۔

Before the Day of Judgment, thirty liars will appear, all claiming prophethood.

According to the Prophet’s ﷺ prediction, from the prophetic era until today, claimants of false prophethood have appeared, but in every era, the devotees of the Book and Sunnah have sacrificed everything to protect the finality of prophethood.
Until I die, I will not bow down to anyone but the honor of Khawaja Yathrib,
God is my complete witness, my faith cannot be otherwise.
The third category are those who outwardly recite the Kalima of Tawhid, claim Islam, and present themselves in such a way that one might think there is no believer or protector of prophethood greater than them in this world. But if examined closely, their condition is no different from Musaylimah the liar and Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Qadiani. The only difference between them is that Mirza and Musaylimah openly attacked the prophethood of Muhammad ﷺ, while these people, under the veil of the Book and Sunnah, also called themselves Ahl al-Imtiaz (people of distinction), extremely pious, but due to their weak and insufficient knowledge, they condemned the division of “legislative” and “non-legislative” and remained deprived of the true understanding of the prophethood of Muhammad ﷺ.
Your heights were not recognized; this is the fault of my understanding,
Otherwise, on your path, there is the Kaaba somewhere, and Mount Sinai somewhere.
Every person who possesses intellect and wisdom and whose hearts and minds are loyal to Muhammad ﷺ will certainly have no place for such objectionable ideas and thoughts. True love and affection for the Prophet ﷺ demand that one does not give space to such denial about these people because their condition is like that of hypocrites, as Allah says:

وَإِذَا قِيلَ لَهُمْ آمِنُوا كَمَا آمَنَ النَّاسُ قَالُوا أَنُؤْمِنُ كَمَا آمَنَ السُّفَهَاءُ ۗ أَلَا إِنَّهُمْ هُمُ السُّفَهَاءُ وَلَٰكِن لَّا يَعْلَمُونَ ‎﴿١٣﴾‏ وَإِذَا لَقُوا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا قَالُوا آمَنَّا وَإِذَا خَلَوْا إِلَىٰ شَيَاطِينِهِمْ قَالُوا إِنَّا مَعَكُمْ إِنَّمَا نَحْنُ مُسْتَهْزِئُونَ ‎﴿١٤﴾

And when it is said to them, “Believe as the people have believed,” they say, “Should we believe as the fools have believed?” Beware, indeed they are the fools, but they do not know. And when they meet the believers, they say, “We believe”; but when they are alone with their evil ones, they say, “Indeed, we are with you; we were only mocking.”

You may wonder who these people are? I inform you that they belong to the Rafidah, the people of Sufism, and the people of personal opinion. To expose their vile beliefs, I have taken up my pen on this extremely delicate subject, and indeed it was necessary because it is a demand of my faith:
When any Dajjal looks at the prophethood and messengership of Sayyiduna Muhammad ﷺ with a biased eye, then life, wealth, and knowledge will also require jihad, and everything will be sacrificed for the protection of the prophethood of Muhammad ﷺ, for:
We have sworn to protect the heritage of prophethood.

Rafidah and the Belief in the Finality of Prophethood

The group that denied the belief in the finality of prophethood under the guise of the Imamate of the Imams, even before Mirzaiyyat, is the Rafidah group. The belief in the finality of prophethood is such a belief that there is no option to include its view within the fold of Islam. The Rafidah sect denies this belief and it has no existence in their religion; rather, they have given the status and rank of a prophet to an ordinary person. Among the Shia, it is established that their Imams possess the following four attributes:
➊ The Imams are appointed by Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, i.e., they are divinely appointed.
➋ They are infallible.
➌ Obedience to them is obligatory.
➍ Revelation also descends upon the Imams.
If examined closely, these four attributes are the special characteristics of prophethood. If these are accepted in a non-prophet, then no, and the distinction of a non-prophet is lost. The greatness and dignity of the prophet or the status and rank of the prophet have been attributed to the Imams, and this belief has laid the foundation of the Shia that prophethood has not ended yet, but it is still ongoing under the guise of the Imamate of the Imams, and the twelve Imams are not only Imams but in reality, they are twelve prophets (نعوذ باللہ من ذالک). Now I will explain these four attributes in order, which are the special characteristics of prophethood, but the Shia have proven them for their Imams and thereby attempted to nullify the finality of Muhammad’s ﷺ prophethood:

Prophethood:

Allah Almighty sent the Noble Prophet ﷺ for the guidance and growth of humanity, as is evident from the following texts:
➊ At the time of the construction of the Kaaba, our master Ibrahim (peace be upon him) prayed before the Lord of Glory that Allah send among them, i.e., the people of Makkah, a messenger who would guide them towards guidance. So Allah Almighty accepted the prayer of Ibrahim (peace be upon him) and created Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, for their guidance. This is indicated in the Divine Word as follows:

رَبَّنَا وَابْعَثْ فِيهِمْ رَسُولًا مِّنْهُمْ يَتْلُو عَلَيْهِمْ آيَاتِكَ وَيُعَلِّمُهُمُ الْكِتَابَ وَالْحِكْمَةَ وَيُزَكِّيهِمْ ۚ إِنَّكَ أَنتَ الْعَزِيزُ الْحَكِيمُ ‎﴿١٢٩﴾

Our Lord, send among them a messenger from themselves who will recite to them Your verses and teach them the Book and wisdom and purify them. Indeed, You are the Exalted in Might, the Wise.

At another place, it is stated:

وَإِذْ قَالَ عِيسَى ابْنُ مَرْيَمَ يَا بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ إِنِّي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ إِلَيْكُم مُّصَدِّقًا لِّمَا بَيْنَ يَدَيَّ مِنَ التَّوْرَاةِ وَمُبَشِّرًا بِرَسُولٍ يَأْتِي مِن بَعْدِي اسْمُهُ أَحْمَدُ ۖ فَلَمَّا جَاءَهُم بِالْبَيِّنَاتِ قَالُوا هَٰذَا سِحْرٌ مُّبِينٌ ‎﴿٦﴾‏

And when Jesus, the son of Mary, said, “O Children of Israel, indeed I am the messenger of Allah to you confirming what came before me of the Torah and bringing good tidings of a messenger to come after me, whose name is Ahmad.” But when he came to them with clear evidences, they said, “This is obvious magic.”

The Noble Prophet ﷺ said:
I am the prayer of my father Ibrahim (peace be upon him), the glad tidings of my master Isa, and the dream of my mother.

Regarding the mission of the Prophet, Allah Almighty said at another place:

لَقَدْ مَنَّ اللَّهُ عَلَى الْمُؤْمِنِينَ إِذْ بَعَثَ فِيهِمْ رَسُولًا مِّنْ أَنفُسِهِمْ يَتْلُو عَلَيْهِمْ آيَاتِهِ وَيُزَكِّيهِمْ وَيُعَلِّمُهُمُ الْكِتَابَ وَالْحِكْمَةَ وَإِن كَانُوا مِن قَبْلُ لَفِي ضَلَالٍ مُّبِينٍ ‎﴿١٦٤﴾

Indeed, Allah conferred a great favor on the believers when He sent among them a messenger from themselves who recites to them His verses and purifies them and teaches them the Book and wisdom, although they had been before in manifest error.

This verse is also from Allah regarding the prophetic mission ﷺ. Allah Almighty bestowed a favor on the original faith by sending His great Prophet ﷺ for their guidance.
At a third place, Allah Almighty mentioned the prophetic mission ﷺ in these words:

كَمَا أَرْسَلْنَا فِيكُمْ رَسُولًا مِّنكُمْ يَتْلُو عَلَيْكُمْ آيَاتِنَا وَيُزَكِّيكُمْ وَيُعَلِّمُكُمُ الْكِتَابَ وَالْحِكْمَةَ وَيُعَلِّمُكُم مَّا لَمْ تَكُونُوا تَعْلَمُونَ ‎﴿١٥١﴾‏

Just as We have sent among you a messenger from yourselves reciting to you Our verses and purifying you and teaching you the Book and wisdom and teaching you that which you did not know.

In this verse, Allah Almighty also mentions the mission of the Noble Prophet ﷺ and, like the previous verses, mentions the purposes of the prophetic mission, i.e., the arrival of Mustafa ﷺ aims to recite the Quranic verses before the people, purify the soul, teach the Book and wisdom, which the Noble Prophet ﷺ fulfilled completely during his thirty-year life and then met his true Creator.
At a fourth place, Allah Almighty mentioned the prophetic mission ﷺ as follows:

وَإِذْ أَخَذَ اللَّهُ مِيثَاقَ النَّبِيِّينَ لَمَا آتَيْتُكُم مِّن كِتَابٍ وَحِكْمَةٍ ثُمَّ جَاءَكُمْ رَسُولٌ مُّصَدِّقٌ لِّمَا مَعَكُمْ لَتُؤْمِنُنَّ بِهِ وَلَتَنصُرُنَّهُ ۚ قَالَ أَأَقْرَرْتُمْ وَأَخَذْتُمْ عَلَىٰ ذَٰلِكُمْ إِصْرِي ۖ قَالُوا أَقْرَرْنَا ۚ قَالَ فَاشْهَدُوا وَأَنَا مَعَكُم مِّنَ الشَّاهِدِينَ ‎﴿٨١﴾‏ فَمَن تَوَلَّىٰ بَعْدَ ذَٰلِكَ فَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْفَاسِقُونَ ‎﴿٨٢﴾‏

And when Allah took a covenant from the prophets, [saying], “Whatever I give you of the Book and wisdom and then there comes to you a messenger confirming what is with you, you must believe in him and support him.” He said, “Do you agree and accept this covenant?” They said, “We agree.” He said, “Then bear witness, and I am with you among the witnesses.” And whoever turns away after that – they are the defiantly disobedient.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Huraira that the Messenger of Allah said:
’’انما بعثت لاتمم مكارم الاخلاق ‘‘
I have been sent to perfect good morals.

Shuaib Arna’ut has authenticated this. From this noble statement of the Mercy to the worlds ﷺ, two things are understood. First, from (انما بعثت) “I have been sent” it is clear that there was one who sent you ﷺ, and who was the sender? There is no doubt that it was Allah Almighty. Thus, it is understood that Allah Almighty sent the Messenger of Allah ﷺ to bring humanity out of servitude to creatures into servitude to Himself. The second point, (لاتیم مکارم الاخلاق) “to perfect good morals,” shows that this noble statement of the Prophet ﷺ is a clear proof of his being the last Prophet. The Prophet ﷺ himself possessed the highest morals, as the Quran of Allah also testifies:

وَإِنَّكَ لَعَلَىٰ خُلُقٍ عَظِيمٍ ‎﴿٤﴾

And indeed, you are of a great moral character.

And he never taught his Ummah anything but noble morals. Now the question arises: when the perfection of noble morals was completed by the Prophet ﷺ, then what kind of morals require the need for a new prophet? Or what kind of morals have been completed by false claimants of prophethood such as the Rafidah’s twelve Imams, Mirza, and other impostors? After reflection and contemplation, من کل الوجوہ this can be a source of comfort for human intellect that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ is the last Prophet and he ﷺ completed all noble morals. Therefore, there is no need for any legislative or non-legislative prophet now. Whoever holds the belief (that a new prophet is needed after the Noble Prophet ﷺ) has no right to be considered a Muslim in fairness.
From all these definitive texts, it is fully established that being appointed by Allah, i.e., being sent, is exclusively the characteristic of prophethood, and this characteristic is unique, meaning it is not found in anything else. Therefore, associating or considering anyone else in this is an insult to the bearer of prophethood and a denial of it.
The Shia have the belief regarding their Imams that they too are appointed by Allah, i.e., sent. Thus, a Rafidi scholar, Mulla Baqir Majlisi, who is highly regarded in his sect and is called Qa’imat al-Muhaddithin, writes in his book

:
“The twelve Imams are appointed by Allah Almighty.”
Another Rafidi, Mullah Muhammad ibn Ya’qub al-Kulayni, attributing to Sayyiduna Ja’far, writes in his book Usul al-Kafi:

وأن الامامة عهد من الله عزوجل معهود لرجال مسلمين ليس للامام أن يرويها عن الذي يكون من بعده.

Indeed, Imamate is a position from Allah, the Exalted, which is assigned specifically to servants. It is not permissible for any Imam to deprive his succeeding Imam of this position (i.e., to take this position from one and give it to another).
(اصول کافی از کلینی باب ان الامامتہ عهد من الله ) Mullah Tabarsi writes that “Each of the twelve Imams was appointed by Allah Almighty.”

For more evidence from Shia books on this subject, see the previous article.
The point is that all those caliphs whom the Muslim masses elected, even if they were the Rightly Guided Caliphs, were illegitimate caliphs. The caliphate and the crown of honor belonged to Sayyiduna Ali or his right, because Allah Almighty had placed the crown of honor on his head through a clear text. The summary of all these texts and statements is that the Shia consider their Imams to be appointed by Allah, like the Prophets and Messengers, while the Muslim Ummah considers the mission only a characteristic of the Prophets and Messengers of Allah. Thus, believing in the appointment of anyone other than the Prophets as sent is the first step towards denying the finality of prophethood, which was taken by Ibn Saba and followed by his followers, who later formed the foundation of the Shia sect.

Obligation of Obedience

Obedience and compliance to the Noble Prophet ﷺ is obligatory upon all people, and whoever neglects this is disobedient and rebellious. The evidences are as follows:

➊ Allah Almighty says:

وَأَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَالرَّسُولَ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُرْحَمُونَ ‎﴿١٣٢﴾‏

“And obey Allah and the Messenger so that you may receive mercy.”

Meaning, the means to attain mercy and forgiveness is obedience to Allah and obedience to the Messenger ﷺ. So, whoever does not obey Allah and His Messenger is considered disobedient, and for him there is no mercy but hardship, i.e., punishment.

➋ Allah Almighty says:

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا أَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَ أَطِيعُوا الرَّسُولَ وَلا تُبْطِلُوا أَعْمَالَكُمْ (۳۳).

“O you who have believed! Obey Allah and obey the Messenger and do not waste your deeds.”

From this verse, it is understood that righteous deeds should be performed while remaining in obedience to His Messenger. Any good deed that is contrary to the way of the Messenger ﷺ is not acceptable to Allah but is wasted. That is why it is said ولا تبطلوا اعمالکم “do not waste your deeds.” As long as deeds are not according to the Sunnah of the Messenger ﷺ, they cannot attain acceptance in the court of Allah. Rather, the one who does so is disobedient to Allah and His Messenger ﷺ.

➌ Allah Almighty says:

قُلْ أَطِيعُوا اللہ والرَّسُولَ فَإِن تَوَلَّوْا فَإِنَّ اللهَ لَا يُحِبُّ الكَافِرِينَ (۳۲)

“Say, ‘Obey Allah and obey the Messenger; but if you turn away – then indeed, Allah does not like the disbelievers.'”

The meaning of this verse is that people should obey Allah and His Messenger ﷺ. If you obey and comply, then you will be beloved to Allah and His Messenger. But if you do not obey and instead disobey and rebel, then you will not be beloved but despised, and you will be punished. In all three verses above, the imperative form is used, and it is an established principle that the true meaning of the imperative, unless there is a contextual indication otherwise, is obligation.

Sayyidna Abu Hurairah narrates that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:

كُل أُمَّتِي يَدْخُلُونَ المَلةَ ، الأَمَنُ أَبي . قَالُوا يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ وَمَنْ يَأْتِي قَالَ « مَنْ أَطَاعَنِي دَخَلَ الحملة، وَمَنْ عَصَانِ فقد أي

“My entire Ummah will enter Paradise except those who refuse to enter it themselves.” The people asked, “O Messenger of Allah ﷺ, who will refuse?” He ﷺ said, “Whoever obeys me will enter Paradise, and whoever disobeys me has refused (to enter Paradise).”

In this noble statement, the Prophet ﷺ mentioned the fruit of obedience to the Messenger ﷺ, and it is also established that the reward of entering Paradise is in return for obedience to the Messenger ﷺ. Because in “Obey me,” the obedience is directed towards the Messenger ﷺ. That is, whoever obeys the Noble Prophet ﷺ will have Paradise. Thus, wherever the hadith indicates the fruit of obedience to the Messenger ﷺ, it also indicates that obedience should be only to the Messenger ﷺ. Obedience to anyone other than the Messenger ﷺ is disobedience, for which Allah Almighty has warned with punishment.

Allah Almighty says:

وَمَن يَعْصِ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ وَيَتَعَدَّ حُدُودَهُ يُدْخِلْهُ نَارًا خَالِدًا فِيهَا وَلَهُ عَذَابٌ مُّهِينٌ ‎﴿١٤﴾‏

“But whoever disobeys Allah and His Messenger and transgresses His limits – He will put him into the Fire to abide eternally therein, and he will have a humiliating punishment.”

From all these texts, it is clear that obedience to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ is obligatory upon people, and whoever neglects it deserves punishment. This is exactly the belief of the Rafidah regarding their Imams. That is, obedience and following the Imams is obligatory upon people. If anyone disobeys any of the twelve Imams or does not consider obedience and following them obligatory, he is a disbeliever and outside the fold of Islam because they are also peers of the noble Prophets in the attributes of prophethood.

Accordingly, Ibn Babawayh al-Qummi and Ibn Shi’a al-Hurrani (died 381 AH) narrate from the eighth Shi’a Imam Ali ibn Musa (peace be upon him) and write:
“The death of the Prophets is their rank; the Imam is the Caliph of Allah. The Imam is the foundation of Islam and its pillar. Prayer, fasting, Hajj, Zakat, and other obligations of religion are not accepted without the Imam. The Imam has the authority to declare things lawful and unlawful. The Imam is the Caliph of Allah and His proof over His servants. In the entire universe, the Imam is the most superior; no one is his equal. These virtues are exclusive and unique like prophethood. The Imam is the treasury of prophethood; his lineage cannot be criticized. Finally, according to the Shi’a, Imam Ali al-Ridha says, ‘He who deserves leadership is obliged to be obeyed,’ meaning the right to authority belongs only to the Imam. His obedience is obligatory upon people.”

Readers should consider how the Rafidah have exaggerated their Imams and placed them alongside the noble Prophets! They have attributed to their Imams what is exclusively the prerogative of prophethood, thereby attempting to undermine the doctrine of the finality of prophethood. The Shi’a scholar al-Tusi writes:

على من الرسول كنفسه طاعه كطاعته و معصیته کمعصیته۔

“Ali (peace be upon him) is like the Messenger ﷺ. Obedience to him is obedience to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and disobedience to him is disobedience to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.”

For more evidences from Shi’a books on this matter, see the previous article.

Dear readers! You have read in the previous pages how the Rafidah have exaggerated their Imams and tried to place them alongside the noble Prophets. The obligation of obedience in the Shi’a sect to their Imams alongside the Prophets is an attempt to undermine the doctrine of the finality of prophethood. This is the second step in the construction of their religion.

Revelation of the Divine Inspiration

From the evidences and texts of the Book and Sunnah, it is as clear as daylight that Allah, the Exalted, sends down revelation upon His Prophets, according to which the noble Prophets themselves act and also urge the people of their respective nations to follow it. However, the Rafidah took a third step and formulated the belief that the Twelve Imams also received regular revelation from Allah just like the noble Prophets. They have written this in many places in their books. Before I present references from their books, I will mention a few evidences from the Book and Sunnah which clearly and evidently show that revelation descends only upon the Prophet. To associate anyone else with this characteristic is an insult to Prophethood and a denial of it. No statement of the Prophet ﷺ was made without revelation.

1. The command of Allah, the Exalted, is:

وَمَا يَنطِقُ عَنِ الْهَوَىٰ ‎﴿٣﴾‏ إِنْ هُوَ إِلَّا وَحْيٌ يُوحَىٰ ‎﴿٤﴾

He does not speak from his own desire. It is only a revelation revealed.

2. In another place, it is mentioned in these words:

اتَّبِعْ مَا أُوحِيَ إِلَيْكَ مِن رَّبِّكَ ۖ لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ۖ وَأَعْرِضْ عَنِ الْمُشْرِكِينَ ‎﴿١٠٦﴾

So follow what is revealed to you from your Lord. There is no deity except Him, and turn away from the polytheists.

These two verses clarify that revelation descends only upon the Prophet ﷺ, according to which he himself acts and commands his people to act.

3. The divine command is:

وَمَا أَرْسَلْنَا قَبْلَكَ إِلَّا رِجَالًا نُّوحِي إِلَيْهِمْ ۖ فَاسْأَلُوا أَهْلَ الذِّكْرِ إِن كُنتُمْ لَا تَعْلَمُونَ ‎﴿٧﴾

Before you, We sent only men to whom We revealed [Our message]. So ask the people of the message if you do not know.

4. The command of Allah, the Exalted, is:

وَمَا أَرْسَلْنَا مِنْ قَبْلِكَ مِنْ رَسُولٍ إِلَّا نُوحِي إِلَيْهِ أَنَّهُ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا أَنَا فَاعْبُدُونِ

And We sent not before you any messenger except that We revealed to him that there is no deity except Me, so worship Me.

5. The command of Allah, the Exalted, is:

كل أوحى إلى أَنَّهُ اسْتَمَعَ نَقرُ مِنَ الجنِ فَقَالُوا إِنَّا سَمِعْنَا قرُ أَنا عَجَباً (۱)

Say, [O Muhammad], “It has been revealed to me that a group of jinn listened and said, ‘Indeed, we have heard an amazing Qur’an.'”

6. The command of Allah, the Exalted, is:

إِنَّا أَوْحَيْنَا إِلَيْكَ كَمَا أَوْحَيْنَا إِلَىٰ نُوحٍ وَالنَّبِيِّينَ مِن بَعْدِهِ ۚ وَأَوْحَيْنَا إِلَىٰ إِبْرَاهِيمَ وَإِسْمَاعِيلَ وَإِسْحَاقَ وَيَعْقُوبَ وَالْأَسْبَاطِ وَعِيسَىٰ وَأَيُّوبَ وَيُونُسَ وَهَارُونَ وَسُلَيْمَانَ ۚ وَآتَيْنَا دَاوُودَ زَبُورًا ‎﴿١٦٣﴾

Indeed, We have revealed to you, [O Muhammad], as We revealed to Noah and the prophets after him. And We revealed to Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, and the Descendants, Jesus, Job, Jonah, Aaron, and Solomon, and to David We gave the book [of Psalms].

7. Umm al-Mu’minin Sayyida Aisha Siddiqah (may Allah be pleased with her) narrates that Harith bin Hisham asked the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, “O Messenger of Allah ﷺ! How does revelation come to you?” He ﷺ said:

أحیانا یأتينی مثل صلصلة الجرس – وهو أخذه على – فَيَفْصَمُ عَلَى وَقَدَ وَ عَيْتُ عَنْهُ مَا قَالَ ، وَأَحْيَانًا يتمثل فى التلك رجلا نيك لعلى تاعى ما يَقُولُ . قَالَتْ عَائِقَةُ فِى الله عنها وَلَقَدْ أَنه يَنزِلُ عَلَيْهِ الوحى فى الْقَوْمِ الشَّديد الجزر. فَيَقْصِمُ عَنْهُ وَإِنَّ جَبِينَهُ لَيَتَفَقَدُ عَرَقا

Sometimes revelation comes to me like the ringing of a bell. That state is very hard on me, and then when I have memorized what is revealed, the state passes. Sometimes the angel comes to me in the form of a man and talks to me, and I remember what he says. Umm al-Mu’minin Sayyida Aisha Siddiqah (may Allah be pleased with her) says that she saw revelation coming to the Prophet ﷺ during the severe cold of winter, and when the revelation ended, sweat would flow from his forehead.

All these texts are clear evidence that revelation descends upon the noble Prophets. If the Rafidah’s Imams were so exalted that revelation also descended upon them from Allah, then there should be mention of this in the Book and Sunnah!! But this is not the case; rather, the belief in revelation descending upon the Imams is a self-created belief by the Rafidah, which has no basis and is an extremely vile effort they made to prove a baseless belief.

The martyr of the Ummah, Allama Ihsan al-Ilahi Zaheer (may Allah have mercy on him), in one of his delicate writings, exposes this belief of theirs as follows. He writes:

ان الشيعة يحقدون نزول الوحى على المتهم وعن طريق جبريل و عن طريق ملک اعظم و افضل من جبريل فان المتهم في الحديث بوبوا أبواباً مستقل وفي هذا الخصوص.

“The Shia group believes that revelation descends upon their Imams. Most of the time, Gabriel would come to them with Allah’s message, and sometimes, according to the Shia, an angel greater and superior than Gabriel would descend upon them. The senior Shia scholars have established entire chapters on this subject.”

For more evidences from Shia books on this matter, see the previous article.

After all this detail, no Rafidi can deny that the belief in revelation descending upon the Twelve Imams is theirs. We have quoted this belief from their books with references. Now if any Rafidi wishes to investigate all these texts, all doors of research are open for him. Respected readers! Now I mention the fourth belief of the Shia, which they have formulated to deny the finality of Prophethood. Before presenting evidences from their books, I consider it necessary to mention a few evidences from the Book and Sunnah regarding the infallibility of Prophethood so that the matter becomes clear to the general public that the belief in the infallibility of Prophethood cannot be assigned to anyone other than the Prophet.

Chastity of Prophethood

➊ Allah Almighty says:

وَمَا أُرِيدُ أَنْ أُخَالِفَكُمْ إِلَىٰ مَا أَنْهَاكُمْ عَنْهُ ۚ إِنْ أُرِيدُ إِلَّا الْإِصْلَاحَ مَا اسْتَطَعْتُ ۚ وَمَا تَوْفِيقِي إِلَّا بِاللَّهِ ۚ عَلَيْهِ تَوَكَّلْتُ وَإِلَيْهِ أُنِيبُ

It is not my intention at all to oppose you and incline towards that which I am forbidding you from. My intention is to reform according to my ability; my success is only with the help of Allah, in Him I trust, and to Him I turn.

Glory be to Allah, what a beautiful proof of the infallibility of the Prophets. Not only does it negate the occurrence of sin, but this verse also denies the very intention of sin in the Prophet’s heart, meaning the thought of sin cannot even arise in the Prophet’s heart.

➋ Allah Almighty says:

إِنَّ عِبَادِي لَيْسَ لَكَ عَلَيْهِمْ سُلْطَانٌ ۚ وَكَفَىٰ بِرَبِّكَ وَكِيلًا ‎﴿٦٥﴾‏

You have no control over My true servants; your Lord is sufficient as a disposer of affairs.

At another place, it is stated:

قَالَ فَبِعِزَّتِكَ لَأُغْوِيَنَّهُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ ‎﴿٨٢﴾‏ إِلَّا عِبَادَكَ مِنْهُمُ الْمُخْلَصِينَ ‎﴿٨٣﴾

The Satan said, “Then by Your might, I will surely mislead them all except Your chosen servants among them.”

From these verses, it is understood that Satan cannot reach the Prophets, nor can he mislead them or cause them to deviate from the straight path. So how is it possible for sins to originate from the Prophets?

➌ Allah Almighty says:

مَا كُنتَ تَدْرِي مَا الْكِتَابُ وَلَا الْإِيمَانُ وَلَٰكِن جَعَلْنَاهُ نُورًا نَّهْدِي بِهِ مَن نَّشَاءُ مِنْ عِبَادِنَا ۚ وَإِنَّكَ لَتَهْدِي إِلَىٰ صِرَاطٍ مُّسْتَقِيمٍ

You did not know what the Book and faith were before, but We made it a light by which We guide whom We will among Our servants. Indeed, you are guiding to the straight path.

Exegesis of this verse

قال أهل الاصول اجتمعوا على ان الرسل عليهم السلام كانوا مؤمنين قبل الوحى معصومين من الكبائر ومن الصغائر الموثة لنفرة الناس عنهم قبل البعث وبعدها فضلاً عن الكفر.

That is, the scholars have agreed that indeed the noble Prophets, peace be upon them, were believers before revelation and were infallible from major sins as well as from those minor sins that cause dislike, both before prophethood and after, let alone disbelief.
➍ Allah Almighty says:

انَّا فَتَحْنَا لَكَ فَتْحًا مُّبِينًا ‎﴿١﴾‏ لِّيَغْفِرَ لَكَ اللَّهُ مَا تَقَدَّمَ مِن ذَنبِكَ وَمَا تَأَخَّرَ وَيُتِمَّ نِعْمَتَهُ عَلَيْكَ وَيَهْدِيَكَ صِرَاطًا مُّسْتَقِيمًا ‎﴿٢﴾‏

Indeed, We have given you, [O Muhammad], a clear conquest That Allah may forgive for you what preceded of your sin and what will follow and complete His favor upon you and guide you to a straight path.

Mughirah bin Shu’bah (may Allah be pleased with him) says:

كان النبي يصل حتى ترم قدماه فقيل له اليس قد غفر الله لك ما تقدم من ذنبک وما تأخر فقال افلا اكون عبد أشكورا

The Noble Prophet, peace be upon him, used to pray until his blessed feet would swell. It was said to him, “Has not Allah, the Lord of Glory, forgiven your past and future sins?” The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, replied:
Should I not be a grateful servant of Allah?

This same narration is also reported from Sayyida Aisha and Anas, may Allah be pleased with them. The meaning of infallible is protected, preserved, or saved. So it is clear that the above two texts indicate the negation of sin from the person of the Noble Prophet ﷺ, not its affirmation. Therefore, it is permissible to take these texts as proof of the infallibility of the Prophets. Sayyid Abdullah ibn Umar, may Allah be pleased with both of them, says:

كنت اكتب كل شئى اسمعه من رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم اريد حفظہ فنهتنی قریش فقالوا الگ تكتب كل شي تسمعه من رسول الله و رسول الله هل يتكلم في الغضب فامسكت عن الكتابة فذکر تہ ذالک لرسول الله قال اكتب فوالذي نفسي بيده ما خرج على الأحق.

Whatever I heard from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, I used to write it down for the purpose of remembering. The Quraysh stopped me and said:
Whatever you hear from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, you write it down, while the Messenger of Allah ﷺ is a human being (and sometimes speaks in anger). So I stopped writing, and this incident was presented before the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. He said:
Write, by the One in whose hand is my soul, nothing comes from me except the truth.

This narration is also the main proof of the infallibility of prophethood because if prophethood were not infallible, it would imply that something other than the truth could come from him, which the Messenger of Allah ﷺ himself denied, since the manifestation of sin contradicts the source of truth.
Dear respected readers! All these texts indicate the infallibility of the Prophets. Now I present before you texts from Shia books which show that the Shia also hold the belief in the infallibility of their Imams, which is false and completely opposed to definitive texts.
Thus, the Shia scholar Tawi writes:

الصم ۃ عند الامامية شرط اساسى لجميع الانبياء والائمة عليهم السلام سواء في الذنوب الكبيرة والصغيرة قبل النبوة والامامة وبعدها على سبيل العمد والنسيان وهكذا الصورة عن كل الرذائل والقبائح۔

“According to the Imamis, the infallibility of the Prophets and Imams is a fundamental condition of prophethood and imamate. The Prophets and Imams, both major and minor, are infallible from all kinds of sins. There is no possibility of error from them before prophethood and imamate nor after. They neither commit major sins nor forgetfulness. Likewise, they are infallible from all kinds of immoral and unchivalrous acts. Also, since the Imam is obligatory to obey, his infallibility is necessary.”

For more evidence from Shia books on this matter, see the previous article.
From all these texts and quotations, it becomes clear that in the Shia religion, just as the Imam is appointed and sent by Allah Almighty like the Prophets, similarly he is also infallible from error. The denial of the finality of prophethood was the last step taken by Shia scholars.

People of Opinion and the Belief in the Finality of Prophethood

Under the following heading, the author has exposed the beliefs and corruptions of some personalities from the Deobandi and Barelvi sects. However, before that, I consider it necessary to remove a doubt.

Who are meant by the term People of Opinion?

Although this is not my topic of discussion, it is quite possible that someone might think that I have concealed the truth by referring to Deobandism and Barelvism in written discourse as “Ahl al-Ra’y” (people of opinion). Since in the following lines, the beliefs of some personalities from these two sects have been unveiled, it should be noted that those who are followers of Imam Abu Hanifa, whether Deobandi or Barelvi, are called “Ahl al-Ra’y.” This is clarified by the following statement. Ibn Khaldun says:
“Hadith was very scarce in Iraq, so the people there used Qiyas (analogical reasoning) more and became skilled in it, due to which they were called Ahl al-Ra’y. The leaders of this group are Imam Abu Hanifa and his students.” (تاریخ ابن خلدون)
Neither of these two groups denies the leadership of Imam Abu Hanifa over themselves.
Thus, it is understood that a person who is a follower of Abu Hanifa and considers Imam Abu Hanifa as his leader and chief is Ahl al-Ra’y. Abdul Rashid Arshad writes in his book ”

” on page 65 as follows:
“In the matter of constructing the madrasa and laying its foundation, Hazrat Nanotvi (may Allah sanctify his secret) preferred that the madrasa building remain simple, with students sitting on grass and straw to study, so that asceticism, contentment, simplicity, humility, and patience would be prominent in them. However, the opinion of other ‘Ahl al-Ra’y’ was that the Darul Uloom building should be solid and strong so that the madrasa would also be distinguished by its appearance. But in this matter, Hazrat Nanotvi’s opinion was not influenced.”
The phrase “the opinion of other ‘Ahl al-Ra’y'” is noteworthy. Who were these other Ahl al-Ra’y? They were the Deobandis who belong to the madhhab of Imam Abu Hanifa. This further confirms our claim, Alhamdulillah.

, establishes a chapter titled “Hakim al-Ummah in His Own View” and writes:
“I neither ask anyone for anything, nor seek anyone’s recommendation; therefore, some ‘Ahl al-Ra’y’ call me dry.”
Who calls Thanvi Sahib dry? These are the same Ahl al-Ra’y who are followers of Imam Abu Hanifa. So, Alhamdulillah, this statement also confirms our claim, and after this, no one has the right to say that there are people other than Deobandism and Barelvis among Ahl al-Ra’y.

People of Opinion and Mirzaism

A person who claims to be the twenty-third prophet is undoubtedly a disbeliever. He does not have the right to join Islam. Rather, it is necessary for every sane person to consider him a disbeliever and declare his disbelief, because such a person denies a unanimous belief of Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jama’ah. However, “some people” like Ahl al-Ra’y and others did not themselves strive to uproot the belief in the finality of prophethood, and they considered Mirza Qadiani, who declared himself a prophet, to be a Muslim and did not declare his disbelief. Why did they do this? I will explain the reality of this later in ان شاء اللہ. However, first, I will mention a few references that Ahl al-Ra’y did not declare Mirza a disbeliever but considered him a Muslim. A great scholar of the Deobandi school, Maulana Ashraf Ali Thanvi, who was given the titles “Hakim al-Ummah” and “Mujaddid al-Millat,” writes in one of his books:

“We did not consider the Qadianis disbelievers, and they used to say the same about us. But now, since it has been proven that they believe in Mirza Sahib’s prophethood, we have issued a fatwa of disbelief because this is outright disbelief. Apart from this, we used to interpret all their other statements, though those interpretations were far-fetched.”

From Maulana Thanvi’s first statement, it appears that according to Ahl al-Ra’y, Qadianis are disbelievers. Then he writes that apart from Mirza’s claim of prophethood, they used to interpret the rest of his statements. Now, any sensible person would ask this group: after the claim of prophethood, he was declared a disbeliever. So do you interpret the words of a disbeliever and thereby support him? And these interpretations were such that nothing but enmity to the truth was evident, as is clear from Thanvi’s statement: “Though those interpretations were far-fetched.” In reality, the underlying facts were different, which I will explain in their place in ان شاء اللہ. The leader of Ahl al-Ra’y, Maulana Thanvi, expresses his firm beliefs elsewhere as follows:

“Our elders did not declare the Qadiani a disbeliever for a long time; they used to interpret his statements. But when he crossed the limit, they declared him a disbeliever. For example, he claimed, ‘I am a prophet.’ Initially, it was only a claim of inspiration. Although some parts of it were very objectionable, such as this inspiration: ‘یا احمد یتیم اسمک ولایتیم اسمی.’ Some scholars had declared him a disbeliever and had even come to Allama Maulana Muhammad Yaqub Sahib and presented this matter to him. But he denied declaring disbelief on the basis that these statements could be interpreted. Accordingly, our elders interpreted this inspiration as meaning perfection here, rather than vengeance and severance, and this was the approach of the gentlemen.”

People of intellect will ask them: Maulana, what is that limit beyond which every disbelief can be interpreted? On one hand, a false claimant of prophethood is busy proclaiming his disbelief and convincing people of his disbelief, while on the other hand, these so-called Muslims are among the spectators of this spectacle. Moreover, they are not even disbelievers. Simple-hearted Muslims will address such so-called Muslims and ask: When you yourself are deprived of the knowledge of the prophethood of Muhammad ﷺ, you do not know his status and rank but deny it, then what is the need to wear the cloak of Islam? Say openly that we and the Mirzais are not different; there is no difference between us so that the belief of Ahl al-Islam about Mirzaism becomes the same about you, and people remain safe from your rebelliousness.

May Allah’s wrath fall upon them like a lightning strike,
Who deceive Muslims while being their leaders.

Yet these so-called Muslims insist on presenting themselves as Muslims, though their beliefs do not warrant it. Another well-known figure of the Ahl al-Ra’y school, Rashid Ahmad Gangohi, writes in his letter number 138 as follows:

“Mawlawi Ghulam Ahmad Qadiani Sahib’s Fatah al-Islam was also seen by the servant. In summary, the original suspicion that arose in his mind was that he was like Jesus. In this matter, the servant thinks that he was not worldly-minded but rather a self-conceit had developed in his mind due to his abilities. These thoughts kept increasing, and he considered them religion, support of religion, and his perfections. This is inevitable. The claim of being like Jesus and the denial of the true meanings of the descent of Jesus (peace be upon him) and the traditions of the Dajjal were inquired about from the servant in a few places. The servant wrote that this belief is corrupt, erroneous, and contrary to all the predecessors, both early and late. They have become delusional, writing things contrary to reason that the whole world did not understand. Now they understand it and have issued a public debate on it. They have addressed the servant and said that disbelief is not necessary because he is the first and is excused. Only…”

Those knowledgeable and wise will ask these blind people: Mirza claimed prophethood and, according to you, writes things beyond the understanding of the entire world. That is, the people of the world cannot understand him, yet you say disbelief is not necessary; rather, he is the first and excused. Interpretation is only possible for something within the capacity of human intellect. These people, deprived of the true understanding of Islam, say that even if Mirzais claim to be Jesus, so be it. Who knows whom they consider disbelievers?

Maulana Ashraf Ali Thanvi writes about Rashid Ahmad Gangohi:

“Hazrat Gangohi was initially lenient and used to interpret Mirza’s statements. When he explicitly claimed prophethood and other clear acts of disbelief, he was compelled to declare him a disbeliever.”

What was the compulsion? It was only so that the love of Islam remained intact and the customs with Mirza Qadiani, who was their true mentor and spiritual guide, remained properly maintained. Maulana Khalil Ahmad Saharanpuri provides proof of his relationship with Mirza as follows:

“حملة قولنا وقول مشائخنا في القادياني الذي يدعى النبوة والمسيحية انا كتافى امره مالم يظهر لنا من سوء اعتاديل بلغنا انه يؤيد الإسلام ويبطل جميع الاديان التى سواه بالبراهين و الدلائل نحن نظن به على ماهو اللائق المسلم با المسلم وتأول بعض الو الصوتحمله على محل حسن۔”

“Our elders and all our spiritual guides’ stance regarding the claimant of prophethood and Messiahship, Qadiani, was that initially, until his disbelief became apparent to us and the news reached us that he supports Islam and refutes all religions with arguments, we, as Muslims, maintained good opinion of him and interpreted some of his inappropriate statements and continued to act with good intentions.”

Mirza must have supported Islam in the same way you did, that is, by attacking and shattering the unanimous belief of Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jama’ah, which has been established since the Prophetic era and whose denial is disbelief. Later, you interpreted Mirza’s inappropriate statements and acted with good intentions.

There is something that is being concealed

The reason why Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Qadiani was not declared a disbeliever for his claim of prophethood but rather his blasphemies were interpreted is explained by the author in a few words as follows: “Hanafism is essentially a sister sect of Mirzaism.” Obviously, no one considers it appropriate to declare one’s sister as a disbeliever and disgrace her. Some might think that saying “Hanafism is essentially a sister sect of Mirzaism” is an exaggeration, which is unjustified, but I have not said this against the truth; rather, I will present evidence to prove this point. Maulvi Abdul Majid Daryabadi writes:

“When someone spoke ill of the Qadianis in front of Thanvi Sahib, he got upset and said this is an injustice. We have no difference with them in Tawhid (Oneness of God), the difference is in prophethood, and even that in only one chapter (i.e., the belief in the finality of prophethood).”

A person who commits blasphemy against prophethood and is a disbeliever should be called a disbeliever, but Thanvi Sahib did not even call him a disbeliever; rather, he supported Mirzaism. But why? Because there was a sisterly relationship with it, which Thanvi Sahib was obliged to uphold. The strong bond and customs between Haqiqat and Mirzaism can be understood from the following statement by the traditional historian and biographer Muhammad Ashiq Ilahi Mir Thi, who writes:

“Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Qadiani was writing against Haqiqat during the time when his virtues and excellence were being praised and publicized in newspapers. Although until then he had reverence for Hazrat Imam Rabbani (Rashid Gangohi). Those who went to that side used to inquire about Hazrat Maulana’s well-being and how far Gangoh was from Delhi, and what the road was like; in short, there was also a thought of visiting. At that time, Hazrat Imam Rabbani once said, ‘This person is doing good work, but a spiritual guide is needed; otherwise, there is a possibility of misguidance.’ After that, ideas of renewal, Mahdism, and Christianity began to appear.”

Maulvi Ashiq Ilahi Mir Thi revealed a fact-based truth, and the truth always comes to light no matter how much a person tries to hide it. How much love Mirza had for Gangohi is evident from the fact that he often asked those going to Gangoh about Hazrat’s condition and sometimes even thought of visiting. Now a wise person would think that if Mirza had no relations or love for Gangohi, why would he bother so much and praise him by saying that he is doing good work? Why such expression of love and endorsement? In reality, there are some hidden secrets whose unveiling I have done in the preceding lines.

Listen to another traditional Maulvi deprived of the true understanding of Islam, who even after Mirza’s claim of prophethood wrote him as a Muslim. Ashraf Ali Thanvi writes:

“When some scholars of Punjab were discussing Qadianis quoting Maulana Muhammad Yaqub Sahib’s statements, Maulana was interpreting them. When they insisted more, he jokingly said, ‘Oh man! Where there are fifty million Muslims in India, even one is enough.’ The scholars said, ‘No, sir, there is wisdom in declaring disbelief.’ At that time, Maulana got emotional and said, ‘When Muslims themselves declare disbelief, then why not declare your own disbelief who are busy declaring disbelief of a Muslim?’ The scholars said among themselves that Maulana is emotional now; later he himself will call him a disbeliever. And so it happened.”

The reason the people of opinion did not consider Mirzaism as disbelief was that Mirzaism and Hanafism were the same thing. Obviously, in such unity, no one considers his ally a disbeliever.

Dear respected readers! I hope that up to this point, along with these texts, the matter has reached the limit of explanation as to why the people of opinion did not declare Mirzaism as disbelief. Now I present some statements of their scholars who struck a severe blow to the belief in the finality of prophethood so that their true nature may be seen. Maulvi Qasim Nanotvi, a well-known scholar of the people of opinion, who was given the title Hujjat al-Islam (Proof of Islam), attempted to undermine the belief in the finality of prophethood, which can be gauged from the following argument.

Qasim Nanotvi at the Station of Truthfulness

Maulvi Ashraf Ali Thanvi, in his sayings, establishes the title “Hazrat Nanotvi was at the rank of Siddiqiyyat” and writes:
“People once insisted a lot from Maulana Muhammad Qasim Sahib to ask what his status was. With great difficulty, he said that I have this certainty that I do not have any hesitation in any of the rulings. Naturally, there is absolute certainty. A very intelligent person said that you are Siddiq, and the sign of Siddiq is that he has no hesitation in the divine rulings. Accordingly, Hazrat Siddiq Akbar, upon hearing the state of Mi’raj, said without hesitation that if Muhammad ﷺ says so, then going to the heavens is absolutely true, and he said that the matter which was greater than this, in which we have already confirmed you, is even more so. When we have accepted that the inhabitants of the heavens come to you, then it is less surprising that the inhabitants of the heavens take you to the heavens. For example, without any comparison, it is more surprising for a collector to come to someone’s house than for someone to be summoned by the collector himself.”

First, he elevated himself to the rank of Siddiqiyyat, that is, the rank and status which belongs to Siddiq Akbar, the rank and status of نعوذ باللہ من ذالک Qasim Nanotvi. Then, he made the path easier for himself by writing, “If, hypothetically, after the prophetic era ﷺ any prophet arises, still the finality of Muhammad would not be affected.”

If the coming of any new prophet would not affect the finality of Muhammad, then why was it necessary for the Noble Prophet ﷺ to negate prophethood after him at various places with the words لانبی بعدی? The reality was something else which a wise person can understand by hint. Now see! How Qasim Nanotvi presents himself as a prophet. Maulvi Manzar Ahsan Gilani writes:
“After the initiation of Bay’ah and the teaching of Dhikr and spiritual practice, it was customary that people would narrate to Hazrat Haji Sahib the states that appeared before him during Dhikr and spiritual practice. But contrary to the custom, Maulana Muhammad Qasim Nanotvi did not mention any of his states to Haji Sahib. Finally, one day he himself inquired, ‘You say nothing?’ Upon this inquiry from his Pir, Hazrat Thanvi narrates that ‘Maulvi Muhammad Qasim began to weep,’ then he said in very passionate words, ‘How can I describe my state where sitting with a rosary is just a calamity, such a spiritual darkness that it is as if hundreds of hundreds of heavy stones have been placed, the tongue and heart both become bound.'”
Hazrat Amir Shah Khan Sahib heard from a faqir that the tongue seemed like a mountain to me, I felt so. In any case, now listen to the state from which excessive despair about himself arose in Sayyidna Imam al-Kabir. The one who was aware of the path and method, that is, your true mystic, after hearing this, Hakim al-Ummah said:
“He spontaneously said, ‘Congratulations.’ Do you know why this strange state became a cause of ridicule and congratulations? Hazrat Amir Shah Khan Sahib used to tell me directly that Haji Sahib said, ‘Maulana, you have a special connection with the Name of Allah, the All-Knowing, and this special connection is the cause of these effects which you are experiencing and observing.’ Then, as proof of this claim, Hazrat Haji Sahib reminded the state of revelation which befell the Master of the Universe ﷺ. It is narrated that an extraordinary weight would be felt by you; when you were on the camel’s back, the camel would sit down (except for Qaswa, your special she-camel). The famous incident of Zaid bin Thabit, the scribe of revelation, is that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ rested his head on Zaid’s lap and revelation began to descend in that very state. Zaid said that such an extraordinary weight was felt in the Prophet ﷺ at that time that it seemed as if the camel would break into pieces. This story is at the beginning of Sahih Bukhari that even in the harshest winter, when revelation descended, the noble forehead would be drenched with sweat. In short, the intensity and heaviness felt at the time of revelation is the same state explained by the Sheikh Arif as the strength of this spiritual connection. As quoted from Hakim al-Ummah on this occasion, Haji Sahib addressed Maulana Muhammad Qasim and said, ‘This is the flood of prophethood upon your heart, and this is the weight which the Prophet ﷺ felt at the time of revelation, which Haji Sahib explained that Allah wants to take from you (i.e., Maulana Muhammad Qasim) what is taken from the prophets, so go and serve the religion. Leave the arrangement of Dhikr and spiritual practice.'”

This is a great audacity of Maulvi Qasim Nanotvi to strike at the belief of the finality of prophethood. On one hand, the Noble Prophet ﷺ has the characteristics of revelation, while on the other hand, Nanotvi Sahib is trying to prove these attributes for himself, whereas it is an established belief of Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jama’ah that whoever denies or deviates from the prophethood of Muhammad ﷺ has no connection with Islam at all. If anyone else besides him said what Nanotvi Sahib said, he would be declared a disbeliever and given many non-Islamic titles, and his condemnation would be very intense. But they do not even have time to look at themselves!!!
Qari Muhammad Tayyib, who was the principal of Darul Uloom Deoband, attacked the belief of the finality of prophethood in his words, writing:
“So here, understand the meaning of the finality of prophethood that the door of prophethood is closed is deceiving the world; prophethood is complete, revelation will continue until the Day of Judgment, not that it will be cut off and darkness has spread in the world.”

From Qari Muhammad Tayyib’s statement, it is clear that according to Ahl al-Ra’y, the door of prophethood is not closed, rather according to them, whoever says that the door of prophethood is closed and no prophet can come now is deceiving people. Qari Tayyib’s statement is proof of his ignorance of the sayings of the Prophet ﷺ. If Maulvi Tayyib had known the sayings of the Prophet ﷺ, he would not have doubted that prophethood and messengership have been cut off. After me, there is no prophet nor messenger.

This hadith has been graded Hasan Sahih by Imam Tirmidhi, and Imam al-Darami (2645) said it is Sahih, Imam Hakim said its chain is Sahih according to the conditions of Bukhari and Muslim, and Hafiz Dhahabi has agreed with it. Sayyidna Abu Umamah Bahili narrates that he heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say:

ایهالناس انه لا نبی بعدی ولاامة بعد كم –

“O people, after me there is no prophet and after you there is no nation.”

If you had studied, you would not have said such a great thing, but it is very surprising that such people who are completely unaware and unfamiliar with the sayings of the Prophet ﷺ have been given titles like Hakim al-Islam and many other great titles which they do not deserve. Maulvi Rashid Ahmad Gangohi also tried to subtly undermine the belief of the finality of prophethood. Ashiq Ilahi Mir writes:
“You have repeatedly said as a preacher through the tongue of Faiz Tarjuman, ‘Listen, the truth is only what comes from the tongue of Rashid Ahmad, and I swear by God that I am nothing but in this era, guidance and salvation depend on following me.'”

Both these statements are noteworthy:
(1) “Listen, the truth is only what comes from the tongue of Rashid Ahmad.” How audacious is this statement of Gangohi! In a hadith, the Noble Prophet ﷺ said to Abdullah bin Umar رضي الله عنه:

ما خرج علی الاحق۔

Meaning, from me, nothing but truth can emanate. The same is stated by Allah’s Quran:

‏ وَمَا يَنطِقُ عَنِ الْهَوَىٰ ‎﴿٣﴾‏ إِنْ هُوَ إِلَّا وَحْيٌ يُوحَىٰ ‎﴿٤﴾‏

And they do not speak from their own desire; it is only revelation that is sent down. From these two texts, it is understood that nothing but truth can emanate from the Noble Prophet ﷺ. But Gangohi Sahib shares this attribute with the Prophet ﷺ and says, “The truth is only what comes from Rashid Ahmad’s tongue,” meaning no one else can issue truth. The Prophet ﷺ said, “Nothing but truth can emanate from me,” but on the other hand, Gangohi also claimed the same. The second point: “In this era, guidance and salvation depend on following me.” A sensible person reading this would surely ask him that if guidance and salvation depended on following Gangohi, then Allah Almighty should have commanded following Gangohi besides following Muhammad ﷺ in His speech. But Allah Almighty did not do so, which is clear evidence that these people themselves have strayed from the straight path and are trying to mislead others. This is Gangohi’s personal invention which he expressed from time to time during his life.
Maulvi Abdul Hai Hanafi Lakhnawi Sahib also belonged to the religion of Ahl al-Ra’y. Among the Hanafis, he holds a high status. But he did not abandon the ways of his ancestors and followed their path.
He writes:
“The scholars of Ahl al-Sunnah also clarify that in the era of the Prophet ﷺ, no new lawgiver can arise, and the prophethood is general for you, and any prophet who will be contemporary with you will follow the Shariah of Muhammad ﷺ.”

He further writes:
“After the Prophet ﷺ or in the era of the Prophet ﷺ, the existence of a prophet in the strict sense is impossible, but being a new lawgiver is impossible.”

“The scholars of Ahl al-Sunnah also clarify this matter.” Now one should ask them, who among the scholars of Ahl al-Sunnah agrees with your corrupt belief? A person who is truly from Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jama’ah would certainly not hold such a belief. Such nonsense can only be the talk of the scholars of Ahl al-Ra’y, not of the scholars of Ahl al-Sunnah. When the Noble Prophet ﷺ said, “لا نبی بعدی” (There is no prophet after me), he negated every kind of prophet (whether legislative or non-legislative). Then what is the meaning of insisting on non-legislative prophethood? This is exactly the difference we have with Mirzaism; they consider Mirza a non-legislative prophet of the Ummah. If they say so, they are disbelievers, and do whatever you want. So certainly, this is a great tragedy. Another person known as Mulla Ali al-Qari opened the door for the coming of a non-legislative prophet by citing a weak narration. First, I will present that weak narration with its chain and text, then I will expose the blow he dealt to the belief of the finality of prophethood so that people know that such nonsense can only be attributed to the Imams of Ahl al-Ra’y and no one else.

حدثنا عبد القدوس بن مُحَمَّدٍ حَدَّثنا داؤد بن شَبِيبٍ البَاهِلَ حَدَّثَنَا إِبْرَاهِيمُ بْنُ عُثْمَان حَدَّثَنَا الحكم بن النبيَة عَن مِقْسَم عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاس قال لنا مات إِبْرَاهِيمُ ابْنُ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ – صلى الله عليه وسلم – صَلَّى عَلَيْهِ رَسُولُ اللهِ وَقَالَ « إن له مرجعا في الحلَةِ وَلَوْ عَام كَانَ صِديقًا نَبِيًّا. ولو عاش اعتقت الحوالة القيط وما اشترق تنحى». (۱۴۵)

Sayyidna Abdullah Ibn Abbas narrates that when the son of the Messenger of Allah, Ibrahim, died, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ performed his funeral prayer and said, “Indeed, there is a wet nurse for him in Paradise, and if he had lived, he would have been a true prophet. And if he had lived, I would have freed his Coptic uncle and no Coptic slave would have been made.”

ان الرسال ة والنبوة قد انقطعت فلارسول بعدی ولانبی

Hadith Authentication

Sunan Ibn Majah – Book of Funerals, Chapter on what has been narrated about the prayer upon the son of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and mention of his death.

This narration is weak because in its chain of transmission Ibrahim bin Uthman is unanimously considered by the hadith scholars as a weak narrator. قال الذہبی ضعیف ترکہ غیر واحد –

From this clarification, it is understood that the narrator Ibrahim bin Uthman Abu Qutaibah in the chain of this narration is unanimously considered weak by the hadith scholars, and therefore it is not correct to derive rulings from this narration, which has strengthened the Mirza’iyyah sect. He writes:
“كلت ومع هذا الوعاش ابرابيم وصار تبياً وكل الوصار عمر و الله نبياً لكانا من اتباعه علیہ السلام فلا يناقض قوله تعالى خاتم النبيين ان المعنى انه لا باقی نبی بعده بنسخ ملته ولم یکن من امته”
I say that with this (the Prophet ﷺ saying) if Ibrahim were alive, he would be a prophet, and similarly if Umar Farooq (RA) were alive, he would be a prophet; both would be among your followers ﷺ. This statement of yours ﷺ is not contrary to Allah Almighty’s command “خاتم النبین” because (خاتم النبیین) means that after you ﷺ no prophet can come who would abrogate your nation and would not be from your community.

From Mulla Ali Qari’s statement, it is understood that a person can be a prophet who fulfills the following conditions:
1. He does not abrogate your ﷺ nation.
2. He is from your ﷺ community.
If the coming of such a prophet is possible, then what is the need to declare Mirza Qadiani a disbeliever? Because both these conditions are present in him which you have set for a new prophet. It seems that the Imams of Ahl al-Ra’y, despite writing commentaries on hadith, remained unaware of the true meanings and implications of the commands of the Messenger ﷺ. Because if these people were aware of the meanings of the commands of the Messenger ﷺ, they would not have made such grave mistakes. Following the old method of their Imams, another scholar paved the way for Mirza’iyyah to attack the belief in the finality of prophethood and did not deviate even slightly from his ancestors. I mean Shah Waliullah Dehlawi Hanafi. Shah Waliullah Dehlawi Hanafi was the name of Ahl al-Ra’y in his time. Although he differed from other Ahl al-Ra’y on some issues, yet he remained a Muslim among them, as is evident from the following passage.
Abdul Rashid Arshad writes:
“The elders of Darul Uloom Deoband from Shah Waliullah Sahib Qaddas Sirruhu to Nanotvi Sahib Qaddas Sirruhu are all counted among the elders because doctrinally and traditionally Darul Uloom Deoband is attributed to Shah Waliullah Sahib Qaddas Sirruhu and in spiritual practice the chain of Haji Imdadullah Sahib Qaddas Sirruhu continues among the elders of Darul Uloom.” This means Shah Waliullah is such a great figure of Ahl al-Ra’y that doctrinally they made him their leader as is evident from the preceding lines. But regarding the belief in the finality of prophethood, he wrote something that became the foundation of the Mirza’iyyah sect, and to this day Mirzais present this and similar statements of so-called Muslims as scripture. Shah Waliullah writes:
“حتم بہ النبیون ای لا یوجد من بامره الله سبحانه با التشريح على الناس”
“The prophethood upon you ﷺ has ended, meaning that after you ﷺ no one can come whom Allah Almighty appoints with a Shariah and sends towards the people.”

From this statement, it is asked that Shah Waliullah Hanafi’s position is that after the noble Prophet ﷺ no one can come without a Shariah. Whereas Mirza has stated his description differently. Then he should also be accepted as a prophet, but no one is ready to accept him. Nowadays, the defenders seem unfamiliar with their own elders, which is why they consider themselves the guardians of the finality of prophethood. But the hidden facts are different. Another Imam among the Ahl al-Ra’y who paved the way for Mirza Qadiani is Mujaddid al-Miyani. He wrote in one of his books:
(1) “پس حصول کمالات نبوت مرتابعان را بطریق تبعیت و وراثت بعد از خاتم الرسل ملام جميع الأنبياء والرسل الصلواة والحياة فتافی خاتمیت اور نیست علیہ وعلی الہ الصلاۃ والسلام فلا تمن من المترین”

The Barelvi Raza Khani Maulvi Muhammad Saeed Naqshbandi translates this as:
“After the advent of تو خاتم المرسلین علیہ والہ و على جميع الأنبياء والرسل الصلوۃ والتسلیمات, by inheritance and following, the attainment of the perfections of prophethood by his followers does not contradict his finality. May peace and blessings be upon him and his family. Let none among those who doubt this be.”
(b) It is understood that the perfections of Wilayah correspond to the Shafi’i fiqh and the perfections of prophethood correspond to the Hanafi fiqh. If, hypothetically, a prophet were sent in this Ummah, he would act according to Hanafi fiqh.

(c) That is, the knowledge that remains from the Prophets, peace be upon them, is of two kinds: one is knowledge of rulings, the other is knowledge of the secrets of the world. The inheritor is the one who has acquired a share of both these knowledges. Regarding such scholars, the Prophet ﷺ said:
“علماء امتی کا نبیا ء بنی اسرائیل” The scholars of my Ummah are like the prophets of Bani Israel.

From the following statements of Imam Ahl al-Ra’y Mujaddid al-Miyani, it is clear that according to him, a prophet can come after the noble Prophet ﷺ, and indeed the prophet who comes after the Prophet ﷺ will follow Hanafi fiqh. Mirza Qadiani and Ahl al-Ra’y share the same fiqhi religion, the details of which are present in Mirza’s books. Since there is a complaint of lack of space, I will refrain from discussing the issues here and suffice to say that Qadianiyyat is essentially Hanafiyyat. Consider some evidences:
1. Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Qadiani wrote that “My religion is that the Hanafi fiqh should be followed.”

2. Mirza Qadiani says our religion is contrary to the Wahhabis. For us, abandoning taqlid (imitation) is a catastrophe because not everyone is a Mujtahid. Whoever comes to us must first adopt the color of Hanafiyyat. Nowadays, the reason people have gone astray is that the following of Imams has been abandoned. For us, those who follow these people are very good.

3. Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Qadiani’s son Mirza Bashir Ahmad MA writes about his father:
“But basically, you always showed yourself as Hanafi and never preferred the name Ahl al-Hadith for yourself at any time.”

4. The president of the Lahori Mirzais, Maulvi Muhammad Ali MA writes:
“From the beginning to the end of his life, Hazrat Mirza Sahib openly remained Hanafi in fiqh.”

5. Lahori Mirzai Dr. Basharat Ahmad wrote:
“Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Qadiani wrote that it should be the duty of our community that if a matter is not found in hadith, nor in Sunnah, nor in the Quran, then in that case the Hanafi fiqh should be followed.”

6. Murtaza Hasan BA Qadiani wrote:
“We accept fiqh and sincerely respect the great jurists and value their ijtihad and fatwa. We especially follow the fiqh of Imam Abu Hanifa, whose guidance was given by our Imam Hazrat Mirza Sahib.”

7. Munshi Barkat Ali Hoshiarpuri Qadiani writes under the title “Mirza Sahib belonged to which sect?” that “Hazrat Sahib was Ahl al-Sunnah wal Jama’ah, especially Hanafi fiqh. He was among the pure group on the truth.”

8. In the preface of the book “Saif Chishti” and the biography “Peer Munir” written about Peer Mehr Ali Shah, who is praised by Deobandis and Barelvis, it is written: “As far as is known, his (Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Qadiani’s) ancestors were Hanafi Muslims and Mirza Sahib himself followed their footsteps in his early life.”

9. A debate took place between Maulana Muhammad Hussain Batalvi and Maulvi Abdullah Chakralvi on the topic of the status of hadith (authenticity of hadith), on which Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Qadiani wrote his impressions published as “Rabwah Mubahisa Chakralvi Batalvi” and this treatise is available in the collection of books titled “Ruhani Khazain” volume 19, in which Mirza Qadiani writes:
“It should be the duty of our community that if a hadith is not contradictory or opposed to the Quran and Sunnah, no matter how weak the hadith is, they should act upon it. And if a matter is not found in hadith, nor in Sunnah, nor in the Quran, then in that case the Hanafi fiqh should be followed because the majority of this sect indicates the will of Allah.”

10. Mirza Bashir Ahmad MA writes:
“A Maulvi came to Hazrat Masih Ma’ood (Mirza Ghulam Ahmad) and said several times that I am Hanafi and consider taqlid good, etc. You (Mirza Ghulam Ahmad) asked him if you are against the Hanafis? I consider these four Imams as a four-walled enclosure for Muslims, which saved them from dispersion and disunity.” Mirza Bashir MA further writes:
Hazrat Masih Ma’ood, although respected all names, yet especially considered Imam Abu Hanifa as superior in knowledge and understanding and praised his reasoning power greatly. (Seerat al-Mahdi Part 2 p. 29) Just as Mirzais claimed that they are Hanafi, similarly the Hanafis proved by their actions that they are Qadiani; now it is not correct to differentiate between them.

Ahmad Raza Khan Barelvi and the Belief in the Finality of Prophethood

The founder of the Barelvi sect, Ahmad Raza Khan Barelvi, also appears to be deeply engrossed in the issue of the belief in the Finality of Prophethood, writing: “The end is the beginning of prophethood, now I say we are followers of Abdul Qadir”

.
After the death of Hazrat Sheikh Abdul Qadir Jilani, prophethood will begin again; say that he will also be a follower of Sheikh Abdul Qadir Jilani.” (Mawahizat)
1. From Ahmad Raza Khan’s statement, it is understood that after the death of the Noble Prophet ﷺ, the door of prophethood was closed until 520 AH. After the death of Abdul Qadir Jilani in 561 AH, prophethood will begin again. In reality, Maulvi Ahmad Raza Khan wanted to pave the way for himself, but unfortunately, Mirza Qadiani Ahmad surpassed him, and all of Maulana Ahmad Raza Khan’s efforts to uphold the belief in the Finality of Prophethood were in vain and fruitless. Perhaps Maulvi Ahmad Raza Khan was unaware that Allah Almighty always destroys His and His Prophet’s enemies. That is why he spent his life opposing the Book and Sunnah.
2. Maulvi Ahmad Raza writes:
“After 561 AH, the coming prophet will be a follower of Abdul Qadir Jilani. There is no doubt that believing in the coming of a legislative or non-legislative prophet after the Noble Prophet ﷺ is the worst belief. But consider the founder of Barelvism’s statement that he considers the prophet to be a follower of a wali (saint). That means in the Barelvi religion, the status of an ordinary person is higher than that of the prophet, which scholars call blasphemy against the Messenger ﷺ.”
3. Maulvi Ahmad Raza writes:
“On the night of Mi’raj, Allah Almighty asked the Prophet ﷺ:

اغم علیک ان جعلتک آخر الانبیاء

‘Did you feel sorrow that I made you the last?’ He replied:
No, O my Lord. He said: I made them the last so that I may disgrace all the nations before them.”

From Ahmad Raza Khan’s writing, it appears that the Noble Prophet ﷺ was not نعوذ باللہ happy about being the last prophet. The honor was only for the Ummah; there was no intrinsic virtue. But this is only Maulvi Ahmad Raza Khan’s assumption, which he fabricated to justify the Prophet’s statement:

من كذب علي متعمدا فليتبوأ مَقْعَدَهُ مِنَ النَّاسِ .

4. Maulvi Ahmad Raza Barelvi writes: It was close that the entire Ummah would become prophets:

جمال ہمنشین در من اثر کرو و گرنه من جہاں قائم که بیستم

How foolish it is to say that if the entire Ummah became prophets, then where would the Ummah of each prophet come from? The reality is that Ahmad Raza, because of this writing, surpassed even Mirza Qadiani, because Mirza only affirmed non-legislative prophethood for himself, but Ahmad Raza affirmed prophethood for every person. Scholars and thinkers will consider that if Mirza was not accepted in Islam for affirming one prophethood, then how can one who affirms prophethood for every person be accepted in Islam? Besides these arguments, there are other evidences that can uproot the roots of the Barelvi religion, but to avoid lengthiness, I suffice with these texts only.

The Belief in the Finality of Prophethood and the Sufis

Among those whose beliefs Mirza Qadiani used as a basis to make a malicious attempt to undermine the prophethood of the Noble Prophet ﷺ, one group is the Sufis. But it is remembered that Hanafi jurisprudence is also closely related to Sufism, which is why the divine lover Mir Thi praises Sufism, stating:
“Sufism is the essence of faith; it is not an additional thing. This is the faith that every Muslim claims. It is the true spiritual practice so that its reality and sweetness may be granted to the heart.”

Although many sources can be cited for this statement, due to brevity, I do not find it necessary to refer to them here. But the reason for mentioning this statement is that it clearly shows that according to the people of opinion, Sufism is an extremely valuable matter. For this reason, I also align with the Sufis and, as evidence, I will mention a narration in the context of Ibn Arabi, which strengthens my point. Here, I mention a few Sufis who made statements regarding the finality of prophethood, which gave considerable strength to the false claimants of prophethood. In fact, they used these statements as proof to attempt to undermine the belief in the finality of prophethood, due to which those people were declared disbelievers by the scholars of Ahl al-Sunnah. Those who, due to their reprehensible efforts, gave them the opportunity to commit this impure audacity are no different from them.

➊ Ibn Hajar al-Haythami Abu al-Fadl Shihab al-Din al-Sayyid Mahmood al-Alusi al-Baghdadi, who died in 1266 AH, writes about Haythami:

ومن العجب أن ابن حجر الهيثمي قال في فتاواه الحديثية انه لابد في اثبات النبوة لابراهيم ابن النبي لا في صغره وقد ثبت في الصغر لعيسى ويحيى عليهما السلام ۔

Ibn Hajar al-Haythami said a very strange thing in his Hadith Fatwas. (He said) It is not unlikely to affirm prophethood for the son of the Noble Prophet ﷺ, Ibrahim, in infancy (sughr sani), because prophethood is established in infancy for Jesus (ʿIsa) and John (Yahya).

That is, Haythami wants to say that just as prophethood in infancy is affirmed for Yahya and ʿIsa, similarly prophethood in infancy is established for the son of the Noble Prophet ﷺ, Ibrahim. But Haythami’s statement is incorrect in several respects.

➊ Because if prophethood in infancy is established for the son of the Noble Prophet ﷺ, Ibrahim, then the others were also your ﷺ sons: Abdullah, Qasim, and Tayyib. But no one has affirmed prophethood for them nor considered them prophets, and there is no evidence to single out one. So it must be accepted that just as it is incorrect to consider the other sons of the Prophet ﷺ as prophets in infancy, similarly it is incorrect to consider Ibrahim as a prophet in infancy.

➋ Also, Haythami’s statement is wrong in this respect that prophethood in childhood is established by legal texts for Yahya and ʿIsa, but prophethood in infancy is not established for Ibrahim.

Prophethood of Jesus (peace be upon him) in Childhood

The Almighty Allah says:

وَجَعَلَنِي مُبَارَكًا أَيْنَ مَا كُنتُ وَأَوْصَانِي بِالصَّلَاةِ وَالزَّكَاةِ مَا دُمْتُ حَيًّا ‎﴿٣١﴾‏ وَبَرًّا بِوَالِدَتِي وَلَمْ يَجْعَلْنِي جَبَّارًا شَقِيًّا ‎﴿٣٢﴾‏ وَالسَّلَامُ عَلَيَّ يَوْمَ وُلِدتُّ وَيَوْمَ أَمُوتُ وَيَوْمَ أُبْعَثُ حَيًّا ‎﴿٣٣﴾‏ ذَٰلِكَ عِيسَى ابْنُ مَرْيَمَ ۚ قَوْلَ الْحَقِّ الَّذِي فِيهِ يَمْتَرُونَ ‎﴿٣٤﴾‏

He said (meaning Jesus, peace be upon him), “Indeed, I am the servant of Allah. He has given me the Scripture and made me a prophet. And He has made me blessed wherever I am and has enjoined upon me prayer and zakah as long as I remain alive. And He has made me dutiful to my mother, and has not made me arrogant or miserable. And peace is on me the day I was born, the day I die, and the day I will be raised alive again.” This is the true account of Jesus, son of Mary; this is the truth about which people are in doubt.

Prophethood of John (peace be upon him) in Childhood

Allah the Exalted says:

هُنَالِكَ دَعَا زَكَرِيَّا رَبَّهُ ۖ قَالَ رَبِّ هَبْ لِي مِن لَّدُنكَ ذُرِّيَّةً طَيِّبَةً ۖ إِنَّكَ سَمِيعُ الدُّعَاءِ ‎﴿٣٨﴾‏ فَنَادَتْهُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ وَهُوَ قَائِمٌ يُصَلِّي فِي الْمِحْرَابِ أَنَّ اللَّهَ يُبَشِّرُكَ بِيَحْيَىٰ مُصَدِّقًا بِكَلِمَةٍ مِّنَ اللَّهِ وَسَيِّدًا وَحَصُورًا وَنَبِيًّا مِّنَ الصَّالِحِينَ ‎﴿٣٩﴾

At that place, Zakariya (peace be upon him) prayed to his Lord, saying: O my Lord! Grant me from Yourself a pure offspring. Indeed, You are the Hearer of supplication. Then the angels called him while he was standing in prayer in the chamber, saying: Allah gives you the glad tidings of a boy whose name will be Yahya (John), confirming a word from Allah, honorable, abstaining (from unlawful things), and a prophet from among the righteous.

From these Quranic texts, it is understood that Isa (Jesus) and Yahya (John) (peace be upon them) were prophets in their childhood. Now, if the son of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, Ibrahim, was also a prophet in his early childhood, then evidence from the Quran and Hadith must be presented, but there is no such evidence. Therefore, Ibn Hajar Haithami’s argument based on the prophethood of Isa and Yahya (peace be upon them) is not correct.

➌ Ibn Hajar Haithami’s statement is also incorrect in this regard because establishing prophethood for Ibrahim bin Muhammad ﷺ in early childhood contradicts the commands of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. If your son was a prophet, then what is the meaning of these commands of the Prophet ﷺ?

➊ It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Huraira (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:

كانت بنو إسرائيل تشوشهُمُ الأَنْبِهاء ، كُلَّمَا هَلَكَ نَبِي خَلَقَهُ نَبِي ، وَإِنَّهُ لا نَي بَعْدِي . وَسَيَكُون لحلها، فَيَكْثُرُونَ.

The governance of the Children of Israel was by prophets. When a prophet died, another prophet succeeded him. But listen! After me, there will be no prophet, but there will be caliphs (successors), and they will be many.

➋ Sayyiduna Thawban (may Allah be pleased with him) says that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:

وَإنَّه سيكون في أمي لاكون كل الون الهم تزعم أَنَّهُ نَي وَأَنَا عَالم اليوين لا نرى بَعْدِي .

There will appear among my Ummah thirty great liars, each of whom will claim to be a prophet, whereas I am the Seal of the Prophets; there is no prophet after me.

Sayyiduna Jubair bin Mut’im (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:

أنا محمد وأنا أَحْمَدُ وأنا الناس الذى نمى بن الكفر وأنا الخاشِرُ الَّذِي يُعْشَرُ النَّاسُ عَلَى . عقبي وأنا الغائب». وَالْعَاقِبُ الَّذِي لَيْسَ بَعْدَهُ نَي.

I am Muhammad, I am Ahmad, I am the Mahi (the one through whom disbelief will be wiped out). I am the Hashir (the one before whom the resurrection will take place). I am the Aqib (the last), and Aqib is the one after whom there is no prophet.

These Ahadith are evidence that you ﷺ are the last prophet of Allah, the Exalted. After you, the Day of Judgment will be established, and no prophet will be born between you and the Day of Judgment.

Statements of the Exegetes

4. Verse of the Holy Quran:

مَّا كَانَ مُحَمَّدٌ أَبَا أَحَدٍ مِّن رِّجَالِكُمْ وَلَٰكِن رَّسُولَ اللَّهِ وَخَاتَمَ النَّبِيِّينَ ۗ وَكَانَ اللَّهُ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ عَلِيمًا ‎﴿٤٠﴾

O people! None of your men is the father of Muhammad ﷺ, but he is the Messenger of Allah and the Seal of all the Prophets.

In the exegesis of this verse, many commentators have clarified that Allah Almighty did not grant you ﷺ any son who reached the age of maturity. Because if any of your ﷺ sons had reached maturity, he would have been a prophet. Since no prophet can come after you ﷺ, Allah Almighty took all your ﷺ sons back to Himself in childhood.
1. Muqatil bin Sulayman says:

ولم يجعل محمد ابا احد من الرجال لانه لو جعل له ابنا لجعله نبيا وليس بعده نبی قال الله تبارک و تعالىٰ وخاتم النبيين۔

If Allah Almighty had given you ﷺ a son, He would have made him a prophet, but there are no prophets after you ﷺ, as Allah’s command states that you ﷺ are the Seal of all Prophets.

2. Sayyid Na Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) says:

ان الله تعالىٰ لما حكم انه لا نبي بعده لم يعطه ولد اذکر ابصير ارجلا ولو اعطاه ولد أذكراً يصير ارجلا لجعله نبيا –

Indeed, when Allah Almighty decreed that there would be no prophet after you ﷺ, He did not grant you ﷺ a son who reached the age of manhood. Because if Allah Almighty had given you ﷺ such a son who reached maturity, He would have made him a prophet. Since there is no prophet after you ﷺ, Allah Almighty caused all the sons of the Prophet ﷺ to die in early childhood.

3. Ibn Umar Al-Baqa’i says:

ولو صار أحد من ولده رجلا لكان نبيا بعد ظهور نبوته وقد قضى الله الا يكون بعده نبي اکر اماله۔

If there had been a male among your ﷺ offspring (i.e., who reached maturity), he would have been a prophet even after the manifestation of your ﷺ prophethood. But Allah Almighty, to honor and glorify you ﷺ, decreed that there would be no prophet after you ﷺ.

Ibn Hajar Haithami narrated this tradition:

انه ﷺ ادخل يده في قبره بعد دفنه و قال اماو الله انه لنبي ابن نبی

Indeed, after you ﷺ buried him (i.e., his son Ibrahim) in his grave, you ﷺ put your blessed hand inside and said: By Allah, indeed he is a prophet, the son of a prophet.

This tradition is not acceptable because it has no chain of narration, and without a chain, a tradition is not authentic. Therefore, Haithami’s argument based on this tradition is also incorrect.
4. Abdul Wahhab Sha’rani (died 983 AH) writes in his book:

أعلم أن النيرة لم ترتفع مطلقاً بعد محمد واهما ارتفع نبوة التشريع فقط فقوله لانبی بعدی و لارسول بعدی ای ماثم من يتشرع بعدى تشريعة خاصة۔

Know that prophethood was not absolutely ended after Muhammad ﷺ; only legislative prophethood ended. Your ﷺ statement “There is no prophet nor messenger after me” means that no prophet will come who brings a new Shariah.
(Book Al-Yawaqit wal-Jawahir fi Bayan Aqaa’id Al-Akbar by Imam Al-Arif Ar-Rabbani Sayyid Abdul Wahhab Sha’rani – with footnote from Kitab Al-Kabeer Bayt Al-Ahmar fi Bayan ‘Uloom Ash-Sheikh Al-Akbar by the author of Al-Yawaqit wal-Jawahir –

He further writes:

فمازال المرسلون ولا يزالون في هذه الدار لكن من باطنية شرع محمد ولكن اكثر الناس لا يعلمون۔

That is, in this world, messengers have come before and will continue to come, but they will be from the inner reality of Muhammad ﷺ’s Shariah, though most people do not know this.

3. Sayyid Abdul Karim Jilani bin Ibrahim Jilani writes:

فانقطع حكم النبوة التشريع بعدة وكان محمد ﷺ خاتم النبیين

Thus, the ruling of legislative prophethood ended after you, and Muhammad ﷺ is the Seal of the Prophets.

4. Ibn Arabi:
His full name is محمد بن علی بن عربي الحاتمي الطائي الاندلسی – ابوبكر الملقب بالشيخ الأكبر عند الصوفية (ميزان الاعتدال ۶۵۹/۳، العقد الثمين ۱۲۰/۲، شذرات الذهب ۱۹۰/۵، طبقات المسالمية ص: ۱۵۵، معجم مولفین ۳۰/۱۱). He was born in Murcia in 520 AH and died in 638 AH. He authored many books and treatises, which Zarqali counted as four hundred.

Among his books, these two are most famous:
1. Al-Futuhat Al-Makkiyah.
2. Nusus Al-Hikam.
Although some people have defended Ibn Arabi’s beliefs, such as Jalal ad-Din As-Suyuti, who wrote a book in defense of Ibn Arabi titled “Tanbih Al-Ghabi bi Tanzih Ibn Arabi.” Ibn Al-Imad named it “Tanbih Al-Ghabi bi Tabriah Ibn Arabi.” Similarly, when Shams ad-Din Ahmad bin Sulayman Al-Hanafi Ash-Shirbabi Kamal Pasha (died 940 AH) was asked about Ibn Arabi and his beliefs, he said:

اما بعد ابها الناس اعلموا أن الشيخ الاعظم المقتدى الاكرم قطب العارفين وأمام الموحد بن محمد بن على بن عربي الطائي الاندلسی مجتهد كامل و مرشد فاضل له مناقب عجيبة