100 Years of the Ahmadiyya Anjuman

“Al-Wasiyyat, as will be obvious from reading it, is the Will of the Promised Messiah [Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian]. In December 1905, when he received intimation from Allah the Most High of his impending death, he immediately wrote this booklet, Al-Wasiyyat, in which he expressed his Will as to the arrangements for running the Move­ment after him, and published it at the same time. In fact, as regards the system for the control of the finances of the Move­­ment which he wished to put in place, he did not postpone its implementation till after his death, in case some disagreement arose at the time destroying his original aim. He himself created the Anjuman which was to have charge of the adminis­tration of the Movement, and publi­shed its rules and regulations under his own signature. In the Supplement to Al-Wasiyyat, published only fifteen days later on 6^th January 1906, he declared this Anjuman in clear words to be his ‘successor’, and plainly gave all the powers for the administration of the Movement after him to this Anjuman. He did, however, make separate arrange­ments for the taking of the baiat (pledge) to admit new entrants into the Movement, and thus created a system which was complete in every way. Moreover, he put into practical effect, while he was still alive, all that part of this system which could be imple­mented during his life to prevent any dissension after his death.

“The selfish motives of human beings, however, did not let even such a comprehensive system stay in place, and the Will of the Promised Messiah was thrown into neglect. …

“There arose a disagreement even during the life of the Promised Messiah in connection with the part of the Will which he had put into operation. The question was raised whether the Anjuman created by him had the ultimate authority, and whether its decisions were binding or not? If such a disagreement had taken place after the death of the Promised Messiah, it was possible that there would always remain room to differ over this question. But it is a matter of great thankfulness to God that this disagreement itself occurred during the life of the Promised Messiah, and he gave his judgment by his own hand in his own writing. That judgment was that the decisions of the Anjuman are final and binding. However, an exception was made but only for the duration of the life of the Founder of the Movement, to the effect that in religious matters the Anjuman must inform him before making a decision because of the possibility that he might receive Divine revelation to guide him in that matter. But he did not wish to leave this privilege, which he retained as the Founder of the Movement, for any individual after his death. He wrote absolutely plainly:

‘After me, the decision of this Anjuman in every matter shall be sufficient.’

“Had he assigned this power to any individual, it would have contra­vened his own words which he had written in the Supplement of Al-Wasiyyat:

‘The Anjuman is the successor of the Khalifa appointed by God.’

“The powers that he had reserved exclusively for himself during his life, those too he gave to none other than the Anjuman after his death. He thus proved that in fact no one other than this Anjuman was his successor. The Anjuman is the successor in the real sense because, by his note of 27^th October 1907, he gave to the Anjuman, and to none else, all the powers which he himself possessed. In this way, the note of 27^th October 1907 is, in actual fact, an unequi­vocal and conclusive expla­nation of his Will which does not leave room for anyone to put forward some other interpretation of the words of the Will.”