The Martyrdom of Sahibzada Abdul Latif Shaheed
by Prof. Khalil-ur-Rahman
Martyrdom
Departure for the Place of Martyrdom:
What is the clamour in your street, enquire about it quickly,
Lest a mad lover’s blood be spilt.
Hazrat Mirza writes:
“When Hazrat Sahibzada rejected repeated suggestions to repent, the Ameer despaired, and wrote with his own hands a long judgement in which he included the verdict of the maulvis and stated in it that the punishment for such a kafir is death by stoning. The judgement was hung from Akhundzada’s neck, and the Ameer ordered that a hole be made in his nose, a string put through it, and he be pulled by that string and led to the place of execution. Accordingly, by order of this cruel Ameer, a hole was bored in his nose, a string passed through it with great pain, and he was led by the string to the place of execution amongst a tumult of abuses, jeers, and jokes. The Ameer, along with all his courtiers, judges, Islamic jurists, and other officers, witnessed this painful scene as they proceeded to the site of execution. Thousands of people from the city, whose exact number is difficult to gauge, turned up to witness this show.”
Exactly the same treatment was meted out by the Jews to Jesus (on whom be peace). They had spat on his face, slapped and boxed him, placed a crown of thorns on his head, and taken him to the cross, hitting him with a cane, joking, and laughing.
“When they reached the place of execution, Hazrat Sahibzada was interred [buried] in the ground up to the waist. In this condition, when he was buried up to the waist, the Ameer went to him and said: ‘If you denounce the Qadiani, who has claimed to be the Promised Messiah, I will save you even now. Time has run out on you, and this is the last chance that is being given to you. Have mercy on yourself and your family.’ Hazrat Sahibzada replied: ‘May Allah protect me. How can truth be denied? What is the reality of life and what is the importance of family and children, for which I should leave my belief? I can never do it. I will die for the truth.’ The judges and Islamic jurists raised a cry: ‘He is a kafir; he is a kafir. Stone him immediately.’ At that time, the Ameer, his brother, Nasrullah, the Qazi (judge), and the Commander, Abdul Ahad were mounted on horses, while everybody else was on foot. When, even in this critical situation, Hazrat Sahibzada persisted repeatedly with his reply, ‘I value my belief more than my life,’ the Ameer told the Qazi to cast the first stone because he had given the verdict of kufr. The Qazi said: ‘You are the ruler; you throw the (first) stone.’ The Ameer replied: ‘You are the king of Islamic law, and it is your verdict; I have nothing to do with it.’ The Qazi then got down from his horse, and threw a stone, which injured Hazrat Sahibzada grievously, and his head bent forward. After that, the unfortunate Ameer threw a stone, and this was a signal to the public to follow the example of their ruler. Thousands of stones started to rain on him, and there was none in that crowd that did not throw a stone in his direction. The abundance of stones created a pile over the martyr’s head. At the time of his departure from the site, the Ameer said: ‘This person had remarked that he would come alive on the sixth day; so keep a guard on him for six days.’ What cruelty! The stoning took place on July 14, 1903. The martyrdom which was ordained for Sahibzada Abdul Latif has occurred, but the recompense of the tyrant remains… O Abdul Latif, thousands of blessings be upon you that you showed an example of your truthfulness in my life, and about those who will stay in my party after my death, I know not what they will do.”1
These words of Hazrat Mirza should be a source of reflection for us.
Footnotes:
- Tazkirat-ul Shahadatain, pp. 56-58. ↩