The Religion of Islam

Born in 1874 in the Punjab (India) Maulana Muhammad Ali had a distinguished academic record, obtaining degrees in English and Law by 1899. As he stood on the threshold of a lucrative career in law, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmed, the reformer (mujaddid) of the 14th century Hijra, called on him to devote his life to the service of Islam. He forthwith abandoned his worldly plans and joined the great reformer in Qadian. Here he learned those gems of Islamic truth uncovered in this age by Hazrat Mirza Sahib through which Islam was now destined to attract people all over the world. He became the secretary of the organization and was appointed by Hazrat Mirza Sahib as the editor of the Review of Religions, one of the first Islamic journals in English. Under his editorship this journal presented the pristine beautiful face of Islam to a world which had seen only an ugly image of it.

When the successor of Hazarat Mirza Sahib, Maulana Nuruddin Sahib, died in 1914 certain elements in the organization led by the founder's son gained control of the movement, turning it into an exclusive intolerant sect ruled by a spiritual autocracy. They distorted and misrepresented Hazrat Mirza Sahib's views by asserting that he had claimed prophethood. These circumstances compelled Maulana Muhammad Ali to leave Qadian, and he along with his associates established the Ahmadiyya Anjuman Ishaat Islam in Lahore to continue Hazrat Mirza Sahib's real mission. From that date until his death in 1951 he led this society, organized its worldwide missionary activities, and produced a vast amount of invaluable scholarly literature in English and Urdu. His major works include: translations of the Holy Quran with detailed commentaries in both English and Urdu, The Religion of Islam, A Manual of Hadith, Fazl-i-Bari an exhaustive commentary on the Sahih Bukhari in Urdu, Muhammad the Prophet, The New World Order, the Early Caliphate, and the Living Thoughts of the Prophet Muhammad. This unique collection of books presents a picture of Islam restored to its original purity -- a religion of peace, tolerance, and spirituality. The Maulana's contribution to Islamic literature and revival of Islam has been highly acclaimed by eminent Muslims all over the world. A famous British Muslim scholar and translator of the Holy Quran, Marmaduke Pickthall, while reviewing the Maulana's monumental work the Religion of Islam, wrote in 1936 "Probably no living man has done longer or more valuable service for the cause of Islamic revival than Maulana Muhammad Ali of lahore..."