Mirza Basheer-ud-Din Mahmood Ahmad

Mirza Basheer-ud-Din Mahmood
مرزا بشیر الدین محمود احمد
Mirza Basheer-ud-Din Mahmood Ahmad
TitleCaliph of the Messiah
Amir al-Mu'minin
Promised Son
Personal
Born(1889-01-12)12 January 1889
Died7 November 1965(1965-11-07) (aged 76)
Rabwah, Punjab, Pakistan
Resting placeBahishti Maqbara, Rabwah, Pakistan
ReligionIslam
Spouse
7 spouses
  • Mahmuda Begum (m. 1902; d. 1958)
  • Amtul Hai (m. 1914; d. 1924)
  • Syeda Maryam Nisa Begum (m. 1921; d. 1944)
  • Sarah Begum (m. 1925; d. 1933)
  • Aziza Begum (m. 1926–?)
  • Maryam Siddiqa (m. 1935; d. 1996)
  • Bushra Begum (m. 1944; d. 1997)
Children
13 sons
  • Mirza Nasir Ahmad
  • Mirza Mubarik Ahmad
  • Mirza Munawar Ahmad
  • Mirza Khalil Ahmad
  • Mirza Hafeez Ahmad
  • Mirza Rafi Ahmad
  • Mirza Waseem Ahmad
  • Mirza Tahir Ahmad
  • Mirza Anwar Ahmad
  • Mirza Naeem Ahmad
  • Mirza Haneef Ahmad
  • Mirza Azhar Ahmad
  • Mirza Rafiq Ahmad
9 daughters
Parents
DenominationAhmadiyya
Signature
Muslim leader
Consecration14 March 1914
PredecessorHakeem Noor-ud-Din
SuccessorMirza Nasir Ahmad
PostCaliph
Websitewww.fazleumarfoundation.org

Mirza Basheer-ud-Din Mahmood Ahmad (مرزا بشیر الدین محمود احمد; 12 January 1889 – 8 November 1965) was the second caliph (Arabic: خليفة المسيح الثاني, khalīfatul masīh al-thāni), leader of the worldwide Ahmadiyya Muslim Community and the eldest son of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad from his second wife, Nusrat Jahan Begum. He was elected as the second successor of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad on 14 March 1914 at the age of 25, the day after the death of his predecessor Hakim Nur-ud-Din.[1]

Mahmood Ahmad's election as second caliph saw a secession within the movement in which a party refrained from pledging allegiance to him on account of certain differences over succession and theology; and possibly owing to a clash of personalities. He led the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community for over half a century and is known for establishing virtually the entire organisational structure of the Community (including five Auxiliary Organisations), improvement of its administration, formally establishing the Majlis al-Shura (Consultative Council), consolidating and formalising the system of financial contributions of the Community and directing extensive missionary activity beyond the Indian subcontinent. He is also known for his Tafsīr-e-Kabīr, a ten-volume exegesis of the Qur'an. A renowned orator, Mahmood Ahmad was also an active political figure especially in pre-independence India. He was also one of the founding members and the first president of the All India Kashmir Committee set up for the establishment of the civil rights of Kashmiri Muslims. Following the Partition of India and the creation of Pakistan in 1947, he carefully oversaw the safe migration of Ahmadis from Qadian to the newly found state, eventually building a town on a tract of arid and mountainous land bought by the Community in 1948 which now became its new headquarters and was named Rabwah. A 26 volume compilation of his works called Anwārul Uloom contains over 800 writings and lectures (excluding the many thousands of sermons).[2] Mahmood Ahmad is regarded by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community as the Musleh Ma'ood (Promised Reformer) and the "Promised Son" that Ghulam Ahmad foretold God would bestow upon him.[3]

  1. ^ "The Fadl-i-'Umar Foundation". fazleumarfoundation.org. Archived from the original on 17 February 2015. Retrieved 20 August 2016.
  2. ^ "Anwarul 'Ulum : Urdu Books by Hazrat Mirza Bashir-ud-din Mahmud Ahmad Khalifatul Masih II – Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama'at Urdu Pages". alislam.org. Retrieved 20 August 2016.
  3. ^ "Ahmadiyya Muslim Community". alislam.org. 23 February 2000. Retrieved 20 August 2016.