Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad - Khalifatul Masih V (a.b.a)
September 27, 2025
I bear witness that there is none worthy of worship except Allah. He is alone and has no partner and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger After this I seek refuge with Allah from Satan the accursed.
In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful. All praise belongs to Allah, Lord of all the worlds. The Gracious, the Merciful. Master of the Day of Judgment. Thee alone do we worship and Thee alone do we implore for help. Guide us in the right path The path of those on whom Thou hast bestowed Thy blessings, those who have not incurred Thy displeasure, and those who have not gone astray.
With the grace of Allah, You all gathered here to enhance your intellectual, moral and spiritual capabilities and standards. My voice is reaching the end. Is it okay?
Without doubt, the establishment of Lajna Imaillah as a distinct auxiliary organisation was a profound gift and favour from Hazrat Musleh Maud upon Ahmadi women and girls. He founded Lajna so that Ahmadi women and girls could independently strive to build a connection with God and their faith free from the influence or shadow of men. It was founded to nurture and guide them so they may become beacons of virtue and excellence and that their piety, knowledge and boundless potential may illuminate the world.
We live in a time when the call for women's rights has become fashionable in the West. Traditionally dismissed as weak and fragile by these societies, women are now raising their voices to assert those rights they were previously denied. Modern trends now see men branding themselves as feminists and claiming to grant or deliver rights to women. However, often such proclamations are merely hollow gestures or fashionable postures rather than a sincere commitment to the empowerment of women and girls. As certain female intellectuals have noted, concealed vested interests often lie behind the call for women's rights and freedoms.
These modern day movements are frequently driven by selfish reasons, not by love, compassion or a genuine desire for equality. By contrast, empty women can proudly proclaim to the world that more than 1400 years ago, Islam enshrined their rights and freedoms. They do not need any man to bestow rights or equality upon them, as Allah Himself honoured them with true freedom, justice and equality. Moreover, Ahmadi women can proudly state that they do not need rights or freedoms as defined by worldly people or the men of this era. Rather, they desire and require those freedoms and rights as defined by Allah the Almighty and His Messenger. Indeed, over 14 centuries ago, Allah placed men and women side by side and affirmed that a woman's heart beats with emotions and feelings no less than a man's. He commanded that women's rights and dignity must never be violated, nor should they ever be subjected to injustice or cruelty.
Any man who denies a woman her due rights is guilty in the eyes of God and will be held accountable by Him. While Allah the Almighty has granted women countless rights and equality, He has also laid down obligations that you must strive to fulfil. He requires you to be righteous, perform good deeds and act upon Islam's teachings at all times. Only then will you be deserving of His rewards.
In the Holy Qur'an, Allah the Almighty outlines the principles of righteousness for both men and women. Sometimes, He addresses believers collectively, while at other times, He speaks to believing men and believing women separately about their religious duties. Above all, Allah states that they can only have true faith if they ardently act upon His commands. Moreover, everyone will be rewarded equally for their good deeds with no discrimination.
Thus, in the Holy Qur'an, Allah the Almighty states:
Surely, men who submit themselves to God and women who submit themselves to Him, and believing men and believing women, and obedient men and obedient women, and truthful men and truthful women, and men steadfast in their faith and steadfast women, and men who are humble and women who are humble, and men who give alms and women who give alms, and men who fast and women who fast, and men who guard their chastity and women who guard their chastity, and men who remember Allah much and women who remember Him, Allah has prepared for all of them forgiveness and a great reward.
In this verse, Allah the Almighty prescribes the same righteous deeds for both men and women to attain the rank of a believer. Furthermore, as Ahmadi women, if you act on these commands, you will not only reform yourselves, but will also give rise to righteous fathers, husbands, brothers and sons. You will be the ones who cleanse and liberate society from the conflicts and turmoil that grip it today. Always remember that achieving any great objective requires sacrifice. The greater the objective, the greater the sacrifice required. Therefore, every Ahmadi woman and girl must constantly seek to improve her spiritual and moral state. Only then can you act upon the commands of Allah.
You must be firm in faith and submit entirely to Allah, being obedient to Him and always exhibit truth and patience. A believing woman must be humble. She must offer Sadqa and spend in the way of Allah. She is commanded to observe the fast, guard her modesty and chastity, and remember Allah at all times. Allah has promised His forgiveness and rewards for those who possess these virtues. Accordingly, as you navigate your daily lives, remember that this world is not your ultimate objective. Often, girls or women share their worries and difficulties with me and ask why they do not see immediate results from their good deeds and prayers. Without a doubt, Allah the Almighty has promised to reward all righteous deeds and sincere prayers. Yet, some rewards require patience and are granted at their destined time, either in this life or in the hereafter. True believers do not consider this world to be everything. Instead, their eyes are set upon the eternal life in the hereafter.
So, if you are steadfast in your faith and uphold the moral virtues, Allah has decreed He will bless and reward you in ways far beyond your imagination or comprehension. Keeping this in view, I shall now briefly outline the moral values a believer should embody. Allah the Almighty desires that we strive to perfect our faith and live as true Muslims. It is not enough to merely profess the Kalima verbally. Instead, there must be a deep conviction in your heart to fulfil every command of Allah.
Regrettably, many who claim to have faith exhibit impatience. When confronted by trials, quickly complaining that their prayers were not immediately answered, Allah greatly loves His people. But in return, He requires that we maintain an unwavering faith in Him, both in times of ease and of trial, rather than doubting His presence whenever hardship occurs. Thus, no matter what adversity a believer faces, their faith in Allah must never weaken, nor must they ever harbour a grievance against God.
Always remember that Allah is the Lord of all the worlds, who has bestowed countless blessings upon each of us from the moment we were conceived. If we remember these favours, we will never be inclined to complain or feel that we have been unfairly treated. Instead, we will patiently and gladly bear all temporary hardships for His sake, and if we remain steadfast in the face of adversity for Allah's sake alone, He will reward us beyond measure. To truly follow Islam's teachings and strengthen our faith, it is essential that every Ahmadi Muslim woman regularly recites the Holy Qur'an, strives to understand its meaning, and lives by its sacred guidance.
Unfortunately, even within our Jama'at, many fail to pay proper heed to the word of God. Allah states, So they should hearken to Me and believe in Me. Here, Allah commands us to listen to Him and strengthen our faith in Him. As I just said, the primary method to increase one's faith is to study the Holy Qur'an, identify and reflect upon its commands, which number over 700, and sincerely strive to act upon them. We must adopt all that Allah commands and avoid all that He forbids. Only then will our faith be firm, and only then will we become the rightful inheritors of His blessings and mercy.
Another fundamental quality of a believing woman is truthfulness. Women who have complete faith always speak the truth. When a woman recognises her obligations to be truthful and shun falsehood, she embarks on a spiritual Jihad. This Jihad not only purifies her from all forms of shirk, but also sets a potent example for her children and others in society, teaching them to abhor lying and to reject shirk. Indeed, a person who upholds truth and fosters it in others, plays a key role in unearthing the beauty within society. Falsehood is the malignant key unlocking the door to discord and disunity, corroding the foundations of home and community alike. As the next generation of Ahmadis will be nurtured in your laps, it is essential that you exemplify truth at all times.
When mothers express concerns to me about raising children in a non-Islamic Western environment and ask how to guide them best, my answer is always the same, that parents must set the best possible example for their children. If parents are pious, God-fearing, and live according to Islam's teachings, their children will naturally learn from them. Young children, especially in their early years, spend more time with their mothers than anyone else. They adopt what they see in their mothers and consider it right. Therefore, Ahmadi mothers have a great responsibility to rid society of shirk and establish truth and piety.
Then Allah commands believing men and women to guard their chastity and modesty. The Promised Messiah, on whom be peace, explained that modesty is not just about dress. It also includes a person's eyes, ears, tongue and all other things that can lead to indecency or impropriety. In terms of appearance, Islam teaches a woman to dress modestly, to protect her from the unwanted gaze of men and to safeguard society from impure thoughts or actions. Accordingly, Warda is a means of protecting a woman from unwanted advances and preserving her honour and dignity. While the concept of modesty has existed in all major religions, today indecency and vulgarity have become widespread in the name of freedom. In such an era, it is a source of pride for the Jama'at that Ahmadi women and girls remain firm in their faith and continue to manifest these religious teachings.
Thus, you should resist external pressures. I have often spoken about how Islam was the first religion to establish true women's rights. For example, Islam has always promoted the education of girls and was the first to give women the right to inherit or to divorce. Allah does not stop women from working or require them to remain confined to their homes. At the same time, alongside this right, Allah has laid down certain conditions and responsibilities. He requires Muslim women to observe hijab and maintain a degree of separation from men to prevent the risk of any improper situation arising.
Observing hijab and modesty is not a restriction, it is a means of elevating your status. It does not steal your freedom, rather it adorns it with beauty and grace. If you are proud of your faith, others will respect you. So never fall prey to any complex or feel embarrassed.
It is easy to speak of bringing about a spiritual revolution, but in reality, revolutions are never born from convenience, comfort or words alone. They are forged through sacrifice, by surrendering one's ego, personal interests, trends and all desires for a higher purpose. After inculcating this spirit within yourselves, train your children so that the noble legacy of true sacrifice in the way of Allah may pass seamlessly from generation to generation.
Throughout the history of the Jamaat, many righteous women have made immense sacrifices that prove that just as women in the time of the Holy Prophet made monumental sacrifices, today, in the era of the Promised Messiah, Ahmadi Muslim women are doing the same. A striking example of this was witnessed only a few years ago in Burkina Faso, where Ahmadi men and women displayed astonishing courage and faith. While fearless and devoted Ahmadi men sacrificed their lives for the sake of Islam, the women of that Jamaat also stood tall exemplifying extraordinary faith and steadfastness. They have since testified that when they saw their husbands and fathers martyred before their eyes, their faith was not shaken for even a moment.
Those African women have set the bar extremely high and their faith should serve as a living model for all of you. So, with conviction and courage, all of you must be ready to make every necessary sacrifice to place your faith above all worldly matters and to act without hesitation upon every command of Allah in order to ignite a spiritual revolution in the world.
So, as members of Lajna Imaillah, understand your responsibilities. You have been entrusted with the sacred duty of conveying the message of Islam in this country and around the world, and to play a foremost role in serving the noble mission of the Promised Messiah.
May Allah grant you the ability to do so. Ameen. JazakAllah. Now join me in silent prayer. Ameen.
