Beacon Of Guidance
My question is that in India there are limited resources for preaching in certain villages, and people generally work in the fields and in manual labour, so how can we preach to such people? Do you belong to a farming family? Yes So there are different seasons when it comes to working in the field.
If you have an apple orchard or any other crop, it has a specific season, one for cultivating and the other for waiting patiently. Alright? When the season for cultivating comes along, they are busy for a month or two. And when the season for harvesting comes by
They are busy again for a month or two, that is if they have orchards. If they have crops they finish their work within a month. Then, there are different seasons for the crops in different places. So the missionaries who are posted in these various places,
Can preach to the people working in the fields outside of these months, i.e. in the other six, seven or eight months of the year. You can get in contact with them and visit their homes. Then with regards to the villages within the countryside, they usually have a meeting place where they sit.
You can go there, speak and preach to them when it isn’t the season for the crops. Missionaries cannot work alone, in fact their duty is to train others around them. The Dai’een-ilallah (preachers) scheme was established by Hazrat Khalifatul Masih IV (rh) for this very reason. There was very good progress in the beginning,
Then over time there was less progress made in this regard. But efforts are being made again towards improving it. If you include these people and also create an interest in others to preach, they will then begin to preach within their own circles when they have an opportunity.
When there is such a gathering in which local Dai’een or the local Tabligh department, be it of Khuddamul Ahmadiyya, Ansarullah, Lajna of the Jama’at, calls the missionary to come, and speak, preach and answer questions in their gathering, then in such instances, you should avail of the situation by going there.
There is no excuse therefore to say that the farmers are always busy. There are seasons for agriculture. No farmer remains busy throughout the entire year. Alright? There are three or four months in between. Even if they are growing a two types of crops in the year,
There is still a period of three to four months in which they are usually free. If not, then there is a custom in the villages where people gather, and sit together in the evenings. Furthermore, the preachers ought to increase their personal contacts, and in whichever Jama’at the missionary is assigned,
He ought to encourage the people to do the same; he ought to advise the Tabligh department who then ought to establish a connection with them, and begin by mentioning simple points in order to convey the message to them. One can pave new avenues for Tabligh through one’s personal connections with people,
And personal contacts are very important. Moreover, those who have a passion (for Tabligh), explore new ways themselves in order to convey the message to the farmers. I remember when we were studying in university, we were instructed by Khuddam- ul-Ahmadiyya to go for Tabligh.
So as young men we went on cycles to the rural villages and met with the farmers there. If we saw a farmer watering his field, as we were students of agriculture, and had a passion for matters relating to agriculture, we would enquire about their health,
And then offer to water their field for them. After helping him, out of courtesy he would sit down and speak to us, in which we would convey the message of Ahmadiyyat. If there was a person who was ploughing the field, the one who knew how to use a plough,
I.e. he belonged to a family with a farming background, he would offer to plough the field with oxen or with a tractor; another person would sit and talk to them. So if one has a passion and drive, one can even find ways and opportunities (for Tabligh) in farms as well.
In fact, a humorous incident took place there, I have mentioned it in the past as well; I was sitting down speaking to a farmer who was working in his field. I asked him how he was and offered to help him; so we began talking; he asked us where we had come from,
We informed him that we belonged to the (agricultural) university, he then asked us who we were and where we were originally from, we introduced ourselves, and informed him that we are from Rabwah and are Ahmadis. He said: “Oh right, so you are Mirzai” (i.e.referring to Ahmadis).
In those days Sheikh Muhammad Ahmad Sahib Mazhar who was an advocate, was serving as the district Ameer, he is the one who has written various books on the topic of the “Mother of all Languages”, having conducted research into various languages and books of the Promised Messiah (as);
For example, tracing English back to Arabic, Sanskrit back to Arabic, he researched into various languages; he was a very scholarly person, and also an excellent lawyer. So the farmer said: “look, Muhammad Ahmad Mazhar Sahib is a very good lawyer, “he is also a Mirzai or Qadiani,
“but there is one issue with him, that he is a Mirzai. “Apart from that he is a very honourable person “and deals with cases honestly.” So if you increase your personal contacts and create awareness, you will find new opportunities. And if you ensure the members of the local Jama’at become active,
Then through their contacts there will be more opportunities for Tabligh. So these are just all excuses that such and such person belongs to a farming family or such, and such is a farmer etc., I also have a background in agriculture and I know how much effort goes in and the various seasons.
In each season there is time of about two to four months, which one should make use of and look for preaching opportunities, okay? Yes This depends on how much desire you have and how efficient you are. If you do not have a passion for something,
One will think ‘what is the point of carrying out this task.’ But if one is really passionate about something, they would use even the smallest of opportunities to accomplish the task.