The Call of Heaven

Hazrat al-Haj Mirza Bashir-ud-Deen Mahmood Ahmad (ra) (1889–1965), was the second Khalifah of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community. He was the son of the Promised Messiah and his birth was the fulfilment of the Musleh Mau‘ud (Promised Reformer) prophecy. From his early childhood, he was gifted with knowledge—both, secular and spiritual—and a deep love for the Holy Quran. He was nineteen years old when the Promised Messiah (as) passed away. In 1914, at the age of 25, he was elected as Khalifatul-Masih II. During his almost fifty-two years of Khilafat, he led the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community internationally, expanding the Movement to forty-six countries. He was an avid scholar and a prolific author, who spoke and wrote extensively to defend Islam. A twenty-six-volume compilation of his works called Anwarul-‘Ulum contains over 800 writings and lectures (excluding several thousand sermons). His Tafsir-e-Kabir—a ten-volume commentary of the Holy Quran—is revered as a treasure trove today. He passed away on 8 November 1965 in Rabwah, Pakistan, and was succeeded by Hazrat Mirza Nasir Ahmad as Khalifatul-Masih III (rh).