Here, Al-Arq can be treated in two ways, or in fact in three ways. One is generally the land, the earth. And this is a phenomena which has been mentioned elsewhere in the Holy Quran repeatedly, that after a prophet came, the control of the land was shifted from the hands of those who rejected those prophets to the hands of those who followed. This is how justice was preserved until it was again destroyed by the people themselves. This is a general common rule. And in this respect, when you say Al-Arq, it means earth generally speaking. In another way, Al-Arq means the particular land in context with a particular situation.
For instance, Al-Arq could mean Pakistan as well, where a special situation has arisen. People are usurping the rights of some people who claim that a true prophet from Allah came, a messenger came and they have accepted him, have faith in him. That is the only crime committed. And they also claim that this prophet is entirely and completely subordinate. Does not speak a single word from himself, but says what was told to him by his master or by Allah in the Holy Quran. By master I mean Ahzoo Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam. Despite this clarification, atrocities are being committed against Ahmadis.
So Al-Arq as a principle means anywhere a land, a piece of land, a country, a region where people are deprived of their rights of equal citizenship only for the crime that they believe in a messenger of Allah, they would ultimately be handed over the charge of that land. Not directly. What does it mean handed over the charge? Not in the temporal sense. It means they will win ultimately, their message will spread and that message will capture the whole people and their imagination.
So that ultimately they will be the owners, they will be the successors. In that sense, not in the sense of any political victory. That is not mentioned. But ultimately it amounts to the same thing. If the majority of a country’s population adhere to a certain religion, then they become victorious anyway. So through that process, ultimately the lands are inherited by Allah’s chosen ones. Now the third is Al-Arq, the land of Palestine. Or Arz-e-Sham, as Rasim-ul-Islam has mentioned. Now Palestine and Syria in fact are one and the same thing. If that is the question, that may be, I mean, the word Syria may be bothering you, why he has used Syria against Palestine. People forget that geographies are not fixed things. They change with history. There is a present geography and a historical geography.
So when you speak of Sham, it does not mean the country which is contained in the present boundaries. It means Sham known to the religious world of old, in which various prophets appeared, and Palestine was a part or a central part of that Syria. It was only recently that it was taken away and three countries were created out of one, Lebanon, Palestine and Syria. Previously it was not the situation. So Rasim-ul-Islam means that this land is particularly dear to Allah because so many prophets came here and ultimately the prophets who appeared here gave birth to the best of prophets, the pride of prophets, Ahazza sallallahu alaihi wa sallam. So this land will also be ultimately handed over to his pious and chosen people.
Now this is a promise as well as a direction, as well as an instruction. If you really want that land, be the chosen ones of Allah because sword is not going to ruin you that land. If you become the chosen ones of Allah and behave in a manner that Allah begins to love you, then Allah says it’s my job then. I will change things to your advantage and ultimately you will become the inheritor of this land.
