Since Maulavi Hakim Nuruddin had a wide knowledge of the Traditions from the Prophet, he used to draw the attention of the Mirza Qadiani towards the difficulties in justifying his claims and also used to help him in solving those difficulties. The problem as to how to relate the attributes which had been mentioned with regard to the Messiah (Jesus) required extraordinary intelligence. Here are a few examples of this intelligence—and of its having run riot.
The Traditions on which the Mirza Ghulam Ahmad’s claim of Messiahship is based also mention a number of details relating to the descent of the Messiah and hayat e Messiah. One of these is that the Messiah would descend in Damascus. Now, if the Mirza was the promised Messiah, how could this is justified in the light of the above-mentioned Tradition? It is obvious that Damascus and Qadian are far away from one another. Nevertheless, the paradoxes did not occur to the Mirza. It is Nuruddin who drew his attention to it. Let us refer once more to the Mirza himself on this question:
‘‘This humble one had so far not occupied himself with trying to find out the signification of this (i.e Damascus), when a friend and trusted lover, Maulavi Hakim Nuruddin came here to Qadian and he made a request to turn towards God to reveal the significance of Damascus and the two other ambiguous terms which occur in the Tradition concerned in “Muslim”. Since in those days, I was sick and my mind was incapable of strenuous exertion I was unable to attend to these matters. Only a little bit of effort led to the explanation of a word, that is, the reality of Damascus was revealed to me.”
Later, he explains his inspired discovery of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad’s claim of Messiahship and the meaning of Damascus in these terms:
“Thus, it should be clear that in the interpretation of the word ‘Damascus’, it was revealed to me by God that that town has been called Damascus which is inhabited by a people who have the nature of Yazid, who follow the practices and ideas of the filthy Yazid, in whose hearts there is no love for God and the Prophet, no veneration for the commandments of God, who have become wont to follow their desires, whose enslavement to the commands of the baser self is such that even the blood of the pure and the sacred appears to them as easy and trifling, who do not believe in the Hereafter and for whom the existence of God is a complicated problem which eludes their understanding. And since the physician should come to the sick, it was essential that the Messiah should appear among such people.”
“Thus, ‘the descent of the Messiah in Damascus’ clearly indicates that there is someone who is a Replica of the Messiah, who also resembles Hussain owing to the resemblance between these two venerable personalities (the Messiah and Hussain). And who will descend in order to warn the Yazids for they are akin to the Jews.”
Later, he writes “Damascus has been used merely in a metaphorical way.’ He also adds:
“Then He told me that these people had the nature of Yazid and this town (Qadian) is similar to Damascus. So, the Exalted Allah sent this humble one down to this Damascus for a great purpose (at the eastern side, next to the white minaret of the mosque wherein whosoever entered became safe. Blessed is the One who sent me down at this place).
Reference : Qadianism- A Critical Study by S. Abdul Hasan Ali Nadvi
