1. Hadrat ‘Abdur Rehman bin ‘Auf ^ra
2. Hadrat Talha ^ra
3. Hadrat’Ali ^ra
4. Hadrat Uthman Ghani ^ra
5. Hadrat Sa’d ^ra
6. Hadrat Zubair ^ra

Hadrat ‘Abdur Rehman Bin Auf ^ra was not willing to shoulder the great responsibility and opted out of the election in favor of the other five.

He was, therefore, appointed to seek a common census for the next Khalifah. Hadrat ‘Abdur Rahman bin ‘Auf ^ra took the opinions of the Council members and other prominent Muslims and the majority votes were in favor of Hadrat ‘Uthman Ghani ^ra . He was, therefore, declared as the elected Khalifah and everyone took the oath of allegiance at his hands.

Hadrat ‘Uthman Ghani ^ra belonged to the well Known family, Banu Umayya of the Quraish. His lineage can be trace back to the Holy Prophet ^saw in the fifth generation before him. His generosity for the poor was so well known that he earned the title Ghani.

Hadrat ‘Uthman ^ra embraced Islam through the preaching of his close friend, Hadrat Abu Bakr. He was the forth person to embrace Islam, but he faced much hardships as his uncle started persecuting him. He migrated twice, first to Abyssinia and then to Medina.

The Holy Prophet ^saw held Hadrat ‘Uthman ^ra in great esteem, and married his daughter, Ruqayyah ^ra to him. On her death, the Holy Prophet ^saw married his second daughter, Ummi Kulthum ^ra to Hadrat ‘Uthman ^ra. Thus, Hadrat ‘Uthman was called Dhunnurain, meaning the one with two lights.

During the Khilafat of Hadrat ‘Uthman ^ra the Islamic Empire expanded still further, A rebellion in Iran was crushed. In the north, the Romans were once again defeated by the Muslim forces led by Hadrat Amir Muawiah ^ra. Then the Romans came by the sea to invade Egypt, but were once again repelled by the Muslim forces. As a result of these battles, the whole of Iran, Asia Minor and Egypt came under Muslim control. It was during his Khilafat that a navy and an Islamic fleet were established.

During his Khilafat, standard copies of the Holy Qur’an were prepared from the ones compiled by Hadrat Abu Bakr ^ra and sent to all the provinces of the state. This was certainly his most important deed.

The Hoy Qur’an, as we see it today, was compiled during his Khilafat and under his direct supervision. The last six years of his Khilafat, however, passed in chaos and conflicts due to the conspiracies of certain groups including that of ‘Abdullah Bin Sabah, a Jew who had become a Muslim with an intention of weakening the Islamic state.

Hadrat ‘Uthman ^ra was then martyred on June 17, 656 AD, at the age of eighty-two, while he was reciting the Holy Qur’an . He certainly sacrificed his life for the integrity of Khilafat in the best interest of Islam. He was one of ten blessed ones to whom the Holy Prophet ^saw had given the glad tidings that they been rewarded the paradise.

(The concise Encyclopedia of Islam, Cyril Glasse, Stacey International, London, 1989, p 412; A book of Religious Knowledge, Waheed Ahmad, p.150)

Hadrat ‘Umar Bin Khattab ^ra was the second successor of the Holy Prophet ^saw. During his Khilafat, the Muslim had to fight a number of battles against Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Egypt. As a result of this, vast areas of these countries came under the Muslim rule. When the city of Jerusalem in Palestine was conquered by Muslim in 17 Hijri, Hadrat ‘Umar ^ra himself visited the city on the request of the Romans, and signed a treaty between the Muslims and the People of Jerusalem.

Hadrat ‘Umar ^ra Established a splendid system of administration for the Islamic state. Some of his main achievements in this field are:

1. Establishment of Majlis Shura, a consultative body of advisor to Khalifah.
2. Division of the whole Islamic state into provinces to facilitate administration.
3. Establishment of a finance department and building of schools and mosques in different parts of the state.
4. Introduction of Islamic calendar of Hijrah.

Hadrat ‘Umar ^ra was so anxious about the welfare of his people that he used to go around in disguise, in the city of Madina at night, to see himself if anyone was in need of help. Once, during his patrol at night, he observed a woman cooking something in a pot while her children were crying around her. He found out from woman that the children were hungry for two days and the pot was put on fire just to console them. He immediately went to the treasury, and himself brought all the necessary food items to the woman. On his way, one his servant offered to carry the load but he stopped him saying: On the Day of Judgment you will not carry my load.

The woman, who had not seen Hadrat ‘Umar ^ra before, was so pleased that she prayed aloud for him saying, May Allah make you the Khalifah in place of ‘Umar. On hearing this Hadrat ‘Umar ^ra started crying and without saying a word left the place.

In 644 AD, Hadrat ‘Umar ^ra was stabbed by a Persian slave, while he was offering his Prayers in Mosque. This proved fatal and he passed away at the age of sixty three on 26th of Dhul Hijjah, 23 AH. He was a truly great Khalifah whose period of Khilafat was undoubtedly a golden period in the history of Islam. He was one of ten blessed ones to whom the Holy Prophet had given the glad tidings that they had been rewarded the Paradise.

(The Concise Encyclopedia of islam, Cyril Glasse, Stacey International, London, 1989, p 408; Ahmadiyya Gazette, April/May 2000, p28-29)

Following the Hijjatul Wida (The Last Pilgrimage), when the Holy Prophet ^saw fell seriously ill, he instructed Hadrat Abu Bakra ^ra to lead the daily Prayers. After the sad demise of the Holy Prophet ^saw, Hadrat Abu Bakr ^ra was elected as the first Khalifah. He had to deal with an extremely difficult situation which developed due to the sudden demise of the holy Prophet ^saw.

The first problem was that some of the tribes renounced Islam, simply because their tribal chiefs did not feel necessary to remain loyal to the successors for the Holy Prophet’’. Not only that but they started preparing to attack Medina to end the newly established institution of Khilafat. Hadrat Abu Bakr ^ra. After knowing their intentions, sent troops and succeeded in suppressing their rebellion.

The second major problem faced by Hadrat Abu Bakr Siddiq ^ra was that many people refused to pay the Zakat, which was essential for fulfilling the needs of the Islamic state and caring of the poor. Hadrat Abu Bakr ^ra vowed to collect Zakat from every one and took all the necessary measures to achieve this goal.

The most dangerous of all the problems was that a number of ambitious persons pretending to be prophets, started rebellion against the Islamic state. Musalima Kadhdhab and Aswad Ansi, raised large armies and captured some of the Muslim territories. Hadrat Abu Bakr ^ra was prompt to fight back these rebellious false prophets. Despite meager resources, Allah granted him victory against the mischief mongers.

One of the many great achievements of his Khilafat was the collection of the Holy Qur’an at one place. Although the writing and arrangement of the Holy Qur’an was done under the supervision of the Holy Prophet ^saw himself, yet it was written on various pieces of skin, leaves and slates. Hadrat Abu Bakr ^ra collected all these pieces of writings in one place, and re-organized the system of Huffaz, or those who committed it to memory, in a systematic way, for the preservation of the Qur’an.

During the last days of his life, the Holy Prophet ^saw had raised an army to be sent against the Romans who had made some incursions into the Northern borders. This army was still in medina when the Holy Prophet ^sawpassed away. As Hadrat Abu Bakr ^ra became Khalifah, the law and order situation within and outside the Medina became very delicate. In view of this grace danger, many Companions of Holy Prophet ^saw advised him not to send the army against Romans. But Hadrat Abu Bakr ^ra replied forcefully, “What authority has the Son of Abu Qahafah, to stop that which was started by the Holy Prophet ^saw. The Muslim army, under the command of Hadrat Khalid bin Walid ^ra, crushed a rebellion in Bahrain. Then the Persians were defeated, who had supported the rebels of Bahrain. The Muslim Army Also defeated the Roman forces in the battles of Ajnadan and Yarmuk, and thus the whole of Syria came under the control of the Islamic state.

Hadrat Abu Bakr ^ra passed away on August 23, 634 AD, after remaining ill for fifteen days. He was one of the ten blessed ones to whom the Holy Prophet ^saw had given the glad tidings that they had been rewarded the Paradise. He remained Khalifah for a little over two years.

(For additional information visit www.alislam.org)

Ahmadiyya Muslim Community is the only Islamic organization to believe that the long-awaited Messiah has come in the person of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad^(as) (1835-1908) of Qadian. Ahmad^(as) claimed to be the metaphorical second coming of Jesus^(as) of Nazareth and the divine guide, whose advent was foretold by the Prophet of Islam, Muhammad^(sa). Ahmadiyya Muslim Community believes that God sent Ahmad^(as), likeJesus^(as), to end religious wars, condemn bloodshed and reinstitute morality, justice and peace. Ahmad’s^(as) advent has brought about an unprecedented era of Islamic revival. He divested Islam of fanatical beliefs and practices by vigorously championing Islam’s true and essential teachings. He also recognized the noble teachings of the great religious founders and saints, including Zoroaster^(as), Abraham^(as), Moses^(as), Jesus^(as), Krishna^(as), Buddha^(as), Confucius^(as), Lao Tzu and Guru Nanak, and explained how such teachings converged into the one true Islam.

Ahmadiyya Muslim Community is the leading Islamic organization to categorically reject terrorism in any form. Over a century ago, Ahmad^(as) emphatically declared that an aggressive “jihad by the sword” has no place in Islam. In its place, he taught his followers to wage a bloodless, intellectual “jihad of the pen” to defend Islam. To this end, Ahmad^(as) penned over 80 books and tens of thousands of letters, delivered hundreds of lectures, and engaged in scores of public debates. His rigorous and rational defenses of Islam unsettled conventional Muslim thinking. As part of its effort to revive Islam, Ahmadiyya Muslim Community continues to spread Ahmad’s^(as)teachings of moderation and restraint in the face of bitter opposition from parts of the Muslim world.

Similarly, it is the only Islamic organization to endorse a separation of mosque and state. Over a century ago, Ahmad^(as) taught his followers to protect the sanctity of both religion and government by becoming righteous souls as well as loyal citizens. He cautioned against irrational interpretations of Quranic pronouncements and misapplications of Islamic law. He continually voiced his concerns over protecting the rights of God’s creatures. Today, it continues to be an advocate for universal human rights and protections for religious and other minorities. It champions the empowerment and education of women. Its members are among the most law-abiding, educated, and engaged Muslims in the world.

Ahmadiyya Muslim Community is the foremost Islamic organization with a central spiritual leader. Over a century ago, Ahmad^(as) reminded his followers of God’s promise to safeguard the message of Islam through khilafat(the spiritual institution of successorship to prophethood). It believes that only spiritual successorship can uphold the true values of Islam and unite humanity. Five spiritual leaders have succeeded Ahmad^(as) since his demise in 1908. It’s fifth and current spiritual head, Mirza Masroor Ahmad, resides in the United Kingdom. Under the leadership of its spiritual successors, Ahmadiyya Muslim Community has now built over 15,000 mosques, over 500 schools, and over 30 hospitals. It has translated the Holy Quran into over 60 languages. It propagates the true teachings of Islam and the message of peace and tolerance through a twenty-four hour satellite television channel (MTA), the Internet (alislam.org) and print (Islam International Publications). It has been at the forefront of worldwide disaster relief through an independent charitable organization, Humanity First.

http://www.wandsworthguardian.co.uk/news/8451429.Hate_campaign_discovered_against_Islamic_minority/

An international hate campaign by Islamic fundamentalists against a minority sect has spread to Britain and is causing a dangerous rift in south London’s Muslim community.

The situation has been likened to the “beginnings of the Holocaust” by a leading expert who is urging the police to act.

Lord Avebury, the long-serving vice-chairman of the Parliamentary Human Rights Group, said the extremist views were being imported from Pakistan and compared the vilification of Ahmadiyya Muslims with the beginnings of the Holocaust.

Our investigation has revealed shocking examples of Ahmadi residents, businessmen and politicians being demonised and ostracised by UK Islamic fundamentalist group Khatme Nabuwat (KN).

Ahmadi-owned businesses have been boycotted and face ruin, while employers have been pressurised into sacking Ahmadi workers.

The hate campaign even infected the General Election result after a campaign to discourage Muslims voting for an Ahmadi Liberal Democrat candidate in Tooting.

There are an estimated 13,000 Ahmadi Muslims living and working in south west London, who were drawn to the area after its first mosque was built in Southfields.

Ahmadiyya Muslims differ from mainstream Islam by believing the second coming of the Messiah has already happened and is embodied by their founder, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad.

Their two main mosques are the London Mosque, built in 1926 in Gressenhall Road, Southfields, and the massive Bait-ul-Fatah mosque in Morden, built in 2003 – which their website claims is the largest mosque in Western Europe.

Since then, many Ahmadis who have fled religious persecution in Pakistan have come to live in Merton, Wandsworth, Kingston and Lambeth.

Since being established in 1884, the movement is followed by 160m people in 190 countries worldwide and actively promotes humanitarian efforts under the motto: “Love for all, hatred for none”.

They have a highly active public relations team, which within the past year has promoted community initiatives on behalf of the entire Muslim community, such as an advertising campaign launched in February on London’s bus network.

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