Sohbate Saliheen with Respected Abid Khan Sahib

The National Majlis-e-Amila of Majlis Khuddamul Ahmadiyya Canada hosted Respected Abid Khan Sahib, who is serving as Press Secretary to Hazrat Khalifatul Masih (May Allah be his helper), for another session of Sobhate Saliheen.

MKAC Studios is proud to bring you the full experience filled with light-hearted moments, profound spiritual insights, and faith-inspiring incidents with khilafat.

Please join me in the silent prayer that Allah May bless this uh this this uh event Du a Allah my very dear kudam I have the pleasure of uh introducing our honored guest by the grace of Allah we are very fortunate to be joined by respected Abid Khan sahib today he serves as the in charge of the central press desk of the ahmadia Muslim jamaat and is press

Secretary to our s M Abid Khan sahib is also director of MTA news and oversees the production of this week uh with huzur uh the program this week with huzur along with many other programs Above All Else uh he is very fortunate to have the opportunity

To spend lots of time in the Blessed company of sayi may Allah be his helper by virtue of the time he he spends withi he also has the Blessed opportunity to write many Diaries narrating details of the different tours from around the world which we all enjoy

Reading he is the son of uh Dr Hamid Ahmed Khan sahib and respected Saj muasher Khan Saha who were the founding members of the historic harol jamaat in UK alhamdulillah we are very grateful to Allah for giving giving us this blessed opportunity and I welcome mam Abid Khan

Sahib to address us first of all respector am sa for that very kind introduction and uh to S sa and to all of the Amna members for uh inviting me to be here this weekend at the beginning I think the title of this program is

Soin and uh I I know that this is a term but for me personally I found that for uh uncomfortable because the the righteous I certainly don’t consider myself to be a a righteous person and uh in this uh world of ours if we want to have the for me there’s only one

Guaranteed person who he can say is is truly righteous whose company we should try to uh to attain as much as possible and that’s but obviously uh as uh some body who has the opportunity to spend some time with hul it’s also my duty and my uh my uh responsibility to convey some

Of those experiences and blessings and I’ll try to do that a little bit later today but um before I I will actually hand over and if anybody has any questions or something then I’ll answer them um just one thing as cuz you are all uh here office bearers I believe is

The thing that H bar bar again and again reinforces is the absolute need for humility in all members of the jamat but especially in those who are office beers it must never be that once you given a position of trust of in the jamaat that you think that I am have

Achieved something or I have some authority over other people every single whatever position you are whatever level you’re at’s guidance always is that you must keep U an understanding of your own status and remember who you are every person knows better than anyone else their own weaknesses

And the worst type of people are those who are hypocrites those who go around to the other kudam or to their uh to their fellow brothers or sisters and point out their mistakes or point out their flaws whilst knowing that they themselves are guilty of many other things or even sometimes those very

Things that they are asking other people so that is something that time and time again privately when I’ve had mulat the point that if HZ ever expresses any displeasure with any of the jamat members or especially with the office Bears it invariably is based upon that point that some form of arrogance has

Developed which has led them to uh considering that they are important and they are uh the people who can uh are the cause of the some success in the jamat and so again I must reiterate the importance of humility personal humility and again we look at hu’s example what a beautiful

Example he is the one person as I said who we know Allah tal has given has about for him and express for him that he is the righteous look in in his personal dealings the way he meets people the way he interacts with people with Grace with

Kindness always finds time for people no matter what he has so many other duties but when people approach him hzu talks to them he spends time with them he meets them like a father like a Elder like a spiritual of course like a spiritual guide never concerned about his own well-being

Or never thinking that I’m too important for this so this is this uh example of Khalifa then who are all of we if we think that we uh are uh are something of value um one other thing which again uh I don’t want to make it uh to label the

Point but we must also Al also as office bearers or people who have some responsibility what is our primary Duty first of all of course it is our own personal self-reformation but apart from that after you it is to bring others closer to the jamat it is has who said on many

Occasions certainly said it to to me several times but I know he said it in other places as well that one of hu’s own Elders used to say that it’s very very easy to push somebody away from the jamat it’s much harder to bring them closer so you might say something make a

Joke or a small taunt or something and I’m not saying that this is the case here but I’m just giving as a general example thinking that this is nothing but it could have an effect on that person’s heart something that could have been lingering and then push them a little bit

Further so we must never ever fall prayer to those always show empathy and love and consideration and patience we should never what is the difference between us and other we are following the true Islam which is a moderate path should not be that we turn towards an extremist uh manner the other

Yesterday somebody told me and again this is one example and everybody there’s always two sides to a story but somebody told me that here when they come to the mosque if they talk to their wives or their daughters they’re fearful that or some of the administration is

Going to start saying that why were you talking to a woman in the mosque even though it’s their own wife and their own daughter and that person said to me he said that I’m actually fear I I’ve now told my family that we will not speak together when if we’re at the

Mosque now what kind of Islam is this that if a father is scared to talk to his daughter at the mosque because he thinks that somebody is going to start uh uh addressing him or or make some thing that they’re too liberal or too whatever have so this concept of of of

Of putting people pressure on people again I don’t know if that’s the case here or if this is just one example or somebody got the wrong end of the stick but as office bearers we have to be cautious of this that are we bringing people to the mosque are we bringing

Them closer to Allah tala or are we driving them away um also and again I I I I I want to turn it back to you I’m sure they’ll uh if you ask questions I’ll I’ll talk in a more happy way and positive way but uh

Um here when I uh just and this is again when as an example for guests and stuff that when you receive guests that U the the the host the hosting here has been exceptional everyone had for me been very very gracious but um we should never go beyond the

Limit and so during the past couple of days the uh constantly there has been security for me at first I thought the people who were assigned were they just wanted to walk with me to enjoy my company and just well just to spend some time with me which I was enjoying but

After three four five times then I realized that it was a duty that they were assigned to do security and then when I was coming to the mosque there was was a car behind this is too much again this what kind of message is this signaling to the other

People that uh this is the type of protocol this is the type of uh care and love which is fori it’s not for me it’s not for anybody else and so again the sentiments Behind these types of things are good no doubt you want to look after a guest but you always need

To know what what the appropriate limit is and make sure a guest is received if he’s at the airport he has a ride here there’s some good decent food has a a normal place a good good nice place to stay but beyond that uh the thing is is

That’s when it starts getting to limit and the impression that it can give to other people I mean uh for for me personally it was very embarrassing people were opening the doors for me when I’m entering the mosque and people must be looking thinking that does he expect that people

Are are going to open the doors for him when he goes to places does he think that because he is close to kif that he is deserving of these things so these are just some things from my perspective that I I because you are all here part of the that you always

Have to think again again and again that what message am I sending to other people what message am I sending to the jamat to the jamat members am I bringing them closer again or am I doing something that can give them the impression that there is uh different

Hierarchies and all these type of things which which if we are following Islam in the true Spirit there should never be we should all be brothers together in uh in the mosque but uh anyway after that 10-minute lecture I uh turn it back to any of you

And if anybody has any questions or or comments then I would love to uh to hear them and and if anybody has any personal experiences themselves that they wish to share then uh I’d be very happy to hear those as well G there’s somebody there Kar just wanted to ask about’s

Health and you know we used to hear that goes for regular walks and sometimes bikes as well so just wanted to know you know what is my name is serving as um alhamdulillah is well um but uh we should always pray for H’s health age is

A factor it’s a human factor when Hub was appointed Khalifa he was in his early 50s now he’s in his early 70s he’s a of course in the 20 years or more that he has served as Khalifa It’s been we all are witness to it it’s Relentless other

People even if we have some duties in our lives whether it’s our personal lives or whether it’s in our jamat duties and we have periods where there’s a lot of pressure we always know we always have this reassurance that okay we get through this period whether it’s Jelsa salana or whether it’s something

At work then we’ll have a little bit of downtime you can look some we take holidays we go for breaks but um imagine that there would be no break that you would for year after year after year day after day after day and knowing that this is your um

Duty for life of course that’s going to take a not just a mental toll but a physical toll and age of course is a factor so um again alhamdulillah hu’s health is well and when his his his his routine in the office is uh the same as it always

Was he’s always the last to leave and when we find out the time that huzur has left the office you then you start feeling very embarrassed that why uh was HZ in the office late and we were at home uh by that time uh enjoying our our

Food or or spending some time with our family but um and in terms of exercise um huzur doesn’t go on regular walks outside of uh Islamabad but sometimes every couple of weeks he he’ll go for a walk in Islamabad and it’s an opportunity for the the families there or any people who

Come from namas to then see hus spend he normally distributes chocolates to the children and so that is I think a moment in a few moments that Hur himself enjoys and he gets to uh enjoy that experience within his home um I think uh hzu does sometimes take some uh does some cycling

Or he did certainly in the past and uh I don’t know if it’s continuing every day but certainly the indoor bike type things that has done but my name is Hassan Shah and I’m serving as chairman a press in media G I know you will G firstly mentioned that you’re

You’re happy to be here and I want to also say similarly we’re happy to host you as well uh we had some great experiences from 2016 during his trip uh I just have my question is that um about your the early days of when you were first appointed into this world if you

Can share you know how that came to be and then some early experiences that you may have had with aour during that time um I uh grew up in Hartlepool as respected Amisa mentioned which is a very small coastal town in the northeast of England

It’s a very um deprived area and it’s a tough area the schools and stuff I remember when I was in school every day there would be people having fights and punching what all these types of stuff which just when you’re growing up this some if you see these things they seem

Normal and it’s only when you get out of that environment that you realize that it was quite a tough area to bring but anyway as Amisa mentioned that town was unique for the fact that it was the first jamat in um England uh in all of Europe actually and probably all of the

West where there were more local MDS as in English people compared to pakistanis or uh Asians um and I’m I’m taking it back but I will come back to your point um and I grew up in that environment where I saw my parents doing a lot of the ble and serving the

Jamat and because of that uh uh experience it used to be that every single day in our house when I was 6 7 8 9 10 years old we would have guests uh and every night there would be some English people who would be coming and

They would stay to our house till 111 12 p.m. and just eating with us talking with us and spending time and to the extent that they they all seem like family members so I had that upbringing and then during the 1990s and late 80s when I was in the 80s I was

Very small but in the ‘ 90s where I can remember better KH would U visit harle poool quite regularly and I would I saw his example I saw the way he was just such a beautiful personality filled with knowledge filled with grace and naturally as a child the attachment to

Kalaat grew very very strong uh through those experiences and but um my parents both both of them they passed away quite when I was quite young and so but they’d always said to me that you should get a good education and I remember that my father had said to me a

Couple of weeks actually it was one of my last probably conversations with him that um was certainly last proper conversations he said to me he said he said that I I’m not going to be able to see you as you develop and there’ll be certain milestones in your life that

Every father wants to be part of he wants to see his child married he says I won’t be able to be there and you won’t be able to have me there and he says above all you want your child to be attached to the jamat and you want them

To to just to know that they’re doing well and he said that I won’t be there to to judge or to see if you are able to do that but I’m telling you now and this if if this is the only thing you ever remember my one n to you instruction to

You is that always stay close to kala because then I know that everything will be fine in your future so then uh in uh 2003 2004 I was studying as a lawyer and uh as part of that training in 2005 I had to move to London and um when hul became Khalifa I

Still had those words of my father ringing my ear so whenever I could I would visit hul as much as possible and then when I moved to London I had this opportunity to spend um much more time in close proximity because uh I would see huzur at namas I was living close to

Masid fuzel and then also sometimes I would see huzur in evenings uh sometimes in family gatherings and again I got to spend that time with huran to learn from him but in a very informal way but all that time I I I think that attachment to

Kalaf which we need to instill in and try to instill in all our youth was developing and becoming stronger um I beca I did uh wak I I applied for wakf then in 2006 and the reason was is that I started working as a lawyer

And I did I I I knew quite quickly that I wasn’t cut out for it I wasn’t getting any job satisfaction the two times I appeared in court I lost the case badly and uh the uh and so I just was I knew that this isn’t going to be the

Life that is going to give me satisfaction and happiness and so then uh I prayed and I thought about it and there wasn’t really a trend then this is going back 17 18 years for young people in the west to do work now M because of Jama and because

Of the W nor scheme reaching its like I was born before the work foros but now reaching now there is it’s become much more common but at that time uh it was very rare I didn’t know of any young people at the time hardly who had been

Grown up in the west but then requested to do work but anyway uh over time I started feeling uh that I need to uh do something more with my life and so after prayers and stuff I wrote to hul and with my desire to do

Work and this is 2006 huz wrote back I still remember just saying on the letter and I read this and I was really confused because I was like am I a wak am I not a wak did accepted did he not accept it and so then obviously I asked private

Secretary and whatever and they were they weren’t clear either but then the next time I met himself he said he said that keep doing what you’re doing and then when uh when we need you then we’ll call you so then uh uh 7 8 9 10 months passed the middle of

2007 U I still remember that one day Maj additional he called me and he says you need to come to the office you need to sign something so I went and I didn’t know uh why he was calling me but like obviously in your uh in my mind I knew

The background I thought maybe might be something to do with my work and he just said for sign I signed it and then afterwards I still remember it now as well I said to him what did I sign and he said it’s the it’s the it’s

The work form and then he said to me he said you better read it now you’ve signed it so then I I I read it and then he said Gaz appointed you to the uh press and media office and again I was very confused in the sense that I didn’t know that the

Jamat had a press in media office what it did anything like that um so but anyway he said that there’s going to be an elder who’s called who his name was mik KH Saab and he’s also been appointed he’s going to be the InCharge and you’re going to be his

Staff member and uh also huz was going to is sending you to kadan for 3 months actually was meant to be for 6 months but it turned out to be 3 months because of Visa but he said huzu is going to send you to kadan and you’re going to get training

There and then you’re going to come back so uh I went to kadan in that two 2007 period my wife’s grandfather had just passed away he was from gadan as well and so she came with me she spent time me and Wasim Sab and then uh so she spent time with her

Grandmother and then uh while was away Malik KH sa unfortunately he he was quite elderly he passed away and uh so I returned to uh London after 3 months and uh I I started going back to the office where I just started before the trip and

I didn’t really know again what I was doing but I just used to spend my days looking through different files and trying to understand what the office did and then uh one day I got a letter from and I was I think I was 23 2 24

Probably at the time uh and I got the letter saying that from again from T saying that has appointed you as the in charge of this office and I read that five six seven times and thought there’s definitely some mistake here this this this can’t be and I just put the letter

In my drawer and I just didn’t think about it again I didn’t mention it to my at home I didn’t tell anybody I just continued the way I was continuing it and just thought that there some mistake here or something then about a month later I think a month had passed and I

Was continuing with that routine I got a call from private secretary’s calling you uh so you so you should come and meet him I think probably he’s G me time for the next day so the next morning I went for uh mulakat and uh it was all these D mulakat were

Taking place and I didn’t really know what was happening I until then I only ever had the experience of a family mulakat which used to happen in the evenings and uh so I when it came to my turn HZ I walked into the office and uh first of all he said he

Said and so he said what what did you bring G and I said I didn’t bring anything and um he I said huzur I got a message that you were calling me so I came so then huzu looked a little bit surprised I think he’d expected probably

That I I must have received the letter I must have made some plans or something and now I was coming to to see him and uh so then uh I I still again sometimes you remember strange things I remember seeing hu’s reaction and thinking he’s thinking about sending me

Back out then if I’ve got nothing but I think he had mercy on me that he thought that he’s coming for his first mulakat and now if I send him out after 10 seconds people outside are going to be thinking so so then H instead he uh he

Then he just paused and then he started continuing his work and he just let me sit there for 8 10 minutes and I was just sitting there in silence and um then at the end hzu said you should make a plan for your office and these are

Some of the and then he explained some of the tasks that these are the first things you should start with and then come back to me and come and see me regularly and then get guidance and this is how the process works and then uh he said to me he he said uh

That whenever you have any question don’t ask anybody else they only ask me and that was such a beautiful I mean it’s so gracious but also it was just uh so fundamental to my personal training that I had that opportunity and then for those first 2 3 years I uh felt that

Uh no matter was too small I would get an email in the office and it might just be a routine email and I would take it to the mulakat and I would say huz I received this email from such and such person and never once did say why are

You bringing this to me this is you can sort out yourself you would say say you give it you respond like this and literally teaching me how to write these rep reply emails and he would he was like somebody’s holding your hand and taking you step by step by

Step then uh as a few months past the one thing also during that time is that I was a very young person obviously most of the people in the jamaat offices especially the senior offices are people much older than me people who I’ve been seeing since a child so it was very

Intimidating for me as an individual to to now be dealing with them into speaking to them and um they were just like obviously your your elders and but sometimes if there was some issue and I I also I could sense as well sometimes that they were thinking where’s he

Coming from why is he here why is he involved and so sometimes you’d get that a little bit of resistance which uh and so sometimes I would mention some comment or some email that I’ve received about something and then hzu would dictate and he said that this is what

You should respond to them and sometimes the language like would be quite firm firm in the sense that maintaining my position that this is what should happen and I remember I used to tremble but used to say don’t say that said it you you write

It and at that time I I used to wish that would say that right that is instructed so that at least obviously it’s much easier but if I’m saying that you must should do this you should do this who am I to say it but again hzu

Was establishing that in the jamat it doesn’t matter if you’re 20 30 40 50 60 the it’s the uh respect of the office it’s respect of the of the jamaat’s N that if huz has appointed somebody then then obviously then you you you follow the naam but then also uh over

Time that give me uh it taught me as well a lot about how to deal with people and but uh it’s not thatu was would say that you should give harsh emails or anything like that but it’s just where you need to make a stand for the for the

Betterment of the jamat then you should be have the then the courage to do so uh so that uh I sorry you started with a much shorter question but that that was the way that hul guided me and one other thing I should actually point out since we’re here is that before I

Did work alhamdulillah I huz my relationship with huz was a very informal to some extent that I was just a young boy and we had some uh links as in terms of family terms as well so whenever I would see hul he would always make some joke or some comment and show

A lot of love and when I would uh sometimes say things this is before I did work which sometimes hzu would enjoy some light comments I remember these experiences very much but when I did work and I started in the office for that first year year and a

Half I felt I a very clearly a change where huzu was guiding me on all these points that sense of the H ma the laughing and joking that was cut quite considerably during that period And I used to sometimes go home and think that have I done something wrong before I did

Work hzu was so uh kind and gracious and loving but now although I’m getting the uh the guidance for my work in terms of that personal thing it seems to have become much less and I wanted to do this to become closer to huzur and so sometimes I used to have this confusion

And worry and I think this lasted about a year year and a half perhaps two years and then um after that gradually that old style of that love and the huz like comments sometimes and having that personal that was started again and much more more than probably than ever before with the

Grace of Allah and when I reflect on that I also realize that there was wisdom in that there was wisdom and the wisdom was that before huzu treated me like you treat any MD as a a young person and he would with great love and affection but when I started

Working in the jamat then hzu was sending me a message as well that now you have to to now mature as well and you have to now realize that if I’ve given you some responsibilities then you have to take them very seriously and that was part of the training and in UK

Jamama there’s a since then there’s been quite a few Jam students who from time to time who throughout Jam they had this very inform not informal is the wrong word but a loving relationship where hu would laugh and joke with them and then when they came to their first posting

Sometimes they would come to me and say that we’re worried have we done something wrong because since we’ve started in the office it seems to have changed slightly and hu’s been coming a little bit more stricter there’s less of that uh uh thing and then I all say to

Them as well that this was this is part of the training and so again you have no expectations but whatever whatever whatever way huzu deals with you whatever way he interacts with you consider it a blessing and seek to uh learn from it and then you can can

Inshallah move forward and then you will see that over time the the blessings and and the love of will uh will will always be there and will always be with you oh sorry sorry are you still in is it Quebec yes uh first of all Z to be here and I

Want to ask question regarding uh the the prayers of and for the especially for us off his bearers we should write after to to seek prayers because you had uh such a close relationship with if you can let us know the importance of having that relationship of letters and praying and how those

Prayers get affected of than you um yeah I mean I would say to every uh office Bearer every MD that build that relationship with huzur and if obviously if you’re living far away you can’t do it through regular physical meetings but you most certainly can through through letters and I’ve always

Seen and this is my experience over the past 15 16 years that those people who regularly write to huzur HZ always and hul remembers them and he feels an attachment to them and has mentioned this in Virtual mulakat a few perhaps a year or two ago as well that he has love

For all emps of course and very very deep emps but those who make a special effort it’s a natural human phenomenon that then if somebody’s coming towards you then you are going to feel an attraction and a warmth and a love towards them and so again especially when you’re younger

But also I mean throughout there there’s no reason whatever issues you have whatever concerns you have you should share them with huz whether you get a reply directly to that point that you raised or not rest assured that huzur is understanding and feeling and uh and

Seeing and praying for you and then um and that attachment and that bond is growing stronger and you’ll find the blessings of that uh in your work day today uh so yes uh I mean off the top of my head I can’t think of like spefic

Examples but the thing is is that it’s again and again you always see that those who write to hun directly and have that close bond with them then they tend to do better in their duties they tend to do better in their work and they obviously where they have some Pani and

Stuff has who guides them my is my question is that talked about in a very loving way so he also worked in your office so can you please also mention some of his great qualities T is a very beautiful special person who spoke about him and so you I’m sure all

Of you must have heard that kba but uh just as a background my elder sister her uh um Elder son was and but I was his Mamu but there wasn’t a huge age difference um he was um uh about 6 and a half years younger

Than me so after about in the early ’90s or mid ’90s they came and they were living abroad but then their family moved to harol and uh they lived with us for some time and I I and then also when my uh parents passed away Dal and his

Family moved in cuz I was still quite young and they they looked after me as well as as I was completing my studies so I had I had this very uh close relationship from childhood with the tal one thing from childhood he had this quality that uh one of his qualities was

That from childhood you could always see he had this immense love for and and I think but again I don’t need to speak so much about that because hu’s already spoken about the way the he had with with kala but there were other qualities that he would have as

A which perhaps are not as wellknown one is is that he was we have uh like every families they have extended relatives and then further extended relatives and it goes on and on and some people probably like myself are the type that you don’t uh spend so much time getting

To uh to check in with your the relatives and just on the day-to-day life who you’re who you are with you you focused on that but had this quality that he would check in with almost all members of his family from time to time and no matter how remote how distant he

Would send them a message he would call them just to say that uh you’re my cousin and I know we haven’t seen each other for a for for a few years but I just wanted to see if you’re you’re well with his Elders he would do that as well

With his aunts his uncles they were spread across the world but afterwards they would always tell me as well that Dal was very unique that out of all our nephews and nieces he was the only one who would regularly call us and just to

Find out if if if we are well if there’s anything so he had that he had an immense regard for fulfilling the responsibilities of his family so that was his uh good call he had a really wonderful sense of humor like again sometimes he would say things and I

Would say th you can’t say that and uh but but the thing is that was just part of his innocence as well and then he would then talk and laugh and joke about that but uh the reason people liked him and the reason people were drawn to him was that

There was a purity that there was no politics if he was talking to the most senior person whether in the jamaat or outside the per uh the thing he would talk to him kind of in the same way he would talk to a 10-year-old boy who was

Who was with him it was he was just very simple and sad in that way but in a in a that it was a reflection of his Purity that he and he would approach some again sometimes when we were making MTA documentaries they would uh uh we would

Need to involve somebody like senior people of jamaat in different countries in rabba and Pakistan and uh he would say that oh I I just messaged them and I said you have you need to help us and I would say to him that again I spoke to

You about protocol earlier but even I was the of the sent that there should be a little bit of protocol that we should at least email them or contact them but he his style was just oh I just whatsa them and they’re on board now and stuff

So that was his style but he used to get the job done and uh these documentaries he made again they were outstanding and I remember he the the uh first documentary like featured documentary he made which was 4 days without a Shepherd which was about the election of the

Fifth Khalifa in 2003 and one day he again we were just sitting in the office office and he said to me that I have a ambition or a desire to make a documentary about the uh that period of the fif and um I was just listening I

Was like sounds like a good idea look into it and let me know what the uh and then what you need and then we can we can try and progress this and then he didn’t speak to me again for about 8 or 10 months about that and um I was busy

With other things and so it it kind of fell off my radar and um then um about 8 n months later or however long it was he said oh you know do you remember that documentary that I was working on I’ve got something to show

You and then I was he reminded me what the documentary was and he showed me a first draft of it and I remember just sitting there and I was I was stunned I was like I don’t think I’ve seen a documentary in the jamat which has like

Made me so emotional so invested this is this is there were some like things that needed to be changed are altered but as a rough cut I just I remember feeling that I don’t know if this is just me but this is something really impactful and then then obviously then I

Got uh in uh more invested in it and then we would spend the next few weeks going back and forth on some of the changes and those types of things and there were things that is this appropriate to include not include and then finally we had a draft

Uh or a version to show hul and we didn’t have a title I remember that that uh he’d come up with um 4 days without uh oh yeah four days withouta that was the initial one and I didn’t like this that name and I said to him I

Said we is mix like obviously there during those days there was no elected but it sounds like there was a gap in the chain of so that was my reservation so I said that I don’t uh uh I’m not sure about that name so anyway I said I’ll take it to in mulak

And see kaz’s guidance so I took the uh the DVD and um I I mentioned to hzu that hzu we produced this documentary and it’s about the election ofat and huzu was busy but he said okay put the DVD in I’ll get a feel and then I’ll give

You some feedback and huzu was continuing his work and it played from the beginning and as it was playing um after 2 or 3 minutes of just listening hzu looked up as well and I think the way it grabbed my attention a little bit also it grabbed hu’s

Attention that this it wasn’t something routine it was something of a of a of of genuine interest and then hzu started watching it and for like 10 15 20 minutes huzu was watching it and very intently and then huzu returned to his work after 10 or 15 minutes but he was

Still listening and we got through the whole documentary which is about 45 minutes and uhur I can’t remember the exact comment but Hur expressed that a cheer and it’s called the kanich MTA they should show it on MTA and then I said I said we are we don’t know what to call

It I said that t had this suggestion of 4 days withouta and uh I said that I had some reservation Hur agreed he said okay it doesn’t sound quite right um so then hul said in one of the interviews in the documentary and I had missed this but one of the people had

Said that wheni was elected it felt like we had our Shepherd back so had been listening very intently and he said you should call it four days without a shepherd and again that’s like some of the genius that you see inaf that they just pick things and it’s just make

Things and I was like stunned as well I was like this it is beautiful and I went out of the office and I remember I called T and uh I said to him I said that hus watch your documentary and he was like how much did he watch 2 minutes

3 minutes I said he watched the whole thing and he was completely stunned and I said that Hur has even like given a name and he was like what is it I said four days without a shepherd and on the phone I still remember that Talis had

Crying just with happiness like this is the first thing that his first documentary and he was and then alhamdulillah when something has the blessings of K then uh it we played it on MTA and it was extremely uh popular and well received and uh we got a lot of

Feedback hzu received a lot of feedback and hzu then encouraged tal a lot to continue to make documentaries and then after that this the procedure would always stay the same that he would talk to me say that I’ve got this idea and then he would go away for 6 months 5

Months like he would do his day-to-day work but on that project I didn’t ask him he didn’t ask me cuz I knew that this is how it worked and then after five or six months he would come to me and on one of the documentaries I

Remember that we had to do a lot of revisions after that period and he accepted that again that theat was there always that there was I said that in this there was some things which are issues I had with it and I said that these need changing quite significantly

And so even though he’d spent those six months then when when he got the instruction that these need changing then happily and gladly well I don’t know happily but glad but he he changed them and uh and that was the the way and even the last documentary he made which was about M

Bashed that uh uh again that was a he handed that to me a few weeks before his Shah the DVD and uh I still remember that I I I took it to hazur and HZ told me at the time to leave it on his desk and he

Said that I’ll give you feedback when I review it when I get a chance but OB that was a busy period of jalsa so hzu didn’t have a chance and then in August it was T shahat and I still uh remember the day after the shahadat I went to see huz and

And then saw the the DVD and he said and I said’s documentary and he said put it in and then huzur watched it and then uh again uh he watched the whole thing and then he said okay um you must play this and H appreciated

It and then that was uh kind of uh like something very emotional for us as well that after his Shah there was still at least one fresh documentary of his that went out on MTA with his narration I think I’ve been talking too much and too

Long my name is to and I’m serving as chair on social media this year um in August 2020 I think we had the first virtual mulakat was first ever which was with Canadian fall we had a lot of excitement here as well and so just want

To we WR read a little bit your diary as well about that maybe you can explain what was the feelings over there how did this idea came about 10 um that Co was a very tough period especially the early months mons because the jamat had this routine everybody

Would come to offer prayers behind H spend time with with HZ have mulakat with hazur there was a increasing trend of people jamats sending delegations from different countries to meet hazur and then suddenly everything stopped and I obviously you all know that even kba there was nobody in the mosque hardly

Apart from the one or two people and the virtual mulakat sorry the huz family mulakat the mulat they all stopped for a for a period and so it was a period of very uh intense sadness uncertainty anxiousness uh and then after uh a few days then

Uh hzu started having his D Ms on the phone and he would uh call uh uh basically people would make the request in the same way and that then h would call them when he a certain slots in the same way so that that side of it was continuing but there was definitely

A void an absence or in terms of the uh the the the general MDS in other countries especially who weren’t able to come and see Hur so I can’t recall at the time but I think it was manab but it may have been somebody else but then I

Think in one of his mulakat he mentioned to hul that uh there’s a this possibility of uh doing virtual but I think if if I remember correctly he told me that there was a short period or or some period where hzu didn’t um uh give an answer but then after a few more

Weeks had passed then huzur asked further details and then huzur uh uh instructed that let’s go ahead and test it and then the mulat that you mentioned with theal from Canada was arranged and I remember being in the room for that mulakat um and even before the mulakat happen I was talking to

Manab and we were talking amongst ourselves that this is a once in a lifetime type opportunity if it goes well this could be a trend for the next 50 years 100 years that jamat will have this opportunity but if there’s it goes badly or there’s like the network FS

Hu’s probably going to say kordo is just wasting my time so we were really tense and nervous and anxious and then uh until the moment like said and then that moment as it was just so special that as soon as the mulat started you could see the happiness in

Hu’s face that after a long time he was seeing someone new and some new children atal because H had been in Islam B and the happiness on hu’s face and the happiness of the and it just worked seamlessly that day and I think that was special help some days afterward

Subsequently there have been times when the connection is broke for a few minutes or there’s been some issues but that day it worked perfectly and uh the the mikat was interesting and huzur at the end of it he just like throughout it he was smiling and then at the end of it hu

Smiled and then he just looked at me at the end and he said gu how did it was beautiful wonderful and you could tell that huzu was happy and then uh that’s when uh more mards were quickly arranged especially during that period where the lockdowns

Were still imposed then uh it was M such a huge blessing and now they still go on but now of course now we have the both sides of the blessing that now uh I think yla is visiting as well and other Aras of metaz and people are coming but

At the same time the virtual mulakat are also continuing alongside it for those places where huzu can’t visit or their people can’t come so yeah I think that was uh again uh it I don’t think without Co that would have happened certainly not in this period so everything has uh

A purpose and some blessings and maybe that was one of the things that to to be able to spread the message ofat to an even wider degree we had to experience that I just had a quick question with regards to a beautifully narrated an experience that mother had

With the existence of Allah in terms of what she faced when she was Ill so I wonder if you kindly share that I I I I know the what the incident you’re referring to and I don’t want to I mean I wasn’t born at the time it was before

My birth So and I’ve heard the story and I heard but explained it in a lot of detail so I don’t want to be mistaken in the way but my understanding of the incident is that um my uh mother in the late ’70s or uh she

She became unwell she was she was in quite young about 30 she got she she got cancer and then um in about 1981 she she she she developed cancer again and uh it was quite critical quite severe at the time she was in her early 30s

And uh basically it got to the point that doctors had given hope that she would recover and she was in this induced state of coma something like along those lines in the hospital and when when she woke up then she narrated that whilst I was in that state

I I had this experience that Allah was talking to me and that Allah had said to her that now is the time for the end of your life or that I’m calling you back to me something along those lines and uh during that conversation she said

That she said that no I’ve got three young children at home I’m too young to uh I can’t leave them and um um then uh but then in that conversation there was more details which if you if anyone’s interested they should listen to the to the clip of but

One of the things that uh um was the conclusion that Allah said to her in this whatever state it was that okay I’ll let you go back but there’ll be two things that you will uh will show you that this wasn’t just an ordinary dream but it was actually a manifestation of U

Of of Allah’s will and one is is that when you come out of this coma or this period you will face the most intense excruciating pain the type of pain that you’ve never felt before and uh the other thing is is that you will have another child

So when uh I guess she regained Consciousness and uh my father and this is more from what my family have told me the rather than the clip of but uh she regained Consciousness and she was in excruciating pain for some time and and she said that as soon as she had that

Excruciating pain this whole whatever happened came back to her and then she remembered the second point about having another child and so my father who came in to the to see to see and was just like was so glad I guess and relieved that she was alive um she said to him

We’re going to have another child and I think he thought like the drugs had got to her and so he was like take a take a so so but anyway then when she regained uh uh hor and Consciousness and stuff I think she must have narrated the

Story to uh to to him and then In that clip that you mentioned of my sister my elder sister was was sitting there and H asked her that and then you had a son and his name was was Abid so it was it was it was then after that I was born

And which was about a year later in December 1982 so it was pre-existing me so I don’t I’m not up to but that’s the story as far as I know it my name isim serving as I know that you get to meet as and you discuss a lot of events

What’s happening in the world for example in terms of news and and to release press releases that you pleas as well so when when you meet are you mentioned a lot of times that as is already aware of the conflicts for example the Middle East a lot

So in this regard I want to ask that how Hur you know in his busy routine schedule how he follows the news and what’s happening in the world and what kind of guidance if you share uh one thing is that yes I give media briefings reports updates to hazur on a regular

Basis and um just in terms of reporting one thing which I think applies for office bearers as well is that you have to be sure as much as possible that you’re accurate when you’re presenting any report to khif I mean I always go with the Assumption if I’m presenting any report

To hazur that especially if it’s a media related or something like that that this could be something that huzu relies on or refers when he’s giving a speech or if he’s meeting somebody so you have to as much as possible make sure you’ve gone through that process to make sure

It’s as accurate and you’re sure of it and if there’s any doubt then you let hzu know that there’s some doubt but this is what we think is happening or what what’s being reported and I think that’s from a jamat perspective as well that sometimes we have a a tendency to

Try and show best case scenario uh but we should give as accurate a picture as we can so that then that’s then huz can guide and give instructions on it then he knows also the what the state of the jamaat is or what the state of the world is but in

Terms of the world news for sure you’re very right that many times I will present a report to hul and he will say and he he’ll give additional information it happened last week as well that uh I mentioned something about Gaza and I think I said I just rounded up about

25,000 how many the death toll was and H then added like the exact number he’s like no actually I just checked it on my phone it’s 7 100 and whatever and then but also just generally people send news reports or people stories of Interest that’s the

Beauty of the jamat that there of course there’s some people responsible but then every MD has a right to write to Hur and send their an analysis or their views which some people do especially who are in those fields and then uh the other thing that uh there’s no doubt that

Allah tala blesses the time of khif m a great deal and uh so and whenever he has the chance perhaps sometimes in his home sometimes maybe um less so in his office but I think at home sometimes huz will watch the news and one thing that huzu tells

Me as well and instructs me is that we shouldn’t just rely on the western mainstream media we should make sure that we’re looking at Eastern media Far Eastern media uh African media and then you get a a better understanding of the world because obviously then everyone’s

Got their own biases so you should be able to uh look at everything and H himself I know what when he does have time to watch the news he’ll watch three or four five different channels he’s mentioned to me recently during this Kaza that he thinks that Al jaaz has

Given pretty good coverage compared to some of the other uh other ones and after huzu said that I started watching it more as well and you could definitely notice a difference uh so yes uh again the point is is that huzu so much more efficient than us that’s one of the

Other things that you find out that even the dark that uh he hul gets um apart from the hundreds if not thousands of family letters he gets personal letters he gets hundreds of D dark every day and invariably by the next day he’s gone through it all written down instructions

Or given instructions and and the dark is given back to that whoever the uh office is or the individual is whereas uh if we get like one or two documents to review probably will take us a week or something so again I don’t huzu Allah T has given him this special ability

There’s no doubt and again it’s also about I think the intention hu’s intention and desire is to devote every single moment that he has to service a jamat that’s his priority whereas other the rest of us sometimes we get clouded in our own personal things my name is

M and I’m serving as the regional guide for Eastern C regions respect for joining us here in Canada we love to have you um my question is uh about way back in the class days came to with class and he brought Thomas with him I was wondering

If you could just give us some stories about uh his interaction with Thomas at that time and your personal interaction with before there was it was actually two separate trips met there was one trip where there was in 1997 huzur actually took the Udu class to Holland and they

Went and the whole there was about 100 I was on the trip as well and uh for about a week we we were with in Holland but there was about 10 or 11 or 12 members of the Udu class who because they didn’t have Visa they couldn’t come to Holland

So whilst in Holland I remember he said that because uh they couldn’t come to here I’m going to take them for an Udu class to harur so those who were left over plus a few others so I think there was about 20 members of the Udu class they came with khif and

They stayed at our house in harol for 2 or 3 days and that was a a very fun experience as well and blessed experience but the visit of KH m ham that was in 1997 also but it was a separate visit and that was in after UK jalsa that year

H’s uh had some of his cousins who were the Elders of the jamaat who were visiting as for the for the jalsa one of them was msed the father of Hur and the other one was h m m muf ammed sa who was the Amir sa in USA for a long time and

Um they both came for UK jalsa as hu’s guests so then when after the jalsa hzu wanted to take them for some Excursion and so he took them to uh uh his plan I think at the time if I remember correctly the plan was that they were going to go to the Lake

District for two or 3 days and then visit harpool for one night and then go back to London but when hul got to the Lake District I think the accommodation it wasn’t suitable there was too many people which had been arranged by locally so said we’re going to go straight to

Heart poool and uh we’ll spend 3 4 days there so that was uh at that time it was very special uh for us as a family and I remember my father on the first night uh of the visit he uh I still remember this him telling me the next day he said I

Didn’t sleep at all last night not even for a minute and he said the reason was is that the promised Messiah had three sons from his second wife Haan and their U representatives are all here is the the U obviously the son of H

Muslim h m mans Ahmed is the son of h m Sharif Ahmed and H M MF ammed was the son of M bash ammed and he said just that that fact that those uh the all three are represented today in my house meant I couldn’t sleep but I did notice

Of course our as a family our Focus was on and making sure especially the Elder guests we brought everything was comfortable for them uh but I did at that time remember that was traveling and with with he was coming with with his father and obviously had brought him along as well

And it was the first time I ever saw him and I had a uh just seeing the way he he would always stay in the background we went for a walk on the beach with we would have fishing chips and was there but he would always stay in The Bu and I like

Just as a 12 13 year old boy this was one of the things I noticed and I picked up on and I fell then I remember that if was eating at the dinner tableu would never come himself khif if he got but then RAB would said

Call him and said tell him to come and then he would come and at the dinner table I remember observing again I was serving helping to serve but I would always see that he would keep his eyes down he would only speak if hul directly addressed to him so that level

Of respect and love for was very evident and also was humility again I said our Focus was on making sure that was comfortable and also that his the Elder ban were comfortable and H Mah’s father he couldn’t walk up steps by then he was in his late

80s and so we’d arranged for a bed in one of the rooms downstairs we brought the bed from upstairs we we’d arranged it and then he slept on that bed and throughout those three four nights hul would sleep on the floor and uh huz would use the because we only had two or

Three bathrooms we had a bathroom outside which was for the kaf for the staff the security and even though we did I’m sure we we must have offered huzu to use the upstairs bathrooms which were being used by hu’s family huzu would always go to the outside bathroom

Where the kafla members were and that’s where he would do his ablutions where he would do his brush his teeth or have a shower and stuff and uh all of these things like again I would had a impact on me as a child and I remember after

That um obviously huz returned to to R there was something that I had a uh uh an attraction to the way I saw hu’s person I started writing letters to huzur just as a 15 14 15y old in RVA and uh even though I didn’t really know him

I’ i’ only seen him on that trip and uh and he was Naz soon after he became Naz but even at that time huzu would all the way from Pakistan he would write back to me and I I think it’s probably I I sent probably five or six letters and I think

I got replies to about three and I remember on the last one said that I uh he wrote back saying I’m I apologize because I didn’t respond to your last two letters and I’m responding to them all with this letter now and so even

That sense of I mean I was a 13 14 year old boy 15y old boy and uh on the other side he was The Naz Allah at that time but just to have that sense of of respect and humility and keeping oneself to the ground it was it was something

That so that when Hur becomes Khalifa and then you see later on it’s it’s always it’s nice to have that personal reflection of before and I know all the people and you must have heard this as well uh in when people talk on MTA or when they come to

Events like this that huzur was always the last person who would give a speech the last person who would want to address he he would want to stay in the background as much as possible Alum my name is Rashid I’m currently serving as original guide PR uh respected uh

Uh your diary is very U inspiring and you know like so many good stories in your diary we haven’t seen um recent any uh inspiring story so can you please tell us like when we will be receiving the new aition wait long wait yeah I

Mean the thing is is that I I apologize for that actually this is you get busy with other things some things and so I haven’t written wait a minut a minute please and I should have written and I I had some notes but I never formalized them recently and then sometimes you get

To a point where something gets so delayed that then you feel just embarrassed to to to even uh to uh to to go with it but I do hope to write in the near future and inshah when it’s whenever it’s ready I’ll I’ll I’ll send it to you

Guys everyone this was it was a very nice uh sitting and nice to see you all and uh I just please remember me and my family and uh in your prayers and our team in the UK the Press team that we can fulfill our duties that’s the fear

And the that we always have that uh no matter that you don’t in any way come short or disappoint or fail to fulfill your duty so please remember us in your prayers as well we’ll be like sharing this video with all the audience as well insh tala

That will be coming to you as well so our other will benefit at the beginning respected Abid Khan sah have highlighted some issues and uh we must uh work on that and the one thing that AB Khan s highlighted that there was a person who got affected he felt that maybe aumi or

Like anyone because of those uh Duty uh members he’s not he doesn’t feel comfortable to even meet their family members members so because that was from the mumi team I’m not sure but still as I do apologize from that member as well uh because this will go out so they

Should know that uh we apologize for that as well and if this is not a policy of any auxiliary or jamat so they should feel comfortable and if they have any other concern as well they should uh reach out to us as soon as possible so we can mitigate those things so but

Please remember us in your p and also at the and to our honored guest so for taking that much time and also answering that many questions