About the Author
Hazrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad was the fourth successor of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad(as) who proclaimed that he was the Messiah and reformer, promised by all the great religions of the world to the people of the latter age. His community is a dynamic, world-wide, missionary force in Islam.
Hazrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad was born on 18 December 1928 in Qadian in India. He was educated in India, Pakistan and in the UK, at The London School of Oriental and African Studies. In 1982 he was elected as the Head of the world-wide Ahmadiyya Muslim Community following the demise of the third Khalifa (successor). The anti-Ahmadiyya ordinance imposed on 26 April 1984 by General Zia, the then dictator President of Pakistan, made it impossible for him to function as the head of his community while remaining in that country. After due consultation he decided to leave Pakistan immediately. Three days after the promulgation he took the plane from Karachi and came to London where he lived until his demise in 2003.
Hazrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad widely travelled and often delivered addresses to audiences including people from all walks of life and widely differing cultures. His addresses and other meetings were often accompanied by ‘Question and Answer’ sessions. He was always ready to respond to questions agitating the minds of his audience on any topic, religious or temporal, although his answers could not avoid the influence of his deep understanding of religion, which pervaded his thinking. He wrote many books in Urdu as well as some in English. “Murder in the Name of Allah” and “Islam’s Response to Contemporary Issues” are two of his English publications, which the reader may find of interest. He also occasionally expressed himself in Urdu verse.