In the light of Quranic verses and numerous Ahadith, Muslims consider Masjid Al-Aqsa the third holiest site after Masjid Al-Haraam and Masjid Al-Nabawi ﷺ. It is the same Masjid that Prophet ﷺ visited during his journey of Isra and Mi’raj. It is an established fact that Masjid Al-Aqsa is located in Palestine. Even a naive person knows this fact. However, contrary to Islamic beliefs and simple general knowledge, Qadianis believe that Masjid Al-Aqsa is located in Qadian (a town in India) instead of Palestine.
Although it is totally absurd to believe that Masjid Al-Aqsa is situated in Qadian but like many other core tenets of Islam, the Qadianis (or Ahmadis) have tried to hijack yet another religious belief in Islam – Masjid Al-Aqsa. According to Mirza Ghulam Ahmad and his son’s misguided beliefs, the Masjid Al-Aqsa or Bayt Al-Maqdis as referred to in the Qur’an and ahadith is a mosque in Qadian, India, where Mirza Ghulam Ahmad was born.
Mirza Qadiani writes:
The Night Journey which the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ undertook from Masjid Al-Haraam to Masjid Al-Aqsa – it is this very Masjid Al-Aqsa in Qadian to the east which God Himself has called blessed. This mosque was physically built on the instructions of the Promised Messiah. (Roohani Khazain, Vol. 16, Khutba Alhamiya, page 22)Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Qadiani’s son Mirza Mahmood also writes:
This is the fifth benefit of coming to Qadiyan. Praying, fasting, worshipping, and attending lessons here hold greater reward as compared to other places. It is here that is Masjid Al-Aqsa about which the Prophet ﷺ said that to pray in it holds immense reward. It is in this very mosque that the messiah of Allah descended. And it is this mosque that the Prophet ﷺ visited in one sole night and where he descended in those dark times. The Prophet ﷺ left his house on that dark night and came here. Thus, this place holds immense blessings for these reasons. (Malaikatullah, page 59)
There is a Muslim scholarly consensus on the fact that Masjid Al-Aqsa is located in Palestine, which has been proven in many ahadith and referred to in the Qur’an as well. Anyone who says otherwise is directly going against the consensus of scholars (which is a source of law in Islam), the ahadith, and even the Qur’an itself. And how can anyone who apostatizes in this manner be called a Muslim if he/she goes against the very basic principles of Islam?
Common Sense
The Qadianis’ house of worship named by them as “Masjid Al-Aqsa” in Qadian, in the Gurdaspur District of India was actually built by Mirza Ghulam Murtaza, the father of Mirza Ghulam Ahmed in 1876. This place of worship that the Ahmadis visit as pilgrims is built inside the compound of the family home of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad.
The Masjid Al-Aqsa that is revered by Muslims all over the world as the third holiest site in Islam was actually built 40 years after the Ka’bah as narrated in a sahih hadith:
Abu Dharr ؓ reported that he asked the Prophet ﷺ, “O Messenger of Allah, which masjid was built first on earth?” The Prophet ﷺ replied, “The Sacred Masjid of Makkah.” Abu Dharr ؓ again asked, “Which was next?” The Prophet ﷺ said, “The Masjid al-Aqsa.” Abu Dharr ؓ further asked, “How long was the period between the building of the two masajid?” The Prophet ﷺ said, “Forty years.” Apart from these, offer your prayers anywhere when it is time to pray, as excellence lies in it.” (Al-Bukhari)
If it is established through a sahih hadith that Masjid Al-Aqsa was built 40 years after the Ka’bah and also that it was the second masjid built on earth, then according to the Qadiani claim, there should have been no masjid apart from the Ka’bah existing on earth until after 1876 when the ‘mosque’ in Qadian was built. But simple logic tells us that this is definitely not the case and such a claim is utterly nonsensical. There have been thousands of masajid on earth long before 1876 and the mosque in Qadian simply cannot be the sacred Masjid Al-Aqsa.
Every Muslim knows that Masjid Al-Aqsa was the Qibla of the Muslims till the second year of Hijrah and Muslims used to face towards the North in the direction of Masjid Al-Aqsa instead of facing East towards India. Moreover, historically Muslims fought several wars to liberate Masjid Al-Aqsa from Christians and Jews. Masjid Al-Aqsa was liberated by Syeddina Umar Farooq ؓ and then by Sultan Salahuddin Ayyubi after the conquest of Jerusalem in Palestine. Definitely, these battles were not fought for the liberation of Qadian in India.
Even the Jewish and Christian beliefs hold the Masjid Al-Aqsa and the area surrounding it to be a holy and sacred land and they also believe it to be in Palestine – the place where the Jews also face while praying. If you ask any Jew which direction they face while praying, they would tell you that it’s Jerusalem in Palestine and definitely not Qadian in India.
The belief of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Qadiani and his followers about Masjid Al-Aqsa is one of the many examples of their bizarre, deceiving, and illogical beliefs. Such examples are in fact a food for thought for Ahmadi community to consider their affiliation with Qadiani religion which is unanimously considered a cult and deception by all Muslims of the world.