Mirza Ghulam Ahmad founded the Ahmadiyya movement and claimed to be the return of Christ, the promised Messiah, the Mahdi, and Mujaddid of the modern Islamic era. His death sparked great controversy surrounding the validity of his claims. Supporters have vigorously defended against these controversies while opponents have used them to point to various predictions and prophesies they say invalidate his rank and station. Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (مرزا غلام احمد) (February 13, 1835; May 26, 1908), a religious figure from Qadian, India, was the founder of the Ahmadiyya religious movement. ... Ahmadi Muslims are followers of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad. ... The Second Coming or Second Advent refers to the Christian and Islamic belief in the return of Jesus Christ to fulfill the rest of the Messianic prophecy, such as the Resurrection of the dead, Last judgement and establishment of the Kingdom of God. ... In Judaism, the Messiah (מָשִׁיחַ Standard Hebrew Arabic: Al-Masih, المسيح), Tiberian Hebrew , Aramaic ) initially meant any person who was anointed by a prophet of God. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... A Mujaddid (Arabic: مجدد), in Islamic tradition, refers to a person who, Muslims believe, is sent by god in the first half of every century of the Islamic calendar. ... Islam (Arabic:  ) is a monotheistic religion based upon the teachings of Muhammad, a 7th century Arab religious and political figure. ...

Circumstances of his death

Mirza Ghulam Ahmad died as a result of complications arising from diarrhea. Types 5-7 on the Bristol Stool Chart are often associated with diarrhea Diarrhea (in American English) or diarrhoea (in British English) is a generally unpleasant condition in which the sufferer has frequent watery, loose bowel movements (from the ancient Greek word διαρροή = leakage; literally meaning to run through). Acute infectious...

Opponents' reactions

Some muslim opponents of Ahmadiyya claim that his death was accursed and his terminal disease a sign of wrath of God,^[1][2] which he mentioned in his own writings would be the punishment for a liar: "...punishment which is not by human hands but only at the hands of God, such as Plague and Cholera etc. deadly diseases..."^[3]

Prophesies in question

His critics say that his death proved his following prophecies to have been untrue: ^[4]

1. His prophecy that he will live to be 80 or more years old; He died when he was only 68 year old. His followers disagree with this contention and point out that the said prophecy (made in 1865 or about 43 years before his actual death) was for “..eighty years or a few years less or more….” (Tadhkira, page 6, emphasis by editor), and that Mirza Ghluam Ahmad was past the age of seventy at the time of his death (b: 1835 – d: 1908)^[5]
2. His prophecy that he would marry Muhammadi Begum, before his death; He never did marry Muhammadi Begum. Followers of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad however claim that the prophecy regarding Mohammadi Begum was multi-faceted, not confined to marriage with Muhammadi Begum only and "conditional", i.e, did not require absolute fulfillment. They point out that as part of the prophecy (death of Muhammadi Begum’s father) was fulfilled after which conditions changed, the remaining prophecy did not come to pass. ^[6]
3. The claim (and Mubahala challenge) that Moulvi Sanaullah of Amristar, his arch opponent who had openly called him a liar and an impostor, will die before him; Ahmad died first! His followers however contend that the said claim was not one-sided and was part of a Mubahala (Prayer-Duel) or challenge which was conditional upon the acceptance of the same by Maulvi Sanaullah. As Maulvi Sanaullah publicly refused to accept the challenge posed by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, the contents therein did not come into effect. Hence the question who died first became immaterial and inconsequential due to Maulvi Sanalullah’s recorded refusal to accept the Mubalaha (prayer-duel or challenge).^[7]
4. His prophecy that Abdul Hakim, one of his opponents who had called him a liar during an open debate, will die within Ahmad's life time; Ahmad died first!
5. The prophecy (and Mubahala challenge) that Abdullah Atham, a Christian who had debated with Ahmad , will die before him; Ahmad died first! His followers however point out that Abdullah Atham died on July 27th, 1896 ^[8], while Mirza Ghulam Ahmad died in 1908.
6. His revelation that Allah will bestow upon him a great new son, a sign of Allah's presence and proof of his prophethood; he died without having another son.
7. His claim that Allah had revealed to him that he would marry many more virtuous women; After the prophecy, he did not marry anyone else.
8. His prophecy that he will marry a widow, before his death; After the prophecy, he did not marry anyone else.
9. His prophecy that he will die in Makkah or Medina. He died in the city of Lahor; he never saw Mekkah or Medina.

It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Christianity. ... For other uses, see Allah (disambiguation). ... A widow is a woman whose husband has died. ... Mecca or Makkah (in full: Makkah al-Mukkaramah; Arabic مكة المكرمة) is revered as the holiest site of Islam, and a pilgrimage to it is required of all Muslims who can afford to go. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Response from Ahmadiyya supporters

Ahmadi Muslims do not subscribe to this view.^[9] Opposing muslims claim that the diarrhea was a result of Cholera^[10] while Ahmadi Muslims contend that the attending physicians at the time of his death declared the cause of death as Diarrehoea and not Cholera, and the same was recorded for publication in newspapers. They also claim that the lack of precautions taken by attending doctors and his followers against infectious diseases during the postmortem handling of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad's body was not consistent with a death from Cholera.^[9] Cholera is a water-borne disease caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae, which is typically ingested by drinking contaminated water, or by eating improperly cooked fish, especially shellfish. ... Cholera is a water-borne disease caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae, which is typically ingested by drinking contaminated water, or by eating improperly cooked fish, especially shellfish. ...

References

1. ^ Mirza Ghulam Ahmad in the Mirror of his own Writings, irshad.org
2. ^ Death of Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Qadiani?, qadiani.org
3. ^ Prayer of Mirza Ghulam, against his erstwhile opponent, Molvi Sanaullah Amratsari seeking judgment from Allah, Majmooa-e-Ishteharaat, Collection of Advertisement of Mirza Ghulam, vol.3 p.578-579. Published by Jamaat Ahmadiyya Headquarter London
4. ^ The Death of Mirza Ghulam Qadiani, irshad.org
5. ^ Muhammad, Maulana Hafiz Sher, True Facts about the Ahmadiyya Movement, Ahmadiyya Anjumah Ishaat Islam Delhi, page 59 [1]
6. ^ The Prophecy about Muhammadi Begum Compiled by Dr. Zahid Aziz
7. ^ 'True Facts about the Ahmadiyya Movement.' (pp. 44-47) by Maulana Hafiz Sher Muhammad Sahib. Web Link
8. ^ Beg, Mirza Masum, Prophecies of the Promised Messiah, Ahmadiyyah Anjuman Isha'at-i-Islam, page 53) [2]
9. ^ ^{a b} Maulana Hafiz Sher Muhammad Sahib, True Facts about the Ahmadiyya Movement. In Reply to S.P. Tayo's Facts about the Ahmadiyya Movement, pp. 47-50
10. ^ Scanned Image of Hayat-e-Nasir, alhafeez.org. For translation see [3]