We may recognize in the AROPL some common traits with both esoteric movements and millennialist religions with a progressive approach.
by Massimo Introvigne and Karolina Maria Kotkowska.
Article 3 of 5. Read article 1 and article 2.


After a tour of the Victorian orphanage re-adapted to serve as the universal headquarters of the Ahmadi religion of Peace and Light (AROPL), a Shia-derivative new religion (not to be confused with the Sunni-derivative, and different, Ahmadiyya community persecuted in Pakistan), we and the group of scholars who participated in a conference and field trip with AROPL members, are finally introduced in the most sacred part of the building, the basilica. Here, Abdullah Hashem Aba al-Sadiq, the leader of the religion, appears accompanied by his wife. He is a handsome man in his early forties, who speaks with authority in short sentences easy to understand. Some of us had read his new sacred scripture, “The Goal of the Wise,” before the meeting. One scholar is a specialist in UFO religions and asks about the AROPL’s belief in extraterrestrials. Others want to know whether the AROPL believes in the devil. Hashem answers with patience, and not without a touch of humor.
Yes, a significant role in the sacred history presented by Hashem is played by Iblis, the devil, who according to the gnostic theology of the AROPL created the physical bodies of humans (hence their imperfections) while relatives of Prophet Muhammad, including Ali, created their souls, acting as the “hands” of God. Hashem’s system is creationist, in the sense that he regards Darwin’s theory of evolution as false. However, he believes that there were numerous races before Adam, which came to earth from other planets and were not fully human. Some of their descendants are still on earth, and this is also the truth behind stories about Bigfoot or the Yeti.
Iblis’ sexual relationship with Eve generated Cain. From that time, the descendants of Iblis and Cain continuously opposed in history the mission of the prophets. The “conspirituality” (a word created by scholars of esotericism combining “conspiracy theories” and “spirituality”) of Hashem’s teachings emerge in his discussion of the Freemasons and the Illuminati, a theme he has in common with several contemporary Western and non-Western esoteric movements. While it expresses sympathy for the American people, “The Goal of the Wise” denounces the evil U.S. government controlled by the Illuminati. Again with precedents in other forms of “conspirituality,” “The Goal of the Wise” claims that George Washington was in reality Adam Weishaupt, the Bavarian founder of the Illuminati who had moved to the United States (the two shared a certain physical likelihood). He also claims that the second President Bush was the grandson of the British magus Aleister Crowley, who was the (unacknowledged) real father of the president’s mother, and wife of another president, Barbara Bush.


The typical “conspirituality” theme of the evil extraterrestrials and of children of human beings and aliens active on Earth is also present in “The Goal of the Wise.” There are, however, also extraterrestrials, and spirits from other dimensions such as the jinn of the Muslim tradition, who are not evil—or not entirely. Controlling the jinn is connected with magic, a science in which King Solomon once excelled. The Qaim today is the owner of Solomon’s ring and controls legions of jinn. Some jinn appear as stones that are in fact living beings, such as the Sulaimani stones, found in the bellies of serpents according to Islamic esoteric traditions. Magic is a science like others and is not forbidden; only black magic is.
In accordance with Alawite and other forms of Muslim esotericism, a theory is presented that the stars “are people” and are related to certain persons on earth, each of whom both “is” and “has” a star. The Riser/Qaim “is,” in this sense, Planet Mars, while Iblis “is” Sirius, a star Hashem claims is worshiped by Freemasons.
What kind of religion is this? Once again, scholars have an “etic” (not to be confused with “ethic”) outsider view, which complements (and respects) the “emic” insider view of the believers. For them, the AROPL is simply the truth revealed by God in the new covenant. The scholars’ method, however, is normally comparative.
That it uses this word or not, the AROPL is an esoteric religion, where themes of both esoteric Islam and Western esotericism are present. “The Goal of the Wise” reveals many hidden mysteries that only those in touch with higher powers can know and unveil, and alludes to others, which is typical of esotericism.
It is also a millenarian religion. It believes that wars and rumors of wars, natural disasters, epidemics, and the climate change confirm that we are living in the end times. AROPL devotees also claim that Ahmad al-Hassan, Hashem’s mentor, had predicted several of the most recent disasters, including COVID-19, for which he also offered a remedy he would have made public, if just the Shiite ayatollahs in Iraq and Iran had publicly asked for it. We met a medical doctor (and son of an eminent British cardiologist) who is a member of the community and claims to have used the “Imam’s remedy” for COVID-19 with success.


American scholar Catherine Wessinger distinguishes between “catastrophic” and “progressive” forms of millennialism. While catastrophic millennialism waits for a final disaster that would end the world as we know it, progressive millennialism examines the signs of the times and expects a great transformation that will not necessarily be the end of everything. Also, progressive millennialism does not believe that the transformation will be the simple consequence of cosmic forces humans cannot control. We have a role to play in preparing it.
A good example of a movement that was both esoteric and believed in a progressive form of millennialism is the Theosophical Society, established in New York in 1875 around the charismatic figure of Helena Petrovna Blavatsky. There are certain similarities between the Theosophical Society and the AROPL. Both believe that a teacher appointed by higher powers will appear at the appropriate time. Both reinterpret the teachings of existing religions and believe in reincarnation. Both see the evolution of humanity as an upward spiral. Both include in their history of human evolutions “unknown prophets” and accept messengers of God from many different traditions. Both believe that a new call to enlightenment will appear “in the West.” And both share the idea that seven is an important number (for the AROPL, its Call is the seventh covenant) and even the respective six-pointed star symbols are somewhat similar.


Obviously, there are also significant differences. The AROPL is firmly rooted in the monotheism of the Abrahamic faiths, while the Theosophical Society is pantheistic and privileges the approach of the East Asian religions where there is no concept of a personal God. Since we are all part of a fundamental unity, for the Theosophical Society there is no punishment for breaking the covenants with God, although individuals will pay for their mistakes through the law of karma and reincarnation.
We are not arguing that the AROPL is part of the larger family of religious movements with roots in the Theosophical Society. It is not. We are suggesting, however, two interpretive tools that may be useful to study the AROPL from the point of view of outsider scholars: esotericism and progressive millennialism. Although there have been historical exceptions, it is also the case that progressive millennialists, including those esoterically oriented such as the Theosophists, build peaceful movements that regard the theme of promoting justice and world peace as crucial—and work for it. We will explore how the AROPL sees peace and justice in the next article of the series.