Allama Iqbal willed during his later days that someone in the future shouldcarry out a professional psychoanalysis of Mirza Ghulam Ahmed to determinewhat mental disorder he actually suffered from. In respect to that wish of thegreat Sir Iqbal, I have consulted two American psychiatrists of great repute,Dr. Abid Mian of Florida and Dr. John Zeman of Pennsylvania. Both physiciansare Board Certified in Psychiatry and Brain Disorders. They have studied different aspects of the life of Mirza Ghulam Ahmed and their findings arepresented as follows:
•Mirza was brought up in an orthodox village in India.
•He life was confined from the mosque to the home.
•He liked to participate in religious dialogue with Hindus andChristians.
•He frequently admitted to being an opiate user.
•Mirza admits to suffer from Depression and Psychosis
• The events of his life reveal that he fluctuated between mania anddepression. According to current terminology, his condition was that ofthe Bipolar Disorder or Mania-Depression. In the bipolar state, at times,the patient goes into deep depression and suffers from a sense ofworthlessness. An example of this state is when Mirza calls himself a pinworm. Coming out of this phase the patient has fits of hyperactivity.These fits are called mania. During mania, some patients displaycreativity. This is when Mirza wrote his seventy or so repetitious books.
•In the Bipolar disorder the patient loses touch with reality and dwells ina world of fantasy. Seeing angels like Tichi Tichi, Khairati and Aayil, is one example of this.
•The patient has visual hallucinations. He sees things, which do not exist. An example of that is Mirza’s stooping on to a grave and his wrestling with the dead old man.
•The patient experiences auditory hallucinations as well. He hears voicesfrom within his own mind. His ‘Ilham’ “Shaana Naasa Peration Omar Paratoos Yaani Parratoos Yaani Palatoos” is a good example of such a hallucination.
•Making statements and then retracting them is one of the symptoms of Bipolar disorder.
•If Mirza were alive today, he could be effectively treated with Lithiumand/or ECT (Electro-convulsive Therapy). This treatment would have lessened the inconsistency in his behavior and writings. However, the most effective remedy to stop his bizarre claims would have been total withdrawal of his financial support. Another prescription would have been for the Islamic clergy of the time to take a resolute stand against him: Any claimant of prophethood or revelation from God, after Prophet Muhammad (S) would either be insane or an imposter.
•To conclude, Mirza Ghulam Ahmed was afflicted with Bipolar Disorder.The British Government master-minded his advent to accomplish their own designs.Another important question falls in to the realm of psychiatry. That is, how could so many people follow a man with such serious mental disorders? The experts state that in the phenomenon of mass hysteria, group members try to outdo each other in their reverence. The popularity of the "Whirling Dervishes”of Rumi furnishes a good example of such mass hysteria. Even eminent men like Sir Zafrullah Khan, Dr. Abdus Salam and M.M. Ahmad were not immune to this syndrome. In blind reverence, one sees but does not observe. And he tends to rationalize obvious silliness. For example, when Sir Zafrullah Khanwas told that Mirza Ghulam Ahmed used to wear the ladies skirt, Gharara, he simply called it the simplicity of the Messia
