If Jesus went to Kashmir in India where is the evidence? And why is there not then a huge population of Christians in that region?
The question is a very valid one. And one that should be answered to expel all doubt in the claim of Ahmadiyya Muslim Theology.
The first point in the question, is one of comparative evidence of Jesus Christ's (as) existence in and around Jerusalem compared to Kashmir. So if we leave aside the Holy Bible and all accounts of those who believed in Jesus Christ (as). And look solely at the research of independent historians of that period - surprisingly, we find we cannot find any independent historical records or evidence of Jesus' (as) birth, life or even crucifixion in and around the areas of Jerusalem, Galilee and Nazareth. Unfortunately, it is a misconception that all believers in Jesus Christ (as) think that his existence is proven.
The Roman Empire of the day, had no cause to record the life of a hanged man. And all evidence ever presented has always been written many decades after Jesus (as) had left the area. The first proof so far found is approximately 34 years after the date that Jesus Christ (as) was known to have been crucified. That's the first credible known references in Roman and world history. In it we find Emperor Nero in A.D. 64 blaming the Christians for the fire that destroyed Rome. This was recorded by the Roman historian Tacitus. And the second closest known evidence is found in the letters of Pliny the Younger written to Emperor Trajan some 82 years after the crucifixion. Pliny was the Roman governor of Bithynia in Asia Minor. In one of his letters, dated around A.D. 112, he asks Trajan's advice about the appropriate way to conduct legal proceedings against those accused of being Christians.
So its little surprise then that there are many historians who, still to this day, doubt the existence of Jesus Christ (as) because of a lack of clear time dated evidence or witnesses. So that goes to show that as far as the historical evidence goes the first part of his life in not also proven without a shadow of doubt, so why bother to contest the second part if we are looking for just historical data.
However, if we do look for time dated historical evidence of Jesus Christ (as) in Kashmir we find many independent witness reports and proofs as compared to those of him being in Jerusalem. The Indian Chronicles known locally as the Bhavishya Maha Purana's (written in Sanskrit) make an astonishing record of a King who met Jesus (as). The name of the King was Raja Shalban who after meeting Jesus (as) went on to become one of his contemporaries.
It states in the Purana's that Raja Shalban (Shalivahana cheif of the Shakas) was on a hunting trip when he came across a handsome and holy foreigner with his companions walking along in one of the valleys of Kashmir. He approached him and asked him who he was and the foreigner replied 'I am a Prophet Prince' and he went on to say that 'I was so terribly tortured by my people that I should have died but for the promise of God which he had given to me earlier... And I was then saved miraculously from that torturous death and so I migrated to your land'.
It is recorded that Raja Shalban (Shalivahana cheif of the Shakas) then asked him what was his name and he replied 'Yuss Asaf'. A name in two parts but which are to be read together and pronounced as Yussus or Yessu. As is the custom in those parts the F sound is silent in many pronunciations. And most interestingly that sounds nearly exactly the same as 'Yeshu' which is the Hebrew pronunciation of Jesus. And when Raja Shalban (Shalivahana cheif of the Shakas) further asked what is the name of his faith the Prophet Prince replied 'Love is the name of my faith'.
Now it has to be bore in mind that this evidence was not revealed by an Ahmadi scholar but by a Christian Bishop from Russia over 200 years earlier. He made this discovery and then made reference to this in his own book. And that book is preserved in the Pope's library to this today.
He mentioned himself these Purana's but with one difference, he distorted the story, to say according to the Purana's Jesus (as) went to Kashmir before his crucifixion. But foolishly in his very own appendix he admits that he has said that Jesus went before the cruxifiction because as far as the Purana's state clearly that he went there after the crucifixion. But as he the Bishop refused to believe it to be possible he then took it upon himself and assumed the Purana's to have been mistaken. But the fact is that the original story held in the Purana's prove one hundred percent that in a time verified independent historical witness account that a Prophet came to Kashmir called Jesus (as) and he told his life story. There is no other conclusion, as what terrible torture and near death event did Jesus Christ (as) suffer before the crucifixion that it could be said that he visited India before his ministry in Jerusalem as some Christian scholars have tried to say. and there are many more accounts of Jesus (as) in these Purana's and listing them all is of no real benefit at this time.
So with such strong written historical evidence of Jesus (as) being in Kashmir as compared to Jesus (as) in Jerusalem it can be said that we have more independent proof of his existence in India than in Jerusalem. And the Ahmadiyya theology is not alone in this belief, many non Christian researchers have found a lot of evidence of Jesus (as) in Kashmir.
Further independent historical research backing modern day evidence is presented by a Russian Christian aristocrat Nicolas Notovich who wrote about Jesus in India in 1894 and about the historical records of a 'Saint Issa' at the monastery of Hemis in Ladakh, India. 'Issa' being the Arabic version of Jesus (as). As does Aziz Kashmiri in his book 'Christ in Kashmir', and Holger Kersten in 'Jesus lived in India'. And many more all believing Jesus Christ (as) to be have been buried at the Rosa Bal shrine in Srinagar, Kashmir.
Moving on to the second question. this question raises a question in itself; i.e. which type of Christianity does the questioner want to see in India? If the questioner wanted to see the see the concept of Christianity and Trinity as presented by the Catholic Church then we have to ask ourselves did Jesus Christ (as) preach this in Jerusalem before his cruxifiction that he would continue to preach it in India. The answer is an emphatic and clear no. It is well known that this doctrine was introduced by the Apostle Paul, the author of modern day Christianity and Trinity. Originally a staunch Jew who persecuted and hunted down Christians to try to get them to denounce their faith. He was not a disciple and had only met Jesus Christ (as) in a vision as he himself said many years after Jesus (as) had left the area.
So if it can't be be a message of Trinity that is to be found so what else can it be? Well the answer is that a message of love would be found. A story of a virgin birth and a teaching of being kind and not taking revenge would be found there. And if such a teaching is found under a different title it would still remain that of Jesus Christ (as).
Under Buddhism we find the same teachings as per the original Christian teachings of Jesus Christ (as). We also find reference to Jesus (as) in the Pali (Buddhist) literature declaring him to be a Buddha. We also have a prophecy by the original Buddha that after about 500 or so years another Buddha would come. And that Buddha was Jesus (as). The Buddhists had been waiting for him. So naturally Jesus the Messiah (as) was given the title Buddha and his teachings were incorporated into Buddhism.
Buddhist texts contain a prophecy of a future Buddha, a bodhisattva, named ‘Bagwa Metteyya’ a Pali phrase which literally means “fair-complexioned”, or “white traveller”. The etymological resemblance of the word “Metteyya” to “Messiah” is established and one meaning of the word “Messiah” is traveler. And as the teachings of Jesus's (as) religion of love spread in the area, many of his teachings became interwoven with Gautama Buddha’s teachings. Even certain parables as recorded in the New Testament became attributed to Buddha, such as parable of the sower which is found in Buddhist texts. That is why there are so many similarities between the original teachings of Christianity and Buddhism that confounds Christian scholars. Especially the stories of Buddha's virgin birth, legendary forgiveness and all encompassing love.
For you see the name Christianity is actually a title of Messiahism. It is not his name, Jesus (as) was his name. So the name of his religion is not Jesusism, it is Christianity because Christ is the literal translation in Latin of the Hebrew word Messiah. So Messiahism or Christianity indicates his religion. So when he is known under a different title that of ‘Bagwa Metteyya’ the Buddha then his religion should obviously described under the title of Buddhism.
And this is exactly what has happened. All his followers, were amalgamated within Buddhism, simply because they were waiting for the arrival of a second Buddha and he was accepted as such. And many genuine time dated references can be found in Pali literature describing Jesus Christ (as) and his teachings to be a Buddha.
One of the main reasons that Jesus (as) would have gone to Kashmir was to preach to the lost (sheep) tribes of Israel, as was his purpose described by himself in the Holy Bible. It is well established fact that their were only two tribes in the area of Jerusalem and he the other tribes had emigrated. And as the Jews of Kashmir were the furthest settled of these tribes and the others were on the way it makes sense that he would follow their path and eventually settle there when his task was complete. And it is also well documented that many of these Jewish tribes travelled along the silk and trading routes, and so converted to Buddhism in Kashmir and neighbouring Afghanistan.
The remnants of the followers of Jesus Christ (as) still exist in the vicinity of Herat, Afghanistan. The British scholar O.M Burke in his book ‘Among the Dervishes’ described these people. Though they are now Muslims, they have not forgotten their Christian and Buddhist legacy. They have a special attachment to Jesus (as) and refer to him as ‘Yuz Asaf the Kashmiri’ who came to preach to them.
So in conclusion the question should then move to how many Buddhists are there in India compared to Christians in Israel? And the national statistics show that India has over 13 million of the population compared to 120-140 thousand of the population in Israel.
(as) is an Arabic abbreviation for Peace be upon Him
Notovitch, Nicolas (2008). The Unknown Life of Jesus Christ. Dover Publications.
Ganhar et al., Buddhism in Kashmir and Ladakh, Tribune Press, New Delhi, 1956
Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad. Jesus in India (1944)
Mirza Tahir Ahmad. Christianity: A Journey from Facts to Fiction
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesus_in_Ahmadiyya_Islam
Kalhana's Rajatarangini, A Chronicle of the Kings of Kashmir, M.A. Stein, 2 vols. London, 1900.
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/judaica/ejud_0002_0011_0_10803.html
F. Bernier, Travels in the Moghul Empire, 1656–58, ed. by A. Constable (1891).
T. Parfitt, The Lost Tribes of Israel: The History of a Myth (2002).
Ansar Khan is the Regional Nazim Taleem for Tahir Region, London. To read more article by Ansar Khan and other interesting writers visit www.tahirregion.weebly.com/blog. Please feel free to comment and share this or any of the other articles with your freinds.