Additional information
by Israr Ahmad (Author)
The substance of this book is based on the ideas published by Dr. Israr Ahmad in 1993 in the columns of the Urdu daily Nawa-e-Waqt of Lahore. The series of write-ups continued for a few months and were widely read with interest. The entire material, after slight editing, was published in a book form in October 1993 under the title Sabiqa aur Maujuda Musalman Ummatun ka Mazi, Haal, aur Mustaqbil, and has since gone through many re-prints. Dr. Ahmed Afzaal rendered these ideas into English and part of it was serialized in 1995-96 in the monthly Hikmat-e-Qur'an published by the Markazi Anjuman Khuddam-ul-Qur'an Lahore. For putting it into a compact book, he further revised the entire material, added his own sub-titles, and made it more authentic by giving quotations from the Old and New Testaments. Indeed, he took great pains to make the citations of quite a few historical events and landmarks, particularly of early Jewish history, more authentic by giving dates and references from reliable sources. Moreover, he suggested a much more telling title for the book - Lessons from History - and the sub-title - Reflections on the Past, Present, and Future of Two Muslim Communities - puts in a capsule form the whole spectrum of ideas covered in the book.
