By Aleem Zia

‘Reserve 1’ is a site located at Jamia Ahmadiyya UK which accommodates Tabshir guests attending Jalsa Salana UK. These include foreign Ahmadi guests and non-Ahmadi external guests. Being an international Jalsa, Jalsa Salana UK is attended by guests from all across the globe. They are hosted by the UK Jama’at and all their needs are attended to. The attendance of the Jalsa Salana UK of 2019 was 39,829. This included guest representation from 115 different countries. Amongst these guests are the Tabshir guests. They are accommodated across 3 venues in Reserve 1. The majority of the Ahmadi guests stay at Jamia Ahmadiyya UK and external guests stay in Guildford University and Holiday Inn Guildford. All their needs are met by volunteers who work around the clock to serve the guests of the Promised Messiah (as). 

Different departments in Reserve 1 include transport, reception, accommodation, hygiene, food, delivery etc… The work of the transport department is to ensure that they manage arrival and departures of all the guests and make sure that they have transport to and from their destinations. They also have transport for guests to visit the Khilafat headquarters every day, and get an opportunity to see their beloved Khalifa. 

The reception teams work with the accommodation and hygiene teams to ensure that the rooms are in perfect condition for the guests of the Promised Messiah (as) and they make sure all their needs are met during their time at ‘Reserve 1’. The food and delivery teams ensure there is no shortage of anything for the guests which can include food, drinks, snacks, dietary requirements etc… These volunteers play a huge role in directly serving the guests of the Promised Messiah (as).  

This idea of respecting the guests and dignitaries that visit a person stems back to the teaching of the Holy Prophet (sa). In a Hadith from Ibn Majah, it states:

اِذَا اَتَاکُم کَرِیْمُ قَوْمٍ فَاکْرِمُوْہُ

“When the leaders of a people pay you a visit, show them due respect.”

(Sunan Ibn Majah, Hadith 3712)

Many guests that stay in Reserve 1 truly are the leaders of other nations in one way or the other, who have come to attend the Jalsa. Islam teaches us that it is these guests in particular that should be taken special care of and this is what the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama’at teaches us too.