LAHORE, Nov 12: The Raiwind Tableeghi congregation, which is said to be one of the major religious gatherings and attended by an estimated hundreds of thousands of people, concluded here on Sunday with a message that Islam is a religion of peace, prosperity and tolerance.

All manner of people came to attend the moot from all over Pakistan and abroad. This year the number of visitors is viewed to be the highest ever. Thousands of them, mostly youth, volunteered to join hundreds of missionary groups formed during the four-day congregation. They will be sent to various parts of the country and abroad after a few days of preliminary training on how to go about preaching the basic teachings of Islam.

They got themselves enrolled in missionary groups of 10 to 15 people for touring for a period ranging from the minimum of three days to one year and above. Most of them are set for a 40-day mission they call “chillah”. Those volunteering themselves for three “chillahs” to one year and above are sent abroad on their own expenses.

Before dispersing, Maulana Zubairul Hassan led the grand prayer for about half an hour seeking Allah Almighty’s blessings for the success of the Muslim missionaries spreading Islam’s message of peace, love and affection to the world and dispelling the impression from the minds of the non-Muslims that violence and militancy is the creed of Islam.

Sunday’s was the record gathering as people came in hordes from Lahore and its suburbs to attend the prayer. Politicians, federal and provincial ministers, legislators, nazims, councillors and government officers also attended the prayer prior to which two general sessions were held after the Fajr prayers for imparting instructions to the missionaries.— Reporter