THE SITUATION BEFORE THE APPEARANCE OF HAZRAT AL-MAHDI...continued

12.Hazrat Mahdi (as) will appear at a time when people are sick of evil, crime and oppression

 

Salama Ibn Zufar says: “One day, when someone said, ‘Hazrat Mahdi (as) has appeared’ in the hearing of Hudhayfa, he replied: “If Hazrat Mahdi (as) has appeared, you are near the time of the Messenger of Allah and the companions are still living among you. You are therefore really happy people. But, no, this is not true. HAZRAT MAHDI (AS) WILL APPEAR AT A TIME WHEN PEOPLE ARE SICK OF EVIL, CRIME AND OPPRESSION and when nobody living in reclusion is as saintly or as loved as him.

(Al-Hawi, Vol. 2, p.159)

13.The gospel reveals that lovelessness will prevail among people in the end times 

Lovelessness prevailing among people is one of the main portents of the End Times that will take place prior to the coming of the Mahdi revealed in the hadith of our Prophet (saas).  The following passage from the Gospel according to Matthew “the love of most will grow cold and they will hate each other” is in full agreement with these hadith of our Prophet’s (saas): Matthew, 24 (1-13)

Jesus left the temple and was walking away when his disciples came up to him to call his attention to its buildings. "Do you see all these things?" he asked. "I tell you the truth, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down."

As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. "Tell us," they said, "when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?"

Jesus answered: "Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, 'I am the Messiah,' and will deceive many. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains.

AT THAT TIME MANY will turn away from the faith and will...HATE EACH OTHER...Because of the increase of wickedness, THE LOVE OF MOST WILL GROW COLD, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.

 

 

 

Doomsday will not take place... UNTIL GREETINGS ARE EXTENDED ONLY TO ACQUAINTANCES NOT TO PEOPLE IN GENERAL, . (Death-Doomsday-The Hereafter and the Portents of the End Times, Imam Sharani - Al-Qurtubi, Bedir Publishing, Istanbul 1981 p. 461; no. 845)

14. There will be no caliph (spiritual leader of Muslims) when the Mahdi appears 

It is revealed in the hadith that in the period prior to the appearance of the blessed Mahdi “Muslims will have no individuals to assume their spiritual leadership.”

Abu Said relates that the Prophet (saas) said: In the End Times, my community will suffer tribulations from their rulers. Such a scourge that the like will never have been seen before. So much so that the world will be like a prison and full of oppression. BELIEVERS WILL BE UNABLE TO FIND A REFUSE AND A SAVIOR TO ESCAPE THIS OPPRESSION... (Al-Bayan, p. 72, Al-Sawaiq Al-Muhariqa, p. 161, Yanabi Al- Mawadda, Vol. 2, p. 177)

 

IN THE YEAR IN WHICH HE (MAHDI) WILL EMERGE, PEOPLE WILL PERFORM HAJJ WITHOUT AN AMR (CALIPH) LEADING THEM.

(Narrated By `Amr Ibn Shu`Ayb, Al-Hakim And Nu`Aym Ibn Hammad)

 

PEOPLE MAKE PILGRIMAGE WITHOUT AN IMAM (CALIPH) (Muslims’ spiritual leader) LEADING THEM…

(Al-Muttaqi al-Hindi, Al-Burhan fi Alamat al-Mahdi Akhir al-zaman, p. 35)

15. On the subject of the coming of the Prophet Jesus (as) and Hazrat Mahdi (as), there will be those who say, 'Allah and His Messenger have promised us nothing more than an empty deception.' 

WHEN THE HYPOCRITES AND PEOPLE WITH SICKNESS IN THEIR HEARTS SAID, ‘WHAT ALLAH AND HIS MESSENGER PROMISED US WAS MERE DELUSION’.” (Surat al-Ahzab, 12)

In the Qur’an, Allah tells us that there will be people who say, “What Allah and His Messenger promised us was mere delusion.” In the indicated meaning, this verse refers to the situation of those people who have lost hope of the coming of the Prophet Jesus (as) and the Hazrat Mahdi. These people “deny the coming of the Prophet Jesus (as) and the Hazrat Mahdi,” which the Prophet (saas) reveals in the hadiths, and they claim that the Prophet’s (saas) words on this subject are supposedly “unfounded.” Many writings appear in many places today, saying that the Prophet Jesus (as) and Hazrat Mahdi (as) will not be coming and, even more important, even people known as Islamic scholars issue statements along those same lines.
The truth of the matter is, however, that the fact that these people believe that “the coming of the Prophet Jesus (as) and Hazrat Mahdi (as) is untrue” and a supposedly “empty promise” is one of the things that our Prophet (saas) has promised us will happen. Because one of the portents of the End Times in the hadiths of our Prophet (saas) that the coming of the Prophet Jesus (as) and Hazrat Mahdi (as) is close at hand is the widespread nature of words to the effect that “Hazrat Mahdi (as) will not come and there is no such person as Hazrat Mahdi (as).”Some of the hadith on the subject read:
"Allah will send Hazrat Mahdi (as) when people have despaired and say ‘THERE IS NO SUCH PERSON AS HAZRAT MAHDI’.” (Al-Muttaqi al-Hindi, Al-Burhan fi Alamat al-Mahdi Akhir az-Zaman, p. 55)

"... HAZRAT MAHDI (as) WILL COME, with the standard of the Messenger of Allah (saas),WHEN HOPE OF HIS APPEARANCE HAS BEEN ABANDONED, and when scourges rain down on people’s heads…”(Al-Muttaqi al-Hindi, Al-Burhan fi Alamat al-Mahdi Akhir az-Zaman, p. 55)

... HIS [HAZRAT MAHDI’S (AS)] COMING WILL BE AT A TIME OF HOPELESSNESS AND DESPAIR.(Sheikh Muhammad ibn Ibrahim Numani, al-Ghaybah al-Numani, p. 274)
HE [HAZRAT MAHDI (AS)] WILL APPEAR WHEN PEOPLE HAVE LOST ALL HOPE OF HIS COMING! How fortunate those who live in his time and help him will be! Woe to those who harbor enmity toward him, to those who oppose him and his commands, and to his enemies!(Sheikh Muhammad ibn Ibrahim Nomani, al-Ghaybah al-Nomani, p. 301)
Dawud ibn Kathir Riqqi says: “I asked Imam Abu Abdullah: ... This coming [of Hazrat Mahdi (as)] is taking so long that our hearts have shrunk and we are dying from profound sorrow. And he said, ‘THAT APPEARANCE WILL TAKE PLACE WHEN PEOPLE ARE EVEN MORE DESPAIRING AND WHEN SORROW IS EVEN GREATER.’”(Sheikh Muhammad ibn Ibrahim Nomani, al-Ghaybah al-Nomani, p. 208)

This period, in which the portents of the End Times are taking place one after the other, shows that the return of the Prophet Jesus (as) and the appearance of Hazrat Mahdi (as) are close at hand. By Allah’s leave, these two holy personages will appear just as described in the hadiths of our Prophet (saas) and will cause Islamic moral values to prevail across the world.

 

16.Economic crisis before the coming of the Mahdi 

 . From Abu Bashir: Imam Jaffari Sadiq (as) said:

 

THE PEOPLE WILL GO HUNGRY FOR A YEAR BEFORE THE COMING OF THE QAIM, AND A FEAR OF BEING SLAIN WILL ENFOLD THEM; they will suffer losses of goods, lives and assets. Allah writes this clearly in His book. He then added this verse: “We will test you with a certain amount of fear and hunger and loss of wealth and life and fruits. But give good news to the steadfast.”
 

(Sheikh Muhammad bin Ibrahim Nomani, al-Ghaybah al-Nomani p. 297)

... From Ibrahim al-Karhi: Imam Jaffari Sadiq (as) told me: ... He is the Mahdi. Allah has given them miracles. He has given them place in the holy abode... O Ibrahim! After terrible troubles and scourges, fear and FAMINE, he will ELIMINATE ALL SORROW from the hearts of those who love the Ahl al-Bayt (People of the House). How happy those who live in his time will be! (Sheikh Muhammad bin Ibrahim Nomani, al-Ghaybah al-Nomani, pp. 94-95)

The convergence of bazaar and market is a sign of the End Times. “What does the convergence of bazaars mean?” It means: Everyone will complain of low earnings....” (from Ibn Marduwayh Abu Huraira (ra)...) (Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-Rasul Barzanji, Al-Isha'ah li-ashrat al-sa'ah, p. 146) In a hadith narrated by Naim ibn Hammad from ibn Masud, the period preceding the appearance of the Mahdi is described as “the time when TRADE and roads are CUT and strife increases.” The hadith goes on to report that this will come to an end in the time of the Mahdi:   "… We came to seek that person (the Mahdi) BY WHOSE HAND STRIFE WILL BE EXTINGUISHED. CONSTANTINOPLE (ISTANBUL) WILL BE CAPTURED THROUGH HIM. (In other words, the Mahdi will spiritually capture hearts and establish a huge cultural intellectual impact.) We recognize him by his name, and his mother and father’s names, and his army…" (Al-Burhan fi Alamat al-Mahdi Akhir al-Zaman, p. 52) Before the Mahdi appears, TRADE AND ROADS between nations WILL BE CUT and strife among people will grow. (Ibn Hajar al-Haythami, Al-Qawl al-Mukhtasar fi `Alamat al-Mahdi al-Muntazar, p. 39)  (Before the emergence of the Mahdi) StagnatIon IN THE MARKETS, A REDUCTION IN EARNINGS… (Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-Rasul Barzanji, Al-Isha'ah li-ashrat al-sa'ah, p. 148) Everyone COMPLAINING OF LOW EARNINGS... the rich respected for their money... (Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-Rasul Barzanji, Al-Isha'ah li-ashrat al-sa'ah, p. 146) Business being slack. Everyone will complain, “I cannot sell, buy or earn money.” (Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-Rasul Barzanji, Al-Isha'ah li-ashrat al-sa'ah, p. 152) When TRADE and roads are CUT and strife multiplies ... (Al-Muttaqi al-Hindi, Al-Burhan fi `Alamat al-Mahdi Akhir az-Zaman, p.52)

17.Disasters, corruption and scourges will afflict the people prior to Hazrat Mahdi (as) O Abu Hamza! THE QAIM (Hazrat Mahdi (as)) WILL ONLY APPEAR WHEN THE PEOPLE ARE SEVERELY AFFLICTED BY FEAR, EARTHQUAKES, STRIFE AND WOE and before that there will be a plague, a sharp sword will appear among the Arabs and there will be severe disputes among the people and there will be schism and argument in the faith and the situation will change greatly. (Sheikh Muhammad bin Ibrahim Nomani, al-Ghaybah al-Nomani, p. 274) Then he said: Before the coming of the Qaim (Hazrat Mahdi (as)), THERE WILL BE GREAT FEAR, AND THE PEOPLE WILL BE AFFLICTED BY DISASTERS, STRIFE AND WOE. (Sheikh Muhammad bin Ibrahim Nomani, al-Ghaybah al-Nomani,  p. 301)     MANY PEOPLE WHO SEE THE EXTENT OF THE PEOPLE’S TROUBLES AND HOW THEY DESTROY ONE ANOTHER WILL DAY AND NIGHT BEG TO DIE. (Sheikh Muhammad bin Ibrahim Nomani, al-Ghaybah al-Nomani, p. 274) All systems will be tried before Hazrat Mahdi (as) Hisham ibn Salim says: Imam Jaffari Sadiq said: "Until the coming of Hazrat Mahdi (as), every class of the people will rule the people.” So that NOBODY WILL BE ABLE TO SAY “WE WOULD IMPLEMENT JUSTICE IF WE WERE IN POWER.” Then the Qaim (as) (Hazrat Mahdi (as)) will rule with truth and justice. (Sheikh Muhammad bin Ibrahim Nomani, al-Ghaybah al-Nomani,  p. 322)