The Lesser Signs of the Hour A Reconstruction of the Islamic Apocalyptic Overture

ORIENTAL ARCHIVE 81, 2013 • 235

The Lesser Signs of the HourA Reconstruction of the Islamic Apocalyptic Overture

Bronislav Ostřanský

Knowledge of the Hour belongs to God; it is He who sends down the relieving rain and He who knows what is hidden in the womb. No soul knows what it will reap tomorrow, and no soul knows in what land it will die; it is God who is all knowing and all aware.

The Qur’ān1

There is no doubt that the belief in Doomsday and the Hereafter belongs to the basic doctrinal articles of Islam and, to be precise, it is the medieval apocalyptic imagination that successfully stimulated the birth of an independent genre of Muslim religious writings. Nevertheless, the collective expectations of the approaching End (millennialism) are not only a harmless academic issue, examined by Muslim scholars (culamā’), but such emotions have repeatedly played an important role throughout the history of Islamic countries. In this article, two major subjects will be discussed: The classical Islamic ideas devoted to “the beginning of the End”2 and their current reading and perception or, to be more accurate, their modern Sunni Arabic exegeses.3 In any case, contemporary Muslim apocalyptic literature is a notable phenomenon whose examination started only quite recently. This important branch of today’s popular religious literature originated from the fruitful blending of the classical Islamic eschatological legacy and a set of “Western borrowings.” Therefore, the main objective of this paper is to provide a precise examination of the mutual interactions between the classical and the modern approaches to selected chapters of the Muslim apocalyptic heritage.4

1 The Qur’ān 31:34. All Qur’ānic quotations come from a new translation by M. Abdel Haleem (Oxford 2010).

2 For the classical Muslim apocalyptic, see Muhammad al-Qurtubī, Al-Tadhkira fī ahwāl al-mawtā wa umūr al-ākhira [The Reminder of the States of the Deceased and the Matters of the Next World] or Nucaym ibn Hammād al-Marwazī, Kitāb al-fitan [The Book of Tests].

3 When the term Muslim is mentioned, a Sunni Muslim is meant.4 This paper was created as part of project No. 401/11/2450 (“The Millennialism in the

Monotheistic Religions: Its Origin, Contemporary Manifestations and Social Relevance”), funded by the Czech Science Foundation (GAČR). I would like to acknowledge the contribution of my colleagues, who helped me in heuristic and technical matters. My thanks belong to Dr. Daniel Boušek (The Institute of Middle Eastern and African Studies, Charles University, Prague) for his comments and suggestions. I am grateful also to Dr. Miroslav Melčák (The Oriental Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague) for his valuable suggestions.

ArOr – Issue 81.2 ISSN 0044-8699 © 2013 Oriental Institute (ASCR), Prague

236 • BRONISLAV OSTŘANSKÝ

In principle, the development and permanent popularity of contemporary Muslim apocalyptic books and brochures has been considerably encouraged by the efforts of their authors to associate various medieval prognoses with topical events. Such an approach, however, is not new since examples can be easily found in medieval treatises (see, e.g., § 26).5 Currently, this “updated” reading of classical texts enjoys great popularity, not only among Muslims. There are several possible explanations for this apocalyptic boom. First of all, we should emphasize the timeless human love of riddles and enigmas, with the Muslim apocalyptic representing, quite literally, a deep well of mysteries. From another perspective, apocalyptic screenplays have become effective spiritual tools, having the ability to heal some of the common frustrations that beset today’s Muslims. The firm conviction that all contemporary disasters and miseries are only one part of a wider plan, which ultimately has a happy ending, has the ability to reliably bring consolation to millions of Muslim readers. So, modern Muslim apocalyptic literature provides its readers with both the tension of mysteries, as well as the hope of an anticipated future.6 Last, but not least, we should remind ourselves here of the undisputed moralizing potential of apocalyptic visions in general. In this respect, we should also stress the fact that modern Muslim apocalyptists, as will be repeatedly discussed in the examples given below, always connect their interpretations of specific Signs with the constant condemnation of all sorts of sins and vices.

In the Arabic language, the apocalyptic phenomena are generally known as calāmāt (or ashrāt) al-sāca, which means the Signs of the Hour (i.e., the end of the world). Muslim theologians have divided these apocalyptic portents into two groups: The Lesser (sughrā) and the Greater (kubrā) Signs. The Lesser Signs are mostly moral, religious, social, cultural, political, and even natural events, designed to warn humanity that the end is near and to bring people into a state of repentance (tawba). The vast majority of these Signs are general and have been present in all known societies: moral decay, crimes, natural disasters, and wars, for example.7 The Greater Signs of the Hour contain a series of events of ever-increasing severity that will precede the end of the world, i.e., the Day of Resurrection and Doomsday. This apocalyptic scenario provides a narrative about the struggles between the forces of good and evil, clearly personified by al-Mahdī (the Muslim messianic figure;

5 The character § refers to the number of the Lesser Sign of the Hour, according to al-Shacrāwī’s list (see below).

6 On Islamic apocalyptic in general, see, e.g., Abbas Amanat, Apocalyptic Islam and Iranian Shi’ism; David Cook, Studies in Muslim Apocalyptic; Jean-Pierre Filiu, Apocalypse in Islam; Richard Landes (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Millennialism and Millennial Movements; Josef Meri (ed.), Medieval Islamic Civilization. An Encyclopaedia; Hayrettin Yücesoy, Messianic Beliefs and Imperial Politics in Medieval Islam: The Abbasid Caliphate in the Early Ninth Century, and eschatological and apocalyptic articles in the new edition of Encyclopaedia of Islam. On modern Islamic apocalyptic, see David Cook, Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature.

7 David Cook, Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature, 8.

The Lesser Signs of the Hour. A Reconstruction of the Islamic Apocalyptic Overture • 237

see § 84), cĪsā (Muslim Jesus),8 al-Dajjāl (the Muslim Antichrist) and al-Sufyānī (the helper of the Antichrist). According to most modern Muslim apocalyptists, the Lesser Signs of the Hour (hereinafter, the Signs) have been already fulfilled to a large degree; therefore mankind is inevitably approaching the end of history. These Signs are often figuratively referred to as the “apocalyptic overture.”

This article examines precisely that “beginning of the end” period, if such metaphorical diction might be applied, from the modern apocalyptists’ perspectives, or more properly, the main objective of this study is to describe and elaborate on the various contemporary approaches to this part of the classical Islamic heritage.9 Therefore, the paper will avoid completely the birth and development of medieval Muslim apocalyptic literature, in order to focus on its modern utilization. Due to the enormous amount of contemporary Muslim apocalyptic writings,10 this article cannot provide more than a brief overview of the subject; nevertheless, some more general features of the specified current attitudes to the past can be outlined. The following survey results mainly from the interpretations and commentaries of several Egyptian apocalyptists, whose works were collected during the author’s last stay in Cairo at the beginning of 2012.11 Although every writer brings his own viewpoint to the apocalypse, we can find certain common “scenarios” on which there is more or less consensus, and precisely such a “screenplay” will be the subject of further discourse and analysis.

8 In his lecture under the title Jesus’ Return in Islam. Problems and Prophecies presented at the conference, Millennialism: Expecting the End of the World in Past and Present (The Hussite Theological Faculty of Charles University in Prague, November 13–14, 2002), David Cook summarized Jesus’ eschatological role as follows: “In my opinion, the principal factor causing Jesus’ relegation to a subsidiary role has to do with the polemical nature of the material vis-à-vis Christianity. It is clear from the traditions that the function of Jesus as a demonstration of the truth of Islam and the falsehood of Christianity was paramount. His functions are directed primarily at Christians, with issues such as the breaking of crosses and the slaughter of swine being repeatedly mentioned.”

9 In principle, this article is not, definitely, intended as a comprehensive and meticulous account; rather, it seeks to examine the mainstream tendencies of the contemporary Muslim apocalyptic.

10 For a contemporary Muslim apocalyptic bibliography, see the comprehensive overview in Jean-Pierre Filiu, Apocalypse in Islam, 241–50. An extensive list of references on modern Arabic apocalyptic is available also in David Cook, Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature, 237–55.

11 The following “reconstruction of the apocalyptic overture” was based on an analysis of the several contemporary (mostly Egyptian) books and brochures listed below: Abū Mālik Muhammad, cAlāmāt al-sāca al-sughrā wa al-kubrā [The Lesser and the Greater Signs of the Hour]; Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam [The Events of the End of the World]; Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Al-Dār al-ākhira [The Last Abode]; Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, cAlāmāt al-qiyāma al-sughrā [The Lesser Signs of the Resurrection]; Muhammad al-Shahāwī, Ahwāl al-qiyāma [The States of the Resurrection]; Muhammad al-Shahāwī, al-Masīh al-dajjāl wa Ya’jūj wa Ma’jūj [The False Messiah and Gog and Magog]; Rabīc cAbd


The Framework and the Structure: A Few Questions

In principle, the Signs can be divided into two categories:12 1) events that manifest themselves once and have no continuation (hereinafter, events); and 2) phenomena that occur, in order to persist, continue or repeatedly return (hereinafter, tendencies). Tendencies mainly encompass various forms of decay and corruption, which fill a substantial part of this paper. Another possible classification distinguishes Signs according to their focus in relation to moral, religious, social, economic, or natural phenomena, etc. However, a great part of the Signs combines more of the above mentioned aspects into a complex vision of decline and corruption.

In order to briefly sketch an outline of our subject, we should first attempt to answer a number of questions. The first one can be quite simply stated: How many signs are there? However, this is where the disputes begin. Although the vast majority of apocalyptic versions coincide, more or less, on a particular “scenario,” they differ considerably in relation to how they distribute different episodes into the individual chapters. Therefore, Sheikh Muhammad al-Shacrāwī in his Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam [The Events of the End of the World] lists approximately three times more Signs than Abū Mālik or Bayūmī, for example. But by putting their versions together, it is surprising to realize that they are, in all essential features, almost the same. Amīn Muhammad Jamāl al-Dīn, who is a representative of the so called neoconservative school of apocalyptic, identifies a total of 79 Signs that have to be fulfilled before the Hour will come.13 Sheikh Nazim al-Haqqani even states a figure of 101 Signs, including both the Lesser and the Greater ones. 14 Mustafā Murād goes much further, listing 142 Signs.15 Despite differing views on the composition of apocalyptic chronology, there is an important consensus on the role of al-Mahdī’s appearance (see § 84), connecting and at the same time separating the Lesser and the Greater Signs of the Hour. Dealing with the apocalyptic prelude, we can, therefore, speak about “a great epic,” although its various pages might be scattered.

What period do the Signs cover? According to the traditional interpretation, the Signs started to be fulfilled as early as the very beginning of Islam, since the first portent of the End is the Mission of the Prophet Muhammad itself. If the beginnings

al-Ra’ūf al-Zawāwī, al-Mufsidūn fī al-ard: Yahūd [Those who Corrupt the Earth: the Jews]; Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā [The Lesser Signs of the Day of Resurrection]; Muhammad Bayūmī, Nubu’āt al-nabī [The Predictions of the Prophet]; cAbd al-cAzīm Sacīd, Amārāt al-sāca [The Indications of the Hour]; cAbd al-Hākim Mansūr, Nihāyat al-cālam [The End of the World]; Muhammad Hisān, Ahdāth al-nihāya [The Events of the End]; Muhammad Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon? An Islamic Perspective; Nazim Adil Al-Haqqani, Mystical Secrets of the Last Days.

12 Abū Mālik Muhammad, cAlāmāt al-sāca al-sughrā wa al-kubrā, 8.13 David Cook, Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature, 50.14 Nazim Adil Al-Haqqani Naqshbandi, Mystical Secrets of the Last Days, 125.15 David Cook, Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature, 54.


are sure and unquestionable, the End is quite unclear and controversial, because Muslims are required not to attempt to specify its date. This prohibition is distinctly expressed in three verses of the Qur’ān, from where we can learn that the knowledge of the Hour belongs exclusively to God.16 Despite this unambiguous imperative, Muslim scholars have often succumbed to temptation and repeatedly tried to date the Hour, exploiting various prognostic methods (references from the Tradition,17 numerology, etc.). Although only God knows the time of the Hour, people should be aware of its approach, since such an awareness will lead to the encouragement of piety. To summarize, while Islam rejects attempts to date the End, examining the Signs and identifying their relationship with particular historical events has always been highly recommended, and thus such an attitude has been distinctly manifested in the great popularity of apocalyptic literature. The following pages will present only a small part of the huge range of contemporary exegetical approaches.18 Many calculations of the date of the Hour are tied to the expected end of Israel.19 As most of today’s Muslim apocalyptists believe, we live in the final stages of the Lesser Signs and according to common conviction, only a few decades will divide the appearance of al-Mahdī from the Hour.

What is the sequence of the Signs? Even in this matter, there is no consensus and disputes concerning particular Signs are so deep that interpreters sometimes do not even agree as to whether they belong among the Lesser or the Greater ones

16 Namely these verses: 7:187 (“They ask you about the Hour, ‘When will it arrive?’ Say, ‘My Lord alone has knowledge of it: He alone will reveal when its time will come, a time that is momentous in both the heavens and earth,’ ”) 31:34 (“Knowledge of the Hour belongs to God; it is He who sends down the relieving rain and He who knows what is hidden in the womb. No soul knows what it will reap tomorrow, and no soul knows when it will die; it is God who is all knowing and all aware”) and 43:85 (“Exalted is He who has control of the heavens and earth and everything between them; He has knowledge of the Hour; you will all be returned to Him.”)

17 According to a very frequently referenced and favorite calculation based on a well-known Prophet’s saying and presented by the influential scholar Jalāl al-Dīn al-Suyūtī, the Community of believers (umma) will not survive the year 1500 A.H. (2076 CE), since the hadīth claims: “If my Community will follow the right path, a day will be given to them, but if will not follow the right path, it will be given a span of half a day.” As the Qur’ān reminds us, one day for God is equal to a thousand years of the human calendar, and precisely from these references Sheikh al-Suyūtī derived the year 1500 A.H. For more information, see Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 33.

18 Modern apocalyptists have presented a lot of predictions and speculations leading up to the year 2076. But in this field, we can also find a variety of opinions. “Some of the most impressive calculations about the end of the world have been undertaken by the Egyptian writer Amin Jamal al-Din in his series of books on the subject. (…) Assuming that the 1996 election of Benjamin Netanyahu as prime minister of Israel would inevitably lead to war with Israel, he regarded it as a clear sign that the end was near.” For the controversy about dating the end of the world, see David Cook, Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature, 84–97.

19 Ibid., 97.


(see, e.g., § 72; 75 or 81 ). Of course, the apocalyptic chronology inevitably results from the exegesis. Undoubtedly, this remark fully applies to the splitting of the moon (see § 2), for example. Meanwhile the vast majority of commentators see in this Sign a real event from the time of the Prophet, and thus they put it among the introductory issues; Hisham Kabbani viewing this image as a prediction concerning the landing on the moon, since the word inshiqāq refers, in his opinion, to the moon rock sampling by U.S. astronauts in 1969. He, therefore, ranks this Sign among the final ones.

Which Signs have been already fulfilled and which are still expected? The answer closely depends on the chronology, which results from the interpretation. As already mentioned, according to the vast majority of apocalyptic authors, whether modernists (e.g., Amīn Muhammad Jamāl al-Dīn) or conservatives (e.g., Muhammad al-Shacrāwī), most Signs have already occurred. Muhammad Bayūmī draws a distinction between those Signs that have already happened and have then disappeared (5 issues), the Signs that have already occurred and are still present (18 issues) and those still waiting to be fulfilled (11 issues).20 Some portents have already undoubtedly happened (e.g., § 1: The mission of the Prophet; or § 13: The fire from Hijāz), but the greater part, in principle, refer to certain tendencies or trends, and that is why it is so difficult to identify them accurately, either because of their generality (e.g., § 15: The authority of fools; or § 30: The spreading of lasciviousness), or because of their mysteriousness (e.g., § 26: The happiest man in the world will be Pariah, son of Pariah; or § 31: Time contracts). Moreover, some sayings of the Prophet have already been reinterpreted in an innovative way (e.g., Sheikh Nāsir al-Dīn al-Albānī has explained the hadīth in terms of “abodes of demons,” although it was originally understood as being a reference to various manifestations of heresy or apostasy, and more recently as a prediction of the advent of cars).

Which Signs are unambiguous and which are multivalent? No doubt, most apocalyptic portents are ambiguous due to their nature or, more properly, it is scarcely possible to find one which is completely unequivocal. As indicated above, the boom and extraordinary popularity of modern Muslim apocalyptic literature has always been encouraged precisely because of the enigmatic character of this genre. In any case, the ambiguity of interpretations (as will be repeatedly pointed out) is such that particular Signs, regarded by traditionalists as clear and already fulfilled, appear, from the perspectives of modernists, as being obscure and, till now, not fulfilled (e.g., § 8: The Purification of Jerusalem).

Nevertheless, the most difficult question remains: Which Signs are linked to the present day and which are still awaiting fulfilment? According to Muhammad Hisān, most Signs have been fulfilled already and those remaining are quite limited in number (e.g., § 72: The Euphrates uncovers golden treasure), while some of

20 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 70.


them (e.g., § 81: the Destruction of the Kacba) are, moreover, usually classified under the Greater Signs of the Hour. As Muhammad Bayūmī claims, there are just eleven Signs still waiting to be fulfilled, but some of them encompass several components, regarded by other authors (e.g., by al-Shacrāwī) as separate portents:21 1) apostasy from Islam and the worshiping of idols; 2) a lot of property and the return of rivers and meadows to the Arabian Peninsula; 3) the Euphrates uncovers gold; 4) the speech of beasts and inanimate things; 5) the spreading of adultery; 6) the inflation of crescents; 7) the earth throws up hidden treasures; 8) Muslims will fight against Jews; 9) Muslims will fight against Turks; 10) a man from Qahtān will lead a people; 11) tests and temptations – fitnat al-ihlās and fitnat al-duhaymā’ (see § 44).22 Here, it should be added that some of these aspects, according to most experts, have already happened (e.g., the abundance of property, the inflation of crescents, etc.), which clearly demonstrates the ambiguity of apocalyptic exegesis. An extreme statement was delivered by Amīn Jamāl al-Dīn: “Before we start our long journey with the Lesser Signs of the Hour, we will affirm that the Lesser Signs have all been fulfilled, and we are eagerly awaiting the sign that is the link between the Lesser Signs and the Greater Signs, and that is the appearance of the Mahdi.”23 In this respect, however, he remains quite isolated.

Moreover, we should not forget that a great many modern Muslim apocalyptists have already attempted to introduce a lot of contemporary events or phenomena into their own apocalyptic frameworks and, afterwards, to identify them (often quite dramatically!) with certain portents of the End. From this category, we can mention here the appearance of Halley’s Comet in 1985, the drought in Syria-Palestine (1986), the beginning of the intifāda in the West Bank and Gaza, the Iran-Iraq War (1981–88), the invasion of Kuwait (1990–91), the spreading of AIDS and the migration of Jews from Russia to Israel (1989–92), for example.24 For the radical modern apocalyptists, all these events just prepare the scene for the crucial apocalyptic act that we should expect soon. From their perspectives, this positively means a global war systematically caused by the Jewish (or Zionist) conspiracy.

21 Ibid., 71.22 As Mustafa Murād believes, the end of the world is still distant, and therefore he even lists

nineteen Signs that demonstrably have not happened yet. Among them: there would be no pleasure in the taking of spoils (since wealth would be so common); Islam would have reached every household in the world; each man would have fifty women; animals would talk; a shoe would tell its master about the infidelities of his wife; and there would be open immorality in the streets. See David Cook, Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature, 54.

23 Ibid., 50.24 Ibid., 55.


The Survey and the Interpretations25

1. The Mission of the Prophet, God bless Him and grant Him salvation (mabcath al-nabī sallā allāh calaihi wa sallam): Muslim scholars, in general, agree that the Signs accompanied Islam from the very beginning. Therefore, the first Sign is the Mission of the Prophet itself. As all Muslims believe, his death (632) concluded forever the chain of the prophecy. Thus, perfection was achieved at the very beginning and afterwards a slow, yet inevitable, decline began and the End started to approach. The Prophet Muhammad referred to that nearness in his saying: “I was sent so close to the Judgement Day like these two fingers next to each other,”26 and he stretched out his middle and index fingers. According to Muhammad Bayūmī’s interpretation, based on the opinions of Ibn Kathīr and al-Qurtubī, the hadīth indicates that both events are neighbours, i.e., there will be no other prophet between Muhammad’s Mission and the Hour. As Bayūmī has indicated, if the time appointed to mankind was not so short, God would have sent another prophet to overcome the message of Muhammad as has often happened in the past.27 The proximity of the Hour was clearly expressed in another hadīth: “I was sent in the breeze of the Hour.” As modern commentators usually emphasize in relation to “the proximity,” the measures of this world must be completely different than God’s ones, since the Qur’ān (30:55) states: “On the Day the Hour comes, the guilty will swear they lingered no more than an hour.” Accordingly, this imaginary neighbourhood extends throughout the history of Islam.28

2. The splitting of the moon (inshiqāq al-qamar): According to the vast majority of exegetes, this forecast was fulfilled in the time of the Prophet. As al-Shacrāwī emphasizes, the Sign had to be a warning against human apathy.29 The Qur’ān refers to such an alert in verse 54:1: “The Hour draws near; the moon is split.” When infidels asked Muhammad to perform a miracle and became disappointed since

25 The most extensive account of both the Lesser and the Greater Signs of the Hour, compiled by Muhammad Mutawallī al-Shacrāwī (see Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam), contains 100 items and each of them has been discussed in a separate chapter. In the following survey, his sequence and division will be kept. Although the chronology reflects al-Shacrāwī’s way of interpretation, the content of individual items clearly shows the breadth of contemporary exegetical approaches. The Arabic names (inserted in parentheses) accurately correspond to the chapters of al-Shacrāwī’s volume.

26 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 32.27 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 7.28 According to Amīn Jamāl al-Dīn, the appearance of the Prophet belongs to the small group

of historical Signs that were already fulfilled in classical times. The others are the conquest of Jerusalem (§ 4), plagues (§ 6), and the fire in the Hijāz (§ 13). Others do not refer to any historical events, so their identification is quite uncertain. See David Cook, Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature, 50.

29 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 18.


nothing happened, God revealed verse 21:1: “Ever closer to people draws their reckoning, while they turn away, heedless.” As Ibn Mascūd narrates, the moon was distinctly split in two when the Prophet Muhammad dwelt in the Mīnā valley. Then, he called his Companions to look at it. One half of the moon allegedly covered up the local hill and the second one remained over it.30 According to modern reading, the verb inshaqqa, used in the forecast, means also to plough or to dig. So, the Sign could have been fulfilled in 1969 when U.S. astronauts landed on the moon and took samples of lunar rock. In this case, the Sign would be closely related to § 66.

3. The Death of the Prophet, God bless Him and grant Him salvation (wafāt al-nabī sallā allāh calaihi wa sallam): The death of Muhammad is generally regarded as one of the introductory Signs, to which a lot of the Prophet’s sayings refer. The famous hadīth (al-Bukhārī 6: 198) enumerates six tremendous events, preceding the Day of Judgement: “Count six Signs before the Hour: my death; then the opening of Jerusalem; then the death of huge numbers, like a plague of sheep; then there will be such an excess of money, such that a man might give one hundred dinars to a needy person and he, in turn, would look at it with disgust; than a state of confusion will enter every Arab house; then there will be a truce between you and the non-Muslims because they will be exceedingly powerful against you, coming towards you in eighty different formations; in each group twelve thousand soldiers.”31

4. The conquest of Jerusalem (fath bait al-maqdis): Jerusalem was conquered by a Muslim army under the command of cUbayda ibn al-Jarrāh six years after the death of the Prophet Muhammad (638). This event was supposedly foretold by the Qur’ān (17:4–8): “We declared to the Children of Israel in the Scripture, ‘Twice you will spread corruption in the land and become highly arrogant.’ When the first of these warnings was fulfilled, We sent against you servants of Ours with great force, and they ravaged your homes. That warning was fulfilled, but then We allowed you to prevail against your enemy. We increased your wealth and offspring and made you more numerous – whether you do good or evil it is to your own souls – and when the second warning was fulfilled We sent them to shame your faces and enter the place of worship as they did the first time, and utterly destroy whatever fell into their power. Your Lord may yet have mercy on you, but if you do the same again, so shall We: We have made Hell a prison for those who defy Our warning.” Modern readings of those verses are based on the history of the Jews, but they differ in what is meant by the first and the second conquests and destructions.32 According to the most common opinion, the conquest of Jerusalem happened and will happen again, i.e., this Sign was fulfilled only partially. In this context, we should be aware

30 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 8.31 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 138.32 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 32–47.


that Islam was born in the society imbued with strong millennial emotions and medieval Muslim sources chiefly mention the millennial aspect of the reign of the second khalīfa, cUmar.33

5. The appearance of the khawārij (zuhūr al-khawārij): Khawārij might be understood as a specific strand in Islam, originating from that part of khalīfa cAlī’s followers who left his army (657). However, it can also be perceived as a general term (i.e., dissenters, dissidents, rebels, heretics, sectarians, etc.). Supposedly, the Qur’ān devotes verse 9:58 just to this kind of people: “Some of them find fault with you regarding the distribution of alms: they are content if they are given a share, but angry if not.” According to al-Shacrāwī, the verse refers, in general, to those who are continually dissatisfied and cause quarrels. Hisham Kabbani reads the Sign as an allusion to internal Islamic disputes, in which he took part. “The khawārij of today are the followers of the Wahhābī / Salafī sect. They are actively promoting falsehood of their cult with massive propaganda campaigns whether by speakers in mosques, via the Internet, on television, or through the massive distribution of videos, newspapers, books, magazines, and pamphlets. All the while they are suppressing and concealing the truths of mainstream classical Islamic teachings, conspiring to silence anyone who speaks against their extremism.”34 In any case, the wide semantic field of khawārij allows for highly diverse explanations. As David Cook has noted, the khawārij, together with the qadarīya and the revolutionary Shiites (rawāfid) belong to the heretical tradition and from an apocalyptic point of view, they all represent the Signs of decline.35 Nevertheless, hypocrites (munāfiqūn) are indeed more dangerous than any heretics (see § 82).

6. Death like plagues of infected sheep (mawt ka-qucās al-ghanam): This is the third item from the Prophet’s account of the six events leading up to the Hour (see § 3). According to Ibn al-Munādī and al-Zamakhsharī, it means a fatal disease of ruminant animals. Ibn Hajar explains that it is a sickness that enters through the lungs and results in a discharge from the nose and mouth. Saliva and mucus flow profusely and if the animal is not mercifully slaughtered, it dies a miserable death.36 Instead of qucās, we can sometimes find the term mawtāni which has an unambiguous meaning of plague. Most commentators state that this forecast refers to the plague in the region of cAmwās, a town near Jerusalem, that broke out in the middle of the 7th century and killed more than 70,000 Muslims, among them cUbayda ibn al-Jarrāh, the conqueror of Jerusalem. As Hisham Kabbani has already noted, “we have seen this recently in Europe with the outbreak of foot and mouth disease.

33 For more details, see Josef W. Meri, Medieval Islamic Civilization. An Encyclopaedia, 845; or Patricia Crone, Medieval Islamic Political Thought, 75.

34 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 163.35 David Cook, Studies in Muslim Apocalyptic, 253.36 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 138.


According to the BBC, over 3.9 million animals had been slaughtered by October, 2001. In the Last Days a great number of people will also die in this way, i.e., by the spread of a harmful substance into the respiratory system.”37 Kabbani, therefore, concludes that this Sign, in general, indicates the current spate of epidemics and pandemics.

7. The battle of Siffīn (mawqacat siffīn): Several hadīths mention a clash of two mighty forces within Islam. The battle of Siffīn (657) was the first event of this kind. Thus, the fratricidal conflict symbolically closed the “golden age” of Islam and distinctly demonstrated that the Community of believers (umma) was no longer uniform and integrated. It was the first fitna (i.e., civil war) and launched a series of clashes and disturbances. The third fitna, at a later point in time, led to the so called cAbbasid revolution.38

8. The purification of Jerusalem (cumrān bayt al-maqdis): The term cumrān usually means flourishing, civilization or building. In our context, according to Ibn al-Munādī, it refers to cultivation in the sense of the cleansing of the city (or more properly, the Temple Mount) from idols or sins and, at the same time, its enrichment by mosques. Such a way of “purification” indicates the introduction of Muslim government over Jerusalem. So, this forecast was partially fulfilled when Muslims dominated the city and built the Dome of the Rock, the al-Aqsā’ mosque, etc. The cumrān will be fully accomplished when religious relics, identified in the apocalyptic cycle which addresses the battles with the Byzantines and removed from Jerusalem before the Muslim conquest, are returned. In this respect, David Cook notes 13 items.39 This return, therefore, could be understood as the certain “restoration” of the city. 9. The end of the epoch of Companions (intihā’ casr al-sahāba): According to a common definition, the Companions of the Prophet are all those who saw Muhammad, believed in him and died as Muslims. The end of this period, generally considered as the golden age of Islam, brought an end to certitude and witnessed the beginning of decay and quarrels (see, e.g., § 5 and 7). Such an historical decline was clearly described by the well-known hadīth from al-Musnad (4:273) of imām

37 Ibid., 139.38 See Hayrettin Yücesoy’s brilliant study Messianic Beliefs and Imperial Politics in Medieval

Islam: The Abbasid Caliphate in the Early Ninth Century.39 David Cook, Studies in Muslim Apocalyptic, 56. Among them: 1) The tābūt al-sakīna (probably

the Ark of the Covenant); 2) The hulā Bayt al-Maqdis (the decoration of the Temple); 3) The rod of Moses; 4) The pulpit of Solomon; 5) The garment of Adam; 6) The earring of Eve; 7) The tābūt min jaz’ (a container cut from a jewel containing Eve’s earring); 8) Fragments of the Tablets (the Ten Commandments); 9) The garment of Aaron; 10) The table of Banū Isrā’īl. Possibly, this is the same as the table of Solomon; 11) Two measures (qafīz) of manna; 12) The gate of Zion; 13) The cloth / head-covering (ghifāra) of Jesus.


Ahmad ibn Hanbal: “Prophecy will be in your midst as long as God wills it to remain there. Then it will be removed when God wills it to be removed. Then there will be khilāfa (divinely-ordained rule) on the pattern of prophecy and so it will remain as long as God wills. Then there will come kingship and so it will remain as long as God wills. Then it will be removed when God wills. Then there will come tyranny and so it will remain as long as God wills it to do so. Then it will be removed when God wills. Then there will come khilāfa on the pattern of prophecy.”40 Another hadīth narrates: “After me come caliphs, and after the caliphs come princes, and after princes there will be kings and after the kings, there will be tyrants. And after the tyrants a man from My House will fill the earth with justice, and after him is al-Qahtānī.”41 Grand Sheikh Nazim al-Haqqani identifies the caliphs spoken of as “the Rightly-Guided Ones,” the princes are the Ummayad and the Abbasid Caliphs. The kings are the Ottoman Sultans. And tyrants are today’s rulers.42 The tyrants were, in fact, often identified with contemporary Arab dictators, Saddām Husayn or Mucammar al-Qadhdhāfī, for example.

10. The appearance of impostors and those who claim to be prophets (zuhūr dajjālīn wa mudac cī al-nubūwa): In addition to al-Masīh al-Dajjāl (“The False Messiah”), i.e., the Islamic Antichrist, whose appearance will provide the key opening episode of the Greater Signs of the Hour, the Muslim apocalyptic indicates a number of serial imposters or charlatans, dajjālūn. Muslim scholars diverge considerably as regards their number or their identification. As the hadīth narrated by Abū Hurayra states, the Hour will not arrive until thirty dajjāls appear. According to Sheikh al-Shacrāwī, the first imposters appeared during the time of the Prophet Muhammad and one of them was even a woman.43 Muhammad Bayūmī devotes the longest chapter of his book to this Sign44 and among the imposters he lists in his account we can find the following personalities: Musaylima, Sajāh, al-Aswad, Tulayha, al-Mukhtār al-Thaqafī, Abū Mansūr al-cIjlī, al-Mughīra ibn Sacīd, Bayān ibn Samcān, al-Hārith al-Kadhdhāb, Ishāq al-Akhras, cAbd Allāh ibn Maymūn, Mahmūd al-Naysābūrī, al-Mansūr, Abū Sacīd al-Lihyānī, Abū Jawf, Hāmīm al-Mahkasī, al-Mutanabbī’, al-Asfar al-Taghlibī, al-Husayn ibn Hamdān, etc. From the above list, we should not conclude that dajjālūn are an exclusively medieval phenomenon. Abū Mālik, for example, lists among them Ghulām Ahmad, the founder of ahmadīya, as well as the modern Sudanese thinker, Muhammad Tāhā.45

40 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 34.41 For the appearance of al-Qahtānī, see § 73.42 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 35.43 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 55.44 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 19–45.45 Abū Mālik Muhammad, cAlāmāt al-sāca al-sughrā wa al-kubrā, 39.


11. The first thing taken away from this Community will be humility (awwal shay’ yurfac min hādhihi al-umma al-khushūc): This is the first item from a series of forecasts referring to various aspects of moral decay. The Sign, in particular, mentions an important loss that must inevitably lead to the decline of Muslims. In this respect, the Qur’ān (2:45-46) states: “Seek help with steadfastness and prayer – though this is hard indeed for anyone but the humble, who know that they will meet their Lord and that it is to Him they will return.” The modern exegetes diverge in relation to how to define humility (khushūc) but there is common agreement that this Sign started to be fulfilled in the early period of Islam when social egalitarianism disappeared and people began to be proud of their ranks or their wealth and, at the same time, they forgot their own unworthiness before God.

12. The loss of confidence (diyāc al-amāna): This Sign moralizes once again, yet from another perspective. The term amāna has several meanings, including truth-worthiness, loyalty, fidelity, honesty, confidence, trust or good faith. According to al-Shacrāwī, the prediction speaks chiefly about the loss of feelings of safety, because both faith and safety are derived from the same Arabic root A-M-N.46 The famous Qur’ānic verse 33:72 refers to the difficulty of the faith: “We offered the Trust to the heavens, the earth, and the mountains, yet they refused to undertake it and were afraid of it; mankind undertook it – they have always been very inept and rash.” Muhammad Hisān understands amāna as the system of prescriptions and regulations in relation to divine law or, in general, religion (i.e., Islam) as an institution (dīn).47 The same attitude was clearly expressed by Muhammad Bayūmī, for whom sharīca is the best warranty of amāna, and that is why the loss of confidence (or the feeling of safety) results from the violation of religious norms and moral decay (see § 44).48

13. The outbreak of fire from the Hijāz (khurūj al-nār min ard al-hijāz): This prediction is (and always was) particularly identified with the volcanic eruption in 654 A.H. (1256–57),which occurred close to Medina and thus, it is, in general, ranked as one of the fulfilled Signs. In Arabic historical sources, we can find several pieces of evidence which verify that this event took place. In addition, medieval Muslims were fully aware that this precise phenomenon had to be the fulfilment of the well-known hadīth from al-Bukhārī’s collection: “The Hour will not be established until a fire emerges from the land of Hijāz which will light up the necks of the camels in Busrā.”49 This impressive event was recorded by medieval scholars, e.g., Abū Shāma, Ibn Kathīr, al-Nawawī, or al-Qurtubī, and from their descriptions, there is

46 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 69.47 Muhammad Hisān, Ahdāth al-nihāya, 177.48 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 19–45.49 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 199. Currently, Busrā al-Shām is a town in

southern Syria.


no doubt it was a volcanic eruption, visible from a great distance and accompanied by an earthquake and atmospheric changes.50 In passing, we should note that a great deal of Hijāz’s surface originated as a direct result of volcanic activity. According to Hisham Kabbani, this forecast may also refer to the conflagration of Kuwait’s oilfields during the war of 1991.51 The fire from the Hijāz should not be confused with the fire of Yemen (or the Gulf of Aden), which will drive mankind to the Gathering place (al-mahshar), since this belongs to the Greater Signs.

14. Fighting against Turks (qitāl al-turk): Although the apocalyptic overture encompasses a lot of fighting, only Turks, Byzantines and Jews are singled out for attention.52 In most medieval predictions, we find the following repetitive descriptions: small eyes, reddish cheeks, flat noses, etc. These images are very similar to those of Gog and Magog (Yājūj wa Mājūj), since the medieval authors believed that they were of the same origin. Moreover, Wahb ibn al-Munabbih presented an idiosyncratic etymology of the name Turks: When Gog and Magog were separated from the civilized world by the Dam (al-sadd), supposedly built by Iskandar Dhū al-Qarnayn, the only tribe that remained (turikū) and were forgotten behind the Wall were the Turks.53 After the elimination of Byzantines, Turks remained for Muslims the most dangerous enemies and that situation was reflected by the apocalyptic cycle referring to Turkish invasions. Compared with the previous ones, this cycle is not particularly sophisticated. It narrates details of battles with Turks, but there is no report on Muslim victories. According to Bayūmī, this Sign was partially fulfilled in the period of the Seljuq, Mongol and Tartar invasions (10-15th centuries), but in the last days, the wars will be repeated.54 We should note that Harun Yahya (himself of Turkish origin), in his visions of the end of the world, expects that the Turks will play a much more positive role. They will become examples to be followed and, therefore, the unifiers of all Muslims.

15. The authority of fools (imārat al-sufahā’): This very broad Sign speaks about the widespread corruption of the government, in association with the growth of ignorance (see § 48). This forecast, therefore, is one of the most popular with modern commentators because of its timelessness. As al-Munāwī noted, the Hour will be preceded by the rule of those who will act violently and foolishly at the same time. The Hadīth related to Anas ibn Mālik describes various aspects of this

50 For more information, see Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Al-Dār al-ākhira, 75; Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 8–17; Abū Mālik Muhammad, cAlāmāt al-sāca al-sughrā wa al-kubrā, 33.

51 Ibid., 199. Probably, it is the result of confusion between the cities of Busrā (southern Syria) and al-Basra (Iraq).

52 For example, see Nucaym Ibn Hammād, Kitāb al-fitan, 132.53 Majdī al-Shahāwī, al-Masīh al-dajjāl wa Ya’jūj wa Ma’jūj, 63.54 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 66.


final decline: “Verily, among the Signs of the Last Days are that knowledge will be taken away, ignorance (jahl) will appear, wine will be drunk, fornication will be widespread, men will die, and women will remain to the point that there will be fifty women looked after by one man.”55 According to Muhammad Hisān, the authority of fools is a feature which results from the elimination of social elites. Here, we should keep in mind that the traditional elites were always the religious scholars (culamā’). Currently, such elites no longer lead society, since they have been replaced by graduates in secular specializations (see § 49).56

16. Many policemen (kathrat al-shurat):57 As modern apocalyptists often suggest, this forecast might refer, in particular, to the fragmentation of state administration which will lead to a higher number of administrators of power and will thus cause an increase in terror and despotism. In this respect, the Prophet Muhammad said to Abū Hurayra: “You will see a people with something in their hands like the tails of oxen. They go out in the morning under the wrath of Allāh and come back in the evening under His curse.” According to Hisham Kabbani, those people are today’s Muslims.58 Nevertheless, the common reading of this reference views it as a prediction of police terror and brutality.59 From the same reference, Bayūmī deduces that the last days will be accompanied by the growth of despotism, which will result, on the contrary, from the concentration (!) of power.60 A quite unique explanation was delivered by Amīn Jamāl al-Dīn, who does not focus on the oppressive nature of many Muslim governments; instead, he says that this indicates the rampant wave of crime that will be in evidence before the End, without which there would be no need for the police.61

17. The selling of government (baycu al-hukm): There is a consensus that this Sign positively refers to corruption (rashwa) and, therefore, it has been frequently fulfilled (in the Middle Ages as well as at the present time) as people have been prepared to pay enormous amounts of money in order to achieve ephemeral positions. Some authors (e.g., Muhammad Bayūmī) mention in an independent forecast the “attribution of authority to those to whom it does not belong” (isnād al-amr ilā ghayr ahlihi).62 This vague reference perhaps indicates a similar phenomenon as

55 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 103.56 Muhammad Hisān, Ahdāth al-nihāya, 396.57 Shurat (singular shurta) meant in the Middle Ages any oppressive security forces of the

government.58 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon, 118.59 Among others, this is Hisān’s interpretation. See Muhammad Hisān, Ahdāth al-nihāya, 309.60 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 50.61 David Cook, Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature, 52. As Cook states, “it is clear

that with this comment he has missed a golden opportunity to attack the dictatorships in the Arab and Muslim worlds.”

62 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 46.


“the selling of government.” In any case, the qualification necessary to rule should be personal qualities, not property. 18. The underestimation of blood (al-istikhfāf bi-l-dimā’):63 As the forecast declares, bloodshed will be so widespread that blood will seem to be worthless. The Prophet Muhammad repeatedly stated that the Hour will not come, until there is much harj.64 And when He was asked, “What is harj?” He said, “Killing, killing,” three times. According to Muhammad Hisān, the contemporary degree of bloodshed has already completely fulfilled this forecast, and in this respect, he emphasizes the current spread of the weapons of mass destruction,65 the existence of which were supposedly predicted in the hadīth related to Abū Hurayra: “By Him in Whose Hand is my life, the world will not perish until a time will come when the murderer would not know why he has committed the murder, and the victim would not know why he has been killed.”66

19. The arbitrary treatment of the Qur’ān (ittikhādh al-qur’ān mazāmīr): Quite literally, this Sign refers to the treatment of the Qur’ān, as if it were a stringed musical instrument. According to Abū Mālik, although the Qur’ān will be accessible everywhere, it will not be understood correctly. Although people will memorize the entire Book, they will not study its inner meaning at all, or they will just recite some Qur’ānic verses for quite pragmatic reasons, i.e., in order to use it for the istikhāra prayer.67 As the Prophet Muhammad said, ”there will be trials in which large amounts of money will be collected, and the Qur’ān will be opened to the point that it will be read by both the believer and unbeliever, the woman and the man, the young and the old. A man will read it then exclaim, ‘No one is following me!’ So he sits in his home and makes a room like a mosque in his house. Then he will innovate things in the religion which are not found in God’s book or in the Sunnah of God’s Messenger. Be wary of what they innovate for verily it is misguidance.”68 According to the majority of modern scholars, this Sign is, indeed, currently in evidence. Such an opinion was clearly expressed by Hisham Kabbani: “Today everyone – both Muslim and non-Muslim – is opening the Qur’ān, without studying it in its entirety, picking out one verse and building a case for their verdict around it. Rather than looking to the Qur’ān for guidance on an issue, they begin with their own opinion and then find a verse in the Qur’ān they can use to support their position, right or wrong.”69

63 It can be freely translated as not caring about the shedding of blood.64 For example, see Nucaym ibn Hammād, Kitāb al-fitan, 22.65 Muhammad Hisān, Ahdāth al-nihāya, 192.66 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 188.67 Abū Mālik Muhammad, cAlāmāt al-sāca al-sughrā wa al-kubrā, 11.68 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 114–15.69 Ibid., 116.


20. The application of other then God’s law (al-tahākum ilā ghayr sharc

allāh): This Sign clearly indicates how easily people can go astray. The Qur’ān (5:44) says: “We revealed the Torah with guidance and light, and the prophets, who had submitted to God, judged according to it for the Jews. So did the rabbis and the scholars in accordance with that part of God’s Scripture which they were entrusted to preserve, and to which they were witnesses. So do not fear people, fear Me; do not barter away My messages for a small price; those who do not judge according to what God has sent down are rejecting God’s teachings.” As with a number of other Signs, this prediction also refers to the fact that Islam was misunderstood and misinterpreted at the time of its inception and will again be in a similar position at the end of time (see, e.g., § 82 or § 83), i.e., before the Hour, Islam will be marginalized. In fact, Muslim countries have extensive experience of the implementation of Western law, so this forecast has already been fulfilled many times over.

21. Clothed but naked (al-kāsiyāt al-cāriyāt): This famous forecast, referring to the provocative attire of women, often serves as a model example for the entire Signs of the Hour. Through this prediction, Muslim apocalyptists, in general, like to demonstrate the miraculous source of the Prophet Muhammad’s inspiration. According to the hadīth related to Abū Hurayra, there are two sorts of people in Hell; one of these constitutes “women who are dressed but naked, seductively swaying and dancing about, their heads look like humps of camels.” As Hisham Kabbani emphasizes, it is precisely this type of lascivious behaviour on the part of women (see also § 30) which is subject to the most criticism and constitutes one of the main portents of moral decline during the last days. As he notes: “Fourteen hundred years ago this seemed like contradiction, as people could not imagine the styles of today.”70 From Muhammad Hisān’s perspective, heads “like humps of camels (asnima)” at the end of the hadīth refers to modern hairstyles.71

22. The cutting of family relationships (qatc al-arhām): The phrase qatc al-arhām has several meanings: the cutting of family relationships; severing the means of continuing the family or the cutting of wombs.72 The first sense (i.e., the breaking of social ties) was the preferred one for Muhammad Hisān. According to his interpretation, this phenomenon has characterized Western societies but has also slowly begun to spread throughout Muslim countries, reflecting a total moral decline and the growth of anonymity. The latter point was most convincingly expressed in another portent of the Hour, i.e., bad neighbourly relations (sū’ al-majāwara).73 As a majority of the modern exegetes admit, the forecast will soon be

70 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 123.71 Muhammad Hisān, Ahdāth al-nihāya, 309.72 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 132.73 Muhammad Hisān, Ahdāth al-nihāya, 281.


completely fulfilled, since it has already manifested itself in all three of the above mentioned aspects. The cutting of family relationships has already affected mostly wealthier Westernized classes and the same applies for the growth of contraception and abortions. Regarding Caesarean sections, this way of childbirth is even more widespread. The same is true for the last possible reading of the Sign, i.e., the infertility of men and women.

23. Bearing false witness (shahādat al-zūr): The Qur’ān speaks about false utterances in verse 22:30: “All this is ordained by God: anyone who honours the sacred ordinances of God will have good rewards from his Lord. (…) Shun the filth of idolatrous beliefs and practices and shun false utterances.” The false testimony refers, in general, to lies, i.e., to any falsehood, especially those relating to propaganda and advertising, as Kabbani emphasizes.74 The lies belong to the greater sins (kabā’ir) and as such they were strictly prohibited in 280 Qur’ānic verses. According to Muhammad Hisān, no time has been as full of lies as is the present case. This statement is related mainly to corruption (see § 17).75 The spreading of lies reflects, in particular, a common reversal of values.76

24. The concealment of truth (kitmān shahādat al-haqq): This Sign is closely related to the previous one. The Qur’ān (2:283) says: “Do not conceal evidence: anyone who does so has a sinful heart, and God is fully aware of everything you do.” In our context, most commentators focus on the devastating power of the global media, which are (according to Muhammad Hisān)77 indeed responsible for the current environment of moral deterioration. In this respect, Hisham Kabbani speaks about a certain “comminution of truth,” and further states: “This illness has spread to the common people who nowadays find it easy to lie and conceal the truth. In the global media we find that too often the truth is concealed and falsehood is promoted by reporters.”78 (See also § 53.)

25. Plenty of greed (kathrat al-shahh): In general, Islam encourages grace and generosity, e.g., through the Qur’ānic verse 2:110: “Keep up the prayer and pay the prescribed alms. Whatever good you store up for yourselves, you will find it with God: He sees everything you do;” or through verse 2:261: “Those who spend their wealth in God’s cause are like grains of corn that produce seven ears, each bearing a hundred grains. God gives multiple increases to whoever He wishes: He is limitless and all knowing.” The total absence of generosity, or the presence of its opposite, avarice, has to be among the apparent portents of the Hour. As Muhammad Hisān

74 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 133.75 Muhammad Hisān, Ahdāth al-nihāya, 287.76 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 51.77 Muhammad Hisān, Ahdāth al-nihāya, 355.78 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 133.


emphasizes, greed is a worse sin than avarice (bukhl), since a greedy man even wishes to seize that which does not belong to him.79

26. The happiest man in the world will be the Pariah, son of Pariah (Ascad al-nās bi-l-dunyā Laqc ibn Laqc): As al-Zamakhsharī, a famous exegete, explains, such a name, in general, belongs to a mean person of unknown origin.80 This forecast, in particular, is regarded as a reference to social disintegration, which can be applied to any time and to any place. On the contrary, Nucaym ibn Hammād tries to identify the Paria with Abū Muslim al-Khurāsānī, the leader of the Abbasid revolt.81

27. Greetings reserved for acquaintances (taslīm al-khāssa): Islam highly recommends the greeting of any fellow Muslim, either known or unknown, by saying al-salām calaykum (“Peace be upon you”). One of the Signs of the Hour is that Muslims will not greet unknown Muslims they encounter. They will greet people because they are acquainted with them, not by virtue of the principle. The forecast is closely related to the current rise of anonymity (see § 22). According to Muhammad Hisān,82 Muslims should always greet an unknown person, since the Qur’ān declares that all believers are brethren. Moreover, this imperative is clearly expressed by Qur’ānic verse 4:86: “But when you are offered a greeting, respond with a better one, or at least return it: Good keeps account of everything.”83

28. Vagabonds will speak (yantuqu al-ruwaybida): As apocalyptic predictions repeatedly mention, the last days will be stigmatized by fraud, when the truthful will lie, the liar will be right, the faithful will betray others (see, e.g., § 12) and in such a period ruwaybida shall speak. The term ruwaybida is a diminutive derived from rubūda which means nest, burrow, lair, slum, hole, etc., and thus denotes, in general, a small and insignificant person, a miserable creature, or scum.84 From this dark reference, Abū Mālik deduces that the mob will be listened to. It signifies that the rabble will seize power, which indicates the total disruption of social values before the End.85

79 Muhammad Hisān, Ahdāth al-nihāya, 322.80 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 103.81 Nucaym Ibn Hammād, Kitāb al-fitan, 119.82 Muhammad Hisān, Ahdāth al-nihāya, 343.83 As Hisham Kabbani (The Approach of Armageddon?, 129) explains: “The scenario is, ‘If

I don’t know you I will not greet you.’ This is partly because Muslims are to a large extent unrecognizable as such. (…) Especially in places where Muslims are a minority, it is important to wear identifiably Islamic apparel, so Muslims can recognize and greet each other.”

84 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 105.85 Abū Mālik Muhammad, cAlāmāt al-sāca al-sughrā wa al-kubrā, 27.


29. People will pass through the mosques without praying there (ittikhādh al-masājid turuqan): In the last days, people shall pass through the mosques without praying there, as Prophet Muhammad foretold in His saying: “At the end of time will be men who come to mosques and sit in circles discussing this world and its love. Do not sit with them. God has no need of them.”86 Another apocalyptic hadīth reminds us: “Truly one of the Signs of the last days is when people show off in the mosques.”87 Thus, people will transform the mosques into arenas for social dominance rather than places for religious and spiritual enhancement (see § 51). One explanation refers to the growth of mass tourism in Islamic countries, where some mosques have been already turned into museums and other are frequently visited by non-Muslims. Generally speaking, this Sign refers to past, present and future hypocrisy. According to another tradition, there will be one thousand men praying in a mosque before the Hour and not one of them will be a true believer.88

30. The spreading of lasciviousness (intishār al-fuhsh): In the last days, impudence will exceed all boundaries. By the word fuhsh, the majority of modern commentators usually understand adultery (zinā’), which has long-lasting consequences, as the Qur’ānic verse 17:32 implies: “And do not go anywhere near adultery: it is an outrage, and an evil path.” As Muhammad Hisān reminds us, the spreading of obscenity was considerably encouraged (or even caused!) by the contemporary media, which are, in principle, responsible for all moral corruption.89 From the perspective of cAbd al-Ra’ūf al-Zawāwī, the Jews are those responsible, since they systematically seduce Muslim youth and lead them astray through the media, the Internet, etc.90 Most authors deem that this forecast was already been entirely fulfilled, but not Muhammad Bayūmī. He believes this Sign will be fulfilled in the near future91 and thus reminds us of the well-known hadīth: “The Hour will not come until there are men and women in the streets having sexual relations (tafāsud) with each other like donkeys do.” The word tafāsud means, in general, any sexual relation or expression which includes hugging and kissing; even holding hands. For a man and a woman, holding hands is, therefore, an expression of their sexual desire.92

31. Time contracts (taqārub al-zamān): This is an enigmatic Sign, leading to many possible explanations. Al-Munāwī and al-Nawāwī understand the word taqārub as a reference to the approaching the Hour and, in this sense, it is a mere statement

86 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 113.87 Ibid., 111.88 David Cook, Studies in Muslim Apocalyptic, 253.89 Muhammad Hisān, Ahdāth al-nihāya, 262.90 cAbd al-Ra’ūf al-Zawāwī, al-Mufsidūn fī al-ard: Yahūd, 47.91 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 64.92 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 126.


that time goes by. One famous and frequently quoted hadīth says: “The Hour will not take place before time shrinks. One year will be like a month, one month will be like a week, a week will be like a day, and a day will be like an hour; and an hour will be like a burning flame.” Hisham Kabbani reminds us how modern means of transportation and communication have diminished the world and accelerated all events.93 Muhammad Hisān tends to the following reading: In the last days, time shall be deprived of the blessing (as the punishment for human sins) and it will seem as if time passes more quickly,94 something that was allegedly pointed out by the Qur’ānic verse 7:96: “If the people of those towns had believed and been mindful of God, We would have showered them with blessing from the heavens, but they rejected the truth and so We punished them for their misdeeds.” According to Abū Mālik, people will enjoy their life very intensively, and that is why it will seem as if time flows faster.95

32. A lot of killing (kathrat al-qatl): This forecast is closely related to that about bloodshed (see § 18). According to al-Munāwī, the term harj, which the Prophet Muhammad used for killing, is of Abyssinian origin. There was a consensus among medieval interpreters that this Sign had already been fulfilled during the earliest periods of Islam. Another frequently heard prediction speaks about “people who have whips like the tails of oxen, with which they beat people.” The common reading of this hadīth is that leaders will engage in widespread torture and human rights abuses in order to keep themselves in power.96

33. The illegal appropriation of property (kasb al-māl min ghayr hillihi): It means that men will cease to worry about the origin of their own property. Such an acquisition of illegal assets firstly occurred during the Umayyad government, also referred to as the secular reign (mulk). This Sign is closely related to corruption and improper trading (see § 17; 54).

34. Attachment to this world (al-takālub calā al-dunyā):97 When the Hour approaches, people will, paradoxically, no longer think about the Hereafter, whereas they will adhere to this world (al-dunyā) and its delights. Islam, however, describes this world as a perishable place of tests in preparation for the Other Side and it is precisely this wisdom which will be forgotten in the last days.98

93 Ibid., 108.94 Muhammad Hisān, Ahdāth al-nihāya, 316.95 Abū Mālik Muhammad, cAlāmāt al-sāca al-sughrā wa al-kubrā, 25.96 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 121.97 Takālub means fierce struggle, melee, brawl, but also avidity and greed.98 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 112.


35. The imitation of Bedouins (al-tashabbuh bi-l-acrāb): This forecast (as is the case with many others) reminds us that before the End everything will seem to return to the beginning. The imitation of Bedouins refers, in particular, to the propensity to jahl, which signifies not only ignorance, but also coarseness and brutality. In the Qur’ān (9:97), the Bedouins are described in very unflattering terms: “The desert Arabs are the most stubborn of all peoples in their disbelief and hypocrisy.” Salafī (or Wahhabī) thinkers believe that this Sign is a reference to reputed pagan relicts, e.g., Sufism, from their perspective.

36. The imitation of the Jews and Christians (al-tashabbuh bi-l-yahūd wa al-nasārā): This prognosis also carries a moral warning. The Prophet Muhammad stated: “Whoever imitates a people is one of them.” In another hadīth, he was asked whether this applies to Romans and Persians and he replied: “Who is there other then they.”99 So, Romans here signify the nations of the West, while Persians stand for the nations of the East. As most commentators agree, this Sign was indeed fulfilled very early on when Muslims conquered a great deal of the Middle East, whereby they were distinctly influenced by the cultures and the manners of local nations (chiefly Christians and Jews) in all aspects of their lives. Modern authors often add that this warning is now more topical than ever before. In this context, Muhammad Bayūmī reminds us of the forecast about a lot of non-Muslim servants in the last days, which is currently so typical for some Arab Gulf countries.100

37. Resistance to holy war (karāhīyat al-jihād): The Qur’ānic verse 2:216 says: “Fighting has been ordained for you, though it is hard for you. You may dislike something although it is good for you, or like something although it is bad for you: God knows and you do not.” Before the Hour, therefore, people will choose from Islam only those elements they want and neglect whatever else, including jihād. Modern interpreters mostly believe that people will try to bypass this imperative through its symbolical reading (i.e., not in terms of fighting but rather as uncertain spiritual effort or endeavour).

38. Considering zakāt as a penalty (ittikhādh al-zakāt maghraman): As with the previous Sign, this forecast also indicates a selective approach to religious principles. The Qur’ān (9:98) says: “Some of the desert Arabs consider what they give to be an imposition; they are waiting for fortune to turn against you, but fortune will turn against them.” Thus, zakāt, which has been ordained for Muslims to help them through the purification of their property, will be finally considered as a penalty.

99 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 99.100 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 59.101 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 175. See the aproach to the Sunna in Libya

under Qadhdhāfī.


The same approach will be applied to the Tradition of the Prophet (sunna), because there will be people who claim to follow only the Qur’ān and ignore the hadīth.101 To this category of neglected obligations, Bayūmī also adds the payment of jizya and kharāj, i.e., the charge for non-Muslims and a tax on land.102

39. Frauds concerning alcohol (al-tahāyul calā al-khamr): One interpretation refers to achieving a state of intoxication without any alcohol (khamr), i.e., using drugs. Another possible reading emphasizes that people will call alcohol by other names, e.g., mashrūbāt rūhīya, which is the current practice. However, both explanations have only one meaning: to bypass an apparent ban by quibbling.103

40. A slave gives birth to her own mistress (Talidu al-ama rabbatahā): This enigmatic reference has several possible interpretations. Abū Mālik offers four:104 1) The spread of Muslims led to the growth of children spawned by slaves, i.e., the child stood in a higher social position then his/her own mother; 2) A reference to the violation of the prohibition on the selling of slaves that engendered children by their own masters, i.e., it might happen that a son could buy his own mother without knowing it; 3) An indication of the rise of child disobedience, i.e., children will behave towards their own mothers as if they are slaves (this explanation is the preferred one for Muhammad Hisān, who understands child disobedience as a part of the moral decay of the last days);105 4) A non-Arab woman gives birth to an Arab, i.e., a child of higher rank. According to Sheikh al-Shacrāwī, a poor mother will give birth to a future king.106 Bayūmī comprehends this prediction as a reference to the increase of single mothers (or, according to Islamic law, adulteresses) whose children, thus, will stand higher in comparison to them.107 This Sign was fulfilled in the Middle Ages.

41. Competing in the construction of tall buildings (al-tatāwul fī al-binyān): This prediction belongs to the most well-known group of Signs of the Hour and for modern Muslim apocalyptists, it provides apparent evidence of the Prophet Muhammad’s miraculous visions. As the famous hadīth declares, “you will see the barefoot, naked, destitute Bedouin shepherds competing in the construction of tall buildings.” Kabbani (together with the vast majority of contemporary commentators) understands it as a clear reference to the construction of skyscrapers in the Arabian Peninsula, culminating in the building of the Burj al-Khalīfa (828 m).108 In the

102 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 18.103 Muhammad Hisān, Ahdāth al-nihāya, 380.104 Abū Mālik Muhammad, cAlāmāt al-sāca al-sughrā wa al-kubrā, 22.105 Muhammad Hisān, Ahdāth al-nihāya, 241.106 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 134.107 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 48.108 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 90.


vision of barefoot shepherds becoming leaders, Bayūmī sees a more general reference to the upheaval in relation to all social values (see § 49).109 Although the majority of exegetes perceive this Sign as a reference to human boastfulness, as manifested through the erection of tall buildings, Amīn Jamāl al-Dīn has suggested another explanation, pointing, in particular, to the huge buildings around the Kacba in Mecca, so often criticized by the traditionalists.110

42. The spreading of musical instruments (intishār al-macāzif):111 The Prophet Muhammad said: “There will be people from my Community who make permissible fornication and silk and intoxicants and immoral music.”112 The expansion of musical instruments is just a part of the wider trend of spreading entertainment (lahw) and games (lacb). The Qur’ānic verse 6:32 refers to both of them: “The life of this world is nothing but a game and a distraction; the Home in the Hereafter is best for those who are aware of God.” According to al-Shacrāwī, lacb and lahw generally mean all human activities that lead believers away from their religion.113 As Amīn Jamāl al-Dīn admits, this Sign belongs to those that do not refer to any historical event, and, therefore, are quite difficult to be identified.114

43. Many people will wish for death (kathra tamannā al-mawt): As the Tradition reminds us, this world will not perish until a man passes by someone’s grave, returns to it and says: “Would that I were in his place!” As contemporary interpreters unanimously claim, such a reluctance to live will be caused by the disasters and miseries of the last days.115

44. Fitnas like the interruptions of a dark night (fitan ka-qatc al-layl al-muzlim): This vague Sign perhaps refers, in particular, to the appearance of uncertainty and temptations before the End. In the hadīth related to Abū Hurayra, the Prophet Muhammad said: “Woe to the Arabs for a great evil which is nearly upon them: it will be like patches of dark night. A man will wake up as a believer, and be an unbeliever by nightfall. People will sell their religion for a small amount of worldly goods. The one who clings to his religion on that day will be as one is grasping an ember of thorns.”116 Bayūmī links this prognosis with the eleven Signs still waiting

109 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 48.110 David Cook, Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature, 50.111 Miczaf (pl. macāzif) means stringed musical instrument, in modern standard Arabic also the

piano.112 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 101.113 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 127.114 David Cook, Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature, 50.115 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 54.116 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 93.


for fulfilment.117 A frequently quoted hadīth claims that in the last days there will remain no house where fitna does not enter. As Muhammad Hisān explains, this saying by the Prophet is the forecast of mass media expansion, which has brought a lot of new temptations,118 because fitna does not mean only a clash but the first of all the tests for the Hereafter, as the Qur’ān clearly expresses (21:35): “Be aware that your possessions and your children are only a test, and that there is a tremendous reward with God.”119

45. Extravagance in the decoration of houses (al-isrāf fī tazyīn al-buyūt): This forecast speaks about the spread of a specific type of extravagance (isrāf); however, the commentators dispute amongst themselves concerning the actual definition of isrāf. In general, Islam rejects extremes on both sides, i.e., greed and prodigality, and it is no wonder that such exaggeration belongs to the typical Signs (see, e.g., § 41, 51). As al-Shacrāwī emphasizes,120 the only activity in which overstatement does not exist is in relation to the doing of good. According to most interpreters, this Sign has been repeatedly fulfilled since the earliest periods of Muslim history and currently such extravagance is particularly manifested throughout the rich countries of the Arabian Peninsula.

46. The expansion of business (fashw al-tijāra): This Sign has always been understood in two different ways: Literally, as an increase in business, and symbolically, as a reference to general welfare provision. The famous account of the six events before the Hour (see § 3) also mentions that “there will be such an excess of money, such that a man would give one hundred dinars to a needy person and he looks at that with disgust.”121 Such a situation of welfare provision, which

117 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 71. Bayūmī analyses two specific sorts of such tests, called fitnat al-ihlās a fitnat al-duhaymā’.

118 Muhammad Hisān, Ahdāth al-nihāya, 153. From Hisān’s perspective, the mass media are truly responsible for most of the attributes of contemporary moral corruption throughout Muslim countries.

119 In general, Hisān divides fitna into two categories: Fitan al-shahawāt (temptations of desires) and fitan al-shubhāt (temptations of doubts). Men can be tested by both suffering and well-being (see the Qur’ānic verse 21:35). That is the nature of this first kind of fitna. The second one is more dangerous and as Hisān (Ahdāth al-nihāya, 159) emphasizes, it is exactly this way of fitna that will lead to a division of Muslims into 73 sections as the famous saying of the Prophet has already foretold. The only group to be saved will be those who are able to resist these final fitnas.

120 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 144. Sheikh al-Shacrāwī reminds us here about Hātim al-Tā’ī, a pattern of traditional Arab generosity. When approached with the statement: “There is no good in exaggeration!” he replied: “There is no exaggeration in good!”

121 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 138. Al-Nawāwī’s version records the period when an unspecified khalīfa will distribute huge amounts of money and refers to another saying that mentions an abundance of gold that nobody wants to accept.


even prevented Islamic charitable acts, supposedly occurred during the reign of khalīfa cUmar ibn cAbd al-cAzīz (717–720) when people lived in overwhelming prosperity, when the state covered all the debts of its own citizens and sponsored their pilgrimages to Mecca and when it was virtually impossible to find a needy person to whom a Muslim could give alms.122 Bayūmī dates such affluence to the time of khalīfa cUthmān (644–656)123 and others believe that this miraculous period will happen after the second coming of Jesus (cĪsā).124 A literal understanding of the forecast causes certain confusions since the Signs mostly encompass various forbidden or condemnable phenomena; nevertheless; trade in the Islamic world is, in fact, a legitimate and praiseworthy activity. Bayūmī explains this apparent contradiction through reference to an expected massive violation of all Islamic norms in relation to trade (e.g., a man will entrust the undertaking of trade to his wife,125 or traders will cheat others, etc.). Therefore, people will think only of profit and will forget their principles.126 In any case, most authors consider this forecast as having been fulfilled, either partly or completely. This Sign is often related to the convergence of markets (see § 54).

47. A lot of writing (kathrat al-kitāba): This forecast verbatim mentions zuhūr al-qalam, which precisely means the appearance (Hisham Kabbani rather prefers the term “pre-eminence”) of the pen, and indirectly points to education, or any technology facilitating education and the dissemination of knowledge.127 According to Kabbani, “there will be a time when millions and millions of pieces of information will be recorded and accessible to use. (...) The computer is a manifestation of the Qalam.”128 Likewise, Muhammad Hisān understands the Sign as a reference to the contemporary “information boom.”129 This process has various facets: ignorant authors will write on subjects they do not understand at all; secular specializations might flourish while, meanwhile, true religious education declines; new technologies (the Internet, satellites, etc.) enable the transmission of data over all the world. As most modern commentators believe, this Sign has already been manifested and nowadays is in the process of being completely fulfilled (see § 48). In this respect, we should remind ourselves that the attitudes of apocalyptists

122 Muhammad Hisān, Ahdāth al-nihāya, 143.123 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 7.124 Muhammad Hisān, Ahdāth al-nihāya, 144.125 See David Cook, Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature, 51-52. Regarding the

reference to women joining their husbands in economic ventures, Amīn Muhammad Jamāl al-Dīn has noted: “The woman has gone out to work with the men, facing them, contending with them, talking with them, and disputing with them. (…) The woman, by her going to work, has ripped every veil and has taken every calumny and sin.”

126 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 54.127 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 146.128 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 134.129 Muhammad Hisān, Ahdāth al-nihāya, 394.


towards Islamic scholars (culamā’), in general, and jurists (fuqahā’), in particular, are quite sceptical and even critical, because they have been repeatedly accused of collaborating with the state authorities. The apocalyptists, in fact, have even expressed their aversion to education itself, which is, from an Islamic perspective, so highly esteemed (and, on the contrary, considered by apocalyptists as being ephemeral and, thus, worthless). As David Cook suggests, God will withdraw human knowledge since people will no longer be able to understand it properly.130

48. Knowledge will be taken away and ignorance will spread (rafc al-cilm wa intishār al-jahl): Although knowledge will be more accessible than ever before (see the previous Sign), people will grow stupid or, more precisely, mankind will return to the beginnings, to the jāhilīya, i.e., the pre-Islamic period of roughness and ignorance (see § 82). The disappearance of knowledge cannot be understood literally, as if someone suddenly wakes up and realizes that he knows nothing. As Muhammad Hisān convincingly explains, knowledge will be taken away through the death of its holders, i.e., the scholars. So, people lose their knowledge without knowing it.131 As most modern interpreters believe, the decrease in education refers, in particular, to religious sciences, not to scholarship in general, since that is, currently, flourishing (see the previous Sign). In this context, the secular specializations are regarded as superficial; meanwhile, the religious ones are deep, as Qur’ānic verse 30:7 denotes: “They only know the outer surface of this present life and are heedless of the life to come.” Hisham Kabbani takes a similar view: “Muslims make decisions according to their education based on secular principles, which inevitably leads to misguidance. From an Islamic understanding this is not education, but the spreading of ignorance.”132 (See also § 49.)

49. Ignorant leaders (al-ru’ūs al-juhhāl): This forecast, quite naturally, follows the two previous ones. In addition to the death of Islamic scholars, the survivors will lose their knowledge, so the misguided leaders will misguide others, as the Qur’ān (16:25) clearly denotes: “On the Day of Resurrection they will bear the full weight of their own burden, as well as some of the burden of those they misled with no true knowledge. How terrible their burden will be!” Thus, the ignorant and the misguided will be highly esteemed and regarded as being the elite members of society. This point is closely related to another forecast, speaking about the worship of elders, which is not considered by al-Shacrāwī as a separate Sign. The saying of the Prophet narrated by Ibn cAbbās states that in the last days there will be people who dye their hair black. Therefore, as commentators remind us, even the beautification of elders belongs to the portents of the End. The condition relating

130 David Cook, Studies in Muslim Apocalyptic, 249–52.131 Muhammad Hisān, Ahdāth al-nihāya, 396–98. See also Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm

al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 53.132 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 104.


to the ignorance of leaders (together with the previous and the following ones) has already been fulfilled since Muslims chose leaders who, according to Hisham Kabbani, “know only the name and description of Islam, and do not know the practice and heart of Islam.”133 Most exegetes emphasize that the guidance belongs only to those who are qualified to lead, as the Qur’ānic verse 59 of the Sura Jonah clearly suggests.134

50. Demanding knowledge from the little ones (iltimās al-cilm cinda al-asāghir): The first Muslims took their knowledge from akābir (“the great ones”), i.e., from those who dedicated their lives to learning about Islam. On the contrary, asāghir are illiterate, they represent the least educated people who scarcely know anything about Islam. According to the eminent Companion Ibn Mascūd, the ignorant leaders (see above) will emerge from this kind of people. As Sheikh al-Shacrāwī clarifies, asāghir are innovators (ahl al-bidac) in general.135 From Kabbani’s perspective, current Muslim leaders are uneducated in Islam (i.e., “the little ones” in terms of religious knowledge). Moreover, as Kabbani writes,, “there are literally children (asāghir) on Islamic Internet groups making verdicts on every issue. On the Internet an eighteen year old boy acts like a great scholar!”136

51. Competition between the mosques (al-tabāhī bi-l-masājid): As Muhammad Bayūmī has elaborated, this competition might be carried out either at the level of rhetoric (people will dispute which mosque is the best one) or in architectonical contests, inevitably accompanied by extravagance in all aspects (dimensions, decorations, etc.). As he emphasizes, a mosque should not be built as a proud exhibition, but rather as an expression of the builder’s humility.137 Instead of the word tabāhin (“competition”), sometimes the term mubāhā (“vainglory” or “arrogance”) appears and this is clearly manifested in excessive decorativeness, following the example of Catholic churches.138 This forecast was fulfilled for the first time in 685, when khalīfa cAbd al-Malik ordered the building of the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, generally regarded as the first masterpiece of Islamic architecture. According to Bayūmī, this Sign results from the imitation of Christians and Jews (see § 36).139

133 Ibid., 110.134 “Say, ‘Think about the provision God has sent down for you, some of which you have

made unlawful and some lawful.’ Say, ‘Has God given you permission to do this, or are you inventing lies about God? What will those people who invent lies about Him think on the Day of Resurrection?”

135 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam , 151.136 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 113.137 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 55.138 Ibid., 55.139 Ibid., 56.


52. Sudden death (mawt al-faj’a): It means that a person once well will unexpectedly fall down, without any apparent cause. According to Muhammad Hisān, this Sign forecasts the large-scale spread of lifestyle diseases, such as strokes and heart attacks.140

53. A lot of lies (kathrat al-kidhb): In the last days, truth will disappear completely. Yet, the lie will serve truth as well as the healing of pain. So, although the lie is damnable, it is necessary.141 In principle, lies are an essential part of the apocalyptic overture, since they inevitably accompany a series of the Signs (see e. g. § 10; 23), as the hadīth related to Abū Hurayra clearly denotes: “Before the Hour comes, there will be years of deceit, in which the trustworthy one will be said to be a traitor, and the traitor will be trusted and the insignificant (al-ruwaybida – see § 28) will have a say.”142 Like most modern interpreters, Bayūmī also claims that lies are, in fact, the most typical symptoms of the End.143

54. The convergence of markets (taqārub al-aswāq): Like many others, this Sign can also be interpreted either literally (the world “shrinks,” and therefore the markets “converge”), or figuratively (trading will become more intense, that is to say “more compressed”). This second approach refers, in particular, to the hectic nature of business, which will prevent Muslims from finding the time for the obligatory prayers, pious sayings or even for greeting each other (see § 27). This reading, thus, mainly indicates the abandonment of Islamic rules, designed for business, as has been clearly manifested as part of the development of the more anonymous ways of contemporary shopping (hypermarkets, e-shops, etc.). According to Hisān, taqārub al-aswāq signifies, quite literally, convergence, since modern means of transportation and communication have already made the world a smaller place.144 Some bodies of opinion also understand it as a forecast of stock market trading. According to Hisham Kabbani, “people will be striving so hard in pursuit of their daily bread that they will set up any kind of work or trade.”145 In this context, he reminds us of the Prophet’s saying: “The wife will help her husband in working for money,” to which he adds: “In the last days, there would not be adequate sustenance from one income, so that the wife would have to help her husband to provide sufficient support.”146 As current commentators frequently remind us, this Sign is closely related to the growth of corruption (see § 33).

140 Muhammad Hisān, Ahdāth al-nihāya, 303.141 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 155.142 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 152.143 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 51.144 Muhammad Hisān, Ahdāth al-nihāya, 365.145 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 131.146 Ibid., 131. See also Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 54.


55. States will encourage each other against Islamic countries (tadācī al-umam calā duwal al-islām): This Sign could be identified either with particular historical events (the Crusades, the Mongol and Tartar invasions or the period of colonialism), or with contemporary politics. In any case, it has been repeatedly fulfilled. As Bayūmī reminds us, the abolition of the Caliphate (1924) also falls into this category.147 According to the famous saying of the Prophet, devoted to the so called “six events before the Hour” (see § 3), there will be a truce (hudna) between Muslims and non-Muslims (sometimes referred to as “the Yellow people”), because they will be too powerful, and “coming to you with eighty different groups of soldiers, under each group twelve thousand soldiers.”148 Most contemporary interpreters frequently comprehend this reference within the context of various conspiracy theories, particularly those connected with strong anti-Jewish sentiment. From al-Zawāwī’s perspective, the Jews (unable to face Muslims directly) will perpetually strive to encourage their internal disputes.149 Moreover, many modern apocalyptists see in this forecast a reference to the so called “clash of civilizations” (see § 83). To sum up, the Muslims will be defeated not because of their weakness but for their love of life, and mainly for their disunity (!). Supporting this point, the Prophet’s saying, narrated by Thawbān, clearly indicates that: “The people will soon summon one another to attack you as people when eating, invite others to share their dish. Someone asked: ‘Will that be because of our small numbers at that time?’ He replied: ‘No, you will be numerous at that time: but you will be like foam that is carried down by a torrent...’”150 In this respect, the already mentioned truce with the Yellow people (banū al-asfar) is often referred to and interpreted, while this unspecified enemy is frequently identified with the Western powers (especially the U.S.). Therefore, this forecast might have been fulfilled when the U.S. signed agreements with several Arab countries (see No. 83).151

56. The truthfulness of Muslim dreams (sidq ru’yā al-muslim): Although lies will prevail before the Hour (see § 53), apocalyptists strongly believe there is one important exception, visionary dreams. The forecast literally indicates that: “When the time contracts (see § 31), the dreams of the believer will not lie.” In this prediction, the term ruy’ā, which means either a visionary dream or a vision, in general, was deliberately used. According to Sheikh al-Shacrāwī, this type of dream

147 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 47.148 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 138.149 cAbd al-Ra’ūf al-Zawāwī, al-Mufsidūn fī al-ard: Yahūd, 25. See also Muhammad Bayūmī,

cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 47.150 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 141.151 According to Cook, the modern apocalyptists like to elaborate a thesis that the last struggle

(Armageddon) is near and Muslims are forced onto the defensive, because they have completely forgot how to carry out jihād (see § 37). See David Cook, Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature, 182.


will be the prevailing one in the last days, in the same way that it was distinctive at the very beginning of Muhammad’s mission.152 Consequently, as this Sign points out, before the End, everything will apparently return to the beginning.

57. People will pretend not to know each other (tanākur al-nās bacduhum li-bacd): This Sign distinctly refers to the decay of morals in the last days, and as such is closely related to greetings reserved for acquaintances (see § 27). People will pretend not to know each other, because they will not want to express their kindness and decency.153 This Sign is mostly regarded as having ben fulfilled. As Kabbani reminds us, “even if we know someone, we turn our faces away to avoid interacting with each other. For the sake of some worldly agenda we do not want to show that we know this person. Muslims have become separated from each other.” This behaviour results, along with others, from the growth of anonymity.

58. A number of women and few men (kathrat al-nisā’ wa qillat al-rijāl): As various traditions denote, men will pass away and women will remain, until there are fifty women for every man. According to Bayūmī, this disproportion results chiefly from wars and killing, and that is why he links this prognosis to the forecasts about killing (see § 18; 32).154 Grand Sheikh Nazim states another number, forty, which, in Arabic culture, always symbolizes a large quantity. This number is based on the authority of the hadīth from al-Nawawī’s collection. According to Sheikh cAbd Allāh al-Dāghistānī, Nazim’s teacher, “for those women who do not have a husband anymore, God will send people from behind Mt. Qaf. No one will be alone at that time. (...) There are so many unknown worlds around our world. People will come from Nujaba, Awtad, Budalla and Akhyar.”155 According to Kabbani, it is significant to note that this portent was deliberately mentioned immediately after fornication (zinā’), as has been already pointed out (see § 15). So this sequence indicates that a number of men will also die from sexually-transmitted diseases.156

59. A number of earthquakes (kathrat al-zalāzil): This portent belongs to the realm of natural disasters and, as such, might easily be classified among the events of the

152 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 157. The famous saying of the Prophet states that dreams are one of the forty-six pillars of the prophecy. Some interpreters understand this number as a reference to the period of six months (half a year) between the first and the second Revelation (so rich in visionary dreams), which is one of forty-six stages of the Prophecy of Muhammad (610–632).

153 Ibid., 161.154 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 49.155 Nazim Al-Haqqani Naqshbandi, Mystical Secrets of the Last Days, 129. Sheikh Nazim

mentions here various categories of Sūfī spiritual hierarchy. Mt. Qaf (al-Qāf) is the imaginary end of the world.

156 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 106.


apocalyptic conclusion.157 The Qur’ān mentions earthquakes in several verses, e.g., 22:1: “People, be mindful of your Lord, for the earthquake of the Last Hour will be a mighty thing”; and at the beginning of Sura 56. (That Which is Coming): “When that which is coming arrives, no one will be able to deny it has come, bringing low and raising high. When the earth is shaken violently and the mountains are ground to powder and turn to scattered dust, then you will be sorted into three classes.” Reference to earthquakes can also be found at the beginning of Sura The Rolling Up, generally considered the most impressive apocalyptic “summary”: “When the sun is rolled up, when the stars are dimmed, when the mountains are set in motion.” cAbd Allāh Yūsuf cAlī interprets the third verse (“when the mountains are set in motion”) as follows: “On our own earth the mountains - the ‘eternal hills’ - seem the most striking examples of stability; yet they will be swept away like a mirage, as if they had never existed.”158 Destructive earthquakes before the Hour might be understood as a punishment for the sins of women.159 Bashīr cAbd Allāh failed in his unique forecast that an apocalyptic earthquake would destroy the U.S. on 19th April 1997.160 According to the statistics of Harun Yahya, the number of large earthquakes has grown rapidly during the past few decades. Muhammad Bayūmī was firmly convinced that the Sign was partially fulfilled through the ruinous earthquake in 1992 that considerably damaged old Cairo.161 This prediction is closely related to the swallowing up by the earth (see § 62).

60. The strong will eat the weak (ya’kulu al-qawī al-dacīf): Again, this is one of the Signs that will result from the moral decline experienced before the Hour. Every human society consists of stronger and weaker individuals, while before God all of them are just poor and powerless. Thus, nobody should be proud of his strength, since only God is omnipotent. And it is precisely this principle that will be forgotten before the End.162 Yet, despotism and tyranny have repeatedly occurred in virtually all periods of Islamic history. Another prediction speaks of the persistence of villains (ashrār) before the End, with several hadīths claiming that the Hour will not arrive until the pious have died out and the evil infidels (often called the “sediment” or “waste” of society) remain. According to Abū Mālik, the Hour will not come while a single pious man remains on the Earth.163 As a result

157 Here, we will assume that earthquakes belong to both the Greater and the Lesser Signs of the Hour.158 Vznešený Korán, 675. This edition also contains Czech translation of Yūsuf’s renowned

Qur’ānic interpretation, which I did not have at my disposal in English.159 This interpretation is based on the hadīth narrating how Anas ibn Mālik asked cĀ’isha questions

about the earthquake. On this occasion, the Mother of Believers declared that the earthquake would occur as a punishment when women started stripping and behaving shamelessly. See Nucaym Ibn Hammād, Kitāb al-fitan, 368.

160 David Cook, Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature, 89.161 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 57.162 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 167.163 Abū Mālik Muhammad, cAlāmāt al-sāca al-sughrā wa al-kubrā, 18.


of such an approach, we could well derive that this Sign will be fulfilled as one of the last ones. For oppressors, in general, Islam knows several names and two of them (jabbār and fircawn, i.e., tyrant and Pharaoh) occur in the Qur’ān. Tradition reminds us of five Pharaohs who lived before Islam and seven during the time of Islam. In principle, the apocalyptists do not attack anonymous oppressors but rather they seek to identify them, in particular, with some of the Umayyads, Abbasids and even the Quraysh.164 “The Muslim apocalyptist divides up the rulers of the world into prophets and tyrants. This is nowhere made clearer than in the tradition listing four world-rulers: Dhū-l-Qarnayn (Alexander the Great), Solomon, Nimrod and Bukhtnassar (Nebchadnezzar); the fifth is the Mahdī. (...) This tradition is a strong attack on the Abbasid caliphate; since it is clear that they are not prophets, they must be tyrants.”165 This Sign, in fact, has been completed.

61. The earth will throw up its treasures (tukhriju al-ard kunūzahā): An enigmatic prediction narrates that the earth will split open and golden and silver treasures will be revealed. After this a murderer will say: “For this, I killed.” A robber will say: “For this, I robbed.” And a thief will add: “For this, my hand was cut off.”166 The beginning of the Sura The Earthquake points us in the same direction: “When the earth is shaken violently in its last quaking, when the earth throws out its burdens, when man cries, ‘What is happening to it?’ on that Day, it will tell all because your Lord will inspire it.” The common opinion is that this Sign has already been fulfilled since people have increasingly benefited from the depths of the earth (coal, iron ore, oil, gas, etc.). The extraction of these commodities was followed by the rapid development of the petrochemical industry and other modern technologies. There is also another perspective. A more literal approach refers to the increase in soil erosion, currently regarded as a serious ecological threat. The most frequent explanation, however, points to the development of sciences and technologies that have the capacity to reveal the hidden faces of our planet.167 Yet, Bayūmī, in principle, rejects such a metaphorical understanding because he expects there to be a real uncovering of a real treasure; therefore, as he strongly believes, this Sign is still waiting to be fulfilled.168

62. The appearance of being swallowed up by the earth, deformation and “throwing” (zuhūr al-khasf, al-maskh wa al-qadhf): It is not clear either the exact meanings of the words, or the reason why they were put together within one forecast. Quite literally, khasf means the disappearance of land surfaces into the depths, maskh can signify transformation, metamorphosis or even disfigurement

164 David Cook, Studies in Muslim Apocalyptic, 242.165 Ibid., 247.166 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 169.167 Ibid., 169.168 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 65.


and qadhf is any act of throwing (among others of a bomb, but it might also refer to a volcanic eruption). According to al-Shacrāwī, this mysterious Sign forecasts various ways of punishment before the Hour.169 It is precisely with reference to this final revenge that the Qur’ānic verse 29:40 refers: “And We punished each one of them for their sins: some We struck with a violent storm; some were overcome by sudden blast; some We made the earth swallow; and some We drowned.” And verse 8:25 adds: “Beware of discord that harms not only the wrongdoers among you: know that God is severe in His punishment.” As modern apocalyptists often state, a series of khasfs will precede the final punishment, i.e., the terrible earthquake (see § 59). One should occur, according to Bashīr cAbd Allāh, in the Arabian Peninsula, where rich Gulf Arabs will be swallowed up and judged for their arrogance and waste of resources.170

63. Heavy rain (al-matar al-shadīd): Water once facilitated the establishment of life on this earth and the same water will take away lives in the last days. In this respect, modern interpreters often remind us of the global climatic changes that are taking place. The forecast speaks about extremely heavy rains from which there will be no shelter, “either among Bedouins or city inhabitants.” According to Bayūmī, this Sign has already been fulfilled.171 See also § 67 (Meadows and rivers will return to the Arabian Peninsula).

64. Fighting between Muslims and Jews (qitāl al-muslimīn li-l-yahūd):172 The Islamic “apocalyptic overture” would not be complete without predictions of battles against the Jews.173 Moreover, for modern Muslim apocalyptic literature, this point is of paramount importance.174 In principle, it is quite a controversial and sensitive issue, and that is why some contemporary exegetes, especially those of Sūfī provenance (e.g., Kabbani and Nazim), have sought to temper the tone of this

169 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 174. 170 David Cook, Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature, 163. The khasfs will not only

torment Muslims, but chiefly their enemies. The U.S. will be targeted, specifically New York (referred to as the “great Babylon” of Rev. 18).

171 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 58.172 Here, we should remind ourselves that strong anti-Jewish rhetoric, so distinct in modern

Islamic apocalyptic, does not result mainly from medieval sources but particularly from “Western borrowings“.

173 Al-Zawāwī provides us with a long list of crimes, supposedly committed by the Jews against Muslims (starting with their attempt to assassinate the Prophet). See cAbd al-Ra’ūf al-Zawāwī, al-Mufsidūn fī al-ard: Yahūd, 24.

174 As Cook reminds us, “many Arabic-language Muslim apocalyptic writers and exegetes have actually abandoned the classical exegetical traditions (…) and even overturned the previous identification of Banu Isra’il with a group other than the Jewish people. This new exegesis is in the interest of the higher goal, that of finding a satisfying prophecy in the Qur’an.” See David Cook, Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature, 123–24.


Sign.175 Apocalyptists usually distinguish between fighting against those Jews who are the followers of the Antichrist and the clashes with them within the context of a global war, thus concluding the Lesser Signs of the Hour and interpreted by Sheikh Nazim as a conflict between the East and the West. Although the former struggles belong among the Greater Signs and will not, therefore, be elaborated on here, the latter struggles still fit into the framework of the apocalyptic overture. Generally speaking, modern interpreters place the battles against the Jews within the context of the so called “clash of civilizations.” In order for the Jews to be able to even face the Muslims, God has first to bring them together in Palestine, their original homeland. This part of the forecast has already been fulfilled with the founding of the state of Israel. In any case, the continuous confrontations that have taken place with the Jews, as well as the conspiracy speculations linked to them, constitute the central theme of the modern Muslim apocalyptic.176 Enraged expressions of revulsion, conspiracy paranoia, and the aspiration to annihilate not only the Jews but also, frequently, Americans, atheists, Freemasons, Zionists, etc., belong among the most disquieting characteristics of contemporary Islamic apocalyptic writings. Nevertheless, the well-known and frequently quoted hadīth about fighting with the Jews refers us to the Greater Signs: “The Hour will not come until the Muslims fight against the Jews and kill them. And when a Jew will hide behind a stone or a tree, they will cry out, ‘O Muslim! O servant of God! There is a Jew behind me.’ And the Muslim will come to kill him.”177 As modern apocalyptists believe, these battles are, in fact, the Muslims’ revenge for all the Jewish plots hatched against them throughout the entire history of Islam (see § 4);178 for Sheikh al-Shacrāwī, it is retaliation for the Jewish attempt at world domination (manifested, in particular, through media control), while for Bayūmī, it is the punishment for the occupation of Palestine.179 Yet, fights with the Jews are not a single war within the apocalyptic prelude (see § 14; 83).

65. A lot of temptations (kathrat al-fitan): The Prophet Muhammad repeatedly described particular degrees of apocalyptic temptations. In this respect, fitna has its initial meaning, i.e., the test for the Hereafter. As al-Shacrāwī reminds us,180 the fitna also indicates punishment by fire, since the Qur’ān (51:13) says: “On a Day

175 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Al-Dār al-ākhira, 182.176 According to Cook, the anti-Jewish conspiracy theories, presenting the Jews as the instruments

of the Antichrist, were the decisive impulse for the origination and development of modern Muslim apocalyptic in general. See David Cook, Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature, 23.

177 Nucaym Ibn Hammād, Kitāb al-fitan, 339.178 See David Cook, Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature, 98–125 (chapter V: Qur’an

17:4–8 – From Banu Isra’il to the State of Israel).179 For example, Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 182; Muhammad Bayūmī,

cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 66.180 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 185.


when they will be punished by the Fire.” The term originally referred to the refining of metal (especially of gold) to remove dross. As regards the risk associated with the fitna, verse 2:191 states: “For persecution (fitna) is more serious than killing.” Various fitnas (either in the sense of temptation, or schism) occur throughout the entire apocalyptic prelude (see § 7; 44) and no doubt they provided the title of Kitāb al-fitan by Nucaym Ibn Hammād, the most famous volume of that genre.

66. The inflation of crescents (intifākh al-ahilla): According to this enigmatic forecast, the Hour will not come until crescents have increased. The term intifākh has several meanings: the process of being inflated; distension; swelling, etc. The Sign itself can be understood either literally, or figuratively. The latter approach was distinctly expressed by Sheikh al-Shacrāwī. According to his interpretation, it is precisely by means of the moon, that God has taught people an important principle: how they can recognize the Creator by His creation (i.e., the world). Since ancient times, the moon has been regarded as a simple tool for determining dates (especially the start of the month of ramadān); people then learnt about the true reason for the changing of the moon’s phases, and afterwards, they even explored the lunar surface. Our knowledge, therefore, has made the moon greater in our eyes.181 Modernists refer to the development of astronomy and cosmonautics, which have truly made the moon appear nearer and larger. As Hisham Kabbani claims, this forecast was fulfilled in 1969 when U.S. astronauts first landed on the moon.

67. Meadows and rivers will return to/disappear from the Arabian Peninsula (jazīrat al-carab tacūdu murūjan wa anhāran): The reading of this forecast is dependent on an understanding of the verb cāda, and thus the interpretations may be completely contradictory: that meadows and rivers will either return or disappear.182 Although it seems as a paradox, for both readings there are possible explanations. According to al-Shacrāwī’s interpretation (based on al-Nawawī’s statement), people will abandon this area, and that is why the land will become neglected, wells will dry up and the region will turn to desert.183 Abū Mālik offers quite a contradictory approach:184 extensive irrigation has enabled (and will enable more) the development of agriculture, even in areas where it was completely impossible before. From Muhammad Bayūmī’s perspective,185 the return of meadows and

181 Ibid., 189. According to al-Shacrāwī, the word hilāl (crescent) is closely related to tahlīl (the utterance of the formula “There is no god but God,” or applause), since sighting the new crescent is a cause for great joy for Muslims.

182 The verb cāda has a lot of meanings, e.g., to return, to come back, to go back, to revert, but also to abandon, to withdraw, to relinquish, etc.

183 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 190.184 Abū Mālik Muhammad, cAlāmāt al-sāca al-sughrā wa al-kubrā, 40.185 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 61.


rivers refers partially to the development of modern agriculture and irrigation, but also it is a reference to global climatic changes, that affected the climate in ancient times (when demonstrably there were meadows in the Arabian Peninsula) and will do so again in the near future.

68. The extinction of mountains (zawāl al-jibāl): As the forecast states, the Hour will not arrive until the mountains have disappeared from their sites. The eternal symbols of stability will, thus, expire. The Qur’ānic verse 18:47 points precisely to this portent: “On the day We make the mountains move away, and you see the earth as an open plain.” The verses 70:8-9 further elaborate: “On a Day when the heavens will be like molten copper and the mountains like tufts of wool,” and the beginning of the Sura The Crashing Blow confirms: “The Crashing Blow! What is the Crashing Blow? What will explain to you what the Crashing Blow is? On a day when people will be like scattered moths and the mountains like tufts of wool.” Despite various speculator conclusions, the vast majority of exegetes believe that the forecast emphasizes the transience of this world (al-dunyā), in contrast to the omnipotence of the Creator.186 This Sign is closely related to § 59 and § 62.

69. The languages of beasts (kalām al-sibāc): This enigmatic Sign, once again, distinctly relates to the expected apocalyptic disruption of the current order.187 The Prophet Muhammad said: “By Him in Whose hands is my soul, the Hour will not come until wild creatures talk to men, and a man speaks to the end of his whip and the straps of his sandals, and his thigh will tell him about what happened to his family after he left.”188 This hadīth contains several riddles. According to Sheikh al-Shacrāwī, animals have their own communities, as the Qur’ān (6:38)189 clearly expresses. They have their own rules, manners, even some of them can fully understand tawhīd (the principle of the uniqueness of God); there is, therefore, no doubt that animals have their own languages, which until now remain unintelligible to mankind. However, modern science might change all this, so that we have a situation where people will sooner or later be able to understand animals and even communicate with inanimate matter.190 Kabbani offers a quite courageous and unusual interpretation: beasts as celebrities. “This hadīth signifies that people in the Last Days will talk about someone that they do not know. (…) Everything the celebrity does is exposed and discussed by millions of people who have never even

186 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 191.187 Ibid., 200.188 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 136.189 “All the creatures that crawl on the earth and those that fly with their wings are communities

like yourselves.”190 Abū Mālik Muhammad, cAlāmāt al-sāca al-sughrā wa al-kubrā, 28. Here, the speech of

animals refers to their sounds and radiation is regarded as the speech of inanimate matter. Modernists often understand the speech of inanimate objects as a prediction of modern inventions, e.g., radio, television, etc.


seen that person in real life. (…) This saying is also an indication that backbiting will be prevalent in the last days.”191 “Speaking to the end of a whip” indicates telephones (i.e., a technology using waveforms) and a “thing will speak to him” allegedly refers to GPS and cellular telephones. “This saying is also a warning to Muslims to be pious and virtuous because everything one does now is monitored by unknown people, and everything is exposed.”192

70. The Extinction of the Quraysh (fanā’ al-quraysh): As the forecast literally states, the first Arabic tribe to become extinct will be the Quraysh.193 Nevertheless, extinction, here, is just metaphorical, since the prediction indicates the end of their power, which was closely connected with the guardianship of the Holly Mosque. As al-Shacrāwī claims, this portent was fulfilled at the very beginning of Islam, when the Prophet, through his message of brotherhood in faith, abolished, in theory, any tribal inequalities (see also § 80; 81).194

71. The appearance of cars (zuhūr al-sayārāt): As the Prophet’s saying narrates, in the last days men will ride in their saddles and get off at the gates of mosques. Al-Shacrāwī and Hisān understand this reference as a forecast of cars that have brought progress, even though this is at the expense of damage to the environment. According to the prominent Salafī thinker Nāsir al-Dīn al-Albānī, cars were also foretold in another portent, that which deals with “the abodes of demons.”

72. The Euphrates will uncover a golden hill (jahsiru nahr al-furāt can jabal min dhahab): This Sign anticipates the uncovering of a golden treasure and the appropriate forecast warns those who find it, since it is written that the finders will fight each other and then the vast majority of them will be killed.195 Such a prognosis can be understood either figuratively (in which case it has been already been fulfilled or is soon going to be fulfilled completely), or literally (in which case the Sign is still waiting to be fulfilled). In either case, the idea of the Euphrates uncovering gold enjoys great popularity not only among modern Muslim apocalyptists, particularly because of the wide variety of possible meanings. According to Sheikh al-Shacrāwī’s interpretation, based on the statement of al-Qurtubī, this event will happen at the very conclusion of history and will be closely related to the forecast about the abundance of property (see § 46). As Ibn Kathīr has noted, this Sign should, therefore, immediately precede the appearance of al-Mahdī.196 Since this excess of money will occur after the second coming of Jesus and as a result of newly

191 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 136.192 Ibid., 137.193 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 205.194 Ibid., 206. 195 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 62.196 Jean-Pierre Filiu, Apocalypse in Islam, 39.


discovered gold and the Muslim war booty, this portent could be classified among the Greater Signs of the Hour.197 In addition, Muhammad Hisān and Abū Mālik remind us that the uncovered gold will be actual gold (they both strictly refuse any metaphorical reading), which will result in a fight breaking out that will see ninety-nine out of every hundred men dying. So, this Sign is also associated with the final war, the Islamic Armageddon (harmājīdūn). As Bayūmī suggests, the word inhisār (uncovering, exposing, etc.) means also the denudation of something, after the soil disappears, and therefore this forecast might be simply explained as a shift in the Euphrates riverbed, together with the ensuing erosion.198 By contrast, some modern exegetes (e.g., Kabbani, Yahya) indeed understand this phenomenon figuratively as being a reference either to the revenues from the hydroelectric power plants built on the Euphrates in Syria and Turkey,199 or to the discovery of oil fields in southern Iraq (in both cases, such a development might cause a war).

73. A man from Qahtān will appear and he will lead people by his stick (jakhruju rajul min qahtān jasūqu al-nās bi-casāhu): Qahtān was the grandson of Noah and the fabulous ancestor of the southern Arabs. Thus, his appearance in all cases would indicate that before the End, everything will apparently return to the beginning. The identification of this hero is quite controversial and his leadership (whether good or evil) is also questionable. A very common approach identifies al-Qahtānī with the figure called Dhū al-suwayqatayni (“A man with very thin weak legs”), the evil character often known as the Abyssinian (al-Habashī), so that the event might be fulfilled even after the death of al-Mahdī and even after the appearance of Gog and Magog.200 Thus, it is hardly understandable as to why al-Shacrāwī classifies this event among the Lesser Signs, although, as he repeatedly admits, only God knows who this enigmatic character will in fact be and when he will come. According to Abū Mālik, al-Qahtānī is identical with al-Yamanī (the Yemeni) and will appear after al-Mahdī.201 The interpreters even disagree as to whether he is a good or evil person. An attempt to exploit the meaning of this forecast for quite practical reasons occurred in 1979 (= 1400 A.H.) when Islamist rebels occupied the Holly Mosque in Mecca, while their leader Juhaymān al-cUtaybī declared himself as al-Qahtānī (then he strongly believed that al-Mahdī would come within twenty years). Some modern authors identify al-Qahtānī with al-Jahjāh (see the following Sign), but others believe that they are both different.

197 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 209.198 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 63.199 See David Cook, Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature, 54. As Cook writes: “The

final sign in this list, concerning the Euphrates River, has been a major concern to many Arab countries; ever since Turkey built dams in the upper reaches of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, Arabs have been reminded that their water resources are at the mercy of a foreign power – and Turkey’s close relations with Israel does not reassure them.”

200 For example, see Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 212.201 Abū Mālik Muhammad, cAlāmāt al-sāca al-sughrā wa al-kubrā, 32.


74. The appearance of al-Jahjāh (khurūj al-jahjāh): As this forecast claims, the Hour will not arrive, until al-Jahjāh reigns. According to Ibn Athīr, the name Jahjāh is a symbolic composite (jāh means dignity or rank). As Ibn Kathīr and al-Qurtubī suggest, he will be identical with al-Qahtānī. Muhammad Bayūmī, however, claims that they will differ (see also the previous Sign).202

75. The destruction of Medina (takhrīb al-madīna): In his saying, the Prophet Muhammad deliberately used the word Yathrib, which was the pre-Islamic name for Medina. Therefore, his prediction allegedly pointed to the hectic modernization of the city, leading to the real destruction of original values, either spiritual, or material. As contemporary interpreters often stress, Islam does not need any improvement, since it was revealed in perfect form as the Qur’ān clearly expresses in verse 5:3: “Today I have perfected your religion for you, completed My blessing upon you, and chosen as your religion Islam.” According to Kabbani, the destruction of Medina predicts the Wahhābī movement, i.e., the ideology that “destroyed traditional Islam under the guise of ‘purifying’ Islam, as if all Muslims before the advent of Muhammad Ibn cAbd al-Wahhāb had been astray. He brought not the purification, but the destruction of centuries-old Islamic knowledge and practices.”203 Our understanding of “destruction” should not be limited to only spiritual damage but also to material damage, since the Wahhābīs did not hesitate to demolish a lot of monuments associated with the life of the Prophet and his Companions, in particular the tombs.

76. The raid on Constantinople (ghazw al-qustantīnīya): The raid on Constantinople and the conquest of this city is closely related to the vision of global war, which will immediately usher in the appearance of the Antichrist (al-Dajjāl). This Sign, thus, often falls within the Greater Signs. Traditions provide us with a lot of military details (e.g., the ramparts collapsing under the call Allāhu akbar) but they confirm that Muslims, immediately after the conquest of Constantinople, should realize that the Antichrist has just appeared, thus they will be forced to retreat into Syria (al-Shām).204 This Sign undoubtedly reflects the rich experiences of the early Community of believers, since clashes between Muslims and Byzantines were clearly described in the so called Acmāq cycle. “This cycle is fundamental to the study of Muslim apocalyptic, since the basic story line is repeated in most of the major traditions, or used as a hinge between stories.”205 The historical conquest of Constantinople (1453) was, in principle, regarded by Muslims as a just retribution for the destruction of Jerusalem’s

202 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 67.203 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 171.204 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 216.205 David Cook, Studies in Muslim Apocalyptic, 49. The Acmāq (“The Depths”) are the valleys

of northern Syria, between Hims and the Taurus Mountains, a frequently fought-over land between the two warring empires during the first centuries of Islam.


Temple. In the future, the apocalyptic conquest of the same city will be part of a great war (perhaps nuclear, as Hisham Kabbani suggests)206 between two Powers (East and West) that will erupt in the Middle East or in Central Asia. Therefore, this Sign has already been fulfilled and will once again be fulfilled (as in the case of Jerusalem; see § 4). The Prophet Muhammad predicted both conquests. The first one was pointed out in the hadīth: “Constantinople will surely be conquered. What a most splendid leader is the leader of the army that does so, and most splendid is that army.”207 Finally, the second conquest was supposedly foretold by the Prophet’s saying, narrated by Abū Hurayra: “The Hour will not appear until there will be two enormous groups fighting each other in colossal battle…”208

77. Tribes will follow idolaters (talhaq qabā’il bi-l-mushrikīn): The forecast says: “The Hour will not rise until tribes of my Ummah (the Community of believers) follow the polytheists in everything.” Tribes indicate Arabs and the word mushrik does not mean only idolaters but, in the Middle Ages, was a term that was also often used as a pejorative label for Christians. However, medieval scholars considered this Sign as having been fulfilled during the first Muslim expansion in the 7th century, when the Arabs conquered the Middle East. However, from a cultural perspective they were fully conquered by local inhabitants (mostly Christians). Modernists emphasize the fact that this Sign is still in the process of being fulfilled since Muslims continue to be seduced by Western pop culture. The same approach has been expressed by Kabbani: “Among the signs of the End Times is that Muslims will follow the unbelievers in all aspects of life.”209

78. The worship of idols (cibādat al-awthān): This prediction probably does not denote real idols, but rather refers to everything, apart from God, that people choose to worship. For most traditionalists, the Sign has been repeatedly fulfilled in the past from the time when people started visiting graves (ziyārāt) and engaging in the adoration of Sūfī masters (awliyā’). Sheikh al-Shacrāwī mentions, as a specific example, the Shiite pilgrimages to Husayn’s tomb in Cairo.210 As Salafī scholars, in principle, understand, this prediction refers mainly to the spread of Sufism. Modernists prefer a figurative reading and thus speak about a “cult of money” or a “consumerist way of life.”

206 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 186. See also Nazim Adil Al-Haqqani Naqshbandi, Mystical Secrets of the Last Days, 127.

207 Ibid., 184. The Prophet Muhammad even predicted the first, unsuccessful attempt by Muslims to conquer Constantinople when he stated that Abū Ayyūb al-Ansārī, his Companion, would die in the cold (an unusual prediction in Arabia), and Abū Ayyūb did, in fact, pass away in the cold during the siege (672).

208 Ibid., 184–185.209 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 101.210 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 219. Some Shiites even believe that eating

dust from the neighbourhood of the tomb can cure all their diseases.


79. The return of the tribe of Daws to the worship of Dhū al-khalasa (rujūc qabīlat daws li-cibādat dhī-l-khalasa): As the Prophet’s saying claims, the Hour will not arrive, until the posteriors of Daws women tremble when next to Dhū al-khalasa, which was a local idol worshipped in the form of a white stone in southern Arabia. Exegetes usually do not know how to understand this saying. According to Bayūmī, this Sign belongs to those still awaiting fulfilment and refers, in principle, to any return of mankind to forbidden practices (see also § 35).211 This Sign could be, perhaps, just a detail of § 77 and § 78.

80. The abandonment of the pilgrimage to the Kacba (tark al-hajj ilā bait allāh): This Sign, possibly, refers to the destruction of the Kacba during the campaign of the apocalyptic Abyssinian (see § 73), and in this case it should be classified as one of the Greater Signs. However, it might be understood also as a general reference to a decrease in piety and the decline of Islam.

81. The destruction of the Kacba (hadm bait al-harām): This destruction can be understood either in a material sense or from a spiritual perspective. In either case, the prognosis is closely connected with the previous one. The Qur’ān (28:57) refers to Mecca as a “secure sanctuary” (haraman āminan) and according to Sheikh al-Shacrāwī, such an indication is not inconsistent with the forecast about the destruction of the Kacba, since at the end of history the current order will no longer be valid. The world will be on the verge of destruction and nothing will be as before.212 According to Kabbani, this event definitely belongs to the Greater Signs of the Hour and therefore will occur after the appearance of Gog and Magog. Kabbani suggests that: “This will happen both figuratively and literally, with the final stage being the physical dismantlement of the Kacba.”213 From his perspective, the ideological “dismantlement” of the Kacba has already been brought about by the followers of the Wahhābī movement when they “destroyed the Kacba’s essence, which is the authentic understanding and teaching of Islam.”214 On the contrary, Abū al-Hasan al-Kisā’ī offers a literal interpretation: The Abyssinian’s soldiers will take away the Kacba, in order to throw it into the Red sea. A less frequent reading identifies this Sign with a specific historical event, the second fitna (680–692), since al-Qurtubī identifies Ibn Zubayr, the leader of the Meccan rebels, with “the Abyssinian” (al-Habashī). An alternative explanation was suggested by Harun

211 Muhammad Bayūmī, cAlāmāt yawm al-qiyāma al-sughrā, 61. The trembling of women’s posteriors allegedly refers to the crowding and hustling around this idol or to shaking during their transportation there on the backs of animals.

212 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 222.213 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 249. The Kacba will be destroyed after the

arrival of the Antichrist, because the Prophet Muhammad said: “There will be no place that the Dajjāl will not enter except Mecca and Medina.”

214 Ibid., 249.


Yahya, who identified the Abyssinian with Juhaymān al-cUtaybī, the leader of the Meccan uprising in 1979 (see § 73).

82. God will no longer be remembered on the earth (Lā yudhkaru Allāh fī al-ard): As this eloquent prediction claims, the Hour will not come until people no longer call out “Oh, God!” (Yā Allāh). Ibn Kathīr suggests two possible interpretations: 1) The decay will go so far that people will even forget the name of God (Allāh); 2) Although people will know the name of God, they will have no idea how to pronounce it. Al-Shacrāwī hesitates to determine which one is worse.215 As Anas ibn Mālik narrates, the one who clings to his religion on that day will be like one “who is grasping an ember of thorns.” The Prophet Muhammad said: “Truly the religion shall retreat and take refuge in the Hijāz, just like the snake returns to take refuge in its hole. In truth, the religion shall indeed find refuge in the Hijāz in the same manner that mountain-goats find refuge on the tops of mountains.”216 All these indications point, in fact, in the same direction: Islam began as an enigma and will become so once again.217

83. When the Hour approaches, most people will be Byzantines (taqūmu al-sāca wa al-rūm akthar al-nās): At the end of days, the number of Muslims will be small, while the number of infidels (here symbolized by Byzantines and Persians) will be large. According to al-Shacrāwī, this is currently true because the number of Christians (or non-Muslims in general) exceeds the number of Muslims.218 Kabbani believes that before the End the people of the West will enter Islamic countries in large numbers and he adds: “This is a moving statement for Muslims because it indicates that the hour is near.”219 Amīn Jamāl al-Dīn interpreted the reference to a majority of Byzantines (i.e., the Western powers) in terms of the Gulf War (1990–91) and stated that for the present the West and the Muslims are bound together in a secure treaty (hudna, see § 55) after having joined together to destroy Iraq. Therefore, the Acmāq traditions (see § 76) have recently been reinterpreted by some radical Muslim apocalyptists into a set of references linked to the anticipated “clash of civilizations.”220

84. The appearance of the Mahdī (khurūj al-mahdī):221 The coming of al-Mahdī concludes the Lesser Signs of the Hour and sees the beginning of the Greater ones, namely the episode called the first fitna (or fitnat al-dajjāl, i.e., the fitna of the

215 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 224.216 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 148.217 Ibid., 147. 218 Muhammad al-Shacrāwī, Ahdāth nihāyat al-cālam, 226.219 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 209.220 David Cook, Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature, 56.221 The Mahdī is the subject of a separate study, so for the sake of this paper, the topic has only

been briefly summarized.


Antichrist). The name Mahdī is derived from the verbal root h-d-y (to lead the right way) and although it is missing from the Qur’ān, his appearance was distinctly foretold by a great number of hadīths, both Sunni and Shiite (akhbār).222 Only the most conservative Muslims question his existence since he is not present in two of the most authoritative collections of the Tradition (sunna), written by al-Bukhārī and Muslim ibn Hajjāj.223 Nevertheless, for the vast majority of believers, the Mahdī is an inseparable part of their faith, although their opinions differ considerably on a series of specific questions. For example, numerous medieval sources offer long and incoherent lists of places from where the Mahdī and his followers will arise.224 Muslims generally believe that he will come from the East. The physical appearance of the Mahdī has been commented on in detail by many of the most prominent Islamic scholars, among them al-Qurtubī,225 Ibn Kathīr226 or al-Suyūtī.227 From their written heritage, we definitely know that the Mahdī will arise from the Prophet’s offspring, as the famous and extremely well authenticated hadīth (accepted even by Ibn Taymīya and al-Albānī) declares: “If this world has just one day remaining, God will extend that day until a man comes. He is from me, (or from my family). His name is like my name, (i.e., Muhammad), his father’s name is like my father’s name (i.e., cAbd Allāh). He fills the earth with equality and justice.”228 Moreover, the Mahdī’s reign will also bring welfare in all aspects of life.229 As we are repeatedly reminded, the Mahdī will also resemble the Prophet’s appearance. In general, Muslims believe that the Mahdī, together with Jesus (cĪsā), will face the apocalyptic hordes of Gog and Magog, in order to establish (for a short period) the rule of justice,

222 According to Kabbani, “some people, in ignorance, assert that the Mahdī is a Shia concept, and not part of traditional Sunni beliefs. On the contrary (…), the arrival of Mahdī is confirmed by many authentic narrations.” See Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 228.

223 Richard Landes, Encyclopedia of Millennialism and Millennial Movements, 188.224 For more details, see David Cook, Studies in Muslim Apocalyptic, 387–91. Among them, we

can find e.g., the following localities: Basra, Ahwāz, Tustar, cUmān, Sīrāf, Shīrāz, Isfahān, Hamadhān, Qumm, Khurāsān, Jurjān, Balkh, Samarqand, Qazwīn, Ardabīl, Tadmur, Wāsit, Kūfa, Saydā, etc.

225 As al-Qurtubī (d. 1273) noted in his treatise Al-tadhkira fī ahwāl al-mawtā wa umūr al-ākhira, the Mahdī will appear in the West, more specifically in Morocco, in order to firstly conquer al-Andalus.

226 Ibn Kathīr (d. 1373) consistently distinguishes between the Mahdī and the Shiite Hidden Imām. As he strongly believes, the Mahdī will appear shortly after the Euphrates uncovers golden treasure (see § 72).

227 Jalāl al-Dīn al-Suyūtī (d. 1505) expected the end of the world to occur around the year 1500 A.H. (= 2076–7) and his opinion has had a significant impact on modern apocalyptic speculations.

228 Hisham Kabbani, The Approach of Armageddon?, 228.229 Ibid., 234. In this respect, Kabbani goes into remarkable details: “Then, the earth will put forth

its full capacity to produce plants. Some descriptions say that the earth will yield watermelons of such strength that they will no longer grow on the ground, but on trees. (…) It will be a Golden Age, the best time for the Ummah.”


associated with the expected conversion of Christians to Islam.230 According to most commentators, the Mahdī will appear at the very end of a great war,231 culminating in the Muslim conquest of Constantinople (see § 83); i.e., earlier than the arrival of Jesus but later in relation to the Antichrist.232 From a Shiite perspective, the Mahdī is identical with their Hidden Imām, also referred to as the Master of Time. To be more accurate, many Sunni scholars (e.g., Nazim and Kabbani) also agree that the Mahdī, even now, lives secretly on the earth. Sunnis and Shiites understand the Mahdī in many different ways and for both streams of thought the Mahdī always personifies what they are missing in this world. Therefore, the dominant Sunnis always expected a humble and very human leader, while the persecuted Shiites longed for a triumphant hero. Throughout the modern apocalyptic, “Mahdī is, in essence, a projection of the powerful, dominating, messianic personality that the Muslim apocalyptist feels is most lacking in the world.”233 Although the Mahdī has to eliminate the “western tyranny,” his main enemies will be Muslim traitors. As modern apocalyptists (mostly Egyptians) often admit, the first country swearing allegiance to the Mahdī will be Egypt.234 The growing Islamic empire, then, will not be able to avoid war, in which the Muslims will face enormous opposition. Finally, they must win and thus unify the world under the reign of Islam. What is most remarkable is the comparison between the analytical verbosity devoted to most Signs leading up to this great finale, and the Mahdī’s reign of goodness and justice, which has attracted considerably less attention.235 In any case, the Mahdī’s

230 David Cook, Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature, 9.231 Ibid., 126–49. Contemporary Muslim apocalyptists, surprisingly, know a lot of details

concerning al-Mahdī’s rule and wars. Such “screenplays” are examined by David Cook in the chapter The Mahdi and World Conquest.

232 According to Sheikh Nazim, the Day of Judgement will occur fifty years after Armageddon, which should happen before the second coming of Jesus. He strongly believes that the Antichrist is, at this very moment, physically present on the earth, chained and imprisoned on an unknown island. Al-Mahdī “is going to appear after 101 hindrances. He must deal with all these before he can appear. This means that the time of his appearance must be absolutely perfect. 99 of the hindrances have passed away. Now only two of them remain. (...) One of them is the arrival of the red-coloured people in Afghanistan. (...) After this, World War III will come.” See Nazim Adil Al-Haqqani Naqshbandi, Mystical Secrets of the Last Days, 126.

233 David Cook, Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature, 126.234 Ibid., 130.235 The messianic period in modern apocalyptic literature is described vaguely and in many ways

it was inspired by the detested West. David Cook elaborates this point through reference to the example of the modern Egyptian thinker, Muhammad Dāwūd: “Da’ud’s vision of the messianic future is that of a benevolent dictatorship. His world is one of technological wonders, food for the poor, full employment for everyone, ecological and environmental sensitivity, and the spread of Islam. There is no democracy, and the Mahdi rules the entire world. (…) This is an entirely Western based fantasy, and there is no real Muslim part to it at all, with the single exception of domination and rule on their part. No classical Muslim society has ever looked like the Mahdi’s Empire nor has one ever even aspired to look like it.” See David Cook, Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature, 147.


appearance is an imaginary linking bolt which firmly connects the Lesser and the Greater Signs of the Hour into a monumental dramatic epic.236

Conclusion

When examining the modern Muslim apocalyptic, we should definitely not forget that there are many more common features which connect the contemporary and medieval apocalyptists of Islam than divide them. Despite the time gulf and the completely different ways of presentation, both sets of authors have been able to find and fruitfully utilize very similar tools in order to reach their objectives. First of all, we should emphasize that they have all remained fully aware of the necessity to focus on the higher goal of making earthly suffering more bearable. In this respect, the Islamic apocalyptists have sought to console and encourage, while, at the same time, to warn and frighten. And it is precisely through various apocalyptic screenplays that the Muslim apocalyptists (either medieval or contemporary) have sought to address their own contemporary societies that were, from their perspectives, thoroughly corrupt and therefore heading towards annihilation.

Moreover, the modern apocalyptists have attempted to support their visionary constructions not only through reference to classical Islamic sources (i.e., the sayings of the Prophet and direct or indirect references taken from the Qur’ān), but they have also been able to exploit a diverse range of non-Islamic (“Western”) components and inspirations. Among them, we can find various material elements (cars, electronic devices, etc.; see § 47; 69; 71), spiritual influences (e.g., the anti-Jewish conspiracy, pop culture trends; see § 21; 30; 64), but most commonly the generally well-known current phenomena (e.g., the media or modern means of transportation and communication; see § 31; 46–48, etc.). Both the medieval and the contemporary apocalyptic, in principle, reflect historical conditions, which might, quite easily, lead us to the misguided conviction that Islam is essentially an apocalyptic faith.237

The modern Muslim apocalyptists, consequently, have been able to revive the topic, traditionally considered as being too academic and “remote” for the common reader. As David Cook reminds us, “Muslim apocalyptic literature was surrendered into the hands of hadith specialists some thirteen centuries ago. Since that time it has sat dead and cold, repeated and commented on by the hadith commentators who have carefully denuded it of all real life and pushed its relevance far into the distant future. That future, however, is today; it is now. The bill they refused to pay is now due, and thanks to their procrastination, others have gladly taken over the payment

236 The Greater Signs of the Hour usually consist of ten issues: 1) Smoke covers the earth; 2) The Antichrist (al-Dajjāl); 3) The Beast of the Earth (al-Dābba); 4) The rising of the sun in the west; 5) The return of Jesus (cĪsā); 6) Gog and Magog; 7–9) A triple solar eclipse (in the East; in the West; in Arabia); 10) The fire before Doomsday.

237 David Cook, Studies in Muslim Apocalyptic, 312.


of it.”238 The contemporary Muslim apocalyptic visions, therefore, have not been born as an “academic product” of a passive society. On the contrary, they seek to address and mobilize all believers in order that they might change themselves before the arrival of the Day of Judgment. Therefore, their authors definitely cannot be accused of any detachment from reality, since in a number of specific examples their innovative and contemporary ways of interpretation have been depicted and examined.

The modern apocalyptists, whether conservatives and modernists (called the radical school) or neoconservatives,239 have gladly taken any opportunity to moralize and warn, as has been repeatedly mentioned above (see, e.g., § 11; 12; 15; 17; 19; 21; 22, etc.). In analyzing various referenced examples of moral decay that will be witnessed before the End, apocalyptists have often emphasized that this is not merely a portent of the approaching Hour but is, at the same time, a powerful stimulus for the spiritual improvement of believers – and also a serious justification for their decision to write. The crucial theme of all “apocalyptic screenplays” is namely fighting, in all its various forms: fights against their own vices and sins, or fights with the internal and external enemies of the Community of believers.

Readers of the Muslim apocalyptic, in general, are still attracted by the expectation of a great messianic Empire, but simultaneously they are much more frightened by the never-ending visions of current or expected enemies and threats (see, e.g., § 42; 44; 52; 55; 59; 60; 63; 65). Such a genre of literature can easily address the masses, since these narratives are comprehensible, denouncing the well-known ills of society. However, they are also able to offer hope and establish conviction in relation to the meaningfulness of human suffering. In the last days, all manifestations of misery will exceed current boundaries, since before the End everything will reach extremes: good and evil, quantity and quality, dynamics and intensity (see, e.g., § 58; 59; 62; 63; 68; 82). Time will contract (see § 31) and the end of history will be accompanied by many exaggerations.

Although the modern Muslim apocalyptic exploits a lot of “western borrowings” (see § 31; 54; 69; 71), the Islamic vision of the Empire of Good (see § 84) differs considerably from the Christian one. Here, we should remind ourselves, that this common apocalyptic objective is not as clearly elaborated as the process by which it will be achieved. From the modern apocalyptic writings, in general, we can easily feel that the Journey is much more important than the Target itself. The medieval apocalyptists were in a way “historians of the future”; nevertheless, their works never became the instigation for any messianic uprising, no matter how much such an idea might have been attractive and realistic.240 The apocalyptic screenplays have never played the role of social catalyst, but rather they have often helped, in retrospect, to justify and explain contemporary problems or tensions. And the same

238 David Cook, Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature, 214.239 Ibid., 13–18.240 David Cook, Studies in Muslim Apocalyptic, 325.


statement fully applies to the modern apocalyptists, since although they seek to denounce and warn, until now they have not become the stimulus for any form of social disturbance.241

In current Islamic discourse, the subject of the apocalyptic has become a battlefield, where the modernists (or radicals), lacking any religious education, are able to effectively face up to the conservative (or neoconservative) Muslim scholars, who are considerably cautious when dealing with any apocalyptical hadīth, because they have always been easy to misinterpret and therefore present a significant danger. The vast majority of the Prophet’s sayings, recorded by Nucaym ibn Hammād al-Marwazī in his classical volume Kitāb al-fitan, cannot be found in the canonical six collections of the Sunna. A fair amount of suspicion and caution towards apocalyptic predictions is also apparent today, not only on the part of the Islamic authorities (al-Azhar, Saudi universities, etc.), but also from the perspective of opposition thinkers (as was the case of Sayyid Qutb, executed in 1966). In this respect, however, huge differences exist among individual Muslim countries. While in Egypt apocalyptic literature enjoys great popularity and the official authorities do not interfere to its publication and distribution, the Saudi regime, quite consistently, suppresses these sorts of publication.

In any case, modern Muslim apocalyptic literature is an illustrative example of how Islam is able to successfully address new opportunities or challenges and how flexibly it is able to integrate the above mentioned western borrowings and novelties into classical religious patterns. Thus, the contemporary writings on the portents of the End definitely cannot be regarded as an anachronism, since they are surprisingly vibrant and adaptable. By reviewing specific examples, we are able to clearly examine how Islam is currently experiencing its own challenges. Through research in the field of the apocalyptic, we are in a position to answer the fundamental question: What exactly does contemporary Islam stand for?

The flexibility of the modern apocalyptists enables them to attract a lot of new readers to this religious subject, providing them with unexpected theories and thrilling prose, so rarely available in other “Islamic genres.” This apparent primacy, however, can easily be misused; this fact should not be forgotten. In his concluding essay on the Islamic apocalyptic, David Cook clearly expresses his conviction as to the fundamental importance of the millennial expectations of medieval Muslims: “Though ultimately Islam as a whole did not treat apocalyptic favourably, the scholar, after a judicious examination of this material, should be able to come to the conclusion that here we have material that, when first used, provided one of the principal sources of the energy needed to conquer the enormous territory conquered by the Muslims during the first century of Islam, and to establish it as a vital religion. Without this sense of complete self-confidence, this venture would have failed. This material proves that the power that drove the first Muslims was

241 Jean-Pierre Filiu, Apocalypse in Islam, 193.


the belief that they were living in the last days, and had to accomplish these things before the Day of Judgment.”242

Nowadays, once again, Muslims believe that they are living in the last days, but until now nobody is certain as to the future results of such apocalyptic conviction. At the very least, we can definitely expect the further development of apocalyptic writing and this might help us to better understand the essence of this remarkable phenomenon.

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Documents

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