LOOKING FOR THE MAHDI
The Prophet SAW said: “Al-Mahdi will be of my stock, and will have a broad forehead, a prominent nose. He will fill the earth with equity and justice as it was filled with oppression and tyranny, and he will rule for seven years.” (Abu Dawud)
Asalamu’alaikum wa Rahmatulahi wa Barakatahu,
A common topic of discussion in our home is the Mahdi and his coming. We speak of him almost every day and have read many books and watched many lectures on the End of Times (please see the message and links at the end of this blog) and the Prophecies that the Prophet Muhammad SAW left us to recognize these times, the coming of the Mahdi, the Dajjal, and the return of Esa AS. These prophecies are exciting, and they are extremely interesting, especially when you see the state of the world and see how the prophecies are coming true! But it is extremely important not to use these as entertainment or just to pass some time, they were given to us to recognize the time we live in and what we should expect and what is expected of us, Insha’Allah. I hope to write more about the End of Times, but I thought a good place to start would be with introducing the Mahdi, as he is the first to emerge and the one we have to look out for and prepare to join, Insha’Allah. This is not an in-depth study, but I hope to make more people, especially kids, interested in him, so that they will study more and take advantage of all the amazing lectures and series people have produced.
Who is the Mahdi?
Mahdi in Arabic means “The Chosen Awaited One.” The Prophet (SAW) said “His Name will be my name and his fathers name will be my father’s name,” so his name is Muhammad ibn Abdullah and he will have another name of the Prophet (SAW). That name is Ahmad, meaning the praiseworthy. This means that Mahdi is his title, but his real name is Muhammad ibn Abdullah.
He will have a large forehead and an aquiline nose. It is reported in ibn Majah by Ali ibn Abi Talib “he will represent the Prophet in character, but not in looks.” He will be from the linage of the Prophet SAW. Some scholars say he is from the lineage of Hassan ibn Ali RA, because he gave up the khalifah, so Allah SWT will return it to his linage.
The Events before his appearance
There will be two major events that will happen before the emergence of Mahdi:
- There will be total chaos and destruction in the world. There is a Hadith that state that there will be destruction in the world and when the Mahdi comes there will be total peace. (Please see the very first Hadith in this blog under the title)
- There will be three sons or princes of a Caliph and they will fight over the kingdom. The Messenger of Allah (SAW) said: “Three people will fight over your treasure. All three will be sons of Khulafa (kings). This will not come into the hands of any of them. Then black flags will appear in the east. They will fight with you in a way that nobody has fought with you before.” Then the Prophet (sal Allahu alaihi wa sallam) said something. Then he said: “When you see them then give the pledge of allegiance to them even if you have to crawl over snow to reach them. Because he will be Allah’s Khalifa Mahdi.” (Bukhari, Muslim, Tirmidhi, Ahmad, Ibn Majah)
What will happen when he comes?
He will be in Madinah. Allah will change him to be the Leader of the Muslims in those difficult times. This will happen in the course of one night and Allah will purify him and grant him knowledge of leadership and faith according to the Hadith. There will be Muslims that will be awaiting the Mahdi to lead them. As soon as he knows he is being looked for and what is to come, he will run to Makkah and those people will follow him. He will hide in the Kabah and the Muslims will come to take him out. Then between the Maqam and the Black Stone they will give allegiance to the Mahdi. The Mahdi will first refuse to take it and they will threaten to kill him if he doesn’t take their allegiance. At this, he will take it and become the Leader of the Muslims.
Then an army with black flags will come to join the Mahdi and become his army. The Prophet SAW said, “When you see them then give the pledge of allegiance to them even if you have to crawl over snow to reach them. Because he will be Allah’s Khalifa, the Mahdi.” Mahdi will have many opponents across the world. There will be a great army that will come to fight the Mahdi from Syria. They will stay in Baydah and Allah SWT will make the earth swallow them up at once. The army of Mahdi and his power will continue to grow, people will join him from far and wide (May Allah make us and our families of those, Ameen)!
The Mahdi will rule over the world for seven years and no poverty or oppression will exist. Everything will be peaceful and just. On the eighth year the Dajjal will appear, many people will fall under his deception and a great army will rise from him. The Mahdi will fight the forces of the Dajjal for a long time. He will not win until Esa ibn Maryam AS appears, because the prophecies say that only Esa AS can defeat the Dajjal.
After a long and hard fight, the Mahdi will land in Damascus in the mosque with the white minaret (as we know from a Hadith). It will be Fajr time and the Iqama will be called. Suddenly, two Angels will descend from the heavens with Esa ibn Maryam AS leaning on their shoulders. The Mahdi will ask him to lead the prayer and Esa AS will refuse saying, “No, the Iqama was given for you.” Esa AS will pray behind the Mahdi and will go on to kill the Dajjal after the Salah, who will wait outside the Mosque’s doors to attack the Muslims inside. After this the Mahdi is not mentioned in the Ahadith. Esa AS will take over as the leader of the Muslims.
What is the importance of knowing about the Mahdi?
To know the Mahdi is very important. If we know the signs and timeline of his coming then we will be prepared and recognize him. The Muslim Ummah should know the signs of the End of Times as told to us by our Prophet Muhammad SAW, because they are already occurring and when we see the state of the world today, we can see that the first sign of the coming of the Mahdi is very close. Muslims should know about the Mahdi like they know about their fathers and brothers, so that they will not hesitate in knowing him when they hear he has come. We also have to study the Qur’an and Ahadith closely, as well as the Seerah, so that we will have proper Tawheed and the Iman to give our lives in support of the Mahdi and fight alongside him, even if we have crawl on snow to get to him.
We should also be physically and mentally healthy and strong, so that we can face the hardships and strain that will come with the coming time. This means having a proper diet, working on the land and with animals, being active, learning how to protect ourselves (mind and body), be careful about what we watch and listen to, careful about the company we keep, spending time on studying Islam deeply and practicing Dhikr (it will be our sustenance in the time of Dajjal after all, according to the Hadith), helping the less fortunate, and always speaking for justice, Insha’Allah. We must also speak of the Mahdi to children every day and motivate them to be ready to join him and all strive together to be part of the first people to give him bayah, Insha’Allah.
We Muslims do not take these prophecies seriously. We think of them like stories to share and wonder over, but this knowledge has no use if we do not believe it and prepare for this coming time. If we are weak, follow the ways of this Dunya, take Islam as rituals, and think that these are just stories, we will fall into the traps of Dajjal very easily and will lose the glory of standing with the Mahdi in this world and will definitely hurt our chances of a good end in the Hereafter.
These prophecies are so important that the Prophet SAW stood and spoke about the End of Times from Dhuhr to Asr. And, when they finished praying Asr, he would stand back up and spoke from Asr to Maghreb. Hours upon hours he would speak and make sure that the Sahabah RA knew what the coming time would bring and what we should do, Alhamdulillah.
May Allah guide us and make us strong in our Faith, may He make us those that recognize Mahdi and stand with him, may He make us those who do not hesitate to give our time, energy, and lives in His Way, and may He always keep us working for his love and pleasure, Ameen.
Please share this blog with your family and friends, so that we may all know who the Mahdi is and join him when he emerges, Insha’Allah. Imagine the reward for those who inspire even one to join him!
Warning: The Mahdi is not an easy Google search. There is much fitnah when it comes to this topic and people have put out videos, blogs, books, and articles that are not authentic and outright lies. Please be very careful about the resources that you use and please make sure that you only go with authentic information from the Qur’an and Sahih Sunnah, Insha’Allah. I have added some links below. These are genuine and will give only proven knowledge, Insha`Allah. Jazakum’Allahu Khayran.
The End Series – Ustadh Bilal Assad
http://thechoice.one/end-series-bilal-assad/
Dajjal’s History by Shaykh Hamza Yusuf
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=gVFCfquk6ME&app=desktop
Fitna Of Ad-Dajjal – Shaykh Muhammad Abdul Jabbar
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFNPAnxcd3g&list=PL515Y5Z2YDkRtQbKzLzw3fWW6EhWxJAI-&index=18
Signs of THE END of The World – Shaykh Hamza Yusuf
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZn8sWvWIJQ&app=desktop
Imam Al-Mahdi & The Return Of The Caliphate
http://thechoice.one/imam-al-mahdi-the-return-of-the-caliphate/
Seerah based on The Sealed Nectar by Ustadh Muhammad al Bizry
http://thechoice.one/seerah-based-on-the-sealed-nectar-by-muhammad-al-bizry/
Tafhim-ul-Qur’an – The Meaning of the Qur’an (English Tafsir)
http://thechoice.one/maududi-tafhim-ul-quran-english-tafsir-the-meaning-of-the-quran/
The End Of The World: Major And Minor Signs Of The Hour