Even if people who love Mr. Adnan Oktar refer to him as the “Mahdi,” there is no question of him ever agreeing. Hazrat Mahdi (as) will never, throughout his life, allow himself to be called the Mahdi. And as a believer preparing the way for Hazrat Mahdi (as), Mr. Oktar will never allow such a thing to be said of himself. In addition, Mr. Oktar has many times stated that he will never permit himself to be called the Mahdi. However, it appears from some people’s comments on this subject that they prefer the subject of Hazrat Mahdi (as) to be kept as vague as possible, rather than clear and explicit, and to avoid the question of the way of the Mahdi.
More than 200 portents of the coming of Hazrat Mahdi (as) foretold by our Prophet (saas) in the hadiths have taken place one after the other in the last 30 years as of Hijri 1400. Since all these signs have come about, all Muslims must seek Hazrat Mahdi (as) in the light of these. Our Prophet (saas) cited these signs in order for us Muslims to find Hazrat Mahdi (as). Our Prophet (saas) gave detailed instructions. The hadiths contain detailed instructions, in terms of time, place, individuals and events, and when these are all combined together they point the way to Hazrat Mahdi (as). Our Prophet (saas) practically said, “go and find that blessed individual there.” If Muslims ignore this detailed description, then they are failing to properly evaluate the address given by the Prophet (saas).
For example, the attack on and bloodshed at the Kaaba in 1979, the invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, the stopping of the Euphrates for the first time ever in 1979, the Iran-Iraq War in 1980, the solar and lunar eclipses at 15-day intervals in the month of Ramadan in 1986, the appearance of Halley’s comet in 1986 and the sighting of the comet Lulin in 2009 are all chronological indications regarding the coming of Hazrat Mahdi (as). Geographical signs indicating Hazrat Mahdi (as) are the discovery of the sacred relics alongside Hazrat Mahdi (as) in Istanbul, and a column of fire so bright that even the blind could see it following the explosion of a tanker in 1979, again in Istanbul. Signs revealed by our Prophet (saas) regarding Hazrat Mahdi’s (as) physical appearance are his being attractive with a fine nose, a black mark on his right leg, a mole on his forehead, a scar on his brow, a leaf-shaped mark on his shoulder, his shoulders being broad, there being a single furrow between his eyebrows, his teeth being bright, a pale mole on his cheek, the sign of the prophethood on his shoulder, his having black hair, a broad body, wide thighs and curved eyebrows. Bediüzzaman also provides instructions for finding Hazrat Mahdi (as) in terms of his activities; his intellectual demolition of Darwinist, materialist philosophy, his spreading the faith on the basis of evidence, his protecting believers against perversion, his serving Islam by forming an alliance with Christian clergy and his establishing Islamic Union.
Sincere Muslims must look at all these directions given by our Prophet (saas) and say, “Yes, I am aware of these and am seeking Hazrat Mahdi (as) in their light.” Then it will be clear they are acting honestly and genuinely. But if they say, “I am not seeking Hazrat Mahdi (as), for which reason I attach no importance to these hadiths, and in my opinion Mr. Oktar cannot be the Mahdi [a claim that Mr. Oktar has never, ever made]” then their honesty may perhaps be questioned. Because according to the Qur’an and the hadiths, Islam will come to rule in the age in which we are living and Muslims will clearly be seen to have a leader. According to the verses of the Qur’an and the hadiths, it is a religious obligation to believe in and desire the global dominion of Islam. Muslims’ leader during that dominion will be Hazrat Mahdi (as).
One of the glad tidings imparted by Allah in the Qur’an is the return to earth of the Prophet Jesus (as) in this century. Our Lord says that the Prophet Jesus (as) will appear near the Day of Reckoning and commands us to believe in and follow him:
"He is a Sign of the Hour. Have no doubt about it. But follow me. This is a straight path.” (Surat az-Zukhruf, 61)
In another verse He reveals that when the Prophet Jesus (as) returns there will be nobody on earth who does not believe in him. This clearly and explicitly refers to the dominion of Islam over all the earth.
"There is not one of the People of the Book who will not believe in him before he dies; and on the Day of Rising he will be a witness against them.” (Surat an-Nisa’, 159)
When the Prophet Jesus (as) comes, he and Hazrat Mahdi (as) will wage an intellectual struggle against the antichrist (dajjal), and they will neutralize the antichrist through that struggle, thus bringing about the global dominion of Islam. In verse 55 of Surat an-Nur, Allah reveals that Islam will rule the world and that Muslims will live in peace and security:
Allah has promised those of you who believe and do right actions that He will make them successors in the land as He made those before them successors, and will firmly establish for them their religion with which He is pleased and give them, in place of their fear, security. ‘They worship Me, not associating anything with Me.’ Any who are unbelievers after that, such people are deviators. (Surat an-Nur, 55)
In conclusion, according to these verses of the Qur’an, the hadiths and the words of Bediüzzaman Said Nursi, Muslims must say, “Hazrat Mahdi (as) must come, and I am seeking him in the light of the descriptions provided and wish to follow him.” However, some Muslims appear not to have adopted this sincere attitude. These people are foolishly trying to gloss over the subject of the way of the Mahdi. This is a technique of the antichrist’s. Because Hazrat Mahdi (as) is the diametric opposite of the antichrist and he will intellectually annihilate the antichrist. For that reason, the antichrist will dislike Hazrat Mahdi (as) and seek to eliminate his influence. He will first try to eliminate him intellectually, and then, if that fails, through insults. When he is unable to overcome him with knowledge, he will then resort to a psychological campaign. He will suggest that, “Hazrat Mahdi (as) is a collective personality, a spirit, he will not come at all, do not believe the signs related in the hadiths, do not seek Hazrat Mahdi (as).” But it is clear that believers who follow our Prophet (saas), who take the Qur’an as their guide, who wish to see the global dominion of Islam right away and who strive to that end will never be taken in by this sly conditioning on the part of the antichrist. Sincere believers will recognize Hazrat Mahdi (as) when he comes, by Allah’s leave, by looking at the directions left by our Prophet (saas), and will identify that luminous individual through the light of faith.
