Throughout the course of history, people who have wished to disseminate immorality and corruption on Earth have employed the technique of slandering true believers who called them to the true path. This method was employed against the Prophet Noah (as), the Prophet Solomon (as), the Prophet Moses (as), the Prophet Muhammad (saas), and all of Allah’s messengers and those around them. However, by Allah’s will, it never succeeded in achieving its aims, and the slanders uttered never harmed these worthy individuals. Allah always protected His devout servants against them. One of the examples given in this regard in the Qur’an is that of the Prophet Moses (as):
You who believe! Do not be like those who abused Moses. Allah absolved him of what they said and he was highly honored with Allah. You who believe! Fear Allah and speak words which hit the mark. (Surat al-Ahzab, 69-70)
The fact that all the messengers and prophets sent throughout history have faced the same situation shows that the slanders directed against Hazrat Mahdi (as), verbal or physical attacks, are an important portent regarding the End Times.
In the same way that the slanders against Muslims in the past failed to achieve their objectives, however, so those uttered in order to hinder the Prophet Jesus (as) and Hazrat Mahdi (as) in their work of spreading Qur’anic moral values among all mankind will, by Allah’s leave, also be ineffective. In one verse Allah reveals the situation of those who set traps for believers:
And likewise in every city We set up its greatest wrongdoers to plot in it. They plot against themselves alone, but they are not aware of it. (Surat al-An‘am, 123)
The hadiths of our Prophet (saas) also contain indications that the slanders against Hazrat Mahdi (as) and his community will be ineffective, and that all this will merely enhance that holy community’s enthusiasm, excitement and devotion to the religion of Allah. In one hadith our Prophet (saas) describes this characteristic of that blessed community in these terms:
After you, the most auspicious of Muslims [the congregation of Hazrat Mahdi (as)] will emerge to strive against them, and these are the people of Islam, who fear no condemnation or slander on the path of Allah...(Sunan Ibn Majah, 10/259)
All this goes to show that devout believers should not be alarmed in the face of the slanders uttered either against them or against other believers, and that Muslims should not be suspicious of one another. What the believer needs to do is to evaluate every event, every verbal and physical onslaught from the unbelievers, according to the perspective revealed in the Qur’an. All contemporary believers must exhibit the same submission as the patient and moderate approach adopted in the face of slander by Allah’s messengers and those around them in the past. Thinking in this way, in the light of the verses of the Qur’an, will by Allah’s leave be a means whereby the obstacles to people recognizing Hazrat Mahdi (as) are lifted.
The Sorcery Slander
We sent Moses with Our signs and clear authority to Pharaoh, Haman and Qarun. But they said, “A lying magician.” (Surah Ghafir, 23-24)
Equally, no messenger came to those before them without their saying, “A magician or a madman!” Did they bequeath this to each other? Indeed they are an unbridled people. (Surat adh-Dhariyat, 52-53)
Do people find it so surprising that We should reveal to a man among them: “Warn mankind and give good news to those who believe that they are on a sure footing with their Lord”? The unbelievers say, “This is downright magic!” (Surah Yunus, 2)
The Falsehood Slander
Pharaoh said, “Council, I do not know of any other god for you apart from me. Haman, kindle a fire for me over the clay and build me a lofty tower so that perhaps I may be able to climb up to Moses’ god! I consider him a blatant liar.” (Surat al-Qasas, 38)
They are surprised that a warner should come to them from among themselves. The unbelievers say, “This is a lying magician.” Has he turned all the gods into One God? That is truly astonishing!” (Surah Sad, 4-5)
Thamud denied the warnings. They said, “Are we to follow a human being, one of us? Then we would truly be misguided, quite insane! Has the Reminder been given to him of all of us? No indeed! He is an impudent liar.” ‘They will know tomorrow who the impudent liar is. (Surat al-Qamar, 23-26)
The ruling circle of those of his people who disbelieved said, “We consider you a fool and think you are a liar.” He [Hud] said, “My people, I am by no means a fool, but rather am a messenger from the Lord of all the worlds, transmitting my Lord’s message to you, and I am a faithful counselor to you.” (Surat al-A‘raf, 66-68)
The Madness Slander
Or is it that they do not recognize their messenger and therefore do not acknowledge him? Or do they say, “He is a man possessed,” when he has brought the truth to them? But most of them hate the truth. (Surat al-Muminun, 69-70)
They say, “You, to whom the Reminder has been sent down, are clearly mad.” (Surat al-Hijr, 6)
Those who disbelieve all but strike you down with their evil looks when they hear the Reminder and say, “He is quite mad.” (Surat al-Qalam, 51)
But then they turned away from him and said, “He is an instructed madman!” (Surat ad-Dukhan, 14)
The ruling circle of those of his people who disbelieved said, “We consider you a fool and think you are a liar.” (Surat al-A‘raf, 66)
[The ruling circle of Noah’s people said,] “He is nothing but a man possessed so wait a while and see what happens to him.” He [Noah] said, “My Lord, help me because of their calling me a liar!” (Surat al-Muminun, 25-26)
Before them the people of Noah denied the truth. They denied Our servant, saying, “He is madman,” and he was driven away with jeers. (Surat al-Qamar, 9)
He [Pharaoh] said, “This messenger, who has been sent to you, is mad.” (Surat ash-Shu‘ara’, 27)
But he turned away with his forces, saying, “A magician or a madman!” So We seized him and his armies and hurled them into the sea, and he was to blame. (Surat adh-Dhariyat, 39-40)
We know how they listen when they listen to you, and when they confer together secretly, and when the wrongdoers say, “You are only following a man who is bewitched!” (Surat al-Isra’, 47)
They said, “You are merely someone bewitched. You are nothing but a human being like ourselves, so produce a Sign if you are telling the truth.” (Surat ash-Shu‘ara’, 153-154)
... The wrongdoers say, “You are merely following a man who is bewitched.” (Surat al-Furqan, 8)
The Perversion Slander
They said, “These two magicians desire by their magic to expel you from your land and abolish your most excellent way of life, so decide on your scheme and then arrive together in force. He who gains the upper hand today will definitely prosper.” (Surah Ta Ha, 63-64)
Pharaoh said, “Let me kill Moses and let him call upon his Lord! I am afraid that he may change your religion and bring about corruption in the land.” (Surah Ghafir, 26)
The ruling circle of his people said, “We see you in flagrant error.” (Surat al-A‘raf, 60)
Those who did evil used to laugh at those who believed. When they passed by them, they would wink at one another. When they returned to their families, they would make a joke of them. When they saw them, they would say, “Those people are misguided.” (Surat al-Mutaffifin, 29-32)
Unbelievers’ Mockery and Hate-Filled Words
The ruling circle of those of his people who disbelieved said, “We do not see you as anything but a human being like ourselves. We do not see anyone following you but the lowest of us, unthinkingly. We do not see you as superior to us. On the contrary, we consider you to be liars.” (Surah Hud, 27)
Pharaoh called to his people, saying, “My people, does the kingdom of Egypt not belong to me? Do not all these rivers flow under my control? Do you not then see? Am I not better than this man who is contemptible and can scarcely make anything clear?” (Surat az-Zukhruf, 51-52)
In that way he made fools of his people and they succumbed to him. They were a people of deviators. Then when they had provoked Our wrath, We took revenge on them and drowned every one of them. We made them a thing of the past, an example for later peoples. (Surat az-Zukhruf, 54-56)
The Slander of Pride and Arrogance
Thamud denied the warnings. They said, “Are we to follow a human being, one of us? Then we would truly be misguided, quite insane! Has the Reminder been given to him of all of us? No indeed! He is an impudent liar.” They will know tomorrow who the impudent liar is. (Surat al-Qamar, 23-26)
The Slander That They Sought Their Own Advantage and Self-Interest
They said [to Moses], “Have you come to us to turn us from what we found our fathers doing, and to gain greatness in the land? We do not believe you.” (Surah Yunus, 78)
... “This is nothing but a human being like yourselves who simply wants to gain ascendancy over you.” (Surat al-Muminun, 24)
The Slander That They Threatened the Public Peace and Security
He [Pharaoh] said to the High Council round about him, “This certainly is a skilled magician who desires by his magic to expel you from your land, so what do you recommend?” (Surat ash-Shu‘ara’, 34-35)
Pharaoh said, “Have you believed in him before I authorized you to do so? This is just some plot you have concocted in the city to drive its people from it.” (Surat al-A‘raf, 123)
The Slander Against the Prophet Joseph (as)
And then when he [Joseph] became a full-grown man, We gave him knowledge and right judgment too. That is how We reward all doers of good. The woman whose house it was solicited him. She barred the doors and said, “Come over here!” He said, “Allah is my refuge! He is my lord and has been good to me with where I live. Those who do wrong will surely not succeed.” She wanted him and he would have wanted her, had he not seen the Clear Proof of his Lord. That happened so We might avert from him all evil and lust. He was Our chosen servant. They raced to the door. She tore his shirt at the back. They met her husband by the door. She said, “How should a man whose intention was to harm your family be punished for what he did except with prison or painful punishment?” (Surah Yusuf, 22-25)
She said, “You see! It’s him you blamed me for. I tried seducing him but he refused. If he does not do what I order him, he will be put in prison and brought low.” (Surah Yusuf, 32)
The Slander against Mary (as)
Mention Mary in the Book, how she withdrew from her people to an eastern place, and veiled herself from them. Then We sent Our Spirit to her and it took on for her the form of a handsome, well-built man. She said, “I seek refuge from you with the All-Merciful if you guard against evil.” He said, “I am only your Lord’s messenger so that He can give you a pure boy.” She said, “How can I have a boy when no man has touched me and I am not an unchaste woman?” He said, “It will be so! Your Lord says, ‘That is easy for Me. It is so that We can make him a sign for mankind and a mercy from Us.’ It is a matter already decreed.” (Surah Maryam, 16-21)
She brought him to her people, carrying him. They said, “Mary! You have done an unthinkable thing! Sister of Aaron, your father was not an evil man nor was your mother an unchaste woman!” (Surah Maryam, 27-28)
Since all the slanders in the above verses and more are reported in hadiths and the words of great Islamic scholars, they will also be made against Hazrat Mahdi (as). Accusations of madness, falsehood, perversion, self-interest, and turning people away from the true path may cause the public to form a negative impression of this holy individual. It is indicated in the hadiths that because of this fear, unease and uncertainty people will keep their distance from Hazrat Mahdi (as).
