The End Times and Glad Tidings for the Ahlal-Sunnah
Our Prophet (saas) told us that the time preceding the Day of Resurrection will be one of an ever-increasing number of wars, conflict, chaotic situations, injustice, oppressive measures, and discord; a time when the whole world will be swept into tremendous chaos. This hard period, in turn, will be the harbinger of the coming Golden Age when justice, peace, security, love, tolerance, and prosperity will be supreme.
He has also announced that this time will be one of glad tidings for the Ahl al-Sunnah. The End Times, when Islam will be restored after a period of its wrong practice, is clearly being lived right now in a plain and open manner. Every tiding made by the Prophet (saas) over 1,400 years ago has come true and continue to do so.
According to the Prophet (saas), the first stage will be when great strife will occur among humanity due to the evils of atheism and various philosophical systems that encourage the denial of faith. Humanity will be removed from the purpose of its creation and thus enter a period of spiritual emptiness and moral degradation. Great disasters, wars, and pains will start happening, and everyone will look for an answer to the query of “How can we be saved?”
The signs of the End Times, which have been foretold in the hadiths, are all being realized rapidly in our own day. For example, the fact that wars, conflict, terror, violence, anarchy, and chaos are continuously on the increase is nothing but a manifestation that we are living through the first stage.
According to the hadiths, Allah (swt) will save humanity from this dark age and then usher in a great time of liberation. He will send a righteous servant of His, known as the Mahdi, who will guide humanity, now caught up in a state of degeneration and far removed from Allah’s (swt) beautiful morality, to the right path. The explanations of Islamic scholars indicate that he will shoulder three great responsibilities: ensure that all philosophical systems denying Allah’s (swt) existence and supporting atheism are intellectually defeated, turn Islam back to its essence as defined in the Qur’an and the Sunnah, and resolve the discord besetting humanity during this first stage of the end of times. In other words, he will be a means for ending all kinds of social difficulties and establishing peace, security, and a beautiful morality. Third, he will unify the fragmented Islamic world.
Another glad tiding of the End Times is the fact that Isa (as), a blessed prophet of Allah (swt), will return to Earth. His second coming is reported in verses from the Qur’an, the hadiths of the Prophet (saas), and in works by eminent Islamic scholars in such a way as to leave no room for doubt as to its veracity.
Isa (as) will call upon the Jews and Christians to abandon their superstitious beliefs and accept the life ordained by the Qur’anic morality. When the Christians obey Isa (as), the Muslim and Christian worlds will unite in one single faith and, subsequently, a golden age of peace, security, happiness, and prosperity will envelop the world.
Many hadiths state that Isa (as), in conjunction with the Mahdi, will defeat the perfidious system of ideas propagated by the Dajjal (the anti-Christ) and will, with Allah’s (swt) help, establish a happy era when the Qur’anic morality will be all-enveloping. This era will last longer than half a century and will be a time comparable to the Age of Happiness, when the Prophet (saas) was alive. The fact that the Prophet (saas) described this era in terms comparable to the delights of Paradise is the reason why it will be called the Golden Age. With Allah’s (swt) permission, during this period humanity will live in complete security. Every kind of collapse, confusion, and affliction experienced in the first stage of the End Times will disappear, and consecutive disasters, wars, and catastrophes will end. Philosophical systems that deny Allah’s (swt) existence and thereby cause degeneration, moral emptiness, and spiritual decay will be replaced by a happy time during which the Qur’anic morality will rule supreme. All believing people have hoped for this era for centuries. Our Lord will save humanity from the great chaos of the End Times and bestow prosperity, affluence, and justice upon all people.
Glad Tidings of the Prophet (saas) Regarding the End Times
The Prophet’s (saas) hadiths speak of the blessings that will arise in these years. For example, this will be a time of great affluence, prosperity, and wealth. All that one needs to survive will be available in such great numbers that it will be impossible to count them. Even the smallest problems will disappear, as well as any kind of want or poverty.
The abundance of products:
All of the planet’s riches will appear, and the fields will yield a great surplus. Some of the hadiths that announce the abundance of blessings in this era are as follows:
“Allah will raise a man from my descendants. As a result of his untiring efforts, Allah’s Earth, just as it was replete with cruelty and oppression, will be full of justice. Those in the heavens will be happy with it and those on Earth too. In fact, it will grow whatever crop it should grow. Similarly, the heaven will not retain rain drops as treasures, but will shower them down. And the brave man will live among the men for seven years, or eight years, or nine years.” (Mustadrak Hakim, Kanz al-`Ummal [Kitab al-Qiyamat])
“During this (period), my ummah will lead a kind of comfortable and carefree life that they have never known before. (The land) will bring forth its yield and will not hold anything back.” (Ibn Majah)
“The land will emit the treasures within.” (Ibn Hajar al-Haythami, Al-Qawl al-Mukhtasar fi `Alamat al-Mahdi al-Muntazar, p. 45)
“The land will turn like the silver tray growing vegetation...” (Ibn Majah)
“Someone sowing a measure of wheat will find 700 in return ... A person will scatter a few handfuls of seeds, but will reap 700 handfuls … Despite an abundance of rain, not a drop will go to waste.” (Ibn Hajar al-Haythami, Al-Qawl al-Mukhtasar, p. 24)
The end of moral degeneration and the formationof an environment of peace and safety:
The prevailing moral decay and injustice will disappear. Such injustices as robbery, lying, cheating, not taking care of those who are in need, and having only a few people living in surplus will come to an end. Equality will prevail among every class of people, for the Qur’anic morality will hold sway. An environment of trust and security will be established, and so no one will be inclined to lie and engage in evil and prohibited actions. The hadiths describe these years in the following terms:
“The dwellers of heaven and Earth, even the birds in the sky, will be pleased with his Caliphate.” (Ibn Hajar al-Haythami, Al-Qawl al-Mukhtasar fi `Alamat al-Mahdi al-Muntazar, p. 29)
“In this time, one is not awoken from sleep and not a drop of blood is shed.” (Al-Muttaqi al-Hindi, Al-Burhan, p. 11)
“In this time, neither a man will be awoken from sleep, nor will a person’s nose bleed.” (Ibn Hajar al-Haythami, Al-Qawl al-Mukhtasar, p. 44)
“There would be a caliph in the last (period) of my Ummah who would freely give handfuls of wealth to the people without counting it.” (Sahih Muslim, Book 041, Number 6961)
“If only one day of this time (world) remained, Allah would raise up a man from my family who would fill this earth with justice as it has been filled with oppression.” (Sunan Abu Dawud, Book 36, Number 4270)
“... There will be no injustice or oppression under his [the Mahdi’s] rule.” (al-Dani)
“The earth fills with justice.” (Imam Rabbani, Maktubat al-Rabbani, Vol. 1, Hadith No. 251)
“During the time of Mahdi, justice will prevail to such an extent that every possession taken by force will be returned to his owner; some other person’s thing, even if it rests within one’s teeth, will be given back to its owner… Security will permeate all over Earth and even a few ladies will be able to fulfil their hajj without the company of men.” (Ibn Hajar al-Haythami, Al-Qawl al-Mukhtasar, p. 23)
The end of wars:
According to the hadiths, the most distinctive characteristics of this era will be the lack of anybody who needs any kind of product; the existence of complete security, safety, justice, peace, and bliss; and the use of every type of material and spiritual means to ensure people’s ease, comfort, joyfulness, and security. All of these will be given to everyone in copious amounts, without counting. In the Prophet’s (saas) hadiths, there is a mention that in this period “the weapons will rest.” In other words, humanity will be at peace with itself. The Golden Age will experience a great sense of brotherhood among those who had previously hated each other, and in place of conflict there will be peace, friendship, and love.
Prevalence of the Qur’anic morality:
All people will live in an environment of great well-being, security, and comfort due to the prevalence of the Qur’an’s beautiful morality. In fact, this age’s most important characteristic is that all people who are living at that time will live by the Qur’an and will apply its morality to their lives. They will refrain from egotism, hatred, anger, envy, and other negative characteristics, as well as from such evils as corruption, unjustified earnings, lying, wishing evil upon other people, and accepting bribes. All of this will happen because all people will understand that Allah (swt) sees them and will ask them about what they did on the Day of Judgment. As a result, honesty, helpfulness, love, respect, mercy, self-sacrifice, being mindful of other people’s well-being, health, ease, and security will rule supreme. The hadiths describe this moral beauty as follows:
“Just like Allah began Islam with us, it will reach its conclusion in him [the Mahdi]. Just like with us people were saved from idolatry and enmity and friendship and love replaced them in their hearts, [with his coming] it will be the same.” (Al-Muttaqi al-Hindi, Al-Burhan fi `Alamat al-Mahdi Akhir az-Zaman, p. 20)
“The good become even more good, and the wicked ones are treated well.” (Al-Muttaqi al-Hindi, Al-Burhan fi `Alamat al-Mahdi Akhir az-Zaman, p. 17)
Developments in technology and arts:
In conjunction with these developments, technology will reach its peak during this time. All people will benefit from the ensuing great developments in medicine, agriculture, industry, and communication. (See The End of Times and the Mahdi by Harun Yahya.)
The abundance, wealth, beauty, and progress that will have enveloped every field of life during the Golden Age will also affect the arts. Works more beautiful than what has gone before will spring up in music, painting, and all other branches. The wide perspective and deep thoughts that faith in Allah (swt) bequeaths to humanity means that Muslims will lead the world in all artistic fields. People will always encounter beauty, like their morals, in their places of residence, gardens, clothes, and workplaces, as well as in all forms of music and entertainment, theaters and paintings, as well as conversations. All of these will become even more beautiful.
People will be so pleased with their lives that, according to one hadith, they will not realize how the time passes and will pray to Allah (swt) to prolong their lives in order to receive more benefits from these graces. Another hadith states that all people will want to live during the Mahdi’s time:
“The younger ones wish they were grown-ups, while the adults wish they were younger…” (Al-Muttaqi al-Hindi, Al-Burhan fi `Alamat al-Mahdi Akhir az-Zaman, p. 17)
Nu`aym ibn Hammad heard from Tawuj:
“I wish I would not die until the Mahdi were to appear.” (Ibid., p. 17)
Nu`aym ibn Hammad heard from Ibn Abbas: “The Mahdi is a young man from the Ahl al-Bayt. Our old members will not live to see him, while our young people hope for him.” (Ibid., p. 23)
As a matter of fact, the Prophet (saas) pointed to all of these blessings, saying that the blessed Mahdi, who will be a means for humanity’s salvation in both worlds, should be adhered to even if one needs to crawl on the snow to reach him:
“A man from my family appears to fill Earth with justice, just as it has been filled with corruption. So whoever reaches that [time] ought to come to them, even if crawling on the ice/snow, since among them is the caliph of Allah al-Mahdi.” (Ibn Majah)
All of the beauties that Allah (swt) mentions in the Qur’an will be experienced during this era. Allah (swt) has told Muslims that He will let them live a beautiful life in this world:
What is with you runs out, but what is with Allah goes on forever. Those who were steadfast will be recompensed according to the best of what they did. Anyone who acts rightly, whether a male or a female, being a believer, We will give them a good life and recompense them according to the best of what they did. (Surat an-Nahl, 96-97)
In the Qur’an attention has been drawn to the fact that those surrounding people who live according to Allah’s (swt) commands will turn into a kind of “home of peace” and that people with such an understanding of morality will encounter even more beauty and be rewarded with an endless life in the next world:
Allah calls to the Abode of Peace and guides whom He wills to a straight path. Those who do good will have the best and more! Neither dust nor debasement will darken their faces. They are the Companions of the Garden, remaining in it timelessly, forever. (Surah Yunus, 25-26)
