Keyamot or doomsday according to Islam
When will be the Keyamot?
The one all-encompassing theme of the Qur'an is the inevitability of Judgment Day/Kiyamat/Doomsday. Muslims believe that this world, created by Allah, will eventually be brought to an end by Him, and that it will be followed by a new world (so called "Roj Hashorer Moydan") in which all people will be resurrected and brought to account for their deeds. The precise timing of the end of the world is known only to Allah; not even any of the prophets sent by Allah, nor any of the angels closest to Him, know when it is to occur. I cite an verse from Quran :
"They ask you about the hour, when will be its taking place? Say: The knowledge of it is only with my Lord; none but He shall manifest it at its time; it will be momentous in the heavens and the earth; it will not come on you but of a sudden. They ask you as if you were solicitous about it. Say: Its knowledge is only with Allah, but most people do not know." [Qur�an, 7:187]
Also from another verse which tells us that Kiyamat will come all on a sudden:
Nay, it shall come on them all of a sudden and cause them to become confounded, so they shall not have the power to avert it, nor shall they be respited. [Qur'an, 021.040]
It is said an angel named Israfil is standing -only Allah knows where- with a trumpet in his hand. When he will blow the trumpet at the command of Allah the great cataclysm ('Kiamat'-Doomsday) will occur. And when he will blow it again at the command of Allah the plains of 'Hashar' etc. will be recreated. Our Great Guru Aroj Ali Matubbar uttered in his book, Shotter Shondan:
In the beginning the universe was created simply by order of Allah. Why then can't it be destroyed only by His order? What need is there for Israfil to blow his trumpet? Then again the command of Allah was enough for the creation of the universe on the first occasion but after the great cataclysm a second blowing of the trumpet would be necessary for the recreation of the plains of Hashar etc. Why ? and what for? We hear that angel Israfil has been standing erect with the trumpet in his hand from time immemorial and will remain in that position till Doomsday. Yet during this incalculable time he will blow the trumpet only twice. Does not Allah know the exact date of Doomsday? If He does what is the point in keeping Israfil standing there for such an eternity?
What will be destroyed and what will be not:
It is mentioned earlier that when angel israfil will blow his trumpet at the command of allah, the almighty, there will be a total cataclysm in which the entire universe will disappear. With the single exception of Allah, everything including Israfil, the trumpet blower will loose its existence. Forty days (in another opinion forty years) after this, Allah will recreate Israfil to blow the trumpet once again as a result of which the world and all its animals will be resurrected . Aroj Ali Matubbar said,
" Immediately after the cataclysm (Kiyamat) there will be no sun nor any light transmitting object. How then will forty days or forty years be counted during the interval between this disastrous event and the resurrection?
Besides, will there be night, too, with those days? if there be what will they be like without the sun? And if there be no nights with the days how will the number of those uninterrupted prolonged days be forty?"
However from a different version of Islamic story, 8 things will somehow be able to survive from Allah's cataclysm:
1) Allah and his throne
2) Kursi (!!)
3) Laoh (???)
4) Pen
5) Heaven
6) Hell
7) Trumpet
8) SoulCurrently I have no authentic sources (verses from Koran and Hadith) in hand to verify the above claim.
Signs of Keyamot:
Although we have been repeatedly told that none in the world knows when exactly the world is going to end, Allah and the Prophet also have told us of some of the signs which indicate that the Hour is approaching, drawing nearer.
In the Gabriel Hadith, wherein the angel Gabriel took on the form of a man with extremely dark hair and extremely white clothing, and then came and asked the Prophet about the levels of the religion (Islam, Iman and Ihsan), he asked after that, "Tell me about the Hour." The Prophet (may Allah bless him and his Household and grant them peace) replied, "The questioned one is not more knowledgeable about it than the questioner," whereupon Gabriel (peace be upon him) said, "Then tell me about its signs." He replied, "That the slave girl shall give birth to her mistress, and that you see barefoot, naked, poor shepherds building tall buildings." [Shahi Muslim]
So, there are certain events and signs which will occur on the earth prior to it. These signs are categorized into two :
Minor sign (Alamot-e Chugra)
Major sign (Alamot-e Kubra)The minor signs are those which start occurring well before the Day of Judgement, and which in themselves are not strikingly extraordinary. It starts from the day of Prophet's death to appearance of Imam Mahdi (some time in future)
The major signs are those which will occur closer to the Day of Judgment, and they are bizarre and remarkable. It starts from the day of arrival of Imam Mahadi and will end when Israfil will blow his trumpet. Quran says that at the Day of Judgment, the heaven is split asunder (Q.84:1) and it will heave with (awful) heaving (Q.52:9), the sun is overthrown (Q.81:1), the Earth is shaken with her (final) earthquake (Q. 99:1), the moon is eclipsed (Q.75:8) and �the angel Israfil will sound the trumpet and all living creatures, mankind, angels and jinn then living, will die. Another blast and all will be raised to life. Allah's throne will appear in the clouds, carried by 8 angels. Believers will receive a book of their deeds in their right hand, and unbelievers in their left hand. The books will be opened and men's works weighed on scales (mizan). In fear, men will look for someone to plead with Allah. They will go to Adam, Abraham, Moses and Jesus, but find no help. At last they will turn to Muhammad�
Some Hadith Regarding the sign of Keyamot:
Narrated Anas: "I will narrate to you a Hadith I heard from Allah's Apostle and none other than I will tell you of it. I heard Allah's Apostle saying, 'From among the portents of the Hour are the following: Religious knowledge will be taken away; General ignorance (in religious matters) will increase; illegal Sexual intercourse will prevail: Drinking of alcoholic drinks will prevail. Men will decrease in number, and women will increase in number, so much so that fifty women will be looked after by one man.' (Translation of Sahih Bukhari, Wedlock, Marriage (Nikaah), Volume 7, Book 62, Number 158)"
Narrated Abu Huraira: "The Prophet said, 'The Hour (Last Day) will not be established until (religious) knowledge will be taken away (by the death of religious learned men), earthquakes will be very frequent, time will pass quickly, afflictions will appear, murders will increase and money will overflow amongst you.' (Translation of Sahih Bukhari, Invoking Allah for Rain (Istisqaa), Volume 2, Book 17, Number 146)"
Narrated Abu Huraira: "The Prophet said, 'The Hour will not be established till you fight with people wearing shoes made of hair. And the Hour will not be established till you fight with people whose faces look like shields coated with leather.' (Abu Huraira added, 'They will be) small-eyed, flat nosed, and their faces will look like shields coated with leather.') (Translation of Sahih Bukhari, Fighting for the Cause of Allah (Jihaad), Volume 4, Book 52, Number 180)"
Narrated Abu Huraira: "The Prophet said, 'The Hour will not be established till there is a war between two groups among whom there will be a great number of casualties, though the claims (or religion) of both of them will be one and the same. And the Hour will not be established till there appear about thirty liars, all of whom will be claiming to be the messengers of Allah.' (Translation of Sahih Bukhari, Virtues and Merits of the Prophet (pbuh) and his Companions, Volume 4, Book 56, Number 806)"
Narrated Abu Huraira: "Allah's Apostle said, 'The Hour will not be established till two (huge) groups fight against each other, their claim (i.e, religion) being one and the same.' (Translation of Sahih Bukhari, Dealing with Apostates, Volume 9, Book 84, Number 69)"
Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: "The Last Hour will not come till wealth is abundant and overflowing, so much so that the owner of the property will think as to who will accept Sadaqa from him, and a person would be called to accept Sadaqa and he would say: I do not need it. (Translation of Sahih Muslim, The Book of Zakat (Kitab Al-Zakat), Book 005, Number 2209)"
One Islamic Scholar's opinion Regarding the sign of Keyamot:
Yahiya Emerick writes "Signs of the end-time include the following:
1. Abundant riches (oil?) will be discovered under the Eurphartes River in Iraq, and people will fight over them, causing much death and destruction
2. Children will no longer obey their parents.
3. Poor nations will compete with each other to build tall buildings in their cities.
4. It will be hard to tell men and women apart.
5. Women will outnumber men.
6. Religious knowledge will decrease dramatically.
7. Wealth will be widespread and corruption will be rampant.
8. Music, female singers, and alcohol will be prevalent.
9. The worst people will be chosen as leaders.
10. There will be family turmoil in every household."
Summary of Signs (collected from various sources, books and scholarly opinion):
Past
1. Splitting of the Moon (by Muhammad).
2. Death of the Prophet Muhammad, .
3. A form of death which will kill thousands of Muslims. (some says it refers to the plague of Amwas during the caliphate of �Umar ibn al-Khattab.)
4. A major fighting in Madinah (some says it refers to the battle of al-Harrah during the caliphate of Yazid, 63 AH).
5. The Muslim conquest of Jerusalem.
6. The Muslim conquest of Constantinople.
7. Two large groups of Muslims will fight in war.
8. A war between the Muslims and a reddish people with small eyes, wearing sandals made of hair (some says it refers to the Mongol Tatar invasion of the Islamic lands, some says it will be a future event.)
9. A peace agreement between the Muslims and non-Muslims from the yellow race (Chinese, Mongols, etc.)
10. Thirty impostors (dajjal) will appear, each thinking he is a prophet (it may be a future event).
Present?
11. Naked, destitute, barefoot shepherds will compete in building tall buildings.
12. The slave-woman will give birth to her master or mistress.
13. A trial (fitnah) which will enter every Arab household.
14. Knowledge will be taken away (by the death of people of knowledge), and ignorance will prevail.
15. Wine (intoxicants, alcohol) will be drunk in great quantities.
16. Illegal sexual intercourse will become widespread.
17. Earthquakes will increase.
18. Time will pass more quickly.
19. Tribulations (fitan) will prevail.
20. Bloodshed will increase.
21. A man will pass by the grave of another and wish he was in the latter�s place.
22. Trustworthiness will be lost, i.e. when authority is given to those who do not deserve it.
23. People will gather for prayer, but will be unable to find an imam to lead them.
Future
24. The number of men will decrease, whilst the number of women will increase, until for every man there are 50 women.
25. The Euphrates will reveal a treasure of gold, and many will die fighting over it, each one hoping to be the one who gains the treasure.
26. The Romans (Europeans) will come to a place called A�maq or Wabiq, and an army of the best people will go forth from Madinah to face them.
27. The Muslim conquest of Rome.
28. The Mahdi will appear, and be the Imam of the Muslims.
29. Jesus Christ will descend in Damascus, and pray behind the Mahdi.
30. Jesus will break the cross and kill the swine, i.e. destroy the Christianity.
31. The Al-masih al-dajjal or Boro-Dajjal will appear, with all his tools of deception, and be an immense trial. He will be followed by 70,000 Jews from Isfahan (present-day Iran).
32. The appearance of Ya�juj and Ma�juj (Gog and Magog?), and the associated tribulations.
33. The emergence of the Beast from the Earth, carrying the Staff of Moses and the Seal of Solomon, who will speak to the people, telling them they did not believe with certainty in the Divine Signs.
34. A major war between the Muslims (including Jews and Christians who truly believe in Jesus after his return) led by the Imam Mahdi, and the Jews plus other non-Muslims led by the Antichrist.
35. Jesus will kill the Boro-Dajjal at the gate of Ludd (Lod in present-day Israel, site of an airport and a major Israeli military base).
36. A time of great peace and serenity during and after the remaining lifetime of Jesus.
37. Wealth will come so abundant that it will become difficult to find someone to accept charity.
38. Arabia will become a land of gardens and rivers.
39. Society will then decay.
40. The buttocks of the women of the tribe of Daws will again sway in circumambulation (tawaf) around the idol Dhul-Khulsah.
41. A great fire in the Hijaz, seen by the inhabitants of Busra.
42. Three major armies will sink into the earth: one in the east, one in the west, one in Arabia.
43. An Abyssinian leader with thin shins will destroy the Ka�bah.
44. The huge cloud of smoke.
45. The sun will rise from the west
46. A gentle wind which will take the souls of the believers.
47. There is no-one left on the earth saying, "Allah, Allah" or "There is no god except Allah."
48. Eventually the Day of Judgment is established upon the worst of the people, who copulate like donkeys in public.
49. The blowing in the Trumpet by the Angel Israfil, upon which everyone will faint except as Allah wills.
50. The second blowing in the Trumpet, upon which everyone will be resurrected.
Elaboration of some specific points:
Imam Al-Mahdi will appear:
Al-Mahdi, whom the muslim community believes will be an Imam and a Caliph, among other Caliphs who rule Muslims with justice. However, what differentiates Al-Mahdi from other Caliphs is that he will meet Jesus son of Mary.
Also, Jesus, the Prophet of Allah, will pray behind Al-Mahdi. Allah will give Al-Mahdi the ability to righteously rule the Muslim nation in the span of a night. He will fill the earth with justice, as it was filled with injustice. He will lead the Muslim nation to the second conquering of Constantinople and possibly Rome.
The Prophet Muhammad mentioned that just before the end of this world, the Muslim nation will be ruled by a Caliphate that will follow the guidance sent with the Messenger of Allah.
Jesus will descend at the end of time:
Jesus, son of Mary will descend at the end of time and judge among the people with justice, following the Law of Muhammad. He will break the crosses and kill the swine. HE shall put an end to the payment of the jizya. He will only accept Islam from the people. The People of the Book, the Jews and Christians, will all believe in him before his death, after he descends at the end of time.
Allah has stated that all of the People of the Book, Jews and Christians, will believe in Jesus son of Mary before his death - that is, before the death of Jesus. That will be when he descends at the end of time as a judge and just caller to Islam, as shall be noted in the hadith describing his descent.
Dajjal will appear and will be killed by Jesus:
A lengthy hadith narrated by Ibn Majah, Ibn Khuzaimah, and ad-Dhiyaa�, attributed to Abu Umamah, reports that the Prophet of Allah, said,
�There will be three hard years before the Dajjal (appears). During them, people will be stricken by a great famine. In the first year, Allah will command the sky to withhold a third of its rain, and the earth to withhold a third a third of its produce. In the second year, Allah will command the sky to withhold two thirds of its rain, and the earth to withhold two thirds of its produce. In the third year, Allah will command the sky to withhold all of its rain, and it will not rain a single drop of rain. He will command the earth to withhold all of its produce, and no plant will grow. All hoofed animals will perish, except that which Allah wills.� He (sallallahu `alaihi wa sallam) was asked, �What sustains people during that time?� He said, �Tahlil, takbir and tahmid (Saying, la ilaha ill Allah, Allahu Akbar and al-hamdulillah). This will sustain them just as food does.� [Sahih Al-Jami` as-Saghir, no. 7875]Dajjal is considered as the embodiment of evil. He will kill a lot of muslims. Dajjal will be blind in the right eye. He will have thick hair on his body and he will also have Paradise and Hell with him. Though his Paradise will appear as Jannah, in reality it will be Hell, and likewise, though his Hell will appear like Jahannnam, in reality it will be Paradise.
He will remain on the Earth for a period of forty days, of which the first day will be as long as a year, the second day as long as a month, the third as a week and the rest will be normal in length. He will try to gain entry to the two holy cities Makkah and Madinah, but the angels who guard them will bar him from them. From there, he will flee to Syria, where he will meet resistance from the forces of Imam Mahdi, the leader of the then Muslim community. Then shall the battle between Good and Evil begin in earnest.
As was narrated in the Hadith by An-Nawwas bin Sam`an, the Dajjal will be killed at the hand of Jesus son of Mary.
The rising of the sun from the west:
The rising of the sun from the west is also a major sign of Keyamot proven by the Qur'an and Sunnah. Allah says in the Qur'an, "The day when some signs of your Lord will come, no good will it do to a person to believe then, if he believed not before, nor earned good (by performing deeds of righteousness) through his faith." (Surah Al-An'aam)
The verse is referring to the rising of the sun from the west, as is the opinion of the majority of the commentators. (Tabari/Ibne Kathir) Imam Tabari, after mentioning the different opinions of the commentators writes, "The most correct opinion in regards to the meaning of this verse is that what is apparent from the reports narrated from the Prophet that he said, "(lmaan will be of no benefit) when the sun rises from the west." (Tabari)
The emergence of the Beast from the Earth:
The Beast named Dabbatul Arad is also a major sign of Keyamot. Allah says in the Qur'an, "And when the word is fulfilled concerning them. We shall bring forth a Beast of the Earth to speak unto them because mankind had no faith in our revelation." (Surah An-Naml, ayat:82)
Abdullah-b-Umar said, "I memorised a Hadith from the Messenger of Allah which I have not forgotten. I heard the Messenger of Allah saying, 'The first of the signs that will come is the rising of the sun from the place of its setting and the emergence of the Beast upon the people. Whichever of these two occurs before the other then the other is right behind it." (Muslim)
Commentating on the above verse Ibne Kathir has said that the beast will appear very near the end of time. When disintegration, corruption, kufr and evil prevail, commands of Allah are ignored, the Deen changed and made a mockery of, it is then Allah will take out the Beast from the earth. (Ibne Kathir)Fire in the Hijaz:
The last major sign to appear before the Day of Judgment is the fire which will come out from the Yemen and gather the people in the place of their assembly.
In the Hadith of Hudaifa-b-Usaid regarding the Major signs the Prophet said, "At the end of which a fire would burn out from Yemen and would drive people to the place of their assembly." (Muslim)
Avijit Roy writes from Singapore. e-mail: [email protected]
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