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Mahdi – Qualifications
The Events Of The Uprising Of al-Mahdi
According to Ja’far al-Sadiq, the sixth in the chain of the twelve imams of the Shia, al-Mahdi will appear on a Friday. Muhammad al-Baqir also emphasizes on the day of Ashura being the day of the uprising. His reappearance will be announced from the heavens. Muhammad al-Baqir says regarding the reappearance of Mahdi, “The Mahdi (‘a) will rise up at a time when the helm of affairs would be in the hands of tyrants.” Ibn Tawus, Malahim, p. 77.
The World Before The Advent Of Mahdi
Muhammad al-Baqir said: Mahdi will not rise up except at a time full of fear and dread. Prophet Muhammad said, “After me the caliphate will rule; after the caliphs, the emirs will come, followed by kings, and after them tyrants and oppressors will rule, then the Mahdi will reappear.”
Religious Conditions
Muhammad in one of his hadith, narrates the religious condition of Islam saying that it will be such that Muslims will be Muslims just for namesake, people will not recognize Allah and people will not know what is monotheism. Mosques will loose their importance. More attention will be given to the beautification of the structure devoid of the main aim of providing guidance and enlightenment. The plight of religion will be such that it will be sold at a miserable price. Believers in the morning will turn into infidels by evening. The rulings of the Quran will be denied. Muhammad said: “A period will come to pass for my ummah in which nothing will be left of Islam but its name, and there will be no trace of the Qur’an but its form and outline. The Muslims will be called Muslims in name but of all the people they will be the most alien to Islam.” The Ulama who are supposed to be the protectors of God’s religion and the ones who guide the people will be ready to compromise with the tyrant kings and the self-centered rulers. Muhammad says in this regard,“The jurists (fuqaha) of those days will be the worst jurists under heaven. Sedition and chaos will start from them and will also return to them.”
Social Conditions
The social condition would be such that the powerful will oppress the weaker.
- People will be afflicted by immodesty and family insecurities;
- The most inhumane behavior will not be considered as indecent and gradually will become a normal act;
- Corruption and immorality will no longer be considered as indecent rather it would be counted as something natural and normal;
- People will be encouraged to have fewer children due to economic problems and lack of facilities;
- The number of women will exceed the number of men.
The hadith of Muhammed says in this regard:
- Men will die and women will remain.
- The aggressive and dominant powers of the world will cause insecurity to the weaker nations and their rights will be violated;
- Horrifying crimes such as executing young boys;
- Burning children by dipping them into molten liquids;
- Cutting human beings into pieces by axes and iron saws;
- Molesting women;
- Klling the fetus by slitting their wombs.
The extent of the loss of Islamic values can be predicted by Muhammad’s hadith, “The Day of Resurrection will not commence unless a woman would be openly taken away from her guardian in broad daylight and be molested in public in the middle of the road and no one would condemn and prevent this. The best among the people is he who will say: ‘I wish you would have gone a bit away from the middle of the road and done your work!’” On enquiring about the time of the reappearance9(j of Mahdi, Muhammad al-Baqir replied, “It will be at the time when men would resemble women and women would act like men; at the time when men would suffice themselves with men (i.e. they would do sodomy), and so would women with other women (i.e. they would engage in lesbianism).”
Economic Conditions
- With frequent wars:
- Corruption;
- Bad governance;
- The economic condition will globally decline;
- Scarce and untimely rains will affect agriculture;
- Fruits and crops will be destroyed;
- Water bodies may dry up leading to famine;
- Due to the lack of agricultural products, a recession in trade will prevail;
- Inflation will rise, leading to the inadequacy of income;
- The condition of poverty and starvation will be such that people will barter their daughters and wives in exchange for a small amount of food.
Insecurities
- People would wish for death upon seeing the brutality of each other;
One of the companions of the prophet narrates a hadith in this regard “Verily, a time shall come upon you when man will wish for his death although he would not be under the pressure of poverty and indigence.”
- Slavery will prevail;
- Epidemics may occur frequently;
- Before the advent of Mahdi ‘Red Death and White Death’ may occur frequently.
Red Death refers to war killings and White death means a plague. The whole of the world would be in despair and disappointment and people would not find any place to take refuge. A hadith of Muhammad al Baqir the fifth Imam of the Twelver Shias indicates the truth about the situation. “You will not see him while waiting for him except at the time when you become like a dead she-goat under the clutches of a fierce animal for which it makes no difference how she was brought. At that time there would be neither a place away from aggression where you could go nor a sanctuary where you could seek refuge.”
War And Bloodshed
Before the reappearance of the Mahdi:
- Mass killings will increase;
- There will be massive bloodshed;
- Usurpation of the property will be regarded as lawful;
- The whole of the world will be afflicted by the war in such a way that while it subsides in a certain area, it will ablaze in another area.
According to a hadith of Muhammad, no one would be free from the sedition of the end times. It would start from Syria turning towards Iraq spreading to the whole of the Arabian peninsula. A hadith from [Ali] adds in this regard, “Mahdi will not appear unless one-third of the people are killed; another one-third die, and the remaining one-third survive.” A number of people will die due to contagious diseases caused by chemicals and biological weapons used in the war.
They World After The Advent Of Mahdi
When the Mahdi finally assumes control of the government:
- The world will for some time have been in a state of utter turmoil:
- Several Governments and political parties will have failed to provide peace;;
- There will be no security:
- There will be no economic improvement in the world;
The Mahdi’s government will be just in such a manner that the living will wish that their dead could come alive to live under a governance of such blessed peace and tranquility. Kufa will be the political capital of Mahdi. He will reside in Al-Sahlah Mosque where all the Prophets have visited in the past. All the believers will visit the city of Kufa. Muhammed al Fadil says in this regard, “The Day of Resurrection will not come to pass unless all the believers gather in Kufah.
Justice and Equality
Mahdi will fill the earth will justice and peace as it is filled with injustice and oppression. The people of the Torah, Zabur, Injeel, and Qur’an will be judged according to their respective books. All the heavenly books will be presented in their original form.
Economic Condition
The earth will unveil all its hidden treasures and they would be visible to all. The rivers will start flowing due to regular rainfalls, The famine situation will change and the vegetation will flourish. The farms will yield crops for starving people. Even the desert regions like Mecca and Madina will turn into vegetation and there will be palm-groves all over the area. Zakat and khums will be equally distributed amongst the people. In his governance, the rulers will be generous and will bestow the people with abundance. Prominent Shia scholar Mohammad Baqer Majlesi in his famous book Bihar al-Anwar interprets a hadith “Come and take those things for the sake of which you used to sever relationships, shed blood and commit sins. He will give wealth such that no one before him had ever done.
Religious Conditions
The religion of Islam will be accepted wholeheartedly. It will be de-voided of any innovations and irreligiousness. People will live a long life free of disease and ailments. Due to their long life, they will have too many children.i
Science And Technology
Mahdi will introduce new aspects of knowledge. It will reach its peak in the era of Mahdi. There will be advancements in the field of communications to such an extent that people will be able to find solutions on their palms. With regard to the development of transportation, Muhammad al-Baqir says in this regard that Mahdi will ride on the clouds with the help of thunder and lightning (i.e., electricity). This hadith interprets that there will be major advancements in the field of transportation. Imam as-Sadiq said:
“Knowledge and learning are twenty-seven letters, and everything that the prophets have brought is only two letters; so, now, the people are unaware (of these letters) except (juz’an) these two. When our Qa’im rises up, he will bring out the other twenty-five letters, spreading and extending them among the people. He will also attach the two letters and a total of twenty-seven letters will be distributed among the people.”
It can be deduced from this hadith that although mankind progresses in terms of knowledge and learning, in the period of Mahdi it will suddenly attain growth and expansion thirt
Occultation
Occultation refers to the belief of the twelve Shias that Mahdi has disappeared by the permission of Allah and that he will reappear on His command. According to Shi’a teachings, Mahdi has had two occultations: The Minor Occultation, which lasted sixty-nine lunar years, and the Major Occultation, which continues to the present day. During the Minor Occultation, Mahdi communicated with the Shi’a through the four deputies, but during the Major Occultation this communication does not exist and the Shi’a must refer to the scholars for their religious needs. The period of the minor occultation started after the death of his father. Only some trustworthy believers and righteous persons could meet him.
Reasons For Occultation
Because of the social and political restrictions and security threats that the Imams were increasingly facing after the Abbasid Caliphate, he was concealed from the eyes of the enemy just like his great grandfather Muhammed was concealed from the eyes of the Quraysh. Mahdi was sent to occultation so that he does not have the oath of allegiance of the tyrant rulers on his neck. Mahdi himself says in this regard. “Verily each of my ancestors had the oath of allegiance, upon their necks, of their contemporary tyrant rulers. But I will reappear at such a time that I will not have any tyrant’s allegiance upon my neck.” The Shi’a claim that the occultation of the Mahdi is a test of their belief in him.
Mahdi – Qualifications
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Last Update: 04/2021
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