Islamic eschatology

Islamic eschatology is the branch of Islamic scholarship that studies the Yaum al-Qiyāmah, or Day of Judgment and Resurrection. Its tribulation is described in the hadith, Qur'an, and commentaries of Islamic expositors such as al-Ghazali, Ibn Kathir, Ibn Majah, al-Bukhari, and Ibn Khuzaymah.^[1]^[2] The Day of Judgment is also known as the Day of Reckoning, the Last Day and al-sā'ah, or the Hour.^[3]^[4]^[5] ^[6]

The hadith, and to a lesser degree the Qur'an, provide detailed information about end time, describing the events of al-Qiyamah through twelve major signs. At the time of judgment, terrible corruption and chaos will rule. The Mahdi will be sent and with the help of Isa, will battle Masih ad-Dajjal. They will triumph, liberating Islam from cruelty, and this will be followed by a time of serenity with people living true to religious values.^[7]

Like other Abrahamic religions, Islam also teaches resurrection of the dead, a final tribulation and eternal division of the righteous and wicked.^[8] Islamic apocalyptic literature describing Armageddon is often known as fitnah, malāhim, or ghaybah in Shī‘a Islam. Righteous are rewarded with pleasures of Jannah, while unrighteous are punished in Jahannam.

Sources

There are two main sources in Islamic scripture that discuss the Last Judgment, the Qur'an, which is viewed in Islam as infallible, and the hadith, or sayings of the prophet. Hadith are viewed with more flexibility due to the late compilation of the traditions in written form two hundred years after the death of Muhammad.^[9] The concept has also been discussed in commentaries of Islamic scholars such as al-Ghazali, Ibn Kathir, and Muhammad al-Bukhari.

Three periods

There are three periods before the Day of Judgment, also known as ahsratu's-sa'ah or alamatu qiyami's-sa'ah, with some debate as to whether the periods could overlap.^[10]^[11]^[12]

The first period began with the passing of Muhammad, while the second began with the passing of his Companions and ended a thousand years after that. Other events of the second period are the Tartar invasion, which occurred 650 years after Muhammad. The Mongols, led by Hulagu Khan, grandson of Genghis Khan, attacked Baghdad in 1258 CE and brought the Abbasid caliphate to an end. They massacred millions of Muslims, and the water of the river Tigris turned red with blood. The Qur'an also predicted a fire at Madinah in the Hijaz near Busra in Syria, which Islamic scholars believe occurred in 654 AH.^[10]

Twelve major signs

There are twelve major signs of Qiyamah, known as amaratu's-sa'ah al- kubra. The first sign will be the appearance of the Mahdi, whose arrival is awaited by the angel Israfil so that he may sound the horn signalling the end of days. The natural order will become reversed, including the sun, mountains and sea.^[13]

The twelve signs are as follows:

Appearance of the Mahdi atop a white horse^[11]^[13]
The false messiah, Masih ad-Dajjal, shall appear as a great beast-like creature with one eye good and the other blind, and the mark of Kafir. He will claim to hold keys to heaven and hell and lead many astray, although believers will not be deceived.^[12]^[14]
The return of Jesus Christ, from the seventh sky to assist the Mahdi against Dajjal^[15]
Ya'jooj and Ma'jooj, two tribes of vicious beings which had been imprisoned will escape. They will ravage the earth, drink all its water, and destroy all life. Allah will eventually send worms and insects to wipe them out.^[12]^[16]^[17]
Medina will be deserted, with true believers going to follow Mahdi and sinners following Dajjal
A short legged and thin ruler of Ethiopia will attack Mecca and destroy the Kabah
Dabbat al-ard, or the Beast of the Last Days will populate the entire planet^[18]
A pleasant breeze will blow from Yeme that shall cause all believers to die
The sun will rise from the west ^[19]^[20]^[21]
A first trumpet will sound, and all remaining humanity will die, followed by a period of forty years, at the end of which smoke will envelope the world for forty days
The Qur'an will be taken to heaven and even the huffaz will not recall its verses
A second trumpet will sound, the dead will return to life and a fire will start from Hadramawt in Yemen that shall gather all people of the world in Mahshar for the Qiy'amah

Minor signs

The second period will contain the minor signs known as ashratu's-sa'ah as- sughra.^[10] This is the period we are currently in, and will last for a length of time unknown to all but Allah. The minor signs are numerous, and include up to one-hundred different predictions. Some are as follows:

People will speak and understand the Qur'an, but few will understand it, and even fewer will act on it
Men will wear silky and effeminate clothing and marry other men
Trade and wealth will flourish, but people will complain of lack of barakah
Respect will be given according to wealth
There will be abundant rain, but poor harvests
Women will be more numerous than men
Businesses will defraud customers
Elderly will not be respected
People will not care when their children are illegitimate
Property will be unlawfully taken
Life expectancy will decrease, jealousy will spread, and murder will be common
The just will be unfairly accused, the wise ignored, and the deceitful shall become leaders
Inanimate objects will speak
There will be strange noises from the sky
There will be fire west of Yemen
There will be fighting over gold revealed by Euphrates
Woman will give birth to their masters^[13]

Following the second period, the third will be marked by the twelve major signs.^[10]

The last battle

Mahdi

Mahdi (Arabic: مهدي) translates to 'guided one', with hadith being the primary source of his descriptions. His appearance will be the first sign of the third period.^[10] Hadith write that he will be a descendant of Muhammad through his daughter Fatimah and cousin Ali. The physical features of Mahdi are described in the Qur'an and hadith--he will be of Arab complexion and average height with a large belly, large eyes and a sharp nose. He will have a mole on his cheek, the sign of the prophet on his shoulder, and be recognized by the caliphate while he sits at his own home.

Hadith go on to say that Allah will perfect him in a single night with inspiration and wisdom, and his name will be announced from the sky. He will bring back worship of true Islamic values, and bring the Ark of the Covenant to light. He will conquer Istanbul and Mount Daylam. His banner will be that of the prophet Muhammad: black and unstitched, with a halo. Unopened since the death of Muhammad, the banner will unfurl when the Mahdi appears. He will be helped by angels and others that will prepare the way for him. He will understand the secrets of abjad.^[7]

Isa

Isa is the Arabic name for Jesus Christ, and his return is considered the third major sign of last days, while the second is the appearance of Masih ad-Dajjal. As written in hadith:

Abu Hurayrah narrates the the Messenger of Allah said, "By Him in whose hands my soul rests! It is definitely close in that time that Isa, Son of Maryam descends amongst you as a just ruler. He will break the cross, kill the swine and abolish jizya. And money will abound in such access that no one will accept it.
— Ahmad bin Hambal, al-Musnad, vol 2, p. 240^[10]

The return of the Mahdi will coincide with the return of Christ, and he will descend from the heavens in al-Quds at dawn. The two will meet, and Mahdi will lead the people in fajr prayer. After the prayer, they will open a gate to the west and encounter Masih ad-Dajjal.

Masih ad-Dajjal

Masih ad-Dajjal is the nemesis of Mahdi and embodiment of evil. He will have an army of thirty thousand with him. There will be a magnificent battle, at the conclusion of which Dajjal will be killed at Bab al-Ludd.^[10]

Ya'juj and Ma'juj

The fourth major sign of end time will be that the wall which imprisons the nations of Ya'juj and Ma'juj will break, and they will surge forth. Some Islamic scholars, such as Imran Nazar Hosein, believe the wall began to crack during the life of Muhammad. This is supported in the hadith when the prophet mentions that "a hole has been made in the wall containing the Ya'juj and Ma'juj", indicating the size of the hole with his thumb and index finger. Their release will occur forty years prior to the Last Judgment:^[10]

But when Ya'jooj and Ma'jooj are let loose and they rush headlong down every hill and mountain
— Qur'an 21:96 ^[22]

They will ravage the earth. Ultimately, Allah will send worms and insects to destroy them.^[10]

Desertion of Medina, destruction of Mecca, and the Beast of the Earth

The fifth sign is that Medinah will be deserted, and all that remains in the city will be date palms. The just will have gone to join Mahdi, and the evil to Dajjal. Medinah will have been depopulated for forty years by the time of al-Qiyama. The sixth sign is that a thin ruler with short legs from Ethiopia will attack Mecca and destroy the Kabah.

The seventh sign is written in the Ahadith, and is the appearance of the da'ba-tul-ard, or the Beast of the Earth, who will populate the entire world and judge the wicked:

And when the Word is fulfilled against [the unjust], We shall produce from the earth a Beast to [face] them: he will speak to them, for that mankind did not believe with assurance in our Signs.
— Qur'an 27:82

The entire world will be engulfed by dukhan, or smoke, for forty days and there will be three huge earthquakes. ^[13]^[23]The Qur'an will be taken to the heavens and even the huffaz will not recall its verses. Finally, a pleasant breeze will blow that shall cause all believers to die, but infidels and sinners will remain alive. A fire will start from Hadramawt in Yemen that shall gather all the people of the world in the land of Mahshar, and al-Qiyamah will commence.^[10]

al-Qiyamah

The eighth sign is a breeze bearing a pleasant scent will emanate from Yemen, causing the awliya, sulaha and the pious to die peacefully once they inhale it. After the believers die, there will be a period of 120 years during which the world will hold only kafirs, sinners, oppressors, liars and adulterers, and there would be a reversion to idolatry.

The ninth sign is the rising of the sun from the West after a long night, which after midday will set again. According to Hadith:

Abu Hurayrah states that the Messenger of Allah (swt) A said, “The Hour will not be established until the sun rises from the West and when the people see it they will have faith. But that will be (the time) when believing of the soul, that will have not believed before that time, will not benefit it.
— Ibn Maja, as-Sunan, vol. 2 p 1352-53^[10]

The final signs will be nafkhatu'l-ula, when the trumpet will be sounded for the first time, and which will result in the death of the remaining sinners. Then there will be a period of forty years.

The eleventh sign is the second sounding of the trumpet, at which time the dead will be resurrected as ba'as ba'da'l-mawt. All will be naked and running to the Place of Gathering, while the enemies of Allah will be travelling on their faces with their legs upright. Muhammad himself will be travelling on a buraq accompanied by 70,000 angels.^[10] The Day of Judgment or Resurrection, al-Qiyāmah, relates to one of the six aqīdah in Sunni Islam, and seven aqidah in Shī‘a belief and is a basic tenet of Islam.^[11]

The dead will stand in a grand assembly, awaiting a scroll detailing their righteous deeds, sinful acts and ultimate judgment.^[24]^[25] Muhammad will be the first to be resurrected.^[26]

Punishments will include adhab, or severe pain, and khizy or shame.^[27]^[27] There will also be a punishment of the grave between death and the resurrection.^[28]

Differing perspectives on the Mahdi

Sunni and Shi'ite Islam have different beliefs on the identity of Mahdi. Historically, Sunni Islam has derived religious authority from the caliphate, who was in turn appointed by the companions of Muhammad at his death. The Sunnis view the Mahdi as the successor of Mohammad, the Mahdi is expected to arrive to rule the world and reestablish righteousness. ^[29]

Twelver Shi'a Islam, in distinction, followed the bloodline of Muhammad, favoring his cousin and son by marriage, Ali. Ali was appointed the first Imam, and following him there were eleven more. Muhammad al-Mahdi, otherwise known as the twelfth imam, went into hiding in 873 AD at the age of four. His father was al-`Askari, and had been murdered, and so he was hidden from the authorities of the Abbasid Caliphate. He maintained contact with his followers until 940 AD, when he was hidden. Twelver Shia Islam believes that al-Mahdi is the current Imam, and will emerge at the end of the current age as the Ahmadi described in scripture.^[30] In distinction, Sunni Islam foresees him as a separate and new prophet.^[31] The present Ayatollahs of Saudi Arabia see themselves as joint caretakers of the office of the Imam until he returns, with Ayatollah Khomeini having claimed that he specifically was a descendant of the seventh Imam, and rightful ruler of the Shi'ites. ^[31]

The Mahdi is not described in the Qurʾān, only in hadith, with scholars suggesting he arose when Arabian tribes were settling in Syria under Mo’awiya. “They anticipated ‘the Mahdi who will lead the rising people of the Yemen back to their country’ in order to restore the glory of their lost Himyarite kingdom. It was believed that he would eventually conquer Constantinople.”^[29]