The end of time have profound meanings… Part 4

NINTEENTH MATTER

In the narrations are various different prophecies about the Mahdi (May God be pleased with him), who is one of the signs of the end of time and will be from the Family of the Prophet. In fact, some scholars and saints stated long ago that he had appeared.

God knows best what is right, one interpretation of these various narrations is this: the Great Mahdi will have numerous functions. He will carry out duties in the world of politics, the world of religion, the world of government, and in the many spheres of the world of jihad. Similarly, since every century at a time of despair people are in need of a sort of Mahdi to strengthen their morale or for the possibility of a Mahdi appearing at that time to assist them, through Divine mercy, every age or perhaps every century a sort of Mahdi has appeared from among the Prophet’s (PBUH) descendants, and preserved his forefather’s Shari‘a and revived his Sunna. The narrations about the Mahdi are various because Muhammad (Peace and blessings be upon him) saw persons who would perform some of the Great Mahdi’s works; for example, the ‘Abbasid Mahdi in the world of politics, and Gawth al-A‘zam,30 Shah Naqshband,31 the four spiritual poles,32 and Twelve Imams in the world of religion. For this reason some of the people of reality said that he had already appeared. Anyway, since this matter has been explained in the Risale-i Nur, we refer discussion of it to that and here only say this:

There is no family in the world so mutually supportive, nor a tribe in such agreement, nor so enlightened a community or society as the family, tribe, community and society of the Prophet’s Family.

Yes, the Prophet’s Family has raised hundreds of sacred heroes, and produced thousands of spiritual leaders of the Umma, and has been nurtured with the leaven of the reality of the Qur’an and the light of belief and honour of Islam, and has thus been perfected. It is therefore totally reasonable that through reviving the Shari‘a of Muhammad (PBUH) and his Sunna and the reality of the Qur’an at the end of time, and proclaiming them and putting them into practice, they should display to the world the perfect justice and veracity of the Great Mahdi, their Commander-in-Chief. This is also both necessary and essential and demanded by the principles of human society.

TWENTIETH MATTER

The sun rising in the west33 and the emergence from the earth of the Beast (Dabbat al-Ard).34

The sun rising in the west will be a self-evident sign of the end of the world, and because it is self-evident, it will be a heavenly event which closes the door of repentance, which is tied to the will and reason. Its meaning is therefore clear, and is in no need of interpretation. One may just say the following:

God knows best, its apparent cause will be this: with the disappearance from the head of the earth of the Qur’an, which is like its intelligence, the earth will go mad. With Divine permission, on another planet colliding with it, its rotation will be reversed. Through Divine will, its journeying from west to east will be reversed to from east to west, and the sun will start to rise in the west. Yes, the Qur’an is ‘the firm cord of God’35 which binds the earth to the sun, and the ground to the Divine Throne. If its gravity is broken, the string holding the earth would be undone, it would  become dizzy and deranged, and with its reversed uncontrolled motion, the sun would rise in the west. There is another interpretation, which is that due to a collision, Doomsday would break forth at the Divine command.

As for the Beast (Dabbat al-Ard), in the Qur’an is an extremely concise indication, a brief expression made by its tongue of disposition. As for its details, like with some other matters, I do not know with any certainty for the present. I can only say this much: None knows the Unseen save God, just as the people of Pharaoh were visited by plagues of locusts and fleas, and the people of Abraha, who were trying to destroy the Ka‘ba, were attacked by “flights of birds;”36 so too, for the purpose of bringing to their senses those people who knowingly and willingly rebel due to the dissension of the Sufyan and Dajjals, and through the anarchy of Gog and Magog embark on corruption and savagery, and fall into irreligion, disbelief, and denial, a beast will emerge from the earth and beset and rout them. God knows best, that beast is a species. For even if huge, a single creature could not be everywhere. That means there will be a truly terrible species of animal. Perhaps, as indicated by the verse, Except a little worm of the earth, which kept [slowly] gnawing away at his staff,37

that creature will be a sort of termite, called “Dabbat al-Ard,” which will gnaw away at the bones of men as though they were wooden, establishing themselves in every part of their bodies, from their teeth to their finger-nails. By making the creature speak on the question of belief, the verse38 indicates that through the blessing of belief and their avoiding vice and abuses, the believers will be saved from it.

O our Sustainer! Do not take us to task if we forget or do wrong.39

Glory be unto You! We have no knowledge save that which you have taught us; indeed, You are All-Knowing, All-Wise.40

[Ustad Bediüzzaman Said Nursi(1873- 1960) described Turkey’s role as the Sufyan (Islamic Antichrist that Imam Ali r.a mentioned)]

the text is about 30 pages so we will present in parts to avoid bothering you…