Benefits of Studying the Signs of the Hour

It may be said, you have exhausted yourselves in studying matters which are of little benefit. It would be better if you concerned yourselves with the affairs and problems of the Muslims instead of wasting so much time in investigating things which will happen in the future. You should concern yourselves with the reality in which you are living, instead of some other world in which you hope to live or that you fear may come upon you. You are running away from facing real difficulties. We say to them: we do not have any choice regarding the events of the future; it is not up to us whether we should study or ignore this matter. Studying and believing in these matters is an essential part of the religion which was brought by our Messenger (pbuh). Some of it is mentioned in the Quran, and some of it was mentioned in the Sunnah of the Prophet (pbuh). The Sahaabah learned all of that and concerned themselves with it; they paid a great deal of attention to it. Belief in the unseen is the first characteristic for which Allah praises the pious who are guided and who will be successful: {Alif-Laam-Meem. This is the Book! There is no doubt about it—a guide for those mindful ˹of Allah˺, who believe in the unseen, establish prayer, and donate from what We have provided for them} [Al-Baqarah 2:1-3]

It is true that many Muslims are preoccupied with matters of the unseen for which there is no evidence (daleel) from the Quran or Sunnah, and some of those who claim to be scholars went too far in such matters, but concerning oneself with the sahih texts is a part of this religion, revealed by the All-Knowing, All-Aware.

We can and should blame those Muslims who refrain from taking action because they are waiting for the events of which the Messenger (pbuh) spoke to happen, such as those who do not engage in jihaad because they are waiting for the Mahdi to appear, but this is a mistake which needs to be corrected. We should not ignore the sahih texts because our pious predecessors, though sincerely believing in the unseen as described in sound reports, did not neglect jihaad or other kinds of action.

We should also blame severely those who interpret the words of the Prophet (pbuh) and the texts which speak of matters of the unseen to mean something other than that which was intended, they claim something (unreal) and mislead the people, like those who, down the ages, claimed to be the Mahdi - except in cases where they were mistaken. Those mistakes can be put right but this misinterpretation should not lead us to reject the sound texts. Truth is truth and falsehood is falsehood; we cannot ward off falsehood by rejecting the truth. To those who denounce us for our concern with studying the sahih texts on this issue, we would point out the immense efforts being made by modern scientists to discover the unknown events of the distant past, and unknown events of the future, and unknown features of the space which surrounds us. Hence we see them studying the relics of past nations, and the writings, artifacts and ruins that they left behind; we see them paying attention to what fortune-tellers and soothsayers tell them, even though what those people say is all lies and you can hardly find any element of truth in it; and we see them building huge telescopes and sending satellites into space so that they can find out what they do not know. If this is how humans are, always wanting to find out about what they do not know and to find out about the past and the future, and to find out about the universe around them, is it not more appropriate that they should look at facts which they receive from a source which never lies? The information brought by the texts concerning these matters is valuable and is indeed beyond doubt, but human beings are too arrogant when they turn away from this valuable knowledge that is based on truthful Revelation, and they lose a great deal when they reject this beneficial knowledge. Moreover, there are people who want us to keep away from studying these topics on the basis of the texts of the Revelation whilst they themselves run after the information produced by western scientists on this topic, which is mixed with lot of confusion and lies.

We may sum up the benefits that we gain from studying the reports which speak of the portents of the Hour as follows:

(1) Fulfilling the Pillars of Belief

Belief in these reports, if they are proven to be sound, is part of belief in Allah and belief in His Messenger. How can we believe in Allah and His Messenger, then not believe in what they tell us ?! {This is the Book! There is no doubt about it—a guide for those mindful ˹of Allah˺, who believe in the unseen...} [Al-Baqarah 2: 2-3]

(2) Strengthening and Renewing Faith

The fact that some of these prophecies have come to pass as they were described in the reports reaffirms and strengthens faith. Muslims in all ages have witnessed events happening as they were foretold in the sound texts. The Sahaabah witnessed the victory of the Byzantines over the Persians, then the victory of the Muslims over both the Persians and the Byzantines, and the prevalence of Islam over all other religions. They saw the ummah split in the year when the Messenger (pbuh) said it would happen, and they saw many events unfold as foretold in the texts. Similar things have happened in every era, the Muslims have witnessed events as foretold in the texts. Undoubtedly this has a great impact on strengthening the believer's faith, and this is a means of calling others to the truth which our Lord has given us.

(3) Affirming Belief in the Day of Resurrection

Strengthening belief in the Day of Resurrection. The resurrection and its terrors are matters of the Unseen which Allah and His Messenger have informed us about. Belief in them is one of the fundamentals of faith. The fact that events in this world unfold as described in the texts is a clear indication of the truthfulness of all of the reports, including the reports about the Hour. And all of that comes from Allah.

(4) Guidance for Dealing with Trials

Allah sent His Messenger to show us what is good and warn us against what is evil. The Messenger (pbuh) showed his Sahaabah the best way to respond to the events that happened during his lifetime.

In the reports about future events there are directives for those members of his ummah who come after him, telling them how they should deal with events in which the right way of handling the matter may not be clear. It is narrated that 'Abdullah ibn 'Amr ibn al-'Aas said: "We were with the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) on a journey, and we halted at a place. Some of us began to erect their tents, others began to compete with one another in shooting arrows, and others began to graze their beasts, when an announcer of the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) announced that the people should gather together for prayer. So we gathered around the Messenger of Allah (pbuh). He said: “It was the duty of every Prophet before me to guide his followers to what he knew was good for them and warn them against what he knew was bad for them. However, this Ummah of yours has its days of peace and (security) at the beginning of its career, and in the last phase of its existence it will be afflicted with trials and with things disagreeable to you. (In this phase of the Ummah), there will be tremendous trials, one after the other, each making the previous one pale into insignificance. When afflicted with a trial, the believer will say: This is going to bring about my destruction. When (the trial) is over, he will be afflicted with another trial and the believer will say: This surely is going to be my end. Whoever wishes to be delivered from the Fire and enter Paradise should die with faith in Allah and the Last Day, and should treat the people as he wishes to be treated by them. He who swears allegiance to an Imam (leader) and gives him the pledge of his hand and the sincerity of his heart (i.e. submits to him both outwardly and inwardly) should obey him to the best of his ability. If another man comes forward (as a claimant to leadership), disputing his authority, they (the Muslims) should behead the latter.” This version is narrated by Muslim; this is also narrated by Nasaa'i, Ibn Maajah and Ahmad.

Examples of this advice which had a great impact in guiding the Muslims to the truth include: when the Prophet (pbuh) gave 'Uthmaan (May Allah be pleased with him) the glad tidings of Paradise because of a calamity that would befall him; when he told 'Ammaar that he would be killed by the group that was in the wrong; when he ordered Abu Dharr to keep away from fitnah and not to fight even if he was killed.

(5) Clarifying Shariah Rulings for Extraordinary Future Events

The Muslims may be faced with events in the future concerning which they will need to know the rulings of shariah. If the Muslims to the Muslims not to take are left to their own devices, they may differ and may fail to be guided to the right path. Indeed, it may be obligatory and essential to explain the shariah rulings concerning these matters, and not doing so would be a shortcoming, but shariah is above any shortcomings. For example, the Messenger (pbuh) told us that the Dajjaal will remain on earth for forty days, one of which will be like a year, one will be like a month, one will be like a week and the rest of his days will be like our (normal) days. The Sahaabah asked the Messenger (pbuh) about those long days, and whether the prayers of a normal day would be sufficient on one of those days. The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said: “No, estimate it and work it out.” If people were left to their own devices, they would fall short in their prayers on the days which were not like normal days. And the Messenger (pbuh) informed us that after his descent (to the earth), Jesus will not accept jizyah from the Jews and Christians; he will not accept anything from them but eemaan (belief or faith). This explanation from the Messenger (pbuh) is essential, because 'Eesa will rule according to this (Islamic) shariah. This shariah states that the jizyah is to be accepted from anyone who pays it, until 'Eesa ibn Maryam descends; at that point, jizyah will be abolished and everyone who refuses to believe will be killed, even if he offers jizyah.

(6) Protecting People from Superstition

Trying to find out what will happen in the future is something natural. Man finds in himself a strong desire to know about the things that may happen to the human race, or to the nation of which he is a member, or to himself. Hence, leaders and rulers, and even individuals, resort to consulting sorcerers, fortune-tellers and astrologers in order to find out these things. But Allah has given them the truth which is sufficient. Ibn Khaldoon discussed this matter in the Introduction to his Taareekh (History), where he said:

"Know that one of the characteristics of the human soul is a longing to know how things will work out and to know what is going to happen in terms of life and death, good and bad, especially in matters that have to do with the general welfare of the world, such as how long this world will remain, how long a nation will remain and when it will pass. Seeking to discover these things is human and is something towards which people are naturally inclined. Hence we see many people trying to find these things out from their dreams and from the words of soothsayers, in the case of kings and commoners who consult them, as is well known. In the cities we find a type of people who earn their living from that, because they know that the people have a keen interest in it. They offer their services in the streets and in shops for those who ask them about these things. So the women and children of the city, and those who are of weak intellect, go to them in order to ask them how things will work out with regard to earnings, power, livelihood, relationships, enemies and so on. They go to those who draw lines in the sand, or who use pebbles and seeds, or who look into mirrors and water (all forms of divination). These are all kinds of evil actions that happen in various regions, as the shariah clearly denounced such things and stated that the unseen is concealed from mankind, except for those to whom Allah shows something in his dream or by means of inspiration.

Those who pay the most attention to such things are the rulers and kings, who try to find out how long their reigns will last. Hence people of knowledge devoted a great deal of attention to such matters. Every nation has soothsayers, astrologers or walis ("saints") who tell them about the dominion that they may look forward to, or the dawn of a new era that is about to begin, or about wars and battles that they will engage in, how long their nation will last, how many kings there will be in their dynasty, and what their names will be. Such things are known as hidthaan or predictions.

The Arabs also had soothsayers and fortune-tellers, whom they would consult about such things. They would foretell the kings and dynasties that would arise among the Arabs, as happened with Shaqq and Sutayh, who interpreted the dreams of Rabee'ah ibn Nasr, one of the kings of Yemen. They told him that the Ethiopians would take over their land, then it would be restored to them, and that the Arabs would have power and dominion after that. Sutayh also interpreted the dreams of Al-Moobadhaan when Chosroes sent the story of the dream to him with 'Abd al-Maseeh, and he told him of the coming Arab state. The Berbers also had soothsayers, one of the most famous was Moosa ibn Saalih from the tribe of Yifran (or as per another report, from Ghamrah). Some of his words were narrated in verse in the Berber language. They contained many predictions, most of which concerned the dominion and dynasties of the Zinaatah tribe in the Maghreb (Morocco). These predictions are in circulation among the people of the mountains, who sometimes claim that he was  a soothsayer. Some of them even claim that he was a Prophet, because in their view he lived a long time before the Hijrah. And Allah knows best.".

Read Also:

-       Wisdom Behind Concealing the Time of the Hour

-       What Are the Five Keys of the Unseen in Islam?

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Source: Umar Sulayman al-Ashqar, The Minor Resurrection and the Major Signs of the Hour, Dar Al-Nafa'is, Jordan; Al-Falah Library, Kuwait, 1991.