The Signs of 'Saa' at'

 

On the Signs of the End of Times- I

 

فَہَلۡ یَنۡظُرُوۡنَ اِلَّا السَّاعَۃَ اَنۡ تَاۡتِیَہُمۡ بَغۡتَۃً ۚ فَقَدۡ جَآءَ اَشۡرَاطُہَا ۚ فَاَنّٰی لَہُمۡ اِذَا جَآءَتۡہُمۡ ذِکۡرٰٮہُمۡ 

“Do they then only wait for the Hour - that it should upon them unawares? But already have come some tokens thereof, and when it (actually) is on them, how can they benefit then by their admonition?” (Muhammad 47: 19) 

The Qur’an is the only book of its kind that is not limited to a time or a place; having been revealed to the Holy Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) more than fourteen centuries ago, and being also the word of the Eternal God, the Qur’an is eternally true. 

Thus, the appearance of the signs of the Hour - the end of the world - which it [i.e. the Qur’an] evokes in this verse has been true throughout these fourteen centuries, is still true today, and will always be so until the end of the world. Indeed, yesterday [in a manner of speaking] it was the very coming of the Holy Prophet (pbuh) which constituted one of these signs, then it was his death, then the confrontation of the believers in Siffin, the appearance of the terrible fire in Hijaz, the Mongol invasions, etc. Today it is the profusion of money and goods, the construction of tall buildings, drug dealings to get richer. Indeed the scourges of drugs are ravaging. Several people, thousands of young people (boys and girls) fall into drugs and the merchants of death multiply their wealth on the corpses of these young people, or even the disintegration of the family unit.

 

Just yesterday [in a manner of speaking] - in the past century - there was the second coming of: Isa (as), Krishna (as), that is to say, the Promised Messiah Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as). Many things at the global and national level have have happened with his coming and today it is with the coming of the Muhyiuddin, Al-Khalifatullah, Al-Mahdi, Al-Massih, etc. where there are a lot of very scary things happening. Indeed, since Allah raised this humble servant in this century, from the beginning of this century in the year 2001 until today, many things have happened and what will still come will be more frightening, the situation will be more harsh, frightening, and bothering around the world, in all ways. If God declares in the Qur’an, in the verse I quoted at the beginning of my sermon, that certain signs of the Hour have already appeared, He does not give any details on the nature of these signs. It was up to His prophet (pbuh) - the leader of all prophets - and His other Islamic prophets to do so, by virtue of our capacity as commentators on the word of God. Also our beloved prophet Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) mentioned many of these signs in his Hadiths (his words, which explain, detail, and complete the word of God). 

Since the creation of this world on earth, all the prophets have announced this terrible day to their respective peoples, but the Holy Prophet (pbuh) has informed his people and also to all mankind that the end of the world is now near, that he is the seal of all the prophets of God on earth, and that although the month, the year, and the century in which the end of the world will take place is not known to anyone but God, many signs which are forerunners to it will announce it. More than any other prophet, he told his people as much as possible about these signs of the end of the world.

 

Also today the goal of the Khalifatullah, Al-Massih of this century [this humble servant present before you] is to warn not only all of his disciples across the world, but also all of humanity that you all need to be concerned about life after death, that you should be concerned with correcting your actions, and that you do not fall body and soul into earthly pleasures. This is all very important. 

I remember a Hadith of the Holy Prophet (pbuh) which gives us an idea of ​​the care with which he (pbuh) mentioned these signs. Huzaifah (ra) relates: “Once the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) stood up among us, and began to speak; there was no important event, which must take place between this moment and the end of the world that he did not neglect. The one of us who remembers it remembers it, and the one who has forgotten has forgotten. My friends here also know that. And there are things that he told us about that I don’t have in mind, but that I remember when I see them happening. Just like someone who had seen a person’s face before: that person then went away [for a long time]; but he remembers him when he sees him again.” (Muslim) 

If some signs are mentioned only very briefly in the Hadiths, others are, however, in great detail. As for example the prophecies relating to Dajjal, the reason is simple: the coming of the Dajjal constituting an event where the faith of the believers will be severely tested, it was normal for the Holy Prophet (pbuh) to warn his people about it in a perfect way and to speak about it with particular care to his companions. 

Al-Nawwas Ibn Saman (ra) relates for example: “The Holy Prophet (pbuh) spoke one morning of Dajjal. He sometimes raised (his voice) and sometimes lowered it, to the point that soon, [impressed by his words], we even began to fear that Dajjal was in the neighbouring palm grove! When we later went to the Holy Prophet (pbuh) he saw the effect of his words in us, and asked us: “What is happening to you?” (Muslim) 

Even among the final recommendations he addressed to his people on the famous Farewell Pilgrimage, the Holy Prophet (pbuh) renewed his warning regarding Dajjal’s turmoil. The main function of these particular Hadiths is to remind believers of the coming of an end for this world and the need to prepare themselves for the afterlife.

 

Today in this century I am not here to terrorize you or to disgust you with life. My goal in front of my Creator is to remind you that this world is fleeting, and that the future life must be remembered. The end of the world and its signs are a reality, but know that whoever dies, it is like that his end of the world has already taken place. 

Death is equivalent to the end of the world [from an individual point of view] because whoever is dead, his end of the world is already there. 

Remember that no Hadith mentions any date for any of all of these signs, and it would be wrong to claim with absolute certainty that such and such a sign foretold by the Holy Prophet (pbuh) will come true in such a year. It is a fact that the absence of a date has made it possible for each era to envisage being the one in which such and such signs will come true, thus keeping the future life in mind. But it is equally notable that this lack of a date at the same time allowed it [i.e. the End of Times] to benefit from the doubt [in people’s minds]. So, you must not sink into futile terrors by giving up all economic, social, or family activity. Also, do not forget, that the Middle Way, as always in Islam, is essential! 

Also know that not all events that the signs speak of are sins. Some are [sins], it is true, but others are simply facts predicted by the Holy Prophet (pbuh) which were/ are to happen before the end of the world and to announce it. So don’t think that increasing lawful goods or planting greenery in the Arabian Desert is wrong in Islam. 

And I assure you that you will remain confused, if not quite perplexed, when you realize that many of the signs he (pbuh) foretold have already happened, or are happening before our eyes.

 

For today I will end here. This is a very broad subject. May Allah give me the Tawfiq and Ilm to elaborate more on this subject, because it is very important nowadays. Certainly, Allah says in His Holy Book, the Noble Quran, speaking in particular of the coming of some of the signs of the end of the world: “Are they awaiting the coming of the angels, or your Lord [Himself], or some of your Lord’s [major] signs? On the Day your Lord’s signs arrive, belief will not benefit those who did not believe earlier or those who did no good through their faith. Say, ‘Keep waiting! We too are waiting’.” (Al-Anam, 6: 160). 

May Allah keep all my followers, all believers and all mankind on His straight path, and may Allah’s victory arise in this world, and evil perish. So we have a lot of work to do to get to our goal and accomplish our mission. Interior and exterior reform is required, so that the evils of Dajjal and all the pangs of this world do not touch us, Insha-Allah. May Allah have mercy on all of His true servants and on all mankind. Insha-Allah, Ameen.

----Friday Sermon of 24 September 2021~16 Safar 1443 AH delivered by the Khalifatul Muslimeen, Hazrat Khalifatullah Munir A. Azim (aba) of Mauritius.