Re: Dijjal
Taken from a talk given at Dar al-Fatwa (Beirut) by Shaykh Al-Sayyid Al-Habib Ali Jafri of Yemen.
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The Dajjal
In that time the Great Deceiver or Dajjâl will have appeared. All the uproar and loud cries of the voices of money and materialism in the world today, in all their manifestations, are only preliminaries for the Dajjâl. Everything that you see in this world producing weak souls and raising entire generations with the most tenuous of links to principles and values - people made into worldly automatons, worshippers of the world, their sole concern the world, their thought the world, their religion the world, their consciences the world - when the people are ripe in this sense, the Dajjâl will emerge onto this world in the form of a missionary - a reformist missionary.**
He will appear among the people then he will acquire fame and more fame. Many miracles will show at his hands. He will claim Prophethood. Then he will claim Divinity - our refuge is Allâh! We might very nearly have to envisage or imagine that a Muslim can actually follow some misshapen creature walking this earth and whom he will consider his Divine Lord!
However, the Most Beloved - God bless and greet him and his Family - told us about the Dajjâl. He said he might enter an all-Muslim town and then exit it, all its population now disbelievers! God is our refuge from such a thing! Someone asked, what is the reason? It was said that the reason is that he will go to people whose hearts have grown attached to love of the world and whose entire identities have thoroughly mixed with the world and its train. For such, “whoever pays leads” (man yadfa yutba)!
This is what the people are being trained for today. They are being prepared for the Dajjâl and his sovereignty. They are being educated today - in their economy, their politics, their societies, their relationships, their commerce, their undertakings and derelictions - all on the debilitated foundation that is the attachment of hearts to trivial worldly interests.
Whoever pays leads. For this was it related that the Dajjâl will roam the earth. God will permit that people be tried at his hands. He will have control of their sustenance - agriculture, food, water - to the point he will say, “O heaven, rain!” and rain will pour; “O earth, sprout!” and vegetation will grow; “O plantations, bear fruit!” and fruit will ripen; “O living one, die! O dead one, rise!” and the dead will rise. God will grant him these displays and watch those whose hearts have latched upon externalities (mazâhir) be seduced while those whose hearts have latched upon the Hidden and Manifest (al-bâtin al-zâhir) remain oblivious to all but Him.
It was related that the Dajjâl will roam the entire earth. It was related from the Beloved that he said: “Let none of you ever wish to meet the Arch-Deceiver!” In addition to the extreme gravity of the warnings of the Beloved against the Dajjâl, he even said that there had never been any Prophet except he warned his people about the strife of the Dajjâl. Indeed, IN EVERY PRAYER, AFTER RECITING THE FINAL WITNESSING OF FAITH (TASHAHHUD) AND THE BENEDICTION UPON HIS PURE SELF, HE WOULD SEEK REFUGE IN HIS LORD FROM “THE TRIAL (FITNA) OF LIFE AND THE TRIAL OF DEATH AND THE TRIAL OF THE ARCH-DECEIVER MASIKH.” May God save us and you from his trial!
He - upon him blessings and peace - insisted so much on the terrible gravity of the Dajjâl’s strife before the Companions that some of them said, “We believed he was already among the date-trees of Madîna.” They believed he had arrived and would appear any moment among the people because of the fear caused by the reports of the Prophet - upon him blessings and peace - about him.
**THE DIVINE PROTECTION
**Despite these incessant warnings and the fear caused by this forthcoming strife, the Messenger of God - upon him blessings and peace - said: “Whoever recites Sûrat al-Kahf the night before Jumu`a and its day, God will protect him from the strife of Dajjâl.”
O Messenger of God! You told us of a calamity that would shake the entire earth - a man that would control the world from East to West, roaming the earth, in his hand many of the powers that cause these calamities. The people of faith will experience hunger, poverty, distress. Then you said, after warning us of this terrible disaster that would befall us - so great that the Companions themselves thought the Dajjâl had almost come out - that the remedy is to recite Sûrat al-Kahf the night before Jumu`a and its day? One Sûra of the Qur’ân containing one hundred and ten verses. Are you telling me that if I recite it, I will be safe from this huge disaster?
He says yes! So that you would understand that the greatness of this safety and salvation are linked to God Most High. WE ARE A COMMUNITY OF ISLAM WHOSE SALVATION AND SAFETY AND PRESERVATION DO NOT DEPEND ON SHORT-SIGHTED EXTERNALITIES AND POWERS NOR ON THEIR “MOVERS AND SHAKERS”. We are a Community whose paths of salvation in the world and the hereafter consist in the attachment of our hearts to this most glorious Book, in the arousal of feelings in our hearts telling us of the greatness of the message that comes from God. There is no Muslim that regularly reads Sûrat al-Kahf every night before Jumua and every day of Jumua except he obtains a guarantee from the Beloved Elect - upon him blessings and peace - regarding his salvation from the trial of the Dajjâl.
It was related from both Ibn Masûd and al-Hasan al-Basrî that they received the news or rather heard the rumor that the Dajjâl had come out. Al-Hasan laughed. He was asked "What makes you laugh?" He replied: "If he came out now, the boys of al-Basra would play with him the way they play with a foot ball." Why? Because in the time in which al-Hasan and Ibn Masûd were told of this rumor, the people had a firm foothold in certitude in their relationship with God. The sway of the Dajjâl and his power cannot in the least affect hearts upon which the lights of certitude have dawned. THE SWAY OF THE DAJJAL HOLDS ONLY OVER HEARTS WHOSE CERTITUDE HAS WILTED AND WHOSE ATTACHMENT TO EVANESCENT MATTERS HAVE GROWN STRONG.
THE INVINCIBILITY OF MADINA
It was related that the Dajjâl would roam the earth and that when he reaches Madîna the Radiant - upon its dweller the best blessings and greetings of peace! - and desires to enter it, the angels will stand in front of him at the gates of Madîna and bar his passage. They will stand in front of him at a place the Messenger of Allâh - upon him blessings and peace - has named for us - al-Jurf - a place known today in Madîna al-Munawwara. He will stand on a mountain there and look toward the Mosque of the Beloved and his grave, saying: “Look there, at that white building: that is the palace of Ahmad.” He will try to enter but will be unable. Some of his followers will bring some people. The Prophet - upon him blessings and peace - said that when the Dajjâl stands at the gates of Madîna, Madîna will shake three times; at that time, anyone in whose heart remain hypocrisy and dissemblance or other than firm attachment to God Most High shall be corrupted and follow the Dajjâl. One of the narrations specifies they will reach eighty thousand. God is our refuge from that!
THE RIGHTEOUS WITNESS
Some of the soldiers of the Dajjâl will seize a man from among the righteous whom they think to be a common person. They will stand him before the Dajjâl who will say to him: “Do you believe that I am your Lord?” He will reply: “No! You are none other than the Arch-Deceiver.” He will say: “I am your Lord!” “No! You are the Dajjâl!” He will say: “I am your Lord!” “No! You are the Dajjâl!” He will then order for a saw to be brought. The saw will be placed in the middle of the righteous man’s head and he will be sawed in half until he becomes two separate pieces and the horses will pass between the two. Then the Dajjâl will give an order. He will be brought back together again and the Dajjâl will pass his hand over him, after which he will live a second time, by the power of God. When he comes alive the Dajjâl will look at him, thinking that he has definitely gained control over him, and say: “I have caused you to die and caused you to come alive again. Do you now believe that I am your Lord?” The man will reply: “My certitude has only increased that you are the Dajjâl of whom the Messenger of Allâh - upon him blessings and peace - told us!” He will order him to be killed but will be unable to do so anymore.
THE KILLING OF THE DAJJAL
Just as the Dajjâl orders the righteous man to be killed he will hear a voice crying out: “The Spirit from God, Jesus, has descended!” When the Dajjâl hears the name of our liege-lord `Isâ he will shake and tremble in fear. He will rush to Palestine . There, the army of our liege-lord Jesus and our liege-lord al-Mahdî will meet the army of the Dajjâl at the gate of Ludd. When the Dajjâl looks and sees our liege-lord Jesus, upon him peace, surrounded with a halo of light, the Dajjâl will melt - as mentioned in the hadîth - just as salt melts in water. Our liege-lord Jesus will approach him and so will our liege-lord al-Mahdî. They will strike him with their two swords and kill him.
O nations of the Believers, this matter is not just a story we hear for our hearts to be moved a little. This is about living, this is a method one follows, a path one takes, this is a transaction that is going to take place and in which we are going to be involved. AT THIS VERY MOMENT THE ARMIES OF THE CHRIST ARE GETTING READY AND SO ARE THE ARMIES OF THE DAJJAL. THE MEANING OF THIS PREPARATION IS THAT CERTAIN ATTRIBUTES IN THE HEARTS ARE RISING AND TAKING FIRM ROOT IN THE ARMY OF TRUTH AND RIGHT WHILE CERTAIN ATTRIBUTES ARE ALSO FORMING IN THE ARMY OF FALSEHOOD.
CHRIST, ANTI-CHRIST, AND THE JEWS
It is also said that the wisdom for which God has the killing of the Dajjâl take place at the hands of our liege-lord the Christ is that the Dajjâl is the manifestation of the oppression of materialism while our liege-lord the Christ is the manifestation of the supremacy of the spirit in this existence. The Dajjâl is also named “anointed” (masîh), but “the anointed arch-liar and deceiver” (al-masîh al-kadhdhâb al-dajjâl). He was named masîh because at some point in his career he will claim that he is our liege-lord the Christ.
This is because when the Jews fought the Christ - the spirit from God - and refused to believe in him and submit to his mission, they then denied that the Christ had appeared even as it was written in their books that the Christ would appear. Therefore, they claimed that our liege-lord Jesus was a great liar - and he is far exalted beyond their claim! - and they opposed him and tried to kill him. But God saved him, {They did not slay him, neither crucified him, only a likeness of that was shown to them} (4:157).
Then our liege-lord the Christ was raised up to the near heaven - upon him peace - and the Jews remained as they were, in their belief that the Christ had not yet come out. They are now waiting for a Christ to come, and their Christ is the Dajjâl. About ten years ago or more a manifestation took place in Tel-Aviv in which a large placard was hoisted, saying: “Welcome to the impending appearance of the Prince of Peace.” This is the one they claim to be the Christ, but he is the Arch-Deceiver.
You can read more about Isa alaysalam here:
http://qa.sunnipath.com/issue_view.asp?HD=7&ID=886&CATE=24