38. The Mahdī
Sunan Abi Dawud 4279Graders disagree
لاَ يَزَالُ هَذَا الدِّينُ قَائِمًا حَتَّى يَكُونَ عَلَيْكُمُ اثْنَا عَشَرَ خَلِيفَةً كُلُّهُمْ تَجْتَمِعُ عَلَيْهِ الأُمَّةُ فَسَمِعْتُ كَلاَمًا مِنَ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ لَمْ أَفْهَمْهُ قُلْتُ لأَبِي مَا يَقُولُ قَالَ كُلُّهُمْ مِنْ قُرَيْشٍ
The Prophet ﷺ said: The religion will continue to be established till there are twelve caliphs over you, and the whole community will agree on each of them. I then heard from the Prophet ﷺ some remarks which I could not understand. I asked my father: What is he saying: He said: all of them will belong to Quraysh.
Sunan Abi Dawud 4280Sahih
لاَ يَزَالُ هَذَا الدِّينُ عَزِيزًا إِلَى اثْنَىْ عَشَرَ خَلِيفَةً قَالَ فَكَبَّرَ النَّاسُ وَضَجُّوا ثُمَّ قَالَ كَلِمَةً خَفِيَّةً قُلْتُ لأَبِي يَا أَبَةِ مَا قَالَ قَالَ كُلُّهُمْ مِنْ قُرَيْشٍ
I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say: This religion will continue to be strong till the time of twelve caliphs. The people then uttered: Allah is more great and uproared. He then silently a word which I could not understand. So I said to my father: What did he say, father ? He said: All of them will belong to Quraish.
Sunan Abi Dawud 4281Hasan or sahih
فَلَمَّا رَجَعَ إِلَى مَنْزِلِهِ أَتَتْهُ قُرَيْشٌ فَقَالُوا ثُمَّ يَكُونُ مَاذَا قَالَ ثُمَّ يَكُونُ الْهَرْجُ
When he came back to his home. the Quraish came to him and said: Then what will happen ? He said: Then turmoil will prevail.
Sunan Abi Dawud 4282Hasan or sahih
عَنِ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ قَالَ: «لَوْ لَمْ يَبْقَ مِنَ الدُّنْيَا إِلاَّ يَوْمٌ». قَالَ زَائِدَةُ فِي حَدِيثِهِ: «لَطَوَّلَ اللَّهُ ذَلِكَ الْيَوْمَ». ثُمَّ اتَّفَقُوا: «حَتَّى يَبْعَثَ فِيهِ رَجُلاً مِنِّي» أَوْ «مِنْ أَهْلِ بَيْتِي يُوَاطِئُ اسْمُهُ اسْمِي وَاسْمُ أَبِيهِ اسْمَ أَبِي». زَادَ فِي حَدِيثِ فِطْرٍ: «يَمْلأُ الأَرْضَ قِسْطًا وَعَدْلاً كَمَا مُلِئَتْ ظُلْمًا وَجَوْرًا». وَقَالَ فِي حَدِيثِ سُفْيَانَ: «لاَ تَذْهَبُ أَوْ لاَ تَنْقَضِي الدُّنْيَا حَتَّى يَمْلِكَ الْعَرَبَ رَجُلٌ مِنْ أَهْلِ بَيْتِي يُوَاطِئُ اسْمُهُ اسْمِي».
From the Prophet ﷺ, who said: “If there remained but one day of this world.” Zaidah said in his version: “Allah would prolong that day.” Then they all agreed: “Until He sends on that day a man from me,” or, “from my household, whose name corresponds to my name and whose father’s name corresponds to my father’s name.” Fitr added in his version: “He will fill the earth with equity and justice just as it was filled with injustice and oppression.” In Sufyan’s version, he said: “The world will not pass away—or will not come to an end—until a man from my household, whose name corresponds to my name, rules the Arabs.”
Sunan Abi Dawud 4283Hasan or sahih
لَوْ لَمْ يَبْقَ مِنَ الدَّهْرِ إِلاَّ يَوْمٌ لَبَعَثَ اللَّهُ رَجُلاً مِنْ أَهْلِ بَيْتِي يَمْلأُهَا عَدْلاً كَمَا مُلِئَتْ جَوْرًا
The Prophet ﷺ said: "If only one day of this ˹worldly˺ time remained, Allah would raise up a man (the Mahdī) from my family who would fill this earth with justice as it has been filled with oppression."
Sunan Abi Dawud 4284Hasan or sahih
الْمَهْدِيُّ مِنْ عِتْرَتِي مِنْ وَلَدِ فَاطِمَةَ
The Prophet ﷺ said: The Mahdi will be of my family, of the descendants of Fatimah. Abdullah ibn Ja'far said: I heard AbulMalih praising Ali ibn Nufayl and describing his good qualities.
Sunan Abi Dawud 4285Graders disagree
قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ الْمَهْدِيُّ مِنِّي أَجْلَى الْجَبْهَةِ أَقْنَى الأَنْفِ يَمْلأُ الأَرْضَ قِسْطًا وَعَدْلاً كَمَا مُلِئَتْ جَوْرًا وَظُلْمًا يَمْلِكُ سَبْعَ سِنِينَ
The Prophet ﷺ said: The Mahdi will be of my stock, and will have a broad forehead a prominent nose. He will fill the earth will equity and justice as it was filled with oppression and tyranny, and he will rule for seven years.
عَنِ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ قَالَ: «يَكُونُ اخْتِلاَفٌ عِنْدَ مَوْتِ خَلِيفَةٍ، فَيَخْرُجُ رَجُلٌ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْمَدِينَةِ هَارِبًا إِلَى مَكَّةَ، فَيَأْتِيهِ نَاسٌ مِنْ أَهْلِ مَكَّةَ فَيُخْرِجُونَهُ وَهُوَ كَارِهٌ، فَيُبَايِعُونَهُ بَيْنَ الرُّكْنِ وَالْمَقَامِ، وَيُبْعَثُ إِلَيْهِ بَعْثٌ مِنَ الشَّامِ فَيُخْسَفُ بِهِمْ بِالْبَيْدَاءِ بَيْنَ مَكَّةَ وَالْمَدِينَةِ، فَإِذَا رَأَى النَّاسُ ذَلِكَ أَتَاهُ أَبْدَالُ الشَّامِ وَعَصَائِبُ أَهْلِ الْعِرَاقِ، فَيُبَايِعُونَهُ بَيْنَ الرُّكْنِ وَالْمَقَامِ، ثُمَّ يَنْشَأُ رَجُلٌ مِنْ قُرَيْشٍ أَخْوَالُهُ كَلْبٌ، فَيَبْعَثُ إِلَيْهِمْ بَعْثًا فَيَظْهَرُونَ عَلَيْهِمْ، وَذَلِكَ بَعْثُ كَلْبٍ، وَالْخَيْبَةُ لِمَنْ لَمْ يَشْهَدْ غَنِيمَةَ كَلْبٍ، فَيَقْسِمُ الْمَالَ، وَيَعْمَلُ فِي النَّاسِ بِسُنَّةِ نَبِيِّهِمْ ﷺ، وَيُلْقِي الإِسْلاَمُ بِجِرَانِهِ إِلَى الأَرْضِ، فَيَلْبَثُ سَبْعَ سِنِينَ، ثُمَّ يُتَوَفَّى وَيُصَلِّي عَلَيْهِ الْمُسْلِمُونَ»،
The Prophet ﷺ said: "There will be disagreement at the death of a caliph. A man from the people of Madinah will flee to Makkah, and some people of Makkah will come to him and bring him out, though he is unwilling. They will pledge allegiance to him between the Rukn (Hajar al-Aswad) and the Station ˹of Ibrahim˺. An army will be sent against him from Syria, but they will be swallowed by the earth at al-Bayda, between Makkah and Madinah. When the people see that, the eminant scholars of Syria and the bands of the people of Iraq will come to him and pledge allegiance to him between the Rukn and the Station. Then a man from Quraysh whose maternal relatives belong to Kalb will arise and send an army against them, but they will prevail over it. That will be the army of Kalb, and loss awaits whoever does not witness the spoils of Kalb. He will distribute the wealth, govern the people according to the Sunnah of their Prophet ﷺ, and Islam will settle firmly upon the earth. He will remain for seven years, then he will die and the Muslims will offer the funeral prayer over him."
بِهَذَا الْحَدِيثِ وَقَالَ تِسْعَ سِنِينَ
The other narrators mentioned "nine years" from Hisham except Mu'adh.
حَدَّثَنَا قَتَادَةُ عَنْ أَبِي الْخَلِيلِ عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ الْحَارِثِ عَنْ أُمِّ سَلَمَةَ عَنِ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ بِهَذَا الْحَدِيثِ وَحَدِيثُ مُعَاذٍ أَتَمُّ
The tradition mentioned above has also been transmitted by Umm Salamah from the Prophet ﷺ through a different chain of narrators. The tradition of Mu'adh is more perfect.
Sunan Abi Dawud 4289Sahih
عَنِ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ بِقِصَّةِ جَيْشِ الْخَسْفِ قُلْتُ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ فَكَيْفَ بِمَنْ كَانَ كَارِهًا قَالَ يُخْسَفُ بِهِمْ وَلَكِنْ يُبْعَثُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ عَلَى نِيَّتِهِ
How will a man who comes against his will (be swallowed up by the earth), Messenger of Allah ? He replied: All will be swallowed up, but each will be raised according to his intention on the Day of Resurrection.
قَالَ عَلِيٌّ ؓ وَنَظَرَ إِلَى ابْنِهِ الْحَسَنِ فَقَالَ إِنَّ ابْنِي هَذَا سَيِّدٌ كَمَا سَمَّاهُ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ وَسَيَخْرُجُ مِنْ صُلْبِهِ رَجُلٌ يُسَمَّى بِاسْمِ نَبِيِّكُمْ يُشْبِهُهُ فِي الْخُلُقِ وَلاَ يُشْبِهُهُ فِي الْخَلْقِ ثُمَّ ذَكَرَ قِصَّةَ يَمْلأُ الأَرْضَ عَدْلاً
Ali looked at his son al-Hasan and said: This son of mine is a sayyid (chief) as named by the Prophet ﷺ, and from his loins will come forth a man who will be called by the name of your Prophet ﷺ and resemble him in conduct but not in appearance. He then mentioned the story about his filling the earth with justice.
النَّبِيُّ ﷺ يَخْرُجُ رَجُلٌ مِنْ وَرَاءِ النَّهْرِ يُقَالُ لَهُ الْحَارِثُ بْنُ حَرَّاثٍ عَلَى مُقَدِّمَتِهِ رَجُلٌ يُقَالُ لَهُ مَنْصُورٌ يُوَطِّئُ أَوْ يُمَكِّنُ لآلِ مُحَمَّدٍ كَمَا مَكَّنَتْ قُرَيْشٌ لِرَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ وَجَبَ عَلَى كُلِّ مُؤْمِنٍ نَصْرُهُ أَوْ قَالَ إِجَابَتُهُ
The Prophet ﷺ said: A man called al-Harith ibn Harrath will come forth from Ma Wara an-Nahr. His army will be led by a man called Mansur who will establish or consolidate things for Muhammad's family as Quraysh consolidated them for the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. Every believer must help him, or he said: respond to his sermons.