A second chapter on the signs of the Hour

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: I came into the presence of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) while he was performing ablution slowly and calmly. He raised his blessed head, looked at me and said: "O Ummah! Six signs will appear among you: the passing away of your Prophet. The narrator says: I felt as though my heart would be torn from its place. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: That is one sign. Then he said: Wealth will spread among you, until a man will be given ten thousand and he will still remain displeased. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: That makes two. He said: A tribulation will come that will enter the house of every one of you. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: That makes three. He said: Death will occur (on a general scale) just as goats die from the particular goat disease called qu'as." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: That makes four. Then there will be a truce between you and Banu al-Asfar (the Romans); they will keep gathering against you for nine months, which is the length of a woman's pregnancy, and then they will be the first to break the covenant. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: That makes five. Then he said: And a city will be conquered. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: This is the sixth sign. I submitted: O Messenger of Allah! Which city is that? He said: Constantinople.
Ahmad and al-Tabarani recorded it. Its chain contains Abu Janab al-Kalbi, who is a mudallis (one who conceals defects in the chain).

Sayyiduna Mu'adh bin Jabal (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Six things are among the signs of the (nearness of the) Hour: my passing away; the conquest of Bayt al-Maqdis (Jerusalem); the occurrence of a death that will seize people just as the disease qu'as (causes the death of goats); a tribulation whose ruin will enter the house of every Muslim; that a man will be given a thousand dinars and will still be displeased with it; and that the Romans will break their covenant and march with eighty banners, under each of which there will be twelve thousand people."
Ahmad and al-Tabarani recorded it. Its chain contains al-Nahhas bin Qahm, who is da'if (weak).

Sayyiduna Jabir bin Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates: During the caliphate of Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), locusts became scarce. He asked about the locusts, but he was not told anything about them (that is, no report came from anywhere that locusts were found there). He became worried about this. He sent someone to Yemen, someone to Syria and someone to Iraq, asking: Are any locusts seen there? The narrator says: The rider from the direction of Yemen came to him with a handful of locusts, and he placed them before Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him). When Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) saw them, he said the takbir (Allahu Akbar) three times and then said: I heard the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) say: "Allah Almighty created a thousand kinds of creatures, six hundred kinds of which are in the sea and four hundred kinds on land. The first thing among these nations to meet destruction will be the locusts; when they are destroyed, then (the destruction of the rest) will follow just as beads scatter when the thread breaks."
Abu Ya'la recorded it in al-Kabir, and its chain contains Ubayd bin Waqid al-Qaysi, who is da'if (weak).

Utay al-Sa'di narrates: I set out in pursuit of knowledge until I came to Kufah. At that time Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) was present among the people of Kufah. I asked about him and was directed to him; he was in its largest mosque. I came to him and said: O Abu Abd al-Rahman! I have come to you to seek knowledge from you, so that Allah Almighty may benefit me through this knowledge even after you. He said: Where are you from? I replied: From the people of Basrah. He asked: From which tribe? I replied: From the tribe of Banu Sa'd. He said: O Sa'di, I will narrate to you a hadith about your people that I heard from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). "I heard the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) when a man came to him and submitted: O Messenger of Allah! Shall I not direct you to a people whose wealth is abundant and whose strength is great, from whom you will obtain much wealth (the narrator is in doubt about one word here)? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) asked: Who are they? The man said: This tribe of Banu Sa'd, the people of al-Rimal (the sand dunes). The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Stop! Banu Sa'd hold a great standing in the sight of Allah Almighty. (Then Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) said to that man:) O Sa'di, ask. I said: O Abu Abd al-Rahman! Is there any particular sign of the Hour by which it can be recognised? The narrator says: He had been reclining, and he sat up straight and said: O Sa'di, you have asked me about something that I asked the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) about. I submitted: O Messenger of Allah! Is there any particular sign of the Hour by which it can be identified? He said: "Yes! O Ibn Mas'ud! The Hour has certain marks, and the Hour has certain signs. Beware! Among the marks and signs of the Hour is that the child will be disobedient, rain will stop falling, and wicked people will spread. O Ibn Mas'ud! Among the marks and signs of the Hour is that the treacherous will be made trustworthy and the trustworthy will be declared treacherous; the liar will be believed and the truthful will be belied. O Ibn Mas'ud! Among the marks and signs of the Hour is that ties will be maintained with distant people while the rights of kinship will be trampled. O Ibn Mas'ud! Among the signs and marks of the Hour is that the hypocrites of every tribe will be the chiefs of every tribe, and the wicked of every market will be its chiefs. O Ibn Mas'ud! Among the marks and signs of the Hour is that the mihrabs will be adorned and hearts will be ruined. O Ibn Mas'ud! Among the marks and signs of the Hour is that the standing of a believer in a tribe will be more abject than that of a small sheep (naqad). O Ibn Mas'ud! Among the marks and signs of the Hour is that men will be content with men and women will be content with women. O Ibn Mas'ud! Among the marks and signs of the Hour is the rule of children and the rule of women. O Ibn Mas'ud! Among the signs and marks of the Hour is that the ruins of the world will be built up and its built-up places will be ruined. O Ibn Mas'ud! Among the signs and marks of the Hour is that musical instruments, arrogance and the drinking of wine will become widespread. O Ibn Mas'ud! Among the marks and signs of the Hour are the police, the slanderers and the fault-finders. O Ibn Mas'ud! Among the marks and signs of the Hour is that children born of fornication will be numerous." (The narrator says:) I said: O Abu Abd al-Rahman! Will those people be Muslims? He replied: Yes. I said: O Abu Abd al-Rahman! Will the Qur'an be among them? He replied: Yes. I said: O Abu Abd al-Rahman! Then how will this happen? He said: A time will come upon people in which a man will divorce his wife and then deny having divorced her, and he will remain on her bed, and as long as the two of them remain together they will be committing fornication."
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat and al-Mu'jam al-Kabir. Its chain contains Sayf bin Miskin, who is da'if (weak).

Sayyiduna Awf bin Malik al-Ashja'i (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O Awf! What will be your state when this Ummah divides into seventy-three sects, one of which will go to Paradise and all the rest will go to Hell?" I submitted: O Messenger of Allah! When will that happen? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: When the police (shurat) become many, slave women become owners, people of no standing sit on the pulpits, the Qur'an is made into music, the mosques are adorned, the pulpits are built high, the spoils are treated as personal wealth, zakah is regarded as a penalty, trusts are regarded as spoils, knowledge of the religion is acquired for other than the pleasure of Allah Almighty, a man obeys his wife, disobeys his mother and drives his father away, the latter part of this Ummah curses the earlier ones, the chief of every tribe is its sinful person, the leader of the people is the most contemptible of them, and a man is honoured to avoid his evil. At that time this will happen, and people in distress will go to Syria, and to a city of Syria called Damascus, which will be the best city of Syria; it will protect people from their enemy. I asked: Will Syria be conquered? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Yes. That will happen soon. Then after its conquest tribulations will occur; then a dusty, dark tribulation will come; then tribulations will come one after another; then a man from my household will come forth who will be called the Mahdi. If you live to see his time, follow him and be among those who follow the Mahdi. (Allamah al-Haythami says:) I say: Ibn Majah recorded the opening part of this report.
Al-Tabarani recorded it, and its chain contains Abd al-Hamid bin Ibrahim, whom Ibn Hibban declared thiqah (trustworthy), but he is da'if (weak). It contains a group of narrators whom I do not know.

Sayyiduna Abu Musa al-Ash'ari (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was asked about the Hour while I was present there. He said: Knowledge of it (its appointed time) is only with Allah Almighty, and none but He will reveal it at its time. However, I will tell you about its signs and about what will happen before it. Beware! Before it there will be tribulations and harj. It was submitted: O Messenger of Allah! As for the tribulations, we know about them; what is meant by harj? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: In the language of Abyssinia it means killing; (and another sign is) that mutual estrangement will be cast among people, until no one will recognise anyone else; the hearts of people will dry up, and a worthless rabble will remain who will not recognise good as good nor denounce evil as evil. (Allamah al-Haythami says:) I say: The opening part of this report is mentioned in the "Sahih".
Al-Tabarani recorded it, and its chain contains a narrator who is not named.

It is narrated from him that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The Hour will not be established until the Book of Allah Almighty becomes a source of shame, time contracts, its handholds are broken, years and fruits decrease, those under suspicion are made trustees and the trustworthy are accused, the liar is believed and the truthful is called a liar, and harj becomes widespread. The people submitted: O Messenger of Allah! What is meant by harj? He said: Killing; and transgression, envy and miserliness will become manifest, matters will be in dispute among people, desires will be followed, judgements will be passed on the basis of conjecture, knowledge will be taken away, ignorance will become manifest, children will be disobedient, winter will be hot, indecency will be committed openly, and the earth will be soaked with blood." (Allamah al-Haythami says:) I say: Part of this report is mentioned in the "Sahih".
Al-Tabarani recorded it, and its narrators are thiqat (trustworthy), though there is disagreement about some of its narrators.

Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reports this saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): "By the One in whose Hand my soul is! The Hour will not be established until indecency and miserliness become manifest, the trustworthy is declared treacherous and the treacherous is made trustworthy, the wu'ul perish and the tuhut become prominent. The people submitted: O Messenger of Allah! What is meant by wu'ul, and what is meant by tuhut? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Wu'ul means the leading and honourable people, and tuhut means those who used to be under people's feet (that is, of low social standing) and nobody even knew of them." (Allamah al-Haythami says:) I say: Part of this report is mentioned in the Sahih.
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat. Its chain contains Muhammad bin Sulayman bin Walibah, and I do not know him. The remaining narrators of this report are thiqat (trustworthy).

Sayyidah Umm al-Dirab (may Allah be pleased with her) narrates: My father passed away, leaving behind me and my brother as his survivors, and he did not leave us any wealth. My paternal uncle came from Madinah and took us to Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her). She took me inside behind the curtain because I was a girl, but the boy was not allowed in. My uncle complained to Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) about our need, so Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) ordered that we be given bread containers, two containers of wheat and two bedding mats. Then she said: I heard the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) say: "The Hour will not be established until children become disobedient, rain stops falling, contemptible people become many, the honourable disappear, the young become insolent towards the old, and the contemptible become insolent towards the honourable."
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat, and its chain contains a group of narrators whom I do not know.

Sayyiduna Abu Dharr al-Ghifari (may Allah be pleased with him) reports this saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): "When the time (of the Hour) draws near, the tayalisah cloth will be worn abundantly, trade will increase, wealth will increase, the man of wealth will be regarded as great, indecency will become widespread, children will rule, women will become many, the ruler will be oppressive, there will be cheating in measuring and weighing, a man will consider raising a puppy better than raising a child, the elder will not be respected, the young will not be shown mercy, children born of fornication will become numerous, until a man will have intercourse with a woman in the road, and the best person of that time will be the one who says: It would have been proper if you had done this away from the road. They will be wearing the skins of sheep while their hearts are like those of wolves, and the most exemplary person of that time will be the one who compromises (with people)."
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat, and its chain contains Sayf bin Miskin, who is da'if (weak).

Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) reports this as a marfu' hadith from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), that he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Among the signs of the nearness of the Hour is that the new moon will be seen on one night, and it will be said: This is the moon of two nights; mosques will be made into thoroughfares; and sudden death will become common."
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Saghir and al-Mu'jam al-Awsat. He narrated it from his teacher al-Haytham bin Khalid al-Missisi, who is da'if (weak). The chains of this report have already passed in the Book of Fasting, in the chapter on sighting the new moon.

Sayyiduna Umar bin al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Among the signs of the Hour is that a fool, who is the child of a fool, will dominate the world; and the best of people at that time will be the believer whose parents are also honourable."
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat with two chains, the narrators of one of which are thiqat (trustworthy).

Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The nights and days will not come to an end until the most fortunate person in the world is one who is a fool and the child of a fool."
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat, and its narrators are the narrators of the Sahih, except for al-Walid bin Abd al-Malik bin Musarrih, whose case is different, and he is thiqah (trustworthy).