This excerpt is taken from Sheikh Hafiz Mubashir Hussain Lahori's book Signs of the Day of Judgment in the Light of Authentic Hadith.
Sign of the Day of Judgment: The End of Knowledge and Increase in Ignorance
عن أنس بن مالك رضى الله عنه قال قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم : إن من أشراط الساعة أن يرفع العلم ويثبت الجهل ويكثر الهرج
Hazrat Anas bin Malik (RA) narrates that the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said: "The disappearance of knowledge, the increase of ignorance, and killing and plundering are among the signs of the Day of Judgment."
Reference: Bukhari: Book of Knowledge: Chapter on How Knowledge is Taken Away (100) Muslim (2672) Ahmad (387/11 - 503 - 550 - 564) Tirmidhi (2200) Ibn Majah (4099 - 4100)
عن عبد الله بن عمرو رضى الله عنه قال قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم : إن الله لا يقبض العلم انتزاعا ينتزعه من العباد ولكن يقبض العلم بقبض العلماء حتى لم يبق عالم ، اتخذ الناس رؤوسا جهالا ، فسئلوا فأفتوا بغير علم فضلوا وأضلوا
Hazrat Abdullah bin Amr (RA) narrates that the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said: "Allah will not forcibly take knowledge away from the hearts of people, but He will take away knowledge along with the death of the scholars until no scholar remains. Then people will appoint ignorant ones as leaders (Amirs). When asked, they will issue rulings without knowledge. The result will be that they themselves will be misguided and will misguide others."
Reference: Bukhari: Also (100) Muslim (2673) Ahmad (216/2 - 252) Ibn Majah (40) Humaydi (581) Abdul Razzaq (256/11)
Hazrat Ziyad bin Labid (RA) narrates that the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) mentioned the disappearance of knowledge, so I said: O Messenger of Allah! How will knowledge end when we recite the Quran and teach our children (they will continue teaching their children, so this chain will continue until the Day of Judgment)? The Prophet (PBUH) said: "Ibn Labid! May your mother have mercy on you, I considered you a sensible man of Medina! Do not the Jews and Christians read the Torah and the Gospel? But they do not benefit from them."
Reference: Ahmad (219/4 - 298) Ibn Majah (4097) Hakim (179/6) Mushkil al-Athar (278/1) with authentic chain
Hazrat Hudhaifa (RA) narrates that the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said: "Knowledge will gradually disappear just as the marks on clothes fade away until people forget even the concept of prayer, fasting, zakat, and sacrifice. The Quran will be taken away, and some old men and women will remain who will say: We have only heard one word لا إله إلا الله from our forefathers, so we also repeat that word."
Reference: Fath al-Bari (16/13) and Hafiz said, narrated by Ibn Majah with a strong chain, Ibn Majah (4049) Hakim (473/4) authenticated and agreed by al-Dhahabi, Sahih al-Jami' al-Saghir (339/6)
In one narration, it is said that the Day of Judgment will be established when there will be no one left on earth to say "Allah Allah."
Reference: Muslim: Book of Faith: Chapter on the Disappearance of Faith at the End of Times (148) Ahmad (134/3 - 204)
Benefits:
(1) The removal of knowledge and the spread of ignorance is a sign of the Day of Judgment.
(2) This sign has been apparent for a long time, as the commentator of Bukhari, Ibn Battal, states that we have witnessed the decline of knowledge and the increase of ignorance with our own eyes.
Reference: Fath al-Bari (16/13)
(3) Knowledge will gradually disappear step by step until at the time of the Day of Judgment, people will forget not only the concept of prayer and fasting but even the word Allah.
(4) The knowledge referred to here is religious knowledge. It does not mean natural sciences or their various branches.
(5) Allah will not forcibly take knowledge from people's hearts, but with the death of scholars, their knowledge will also be taken away.
(6) The number of Mujtahid Imams will gradually decrease until the trumpet of the Day of Judgment is blown.
(7) People will appoint ignorant ones as their leaders, chiefs, administrators, amirs, managers, ministers, and presidents instead of scholars.
(8) The practice (action) is primarily included in the disappearance of knowledge because the Jews and Christians have their scriptures and knowledge, but the practice is missing.
