In the name of Allah, the most beneficient ever merciful .

Every individual, every society and every nation has its own particular destiny. Even before the first human being had been created, all the details of what each person would experience in the future, the events to be witnessed by every nation, the stages every society would go through, and the like, had all been established in the sight of Allah. Yet, people do not know any of these details that have been established, lived through, or done with in the sight of Allah. They only see and come to know them as they experience them. The future is thus unknown to us.

However, Allah has also revealed that He has granted some of His servants information about the unknown in the Qur'an. One such factor was that about the Prophet Yusuf (as). In his dungeon, he told two of his companions of the proofs of the existence of Allah:

"He said, "No meal to feed you will arrive before I have informed you what they mean. That is part of what my Lord taught me. For I have left the religion of a people who clearly have no belief in Allah and are disbelievers in the hereafter." (Surah Yusuf: 37)

As we see from this verse, Yusuf (as) is saying that he knew something that had not yet occured. That is knowledge, and a miracle, imparted to him by Allah. Allah also gave him the knowledge to interpret dreams. As long as Allah so wished, he could see certain events in the future.

Similar knowledge to that given to Yusuf (as) was also given to other prophets. In some verses, Allah states that He will reveal aspects of the unknown to those He chooses to be His messengers:

"He is the Knower of the Unseen, and does not divulge His Unseen to anyone-except a Messenger with whom He is well pleased, and then He posts sentinels before him and behind him. "(Surat al-Jinn: 26-27)

Our Lord gave the Prophet (saas) much knowledge of the unknown. The Prophet (saas) was told by Allah of things that had happened in the past, which nobody knew about, and of things that were yet to happen in the future. Allah states the truth in one verse:

"This is news of the Unseen which We reveal to you. You were not with them when they decided what to do and devised their scheme. "(Surah Yusuf: 102)

This chapter will consider some information regarding the unknown that has come down to us from the Qur'an, that was imparted by Allah to the Prophet (saas) or that is available in the hadiths. (For more detail, see Harun Yahya, Miracles of the Qur'an, Attique Publishers, 2001).

The great majority of these things have come to pass already, and people have witnessed these miracles. That is also one of the proofs that the Prophet (saas) was the messenger of Allah and that the Qur'an is the word of Allah.

Some of the information regarding the unknown imparted
to the Prophet (saas) by the Qur'an

"Alif Lam Mim. The Romans have been defeated in the lowest land, but after their defeat they will themselves be victorious within three to nine years. The affair is Allah's from beginning to end. On that day, the believers will rejoice. "(Surat ar-Rum: 1-4)

One of the items of information about the future given to the Prophet (saas) by means of the Qur'an is to be found in the early verses of Surat ar-Rum. It is revealed in these verses that the Byzantine Empire had been defeated, but would then emerge victorious a short while later.

These verses were revealed in 620 A.D., some seven years after a crushing defeat inflicted on the Byzantines by the idolater Persians. The news is reported that the Byzantines will soon again be victorious. At that time, however, the Byzantines had been so seriously defeated that it looked impossible for them even to survive, let alone later emerge victorious. Not only the Persians, but also the Avars, Slavs and Lombards all constituted a grave menace to the Byzantine Empire. The Avars had come as far as the walls of Constantinople. In order to meet the expenses of his army, the Byzantine Emperor Heraclius had ordered all gold and silver ornamental goods in the churches to be melted down. When that proved to be insufficient, he even started to have bronze statues torn down to make coins from. Many governors rebelled against Emperor Heraclius, and the empire was on the point of falling apart. The idolator Persians had occupied many Byzantine territories, including Mesopotamia, Cilicia, Syria, Palestine, Egypt and Armenia.

In short, everyone expected Byzantium to disappear completely. Yet, at just that moment, the news was revealed in the verse that Byzantium would emerge victorious again within nine years. Such a victory looked so totally impossible that Arab idolaters believed that this victory, revealed in the Qur'an, could never happen.

Yet, it was certainly true, just like everything else in the Qur'an. About seven years after the revelation of the first verses of Surat ar-Rum, in December 627 A.D., there was a major battle between Byzantium and the Persian Empire not far from the ruins of Nineveh. The Byzantine army defeated the Persians. A few months later, the Persians had to sign a treaty handing back to Byzantium all of its territories they had occupied.209 The "victory of the Romans," revealed to the Prophet (saas) by Allah in the Qur'an, had miraculously come about.

Another miracle in these verses consists in the reporting of facts about a part of the world that nobody at the time could possibly identify.

In verse 3 of Surat ar-Rum, it is said that the Romans had been defeated in "the lowest place on Earth." The Arabic for that is "Adna al Ard," and is translated in some texts as meaning "a land nearby." Yet, that does not accurately reflect the original meaning. The Arabic word "adna" means "the lowest," and comes from the word "deni," which means "low." "Ard" means the "earth." "Adna al Ard" therefore means the lowest place on earth.

The battle between the Byzantine Empire and the Persians really did take place at the lowest point on earth. That was the basin of Lake Lut, where present-day Syria, Palestine and Jordan meet. It is also known that the area around the lake is 395 metres below sea-level, making it the lowest point on earth. As the verse reveals, the Romans were defeated at "the lowest place on earth."

The important point here is that the altitude of Lake Lut has only been been established by measurements taken in the modern age. Before that, it was not possible for anyone to know that the lake was the lowest point on earth. Yet the region is described as such in the Qur'an. That is one of the proofs that the Qur'an is the divine word, and that the Prophet Muhammad (saas) is the prophet of Allah.

"The Romans have been defeated in the lowest land..."
(Surat ar-Rum: 2-3)

"Glory be to Him who took His servant on a journey by night from the Masjid al-Haram to the Masjid al-Aqsa, whose surroundings We have blessed, in order to show him some of Our Signs. He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing. "(Surat al-Isra': 1)

In this verse, Allah reveals that one night he took the Prophet (saas) to the Al-Aqsa Mosque. That is a great miracle. The Sacred Mosque (Masjid al-Haram) is in Mecca, and the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. The Prophet (saas) was in Mecca when this happened. Under the conditions of that time it would have been quite impossible for him to go from Mecca to Jerusalem in one night. We must also make it clear that the Prophet (saas) had never before seen Jerusalem and the Al-Aqsa Mosque.

The next day, when he recounted this great miracle to those around him, the polytheists in Mecca refused to believe him, and, it is said, demanded proof. One of them had seen the Al-Aqsa Mosque, and they asked the Prophet (saas) to describe it and asked him questions about it.

When the Prophet (saas) was able to describe the Al-Aqsa Mosque correctly, the polytheists said his description was exact. They then asked him whether or not he had met a caravan that was coming from there. The Prophet (saas) replied: "Yes, I came across it. It was at Rawha. They had lost a camel and were looking for it. There was a water goblet among what they were carrying. I was thirsty and drank from it, and then put it back in its place. When they arrive, ask them if they found the water in that goblet." The Quraish then said, "That is another sign." They then continued to ask him detailed questions about the caravan. The Prophet (saas) answered all their questions, and said: "They will arrive on such and such a day, at dawn, led by such and such a person on a grey camel with two haircloth sacks on it." They then said, "That is another sign." It is then reported that on that day they then made haste for Saniyya to wait for dawn. The caravan in question indeed came into view at dawn. Leading the caravan was that same grey camel that the Prophet (saas) had described.

"It is He who appointed you successors on the earth and raised some of you above others in rank so He could test you regarding what He has given you. Your Lord is Swift in Retribution; and He is Ever-Forgiving, Most Merciful. "
(Surat al-An'am: 165)

It is an important miracle that Allah should have shown the Prophet (saas) somewhere he had never been without actually going there. It was impossible at that time to go from Mecca to Jerusalem in a single night, and that makes the miracle even greater and clearer.

"Allah has confirmed His Messenger's vision with truth: You will enter the Masjid al-Haram in safety, Allah willing, shaving your heads and cutting your hair without any fear. He knew what you did not know and ordained, in place of this, an imminent victory. "(Surat al-Fath: 27)

The Prophet (saas) had a dream when he was in Medina, that the believers had entered the Sacred Mosque and walked around the Kaaba. He gave the good news to the believers. Those of the believers who migrated from Mecca to Medina had not been able to return since. When the Prophet (saas) spoke of his dream, as the account has it, the believers went to Mecca for the purposes of pilgrimage, although the idolators would not allow them in. The unbelievers saw this as an opportunity to sow discord, and tried to prove the Prophet (saas)'s dream false by saying that they had been unable to go to the Kaaba and unable to cut their hair.

Allah revealed verse 27 of Surat al-Fath to the Prophet (saas) to help and support him, and revealed that the dream was true, and that if Allah so wished the believers would be able to enter Mecca. A short while later, with the Treaty of Hudaybiya and the conquest of Mecca, the believers were able to enter the Sacred Mosque in complete safety, just as the dream had shown. That was how Allah showed that the news He had previously given to the Prophet (saas) was true.

Another important point here is this: When the Prophet (saas) gave that good news to the believers it looked totally out of the question. In fact, the situation pointed in quite the opposite direction, and the polytheists appeared quite determined never to let the believers in. That led those who harboured doubts in their hearts to doubt the words of the Prophet (saas). Yet, the Prophet (saas) trusted in Allah, took no notice of what people might say, had complete faith in what Allah had revealed to him and told people about it. It is an important miracle that his words were confirmed by the Qur'an, and that they came to pass shortly afterwards.

"We decreed in the Book for the tribe of Israel: "You will twice cause corruption on the earth and you will reach [a degree of] great haughtiness. When the promised first time came, We sent against you servants of Ours possessing great force, and they ransacked your houses, rampaging right through them. It was a promise which was fulfilled. Then once again We gave you the upper hand over them and supplied you with more wealth and children and made you the most numerous group." (Surat al-Isra': 4-6)

As these verses reveal, the Children of Israel were to experience two victories. Following the first of these, and their "reaching to a degree of great haughtiness," Allah then sent a powerful army against them. Indeed, when the Jews killed the Prophet Yahya (as) and set a trap to kill the Prophet 'Isa (as), in other words, after their "reaching to a degree of great haughtiness," they were exiled shortly afterwards from Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 A.D. The Temple of Solomon in the city was completely demolished.

Following their exile from Palestine in 70 A.D., the Jews wandered all over the world. Since they were seen as the killers of 'Isa (as), they were generally despised in European countries, had to live under oppressive conditions, and even most of the time had to practice their religion in secret. When that verse was revealed to the Prophet (saas), the Jews were living under very difficult conditions and had no state of their own. Yet, Allah told them that they would one day recover their strength.

That looked like a particularly remote possibility when the Prophet (saas) was alive, yet it later came about. They returned to Palestine and established the State of Israel in 1948. Israel's military and political power is no secret to anyone today.

In this verse regarding the Jews, and in other verses, one of the important things is the revelation that things that looked totally impossible at the time, would come about. All of these examples are miracles of the Qur'an, of course.

"The Prophet confided a certain matter to one of his wives, then when she divulged it Allah disclosed that to him, and he communicated part of it and withheld part of it. When he told her of it, she said, '"Who told you of this?" He said, "The All-Knowing and All-Aware informed me of it." (Surat at-Tahrim: 3)

As is revealed in this verse, the Prophet (saas) imparted a secret to a number of his wives. However, they were unable to keep it, and revealed it to each other. Allah had told the Prophet (saas) of that behaviour, that they would talk amongst themselves. The Prophet (saas) then told his wives that he knew they had divulged the secret.

Information about the unknown the Prophet (saas) revealed in the hadiths

"O my people! You are about to conquer Egypt. Keep the welfare of the conquered people in view. You shall have to abide by the divine covenant that their life and property and their honour should be protected."(Al Hafiz ibn al-Dayba al-Shaybani,Taysir al-'usul ilaJami al-'usul, Volume 15, p. 420)

In the hadiths, the Prophet (saas) gave the good news that Egypt would be conquered. At the time when he communicated that message, Egypt was under the dominion of the Byzantines. Furthermore, the Muslims had yet to attain any great power. Yet, these words of the Prophet (saas) came true, and, not long after his death, the Muslim armies under the command of Amr bin al-As conquered Egypt in 641 A.D., during the caliphate of Omar. That is one example of the Prophet (saas) accurately knowing the unknown.

"Kisra (Khosrau, King of Persia) will die; there will be no Kisra after him, and Qaisar (Caesar, King of Rome) will die; there would be no Qaisar after him, but, by One in Whose Hand is my life, you will spend their treasures in the cause of Allah."(http://lists.isb.sdnpk.org/pipermail/cyberclub-old/1999-April/000341.html)

The word "kisra" that appears in this hadith was a name that used to be used for kings of Persia. The title "caesar" was used for the Roman Empire. The Prophet (saas) gave the good news that the Muslims would come into possession of the treasures of both these rulers.

What needs to be stressed here is that when the Prophet (saas) related that fact, the Muslims still lacked the necessary economic, military and political strength to effect such a great conquest. Furthermore, at that time, the Persian and Byzantine Empires were the two most powerful states in the Middle East. For that reason, such an event was out of the question, at the time when the Prophet (saas) delivered those tidings. However, things actually happened as the Prophet (saas) predicted they would. Iran was conquered during the time of Omar and all its goods seized. The kingdom of the Persian "kisra" thus came to an end.

"The death of "caesar" and the reversion of his treasuries to the Muslims came about with the capture of important Roman centers, particularly during the time of the Muslim caliphs. Starting with the time of Abubakr, important centers under the dominion of "caesar" such as Jordan, Palestine, Damascus, Jerusalem, Syria and Egypt were conquered. The capture of Constantinople by the Ottoman Sultan Mehmet the Conqueror in 1453 meant the collapse of the Roman Empire, and the end of the title of "caesar."(http://www.mustakiim.de/Islam/IslamTarihi/bilgi5.htm)

In his book The Venture of Islam, the American researcher M. G. S. Hodgson describes the Muslim capture of territories belonging to Byzantium and the Persian Empire:

"Muhammad, an Arab of Mecca, sets up a religiously organized society in Medina, and expands it over much of the Arabian peninsula to march with and even locally replace Sasanian and Roman power."(M.G.S. Hodgson, The Venture of Islam, Volume1, Ýz Publications, Istanbul, 1993, p.61)

In this way, these important conquests, that seemed to be totally impossible at the time of the Prophet (saas) both politically and economically, actually happened, as revealed to the Prophet Muhammad (saas) by Allah.

"Great Allah sent many tribulations to Kisra by his son Shireveyh, who killed him in this month, on this night at this hour!"(http://www.najaco.com/islam/companions_prophet/sahmi.htm)

"In the near future, my religion and its sovereignty will reach Kisra's throne."(Ar-Raheeq Al-Makhtum,(The Sealed Nectar), http://www.quraan.com/Raheeq/32.asp)

The Prophet (saas) decided to invite the rulers to turn to Islam, and sent one of his companions, Abdullah bin Hudhaafah, to the Kisra, the Persian King, as an ambassador. The Persian Kisra, swollen with pride, rejected the Prophet (saas)'s offer. He even sent two ambassadors of his own to the Prophet (saas), telling the Muslims to submit to him. The Prophet (saas) first invited these two ambassadors to accept Islam. Then he called them into his presence the next day to learn their decision.218

The next day, the Prophet (saas) told the two ambassadors what Allah had revealed to him:

"Great Allah sent many tribulations to Kisra by his son Shireveyh, who killed him in this month, on this night, at this hour!"(http://www.najaco.com/islam/companions_prophet/sahmi.htm)

He also personally told them:

"Tell him that my religion and my empire will reach far beyond the kingdom of Kisra; and say to him from me: Enter Islam, and I will confirm you in what you have, and I will appoint you king over the people of Yemen."(hhttp://cyberistan.org/islamic/chosroes.html)

The ambassadors then returned to Yemen and described what had gone on. Badhan said:

"We will see what happens next. If what he said is true, then he is the prophet whom Allah has sent."(http://cyberistan.org/islamic/chosroes.html)

He then turned to his men and asked what they thought of him. The ambassadors had been greatly impressed by the Prophet (saas), and said:

"We never saw a ruler more majestic, more fearless and less guarded than him. He walked humbly amongst the people."

Badhan waited for a while to see whether the Prophet (saas)'s words about the ruler would come true or not. In that way, he said, he could be sure that Muhammad (saas) was Allah's messenger. A short while later, a letter reached Badhan from the ruler's son, Shireveyh: I killed Kisra. When this letter reaches you, take the oath of the people in my name. Regarding what Kisra wrote to you, wait and do nothing until a new command from me.(http://www.najaco.com/islam/companions_prophet/sahmi.htm)

When Badhan and his men worked it out, they realized that all this had happened just as the Prophet (saas) had said it would.

Badhan came to believe after that great miracle, and accepted Islam. He was followed by the Yemeni Abna.

Badhan became the first governor appointed by the Prophet (saas), and the first Persian governor to be a Muslim.(Salih Suruç, Kainatýn Efendisi Peygamberimizin Hayatý, (The Life of the Prophet (saas)) Yeni Asya Publications, Istanbul, 1998,)

It is a historically documented fact that in 628 the Prophet (saas) sent a letter of invitation to the Persian King Kisra, and that he was killed by his son that same year.(H.G. Wells, A Short History of the World, http://www.bartleby.com/86/41.html; http://www.encyclopedia.com/printablenew/25555.html)

The Prophet (saas)'s hadiths regarding the signs of the end times

Many details of what the Prophet (saas) said would happen before the last days have reached us. These events are happening one by one in our own time, proving to be yet another miracle of the Prophet (saas). These events, that are happening 1,400 years after the Prophet Muhammad (saas), were explained in great detail, as if he had witnessed them himself.

These are the Prophet (saas)'s prophecies regarding the signs of the end times and the last day, taken from the hadiths:

"The Last Hour will not come unless there is much bloodshed."(Sahih Bukhari Hadith)

"Near the establishment of the Hour there will be much Al-Harj, and Al-Harj means killing…"(Sahih Bukhari Hadith)

"The day of Judgment will not come until people openly deny Allah."(Al-Muttaqi al-Hindi, Al-Burhan fi Alamat al-Mahdi Akhir al-zaman)

"Great cities will be ruined, and it will be as if they had not existed the day before"(Al-Muttaqi al-Hindi, Al-Burhan fi Alamat al-Mahdi Akhir al-zaman)

"Gains will be shared out only among the rich, with no benefit to the poor"(Tirmidhi Hadith)

"People will indulge in homosexuality and lesbianism."(Al-Muttaqi al-Hindi, Kanzul Ummaal)

"There will be prevalence of open illegal intercourse."(Sahih Bukhari Hadith)

"The Hour (Last Day) will not be established until murders will increase."(Sahih Bukhari, Volume 2 no: 146)

"Pity poor Taliqan (a region in Afghanistan) that at that place are treasures of Allah, but these are not of gold and silver but consist of people who have recognised Allah as they should have."(Al-Muttaqi al-Hindi, Al-Burhan fi Alamat al-Mahdi Akhir al-zaman)

There is an indication in the hadith that Afghanistan will be occupied during the end times. The Russian invasion of Afghanistan took place in 1979, or 1400 according to the Hijri calendar. In other words, it coincided with the start of the fourteenth century under the Hijri calendar.

"It (Euphrates) will uncover a mountain of gold (under it)."(Sahih Bukhari, Volume 9, Book 88, Number 235)

"Soon the river "Euphrates" will disclose the treasure (the mountain) of gold, so whoever will be present at that time should not take anything of it."(Sahih Bukhari, Volume 9, Book 88, Number 235)

"The rebuilding of the ruined places in the world, and the ruination of constructed places are signs and portents of Doomsday."(Ismail Mutlu, Kýyamet Alametleri, (Signs of the Last Day), Mutlu Publications, Istanbul, 1999)

"There are two signs of our Mahdi; ...and those signs are that moon will eclipse in the first night of its fixed nights of eclipse and sun will be eclipsed in the middle of the fixed days for its eclipse, during the month of Ramadhan."(Ibn Hajar Haytahami, Al-Qawl al-Mukhtasar fi'alamat al-Mahdi al-Muntazar)

"There will be two eclipses of the sun in Ramadan before the Mahdi emerges."(Imam Sarani, Olum-Kýyamet- Ahiret ve Ahir Zaman Alametleri, (Death, Judgment and Resurrection), Bedir Publications, Ýstanbul)

"There will be two eclipses of the Moon in Ramadan..."(Ibn Hajar Haytahami, Al-Qawl al-Mukhtasar fi'alamat al-Mahdi al-Muntazar)

The common points emerging from the above three hadiths are:

1. There will be solar and lunar eclipses during the month of Ramadan.

2. These will be spaced about 14-15 days apart.

3. The eclipses will be repeated twice.

In line with those calculations, there was a lunar eclipse in 1981 (Hijri 1401), on the 15th day of Ramadan, and a solar eclipse on the 29th day of the month. There was a "second" lunar eclipse in 1982 (Hijri 1402) on the 14th day of Ramadan, and a solar eclipse on the 28th day of the month.

It is also particularly significant that in that particular instance, there was a full lunar eclipse in the middle of the month of Ramadan, a most striking prophecy.

"Before he comes, a comet spreading light will come from the East."(Ibn Hajar Haytahami, Al-Qawl al-Mukhtasar fi'alamat al-Mahdi al-Muntazar)

"The birth of that star will follow the eclipse of the Sun and Moon."(Al-Muttaqi al-Hindi, Al-Burhan fi Alamat al-Mahdi Akhir al-zaman)

"A tailed star will be born from the East and spread its light. Its daily direction will be from East to West."(Imam Rabani, Mektubat-ý Rabbani, (Maktubat Imam Rabbani) Translated by Abdulkadir Akcicek, Istanbul Daðýtým A.S., Istanbul,)

-In 1986 (Hijri 1406), in other words at the start of the 14th century, Halley's comet passed by the Earth. The comet is a bright, shining star.

-It travels from East to West

This happened after the lunar and solar eclipses of 1981 and 1982 (1401-1402)

"People will go on the hajj with no imam at their head. When they descend to Mina, the tribes will savage each other like dogs and there will be great wars. To such an extent that feet will be covered in a lake of blood."(Al-Muttaqi al-Hindi, Al-Burhan fi Alamat al-Mahdi Akhir al-zaman)

"A fire will appear in the sky from the East and a redness will cover the sky for three or seven days in a row."(Ýsmail Mutlu, Kýyamet Alametleri, (The Signs of the Last Day) Mutlu Publications, Ýstanbul, 1999)

"A fire will enfold you. That fire is currently extinguished in the valley called Berehut. People will be enfolded in that fire with terrible suffering. That fire will burn and destroy people and belongings. For eight days it will rage over the world like wind and cloud. The heat of night will be fiercer than that of day. That fire will stretch from the heads of man to the highest heavens, and there will be a terrible noise like thunder between the earth and sky, he said."(Ýmam Sarani, Ölüm-Kýyamet- Ahiret ve Ahir Zaman Alametleri, (Death, Judgment and Resurrection), Bedir Publications, Ýstanbul)

- The burning oil in Kuwait led to the deaths of people and animals. According to experts, half a million tons of oil went up into the atmosphere as smoke. Every day, more than 10,000 tons of soot, sulphur, carbon-dioxide and large quantities of hydrocarbons with their carcinogenic properties hang suspended over the Gulf. It is not just the Gulf, but the world itself that is burning. (Necati Özfatura, Kurtlar Sofrasýnda Ortadoðu, Adým Publications, 1983)

- Two wells that were set alight produced as much oil as Turkey does in one day, and the smoke from them can be seen from Saudi Arabia, 55 kilometres away.(Hurriyet Newspaper, 23 January 1991)

- Continuing news of disaster from the Gulf: Hundreds of oil wells set alight in Kuwait are still burning fiercely. Experts say it will be "exceedingly difficult to put those fires out," and it is said that the fires will affect a wide area from Turkey to India for the next 10 years.

The fire and smoke coming from the wells constantly pollute the atmosphere. Daytime resembles night in Kuwait. The brown smoke that rises together with the flames remind one of the sky as the autumn turns into winter … It will take at least a century for Kuwait to be completely habitable again. The smoke that rises with the flames is visible from miles away, totally blocking out the sky and making the country unfit to live in. The wealthy are abandoning Kuwait.(Necati Özfatura, Kurtlar Sofrasýnda Ortadoðu, Adým Publications, 1983)

"He(The Mahdi) will not come until there is a portent from the Sun."(Ibn Hajar Haytahami, Al-Qawl al-Mukhtasar fi'alamat al-Mahdi al-Muntazar)

The solar eclipse of August 11, 1999 was the last of the century. During this eclipse, the likes of which take place only every 400 years, the sun, the moon and the world align. It was the first time that so many people had been able to watch and study an eclipse for so long a duration. Below are some newspaper headlines regarding the phenomenon. This can be interpreted as the "portent from the Sun" referred to in the hadith. (Allah knows best, of course).

"Before the Hour comes, there will be a tribulation like patches of dark night..."(Sunan Abu Dawud Hadith)

The word "tribulation (fitna)" implies anything that turns peoples' reason and hearts away from the true path, or war, incitement, chaos, disorder and conflict. The tribulation in the hadith will leave smoke and dust behind it, we learn.

Furthermore, the way that tribulation is described as "darkness" in the hadith, can be seen as an indication that its origins are unclear, that it is unexpected. Looking at it from that regard, it is probable that the hadith is referring to the world's worst terrorist attack, on the cities of New York and Washington in the United States on September 11, 2001.

"The inhabitants of Egypt and Sham would kill their ruler and his commands…"(Ibn Hajar Haytahami, Al-Qawl al-Mukhtasar fi'alamat al-Mahdi al-Muntazar)

"The people of Sham will take prisoner the tribes of Egypt."(Ibn Hajar Haytahami, Al-Qawl al-Mukhtasar fi'alamat al-Mahdi al-Muntazar)

Today, the states in the region in question include Israel. That is why the hadith could be pointing to the war between the State of Israel and Egypt, and the invasion of Egyptian territory.

"The Hour (Last Day) will not be established until ... earthquakes will be very frequent."(Hadith Sahih Bukhari, Volume 2, Book 17, Number 146)

"There are two great events before the day of Judgment ... and then years of earthquakes."(Ahmad Diya'al-Din al-Kamushkhanawi, Ramuz al-Ahadith, 187/2)