As is the usual practice in my works, the symbols { } are used to facilitate an understanding in the translations of scripture.
“Knowledge without intelligence is like having shoes with no feet and intelligence without knowledge is like having feet with no shoes.” (Ali ibn Abi Talib)
Human beings have been gifted with the facilities and powers of intellect and reason by which our daily lives, the physical/spiritual world around us and even our religion have an eternal source from which our thoughts do spring. This is the ideal, unimpaired process of unblemished thought which is not tarnished by artificial barriers set forth to protect ‘meism’ from the ‘naked truth’.
Therefore, original human, untainted thought is to think logically while making observations and thus arriving at correct conclusions. In the case of faith, one can apply these broad spectrums throughout the range of intellect preparing the way for a dedicated worship of the ONE GOD in truth and harmony.
Many people have taken up sides in the stance on just what is human nature comprised of. Is it nurture or is it nature? Is it learn to kill or born to kill? That is, is it from learning from society or is it genetically implanted (a type of predestination)? In studying Islam it seems that we can encounter both sides at the same time* but we do not yet understand these things because we cannot understand the Divine Decree.
It is not important to go beyond our capable knowledge because we trust in our LORD and HIS WAYS ARE PERFECT IN ALL THINGS. All we need to know is that there is support for these things and we should be content and find satisfaction in that.
If Islam is a truly world-wide, universal and truthful religion, which it is; one can then study Islam first by studying Islamic theology of course as well as studying science, comparative religion, nature, psychology and all things sound and sensible. That is the way it should be especially as the ONE GOD HIMSELF has thrown up the challenge to take on HIS TRUTH and see if there is any weaknesses in it. HE says emphatically, “There is NO weakness”! In the Quran – HIS WORD!
Praise be to ALLAH, WHO has sent to HIS Servant {Muhammad} the BOOK and has NOT ALLOWED any crookedness {or misleading statements or sentiments} therein. Q (18: 1)
So in this article some ancient mysteries will be uncovered to some extent but these things are not like playing marbles or buying eggs. They require a deep mind set of thought and of course connecting the dots as one plunges on the pathway in search of an understanding into ourselves and the world around us.
The United States presidential campaign has proven one certain thing. Due to the oddity of massive, delusional fibbing and outright outrageous lying even in some cases by the candidates, researchers have proven once again that even when people know that the truth is being widely bent they don’t seem to mind much when it is their side that is bending the truths.
This is indeed very much related to tribalism and the whole world seems infested with this practice of brushing off the truth when it is convenient or as long as our side wins. That, by any other name, is tribalism whether it is tribalism of belonging to a namesake, territory country, group or club.
However, this is not our concern at this time except to note that a lot of people brag about the truth but in fact most of those braggarts in the end can’t seem to handle it! And we go so far as to ask ourselves why the world is in the state that it is in! What a mess we have made for ourselves because the truth does not abide in us and therefore even our societies that we have tried to make strong and invincible will always have a timeline established for its destruction.
And what is there to keep back men from believing now that GUIDANCE has come to them nor from praying for forgiveness from their LORD but that (they wait for) the ways of the ancients to overtake them or the WRATH be brought to them face to face? Q (18: 55)
And who does more wrong than one who is reminded of the Signs of his LORD but turns away from them forgetting the ({cruel}deeds) which his hands have sent forth? Verily, WE have set veils over their hearts so that they DO NOT understand this {concept} and over their ears, deafness. If you {O! Prophet through the wisdom given to you} call them to guidance {or they are called through your written down teachings} even then will they never accept guidance. Q (18: 57)
In some of my writings I have discussed the Gog and Magog peoples but only briefly. The current literature about these ‘peoples’ including some Islamic literature is very much incomplete, confusing and just plain wrong. Indeed, there are a lot of myths about the Gog and Magog peoples that have been passed down through the centuries.
The Old Testament doesn’t give much about the Gog and Magog but does supply a few things. They are from the ‘northern tribes’ is about it. Furthermore, it can be historically stated for future reference:
Son of man, set your face against Gog, {and} the land of Magog, the chief prince of Me’shech and Tu’bal, and prophesy against him,
And say, thus says the LORD GOD; Behold, I am against you, O Gog, the chief prince of {over} Me’shech and Tu’bal: Ezekiel (38: 2-3)
And I will turn you back and leave but the sixth part of you and will cause you to come upon the mountains of Israel.
You shall fall upon the mountains of Israel, you and all of your bands and the people that are with you; I will give you unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured.
And I shall send a fire on Magog and amongst them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the LORD. Ezekiel (39: 2, 4, 6)
Me’shech and Tu’bal were sons of Japheth one of the sons of Noah (pbh).
There are many different and foolish myths floating around in Islamic circles regarding the Gog and Magog of which some are:
1) Some of the Gog and Magog are as tall as the Arz tree or about 120 feet in height.
2) They live, eat and reproduce underground.
3) Some spread one ear to sleep on and cover themselves with their other ear which acts as a blanket.
Another myth surrounding the Gog and Magog is that some believe that Gog and Magog are not human beings but some kind of third being. However, the reality is that they are human beings just like you and I, and will eventually constitute nine-tenths of mankind. The Gog and Magog are in truth nothing more than part of the progeny of Prophet Noah (pbh).
Even one highly thought of Muslim scholar, Ibn Kathir, in his historical work called ‘The Beginning and the End’ discussed the origins of Gog and Magog as the people who traditionally inhabited the area between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, or where the Khazar Kingdom (a kingdom that supposedly contained the missing tribes of Israel) was originally situated. He specifically states that Gog and Magog are two groups of Turks, descended from Japheth, the father of the Turks, one of the sons of Noah.
Finally, a modern day scholar, whose name will not be mentioned, figures that the Gog and Magog are the non-Muslim peoples. Considering what some so-called Muslims have been doing to other Muslim peoples, I would say that his idea at least on this part is all wet.
From all of these ideas generated from overly fertile minds we must ask ourselves, “Who really are the Gog and Magog peoples?” The answer surprisingly is not that difficult.
Authentic hadiths suggest that they are very strong and powerful people whom nobody has the power to fight. It has also been narrated that they have wide faces, small eyes, graying hair and their faces are like shields covered with reddish-like skin. Finally, they wear shoes made from animal skins/hair. The parts of this paragraph that have been underlined will be explained below.
The first thing in our search for the truth is that we should note the advice given in the Quran and that is to look at the heavens or at nature to unlock the key to the above question. The next thing we should do is go to the correct and approved hadiths. In using these two things, one should come up with a clearer picture of ‘who are the Gog and Magog’, i.e., tracing them back to their original geographical origins.
In order to simplify things, I have broken down the Gog and Magog peoples as to the following:
1. The Gog
2. The Magog
3. Their Friends
First, let us take a trip into the world of nature and see if we can’t spot something like the Gog-Magog and their temperament. This will also be helpful for looking at their friends as in one who is in like nature and one who lives on other continents and are NOT in the ‘Land of Palestine’ when they will all be collectively destroyed in one fateful and beautiful day!
In nature, we do find the Gog and Magog example. The example is that of the locust. In some years the locust, which is a form of grasshopper, appears to be almost nonexistent. However, in just one year, almost like magic, there appears such a horde (a communal collection) of these creatures (sometimes estimated as a million times a million of these creatures) that even in daytime; the sun’s light is nearly cut off as an artificial darkness invades the land due to their swarming techniques.
However, there is one important point to remember! The locusts mill around the ground as empty do-nothings UNTIL ONE OF THOSE CRITTERS TAKES FLIGHT AND THEN THE DEADLY SWARM BEGINS. That is also an important key to our understanding of who the GOG are.
Another point to be taken is that we already have tasted these ‘peoples’ beforehand and therefore we should already know who they are. That is, we should already know in general who makes up this deadly and crazed army that no one has the power to stop. Furthermore, we have such clear and unambiguous sayings from Prophet Muhammad (pbh) that we can understand how it is that mankind will NOT have the resources to deal with them. Therefore, they become relatively free to go on their rampage basically unopposed!!!
The answers to the above question are now easy to come by and quite provable when all things are considered.
1. The Gog are from Mongolia and are appropriately called Mongols in today’s world.
2. The Magog are the neighboring tribes that are akin to the Mongols in relationship and ideals and have an historical connection, as they themselves teach, with Genghis Khan and the philosophy of being the ‘stem and root’ of the origins of civilization as some of the ultranationalists Turks believe. That is ‘we’ started the human race, (after the Flood) its language, customs, etc. and the others are mere degraded and delusional forms of human beings and not like us.
I know that is hard to believe but when one comes up against one of these characters; it becomes obvious about his or her abhorrent and delusional self-righteous beliefs. These people, from numbers one and two above, can ‘claim’ any religious philosophy. In fact, Gog and Magog have been counted as Buddhists, Animists, Shamanists, Christian or Muslim in their so-called outward beliefs.
3. The Friends of Gog and Magog form a great number of individuals who have nothing left for them in a world apparently going extinct but to commit murder, mayhem and other degrading acts. These people exist now and of course will come forth in great numbers when society crumbles and is on the verge of total collapse. They will show their true spirit in their criminality and wanton thirst for surviving at any cost.
Even today we are seeing in the news more and more bizarre and psychopathic actions being created by those who society would call abnormal. Such things are torture, cannibalism, and other cold, cruel and impersonal acts considered non-human or monstrous by their various human societies. So in retrospect we are seeing a ‘growing but unstoppable’ type of human being with an internal lust bent on wicked things EVEN WHEN THE SOCIETY THAT THEY ARE IN HAS NOT COLAPPSED.
The Prophet (pbh) was clear that the Gog and Magog were building up a force for the future in a correct (Sahih) but not very well understood hadith.
Zainab daughter of Jahsh told that ALLAH’s Messenger (pbh) came in to visit her one day in a state of trepidation saying, “There is NO god but ALLAH. Woe to the Arabs because of {the} evil which has drawn near! Today an opening has been made in the barrier restraining Gog and Magog to this extent and he (pbh) made a circle with his thumb and forefinger. Zainab said she asked ALLAH’s Messenger (pbh) whether they would perish when there were righteous people among them and he replied, “Yes, when wickedness is abundant.” (Bukhari and Muslim)
Some people may think of the term ‘barrier’ as a wall-type barrier especially made of iron and such, as was the barrier erected by Zulqarnain (peace be upon this knowledgeable and righteous servant of ALLAH) against the Gog and Magog so many, many uncountable years ago .
However, take note of these words, “A barrier is set between man and the Unseen.” Is this barrier made of cement and brick or even iron? The ‘opening in the barrier’ in the above hadith in this case does NOT refer to a wall-type barrier but the barrier of certain types of souls being sent to the Earth. ALLAH’s Plan is truly calculated and perfectly tuned to meet the ravages of time or the trials and tribulations of mankind as well as the total considerations of all of HIS creatures and creation!
Today we would call these souls a criminal, thoughtless type of soul easily swayed to a certain direction while creating mayhem. The barrier spoken of here cannot be a barrier as in a wall-type of structure because one cannot imagine people squeezing through a hole one-by-one and discussing about giving each other a little push and pull to get through.
Until the Gog and Magog (people) are let through {their barrier} [upon the world], and they swarm down from every corner [of the earth]. Q (21: 96)
In other words, it is ALLAH WHO IS IN CHARGE, TOTAL CHARGE AND HE DECIDES AND DETERMINES THE DESTINY AND THE OUTCOMES AND HAS FASHIONED THE MOST PERFECT OF PLANS!
So now we have historical evidence of what occurred when this ‘HORDE’ ravaged the land! We can also see that their faces were like shields with their high cheekbones narrowing down to where their chin forms. Their eye shape was small and their skin color was kind of a coppery-reddish tint and their skin is kind of tightened looking due to much time spent outdoors in rugged terrain. Even their shoes were made from animal skin and hair.
Abu Huraira narrates that Prophet Muhammad (pbh) said that The Last Day will not occur until you people engage in battle with the Turks, who have small eyes, reddish faces and small flat noses. Their faces will be like a shield (broad) upon which many layers of skin have been placed. The Last Day will not come until you fight with that nation which wears shoes made of hair. (Bukhari)
And they did fight such a fight that millions of Muslims were eradicated including women who were horribly mistreated and tormented including the deaths of countless children and newly born babies.
What other telltale signs do we have about those people? Another sign that we have is their lifestyle and country of origin. When people study the Mongolian land, they see a people who have adapted to a harsh, nomadic wandering environment. This has given them an aptitude of survival and ‘animal-like’ instincts and endurance in order just to dwell successfully in their harsh terrain.
It has been estimated that between just Genghis Khan and his Mongol grandson Hulagu and Timur (Tamerlane) that between 15% and 20 % of the known human population of that day was exterminated. Timur, who only envisioned himself as a relation to Genghis Khan, was born in what is now modern Uzbekistan and belonged to a Turko-Mongol tribe. Today, he is credited with being of Turkish origin and a Genghis Khan copycat.
The list of horrors and idiocies that were perpetuated by those people (The Gog and the Magog) is legendary. For example, Genghis Khan considered himself the ‘stick of God’ and as such he had the so-called right to inflict other people with terrible punishments because his whims were supposedly his god’s whims. These were that because this ego-maniac was like unto a god himself in his way of thinking!
Timur, a grand admirer of Genghis Khan, considered himself as a Muslim Turk as well as the ‘Sword of God’. This allowed that egotistical monster to slaughter Muslims by the millions as well as anyone else he didn’t seem to like. So, the kingdom started by Genghis Khan eventually ended up to be the largest conquered kingdom of lands that the world has ever seen. In fact it spread from the Atlantic to the Pacific Oceans and included such diverse areas as Eurasia (China, Korea, the Caucasus, Central Asia) and a large part of Russia, Eastern Europe and the Middle East even going in as far as Palestine.
Getting back to the locust example, one sees the milling around of countless locusts on the ground until ONE takes wing which is followed by the other individuals. So, one is appointed to ORGANIZE and UNITE the group and that is exactly what Genghis Khan did with the Mongols. In fact, he took the various tribes which had their own identities and melded them into a voracious, fighting force destined to overrun territories spreading terror, torment and fear amongst the various populations.
So, it will take but one man in the not too distant future to once again rise up that spirit of domination in a wave of destructive and massive killing. This will start from Mongolia as they are the true Gog peoples.
Genghis Khan was saddened that he was not going to live to see the whole world under his proverbial thumb but he made a prophecy that he would leave that up to his relations. Now we have motive thrown into the mix and when one looks at the current Mongolia and some of the surrounding areas like Uzbekistan, one can see how Genghis Khan is thought of which is equal to a borderline type of idol worship.
For example, in Mongolia, he is the father of the Mongols and is treated like a demigod. His name appears on the national currency, on candy, liquor containers, etc. In effect, he is by many, worthy of worship as a lord among lords due to his successes against the known world. One day someone will appear to revitalize the importance of the Mongols in history or so the Mongolians and their related tribes would seem to believe. All they now need is that person and the right time for their ‘bursting forth’ to have prophecy ?????? come down upon them and give them their return to ‘glory’.
It is interesting to read about this man, two of his famous followers and the type of carnage they caused only to remind oneself that ALLAH’S WORDS ARE TRUE!
Why is it that with all our treaties between nations and military might that we cannot stop these human ‘locusts’? The answer was provided by Prophet Muhammad (pbh). One thinks of a small people growing strong but being ineffective while we have large and powerful armies, navies and weaponry. However, that will NOT be the case as the following hadiths go on to show.
The world of the Gog and Magog and their Friends will be a broken world with billions of people dead and billions being reduced to uselessness. It will be a world that the unbeliever will believe will be just a notch away from extinction so many will live by the ‘sword’. That is, many when faced with what their minds see as starvation and death or killing others just to live another day, they will opt for what their minds will believe as human practicality or kill before being killed. So in the Middle Eastern Area and surrounding areas one can see problems of population numbers and the almost total breakdown of society from the following hadiths.
Abu Huraira reported ALLAH’s Messenger (pbh) as saying: Hasten in performing these good deeds (before these) six things (happen): (the appearance) of the Dajjal (Anti-christ), the smoke, the {appearance of the} beast of the earth, the rising of the Sun from the west, the general turmoil {that will} lead to large scale massacre and death of masses {of people} and individuals. (Muslim)
Yusair b. Jabir reported: Once there blew a red storm in Kufah that there came a person who had nothing to say but (these words): ‘Abdullah b. Mas’ud, the Last Hour has come. He (‘Abdullah b. Mas’ud) was sitting reclining against something, and he said: “”The hour will not arrive until no inheritance will be divided and no war possessions will bring about satisfaction. He then said pointing towards Syria with the gesture of his hand like this: The enemy shall muster strength against Muslims and the Muslims will muster strength against them (Syrians). I said: You mean Rome? And he said: Yes, and there would be a terrible fight and the Muslims would prepare a detachment (for fighting unto death) which would not return but victorious. They will fight until night will intervene them; both the sides will return but without being victorious and both will be wiped out. The Muslims will again prepare a detachment for fighting unto death so that they may not return but victorious. When it would be the fourth day, a new detachment out of the remnant of the Muslims would be prepared and ALLAH will decree that the enemy should be routed. And they would fight such a fight the like of which would not be seen, so much so that even if a bird were to pass their flanks, it would fall down dead before reaching the end of them {their line}. (There would be such a large-scale massacre) that when counting would be done, (only) one out of a hundred men related to one another would be found alive. So what can be the joy at the spoils of such {a massive loss of life type} war and what inheritance would be divided {if there are so few who will be found to be related}! They would be in this very state that they would hear of a calamity more horrible than this. And a cry would reach them: The Dajjal (Anti-christ) has taken your place among your offspring. They will, therefore, throw away what would be in their hands and go forward sending ten horsemen as a scouting party. ALLAH’s Messenger (pbh) said, “I know their names and the names of their forefathers and the color of their horses. They will be {the} best horsemen on the surface of the earth on that day or amongst the best horsemen on the surface of the earth on that day. (Muslim)
Umm Sharik reported that the Messenger of ALLAH said: “The people will flee from Dajjal till they will take shelter in the mountains.” Umm Sharik said that she asked: “Where will be the Arabs at this time?” He answered: “They will be few” {in number} (Muslim)
Narrated Hazrat Anas bin Malik: I heard from Allah”s Messenger (pbh) a narration which none other than I will narrate to you. The Prophet said, “From among the portents of the Hour are the following: General ignorance (in religious affairs) will prevail, (religious) knowledge will decrease, illegal sexual intercourse will prevail, alcoholic drinks will be drunk (in abundance), men will decrease and women will increase, so much so that, for every fifty women there will be one man to look after them.” (Bukhari)
Abu Sa’id al-Khudri reported the Prophet (pbh) as saying that ALLAH Most High will call Adam (pbh) {on that most dreadful of days} and he will reply, “At YOUR service and at YOUR pleasure in WHOSE hands is ALL GOOD.” ALLAH will tell him to bring out those who are to go to HELL and when he asks what this consists of, he {Adam} will be told that it is 999 out of every 1,000. Then {as prophesied by Muhammad (pbh)} young children will become grey-haired, pregnant women will give birth and mankind will appear drunk {dazed beyond endurance due to fear and terror} although they will not be really drunk. On being asked which of them that {fortunate} one would be, ALLAH’s Messenger (pbh) replied, “Be of good cheer, for there is one of you to every thousand of Gog and Magog.” He then said, “By HIM in WHOSE hand my soul is, I hope you may be a quarter of the inhabitants of paradise,” and when they cried {out}, “GOD is MOST GREAT,” he said, “I hope you may be a third of the inhabitants of paradise.” Again they cried {out}, “GOD is MOST GREAT,” and he said, “I hope you may be half the inhabitants of Paradise.” Yet again they cried {out}, “GOD is MOST GREAT,” and he said, “Among mankind you are just like a black hair in the skin of a white bull or a white hair in the skin of a black bull.”
(Bukhari and Muslim)
‘Abdullah bin ‘Amr reported that the Prophet (pbh) said, “How will it be with you if you are left amongst the scum of people whose covenants and trusts are loose {because they are untrustworthy people with no regard for the truth} and who will differ and become like this”, and he interjoined his fingers. He asked, “What do you order me to do?” The Prophet (pbh) said, “Keep to what you know, and reject what appalls you, and mind your own affairs {business} and beware of public affairs.” {Lest you get drawn into heated and hateful disputes which will make the tongue deadlier than the sword and the heart to seek out revenge} (Tirmidhi)
As we can see, society will be in quite a state of upheaval that many without faith would sell their own souls just for a piece of bread and peace and quiet without being hunted down like a beast in the forest. But where is the comfort of peace, contentment and quiet in a soul that has no or little faith or right guided belief? How can man, without DIVINE INTERVENTION by the sending of Jesus the son of Mary (pbh) and the small creatures who will wipe out the Gog and Magog, live? So ALLAH will NOT abandon those who have righteous (correct belief) in their hearts and HE WILL grant the survivors their means to Paradise!
In review:
Authentic hadiths suggest that they (the Gog and Magog) are very strong and powerful people whom nobody has the power to fight. {This is explained by their rugged lifestyle as it pertains to their toughness and also the collapse of society as we know it leading to massive confusion, deaths and a world depleted in resources to counter the Gog and Magog aggression} It has also been narrated that they have wide faces, small eyes, graying hair and their faces are like shields covered with skin. {This gives us an excellent clue as to the heartland of these peoples’ identity as well as those who are what best might be described as ‘soul mates’} Finally, they wear shoes made from animal skins/hair. {This also gives us a clue to who these people were in medieval history and of course who they will be in the future}
*Narrated Abu-Huraira: ALLAH’s Messenger (pbh) said, “No child is born except on the Fitra {returning to a perceived pure state of originality in a spiritual sense of original creation} and then his parents {society} make him Jewish, Christian or Magian (Zoroastrian), as an animal produces a perfect young animal: do you see {at birth} any part of its body amputated {left off or forgotten}?” (Bukhari)
Say: “Everyone acts according to his own disposition {inner drive or lust}: But your LORD KNOWS BEST who it is that is best guided on the WAY.” Q (17: 84)
Fitra also has a physical component besides a spiritual one. The fitra of the human body is its beauty and perfection as created by ALLAH.
“A”isha reported that Muhammad (pbh) said: Ten are the acts according to fitra: clipping the mustache, letting the beard grow, using the tooth-stick, snuffing water in the nose, cutting the nails, washing the finger joints, plucking the hair under the armpits, shaving the pubic hair and cleaning one”s private parts with water. The narrator said: I have forgotten the tenth, but it may have been rinsing the mouth. (Muslim)
The Isra’ and Mi’raj of the Holy Prophet (pbh)
Sometimes people argue about things that they just don’t understand. This is called arguing for arguing sake and it is very much disliked in Islam. Of course people are very much encouraged to bring forth their evidence if they are telling the truth instead of just ‘blowing smoke’ for the sake of blowing smoke.
One such argument that could not be proven especially in days gone by is what happened to the Prophet (pbh) on his journey to Jerusalem and finally up into the seven heavens. The story is a long one but the crux of the matter occurred between two sides: the side that believed in his journey and Ascension in both body and spirit and the other side which declared that it was a spiritual journey and spiritual Ascension only.
Both sides had their arguments but the side believing that the Prophet (pbh) went on his journey to Jerusalem and then into the heavens in both body and spirit was the side with the most ‘evidence’ and the one most supported.
Actually this topic is discussed basically to introduce another topic concerning the Dajjal. So, what is needed is to set the stage or set an example that will be easy to relate to.
When I had written about certain topics like this in one of my books, KILL THE BEAST, I recall that what we were dealing with were paranormal expressions found in some hadiths. In connection with the journey and Ascension of the Prophet (pbh), I let the case rest as there was no definite ‘SCIENTIFIC PROOF’ at the time of my writing.
Now we have scientific proof of sorts as to what occurred to Prophet Muhammad (pbh) on that fateful day. Do we understand it? The answer is NO we don’t but we can be almost quite sure of its principles! For example, do we understand what exactly it feels like to be only one mile from the surface of the sun? No, we don’t but we can very well imagine it!
Before the ‘scientific proof’ came about, I could not very well put punch into the fact that there is some type of non-scientific proof called bilocation – 2010 – Andrew Cleland and John Martinis. Bilocation literally means that a person or object can theoretically be physically in two places at the same time.
There are very rare reported occurrences when a person has died for a few minutes on the operating table and then brought back to ‘life’. While that person was in a ‘state of medical death’, he or she was seen to be quite physically active in another area, city or country. Now this might be argued away as a pure fantasy or mistaken identity presumably over a doppelganger (a double or look alike). So, who would count on these outside the box explanations as being meaningful?
In a related instance we have the case of physics and astronomy as a science giving us an explanation for the ‘Big Bang Theory’ which can be shown to be represented in the Quran. Before that time, a person would be hard-pressed to see that theory in the Quran. And the great and the most respected scholars could not and did not offer any explanation coming close to the present Big Bang Theory.
So to prepare ourselves for a journey into the unbelievable, we ask ourselves the question, “can man have a comparison with THE ONE GOD?” The answer is most definitely NO!!!!!! Yet man through science has accomplished something that was recently thought impossible. However, thanks to Quantum Physics as I understand it, man is now able to take a very, extremely small physical item and have it appear IN TWO PLACES AT THE SAME TIME!!!
This was thought to be quite an impossible feat by most people. Nevertheless, it has been accomplished by ‘puny’ intellectual man. Just think of what wonders he might be capable of in the future! Whatever the case might be, there is still NO comparison between so-called man’s accomplishments with those of The ONE GOD’s accomplishments.
The story now takes on more sense when we see that most early Islamic scholars preferred the body and soul combination of travel for the Prophet (pbh) in his important journey that blessed night. The counter idea of his travelling ‘only’ spiritually lost out especially when one might consider that people would attack Islam and the Prophet (pbh) as being just a dreamer or at worst an inventor of tales.
A very important hadith from ‘Aisha declares that the Prophet (pbh) went to Jerusalem and into the heavens with his soul and not his body. That was a dangerous hadith because of the condition she had as the Prophet’s wife. So, people took the only way out that they could by declaring that the ‘Mother of the Faithful’ did not know the Prophet (pbh) at the time of his journey and therefore she could not be qualified to speak about what happened before she actually lived with him.
That in reality is a lame excuse because her character as can be proven by studying her life is one of healthy curiosity and asking lots of questions from her husband (pbh). She shouldn’t be treated as just a piece of fluff or a non-concerned individual. She even set some of the people straight in one hadith concerning whether or not the Prophet (pbh) actually saw ALLAH or not. He did not and she declared that those who said other than this are making a lie against ALLAH.
So what is the answer? The answer now is that, believe it or not, BOTH ANSWERS ARE CORRECT!!! Yes, of course he went to Jerusalem and the seven heavens in BOTH BODY AND SOUL AND HE ALSO WENT THERE IN SOUL ONLY!
This may sound like gobbledygook because we cannot yet understand the complex principles involved but we now have evidence from science that one object can exist in two places at the same time. What we don’t understand is how this can occur on such a large scale as the human body. However, if man can take any physical object no matter how small and have that object appear in two different places at the same time, then HOW MUCH GREATER IS THE POWER OF ALLAH!!!
So theoretically one could still see the Prophet (pbh) leaning against the Kabah while he also physically went on the night journey to Jerusalem and into the heavens with both his body and soul. Hence, his body was indeed in two places at the same time! As with all things, it is ALLAH WHO KNOWS BEST!
We now can understand the lengthy hadith reported by ‘Amir b. Sharahil Sha’bi Sha’b Hamdan where the Anti-christ is described as being on an island bound in chains … “Then we hurriedly went on till we came to that monastery and found a well-built person there with his hands tied to his neck and having iron shackles between his two legs up to the ankles. We said, “Woe be upon thee, who are you?” And he said, “You would soon come to know about me, but tell me who you are.” We said, “We are people from Arabia and we embarked upon a boat but the sea-waves had been driving us for one month and they brought us near this island… (According to the Prophet (pbh) he said)…“Have I not told you of an account (of the Dajjal) like this? Behold he (Dajjal) is in the Syrian Sea (Mediterranean Sea) or the Yemen Sea (Arabian Sea). Nay, on the contrary, he is in the east, he is in the east, he is in the east”, and he pointed with his hand towards the east. I (Fatima bint Qais) said, “I preserved it in my mind (this narration from ALLAH’s Messenger). (Muslim)
This rather long hadith has some very important elements to it. It features a former Christian, Tamim Dari, who later accepted Islam and was a principal member of the ‘boat people’ who were tossed about on the sea for a month. What he and his fellow travelers witnessed was not a dream or mass delusions. They witnessed something real and tangible that could and did react with them. Therefore, it was done physically and not through any mass hypnosis or wild dream.
By admitting that, however, one must face some realities which the Muslim already should know. That is that it is ALLAH WHO IS IN TOTAL CONTROL OF SHAPING THINGS AS HE DECIDES FOR HIS OWN REASONS AND WE AS SERVANTS MUST ACCEPT THE INEVITABLE.
So in this hadith we can ask some questions:
1. What happened to the Anti-christ who was tied up in chains?
2. Why was he tied up in chains?
3. Since he was declared NOT to be there (at that place) at the end result of the speech of the Prophet (pbh), [“Behold he (Dajjal) is in the Syrian Sea (Mediterranean Sea) or the Yemen Sea (Arabian Sea). Nay, on the contrary, he is in the east, he is in the east, he is in the east”,] did he, the Dajjal, just break his chains and fly away?
First of all, when one understands the symbolism of the ‘chains’ one can get a better grasp of this hadith. Symbolism occurs everywhere but it is so fortunately diffuse and unobtrusive that people are not bothered with trying to interpret these things. We must be grateful to ALLAH for this and show our gratitude to HIM and HIM ALONE. Another good reason is that people in general would take things the wrong way and be quite encumbered in living their normal lives.
The chains represent that the Anti-christ is NOT free to go forth when he wants or where he wants though he is VERY EAGER TO DO IT. He will be able to ‘come out’ and do only what has been DECREED FOR him to do by ALLAH’s PERMISSION ONLY. We have excellent proof of that in another lengthy hadith which states that this Anti-christ (Dajjal) will die at a certain place by the hands of Jesus the son of Mary (pbh) AND EVEN IF JESUS WERE NOT TO BE PRESENT, THE ANTI-christ WILL DIE IN THE SAME MANNER AND THE SAME TIME THAT he HAS BEEN ORDAINED TO DIE!!! Therefore, he cannot overcome the DIVINE DECREE.
Abu Huraira reported that ALLAH’s Messenger (pbh) said, “… And as they would be busy distributing the spoils of war (amongst themselves) after hanging their swords by the olive trees, the Satan would cry, ‘The Dajjal has taken your place among your family’. They would then come out, but it would be on no avail. {as this would have been a lie by Satan} And when they would come to Syria {from Constantinople}, he {the Dajjal} would come out while they would be still preparing themselves for battle drawing up the ranks. Certainly, the time of prayer shall come and then Jesus (pbh) son of Mary would descend and would lead them in prayer. When the enemy of ALLAH (the Anti-christ – the Dajjal) would see him {Jesus}, it would (disappear) just as the salt dissolves itself in water and if he (Jesus) were NOT TO CONFRONT THEM {THE DAJJAL AND HIS REMNANT OF FOLLOWERS} at all, even then it {that vile group} would dissolve completely, but ALLAH would kill them by his hand and HE would show them their blood on his lance (the lance of Jesus Christ). (Muslim)
With that being said, we can think of the vision of Tamim Dari and his fellow travelers as being one taking in a real physical presence but a special one ‘cooked up for the occasion’.
What does that mean? According to the whole idea of this hadith was that the discussion of the Dajjal was not going all that well in front of the Arabs and ALLAH aided HIS Prophet (pbh) with substantiated testimony from a person who would not have any reason to agree with and support the Prophet (pbh) unless he actually had this real and tangible experience.
So this Anti-christ (Dajjal) was physically present on that island but in effect he was not there at all. Once again, this sounds like gobbledygook but it is basically inconceivable or unthinkable to imagine these ‘MANIPULATIONS’ going on because this scientifically proven ability of ‘bilocation’ and the manipulations of the physical and spiritual dimensions are far, far above the common everyday comprehensions of man.
What it does sound like to me, at least, is that the talk and PRAISE OF ALLAH’s POWER AND DOMINION is not just empty words or praise for what many think is a sometime disinterested or handicapped being! It seems like mankind is a little slow to develop the feeling of AWE and RESPECT for HIS CREATOR’S INFINITE POWER AND DOMINION!
As with all things, it is most assuredly ALLAH WHO KNOWS BEST!
