Islam and The End Times 2 Sufyaani

As I briefly mentioned in the last post, a desendant of Abu Sufyan is supposed to play a role in the Islam belief of the end times, so lets look at Abu Sufyan and the prophecy.

Among the signs preceding Imam Mahdi, is the appearance of the Sufyaani. The Sufyaani will emerge before the Mahdi from the depths of Damascus. According to Imam Qurtubi (R.A) his name will be Urwah. The Sufyaani will murder the Saadaat [desendant of Sayedina Hassan and Hussein (R.A) and will rule over Egypt and Shaam -(Jordan, Palestine, Lebanon and Syria). ((nice to know the name, he should be easy to spot ))

He will be one of many “Muslim” Tyrants that the Mahdi will have to face in the Middle East. The Sufyaani is NOT the Dajjal. The Hadith regarding the Sufyaani specify that he is a tyrant who will spread corruption and mischief on the earth before the Mahdi. He will be such a tyrant that he will kill the children and rip out the bellies of women. The Sufyaani will murder those from the household of the Prophet and will rule over Syria. When he hears about the Mahdi, he will send an army to seize and kill him. However the earth will swallow this army before it even reaches the Mahdi.

Abu Hurayrah has narrated that the Prophet said:

“A man will emerge from the depths of Damascus. He will be called Sufyaani. Most of those who follow him will be from the tribe of Kalb. He will kill by ripping the stomachs of women and even kill the children. A man from my family will appear in the Haram, the news of his advent will reach the Sufyaani and he will send to him one of his armies. He (referring to the Mahdi) will defeat them. They will then travel with whoever remains until they come to a desert and they will be swallowed. None will be saved except the one who had informed the others about them.” (Mustadrak)

Another site said this:

During the days of the sufyaani, the byzantine ruler will be at war with one Christian faction and will make peace with the other (Christian faction). Thus the waring Christian faction will run over Qustuntuniyyah (Istanbul), and will occupy it. The byzantine ruler will flee and go to Shaam. The Muslim army with the aid of the friendly Christian party will wage war against the enemy Christian party, and will be victorious.

A person from the friendly Christian party will thus announce that “because of the cross, victory was gained”, and in the name of the cross we won. On hearing this, a person from the Muslim army will assault this Christian person and will say no “Islaam was victorious and because of Islaam victory was gained”. As a result of this incident, war will break out between the Muslims and the friendly Christian party. The Muslim leader will be martyred and the Christians will take over Shaam. Thereafter, the two Christian parties will make peace, and the remaining muslims will migrate to Madinah.The Christian rule will extend almost up to khaiber, which is to the north of Madinah. Now the muslims will begin their search for Allah’s khaleefah - the Mahdee.

And yet another website said this:

The 2 Proxy Mahdi’s Pave - Those That Pave The Way For The Mahdi Before He Arrives

Before the Mahdi’s appearance, there would be those who pave the way for his appearance. They would also act as Caliphs in his place, and therefore, would be proxy Caliphs, or proxy Mahdis.

Ibn-i Munawi said that, “Danyal (Daniel) (as) reported in his book that:

“There are 3 Sufyaanis and 3 Mahdis. When the first Sufyaani appears and his name and fame become widespread, the first Mahdi will confront him, the second Mahdi will confront the second Sufyaani and the third Mahdi will confront the third Sufyaani and Allah, the Exalted, will send him (the third Mahdi) to save the ones who have suffered mischief, and the believers. The Sunnah will be revived through him and oppression, injustice and cruelty will come to an end through him. The people will be highly prized and become victorious over their opponents at his time. A beautiful life will be lived, and the earth and the heavens will increase their blessing..” (*)

(*) This quote exists in a handwritten copy of the book titled Al-Burhan fi Alamat al-Mahdi Akhir al-Zaman held in the Suleymaniye Library.

In this quote, there are 2 Mahdis that appear before the real one. They are in fact the forerunners for the Mahdi - those who pave the way for him before he arrives, and appear around the same time he does. These 2 proxies, one succeeding the other, would be Caliphs, but without a Caliphate system or an Islamic state in place. When the Mahdi appears, he would succeed, with their support, in finally overthrowing the despotic tyrants, then establishing his Caliphate over the Muslims.

In another hadith, there identities are specified:

Narrated ‘Ali son of Abu Talib:,

“The Prophet said, ‘A man named al-Harith son of Hirath will come from Transoxania (Tajikistan). His army will be led by a man named Mansoor. He will be pave the way for and establish the government of the family of Muhammad, just as the Quraysh established the government of the Messenger of Allah. Every believer will be obliged to support them.’”

(Sunan Abu-Dawud, Book 36, No. 4277)

Thus, the first proxy to appear, would a man named “al-Harith”, and the one who leads his army and succeeds him as the second proxy, would be the “Mansoor”.

THE HASHIMITE

The first one is the Hashimite (a descendant of the Hashim tribe), by the name of Harith son of Hirrath, who will emerge, during the time of the Sufyaani, from beyond the Euphrates River, and his army, the army of the Mahdi, will be led by the Mansoor . The former (i.e. Haarith) will be preparing the minds of Muslims to-accept the Mahdi when he comes. He will perform the same task for the Mahdi, what the Qurayish performed for The Messenger of Allah (Sallallahu alayhi wasallam) in Medina before the Hijrah. The Mansoor will aid him in this direction. It is compulsory upon every Muslim to help this Haarith, or to respond to his call.

During this time, there would be a war in Byzantium (Turkey), in which the Byzantine ruler will be at war with one Roman faction (who will be invading them) and will be allied with another (Roman faction). Thus the warring faction will run over Qustuntuniyyah (Istanbul), and will occupy it. The Byzantine ruler will flee and go to Bilad al-Sham. The Hashimite and a faction of Mujahids with him, will join with the armies of al-Sham, now allied with Turkey’s Roman ally, in the third peace agreement between them. Together, they will wage war against, and invade, the enemy beyond Rome, and will be victorious. This war would be global.

There would be joint re-conquest of Istanbul, and a Christian from the allied Romans will erect a cross, and announce that “because of the cross, victory was gained, and in the name of the cross we won.” On hearing this, a person from the Muslim army will assault him and will say, “No. Islam was victorious and because of Islam victory was gained”, and shall go and break the cross. As a result of this incident, war will break out between the Muslims and the allied Romans. Those Muslims, as well as their leader, the Hashimite, will be martyred and the Romans will take over al-Sham. Thereafter, the two Roman factions will join together, breaking their peace-agreement with the Arabs, and then going to war against them.

THE MANSOOR (VICTOR)

After the Hashimite’s martyrdom, he will be succeeded by the Mansoor, named Shu’ayb son of Salih from the tribe of Tamim. The term “Mansoor” is a title, meaning “victor”, or “one who is given victory”. As such, Shu’ayb is the one who leads the Mahdi’s army to victory. He will lead the army of the Mahdi, who will come from the East carrying Black flags. The East here refers to Taliqan in Khurasan, i.e. Afghanistan. They will pave the way for the establishment of the Mahdi’s kingdom. Nothing shall stop their onward march, and eventually they will plant their flags on the soils of Jerusalem.

After al-Sham is taken over by the Romans, Egypt would soon follow, and eventually their rule would extend up to Khyber. At that point, the comet with a tail (a sign of the Mahdi), will appear. Its passing would knock out technology, and cause much devastation across the world, resulting in a shift in the balance of powers. Afterwards, there would be the War of the Euphrates and Ethiopia will attack Sudan, then being defeated. The Sufyaani would then come and take over Syria, then start massacring people in Iraq. When some flee to Khurasan, the Sufyaani’s army attempt to move eastward in pursuit of them. Then the Hashimite’s army of the Mahdi, now under the leadership of the Mansoor, would engage them in Iran, and defeat them. The Sufyaani’s army would escape, then launching an assault into Saudi Arabia, with the help of the Romans, and killing its king. There will be a fight in Mecca, thereafter, between two groups of people, each one seeking the kingdom. However, none of them will gain it. This fight will take place in the month of Zul-Qa’dah, and even in Mina during Hajj, there will be quarrelling. After this, the Mahdi would appear.

Details of the Sufyaani

Name and Title:
According to Imam Qurtubi, his name will be Urwa son of Muhammad and his kunniya ‘Abu Utbah’ and is given the title “Sufyaani” due to his descent from Abu Sufyaan.
Physical Characteristics:He will be a man with a large head, a pockmarked face, and white spots in his eyes.

Family Lineage:
The Sufyaani will be from the Quraysh. His mother will be from the tribe of Kalb, but he is from the progeny of Khaleed son of Yazeed son of Abu Sufyaan.

Character:
He will have the characteristics of an apostate and a hypocrite. He will appear to be outwardly pious, but in reality he will be an apostate.

Details of His Emergence and Rule:
The dark people will come after the Arabs and they will be defeated and thrown into the lowest part of the earth. In revolt, a Sufyaani (possibly by the name of Urwah son of Muhammad), who descends from Abu Sufyaan, and whose mother is from the tribe of Kalb, will come (possibly from Egypt) with 360 riders until he reaches Damascus. Then he will emerge - overrunning and seizing control of Syria. He will have 3 staffs in his hand, and anyone whom he strikes with them will die. After a month the tribe of Kalb will also follow him. The Sufyaani will then send an army to Iraq, killing 100,000 in Az-Zawra, and also will receive the support of the Roman forces. The Sufyaani and his forces will go to Kufa and pillage it, killing the descendants of the Prophet and to the point where he kills children and rips open women. In retaliation the tribe of Qays will rise up against him, but they will be defeated, and he will slaughter them in Kurkisa. One of them will escape to Afghanistan, and then the forces of the Sufyaani will come, demanding the Afghanis. Then an army carrying black banners will come, and at their front is a youth from the tribe of Tamim named Shuayb son of Salih, along with a Hashimite. They will engage the forces of the Sufyaani at the Gate of Istakhr (in Southern Iran) and will defeat them, however, the riders will escape. The Afghanis, after suffering from the battle, will demand the Mahdi out of necessity. Then an army of the Sufyaani will go to Medina, and pillages it for 3 days, and those who escape will flee to Mecca. Several men from the Quraysh will escape to Istanbul and the Sufyaani will send to the leader of the Romans who returns them to the Sufyaani and he slits their throats together with their followers.

Upon the Emergence of The Mahdi
When the story of Divine Help being granted to the Mahdi spreads throughout the Muslim world, the Abdaals of Syria will come to pledge allegiance to the Mahdi and join his ranks. Similarly, other Muslim armies from Medina and elsewhere will also come to Mecca and offer their support and allegiance to the Mahdi. The Imam will leave Mecca for Medina, where he will offer salaam at the Rowzha Mubarak (The Grave of The Messenger of Allah Sallallahu alayhi wasallam). Soon after, the forces of the Mahdi will move onward from Medina, and engage the forces of the Sufyaani at Syria.

The End of Sufyaani
The Sufyaani’s forces will be defeated in Syria, and this will be known as the “Battle of Kalb”. The Muslim fighters under the Mahdi will capture the Sufyaani and execute him under a tree and Syria would thus be liberated from the tyrannical rule of the Sufyaani.

This post in addition to my last post, gives you the idea of the coming ‘End Times’, based on the beliefs of Muslims. Although, it is still a bit confusing to me. As I said before, we don’t see near as many people commenting and trying to intrepret Muslim texts as we do in Christian text. Which is too bad for Muslims, as it seems it would make it harder for them to understand as well. Also we already know that not all Muslims believe the same way, and I think that I am mixing the Sunni and Shiite beliefs a bit, well not so much mixing, but leaving out.

Next we will start to go into the Mahdi. We will also go over the difference in Sunni and Shiite beliefs and the goals of Ahmadnutjob. There is much much more that we are going to cover but as you can see, both sides (Christian and Islam) have very drastic things prophesied about. We are getting ready to cover some of the most important things in regards to this series. When it comes to discussing the anti-Christ in both faiths, it is not a mistake any of us want to make.

http://www.geocities.com/muslimapocalyptic/story_of_the_sufyaani.htm

http://members.tripod.com/alislaah4/advices41/id3.htm

http://forum.mpacuk.org/archive/index.php?t-15928.html