Advanced search
Visit
8042
Last Updated: 2010/10/18
Summary of question
Does Imam Mahdi, the Imam of Time (a.s.), know when he is going to reappear?
question
Does Imam Mahdi, the Imam of Time (a.s.), know when he is going to reappear?
Concise answer
This question doesn’t have a brief answer. Please click on the detailed answer.
Detailed Answer

Awaiting the reappearance [intizar al-faraj] is one of the basic fundamentals of Islam, especially Shiite. Awaiting the reappearance means aspiring and yearning for freedom and deliverance from inequalities and injustice, and for elimination of the difficulties facing the people of the world. Those who await the reappearance believe a divine man –called Mahdi in Islam – will reappear at the end of time, a man who will do away with oppression and replace injustice with justice and who will establish Allah’s government all over the world. All of the prophets and their successors ever since the creation of mankind have had such an aspiration and they have made their best efforts to materialize it. They have suffered all kinds of hardships to take the world closer to the reappearance of the Savior of Mankind.

When it comes to fixing the time of the reappearance of the Imam of Time (may Allah hasten his reappearance), not only the time of his reappearance has not been fixed but fixing time for his reappearance has been prohibited also.

In this regard, a few narrations are mentioned as under:

  1. Fudhail says, "I asked Imam Sadiq whether there was any specific time when the Mahdi would appear. The Imam in his response said three times: "Any one who fixes the time of the appearance is telling a lie" [1].

  2. In another narration, Imam Sadiq (a.s.) says: Those who fix a time are liars. We the household (of the Holy Prophet) have never fixed a time for the reappearance of the Imam of Time.[2]

  3. In another narration, Imam Sadiq (a.s.) says: "Any one who fixes the time of the appearance for you -- do not hesitate to falsify him, because we do not fix the time for the reappearance. Therefore, whatever he says is not from us. He has uttered it from his own mouth and it is a lie.[3]"

It is necessary to mention that according to some narrations, even the Imam of Time (a.s.) himself does not know the time of his reappearance, and that God, the Exalted, informs him, through specific signs, about the time of his reappearance.

Mufadhal bin Amr asked Imam Sadiq (a.s.) about the tafsir (interpretation) of the verse "when the trumpet is sounded"[4]. The Imam (a.s.) responded:

انّ منا اماما مستترا فاذا اراد الله عز و جل اظهار امره نکت فی قلبه نکتة فظهر و امر بامر الله عز و جل.

This narration well indicates that the Imam does not know the time of his reappearance and when he is going to reappear, God, the Exalted, informs him about his reappearance through specific signs[5]. [6]

In any case, firstly one of the expectants of reappearance is Hazrat Mahdi (a.s.) himself because awaiting is, as said in the narrations, one of the best acts of worship. It is very unlikely of the Imam (a.s.) to be negligent or deprived of the best act of worship.

Secondly, the word ‘faraj’ (comfort or relief) used in the narrations do not refer only to the believers’ comfort and deliverance rather it is also meant for the comfort of the Imam of Time (a.s) and solution in his affairs. Therefore, the Imam is also awaiting and anticipating solutions in his matters. Since the Imam of Age (a.s.) wishes to establish a monotheistic system and pave grounds for the prosperity of mankind, he is waiting for such a day to establish justice throughout the entire world.

For further information vide:

  1. Index: Signs of the reappearance of Imam Mahdi (a.s.) question No. 49 (site: 285)

  2. Index: The Spread of Injustice and Reappearance of the Imam of Time (a.s.), question No.1373 (site: 1401)

  3. Index: Causes for the Reappearance of the Imam of Time (a.s.) question No.535 (site: 583).

  4. Index: The Imam of Age (a.s.) Awaiting His Reappearance, question No.2714 (site: 2962).



[1] - Saafi Gulpaigani, Muntakhab al-Athar, p.463, 3rd edition, Tehran Publication Center; Shaykh Tusi, Al-Ghaybah, p.262.

[2] - Ibid.

[3] - Ibid.

[4] - Al-Mudaththir: 8

[5] - Saduq, Ikmal al-Deen wa Itmam al-Ne'mah, vol.2, p.349, h.42

[6] - Excerpts made from question No. 1856 (site: 1840), index: Fixing the time for the Reappearance of the Imam of Time (atf).

Question translations in other languages
Comments
Number of comments 0
Please enter the value
Example : Yourname@YourDomane.ext
Please enter the value
Please enter the value

Thematic Category

Random questions

  • Does committing some sins like suicide automatically entail entering Hell?
    7539 Theoretical 2010/09/04
    Some sins, due to their quality, leave no opportunity to repent and will lead their committers to the irreversible path of Hell, the same way falling from heights without employing a parachute or landing equipment will lead to the disintegration of the body or the same way falling ...
  • What are the conditions of divorce?
    9254 Laws and Jurisprudence 2012/01/11
    If you were interested in living with your husband, you should have made every effort to save the marriage. In fact, you could have done something to draw your in-laws' attention and make your husband love you. If you think you made every necessary effort, you should never think that ...
  • Whose saying is this: "Death is sweater to me than honey."
    7973 تاريخ کلام 2011/01/10
    This saying is widely ascribed to Qasim son of Imam Hasan Mujtaba (a.s.). It is said that when his beloved uncle, Imam Hussein (a.s.) asked him "My child, my nephew, tell me, how do you regard death and what do you think about getting killed?" He promptly answered: ...
  • What is Islam's viewpoint regarding reincarnation?
    14897 Traditional 2010/01/21
    A few centuries back in India a theory known as "reincarnation" was developed concerning the consecutive return of souls to this world after death. During the ages this theory was gradually taken into serious consideration by people all around the world and even became, for some, a part ...
  • Please explain the features the Quran mentions for an Imam.
    10893 Traditional 2012/01/17
    There are two types of Imamate (leadership of a society) mentioned in the Quran; First: “The Imams of light” who are the pious and righteous leaders and second: “The Imams of fire” who are the heads of Kufr (disbelief) and deviation. Many features have been mentioned ...
  • Was Hazrat Adam (P.B.U.H.) Black?
    35391 Exegesis 2006/11/25
                There are several interpretations in the Quran on the creation of man, which show that the creation of man had several stages, which were as follows:[1]  
  • Who was Salah al-Din Ayyubi? How did he become the champion of the wars against crusaders? What was his origin? Why and how did he destroy the Fatimid government?
    15602 تاريخ بزرگان 2015/08/04
    Salah al-Din Yusuf bin Ayyub who later became known as Salah al-Din Ayyubi, better known in the Western world as Saladin, is one of the most famous Muslim rulers and commanders in the Islamic middle centuries (or in the 12th century of the English calendar). He achieved ...
  • where did secularism or the belief in the separation of religious and civil affairs emerge from?
    7848 Modern 2008/11/19
    During the renascence Christian believers came to the realization that their religion, with all the shortcomings it had, could not meet the modern social and political needs; therefore, secularism took shape.Secularism can be considered as the legitimate child of western civilization since Christianity, having gotten distracted and intermingled with ...
  • What is sex change?
    8421 Laws and Jurisprudence 2012/08/23
    Although dictionaries do not provide a definition for "sex change", it means any change and transformation in a male, female or genderless in such a way that the current state is different from the previous one. Medically speaking, sex change is different from "genetic modification" ...
  • What kind of a book is "Mikyalul Makarim"?
    6926 شخصیت های شیعی 2014/01/20
    The book "Mikyalul Makarim fi Fawaed al-Dua Lil-Qaem" as the title of the book reads, has been authored regarding Mahdi, the Imam of Time (atf). This is one of the books written in Arabic in the fourth hegira century.[1] The book Mikyalul Makarim consists ...

Popular