The precise reply calls for preliminary traditions concerning various topics as follows: First: Traditions that talk about signs and groundwork for Imam’s ‘Zuhoor’: Once, the holy prophet (s.a.w.a.) addressed the attendants as follows: “How would it be when your women turn lewd and your youth adulterers and you will forsake enjoining the good and forbidding the evil?” The attendants said: O messenger of Allah! Will such an incident ever occur?! He replied: “Yes, even worse than this would occur! How you would be when good shall be presented as evil and evil as good….?” (Muntakhab-ul-Athar: 426, tradition 3) Also, Asbagh-ibn-Nubateh narrates from Amir-ul-Mu’mineen (a.s.): “At theRead More →

WHAT ARE THE SIGNS OF IMAM ZAMAN’S (AS) DHUHUR (REAPPEARANCE) AND WHICH ONES ARE RELIABLE?

1- The rise of Imam Zaman (as) is one of the most important incidents to take place in this world, to the extent that he has been given the title of “The Promised one of all Religions” and “The Universal Reformist to the People of the World”. 2- Since his appearance is of so much significance, it must be accompanied by signs that have never taken place before, like the birth of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) which was accompanied by several extraordinary signs. 3- The reasons and benefits of such signs can be summarized in the following: a) Some of these signs are so great thatRead More →

WHAT ARE THE SIGNS OF THE REAPPEARANCE OF IMAM MAHDI (ATF) AND THE EVENTS THAT SHALL TAKE PLACE THEREUPON?

Your question concerning the reappearance of the Imam of Time can be investigated around four focal points: First: The signs for his coming are categorized into different groups, one of them being their classification into “certain” and “uncertain” signs: According to some hadiths, five signs are considered “certain” which we will mention them cursorily: Abu Hamzah Thumali says: “I told Imam Jafar Sadiq (as) that his father, Imam Muhammad Baqir (as) once said: “The emergence of an individual by the name of Sufyani is for sure, the echo of a call from the skies is also for sure, as is the rise of the sun from theRead More →

The existence of the infallibles brings many benefits; some of them belonging to normal conditions when they are available. Yet, one mustn’t perceive that if an imam goes into occultation, his existence will be no longer of any benefit to the people. With help from hadiths and the sayings of great scholars on this issue, we will list some of the major benefits of an imam in occultation: 1- The upholding of clear signs and proof No matter in occultation or amongst the people, the imams are the “proof” [hujjah]of Allah (swt) in this world [meaning that Allah (swt) has sent them to be followed,Read More →

One of the signs of the reappearance of Imam Mahdi (as) (Of course this sign has been counted as one of the signs of the Day of Judgement (Sunan Tirmidi, vol.4, pp.507-519; Sunan Abi-Dawud, vol.4, pg.115; Sahih Muslim, vol.18, pp.46 and 81), yet in Shia hadith sources it has been counted as one of the signs of the nearness of the Day of Judgment (Biharul-Anwar, vol.6, pg.296, chapter 1 (The signs of the hour (Day of Judgment) and the story of Ya’juj) and also the signs of the reappearance of Imam Mahdi (as). There is no problem in this sign being both the sign of the Day of Judgment andRead More →

WHAT ARE THE SIGNS FOR THE REEMERGENCE OF THE MASTER OF THE AGE [I.E. THE TWELFTH IMAM]?

A discussion regarding the signs of the re-emergence is somewhat complicated, for there are numerous narrations in the corpus of Shi’a ahadith, and add to that the narrations found in the Sunni sources and even the heavenly books of previous religions, such as Christianity, Judaism, Zoroastrianism, and Indian creeds, and all these call for a comprehensive investigation and analysis. Furthermore, the related narrations must be weighed as to the authenticity of their lines of transmission and also the soundness of their content. Based on the Shi’a narrations, it can be inferred that the signs fall under two categories. One group consists of those signs whichRead More →