In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

“O mankind! Indeed, Allah’s promise is true, so do not let the life of the world delude you, nor let the Deluder (Satan) delude you from Allah.” [(35) Fatir, 5] “And they inquire from you, ‘Is it (the Day of Judgement) true?’ Say, ‘Yea. By my Lord! Indeed, it is true. And you shall not escape.” [(10) Yunus, 53]

The Last Day is so named because there is no day (of this world) after it. On that day, Allah will cause this world to perish, and will replace it with another wherein people will be given the dues of their worldly actions. This world, with the precise and well-defined roles of its constituents, indicates the existence of a wise, knowing Creator. Yet, sometimes, we see people around us getting other than what they deserve. Very good people might suffer greatly, while evil, dishonest individuals might escape the hand of the law, and live in luxury and wealth which they have amassed by illicit and immoral means. Thus, there must be another life, in which all will receive their just reward or punishment. This place is therefore a place of toil and action. “Blessed be He in Whose Hand is sovereignty, and He has power over all things. He who created death and life, in order that He might test you, [as to] which of you is best in conduct. And He is the Mighty, the Forgiving. “ [Al-Mulk, 1-2] `Ali radiallahu `anhu said, “Today there is action, and no reckoning. Tomorrow, there is reckoning and no action.” (Related by Bukhari.) The intelligent individual is therefore he who reflects over the universe around him, and comes to this realization.

“Indeed, in the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the alternation of night and day, are signs for people of intellect. Those who remember Allah standing, sitting and on their sides, and ponder over the creation of the heavens and the earth. [They say,] ‘Our Lord! You have not created this in vain; free from all defect are You [exalted above creating without purpose], therefore preserve us from the punishment of the Fire.’” [(3) Aal-`Imraan, 190] So Allah has praised those who use their intellect, and correspondingly He has castigated those who refuse to use their minds, and who consequently deny the Hereafter. “Nay, those who believe not in the Hereafter are in punishment and far error. Have they not observed what is before them and what is behind them of the Heavens and the earth? If We willed, We could make the earth swallow them, or cause pieces of the sky to fall on them. Indeed, therein is a sign for every penitent servant.” [(34) Saba’, 9] The Prophet sallallahu `alayhe wa- sallam has said about [3:190], “Woe to him who recited it without pondering over it.” (Related by Ibn Mardoyah.) Hasan Basri said, “An hour’s contemplation is better than a night’s standing in prayer.”

Thus, it is imperative that we accept and believe that this world, and all it contains, has been created for a purpose. Nothing of Allah’s creation is in vain. “We have not created the Heavens and the earth and [all] that is between them in vain; that is the conjecture of those who disbelieve, so woe from the Fire to those who disbelieve! Or, shall We treat those who believe and do good deeds like those who work corruption in the land? Or, shall We treat the pious like the wicked?” [(38) Saad, 27-28] That person who is certain of the existence of the Hereafter will reflect this belief in his life. He will feel a sense of responsibility for his beliefs, words and actions. He will strive to be sincere and truthful, to worship his Lord, and to desire good for his fellow creatures. “O you who believe! Keep your duty to Allah, and let every soul look [to] what it has prepared for the morrow, and fear Allah! Indeed, Allah is well-acquainted with what you do. And be not like those who forgot Allah, so that He cuased them to forget their own selves; those are the transgressors. Not equal are the Companions of the Fire and the Companions of the Garden. The Companions of the Garden are the victorious ones.” [(59) Al-Hashr, 18-19]
The Time of Occurrence of the Last Day
Its exact time is known only to Allah. “They ask you about the Hour, when will its coming be? Say : its knowledge is only with my Lord. None will reveal it at its time save Him. [Its knowledge] is weighty upon the [inhabitants of the] heavens and the earth. It will not come to you except suddenly. They ask you as if you are well-informed about it. Say : Its knowledge is only with Allah, but most of mankind do not know.” [(7) Al- A`raaf, 187] At the end of the Jibreel hadith, the angel Gabriel asked the Prophet sallallahu `alayhe wa-sallam, “When is the Hour?” He replied, “The questioned is not more knowledgeable about it than the questioner,” and then recited a verse of the Qur’an. “Indeed, with Allah is the knowledge of the Hour.” [(31) Luqmaan, 34]

Thus, it is totally forbidden to engage in speculation or calculation in order to try to predict the end of the world. Anyone who believes that a psychic or fortune-teller shares in Allah’s knowledge of the Hidden, has left Islam. On the authority of Abu Hurayrah radiallahu `anhu : “Whoever came to a diviner, or a fortune-teller, and affirmed him in that which he said, has disbelieved in that which was revealed to Muhammad sallallahu `alayhi wa-sallam.” (Related by Nasa’i, Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah and Al-Hakim.) Nor is it permissible to visit psychics and the like for fun, and the person who does risks losing his prayers for forty days. “Whoever came to a fortune-teller, and asked him about something and then affirmed him , the salah of forty days will not be accepted from him.” (Related by Muslim.)
Signs before the Day of Judgement
Although the exact time of the Day of Judgement is known only to Allah, there are certain events and signs which will occur on the earth prior to it. These signs are categorized into minor and major signs.

Minor signs
The minor signs are those which start occurring well before the Day of Judgement, and which in themselves are not strikingly extraordinary. The Prophet sallallahu `alayhe wa-sallam mentioned, as reported at the end of the Gabriel hadith, that among its signs are “that the slave-girl will beget her mistress, and that you will see barefoot, naked, poor shepherds [competing with one another in] building tall buildings.” (Related by Muslim.)

On the authority of Anas ibn Malik : He said : I heard the Messenger of Allah sallallahu `alayhe wa-sallam say, “Indeed, among the portents of the Hour are that knowledge will decrease, ignorance will abound, adultery will become widespread, wine will be drunk, and men will abound and women will become scarce, to the extent that there will be a single provider for fifty women.” (Related by Bukhari and Muslim.)

On the authority of Anas : the Prophet sallallahu `alayhe wa- sallam said, “Among the portents of the Hour is that people will compete with one another in [building and decorating] mosques.” (Related by Nasa’i.)

On the authority of Abu Hurayrah : While the Messenger of Allah was talking, a Bedouin came and asked, “When is the Hour?” [The Prophet] replied, “When trust is lost then await the Hour.” [The Bedouin] asked, “How will its loss occur?” He replied, “When affairs are rested with those unworthy of [handling] them, then await the Hour.” (Related by Bukhari.)

Major signs
The major signs are those which will occur closer to the Day of Judgement, and they are bizarre and remarkable. They are usually counted as the ten mentioned in the following hadith. On the authority of Hudhayfah ibn al-Asid Ghifari radiallahu `anhu : he said : The Prophet sallallahu `alayhe wa-sallam found us while we talking about the Hour. He asked, “What are you discussing?” We said, “We are speaking of the Hour.” He said, “It will not be established until you have seen before it ten signs : the smoke, the Antichrist, the Beast, the Rising of the Sun from its setting place; the Descent of Jesus, Son of Mary; Ya’juj and Ma’juj; three earthquakes : an earthquake in the East, an earthquake in the West, and an earthquake in the Arabian peninsula; and the last of those is a fire which will emerge from Yemen, driving people to their gathering place.” (Related by Muslim, Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah.)

[Refer back to “Al-Jumu`ah,” Vol. 8, Issue 1, for more details on the Signs of the Hour.]
The End of this World
Eventually, “the worst people will remain [on the earth] . . . who neither recognize good nor spurn iniquity. Then, Satan will materialize before them and say, ‘Will you not hearken [to me] ?’ Thereupon, they will ask [him], ‘What do you command us?’ Then, he will command them to worship idols, and in that condition, their sustenance will be plentiful and their life good. Then, the Trumpet will be blown . . . The first to hear it will be a man who will be plastering the water-trough of his camels, and then he will swoon away, and [the remainder of] mankind will swoon away. Then, Allah will send, or send down (the narrator is not sure) a rain like dew, or like a shadow (the narrator is unsure again), and then the bodies of mankind will grow from it. Then, [the Trumpet] will be blown a second time, and behold! They will be standing, looking.” (Related by Muslim.)

The blasts on the Trumpet are mentioned in several places in the Qur’an, and scholars differ as to whether their total number is two or three. “On the day the Trumpet shall be blown, then whoever is in the heavens and whoever is on the earth will be terrified, except those whom Allah wills [to exempt].” [(27) An-Naml, 87] “And the Trumpet is blown, and then whoever is in the heavens and whoever is on the earth will swoon away, except those whom Allah wills [to exempt].” [(39) Az-Zumar, 68] Some scholars are of the opinion that these are two separate blasts on the Trumpet, while others considered that they are one and the same, such that people will first be terrified, and then fall unconscious and die. Those whom Allah will exempt are the martyrs of the battlefield, for they are living before their Lord, receiving sustenance; and some of the chief angels. After that, Allah will command the Angel of Death to take the souls of the remainder, and finally the Angel of Death will die. Then, Allah alone will remain, being the Last as He was the First. He will ask, three times, “To whom belongs sovereignty this day?” and then will reply Himself, “To Allah, the One, the Overcomer.”

This intermediate period will endure for forty years.