English
Fatimah bint Qays (may Allah be pleased with her) narrated: I heard the caller of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) announcing a congregational prayer, so I went to the mosque and prayed with the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). When he finished his prayer, he sat on the pulpit, laughing, and said: “Let everyone remain in their place of prayer.” Then he said: “Do you know why I gathered you?” They said: “Allah and His Messenger know best.” He said: “By Allah, I did not gather you for a desire or fear, but because Tamim ad-Dari, who was a Christian, came and embraced Islam. He told me a story that aligns with what I have been telling you about the Dajjal, the false Messiah.
He told me that he set sail in a ship with thirty men from Lakhm and Judham. The waves tossed them about in the sea for a month, and they landed on an island at sunset. They sat in the nearest part of the ship and entered the island, where they were met by a hairy beast, so covered in hair that they could not distinguish its front from its back. They said: ‘Woe to you, what are you?’ It said: ‘I am the Jassasah. Go to this man in the monastery, for he is eager for your news.’ He said: When it named 1 a man to us, we feared it might be a devil. He said: We hurriedly went until we entered the monastery, and there we found the greatest man we had ever seen in form, tightly bound, his hands tied to his neck, and from his knees to his ankles bound in iron. We said: ‘Woe to you, what are you?’ He said: ‘You have been able to learn about me, so tell me, who are you?’ They said: ‘We are people from the Arabs. We set sail in a ship, and the sea tossed us for a month. We landed on this island and were met by a hairy beast that said: “I am the Jassasah. Go to this man in the monastery.” So we came to you quickly.’
He said: ‘Tell me about the date palms of Baysan, do they bear fruit?’ We said: ‘Yes.’ He said: ‘Soon they will cease to bear fruit.’ He said: ‘Tell me about Lake Tiberias, is there water in it?’ We said: ‘It has abundant water.’ He said: ‘Soon its water will dry up.’ He said: ‘Tell me about the spring of Zughar, is there water in it, and do its people irrigate with its water?’ We said: ‘Yes, it has abundant water, and its people irrigate with it.’ He said: ‘Tell me about the Prophet 2 of the unlettered people, what has he done?’ We said: ‘He has left Makkah and settled in Yathrib.’ He said: ‘Have the Arabs fought him?’ We said: ‘Yes.’ He said: ‘How did he deal with them?’ We told him that he had overcome those Arabs near him and they obeyed him. He said: ‘Indeed, that 3 is better for them, that they obey him. Now I will tell you about myself: I am the Dajjal, the false Messiah. Soon I will be permitted to emerge, and I will travel the earth, not leaving a village without descending upon it in forty nights, except Makkah and Taybah, both of which are forbidden to me. Whenever I try to enter one of them, an angel with a drawn sword confronts me, preventing me from entering. At every pass of Madinah, there are angels guarding it.’ The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) struck the pulpit with his staff and said: ‘This is Taybah, this is Taybah, this is Taybah’—meaning Madinah—‘Have I not told you this?’ The people said: ‘Yes.’ He said: ‘He is in the sea of Sham or the sea of Yemen—no, rather 4 from the direction of the East,’ and he gestured with his hand toward the East.”
Possible references (unverified, pending editorial review)
- Candidate: Sahih Muslim 2942a (unverified) 99% confidence
- Candidate: Mishkat al-Masabih 5485 (unverified) 86% confidence
Mishkat (candidate) 5485
Confidence and text similarity are not editorial verification.
Commentary and footnotes (8)
Note 1
(1) His statement: “when it named”: This means it mentioned and described. His statement: “the greatest man we had ever seen” is a description to exclude those who had not seen him. Since this statement implies “we had not seen his like,” the use of “ever” is appropriate. His statement: “the date palms of Baysan”: This refers to a village in Sham. His statement: “Tiberias”: This is a major city in Jordan. His statement: “Zughar”: This is a town in Sham with little vegetation. The questions mentioned and their recorded answers indicate that they are signs of his emergence and indications of the loss of blessings due to the mark of his appearance and arrival. Since these questions serve as a prelude to what follows, he said: “Tell me about the Prophet of the unlettered people.” (Extracted from Al-Mirqat)
Note 2
(2) His statement: “about the Prophet of the unlettered people”: This refers to the Arabs, attributed to them because Allah sent him among them. It is said: He intended to disparage him (ﷺ) by suggesting he was sent only to them, as the Jews claimed, or that he was not sent to those of virtue and intelligence. (As stated in Ibn al-Malik’s commentary)
Note 3
(3) His statement: “that is better for them, that they obey him”: Al-Turbishti said: If it is asked, this statement seems like one who recognizes the truth, while the abandoned one is far from Allah in a place where he has no share, so what is the purpose of this statement? We say: It is possible he meant worldly benefit, that their obedience to him is better for them, for if they oppose him, he will destroy and eradicate them. It is also possible this is a form of divine redirection, where Allah turns him away from disparaging and acting arrogantly toward him, compelling him to speak as mentioned, as if overcome and subdued, unable to say otherwise, in support of His Prophet (ﷺ). The virtue is what the enemies testify to. (As stated in Al-Mirqat)
Note 4
(4) His statement: “no, rather from the direction of the East”: The word “rather” is additional. Al-Ashraf said: It is possible that he (ﷺ) was uncertain about his location and thought it must be one of these three places. When he mentioned the sea of Sham and the sea of Yemen, it became clear to him through revelation or predominant thought that it was from the East, so he negated the first two, turned away from them, and confirmed the third. (As stated in Al-Mirqat)
Note 1
(۱) قوله : لما سمت: أي ذكرت ووصفت. وقوله: ما رأيناه قط صفة إنسان احتراز عمن لم يروه، ولما كان هذا الكلام في معنى ما رأينا مثله صح قوله: «قط»، وقوله: نخل بيسان وهي قرية بالشام. وقوله: «الطبرية» قصبة بالأردن. وقوله: «زغر بلدة بالشام قليلة النبات. وفي الأسئلة المذكورة وأجوبتها المسطورة إشارة إلى أنها علامات لخروجه، وأمارات الذهاب بركتها لشامة ظهوره ووصوله، ولما كانت هذه الأسئلة توطئة لما بعدها، قال: أخبروني عن نبي الأميين. التقطته من «المرقاة».
Note 2
(۲) قوله: عن نبي الأميين: أي العرب أضافه إليهم باعتبار بعثه الله فيهم. وقيل: أراد طعنا عليه ﷺ بأنه مبعوث إليهم خاصة، كما هو زعم اليهود أو بأنه غير مبعوث إلى ذوي الفضة والكياسة، كذا في شرح ابن الملك». وقوله: أما إن ذلك خير لهم، ذلك إشارة إلى مبهم فسره بقوله: «أن يطيعوه أو إشارة إلى أن النبي ﷺ وما بعده خبره. وهذا يدل على أنه عارف بفضله وصدقه و إنما جحد كفرا وعنادا ، كما هو شأن اليهود، أو المراد الخيرية في الدنيا، أو أنه لما لم يكن له غرض في إظهار كفره وإنكاره له أخفاه، ولم يصرح به. كذا في «اللمعات».
Note 3
(۳) قوله: ذلك خير لهم أن يطيعوه: قال التوربشتي الله فإن قيل: يشبه هذا القول من عرف الحق، والمخذول من البعد من الله بمكان لم ير له فيه مساهم، فما وجه قوله هذا ؟ قلنا: يحتمل أنه أراد به الخير في الدنيا، أي طاعتهم له خير لهم؛ فإنهم إن خالفوه اجتاحهم واستأصلهم، ويحتمل أنه من باب الصرفة صرفه الله تعالى عن الطعن فيه والتكبر عليه وتفوه بما ذكر عنه كالمغلوب عليه والمأخوذ عليه، فلا يستطيع أن يتكلم بغيره؛ تأييدا لنبيه ، والفضل ما شهدت به الأعداء. كذا في «المرقاة».
Note 4
(٤) قوله : لا ، بل من قبل المشرق ما هو : «ما زائدة، قال الأشرف : يمكن أنه الله كان شاكا في موضعه، وكان في ظنه أنه لا يخلو عن هذه المواضع الثلاثة، فلما ذكر بحر الشام وبحر اليمن، تيقن له من جهة الوحي أو غلب على ظنه أنه من قبل المشرق، فنفى الأولين، وأضرب عنهما، وحقق الثالث. كذا في «المرقاة».