If that account were authentic, then the figure in question was a devil who claimed to be the Messiah and thus confused those witnesses. Incidents of this kind have happened to great multitudes in our time and before it. A group of people once staying in Tadmur (Palmyra) saw an imposing figure flying through the air; he appeared to them repeatedly, each time in different attire, and declared, “I am the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary.” He then instructed them to do things the Messiah—peace be upon him—could never have commanded. When they returned to the populace, they made it clear that the apparition was a devil who wished to mislead them.

Still others visit the grave of a person they venerate and hold in high regard, whether he was truly righteous or not. At times the visitor sees the grave split open and a man who resembles the deceased emerge from it; at other times he sees that figure re-enter the grave. Sometimes he sees him—either mounted or on foot—entering the structure, such as the domed shrine built over the tomb, and at other moments leaving it. He assumes that the figure is the very same pious man and may even think that a group had appealed to him for aid and that he went to them—when in fact it is a devil who has taken on his likeness. This has happened to more than one individual whom I personally know. And at other times he calls for help