lands—security, stability, and prosperity—is but part of the reward granted in this life for upholding the religion. May Allah increase them in every good, protect them from all evil, and guide all Muslims throughout the earth to what brings them honour and happiness in this world and the Hereafter.
[Tenth:—Concluding Remarks]
The numerous hadiths concerning the Mahdi, about which authors have written works, whose mass transmission a number of scholars have affirmed, and whose content Ahl al-Sunnah wa-l-Jamā‘ah and others among the Ash‘arīs believe, point to an indisputable reality: what they foretell will come to pass at the end of time. There is absolutely no connection between this established reality accepted by Ahl al-Sunnah and Shia doctrine. The Shia belief in the emergence of an awaited Mahdi named Muhammad ibn al-Hasan al-‘Askarī, a descendant of al-Husayn, may Allah be pleased with him, has neither reality nor foundation. Their belief concerning their Mahdi is, in truth, illusory, just as the imamate they attribute to their past imams is, in truth, imaginary, with no reality or existence—except for the imamate of ‘Alī ibn Abī Tālib and his son al-Hasan, may Allah be pleased with them both. Both are undoubtedly innocent of any association with them and their beliefs.
As for Ahl al-Sunnah, what they believe concerning the past is historical fact. Foremost among their imams are the Rightly Guided Caliphs, may Allah be pleased with them, who truly held the imamate and were the most entitled to it and worthy of it. What they believe concerning the future, when Jesus son of Mary, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, descends, is likewise an indisputable reality. Thus, no weight should be given to anyone who follows a view without knowledge and claims that the hadiths concerning the Mahdi cannot authentically be attributed to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, because they were fabricated by the Shia—a claim already mentioned at the beginning of this lecture.
Thus, given the great number of hadiths concerning the Mahdi, their numerous routes of transmission, and their inclusion in the hadith collections of Ahl al-Sunnah, it is exceedingly difficult to claim that what they foretell has no reality—unless one is ignorant, obstinate, or has neither carefully examined their routes and chains of transmission nor acquainted oneself with what recognised scholars have said about them.
Believing these hadiths is part of believing that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, for believing in him, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, includes accepting as true what he has told us. It is also part of belief in the unseen, for which Allah praises the believers, saying:
“Alif, Lām, Mīm. This is the Book about which there is no doubt, a guidance for those conscious of Allah, who believe in the unseen.”
It is also part of belief in divine decree, for created beings can know what Allah has decreed in two ways:
The first is its actual occurrence. Whatever has come into being or taken place, we know that Allah has willed it, for nothing comes into being or occurs except what Allah wills. What Allah wills comes to pass, and what He does not will does not come to pass.