a Bedouin, how can anyone else claim to know its appointed time? The Quran and Sunnah have only told us of its signs. These are many: some have already appeared, while others have yet to come.

As for those who have spoken about its precise time—such as the man who wrote a book entitled “Al-Durr al-munazzam fī ma‘rifat al-a‘zam” (The Ordered Pearl on Knowledge of the Greatest), mentioning ten indications by which he specified its time; those who discussed this on the basis of the letters of the alphabet; the one who discussed it in “‘Anqā’ mughrib”; and others like them—although they may enjoy an exalted standing among their followers, most of them are liars and fabricators. It has become clear to them in many ways that they speak without knowledge, even if they claim spiritual unveiling and knowledge of hidden mysteries in these matters. Allah Most High has said:

“Say, ‘My Lord has only forbidden shameful deeds, whether committed openly or in secret, sin, unjust aggression, associating with Allah that for which He has sent down no authority, and saying about Allah what you do not know.’”