Has the Mahdi Already Appeared?

Question

Has the promised Mahdi already come to and gone from this world or not?

During the rule of the Mughal Dynasty, an individual declared himself as the promised Mahdi in Makkah and India at least twice. His followers are mainly in Hyderabad, India, and they believe that he is/was the promised Mahdi, and anyone who rejects him is a disbeliever.

How do we know that his (and others’) claims are false?

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate.

Thank you for your valuable question. According to traditional scholars of Ahl al-Sunna wal-Jama‘a, the prophesized Mahdi has not emerged yet, because the prophecies described in the authentic Sunna have not become manifest, and Allah knows best.

Throughout history, there have been many false claimants to being the Mahdi, but traditional scholars have never unanimously validated them.

The Mahdi will be a man of the descendants of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) who will have a pronounced forehead and a hooked nose. He will fill the earth with justice and will rule for seven years. [Ahmad, Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi, Ibn Hibban and Hakim]

His name will be Muhammad, and his father’s name will be Abdullah. [Ahmad, Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi, Tabarani, Ibn Hibban, Hakim]

He will come before the Dajjal and before the promised return of Prophet ‘Isa (Allah bless him and give him peace.)

It is good to know about the Mahdi and other signs of the Hour. However, it is much more vital that we busy ourselves with preparation for the Day of Judgement by learning and applying the basics of our religion and making sure that our faith and practice conform with orthodox Islam, and Allah knows best.

Shaykh Irshaad Sedick was raised in South Africa in a traditional Muslim family. He graduated from Dar al-Ulum al-Arabiyyah al-Islamiyyah in Strand, Western Cape, under the guidance of the late world-renowned scholar, Shaykh Taha Karaan.

Shaykh Irshaad received Ijaza from many luminaries of the Islamic world, including Shaykh Taha Karaan, Mawlana Yusuf Karaan, and Mawlana Abdul Hafeez Makki, among others.

He is the author of the text “The Musnad of Ahmad ibn Hanbal: A Hujjah or not?” He has served as the Director of the Discover Islam Centre and Al Jeem Foundation. For the last five years till present, he has served as the Khatib of Masjid Ar-Rashideen, Mowbray, Cape Town.

Shaykh Irshaad has thirteen years of teaching experience at some of the leading Islamic institutes in Cape Town). He is currently building an Islamic online learning and media platform called ‘Isnad Academy’ and has completed his Master’s degree in the study of Islam at the University of Johannesburg. He has a keen interest in healthy living and fitness.