jungle of information. In such a situation, differentiating
between truth and falsehood has become so difficult that it is
almost impossible without the special support of God.
2) According to a tradition, the Prophet of Islam said that
Doomsday would not take place until
haraj
had exceeded its
limit. People then asked what
haraj
was. The Prophet replied,
“Killing, killing and more killing.” (
Sahih
Muslim,
Kitab Al-Fitan
)
When the Prophet of Islam came to the world during the
first quarter of the 7
th
century, modern weapons had not yet
been invented. It was unthinkable at that time that killing and
bloodshed could ever become rampant. This has become possible
only in the present days, when weapons of mass destruction have
been manufactured and it has become possible to kill on a mass
scale. As such, we find that in present times innumerable
incidents of killing and bloodshed are taking place on a daily
basis. This state of affairs is an indication that Doomsday has
come very close. It is proof enough of the veracity of this
prediction that it was made a long time ago when the present
kind of bloodshed and violence was totally unthinkable.
3) According to one tradition, the Prophet of Islam said that
the time was soon to come when the river Euphrates would
produce a treasure of gold. This prediction in the Hadith clearly
refers to petrol, which is called liquid gold in present times. This
has been discovered in huge quantities in the Middle East. This
was unthinkable during the times of the Prophet of Islam. Today
this prediction has undoubtedly been fulfilled. This event is
another sign that
qiyamat
is no longer far off. Doomsday,
heralded by the above-mentioned signs, will, according to the
creation plan of God, bring the first phase of human history to
an end. The post-Doomsday phase will then commence.
4) According to another tradition, the Prophet of Islam
mentioned ten indicators which would signal the approach of
Doomsday. These are also set forth in the Quran. An important
one is recorded in verses 10 and 11 of chapter 44: “Watch out
for the day when the sky brings out plainly visible clouds of
smoke (
dukhan
) that will envelop the people. This will be a
58
The alarm of Doomsday
