Saudi Arabia’ s
SPOTLIGHT
Saudi Arabia’ s
Distorted concept of Imam Mehdi
Wahhabism is a radical ideology officially sanctioned by Saudi Arabia and its emergence as a dominant school of thought coincides with Saudi Arabia’ s rise to power in the global sphere. Salafism and Deobandism are ideologically the same as Wahhabism, with slight differences.
Wahhabism, Salafism and Deobandism are the systems of belief held by terrorist organisations such as ISIS, the Taliban, Boko Haram and Al-Qaeda. This ideology is the fastest growing sect in the Muslim World due to the Saudi authorities’ aggressive policy; billions of petrodollars are allocated every year towards the propagation of this sect.
In an effort to discourage Muslims from supporting Imam Mehdi when he arrives, the Wahhabis removed all mention of Imam Mehdi from prophecies of the Prophet Mohammad. The Salafis introduced a fabricated notion: the Caliph of the End of the World, who will convert everyone into Muslims and establish a worldwide Islamic Caliphate.
The Grand MufTi of Saudi Arabia
The Saudis- and therefore Wahhabis, Salafis and Deobandis- are fierce enemies of Imam Mehdi. This is because Prophet Mohammad was famously quoted as saying that Imam Mehdi would rule over the Arabs indicating that he would dethrone those in power. A prominent descendent of the Prophet Mohammad, Imam Jafar Sadiq, also added that Imam Mehdi would be harsh on the Arabs. [ Tirmidhi Sahih, Vol. 9, P. 74; Al- Majlisi, Bihar al-Anwar, Vol. 52, p. 354 ]
The impression has developed in the West that Islam has now become an apocalyptic religion. You can argue that most other religions do have the concept of end times, so what is it that makes Islam different? The answer is that certain organisations who follow the Wahhabi, Salafi and Deobandi schools of thought operate on the belief that we are living in the end times and that by carrying out terrorist activities and inciting war, they will triumph over their enemies.
Experts speculate that ISIS’ s current activities in Syria, Iraq and throughout the Western world are an attempt to fulfill an alleged Islamic prophecy:
‘ The Last Hour would not come until the Romans land at al-Amaq or in Dabiq. An army consisting of the best( soldiers) of the people of the earth at that time will come from Medina( to counteract them).’ [ Sahih-Muslim, Vol. 41, Chap. 9, Hadith 6924 ]
© AP Photo / Hassan Ammar
6 THE TRUE MEHDI 01 / JAN 2017