Ad-Dajjaal is derived from the Arabic word “Dajal”, which means “lying”, and it is the proper name of a person who will come out near the end of time. Allah The Exalted Will Give him supernatural powers, and He Will Make him a trial and affliction for people. He will claim divinity and will ask people to worship him instead of Allah The Almighty. He will be a great trial for humankind, because his emergence will shake people’s beliefs and raise serious doubts as to the creed. Consequently, he will persuade some people to believe in him, while others will follow him in hope or out of fear. On the other hand, some people will realize that he is a liar and they will either escape from him or even defy and resist him.
All the Prophets, may Allah exalt their mention, have warned their nations from him generally, but the Prophet spoke in detail about the dire threat he poses to people’s creed and religion, as well as his physical description, supernatural abilities and deceptive methods. The Prophet also referred to his followers, the period that he will stay on earth, how he will die, and who is going to kill him. All these things were accurately detailed in the prophetic Hadeeths, which covered the whole life of Ad-Dajjaal; and the Prophet did so to advise his Ummah and shield its religion from doubts.
In this article, we will speak in detail about Ad-Dajjaal.
The Prophet warned his Ummah about Ad-Dajjaal:
Although Ad-Dajjaal will emerge near the end of time just prior to the coming of the Final Hour, the Prophet as well as the prophets who preceded him, warned their nations about him strongly to the extent that the Prophet sought refuge in Allah The Exalted from him along with the torment of the grave. Certainly, this confirms that his danger and evil are mortal because he will suggest doubts to people’s religion and make them mistrust their Lord The Almighty. Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, reported that the Prophet used to supplicate saying, “O Allah, I seek refuge in You from the torment of the grave, the torment of the Fire, the trials and tribulations of life and death, and the evil affliction of Al-Maseeh Ad-Dajjaal.” [Al-Bukhari]
‘Abdullaah ibn ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, also reported that the Prophet stood up amongst the people and then praised and glorified Allah The Almighty as He Deserves and then he mentioned Ad-Dajjaal, saying, "I warn you about him, and there was no prophet but he warned his followers about him.” [Al-Bukhari and Muslim]
The Prophet stated that Ad-Dajjaal is the greatest trial that people would ever face since the creation of Aadam, may Allah exalt his mention, until the Day of Judgment. ‘Imraan ibn Husayn, may Allah be pleased with him, reported that the Prophet said, "There is nothing between the creation of Aadam and the Day of Judgment greater than the Antichrist." [Muslim]
When and where will Ad-Dajjaal emerge?
According to the Hadeeth of Tameem Ad-Daari, may Allah be pleased with him, that was narrated in Saheeh Muslim, Ad-Dajjaal has existed since the time of the Prophet and probably before that, and he is imprisoned in an island somewhere in the sea. The same Hadeeth also states that Ad-Dajjaal will remain on this island until Allah The Exalted Gives him permission to emerge near the end of time, when wars and trials would be rampant, and when people would suffer from infirm belief and lack of knowledge.
Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, reported that the Prophet told his companions that “the Muslims would conquer a city, with one side in the land and the other in the sea, and that Allah The Almighty Would Give them victory. Then, while they would be collecting and distributing the spoils of war, a voice would be heard crying out that: Verily, Ad-Dajjaal has emerged. Thus, they would leave everything and return.” [Muslim]
In addition, the Hadeeth of Huthayfah ibn Usayd, may Allah be pleased with him, proves that the emergence of Ad-Dajjaal would be one of the greatest events that indicate that the Final Hour has become so close. He said: The Messenger of Allah came upon us while we were busy in a discussion. He said: What are you talking about? They (the Companions) said: We are talking about the Last Hour. Thereupon he said: It will not come until you see ten signs before. He mentioned the smoke, Ad-Dajjaal, the Beast, the rising of the sun from the west, the descent of ‘Eesa, son of Mary, may Allah exalt his mention, the [emergence of] Gog and Magog, and landslides in three places, one in the east, one in the west and one in Arabia, at the end of which a fire that would burn forth from the Yemen, and would drive people to the place of their assembly.” [Muslim]
Scholars disagreed over the sequence of the occurrence of these signs; however, some scholars confirmed that the emergence of Ad-Dajjaal will occur first, as stated by Al-Qurtubi in his book At-Tathkirah.
As for the place where Ad-Dajjaal will emerge, Hadeeths stated that Ad-Dajjaal would come out from the East in a land called Khuraasaan, and precisely in the city of Yahoodiyyah in Asbahaan (currently Iran).
Abu Bakr As-Siddeeq, may Allah be pleased with him, reported that the Prophet said, “Ad-Dajjaal emerge from the East in a land called Khuraasaan." [At-Tirmithi]
In a Hadeeth on the authority of Anas ibn Maalik, may Allah be pleased with him, the Prophet said, “Ad-Dajjaal will emerge from [the city of] Yahoodiyyah [in] Asbahaan, accompanied by seventy thousand Jews.” [Ahmad]
Yahoodiyyah (meaning the Jewish city) was known by this name because its population was mainly Jews. However, the Muslims later lived in it and the Jews lived together in a separate part of it.