Caution During Trials, Preservation of Knowledge, and Inner Sincerity (Reports 7–11)

1. Understanding turmoil without speculation

The section ذِكْرُ بَعْضِ الْمُغَيَّبَاتِ brings together reports about future circumstances. This lesson covers Reports 7–11, describing violent turmoil, loss of knowledge, severe hardship, empty religious appearances, and hostility hidden beneath public friendliness.

Their practical purpose is not to spread fear or identify particular present-day people as the subject of a prediction without evidence. The lessons concern protection of life, knowledge, truthfulness, and people’s rights.

Useful expressions include الْهَرْجُ, يُقْبَضُ الْعِلْمُ, يَا لَيْتَنِي, لَا ... إِلَّا, and إِخْوَانُ الْعَلَانِيَةِ. Grammar is explained briefly where it supports comprehension.

2. Report 7: The gravity of violent disorder

وَالَّذِي نَفْسِي بِيَدِهِ لَا تَذْهَبُ الدُّنْيَا حَتَّى يَأْتِيَ عَلَى النَّاسِ يَوْمٌ لَا يَدْرِي الْقَاتِلُ فِيمَ قَتَلَ، وَلَا الْمَقْتُولُ فِيمَ قُتِلَ، فَقِيلَ: كَيْفَ يَكُونُ ذَلِكَ؟ قَالَ: الْهَرْجُ، الْقَاتِلُ وَالْمَقْتُولُ فِي النَّارِ
Translation: By Him in whose hand is my soul, the world will not end before a time comes when the killer does not know why he killed and the slain does not know why he was killed. Asked how that would be, the Prophet ﷺ replied: “Harj” (widespread killing); “the killer and the slain are in the Fire.”

Source: مسلم

الْهَرْجُ here means widespread killing. الْقَاتِلُ is “the killer,” while الْمَقْتُولُ is “the one killed.” لَا يَدْرِي means “does not know,” and فِيمَ asks “for what reason?”

The report depicts severe disorder in which even the reasons for taking and losing life become obscure. It highlights the sanctity of human life and the gravity of violence.

3. Killer and slain: Understanding the warning

الْقَاتِلُ وَالْمَقْتُولُ فِي النَّارِ is a grave warning. It does not justify the sweeping conclusion that every innocent murder victim deserves punishment. Nor does this short wording authorize certainty about the fate of a specific deceased person.

People participating in unlawful mutual violence are not the same as an innocent victim who is attacked. For beginners, the central lesson is the seriousness of taking life and the duty to avoid participation in violent disorder.

Example: Joining a confrontation because of an unverified rumor can put lives at risk. Verify information, avoid escalation, and seek appropriate assistance.

4. “For what did he kill?”: The question word

فِيمَ comes from فِي + مَا. When the interrogative مَا follows a preposition, its alif is often omitted. The question emphasizes the absence of a known motive.

قَتَلَ is an active past verb, “he killed”; قُتِلَ is passive past, “he was killed.” الْقَاتِلُ is an active participle and الْمَقْتُولُ a passive participle. This distinction clarifies the two roles.

وَالَّذِي نَفْسِي بِيَدِهِ is an oath, emphasizing the gravity of what follows.

5. Practical restraint during turmoil

The practical response is more than repeating a prediction. It requires restraint from injustice and unlawful violence now. A slogan or viral claim is not enough to justify actions that endanger life.

1. Do not intensify hostility or incitement.
2. Take appropriate steps to protect yourself and others when threatened.
3. Do not pronounce definite judgments about a killing without knowing the facts and applicable duties.

The phrase لَا يَدْرِي is a reminder that heedlessness and unthinking participation can worsen violence.

6. Report 8: Knowledge, turmoil, and killing

يَتَقَارَبُ الزَّمَانُ، وَيُقْبَضُ الْعِلْمُ، وَتَظْهَرُ الْفِتَنُ، وَيُلْقَى الشُّحُّ، وَيَكْثُرُ الْهَرْجُ، قَالُوا: وَمَا الْهَرْجُ؟ قَالَ: الْقَتْلُ
Translation: Time will draw close, knowledge will be taken away, trials will appear, avaricious miserliness will spread, and harj will increase. They asked, “What is harj?” He replied, “Killing.”

Source: البخاري ومسلم

يَتَقَارَبُ الزَّمَانُ describes time drawing close or seeming compressed. يُقْبَضُ الْعِلْمُ refers to knowledge being taken away. الْفِتَنُ means trials or turmoil, and الشُّحُّ combines intense greed with miserliness.

The companions asked the meaning of الْهَرْجُ, and the answer was الْقَتْلُ, killing. Asking for a difficult term to be explained is a model for careful learning.

7. Understanding the “closeness” of time

يَتَقَارَبُ الزَّمَانُ may describe a sense of compression or the rapid passing of time. The brief wording does not by itself establish a specific clock phenomenon, calendar prediction, or modern scientific theory.

A useful application is to allocate time for knowledge, worship, people’s rights, and essential responsibilities rather than confusing busyness with understanding.

يَتَقَارَبُ is a present-tense verb conveying an ongoing or future state.

8. “Knowledge will be taken”: A linguistic distinction

يُقْبَضُ is a passive present-tense verb: “will be taken away.” الْعِلْمُ is its nominative passive subject. The construction highlights the loss of knowledge without naming the agent in this clause.

Knowledge is more than collecting statements. Sound understanding, careful transmission, and competent teaching matter. Unchecked rulings and fabricated attribution contribute to confusion.

Example: When contradictory religious claims circulate, consult original wording, context, and qualified guidance rather than choosing the loudest assertion.

9. Greed and violent disorder: Two social dangers

الشُّحُّ is more than ordinary reluctance to spend; it can combine possessive greed with withholding others’ rights. The report itself explains الْهَرْجُ as الْقَتْلُ, killing.

Loss of sound knowledge, intense greed, and social turmoil can reinforce one another. Fair dealing and protection of life are connected duties.

Example: In dividing shared property, resolving claims justly rather than grabbing disputed assets counters greed. Using threats or violence escalates conflict.

10. Report 9: A picture of severe hardship

وَالَّذِي نَفْسِي بِيَدِهِ لَا تَذْهَبُ الدُّنْيَا حَتَّى يَمُرَّ الرَّجُلُ عَلَى الْقَبْرِ فَيَتَمَرَّغَ عَلَيْهِ، وَيَقُولَ: يَا لَيْتَنِي كُنْتُ مَكَانَ صَاحِبِ هَذَا الْقَبْرِ، وَلَيْسَ بِهِ الدِّينُ إِلَّا الْبَلَاءُ
Translation: By Him in whose hand is my soul, the world will not end before a man passes a grave, rolls upon it, and says, “If only I were in the place of the one buried here.” He will be driven to this not by a religious aspiration but by severe affliction.

Source: مسلم

الْقَبْرِ is a grave; فَيَتَمَرَّغَ describes rolling upon it in distress; يَا لَيْتَنِي introduces an anguished wish (“If only I…”); and الْبَلَاءُ is severe trial or affliction.

The report describes distress so intense that a person wishes to be in the grave. It describes a condition; it does not recommend wishing for death.

11. Depicting despair is not endorsing it

يَا لَيْتَنِي كُنْتُ مَكَانَ صَاحِبِ هَذَا الْقَبْرِ reports the words of a profoundly distressed person. It shows how a severe trial may affect someone.

A statement appearing within a hadith is not necessarily an instruction to imitate it. A sound response is patience, seeking help, finding practical support, and treating distressed people compassionately.

Example: If someone is overwhelmed by financial or family hardship, listen without ridicule, help them remain safe, and connect them with trusted people who can assist.

12. “If only I”: Wishing and context

لَيْتَ expresses an unattained wish. In لَيْتَنِي, the suffix refers to “me”: “If only I…” كُنْتُ is a past-tense verb within that wish. صَاحِبِ هَذَا الْقَبْرِ forms a connected possessive expression describing the person in the grave.

The clause وَلَيْسَ بِهِ الدِّينُ إِلَّا الْبَلَاءُ connects the desperate reaction to severe affliction rather than to a noble religious aspiration.

Context matters: language reporting a desperate wish should not be mistaken for advice to seek that situation.

13. The rights of someone under strain

The narration also invites compassion. Severe distress can affect how a person speaks. Understanding their situation is more constructive than rushing to blame or shame.

1. Listen attentively and respectfully.
2. Obtain suitable immediate help if anyone is at risk of harm.
3. Do not pronounce judgment on someone’s faith or final fate from distressed words alone.

The expression الْبَلَاءُ reminds us of the weight of trials; helping to ease someone’s burden is a practical form of goodwill.

14. Report 10: Names, outward form, and guidance

يُوشِكُ أَنْ يَأْتِيَ عَلَى النَّاسِ زَمَانٌ لَا يَبْقَى مِنَ الْإِسْلَامِ إِلَّا اسْمُهُ، وَلَا يَبْقَى مِنَ الْقُرْآنِ إِلَّا رَسْمُهُ، مَسَاجِدُهُمْ عَامِرَةٌ، وَهِيَ خَرَابٌ مِنَ الْهُدَى، عُلَمَاؤُهُمْ شَرٌّ مَنْ تَحْتَ أَدِيمِ السَّمَاءِ، مِنْ عِنْدِهِمْ تَخْرُجُ الْفِتْنَةُ وَفِيهِمْ تَعُودُ
Translation: A time may soon come when only Islam’s name remains, and only the outward script of the Qur’an remains. Their mosques will be populated yet devoid of guidance; their scholars will be the worst under the sky, with turmoil arising from among them and returning to them.

Source: البيهقي

يُوشِكُ means “it is near that…” The structure لَا يَبْقَى ... إِلَّا restricts what remains: “nothing but…” اسْمُهُ means its name, and رَسْمُهُ its outward script or written form.

The warning concerns preserving religious names and appearances while neglecting guidance and practice. It is not a warrant to label every individual or mosque; it invites personal and communal reform.

15. “Nothing remains except…”: Restriction

In لَا يَبْقَى مِنَ الْإِسْلَامِ إِلَّا اسْمُهُ, لَا negates and إِلَّا restricts: “nothing of Islam remains but its name.” A parallel clause speaks of the Qur’an’s رَسْم.

Distinguish اسْمٌ (name) from رَسْمٌ (written outline or outward form). Respecting religious words is meaningful, and understanding and practicing their guidance is also essential.

Example: Reciting the Qur’an is valuable; so is taking its guidance seriously in worship, honesty, and treatment of others.

16. Populated mosques and the need for guidance

مَسَاجِدُهُمْ عَامِرَةٌ، وَهِيَ خَرَابٌ مِنَ الْهُدَى is a pointed contrast: populated buildings but deficient guidance. مَسَاجِدُهُمْ is the subject of the nominal sentence and عَامِرَةٌ its predicate. هِيَ refers back to the mosques.

Building, maintaining, and cleaning mosques are useful endeavors, but worship, sound learning, good conduct, and respect for worshippers must accompany them.

Example: If a mosque is well-maintained but people are treated harshly or cannot find reliable teaching, the response should be constructive improvement, not contempt for mosque maintenance.

17. Religious authority and responsibility

عُلَمَاؤُهُمْ شَرٌّ ... مِنْ عِنْدِهِمْ تَخْرُجُ الْفِتْنَةُ is a stern warning against abusing religious authority through corruption and misleading others. It does not prove that every scholar, or any particular present-day group, deserves that description.

تَخْرُجُ means “emerges” and تَعُودُ means “returns.” The phrases مِنْ عِنْدِهِمْ and فِيهِمْ describe where trouble arises and returns.

Example: Responsible teachers avoid issuing rulings without evidence, treat disagreements fairly, and use learning to serve people rather than gain improper influence.

18. Report 11: Public friendliness and hidden hostility

يَكُونُ فِي آخِرِ الزَّمَانِ أَقْوَامٌ إِخْوَانُ الْعَلَانِيَةِ، وَأَعْدَاءُ السَّرِيرَةِ، فَقِيلَ: يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ، وَكَيْفَ يَكُونُ ذَلِكَ؟ قَالَ: ذَلِكَ بِرَغْبَةِ بَعْضِهِمْ إِلَى بَعْضٍ، وَرَهْبَةِ بَعْضِهِمْ مِنْ بَعْضٍ
Translation: Toward the end of time there will be people who appear as brothers in public but harbor hostility privately. Asked how that could happen, the Prophet ﷺ explained that some will seek things from others while others will fear them.

Source: أحمد

إِخْوَانُ الْعَلَانِيَةِ refers to outward brotherliness, while أَعْدَاءُ السَّرِيرَةِ describes private hostility. رَغْبَةٌ is desire for a benefit, and رَهْبَةٌ is fear.

The report cautions against relationships governed by gain or intimidation rather than sincerity. Ordinary courtesy or disagreement is not itself proof of hidden hostility; conduct and the protection of others’ rights matter.

19. Desire and fear as pressures on relationships

بِرَغْبَةِ بَعْضِهِمْ إِلَى بَعْضٍ، وَرَهْبَةِ بَعْضِهِمْ مِنْ بَعْضٍ identifies two pressures: seeking benefits from others and fearing harm from them.

The report does not condemn all politeness, practical cooperation, or cordial disagreement. The danger arises when apparent closeness conceals betrayal, exploitation, or a readiness to harm.

Example 1: Being respectful despite disagreement is good character.
Example 2: Pretending affection to gain favors while planning to violate someone’s rights is insincere and harmful.

20. The paired expressions: Possession and contrast

إِخْوَانُ الْعَلَانِيَةِ and أَعْدَاءُ السَّرِيرَةِ are two possessive constructions. الْعَلَانِيَةِ refers to what is public; السَّرِيرَةِ to what is concealed. إِخْوَانُ is plural “brothers,” and أَعْدَاءُ plural “enemies.”

Placing these opposites side by side makes the inconsistency of character clear. Prepositions also matter: إِلَى expresses desire directed toward someone; مِنْ expresses fear from someone.

The lesson is not grammar alone: outward language, inward intention, and actual conduct should be consistent.

21. Building trust without naive suspicion

Trust is built by more than gentle speech: it requires honesty, keeping confidences appropriately, fair dealing, and reliability under pressure. Nobody should claim certain knowledge of others’ concealed intentions.

1. Do not exploit another person’s trust for gain.
2. When you disagree, state the truth respectfully rather than offering deceptive agreement.
3. Judge observable behavior fairly rather than speculating about hidden motives.

Applying this report to one’s own sincerity is more constructive than inventing accusations about others’ inner hostility.

22. Connecting the five reports

ReportWarningPractical responsibility
7Violent disorderProtect life; avoid unlawful violence
8Loss of knowledge and greedLearn carefully and deal fairly
9Severe hardship and despairShow compassion and seek assistance
10Appearance without guidanceCombine learning with upright action
11Public-private inconsistencyPractice sincerity and trustworthiness

The shared response is protection of sound learning, character, and people’s rights. These reports are not a method for fixing dates or judging particular people without evidence.

23. Summary: Knowledge and character during trials

1. الْهَرْجُ is explained as killing; protect life and refuse unlawful violence.
2. يُقْبَضُ الْعِلْمُ warns of lost knowledge; careful study and honest teaching matter.
3. يَا لَيْتَنِي reports the desperate wish of someone under severe trial, not a recommendation to imitate it.
4. لَا يَبْقَى ... إِلَّا warns that an outward name or script may remain while genuine guidance is neglected.
5. إِخْوَانُ الْعَلَانِيَةِ، وَأَعْدَاءُ السَّرِيرَةِ contrasts public friendliness with concealed hostility and calls for sincerity.

Understanding these reports should improve present responsibilities rather than encourage speculation about future events.