There is a popular saying in Lebanon about the signs of the end of the world: “rumours become abounding, donkeys walk ahead of camels, and women wear men's clothes”. I remembered the above as I was reading, on a Likudnik website, about a new book entitled “The Islamic Antichrist”. It was written by an author who changed his name in order to protect his family, since he expects that the book will stir the same kind of reactions that followed the publication of Salman Rushdie's book “The Satanic Verses”. I believe that the website is trying to promote the book whose author is hiding behind the pseudonym Joel Richardson, or perhaps it is his real name since it is mentioned as the author of other books about Islam and terrorism, and Muslim apostates, which means that the man practically professes animosity to Islam and Muslims. I cannot imagine that the issue of the Antichrist can stir any controversies; the issue is well known among Muslims, and there are many books concerned with this topic. The latest book I read in this same vein was “the Signs of Judgement Day”, written by Yusuf al-Wabel and published by Dar Al-Jawzi. It is an excellent book that covers the subject so well, that it leaves no room for anything else to be said. 30 years ago or so, I read the book “Scenes from Judgment Day” by Dr. Al-Sayed Al-Jamili, published by Dar al-Hilal in Beirut. Moreover, there are many other old books focused on this issue, and which some of the most prominent Muslim scholars have left behind for us, including “The End”, or “Trials and Tribulations” by Al-Hafez bin Katheer. Perhaps some of my oldest memories from London, when I was a visitor there and before I moved to live in the British Capital, involve a man in Oxford Street who used to carry a sign that hanged from his neck and covered his chest. It said: “the end is nigh. Repent.” The person carrying the sign changed many times over, but the words remained the same, or carried the same message at any rate. I was thus reminded of the Oxford Street omen, as I was reading a news item claiming that the world would end on Friday, 21/12/2012, when the planet Nibiru would collide with Earth, and we all go up in smokes. I can easily challenge the advocates of this claim, while expecting to definitely win, because if the world truly ends, then there will be no one left to prove me wrong, and if it does not end, then I would say that I was right and then demand a reward. In fact, this theory is gaining some acceptance, because a U.S Space Agency (NASA) telescope detected the planet approaching Earth; nonetheless, we have heard such false claims before, and some of the readers must definitely remember that many expected the world to end by the end of the second millennium. However, nothing happened, not even a mere medium-sized tsunami. In Surat Al-Haaqa [the inevitable] in the Quran, we read: “And when the trumpet shall sound one blast (13) and the earth with the mountains shall be lifted up and crushed with one crash, (14) then, on that day will the Event befall. (15) And the heaven will split asunder, for that day it will be frail.” There are many other references to the end of days in the Quran, such as in the use of the words the hour, the resurrection, al-Saakha [the piercing shout] and Al-Azifa [the impending event]. Furthermore, the researcher Yusuf al-Wabel records both the major and minor eschatological signs. But because the allotted space [for this column] is limited, I will suffice myself with the major signs, or the momentous events that will appear near the onset of Judgment Day, including unusual things such as the emergence of the antichrist, the resurrection of Jesus peace be upon him, Gog and Magog and the rise of the sun from the west. There is a chapter about the antichrist, which mentions that Jesus Christ is the righteous Messiah, while the antichrist is the false Messiah who will tempt people, and that he was called the fraudulent Christ because he only had one eye. While I was studying Andalusian literature, I memorized a number of verses written by a poet complaining about a Jewish [tax] collector who was demanding him to pay. The poet was hoping to receive some bestowments from the country's emir, and hence said this humorous poem than ended with: [loose translation: Tell this one-eyed antichrist, your time has come, if you intend to rise]. Equally, the book “the Signs of the Hour” speaks in great detail, while consulting ancient references, about Ibn Sayyad, who was an impostor that was infamous among the people at the time of the Prophet. In fact, the latter tested him in the presence of Omar ibn al-Khattab. It was said that Ibn Sayyad was one of the city's Jews, while it was also said that he was one of the Ansar, and that his name is Safi or Abdullah. He was one-eyed, or his eye was frighteningly bulged as though it was the eye of a donkey. The book also quoted Ibn Omar who considered Ibn Sayyad to be the greatest impostor, while the latter found, amongst the scholars of that time, some who defended him; in fact, he strongly denied that accusation, which hurt him dearly. The antichrist is mentioned in the Gospel of Matthew, in the New Testament of the Bible, and also in the Book of Revelations. He is depicted as a beastly figure that rises from the sea, or a beast that appears like a dragon and speaks; the Christ then comes on a white horse, and the false prophet and the dragon are both slain. I do not know what the Likudnik book about the antichrist contains, but it most likely competes with the antichrist in fabricating lies about God and God's creatures.
