The Reality of Khilafah — Page 74
SIRRUL-KHILAFAH— 74 subtle indications regarding the misguided state of humankind at the time of his coming. It is as though by using the word Mahdi, which denotes one who is entrusted with guidance, Allah is indi- cating a time when the light of faith would have become extin- guished and hearts would yearn only for this transient world, abandoning the ways of the Gracious One. People would be confronted by an age of polytheism, sinfulness, immorality and permissiveness, such that even the blessings that are found in the most beneficial sources would have vanished and people would revert to ways of ignorance and apostasy. Along with their longing for straying in wildernesses, they would incline towards the paths that lead them astray, turning away from guidance and integrity, in favour of infidelity and corruption. The locusts of misfortune would swarm upon the tree of mankind, leaving neither fruit nor soft branch intact. You will see that the time of righteousness has gone by, faith and piety have fled, and the source of guidance is hanging far high on the Pleiades. Then, in this tumultuous time, Allah remembers His prom- ises of old. When He sees the religion weakened from every angle, He responds by extinguishing the fire of rebellion. A man is then created, like the creation of Adam, by the Hands of the Lord of Majesty and Beauty, who then perfectly breathes into him the spirit of guidance. At times, He calls him ‘ I s a [ Jesus] because He created him like He created the Son of Mary, and sometimes He names him Mahdi, for he has come from His Lord in order to guide Muslims who have gone astray. He is sent to the Muslims whose eyes are veiled so that he may lead them to the Lord of the worlds. This is the truth regarding which you argue. Surely, Allah knows and you know not. He gave life to one among His servants