The Promised Messiah and Mahdi — Page 78
THE PROMISED MESSIAH AND MAHDI nights of the lunar month. And the dates on which a solar eclipse can occur are the 27th, 28th, and 29th of the lunar month. Thus according to the above prophecy, the lunar eclipse would occur on the 13th of. Ramadhan i. e. The first of the three possible nights it can occur. And the eclipse of the sun would occur on the 28th of the same month i. e. the middle of the three possible days it can occur. . Some have objected that the lunar eclipse should have occurred on the first night of Ramadhan. They ignore the laws of astronomy and the established movements of celestial bodies. . Furthermore, the Arabic word for moon used in the above stated. Hadith is Qamar, which is used for the moon on the fourth lunar night and onward; whereas, the moon of the first three nights is called Hilal in Arabic. . This Hadith does not mean to say that the Lunar and Solar eclipses have never occurred in the month of Ramadhan before. In fact, according to astronomers they have occurred many times in the month of Ramadhan since the time of the Holy Prophet. The crucial point is that there would be a claimant of being Mahdi at that time. and he will proclaim this occurrence to be a sign for him. This is exactly what happened. Hadhrat Ahmad proclaimed the eclipses in. Ramadhan of 1894 to be a great sign in his favor. There have been many claimants of being Mahdi in Islamic history, but this sign was never shown for any of them. This sign about the Mahdi is found in the books of Hadith collected by both Shia and Sunni sects. A great many of Islamic religious books mention this prophecy about the expected Mahdi. . The Promised Messiah explained that this sign of the eclipses. is hinted in the Holy Quran in Surah Al-Qiamah: "And the Moon is eclipsed. And the Sun and Moon are brought together. " (75:9-10). The scriptures of many other religions also prophecy this sign. for the Promised Reformer. Christian the Gospels prophecy about the second coming of Jesus: "Immediately after the Tribulations of those days shall the Sun be darkened and the Moon shall not give its light. " (Matt. 24:29) 78