What is dajjal
The Arabic word Dajjal is derived from Dajal, which means deceiver and liar. Because the Dajjal will falsely claim to be God, he is called Dajjal.
Who is dajjal
From an Islamic point of view, Dajjal is a member of the Jewish people, and most of his followers will be Jews. He will have only one eye and his eyebrow will be completely missing. His forehead will have the Arabic letters “ک-ف-ر” (meaning disbeliever) written on it. According to a Sahih Muslim hadith, his emergence will be from the east, and according to one opinion, he will emerge from the fields of Sham and Iraq.
Where is the Dajjal?
The Dajjal is imprisoned on an unknown island, the knowledge of which is with Allah. Near the Day of Judgment, he will appear from the East and will emerge from the fields of Sham and Iraq.
christian muslim convert that meet dajjal
Narrated by Fatimah bint Qais (RA):
“I heard the call for prayer, ‘Al-salatu jami’ah’ (The prayer is about to begin), and I immediately headed to the mosque to join the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him). I was in the row of women closest to the people. When the Prophet finished his prayer, he sat on the pulpit, smiling. Then, he said, ‘Stay where you are, in the position where you prayed.’ He then asked, ‘Do you know why I called you together?’
The people responded, ‘Allah and His Messenger know best.’
He said, ‘By Allah, I did not gather you for a sermon or warning, but because Tamim al-Dari, a Christian, came to me and embraced Islam. He told me something that agrees with what I have been telling you about the Dajjal (the false Messiah). Tamim shared that he had sailed on a ship with thirty men from the tribes of Lakhm and Judham, and they were tossed by the waves of the sea for a whole month. Eventually, they arrived at an island at sunset. They went ashore and found a creature covered with hair so thick that they could not tell its front from its back. They asked, ‘Who are you?’ The creature replied, ‘I am Al-Jassasah.’ They asked, ‘What is Al-Jassasah?’ The creature told them, ‘Go to the man in the monastery, for he is eager to know about you.’
Frightened, they rushed to the monastery, hoping it wasn’t a devil. When they arrived, they saw the biggest man they had ever encountered, chained up with his hands bound to his neck and his legs shackled with iron from his knees to his ankles. They asked, ‘Who are you?’ The man replied, ‘You will soon find out, but first tell me who you are.’ They explained, ‘We are Arabs, stranded in a boat, and the sea tossed us around for a month. Finally, we reached this island. We took the boat to the shore and encountered a strange creature covered in hair, unable to recognize its front from its back. It told us to go to the person in the monastery. We rushed here, worried it might be a devil.’
The chained man asked, ‘Tell me about the date palms of Baysan.’ They responded, ‘What do you want to know?’ He asked, ‘Do the trees bear fruit?’ They replied, ‘Yes.’ He said, ‘Soon they will not bear fruit.’ He then asked, ‘Tell me about the Lake of Tiberias.’ They said, ‘What do you want to know?’ He asked, ‘Is there water in it?’ They answered, ‘Yes, a great deal.’ He said, ‘Soon it will dry up.’ He then inquired about the spring of Zughar in southern Syria. They answered, ‘Yes, there is water in it, and people use it to irrigate their crops.’ Then he asked, ‘Tell me about the Prophet of the unlettered people. What has he done?’ They replied, ‘He left Makkah and settled in Yathrib (Medina).’ He asked, ‘Do the Arabs fight against him?’ They said, ‘Yes.’ He asked, ‘How did he deal with them?’ They explained, ‘He overcame those in his vicinity, and they obeyed him.’ He then asked, ‘Has this really happened?’ They said, ‘Yes.’ He said, ‘If that is the case, it is better for them to obey him. Now, I will tell you about myself: I am the Dajjal. Soon, I will be permitted to emerge. I will travel through the earth, and I will not leave any town except Makkah and Medina. These two are forbidden to me. Whenever I try to enter them, an angel with a sword will block my way, and angels will guard every entrance to them.’
The Prophet (peace be upon him) then struck the pulpit with his staff and said, ‘This is Taybah, this is Taybah, this is Taybah,’ referring to Madina. ‘Did I not tell you this before?’ The people replied, ‘Yes.’ The Prophet continued, ‘I liked Tamim’s story because it matches what I used to tell you about the Dajjal, and about Makkah and Madina. But he is in the Syrian Sea (the Mediterranean) or the Yemeni Sea (the Arabian Sea). No, he is in the east, he is in the east, he is in the east,’ and he pointed toward the east with his hand. Fatimah bint Qais (RA) said, ‘I memorized this from the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him).'”
This narration is found in Sahih Muslim (2942), and it is also narrated by scholars in their books with authentic chains of transmission.
What will the Dajjal do?
For 40 days, he will roam the earth, except for Makkah and Madinah. He will have a bag with him, which he will call Paradise, and a fire, which he will call Hell. He will claim to be God. Whoever believes in him will be admitted into his Paradise, which will actually be fire, and whoever does not believe in him will be thrown into the fire, which will actually be Paradise. He will command the clouds, and they will bring rain, and the vegetation will grow, but this will all be deception. Therefore, as soon as the Dajjal leaves, everything will turn into ruins.
Who will kill the Dajjal?
The fitnah (trial) of Dajjal will reach its peak when he lays siege to the Muslims in the land of Sham (Greater Syria). He will be accompanied by 70,000 Jews who will be armed.
During this time, Prophet Isa (Jesus, peace be upon him) will descend from the heavens in the Umayyad Masjid of Damascus, supported by the wings of angels. He will instruct Imam Mahdi to lead the prayer, and Imam Mahdi will do so. There will be a battle between the Muslims and Dajjal. When Dajjal sees Isa (peace be upon him), he will begin to melt from his breath. Isa (peace be upon him) will chase him until, near Bait-ul-Maqdas at the place of Lud, he will strike Dajjal with a spear on his back, and he will be killed.
