Your safety matters. Due to COVID-19, this MasterClass will be conducted online on Google Meet.

Overview

Anas ibn Malik narrated that The Prophet ﷺ said:
 “Me and The Last Hour, have been sent like this.”
 The Prophet ﷺ placed his index finger and his middle finger close to each other as he said that.
[Sahih Muslim, Kitab Al-Fitan Wa Ashrat As-Sa’ahn]

One of the pillars of our faith, is the belief in The Last Day. The Quran addresses this reality in vivid detail, using strong language, indicating its imperative nature of our holistic worldview. Mankind is bound by time, and that time shall run out one day, to signal our transition into the next phase, the afterlife. The Prophetic ﷺ tradition further elaborates this imperative in many narrations, culminating in a prefatory summary, as captured by the narration of the angel Jibril, when he asked The Prophet ﷺ about the details of the signs of The Last Day, highlighting the credal and practical significance of this concept in our lives.

The discussion revolving around The Last Day is often met with a spectrum of reactions, ranging from doubtful skepticism to mystic fascination, as descriptions of The Last Day take shape, after collecting the verses and narrations that mention the details on this topic. These texts from The Quran and The Sunnah are, at times, interpreted with various approaches, leading to a wide range of understandings on the specifics of The Last Day.

While a diverse set of interpretations of The Last Day and it signs might cause confusion, along with our experiences of some of these signs being manifest in our day and age, there are key points to note on the matter, that would help us to achieve a clear and practical understanding of The Last Day, its signs, and how it impacts us and our lives today. Learning about The Last Day is not merely a descriptive process of speculation of future events, but rather, the study should serve as a catalyst in our self-development today, in our preparations for the uncertainties of tomorrow.

Points Of Discussion Include:

• One Future, One Direction: The Importance of The Signs of The Hour
• The Texts Describing The Last Day: Guidelines on Understanding The Signs of The Hour
• Reading The Signs: The Categories of The Signs of The Hour
• What We Witness: The Minor & Major Signs of The Hour

“Are they only waiting for The Hour to take them by surprise? Yet some of its signs have already arrived. Once it actually befalls them, will it not be too late to be mindful?”
[Surah Muhammad, Ayat 18]

As we try to get out of the confusion that surrounds the discourse of The Last Day, it is important for us to understand how the scholars of Islam interpret The Quran and The Sunnah to provide a comprehensive viewpoint for Muslims to shape our perception of the ends of times.

Signs are not meant to be sought, but rather, signs are meant provide us with the directions to our final destination. While reading the signs are important, it is even more of an imperative for us to know what to do when we read those signs.

The question that we ask, is not whether the signs are here yet, or otherwise. We know for sure, that the signs are here. The question now is, what do we do next?