It is narrated from Abu Nadrah that Sayyiduna Uthman bin Affan (may Allah be pleased with him), giving a parable of tribulation (fitnah), said: "The parable of tribulation is like a group of three people who set out together on a journey. They travelled by night and reached a place where three roads met. One of them said: I will go to the right. So he went to the right and lost his way. The second said: I will go to the left. So he turned to the left and lost his way. And the third said: It is still night; I will remain in my place until morning so that I can take the right road (in the light)."

It is narrated from Abu al-Aliyah that he said: We used to be told that a time will soon come upon the people in which the best of them will be the one who sees the truth clearly near and so keeps away from the tribulations.

It is narrated from Ibn Abdullah bin Mughaffal that he said: A son of Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Salam (may Allah be pleased with him) intended to set out towards Syria (al-Sham), so Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) looked down at him from the roof of the house and said: "O my son! Do not grieve me with the loss of your life, for the pure (genuine) ones of every Muslim will surely come from Syria."

It is narrated from Abu al-Aswad al-Dili that he said: Zur'ah bin Damrah and I set out with Sayyiduna Abu Musa al-Ash'ari (may Allah be pleased with him) towards Sayyiduna Umar bin al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him), and we met Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with them both). He said: "Soon a time will come when no Arab will remain in the land of the non-Arabs except one who is killed or a captive over whose blood judgment is being passed." Zur'ah asked: Will the polytheists prevail over Islam? He asked: Which tribe are you from? He said: From Banu Amir bin Sa'sa'ah. So he said: "The Hour will not be established until the women of Banu Amir jostle one another at Dhu al-Khalasah (the idol)." (Dhu al-Khalasah) was an idol that used to be worshipped in the Jahiliyyah. We mentioned this statement of Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with them both) to Sayyiduna Umar bin al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him), and Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said three times: Abdullah bin Amr knows well what he is saying. Then Sayyiduna Umar bin al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) delivered the sermon on Friday and said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say: "A group from my Ummah will always remain upon the truth, victorious, until the command of Allah comes." We told Abdullah bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with them both) this statement of Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), and he said: The Prophet of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) spoke the truth; when that (group departs), then what I said will come to pass. This hadith is sahih (authentic) on the condition of the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim), but they did not record it.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with them both) that a man said to him: You say that the Hour will come by such-and-such a time. He said: I had resolved not to tell you anything at all. I only said to you that you will soon see a tremendous event, and that was the burning of the House (the Ka'bah) (Shu'bah said: these were the words, or something like them). Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with them both) said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The Dajjal will emerge in my Ummah and remain among them for forty" (I do not know whether forty days, or forty years, or forty nights, or forty months) "then Allah Almighty will send Isa ibn Maryam (peace be upon him), who will resemble Urwah bin Mas'ud al-Thaqafi (in appearance). He will seek him out and destroy him. Then people will live after him for several years in such a state that there will be no enmity even between two men. Then Allah Almighty will send a (cool) wind from the direction of Syria, which will not leave anyone on the face of the earth who has in his heart faith equal to the weight of a mustard seed without taking his soul, so much so that even if one of you were hidden in the heart of a mountain, that wind would enter upon him there." (Sayyiduna Abdullah said: I heard this from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him).) "Then the worst of people will remain, with the flightiness of birds and the minds of beasts of prey. They will neither recognise any good nor forbid any evil. Then Satan will appear before them (in human form) and say: Will you not respond to me?! Then he will command them to worship idols, and they will worship them. Even in this state their provision will be abundant and their life comfortable. Then the Trumpet will be blown, and whoever hears it will tilt his neck to one side (in terror). The first to hear it will be a man plastering the trough of his camels; he will fall down senseless, and then no one will remain who does not fall senseless. Then Allah Almighty will send down, or cause to descend, rain like dew (or like shade; al-Nu'man is the one in doubt), from which people's bodies will grow (again). Then the Trumpet will be blown a second time, and behold, they will be standing, looking on. Then it will be said: Come to your Lord, 'And stop them; indeed, they are to be questioned' [Surah al-Saffat: 24] . Then it will be said: Bring out the contingent of the Fire. It will be asked: How many? The answer will be: From every thousand, nine hundred and ninety-nine. On that day (because of its terror) children will become grey-haired, and on that day the Shin will be laid bare." Muhammad bin Ja'far said: Shu'bah narrated this hadith to me many times, and I also read it back to him many times. This hadith is sahih (authentic) on the condition of the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim), but they did not record it.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Awf bin Malik al-Ashja'i (may Allah be pleased with him) that on the occasion of a conquest he came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), greeted him (peace and blessings be upon him) with salam and said: O Messenger of Allah! Congratulations to you; Allah has honoured your victory and made your religion prevail, and war has laid down its burdens (its weapons). At that time the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was seated in a leather tent (a dome-shaped tent). He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O Awf! Come inside." He asked: Shall I come in wholly or partly? He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Come in wholly." Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "War will not lay down its burdens until six (signs) have appeared: the first of them is my death." Hearing this, Awf began to weep, and the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Say: This is the first. The second: the conquest of Bayt al-Maqdis (Jerusalem). The third: a tribulation will befall the people like the disease of sheep ('uqas), (killing suddenly). The fourth: a tribulation from which no household among the people will be spared without its effect entering it. The fifth: a boy from the children of kings will be born among Banu al-Asfar (the Romans). He will grow in a day as much as an ordinary child grows in a week, in a week as much as an ordinary child grows in a month, and in a month as much as an ordinary child grows in a whole year. When he reaches twelve years of age, they will make him their king. Then he will stand among them and say: How long will these people (the Muslims) prevail over the best of our lands?! I intend to march against them with an army and drive them out of it. So the orators will stand up and endorse his opinion. He will order ships to be built on the islands and on land, then he will load fighters onto them and land them between Antioch and al-Arish." Ibn Shurayh said: I heard someone say: They will be under twelve banners (ghayayah), and under every banner there will be twelve thousand soldiers. The Muslims will gather to their leader in Bayt al-Maqdis, and they will agree in their opinion to march towards the City of the Messenger (Madinah) until their outposts reach al-Sarh and Khaybar. Ibn Abi Ja'far said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "They will drive my Ummah out of the places where desert plants (shih) grow." Al-Harith bin Yazid said: They (the Romans) will remain there; a third of the Muslims will flee (in fear), a third will be martyred, and Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, will grant defeat upon them through the third who are steadfast. Khalid bin Yazid said: By Allah! On that day the Muslims will fight with their swords and spears and will pursue them until they reach the narrow passage near Constantinople. They will find that its water has dried up, so they will cross over to the city (Constantinople) and encamp there. Then Allah Almighty will bring down their walls through the takbir (the cry of Allahu Akbar), and the Muslims will prevail over them and will divide the spoils by the shield-full. Abu Qabil said: While they are in this state, suddenly a rider will come and say: You are here while the Dajjal has come behind you among your families; yet this will be a false report. So those who had heard the words of the people of knowledge will hold firm to their success, and the rest will disperse. The Muslims will be building mosques in Constantinople and waging jihad beyond it until the Dajjal emerges, and this will be the sixth sign. This hadith has a sahih (authentic) chain, but the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim) did not record it.

It is narrated from Kurayb (the freed slave of Ibn Abbas) that he was sitting with Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas and Sayyiduna Ibn al-Zubayr (may Allah be pleased with them) among a group of people, when Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) came in and said: "Die, all of you!" At this Ibn al-Zubayr (may Allah be pleased with him) said: O Abu Hurayrah! (What are you saying?) The religion is established, jihad continues, and the prayer, zakah, Hajj and the fasting of Ramadan are (all) present. Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: (What I mean is) that you should die before that time comes when the doer of good will be unable to increase his good, and the wrongdoer will be unable to turn back from his wrongdoing (that is, conditions will become so corrupted by the abundance of tribulations).

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: "There has never been a state of truth in which Adam (truth) was not given the upper hand over Iblis (falsehood), nor a state of falsehood in which Iblis was not given the upper hand over Adam. Iblis was commanded to prostrate but he disobeyed, so Adam was given the upper hand over him, until, when one (of the sons of Adam) killed the other, Iblis was given the upper hand over him. And soon tribulations will arise: a particular tribulation and a general tribulation, then a particular tribulation and then a general tribulation." It was said: O Commander of the Believers! What is meant by the particular and the general tribulation? He said: "(A time will come when) there will be two imams (leaders): one an imam of truth and the other of falsehood. (People's state will be that) some will turn from truth to falsehood and some from falsehood to truth; this is the 'particular tribulation' (which concerns the beliefs of individuals). Then there will be two imams: one of truth and the other of falsehood, and (the whole society) will begin to turn from truth to falsehood and from falsehood to truth; this is the 'general tribulation' (which will envelop the entire nation)." This hadith is sahih (authentic) on the condition of the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim) (because its narrator al-Waddah is none other than Abu Awanah), but they did not record it.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ali bin Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: "Soon there will be a tribulation in which people will be sifted and separated just as gold is separated (from earth) in a mine. So do not revile the people of Syria, but revile their oppressors, for among them are the Abdal (the chosen servants of Allah). Soon Allah Almighty will send upon them (the oppressors) a calamity (a flood or disaster) from the sky that will drown them, so much so that if even foxes fought them, they would overcome them. Then at that time Allah Almighty will raise up a man (al-Mahdi) from the family ('itrah) of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), with twelve thousand (if they are few) or fifteen thousand (if they are many) people with him. Their slogan (or sign) will be 'Amit, amit' (Kill, kill). They will fight under three banners, while opposing them will be the people of seven banners, every banner-bearer among whom will covet kingship. So they (the opponents) will be killed and defeated. Then that Hashimi (al-Mahdi) will appear, and Allah Almighty will restore to the people their harmony, blessings, prosperity and provision (grain, the fruit of the arak and the like), and they will remain in this state until the Dajjal emerges." This hadith has a sahih (authentic) chain, but the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim) did not record it.

It is narrated from Muhammad Ibn al-Hanafiyyah (the son of Sayyiduna Ali) that he said: We were sitting with Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) when a man asked him about the 'Mahdi'. Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "How far off he is! (His time has not yet come.)" Then he tied a knot of seven (eras or periods) with his hand and said: "He will emerge at the end of time, when (the situation will be such that) if a man says 'Allah, Allah', he will be killed. Then Allah Almighty will gather for him (the Mahdi) a people who will come together like scattered patches of cloud (coming from different places). Allah will create such harmony in their hearts that they will neither feel lonely (at anyone leaving) nor rejoice (on a worldly basis) at anyone joining them. Their number will be equal to the Companions of Badr (313); those before them did not outstrip them, and those after them will not attain their rank. And their number will be equal to the companions of Talut who crossed the river with him." Abu al-Tufayl said: Ibn al-Hanafiyyah asked me: Do you wish to see him? I said: Yes. He said (pointing towards Makkah): He will emerge from between these two pieces of wood (or pillars). Abu al-Tufayl said: I said (to myself): By Allah! I will not leave these two until I die. And so he died there. (Makkah is meant.) This hadith is sahih (authentic) on the condition of the two Shaykhs (Bukhari and Muslim), but they did not record it.