The Major Signs of the Day of Judgment

The major signs of the Day of Judgment (ashrat al-sa'ah al-kubra) are extraordinary, unmistakable events that will occur in rapid succession shortly before the Hour is established. The Prophet (peace be upon him) described them in the hadith of Hudhayfah ibn Asid: "The Hour will not come until you see ten signs: the smoke (al-Dukhan), the Dajjal (Antichrist), the Beast (al-Dabbah), the rising of the sun from the west, the descent of Isa ibn Maryam, Ya'juj and Ma'juj (Gog and Magog), three major landslides (one in the east, one in the west, and one in the Arabian Peninsula), and a fire that will emerge from Yemen and drive the people to their place of gathering" (Sahih Muslim).

The Dajjal (The False Messiah)

The Dajjal is described as the greatest trial to face humanity. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "There is no fitnah (trial) on the face of the earth since Allah created Adam greater than the fitnah of the Dajjal" (Sahih Muslim). He will be a human being, one-eyed (the word "kafir" or "kaf-fa-ra" will be written between his eyes, readable by every believer), who will claim to be a prophet and then claim to be God. He will perform extraordinary feats: bringing rain, making dead land fertile, and apparently raising the dead. He will travel the entire earth except Makkah and Madinah, which are protected by angels. His trial will last forty days, the first day like a year, the second like a month, the third like a week, and the rest like normal days.

The Descent of Isa ibn Maryam

Isa (Jesus, peace be upon him) will descend from heaven near a white minaret in Damascus at the time of Fajr prayer. He will descend with his hands on the wings of two angels. He will pray behind the Muslim leader (identified in some narrations as the Mahdi), establishing that he returns as a follower of the Shariah of Muhammad (peace be upon him), not with a new revelation. He will kill the Dajjal at the gate of Ludd (Lydda) in Palestine. He will then break the cross, kill the swine, and abolish the jizya, signifying the end of Christianity as a separate dispensation. He will live on earth for forty years, marry, and be buried next to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) in Madinah.

Ya'juj and Ma'juj (Gog and Magog)

Ya'juj and Ma'juj are two vast nations that were sealed behind a barrier built by Dhul-Qarnayn, as described in Surah al-Kahf (Quran 18:93-98). They will break through the barrier after the descent of Isa and will spread corruption across the earth, consuming water and resources in their path. Their numbers will be so vast that no army can resist them. Isa and the believers will take refuge on Mount Tur (Sinai). Allah will then destroy Ya'juj and Ma'juj by sending a type of worm (naghaf) in their necks, killing them all in a single night. Birds will then carry their bodies away, and rain will cleanse the earth.

The Rising of the Sun from the West

The sun will rise from the west instead of the east, after which the door of repentance (tawbah) will be closed. Allah says: "The Day that some of the signs of your Lord come, no soul will benefit from its faith if it had not believed before or had not earned through its faith some good" (Quran 6:158). The Prophet (peace be upon him) explained that this verse refers to the rising of the sun from the west. After this sign, faith and repentance will no longer be accepted from anyone who had not already believed. This is the point of no return for humanity, after which the remaining major signs will follow in rapid succession until the Trumpet is blown.