A Tribulation of Dust and Smoke
This hadiths foretells about
a dusty and smoky and dark wave of tribulation just before
the advent of Mahdi. The word "tribulation (fitnah)"
implies anything that turns peoples' reason and hearts away
from the true path, or war, incitement, chaos, disorder
and conflict. The tribulation in the hadith will leave smoke
and dust behind it, we learn.
Furthermore, the way that tribulation is described as "darkness"
in the hadith, can be seen as an indication that its origins
are unclear, that it is unexpected. Looking at it from that
regard, it is probable that the hadith is referring to the
world's one of the worst terrorist attacks, on the cities
of New York and Washington in the United States on September
11, 2001. As witnessed on TV screen and newspapers, a big,
thick cloud of dust and smoke swallowed up the surroundings
after these big terror acts.
A big smoke formed as a result of the explosions caused
by the fuel of the airplanes which hit the World Trade Center
in New York and Pentagon complex in Washington and this
smoke got so high and spread so vast it could be seen throughout
the city and even from the neighboring cities. The buildings
which collapsed as a result of the explosions caused yet
another bigger smoke of dust and the cloths of some people
passing by were covered by this dust entirely.
This incident is very important for a number of reasons:
it is one of the biggest terror acts in the World history,
it occurred in a recent time along with other signs and
it bears characteristics similar to the description in the
hadith. Therefore, this most saddening act of terror, which
caused the lives and injuries of thousands of innocent people,
may well be that “tribulation like patches of dark night”
foretold by the hadith as the sign of the Mahdi's emergence.
