7. The Beast

Allah says: “And when the decree of Allah (or the Word of Allah) befalls them, we would send out to them a beast from the earth. It would talk to them. The people do not believe in Our signs.” Tukallimuhum can be explained as talk to them or mark them. Ibn Abbaas says that both meanings are correct. This beast would come out and talk to people: “You are a believer” “You are a nonbeliever” and it would stamp them.

What does it mean ‘the word of Allah would befall them’? AlQurtubi says, “The word of Allah befallas them means it is time for the punishment of Allah. Because of their extremism in corruption and evil and arrogance, and because they ignored the Signs of Allah and did not contemplate in them.”

Ibn Mas’ood says, “The word of Allah comes on them is when the scholars die and the knowledge dies and the Qur’an is lifted.”

Abu Hurayrah says that RasulAllah sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam says, “Three things, when they occur, no soul would benefit from imaan after that. 1) Rise of the sun from the west. 2) ad-dajjaal. 3) The beast.” During the time of ad-dajjaal, because there will be so much fitna. In the time of the beast, you will be stamped as a believer or a non believer.

There are more details in the following hadith, which can be found in Ahmad and AtTirmidhi, RasulAllah sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam said, “The beast would come out carrying the seal of Sulayman [Solomon] and the stick of Musa [Moses]. It would mark the face of the believer with Musa and would stamp the face of the nonbeliever with the seal of Sulayman. People would be eating together and they would say, ‘Give me this, believer’ or ‘Hand me this non-believer.’” Everybody has it written on their face. People would call each other, “ya kaafir” or “ya mu’min.”

Shaykh Ahmad Shaakir says that the hadith is authentic. Shaykh Albaani says that the hadith is da’eef because Albaani considers one of the narrators of the hadith to be weak, but Shaakir considers him to be strong and he says that AtTirmidhi and Ahmad have narrated from this man. Wallahu ‘Alam.