Dajjal Emerges from this Ummah

 باسمك اللهم

اللهم صلى على سيدنا محمد

Many Muslims don’t realize that the coming Masih al-Dajjal, or the Antichrist, shall appear from among the Ummah of Prophet Muhammad.

They imagine he is an external agent, an Israeli Jew, who shall openly reject Allah and His Last Apostle صلى الله عليه وسلم

This is the same argument that was put forward by Ibn Sayyad when some of the Sahabah suspected he was the major Dajjal:

يَا أَصْحَابَ مُحَمَّدٍ أَلَمْ يَقُلْ نَبِيُّ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ ‌إِنَّهُ ‌يَهُودِيٌّ وَقَدْ أَسْلَمْتُ

O companions of Muhammad, did not the Prophet of God, peace be upon him, say “he [the Antichrist] is a Jew” but I have accepted Islam?

(Sahih Muslim)

Yet some of the Sahabah, like sayyidina Umar رضى الله عنه and Jabir bin Abdullah رضى الله عنه swore on oath that Ibn Sayyad was the Dajjal. Abu Sa’id al-Khudri also suspected or was not fully persuaded by Ibn Sayyad’s argument. This indicates the fact that although Ibn Sayyad outwardly embraced Islam, the Sahabah did not feel it was sufficient to totally discount him as being the Antichrist.

That the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم informed us that the Antichrist is a Jew does not contradict the fact that the Antichrist shall emerge from his Ummah. It may be that the Antichrist is of Jewish descent while apparently being from the Ummah. In this way his affair resembles that of one of the minor antichrists who appeared before him, namely, Abd Allah bin Saba. It is reported that Amir al-Mu’minin Ali bin Abi Talib رضى الله عنه addressed Ibn Saba, saying to him:

وَيْلَكَ مَا أَفْضَى إِلَيَّ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ شَيْئًا كَتَمَهُ أَحَدًا مِنَ النَّاسِ وَلَقَدْ سَمِعْتُهُ يَقُولُ إِنَّ بَيْنَ يَدَيِ السَّاعَةِ ‌ثَلَاثِينَ ‌كَذَّابًا ‌وَإِنَّكَ ‌لِأَحَدُهُمْ

I heard the Apostle of Allah, sall Allahu alaihi wasallam, say, “before the Hour shall come thirty liars” and you are one of them

(Musnad Abi Ya’la; v.1, pp.349-350):

This prophecy from the Prophet Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم about thirty liars and antichrists, which has multiple attestation, is significant because the Prophet explained that each of these thirty or so pretenders shall arise from within his Ummah:

سَيَكُونُ فِي أُمَّتِي كَذَّابُونَ ثَلاَثُونَ كُلُّهُمْ يَزْعُمُ أَنَّهُ نَبِيٌّ

There shall be, in my Ummah, thirty liars, each of them claiming to be a Prophet

(Sunan Abi Dawud)

In another version of this Hadith, the Prophet Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم revealed that the Masih al-Dajjal, the major Antichrist which is known as al-’Awar or the One-Eyed Dajjal, is the last of these thirty pretenders:

وَاللَّهِ لَا تَقُومُ السَّاعَةُ حَتَّى يَخْرُجَ ثَلَاثُونَ كَذَّابًا ‌آخِرُهُمُ ‌الْأَعْوَرُ الدَّجَّالُ مَمْسُوحُ الْعَيْنِ الْيُسْرَى كَأَنَّهَا عَيْنُ أَبِي تَحْيَى أَوْ يَحْيَى لِشَيْخٍ مِنَ الْأَنْصَارِ وَإِنَّهُ مَتَى يَخْرُجُ فَإِنَّهُ يَزْعُمُ أَنَّهُ اللَّهُ فَمَنْ آمَنَ بِهِ وَصَدَّقَهُ وَاتَّبَعَهُ فَلَيْسَ يَنْفَعُهُ صَالِحٌ مِنْ عَمَلٍ لَهُ سَلَفَ وَمَنْ كَفَرَ بِهِ وَكَذَّبَهُ فَلَيْسَ يُعَاقَبُ بِشَيْءٍ مِنْ عَمَلِهِ سَلَفَ وَإِنَّهُ سَيَظْهَرُ عَلَى الْأَرْضِ كُلِّهَا إِلَّا الْحَرَمَ وَبَيْتَ الْمَقْدِسِ

By Allah, the Hour will not be established until there come thirty liars, the last of whom is the One-Eyed Dajjal, whose left eye is concealed like the eye of Abu Yahya – or Abu Tahya – an elder of the Ansar. He will claim to be Allah. Whoever believes in him, confirms him and follows him, nothing of his previous good deeds shall profit him, and whoever disbelieves in him and belies him, nothing from his previous deeds shall hold him to account. He shall prevail upon the entirety of the Earth except the Haram and Bait al-Maqdis [Jerusalem]

(Sahih Ibn Khuzaymah #1397):

As I have explained in previous articles, the fact that the Dajjal emerges from Khorasan, which today is an exclusively Muslim region, and that he is followed by Turkic peoples who today are almost exclusively Muslim, and that he is such a great trial for the Muslims in particular, are all indications that he emerges from this very Ummah.