প্রথম অধ্যায়: সুদূরবর্তী আলামত যা অতীতে প্রকাশ পেয়ে অতিবাহিত হয়ে গেছে

Nur al-Din al-Sayyid 'Ali al-Samhudi said in "Tarikh al-Madinah": "This fire appeared in Madinah and became renowned to the degree of mass-transmission (tawatur). It was preceded by terrifying earthquakes, and the people of Madinah were filled with utmost dread and sought refuge at the Mosque of the Prophet (ﷺ). The beginning of the earthquake in Madinah was at the onset of Jumada al-Akhirah, at the close of Jumada al-Ula, in the year six hundred and fifty-four (654 AH), which was two years prior to the killing of al-Musta'sim and the sack of Baghdad. He said: However, it was initially mild, but it intensified on Tuesday and manifested tremendously. Then, when the night of Wednesday arrived, being the third or fourth of the month, during its final third, a tremendous earthquake struck, terrifying the hearts with its awe-inspiring dread. It continued throughout the remainder of the night until Friday, accompanied by a rumbling sound louder than thunder. The ground surged in waves and the walls shook, to the extent that eighteen tremors occurred in a single daytime, not counting its night, and it finally subsided during the forenoon of Friday."

"When midday arrived, that fire manifested, and thick, accumulated smoke billowed from the place of its emergence, its blackness blanketing the entire horizon. When the darkness deepened and night set in, the brilliant flame of the fire illuminated the sky. It appeared in Qurayzah at the edge of the Harrah; the fire was seen in the semblance of a magnificent metropolis, encompassed by a surrounding wall crowned with battlements, towers, and high platforms."