Scholarly Note and Clarification

Hudhayfah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say: "The Mahdi will surely extract that until he returns it to Bayt al-Maqdis (Jerusalem)."

The author of "Iqd al-Durar" stated: Rome (Rumiyyah) is the mother city of the lands of the Romans (al-Rum). Whosoever rules over it is called the Pope (al-Bab), and he is the supreme religious ruler over the Christian faith, holding a status analogous to that of the Caliph over the Muslims; there is nothing comparable to it among Muslim lands. Historians have described wonders regarding its characteristics that have never been heard of anywhere else, so let that be referenced. The Muslims will pronounce four Takbirs over it, causing its wall to collapse, and they will kill six hundred thousand. They will extract from it the ornaments of Bayt al-Maqdis, the Ark (al-Tabut) wherein is the Sakinah (Divine Tranquility), the Table of the Children of Israel, the fragments of the Tablets - meaning the Tablets of Moses - the garment of Adam, the staff of Moses, the pulpit of Solomon, and two qafiz-measures of the Manna which Allah sent down upon the Children of Israel, whiter than milk. This is as recorded in "al-Isha'ah". However, it is not hidden that this is somewhat discordant with what preceded earlier: namely, that the Mahdi extracts the Ark from Lake Tiberias (the Sea of Galilee) or from the cave of Antioch.

Among the matters that ought to be recognized is that books of epic battles (al-malahim) are generally far from authenticity. Imam Ahmad said: "Three kinds of books have no authentic foundations: books of epic battles, military expeditions (al-maghazi), and Quranic commentaries (al-tafasir)." Al-Daraqutni interpreted this as applying to specific books regarding military expeditions and tafsir; as for epic battles (al-malahim), he maintained the statement in its generality. However, the erudite scholar made an exception