Page 87: Part 1: Distant Signs that Have Appeared and Passed

Mention of the tremendous fire that appeared in the land of Aden.

Mention of the Franks' conquest over the entire island of Sicily and the enslavement of the offspring of Muslims.

Mention of the great deluge in Baghdad.

Mention of the drowning of a great many people in the city of al-Ramlah.

Mention of momentous occurrences: severe famine and drought.

...a cause for the withering of crops and exorbitant inflation of prices. Al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar mentioned it in "Inba' al-Ghumr".

As for the momentous occurrences, severe famine has struck on numerous occasions.

Among them was what occurred during the reign of al-Zahir the Ubaydid in Egypt, marked by extreme scarcity and price inflation the likes of which had not occurred since the time of Yusuf (peace be upon him). It persisted for seven years until people began devouring one another, and it was reported that a single loaf of bread was sold for fifty dinars.

During the reign of al-Mustansir the Ubaydid, famine struck Egypt once again for consecutive years until people devoured one another. An irdabb of wheat reached one hundred dinars - an irdabb being forty sa' according to the sa' of the Prophet (ﷺ) plus a fraction - and a dog was sold for five dinars, while a cat was sold for three dinars.

In the year forty-five [and five hundred], during the caliphate of al-Muqtafi the Abbasid, rain fell across Yemen entirely consisting of blood, such that the earth was drenched in blood and its traces remained upon people's garments.

In the year four hundred and fifty-eight, a celestial body appeared, resembling the halo of the full moon with immense radiance, which terrified the people. It remained for ten nights, after which its light waned and it disappeared.

In the year four hundred and sixty, during the caliphate of al-Qa'im, a great many people drowned in al-Ramlah.

In the year four hundred and sixty-six, during the caliphate of al-Qa'im, the great deluge occurred in Baghdad. The Tigris rose by thirty cubits, the likes of which had never occurred before; wealth, lives, and livestock perished, people had to travel by boat, the Friday prayer was established twice on the water's surface amidst the currents, the whole of Baghdad was submerged and devastated, and one hundred thousand houses collapsed.

In the year four hundred and eighty-four, during the caliphate of al-Muqtadi, the Franks overpowered the entire island of Sicily, capturing and enslaving the descendants of the Muslims.

In the year six hundred and fifty-two, during the caliphate of al-Musta'sim, a great fire appeared in the land of Aden; its sparks would fly at night out into the sea, and from it ascended immense smoke during the day.