Sufyani

False Messiah Sufyani سفیاني
Known for	Being a false messiah
Opponent(s)	Mahdi

Sufyani (Arabic: سفیاني) is an evil figure in Islamic eschatology. According to hadith, Sufyani will be a tyrant who will spread corruption and mischief. According to Shia hadith, Sufyani will rise in the month of Rajab.^[1] The predicted location of his arrival is in Damascus.

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Reports about Sufyani are available in both Sunni and Shia Hadith.^[2][3] Sufyani is a distinctly different individual than Dajjal.^[4] It is said that he will kill children and rip out the bellies of women. The Sufyani will murder those from the household of the Prophet and will rule over Syria. When the Mahdi appears, Sufyani will send an army to seize and kill him. However, when Sufyani and his army would reach the desert of Bayda, they would be swallowed.^[5]

Heritage[]

In a narrated hadith Sufyani is said to be descended from Abu Sufyan,^[6][7] father of the first Umayyad caliph (the hadith has no grading, which makes it a weak narration).^[8] In da'if hadith, Sufyani is said to be descended from Abu Sufyan.^[6]

Eschatology[]

Prior to Sufyani[]

Before Sufyani, a sedition will arise in the Maghreb and spread in every direction such that no party or group could protect itself from it.

Disorder, strife, and fear will emerge in the Magrib (west)... Strife will proliferate. (Ash-Sharani, Mukhtasar Tazkirah al-Qurtubi, p. 440)

A kind of corruption will surface from which no party will be able to protect itself, and spread immediately in every direction. This situation will persist until one comes and says: “O people, from now on your leader is Imam Mahdi(as).” (Ibn Hajar al-Haythami, Al-Qawl al-Mukhtasar fi `Alamat al-Mahdi al-Muntadhar, p. 23)

Later the sedition which started in the west will arrive in Shaam (Levant): two banners will fight for control over the region; fighting until their armies are exhausted.

Appearance of Sufyani[]

Following these events the Sufyani will appear in Damascus. He will start an uprising in the dry valley of Transjordan and move to seize Damascus, he will gain much support and he will advance to capture the rest of Syria, defeating the two other competing forces. Once he captures the 5 districts of Shaam, he will send armies to Iraq.

Abu Hurayrah narrates that the Prophet said:

A man will emerge from the depths of Damascus. He will be called Sufyani. Most of those who follow him will be from the tribe of Kalb. He will kill by ripping the stomachs of women and even kill the children. A man from my family will appear in the Haram, the news of his advent will reach the Sufyani and he will send to him one of his armies. He (referring to the Mahdi) will defeat them. They will then travel with whoever remains until they come to a desert and they will be swallowed. None will be saved except the one who had informed the others about them.

— Mustadrak Al-Hakim

Khalid bin Ma'dan said:

The Sufyani will emerge with three staffs in his hand. Anyone whom he strikes with them will die.

— Nu'aym bin Hammad

^[1] of Sufyani[]

The Sufyani will be followed, for the most part, by the tribe of Banu Kalb, and will fight with anyone daring to oppose him. Injustice will rule the day and the Sufyani's disregard for life will extend to women and children. The tribe of Qays will rise up against him, however, they will not succeed, and he will slaughter all of them. One of the Sufanyi's wonders consists of his staffs, which would kill anyone when he strikes with them.

The Sufyani's army will go to Kufa; a city in Iraq, and from there he will launch an attack against the Khurasan. At the Gate of Istakhr, Shu'ayb bin Salih and the Hashimites will join forces and engage his army. The battle will be cost many lives and Sufyani will suffer a temporary defeat. It is at this time that a yearning for the Mahdi's appearance becomes universal.

The army of the Sufyani will march from the Iraq to seize the Mahdi, however, when they reach the desert near Dhi Hulayfah the ground will swallow them up. Two will escape to convey the news, but even when he learns of the occurrence he will not be deterred. Some people from the Quraysh escape to Constantinople, which will not be under Muslim control. The Sufyani will ask for their return and when they arrive they and their allies will be killed.

Death of Sufyani[]

When Sufyani learns of the Mahdi, He and his army will go towards Iraq to attack Mahdi. When the army enters the territory of Bayda, the Earth will consume his army except 2 or 3 individuals.^[9] In regards to the event of Khasf-al-Bayda, diverse Hadiths describe the size of his army.^{[10][11][12][13]} Some sources say that the army Sufyani will number 12,000;^[14][15] while some say 170,000^[16][17] and some sources say 300,000^[18] Shia commentator Shaikh Tabarsi interprets Quran verse 34:51 concerning the fate of the army of the Sufyani, referring to it as the army of the desert of Bayda, where the earth will swallow them.^[5]

Persons claiming to be Sufyani[]

At least nine figures revolted in the Levant using Sufyani as their title between 749 and 1413 CE. The first one was Ziad ibn Abdollah ibn Yazid ibn Muawiah ibn Abi Sufyan who revolted against Abbasids. The second Sufyani revolted in 754. Abu Harb al-Muburqa claimed the mantle about one hundred years later. In 1413, someone used this title and revolted against Mamluk Sultanate. He tried to exactly follow the Hadiths, but Mamluks suppressed and killed him.^[19]

See also[]

• Khasf al-Bayda'
• Abu Muhammad al-Sufyani
• Al-Mubarqa
• Mahdi
• Masih ad-Dajjal
• Islamic eschatology
• Nafs-e-Zakiyyah (Pure soul)
• Reappearance of Muhammad al-Mahdi
• Signs of the reappearance of Muhammad al-Mahdi

Footnotes[]

References[]

• Wessinger, Catherine; Yamauchi, REV H James (2016). The Oxford Handbook of Millennialism. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780190611941.

External links[]

• Do we believe in the Sufyani who will allegedly come before the Dajjal?