The Overturning of Social and Moral Order
Appeared
In brief
This is a group of signs about the social and moral order turning upside down: when people reverse the rights of parents, friends, leaders and worship, calamities follow.
Ali ibn Abi Talib narrated a list of fifteen things which, when the ummah does them, bring calamity. Among them: a man obeys his wife and disobeys his mother, is kind to his friend and keeps away from his father, voices are raised in the mosques, the leader of a people is the lowest of them, and a man is honoured only out of fear of his harm. Then, it says, expect a red wind, the earth swallowing, and disfigurement.
Both chains of this narration in al-Tirmidhi are weak. Scholars still cite it for its overall meaning, because most of the items on the list come in stronger narrations elsewhere. It is read as moral advice, not as a timetable.
Honor parents above spouse and friend, keep the mosque for remembrance, and give honor to the righteous rather than to those whose harm is feared.
Where it sits in the sequence
The narrations do not put these in order, and many of them overlap. Sahih al-Bukhari 7121 lists several together.
Strongest narrations
Read all in the archive →Tags are automatic and unreviewed.
No sahih or hasan narration is tagged with this sign yet.
Weak and ungraded reports on this sign
2
Shown for study, not as established. Includes Kitab al-Fitan of Nu'aym ibn Hammad, which is ungraded and weak overall.
Weak report. Shown for study, not as established.
حَدَّثَنَا صَالِحُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ التِّرْمِذِيُّ، حَدَّثَنَا الْفَرَجُ بْنُ فَضَالَةَ أَبُو فَضَالَةَ الشَّامِيُّ، عَنْ يَحْيَى بْنِ سَعِيدٍ، عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ عَمْرِو بْنِ عَلِيٍّ، عَنْ عَلِيِّ بْنِ أَبِي طَالِبٍ، قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم " إِذَا فَعَلَتْ أُمَّتِي خَمْسَ عَشْرَةَ خَصْلَةً حَلَّ بِهَا الْبَلاَءُ " . فَقِيلَ وَمَا هُنَّ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ قَالَ " إِذَا كَانَ الْمَغْنَمُ دُوَلاً وَالأَمَانَةُ مَغْنَمًا وَالزَّكَاةُ مَغْرَمًا وَأَطَاعَ الرَّجُلُ زَوْجَتَهُ وَعَقَّ أُمَّهُ وَبَرَّ صَدِيقَهُ وَجَفَا أَبَاهُ وَارْتَفَعَتِ الأَصْوَاتُ فِي الْمَسَاجِدِ وَكَانَ زَعِيمُ الْقَوْمِ أَرْذَلَهُمْ وَأُكْرِمَ الرَّجُلُ مَخَافَةَ شَرِّهِ وَشُرِبَتِ الْخُمُورُ وَلُبِسَ الْحَرِيرُ وَاتُّخِذَتِ الْقَيْنَاتُ وَالْمَعَازِفُ وَلَعَنَ آخِرُ هَذِهِ الأُمَّةِ أَوَّلَهَا فَلْيَرْتَقِبُوا عِنْدَ ذَلِكَ رِيحًا حَمْرَاءَ أَوْ خَسْفًا وَمَسْخًا " . قَالَ أَبُو عِيسَى هَذَا حَدِيثٌ غَرِيبٌ لاَ نَعْرِفُهُ مِنْ حَدِيثِ عَلِيِّ بْنِ أَبِي طَالِبٍ إِلاَّ مِنْ هَذَا الْوَجْهِ وَلاَ نَعْلَمُ أَحَدًا رَوَاهُ عَنْ يَحْيَى بْنِ سَعِيدٍ الأَنْصَارِيِّ غَيْرَ الْفَرَجِ بْنِ فَضَالَةَ . وَالْفَرَجُ بْنُ فَضَالَةَ قَدْ تَكَلَّمَ فِيهِ بَعْضُ أَهْلِ الْحَدِيثِ وَضَعَّفَهُ مِنْ قِبَلِ حِفْظِهِ وَقَدْ رَوَاهُ عَنْهُ وَكِيعٌ وَغَيْرُ وَاحِدٍ مِنَ الأَئِمَّةِ .
Ali bin Abi Talib narrated that the Messenger of Allah(s.a.w) said:"When my Ummah does fifteen things, the afflictions will occur in it." It was said: "What are they O Messenger of Allah?" He said: "When Al-Maghnam (the spoils of war) are distributed (preferentially), trust is usurped, Zakah is a fine, a man obeys his wife and disobeys his mother, he is kind to his friend and abandons his father, voices are raised in the Masajid, the leader of the people is the most despicable among them, the most honored man is the one whose evil the people are afraid of, intoxicants are drunk, silk is worn (by males), there is a fascination for singing slave-girls and music, and the end of this Ummah curses its beginning. When that occurs, anticipate a red wind, collapsing of the earth, and transformation
Weak report. Shown for study, not as established.
حَدَّثَنَا عَلِيُّ بْنُ حُجْرٍ، حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ يَزِيدَ الْوَاسِطِيُّ، عَنِ الْمُسْتَلِمِ بْنِ سَعِيدٍ، عَنْ رُمَيْحٍ الْجُذَامِيِّ، عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم " إِذَا اتُّخِذَ الْفَىْءُ دُوَلاً وَالأَمَانَةُ مَغْنَمًا وَالزَّكَاةُ مَغْرَمًا وَتُعُلِّمَ لِغَيْرِ الدِّينِ وَأَطَاعَ الرَّجُلُ امْرَأَتَهُ وَعَقَّ أُمَّهُ وَأَدْنَى صَدِيقَهُ وَأَقْصَى أَبَاهُ وَظَهَرَتِ الأَصْوَاتُ فِي الْمَسَاجِدِ وَسَادَ الْقَبِيلَةَ فَاسِقُهُمْ وَكَانَ زَعِيمُ الْقَوْمِ أَرْذَلَهُمْ وَأُكْرِمَ الرَّجُلُ مَخَافَةَ شَرِّهِ وَظَهَرَتِ الْقَيْنَاتُ وَالْمَعَازِفُ وَشُرِبَتِ الْخُمُورُ وَلَعَنَ آخِرُ هَذِهِ الأُمَّةِ أَوَّلَهَا فَلْيَرْتَقِبُوا عِنْدَ ذَلِكَ رِيحًا حَمْرَاءَ وَزَلْزَلَةً وَخَسْفًا وَمَسْخًا وَقَذْفًا وَآيَاتٍ تَتَابَعُ كَنِظَامٍ بَالٍ قُطِعَ سِلْكُهُ فَتَتَابَعَ " . قَالَ أَبُو عِيسَى وَفِي الْبَابِ عَنْ عَلِيٍّ . وَهَذَا حَدِيثٌ غَرِيبٌ لاَ نَعْرِفُهُ إِلاَّ مِنْ هَذَا الْوَجْهِ .
Abu Hurairah narrated that the Messenger of Allah(s.a.w) said:"When Al-Fai' is distributed(preferentially), trust is a spoil of war, Zakat is a fine, knowledge is sought for other than the(sake of the) religion, a man obeys his wife and disobeys his mother, he is close to his friend and far from his father, voices are raised in the Masajid, tribes are led by their wicked, the leader of the people is the most despicable among them, the most honored man is the one whose evil the people are afraid of, singing slave-girls and music spread, intoxicants are drunk, and the end of this Ummah curses its beginning- then anticipate a red wind, earthquake, collapsing of the earth, transformation, Qadhf, and the signs follow in succession like gems of a necklace whose string is cut and so they fall in succession
What scholars have said
Scholars cite it as having appeared
Dr. Yusuf ibn Abdullah Al-WabilContemporary (b. 1375 AH / 1955 CE)
Gathers the hadith's list - a man obeying his wife and disobeying his mother, drawing near his friend and estranging his father, raised voices in the mosques, the vilest of a people leading them, and the most honored being the one whose evil others fear - as signs of the reversal of values in the latter days, and warns that the narration of Ali is weak, cited only for the broader meaning confirmed by sounder reports.
Ashrat al-Sa'a, the minor signs, on Jami' at-Tirmidhi 2210-2211
Meaning and context
When values are overturned - a man obeying his wife over his mother, the mosque filled with raised voices, the basest leading and the feared being honored - calamity is said to follow. The chain of Ali's narration is weak, so it is cited for its overall meaning, which sounder reports confirm.
Narrations behind this panel: Jami' at-Tirmidhi 2210 · Jami' at-Tirmidhi 2211
What the commentators said it means
- The hadith gathers signs of values inverted; its chain (through al-Faraj ibn Fadala) is weak, cited only for the meaning: Yusuf al-Wabil.
- Giving affairs to the unfit and the basest leading a people is confirmed by the sounder hadith 'when authority is entrusted to those unfit for it, await the Hour': al-Bukhari 59, 6496.
- Honoring a man out of fear of his evil is read beside the sound report naming the worst of people as the one others avoid to be spared his harm: Ibn Hajar on al-Bukhari 6032.
Read with care
- A weak narration carries admonition, not proof; its force is moral, and it sets no date or order for the Hour.
Draft: figures and wording await a researcher's check and the scholar board.