Ad-Dajjal: One Eye or Metaphor?
Understanding Ad-Dajjal's Description and the Attributes of Allah
Summary
This lecture discusses a hadith from Sahih Muslim about Ad-Dajjal (the one-eyed liar), a major sign of the Day of Judgment warned about by all prophets. Sh. Ali Mashhour clarifies the description of Ad-Dajjal as literally one-eyed (having two eyes with one deficient), not metaphorical references to television or internet. The lecture emphasizes that Ad-Dajjal is described as a human being with specific physical characteristics including being young, muscular, with coarse curly hair, and having text written between his eyes. The discussion then pivots to theological understanding of Allah's attributes, particularly His eyes, explaining that negative descriptions of Allah (what He is not) only constitute praise when their positive opposites are implied. Sh. Ali Mashhour clarifies that Allah's attributes like sight, hearing, and having eyes are real but unfathomable to human comprehension.
Note: This transcript was generated using YouTube's automatic captioning, with AI-assisted cleanup for readability. It may contain inaccuracies due to background noise, audio quality, or limitations of the transcription software — particularly during Arabic recitation. Listener discretion is advised; please refer to the original video for precise wording.
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We got Ibraim back today. We got brother Han back today. We got Abdi back in the house. We got Aban back. Well, today is today is quite a day. We have brother J back today. Alhamdulillah.
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Continuing in ribb in the 19th book some versions it is the 18th book the book of almanat and the chapter regarding the narrations of al he's also referred to as al- mas means that one of his eyes has been made deficient. It's a synonym to the word. It's a synonym to the word oneeyed. And in another of his terms that the prophet sallallah.aii Wasallam used to refer to him which is most widely known meaning the traveling the traveling liar. The one who will travel and globe trot the earth in search of followers so that he can take them with him to the depths of hell.
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This narration here is on the authority of an annis. What is his name? Anisb and his Abu Abu Hamza. of Muhamza and Malik and he was one of the last some say the last companion to pass away from amongst the prophet's companions but he was certainly the last to pass away in which is where he passed away narrates that the messenger of Allah saiam said there has never been a prophet except that he has warned his people of the oneeyed liar. Now, let's take a stop here for a moment. This word in English, we would translate this to oneeyed. Oneeyed. There is a big difference between one eye, a person being one eyed and a cyclops, right? What is a cyclops? A cyclops is just one eye. never had two eyes. One eyed means that he has two eyes but one of them is deficient. This is extremely important because he has been described as.
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And so the term In the Arabic language, this is only used to describe someone who has two eyes, but one of them is deficient. So why is this so important? Well, first of all, it's the description of this because if you were around in the '9s, I know it's starting to feel the '9s were a million years ago, but during the '9s and the 2000s when the computer really the advent of the personal computer in the home, this wasn't something that was common until about around the 90s and early 2000s where started to be common place to find a computer in the home, common place to have internet, common place to have a television. Some people started to have the impression that this was metaphorical for right. So they said the television is the why because it's one eye. See it just has one eye. The screen is one eye. is a human being. Yes. The things perpetrated and propagated on the internet, on television, on these mediums may be of may be of the way of adj may be of the tools of adj and of the climate of adj. But they are not adj.cribed as having two eyes. One of them is deficient. He's described as having written on his forehead. He's described as being very young. He's described as being very muscular. As a matter of fact, he's so muscular that he's hunched. You ever see when people become so muscular, their back muscles kind of puff out and they become almost hunched. This is how he is described, right? his hair being very very very coarse and extremely curly. This these are descriptions of a human being. These are not descriptions of of you know to be taken metaphorically. He said, "There has never been a prophet except that he has warned his people of the oneeyed liar. Indeed, he is oneeyed," meaning one of his two eyes is deficient. And indeed, your Lord is not one eyed. This is a description of Allah. Now, correct? This now is a description of Allah. In order to understand this, we need to understand that just negating alone is not a type of praise, right? It's not a top type type of praise. Negation alone is not a top type type of praise. Give you an example. Let's say someone wanted to you wanted to marry your daughter to someone. You come and you say, "She Ali, I want to ask you about this guy. What do you think of this young man?" And then my response is, "Well, he's not a thief. He's not a liar." , well, he's not a he's not a felon. Do you understand from that that this is a good guy? What did you understand from that? Did you understand any praise? No. This is just purely negating. Pure negating is not praise. So when we have for instance Allah says about the Quran there is no doubt in it. This alone is not praise. It's only praise if its opposite is insinuated. If its opposite is implied, meaning there is no doubt in it, everything in it is sure and certain. Now it becomes praise. Do you understand? If I say so and so is true, so and so is not a liar. And the implication is he tells the truth always. Now it becomes praise. Just negating alone is not a type of praise. So whenever we have a narration or a verse of the Quran that has a description of Allah in the negative meaning it is negating Allah is not something we always understand its opposite. You guys understand? Are you with me? So for instance when Allah describes himself he is not subdued by by fatigue nor sleep. This in its own is not praise. The only time it becomes praise is if we understand its opposite as being implied. Meaning he is neither subdued by fatigue nor sleep. He is ever alive in the most in the epitome of what is life for him. Subhanahu wa ta'ala. That's why right after this he says before. So he affirms for himself the epitome of life and then negates for him from himself the most minor of death which is sleep. Understood? The companions understood from this narration the description of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala and they agreed upon the description that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is described as having two eyes. What are these eyes like? How are these eyes? This is something that is unfathomable. It can never be described to us. The only thing we know about Allah's descriptions is that whatever we conjure up in our imagination, it is not that. Right? So Allah describes himself as having a face. Right? What does this mean? We understand what the word face means. It's a face. We understand. But how is his face? This is unfathomable. It's not something you could ever imagine. The only thing you can be sure of is that anything that the human being would imagine it is not like that. Because Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says, None is him in any way. None is unto him. And he is the all-heering, allseeing. What does it mean that he hears? We understand what hearing is, right? He hears. He's hearing me right now. How does he hear? It's impossible for us to know that. How does he see? He sees me right now. He's watching us right now. Correct. How is he watching us? If I told you that a lobster or a crab can see in almost 360 degrees around itself at all times. Can you imagine what it would be to see 360 degrees all at once? Can you imagine that if I told you that the prophet sallall.aii wasallam in salah he was given the ability to see in in front of him and see also what the companions behind him. Correct? Can you imagine what that's like? How was that? It's impossible to imagine that. You'd have to experience it first. So when it comes to the names of Allah, the attributes of Allah, the descriptions of Allah, we affirm it as that's what Allah is. Allah's face, Allah's hands, Allah's eyes, Allah's words, Allah hears, Allah sees. How does Allah see? How does Allah hear? Unfathomable. How is Allah's face Allah? How are Allah's two eyes? Right? But the companions agreed upon this and this is one of their evidences for that that the prophet described Allah saying and indeed your Lord is not deficient in either of his two eyes. Right? He then goes on to say written between his eyes. The Arabs when they say between his eyes, it could either mean in front of someone or on their forehead. This here is considered to be between a person's eyes. Doesn't necessarily mean it's on the bridge of their of his nose here, right? This is the area that is considered to be what? Between his two eyes. So the prophet sallallah.aii wasallam says that between his two eyes is written the letters which is read because the alif is implied in Arabic shorthand. The al if is understood to be there. So it's not written. That's why it's written this in the Quran. So it's what does that mean? In other wordings of this narration, every believing man and woman will be given the ability to read it, whether they are literate or illiterate. So in one narration he says that means that it's written in Arabic and in another narration meaning it's spoken and it is something that every believing man and woman can read whether they are literate or illiterate Allahbar. So when we say the fitna of is very severe it is but for the believer it is very clear is it not soon as you see him right will it be difficult for a person to bite the bullet yes will it be difficult to sacrifice Yes. Will it be unclear? Absolutely not.
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