Mahdi

The Mahdi (Arabic: ٱلْمَهْدِيّ, romanized: al-Mahdī, lit. 'The Guided One') is the Islamic messianic and eschatological figure, who is believed to appear before the End Times to restore justice and defeat tyranny alongside Isa (Jesus). He forms an important part of Islamic eschatology, although Sunni and Shia Muslims differ slightly in their interpretation of him. While the Mahdi is mostly developed in Shia Islam, he is also present in numerous Sunni hadiths. In Twelver Shia Islam, the Mahdi has a significant role. He is identified with the twelfth and final Imam Muhammad al-Mahdi, who was born in 869 AD, entered occultation, and remains alive until his eventual reappearance at the end times alongside Jesus. He is a descendant of Ali, the Islamic prophet Muhammad's cousin and son-in-law, and Fatima through their second son Husayn, Muhammad's grandson. In Sunni Islam, the Mahdi is also described as a descendant of Muhammad through his daughter Fatima, who will emerge in the end times alongside Jesus. However, Sunni tradition do not identify him with a historical individual, nor do they attribute to him an occultation. The difference in Sunni Islam is that the Mahdi is a future figure who has not yet appeared, whereas in Shia Islam, he has already been born and is currently in occultation. The Mahdi has a central place in Islamic theology, devotional literature, and popular piety for over a millennium. He has influenced numerous religious, political, and messianic movements. Throughout history, there have been a vast number of Mahdi claimants. The signs of his reappearance are common in both Shia and Sunni branches. The belief in the Mahdi remains very popular among all Muslims, owing to numerous traditions in canonical Sunni and Shia hadith. It is popularly held that the Mahdi occasionally appears to pious individuals. Accounts of such...