"No time will come upon my ummah but the time following it will be worse than it? Is there a hadith like that? If yes, how should it be understood?

"No time will come upon my ummah but the time following it will be worse than it? Is there a hadith like that? If yes, how should it be understood?

Dear Brother / Sister,

There are various hadith narrations having similar statements regarding the issue: We will give the narration of Bukhari as an example:

Zubayr b. Adi narrates: We went to Hz. Anas and complained to him about the oppression of Hajjaj. He said to us,

“Be patient till you meet your Lord, for no time will come upon you but the time following it will be worse than it.”(Bukhari, Fitan, 6)

Various interpretations were made regarding the issue. It is possible to state the following in summary:

It seems more appropriate to understand “time getting worse” mentioned in the hadith as gradual decrease in taqwa, honesty, sincerity, real ilm and real (fiqh) scholars in general rather than material hardships, famine, etc. There is no doubt that there were and will be more knowledgeable and pious people in a century than the previous century. However, they are exceptions to the rule. The issue here is to describe the general course of events and the state of the ummah. (see Ibn Hajar, the interpretation of the hadith in question)

Sometimes a period can be better than the previous one. For instance, the caliphate of Umar ibn Abdilaziz is after the cruel period of Hajjaj but there was a just administration then like the one in the period of Rightly-Guided Caliphs. It means exceptions can be in administration as well as other issues. However, they are exceptions to the rule. The decree is given according to the majority.

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