Gog and Magog: Difference between revisions

'''Gog and Magog''' or '''Ya'juj and Ma'juj''' (Arabic: {{ia|یَأجوج وَ مَأجوج}}) refers to a tribe or tribes mentioned in the [[Qur'an]] and the religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. Gog and Magog are characterized in religious texts as a cruel group who harassed and abused others and plundered their possessions. On the Quranic account, [[Dhu l-Qarnayn]] constructed a dam, at the request of people who were oppressed by Gog and Magog, in order to protect them against their aggression. The dam was known as “Sadd Dhu l-Qarnayn” (the Dam of Dhu l-Qarnayn) or the “Dam of Gog and Magog”. Some people have speculated that the dam is located in northern Georgia. The Qur'an as well as the religious texts of Christianity and Judaism have referred to the destruction of the dam and the renewed riot of Gog and Magog as an event in [[Akhir al-Zaman]] (End Time).

There are several accounts regarding the identity of Gog and Magog:

* Name of a person: according to some sources, Gog and Magog was the name of a person. In the Old Testament, Magog is the second son of Japheth who was one of [[Noah]]’s sons.

* A geographical location: according to religious sources, “Gog and Magog” does not refer to a person, a tribe, or a number of tribes; rather it refers to a geographical region.

* Tribes residing in northern Asia: in Islamic sources, “Gog and Magog” refers to tribes residing in northern Asia who were engaged in murder and plunder of the possessions of other tribes. According to these sources, the area of their residence ranged from northeastern Asia, that is, [[Tibet]] and [[China]], to Arctic Ocean, and from the west to [[Turkmenistan]]. Thus, some people take the word, “Gog and Magog”, to be derived from the Chinese word, “Mongok” or “Monchok”, which has transformed into “Ya'juj wa Ma'juj” in Hebrew and Arabic, and into “Gog and Magog” in Greek.

* Another title for Mongols: some people have speculated that Gog and Magog were the same as the Mongol people who lived in northeastern Caspian Sea and invaded nearby regions, such as Transoxiana, Armenia, and Azerbaijan as well as farther regions, such as China and the Indian Subcontinent. The Great Wall of China and the Dam of Dhu l-Qarnayn were constructed in order to block their progress. Thus, the riot of Gog and Magog in the End Time, which is mentioned in the Qur'an, has been interpreted as the invasion of the Mongols in the 7th/13th century.