Uprising of al-Sufyani: Difference between revisions

'''The Riot of Sufyani''' is one of the five inevitable events that happen before the [[Reappearance of Imam al-Mahdi (a)|Reappearance]] of [[Imam al-Mahdi (a)]]. The riot happens in [[Syria]]. According to a [[hadith]] from [[Imam al-Rida (a)]], the Reappearance of [[al-Qa'im (a)]] will not happen without the Riot of Sufyani. According to other hadiths, after nine months of rule in Syria, Sufyani and his army advance towards [[Medina]] and will be devoured by the Earth in a place called "Bayda'".

In [[Shiite]] and [[Sunni]] hadiths, Sufyani is said to be from the progeny of [[Abu Sufyan]] and is characterized as a blood-shedder and cruel and people are frightened by seeing him. Different names are mentioned for him, such as 'Anbasa b. Marra.

==The Name and Features of Sufyani==

Different names have been mentioned for Sufyani in Shiite and Sunni sources of hadiths. For example, in different hadiths from [[Imam Ali (a)]], his name is variously mentioned as 'Anbasa b. Marra, Harb b. 'Anbasa, and 'Uthman b. 'Anbasa, and it is said that he is from the progeny of Abu Sufyan. In Sunni sources, his name is variously mentioned as Harb b. 'Anbasa and Mu'awiya b. 'Utba.

According to hadiths, Sufyani is a blood-shedder, homicidal, and brutal. Moreover, according to hadiths from Imam Ali (a), Sufyani is a broad-shouldered, his face is full of acnes, and has one eye, and people are frightened upon seeing him. According to a hadith transmitted from [[Imam al-Sadiq (a)]] in ''[[Bihar al-anwar]]'', Sufyani is an enemy of the [[Shi'a]]s, and his crier in [[Kufa]] announces that anyone who beheads a Shi'a will be given one thousand [[dirham]]s.

According to hadiths from Imam al-Sadiq (a), the Riot of Sufyani is characterized as inevitable, and is referred to as one of the five [[signs of the Reappearance]] of the al-Qa'im along with the [[Riot of al-Yamani]], the [[Heavenly Cry]], the [[Murder of the Pure Soul]], and [[Khasf al-Bayda']].

There is also a hadith from [[Imam al-Rida (a)]] according to which the Reappearance of the al-Qa'im is inevitable, and the Riot of Sufyani is likewise inevitable, and without the Sufyani's riot, the al-Qa'im is not going to reappear. According to a hadith from Imam al-Sadiq (a), the Riot of Sufyani is inevitable and is going to occur in the [[Rajab month]]. There is a hadith from [[Imam al-Baqir (a)]] implying that the Riots of Sufyani, [[Sayyid al-Yamani]], and [[Sayyid al-Khurasani]] are going to occur in the same year, same month, and the same day.

==Khasf al-Bayda': The Collapse of Sufyani==

According to another hadith, [[Imam Ali (a)]] points to the [[Qur'an 34]]:51, <ref>"Were you to see them when they will be stricken with terror, without any escape, and are seized from a close quarter."</ref> suggesting that [[Sufyani]] will rule Syria for nine months and then when he leads his army towards [[Medina]], God takes him inside the Earth in Bayda'.