The Great Expectation

It simply means hoping and aspiring for the materialization of the order (referred to above) which the Divine Will has destined for the world.

Now let us turn back to the point that expectation is of two kinds. One kind is constructive and dynamic which is an act of virtue and the other is destructive and paralyzing which is a sort of licentiousness. We have already mentioned that these two kinds of expectations are the outcome of two divergent notions of the great appearance of the promised Mahdi. These two notions have sprung from the two approaches to the nature of historical development. Now let us explain further the two kinds of expectations.

Destructive expectation

The concept which some people have of the rising of the Mahdi and the revolution which he will bring about is only of an explosive nature. These people believe that the appearance of the Mahdi depends solely upon the spread of injustice, discrimination, frustration and disasters. They are of the opinion that, immediately prior to the appearance of the Mahdi, the forces of evil will gain a complete hold and not a single good man will be left in the world. They look forward to an explosion, following which the divine forces will redeem the truth but not the supporters of truth, for they would not be existing. On this basis, they would condemn every reform and regard every sin, every excess and every injustice as valid and proper, because, according to their idea, corruption and tyranny bring the explosion nearer and pave the way for the eventual betterment of a permanent nature. They believe in the maxim that ends justify the means and as such, unlawful means become lawful is the objective is desirable. That is how deadly sins besides giving pleasures, are supposed to help in bringing about the final sacred revolution! The following lines most appropriately apply to their case:

"Win the heart of your beloved even by deceit and treachery. Commit a sin if you are unable to perform a good deed."

Such people naturally dislike the reformers and all those who enjoin good and forbid evil, because they think that their action is delaying the appearance of the promised Mahdi. They, even if they do not commit the sins themselves, at least appreciate the reprehensible activities of the sinners who, according to them, are preparing the ground for the appearance of the Mahdi.

This sort of notion may be called semi-dialectic, because, it regards corruption and distress as a prelude to the sacred explosion. The dialectic thinking also opposes partial reforms and allows the creation of unrest, but it has some merit, because it does so with a view to making the split wider and the fight hotter, whereas the supporters of this outrageous notion simply allow corruption and disorder and then do nothing except to sit back and hope for the desired result to follow 

automatically. It need not be added that this sort of notion of the appearance of the promised Mahdi is against the tenets of Islam and must be regarded as a sort of licentiousness.

Constructive expectation

All the verses of the Holy Quran which form the basis of the concept of the Mahdi and all the traditions cited in support thereof go against the above notion. What is inferred from the Holy Quran is that the appearance of the Mahdi is a link in the series of fights between the righteous and the wicked and the Mahdi is the symbol of the final and complete victory of the righteous and the faithful. The Holy Quran says:

"Allah has promised the righteously striving believers to appoint them as His deputies on earth as He had appointed those who lived before them. He will make the religion that He has chosen for them to stand supreme. He will replace their fear with peace and security. They will worship their Lord without fear and will not submit to anyone other than Him and will associate nothing with His worship and obedience." (Surah al-Nur, 24:55)

The appearance of the Mahdi is Allah's favour for the oppressed and the weak and is a means of their coming to power and gaining the promised Divine succession in the whole world. The Holy Quran says,

"We have decided to grant favour to the suppressed ones by appointing them leaders and heirs of the earth." (Surah al-Qasas, 28:5)

The appearance of the Mahdi means the realization of the promise Allah made to the righteous in His sacred Book.

"Verily We have written in the Psalms after the Torah had been revealed: My righteous servants shall inherit the earth." (Surah al-Anbia, 21:105)

The well-known saying of the Holy Prophet that Allah will fill the earth with justice after its having been filled with injustice and tyranny testifies to the fact that at the time of the appearance of the Mahdi, there will exist two classes. One will consist of the oppressors and the other, howsoever small, of the oppressed, who are subjected to injustice and tyranny.

Shaykh Saduq narrates on the authority of Imam Jafar ibn Muhammad al-Sadiq, that the Mahdi would appear only when the virtuous would become the most virtuous and the wicked, the most wicked. From this also, it is evident that both the virtuous and the wicked will be in existence.

Islamic traditions make mention of a group of people who will come forward and join Imam Mahdi immediately on his appearance. From this again, it is evident that the virtuous will not be completely wiped out and though their number may be insignificant, yet they will be best in the quality of faith and comparable to the companions of Imam Husain ibn Ali.

According to Islamic traditions, the rising of the Mahdi will be preceded by other risings of the virtuous. What has been mentioned as the Yamani's rising is an instance.

In some Islamic traditions, a mention has been made of a government of the righteous people which will continue to exist till the rising of the Mahdi (may Allah hasten his solace) and, as we know, some Shia ulema, who held good opinions about some of their contemporary Shia governments, considered it probable that it would be those very governments which would last till the rising of the Mahdi.

It is gathered from the various Quranic verses and traditions taken together that rising of the promised Mahdi will be the last one of the chain of the battles which have taken place between truth and falsehood since the creation of the world.

The promised Mahdi will realize the ideal of all the prophets, saints and fighters in the path of truth.