Two Yellow Sheets?

Two Yellow Sheets?

The Holy Prophet Muhammad^saw stated in regards to a vision which foretold the coming of the messiah that he would descend with two angels and would be wearing yellow garments. The ahadith are as follows:

Now another important fact to note is that the latter day messiah coming with two sicknesses was actually prophesied by the Prophet Muhammad(saw) himself. He(saw) states:

حَدَّثَنَا هُدْبَةُ بْنُ خَالِدٍ، حَدَّثَنَا هَمَّامُ بْنُ يَحْيَى، عَنْ قَتَادَةَ، عَنْ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنِ آدَمَ، عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ ‏ “‏ لَيْسَ بَيْنِي وَبَيْنَهُ نَبِيٌّ – يَعْنِي عِيسَى – وَإِنَّهُ نَازِلٌ فَإِذَا رَأَيْتُمُوهُ فَاعْرِفُوهُ رَجُلٌ مَرْبُوعٌ إِلَى الْحُمْرَةِ وَالْبَيَاضِ بَيْنَ مُمَصَّرَتَيْنِ كَأَنَّ رَأْسَهُ يَقْطُرُ وَإِنْ لَمْ يُصِبْهُ بَلَلٌ فَيُقَاتِلُ النَّاسَ عَلَى الإِسْلاَمِ فَيَدُقُّ الصَّلِيبَ وَيَقْتُلُ الْخِنْزِيرَ وَيَضَعُ الْجِزْيَةَ وَيُهْلِكُ اللَّهُ فِي زَمَانِهِ الْمِلَلَ كُلَّهَا إِلاَّ الإِسْلاَمَ وَيُهْلِكُ الْمَسِيحَ الدَّجَّالَ فَيَمْكُثُ فِي الأَرْضِ أَرْبَعِينَ سَنَةً ثُمَّ يُتَوَفَّى فَيُصَلِّي عَلَيْهِ الْمُسْلِمُونَ ‏”‏ ‏.‏

Narrated Abu Hurayrah:

The Prophet (saw) said: There is no prophet between me and him, that is, Jesus (ﷺ). He will descent (to the earth). When you see him, recognise him: a man of medium height, reddish fair, wearing two light yellow garments,looking as if drops were falling down from his head though it will not be wet. He will fight the people for the cause of Islam. He will break the cross, kill swine, and abolish jizyah. Allah will perish all religions except Islam. He will destroy the Antichrist and will live on the earth for forty years and then he will die. The Muslims will pray over him. (Sunan Abi Dawud #4324)

Also in Sahih Muslim it is stated:

إِذْ بَعَثَ اللَّهُ الْمَسِيحَ ابْنَ مَرْيَمَ فَيَنْزِلُ عِنْدَ الْمَنَارَةِ الْبَيْضَاءِ شَرْقِيَّ دِمَشْقَ بَيْنَ مَهْرُودَتَيْنِ وَاضِعًا كَفَّيْهِ عَلَى أَجْنِحَةِ مَلَكَيْنِ

Allah would send Christ, son of Mary, and he will descend at the white minaret in the eastern side of Damascus wearing two garments lightly dyed with saffron and placing his hands on the wings of two Angels. (Sahih Muslim #2937)

The Holy Prophet Muhammad^saw stated in regards to a vision which foretold the coming of the messiah that he would descend with two angels and would be wearing yellow garments. This is another vision of the Prophet Muhammad^saw and therefore is interpreted and not to be taken literally.

Firstly let it be made clear that no one should take this literally, as the Holy Prophet Muhammad^saw made it clear that one should not physically wear yellow. He^saw states:

أَخْبَرَنَا إِسْمَاعِيلُ بْنُ مَسْعُودٍ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا خَالِدٌ، – وَهُوَ ابْنُ الْحَارِثِ – قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا هِشَامٌ، عَنْ يَحْيَى بْنِ أَبِي كَثِيرٍ، عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ، أَنَّ خَالِدَ بْنَ مَعْدَانَ، أَخْبَرَهُ أَنَّ جُبَيْرَ بْنَ نُفَيْرٍ أَخْبَرَهُ أَنَّ عَبْدَ اللَّهِ بْنَ عَمْرٍو أَخْبَرَهُ أَنَّهُ، رَآهُ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم وَعَلَيْهِ ثَوْبَانِ مُعَصْفَرَانِ فَقَالَ ‏ “‏ هَذِهِ ثِيَابُ الْكُفَّارِ فَلاَ تَلْبَسْهَا ‏”‏ ‏.‏

The Messenger of Allah, Prophet Muhammad^saw saw him wearing two garments dyed with safflower and he said: “This is the clothing of disbelievers; do not wear it.”(Sunan an Nasai, #5316)

Another Hadith of Sahih Muslim states:

حَدَّثَنَا يَحْيَى بْنُ يَحْيَى، قَالَ قَرَأْتُ عَلَى مَالِكٍ عَنْ نَافِعٍ، عَنْ إِبْرَاهِيمَ بْنِ عَبْدِ، اللَّهِ بْنِ حُنَيْنٍ عَنْ أَبِيهِ، عَنْ عَلِيِّ بْنِ أَبِي طَالِبٍ، أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم نَهَى عَنْ لُبْسِ الْقَسِّيِّ وَالْمُعَصْفَرِ وَعَنْ تَخَتُّمِ الذَّهَبِ وَعَنْ قِرَاءَةِ الْقُرْآنِ فِي الرُّكُوعِ ‏.‏

‘Ali b. Abu Talib reported that Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) forbade wearing of silk and yellow clothes, and the gold ring, and the reciting of the Qur’an in the ruku’ (state of kneeling in prayer).(Sahih Muslim #2078 a)

And:

وعن عبد الله بن عمرو بن العاص رضي الله عنه قال‏:‏ رأى النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم علي ثوبين معصفرين فقال‏:‏ ‏”‏أمك أمرتك بهذا‏؟‏‏”‏ قلت‏:‏ أغسلهما‏؟‏ قال‏:‏ ‏”‏بل احرقهما‏”‏‏.‏
وفي رواية فقال‏:‏ ‏”‏إن هذا من ثياب الكفار فلا تلبسها‏”‏ ‏(‏‏(‏رواه مسلم‏)‏‏)‏‏.‏

The Prophet (ﷺ) saw me dressed in two saffron-coloured garments and asked, “Has your mother commanded you to wear these?” I asked him, “Shall I wash them out?” He replied, “You had better set them to fire”Another narration is: “These are garments of the disbelievers. So do not wear them.”(Riyad as Salihin Narrated by Muslim Book 18 Hadith #289 and Book 18 Hadith #1799,Sahih Muslim book 19 hadith 289)

This is a act which the Prophet^saw was totally against and even has a chapter dedicated to itself in Sahih Muslim under The Book of Clothes and Adornment. Therefore, its not possible that Isa^as would physically be wearing yellow robes, as this would contradict many ahadith of the Prophet^saw. If the non Ahmadi Muslims want to keep this interpretation, they would be forced to call the latter day messiah a disbeliever rather than a lover of the Prophet^saw.

These ahadith show us that the robes signify something else. Now when we look at the interpretation of dreams, the true meaning of this hadith becomes clear.

Tabir al Ruyah is written by Hazrat Muhammed Ibn Sirin of Egypt. It is a famous Interpretation of Dreams book and states that yellow clothes signify sickness.

Another official Islamic Dream interpretation website also quotes Ibn Sirin to have said : “Wearing a yellow silken garment in a dream means a sicknesss” (E-Islamicdream)

It is written on the official Islamic Dream Interpretation website:

Yellow — (Color) Wearing a yellow silken garment in a dream means a sickness. If a warrior sees himself wearing a yellow silken garment in a dream, it means that he will be decorated for his chivalry. Yellow in a dream also represents strains (Islamic dream Interpretation Official Website)

This simply shows that the prophecy meant that the Messiah would come with two illnesses. One on the top part of his body, and one on the lower part. Ahmad^as fulfilled this prophecy as well. We should always remember that taking dreams literally will lead one into many problems, and are to be interpreted even according to the Qur’an and Ahadith. For example the Holy Prophet Muhammad^saw stated:

حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو الْيَمَانِ، أَخْبَرَنَا شُعَيْبٌ، عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ أَبِي حُسَيْنٍ، حَدَّثَنَا نَافِعُ بْنُ جُبَيْرٍ، عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ قَالَ قَدِمَ مُسَيْلِمَةُ الْكَذَّابُ عَلَى عَهْدِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم فَجَعَلَ يَقُولُ إِنْ جَعَلَ لِي مُحَمَّدٌ الأَمْرَ مِنْ بَعْدِهِ تَبِعْتُهُ‏.‏ وَقَدِمَهَا فِي بَشَرٍ كَثِيرٍ مِنْ قَوْمِهِ، فَأَقْبَلَ إِلَيْهِ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم وَمَعَهُ ثَابِتُ بْنُ قَيْسِ بْنِ شَمَّاسٍ، وَفِي يَدِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قِطْعَةُ جَرِيدٍ، حَتَّى وَقَفَ عَلَى مُسَيْلِمَةَ فِي أَصْحَابِهِ فَقَالَ ‏”‏ لَوْ سَأَلْتَنِي هَذِهِ الْقِطْعَةَ مَا أَعْطَيْتُكَهَا، وَلَنْ تَعْدُوَ أَمْرَ اللَّهِ فِيكَ، وَلَئِنْ أَدْبَرْتَ لَيَعْقِرَنَّكَ اللَّهُ، وَإِنِّي لأَرَاكَ الَّذِي أُرِيتُ فِيكَ مَا رَأَيْتُ ‏”‏‏.‏ فَأَخْبَرَنِي أَبُو هُرَيْرَةَ، أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ ‏”‏ بَيْنَمَا أَنَا نَائِمٌ رَأَيْتُ فِي يَدَىَّ سِوَارَيْنِ مِنْ ذَهَبٍ، فَأَهَمَّنِي شَأْنُهُمَا، فَأُوحِيَ إِلَىَّ فِي الْمَنَامِ أَنِ انْفُخْهُمَا، فَنَفَخْتُهُمَا فَطَارَا فَأَوَّلْتُهُمَا كَذَّابَيْنِ يَخْرُجَانِ بَعْدِي ‏”‏‏.‏ فَكَانَ أَحَدُهُمَا الْعَنْسِيَّ وَالآخَرُ مُسَيْلِمَةَ الْكَذَّابَ صَاحِبَ الْيَمَامَةِ‏.‏

Narrated Ibn Abbas: Musailama-al-Kadhdhab (i.e. the liar) came in the life-time of Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) with many of his people (to Medina) and said, “If Muhammad makes me his successor, I will follow him.” Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) went up to him with Thabit bin Qais bin Shams; and Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) was carrying a piece of a datepalm leaf in his hand. He stood before Musailama (and his companions) and said, “If you asked me even this piece (of a leaf), I would not give it to you. You cannot avoid the fate you are destined to, by Allah. If you reject Islam, Allah will destroy you. I think that you are most probably the same person whom I have seen in the dream.” Abu Huraira told me that Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ); said, “While I was sleeping, I saw (in a dream) two gold bracelets round my arm, and that worried me too much. Then I was instructed divinely in my dream, to blow them off and so I blew them off, and they flew away. I interpreted the two bracelets as symbols of two liars who would appear after me. And so one of them was Al-Ansi and the other was Musailama Al-Kadhdhab from Al-Yamama.”(Sahih Bukhari, Volume 4, Book 56, Hadith #817)

After this dream the companions did not mock the Prophet^saw for wearing gold as that would be illogical, rather they awaited its interpretation.

Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad^as states:

” I had become very weak on account of mental fatigue and dizziness and was much afraid that I would not be capable of doing any writing and publication at all. I was very weak as if I had no strength left. In this condition I received the revelation:

That is “The capacities of youth will be restored to you.” Thereafter, within a few days I began to perceive the restoration of my capacities and soon I became strong enough to be able to write two juzw of my new book with my own hand daily. Moreover, I was able to reflect upon and think out the subject matter of my writing, which is an essential need for writing a new book. Of course, I do suffer from two disorders, one that affects the upper part of my body and the other that affects the lower part. In the upper part I suffer from headache and dizziness and in the lower part I suffer from the frequency of passing water. I have suffered from these two afflictions ever since the publication of my claim of having been commissioned by Allah. I have supplicated for release from these disorders but the response has been negative. It has been conveyed to me that from the very beginning it had been appointed that the Promised Messiah would descend clad in two yellow sheets with his hands resting on the shoulders of two angels. These are the two yellow sheets which represent my physical condition. The interpretation of a yellow sheet has been unanimously given by the Prophets to be a disease or disorder. Two yellow sheets, therefore, means two disorders which affect the two parts of my body. The same has also been conveyed to me by God Almighty that the two yellow sheets indicate two ailments and the word of God was bound to be fulfilled” (Haqiqatul Wahi, Pages 306-307,Ruhani Khazain, Volume 22, Pages 319-230)

He also states:

“It is an absurdity to interpret literally the Hadith of Sahih Muslim which says that when the Messiah descends from heaven he will be wearing yellow robes. There appears no reason for this peculiarity. If this indication is interpreted according to the principles of the interpretation of dreams, it would mean that when the Promised Messiah announces his claim he would not be in good health.”(Izala-e-Auham, Ruhani Khazain, Volume 3, Pages 142-143)

And:

“I supplicated once that my ills might be totally removed but I was told that this would not be; then God Almighty conveyed to me that this was a Sign of the Promised Messiah, for it is written that he would descend clad in two yellow sheets. The ills from which I suffer are these two yellow sheets, one covering the upper part and the other covering the lower part of my body.”(Nasim-e-Dawah, Page 70, Ruhani Khazain Volume 19, Pages 435-436)

And:

” 1906 I have suffered for a long time from two ailments. One of these is migraine, which has caused me a great deal of suffering and resulted in many alarming side-effects. I had suffered from it for nearly twenty-five years and then it was accompanied by dizziness. Physicians have opined that these disorders may lead to epilepsy. I continued my supplications that Allah the Almighty might safeguard me against this contingency. On one occasion I perceived in a vision that I was about to be attacked by an affliction in the form of a black animal of the size of a sheep having long hair and big claws. It was conveyed to me that this was epilepsy. I struck it with my right hand on its breast with great force and said: Avaunt, you have no part or lot in me. Thereafter God knows that all those dangerous symptoms disappeared along with the migraine, except that occasionally I suffer from dizziness, so that the prophecy relating to two yellow sheets should continue to be fulfilled. The second disorder from which I have suffered for nearly twenty years is diabetes.… Even now I need to pass water about twenty times a day and sugar has been detected in the tests of urine. One day it passed through my mind 1906 I have suffered for a long time from two ailments.

One of these is migraine, which has caused me a great deal of suffering and resulted in many alarming side-effects. I had suffered from it for nearly twenty-five years and then it was accompanied by dizziness. Physicians have opined that these disorders may lead to epilepsy. I continued my supplications that Allah the Almighty might safeguard me against this contingency. On one occasionI perceived in a vision that I was about to be attacked by an affliction in the form of a black animal of the size of a sheep having long hair and big claws. It was conveyed to me that this was epilepsy. I struck it with my right hand on its breast with great force and said: Avaunt, you have no part or lot in me. Thereafter God knows that all those dangerous symptoms disappeared along with the migraine, except that occasionally I suffer from dizziness, so that the prophecy relating to two yellow sheets should continue to be fulfilled. The second disorder from which I have suffered for nearly twenty years is diabetes.… Even now I need to pass water about twenty times a day and sugar has been detected in the tests of urine. One day it passed through my mind that according to the physicians, diabetes brings about epiphora in the eye or erupts in the form of carbuncle, a cancerous growth, which proves fatal, whereupon I received the revelation about epiphora:

That is [Arabic] Mercy has descended upon three, the eye and two other limbs;

and when the thought of carbuncle passed through my mind, it was revealed [to me]:

Thus Allah has, for a long time, safeguarded me against these calamities.  [All praise belongs to Allah].” (Haqiqatul-Wahi, Ppages 363-364, Ruhani Khazain, Volume 22, Pages 376-377)