(May 15, 2020 at 5:45 pm)Klorophyll Wrote: What follows is quoted from Sahih Muslim, one the most renowned collections of authentic hadiths;
He (the enquirer) again said: Inform me about the hour (of the Doom). He (the Holy Prophet) remarked: One who is asked knows no more than the one who is inquiring (about it). He (the inquirer) said: Tell me some of its indications. He (the Holy Prophet) said: That the slave-girl will give birth to her mistress and master, that you will find barefooted, destitute goat-herds vying with one another in the construction of magnificent buildings. [Source : https://sunnah.com/muslim/1/1]
'Barefooted, destitute goat-herds' incontrovertibly refers to inhabitants of any country in the Arabian peninsula. These folks, according to Muhammad, will compete with each other about building the tallest skyscrapers. The Arabic equivalent of "vying with one another", tatawala' تطاول is more expressive, being derived from the word toul' طول literally meaning length. The reader can easily check the accuracy of these translations. Muhammad clearly referred to buildings, guaranteeing that this prophecy can't be misinterpreted in any other way.
Muhammad's prophecy came true in the modern era, there are many skyscrapers in numerous countries belonging to the Arab league:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ta...rab_League.
Now let's hear our dear skeptics complaining of the vagueness of Muhammad's prophecies ;
Well, if you see that as clear and concise, then the basic problem you are having is clear.
Can you explain *why* we should interpret 'barefoot, destitute goat-herds' geographically, as opposed to literally? it seems pretty *clear* to me that is NOT the meaning of that phrase.
And, let's face it, barefoot, destitute people were used to build *most* ancient buildings. The typical workforce was both barefoot and destitute. Many were probably goat-herds when not building.
In other words, I would bet that this 'prophecy' would have applied much better to much of the building of Baghdad in the 8th century (or before) than it does to any modern society.
So, either clear and wrong or unclear and meaningless. You choose.