In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness in everything we do.

There are over fifty scholarly comments on the meaning of the word Maseeh (Messiah). They said that this word is applied both to the Truthful One [True Messiah, i.e., ‘Eesa (Jesus)] and to the misleading liar [the “antichrist” or Dajjaal]. The Messiah is the Truthful One, ‘Eesa ibn Maryam (Jesus the son of Mary), the Messiah of guidance, who healed those who were born blind and lepers, and brought the dead to life by Allaah’s Leave.

The false messiah (al-maseeh al-dajjaal) is the liar who leads people astray, the messiah of misguidance who will tempt people by means of the signs that he is given, such as bringing down rain, reviving the earth to bring forth vegetation, and other “miracles.”

So Allaah has created two messiahs, who are opposites of one another.

The scholars said that the reason why the Dajjaal is called maseeh (a “messiah”) is because one of his eyes is mamsooh (lit. “wiped”; smooth or abraded, i.e., he will be blind or defective in one eye). Or it was said that it is because he will survey or travel throughout the earth (yamsah) in forty days…

The Dajjaal will be a man from among the sons of Adam. He will have many attributes which were described in the ahaadeeth to acquaint people with him and to warn them of his evil. So when he comes, the believers will know him and will not be misled by him; they will know his features which the Truthful One (the Prophet) (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) has told us about. These features will distinguish him from other people, so that no one will be deceived by him except those who are ignorant and whose doom has already been decreed.

The appearance of the Dajjaal is one of the signs of the Hour, but the time of his emergence is not clearly defined, because no one knows when the Hour will be except Allaah.

With regard to the direction from which he will emerge, he will emerge from the east, from the direction of tribulation and evil, as the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Fitnah is here,” and he pointed towards the east. (al-Bukhaari, 3279; Muslim, 5167). So the east is the source of evil and tribulation, and he will emerge from the east, from Khurasaan, passing through Isfahan and entering the Arabian Peninsula from a point between Syria and Iraq, with no goal but Madeenah, because there lies the Bringer of glad tidings and warnings (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him).