What is your interpretation and clarification of the Hadith: "Three shall fight for your treasure, all of them sons of a caliph, then none of them shall attain it. Then the black banners will come from the East, and they will kill you with a killing not committed by any people" – then the following is mentioned – "So when you see him, pledge allegiance to him, even if you have to crawl over snow, for he is Allah's Caliph, the Mahdi," along with an explanation of what the treasure is, who the three and the caliph are, whether the time of its occurrence is near, and who the people of the black banners are, and if they are the Persian Majus in Iran?
Belief in the emergence of the Mahdi is part of the creed of Ahl al-Sunnah wal-Jama'ah (the People of the Sunnah and the Congregation), and the narrations regarding this have reached the level of tawatur (recurrent narration). The hadith of Thawban (may Allah be pleased with him) mentions three fighting over a treasure, the emergence of black banners from the East, and the pledging of allegiance to the Mahdi. Scholars have differed on whether to authenticate or weaken this hadith, as well as on the interpretation of "the treasure." Some have said it refers to the treasure of the Kaaba, while others have said it is the treasure uncovered by the Euphrates. The hadith does not specify who "the three" or "the caliphs" are, nor does it explicitly state the time of the Mahdi's emergence. However, the texts indicate the return of the Islamic Caliphate before the Hour. The people of the black banners are not the Persian Majus (Zoroastrians); rather, they are people from the East who will support the Mahdi and establish his authority.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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