by the Abbasid caliphs. The middle position in
this debate was defined by al-Ashari (873–935)
and his followers, who argued that the anthropo-
morphic descriptions of God based on the Quran
and hadith must be accepted as real, but that
God remains uniquely different from his creation
“without [our] knowing how.” This is the doc-
trine that has prevailed in the Sunni community
until the present day. Nevertheless, anthropomor-
phic understandings of God continue to surface
in popular Muslim beliefs and certain strands of
sUFism and speculative thought.
See also abbasid caliphate; allah; ashari
school; ghulat; ibn hanbal, ahmad; perFect
man.
Further reading: Binyamin Abrahamov, Anthropomor-
phism and the Interpretation of the Quran in the Theol-
ogy of al-Qasim ibn Ibrahim (Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1996);
W. Montgomery Watt, The Formative Period of Islamic
Thought (Oxford: One World Press, 1998).
Antichrist (Arabic: al-dajjal, or al-masih
al-dajjal)
The Antichrist is a well-known figure who Mus-
lims expect to arrive at the End of Times. Ideas
about the dajjal, which means “deceiver,” do not
come directly from the qUran, although other
apocalyptic elements, such as JUdgment day, Gog
and Magog (armies lead by the Antichrist), and the
trials and tribulations of the End Times are pres-
ent. Rather, the term dajjal—the Islamic equiva-
lent of the Christian Antichrist—occurs in the
hadith, the second major source of authoritative
knowledge in Islam. In many hadith collections,
including the authoritative Sunni collections by
al-Bukhari and Muslim, the dajjal is variously
described as being red-complexioned, one-eyed
(or blind in one eye), and short (or sometimes
enormously large), with bowed legs and curly
hair. The name Unbeliever will be written on his
forehead. It is said that he will perform miracles,
attracting many whose faith is weak. However,
true, believing Muslims will not succumb. He will
reign for 40 years (or 40 days) before he succeeds
in destroying Muslims. Ultimately, the Antichrist
will be slain by JesUs, who also plays an important
role in Islamic eschatology. The Shia, it should be
noted, believe that Jesus and the mahdi together
will slay him, after which the End Times and
Judgment Day will come.
The different and sometimes contradictory
ways in which the Antichrist is described in
Islamic eschatology is a result of early inter-
actions among Muslims and Christians in the
Middle East. Muslim scholars are divided on the
authenticity of these traditions, which appear to
go against the Quranic teaching that Judgment
Day will arrive suddenly. Nonetheless, belief in
the emergence of the Antichrist is a central aspect
of belief for Muslims. There is an active apocalyp-
tic tradition today in which various “Antichrists”
are described; some commentators even see the
Antichrist embodied in the modern temptations
and foreign domination to which Muslims have
been subjected.
See also christianity and islam; death; shiism.
John IskanderFurther reading: Bernard McGinn, Anti-Christ: Two
Thousand Years of the Human Fascination with Evil
(New York: Columbia University Press, 2000); Zeki
Saritoprak, “The Legend of al-Dajjal (Antichrist): The
Personification of Evil in the Islamic Tradition.” Muslim
World 93 (2003): 291–308.anti-Semitism
A term coined in the 19th century, anti-Semitism
is used to describe hateful attitudes and hostile
actions directed at Jews. It is not to be confused
with the persecution of Jews by Christians and
others prior to that time, which is better under-
stood as anti-Judaism—the persecution of Jews
because of their religious beliefs and practices. The
term Semite originated in modern history as partK 46 Antichrist