IMRAN:
CIVILISATION CYCLES
By
Bayo Robiu Ogunmupe
Part
One: Prologue
IMRAN is the concept by Muslim scholars
meaning civilization cycles. It arose after Satan cast doubts on Allah’s
sovereignty when he (satan) a renegade spirit son of God succeeded in influencing
Adam and Awawu to rebel against Allah’s rulership.
That rebellion constituted a challenge to God’s sovereignty. The purpose of
this essay is to answer the questions: why did civilization cycles occur? Which
of the civilizations are we concerned with and what can we do to restore
Allah}s rulership?
“Allah himself has firmly established his throne in the very heavens, and over
everything his own kingship has held dominion” – Zeburrah 103:19. With those
words the psalmist – King Dauda of ancient Israel, pointed to the fundamental
concept of rulership, Allah being the creator, is rightfully the sovereign
ruler of the universe. Of course, for a ruler to rule, there must be subjects.
Thus, Allah exercised his dominion over spirit
creatures whom he brought to existence – like the angelic hosts. Far down the
stream of time, prophets have given glimpse of the heavenly scene for eons,
Allah, presided as Lord over his immense and orderly family of spirit sons, who
served as ministers doing his will. – Zeburrah 103: 20-21.
Eventually, Allah extended his rulership by bringing into existence the vast
universe, including the earth. To an observer from earth, the heavenly bodies
operate with such order and precision that they seem to need no one to guide or
govern them, yet the Zeburrah declared, “Allah himself commanded, and they were
created. And he keeps them standing forever, to time indefinite. A regulation,
he has given, and it will not pass away, “Zeburrah 148: 5-6. As ever, Allah has
been exercising his power in directing, regulating and governing the spirit
realm and the physical universe.
With the creation of the first human pair, Allah exercised his power in yet
another way. Besides providing humans with everything they needed, Allah
granted them dominion over the earth – that was a delegation of authority.
Thus, it is clear that not only is Allah’s rulership benevolent, it also
accords its subjects honour and dignity. As long as Adam and Awawu submitted
themselves to Allah’s sovereignty, they had the prospect of living forever in
an earthly paradise home.
What can we conclude from all of this? First, Allah has always been exercising
his authority over all his creation. Second, God’s rulership is benevolent and
dignifying. Finally, our obeying and supporting Allah’s rulership will result
in eternal blessings. It is no wonder that King Dauda of ancient Israel was
moved to say; “yours, O Allah are the greatness and the mightiness and the
beauty and the excellence and the dignity; for everything in the heavens and in
the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom O Allah, the one also lifting yourself
up as head over all – 1 Chronicles 29:11.
Why a Kingdom of God?
Since Allah the
universe sovereign has always been exercising his power and mightiness, why is
there a need for the kingdom of God?
A sovereign generally exercises his authority through an agency that is placed
over his subjects. The Kingdom of God therefore, is an expression or exercise
of Allah’s universal sovereign towards his creatures, a means or an agency used
by him to carry out his rulership.
Allah has expressed his sovereignty in different ways at different tunes. He
instituted a new expression of his power to respond to a new development
when a renegade spirit son of God, satan succeeded in influencing Adam and
Awawu to rebel against Allah’s rulership.
That rebellion was a challenge to Allah’s sovereignty in what way? By telling
Awawu that she “positively would not die,” if she ate the forbidden fruit,
satan insinuated that Allah was untruthful, thus untrustworthy, satan further
told Awawu:
“God knows that in the very day of your eating from it your eyes are bound to
be like God, knowing good and bad!!! Satan was suggesting that Adam and Awawu
could do better by ignoring God’s command and going their independent way, what
would Allah do to crush that challenge?
The familiar response to such like challenges was that rather than ignoring the
matter, usually a sovereign would render judgement against the rebels declaring
them guilty of treason. Then the ruler might empower someone to subdue the
rebel forces and restore peace. Similarly Allah showed that he was in full
control of the situation when he took immediate action and pronounced judgement
upon the rebels. He pronounced Adam and Awawu unworthy of the gift of
everlasting life, and He drove them out of the garden of Eden.
In sentencing satan, Allah revealed a new expression of his power, a means by
which he would restore peace and order to his realm. To satan God said: “I
shall put enmity between you and the woman and between your seed and her seed.
He will bruise you in the head and you will bruise him in the heel,” thus Allah
revealed that it was his purpose to empower a “seed” to crush satan and his
forces and to prove the rightfulness of His sovereignty – Zeburrah 2: 7-9, 110:
1-2.
That “seed” is Prophet Isa, along with a distinct group of associate rulers.
Together they form Allah’s messianic kingdom. This is also known as the period
of the mahdi. Isa shall return as the Madhi. All of this, however, was not
revealed immediately. In fact, the outworking of the first prophecy remained a
“sacred secret” which had been kept in silence for long lasting times. For
centuries the faithful longed for the time when the sacred would be revealed to
fulfill the first prophecy in vindication of Allah’s power.
As time went by, Allah progressively made known aspects of the sacred secret of
the kingdom of Allah. Among those to whom Allah revealed the secret was
Ibrahim, the man who was called Allah’s friend. Allah promised Ibrahim that he
would raise a great nation out of him. Later God told Ibrahim, “kings will come
out of you,” and by means of your seed all nations of the earth will certainly
bless themselves.”
By Ibrahim’s time, there had already been
human attempts at rulership and domination. For example concerning Nimrod, the
great-grandson of Nuhu, Injill says: “he made the start in becoming a mighty
one in the earth. He displayed himself a mighty hunter in opposition to Allah.”
Clearly, Nimrod and other self appointed rulers were puppets in satan’s hands.
They and their supporters become part of satan’s seed.
In spite of satan’s efforts to produce human rulers, Allah’s purpose moves
forward. Through Ibrahim’s grandson; “the scepter will not turn aside from
Judah, neither the commander’s staff from between his feet, until the Mahdi
comes; and to him the obedience of the peoples will belong.”
The term Shiloh or Mahdi means: “He whose it is; he to whom it belong.” Thus,
these prophetic words indicated that there would come one who had the legal
right to receive the scepter and rulership over the peoples or all mankind!
Of the descendants of Judah, the first one to be chosen by Allah to be king
over his people was the shepherd Dauda son of Jesse. Despite his sins and
errors, Dauda found his favour with Allah – because of his loyalty to Allah’s
sovereignty. According to Edenic prophecy, Allah made a covenant with Dauda,
saying! “I shall certainly establish the throne of his kingdom firmly to time
indefinite.” That covenant made clear that the promised kingdom “seed” would in
time come through the line of Dauda.
With Dauda started the dynasty of kings who were anointed with holy oil by the
high priest. These kings were anointed ones or messiahs, they stood on Allah’s
throne and ruled as kings of Allah in Jerusalem. Thus, the kingdom of Judah,
represented God’s kingdom.
When the king and the people submitted to Allah’s power they enjoyed His
protection and blessing. The reign of Suleman was a time of peace and
prosperity beyond compare, providing a glimpse of Aljanah, the rule of God’s
kingdom. Sadly other kings in the line of Dauda failed and the people fell into
idolatry and immorality. Finally, Allah allowed the kingdom to be destroyed by
the Babylonians in 607 BC. Thus, that was how God made a ruin of Dauda’s
dynasty. “As for this also, it will certainly become us one’s until he comes
who has the legal right, and I must give it to him – “Ezekiel 21: 26-27. Those
words indicate that the “seed” the one who had the right was yet to come.
In 2BC angel Jubril told Maryam of Galilee that she will bear a son whose name
shall be Isa the Redeemer. Later the Greeks called Isa by the name of Jesus. To
Isa the son of Maryam, God will give the “throne of Dauda his father, and he
will rule as king over the house of Yakub forever, and there will be no end of
his kingdom” – Luke 1: 31-33.
At last, the time of revealing the sacred secret is near. The promised “seed”
was soon to appear. Maryam’s son, whose kingdom there will be no end, is the
same person as the messiah, Islam’s Mahdi, the second coming of Jesus Christ.
He would be bruised in the heel by satan. But the Mahdi will bruise satan’s
head, putting him and his cohorts out of action. Isa would bear witness to
Aljanah and Vindicate Allah’s sovereignty.
Civilization
Cycles
Part
Two: Civilisations
It has been
revealed that there shall be seven cycles of Civilisations before the
appearance of the Mahdi. These cycles of civilization of false religion began
with Egypt, followed by Assyria and Babylon, others which followed are Persian,
Greek, Roman and the present Anglo American civilization.
Egyptian
Civilisation
Egypt is the
world’s oldest Continuous Civilisation. It is the world’s first civilization.
About 2925 BC, Upper and Lower Egypt were united by King Menes. This
unification started an unbroken line of native rulers that lasted 3000 years.
Egyptian history is divided into Old, Middle and New Kingdoms – Spanning 31
dynasties and lasting to 332 BC.
The pyramids date from the Old Kingdom; the cult of Osiers and the refinement
of sculpture from the middle kingdom, the era of empire and the Exodus of the
Jews from the New Kingdom.
The Assyrians invaded Egypt in the 7th century and the Persians established a dynasty in 525
BC. The invasion by Alexander the Great in 332 inaugurated the Ptolemaic Period
when Egyptian rulers remained firmly planted in the Hellenic world. The city of
Alexander, founded by Alexander developed into a centre of Hellenism and Semite
learning, was soon to become a focal point of the highest development of Greek
Scholarship and Science.
The Romans held from 30 BC to AD 395. Thereafter, it was administratively
placed under the control of Constantinople, the capital of the East Roman
Empire; later known as the Byzantive Empire. The Byzantine control of Egypt
ended in 642 AD when its forces evacuated Egypt after three years of armed
conflict with invading Arabs. Within a century, Egypt was transformed into an
Arabic speaking state with Islam as its dominated religion.
Later, Egypt became part of the Umayyad and Abbasid caliphates, subsequently;
it became the centre of the Fatimid caliphate in AD 969. In 1171 it returned to
the Abbasid caliphate.
The Mamluks gained ascendancy after the collapse of the Abbasids in 1250. The
Mamluks were soldiers, they were slaves of non-Arab and non-Muslims origin who
had been used to augment the armies of the Arab world. They established a
dynasty in Egypt that lasted until 1517 and made Egypt the Centre of the
Eastern zone of the Arabic speaking world. Then, the Arabisation of Egypt was
complete.
In 1517, Turkey annexed Egypt into the Ottoman Empire and was ruled as its
province from Istinbul. The decline of Egypt invited a French invasion in 1798,
it lasted a few years but brought Egypt into European politics. Thereafter,
Mohammed Ali, an Albanian created a dynasty and an empire but under Ottoman
control. His monetary greed and expansionism and those of his successors left
Egypt in debt to the British, who occupied the country in 1882 during a civil
strife.
Like Nigeria, Egypt became a British Protectorate in 1914, and received nominal
independence in 1922, when a constitutional monarchy was established. A coup in
1952 brought Gambal Abdel Nasser to power. Nasser was the first native Egyptian
ruler in 2000 years. He fought two failed wars against Israel: in 1956 and
1967. His successor: Anwar Sadat reversed Nasser’s socialism, attacked Israel:
in 1973, he gained a foothold in the Sinai. He was assassinated in 1981. Hosni
Mubarak who followed Sadat regained sovereignty over the Sinai Peninsula in
1982 which had been lost to Israel in 1967. Mubarak continued Sadat’s policy of
close ties with the United States, with Egypt joining the US led coalition
against Iraq in the 1991 Persian Gulf War. Mubarak was re-elected in 1987, 1993
and 1999. President Mohammed Morsi replaced Mubarak in 2012.
The
Assyrian Civilization
Assyria was the
second cycle of civilization after Egypt. It started as a Kingdom in northern
Mesopotamia, it became the centre of one of the great empires of the ancient
middle east. It was located in what is now northern Iraq and South eastern
Turkey.
Assyria was a dependency of Babylonia and later of the Mitanni Kingdom during the
second millennium BC. It emerged as an independent state in the 14th century BC and subsequently became a major power in
Mesopotamia Armenia and northern Syria.
Assyrian power
declined after the death of Tukulte Ninurtal in 1208 BC. It was restored briefly
in the 11th century BC by Tiglath Pileserl later,
both Assyria and its rivals were preoccupied with the incursions of the semi
nomadic Aramaeans, Assyrian kings began a new period of expansion in the 9th century BC and from the eight to the late 7th century BC a series of strong Assyrian Kings – among
the Tiglathe Pileser III, Saergon 11, Sennachrib and Earhaddon – United most of
the Middle East from Egypt to the Persia under Assyrian rule.
The last great Assyrian was Ashurbanipal, but his last years and the period
following his death in 627BC are obscure. The Assyrian state was finally
destroyed by a Chaldean – Median coalition in 612-609 BC. Famous for their
cruelty and fighting prowess, the Assyrians were also monumental builders as
shown by archaeological sites as Nineveh, Asher and Nimrod.
3rd Civilization: Babylon
Babylon is the
third world. Empire of false religion; following the flood of Nuhu’s day, false
religion began at Babel, later known as Babylon.
The city of Babylon was taken by the Persians under Cyrus the Great in 539 BC.
Today, Babylon is an uninhabited ruin, Nimrod started Babylon as an Empire. It
was later ruled by Balthazar.
An ancient cuneiform inscription reads: “Altogether there are in Babylon 53
temples of the chief gods, 55 chapels of Marduk, 300 chapels for the earthly
deities, 600 for the heavenly deities, 180 altars for the goddess Ishtar 180
other altars for different gods.” – Quoted from The Bible as History (New York
1964) w. Keller, P. 301.
The civilization of Egypt, Persia, and Greece felt the influence of the
Babylonian religion: from The Religion of Babylonia and Assyria (Boston) 1898
by M. Jastrow.
Babylon was the capital of the Chaldian Kingdom which grew to the Babylonia
Empire in the 7th
and 6th centuries BC. Then it was at the height
of its splendor. Its extensive runs on the Euphrates River about 55 miles south
of Baghdad lie in the modern state of Iraq.
After the fall of the third dynasty of Ur where Babylon was a provincial centre
became the nucleus of a kingdom established in 1894 BC by the Amorite king
Sumuabum, whose successor consolidated its status.
The sixth and best known of the Amorite dynasts – Hammurabi 1792 – 50 BC raised
Babylon to the capital of a kingdom comprising southern Mesopotamia and part of
Assyria in northern Iraq. Henceforth it became the main political, commercial
and administrative centre of Babylonia, while its wealth and prestige made it a
target for foreign conquerors. In 1570 BC the city passed into the control of
Kassites who established a dynasty lasting more than four centuries.
Babylon
Later in this period, Babylon becomes a literary and religious centre, the
prestige of which was reflected in the elevation of Marduk, its chief god to
supremacy in Mesopotamia. In 1234 Tukulte Ninurta of Assyria took Babylon,
though subsequently the Kassite dynasty itself reasserted itself until 1158
when city was sacked by the Elamites.
Babylon’s acknowledged political supremacy is shown by the fact that the
dynasty of Nebuchadnezzar (1124-30) made it their capital although they did not
originate there. This dynasty endured for more than a century.
Just before 1000BC, pressure from Arameans of Northern Syria brought
dislocation inside Babylon. From then to the fall of Assyria in the 7th century BC, there was a continual struggle between
Aramacous, Chaldeans and Assyrians for the control of the city. Finally,
disorders persuaded Sennachrib (704-681 BC) that peaceful control of Babylon
was impossible and in 689 he ordered the destruction of the city, but it fell
to Assyria in 648 BC.
Under Cyrus, the Persians took Babylon in 539 BC. But in 331 Babylon
surrendered to Alexander the Great who confirmed its privileges and sought to
make it his capital. In 323 Alexander died in the palace of Nebuchadnezzar.
After a power struggle among Alexander’s generals, Babylon passed to the
Seleucid dynasty in 312. The city lost its prestige by the building of a new
capital in Seleucid on the Tigris River.
Persian
Empire and Civilization 490-450 BC
Persia is the kingdom of Iran in southwestern Asia. Persia is its ancient name
when it was an empire embracing the Greek city states. However, a series of
wars broke out between the Greek city states and Persia over a period of almost
fifty years 492-449 BC.
The fighting was most intense during two invasions that Persia launched against
mainland Greece between 490 and 479 BC. Although the Persian Empire was at its
peak, the collective defense mounted by the Greeks overcame seemingly
impossible odds and even succeeded in liberating Greeks city-states on the
fringe of Persia itself. The Greek triumph ensured the survival of Greek
culture and political structures long after the demise of the Persian Empire.
In the generation before 522 BC, the Persia kings Cyrus and Cambyses extended
their rule from the Indus River valley to the Aegean Sea. After the defeat of
the Lydian King Croesus in 546, the Persians gradually conquered the small
Greek city states along the Anatolian coast. In 522 Darius came to power and
set about consolidating and strengthening the Persia Empire.
In 500, the Greeks again rebelled against Persia. This uprising known as the
Lonian Revolt, (500-494 BC), failed but its consequences for the Greeks were
momentous. In 490, a Persia army of 25000 men landed unopposed on the plain of
Marathon, and then Athenians appealed to Sparta to join against the invaders.
But the Spartans were detained by a festival. However, Athenians won a decisive
battle at Marathon.
After their defeat, the Persian went home to return 10 years later, led by
Darius successor, Xeroxes. A league against Persia was formed by the Greeks in
481. According to Herodotus, the Persian army number in the millions, making it
unwieldy. The Spartan general Leonidas dispatched his main army to safety but
fought to the death at Thermyopylae with the Spartan and Thespian soldiers who
remained to fight Persia.
Although Xeroxes returned to Persia, his army remained in Greece, Persia was
finally expelled after the battle of Palataca in 479 BC. The Persian navy was
defeated in Mycelex. Although the battles of Palataca and Mycelex ended the
Persian control of Greece, fighting continued between them for 30 years more.
Led by the Athenians, the newly formed Delian league went on to free the other
Greek city states and in 449 BC the peace of Callias finally ended hostilities
between Greece and Persia.
The
Greek Civilization
In many respects, ancient Greece was the mother of Western Civilization. Its
achievements were remarkable and its legacy in the arts and sciences
incalculable. But Greece began badly, for the Bronze Age History (3000-1200BC)
of Greece is trivial beside that of the great empires of Mesopotamia and Egypt.
About 2000 BC, an Aegean Civilization known as Minoan developed on the Island
of Crete. The Minoans were literate, urban and into maritime trade. Natural
disasters and conquests terminated the Minoan civilization in about 1400BC.
Indo-Europeans started entering Greece in about 2000 BC. The resulting
Mycenaean civilization from about 1600 BC was heavily influenced by Crete. In
1200BC the Dorians, an Indo-European people invaded Greece precipitating a dark
age. By 750 BC Classical Greece began to emerge from a loose composite of city
states heavily involved in maritime trade and a devotion to art, literature,
politics and philosophy. This remarkable Greek civilization reached its zenith
in the 5th century BC after repelling the Persian
invasions in Greco – Persian wars.
In 338BC, Philip II of Macedon took over the Greek city states. Thereafter,
Greece enjoyed immortality as its culture was spread by Philip’s son Alexander
the Great throughout his vast empire. The Romans conquered the Greek city
states during 205-146 BC.
The Barbarians reduced Greece further during the late Roman Empire but Greeks
culture and language survived. Through the efforts of the Greek Orthodox
Church, in the 5th
and 7th century AD Greeks were converted to
Christianity. The crusaders sacked Constantinople in 1204 but by 1453 Greece
had fallen to the Ottoman Turks.
However, Greek independence was recognized in 1832, Otto 1 ascended the Greek
throne in 1833. Driven to exile in 1862, Otto was replaced by George 1.
Instability marked much of 20th century government but it survives today as a member
of the European Union.
The
Roman Empire
The ancient state that centered on the city of Rome started as a republic in
509 BC. The empire was established in 27BC. The final eclipse of the empire in
the West occurred in the 5th
century AD. Roman Empire in the East was known as the Byzantine Empire.
The early Roman Republic was between 509 to 264 BC and the regal period was
between 753 to 509 BC, Rome had been a republic founded in 753 BC, the republic
had begun in 5709 BC following the overthrow in a popular uprising of Luscious
Tarquinius, the last of Rome’s seven Kings.
Thereafter, the Romans elected two consuls annually to act as magistrate in
place of a king. These consuls were usually generals tasks it was to lead
Rome’s armies in war. In times of military emergency when unity of command was
necessary, Rome appointed a dictator, in place of the consuls. The dictator
however, cannot hold supreme military command for longer than six months. The
Senate served as an advisory council for both magistrates and dictators.
In 451BC Rome reserved its first written law code, inscribed upon 121 bronze
tablets and publicity displayed in the Forum.
During the 6th century BC Rome became the largest Latin
city, owing to the achievements of its Etruscan overloads, Rome became the
master of the Latins in 338 BC, by 275 BC Rome had become master of all Italy.
Soon Rome’s success led it into conflict with Carthage, in North Africa.
The ensuing battles known as Punic Wars spanned the years 264-146 BC. Two great
military geniuses were among the leaders in these wars. Hannibal led the
Carthaginuan forces from 220 to 200 BC when he was defeated by the Roman
Commander Scipio Africanus Elder. The Romans occupied Carthage, they destroyed
it completely in 146.
The defeat of this powerful rival made Rome master of the entire Mediterranean
area. To the east, the Romans defeated Syria, Macedonia, Greece and Egypt all
of which had until then destroyed the Achaean League and burned Corinth in 146
BC. Then, the Romans organized the conquered people into provinces – under the
control of appointed governors. They also stationed troops in each province.
Unrest and civil war in Rome fueled by inequality created by slavery marked the
transition of Rome from republic to an empire. Notable figures in the civil
wars included Gaius Marius a military leader who was elected consul seven times
and Sulla, an army officer. The civil wars encompassed the careers of Pompey,
Orator Cicero and Julius Caesar, who was later elected dictator of Rome.
After Caesar’s assassination in 44 BC, the triumvirate of Mark Antony, Lepidus
and Octavian, Caesar”s nephew, ruled. Not long after, Octavian went to war
against Antony and after his victory at Actium in 31 BC, he was crowned Rome’s
first emperor, Augustus. His reign, from 27 BC to AD 14 was distinguished by
stability and peace.
Augustus established a form of government known as a principate – a cross
between republicanism and monarchy. The senate still functioned, though
Augustus as prince, or first citizen ruled unrestrained by any one. Under
Augustus, prosperity returned to Rome and the emperor came to be looked upon as
a god. Thereafter all good emperors were worshipped as gods-after death. Among
the beloved rulers of Rome were Hadrian-reigned 98-117, 117-138, Antoninus Pius
138-161, and Marcus Aurelius 161-180. Decadent, cruel men also rose to power.
Caligula and Nero were so loathed that their reigns were struck from the
official Roman records.
It was during the rule of Tiberuis 14-39 AD that Jesus Christ was crucified.
Thereafter, Christians were tolerated, but often tortured or killed until the
reign of Constantine 1, 312-237 AD. In 313 an edict of tolerance for all
religious was issued and from AD 320, Christianity was favoured by the Roman
State.
But the empire was dying. The last Constantine’s line Theodosius 1 AD 379-395
was the last emperor to rule over a unified Roman Empire. When Theodosius died
in 395 Rome split into Eastern and Western Empires.
The West was shaken in 410 when the city of Rome was sacked by the northern.
Roman fall was completed in 476 when Odoacer deposed the last Roman emperor
Romulus Augudtulus. The east continued as the Byzantine Empire through the
European Middle Ages.
The
Anglo American Civilization
Seventh
Civilization
The
civilization by the name of Anglo American is not restricted to the cultural
entities of the United States whose folkways have been those of northern
Europe. Anglo American civilization comprises the United States and Canada, the
United Kingdom and the commonwealth and the states of the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization (NATO).
The expressions Anglo has come to signify a white, of British descent, English
speaking, North American and European as distinct from other groups. Thus, the
Anglo American civilization is the present power structure in the world where
the United States and its allied have become the dominant power in the world
today.
So, I wish to give the historical reasons why the folkways of Britain and the
United States have become dominant in the modern world. The United Kingdom (UK)
entered World War II in 1939 and battled German and Japanese forces in Europe,
Africa and Asia. After the war the Irish Free state became the republic of
Ireland and left the Commonwealth. India also gained independence thereafter.
During the 20th century, UK underwent a quiet revolution
with the advent of the Labour Party and the creation of a welfare state, the
first Labour premier was Ramsay Mac Donald in 1924m and in the 1945 election,
Labour Party, espousing a socialist platform, won an overwhelming majority in
parliament and at once embarked on a nationalization programme.
The state acquired the Bank of England, the coal mines, inland mass transport,
aviation, gas and electricity. It put through a cradle-to grave social
insurance plan and set up a National Health Service to provide free medical
care. Subsequent conservative governments denationalized some sectors but the
basic welfare state remained.
In 1973, Britain joined the European Economic Community, now part of the
European Union, however, Conservative Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher
sponsored many changes in the 1980s that favoured private enterprise and
discouraged governmental introduced Constitutional reforms which established
regional governments in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
The Japanese attack on Pearls Harbour brought the US into World War II on the
side of Britain, and the Soviet Union against Germany, Japan and Italy. After
victory was achieved in 1945, the US experienced three decades of economic
prosperity. The Allied Victory in 1945 left the US the leader of the western
world. Subsequently, it got embroiled in 40-year-long rivalry with the Soviet
Union that became known as the Cold War, in 1949, it formed the North Atlantic
Treaty Organization so as to counter the Soviet Military presence in Eastern
Europe and Korea.
In defence of South Korea, the US engaged in war in Korea between 1950 and
1953. The war spread to Vietnam in 1955-75. However, the US involvement in
Korea and Vietnam was accompanied by the Watergate Scandal which forced the
resignation of US President Richard Nixon in 1974.
The US resumed its anticommunist foreign policy under President Ronald Reagan
(1981-89) whose administration saw to the break-up of the Soviet Union in 1991,
thus making the United States the world’s only super power. The US prepared
during Bill Clinton’s term 1993 – 2001 with its first budget surplus in 30
years.
In 2001 the September 11 attacks against the US killed more than 3000 people
and raised the specter of international terrorism. This led George Bush Jnr
later in the year to topple the Taliban government in Afghanistan which was
harbouring the mastermind of the attacks, Osama bin Ladin. The administration
also overthrew the Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein in 2003. George Walker Bush
was re-elected in 2004, narrowly defeating Democratic challenger John Kerry.
The Anglo American new world order came into being after the Soviet Union was
dissolved in 1991. The status of this alliance was enhanced by its success in
gaining the support of the United Nations to push Iraqi forces out of Kuwait
during the First Persian Gulf War. The US also led the world Second Persian
Gulf War in 2003. The participation of NATO members states in the US led war in
Iraq is the apogee of the Anglo American civilization. Thus, this is the
seventh and last civilization of the Mahdi while the Christians are looking for
the second coming of Jesus Christ who will launch his millennium, his 1000 year
rule which shall be the beginning of God’s kingdom.
Civilization
Cycles
Part
Three: Epilogue
The subject of this dissertation is Imran which means civilization cycles. In
the prologue we were able to answer the question: why did civilization cycles
occur? In part two, we were able to identify the civilizations in question.
The aim of this Epilogue therefore, is to chart the course to the restoration
of Allah’s sovereignty. The Mahdi is seen as a restorer of power and religious
purity in Islam. At this period of human history therefore, we are to expect
the emergence of the Mahdi. Many self styled Mahdis have emerged in the past.
One was Ubayd Allah, founder of the Fatigued dynasty in Islam. Another is
Muhammad Ibn Tumart, the founder of the Almohad Movement in Morocco in the 12th century AD and Muhammad Ahmad, the Mahdi of the Sudan
who in 1881 revolted against Egyptian control of the Sudan.
Also, Ghulam Ahmad claimed to be a Mahdi. He
was born in India in 1839. He died in 1908. He founded the Ahmadiyah Movement
in Islam. Ghulam’s teachings were incorporated in the beliefs of the Ahmadiyah.
Ghulams teachings and practices as espoused by the Ahmadiyah Movement has had a
great influenced in the proselytisation of Islam in Nigeria. The Ahmadiyah
established the first non-Christian educational institutions in Nigeria and in
Southern Nigeria in particular.
In the 1550s, Nostradamus, a Christian seer predicted the emergence of an
anti-Christ during the first half of the 21st century. It may well be that the quest to scuttle
this is why the US has engaged in the destruction of the Taliban regime in
Afghanistan, Saddam Hussein in Iraq and a possible incursion to Iran later on.
To my mind, this antichrist may well be Islam’s Mahdi.
Notwithstanding, Christians are also expecting the second coming of Jesus
Christ around this time. At all events, the best Muslims can do to prepare the
way for the Mahdi is to transform the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC)
to the Islamic Treaty Organization (ITO) to contain aggression against member
states. The ITO will provide a bulwark against external intervention in the
affairs of Muslims.
Since OIC was founded in Saudi Arabia in 1971 with the aims of promoting
Islamic solidarity, prosperity and the promotion of Islamic education, its
transformation would provide safe landing for the Mahdi, the restorer of
paradise on earth. The rule of the Mahdi is Islam’s counterpoise to the second
coming of Jesus Christ and his millennial rule.
Notes
on the Author
Ogunmupe,
Chief Bayo Robiu, journalist, historian and columnist, was born in Abope, Osun
State on 18 April, 1948. He was educated at the International School, Ibadan;
the Universities of Ibadan and Geneva, and the London School of Economics, UK.
Ogunmupe taught History and English at Oranyan Grammar School, Oyo, Lautai High
School, Gumel, Jigawa and Okebadan High School, Ibadan.
As a journalist, he was Political Editor, Daily Sketch, Features Editor,
Nigerian Tribune, Ibadan. He was copy editor and columnist on the Daily Champion,
Newswatch, Daily Independent and The Guardian, Lagos.
He also consults for the University of Ilorin, Nigeria.
Ogunmupe holds the Chieftaincy title of Akede Adini of Ilasamaja, Lagos,
Nigeria.
He is married with children.
remained
firmly planted in the Hellenic world. T
