The Good News for the Strangers

📖Sahih Muslim 145
It is narrated on the authority of Abu Huraira that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “Islam began as something strange, and it will return to being strange as it began, so give glad tidings to the strangers.”

Explanation:
Some interpret this Hadith as a sign of Islam’s decline or a shrinking Muslim population. But that’s not what it truly means. It refers to religious practice becoming rare, not the number of Muslims. At some point in history, true adherence to Islam may seem strange again – not because people leave Islam completely, but because they drift from its core teachings.

If this happens, it’s a wake-up call for Muslims – not a prophecy of doom. Islam will never disappear. It may seem rare in its true form during certain times, but it will rise again.

Quranic Context:

📖Quran 9:33
It is He who has sent His Messenger with guidance and the religion of truth to prevail over all religion, even though the disbelievers hate it.
True Islam is destined to prevail – not disappear. The Hadith refers to spiritual strangeness, not a collapse in numbers.

This Hadith is a call to revival, not despair.