The Smoke Before the Hour: What Sunni Scholars Said

Among the major signs before the Last Hour is the Smoke, known in Arabic as Ad-Dukhan.

It is one of the most striking signs mentioned in the Qur’an and authentic hadith. It is also one of the signs where Sunni scholars discussed an important question: did it already occur during the time of the Prophet ﷺ, or is it still to appear near the end of time?

The Qur’an says:

“Wait then ˹O Prophet˺ for the day ˹when˺ the sky will be veiled in haze, clearly visible, overwhelming the people. ˹They will cry,˺ ‘This is a painful torment.’”
Surah Ad-Dukhan 44:10-11

The wording is direct. A visible smoke will cover people, and it will be recognised as a painful punishment.

The Smoke Among the Major Signs

The clearest hadith evidence comes from Sahih Muslim.

Hudhayfah ibn Usayd al-Ghifari reported that the Prophet ﷺ came upon the Companions while they were discussing the Last Hour. He said that the Hour would not come until they saw ten signs, and he mentioned among them: the Smoke, the Dajjal, the Beast, the rising of the sun from the west, the descent of Isa ibn Maryam, Gog and Magog, three landslides, and a fire from Yemen that will drive people to their gathering place.

This establishes the Smoke as one of the major signs of the Hour.

It is not a minor event. It belongs to the final sequence of world-changing signs before the end of human history.

The View of Ibn Mas’ud: It Already Happened

One major interpretation comes from Abdullah ibn Mas’ud, may Allah be pleased with him.

In Sahih al-Bukhari, Ibn Mas’ud explained that the Smoke referred to a severe famine that struck Quraysh after they rejected the Prophet ﷺ. They became so exhausted by hunger that a person would look at the sky and imagine seeing something like smoke between himself and the sky. He connected this to the verses in Surah Ad-Dukhan and said that the “mighty grasp” mentioned afterwards referred to the Battle of Badr.

Ibn Kathir records this position in his tafsir and notes that Ibn Mas’ud said five signs had already passed: the Smoke, the Romans, the splitting of the moon, the mighty grasp, and al-Lizam. Ibn Kathir also mentions that a number of early scholars agreed with Ibn Mas’ud’s interpretation, including Mujahid, Abu al-Aliyah, Ibrahim al-Nakha’i, al-Dahhak and others.

This view understands the Smoke as a punishment that already came upon Quraysh in the Prophet’s time.

The Other View: It Is Still to Come

Another strong Sunni view is that the Smoke has not yet appeared and remains one of the awaited major signs before the Hour.

Al-Qurtubi records this as the first view in his tafsir, saying that the Smoke is from the signs of the Hour and has not yet come. He mentions that it will fill what is between the heaven and the earth, and that the believer will be affected by it like a cold, while the disbeliever and sinner will suffer from it more severely. He also lists several early authorities who held that it had not yet appeared, including Ali, Ibn Abbas, Ibn Umar, Abu Hurayrah, al-Hasan and others.

Ibn Kathir also presents this future view. After mentioning Ibn Mas’ud’s position, he writes that others said the Smoke has not yet passed, but is from the signs of the Hour. He then cites the hadith of Hudhayfah ibn Usayd in Sahih Muslim, where the Prophet ﷺ counted the Smoke among the ten major signs.

At the end of his discussion, Ibn Kathir says the reports from the Companions and Successors, together with raised narrations, indicate that the Smoke is one of the awaited signs. He also states that the apparent meaning of the Qur’an supports this, because the verse describes a clear visible smoke that everyone will see.

Why Scholars Differed

The difference is not because the sources are weak. It is because the evidence points in two directions.

On one side, Ibn Mas’ud had a specific historical explanation connected to Quraysh, famine and Badr. That explanation is recorded in Sahih al-Bukhari.

On the other side, Sahih Muslim records the Smoke as one of the ten major signs before the Hour, alongside the Dajjal, the Beast and the rising of the sun from the west.

Because of this, many scholars treated the issue carefully. Some held that the Qur’anic Smoke referred to the famine of Quraysh. Others held that the true final Smoke is still to come. Some reconciled the evidence by saying that one smoke occurred in the past, while another greater Smoke remains among the signs before the Hour.

What Will the Smoke Do?

The reports mention that the Smoke will affect people differently.

Al-Qurtubi records the view that the believer will experience it like a cold, while the disbeliever and sinner will be struck by it severely.

Ibn Kathir also cites reports with this meaning, including narrations that describe the believer being affected like one suffering from a cold, while the disbeliever is overwhelmed more intensely.

The exact physical details should not be exaggerated beyond the evidence. What is clear is that the Smoke will be a public, visible, painful sign connected to the final phase before the Hour.

The Warning Behind the Smoke

The Smoke is not mentioned to entertain curiosity.

It is a warning.

Human beings often ignore signs when they come as revelation, advice, history, death, illness or disaster. The Smoke represents a stage when denial is no longer comfortable. It covers people. It surrounds them. It cannot be ignored.

That is why the Qur’an describes it as clear and overwhelming.

The message is simple: do not wait for signs that remove the luxury of denial.

Conclusion

The Smoke before the Hour is established in the Qur’an and authentic Sunnah.

Surah Ad-Dukhan mentions a visible smoke covering people as a painful punishment. Sahih Muslim lists the Smoke among the ten major signs before the Hour. Sahih al-Bukhari records Ibn Mas’ud’s interpretation that the Smoke occurred during the famine of Quraysh.

Sunni scholars therefore discussed the matter with precision. Some said it already happened. Others said it is still to come. A strong reconciliatory reading is that Quraysh experienced a smoke-like punishment in the past, while the greater Smoke remains one of the awaited signs before the Last Hour.

Either way, the lesson remains urgent.

Before the sky changes, the heart must change.

Before the signs become overwhelming, the believer must return to Allah with certainty.