‘I invite you toward God and His Messenger...

‘I invite you toward God and His Messenger, the implementation of His Book, the annihilation of falsehood, and the revival and restoration of the life conduct ( sirah ) of the Prophet (S).’ Then, he will appear in the midst of his three hundred and thirteen companions.”[^10] The Slogan on the Flag of the Uprising Every government has a flag by which it can be recognized, and uprisings and revolutions also have particular flags whose logos bespeak of the objectives of their leaders.

The global revolution of Hadrat al-Mahdi ( ‘a ) has also a specific flag on which a slogan has been inscribed.

Of course, although there are differences with respect to the slogan on his flag, there is a common point in all the statements and that is: It invites the people to obey him ( ‘a ).[^11] Now, it would suffice to mention some pertinent instances: It has been recorded in a hadith : “It is thus written on the flag of Hadrat al-Mahdi ( ‘atfs ): ‘Listen and obey him’.”[^12] Elsewhere, we read: “The slogan of al-Mahdi’s ( ‘atfs ) flag is al-bay‘atu lillah (the allegiance for the sake of Allah).”[^13] The Gladness of the People of the World for the Uprising It can be understood from the hadith s that the uprising of al-Mahdi ( ‘a ) will bring delight to the people of the world.

This gladness and pleasure has been expressed in various forms. Some hadith s mention the gladness of the inhabitants of the heaven and the earth while others mention the gladness of the dead ones. Some hadith s discuss the people’s reception of the uprising and others mention their wish for their dead to be revived.

Here, we will quote some of these hadith s: • The Messenger of Allah (S) said: “All the inhabitants of the heaven and the earth—the birds, beasts of prey, and fishes of the sea—will be happy and glad at the advent of Hadrat al-Mahdi ( ‘atfs ).”[^14] • The Commander of the Faithful ‘Ali ( ‘a ) said in this regard: “When Hadrat al-Mahdi ( ‘atfs ) appears, his blessed name will be mentioned on different tongues and people will be so full of love for him that no name other than his will be on their minds and tongues and friendship with him will enliven their spirits.”[^15] • The phrase “ yashribuna hubbuh ”—“they are imbibing his love”—has been used in hadith where love for him has been compared to water or a pleasant beverage, which the people will drink with the utmost pleasure and their love for him will influence their existence.