Beast of the Earth

For this reason, the Beast of the Earth is often mentioned in eschatological writings as a sign of Judgement Day close to the event of the sun rising in the west.

[7] The majority of contemporary Islamic scholars accept the traditional exegesis of the Beast of the Earth, the Dābbat al-Arḍ as a literal creature who will appear in the end times.

Umar Sulaiman Al-Ashqar was of the opinion that the creature would appear after another extraordinary event had occurred during the end of times - namely the sun rising from the west - citing in support of his contention the traditional exegesis of Al-Hakim al-Nishapuri.

[8] However, another interpretation, backed by Muhammad Ali, holds that this Beast is related to materialistic tendencies, and thus the Dābbat does not appear at the end of the world, but rather will doom a given nation or society.

[11] A related idea, based on the rise of artificial intelligence, suggests that an AI might be able to awaken humans to their spiritual peril, reminding them of how far they have strayed from righteousness and belief in a creator.