What is your opinion with regard to the two eclipses to occur in the coming Ramadhan? What is supposed to happen after that?

I have read the attached information and here are my comments:%0D%0AA narration does appear in some books of hadith that a dual eclipse shall%0D%0Aoccur during the Ramadaan of the year in which Imam Mahdi is scheduled to%0D%0Amake his appearance. For the benefit of readers, I reproduce the text and%0D%0Acommentary of this particular narration:%0D%0AImam Ali bin Umar D?r-e-Qutni states in his collection of ah?dith:%0D%0AAMy Ustaad Abu Saeed Istakhri narrates from his Ustaad Muhammad bin%0D%0AAbdullah, who narrates from his Ustaad Ubaid bin Ya=eesh, and he narrates%0D%0Afrom Yunus bin Bukair, and he from Amar bin Shamir, and he from Jaabir who%0D%0Anarrates that Muhammad bin Ali said:%0D%0AAVerily, for our Mahdi there are two signs which have never as yet concurred%0D%0Asince the creation of the heavens and earth; first is the eclipse of the%0D%0Amoon on the first night of Ramadan, and second is the eclipse of the sun%0D%0Aduring the middle of that same Ramadan. This (concurrence of a solar and%0D%0Alunar eclipse) has never happened since Allah created the heavens and%0D%0Aearth.%40%0D%0A(D?re Qutni vol.2 p.65)%0D%0A%0D%0ATHE CHAIN OF TRANSMISSION%0D%0ASanad or Isnaad are Arabic terms which mean the chain of transmission%0D%0Athrough which a hadith or narration is transmitted. In order to verify%0D%0Awhether a hadith or narration is authentic and reliable, the narrators whose%0D%0Anames appear in the sanad are scrutinised. This procedure, known in Islamic%0D%0Aterminology as Jarah wa Ta=deel, was used extensively by the Imams and%0D%0AMuhadditheen of old. They have set out a code of conduct according to which%0D%0Athey examined and critically analysed the narrators of any hadith. If even%0D%0Aone Raawi (narrator) is discovered to be unreliable or untrustworthy, the%0D%0Aentire narration becomes seriously suspect. Such a hadith or narration can%0D%0Anever be accepted as a basis for any Islamic belief or practice. They%0D%0Aadopted this procedure in order to prevent fabrications and false narratives%0D%0Afrom creeping into the pristine pure teachings of Islam. It has quite%0D%0Arightly been said: AIf these chains of transmission were non-existent then%0D%0Aeveryone and anyone would say what they like.%40%0D%0AUpon studying the chain of transmission quoted above we firstly notice that%0D%0Athis sanad does not reach right up to Rasoolullah sallall?hu alaihi%0D%0Awasallam. It stops on Muhammad bin Ali, the great-grandson of Ameerul%0D%0AMumineen Hazrat Ali radhiyallahu anhu. Such a narration, where there is no%0D%0Adirect link with Rasoolullah sallall?hu alaihi wasallam, is termed Munqati=,%0D%0Aand most Ulema do not regard such a transmission as tenable proof for any%0D%0ADeeni practice or belief. Secondly, two names appear in this chain, viz.%0D%0AAmar bin Shamir and Jaabir. Let us now study statements of the Muhadditheen%0D%0Aregarding the authenticity and integrity of these two:%0D%0AThe author, Imam D?re Qutni himself, after quoting this narration, singles%0D%0Aout these two figures in the chain of transmission and states:%0D%0AABoth are unreliable narrators. Their narrations are not admissible as proof%0D%0Ato substantiate any claim.%40 (D?re Qutni vol.2 p.65)%0D%0A%0D%0A%0D%0A%0D%0AAllama Zhahabi, a great authority on hadith has the following entry in his%0D%0Afamous critique, Meezaanul I=tidaal:%0D%0AAmar bin Shamir: A Shia from K?fa. Yahya (bin Mu=een) says: A(He is) a%0D%0Anon-entity.%40 Jauzjaani says: AA misguided impostor.%40 Ibni Hibbaan says:%0D%0AAThis man is a Shia who insults the Sahaba, and fabricates narrations in the%0D%0Aname of authentic Ulema%40. Imam Bukhari says: AHis narrations are rejected%40.%0D%0AYahya says: AHis narrations should not be recorded.%40 Suleimani says: AThis%0D%0AAmar used to fabricate narrations for the Shias.%40 Imam Nasaai says: AHis%0D%0Anarrations have been discarded.%40%0D%0A(Meezaanul I=tidaal vol. P.268)%0D%0A%0D%0AAllama Ibni Hajar quotes the following in his work, Lisaanul Meezaan:%0D%0AIbni Abi Haatim says: I asked my father(Abu Haatim) about him (Amar bin%0D%0AShamir), and he replied: AHis ahadeeth are totally rejected, a weak%0D%0Anarrator, a person one should never get involved with. The Muhadditheen have%0D%0Aforsaken him.%40 Abu Abdullah Haakim (a high ranking authority on hadith)%0D%0Astates: AHe has many fabrications narrated from Jabir Ju=afi, and no-one%0D%0Aelse besides him (Amar bin Shamir) narrate these blatant fabrications from%0D%0AJabir.%40%0D%0A(Lisaanul Meezaan vol. P. 367)%0D%0A%0D%0AFrom the above it is evident that this narration is very weak and flimsy,%0D%0Aand cannot serve as the basis for any firm belief or practice. You will%0D%0Anotice many signs attributed to Imam Mehdi=s appearance in the books of%0D%0Ahadith, which are derived from extremely weak, unsound, and doubtful%0D%0Anarrations. Some of these appear to come from Shia sources, of which the%0D%0Aabove is a typical example. Note the words, AVerily, for our Mahdi....%40. The%0D%0AShiahs have their own concept of a Imam Mehdi, which differs vastly to what%0D%0Athe Ahle Sunnah Wal Jama-ah believe and teach.%0D%0AApart from the above, let us consider some other aspects to this narration.%0D%0AAssuming that the narration is sound and good, the content matter is%0D%0Adifficult to reconcile with scientific evidence (which we are presently%0D%0Ausing to figure out these signs). It states that the lunar eclipse will%0D%0Aoccur on the first night of Ramadaan. Now it is common knowledge that lunar%0D%0Aeclipses only occur when there is full moon, and that can be on the 13th ,%0D%0A14th , or 15th nights of the Islamic month. According to the information%0D%0Aobtained from the Observatory, the lunar eclipse will occur on 9 November,%0D%0Aand that should be somewhere in the middle of Ramadaan. Logically too, one%0D%0Acannot imagine an eclipse of the new moon (which too many may happen every%0D%0Amonth when they go out to sight the moon!).%0D%0ASecondly, this particular concurrence of eclipse, I believe, will not be%0D%0Avisible from the same belt of earth. The lunar eclipse on November 9, 2003%0D%0Awill be visible from America, Africa, and Europe, while the solar eclipse on%0D%0A23 November will be seen from Antarctica (of all places). For this sign to%0D%0Abe accepted, both eclipses must be seen from the same belt of earth, and in%0D%0Aparticular, from Arabia, for this is the context of this sign of Imam Mehdi.%0D%0AIt seems that this is not the case with this particular eclipse.%0D%0AWhen I enquired from the same Observatory several years ago about the same%0D%0Aphenomenon, they replied that a dual eclipse is not uncommon and happens%0D%0Aoften. (That is, at different parts of the world) They provided some charts%0D%0Awhich depict different areas where both solar and lunar eclipses will occur%0D%0Aover the next two decades (i.e. up to 2015), advising me to study these%0D%0Acharts. Apparently they were too busy to enlist places and dates where a%0D%0Adual eclipse was to occur. Nonetheless, this observation of the Observatory%0D%0A(if you'll excuse the pun) that such a happening is not uncommon means that%0D%0Ayou will frequently find a situation when in one area of the world there is%0D%0Aa solar eclipse and, concurrently, at another place there is a lunar%0D%0Aeclipse. This, of course, can and does happen frequently. They further%0D%0Astated that a dual eclipse from the same belt of the earth is less frequent.%0D%0AWell, if you can recall, in June 1992, here in South Africa we had a similar%0D%0Aexperience of a lunar and solar eclipse in the month of June, for which we%0D%0Aeven offered Salaatul-Kusoof in the Musjid. Both were visible in South%0D%0AAfrica.%0D%0AThirdly, the signs attributed to Imam Mehdi are all unique in their%0D%0Aoccurence. This dual eclipse, too, must be unique. Yet, it appears that such%0D%0Aa dual eclipse in one month in the same area of the world has already%0D%0Ahappened. The words in the narration clearly state that "this has never%0D%0Ahappened since Allah created the world". So if we are to accept the%0D%0Anarration as it is, with an eclipse of new moon and all, how do we reconcile%0D%0Athis statement when we have already experienced a dual eclipse in one month?%0D%0AYes, one might say that such an event has never happened before IN RAMADAAN,%0D%0Aor that an eclipse of the new moon has never yet occurred, and it may be a%0D%0A"first". The first is possible, the second (of it being a "first")%0D%0Aimprobable, but the first is dependent upon acceptance of the second - first%0D%0Aaccept that eclipse of the new moon is possible, then say it will happen for%0D%0Athe first time in Ramadaan.%0D%0AFurthermore, a lunar eclipse is called such because the entire moon is cast%0D%0Ainto shadow, and that's what makes it so dramatic. But the crescent at the%0D%0Astart of an Islamic month is already barely noticeable, what's so grand%0D%0Aabout it not being noticed at all? (Ask the people of PE who go%0D%0Amoon-sighting every month!)%0D%0ALets move on to another aspect. Sorry for the quick shift in line of%0D%0Athought, for perhaps you may need time to sift through my maze of confusion%0D%0Aabove. Leaving alone the authenticity of such an event, what is important is%0D%0Anot to create hysteria among people for no reason. Also, not to present%0D%0Asomething of Islam which may turn out to be false. The prediction we now%0D%0Adiscuss was brought up several years earlier by a certain Moulana. I believe%0D%0Asome people, after listening to his talk of the dual eclipse in 2003 or%0D%0A2004, actually intended selling up and going to settle in Makka to await the%0D%0Acoming of Imam Mehdi. Now this is not healthy for anyone. Besides, the%0D%0Ahadith shareef is very clearly THAT IMAM MEHDI WILL APPEAR WHEN PEOPLE LEAST%0D%0AEXPECT, AND THE FIRST GROUP OF ULEMA AND BUZRUGS WHO TAKE BAY'AT AT HIS%0D%0AHANDS WILL DO SO UNEXPECTEDLY. Now if this is the case with the pious people%0D%0Awho will be honoured to take first bay'at at his hands, do we think we can%0D%0Ado better by either searching out for him, or awaiting his advent? This is%0D%0Asomething that will take its natural course. None of the signs are such that%0D%0Apeople can actually predict them with accuracy. Yes, once it really happens,%0D%0Athen one can attribute it to the Imam. Once Hazrat Umar and Hazrat Ali were%0D%0Apassing by a certain area of Iraq, on the banks of the Tigris or Euphrates%0D%0ARiver. The former remarked: "I've heard Rasoolullah (sallallahu alaihi%0D%0Awasallam) speak of the treasures that this area will throw up. Perhaps I%0D%0Ashould make an attempt to unearth these treasures (thus fulfilling the%0D%0Aprophecy)." Ali (Radhiyallahi anhu) said: "O Ameerul-Mumineen, forget it and%0D%0Ajust keep walking ahead. These treasures are not your department. Instead a%0D%0Ayouth among the Quraish, who will be called Mehdi, will see to this." This%0D%0Aincident proves that such signs must take their fixed course and cannot be%0D%0Apre-empted.%0D%0A%0D%0A%0D%0AI believe that we should concentrate on the signs that are chronicled in%0D%0Aauthentic and sound ahadith, so that we are sure of our teaching and belief,%0D%0Aand we do not run the risk of inadvertently endorsing a Shia concept.%0D%0ADespite extensive research we could not find any other hadith book recording%0D%0Athis event as given above, besides the work of Imam Daare-qutni, from which%0D%0Awe have obviously quoted. Sometimes the author will cite a narrative purely%0D%0Ato reject and criticise it, which I think is what the author of Daarie-Qutni%0D%0Ahas done. Also, all subsequent books that do mention this event quote it%0D%0Afrom the same Daar-e-Qutni.%0D%0A%0D%0AInsha-Allah, an updated version of our book, The Story of Imam Mahdi will%0D%0Asoon be handed in for publication. We shall be referring therein to this%0D%0Aincident.%0D%0A%0D%0AWas-salaam%0D%0A%0D%0ASiraj Desai