In the narrations are various different prophecies about the Mahdi (May God be pleased with him), who is one of the signs of the end of time and will be from the Family of the Prophet. In fact, some scholars and saints stated long ago that he had appeared.
God knows best what is right, one interpretation of these various narrations is this: the Great Mahdi will have numerous functions. He will carry out duties in the world of politics, the world of religion, the world of government, and in the many spheres of the world of jihad. Similarly, since every century at a time of despair people are in need of a sort of Mahdi to strengthen their morale or for the possibility of a Mahdi appearing at that time to assist them, through Divine Mercy, every age or perhaps every century a sort of Mahdi has appeared from among the Prophet’s (PBUH) descendants, and preserved his forefather’s Shari‘a and revived his Sunna. The narrations about the Mahdi are various because Muhammad (Peace and blessings be upon him) saw persons who would perform some of the Great Mahdi’s works; for example, the ‘Abbasid Mahdi in the world of politics, and Gawth al-A‘zam, Shah Naqshband, the four spiritual poles, and Twelve Imams in the world of religion. For this reason some of the people of reality said that he had already appeared. Anyway, since this matter has been explained in the Risale-i Nur, we refer discussion of it to that and here only say this:
There is no family in the world so mutually supportive, nor a tribe in such agreement, nor so enlightened a community or society as the family, tribe, community and society of the Prophet’s Family.
Bediuzzaman Said Nursi
Yes, the Prophet’s Family has raised hundreds of sacred heroes, and produced thousands of spiritual leaders of the Umma, and has been nurtured with the leaven of the reality of the Qur’an and the light of belief and honour of Islam, and has thus been perfected. It is therefore totally reasonable that through reviving the Shari‘a of Muhammad (PBUH) and his Sunna and the reality of the Qur’an at the end of time, and proclaiming them and putting them into practice, they should display to the world the perfect justice and veracity of the Great Mahdi, their Commander-in-Chief. This is also both necessary and essential and demanded by the principles of human society.