“Inspired by Islam”

During the ‘madness’ called youth and those tumultous teenage years, we find ourselves constantly searching. Searching for happiness, love and affirmation; searching for direction and purpose; undoubtedly searching for inspiration. How fortunate are those who find all that they are searching for in the haven called Islam! How blessed are those who experience the inspiration of Islam. In this month’s article in the series In The Embrace of Islam, a young Irish sister shares her story of reversion and of simply being…inspired by Islam.

“Assalaamualaikum. Bismillahirahmaniraheem. Praise be to ALLAH, the Lord of the worlds and may peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad sallallahualaiwassallam. I was born in the UK, to a Catholic family originally from Ireland. I was an only child and during my childhood and youth, I preferred not to intermingle with the opposite sex as well as preferring to stay away from alcohol, smoking and going to nightclubs as was the way of my friends and classmates.

However, I never really thought about religion or even the purpose of life. The first time that I came across Islam was during a World Religions class at the age of sixteen. I studied all the religions but the only religion that captured my heart was Islam. First I studied and learnt about the basics of Islam. For example the five pillars of Islam: praying salaah five times a day; fasting in Ramadaan; giving zakaah and supporting the needy; going for pilgrimage to Makkah and the testimony of faith.

There were a few aspects that truly inspired and drew me to Islam. Firstly, that all our bad and evil deeds are forgiven upon embracing Islam and becoming a Muslim; emigrating for the sake of ALLAH and doing the pilgrimage of Hajj. Secondly, was the belief in One God, Who has no partners as well as belief in all the Messengers including Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Mohammed (Peace be upon them all). ALLAH says in the Holy Quraan, “Do not worship anyone but me.” And the final thing which truly inspired me was the fact that most Muslims come across as very devoted to their Lord, completely submitting themselves to their Creator by not only praying five times a day but also by utilising every second to please Almighty ALLAH.

Even the Prophet sallallahualaiwassallam said, “The least amount of faith is to remove an obstacle from the road.” So I became a Muslim at the age of seventeen and I have been inspired by the discovery that Islam is the straight path; a religion of truth, logic and reason. In Islam I could find answers to all my questions. I learnt that on the Day of Judgement we all have to answer to ALLAH concerning the record of our deeds. No matter what anybody does, we will not be able escape that day. Becoming a Muslim is thus a salvation for us and In Shaa ALLAH we will be rewarded for our good deeds.

When I found Islam, I acknowledged that this was the truth; the straight path and I shared this with my mum and uncle who too accepted Islam, Alhamdulillah. Now they also lead good Muslim lives.

I would like to take this opportunity to share with you some information about Islam. Islam means peace and the word Islam originates from the root word salaam, which means peace. Islam also means to peacefully submit to Almighty ALLAH’s Will. Throughout the history of man, prophets have come to each nation to encourage people to worship ALLAH alone and not to associate partners with Him.

To become a Muslim, all you have to utter with your tongue and believe in your heart is the shahadah. That is, to bear witness that there is no God but ALLAH and that Muhammad sallallahualaiwassallam is His final servant and Messenger.

Islam is not a new religion. Every messenger came with this very same message. If it was the time of Abraham, we would have obeyed him; if it was the time of Moses, we would have obeyed him; if it was the time of Jesus, we would have obeyed him. The only way for salvation is to obey the Prophet of our time, Muhammad sallallahualaiwassallam, who was the final Messenger as there is no Prophet to come after him. This too has been mentioned in the Holy Quraan, which firmly remains a guidance for mankind till the Day of Judgement and will be preserved by ALLAH SWT without a single change.

I would like to conclude by sharing that it is three years since I have become a Muslim and embraced Islam. I absolutely love to wear the Islamic type of dressing and have become particular about halaal food. Alhamdulillah, I have recently married a Muslim brother and I fervently wish to dedicate my life for the sake of ALLAH by spreading the message of truth and justice; by spreading the religion of Islam.”

Like this young sister, many people, whether confronted by the searching period of their youth or the reflective moments of their latter years, have been deeply inspired by the world and way called Islam.

Extracted from the column in the series In The Embrace of Islam
With intent on aspiring and inspiring towards the ‎​L♥√ع and Pleasure of ALLAH subhanawa’ta’ala,
Rehana Shah-Bulbulia, the author of ‘Falling In Love With Muhammad SAW’, blogs at
https://muslimahatpeace.wordpress.com
And tweets as @muslimahatpeace

“Touched by The Adhaan in the Land of Senegal”

A scent and a sound has the ability to evoke much…Sometimes all it takes to urge on a memory or promote a change is a subtle scent and a sweet sound. When the words of the adhaan “ALLAHu Akbar…ALLAH is the Greatest” coincides with the whispered yearnings of the heart, it lays the foundations for change. And so was the case of an American brother, whose life’s journey changed its course through the sweet melody of the adhaan…

“Bismillahi Walhamdulillah, Assalaamualaikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatu. I begin in the Name of ALLAH. All Praise, bounteous Praise and never ending praise be for Him and may peace and blessings always be conveyed upon our beloved Prophet Muhammad SAW. I would firstly like to begin by discussing the difference between being born a Muslim and reverting, that is, accepting Islam from your own free will. Reality is, we all are not born with personal values and morals. Our personal values and morals are developed by our guardians and parents. Taught to us by them and as such it becomes our foundation. In actuality, their values and morals become ours.

So if your parents raised you as a practicing Muslim, your morals and personal values are then beautifully structured by Islam. Islam becomes your foundation And in fact structures how you think, how you act, even your attitude and personality. For those non muslims like myself, who have investigated islam, we have found that Islam proves itself to be a light of guidance. I am also quite sure that you will all agree that Islam provides solutions to all of life’s questions, problems and differences. Now if you were born with this manual for your life and if you were raised as a practicing Muslim you probably wouldn’t know the issues or the doubts or the emptiness or hopelessness that those outside the fold of Islam deal with and we have always dealt with since we were born. We were not raised in a structured or proven lifestyle like Islam is. We were instead given the incorrect fundamentals by our parents, which we assumed were correct. And at the very least we thought that they were good enough to get by. So we were left with nothing more than what our parents taught us, to assist us in dealing with all that life threw at us. As for that emptiness and hopelessness, we learnt that it was a natural part of life and we learnt to suppress it and pretend it is not there.

Looking at children in today’s time, we observe that they they are so immersed in all the technological gadgets which western society provides like computers, electronic games, internet and cellphones that they don’t really have the inclination to look at the natural world that surrounds them and reflect on it. Similarly from the time we are young we fill our lives with all these activities, supressing those feelings of emptiness and those unanswered questions but as the years pass we realise that those feelings and that emptiness are still there. It is the memory of that life, a life of trial and error; a life of hopelessness and uncertainties; a life of confusion and doubt…that you leave behind when you grasp the strong handhold of Islam. No matter what age you embrace Islam, you finally find peace, purpose and meaning to your life. And it is never too late and you are never to old to investigate and discover Islam. Islam, which is indeed a detail map and manual for our lives and really how much easier is it to do things with a manual.

I, like so many others, was not born Muslim. In fact I was not born into any religion at all. I was born in a suburb of New Jersey and later we moved to a country or rural area just outside of the city of New York. In a place like this where we were raised without the television and computer games, we learnt to occupy ourselves as children. We would spend much time outdoors with nothing but nature to keep us busy and entertained. I believe that this had been the beginning of me contemplating my world and surroundings from a young age.

While I believe that these positive effects of my childhood weren’t completely lost, but the acts of youth, the teenage years and adolesence had covered up the light which ALLAH had put in my heart as a child. From the age of eighteen I pursued a number of varied lifestyles, I took up sky-diving, jumping out of a plane at high altitudes. I thought that the thrill of having near-death experiences might help me to ascertain my purpose in life. While trying to fit in with that crowd, I realised that this was not a lifestyle that had any truth to it and so I ventured through a few regular mundane jobs. Thereafter I joined the navy in the United States.

Still dissatisfied and searching, I moved back to New York and became involved with a small group of African musicians from Senegal. At the core of the lifestyle of these musicians was the drug marijuana. As weeks and months became years I became very addicted to this drug. Amidst this mental confusion and fog I had the opportunity to travel to the land of Senegal. And one of the first mornings that I was there, about five in the morning, I heard, “ALLAHU Akbar, ALLAHuakbar!”, which of course is the adhaan and that moment was a life-changing one. For as you can imagine, my searching heart was greatly touched by it.

So when I returned to America, I was intrigued by what I ignorantly perceived to be Senegalese customs but were in fact a part of Islam. I started researching and investigating and discovered that I was in fact becoming magnetically drawn to Islam. Coming across a book of Islamic invocations, I memorised it. And as time passed, even though I wasn’t yet a Muslim, I would read the English translation of the Quraan and pray what I had memorised. Then I decided to embark on a spiritual and physical cleansing for ten days. So I stopped eating pork; I stopped drinking, smoking and taking drugs, Alhamdulillah. After the fourth day of changing my lifestyle completely, again even though I was not yet a Muslim, I now found myself saying the shahadah.

However, because I had no contact with any Muslims and knew of no masjids, I took the shahadah with just ALLAH as my witness and just endeavoured to live the best Islamic lifestyle that I could live for the next couple of months. I then had the opportunity to fly to the capital of the island of Bahamas which had one Mosque and about twenty Muslims. I took the shahadah again at this Mosque and actually took shahadah and made nikah on the same day. I married another revert who had also taken the shahadah at this very same Mosque in the Bahamas. ‎​Alhamdulillah, we have lived as practising Muslims and have been blessed with a child.

I believe that when you can revert to Islam in the middle of nowhere, on an island and without being in contact with other Muslims, it is only by the Will of ALLAH. It proves that ALLAH chooses you for Islam. I strongly assert that Islam has all the solutions from personal hygiene to how you treat your parents. Personally my parents have no problem with me being a Muslim. They have witnessed first hand what it means to be a Muslim child…to treat your parents correctly, with the dignity and respect they deserve; it means you love them more because you have motivation to and you maintain family ties because Alhamdulillah, it is an opportunity to give them dawah too.

Islam is a light that diffuses all darkness and depression, bringing with it tangible peace…it is as simple as that, SubhanALLAH!” ‎​

Extracted from the column in the series In The Embrace of Islam
With intent on aspiring and inspiring towards the ‎​L♥√ع and Pleasure of ALLAH subhanawa’ta’ala, this is the blog of
Rehana Shah-Bulbulia, the author of ‘Falling In Love With Muhammad SAW’, who tweets as @muslimahatpeace.

In the Embrace of Islam “From Monk to Muslim”

In the voyage across the ocean of life, everything may be perceived as relative. Like the morning ocean breeze, carries and dissipates droplets of salt water to those in its vicinity, so too do the winds of guidance dissipate truth and faith to those who are in search of it.

Encounter a man who studied and searched for the Almighty to such a degree that his entire life centred around serving Him and His creation. So while, even though his course was not the right and required route, his intent of purpose was so sincere, that eventually he was guided to the reality of his true goal and objective. This is his story of reversion; from Monk to Muslim…

“Assalaamualaikum and I thank you for giving me the opportunity to share my story. I was born and brought up in Malaysia. I accepted Islam in 1978. But before that I was a monk for twelve years. From an early age I would attend Church quite regularly with my parents, every Sunday, as the religious and practicing Christians would. As I grew up, I realised that I wanted to become a priest, so that I could help many people, those who were poor and those who were suffering. So when I completed school in 1954, I began my studies and work as a Roman Catholic Monk.

Throughout the course of it, I travelled to many countries and my parents were very proud of me. I received a scholarship from the German government, in West Germany for theological studies. After completion of training in 1971, I became a chaplain for the hospital that I was attached to. I was also given the power to forgive sins. In fact I was given the title and vocation of being an international forgiver of sins. This work of mines took me throughout the world, from South America, to Asia and Africa.

During this period I met many Muslim people. Wonderful and practicing Muslims, who would pray five times a day, not drink alcohol and even fast the way the Holy Bible described all the Prophets’ manner of fasting. I would often wonder and find myself plagued by the thought, “How come they are not going to Heaven just because they have not been baptised? But we Christians would be entitled to Heaven simply because we had been baptised.”

I would always have in my possession the Holy Water to baptise and absolve the repentant Christians. So while I worked in the hospitals, I would request the nurses that they inform and call for me whenever any of the patients were nearing death, be they Christian or not and no matter what their religion, so that I may baptise them before their death so that they would now have a hope of entering Heaven. And of course, for the Christians I was their international forgiver of sins and would assist them by forgiving them at this vital moment. This was important for me because I was trying to find a way to help these Muslims get to Heaven.

Also because my homeland was Malaysia, filled with many Muslims, I wanted and needed to know more about Islam so that I could revert them as this was my desire. Contacting my superiors, I informed them of my eagerness to study comparative religion between Islam and Christianity and also shared my purpose for wanting to do this. They agreed and sent me to London to acquire this degree. In London I met many Muslims and had been given much Islamic literature. One of these works was the translation of the Quran by Mohammed Marmeduke Pickthall. I read it froms start to finish, searching for errors and faults, but I could find none. The more I read, the more I realised what a good book it was and that even the Bible was not as good.

That’s when I started praying to God for guidance, to enlighten my heart and convey to me the Truth. Thereafter I wrote to my superiors sharing with them my deep desire to now become a Muslim. They immediately recalled me to Germany and were in fact quite angry and disappointed, especially after all they had invested in educating me for the efforts of the Christian missionary work. They angrily stated that they would take a picture of a mock grave with my name on it and send it to my family and people in Malaysia informing them that I had met with a terrible accident and had passed away.
Of course, I became terribly afraid and decided that perhaps I had studied too much and was now confused. I shared this with them and worriedly enquired if there were any other options left for me. They suggested that I repent and that perhaps I did need help of some sort and sent me to a mental institute for three months.

At this institute I met a famous writer and theologian, who had many works on the divinity of Christ. Hoping to make sense of it all, while my heart still found itself attached to Islam, I asked him , “Do you really think Jesus Christ is God?” His reply left me without any further doubts, “No, I just use the concept to write my books and make money.” Now I was in a hurry to become a Muslim. However, I knew that I had no proper vocation to return to other than being a monk and a forgiver of sins, so I approached my superiors and explained to them that I had been confused about wanting to be a Muslim and that I wanted to continue my missionary efforts at the hospitals and thought that I also needed to do a three medical lab training course for this. My hope was to be sent back to Malaysia.

However, my superiors decided on sending me to South America, a continent filled with mainly Christians. I then started praying fervently to God, even though I didn’t even know the Fatiha-Opening chapter. It just happened, by the great Will of God, that the monk at the lab in Malaysia fell and broke his arm and they needed to replace him within forty-eight hours. My prayers had been answered, I was to return to Malaysia, a land filled with mostly Muslims. In Malaysia, I met the German Writer Johannes Snyman, who too had accepted Islam and changed his name to Yahya Snyman. Whilst in Malaysia I wrote to my superiors and asked for them to release me from all the vows that I had taken as a monk and from the monastry as well. Reiterating that I wanted to become a Muslim. Again they reacted as before, threatening me now with no compensation.

Without money this time and no airfare and plane as the manner I was usually accustomed to when visiting my parents, I had to take a train. When I reached my home and met my mother, I immediately told her of my reversion to Islam. Normally a loving mother to me, she became very angry and accused me of wanting to be like the Malays. The Muslims of Malaysia were known as Malays and most of those whom my parents knew were not good examples of Muslims and Islam. Sadly, my mother kicked me out and told me that she used to be so proud of me and my international missionary efforts but now I was no longer her son.

I then went to Kuala Lampur to stay with my elder brother. He kept me for two weeks with him, but stated quite emphatically that I was not to share or display my Islam, as his in laws were strict Catholics and he didn’t want to encounter any unneccessary problems. It was at this point that I was notified of a world health six month counseling course on family planning in Australia. I decided that this would be my best bet considering the current circumstances. While I was there I was on the lookout for job opportunities in the Arab countries. I came across a position in Jeddah. After applying and being interviewed my application was accepted.

Before commencing my new life and job in Jeddah, I returned to Malaysia where I met Dr Johannes/Yahya Snyman and with his assistance finally officially took the Shahaadah and accepted Islam on the fourth of September 1978, even though my heart had embraced Islam a long time ago.”

Witnessing such an extreme change of circumstance and life condition, from being a Monk to being a Muslim, we take cognisance of the fact that when there exists such a strong desire for Guidance and Truth, the ocean of life will bring one to the sanctified shores of Islam, through the Will and Plan of ALLAH.

Extracted from the column In The Embrace of Islam from the South African based print magazine_ The Muslim Woman…With intent on aspiring and inspiring towards the ‎​L♥√ع and Pleasure of ALLAH subhanawa’ta’ala,
Rehana Shah-Bulbulia, the author of ‘Falling In Love With Muhammad SAW’, tweets as @muslimahatpeace

Let His Love lead the way…in the Blessings of ALLAH endeavour to live your day! RSB
@muslimahatpeace

In the Embrace of Islam…’No ALLAH, No Peace…Know ALLAH, Know Peace”

Described as a fragrance that permeates every single pore; a light that traverses from the chambers of the heart, illuminating not only the heart but the mind and soul too; a feeling that enshrouds one in the velvety warmth of tranquililty and hope…this is the reality and embodiment of peace. Those who have discovered its reality can quite vividly recall that very first moment when it gracefully entered their lives. For once its presence is felt, there is nothing else that can compare. Yet many, if not all who have discovered the essence of peace, will undoubtedly attest that to know ALLAH is to know peace, SubhanALLAH.

Journey with me to Ohio, in the United States of America and encounter another truly inspirational tale of reversion. A story of a young woman’s desire to know her Creator; to feel His Presence in her life and to discover the most coveted prized possession called peace. This is the story of the young and vivacious Lauren Kate Ward, an Equine Pre-Vet student…

“Assalaamualaikum. Well, I was raised in an extremely religious Christian household. From preschool to seventh grade I attended a private Christian school, where we were taught daily Bible lessons and Chapel lessons on Fridays. My family went to Bible school and Church every Sunday without fail. So, as you can imagine everyone in my family was very religious. Around the time I entered high school, I realised that I was experiencing some trouble with my faith. While everybody around me kept talking about feeling God; the spirit of God around them; His work in their lives, and the peace they gained from it, no matter what I did, I just never felt this way. I put my questions forward to my family, but they didn’t or couldn’t answer them. I even recall asking my pastor, but he too couldn’t really answer them. I just had this nagging feeling that something wasn’t right. However, I still went to church and by this time I was leading the Bible study group in my high school. So I simply pretended to feel what the others were feeling because I didn’t want to be in a position where people would find out that I was not as strong in my faith as I appeared to be.

In my sophomore year of high school, I took a world history class. Part of our syllabus was concerning the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and in our lessons our teacher traced the history all the way back to Isaac and Ishmael. Along with that, he also taught us the basics of Islam: the five pillars, the basic tenets of faith and things of this nature. I had always been quite interested in everything about the Middle East, but it had never dawned on me to learn about the faith. It was then that I began to do a little more research on my own and began learning the basics. What I found was that it answered many of the questions that had been plaguing me as a Christian. However, when my mother found out, she became very upset with me for “turning my back on God” and forbade me to read any books or learn anything more about Islam as long as I lived with my family. 

So, fast forward a few years to my second year in college. While in my first year, I once again tried to go to Church and attempted to get involved in the Christian campus groups and Bible Studies, as I attend a Christian University, I just wasn’t feeling any impact of my faith in my heart.
Around Christmas time, just on a whim, I began to look for mosques in my area. I discovered that where my school was situated in Ohio was a large Somalian population. Astonishingly, my search came back with plenty of Mosques! I found one that had special classes about the basics of Islam and decided to attend one of these sessions… Just to see what it was all about. As soon as I walked in to the Mosque, Alhamdulillah, I felt the Presence of Allah. I felt in my heart what I had heard about and yearned for all these years! I actually broke down and cried, because the feeling was indescribably beautiful and beyond my expectations. I finally felt as if I belonged; something akin to coming home. I knew and realised that I had discovered what I had been searching for!
And so began and continued my study of Islam. However, the more I learnt, the more I fell in love with the religion.” 

The challenges that we all face on a daily basis may seem insurmountable, yet when learning of the challenges of others, it grants us the courage to perservere through ours. Reverting to Islam comes with its fair share of dunya trials and challenges and Sister Lauren openly shared hers with us, “Well, with my family being such strong Christians, the reaction really wasn’t positive at all. When my mother found out, she didn’t talk to me for about a month. My father was a little better with dealing with it. He noticed how it changed me as a person and how it appeared to have procured for me the peace and love of Allah. My brother and sister, eleven and sixteen, were pretty alright with it, just curious. My mother unfortunately doesn’t see that Allah is just the Arabic word for God, and that it is still the same God. So from her point of view, I have completely turned my back on God, to follow a religion that, unfortunately, has a very bad reputation in America. I pray though, in sha Allah, that she will realise how important this is to me and she will come to accept my decision. My friends have been pretty good about it! They’ve been very curious but have been amazingly supportive as well, Alhamdulillah!”

Touching on her experiences as a new Muslimah, Lauren stated, ” Of course it has really been kind of a life-style change! I had never been used to praying more than once a day, usually before bed! So praying five times a day is something that I still struggle with, a LOT. I experienced my first Ramadaan this summer, and I fasted about half of the days. It was something I have never been exposed to or experienced before! I’d like to try and fast the entire month of Ramadaan this year, in sha Allah. A big thing I have been struggling with is trying to incorporate Islam into who I am. I go through phases where I am very religious, very enthusiastic towards going to Jummah, praying, listening to halaqas, but then the dunya gets in the way, and I start to fall out of practice. I’m working on it in sha Allah. I hope to reach that ‘place’ where Islam is so much a part of my life that I can’t even imagine it any other way!

My favorite and most treasured aspect of Islam is that I have finally come to know peace, due to having ALLAH in my life. Along with being at university, I am a member at many campus clubs, and work two jobs as well. As you can imagine, I am usually a big ball of stress! But since I have accepted Islam, I have come to the realization that everything that happens in life has already been ordained by Allah. And that He is always there, available and ready to listen and help us if we just pray!
I heard from a speaker at an MSA-Muslim Student Association event that, “Allah only tests those who He loves, who He wants to strengthen” and that, “Allah never tests a person beyond what they can bear. For, if you’re going through it, you can handle it!”
I try to remember this every single day and in all situations. SubhanALLAH, it makes my stressful life a lot easier. Another thing I love about Islam is how everything comes back to Allah. We wake up, we thank Allah; before we eat, we remember Allah; we plan to do something, we say in sha Allah. While it seems like a little thing, it has really had a huge impact on my life. It centers me, reminds me of my faith, and keeps my focus always on Allah!”
 
Lauren’s message to Muslims and non Muslims were, “As a Muslim, keep your chin up! Sometimes, I-myself feel lost in the middle because Muslims hold me to a very high standard even though I’m still a very new Muslim and they expect certain things from me. And then non-Muslims also expect me to behave and act in a certain way or do certain things! But you’ve got to be comfortable with who you are, how Allah made you and realise that this dunya is a merely journey. We are constantly moving, constantly changing and constantly learning. And in the end, the only important thing is what Allah thinks of us! Endeavour to be confident in who you are and remember that you should only aim to please Allah, in sha Allah!
To non-Muslims, I would like to say that ‘hey, we’re just like you!’ Get to know us, talk to us. For me personally, I love telling people about my faith and having interfaith dialogues! Don’t let a peace of cloth or a headscarf deter you from getting to know us Muslims. Who knows, we could end up being your best friend!”

Being a student at a University with very few Muslims, Lauren’s reception and interaction with others proves interesting, “Since I attend a college that is affiliated with the United Methodist Church, it’s been interesting. Nothing bad at all, but I’m one of only six Muslims on campus, and the only revert. I have met all of the other Muslims on campus, and I am good friends with two of them. But being an American revert Muslim, I get some pretty strange looks at times! I have begun to wear the hijab on Fridays and I am trying to get into wearing it more often. So when I do wear the hijab, I get more weird looks! But people are usually very polite and while some ask questions, I have never really received a negative response to the hijab or my reversion. I even had one professor, who is Jewish, show a keen interest when I showed up in a hijab and abaya with henna all over my arms, the first day of class was on Eid! Over the course of the semester, she asked me to share my testimony regarding my reversion! She has been wonderful, Alhamdulillah, and very polite. She will be joining me for Jummuah at our local Masjid some time soon, In sha Allah!
 
Heartfelt and sincere, Lauren’s concluding sentiments were, “I would just like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has helped me in my journey to Islam; brothers and sisters from all over the world who have supported me in tough times. I feel as if my life has been blessed over and over with my reversion to Islam. I thank you sister, for allowing me to pass my story along as well! If this helps steer anyone to the way of Allah, that is really all that I can ask for! Jazakallahu khair.”

From many a reverts inspirational tale, I have discovered one underlying message, which undoubtedly leaves one with much food for thought, “No ALLAH, No peace…Know ALLAH, Know Peace,” SubhanALLAH!

Extracted from my column, In The Embrace of Islam from the SA print mag- The Muslim Woman Magazine.
Rehana Shah Bulbulia Twitter account- @muslimahatpeace

Let His Love lead the way…in the Blessings of ALLAH endeavour to live your day! RSB
@muslimahatpeace

In the Embrace of Islam “A LifeLong Journey”

In the depths of the majestic and mesmerising ocean there exists countless of wonders for us to behold; we have the opportunity to study infinite lessons as they unfold. A never ending journey, a cycle of continuous fluid motion. It has no beginning, we can see no end; a lifelong voyage for all its inhabitants.

And in these waters of such potency, we are privileged to observe and take lesson from the multitude of creation of ALLAH’s ocean cosmos. Glory be to ALLAH, the Magnificent, He- Who has created waters sweet and salty, separated by an invisible barrier; such a vast and intricate system to explore. Have you ever watched or read about the salmon run each year? Tiny fish that travel thousands of miles from the Atlantic Ocrean just to reach a specific place, infact a river and the exact spot where they were spawned, in order to lay their eggs and birth their young. Yet, that is not their destination. For subsequently, they together with their young, traverse again thousands of miles to return. And each year they proceed back and forth, in what proves to be a lifelong journey for them.

Undoubtedly as Muslims we acknowledge, that like the salmon fish, we traverse a lifelong journey. It is indeed a lifelong effort that we have to endeavour for our Imaan, for our Islam and as ummatees of Muhammad sallallahualaiwassallam. And this is the message that has been shared with us by the revert we encounter in this month’s edition of In The Embrace of Islam.

“Assalaamualaikum, my name is Muhammad Nubi. ‎​Alhamdulillah for this opportunity to share with you my journey to Islam. I am an American and I was born in America. My parents are Christians and so I was born and raised as a Christian. My named used to be Thomas Hall but after accepting Islam I changed my name to Muhammad.
Alhamdulillah my journey to Islam was a beautiful and nice transition for me. Before Islam my life in America was that of a typical young American man. I had a good job, happy family and all the material things that plentiful money could buy. And I was also doing the kind of things young people do in America. You know when you are young and just out of college, busy making money. While fortunately I possessed all of these material things I still found myself very dissatisfied with my life. Perhaps for two reasons. Firstly, life beginning to get a little out of control for me. The norm is, as a young American you party, drink and club a lot and I was also engaging in drugs. And secondly, I began to realise, that while I had all enough money and material possessions, I was still not at peace with myself. I wondered that there had to be more to life. What was life really supposed to be about? More importantly, what was my real purpose in life? This kind of emptiness led me to begin my search. In all honesty, I didn’t know about Islam, I only knew about Christianity. While I believed in God, my belief was

hazy. So I went back to the Church in an attempt to discover what my real purpose was and what exactly my relationship with God was supposed to be like. But unfortunately no one had the answers, infact any answers for me. They told me straight that I just had to believe, even without answers and understanding. And so many of these people began to become annoyed with me. I was asking too many questions and causing an uneasiness amongst them at the Church. They then quite abruptly, asked me not to come to the Church anymore.It was after this that Islam entered the picture. A friend invited me to a programme/talk about different religions at a hall and this was the first time that I learnt about the religion of Islam; Who is our Lord, Allah; the beautiful prophet Muhammad sallallahualaiwassallam, the greeting of Islama and the five daily prayers. In learning about Islam and the way of the Prophet Muhammad sallallahualaiwassallam, I began discovering what my purpose in life should be; I began to feel at peace. I learnt about ALLAH, my Lord and the Creator of the heavens and the earth.

Of course after I accepted Islam, my life changed tremendously. My mother was very supportive, even though she didn’t understand much of it. Especially when it came with all those things that I could no longer do now that I was a Muslim, like not eating pork. My father, on the other hand, was very upset with me for leaving the religion of our forefathers. It was actually very difficult for him and he somewhat disowned me. My brothers and sisters were not too much of a problem. ‎​Alhamdulillah, my youngest sister accepted Islam but only brother ended up becoming a minister. I really tried to give him da’wah, but it is as ALLaH has wished. I also lost all of my friends, because now since I was a Muslim we had nothing more in common.

After I took the shahadah I felt extremely happy. I sincerely believed that it was indeed ALLAH who had guided me to this way, the way of Islam Don’t imagine that my life was without challenges and tests. My wife didn’t like and accept this change at all. So we had no choice but to divorce. Even though we had a little son together. Next came the problem with my job, I was a cigarette salesman, selling tabacco for a big and major company in America. This company also used to buy and sell alcohol. Of course, I learnt that as a Muslim, this was all haraam and so I quit that job. My life now seemed to be filled with difficulty and hardship-no job, no wife, no baby. But ALLAH SWT promises in the Holy Quran that surely after difficulty there comes easy. Alhamdulillah, ALLAH has made it easy for me.
My message to the non Muslims is please study Islam, the Quran and life of the Last Messenger Muhammad sallallahualaiwassallam. Also talk to sincere muslims, and ask God-Almighty show you the correct way, the straight path and guidance to the truth.
To new muslims I say, hold fast to the reliogion of Islam, your Imaan and the commandments of ALLAH and the way of Muhammad sallallahualaiwassallam. Islam is a lifelong journey of study and effort. We all need a good and sincere teacher because there is so much to know. Islam isn’t just black and white, we have to learn about ALLAH’s commands and the life and way of Prophet Muhammad sallallahualaiwassallam, what is halaal and haraam and so much more. But throughout this journey, fellow Muslim be patient. For we all can never learn everything. Yes, Islam is truly a lifelong journey, towards your relationship with ALLAH and your purpose in life. It is also a beautiful journey, so enjoy it.”

Extracted from my column, In The Embrace of Islam from the SA print mag- The Muslim Woman Magazine.

Twitter account- @muslimahatpeace

Let His Love lead the way…in the Blessings of ALLAH endeavour to live your day! RSB
@muslimahatpeace