Page 12 The Islamic Bulletin Issue 12 Page 13 The Islamic Bulletin Issue 12 be absolutely certain when I read the Quran, in the original Arabic, that these are the words that Muhammad (SAW) actually spoke and which I believe to be from God. So if you have doubts about the Holy Quran, you can learn Arabic and examine it yourself. The text has not been corrupted; it exists in the original words of revelation. Q: Now that you are a Muslim, what are your impressions of Muslims? A: Let me tell you a story. I was walking down the street in Istanbul, Turkey. Men were entering a small mosque during the call to prayer. I performedmy ablutions and participated in the congregational prayer. After prayer, I exchanged communicate to them that I was Ismail from America. One man said to me “Chay (tea)!” and gently tugged at my sleeve. We walked with our arms around each others shoulder through a maze of buildings and alleys to his small tea station in an office building to share tea and mutual goodwill. I walked arm and arm through unfamiliar surroundings in a strange country with a complete stranger whose language I could not speak. I never once had any concern for my well-being or questioned my judgment. Such is the beauty of Islam, and the feelings of the Muslims toward one another reflect this beauty. My impressions of Muslims are very positive. We are certainly not perfect, but generally speaking we hold ourselves to a higher standard of conduct than the average person. As with any generality, there are certainly exceptions. Q: Have you ever felt that it was all part of a plan--the path you have taken in life to finally reach Islam? A: Yes, I do believe it was God’s plan. Perhaps I needed to go through some of the negative experiences I did in life to finally reach and appreciate the point I am at now. Ten years ago, if a Muslim person knocked on my door trying to explain the teachings of Islam to me, I probably would have thought that he was crazy. But at the point where I am now in my life, I was confronted with the beliefs of Islam and ready to accept them. It was a very easy transition at the time that I made the transition. I feel that I wouldn’t have been able to make this transition at any other point in my life. Q: If you had to look back and make any changes, would you like anything to have been different with your life? A: There are many things I have done in life which I am not proud of. Overall, maybe I had to go through these things. The interviewer reminds Brother Ismail about a saying of our Holy Prophet (pbuh) which says: “The believer doesn’t fall in the same hole twice.” Brother Ismail continues, “Inshallah that will be true. Inshallah I can stay out of all these holes. Perhaps I had to experience many of the things in life so I would not be curious about them. I’m really not sure-- maybe this is just a way of justifying my life.” Q: What are your plans for the future now that you are a Muslim? A: My immediate plans are to participate more in dawah, or the propagation of Islam. Because I am an American and English is my native language I feel a strong obligation to attempt to clear up some of the negative stereotypes relating to Islam. Because the United States, at least nominally, is a Christian country, I have spent time studying Christianity and comparative religion. I sense a great spiritual vacuum and a spiritual yearning in the West. I feel that Islam is the answer, and pray that I can participate in the spread of Islam here. Recently, I was up in San Quentin Prison to give dawah. I think I would like to get involved with the brothers up there. I would also like to marry soon and Inshallah start a family. Q: Was it a positive experience visiting San Quentin Prison? A: It was a very positive experience. We were very well received by the inmates. Inshallah I will be able to spendmore timewith these brothers. Q: Did you face any difficulty or embarrassment after you accepted Islam? A: I must admit that I do feel a certain distance between myself and mainstream America. It seems to me that religion in America is viewed as old-fashioned and not relevant in today’s world. Whatever difficulties or embarrassment I have encountered seem to become less important as I continue to practice my religion. This is another of the beauties of Islam, practice of the religion becomes easier and difficulties seem to resolve themselves with less effort on my part. I view Islam as the greatest gift of my life, a gift from God, a gift that I am not worthy to receive. I believe that God will not test me beyond my capability. This belief minimizes the difficulties in my life. Life is much more easier for me. In Islam there is Peace. Q: Is there anything, Brother Ismail, that you would like to conclude with? A: I think throughout my life I had always had a certain spiritual inclination that I had been denying. I hate to blame anything else but I think in a way Christianity pushed me away from spirituality. I had always been searching for the truth. The last place I looked was Islam. I had been searching but totally dismissed Islam because the media has always portrayed such an ugly picture of Muslims. I was taught to believe that Muslims were obviously mad men. It is funny to look back on those things now. I had always wanted to be spiritually inclined but I was turned off by Western religions and spirituality. This is why I hope that more Westerners, in particularly Americans, are exposed to Islam from a Muslims perspective as opposed to having Islamexposed to themby themedia. Let me conclude by inviting everyone, who is not a Muslim, to examine Islam and decide for yourself about this religion which is practiced by one out of every five people in the world. As a Muslim, I invite you and encourage you to seek out a Muslim and initiate a dialogue. In the words of the Old Testament; “Come now, and let us reason together.” (Isaiah 1:18) My prayer and advice for all mankind is contained in the Muslim call to prayer, the Adhan. Hayya ‘Alas Salah (Come to Prayer) Hayya ‘Alas Salah (Come to Prayer) Hayya ‘Alal Falah (Come to Success) Hayya ‘Alal Falah (Come to Success) Assalamu Alaykum and may Allah (SWT) guide us closer to the truth. Abdulla ibn Mas’ud When he was still a youth, not yet past the age of puberty, he used to roam the mountain trails of Makkah far away from people, tending the flocks of a Quraysh chieftain, Uqbah ibn Muayt. People called him “ibn Umm Abd”-- the son of the mother of a slave. His real name was Abdullah and his father’s name was Mas’ud. The youth had heard the news of the Prophet who had appeared among his people but he did not attach any importance to it both because of his age and because he was usually far away from Meccan society. It was his custom to leave with the flock of Uqbah early in the morning and not return until nightfall. One day while tending the flocks, Abdullah saw two men, middle-aged and of dignified bearing, coming towards him from a distance. They were obviously very tired. They were also so thirsty that their lips and throat were quite dry. They came up to him, greeted him and said, “Young man, milk one of these sheep for us that we may quench our thirst and recover our strength.” “I cannot,” replied the young man. “The sheep are not mine. I am only responsible after them.” The two men did not argue with him. In fact, although they were so thirsty, they were extremely pleased at the honest reply. The pleasure showed on their faces... The two men in fact were the blessed Prophet himself and his companion, Abu Bakr Siddiq. They had gone out on that day to the mountains of Makkah to escape the violent persecution of the Quraysh. The young man in turn was impressed with the Prophet and his companion and soon became quite attached to them. It was not long before Abdullah ibn Mas’ud became a Muslim and offered to be in the service of the Prophet (PBUH). The Prophet (PBUH) agreed and from that day the fortunate Abdullah ibn Mas’ud gave up tending sheep in exchange for looking after the needs of the blessed Prophet. Abdullah ibn Mas’ud remained closely attached to the Prophet. He would attend to his needs both inside and outside the house. He would accompany him on journeys and expeditions. He would wake him when he slept. He would shield him when he washed. He would carry his staff and his siwak (toothbrush) and attend to his other personal needs. Abdullah ibn Mas’ud received a unique training in the household of the Prophet. He was under the guidance of the Prophet, he adopted his manner and followed his every trait until it was said of him, “He was the closest to the Prophet in character.” Abdullah was taught in the “school” of the Prophet. He was the best reciter of the Qur’an among the companions and he understood it better than them all. He was therefore the most Knowledgeable on the Shariah. Nothing can illustrate this better than the story of the man who came to Umar ibn al-Khattab as he was standing on the plain of Arafat and said: “I have come, O Amir al-Mu’mineen, from Kufah where I left a man filling copies of the Qur’an from memory.” Umar became very angry and paced up and down beside his camel, fuming. “Who is he?” he asked. “Abdullah ibn Mas’ud,” replied the man. Umar’s anger subsided and he regained his composure. “Woe to you,” he said to the man. “By God, I don’t know of any person left who is more qualified in this matter than he is. Let me tell you about this.” Umar continued: “One night the Messenger of God, peace be upon him, was having a conversation with Abu Bakr about the situation of Muslims. I was with them. When the Prophet left, we left with him also and as we passed through the mosque, there was a man standing in Prayer whom we did not recognize. The Prophet stood and listened to him, then turned to us and said, “Whoever wants to read the Qur’an as fresh as when it was revealed, then let him read according to the recitation of Ibn Umm Abd.” After the Prayer, as Abdullah sat making supplications, the Prophet, peace be on him, said, “Ask and it will be given to you. Ask and it will be given to you.” Umar continued: “I said to myself--I shall go to Abdullah ibn Mas’ud straight away and tell him the good news of the Prophet’s ensuring acceptance of his supplications. I went and did so but found that Abu Bakr had gone before me and conveyed the good news to him. By God, I have never yet beaten Abu Bakr in the doing of any good.” Abdullah ibn Mas’ud attained such a knowledge of the Qur’an that he would say, “By Him besides Whom there is no god, no verse of the book of God has been revealed without my knowing where it was revealed and the circumstances of its revelation. By God, if I know there was anyone who knew more of the Book of Allah, I will do whatever is in my power to be with him.”
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTUxNjQ1