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| what is the best reversion story you read/know? |
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| amatullah |
| 01/28/03 at 07:12:41 |
| [slm] I am trying to send someone a revert story. Do you have any suggestions of which might be the best one to send? Which is your favorite?? |
| Re: what is the best reversion story you read/know |
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| sofia |
| 01/29/03 at 11:36:06 |
| As-salaamu alaykum wa rahmatullah, There are masha'Allah so many, and there isn't possibly a *best* one, but one that had an interesting response is below. After I sent it out, some of my friends were like, do you know this brother? can you tell him salaam? can you give me his contact info? I was like, whoa, no I *don't* know this brother! But may Allah keep him steadfast, and us, as well. ------------- In the Name of Allah, most Compassionate, most Merciful Becoming Muslim Malik -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Assalamalaikum brothers and sisters and non Muslims. First off all, I would like to start by saying that this true story is not for my own fame or admiration but for the sake of my Lord and your Lord Allah. All praises due to Allah, the Lord of the worlds, the Beneficent, the Merciful Owner of the day of judgement. I would like to repeat to you something I heard: the journey of a thousand miles has to start with the first step and this is the first part of my journey. My name is Malik Mohammed Hassan and I have recently converted to Islam. When I was in junior high school I was first introduced to Islam by reading the book Roots by Alex Haley. It taught me a little bit about the strong will that most Muslims possess, myself included. It also introduced me to Allah. I had never heard of Allah in his real form until I read that book and I was very curious. I then started reading about The Nation Of Islam (specifically Malcolm X) and it fascinated me how devoted he was to Allah, especially after he left the self serving Nation Of Islam. Reading about Malcolm made me think about a God who (for a change) did not have any physical form or limitations and, being a totally blind person, it made me relate to these people: the people who Malcolm and Haley referred to as Muslims. I continued reading what I could about Islam which wasn't as much as it should have been. My reading material was very limited because like I said above: I am a totally blind person and the material available about Islam in braille or on tape was not only very little, but also very general. I believe the reason was that the material that I had access to wasn't written by Muslims and it kind of painted a dark picture of Islam. I think most of the literature written by Christians or non Muslims about Islam tends to do that most of the time. And I didn't know that their were even Muslims in Halifax so I obviously didn't know any. I didn't even know about the local Islamic association until I was already a Muslim. So, I read what I could until my first year out of high school around the month of May, 1996, when I received a phone call asking me if I wanted to participate in a camp for blind and visually impaired people known throughout Canada as Score. I agreed and sent them a resume and praise be to Allah I was excepted for work. At first I really didn't want to go but something kept telling me it would be a good idea if I went. So, on June 30th 1996 I boarded a plane from Nova Scotia to Toronto and took my last trip as a non Muslim; I just didn't know it yet. I got to Toronto and everything at first was pretty normal... It was on the second day that I was there when the journey of a thousand miles first started. I arrived on a Sunday and on the next day I met the person who Allah would use with His divine power to help guide me to the beautiful Religion of Islam. I met a sister named Rizvana and if she reads this I hope she doesn't get mad at me for using her name. When I met her, I immediately wanted to talk to her because I liked her name. I asked her of what origin her name was and she told me that it was Arabic; so I asked her if she was Muslim and she replied with the answer of yes. I immediately started telling her what I already knew about Islam which lasted about ten seconds. I started asking her questions and also asking her to talk to me about Islam. One particular incident that comes to my mind is when all of the workers at the camp went to a baseball game and the sister and I started talking about Islam and missed pretty much the whole game. Well, anyways, we talked for about three, maybe four days on and off about Islam and on July the fifth if my memory doesn't fail me I became a Muslim. My life has been totally different ever since. I look at things very differently than I used to and I finally feel like I belong to a family. All Muslims are brothers and sisters in Islam so I could say that I have approximately 1.2 billion brothers and sisters all of whom I'm proud to be related to. I finally know what it feels like to be humble and to worship a God that I don't have to see. For any non Muslim reading this just look at it this way. It's good to learn, but you never know when you will be tested and if you're not in the class at the time of the final exam no matter how much you know you'll never get any credit. So like I said it's good to learn but if you want to get credit sign up for the class. In other words, declare shehada (testimony to faith) and let Allah teach you everything you need to know. Believe me the reward is worth it. You could say the reward is literally heaven. If any good comes out of this story all the credit is due to Allah; only the mistakes are my own. I would like to mention a part of a hadith that has had a great effect on me and that is: "Worship Allah as if you see him and if you don't see him, know that he sees you." - Sahih Muslim, Volume 1, Number 1 Oct. 23rd, 1996 |
| NS |
| Re: what is the best reversion story you read/know |
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| WhatDFish |
| 01/29/03 at 11:52:56 |
| assalaamu`alaikum like Sis Sofia says there are many, the 'best' reversion story i know or rahter my fav would be of Sister Shariffa Carlo, hers stirkes me the most, esp this part - [i]I had been taught, argued with and even insulted, but never invited. May Allah guide us all. So when he invited me, it clicked. I realized this was the time. I knew it was the truth, and I had to make a decision. Alhamdulillah, Allah opened my heart, and I said, “Yes. I want to be a Muslim.” [/i] the story of how Muhammad Asad came to Islam is just as interesting too but for that ull have to read his book, The Road to Makkah. that would be a good book to recommend to a non-muslim. also the reversion stories of Yahya Emerick and Sis Kathleen Bullock which you can find over the net. heres Sister Shariffa Carlo's story to Islam In the Name of Allah, most Compassionate, most Merciful My Story Shariffa Carlo The story of how I reverted to al Islam is a story of plans. I made plans; the group I was with made plans, and Allah made plans. And Allah is the Best of Planners. When I was a teenager, I came to the attention of a group of people with a very sinister agenda. They were and probably still are a loose association of individuals who work in government positions but have a special agenda — to destroy Islam. It is not a governmental group that I am aware of, they simply use their positions in the US government to advance their cause. One member of this group approached me because he saw that I was articulate, motivated and very much the women’s rights advocate. He told me that if I studied International Relations with an emphasis in the Middle East, he would guarantee me a job at the American Embassy in Egypt. He wanted me to eventually go there to use my position in the country to talk to Muslim women and encourage the fledgling women’s rights movement. I thought this was a great idea. I had seen the Muslim women on tv; I knew they were a poor oppressed group, and I wanted to lead them to the light of 20th century freedom. With this intention, I went to college and began my education. I studied Quraan, hadith and Islamic history. I also studied the ways I could use this information. I learned how to twist the words to say what I wanted them to say. It was a valuable tool. Once I started learning, however, I began to be intrigued by this message. It made sense. That was very scary. Therefore, in order to counteract this effect, I began to take classes in Christianity. I chose to take classes with this one professor on campus because he had a good reputation and he had a Ph.D. in Theology from Harvard University. I felt I was in good hands. I was, but not for the reasons I thought. It turns out that this professor was a Unitarian Christian. He did not believe in the trinity or the divinity of Jesus. In actuality, he believed that Jesus was a prophet. He proceeded to prove this by taking the bible from its sources in Greek, Hebrew and Aramaic and show where they were changed. As he did this, he showed the historical events which shaped and followed these changes. By the time I finished this class, my deen had been destroyed, but I was still not ready to accept Islam. As time went on, I continued to study, for myself and for my future career. This took about three years. In this time, I would question Muslims about their beliefs. One of the Individuals I questioned was a Muslim brother with the MSA. Alhamdulllah, he saw my interest in the deen, and made it a personal effort to educate me about Islam. May Allah increase his reward. He would give me dawaa at every opportunity which presented itself. One day, this man contacts me, and he tells me about a group of Muslims who were visiting in town. He wanted me to meet them. I agreed. I went to meet with them after ishaa prayer. I was led to a room with at least 20 men in it. They all made space for me to sit, and I was placed face to face with an elderly Pakistani gentleman. Mashallah, this brother was a very knowledgeable man in matters of Christianity. He and I discussed and argued the varying parts of the bible and the Quraan until the fajr. At this point, after having listened to this wise man tell me what I already knew, based on the class I had taken in Christianity, he did what no other individual had ever done. He invited me to become a Muslim. In the three years I had been searching and researching, no one had ever invited me. I had been taught, argued with and even insulted, but never invited. May Allah guide us all. So when he invited me, it clicked. I realized this was the time. I knew it was the truth, and I had to make a decision. Alhamdulillah, Allah opened my heart, and I said, “Yes. I want to be a Muslim.” With that, the man led me in the shahadah - in English and in Arabic. I swear by Allah that when I took the shahadah, I felt the strangest sensation. I felt as if a huge, physical weight had just been lifted off my chest; I gasped for breath as if I were breathing for the first time in my life. Alhamdulillah, Allah had given me a new life — a clean slate — a chance for Jennah, and I pray that I live the rest of my days and die as a Muslim. Ameen. Shariffa Carlo |
| Re: what is the best reversion story you read/know |
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| Julia |
| 01/31/03 at 22:35:14 |
| [slm] Less than a week after I took Shahada (Just before this past Ramadan, alhamdullilah), I met the most amazing Muslim who was a guest speaker at our Masjid. You probably know her, as she is quite famous. Her name is Aminah Asilmi, and her path to Islam was very inspirational. She tells the many ways she was tested by Allah (SWT) after her conversion. Women, especially will appreciate the courage of this radiant heroine for Allah (SWT). Her whole life is Allah (SWT). See http://www.welcome-back.org/profile/aminah1.shtml Hope this helps. [slm] Sister Julia Please, let me know what you think. |
| Re: what is the best reversion story you read/know |
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| yunus |
| 02/01/03 at 00:46:00 |
| read the autobiography of malom X the best reversion storys and one of the best books of all time great dawah book too |
| Re: what is the best reversion story you read/know |
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| Kathy |
| 02/02/03 at 18:15:04 |
| [slm] [quote]what is the best reversion story you read/know?[/quote] Mine!! :-) Yipee! Al-Humdullillah! [move] :-* :-* :-* :-*[/move] |
| Re: what is the best reversion story you read/know |
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| Sabr |
| 02/03/03 at 14:54:09 |
| [slm] well sis kathy ....r u gonna keep us in the dark ? tell us :-* Ok ....... here's a nice 1 ....I heard a bro say he was invited to islam of course only because of the guidance of allah and he heard the phrase "assalamu alikum" . He thought it was the most beautiful words he ever heard and decided to learn more about islam . Allhamudulillah Wassalam Sis :-)Sabr |
| Re: what is the best reversion story you read/know |
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| Kathy |
| 02/04/03 at 11:24:55 |
| [slm] Mine is rather boring. When I said "mine!" it was because to me nothing better could have ever happened to me...boring or not! |
| Re: what is the best reversion story you read/know |
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| se7en |
| 02/06/03 at 03:41:33 |
| as salaamu alaykum, It's so amazing to hear converts tell their story in person.. I had the opp to hear Imam Zaid Shakir tell his story.. sooo moving subhanAllah.. Two more conversion stories I like a lot are Nuh Ha Mim Keller's (which can be found [url=http://wings.buffalo.edu/sa/muslim/isl/intro/becoming.muslim.html]here[/url]) and Yahiya Emerick's (which Jannah posted before [url=http://www.jannah.org/cgi-bin/madina/YaBB.pl?board=lighthouse;action=display;num=1040354335]here[/url]) wasalaamu alaykum :-) |
| 02/06/03 at 03:45:34 |
| se7en |
| Re: what is the best reversion story you read/know |
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| jannah |
| 02/06/03 at 03:46:33 |
| [wlm] I like Muhammad Asad's story... I liked it so much, it's located on the jannah.org/articles page :) |
| Re: what is the best reversion story you read/know |
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| a_Silver_Rose |
| 02/09/03 at 01:38:56 |
| [slm] This is my all time favorite reversion story. Yousuf Islam (the famous Cat Stevens) writes his story so Beautiful that I love to read it over and over. I showed this story to an Atheist and he really liked it also, Alhumdulilah. Enjoy! ;D How I Came To Islam By Yusuf Islam January 1st, 1985 All I have to say is all what you know already, to confirm what you already know, the message of the Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) as given by God - the Religion of Truth. As human beings we are given a consciousness and a duty that has placed us at the top of creation. Man is created to be God's deputy on earth, and it is important to realize the obligation to rid ourselves of all illusions and to make our lives a preparation for the next life. Anybody who misses this chance is not likely to be given another, to be brought back again and again, because it says in Qur'an Majeed that when man is brought to account, he will say, "O Lord, send us back and give us another chance." The Lord will say, "If I send you back you will do the same." I was brought up in the modern world of all the luxury and the high life of show business. I was born in a Christian home, but we know that every child is born in his original nature - it is only his parents that turn him to this or that religion. I was given this religion (Christianity) and thought this way. I was taught that God exists, but there was no direct contact with God, so we had to make contact with Him through Jesus - he was in fact the door to God. This was more or less accepted by me, but I did not swallow it all. I looked at some of the statues of Jesus; they were just stones with no life. And when they said that God is three, I was puzzled even more but could not argue. I more or less believed it, because I had to have respect for the faith of my parents. Gradually I became alienated from this religious upbringing. I started making music. I wanted to be a big star. All those things I saw in the films and on the media took hold of me, and perhaps I thought this was my God, the goal of making money. I had an uncle who had a beautiful car. "Well," I said, "he has it made. He has a lot of money." The people around me influenced me to think that this was it; this world was their God. I decided then that this was the life for me; to make a lot of money, have a 'great life.' Now my examples were the pop stars. I started making songs, but deep down I had a feeling for humanity, a feeling that if I became rich I would help the needy. (It says in the Qur'an, we make a promise, but when we make something, we want to hold onto it and become greedy.) So what happened was that I became very famous. I was still a teenager, my name and photo were splashed in all the media. They made me larger than life, so I wanted to live larger than life and the only way to do that was to be intoxicated (with liquor and drugs). IN HOSPITAL After a year of financial success and 'high' living, I became very ill, contracted TB and had to be hospitalized. It was then that I started to think: What was to happen to me? Was I just a body, and my goal in life was merely to satisfy this body? I realized now that this calamity was a blessing given to me by Allah, a chance to open my eyes - "Why am I here? Why am I in bed?" - and I started looking for some of the answers. At that time there was great interest in the Eastern mysticism. I began reading, and the first thing I began to become aware of was death, and that the soul moves on; it does not stop. I felt I was taking the road to bliss and high accomplishment. I started meditating and even became a vegetarian. I now believed in 'peace and flower power,' and this was the general trend. But what I did believe in particular was that I was not just a body. This awareness came to me at the hospital. One day when I was walking and I was caught in the rain, I began running to the shelter and then I realized, 'Wait a minute, my body is getting wet, my body is telling me I am getting wet.' This made me think of a saying that the body is like a donkey, and it has to be trained where it has to go. Otherwise, the donkey will lead you where it wants to go. Then I realized I had a will, a God-given gift: follow the will of God. I was fascinated by the new terminology I was learning in the Eastern religion. By now I was fed up with Christianity. I started making music again and this time I started reflecting my own thoughts. I remember the lyric of one of my songs. It goes like this: "I wish I knew, I wish I knew what makes the Heaven, what makes the Hell. Do I get to know You in my bed or some dusty cell while others reach the big hotel?" and I knew I was on the Path. I also wrote another song, "The Way to Find God Out." I became even more famous in the world of music. I really had a difficult time because I was getting rich and famous, and at the same time, I was sincerely searching for the Truth. Then I came to a stage where I decided that Buddhism is all right and noble, but I was not ready to leave the world. I was too attached to the world and was not prepared to become a monk and to isolate myself from society. I tried Zen and Ching, numerology, tarot cards and astrology. I tried to look back into the Bible and could not find anything. At this time I did not know anything about Islam, and then, what I regarded as a miracle occurred. My brother had visited the mosque in Jerusalem and was greatly impressed that while on the one hand it throbbed with life (unlike the churches and synagogues which were empty), on the other hand, an atmosphere of peace and tranquillity prevailed. THE QUR'AN When he came to London he brought back a translation of the Qur'an, which he gave to me. He did not become a Muslim, but he felt something in this religion, and thought I might find something in it also. And when I received the book, a guidance that would explain everything to me - who I was; what was the purpose of life; what was the reality and what would be the reality; and where I came from - I realized that this was the true religion; religion not in the sanse the West understands it, not the type for only your old age. In the West, whoever wishes to embrace a religion and make it his only way of life is deemed a fanatic. I was not a fanatic, I was at first confused between the body and the soul. Then I realized that the body and soul are not apart and you don't have to go to the mountain to be religious. We must follow the will of God. Then we can rise higher than the angels. The first thing I wanted to do now was to be a Muslim. I realized that everything belongs to God, that slumber does not overtake Him. He created everything. At this point I began to lose the pride in me, because hereto I had thought the reason I was here was because of my own greatness. But I realized that I did not create myself, and the whole purpose of my being here was to submit to the teaching that has been perfected by the religion we know as Al-Islam. At this point I started discovering my faith. I felt I was a Muslim. On reading the Qur'an, I now realized that all the Prophets sent by God brought the same message. Why then were the Jews and Christians different? I know now how the Jews did not accept Jesus as the Messiah and that they had changed His Word. Even the Christians misunderstand God's Word and called Jesus the son of God. Everything made so much sense. This is the beauty of the Qur'an; it asks you to reflect and reason, and not to worship the sun or moon but the One Who has created everything. The Qur'an asks man to reflect upon the sun and moon and God's creation in general. Do you realize how different the sun is from the moon? They are at varying distances from the earth, yet appear the same size to us; at times one seems to overlap the other. Even when many of the astronauts go to space, they see the insignificant size of the earth and vastness of space. They become very religious, because they have seen the Signs of Allah. When I read the Qur'an further, it talked about prayer, kindness and charity. I was not a Muslim yet, but I felt that the only answer for me was the Qur'an, and God had sent it to me, and I kept it a secret. But the Qur'an also speaks on different levels. I began to understand it on another level, where the Qur'an says, "Those who believe do not take disbelievers for friends and the believers are brothers." Thus at this point I wished to meet my Muslim brothers. CONVERSION Then I decided to journey to Jerusalem (as my brother had done). At Jerusalem, I went to the mosque and sat down. A man asked me what I wanted. I told him I was a Muslim. He asked what was my name. I told him, "Stevens." He was confused. I then joined the prayer, though not so successfully. Back in London, I met a sister called Nafisa. I told her I wanted to embrace Islam and she directed me to the New Regent Mosque. This was in 1977, about one and a half years after I received the Qur'an. Now I realized that I must get rid of my pride, get rid of Iblis, and face one direction. So on a Friday, after Jumma' I went to the Imam and declared my faith (the Kalima) at this hands. You have before you someone who had achieved fame and fortune. But guidance was something that eluded me, no matter how hard I tried, until I was shown the Qur'an. Now I realize I can get in direct contact with God, unlike Christianity or any other religion. As one Hindu lady told me, "You don't understand the Hindus. We believe in one God; we use these objects (idols) to merely concentrate." What she was saying was that in order to reach God, one has to create associates, that are idols for the purpose. But Islam removes all these barriers. The only thing that moves the believers from the disbelievers is the salat. This is the process of purification. Finally I wish to say that everything I do is for the pleasure of Allah and pray that you gain some inspirations from my experiences. Furthermore, I would like to stress that I did not come into contact with any Muslim before I embraced Islam. I read the Qur'an first and realized that no person is perfect. Islam is perfact, and if we imitate the conduct of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) we will be successful. May Allah give us guidance to follow the path of the ummah of Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam). Ameen! Yusuf Islam (Bio) (formerly Cat Stevens (Bio)) |
| Re: what is the best reversion story you read/know |
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| BroHanif |
| 02/09/03 at 04:52:11 |
| Salaams, The best storys I find are the ones of the sahabas, may Allah be pleased with them. Today you won't find many who were punished like Bilal R.A. by haivng a stone on his chest, or Musaib ibn Umayr leaving a life of luxury, Abdur rahman ibn Awf and his trials of persecution. They really did stand out as examparly role models. Companions of the prophet [saw] is a must for everyones bookshelf. May we learn from our brothers and sisters. Hanif |
| NS |
| Re: what is the best reversion story you read/know |
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| sister2sister |
| 02/12/03 at 06:06:35 |
| I know a brother who said what first got him interested in Islam was the fact that multiple wives were permitted :D. YSII :-) |
| Re: what is the best reversion story you read/know |
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| amatullah |
| 02/12/03 at 13:44:29 |
| May Allah bless you all for these wonderful masha'Allah stories. I am really moved by them. Jaza Allahu khayrn all those who participate |
| Re: what is the best reversion story you read/know |
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| ascetic |
| 02/12/03 at 16:06:27 |
| [quote] Sr. Kathy wrote Mine is rather boring. [/quote] I don't think such a life changing event can ever be boring! I am always in awe of people who have the courage to challenge long-held dogmatic beliefs. |
| Re: what is the best reversion story you read/know |
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| gharib |
| 02/12/03 at 16:42:01 |
| I agree with brother zahid, there is no boring revertion! I think it is a miracle everytime it happens. Even more so nowadays where so much propaganda, demonising, FUD, lies, ....etc are being spread about Islam. It's like lighting a candle in a dark world, and keeping it alight despite violent winds trying to extinguish it. May Allah guide us all. |
| Re: what is the best reversion story you read/know |
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| WhatDFish |
| 02/13/03 at 00:10:46 |
| [quote]I know a brother who said what first got him interested in Islam was the fact that multiple wives were permitted[/quote] lol, way to go bro-tha! |
| Re: what is the best reversion story you read/know |
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| a_Silver_Rose |
| 02/18/03 at 02:00:51 |
| [slm] "I know a brother who said what first got him interested in Islam was the fact that multiple wives were permitted . " Hmm from what I know multiple wives are permitted in any religion.. but Islam actually limits the number to four ;D Alhumdulilah! |
| Re: what is the best reversion story you read/know |
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| sister2sister |
| 02/18/03 at 10:27:28 |
| Salaam to everyone here's another story I heard just recently. Somewhere in Europe ( I think it was london) in a Kindergarten, a teacher asked her students what they wanted to be when they grew up. Each child took a turn answering the question until the turn fell on a child who was muslim. He answered " I want to be a sahabi". The teacher was puzzled at his answer. When the parents came to pick him up she inquired about his answer. The parents told her what 'sahabi' meant. The teacher was very impressed. She wanted to learn more about Islam, and after being around the family and learning about Islam, she finally converted. Masha Allah. YSII :-) |
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