My Journey To Islam & A Very Touching Story

I was born Muslim hamdulillah raised Muslim, but

you know, Muslim by name. I knew very little about my Deen. Even though my mom and my father, they did do their best. But I knew very little about my Deen basics.

Eating pig is how long alcohol is haraam that Muslims pray five times a day, and there's once a month, there's a monk called Ramadan. And this was pretty much it. We grew up in a place where of course, haram was abundant. Not only was it abundant, but it was actually encouraged. So hamdulillah I mean, you know, for you guys here, in South Africa, there's a, there's a strong presence in your communities. So even if someone wants to do something wrong, it's very difficult for the young man or the young woman to sort of openly do something and how long you'll have to go to certain places, you have to leave your communities. In the earliest stages for myself, growing up, this was not the

case. Of course, now things are changing back home in Sydney and hamdulillah. But, you know, there was no such thing as horrible, or shameful act.

So of course, young, you know, growing up growing up, nothing was off limits. Literally, nothing was off limits, and it was abundant, and it's available. And then you know, it's kind of like you reach a point in your life where you start, you know, you've done everything, you've tasted everything, you've tried everything, you've been everywhere. And there's an emptiness, there's an emptiness. So,

and I think this was the beginning of my calling. I always loved them. I always loved Islam, it was a thing of respect. But, you know, it was not in my life. So there was no practice, there was no implementation of anything. And actually, Subhanallah, one of my inspirations for coming, becoming a daddy was actually due to a South African man. No, other than the late the chef comedy that we asked Allah subhanaw taala, that mercy upon him, but he played the really big influence. I remember the first time I watched the video of he's just the idea that a Muslim could stand on stage, with so much confidence and speak about their faith in front of it was it really blew me away. So and then

Subhanallah, you know, I just, I turned to the end of handily learned,

I guess, as I say, the rest is history.

As you know, many youth will be able to identify with your own story, and that inshallah will be inspiration for them.

Now, then progressing in your life, and then going out in the path of Allah, and becoming more affiliated with Dean, How was it for you in terms of having to leave perhaps those frames and the places where you were going and those that you associated before? No regrets whatsoever? Well, I, you know, I speak to a lot of brothers, and I guess this is hard for them leaving their own. For me, I,

for me, I loved every minute of it. I haven't turned back since I don't regret a single moment. I mean, if there's any regret I have, it's that I didn't do it early on. But having said that,

not all is bad, you know, not all is lost. I feel that being where I've been, helps me my dollar today.

Now, of course, I'm not saying this, so that the young one can be encouraged.

No, but you know, I believe, for myself, personally, it has impacted me. And I feel like I understand

that side of things more. And if it helps me addressing those issues, in my doubt, and certainly that does have an impact in a sense that many us are able to identify with you and they listen to your, you know, your lectures and they draw inspiration. When we talk about drawing youth towards the deen of Islam and, you know, providing them with content and things that will inspire them. What is how do we attract them? And how do we appeal to them?

How want us to do you want to be as honest as you know, what is in your heart, you say? Okay, well, I believe that we do a lot of injustice towards. And the truth is, I feel like we contradict ourselves so much, because we display one thing, but in reality, we want another so we saw we want to use we want to use and everything you do online, and wherever I go organizations, big organizations, media outlets, whatever it is, they always display that we do what we do, because we want the youth. Yet when the youth come to us, we question them, we doubt them. We don't give them roles. We don't give them any positions. Right? So it's like we say one thing, but we actually do

another, the youth, the prophet of Allah says Allah Allahu alayhi wa sallam more suited to be Shabaab. He says I was given a victory to the youth. He loved the youth some Allahu alayhi wa sallam. The youth is

where the heart is, it's where the passion is, it's where the enthusiasm is. Now, of course, we don't take away anything from our elders and our seniors and are on the map. You know, we pray for them, and we need their watchful eye. But the youth, I feel that a lot of the youth have turned away, because it's like, you know, I have no role. Like, I'll give you an example. We get a young men that comes onto the team. And it's the nature. I know, it's difficult, but it's the reality when someone comes up to me, and especially if he has J. Leah. He comes in, he's Yes, he's hungry. He wants them. And he wants to old right now. Now good or bad. I know, we can debate this, I

understand. But what do you do with this enthusiasm? There's no room for you.

There's nowhere to go. You look at our institutions, you look at our organizations, the same ruler, the same elder that's been there for the last 50 years. He won't give up his seat. And even if he does, it's probably to his son or to his grandson or to his

South African community. I've been very touched with the Australian brother who passed away. Also the video that went viral we you spoke about that? Yes. Perhaps you can share with us an insight on his life story and showed us you know, your link or anything to him. So so so this brother, he's a he's a close brother. He's from our local Masjid. And, you know, what's amazing about his story is he's your typical average, everyday Muslim. He has a family, he has a business. You know, he has his everyday commitments like every single one of us do.

He's 41 years old. I mean, he died at the age of 41. But a few years ago, so hello, some more. I'm not sure exactly what it is that inspired him. I know his younger brother, who also came to South Africa and he did his half of the finish this half of he,

he inspired him to want to memorize the Quran. Now, he had no no experience with the poor and his Quran was actually quite poor. But he inspired him, and he wanted to memorize the plan. So I remember

for years, you know, he would pray fudger with us in Jamal, and then right after the budget, he would go take his corner, and he would sit from budget until nine o'clock in the morning, and then nine o'clock in the morning, or take his children at school, and then get onto his truck. It's got to worry here was that a truck, like your tow truck.

And then he would go to work. So Pamela, and he had this unbelievable dedication. And every single day, you know, and he struggled, I remember when a whole week would go by a whole week 500 to nine o'clock in the morning, and he would barely memorize one line of the Quran.

But he stayed and he stayed that he was so persistence, Pamela until until

until he got some float. And then it was only last g he moved to South Africa.

What's the famous school? Yeah.

That's cool. So he went there.

He came with his family. And he was loving it. He was enjoying it so much.

And then the only reason why he ever left was because his one fell ill. So he came back home to Australia. I think maybe he spent two weeks, three weeks with her. And then she died. And then right after her death, he went straight back.

She went straight out one law, if I'm not wrong, maybe a day or two went straight back. He was he really wanted the Quran so much he wanted. So that.

And then so Pamela, just a few, maybe about a week ago, I was in Oman. And he was there. And he was there with his brothers, you know, with his siblings and their children and their families. And

so I hadn't seen him since his mom's death. So that in that gap between these months that I hadn't seen, but I remember when I seen him in Makkah, why his face was beaming with beaming with me. You know, so we had a lot of obviously we're very close friends, I said to men, what are you doing, you know, how are you looking so good. And he said that in his return to South Africa, he felt you must have had some

he was complaining about some lack of iron or some lack of vitamin and he had some blood cells. But it was nothing dramatic, though there was no concern.

And so upon Allah we I spent two days with him in Mecca. He performed his Amara, then that night, so the next morning I was coming back home to Sydney, he left Mecca and went through

my Medina and Subhanallah so I flew out and then I got home, slept that night, woke up in the morning and I got a text message. When I left my job he passed away. So he had got to Medina spent the day in Medina. pray Lord in Baroda behind the man because the man now prays and look older.

So the Imam used to pray in front of an older now he prays in the robot. So he had prayed the prayer directly behind the man. He was so excited.

He got a chance to pray behind the Imam spent about two hours sitting a little old on making Dawn of God

that he went back on. Then he went back to his room just complaining of some chest pains

and his siblings had agreed that they wanted to pray Marie Benjamin did not want it to go eat

and then it was awesome he's his chest got really bad then he asked for an ambulance.

As they asked for the ambulance, they took him downstairs into the foyer of the hotel

and things got really bad he started making sure that his family didn't you know his family will when they seen he make sure whether

they they didn't think the situation was as bad as he was reacting you know, so they started making law and they're waiting for the ambulance to come pick him up and his brother's police with me just as they called the again for the motive solo on

June garden. So hello, this was

Yes, hello I find it interesting that only in Islam, can you be envious of someone's day?

Have you noticed this?

that anyone that really wants a law

when you have a noble death a part of you becomes envious and this is unique to ourselves I think

I've never met a people that enviable do. People always want to leave for as long as they possibly can. But for a believer you know when you when you feel you believe that a certain individual has died. And whatever the conditions may be that you feel that Allah has accepted Him will he become envious of this person is that the thing is is that you know, as I was saying in the video, but the worst thing we could ever do is to say that brother is lucky

because yes while there's an element of luck, but when we say that he's lucky you take away the hard work that he's invested.

You see Allah subhanaw taala doesn't do things at random you know, you work hard if you really want something and you dedicate the new Cincy the luggages and I believe this brother, he really wanted