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Turning to the Road of Makkah, Madinah and Jerusalem
By Sheikh Muhammad Ali Al-Hanooti
The
tears ran down my face when I saw Yusef Islam talk about how he
became a Muslim. I look at him inevitably as a symbol and a
substance of arts. He himself, for me, is a message. He is so
glamorous because of his talent and because he turned his face to
Allah. When he focused on surat-Yusef, after which he is named, he
summarized all the arts of novels and romance drawn realistically
in the sura of love and piety.
When I look at him in some of his records, when he sang at Madison
Square Garden, then I saw him of another look. I see him as getting
out of the arena of dunya, turning his chest to the road of Mecca,
Medina and Jerusalem. I see him there standing by the grave of
‘Umar. Yusef asked me, “Do you know about ‘Umar before his
embracing of Islam? I want to be like ‘Umar after he embraced
Islam.”
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