|
|
|
Hottentot-Holland
Mountains, South Africa.
|
It
is not possible to fit my life up to now into an essay, but
here are some pieces that will hopefully shape a picture.
As
a young South African boy when I saw Muslims, even on T.V., I
was attracted to them. Their appearance, the way they carried
themselves in public and even the way they ate with their
hands. I was in awe of the sheer humility of actually placing
your face down on the ground when speaking to God. But that
was just a file in the back shelves of my mental cabinet.
The
government at the time, being one-dimensional as they were,
had people believing that all religions apart from
Christianity were misguided and wrong. That being manipulative
as it was, made people—parents—frown on any other
religion. Parents teaching their kids the same values and
standards that they were taught kept Islam in the shadows...
for now.
Although
I grew up loving the Bible and what it meant to me, I started
wanting a bit more as I grew older. Something was just
lacking. That certain something that you cannot name, but on
closing your eyes, you can clearly feel it. As a young boy I
had a tremendous interest in life, humans and how humans apply
what they know to life. That brought me to study religion.
I
have always spent time away in the mountains and used
the time to get closer to God… |
|
After
not very long at all, it became clear to me that ‘The
Bible’ as we know it today, is not translated correctly from
its original Hebrew scripture. The message was in fact turned
into a complete custom suited version of its original script.
Surely the Almighty God would not just leave mankind without
the proper guidance? Surely He must have revealed Himself
again? I was certain that God did not just turn away after man
defaced His written word. I knew that evil men, no matter how
many could not possibly keep God away from us. Needing to find
Gods revelation to life made me search for that missing
‘something’.
The
search was difficult as the country was still mentally
‘fenced in.’
But
time doing what it does specifically, which is change things
and the perspective we view things from, turned the way life
looked to South Africans. It opened up the doorway to that big
‘out there’. It put Islam right there in my buffet of
facts. Still a bit molded by the old one-dimensional way of
life, Islam was often overlooked on dishing up my spiritual
food. My mental hunger not being stilled and getting more used
to variety, I eventually started with little helpings of
Islam. My plate started looking more colorful. The buffet
started smelling much more aromatic.
Something
took me by my heart and filled me with a magical sense
of wonder. |
|
Loving
nature and its effect on the spirit, I have always spent time
away in the mountains. During these outings I used the time to
get closer to God and more in touch with His creation. I asked
Him to please show me where to turn to. To please light the
path that leads to a higher life. On my return back to the so
called civilization, I became friends with a Muslim for the
first time in my life. A sensitive and friendly man. He was an
ordinary man living an ordinary life and speaking about
ordinary things, but... when speaking about God something came
over him. Something I did not see in the other ordinary people
I knew. Something that took me by my heart and filled me with
a magical sense of wonder.
After
a while our paths forked into separate directions. My life
went on its normal course. Time went by and my emptiness
remained. I kept asking for guidance. Then one day I bumped
into my old friend again. It was wonderful to see his warm
smile again. I had missed him. We exchanged phone numbers and
stayed in touch. This time I made it clear to Him that I want
more insight into Islam. I started meeting him and learning
more every time.
He
gave me literature and I took in like plant takes in water. I
was growing. More and more it became clear to me that Islam is
what I have always been searching for. That Islam was the
frame around my picture of life.
It
was not long before I contacted him and told him that I want
Islam as my way of life, that I wanted Islam to be the robe
covering me when looked upon by the eyes of God. The eyes of
Allah. (I still get filled with a wholesome fear when saying
His name. I always will inshallah.)
Since
the day my friend, now my brother, sat down in front of me as
I testified that Allah, swt, is the true deity and the only
deity worthy of worship, and that Mohammed, pbuh, was His
prophet and messenger, I have grown stronger in Islam. I have
been living the life I was longing for my whole life.
May
Allah, swt, grant me the ability to be a living testimony of
His glorious and supreme reign to all of mankind. Ameen.
|
