A Muslim Convert Once Before

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ   When I first converted, I attended Shaykh ‘Abd al-Hakim Murad Timothy John Winter’s talk, “The Muslim Jesus.”   Shaykh ‘Abd al-Hakim was educated at Westminster School, and graduated with a double-first in Arabic from the University of Cambridge in 1983.   He studied and taught the traditional Islamic sciences at al-Azhar for several years.   He also spent an equal number of years in Jeddah administering a commercial translation office.   He maintained close contact with Habib Ahmad Mashhur ibn Thaha al-Haddad ( q.s. ).   He returned to England in 1989 and spent two years at the University of London concentrating on Turkish and Persian.   Because of the subject of the talk, it was a packed venue.   There were many Muslims and there were many Christians who came with their Bibles.   It was after all, a controversial topic.   I remember when they left, they left their Bibles behind.   Howeve...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيم   In the Book of Genesis, Onan was the second son of Judah ( r.a. ), and the younger brother of Er.   Er was married to Tamar.   Tamar eventually had a son, Perez, who was the ancestor of David ( a.s. ).   Genesis 38:8-10 8 Judah, therefore, said to Onan, his son, “Go in to your brother’s wife and marry her, that you may raise seed to your brother.”   9 He, knowing, that the children should not be his, when he went in to his brother’s wife, he spilled his seed upon the ground, lest children should be born in his brother’s name.   10 And, therefore, the Lord Slew him, because he did a detestable thing:   8 εἶπεν δὲ Ιουδας τῷ Αυναν εἴσελθε πρὸς τὴν γυναῖκα τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ σου καὶ γάμβρευσαι αὐτὴν καὶ ἀνάστησον σπέρμα τῷ ἀδελφῷ σου 9 γνοὺς δὲ Αυναν ὅτι οὐκ αὐτῷ ἔσται τὸ σπέρμα ἐγίνετο ὅταν εἰσήρχετο πρὸς τὴν γυναῖκα τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ αὐτοῦ ἐξέχεεν ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν τοῦ μὴ δοῦναι σπέρμα τῷ ἀδελφῷ αὐτοῦ 10 πονηρὸν δὲ ἐφάνη...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Once, a man came to visit Imam Abu al-Qasim al-Junayd ibn Muhammad al-Baghdadi ( q.s. ).   His life reflected no change, even after having performed haj .   Imam Junayd ( q.s. ) asked him, “Where are you coming from?” “ Shaykh , I have returned after performing haj at the House of Allah ( s.w.t. ),” was the reply. “So, have you actually performed haj ?” “Yes, shaykh , I have performed haj ”, said the man. “Did you pledge that you would give up sins when you left your home for haj ?” asked Imam Junayd ( q.s. ). “No, shaykh , I never thought of that,” said the man. “Then, in fact, you did not even step out for haj .   While you were on the sacred journey and making halts at places during the nights, did you ever think of attaining Nearness to Allah ( s.w.t. )?” “ Shaykh , I had no such idea.” “Then you did not at all travel to the Ka’bah, nor did ever visit it.   When you put on the ihram garment...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ   In the aftermath of the reunification of Germany, many Eastern Europeans including Russians resident in the former East Germany flocked to work in the factories in the former West Germany.   There, they met many of the Muslim immigrants, mainly of Kurdish extraction.   Once, in an unnamed factory, a Russian approached a Kurd and asked if he was Muslim.   And the Kurd said he was.   And the Russian said he wanted to tell a story and he hoped the Kurd would listen.   During the break, he told this:   “I was a soldier in the armies of the USSR sent to fight in Afghanistan.   I was a tanker man (meaning he was a tank crewman).   Once, we were sent to capture a pass in the mountains.   They were going to exterminate a village as an example.   We saw a man in white on a white horse blocking the pass.   He had a white turban and carried a sword.   No guns.   We laughed since a ho...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ This is a story from Sirr al-Asrar of Shaykh Muhyi ad-Din Abu Muhammad ibn Abu Swalih ‘Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani ( q.s. ).  It is actually in the translator’s introduction, and was contributed by Shaykh Tu’sun Bayrak al-Jirrahi.  It is a story of many meanings, and perhaps the reader will know better than the one who passes it.  How many times have we been the wali and how many times have we been the swineherd?  How many times have we danced in the Garden without entering the Palace?  And how many times have we beheld the Fires without entering the Gates?   There was a Persian shaykh .  He was a very devout shaykh .  He prayed more than anyone.  He fasted continuously.  He made numerous pilgrimages to the Ka’bah.  He was very ambitious to obtain Allah’s ( s.w.t. ) Pleasure.  For fifty years he remained in seclusion from the world with four hundred of his disciples, whom he made work day a...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ The following is extracted from Shaykh ‘Abd al-Wahhab ibn Ahmad ash-Sha’rani ( r.a. ) in his Thabaqat al-Kubra , as quoted by Shaykh Ibrahim ibn ‘Abdullah Niyas al-Kawlakhi ( r.a. ) in his Kashif al-Ilbas . Know that the science of Sufism is a knowledge kindled in the hearts of the saints, until the practical application of the Qur’an and the sunnah completely illuminated their hearts.   For anyone who puts the religion into practice like this has such sciences kindled in him, along with moral virtues, secrets, and divine realities that tongues are incapable of enunciating. This is similar to the way in which the scholars have had knowledge kindled in their hearts from studying the legal rules, and they likewise have put into practice what they have learned.   Consider how the sciences of rhetoric and eloquence are the cream of the knowledge of grammar.   Similarly, Sufism, provided the servant is free from false pretexts ...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ The following write-up is based on the one given to Pustaka National.   The shorter version is found in a tribute book for Shaykh Zakariya ibn ‘Umar Bagharib ( q.s. ).   In that book is also a list of some of the ud’iyyah that he taught us. Shaykh Zakariya ibn ‘Umar Bagharib ( q.s. ) will always have a place in our hearts, especially for many of the converts in Darul Arqam Singapore who had the privilege of learning from him.   I first met him at Darul Arqam whilst I was waiting for my first Beginners’ Course in Islam.   He was teaching the tawhid class in the room opposite.   It is ironic that although I studied much from him, I never studied any of it at Darul Arqam itself.   In any case, he had a different understanding of how tawhid should be taught with the then President of Darul Arqam, Ridzuan Abdullah Wu Chia Chung, who is Salafist.   He was told to leave, and the students left with him.   T...