ÿþ<html xmlns:v="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:vml" xmlns:o="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" xmlns:w="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:word" xmlns:st1="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40"> <head> <meta http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; charset=unicode"> <meta name=ProgId content=Word.Document> <meta name=Generator content="Microsoft Word 10"> <meta name=Originator content="Microsoft Word 10"> <link rel=File-List href="sagaisra_files/filelist.xml"> <title>Islam.is</title> <o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="City"/> <o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="PlaceName"/> <o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="PlaceType"/> <o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="date"/> <o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="country-region"/> <o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="place" downloadurl="http://www.5iantlavalamp.com/"/> <!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:DocumentProperties> <o:Author>Sigrun Valsdottir</o:Author> <o:Template>Normal</o:Template> <o:LastAuthor>Sigrun Valsdottir</o:LastAuthor> <o:Revision>3</o:Revision> <o:TotalTime>3</o:TotalTime> <o:Created>2006-09-26T20:50:00Z</o:Created> <o:LastSaved>2006-09-26T21:10:00Z</o:LastSaved> <o:Pages>1</o:Pages> <o:Words>963</o:Words> <o:Characters>5492</o:Characters> <o:Company> </o:Company> <o:Lines>45</o:Lines> <o:Paragraphs>12</o:Paragraphs> <o:CharactersWithSpaces>6443</o:CharactersWithSpaces> <o:Version>10.6626</o:Version> </o:DocumentProperties> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:Zoom>125</w:Zoom> <w:SpellingState>Clean</w:SpellingState> <w:GrammarState>Clean</w:GrammarState> <w:BrowserLevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id=ieooui></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--> <style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; 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mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style> <!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman";} </style> <![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:shapedefaults v:ext="edit" spidmax="4098"/> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:shapelayout v:ext="edit"> <o:idmap v:ext="edit" data="1"/> </o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--> </head> <body bgcolor=white lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=blue style='tab-interval:.5in' alink=blue marginwidth=5 marginheight=5 leftmargin=5 topmargin=5> <div class=Section1> <p class=MsoNormal style='line-height:150%'><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p></p> <p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center;line-height:150%'><b> My journey the right and straight path <o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center;line-height:150%'><span class=GramE><b>by</b></span><b> <span class=SpellE>Isrâ</span> <span class=SpellE>Zubair</span> Abdul-<span class=SpellE>Wahhab</span><o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center;line-height:150%'><b><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p></b></p> <p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center;line-height:150%'><span class=SpellE><i style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'>Bism'Allah</i></span><i style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'> al-<span class=SpellE>Rahman</span> al-<span class=SpellE>Raheem</span> (In the name of <span class=SpellE>Allâh</span> the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful)<o:p></o:p></i></p> <p class=MsoNormal style='line-height:150%'><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p></p> <p class=MsoNormal style='line-height:150%'><span class=regtext>Praise be to Allah, the Almighty, the Cherisher and Sustainer of the Universe, and peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, last of the Prophets, and upon all those who adhere to his example until the Day of Judgment<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class=MsoNormal style='line-height:150%'><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p></p> <p class=MsoNormal style='line-height:150%'>My full name is <span class=SpellE>Isrâ</span> <span class=SpellE>Zubair</span> Abdul-<span class=SpellE>Wahhab</span> and I reverted to Islam on <st1:date Year="2004" Day="1" Month="10">the 1st of October 2004</st1:date>, this story is written on the 21st of May in 2005. Although this is the moment where I read the <span class=SpellE><i style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'>Shahada</i></span><i style='mso-bidi-font-style: normal'> </i>(La <span class=SpellE>ilaha</span> <span class=SpellE>illa</span> Allah, <span class=SpellE>Muhammadun</span> <span class=SpellE>rasoolu</span> Allah), my journey to Islam started however ten years ago in <st1:country-region><st1:place>England</st1:place></st1:country-region>.</p> <p class=MsoNormal style='line-height:150%'><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p></p> <p class=MsoNormal style='line-height:150%'>I was born in 1977 in <st1:City><st1:place>Reykjavik</st1:place></st1:City> the capital of <st1:country-region><st1:place>Iceland</st1:place></st1:country-region>. My family was not religious although it belonged to the Evangelical Lutheran Protestant state <st1:place><st1:PlaceType>Church</st1:PlaceType> of <st1:PlaceName>Iceland</st1:PlaceName></st1:place>. Like most other children in <st1:country-region><st1:place>Iceland</st1:place></st1:country-region> at that time I went to Sunday schools, were we traded bible cards, played music and sung songs (may Allah forgive me for my deeds!). I was disappointed with the education that I received in Sunday school because there was not that much focus on the Bible and the word of God in it self. Even set before these difficulties I never lost my faith in God and I was monotheistic. I completely rejected and loathed the holy trinity that I was thought both in Christianity studies in secondary school and Sunday school. If we imagine us an egg which has three parts: the shell, the clear fluid between the shell and the yolk. Then let us say that the shell represents the Holy Spirit, the clear fluid represents Jesus (<span class=SpellE><i style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'>radhi</i></span><i style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'> <span class=SpellE>Allaahu</span> 'anhu,</i> Peace be upon him) and the yolk represents God. Then if we say that the whole egg in its totality is God and that God has three parts (a holy trinity) the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Now if we crucify the son Jesus (Peace is upon him) then don t we remove the clear fluid between the shell and the yolk? Can we then claim that we have a whole egg? And can we then claim that we complete monotheism (monotheism is the belief in one God)? The answer in my heart was a clear no. I was not on the right path to God. </p> <p class=MsoNormal style='line-height:150%'><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p></p> <p class=MsoNormal style='line-height:150%'>When I was growing up in <st1:City><st1:place>Reykjavik</st1:place></st1:City>, I alienated from the culture. I did not relate to the selfishness of some of the people around me, where everyone just cared about themselves and did not care about their fellow man. People where constantly hurting each other. Women were mistreated, beaten, raped and used as tissues by other men around me. I was disgusted by this! I asked myself where is the respect and love for women in this society? Why did they constantly point towards problems in the third world where they had similar problems in their own backyards? So like the Prophet Muhammad (<span class=SpellE>salallaahu</span> '<span class=SpellE>alayhi</span> <span class=SpellE>wassallam</span>) I felt extremely alienated from my society. I often asked myself the question where do I belong? And I often cried and prayed to God to give me good guidance in my life. Although I felt alienated from the society I had good loving family which supported me. Yet I felt that I did not belong to the society since I did not find any comfort in any material gains, and the more things I acquired the lonelier I got. Allot of times in my child hood where spent thinking and pondering on these existential questions. And even my grandmother started complaining to my parents over the fact I thought too much. But I was convinced there was no doubt in my mind that there was a creator that had given me a purpose in my life. I could not live my life without any goal or any meaning.</p> <p class=MsoNormal style='line-height:150%'><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p></p> <p class=MsoNormal style='line-height:150%'>Then when I was 14 years old my parents sent me to an English school for children in <st1:country-region><st1:place>England</st1:place></st1:country-region>, in my class there were mixed nationalities. Among my classmates where Muslim brothers from the <st1:place><st1:PlaceType>Kingdom</st1:PlaceType> of <st1:PlaceName>Saudi Arabia</st1:PlaceName></st1:place> and <st1:country-region><st1:place>Yemen</st1:place></st1:country-region>, we became friends and started to hang around with each other. We discussed different matters and I was able to see threw the propaganda that I had been subjected to throw the media as a child. These people where human beings just like me and I learned that the propaganda that was shown about Islam in the media was far away from the truth, and also I realized the there are no distinctions between human beings no matter which race, creed, status we have we are all human. From that point on I became interested in Islam. And I started reading as much about Islam as I could. And even today I am thirsty for even more knowledge on my religion, and it is the duty of every Muslim to seek knowledge about his or her religion.  High above all is Allah, the King, <span class=GramE>the</span> Truth! Be not in haste with the <span class=SpellE>Qur'an</span> before its revelation to thee is completed, but say, &quot;O my Lord! <span class=GramE>advance</span> me in knowledge.&quot;<span class=GramE>[<span class=SpellE>Surah</span> <span class=SpellE>Th</span>, 20.114],  O ye who believe!</span> <span class=GramE>when</span> it is said unto you, Make room! <span class=GramE>in</span> assemblies, then make room; Allah will make way for you (hereafter). And when it is said, <span class=GramE>Come</span> up higher! <span class=GramE>go</span> up higher; Allah will exalt those who believe among you, and those who have knowledge, to high ranks. Allah is <span class=GramE>Informed</span> of what ye do. <span class=GramE>[<span class=SpellE>Surah</span> Al-Mujadila, 58.11].</span></p> <p class=MsoNormal style='line-height:150%'><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p></p> <p class=MsoNormal style='line-height:150%'>It was after a careful consideration of the facts and a thoughtful process that has taken nearly thirteen years that I decided to take one more step forward and to walk the right path and take the religion of Islam. This is the path which is closest to my heart <span class=SpellE>Masha</span> Allah, and Allah with his mercy has opened my heart. Allah <span class=SpellE><i style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'>Lâ</i></span><i style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'> <span class=SpellE>ilâha</span> <span class=SpellE>illâ</span> <span class=SpellE>Huwa</span> </i>(none has the right to be worshipped but He), the ever living, the one who sustains and protects all that exists. Neither slumber, nor sleep overtakes Him. To Him belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on earth. He knows what happens to them (His Creatures) in this world, and what will happen to them in the Hereafter. And they will never compare anything of His knowledge except that He wills. His <span class=SpellE>Kursi</span> extends over the heavens and the earth, and He feels no fatigue in guarding and preserving them. And He is the Most High, the Most Great (<span class=SpellE>Ayat-ul-Kursi</span>). [<span class=SpellE>Surah</span> Al-Baqarah, 2:255). I feel privileged to be a part of Muslim <span class=SpellE>Ummah</span> you are all my brothers and sisters. At last I have found true peace in my heart, I can not put the feelings that I have into words for these feelings are beyond words! I have truly come to the right and straight path! And finally I feel peace and love in my heart. </p> <p class=MsoNormal style='line-height:150%'><br> O Allah, send peace and blessings <br> upon our prophet <span class=SpellE>Muhammed</span>, his <br> companions and all those who follow them in <br> righteousness till the Day of Reckoning. <span class=SpellE><span class=GramE>Aameen</span></span><span class=GramE>.</span></p> <p class=MsoNormal><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p></p> </div> </body> </html>