Abū Abdullāh Afia (UK)

• English

• Was Jewish

• Became Muslim in 1991

“In the course of a discussion with my friend who came from a similar background (i.e. wealthy), he said to me, ‘What’s it all about (i.e. meaning life)?’

So we got into a deep discussion and came out of it with the conclusion that our parents and what they believed in and strove for was absolutely ridiculous, and there has to be more to life than this. That’s when I started thinking about the purpose of life for the first time. So that search, took a period of three years; finding out what I could about the different religions. I found no answers in any of the other religions except when I came to listen to the teachings of Islām.

So one day, I was traveling on a bus past Regents Park Masjid (mosque) on the way to work, when I saw so many people entering the masjid. I got off the bus and sat in the [courtyard) wall of the masjid watching everyone go in. So I sat and began thinking and watched everyone come out of the masjid. And then, one man came over and gave me a translation of the Qurʾān and the book, What Everyone Should Know about Muslims. So I kept the Qurʾān and began reading it. I used to take it to work and read it and read it everywhere I went. I read it all the time. Then one day, I was on top of Harrods (where I worked) roof smoking a cigarette and reading the Qurʾān and then I read, <<Alif, Lam, Meem. This is the book whereof there is no doubt, a guidance to those who fear Allāh>>, and shed a few tears as I realized that this truly was guidance with no doubt and what I had been searching for. So I remembered somebody telling me years ago that you get people from all different faiths going to Speakers’ Corner (a place In London’s Hyde Park where people can stand on a box and express their views). So I started attending and listening to the Muslims until one day, I decided I had to find out more about Islām. So I went over to one of the speakers and said to him “I want to become a Muslim (i.e. tell me more about Islām). As I said I want to become Muslim, he told me to wait there and went off and came back with thirty other men. He started to explain to me the fundamentals about AI-Islām and I thought, this is good. This is what I wanted, information.

So he asked if I understood and believed what he was saying. So I said yes. So then he said repeat after me “I bear witness that none has the right to be worshipped except Allāh, alone without partners, and I bear witness that Muḥammad is His devoted servant, worshipper and Messenger”. So I did. So the next thing I knew everyone was embracing me telling me I was a Muslim now. So I shed a few tears and went off and sat down in the park. And I thought this is the best thing I’ve done in my life so far. And I was right”