The Guide
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NAMCC speech contest 2008 (Islam in my Life)
Rakin Mazid
April 5, 2008
Austin, Texas.
Alhamdulillah Assalatu-assalumual ika ya Rasoolillah
Assalamu Alaikum Dear Brothers and Sisters in Islam,
In a beautiful hadith in Sahih Al-Bukhari, the Prophet (SAW) said that on the Day of Judgment, there with be 7 whom Allah will bestow his shade upon, when there will be no shade but His shade-- and amongst these 7, one of them will be a youth who grew up in sincere worship of Allah (SWT) from childhood.
Growing up as a young Muslim, I am delighted to consider myself as one of the fortunate ones for the infinite blessings of Allah (SWT) for guiding me in the true path of Islam, in a society where the youth is constantly being targeted by worldly distractions making it liable to easily drift away from the Islamic Path. I also owe tremendous gratitude to my parents for bringing me up in a family where Islam is practiced in true sense.
Islam has a tremendous effect on my daily life. As a family, we have evening halaqas on a daily basis, where we discuss a variety of topics in Islam. We have a library of Islamic books and CDs consisting of lectures by some of the best scholars of our times—making it easy for me to gain proper Islamic knowledge from authentic sources. As I grow up, I find the love of practicing Islam in all my daily activities.
I am fortuitous to begin each day making ablution and performing Fajr, while many people around me are busy preparing for their worldly affairs. After I have completed my prayer, I recite the Holy Quran. Then I help my younger sister wake up so she wouldn't miss the Fajr prayer, and afterwards, I help her get ready for school. I also make breakfast for the family and help my mom with any other household chores. As a Muslim, I do my best to make the best use of my time by balancing out all my duties, as Islam teaches us to do.
I am a junior at Connally High School. When I go to school, I maintain perfect hijab, fulfilling all 7 requirements of hijab, and my attire makes me seem like a stranger to all the other students in the school. But, I feel proud to be a stranger in my school, because in a Sahih hadith in Tirmidi, the Prophet (SAW) said, "Islam began with something strange, and it shall return to being something strange, so give glad tidings to the strangers". Not only does my attire and personality at school cause others to respect me for who I am, I feel like I am a paradigm for all the other Muslim girls who have taken to follow the crowd, by imitating their attire and behavior in order to fit in with them. I feel especially proud to go to school with perfect hijab, when I remember a story my dad told me. There was an American guy who always used to ask my dad questions about various topics regarding Islam, when he came to know that my dad is a Muslim. My dad always answered all of his questions and also gave him a translated version of the Holy Quran, so he could study from it. One day that man asked my dad, "Do you know why I became so interested to learn about Islam. When I was in school, I had a female Muslim classmate who used to wear hijab very nicely. I really liked her attire and modest character, which caused me to become so interested in learning about Islam." This story helped me realize that I too am giving dawah to both the Muslims and Non-Muslims. Doing perfect hijab in a public high school environment is a great jihad for me, and inshallah, I will have glad tidings waiting for me as a result of my actions.
Allah (SWT) says in the Quran in Surah Al Baqara, Ayat 286: "Allah burdens not a person beyond his scope". I have witnessed this many times in my life. If we try our best to follow the commands of Allah, He (SWT) will make thing easier for us. This is mentioned in many Ayahs in the Quran. I never participated in physical exercise where we need to wear sport dresses with others students (male and female) in middle school and high school. My parents informed the school administration in advance that my participation in physical exercise conflicts with our religious beliefs. So when other students go for indoor/outdoor sport activities, I go to the library in order to research and write reports on various sports, games, and health topics. As a result of this, I have always gotten 100% mark in PE. My school authority also assigned a prayer room for me, where I could go to pray my Dhur and sometimes Asr prayer.
I am greatly honored and proud to be a member of the ummah of our great Prophet Muhammad (SAW). The objective of my life is to worship Allah, as He (SWT) has mentioned in the Quran, "Wama khalaktul jinna wal insa illa liaboodun," meaning "I have created jinn and inshan for nothing but to worship me." My goal in life is to escape myself from the hellfire and enter paradise by the mercy of Allah (SWT). I always make du'a to Allah (SWT) to grant me steadfastness on my religion wherever I may go and guide me on siratal mustakim to fulfill the purpose and achieve the goal of my life.
Jazakallahu Khairan for your time and attention.
Collected
May Allah bring peace and blessings into our life and home!
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