Romanian and Loving Islam - Jibreel

bismillah alhamdulillah Salam alaikum welcome to another episode of the Deen show on location and we've interviewed all sorts of Muslims all over the world I told you if there's a Muslim on the moon we'd be interviewing them but I found a Muslim from Romania Romanian Muslim love in Islam gibreel assalamualaikum how are you brother good good to be a hundred I want to ask you a few questions inshallah so in a predominantly Christian Orthodox Catholic Romania how did you find Islam it's me not him actually it's a long story I'll try to make as short as possible yes Romania is predominately Orthodox and some Catholic that's my background once my family was you know raising me that way Christianity is part of the culture there it's it's not something that you just choose you know you raised into it we were having Bible class you know starting grade one and I'm not talking about here just your normal average Bible study like you're actually going deaf and you know you you and I developed actually a love for for faith you know for for Christianity and I used to be one of the only ones my family to go to church actually believe not you know grade one I would go myself to church and even pick some of the kids in the neighborhood and take him to church Jannah and even the parent parents were like what is this guy doing so yeah it was and I developed a love for God and interest in in faith to the point where I used to cross the road I used to cross myself you know I was very very into it and I was introduced to Islam very early actually you know part of our history classes in Romania we you know we have a long history with with the Turks with the Muslim Turks and we were always taught that they're disbelievers they believe in this God Allah who was a different God it was just you know someone out there was totally you know different right so you know we were kind of taught not to like them I wouldn't put it hate him but not to like them and Romain's were always praised and you know they defeated Turks and you know but obviously history knows it so the Muslims were called Turks yeah the Muslims were called Turks and we were memorizing even like even now I know some some poetry in romania no kind of against you know the the the Muslim Turks and praising the Romanians and the Christian armies and how did he feed it you know in certain battles the Turks so you know it's very nationalistic type nationalist a very - there's part of the culture it was part of the culture and you know so I had that preconceived idea you know when push comes to shove different things happen in my life and you know I kind of when I came to Canada which was 1998 I was introduced Muslims I actually finally got to meet a Muslim and I was like was it a Turkish Muslim it was not a Turkish roast actually a Bosnian was I Razia most Bosnia Muslim and you know I and I real and I met other Muslims Arab Muslims and I I've seen these you know a variety of people from different backgrounds all being Muslim you know talking about the same this Allah is God Allah and I was like who is this you know Allah so finally slowly I realized first of all that some of the things that they were saying about Muslims you know being pagan and you know bad people that do or not they were actually very nice people and good people and actually praying a lot you know and they prayed in a manner which you know I really really became to love from the begin when I when I would you know see my friend praying I was I felt like I was missing something myself in my prayers you know so actually at one point in my life and I was so Christian how I used to get down and make Sergiu with you know because I felt like that's a closer to God and you know just my normal prayers while kneeling or I just you know crossing my hands meaning they would like fall on their face and pray to God come up all the way down right though the you know make what's called a full prostration which is weird because it's also described of Jesus peace be upon him of doing it and in the Gospels right so you know he did that so you know I I really became to love you know that way pray and I starting on being very interested in in Islam you know trying to understand a little bit about Islam trying to you know a lot of the things that I you know knew before about and we're just you know you know misconceptions and there came to a point where you know I was really I I would say was the guidance of God that really made me question my own faith you know I was I was really I know in two different things happen my life basically you know I mean I wouldn't like to flaunt it on your like just everybody all just chasing the material world satisfying the flesh and you know if you want to put yeah I was you know drinking and even though I didn't like drinking but I was you know trying to you know be in conformity with my friends nervous the past you know but but it's reality that's what people are caught up in to just having a good time get all you can can that's what it was with Canada coming here my parents kind of divorced and you know basically certain things happen they really opened my mind right so I'm to mission now you were missing something those those there was a lot missing from the beginning actually and and now I realize it and as that void was very deep right now when you know my life was you know even more empty because my family was broken apart and you know I was culturally confused coming to Canada right like the culture was different right so I was like I was having identity you know issues I was like I mean Who am I really you know what what is you know that same you know question that everyone has to the nightclubs in the drinking it wasn't in the way all that stuff wasn't satisfied answering your questions right I turned to the to the female you know aside for some time and that supposedly gave some some you know took my mind off it for some time but no it didn't you know that the night the nightlife and the drinking which I didn't like the drugs I never did because I don't I could I was just a sports guy all the time so I couldn't do but the nightlife never did I used to go back in my bed at night I remember you know being drunk and just laying on the back and just sitting almost you know they nightly you know every night I was a dancer like what I just do you know I like I went I laughed I had fun yes I got drunk and you know I danced but I just feel like so empty what's what did I do I mean I don't feel happy everyone's laughing like the you know it's so fake because you're there and you're you know you pretend you having a good time but I'll go home and I would literally be like like what I don't know like can I see my stuff like this in five years ten years what am I really doing so I was very very empty and you know I was I was definitely looking for something and then it came to the point where I was you know involved with a certain girl and we had some issues Nargis I remember that one night very very quite very well actually that I asked God to you know I felt my I doing that you know SuJu that prostration with the Muslims prayed you you copy that you fell on your face you humbled yourself I humble myself you know and I remember I was crying because I just I was so depressed I was like man like I don't know I'm not happy you know I mean I came from a third-world country where everyone support everyone's dreaming to come to Canada everyone's dream to come to the United States and that's like the utopia you know you want to go there but when you reach there it's like okay a year you're like wow nice buildings nice cars nice clothes but then after some time he's just like okay is that it you know I like where's all that hype that everyone's talking about so I humble myself and I put my head down to go I was just depressed I was like man I don't know why I am and I said you know god I'm just unhappy with you know girlfriend this that money whatever you know you're trying to get I'm not happy you know like I mean I need I need to find a way what is this way you know they want me to I was I was I was confused you know I was just like you know and I even before I turn to the Bible to look for answers right but I was confused and I asked you know the Almighty in that position and I was all honest you know I mean I don't like to to you know to to short but like I was crying you know I I was really in the depressed state and I remember even after some time I went through a doctor because I felt the house depressed night and I mean all you see throughout the TV you know doctors and Prozac and you 90 depress sense right so the first thing I clicked my own let me go to the doctor there's something wrong let me not you don't feel too bad because I'll guarantee you there's millions of people that are in that state right now but they're not doing what you did you humbled yourself and your ass can God to guide you continue please yes so I went to the doctor and I was like listen uh I wake up in the morning and I have anxiety attacks like my heart's about to jump out of my chest I can't go to school anymore I don't feel I would go to school I would look at the school door and I would turn around sometimes you know I just my marks went down I was like I don't I don't know what's going on so the doctor said you know here I'll prescribe you some medicine right so I look at them I'm like I don't want to take pills man I say next was in I don't remember what I just want to take pills you know I need to I need there's there's a greater purpose from you know I can't just stuff myself with pills and you know hope it's going to go away so I remember I I went you know home and and you know from this time till the time I found this time there was actually a great period of time I would say about you know a year and a half or so where you know it's still emptiness you know I try to look for a different place I try to forget about these things I try to push myself to be someone I wasn't just I you know I appear much when strong you know and it worked for some time knowing i mean i was doing very well in school i was becoming very popular on the soccer team but it still you know it was it was catching up with me once in a while right and just you know bringing back those same feelings and I knew that I'm just covering up you know sooner or later it's kind of that reality is going to come back to to haunt me and I remember exactly the the time when I actually gave up Christianity because of course I turned to it for answers and I was I moved I got kind of kicked out from one of the schools told not to come back and I went to a Catholic school and I remember the priest would come in and you know tell us about God and I would I would just be like I would have questions for him right and unfortunately no my methodology was not the best you know I was a bit rude and you know I was just keep cutting off in question I was like it makes no sense make some sense can you please explain it's can you please explain that and you just say you have to believe and I remember that I went one day home and it was I think I was Saturday morning I was sitting in front of the computer and I was looking through some Bible verses around Internet and I I just research the 10 commandments which we all learned before memorize in school in Navy you know and I read the first commandment you know I am your Lord thy God thou shalt not have any gods except me on heaven earth in between right I mean we all know that you know all the Christians know that and at that time it just it was it was different it sounded different and I just realized was like but we don't really do that it's Christian I remember the next week I went to school and I was talking to one of my teachers she was explaining something about Christianity and I said but miss we don't really you know I mean the Trinity and the whole issue of you know worshiping Jesus it kind of goes against you know the principles of of you know what did you know the Bible supposed to teach it and she says yeah I know you're right but you know this is just something we believe and I remember in myself I said you know I can't believe this I just can't and I'm went home after some time I took my cross and I just want to get your very nature it went against exactly that feeling in your heart you know you and you know I mean you you have it in yourself as to what you know you you would see a contradiction you know there's a contradiction there so I went home you know obviously I wouldn't do that right now break across anything but I broke my crosses I broke all you know like icons that we have you just Catholics or songs they have icons I took those away and I just said you know what I'm I believe in God all religions are equal evil or whatever they just cause wars and I just believe in God and and you know I'll just live my life like that I'll have my own religion where I you know I'm okay with everyone as long as they call upon God and I can have no problem with praying with all and I remember even one of my friends I was telling the buzzing I was like we're going on Toronto trip and I say you know I'll pray with you guys I don't mind you knowing because you guys pray to God he says yeah that guy actually I like your prayer teach me how to pray right and that's what started that he actually said okay let me teach you how to pray so you know he he he gate you know I gave up Christianity fully I was in openly saying I'm not a Christian and I believe in God I'm on the religion of God I would say no and you know I he taught me how to pray he gave me you know surah fatiha and I remember was you know my car broke down at that time for some time I was going on the bus and every time I'll be on the bus I was reading through it I was like I would never remember these words you know like what is I don't do I'm not gonna remember it you know what is Arabic I mean why did they have to be Arabic I'll put in my pocket and amazingly it would start going in my mind you know and hamdulillah you know like whoa I mean it's that's amazing out you know and after some time easy I memorized it and he actually I told him that and he told me well actually this is one of the the horns at the first chapter in the in the verbatim word of God the Quran and he said that's also one of the miracles because I memorized so easily he said you know that's one of the things that Allah tells us in the Quran that you know it made easy for people to remember right and I was like wow interesting and slowly slowly very very you know with much wisdom he'd start telling me about Islam I started taking different books I was hiding in mind you you know under my pillow is you so my family doesn't really know I don't want him to you know I was a bit embarrassed you know that I'm looking to you know what they perceived to be this Turkish religion which you know as pagan God and whatnot so I was kind of like hiding it and I was looking through it but you know again the worldly things caught up with me and I was pushing it was a struggle you know I was pushing the knowledge trying to get into the world I wasn't happy with the world trying to back go back to the knowledge and I was you know struggling with it too I actually it was interesting one of the times actually you know I went to them I was going to the mosque with my friend you know and we were sitting down one time and one guy comes to to us where he was actually he knows me and you know he saw me before in a mosque and he didn't seem for a long time he comes this looks and he's like wow how are you you know did you become muscle and slip of a thing I say yeah I said no and he starts screaming Oh brothers this guy became awesome I was like no no no and both me and my friend were like trying to explain today because I just you know I I made a mistake but that mistake was an innate mistake that was what in my heart I was one thing you know I like a slip of the tongue is I call you something that you really think about it's inside of you and you can't control that anymore you know and you just used you let it go right so I that's what I actually my heart was I was wanting but I was fighting it what what not go ahead and I was fighting it very well because I pushed it again and what happened is my friend actually in May we went to different schools and for some time we didn't see each other right so that connection you know kind of stopped right and I got caught up again with you know the worldly things on the other side but there was one incident and I mean I don't base the proof on dreams and stuff like that but there was one incident that I can just swipe over I mean it just catches up with me all the time that I was sleeping one night after you know doing my thing coming home I was sleeping one night in my bed and I dreamt that I was partying and I was in house and it was dark and you know you know the you know the scenario right and certain person approached me and stabs me in the stomach it was so real it was what you call like a lucid dream you know it's very you can't really tell the difference between reality and dream and I was hurting and I was bleeding and I was holding my stomach and I was you know getting dizzy and I walked outside is very dark and I heard the the ambulance coming and when I walked outside it was very dark and I looked in the sky and I saw a light in the sky right and my soul left you know my body and it was so real that I actually felt it and as my soul left my body and I was going towards light I woke up and when I woke up I was just crying I was just wet sweat it you know like I could just came out of the pool like I was just sweaty I didn't know what happened you know my reaction was like okay you know in our culture if you dream you know these kind of dreams nightmares maybe something bad happened right so I went checked up on my mom to see if she's okay see if my brother's okay everyone was okay and I couldn't I was just sitting my bad I went back Nozick I don't know like how do I interpret it and I realized you know just in my in my you know Americans that there is a way out there and it's not my way I can't just pick my own way and say you know what forget with this forget with that I have my own way there is a way out there and God wants me to find it till it's too late that's how I mean that was just my own interpretation of dream not that you know I stayed and ponder it but I felt it as well you know I need to find something I know there is I'm just fighting myself you know I'm just you know fooling myself that there isn't something out there I just need to find and you know what so what what was that the logic rational thing the the overwhelming thing about Islam that overtook you and had you take that step on to becoming a Muslim I would say it was what you know what we call in Islam tawheed right the oneness of Allah of God the perfect one is because a lot of people claim that they have you know the oneness of God but that perfect oneness of God and also another thing what we call v 99 that it fits your your humane your natural disposition you know you just it fits that and before knowing all these you know I mean of course the added later on to my to my firm belief but before I knew you know concepts of knowledge of science in the Quran and all these you know beautiful things the Quran that are used today for proofs you know I I had I would say what you know I could really understand how the sahabas fell you know because they didn't know about all these Sciences in the Quran right but they had the toe heed and the fit that I know and that matched right so that's where you know slowly I I came you know to to you know to to link that prayer that I made that one night that desperate prayer and the dream and you know all the everything that happened that's what it was pushing me that was the answer for me to that to that prayer that I made for God to show me you know the one true path and and very interesting that we know as humans were insane you're always forgetting it was very interesting because I was eating again trying to fight it and I remember the day when I was I gave up it was a day that again I I saw the I mean you know God sends people to guide you I saw that you know Bosnian brother again and it was in the computer center he was watching a very famous Nishida everyone watches probably not the last breath you know about mom clutter right and you know it's about the body the soul leaving the body know and says you know and it is true but it's too late you know and it really when I washed it it just it connected everything you know and I thought you know kind of like the next day I told him you know I really felt that this is the day I woke up that day was just perfect walking on my way to the university I was just I felt that you know what this is I can't I mean I can't fool myself you know anymore this is too much I am just kidding myself and I saw him actually on the way from one of the class and I said you know can you please help me with something can you come over to my house I need some help and he came at night and you know I went down the stairs we went like you know in front of house and I told him I want to be Muslim and he's like no way he's like I knew it all along he's like and I was so happy and you know very simply he told me you know I'm gonna obviously you know what I do he said you just repeat after me and he said I should win Allah Allah Allah said I know my mother saw such a beautiful you know statement very simple for a person you know to to you know to become Muslim and since that day I'm relying on being a Muslim you know I thought that that's going to be you know the the the the how would I say the the threshold you know when you reach here your Maxima in your life and I always believe that God had a purpose for me but it wasn't it was just the beginning of life so now you became a Muslim you took the declaration of faith which was a shadow and la ilaha illallah wa ashhadu anna muhammadan rasulullah which is basically bearing witness that there is only there is only one God there is no deity worthy of worship except this one God Allah the creator of the heavens and the earth and that Muhammad is His slave servant and the finality of the Prophet just like Jesus Moses Noah we're all messengers of God now you're Muslim ones who surrenders and submits to the Creator none of his creation you pray to Him you worship Him alone tell us for someone else who's hearing your story what advice do you have for doesn't matter if he's Romanian Italian Irish white black Chinese Islam is for the whole world for all mankind what advice do you have someone who might be caught up in that grip of cultural barriers I'm born into this and I can't get out but he's feeling inside he feels that that his his natural instinct or his natural what we call fitna that that it doesn't make sense that God is three and one and all praying and and all these other things that they believe but you know what he's having a hard time coming over the barrier he can relate to you what advice do you give that person my advice is you know just be sincere I mean I got you know Allah he hears everyone's prayer you know just be sincere and and be open to the truth there's lots of baggage that you have to push on the side now and that's why I was trying to tell you know it was a fight between myself when I you might desire one and you know what the truth was and that's what Islam is really is once you reach the truth is you're submitting to it you know what do you know you might not you know one to wake up for example 5:00 in the morning to pray right and a person was seeking the truth and you might hear that it might not be used to ibly all meant five o'clock or 4:30 sometimes you know four o'clock that's your body you know I necessarily you want to sleep right that's the whole issue of Islam you go against that desire of the body because you submit that will to the will of the creator and that's the beautiful thing about it you know as you explain that's you know the concept of faith in Islam and tawheed and worshiping or the aundrea if you're sincere and you ask for it get down there on your knees put your head on the ground if you're Christian you're not going to be wrong with it because you know Jesus did it Abraham did it another prophets that put your head on the ground and asked you know don't ask in anyone elses name okay this will not be something that will go against you know your belief either just ask the one true creator just say oh my oh my lord creator of the heavens and the earth right use you know all the most gracious the most merciful the Creator show me the truth I'm looking for you I want to submit my world to you well just show me the light and without a doubt without without any doubt he'll guide you darling though thank you once again for for being with us on the Deen show like thank everybody for tuning in I told you Islam is for everybody we have interviewed many people from all over the world different countries and we just got to interview somebody from Romania so inshallah God willing you got to benefit tune in every week at the Deen show calm th e de and show calm for more great topics great lectures and more of Islam and Muslims straight from the source till next time Salaam alaikum peace be unto you you

Channel: Digital Mimbar

Views: 89,795

Rating: 4.616734 out of 5

Keywords: Romanian, romania, Islam, Islamic, convert

Id: vklQ-C_Xi4g

Length: 24min 29sec (1469 seconds)

Published: Tue Jun 24 2008