Why Islam is my choice — Page 58
58 should say style, as he was what we called “hip. ” Akbar invited me to have dinner with him at a local Indian restaurant. This was the first time I had ever tasted Indian food, and I fell in love with the food instantly. We ate and talked about the world and Isl ā m. As I did not know anything about Isl ā m, Akbar gave me a book, as a gift. The book was entitled, “The Philosophy of the Teachings of Isl ā m” by Ḥ a ḍ rat Mirz ā Ghul ā m A ḥ mad of Qadian. This was to be one of many books given to me by Akbar. Through reading this book and others, I developed a thirst for knowledge about Isl ā m, and I started to read anything I could find on the subject. I became overwhelmed with the character and teachings of the Prophet Mu ḥ ammad, peace and blessings be upon him, and the prayers that he would recite, and all the effort his followers took to preserve his actions, sayings, and other details of his life. I became particularly interested in the Sufi books as they brought me in touch with the beauty, fragrance, and love of Isl ā m. Coupled with the book of Ḥ a ḍ rat Mirz ā Ghul ā m A ḥ mad, the Promised Messiah, about Jesus in India, my belief in the divinity in Jesus was removed so completely as if I never believed in it. I guess in a way I never did. In 1977, I took an overseas job which landed me in Iran. I could not believe I was in a land where Muslim saints had been born, lived, and died. I was moved by the warmth that the Iranian people extended to strangers. Here I was befriended by a Persian brother by the name of Hussein Rajab ī , he became my guide, teacher and friend. Hussein gave me a book entitled “Nahjul-Bal ā ghah of Ḥ a ḍ rat ‘Al ī. ” This book increased my knowledge even more as I read his eloquent and spiritually deep sermons. In Iran, during the summer of 1977, Hussein Rajab ī took me to an unfinished mosque on the outskirts of Tehran called “Hussayniyya Haiet Ben ī F āṭ imah” where I accepted Isl ā m at the hand of