Why Islam is my choice — Page 59
59 Ayatollah Nassere Makareme Shirazy. My stay in Iran was short but the memories will last me all my life. In August of 1977, I returned to New York with a new religion, and found myself a stranger in my own country as there was such a contrast between the Isl ā mic society of Iran and the Non-Isl ā mic society of America. Thus began my spiritual Jih ā d with myself as everything I used to do that was Un-Isl ā mic became repugnant, and I found myself becoming more of a loner. My life was going through such an upheaval during this time that I feared losing what I had gained through Isl ā m as I started to lose touch with the Isl ā mic connections I had made within the A ḥ madiyyah Community when the mission house was moved out of Brooklyn. I stayed caught up in this dilemma until around 1991 during the Gulf Crisis. It was at this time that I felt an intense need to take control of my life and decide if I was going to be a Muslim or something else. So I prayed to All ā h for guidance. Prior to this I had a dream during Rama ḍā n of 1984. In the dream, I saw the Holy Prophet Mu ḥ ammad, peace and blessings be upon him, laying his hands on the afflicted people and healing them one by one. I had been summoned to be among the people being healed. I always remembered this dream ‘Al ī Murtaz ā