Freedom Galore! "What are you planning to wear next week? Remember you have to look good." "I'll see what I can do. I guess I have to get something new. There had better be fine guys at that party." "Don't worry your efforts will not go to waste." Does this sound familiar? This type of conversation was a constant one between my friends and I. We just gained admission into the university and some of us automatically gained freedom from our parents watchful eyes. I did not have a freedom problem with my parents; I just did it for the fun of it. We tried to attend all the parties and - we had no care in the world. We all enjoyed this way of life for various reasons. I thought I enjoyed it because it was so much "fun" and my friends thought I was cool.
Others enjoyed it because they could go to places and wear clothes their parents would not approve of. Of course, our parents did not think the company we kept was bad because we behaved properly in their presence. This went on for a while but eventually I became bored. My life style was monotonous. It was always parties, boys, clothes, lies and occasionally some schoolwork. I decided to stop attending some of these parties.
Thank God my friends did not notice this slight change of attitude at its earliest stage. A good friend. On the other hand, I had this friend who used to preach to me about my ways telling me there was more to life than the way I was living it.
She would invite me to programmes organized by the Muslim Students Society (M.S.S) and naturally I would decline. When I cut down on the parties, I attended some of the programmes to fill up my time and found out that I was actually enjoying them.
A wrong impression.
Most of the lectures did not sound appealing but there was some sense in what was being said. What impressed me the most was the amount of knowledge the brothers and sisters at these programmes had. I thought they were illiterates, archaic and inferior to me but found out I could learn a lot from them.
Not only did they have the knowledge of the Quraan; they also knew and understood the happenings in the world. Apart from the knowledge they had, they also made me feel at home. This was surprising because I was expecting a cold shoulder, something my friends and I would give to anyone we thought was not good enough to be one of us. A good turn. I started attending more of these religious programmes and my attendance at the parties decreased gradually. This sent tongues wagging and my friends started fuming; they wanted to know what was happening. When they found out that I was becoming religious, they laughed at me and called me names: Ninja! They often shouted but that did not bother me at all. I was not a Ninja.
So you can imagine how they took it when I told them of my intention to use the hijab. They tried to talk me out of it and make me realize that it was a phase I was going through. They were sure that I could not go through with using the "hijab". They would remind me how cool and tapping I was before I became an Alhaja! They were not pleased with me! Hmm. "My friends" also tried to make me realize how much fun I was missing out on, but this did not have an effect. When they realized I was not going to budge, they started to keep their distance. They would not return my phone calls or visits. This attitude made me worried because these were people I had known as my friends for a long time. I was really excited to share my new experience with them, but whenever I brought it up, it was always a source of discord. A sincere adviser. I decided to talk to my newfound friend whom Allaah used as the source of my guidance and that was when I understood their problem.
Sire referred me to a verse of the glorious Quraan where Allaah said: "And never will the Jews nor the Christians be pleased with you until you follow their religion and way of life ... " (AI - Baqarah [2]: 102). Thus, she asked me to pray for Allaah's guidance for them, be patient and steadfast and hope for the best from Him. With good companions. Naturally, I stopped hanging out with these friends, though at times we exchange pleasantries. I made new friends whose company helped me remember Allaah and made it easy for me to practice my newfound love, the deen of Islaam! So, "0 you who believe! Be afraid of Allaah, and be with those who are true (in words and deeds). "(At- Tawbah [9]: 119).
This article was culled from the publications of Deen Communication Limited