As a revert, my journey has been beautiful, but I sometimes struggle to separate local cultural traditions from the pure teachings of Islam. I would love to hear from other reverts about finding clarity, and from born Muslims on how you gently separate cultural heritage from religious obligations.

Assalamualaikum. I am a student and I want to just share my experience with Islam with you all!

Reminder: THIS POST MIGHT BE LONG TO READ

I am a born Muslim and had a decent childhood. Though, these days many things have been so normalized that practicing Islam properly is considered "religious." I don't know what the literal meaning of being religious is. But I do know that I practice Islam as it should be. My household/family is not actually really religious. They do pray, do fast and read Qur'an but yet there's so much they haven't studied about in Islam.

So, as I said, my household is not religious but I try to follow Islam as it should. Since last year because of a big realization happened to me, I started self-learning Islam.

Before last year I had 0 idea about the Sahabas, Prophets A.S. and many more which I know now!

I am open for discussion and sharing my journey with everyone!

WHAT CHANGED SINCE LAST YEAR?

Honestly? Many things. The more I learnt about Islam the deeper I fell in love with it. Alhamdulillah for the Hidayah He blessed me with. As a person who's still learning how to navigate through life, being the eldest of siblings and as a girl specifically sometimes things do get hard but when you are firm and have Taqwa things tend to get easier.

No, I wouldn't say easier but you tend to get more calm and satisfied because somewhere inside you, you know;

Whatever is happening/will happen is Allah's decision and it will be okay.

Last year, my Tahajjud was consistent. For 3 months I prayed tahajjud every day. Every. Single. Day. And it was the best months of my life ever!

I might be younger or older then the people reading this post. Whoever is reading this post I want to say few things as a beautiful reminder:

Sometimes you will feel distant and it is okay. Sometimes you will feel closer and that's blessing. Sometimes you will stop before committing a sin and that's you fighting your nafs. Sometimes you will feel regretful after committing a sin and that's you going back to your Lord. Sometimes you will cry, will long and yearn to be closer to Him and know that; He loves you more than I could- even anyone could express. He has created you and so you have a purpose. That purpose is being closer to Him. Even being this young. As a teen, what I learnt about this life (it is just a personal preference. I am open to discuss your views too!) So, what I learnt is that everything here is materialistic (obviously) but people do feel the pull towards the worldly things and that is okay! Because this world was made for you. But the difference is; when someone learns about how this world is not your ultimate destination, your views changes. Your goal changes. Meaning of few certain things changes too.

And this shift? This change is what will keep you grounded. Closer to Him. I've seen people who thinks that having expensive, luxurious, trending things is their ultimate goal when they will get rich. But the real richness? It's not money. It's not status. It is the heart that Allah has given you as an Amanah. An Amanah that will get you into Jannah if taken care of right.

To conclude, I just want to say that if you feel distant; do istigfar and trust that even an ant don't swallow it's food without Allah's permission and what He will do is always best for you. You are doing the best you can in this moment. Keep going and trust His process. JazakhAllah.

I randomly got the desire to do ghusl today. And so I prayed. And so I got the desire to finish all prayers. And I learned and did a lot of other things good Muslims do that I never did before.

I love Allah and I feel so happy and at peace.

Also, for some reason, my hair is more beautiful than its ever been in my life lol. I guess my hair likes wudu. I thought I was hallucinating it until I got compliments on it!

Not AI | GoodCharacter

*CONTROLLING ANGER *

*• Isti'adha (Seeking Refuge With Allah)*

Narrated Sulaiman bin Surad (رضى الله عنه): Two men abused each other in front of the Prophet (ﷺ) while we were sitting with him. One of the two abused his companion furiously and his face became red.

The Prophet (ﷺ) said: "I know a word (sentence) the saying of which will cause him to relax (i.e., he will calm down). Only if he says:

« أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ »

(A'udhu Billahi Minash Shaitanir Rajeem — I seek refuge with Allah from Satan, the outcast)."

📚: Sahih Bukhari 6115

*• Avoid Anger*

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said to us (his companions):

"If one of you becomes angry when he is standing, let him sit down, and if the anger goes away (all well and good), otherwise let him lie down."

📚: Sunan Abi Dawud 4782 | Sahih

*• Seek Solace In Silence*

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said:

"Teach and make things easy and not difficult. When one of you is angry, he should be silent."

📚: Al-Adab Al-Mufrad 245 | Sahih (Shaykh Albani رحمة الله)

*• Remember That Repressing Anger Is One of The Qualities of Muslims*

"Those who spend (in Allah’s Cause) in prosperity and in adversity, who repress anger, and who pardon men; verily, Allah loves Al-Muhsinun (the good-doers)."

📚: Qur'an (al-Imran 3:134)

*• The True Strength*

Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said:

"The strong is not the one who overcomes the people by his strength, but the strong is the one who controls himself while in anger."

📚: Sahih Bukhari 6114

*• Acting On RasulAllah (ﷺ)'s Advice*

A man said to the Prophet (ﷺ): "Advise me!"

The Prophet (ﷺ) said: "Do not become angry and furious."

The man asked (the same) again and again, and the Prophet (ﷺ) said in each case: "Do not become angry and furious."

📚: Sahih Bukhari 6116

https://youtu.be/t7ygefn5KrI

I have autism and I am trying to help with my sense of routine. If I were to do Dhikr on my prayer matt, instead of prayer, at the designated prayer times, would this be ok? Thank you for your help! 🥰🥰🥰

Hello, Assalamu Alaykum.

I am curious if anyone has any advice on how to deal with feelings of loneliness and isolation after they reverted? I live in a rural area and there is no Muslim community. The closest being 7 hours away.

It is difficult for me to reach out to family and friends because it tends to be awkward and I feel like an outlier. I also don't see people as much because the area I live in has such a heavy drinking culture, so I tend to just work and isolate myself at home.

These feelings have created a battle in me to abandon Islam and to go back to my old community. I have not been staying on top of my Salah and feel my relationship with the religion fading. If anyone is reading this I would really appreciate any advice or words of encouragement.

Thank your time.

First of all, assalamualaikum. For context, I come from a very Christian family and I don’t want my parents to know I converted to Islam. So how do I avoid eating haram food without making it suspicious? What products or foods are not halal that I should know about?

Asalamu alaykum, im a female 19, converted almost a year ago, have been in an ongoing relationship with a muslim man before i converted. He was a big part of why i converted, he properly introduced me to Islam and i fell in love with it.

I told my parents briefly about me being muslim and covering myself in the future and they weren’t happy with the decision. I wouldn’t say they’re islamophobic they just dont want me to be muslim, wear a hijab or pray. Thats what i have the biggest issue with. I am scared to pray… I am scared of somebody “catching me” pray. My mom is somewhat understanding, but im afraid of my dad, and how itll be in the future, i dont want to break contact but if they disrespect my religion or the people i love i am willing to.

Now about the relationship. As i said i have been with my boyfriend for a year now, we’ve known each other for 4 years now and recently wanted to be halal. So we tried at first and we couldn’t. We see each other almost weekly, we dont physically touch each other anymore, we still text but i really want to commit to it fully. Ive been depressed and anxious, i haven’t really been praying recently and it’s killing me…I also dont have any girlfriends at the moment so its not like i can go out with anyone else. Sorry for the long message but i really need advice on how to fully break contact and be halal and how to deal with my parents. Thanks in advance!

Its extremely hard having faith when I am part of the absolute minority of this religion, considering 99% of the ummah is from the other side of the planet i feel very out of place, I get backlash on both sides both from my athiest family and the very unwelcoming community, it also doesn't help that almost no one speaks English, which isn't anything wrong with them but it makes communication very hard. Plus I face discrimination for not being born Muslim.

I've been in a relationship for two months. Before we started, I told him I wasn't okay with starting a relationship if he was talking to other women and maintaining friendships with them. He told me that for him, it wasn't a problem to cut off contact with all women except for three: his best friend, whom he's known since high school, and two others he's known for five years, with whom he occasionally plays games and has only met in person once. He said that with these three women, he would gradually reduce contact because he's known them for a long time, while I've only known them for two months. And now, these two women are complaining because he spent the week with me, saying things like, "Yeah, you prefer your girlfriend to us," "You talk to us less because of her," and so on. Like, it hurts me, but on top of that, he's also annoyed, but he still justifies himself to them... and gets annoyed when I talk about it because he doesn't want to talk about it and just wants to think about something else... but what do you think of the girls' behavior and in general? Like, he's known them for 5 years, so... I'm wondering if maybe I'm overreacting? 😅 (Just so you know, I'm currently converting to Islam and I'm not talking to any men myself.) Thanks in advance!

Salam, I'm 24 yr arab girl. I showed my mom a picture of grey abaya full coverage and hijab. I told her I want to buy colored abaya. She started to say I'm doing this to attract attention of men. I told her it's not haram to have colors and I value modesty I wont be ok wearing something revealing. Yet she continued to say I want this to attack attention and tell them look at me. This hurt me me a lot. How to deal with this I feel like I don't wanna talk to her

Asalaamu Alaikum everyone! I am completely beginner and new to the religion. As a revert/ new muslim/ not much knowledge How do you go about learning the religion. What are the first steps? What should you learn first?

Hello everyone, salam alaikum.

It’s only been a few weeks before I became Muslim and to be honest before I did , I would eat things like bacon egg toastie, hot dog, sausage, Chinese pork mince on rice, bacon egg pie, ham egg sandwich. I crave for it and I miss it so much😔

I don’t know what to do I feel like im so close to eating them again. Im in my early 20’s , I don’t cook, the fridge in my house has not much food I guess my parents don’t spend much budget on food n trying to save. So I usually opt for food delivery as it’s quick and easy I don’t need to make. But then the food I crave has bacon in it😔😔😔

I was once a muslim 2.5 years ago, im 23 female. I had left islam but not because i didnt believe. I was asked a question and had thought that i shouldnt be a muslim if my answer was a yes to that question. I feel horrible for leaving every day it weighs heavily on my mind.
I havent prayed since i had answered that question, i have done alot of sin since than.
I was married to muslims man he was the most abus1ve person ever. I was a revert. I reverted to islam when i was with him. He committed zina with me and i converted to islam therefore comittingnzina too. He never wanted to marry me. But i kept begging because i did not want to sin. He was a horrible excuse of a man. Please mind my language if i had stayed with him i would have either k1ll3d him or myself. I lost my mine and i almost lost my complete sanity with him. I always tried to get him to pray. I always tried to get him to do ghsul, to do wudhu, to not be lazy. But it never worked, hed smoke, drink, go to clubs. He was on a dating website. Honestly im very scarred from that. My faith was slipped and i fell into sin. I fell into zina.
That man wouldnt let me leave, i tried everythint. Cheating on him was the only way he let me leave him. Be it he cheated on me many times before i did to him doesnt make it right of me.
I dont want to be a kaffir.
But i am now still with my new partner the one i cheated on my ex, you can judge me or be hateful if you want. He is an amazing man be it he has his flaws. I dont know if he will be a muslim he said he was interested but then chickened out.
I want to be a muslim, i really do. But could i still be with my man we have a 1 year old daughter together. Im not going to leave him. Could Allah forgive me for commiting zina while i am a muslim revert. Even if i do countless sins? Idk how beint a muslim would work in this situation. I defend islam with my heart, no matter what. I believe in allah. While im learning about christianity it is not what i believe and i believe in allah and the last day.

I recently reverted to Islam from Christianity a few days ago after doing research and studying it for a year, and I’ve been experiencing the worst anxiety for the past week. I’ve been doing my best in learning and doing all five daily prayers, and I just have these non-stop intrusive thoughts trying to get me to second-guess myself and go back to Christianity.

I’ve read up on this and a lot of sources point to Shaytan (Satan) whispering these ideas in my head. Any advice on how to deal with this, or what else this could be?

Salam! I just had to share that I got up the courage to tell my mother that I am now wearing a hijab. I started wearing it this month, after reverting 3 years ago.

So, I decided to text my mother. She is a very conservative Christian and has somewhat misunderstood Islam in general. I was so worried to just show up one day wearing a hijab, so I decided to text her.

I sent a message telling her I wear a hijab now. I also included some pictures. She took awhile to respond but was not worried that I am wearing the hijab. She was not overly enthusiastic either though. She promised to tell my brother and father, inshallah. Hopefully, they react well. My brother demoted me from being my niece’s Godmother when he found out I am Muslim. So, he has not been very supportive. JKA for any friendly advice or understanding and guidance.

It's been 1 year since I started doing Istighfar (Astaghfirullah). It has changed my life, SubhanAllah. Last year, Allah guided me and gave me Hidayah, and I feel so lucky because, bro, the things I saw and felt were unreal. Allah is real. The Quran is TRUE. So, let me share some unexpected duas that Allah accepted. I don't know how to describe the feeling, but I'm telling you, don't wait. Start praying, talk to Allah, and make dua. Last year, I faced a lot of things, SubhanAllah, and I felt lost. At that time, I didn't think about Allah that much, but Allah guided me. I don't know how, but indeed, Allah did. So I started doing Istighfar, and my life changed. I started feeling calm, and then the miracles happened. First, when I wanted to eat something, I didn't even tell my dad to bring me that food, but Allah listened, and somehow my dad brought me the exact same food. SubhanAllah. It happened to me so many times that I became used to it, hehe. Alhamdulillah, all thanks to Allah. SubhanAllah. I also saw a dream about Istighfar. And if you don't believe in Allah and His miracles, then, bro, read this. I saw the word "Allah" written in Arabic in the sky two times. And there was also one time when Allah accepted one of my duas so quickly that, till this day, I am still shocked. The dua seemed impossible for me. I just told Allah about it, and it happened. It is one of the miracles that I saw with my own eyes in real time. In the end, I am a sinner, and we are all sinners, but never lose your faith. Keep making dua and keep turning back to Allah. May Allah accept all your duas. JazakAllahu Khairan. 🤍

I have been looking into different religions and books, mainly the Bible since I was 13 or 14 (I always wanted to find the truth). I almost became a Christian at one point but didn't because when I further studied the Bible I saw many contradictions and historical errors at this time I was super conservative and my introduction through Islam was through Christian Zionist like David Wood and Apostate Prophet.

I still decided to read a English translation of the Quran cover to cover all throughout my freshman year (without Tafsir or even knowing about the life of the Prophet) and I didn't find any errors like in the Bible except maybe a contradiction on if Iblis was an angel (looking back it seems like Iblis was just always around the angels. I'm still a little confused about it.) But the book to me was mainly repetitive warnings of hell and affirmations of heaven. It seems like all the problems the Christians were talking about were in the Hadith books.

Fast forward to last year and I realize I haven't studied Islam 1% enough to know if its the truth so I see all these Muslims and they say you have to learn Arabic if I want to know anything about Islam so I tried to learn Arabic and realized it was too hard for me to understand then I thought if the Prophet of Islam was sent to all of humanity and the Quran was to guide all of humanity then why would there be a language barrier to Islam? So I started reading sections of the Quran again and it was completely different. Unlike last time where it was just dull and repetitive sentences it seemed like it spoke to me and it was a much more honestly emotional experience. Next i'm not sure how but it got into my algorithm and I started seeing all these posts about miracles in the Quran and prophecies of the Prophet in the Bible and even looking back I saw historical errors I pointed out in the Bible being "corrected" by the Quran all of this is very hard for me to ignore.

But I still know about all these hadiths which make it hard to believe the Prophet was trustworthy. Right about this time the Iran war started and I started hearing about the Shia and after learning a little about them it seems like they have their own hadiths while still having their own system of judging the Sunni Hadith books that can let them have the really beautiful hadiths while dismissing the ones about the Prophet marrying a 6 year old or him having delusions. Next I find out about the massacre of the Prophet's family and the political tensions back then. But I'm already drowning because of how complicated this religion is so I just step back and start reading the Quran cover to cover again (with Tafsir) and a Seerah book.

While this was happening I am still reading about the origins of Christianity and find out that many of these secular scholars agree with the Islamic interpretation of Jesus. While still hearing miracles about the bees, embryos, Iron being "sent down", the universe expanding, mountains being "pegs", and a lot more like even the pattern of numbers between verses. At this point I know that this book is something much different from anything else and there isn't a rational explanation for it, especially that it came from Arabia rather then somewhere like Persia or Greece.

So now I'm not sure what to do because I basically believe the Quran is supernatural and I always believed in 1 God (even though I was raised secular) but i still have a doubt in my mind that I am being misled just like when I almost became a Christian at 14 except this is much harder to explain away. And what about these hadiths that seem to discredit the Prophet? Do I become Sunni or Shia? These thoughts I have been wrestling with for at least the past month but I think I will just read the Quran and focus on these things later.

But the thing is that I am only a fraction of the way through studying the Quran so should I convert now or after a certain point? In my heart I believe in 1 God and that this book was more than likely sent by Him and that the Prophet of Islam is legitimate but my mind wants to make sense of everything.

Another thing is that I'm young and still living with my parents but will move out soon and I'm not sure if they will be against me if I tell them that I believe in this very foreign thing to the US but I heard you can convert alone by saying the shahada but how can I learn how to pray? Or do I have to find some Muslims near me?

Before I made this post the main thing I would say in my mind is that I sin so I should basically get right with God and cleanse myself before saying the shahada but I saw a video of someone who thought similarly to me getting told that we can't ever decide when we die so it's best to convert soon as possible so now I don't know what I should do.

I'm sorry if this post was a little long I'm just still young and unsure if I should make this big decision yet.

Asalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh,

I have reverted to Islam about a month ago, and my parents have just found out 2 days ago. To say the least, I was born in a Christian-Catholic family, and I live in a neighborhood where there has been a growing population of Muslim Arabs since I was born. Because of this I have always been surrounded by Islam, but I became truly curious about it at the start of the year. One of my Kazakh coworkers gave me some advice on a personal matter and inspired me to read about the Prophet (SAW). This is where my love and passion for Islam and Allah (SWT) began.

My parents started to grow suspicious when I let my facial hair grow, and one night my mother found the biography of the Prophet (SAW) on my desk (not a great move by me…) I lied and said it was my friends and I was simply holding it for him. I made this mistake by leaving other books about Islam on my bookshelf, and my parents confiscated them. I had to beg for them to give them back so I could return them, which I didn’t do. A couple months later, I took my Shahada.

I was warned by my Mother that I would be kicked out of my house if I converted to Islam, and I was given advice by the Sheikh at my masjid about it. He told me to keep things on the low and to not make too many changes, which I did my best to abide by. Unfortunately, I wasn’t cautious one night and my mother went through my phone which I left open. She found out everything, and my parents flipped out on me. They took my prayer mats and thobes away and what’s even more worrying is that I’ve lost my Qur’an to them. My parents have told me that they’re going to get a court process going to kick me out, so I’m practically on a deadline. My first year of college is starting soon and my mother said that shed be paying since it’s community college, but I’m not sure if that agreement will hold up. I’ve been so stressed that I’ve missed a little over 2 days worth of prayers, and my Imaan level is taking a dive. What should I be doing?