Introduction/Shahadah

Every book I have read on converts to Islam has been about the person writing it and in a way that's what I am going to do but at the same time I want this to be a sort of step by step survival guide to the basics as I have learnt them.

As every convert knows it is a truly difficult time when you first take your shahadah and a real test of faith; the Shaytan is pulling on you from every direction more so now than at any other time of your life or so I have found. Your friends will still expect you to be doing all the things you may have done in the past like drinking, clubbing, drugs, dating and much more, which we know aren't allowed in Islam as they are Haram (forbidden). The temptations are endless and seem like they are closing in on you but this is just the Shaytan at work trying to pull you from the Right Path.

Families will be on your back about "Why?", "Were you forced?", "Have you been brainwashed?"etc…  Female converts you will be asked the same question from so many people both believers and non-believers which is "Did you convert for your boyfriend/husband?" that is the one that has and will always make me laugh.  We know that to become Muslim 'A believer must first cleanse his/her heart of the idea of any other god or any other object of worship, only then can the faith in the Oneness of Allah take root inside his/her heart.' Page 19 of Islam Beliefs and Teachings by Ghulam Sarwar  8th Edition (2006) . So to convert for another person would be (in my opinion) pointless.

A reason why it can be harder for women is because we have to change our outward appearance by wearing the Hijab. It is not enough to just wear the outer hijab though we also have to have an inner hijab too. The inner hijab is your attitude and way of behaving which goes with how you dress; the ideal behaviour of a muslim woman is modesty, shyness and bashfulness, these qualities are part of the faith whether a muslim woman wears hijab or not, she should still adopt this behaviour. The outer hijab is more than a scarf covering your head though;  to dress in Islamic clothing you should cover the whole head and body except for your hands and face. So you will need to cover your neck, forearms, and ears too. Also your legs should be covered and some schools of thought say you should cover your feet too. Clothing should not attract men's attention to your body such as dazzling bright colours, glittery decorations and material with interwoven shiny thread should be avoided. The material should be thick enough to hide the colour of the skin, clothes shouldn't be perfumed, they should not resemble men's clothing but should be loose enough to conceal your shape, clothes that show off the contours of your body are not acceptable. Your clothes should not make you stand out or be similar to non-muslim dress. One of the best things to wear is an Abaya (loose fitting dress) with a jilbab over which is a loose coat like garment.

You also have to be aware of your voice. You should keep the tone level, polite and businesslike and don’t indulge in idle chit-chat always restrict yourself to the business in hand. These are some of the  rules on the voice and speech when in the presence or hearing of non-mahrem men (e.g. teachers, doctors, shop-keepers, etc).

Always remember sisters hijab isn't just a fashion, it's an attitude. There is so much more to being a muslim woman than a scarf and a long dress. Always strive towards your inner hijab and if you are not yet wearing your outer hijab it will soon follow Insha'Allah.

Islamic clothing for me is the easy part, I have always found it harder with my inner hijab; it was and is difficult giving up my "normal" life; the hardest thing for me is not spending time with my friends, they have always been like family to me and I care about them but islamicly I can't see them because they are male. In that time I don’t think there were many haram things that I didn't do. My "friends" didn’t accept me as Muslim even though I was trying my best but in the end they won and I forgot Allah and went back with them; my family hated it and to this day still try to bring me down about my life choices. Always bringing up my past and how many times I have been on my deen and then according to my Mum being a heathen, I have never found support in them or encouragement in my faith in God. My brother doesn’t believe in God, he also loves to bully me about wearing my hijab by saying "why you wearing that thing for? It looks stupid" and about being Muslim by telling me that all forms of religion are man made and that I shouldn’t bother with it; ok I admit at 18/19 years old I listened to him but I'm in my mid 20's now and living alone so I don’t have to answer to him. I just pray that one day he will accept that I am Muslim because I believe that it is the right path for me. My mum hates it because I wear my hijab she doesn’t see how I light up when I wear it, she always worries about what strangers think when in reality it is nothing to do with them and everyday that I wear my hijab she rolls her eyes and on her face is a look of pure disappointment. She isn't interested in anything I have to say about Islam she just rushes me off the phone telling me that she doesn't understand when I know that she really means that she doesn't care about what I am saying. It really hurts me because she is my Mum, she should be someone that I can talk to about anything but she just judges me all the time just because of a piece of fabric on my head and a few words that come out of my mouth. In Islam paradise is at your mothers feet but it can be a real test to respect someone that won't ever approve of the life that you have chosen, no matter how happy it makes you. I pray Inshallah that one day she will know how I feel and start to accept me for who and what I am.