The British Nomad

A maternal cousin, of our beloved prophet ﷺ To tell his story in a poem, such a tight fit Of all the Sahaba, he is the one for me That I see in myself, may Allah make it be One of the first converts, he was seventeen His mother made it tough, for she wasn't keen He refused to give up, and things got so tense Until finally his resolve, made her see sense In Makkah, he was the first to fight & draw blood Against the mushriks, when they were upto no good Alongside the Prophet ﷺ, in Uhud he stood true 'May My mother & father be sacrificed for you' A leader in war, the Persians at loss If he made dua, always accepted it was Founded & governed Kufa in the years to come Of the Ten Promised Jannah, he was the last to be done

I asked for a sign, then had an epiphany Why did this have to happen to me And now what am I, supposed  to do? Now that my faith, has come out of the blue I don't want to, but I can't ignore it My mind is made up, I'm not one to quit But now there's so much I need to address My life for a while is sure to be a mess My dad never have the chance, to take me for a beer The prohibition of alcohol, obviously so clear My mum reflects on our ancestors, they couldn't be wrong Always to their religion, we should try to belong Since that day, lost much family and friends Some never wanting, to ever make amends But as I reflect, what a game I played By far the best decision I've ever made

Can they not see, why I am so very upset? Because the greatest woman, that I've ever met Is bound to Hell, for all of eternity I have to accept, that this is the certainty Unless the message, she never heard Perhaps a second chance, there isn't a third Can't you see? Don't you realise? It seems you don't even try to sympathise It's easy for you, your family is Muslim Whilst for us, our numbers are slim I face reality, the outlook is bleak But I have resolve, my faith is not weak What would you think? How would you feel? In this situation could you even deal? Not an attack, but please understand Treat the new Muslims with a softer hand

Amongst the companions, there was none with more wealth Not through inheritance, but he earned it himself With all of this he became, the greatest in charity Rescuing thousands, staving off poverty Supporter of the prophets ﷺ wives Gave so much, to improve peoples lives Freeing 30 families, all of them slaves In an ocean of wealth, he made some big waves One of the first to embrace, when it was hard to survive One of the ten promised heaven, whilst still alive One of the six chosen for caliph, so fair One of only two, to lead the prophet in prayer Pride in appearance, he dressed so well At Badr and Uhud he sent many to Hell Got injured in the latter, developed a limp Of the greatest companions, far from a wimp

Think back, do you remember how things used to be? The first European Muslims, what a sight oh to see Kings all over Europe, curious of your magic Sending their children to learn some Arabic The Renaissance? What would it be without you? Christopher Columbus should pay you his due The buildings of yours, flawless architecture  All of Europe wanting, demanding your culture You were the apple of our eye With potential, sky-high Then we lost you, our fault What followed, such an assault With situations seemingly so dire Faced with conversion or fire When unity deserts us Allah's decree is thus

Oh Ancient city standing there Looking at us with a longing stare We've not forgotten you, how could we? Our forefathers praying would turn to thee The city of the prophets, such blessed ground Four billion souls to you are bound Martyrs blood through you, runs knee deep Their wives and daughters eternally weep Has there ever been a city through more war? There'll be additional to come, of that I'm sure But you are ours, let there be no dispute Whosoever else claims you, we shall refute There's Makkah, Madinah and you are the third We'll be sure to hold true to our word You and Al-Aqsa, just hold tight Your salvation is well within sight

Just come to the party, don't stay long We won't push you, to do what's wrong You've got to fit in, with us in the west See with your eyes, our way is the best I went to the bar and bought you a beer Let's chat to those girls, have no fear I'm going for a smoke, do you want a cig? Let's meet up tomorrow, go to a gig Tonight's the night bro, time to do it My parents are out, come round for a bit Take her upstairs, first door on the right Thank me later, have a good night We've got some drugs, you give it a try You'll love the feeling, the amazing high We won't tell, who's gonna know? Stick with us and go with the flow

Oh we love you, the first capital Whose people are so hospitable When all the world was death and blind You offered your services, oh so kind Oh we love you, the first capital The masjid you own, beyond beautiful Inside you, deep in the earth The greatest people, women did birth The voices you’ve heard, the people you’ve seen Pure from the filth, so humble and clean Never fallen to any other nation Those natural defences, a fortification Oh to walk where the prophet did walk Are there trees still there, that heard him talk? If I go to you, will you accept me? Not too sure, if I’m worth of thee

Blessings on our women, they raise our children well Peace on our women, guiding away from hell Mercy on our women, they can not hide their faith  Salutations on our women, let’s protect them with the sayf Unlike us brutes, possessing a fragile form Things they can’t do, that for us are the norm My wife, the one companion that repaired my soul We matched ambitions for the ultimate goal  My daughter, such a love I’ve never known So much would be sacrificed for her alone My mother, save for Islam, above her naught Defend her to the death, without a second thought Daughters, mothers, sisters & wives They are the jewels within our lives As men we’re duty bound to provide protection From now until the resurrection

Up and out the house before dawn Two hundred miles to drive this morn Stopping for Fajr on the way Never missing prayers, come what may A job where I'm the only stranger Around every corner, so much danger Twitter and lectures keep me going In this constant life of to & fro-ing Providing for the kids and wife Allah blessed me, with such a life Many a day, spent away from home But with my religion, I'm never alone Not a job I'd recommend to many There's easier way to make more penny Just make sure you study in school Don't end up like me, a silly fool

You're the best amongst us, you've done more good deeds We're here to serve you, when we find you in need Once not long ago, young, virile  and strong But these days you can't even, stand for long With you as our leaders, we make the right choice The elders verily, have the best voice To you we initiate, the salutation The scholars of the Islamic nation We honour you, on account of your age Filled with wisdom and lessons, a sage Your hair once black, dark as the night Now it is grey, but on the Day light We acknowledge your rights, we let you speak first If some of us don't, then they are the worst You cared for us, when we were so small Thus it's our turn, mercy to you all

I see you all so eager, to "complete half your deen" But it's not always happiness, I'll tell you what I mean Yes at first it's fun, just like a honeymoon But things may start to change, oh so very soon Suddenly your time, is not just yours to own Spending countless hours, on twitter with your phone You may have some plans, she has got some others An argument has sparked, very common for two lovers Yes I'm sure you'll make up, before too long Both admitting that you may be in the wrong It will become more frequent, through the months & the years Whilst as your relationship, kicks through the gears Finishing work late, what a tiring day All you want to do, is in bed just lay "Babe my car won't start, can you check it out?" You start to refuse, but she hits you with a pout She's made you some dinner, not quite like mummy does Just make sure you don't insult, it will kick up a fuss After not too long, your wife's now pregnant Kee

There was a time, where it was all new I simply did not have a clue What do I do? How do I pray? Are the words in Arabic, that I must say? Then I was introduced to my imam And let me tell you, he's the man "Come to my house, whenever you care I will teach you all you can bare" "My wife will cook us Gujarati food" Such a lovely gesture lifted my mood He taught me fiqh and how to read Did the most, when I was in my need When I moved away, the lessons stopped Yet my love for him has never dropped A better person I've met, never I pray he gets Jannah forever.

When we were young, time spent playing But not those ones, always praying Becoming members of a blessed group Reciting Quran, forever on a loop It didn't stop there, whisked away Not seeing their families for many a day Never hanging round on the street And their friends, they'd hardly meet What applies to us does not to them Each one similar to a mighty gem When we're not sure, they will know Now helping us and our families grow Attacked, backbitten & often slandered Many of them have been martyred So go to them, make sure to sit They're successors of the prophet 

(This is a slightly edited version compared to my thread on twitter a few months ago, a few sisters pointed out some issues they deemed problematic and unfair, this has given me a wider perspective and understanding of the issue which I hope is noticeable in this post.) Before I start, the inspiration for this thread was a twitter post which talked about how a pious married man became addicted to porn, which spiralled out of control and resulted in sexual interactions with other men, STDs and divorce. Suffice to say it is a true story about what can happen if a porn addiction is left unchecked. Firstly, it’s prohibited in Islam...you are seeing the awrah of non-mahram women (& men) doing private (often disposable) acts & there is often music in the background.  Secondly, you are actively promoting porn by clicking on those websites, giving them views, giving them advertising revenue, it is a multi billion dollar industry. (With the biggest website alone worth almost $3billion)

I face you several times a day The most beloved place to me I say There's a part in me, I think my soul Has your location as a lofty goal When I visit you, will I be able to leave? On that day I will surely grieve  Time spent in you, with 3 million others In faith we are eternally brothers Home of the Ka'aba, a special place To a billion Muslims, no matter our race Your blessed water from God to man I must do whatever I can! To get me or mine closer to you To support the Mahdi when the time is due T'was From you this journey did start And I'm determined to play my part

What is this change inside of me? Something I perceive but I cannot see Closer to Him, have I become? An infliction occurs, my emotions are numb A few months ago, this wasn't the case I'd get upset, angry & then start to pace But now I smile & say praise be to God So in love with this path I have trod I can only deduce it's a change in my soul Feeling happy because this is my goal All I need to do is play my part The rest? Allah   puts ease in my heart It's been proven many times, I speak not in jest That the plans of Allah are always the best No matter what happens, in Him I will trust Happy with my Lord, until I am dust

 I woke up this morning, devoid of any life Rising to pray Fajr, a monumental strife The cold, ablution water pierces deep into my skin Such an awful state, it feels that I'm in I had planned some exercise, I was going for a run But when I look outside my window, it doesn't seem such fun So I arranged to read some Qur'an, but I think I've caught a cold I've got a banging headache, maybe I'm getting old Sitting on my sofa, I start scrolling through my twitter Three hours later, now I'm feeling worse and bitter I need to be productive, I hate wasting time Though all I seem to do is complain, moan and whine I've been here for hours, doing nothing, am I sane? Without a legit reason to be feeling so much pain I need to do something, I must find a way! Then I look at my watch & I've wasted a whole day

He's finally made his decision  In a matter which needs much attention He's going to convert, to become a muslim The truth being made apparent to him He tells his closest friends from school a few accept, many call him a fool "You've been brainwashed, you're in the wrong" And now amongst them, he doesn't belong He tells his family, it was tough The parents aren't happy, they've had enough "We don't want a terrorist living here" Hatred of the religion, it was oh so clear Everyone asking what he's changing for "I bet he did it for a girl that he adores Its just a phase, it will not last a year" But now a dozen in & the end isn't near