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Peace be upon you and the mercy of Allah and His blessings. May Allah bless your time. This is the Falaq podcast from the Irsaa platform, and our guest today is Dr. Iyad Qunaybi, a professor of pharmacy and a preacher. Welcome.
So, this episode, praise be to Allah, about two and a half years ago, my friend and I were reading a post you wrote about part of your experience studying in America. We talked, by Allah, it was suitable that there are stories from it, and you were saying that you actually wanted to talk about this topic. Yes. So, we said why don't we do an episode and we contacted you and arranged a time, then things got messed up, and then the days passed and the Al-Aqsa flood and the recent events in Syria happened. May Allah relieve our people in Gaza and all Muslims and complete victory for our people in Syria, God willing. Amen, Lord of the worlds. So, praise be to Allah, finally now we are recording this episode. Welcome, may Allah bless you, brother Thabet.
By Allah, I say the same as what I said in the podcast "How I Loved the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him," I kept postponing it until I master this work, but the postponement was too long. These are memories from 20 years, and I wish to share them with my brothers and sisters.
Okay, we ask Allah to bless and facilitate this episode, God willing, and that a large part of these details and stories that can be benefited from, by the permission of Allah the Almighty, come out.
Okay, let's start before going to America. Iyad, who is still in school or before these stages, what can we talk about from there?
In the name of Allah, praise be to Allah, and prayers and peace be upon the Messenger of Allah. People usually say that the school stage is the most beautiful stage in your life, then university takes you into a whirlwind of study and you wish you could go back to school. Honestly, this was not the case for me. I moved between several schools, perhaps setting a record, nine schools, knowing that I was not expelled from any of them and did not receive a warning or a notice in any of them, praise be to Allah, I was not a problem, but due to circumstances with the family and many transfers, I moved between schools. This created a kind of instability in forming lasting friendships, and generally, the atmosphere in schools sometimes lacks respect and dignity, and free, disciplined thinking according to the Shariah rules is not present in some schools. Therefore, the school stage was not rich with beautiful memories for me as it is for many, although it is not devoid of it.
I finished the school stage, praise be to Allah, I was not very academically outstanding, we got a good average in the guidance of 93.3%, outstanding, the situation is fine. But I think when I turned to pharmacy and found something of my passion in it, especially in the courses related to the human body, biology, pathology, physiology of diseases, physiology of organs, pharmacology, and so on, I loved these courses. So, by the grace of Allah, I excelled and distinguished myself, but I was also dominated by constant and continuous preoccupation. I was attached to my family, we have strong family cohesion, praise be to Allah, and therefore I could not bear to live in accommodation near my university in the north, the University of Science and Technology. We are residents of Amman, and between us and this university is perhaps more than 80 kilometers, of course, in those days there was even a winding road, so much more than 80 kilometers, we did not have the direct road now. And I had to live in accommodation near the university, I could not bear that. I would go and return home every day and try to adjust my schedule so that I attend three or four days a week, so I would spend a very long time in transportation and then return.
I want to devour these slides that the doctors used to give us, and they were a bit difficult in their exams. By the grace of Allah, I excelled academically, I was the first in the first batch of graduates, meaning I completed in four and a half years. But I also did not have a social life in the real sense, limited friendships, limited relationship with them. There is a new preoccupation with transportation and study, and if some time remained, I would read readings, and most of them were in those days in interpretation, especially by Sayyid Qutb, may Allah have mercy on him, in the shadows of the Quran, and write some preaching ideas at the end of summaries. The students loved organized and well-arranged summaries, and I was, on consideration, clever, they would ask me for the slides, so I would write some preaching benefits at the end of the slides as a call. So, the university stage also passed without many memories, let's say the memories are related to study. I did not have a large student activity honestly at that time, limited. I met good people whom I still have a relationship with to this day, but things or let's say the social life opened up more after I went to America.
Of course, there was a transitional phase that lasted a year and five months after I graduated. I went to work for a company, the Jordanian Pharmaceutical Company, where I worked in different departments and applied to several universities. Since I was the top student, praise be to God, this gave me an advantage. However, it was required in our time that one must achieve sufficient scores in the TOEFL and GRE. My English language skills were not very good; they were acceptable. Perhaps one of the reasons for this was that I moved between schools. I would transfer from a private school to a public one and then back to a private one, so my language skills were built up, then torn down, and then built up again.
So, what were the reasons for moving between schools? What was the real reason that drove me to transfer from one school to another?
Nine schools, each with its own story. For example, I remember, although my old memory is not strong because I focus on what is present with me now, which sometimes comes at the expense of old memories. But I remember an incident where my late father, may God have mercy on him, was teaching me in one of the early grades, perhaps the first or second grade. I was in a Christian school, yes. And my father knew this, but it seemed to be close and had a strong academic reputation, so he handled the matter and enrolled me in that school. In the math book, for example, there were five pears, six apples, and seven crosses. I remember that very well; it might seem strange, but I remember it clearly. So, the next day, my father took me out of that school. This was one of the incidents. I also remember that in one of the schools, I do not know if it was this school or another, I had a friend. Once I asked him, "Why don't you convert to Islam?" He was a Christian. He said to me, "I will ask my mother for permission, then I will see if I can convert." His mother apparently told the teacher, who was also a Christian, so she began to treat me differently, as we say, with resentment. Therefore, my mother used to call me the youngest preacher, and this was at a very early age. Praise be to God, sometimes the reasons are simple. My late father's financial situation was beginning to deteriorate, so he asked me, "What do you think, Yiad, should I enroll you in a public school?" I told him, "As you wish, Father." He transferred me to a school where there were painful memories, but honestly, every school has its own story. However, praise be to God, I was not a problematic student at that time; I was a quiet and respectful student. Yes.
Many transfers affected my English language skills. Praise be to God, when I wanted to apply to universities, I had to achieve a good score in the TOEFL. Some universities required 550, which was after the bachelor's degree. After the bachelor's degree, some required 500 for weaker universities, and there were a few strong universities that required 600 in our time; this is how the scores were. I was also required to achieve a distinguished score in the GRE. Do you know what the GRE is, Thabet? No. This was an exam with three sections: a math section, a logic section, and an English language section. The English was Shakespearean and extremely complex, the logic section had intelligence and quick-wittedness questions, and the math section was math. Yes. My English language skills were modest again at that time. I remember that I even lost a question in the GRE because I did not understand what the question meant, i.e., the back part. When I took the TOEFL, no, when I took the GRE for the first time, the score was not very satisfactory. So, I worked on practicing for both exams. I said to myself, "I will put myself in the exam environment," and this piece of information I mentioned in the course "The Journey of the Successful Student": if you want to excel in a subject, put yourself in the atmosphere of its exam. I brought many previous exams, which were available publicly; they did not hide previous exams. Yes, yes, I bought them and brought them, and I would put myself in the guest room in our house in Suwaylih, as I remember, and ask that no one disturb me.
I took the TOEFL exam in Amman and scored 120, which was a very excellent score at that time. In the second attempt at the GRE, I scored 360 out of 400 in the Analytical section despite the language difficulty, 350 out of 400 in the math section, and I do not remember now, perhaps 320 out of 400 in the English section initially. Praise be to God, my memory is excellent; I do not remember the scores from a recent period. Yes. This is what is etched in my memory. Beautiful. By the grace of God, this is what I remember; God willing, it will be accurate. Yes. By the grace of God, it was a distinguished score. We contacted universities, and I was accepted into the American University of Houston on the basis of a scholarship. This was what I was also looking for, that I would go out with a scholarship. Yes. So, I did not burden my late father. My father was ready to help me, but the financial situation was as it was. I was accepted into the University of Houston. I told the company that I had to leave. The pharmaceutical company where I was working. Yes. Dr. Adnan Badran was the general manager of the company. I told him, "Dr. Adnan, I consider that my salary for the last two months is not right for me because you did not benefit from me as I moved between departments; consider it a training period. I ask for your forgiveness for the salary of the last two months." He insisted that no, I must take this salary; it is my right. I remember the director who was responsible for me was not veiled, so I dealt with her with averted gaze, but I remember her words when I left the company: "Yiad, if you know someone exactly like you, bring him to us." Praise be to God, I was walking, God willing, upright in the company, and my behavior was disciplined. This was unusual compared to the general norm that was present, but nevertheless, they were respectful in their dealings and gave me my rights without deducting anything. So, I left for America. Yes.
My father, may Allah have mercy on him, wanted to make it easier for me to integrate there, so he contacted his friend whose son was in America. He said to him, "My son is going to Houston. Can your son receive him?" His son was in Houston. They welcomed me. The obstacle was that I was attached to my family. I don't consider myself a very emotional person, but I have strong family ties, so I didn't like being away from my parents, especially since my father, may Allah have mercy on him, had started suffering from Parkinson's disease. Parkinson's, which is the shaking paralysis. Yes. So, I was troubled that I would be away from them. I remember clearly that on my first trip, while I was on my way to America, I repeated a lot the supplication: "O Allah, comfort me in my exile and make it easy for me to be away from my family." I repeated this supplication, perhaps dozens if not hundreds of times because it was hard for me. And by Allah, Allah answered my prayer, by the grace of Allah the Almighty, He comforted me in my exile and compensated me for my family and made this matter easy for me, meaning through the many situations and things that I will talk about, insha'Allah. And I arrived there in America. Yes.
Before, I mean, now we will delve into the stories in America, but before that, what was the main reason that pushed you towards higher education? You could have continued your job. What was the goal and why leave the country you are living in to become an expatriate? What was the main reason that pushed you to do that?
A beautiful question. Now, my intention or resolve to pursue higher education has more than one reason. The first reason is that I noticed if I wanted to work in pharmaceutical companies, I would spend a long time with limited income, and progress would be slow. And I do not accept for myself this life, meaning that most of my time is spent at work, then I return home exhausted. So, where is the space for reading, learning, knowing religious, political matters, the reality of Muslims, and then spreading the call? I had an early calling ambition. So, I said to myself that I should look for a job with limited working hours and a rewarding financial return so that I can devote the rest of my time to what is more beneficial. And I found that pursuing a PhD achieves that, insha'Allah.
The second reason is that there were situations that made me aspire to become a university professor. One of them, I remember my eldest sister, Nadia, who is seven years older than me, was studying architecture at the University of Jordan and spent a long time at the drawing board. Of course, architecture is tiring, so she spent a long time, and we would go to sleep while she was poor, her shadow still working at the drawing board. And one day she came home disappointed. Dr. So-and-so was not a good doctor at all, meaning he treated the veiled students badly. He is not a Muslim either. So, he would take the red pen and say, "No, no, this is wrong, this is wrong, revise it," while some non-veiled students would laugh with him. My sister was longing and, I mean, angry about this thing. This left a mark on me that I want to be a university professor and, at the same time, feel that I am fair to everyone, but I feel that the respectable girl has a big brother who supports her, a human being who stands up for her and respects her for her hijab.
And also when I entered the university, of course, our professors were generally respectful, they were respectful, but there were also situations that left a mark on me. I remember the pathology class, the science of organ diseases, if I may. A doctor came in the first lecture and started explaining and said, "As you know or as it is known, man began as marine creatures then as marine organisms then came out to the land and evolved until he reached the man we know." He talked about it as if it were something very normal. I was angry. You are talking about a false theory that opposes our religion, and all the students are silent, and I am silent, not knowing how to respond to him. So, I said I will be a doctor one day and talk about science in a strong and superior way, insha'Allah, and have a clear Islamic identity, be proud of my religion, and teach my students what is beneficial, not this empty talk. Knowing that the doctor, by the way, in the same lecture, said a religious phrase, praise be to Allah and glory be to Allah, meaning, for him, there is no contradiction. So, I wanted this to be an ambition for me to be a successful and distinguished doctor. Yes, yes. In religion and in the world, this was the idea. So, I said I want to pursue higher education. Okay, and where in a suitable place? America has scholarships, Britain did not have scholarships, it was very difficult to get a scholarship in Britain, it is available in Canada, it is available in Australia, but the strongest country in reputation, I want a respected degree, is America. Therefore, I headed for higher education. Beautiful.
Peace be upon you. We arrived in America. I remember that I arrived in the evening, and a friend of my father's son, may Allah reward him with goodness, picked me up and took me to his apartment, and we ate. Then, a dear friend of mine came to me. This dear friend of mine, I mention him more than he would like in the meeting. Yes. But I know he wouldn't be pleased if I mentioned his name. I mean, for reasons, may Allah reward him with goodness and increase his sincerity. He is a dear friend who holds a great place in my heart. Glory be to Allah, you meet people whom you don't see their status, I mean I haven't seen this brother for 20 years, more than 20 years, 21 years and some, he holds a great place in my heart because glory be to Allah, when you go to a strange environment and a person takes care of you and treats you like his brother in every sense of the word, he has a unique place in the heart. I remember that he came to me specifically from a far place from his residence just to tell me that he only came to talk to you, praise be to Allah, you are safe, never mind, I have to go now because there are sick brothers who I need to take to the center, but I wanted to greet you. I told him, by Allah, may Allah reward you with goodness. Where did he know you from? He knew me from the doctor I was communicating with, he connected me with him, he is an Arab student, he told me he would connect you with so and so and we would correspond via email, and then he came to receive me.
So, the next day, this dear brother, may Allah honor him and raise his status, came to me early in the morning and took me to the university and helped me with the registration because there were, of course, people I was dealing with, but Americans, I was not used to them. The English, especially with the practice for the TOEFL, improved, but the American accent is a bit strange to me. And look, the problem was when dealing with African Americans who also have a unique accent, he was the translator between me and them. He took me, helped me with the registration, then took me to a mall to get some supplies. He told me, be careful, if this is within the circle, it is halal, meaning kosher, this is the Fiesta, this is the Walmart, he introduced me to the names of the malls. Then, as if it was time for a lecture or he had to go do an experiment, he was giving lectures, he was attending lectures and conducting experiments at the same time, so he had to leave me and introduced me to a brother named Waseem, an Indian brother. And he, our dear friend, and Waseem also did not know me, a brother from the Tablighi Jamaat wearing Pakistani clothes, so I was very embarrassed by his humility and help. I needed to buy more supplies, so he helped me buy the supplies and insisted on taking the cart from me. Waseem, leave it, no I want to take it from you, Waseem, no I want to take it from you. Then we went to the cashier, and I remember how when we left the mall, he drove in the wrong way, so an American woman screamed at him, and he said, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry," you know the way of the H, very high morals.
Why did you mention Waseem in particular? Because Waseem was the first person I met from the Tablighi Jamaat, and after that, I had many relationships with them. Yes. So, it occurred to me that glory be to Allah, these brothers from the Tablighi Jamaat, I have some reservations about them, I do not agree with them in their methods in several matters, but with that, a person does not take a negative or harsh stance towards his Muslim brothers who, in his opinion, want the face of Allah the Almighty and seek to draw closer to Him with what they know, even if they have mistakes. Mixing with Waseem and the likes of him made me have more mercy and more love for the Muslim brothers, even those I disagree with. Yes. So, these are some memories from the first day. I remember that the dear friend I said I would not mention his name, from which country? He is from the Gulf countries. Ah. I remember that he had also booked me a student residence before leaving me, he booked me a student residence. Come, I will show you how you can agree with him, and he wrapped me up with several types of residences. Yes. I chose a residence consisting of cabins, two rooms sharing a bathroom, each room shares a bathroom. Males with males, females with females, but the residence as a whole is mixed. I mean, there could be a cabin for females and a cabin for males and so on. All the cabins are two floors. So, I and Waseem went back and put the supplies in the apartment, and Waseem also insisted that he, even if I don't need to carry, he insisted on carrying for me, may Allah reward him with goodness and guide him to goodness wherever he is. And I settled in my residence and found out that my neighbor who shares the bathroom with me is of Bengali origin but has apostated from the religion of Allah the Almighty. He was an apostate and wore a strange suit, even in the very hot summer, a non-elegant suit and dyed his hair yellow. I asked him about his religion, and he said, "No, I have left Islam." So, this was the first day, this Bengali also, there are stories with him and problems that happened in the student residence.
How was it, I mean, from the first day, was there a certain shock upon your arrival or the situations that you started to encounter in America with the beginnings of your arrival in America? The beginnings of the arrival were not a real shock, perhaps there were temptations in a completely heedless life. The appearances are different from Jordan completely, of course, but this was expected. So, in the beginnings, there was no real shock. The shock came later, especially in the student residence. I mean, on Saturday, the person who is leaving the residence or going to the residence sees bad scenes, unfortunately. True, and even though the residences are separate, there is debauchery and lewdness and vices practiced in the student residences, unfortunately. So, there are uncomfortable appearances. Also, the one who was living and sharing a room with me tried to invite him to Islam with the simple linguistic knowledge I had. I mean, was I in the same residence, in the same room? And two separate rooms. Two rooms, I mean, he is in the lower floor with two apartments separated by a bathroom, an upper floor with two apartments separated by a bathroom. Yes. So, he was the apartment opposite to you? Opposite to me. The one who enters the bathroom enters the other's apartment and so on.
Among the provocative and bad situations, I mean, of course, I have bad and painful memories, but I mention them so that the youth, when they hear about America, do not imagine it as all pink and full of science and wealth. There are indeed bad things. This was during my time when America was relatively conservative. I went there in 1999, 25 years ago. Yes. Now the situation is much worse with the spread of deviance, gender transformation, the war on innate nature, and the control of the Democratic Party on this matter. The situation is much worse. Even in our days, there were bad things, frankly. I remember one of the early incidents where this guy one day came with his girlfriend, and I heard voices that were, well, inappropriate. So I got angry and went to the housing administration and told the employee there, "I will harm him." I say this word for the youth who go to America to control their tongues a lot, this word can get you into prison. The employee was relatively understanding and said, "Sir, I will write this down. We will not allow you to harm him. I will transfer you to another accommodation." So, in coordination with another accommodation called Moody Towers, which consists of high-rise buildings, about 17 floors, maybe not a skyscraper but tall buildings, they gave me accommodation there until the problem was resolved and until I found another room. So I remember that I returned to another room in the cottage accommodation, and the person opposite me was an African American who came to study at the University of Houston. I tried to invite him to Islam and took care of him a lot. He would ask me not to open the water in the morning because it would be loud, so I would open the water very carefully so as not to disturb him and take care of his feelings so that he might accept entering the religion of God. This was one of my goals. Once I gave him a book titled "The Truth," a book about Islam. I remember he threw it back at me from under the bathroom door, so I got very angry at him and threatened him. The important thing is that it was clear that he was not suitable to stay in accommodation with non-Muslims. By the will of Allah, glorified be He, at this time, I got to know a person who was the beginning of my transition out of the university accommodation. The university accommodation did not suit me at all, nor did it suit me to share with someone whose morals and religion are different from ours. Everything was different. Yes, I was in shock at meeting people who had what we did not have in terms of corruption and indifference to religion as a whole. Yes.
After that, we moved in the direction of moving to separate accommodation. Yes. Of course, during this period, there were many events happening at the university, but let's skip the accommodation file. Nice. So, when did I start to settle down mentally and feel comfortable in the university accommodation?
During my stay in the university accommodation and the many problems that were happening, I attended religious lessons. The religious lessons were sometimes held in the Edy Brooks Religion Center, a building dedicated to religions. Christians perform their prayers there, Muslims perform their prayers there, and sometimes religious lessons are also held in this center. I remember that I attended some of the lessons and got to know a short Bangladeshi brother named Matien. People even used to make mistakes and call him Martin, thinking his name was Martin. His name is Matien Matien Saad. I saw him once in a lesson and asked him, "Brother, what's your name?" He told me Matien Saad. "Where are you from?" Bangladesh. I told him, "I am from Jordan." Welcome. I saw him in another lesson and asked him, "Brother, I have a bad memory for names and countries. What's your name again?" He told me Matien. "Where are you from?" Bangladesh. Then I met him in a third lesson and asked him, "Brother, I..." He told me Matien from Bangladesh. Okay, good. I actually have a problem with remembering names, I don't know why. The important thing is that this brother, what do you think, should we live together? I mean, I asked him, "What do you think, should we live together?" Good idea. Okay, where should we live? He started looking and I started looking. He had a car, I didn't have a car, and he was a student pursuing a master's degree in computer science. So, finally, we found accommodation, accommodation whose name I have forgotten honestly, but it was next to the Islamic School Mosque. Glory be to Allah. I lived there for three years and some change, but now I have forgotten its name. This accommodation was next to the Islamic School Mosque. The Islamic School Mosque is a mosque for the Tablighi Jamaat. Why is it called the School Mosque? Because there is a large mosque and also a large hall dedicated to students learning the Quran there. So, there was a nearby accommodation, a large accommodation but separated from the mosque only by a wall. This accommodation was inhabited by Muslims from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Bosnia, and they were the least religious, may Allah guide them, and there were also foreign people who were considered from the middle to the lower middle class in terms of material means. Yes. We settled down, put our luggage in this accommodation, and I continued my stay there until the end of my time in America. Praise be to Allah, we were relieved of the problem of university accommodations. I mean, I and Matien lived in an apartment consisting of two rooms, one for him and one for me, and a shared room, let's say a dining room, and the mosque was very close, so we would go to the mosque together and return. Praise be to Allah. This solved the problem of university accommodation. Yes.
Peace be upon you and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
In this episode, we will discuss the religious and social challenges that Muslims face in America. These challenges are numerous and varied, and they require us to be aware and prepared to face them with wisdom and patience.
One of the main challenges is the integration of Muslims into American society. Many Muslims face difficulties in balancing their religious practices with the demands of daily life in a non-Muslim country. This can lead to feelings of isolation and alienation.
Another significant challenge is the issue of identity. Many Muslim youth struggle with their identity, trying to balance their Islamic values with the cultural norms of America. This can lead to confusion and a sense of not belonging.
Islamophobia is a major challenge that Muslims face in America. This prejudice can manifest in various forms, from verbal abuse to physical violence. It is important for Muslims to be aware of their rights and to know how to respond to such challenges.
Education is another area where Muslims face challenges. There is a lack of Islamic schools and educational resources, which can make it difficult for Muslim children to receive a proper Islamic education.
Family life is also affected by the challenges of living in a non-Muslim country. Muslims may face difficulties in finding suitable spouses, raising children with Islamic values, and maintaining strong family ties.
In conclusion, Muslims in America face numerous religious and social challenges. However, with wisdom, patience, and a strong faith, these challenges can be overcome. It is important for Muslims to support each other and to seek knowledge and guidance from reliable sources.
Peace be upon you and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
Okay, let me go back a bit to a small point. Now, you're telling us about yourself in America, the committed, bearded man who is trying to discipline himself, but what stage did Yiad reach? I mean, I feel like we skipped this stage. I mean, his upbringing had the environment, the family, and he ended up on this path or not? How was it? How was Yiad during his upbringing?
During my upbringing, our house was one that maintained prayer and was concerned with the issues of the nation, but there were lapses and mistakes in songs and films, etc. My sister, may God preserve her, became more religiously inclined when she met some friends at university who embraced her. Yes. And my older brother, possibly before university. Now, I remember the stage where I transformed. I tell people I tried to deviate but couldn't. There were people in my environment who were deviant, and I tried to imitate them, feeling that this didn't suit me. How, deviant, you imitate them? Minor details, obscene language, unacceptable behaviors. I tried to blend in and be like them, feeling that I was never in the right place. My early attempts failed, thank God Almighty. I felt there was a block, something preventing me from going down that path. But praise be to God, I grew up maintaining my prayers, loving the religion, honoring the religion, thank God Almighty, away from lewdness and major sins. But let's talk about the issue of caring for the nation, caring for the call, and religious culture. This came to me more and more in the final years of elementary school and the beginning of preparatory school, I think. There was a religious teacher at Al-Manhal School who wasn't wearing a hijab, may God make it easy for her and guide her, she would put the sign like this and tie it behind the number. She did us a favor, she told us to look up the interpretations of the verses we were learning. The religious teacher was. So, the first thing that came into my hands was in our home library, Safwat Al-Tafasir by Muhammad Ali Al-Sabouni, may God have mercy on him. Of course, I later knew that it wasn't the best and didn't represent him, but I definitely benefited from it. I loved the science of interpretation through this book. Then there was my uncle who had a story with Sayyid Qutb. Sayyid Qutb was the reason for his return to Islam. He had left Islam, meaning he had strayed far, his faith had weakened greatly, he had left prayer and fasting, and his convictions had changed. So, Sayyid Qutb was the reason for his return. My uncle introduced me to the world of Sayyid Qutb and In the Shade of the Quran, Milestones, and the like. So, I started reading in the preparatory stage, a religious concern began, and I started demanding that my family change their wrong habits. The songs, and praise be to God, after my sister became more religious, she started reducing the house until she cut off the films. I remember I told my father, "Father, this talk is forbidden and not permissible." He said to me, "Don't attend." I said to him, "No, the whole house doesn't attend," and this is a blessed hour that you are attending, and on Fridays, father, and so on. So, my father issued a law that ended with the cancellation of attending films, praise be to God Almighty. May God have mercy on him, my father was indeed a lover of the religion, honoring the religion, concerned with the affairs of Muslims, maintaining it, but frankly, the environment was generally, it had its mistakes. So, by the grace of God Almighty, the house turned towards a better direction, becoming more committed, religious, and inclined towards studying religion in the preparatory stage, I think, when I went to America. Yes, I considered myself conservative, and I was definitely religious.
The people who are heading, for example, students from Arab countries to study in the West, are not necessarily all committed, and even the committed ones face many problems there. So, how did you face these problems, whether it was mixing, whether it was cultural challenges, etc.?
At first, there weren't many problems, but problems started to happen to us when the lecture times were set. There was a lecture on Friday prayer time. So, I went to the doctor and said to him, "Doctor, this will conflict with Friday prayer." The doctor had an Arab background but was completely assimilated into Western society, and he said to me, "You will make it up." I said to him, "Friday prayer is not made up." He said to me, "There is a field you must attend the lecture." I said to him, "I can't." He said to me, "You will be punished." I said to him, "No problem, but I won't miss Friday prayer." He said to me, "You will be punished." I said to him, "Okay." For me, this was a threat, it could lead to expulsion from the program if I failed or at least deprivation of the scholarship. I was accepted on the basis that I would receive a salary and help in teaching and earn money, and therefore, praise be to God, I did not burden my father except at the beginning only. So, I was surprised, glory be to God, after the first lecture, the doctor himself told the students that the lecture time did not suit Yiad, he has Friday prayer, we need to change it. So, they changed the lecture time for me. And this is credited to him and he is truly thanked for it. So, this was one of the early clashes. Apart from that, the environment I dealt with, the environment of doctors, professors, and students, was an understanding and cooperative environment. And Houston is known for that because it has many communities. It is known that it has communities from everywhere and there are large numbers of Arabs, and we used to hear when I went there in 1999 that there were like 120 mosques and centers or mosques and prayer places. Therefore, the interaction, they understood. Of course, I was invited to attend parties, for example, someone has a birthday party, "Come with us, Yiad?" Thank you. Okay, we will go out to break the fast together, "Come with us, Yiad?" Thank you. I only limited myself to what was related to study. I didn't socialize, I didn't mix with them socially because I knew that there would be situations I wouldn't accept.
Okay, did you feel that you were looking at them in a way that they were nice to you and therefore you expected you to be nice to them? Did you feel this challenge?
I felt that this was an entry point for Satan. I mean, and I hear the voice of Satan, metaphorically speaking, saying to me, you will give a bad impression of your religion. You are a young man with a beard, by the way, my beard was perhaps longer. Ah. You will give a bad impression of your religion, I mean, brother, it's not to this extent, you compromise a little. But I knew that the descent has no bottom, and the series of concessions could end with involvement. Examples of that, I saw people who tried to appease society by compromising their religion, Muslims but compromising their religion and reaching bad consequences. All of this scared me. I mean, I connected between desires and doubts, I feared that I would regress in the matter of desires, reaching a stage of covering the heart so that I see the ugly as beautiful and the beautiful as ugly and hate the commands of God Almighty, and consequently, God forbid, I would abandon my religion. So, I did not open the door. Close the door. And the matter of lowering the gaze helped a lot, praise be to God Almighty. The environment there is not good, especially since I was a teaching assistant, and it is required of me not only female classmates but also female teaching assistants. So, I was strict with myself to a very good extent, praise be to God Almighty. The human being may, by mistake, sometimes due to weakness, if the conversation is prolonged, have intermittent glances, but with that, praise be to God Almighty, I considered myself strict with myself in these matters.
Sometimes, a different person arouses curiosity. As a teaching assistant and someone who takes lectures with students and female students from different nationalities, there were sometimes attempts to get closer in a nice way from some parties. So, I would respond with a kind of dryness and formality, thus closing the door so as not to give a negative impression. At the same time, I did not wrong anyone and I was keen on perfecting my studies, perfecting my work. For example, in my teaching assistance, I tried to help students, whoever needed something from me. Yes. Praise be to Allah, this was not a big problem. We said it is the matter of the prayer time. Of course, the prayer time was in more than one station, meaning there were problems with me because of it. For example, I remember an Argentine doctor whose lecture time clashed with the Maghrib prayer. The Maghrib prayer would be in the middle of the lecture, and he would give a break in the middle of the lecture, but the Maghrib prayer was before the break. So, I said to Dr. Bedamonti, I think his name was Dr. Bedamonti, I want to pray the Maghrib prayer. He said to me, "You cannot leave during the lecture." I said to him, "I want to pray Maghrib and come back to you." He would get angry, but I would go out and pray the three rak'ahs at the door of the lecture and return. I often prayed even on the grass of the university if the prayer time came and I had a lecture. I had no hesitation in praying in front of everyone, even if they looked at me with strange looks, I had no problem. Honestly, the matter of being proud of the Islamic identity helped a lot, thanks to Allah the Almighty, in that the human does not slip.
But to answer your question, which was constant, the religious challenges? Correct. I consider the biggest challenge facing Muslims there is more than temptations and desires, the mockery of the American society of Allah the Almighty. It is easy to be in a lecture where one of the attendees mocks Allah, Allah forbid. It is easy. I remember, for example, once we entered a lecture and a lecturer came, meaning we would have lectures even from another state, and he would give a lecture on the basis that it is a luxurious and important lecture and a topic from the latest that modern science has reached. Everyone was eager and interested, and he would start his lecture with the symbol of the two fingers and say, "That Adam." I seek forgiveness from Allah the Almighty that I would stay and not know if this speech meant... perhaps... of course, I would denounce the evil but late, meaning I would send a message, for example, to the head of the department that as a Muslim I refuse that such a thing happens and this is haram and this is mockery of Allah. And I would send this message, but perhaps it was necessary for me at that moment to denounce. The problem is that you are talking to people who are completely oblivious in another world of thinking. He would present this thing and then move on to the scientific topic. Of course, if he had insisted on the mockery, I would have left for sure, but he would move directly to the scientific topic. The painful thing is that sometimes things like this were said, and some Muslims would smile so as not to appear stingy. I sometimes denounced, for example, a doctor said a word and I denounced him, but one of the Muslim women smiled. Of course, in addition to the colleagues I mentioned, we sometimes attended collective lectures in which students from different batches participated. Therefore, there was a Muslim woman with us, there were Muslims from previous batches with us, meaning there was diversity. This is one of the most dangerous situations in which a person, Allah forbid, may leave his religion because it is not only silent but also shows satisfaction. Therefore, my advice to every Muslim is to be proud of his religion and not to allow such situations to pass without denouncement.
Alright, so there were definitely Muslim colleagues, but perhaps they had a psychological submission to the West. Do you feel that this was a condition that affected him when he went to America, that his handling and interaction with all these files would differ?
Yes. As I mentioned, there were people who had submission and tried to appease the Western environment, and some even went too far. I remember a colleague named Mahmut. He entered with me, by the way, I didn't mention him within the group, but he was one of them. Mahmut is his original name, Mahmoud, but that's how they pronounced his name, Mamo. I asked him, "Are you a Muslim?" He said, "How so? I'm not interested, I'm not interested in religions."
For example, Mamo, who was Mahmoud, would come with us to the break room, of course, he would go out with them to parties. One of the research assistants would say, "Your hairstyle is beautiful, your dress today is beautiful." They tried to compliment his appearance. Over time, this man's interaction with the doctors was respectful with me and with him in a kind of disdain, they disrespected him. I remember once there was a doctor named Richard Bond who respected me very much. So Mahmoud came to complain to me about Richard Bond. Mahmoud was working in Richard Bond's lab. We had a course and a lab, we had courses that we had to pass. From the first semester, you choose a research topic and start practicing research. So Mahmoud was going with Richard Bond. I was also with Richard Bond, but later I left him, I will mention the reason if God wills. The important thing is that Mahmoud came to complain, saying to me, "Imagine Richard Bond asks me to feed his cats milk while he is traveling." Mahmoud said to me, "I, I want to travel to such and such state, and the key to my house, if you please, go feed my cats." So they dealt with him disrespectfully. In the end, he left the program and went, we don't know where. I mean, glory be to God, in contrast to that, there were those who dealt with me disrespectfully.
I remember that when he worked in Dr. Richard Bond's lab, by the way, before I talk about the situations that happened in Dr. Richard Bond's lab, we had a challenge or a problem that there were two types of research available. Research with practical applications, for example, experiments with drugs to lower blood pressure on animals. Yes. And on the other hand, research they call basic science, foundational research. Basic science research has no future in our country. It is research that is usually concerned with foreign countries, considering that it will bear fruit in the long run and will need state care. In our region here, this is not paid for and is not sufficiently cared for. So I compared between two fields: I do not like dealing with animals on the one hand, and on the other hand, I was fascinated by the world of receptors or what is known as pharmacodynamics. My brothers who follow us from the field of medicine, pharmacy, and biology know pharmacodynamics, which means understanding the behavior of receptors present on cell surfaces. When I entered the doctoral program, I became more fond of this topic. So I chose to work with Dr. Bond, who is Richard Bond, and praise be to God, I acquired research skills that qualified me, when I returned to the country here, to work on practical applied research. So Dr. Richard Bond's lab had two of his team, one American and one European. The appearance was not respectable. So when I deal, I also lower my gaze, so they started to treat me badly, meaning how bad? I mean, they were nervous. So one of the doctors summoned me, he is responsible, I mean, in the college, he said to me, "Iyad, there are complaints coming to you that you do not respect the doctors so and so." Doctor, not disrespect, I lower my gaze. I explained to him, in the end he said to me, "Okay, if someone opens the subject with you, tell him Dr. So and so will handle the matter, and I respect your convictions. Honestly, his attitude was good. The important thing is that I could not bear to stay in this lab, as they say, there is no chemistry. I went to Dr. Bond, the one responsible for them, I said, "Dr. Richard, may I withdraw from the lab?" He said to me, "Why?" I said honestly, the treatment is not satisfactory. He said to me, "I bear everything in this world except intolerance, I tolerate everything except intolerance." I said to him, "Intolerance is not from my side." So honestly, I am not in harmony. And for any word in English that we say in Arabic to the listeners, we bear everything except intolerance. So I told him, I mean, I can't. The important thing is that honestly, the man had a noble attitude towards me. I ask God to guide him. He was in contact with me, by the way, until now, every now and then, I send him a message. He was, unfortunately, a heavy drinker of beer and lived with his girlfriend in the same apartment, unfortunately. So his life is completely wasted, but he respected me very much. He said to me, "Okay, okay, I will look for another lab for you." And indeed, he looked for a lab for me and sent me to the lab of Dr. Roger Barber, the British, at the Texas Medical Center. Glory be to God. The Texas Medical Center is the most prestigious medical research institution in America, and on their website, they say they are the largest medical research center in the world. So he did me a favor instead of the University of Houston. I mean, I started taking courses at the University of Houston, but I was doing my research at the Texas Medical Center. And indeed, I went to the Texas Medical Center and met Dr. Roger Barber, and there was a situation that can be one of the most important situations that happened to me in America.
Dr. Roger Barber told me, after I got to know him, that I came at the right time. A woman named Tracy was going to leave the lab; she had finished her research and was going to give a lecture about the nature of research today. He said, "Come attend the lecture because you work with us on something similar. If you like it, you can take it." I went to attend the lecture. There was a round table with chairs, and she started giving the lecture. During the lecture, or just before, they placed pizza and beer on the table. I sat in front of the pizza and beer, moved the beer aside, but then remembered a hadith that says, "Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day should not sit at a table where wine is served." So, I saw the background now, meaning I was in trouble at the university and had to change the lecture time because of me. There were problems with two female doctors, and more would come out, and more would come out. You are causing problems and carrying the ladder sideways, where are you going? The devil laughed at me and sat me in that lecture, and by Allah, I seek help. I remained and sought forgiveness from Allah for that, and I sought forgiveness from Allah for that. What was I talking about now? Okay, perhaps the hadith is weak, perhaps the Messenger did not say this hadith. I know, I know that this talk is not acceptable, but my soul was weak at that moment. Of course, I was attending the lecture; Dr. Roger Barber, the British doctor, invited me. He said, "Please come." I told him, "No, I don't drink." He said, "The pizza." I said, "Thank you." I was upset, so I didn't want to eat or drink. The lecture ended, and I left. Praise be to Allah, after a not-so-long period, Allah willed that I attend a religious lecture at the Al-Farooq Mosque in Houston. The speaker was Sheikh Adnan Al-Arour. I did not know him before, but Allah guided me to him. He spoke about obeying Allah, glorified and exalted be He, and the talk was very broad, meaning it was all over the place. The lecture was beautiful, but he was a bit scattered. I remember his scattering; sometimes it was like he was cutting the broadcast and giving new information. He suddenly cut the broadcast, hit the table, stood up, and said, "The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: 'Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day should not sit at a table where wine is served.'" He sat down and returned to the topic he was on. This was like a different broadcast. I said, "Glory be to Allah the Great. Allah has established the proof upon you, O Eyad." I went home, and there was a book called "Musnad Al-Sharif" by Al-Sakhr. I entered it into the computer, and the hadith came up. The hadith is authentic. There was no website like Minhad or Darussunnah at the time, but in any case, I verified that the hadith is authentic. I said, "That's it, that's it. I cannot sit at a table where wine is served." It was actually just this one situation that I sat in. I resolved in my heart not to sit at a table where wine is served. The days passed, and I was invited to similar lectures. Now, these lectures are not mandatory. The lectures that had beer were university lectures, and they considered that there should not be beer because there were more than one Muslim. So, there was no beer. The lectures at the Texas Medical Center had beer. Ah, so I no longer attended them, and they were not mandatory for me. It was culturally expected to attend them because, as I was conducting research at the Texas Medical Center, I needed to see others in the same field. I was conducting research at the Health Science Center, which is part of the Texas School of Medicine College. The important thing is that it was culturally expected that I attend other lectures and others attend mine. So, I stopped attending these lectures because of the beer present. I remember that a friend of the supervising doctor, whose name is Richard Clark, once saw me in the lab and told his employees, "Eyad, who does not attend, apologizes for not attending the lectures, which Eyad does not attend." I told him, "Dr., I do not attend because there is beer." He said, "Shut up." He was trying to convince me. I said, "Not in my religion." He shook his head in admiration. The days passed, and once he came out of the bathroom washing his hands at the sink. He also washed his hands. He said to me, "Don't you want to attend the lectures?" I said, "No, as long as there is beer." He said, "Shut up." I said, "It's not in my religion." The days passed, and he himself came to me and said, "Eyad, for non-religious reasons but for material reasons, we no longer bring beer or pizza. Do you want to attend with us?" I said, "Yes, I will attend with you." So, I attended these lectures, and then I worked on the doctoral research and became intermittent in attending.
The most impactful situation in my entire journey in America, I was shaken when this happened to me. Dr. Roger Barber, who was directly in charge of me in the research, the British doctor who was hostile towards Islam and Muslims but dealt with me very respectfully. Look at this split duality. He came to me in the final period while I was fixing some errors or making some modifications to the doctoral thesis. He said to me, "Eyad, do you want to attend Dick's lecture?" Dick is the nickname for Richard Clark, his friend. I said to him, "By Allah, Dr., I am busy now fixing the doctoral thesis. If you want me to attend, I will." He said to me, "It is up to you whether you come or not to bring the beer." If you are coming, they will not bring beer; if you are not coming, they will bring beer. I said to myself, "Glory be to Allah the Great." This was, by the way, after the events of September 2001, and he said this to me in 2003. The American society was generally angry at the Muslims. I, by the way, did not change anything about myself. I will mention this, inshallah. I mean, glory be to Allah, my being shook, they had to adapt to me whether they bring it or not. I said to him, "Leave me to finish the doctoral thesis." I felt the value of being strong in this position and adhering to my religion, not the opposite. They can walk with you in this adaptation. I, by the way, have entrusted myself to Allah, glorified and exalted be He, not to sit at a table where wine is served. I broke it honestly once and seek forgiveness from Allah, and I do not say that the human nature covers up his disobedience, but I say it for the lesson. Yes, sometimes you are put to the test. To mention this situation, I need a bit of elaboration. No, no.
Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings.
In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Praise be to God, Lord of the Worlds, and peace and blessings be upon our master Muhammad, the seal of the prophets, and upon his family and companions.
Indeed, the world is witnessing a series of natural disasters that have left their mark on the lives of many people. Among these disasters is Hurricane Alison, which struck with great force and caused widespread destruction.
In the face of such calamities, we must remember the words of our Lord, the Most High, who says: "And We send the winds fertilizing, and send down water from the sky, and give it to you to drink, and you are not the owners of its stores." (Surah Al-Hijr, verse 22)
This verse reminds us of God's wisdom and power in managing the affairs of the world. It also reminds us of our duty to be grateful for the blessings He has bestowed upon us and to seek refuge in Him during times of hardship.
In addition to natural disasters, we are also witnessing a series of political and social crises that are causing great harm to the lives of many people. Among these crises is the stance of some countries that are supporting terrorism and extremism, which is causing widespread destruction and suffering.
In the face of such crises, we must remember the words of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, who said: "The best jihad is a word of truth in front of a tyrant ruler." (Sahih al-Bukhari)
This hadith reminds us of our duty to stand up for justice and truth, even in the face of great adversity. It also reminds us of the importance of seeking knowledge and understanding in order to make informed decisions and take appropriate actions.
In conclusion, we must remember that God is the One who controls the affairs of the world, and that He is the One who can bring relief and comfort to those who are suffering. We must also remember that we have a duty to stand up for justice and truth, and to seek knowledge and understanding in order to make informed decisions and take appropriate actions.
May God bless you and grant you success in all your endeavors. Amen.