The time was 11: 15 a.m. and I was walking briskly to the CMS taxi park. Ordinarily I would not take a taxi to 1004 Estate. but that day I had to get there to deliver a lecture to a gathering of young professional Muslims. Once I had agreed to be there for 11:30 a.m.. it becomes a trust which must be faithfully discharged as Allah commands:
"... let the trustee (faithfully) discharge his trust and let him fear Allah, his Lord .. :" (Q2:283)
Inspite of this consciousness, I was running late for a very typical reason: My wife took forever to dress up and get ready! As a mahjubah (one who wears full hijab) she does not wear such vain adornments as lipsticks, eye shadow, nail polish, layers of mascara etc. All she needed to do was wear her dress and that lovely sweet-smelling pungent perfume and she would be ready to go out. Still, it took her a long time. I guess us men can never understand the cause of the delay but we all have to continue to pay the price. My price for that day was that we had to get across town by expensive hired cabs rather than "jumping buses".
Fortunately, one taxi cab was waiting for only two passengers at the park. Immediately the taxi took off, I began to collect my thought for the presentation. We were half-way through the journey when I felt eyes boring into me. I looked up to see three pairs of young eyes staring strangely at my wife and I. The three boys in the cab had similar looks - they turned out to be brothers. John, the first boy of the family, later told me that they were heading back home that Sunday morning after attending the first service at the Seventh Day Adventist Church in Lagos. Ten year-old Thomas blurted out why they were looking at me so intently. "You look very strange; but you both look like someone I have seen before. Why did you leave your beard to grow this long and why is your wife covering herself up like that?" Joe, the five-year old, quickly added his own comments before I could respond: "Is this beard really your own or is it fake like that of Father Christmas? Can I touch it?" I readily obliged him and I explained to them: "My friends, we are not strange, we are Muslims. A Muslim believes that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah and that Muhammad, the last Prophet to mankind, is His messenger .
Whatever Allah and His Messenger command us to do, as Muslims we hear and we obey."
The three of them listened to me with rapt attention as I continued: "Take my wife, Allah commands that believing women should lower their gaze, use the veil and should not display their beauty and ornaments (Q24:31) and His Messenger further explained that
"when a woman reaches maturity, it is not good that any part of her body be seen except the face, and hands" (Abu Daud). This she hears and she obeys. On my part, I heard the call that
"the Messenger of Allah ordered us to trim the moustache closely and spare the beard" (Muslim).
So I obeyed by keeping my beard. To do this is to behave in the true way Allah has created every human being and it is the same practice of all Prophets of Allah from Adam. to Muhammad (pBUH). Abraham, Moses and Jesus (pBUH) had full beards too, you know. "
"Yes"; Thomas shouted, "I know why you are familiar. You look like the Prophets in my pictorial Bible and like the Jesus on our calendar at home. Arid your wife's dress looks like that of the Virgin Mary in our house". I fixed my gaze at John, the fourteen years old but spoke to all of them: "Those Prophets and even Maryam, the mother of Isa (Jesus) (PBUH) were all chosen servants of Allah. None of them was a Christian nor was any of them a Jew: but they all submitted fully to Allah, the Creator of all things. For this submission to the will of Allah, they are Muslims. That is what you and your brothers should be as well. Do not follow the wrong ways of your parents, accept Islam and live your lives as true Muslims".
By this time, the taxi had come to a stop at the gate of 1004 Estate. I quickly put on my shoes, careful to put on the left leg first. I got to the venue at 11:40 a.m just as the imaam was reciting Surah Rahman (Q55). I was at the door when he recited "fabi ayyi aalahi Rabbikumma tukadhiban (then which of the favours of your Lord will you deny?); so I quickly told my wife she should meet me at the gate as I leave after my lecture. As I was sitting down, the Amir rose to announce my name; so we shook hands. Alhamdulillah, the lecture went very well but it was the discussion in the taxi that made a more lasting impression on me.
This article was culled from the publications of Deen Communication Limited