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(Thread) The Story of my Hijrah to a Muslim Country
Some background. I was born and bred in Shepherd's Bush, London, and educated in a private Muslim school at primary level and a public "Church of England" school at secondary level. My father is Bahraini, and mother English.
Some background. I was born and bred in Shepherd's Bush, London, and educated in a private Muslim school at primary level and a public "Church of England" school at secondary level. My father is Bahraini, and mother English.
The thought of moving permanently to a Muslim country was never a serious one. I married a Bahraini resident whilst studying at a London university. I was 19. My plan was to finish university, get a job and become financially stable in order to apply for UK residency for my wife.
I was spending a lot of money travelling to Bahrain multiple times a year in order to spend time with my wife. As I was approaching the end of my degree, a friend at uni suggested I take a job as a teacher and move to Saudi Arabia to be closer to my wife.
I thought it was a good short term solution. Hijrah was not my intention. Shortly after University in 2011, I got my first job in the Gulf. Upon moving I was definitely homesick. I missed things like the banter with my siblings and parents, and weekly football with friends.
I did though enjoy the benefits that come with living in a Muslim country such as hearing the athaan, being surrounded by Muslims, Qur'an and Arabic classes, not having to read ingredients when grocery shopping and halal McDonalds!
I remember a call I had with my younger sister who was in high school in the UK. I asked her what book she was studying for her English Literature class. She replied "its about a girl, she runs away from home, and oh yeah she becomes a lesbian". As you can imagine this upset me.
Of course it didn't surprise me though, I had also been to a UK secondary school. It got me thinking about the dangers of the normalisation of such things. Here you have an innocent Muslim girl from a religious family, being made to study something that opposes our Muslim values.
After a year, my wife gave birth to my first child. It was a girl. A few years down the line, two more girls and a boy. By the time we had the second child, my mind was made up. There was no way in this world that I would raise my children in a non Muslim country.
The thought of my princesses being exposed to what I was exposed to horrified me. I remembered things like sex education classes or the talk in grade 7 when all students were gathered for a workshop on sex where we were told about masturbation.
The boys were handed condoms at this event. We had fun blowing them up like balloons on the way home lol. In hindsight the decision to stay in the Gulf was easy. I thought about what was most important in life. Safety, religion, stability.
Last summer I sat with my sister and discussed parenthood. She asked how I deal with the "gay agenda" at school. I told her, I don't deal with it. It is a non issue here. She told me that she has to teach her kids to be accepting of homosexuality out of fear of being reported.
From the outside looking in, I can see how the moral fabric of society in the UK was getting torn to shreds. Going further and further away from fitrah. I can see Muslims adopting more liberal values in order to be accepted by the kuffar.
I can see Muslims becoming more and more accepting of major sin. I can see the difference between the rhetoric in the speech between Western and Eastern Muslim scholars and speakers.
I'm sorry to say, what most Western speakers propagate is absolute liberal garbage that would be laughed at in the East. A reaction to the pressure from a kafir society. Which is why I have a deep respect for those like @Haqiqatjou who say it as it is (may Allah preserve him).
I think back to my education in a "religious" Church school. How many girls by the time I was in grade 9 were still virgins? It was known by everyone- only one. A natural consequence of a hyper sexualised society.
How many Muslim girls did I know in the UK that were pious Muslims? Must be less than 5% I thought. I have three girls, what is the probability all will turn out well if I raised them in the UK? Let's be honest, it isn't very high. May Allah raise them to be His devout servants.
If you live in the West, the probability of the history of Islam in your family ending with your grandchildren is high. Think about that for a moment.
Like I said, when you think about what is important in life, the decision to make my stay permanent was easy.
Like I said, when you think about what is important in life, the decision to make my stay permanent was easy.
However, living in the Gulf for nine years has really made be appreciate many aspects of the governance of Western countries. Living here comes with its difficulties and is far from perfect. I deal with stupidity daily. There is a lack of professionalism at work.
Systems are not always "fair". Healthcare isn't as good. The roads are bad. Education lacks the quality of the West but at least there is no LGBT agenda (yet). Many people are liberal and non practicing of Allah's deen.
Of course the Gulf is also being infected by kufr liberal agendas and unfortunately is quickly changing for the worse, however it is no where near as bad as the West. Things are far from ideal. It is not Medinah at the time of the Prophet ﷺ and the people are not the sahaba.
But, Islam prevails. Tawheed and Qur'an are a mandatory part of the curriculum. The athan is called. Graves are flattened. Homosexuality is punished (even in the more liberal Gulf countries). Crime is almost non existent. Women cover. There are no half naked people on billboards.
You can control what your children are exposed to with ease. The are no "late night" television shows. Pornography is blocked by the government. Unfortunately turbaned hijabi fashionista feminists talking about the deen are not though.
I advise all my brothers and sisters living in the West to make hijrah to a Muslim country (as long as it is a possibility). Of course you will have to sacrifice the conveniences of the West. Of course there will be difficulty- but who said sacrifice for Allah was easy?
But when you consider what is important in this life to prepare you and your family for the next, the decision is easy. For those reading this who live in Muslim countries and are thinking about moving to the West, DON'T, unless it is for safety.
Thank Allah that you are already residing in a Muslim country. I hope this thread is of benefit to those reading it. May Allah accept our intentions, ameen.
السَّلاَمُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَةُ اللهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُ
السَّلاَمُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَةُ اللهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُ
