He wants to become Muslim, and is asking for advice regarding his new life

We are very happy that you sent a message to our website when the light began to shine on your heart and your heart began to open and feel at ease with that new light, from which Allah likes His slaves to seek guidance.

That is the main turning point in your entire life, not only this transient worldly life, but also what will result from this decision in your eternal life in the hereafter, either in Allah’s Paradise, as Allah loves for His slaves and what we hope for for you, to abide therein forever, enjoying bliss in its gardens, never feeling miserable or tired, never dying, never growing old, never feeling stress or grief; rather it will be a state of eternal happiness;

or in the fire of Hell – may Allah protect us and you from it – abiding therein forever, never dying therein so that one might have respite, and never living a life of ease and well-being; rather its people will suffer a humiliating torment, abiding therein for all eternity, and never leaving it.

This moment when you told us of your desire to enter Islam is the greatest moment of your life, when you felt at ease and your heart became open and filled with light after darkness. Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning): “So whoever Allah wants to guide – He expands his heart to [contain] Islam; and whoever He wants to misguide – He makes his heart tight and constricted as though he were climbing into the sky. Thus does Allah place defilement upon those who do not believe” [al-An‘aam 6:125].

So make the most of this moment, do not procrastinate or delay, and do not hesitate to make the most of it.

Do not close this window after your heart has begun to feel the breeze of a new dawn, for if you close it – may Allah protect you from that – your heart will soon be deadened, without any breeze from the Most Gracious to bring it back to life.

Do not delay inhaling this breeze that is blowing on your heart, for if you delay taking advantage of this fresh morning breeze, the heat of the sun will soon touch you and its flames will burn you.

So hasten, for if this opportunity passes, it may not return. Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning): “And We will turn away their hearts and their eyes just as they refused to believe in it the first time. And We will leave them in their transgression, wandering blindly” [al-An‘aam 6:110].

Hasten to take this opportunity in this moment, for other people wasted this opportunity, then wished that it would come back, but if it is missed the first time and life ends, it will never return. Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Alif, Lam, Ra. These are the verses of the Book and a clear Qur’an.

Perhaps those who disbelieve will wish that they had been Muslims.

Let them eat and enjoy themselves and be diverted by [false] hope, for they are going to know”  [al-Hijr 15:1-3].

Hasten, for the matter is very easy and straightforward for those whom Allah helps and guides.

It was narrated that Mu‘aadh ibn Jabal said: I was with the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) on a journey, and one morning I was very close to him as we were travelling, so I said: O Messenger of Allah, tell me of a deed that will admit me to Paradise and keep me far away from Hell.

He said: “You have asked about something momentous, but it is easy for the one for whom Allah makes it easy.

Worship Allah and do not associate anything with Him, establish prayer, give zakaah, fast Ramadan, and go on pilgrimage to the House [the Ka‘bah].”

Then he said: “Shall I not tell you of the means of goodness? Fasting is a shield; charity extinguishes sin as water extinguishes fire; and a man’s prayer in the depths of the night – ” Then he recited (interpretation of the meaning):

“They arise from [their] beds; they supplicate their Lord in fear and aspiration, and from what We have provided them, they spend

And no soul knows what has been hidden for them of comfort for eyes as reward for what they used to do” [as-Sajdah 32:16-17].

Then he said: “Shall I not tell you of the head of the matter, and its pillar and pinnacle?” I said: Yes, O Messenger of Allah. He said: “The head of the matter is Islam, its pillar is prayer and its pinnacle is jihad.”

Then he said: “Shall I not tell you of the basis of all that?”

I said: Yes, O Messenger of Allah.

He took hold of his tongue then said: “Restrain this.”

I said: O Prophet of Allah, will we be brought to account for what we say?

He said: “May your mother be bereft of you, O Mu‘aadh! Are people thrown onto their faces – or their noses – in Hell for anything other than the harvest of their tongues?”

Narrated by at-Tirmidhi (2616). He said: This is a hasan saheeh hadith. It was also narrated by Ahmad and others, and classed as saheeh by al-Albaani.

You do not need a priest to baptize you, or an intermediary to mediate for you, or anyone to guide you to Him, for He, may He be glorified, guides you Himself and has introduced Himself to you in His revelation and on the lips of His Messengers. So turn to Him, for He is near; he is closer to you than you think or can imagine:

“And when My servants ask you, [O Muhammad], concerning Me – indeed I am near. I respond to the invocation of the supplicant when he calls upon Me. So let them respond to Me [by obedience] and believe in Me that they may be [rightly] guided” [al-Baqarah 2:186].

You have no need to ask about a time or an hour, by night or by day, to turn to your Lord and begin your new life. Anytime is the time for that.

It was narrated from Abu Moosa al-Ash‘ari (may Allah be pleased with him), that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “Indeed Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, holds out His hand at night to accept the repentance of those who have sinned during the day, and He holds out his hand by day to accept the repentance of those who have sinned at night – until the sun rises from its place of setting.” Narrated by Muslim (2759).

Beware lest the Shaytaan bar you from the religion of Allah and come between you and your Lord because of some sin that you committed, or a dark past. Leave all of that behind you, and start a new page that is bright and clear, a new covenant with your Lord, and repentance from disbelief and all that it entailed, no matter what happened in the past at the time of disbelief.

“Say, ‘O My servants who have transgressed against themselves [by sinning], do not despair of the mercy of Allah. Indeed, Allah forgives all sins. Indeed, it is He who is the Forgiving, the Merciful.’

And return [in repentance] to your Lord and submit to Him before the punishment comes upon you; then you will not be helped

And follow the best of what was revealed to you from your Lord before the punishment comes upon you suddenly while you do not perceive

Lest a soul should say, ‘Oh [how great is] my regret over what I neglected in regard to Allah and that I was among the mockers.’

Or [lest] it say, ‘If only Allah had guided me, I would have been among the righteous.’

Or [lest] it say when it sees the punishment, ‘If only I had another turn so I could be among the doers of good.’

But yes, there had come to you My verses, but you denied them and were arrogant, and you were among the disbelievers

And on the Day of Resurrection you will see those who lied about Allah [with] their faces blackened. Is there not in Hell a residence for the arrogant

And Allah will save those who feared Him by their attainment; no evil will touch them, nor will they grieve ” [az-Zumar 39:53-61].

Islam erases everything that came before it of shirk (association of others with Allah), the deeds of shirk, the condition of shirk and the covenant of shirk. So cast these burdens from your back that had weighed you down, and begin a clean, pure life with the Lord of the Worlds; turn to Him and flee to Him.

Yes, your happiness, your comfort and your ease – in this world and the hereafter – depend on entering this religion of Islam and following the guidance of this new light.

“Indeed in that is a sign for those who fear the punishment of the Hereafter. That is a Day for which the people will be gathered, and that is a Day [which will be] witnessed,

And We do not delay it except for a limited term.

The Day it comes no soul will speak except by His permission. And among them will be the wretched and the prosperous.

As for those who were [destined to be] wretched, they will be in the Fire. For them therein is [violent] exhaling and inhaling.

 [They will be] abiding therein as long as the heavens and the earth endure, except what your Lord should will. Indeed, your Lord is an effecter of what He intends.

And as for those who were [destined to be] prosperous, they will be in Paradise, abiding therein as long as the heavens and the earth endure, except what your Lord should will – a bestowal uninterrupted” [Hood 11:103-108].

There is no need for any condition or stipulation other than leaving your previous religion and entering Islam by saying, “Ash-hadu an laa ilaaha illa Allah wa anna Muhammadan rasoolullah (I bear witness that there is no god worthy of worship except Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah).”

You should understand that by doing that, you have left behind your old beliefs and all human religions, and you have nothing left but a Lord Whom you worship, and no god in whom you believe and to whom you pray except the Lord of the Worlds.

You have no messenger whom you follow, except the Prophet of Islam, Muhammad ibn ‘Abdillah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him).

You have no religion and no thought that you follow, except the religion of Islam. Allah (may He be exalted) says:

“And whoever desires other than Islam as religion – never will it be accepted from him, and he, in the Hereafter, will be among the losers” [Aal ‘Imraan 3:85].

We would like you now to hasten and wash your entire body, to start a new life, clean and pure both outwardly and inwardly.

The moment you enter Islam and begin a new covenant with the Lord of the Worlds, we will be very happy to hear any questions you may have about your new religion and what you need to know about acts of worship and interactions with others. So do not hesitate to ask us, and send us any questions and ask us about any problems you face.

If there is an Islamic centre near you, then the best is to get in touch with them, and meet them and mix with the people there. That will help you with what you need to learn about your religion, and you will find there the right environment that will help you to  adhere to the religion that you have embraced.

We ask Allah to open your heart to Islam, guide you and enable you to do that which He loves and is pleased with.

And Allah knows best.