Footprints in the sand … Haisam Farache at South Narrabeen beach yesterday.
WHEN he’s in the line-up off Sydney’s popular beaches, Haisam Farache is just another surfer waiting for a wave.
But once he’s out of the water he swaps his wetsuit and surfboard for a robe and turban and assumes the role of an imam at Australia’s largest mosque.
“For me it relates to how I am as an Australian and a Muslim,” he said. “When I go to the beach I feel rejuvenated. I feel like a new person and whatever stresses I have in my life are being washed away with the waves.”
The 34-year-old, who began surfing at 11, said his pastime intrigued his students at the Lakemba Mosque. Most laughed, he said, when they discovered he was a surfer, and found it difficult to believe a religious leader had an interest outside teaching Islam.
The Auburn-based lawyer said surfing was also an ice-breaker when he visited schools across the country as part of his work with the Together for Humanity Foundation.
He recalls visiting a school on the northern beaches where many students began calling him a terrorist. Once the children discovered he was a surfer, their opinion changed and they saw him as one of “them”, he said.
This is no laughing matter…if we follow Our Holy Prophet’s (PBUH) advice Every Father should teach his Son three things…Swimming, Horseback riding and archery.
More power to this Imam who can ride the surf…:biggthumb
We need more imams who can break the barriers and think out of the box. May Allah bring that day soon when the Imams would be captain or coach of sports team and be Imam of Salat in all the big sports stadiums during Salat break.
This is no laughing matter......if we follow Our Holy Prophet's (PBUH) advice Every Father should teach his Son three things........Swimming, Horseback riding and archery.
More power to this Imam who can ride the surf......:biggthumb
