Salaam,
I received this from a friend. I’m afraid it’s a tad long, but nevertheless a most interesting read.
RABBI OF MAKHACHKALA SYNAGOGUE EMBRACED ISLAM.
Rabbi of Makhachkala
synagogue embraced Islam Every person has a different way of coming to
the
Truth. For Moisha Krivitsky this way led through a faculty of law, a
synagogue and a prison. The lawyer-to-be becomes a Rabbi, then he
converts
into Islam and finds himself in prison. Today Musa (this is the name he
has
adopted when he became a Muslim) lives in a small mosque in
Al-Burikent, a
mountain area of Makhachkala in the region of Daghestan of Russia, and
works
as a watchman in the Central Juma mosque. Musa, before we began
talking, you
asked what we were going to talk about. I said: ‘About you.’ ‘What’s so
interesting about me?’ you wondered. ‘I live in the mosque’. How did
you
come to live in the mosque? Well, I just dropped in… and stayed. Did
you
find the way easily? With great difficulty. It was hard then, and it
isn’t
much easier now. When you go deeply into Islam’s inner meaning, you
understand that this religion is very simple, but the way that leads to
it
may be extremely difficult. Often, people don’t understand how a person
could be converted into Islam ‘from the other side’, as it were. But
there
are no ‘sides’ here: Islam is everything there is, both what we imagine
and
what we don’t imagine. Musa, as a matter of fact, we were given this
fact as
a certain sensation: a Rabbi has turned Muslim. Well, it has been no
sensation for quite a long while already - it’s more than a year that I
did
this. It was strange for me at first, too. But it wasn’t an
off-the-cuff
decision. When I came into Islam, I had read books about it, I had been
interested. Did you finish any high school before coming to the
synagogue?
Yes, I finished a clerical high school. After graduation, I came to
Makhachkala, and became the local Rabbi. And where did you come from?
Oh,
from far away. But I’ve already become a true Daghestani, I’ve got a
lot of
friends here - both among Muslims and people who are far from Islam.
Let’s
return to your work in the synagogue. It was quite a paradoxical
situation:
there was a mosque near my synagogue, the town mosque. Sometimes my
fiends
who were its parishioners would come to me - just to chat. I sometimes
would
come to the mosque myself, to see how the services were carried out. I
was
very interested. So we lived like good neighbours. And once, during
Ramadan,
a woman came to me - as I now understand, she belonged to a people that
was
historically Muslim - and she asked me to comment the Russian
translation of
the Qur’an made by Krachkovsky. She brought the Qur’an to you - a
Rabbi?!
Yes, and she asked me to give her the Torah to read in return. So I
tried to
read the Qur’an - about ten times. It was really hard, but gradually I
began
to understand, and to get a basic notion of Islam. (Here, Musa looked
at my
friend’s son, the six-year old Ahmed, who had fallen asleep in the
mosque
courtyard. “Should we probably take him inside the mosque?”, asked
Musa.)
And that woman had brought back the Torah. It turned out to be very
difficult for her to read and understand it, because religious
literature
requires extreme concentration and attention. Musa, and when you were
reading the translation, you must have begun to compare it with the
Torah? I
had found answers to many questions in the Qur’an. Not to all of them,
of
course, because it wasn’t the Arabic original, but the translation. But
I
had begun to understand things. Does it mean that you couldn’t find
some
answers in Judaism? I don’t know, there’s Allah’s will in everything.
Apparently, those Jews who became Muslims in the times of the Prophet
(let
Allah bless and greet him), couldn’t find some answers in Judaism, but
found
them in Islam. Perhaps, they were attracted by the personality of the
Prophet (let Allah bless him!), his behaviour, his way of communicating
with
people. It’s an important topic. And what exactly were the questions
that
you couldn’t find answers to in Judaism? Before I came into contact
with
Islam, there were questions which I had never even tried to find
answers to.
Probably, an important part here had been played by a book written by
Ahmad
Didat, a South African scholar, comparing the Qur’an and the Bible.
There is
a key phrase, well-known to those who are familiar with religious
issues:
“Follow the Prophet who is yet to come”. And when I studied Islam, I
understood that the Prophet Muhammad (let Allah bless him!) is the very
Prophet to be followed. Both the Bible and the Torah tell us to do it.
I
haven’t invented anything here. And what does the Torah say about the
Prophet (let Allah bless him!)? We won’t be able to find this name in
the
Torah. But we can figure it out using a special key. For example, we
can
understand what god this or that particular person in history worships.
The
formula describing the last Prophet (let Allah bless and greet him) is
that
he would worship One God, the Sole Creator of the world. The Prophet
Muhammad (let Allah bless him!) matches this description exactly. When
I
read this, I got very interested. I hadn’t known anything about Islam
before
that. Then I decided to look deeper into the matter and see whether
there
were any miracles and signs connected with the name of the Prophet (let
Allah bless him!). The Bible tells us that the Lord sends miracles to
the
prophets to confirm their special mission in people’s eyes. I asked the
alims about this, and they said: “Here’s a collection of true hadiths
which
describe the miracles connected with the Prophet (let Allah bless
him!)”.
Then I read that the Prophet (let Allah bless him) had always said that
there had been prophets and messengers before him (let Allah be content
with
them). We can find their names both in the Torah and in the Bible. When
I
was only starting to get interested, it sounded somewhat strange for
me. And
then… Well, my own actions led to what happened to me. Sometimes I
get to
thinking: why did I read all this? Perhaps, I should say the tauba (a
prayer
of repenting) right now for having thoughts like that. Should I
understand
you, Musa, that you now feel a great responsibility for becoming a
Muslim,
or do you have some other feelings? Yes, responsibility, but something
else
as well. I can’t put my finger on it now. When a person knows Islam
well,
he’s got both his feet firmly on the ground. Islam helps a person I
would be
insincere if I said that the all the Daghestani are such ‘knowing’
Muslims.
We sometimes talk about it in the mosque and I like to say that there
are
not so many real Muslims in Daghestan - only the ustaths (learned
theologians) and their students, and the rest of us are just
candidates. I
can’t say that we do what the sunna requires, we’re only trying to. And
when
we don’t do what we should, we’re trying to invent some clever excuses.
These efforts should have better been applied to doing our duty. It’s
hard
for me to watch this. Sometimes, I’m distracted by what is happening
around
me, as well. I haven’t got strength enough to fight this, and the
weakness
of my nature shows clearly here. I can’t say I’m totally helpless, but
I
have no right to say that I’ve achieved anything in Islam. I’ve only
got
torments. When I understood that I had to become a Muslim, I thought
that
Islam was a single whole - one common road, or a huge indivisible
ocean.
Then I saw that there were a lot of trends in Islam, and new questions
appeared. All these trends are like whirlpools, they whirl and whirl…
it’s
very hard! If a person tells you: “Look, we fulfil all the hadiths,
only we
understand åðó Qur’an correctly”, then you follow this person, because
you
think that he speaks true things, and because you want to please Allah.
But
then, after a couple of months, you understand that these claims were
false.
Allah controls us. And you think: if this way is the right way, then
why is
there something that goes the wrong way?.. Musa, and what brought you
into
the prison? A good question, this, isn’t it? Who welcomed you there? If
there’s Allah’s will to everything, then this was His will as well.
Regarding life from behind the barbed wire, going through all of this,
that
was a certain school for me. How did it happen? I’ve recently seen a
programme on the TV, and a representative of the Chechen republic in
Moscow
- I forget his name now, I believe he had some beautiful,
French-sounding
name, something like Binaud - he said that if the authorities were
going to
carry on like they had done before - barging into homes, planting drugs
and
weapons on people - then the people would be out in the streets
protesting.
This has happened to many here. So there was something planted on me.
Then
they came and took me away at night. Before that, I had had a certain
notion
about he forces of the law here… well, I couldn’t think they would
use
such, well, not very polite methods. Islam doesn’t let me use a
stronger
word. Allah estimates what every man does, and those people will have
to
answer for what they have done. But the three months I spent in prison,
they
probably helped me to make my faith stronger. I saw how people behaved
under
the extreme circumstances, both Muslims and non-Muslims, how I behaved.
It
would be good, of course, if the people in power would pay their
attention
to this problem. They shouldn’t be trying to eradicate Islam with such
unsavoury methods. Musa, why were the authorities frightened by you? No
idea. Even children aren’t afraid of me. At this moment, our
conversation
was interrupted by a stunningly beautiful azan. Is there a muezzin in
your
mosque? Yes, his name is Muamat Tarif, it was him that we’ve just
heard. And
there’s only you and him who works in this mosque? Well, as a matter of
fact, only he works. He allows me… I still can’t get used to things
after
prison. He allows me to live here. It’s hard to recall this. I had a
certain
trouble with the people whose flat I was living in, the understanding
between us somehow failed. I started perceiving them in a different
way. But
it’s probably bad to be looking for other people’s drawbacks, I’ve
probably
got more. People started arriving to the mosque. We rose and hastened
for
the prayer, too. After the prayer, we tarried a little, but I thought
as I
was walking towards this bench we’re sitting on: “It’s all right, Musa
seems
to have a lot of spare time”. Is that right? Well, it depends on what
we
mean by time. As for every Muslim, my time is divided into certain
stretches, between the prayers. The time to do something. And what do
you do
here in this mosque? I just live here after some very unpleasant things
that
happened to me. Before that, I had lived here, an Al-burikent, at a
flat. I
don’t even want to think about it now. I remember being taken out of
bed at
one or two in the morning, feeling a hand grenade in my bed and cuffs
on my
wrists: “What do you need Islam for, you Jew?” Well… Then they tried
to
shoot me, then I was beaten. At first a friend helped me with my
ablutions,
because I couldn’t walk. But then I recovered, alhamdulillah, in about
two
months.It’s a bit funny, because it reminds of a doctor who prescribes
guillotine for headache. They say: there are a lot of problems in
Daghestan,
in Islam. That’s a mistake. The problems are in the people. And what
was the
crime you were accused of, and why has your conviction not been
stricken off
your record? Well, there’s been an amnesty recently, they’ve cut me a
little
slack. But the police and the Ministry of internal affairs still
control us,
it’s their job. The main thing is to make them see what Islam really
is, and
that’s what we’re trying to explain to them. The seventy years building
of
Communism hasn’t left Daghestan unchanged. Although it still remains
the
stronghold of Islam in Russia, we have the Islamic traditions well
preserved. But sometimes when I walk the streets of the town, I get to
thinking that the people don’t quite understand what Islam is. Some,
so-called, ethnic Muslims… words fail me. Did you avoid the question
on
the nature of your crime on purpose? No, it was illegal weapon keeping.
I’ve
forgiven those people, of course, although I used to be very angry with
them. What matters is the Islam, and the things that are good for it.
Everyone’s been somehow shaken up by all this. Those who were not
interested
in Islam, became interested. Those who were only fake Muslims, moved
away. I
know many examples, I’ve often met people like this, sometimes these
people
were close to me. They would sometimes use the word Wahhabism, or would
claim that they had a fundamental knowledge of the Qur’an and the
Sunna. But
it turned out to be a tree that is rotten. I would advise people to
read the
sifats (signs) of hypocrites before they go to bed every night, like
fairy-tales. I used to be interested in this issue too. It’s really
strange,
when you think of it. Say, among the Duma deputies there are people who
came
to the Chechen village of Karamakhi, brought medicines to the people.
The
Karamaknians are still using those medicines. No one would tear them
out of
their beds at night or try to ‘educate’ them in non-traditional
methods. And
still, the way that most of the people perceive Islam… This, in fact,
is
the problem of Islam. I thought: you become a Muslim and all the
problems go
away. I hoped they would. I hoped to find Paradise. As the Qur’an says:
“Allah calls into the peaceful abode, and those He loves He guides on
the
straight way”. I thought I would find this peaceful abode. And I’ve
been
searching ever since I came into Islam, both here, in Daghestan, and in
the
neighbouring Chechnya, through the so-called Sharia enclaves. They say,
for
example: “The law of this or that place is Sharia in the shortened
form”.
Sometimes it’s just a slogan. Here, in Russia, we’re used to slogan
thinking. For example, our neighbours had a slogan: “Sharia rules
here!” But
this wasn’t the case. Musa, and what kind of secular education did you
have?
Various, I could say. Well, I can read and write. I don’t know what
else to
say. I studied at a prestigious institute. I don’t think it was
actually
very useful in any way. But then yes, it was. It had something to do
with
law. One teacher had a joke: “Sincere confession relieves one’s
feelings and
lengthens the time one does one’s term”. A law paradox. What is the
most
difficult thing for you now? Endurance. Sabr. Sometimes I feel so
desperate
I could jump into the Caspian sea. And the desperation comes from the
fact
that you want to see the “peaceful abode” around you, but find
something
completely different instead? Yes. There’s much misunderstanding. I see
the
noble and high principles if Islam, and I see the abyss we’re in. We
try to
get out of it, each one the way he can. But unfortunately, we don’t
often
see our ustathes, it’s not always we can reach them. Well, but they’re
always there to meet you. Are they? Then my way to them must be very
long.
Apparently, just pronouncing the shahada (the confession of faith,
which,
when said by a person, signifies their belonging to Islam) is not
enough. In
fact, you should always confirm your being Muslim, every day. At least
five
times a day. Sometimes it’s hard, when you argue with someone, or
someone
hurts you, or you see something that’s going wrong. And you have to
force
yourself to be a true Muslim. Where are you, the “peaceful abode”?
Where
should I look for you? In the self, probably? The self is to be sorted
out
as well. Don’t forget that I came into Islam from a parallel world, and
I
still can’t forget it. Sometimes I’m reminded of it. It’s hard to
educate
such people. The Qur’an tells us: not everyone believes. We have to
face
that it’s predestined and we can do nothing about it. What we have to
do is
tell the truth about Islam, to show it by our own example.
Unfortunately,
I’m not always an example. I’m still looking for my way. I don’t know
if
it’s to the point, but I’d like to adduce the hadith of the Prophet
(let
Allah bless him) which tells us that the Jews will be divided into 71
group,
the Christians - into 72, the Muslims - into 73 groups. The Qur’an
tells us:
“Be with those who tell the truth and act according to the truth”. But
the
truth is very hard to find. Daghestan is simmering. For me, a person
from
the outside trying to become part of it, it’s really hard. I follow
these
people, then those people. All the painful lessons I’ve learned were
not in
vain. Allah was teaching me. As the Qur’an says: “If you think this
evil,
this is truly good. And that which is good for you, may turn out to be
evil”. Now that I’m past the nervous stage, I analyse things and say:
everything’s for the better. It would be good if our ustathes would
communicate with us, or appear on the TV. We would feel they are there.
I
live here in Al-burikent, like on an island. Sometimes they broadcast
programmes on Islam on the radio. But it would be better if the call to
Islam would always be there. I wish that we were constantly told: Islam
is
good for the people, it’s profitable. This sounds awful - very mean and
ugly, but in actual fact, Islam is profitable. What state can give you
common brotherhood, mutual assistance, social guarantees, a minimal tax
of
2,5 per cent? Islam gives all that, it prescribes all that. It
prescribes
the correct way of life, the one which is necessary for a man. I wish
there
were more talk about that. What we hear instead is that if a Muslim is
wearing a beard, he’s a Wahhabi. I have such tags attached to all I’m
wearing. It’s ridiculous. Each religion has its extreme forms. Even the
heathens, who are far from the faith in the Sole God, have such
extremities.
I think that an institute should be established for studying Islam,
helping
it develop. That was the question I wanted to ask when I was searching,
and
following different people: where are you, the ones who can show me the
way
to become a true Muslim? I think that what happens to me is right. And
what
I want now is to come to people who don’t understand me, to tell them
about
my ideas, to explain what Islam is. We’re all in the same boat, anyway.
Especially here in Daghestan: we know everything about one another. Why
then
should we be trying to find enemies in one another? Life is going by,
and
finally, we’ll all have to answer for what we’re doing. And to round
up,
Musa: what would you wish to the people who are probably in the same
position now as you were two years ago? I’ll try to recall the 155 ayat
of
the second sura: “Allah will try thee with fear, with loss of thy fee,
with
loss of thy closest ones, with loss of the fruit of thy labours. But
tell
thee the good news to them who are patient and enduring: their reward
will
be great”. Patience and endurance are the basis of faith which is the
basis
of Islam. Insha Allah, everything’s going to be alright. Interview
taken by
Laila Husyainov
“No leaf falls except that He knows of it, and no rain drop forms except that He has willed it.”