[lymnCymment]

Al-Fatihah
1. In the name of God, the Gracious, the Merciful.
2. Praise be to God, Lord of the Worlds.
3. The Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
4. Master of the Day of Judgment.
5. It is You we worship, and upon You we call for help.
6. Guide us to the straight path.
7. The path of those You have blessed, not of those against whom there is anger, nor of those who are misguided.
quoted from www.ClearQuran.com

[rvadipoldkov]

I accepted Islam because one day at a bookstore I picked up a Qur'an and read Al Fatiha.

Those 7 verses changed my life forever. Alhamdulillah

[ChyFDjfed]

It is so nice to hear that. Al-Hamdu-Lillah.

[esconsise]

I accepted Islam because one day at a bookstore I picked up a Qur'an and read Al Fatiha.

Those 7 verses changed my life forever. Alhamdulillah

WOW. But once you picked up a Qur'an... reading Al Fatiha was inevitable as it's on the first page!

Some non Muslims find browsing the Islamic section in a bookshop daunting... I approached one once asking him "are you interested in Islam?" and he told me that he got interested as there was a Muslimah in his college and he had been asking her some questions. He told me he knew Islam is the truth; everything was making sense to him: the prayer, the way they dress; etc... I don't know whether he is Muslim today but I told him then to contact the local masjid. Observing him before I spoke to him - he was looking around checking (I think) no one who might know him might spot him reading an Islamic book! Or he was planning to steal! I think he was a little embarrassed.

You must have noticed a similarity with the Lord's Prayer? We expect them to be similar as the source "Allah" is the same!

Our Father which art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done,
as in heaven, so in earth.
Give us day by day our daily bread.
And forgive us our sins;
for we also forgive every one
that is indebted to us.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil.

Luke 11 version (KJV)

http://www.lords-prayer-words.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lord's_Prayer

[b91ZmxzX]

WOW. But once you picked up a Qur'an... reading Al Fatiha was inevitable as it's on the first page!

After I read those 7 verses; it was as if time stopped.

Everything around me had gotten bright with light.

I just stood there motionless and in amazement as to what I had just read.

And in my minds voice I silently said, "Who ever wrote this knows God".

[vforvandetta]

Was the shop assistant in the store concerned? Would you like a glass of water - you look like you might faint?

This is interesting similar to your experiences:
http://www.turntoislam.com/forum/showthread.php?t=16004

Reading the Qur’an
I will never forget that day (the day I first read a translation of the Qur’an). Ever. I can still see it happening. Little did I know what I was in for-that my life and total world-view would be changed - that I myself would be changed. I read the whole translation through in one sitting. I don’t think I even changed position.

Right from the start it grabbed me. The very beginning called Al-Fatiha is a prayer. I immediately liked it as a prayer. It was, in essence, what I already prayed: You are God the Creator. Guide me, make me into one of those You love. I certainly couldn’t argue with those sentiments!

Then, in the beginning of the second chapter, it gave the description of who this book was addressed to: people who believe in God, establish prayer, give in charity, believe messengers were sent to us, and that we will return to God. Well, that was me, that this book was not to be doubted, that it was truly and sincerely from God to these people; like me; precisely, to guide them, which was what I had wanted for years. So right off, it was speaking directly to me as an individual.

Right off, it wasn’t just some ancient, 1400 year-old-text. It really grabbed me and did not, would not, let go. As I read a thought began to form and then started going through my head over and over and over: Oh my God! This is from God! It was like being slammed in the head with a brick or a hard wooden plank. I was stunned. It was real. Not the inspired writing of the Bible. It was direct revelation - it really was the Word of God. Literally. Oh my God! This really IS from God.

Floored
Well, needless to say, I was floored. I knew there was something very extraordinary here. Quite amazing. Something was happening. Imagine how bizarre it would be to really see a UFO. How unusual and fantastic something like that would be. Or what if someone just started to truly levitate and fly around right in front of you. Or what if you really truly did see a miracle? Your view of the world would necessarily change after such a non-ordinary experience.

What was happening to me as I read the Qur’an was beyond that. Way beyond that. There was nothing that gave me pause. I kept saying ‘yes’ to all that I read. One thing pulled me up short and that was that Jesus did not die on the cross. But by that time, the evidence was so overwhelming to my heart, my soul and my mind that this Book was indeed EXACTLY what it claimed to be, that I had no trouble accepting this as the truth from God Himself. And none of this is the slightest exaggeration whatsoever. I am not sugar-coating or embellishing my story to make it more attractive, or pious-sounding, or dramatic, or whatever. I am telling the truth. (I was especially struck by how contemporary the Qur’an is - remember my academic background. Everything about it is just absolutely brilliant!)

I don’t know why Muslims are so afraid of contemporary philosophy, psychology, or textual criticism. There is nothing to fear. The Qur’an is very true today. Actually, it is very true tomorrow. Two weeks later I declared in public that I bear witness there is no god but Allah and I bear witness that Muhammad is a messenger from Allah.

[read more at the URL above]

[Stivenslivakovishhhs]

Thank you for sharing this. Your words made me remember my own experiences while reading the Quran. I do not forget the moment when I said to myself: "Oh my God, this is from God." After that, everything changed.

[Inonanialry]

And in my minds voice I silently said, "Who ever wrote this knows God".

And I guess you must have shortly thereafter learnt that the Qur'an is actually the Word of God Himself, not just "written by someone who knows God"...

[ChyFDjfed]

And I guess you must have shortly thereafter learnt that the Qur'an is actually the Word of God Himself, not just "written by someone who knows God"...

At the time I had No idea who had written the book I was holding.

I just knew it was the muslim's "bible" but not much else.

[merloermfgj]

Was the shop assistant in the store concerned? Would you like a glass of water - you look like you might faint?

I had looked around to make sure that no one saw me pick up the Qur'an.

After all, I was a Christian and it was wrong for me to even be holding this book; let alone opening it to read!!

[BundEnhamma]

I had looked around to make sure that no one saw me pick up the Qur'an.

After all, I was a Christian and it was wrong for me to even be holding this book; let alone opening it to read!!

You done the Right thing how else would get the real understanding of Islam ?

[cypedembeda]

When I was reading the Quran for the first time, I was reading it like reading any other book. Assuming it is written by a human being. The Quran changed my mind for me. It is beyond doubt from the Lord of the Universe.

[EnubreBense]

when I was young, in my teenage years, I used to say to myself: "God does not sit in the sky, write book, and then dump them on the little people of the earth." I used to say this, even I was raised in a Muslim environment. Fortunately, later, I became convinced, that the Quran could not have been produced by anyone other than God.

[Aqgkvwzm]

I tried to resist the idea that the Quran is from God. After a long struggle, I surrendered.

[Frannypaync]

When reverts talk about how they were guided, the rest of us feel awe, and maybe embarrassed at ourselves.

Do we ever get this feeling of illumination reverts talk about?

[famosetroie]

Think of a person born and raised in a Muslim family. That person may leave the faith, disbelieve, and become misguided. If that person comes back to Islam, he is a Revert.
God guides whom He please, and He misguides whom He please. In his Hand is all sovereignty. He is the Most High, the Sublime.

Wassalam,
Talal Itani