alhamdulillah Alum peace be with you
D
Kaki
[Music]
Chia peace be with you now people are
like what is this guy talking about but
for the people from the
Balkans the people who are doesn't
matter if you're Serb or Albanian or
Bosnian these are nationalities they
shouldn't split us apart the way of life
that was
ordained Jesus who he
worshiped hope I'm doing all right
now he is the one Creator who gave us
this greeting of Peace we're wishing
upon you and I what's this all this for
the people who don't understand what I'm
saying now we're doing a specific show
for those from the balcons who've
drifted away from the right way so we're
going to be trying to reach out out of
the love to our brothers from the
Balkans and our sisters from the Balkans
and everyone from all over the world can
benefit inshallah akob from this show
will be right back with my brother and
your brother from Albania from New
Jersey Imam de here on the dean show
this is the dean the
D this is the
D this is the this is
the is
the this is the
D this is the
the
the this is the
show this is the this is the
[Music]
this is
the this is
the this is the showd
so I was born in New York you came over
from Albania at the age of what one
about one years old you still speak
Albanian I do alhamd I still speak some
broken Bosnian we want to reach out to
the people from the Balkans all over the
world people can benefit doesn't even
matter if you're Serbian or Croatian or
you're not a Muslim yet these are
nationalities aren't they correct can a
Serbian or a Croatian they can submit to
the will of God and be a Muslim
absolutely is true absolutely so you had
this you have this event coming up and I
thought we'd make a show that would try
to help people from that neck of the
woods the Balkan area who've drifted off
they've kind of you know taken certain
cultures that aren't really Islamic and
we're trying to out of the love because
many have the love they fought through
communism and they still held on to the
belief in one God but now you know we
want to reach out to have them come all
the way back
this was your idea talk to us about this
idea you had well absolutely um not
absolutely in the sense of it being my
idea but the love that we have for our
people in the sense of wanting to really
help them to see that uh what we are
practicing and teaching of Islam that it
is no different than what the prophet
himself peace be upon him has actually
called and taught the people during his
lifetime we have love for our people in
the same way that we have love for all
people we want what's good for them
naturally when you're of a certain
background you can't help but feel a bit
closer to the people because of the
ethnic ties and National ties and things
of that sort so uh this is a bit of that
expression and manifestation of Love of
true compassion and concern for them of
hopefully being able to help them see
the beauty of Islam
inshah okay so what I just said what we
know that a Muslim is one who has
submitted not to Jesus or Muhammad the
son or the moon but the one who created
the Sun the moon on
CH am I saying that
right so
now we've defined this word Muslim how
do you define it in Albanian for the
albanians out there they're like What's
this they're Muslim maybe or they're
considering being Muslim or they're
around Muslim but they're like they
think Muslim is an Arab thing how would
you define in in in the Albanian
language what a Muslim is and what Islam
is go ahead talk to him
well the believer or the Muslim we use
the same term in Albanian Muslim is the
one who basically wants to submit and
live according to what Allah has given
of teachings so
absolutely to understand that as a
Muslim it is to live a life of happiness
with god with
Allah also Al within oneself with one's
family with the larger family of
humanity as well as everything else of
what Allah has
created to find your place within the
creation as a whole to be a Muslim in
the same way that everything else has
surrendered to live according to what
Allah has given of teachings so you can
still remain a Serb or a Croatian or any
other nationality right but do you have
to abandon that to be a Muslim see and
that's one of the interesting points
that you bring
I remember hearing as I was growing up
um
that like you're Albanian and you can't
be anything else you
know Allah has created us whatever our
backgrounds are and we are naturally
supposed to be grateful to everything
for everything that Allah has given
us right in the same way that Allah has
also created you of a ban ground and
someone else of an Arab or Turkish or
whatever the case may be whatever Allah
has decreed for us we welcome it we are
thankful and appreciative to Allah for
it but that's nationality that's
ethnicity and Heritage and there's no
contradiction between that and what
religion itself is there's no
contradiction nor is there competition
each one has its own place has its own
role and significance in the life of the
person mashallah tell us we're going to
go to break now uh tell us this this was
actually uh I was sitting with one of
your colleagues you actually finished
from the prestigious Medina University
you speak also Arabic fluently you
graduated from that University uh was it
the same time about Yas actually he's my
senior by about uh four or five years he
spent some time in Bosnia uh doing
humanitarian Aid helping after the war I
believe and he was also uh having this
this um um idea that we should reach out
to the people from the Balkans because
they've drifted away from the way of all
the prophets and Messengers and
they've decided decided many of them you
know unconsciously consciously you know
to follow certain Traditions that are un
um opposite to Islam you know so it's
very important that we're doing this
episode so inshallah God willing not to
to judge or be you know um putting
people down but just trying to critique
the situation so we can like a doctor
diagnose the problem and God willing
give some good advice
I mean yeah AB we're going to we're
going to take a break uh have you talked
this uh have you uh before we go to
break have you had contact with SH Yas
actually there was a phone call about
maybe a month or so back yeah you know
he speaks also bosan he does yeah his
BOS how about Albanian uh no Albanian
but his bosan is masallah very good my
father's told me okay look we're going
to be right back to uh aaba here on the
dean show inshallah with more you think
these things are going to bring you
happiness you know why you keep going
back to the club and you keep going back
to these
desires cuz you never find
satisfaction it's going to end up
causing you if it hasn't already a lot
of pain you think you're happy you're
kidding yourself you're really
are what we are offering in Islam what
we have found in Islam for ourselves is
a means by which our hearts are at peace
they're at rest they're not discontent
we are pleased with what we
[Music]
have I am not afraid to stand
alone I am not afraid to stand alone if
Li by I am not afraid to stand
alone I am not afraid to stand alone if
Li by I am not afraid of stand
alone I am not afraid to stand alone if
Li I am not afraid to stand
alone back here on the de
show and again forgive me for my broken
Bosnian we want to really
capture the attention of those people
from the balcons our brothers and
sisters who are out there now I'm GNA
give you a story the other day I was at
at the post office and I saw a brother
from what's called sjuk all right you
know where sjuk is sure older gentleman
he was walking with a came very nice
suit dressed real nice he's about in his
80s so I called over to him and we
started talking and I thought it a good
opportunity because the person really
from talking to him way before in the
past that he wasn't
implementing Islam so I reminded him
about the Creator about Allah and how
this this life look how it's passed
you're 85 years old now and all these
good times are gone now you should go
ahead and make Haj and just spend the
rest of your life really in sujud you
know for all the mistakes that we've
made and he and and and this is a common
argument you can take off with this he
said what many say he said ah you know
what you know my great-grandfather no my
my father used to pray or some family
member prayed and they went to Hajj five
times and I'm like what about you why
were they better than you have you heard
this argument absolutely yeah yeah it's
it's very common to find that from our
people because understand it was for
about 400 years part of the Ottoman
Empire and so Islam is something that
has really uh dug Deep Roots among our
people and so for over 400 years it was
typical for our people Albanian Bosnian
uh the mixture of different peoples that
are in the Balkan areas to be
alhamdulillah very good theout Muslims
to pray to fast to address islamically
to make the Hajj to give the zaka to
uphold the pillars of Islam for example
among other things and so it was only
unfortunately with the Communist uh
regime basically taking over what then
became former Yugoslavia that changed
things but it's typical to find and it
was something that's even interesting I
remember speaking with my father once
before where he said the first time he
came to Medina while I was still a
student there when my first daughter was
born and he saw my wife with the nikab
and he said I remember seeing my mother
dressed like this and I'm saying my
grandma he goes yeah your mother my my
mother your grandma she used to wear the
nikab prior to the actual government
passing a law saying that women have to
uncover their faces and so it was this
gradual breaking down of the Islamic
ident among our people but they know
very well because you're still talking
what about 20 30 pardon me 30 40 Years
of of communist rule in that sense uh
perhaps even a little bit more but
you're talking a few Generations they
know they've seen their grandparents
they've themselves prayed they
themselves fasted they themselves
dressed islamically but yet the kids or
the grandkids have it so they identify
with it and they see it but still
there's that barrier that's preventing
them from actually taking that step to
say hey you know what I'm the son of so
and so the daughter of so and so
alhamdulillah they were imams they were
shs they were righteous people and I can
be just like him there's nothing to
prevent me or nothing that should
prevent me from doing so that's the key
I I I want to be like them because they
were upon that way that is pleasing to
the Creator you know praying five times
a day giving in charity avoiding alcohol
avoiding gambling all the things that
the last and final messenger had warned
us about through the verbaan word of God
the Quran and reading the Quran and not
just having it up there during Ramadan
it's collecting dust you kiss it you put
it on the shelf and we've abandoned this
this this guidance from the Creator and
now we're just Muslim by by name right
is Muslim just about being Muslim by
name or is it by action and in the same
way that if you were to ask an Albanian
and this is cuz my Albanian is not the
best either something learned from just
speaking home with my parents
um you know like when I speak Albanian
it's it's kind of like the village you
know Albanian and some of those who are
well educated they listen they laugh now
some of them may even get to the point
where they may say and this was
something that happened La student in
Medina they didn't call me Albanian they
would say American why because my
Albanian was so poor so if imagine now
culturally speaking if you don't speak
the language you're not considered
Albanian you're not considered a Bosnian
what about being a Muslim how is it
possible that we would accept it to say
well you cannot do anything of what
Islam teaches nothing of what Islam uh
has of has of beautiful teachings too
and yet to still say that it's okay and
that I Muslim and that there's no
problem with it when we don't accept
that even at the cultural level you know
what I mean yes absolutely so this is
you know I I just want to make this
clear that we're going to bring up some
things that
are practiced and some things that we're
going to critique not in judging the
individual and putting them down it's in
in a hope that we don't want them on the
day of judgment to be judged by Allah
and to end up in a place where it's very
hot and that's the Hellfire we want
everybody to be in Jenna and Paradise so
talk is cheap and that's why Allah the
Creator he sent Messengers to guide
mankind so we have to obey the last and
final messenger his way his Sunnah and
we have to implement Islam by our
actions by our speech by everything that
the creator has told us to do not just
by talk talk is cheap so tell us some
common things is now you start
implementing Islam okay and for instance
the woman she wants to start to you know
put on the hijab okay she wants to cover
up dress modestly but the parents who
are Muslim they start chasing her out of
the house they start giving her a hard
time they start rebelling against her
and basically boycotting her I mean is
this and and and these are Muslims from
I mean probably most cultures might do
this but particular we see this you see
it in Albanian culture we see this in
the basian culture it happens what
advice do you have for the for for you
know the the basian parents now who are
listening or Albanian and they're
they're they right now possibly having a
conflict because their daughter wants to
dress with the fashion that the crater
sent down not with the culture around
Min skirt and you know all this other
stuff and and that's it if if parents
were to recognize that
look we have still values and traditions
that for the most part are good
ones when it comes to Islam it only
further beautifies those values and
traditions so there should be no parent
that gets upset because their daughter
wants to cover herself and not to
uncover herself rather as parents you
should be proud you should be thankful
that she's not dressing in ways that are
going to cause her to become the uh
perhaps the meal of somebody's sexual
appetites you should be happy and
pleased to see that she's a person who
respects
herself that she's making a statement
when she's dressing like that she's
saying I respect myself that I'm more
than just a phys physical body that you
know men can indulge in you know the
same thing with regards to even the
brothers alhamdulillah if they start to
practice and they start to grow a beard
and I remember that that was one of the
issues I had when I first started just
because a person grows a beard it's not
that they've become an Arab or something
else yeah I remember seeing pictures of
people that are imams from the albanians
from the bosnians from over 50 years ago
and more where they had beards as big as
this and bigger you know what I mean um
there were things that even tradition
wise that with regards to the clothing
and I brought a little token can I can I
give a show of it you know um our our
people they would dress in I had the
kufi The American or Arabic style one
but this here is an Albanian one and
because you know albanians and basian
our people got some Swagger they would
have this stuff hanging a bit to the
side you know a little bit up to the
front like this and it was like this is
how they walked around and they had no
problem knowing that in the Balkan area
or even in Europe when they went that
this identified them as not just being
Albanian and Bosnian but Al being Muslim
you know what I mean so they didn't have
problems with that this inferiority
complex that unfortunately has uh made
some of our people and not all
alhamdulillah but some of them think
that if their son or daughter were to
dress islamically where to start praying
were to start living the correct Islamic
life as if they have something to fear
as if something's going to happen to
them nothing's going to happen if
anything it's only going to be good
that's going to happen for them for the
children for the family as a whole and
there's many of people as proof for this
now we'll see parents pushing pushing
hard for the children to study to study
so they can graduate you know get that
Masters that PhD that GED whatever it is
but now the formula the blueprint that
the crater sent down that improves your
character that helps you to be the best
among society that helps you to be a
better son a better father it's a
complete way of life Islam when you
submit to the crater it produces good
results only good results is this right
100% so now they're said oh when you
start practicing you start praying to
the Creator the one God the same God
Jesus worship Muhammad worship Abraham
you don't worship His creation but the
one Creator you're doing Islam
submitting to the will of God they're
like slow down man you're going too much
you know they're promoting you're going
too fast now you got you know till 50
hey just po you know just slow it down
why do you think this is what is it
they're discouraging the youth and they
rather see their daughters out there
dating in the nightclub in the places
that boys and and girls are mixing
alcohol and next thing you know you got
all sorts of evil that's coming from
this but now they want to do good and
even the parents are preventing them
from doing good what advice do we have
we'll tell the parents yavash
Yash slow down to the parents because
because what they are really doing is
they they're allowing Shan to take
advantage of their
ignorance if you can understand that as
parents and the way that you love your
kids and you want only what's best for
them Allah he loves us even more than we
can love our children he cares for us
even more than we can care for our
children the teachings that Allah gives
us they are for the betterment of Our
Lives as well as our family and parents'
lives so parents need to understand that
when a child their child is going to
practice Islam they should not all of a
sudden start discouraging it but rather
they should realize that look this is
only going to make my child more
respectful towards me this is going to
make my child only a more decent person
that with regards to what they may have
and unfortunately among our people we
have problems of alcoholism of gambling
of all sorts of other different problems
to see that inshallah this son of mine
who alhamdulillah is praying that he's
not going to drink that he's not going
to to gamble that he's not going to be
some loser who's going to you know harm
his family but rather he's going to be
inshallah this great person that is
going to be a role model in the family
that is's going to be all of these other
wonderful things and the girl just the
same she's not going to bring any shame
to herself to her family she is not
going to in any way destroy her life in
her future she is not going to do these
different things that our
grandparents themselves never did and so
it's not about us leaving and changing
and doing something bad we're actually
going back to what our roots are that's
the the the roots that we're trying to
go back to we'll be right back with more
here on the dean show
inshallah everything the this cup is in
sincere submission to the one who
created it because it's following the
rules of Gravity by definition this is
how we can say that Islam has been here
since the very beginning of time
anywhere the Muslims went to people
Embrace Islam in masses countries
Nations and this is something that is
amazing never happened on the face of
earth when people saw practical way of
life of being truthful being honest
making sense of everything that they do
they worship and they buy and
sell I am not afraid to stand
alone I am not afraid to stand alone if
Li by I am not afraid to stand
alone I am not afraid to stand alone if
Li by I am not afraid of stand alone
I am not afraid to stand alone Li I am
not afraid to stand
[Music]
alone back here on the dean show and
we're reaching out to the viewing
audience from the balcon area and we're
trying to give them some heart softeners
they're going to soften their hearts out
of the love because day of judgment is
close and this message is lucid it's
clear worship one
Creator Jesus never claimed he was
God Jesus never said he was God did he
not clearly no never and we don't
worship Jesus do we no we worship the
one who created Jesus and that's Islam
submitting to the Creator and doing all
the good that he's told us to do so even
for those people who are not yet Muslim
they can say hey that makes sense I
never believe this whole Trinity thing
anyway I just want to worship one God so
that's the message of Islam and doing
the action so we kind of expounded on
some of these things we're going to have
to do another episode to go further into
it superstitions you know people
abandoning the Hajj until they're like
60 you know the the abanian mafia guy
now he's you know uh making his whole
thing into a to a click to a gang you
know you've seen these two in New York
is big I heard Alban Albanian uh uh
mobsters
yeah so so much to talk about man and
overall general advice we're coming to a
close you know Superstition such a thing
in Islam No they're reading the coffee
cups and then you know you go to
nightclub and now you're feeling guilty
you're missing something so you go to
the Imam who's supposed to be an example
but he's charging you 200 100 bucks he's
giving you what's called a himalia
putting it around your neck kiss it or
you got the big Allah chain and now this
is like your badge right but you're in a
nightclub drinking and you're a mafia
guy are these things also in Albanian
culture yeah they are what do we got to
say I think that uh with regards to
these things as you mentioned I think in
the next session um we'll need to really
talk about some of these things in a bit
more detail the main focus of what you
did mention is that we do not worship
except for one God say that in
Albania that's
it one not three in one just one that's
simple the same God that Jesus himself
worshiped the same God that Muhammad
worshiped the same God that M and ibraim
Moses and ibraim and all of the mid May
Allah's peace and blessings be upon them
so Islam is nothing more than the
continuation of what every Prophet came
to teach believe in the one God worship
only this God live life in the way that
God has given and you're going to have
the happiest life in this world you'll
be saved from punishment in hell in the
next and in addition to that will be
entered into The Gardens of bliss for
eternity and you don't have to be paying
for those himalia thr that stuff that
stuff has nothing to do with Islam these
superstitions no they don't man no no no
no no no okay so we got a lot more to
talk about you're actually going to be
talking about this you got an invent for
people who are in the area they want to
maybe fly into to the event they're from
the balcon area even if they're you know
whoever they are they can come in to
your Masjid the 25th is it yep May 25th
uh Friday May 25th and we have a field
to the side of our building so so if
anybody wants to Hort in they can do
that too mm mallah but it'll be
inshallah it's a free event we're going
to have uh dinner as well as inshallah
um something of a nice presentation some
Bosnian Albanian for our brothers and
sisters inshallah this is at the the the
Muslim Community Center in Rockford in
Rockford you guys have a website we do
um the website may still be down though
but the address is 5921 Darlene Drive
Rockford Illinois 61109
n and we hope to see us inshallah okay
so before we cut out you know gifts are
always encouraged and we're going to
give you a gift inshallah right now we
have the the new uh you see purpose of
life let's uh get a zoom in on this and
I hope your size large am so you know
this is a gift for you and we encourage
our our VI follow follow masallah here
you go here we go and we also have the
purpose of light bumper stickers we have
a brother Muhammad Khan who helped put
these together may Allah reward him
and we encourage people they can pick
this up it's a GI for
you thank you very much may Allah bless
you too and we also before we cut out
now and last but not least people have
been waiting they've been waiting you
know for years people been wanting to
know my story and I was really reluctant
I really didn't want to talk about the
past but you know from talking with
people uh more knowledge and you know
really reflecting making this the
praying I thought you know people are
like this could be of benefit so we kind
of didn't go into the details we kind of
uh made a film so we had hooked up with
a filmmaker who made the film dun tadine
is finally here you saw the film and you
know it it uh has the the new volume
form of the dean show so you've seen it
we actually have uh what are your
comments because you've seen the film
we've you know uh we've had other people
comment on it you recommended that this
uh be shown in in different discussion
groups and Islamic centers mids uh what
do you what's your comment on The Dean
show dun for those who haven't seen it
um reiterate what I have said in the
past I think it's a wonderful story that
touches on many of the true things of
challenges that a youngster growing up
in this country will also face where
they want to have money they want to
have friends they want to have the girls
they want to have the party life they
want to have all of these things that
they perceive are going to give them
happiness and make them feel significant
and important um in the way that you
yourself had but then to realize that
look you know once you get it it's not
what it was meant to be it's not all
that it was made out to be so to see how
a person like yourself who had it and
then walks away from it realizing that
it does nothing to feed the heart to
feed the soul it does nothing to really
add to the significance of who you are
um and to see that what does make that
change and difference is Islam I think
that it's uh it's a transformational
experience and movie that you put
together together there so I really
recommend that it's something that
should be seen something that our youth
should also be brought into a discussion
about just so that we can learn from
history and not be doomed to repeat it
absolutely absolutely that's why we made
the dean show so it could be a benefit
to mankind help people after watching it
who aren't Muslim thinking about being
Muslim thinking about the purpose of
light to really reflect if they're not
reflecting watching the film God willing
it could be a tool that people can use
to help people really reflect upon the
seriousness of figuring out the purpose
of life before death over texts us you
can get the dean show daden volume 4
thank you very much thank you for being
with us we're going to have to do uh
another program for the people in the
Balon area soon
inshallah look forward to it thank
you and thank you for tuning in to
another episode of the dean show share
this episode with all your friends all
your family and those who've been away
from the Creator they've been following
their lust and their desire and their
passions know that this life will end
this life will end and we will be judged
on the day of judgment and there's a
Hellfire and there's a paradise and we
want to strive to love our creator the
the the the way that he has communicated
to us through all his Messengers
Muhammad peace be upon him being the
last and final messenger and we have the
verbatim word of God the Quran and the
Sunnah the authentic says of the last
and final messenger get to know this
Quran read the Quran connect connect
with the Quran connect with your creator
so you can achieve great success in this
life and the
next and we'll look forward to see you
next time here on the dean show akoba
inshallah don't forget to visit Eddy
dvd.com to pick up dun to we'll see you
next time peace be unto you