ONE MAN, TWO MISSIONS

How were you introduced to Maulana? Kindly describe your first meeting. It was Naghma who first heard about Maulana Wahiduddin Khan and when she tried to contact him for her centre as a speaker, he asked her to first attend his Sunday Lecture and see if what he spoke addressed her mind. When Naghma asked me whether I would like to accompany her, I replied, “Not another Maulana.” So, she went alone for the first class. She has a habit of writing down everything. So, she took notes of the entire class. When she came back, she asked me whether I would be interested in listening to what Maulana said. I very reluctantly agreed. And she read out the lecture to me, which was on the Creation Plan of God. On hearing that lecture, I immediately said, “This man thinks like me. And I will go with you to the next class.” And this is how my journey with Maulana started. I still remember that the first time we met Maulana he asked both Naghma and me to tell him something about ourselves. After giving us a patient hearing he said, “You must change 1% while you must make 99% of the changes.” Naghma who was not looking at Maulana directly thought that she is the one who has to change 1% but then he said, “Ma’am,I am addressing you. You need to make 99% of the changes because Islam that you have received is through culture and tradition. You must unlearn this Islam, then you have to make a renewed effort to understand what Islam is. As of now, the only correct thing about Islam that you know is the concept of God.” Then, turning to me, Maulana said, “You need to change your concept of God, otherwise, you are on true nature.” From the beginning, I never missed a class come what may. I used to look forward to every lecture. His lectures addressed my mind and I got answers to all my questions when he explained the Creation Plan of God. How did Maulana influence your thinking? Maulana made things very simple and explained the purpose of life so beautifully that my entire goals in life changed. My focus was now on attaining Paradise in the Hereafter, rather than trying to make paradise in this world. Maulana realized that I had a logical mind but used to do things in a hurry which often resulted in my making mistakes in taking the correct decision. He made me realize that I have to change this habit and take my time to think logically before taking a decision. Overall, Maulana has been a very positive influence in my life. He addressed