I was born in Sydney Australia to an Australian born mother and an Egyptian born, Greek Italian father, who migrated to Australia in his thirties.

My mother had been a nun prior to her marriage to my father, so my siblings and I grew up with Sunday church and Catholic ideals. We gradually stopped going to church soon after my mother passed away when I was 11 years old. I know that I personally developed a bit of resentment towards a God that I believed could take my mother away from us when we needed her most. At age 11, I guess this was my way of dealing with it.

I think I never actually disbelieved in God. It was more a disbelief in the church and what it asked me to believe. I liked (and felt) the idea of a single, universal source of everything, and creator, not a fatherly godhead.

In my late 20s I was inspired by a friend to read self-development and business books. More impacting, I was introduced to audiobooks and the idea that my car was my own personal rolling university where I could use my travel time (and my gym workout times too for that matter) to acquire my own personal master’s degree in whatever I chose learn through the audiobooks. At the same time I was told that reading 100 business books is the equivalent of an MBA, so that is what I was aiming for (given I didn’t have time to go to university).

I started listening to audiobooks and seminar recordings including those by motivational speaker Anthony Robbins. They set me on a path of self-discovery where I explored the development of NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) through its many celebrated teachers, all the way back to its creators (where I got deeply involved). I also listened to and read many other self-development methodologies which I came across during my searches.

One of the tangents I explored was a marketing author named Joe Vitale whom you may recognise from his appearance on the movie “The Secret”. He was using NLP and hypnosis in marketing, which appealed to me for my branding and marketing business. I listened to and read everything by Joe.

Through his book “Zero Limits”, Joe and his coauthor, Ihaleakala Hew Len, I discovered something truly mind and heart shifting, the ancient art of Hooponopono. Their book features and authenticates the unusual story of Dr. Hew Len, where he closed a criminal insanity facility in Hawaii by curing all the inmates. He did this without so much as meeting with any of them, rather he simply practiced the simple yet powerful process of Ho?oponopono.

The Hooponopono process in Dr. Hew Len’s words, “is essentially about complete freedom from the past”. This cleansing process starts with acknowledging that there is one divine source. The first step is to first accept that I am responsible for everything wrong in my life (even if I may not be knowingly at fault). The problem is always within, never without, so with a fault in mind I address the divine and say “I am sorry”, I then ask the divine to clear it from my soul (and our shared consciousness) by asking “Please forgive me” and I release it knowing that it will be taken and I give thanks saying “Thank you” and finally acknowledging the divine’s constant love for me I say “I love you”.

I practiced Hooponopono regularly for about 7 months and I was feeling free and clear. I felt in touch with the divine and was receiving clear inspirations in my life and my work where my role is to solve creative challenges. For example these inspirations at work are ideas or concepts that flash into my mind and when they do, they feel right and complete, like I “know” them.

During one cleansing session one Saturday in my home, I received out of the blue one such inspiration, whole and complete, and it was a resounding message to “Read the Qur’an”. The closest interaction I had with any Muslim prior to this was some 9 years prior. So I ordered a copy of the Qur’an from Amazon.
While I was regularly reading business books, I would easily read a 400 page textbook in 3 or 4 days. The translation of the Qur’an took a month to read (funnily enough it was through Ramadan 2007). It was so rich in content and meaning, that I simply could not read it in the same way. Time and again I had to reread, or stop to ponder verses.

There were so many similarities between Ho?oponopono and Islam, it blew me away. Basically I understood Islam to be submission to the divine and a similar structured prayer routine to bring you to a zero state. About half way through the Qur’an I knew that I could not deny the truth of what I was reading and although I did not want to be a Muslim (for all the stereotypical, media driven reasons), I knew that I was one.

That is how I came into Islam. Now I see it as the greatest gift ever.

Imam Bukhari was born in 810 A.D. / 196 A.H. in Bukhara, Uzbekistan. His father, Ismail
Ibn Ibrahim, was a known hadith scholar who died while he was still an infant and he was
hence raised by his mother. Imam Bukhari began studying hadith, memorising works of
Abdullah ibn al-Mubaarak while still a child.

At age of sixteen, Imam Bukhari made the pilgrimage to Mecca, beginning a series of
travels in order to increase his knowledge of hadith. He went through all the important
centres of Islamic learning of his time, talked to scholars and exchanged information on
hadith. It is said that he heard from over 1,000 men, and learned over 600,000 traditions.

After sixteen years’ absence he returned to Bukhara, and drew up his al-Jami’ as-Sahih,
a collection of 7,275 tested traditions, arranged in chapters so as to afford bases for a
complete system of jurisprudence. Imam Bukhari finished his work around 846 A.D., and
spent the last twenty-four years of his life visiting other cities and scholars, teaching the
hadith he had collected. In every city that he visited, thousands of people would gather
in the main mosque to listen to him recite traditions. Imam Bukhari died in a village near
Samarkand in the year 870/256.

The Sahih Al-Bukhari book covers almost all aspects of life in providing proper guidance of
Islam such as the method of performing prayers and other actions of worship directly from
Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).

Hadiths are a practical example of the implementation of Quranic guidance and are
essential supplements to the teachings of the Quran. Neither the Quran nor the Sunnah
can be understood correctly without the other. They have been meticulously compiled
by individuals with exceptional memory skills and analytical expertise like Imam Bukhari,
who travelled tirelessly to collect thousands of narrations and distinguish the true words of
prophetic wisdom. Muslims during the time of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)
and generations that followed and generations to come are blessed to have these pearls of
wisdom to guide us in a righteous, Islamic way of life leading to Al-Firdaus.

Muhammad Ibn Ismail Ibn Ibrahim Ibn al-Mughirah Ibn Bardizbah al-Bukhari
popularly known as Bukhari or Imam Bukhari, was a Sunni Islamic scholar of Persia. He
is the author of the collection of Hadiths which Sunni Muslims regard as the most authentic
of all Hadith compilations, the Sahih Al-Bukhari. Most Sunni scholars consider it second
only to the Qur’an in terms of authenticity. The Arabic word sahih translates as authentic or
correct.

Imam Bukhari was born in 810 A.D. / 196 A.H. in Bukhara, Uzbekistan. His father, Ismail
Ibn Ibrahim, was a known hadith scholar who died while he was still an infant and he was
hence raised by his mother. Imam Bukhari began studying hadith, memorising works of
Abdullah ibn al-Mubaarak while still a child.

At age of sixteen, Imam Bukhari made the pilgrimage to Mecca, beginning a series of
travels in order to increase his knowledge of hadith. He went through all the important
centres of Islamic learning of his time, talked to scholars and exchanged information on
hadith. It is said that he heard from over 1,000 men, and learned over 600,000 traditions.

After sixteen years’ absence he returned to Bukhara, and drew up his al-Jami’ as-Sahih,
a collection of 7,275 tested traditions, arranged in chapters so as to afford bases for a
complete system of jurisprudence. Imam Bukhari finished his work around 846 A.D., and
spent the last twenty-four years of his life visiting other cities and scholars, teaching the
hadith he had collected. In every city that he visited, thousands of people would gather
in the main mosque to listen to him recite traditions. Imam Bukhari died in a village near
Samarkand in the year 870/256.

The Sahih Al-Bukhari book covers almost all aspects of life in providing proper guidance of
Islam such as the method of performing prayers and other actions of worship directly from
Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).

Hadiths are a practical example of the implementation of Quranic guidance and are
essential supplements to the teachings of the Quran. Neither the Quran nor the Sunnah
can be understood correctly without the other. They have been meticulously compiled
by individuals with exceptional memory skills and analytical expertise like Imam Bukhari,
who travelled tirelessly to collect thousands of narrations and distinguish the true words of
prophetic wisdom. Muslims during the time of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)
and generations that followed and generations to come are blessed to have these pearls of
wisdom to guide us in a righteous, Islamic way of life leading to Al-Firdaus.

I moved to Abu Dhabi, UAE, in the spring of 2010, to teach English. My first time in the Gulf, I didn’t know what to expect but I wanted to understand the culture around me and the religion, which are a vital aspect of everyday life in this part of the world. Hence began my journey to learn about Middle Eastern culture and the people around me, reading books about Islam and the Quran.  I had no intention of changing my own religion. I just wanted to understand Islam.

As I continued reading and delving , I realised that there was alot about Islam that I didn’t know or had misunderstood, and continued to search for answers to the myriad of questions I had about Muslim traditions and practices, stature and rights of women in Islam and so on.

Ramadan approached and I was marvelled by how beautifully the atmosphere transformed with everyone preparing for one of the most important times of the year for Muslims. The excitement grew around me and I decided to join and try fasting. The first day was the hardest but with each passing day, I was determined not to give up and managed to fast the entire month. I felt really good about it, like I was becoming more disciplined, and a better person.

I started to pray whenever I heard the beautiful sounds of the Adhaan, the call to prayer, reverberating throughout the city. I read the entire Quran, word for word. I changed my lifestyle and gave up clubs and alcohol drinking, channelling my energy toward a more positive purpose, a master’s degree in education. I spent my free time doing volunteer work and I formed a group of Muslim women friends.

I explored Islam on the Internet, signing up for Facebook groups like Hadith of the Day and Quran Surah of the Day. Every time I checked Facebook, I would read Hadith of the Day, captivated by the beauty of the words and the truth behind them. I started to identify more and more with Muslims, and I started to feel less and less like the person I used to be. It slowly started to dawn on me that maybe I was already Muslim inside and I just hadn’t said the Shahadah.

I shared my internal conflict regarding difference of beliefs and cultures and finding myself, with a friend who had recently embraced Islam. I went with her to women’s service at a local mosque and continued talking with friends and contemplating a new way of life.

On Christmas Eve, I had dinner with a Muslim American friend and the conversation we had then about Christianity and Islam, talking about the 5 pillars of Islam and what I believed in, was probably the turning point for me in accepting what my heart and soul were ready for.

On Christmas Day I read Surah Maryam and watched an online documentary about Prophet Isa AS. As I went about my day, I was overcome by a strong feeling that I was ready to accept Islam. I contacted my friend who was excited at my resolution and came over in the evening. He explained the process of accepting Islam, asking over and over if I was ready for something that would be a complete overhaul of my life.  Suddenly I felt unsure and decided to sleep over it. As I got into bed, I felt again that I was ready and so I quickly prayed the Shahadah.  A deep sense of relief came over me, and I went to sleep.
The next day I felt a little scared and unsure if I had done the right thing. I was overwhelmed by questions in my mind about how I would carry out the responsibilities of being a good Muslim, how would people I knew react at my decision to abandon the religion and culture of my family. I decided the best thing to do was to take things one day at a time, and start by only telling people who I knew would support me. I shared with my closest Muslim friends and was touched by their happiness and offers of help and encouragement. I felt a sense of peace and contentment.  I knew I was doing what was meant for me and that Allah would bless my efforts.  And I prepared to start the new year, on a straight, new path.