money and women and alcohol power I used
to have a Godlike complex I used to
think I was better than people honestly
I I used to think nothing can touch me I
used to think I had some sort of
significance the older I get the higher
the levels got and the more I'd get I
could have all the money in the world
I'd have 10 women around me I'd have a
big pile of cash behind me nothing would
make me
happy I had a failed relationship she
wanted me to stop um going to the clubs
and drinking and you know and I and I'd
kept going there and I'd kept going
there very selfish she'd left me I'd
lost my son my father passed away I'd
lost my father I'd lost
everything I got Avengers 2 movies
coming out next week we like Marvel he
loves
Marvel I feel like he knew that he was
going to die and like he told me he told
me yeah you know and life suddenly
changed from like being with my dad then
going through that doing all this I
ended up becoming homeless and I ended
up stealing no ID no job I couldn't like
progress so I'm homeless outside
Birmingham I've got a little turtleneck
on you know I've wrapped the turtleneck
over my head it's like winter I'm
freezing i' I've managed to like get the
whole turtleneck over my whole body and
I'm shivering man a man called musen he
had approached me and he was seeing me
on the floor and said what's up I said
bro please just leave me alone said
leave me alone you know he said uh come
stay with me and I said why why why and
he says fall Allah Allah and he says
fall Allah Allah and that was the first
time in my life that from the bottom of
their heart someone you know wanted to
help me because just wanted what was
best for me like why me was very
[Music]
happy
asalam alikum brother Ibrahim as toity
we are very happy to have you with us I
want to start by asking who is ibraim f
can tell us briefly about your
life my name is ibraim fat formerly
known as Joseph Johnson I was born a
Christian in the northwest of United
Kingdom in Blackpool growing up I was U
always getting into trouble I got kicked
out of high school I never went to
college had drink party smoke take drugs
I was very very lost very lost I
reverted to Islam in
2018 and just generally just become a
better person a better father a better
human being and alhamdulilla that's how
it all started so how was your life in
regards to Faith what was your belief as
a kid I was a Christian got baptized my
Holy Communion my confirmation and you
know I did believe in God even as a kid
I've always believed in God I was never
God-fearing when I was a Christian but I
believed in God I believed in the
prophets but um growing up I never
believed in um that Jesus was a messiah
so even through school I had doubts even
through High School So it' Gone in one
year and out the other so the things
that didn't make sense to me like in
Christianity was um G Jesus being a God
I did not believe in this I was
practicing when I was a child growing up
yeah we go to church on a Sunday so
Christians only go to church on a Sunday
and they go for themselves Sunday mass
and you know you go there and you go go
back home you know there's not much uh
discipline in Christianity you know pray
once a week then go back most people
just sin and then go back on the on the
weekend you know go back on the Sunday
most them believe that he will forgive
you for anything no matter what you do
and you'll go to heaven is very how was
your you know teenage years the teenage
years for me was quite quite hard
because uh growing up I thought these
things would make me happy going out
partying drinking girls when I got to
the age of 18 I was absolutely calamiti
by um money and women and alcohol power
I used to have a Godlike complex and I
used to think I was better than people
honestly I I used to think nothing can
touch me I used to think I had some sort
of significance and it was very very
wrong I I really hated who I was I used
to think these things would make me
happy because I couldn't be happy
nothing made me happy in this world I
was never happy I could have all the
money in the world I'd have 10 women
around me I'd have a big pile of cash
behind me I'm not happy nothing would be
happy nothing would make me happy no
matter what I done and the older I get
the higher the levels got and the the
more I'd get and the more I wouldn't be
happy so you know it got even worse
because I thought if this can't make me
happy nothing's going to make me happy
and I was miserable I was absolutely
miserable I was lost I had no guidance I
would drink myself to death on the night
no one's there for me when I was down
and out and no one was truly there for
me as a friend you know they'd only want
me to go down with them we'll all go
down together and what I used to think
was a friend it was not a friend at all
I know that now I I have a son I had a
failed relationship she wanted me to
stop um going to the clubs and drinking
and you know and I and I kept going
there and and i' kept going there very
selfish she'd left me I'd lost my son my
father passed away I'd lost my father
I'd lost everything you know my father
made me happy my son made me happy and I
used to think all these materialistic
things will make me happy can you take
us to those moments where you lost your
dad how how did it happen as towards
eternity we need your support we are a
charity organization that aims to spread
the message of Islam to the entire world
in eight languages with your support you
can help people convert to Islam give up
Haram start praying wear hijab learn to
read the Quran and so on by donating
just $1 a day you can have your share in
all these Good Deeds inshallah donate to
towards eternity and don't let this
Ramadan pass without making a difference
can you take us to those moments where
you lost your dad how how did it happen
so uh my father passed away when I was
20 years old you know just died suddenly
was my best friend I was at my um
girlfriend's house at the time and
um yeah I was at my girlfriend's house
and my son was around about two months
old and my my dad was at his house my
sister lives there she'd rang me up
saying like dad's collapse he had a
stroke half of his face wasn't working
so half of his face is you know is like
drooping down I know she was really
really worried I didn't think nothing of
it my dad used to go in in and out of
the hospital all the time he had
diabetes and he didn't used to look
after himself like sometimes misses
injections I thought nothing of it and
um I'd gone to the hospital he gone to
the hospital he had injected him with um
an you know to make him pass out and AE
I just remember him comeing we all the
sisters and brothers came there's loads
there like six of us and then he got us
in a room and he was just like I don't
know how to tell you this my mom died to
the same thing and I go what you what
are you on about father had a brain
hemorrhage I remember just everyone just
crying straight away and I it took me it
took me a while to process what happened
you know and um he was on on the
hospital bed and I remember that night
like all all my sisters all my sisters
had like work the next day and um they'd
gone homes cuz I had children and I was
just left in the hospital man you know
on my own and um I was just walking
around the hospital all night in circles
you know and I stayed in the bed with
him you know and I just looked at him
but the last time and I sometimes I
regret doing that
[Music]
because I'm staying with him and
sometimes when I look back as well I
just get
like images images of his face you know
so I thought I was doing a good thing by
staying with him all night and then but
I think like I tortured myself that that
24 hour was felt like a year and he died
the next morning he flatlined yeah he
was conscious no the last time I seen
him conscious he rang me two weeks
before we fell out and he rang me up
saying I love you you know that and I
said yeah yeah yeah and he said I just
want you to know that I love you so much
I said what are you on about and he's
just like saying I'm proud of
you I'm proud of you you know I'm proud
of my grandson and they go sh up what
you want about I go Avengers 2 movie is
coming out next week we like Marvel he
loves
Marvel
I feel like he knew that he was going to
die and like he told me told me yeah he
knew he was going to
die without any symptoms or signs he he
felt that he felt it he felt it he felt
it I think he might have gone to the
doctors a few weeks before and like he
knew he just didn't want to tell us you
know I wasn't ready I wasn't ready for
the world you know when he left I wasn't
in my head I was like 20 but I was still
like 16 in my head at the time you know
I did really struggle after we left I
didn't know how to live I didn't know
how to do the mortgage the rent that's
why I say like I go out with my friends
and I'd get into trouble and i' do other
things you know I end up becoming
homeless um I ended up stealing not off
the shops or people but asum brothers
and sisters we realize that 80% of our
audience including this video are not
subscribed to our Channel as you know we
are a nonprofit organization and
advertisements are disabled on our
videos towards eternity is not just a
YouTube channel but also a med here we
try to educate ourselves and the youth
Islamic league so the only reason we are
asking for this is to spread the truth
it may seem like a small act but
inshallah it will help us reach millions
of people now let's click the like and
the Subscribe buttons and let's together
walk towards
eternity you know I did really struggle
after we left I didn't know how to live
I didn't know how to do the mortgage the
rent that's why I say like I go out with
my friends and I'd get into trouble and
I'd do other things you know I end up
becoming homeless um I ended up stealing
not off the shops or people but you know
I'd go to like places like hars or
something like that where it's not going
to affect anyone only a millionaire I
didn't have a passport I didn't have a
bank account at the time and I had no ID
in my own government country so I was
stuck in the system no ID no job I
couldn't like progress and I didn't have
money to get uh a bank account I mean I
have bank account to get money at the
time so I had to do these things I
didn't want to do and they put me in a
hostel and hosts where um they put
people who's like got no place to live
or jail levers well I remember they put
me in William Booth and um whole city
well why did you have to leave your
house didn't you because it was a
mortgage um the house was mortgag and um
you know it got sold off really and he
when he died I ended up in debt we
actually end up in £5,000 in debt all of
us but had money to the thingy so we had
to pay it so your your home was sold
sold it was sold you became homeless as
as an entire family my family um they
have their own homes I live with my dad
and had boyfriends and children and you
know ego Pride I'm not going to go
intervene I didn't want to jump in with
my sister so I chose to just just help
try and help myself they end up chucking
me into Willy Booth it's a bad place and
they end up just getting passed around
hostle to hostle you know and then
that's when I started to go decline
downhill because I started spending time
with you know just some different kind
of people you know and my life suddenly
changed from like being with my dad then
going through that doing all this then
eventually I'd start going to the clubs
because I want to get out of there and
get a bank account and get some ID which
I did so I didn't even really used to
drink I did start drinking um a lot a
lot when my dad passed away because I
was I was sick and tired being sick and
tired like you know I I was hurting and
it got progressively worse and then
other things came into in as well you
know started to go partying doing other
things starting on to the club that's
what I mean I started to him you know I
don't like to say it but I mean you know
I started to do other things than
drinking that's all I would say when he
was in the club did you ever sleep on
the streets yeah yeah I did and how was
that experience not nice man not nice um
so black pool's my local Town yeah I'm
from Cleveland and there's no hostiles
for like people who are homeless cuz
quite a nice area so I found myself
being homeless like full on and then my
my my government my Council they
wouldn't like help me accommodate me so
I to moved to Birmingham so in
Birmingham was even worse I go to the
Willie booth in Birmingham the hostel
and Washington core and it's a different
ball game in Birmingham you know the the
big lions the guys that they're not some
of them are not very nice get myself out
of this hostel I just stayed outside
McDonald's I just don't want to be
around that thought I've I've been
around people like that that's in the
past I'm not doing it anymore and I want
to help myself so I'm homeless outside
Birmingham I've got a little turtleneck
on you know I've wrapped the turtleneck
over my head it's like winter I'm
freezing I've managed to like get the
whole turtleneck over my whole body and
I'm shivering man you know I've got my
head on concrete the bottom of my spines
hurting in the morning aching aching and
I was outside um McDonald's in the bull
ring birming Camp a man called musen he
had approached me Pakistani U Muslim and
he was seen me on the floor and um he
said what's up I said bro please just
leave me alone said leave me alone you
know and he said no no no no no no no no
no I said you don't you shouldn't be
here he looked at me he said what what
what are you doing and then I tell him
the story about like my father you know
about the house and uh alhamdulillah he
said um come stay with me and I said I
don't really know you I said he said
they I said you can have your own house
said I've got a house we do a we we help
a load of homeless people there's
there's a houses and they put like
people in need in each room there's an
empty one with no one in there and he'd
let me stay in it and I said why why why
and he says for Allah Allah and when he
said that it made me smile and I didn't
understand at the time because people
I've been around in my life they'll
never do anything unless they get
something in return they'll never do
anything of the kindness of their own
back you know just it was very very nice
and that was the first time in my life
that from the bottom of their heart
someone you know wanted to help me
because they just wanted what was best
for me then what happened that you took
further steps towards Islam yeah so um I
didn't know much about Islam um I studed
Constantinople in um in high school my
brother Mosen he didn't mention Islam
for about a month when I was there
people say was groomed which means he
was pressured and manipulated into
joining Islam well people think you've
been in jail you know it's it's very
wrong but um the Brotherhood they just
started picking me up building me back
up and just building me up as a as a
human being not about anything about the
Quran they didn't mention it once I
swear they didn't mention it once and
they just builded me back up getting me
back in the gym and just you know I was
at this point when he found me you know
I was very always very mentally strong
but I was shattered I was broken I was
in bits so we getting me in the gym just
boosting my confidence really and then
the brothers start taking me out slowly
and birmingam I was going down hodg hill
hansworth and all the brothers like they
know me and I'm not even a Muslim yet
and they're calling me brother they
giving me hugs it's like I've got a
family and maral it was amazing it was
beautiful all my life I've just wanted a
hug man you know and then I found that
in Islam and the Brotherhood you know
really drew me to Islam I never felt the
brotherhood like a
within the Muslim Community I never
trusted any of my friends you know my
friends would always try do dirty on me
don't get me wrong Muslims are not
perfect but you know the majority the
God-fearing ones we started talking
about religion and I love debates
religious theosophical I love having
debates which is beyond human comp
comprehension whatever it may be we're
talking about Christianity we're talking
about religion it's like R our own
little speaker corner and um starts to
tell me to watch Ali dawa and Ham
ham Muhammed hijab I'm trying to tell
them why the Bible's authentic and I
can't say anything and you know
alhamdulillah I cannot say anything you
know I you were trying to defend the
Bible I wasn't trying to defend it but I
mean they was trying to like put the the
Quran on me I mean at that time you know
and I tried to come up with some sort of
Defense because at the time I was still
a Christian but I couldn't say anything
I agreed with everything that they said
before Islam I did not know that we
believe in the same God I did not know
we believe in the same prophets really I
thought they would believe in something
else and when I started to watch the da
everything started to make sense to me
and you know and martial it was such
beautiful feeling that we believe in the
same prophets I was very surprised and
shocked like how is this kept secret
from me my whole life how do I not know
this and I'd been liting my whole life W
i' been liting my whole life you know
from so social media and propaganda and
listening to what the people are saying
I was very ignorant and very misguided
and I start to make my own mind up and
you know I found truth in the Quran for
one reason one reason only this is where
I found the truth in the Quran where I
could say right this is authentic it's
the truth half as memorization if
someone tried to change the Quran the
Muslim will know you ask one Christian
to start reciting Pages you know of the
Bible you know they won't be able to do
it so the love and the passion the true
Protectors of the word of God through
the ha and the haa you know and for me
for me personally it was the ha
you know that give me proof that these
people have so much love for this word
this book they'll memorize it and
dedicate the life to it you know and for
me that was a big big authenticity I
started to meet other brothers and I
started to watch Da and then I started
to go to learn go to pray in the mashid
and learn to pray before becom Muslim
before becoming Muslim I wanted to like
experience and see like you know I was
interested you don't have to be Muslims
to go into a mashid anyone's welcome you
can be Christian you anyone's allowed in
it's fine and U I just wanted to go see
I was very nervous the first time I went
into the mashed I was scared I was
nervous because I was afraid that they
was not going to accept me and when I
went in there people come and hug me and
kiss my head and they just hug me they
say Sal you know were you hesitant about
your looks that they want I was at first
with the tattoos because obviously I'd
heard that in in Islam the tattoos are
not allowed I was thinking how am I
going to be accepted as a Muslim it's
going to be hard for me I was thinking
the Muslim might make it hard for me but
it was not true at all straight away
they say Al Allah subhana wa tala is the
most forgiven doesn't matter what you do
before if you revert to Islam you're
like newborn baby brand new Clean Slate
all sins forgiven I met a lot of men who
was ex drug dealers ex uh criminals ex-
murderers and they' come out and they
repented and turn back to God and these
were born Muslims and W these guys were
so passionate to me uh you know I have a
big passion I listen to them through
mutual understanding you know in the UK
we all come from the same place a lot of
us and these men who have reformed their
lives through Islam that's what appealed
to me as well I've seen people go
through Rehabilitation mental counseling
so many times I've seen people try these
forms of Rehabilitation whether it be
mental health whether it be drugs
addiction none of it works my personal
experience is Islam is the only proven
for form of Rehabilitation that I've
seen to change a man to bring him out of
a dark place like that and change him
from the heart genuine and just fill it
with love and and alhamdulillah and I've
never seen that before and these you
know mar mar i' never saiden that it
impressed me massively at this time I'm
watching Dr Zakir Nik I'm wearing my T
PE I've got the ju on I'm not even turn
to a Muslim yet and I'm listening to
M you know I'm listening to everything
alhamdulillah and I say boss yeah
Zakaria I said I want to do the shahada
I want to become a Muslim and then you
decided to take shahada and then you
call your they take my shahada I go to I
remember it like yesterday I go to green
lay mashid in Birmingham I choose mus
son to take the shahad with me because
he loved me like a brother and and you
like I'm his prodige he's teaching me
the things that his dad's teaching him
he's teaching me about Islam and the
Quran and I love him he's part of my
Dean so I gone in there and I swear to
God W he when I was in the Christian
church when my dad died after I'd done
all these um bad things and I say the
bad I tried to repent and like you know
oh God help me put me in a situation
where I can get out of this and do some
good and I tried to repent and say
confession I'd gone to confession once
and telling my confessions to some man
in a box next to me and I thought this
is not right this is not right I did not
feel forgiven by God I did not feel God
I didn't feel that God answered my
prayers and when I do my
sh and Muhammad and you know I felt
forgiven I felt Solace when I when I did
that I felt newborn I felt Rejoice like
a newborn baby Mah M and I have so much
love and all the brothers you know they
come hug me but most of all I truly
truly truly felt forgiven and that is
what I was searching for and I felt
forgiven where I could start a new slate
where my pastor is not going to creep up
behind me and torture me you know
torment me
you know because aldah Allah most
forgiving most merciful how was your
fam's and your close circles reaction
for your reversion at first my mom
ranged me my sister ranged me they
thought I was going to become a
terrorist she didn't understand it so At
first she wasn't supportive not in a
negative way my my sister as well but
now they're all W they're all like
pushing me my mom saying how proud she
is of me I'm much love that's all I've
ever wanted you don't know how nice it
is like for your mother to say she's
proud of you and family want to be with
you you know so alhamdulillah through
Islam and the Quran I've got my family
back and my family loved me how did
people react to your tattoos after
tattoos after you became a Muslim so
it's mixed opinions you know a lot of
people Alim very good um perception
they've got a good understanding of the
Quran and the attributes of Allah
subhana wa tala alham is the judge
nobody can judge but sometimes when I go
to umra you get the
aunties and I go Auntie I'm I'm sorry
you get the uncles and they go but you
know U yeah some of the aunties and the
uncles they do that but when I tell them
I'm a Rea they go mar mar but I say look
you shouldn't do that though if it was a
Bor Muslim he made a mistake come on
said
Al was it difficult for you to give up
your old bad habits after becoming a
Muslim do you think a person who wants
to become a Muslim should not do so
unless he or she is willing to give up
everything bad in their life and so for
like revers or non practicing Muslims
who was thinking coming back to the dean
take it baby steps don't think about
things like this you know you'll learn
as you go along you know you're you're
rewarded double for trying so yes 100%
And for me personally a big big
lifestyle change it took a couple of
years it took a couple of years and to
uh adjust to you know doing things
sooner music there's a lot of little
things there's a lot of little little
little things okay but don't be too hard
on yourself you know just do it from the
intentions and slowly by slowly little
by little you'll get there there's
different levels of M MIM believer so it
depends where you want to be everyone's
got a rank you know everyone it can be
easy it can be easy you can make Salah
five times a day and you can go do your
thing and alhamdulillah you can say oh
I've done loads of Good Deeds inshallah
I go to Jenna one of my friends tell me
that you will none of us are going to
Jenna based on Good Deeds but Allah
subhana T's mercy and you know the more
that we fall in love with the prophet
Muhammad sallallah wasam you know the
more better people we become in time but
that comes in time so all I will say
even if you have tattoos Islam is for
everybody it's reserved for the people
who need it doesn't matter where you're
from no matter what you've done in the
past even if you're drinking doing just
make pray and say and in time if you
really want jna and you're taking it you
know Islam is not a joke so when we're
making Salah and then more we study the
Quran you will fall in love and you will
want to do this for Allah so don't worry
even if you're drinking I'm sure slowly
Allah will guide us inshallah
have you ever experienced an
extraordinary event where you felt that
you had a special connection with Allah
um one of the extraordinary events was
um um last year I was very very alone I
was in Hall City i' moved to Hull and um
I started going to the the mosque in um
in Hull and then I made a video just
saying like I'm a Muslim on Tik Tok
about a year ago now nine months ago and
then I remember just waking up and
getting like 100,000 followers on Tik
Tok and then it went viral and and I
felt so much love my World opened like
so much love from that um and I was
still afraid that people wasn't going to
accept me and um you know and I also
wanted to like try and I was very
passionate about Islam I wanted to try
and um show other people as well that
Islam's peaceful since I've come online
you know I had thousands of people
blessing me about the tattoos and not
just um it's just G me more more more
strength and you know more solace in the
heart and since then I've had over a
thousand people mail me saying that they
took the Shah Hardo because you know
because I've made the video and I've
shown them that Islam's peaceful and
then they seeing it live and direct it's
helped them it's helped them since I
first made that video over a thousand
people across my medias have messaged me
who are non-muslim who have took shahada
or have bought the Quran and studying
Islam they wanted me to try and teach
them so I've guided them to these
servers revert servers I want Allah
subhana wa tala to save them and if I
can have any part to play to try and be
there for them inshah I'm there so
you have been to umra many times but
when you went to umra for the first time
what was the thing that affected you the
most and why when I went to mash Al so
many people in one area all Races all
colors every single country and I knew
this was the answer the people were here
for the pilgrimage for Allah not like
the Vatican the people were there to see
the pope oros or it was there for God
these are true Pious Believers and then
it was a cure an answer for racism it's
world peace and that was the big moment
for me Islam is a cure for everything
it's an answer to every problem it's a
Guide to Life it's a way of life I
remember my brother anas I love him he's
from dagistan he used to call me from
from meca the Swiss Hotel and start
calling me and show me the Caba this is
the Caba I make du for you I'm going to
perform um for you I just remember he
took me to Medina first so we did like
the Hijra in Reverse we went to Mas naui
but we did our intentions in in Medina
and then D all all the way and just that
car Journey I'll never forget that you
know going to all these places you know
going to like all the pit stops and
stuff and you just like talk about just
tell me how to do the supplications and
you know and it was very special like
that first time I felt like why me was
very
[Music]
happy what was your purpose your in your
life before Islam and what is it after
Islam you know what my purpose before
Islam I was um I didn't have one didn't
have a goal I didn't know where I was
going in life I didn't even know what to
do when I woke up I didn't know how to
be I didn't know how to think I didn't
know how to be around people I'd woke up
I was so lost I didn't know what to do
you know I was very very very lost very
lost but now inshah I want to slowly get
rid of the tattoos it's going to take
time and I've been traveling so when I
go back to Indonesia I'm going to be
settled I get them lasered I want to be
I want to be a h i want to recite Quran
I want to be an IM one day and I want to
give da I want to give da with Ali da
with a so I'm going to uh study inshah
and may I go to speak his corner and
give da I I want to be a half I love the
Quran when I first made Tik Tok uh my
brothers theams from Saudi uh so many
places Iraq they come on my live and
they recite Quran to me to make me fall
in love with the Quran to show the
beauty you know and they slowly start
reciting to me and I'd fall in love s of
yin and I I start to read all the suras
and Surah YF and I'd start read the
Quran anyway but I mean I start to fall
in love with the Quran that's a
different story you
know
[Music]
insh