A visit to Rodrigues: Thabligh Diary

At the heart of the Indian Ocean, at latitude 19°43’ S and longitude 63°25’ E, Rodrigues Island stretches over a surface area of 108 km², some 650 km to the north-east of Mauritius. It is the part of Africa that is closest to Australia. Born from volcanic activity between 1.3 and 1.5 million years ago, the island – 18 km long, 8 km wide – is the smallest of the Mascarene archipelago.

Rodrigues is a mountainous island with a succession of valleys plunging to the 300 km² lagoon. Its population is now around 39,500 people, the majority of them are Christians and they work as fishermen, traders and craftsmen. Rodrigues Island is till date a dependency of Mauritius, though Mauritius has given it an autonomy whereby some decisions are taken in the Regional Assembly of Rodrigues.

Alhamdulillah, Summa Alhamdulillah, the Messenger of Allah arrived in Rodrigues in the morning of Saturday 09 August 2014. As in his habit, losing no time, the Khalifatullah (atba) after briefly refreshing himself launched into Jamaat works. A special meeting was held with the members of the Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam, in view of the Jamaat projects planned and also concerning the activities of the Jamaat during the stay of Huzur (atba) in Rodrigues.

Next, accompanied by his delegation Huzur (atba) went on Dawa/tabligh venture. He met with several youths by the seaside and captivated their attention on the importance of turning in prayer to our Unique Creator, associating nothing with Him in worship, and he also counselled them on the harm of cigarettes, alcoholic drinks and other drugs. He warned them to stay clear from those evils, and if ever they have already indulged in them, then to abandon this wrong path and to take firm resolution to return back on the right track for the sake of their own souls. Huzur (atba) moreover told them to replace their bad habits with good ones, such as prayer, for it is only prayer to one sole God which can save them from all kind of evils throughout their lives. The youths appreciated his speech and counsels and some of them were inspired by it to reform themselves, and to keep contact with Huzur (atba) and the Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam for their spiritual advancement.

Dawa then continued with several other people till late at night.

The next day, Sunday 10 August 2014, before the One-Day Jalsa Salana, the Khalifatullah (atba) gave a profound message to the people of Rodrigues on the MBC Radio. The message was axed on the Ebola Virus and the need for the Rodriguans to turn to the Unique Almighty God in prayer.

The Jalsa Salana started with a recitation of the Holy Quran and Hadiths and explanations. For his Opening Speech, Huzur (atba) talked about two attributes of Allah, Al-Khafidh and Al-Rafi, specifying that man is only a slave, and that the slavery he should aim to is that of being the exclusive slave of Allah, not that of his desires and passions or any other creatures. Other members also addressed the audience and stressed on obedience to Allah and His Messenger, and the importance of following the example of our role model, the Holy Prophet of Islam Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh).

To close the Jalsa Salana, the Khalifatullah (atba) gave some advices to our members how to manage the Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam and to work hard for the cause of Allah. Huzur (atba) stressed also on financial sacrifice, tabligh, tarbiyyat & congregational prayers (Jama’ah prayers) – including Tahajjud prayers – on a regular basis.

Afterwards, there was a Questions & Answers programme and then the distribution of refreshments and cakes, among members and guests.

On Monday 11 August 2014 Huzur (atba) and the members of the Jamaat mostly concentrated on a specific and important Jamaat project for which the presence of the Khalifatullah was needed in Rodrigues.

Afterwards, Huzur (atba) continued with his Dawa/tabligh works, going to meet several important personalities in several places of the country. He gave them the message of Islam, and invited them to the worship of one God and not trinity. He moreover requested their cooperation for the several Jamaat projects under supervision.

On the last day of Huzur (atba) in Rodrigues, a busy day in finalising some urgent dealings for the Jamaat projects with some important people. And before his departure for Mauritius, the Khalifatullah met with the members of the Jamaat and gave them the right guidelines for keeping the Jamaat always united and remaining in the light of Allah and His Khalifatullah. Huzur (atba) stressed again on financial sacrifices, saying that they should, like other countries also give a helping hand, contributing for the development of the Jamaat in their country. Each country should aim to stand on its feet for its growth through all kinds of sacrifices. Insha-Allah, when one makes efforts in this direction, then Allah Himself shall put immense blessings in their intentions and efforts.

May Allah enable them to do so. Insha-Allah. Ameen.