How is Life as a Muslimah?

On this blog I often write of being a Muslim convert. That tends to be the primary theme here, actually. But a lot of you may not know what that means in practical terms. So, I’d like to open up to you about my experience living my daily life according to Islam.

The prayers are said at prescribed times each day. Fajr is the pre-dawn prayer, Dhur is the midday or early afternoon prayer, Asr is the late afternoon prayer, Maghrib is the dusk prayer, and Isha is the final evening prayer. The exact time of day at which these prayers are recited depends on the position of the sun in the sky, and it changes throughout the year. There are also additional optional prayers that Muslims may recite — some repetitiously, some not. That’s a post for another day. In any event, salat is around what our daily schedules revolve. Of course, we Muslims can also offer dua, or prayers that we make up as we go along rather than recite from memory. This form of prayer would be familiar to many non Muslims.

In addition, I try to read Quran every day, even if it’s just a couple of verses. I also make an effort to read a few passages from some Islamic book as well. I pretty much always have some Islamic book that I’m in the middle of reading, in hopes of not letting my Islamic education stagnate. I’m also currently trying to memorize another sura (chapter) of the Quran to recite in my daily salat.

There are a lot of other things that aren’t exactly part of my daily schedule per se, but which are part of being a Muslim. For example, my diet is dictated partly by my religion: I don’t eat pork and I don’t consume any alcohol — no, not even if it is “cooked out” of the food! I am also vegetarian; this is in part to avoid meats that don’t come from animals slaughtered according to Islamic rules, partly to avoid consuming animals that were tortured, which doesn’t seem halal (religiously permissible) to me, partly for other ethical reasons, and partly for health reasons.

Another thing that my religion affects is my entertainment. I don’t listen to music that has vulgar lyrics and I don’t watch TV shows or movies that have vulgarity in them. If I’m watching something on a streaming platform where I can skip over objectionable parts of the video, show, or movie, then I do that. And, I don’t read vulgar or “dirty” books or other printed media. Furthermore, I don’t use vulgar or crass language. I don’t talk about sex with members of the opposite gender, or in a casual way. I dress in long, loose clothing and a headscarf and only show my face, feet, and hands. This mode of dress is called hijab. Hijab is also sometimes used to refer to the headscarf worn by Muslim women. I also don’t go out alone with men who aren’t specific close relatives. I don’t stay alone in a room with such men, either. I’m careful not to act in a way around others, especially men, that could be interpreted by anyone as flirting. I don’t speak irreverently about the Divine or spirituality.

As you can see, Islam affects every part of my life and daily routine. The above were only some examples; I couldn’t possibly list all the minutiae of being Muslim. This is something that I love about my religion: I can’t go a minute without remembering that I am Muslim and must seek to submit to Allah. So often, I don’t get it right. I make mistakes so terribly often. I am no example. But I keep trying; I wouldn’t trade the trying for anything.

One of my favorite quotes reminds me to keep trying, imperfect as my practice of faith may be. It always gives me hope. I’ll close with it:

― Rumi

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