Sheikh Ahmed Deedat

Sheikh Ahmed Deedat:

He is a Muslim Scholar with more then 5 decades of experience, amazingly he has more knowledge of Christianity then Islam and due to this, any Christian missionary thinks 100 times before debating with him. He with exact Surat, Ayat number, recites different quotes from Different Bibles each conflicting with each other which makes his opposite Christian missionary rethink his own religion. In South Africa were he lives, hundreds of people have entered Islam Including large number of  Christian Missionaries.

Born in the Surat district of India in 1918, Ahmed Hoosen Deedat had no recollection of his father untill 1926. His father a tailor by profession had emigrated to South Africa shortly after the birth of Ahmed Deedat. With no formal education and fighting off the extreme pangs of poverty, he went to South Africa in 1927 to be with his father. His farewell to his mother in India in 1927 was the last time he saw her alive for she passed away a few months later. In a foreign land, a boy of nine with no formal schooling and command of the English language began preparing for the role he was to play decades later without realizing it. Applying himself with diligence to his studies, the little boy not only was able to overcome the language barrier but excelled in school. His avid passion for reading helped him gain promotions until he completed standard 6. Lack of finance interrupted his schooling and at the early age of about 16 he took on the first of many jobs in retailing.

The most significant of these was in 1936 where he worked at a Muslim owned store near a Christian seminary on the Natal South Coast. The incessant insults of the trainee missionaries hurled against Islam during their brief visits to the store infused a stubborn flame of desire within the young man to counteract their false propaganda.

As fate would have it, Ahmad Deedat looked impatiently in the store of his Muslim owner to find any book that is interesting, by pure chance he found out a book entitled Izharal-Haq, meaning the Truth revealed. This book recorded the techniques and enormous success of the efforts of Muslims in India in turning the tables against Christian missionary harassment during the British subjugation and rule of India. In particular the idea of holding debates had a profound effect on Ahmed Deedat.

Armed with this new found zeal, Ahmed Deedat purchased his first Bible and began holding debates and discussions with the trainee missionaries. When they beat a hasty retreat in the face of his incisive counter arguments, he personally called on their teachers and even priests in the surrounding areas. These successes spurred Ahmed Deedat in the dirrection of Da’wah. Not even his marriage, birth of Children and a 3 year sojourn to Pakistan after its independence dampened his enthusiasm or dulled his desire to defend Islam from the deceitful distortions of the Christian missionaries.

With missionary zeal to project the Truth and beauty of Islam, Ahmed Deedat immersed himself into a host of activities over the next three decades. He conducted classes on Bible studies and gave numerous lectures. He established the As-Salaam, an institute to train propagators of Islam. He, together with his family, almost single-handedly erected the buildings including the masjid which is still a landmark today.

He was a founder member of the Islamic Propagation Centre International (IPCI) and became its President, a position he still holds today. He has published over 20 books and distributed millions of copies free of charge. He has delivered thousand of lectures all over the world and successfully engaged Christian Evangelists in public debates. Several thousand people have come into the fold of Islam as a result of these efforts Due to his extensive knowledge of Christianity many of Christian Scholars with whom he debated have converted. He is also popular due to his very humorous way of explaining Religion.

In a fitting tribute to this monumental achievement, he was awarded the King Faisal International award in 1986, a prestigious recognition of enormous value in the world of Islam. No number of awards and honors can truly capture the man’s essence and zeal for Islam. This anthology of books is no exception. It demonstrates Sheikh Deedat’s analytical compilations drawn from personal encounters and experiences against Christian distortions.

In 1996 Sheikh Ahmed Deedat suffered from a serious stroke and since then was unable to move or speak. Please pray to Allah (swt) for his health and well being. On the 8th of August 2005 / 2 Rajab 1426, Sheikh Ahmed Hoosen Deedat passed on yo meet his creator. This was After succumbing to asevere stroke that left him paralysed for More than nine years.

To commemorate the passing away of this world renowned personality the IPCI held a tribute to its founder & president the late Sheikh Ahmed Deedat on Saturday, 20 August 2005 at the Durban City Hall. At the the event some were moved to tears when an on screen 15 minute visual presentation on the life and times of Sheikh Deedat concluding with his Janazah. The full part of this one hour documentary is available from the IPCI on the life of this icon of the muslim world, Marhoom Sheikh Ahmed Hoosen Deedat.

His life and times should be an example that muslims should emulate. The IPCI has received approximately one thousand messages of condolences both nationally and internationally.at the Saturday afternoon event, message of condolences were read out from hrh Prince Khalid Al Faisal Bin Abdul Aziz, Dr Ahmed Totonji, Dr Zakir Naik, Professor Ali Mazrui amongst, mayor of Durban Obed Mlaba & many others. Present at the function were the ambassadors of palestine, he Mr Salman el Herfi, the ambassador of sengal, Mr Mame Gorgui Gueye, and the ambassador of Pakistan, Dr Ali Ahmed Arain.

Personal Address : 49, Trevenneri Road, Verulam 4340, Republic of South Africa. Tel (Res.): 331790

Famous Books by Sheikh Ahmed Deedat:

The Choice - Between Islam and Christianity - Volume I
The Choice -Between Islam and Christianity - Volume II
Is the Bible God’s Word?
Al Qur’an the Miracle of Miracles What is His Name?
Christ in Islam What was the sign of Jonah?
What the Bible says about Muhammed (pbuh)?
Resurrection or Resuscitation?
Arabs and Israel – Conflict or Conciliation?
Crucifixion or Cruci-Fiction?

Dr Zakir Naik

Dr. Zakir Naik: Born-October 18, 1965 in Mumbai, India

A medical Doctor by Degree, Dr. Zakir Naik is renowned as a dynamic international orator on Islam and Comparative Religion. Any Person who  listen's to his question and answers session is going to be astonished and overwhelmed as he clarifies Islamic viewpoints and clears misconceptions about Islam, using the Quran, authentic Hadith reciting each and giving each Surat, Ayat number(by heart) and he has not only learned Quran and Hadith by heart but has also learned several Bibles, the Talmud and the Torah (the Jewish scriptures), the Mahabharata and the Bhagwat Gita (the Hindu holy books), and other scriptures and gives very satisfying answer in conjunction with reason, logic and scientific facts. He has learned hundred and thousands of pages from different books by heart and  has the knowledge of scientific and mathematical theories. Dr. Zakir is popular for his critical analysis and convincing answers to challenging questions posed by audiences specially non-muslims, after his public lecture.

 In the last 7 years, Dr. Zakir Naik has delivered more than 700 public talks in the U.S.A., Canada, U.K., Saudi Arabia, U.A.E., Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, South Africa, Mauritius, Australia, Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand, Guyana (South America) and many other countries, in addition to numerous public talks in India. His lists of guests have included ambassadors of the respected countries, Army Generals, Political Leaders, Sports Persons, religious scholars , entrepreneurs, and most importantly the ordinary people.

He has successfully participated in several symposia and dialogues with prominent personalities of other faiths. His public dialogue with Dr. William Campbell (of USA), on the topic, “The Quran and the Bible in the light of Science” held in city of Chicago, U.S.A., on April 1, 2000 was the most famous one. He is also the founder and chairman of Islamic Research Foundation .

The Islamic Research Foundation (IRF),  Mumbai, India, is a registered non-profit public charitable trust. It was established in February 1991. It promotes Islamic Da’wah - the proper presentation, understanding and appreciation of Islam, as well as removing misconceptions about Islam - amongst less aware Muslims and non-Muslims IRF uses modern technology for its activities, wherever feasible. Its presentation of Islam reach millions of people worldwide through international satellite T.V. channels, cable T.V. networks, internet and the print media. IRF's activities and facilities provide the much needed understanding about the truth and excellence of Islamic teachings - based on the glorious Qur'an and authentic Hadith,  as well as adhering to reasons, logic and scientific facts.

Dr. Zakir Naik appears regularly on many international T.V. Channels in more than 100 countries of the world. He is regularly invited for T.V. and Radio interviews More than a hundred of his talks, dialogues, debates and symposia are available on video cassettes, video CDs and audio cassettes by http://www.irf.net/ . He has authored books on Islam and Comparative Religion.

One example of his abilities was revealed during an airport incident in Los Angeles. Where the security precaution post-9/11 has spawned complaints by visiting Muslims about harassment, especially over their inability to express themselves well enough to give convincing answers. But not for Dr. Zakir Naik, , who landed in Los Angeles airport on October 12 for a day's visit to receive an award for Service to Islam and humanity given by the International Islamic Internet University in Los Angeles. When he was asked about his treatment by immigration officers he replied “For me there was no problem and the people's behaviour was very nice”

Well when a Saudi newspaper interviewed him and investigated further, it was found that With his beard and Islamic skullcap, Dr. Naik did not escape notice at Los Angeles airport and so was immediately hauled in for questioning. After he was taken to the investigation room for question and answers, the custom officers started asking the question about different topics and also asked about his views on Sep 11 attacks he condemned the attacks ,then the officers asked about the Word “JIHAD”, he started quoting from several versions of the Bible, the Holy Quran, the Talmud and the Torah (the Jewish scriptures), the Mahabharata and the Bhagwat Gita (the Hindu holy books), and other scriptures he know by heart. And he proved that the concept of true “JIHAD” is not only Islamic but universal. Custom officers became curious and started putting more and more question, he continued to reply with his wisdom, knowledge and Logic, an hour passed, a long line of people were waiting for questioning ,so he was allowed to go and when he got up and left room about 70 officers from the airport surrounded him started following him to know about their own religion and Islam. After wards custom officers told that they were just astonished and they had never seen a person with so much knowledge.

Sheikh Ahmed Deedat, the world famous orator on Islam and Comparative Religion, who had called Dr. Zakir, "Deedat plus" in 1994, presented a plaque in May 2000 awarded to Dr. Zakir Abdul-Karim Naik for his achievement in the field of Da’wah and the study of Comparative Religion with the engraving "Son what you have done in 4 years had taken me 40 years to accomplish, Alhamdullilah.”Zakir continues to amaze people, with his Genius Personality, and continues to travel around the word giving lectures, conducting Da’wah training programs including international training Programs for training Muslims to effectively convey the message of Islam.

Article By Doctor Genius
Frequently asked questions By NON-MUSLIMS by Zakir Naik

BOOKS AUTHORED BY DR. ZAKIR NAIK:

1. REPLIES TO THE MOST COMMON QUESTIONS ASKED BY NON-MUSLIMS
2.  QUR'ÂN AND MODERN SCIENCE - Compatible Or Incompatible
3.  CONCEPT OF GOD IN MAJOR RELIGIONS
4.  ISLAM AND TERRORISM
5.  WOMEN'S RIGHTS IN ISLAM - Protected Or Subjugated?
6.  AL-QUR'ÂN - Should it be Read with Understanding?
7.  IS THE QUR'ÂN GOD'S WORD?

Personal Address :

56 / 58 Tandel Street (North), Dongri, Mumbai 400 009 (India)

Tel (Off.): 3736875 / 79 (6 lines) e-mail: zakir@irf.net Website http://www.irf.net/