Day 29 – From a Boy with Dreams… to a Servant with Purpose

In this inspiring episode, Imam Safraz Bacchus shares his journey from a boy with dreams in Guyana to a servant of purpose and spiritual guide. He reflects on the lessons learned from his parents’ sacrifices, the challenges he overcame, and the transformative power of education and lifelong learning. Guided by the teachings of Prophet Muhammad, may the peace and blessings of Allah be with him, Imam Safraz offers a motivational call to action: embrace knowledge, persist through obstacles, and turn your aspirations into meaningful impact. This is a story of faith, resilience, and the pursuit of purpose.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:16

Peace and love be with all of you, and welcome to another episode of our Ramadan podcast. As we are coming to the end of the blessed month of Ramadan, I want to take this opportunity in speaking a little bit directly to our youths. The beloved Prophet Muhammad, our beloved Prophet Muhammad, may the peace and blessings of God Almighty be with him, encourage us to be people who seek knowledge. Prophet he said, seek knowledge from the cradle to the grave. And in addition to this, he also mentioned, talabul, seeking knowledge is compulsory on every male and female. And as we look at all of the Quranic verses and the prophetic traditions that encourage us to seek knowledge, we learn that our faith is a very progressive faith and ask of us to make sacrifice for learning. And before I share a little bit about my journey, and I would like to take these few minutes that I have in this episode to speak a little bit about my journey to where I am today, being a spiritual leader, being a life coach, being a person who have become a servant leader and a spiritual leader and a healthcare chaplain. Where I am currently now, how did I reach to this point? And basically some of the things that I have learned in my journey that I think could be important for all of you. But before I do that, I want you to think about our beloved Prophet Muhammad. Here is it, the Prophet Muhammad living in the Arabian Peninsula, and as he's living in the Arabian Peninsula at the age of 40, you know, prior to him receiving the revelation, he noticed the environment in which he was living in was not an environment that was a healthy one in terms of the social well-being of the people. In other words, that there was a lot of injustices, uh, there's a lot of nudity, a lot of lawlessness. There was disparity in the very layout of the society itself. And the Prophet, growing up in the Arabian Peninsula and in Mecca to be specific, in the midst of the Quraysh, that he did not like what he saw. Something about the Prophet that he witnessed cause him to somehow drift away from there. And he will go and isolate himself and he will reflect and he will ponder upon his well-being and about his spirituality and you know generally about life. Here is someone that we and what we can learn from this as well is that uh when we live in societies that are not progressive societies, uh societies that are oppressive, societies that are overwhelmed with darkness, whether it's from spiritual darkness or what because they the Arabs uh they indulge during that particular time in um a lot of idol worshiping, which is something that Islam speaks against. And also the injustices, they will bury their children alive, you know, they will all they will also you know treat um you know the weak in a particular way, in a lesser way. And so this is our prophet. He moved away, he drift away. And we can learn from that is that when we live in a society we uh and we notice certain things, we move away from that society, we move away from that society and we try to find some time with ourselves. And I think Ramadan can help us with that. So uh that's a point. The other thing, which is our point of discussion, I would I would like to say that the Prophet went to Kevira, and here is it, you know, subhanallah, Injal Jibra'il came to him and asked him to read. To the end of it, right? That we all as Muslims we know this, and for those of you who are unaware of it, that Injal Jibra'il came to the Prophet with the peace and blessings of God Almighty, be with him and ask him to read. He says, I cannot read. And he says, Read. He says, I cannot read. Again, he says, read. He said, I cannot read it. And he Injil Jibra'il said to him, Read in the name of your Lord who was created. You. What comes to mind? Taught men, which he knew not. Read again. So read is repeated more than once. Taught men, which he knows which he knows not. So when we look at all of that, all of those words, they're key words that guides us and inspire us and teaches us the importance of reading and learning. And today, the world in which we live in, I'll say to our younger generation, the world in which we live in today, one, it is important for us to advocate, be an advocate for learning and reading. Be an advocate for elevating yourself academically and elevating yourself religiously in terms of knowing your religious values and teachings. The more you learn about your existence, the more you learn about life, the more you learn what's going on around you, the more you're able to be equipped to deal with whatever challenges life may you know throw at you. When you have knowledge and wisdom, you're able to put, as a person, as an individual, you are able to put things in a particular specific perspective and understand. You'll understand certain things, you're able to apply it in a particular way. So that's the first advice I will render to our younger generation. Seek knowledge. Today, if you do not have knowledge and wisdom, then life becomes very challenging for you. It becomes very difficult for you. If you do not take that path of learning, right, then it becomes challenging for you. You have other people thinking for you. And this learning process does not come easy. It comes with challenges, it comes with hardship. And I'll say this that despite who you are and where you are in the social ladder, and I know this podcast is uh televising and also on YouTube, Spotify, and also Apple Podcasts, and wherever you are, listening to this in the world. Right? Remember, do not allow where you are on the social ladder to prevent you from climbing that ladder to reach that pinnacle and to reach your dream.

SPEAKER_01 8:14

Because here is it those of you who do not know me, right? I am originally from Guyana. Small country that borders Venezuela and Suriname is the only English-speaking country that is actually in South America.

SPEAKER_00 8:38

And in addition to this, it's a country that is considered to be a Caribbean country, English-speaking. So I grew up in a place called Potencia Wales, very small area where life was not easy. Life was quite challenging, difficult. I grew up as the youngest in the family with four sisters and a brother and myself. My father basically was working at the sugar estate, which the sugar estate, the whale sugar estate, a sugar estate where a lot of people within that vicinity and sometimes outside the vicinity will come and work on the sugar industry. And my dad was a pump operator. That the irrigation pump that pumps water into the fields, he used to operate that. And at one point, my dad was also, as we call back home, you know, a cane harvester or a cane cutter. My mom was a domestic worker. Humble beginning. That's a key thing. Humble beginning.

SPEAKER_01 9:51

And we grew up uh with very minimal resources.

SPEAKER_00 9:56

My dad worked, uh, and my mom also worked, and strive and struggle to maintain uh basically uh my four sisters, myself and my brother. But coming back to myself, you know, uh I remember how challenging it was challenging it was. Today, when I see individuals, for example, not appreciating the things that they have in their life, and they're always complaining, right? Always complaining, that the reason they are not able to, you know, somehow accomplish their dreams is because things are tough with them.

SPEAKER_01 10:42

They complain, you know, um about very silly things.

SPEAKER_00 10:50

But if you look at individuals, right back in the days during our time, when you had to somehow go to the library, when you had to go to the library and borrow a book, and sometimes when you go there, the book is not there, and then you had to pay for that. That only certain amount of people, certain class of people were had access to textbooks because they're the only one who could afford it, and the school itself had minimal textbooks, and if someone borrowed, that's it. Only certain people in in the social ladder was able to take extra extra lessons, which the school would not offer. But despite all of that, right, our parents instilled uh in us the importance of education and ensure that we get at least up to the high school education. Couple with that was Islamic education, and that's the point that despite how challenging life was, all of us subhanAllah live in a small shack, that's what we call a shack, one bedroom, small kitchen, a small space, small space, but I know that it was a home.

SPEAKER_01 12:25

And I'll tell you why I say that.

SPEAKER_00 12:29

I'll tell you why I say that. But it was one bedroom, three beds, and we all, my mom, my dad, my four sisters, myself, and my brother all share that room.

SPEAKER_01 12:45

And we were content, never complain.

SPEAKER_00 12:50

As I said, you know, we did what we had to do, whether it's fetch in water, whether it's weed in the yard, whether it's cleaning, in addition to this, go to school, come back, and go to the madrasa. Our parents ensured that we had Islamic studies, that Islamic values were instilled in us at a very tender age.

SPEAKER_01 13:13

Quranic classes. I can remember my mom would sew, she will sew like hats for us in specific colours, matching for myself and my brother.

SPEAKER_00 13:29

And for my sisters, also, they will have matching colours. And in the afternoon, after the academic school, all of us will walk from 87 potential house and scheme all the way to the masjid with our Islamic attire, with our Arabic reader, and we will go to the masjid and we will learn. We learn from the older Imams. We learn the alphabet, we will learn qasid, we will learn Islamic etiquettes and adab. And that is where the journey started. It started from our parents making that sacrifice, a lesson. A lesson parents need to learn now. Look back at your journey. Look what your parents had done for you to ensure, to ensure that religious values were instilled in your life, that your home was was never looked at as the the type, the house that you have, the fancy house that you have. Your home was a happy home because God's name was mentioned, because there was contentment.

SPEAKER_01 14:46

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 14:49

Everyone who knows me, coming out of potential, knowing the area, and how harsh the area was. At one point it was flourishing economically because you had a sugar estate right there, also you had the market and you had the cinema in my area. But after you know, things became very difficult and people struggled. The social life for people many people was like the rum shop. The men will go out, the men will go out with their bicycles or walk and stand up at the bridge side hanging out or in the rum shop. A lot of illegal rum shops in Ghana, and they still probably have a lot of illegal um rum shops in Ghana right now. And my dad uh fall as a victim to that. Nothing to do. He made choices, he was an alcoholic, but despite him being an alcoholic, he was a father. He's a father that showed love, compassion, and care. He ensured he and my mom, my dad being Yusuf Bakas and my mom Rubina Bakr, ensured that they instill in us that religious value. I can remember that despite my dad was an alcoholic, that he will sing qasayids, he will call the adan, that the local masjid, when they have work, he will go and be a part of the helper, help and assist. But our home was a place where the name of God is mentioned, and I must thank my parents for instilling those values. Thursday night, Thursday night, that we will assemble in the home, all of us around the table, and we will read our Quran, the the incense, or what we call the agarbati. An incense will be lit in and we walk around the house with the agarbati and incense, the sweet scent, and we will read the Quran, my mom would read, my dad would read, we will read, and we will make dua every Thursday in the home. This is the consistency that we grew up with, despite that my dad was drinking, despite he never used to pray five times a day, despite none of us used to pray five times a day. But we believed that there was a God, it was a power beyond the power of the humankind, and having that knowledge, having that awareness, having that faith helped us. And you know my growth began there at Potential Masjid. And then we get exposed to the Central Islamic Organization of Guyana. Three-month Islamic Imam Islam course was held by the CIOG, I think it was 1986. I might be off a little bit with a year, but I still have those certificates. That I was the youngest that was selected to go on that course. They were, I think, my brother, two or three other persons along with myself, two persons along with myself, so three include me, four of us in potential masjid was selected to go to the CIJ three-month Imam course. And it was the first the first time we we we met Imam Ahmed Hamid, um Imam Shaheed. These are known names here in New York. Imam Shaheed being the brother of Sheikh Rafik, who played a very important role in teaching us at that course. Um Sheikh Abdul Wahhab from Ghana, there's where we were exposed to sitting in their class. We were exposed to sitting in the class of uh Sheikh Abdul Rahuf Zaman. And later on as well, we were exposed to Sheikh Muin, I think that was in the one-month course, not this, not this, not the six-month course. But the important thing to mention is that from that foundation that our parents gave us and sending us to Madrasa, that was a starting point. That was the seed that they planted. And despite, subhanAllah, despite we did not have the resources, financial resources, to still make that sacrifice to ensure that they sent us in a three-month imam training program at MYO, leaving Potenja, going out to all the way Woolford Avenue Thomas Land, Georgetown, to learn the deen, to learn the religion. And when I went there, was told, listen, you're too young, you cannot be. This is an imam course. You're a little kid. You're not befitted to sit in this in the classroom. There were older individuals, people that were older than my older, like my father, and older than my father.

SPEAKER_01 20:29

The youngest one that sat in the class.

SPEAKER_00 20:34

And as I, you know, but my parents intervened, um petitions were made, pleas were made, and they accepted me. But despite all of those odds, all of those who doubted me at that time, Alhamdulillah, all praises is due to God. I was able to integrate and learn. And when when there was a graduation after three months, I'll say I did not get A grade, but I got B. I still have to certificate on to this day.

SPEAKER_01 21:16

But that exposure, that exposure of responsibility, the exposure of what?

SPEAKER_00 21:24

Of responsibility. The exposure of responsibility is what matters. Why am I saying this? Is because we were exposed to cleaning the dorms, cleaning the washrooms, cleaning the kitchen. We were set up in groups. Groups that were were named after the names of the of senior companions, Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Ali. And we had a group leader. One day, the task was that we had. To make sure that the dorms are kept clean. So that's your the responsibility of your group. The second responsibility uh you know cleaning of the washroom, make sure the washrooms are clean. All students making sure that subhanAllah the the kitchen is clean in the darms. Those of you who know uh subhanallah, uh those of you who know the Muslim youth organization, as you Muslim Youth organization, the building itself, the bottom floor was occupied. It was an office there that was CRG office before CRG became what it is now, in terms of having that building. So there was an office there. That office was there, and MYO building was used as the dorm, upstairs was a classroom. So you have to make sure that the classroom was clean, the bathroom was clean, the dormitory was clean, and also the kitchen was clean, and that was a responsibility. We wash our own clothing, we wake up in the morning for fajr. And then at that young age, tender age, before I reached the age of 16, I think I was approximately 14 or 13 years of age at that time. To have you running around the park exercise, and looking back at all of these things, you know, like subhanAllah, I think the exposure is what matters. And why am I saying this is not about me, this is about you, this is about me sharing my journey so that it may learn you. That our kids in these days, some of them are spoiled, they have a golden spoon in their mouth and they don't know what they have, they don't want to take responsibility, they want everything to be presented to them, no research, no sacrifice. So, therefore, if there isn't anything like that, what happens? You're not able to value anything. If you don't work hard for something, how can you value it? If everything is presented to you uh on a platter without you exhorting any energy, you want to exploit, you would want to somehow not only exploit, but you would want to take for granted what you have.

SPEAKER_01 24:23

But when you work hard for what you have, when you when you exhort the energy, you know what you thought for and what and where you're at.

SPEAKER_00 24:36

So that was the foundation. Point I'm making, parents instilling values at the initial stage, despite that they were not religious. People are asking the question, you know, like, how did I come out of an environment like potential that is known for drugs, that is known for alcohol? When I say known for alcohol, like in one street, you will have five, six rum shops, some legal people's bottom house, the the lower part of their home, were like makeshift rum shops where they will exploit workers that are that were alcoholic and give them somehow um alcohol to drink without them paying, and then take their paychecks. And then when you look at it, they have a long list of debts that they have to pay. That's the environment.

SPEAKER_01 25:29

Marijuana, area that is well known for that.

SPEAKER_00 25:39

Hadim in Fadllah. This is from Allah's will, but at the same time, it is the values that was instilled and the sacrifices that was made by our parents. And secondly, you being appreciative of what you have and be content. And from that, the three-month Islamic course to a one-month Islamic course, then that exposure from that tender age, taking part in madrasa programs, whether it's Yom Man Nabi, whether it's um Shabi Barat, whether it's Israel al-Me'raj, we will walk around. I can remember that our Imams, I can remember particularly Uncle Mehbub, who was once the Imam of one of the Imams of Sarvat Patensha, I will hold his back bag on Friday because he did not live too far from us, and we will walk after Jummah down. He will take the turn to his home and I will continue.

SPEAKER_01 26:44

So as a young kid.

SPEAKER_00 26:51

So growing up in that environment instills something in us, instill the importance of religious values. And despite how young I was, I always taught the importance of religion. From those training and start to pray five times a day, at least try to pray five times a day. That we will take time off from the school, academic school, to go for Friday Jum'a. Pent uh a few years in leaving potential, going to LaGrange to get better Islamic studies, because uh my good friend and brother and teacher, Majeed, who is currently now in New Jersey, from LaGrange.

SPEAKER_01 27:38

So there was this journey.

SPEAKER_00 27:41

And and and from that particular uh phase in my life, in you know, I'll say in in Guyana, there was so much that we can learn from that. There's so much that we can learn from that. And the first thing is that never doubt yourself. There are kids out there that are doubting themselves. I cannot accomplish this because of the situation that I am in. Push yourself, exhort yourself, set for yourself certain goals, and you'll achieve it. You'll achieve that goal. You know, and I'll say this, you know, like um uh when I was 16 years of age, around that time, there was a one-month Imam training program at MYU, which I attended. And during that time, the CIOG received correspondence from Egypt through the Egyptian embassy in Brazil that they have scholarships, two scholarships for students who are interested to go and study in Al-Azhar University. And I was very young, very young at that particular point. And the CIRG said, okay, we know someone, this guy, and I want to show you. I have on my phone, I have on my phone a picture that I often keep on my phone to somehow um remind me of my journey. Here, this is it. This is the first week in Egypt at this age.

SPEAKER_01 29:30

First week in Egypt at this particular age. Right? I was 16 years of age. So the scholarship came, and I was so excited.

SPEAKER_00 29:43

One, I'm leaving Guyana, two, I'm gonna learn Islam. I did not know what Egypt was like. There was no internet for you to Google and search. We did not have telephone those days. There was an Egyptian teacher by the name of Sheikh Ahmad Zaki Badr who was teaching us. And you know, after all the formalities and that type of thing, we would somehow want. But before I talk about that, I cannot forget Sheikh Muin and uh Sheikh Muin Al-Haq and his role and his dad's role in helping and assisting us because after the three-month Imam training program and before the one one month, Sheikh Muin came back and he started to keep a class every Saturday. And there were students leaving Potentia, all the way from Potentia, every Saturday to join students at MYU. And we were sitting in the class of Sheikh Moon. So Sheikh Muin will come, he will do a tafsir session, he will he will see like a Quranic verse, and he will teach us. I remember some of those verses that he had taught us. Um, now that we're thinking about it and the stories and his unique way of teaching, um definitely um you can you cannot forget it. So Shaykh Muin also played an important role, and his father, you know, brother Haq, you know, played a very important role as well in assisting and helping us during that process because traveling to from potential to to Georgetown every Saturday, the finances was hard and difficult. So Shaykh Muin, most of you know Shaykh Muin Al-Haq, who's the director of education of the CIRG right now, um, and quite prominent figure in Guyana, um, he his dad played an important role, and I always remember him and our dua in helping and assisting me during my early stage of learning. And when I got the scholarship to go to Egypt at this tender age that I just showed you that picture, a Sheikh Muin's father gave me 20 US dollars. I will never forget that. We did not have any finances, he gave us um 20 US dollars, and in addition to this, that give us some finances. Uh Sheikh Ahmed Zaki gave us five Egyptian pounds, and he gave us the address of Malid Bar Usul Islamiyyah, that the student hostel.

SPEAKER_01 32:14

And off we go, off we go to a foreign land, myself and um Muhammad Asif Aziz, two of us leave in Guyana at this age, at this age, this is the first week in Egypt we went and my exposure, exposure to the outer world away from potential big and dense.

SPEAKER_00 32:55

And I'll say this before I end this episode that here is it, my mom, may Allah, when she died, I I wept when my dad died, I wept bitterly, and I primarily my mom, because now that I'm matured, I think I think about how a mother gives permission for her son at this age, and um always remember her in my dua, and I'll always say I can never repay her for making that decision because I still believe that it was an inspiration from Allah to give the permission. The ultimate see was not with me, not with my dad, the ultimate see whether I should go or not go was her, and she allowed me to come. She allowed her son at this age, the youngest, which afterwards give her a nervous breakdown.

SPEAKER_01 33:59

At one point, she was in the mental asylum.

SPEAKER_00 34:05

Um at this age, allow me to leave and had to face all of that.

SPEAKER_01 34:17

In a time when there was no Facebook, in a time when there was no WhatsApp, in a time when our home did not have a telephone where you can call. Communication was actually by letters.

SPEAKER_00 34:45

Scholarship for five years, you go to Egypt, um, you you studied a year or so for an Arabic language, and then you enter into university, finish university, and come back again.

SPEAKER_01 34:57

That was it. But things was not like that. Things were not like that.

SPEAKER_00 35:10

And I remember on the first of January 1994 at 11 a uh 11 uh p.m. I arrived at Marin Zubur as a student hostel in Egypt.

SPEAKER_01 35:31

I departed Guyana in December 1993. Away from my brother, away from my siblings, away from my mom, and away from my dad. Leaving Guyana at a standard age for what?

SPEAKER_00 35:54

For seeking knowledge. Remember, like when other universities like Saudi would give tickets for students to come back home and see their parents traveling back and forth, Egypt, in Egypt, we did not have that luxury. So I'll stop here now in this episode, and I just want to clarify one thing that the only reason I'm speaking about myself, I just want to get two pointers over. Our young people today, you have to stop complaining and appreciate what you have, and do not allow your current situation that you may be in, challenges, hardship, family issues prevent you from achieving your goals. Because here is my story, and here's my story that I'm sharing with you, and you can learn from it, and I hope that it inspires you.

SPEAKER_01 36:52

Have a blessed day, peace, and love be with all of you.