St. John's Today: April 24, 2000
by Michael Belich
Presenting a lecture entitled, "My Rise from Icon to Slave of God," Yusuf Islam, formerly known as rock legend Cat Stevens, came to St. John's University on behalf of the Muslim Students' Assocation on Monday, April 3.
Stevens, who is from London, was a pop icon in the early 1970's, recording such hits as "Wild World" and "Peace Train." He converted to Islam soon after his brother David gave him the Koran to read in 1976 after visiting Jerusalem.
"Nothing can make me cry but this book. I knew at that moment that I was a Muslim," Mr. Islam said.
He was surprised to find that prophets like Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Solomon were mentioned in the Koran along with the Islamic prophet Muhammed, who was a servant to Allah and led the Arabs to freedom, Mr. Islam said.
"After becoming a Muslim, I forgot about the outwardness in the world and looked at the world within," he said.
Having musical hits and making money did not make Mr. Islam fully happy or give him a feeling that his life was complete. At one time in his career, he got burned out and collapsed with tuberculosis.
During his time as Cat Stevens, Mr. Islam said, his career was drifting and he began to lose interest in his music. He saw the Koran as a perfect guide and went to a mosque to declare himself a Muslim.
A Muslim must bear witness that there is one God called Allah, Mr. Islam said, and Muhammad is the messenger of God. "As a man makes peace," Mr. Islam said, "he submits and surrenders to the will of God, becoming a winner."
Converting to the Islamic faith, Mr. Islam said, can be difficult for one's family and may cause conflict with one's elders. "You can't be a Muslim and cut off your family," Mr. Islam said. "You must respect your mother. The only time that you should disobey your family is when they force you to abandon your religion."
As a converted Muslim, Mr. Islam wanted others to share his happiness. In his family his conversion was not a great problem, since both his mother and ather became converted Muslims.
His father converted while he was dying for he wanted to profess before his death that there was one God.
Being a Muslim can be tough for some because they cannot smoke, drink or date. A Muslim must pray five times a day in order to meet his creator and make one trip in their lifetime to the holy city of Mecca.
It must seem especially difficult for Cat Stevens to overcome the rock star's sterotypical life of drinking, drugs, and women. But, Mr. Islam said, "It may have been difficult to give up drinking, but when God says so, I just stopped."
Since dating is not allowed in the Muslim religion, Mr. Islam found a wife who was born a Muslim and started a family. He wrote a poem called "A is for Allah," which is an alphabet song. Mr. Islam wrote it out of his love for education, in which he became involved for his daughter.
In his years of being a Muslim, Mr. Islam said that he went from being an icon to a slave for God out of his love for God. In closing, Mr. Islam said, "Make your pilgrimage and I hope that God guides you."