I was not enrolled in Islam at the time of the first class, but thankfully I was able to enroll the next evening. I’ve heard a lot of great things about Mozaffar–some have even said he is one of the smartest men they have ever met. Since I do not know what actually happened in class that week, I will take this time to talk about my brief 20 year journey through Islam and my expected takeaways from this class.

As a Shia Ismaili Muslim, there are many practices that vary, and often times may not make sense to many other Muslims. From Jummah prayer on Friday evenings to only praying three times a day to having an altered form of namaz called our Du’a, I’ve never been able to fully relate to common Muslim practices. However, in theory we are all one, and I have used that mentality to never shy away when relating myself into the bigger ideas and morals of Islam.

With that being said, there are many values that every Muslim needs to integrate into his or her own life, certain benchmarks that every devout Muslim should have infused into their minds. I often feel like I either miss these benchmarks, or skim through them. Even though I try not to compare myself to others, it embarrasses me sometimes to have an answer to a seemingly-easy question.

That is why I’m taking this class. I have no intentions of feeling proud of myself that I know most of the material being taught. In fact, I’d be upset at myself for every having that mentality. In reality I want to face my insecurities of the values I’m not pinpoint about, and have Mozaffar be able to guide me through the process all over again.

I don’t want to exaggerate; I’m fairly confident with my Ismaili practices. In fact, I even teach a religious education course at my mosque (called Jamat Khana) and I think I’m a pretty raw teacher. But it’s time for me to be the student and reevaluate my foundation, so that when I am being judged in the eyes of Allah, I can tell Him that I gave it an honest attempt. Game on, Mozaffar.