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The Greatest
by Akbar Faruq

“God is Great! God is Great! God is Great! God is Great!
I bear witness that there is no god except the One God.
I bear witness that there is no god except the One God.
I bear witness that Muhammad is the messenger of God.
I bear witness that Muhammad is the messenger of God.
Hurry to the prayer. Hurry to the prayer.
Hurry to salvation. Hurry to salvation.
God is Great! God is Great!
There is no god except the One God.”

- English translation of the Adhan

When I was born, the first thing that I heard was a fifteen-line melodic passage that communicated the beginning of a new life. This passage was the Islamic call to prayer, known as the Adhan, and it is a tradition for Muslim fathers to recite it in the ears of their newborn child after birth. I remember telling my Christian friend about this, and she told me that this is similar to baptism. Also, when attending my friend's Bat Mitzvah, I learned that he had gone through a practice known as Brit Milah. Even though we do not remember these moments, these rituals have shaped our spiritual mind by serving as the seed of our submission to a religion. Billions of people throughout the world, including myself, identify with a religion. They guide us through our livelihoods so that we have a sense of meaning in life. Many parents, including mine, have given their children divine names in order to solidify their religious identity. As a result, adherents of these names need to act with extreme dignity given that they serve as a representative of their faith. But for some people, having a religious name can be a burden.

My name, Akbar, means the biggest, the greatest, or the greater. The religious phrase “Allahu Akbar” in Arabic, translated as “God is the Greatest” in English, gives my name its divine value to many Muslims around the world. We use this phrase in our daily prayers as a way to give remembrance to God. Unfortunately, my name tends to be mentioned in the media when one of “our” people commits an atrocious terrorist attack while shouting this religious expression. Due to this, society has linked my name with terrorism. The negative connotations revolving around my name have been an obstacle for me and other people who share the same name. At times, when I tell people my name, they respond with “What?”, “Really?”, “Like what the terrorists shout?” As a result, people formulate preconceived thoughts about me as a person. But the topic of my name is just a small example of the bigger issue, the fear of Muslims, commonly termed as Islamophobia.

Occasionally, growing up Muslim in America has made me feel like an outcast. This feeling arose in the year 2012. When I was ten years old, I attended my local Memorial Day parade. I felt a deep sense of patriotism and pride to be a part of a diverse and prosperous nation. I shook hands with many veterans, waived the American flag, and was even allowed to stand on a float during the main parade. But a couple of months later, I came home to see on television that my local mosque was the site of an arson attack by a former marine. I was completely distraught after my television displayed videos of the flames burning in the main prayer room. You can see parts of the prayer carpet burning off, revealing the foundation underneath. I was in complete denial that this occurred in my hometown, more specifically my own mosque. How do people who live in the same town as I have a tremendous amount of hatred towards us? The place that serves as a symbol of peace and tranquility for Muslims was a victim of a severe Islamophobic attack. This is the place where I had gone every week for Friday prayers and Sunday school. This is the place where my uncle had his religious ceremony for his wedding. I called this place a second home because I always felt a sense of security when inside of it, but that feeling was taken away from me. The attack on my mosque was completely different from what I had seen during the Memorial Day parade. Every person regardless of their religious or ethnic background was united under one nation. However, both the parade and the mosque arson took place in the same town. This was a clear indication that even though the majority of Americans respect everyone regardless of faith, Islamophobia is still prevalent in the United States.

Following the arson attack, I questioned whether I was accepted in my community, especially my country. The Muslims in my town, including myself, started to disassociate from their Muslim identity due to fears of additional attacks. At my household I was known as “Akbar,” but at school, I told people to call me “Bar”, like the long table where drinks are served. Which was quite ironic given that Muslims do not drink alcohol. When people asked for my religious background I usually did not answer, or I responded with “My family is not religious.” During most of my adolescence, I was ashamed of being a Muslim named Akbar. My Muslim identity slowly faded, and without realizing it, the meaning of my name started to fade away as well. For a while, I felt a sense of security given that I was not labeled as a Muslim, but part of me remained lost.

When I began high school in the year 2016, I started to reconnect with my faith. I told people that I was Muslim, and their perceptions about Muslims changed. I started to change my feelings about Islam because my parents told me that they named me since they wanted me to become the greatest individual that I can be. They wanted me to be an “Akbar” in all aspects of my life. After this realization, I came to a consensus. I told myself that I should show society what a true Muslim is, contrary to what the media portrays us as. I fought the stigmas against Muslims, not through degrading others, but through my actions and personality. I was able to fulfill my parents’ wish because I had reached my greatest potential in all aspects of my life. I wanted people to formulate my identity through my actions, not through negative preconceptions about me. I am a proud Muslim American who aspires to become a doctor. Throughout my whole life, I have found medicine intriguing, and helping people has always been a part of me. I also take sports very seriously, especially football, mainly because I played it in high school. In addition to that, I take the gym life very sincerely. I will spend hours every day working out, pumping iron, and indulging in supplements. I was able to find common ground with many people given my hobbies and interests. Instead of allowing the media to define who I am supposed to be, I effectively portrayed my personality which defined my true identity.

Now, as a nineteen-year-old, I have continuously pondered what exactly makes up my identity. I am someone who loves his family and community. Someone who wants to help others as a potential future profession. All these qualities are attributed to someone who is considered to be a great individual, or an “Akbar”. And more importantly, these are the qualities of a true Muslim. Someone caring, open-minded, resilient, optimistic, and more importantly, proud of being who they are. The Prophet Muhammad said, “The best way to defend Islam, is to practice Islam.” And one of the main practices of a Muslim is to tell people you are Muslim, not hide away from it. After this realization, I am proud to identify with the religion of Islam, and I will continue to show people what a true Muslim is.