Habibullo-Eugene Kiselev
A Synopsis of my Life
January 29th, 2019, Tuesday, 10:14:00 p.m.
Yekaterinburg, Russia. GMT 05:00
I have spent almost the whole day in the mosque named “Noor Osman”. When I entered the yard of the mosque, I met Muћamad Xazrat Abasov, the imām of the mosque. We had a word; Muћamad Xazrat told me he was going to Uralmash. (Note: Uralmash is a name of a subdivision of the Ordzhonikidzevsky District of Yekaterinburg.) When I entered the mosque, I saw a man sleeping on the floor. I did not recognize him. When he got up I saw this was Şahban Kuramagomedov, my good acquaintance, who is currently pursuing a Master’s Degree in Muslim theology at the Ural State Mining University. I was happy to see him.
After the ṣalāt al-ʿaṣr I met Yahyā Mumtaz (Urdu: يحيى ممتاز ) from the city of Haripur in Pakistan. He studies Russian at the Ural Federal University. He studies at the campus which is situated in Chapaeva Street, not far from “Noor Osman”. By the way, it was Xәđrәttәre Ajnur from the mosque named “Ramadan”, who gave me the phone number of Yahyā, having introduced him to me in absentia. We got in touch over the phone several times, today we have at last met personally. Right before coming, Yahyā sent me an SMS-message that said, “I will finish my class in sha Allah and I will come to the mosque. It’s my last class; I am in UrFU Chapaeva, very near to the mosque. Hope to see in masjid in sha Allah.” I gave Yahyā “A White Raven” as a present having signed it for him. We talked a little bit, after that Yahyā left having told me his classes were over.
I decided to stay. I participated in the ṣalāt al-maġrib; I also took part in the ṣalāt al-ʿišāʾ. In the meantime, Muћamad Xazrat returned from Uralmash. In between the ṣalawāt, I enjoyed friendly communication with Adham and Omar, my good acquaintances, the staff members of this mosque. Adham told me his story, that he can only make money by cooking ḥalāl pilaf every Friday and selling it to people for one hundred Russian rubles per helping. He also told me that “Noor Osman” was his home too. “You are a happy man” – I said to support him. By the way, these were not just words. “Of course I am. Not everyone is granted this” – Adham replied. He also told me he had recently turned forty-four, I congratulated him. Adham wishes to find a job as a night watchman, because he has to stay in the mosque in the morning and in the afternoon.
Omar asked me about my ethnical background. When I told him I was of a Polish, Mordvinian and Russian descent, he told this was “a collection of healthy herbs” to mean my polyethnicity. I really liked this comparison to be honest.
When the ṣalāt al-ʿišāʾ was finished, I said “goodbye” to Muћamad Xazrat and to Adham and went home.
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