My journey to Egypt was the first time I had ever set foot in an Islamic country, and because I had recently become a Muslim, I went there with a mixture of excitement and trepidation.

Would it live up to my expectations or was I in for a horrible let-down? Arabs are famous for their generosity and hospitality, but I’d also been told scare-stories of tourists who’d been duped into being parted with their money. I travelled with two brothers: one Malaysian and one Filipino.

The Revival's Humayra Sadiq had the opportunity to talk exclusively to Sami Yusuf about his latest single: ‘You Came to Me.’ Here he tells us about his albums, his charity work and his plans for the future.

Br Sami, Jazakallah for agreeing to take the time out to do the interview with the Revival Magazine.

My pleasure, no problem at all!

You have had a lot of success in the past few years. What inspired you to go down the line of music? Was it something you’ve always wanted to do?

Well, yes I mean everyone – at some point - kind of searches deep inside their souls to find out they have one, or perhaps few, multiple talents that they think they can use and utilise to contribute in their field. For me that ‘one’ talent was music.

By Irfan Jalil

This is an online exclusive article added to the website for Issue 14.

From the death of Jesus and World War I to the death of Tupac and 9/11, Jews get the blame for anything that goes wrong and everything that is bad. It's as if they control the world and whatever they say goes. All perfectly plausible you might think. But this idea that a group of people secretly plot major events and manipulate political happenings from behind the scenes is called a conspiracy theory.

There are many words we read and hear but aren’t too sure what they mean. So The Revival attempts to define some Islamic terms used in this issue...

Alim/Alimah – a man/woman of knowledge, a scholar, especially in the sciences of Islam.

Fiqh – the science of the application of the Sharia. A practitioner or expert in Fiqh is called a Faqih.

Fard al-'ayn - an individual obligation.

Fard al-kifaya - a collective obligation, something which is obligatory for the community as a whole and is satisfied if one adult performs it.

Ghiba – backbiting, slander, mentioning anything about a person that they would dislike to hear, even if it is true.

Select messages received by the Editor

Salaam Alaykum

I hope that you are well, Inshallah. I just wanted to congratulate you on your magazine. I love your mag. I cannot put it down. Alhamdullilah, I have benefited a lot from it. I have managed to get hold of the Sep/Oct edition and I love it. I love the previous issue too when you interviewed 786, they are my favourite nasheed artists so I loved the interview.

Hope you make more magazines. My dua's are with you.

Saima Arshad
Bradford

Hi there,

By Oldham Community Health Services

“Trance” is the name given to any state of mind in which a person has a narrow focus of attention. Typically, in the trance state, the subject is very relaxed, has a quiet mind and is aware of what is going on. In the state of trance (altered state of conscious awareness), the subject is provided with powerful hypnotic suggestions which act as a healing therapy for the individual. Contrary to common belief, there is nothing stopping the person from being able to reject any suggestion or awaken at any time -- unless the subject believes otherwise.

By Irfan Jalil

Islamic finance is a system of monetary trade based on the Islamic principles and jurisprudence. It seeks to create wealth based on partnership and fairness with risks and profits being shared.

Islamic finance, believe it or not, is worth £250bn worldwide. So, clearly, there's a buck to be made. And it's not just about mortgages – multi-million pound global businesses based in Muslim countries increasingly want to base their trade on Islamic principles. Recently, two Kuwaiti companies bought Aston Martin using Sharia-compliant finance.

By Oldham Community Health Services

The Hookah also known as Shisha has been used to smoke tobacco for about 400 years. It has various other names, one being a water pipe.

It exists in a variety of sizes, shapes and designs. The tobacco used can have one of many different flavours. It is burned using glowing charcoal. The smoke produced is passed though water before being inhaled using a mouthpiece attached to a flexible tube.

Many users believe that smoking tobacco in this way is less harmful than using cigarettes.

This isn’t true.

Using a Hookah/Shisha often happens in a group. Everyone shares the same mouthpiece. This can lead to the spread of diseases such as tuberculosis (TB), herpes, hepatitis and other viruses.