Ijtihad Network Being Wise and Faithful Muslim in the Contemporary World
In 1972, when questions for the first volume of “Your Questions Answered” were being edited, it was found that Mr. Dhikiri Omari Mohamed Kiondo’s correspondence with the Mission could form a separate volume of its own. The result was this Second volume in the series, “Your Questions Answered”, which was edited at that time, though its publication was delayed.
Mr. Dhikiri Kiondo was born in 1946, at Kwemiinu village (District Lushoto, Tanga Region, Tanzania). His grandfather was the traditional Chief of the Wakilindi clan of the Wasambaa tribe. His father was a farmer and a staunch Muslim of Sunni faith. He did not like to send his only son to any school as he was afraid that his son would be converted to Christianity (as was common in those days). As a result he started his education late. He was enrolled in a Native Administration School and then was sent to a Qur’anic school, which he left in 1954 owing to bad health; and then his father died and he could not go back to school.
In 1955, he was enrolled in a Mission school and completed his Primary, (1958), Middle (1962) and Secondary (1966) education at various school run by U.M.C.A. One of his subjects was Bible knowledge. He was selected for teachers training course at Butimba T.T College Mwanza (1967-68).
It was from Butimba that he wrote his first letter to us, asking 24 questions which showed that he was an intelligent youth eager to learn the truth about Islam; and also that he was completely in darkness about Shi’ism. I replied to him and the correspondence continued.
In 1969, he was employed as a teacher in Lushoto District, and at the end of that year I invited him to embrace the Shia faith (letter No. 16), which he gladly did (letter No. 19).
We first met in August, 1970, when I went to see him at National Service camp at Oljoro. Third day he came to Arusha where he was introduced to Haji Ali Mohamed Jaffer Sheriff and Haji Ahmad Hussein Sheriff. He refers to this meeting in letter No. 26.
In August, 1973, he was sent by the Mission to Iran to study under the patronage of ‘A Group of Muslim Brothers, Tehran, from where he returned in September, 1974. In February, 1975, he resigned his teaching post to become the Administrative Secretary of this Mission.
He is married (2 wives) with 5 children.
The Mission hopes that this booklet will be received as enthusiastically as the first volume was. The reader will be interested to note the gradual development of Mr. Dhikiri’s questions demonstrating how he came nearer to us and found the true happiness and peace of mind that he began searching for when he first wrote to us.
While replying. I always copied his questions in my letters; therefore, those questions have been omitted from his letters.
Bibliographic Information
Title: Your Questions Answered Vol. II
Author: Sayyid Saeed Akhtar Rizvi
Publisher: Bilal Muslim Mission of Tanzania
Language: English
Length: 59
ISBN: 978-1494398446
Pub. Date: 2014/04/23
