German Pop Singer Discovers Islam

"I found my destination in tolerant and peaceful Islam and was born again," said Kandemir.

By Ahmed Al-Matboli, IOL Correspondent BERLIN, 17 October 2005

Key excerpts of her conversion
Famed German pop singer Hülya Kandemir released a book, which is a personal reflection on how Islam fulfilled her spiritually.

"I found my destination in tolerant and peaceful Islam and was born again despite the recent wave of hatred and animosity towards the Muslim faith across Europe," Turkish-born Kandemir told the Web site of the Supreme Council of Muslims in Germany in an interview.

"All divine religions are invoking virtue, but what I liked most about Islam is that it strongly calls for struggling against the self and damping down evil and corporeal desires."

When Kandemir started praying, she felt an overwhelming joy."Words are unable to express how I felt when I start praying. I became preoccupied with one and only thing: how to get closer to God and utterly left behind my past life as a pop singer. I stressed in my book that there was no compulsion in religion as stated by the Noble Qur'an as people are free to choose," she said.

She also highlighted the characteristics of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and how he should be taken as a role model for all Muslims. "I described how merciful the prophet was with the orphans, women and children."

Did you know:
- There are some 3.4 million Muslims in Germany
- Two thirds of the Muslims are of Turkish origin.
- Islam comes third in Germany after Protestant and Catholic Christianity.

Read the details here.