For almost 81 years, Pondani Thamanga lived as a Christian in his village. Like many people around him, he had heard different rumors about Muslims and Islam throughout his life. Because of this, he never tried to learn about Islam for himself and believed what others said about Muslims without searching for the truth.
One day, a dawah team from iERA visited his village to do door-to-door dawah. As they were moving around the village, they found Pondani sitting outside feeling the warmth of the sun. They greeted him kindly and told him, “We have come to your village to do dawah.” Curious, Pondani asked, “What is dawah?” One of the outreach brothers replied, “Dawah means calling people to Allah, which means God in English.” Pondani smiled and asked, “So you are Muslims?” They answered, “Yes.” The team then invited him to attend their Islamic classes, explaining that everyone from different backgrounds was welcome.
Pondani accepted the invitation and started attending the classes the next day. As he listened to the teachings of Islam, he became deeply interested. He was surprised to learn that Muslims also believe in Jesus Christ and honor him as a prophet of Allah. The classes opened his heart and mind because, for the first time in his life, he was learning about Islam directly instead of relying on rumors and misunderstandings. What started as simple curiosity soon became love and respect for the religion.
Despite being 81 years old, Pondani made the brave decision to accept Islam and took his Shahadah. Some people in the village spoke badly about him and said he was too old to change his religion. But Pondani did not argue with them or respond with anger. Instead, he stayed quiet, focused on himself, and continued learning and practicing his new faith.
